Spoilers: Up through "Bad Moon Rising"

Archive: Let me know where and please give me credit.

Summary: Something is up in the White House, but Josh and Donna aren't sure what it is. Meanwhile, they spend a weekend together and get more comfortable in their relationship.

Note: Donna's roommate's name is totally ripped off from Pix' "Crash Into Me" series.

I guess this is becoming a post-ep series of sorts, but I have no idea where it's going, partly because I don't know what's going to play out in the next few episodes, so…

Previous stories are:

"Something In the Air"

By Mary

Donna went into work on Friday with more energy than she'd had in a long time. She wondered if it was a direct result of getting a few things off her chest--that, and a good night's sleep; a good night's sleep after which she awoke to find Josh watching her with that look on his face–the unguarded, totally exposed one she'd seen the night before–and his sleepy morning grin.

Yes, she had begun to catalog Josh's grins. She loves them all, so she doesn't have a particular favorite, but she's added a few to the catalog since their relationship changed a month or so ago. Previously, there'd been the smug grin, the goofy grin, the evil grin, and the "I just kicked some Republican ass" grin. Recently, she'd added the silly grin, the morning grin, the "I love you" grin, and the post-coital grin (which is a combination of the smug grin and the silly grin with a healthy dose of the "I love you" grin mixed in). If forced to choose, she thought she'd pick the last one as her favorite.

The last 24 hours had been quite a roller coaster for Josh and Donna's relationship, but they made it through the ride. They rumbled down the tracks into their first major disagreement as a couple when the flowers arrived yesterday afternoon, struggled back up as they worked on the speech and reached a comfortable spot after Donna explained to Josh why the flowers had upset her. Donna pushed things back down the hill when she fell into the self-doubt pit and questioned Josh about why he loved her, only to have him join her there by asking her to tell him about how she dealt with the shooting, his surgery and putting up with him during his recovery.

It was an evening of tears and painful memories for both of them, which lead to relief and realization: relief that they finally talked about it (Rosslyn) and realization that this thing between them is more than they had ever hoped for.

Seeing the flowers again when she arrived at her desk served to lighten Donna's mood further. They were still beautiful and she paused to inhale a deep breath of their spring-fresh scent before she got into her day. When she turned around, Josh was standing in the doorway of his office watching her. He flashed her the "I love you" grin briefly before disappearing into his office.

For the White House, it was a fairly calm Friday. There were no crisis' to handle, nothing unexpected that was out of the ordinary. But there was something odd going on. There was a tension in the air that she couldn't quite describe. Like something big had happened that few people knew about. Or that something big was about to happen and somewhere, like a watch spring, was winding itself taught and waiting to spring out.

Josh didn't seem to notice it, so she decided not to say anything to him. She didn't want to set him off on something that might be nothing.

Another reason it was quiet was that CJ was still out of town and Toby hadn't come in that day. If she hadn't known that CJ was out of town, Donna might have wondered if they were together. But Toby had been with them in the Roosevelt Room late last night and something hadn't seemed right. It wasn't just normal grumpy Toby. There was something else–something behind his eyes. And now he wasn't here. Strange.

Of course, all of these things added up to meaning that they actually left the building at a reasonable hour Friday night, so she didn't want to complain. It wasn't even fully dark yet when they walked out to their cars.

When Josh and Donna started seeing each other, they promised that they would spend as much of the weekend together as possible. Their weekends didn't always start on Fridays, but Josh said that this one was going to. He packed up some low priority work that had been waiting to be done and put it in his backpack. He had decided that they wouldn't go to the office on Saturday. Instead, they could knock some of this work out over the weekend, but on their own time schedule and in the comfort of his home office. He even told her she could wear her fuzzy bunny slippers while they worked if she wanted to.

When they got to their cars, Josh took her briefcase and his backpack and slung them into the passenger seat of his car. Closing the door, he turned and took her in his arms.

"Don't be long."

"I won't," she smiled back at him. "I'll grab some things, check my mail and be right over, okay?"

