You know what, Pam thought to herself as she walked out of the conference room with Roy’s gift in hand. Today actually wasn’t too bad. I mean the whole goose thing was kinda weird, but other than that not bad. Roy was being nice. Where was that when we were together? No don’t go down that line. Yes, he was being nice, and yes, I’ve been wanting this coffee table book of Monet paintings for a while but being nice for one day and one gift doesn’t mean we’re getting back together. Not when Roy’s not the guy I want to be with anyway. Damnit Jim! Why’d you have to say no to the whole CIA thing. That really sucked. I mean I went to a lot of work on that and then you tell me you’re not really doing the whole prank thing anymore? Then what was up with Andy the other week? Not that kind of guy anymore my ass!

She felt herself starting to frown based on the directions her thoughts were taking her. Glancing around she saw the most of her co-workers were still watching the weird duet Angela and Dwight were performing. Quickly she walked in the direction of the kitchen due to a sudden need to use the restroom. She’d just reached the door when it swung open as Karen was leaving.

“Oh!” Karen said with mild surprise. “Pardon me.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Pam replied as she started to make her way past the other woman.

“Hey!” Karen called out. “Real quick, thanks for being, like, my partner in crime today. It was a lot of fun.”

A sudden lump developed in Pam’s throat. Schooling her thoughts, she pasted a smile back on her face. “Yeah! It was.”

“Think about what I said earlier too.” Karen looked past Pam out to the main office. “That Roy guy is really cute. Maybe you and him could join Jim and I on a double date sometime.”

“Uhh, maybe,” Pam didn’t trust herself to say anything else. She did bend slightly at the knees and point into the restroom. “If you don’t mind, I kinda need to, you know...”

“Oh! Right! Yeah! Sorry!” Karen quickly moved aside so Pam could move past.

Pam quickly moved to a stall and locked the door. Nature’s call was forgotten as she started taking long slow breaths. Her mind was racing again. Steady girl. Keep calm. Deep breaths. Karen was just trying to be nice is all. Being nice by inviting me out to a date with my ex-fiancé and her boyfriend. The guy I want to be MY boyfriend. That would show Jim a thing or...NO! I know I hurt him and he’s hurt me, but there’s been too much hurt on both our sides. I don’t want to do that anymore.

Maybe this is what I deserve for all those years Jim was ‘just a friend.’ A taste of my own medicine. This sucks! And right at Christmas too. Come on Pam, snap out of it. There’s still a party going on and it turned out to be fun.

Feeling only slightly better about herself, Pam stood up and got out of the stall. A quick glance in the mirror showed her outward appearance still looked the same, despite her roiling thoughts. Walking out of the restroom she looked through the kitchen window for a second before she re-joined the festivities. Michael was now in possession of the karaoke mic and was belting out his perpetual favorite, “Islands in the Stream.” Karen was talking to Hannah while leaning against her desk. Kelly, Phyllis, and Meredith were in a tight little knot sipping their drinks. Jim was standing behind Kevin at the accountant's desk, both staring intently at the computer screen. Other groups were also scattered about the room as she walked in. Pam started to make her way to her desk when a familiar voice hailed her.

“Hey Pam!” Turning she saw Roy making his way towards her.

She stopped as he walked up near Stanley’s desk. “What’s up?”

Roy had what looked like an almost sheepish half-grin on his face as he rubbed a hand across the back of his head. “Hey, so, uh, Darryl, me, and some of the other guys from the warehouse were thinking of heading to Poor Richards. I thought you might like to come with us, you know, for old time’s sake?”

Memories of previous nights with him and the warehouse crew flashed in her mind. Many of which involved her having to not only pick up the tab but act as chauffer after a few to many pitchers of cheap beer. “Oh, um, thanks,” she started off. “But I’ve got to get home tonight.”

Roy’s smile and shoulders sagged. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” Pam did her best to put an apologetic tone in her voice. “It’s just that finals are coming up in my class and I need to get some more work done with those.”

“Yeah, sure.” Roy looked defeated as he slowly started to back away. “Have fun with that.”

“I will. Thanks again for the book. It’s really nice.”

“You’re welcome. Merry Christmas,” he said before turning around to find Darryl.

“Merry Christmas,” Pam’s voice was almost a whisper as her eyes fell to her feet. A feeling like she was being watched suddenly came over her. Looking up, her eyes at once darted to Kevin’s desk. Jim was still hunched over the computer but in the instant her eyes had settled on the area, she could have sworn she saw Jim’s head dart down as if he’d been looking at her.

Crossing the office, Pam was able to avoid Michael and sat down in her chair. Setting her new book down on the floor next to her purse, she scanned the papers covering her work space. The Christmas party meant only a half day of actual work had been completed which also halved the number of daily faxes she needed to send to corporate. Again, her thoughts betrayed her as she started to organize the papers.

Have things really changed so much that he won’t even look at me anymore? Or is he hiding too? Being all ‘Ranking Number 2’ might get Dwight and Angela off my back, but that’s not the Jim I know. I really should have called him last summer.

“Hey, ready to get all this cleaned up?” Karen had appeared at Pam’s desk.

Pam glanced at her computer screen and saw it was almost 4:30. “Yeah, sure.”

Heading back to the break room, she helped Karen lift the slushy machine onto a cart and haul it down to Karen’s car. Between them they got it into the trunk.

“Thanks for the help,” Karen said as they turned to head back inside.

“No problem,” Pam replied.

“Hey can I ask you a kind of personal question?”

Pam felt her mental armor start to go up. “Uh, sure.”

“Maybe it’s me, and I’m sorry if this is awkward, but both times I mentioned Roy to you today you seemed, kind of, I don’t know hesitant to talk about him. But I saw you give him a hug earlier when he gave you that present. Is there something going on between the two of you?”

Oh crap. Pam felt like she was stuck. “Umm, yeah, kinda.”

Karen’s face lit up. “Really! Good job, like I said earlier, he’s really cute.”

“Oh no!” Pam blurt out. “Not like that. It’s just...” Pam blew out a huge sigh. “Roy and I used to be engaged. I called things off a few weeks before the wedding.”

“Oh my god!” Karen’s hand flew to her face. “I had no idea! I’m so sorry! Here I was trying to push you on him and he’s...well...oh...I’m really sorry.”

Pam managed a weak smile. “Thanks. It all happened last June. He’s been trying to be nice about it all. Still trying to be friends, you know.”

Karen put a hand on Pam’s arm as they stored the cart in a utility closet. “Still, that sucks. Why’d you break things off?”

Because I’m in love with your boyfriend. Pam kept her eyes on the floor as they walked to the elevator. “Sorry but, I, um, don’t really want to talk about it.”

“Yeah, sure,” Karen said as she dropped her arm. “If you ever do, let me know. My offer earlier still stands though if you’d like to come out sometime with Jim and me. He’s a great listener.”

“Yeah,” was all Pam able to croak out.

“I mean it, he’ll let me just go on and on about just about anything. When we go out for dinner, he’ll sit there and nod and take in everything. It’s nice. I’m sure he’d be willing to listen to you too sometime.”

Okay you can shut up anytime about how great Jim is. By now they were back at the front door to Dunder-Mifflin. “Thanks.” Pam said quietly. She walked back to her desk. “I’ll, um get the karaoke machine later. But I’ve got some faxes I need to send.”

Karen recognized the dismissal. “Yeah, no problem.”

Pam watched as the other woman walked back to her desk. She was about to look back down at her desk when her eye caught something. Karen had reached her desk and was cleaning up some various party debris that had been left on it. Along with some discarded plates and cups were both copies of the DVD’s she and Jim had exchanged.

That’s weird. Anytime I ever gave Jim a gift he’d put it in his messenger bag or his desk right away. He always told me he was afraid he’d lose them if he didn’t put them some place safe right away.

Her eyes travelled across the room to find him. At first, she didn’t see where he was in the office. Then the door to the kitchen opened and he walked through. Their eyes met and for the first time in a long time neither of them broke contact. He stayed where he was as the door closed behind him. She could see pain in his eyes. She had since his return. However, there was something else in his expression she couldn’t quite put a finger on. Her expression softened as the slightest hint of a smile formed at her lips. The corner of his mouth moved almost imperceptibly upwards before he finally broke eye contact and walked into the conference room to help Angela and Karen clear away the decorations on the table.

She turned back to the papers on her desk. By the time she was done with her faxes most of her co-workers were on their way out the door. She watched a few of them walk out the door while she sorted the last of her papers. Phyllis wished her a Merry Christmas. Karen waved as she left with Ryan and Kelly. Her eyes had just fallen on a red folder that read “Classified,” when she heard Jim’s familiar voice.

“’Night Pam.”

“Night,” she replied with a quick glance up at him, before returning to her desk to move some papers over the folder. He’s just being friendly is all.

Much to her surprise he walked back to lean over the counter after grabbing his coat and scarf. “Oh, you know what? I intercepted a transmission earlier, and it seems the CIA is gonna need Dwight down at their headquarters at Langley for training and an ice cream social with the other agents.”

Oh my god, is this real? It is! Her expression of surprise quickly melted into a radiant grin to match the one on his face. There he is, that’s my Jim. “We should get him a bus ticket,” she said as she turned back to her computer and pulled up the Greyhound website. This is how it’s supposed to be. The original Dunder-Mifflin partners-in-crime back together again. “To make his trip easier.”

“Oh no, that would be very patriotic.”

