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[jim_halpert]

With Pam in a safer area, Jim didn't feel so bad more or less booking it out of there once she was settled. He intended on heading over to his hut once it was done, but it all hit him full force by the time he got to the rec room. He stood in the hallway, leaning against the wall, the full weight of everything baring down on him, and it took

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[neptune_sleuth]

Sure, other islanders might have already settled snugly into their beds, but Veronica Mars had never been the kind to turn in early. With Elliot moved out to live with J.D. (the man and the rabbit), she had the place to herself once again. Someone at the door was unusual at this hour, though. Rising from her bed where she'd been going through the day's photos on her laptop, she went to answer it. "I forgot we scheduled an illicit midnight rendez-vous," she began, but her voice died away as she took in the look on his face. She opened the door wider to let him in. "What happened?"

[jim_halpert]

Jim had been second-guessing himself all the way up to the door opening. It was too late by then, with Veronica already obviously noticing something was wrong, and he went inside without really saying much to sit down on the first bed he reached. He needed to sit down. Calming down was something he wanted to do, too, but he doubted that was going to happen any time soon.

Now that he was inside, though, he realized he hadn't even thought about how he was going to break it to her. Pam had loved Veronica like a little sister, and he didn't doubt the feelings were mutual. He looked down at the floor, biting his lip. In the end, he could think of being nothing but blunt.

"She's back," he said, shoulders still hunched. "Pam."

[neptune_sleuth]

Veronica handled disaster like an old pro. She'd expected any number of things - disappearances, deaths, Samantha come down suddenly and terribly ill - and she would have taken them all in stride, clear-headed and self-possessed in the face of it. This, though, this was different, and that was clear from her expression. She stood by the door she had already closed, silent, as if she were waiting for something to happen, for the words to rearrange themselves into a new order which would make some kind of sense.

"She's..." She stopped, blinking, dazed, and tipped her head up to look at him. "But she doesn't remember, does she?" It was barely a question, but knowing better than to hope wasn't enough this time to stop her.

[jim_halpert]

Jim knew she'd catch on quickly. It might've been Pam, but it wasn't her. Her being there was just a nice big mocking gesture by the island to remind him the one he cared about really was gone for good. He was pretty sure now he would rather have her not be around at all than him to have to deal with feeling the way he did right at that moment.

He couldn't find his voice at first, the words caught in his throat. He didn't want to admit it, not at all. Admitting it would mean it really was true.

"No, nothing," he finally managed to choke out, his hands balling into fists. He let out a slow, shuddery kind of breath afterwards, trying to calm himself down again. He doubted it'd work.