"Do you want to go out to dinner tonight?" he asked.

She thought for a second. "Nah, let's just stay in and relax. Maybe we can go out tomorrow."

"Chinese, Italian, Pizza, or Deli?" he asked, rattling off their favorite carry-out/delivery options.

"Umm…the chef salad from the deli sounds good."

"Large or small? How hungry are you?" he mentally noted her order.

"Large. I think I'll need the energy for the weekend," she teased.

And the smug grin has entered the conversation.

"Large it is. I'll stop on my way home."

"I won't be long," she said, leaning in to kiss his lips softly.

And there was the "I love you grin."

**********

Saturday dawned a beautiful spring day. Donna awoke to hear the sweet sound of birds chirping. Sensing no movement from the body against hers, she slowly lifted her head to look at something that she doesn't see often and others wonder if it ever happens: Josh in recharge mode.

He was breathing rhythmically, indicating that he was still sleeping soundly. He had one hand covering hers hand on his chest and the other loosely against her back. His face was completely relaxed, and his hair made a wild reddish-brown halo against the pillow behind it. She wanted desperately to reach out and touch his calm, unworried face, kiss his slack lips and un-furrowed brow, and smooth back some of that crazy hair of his, but she didn't want to disturb the sleeping giant just yet. It was her turn to watch him.

So she watched him sleep as she continued to wake up, enjoying the sight of the morning sun straining against the blinds of the east window, listening to the birds singing, along with the other normal sounds of morning in Josh's neighborhood.

Looking back at his face, she was suddenly reminded how happy and full her heart is. They were meant to be together. She had suspected it from the start, but now that they had confirmed it, she couldn't help but smile when she thought about him: her Joshua, her love, her lover.

He must have felt her looking at him because he shifted a little and opened his eyes. Seeing her staring at him, his face opened into the sleepy morning grin. Neither of them said anything at first. Then she pulled herself up from where she had been resting her chin on his chest and brushed a soft kiss across his lips.

"Good Morning, Sleeping Beauty," she said softly.

"Now if I'm Sleeping Beauty, who does that make you?" he asked playfully, wrapping his arms around her.

"That makes me 'Donnatella, the Magnificent.' Can you work with that?"

"Yeah, I think I can."

"So," she asked, "are we working today or tomorrow? It looks like a beautiful day, Josh. You never know what might happen tomorrow. It's spring–it could rain or be cooler, or–"

He cut her off with his lips. "I think there's a vote on the…bed. All those in favor of putting off work until tomorrow, say 'aye'."

"Aye…I love you." She kissed him again before throwing back the covers and hopping out of bed. "Come on, Josh! Let's not waste any more of today. Let's get outside and enjoy it."

"Aye-yah-yie," he smiled to himself, following her out of bed.

**********

They showered, dressed and walked to a corner bakery several blocks away for bagels and coffee. They were simply enjoying their time together and breathing in the fresh spring air.

After spending an hour or so sitting under an umbrella table on the sidewalk, they bought some more bagels for the next morning and walked back to Josh's place. Donna still wanted to do something, so they decided they would head for the mall and maybe take in a museum visit. Or maybe just wander on the mall, enjoying the day. It was a great place to people watch.

Once at the mall, they opted not to go into any of the museums–the day was too beautiful. Instead, they wandered around and enjoyed the beauty of the day and just being with each other. Josh bought Donna an ice cream cone from a vendor and shared a few licks off it.

They paused to sit on a bench, just watching the day go by. As they sat there, Josh realized how different his relationship with Donna was from any other relationship he's ever had. In past pairings, everything had been about who the other person was, what "in" they provided, where you went, who you saw, who saw you, etc. With Donna, everything was different. All he cared about was being with her. He didn't care where they went, who they saw, or what they did.

