A/N; Jim centered chapter this time around. I hope you enjoy
"This is exactly what you've been here for, man! Give me five years, ten at the most, to raise some real capital and you, me, Wade, and Lucas; we'll be unstoppable!"
Jim raised his bottle of beer to his lips and took a drink to consider what his friend was saying. Drake had a good point. Jim was about to graduate with a degree in sports marketing and the idea of getting in on the ground floor of a new marketing company was tempting. "What do we do in the meantime?"
Drake leaned across the table to his friend. "I was thinking about that actually. There are tons of sales jobs out there. I know you said you've thought about heading back to Scranton. Go for it! Find a house to rent, maybe get a roommate or two to offset those costs some more. Find a job that has a good commission structure, maybe a few bonuses or two. I'll bet if you don't go hog wild you could pay off your loans within a few years. Maybe if things go good with that girlfriend of yours and you two get really serious we can add her to the team too. We'll keep in touch and I'll let you know how much the rest of us have to put in and we'll be up and running!"
"Hey! Now there's an idea!" Jim agreed. "Actually, she's supposed to meet me here in a few minutes. Got time to stick around and pitch this idea to her?"
"I'll stick around, but how about you pitch it to her? Consider it your first interview." Drake raised his glass to Jim with a smirk on his face.
"Done," Jim clinked his bottle against the proffered glass and the two friends took a swig to seal the deal. Noticing Drake looking over his shoulder he turned and saw his girlfriend walk into the bar and scan the crowd of him.
"Jess! Over here!" He called out and waved her over. Jim stood up to scoot back one of the empty chairs from their high-top table. He gave her a quick kiss on her cheek as she sat down before he also resumed his seat. "Thanks for coming out. Have you met my buddy Drake before?"
Jess was peeling her light coat off her shoulders to rest it on her chair back. "I don't think so." She extended her hand and smiled at the other man. "Jessica Coleman."
"Drake Johnson. A pleasure to meet you." Drake said as he shook her hand.
She turned back to Jim. "So, one last night out before our last finals week?"
"That's the plan. What are you drinking?"
"Oh, I don't know. Something good," she said as she started to peruse the cocktail menu.
"Whatever you want. My treat," Jim told her.
The offer was a common one for the two of them. Usually Jim would see Jess's eyes light up at the offer. Tonight though, something was off. She didn't smile warmly back up at him like normal, instead kept her eyes downturned in the menu. Jim felt a pang of concern knit his eyebrows slightly closed. "Hey, you okay?"
She looked back up at them with a start. "What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just got a lot on my mind with exams coming up is all."
"Fair enough," he told her. She figured out what she wanted and after ordering the three made small talk until her cocktail arrived at the table. Jim looked back at Drake who gestured back to him to start his pitch. Jim took another small swig of beer before turning back to Jess.
"So, Drake and I have an idea. Between him, me, and a couple of our other friends we'll have a marketing major, a graphic design major, and two business majors. The way we figure it we've got the makings of a great start up. The only thing is what to start up. What's been one of your best extra-curricular experiences here at school?"
Jess considered for a few seconds. "Other than hanging out with friends, I'd have to say being on the field hockey team."
"Exactly!" Jim told her. "Field hockey. Drake here was on the intramural indoor soccer team and you know I was on the 4 on 4 basketball team. The other guys were also heavily involved with campus sports in some way. I don't know about you Drake, but it seems like the last four years have just flown by because we were always doing something on the field or court. A wise man once said, 'do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life.'
"We've got an idea to do just that. We all know that none of us are good enough to go pro, but that doesn't mean our passions have to die. Playing as long as we have in all sorts of sports means we know what drives those who are good enough to go pro. We speak their language. Now the real superstars get the huge contracts. The quarterbacks, the point guards, the power hitters and the like. But without their teammates behind them there's no way anyone makes the highlight reel.
"What we're talking about is a brand-new marketing company but not aimed at the big superstars. Everyone goes for the superstars and there's no way a new start up can compete with big companies that already have contacts everywhere. Instead we focus on the utility players that make superstars possible. We start getting them endorsement deals in the sort of local markets the big boys tend to ignore.
"Fly to close to the sun and your wings melt and you fall. Keep it low and slow and you'll soon soar. All we need is a smart, energetic, and creative person to head up our advertising section. Preferably someone with a degree in advertising." Jim gestured to her.
Jess looked back and forth between the two of them with shock on her face. "You guys can't be serious? You're not even out of college yet and you're already planning to start your own company? Where are you going to get the money? Six months, that's all you've got until you either start paying back your loans, defer them, or default. You're going to set up a brand-new company, with no experience, no location, no contacts, and no clients all in six months?"
