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dollsomeTitle: ever afters
Pairing(s): Ryan/Kelly, Michael/Jan, Dwight/Angela, Jim/Pam
Spoilers: through "The Job"
Word Count: 1,014
Rating: PG
Summary: Endings, angry dogs, beet fields, and beginnings. In that order. (The romantic aftermath of The Job.)
Author's Note: This started as just the Ryan/Kelly section, and then I couldn't resist fleshing it out a little. Because it's Sunday, and I have a history paper I need to be writing, and avoiding productivity? It's sort of my thing.
--
This is how the breakup goes—
Kelly throws a stapler at him. She doesn’t miss, either. After like two minutes Toby goes to hide in the breakroom. Michael gets wind of what’s going on and starts freaking out with Kelly. Ryan finally just winds up taking off early.
That night, she comes by with a box of his stuff, and rings the doorbell only once instead of over and over like usual. When he opens the door, she doesn’t throw anything, or even start screaming. Her eyes are red, and all she says is, “This is yours. Good luck in New York.” For the first time in over a year she reminds him of the girl he used to think she was.
He doesn’t say anything back; just watches her walk away. It takes him a second, and then he mumbles “Finally” and shuts the door.
--
“So,” Michael says, sitting on his couch and surrounded by the contents of Jan’s apartment, of which there are a lot. “Looong day.”
“Yeah,” Jan agrees, still all frenzied as she sinks down next to him. She’s drumming her foot against the floor – taptaptaptaptaptaptap – and he wonders if he needs to get her put on some drugs or something. “This is good, isn’t it? This feels good. I think it’s going to work. Do you think it’s going to work? I think we can really make this work.”
Michael sort of does this nodding thing. Which is apparently not gonna cut it.
“Answer me, Michael!” she snarls, reminding him of this dog that their next-door neighbors used to have when he was growing up. He’s still got a scar on his left ankle thanks to that dog. Its name was Comet, but right now he’s pretty sure its name should’ve been Jan. Or Jan’s name should be Comet now. Something along those lines.
“Yeeeah,” he says, and smiles at her, all handsome and convincing. He’s been doing that a lot over the past couple of days. His face is starting to hurt. “We can make this work. Totally.”
She loops her arm through his and snuggles against him, leaning her head against his shoulder. “Good.”
“So good,” Michael mumbles.
Just between you and him, he’s 99% sure this is not good. Not good at all.
--
The day after Michael’s return, Angela goes to have supper at Schrute farm. Afterwards, she and Dwight walk the beet fields at twilight, standing close enough for their arms to graze every couple of steps. There is a sort of faded triumph about him, and although she knows he won’t say anything against Michael, his disappointment is obvious.
“Dwight?” she ventures quietly.
“I can’t betray him again, Monkey,” Dwight answers at once, every bit as fierce as he is tormented. “Michael is our leader, and every one of us must be willing to follow him to the very depths of hell.”
“I know that,” Angela says gently, even though she privately thinks that she wouldn’t follow Michael to the supermarket, let alone hell. Dwight doesn’t need to know this. “I only wanted to say—” She pauses for a moment, and can’t help smiling slightly, “you were glorious.”
His expression softens. He stares fondly down at her before his gaze rises, mighty, to the horizon. “I was, wasn’t I?”
“Like an emperor,” she confirms breathlessly.
“An emperor,” he echoes, reverent. His words are quiet, quickly lost amid the vastness of the fields.
After a couple of steps, his hand finds hers. The moment is pleasant. That is, at least until they stumble across a couple of teenage heathens copulating behind the barn.
The fact that they make the girl cry is a small consolation.
--
It’s not a date-date, really. They take their own cars from the office and wind up just going over to Cugino’s, which is nice – comfortable and familiar. It’s a lot like the time they went out to lunch right when she first started, only now she catches herself paying too much attention to the way his hands move and the curve of his smile.
For the first couple of minutes, it’s a little bit awkward: she asks him how the interview went, and he doesn’t quite meet her eyes as he announces that he’s gonna be sticking around Scranton for the foreseeable future. He doesn’t seem too bummed about it, which makes her so happy that she feels a little bad.
“Besides,” he finishes, looking up at her again, “Enough change for one year, right?”
“Right,” she agrees, trying not to smile too wide.
She tells him all about her one-day adventure as Secret Assistant to the Regional Manager, and when she gets to ‘Absolutely I do,’ Jim breaks out into a huge grin and high fives her across the table. After that story’s over, he starts recounting The Best of Andy at Stamford. There are a couple of hasty gaps in those stories, the places where she knows Karen must be, but she can’t quite bring herself to mind. It just feels so good to be talking again.
