An Outing at the Fair
At exactly six in the morning on the Saturday before Labor Day, Elizabeth Bartlet ran into her parents' room with a gleeful squeal. "Daddy! Daddy! It's state fair day!"
Jed and Abbey loved their oldest child. They really did. But really, no one is that lovable before the sun is above the trees on a Saturday. Jed groaned and rolled over to the sight of brown eyes crinkled by a big smile. That smile was missing a couple of teeth, which the ten year old was extremely proud of. "Hi there kiddo," Jed said quietly, his voice hoarse from sleep.
"Time to get up, Daddy! You promised Ellie and me pancakes before we go to the fair!" Liz exclaimed.
Abbey sat up and whispered, "Lizzie, keep your voice down, please. You'll wake the…" A loud cry wailed through the room. "…baby…" Abbey dropped her exhausted face in her hands for a moment before groaning quietly and pushing her hair back. "Okay, Zoey. I hear you, baby girl." She got out of bed and shuffled over to the eight-month-old's crib. The infant quieted down as soon as Abbey picked her up.
Liz walked over to her mother and baby sister. "Mom?"
"Yes, baby doll?" Abbey replied, bouncing Zoey on her hip.
"How come you call me 'baby doll' but you call Zoey 'baby girl?'" Liz asked curiously.
Abbey smiled over Liz's head at Jed as he hauled himself out of bed. She returned her attention to Elizabeth. "Because, Lizzie, when you were born, your Aunt Katie said that you looked just like a perfect little doll. So you're my baby doll. And when Ellie was really little, do you remember? She almost never cried. Always smiling and quiet and happy. So she's my sweet girl. And now since Zoey is the last of our girls, she's the baby. Baby girl," Abbey explained. Zoey had gone back to sleep, so Abbey put her gently back in the crib.
Liz peeked over the side of the crib to watch her sleeping sister. "Is she really going to be my last sister?" she asked, a hint of disappointment in her voice.
"Yes," Jed answered firmly.
Abbey chuckled. "Yes. The three of you are pretty much all we can handle."
Elizabeth shrugged and went back over to her father. "Daddy, can we have pancakes now?"
Jed sighed, regretting this particular promise to his girls. "Sure, Lizzie. Why don't you and Ellie get dressed for the day, and I'll meet you in the kitchen. I'm going to take a quick shower first."
Liz ran out of the room. Abbey called after her, "Jeans and tshirts today! No dresses!" She wasn't sure if her daughter had heard her, but she wasn't too bothered. "I'll probably have to make her change about six times before you can leave anyway."
Jed turned on the shower and called over the sound, "You sure you don't want to come to the fair today?"
Abbey closed her eyes and resisted the urge to groan audibly. "No, Jed, I don't want to go to the fair. I have charts to finish, and I want to spend my one day off with my baby, not with pigs and beer-swilling farmers competing in a tractor pull."
"Ah yes, that's right. My city wife doesn't like the rural activities of us lowly farmers, does she?" he teased.
Abbey walked into the bathroom and stood with her hands on her hips, shouting at her husband in the shower, "I am not from the city. I'm from the suburbs. And you're no rural farmer, Jethro. Your family has owned this farm and its acres and acres of land for the better part of three centuries. Your father was a headmaster of a private prep school. Those state fair people are no more your people than they are mine."
Jed poked his head out of the sliding glass shower door. "But they are my people, babe! I represent them and their children."
"Oh yes, how could I forget your lofty civic role as member of the State Board of Education," she replied sarcastically.
"It's an important position!" he insisted.
She smiled. "Yes it is. As a tenured professor, you know more than most how important education is."
"If you wanna come join me, I'm sure I could teach you a little something…"
"Tempting, but I have to feed Zoey. And you have pancakes to make, mister."
Jed turned off the shower and stepped out, accepting the towel Abbey handed him. "When the hell did I promise pancakes?"
Abbey smirked. "Yesterday when you told Liz that you'd make them if she could get up on time. And look how well that bribery worked out. The whole house was awake at six. Great going."
