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Sugar“Pam, you’ve got a little bit of…” Jim gestured to the area around the corner of his mouth.
People were filing back to their desks from the break-room, where Michael had placed the box of Dunkin’ Donuts. He’d taken to bringing in breakfast treats after his dates with Jan. The implications of that were too disturbing to contemplate.
Pam reached up to rub at the side of her mouth. He knew she loved powdered-sugar donuts, despite the mess they made. “Better?” she asked.
“No. I mean, yeah, better, but you didn’t get it all…You need to work on this whole ‘eating’ thing, I guess.”
“I guess.” She smiled slightly and rubbed her face again, unconsciously poking her tongue out to lick at her upper lip. Jim was suddenly aware that they were the only two left in the room. “Did I get it?” she asked.
“No. Here, uh…” Jim took a step toward her and reached out his hand.
Pam’s sharp intake of breath when he touched her face was one of the most intense sounds he’d ever heard. As he gently rubbed away the powdery residue, acutely aware of the warmth of her skin, she squeezed her eyes shut. Her head tilted slightly and she pressed her cheek against his hand.
They stood together, his hand on her cheek, her eyes closed, for a least half of a minute. Her breaths were shuddery and deep, and her brow was furrowed as though she were in pain. Finally, her lashes fluttered. She looked up at him, her eyes dilated, her lips slightly parted.
“Can we go somewhere and talk?” she asked in a whisper.
Jim nodded with quick, small nods. “I think we need to.” He moved his hand away from her skin and immediately wanted to put it back.
Pam bit her lip. She broke eye contact for a split second, but then looked back into his eyes. “Do you think we can fix all this?” she asked seriously.
Jim blinked. He felt dizzy. Nothing- not the years of torture nor the months of silence, not her fear nor his pain, neither Karen nor Roy- nothing else mattered now but this sudden connection with her. He wanted to touch her again. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it. “Yes.”
Pam smiled and instantly Jim’s skin felt as warm as hers. “Meet me outside in five minutes?” Jim nodded. He could just about make it for five minutes without her. He suddenly couldn’t believe he’d lasted years.
In the end, neither of them corrected Michael when he bragged that he had been the one to bring them together. After all, he was the one who bought the donuts.