This is just, right. Us back together again. Pam felt a glow in her heart as her search result came up on the screen. “It cost 75 dollars.” She looked up at him. He’ll think of something, he always does. She wasn’t disappointed.

Jim thought for a second. “Hmm. Well maybe the CIA could send a helicopter.”

She felt her face light up as she quietly laughed back at him. Looking back down at her desk she swiped the papers off her Classified folder and dug out the page where she had what Dwight had listed as his private cell phone number. She placed it on the counter for Jim to look at. “Here’s the number he gave me. I found a web site that taught me how to send anonymous text messages. It’s what I’ve been using to communicate with him.”

Jim’s grin if anything grew wider as his hand reached out to pluck a jelly bean from the dispenser. “Wow Beesly! I’m impressed.”

The glow around her heart intensified as she pulled out her phone and started punching in numbers. “What do we say?”

Jim took his time as he looked through the file and the phrases Pam had been using. His eye stopped on the code name she had assigned Dwight. Looking back at her, his gaze was full of mischief. “How about this. ‘Agent Beets. Prepare for extraction tonight by Coast Guard helo on the roof of your safehouse at 2045. Mandatory training to follow at Langley followed by dessert.’”

“Coast Guard helo?” she asked as she punched in and sent the message before looking back up at him.

“Yeah,” he replied. “Give a, you know, Jack Ryan, kind of feeling.” He was staring at her with the smirk she knew so well.

The glow in her heart was now overwhelming. She didn’t plan on it, couldn’t have planned on it, but the words still tumbled out seemingly of their own accord. “I love you.”

THUMP!!

Jim fainted.

I have to admit it, they would make a cute couple, Jim thought as he watched Angela sing with Dwight kneeling in front of her. While he was no stranger to odd days and odder office parties, today had left him decidedly unbalanced. Seeing Angela come the closest he’d ever seen her to unwinding had provided a nice distraction after the conversation he’d had with Michael on the couch. Did I really say all that to Michael? Don’t you remember what happened last time you confided to him? It just made things even worse. Is that really all that Karen is to me? A distraction? Does that make me an asshole? Aw crap they’ve got the camera on me again. But now it’s pointing over to the conference...

Jim’s thoughts instantly stopped as he watched Pam open Roy’s present. The sight of her face lighting up with joy and the hug she gave Roy drove an unexpected shard of ice into his heart. Swallowing the lump that had lodged in his throat he returned his attention to Angela’s performance. He kept his face calm even as he could feel the cold travel through him. Looking around his eyes fell on Kevin who was grinning at something on his computer.

Distract yourself, anything is better than thoughts about her, he thought as he made his way to Kevin’s desk. That Jim wasn’t sure which, ‘her’ he was thinking about caused another rock of guilt to drop heavily in his gut.

“Hey Kev!” he called out in greeting. “Got the latest fantasy football stats?”

“You know it!” Kevin quickly clicked off the cat video he’d been laughing at and pulled up the scoresheet for their fantasy football league.

Leaning over Kevin’s chair he lost himself in the world of players, teams, and stats. For all of his seemingly bumbling ways, Kevin had proven himself adept at choosing players. Jim had been having a hard time all due to that fact season. He was almost completely lost in the discussion he’d been having with Kevin until he heard someone speak up across the office.

“Hey Pam!”

As it always had, Roy’s voice calling out to her grated on his nerves in a way Dwight never could. Glancing up he saw Roy talking to Pam with a grin on his face.

Don’t do it man, you’ve moved on. She made her choice, live with it. Despite repeating the mantra that had been going through his mind since last May, he found he couldn’t help but keep an eye on her. By now their voices had faded so he couldn’t overhear their conversation. Pam said something quietly that changed Roy’s demeanor quickly. Where once, he’d been grinning and excited, now Roy’s shoulders were slumped and his face was long. They exchanged a few more words as Roy backed up, before turning away.

Well that’s interesting, he mused. Oh shoot! She’s coming this way! He quickly ducked his head back down to Kevin’s screen. By now, Jim was only halfway paying attention to Kevin. Despite his earlier recital of his mantra, the icy feeling in his chest seemed to have stopped spreading at the very least. He finished up his discussion with Kevin. Looking up, his eyes travelled over the office intent on looking for Karen to spend time with her. Walking over to her desk he saw Stanley standing nearby.

“Have you seen Karen?” Jim asked his fellow salesman.

“She was helping Pam bring the slushy machine down to the parking lot,” intoned the dour man.

“Cool thanks.” Walking away from Stanley, Jim headed through the kitchen to the break room. While the slushy machines were indeed gone, there were still a few cans of soda stacked on one of the tables. Grabbing one at random, Jim sat down heavily in chair. He cracked the tab on his soda and took a long pull. The flavor of the drink caused him to look down at the can. He smirked when he saw the familiar grape logo. The smirk disappeared as a long running argument started up in his mind.

I did miss this in Stamford. I missed a lot of things in Stamford. Oh hell, who am I kidding I missed Pam. How could I not? Careful there buddy, remember, first she broke your heart, then didn’t call you to say she’d called off the wedding, and then basically hung up on you when you called here that one time. But she did want to go out for coffee when you got back. That’s something.

Then again, Karen’s never hid what she’s felt for you. Even when you first got to Stamford and she was basically annoyed at you every day. What changed that? Searching for those chips? Maybe. Weird that after basically loathing you all summer one afternoon could cause such a big change in her.

Pam’s changed too. In good ways. Taking art classes, standing up to Angela, coming up with her own pranks. And where did that sweater come from? Does she know how pretty she is today? Whoa! Steady! You’re with Karen now. You’re not supposed to be thinking about other women like that. But then again Pam’s never been, “another woman.”

He kept arguing with himself until the last of his soda was emptied from the can. There were still a few holiday treats left on the tables. Reaching over to a plate he pulled over the last of the cake pops he’d heard Pam said she’d made. He spun the sprinkled covered confection in his fingers and found himself grinning at the thought of Pam hunched over a bowl of cake ingredients in the kitchen he’d teased her about. The vision effectively killed his mental struggles as he pictured Pam checking her oven temperature with a slight dusting of flour on her cheeks. Glancing up at the clock he saw it was almost time to leave for the day. Setting the cake pop back down he rose from his chair to head back to his desk to start gathering his effects.

Emerging from the kitchen he stopped short as his gaze fell across the office. There she was behind the desk he’d so often leaned across. He paused as the door closed behind him and held her gaze. No, defiantly not just any other woman.

She must have seen something in his eyes because he swore, he saw the corners of her lips curl up. It made the corner of his own mouth rise up in response. I wonder if this is what it was like for her all those years? Holding out for any thread of friendship? She’s done way more than I could have ever done. She’s actually tried to be friends with Karen whereas I did my best to avoid Roy like the plague. Speaking of Karen, where’d she get off too?

He saw his girlfriend in the conference room with a garbage bag in hand. Finally, breaking eye contact with Pam, he walked in to join her and Angela.

“Anything I can do to help?” he offered.

“You can help Karen with the trash,” came Angela’s stiff reply. “Just don’t get any crumbs in the carpet.”

“No problem.” Jim picked up another garbage bag and started tossing used plates and cups inside.

“Hey!” Karen said brightly. “Thanks for coming in to help out.”

Shrugging his shoulders good naturedly, he tossed some more trash in his bag. “Like I said, no problem.”

“Well I’m glad you’re here,” Karen went on. “So anyway, while you were out at lunch I was talking to Ryan and Kelly. They said they knew of a couple great spots we could try out. There’s this one...”

Outwardly Jim put on the appearance he was listening to his girlfriend. He spoke with the appropriate, “yeah’s,” and “sure’s,” but he wasn’t really paying attention to her. Guilt was weighing heavily in his stomach as he worked. I’m not being fair to Pam. To reject her present this morning, but spend all that time in the restaurant messing with Dwight? I’m safe for now, but I’m sure they’ll use that footage. How could they not? I just handed them yet another drama packed episode. ‘Jim Halpert, such a good prankster, he even pranks himself.’ Or better yet, Jim Halpert, douche-bag extraordinaire!’ I mean it’s not like I haven’t pulled anything since I got back. Setting Andy on Pam was pretty funny.

Despite himself, he felt a small grin creep onto his face at the memory. That was one of the best smiles I’ve ever seen from her when she realized it was me. Then when she set him back on me like that? Well done Beesly, well done. Come on man, she’s been working on this for months. How would you have felt if you’d put all this set up into a prank, handed her the keys to it an she said what you did? No, it’s time to stop being afraid of her. It’s Pam. She may not love you, but she’s still your friend and deserves at least that much.

Finishing up clearing the garbage out of the conference room, Jim took the trash bags out to the back hallway where the building cleaning crew would take care of them. By the time he made it back to his desk to put his papers away, most of his co-workers were already heading for the door. He gave Karen a quick good-bye as she walked out with Ryan and Kelly.

Pam was still at her desk as he walked up to retrieve his coat and scarf. “’Night Pam.”

She barely looked up at him. “Night.”

Here goes. “Oh, you know what? I intercepted a transmission earlier, and it seems the CIA is gonna need Dwight down at their headquarters at Langley for training and an ice cream social with the other agents.”

Watching her face morph from one of shock to a beautiful grin cracked the cube of ice in his chest. Without a thought, he was back to his normal pose of leaning over the counter to look at her. He felt the corners of his mouth rise up to match her smile. She is so wonderful.

