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“Then…it’s a date.”
Jim closes the door of the conference room and goes back to his desk for the last hour of the work day. After the day he’s had already, he really needs a grape soda. Water is just not going to cut it right now. He walks into the break room with Kevin right behind him.
Kevin: “Hey Jim, I finished that list you asked me to do. I’ll give you 10 to 1 odds that this will make it very easy to decide between Karen and Pam now. Karen is…”
Jim: (interrupting him) “Hey, Kev, thanks.” He leans down to get his soda. “You know what, though? I don’t need it. So… Hey, see ya out there, buddy.”
Kevin: “OK.”
Smiling, Jim walks out of the room and sits down at his desk.
Kevin’s TH: “There is definitely something going on with Jim today.” He picks up his pad and pen and hurries out to investigate.
At his desk, Jim takes a long drink and sees Dwight watching him with suspicion.
Jim: “Hey, Dwight.”
Dwight: (sneering) “Hey, Jim. How did the interview go at Corporate?”
Jim: “Great. Thanks.”
Dwight: “Are you finally going to face up to your responsibility to this company and stop being such a slacker?”
Jim: (taking another drink) “Nope. I just withdrew my name from consideration.”
Dwight: “What?! What an idiot!”
Jim: (smiling) “You know what, Dwight? Not even you could ruin this day for me.”
Dwight: “Pssh. Loser.”
Jim: (looking up, thinking) “OK.” He gets up and walks around the corner of the office.
The conference room door opens and Pam walks out, smiling, with the camera crew in tow. She glances at Jim’s desk, but doesn’t see him, then quickly looks around for him.
*Did he leave already?*
She sees him at the copier looking at her. They smile at each other as the camera crew zeros in on their silent communication. Pam moves on to sit at her desk, smiling larger, and blushing a little.
*Oh my god. Oh my god! I sound like Kelly.* (Furtively looking around) *Where is Karen??*
For the rest of the day, she fights all of her instincts to look over at Jim’s desk.
5:00.
Jim stands up and puts his messenger bag over his head. Pam sneaks a peak at him over her desk.
*What do I say to him when he walks by? Should I be nonchalant…or just friendly…or… WHAT? Oh god, here he comes.*
Jim: “Hey, Pam. See you later.”
Pam: (too brightly) “OK.”
Jim walks out the door.
Pam grabs her purse and quickly follows him out the door. Jim walks into the elevator, followed by Phyllis, Oscar, Creed and Kevin. Pam steps in last and turns to face the front. Jim glances over at Pam with a smile, which Kevin catches, and finds Phyllis next to him instead.
Phyllis: (smiles at Jim) “I’m going home to make Bob Vance his favorite Philly steak dinner because he has to work late tonight. We Vances are very romantic too.”
Jim: (looking confused) “That sounds great, Phyllis.”
The door opens and Phyllis steps out.
Phyllis: (turning around, with a knowing smile) “Have a good night, Jim.”
Jim: “OK. You, too.”
Phyllis: “You too, Pam.” With a big smile, she leaves.
Pam: ”Good night, Phyllis.”
Kevin observes the interchange between Phyllis, Jim and Pam.
*Something is definitely going on.*
Kevin leaves the elevator, followed by Oscar, Creed and Pam.
Jim: (calls out too loudly) “Hey, Pam. Can I talk to you for a second?”
Pam: (turning around) “Sure.”
He grabs her arm and pulls her back into the elevator before the door closes. Oscar and Kevin walk out into the parking lot. Creed looks around then takes the stairs back up.
In the elevator, Jim pushes the button to secure the elevator doors. He turns to face Pam, their first private moment together in months.
Pam: (smiling, slightly nervous) “What’s up?”
Jim gazes at her for a few seconds, searching her face. “I, um…”
Pam: “What?”
Jim: (shaking his head) “Ah, nothing. Um, pick you up at 7?”
Pam: (slightly bemused) “Yeah, sure.”
They gaze at each other for a second more.
Jim: “Great.” He smiles gently at her.
Jim leans in and reaches around her waist. Her eyes widen and she takes a breath in. She leans in. Behind her, he pushes the button to open the elevator doors and then straightens. The opening doors shatter the intensity of the moment.
