Season 6:
”Somewhere Over the Rainbow” (Ray Charles & Johnny Mathis)
Lyrics
Way up high
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullaby
“What are you doing down here?”
Distracted, Pam dragged her gaze from the laptop screen to her fianc who was nipping at her shoulder.
She hunched up. “Jim…stop! That tickles!” She laughed when he started to playfully gnaw at her instead.
“Why aren’t you in bed with me? Is Baby giving you trouble?”
Pulling his head down for a quick kiss, Pam pointed to the screen. “I couldn’t sleep so I decided to work on our wedding site. That way, people don’t need to bug us when they need info about our wedding.”
Arms enveloping her waist and one hand settling directly on the growing swell of their unborn child, Jim started to click on the tabs to observe his wife-to-be’s progress. When he clicked on the last tab, he turned to her. “Wow! Pam…this is amazing! Just…wow!”
“It wasn’t that difficult.” Pam said while feeling ridiculously proud at how impressed Jim was with her little project.
Shaking his head, Jim took a last look at their wedding site and focused his attention on her. “Well, this is just brilliant no matter how easy it is for you. C’mon, let’s go back to bed.”
“Wait! Let me finish writing a mini bio about us and then I’ll go up.” She paused. “Actually, why don’t you do it?”
Pretending to heave a long-suffering sigh, Jim pulled Pam up from the chair. “If I have to. Can I just do the gift registry section? I want to put us down for a Ferrari.”
She grinned at the hopeful expression on his face. “I hate to break this to you but it’s not gonna happen.”
“You’re no fun.” Then he sat down at the chair vacated by Pam, pulled her onto his lap and began typing. Pam read when he was done and turned to bury her face in his neck, whispering, “I love you.”
In the ‘About Us” section, he wrote just one sentence: Jim Halpert is the luckiest man in the world.
And wake up where the clouds are far
Behind me
“Why not, Pam?” Jim teasingly asked Pam once again.
“Because.”
The sky was overcast as they drove to Niagara. And even knowing that soon their relatives (not to mention the whole office) would be descending on them didn’t put a damper on their moods. They were getting married.
“Because what? Remind me once again why we have two separate hotel rooms? You know I have a hard time sleeping without you next to me.”
Pam finally took her gaze from the scenery passing outside their car. “Because I want you to be surprised when I walk down the aisle!”
They shared a quick glance as Jim brought their entwined hands up to his lips. “Well, then come out with me after the party. No one has to know. Plus, what’s the worst that could happen? I already got you pregnant.”
She laughed and poked him in the arm. “Don’t Tom and Pete have some kind of plans for you? I heard some rumors about them trying to get you drunk. Which, by the way, better not happen before our big day.”
“That’s why you need to keep me company.” Jim exclaimed. “Why would I want to spend time with them when I could be hanging out with my wife? We can paint the town red. Or whatever crazy kids do nowadays.”
“Oh, you mean like getting pregnant before getting married? Also, I’m not your wife yet.”
Feigning an innocent expression, Jim said, “You’re right. Those things you do to me in bed are definitely not wife-like.”
When she burst out laughing again, Jim smiled to himself and waited for her retort. He didn’t have to wait long.
And so it went for the rest of the drive. The talking, teasing, bantering, and the occasional kissing. And when they entered the vicinity of Niagara, there was a momentary silence as they both took a mental picture.
They were here.
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me
“Jim, where are we going?” Pam asked as Jim shuffled her into their car.
He seemed both elated and nervous at the same time when he answered. “You’ll see. Just…trust me, okay?”
She looked at his half tie and beamed at him as she threw her torn veil into the back seat. “Always.”
Both let out a laugh they didn’t realize they needed as Jim hightailed them away from the church and from their crazy friends and families.
Pam finally got a clue where they were going when she heard the roaring sounds of water. Her suspicion was confirmed when they passed the sign that pointed to Niagara Falls. “We’re going to the Falls?”
Jim nodded, “Yep.” But he didn’t add anything else until they reached the parking lot and he helped her out of the car.
When Pam stopped and pulled him back to her, wanting to remind him that they were still in their wedding attire, he just took both her hands in his. “When we decided to get married here, I got two tickets for a tour to see the Falls.” He paused and looked uncertainly into her eyes. “And if we ask the captain of the ship, he will marry us.”
Whatever Pam was expecting, it was not this. But then again, when it came to this amazing man, nothing was expected. Not when he first confessed his love, not when he asked her out on their first real date, not when he proposed. Not the house that they were making their home and then…their baby. And she didn’t realize tears were rolling down her cheeks until his thumbs started to wipe them away.
“Pam? We can go back to the church now and…” Jim stopped mid-sentence when she hugged him close and shook her head.
“No…no! I want to marry you here.” She kissed him on the lips. “I’ll marry you anywhere! As long as it’s you.” And then, no more words were needed.
As the cool mist enveloped them and strangers watched on, Jim and Pam repeated the vows and placed the rings on each other’s fingers, both ignoring the slight tremor of the other’s hands. When the captain of The Maid of the Mist pronounced them man and wife and the onlookers cheered at the impromptu wedding, they only had eyes for each other.
Man and wife. Mr. and Mrs. Halpert. Jim and Pam. Best friends. Lovers. Soul mates.
Forever.
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true
25 years later:
“Pam?” Jim called out, wondering where his wife was.
“In here.” Her voice came from her newly renovated art studio (former garage turned art studio turned storage for their kids’ stuff turned garage for their children’s cars turned back to art studio).
When Jim entered, he saw that his wife was in full painter mode. The easel was up with a canvas half done. Paints were on the ground, on her clothes (even with the painting apron), her hands and some even made it onto her face. Instead of the barren walls that used to be here when he first set up her studio, one wall was now shelves filled with various artists’ tools. On the other two walls hung various pieces that she worked on and experimented with. The place looked well-used. Cheerful.
She automatically tipped her head up for his kiss. It was the way they’ve been greeting each other for the last twenty plus years. “Lauren and Liz just called.” Jim said about their daughters. “They’ll be home early for winter break.”
“Oh. I wonder why they needed to call instead of just coming home?”
Jim just shrugged. “Who knows? Our kids are weird like their mother, I guess.” He grinned and evaded her easily when she jabbed the paintbrush at him.
“What about Nick?” Pam asked, referring to their youngest child and only son.
“I think he might be coming home a bit after his sisters.”
Pam was about to say something when she noticed her husband looking intently at her painting. “What?”
He shook his head. “Nothing. Just…you’re painting our house.”
“Yeah. Do you like it?” They both stared at the colors and swirls and lines that made up their home. Changes were made from when they first bought the house. The front door was finally fixed. They added rooms to the house, expanded the kitchen. But the scary clown picture was still there.
“I do. But I remembered you used to have these drawings of houses with some kind of balconies, right?”
It no longer surprised Pam that her husband remembered these little details. “Terraces. A house with a terrace.”
Of course Jim remembered when her grandest dream was a house with a terrace. And now, even though she didn’t have her terrace (just a half-finished patio that Jim promised to get to soon), she had more than she could ever dream of.
Turning to her husband, she said. “You know, that sofa looks very comfortable now, doesn’t it?” Then she squealed when Jim whipped off her apron and walked her backward until she fell onto the sofa with him.
Life was sweet. She was living her dream.
