It’s 3:00 and he could barely look at her.  He wants to, he really wants to.  She was glowing today.  It’s the pink flush of her cheeks, the coat of pink gloss on her lips. He loves when she wears her hair like this, and he kind of wanted to kiss her when he walked in this morning.  Her face was so there. So exposed, and so beautiful to him.  There are flashes of pink everywhere he looks – her hair, her ears, her chest, her eyes, her lips.  He can’t help but notice the way the collar of her shirt slopes into a deep-V.  He even notices the scalloping on the ends of her sleeves.

He thinks pink might just be his favourite color.

And Jim has to admit it to himself – he’s never been a violent guy.  In fifth grade, he’d even let Tommy Jefferson punch him.  He knew Tommy got made fun of for his weight and he felt like maybe just once, Tommy deserved a few pats on his back.  So he’d taken the punch, walked it off.  He wasn’t a violent guy.

But he really wanted to beat the shit out of Roy because pink was his favourite color (as of today) and Roy was really ruining that for him. 

She had become more and more pale as the day progressed.  With every flower delivery, she wilted.  The pink in her cheeks faded with every second that passed.  She hid her hands in the sleeves of her scalloped-edged shirt.  She lost the light in her eyes.  And he hated Roy for it. 

He knew they weren’t dating or engaged or anything like that, but Pam had sort of been talking about Valentine’s Day for the past week.  She’d asked him if he was doing anything.  She’d rambled on for hours about the Poconos, how maybe her and Roy would go there for the weekend. 

(He’d pretended she was talking about him.)

He knew she loved pink and white tulips.  She’d told him about that when she was talking about a garden centre she found in Scranton a few months ago.  But he was pretty sure Roy could have just gotten her a rose or two and she’d be happy. 

He couldn’t catch her eye, so he IM’d her instead.

JHalpert: Hey Beesly!  What are you up to back there?

mspambeesly: Hi Jim.  Nothing, really.  Faxes.  

JHalpert: Sounds exciting

mspambeesly: Very. 

JHalpert: So do you think Mr. Schrute is acting kind of strange today?

mspambeesly: Not anymore than usual.  Why? 

JHalpert: I don’t know, Pam.  He’s been staring in my direction a lot more than usual.  Think he wants to ask me to join him for a Valentine’s Day themed dinner at the famous Schrute Farms.  Or is he planning my murder?

JHalpert: Should I be scared?

mspambeesly: lol I think you’ll be okay

JHalpert: Do you think -- if I get the honour of joining him on a dinner date – he’ll cook?  

mspambeesly: Yes.  A three-course meal, I suppose. 

JHalpert:  All courses involve beets in some way, shape or form. 

mspambeesly:  Of course

JHalpert:  He’s probably just too nervous to ask me.  What do you think?

mspambeesly: I mean, you are pretty intimidating Mr. Halpert.

JHalpert: Definitely.  And you should probably call me Mr. Halpert from now on, Pam.  That’s a direct order.

mspambeesly: lol if you say so

JHalpert: So, I have a plan.  Care to help me out?

mspambeesly: Sure 

JHalpert:  Only if you have the time.  I mean, I know you’re busy faxing 

mspambeesly: LOL! Jim!

JHalpert: That’s Mr. Halpert to you.

mspambeesly: J

mspambeesly: So what’s the plan, Mr. Halpert? 

JHalpert:  I will need a beautiful dinner invitation made out to Mr. Dwight Kurt Schrute from his best friend, Mr. James Halpert.  Inviting him to dinner tonight, of course.  I’m thinking it should almost look like a wedding invitation of some sort?  Flowers, hearts.  Maybe a little image of Cupid.  That sort of thing.

mspambeesly: Gotcha. 

mspambeesly:  Hey.  I even have that Valentine’s Day gift you gave me last year, of Cupid-Dwight.  It’s in my drawer. 

JHalpert:  You still have that?

mspambeesly: Uh, of course! How could I get rid of THAT masterpiece?

JHalpert: LOL, I guess you couldn’t

mspambeesly: Right.  Should I put that on the card? 

JHalpert:  No, no.  Keep that one for old-times sake.  Maybe put a Cupid-Michael in the card?  Or Cupid-Kevin?  To add romance, of course.

mspambeesly: Of course 

JHalpert: J

mspambeesly: I’ll come to your desk with the finished product in about 20?

JHalpert: Sounds good.  Good luck, young grasshopper.

mspambeesly: lol! J thanks jim 

mspambeesly has signed off

JHalpert has signed off

She comes to his desk twenty minutes later, taps him on the shoulder, and points to the break room.  He gets up and follows her.  

“So?” 

She blushes when she puts the card in his hands.

“Pam!  It’s amazing!” 

He’s laughing so hard, his stomach actually hurts.  He could feel Toby's eyes on them from the Annex but he doesn't even care, he can't contain himself.  She used pink cardstock.  Somehow, she photo-shopped Kevin and Michael’s heads onto two cherub-like bodies that are hugging each other. His name is written in cursive, and he’s pretty sure his heart skips 5 beats when he sees how she put a heart over the ‘i’ in his name. 

“Are you sure?  I could put something else or add something or—“

He touches her wrist and his face grows warm when she doesn’t pull away.  In fact, she steps closer to him and he bends awkwardly to put his face beside her ear.  Her hair tickles his cheek.

“He’s gonna love it.  I love it.”

He likes that he can be the one to make the pink come back into her face.

After they’ve both settled back into their desks and he gives Dwight the card, he can hear her trying to hold in her laughter.  Yeah, it’s kind of hilarious, the way Dwight’s eyes practically pop out of their sockets.  And yeah, he finds it funny when Dwight bursts into Michael’s office to report him for “inappropriate office intimacy.”  But he’s pretty the only reason he feels so happy, so warm inside, is because of the fact that Pam’s literally beaming at her.  Her eyes are glowing and she’s flushed and so beautiful and he still wants to kiss her and he thinks this is really what love is.

He leaves a paper tulip on her desk before he leaves for the day.  It’s pink, and it’s made of flimsy cardstock.  And he's not an artist or sculptor by any means so, he knows it's not the best looking paper flower ever created.  In fact, it kind of looks terrible and he's sort of embarrassed.  He'd tried his best, he really did, but he couldn't get the paper to curve the way he wanted it to.  He almost doesn’t give it to her, because his heart is about to explode out of his chest from nerves.  So he puts it down hastily and leaves while she’s in the bathroom.  He doesn’t look back.  He can’t.  He left a sticky note underneath the flower. 

Beesly,

Roses are red

Violets are blue

I made this flower

Just for you 

Happy Valentine’s Day

- Jim

He’s putting his seatbelt on when he sees Pam running out the front door of the building.  Towards him.  He only rolls down the window, not wanting to look too hopeful.  Because what if it looks like she’s running to him but she’s just running to the warehouse or—

When she presses her lips on his, he’s not expecting it in the slightest.

When she pulls away, her face is flushed, and her eyes are watery.  The pink gloss she was wearing is kind of smeared.  He watches the warmth spread to her cheeks, and she’s watching him, trying to gauge his reaction. He can’t keep the smile off his face.

Yeah, pink is definitely his favourite color.