Whatever Happens

Summary: Instead of calling off her wedding because of Jim, Pam decided to marry Roy. Six weeks later, Pam has some big news. Set between Seasons 2 and 3 and will be JAM in a few chapters.

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Enjoy!

Pam sat alone in the booth, sipping her glass of orange juice slowly. The diner she was in fit in well with the stereotype diner. It was small, with worn, dark leather booths and waitresses who looked like they were dragged kicking and screaming out of the sixties. There were bells on the door that clanged every time someone came in, and the whole place reeked of coffee. The diner was just off the highway in what just so happened to be the town that was the exact midpoint between Scranton and Stamford. The small establishment was bustling, obviously in the middle of its morning rush. All the booths were full, no doubt of people just finishing their breakfast before hurrying off to a day of work.

She was not going to hurry off to work when she finished her O.J. She was waiting for someone.

Was she nervous to see him again? A little. Okay, more than a little. A quick glance at her watch revealed that he was running late. Pam wondered briefly if he was lost, or stuck in traffic, or had decided to not come at all. She slumped slightly at the thought. Surely he was coming. Surely he wouldn't stand her up like this.

To get her mind off the idea that maybe he wasn't coming, Pam recalled the conversation between them. It was strange, really; the whole thing had only lasted for a few sentences, but now that Pam thought about it, she probably wouldn't have called him at all had it not been for the conversation. She could remember it so clearly, as if it had happened just five minutes ago…

It was the day of the Casino Night charity event, and despite herself, Pam was excited. She was looking forwards to getting dressed up for the event. Pam had purchased a new dress for the occasion, regardless of how Roy insisted that she already had plenty of suitable clothing, and it's always fun to wear something new. Especially if it's something that makes you feel pretty, that makes you feel like maybe you're not just some ordinary person. Like maybe you're extraordinary.

Of course, she was also eager to see how everybody else looked when they were dressed up. She wondered whether or not Michael would actually wear a tuxedo, if Kelly would be wearing something more suitable for the Academy Awards, and naturally, what Jim would look like. Pam had always kind of wondered if he was the kind of guy who could pull off a tuxedo, or if it made him look like a vampire or something. She was hoping it was the latter; in fact, she had bought an inexpensive set of plastic fangs to complete the look, just in case.

Pam's plans for the day included leaving work just a few minutes early, to make sure that both she and Roy had time to shower before returning to the warehouse for the party. She'd been about to start packing up her stuff to go home when Jim approached her desk.

"Hey," she said, smiling. "You excited for Casino Night?

"Yeah, I'm sure it'll be great," Jim replied absentmindedly, drumming his fingers lightly on her desk. "Listen, can I talk to you for a second?"

"Of course," Pam replied, smiling fading as she saw the serious expression on his face. "Are you okay?"

"Me? No, I'm fine," he answered. "Listen, you're getting married soon, and I'm heading off to Australia in a few days, so I just wanted to… to make sure you know this. It's not a big deal, or anything."

Pam thought that the expression on his face suggested otherwise. "I'm listening," she said sincerely.

"It's just…" Jim began softly. Pam placed her elbows on her desk and leaned forwards slightly to hear him better. " You know you can always tell me anything, right? No matter how big or weird or whatever, you can tell me," Jim explained slowly. "You can tell me anything."

Pam smiled faintly. "I know. And you can always tell me anything. Whatever's on your mind."

Jim returned her grin. "Thanks." He straightened, and then bent back down. "I don't suppose there's anything you'd like to get off your chest now, is there?"

Pam's eyes flickered towards the ceiling as she pretended to think about it, before coming back to rest on Jim. "Nope, nothing groundbreaking right now. But I'll keep you posted."

"Thanks," Jim replied lightly. "I better go get back to work, so…"

"Right. I'm actually about to take off, so I'll see you later at Casino Night?"

"I'd bet on it, Beesly," he answered, heading back to his desk, still smiling.

"Would you like anything else?" The waitress' question brought Pam back from her reverie. "Some coffee, or some food?"

Pam shook her head. "No thanks. Maybe when my friend gets here," she answered.