"I'm sorry about that. But we'll be out of your hair that much sooner." He leaned over and gave her a soft kiss. "Good morning, by the way," he murmured.
His hot breath on her gave Abbey a small shiver. "Good morning," she whispered back. "Getting woken up by the kids does have its downsides, huh?"
"Mmmm," he hummed as he pressed another kiss to her lips.
Far too soon, Zoey woke up again, crying. Abbey took a small step back. "She's hungry. Go get dressed. Save me some pancakes for later?" She smiled and pushed her husband's wet hair back out his face.
He nodded. "You got it, babe."
Abbey left Jed to get dressed and went downstairs to get Zoey's bottle out of the fridge. She checked on Ellie and Liz on her way back up. They were both excitedly getting dressed. Little five year old Ellie saw her mother walk by her bedroom and ran after her.
"Mommy!"
"Yes, sweet girl?" Abbey said, turning to see Ellie skidding through the hallway, her shirt over her head but not her arms and only one sock dangling off her foot.
"Mommy, are you coming to the fair?"
"No, I'm going to stay here with Zoey. And I have some work to do."
"Bring Zoey with us. Do work later," Ellie begged, the moisture of tears shining in her eyes.
Abbey helped her put her shirt on correctly, smoothed her blonde curls back, and explained, "I have to work, sweetheart. Because if I don't do it today, I have to stay late at the hospital later in the week. And isn't it better when I can be home for dinner more than one day a week?"
"But I want you to come to the fair!"
"Ellie, you're going to have so much fun with your daddy and Liz. And when you come home, I want to hear all about it, okay?"
She sniffed back tears and nodded sadly. Ellie went back to her room to finish getting dressed. Abbey went to feed Zoey.
Jed, wearing a Notre Dame polo shirt and a pair of very nice fitting jeans, put his hand on her arm as he passed her in the doorway. He saw the smile on her face, and that satisfied him. They had recently discussed Ellie's attachment to Abbey and how to deal with it. This day at the fair, aside from giving Abbey a quiet day with Zoey, was a way of getting Ellie to spend some time with Jed. Hopefully Liz would help bridge the gap between them.
An hour later, the girls were stuffed full of pancakes and chatting together about what they wanted to do at the fair that day. Jed listened to them happily while he washed the dishes. Abbey came down with Zoey in her arms. She put the baby in the high chair with some cheerios and made her way to the plate of pancakes her husband had saved for her.
"These are fantastic, babe," she complimented.
"I'm glad everyone liked them," he replied. Jed turned to face her as he dried the frying pan. He paused for a moment and smiled. He walked over to stand behind her chair. He pushed her hair over one shoulder and pressed a kiss to the back of her neck, eliciting a happy hum from her.
Liz and Ellie watched their parents curiously. They had seen them do things like this many times before, but this seemed different somehow.
"Your hair's wet," Jed commented, whispering in her ear.
"I know. I took a shower and washed it."
"Now I wanna take you back upstairs."
Abbey's nose wrinkled as she laughed, pushing him away. She was very aware that her wet hair was a huge turn on for her husband, but she really hadn't intended to get him all hot and bothered without following through.
Jed sighed and put the rest of the dishes away. When he was done, he turned to Liz and Ellie. "Okay, who's ready to go to the fair?" Both the girls raised their hands excitedly. "Then let's get going!"
Abbey and Zoey waved goodbye to the rest of the family from the front door as the blue Chevy Caprice drove away. She went back inside, put Zoey in the playpen, and got to work in the peace and quiet of her empty home.
The girls were already having a wonderful time with their father. Neither of them had ever been to the Deerfield state fair before, and they were bursting with questions for Jed.
"Will there be animals?"
"How about rides?"
"What are we going to eat for lunch?"
"Can we see a show?"
"Are there going to be games?"
