1

So glad the two of them worked that out. Thanks for the story!

Author's Response: Thank you very much for reading and taking the time to review! It's much appreciated - I thought I was never going to get this over the line...

1

Well...I'm always one for awful Ryan because he is indeed awful but holy shit.

Author's Response: So, maybe I overdid it...?   :o)

1

So perfect. Like Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf but the Office.

Author's Response: Apologies for taking so long to reply, and thanks! Glad you liked it.

1

"he got waterboarded by reality." "What he actually looks like? A total flake who is genuinely concerned he might pass out with nervous anticipation." "he feels like a guy who’s just crawled clear of an explosion in a munitions factory on his hands and knees, all stupefied and bedraggled." Your knack for description remains as dynamite as ever.

The banter between them is fun here! They're in that space where they're semi on familiar ground and semi REALLY not, and that comes through clearly. Them both desperately trying not to laugh at a TWSS is classic, and they're very sweet when they get serious.

"which is decorated with a map of Maine and a cheerful lobster tucking into a pan of mussels, which just seems… wrong?" This is... a perfect example of Maine tourist kitsch.

In my head I'm making Jim's Boy Scout troop leader Isabel's new boss, and I won't hear anything otherwise. Also I'm now determined to convince my nephew to get a dentistry merit badge.

"They could actually keep going on like this until the end of time." Which has always been part of their problem, hasn't it?

Have I ever mentioned how much I appreciate your relentless destruction of Ryan? Like the portrayal of him as a guy too incompetent to run an extortion racket is amazing. And so in character.

"and then she’s grabbing his hair and writhing and groaning like her name’s Delicious MacLusty or something." Write THAT fic next.

"Breakup-by-Ryan." Yet another thing he's terrible at! He can do other people's breakups for him but not his own!

Jim's secret delight at Roy being intimidated by him is fun. And I also buy it. Very particular idea of masculinity from Roy that I can easily see him not wanting to puncture by putting it directly up against Jim's.

"Absolutely too early to be thinking about whether she’d prefer a single diamond or a cluster. Or maybe she rather have sapphires… That’ll definitely have to wait until the end of the week. He’s not an obsessive freak." Exactly, Jim. Make her work for it.

The ending line! Fabulous.

Sam, I enjoyed the heck out of this. Your work here is always appreciated and I hope we won't have long to wait before your next project!

Author's Response:

As I've said before (hopefully!), I really appreciate the time and effort you put into your thoughtful revies - it's much appreciated!

I very much enjoyed dismantling Ryan! I can definitely see him as a kind of incompetent plotter who is eaten up with resentment. An embittered, barely useful loser, basically. Anyway, it was fun.

I also enjoyed the idea of Roy being intimidated by Jim, and kind of wish I'd given Jim an opportunity to have some fun with it. Some hard stares, a last minute body-swerve with a wink... Roy becoming increasingly freaked-out... :o)

Thanks! 

1

I'm not sure how you turned me into Kelly, one of the characters I have the least in common with, but I positively SQUEALED when I saw this was updated!

This was a blast from start to finish. Not a dull moment, not a thought or word out of character, funny, smart, cute, nerve-wracking, angst fueled, smutty goodness.

Instantly one of my favorites. Can't wait to see what you write next b

Author's Response: You're being incredibly (too!) kind here, and I really appreciate it. I found this a struggle, so I'm really glad you think it worked, and enjoyed it. Thanks!

1

I’m so happy you’re back and that this is completed!! It’s been such a great little story!
You definitely fixed season 3 for sure and I was not sad about Karen’s apartment getting trashed at all.
I’m so happy the epilogue got these two together, and look at Jim already wanting to get her ring.
But really, this whole chapter was about Delicious MacLusty. Amazing.
Great job with this one, loved it!

Author's Response: Thanks - I'm really glad you've enjoyed it. Hopefully as much as I enjoyed trashing Karen's apartment!

1

Yay new chapter! Samantha is a character I'd love to see again.

As much of a complete and utter fool/tool Ryan is here, he's kind of right, they may want to thank him later. He forced everyone to be honest with themselves and each other by throwing a bomb in the middle of the party.

So many important revelations come out of Pam's ankle injury. Jim learns a bit about how difficult it was for Pam after he left, physically, emotionally and logistically. We get a wonderful glimpse of the changes in Pam's relationship with Dwight and the rest of the office. They had her back when Jim did not.

He was suffering but so was she. It always boggles my mind that he never seemed to consider that.

Way to go FNB! Old Pammy is getting what she wants. Excited for the epilogue but will be sad to see this one end.

