Disclaimer: These characters do not belong to me and no
copyright infringement is intended.
Spoilers: None
Ratings: PG-16 (or higher) for mature themes, mild drug use and
some swearing.
Warning: This story is contains drug use and is partially based
on my own reaction to a very popular soft drug. (Yes, in
my youth, I smoked marijuana and I did inhale.)
Summary: Sam gets a little out of control at the Democratic
National Convention where Bartlett got the nomination.
Politics Makes Strange Bedfellows
The convention was a real blast, Josh thought, as he danced a
little jig on his way to the bar. The speeches were over, the
nomination confirmed and a healthy meed of praise had been heaped
on the campaign staff for Bartlett. Governor Bartlett had spoken
warmly about the efforts of his campaign staff, making Josh feel
like all the crap he had been through with Bartlett was worth it.
Now all he had to do was celebrate. No more wheeling and
dealing, no more putting out feelers, no more begging for funds.
That would begin tomorrow. Tonight, it was a celebration.
He got his drink at the bar and shimmied his way along the floor,
dancing with a girl who gave him a brilliant smile and a wink.
He stopped cold when he caught a whiff of something very familiar
and quite illegal. Somebody was smoking up. Several somebodies,
in fact.
It didn't surprise him any; if the cops decided to raid either of
the national nomination conventions, they'd find a whole lot of
things that would make the voter's hair curl.
Still, they shouldn't be doing that in the common areas. He'd
find the culprits and suggest they take it to somebody's room.
"Oh, God." Josh groaned. In the middle of the group was Sam,
with a drink in one hand and a joint in the other.
**
"Josh?" CJ Cregg came up to him. "What's the matter?"
"Sam's smoking up." He said solemnly.
"Oh-oh." CJ frowned. "Sam's a user?"
"No, no. Nothing like that." Josh shook his head. "Sam doesn't
smoke much. He'll just take a toke if everyone else is doing
it."
"Still..." CJ gave him a stern look.
"Don't look at me like that. I've done it." Josh said
scornfully. "If you tell me you haven't, you're a liar."
"I haven't." CJ protested. Josh just looked at her. "I could
never get the hang of smoking. I ended up coughing a lot." She
admitted sheepishly.
"I was going to tell them to take it upstairs, but when I saw
Sam..."
"You don't want to talk to Sam?"
"CJ, Sam's had a lot to drink tonight."
"We've all been drinking. Well, except Leo." CJ pointed out.
"In fact, Toby just went upstairs. I persuaded him that getting
melancholy wasn't all that attractive."
"CJ, the combination of booze, marijuana and Sam is not a good
one." Josh said carefully. "Grass really turns him on. Booze
lower inhibitions and Sam's not exactly butt ugly."
"I'm still not tracking here, Josh."
"All I'm saying is, Sam is going to start making passes and he
doesn't take no for an answer when he's high."
"He'd force himself on somebody?"
"No, Sam would never do that." Josh shook his head. "He just
gets really, really persistent. And he's not too picky about who
he targets, either."
"So go get him and haul him up to bed."
"Only if you help me."
"Why do you need my help?"
"As I said, he's not too picky..."
"You need me to protect your virtue?"
"And I'll protect yours." Josh promised.
"So Sam gets stoned and he makes passes at you?" CJ snorted.
"And drunk. He has to be drunk, too." Josh explained. "It's
like his brains fall into his genitals."
**
Sam took a last toke and handed off the joint to the next person.
Somewhere in the back of his brain, he heard faint alarm bells;
there was some reason why he shouldn't be doing this and it had
nothing to do with being busted for possession.
He was flying high, for reasons other than the many drinks and
the several joints he had. They'd done it. They had gotten
Bartlett the nomination. And Bartlett was the real thing. He
was the kind of politician that was rarely seen and even more
rarely elected. Integrity oozed out of his pores. So what if he
had blown his corporate law career; it was all crap anyway.
"Mr. Seaborn." An older woman stopped him and smiled. "I wanted
to tell you how much I admire all the work you did for Governor
Bartlett."
Sam turned on his brightest smile. This was a fine looking
woman; not young, but elegant and beautiful with the sort of
beauty that comes with intelligence and maturity.
"Thank you. It was a pleasure to work on the campaign. I'm just
grateful for the opportunity."
