I don't own Jim, Karen, or the Office!!! I just like to take them out and play every now and then :)

She could never find the right person to get close to. Men struck fear in her heart. A few months ago, going home meant walking into situations that twisted her stomach into such tight knots her abdomen would ache so bad she couldn’t sleep. But why sleep? Why sleep when as soon as your eyelids slipped shut you were jolted awake by intense nightmares that left your body trembling with suppressed sobs. Somehow she was able to keep her composure at work. Even as her ribs burned with every breath she took. Even though her belly was decorated with bruises and dread about the end of the day lying constantly on her mind.

The guy with the wayward smile and messily parted hair came into her life two days after she said no more. Vowed not to shed anymore tears. She wanted to permit time for her cuts to heal. The ones skewed into her side and the ones that were forever etched into the slate of who she was as a person. His name was Jim. Just another guy. With hands capable to love. But equally as capable to hurt and draw blood. Just another guy. There were days when she didn’t feel so optimistic on the outcome of her life. The day she met Jim was one of them. She was still vulnerable and hurt. Everything was making her jump. What if he came looking for her?

“Hi…I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Jim.”

Her head snapped up at the disturbance. He looked awkward, swaying a little on the balls of his feet. He held a small briefcase underneath his arm, his blue tie perfectly straight around his neck, standing out against his white button up. His free hand extended towards her. She took it gently.

“Karen.”

<><><><><><> 

There was a certain intensity about her Jim had trouble ignoring. He saw a flicker of something he couldn’t quite put his finger on shine behind her eyes. Her hands were always busy. Typing steadily behind him. Fidgeting nervously with the hems of her sweaters. She was always fretting with those sweaters. Barely 3 days after they had met he was left puzzled by her.

One day they ended up in the kitchen at the same time. Jim reached out for the handle of the coffee pot just as Karen had took hold of it. Her hand snapped away quickly as if the pot had become extremely hot.

“Sorry,” Jim apologized awkwardly. “Go ahead.”

“No…its fine,” Karen said softly, shaking her head and self consciously pulling the sleeves of her sweater farther over her sore arms. He poured the coffee clumsily, a majority of it ending up on the counter. She smirked as his head fell back and a sigh escaped his lips.

“One of those days huh?”

“Yeah,” Jim smiled. “One of those days.”

One of those days where all he could think about was how much he missed Pam and how lonely life was becoming without the bright-eyed receptionist.

“Me too,” Karen patted his arm in condolence. “One of those days.”

One of those days where all she kept envisioning was her ex-boyfriend barging through the door of their office in a rage. Him taking a handful of hair from her low ponytail and screaming about how much of mistake leaving him had been. She feared he’d come back and kill her.

“Are you on break?” he asked, taking a slow sip from his cup.

“For a few more minutes yeah. Why?” Karen lifted an eyebrow curiously. She crossed her arms over her chest but regretted it as soon as her sore muscles began searing in protest. She let them fall gingerly at her sides.

“Would you like to get some air with me?”

The invitation seemed innocent enough.

“I don’t know…,”

"Come on. You’ve been staring out that window all day.” Karen could feel her ears begin to burn a little. Had she been looking out the window all day? She averted her eyes a little, ignoring the empty Styrofoam cup she held in her hand.

“Okay,” she agreed.

It was just air after all. Maybe it would actually do some good.

<><><><><><> 

It was out there on the cold sidewalk where Jim first noticed a bruise. He was watching as Karen tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She failed to remember her sweater sleeve as it slid down just enough to reveal her naked wrist, a dark purple fading into colors of lighter purple and shades of yellow.

“Ow,” Jim half laughed in astonishment as he took Karen’s arm. She quickly tugged away, mortified that he had seen. She tugged so hard on her sleeve her shoulder was exposed for half a second. “What happened?”

“Oh…those stupid desks. You know how close together they are. I just wasn’t paying attention one day and ran into it,” she laughed it off as she’d grown accustom to doing.

Jim stared at her with solemn eyes, nodding his head.

“Klutz,” he teased, pushing her a little. She smiled, lightly pushing him back.

He didn’t believe her for a second.

<><><><><><> 

Over the next few days Karen kept catching herself taking pained glances out the window. She knew she was doing it because every time she did she half expected to see Rich down in the parking lot.

Karen met Rich their senior year of high school. He was the guy all the girls wanted to go out with. Initially Karen had been confused as to why he chose her over all the preppy rich girls that seemed so much more his type. Karen wasn’t anywhere near that. She was the sporty girl, soccer in the fall, tennis in the spring and still with energy left over to play softball in the summer and spend time as a cheerleader during varsity football games. She knew that deep down if it hadn’t been for the cheerleading then he wouldn’t have given her a second glance.

Things had been great at first. Long walks in the park, sweet whispers about how he wanted to get married and have her bear his children. It was like all the things she had ever read about in fairy tales. Things that proved too good to be true.

Karen had been out with her girlfriends one night and had forgotten to call Rich. Just an innocent mistake. Besides, she didn’t have to let him know where she was every second of the day right? The first time he hit her she was too much in shock to do anything but hit him back. She remembered the anger lay so heavy on her chest she thought she was going to pass out. Rich shoved her to the floor and said she was a stupid bitch that didn’t deserve him. She went to school with red marks on her face and the counselor called her parents. She dubbed it an accident that happened during tennis. No one seemed it necessary to question it any further. Rich called her, crying, a few days later, weeping about how out of line he was and begging for her forgiveness. He was the love of her life. There wasn’t any reason not to forgive him.

As time went on Rich became further unattached from Karen and when she caught him kissing another cheerleader behind the stadium one night after a game, she broke up with him. He hadn’t ever touched her after that night where he had thrown her to the ground. Pretty soon Karen erased the incident from her memory all together.

Sometime after her 22nd birthday Rich called her and they talked for hours. He told her how foolish he had been back in school. So they started going out again. High school sweethearts. Life was good. But steadily Rich started to mold back into the terror he had once been. He started hitting her. Sometimes without even any reason. Karen was surprised by his actions but even more surprised by her own. She didn’t do anything about any of it. Soon she became too afraid to speak. Work was her only place of solace. The only place where she could devise plans to get out of the predicament she was in.

She never went through with any of them. She found needles strayed around her apartment. Bags of white powder stashed in the most innocent places. The cookie jar. Weaved underneath shoelaces. That had been it. Karen stood up to him. Screamed her throat raw and cried her eyes dry. Told him that he was ruining her life. He left with no questions. Didn’t even pass a glance her way as he packed up his things and left. It was this that kept Karen stealing glances out the window during the day. It had been too simple.

And she knew he was coming back.