Hey Safe & Sound lovers, just for fun I made a playlist, please enjoy and look for the update soon! Spotify | Youtube
Just an Office lover writing fanfics under a penname that's a Park & Rec reference.
"You've been around forever!"Kinda, I was absolutely obsessed with the show during the Season 3 of Angst (aka when it was looking like they'd drag out the will-they-won't-they indefinitely and only fanfic could fill the void!) and joined up, submitting my decent fanfics and being incredibly intimidated by the fantastic writers this fandom attracted.
After S4 I pretty much fell off the fanfic and fandom map, but Netflix helped me rekindle my JAM feeling something fierce a few summers ago and I thought hey better check on MTT. And here we are!
"Are you ever going to finish Anywhere But Here?"
I am! I have it plotted out and I'm chipping away at it, along with my other WIPs, and once I finish them up I will NOT have like 5 WIPs at once again >.<
I also have most of my office stuff archived at FFN and AO3
Please don't hesitate to review no matter the age of my fics!
Look at this idiotic fool that you made me
You taught me a secret language I can't speak with anyone else
And you know damn well
For you I would ruin myself
...a million little times
Song fic based off of illicit affairs by Taylor Swift
1 Yay, our first folklore-inspired fic and very worthy of the title! I like the threading of the song lyrics through the fic, though I admit like warrior I was a little worried someone would come around the corner when Pam finally worked up the courage to knock XD I like the ending, I appreciate it was a few months after casino night so Pam has fully struck out on her own and had some time to process everything, but of course also appreciate this cuts most of the season 3 angst out.
It takes a few endings to get to a beginning. Season 3, but make it exile.
(When I was talking about folklore inspiring fics I didn’t mean me, whoops...)
1 Oh wow where do I begin?? Everyone’s POV is so spot on, and you really beautifully fill in some of the gaps left in canon. Like (and this is a small thing but) I never considered maybe Jim went upstairs on casino night to clean out his desk only to find Pam there, it makes a lot of sense and might be my new headcanon now.
I don’t often have much sympathy for Roy but ugh you made me feel a bit for the jerk here XD. He doesn’t really see Pam anymore but it’s not out of anything malicious, she’s just always been there and he has come to depend on that. Again, this may become my headcanon of how their breakup went, him being more stunned than anything and really honestly not seeing anything was wrong.
Oh Karen, so many warning signs but suddenly she can’t read. But really, I love how you have Karen convincing herself that Jim not breaking it off after Pam’s speech means Karen has won and she and Jim are gonna make it, because haven’t we all been there? Rationalizing things and convincing ourselves “oh them doing this actually means they love me”? “She can drive her own getaway car”, you know this means we now need Karen/Getaway Car songfic. You know this, right?
The yogurt lid!!! First off I love how Pam just assumes Jim left the lid on purpose and is hurt by all that implies, again this helps fill the gap of why Pam didn’t call Jim after she broke it off, she was so sure he didn’t want anything to do with her. Then it turns out Jim didn’t purposely leave it at all, thought it was lost. This was kind of the crux of their whole issue in S3, making assumptions about what the other was thinking and intending and not communicating because of it. Like everyone else has said the yogurt lid is a poker chip metaphor is so perfect.
In short, great fic! Thank you Jenna (and thank you TSwift!)
Author's Response:
NLM, this is such a lovely review. Thank you so much!
I always thought it was interesting that after striking out so heartbreakingly that Jim would seek Pam out again. I feel like it’s not completely implausible their second go around at Jim’s desk was somewhat accidental...
Stunned is exactly how I picture Roy. I doubt he saw it coming at all. I think that’s why he worked so hard to try and win Pam back in S3.
Haha, this basically was my Karen/Getaway Car fic. It’s more of an Easter egg sure, but let’s just go with it...
Thank you TSwift is right! I haven’t felt inspired to write in weeks. Now all I can see is JAM in every lyric.
S3 angst + folklore.
1 Let me be the first to welcome to MTT! I love that you came out of fanfic retirement for our little fandom and even brought some TSwift. This song immediately made me think Season 9 Pam but now you’ve convinced me it fits S3 better (or at least as well. Love how you fill the gaps of canon, every bit I can easily imagine actually happening. And that last segment packs a great emotional punch. I really hope to see more from you!
Author's Response:
Ah, thank you so much! I love your stories; this is quite the honor for my first review.
I think I chose S3 because I am a masochist obsessed with massive angst. But now we need to see the S9 Pam fic! *hint*
She leaves Phyllis’ wedding reception with Roy and unbeknownst to her the last remnants of her friendship with Jim up and follow them out the door.
Yes, it’s another Season 3 fix-it... don’t judge me...
1 I think the moment I disliked Jim the most in canon was when he blew off Pam in the break room after Roy attacked him and gave her that condescending “oh I’m sure you’ll get back together someday” and you took that Jim and turned him up to 11. So I was very frustrated with him in the first 2 chapterS which I’m sure was your intent so good job! But having the almost-but-not-really kidnapping knock some sense into Jim and help them get over themselves was great! Good work with the steamy bits, I feel like all us writers are getting a little more comfortable with ourselves XD Please feel free to write all the S3 fix-its you want!
