Hi, guys. Sorry this took so long. End of the semester mayhem with exams and papers and all that. Then I get caught up reading other great stories and forget about my own. Anyway, thank you for your patience and the great reviews. They're the reason I keep coming back. This is the last chapter this story. However, as one of my lovely, lovely reviews suggested, I think I'll write another story with Jim and Pam as a couple. What do you guys think? Yay? Nay? Hope you guys enjoy this!

"Hi, Jim. It's Pam."

"I know. Believe it or not, Beesley, I know your voice by now."

"Oh boy", she thought, "Not two seconds into the conversation and I'm already blushing. But just listen! You can almost hear the smile in his voice."

"Hello? You still there, Pam?"

"Huh? Oh! Sorry. I'm just kind of tired. Didn't sleep all that well last night."

"Yeah, I can hear that. You sound pretty wiped. Why are you up? It's Saturday; you can spend the day in bed if you want."

"No no. I'm fine. I was actually calling to see if you maybe wanted to do something today. It's nice out, we could go for a walk. Or out to eat. Or to the mall…"

He laughed, "Okay, I get it. Sleep bad, socializing good. Truth be told, I couldn't be happier. Ever since I woke up this morning, all I've wanted to do is see you."

Now she was sure she must look like a lobster. It was so weird hearing her best friend saying that he couldn't wait to see her. She didn't know how to respond to it. Roy hadn't spoken to her like that for as long as she could remember and it seemed like they had always been dating. There had been no transition period between friends and boyfriend/girlfriend. What was she supposed to say?

Luckily, he broke the silence while she was trying to think of a response. "So…you want me to pick you up in, like, half an hour?"

"Actually, Roy's stopping by in a little while to get the rest of his stuff."

"Okay, will you be free around three?"

"Sure!"

"Calm down, Pam," she told herself. "No reason to scare him off yet."

"I mean, that sounds good. See you then?"

He was chuckling on the other end of the line. "Okay, Pam. I'll see you then." With that, he hung up.

Roy arrived fourty-five minutes later in Kenny's truck. They awkwardly greeted each other and then Roy silently began loading up the rest of his stuff. Within an hour, he was done. He approached Pam, both with dry eyes this time, and she slowly moved from the corner she had been standing in, watching him.

"So, uh, I'm all packed and I guess I'm gonna take off."

Pam slowly nodded, her face expressionless as again, she struggled to keep her tears in. "Okay. Ummm, I guess I'll see you around work then?"

She could feel the tears coming closer and closer to the surface. "Why are you doing this, Pam? Come on! This is what you wanted! He should be the one that's a wreck, not you!" The self-berating did nothing to help, though, and finally, the tears escaped and silently ran down her cheeks.

Roy grinned slightly as he wiped the tears from her face. "Yes. We will see each other at work. Now listen, Pammy. This may sound strange, coming from the guy that you dumped, but things are going to be okay. I've been thinking, and you were right. This had to happen. The two of us never would have worked out. Now you've got Jim and don't worry about me. I will find someone. I promise, this is all for the best. Now come here."

The two embraced for what would probably be the last time. Roy gently placed his hand on the back of her head and pulled her toward him as he kissed her forehead and then he was gone. Pam went to the window and waved to him as he left. It was amazing the effect his words had had on her. She no longer felt the guilt that had been plaguing her for the past week and she knew he was right. She had Jim and Roy would find someone.

She spent the next hour running around the apartment tidying things up in case Jim would want to come in. As she went from room to room, it struck her how empty the place looked with Roy's stuff gone. She forced herself to continue and tried not to think about it.

When Jim arrived a little while later, the place was spotless. She had reapplied the little makeup she wore after looking in a mirror and seeing that it was quite streaky from crying. She answered the door with a huge smile and was excited to see that he was also smiling.

"So, Beesley, what's on the agenda today?"

"Well, it is a great day outside. How about if we just walk. We can even walk around the neighborhood here if you want."

"Sounds good to me."

