November 6th, 2016
The day that changes their lives as they knew them. The day a country was shaken to its core. The day hundreds woke up, kisses their children and went to work never to return.
The day a man got up, kissed his wife and children goodbye and drove to the Department of Housing and Urban Development for his everyday routine and never left because later that day it became his family's permanent residence.
The day a woman, a wife and mother, went early to her job. She later visited her husband at his job where they realized they wouldn't be able to leave. No matter what. Because everything had gone horribly wrong and her husband was the one designated to take over in case of such a tragedy as this.
This was the day two kids- one a mere child, the other a teen in the midst of rebellion- got up, said goodbye to their parents, went to school. Their day was fine until later that night when suddenly a motorcade of sedans pulled up in the driveway of their Georgetown home. Men dressed in dark suits swarmed the house and knocked on the door. An elderly woman answered and they immediately started into the house.
"Ma'am we need you and your grandchildren to come with us. There's been an accident and your family will be needed the White House. Immediately." A gruff looking man in a black suit and an earpiece told them.
"What's happening?!" She replied, holding the children close to her in an attempt to hide them from the threatening men.
"I'm sorry but as of now that's a need to know basis. We can't allow anything to get out in the public as of yet. But you need to come with us." Another man stated.
"Are my mom and dad okay?" The teen boy, Leo, asked.
"Yes. They are fine. You'll meet them at the White House when we arrive."
"Okay."
They got into the cars they were escorted to and were driven towards their new lives. They had no idea what was waiting for them beyond those gates.
Meanwhile at the HUD...
Tom was waiting for his wife to finish her conference call because they had agreed on a date night earlier but Alex had gotten bogged down with work.
He could hear her ending the conversation and heard the familiar click as she hung up the phone. She was walking back into the room with a smile that said "I'm sorry."
"Hey beautiful." He smiled back at her.
"Hey babe. I'm so sorry about that. I asked them to not call tonight but they never listen and can't seem to get anything done without me." She said with a wistful smile.
He got up and walked to her. Grabbing her waist from behind he swirled her around so she faced him. "It's absolutely fine Alex. I know you have a job to do. I get it. At least I get to spend some time with my gorgeous wife. I've missed her a lot you know?" He teased.
She blushed and wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulder. "I love you Tom." She picked her head up and stood on her toes to give him a kiss that he deepened.
Lost in their own world they didn't notice the crowd gathering at the door to the office they were in. "Ahem". Someone coughed hoping it would get their attention.
Red faced they pulled away from each other (Tom however kept his hand around her waist) and looked at the group.
"We have a problem. And unfortunately it's big."
How big could it be if they're coming to me? Tom thought. It doesn't make any sense. "How big?"
"As you know, President, cabinet, Congress etc were all in attendance for the annual State Dinner. Around 8 pm this evening while the President was in the midst of his State of the Union Address, a bomb went off in the Capital. The explosion claimed the lives of all inside. This means we have no Executive, Legislative or Judicial branches because everyone was there. Since the line of has been disrupted there's only one person who can now assume office... This person was called the Designated Survivor. In the case of a National emergency and we are left without anyone from the original line of succession that person takes the oath of office..." The agent, Mike, took the remote from where it sat
on the table and turned on CSPAN. There was nothing but white noise. The channels signal had gone down right before the explosion. When no one could get it back on they'd called to investigate and when no one could get ahold of anyone at the Capital they started panicking.
"Why exactly are you telling me this? What do I have to do with any of it?" Tom asked. None of this made any sense and he didn't understand why he was being told.
"Tom... I think it's you." Alex said realization showing on her face. "I think the Designated Survivor is you..."
"What? No." Tom said incredulously.
"She's right sir. You are the man chosen to take the mantle in case of something like this happening."
"But why?"
"Unfortunately we do not have that specific information because everyone who would have known is dead. Right now we need to have you and Mrs. Kirkman downstairs so we can head to the White House. We need to perform the oath now."
"Right now?!" Alex asked. There's been no time to process any of this and now they would have to step into the most public of offices.
"Yes. With no one in place and news spreading fast, we need to quickly reestablish that we are still standing strong in the wake of this tragedy."
"Okay." Tom held his hand out to Alex and she grabbed it and got up. Grabbing their coats they headed down the stairs and out into the winter air into already running sedans and pulled out the parking garage.
"Are you sure about this Tom? I mean, it's a long way from being Secretary of the HUD. You'd be the President of the United States. The most powerful man on the planet." Alex asked. She was worried that her husband was simply just jumping into this role because it had already been chosen for him and he felt a duty to step up and take the role. She wanted to know if he truly wanted it.
"Yes, I'm sure. I've always wanted to make a difference and since I've got this opportunity I think I should take it. I just worry about the children. It'll uproot their entire lives. What do you think about how they'll take it?" Tom asked.
When she didn't answer he looked over and saw that she was staring out the window. At the White House coming into view just beyond the gates.
"Alex?"
"Yes? I'm sorry. I was just thinking..."
Pulling up to the front doors the doors to the car were immediately snatched open and they were rushed inside. Somewhere in the rush Alex was handed a Bible and once they were all inside near the downstairs living room everyone gathered to hear the man no one thought would be President, take the oath of office. Someone live-streamed it onto every social media site they could find. The United States went only two hours without a President but it'll have to go another few weeks without a full government.
After the oath was taken Tom said a few words he hoped would raise the morale of the American people.
"I know this is not the best night in our country's history but we need to rally together and show these horrible people that even though they try to take us down, we are stronger together and will not let them destroy this amazing country. We will need to stand tall and come together as we rebuild. In order to do that we will need to let them know that though they've taken away so many, they can never take away our grit, our love for our fellow Americans, our hope and determination to create a better tomorrow. This is America and even when we've been targeted we don't give up. We band together as one unified people and show the world we can't be broken. And although no one voted for me, I am thankful to join you on this ride as your newly sworn in President. God bless you and God bless America."
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Okay so there's chapter one. I wanted to get into the feelings of what some of characters were going through that night. You'll meet the rest of the Oval Office team in chapter two. And we'll get to see more of what Leo and Penny are feeling about this pivotal moment of their lives. Also this story will mostly be based around accusations involving Alex and how they lead to tensions in the country and in the Kirkman's marriage. Thanks for reading!!!!
Xxxx