He knew he had been looking over at Pam for a minute or so -- at least, that was his estimate. During that time, she had never looked back at him. So instead, he busied himself with imaginary work, which was something he did more often lately. It was especially bad today after his interview with the documentary crew.

"Pam and I?" he replied, trying to stall for time. "Um...we're friends. Yeah...we're just friends."

He knew they wanted to hear some kind of juicy details about what he and Pam did after work or where they went. The truth of the matter was they didn't do much.

It started out fine -- they had a nice date the day Jim came back from his interview in New York City. After that, though...well, Jim really couldn't put her finger on it. They had gone out a few more times, but one date every two weeks did not a relationship make. Maybe it was the fact that Karen was still working there. Maybe it was pressure from all the expectations they had built up over the years. Maybe it was just not wanting anyone else to know about their personal life so they just didn't have one. Whatever it was, it was worrying Jim. After all those years of pining for Pam and after dating someone else to try and forget her, why wasn't it working? And, even worse, what if it never did?

Jim looked up again at Pam sitting at her desk. She looked bored. He figured she was probably enthralled with a game of solitaire or something.

By the end of the day, he was once again getting anxious about saying good night to her. Some of the usual crowd had left, including Karen, which he thought would make him feel better. But the butterflies in his stomach were still going strong as he tried to think about what he was going to say to Pam on his way out the door. He was going to try and sound casual, asking about her weekend without forcing her to go out with him in case she didn't want that after all.

"Hey," he said, laying his briefcase on her desk next to the jelly beans. "Big plans this weekend?"

"Um, sort of...I guess," she stammered.

"Like what?"

"Well, I'm cleaning my apartment tonight."

He smiled down at her and laughed a little. "Sounds exciting."

She gave him a bit of a smirk in return. "I guess," she replied. "It's just that, you know, I'm starting this new art class next week and I need to set up an area for my painting supplies and stuff so..." She trailed off and Jim thought she was trying to come up with an excuse so she couldn't go out with him.

"Right. I'm excited to see what you do for this new class."

She smiled and looked down, a blush coming to her cheeks. "You'll have to come by and see it sometime."

"I will," he said, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "So....yeah, I better get going."

"Oh, right. Well, have a good night."

He grabbed his bag and slung it on his shoulder. "You, too," he mumbled as he headed for the door.

Why does it always have to be melodrama with them? First, it was the whole telling her he loved her and then leaving. Then she did the coal walk. Then he broke up with Karen in New York just to ask Pam out on a date.

Why can't we find a nice, calm level for our relationship?

Of course, he thought this as he was sitting in his car outside her apartment with a bouquet of flowers in his hand. As he walked up to her door, he once again started to think this was a bad idea. Then he knocked and realized that he no longer had a chance to back out now.

She opened the door wearing a white t-shirt, pajama pants, and her hair in a bun. Jim immediately noticed the look of shock on her face. "Um...hi," she said, a bit apprehensive.

Despite her disheveled look, Jim still thought she was gorgeous. Then he realized her pajamas had the Dunder Mifflin logo all over them. "Cute pants," he replied.

She looked down and started making a flustered excuse. "Oh...um...I got them last summer when Michael decided to have a pajama party at the office."

"A what?"

"Pajama party. Angela thought it was inappropriate, but as head of the Party Planning Committee, she had to buy the pants," she said, giving him an embarrassed smile.

Jim started laughing. "I'm sorry I missed that."

"Me, too," she said. "Um...do you want to come in?"

"Oh, yeah," he said, handing her the flowers.

She closed the door behind him and the two of them stood still in the foyer of her apartment. "I'm just going to put these in water," she told him, and he took it as a cue to follow her.

"So is this the area you're clearing away for your art stuff?" he asked as he stood in a corner of her living room.

"Yeah," she said, walking over to grab a vase from her bookshelf. "What do you think?"

"It'll be great."

She smiled back at him and walked into the kitchen. "So what's up?"

"Nothing," he said, trying to sound casual.

"Oh," she replied. "Um...so you just stopped by to give me some flowers? I mean...not that I mind because I totally..."

"Let's go out," he blurted, his confidence finally coming back to him.

