Love Me [Jim Halpert]

Twenty-Three

THE MERGER

It was a brisk Monday morning in the office, the air filled with the buzz of excitement as the staff awaited the upcoming merger. Pam sat at her desk, diligently typing up an important email as Toby approached her.

"Hey," Pam greeted, looking up from her screen.

"Hey," Toby's face lit up with a smile.

"How'd the run go?"

"Ah, pretty good. I finished," Toby replied, proud of himself.

"That's great,"

"Thanks."

Dwight looked over from the printer, "Why is that great?" He scoffed.

Pam glanced over at Dwight, then back to Toby, "Because he accomplished something."

"What was your mile time?" Dwight inquired.

"About seven," Toby replied, still feeling good about his achievement.

Dwight scoffed as he narrowed his gaze, "I could beat that on a skateboard."

"Well, that has wheels."

Dwight shrugged, "Yeah, well, my feet don't, and I could still crush that time."

"Really?" Pam raised an eyebrow in amusement.

~

"I am fast. To give you a reference point, I'm somewhere between a snake and a mongoose." Dwight paused in his explanation. "And a panther." He added.

~

Outside, Dwight stretched his arms, "Man, what is taking Toby so long?" He muttered before running in place.

"Oh, I'll just time him later,"

"And you'll compare the times?"

"Yeah," Pam nodded, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Are you ready?"

"No--"

"Set, go!" Pam declared, starting the stopwatch.

"I can't--" Dwight protested before rushing off around the building as Pam stopped her stopwatch.

"Am I being mean to Dwight?" Pam thought to herself as her face crinkled in amusement. "I don't know. I did just make him run around the building, and I have no intention of timing him. This isn't even a stopwatch; it's a digital thermometer," She chuckled. "He does make my life harder sometimes, and on purpose. Like when he tried to put meters on the bathroom stalls as a way of bringing in more money for the company," She explained as Dwight boomed his way down the parking lot. "Hey! Three more laps to go! You gotta pick it up if you're gonna beat Toby!" She called out as Dwight passed her. "Well, I should probably get back to work," She mumbled, heading back inside.