"You must be overjoyed at the results. Jed Bartlett was the real
underdog in this one. You fought the good fight."
"Thank you, Ma'am. And call me Sam." Sam leaned closer. "May I
get you a drink?"
"Thank you, but I already have one." The woman smiled.
"Then perhaps we could go some place a little more private to
share it?" Sam offered, his voice turning smoky and sensual,
with unmistakable invitation.
The woman looked taken aback and frowned.
"Jenny?" Leo McGarry came up and put his arm around the woman.
"I see you've met Sam Seaborn."
"Yes." Jenny McGarry replied, with a touch of frost in her
voice.
"Sam, this is my wife Jenny." Leo introduced.
Oh, shit, Sam thought to himself. Time to make a quick exit.
"It was a pleasure to meet you." He said, with a slight bow,
then backed off, leaving Leo looking puzzled and Jenny looking
offended.
**
"Sam. Buddy." Josh appeared at his elbow, with CJ on the other
side. "Time to go to bed."
"Is that an invitation?" Sam asked, with a sly smile.
"No." Josh said decidedly.
"I don't really want to go there alone, Josh." Sam said softly.
"Maybe you could join me?"
"No."
"CJ, take pity on a fellow Californian." Sam said, after a
moment or two, leaning toward CJ. "All alone in this big city,
with no one to talk to..."
"Sam, you're drunk." Josh said.
"So are you."
"Not as drunk as you are. I didn't just put the moves on Leo's
wife."
"How was I supposed to know she was Leo's wife?"
"You could have asked her name." CJ pointed out, as they
practically dragged Sam to the elevator.
"I don't want to leave the party." Sam objected.
"Tough."
**
With Sam safely delivered to his room, CJ and Josh made their way
back to the celebrations.
"You weren't kidding."
"Nope."
"Did he fondle your butt as much as he did mine on the way up
here?"
"Two hands, no waiting." Josh said lightly.
"This is just too weird. I wouldn't think Sam swung both ways."
"When he's like that, he'll go after anything." Josh said
confidently.
"Is he going to stay in his room? Do we need to put a guard on
him?"
"Nah. He's probably going to smoke that last joint he has in his
pocket, drink some more and pass out after..."
"Enough, Josh." CJ interrupted him. "I don't need to know the
gory details."
**
Sam pouted for about ten minutes, hating Josh for spoiling his
fun. He wanted to go back to the party. Still, this bed was
really comfortable and his head was spinning slightly. Besides,
it was getting difficult to walk properly sporting an erection.
Damn, but he wanted to get laid. That older woman - Jenny - was
a fine woman. Older woman were damned good in bed, he knew from
experience.
He sighed. Looked like he'd have to take care of his little
physical problem himself. Not that that would be such a bad
thing; it was very pleasurable in fact, but he wanted someone in
bed with him.
He picked up the remote for the TV and turned it on. He watched
for a moment, wondering how that actress could make floor cleaner
so sensual. He wanted to go out and buy that floor cleaner and
scrub down the bathroom or something; it looked so damned sexy.
The commercial for banking services was as bad, and the insurance
guy was kinda cute, even if he was about sixty.
He turned off the TV and got up to get undressed. If this was to
be a party of one, he was going to be comfortable.
Through the connecting door to the next room, he could hear the
TV going. He had forgotten who was in the next room, but maybe
they wanted a little private party.
He tried the door and found that the other door was open. Lying
on the bed, with a half finished drink in one hand and a half
smoked cigar in the other, was Toby Ziegler.
Sam had worked with Toby for months now, and he respected the
man's mind and abilities very much. He hadn't thought much about
what Toby looked like, but now, filtered through a haze of
hypersexual awareness, he thought that Toby looked rather
attractive.
Toby had changed out of the suit he had been wearing into jeans
and a sweat shirt. He was sprawled on the bed, watching the post
convention coverage and making notes on a pad of paper.
Sam watched him make notes for a moment or two. Toby was a fine
figure of a man, with something to hold on to, he thought. He'd
be warm and solid and comfortable to snuggle up against. Sam
crept, cat like, to the side of the bed and slowly eased himself
onto the bed beside Toby. Toby utterly ignored him, seemingly
engrossed in the talking head on the television screen.
