It was Jim’s first day at Dunder Mifflin. Aside from being nervous as hell, he was extremely grateful that he had gotten this job. Of course, it would only be temporary, but it was quite hard to find a job around Scranton that accepted him with his measly business degree. Jim had scoured the internet in its entirety; he was sure, searching for something, anything that would pay the rent. He couldn’t help but blame his father for this. It was dear old dad that had wanted Jim to follow in the family footsteps and go to business school. Jim, though never quite sure he was interested in anything else, still believed that if he had been given a chance to absorb other careers as options, he may have found something he could truly have taken an interest in. Instead, he would be stuck working 9 to 5 in a dreary office.
Jim thought all this while driving his car to his new job. When finally arriving at the monotone Scranton Business Park, Jim sighed, accepted his fate, and got out of the car. One thing was for sure. This “job” would certainly not be his career. He vowed to himself that he would not make this permanent. With that, he walked inside.
After riding the elevator up to the second floor, he located the door with the logo on it. “Dunder Mifflin Paper Co.”, it read. “Oh, lighten up,” Jim told himself. “It’s not like this is your future. You just need some stability, and then we’ll work on the rest.” He couldn’t believe it, but he was actually kind of nervous.
“Okay,” Jim said out loud. He opened the door.
*****
She was the first thing he saw. Like an angel sent from heaven, she sat there behind that semi-circle desk, turned her head, and gave him a relaxed smile. Jim’s legs almost turned to jelly. He didn’t think he could make the two foot walk from the door to her desk. Miraculously, he made it without falling, but was speechless at her beauty.
“Hi, can I help you?” Her voice was just as angelic as her extravagant features. Jim didn’t trust himself to speak. He thought his voice might crack. But after just staring at her for a minute, he realized how idiotic he must have looked and cleared his throat.
“Um, yeah, I’m uh, Jim Halpert. I’m the new guy.” He gave a light laugh, trying to keep cool but his heart was pounding internally. God, she was beautiful.
Her face lit up. “Oh, great!” Her smile was so warm and friendly. “Welcome to Dunder Mifflin. Trust me, you’re going to LOVE it here,” she said. Jim thought he detected a hint of sarcasm in her voice, but decided to dismiss it. It was probably just his nerves. “I’m Pam, by the way. Pam Beesly. I’m the secretary.” She laughed, showing off her desk like Vanna White.
He just stared at her, dumbfounded. What the hell was wrong with him? He had never acted like this in front of a girl, and he had seen many pretty ones. None, though, that compared to Pam. “Speak,” he commanded himself. “Nice to meet you.” He shook her hand gently, trying to act as casual as possible, and smiled.
“Okay, well let me show you to your desk.” She got up from her uncomfortable looking chair, walked around to the front of the desk, and stopped. Then she whispered to him. She spoke slowly, and with complete sincerity in her voice. “Oh, one more thing. Enjoy this moment, because you’re never going to go back to this time before you met your desk mate, Dwight.”
Jim thought she was kidding for a second, but she looked absolutely serious. Then the sides of her mouth curled into a small smile as she said, “Follow me.”
He was in love.
*****
It was going to be another dreary day at the office, Pam thought. She hadn’t been here that long, but what with Michael’s antics, and Dwight following him all the time, the clock seemed to freeze completely for hours at a time. She had been so grateful to Roy for getting her this job. God knew that the two of them would need the extra income when they got married. But sitting at that receptionist desk for seven to eight hours everyday was beginning to get quite tedious.
Luckily, she had recently established a partner in crime, someone to distract her from the dull and tedious happenings inside the office. Jim was like a blessing sent from God. His blasé attitude was exactly what she needed sometimes. He had made her smile. That never happened here.
Pam realized that some people, when looking at her and Jim’s new, but friendly relationship, would think that something were going on between the two of them. After all, Jim was, in one word, gorgeous. His twinkling blue eyes lit up his face. His slightly large, but very cute nose accentuated his features. And his sexy smile, one that he oddly only gave to Pam, made her melt every time. Pam also realized that to the casual observer, it may have looked wrong that she constantly flirted with Jim in the office, since she was engaged. But she and Jim were truly just friends. That was it. Pam saw it as an act of maturity to befriend another male. Plus, she really didn’t have any feelings for him. And Roy didn’t seem to mind at all. He thought Jim was gay.
Pam had been pondering this while she sat at her desk, typing up a final draft of an email Michael wanted sent to the corporate office. She looked up to see Jim staring at her. She smiled at him, turned to her computer and clicked on his name on their instant messaging system.
She typed…
Pbeesly: What?
Jhalpert: Nothing. I was looking at the picture behind you. =)
Pbeesly: I don’t buy it.
She watched him as he smiled.
Jhalpert: Lunch in the conference room?
Pbeesly: Can’t. I’ve got a lot of Michael’s busy work to clean up. And plus, I’ve got my lunch right here!
She watched him raise his head, and she lifted up the mixed berry yogurt and plastic spoon she had placed on her desk earlier that day.
Jim stood up from his desk, and walked over to Pam’s. She was confused. Why didn’t he just type what he wanted to say?
He casually rested his elbows on the desk, looked at Pam, and smiled. He said, “This might sound weird, and there’s no reason for me to know this, but that mixed berry yogurt you’re about to eat has expired.” He smiled his sexy, crooked smile once again. Pam’s heart started pounding. But she showed no sudden change in her feelings.
"Oh," she said casually, "I must not have seen it." She hadn't seen it. She hadn't seen anything until this moment. She must have been blind not to.
She was in love.
Author's Chapter Notes:
a blast from the past. in this chapter, i decided to go back to the beginning, where our fateful tale commenced. aka, the beginning of jim and pam. comment and rate!
