“I don’t know, I just really thought...that Jim was gonna propose tonight…”

The camera was locked on her for a few more moments, maybe hoping to catch another line or two, but as Pam let her emotions catch up to her, her face crumbled and she felt a single tear trickle down her cheek. Her breath became erratic, and she felt like she was going burst.

“Excuse me. I’m…” Her hands flew up to her mouth to control her sobs and cover her face. She couldn’t finish, turning around quickly and running into the building. She ran right past Toby as he talked to the security guard, not even giving them a second glance. Seconds later, she found herself curled up into a ball in the stairwell, her cheek against the cool wall as the sobs racked through her body. Her arms hugged herself in an effort to feel the comfort and peace that she so desperately needed at that moment. It didn’t work, and her sad cries eventually melted into heavy puffs of breath every few moments.

She must have sat there, in that position for about 20 minutes before she heard the door at the top of the stairs open and a voice call out.

“Pam?”

She didn’t speak, didn’t even move, as she heard the door close again and feet slowly make their way down the steps toward her. As soon as Jim turned the corner inbetween floors, he saw her. She had her knees up to her chest, her head resting on the wall. It appeared as through her eyes were closed, so he spoke again.

“Pam.” It wasn’t a question this time. “Pam, what are you doing? I’ve been looking for your for a half hour!”

She didn’t answer, so he crouched down to where she was sitting.

“Pam, what---”

His words cut short as he moved the hair back that was in front of her face, revealing her wet cheeks and puffy eyes. A lump instantly formed in his throat and he placed his hands on either side of her face, turning it towards him, making her look at him.

Her sad eyes fluttered open, but she didn’t look at him.

“Hey.” His whisper was gentle, but firm. “What’s wrong?”

When she didn’t answer, he removed his hands from her face and placed one around her back and the other under her knees, lifting her up enough so he could sit down and pull her sideways onto his lap. She instantly melted into his embrace and let her head rest against his chest, just as it had done a hundred times before.

His hands, the hands that never ceased to make her tingle and melt every time she felt them on her, stroked, caressed, and comforted every ounce of her while they sat there in silence. Her tears had started up again, but nothing more, as she felt the comfort she was needing radiate throughout her body.

A few minutes passed before he opened his mouth to speak again.

“I won’t know what’s wrong unless you talk to me.” he whispered into her hair as he placed his hundredth kiss there. She took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. Her tears had stopped flowing, and she finally felt ready to talk to him.

“Do you love me, Jim?”

He laughed, and ran a hand slowly down her arm to intertwine their fingers. "Of course I do." He stopped laughing seconds later, as he realized she wasn’t making any effort to hold onto his hand and her body had slightly tensed up.

“Wait.” His breath stopped. “Are you serious?”

He took it as a yes when she didn’t answer.

“Pam.” He reached down and cupped her chin, moving her head away from his chest and up to look at him. Their eyes met for the first time during this, and his heart broke when he saw the sadness in her eyes. His other hand reached down and his thumbs wiped away the new tears that were trickling down her cheeks. “Pam…Love is such an understatement for the way I feel about you.” His eyes searched hers, and her sadness slowly melted away as he continued. “You’re it, Pam. You are…I…just….“ He leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead and let his lips linger there. “I wish there were even words to explain how I feel about you. I guess I'll just have to spend the rest of my life showing you.”

“Then what are you WAITING for?!” She let out an exasperated sigh as his head snapped up to look at her again. “Jim, you can’t keep doing this to me, I’m going crazy! Look at me…I’m a wreck, I can’t even stay sane anymore. Just ask me already!”

“What? Wait…is that what this is about?” He smiled when he saw the look of hope light up in her eyes. “Oh, Pam.” He sighed and moved his hands to run through her hair. “Tonight wasn’t exactly what I would classify as an ass-kicking night. At one point it was, but then…well, you know.”

“I don’t need ass-kicking, Jim. I just need…you.”

