PRELUDE:

Josh walked down the familiar halls of the West Wing with a degree of trepidation that he never carried. He felt as though everybody greeting him 'good morning' knew exactly what had taken place between the four walls of his office approximately seven hours ago. His left hand was clinging so tightly to the padded strap of his backpack his knuckles were white. It as though it were a lifeline and if he were to let go of that lifeline, all hell would break loose. The closer to his office he got, the more nervous he became. The horrible nerves were swimming around his entire body, coming to a crescendo in his head and creating a cacophony of noise that was causing an intense headache. He gulped when he saw the back of Donna's silvery blonde head at her desk. He could see her typing as though this morning held no special meaning, as though it was just another day. He paused for a moment, his fingers drumming against the backpack strap before walking forward. The crescendo was growing louder with each step he took.

"Hi," he said, a little awkwardly as he stepped up to Donna's desk. The noise in his head came to a sudden stop. Donna turned and Josh could see the same trepidation mirrored in her face that was on his.

"Hi," she answered shyly. Josh stared for a moment, searching for the right words to say. The shyness between them was entirely new and neither knew how to navigate it. Their whole friendship had never been marked with awkwardness or shyness. That's what made it so easy, so right. He sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"C-can I talk to you for a second?" Donna nodded solemnly and followed Josh into the safety of his office. He firmly pressed the door closed, locked it, and then leaned back onto it with a sigh.

"Hey," he said again after a deep breath, a small smile was playing on the corners of his lips. Donna chuckled lightly in response and the slightest bit of normalcy was injected into the room.

"Hey."

"So about last night," Josh began, awkwardness filtering into his body language again. Donna too went very still.

"I-" Josh began. He looked down and realized he was still holding his backpack. He dropped it to the floor with a thud and plunged right in. "It was amazing," he said after a moment. He looked up at Donna. "Honestly amazing."

Donna gave a small smile and nodded. She knew what was coming. "Yeah."

"But we can't," Josh tossed his hands around lightly. There it was. "Do... this. Not while we work these jobs. Not in this building." Donna nodded. Of course she knew this was coming. They both did.

"I just," Josh tried to keep going, but Donna could feel the sadness saturating his words. The genuine regret softening his tone. "I wish it could be different and I really hope you believe me when I tell you that."

"If anybody found out," Josh continued, looking around the room now. "I think CJ would personally put my balls in a vice and never let go." Donna gave a soft laugh at that.

"I don't want to be on CJ's bad side either." Josh gave a strained smile.

"So we just go back to normal? Or try?"

Donna nodded, trying to smile, but it suddenly felt as though she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. She sniffed unexpectedly, unaware of the tears that had been building in her eyes. They started to fall one by one on their own accord.

Last night hadn't been planned. They were both working late and became so utterly lost in the moment that there was no hope of turning back. They hadn't been drinking. Neither of them had needed that excuse. Being the only ones left in the building, they had taken advantage of Josh's office. In true romcom fashion, they had pushed everything off Josh's desk (except his autographed baseball, which was delicately placed on a high shelf) and wasted no time. It had been tender and full of passion. Neither of them regretted it, but both of them knew deep down at the time that they wouldn't be able to continue this. Donna dared a glance up at Josh and she took small comfort in the fact that he looked just as miserable as she did.

"I'm sorry," he muttered to the floor.

"Me too," Donna said back. Josh picked his head up and their gazes locked on to each other. They could see the hurt swirling in each other's eyes, more than just tears. He sighed again and slowly walked over to her before gathering her up in a tight hug. Donna hugged him back as hard as she could and they both stood for a long time just holding each other, the silence broken only by the occasional sniffle. Donna's watery eyes created a wet patch on the shoulder of Josh's shirt as her face pressed into it. Neither wanted to break the hug as they knew their separation afterwards would be painfully final.

It took a sharp knock at the door to jolt them out of last moment of peace. It also brought them a sharp reminder of why this couldn't continue in the first place. With one last sorrowful look, Donna brushed away any evidence of tears and made her way out of the office without another word. Josh sat back against his desk and watched her go; his chest was feeling unbelievably heavy. With his hands in his pockets, he glanced up at Ed who was staring next to the doorway nervously.

"What do you need?" Josh asked in a quiet voice. Ed entered the room and the day carried on as though Josh's conversation with Donna had never taken place.