Title: A Window In Time
Author: AmandasArmada
Author's Note: Inspired by a screencap I saw of Danny meeting C.J. at their first date where they both looked really happy, and it gave me feelings and I wrote about it. This is barely anything more than drabble, sorry.
Teaser: The world was a better place because C.J. Cregg was in the White House. He was a big enough man to accept that. (Takes place during Internal Displacement, gives insight into Danny and C.J.'s minds.)
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
October 2006
Danny Concannon was sitting in his office on the third floor of The Washington Post building, his chair turned sideways so he could see the view of D.C. from the window. His mind danced around thoughts and memories, contemplating whether today would be the day he worked up the nerve to do it. It was early October, and the leaves were turning red and gold, the gusts of wind blowing them this way and that. He imagined he could see C.J. walking down below, and what she would look like. Her hair was longer now, and darker, and he pictured the wind blowing it across her beautiful battle-worn face. It had been so long since he'd seen her in person. He'd worked so hard to keep his distance, deep-down planning for this moment. This was it. Zero hour.
It was time.
He had waited, and that was fine. He understood. And he cared about her - really, genuinely cared, and her job was important, not only to her happiness, but to the country. The world was a better place because C.J. Cregg was in the White House. He was a big enough man to accept that, and watching her rise through the ranks from afar filled him with a sense of pride and awe that only the passion and determination of the woman he had fallen in love with could instill in him.
And so he'd waited.
But this was her last year, and he had a window. A window to try and make something happen. And as embarrassing and pitiful as it was, he'd never been able to keep her out of his thoughts for long, even when he'd distanced himself as far as possible from her. He'd crossed the globe for god's sake, but she was like a magnet, and he was drawn to her like moth to flame. He'd watch her on TV, bringing dissenters to their knees with her strong voice and mastery of facts, and the way her face lit up with emotion when she spoke about something she truly cared about. She'd made him laugh and made him think, and for eight years he hadn't been able to look at another woman quite like how he looked at C.J. Cregg. He was enamored by her, utterly, and this was his one chance – his last chance, to see if what they had whenever they were near each other could possibly grow into something real. He had a shot, and he had to make it mean something – let her know his intentions before she committed herself to something (or god forbid, someone) and flew away from him forever.
His heartbeat was a cacophony of nerves and anticipation, and he took a sip of scotch – not something he usually kept in the office – gathering his courage, trying to put himself at ease. It was amazing how his entire future was balanced on a phone call. He felt a thrill of excitement in spite of himself. He was going to talk to her again.
There was nothing left except to just do it.
"Danny Concannon's on line 1 for you," Margaret's nervous deadpan came through on the intercom. C.J.'s head was bent, focused on reading over the 30-page "briefing" that had been set on her desk five minutes before.
"C.J.?"
C.J.'s head shot up. She reached for the intercom button. "What?"
"Danny Concannon."
C.J.'s heart skipped a beat.
"What?" She repeated. C.J. swallowed, the old nervousness creeping back into her voice.
"Danny Concannon. From The Post? He's holding on line 1 for you."
C.J. stared at the intercom, startled. She grabbed the phone.
"C.J. Cregg."
"Hey." She could hear the smile in his voice.
C.J. tapped her foot nervously, willing herself not to react to that voice in her ear. "What can I do for you, Danny?"
"How ya been?"
"What?" Was this a social call? She didn't have time for social calls with Danny Concannon. She didn't have time for social calls with anyone, but especially not that man.
"I saw you on C-Span last week. You blew 'em out of the park."
"Uh – thank you." C.J. looked around her office. "So what can I do for you, Danny?" she repeated.
Danny plunged on, biting down his nerves. If she wanted to cut to the chase, he could do that.
"I was wondering if I could take you to dinner tomorrow night," he said breezily. A sentence he'd uttered to her a thousand times.
C.J. felt a wave of relief. He wanted to talk to her about a story. Fine.
"Ah, I'll have to check with Margaret."
