Chapter 17
“Uh…hi.” Karen said still rooted in the same spot.
“Hi.” Jim said a little stunned to see her standing in front of him. He knew that she still worked for Dunder Mifflin, but the thought that he might see her around the offices had never really crossed his mind.
“What…what are you doing here?” She asked, somewhat nervously.
“Um…job interview. What about you?”
Karen let out a small laugh…or scoff, Jim couldn’t be sure. “Job interview.”
Jim nodded, amazingly not surprised by the irony that seemed to make its presence known in his life at the weirdest times. Karen sat down across from him and pulled a file folder out of her briefcase.
They sat in awkward silence for a good ten minutes before Karen piped up, “How’s Scranton?”
Jim cleared his throat, unsure if he wanted to make small talk with her or not. “You know it’s…Scranton. It’s…unique.”
Karen rolled her eyes slightly, “So nothings changed huh?”
“Not so much. I think Andy might have changed his dosage of Ritalin, but other than that….”
“Glad to hear it.” Karen said with a brief, close-lipped smile. Then the awkward silence took over again. Luckily they were saved by Grace, the receptionist calling out, “Karen Fillipelli? David will see you now.”
Karen stood up and picked up her briefcase. She gave him a small wave and began to walk away, but then she stopped and turned around.
“Are you happy Jim?” she asked in a hushed tone. Jim wasn’t sure that he wanted to answer, but the look on her face was calm and he knew she was sincerely asking him.
He looked at her and nodded, “Yeah…I am.”
She smiled at him, a real smile that lit up her face. “Good. Me too.” She waved again and was gone.
Jim smiled to himself as she walked away. Everything with her seemed to be a lifetime ago.
About twenty minutes later the receptionist looked up again from her desk and said, “Mr. Halpert? David is ready for you.”
Jim took a deep breath, stood up and walked towards the double glass doors that led to David’s office.
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It was a little after 10:00 when Pam’s cell phone rang.
“Hey!” she said answering it after the first ring. “How did it go?”
“Well…it went…okay. Can I come by?”
“Yeah…absolutely. I’ll see you in a little bit.”
“Ok…bye.”
She tried to concentrate on her work, but found it useless. This was a big step for Jim’s career and she was hoping for good news.
It seemed like hours had passed before her cell phone buzzed signaling a text message.
**I’m in the back parking lot**
She tossed her clipboard on the desk and hurried upstairs to the back door. Jim was leaning against his car looking at his cell phone when she pushed open the door.
“Hey!” she said hurrying down the stairs and across the parking lot towards him. He looked up; his face that was usually so full of some sort of emotion was hard to read. She was about ten steps away from him when she held her hands up questioningly. He stared blankly at her for a few seconds and then his face broke into a huge smile. Pam’s eyes widened and then she ran the last few steps and jumped into his arms.
“You got it!” she said happily, as Jim’s arms tightened around her waist, lifting her slightly off the ground. She kissed him quickly before he set her back down. “Tell me all about it!”
“Well, the official title is Regional Director in Charge of Sales. Great salary, benefits, company car…the whole package. I would be working out of a division of the corporate offices….” Jim paused. “…in Philadelphia.”
Pam’s breath caught in her throat and she quickly looked away before he could notice any change in her expression.
“Oh Jim. I am so proud of you.” She wrapped his arms around his neck and kissed him firmly. He brought his hands up to gently cup her face, letting his fingers slide into her hair.
“Well if I had known that I’d get this as a reward I’d of interviewed months ago.” He whispered in between kisses.
“So….” Pam said pulling away slightly. “Did you take it?”
“I have until Friday to let him know. I told him I had to discuss it with my girlfriend first.”
“Really?” Pam asked smiling up at him.
“Of course. Remember…we do this together.”
Pam smiled and then laid her cheek against his chest. “I think you should take it.”
“You do?”
“Absolutely. This is a huge deal Jim.”
“What about…you…and after the internship and everything?” Jim asked.