“You have me, Pam. Oh my God, you have ALL of me.” He wrapped his arms tightly around her, bringing her head down to his chest again. She shifted and wrapped her arms around his middle, breathing in his scent. “It’s going to happen, Pam, and it won’t be when you’re expecting it. I mean, come on…how many times do you get proposed to in a lifetime?”

She chuckled and turned her head up to look at him, her eyes turning serious as soon as they locked with his.

“I love you, Jim.”

He leaned down and placed his lips gently on hers, still holding onto her tightly. She sighed into his kiss, and after a few moments, both pulled back and she placed her head back on his chest. He rested his chin on the top of her head and took another deep breath.

“I love you, too.”

The sat like that, in silence, holding onto each other for what seemed like forever. Jim couldn’t feel his legs anymore and his back was aching from being pressed up against the cold, bitter wall.

“Want to go home?” he asked quietly.

“No, lets just stay like this for a little while longer.”

“Okay.” He replied.

He really didn’t mind that he was uncomfortable. He had his life sitting in his arms, and he was perfectly content to stay that way forever. He knew she wasn’t expecting it now, so he let go of her with his left arm and reached down to his pocket and wrapped his hand around the warm, black box that he’d had in his possession for the better part of a year.

He pulled the box out of his pocket and took another deep breath.

Pam was so content, that she didn’t even feel him loosen his grip on her, and reach down into his pocket. She loved these moments, just the two of them, wrapped together, not a care in the world. Her face was still pressed to his chest, and she would have happily stayed like that forever if she could.

Jim placed the box on the floor next to them, and began to run a hand up and down Pam’s back, the other still around her shoulders, holding her close to him. He dipped his head down so that his mouth was next to her forehead and spoke softly as he began.

“Hey.”

“Mmmm?” She had her eyes closed contently as she responded to him.

“Think of the happiest moment of your life.” he spoke in a near whisper.

Pam opened her eyes and let out a chuckle. She knew he was serious when she didn’t feel a smile form on his lips and when he didn’t laugh back.

“Oh, I don’t know. Being with you. I‘ve never been happier in my life.”

“Fair enough.” He placed a light kiss on her forehead. “Now think of a time when you felt the most proud of something you accomplished.”

She didn’t even have to think about this one. “My last art show, when my oil painting won first place.”

“Good.” Another kiss. “How about when someone is proud of you, how do you feel?”

“Amazing. Like I can do anything.”

“And you can.” Kiss. “How do you feel when I tell you I love you?”

“Like I’m the luckiest person in the world.”

“I love you, by the way.” Kiss. “How do you feel right now?”

She thought about it for a moment before responding.

“Besides the fact that I’m worried that you’re asking me so many weird questions, I feel…loved…peaceful…like everything is perfect. There is no where else, and no one else I‘d rather be with right now.”

“Me too.” Kiss.

Jim let his lips linger on her forehead for a few seconds before sighing contently. He grabbed the ring box and placed it in his large fist before shifting to gently lift her up, enough so that he could place her back down on the floor, right where his body had been.

“Hey, what’re--”

She was immediately silenced when he dropped to one knee, and moved close to her so that their faces were just a mere foot apart. His eyes were closed and she saw his cheeks were wet with tears. She lifted up one hand to wipe them away, but he opened his eyes before she had a chance to see realize what the tears were for. She placed her raised hand on his cheek, cupping his face.

It took a few seconds for their eyes to lock, but once they did, Pam saw a look she’d never seen in his eyes before. If she didn’t know any better, she’d have thought he was in pain, but the love in his eyes told her otherwise.

He swallowed down the lump in his throat, and smiled as he opened his mouth, never breaking eye contact.

“Pam.” His voice was husky, raw with emotion. She now, too, had tears running down her cheeks. “Every happy memory, every moment you‘ve ever felt loved, and proud, and on top of the word, I want to be the one to help you experience those moments every day, for the rest of your life.”

She let her hand slide down to his shoulder, steadying herself, and her body shook with emotion. It was finally happening.

“I’ll devote my life to making you happy. I love you, and I want to take care of you.” He reached up and took her hand, and placed it over his heart, his hand never leaving the top of hers. “You fill the void that used to exist right here.”