He remembered when he was dating Mandy how they never just went out to dinner; it was always some fundraiser or some dinner honoring somebody or something. It was always a "thing"–never just them. Of course, he was in his element. He would mingle and talk to people, make contacts, meet people he needed to know, but he never had fun–never connected with his partner. Never just did something because it sounded like an enjoyable thing to do–like he and Donna were doing right now. Sitting along the mall on a bench, watching people and sharing an ice cream cone. He concluded that he could watch paint dry on a wall with Donna and be perfectly content just to be with her.

After coming to this realization, he looked at Donna and their relationship in a new light. They were together. It is a partnership–not a deal. It is a relationship–not a way to make connections. It is love–not a fling.

He took her hand in his and she turned to look at him. The sun was low in the sky and the mall had fewer people than had earlier been there. The breeze blew some hair across her face and he reached out to push it behind her ear. He let his hand cup her cheek and she leaned into it, closing her eyes.

"Let's go get some dinner."

That night, they went to a small Italian restaurant. It only had about 10 tables and was an out-of-the-way place that Josh had stumbled across at one time. He'd always wanted to take a special woman there, but had never found the person he thought was special enough to take to such an intimate setting. Donna was that person.

They enjoyed a leisurely dinner, drank some excellent wine, shared tiramisu for desert, and then went back to Josh's place. Their hunger sated, they wrapped themselves in each other and made love at the same pace; slowly, passionately, and tenderly.

**********

Sunday morning found them sitting on the couch in Josh's living room. Donna's legs were across Josh's lap as they passed sections of the Post back and forth, reading stories, and pointing out things to each other. Nearby were their coffee cups and the remnants of the bagels they'd picked up yesterday. The television was tuned to CNN with the volume low enough to not disturb them, but loud enough that they could listen to it in the background.

There was a story about the Mexican economy and the possibility of it failing in the very near future. Josh ran his hands through his hair, figuring that if that did happen, he'd be a busy guy, taking meetings, and trying to find the money to bail them out. Donna had some questions about it, but he convinced her not to worry about it until it actually happened. In reality, it was because he didn't want to think about it until he had to.

Later in the day, they settled down in Josh's spare bedroom, which doubled as his home office. They pulled out the files Josh had brought home Friday night and bashed through them. Donna typed up notes as they discussed the various topics. She would turn the notes into an information memo while Josh read the next folder. Then while he proofed her work, she would read the folder he'd just finished. If there were no major changes for the previous report, they started the process again.

By 6:00 p.m., they had cleaned out this portion of Josh's in box. They both felt that they had accomplished something. Instead of going out to dinner, they decided to cook themselves. Since Donna had been spending time there, Josh's kitchen had gotten much more use than it had in the 3 years he'd previously lived there.

After they ate, they watched an old romantic comedy with Doris Day and Rock Hudson, laughing at the silly way that they danced around each other when it was obvious that they were falling for each other. At one point, Josh exclaimed, " What? Is he an idiot? Why is he treating her that way? Can't he tell that he's crazy about her?"

Donna put her hand on his shoulder and simply said, "Josh?"

He turned his head and saw the grin on her face. "Oh. Yeah. Point taken."

After the movie, they watched the 11 o'clock news. Donna finally brought up the tension that had been evident around the White House on Friday. They didn't know what it was and it troubled both of them, but they still didn't have the answers to the questions they both had in their minds. Instead of worrying about it any longer, they decided to get a good night's rest. Somehow they both knew that Monday was going to be a long day and possibly the beginning to a long week.

**********

Monday morning dawned bright and early. There was still something in the air around the White House–an unrest that was different than the normal everyday tension that permeated the building.

Of course, there were things to deal with. The Mexican economy did crash. Their market opened 20 percent off the Friday close. Josh had a meeting to discuss a possible bailout and Donna was concerned about it. The country had 30 billion dollars in foreign loans due this week and they didn't have 30 billion dollars.

Toby was on a tear over the leak about school vouchers. He ordered CJ to find the leak-- like that was going to happen with him hopping around the west wing screaming at anybody and everybody.

