It had been a two weeks. Fourteen days, six hours, and forty-two minutes since she first showed up on his doorstep. They had fallen into a quiet comfortable pattern. She had discovered that he runs late almost every morning so she keeps the keys in her jacket. He had learned that she doesn't drink decaf, so he kept normal coffee in the cabinet next to his. She couldn't sleep one night so he made her hot chocolate and put in her favorite movie. She fell asleep in his lap and he carried her up to bed. She had never felt more at home anywhere.

"Jim." She walked into his room while he was buttoning his shirt behind his closet door. "I'm out of stuff."

"What do you mean?" He poked his head around the door so he could get a clear shot.

"I'm out of clothes. I think I need my other things." She was awkward on the subject, looking down at her feet and wringing her hands.

He stepped out from behind the door and walked over to her. "Want to go after work?"

She looked up at him. "Are you sure this is okay? Me staying with you for so long?"

He smiled and gently grasped her shoulders. "Of course Beesley. We'll grab the rest of your stuff after work than come home and order pizza."

"Vocellis?" She pouted her lip like a six year old and he rolled her eyes, letting go of her shoulders.

"Where else?"

She smiled and turned out of his room. "Oh, I'm driving today."

Jim groaned behind her. "Ugh, but you go so slow. I'm driving."

She turned to face him. "Funny, it seems I have the keys." She dug into her pocket and took out the keys, dangling them in front of his face. When he reached for them she put them up a little higher.

"Can I please have the keys?"

She dropped her arm and pulled the keys closer to her chest. "No, I'm driving."

"Pam, give me the keys." He held out his hand expectantly.

"Pam, give me the keys." She mocked him, dropping her voice so it sounded much lower.

He sighed and pretended to give up when she thrusted her hand in the air jubilantly. He took advantage and picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder.

She let out a surprised squeal. "Jim! Put me down." She couldn't help the giggles the came pouring out. "Jim, seriously! You're wrinkling my shirt."

She heard him laugh as they walked out the front door. He walked to the car and put her in the passenger seat. As he was walking around to get into the driver's seat, she scrambled over the center console and locked the door, sitting down in his seat.

He gave her an exasperated look through the window. She smiled and reached for the keys that were in her pocket but was surprised to find them missing. She looked at him through the window.

He smiled and reached into his own pocket, dangling the keys in front of the window. She crossed her arms over her chest and pouted. He opened the door.

"Please move."

"I don't want to."

"We are going to be late."

"Not if you let me drive."

He gave her a look as if he were seriously considering it and then reached into the car and took her from underneath her knees and back. The position was awkward and she squirmed causing Jim to lose his balance and the both of them to fall into a heap on the cement.

She let out a loud laugh from on top of him as he winced in pain.

"Oh, my back." He groaned.

"Oh, poor baby." She laughed again and he squinted open his eyes. Her laughing died down and she looked at him. Their faces were no more than an inch away. He had the most incredible green eyes. She never really looked at them before. The green was flecked with gold in the center.

Her heart began to beat faster as her eyes dropped from his eyes to his lips. He closed the inch gap and brushed his lips against hers softly. She let out a content sigh, keeping her eyes closed. He lingered there for a second, his mouth below hers, just waiting. When he began to pull away, she put a hand on his cheek, keeping his where he was. This time she closed the gap and brought her lips to his.

He was gentle, soft. His hand rested on her waist carefully as hers continued to rest on his cheek. She pulled away, eyes still shut.

"We're going to be late." She whispered.

"You're still on top of me." He whispered back.

She laughed again and crawled off of him, untangling their limbs and holding out her hands to help him up. He winced again and held out the keys.

"Here, I give up."

She took the keys with a smile and slid into the car as Jim limped over to his side and fell into his seat.

They got to work with minimal groans of impatience from Jim and walked into the building.

"It's all your fault." He muttered in the elevator.

"What is?" She asked innocently.

"The searing pain coursing through my body."

"If you just gave up the keys like a good boy-"

"If you just went five miles above the speed limit-"

"Speed limit Jim, not speed guidelines."

He rolled his eyes and she smiled as the elevator door opened. They took their places at their desks and went about their daily activities. Jim only made several derogatory comments to Dwight. But when Pam announced that his back was bothering him, Dwight went into a ten-minute speech about back problems and how to stop the pain.

Jim glared at Pam from his desk. She just shrugged.

Around noon, Jim stood up and walked over to her desk, taking a handful of jellybeans and tossing them all in his mouth. Pam mock gasped.

"Hey, take it easy. You just ate half a weeks jelly bean stash in one mouthful."

"Consider it payment for my health care. I hear jellies have remarkable healing powers."

She raised her eyebrows. "Oh, do you now?"

He smiled. "Oh yeah, especially the green ones."

"The green ones, huh?"

"Definitely. I think you should get more."

"So this has nothing to do with the fact that you always eat all the green ones first and they are your favorite?"

"Why no Pam, I am surprised you would say such a thing. Doubting my motives." He shook his head in disappointment and she laughed again. He leaned down on the desk on his forearms.

"In all seriousness, I am starving. Want to grab lunch?"

"You mean go the ten feet to the break room?"

"And grab our lunches? Yes. That is exactly what I mean."

She smiled and stood up. "Okay. I am quite famished myself."

He smiled and followed her to the break room. "Huh. Famished. Good word there Pam."

They took their lunches out of the fridge and sat down at one of the tables.

"I think we should talk." He began seriously.

