‘You’ve got to take a chance Pam, you deserve to be happy,’ was ringing in Pam’s ears as she turned her key in the lock, before opening her door. She hesitated, now was her last chance, if she didn’t do something now the moment would be lost, and she might never have the courage to do this again. Pam turned around.

“Hey Jim, can I ask you a question,” Pam asked, even as all questions that she wanted to blurt out were whirring through her mind.

‘Why do you always invite Larissa?’

‘How are you so awesome?’

‘Why did you never like Roy?’

‘Why didn’t you kiss me back?’

“Sure, shoot,” Jim said, leaning against the siding next to the steps and looking her dead in the eyes with something that she couldn’t quite place, but she hoped for once it was what she thought it might be.

‘Do you know just how much your friendship means to me? What it means to me?’

‘Do you ever think about being more than best friends?’

‘How come you haven’t dated in ages? Is it because you feel this too?’

‘Would you please kiss me?’

‘Do you have any idea what just your hugs do to me?’

‘Did you get my Dundie changed?’

‘Crap, crap, crap – Say something Pam!’

“What is your type,” Pam finally asked, having resolved to just blurt out the next question that came to mind, consequences be damned.

Jim didn’t know what he was expecting Pam to ask, but that certainly wasn’t it.

“What,” he asked dumbly, refusing to get his hopes up with where Pam was going with this, she was drunk. Sure, she had kissed him tonight, but that was after a beer, two margaritas, and a surprise Dundie change.

“Do you remember that day in the kitchen… just before I broke up with Roy?” Jim nodded, noticing the trepidation leaking into Pam’s demeanor

“You looked at me to let me in on the joke… and – so … I just need to know what your type is,” Pam struggled to get out, the fear of ruining their friendship clamping down on her throat.

Jim didn’t speak for a moment, that was certainly not where he had expected this to be going. Did that mean that Pam felt it too? As Jim was pondering this, he noticed the fear on Pam’s face and the tears welling in her eyes. ‘She has feelings for me! After all this time, I’ve been afraid for nothing!’ Jim crowed internally, lost in his thoughts.

‘Oh my god, I’ve done it – I’ve misinterpreted everything and ruined my relationship with Jim,’ was running through Pam’s head as Jim just stood there looking dumbstruck. She felt tears rolling down her cheeks before finally a sob broke free from her constricted throat, and she buried her face in her hands.

Jim was shaken from his thoughts by her sob, and his eyes focussed again to find her with her face buried in her hands, crying.

“No, no – hey, don’t cry,” Jim said as he stepped forward and wrapped her in a hug, rubbing what he hoped were comforting patterns on her back.

“You have no idea – how much your friendship means to me,” Pam managed to gasp out between sobs, “And now I’ve ruined it!”

“Hey, no, don’t do that Pam, it’s you, ok?”

“What?” Pam asked with a sniffle as she finally looked up at his face, seeing concern and… adoration?

“My type, Pam, is you – It’s always been you,” Jim said as he squeezed her shoulders, hoping that he hadn’t misinterpreted her distress, because then he would be the one ruining the friendship.

Jim pressed on regardless, “Pam, you are just so awesome, you are – the kindest, warmest, funniest person I know, and you’re beautiful, and … my best friend.”

Pam buried her head in the warmth of his embrace and squeezed back, too overcome with emotion to add anything at that moment. Jim seemed to sense this, and Pam recalled when she had mentally listed all his attributes that she loved.

‘How did it take me this long to realise this,’ Pam thought with an internal guffaw, ‘I don’t just love his attributes – I love him!’

Her immediate thoughts after that were that she could not tell him this while drunk, and she needed to find a way to tell him as soon as she was sober.

Jim found himself spiralling in her silence, what did it mean? Did Pam like him too?

‘Of course she likes you, she’s your best friend,’ he thought, scoffing internally, ‘What you really need to be asking yourself is –”

“Why didn’t you kiss me back,” Jim hears Pam ask in a small voice, ripping him out of his internal monologue, and he looks down to see her eyes searching his face.

“Well if I’m being completely honest,” Jim trailed off, trying to decide how honest he wanted to be, before settling on brutally, “I was still in shock that my beautiful best friend had kissed me – on the lips.”

“You have no idea what you do to me when you kiss me on the cheek,” Jim pressed on, “The lips was just… wow.”

Pam giggled, “Do you want a redo? I’m sure it could be arranged.”

“You know, as much as I’d love to, for the sake of science we should schedule the next one for when you’re sober, so we can compare” Jim shot back with a laugh tinging his voice.

“Oh!” Pam gasped, “There is something I really want to tell you when I’m sober,” Pam exclaimed with a huge smile, and Jim felt like his heart had skipped a beat.

“Oh really,” Jim raised an eyebrow in challenge, “Well it better be good, because there is something that I really want to tell you too.”

“I want to go to bed so I can be sober,” Pam complained suddenly, pouting at up at him.

“Well then why don’t you,” Jim asked, his amusement colouring his voice.

“Because I don’t want to let go of you,” Pam explained, “You give the best hugs, like a giant lanky teddy bear,” she said, burying her face against his chest.

“Ok drunky,” Jim said playfully, “Let’s get you to bed!” Jim proceeded to move his arm lower and scooped Pam up off her feet, lifting her into the house.

Pam let out a shriek, before bursting into a fit of giggles, unable to say anything to admonish him. Not that Pam was really upset by this turn of events, but sober Pam would have wanted her to admonish Jim.

“Come on Beesly, you have to let go if you’re going to sleep,” Jim said with a laugh as he laid her down on the bed, she didn’t remove her arms from around his neck.

“It’s hard to fall asleep when you’re lonely,” Pam mumbled back, her head turned towards a pillow.

“You know I’d love to stay Pam, but I can’t, I don’t want you to think that I’m taking advantage of you,” Jim said earnestly.

“You wouldn’t be, I’d be taking advantage of you,” Pam said with a giggle after rolling her head back to look him in the eyes.

“Wow, fancy new Beesly indeed,” Jim chuckled, “And that is why I cannot stay, I want to do this right Pam, this – us – is a big deal to me.”

Pam let out a big sigh, “Me too.”

“Tell you what, how about I come back tomorrow morning and make you some breakfast,” Jim offered.

“Stay with me until I fall asleep,” Pam asked drowsily.

“As you wish,” Jim said as Pam finally let go of him, scooting herself over on the bed and under the covers.

Jim sat against the headboard over the covers as Pam got comfortable, and she reached for his hand and interlaced their fingers, causing the warmth in Jim’s heart to practically overflow as he felt himself flush.

It couldn’t have been more than ten minutes before Jim was confident that Pam was sleeping, but her grip on his hand remained. When Jim heard Nikita whining at the back door to be let out, he regretfully disentangled their hands and got up to let her out. Jim looked back as he left the bedroom and saw Pam’s arm stretched out across the space he had vacated.

Jim let Nikita out the back door, and watched as she happily trotted to the bedroom, and jumped up onto the bed to fill the void he had left. Pam turned in her sleep and wrapped her arms around the dog, and Jim wished that it was him. Jim locked the back door, and after confirming the location of the spare key he had been shown over the summer, he locked the front door and walked home, the cool night air helping to clear his thoughts. Jim went to sleep with a smile on his face as soon as his head hit the pillow.