Brotherly Emotion
The meeting was going on its fifth hour when Will Bailey interrupted. Josh was standing by the whiteboard, scribbling something incoherent while Lou ate cold Chinese food and Donna pretended to listen. Leo, who had long since given up even pretending to pay attention, was watching Annabeth, diligently taking notes in the corner. Matt was slumped on a couch, snoring lightly, arms folded across his chest. Idly, Donna doodled on her legal pad, vaguely wondering if she could make it to the door before Josh noticed.
Josh knew that something had changed in his relationship with Donna. He had known from the moment Lou hired her, and she shook his hand with a cool smile that didn't reach her eyes. He watched something tighten in her face every time he forgot that she was a member of the Senior Staff and bellowed for her. He watched her giggle with Annabeth and Leo, and wondered when she had stopped speaking to him. So Josh was prepared for Donna having new friends—one of them possibly being Will. What he wasn't prepared for was the look of pure delight on her face when Will walked through the door.
"Will!" said Donna, leaping up from her seat and throwing her arms around his neck. "I missed you!" Will laughed as he folded his arms around Donna's waist. "I missed you too," he said into her hair. Startled, Matt jerked on the couch, flailed for a few moments, then fell to the ground heavily. Josh stood frozen by the white board, uncapped pen in his hand, glaring at Will Bailey's arm, draped over Donna's shoulders. "No, no," muttered Matt as he pulled himself to his feet, "No one help me up. I've got this under control."
Leo smirked at him from across the room, "All right there, old man?"
"I'll show you old man," Matt shot back, "You and me. One on one—it's on."
"Tempting," Leo grinned, "But for now I have to get my…whatever Annabeth is back to the hotel before she falls asleep."
"Hold it," Josh said, coming out of his Will-and-Donna stupor, "We're not done here yet."
"Yes," Lou said, tossing the empty take out cartons into the trash can, "We are. It's two in the morning, we've been at this since nine, and no one's listened to you for the past half hour. What is Will Bailey doing in our office at this hour?"
"Well," Will said, squeezing Donna's shoulders, "I hadn't seen Donna in a while. I was driving back from a late meeting, saw the lights on and thought I'd pay you all a visit."
"Whatever," said Leo, pulling Annabeth to her feet and holding her steady as she sleepily put her shoes back on, "We're leaving. I'll see you all tomorrow."
"I'm going too," said Matt, shrugging into his suit coat, "I'm going to go ice my ribs, not that any of you care, since I could cut the sexual tension in this room with a dull spoon."
"I'll walk you out, Congressman," Lou yawned, gathering files from the table and opening the door for Matt, "Have a nice night, everyone"
The door made a hollow noise, as it swung shut. And then there were three. It would have been awkward, Josh though ruefully, except Donna and Will didn't seem to notice that he was in the room. "When did you last eat?" Will asked Donna.
"Breakfast?" she shrugged.
"I'll buy you some cake and we can catch up," Will said, grinning at her as she shoved files into her bag and pulled her coat on.
"Chocolate?" she smiled at him, pulling her bag over her sweater as Will tied her scarf for her, then straightened her collar.
"You have to ask?" Will opened the door for her, and she turned back right before she walked through. "Later, Josh."
Later, Josh? All those years of Donna tying his bowtie, and coming to him to "catch up" and loving her so much it hurt him, and suddenly he's become this? This—afterthought? Suddenly, he's struck with the urge to move, and so he rushes out of the door, just in time to hear Donna laugh, and watch Will slide his arm around her shoulders, cupping the side of her head as he bent down and kissed her hair. The marker in his hand dropped unheeded to the floor, and he watched Donna walk out of his life.