Pam’s heart swelled at those words. He was always putting her ahead of himself. Always more concerned about her happiness than his own. If it was possible she fell even deeper in love with him. She knew that it was her turn to do something that showed him that he was first. She needed to make a sacrifice for him. He deserved this job. He’d be good at the job and she wanted him to take it. Plus, she knew that her dream of pursuing art wouldn‘t be lost. She could start anywhere…as long as it was where Jim was.
“I can find a job anywhere.” She said. “This is a big deal for you.”
“I love you.” He said pulling her tighter into his arms.
“I love you too.” She said.
“Are you sure about this? I mean…we can talk about it more.”
“What else is there to talk about? It sounds fantastic. And Philly is an amazing city. You deserve this Jim. When will you have to be there?”
“If I take it…” Jim began.
“When you take it…” Pam interrupted with a smile.
Jim laughed softly before continuing, “Either way…I’d have to be there the second week of June.”
“Well that gives us plenty of time.” Pam said.
“To do what?” Jim asked.
“For me to find a job…for us to find a place to live.”
“Are you asking me to move in with you Beesly? Isn’t it a bit too soon?” Jim asked, trying to keep a straight face.
“You know what? You’re probably right. We should just keep doing the long distance thing.”
“No way. You’re not getting off the hook that easily. Sorry, but you’re stuck with me for the long haul.”
Pam kissed him again and said happily, “I’m more than okay with that. If I get to be stuck with someone, there’s no one I’d rather pick.”
“So…you’re really okay with this whole job thing? I mean…is it okay that it’s this easy?”
Pam smiled at him. She thought briefly of the job she had been offered, but she knew that this was something Jim needed to do. She loved her art and all the new things that she had learned, but she also knew that it was something she could take with her. She could start it anywhere. This was going to be an adventure and she wanted to take it with him.
“Do you want this job Jim? Honestly? If there were no other factors involved…would you take it?”
“Yeah…I think I would.”
“Okay. Then take it. It will be worth it.”
“As long as you’re there with me.” He said softly into her ear.
“I will be. This is going to be great.”
Pam glanced at her watch.
“I better get back in. I’ll try and finish early, so we can go celebrate.”
“Sounds good.” Jim said hugging her once more. Pam turned to walk away. “Hey Beesly?” He called.
Pam turned back towards him. “Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
Pam smiled and winked at him and then walked back inside the building.
Jim watched her go, amazed at how easy this had just been. He had been nervous about telling her, still sometimes feeling that he was going to wake up from all of this. He had finally gotten the girl of his dreams and things were going so great, but sometimes he couldn’t help but think that even the smallest shift could send it all crashing to the ground and he would lose her again. He was more in love with her now than he thought was possible and the prospect of starting a new life with her was exciting to him. He was surprised at how quickly Pam had agreed to move with him, seeing that the Pam he used to know was very wary about making big, life affecting, decisions. New York had changed that part of her. It was at that moment, standing in the parking lot, happier and more confident than he had ever felt before, that Jim Halpert made an impromptu decision.
He got into his car and pulled out of the parking lot. 45 minutes later he was back in his car driving towards Pam’s apartment, extremely aware of the small, black velvet box that was burning a hole in his pocket.
He knew that it was probably too soon to propose, but just having the ring…knowing that sometime in the near future he would propose to Pam with it, made him even happier than he was already. If someone had told him a year or even six months ago that he would be moving to Philadelphia with Pam and that he would have just purchased an engagement ring to give to Pam, he would have told them that they were crazy. He let himself into Pam’s apartment and after carefully stashing the ring in the inside pocket of his suitcase he pulled on some jeans and a t-shirt and settled in front of the TV.
His cell phone ringing woke him from the extremely uncomfortable position that he had fallen asleep in. He carefully sat up, running his hand over the back of his neck as he fished his phone out of his pocket and flipped it open.
“Hey…” he said.
“Hi. I just wanted to let you know that I am on my home.”
Jim smiled, thinking how soon ‘home’ would mean their home…together.
“We have some serious celebrating to do…” Pam continued. “…so I was thinking that we could either go out somewhere or stay in and order take-out. It’s your night to celebrate so you choose.”
“Wow…tough choice. I am thinking that getting some take-out and staying in sounds like the perfect way to celebrate. I just want to spend some time with you.”
