Chapter Three

'Are these for everyone?' Jim asked, indicating the sweets on the reception desk.

'Yes, help yourself,' smiled Pam, peeling the lid off a yoghurt pot.

There was a pause.

'Listen, this might sound weird, and there's no reason for me to know this –'

Pam stared, bewildered, her spoon in her yoghurt.

'– but that mixed berry yoghurt you're about to eat has expired.'

Pam relaxed and laughed. Jim grinned.

'Thanks, I hadn't –'

'Conference Room in ten seconds people, for a very important video,' announced Michael.

'Yes, Michael,' said Dwight obediently, and dashed into the Conference Room before Michael. Pam's phone rang.

'Be there in a sec,' Pam told Jim and he followed the rest of the office, Stanley groaning, after Michael.

Like he would at school to avoid the teacher's attention, Jim took a seat at the very back and saw a large television stand at the front of the room, where Dwight sat. Jim watched Pam enter, and she nodded enquiringly at the chair next to him: seat free? Jim had barely smiled in answer when Stanley parked there instead, a crossword book and pen clutched in each hand. Jim kicked himself for not waiting for Pam and watched helplessly as she found a spare seat on the side.

'Now, as you all know, we have a new employee starting today, Mr Jim Halpert –' Jim smiled embarrassedly '– so to make him feel more at home in our family here in Scranton, we are going to show him a little handmade orientation video, so he knows what it's like to work here.'

'Do we all have to watch it?' muttered Stanley.

'Yeah, Michael we have a lot of work to do, we haven't got time –' piped up Oscar.

'No, no, no, this is much more important!' said Michael. 'Jim is a new member of our office family, and we need to welcome and appreciate that, all together. When a new baby is born, do you think the parents, which is me and – er …'

'As second in command, that would make me a parent also,' supplied Dwight. Jim raised his eyebrows and saw Pam do exactly the same.

'OK, when a baby is born, do you think the parents, which is me and Dwight, and the brothers and sisters, which is you guys, just ignore and abandon it? Of course not, they would all sit down and watch a video about the rules of the house and –'

'– Michael, that's ridiculous –'

'– No they wouldn't –'

'– Yeah, that makes no sense –'

'Stop! Just stop! God!' shouted Michael. 'OK, you know what, let's just get this thing rolling.'

Jim didn't know what to expect from the orientation video, but never expected a Blair Witch Project parody, with Michael prowling around a dark office with a torch. It was certainly entertaining, if not completely bizarre. Jim's personal favourite line was 'I am so scared, when people don't label their personal food'. He spent most of the video with his mouth agape, and Pam watched his reaction with stifled laughter.

Once the video finished, Michael asked Jim if he had any questions. He said he didn't, even though the question What the hell just happened? sprang to mind, and the meeting broke up.

'Are those meetings normally like that?' Jim asked Pam once they were out of earshot of Michael.

'Believe me, they've been weirder,' she chortled. 'Hey, we could have lunch now, in the break room? Since it's your first day, I could give you a tour of the vending machine.'

'Awesome,' grinned Jim, feeling a hopeful swoop in his stomach.

Pam bought him crisps in the break room. They chatted happily and uninterrupted at a table, and Jim had an excuse to gaze at Pam from close distance as she talked a little about her background and hobbies. Her eyes and smile were both so pretty, and she was very easy to talk to. It was hard to believe he'd only known her for four hours.

Jim was in a very good mood and the rest of the day passed rather quickly, in spite of Dwight's remonstrations about how he was double jointed in all his toes, and triple jointed in his hands, which he said caused him to harvest his beet farm three times faster than a normal man. He shut up when Jim offered to tie his hands together with duct tape and see if he could free them.

Jim found himself glancing at reception – a lot. He taught himself to do it when Pam was distracted: he didn't want to make things weird between them; whenever he heard Pam on the phone, or shuffling through paperwork, he would simply watch her, sometimes without even thinking. He knew it was only their first day of meeting each other, and he knew office relationships weren't always a good idea, but the urge to ask her for a drink that evening grew stronger and stronger. Of course, he would see her again tomorrow, and the next day, and probably five times a week for the rest of the foreseeable future, but there was no time like the present. By five o'clock, as he slung his bag over his shoulder and waited for everyone else to file out, he'd made up his mind.

He took a calming breath as Pam buttoned up her pink coat. It was just the two of them left, except Michael, who was re-watching the orientation video with glee.

'Hey, Pam … I was wondering if you'd –'

He broke off as the entrance door opened and a big guy, taller than Jim and with rugged good looks approached the desk.

'Er, I was wondering if you'd finished those copies for tomorrow,' recovered Jim.

'Oh, yeah, all done,' smiled Pam.

'Hey babe, all ready?' the guy said to Pam. He turned to Jim. 'Hey man, you're a new face. You work here?'

Jim's mouth had suddenly gone dry, and he cleared his throat. The word 'babe' had felt like a brutal kick in the stomach and he sensed his happiness drain away like ice-cold water coursing through him. It sucked, but it was a small comfort knowing he'd been two seconds away from an awkward exchange with Pam.

'Yeah, first day, always a big day. Jim, by the way,' he said, reluctantly extending a hand.

'Roy, I work in the warehouse downstairs – gives me a break from this goofball,' the guy said, nudging Pam. She smiled uncomfortably. 'She hasn't put you off working here, has she?'

'Oh no, she's been really helpful actually,' said Jim, smiling at Pam.

Roy paused awkwardly.

'Great, well we should get going. Good meeting you.'

'You too man.'

'I'll um, see you tomorrow, Jim,' said Pam.

'Sure, see ya.'

Jim watched them go, giving them a head start. If he was honest with himself, he knew there had to be a catch.

What a first day.