Donna was waiting for Josh in his office when he came out of the meeting. Actually, she about scared him half to death when he found her in his office. He wasn't expecting her to be there and when he turned around and she was right there, it startled him. She wanted to talk to him about the Mexico bailout, but he didn't have time to debate her about the pros and cons. She decided to find another way to let him know how she felt about it.

When he came out of his office a while later and asked if the group was done in the Roosevelt room, she hit him with it. She told him that a man–a hard-working man with several children and a working wife--had called to thank him for sending his money to Mexico. She knew that this was seeding the banter, but with the odd feeling in the air, it was nice to have something normal going on.

Josh could tell what she was doing and didn't mind the banter opening either. He still didn't know what was going on–what was causing the tension in the air, so he welcomed the sense of normalcy and comfort he found in their bantering.

Josh gave her a list of reasons why this generic worker should want the US to help out Mexico. Donna still didn't buy it. She told Josh that she thought it was time for some tough love. She didn't think that Mexico was going to fix their problems as long as they knew that the US was going to bail them out every time it happened.

Josh decided to have some fun with the "tough love" comment. Lowering his voice, he said, "Well, not right here in front of everybody, Donna but if you want to run home and get your equipment..." The grin he was displaying now was based on the "I love you" grin, but had a bit of a leer to it.

Matching his voice, Donna said, "Go away from me," as she turned back toward her desk.

He commented on her story as he walked back toward his office. "The telemarketing was a nice detail but you should've said, 'scrubbed floors.'"

"I thought it'd be too much," Donna conceded.

Over his shoulder, Josh said, "Yeah, probably."

A few minutes later, Josh's head popped out of his office, peering to either side of his doorway like a spy in a bad movie. Stepping quickly out to the bullpen, Donna and Zach were the first two people he saw.

"Donna. Zach. Come into my office for a minute please." His voice was lower than normal and he had that evil grin on his face that made Donna wonder what he was up to.

Once they were both inside and the door closed, he clapped his hands together and said; "I think we need to have a little fun with CJ today. She's interviewing everybody trying to determine who might have leaked the voucher quote to Terry Cashin. First of all, neither of you did it, right?"

Donna exclaimed, "Josh!"

Zach looked slightly confused and said, "No way, Josh."

"Okay, good. So, lets have some fun with CJ. Do you think you guys can bluff her and get her thinking that you know something or that you did it? You need to get her believing you, then throw in something like…that you also know where Jimmy Hoffa's body is or…"

"The Lindbergh baby," Donna added.

"You know who framed Roger Rabbit!" Josh threw out.

"We could suggest a good way to tell if somebody is a witch since she's on a witch hunt," Zach offered.

"How about Whittaker Chambers and the secret pumpkin? Do you think that's going too far?" Donna asked.

Josh stroked his chin before saying, "Well, she'd know the reference, but I'd hold that out for a last resort."

Donna looked at Zach and said, "Okay, whoever gets called first, brief the other so we don't duplicate shows…"

"…And if I come up with anything else, I'll let you know. You too, Josh," Zach continued as he and Donna headed back to their desks.

"Let me know how it goes," Josh called after them as they left his office throwing ideas at each other.

**********

Sometime later, Donna had her opportunity to get CJ. Carol called to let her know it was her turn to be grilled.

CJ asked, "And Josh was in the Roosevelt Room meeting last Thursday, right?"

Donna nervously answered, "Yes."

"And do you recall him talking to you about what went on?" CJ continued.

Looking down at her hands, Donna said, "I don't know. He might have. I don't know."

"It's important," CJ said earnestly.

"I'll try and remember."

"'Cause somebody might've overheard you talking to him," CJ said, trying to make Donna realize that it might have gotten out by accident.

"Yeah, there's so much to remember," Donna said, sighing heavily.

Concerned, CJ asked, "Are you okay?"

"I'm just... I'll be fine."

"And,...and you yourself didn't talk to anybody, did you? Donna?"

"C.J., I can't..." Donna's voice broke a little.

