The Road to Normalcy
I wake up shaking and
sweating.
Again.
It takes me a minute to
realize where I am. I'm on Donna's
couch. I start to call her name but then
glance at the clock on the VCR. It's 4
in the morning. As much as I want her to
come out and make me feel better as only she can I don't want to wake her up.
So I sit up and run my
hands over my eyes while trying to calm down.
Wait...I'm on Donna's
couch. Did I get drunk and wander over
here?
No, I remember now. After CJ broke the news to Billy's wife I had
a little drama of my own. I realized the scene playing out in CJ's office must
have been eerily similar to a certain hospital waiting room scene in the not so
distant past.
My brain decided to treat
me to a series of all too vivid memories. Flashing lights, sirens, screams, the
bitter taste of adrenaline and the warm, sticky flow of blood.
I remember thinking that
I really needed to get my breathing under control before I ended up on the
floor.
Which is pretty much how
I feel at the moment.
By the way, I did end up
hyperventilating and passing out in my office. Luckily Donna heard me and was
there before a whole slew of agents came investigating. She got me up and got me an ice pack for my
head. Which I managed to hit on
something as I crumbled to the floor.
Anyway.
"Josh." I hear
Donna calling from her room. "You
ok?"
"I've been
better." I say quietly.
She sticks her head
around the corner and gets a good look at me.
I guess I look pretty bad. She just
gives me a sad smile and goes into the bathroom. She comes back with a cool cloth and sits
next to me. I'm curled up in the corner
of the couch, sitting sideways, shivering. Donna reaches over and pulls the
quilt up around me. She wipes my face
and brushes back my hair.
It's nice, normal, just
like old times. Well, the nightmare part
isn't nice but you know what I mean.
We're back to us. Or at least I
think we are finally headed in the right direction.
"You want to try and
drink something?" she asks as she points to the can of ginger ale on the
coffee table.
Oh, did I forget to
mention the cookie-tossing incident. It
was memorable. As if throwing up in
front of Donna wasn't bad enough the whole context in which it happened, well,
let's just say I don't think she'll let me forget it anytime soon.
Donna had been on her way
back to my office with the ice pack when my cell phone rang. As I glanced at the readout my stomach
revolted. I simultaneously tossed the phone to Donna and my cookies into the
trashcan.
One guess who was on the
phone.
Yeah, Amy.
Donna tried to get rid of
her quickly so she could hold my head, rub my back and do all the other things
she does to make me feel better. But
apparently Amy was giving her a hard time.
I didn't get the details nor do I really care to hear them.
In her defense, Donna did
manage not to laugh at me until I was finished puking and things were cleaned
up. Then she laughed so hard that tears
ran down her face.
"Josh, focus a
little, do you want some ginger ale?" I hear Donna ask and she taps me on
the shoulder to get my attention.
"Uh, oh, sorry. Yeah, I'll try a little."
She hands me the soda and
glances over towards the end of the couch where she put a bowl, just in case.
The soda goes down ok and
seems to be staying there.
"How's your
head?"
"Hurts."
"Advil?"
I nod as I take another
sip of soda.
She gets up and goes into
the kitchen, returning a minute later with 2 Advil and some crackers.
"You want to try
some crackers?" she asks as she hands me the pills.
"Not now."
"So, I think you'd
better call Amy in the morning."
"We'll see how I
feel."
"You could always
ask her to come to your place. Fuss over
you until you feel better."
The thought of Amy
fussing over me, holding my head while I puke, listening to me whine about how
my head hurts is enough to make me laugh, despite the pain in my chest from
throwing up.
"I don't see that
happening."
Donna chuckles in
agreement as she settles herself down on the end of the couch. She tosses a pillow onto her lap and pulls me
down by the shoulders, settling me with my head in her lap. She brushes back my hair and puts the cool
cloth on my forehead.
"And since she's not
here at the moment, I guess you're stuck with me." says Donna. Even in the dark I can tell she grinning.
"And you always know
how to make me feel better. Thank
you." I say, hoping to sound as sincere as I feel.
I guess I sounded sincere
cause Donna's reaching for the tissues.
"Don't cry."
"I'm sorry,
it's...been a bad day all around."
"What about the job
offer? Was that a bad thing?"
"I don't know."
"Are you going
to..."
"I haven't decided
yet."
"Well, just
remember, should you decide to leave you need to find me and assistant that's
at least as good as you and has the skills needed to make me feel better. Should the need arise."
"Keep dating Amy and
I'm sure that need will arise." mutters Donna.
I just raise my eyebrows.
"Sorry. I didn't think I actually said that
aloud." she giggles. "Josh, you know, if I take this job, it's not
like I'd be moving to like, Hawaii or anything. I wouldn't be leaving town."
"No, you'd be
leaving me."
"I'd be leaving the
White House."
"Same thing."
"No, it's really
not. Look, it's almost 4:30 in the morning. Why don't we talk later? You can buy me lunch."
"Sure."
"You know
what?"
"What?" I ask
as I close my eyes.
"This is nice, us
here, together, not fighting, just acting normal. Apart, of course, from the fact that you had
a nightmare."
"It's ok, it wasn't
a horrible one and you were here to make it all better." I whisper.
Donna suddenly stops
brushing back my hair. Oh no, I've gone
too far, said the wrong thing, again. She
pats my ribs to get me to sit up enough so she can slide off the couch.
"And right here is
where I want to be." she says softly as she kneels next to the couch,
takes my hand in hers and places our two hands over my heart.
She kisses my forehead
and walks down the hall without looking back.
Even though I am still as
confused as I have been for the past 6 weeks or so I feel better.
Things look like they are
headed down the road to normalcy.
Finally.
THE END