Jim could barely speak anymore, as he watched Pam struggle to control her emotions. She was crying, but wasn’t like he’d seen her cry before. He knew they were happy tears, as were his. He let go of her hand and reached up to smooth her hair and let his hand rest on the side of her face.

“Pamela Morgan Beesly, you’re all I’ve ever wanted.”

He moved his left arm up, from where it had been resting at by his side, and revealed the little black box that had had been hiding. Pam’s breath stopped as he flipped the case open, revealing the most beautiful diamond ring she’d ever laid eyes on.

“Will you marry me?”

She knew words weren’t going to come, so she nodded vigorously, and mouthed a silent ‘yes’. She tried earnestly to wipe away the tears streaming down her face, but Jim gently took her left hand and slid the perfect ring onto his fiancee’s finger.

Perfect. It wasn’t a word she used a lot, but it described everything about that moment. Jim, Jim’s emotion, the proposal, the ring. Them.

Pam leaned forward and threw her arms around his neck, their cheeks meeting, and their tears melting together. Jim wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer, until she was once again sitting on his lap. Neither one spoke, but they didn’t have to. The silence said it all.

It had been nearly 10 minutes, and Jim thought that maybe Pam had fallen asleep. Her breathing had steadied, and she had stopped running her fingers though his hair. Her head was buried in the crook of his neck, and he had his hand intertwined with her left hand, his thumb stroking her palm and the skin behind the new addition on her finger.

If someone had told Jim three years ago that this is where he would be in his life, he would have called them crazy. Never in his life did he think he’d find such a perfect match, let alone someone who he though he’d never get to be with.

Pam didn’t know this, but in the mornings when he was first to wake up, he’d spend a good 10 minutes just looking at her. Sometimes he’d wake up thinking everything was just a dream, but then he’d realize he’d never even moved from the position he fell asleep in-his arms around her, her body pressed close to his. On those morning, he’d pull away from her so she would lie on her back, and he’d just study her. Every perfect feature on her face, the way parts of her skin were red from being pressed up to him all night, the way her unruly hair looked so darn sexy.

This was what he had to look forward to, every morning, for the rest of his life. He was never really optimistic of his future, which was partially why he’d stayed at Dunder-Mifflin for so long. So many things had changed since Pam joined his life, and now he couldn’t wait to start on their future.

He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he barely heard Pam speak.

“Pam Halpert.” she said as she placed a wet kiss on his neck, and shifted to look at him.

Jim grinned at those words. “Mrs. Pamela Halpert” he repeated. “I love it.”

“Me too. I‘ve never said it outloud before.” She smiled widely.

“Jim Beesly.” he said while trying to hold a straight face.

Pam laughed and playfully slapped his arm. “You’re such a dork, Jim.”

“Hey, watch it. This dork has to put up with you for the rest of your life, so be nice.”

“Has to? I’d consider it a privilege.”

“Oh, I do.”

Pam leaned forward and rested her forehead against his, her arms moving up to hang around his neck. Jim’s hands rested lightly on her hips as he smiled at her.

“I want babies.” she said once their eyes locked.

Jim laughed for a second at her openness, then his expression turned serious, a look of intensity and pure adoration that Pam had only witnessed a few times. “So do I.” he whispered.

“You’re gonna be such a good daddy.”

Jim swallowed and tried to give her a smile. He moved his hands from her hips and placed them on either side of her face.

Never, ever, in his life did he imagine he’d be having this conversation with Pam. Sure, they both knew each other wanted kids, but they’d never talked about it so openly.

He was still having a hard time speaking, and managed to whisper back, “You think so?”

“Yeah. You’re so good with your niece and nephew. I can’t wait for you to graduate from ‘Uncle Jim’ and become ‘Daddy Halpert‘.”

“Daddy Halpert?” he let go of his seriousness for a second and let out a chuckle. “I could get used to that.”

“Well, you’d better get used to it, daddy, because I plan on making that title official just as soon as we get married.”

He stopped laughing. “Seriously?”

