As Jim practically ran out the door, Pam knew that something had happened to shake him up. But what? It wasn't her, she knew that. He had almost completely ignored her that morning - until he flashed her that smile.
The rest of the day, he was ... well, weird. It wasn't like the old days. But it wasn't like the past few months, either. Every so often, she even thought he might be staring at her, although she couldn't tell for sure.
Pam could definitely tell, though, that Karen was not a happy camper. She, too, must have noticed that something was wrong with Jim, because she kept walking over to his desk, rubbing his back, and trying to engage him in conversation. None of which seemed to be working all that well.
What was going on, Pam wondered?
* * *
On Tuesday morning, Pam chatted with Phyllis in the ladies' room.
"Did you notice anything wrong with Jim yesterday?"
"Why? Was he upset?"
"He looked like it."
"I can't imagine why that would be," Phyllis said sweetly. Pam fidgeted.
"You know, though," said Phyllis, "I did see him and Stanley in the break room yesterday morning. It looked like they were arguing about something."
Pam was beyond curious.
She walked past the break room several times that day, hoping to bump into Stanley. In the mid-afternoon, he was there. But so were Karen and Kelly.
* * *
The next day, Pam made the copies of the sales figures that Karen had requested for the interviews in New York. Before returning to her desk, she walked into the break room to grab a Coke.
There sat Stanley, sitting alone, working a crossword puzzle.
"How are you doing with your puzzles these days?" she asked.
"I keep getting older. And they keep getting harder." He looked up and smiled. "But you seem to be doing pretty good with the Sudoku."
"I try," she said. "I'm faster than I used to be."
For the longest time she stood there, screwing up her courage. Finally, she blurted out:
"So what did you tell Jim the other day to make him so upset?"
Stanley thought for a moment. Then he said:
"I told him to stop being such a damn fool and ask you out."
"Stanley!" she exclaimed disbelievingly, in mock horror. "You did not!"
"I did."
Pam turned red as a beet. "What did he say?"
"He said I didn't know what I was talking about. I told him he was an idiot. Then he got all googley-eyed on me and asked if I thought you were in love with him. And I told him again he was an idiot."
Pam was completely unnerved. "Are you serious?"
Stanley was nonplussed. "Do I not look serious?"
"What do you think I should do now?" she asked.
"I think you should let me finish my puzzle," he said.
As Pam walked toward the door, having completely forgotten about the Coke, Stanley drawled: "Would you like me to pass him a note after recess?"
Pam looked down at the copies she was holding. She looked back at Stanley. And then she smiled.
"No, thank you. I think I can do that myself."
Author's Chapter Notes:
Who do you think bumps into Stanley in the break room this time?
Chapter End Notes:
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