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Story Notes:
I should be working on my other fic, but this idea came to me while listening to some of my current favourites on my iPod. I couldn't resist, so here we are! Each chapter will be inspired by a line from a song, but they probably won't use the exact same words.
Author's Chapter Notes:
I don't own The Office or its brilliant characters. I'm taking them out for a spin, but I promise to have them back by midnight. Please don't sue me! I'm going to be a lawyer and it wouldn't bode well for me. I also don't own the very sweet song "The Guy That Says Goodbye To You Is Out Of His Mind," by Griffin House.
“You don’t need to change a thing about you, Babe,
I’m telling you from where I sit you’re one of a kind.”
- Griffin House, “The Guy That Says Goodbye To You Is Out Of His Mind”


He could tell she’d been crying when she hurried into the office fifteen minutes late. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes damp, and her entire demeanor frazzled as she sat down behind the desk and tried to act like nothing was wrong. He watched for a moment in concern, then noticed Dwight was nodding knowingly in his general direction, obviously trying to get his attention.

“Okay….what are you doing?” he asked, deciding he was bored enough to take the bait.

“It’s Pam’s time of the month,” Dwight answered unapologetically.

“Wow. Um, how would you know that?”

Dwight huffed in typical fashion as though Jim was the idiot in the situation. “Please, Jim. Everyone knows females who are confined to the same area for long periods of time will eventually adjust to the same cycle.”

This actually brought a little grin to Jim’s face as he considered why Dwight might have that little piece of information. “And how would you know anyone’s cycle?” he asked, raising an eyebrow in challenge.

Dwight immediately blanched and scrambled to recover, and Jim couldn’t help smiling a little in victory. Only 9:15 and he already managed one triumph over Dwight. Oh, the possibilities…. “Pam is displaying the classic signs of a woman who is-”

“Okay, um, do you realise this is not an okay topic for you to discuss?” he cut him off before it got any more graphic.

Dwight just rolled his eyes in exasperation and turned back to his computer screen, once more freeing him to return to his own favourite activity – watching Pam. She was focusing way too hard on the monitor in front of her, and every few seconds, she sniffled pitifully. No one else seemed to take much notice, but he wasn’t going to be able to focus on anything until he knew what upset her. Unlike Dwight, he didn’t know anything about her “cycle,” but he had noticed another pattern in her life. Every time he’d seen tears in her eyes, it was because of Roy. Instinct told him this time was no different.

Of course, things had been a little strange between them since their fight about the internship. He had a feeling that was really a fight about Roy and not about her missing out on this opportunity, but either way, his accusations were a little spot-on. As always, she withdrew in on herself, trying to protect herself from even more hurt. He was trying hard to let it go, but it drove him mad to think of that bastard holding her back, and he felt even more crazy over the fact that she didn’t even seem to mind. How long did someone have to put you down and stifle your dreams before you just became numb to it? Anyone could see she deserved better than Roy…anyone except Pam.

Clearly, however, he made his opinion a little more obvious than she liked. If he was going to make her see how wrong Roy was for her, he was going to have to do it a little at a time. Pam needed to move in inches, not miles, and he needed to be gentle. And first, he just needed to be her friend.

He considered walking up for some early morning jelly beans, but he didn’t want to draw anyone’s attention when she was obviously trying to act like nothing was wrong. Instead, he spent the next fifteen minutes looking at online greeting cards. Normally he wouldn’t dream of doing something so cheesy, but he knew she was a sucker for corniness like that, and if a dancing panda couldn’t cheer her up, there wasn’t much he could do for her. He debated adding a note, but ultimately decided not to overdo it. Just a quick little gesture to show he noticed and maybe encourage her to open up again. If she decided she wanted to talk to him, he could tell her himself the encouraging words she needed to hear. He pressed the send button, then waited for her to check her e-mail.

He actually made two sales calls and filled out some paperwork before looking up again. She was noticeably more cheerful now, a slight smile on her face despite her still-red eyes. Just a moment later, a window at the bottom of the screen started flashing, and a grin spread over his face.


PBeesly: Coffee. Break room. Now.
JHalpert: I’m incredibly busy right now, Beesly.
PBeesly: Not too busy to look for dancing panda bears, though.
JHalpert: But really, who ever is?
JHalpert: I do have priorities, you know.


Instead of responding, she got up and headed towards the break room, looking to him expectantly. Not about to disappoint, he got up as well and followed her to the coffee maker. “So Dwight has some interesting theories about your ‘cycle,’” he informed her, giving air quotes before she handed him a cup of coffee. “His words. Not mine.”

“Why would Dwight be talking about my cycle?” she grimaced, looking a bit nauseated at the idea.

“Seriously, Pam. It’s Dwight. Wouldn’t we all be more surprised if he didn’t?”

“You make a good point.” She sighed and held her mug in two hands, not bothering to take a sip. He resisted from pointing out she didn’t even drink coffee and thus forcing her to admit she really just needed to talk right now. He wasn’t about to jeopardise his opportunity to get inside her head a little. “Thanks for the card,” she said after a moment.

