Presidents are humans too
Disclaimer: I (sadly) don't own Designated Survivor
A/N: Even presidents have their bad days. This is set after my other story "Needed" but before "I have an announcement from the president and the first lady" you guys should really read at least "Needed" to understand much of what's happening here.
The talk between Tom and Alex was inspired by an article which I don't remember but will post the link on the bio when I find it, it's amazing.
The prompt was by an Anon in tumblr.
Enjoy!
When Tom got up in the morning he noticed two things, first his wife wasn't there, this puzzled him at first, but then he remembered that she wasn't there in general, it was a little under a month since she had moved to Camp David, the second thing he did notice was the fact that his head felt twice its weight. He once again brushed it off as not sleeping well; it's not as if he could those past couple days since he came back from Camp David. It was as if the days weren't passing by, away from her. And he wouldn't even mention all the dreams he got that kept him awake all the time. He was thankful the nightmares were gone his guilt would have overtaken him at this point otherwise, but he found out that happy dreams of a big family laughing and playing in the back yard weren't much better either. They left him burning up with a mighty passion; he wanted to get to it, to make the dream a reality but he knew there were too many variables in the way that would possibly deny them this.
He tried to brush off those thoughts from his head though and tried to get up, his feet were a bit shaky under him but he tried again, those days going to work was his therapy, he would have gone mad if he had stayed in the residence any longer. The pictures of Alex with him, with their kids, alone, all those would drive him to a very dark place he was scared of going. It scares his mother and it scares Eva too, not to mention it scares his kids and would infuriate Alex if she ever finds out. Getting up proved to be more of a challenge, he had to gather all his will to get up and walk to the bathroom, looking himself on the mirror almost scared him off of his feet, his skin looked paler than usually and his hair were matted to his scalp. He looked like a ghost, with his glassy eyes and pale skin. He turned his eyes away and took his toothbrush; it was nothing, probably just a cold that was what he was saying to himself. After all one of the perks of being president he no longer had to remember the dosage of his flu shot the physician of the president takes care of all of that. And he was glad because he was absolutely horrible at that.
He got dressed trying not to look at himself in the mirror again and sneaked out of the residence, he knew that if either his mother or mother in law saw him like that they would be furious and forbid him from going to the oval. His escape was successful and he managed to get to the oval pretty fast and without anyone finding out that he was a step away from collapsing. He grunted his good morning to Wyatt who didn't really questioned why his boss looked like crap, he liked that about the kid. Sitting on his chair behind the resolute desk and looking around the office all he could think was how many presidents had actually passed out in there before.
Kendra had no clue why Seth had her reading the president's state of the union, she didn't really care about the politics but here was her boyfriend pacing up and down in her office waiting for her input.
"It's good" she says putting the speech down on her desk. Seth froze on his steps "Good? Just good? What did you thing about the B-2 section?" Kendra looked at him puzzled
"It won't get us in jail?" Seth's eyes grew twice its size "You don't even care what's in it!"
"Seth I'm lawyer, I'm not paid to care about politics I am paid to care about whether or not the president and his family are in legal trouble. I'm here to tell you guys that what you want is legal or illegal, I don't care about the president talking about Climate Change I would like to see those things enacted yeah, but this speech it's your turf!" she got up from behind her desk and took Seth's face in her hands, "Baby it's a great speech, if the president likes it then that's all that matters, he'll have to give it." She placed a soft kiss on his lips; the state of the union was driving the entire west wing mental. It was five days away and everyone was at each other's throats. Emily was pissed off because the president was unfocused and Lyor was pissed off because the president was unfocused and the president was unfocused because his wife wasn't there. Kendra found herself wishing for the week to be over about six times more than in a normal week and about three days earlier.
"Why don't we head for the oval, we have the senior staff meeting in ten" she says taking the speech from the desk on one hand and wrapping her free arm around Seth's arm.
The senior staff meeting was torturous, Tom just stayed seated for the entire thing, fearing that he might collapse or puke or both if he stood up. He brushed it off to Emily as a simple cold but he now was feeling much worse for this to be just a cold. He started feeling the room spinning around him and his vision became extremely blurred, he reached with his fingers to his neck to check his heartbeat and he felt his vein pulsing in a very fast pace, his breath was so much faster than usually and he felt as if someone had put him on a chokehold. Trying to calm his breathing didn't help, so he got up and tried to walk to the door, trying to call Wyatt failed his voice wouldn't come out no matter how much he was trying. He barely managed to get up from his chair before he started feeling lightheaded and black spots started filling his vision. He could barely say anything before everything around him went black and he fell to the ground.
Kendra walked to her office she had finally calmed Seth enough to leave him alone in his office, she tried everywhere to find her notepad but couldn't, she was sure she had it in the oval office but right now it was gone. Cursing herself she got up and walked back to the oval office.
