INTERIM LOVER, ryan howard.

002 ⋮ one temp, two temp, old temp, new temp

ㅤㅤㅤRachel ran her fingers across the bare desk. She could still recall shaking his hand on her first day at Dunder Mifflin— a hand that were surprisingly calloused for anyone in Supplier Relations, but it was warm and his shake was firm, like the perfect embrace.

Beyond that, their interactions were limited. Mostly smiles and nods whenever their paths crossed in the kitchen, but they never exchanged a full greeting. She found herself regretting to this day.

Though it had merely been six months ago, he had been wiped out of everyone's mind. She couldn't tell if they couldn't remember or if they didn't want to remember. She supposed it was the latter, considering they had someone to replace him now. What better way to forget the past than to rewrite it altogether, she thought.

One last memory of his kind blue eyes flashed in mind before she tried to forget Tom Peets. Rachel drew a long breath before placing the present on the desk that never belonged to anyone else but Ryan.

—

RYAN
I heard they might be closing this branch down. That's just the rumour going around. This is my first day. I don't really know.
Rachel? What about her? I like her. I'd really like to... y'know? Pretty girls are hard to come by in Scranton.

—

"Dwight Schrute, Assistant Regional Manager."

"Assistant to the Regional Manager," Michael corrected. "So, uh, Dwight tell him about the kung-fu and the car and everything."

Ryan had zoned out of the conversation, now noticing the response of the girl sitting opposite. When she raised her brow, seemingly impressed, he did too; when she scoffed, he shook his head in disbelief.

"I've got some photos." Dwight reached into his draw before sucking in a sharp breath. "Damn it, Jim!"

"Hold on, hold on. The judge is in session. What is the problem here?"

Dwight produced a familiar plate of yellow Jell-O from his draw, earning giggles from Pam and Rachel. "He put my stuff in Jell-O again!"

Ryan watched in horror as Dwight shoved his hand into the desert to grab the stapler. His eyes flicked up to meet Rachel's, which were full of amusement.

Jim, the obvious suspect with his cup of Jell-O, innocently replied, "How do you know it was me?"

"It's always you," Dwight seethed.

"Not this time," Rachel mumbled. The four men turned to her.

"Sweetheart, Jim is always pulling pranks on Dwight," Michael explained as if Rachel was a child. "So it must be him."

"Actually, this time it was just Rachel," Jim nodded.

"Aw, our Temp is growing up to be a naughty little girl," Michael laughed.

"Are you going to discipline her or not?" Dwight sighed.

"There we go, Dwight. Discipline, kinky!"

"Dwight, I'm sorry, because I have always been your biggest flan," Rachel smirked.

"You should've put her in custardy," Ryan added.

At this comment, Pam and Jim exchanged a glance.

—