When they finally leave the restaurant, they linger for a little while in the parking lot in between his car and hers.
“So,” he says, shuffling a little. It’s like the prospect of saying goodbye has thrown them back into maybe-date territory somehow.
“So,” she repeats – and then, because for some reason all of a sudden it seems so easy to be brave: “I missed you.”
For a second, he just looks at her in that way he always has. Then the corner of his mouth quirks upward. “I missed you, too.”
Silence falls over them, but there’s a serenity to it that’s new: it’s like for the first time they aren’t ruled by the things they can’t say. Finally, she thinks without meaning to.
“Call me tomorrow?” she asks, and smiles.
He grins. “Count on it, Beesly.”
There’s no goodnight kiss or anything; it’s not like they’re so different from the way they were once. Still, she sings along with the radio the whole drive home.
Pairing(s): Ryan/Kelly, Michael/Jan, Dwight/Angela, Jim/Pam
Spoilers: through "The Job"
Word Count: 1,014
Rating: PG
Summary: Endings, angry dogs, beet fields, and beginnings. In that order. (The romantic aftermath of The Job.)
Author's Note: This started as just the Ryan/Kelly section, and then I couldn't resist fleshing it out a little. Because it's Sunday, and I have a history paper I need to be writing, and avoiding productivity? It's sort of my thing.
--
This is how the breakup goes—
Kelly throws a stapler at him. She doesn’t miss, either. After like two minutes Toby goes to hide in the breakroom. Michael gets wind of what’s going on and starts freaking out with Kelly. Ryan finally just winds up taking off early.
That night, she comes by with a box of his stuff, and rings the doorbell only once instead of over and over like usual. When he opens the door, she doesn’t throw anything, or even start screaming. Her eyes are red, and all she says is, “This is yours. Good luck in New York.” For the first time in over a year she reminds him of the girl he used to think she was.
He doesn’t say anything back; just watches her walk away. It takes him a second, and then he mumbles “Finally” and shuts the door.
--
“So,” Michael says, sitting on his couch and surrounded by the contents of Jan’s apartment, of which there are a lot. “Looong day.”
“Yeah,” Jan agrees, still all frenzied as she sinks down next to him. She’s drumming her foot against the floor – taptaptaptaptaptaptap – and he wonders if he needs to get her put on some drugs or something. “This is good, isn’t it? This feels good. I think it’s going to work. Do you think it’s going to work? I think we can really make this work.”
Michael sort of does this nodding thing. Which is apparently not gonna cut it.
“Answer me, Michael!” she snarls, reminding him of this dog that their next-door neighbors used to have when he was growing up. He’s still got a scar on his left ankle thanks to that dog. Its name was Comet, but right now he’s pretty sure its name should’ve been Jan. Or Jan’s name should be Comet now. Something along those lines.
“Yeeeah,” he says, and smiles at her, all handsome and convincing. He’s been doing that a lot over the past couple of days. His face is starting to hurt. “We can make this work. Totally.”
She loops her arm through his and snuggles against him, leaning her head against his shoulder. “Good.”
“So good,” Michael mumbles.
Just between you and him, he’s 99% sure this is not good. Not good at all.
--
The day after Michael’s return, Angela goes to have supper at Schrute farm. Afterwards, she and Dwight walk the beet fields at twilight, standing close enough for their arms to graze every couple of steps. There is a sort of faded triumph about him, and although she knows he won’t say anything against Michael, his disappointment is obvious.
“Dwight?” she ventures quietly.
“I can’t betray him again, Monkey,” Dwight answers at once, every bit as fierce as he is tormented. “Michael is our leader, and every one of us must be willing to follow him to the very depths of hell.”
“I know that,” Angela says gently, even though she privately thinks that she wouldn’t follow Michael to the supermarket, let alone hell. Dwight doesn’t need to know this. “I only wanted to say—” She pauses for a moment, and can’t help smiling slightly, “you were glorious.”
His expression softens. He stares fondly down at her before his gaze rises, mighty, to the horizon. “I was, wasn’t I?”
“Like an emperor,” she confirms breathlessly.
“An emperor,” he echoes, reverent. His words are quiet, quickly lost amid the vastness of the fields.
After a couple of steps, his hand finds hers. The moment is pleasant. That is, at least until they stumble across a couple of teenage heathens copulating behind the barn.
