1. Chapter 1 by bitterpill
2. Chapter 2 by bitterpill
“Jim Halpert.”
“Hey.”
“Hi.”
“How are you?”
“Uh…okay. How are you?”
“Okay.”
“Good.”
“I’m lying.”
“Oh.”
“I’ve been better.”
“Yeah.”
“Yeah. So this is awkward, right?”
“No. Not at all.”
“It’s not the strangest conversation we’ve ever had?”
“You’re forgetting our twenty-five minute conversation about deer urine.”
“Right! I had blocked it out. Thanks.”
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be. You have nothing to be sorry about.”
“So…how are things over there?”
“Awful. How are things in Stamford?”
“Different. And in some ways, completely the same.”
“So, you have a Stamford Dwight?”
“He’s more like a hybrid of Dwight and Michael.”
“Oh, God!”
“Yeah, it’s weird. So tell me what’s going on over there.”
“A lot, actually.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“Well, your Gaydar was a big hit. Until, of course, Dwight discovered that he was gay.”
“Excellent! And Gaydar doesn’t lie. Sharper Image promised.”
“That’s good enough for me.”
“So, what else?”
“Well…”
“It’s Michael, isn’t it? He’s done something besides ‘out’ Oscar?”
“How did you know?”
“Kelly.”
“You mean Oscar’s new best friend?”
“Yeah. She’s kept me up-to-date on a lot of things.”
“Oh.”
“So, you were going to say something.”
“Uh…yeah. But it has nothing to do with Michael.”
“Dwight?”
“No.”
“Angela. She has a new poster, doesn’t she?”
“Yes, but that’s not it.”
“Hmm…”
“I miss you.”
“I miss you, too.”
“Am I too late?”
“What?”
“Am I too late?”
“For what?”
“For you and me. For us.”
“Pam, we’ll always be friends. I’ll always be here if you need me.”
“I do need you.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. I need you to look up.”
“I do need you.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. I need you to look up.”
When he did, he saw her standing outside the glass doors. She was wearing her blue-striped oxford and a black skirt. She gave him a small smile and a hesitant wave.
“Oh my God.”
“Hi.”
“You’re here.”
“I’m here. I was sitting at my desk and I just couldn't stand not seeing you anymore.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything.”
“You’re here.”
“Yes. Should I have called first? Are you busy?”
He laughed out loud, causing a familiar smile to light up her face.
“Yeah, I’m swamped. I’m going to have to call you back.”
“Sure. I understand.”
“I’ll be right there.”
“Okay.”
He quickly shut down his computer and grabbed his bag. Just then, Andy walked back from the kitchen with a cup of coffee and a twinkle in his eyes. “Big Tuna, you will not believe the joke I just heard.”
“I’m sure I won’t. Listen, I’ve got to leave right now. Can you let Josh know once he gets out of his meeting? Tell him I’ll make up the time tomorrow.”
“Yeah, sure thing. And remind me to tell you that joke. It’s an instant classic.”
“Will do. Thanks.”
He walked through the doors and she awkwardly held out her hand.
“Seriously?”
“Well, I’m not sure what to do.”
“Well, what do you want to do? I mean, if you want to shake hands, we’ll shake hands.”
“I want to hug you.”
“Let’s go with that.”
They leaned into each other and hugged for close to a minute.
“It’s so good to see you.”
“You, too.”
They slowly pulled away and saw that they each had tears forming in their eyes. Without a word he grabbed her hand and headed for the elevator. Once inside, he began to rub her ring finger with his thumb. When he spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper.
“God, that feels good.”
She closed her eyes and smiled. “Yeah, it does.”
The doors had barely closed before her lips were on his. She pressed herself as close as she could to him and they both let out low, guttural moans. Her hands made their way into his hair as his hands trailed down her lower back. When the doors opened on the garage level, they were both breathless. They walked out a little dazed.
“I think my car is around here somewhere.”
“I have no idea if I even parked in this garage.”
He laughed and took her hand.
She suddenly stopped and grabbed his arm. “Jim, wait.”
“No, it’s okay. We’ll find it later.”
“I have to say something.”
“Okay.”
She took a deep breath and looked him in the eyes.
“I made a huge mistake four months ago and I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I hurt you. You didn’t deserve that.”
“Pam-“
“No, please let me say this. You are so amazing, and I was so scared. I was scared to admit how I felt about you and scared to admit how I no longer felt about Roy. I thought that as long as I suppressed all of my feelings, I could go on living the lie. It wasn’t fair to you, or him, or me. I’m sorry.”
“Pam, I’m sorry that I dropped all of this stuff on you and left. I should have stayed, but it was so much easier to run. I was so stupid.”
“We’re both idiots.”
“Pretty much.”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
They stood there holding each other’s hands the way they did all those months ago. But this time, neither one was willing to pull away.