It wasn't the response Jim had been hoping for. Still he knew she had valid concerns. "Those are all great points. When we do this, we're going to do it smart. No, we're not planning on starting right out of school. All those things you just said, no experience, no building, tons of loan debt? You're right, they're expensive and regardless of what scholarships any of us did or didn't get, we all have loans to pay. So, we take our time before really getting off the ground. Philly is only a few hours away. New York a few more after that. Big time cities with a lot of the utility players we're talking about. There's also a huge untapped small city market. Think about the minor-league players who know they're going to be called up. Big opportunity there to be the marketing team for a player just starting out their career. So, we find what jobs we can while still doing market research, building savings, paying off our loans, that sort of thing. Get ourselves set up to tackle all those great concerns you've got."
Jess was quiet for a moment and kept her eyes on her drink before she looked up and responded. "You know guys, we've got finals next week and this the last night we'll have to enjoy ourselves before then. I know you've given a lot of thought about all of this, but I don't really want to think about stuff like this. How about we just have a nice night instead?"
Jim let out a sigh, but quickly stilled the disappointment in his face and cracked a small grin. "Sure, it's a lot to think about anyway."
The three of them quickly dropped into the easy and familiar conversation of good friends. Later when Drake excused himself to the restroom Jim called the waitress over and placed an order. After she left Jim turned and gave a sly wink to Jess as Drake came back to the table. A few minutes later the waitress returned.
"Hey bud, I got us an order of teriyaki wings for the table. Feel free," Jim gestured to the plate of chicken wings the waitress had left.
"Hey thanks, man, I was starting to get a little hungry." Drake picked up a wing and bit in with gusto.
Jim leaned in close to Jess and quietly counted down. "Three...two...one...now." As he said the last word he pointed to his friend.
Across the table Drake had been looking curiously at Jim. His face changed to one of surprise and pain as he realized the wings Jim had ordered were not covered in teriyaki sauce, but the hottest sauce the bar had to offer. Sweat beaded on his forehead and tears came to his eyes as he started fanning at his face. He grabbed for his water, which proved to be a worse idea as Jim had also emptied the contents of the salt shaker in the glass while Drake had been away from the table. Tears were in Jim and Jess's eyes too but it was due to laughing so hard.
"Dude, here looks like you need it," Jim finally told Drake as he got his laughter under control and slid his friend one of two glasses of Jack Daniels he had ordered with the wings.
The whiskey did much to soothe the burning sensation. "Good one," Drake told him while still coughing. "You do know what you've got to do now though."
Jim picked up his own hot wing. "It was worth it to see your reaction." Between the two of them they finished off the remaining wings as well as anther glass of whiskey. Jess only looked on, shaking her head at the pair while munching on her onion rings. Soon they finished the last of their food and drink and headed for the door. Jim climbed into the passenger's seat of Jess's car for the ride back to the house Jim rented with another friend.
"I think I left my jacket here the other night. Mind if I come up and look for it?" Jess asked when she pulled into the driveway.
"Sure."
Together they made their way up to his room. She got down and looked under the bed while Jim look a glance through the closet. It didn't take her long to find the garment.
"Here it is! Along with one of my shirts. Now how did that get under here?" She asked with a mischievous giggle.
"Got me. I'm sure my attention was otherwise occupied," Jim deadpanned.
Something else under the bed grabbed Jess's attention. "What's this?" She pulled a small shoe box out from under the bed. She read aloud what had been written on the lid. "M-A-F-1-2. What's in here?"
"Oh that, it's nothing," Jim said hastily as he got a glimpse of the box. He hadn't seen the box in years but instantly recognized the initials written on the lid was and the contents it held. "Just some stuff that my parents gave me from my old room at home."
"Jim, it's not nothing otherwise you wouldn't be blushing." She opened the box and looked inside. Inside were a few folded sheets of paper as well as some very rough sketches. A girl with curly hair, glasses, and a turtleneck sweater started back at her. "Who's this?"
"It's kinda embarrassing," Jim told her while scratching the back of his head. "Just a girl I met back in high school. Honestly, I haven't even thought of her or that box for like, four years."
"Did you draw these pictures?"
"Yeah, I know they're not that great. I'm not an artist or anything."
Jess set the sketches aside and pulled out the folded papers. Unfolding them revealed a printed off chat log between two people. "Jim, people don't print off chat logs of people they don't care about. Let me guess though, you're 'bballer' and she's 'artfan.'"
"I was in high school. I only even met her in person once, and that right there is the only time we ever talked online. I told you, it's really not that big of a deal."
"Then why keep all this stuff all these years?"
