.
It was a week after Jim’s birthday. She had been waiting for him to finally see his present. It took a lot of preparation and bribing to get it done. She knew when she heard that little ding coming from her computer it was Jim.
jimjam76: That was amazing!
bees_knees: When did you see it?
jimjam76: I was with him when he opened it.
bees_knees: how did you figure out that was your present?
jimjam76: Are you kidding? Letters from Dwight’s Grammutter to the Allied Forces?
bees_knees: They could have been real.
jimjam76: They were in your handwriting!
jimjam76: How did you get them sent from Britain?
bees_knees: My roommate’s boyfriend went home last weekend and he sent them while he was there.
bees_knees: What did Dwight say about them?
jimjam76: well, he went up to his room to look up plane tickets to get to the bottom of it.
bees_knees: Don’t let him fly out. I’ll feel bad.
jimjam76: Obviously you have a lot to learn about pranking. You’ve gotten in over your head.
bees_knees: It was a good idea. Give me that at least.
jimjam76: of course
bees_knees: I was so tired of hearing Dwight talk about his Nazi grandma last year. I thought it would be a shock to hear that she was an informant for the Allies.
jimjam76: it was definitely a shock. I wasn’t sure if he was angry with the idea of his grandma not being a Nazi or happy that his grandma was an informant.
bees_knees: I have more presents for you too.
jimjam76: More presents?
bees_knees: Yeah, they’re nowhere near as cool as fake letters.
jimjam76: we’ll see.
bees_knees: I’m glad you got to see the letters in person. I thought you would have to hear about them in a Dwight rant.
jimjam76: I can’t even describe the look on his face.
bees_knees: I have to start writing this paper, but give me a call later... if you want.
jimjam76: I’ll think about it. ;-*
bees_knees: yep, ;-* to you too.
Pam closed the window and opened up her paper. She had three weeks to finish it and so far she had five words written. An outline was due tomorrow and if she had started it earlier she could be looking forward to sleep, but that seemed more unlikely now.
The next week was the same way. She couldn’t stop thinking about going home and she couldn’t concentrate on anything else. She closed her computer. Maybe if she gave it some time the words would come easier for her. Food sounded like a good distraction. She walked out of her room and into Dawn’s room.
“I’m going down the street to get some lunch. Do you want go?”
Dawn threw her head back so she could see Pam upside down. She shook her head in frustration. “No. I still have too much work to do. I feel like I’m mucking about right now. I’m never going finish on time.”
“I can bring you something back.”
“Oh, yeah?” Dawn spun her chair around so she was facing Pam. “You wouldn’t mind?”
“Uh-uh. I’m going there anyways.”
Dawn’s face brightened up. “Brilliant!”
“I’ll be back in hour.”
As Pam walked down the streets she thought about how close she came to leaving that day she got lost. Jim was right, she would have regretted it forever if she hadn’t come and she would have always regretted coming all the way here and leaving right away. She walked slowly down the street just taking everything in. She’d be gone soon and she feared that she wouldn’t remember any of this later. She tried to remember the noise that her sandals made against the street. She wanted to remember the way the street looked. She could never get enough of the cobblestone. She reached the restaurant and she sat down at a table. She ordered her food and ordered the same thing for Dawn to go.
She took a cab home. She asked him to take her the long way, and he did, but then it was like the universe was testing her. The driver had stopped at exactly where the cab driver on her first day had dropped her off at. Was she the same push over from that first day? Was she the girl who let the front desk clerk give her half-ass directions, or the girl who let the driver drop her off at the wrong address?
Pam looked at the building in front of her. It was only one block. Her hand reached for door while the other one searched for the money her purse. But then again she asked to be dropped of at her address, not here. Her hand dropped the money and she released the door handle.
‘It’s one block over. Poli, not San Marcello.’ She thought to herself.
It took her several seconds before she could say it. Not because she was thinking of how to say it, she just needed to build up her courage. “No, via Poli è sopra una strada.” She was surprised with the tone that came out of her mouth. It wasn’t shaky, it was steady and calm.
The cab driver looked more stunned that she said it in Italian than anything else. He apologized a moment later and drove around the block.
It was a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.
