Summary: Jim and Kelly play games. Someone will get hurt, and it won't be Ryan. No spoilers, but everything up to and including "Take Your Daughter to Work Day" has happened.

Scenes in front of the camera are in italics.

Chapter 1 – Kelly Gets it Rolling

Monday morning dawned bright and chilly in Scranton, Pennsylvania. It was the first day of spring, a day that symbolized rebirth, growth and all things positive, but Jim Halpert was nonetheless in an awful mood. Upcoming trip to Australia notwithstanding, he still had to get out of his car, march his ass upstairs and pretend to be productive until 5 o'clock. It used to be an easy task, one he approached with just enough enthusiasm to get by, but lately it'd been getting harder and harder to work up even a wisp of a smile.

Pam was getting married. That was a fact, and it was getting thrown in his face at least once a day, every day. Gone was the easy relationship they had once shared – their playful banter was now a thing of the past. Oh, they still talked, but each conversation was now tainted (for him, at least) by the ghost of 'what could have been'.

"BFD," Michael had said. "Engaged ain't married." In retrospect, his boss had never spoken truer words. If only Jim had had the benefit of Michael's wisdom (ahem!) prior to the cruise, maybe this mess could have been avoided.

With a dejected sigh, Jim pushed open his car door, grabbed his bag and got out, ready (just barely) to face another day of "no, we're not having chocolate cake" or "I've got a fitting this afternoon…Ryan, could you cover for me?". He toyed briefly with the idea of wishing that Roy would cheat on Pam in a very public way, but decided he didn't want to be even indirectly responsible for anything that could make her cry. Oh, that and karma could be a bitch.

He spotted Kelly getting out of her car, and decided to wait for her. They'd formed a weird bond ever since he'd temporarily relocated his desk near hers. She annoyed the hell out of him most times, but he could sympathize with the situation she had with Ryan. Unrequited love? Been there, done that…still was, in fact.

"Hey, Kelly," he called out when she was within earshot.

"Jim, hey! Did you have a good weekend?" she asked as she joined him.

"Well-"

"Mine was the worst," she interrupted as they headed towards the door. "I swore to myself that I wasn't going to wait by the phone for Ryan to call. I was going to hang out with my friend Denise, catch a movie, get totally trashed on Saturday night, nurse my hangover on Sunday and get a little shopping done. Instead, I moped like an idiot at home. What's wrong with me?" she wailed.

"Is that a rhetorical question?" Jim quipped as he held the door open for her.

"Oh, you're hilarious, Jim. Don't mess with me yet, I haven't had my coffee."

"Oh my god, this is you without caffeine? What happens once you've consumed? Do you go into hyper drive?"

"That's what she said," came Michael's voice behind them.

"Ok, I was so not setting that up," Jim pointed out, already exasperated but trying not to show it. Kelly, smart girl that she was, took advantage of his reply to hightail it out of the foyer to take the stairs.

"I know, those are the best ones! So Jimbo, how was your weekend?" Michael asked as they stepped into the elevator.

Yeah, it's gonna be one of those days, Jim thought as the elevator doors closed on him and Michael.

- - - - - -

The morning was uneventful. Monday mornings usually were at Dunder Mifflin. People caught up on their emails and planned their week, carefully avoiding any talk of the previous weekend until Michael was far, far away…

"Hey, man," Ryan called out to Jim as he entered the break room. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

Jim poked his head out of the fridge; he'd been searching for his brown bag. "Sure, as long as it doesn't involve Kelly."

"Yeah, what am I going to do about her? I mean, I like her and all, she's a blast to hang out with, but I'm not exactly looking for the same thing as she is. Marriage? Kids? I'm 26! What do you think?"

- - - - - -

I don't know how it happened, but somehow I've managed to land in the middle of the Kelly/Ryan will-they-or-won't-they mess. Kelly hopes they will, Ryan's pushing for won't, and I don't care one way or the other. If I were a betting man, I'd wager on Kelly. Ryan's got a pretty strong case, but I think he underestimates Kelly's absolute and total delusion. He'll eventually give up out of sheer exhaustion.

- - - - - -

When Jim got back to his desk, Kelly was waiting for him, perched on Dwight's desk.

"You know, Kelly, Dwight hates it when people do that," Jim pointed out as he sat down.

"That's why I do it…besides, he's in the bathroom, I have a couple of minutes before he catches me. So, I saw you with Ryan in the break room. Were you guys talking about me?"

"Not everything is about you," Jim said.

"Which means you were! Jim, I thought you were on my side!" she wailed.

"Kelly!" Jim hissed. "First of all, there are no sides here. Second, stop acting like a five year-old. Ryan likes you well enough, he's just a little overwhelmed by your fixation on the future."

"But-"

"No, listen to me. This…thing, for lack of a better word, has been going on for what, a month now? You can't expect a guy, especially one like Ryan, to start thinking marriage with a girl he's been hanging around with for a month. Guys aren't like that, and all your complaining and pining won't change that. You'll either have to go with the flow, or find someone else to hang around with. You think you can do that?"

Kelly was not a woman who enjoyed being talked down. It tended to bring out her inner bitch. "That's great advice coming from you," she huffed.

"Now what is that supposed to mean?" Jim asked sardonically.

"All the pining in the world won't change the fact that," Kelly leaned over to whisper in his ear, "Pam is getting married. You should take your own advice and find someone else to moon over."

Jim gritted his teeth. "It's not that easy."

"My point exactly! You like Pam, and won't give up and move on to someone else. Did you ever think that, maybe if you did find someone else, Pam would realize the great guy she could have instead of the ok one she's going to marry?"

"That makes no sense, Kelly. Pam loves Roy, she's been with him forever and wants to marry him. Anything I do will not change that."

Kelly crossed her arms and leaned back against his desk. "That's where you're wrong. She can deny it until, like, forever, but she has a thing for you. I can tell, I have sort of a sixth sense about these things. A little jealousy on her part might go a long wait to kick-starting that thing into something more…something that might make her reconsider her choice…"

Jim leaned closer to Kelly. "What are you suggesting?" he asked, intrigued.

"Would you be willing to conduct a little experiment? You and I could, you know, pretend to hook up. It could make Pam and Ryan jealous, and we could have a little fun," Kelly suggested with a devious smile.

"That would not make Ryan jealous," Jim pointed out. "He would most likely be extremely relieved."

"Don't be an ass!" Kelly swatted his arm.

"Seriously, Kelly, I won't stoop that low," Jim stated. "I don't want it that bad that I'm wiling to lie."

"Yes you do. You know you do. And I'm willing. To stoop that low, I mean. C'mon, Jim, please, pretty please…?" Kelly begged.

Jim tilted his head to the side as he considered Kelly's childish, ridiculous, and oh-so-wrong-in-many-many-ways idea. It was stupid and probably wouldn't work for him, but maybe, just maybe, it would for her. And, if he helped her and Ryan fell for it, Kelly would be out of his hair and he could go on with his life without being reminded daily of what he couldn't have. Also, it would at least serve as a distraction against the constant wedding planning going on not ten feet from his desk.

A sigh. "Fine, whatever."

And with that, Jim Halpert sealed his fate, for better or for worse.