Pam shook the rain off her umbrella as she walked in the front doors at the Scranton Business Park. The thunderstorm showed no signs of letting up. Driving rain had almost turned the parking lot into a lake. Combined with strong gusts of wind, it had made for a harrowing drive. She quickly made her way upstairs and unlocked the doors. It was surprisingly easy to return to habits of being the first to arrive at Dunder-Mifflin. She and Jim would normally spend the time fixing tea and coffee while having uninterrupted time to plot their latest prank. Today however she was assaulted by memories of the years before she and Jim became a couple. She set her coat down across her chair and turned to face her old position at the reception desk as the memories played in her mind. Times where she had lost herself in her thoughts and hid in a world of denial and behind the mask of comfort rather than trying to grasp what her heart truly wanted.

As she made her way to the kitchen to brew her morning pot of tea she smiled at the changed woman she now was. No longer the office secretary, but actually pulling her weight with sales. Married to a man who loved her in a way she’d never truly thought possible and mother to a sweet daughter. Her small but wonderful family that had still been asleep when she left the house. It was only the booming of a lightning strike so close it rattled windows that snapped her out of her reverie.

As she sat down at her desk, Pam arrived just in time to see Michael burst in.

“Pamster!” He said enthusiastically. “Why didn’t you tell me you and Jim have a pet hamster? Wonderful things hamsters. Do they really dance like on that one website?”

Pam groaned internally at the memory of the hamster dance website Michael had found yesterday. “It’s a rabbit, not a hamster Michael,” she said patiently.

“Really?” Michael put a confused look on his face. “I could have sworn Jim’s thing yesterday said hamster.”

“Nope, it’s definitely a rabbit,” Pam said as she turned on her computer and picked up her day’s call sheet.

“Huh!” Michael's expression shifted to one Pam knew he used when he wanted people to think he was deep in thought. “You think there’s a dancing bunny website?”

“I don’t know Michael,” Pam was now tuning him out as she started jotting down that month’s discounts.

Fortunately for her, Michael chose that moment to retreat into his office. Breathing a sigh of relief, she started organizing her work for the day. The rest of her co-workers filed in behind her as she got to work. One of the things Jim had taught her about sales was to not jump in and try to pitch a sale the first thing in the morning. ‘Look around,’ he’d said one morning ‘What’s everyone doing? Setting up their computers, getting coffee, things like that. The last thing a client wants is someone bugging them first thing in the morning. Give them an hour or so before you start calling. Let the drudgery of the modern American workplace take hold and lull them into a nice bored stupor, then make your pitch. Even if it’s just paper, breaking up the tedium for even a little get you far.’

Heading her husband’s advice, Pam looked down her call sheet and dug some markers out of her top desk drawer. She started color coding the names of people and companies on her list. Green for returning customers and thus guaranteed sales. Yellow for favorable potential customers who had asked her to call back. Orange for potential clients that she felt would need some extra attention as they’d been hesitant on earlier calls. Red for brand new contacts that she’d never interacted with before.

She opened up a contact information program she kept on her computer. It had the names and pertinent information for all her clients. She’d also taken some lessons from Michael and included what personal information she’d gleaned from her customers. As annoying as her boss was, he was a good salesman and the personal touches he included had garnered many clients over the years. She picked up her phone to make her first call of the day when without warning, the power cut out.

Dwight was on his feet in an instant. “Nobody panic!” he shouted while holding a flash light in front of his face. “We have fifteen minutes to wait for the power to return. After that emergency measures go into place. I’ll lead you all to the shelter and we can start the process of dividing up the rations.”

“What’s going on? Whoa!” Michael emerged from his office and promptly tripped over Jim’s empty chair.

“The power’s out,” Pam spoke up. “Probably because of the storm.”

“Does that mean we can go home,” Stanley droned from his chair.