They were in Rome for another two weeks after their classes were over with. They spent the first week traveling. Dawn and Pam took the train out to Florence and then to Venice. They spent the days just being tourist. The last week they just spent the time going around Rome again, visiting things they hadn’t seen yet.
On the last day before their planes left they spent time with their friends. Pam, Dawn, Oscar, and Dawn’s boyfriend, had each picked a few places that they wanted to see again.
They began the day by visiting the only place Oscar wanted to visit, the building that the Roman Senate met at. It was so stereotypical of him.
“They met here. They walked down this road.”
They watched as he gazed at the building. Granted it was magnificent, but none of them had the connection to it like he had. They stifled a few laughs.
“We can trace our government back here.” He said looking back at them. “Well, not so much yours, but mine and Pam’s.”
They took a few pictures before heading to the next place.
The Spanish Steps were Dawn’s boyfriend, Tim’s choice. He didn’t explain why they were significant to him until they got there.
They walked half way up and sat down. “I know this is going to sound creepy and possibly stalkerish, but the first time I saw you was here.”
“I don’t understand.”
“The first day I got in I came here and I saw you sitting over there sketching.”
Pam and Oscar walked back down to the fountain at the bottom to give them some privacy. Pam stole a glance at them. It was eerie how much they reminded her of herself and Jim. The idea of her being with Jim was just days away from being real.
The next few places were general places that the four of them liked. They visited the Mouth of Truth; each saying a lie while placing their hand in the mouth of the rock, except for Pam. No matter how much courage she had gained she would never be able to get rid of her conscience and the possibility of her hand being bitten off by a sculpture.
They had dinner as the sun set. Then they walked the streets before stopping at the Trevi Fountain. It was just a few blocks from their apartments.
Pam pulled out two coins and made one last wish, and then she thought about how childish it was to make wishes in fountains. She still hoped that the wish would come true though. Childish or not, her dreams would always be there and anything she could do to help them along she would, even if that meant tossing perfectly good money into a fountain.
She had a hard time sleeping that night. She was anxious about the plane ride again. She was fine the last time, but she was sure that the more times you flew the better your odds were of dying in a fiery crash in the Atlantic Ocean. In the morning when her alarm went off she was exhausted. She remembered saying goodbye to Dawn and getting in the cab with her stuff. She remembered looking at the city through her window. She didn’t remember checking in or boarding the plane. She went from the cab to her seat on the plane in her own version of a timeline. She was so tired that she managed to sleep through the turbulence. She had a layover in Frankfurt on the way back. She didn’t really remember that either. The next time she opened her eyes they were an hour away from Philadelphia. She looked out the window for the first time. Maybe it was all of the sleep she just got or maybe she realized how homesick she was, but she didn’t hyperventilate.
When she arrived her parents were waiting for her.
“Mom.” She hugged her for a long time before breaking the hug and turning to her dad and smiling. “Dad.”
She was awake for the whole ride home. Her mom made her dinner when she got back. Even after all of the amazing food that she had during her trip nothing tasted as good as this. She watched a football game with her dad. Really though she sat next to him while he yelled at the T.V. During commercials he would ask her about Rome. Since she was 5 she would sit next to him on the couch and watch him yell at the announcers, sometimes muting the T.V. and announcing the game himself for Pam.
After two days of sitting at home she got a little antsy and she hopped in her car. She was just going for a short ride, but two hours later when she was sitting in front of Dunder Hall it obviously wasn’t quite that short.
She entered the building and immediately saw Phyllis. She walked up to the counter and Phyllis still hadn’t looked up from her paperwork. She cleared her throat and Phyllis glanced up.
“Pam!”
“Hey Phyllis.”
Phyllis walked over to her and pulled her into a hug.
“You left without saying goodbye.”
“Yeah, sorry about that. It was really last minute.”
Phyllis released her from the hug.
“Do you think you could let me upstairs? I really want to surprise someone.”
“Jim?” Phyllis grinned.
Pam nodded with a smile.
“Okay, but only this once.”
She thought it was funny how Phyllis was still a stickler for the rules even when she was bending them for the only person she worked with that she liked.
.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Pam ends her stay in Rome.
Chapter End Notes:
Next chapter Jim and Pam catch up.
