Jim's heart stopped. His eyes locked with a pair of eyes he thought he would never see again. When he finally remembered to breath, he said one word.
"Pam."
Pam's eyes widened significantly. She took all of him in. His always small feet, his muscular chest, and then his light brownish-greenish eyes. He was perfect.
"Oh my god, Jim," Pam laughed and she threw her arms around him, savoring his sweet scent. Her heart swelled with happiness right then and there.
Jim's arms automatically found their way around Pam's waist. His breath came out in short gasps and he grinned. He squeezed her tighter, never wanting to let go. Pam's eyes filled with tears that threatened to fall. Jim let out a triumphant laugh. Pam let go and looked with watery eyes into Jim's eyes still amazed. Her awe quickly turned into awkwardness and she averted her eyes. He had had a kid. He was married. It didn't matter that she wasn't with Roy. He was with Karen. She surveyed Tom and noticed the resemblance between him and Karen. Tears welled up her eyes again, for a different reason. He was back. But he couldn't be with her.
Jim noticed her awkwardness and looked down also. She had a kid. With Roy. She was married to Roy. Oh god, she was married. Well, what did you expect Halpert? Someone as great as Pam is obviously still together with someone.
All the while, Tom and Charlotte looked at their parents as if they were mental.
"Is there something we're missing?" Charlotte asked, a bemused expression on her face.
Pam's eyes softened at her daughter's voice and motioned for them to come inside.
"We'll tell you about it when we get inside," Pam answered in a shaky voice. Her breath caught in her throat, she was trying to control herself. She blinked back tears and opened to door wider to let her daughter, old crush, and his son inside.
They were sitting on the squashy couches of the somewhat spacious home. Pam had gotten glasses of water for all of them. Tom was still looking at his dad with a weirded-out expression. Pam and Jim had just told them the entire story of where they used to work, how they knew each other, and other details. Every detail except one. That they were both avoiding. That they used to love each other. Jim had oddly noticed that they was no significant other roaming around the house. Charlotte was shocked and Tom was humming 'It's A Small World.'
"Tom, as lovely as that song may be and how fitting it is to this time and place, I would kindly like to demand that you please stop singing it," Jim was as patient as he could be with his son, who was singing Disney tunes. Jim had always hated that ride: It's A Small World. The dancing dolls dressed up as different people from different parts of the world creeped him out.
"So, you two know each other? From work? The same office my mom used to work at?" Tom asked, awestruck. When Pam heard the word mom, she felt like a puppeteer was tugging at her heartstrings.
"And the same office my dad used to work at?" Charlotte inquired, eyes wide. When Jim heard the word dad, he felt a pang of jealousy and dejection. Pam slowly nodded her head and turned to look at Jim, who was sitting next to her. He had been staring at her, and she caught his eyes boring into her. They both quickly looked away, blushing furiously. Tom cocked one eyebrow up at his dad's strange behavior and Charlotte looked at him and shrugged.
"Jim, may I talk to you in the other room for a second?" Pam asked, still not meeting his eyes. Jim nodded, then remembered that she wasn't looking at him and uttered a simple "Sure." He felt horrible that she wasn't looking at him. Was he that bad to look at? Was he being rude? He suddenly felt bad for almost letting himself in.
"Pam, I'm sorry for--" He started.
"Shh, shh," she whispered. Jim shuddered at her whisper, a chill ran down his spine that had nothing to do with the temperature of the room. The kids were still watching, the two parents, looking from them to each other.
Jim looked at Tom, nodding his head as if to say: 'I'll be gone for a while, so you two lovebirds behave.' Tom knew that look and smirked. Jim glanced pointedly at Tom again, wanting to make Tom believe that he meant it. Tom sighed and nodded his head in defeat.
Pam grabbed Jim's wrist, pulling him into the another room. An wave of electric shock was sent between them and they pulled apart, alarmed. Pam suddenly felt incredibly embarrassed that she had held his wrist and wrung her hands nervously.
Meanwhile...
Tom and Charlotte were looking at each other's eyes, not saying a word. Silence was the answer, and they both enjoyed each other's company. They both leaned in cautiously, scared of what the other might think or do. Tom's lips met Charlotte's. Tom opened his eyes briefly to see if either of his parents were in the same room, or spying on him. Relief flooded him when he didn't see either of them. Charlotte wrapped her arms around Tom's neck, playing with his hair. Neither of them had any idea what was going on in the next room.
Pam had sat Jim down on a wooden chair, and she was pacing. She was nervous, but she didn't know why. Gosh, I haven't seen him in years and all I can do is pace.
Jim was watching Pam with amusement. He had missed her more than he had missed anything in his entire life. More than he had missed his puppy that ran away when he was four. More than he had missed his best friend that moved in 6th grade. More than he had missed anything at all. He stared at her, entranced. Only then did Pam realize he was, in a sense, checking her out.
Her cheeks flushed a deep scarlet. "Jim," she said, embarrassed again. "Please stop that." Jim averted his eyes, feeling guilty. His eyes wandered to her again.
"What are you doing?" he asked pleasantly, a trace of a smile playing on his lips. Pam closed her eyes for a moment, repeating his words over and over in her head, making a memory. She had longed to hear that voice forever and if this was the last time she would see him for a long time, then she had to remember it.
Jim stood up, bravely and put his hand on her elbow, uncrossing her arms from her chest. He ignored to electricity that coursed through them both. He had decided to ask the question that was burning through his skull since the very second he had stepped into her house.
"Jim, I don't--"
"Are you with someone right now? Are you married?" Jim cut off, his voice deep with curiosity.
Pam was taken aback. "What?" she asked, shaking her head. "Um, no, neither, but what--"
"Good, because otherwise, I wouldn't be doing this." Jim murmured. He forcefully embraced Pam, kissing her with all the passion he had. Pam stood there, shell shocked until she gave in gratefully. They both kept their eyes closed, waiting for reality to wake them up. This kiss was intense, full of the fire they had both held in for too long. Pam wrapped her arms around Jim's neck, kissing him with every ounce of enthusiasm she had. Sparks flew as Jim snaked his arms around her petite waist and lifted her effortlessly into the air. When they couldn't ignore the need for oxygen any longer, they broke apart, Jim grinning goofily, foreheads together. Pam suddenly untangeled her arms from Jim's warm embrace. She backed away, fear written on every line of her face.
"Jim, I c-can't do this," she sobbed and ran from the room, leaving Jim standing in an empty room with an equally empty heart.
AN: I hoped you liked this chapter, because I had a blast writing the kiss!
