One Quiet Day in June
Donna stood on Josh's doorstep having just come out of the mist of the June
morning. It was early but she could hear
the sounds of the stereo through the door.
The smooth sound of Norah Jones drifted out to the hallway. The CD was one of her favorites, she listened
to it often. So did Josh; it was one of
his favorite CDs to play when he brooded.
At just after 7 in the morning it's a little too early to brood. Josh's
choice of music for that particular morning wasn't surprising. This was why Donna was standing at his
doorstep early on that Sunday morning.
It wasn't just any Sunday morning; it was Father's Day.
With the horrible events that seem to always cloud the month of May behind
them Josh and Donna had spent the last two weeks in a whirlwind of
activity. The President regained power
with a quick scribble of his pen after Zoey was returned safely 48 hours after
she was taken. In those two days Glen
Walken had only managed to find his way around the West Wing and not much else,
much to everyone's relief. The first
family spent a few days in New Hampshire
while the rest of the White House hurried to push some bills through Congress
before the summer break. Josh hadn't
even realized that the holiday was upon them until someone made a big deal about
it being Toby's first Father's Day.
Then as the significance of the holiday sunk in Josh sunk into the dark and
brooding mood for which he was famous.
This was why Donna got up before the sun, stopped at the bakery and
Starbuck’s and was poised to ring the bell.
She pushed the buzzer once and Josh answered right away as if he had been
standing there waiting for her. He had a
feeling she would stop by sometime but hadn't expected her to be quite so
early. As a result he answered the door
wearing his favorite oversized blue pajamas and socks. With some gentle teasing about his attire
Donna handed him a cup of coffee before depositing the coffee cake on the
counter and slipping off her jacket.
After some gentle assurances that he was fine Donna dropped the subject of
his mental health and served breakfast.
They lingered over the Sunday paper and coffee before she hustled him
into the shower so they could go out and do something. The last thing Donna wanted to give him was
time to brood. Josh lingered in the
shower, something he only did when he was stiff and sore so without as much as
a second thought Donna knocked once on the bathroom door and went in to sit on
the counter. She had the crossword
puzzle with her and she yelled out the clues to Josh as he washed his
hair. They were about a third of the
way through the puzzle when the hot water was on the verge of running out. Josh held out his hand for the towel and pushed
the shower curtain back a minute later.
He shaved while Donna wandered around his apartment picking things
up. Josh had a tendency to leave things
wherever they fell. And as a result his
floor usually bore some resemblance to a minefield by the weekend.
As he was finishing up getting dressed the phone rang. He yelled for Donna to pick it up and ten
minutes later walked into the living room to catch Donna's side of the
conversation. It was obviously his mom
on the other end and that brought a smile to his face. He motioned for Donna not to rush off the
phone. He knew they had probably started
the phone call with a conversation about his health, physical and
otherwise. Knowing he had two people
looking out for him was comforting as he knew he didn't always recognize when
he was heading for trouble.
Donna worked on the puzzle while he talked to his mom. She told him tales from her retirement
village and he shared what was going on at work. It wasn't until 20 minutes later that his
mother steered the conversation towards the real reason she called. They reminisced about Josh's dad for a
while. His mom reminded him how proud
his father would be and how much he would have liked Donna. His mother never passed up a chance to nudge
him into taking the next step in his relationship with Donna. An idea that both excited and terrified
him. When he finally hung up the phone
Donna was right there with a hug and the box of tissues. But she didn't let him wallow very long.
It was a beautiful spring day, warm enough to leave the jackets behind but
cool enough to walk around and not sweat to death. They headed for the Mall, stopping to visit
Abraham Lincoln along the way. They were
heading for the Washington Monument
when they saw a couple ahead of them, pushing a double stroller. Even without the stroller it would be hard to
mistake the couple, a balding man and a striking, redheaded woman. Josh called to Toby and they stopped to wait
for Josh and Donna to catch up to them.
They made a fuss over the twins who were asleep in the stroller. The four chatted about nothing in particular
as they continued on to the monument.
Molly woke first, a loud demanding cry that conveyed her hunger. Andi picked her up and moved to sit on the
bench to feed her. Donna sat next to her
watching in awe as the infant went from screaming to content in 2 seconds
flat. Toby and Josh walked to the other
side of the monument to show Huck the view of the Capitol. Josh tried to look at the baby with just a
passing interest when Toby picked his son up up but something tugged at Josh's
heart. Toby noticed it but didn't say
anything. Instead he just kissed his son
and handed him to Josh. Holding an
infant was not something Josh was particularly well versed in but he turned out
to be a natural. Huck took to him
instantly, snuggling against Josh's neck, gurgling happily. Josh pointed out the sights to Huck, the
Capitol building, The White House, the Lincoln Memorial, the Smithsonian Castle
and the Jefferson Memorial. Toby
motioned that he was going to check on Andi and Molly. Josh was terrified for all of a few
seconds. Then he realized Huck was just
as content as he was. Walking back and
forth weaving in and out of the flag poles that circled the monument Josh kept
up a running commentary to the baby who seemed enthralled by the sound of his
voice.
Having kids of his own wasn't something Josh spent a lot of time
pondering. In the back of his mind he
always assumed he would have them. But
once in a while late at night, especially after a nightmare, he would think
about having a family of his own. The
child he saw in his mind's eye always had big blue eyes and a head full of
blond curls. The thought was comforting
and usually helped him to settle back down.
After they had completed a lap around the Washington Monument Toby caught
up to him. Josh waved him off as he
offered to take Huck from him. They
settled down on a bench. They talked
about a few things coming up at work and about the President's lecture on the
history of Father's Day. The
conversation turned serious and five minutes later, with tears threatening at
the corners of his eyes, Josh found himself agreeing to be Huck's godfather.
