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I wrote this pretty quickly, so I hope you all enjoy it!

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. 

As CeCe, walked down the stairs, she was amazed at the sight in the Halpert home. There were balloons strewn around the living room, some popping around the corner from their kitchen, and others lining the stairs. Phillip rushed past her trying to karate chop the balloons in his way like Uncle Dwight had taught him.


“HI-YAAAA” she heard her brother yell as he attempted to pretend he was the next big karate chopping master. He narrowly missed Pam who was swiftly walking out of the kitchen while wiping her hands on a towel. 


CeCe ran towards her mother with the widest smile on her face after scowling at her Phil. “MOM, THANK YOU THIS IS SO COOL”, CeCe exclaimed while giving Pam the biggest hug.


“Well it wasn’t just me, dad helped also” Pam cheerily responded while Jim followed her out of the kitchen. 


“HEY KIDDO, HAPPY BIRTHDAY”! Jim picked CeCe up, spinning her around the room. 


CeCe was beginning to get older, but she loved being spun around. It made her feel like she was 5 again and she desperately missed having no homework. She was sure Mrs. Adams would give her homework tonight. It was Wednesday after all and that’s usually when they received their spelling test prep sheets for Friday. 


“How does it feel to be in double digits”?!? Pam asked, leading her to the kitchen. Before CeCe could respond she was overwhelmed by all the types of breakfast foods she had to choose from. Mom and dad sure had a lot of energy this morning to do all that AND decorate!


“Uhm…..it feels….OOOOOOH WAIT ARE THOSE CHOCOLATE CHIP PANCAKES”?! CeCe was in another world and completely unimpressed by the scones, muffins, or the healthy option she had, eggs. 


“I figured that’s what she would be most interested in” Jim commented chuckling to himself. “We definitely know you, CeCe”.


“What about me, daddy, do you know me”? Phil asked inquisitively.


“Of course we do buddy, that’s why you get the option of whatever you want for breakfast. You can have any of this as well”! 


“YAYYYYYYYYYYY” Phillip responded launching himself off of Jim’s lap and running towards all the food.


“I’d be careful though, Phillip”, Pam started, “You still have school today, don’t want to get a stomachache”!


“Stomach aches are for losers” he responded as best he could with half a muffin in his mouth.


Pam gave him a stern look and he settled down.


“So, CeCe, dad and I thought for your birthday you might enjoy taking the day off from school? We already cleared it with Mrs. Adams and she said you could have an extra day to study for your test so you could take it Monday. Would you like that”? Pam looked at her daughter with a knowing smile, figuring she already knew the answer, but truly wanting to give CeCe the choice. She got her answer when CeCe’s eyes flew open widely and her grin nearly taking over her entire face.


“THIS IS THE BEST BIRTHDAY EVER. EVERYONE IS GOING TO BE SO JEALOUS OF ME. YES I WANT TO TAKE THE DAY OFF”!


It was around then that Phil started to get a bit fussy. “Hey, bud, when you turn ten you can take the day off too”, Jim said giving him the sulking child a fist bump.


“I’m going to take Phil to school, why don’t my favorite girls get ready for CeCe’s big extravaganza” Jim said with a hint of adventure in his voice. 


CeCe was ready for the day!


____________________________________________________________________________


Once Jim got back, the girls had gotten breakfast leftovers put away and were talking about ideas for how to celebrate reaching double digits.


“...well what if we, ooooh wait, no, yes…..WAIT I GOT IT, we go see a movie, mom and I can get out nails done, we go to a biggggg lunch at that one mexican place, pick phil up from school and then go mini golfing as family. Can we do that?” CeCe asked hopefully.


“That sounds like an awesome day, let’s do it! Jim what do you think”? 


“As long as my girls are happy, I’m ready! CeCe, any movie ideas”? Jim asked.


“SONIC THE HEDGEHOG”!!!!!! CeCe practically squealed.


Pam and Jim laughed remembering a time not so long ago that they had played the Sonic games on the Playstation 2. Times had certainly changed.


____________________________________________________________________________


Once the movie was over, CeCe practically bounded out of the theatre.


“Mom, I think I’ll get blue nail polish, that would be so cool”! 


Pam agreed, side eyeing Jim for his reaction. It wasn’t going too much longer until they had a teenaged daughter who probably opt for something less childlike, like black. Jim’s eyes had gotten a bit wide seeming to register that same thought.


Jim left them at the nail salon and ran some errands to get ready for CeCe’s birthday dinner.


Jim couldn’t help smiling to himself as he had thought of how well the morning had gone. He and Pam had woken up at nearly 4:30 to get the balloons setup and and breakfast made. No matter how early, he was still so happy to share these little moments with Pam. While CeCe has been a surprise, she had truly been the best gift to them. Even though she was growing up before their eyes, he still couldn’t believe he was lucky enough to have this little family of his.


Jim turned the corner by the nail salon to see CeCe and Pam smiling up at him.


So so lucky.


____________________________________________________________________________


Once they left lunch, overly stuffed from eating enough chips and salsa to feed an army, they headed to the school to pick up a probably excited Phil. 


When Phil bounded into the car he was excitedly telling everyone how jealous everyone was of him when he told his classmates that he would also get a day off from school when he turned ten.


Everyone in the car laughed until their stomach’s hurt and then laughed some more at everyone else laughing.


Before the car could even come to a full stop, Phil was sprinting towards the house saying he “wanted to practice his karate moves more”. CeCe on the other hand was taking it slower, she didn’t want to mess up the pretty manicure she’d gotten. The nice lady had even painted a flower on her thumb for free since it was her special day!


They waited about an hour longer to make sure the paint had dried before they went mini golfing. It wasn’t fully yet spring, but the weather made it possible to go outdoors and not feel like they needed a parka.


Pam and Jim were always competitive about mini golfing. Though CeCe didn’t understand why. She thought she had heard a story or two about them playing mini golf at work one time and some gift her dad had given her mom, but she wasn’t really sure. She didn’t really care that much either.


Phil ended up surprising everyone and getting the highest score. Somehow reigning in his wild child tendencies. Jim commented that he wasn’t surprised in the athletic leanings of Phil nor was he surprised when CeCe came in second place. It was “good genes afterall”.


What surprised Jim the most was how bad he and Pam had done. They hadn’t even been trying to go easy on the kids either! 


The ride home ended up lulling both kids to sleep. It was nearing 6:00 o’clock and CeCe was truly wiped out. Phil, well, he ran off enough energy to power a neighborhood of electricity sometimes so it surprised no one when he fell asleep.


____________________________________________________________________________


“CeCe, wake up, it’s time for your birthday dinner”. Jim was slowly waking her up in the backseat of the car. 


“Iwake” CeCe all but slurred together. She had been too groggy to notice all the cars in front of their house so she was very surprised when a bunch of her friends jumped out at her in the home.


“HAPPY BIRTHDAY”  they all yelled at her at different times, but the sweet message got across nonetheless.


Surprised once again, CeCe jumped up and down excitedly. Today had been such a fun day and it was still continuing. 


Pam came out of the kitchen with a lit birthday cake while all the kids and their parents sang happy birthday to CeCe. When thinking about what she wanted, she wished to grow up and have a fun family like this when she was older. Today had truly been fun and she was sure that she would never forget this day. CeCe blew out the candles and smiled big when the camera flashed and her friends cheered for the sugar they got to eat on a school night.

Chapter End Notes:
Thanks to NobleLandMermaid for the reminder about CeCe's birthday! Hopefully you liked it!


beth9501 is the author of 11 other stories.

This story is part of the series, After the Footage Airs. The next story in the series is The Roads That Led Us Here.

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