What Could Have Been
A/N – set after "Conflict Resolution". No spoilers for the finale.
Chapter 1 – Pam finds out
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Pam was at her desk, entertaining herself with a game of Sudoku (level: expert – time elapsed: 22 minutes) when the call came in.
"Dunder Mifflin, this is Pam," she answered, pondering whether a 1 or a 3 would best complete the row.
"Pam, this is Jan. Could you put me through to Michael?"
"I'm sorry, Jan. Michael's in a meeting. May I take a message?" she asked as she reached for her pink phone message pad.
"Yes," came Jan's clipped, businesslike reply. "Could you have him call me back on my cell? It's with regards to Jim Halpert's transfer."
Pam's pen froze. "Excuse me?" Could she have misheard Jan? The connection was a bit fuzzy; perhaps she was referring to a Jim Malpert…?
Jan sighed impatiently on the other end. "Could you ask Michael to call me back, on my cell, to discuss Jim Halpert's transfer to the Stamford branch?"
"Oh, sure… no problem, I'll make sure he gets the message", Pam stuttered as she lowered the receiver without saying goodbye.
Transfer? Jim? In a daze, Pam checked her desk calendar. Today was May 8. It was definitely not April Fool's Day.
She looked over at Jim's desk. He was starring at his computer screen and chewing on the end of his ballpoint pen. "Jim," she hissed, trying to get his attention without arousing Dwight's suspicions.
He looked up at her and raised his eyebrows. "What?" he hissed back.
She motioned him over to her desk, and waited impatiently while he took his time stretching and walking over. Couldn't he tell she had something important to ask him?
"What is it, Beesly?" He leaned his forearms on the counter as he snagged a jellybean from the dispenser.
"How much do you know about unofficial holidays?" she asked him.
"Um, not much, why? Wait, are you referring to made-up holidays, like Grandparents Day and Arbor Day? 'Cause I'm an expert on those," he smiled down at her.
"Well, I want to know if there's anything special about today," she said.
"It is the Monday after Cinco de Mayo, if that's what you mean," he replied with a straight face.
"No! Is today, like a special day for practical jokes, or playing tricks on people?" Her palms were getting sweaty.
Jim wrinkled his brow, as if deep in thought. "No, not that I know of. I think today is just a plain old Monday. Nothing exciting going on… why?"
Pam cocked her head and pondered whether to ask him. If it were true, he most likely would have told her. She was his closest friend in the office, after all. On the other hand, did she really want to know? Did she want him to confirm what Jan had said? There had been that whole incident with Dwight on that horrible day last week when Michael had decided that all conflicts needed to be out in the open.
In fact…she hadn't really spoken to him since he had owned up to his complaint about her. She had pushed it out of her mind over the weekend. She had tons of wedding details to iron out and had spent both days on the phone with her mom and the caterers and her maid of honor.
"Earth to Pam…" Jim waved his hand in front of her face.
She snapped out of her trance. "Who still says that? You are such a dork, Halpert."
He took a step back from her desk and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Ok, well, on that note, I think I'll head back to my desk. Catch you later," he said as he turned away.
"Is it true about your transfer?" she blurted out, louder than she intended.
Jim immediately stopped in his tracks and whirled around. "How'd you head about that?" he asked, his tone harsh.
When Pam saw the look on his face, his narrowed eyes and the flare of his nostrils, she let out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. She felt herself deflate like a balloon, her shoulders slumping forward. "So, it's true?" she asked, hoping he would deny it.
But he just stood there, staring at her as only he could do. Like he was willing her to read his mind, to understand what he wanted to tell her. She stared back at him, simultaneously daring him to speak and praying he would let sleeping dogs lie.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he dropped his gaze and ran his hand through his hair. "Yeah," he stated, dropping his hand. "Yeah, it's true." And he spun around and marched off towards the break room, leaving her behind, shell-shocked and unable to breathe.
TBC