Author's Response: That’s exactly the Jim I was going for - that moment in the break room was totally my inspiration for Jim being a tool. It helps that this is just about the nicest community ever to get me over that edge into posting smut... Thanks so much, NLM!
In which Jim and Pam find their unicorn...and then find another.1 If you’re driving to hell then I’ll call shotgun! I’m honored to have helped bring this fic about XD And what a start! Like Coley said, you’ve set it up a plausible scenario and I am totally with it. I can easily imagine Danny and Jim sitting around BSing and both being effortlessly charming and can also imagine Pam just getting drunk and increasingly turned on (who wouldn’t with those two). Beardy Jim is just the cherry on top ;-) I will need part two ASAP as possible, I can’t wait!
Author's Response: We should all be thanking YOU since without you bringing it up in the first place this wouldn’t exist! I am glad that it didn’t disappoint!
172 
7 authors. 21 songs. The most shameless smut this site has ever seen.
Well I thought for sure I’d get around to reviewing this before TS dropped another album but I thought wrong! XD
Anyway, Great way to start things off! Already loving the little subtle weave ins of the lyrics. That passage where Jim goes back and forth wanting Pam to be happy but kind of hoping she’s miserable is so good (haven’t we all had that dilemma??). “Even her hair seemed happier” - I thought this line was so cute. Loved the NEVER CALL THIS NUMBER bit, Jim would totally be unable to delete Pam’s number and I could see him changing the name instead. The phone call was great and something I can imagine easily. And while they definitely needed to talk through some things, Jim coming over leading almost immediately to kissing and then to bed is also something I can imagine. The steam? Good stuff. Love it!
I’ll try to be coherent in this review. I just adore everything about this concept, that Pam’s “homemade sexy sweater” (as Angela Kinsey would call it) ended up tossed in the corner and almost forgotten.
“Maybe Peter and Wendy, except he’s the one that grew up and left” Such a perfect way to include that lyric.
I love a good “addressing our past angst” conversation between Jim and Pam. Then Jim asking Pam to wear the cardigan for him was so sweet, and then she undresses before putting it on and (Andy voice) TUNA!!! DAYUM!! *incoherent noises for 5 minutes* And then that last line, amazing. Gray cardigan redemption!
This is my favorite track so I went into this with unreasonably high expectations but of course you exceeded them. Your reign as the queen of writing Karen continues, you always manage to make her so bold and cool and flawed and real. Jim and Karen being friends with benefits makes so much sense I’m now surprised I don’t see it more in fic (and the mention of Karen and Wallace made me simultaneously say “Oh honey no” and “Get it girl” XD). You took me back (waaay back) to the chaos of college house parties with such amazing vivid writing, not to mention everyone’s “role” at the party being so flawlessly cast. The 7 or rather 14 minutes in heaven, guh, so hot and intimate and yet heartbreaking. Like other reviews have said, when it’s revealed this is hardly Pam and Jim’s first time having sex its such a good little twist, suddenly all my assumtions of their backstory was out the window and I needed to go back to reread and reconsider the dynamic. I’m afraid you’d be ashamed of me for how late in the story I picked up on the Normal People vibes XD. And like NP you left it with that ambiguous ending where you want to believe they’re going to work it out but the nagging feeling they just never will. It hurts, I love it T_T
You should have seen me when I was like “Marcie, whose Marcie?” And then I realized, oh that sneaky Isabel!
The friendship between Isabel and Pam is great stuff (and what Pam deserved way more of on the show). “She doesn’t have time to murder Isabel, because Jim is all of three feet away from her.” I love this line XD
Small thing but you always do such a good job of portraying Roy as not a horrible person but just the kind guy making no effort that we have a tendency to tolerate too long when we’re young.
A big yes to everything in the bedroom scene, that’s exactly how this conversation would have gone down, and of course the rest of it. I like your line at the start that Pam is a wait and see kind of girl but then she finally breaks out of it and makes things happen.
The childhood flashback is so good (I think we all had that moment happen to us) and the way you tie it in with the present, beautiful.
Well the short version of my review is I love everything about this. Long version: great backstories for the items. Pam's inner dilemma about the shoes was so funny (and later when Jim said keep them on, claiming them as for him instead of that other guy was damn hot). Your Pam and Jim voices, especially Pam are always so fun. Of course the money part of this is muy caliente, but I also laughed at the visual of Jim being like "so we using this tie? Maybe? No?". And of course that sweet ending, with the fun foreshadowing of their eventual wedding. Just great work, Coley.
1 While I’m not one of those fans that thinks Jim’s pranks “terrorized” or even really bullied Dwight (the show needs humor, people!) the snowball always bothered me since it was such a line crossed (I’m honestly not really sure what the writers were doing with Jim in S7, he’s frequently quite out of character). Dwight dishing it back 100x harder was in line for Dwight but still, the whole thing was dark and mean-spirited.
