“There’s a lot less booze in here than I remember,” Michael said as he leaned down to get a better look into the cabinet.  Pam couldn’t help noticing Meredith nervously looking around the kitchenette.  “Oh well, this’ll still make for a fun shin-dag, am I right people? Am I right, right, right?”  He barked that last part as he walked out towards the conference room with as many bottles as he could carry.  Jim’s eyes were big and he had on one of those “Oh, Brother” smirks as he looked over at Pam.  She just smiled, shook her head and shrugged.  What can you do, she thought.  That’s Michael.  He was ready to celebrate because while up on the roof, he had stared death right in the eyes, and death blinked.  This called for a celebration.

 

Toby had left early to pick up his daughter from school so Michael thought it would be the perfect time to have a cocktail hour after work.  Almost everyone else had stuck around, with the exception of Stanley, who could have cared less, and Karen, who had had a haircut appointment and didn’t feel like losing anymore money in case the betting was to continue. 

 

It had been a good day.  Pam couldn’t remember the last time the entire office had banded together like that.  She thought for a moment while sipping her vodka tonic and a vision of the closing ceremonies of the Office Olympics entered her head.  She smiled and let herself enjoy the memory as she swayed a little to the music playing.  Her drink had just kicked in and she was feeling pretty good.  Jim stepped over to her, with drink in hand, and asked her how she was going to spend her winnings from the day’s games.  “Oh, you know,” she said.  “I think I’ll take my $10 and splurge on a Starbuck’s card or something equally fabulous.”  He was grinning at her, and she knew what she had said wasn’t that witty, and that he wasn’t that drunk.  “What?”

“You do realize what’s still out in the parking lot, don’t you?” 

 

“Um, a smashed watermelon, a crumpled trampoline and the medieval moon bounce?”  As she spoke she could see his wheels turning.  “Ready?”

“Absolutely,” he nodded, and off they went down the hall giggling.

“You know, I just realized I’m wearing a skirt,” Pam said through her teeth as they stood at the entrance to the moon bounce. 

“No chickening out.  You’re a lady, you’ll figure something out.  C’mon, the castle beckons,” he pulled the mesh door out of the way for her.

“Fine,” she said as she climbed in.  “I could totally tell from that giddy grin on your face that you couldn’t wait to get in here.”

She was holding her arms at her sides as she bounced, careful not to show more leg than intended. 

Jim imitated the way she was pressing her skirt to her legs.  “Oh come on, that pencil skirt isn’t going anywhere.  I’ll bet you could bounce all you wanted and it wouldn’t budge.”

“How do you know what a pencil skirt is?”

“I just do.  It’s a skirt shaped like a pencil.  We work within the realm of office supplies, Pam.  If I didn’t know what a pencil skirt was, do you think I would be as knowledgeable a salesman as I am?”

She playfully narrowed her eyes at him and released her grip on the black fabric.  He was right, it barely moved.  “See?  Told you so.  Now you have to do a flip,” he said as he jumped, trying not to fall.

“No way.  I can’t even do that sober when I’m in jeans.  There will be no flipping,” Pam wanted to change the subject because acrobatics were not her strong suit.  “Can you believe Michael thought he could land safely on this thing?”

“I know!  Sometimes I think ‘Michael Scarn’ takes over Michael Scott’s body and he thinks he can jump out or off of things without a parachute,”  Jim said as he lined himself up across from her and started to jump harder and higher, making her lose her footing a little.

“Hey! Are you trying to double bounce me?”  Pam said as she met his rhythm.  “I can’t guarantee I won’t fall.”  She wasn’t drunk by any means, but as soon as she said that, she lost her balance and down she went, taking Jim out with her.  He landed right on top of her, but had put his hands out on either side of her to break his fall.  She giggled with her eyes closed, but stopped when their surroundings stopped moving.  She opened her eyes to see him hovering above her, staring intently at her as if in a haze. 

He moved his gaze to her lips as he said “Sorry,” in a somber voice just above a whisper.  Jim started to shift his weight in order to get up but her hands grasped his tie and he froze.

“Don’t be.”  She had a small contented smile across her lips.  She lowered her gaze to his tie as her hands traveled up around his neck and into his hair.  Her eyes came back up to his briefly before she pulled him towards her for a soft kiss, and then another.

“What are you doing?” he asked in the same voice he had used before.

“I don’t know…” but she did know. “It felt right.”  Her fingers were playing with his hair as he nodded in agreement.  He leaned toward her and kissed her, this time with more fervor as he scooped her up in his arms, pressing his body against hers. 

  

He rolled them onto their sides and pulled his head back to look at her.  Her eyes were half open and she still had that little smile on her lips.  She looked so relaxed as her fingers were gently pushing strands of hair away from his face.  She was tracing his jaw line with her index finger as she said, “Jim, I love you,” like she had said it a thousand times before.

 

He drew in a breath and exhaled, the back of his throat shaking.  “I still love you.” 

 

Still lying close to him, Pam shifted her weight onto her elbow beneath her and leaned over for a kiss.  She leaned back and propped her head up on her fist.  With her other hand, she ran her fingers lovingly through his hair as their stockinged feet rubbed together. 

 

He could barely think while she was doing that, but he managed to speak.  “What do we do now?”

 

“I know you’re with Karen.  I want to be with you …and I’m more than willing to wait.”

 

He nodded.  “I want to be with you too, I just don’t want to hurt Karen.”

 

“Me neither.  So do what you need to do, when you’re ready, just let me know.”

 

Jim nodded and pulled her in for a hug.  He rolled onto his back and Pam fit perfectly into his nook.  She laid with her hand on his chest while he played with her hair.  “There’s a lot we need to work out,” he said.

 

“I know, but it’ll be worth it.” 

 

They stayed there for a little while longer, alternating between kissing and talking, until they figured they should head back to the office before people started to talk.

 

“I really hope Kevin hasn’t started taking bets on when we’ll be back,” she joked.

 

“Or what we were doing, for that matter.”

 

Luckily no bets were taken, and their presence had gone largely unnoticed due to a tearful Michael making a scene while apologizing to Ryan for banishing him to the annex.  Soon the booze ran out, and everyone was heading out of the office for the night.  Pam motioned for Jim to come over to her desk.  “I wanted to make sure you have my cell phone number.”

 

“I’m a little embarrassed to say, but it’s still in my phone.  I even have your old home number from your old place.  You want to give me your new one?”

She blushed while she scribbled her new number on a piece of paper.  “Is your cell the same?  Because it’s still in my phone, too.”

 

“Yup,” he lowered his voice a little, just in case anyone was listening.  “I’ll call you later tonight.”

 

She gave a causal “Sure,” and they grabbed their coats and left.  She drove home without any music playing.  She didn’t need it- she kept replaying what had happened in her head.  She knew it could be a while before they were really together, but it didn’t matter.  What had been said that night had been enough to make them both realize that they could overcome all the hurt from the past.  They could both finally move on, together.