Sam snuggled close, pressing himself up to his boss, wrapping one
arm around him.
"Sam, what are you doing?" Toby asked quietly, not moving.
"I thought you might want some company." Sam replied, softening
his voice in a way that always worked with women. If Toby had
been looking at him he would have fluttered his eyelashes.
"You aren't my first choice for that. Or my thirty seventh,
either." Toby replied, his voice sounding a little odd. "Sam,
how much have you had to drink?"
"A little."
"And how much grass have you had?"
Sam stopped. How could Toby know he had been smoking up? Was
the pungent smell so strong it could compete with Toby's cigar?
Toby gently eased himself a few inches away and put out the cigar
in the ashtray. Then he looked at Sam speculatively for a
moment.
Now was the time, Sam thought. Toby hadn't recoiled from him;
maybe...?
To Sam's surprise, Toby began to laugh. It wasn't one of Toby's
normal laughing at Sam's expense type of laughter. It was
somehow sympathetic and understanding.
"How much, Sam? Four or five joints?" Toby asked, still
smiling.
"I... don't know, exactly." Sam faltered.
"Let me guess. You had several drinks, then started toking."
Toby predicted. "And now you want somebody to do the horizontal
mambo with you."
Sam turned beet red, although it didn't cool his ardour much.
"Considering that you're part of the Bartlett senior campaign
staff and you're prettier than any man has any right to be, why
are you here in my room?"
"You think I'm pretty?" Sam perked up and tried to snuggle
closer.
"Hold on, there, Sunshine Boy." Toby warned, pushing him away.
"I predict that in about fifteen minutes you will be wishing you
were dead."
"No, I won't." Sam replied defensively.
"And," Toby continued smoothly, as if Sam hadn't spoken. "If
you keep trying to touch me, you will get that wish. Go find
some pretty little political groupie and take her to bed.
Yours."
"Josh and CJ made me go to bed." Sam pouted. "I didn't know
that was Leo's wife."
"You made a pass at Jenny McGarry?" Toby chuckled. "And now
you're trying to cozy up to me. Man, do you have horrible taste
when you're like this."
"I don't think so..." Sam tried again, this time managing to
evade Toby's restraining hand and wrapping himself around his
boss.
"May I remind you of two things?" Toby said, avoiding the sloppy
kiss Sam was trying to give him.
"What?" Giving up for the moment on a real kiss, Sam buried his
face in Toby's neck, nuzzling.
"One. I am, for the moment, your boss. Two, if you don't let go
immediately, not only will you not get laid tonight, you will not
get laid ever again."
"Spoilsport." Sam murmured.
"Oh, for God's sake." Toby muttered. He rolled gracefully off
his side of the bed stood up. Sam fell sprawling on the bed.
"Get up, Sam. I don't want you throwing up on my bed."
"I won't." Sam denied into the pillow, although he was starting
to feel a little queasy.
"Damn right you won't." Toby stated. With surprising
gentleness, he sat down again and hauled Sam into a sitting
position.
"You're a wonderful person, Toby." Sam looked up at him with doe
eyes.
"No, I'm not."
"Yes, you are." Sam insisted. Toby rolled his eyes and got up.
Sam also got up and swayed. Toby leaned forward to catch him.
Sam suddenly looked very pale and a little green around the
gills.
"Well, I was off on my time estimate." Toby said to himself.
"Come on, Sunshine Boy."
He hauled Sam to the bathroom, just in time. With soothing
hands, he held Sam's head as Sam threw up.
**
His stomach finally settling, Sam leaned back and sighed. He
felt like hell. His head hurt, his stomach hurt and his throat
was raw, but his head was clear. He closed his eyes.
What the hell had he been doing? Right now, oblivion was
starting to look very, very good. Toby was right; he did want to
die. Not due to the physical discomfort, but out of acute
embarrassment. Had he really tried to...? With Toby?
"Feeling better?"
Sam opened one eye, hoping that this was all a hallucination.
Nope. Toby was sitting on the edge of the tub, offering a towel
and a glass of ice water.
"Thanks." Sam croaked and rinsed out his mouth.
"When I was in 'Nam, there was a guy in my unit. Jeff McCardle."