"I boxed it up after I promised my sister to not live in the past and it's all stayed boxed up till now. My parents moved to a new house last year and were trying to get rid of stuff so they sent it to me and I guess it just found a place under there."
Jess seemed to accept Jim's reasoning before she put everything back in the box and set it aside. "There's something else, Jim."
"Uh oh. That doesn't sound good." He sat next to her on the edge of his bed.
"Yeah," she started. "I know you're pumped about this idea you and Drake have got going. I didn't want to say anything in front of him or ruin our night at the bar, but I can tell you right now, that even though I'm flattered, I don't think it's for me."
"How come?"
"Because just before I met you guys at the bar I got an email offering me a paid internship in San Francisco after we graduate. I'll be leaving for California in about two weeks."
"Oh." Jim didn't know what to say. He'd been with Jess since their freshman year.
"Probably not the news you wanted to hear, I know."
Jim's throat was tight. "Yeah," was the only thing he was able to croak out.
She rubbed his back to take away some of the sting. "Hey, it's not like we didn't have a good run, right? I mean, we had some good times."
He could only nod as he didn't trust himself to say anything. He'd experienced many firsts with her. She'd been his first serious girlfriend, first, and to this point only, lover, and the first girl he'd brought home to meet his family among other things.
"You're strong Jim, I hope you know that. It's one of the things I saw first about you. Not the lanky goofy guy you try to be. Remember that." Again, he could only nod his head. She kissed him on the cheek before she left.
He didn't know how long he sat on the edge of his bed. Eventually the shoe box resting on his pillow caught his eye. He hadn't been lying when he said it had been years since he looked at what it contained. Setting the lid to one side he picked up one of the sketches he'd drawn. The images sparked memories that hadn't surfaced in years. He picked up the picture he'd drawn right after he'd logged off and printed his chat with Morgan. He'd tried his best to recall the way her curly hair had fallen over her glasses. Setting the picture aside, he unfolded the pages he'd printed off. Reading the conversation he'd had that night helped to soothe the pain in his heart and he was able to fall asleep easier that night.
Why didn't anyone tell me it would be this hard to find a job? You'd think after three months there would have been something better than the cell phone kiosk. And who does job interviews at Chili's anyway? Jim took another glace around the restaurant looking for any sight of the man who had set up the lunch interview. He checked his watch for the umpteenth time and squirmed again in the booth. He pulled at the tie around his neck his father had insisted he wear. More than anything he wanted to unbutton the top button and pull some slack in the knot. However, he knew first impressions mattered and he wanted to come across looking good.
"Still doing alright?"
Jim looked from his glass of water back to the server standing at the end of his table. "Yeah, I've got a job interview with the manager of a paper company. He must be running late."
"Let me guess, Michael Scott of Dunder-Mifflin Paper," the server said with half-groan, half-apology.
"Yeah, how'd you guess?"
Jim didn't catch the look of long-suffering acceptance from his server. "He just comes here a lot. The fact he's running late is pretty typical of him. But if you're interviewing for a job with him I might recommend having an Awesome Blossom, ready on the table for when he gets here. The guy loves the things."
"Yeah, sure why don't we go with that." Couldn't hurt, it is a lunch interview after all.
"Coming right up," and the server walked away to fill the order. He was back within five minutes with the appetizer. Jim thanked him and resumed his vigil of the front door. Soon a new voice spoke from behind him.
"Ah, an Awesome Blossom! Excellent choice good sir! Don't mind if I do!"
Jim looked behind him to see a slightly short man in a business suit and black slicked back hair walk around him and without preamble or permission reach over to grab some fried onion. He was further shocked when the man slid into the booth across from him and pulled the sauce cup to his side.
"Um...can I help you?" Jim asked.
"Sure," the man said. "If you see the waitress ask for another cup of sauce. I get hungry when I do interviews."
"Are you Michael Scott of Dunder-Mifflin Paper?"
"The one and only!" Michael said with a flourish of his onion petal that also sprayed drops of sauce across the table. "You're quick to catch on, young James. So, forget all that boring crap other managers ask. I want to know the real you. What makes you tick." He emphasized the last word by poking Jim in the middle of his forehead.
"So, who's your favorite comedian and favorite role they played?"
Jim shook his head to overcome some of the shock he was feeling. Still not sure if this Michael was being serious so he almost blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "I'd have to say...um...Robin Williams in 'Dead Poets Society.'"
"Ah James! Classic!" Without warning Michael stood up on the table top, put his hand over his heart, and shouted across the restaurant. "Oh captain, my captain!"
The manager of Chili's was less amused as he came over to the table. "Michael! How many times have we told you that you can't get on top of anything?"