Jed answered as best he could. This was the first time he had been to the fair in years. He and Abbey had been in Boston, London, or Notre Dame every year during the fair since they had known each other. The last time he had been to the state fair, he had been in high school. And that was sixteen years ago. The time had certainly flown by. He had gotten married, gotten his PhD, and was now the father of three and a tenured professor at an Ivy League university. Jed glanced in the rearview mirror at his daughters. Sixteen years had changed everything. And he couldn't be happier.
They got to the fair soon after it opened. Ellie ran forward. Liz kept ahold of Jed's hand, having grown out of the fearlessness of a young child. She was more apprehensive of new experiences.
"Lizzie, why don't you go with Ellie?" Jed suggested.
"Are you sure?" she asked tentatively, looking up at her father.
Jed smiled. "Yep. Just stay where I can see you. Figure out which rides you want to go on. We'll do all the carnival stuff before lunch, then the shows and the petting zoo after. Okay?"
Liz's face broke into a wide, toothless grin. "Okay!" She dropped his hand and chased after Ellie.
The three of them started with the ferris wheel so they could look out over the whole fair. Jed had to keep his arm around Ellie's waist so she wouldn't lean over too far. Liz had a serene smile on her face. Of all three of his daughters, Jed could see that Liz was the most level headed. Ellie was extremely emotional, and Zoey was a bit of an attention-seeker. But Jed had a special relationship with his oldest child. She had been extremely close to Abbey when she was small, but once Abbey started med school, he spent most of the time with Liz alone. They had developed a very strong bond. Liz trusted him in a way the others didn't. Ellie was all Abbey's, and Zoey, in the first few months of her life, seemed equally attached to both her parents.
Liz looked over to her dad and smiled a little wider. Having this time alone with him, even with Ellie sitting between them, was her favorite. Maybe if she asked nicely, Dad would take her to the movies next weekend when Mom could stay home with Ellie and Zoey.
After the ferris wheel, they went on the train around the fairgrounds, ventured into the funhouse—during which Ellie giggled uncontrollably at the distorting mirrors—and played on the bumper cars. Liz had wanted to go with Jed, but Ellie was too little to go by herself, so the sisters went together and Jed went alone. Candidly, he had to admit that he probably had more fun than his daughters did.
For lunch, they made their way to the rows and rows of food stalls. Liz wanted a hot dog, Ellie wanted pizza, and Jed—away from Abbey's watchful eye—treated himself to fried chicken. They finished eating and walked toward the petting zoo until something caught Elizabeth's nose.
"Dad, what's that smell?" she asked.
Ellie sniffed the air. "Oooo Daddy it smells good! Can we have some?"
Jed knew exactly what they were talking about. The dreaded…funnel cake. Abbey would have had a fit. But Abbey wasn't there. "Of course we can! Funnel cake is a very important part of any state fair experience!"
Within minutes, everyone's faces were covered in powdered sugar. The happy noises and giddy smiles were enough to convince Jed that he had made the right choice.
Eventually they did make their way to the 4-H booths. Ellie fell in love with a prize pig while Liz was convinced that they needed to get goats for the Bartlet Farm. At least Jed was able to say no to those requests. Not only would Abbey actually kill him for bringing home barnyard animals, but he had no desire to have anything messier than three daughters in his ancestral home.
After physically dragging a crying Ellie away from the pig, he took the girls to watch the tractor pull. Unfortunately, that didn't end any better. A drunk farmer-type spilled beer on Ellie's head. Her blonde curls stuck to her face as she sobbed, trying desperately to wipe the stinging amber liquid out of her eyes.
"HEY!" Jed shouted at the oblivious, offending man.
The man turned, readjusting his trucker hat on his cool mullet haircut. His sleeveless tshirt advertised a macho Ford truck and his acid wash jeans barely buttoned over his overly round belly. "What?"
"You just spilled your beer all over my daughter."
The man just looked down at sobbing Ellie, huddled in her big sister's comforting arms. "Oh," he said simply.
Jed could feel the anger rising in his face. "Aren't you going to apologize?"
The man just shrugged and turned his attention back to the tractor pull.