“We should get him a bus ticket,” she said as she turned back to her computer and pulled up the Greyhound website. To make his trip easier.”

“Oh no, that would be very patriotic.” How do you come up with stuff this great?

She frowned a touch as her search results popped up and looked back up at him, her eyes asking for an answer. “It cost 75 dollars.”

Let’s see, CIA, Jack Ryan, that scene in Hunt for Red October where he’s dropped onto a sub from a helicopter, that’s it! “Hmm. Well maybe the CIA can send a helicopter.”

The sound of her soft laugh and bright smile was infectious. Jim felt a lightness in him, he hadn’t felt in months. He watches as she moved some papers and opened the “Classified” file again. She flipped to one of the pages before setting it on the counter.

“Here’s the number he gave me. I found a web site that taught me how to send anonymous text messages. It’s what I’ve been using to communicate with him.”

With one hand Jim picked up the file and absentmindedly pulled a jelly bean from the dish with the other. His eyes scanned the sheet. Pam had clearly put a lot of effort into this prank. “Wow Beesly! I’m impressed.”

“What do we say?”

Glancing up for a second, he saw her pressing buttons on her phone. Flipping to the next page he saw a map with the location of several military bases marked on it. An orange dot on the map at Atlantic City showed the location of a Coast Guard Air Station. Turning back at the previous page he looked over the code names, cyphers, mission phrases, and other information she’d collected. He couldn’t keep the mischief out of his voice, and what’s more, he found he didn’t want to either.

“How about this. ‘Agent Beets. Prepare for extraction tonight by Coast Guard helo on the roof of your safehouse at 2045. Mandatory training to follow at Langley followed by dessert.’”

“Coast Guard helo?” she asked as she punched in and sent the message before looking back up at him.

“Yeah,” he replied. “Give a, you know, Jack Ryan, kind of feeling.” The lightness he’d felt swelled as he smirked at her.

When she looked back up at him, Jim felt all the fear and doubt he’d ever felt around her melt away. It was just them, Jim and Pam. I screwed up big time. I don’t care what I have to do, I’ve got to get back to her. She’s so beauti...

“I love you.”

Jim’s thoughts came to a screeching halt. Her face was the last thing he saw as an unexpected wave of darkness closed around him.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Pam’s hands shot to her face as Jim fell out of view behind the counter. “Jim! JIM!! Oh my god, Jim!”

She raced around the desk to see him lying on the floor. It didn’t look like he’d hit his head on anything. Kneeling next to him she lightly started patting his cheek. “Jim! Come on! Wake up!”

Looking around Pam saw only two cameramen from the doc crew were still around. To their credit, they’d both put their cameras down. One was already pulling his phone out to call 911. The other knelt down and helped Pam to straighten Jim’s limp form out on the carpet.

The cameraman looked up at Pam when they were done. “Do you think you could go find a pillow or something? Also, if there’s any family or the like that needs to be called, maybe find his emergency contact sheet?”

Pam stood back up and reached for her coat. “Here, use this,” she said as she handed it over. Crossing back behind her desk she pulled out her company directory and turned to Jim’s page. The information on it almost caused her to faint as well. She’d known that Jim’s sister, Larissa, was his primary emergency contact. However, seeing her own name and information in the number two spot caused her knees to go weak and she sat down in her chair.

Checking the date on the “Last Updated” line showed he’d last filled it out after his return from Stamford. He still put me there, even though he’s got a girlfriend. What do I say to that?

“The ambulance should be here in a couple minutes,” the doc crew member announced. “I’m going to head downstairs to lead them in here. The 911 dispatcher said to keep him still and not move him around.”

Pam nodded at him as he walked out of the office. Gathering her strength, she walked back to kneel down next to Jim. As gently as she could she wrapped her hand around his. Please be alright Jim!

_____________________________________________________________________________

The words started out blurry and soft but grew louder and clearer. The blackness in his vision was also slowly starting to clear away.

“Come on back man. There you go.”

Blinking Jim tried to sit up as he responded to the voice. “What’s going on?”

A firm hand on his shoulder stopped him from rising further. “Hold on a second. My name’s Steve. I’m a paramedic. Try not to move. I’ve got a few questions to ask. How’s your breathing doing?”

Jim took a deep breath. “Fine.”

“Does anything hurt right now?”

Focusing his eyes on the medic kneeling at his side Jim took a second to see if anything was in pain. “No.”

“Do you feel dizzy at all?”

“No.”

“Lightheaded like you’re about to pass out again?”

“No.”

“Any nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea?”

“No to all three.”

“Any recent injuries?”

“No.”

Steve had pulled a small pad of paper out of the front shirt pocket on his uniform and was making notes on it while he’d been questioning Jim. During the pause Jim looked around. Another paramedic was busy wrapping a blood pressure cuff around his arm. Two of the doc crew members were standing in front of Michael’s office. However, it was the person holding his free hand that commanded his attention the most. Pam was kneeling next to him with an expression of fear, hope, and dare he say love, while lightly grasping his hand. It was the most gorgeous sight he’d ever laid eyes on. Smiling at her, he squeezed her hand harder before giving his attention back to the paramedic.

“What’s the last thing you remember before you passed out?”

Jim looked back at Pam. It looked like fear was starting to creep back into her eyes. No, not again. Not ever again. “A beautiful woman told me she loved me for the first time.”

Both Steve the paramedic and Pam let out little gasps of half laughter. Jim turned to face her and saw hope shining in her eyes. She’d sucked her lips slightly inside her mouth in an expression Jim knew was one she used to stop herself from crying. Her hand squeezed his harder to which he responded in kind.

Steve looked back at his partner who had a smile on his face and doing his best to not break out in laughter. “Okay then,” Steve replied. “Um, since you did pass out it’s our protocol to take a quick picture of your heart. I’ve got a bunch of stickers to go on your arms and legs, and then on your upper chest and around the left side of your torso.”

Steve looked up at the doc crew members and also at Pam. “Mind giving us some space. I will need to lift up his shirt for this.”

“No problem,” said one of the cameramen. He nodded at his partner. They grabbed their cameras and made their way to the small closet where the documentary equipment was stored and left the office.

“Pam can stay,” Jim told Steve as the cameramen left.

“If you say so,” Steve replied. “Go ahead and lift up your shirt for me.”

Reluctantly Jim took his hand from Pam’s and unbuttoned his work shirt before lifting up the white t-shirt underneath. Steve first put stickers with wires attached to them on Jim’s deltoids and then down by his ankles. “All good?” Jim asked.

“Yeah, but I think I need to shave off some of your chest hair,” Steve said while reaching in his med bag for a razor. “Don’t worry, it’ll grow back soon.”

At first Jim watched Steve as he trimmed some hair near the upper part of the middle of his chest and then in four more spots around his left nipple. Looking to his right he saw Pam’s gaze was intently focused on his chest.

“Hey Beesly,” he said with a smirk. “My eyes are up here!”

The joke got a laugh out of the two medics. Pam however jumped a bit at the comment. Immediately Jim saw her eyes grow wide and her face flush scarlet. He couldn’t resist another light jab.

“Wow Pam! It’s amazing! Your face is as red as your sweater!”

He couldn’t stop the grin that formed on his face as she looked back at him with a tight-lipped half-grimace half-smile that reminded him of when she’d figured out he’d used Andy to prank her.

“Your ass is about to be red from me kicking it so hard if you don’t shut it,” she warned.

“Sorry to interrupt, but I need you to hold still for a moment,” Steve interjected.

Jim just kept his smirk and eyes trained on Pam. He knew she’d been scared, but more and more he saw hope and playfulness fill her eyes. The sight did much to continue warming his heart.

“Okay, you can move again,” Steve told him as a piece of paper came out of the small printer on the bottom of his heart monitor. Jim looked over at the printout. To his untrained eye there were a dozen individual squiggly lines in four columns on the small paper. However, to Steve it must have meant something. The medic turned back to Jim after he looked over the electrocardiogram printout. “Good news is, there’s no sign of a heart attack.”

Jim nodded. “Great. Can I sit up now?”

“Sure,” Steve replied. Reaching over Steve helped Jim into a sitting position.

“What is that?” Jim pointed to the printout Steve was folding up to put in a pocket.

“It’s called a 12-lead ECG. I’ll spare you the lecture on cardiology, but those wires I put on you allow me to look at your heart from a variety of angles. By comparing some of them I can tell if you’re having a heart attack or not, which could have been a reason why you passed out. Like I said, there’s nothing that looks like that.”

Jim adopted a somewhat pensive look. “So, what you’re saying is that I don’t have a broken heart?”

Steve glanced back at his partner who threw up his hands and gave a ‘your own your own’ type of gesture. “Uhh, sure.”

“Could I have a copy of that?” Jim asked.

“Sure,” Steve repeated. After fiddling with the controls of his cardiac monitor he gave Jim a copy of the 12-lead ECG. “Since you did pass out, I do have to recommend we take you to the hospital.”

Jim pulled a face at that. “I don’t think that’s needed. I’m feeling better than I have in months.”

“If you say so,” Steve was pulling his small notepad out again. “A few more quick questions, then I’ll have you sign a few papers and we’ll be out of your hair.”

“Shoot.”

“Are you allergic to any medications?”

“Not that I know of.”

“Take any prescriptions every day?”

“Nope.”

“Any major medical conditions? High blood pressure? Stroke? Seizure? Diabetes? Things like that?”

“None.”