"That's what she said!" Michael called out as he climbed off the table, laughing at his own joke.
Jim could only sit in his chair and watch. He gave the manager a look and cocked an eyebrow silently asking, is this guy for real?
The manager only sighed as Michael resumed his seat. "Climb onto the table again and we'll cancel your reservation for your awards ceremony next week."
"Fine," Michael pouted. As the manager turned to leave Michael blew a raspberry at his disappearing back. "Pthbbbbbbbbbb!" He turned back to Jim. "What did you think of my performance? Williams is hard to get down. He's got so many voices and characters."
Jim still wasn't quite sure what to think. "Yeah, no! I think you nailed it."
"So, James, may I call you James?" Michael looked back across the table while grabbing another piece of Awesome Blossom.
"It's Jim actually."
"Jim, Jim, Jimmy, Jimbo, Jim Bob, Slim Jim, the Jim-meister. I was watching you from across the room before I came over here. You stayed here even though I made you think I was late and even had an Awesome Blossom waiting. You know what that says, Mr. Jim?"
That you're kind of a creep? No, he'd be expecting something like that. Wait a minute, he's being serious. He really is that kind of man-child. Two can play this game. Jim leaned his head over the table and gestured for Michael to move in close so he could lower his voice. "That I actually saw you first and knew you were there. Clearly you knew that I had seen you but you didn't know that I knew, you knew I had seen you. I however did know that you knew I'd seen you but didn't want to give away that I knew that you knew. So, it gave you a great chance to fake surprise me instead of giving away that you didn't know that I knew you knew. You know?"
Michael was slightly nodding his head at Jim during the small speech with a thoughtful look to his face. It was almost as if Jim could see the cogs trying to turn in the other man's head as he tried to figure out a response.
"I do know, Jim," Michael finally said gravely as he finished off the last of the Awesome Blossom. "I also know that you're just the kind of person the Dunder-Mifflin family needs. Someone who knows. Scranton Business Park, tomorrow, 10:00 A.M., be there!"
Holy crap, that worked!? Who says you can't learn anything from cartoons. Jim held out his hand. "You got it!"
Michael grasped Jim's hand and pumped it up and down almost violently. "You won't regret this Jim. I can tell. Welcome to Dunder-Mifflin! Here's a welcome home packet my stupid HR guy told me to give you if I hired you."
Jim looked down at the soft cover employee manual Michael had dropped on the table. If nothing this should be interesting.
"You've got to be joking! That worked!?"
"That's basically what I thought! I gotta tell you Ris, if that's what the interview was like, maybe selling paper won't be quite as bad as I thought it would be."
Jim had raced back to the house he was sharing with a friend after the interview. After changing back into a t-shirt and jeans he'd dialed his sister's number to tell her about his new job. She'd been his confidant ever since he'd taken her to prom. If there was anyone Jim could always talk to it was his little sister Larissa.
"Have you done your homework on the place? A lot of times companies hardly offer any base pay and expect you to rely mainly on commission. I mean really how much commission can you really make selling paper?"
"Michael might be a bit odd, but I did call their corporate office before the interview. I also got an employee handbook that had a lot of info too. One of their VP's gave me an overview of their commission policy. Looks like they mainly emphasize their salespeople to maintain current contracts. There is a commission cap on new accounts, but they said few people reach that it. There is base pay which is decent enough. I doubt I'll be buying a new car anytime soon, but I should be able to pay off my student loans fairly quickly."
Larissa sounded pleased when she responded. "Well that's good. Is this going to be enough for you? I always figured you'd be doing something with the Sixers or the Eagles or something like that."
"Hey, for now I'm just glad I have a job. Do I want to spend the rest of my life selling paper? Of course not, who would? But it's a big step up pay wise from the cell phone kiosk. Also, in a few years Drake and they guys will have the resources to get our marketing company up and running."
"What does Jess think about this new paper job?"
Jim was glad she couldn't see the grimace that appeared on his face. He still hadn't told her about his now ex-girlfriend. "Umm..."
"I know that tone. Something's wrong. Oh, my gosh! Did you break up with her? Did she break up with you? What happened?"
She is way too smart for her own good. "She actually broke up with me. It was about two weeks before I graduated."
"Jim, just because I'm studying overseas for the summer, doesn't mean you get to not tell me details like this," she scolded him.
"This is the first time you've called since it happened!"
"Phone service may sometimes suck here in Africa, but email still works all the time. No excuses. Now, what happened?"
Jim sighed, sat down at his desk chair and propped his feet up on his bed. "What's to tell? She got an internship in San Francisco just before finals week. A couple days after commencement she was in California. She tried to let me down easy I guess. I don't know I've never been dumped before."