"What?" CJ leaned forward, eyes wide.

"I can't lie like this anymore," Donna declared.

"Are you saying it was you?" CJ couldn't believe that it Donna would have leaked something to a reporter.

Shaking her head, Donna said, "I feel horrible. I should've said something before but I was afraid of what you'd..."

"No, it's okay." CJ tried to comfort her friend as her mind reeled. How was she going to tell Toby about this? He'd lose it and want to fire Donna. Then Toby and Josh would get into it. It could get really ugly before it was over.

"No, Let me get this off my chest. It was me. I called Terry Cashin," Donna confessed.

Incredulously, CJ asked, "Why?"

Waving her hand, Donna said, "I don't know. Why does anybody do anything?"

CJ couldn't believe what she was hearing. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm a madwoman, C.J. and it doesn't stop with the leak."

"What do you mean?"

Lowering her voice, Donna leaned forward conspiratorially. "Call the authorities. Send them to my parents' house in Madison."

"Why?" CJ nearly shrieked.

"They'll find the Lindbergh baby in the basement."

CJ threw her hands in the air. "Okay..."

Leaning further forward, Donna added, "Also some post-its reminding me where I put Jimmy Hoffa."

CJ leaned back in her chair and pointed toward the door. "Get out!"

Standing up, Donna bugged her eyes and said, "I framed Roger Rabbit."

CJ shook her head. "Get out!"

Giggling, Donna stopped at the doorway and asked, "I'm going to the place. You want a salad?"

CJ shook her head. "Thanks. Carol?

Donna was still laughing as she headed back for her desk. She really had CJ going there for a minute. She had to admit that Josh's idea had been a good one.

Coming into the bullpen, Josh caught up with her and asked, "Did you confess?"

"She didn't let me get to Whittaker Chambers and the secret pumpkin," Donna said, the disappointment evident in her voice.

Josh smiled, glad that his idea had worked so far. Now they would have to wait and see what happened when Zach was summoned before CJ's quest to find the weakest link.

Walking with Donna, Josh smugly informed her, "You got a phone call while you were in there."

"From who?"

"Europe in 1939," Josh offered, stopping near her desk.

Donna knew this was payback for her earlier phone message banter, so she played along. "Yeah?"

They continued walking through the bullpen, eventually ending up standing in Josh's office as he related the "phone call" to her. "Yeah, I jotted it down. Apparently they're at war but we've taken a firm stand as an isolationist nation and refuse to get involved. Our resources are our own and their problems are on the other side of the world. Though they do have problems. It sounds to me from what they said on the phone that France, Austria and England are getting absolutely pounded by the Germans and with no end in sight. They say that by 1941 they're going to desperately need our help if they have any chance of survival but I think they're just being hysterical. This son of a customs agent with the Charlie Chaplin mustache ain't going anywhere but there's no telling that to Franklin Roosevelt who's trying to convince his country they need to get involved. That's why he came with this." He handed her a book.

"An 8th grade social studies textbook?" Donna asked.

Josh waved toward the book and said, "Turn to the page I flagged."

Donna opened the book, then looked up at him and said, "The Lend-Lease Act."

Josh explained, "Yeah. Simply put, a loan of arms to Russia and Britain with the understanding that they'd pay us back when the war was over and he said this: he said if your neighbor's house is on fire you don't haggle over the price of your garden hose. Frank Kelly in South Carolina wouldn't." His voice quieted before adding, "There are too many things in the world we can't do. Mexico's on fire. Why help them? Because we can."

Still holding the book, Donna asked, "Did they agree to the money?"

"Yeah," Josh said, trying to read where she might take this next.

Donna beamed at him and said, "Okay." He returned the smile, holding her gaze for a brief moment as he took the book back from her hands.

"God, I love her," he thought as she turned and walked out of his office. She really didn't think it was a bad thing–she just wanted to make him think about it and get all puffed up telling her why it was the right thing to do, which in turn reminded him why it was the right thing to do. She was never arguing with him, but baiting him to banter about it. Sam had told him about how Mallory had done the same thing to him before and how frustrating it had been. But Josh didn't feel frustrated; he felt admiration, amazement and overwhelming love for the woman who had just walked out of his office.