That was more than Jed could handle. And at five foot eight and only one hundred and sixty pounds, Jed Bartlet pushed the man's shoulder and punched him hard in the jaw. But picking a fight with a man twice his size ended exactly the way anyone expected it to. He was punched in the eye with enough force to knock him back in the bleachers.
Liz screamed and put her hands protectively around Ellie. When her father stood up again to fight back, she stepped in front of him. "Dad! We're going! Right now!"
Jed's blood cooled enough to see the fear in her face and hear Ellie's sobs. He picked up his younger daughter and held her close. "You're right, Lizzie. Let's go." The Bartlets made their way out of the arena and back toward the carnival.
"Dad," Liz said after they had maneuvered around the crowds, "should we get ice for your eye? And maybe a napkin for Ellie?"
"That's probably a good idea, Liz, thank you."
They went back to the food stands to get a bag of ice and some wet napkins to make Ellie's face a bit less sticky. Jed put Ellie on his lap and gently wiped her hair and her skin. Her breaths were hitched, but at least she had stopped crying.
"Daddy, your face is getting big and red," Ellie noted.
"Yeah, it's going to do that," Jed agreed.
Liz put the ice on his emerging black eye. "Keep the ice on it. You'll feel better."
Jed smiled. "You sound just like your mother."
"She's going to be so mad at you, Dad," Liz informed him.
He chuckled. "Probably, yeah. But as long as you both are alright, she won't mind too much."
"I wish Mommy was here," Ellie said quietly.
Jed frowned. "Lizzie, why don't you go on one more ride?"
"Really?"
"Yeah. How about that roller coaster?"
"By myself?"
He nodded. "We'll be right here. Come straight back when you're done, and don't talk to strangers."
"Okay. Thanks Dad!" Liz grinned widely and ran across the way to the big coaster she had been eyeing since they arrived.
Once they were left alone, Jed pulled Ellie close to him and pressed a kiss to her temple. "I'm sorry your mommy isn't here, Ellie, and I'm sorry you didn't have fun today. I tried, honey, I really did."
Ellie looked up at him with her big hazel eyes. "I did have fun, Daddy," she assured him. "But when I cry, I want Mommy because she sings to me and makes me feel better."
"Would it be okay if I sing to you?"
She nodded and curled up in his embrace.
"Okay, what song do you like?"
"Mommy sings 'The Way You Look Tonight.'"
Jed smiled, glad it was a song he knew. He knew all of Sinatra. "Someday, when you're awfully low, I will feel a glow just thinking of you, and the way you look tonight," he sang softly. Ellie smiled and quietly hummed along with him.
When he finished the song, Ellie gave a big smile and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Daddy. I'm all better now. But your eye is really puffy."
"I guess I should put the ice back on it, or else Liz and Mommy are going to yell at me."
Before they knew it, Liz had returned. But she wasn't full of smiles as Jed had expected.
"Lizzie, was the roller coaster fun?"
"Yeah, but I don't feel so good, Dad," she moaned.
Jed noticed she was looking a little pale. Perhaps sending Elizabeth on a roller coaster less than an hour after funnel cake wasn't the best idea. "I think it's time we went home, girls."
He carried Ellie to the car. Liz shuffled along beside him. Shortly before reaching the family Chevy, however, Elizabeth promptly threw up all the delicious fair food she had eaten earlier.
Jed cleaned her up the best he could. Ellie, surprisingly, watched from a safe distance but didn't seem at all disturbed by her sister's vomit. Finally, they were all able to get into the car. The drive home didn't take too long, thankfully. Liz was curled up in the back, still feeling miserable. Ellie seemed better than earlier, but she was far too quiet. Jed was doing his best to drive with one eye, considering one had swelled shut. He could just imagine the horrified look on Abbey's face when he and their daughters came home in this state.
His prediction was absolutely correct. When Jed and the girls walked in the door in their subdued manner, Abbey came to greet them. Upon seeing their faces, she reacted accordingly.
"Oh my god! What happened to all of you?!"
Liz answered for the group. "Ellie got spilled on, Dad got in a fight, and I threw up. But we're fine, Mom, I promise."