Steve also asked Jim for his full name, birthday, and address. He then unhooked Jim from his cardiac monitor. Finally, Steve had Jim sign two forms. One allowing the ambulance company to bill his insurance and another stating that Jim was refusing to be transported. After Pam signed as a witness the two paramedics packed up their equipment and left.

Pam put hand under Jim’s arm and helped him to his feet. “Don’t you ever do that to me again!” She swatted his arm lightly for good measure.

Jim had the good sense to laugh. “Easy Beesly! I’m a recovering heart patient.”

“Yeah sure,” she said with a hint of sarcasm as she started to re-button his dress shirt.

Reaching up Jim covered her hands with his. He waited until she looked back up at him. “Did you mean it?”

He felt his pulse start to speed up. Looking down at her, he watched as she swallowed a couple times and looked back at his chest. Finally, she tilted her head back up and met his gaze. He saw a new look of conviction in her eyes.

“Yes, Jim. I meant it. I’m in love with you.”

There was nothing else he could say. He paused for a beat to look into her eyes again. When he saw her loving expression there was only one thing to do. He wrapped his arms around her and tilted his head down. As his lips covered hers, he felt her stiffen in surprise, but that didn’t last long. At once her own arms wrapped around him as she returned his kiss with equal fervor.

How long they stayed wrapped up with each other, Jim couldn’t tell. All he knew was that he intended to enjoy every second of kissing Pam. That was until a loud voice shattered the silence of the office.

“Hey, I just saw an ambulance pull out of here...Pam! HALPERT! WHAT THE HELL!!”

Breaking from Pam, Jim turned to the doors from where the voice had come from. At that moment only one thing registered. Roy looked pissed.

Bliss. Pure, unadulterated, no-other-word-for-it bliss. Pam couldn’t think of any other way to describe the feeling of Jim kissing her. So, she didn’t. Overanalyzing things in the past had only caused heartache, so this time she wasn't going to think. She was just going to hold on to Jim and kiss him for as long as she could. She did notice things though. His hair was just as soft as she remembered it. His arms were just as warm. His lips were just as smooth as they glided over hers. He even smelled the same. The only thing that was different was the fear she’d felt last May was gone. Sure, somewhere deep down she knew there was a thing called Jim’s girlfriend, but at that moment she didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was they were together and they were kissing. That is until Roy’s angry shout caused both of them to break apart.

“Get your skinny ass away from her!” Roy bellowed as he started stomping towards them.

Oh crap, not good! Pam knew Roy was quickly building up a head of steam. He’d never been violent in the past, but his angry tirades were something she most assuredly did not miss. Casting her eyes around her she saw one of the extra trays of candy she’d set out on her desk. The whole not thinking thing came into effect again. Before she knew it, she’d grabbed a handful of mini candy canes and hurled them at Roy’s face.

Being assaulted by flying candy was the last thing Roy was expecting. His hands flew to his face as the candies bounced off. The act did get him to stop in his tracks and glare at Pam. “What the hell?”

“Roy stop it!” Pam yelled back at him as she stepped forward to put herself between Roy and Jim. “Don’t you dare try anything! Just leave us alone!”

“Leave you alone! I walk in to find that asshole making out with my girl and I’m supposed to leave you alone?!”

Pam felt shock mix in with her anger. She got over it quickly as she folded her arms across her chest and glared back at Roy. “Your girl? You’ve got to be kidding! I am not your girl! Not now! Not ever again!”

Roy glared back equally at her. “Come on Pam. You know you don’t mean that.”

If anything, the comment made Pam glare harder at Roy. “Of course, I mean that. Or was me giving back the engagement ring and telling you the wedding was off last summer not a clear enough hint? I mean I know most guys don’t get subtlety but I thought that was pretty damn clear.”

“Pam,” Roy said in a very patronizing tone. “I’ve known you since fifth grade. I know you’re angry at me. You just need time to cool down and we’ll be alright.” His hands curled into fists as he turned his attention back to Jim. “That’s right before I give this jag-off the beating that’s coming to him.”

SLAP!!

Pam was breathing hard so hard she didn’t feel the sting in her hand. For an instant she took a small bit of pleasure in the hand-sized red mark that had just materialized on Roy’s left cheek. She didn’t feel the earlier roiling anger that had sprung up with Roy’s arrival. Now it was a low but intense white flame that had her speaking with a slow chill to her voice. “Shut your damn mouth for once and pay attention.” She pointed a finger directly at his face. “For the last time, we are done, over, ended. I’m not your girlfriend, your fiancé, your anything. I tried to be nice and see if we could still be friends, but I don’t even want that anymore. The only thing we are now is co-workers. If I have to, I’ll talk to you about company related topics but that’s it.”

Roy was holding a hand to his face where Pam had slapped him. Shock was clearly written into his eyes which was slowly morphing into despair as he listened to Pam’s words. “But I’m doing everything you said. I’m working out, paying attention to you, stopped drinking, all that stuff you said you didn’t like. I even got you that book with the paintings you said you wanted. I’m doing all those changes for you.”

“I never asked you to change for me Roy,” Pam was back to having her arms crossed. “I asked you for space, which you never gave me. Coming up every day with the whole chicken or fish thing. Saying the machine downstairs was out of soda when I know for a fact it was full. I asked Daryl about it after a while. Showing up at Kelly’s Diwali party when neither you or any of the other Warehouse staff was invited. Asking me out to Poor Richards tonight. Hell! I’ll bet when you saw that ambulance leave and my car still in the parking lot you had this whole vision of grandeur thing where you’d rush in, save the day, and we’d head back your apartment where I’d just tear my clothes off and throw myself at you.
You may think you’ve changed, but it’s the same song, just a different tune. You’re still only thinking about yourself, not about me.”

“So that’s it then?” Roy looked utterly defeated. “After all the time we’ve been together you’re choosing him?”

Pam turned and looked at Jim. She quickly stepped to Jim’s side and wrapped an arm around his waist. She was more than pleased when she felt his arm drape across her shoulder. “In a heartbeat. Jim gets me in a way you never have. And spare me the whole puppy dog eyes thing. Grow up. We’re adults, not in high school anymore. It’s high time you figured that out. Now I’m going to tell you this for the last time. Leave us alone.”

Roy opened and closed his mouth a few times but made no move to leave. Pam was about to lay into him again when she felt Jim gently squeeze her shoulder. She looked up at him and caught the small shake of his head.

“Roy,” Jim’s voice was all business. “I want to remind you of a few things. First, the security camera in the corner that has video evidence that makes it very clear that you were about to attack either me or Pam. Both of which are fireable offenses. Second, I am the Assistant Manager of this branch and Daryl’s immediate supervisor. Which means I’m also your supervisor. Pam has said in no uncertain terms that, outside of any strictly professional duties, she doesn’t want to see you. If you make contact with her in any way that’s not related to your job, I can and will start workplace harassment paperwork on her behalf. I have no doubt that Toby will agree with me.”

“You can’t do that,” Roy said in a half-hearted sort of way. “We’re not on the clock right now.”

“Not on the clock maybe,” Jim told him. “But we’re still on company property. Also, part of the agreement we have with the documentary crew allows us to use that footage to investigate things like this. Do the right thing Roy. Turn around and walk away.”

Finally, Roy admitted defeat. He looked back and forth between Jim and Pam a few times before slowly he turned and walked back towards the hall. He paused for a second as he reached the door and looked back at Pam. She didn’t say anything just gave him a look that confirmed everything she’d told him. With a sigh, Roy hung his head and left the office.

Pam let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. At the same time, she heard Jim exhale as well. Adrenaline was still coursing through her veins and she started taking deep breaths in an attempt to control her racing heartbeat. It was Jim who finally broke the silence.

“Remind me never to get on your bad side Beesly. Either that or I’ll have to grow, like a full beard to give myself some cushion against your hand.”

Unbidden images jumped into Pam’s mind. Hmmm, Jim with a beard? That could be fun. I wonder what it would feel like against me? I’ll have to practice with all that lovely chest hair of his. Wait! Hold on. He’s technically still with Karen. Don’t get ahead of yourself. There’s still a lot you’ve got to work through with him. Might as well start now.

She turned to face him again. “Duly noted.” She took another calming breath. “I’m sorry you had to see that. It’s been a long time coming if I’m honest. Clearly Roy didn’t think I was serious last summer. I was hoping we’d be able to stay on good terms, but I guess not.”

Jim put his hands on her shoulders. “Don’t be sorry. What Roy did is not in any way your responsibility. But you! What you did there? Standing up for us like that? That was incredible! I mean when I think of all the times, I saw Roy blow you off and compare that to what I just witnessed? You’re amazing! Fancy New Beesly indeed!”

Pam felt her face flame at the compliment. “Thank you. I’ll have to add that the whole ‘I am the Assistant Manager,’ thing was also very attractive. I mean don’t get me wrong I love the playful prankster, but that confident decisive Jim I just saw there...” She couldn’t stop the slight shiver that ran down her arms. “You should defiantly let that side out more often.”

“As you wish,” Jim leaned down fully intent on kissing her again.

“Jim, hold on,” Pam put up a hand to stave him off. She waited until he straitened up again. “Not that I don’t love kissing you. Because I absolutely love kissing you. But, I mean, I don’t think it’s fair to anyone if we’re standing here kissing and you’re still technically with Karen.”

Jim hung his head of a moment, before looking at her again. “No, you’re right. That’s not fair. But don’t you worry about anything. I was planning on heading home for the night before all this happened. Now I think I need to make a detour over to the Hampton Inn.”

