Chapter 5
It was only half way through the work day, and yet Holly found herself continuously looking at the clock, wishing it would go faster. She could only listen to Kelly on the phone for so long. And there was nothing to distract her - all she could do was focus on the text message Jan had sent her that morning and continue to think of a reply that was cool, calculated, and calm. But it had been hours - it was almost two o’clock and now it wouldn’t even make sense to text her back, right?
Right?
“Mmm…Holly Flax!” The sound of her name whips her out of her own thoughts, and that’s when she realized she was still in the conference room, having to sit through one of Michael’s meetings. He hovered over her, with a curious expression, turning towards the rest of the office with amusement. “Texting about ways we can help boost our online presence, I hope?” He asked, adding, “Would you care to share with the whole class?” He chuckled.
Holly hesitated, unsure of what to say - she knew that was some kind of HR violation.
“She’s texting Jan, Michael.” Kevin nods his head from the back of the room, as if in solidarity.
“What? No. Uh -...” Michael trails off, looking at Holly with confusion. “H-olly…?”
“You don’t even know that. How would you know that?” Angela asked from her seat beside Phyllis, arms crossed with a distasteful look on her face.
“Because,” Kevin began, “she left it on her desk when she went downstairs. When I picked it up, wondering if it was her phone, she was texting Jan.” Holly’s cheeks must have been bright red; at least that was the way it felt.
“You guys are friends?” Phyllis asked quietly, unsure what to make of the situation.
“So what?” Holly asked defensively, wishing she could sink further into her seat. "Why were you looking at my phone?"
"I didn't know it was your phone."
"No way. They’re not friends. You can’t be friends with your crushes ex.” Kelly interjected matter of factly. This caused more stir, and drew Michael’s attention even closer to Holly.
“But you can be friends with your crush.” Oscar offers.
“Your what?” He asks over the chatter, though it seems to be lost among the employees.
“I don’t have a crush on Michael!” Holly blurts out over everybody else, and the room falls silent. Michael looks down at her with a blank expression, looking as if he was holding his breath. He gave a nervous chuckle.
“I, uh…ha.” He shook his head, before heading for the door. “Okay.” He closed the door behind him and went into his office, shutting the door and closing the blinds.
Dwight shook his head with a condescending expression.
Everybody sits in the silence for a moment, trying not to look at Holly. Kevin is the first to move, heading for the door. He turned to Holly, “You,” he pretended to shiver, “Ice. Cold.” Eventually everybody else continued to filter out until it was just Holly and Pam. Jim had let himself inside Michael’s office to try and talk him off the ledge.
“I don’t think you did anything wrong.” Pam offered quietly from her spot a few seats away. Holly looked over in her direction, feeling like an awful person.
“Really?” She asked hopefully, turning her body in Pam’s direction. “Because everyone else acted like I just killed the office puppy.”
Pam shrugged, “You can’t help your feelings. Trust me. I’ve been there.” They’re quiet for a moment, and Holly looks down at the phone in her hands. “Were you texting Jan?” Pam asked out of curiosity, trying not to have any judgement in her tone. “Not that it matters,” she added quickly, shaking her head.
“Yeah. I think she’s nice.” Holly offered quietly, chewing on the inside of her cheek.
“Okay. That’s okay.” Pam nodded, her voice calm and soothing. Jan certainly wasn’t her first choice when it came to company, but she wasn’t going to yuck someone’s yum. At least not to their face. “Don’t worry about Michael,” she continued, “he always builds these relationships in his head, and ends up hurting his own feelings.” It wasn’t nice, but it was true.
“Thanks, Pam.” Holly smiled, standing up and making her way back to her desk. As soon as she sat down, her phone buzzed with another text message alert - from Jan. Holly’s heart did a small flip.
Bad gay? :(
She had waited too long to reply, and Jan thought she was blowing her off. Great.
No, no. Sorry. Haha. Busy work day. Do you want to get a bite to eat tonight? My treat.
Maybe it was her way of making up for ignoring her all day, or maybe she was just feeling bold - but her conversation with Pam helped her feel better and may have even given her a little confidence.
Does tomorrow work?
Yes, it worked. And that’s when it kind of dawned on her that she had asked Jan out on a date; offering to pay and everything.
Yes. Pick you up around 7.
And she was okay with that.