“No problem. Is everything okay?”

“No, not really,” she admitted.

“You want to tell me about it?”

She frowned a little and stared down into her cup of coffee. “Roy and I had a fight this morning,” she confessed.

Yeah, didn’t see that coming, he thought wryly. Score 1 for Halpert.

“I’ve been thinking about that internship,” she continued quietly. “And I guess there are a lot of reasons not to try it, but….I really want it,” she admitted, and it sounded as though she was just starting to come to terms with that herself. “So I tried talking to him again, but he just kept saying no, it wasn’t practical, it was too far away.”

“What did you say?”

“I tried telling him what a good opportunity it was. I looked around, and I can actually stay pretty close to Dunder Mifflin those weekends without going bankrupt, and I told him I would pay for everything myself. But he still just won’t budge.”

“Maybe you should just do it anyway,” he suggested quietly, hoping she wouldn’t think it was too bold. “If you really want it, you should do it.”

“Yeah, maybe,” she answered, not sounding too convinced. She grew silent again for a moment, and he knew there was more to their fight than just saying no. He said no all the time, and she didn’t ever look as distraught as she did this morning. “He told me being an artist was stupid,” she suddenly blurted.

“What?” he asked incredulously. “He really said that?”

She nodded, the tears springing to her eyes once more. “He said it wasn’t something I should still be indulging, that it was ‘cute’ in high school, but now I need to be realistic.”

“Pam, I-” he began before realising he couldn’t actually think of something to say in response that didn’t threaten Roy’s life and limb. Up until this point he didn’t think Roy was dumb enough to say something so hurtful, so demeaning, but wow, he really tossed out the big guns.

“I knew he thought the internship was a bad idea, but he made it about me,” she said quietly. “And I don’t know,” she shrugged. “Maybe he’s right. Maybe I should forget about being an artist, but it’s what I’ve always wanted. That was like, always the thing I dreamed about. I don’t know how to do anything else.”

“Pam,” he said softly, looking into her eyes and allowing those tears to break his heart once more. God, he really wanted to kill Roy Anderson right about now. He shook his head, amazed someone like Roy could actually be with her all this time and still not recognise how wonderful she was. “You don’t need to change anything about yourself,” he said seriously, locking his eyes on hers and trying to convey just how much he meant it. “If Roy doesn’t see that…” he swallowed hard, resisting the urge to tell her that her fiance was an idiot. “People ike who….people who don’t let go of their dreams….they’re the ones who make it. It’s what makes you special. It makes you Pam. And, you know, that’s pretty great.”

Pam just stared at him in response, and for a moment, it seemed as though it all clicked for her. The way he felt about her, the way Roy didn’t. The way he wanted her dreams to come true, the way Roy wanted her to be exactly what he asked instead. Fresh tears rushed to her eyes, and though he was grateful she understood, he hated being the cause – even indirectly – of her pain.

Before he had a chance to say anything else, however, a familiar and entirely unwelcome head popped in the door. “Dunder Mifflin employees are permitted precisely one fifteen minute break and a lunch break. You have now been drinking coffee for seventeen minutes.”

Pam started to say something, but Jim quickly silenced her with a look that clearly said he could field this one. “Dwight, what are you talking about?” he asked in feigned confusion. “Pam and I just got here. We still have ten minutes before the work day starts.”

“False. It is almost ten o’clock.”

“No, Dwight,” she shook her head, always quick to jump right in and contribute. “It’s 8:50.”

“You must have experienced some sort of time warp,” Jim managed with a completely straight face.

“My watch says 9:48.”

“Yeah, of course it does. You were wearing it during the time warp.”

Dwight looked sceptical, but he was also clearly alarmed and dashed out of the room for verification. “Ten points for use of a sci-fi term,” Pam awarded him. “But I’m going to have to go with zero points for follow-through potential. When the clock confirms the correct time-”

“He’ll be locked out,” he finished for her, reaching over and casually turning the lock on the break room door just in time for Dwight to slam into it. After recovering from the initial shock he started to pound on the glass, but they both ignored him and the rest of their co-workers followed suit.

“Nice one, Halpert,” she nodded in appreciation.

“Do the judges redact their humiliating zero points?”

“Well, technically, it still had no follow-through potential. They will, however, award eight points for spontaneous solution-making.”

“Spontaneous solution-making. Right. I always forget that one.”

“A common mistake.”

They grinned at one another, and Dwight gave up his quest and returned to his desk. The silence made them both a little uncomfortable, the room too full of unspoken emotion, so she started towards the door. He briefly considered letting her walk away, but he knew he would regret it forever if he let the moment go. “Pam,” he blurted, causing her to stop. “You know what I think about Roy,” he prefaced. “I’m not going to question your choices again, but you should know…” he trailed off, not quite sure what he could say that wouldn’t be crossing the line still very much intact between them.

“I should know what?” she asked quietly.

“From where I’m sitting, he’s a fool for not appreciating everything about you,” he answered simply, and then he grabbed his coffee mug and returned to his desk.
Chapter End Notes:
Next up: Flowers In The Window

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