“Want me to join you?” Pam asked. “I mean not like there in the room or anything, but, like, I could drive you over there for, you know moral support.”

She saw him consider the offer for a second before he replied. “Thanks, but no. This is something I need to do on my own.”

“Okay,” she said quietly. “We have a lot to talk about. If it’s not too late after you talk to Karen, you’re welcome to come over. I don’t have any plans for the weekend and if this really is the start of you and me, I want to make sure we do it right.”

“That sounds good,” he said as he pulled her into a hug. “This is the start of you and me. I think it’s fair to say we’ve both made a few mistakes over the last year. I really want this to work, so yes, I’m on board with making sure we talk things out.”

Pam nodded into his chest. “I’m glad to hear that. Take as much time as you need. I’ll be waiting.”

Jim stepped back from his embrace. “Thank you.”

Gathering their things, they turned off the lights to the office. Jim made sure the door was locked behind them as Pam called for the elevator. Stepping in together, Jim reached out to interlace his fingers with hers. She smiled up at him, before she leaned her head on his shoulder. He walked her to her car and was about to help her brush off the traces of snow that had started collecting when she let out a quick shout.

“Oh shoot!” Her hands went to her face.

“What?!” Jim looked at her with alarm.

“Dwight!” Pam exclaimed. “He’ll be here in less than fifteen minutes for his helicopter pick-up.”

Jim shook his head. “Would you believe in all the excitement I forgot about that?”

Pam grinned back at him. “Yeah, I could see how that would have slipped your mind. What do you say we pull our cars out of the lot and watch the show before you head over to the hotel?”

“Sounds like a plan,” Jim grinned back.

In quick order they’d parked their cars around the block and walked back to hide in an alleyway across the street from their building. Right on time Dwight’s Trans Am skidded into the parking lot. Despite the cold of the night, Pam felt very warm when Jim slid his arms around her waist as Dwight let himself into the building and disappeared from view. A few minutes later they caught glimpses of his orange hunting cap pacing back and forth across the roof.

“How long do we let him stay up there?” Pam whispered.

Jim checked his watch. “It’s only been two minutes. I say we give him another ten.”

“Five,” she countered. “You still have your own rendezvous to get to you know. The sooner that’s done the better.”

“Nine.”

“Six.”

“Eight.”

“Seven, final offer.” Pam put a hand up for Jim to shake.

“Done,” Jim shook her hand as they kept their eyes back on the roof.

After the seven minutes passed, Pam sent Dwight the abort message they’d come up with. They both had to stifle their laughter when they saw Dwight’s cell phone come flying over the edge of the roof to clatter on the pavement. They stayed still until their co-worker emerged from the building. Dwight was still looking around, seemingly checking for anyone following him.

Pam looked back up at Jim as Dwight left the lot. Just a little longer, and you’ll really have him back.

He caught her staring. Bending down he placed a kiss in her hair. “Hopefully this won’t take long. I’ll be back to you soon.”

“Back to me,” she hummed. “That sounds really nice.”

“That it does Pam.”

He walked her back to her car. She watched as he walked over to his own car and slid into the driver’s seat. Hurry back to me, she thought as he drove away.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Be quick, be decisive, be clear. Things just aren’t working out between us. You’re a great woman but I can’t give you what you want in a relationship. You deserve better than that.

Jim kept rehearsing what he wanted to say to Karen as he approached her hotel door. She hadn’t given him one of the spare keycards. She’d told him it was because the Hampton Inn was supposed to be temporary. When she found a permanent apartment, she’d promised him a key of his own. That he would have no need for such a key, was a welcome relief to Jim as he knocked on the door.

All his carefully thought out lines flew out of his mind as the door opened and he saw the dark haired, towel-clad person standing in front of him.

“Jim!”

“Ryan?”

Jim could only stand in shocked surprise at the sight of the other man in the doorway. Where he would normally have a witty remark, Jim’s mind was for once blank. Ryan must have felt something similar. He was remained stock-still with one hand on the door and one hand holding his towel up. They didn’t say anything for several long seconds. That was until Karen’s voice came from further in the room.

“Ryan? Is that the front desk with the extra towels?”

Hearing her voice snapped Jim out of his trance. He pushed past Ryan and walked in the room. There was a small hallway leading past the bathroom and a closet. The single king size bed was facing away from the door. Rounding the corner Jim looked down at where she was laying naked on the bed.

“Not quite,” he said with frost in his voice.

“Jim!” Karen quickly started fumbling to cover herself with sheets. “What are you doing here?”

“What am I doing here? What is Ryan doing here?!” Before she had a chance to answer, he waved a hand at her face and glared at her. “Actually, strike that. I know exactly what he was doing here, or rather who he was doing.”

“It’s not like that,” Karen started out.

“Oh please, I’m not an idiot, it’s exactly like that.” he spat back at her. “How long?”

She tried gathering more sheets around her. “What?”

“Don’t play dumb, I know you heard me.” Jim crossed his arms. “How long?”

“A couple weeks now,” she said after swallowing hard.

Jim felt something brush behind him. Turning his saw Ryan reaching for where his clothes were laying discarded on the floor. Ryan froze under Jim’s stare.

“Hey Jim,” awkwardness was imbibed in every short syllable. “I, um, I think I’ll just, um, you know, get going.”

“No Ryan. You stay.” Jim turned to glare back at Karen. “I’m sure you two will be really happy together.” With that he turned and left the room. He was almost to his car when he heard a shout behind him.

“Jim! Please wait!” Karen was rushing up to him clad in a bathrobe and slippers. She stopped as he turned from his car. “Can’t we talk about this?”

“Really? You want to talk about how you’ve been cheating on me for two weeks? Acting like everything’s great, while sneaking around with Ryan?”

“I know Jim. I screwed up.” She tried reaching for his arm but he drew away. “But we had something good going. We can’t just give up on that.”

“Apparently it wasn’t good. Not if you’ve been inviting him into your room and your bed.”

“Actually, this is the first time Ryan’s been here,” she said as she looked at the ground.

There was no hiding the anger in Jim’s voice now. “And that’s somehow supposed to make me feel better!?”

“No,” Karen admitted. “But it’s the truth.”

“Karen,” Jim huffed as he slammed his car door to stand in front of her. “How am I supposed to trust that?” She didn’t have a reply for him, she just shuffled her feet and shivered against the snow falling. “Just tell me one thing,” Jim’s voice was softer, but still laced with anger. He waited for her to look up at him. “Why?”

“I don’t know,” she started.

“Oh bullshit!” Jim snapped.

“You want to know why?” Karen finally had some heat to her voice. “Fine! You were never going to let me in. When I saw the way, you were looking at Pam when you two set Andy on each other and how you've never looked at me like that, well I started asking around. Real great bringing me here to be your shield against the girl who broke your heart. How did you think that made me feel! Thinking no matter how long we were together I’d always be second best!
“So, when Ryan asked me out for drinks, I said sure. And you know something Jim? He’s got more ambition in his little finger that you’ll ever have. I know everyone at the office glosses over him like he’s still a temp, but he’s got ideas, visions, he’s going to go somewhere rather than a sales rep at a failing paper company!”

“No! You don’t get to turn this around on me!” Jim fired back. “You were the one cheating on me! Don’t EVER forget that. And I wasn’t using you as a shield against Pam. I was really trying to make things work between us. I was doing that before the branches merged if you remember. That day we spent looking for those chips of yours! Those times we had alone where you helped me get better at Call of Duty? The dinners we had right before the transfer? Remember those?!”

“Yeah, sure,” she scoffed. “Trying to make it work. Then what was all that crap today with Michael about being a rebound?”

Her reply caught him off guard. “What?”

It was Karen’s turn to glare now. “That conversation you had with Michael on the couch. Who were you really talking about? Michael’s fake college waitress girlfriend or me? If all I am to you is a fun distraction why the hell shouldn’t I take any guy to bed that I want?”

Jim had to take several deep breaths to prevent himself from screaming at her. The fury her words triggered was still there though. “Even if it started out like that, what I said still holds true. I was trying to be a good boyfriend to you. Then you see me having fun with another woman or having a conversation that wasn’t about you and rather than talking to me, like an adult, you thought it would be a better idea to jump into bed with Ryan.
“Ryan! The one salesman at the office who has yet to make an actual sale since he got the job months ago! Yeah, a real hotshot! Did he tell you about how he almost burned our building down last year? All those ideas and visions he has, does he have an actual business plan for any of them? Or did he just use a bunch of buzzwords and a couple strong drinks like he tried with me when he pitched them to me a while back? That MBA he’s getting? Did he or did he not tell you he’s last in his class?”

“What?” Karen shook her head. “How do you know that?”

“It’s a small office and he’s been going out with Kelly who sadly can hardly keep anything to herself.”

“Kelly,” Karen blew her lips at the thought of the perky customer service rep. “What an airhead.”

Jim hung his head and shook it before looking back up at her. “Oh, how little you know. You never met Kelly before Ryan or the camera’s showed up. Before her former boyfriend killed himself”

“He what?” Karen looked stunned.

“Killed himself. Gunshot straight through the head.” Jim mimed the action with a finger gun to his temple. “And guess who it was that walked in on the body?”

Jim could see Karen wilting. “Oh my god.”