Toby said quietly. "He spent about ninety percent of his time
stoned. Hell, most of us did. None of us were over twenty and
we didn't know what the hell we were doing there. By that time,
the commanders didn't know, either. It was a crazy time, near
the end."
"Toby, I..." Sam tried to pay attention, but he couldn't see the
point of the story.
"Jeff was a lot like you. Young, idealistic and naive. God, he
was so young." Toby said, reminiscently. "I don't think I was
ever that young. He also had exactly the same reaction to grass
as you do. Get Jeff stoned and pour a drink into him and he was
ready to screw anything. Poor bastard tried it with the RSM and
got drummed out and sent stateside faster than I thought the
military could move."
"The point is...?" Sam frowned, trying to get his brain working.
"The point is, I've seen it before." Toby said kindly. "You
didn't do anything tonight that Jeff didn't do a couple of
hundred times."
"Where is Jeff now?"
"In the New York state legislature." Toby said. "That little
bit of his past has never made it to the public eye. And, if you
promise me that this type of thing is in the past, this won't go
any further either. Promise me that and tonight never happened."
"God, Toby. I am so ashamed..." Sam hung his head.
"So you should be. Marijuana is illegal." Toby shook his head
sadly. "Get rid of the joint you have in your pocket and swear
off the stuff. If I ever hear of you doing this again, you're
out on your ass."
"I am never going to touch the stuff again." Sam vowed. "Never,
ever."
"Good." Toby nodded once. "Now get the hell out of my bathroom
and into your own room."
"Okay." Sam stood shakily and made his way to his own room.
"Thanks."
Toby just grunted and went back to watching the coverage. Sam
hovered at the connecting door.
"Toby?"
"What?" The sympathetic and helpful manner was gone.
"Did Jeff ever make a pass at you?"
"Jeff made a pass at everybody." Toby replied absently.
"Did you ever...?"
"I did a lot of things, Sam. Could you be more specific?"
"Uh... No." Sam stuttered. "Goodnight."
"Sleep well, Sam." Toby called, with a tiny, malicious smile.
"Because you are going to feel like shit in the morning."
**
Toby was right. Sam did feel like shit the next morning. The
only thing that cheered him up a little was that most of the rest
of the staff seemed equally miserable. The breakfast meeting was
long on orange juice and coffee and short on actual food.
Leo was glaring at him with narrowed eyes. CJ was not looking at
him at all. She was too busy holding her head as if afraid that
it would come off if she let go. Josh was practically incoherent
and blinking sleepily around the table. At least Josh and CJ
were as hung over as he was.
Toby, the miserable bastard, didn't seem to be hung over at all.
Toby drank as heavily as the rest of them did, but Sam had never
seen him hung over. In fact, by Toby's standards, he was
obnoxiously and maliciously cheerful. Sam blushed at the
slight, sadistic smile Toby gave him and refused to look at him
again. Instead, he examined his empty plate.
"I see everyone is in fine fettle for the fight ahead of us."
Leo said sardonically as the waitress brought a third round of
juice.
"I have notes on the post convention coverage and the morning
papers." Toby began. "They may help in formulating the policy
directives for the first months of the campaign. Does the
Governor want to address the current issues or do we want to set
our own agenda at the outset?"
"Josh?" Leo looked to Josh.
"Hunh?" Josh lifted his nose out of his coffee cup.
"Agenda." Leo reminded him.
"If we don't address the issues on the table, it'll look like we
don't have a position." Josh said slowly. "I say we ease into
our own policy points as we go along. Our biggest asset is
Bartlett's personal integrity and popularity. Let's coast a
little on that until the issues start coming forward."
"Toby, you and Sam start with position papers on the issues
already on the table. Coordinate with CJ for the best places and
times to address them. Josh, you and I will work with the
Governor for the next phase and development of our policy
agenda." Leo nodded. "Let's try to keep one step ahead of the
game, shall we?"
There was a chorus of agreement around the table, lacking
enthusiasm.
"I would appreciate a little more energy from you people. This
is just the beginning of a long, hard fight." Leo reminded them.
"Leo, take pity." CJ said. "We all partied pretty hard last
night."
"Yes, I know."
Was Leo glaring specifically at him?, Sam wondered.