"Did you try and stop her, or offer to go with her?"
A hint of anger came into his tone of voice. "What kind of question is that?"
"Well, it matters because if you tried any of those things it would have meant you were in love with her. So, were you in love with her or not?"
"I guess not, since she's on the other side of the country and I'm still in Scranton," he growled.
"Hey don't get mad at me bro if you don't know what it actually means to love someone other than family. If I remember right you didn't even really go after her when you first started dating. Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't you tell me that you two basically starting hanging out more and more until a certain wise sister of yours drilled it through that thick skull of yours that your friend-who-is-a-girl was in actual fact your girlfriend?"
"Grrraawr!" Jim made a frustrated noise at his ceiling. "You make it really hard to be mad at you, you know that?"
"Of course I do. Younger cuter sister prerogative," came the smug reply.
"So no, I didn't love her if your measure for love is to go after the other one."
"It's one of the measures of love, there are others too. But if it's love you fight for it, not just let it walk away from without saying anything. Otherwise it's not love you're feeling, it's infatuation, lust, or a host of other things."
"You were a lot easier to talk to about this kind of stuff before you went into that psychology program."
"Don't try changing the subject. Think about it, has there ever been a girl you've actively fought to stay in contact with?"
Jim's gaze glanced to an old shoebox set on one of his shelves. "Only one comes to mind, and oddly enough it was a girl you yourself told me I had to get over rather than, what was it you said? 'Live in the past?'"
"I most certainly did not tell you to not 'live in the past.' I told you to not pass on what's in front of you for what could have been. Big difference there, buddy-boy."
"Enlighten me."
"The first one is focused solely on feeling sorry for yourself based on nothing you can change anymore while the second is about what's right here and what's out there in the future. Also, you did everything you could to find Morgan. Can you honestly say that you did everything you possibly could have done to try hold onto the relationship you had with Jess?"
"No, I didn't do everything I could have done," he admitted after pausing to consider the question. "There was probably a lot I could have done but didn't."
"Right, which just proves my point that you didn't love Jess. I'm sure it was a good relationship for you. I'm sure you had a lot of good times, which I DO NOT need or want the details of, by the way. It's okay if Jess wasn't the great love of your life. She did teach you how to be a good boyfriend. That's something most guys don't get. She was smart and brave enough to get you through all that awkward how-to-be-a-good-guy stuff most guys struggle with. So yeah, I'm sure it wasn't fun having her break up with you, but you'll be set for which ever lucky lady you find next."
"Why do I feel like I should be laying on a leather couch right now?"
"Huh, good luck. There's no way you'll be able to afford my rates once I get out of school."
"What? No family discount for psycho-analysis?"
Laughter came across the phone line. "Ha! Here's your analysis. You're psycho! That'll be five hundred dollars for the visit. I take cash or card."
"Five hundred bucks! What happened to five cents like from the "Peanuts," cartoons. You know like what Lucy charges Charlie Brown when she's playing psychologist?"
"That's the difference between playing psychologist and being one, dear brother of mine." Larissa's smug tone was back. "Also, an added fee since I had to stay up late to talk to you since you're so far behind me."
Jim just chuckled at his sister. "Thanks, I do miss these conversations of ours, annoying as they can be at times. I'll try to call and email more often. Now that I have a better job hopefully it'll be easier."
"I appreciate that. But enough about all of that. What else can you tell me about this new job?"
"I start tomorrow, I'll do my best to sell paper and paper products in and around Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. Umm...I'm pretty sure I'll get a lunch break at some point. I mean it's an office job so not all that active or exciting. It starts out with two weeks paid vacation, but I can accumulate more the longer I stay there. Full benefits as well so that'll be nice. I don't know, it's a job."
"Have you met any of your new coworkers yet?"
"Not yet. Michael, my new boss, was the only one there at the interview. Apparently, Dunder-Mifflin keeps normal business hours so since he wants me there at ten rather than nine I guess they'll all be there when I show up tomorrow. Now that's enough about me, what have you been up to?"
Larissa leapt into telling him stories about the work-study program she was attending. She told him about the various wildlife she'd seen and the relationships she'd been forming. The talked for another hour before she finally admitted it was too late for her and she needed to get to bed. Reluctantly they ended their call with Larissa extracting a promise from her brother that he email her about his first day at his new job.
As he got ready for bed Jim reflected on what his sister had told him. Jess was a good first girlfriend. Fun, funny, sexy, but yeah, Larissa was right. I never once thought we'd end up married or anything. Goodbye, Jess. Thanks for four good years, but now it's time for something new.
A/N; Reviews welcome as always.