“Before then, Kelly wasn’t anything like how she is now. She was really quiet for a long time after it happened. We tried getting her to go to a therapist, but she never did. Finally, one day she waltzed into the office the bubbly person you see today. Some of us like Oscar, Phyllis, Pam and myself have tried talking to her about what happened. She won’t mention it. Denies it happened every time it comes up.”

“I never knew...” Karen trailed off.

“And just what do you think this will do to her when she finds out? Hmmm?”

“I didn’t think...”

“Exactly!” Jim said. “Because, and I think I just realized this, you only see the outside of people. Jim’s cute but kind of a slacker so he’ll be fun to date. Phyllis has smelly perfume so I’ll avoid her. Angela’s mean so I’ll stick it to her. Kelly’s an airhead so she’s not worth my time. Michael’s an idiot so it’s okay to resent him.
“But dig deeper and you’ll find there’s a lot more to people. I may not have the highest number of clients, but I do have the most returning customers, and some of the largest single orders too. Phyllis’ perfume was a gift to her from the grandmother who raised her after her mother just up and left one day. Angela may be harsh, but she has successfully nursed more sick cats back to health and gotten more of them adopted than any private or public shelter in the county. It may be a defense mechanism, but Kelly’s personality and her willingness to listen to customers has helped me, Phyllis, Dwight, and Stanley get a lot of sales. So, much so that on more than one occasion we’ve had new customers tell us they’ve switched to us because they get a real person when they call customer service rather than a phone tree. Michael’s defiantly out there I’ll admit. But if you look past all the bluster, he’s a man with a heart of gold who truly only wants what’s best for his employees.”

His speech had drained the anger out of him. He nodded back to the hotel before turning to his car door again. “Go back inside Karen. It’s cold out here.”

“What about us?”

Jim had one foot in his car. His voice was calm when he spoke. “There is no us anymore Karen. You showed me a lot about your character tonight. Enough for me to know that’s not what I want now or long term. At least do me one favor, unless it specifically has to deal with work business, don’t talk to me for a while. Good-bye.”

He didn’t wait for a reply. He sat down in his car and left the parking lot. I guess I never really knew her at all either. Not like I know Pam. Any lingering anger in his heart started to dissipate at the thought of the curly haired receptionist. Speaking of which.

Digging his phone out of his pocket he dialed a number that had never left his speed dial.

“Jim?”

A wave of calm and a smile came over him when he heard Pam’s voice. “Hey, is that offer to come over still on the table?”

“Of course. How’d it go?”

“I’ll tell you when I get there. But I first have to ask you something.”

“Shoot.”

“How do I get to your fancy new apartment?”

His smile grew wider at the sound of her laughter. She quickly gave him directions. “Drive safe,” she told him afterwards.

“I will. See you soon Beesly.”

“You too Jim.”

Settling in for the rest of the drive, he felt his stomach start to churn. Cool it man. It’s just Pam. You’ve always been able to talk to....no! Not this time. This isn’t just Pam. This is the Pam who told you she loves you. Not the Pam who broke your heart or the Pam that was always out of reach. This is the real deal. Holy crap!

His nerves hadn’t calmed down when he arrived at her apartment complex. Before he knew it, he was knocking on her door. This time when the door opened, the sight before him was much more welcoming.

“Jim,” Pam said his name softly as she wrapped her arms through his overcoat to hold him.

Instantly his arms were around her and his nose was in her hair. As he breathed in her scent, he let out a breath that carried his nervousness away with it. There’s no hiding it this time. She really does want me.

“Come on,” Pam broke the hug and nodded to the door. “Let’s go inside.”

After slipping off his shoes, overcoat, and suit coat he followed Pam to her living room. Looking around he wasn’t surprised by what he saw. Her artwork was pinned up on walls she’d painted a soft eggshell blue. She had a small book case near her TV that held various books on art along with what he assumed were her textbooks for her art classes. Crossing over to the bookcase he picked up the teal teapot that was resting in a place of honor on top.

“I’m glad you kept this,” he said while smiling.

Pam walked up next to him. It was the first clear look he’d gotten of her since she let him inside. Her hair was down, she’d taken out her contacts, and was wearing soft pink flannel pajama pants along with a faded yellow t-shirt with a sun in the middle of it. In short, he thought she looked beautiful.

“I could never get rid of that,” she smiled and took the teapot from him to set it back down. She led him to her couch and curled her legs under her as he sat down. “So? What happened?”

Jim let out a small laugh and leaned back into the cushions. “Well, good news and bad news. The good news is that Karen and I are done. Couldn’t be any more done.”

Pam tilted her head at him. “What’s the bad news?”

“Things are going to be a lot weirder around the office.” He leaned forward to look at Pam. “When I knocked on Karen’s hotel room door, Ryan answered wearing only a towel.”

“Oh my god!” Pam’s hands shot to her mouth. “Ryan? As in Ryan Howard, from work?”

“Yeah,” Jim told her how the rest of the conversations had gone. Pam stayed silent while he spoke. She did reach out to put a comforting hand on his back and rubbed slow circles.

“Wow,” was all she could say when he was finished.

“Yeah, wow,” he agreed.

“What are you going to do?”

He blew out a long breath. “Ignore them for now if I can. This isn’t like what happened with Roy. No workplace rules were violated so I can’t do anything from that point.”

“It still sucks,” Pam told him.

“Yeah it does.”

Pam leaned forward to hug him from the side. “I’m so sorry you had to walk into that.”

Jim closed his eyes. The warmth of her body spreading into his own. It was very calming. “Thanks.”

Jim turned to pull Pam into a warm embrace. Pam pulled her glasses off so they wouldn’t dig into his shoulder. They stayed wrapped in each other’s arms.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

The raps on the door caused them to break the hug. Pam pulled her glasses back on and looked curiously at the door. “Who could that be?”

Leaving the couch, she padded over to her door and looked through the peep hole. Immediately she turned from the door with a somewhat panicked look on her face. “Just a minute!” she called back through the door.

“Pam? What’s going on?” Jim asked as she kneeled down in front of him.

“Jim you trust me, right?”

By now Jim was perplexed. “Of course, I do.”

“Okay, it’s just, I know we have a lot of talking to do about, well everything. Anyway, when you were gone, I did go out of a few dates. I haven’t seen or called any of those guys since you got back but one of them decided it would be good to just show up un-announced.”

“Is that who’s at the door?”

Pam nodded. “Yeah, I was out with Penny one night and he and a friend come up and talked to us. I met him for drinks one more time, but that’s all that happened. Anyway, he’s back and, this is kind of embarrassing, but I think you know who he is.”

Jim looked at the door for an instant before looking back at Pam. “Who?”

“Danny Cordray.”

What else could happen today? Pam felt her nerves rising again as she knelt in front of Jim. She reached out to hold his hands and looked up at him. Jim however, had perked up and looked in the direction of the door.

“Danny Cordray? Really?”

“Please don’t be mad,” she pleaded. “I swear I didn’t invite him over here tonight.”

Jim looked back down at her. “No, I believe you. You don’t want him here, though right?”

Pam vigorously shook her head. “Not in the slightest.”

“Okay then.” Jim stood up and helped Pam to her feet as well. As softly as he could he walked back to the entryway where he’d left his coats and shoes.

“Jim!” Pam hissed while following him. “What are you doing?”

When he turned back to her she saw a very familiar glint in his eye. “I’m going to head out the back door. Go ahead and answer the door, but keep your phone on you. I’ve got a feeling your Mom might be calling soon.”

With a wink Jim slipped his shoes back on and walked back through the living room Silently, he opened the slider door that led to a common grassy area behind her apartment. She watched him go for an instant before another series of knocks came from her door. Looking around she wrapped her old bathrobe around her and grabbed her cell phone before making her way back to the door.

“Danny,” she said calmly when she opened the door. “What are you doing here?”

“I was in the neighborhood.” He flashed her a thousand-watt smile, his voice dripping with charm. “I remembered that you never called me back for that next round of drinks so I figured I’d stop by and show you a good time.”

Internally Pam gagged. Ugh! First of all, you never called me back, and even if you had I would have told you I needed to wash my hair. “Yeah, well I think I lost your number.”

The corner of Danny’s mouth turned up and he reached a hand out to lean against her doorframe. “Then me stopping by is fortuitous then. How long will it take you to get ready?”

She was about to reply when she felt her phone buzz in her pocket. Jim that better be you. Reaching for the phone she held up a finger as she flipped it open. “Excuse me just one second.”

“Of course,” Danny grinned back.

Pam turned slightly away from her uninvited guest. “Hello?”

“Hey honey, it’s Mom,” Jim’s voice came from the speaker. Even though he was doing his best woman’s voice imitation, the sound, instantly caused a wave of relief to pass through Pam. “Just calling to see how you’re doing. I know you had that rash you were worried about.”

Their years of being pranking partners stood her well. As much as she wanted to burst out laughing, she held it together. That’s how you’re taking this? Game on. “Yeah, Mom, thanks for calling. That rash cleared right up. The cream made going to the bathroom feel kind of weird but that’s all taken care of.”

Glancing up at Danny with an apologetic look, she saw his smile had faltered a touch. She held her hand over the speaker. “Sorry it’s my Mom.”

Danny recomposed himself. “Don’t worry about it take your time.”

Giving Danny a thankful look she lowered her hand again. “No, I really appreciate you calling me. Thanks for checking in. I was actually going to call you. I got your email about Daddy. Why didn’t you tell me he’s having more flashbacks? Last time he went on a rant about how war made him paranoid and he thought his Agent Orange was acting up again. I mean we got the charges dropped last time, but I don’t think the judge is going to be as lenient again. And think of Penny! She hasn’t been on a date since the incident either.”

