Strength to Carry On
by AJ
Jed carried that letter around with him as he walked through the halls of the
West Wing. From time to time he would stop and read some of it.
"Hey. . .You probably realized I'm not here anymore. . .I had to get away.
I'm sorry I left so abruptly. I just needed to get away. I need to think.
I need to be alone. I hope you understand that." Jed read silently in his
head, impersonating his best Abbey voice as he did so.
Giving out a sigh, Jed continued on his walk. He didn't have any
destination. He just felt like walking.
One way or another, Jed found himself in the Oval Office. Guess that's just
the one place he was used to be in, when not in the residence. Entering the
room, he kept the lights off, there was enough coming in from the many
windows and doors.
Sitting down on his chair at his desk, he continued to read the letter in his
best Abbey voice. "I won't be gone for long. Just a day or two. I should
be back by Friday at the latest. I need to get my head on straight. And I
don't want to be snapping at you when I try to do so. I suppose that try is
the operative word there."
Jed got up from the chair and moved over to a window, staring out at the
green grass in front of him. "I need to figure out how I feel about me
having cancer. I think I know, but I'm not sure. That's why I've gone away.
I need to think. I need to think about life. About how the world works.
Why this has happened to me."
Getting enough of a sight of the green grass, Jed moved on to lay down on a
couch of his. "I know you keep saying that it's all going to work out. And
you say that not much will change between us, and what does change will be
for the better. I hope that's true. Don't worry about me, I'll be home
soon. I love you, Jed. I love you."
When Jed put the letter down, he thought about what it said. She needed to
be alone. She needed to think. He knew exactly where she went.
She went to their special place.
To the same place they always went if one of them was sad or happy or mad and
needed to be alone. She went to the cabin in Virginia where they spent their
first anniversary.
She needed to be alone. He needed to be with her.
TBC