The fact that they make the girl cry is a small consolation.
--
It’s not a date-date, really. They take their own cars from the office and wind up just going over to Cugino’s, which is nice – comfortable and familiar. It’s a lot like the time they went out to lunch right when she first started, only now she catches herself paying too much attention to the way his hands move and the curve of his smile.
For the first couple of minutes, it’s a little bit awkward: she asks him how the interview went, and he doesn’t quite meet her eyes as he announces that he’s gonna be sticking around Scranton for the foreseeable future. He doesn’t seem too bummed about it, which makes her so happy that she feels a little bad.
“Besides,” he finishes, looking up at her again, “Enough change for one year, right?”
“Right,” she agrees, trying not to smile too wide.
She tells him all about her one-day adventure as Secret Assistant to the Regional Manager, and when she gets to ‘Absolutely I do,’ Jim breaks out into a huge grin and high fives her across the table. After that story’s over, he starts recounting The Best of Andy at Stamford. There are a couple of hasty gaps in those stories, the places where she knows Karen must be, but she can’t quite bring herself to mind. It just feels so good to be talking again.
When they finally leave the restaurant, they linger for a little while in the parking lot in between his car and hers.
“So,” he says, shuffling a little. It’s like the prospect of saying goodbye has thrown them back into maybe-date territory somehow.
“So,” she repeats – and then, because for some reason all of a sudden it seems so easy to be brave: “I missed you.”
For a second, he just looks at her in that way he always has. Then the corner of his mouth quirks upward. “I missed you, too.”
Silence falls over them, but there’s a serenity to it that’s new: it’s like for the first time they aren’t ruled by the things they can’t say. Finally, she thinks without meaning to.
“Call me tomorrow?” she asks, and smiles.
He grins. “Count on it, Beesly.”
There’s no goodnight kiss or anything; it’s not like they’re so different from the way they were once. Still, she sings along with the radio the whole drive home.
Tags:
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no subject
Date: 2007-09-16 09:02 pm (UTC)Just between you and him, he’s 99% sure this is not good. Not good at all.
Ha! The whole Michael and Jan section is super perfect. Other favourite moments: Dwight and Angela making the teenaged girl cry, hasty gaps in Jim's Andy stories and Kelly just ringing the doorbell once.
no subject
Date: 2007-09-16 09:09 pm (UTC)Silence falls over them, but there’s a serenity to it that’s new: it’s like for the first time they aren’t ruled by the things they can’t say.
So lovely! And also so true. Really nice job. :)
no subject
Date: 2007-09-16 09:18 pm (UTC)I may die. Like, a lot.
!!!
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Date: 2007-09-16 09:23 pm (UTC)It's how all fanfiction should be, really, but I'm thinking specifically!
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Date: 2007-09-16 09:27 pm (UTC)Kelly/Ryan- *tear*
Dwight/Angela- "Like an emperor." That was wonderful.
no subject
Date: 2007-09-16 09:31 pm (UTC)Toby hiding in the bathroom and Michael isn't happy, not at all, and Dwight and Angela make a girl CRY, and then Jim and Pam are kind of like they used to be and oh. It makes me flaily in my heart.
no subject
Date: 2007-09-16 09:38 pm (UTC)This is easily one of the best post-Job fics I've read. Thank you so much for writing it!
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Date: 2007-09-16 10:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-16 10:39 pm (UTC)Seriously though, this was amazing. I especially loved Jim and Pam not being sure over the whole goodbye thing, and Dwight being like an emperor. AMAZING. XD
no subject
Date: 2007-09-16 11:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-16 11:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 12:12 am (UTC)Nice job :)
no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 01:23 am (UTC)This part made me cringe - poor Michael!
Just between you and him, he’s 99% sure this is not good. Not good at all.
no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 01:24 am (UTC)This was. . . ahhh, my goodness. Every one made me all akdkfkadlkfla;. Kelly/Ryan was sort of gently heartbreaking, with Kelly being all dignified and strong in the end. Aw. You are making me like them more and more, darn you.
Michael/Jan was just completely spot on. I particularly liked how all the little details together added up to capture his character flawlessly in a few lines.