"What?"

"I know I should have asked you when we were at work, but I didn't and I'm sorry so I'm asking you now to go to dinner with me."

"Tonight?" she asked.

"Yeah, right now. You know, unless you already ate or some..."

"I would love to," she replied, smiling over at him.

"OK. So um...how about you go get changed and I'll take care of these?" he said, taking the flowers and vase from her hands.

"Um...OK," she stammered. "I'll be right back."

"OK." He didn't mean for it to, but his response came out much more eager than he wanted it to. He watched her walk down the hall, then took a deep breath to calm him nerves before taking care of her flowers.

"Is this alright to wear? It's not too casual, is it?" Pam asked as she emerged from her bedroom. She had quickly changed into a pink summer dress and flip flops, and Jim had to snap himself out a daze to answer her.

"It's great. Yeah, it's totally fine. You look...." Calm down, Halpert. "You look amazing."

"Thanks." She blushed a little and ducked her head, which he always found adorable.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah."

"C'mon," he said, gesturing toward the door.

She locked it behind her and turned to follow him to his car. "So where are we going?"

He stopped in his tracks. "You know, I hadn't thought that far. Any preference?"

"No. Whatever you want."

"OK," he replied, grabbing her hand. "We're drive around and find somewhere." He opened the door for her, then got in on his side and started the car. He looked over and saw the setting sun light up her cheeks.

He was driving towards Cugino's, thinking it would be a safe bet to just go there. Then he heard Pam laughing quietly next to him. "What?"

"Nothing."

"You can't choose 'Nothing.' Why are you laughing?"

She turned to face him, squinting a bit with the setting sun in her face. "There's just this Burger King up here on the right that my parents would take me to when I was a kid. My sister and I once got ketchup all down the front of our shirts and I still remember my mom trying to scold us without trying to laugh. So yeah, random thought in my head. Don't mind me."

He smiled as he turned back to watch the road. "I thought you didn't like ketchup on your fries."

"I don't now, but I used to."

"Interesting."

She gave him a skeptical look from the passenger seat. "'Interesting?' What does that mean?"

He put on his blinker and turned into the Burger King parking lot. To hell with Cugino's. He was getting tired of trying to make sure every date was perfect and well thought out.

"It means we're having dinner at Burger King."

He held the door open for her and put his hand on the small of her back as she walked through. But as they walked toward the cashier, he started to doubt this plan of his. He made a hasty decision on this place because there would be no pressure to make the night romantic or perfect. That being said, it was so unromantic that he was getting a bit worried.

"Um...Jim?"

He looked down to see Pam staring at him a bit apprehensive. "Yeah?" he replied nervously. Pam was not looking comfortable at all about this whole thing.

"So...would you think less of me if I order a value meal instead of just a salad?" she asked, a sly smile creeping over her lips.

He felt the blood returning to his face and his confidence come back. "Get whatever you want."

Her smile grew wider before she quickly turned her attention to her purse. "But listen, I don't want to you to think you're going to pay for my dinner in exchange for me having to put out or anything."

"Oh, really?" he replied sarcastically. "No, I mean, of course. Right. That's fine."

"Because Phyllis told me all about what guys expect when they pay for dinner."

He raised his eyebrows in surprise. "What did Phyllis say exactly?"

"Anyway," Pam said, rolling her eyes to avoid the question. "I'm paying for tonight to make sure the playing field is even."

"Um...if the playing field was really even, we'd be going dutch so how about I just pay for it instead?"

"No way!" she replied, finally pulling her wallet out. "I'm not that easy, Jim. Besides, what did you call me? Fancy New Beesly? So I'm at least paying for my half." With that, she triumphantly pulled her cash out in a flourish, only to quickly pretend to be serious again. "Hmm...Do you think you can spot me a buck or two?"

"You know, I did get a promotion a few months ago and all," he said, warmly smiling down at her. "I can just pay for our dinner myself."

"I know, but take my four bucks anyway," she replied. Pam quickly reached down and grabbed his wrist, pulling his hand up to her and shoving the cash in his palm.

"Fine," he said sarcastically. For as much as he liked having his old relationship back with Pam, he frankly found the new assertive receptionist just as cute, and he wasn't about to discourage her new attitude.

