Hello out there! Does anybody still read Office fic? It's been years for me, but I recently started an Office binge on Netflix and got hooked on the Jam story all over again. I remembered this old plot bunny I had never put down on paper when I first thought of it years ago, and decided to go ahead and write it for old time's sake. It was fun to revisit this world!

The whole thing is written, so feel free to follow without "incomplete" fears. Will probably update one chapter per day. (Six chapters total.) Hope you enjoy, and please review! (Especially if you're from the "old crowd," would love to hear from any of you!)


Set during Season Three, after Business School, before Cocktails.


Jim didn't know why it had never occurred to him that he might run into Pam at Poor Richard's. After all, it was one of the few decent watering holes in Scranton, and a favorite haunt of all the Dunder Mifflinites. But when his friends had suggested going out, he already had a few beers in him and had agreed readily enough.

Besides, it didn't matter. Pam was with Roy now, and Jim was with Karen. So who cared if they ran into each other outside the office now and then? It wasn't like he couldn't handle it . They saw each other every single day at work, and it was fine. They were friends. They would always be friends.

Or so he had been told.

But still, when he walked into the dimly lit, crowded room and spotted her over at a corner table with three people he didn't recognize, he wasn't quite sure how to act. He had to go say hi, didn't he? It would be totally weird if he pretended not to notice her.

At least Roy wasn't there. And at least Karen wasn't there, either.

When Karen had told Jim she going to spend a weekend in New York City with her girlfriends, he was ashamed to admit to himself how relieved he was. An entire weekend free to himself, free to just be himself, sounded wonderful. It would be a much-needed escape from the tension between them that had existed ever since he had finally told Karen the whole truth about his history with Pam. And maybe after a few days apart things would be better-sort of a reset on their relationship, so to speak.

He needed that to happen. He still needed Karen if he was ever going to have any hope of getting past Pam. He was still kicking himself for allowing those feelings of hope to enter. Blame it on interfering documentary producers, the romantic wedding atmosphere, the irresistible pull of Pam's eyes, but for just an hour or two, he had let his carefully maintained guard down. Had thought that maybe...just maybe…

But no. Once again he had been reminded of how capable he was of completely misinterpreting Pam's signals. She had gone home with Roy that night, and Jim had refocused his energy back on Karen. If he allowed himself to wallow in misery and disappointment, it wasn't until later that night, away from the cameras and the watchful eyes of his girlfriend.

It wasn't as though he didn't like Karen. She was great! Beautiful, smart, and witty...she was the whole package. He knew they could make it work if they just tried hard enough, and if he could just get past everything with Pam. Like Karen kept saying...it just needed time.

But for now a weekend alone was just what he needed. He had decided he would do nothing but veg on the couch and watch movies, maybe play a few video games. Eat lots of the junk food that Karen had declared verboten. It would be heaven.

Those exciting plans had been changed slightly late on Friday afternoon, when Jim had received a call from Allan, an old friend from high school who had escaped to New York City years ago. He was back in town visiting his parents for the weekend, and did Jim want to come over, have a few beers, and catch up on old times? Jim had agreed, and after he arrived he and Allan and Allan's older brother Steve sat out on the back patio drinking and chatting until Steve declared that he was bored, and that they should go out and find some girls to hit on.

Allan had a girlfriend back in New York, and Jim had Karen, but they agreed they wouldn't mind a change of scenery. So now Jim found himself standing at the entrance to Poor Richard's, Steve and Allan standing behind him, debating whether or not to go speak to Pam.

He would, he decided. Of course he would.

"Hey, guys," he said over his shoulders. "I see someone I know. Give me a minute, all right?"

"We'll come with you," Allan said. "No tables open yet, anyway."

So Jim headed over through the crowd to the corner where Pam was laughing with her friends (who were they, anyway?) with his own two accomplices in tow, hoping it wouldn't be too awkward. He couldn't help noticing how pretty she looked. Not that she wasn't always beautiful (heart-wrenchingly so, in fact), but tonight there seemed to be a glow about her. Her smile seemed to light up the entire room. Jim couldn't stop his own smile from breaking out when he saw it.

She looked up and saw him coming, and if possible, her grin grew even wider. She jumped up from her chair to greet him with a large hug as he reached her table.

"Jim!" she yelled over the loud music blaring from the jukebox. "It's so good to see you!"

Jim laughed, suddenly remembering a night from long ago. A night of Dundies and "second drinks" and a friendly kiss that had left him completely unraveled. Pam was a fun drunk, and she had obviously already had a few. This wasn't going to be bad at all.

"Hi Pam," he said, gently disengaging himself from her arms. "Long time no see!"

"Yeah, it's been a whole, what? Five hours?" Pam giggled.

"Something like that," he agreed with a smile.

"That's too long!" Pam cried.

Before Jim could answer that thrilling but confusing response, Steve interrupted from behind him.

"Hey, Halpert! Aren't you going to introduce us?"