Huck was oblivious to the meaning of the conversation and was starting to
convey his growing hunger. Josh and Toby
walked back to Andi and Donna, trading Huck for Molly. Deciding it was lunchtime all around and that
finding a nice place to eat on Father's Day that could accompany the four
adults and a double stroller was out of the question, Josh and Toby put Molly
in the stroller and they headed for the nearest hot dog stand.
An hour later Josh kissed his godson goodbye and he and Donna continued on
their walk. Josh told her of Toby's
unexpected offer. He was genuinely
touched by the honor. His brooding had
given way to a more reflective mood, one that Donna was glad to see. He was still quiet as they walked along but
there was a renewed swagger in his step and a smile on his face. With his hand on the small of Donna's back
they headed back to his place.
Letting Josh lead the way for the rest of the day Donna hung back and
didn't push him to talk. They watched a
movie and made plans for dinner. Josh
wanted to order pizza but Donna managed to talk him into going out to a little
restaurant around the corner from his place.
It was one of their favorite places and the owner always took time to
come out and chat while they waited for their food. Josh had a couple of beers causing him to
slide back into brooding by the time they got back to his apartment.
Donna sat on the couch and watched him pace back and forth in front of the
window. He was starting to rub his back
and limp a little. She managed to
convince him to sit down and let her get him some Advil and rub his back for
him. They talked about the twins and
Toby's almost seamless transition into fatherhood. They talked of parenthood in the vaguest of
terms, careful to avoid the dreams that kept them going during dark
nights. Donna shared memories of her
father and grandfather in the hope of getting Josh to open up a little and talk
about his own dad.
Josh eventually did start to talk and once he did he found it hard to
stop. At first he told stories of his
early childhood, of Joanie and their brief time together. He moved onto stories of spending time with
his dad at his law office, of his decision to go to law school and of the
terrible day they found out Noah had cancer.
For the first time ever he told Donna in detail the events surrounding
the funeral and burial of his beloved father.
He recalled their last Father's Day together and their last phone
conversation. He told of the sadness he
felt at the fact that Donna never got a chance to really know his Dad. The two had meant for one brief afternoon
when the campaign had made a stop in Connecticut. Josh and Donna had had lunch with his parents
and Noah noticed instantly the gleam in his son's eye whenever Donna
spoke. He saw the connection between the
two of them long before anyone else.
Two hours had passed in the blink of an eye. Josh's voice was ragged from talking so Donna
made tea while he went to get changed.
She found him sitting on his bed ten minutes later. The room was dark, lit only by the
streetlight outside the window. Josh was
holding a picture of his father in his hand.
She watched silently from the doorway as Josh made no effort to hide the
tears that fell from his eyes and landed on the glass of the frame. Donna gave a small cough to alert him to her
presence and came in with a mug of tea. In the shadows she saw a grateful smile
cross his face as he reached for the tea.
He took a few sips to sooth his throat as Donna put the picture back in
its place on his nightstand. Propping
the pillows up against the headboard she kicked off her shoes and crawled to
the head of the bed. She opened her arms
in a wordless invitation. Josh swallowed
some more tea and put the mug down before accepting her offer and curling up in
her arms.
At the first choking sob she tightened her hold on him, whispering into his
hair and kissing his forehead. He relaxed in her embrace, letting her fuss over
him without hesitation. There was no
place in the world he felt safer than in Donna's arms. He drifted off with his head on her chest and
his arm wrapped around her waist. When
she heard his breathing even out and his gentle snoring start Donna carefully
slid out from underneath him and tucked him in.
She kissed him softly, letting her lips linger longer than she would had
he been awake. She cleaned up the couple
of dishes in the sink and wandered around Josh’s living room for a few
minutes. She glanced at the pictures on
the shelf. She picked up her favorite
one and ran her finger over it. It was a
photo of Josh and his Dad. Josh couldn't
have been more than 6 years old; they were at the beach and Josh was covered in
sand, a Mets hat on his head and a big smile on his face. He and Noah had matching dimpled grins and
big brown eyes. The photo was also one
of Josh's favorites. He kept a copy in
his backpack, along with a picture of Joanie.
She carefully set the photo on the bookshelf and grabbed her things.
Donna checked on Josh one last time, fussing with the blanket and brushing
back his hair. He moved a little in his sleep smiling from the image he saw in
his dreams.
It was the image of a family, the family of his future.
He saw himself, his beautiful blond wife and their adorable curly headed
son. He had his arm wrapped around his
wife's swollen belly, their son pressed up against his mother, whispering to
his unborn sibling. It was a familiar dream, one that would stay with him
through out the next day. He replayed it
in his mind as he watched Donna work just outside his office.
Late in the afternoon as his stamina was waning and the figures he was
trying to decipher swam before his eyes he looked up to see a rather frazzled
looking Toby in front of him holding a fussy Huck, a bottle and a pleading look
on his face. Without a second though
Josh took the baby and the bottle and sent Toby to his meeting on the
Hill. Twenty minutes later, after having
tracked down some files at the OEOB Donna returned to the West Wing and went to
see Josh. The sight before her as she
opened his office door brought a smile to her face and a tear to her eye. Her slightly arrogant, political pit-bull of
a boss was sitting with his feet on his desk and a sleepy Huck tucked into the
crook of his left arm while he held the file he was reading in his right
hand. Although a burp cloth was tossed
over his shoulder, a spot of baby drool was already spreading out over the
chest pocket of his dress shirt.
He looked up to find Donna watching them. Smiling shyly he motioned for her
to come in the room to share the wonder that was safely tucked in his arms.
THE END