Dwight/Angela was even more with the flawless. In fact, your calling in life might be writing Dwangela fic. Seriously, every word was chosen to fit them just right. I imagine it would be hard to capture either of them, let alone both. They have such a particular and very weird dymanic that you just get. And hee, they made a girl cry. That just delights me beyond all reason. :)
I do not think I can properly talk about the Jim/Pam because, really, can I ever? They just turn me into an omg-ing pile of squee. It's sad. But ohh, I would give anything to make the writers read this so they would know exactly how the relationship should be portrayed. The change in them was so subtle and gorgeous. Just. . . can't the actual show turn out like this? Pretty please?
no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 01:54 am (UTC)Poor Michael. He is so, so doomed. He is 99% sure this is not good. Awwww.
Also, your Dwight & Angela characterization was perfect. I really think Angela would be encouraging like that. And of course, it's just what Dwight needs at that moment. They're so sweet (when they're not being kind of creepy, hee.)
And Jim and Pam. I totally think this is what their first "date" could be like. I don't think they're going to end up making out and tearing off each other's clothes on the first date. They're not like that. It's going to be a summer of renewal and friendship. And a sense of contentment. Finally. Very nice work!!!
no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 06:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 08:33 am (UTC)Kelly only ringing the doorbell once was just heartbreaking
Michael doing what does but knowing its a mistake is truly in character
Dwight/Angela sheer perfection, Like an Emperor and making the girl cry, just awesome
and Jim/Pam what can I say, that has to be how it is right? It was hopeful and yet so normal
Wonderful!
no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 09:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 10:57 pm (UTC)My favorite section was the Dwight/Angela one because I think Dwight being compared to an Emperor is probably the best, most awesome thing EVER. It's so them. Gyah! They're so weird. <3.
In conclusion: this was awesome to the point that I'm not even upset there was no secret Toby/Pam undertones. ;)
no subject
Date: 2007-09-17 11:41 pm (UTC)The rest is beyond awesome, but that's always the way. But right at this moment, i'm feeling compelled to make a Dwight Emperor icon.
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Date: 2007-09-18 07:12 am (UTC)Excellent, excellent job.
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Date: 2007-09-18 08:27 pm (UTC)And I was not expeciting Kelly's reaction. ;]
no subject
Date: 2007-09-20 07:18 pm (UTC)Personally, I think Jan will be okay... eventually. This is rather a large nervous breakdown to get over, especially with all the changes she made very quickly and without choice/thinking. Still, oh, Michael.
And EEEP, Jim/Pam. ::happy sigh:: Now if he'll just have his damn hair back...
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Date: 2007-09-22 09:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:13 pm (UTC)Thank youuuuu. :)
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Date: 2007-09-22 09:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:16 pm (UTC)It's so them, because I can't decide whether it's creepy or actually kind of sweet!
Bwahaha. Isn't that just the essence of Dwangela? Objectively, they are incredibly unnerving, but then they just fit so well together that you can't help but go 'Aww.' And then maybe feel a little creeped out about doing so.
Thanks again! :)
no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:18 pm (UTC)I like how there was a progression from the saddest into the most hopeful of scenarios.
I'm glad that came across effectively. :)
Kelly needs lots and lots of hugs. From everybody.
no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:19 pm (UTC)Thank you so much for reading. :)
no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:26 pm (UTC)Aw. You are making me like them more and more, darn you.
Mwahaha! I am quite pleased about this, because if I have to have a doomed and lasting love for them, then you get to suffer right alongside me, darnit.
And, dude, writing Dwangela is always an interesting experience. The first time I actually wrote a Dwangela fic, I felt weird all day. Like, physically. I had this bizarre headache that can only come from spending like four hours inside Dwight's brain. Thankfully, since then, I have sort of eased into it more gracefully. :D
And, okay, I very much need to be doing homework instead of responding to comments -- when will I learn? -- so I will quit my rambling and say simply THANK YOU, FOR YOU ARE GREAT. Essentially.
no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:31 pm (UTC)Ahaha! NICE. I am deeply proud of this. :D
And I am definitely going to have to put in extra secret Toby/Pam undertones in the next fic I do, just to make up for it.
Thank youuuuuu, madam. :)
no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:32 pm (UTC)Dwight is the emperor of our hearts. It's just. That. Simple. And don't fight your Dwight Emperor icon urges!! It would just be sad.
Thank you as always, m'dear!
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Date: 2007-09-22 09:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-09-22 09:35 pm (UTC)Ahaha, yes! Dwight, how are you so mighty? Never change.
And, yeah, Jan has to get better again someday, right? She just . . . does. I insist upon this.
And the promo pics have made me feel much better about the return of the JimHair! All seems right in the world, somehow.
Thank you so much for reading, missie. :D
no subject
Date: 2007-09-24 11:50 pm (UTC)