On the other end of the line she only heard Jim’s laughter at her story. Looking back up at Danny, she was quite pleased to see his former confident smirk now had a touch of nervousness to it as he swallowed deeply. She decided to keep going. “Oh, Penny’s dating again? Is it that guy she met, what’s-his-name, the guy who’s the enforcer for the Scranton Penguins?”

Jim’s continuing laughter gave her the confidence to continue. “I don’t know. Maybe. Hold on let me check.” She put her hand over the speaker again and faced Danny directly. “I might be willing to go get drinks tonight. You don’t mind half off-Bud Light pitcher night at Pizza by Alfredo do you? We’ll have to share a booth with Penny’s new boyfriend. He’s missing a couple teeth, but according to my Mom, Penny says he’s a sweetheart.” She rolled her eyes for a moment before going on. “I mean he is leading the team in penalty minutes, but good for us his most recent suspension means we could double, right?”

Danny was starting to take a few nervous steps backwards. Inwardly, Pam felt a surge of justification when she saw the nervousness was gone from Danny’s eyes, replaced now by fear. “I, um, actually, just remembered I have a sales conference early tomorrow.”

“Oh? You’re going?” Pam said with an almost hopeful tone.

Danny pointed a thumb over his shoulder and started to turn away. “Yeah, I mean,-ooff!”

Barely avoiding slipping on the walk that had a dusting of snow on it, Danny turned to face what he’d run into. “Excuse you,” Jim told him with a calm voice and raised eyebrows.

“Sorry, I was just, I mean, I uh...” Danny stammered as he struggled to regain his composure.

“You were just what?” Jim asked in a friendly tone. When Danny didn’t reply Jim continued. “Because it looks like you were just talking to my girlfriend, which is odd considering I know she didn’t invite you over tonight. Do you normally make a habit of that? Just randomly showing up to women’s houses, alone, and uninvited?”

Danny looked quickly back and forth between Jim and Pam. “Girlfriend? I’m sorry I didn’t know!”

Jim had walked around the other man to stand at Pam’s side. He snaked an arm around her waist. Pam put her own arm around Jim’s waist as well. “Maybe you should have thought of that before you just decided to show up here without even bothering to call first,” she said. “I mean do have any idea how much of a sleezeball you look like right now? You didn’t call me back last summer. Then out of nowhere you just appear at my door and say we’re going out on a date. I’m half tempted to go down to the police department and swear out a restraining order against you for stalking.”

“It’s not like that!” Danny waved his hand at them.

“Then what is it like?” Jim asked.

Danny was again stuck for an answer since he’d been completely thrown off his game.

“Come on Jim,” Pam said with one last glace at the Danny. She turned to move back into her apartment. “Let’s go back inside.”

“Glady,” Jim agreed. “See ya around Danny.”

Together they walked back inside and shut the door. As soon as the latch clicked Pam launched herself into Jim’s arms. “That was great!”

Jim playfully rocked her from side to side before leaning back to look at her. “You were great. All that about your Dad, and the hockey player!”

“We were great!” Pam amended while smiling up at him. “Just like we’ve always been.”

“You’re absolutely right,” he agreed. Jim’s smile faded and he hung his head a touch. “Can you ever forgive me for doubting that?”

“Hey,” she said softly and tilted his chin back up. “Of course, I can. Just as long as you can forgive me. I was just so scared after everything last spring. That’s one of the reasons why I never called or anything. I was sure the last thing you wanted was to hear from me.”

“Oh Pam,” Jim pulled her back into a close hug. “Of course, I forgive you.”

“Thank you,” she whispered into his shoulder. If there was any pain or fear left lingering from the last few months, it completely melted away as he held her. Leaning back from the hug she waited while he took his shoes and coats off again. Once more she led him to her couch and snuggled in next to him.

Jim rubbed his hand up and down her shoulder. “I lied to Karen tonight.” He said softly.

“About what?” she asked without looking up at him.

“When she accused me of just using her as a rebound relationship. I told her it wasn’t, but really it was.”

Pam took a deep breath. “We all make mistakes Jim.”

He squeezed her shoulder. “I know. But on the way over here I starting thinking about that whole concept, rebound. In basketball if you get a rebound it means that someone screwed up because they missed their shot. Depending on who gets the ball back, you have two choices. Run away from the basket, or post up and take another shot and try and score. I’m done running. If this is my rebound it’s high time I posted up. But this time it’s you who’s giving me the chance to take another shot. Thank you so much for that.”

“I only did, because of you,” she admitted.

“What do you mean?”

“I was hurting all summer long Jim.” She sat up to look at him. “After Casino Night, I was lost. I mean it’s safe to say you completely shook up my world that night and afterwards after you left. I was sad, hurt, and most of all mad at you. You gave me this wonderful glimpse of what life could be like, but I was too scared to grab it. Then you just left. I knew I had hurt you just as much as you hurt me. That’s the other big reason I didn’t call. After I called off the wedding, I thought you might say something. When you didn’t, I thought the Jim I’d come to know and love was gone forever. Especially when I’d read in the monthly company newsletter how much Stamford’s numbers were improving and them giving you all the credit. The Jim I knew didn’t throw himself into his job like that. Then something changed and I felt the first glimmer of hope again.”

“What was that?”

She looked down for a second before looking back up again. “When you sent Dwight that gaydar.”

He admission cut a lot of the tension that had built up between them. Jim felt his face breaking into a smile at the memory. “That’s right! I almost forgot about that.”

“It was great.” Pam smiled too. “At first I was kind of sad. I mean you’d always told me about your pranks before you did them. To not know it was coming at first reminded me of everything I’d lost with you. But then I realized that if you could still pull off pranks as good as that, the Jim I fell in love with was still there somewhere. I felt the same thing when you’d send Dwight those faxes from his future self.
“When he got that first one about the poisoned coffee is when I started the CIA prank. If you could prank him, well so could I. Then when you came back I, and especially after we sicked Andy on each other I knew I had to let you know about the CIA thing. Even after you told me you were dating Karen; my Jim was still in there somewhere.  It hurt again when you at first rejected it, but then there you were again. Leaning over my desk like always. I didn’t plan on telling you what I did, but I couldn’t say anything else.”

“I’m so glad you did,” Jim pulled her close to him again. “I never stopped loving you.”

Jim’s words were music to her ears. She closed her eyes tight and buried her face into his chest again. If being that impulsive can lead to this, then the hell with it. “Would you like to stay the night?”

She felt him stiffen up in surprise. “Umm, wow! I mean I’d have to go home for an overnight bag-”

“No,” She cut him off gently and looked back up him. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. Clothes stay on, or underwear at least, but I just don’t want you to leave tonight.”

He leaned down and kissed her softly. “Of course, I’ll stay.”

They decided to table any further discussions for the next morning. Pam insisted they start their sleepover, as she called it, by curling up under a blanket and watching Miss Congeniality. After the movie she led him to her bedroom and they stripped to their underwear. Jim clad only in boxer briefs, Pam in a white cami and black panties.

She traced the bald spots on his chest where the paramedic had earlier shaved him while they got settled under the covers facing each other. “You look kinda funny like this.”

He smirked back at her. “Well don’t get used to it. It should grow back soon. Though I am glad of one thing about being shaved like that.”

“What’s that?” she smirked back.

“I have definite proof I don’t have a broken heart anymore,” he said with a grin.

Pam shook her head at him. “Such a dork.”

“But I’m your dork.”

“Hmmm,” she hummed. “That sounds wonderful.” She was quiet for a few seconds before a new thought came to her. “Jim?”

“Yeah?”

“What are we going to do on Monday at work? I mean Ryan and Karen will still be there and everything. That’s going to be real awkward.”

“Don’t worry Pam,” he said confidently. “I’ve got a plan.”

A flashing task bar on his computer screen caused Jim to look up from the TPS report the IT department had sent over. He grinned when he saw it was in the inter-office IM program notifying him that the message he’d just sent had a reply. A program he hadn’t used in a long time. Now however he realized it was going to be up and open on his desktop almost constantly, just as it once had been.

Pbees: Really? That’s your big plan? Kick Ryan back to the Annex and ignore Karen? I had such high hopes for you.
Jhalp: I never said it was a complicated plan. Question; why IM? We’re the only ones here right now.
Pbees: Cause it’s fun!
Jhalp: You are so lucky you’re adorable.
Pbees: I know. : D
Jhalp: Also, you looked quite pleased when we got in this morning and I detailed my new vision for the layout around the office.
Pbees: That was not me looking pleased, that was me looking surprised.
Jhalp: A good surprise?
Pbees: One of the best. : ) You’re back where you belong.

Pam’s message made Jim smile all the more. Even though she was only five feet from his desk and they were the only ones in the office this early, he knew she was right. This return to one of the familiar elements of their relationship had his heart glowing. Glancing up and to his right, he caught her warm smile.

The door opening had her tone down the smile as she looked at who was coming in. Jim saw her face grew worried just before Ryan came around the corner to see Jim sitting at the desk. The same desk he’d once occupied before leaving for Stamford.

“Uh, hey Jim,” Ryan started out nervously. “Um, you’re in my chair.”

