A/N: Thanks to all the positive reviews on "Stealing Cinderella", I decided to do a series of one shots from Jim's POV. This is only my second story so any feedback, including constructive criticism is appreciated.
Jim checked his watch for probably the tenth time in the last five minutes. "Where is she?" he wondered aloud, tapping his thumbs nervously on the steering wheel. Just as he was about to reach for his cell phone, the silver Honda he had been waiting on finally pulled into the parking lot. Jim climbed out of his car and rushed around to greet the short brunette that emerged from the other car. "Emily!" he exclaimed.
"Hey Jim!" the girl wrapped her arms excitedly around his neck as he lifted her slightly off the ground with his return hug. "Sorry I'm late. But you know better than anyone that I'm never on time for anything!"
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure anyone who's ever met you knows that," Jim teased.
"So, what is this top secret mission you've been telling me about?" Emily asked, cocking her head curiously to the side.
"That, my dear," Jim began as he opened the passenger's side door of his car, "will all be revealed in due time."
"Whatever Jim!" Emily took a seat in Jim's car and peered curiously at him as he walked around to his side and climbed in. "You'd better talk fast, Halpert."
One hour and about three stops later, Jim and Emily had their plan in full swing. However, things weren't exactly going their way.
"You know Jim…you really shouldn't be so picky," Emily commented.
"Oh really?" Jim began to respond. "This is only one of the most important decisions of my life! I have every right to be picky!"
"You've already said 'no' to about 15 different options. There's only so many to pick from!"
"Well, when I find the right one, I'll know. Besides, it's not like being picky hasn't paid off for me before!"
Emily nodded in understanding. "Well, I'm trying to help here but I'm not exactly sure what you're looking for."
Jim made a face that told Emily he was deep in thought. "I need to find something that nobody could say 'no' to."
"Well, that helps a bit. Why don't we try that place over there?" Emily asked, pointing to a store a little ways down the road on their right.
"I guess it's worth a try." Jim moved over into the right lane and pulled into the parking lot of the store. "Let's see if we can finish this mission up!"
Twenty minutes later, the pair were leaving the store, still empty-handed. "I had no idea this would be so hard!" Jim sighed with disappointment.
"That's what she said," Emily answered, sneaking a glance at Jim before erupting into a fit of giggles.
"Never, EVER again!" Jim answered with a laugh, putting his arm around Emily's shoulders and pulling her into a quick hug.
Suddenly, a new voice broke into the conversation. "Halpert?"
Jim froze dead in his tracks, turning slowly to face the direction of the man's voice. "Hey Roy," he said as the man walked closer. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, I was just bringing in Pam's ring. You know, to get it cleaned," Roy answered.
"Pam's ring? Didn't she give that back to you almost two years ago?"
"Yeah, but I figured I'd better get it cleaned before I pulled it out again."
"Pulled it out again? Wait! You're not actually proposing to someone else with that ring are you?" Jim asked in disbelief.
"Well, what else am I supposed to do with it? Put it in a scrapbook or something? At least my new girl will appreciate it."
"You know what? I'm not even going to waste my breath on you. Come on, Em. We've got a few more stops to make," Jim responded, leading Emily away from the store, all the while trying not to laugh at how idiotic Roy was.
"Oh, so I guess little Pammy wasn't enough for you either, huh Halpert? You had to go find yourself another hot body to cozy up to!" Roy yelled after them.
Emily noticed Jim's hands balling into fists and gently laid her hand on his arm. "Don't worry about him Jim. He's not even worth it."
"No, but Pam is," Jim said gently before turning on his heel to face Roy again. "Look man, I don't know what your problem is but for your information, Pam and I are perfectly happy together. Don't blame me just because you were a jerk to her. She's always deserved better than you."
"Oh, you mean like you?" Roy accused him. "What exactly do you have that I don't?"
"I am not even going to honor that with a response. Now if you'll excuse me, we have some things to take care of. See you around Roy."
Jim turned around again as he and Emily headed off toward the car. They continued to ignore Roy's outbursts as they climbed in the car and drove away.
"Sorry about that," Jim said, breaking the silence that had set in the car. "Roy's never been what you would call polite."
"Don't worry about it Jim. Let's just see if we can accomplish this mission by the end of the day."
Jim nodded solemnly and drove on to their next destination.
After trying every possible store in Scranton, Jim headed to the next town over to try their luck. They finally spotted a store that looked promising just off the highway. Just as Jim was making the turn into the parking lot, his cell phone rang. "It's Pam," he said, putting his finger over his lips as a gesture for Emily to keep quiet. She nodded and climbed out of the car, pointing toward the store to indicate she would wait inside.