"Already ran it by her," Danny said smoothly. "You could make it to a late dinner." He paused awkwardly. "Of course, if you're not interested-"
"No, that's fine," C.J. said absentmindedly, the implication of his words not registering.
She wrote down a time and the name of a restaurant, shielded by her business-as-usual mode.
"I can't wait to see you again, C.J."
His vulnerability startled her, as it always did. He was always the charmer. C.J. allowed herself a small smile.
"You bet, Danny. I'll see you tomorrow night."
She set the phone down, her smile growing.
She was going to see Danny Concannon again.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
"I wanted to see you."
"...That's it?"
…
"Oh shoot, I ruined the dinner."
…
"Can I see you again?
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
C.J. had a way of growing more beautiful as time went on, Danny reflected late the next night, another glass of scotch clutched in his hand as he sat on his couch, still in his suit.
He'd known, of course he'd known, that he still had feelings for her. Actually seeing her, though...everything about her seemed to get under his skin, burning itself into his brain. Her easy smile. How her voice always seemed to sound sweet and caring but strong at the same time. Her huge blue eyes, sprinkled with flecks of green. The smell of her perfume.
And when they started talking...no one could throw him like she could. She could go from calm and comforting to pure fire in a heartbeat. She was fierce, and he loved her for it.
He'd known going into it that these were going to be high stakes. But now, seeing what this job was doing to her...he had to do something big, show her that he wasn't just looking for a fling, or a even a fun lighthearted date out with an old friend. There couldn't be any question in her mind that he was in this for real. He was going to have to put himself completely out there, and it shook him. He reflected sardonically that it was going to happen at one point or another, and better he ripped the band-aid off quickly, and without fuss.
Danny reached for a pen and his notepad, settling down into the couch to think.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Following her dinner fiasco with Danny, C.J.'s life continued as it always did – relentless and unmerciful. As the next day ran on, C.J.'s mind was preoccupied with thoughts of Doug Westin's indiscretion, anger and disgust and anxiety and weariness bubbling up through her like a stew.
It was another exhausting day. One thing after another, and nothing seemed to get done with nearly the force she had intended. She'd barely had a minute to herself, and only several hours after her phone conversation with Danny did she have time to lay in bed and reflect on what was going on with him.
It had been a social call. And their dinner the next night wasn't a follow-up for a story, it was a date.
She had a date with Danny Concannon.
Exhausted, she rolled over, pushing any deeper thoughts out of her head until the morning.
She went to sleep with a nervous smile playing on her face.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
The next morning C.J. woke up early, deciding to skip her morning run and hop in the shower early. She was going to give herself 20 minutes to just think about this.
C.J. groaned, thinking of her behavior two nights ago. Part of her had known, really, the moment she'd seen Danny and greeted him in the restaurant, that he'd intended it to be a date. And it had scared her, because Danny was dangerous. She had a job to do, and whenever he was around she found her mind wandering at odd moments, remembering a gaze he'd placed on her earlier, or the smell of him when they walked next to each other in the halls. She had to be unshakeable right now, and the only way she'd seen to do that was to pretend that it emphatically was not a date.
But she'd acted like a jackass. She sighed, resigning herself to it. There was nothing to do but apologize, and she would.
She thought about what it would mean, having a date with Danny that night.
She was excited. She couldn't pretend not to be.
Things were different now. Danny wasn't part of the White House press corp anymore, and she wasn't the Press Secretary. And her future was wide open. She didn't have a clue what she'd be doing after she left the White House. Danny was obviously still interested, very interested, to have called her and pursued her like he did. Just seeing him again was enough to throw her off her game, though. She needed to be wary of that.
But maybe, after the inauguration, she could do it – reward herself for 8 years of keeping her nose to the grindstone, diligently keeping her distance from the only person that could still make her blither like an idiot.
She thought about the way his face had lit up when he'd seen her, and the rush of warmth that had spread through her body.
C.J. allowed herself an ounce of hope.
Maybe.