Abbey wasn't sure which family member required her attention first. Jed's face was red and swollen, but he was an adult. A stupid adult, but an adult nonetheless. Liz didn't look great, but she would probably be alright. Abbey could examine her later. But Ellie was suspiciously quiet. "Alright. Liz, go take a shower in my room. Ellie, I'm going to give you a bath. And Jed…"
"Yes?"
She sighed. "There's a bag of peas in the freezer. Put that on your eye until I can look at it later."
Jed went into the kitchen and Abbey took her girls upstairs. Liz's voice was still a little weak, but she started telling her mother all about their day.
"We went on the ferris wheel and the train and the bumper cars, and we got to pet the animals. Oh, Mom? Can we get some animals for the farm?" she pleaded.
"We've got the horses. That's all we need. Maybe when you're older, we can discuss getting you a pet of some kind," Abbey reasoned.
That seemed to satisfy Liz. She went to shower and wash her hair. Ellie and Abbey went into the other bathroom. Once they were alone, Abbey tried to get her to open up.
"Did you have a nice day with your dad, sweet girl?"
Ellie nodded.
"Even though I wasn't there, you still had fun?"
The little girl smiled as she got into the bath water. "We had the best day, Mommy."
"You did? What was your favorite part?"
Ellie thought for a moment, trying to pick just one. "I liked the funhouse mirrors. It made Daddy look really tall. And my head was all stretched!" she giggled.
"That does sound fun."
She continued, "And we saw all the animals. Liz liked the goats, but I liked the pigs. They're pink and soft and cute. Can we get one, Mommy?"
"Liz just asked if we could get an animal. Didn't you hear me say no?"
Ellie frowned. "Yes, but I thought it might be different if I asked."
"Well it's not. What did you guys eat?"
"I had pizza and Daddy got us fun cake but said you'd get mad."
"You mean funnel cake?"
"Yeah I think so. It was really good. There was powder and it got all over my face. Dad wiped it off with a napkin and let me lick it."
Abbey pursed her lips to keep her from getting angry. She'd yell at Jed later. No need to take it out on their daughter. "What spilled on you, Ellie? Why is your hair so sticky?" she asked, pouring warm water over the long blonde curls.
"I don't know. We were at the tractor pull and this giant man had a cup with foamy brown stuff and it went all over me. Daddy wanted him to say sorry, but he didn't, so Daddy hit him. But the giant man hit Daddy in the eye and Liz made us leave. Then Daddy dried my face and sent Liz on the roller coaster, and he sang to me like you do, and then I felt all better. Until we went back to the car and Liz threw up."
After Ellie's long-winded description, Abbey was able to piece together the day's events. Some farmer spilled beer on her daughter and her husband tried to pick a fight. She smirked, trying to imagine her Jethro in a fist fight. He'd only gotten violent twice before, as far as she knew. It was always in defense of someone else. And it never ended well for him. Her darling husband was a thinker and a lover, certainly not a fighter.
Liz knocked on the door as Ellie was getting wrapped in a warm, fluffy towel. "Mom? Dad woke Zoey up from her nap and he doesn't have the frozen peas on his face like you told him to."
Abbey groaned in exasperation. "Why don't you girls get dressed in something comfortable and play in your rooms until dinner, okay? I've gotta go have a talk with your dad."
The girls did as they were told and Abbey marched into her bedroom to find her husband bouncing the baby on his knee.
"What the hell are you doing?"
"Playing with my daughter. I haven't seen her all day," Jed replied, punctuating the sentiment with a big kiss on Zoey's round cheek. She giggled happily.
Abbey frowned. "Jed, she just went down for her nap before you got home. She'll be keeping us up all night now."
Jed checked his watch. "I'm sorry, babe. I didn't realize what time it was."
"Put her down and put something on your damn eye."
He followed her instructions. She bustled around the room, trying to get Zoey to settle back to her nap. Jed watched her with a small smile. She was so capable, so efficient and beautifully adept at everything she did. Watching her care for their children gave him such joy.