The waitress nodded and walked away. Pam felt a little bad; undoubtedly, the waitress wished she would leave so the waitress could earn more tips. Hopefully he wouldn't be much longer, and then they could order and then…. Well, one thing at a time.

Pam took another sip of her orange juice, and began to think about the conversation again. Immediately after Casino Night, the conversation had been forgotten in wake of the kiss and Jim's profession of his love. She hadn't remembered it until after Jim left for Australia. Then she figured that he had been trying to set the stage for his declaration. Maybe he had even been trying to get her to speak first. And then Jim had transferred to Stamford, and she had not had the chance to discuss anything with him.

It was only a little over a week ago that Pam had begun to hope that Jim had been meant beyond Casino Night.

It was a risky move, Pam knew, trying to call him at work. There was a good chance that someone else might overhear, and she didn't think she could handle that right now. But she didn't want to call from home, where Roy might overhear. After just a few weeks without contact, her fingers felt strange dialing the familiar number of Jim's cell phone. She was moderately surprised that she still remembered the number. And then it rang once, twice… seemingly forever.

And then he picked up.

"Jim Halpert," he said. He said it casually, and Pam suspected that he hadn't looked at the caller ID before answering. She didn't think he could have answered so nonchalantly had he known it was her.

"Hey, Jim, it's Pam," Pam said, her voice more choppy than she would have liked.

"Oh, hey."

Pam thought he sounded as though he thought it was weird. Maybe it was. "I'm sorry if this is awkward, or anything…" She trailed off, hoping he would say something to alleviate the sense that she was wrong to call.

He did. "No, no, it's not weird," Jim assured her. "Actually, I was thinking about calling to see how things were going back in Scranton."

She doubted he was telling the truth. If he'd really wanted information about Scranton, he would have asked somebody else rather than talk to her after the ill-fated Casino Night. But at least he was trying. "Things are okay, I guess. As you can imagine, Dwight's not exactly devastated that you're gone. Michael's taking it personally. Oh, and Ryan's been promoted to sales."

"Sounds great."

"Yeah, but people miss you," Pam said, twisting the phone cord around her fingers.

"What can I say? I'm a great guy."

"Yeah." Pam hesitated. Now that the small talk had been exhausted, she needed to get to the point of her call. "Look, Jim, I was wondering if you would consider meeting me for lunch. Not like a date, or anything. We could meet halfway between Scranton and Stamford, if you want. Or I could go to Stamford. If you really want to, you could come back to Scranton. I just… I just have something I wanted to talk to you about," Pam finished weakly, realizing how desperate she sounded. She hadn't meant to sound desperate; Pam had wanted to sound confident and smooth, as though this was no big deal.

"Uh…" For a single, heart-stopping moment, Pam thought he was actually going to say no.

"Please? It's important."

"Sure," he said finally.

Pam was unable to suppress a smile as she gave him the location of a diner evenly between Scranton and Stamford. Jim and Pam made plans to meet there for breakfast in a week, and they exchanged final "see you thens" before hanging up.

Pam looked at her watch again. 9:20. He was supposed to be there twenty minutes ago, and if he wasn't there in five more, she was leaving. She had to be back to work before eleven, or it would count as a whole vacation day rather than coming in late.

She downed the rest of her orange juice. Having nothing better to do, Pam studied the menu. It was typical breakfast fare: pancakes, eggs, bacon, cereal. Nothing special. If he showed up, Pam decided that she would order Breakfast Special #4, which consisted of scrambled eggs, hash browns, and a stack of buttermilk pancakes. She would need a refill on her juice, as well.

She checked her watch. 9:27. He hadn't come, and it was time to go. As Pam grabbed her purse and pulled out a few bills to cover the orange juice and tip, she felt great pangs of disappointment, and a few tears began to well up in her eyes. She really thought he would come. Pam wondered briefly if he had ever intended on coming, or if he just said yes to get off the phone faster. It didn't really matter, she decided. At least she tried.

Pam stood up just as the bells rang, signifying that the door had opened to admit some one. She glanced up, and saw Jim standing in the doorway, as promised.

Soooo? Please review.