Disclaimer: I don't own The Office, only NBC does. )

Notes: My second story, but this one is on The Office. It's based after the Season 3 finale. This is a Jim/Pam fiction.

All reviews and constructive criticism are welcome, except for flaming. Please don't flame, it's not necessary.

"Speech"

Summary: Based right after Jim asks Pam out on a date. Jim and Pam finally get to go out together, but is it what they've always wanted? JAM.

P.S - Here's the long awaited Chapter 4, sorry it took so long! I had horrible writer's block but was determined, and pushed through it. Please tell me what you thought! I wasn't sure how I did with this.

Smelling the Roses : Chapter 4

Laughter continued to pour from her lips which only encouraged him to tickle her more. He was laughing too, probably at how ridiculous they looked. Her face was now covered in a blush blanket, as she tried to shift her body away from his assault. His frame shadowed over hers, as his fingers danced over her. Her head rolled from side to side, strands of honey brown hair getting caught in her mouth. She was very ticklish, especially as a little girl, laughing at the smallest touches.

"J-J-Jim. I…can't brr-breathe." Pam managed out through her giggles. He seemed to enjoy making her suffer through this though. She was about to ask him again when he suddenly stopped, and bent down to kiss her forehead. His lips lingered there for a moment longer before he put some breathing room between them. "This isn't over Beesly. I will strike again." He replied, looking triumphant, as if he had won some sort of war.

Pam smirked at his expression, beginning to think of something brilliant. She knew she shouldn't but the temptation was too strong to hold back. She sat up quickly, her tickling strike on Jim beginning. "You're right. This isn't over, it's just begun, Halpert." His laughs drowned out the soft music that had previously filled the room. Her fingers attacked his sides with a devilish grin on her face, successful at her revenge strategy. The tides were now turned, them rolling and her now being on top of him

Pam didn't seem to notice one thing, however. She was too occupied reveling in the sound of his laughter and tickling him that she hadn't noticed that her hands were under his olive shirt and were actually touching his soft skin. She saw him try to move her arms as she tried to hold her ground but failed as she only landed up embarrassing herself. As he had shifted her hands from his tickle areas, one of her fingers had brushed over his nipple lightly and she had clearly heard him suck in a sharp breath at her action. She felt herself frozen to the spot, unable to speak either.

A chuckle came from below her, thawing out her form. She opened her eyes, forgetting that she closed them, and saw Jim there; he was obviously amused by her. "Wha…What?" She asked quietly, wondering why he thought the situation was funny. He casually detached her hands from underneath his shirt and gazed up at her again, eyes twinkling. She did seem to notice through her embarassment that his green eyes looked a few shades darker but thought that it was probably the lighting that made them seem darker and have a different look to them.

"You're so cute when you blush." Pam's head dropped again, feeling embarrassed still and his compliment only seemed to fuel her cheeks more. He always made her blush so easily at the slightest praising. Her cheeks felt like they were on fire. Jim's hands raised her head, leveling their eye line so that green stared into hazel. "Pam, you're wonderful and so beautiful…Do I make myself clear?" He quoted the last phrase from her, from earlier in the evening when she had told him that he was like an angel.

"You're sweet."

"I'm only being honest." He piped in.

"I give." She replied as she rested her body down and onto his. She smiled at the texture of his shirt against her left cheek, it was almost silky. His right arm then coiled itself around her waist, holding her tightly in his protective grasp. She almost marveled at how naturally his arm seemed to fit around her. "You're comfy." She mumbled, and he laughed at the abruptness of the statement. His chest vibrated against her as he laughed and her head only snuggled into his button-up shirt more. They laid there for a while, neither knowing how long, just content to be so close to one another.

Jim was stroking her hair and rubbing her head which didn't help her current state. She was really feeling tired and Jim felt like the perfect bed at the moment. She soon began to feel light circles being drawn by his other hand on the small of her back, the skin open from her shirt riding up slightly. Pam couldn't hear the music anymore, wondering if Jim had turned it off or not. She internally shrugged, starting to feel the wave of sleep come for her. A loud pat-pat noise brought her out of her sleepiness however.

"Is someone at the door?" She whispered almost incoherently. She really hoped that it wasn't, starting to wonder who it could be. Jim's roomate popped into her head, finding him an acceptable excuse to break her and Jim apart. Jim's arm tightened around her as he answered. "Uh, no. That's umm…the rain." He sounded just as tired as her. "There was a chance of there being a big storm tonight. Guess…it's here." She sighed, not remembering to check the weather for later today, only thinking about Jim.

"Jim?" His head lifted slowly at his name, sitting up with her still in his arms. "Yeah?" She twiddled her thumbs and asked before she could tell herself not to. She tended to back out of things a lot because of her nerves which made it almost impossible to do school presentations in front of the class back then. "I was, um…wondering if, well, if you don't mind…I uh…ok. Could I stay here for the night?" She felt herself nibble at her bottom lip a little. Her mom had always told her to be cautious of weather and so far she hadn't been in any accidents, not to jinx herself or anything. She just hoped she wasn't crossing some sort of line between them, or if they were at that stage yet in a relationship.