Pam quickly grabbed her keys and met him outside, locking her door. They began walking down the block, towards a group of children playing in the front of someone's house.

Jim was the one to break the silence that had begun forming, "So, Roy stopped by for the rest of his stuff?"

"Yep." She knew he was looking for more, but she wasn't sure what to say.

"Are you okay?"

She took a deep breath before answering his question, not sure how much to tell him. "Ummm, I'm not sure. I mean, yes, I am okay. It's just…we were together for so long. It's weird thinking that it's over. Really, though. I'm fine. Better than fine. I'm really, really good." As she said this last, she looked up at him and smiled.

"Pam, you don't have to pretend and act like everything is fine. It's okay if you're still in pain. In fact, it's normal. You have to remember, this whole thing, all of it, has happened in the span of a week. It may seem like a long time, I mean, Dwight can barely wait that long for the next episode of Battlestar Galactica, but it's only seven days. Seven measly days. You're going to need time to heal."

"That's just it, Jim. I don't. I mean, am I upset that it's over between me and Roy? Yes. But not really, because it had to happen. Even he said so. It never would have worked and I think that somewhere, in the back of my mind, I've been preparing for this for a long time. I am really, truly ready to move on."

They walked for a little while in silence. Jim wasn't sure what to say after what she said. Did she mean it? Was she saying she was ready for a new relationship? With him?

Pam was worried. Jim usually wasn't this quiet, especially around her. Had she said too much? Should she try starting a new conversation? Changing the subject? Should she just let him think?

Then his hand slowly found hers and his fingers entwined themselves through hers and she knew she had said the right thing. She looked back up at him, her face almost in pain from the huge smile that she didn't think would ever go away. He was smiling at her, too, looking pleased that she hadn't pulled her hand away.

Still in silence, they found a bench and sat down, hands still locked together.

"So, you say you're ready to move on. I want to believe you. You have no idea how much I just want to take your words at face value and start this, but I have to ask: Are you sure? I want this to be perfect and that means starting perfect."

Her answer was immediate, "Yes, I'm sure. I've never been more sure of anything. Jim, I've had a crush on you since I first met you," she blushed brightly at this confession, "and now it's moved far past that. You've been so great these past few days. If it doesn't work between the two of us, I'm destined to be alone."

"Well, I will do the best I can to ensure that doesn't happen. You know what this means, though, don't you? Us dating, I mean." A completely serious expression now occupied the space where his dazzling smile had been seconds before.

A confused look spread across her face, "I'm not sure what you're talking about…"

"It means no more fast food restaurants. I refuse to keep stifling my date-night creativity. Especially when I've got some great ones planned for us in the near future. If you want to keep sneaking around, pretending this isn't happening, that's up to you. Personally, I don't care what the others think. Just as long as I know that I have you."

She was relieved. As soon as he had gotten serious, she had been afraid of what he was going to say. She should have known that it was just some nonsense, she had seen that face countless times before. The only difference was that normally it was aimed at Dwight.

"Okay, it's a deal. No more fast food joints. I'd say we should shake on it, but I think we've kind of got that covered," she said, holding up their entwined hands. "As for whether or not to tell people, I'm not sure. I mean, I want to tell people more than anything, I'm just not sure what they would think."

"Does it matter what they think? I'm not trying to sway you in one way or another, I'm just asking."

She thought about it for a minute. "No. No it doesn't. I'm happy and you're happy and if they're really our friends, they should be happy for us, regardless of the circumstances."

"Okay. Well, we still don't have to tell people right away if you don't want to. Just give me a signal or something when you're ready and I'll be there."

They walked back to her apartment in silence, still holding hands.

"There is one person I want to tell right now."

"Really? Who's that?"

"I'd like to call my mom. I think she should know."

He smiled as the now-familiar lightness invaded his stomach. She wanted to tell her mom who meant more to her than anyone. She was serious about this whole thing.

Her mom's only response when Pam excitedly told her the news: "It's about time. I couldn't be happier for you, dear."