Title: Daylight Savings Time
By: chipmunk
Pairing: Leo/Margaret
Rating: PG
Spoilers: None
Beta By: Lee pigletnpooh@comcast.net
Disclaimer:
The characters are from the NBC, WB, A John Wells Prod., TV show, 'The West Wing'.
They own them; therefore, they do not belong to me.
They are the creation and property of Aaron Sorkin. I only borrowed them.
No copyright infringement is intended. No monetary benefit is received or anticipated.
Please keep in mind that, 'Imitation is the highest form of flattery'.
A 'grateful' and 'enormous' thanks, to the actors and actresses,
who portray the characters brilliantly and bring them to life in my head.
Any mistakes found in this fic, are totally my own fault and ignorance.
This is a learning process for me. Additions and Corrections are encouraged.
Feedback: I would love it hear your opinion! PLEASE! It helps to improve my writing!
Archived at:
Summary: Margaret forgets to reset her clock.
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Margaret is awakened to the sound of someone knocking at her door. She glances at the clock on the nightstand, which reads 6am. She moans to herself and thinks, ~No way! It's 6am on a Sunday. It was after midnight when I got to bed~. The knocking resumes on her door and she throws back her soft, warm comforter and swings her herself out of the bed. At the front door, she peeks out of the security port, to see Leo standing outside. Noticing he's dressed in a suit and tie, under his overcoat, it's obvious he's going to the office. Margaret jerks open the door and announces, "Leo, it's 6am on a Sunday morning. Why are you at my door, dressed for work?"
Leo answers right back, as if he can't understand her asking the question.
"We need to start early, to have the Crime Bill reworked for tomorrows staff briefing. Josh needs it first thing in the morning." He then smiles. "Margaret, its 7am, not 6am. This is the first weekend in April, so last night we started Daylight Saving Time, at 2am.You know, Spring forward, Fall Back?"
"Great" Margaret replies, "I lost an additional hour of sleep." She sighs, as she motions Leo into the living room.
"You got an extra hour of sleep last fall," Leo reminds her. "Can we go to the office, now that we've straightened that out?"
She looks him in the eye and with a sleep thick voice asks, "Leo, do I look like I'm ready to go to the office?"
Leo scans her from top to bottom, noting her sleep tossed hair, that she is wearing soft, light blue oversized pajamas and with bare feet. "Well maybe you better change, before we leave for the office," he recommends seriously.
"You think!" she snaps, not fully awake yet. "Leo, have your driver take you to the office and I'll be there within the hour," she suggests.
"I'm driving myself today. It's Sunday, my driver isn't working today," was his answer.
Margaret does a slow burn and gives Leo a pointed look and replies. "Lucky him!"
"Hey, O.K.," holding his hands up, like he's warding her off. He hesitates and then adds, " I think you could use some coffee, you obliviously aren't really awake.I'll just go to the kitchen and start some coffee, while you get ready."
"YOU are going to make coffee?" she questions, her voice slightly questioning.
"I 'do' know my way around a kitchen," he answers with bravado, like she knows that already, while he walks past her small, cozy dining area to the kitchen.
"Oh, right, I forgot about your 'soft porn' cooking show," her voice emphasizing the word 'porn'. She turns and heads off, to her bedroom to collect her unmentionables and a skirt suit for work.She then heads back out to the bathroom, to shower and dress. While doing all this, she can hear Leo opening cabinets and running water in the kitchen.Just as she's closing the bathroom door behind her, she hears Leo belated remark, "It's not porn!"
Smiling, she shuts the bathroom door, knowing she just got a rise out of Leo. He 'would' defend his precious cooking show.
Leo is in the kitchen admiring Margaret's neat and organized kitchen. She organizes everything else, so he's not surprised at her efficient use of the small space.She has along one wall an area for cooking preparation, flanked to the left by the stove and to the right by the frig.On the opposite side of the kitchen, he's standing in front of the dishwasher, located beside the sink, where handily she keeps her coffeemaker on the counter. He notices that the wall at the far end of the small kitchen is located what must be a pantry door. The one thing that 'really' catches his eye is the row of professional steel knives, hanging on the wall, over the prep area. He steps closer and notices that they are on a magnetic bar, attached to the wall.He likes the handy way they are located above a corning-ware cutting board on the counter. Leo is speculating about the kitchen and runs his fingers over the smooth surface of the cutting board. He just loves good kitchen tools and an orderly kitchen. Taking a knife down, he tests the weight of it, before replacing it back on the bar.
At the sound of the water being shut off in the shower, he raises his voice, so Margaret can hear him, "Where did you get this great knife set, hanging on the wall?"