“Yeah. I guess I should have clarified…when I said I wanted babies, I meant I wanted babies really soon.”

“I’m OK with that…”

“Really?”

“Yeah, Mama Halpert.”

It was Pam’s turn to let out a chuckle. “That sounded like something you’d call your mother.”

“Ha! I guess you’re right.”

“Call me Mommy Halpert.”

“Mommy Halpert.”

Pam leaned forward and kissed him. Her arms tightened around his neck, and he sighed into her kiss.

-----------------------

10 minutes later, there they were, still in the stairwell, as if their whole lives hadn’t completely changed from just an hour ago.

Jim was sitting up against the wall, Pam still sitting sideways on his lap, head resting on his chest.

Pam took a deep breath, and spoke.

“Want to go home?”

“No, lets just stay like this for a little while longer.”

Stairwell. 1:00.

Jim smiled as he plucked the post-it note off of his computer monitor. He was happy at the prospect of being able to spend some time alone with Pam-she’d been acting strange since they woke up this morning. No amount of emails or trips to her desk seemed to make her open up, and he became increasingly worried when she told him she wanted to take her lunch break alone. She’d taken their car, and he’d eaten his ham and cheese sandwich in the break room, alone and confused.

He sat down at his desk, trying to keep himself occupied until he was to meet Pam in the stairwell in 10 minutes. His patience got the better of him, and at 12:55 he made his way out to the hallway, and down the stairs.

Pam was sitting against the wall, her hands covering her face. When Jim rounded the corner and saw her, he frantically made his way down the rest of the stairs and knelt down in front of her.

“Pam, honey. What’s wrong?” He pulled her hands away, thinking she was upset, but instead, he was met by tears that were anything but sad. She had a huge grin on her face as he locked eyes with his wife.

“Sit down.” she coaxed.

Pam reached for his hand, and laced their fingers together as he took a seat next to her.

“Jim.”

“Yeah?”

“I have something to tell you.”

“Yeah, I kind of figured. What’s going on?” he turned to look at her, still slightly worried, but relieved she wasn’t upset.

“So…I went to the store on my lunch break.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. I had to buy something.”

“What?”

“A pregnancy test.”

The hand that had been absently rubbing Pam’s back suddenly stopped, as his eyes became wide and his breath stopped.

“No way.” he managed to breathe.

“Yeah.”

“NO WAY.”

“Yeah.” Their smiles were getting bigger with each word.

He didn’t dare ask, knowing the answer they both wanted so badly, but fearing it wasn’t true. But, why else was she so happy?

He swallowed before he spoke. “And?…”

Pam reached over to her side, her hand revealing a white pregnancy test. She gave him a smile as she handed it to him.

Jim took the test, but kept his eyes locked with Pam’s for a few seconds before looking at the results.

His eyes blurred with tears, as he laid eyes upon an unmistakable plus sign. He was going to be a daddy.

“Oh my God.” he said as he looked back at Pam.

“Yeah.”

“We’re having a baby.”

“Yeah.”

“You’re pregnant.”

“Yeah.”

“Oh my God." He was too stunned to say anything else. All he could do was wrap his arms around her, and place kisses all over her tear stained face as he tried to take it all in.

“I’ve kind of suspected for a few days now.” she said.

“And you didn't tell me?”

“I didn’t want you to get your hopes up, in case…you know. Plus, I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Wow. How are you feeling? Can I do anything?”

She smiled as he placed his hand flat on her stomach. “No, I’m feeling pretty good. I’m not sure when the morning sickness and all that starts, but I’m sure you’ll have a few days to enjoy it, before I turn crazy.”

He laughed, “I think I’ll enjoy every minute of it.”

“Yeah, you say that now, but wait until I’m craving Chinese food in the middle of the night, and I make you go out and get it for me…even though there are no Chinese places open at 3 in the morning in Scranton.”

“Eh. We’ll manage.”

She placed her small left hand over his large left hand that was still resting on her stomach.

It was the prefect moment. They were both gazing down at her stomach, their rings and tears glistening under the soft florescent lights of the Stairwell Confession.