"Hey Wyatt the president is in?" she asks the young man at the desk outside the office, "I think he's in his private study, want me to check?" he asks, "Nah, I'll just sneak in get my notepad real quick and leave alright?" Wyatt nodes and Kendra walks to the door smiling, if anyone had told her few years back that she would be now in a position to just walk in the oval office she would have told them to go seek medical help. But here she was knocking in the oval office door. When the president didn't respond she turned around smiling to Wyatt, "He's in his office apparently" she said and opened the door slightly sneaking in.
Kendra closed the door and turned around, she saw her notepad right there on the coffee table and she went to get it, that's when something grabbed her attention, the phone was on the floor and the president's favorite picture of his wife and kids was few inches away from it. She leaves the notepad back on the coffee table and walks closer; she was almost at the desk when she noticed the chair had fallen down as well. She looked on the floor behind the desk and felt her breath getting caught in her throat. The president was lying on the ground, right there, unconscious almost lifeless.
She screamed for help and just run to his side kneeling by him trying to find a pulse, she didn't realize but there were tears down her cheeks, and her voice wasn't more than a whisper, she noticed the small bright red button, she presses it three times, and in seconds Mike with other five agents barged in the room.
"Mr. President!" Mike yelled, "Mike, he's unconscious" Kendra managed to get out the words between short breaths.
"Is he?" he asks, he can't finish the sentence so he just goes silent.
"He has a fever! A high one too!" she says, Mike breaths out visibly.
"Go get the physician!" he barks out the order to another one of the agents that followed him in the room.
"Sorry for using the button" she whispered lowering her head, she realized that she had grabbed the president's hand and was holding it tight.
"Tom!" Emily pushed a couple agents trying to block her way and ran to Kendra's side. "Mike we should move him to the couch, can't have him on the floor" she said. Kendra was lost, this was scaring her, even if she didn't want to admit it, but it was.
Mike nodded and with the help of a couple more agents carried the president on one of the couches in the room. Kendra and Emily pulled the chairs closer and sat there, Kendra kept griping his hand while Emily was mindlessly combing her hand through his hair.
"It's just the flu right?" Emily asks her, her voice is soft and almost gets chocked from a sob she was trying to contain. "Yeah, just a flu." The president stirred and scared them both. He tried to open his eyes but the light blinded him and he closed them again.
"Wh't happ'nd" his voice was slurred and slow, Kendra could see the smile on Emily's face that formed, but the tears rolling down her face forbade her from speaking.
"You are running a fever, probably got the flu and fainted. You don't remember?" Kendra asks, Tom tries hard and finally opens his eyes and focuses his sight on her, "Can't be flu Ken, doc gave me the shot." Kendra looked at Emily and then Mike, they all had gotten flu shots few days ago but the president was in Camp David at the time. Neither of them had time to respond when the doctor came in, Kendra had no idea what was his name but his smug face made her really furious.
"I'll need the room." He said, Kendra noticed that Emily was throwing daggers at him. "We aren't leaving if that's what you want." She helps Kendra up and both of them walk to the couch on the other side while the doctor starts examining the man across from them.
Kendra decided to stay behind and help the president up to the residence until Alex came back from Camp David, Emily wasn't sure if she should call the older woman, in the end she did and Alex just got in the first car, she still wouldn't be back for another hour, maybe an hour and a half depending on the traffic. Tom was still dizzy and his fever although lower than before was still high. The doctor had given him a few things for the fever and the coughing and left declaring it as just a flu, nothing life threatening, Emily was so furious that Kendra could hear the muffled screams coming from her office for minutes before the man got out and slammed the door. She imagines the doctor was either fired or demoted, both actions she can live with.
"Come on Mr. President, let me help you up." Tom looks up at Kendra with an amused look on his face. "Now you call me Mr. President?"
"It's the oval office sir." Tom smiled and took her hand getting up, he was a bit unsteady on his feet all the way up to the residence but with Mike on one side and her on the other he managed to make it to his bed without a problem.
"Mike can you get me my state of the union speech? I wanna go over some things while I'm lying here." Mike nodded and left. Kendra helped him with the covers; looking around the room looked a mess "I think Alex might actually kill you if she sees this room." Tom who was lying on the bed propped up by at least five pillows smiled mischievously "Well she's messier than me." He responded. His voice was deeper than usual and he started coughing as soon as he finished his sentence.
"Well I am tiding up and you better wish I don't tell her you lied!"
Kendra managed to make the room look presentable easier than she thought, she looked at the bed to find Tom asleep, the papers on his lap fell all over the bed, his glasses on his nose were dangerously low, she smiled and looked at the clock Alex should be here any moment now.
