First Date (Episode 1) by Jillyree
Rating: T (steamy situations); Spoilers: None; Disclaimer: I own nothing other than the computer this story was typed on and the situation in my head. The characters, names and everything Office related belongs to NBC et al. I am but a fan, and imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right?
I could hear my shoes clicking on the hardwood floor as I paced back and forth in my apartment, waiting for his knock on my door. I’d pace, stop and pick imaginary lint off my pants, pace some more, fuss with my hair, and pace. Every time I heard footsteps in the hall I’d stop and listen, trying to pick out the sound of his step; I didn’t want him to know I was wearing out my living room floor fretting about the evening.
My heart leapt when he finally knocked, and I had to force myself to walk slowly and calmly to the door, repeating to myself, ‘be cool, be cool, calm down. Just because we’re calling it a date doesn’t make it any different than all the lunches we’ve eaten together before. It’s Jim, not a stranger.’ It was working. I was feeling serene and comfortable. That was, until I opened the door.
He stood in the doorway, an odd little smile I didn’t recognize on his face. Maybe he was nervous, too. He was wearing neatly pressed and tailored khakis, a white dress shirt, and dress shoes. If he’d been wearing a tie, he would have looked just like he was going to work. Fortunately, he wasn’t. He was so lovely standing there that I couldn’t think to invite him in for a minute, and he eventually walked through the door on his own.
Before I could open my mouth to say anything, he softly spoke. “Hi, Beesly…these are for you,” then held out a simple bouquet of white daisies wrapped and tied with a blue gingham ribbon.
“I heard you say once that you liked daisies,” he mumbled, with a little boy look on his face. I was so surprised as I took them from him—I certainly didn’t expect him to be bringing me flowers.
“Thank you. No one has brought me flowers in a long, long time. You didn’t need to do this.”
“Well, they’re just daisies. It’s no big deal.”
“It’s a big deal to me - they’re special. Besides, I’d rather have a bunch of daisies than a whole roomful of roses. I just can’t believe you remembered that I like them. I couldn’t have mentioned it more than once.”
I had embarrassed him by going on like that, and his face reddened a little. “Well, you said something about it on Valentines Day…once.”
I didn’t realize he was so observant, as that had been almost 2 years ago, and it made me realize all the more how badly I must have hurt him on Casino Night. Trying to lighten the mood as I looked for a vase to put the flowers in water, I teased. “Not a lot of men I know remember things like that. At least, not the ones who date women.”
“Well, I did.” he said, a smile crossing his perfect lips.
“And I’m impressed,” I answered as I put the vase on the kitchen table. “So, would you like a drink, or are you ready to go?”
He seemed to think for a moment, and then answered, “No, let’s just go. I made reservations at Fellini’s over on West Charleston. We need to be there by eight.”
At the mention of Italian food, I was suddenly starving. Maybe I’d make it through the evening after all. Besides, I was afraid that if we had drinks and got comfortable in my apartment I’d never want to leave. “Oh, that’s great. Let me grab my jacket.”
He took the jacket and walked behind me to ease the jacket up my arms, and when his fingers grazed the skin at the back of my neck, under my hair, I lost my breath for just a moment. He lightly rested his hands on my shoulders before whispering, “Ready?” and opening the front door. As we turned into the stairwell, he put his hand on my lower back and left it there down the steps. Just before he pushed open the exterior door, he paused and turned to face me. “Before we go, I just need to tell you one thing.”
Oh, no. He looked so serious, I was afraid to hear it, but just said, “Okay.”
“I need you to know that I am really, seriously nervous.”
We both laughed after I rolled my eyes. “Oh, thank God, so am I!” We continued outside and across the street to his car, a little more relaxed after confessing our nerves. Although, his hand still burned through my clothes and onto the small of my back.
About five feet from the car, he spoke again. “There’s one more thing I need to make sure you know. Whatever is going to happen between us, we don’t have to figure it out tonight. So let’s both just take a deep breath and relax, okay?”
He hit me with his dazzling grin, and I responded with a nod and by dramatically inhaling through my nose, thinking to myself, we’re going to be fine. When we reached the passenger side door, we laughed again, as we both reached for the handle at the same time.
“Jim, really, you don’t have to open my car door. I’m quite capable of that.”
“I know that. But hey, newsflash, this is a date right? And, you’re a lady.” He pulled the door open as I stepped aside, laughing. “Get in the car, would you?”
“Okay, you win.”
I watched as he rounded the front of the car, pulled his door open and climbed into the driver's seat. Looking straight ahead, he half mumbled under his breath. "Okay, okay. This is now officially a real date.” I wasn’t sure who exactly he was trying to convince, so I just sat quietly as he pulled into traffic. The silence was getting awkward, so I waited until we pulled up at the next stoplight and half-turned to face him.
“So, this is a date, right?”
He nodded and chuckled. “Yes. Yes, it is.”
I tried to stop myself, but couldn’t. I reached over and grazed his hand. He didn’t pull away. It felt so good to have permission to touch him after so many months of wanting to. I caught him smile slightly to himself when he covered my hand with his, softly stroking the skin on the back of my hand with his thumb. After listening to him chuckling to himself for a minute, I couldn’t stand it anymore. “Just what is so funny?”
“Not so much funny as odd, I guess.” He caught my eye and squeezed my hand. “I just can’t believe how good something so simple can feel.”
Continue reading - First Date (Episode 2) on Jim and Pam Fan Fiction
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