A short chapter since I've actually had stuff to do at work (weird, right?) but I wanted to have some of Pam's thoughts posted for you guys since you just saw Jim's. Maybe the longer chapters I started with were too long for someone to read at once anyway, I don't know. This story is going to be longer than I originally thought it would be! I do promise that Pam will watch the footage next chapter, though. I want to see what happens, too. :) Thanks for the reviews and encouragement!
Chapter Four
Pam rubbed her eyes, groaning as the light from the windows shone onto her face. She blinked, unsure of where she was for a moment before recognizing Jim's room. Although she knew he had to be cramped sleeping on the couch, he wouldn't let her sleep there.
She smiled remembering last night. She had expected a casual dinner with maybe Jim's grilled cheese sandwiches, but instead Jim had prepared pasta with sauce and chicken that she was sure he didn't normally have in his house. He must have called Mark to pick stuff up, she realized, touched that he would have gone out of his way to do that for her. Whenever she asked Roy to prepare dinner he would bring it up for days afterwards, but Jim acted like he was happy to do it.
Pushing the comparison between them out of her mind, Pam looked around the room, having been too tired to do anything but fall into bed last night. She had always loved going into her friends rooms growing up, knowing that the person had picked everything in there as an expression of themselves. Pam's bedroom at her apartment was simple, with just one of her paintings as decoration, and she hated it.
Jim's room seemed to reflect him. She hadn't been surprised at the party to see a desk, because she knew that if he worked somewhere else he would work hard. The creativity and thought he could put into one prank on Dwight showed that. She sat down at his desk, wondering how much he used it now. There were a few pictures displayed, one of him and two older people she figured were his parents, and one she recognized as his sister.
Pam picked up the last picture. It was her and Jim at the last office Christmas party. Michael had run around with his camera all afternoon, and snapped a picture of them as she was opening the teapot, huge smiles on both of their faces. She still felt stupid for picking the ipod over the teapot, and remembered how she couldn't find the letter that was in the package later. Someone must have taken it off her desk by mistake.
A soft knock on the door interrupted her. "Come in."
Jim opened the door slowly, a side of his hair sticking up where he had slept on it. "You're up already." He glanced down at what she was still holding and cleared his throat. "Oh, um, Michael gave that to me…"
Pam set it down, admitting sheepishly, "Yeah, I have one, too."
Jim's face broke into a smile, ending the awkwardness. "Well Beesly, I was thinking. Today seems like it would be a really good day to grab some coffee before we head in."
Pam nodded, a lump forming in her throat as she began thinking about the possibility of seeing Roy. She didn't know what to say to him to fix their relationship, and couldn't stop this guilty ache she felt whenever she thought of him. She gave Jim a small smile, not wanting to ruin his day again, too. "Good idea. You just have to give me some time to get dressed. We can't all wake up as beautiful as you," she teased.
As she reached up to smooth down the side of his hair that was still standing out, Jim's smile vanished. He was looking at her with such intensity Pam looked away. She scolded herself for being so stupid. Of course she couldn't do that, it was obviously too intimate for a friend to do.
They stood next to each other for a moment, Pam's face still turned to the carpet, until Jim moved back into the hall. "Alright, just come out when you're ready Beesly."
Pam stood there even after he shut the door and she heard him walk downstairs, confused on what had just happened. She took a deep breath before picking out her outfit. It was going to be another long day.