She barely finished her thought when the door opened and Alex walked in, she looked so much healthier than the last time she saw him. The older woman walked straight to the bed a small smile formed on her lips when she saw Tom sleeping. She gently removed his glasses and placed them on the bedside table next to him, she tried to get the papers from his lap and the bed when Tom woke up, he grabbed her wrist, opening one of his eyes smirking.
"Thief." He tells her pulling her closer.
"I learn from you." She kisses his cheek making Tom to smile wider, he closed his eyes "I still feel like crap." He whined to Alex who bit her lips so she wouldn't laugh at him.
"I'll take care of you, just let me walk Kendra out alright?" the president nodded still refusing to open his eyes "Bye Kendra!" he whispered.
"Feel better sir." She took her things from the couch and followed Alex out of the bedroom. The two of them stood there awkwardly not really sure what to do or say around each other.
"Emily told me it is just the flu, that Dr. Hamon forgot to give Tom the shot and he got the flu from someone." Alex said, Kendra wasn't sure how to react to that news. "I suspected that much. His fever is down and thankfully hasn't felt nausea or dizziness again." Alex smiled and wrapped her arms around the younger lawyer. "Thank you so much for staying with him till now." She whispered. Kendra felt the tears filling her eyes some even escaping.
"I found him in the oval, he looked so sick! How could I not have noticed that? We had a staff meeting just minutes before!" Alex pulled back and took Kendra's crying face on her hands "Listen to me, my husband is a stubborn man, even if you had known that he was sick he would deny it till he was blue in the face, I am just glad you were there to call for help." Kendra looked at the blue eyes of the woman in front of her, she just noticed how red and glassy they looked, the dried tears on her cheeks.
"It was a miracle he didn't hit his head on the desk or the cabinet behind him" Kendra said, Alex smiled and pulled her back into another hug.
"Thank you." She whispered before releasing her.
"I have to go back to work." Kendra wiped the tears from her face , Alex smiled and turned towards the door.
"And I have to take care of the man baby inside these doors."
She walked in, Tom was still awake, his hands were crossed over his chest and he looked straight to the ceiling above him.
"Tom? Darling what are you doing?" she asked him walking closer and sitting on the bed next to him.
"I'm thinking Alex, I am thinking." Alex took off her shoes and coat getting under the covers with him.
"What about?" he turns to her looking with his blue eyes slightly hazy "This job I got is the most important job on the planet, so many great men had it before me and I can't stop thinking all of them have puked in this bedroom at one moment or another." Alex looked at her husband puzzled, he always becomes loopy when he has the flu but this was on some new level.
"What? Tom!"
"The flu Alex, it's the greatest equalizer for all on this planet, and others, doesn't matter who you are, the president of the United States, George Clooney or a superhero everyone gets the flu, and then you're just someone who's hugging the toilet puking their guts out while at the same time you are unable to breath properly and want to pass out." Alex looks at her husband she has to admit it was highly amusing.
"Superhero though Tom? Really?"
"I'll ignore your remark and continue!" he declares. "What I was saying was that I'm might be just an average Joe but so was everyone else before me! They were just people that got sick and scared and puked a lot in the adjoining bathroom, maybe in this bedroom too! And that's inspiring to me!" Alex was trying to follow his logic she really was but this was getting weirder by the minute.
"I don't see the inspiration in this Tom, I'm sorry, but what's inspirational about vomit?" Tom was looking at her as if she grew a second head, "Well it is because take FDR, I love this man but he threw up here, a lot, and cried here, also a lot! Jed! He threw up here too, Kennedy, Reagan, Cornelius, they all puked in this bedroom at some point or another, they all felt crappy in here and wished for the sweet release of death here!"
"I'm sorry baby I just don't see how this is reassuring to you."
"Well maybe it's because I'm president and you are not! Maybe it's a president thing." Alex sees in front of her eyes her husband turning back to his teenage self, he pouted and crossed his hands over his chest turning his head away from her.
"Really Tom?" she looked at him not moving at all and was trying hard not to laugh, this wasn't the first time they talked about former presidents and vomit, this was a long second night in this bedroom, but this was getting worse every time they did. "You should go to sleep."
"Not before you apologize!" Alex looks around the room, someone was playing a prank on her, there's no other way her husband turned into that much of a child.
"Fine Tom, I'm not going to apologize but I guess you don't want to join me taking a bath since you are so mad at me right?" Tom's head snapped back with an almost dangerous speed.
"Bath?" he asked, she could see him breaking, "I guess it's stupid, solidarity because of vomit right?"
A/N: Tada! This to be honest Anon was something I had already sort of promised to a friend so MeredithBrody I hope you enjoyed it too! Let me know what you think of it.