Ok, so now you've gotten a taste of when this story takes place, let's get a little more involved. On with Chapter 1!!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Office or any of its characters.

The next morning, Jim woke up with a headache. Not a hangover headache; but a lack of sleep headache. His pillow was still slightly damp from the tears he shed. He checked his cell phone and saw that he had one new message. Listening, he was disappointed (and happy at the same time) to find it was Jan and not Pam calling him to tell him to meet her at 11:30 at Cugino's so they could fill out the paperwork. He looked over at the clock. It was 10am. Sighing, Jim dragged himself out of bed; all the while asking what the point was. Shuffling over to his bedroom door, he made his way to the bathroom where he hoped a hot shower would get rid of the headache (although he secretly knew it wouldn't).

By the time he was out of the shower, it was 10:45. He had just enough time to get dressed and get to Cugino's. He pulled on a pair of black dress pants and a white Oxford shirt. He figured he wouldn't need to dress too nicely as it was a casual business lunch. Jan wanted him in Stamford and Stamford was where he was going to go.

Rinsing his mouth out with mouthwash, he grabbed his car keys and headed to the restaurant. He turned on the radio to keep himself from thinking too much about the events of last night.

Well, everybody hurts sometimes,
Everybody cries. And everybody hurts sometimes.
And everybody hurts sometimes

Quickly he turned off the radio before the tears could start up again. So much for taking my mind off things, he thought to himself. Sighing, he forced himself to focus on the road and not purposefully ram his car into a telephone pole.

A few minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot of Cugino's. Grinning as he spotted Jan's New York license plate he entered the restaurant. Ok, soon I'll be away from all of this he thought as Jan waved him over. Taking a deep breath, he made his way to her table. Seeing that she already had the paperwork out for him, he thanked God that she was making this quick and painless.

"Everything alright, Jim?" Jan's voice made him realize that he had just been staring at the paperwork for the past few minutes. Jim nodded, grabbed the pen and signed in all the right places. His signature on one of the forms was smudged a little when he realized that he had foolishly allowed a tear to escape. Narrowing his eyes, he began to take deep breaths in and out. It was her fault he was leaving. She was the one who said no. She was the one who wouldn't leave her jerk fiancé. She was the one who made him believe she loved him back. This was her fault! Jim flinched as he felt Jan's hand on his arm. Looking up, he saw genuine concern in her eyes. Glancing at the paperwork, he realized he had been gripping the pen so hard, his knuckles were turning white and the pen had begun to poke through the paper. Closing his eyes, he took a shaky breath and he felt all the heat drain from his face. His anger wasn't completely gone but it was enough for him to brush it off for Jan.

"Sorry" was all he could say as she removed her hand from his arm.

"You're sure everything is alright?" she asked him.

"Yeah, just had a fight with my roommate about my moving to Connecticut this morning," was Jim's response. He was surprised to see how easily that lie came.

"I'm sorry if the timing is any inconvenience to you. You're sure you want to do this?" Jan's voice was full of concern.

"Yes" he snapped (a little too quickly for his liking). She looked taken aback and he apologized. She's helping you, Halpert… get a grip! "Is everything in order? Is that all I have to do?" Jan nodded, apparently still in shock at his demeanor and vocal tone. He stood up and stuck his hand out for her to shake. She robotically did so. "Thank you, Jan, I really mean it." And with that, he left the restaurant.

Driving home, he allowed a few tears to fall before hastily wiping at his eyes. He was doing it. He was leaving Scranton. And it was her fault.

Ok, well there's Chapter 1… let me know what you think!

-Lunar Penguin