"About what?" She asked, bagel in her mouth.

He looked down, uncomfortable. "About this morning. On the driveway."

"Oh." She stated.

"Yeah."

"Jim-" She stopped halfway through her sentence and Jim looked up to see her bagel frozen halfway to her mouth.

"Pam?"

He turned around to see what she was looking at and saw Roy standing in the doorway looking at the pair of them.

"Pam, can I talk to you for a moment?"

Jim looked at Pam who still wasn't answering to Roy who was standing awkwardly at the door. "Uh, I'm not so sure that-"

"Not your problem Jim." Roy cut him off swiftly.

"Not my problem?" He asked with disbelief. He could feel his blood rising. "You beating up my best friend isn't my problem?"

Roy looked around to make sure no one noticed Jim speaking and shut the door behind him. "This is between Pam and me. Not you and me. I would like to talk to her in private please."

"I'm not leaving her anywhere with you."

"Well, guess what-"

"Jim." Pam finally spoke from her end of the table, putting her bagel down carefully on her napkin. "I'm fine. Just let him talk. I'll be out in a second."

"Pam-"

"Really, Jim, I'll be fine." He gave her another skeptical glance before standing up with his soda and walking out of the room.

Roy took his vacated seat as Pam began tracing the jelly from her bagel around with her fingernail. "What can I do for you Roy?"

"Come home Pam."

She looked up at him. "What?"

"Come home. I miss you. I miss us."

"Roy, I can't do that."

He reached forward to take her hands but she pulled them away. He ignored it.

"Pam, come on. I promise. Things will be different this time. I was stupid before. I shouldn't have had those drinks. You were right, I do go to too many bars. I promise, this time I am going to stop drinking. And I swear, I wont ever hurt you again. it was just me being stupid."

"Roy-"

"And I won't ever forget our anniversary or your birthday. I'll bring you breakfast in bed and make you dinner."

"You've never made me dinner."

"Hey, there's a first for everything right? I can change. I will change Pam. I love you."

He reached for her hands again but this time she let him take them. She looked at him with teary eyes.

"You promise me?" She wanted so badly for things to go back to normal. For everything to be like it was before he began to drink. For him to love her for her. For him to love her period. She just wanted to be loved.

He nodded and smiled, wiping away her tears with his thumb. "I promise. Come home?"

She looked at him and gave a small smile. "Okay. I'll come home."

--

She came to his apartment later that night. His car was in the driveway but she was surprised to see all the lights out. She took a shaky sigh before getting out of the car and walking to his door. The entire way, she could feel her heart in her throat.

She rang the doorbell and waited, her palms sweating and her heart throbbing. She could hear him shuffling behind the door before he swung it open. When he saw it was her, his eyes darkened.

"I didn't pack your things yet." He said it without emotion.

"I didn't come for them. I came to talk to you."

"There is nothing to say."

"Jim, just understand. I'm going to be fine. He said he was sorry."

"How many times has he said he was sorry Pam?" He said it quietly and with such anger that Pam actually took a step back. "How many times has he apologized?"

She felt herself grow angry. "You don't understand Jim. He loves me."

"Oh yeah." He chuckled, a dry humorless chuckle. "He loves you so much he punches you in the face."

"That was different. He was drunk."

"And he isn't going to get drunk again?" His eyes widened slightly to enunciate his point.

"He promised me he wouldn't. He promised me things would be different this time." She wanted Jim to understand. She was trying so hard to show him that she would be all right. That she was strong enough to take care of herself.

"Pam, are you listening to yourself? Seriously! How can you trust a thing that man says to you?" He was gesturing wildly with his hands. "He hits you Pam. He causes you physical pain. He breaks you down verbally. He holds you down. Why do you want that? Why do you keep going back to that?"

"You don't understand!" She shouted over him.

"What don't I understand? I understand he hits you! That's all I need to understand! What I don't understand is why you kiss me and go back to him!"

"I just want to be loved!" She said it before she even realized she though it.

"And you think he is the only one that does? That he is the best you can do?" His eyes softened and the anger melted into sorrow. "Pam, what if he doesn't just hit you next time? What if-" He swallowed and looked down. "What if it gets worse?"

"It won't."

"But if it does?"

"It won't." She said with determination.

He sighed and looked back up at her, running a hand through his hair. He hesitated slightly before he spoke again. "I called Jan today."

She looked up at him, confused. "Why?"

"I'm transferring to another office. I can't-"He looked down at the floor. "I can't do this."

"Do what Jim? I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me any more. I'm okay. Everything is back to normal." She was speaking franticly and quickly, trying to put on a brave face.

"Maybe this isn't about you Pam. Maybe this is about me." He looked at her carefully, trying hard to not make this emotional. He was kidding himself. "Maybe this is about the fact that I can't come in and watch you be with him every day. Maybe this is about the fact that I can't save you if you don't save yourself. I can't watch you hurting Pam, it hurts me too much."

She was crying now, the tears falling down her cheeks. "But I'm okay Jim, everything is okay. You don't have to care anymore." She repeated in a sob.

"Pam, God, you don't understand!" She shut her eyes tight at his yelling. "When you kissed me this morning, I thought you would. I can't stop caring because I love you!"

She opened her eyes and he seemed surprised that he said it. His mouth was open slightly and his eyes were suddenly calm. He lowered his voice.

"I'll be in tomorrow to get my things."

And with that he shut the door, leaving her alone and crying on the worn welcome mat his mother had given him for Christmas.