"Oh, yeah...sorry! Pam, this is Allan and Steve Albright. I went to highschool with Allan, so we're just catching up on old times tonight. Allan, Steve, this is Pam Beesly. Pam and I work together."

Thankfully, Allan had been gone too long to have any inkling of how completely inadequate that introduction truly was.

"Pleased to meet you!" he said, shaking hands with Pam. "Any friend of Jim's!"

And Steve, who could always be counted on to be just slightly rude, chimed in, "Pam, howya doin'? How about introducing us to your friends?"

For the first time Jim took a careful look at Pam's companions and saw that there were two girls and one guy, and that one of the girls was extremely pretty. Nothing compared to Pam, of course, but he knew now why Steve had asked for the introduction, and what his likely next move would be. At this point Jim wasn't sure if he wanted to try to head him off or not.

"Sure!" Pam answered, and turned back to the table. "These are my friends from art school. Troy, Billie, and Christi, this is Jim, Allan...and, I'm sorry…" her face turned adorably pink as she turned to Steve, at a loss for his name.

Steve, of course, wasn't fazed.

"Steve Albright, at your service," he said, shaking hands with each of them in turn. He saved the pretty one, Christi, for last, holding on to her hand for a beat too long. Jim rolled his eyes. But Steve wasn't done.

"Do you folks mind if we join you? Place is pretty packed tonight and we haven't been able to find a table."

"Absolutely, please sit down!" Christi said, practically batting her eyes at Steve. Steve wasted no time, quickly grabbing the empty seat next to her.

Jim was still unsure. He turned to Pam.

"Sorry about that," he told her, low. "I'm sure we can find another place if you'd rather just be with your friends..."

"Don't be silly!" Pam said. "We'd love for you to join us. The more the merrier, right?" she asked, turning to her other friends for confirmation.

Troy and Billie smiled and nodded their heads in agreement. With that, Allan took the chair next to his brother, leaving Jim to take the last seat available next to Pam. His heart pounded in his chest.

This is not what he had planned for the evening, at all. Somehow, though, he couldn't bring himself to regret the string of coincidences that had brought him here.

Steve started signalling for the waitress.

"Anybody here ever played the Name Game?" he asked.


Pam hoped her face wasn't too pink as she only partially listened to Jim's friend placing an order with their waitress. She had already been working on her second margarita, and feeling light as a feather, when she had seen Jim walking towards her. Everything after that point had gone so quickly, and now she found herself sitting next to him. The table was small and the chairs were crowded around it, and anytime somebody spoke you had to lean in close to be able to hear over the music and the din of the other patrons. Jim's knee bumped against hers beneath the table, driving her nearly to distraction.

She had been slightly, secretly relieved when Roy had first turned down her invitation to join her here tonight to finally meet her art school friends, (he had pled previous plans to go to Darryl's for a poker game), but that was nothing to the ecstasy of relief she felt now. If Roy was here, she knew there was no way Jim would have agreed to join their two little groups together. As it was, though, she was free to bask in the joy of Jim's company to her heart's content.

She tried to focus on what Steve was saying as the server set down a huge round of shots-enough for two each-in the middle of the table.

"Okay," Steve half-yelled so they all could hear them. "This is an easy game, and everybody has to play, Jim."

Pam glanced at Jim to see how he was going to take this little jab, but he just smiled and rolled his eyes. She smiled too, glad to see that he seemed to be in a good mood and willing to play along.

Maybe it's because Karen isn't here, she thought, and then sharply reprimanded herself. What went on between Jim and Karen was none of her business. Karen was a lovely person, and besides, Pam had Roy.

Wonder where she is, though.

Maybe after a couple of shots she'd work up the nerve to ask.

Steve was still talking.

"...that starts with the same letter as the last name of the previous person. So, like...if I say 'Bill Cosby,' then the person sitting to my left, (in this case the lovely Christi), could say 'Clint Eastwood', and then Billie could say 'Emily Blunt' and so on and so forth. But you have to be quick. If you can't think up a name, if you hesitate, you have to take a shot."

"No way, man!" said Jim. "We're all going to die of alcohol poisoning. A whole shot each time we screw up? Nobody can think that fast, especially drunk!"

"Okay, okay. We'll just finish off this round first to get us warmed up, then switch to regular drinks, okay? Two shot limit each."

"Let's do it!" chimed in Christi, and smiled at Steve. Pam caught the eye of Billie, her closest friend from the art class they all attended at the local community center, and they exchanged amused grins. Christi had just broken up with her boyfriend a couple of weeks ago, and had been complaining all day about needing a rebound. It looked like she had found her victim in Steve.

He was cute enough, Pam supposed, but not really her type. Too short. And stocky as opposed to lanky. But anyway…

The game started, and Pam's friend Troy was the first to not be able to come up with a name. They all cheered as he shrugged and downed the shot good-naturedly. Then they started up again-they made it all the way back around the table and then Jim was caught when he couldn't come up with a response to Pam's answer of 'Will Ferrell.' Pam noticed that he seemed to hesitate, but then he took up the small glass and threw its contents back. They all cheered again.

The night was off to a great start.