*
*
Pam stared at the two pink stripes. It couldn’t be possible, she thought. But it could; after all, this was the third test she had taken. The first one, which she purchased after figuring out she was three weeks late, showed a little plus sign. She was completely in denial at that point and decided that the pregnancy test was wrong, so she ignored the results. Then, a few days ago, after being a month late, and unusually irritable and tired, she bought a second one. It was a different test, one with stripes instead of pluses but the second line, the one that was supposed to indicated a pregnancy, was faded and therefore Pam felt it was inconclusive. The third test had two, clear pink lines.
Pam Beesly was most definitely, and without a doubt, pregnant.
“Okay, okay, so what’s the big problem?” her best friend Isabelle asked. It was almost an hour after Pam had taken the test. Feeling incredibly overwhelmed about everything, she called Isabelle because she had to tell someone.
Pam had been pacing the kitchen when Isabelle arrived. “This is,” she said, holding up the pregnancy test, not even waiting for Isabelle to take off her coat. “You see, I’m not sure if that second line is real because I’ve been staring at it so long and I’m convinced I have double vision. So, I needed a second opinion.”
“Oh my god!” Isabelle said, her eyes wide. She grabbed the pregnancy test away from Pam. “Um, there are definitely two lines there.” Then it dawned on her that she was holding a pregnancy test. “Oh, and ew, you peed on this thing.” She quickly threw it in the trash. “I need to wash my hands.”
“I’m really pregnant,” Pam said, stunned, as if the idea was finally sinking in. She leaned against the counter where Isabelle was washing her hands with dish soap.
“Yeah, you are,” Isabelle responded. Out of all Isabelle’s friends, Pam was the last one she thought would ever get pregnant before she was married. “Do you want another test just to be sure?”
“That is the third test,” Pam informed her. “So, I guess I’m pretty sure.”
“Oh, Pam,” Isabelle said. “What are you going to do?”
“Have a baby,” Pam gave. Truth was, she had no idea what she was going to do. Sure, she knew she wanted children some day but she had hoped to be married first, or at least in some sort of relationship. She was most definitely single and most definitely on her own. And, as the idea was now settling into her, most definitely pregnant.
“Well, you do have a couple of options,” Isabelle said, drying her hands off on a towel. She shook off her jacket and placed it on the counter, she was going to be there for a while. “Adoption, abortion…”
Pam placed her hands on her stomach. There was something growing there, she realized. Something that was a part of her, something she made. As much as the idea of taking care of it scared her, she didn’t think she could give it up. “No,” she said shaking her head. “I think I want it.”
“Alright then,” Isabelle said. “There’s plenty to do.” She scrounged around Pam’s junk drawer for a scrap piece of paper and a pen. “We’ll make a list.”
Pam nodded, organization helped ease off the shock. “Okay, okay,” she said. “Well, I’ll need to make an appointment with my doctor,” she said as Isabelle scribbled the list items down on the paper. “And I’ll want to stop by the bookstore and get some books because I clearly have no idea what I’m doing. Oh, I probably should call my mom…”
“Have you told Roy?” Isabelle asked as she continued to write.
“Um,” Pam stalled. Isabelle stopped writing to stare at her. “Well, I’m not sure if Roy really needs to know.”
Isabelle gave her a confused look. “Well, Pam, if he’s the father, then you probably should…” Isabelle’s jaw dropped as Pam slowly shook her head. “Roy’s not the father?”
“I left Roy pretty much at the alter in June,” Pam explained. “It’s now mid-October. You do the math.”
“Oh my god,” Isabelle said for the second time. “You had sex with some guy and didn’t tell me?”
Pam half-heartedly shrugged. “Well, it was just one night and I didn’t think it counted…as…anything.”
“You had a one night stand and didn’t tell me?” That was almost more unbelievable than Pam being pregnant. “Oh my god, Pam! Who’s the father?”
--
150 miles east of Pam, the father, though he had no idea that he was going to be one yet, was doing what he did every Friday afternoon, staring out at the ocean, wishing he was somewhere else.
Jim Halpert was bored. He had done a decent job of selling paper that day, maybe even a better job than the day before. He could have easily put in a few more calls that afternoon but he was feeling lazy and the mood to actually try at his job hadn’t struck him a long time. He was also disappointed that the prank he had tried to pull that morning had failed miserably. Sure, he was aware that Andy may not have been the best target, with his anger management issues and all, but he had been itching to try the stapler in Jell-O for months now, and he felt Andy was the only one he could get away with pulling it on.
Of course, it backfired and Andy went crazy, nearly destroying everything in the office. But at least Jim had found it funny; until Andy kicked his trash can across the room. Everyone else in the room just stared. Not a single soul found the prank amusing. He sighed, maybe there was something wrong with him and not the rest of the world as he had always thought.
“Hey,” Jim turned around to see Karen leaning against his desk. Karen had been a new hire to the company a few months ago. Since they were the only two close in age at the office, they had struck up a friendship.
“Hey,” he said with a forced smile.
“So, I’m guessing that was you with the Jell-O?” she said with a grin on her face. “Nice. A little amateurish but a good try,” she teased.
“Amateurish,” he returned. His ego was a little hurt by that. “That was a brilliant prank.”
“Maybe if your target wasn’t Andy,” she said with a laugh. “I mean, you had to have seen that coming.”
Jim shrugged indifferently. “It’s not like any of you have a sense of humor anyway,” he joked.
“So,” Karen shifted uneasily. Jim knew what was coming; he had sensed Karen had been trying to get the nerve to ask him out for a while. He had contemplated asking her out but for some reason, he never got around to doing it. “What are you doing tonight? Want to go catch a movie or something?”
“I don’t know,” he said. Karen frowned and Jim felt a little bit bad.
“C’mon,” she said, a little whine in her voice. “What are you going to do anyway? Sit around like you always do and watch some sports thing. Maybe it’s time you inject a little bit of fun into your life. And, besides, I have, like, been here for months and still don’t have that many friends. It’d be nice to go out on a Friday night for a change.”
“Alright, Filippelli,” Jim gave in. He liked Karen. He really did, so there wasn't any reason not to go. She was right; it’d be nice to have some fun for a change. “But no chick flicks.”
“What about chick flicks masquerading as raunchy comedies?” Karen suggested. “I heard the new Judd Apetow one was good. You know that one where Katherine Heigl gets pregnant after a one night stand.”
Jim fazed for a second, as if remembering something he had forgotten. “No,” Jim said, pushing the buried memory aside. “Something has got to blow up in it.”
Karen rolled her eyes. “God, you are such a guy. What about…”
The argument continued all the way to the movie theater.
Story Notes:
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Thanks everyone who took a chance on my first story! I know you might be apprehensive to trust a new author who starts two multi-chapter stories but I do have every intention of continuing that one along side this one. This one was just nagging to be written and sometimes, one has to follow inspiration.
Also, to set the scene a little, the time line is set at the beginning of season three, only Jim has never been at the Scranton branch, he has always worked in Stamford. He has only met Pam once, but more on that later...
Also, to set the scene a little, the time line is set at the beginning of season three, only Jim has never been at the Scranton branch, he has always worked in Stamford. He has only met Pam once, but more on that later...