Pam: (flustered, breathes out) “Yeah, well, great. See you at 7 then.”
She turns around and walks out into the parking lot. Jim, watching her walk away, grins.
*Smooth move, Halpert.*
Jim opens the door to the parking lot and hears, “Dammit, Jim!”
Jim walks to his car, unlocks the door, climbs in and heads for home.
*Yep, it’s a good day.*
At her new apartment, Pam is preoccupied with getting ready for their...
*date! Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. Relax. Must not act like Kelly. It’s just Jim. We’ve been friends forever. It’ll be fine. I’ll just talk to him about his…his…what? I know, his family. His sister. What was her name? Or his brother, or his niece? Oh my god, I can’t remember their names. What am I going to do? Oh, there’s my red sweater. And where was Karen today? Did he leave her in New York? Maybe she got the job and Jim got mad about it. No, Jim wouldn’t do that... I don’t think. No. Then, what happened?? Well, I’m certainly not going to ask him about her tonight. Oh, yeah, I definitely need my black bra. Oh my god, the doorbell!*
Jim is at the door, wearing faded jeans and a gray and black striped sweater, his hair slightly disheveled and still a little damp from his shower. At the door, Pam calms herself, says a little prayer, and pulls it open. Jim hands her a handful of freshly picked spring flowers. His landlady, who has always considered Jim another grandson with all the help he’s given her, told him to pick them out of her garden for his date. Pam takes the flowers and they both take each other in, each acutely aware of what an amazing moment this is…their first date…the first moment…the beginning of maybe something…amazing. They look at each other and smile.
Jim: “Hi.” Pam, smelling the flowers, says a quiet “Hey.”
Pam: (all of a sudden, feeling a little nervous) “So, come in. You look great! Thank you for the flowers, they are beautiful!”
Jim: (smiles) “Thanks, so do you. I mean…you look great too! And…you do look beautiful. Your hair’s down. I like it.”
Pam: “Thanks. Roy liked… I mean…”
Jim: “No, that’s OK.”
Pam: “No. I mean… Oh god.”
She looks horrified and Jim can feel the moment turning awkward.
Jim: “Hey, Pam. No, really… we have a lot of stuff to talk about, a lot of time to make up for, and every thing… and every one… is on the table, OK?”
Pam: (visibly relaxing) “Yeah, OK. Thank you.”
Jim: (reverting for the moment to their more comfortable communication style) “No problem. So Beesly, how do you like Italian food?”
Pam: (appreciating his handling of the situation, she brightens) “I love Italian food.”
Jim: “Great! I know a new place right around the corner. Alfredo’s Pizza Café. Are you ready to try something new?”
Pam: “Absolutely, I am.”
At Alfredo’s, Jim requests a private booth in the back corner of the lavishly decorated restaurant. They both slide into the middle of the circular booth.
Pam: “This is really nice. It looks authentic.”
Jim: “Yeah, Karen and I came here once. The pizza is excellent.”
As Jim glances at the menu, Pam gazes over at him. She relaxes because Jim, in his usual, casual way, has let her know that girlfriends and former boyfriends are not forbidden subjects and that they can still talk to each other about everything in each other’s lives without fearing the other’s discomfort or jealousy. That’s the way they had always been together, open with no secrets,
*well maybe a couple secrets*,
in a close friendship that was always effortless, uncomplicated,
*well maybe it was kind of complicated, yeah, it was pretty complicated*,
so undemanding of each other, and so much fun. Pam opens her menu and surreptitiously looks over at the profile that she had come to know and love from her desk in the office.
*Jim. I can’t believe he’s really here…with me, on a date! How did this happen?*
Suddenly, it occurs to her,
*I love him. I think I’ve always loved him. Oh god, I just got chills.*
Jim: “Are you cold?”
Pam: (smiling brightly at him) “No. I’m great.”
Jim: (confused, but smiling despite it) “OK. Great!”
*I never want to lose him again. Oh my god, I almost lost him today…Yeah, I am definitely not bringing up Karen tonight.*
Now, Jim is aware that Pam is looking at him.
