A/N: So hey, first of all let me say that i am completely new to publishing my stories on here so sorry if i suck. I've been reading fanfiction for like, 2 years now and writing them for about the same amount of time. However, i've only just decided to publish one because i feel like it's the least crappy one that i've written.
Secondly, I want to explain a bit about the story itself. I don't actually remember how the idea came about but throughout reading the Gallagher Girls series, Macey was always one of my favourite characters. I felt that the relationship between Macey and Preston would be a good basis for a story as it was never really a focal point in the series, leaving many details of their relationship completely up to the reader's imagination. So using my sorry excuse of an imagination, i created this.
Finally, Apologies for any grammatical errors or spelling mistakes, my laptop is the biggest spaz in the entire universe and it likes to remove words and letters and occasionally even whole paragraphs. I hope this doesn't suck too bad, and sorry for the long author's note.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters, nor do i own the Gallagher Girls series. All rights go to the genius that is Ally Carter.
Preston Winters stood in the middle of the grand hall in the Washington Hilton deep in conversation with the French Ambassador. Another night, another charity event, he thought to himself which Preston had learned to do a lot. He often kept his thoughts to himself, as he mostly found that if he spoke his mind then it would land him in either a situation of embarrassment or trouble and on some occasions-both. The conversation had ranged from politics to charity and back to politics. And then his mother came over swiftly, grabbed Preston's arm and lead him to their table which they were sharing with two of their family friends and their daughter, Melissa.
Over dinner, conversations of the usual sort took place. Politics, charity, the future. And then Deborah, Melissa's mother, turned to Preston. "Preston, you're almost twenty five now, right?"
"Yes Ma'am, that is correct" He answered politely, hoping that the conversation was not going to the usual place.
"Do you have any plans, for the future?" She continued.
He could've replied with a sarcastic response, but that would only result in unwanted satanic glares from his mother, so he composed his thoughts and replied with "Well I would like to continue with the charity work that I have been doing for the meantime but I have no set career goals at the moment" followed by his oh-so-famous campaign smile.
"Hmmmm. Alright, and what about marriage?" Deborah asked, leaving Preston in a state of confusion.
"Well nothing has been arranged and... I mean... Well there's nobody that I wish to marry right now" Preston said, pushing a thought out of his head yet again.
"Nobody? I'm sure there was a girl at one point, am I wrong?" She said, turning back to Preston's mother who just shrugged and shook her head and said "There's nobody as far as I am aware"
"Melissa, darling, surely you remember. You've spent a lot of time with Preston over the years, what was the name of his girlfriend?"
"Deborah, there wasn't..." Preston intervened,trying to close the conversation but failing dramatically.
And then, somebody in amongst the crowd of people on the other side of the room shouted "McHenry!"
"Oh of course, it was her. Where did she actually go again?" Deborah started up.
"A right troublemaker that one, you must've been glad to get rid of her." Melissa's father finally entered the conversation.
But Preston was oblivious to all of their noise. Their pointless, petty small talk was nothing to him right then. Because as he scanned the room intensely, he couldn't find her. Just her mother, so he got up from his chair and made his way over to Cynthia McHenry. She was in the middle of a conversation, but he didn't have time to wait. He tapped her on the shoulder and the woman in the white dress turned around to face the boy whom she hadn't seen for nearly 7 years.
"Preston Winters, well I never..."
"Where is she?" He asked, a tone of frustration underlying his voice.
"I beg your pardon."
"Ms McHenry, please. Where is Macey?" Her name rolled so easily off of his tongue as if he still said it everyday. It shocked him a little.
"Late. Fashionably late. As always. She's probably waiting outside of those doors right now, about to make her big entrance as she always d..." Cynthia McHenry stopped mid sentence as she noticed that her daughter stood in the entrance to the hall. "There she is now."
"I...I see that..." Preston was astounded. Macey McHenry was beautiful. He knew that. God, the whole country knew that. But having not seen her for five years, she had become even more stunning that he could ever have imagined. She stood there in a floor length, emerald evening gown with a slit up the left side. Her thick black hair was piled high on top of her head in a neat updo. For a moment, she just stood there, watching everything and everyone in the room.
Cynthia tapped Preston on the shoulder. "You may want to close your mouth darling, and for heaven's sake just go and speak to her." Preston closed his mouth and nodded subtly. He walked straight towards Macey, his thoughts running around his head like a stampede of wild animals. When she saw him, she lifted her head up slightly and looked him in the eye.
Her eyes were cold. So, so cold. They showed him a variation of emotions that he knew he had once caused.
Pain, anger,frustration, fear.
"Preston?!" She exclaimed in a whisper.
"Macey" It came out at the same volume as her exclamation had, unintentionally. "Are..Are you okay?" He asked, speaking normally now.