“Actually, I’m not,” Jim swiveled his chair to face Ryan. “I’m in my chair at my desk. Your desk and chair have been moved to help better distribute the work load around here. See I was looking at our sales numbers for the year. After breaking them down by sales rep I saw an inconsistency. All our sales reps have maintained or grown their numbers, even with accounting for the merger. All of them, except you. So, I decided to-”

“Jim, come on man,” Ryan interrupted. “It’s not my fault every time I call a client, they hang up on me.”

“I wasn’t finished,” Jim said calmly. Ryan wisely closed his mouth, though he kept the annoyed look on his face. “So, I decided to look into this a bit more,” Jim went on. “It seems like some of the potential clients you’ve called were put off by what they called, among other things, a brusque attitude with you over the phone. I talked to Michael over the weekend and he agrees with me. Since you’re not filling all of your time getting new or keeping old clients and since there’s complaints about how you deal with customers, we’re going to relocate your work station so you can get some more training on how to deal with customers.”

Ryan’s eyes darted around the office. “Where’s that?” he asked after he didn’t see his desk.

“Follow me,” Jim told him and stood up to begin walking towards the kitchen.

“Jim! No! Come on man! Not back there!” Ryan protested as the realization of where his desk was dawned on him.

Jim just held the kitchen door open for Ryan. “After you.”

Reluctantly Ryan walked through the kitchen and into the Annex. Peering around the corner, he saw his desk in the same cubicle as Kelly’s. “This is about Friday night, isn’t it?” Ryan turned on Jim with a slight glare. “This is you punishing me for that. Well I’ll have you know neither I or Karen broke any company rules so if this is punishment, I’ll go right to David Wallace at Corporate for unfair managerial tactics.”

“This only way this is about what happened this weekend is if you make it like that,” Jim said from where he was leaning against the doorway to the kitchen. He had his arms crossed in a very nonchalant expression. “I’m not filing any disciplinary paperwork. This move is to get you the customer service training you need to be a better salesman. You’ll also be helping Kelly with her work since she’s been swamped lately. And I thought you’d welcome a change of location. Being right outside Michael’s office all day? I figured you’d jump at the chance to get away from that.”

With a sigh, Ryan dropped his coat and bag on his chair. “Fine.”

Jim returned to the main office and sat down at his desk. Several others had filed in by now. On reaching his desk, Jim noticed the IM icon was flashing again.

Pbees: How’d he take it?
Jhalp: He said me moving him back there was punishment for Friday and he’d go to David Wallace at Corporate.
Pbees: Wow! Even jumping over Jan with that one.
Jhalp: I’m not worried. If he does go to Wallace, I doubt the CFO of the company is going to raise a stink about the seating arrangements here in Scranton. I wasn’t lying to Ryan about the complaints or anything about him.
Pbees: Are you feeling okay?
Jhalp: Fine, why do you ask?
Pbees: I don’t think I’ve seen you voluntarily get into any sort of managerial thing like this since you came back is all. Just want to make sure you don’t have a brain injury or something.
Jhalp: Well, I have good reason to keep things running smoothly around here. After all I just got the best view in the office again. I wouldn’t want to change that.
Pbees: Did I ever mention how attractive I find Managerial Jim?

“What is this?!”

Further online discussion between the two of them was curtailed as Dwight arrived. Looking up Jim saw his trench coat clad co-worker stopped in his tracks by the corner of Michael's office.

“What’s what Dwight?” Jim asked pleasantly.

“The desks, they’re changed.” Dwight was glaring. “Explain!”

Jim leaned back in his chair since by now Dwight had walked forward and had blocked his view of Pam’s desk. “Just a little bit of reorganization.”

“Why wasn’t I notified! As the ranking number three in this office it’s imperative that I’m consulted before any changes are made. There could be security risks.”

“Security risks?” Jim gave Dwight a curious look. “Like what?”

“Covert listening devices, hidden cameras, false floors, drop ceilings,” Dwight explained as if he were teaching a five-year-old. “Do you know nothing of tradecraft?”

Jim was about to reply when Pam spoke up. “Dwight! A fax came in for you over the weekend.” She looked down at the sending information. “Looks like it’s from a place in Virgina. Quantipo or Quanzito or something like that.”

Dwight turned on a dime to look at Pam. He had an expectant look on his face. “Do you mean Quantico? Home of Marine Corps Base Quantico, home of the FBI Training Academy?”

“Uhh, sure,” Pam said in a slightly confused way while holding the fax. “Do you want it or not?”

Stalking over to the reception desk, Dwight swiftly grabbed the sheet from Pam. Casting suspicious glances over the rest of the staff, before slipping away through the kitchen doors. Jim watched Dwight leave before turning his attention back to Pam. The smug grin on her face had Jim getting up and travelling the familiar path to her desk. He leaned over the counter and snagged a few jelly beans.

“Care to share the reason for the grin with the rest of the class Ms. Beesly?”

Pam gave him a wide toothy grin. “Well, since the CIA isn’t interested in Agent Beets anymore, I figured the FBI could come calling next.”

Jim smiled back at her. “You are simply amazing.”

“Thank you,” she smiled back. “Now off with you. I have to print off the entry form for that art contest I told you about.”

“Would you like some company today during lunch when you drop it off?” Jim thumped her desk as he straightened up.

“Only on two conditions. One, that said company leaves my desk so I can get this form filled out,” she said without looking away from her monitor. “And two, said company also buys lunch in the form of fries and a Frosty from Wendy’s.”

“I’m sure that can be arranged,” he smiled back before turning back to his own desk.

It’s so good to be back, he mused before tossing aside the useless TPS report and pulling up the day’s cold call sheet.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Jim! Where are you? This is the biggest news in the history of ever! Pam was just shy of bouncing in her seat. The previous month had been the best of her life. After Karen had transferred to a position at Corporate there was decidedly less awkwardness in the office. The fact she and Jim hadn’t told anyone they were dating made their relationship sweeter in her mind. They’d been able to heal their various emotional hurts without having to worry about nosy co-workers. Now she had news that would put the final icing on the cake. Finally, her wish was granted as Dwight and Jim returned from the sales calls they’d been on. Just as she knew he would, Jim waited for Dwight to walk past to deliver the new contracts to Accounting.

“You look happy,” Jim said while leaning over the reception desk.

She couldn’t keep the grin off her face. “The school called back today about the contest.”

Jim’s eyebrows raised in what Pam always thought was the most adorable way. “Yeah?”

“I won,” she said simply even though she was beaming.

“Pam!” Jim’s face lit up with joy as he walked around the desk. “That’s amazing!”

She was only halfway out of her chair when she felt his arms around her as he pulled her up into a warm embrace. “Thanks,” she said into his chest as he rocked her back and forth.

What she really wasn’t expecting was the short, but still sweet kiss he planted on her lips. “This is a big deal,” he said after he leaned back. She met his blazing smile. That is until Michael’s voice cut in.

“No way!”

Instantly Pam felt her face flame as she and Jim remembered where they were. Looking across the office, every eye was on them. The urge to cove her face with the nearest set of faxes was strong, prevented only by the reassuring feel of Jim’s arm around her waist.

“You guys are together?” Phyllis asked.

Pam didn’t think she’d be able to form a coherent response. Fortunately, she was saved from speaking since Jim piped up instead.

“Umm....yeeep,” he drawled out. “Yes, we are.”

Later Pam realized the reactions to Jim’s news were nothing less than what she could have expected from her co-workers. Dwight and Angela both made what they thought were cutting remarks. Phyllis grinned broadly. Michael went on some crazy speech with her only remembering something about eagle’s nests. Kelly’s high-pitched squeak of delight and demands to know every detail did prove a bit much on reflection. Fortunately, by now it was past three so she and Jim only had to endure less than two hours of work before they were free.

“My place or yours?” he asked as she finished shutting down her computer once five o’clock rolled around.

“Yours,” she said while setting the phones to voicemail. “Can we just pick up some take out on the way back?”

“No problem.”

A half hour later, Thai take out boxes in hand, they were kicking their shoes off in Jim’s entryway.

“What do you want to do tonight? Watch TV? Maybe a movie?” she asked as she flopped on to the couch and set her box of food on his coffee table.

“I actually had an idea about that on the way over here. Wait here for a second,” Jim smirked. He disappeared up the stairs. Pam heard him rummaging around in a closet before he returned to the living room.

“In honor of the elementary kids who have such fine artistic sense, I propose an old school night of classic video games.”

Jim set down the box he was carrying in front of her. Peering inside, Pam felt a bubble of laughter escape her. A Super Nintendo system with a variety of games rested within the box. “You’re such a dork,” she teased back at him.

“I’ve never tried to convince you otherwise,” he said proudly. Reaching into the box he pulled out the console and controllers. “Go ahead and pick out a few games while I get this set up.”

The typical titles were there. Super Mario World, Mario Kart, Donkey Kong Country, Legend of Zelda, Star Fox. It was a rather obscure title that caught her eye though. She pulled it out to examine the cartridge and caught Jim’s eye as he finished plugging in cords.

“This one first,” she handed him the game.

“Really?” he looked questioningly at the label.

She smiled sweetly at him. “If we’re going to have an old school game night, nothing says old school like a game based on a cheesy Sylvester Stalone movie.”

Jim was grinning as he pulled the game out of its sleeve and blew on it for good measure. “Great choice,” he grinned back as he plugged in the game. “Hope you’re ready to get blown away Beesly.”

“Bring it on Halpert,” she challenged as the title came on the screen.

CLIFFHANGER!