"Hey sweetie," he said as he answered the phone.
"Hey babe. What are you doing?" Pam asked him sweetly.
"Oh, you know, just out running some errands. What are you up to?"
"Well, my mom just drove in for a surprise visit. I thought I'd call and see if you wanted to join us for a late lunch."
"Oh, you know I'd love to but I don't think I'll be able to make it. I still have a ton of stuff to do. How about we all have dinner tonight? Anywhere you guys want, my treat!"
"Well, I guess that'll work. I was really hoping to see you earlier today though. I miss you!"
"Pam, it's Saturday afternoon. I just saw you less than 12 hours ago."
"I know! But I still miss you! Don't you miss me?" she teased him.
Jim's face broke into a huge grin. The love he felt in his heart threatening to explode from within him. Had he known five years ago just how good it felt to be with her, he would have told her how he felt a lot sooner. He thought back to all the missed chances and longing stares, the awkward discussions and occasional touches. Those touches that had made him feel as though he were on fire.
The first time his lips touched hers at The Dundies, when he thought his knees would give out from under him before he made it back to his chair.
The kiss they had shared on Casino Night after he had offered her his whole heart, only to have her pull away at the last second, leaving him with empty hands and a broken heart.
The first time she had said "yes" to going on a date with him. He was practically floating like Dwight in Second Life when he left the office that day.
The first time he had walked her to her door after an evening of long talks and laughter.
The first time he had kissed her when he was really and truly allowed to. The feel of her fingers running gently through his hair as his hand teased the curls that cascaded down her back.
The first time they had spent the night together. They had merely fallen asleep on the couch while watching "Stranger Than Fiction". To Jim, it had felt as if life couldn't be more perfect.
"Jim? You do miss me don't you?" Pam's voice finally snapped him back to reality.
"Of course I do sweetie! I promise I will come see you just as soon as I'm done with everything. I'll try to hurry, ok?" Jim replied with a smile that he knew she could hear in his voice.
"Ok. I guess I'll see you in a little while then. I love you."
Those three words still left Jim breathless every time he heard them. The emotions that surged through him made him feel like he could do anything.
"I love you too, Pam."
As Jim made his way into the store, he spotted Emily frantically waving at him from her spot at the end of the row of glass cases. He began making his way over to the young brunette, gazing at the treasures held within the cases as he passed by them.
"I think we have a mission accomplished!" Emily said giddily as Jim moved to stand next to her.
Jim looked down to where Emily pointed in the case. "You're sure?" he asked.
"Definitely!" she answered, bouncing up on her tiptoes for emphasis.
"Alright, let's take a look." Jim gave Emily a wink and flagged down the nearest salesman.
"Yes sir. How can I help you?" the salesman asked.
"I'd like to take a look at this ring right here, " Jim said with a smile, pointing at the diamond solitaire.
An hour later, Jim and Emily were back in the car, this time holding a small black bag that housed the object of their mission for the day. Emily reached into the bag, pulling out the black velvet box it contained. "Wow! Jim, this is an amazing ring!" Emily exclaimed as she opened the box. "I don't think she could say 'no' to this if she wanted to!"
Jim gave her a pointed stare.
"Not that she would want to say 'no'!" she teased. "Seriously though. You did a great job. And I had a lot of fun today! Even if that jeweler thought I was your girlfriend!"
Jim burst into laughter. "Yeah, the look on his face when I told him you were my sister was priceless!"
"Maybe we should have played along with it!" Emily continued to laugh.
"You are seriously disturbed!" Jim shook his head at his baby sister. After a few moments, the laughter subsided and Jim turned in his seat to talk to her seriously. "Thanks for all your help today, Em. I seriously don't think I could have done this without you. I'm sure Pam will want to thank you too when she sees this ring. Without you, I probably would have come back with some hideously ugly thing."
"Yeah, this one is pretty awesome." Emily took the ring gently out of the box and studied it closely. It was a princess cut diamond solitaire on a white gold band. The sunlight caught the sparkling diamond, bouncing off of it with blinding beauty. "She's gonna love it! I'm sure you would have done just fine without me but I still appreciate you asking me to help."
"Here's to a mission accomplished!" Jim said, holding his hand up for a high five, which Emily gladly returned.
"Alright. Let's get back home. You have a future wife to go see!" Emily winked at her brother as he backed out of the parking space. The beaming smile on his face told her everything she needed to know. Her brother had found the love of his life and that smile wouldn't easily be erased anytime soon.