Jim could practically hear Pam smile over the phone. “Good…” she said. “There are some take-out menus in the drawer next to the fridge. Pick what you want. I should be there in about ten minutes.”
“Sounds good. See you in a few.”
Jim hung up the phone and grabbed the take-out menus. He was sitting at the kitchen table when Pam walked through the front door.
“Hey!” she said setting her bags down and walking over to Jim. He pulled her into his lap and she wrapped her arms around his neck. “Did you find what you wanted for dinner?”
Jim didn’t answer, just kissed her gently on the lips. He kissed her for a few minutes before pulling back and whispering, “Where’s Natalee?”
Pam smiled, “Having dinner with her parents. Won’t be back until later.”
In one swift motion Jim stood up, still holding Pam in his arms. She kissed him firmly as she wrapped her legs around his waist and laughed softly as he carried her towards the bedroom. He laid her on the bed before pulling his t-shirt off over his head and throwing it in the corner of the room. She grinned widely before hooking her thumbs through the belt loops on his jeans and pulling him down to her.
Later, they lay quietly in bed, legs still tangled together under the sheets. Her head was resting on his shoulder and her fingers were softly trailing across his chest. Jim loved this time with her. The stillness, the closeness. The feel of her body next to his, the warmth of her skin under his fingers. It still amazed him sometimes how perfectly they fit together, in all aspects of their lives.
“Have I told you how proud I am of you?” she asked quietly.
“Thanks.” He said kissing the top of her head. “I still can’t believe that I actually got the job. Can you imagine the hysterics when we tell Michael that neither one of us are coming back?”
“We better get one hell of a goodbye party.” Pam said wrapping her arm tighter across his chest.
“Unless Michael finally snaps and takes us hostage. You know how he gets about his work family.” Jim laughed.
They stayed in bed for a while longer, kissing and making small talk. They got up and dressed when Jim’s cell phone rang. He sat on the couch and talked to his brother, while Pam ordered dinner.
“Jake is coming up here for a work thing this weekend. He wanted to know if we want to have dinner.” Jim said tossing his phone on the coffee table as Pam came to sit next to him.
“Oh…yeah. Definitely. That would be fun.”
“Well I know your show is next weekend, plus with moving and job searching and everything we’ll be pretty busy, so I wanted to talk to you and see what would work for you.”
Pam smiled and shook her head slightly in amazement. This was what a real relationship was supposed to be like. It was supposed to be people talking and deciding together what to do with different aspects of their lives. When Pam had been with Roy, there was a lot of Roy telling Pam what he wanted and Pam just agreeing because she was too timid to do anything else. Or Roy would just do it anyways, regardless of what Pam wanted or thought. She wrapped her arm through his and leaned her head on his shoulder.
“Well things are pretty much set for the show. We did so much prep, so we wouldn’t have to stress as much as it got closer. When will he be here?”
“Friday…”
“Then let’s do dinner Friday night.”
“Okay…cool. I’ll give him a call.” Jim wrapped his arm around Pam’s shoulder and pulled her close to him. “So, I was thinking that I should probably head back to Scranton in the morning. I have to start transferring clients and I get the cheerful task of telling Michael that his BFF won’t be working with him anymore.”
“He’ll be crushed.” Pam said. “You know what’s weird? I think I am going to miss Scranton. We’ll never have another boss quite like Michael.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” Jim laughed.
“Well it kept us on our toes. Plus, deep down you know that you are going to miss Dwight.”
“Must be really, really, really deep down.” Jim said as there was a knock at the door. Pam kissed him quickly on the cheek and as she walked towards the door said, “You can’t deny your feelings forever you know.”
They spent the rest of the evening curled up on Pam’s couch, eating Chinese food and searching for houses in Philadelphia on Pam’s laptop. Later, as Pam lay in bed listening to the comforting sounds of Jim’s soft breathing, she realized that she hadn’t thought about her job offer since she had told Jim she would move to Philly with him. Truthfully, she was a tiny bit disappointed, it was flattering to even get an offer like this, but that disappointment was soon taken over by the excitement of the possibility of her future, in Philly, with Jim.