“No!” Dwight shouted. “No one’s going home yet. For all we know this could be an EMP strike. The roads will be death traps. We’ll stay here for another...” he checked his watch. “Fourteen minutes and fifteen seconds and then as I said before, the shelter.”

“I’m not going to any shelter,” Stanley intoned.

As the two salesmen started to bicker, Pam pulled out her cell phone. Seeing that she still had reception she punched in Jim’s number to text him.

Power’s out here at work. Dwight thinks it’s an EMP attack. Ideas?

Hitting send, she sat back to watch the tennis volley like argument between Dwight and Stanley. To her disappointment she didn’t get a reply back before the power returned ten minutes later. Frowning at the waste of perfect pranking opportunity she settled down to get to work.

The rest of the morning passed uneventfully. She ate with Kelly who gushed over Jim’s journal entry from the previous day.

“I mean that was really funny. Not like it a ha ha ha way funny, but a more funny that makes you think funny, you know what I mean? I mean like, what would it be like if Jim and the baby were really out there on an expedition in Africa. They could get eaten by like a tiger or something. Or maybe they could ride around on elephant and be safe. Wouldn’t that be fun? Just cruise around and have the elephant pick everything up for you. But there’s no way I’d live in like a tent or something. Oh! Do you thing they have hotels where they do safari’s? That would be like the only way I'd ever go on safari. Oh! Oh! Oh! Wouldn’t an African wedding just be like the best? I know you and Jim had that Niagara Falls thing at the church and all, but I mean like really, you guys drove all the way up there and didn’t even see the waterfall. That’s why an African wedding would be so much better, there’s no way you can get away from it.”

Pam nodded in all the right places all the while thinking tomorrow, she might try to eat with Phyllis. She finished her meal and walked back towards here desk. Phyllis caught her eye as she passed the other woman’s desk.

“He’s up to it again sweetie,” Phyllis said with a gleam in her eye.

Pam rolled her eyes but still smiled. She pulled up Facebook as soon as she was seated at her computer. Sure enough, a new entry was posted on Jim’s Wall.

Journals of a Stay-at-home-Dad Day 2. Slight setback to the expedition today. Upon waking it was discovered that the electric power to the domicile was no longer functioning. Small Rabbit did not seem to mind and kept hopping over in hope of carrots. Small Human also appeared non-plussed with the situation. There was really only one thing that could be done, Small Human and I took a nap. Power has been restored and now I must go in search of sustenance. The beast known as grilled cheese shall soon feel my wrath.

She laughed to herself before clicking the Like button and went back to work.

_____________________________________________________________________________

“Jim! I’m home!”

“In the living room honey!”

Pam hung up her coat and tossed her keys in the bowl they kept on the counter for their car keys. She dropped her bag on one of the chairs at the kitchen table and walked to the living room. Jim was sitting in his easy chair watching TV while holding a sleeping Cece.

“Hey,” Pam said softly as she came in the room.

Jim’s face lit up at the sight of her. “Hey yourself.” He looked back down at their daughter. “Cece,” he whispered. “Mommy’s home.”

Gently, Pam took Cece from his arms and settled on the arm of the chair. “So, master hunter. How did your grilled cheese hunt pan out?”

Jim smirked back at her. “Surprisingly well. Though there was one small snag.”

“Yeah?” Pam’s eyebrows shot up.

“Indeed,” Jim reached over to the other side of the chair and picked up the two plates that were resting on the side table. “I think I overdid the hunting. Instead of one sandwich, I bagged two. Know anyone who’d be willing to share in the labors of my toils on the game trail?”

Pam looked down at the grilled cheese sandwiches resting on the plates and a wide grin bloomed on her face. “I think I can help with that. Let me put Cece to bed first.”

She soon had Cece tucked neatly in her crib and came back downstairs. Jim had shifted to the couch. She gladly sat next to him and tucked into her favorite spot under his arm. Jim had “The Mummy,” cued up in the DVD player. They stayed curled up close as the first shots of ancient Egypt filled the screen.