“To disco parties and white suits,” Pam said, holding up her beer.
“To Charlie’s Angels hair and miniskirts,” said Jim. He clinked his bottle against hers. “Here’s to you, Beesly.”
“And to you, Halpert.”
They kissed softly, a beer-flavored kiss that made both of them laugh. They made their way back into the crowd, and Jim stood with his arms around Pam’s waist as they carried on nonsensical conversations with people they didn’t know. They danced to bad disco music, holding each other close. They huddled together in the corner and talked in whispers, although later, Pam would have no idea what they had whispered about. And the whole time, they both smiled, smiled, smiled.
At some point—Pam had no idea how much time had passed—Sadie came up next to them and whispered in Pam’s ear, “What did I tell you?” She smiled slyly, then disappeared into the kitchen without another word.
“What did she tell you?” Jim asked.
Pam turned and put her hands in Jim’s. She took a deep breath, put on a serious expression, and said, “She told me that you are a nosy pain in the ass.”
“Yeah, but you knew that already.”
“Well, Sadie has a knack for telling me things I should already know.”
She knew she wasn’t drunk, but she let Jim drive her home anyway. This feeling—this jump-out-of-your-skin feeling—made her think she might be a little too jumpy and distracted to drive. She settled into Jim’s passenger seat and turned her head to watch him drive, enjoying the feel of the seat against her cheek and the warm blast of the heater on her bare legs. Every time they passed under a streetlight, she watched the light dance over his face.
He knew she was watching; she could tell by the way he self-consciously kept the corners of his mouth from turning up and the way that his eyes would occasionally sneak over to glance at her.
“I think it may be time to get you to bed,” Jim said.
“Dirty!” Pam said. “I may be dressed like a hussy, but I don’t put out unless the guy buys me a really good dinner first.”
This time, he turned his head to look at her as he laughed. She couldn’t stop watching him, couldn’t resist touching his cheek with her fingertips, couldn’t help wondering what it would be like to draw him the way he looked right now.
When they reached her apartment, Jim politely walked Pam to her front door.
“Well, thank you for a very nice evening,” Pam said. She held out her hand for Jim to shake. No one else would get this joke, she thought to herself. Any other guy would wonder what the hell was wrong with her. Jim just took her hand in his, nodded formally, and said, “Yes, we really should do this again sometime.”
They stared at each other, each daring the other one not to laugh. Jim just kept shaking Pam’s hand, and she finally broke down, giggling and letting Jim draw her into a hug.
“Hey,” he said quietly into her ear. “This was a really good night.”
“The best night,” she agreed.
He leaned in to kiss her. The rest of the night, all of those hours since he had first seen her in this outfit and first put his hand on her arm and first stared at her, understanding that she was ready, finally—all of that seemed like a dream now. It wasn’t until she leaned her whole body against his as his arms tightened around her that she felt herself finally let go of the deep breath she felt like she’d been holding since last May. Her whole body suddenly felt lighter.
She didn’t invite him in, and he didn’t look disappointed. He just stepped back and smiled as she let herself into her apartment and turned to say, “Goodnight, Jim.”
“Goodnight, Pam.”
She closed the door softly behind her and glanced around her apartment as though she were seeing it for the first time. She stepped out of the borrowed heels and enjoyed the feeling of the carpet under her feet. She poured herself a glass of apple juice and stood in her kitchen, sipping it slowly and sighing every once in awhile. She changed from the clothes Sadie had lent her into an old t-shirt and flannel pants, slipped into bed, and smiled at the ceiling. And when she woke up the next morning, she thought she had never slept so well before in her life.
Sadie called the next day.
“Hey, I have your car,” she said. “Want to do lunch?”
“How are those two things related, exactly?”
“Um, if you don’t eat lunch with me, you don’t get your car back.”
“And I thought Jim drove a hard bargain.”
“I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”
Pam was surprised by how excited she felt, and by how much she wanted to tell Sadie everything that had happened the night before. She restrained herself, though, and Sadie let Pam keep the conversation on less important topics all the way to the restaurant. It wasn’t until they were sitting with their menus in front of them that Pam blurted out, “I told Jim.”
“I know,” Sadie said, looking amused. “We noticed that you guys weren’t exactly avoiding each other last night.”
“And you were right, he said he had already forgiven me,” Pam said. “Sadie, it was just—I wish—” Pam couldn’t think of a way to finish the sentence that would even begin to explain to Sadie how she was feeling, so she just stopped and grinned.
“I’m really glad,” Sadie said. They ate slowly, talking about Jim and Pam and halter tops and disco balls. Pam loved this feeling of being able to gush—about Jim, finally, out loud to another person—and know that Sadie could understand where she was coming from. She had missed out on so many conversations like this growing up. She had never really gushed to anyone about Roy, and by the time they had gotten engaged, she really didn’t have anyone to gush to.
“Thanks again for...everything,” Pam said as she was dropping Sadie off at her house. “If you hadn’t pushed me….”
“I know,” Sadie said, taking off her seatbelt. “You can thank Jim, too, the next time you see him. This was his idea.”
“What?”
“Dropping in on you at the office, planning the surprise party—all Jim. He’s pretty cunning, too,” Sadie said. She stepped out of the car, leaned her head back in and said, “Have a good day at work tomorrow, Pam.”