Jim: “What?”
Pam: “What happened to Karen today? Whoo, there, that’s out.”
Jim: (closing his menu, resigned to the conversation) “Yeah, no…she stayed in New York tonight with friends. We broke up. And I don’t think she’ll be talking to me any time soon.”
Pam: “Oh. That must have been really awful… for both of you. Do you want to talk about it?”
Jim: (smiling at Pam’s natural compassion for others) “Not really, but…I guess we should.” Pam waited. “It was just a bunch of things. She really didn’t appreciate the stuff we do to have fun that we need in the office once in awhile.” Pam nods and smiles. “She could be kind of insensitive, you know, not always…She also had an ironclad plan for both of us to move up in Dunder-Mifflin to management level, and I am just not… The bottom line is, compared to what I had with you, even as friends, that relationship just required too much out of everyone to make it work.” Pam nods. “I really wish her well. I do care about her and we did try to make it work… like, a lot.”
The waitress arrives to take their order.
Jim: “I’ll have a beer. Do you want one?”
Pam: “Oh no, I never drink.”
Jim: (smiling) “Oh, really? I thought you...”
Pam: “Nope, never have. I’ll have a diet coke.”
Jim: “OK. What kind of pizza do you like? It’s your choice.”
Pam: (remembering that Roy always made her eat a million meat crammed pizzas over the years) “OK. Do you like veggie?”
Jim: “Sure. Whatever you want is fine. We’ll have a large. Thanks.”
Pam stares at him.
*Oh my god, I love this man.*
The waitress brings the drinks and leaves them alone again.
Pam: “Hmm…so, what were we talking about? Oh yeah…so, what now? I mean… how did the job interview go? Were you offered the job in New York?
Jim: “Yeah, it went really well.”
Pam: (a little worried) “Great.” She takes a long drink out of Jim’s beer. He notices and smiles.
*God, she’s adorable.*
Jim: “What? Um, yeah, David Wallace offered me the job right there. It was amazing. He said he’d already done his research and was prepared to offer me the job today.”
Pam: (trying to feel really happy for him) “I mean, of course he did…you’d be so good at it. That’s awesome, Jim. So…when do you start?” She takes another long drink of Jim’s beer. He quietly moves the diet coke in front of him.
Jim: “I don’t.”
Pam: “What do you mean?”
Jim: “I withdrew my name from consideration.”
Pam: “Oh…well, why?”
Jim looks into Pam’s eyes and replies, “You.” Pam waits for him to continue, willing her eyes not to tear up. “Pam, I have had feelings for you for so long but after casino night last year, I knew I couldn’t go on living in Scranton, pretending that I was OK, and not be with you. It was just too awful knowing you were gonna be married to Roy…yeah, I mean, you and I could still hang out and play pranks on Dwight during the day and have a lot of fun but then you’d be going home to Roy every night, having dinner with him, making love to him…” Jim stops, looking anguished. Pam can’t breathe. “Then, when you told me at the beach that you cancelled your wedding for me, I was stunned, Pam. All that time, I had no idea you had any feelings at all for me. I mean, you just always said we’d be friends.”
Pam: (sad) “I know. I haven’t been very honest about a lot of things. I’ve really been working hard though to become more independent and to be honest about how I really feel. I hadn’t been single for years and I wasn’t sure how to go about it and I was afraid you didn’t feel the same anymore since I hadn’t heard from you in months, and Jim, you moved to another state! I mean, what would me telling you my feelings after you’d already moved away accomplish? Then, when I finally see you again, you’re already dating someone else and she’s working with us in the office. It just didn’t seem like I could ever find a moment to talk to you because you were always with… someone else.”
Jim: (thinking) “Yeah.” (looking in her eyes) “You know what the clincher was for me, though? When I saw your note that you stuck in my sales reports and the gold medal…all those memories and emotions just came flooding back. When David asked me what I liked most about Scranton, all I could think of was you. Not Karen. Not anyone else. Just you.”