"Yeah, yeah i'm good. How...how are you?"
"Good, great...I'm...I'm great."
"That's..that's good." she nodded.
"God, is it me, or is it really hot in here?"
"Yeah, totally. Did you wanna go outside?"
"I was really hoping you'd say that."
They walked out of the hall silently and got into the elevator which took them up to the top floor. Macey made a beeline for the door to the roof,opened it and stepped outside. She went straight to the edge of the building and rested against the wall, looking out at the city below them. Preston copied her actions, but focused his gaze upon her instead.
The silence was comfortable, but silent all the same. Within a few minutes, Preston broke it.
"How've you been Macey?" he asked, still looking at her.
She laughed. A literal, actual, genuine laugh which left Preston feeling a little insulted. "Seriously Preston? You break up with me, leave, don't speak to me for five freaking years and then ask me how i've been? Absolute freaking classic. You know, if this politician thing doesn't work out for you then stand up comedy really is your best shot."
"Macey..."
"No. No don't you even dare."
"Macey will you just listen..."
"No Preston, I won't listen. You didn't listen to me, so why should i..."
"Dammit Macey just stop for five seconds and let me speak" Preston shouted, which scared Macey into shutting up. "I'm sorry, and I get that you won't want to hear this but I really am sorry. I know I was an idiot for everything I did and I still don't believe it."
"Yeah, well you better. Because it happened. And I'll accept your apology but I'm over it Preston."
"How over it?" He asked, stepping closer.
"What'd you mean?"
"How over it are you?"
"Two other relationships over it." Macey rolled her eyes, brushing off her comment like it was nothing.
"Ouch. That hurt."
"So did waking up one day to find a note that says you're gone and not coming back. I've taken actual bullets less painful. Twice." She said bitterly, looking away.
"Yeah, I heard about that, are you alright?"
She pulled down the strap covering her right shoulder, exposing a scar. "The other one's on my left thigh. It's all fun and games over at the Secret Service."
"It certainly looks that way." Preston stepped back a little as Macey pulled the strap of her dress back up. "Back to the other conversation. Did your other relationships end badly?"
"Seeing as I ended both of them, not really. But then again, it's not exactly your place to ask is it?"
"No, no I suppose not."
"I wasn't happy with the first guy. And the second asked me to marry him."
"Oh god forbid."
"I didn't think it was right to marry somebody who I wasn't completely in love with. Sorry if you disagree."
"No. No actually, I said the same thing to somebody today. It was during the usual 'do you think you'll settle down soon?' conversations that regularly take place over dinner. You know the sort."
"All too well."
"And then they brought up the subject of my exes"
"Oooh so it's plural now?"
"No. Actually it's not."
"You mean to say...?"
"Nobody since you. Nobody before you either."
"Damn Preston. You must have felt so trapped in our relationship if there was nobody for you to run to after you broke up with me."
"Macey,that wasn't why I left."
"WELL WHY DID YOU LEAVE?" Macey yelled hysterically, a tear spilling from her eye.
"I felt like I was dragging you down. I felt like I was holding you back from actually doing what you wanted with your career. I didn't want you to get sucked back into the life of a politician. I didn't want you to be stuck as just the wife of another political figure. And I knew how much you hated commitment. So I left before I did something stupid like tell you how much i'm in love with you and ask you to marry me."
"Why wasn't that in past tense?"
"What?"
"You said love, not loved. It's not in past tense, why?" Macey asked abruptly.
"Why do you think, you're the genius?"
"You weren't holding me back, god. I wish you'd just told me and we could've talk this through instead of...this."
"It's too late isn't it. To fix things."
"I think so. I don't know. Maybe."
"Could we...try? Try and make it work?"
"I don't know. I don't know how I feel anymore, it's been five years Preston. I hope, I really do hope that I..." He cut her off with a kiss.
It was desperate, needy. All of the anger and pain of the last five years built up and thrown into a bundle. Macey's back was pressed up against the stone wall, which was cold because of the December night. She shivered, and pulled away.
"Macey?" Preston asked, worriedly.
"There's something. Of course there's something, it's 's always, always you. But i don't know if I can do it again Preston, I really don't. You hurt me. A lot. And you've had five years to find me and apologise and did you?"
"Macey, please.."
"I have to go. Goodbye Preston." She ran back inside and got into the elevator. She wiped her eyes but the tears wouldn't stop flowing, causing her makeup to run. Macey considered going to tell her mother that she was leaving, but decided against it and went straight outside to her car which took her on a long silent journey back to her apartment, hoping to forget the evening she'd just had.
A/N: Yeah so it sucks, I know. But thanks for reading though. Idk if/when I'll put the next chapter up, because of the suckiness but yeah...