"I let you all loose for five hours and everyone comes home destroyed. Liz is sick, Ellie is traumatized, you've been maimed," Abbey muttered.
Jed caught her last few words and frowned. "Are you saying you don't trust me with our children?"
Abbey turned to face him. "Of course not. But you couldn't have just had a nice day at the fair? Did you have to get into a fight and feed them junk?"
"There's no point going to the fair if they don't get to eat funnel cake."
"I thought we agreed on no sugar?"
"That's your rule. And when we're not in the house, I figure they can have anything. Within reason."
"Well all that does is undermine my authority, Jed. And what the hell did you do to Ellie? Did she get covered in beer?"
"That was an accident. I took care of it."
She gestured to his face and scoffed, "Yes, I can see that."
"Now that's not fair, Abigail. I did the best I could. You're the one who didn't want to come!" Jed had been trying not to raise his voice but to no avail.
Now she was really getting mad. She yelled, "Are you blaming me for your black eye!?"
"Well you're certainly not helping!" he shouted back.
Abbey paused for a moment, letting her anger settle back down in her chest. "Then let me help," she told him, her tone softer than it had been before. "Lie down and let me take a look."
Begrudgingly, Jed leaned back onto the pillows of their bed. Abbey came to sit beside him. Her gentle touch ghosted over his skin. She put a bit too much pressure on his injury, causing him to jerk away and hiss in pain.
"Sorry," she said, completely sincere. She let her fingers wander from the affected area and down to his jawline.
Jed gave a small smile. "I like it when we play doctor."
Her lips twitched upward. "I don't like when I have to be a doctor to you." She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Do you want to tell me what happened?"
He wrapped his arms around her, keeping her close to him. She curled up beside him, resting her head on his chest, just like he liked. "This idiot spilled his beer all over Ellie, and I told him to apologize. And when he didn't, I hit him in the jaw. Then he hit me back."
"Well I'm glad nothing more serious happened. I didn't see any fractures. But you're going to have a pretty nasty shiner for a while, Jethro."
Jed sighed. "Don't call me that," he muttered.
"Don't argue with your doctor."
He chuckled, causing her body to shake along with his. "How about next year we all go to the fair together?"
"We'll see if any of our children want to go again, seeing as this was such a pleasant experience for all involved," she replied sarcastically.
"Is this what you imagined when you agreed to marry an economist, honey?" he teased.
"Oh don't you worry. I knew exactly what I was getting with you, babe."
"Damaged goods?"
Abbey rolled her eyes. "Something like that. But I guess I love you anyway."
"Valde te amo," he whispered reverently.
She nudged him. "Jed, you can't start romancing me in Latin when I still have to go make dinner. Save it for later."
"Utique!"
Abbey got up laughing. "Stop it!"
"Numquam," he countered, standing up.
She grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him hard on the mouth.
"Ow!" he shouted, jerking away in pain. Her nose had pressed just a little too close to his injury.
"See? That's what you get!" Abbey walked away with a triumphant grin.
Jed almost followed but instead threw a pillow at her back. She turned around with a look of surprise. He just laughed, deciding that no matter what had happened at the fair, Abbey made everything worth it. She made everything worth it. After she left to go check on Ellie and Liz, Jed crossed over to Zoey's crib.
Her big blue eyes were wide awake, not surprisingly. She smiled brightly up at him. Jed whispered to his youngest daughter, "When you get older, Zo, you'll get to come to the fair and see how much fun it is. Don't tell your mother, but she would love it too. The next time we go, we'll all go together. A real Bartlet outing at the fair. And we'll have a great time, all five of us. Because I love you all very much, and I just want you all to have fun and be happy. Can you do that for me, Zo? Can you be happy for Daddy?"
Zoey gurgled merrily in her crib. Abbey, meanwhile, had watched from the doorway and felt tears well up in her eyes. No matter what happened, at the fair or anywhere else, Jed Bartlet would love and care for his family. And that was what she had married. Damaged goods, sure, but he was the best husband, best father, best man that anyone could ever ask for.