From the bathroom, Margaret opens the door part way so Leo can hear her answer,
"On eBay. A distributor for Rada knives sells the complete line, all the time. I even got the Rada sharpener from her. The prices she has for them on eBay is a real bargain!"
"Margaret, eBay? You gotta watch when purchasing things online!" He warns.
"Don't be such a skeptic, Leo!" She scolds back at him.
Leo Looks at the floor and slightly shaking his head, he moans to himself and wonders, ~ what 'else' has she purchased at eBay~.In the next second, bringing his head up, he asks, "So, where is the sharpener?"
"Setting on the window sill over the sink, it has two small, round metal disks on it."
Looking at the window, he is puzzled, "This small, black plastic thing?"
"Yes, it doesn't look like much, but it really works.Those knives are dangerous now," she answers trying to convince him.
"They wouldn't be dangerous to someone who knows how to use them!" He states.
Margaret, while applying her make-up, glances at the doorway using the mirror reflection, to see Leo, at the half opened door.She's not going to act shy; it's her apartment after all. He's leaning on the doorframe, studying the sharpener in his hand. Leo quickly looks up and asks a typical male question, "You ready yet?"
Margaret turns her head toward him and gives Leo one of her glares, indicating she knows he said that with out really thinking, "Leo, do I look 'ready' to go, to you?"
Leo scans her, taking inventory and sees Margaret is half dressed, consisting of bra, skirt and hose. Smiling slowly, Leo answers softly and sarcastically, "I guess you really should put on your blouse, before heading out the door."
Margaret, still glaring at Leo, snaps, "Leo, OUT!"
"O.K., I'll just go check if the coffee is done brewing," Leo suggests his retreat, still smiling.
Not the least bit embarrassed about catching Margaret half dressed, Leo causally goes back to the kitchen. Margaret watches him walk with that wonderful rolling gait of his; the one that makes you think he is walking on a ship at sea. He must've picked it up on ship, as a Navy pilot. He always looks good, especially from behind. "Mmmmm." After he's out of view, she turns back to the mirror and smiles, as she wonders, ~ Maybe Leo's not blind after all~. Her smile widens further, as she looks at herself in the mirror and speculates if Leo noticed the small pink rosebud, in the center of her bra. Sometimes, she's not totally sensible. ~ Now where's that Victoria's Secret catalog that Donna loaned me? ~
A short while later she enters the kitchen, now fully clothed, looking for the fresh coffee she smells. Leo's across the room sipping from a mug. He talks first, by remarking, "I'd love to try out those knives sometime."
After taking a mug from the mug tree and she pours herself coffee, then Margaret replies, pointing out the truth to him, "Like any day of the week we are going to get out of the office early enough, to have the chance to prepare real food. We're even working on Sunday, remember?" Giving him a look, which says, you know I'm right.
"Well, we could possibly leave early today, after we get the Crime Bill revised,." he suggests.
"Today? As in today," she asks, with wonder sounding in her voice.
"Yes, today. We could swing by the grocery and pick up some fresh vegetables on the way back," he plans.
"You want to cook here? Today," she just wants to confirm, what he's suggesting.
"Yah, Margaret, we do have to eat later today; I really want to try out your new knives," he is trying to sound logical, at this point.
"O.K. Well, I do have a stove-top wok," she replies, thinking out loud. "I prefer to steam the food in the wok; there's too much fat in frying oil."
"Great, we'll pick up some chicken breasts and some wild rice. We'll have steamed, stir fry tonight," he decides, with a smile in his voice. "I need to get chicken broth, to use in making the rice. We can also steam the vegetables with it," adding it to the shopping list in his head. They both continued sipping and enjoying their coffee, lost in thought, Margaret wrapping her mind around the possibility of a daydream come true, of Leo spending casual time in her apartment, hopefully with soft clothes and soft music. Leo's still considering which vegetables to purchase and how many of the new knives he can utilize, in the food preparation.
After turning off the coffeemaker, Leo helps Margaret on with the suit jacket, which she'd brought in with her. They both head to the front door, preparing to leave for work. Leo puts on his overcoat, while Margaret retrieves her purse from the bottom drawer of the desk, next to the door. She sets the purse on the desk, while Leo takes her coat from her and holds it up, so she then can easily put her arms in. This morning routine seems as if they're so tuned to each other, like they've done this a hundred times. They leave her apartment smiling, anticipating tonight's novel treat; the meal they'd be making and enjoying this evening.
The end
p.s. till they return tonight!
Betty Lou Riley
6th April 2003
Part 2