"Oh, yeah. Sure." He agreed without any thought. He was taught to be hospitable and especially if the person was somebody he cared for, Pam definitely qualified. "Ok, but…I don't want to be an obligation or something." He kissed her, silencing her doubt, all the while rubbing both of her cheeks lovingly. "You're not. You're at the opposite end of the spectrum Pam, you're much enjoyed company." He told her after pulling back. He stood up then, holding out a hand. She took it without hesitation.

"Let me show you your quarters, my lady."

"You're such a dork."

"You know you love it." He said, their hands bound as they ascended the stairs, toward the bedroom. "You can stay in my bed. Uh…There's some sweatpants in the bottom drawer" gesturing to it, "and some tees in the middle." She wandered over to it, taking out what she was going to wear. She chose on some regular sweats and a t-shirt inscribed with the word Scranton. She put them on the bed, following Jim, who was now showing her the bathroom.

"I don't think you saw the bathroom during the very first tour. That was a good party." He smiled a little, remembering it. She certainly couldn't either. Phyllis expressing her opinion on her and Jim to her face, Michael attempting a duet, looking at Jim's yearbook…which started the huge yearbook picture joke. "Hard to forget." She agreed, then heard herself laugh before she could stop herself. "You're such a bad singer, though much better than Michael. Anyone's probably better..."

"Really now? Let's hear you sing Miss Beesly." She shook her head and started to run away. She didn't get far though. Jim's arms had officially tied themselves around her middle, trapping her from going anywhere. She almost shivered when his short breath kissed the skin between her neck and shoulder. She wouldn't mind feeling that again, she told herself.

"I surrender" She whispered.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite hear you. You'll have to repeat yourself just once more Pam." He said teasingly, trying to keep a mask of innocence on his face even though she couldn't see him. She couldn't see him but could definitely feel his arms encased around her. Pam didn't feel like leaving his embrace so soon, so she played along.

"I don't know, I'm having trouble remembering. You'll have to help me."

"You're so stubborn." Jim said as he rested his head atop hers. Her brown hair tickled at his chin. She felt so relaxed, Jim was the one person that could always do that, usually after she had an argument with Roy, when she'd try to reason with him. She'd call Jim, completely stressed out about Roy, what he said to her and everything but they'd usually end their conversations joking about what to do to Dwight next. His lips against the top of her head brought her out of old memories, a smile soon appearing on her face at his gesture. She began to try and think of what she did without him, which wasn't much.

Pam heard the yawn that escaped her mouth, unable to stop it. Jim chuckled behind her. "Someone should get to sleep." She rolled her hazel eyes, but knew he was right. "What time is it?" She mumbled. His head turned, his cheek rubbing against the back of her head, slightly squinting at the clock. "It's midnight." Her eyebrows raised as he finished, surprised at how fast the night went. "Really? You're not joking with me, it's actually midnight?" He confirmed her suspicions, by turning their bodies so that she could see the clock, before unable to.

They pulled apart slowly, Pam taking the pile of clothes on the bed and going into the bathroom to change while Jim headed for the dresser. She closed her eyes once she locked the door, and leaned against it. Jim in such close proximity made her lose brain cells or that's what it felt like. She always had to catch her breath with him around. His faint cologne didn't help either. He was just amazing, more than she thought. Releasing a breath, she started changing out of her outfit, while listening to the rain. It was even louder, beating against the glass like the sound of drums going. She changed into the garments that he lent to her. The pants were a bit big but the good thing was that there was an adjustable drawstring. It would be way too embarassing for her to handle if the sweatpants fell down on her while she was saying goodnight to him or something, much worse than earlier when she...She halted her thoughts, focusing on if she was in pjs now.

Pam washed her face, removing the small amount of makeup that was still on her features. It didn't take long to take off, she had only put some blush, a little lip gloss...She ran a hand through her hair after she combed it, then opened the door. She was met with a few glimpses of his back muscles working nicely before they were covered by a plain white tee. She resisted her urge to tell him to pull his shirt back up so she could look some more, beginning to wonder what his chest looked like.

Jim turned, giving her a smile and gesturing toward the bed. "It's all set. I just wanted to change quick…I'll see you in the morning." Her head tilted slightly, noticing him fidgety. "Jim?" His green eyes instantly focused on her, awaiting what she was going to say. "Goodnight, and um, thank you for this. You didn't have to." He smiled, loosening the air between them, coming closer to her form. His lips pressed against her own gently, neither wanting to separate but knowing they should. He pulled up the top of the Scranton shirt she was wearing, finding that it was hanging off her left shoulder. She couldn't help but smile cutely, he was such a sweetheart.

"Goodnight." He whispered, his breath barely touching her forehead. Her forehead hummed with the recent warmth. She brought her finger back and forth, gesturing him to her. He stepped closer as she edged his shoulders forward and down, bringing him into a hug. Pam kissed the side of his cheek affectionately then rested her head on his shoulder. Jim smiled bright, so happy to have her more in his life. He rested his head against hers for moments longer, before eventually breaking away from her and the flowery perfume that clung to her skin, making her smell great. He walked to the door, opening it half-way, leaning against the doorframe as he watched her get into bed, making sure she was comfy. He was about to leave when her voice halted him.

"I really appreciate this Jim."

"It's no problem...Just uh, feel free to come get me if you need anything, all right?" She nodded after his words. He smiled at her once more, closing the door quietly, secretly wanting to hold her while she slept. She watched the door for a while before succumbing to sleep, hoping to rest well, as rain continued to bang against the window.

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