"We don't need to answer anything until Monday." Josh said,
taking a deep breath against the pounding in his head. "I think
we should take the weekend off and start fresh when we get back
to Washington. We could all use a rest."
"We have a perfect opportunity to get some connections made
before the convention people leave." Leo reminded him. "Get
packed and ready to go. The bus to Washington leaves in three
hours. Sam, a word, please."
**
"Sam, please tell me that Jenny misunderstood something you said
to her last night." Leo began sternly.
"Leo, I have nothing but the utmost of respect for Mrs. McGarry."
Sam said, putting on his very best respectful attitude. "I admit
I wasn't feeling well last night."
"Jenny said you made advances to her." Leo stated coldly. "Did
you?"
"Well... Uh..." Sam floundered. He didn't remember saying
anything risque to Jenny McGarry last night, but he vividly
recalled the later events and, thus, knew it was quite possible.
"Sam, some women might be flattered that a young man like
yourself would find them worth picking up, but my wife is not one
of them." Leo continued. "In fact, Jenny felt that your
behaviour was an insult to her and so do I. Leaving aside the
fact that you were very drunk at the time, she is a married woman
and even implying that she might consider infidelity to her
husband is insulting. The fact that she is my wife makes your
actions not only insulting and infuriating, but downright
stupid."
"Yes." Sam nodded, not knowing what else to say.
"Sam, if I ever hear of you making improper advances to any woman
ever again, I swear, I will tear you apart. If you want to get
laid, go pick somebody out of Josh's fan club. I'm sure one of
them would be more than willing to oblige."
Sam nodded again, believing Leo. With an exasperated sigh, Leo
let him go.
**
"Are you still in one piece?" Josh asked, as they went to pack.
"Barely." Sam groaned. "Look, Josh. How much of an idiot of
myself did I make last night?"
"Other than putting the moves on Jenny McGarry, not much. Anyone
who saw you toking was toking themselves, so there's no problem
there." Josh assured him. "CJ will forgive you in fondling her
butt on the way to your room, so you're in the clear."
"I fondled CJ?" Sam frowned, unlocking his door.
"Well, you fondled my butt, too." Josh amended, wondering how
many different shades of pink Sam could turn. Sam turned away to
pull out his suitcase and Josh flopped on the bed, watching.
Through the open connecting door, he could see Toby's luggage
neatly lined up by the bed and Toby himself just hanging up the
phone.
"Hey, Toby." Josh called. "You got the official numbers?"
"They're being faxed over. We'll have them on the bus ride
back." Toby appeared at the door, holding a jacket. "Sam, you
might want this."
Josh looked curiously at Sam, who was a different and deeper
shade of pink this time.
"So you and Sam were talking last night." Josh smirked.
"Sam came into my room last night, yes." Toby allowed. Sam
moved out of Josh's line of sight and tried to signal Toby to
shut up. Toby ignored him.
"I see..." Josh drawled. "I guess it's a lot quieter than on
the convention floor."
"It wasn't all that quiet once Sam got here." Toby said. "Sam,
do you have termites in your underwear or something?"
Josh looked just in time to see Sam gesticulating wildly and note
that Sam's face was now bright red. Josh looked back at Toby.
"I was in here, minding my own business, watching the post
convention coverage when Sam came in here." Toby grumbled, with
inner glee at the appalled look on Sam's face. "He spent ten
minutes throwing up in my bathroom. Why his own wasn't good
enough for him, I don't know. I really wish you could hold your
liquor better, Sam."
"Sam!" Josh looked at Sam with mock horror.
"Methinks thou dost protest too much, Josh. You can't hold your
liquor at all." Toby glared at Josh, handed Sam his jacket and
went back to his packing.
**
"Toby, I am really sorry about last night." Sam said quietly on
the bus.
"I'm not." Toby continued making notes.
"You're not?" Sam frowned.
"No." Toby turned a page and began filling it with his neat
handwriting. "Now I have some very potent blackmail material on
you. It's going to come in very handy some day."
"You have no proof."
"In a contest of my word against yours, who's going to win?"
Toby asked, still writing. Sam thought about that for a moment.
"You're not upset about...?" Sam ventured.
"Not especially." Toby shook his head. "After all, politics
makes strange bedfellows."
"You've been waiting all day to say that, haven't you?"
"Yes. Now go away."
END