Oh, God, no. Not Ben Franklin-slash-Gordon whoever again.

Pam regretted for yet another time having to relive this work day when Michael and Ryan walked back into the office with the Benjamin Franklin impersonator in tow. She had been helping set up for Phyllis's bridal shower, and doing her best to avoid looking in Jim's direction when she remember the next piece of this horrific day. She pinched herself one more time on the forearm, hoping against hope that this really was a dream. Unfortunately all she ended up with was another red mark on her arm.

She reminded herself that this time she was going to say as little as possible to Mr. Franklin so as not make the same mistake of having him think she was interested in him. She saw Meredith starting to pour the champagne and decided this time she'd be drinking at least two of those.

Pam went through the motions of appearing to pay attention to Ben Franklin's presentation, but her mind was filled with questions about the conversation she'd had earlier with Jim.  He so rarely expressed anger - and even less so at her - that maybe House was right.  Maybe there was still something there.  

All too soon she was helping to clean up, throwing away trash and taking leftover cake back to the kitchen, when she found herself alone with Karen.

“So, I guess you have the Ben Franklin wig and the costume, and you figure 'How can I put this to practical use'?”

“Well, I like to think that his dad was a Ben Franklin impersonator, and he really pressured him into it.”

Karen laughed briefly. “Hey, I wanted to talk to you...I know this is weird or whatever...”

Pam could feel an awkward pause in the room. She knew what was coming next, but she still hadn't decided what to do about it this time. She focused instead on paying attention to not only what Karen was saying, but like House had told her before, what she wasn't saying.

“Um, Jim told me about you guys.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, that you kissed. Um, we talked it through and it's totally fine - it's not a big deal. It's just a kiss.”

Somehow hearing Karen say these things a second time reminded Pam of the scene she watched between Karen and Jim after Packer's performance. Karen practically was pulling information out of Jim; he certainly wasn't offering much in the way of explanations. She thought about what he said in the break room about being staying up late because he'd been talking to Karen. Pam had the sudden suspicion that the talks went on a long time not because he was the one doing all the talking.

She looked up and saw that Karen was watching her carefully. A bit too carefully, it seemed to Pam – given how casually was trying to act. This brought a single revelation to the forefront: It was a big deal. It was a very big deal, and that's why Karen brought it up.

“Wait – you're not still interested in him?”

Why hadn't Pam heard the near-panic in Karen's voice the first time she said that? She could practically hear House in her head, telling her it was because she was too busy hiding to pay attention to what had been really going on.

Pam trusted her instinct as she replied to Karen's question. “My relationship with Jim is complicated,” she said, calmly looking Karen in the eye. “It's probably best we leave it at that.”

Karen looked as if she'd been slapped. “What do you mean?”

Pam reached for a paper towel and dried her hands. “Just what I said,” she said quietly. “I don't like to talk about my personal life at work.” She turned and walked out of the kitchen before Karen could say another word.

Pam wasn't surprised in the least to see House leaning against at the reception desk, waiting for her. Since everyone was either still downstairs or in the conference room, she didn't worry if she looked like a nut talking to someone no one else could even see.

“You look awfully pleased with yourself,” he observed.

“I'm okay,” Pam replied, with a slight smile.

“Okay?” House repeated. “Wow, that's like an outstanding for anybody else. What happened?”

Pam smirked. “Oh, please. Don't tell me you didn't have a front row seat for the whole thing.”

“Yeah, but this is like the post-game highlights show. I want to what was going on in that head of yours, what your strategy is for the next match.”

“There's not going to be a next match.”

“Why not?”

“I figured something out.”

“Really? This ought to be good. How did you manage that?”

“I listened to what she was saying.”

“Get out.”

Pam couldn't help laughing. “I did!”

“By Jones, the girl can be taught.” He leaned further over the reception counter. “So did you tell her in no uncertain terms you didn't appreciate her going out with your boyfriend?”

“You know I didn't.”

“Why not? You could have totally rocked her world.”

Pam shrugged.

“So why didn't you let her have it? You know it was hardly 'just a kiss'. I mean, personally I think she had it coming. She's kind of a bitch, don't you think?”


Pam ignored his comment. “I said what I needed to.”

“Yeah, but you could have really set her straight.”

“I didn't need to.”

“Why not?”

Pam examined her nails for a moment, then looked House in the eye. “She's not the problem.”

For the second time since she'd met him, House very nearly smiled. He nodded almost imperceptibly, encouraging her to go on. “Why not?”

She wanted to put it into terms she knew House would understand. “She's a red herring. She's the false positive that's hiding the real cause of the problem.”

“Really, Dr. Beesly,” he replied sarcastically. “Do tell me more.”

“One of the things you always like to say is that people don't change, right?”

House rubbed his chin and pretended to think for a second. “It's a very astute observation, so yes, I must say that. I think I would say that sort of thing all the time, in fact.”

“You do,” Pam retorted wryly. “So anyway I was thinking about what I knew about Jim's personality – assuming that if he hasn't changed what I knew then is still roughly true now.”

“Fair enough assertion,” he nodded. “Go on.”

“I also thought about what I've learned about Karen's personality since she's been here.”

“And?”

“When she said they'd discussed our kiss and that it meant nothing, I just knew she was lying.”

“I already told you she lies,” House rolled his eyes comically.

“No, I finally knew it. And I knew she saw me as a threat.” Pam paused, biting her lip. “And why would I be a threat if he longer still cared about me?”

House's eyebrows raised. “If people don't change....”

“Right. I mean,” Pam faltered, “I'm not saying he would have to still care, but it's just --”

“Don't second guess yourself,” House scolded. “You might just be on to something here.”

“Maybe,” she said softly.

“So what's next?” House asked, tapping the counter in much the same way Jim used to.

Before Pam could reply the men of the office came bounding back in from their barbeque in the warehouse, and House had disappeared. She noticed that as soon as Jim appeared, Karen was at his side speaking in hushed tones.

Pam thought that whatever came next was already being put in motion.