All that said, this is a great fix-it for the iffy choices the show made in this ep. Pam calling Jim out on the snowball is something the actually episode would have benefited greatly from and you write a conversation I can easily imagine, and the voices are all great in the mediation session. The show kinda weirdly portrayed Holly as ineffective HR rep so it’s nice to have her here displaying that she’s quite good at her job. Great work, 3V!
Author's Response:
Many thanks!
Season 7 is one of the weaker ones for me, only redeeming itself with the well-executed conclusion Michael's story. (Also, Threat Level Midnight.) And yeah, the episode just made me squirm because, while it's certainly in-character for Dwight (and his guerrilla warfare tactics and lines are just that galaxy-brain), him not knowing when to stop like Jim does just leaves him traumatized. Like, Dwight deserves the occasional W, but not like this.
I appreciate the compliments on my additions! To me, Holly was never ineffective, per se, she was just in the show for so little that we had no idea how she operated like Toby did. She's kind, personable, respectable, and level-headed, all the qualities of a good HRR... *but* her goofing off with Michael was more fun to write, which I get. And yeah, Pam should have said something then and there... come to think of it, if she did, she probably would have talked Dwight out of it and there wouldn't be a B-plot.
As for the treatment of Jim in S7, to me it's only the middle of the season where he gets weird, especially with that third-grade friend of his showing up at the seminar. Literally why. I think they tried to do more of S6 where it delved into the character's shortcomings and have him learn from them... but the co-manager arc pretty much accomplished that. And while co-manager!Jim is my least favorite Jim, at least it was essential for his character development. I think they ran out of stuff for him to do before Phillip H. Pam's line in "New Guys" rings truer than one might think, it seems.
Thanks for the review!
1 Talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before.
(but for real this is genuinely funny, love it aly!)
She had spent her whole life trying to put it into words.
1 These are all incredible but the recollection of Jim’s booze cruise toast and that line “that I loved you just as much as you loved me” legit made my cry. Amazing work as always.
Author's Response: Thank you SO much NLM! I'm always thrilled to hear that something I've put so much time into is enjoyed and evokes an emotion. Honestly, it makes my day so thank you. :)
1 WW, in short I love this. I’ve read many-a post-Casino Night but you still made it feel new and interesting and fresh. I’m so here for a Jim that is aware what a bomb he dropped on Pam and wants to give her time, as well as a Pam who knows (almost) right away what she wants and goes for it.
And this line, “She's been with Roy so long that he's woven into so many of her life's tapestries and she's not sure how she's possibly going to shred them and remain intact herself.” What a beautiful way to incorporate the song lyric and create an apt metaphor. Looking forward to the next chapter!
1 Coley I think you could put Jim and Pam in any situation and I would buy it. So friends with benefits JAM? Bring it, bring it all! Amazing banter both spoken and over IM, Jim and Pam at their sassiest but still feeling very much like them, the psych-out no spark kiss and then the real kiss. I have a feeling this FWB thing isn’t gonna work out the way they think ;-) Can’t wait for Chap 2!
"There was a definite conflict within him: between the Jim who loved having Pam for a best friend and the Jim who wanted to press her up against the door of his apartment and kiss every single platonic thought out of her brain."
An AU loosely based on the film “When Harry Met Sally.”
1 Alright I've been very bad about reading *anything* lately but with the anniversary of When Harry met Sally's release yesterday I decided I better read this 2021 Fave overall fic winner ;).
Amazing first chapter, I was curious how you'd characterize Jim and Pam since I don't think it's too much of a stretch to imagine Jim cynical like Harry and Pam neurotic like Sally. But you made the right choice just to keep them themselves and honestly this reads like it could've been Jim and Pam's canon meet-cute.
You included so many show details in completely organic, seamless ways I'm sure I didn't catch them all. Jim's corolla, ham and cheese, Roy thinking Jim may be gay (“Well, I had my suspicions. But somewhere around Cleveland when you talked about basketball for twenty minutes I decided against it.” - love this!), "Absolutely I do". And then of course the details from WHMS ("You'll be the only person I know in New York") AND the "only bed" trope aka the best trope right off the bat?? Just great work all around.
I like how you've set Jim and Pam up to be fulfilling their canon dreams, Jim interning at Sports Illustrated and Pam working at MoMA, let's see if these dreams turn out to be all they hope for. Again great work, I'm hooked!
Author's Response: Ahhh, you started! I'm so glad you're digging it so far. Excited to follow along with you :) Thanks for the review!
Needs more Altair
Author's Response: ...okay. That's actually going to haunt me.
A story about a boy, a girl, and a word.
1 I’m sorry it took me nearly a year to read this because it’s a delight. You captured their early relationship vibe so well: everything is so fun and exciting and they wanna stay in their little bubble forever but they know they can’t and it causes just a little bit of tension.
I love the story of how they landed on ‘birdcage’ as their safe/code word (and am nostalgic for the days of Netflix by mail and my very finely curated Queue) and I like the idea that Oscar figured it out early on, or rather the first to catch them mackin in the Cugino’s parking lot like a couple high schoolers (this is my headcanon now). Everyone’s voices are great, the situations you get J&P in are fun and feel true to the show and of the course the bits of steam are *chefs kiss*. A fine addition to the ‘summer of ‘07’ collection