**********

Meanwhile, back in CJ's office, Zach was sitting across from CJ saying, "You shouldn't feel bad about this."

"Everyone hates me," CJ said, dejected.

Zach assured her, "Nah, they'll get over it."

"You think?"

"Sure. You're just doing your job."

Nodding her head, CJ said, "That's exactly right."

"And this is really important," Zach continued.

"You're the first one who's understood that." CJ was glad to finally talk to someone who didn't think she was the Wicked Witch of the West Wing for questioning everyone about this.

"You mind if I give you a suggestion that may make this go faster?" Zach offered.

"Sure."

"If you dunk the suspect in a deep well of water and they drown, it means they're not a witch."

CJ couldn't believe that she'd been duped again--and by another person from Josh's bullpen. She knew he had to have been behind Donna and Zach's performances. She'd have to figure out a way to get him back for this.

"All right. That's it," she said, getting up from her chair and storming out of her office.

"I saw Lizzie Proctor speaking with the devil!" Zach added with flourish as CJ disappeared down the hall.

"Shut up," she threw back over her shoulder.

***********

Later in the evening, Donna walked into Josh's office and found him staring blindly out the dark window behind him. She walked around and leaned against his desk. He heard her walk in, but didn't turn around. She reached out and smoothed his hair back gently and he caught her hand, turning his chair with a small and tired grin on his face.

He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and idly massaged her hand. Quietly he said, "Something is going on." He took a deep breath and listed off, "Leo has been out-of-pocket all day. Nobody has seen either he or the president since senior staff this morning. Charlie is acting weird. Sam is freaked out about the oil tanker thing, and Toby is still pissed about the leak and has CJ playing private eye it."

Dropping her hand, Josh rubbed his hands over his face. "I don't get it. I don't know what's going on and I don't know who to ask. If Leo hasn't told me about it, he wouldn't tell me now if I asked him. I don't think CJ or Sam know anything. I think Toby does and that's why he's been so pissy, but I certainly don't want to put my head into the mouth of that lion."

Soberly, Donna said, "I understand, but something is definitely going on."

Josh looked up at her and sighed, suddenly feeling very tired. Again, he reached for Donna's hand and said, "Well, I guess there isn't anything more we can do tonight, huh?"

"No, I guess not," she said quietly, staring off into the distance.

The office was quiet for a moment before Josh said, "Donna…I know it's a Monday, but…"

His voice brought her back from her thoughts and she looked down at his questioning face and those damned puppy dog eyes that she can't refuse. They typically don't stay together during the workweek–just on weekends, if for logistical purposes only. Barring them moving into 1 place together, it's difficult to keep things spread between 2 homes.

She smiled warmly and squeezed his hand. "I've got your dry cleaning at my place & Cindy is out of town."

"Are you going to show me some tough love?" he asked

"You mean with my equipment?" She tried desperately to look mysterious, but she couldn't keep the smile hidden for long.

"You have equipment?" he asked, incredulously

Standing up, she pulled him up with her. "Why don’t we save that for another time, huh? I'll get my stuff," she said, motioning with her head toward her desk.

Josh threw a couple of things into his backpack and found his jacket. He walked out to her desk as she was turning off her computer monitor. He held out his hand for her and she took it. "Let's go home," he said.

Taking his hand and falling in step beside him, Donna said, "I guess we should be a little more descriptive when we say 'home', huh?"

"Don't have to." Josh shook his head.

She looked at him quizzically.

He dropped her hand and put his arm around her waist, pulling her close. "'Home' is wherever you are."

She placed a soft kiss on his cheek as they passed out the door and into the night.

***********

References:

I got the spelling of "Aye-yah-yie" from the following site:

http://www.rit.edu/~jas2842/409/old/tri_dic_409.html