Once upon a time, in the land of Scranton, there was a receptionist named Pam.

Pam worked in a dull, gray office, where she answered the phone, sent and received faxes, and generally tried to forget that her life was phones and faxes.

In this same office, there worked a salesman named Jim. Jim's days were also filled with phone calls. He sold paper. And he was good at it. In fact, Jim could sell paper in his sleep. He was bored a lot.

Jim soon discovered that Pam was often bored, too. So they put their heads together and came up with ways to pass the time. This usually involved playing pranks on a salesman named -

"Dwight!"

"See? You already know this story."

"No, no, I forget the rest. Keep going."

"Please..."

"Please?"

"Okay. Where was I?"

"Pranks on Dwayne."

"Nice try."

Pranks on Dwight. This was a lot of fun because pranks made Dwight angry, and when Dwight was angry, he would make funny faces and shout and stomp around.  This helped Jim and Pam forget how boring their jobs were, so they tried to prank Dwight at least once a week.

While they schemed, Jim began to notice things about Pam. Some were big things, like how smart she was, or that she could draw well. And some were little things, like how she always licked her yogurt lid, or that she hummed when she thought no one was listening.

Also, Pam was very pretty.  It was a sneaky kind of pretty, because she didn't wear fancy clothes or jewelry or makeup, and some people didn't notice it. But Jim did.

Pretty soon, Jim realized he loved Pam.

Of course, this was a problem because Pam had baggage.

"What's baggage?"

"Baggage is what you bring with you."

"Huh?"

"You'll see."

You see, Pam already had a boyfriend. In fact, she was supposed to marry him, but she wasn't sure that was ever going to happen. Sometimes, it seemed like he had forgotten there was supposed to be a wedding. Still, she waited.

In the meantime, she grew closer to Jim. After all, he made her laugh, and he remembered important things (and not-so-important things), and she felt smart and talented and pretty when he was around.

Sometimes, even though she knew it was wrong, Pam took advantage of Jim.

She'd ask him to help her with a computer program, or carry something to her car, or get something for her from a high shelf. And Jim would.

He never pointed out that Pam already knew how to use spreadsheets, or that the box wasn't that heavy, or the shelf that high. He would just do what she asked and smile, and say, simply,

"As you wish."

And each time, Pam wondered if maybe she had the wrong boyfriend.

Then, one night, when Pam was feeling very smart and very pretty, Jim told her how he felt.

"I'm in love with you," he said.

"I can't," she said.

Then Jim walked away, and Pam worried that she had lost her best friend.

But Jim didn't give up.  He found her again a few minutes later, in the office, and when she tried to say something again, he... he, uh...

"What? He what?"

"Oh, nothing."

"Grandpa! What did he do?"

"You don't wanna hear about it. It's... kissing."

"I do! I do!"

"Really?"

"Yes! Please, Grandpa, please, please, please? Please, Grandpa?"

"You want to hear the kissing parts."

"Please, please, please..."

"Oh, boy."

"...please..."

"Alright..."

"Yay!"

"...but don't get any ideas."

"I won't!"

"Right."

Jim found Pam in the office, and she tried to say something to him, but he didn't hear her, and she didn't finish, because he kissed her. Just swooped in and shut her right up.

And that doesn't always work, by the way. But it worked this time, because this was a special kind of kiss, and Jim and Pam were both surprised when Pam kissed him back.

Several minutes later, when they finished kissing, they stood smiling at one another.

Jim said, "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that."

And Pam said, "Me, too."

But when Jim tried to kiss her again, Pam stopped him.

He looked into her eyes, and asked if she was still going to marry her boyfriend.  When she nodded yes, Jim thought his heart might break, but he nodded back, and squeezed her hands before letting them go.

"As you wish."

And for the second time that night, Jim walked away.

*  *  *

Now, Pam had been the only thing holding Jim to Scranton. So when she turned him down,...

"Two times!"

"I know."

"Pam was crazy."

"Shh!"

...Jim decided to seek his fortune in the land of Stamford. He would still be selling paper, but at least he wouldn't have to see Pam marry someone else. On the day of his going-away party, though, he made Pam a promise.

She waited until everyone had gone, then walked him to his car.

"What am I going to do without you?" she asked.

"You're going to marry him and be happy. And answer phones, and send and receive faxes."

"But who'll help me play pranks on Dwight?"

"You'll think of someone."

"They won't be as good as you."

"That's what she said."

She smiled. "I'll miss you, Jim."

And for a moment he was serious. "Listen. I'll always be here for you."

"How can I be sure?"

"Trust me, Pam." Then he smiled again. "Besides, we're BFFs. Do you think this happens every day?"

And that made her smile, so he kissed her quickly on the forehead and got into his car before her smile could fade.

As Jim drove away, Pam wondered if she would ever see him again.

*  *  *

When she came to work the next Monday, she half-expected to see him at his desk.

She didn't.

*  *  *

When she didn't get married after all, she thought she might hear from him.

She didn't.

*  *  *

When she heard he'd been promoted, she thought she might call him.

She didn't.

*  *  *

By the time she got tricked into Michael's awful contest, Pam had decided that Jim was gone for good.