Unable to stop the tears from welling in her eyes, Pam wraps her arms around his neck. “Jim, I’m sorry I hurt you.” Jim holds her close. “We’ve been hurting each other but I think we both just wanted to be together and we didn’t know how to make it happen.” He closes his eyes and lets out a long sigh. He had been hoping for this moment for six long years. “God, I’ve wanted this for so long.” “Me too.”
Pam pulls away and looks in his eyes. “I have a confession to make. Karen asked me this morning to make copies of yours and her sales reports… for your job interview… that was going to take you away again. I was kinda pissed…I mean, I just thought she was being kind of, um… Well, anyway, I guess I should thank her for giving me that one last opportunity to get you back.”
Jim can’t believe this amazing thing that has happened…
*I am sitting here, on a date, with Pam, and we both feel the same way about each other.*
He reaches out and tenderly touches Pam’s face. Impulsively, he bends down to kiss her. Their lips touch and Pam instinctively opens her lips and sighs. At first gentle and sweet, the kiss quickly changes to a deeper kiss that neither of them can control. His hands move to her waist and he pulls her closer. Pam’s hands cradle his face, so in awe of Jim, there with her, kissing her the way she had dreamed of so many times during so many lonely nights. All of a sudden, she can’t get close enough to him.
*Jim. God, I want you. We’ve both waited so long to get here.*
She unconsciously grips the back of his sweater.
Suddenly, the waitress appears around the corner with the pizza. Jolted out of her haze, Pam tries to move away but Jim holds her to him. Pam can’t catch her breath and she shyly turns her head into his neck.
Jim: (clearing his throat) “Sorry, it’s our first date.”
Waitress: “Wow. Well, it looks like it’s going pretty well. Um…do you want me to get a take-out box for you?”
Jim: (smiling at the waitress and checking her name tag) “Yeah, I think we might need one. Thanks, Stacey.”
Jim tilts Pam’s chin up so he can see her face. He smiles at her while she still struggles to catch her breath.
Pam: (smiling at him) “Shut up.”
Jim: (laughing) “I think we better get out of here before they call the police.”
Pam: (joking) “If she hadn’t come when she did, I would have… That’s what she said.”
Jim suddenly turns serious. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
Pam notices her half empty diet coke in front of Jim. “Hey, you drank my drink!” Jim smiles and takes her hand in his. “Come on.”
His long legs practically running to the car, Jim pulls Pam after him. If she wasn’t in such a hurry, she might have issued a complaint. He unlocks the car, opens her door for her, then throws the pizza in the back seat. In two steps, he is at his door and climbing in the car. He tries to get the key into the ignition but his hand is impatiently trying to jam it in. Pam reaches over and touches his hand. “Jim.” He looks at her and, and realizing what he’s doing, stops. They begin to laugh. Pretty soon, the emotional rollercoaster of the last two days takes its toll and they’re laughing so hard tears stream down their faces. When one of them tries to stop, the other begins laughing again and they’re soon overcome with hysterics. It’s ten minutes before they are calm and more relaxed.
Jim: (looking over at her) “Hey.”
Pam: “Hmm?”
Jim: You know what I love most about you?”
Pam: “Hmm…my spectacular charm? I know, my sweater? How about my phone voice, ‘Dunder-Mifflin, this is Pam’?
Jim: (sarcastically) “No, none of those. Well, maybe the last one…”
Pam: “Hey!! But, I do have an excellent phone voice, don’t I?”
Jim: “Yes, you do, and charm and a hot red sweater.” They both smile at each other. “What I love the most about you is how funny you are and sweet and how much fun we have together.”
Pam: “Yeah. I love that too. Now, will you please stop talking and start driving!? By the way, that’s three things you love about me.”
Jim starts the car and puts it into gear. He reaches over and captures her hand. He intertwines their fingers and lays their hands in his lap. Then, he takes off toward Pam’s apartment. “That’s only the beginning.”
Story Notes:
Many ideas about what happened on Pam and Jim's first date have been expressed but I always looked at it a little differently. I hope this rings true to what might have happened after Jim said, "Then...it's a date." And why he bought a ring just a few days later...
Author's Chapter Notes:
The text between the asterisks are Jim and Pam's thoughts. I couldn't get the italics to work so I hope that makes it more clear.