Pam ordered a number seven while he got the classic Whopper value meal. She grabbed the empty cups off the tray, leaving him behind to wait for the food. He watched her fill them up at the soda fountain, making sure she put extra ice in his Coke. It was just the way he liked it, and it reminded him of that morning when the camera crew asked him about her favorite flavor of yogurt. He thought he was the only one that remembered those little things.

"Sir, do you need anything else?"

He turned his head quickly to see the cashier staring back at him quizzically. He had forgotten there were other people in the restaurant with them. "Um, no. Thanks," he said, grabbing the tray and following Pam to a corner booth.

"...so that's when Andy yelled at me."

"What did he say?"

Jim rolled his eyes remembering his disastrous Call of Duty performance. "I think it was, 'I'm going to kill you in real life!' or something." He could hear her trying not to laugh across from him. "How was I supposed to know what gun to use?"

"I guess 'potato gun' was not an option."

He narrowed his eyes to stare at her from across the table. "No, it wasn't. Plus, Dwight wasn't there to help me."

"I'm sure he would've been a tremendous addition to your team," she said sarcastically.

He laughed a little and then looked down at his food. There was a quiet tension brewing between them again like every date they had gone on. Every date that somehow ended in frustration or confusion or plain awkwardness. He just couldn't think of anything to really ask. Well, he could think of alot of things, but he didn't want to ask them out loud. Things like Are you feeling this weirdness too? Does this mean something bad? Are we supposed to be together? Or was this never going to work out anyway?

"Jim?"

He snapped out of his thoughts to look and see Pam staring back at him, her eyes pleading with him somehow. "Sorry, I didn't hear that last thing you said."

"I didn't say anything."

"Oh."

She picked up a fry and stared at it before setting it back down, uneaten, from the same place she grabbed it from. "Are you feeling the same weird vibe between us that I am?"

He took a deep breath, trying to figure out how to answer the question, but couldn't think of anything. "Yeah, I do. I just...what's up with that?" he said, giving her the same pleading look back.

"Maybe we're not supposed to be together?" she replied.

"I can't believe that."

She looked into his eyes and he could see the hope she had for them. "Then what is it?"

He started to think about some of the past dates they had gone on -- the picnic at Lake Wallenpaupak, dinner by candlelight at Cugino's -- and how he tried to make everything so perfect for them. "Maybe we're just putting too much pressure on ourselves to make everything work out just right."

"You know, I feel the same way."

"Really?" he asked, a bit shocked that she felt the same way.

"Yeah. I mean, there's been so many things that have stood in our way that I feel like I don't know how to be around you without that."

Jim poked at a cold fry in front of him. "I know," he said quietly. "I just...I don't know how to get past that."

He looked up to see her smiling at him. "I think tonight is a good start."

"Tonight? I took you to Burger King for dinner and you paid for part of it."

"True," she said, the smile still on her face, "but I'm glad you were standing at my door when I opened it tonight. And I'm glad we're spending time together. And I just..."

That's when he realized they were on the same page after all. "You just want it to work," he finished matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, I do."

He finally smiled back at her. "I do, too."

"So what do you have in mind?" she asked him.

"Well, for starters, we need to talk about some of this stuff, don't we?"

Pam gave him a little smirk. "Yeah, that sounds about right."

"And maybe we just need to take some of the pressure off ourselves, you know? Like, not expect everything to be perfect."

"Like tonight?"

"Yeah. I mean, I actually like sitting her in a fast food place with you with no expectations compared to some fancy restaurant with tons of pressure on us on how things are supposed to be."

She smiled over at him. "So you're saying less Cugino's and more Burger King?"

He smiled back at her. "Potentially." He reached over and grabbed one of her fries, quickly stuffing it in his mouth. "I will say it's easier for me to steal food from you here."

She gave him one of her sarcastic scowls, letting him know that he had actually won. "I can't believe you just ate a fry that I actually paid for."

"I'll pay you back later."

"How?"

He felt the tension leaving his body as he gave Pam a mischievous look. "I'll think of something."

She gave him the same look back. "I'd love to see what you come up with."