Author's Response:

Yes, Ryan is loathsome here, but not necessarily wrong. Still deserved getting his face punched... :0)

 I agree that it's odd that Jim doesn't seem to have realised the trauma Pam would have gone through in the aftermath of her called-off wedding, and his confession and all. And also that Pam didn't give him, at the very least, an in-roads, because it would clearly have been difficult for him to make the first move. But I'm not in charge...  :o)

Thank you so much for reading and reviewing - it's much appreciated! 

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So, starting off, the obvious. Ryan is a 100% complete and utter tool. To try and get Kelly to take care of him because his mommy isn't in town and then to say what he did as he left? Just a complete ass. Loved the way that Samantha just stared him down. The only thing he could do was tuck tail. Good riddance.

We can still feel the tension there as they clean up what they can. The eye of the storm has passed, but there still a lot of waves bouncing them around.

Good onya Jim for not leaving her alone. Superb job with the anger they're both feeling. A lot of angry truths there that needed to be said for sure.

Then Pam hurts her ankle and there's good guy Jim once more. Though we can again feel his anguish when she tells him about how everyone else, not her supposed best friend, helped to take care of her.

Then the rain starts. It feels like a healing kind of rain. The kind of rain that washes away some of the anger and helps to help thing start anew. Also, I love the image of Jim carrying Pam home in the rain. Also also the guilty pleasure of both Roy and Ryan (especially with his face kicked in) sitting the back of patrol cars.

Then the end. THE END! There's Fancy New Beesly finally going for what she wants. Or at least it really feels like it. Bravo!

Author's Response:

Have to say, I didn't feel any guilt about enjoying the end to Roy and Ryan's evening! :o)

Thank you so much for reading, and for your kind review. Glad you're enjoying it. 

1

Obviously another great chapter here. Such a sweet moment with them in the rain, loved how you wrote that part. And eshkk she wants to go to Jim’s house!!
So glad Ryan got his face bashed in. He definitely deserved it.
“Sometimes she fixes it; she’ll say, ‘Me too, Jim. But you need to give me time.’ Because, really, it was as stupidly simple as it was stupidly complicated. She just had to pick.“ LOVED this so much.
Can’t wait for the epilogue, but sad that means this is almost over!!

Author's Response: Ryan totally deserved his face bashed in, and more. Really glad you're enjoying it - thanks very much for reading!

1

I have no idea how you pull all of this action off and not have it seem crazy but I can totally see this playing out.

Is it terrible that each time something spilled on the carpet I was giddy? It's a shame Karen and Jim aren't working out but Karen's making it more difficult and basically torturing everyone, including the rest of her guests.

Just like "the dinner party" Karen seemed to be playing another game than everyone else and it blew up in her face.

Oh and hopefully Karen vomiting on Ryan isn't the worst part of his night. What a jerk!

Can't wait for more.

Roy is such a

Author's Response:

I'm really glad you're liking it, and that you didn't think it was too over the top. I felt like I might have overdone it...

Incidentally, the carpet was the first thing I thought about when I decided I wanted Karen to have a housewarming disaster. I also thought about having Andy accidentally set fire to the curtains, but I decided that was too far. 

Thanks you so much for reading and for your thoughtful review! 

1

Okay, first off, let's acknowledge this: this is *peak* Ryan awfulness, the sort where he's so despicable you're desperate to see his comeuppance *even where he kind of has a point.* Like he manages to come off worse than Roy here. Slimeball. I'm glad he got puked on.

You also continue to write a fascinating version of Karen, someone we can be sympathetic with for how gratuitously she's getting screwed over (her poor apartment!) while also recognizing that she's Not Right for Jim and should probably be self-aware enough to figure that out on her own. (The section of her kinda trying to pick a fight with him over Kevin mid-party is really telling.)

You set up a lot of dominos to fall, and honestly it was just really enjoyable watching it all play out. You did well bringing the tension to a head and then just letting everything explode. It almost ends up as a physical representation of the wreckage that Jim and Pam have left around them in the end.

Well, at least Samantha got a good story out of it. Kinda shipping her and Andy here, is that weird?

Author's Response:

Yup, Ryan is a creep here, and he deserves his comeuppance.

I think I might be doing some kind of penance with Karen  ;o)  I felt guilty about how much I wanted bad things to happen to her in series 3 when she has, after all, done nothing wrong. By any reasonable person's standards, she's a woman wronged, though I think the writers maybe opened a bit of a window to dislike her by making her slightly snarky, then (kind of inconsistently, I thought?) clingy and possessive. Particularly if you add in a couple of the deleted scenes.

In terms of the wreckage, I actually had Pam use the word 'metaphor', but I decided that was too much.

And, yeah... Samantha.  

This is such a great premise for a season 3 story. The behavior of everyone is very true to character, and the tension is really building. I’m excited to see where it goes!

Author's Response:

I'm really glad you're liking it and the characterisation and the tension are working for you. 

Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!