What Pam expected the next day was unclear. And partially drowned by a hangover she knew she had earned after 3 margaritas and a beer just to wash it away, as Karen had said. The awkward silence after Karen announced she was leaving Jim didn’t last long, and Pam found herself sharing stories from the office, from a time that seemed to be remote, and maybe much simpler. From there they jumped to mocking Michael, and then to abusing almost every man (not my dad, though, Karen said and Pam agreed, including his). 

And now Pam was almost late, drowning two aspirins with a large gulp of coffee, and wondering how exactly things at the office were going to be. She very much doubted Karen had had the time, or the soberness, to go to Jim’s at 1 am and break up with him. Besides, they had shared a cab and Pam had left her at her hotel. 

Still, as she drove out of her parking lot, she suddenly became aware of the fact that honestly she didn’t know if Karen really meant business about breaking up with Jim. Last night she had looked serious, and determined, but still… maybe she’d wake up to a hangover to match Pam’s and the thought of it all being silly. 

She didn’t need to fear, though. The moment Karen entered the office, just 2 minutes after she’d settled on her receptionist’s desk, she smiled with a gleam in her eyes. And if that hadn’t been enough, the “s’up sis” that came, followed by a chuckle, told it all.

To her own surprise, relief washed over Pam. Was it because it all made it look like she would break up with Jim? Or just because indeed, Karen had decided to be a friend? She couldn’t tell. 

But it made her smile and silently put her bottle of aspirin over the counter. 

“Thanks,” Karen said, taking it as if her life depended on it. “I ran out and didn’t have the time to go to the drugstore.”

“Help yourself.” Pam said with a smile.

“Coffee later?”

“Sure.”

And just then Jim entered the office, and Pam vaguely wondered if there would come a time in which she’d stop feeling her heart getting trapped somewhere around her throat every time she saw him. 

“Morning,” Jim said at some point about two feet above Pam’s head and then he turned towards Karen. “Hi! I call you last nigh-”

“Morning. Gotta work,” Karen said, walking away. Aboud mid-way towards her desk, though, she turned around and looked straight into Pam’s eyes, shaking the aspirin bottle. “Thanks for this, Pam. You’re the best.”

“Anytime,” she replied amused, not just at Karen’s acting skills, but at Jim’s lost expression. Then and there she decided that no matter the outcome, this could be a very funny thing to witness. 

As the day passed, she could see from her vantage point Jim growing restless, trying to catch Karen’s attention, and she ignoring him, as if her life depended on the sale calls she was taking. At some point around mid morning she stood up and Jim looked hopeful, but she made a beeline towards Pam’s desk and said, quite cheerful, “so how about that coffee?”

Pam followed her lead, and it was with genuine good humour that she started discussing the margaritas from the night before on their way to the kitchen.

The moment the door closed behind them and there was a slight privacy Pam chuckled. “You know he’s getting really anxious, right?” she asked and Karen nodded.

“I feel a little vindicated about the apartment thing. And about the not-telling-me-stuff thing.”

“But you’re eventually going to talk to him, right? Or you’re just gonna give him the cold shoulder until he gets tired?”

Both women laughed. “Not a bad idea,” Karen said, grabbing the pot of coffee and filling two mugs. “Nah, I’m going to talk to him over lunch. I’m not that cruel.”

“Oh, ok,” Pam said, a little taken aback. She knew this needed to happen, but she couldn’t help but wonder how it would really feel like if Jim somehow managed to persuade Karen not to leave him. It was a very uncomfortable thought to say the least.

Still, there was nothing she could do, and whatever happened, she wouldn’t be worse than the day before. Which, honestly, was a bit pathetic.

Lunchtime came, and she saw Karen approaching Jim’s desk and, a moment afterwards, both left the office. She didn’t think she could eat, and least of all in the break room with the regular office small talk, so she followed Karen’s advice from the day before and got in her own car. There was no reason to cry now, but she needed the quiet of a space that she didn’t have to share with anybody.

It was lucky the car was facing the building and not the entrance, or she wouldn’t have been able to stop herself from checking if Jim and Karen were coming back and how.

Luchbreak came and went, and she was back at her desk when Karen came back. On her own. Pam looked at her, trying to telepathically transmit her questions. Karen just smiled a tight lips smile, and went to her seat. A moment later Jim was entering the office, frowning, his hands deep inside his pockets.

For a moment it seemed as if he would stop by reception. Then he took a couple of steps towards his desk, and then back to reception again. Pam braced herself.

“Can I talk to you for a moment?” he finally asked, and she couldn’t tell if he was angry or just puzzled. 

“Sure,” she said, looking at him as if she knew nothing.

“Outside?”

She raised an eyebrow. “O… k…” she said, and quickly turned on the office’s answering machine.

Jim led them to the staircase of the building and for a wild moment Pam remembered all the times she had fantasised about him calling her outside, but not to talk, but to share kisses precisely there. There was absolutely no point in remembering that now. 

Trying to shake off the memories, she climbed down to the landing and waited until he joined her a second later.

“So…” he said.

“So?”

“You and Karen went out last night.”

Pam didn’t say a thing. It wasn’t a question anyway.

“She…” Jim continued after a moment of awkward silence. “Can I ask what you talked about?”

Pam shrugged. “Dunno. Girls’ stuff. Why are you asking me and not her?”

Jim sighed. “Because she just broke up with me, out of the blue, and I want to know what did you tell her.”

At this Pam snorted, sudden unexpected rage filling her insides.

“Why are you asking me?” she repeated, exasperation growing inside her.

“I… because it’s all unexpected.”

“Have you asked her?”

“I asked her why and she didn’t say… I mean… she said I wasn’t treating her right and…”

“Well, there’s your answer. You weren’t, were you? The whole apartment thing?”

“Why do you care-?”

Pam took a deep breath. “I don’t care. You just asked. I’m answering. And if you want the full answer, I think you haven’t treated her right and you haven’t treated me right. What would you expect?”

For a moment Jim looked as if that was exactly the thing he feared she would say, and still he asked “What are you talking about?”

“Have you ever told her that you used to have feelings for me?”

“Wait what? That’s ancient history!” Pam couldn’t tell if he was being cruel on purpose or if for him this was just a passing comment, but it hurt nonetheless. “What’s that supposed to do with this?” Jim carried on.

“I don’t know. Does it?” Pam said, trying hard to focus on being angry and not sad. “Because if I were her, I’d sure would’ve wanted to know before moving here. Not to mention, you know, I wouldn’t have liked being left in a crappy hotel.”

“I didn’t left her-”

“You’ll have to admit you’ve been a shitty boyfriend.”

“What? How can you say that? I mean, what do you- how do you know-?”

Pam rolled her eyes, realising she was almost enjoying this. Being angry at him definitely felt much better than being sad and feeling lonely.

“Come on, Jim. You didn’t even want Karen to move out of the hotel and take an apartment only because it was too near your own place. That’s being a shitty boyfriend,” she took a deep breath and then added, “and I should know because I’m an expert on those.”

“Are you comparing me to Roy?” his voice raised with indignation.

“No, I’m just saying you’re your own brand of shitty.”

Jim looked as if she had just slapped him and Pam couldn’t help but feel a little better.

“That was uncalled for.”

“Maybe. It’s not my place to say that, anyway. What I could say, from my point of view and my own experiences… is that you’ve been a shitty friend. Too.”

At this Jim just stared at her, disgust in his face.

“I don’t need to listen to this,” he said, turning around and climbing up the stairs.

“Just because you don’t like it, it doesn’t mean it’s not the truth.” Pam called after him. If he heard her or not, she couldn’t tell.