Church became a stay-at-home dad. Angelica left him little to no choice; she would not give up her career and as the son of the owner of the company he worked for, Church was able to work remotely whenever he felt so inclined. Besides that, Church was enamored with his new son. After spending just one day with him, it became clear that Philip would be referred to as "Johnny;" Church liked the idea of the boy bearing the same name as him.
Angelica didn't care too much about the distinction between "Philip" and "Johnny." As long as her son was well and taken care of, she was happy to be able to return to work.
Once thrown back into the Washington campaign, it became painfully clear that Alexander and Thomas had not started to get along any better in her absence. Thomas held a grudge against Alexander for his stance on Belgium. Alexander made it clear that he thought that Thomas was stupid for not understanding the necessity of the sanctions. George tried to keep them both under control as best as he could, but it was too tough a task for a mere mortal.
But their arguments stayed out of the arguments, which was all that Angelica could wish for. It made her job infinitely easier; less scandals, less stories to spin.
Not only did their quiet arguments benefit Angelica - it also benefitted George. As his campaign picked up momentum over the course of a few months, the Federalist Society stepped forward and nominated them as their official candidate just before the primaries. The support bumped his poll numbers up to the point where a landslide victory in the primaries was inevitable.
The night of the official nomination, the Federalist Society invited George and his campaign to a massive party in which the booze would be free and the society would be stuffy and intolerable. Everyone was chomping at the bit to get going.
"Alex, are you almost ready?" Angelica asked impatiently, knocking on Alexander's closed office door. "The cab is waiting downstairs. Everyone else is ready to go!"
Alexander emerged from his office, his eyes alight with excitement. "I have to go."
"What?" Angelica's smile evaporated, a frown taking its place.
"Betsey is in labor," Alexander explained, his voice hitching with frantic excitement. "I have to get to the hospital."
"Oh, then I should -" Angelica immediately thought of collecting her things to go to the hospital with Alexander.
Alexander shook his head. "You have to go - if I can't be there for last-minute speech edits, you have to. You know that Thomas is useless after one glass of wine."
"Damn it," He was right.
Alexander smiled breathlessly. "Come to the hospital as soon as you can. I know that she'll want to see you."
Angelica nodded, trying to ignore the fact that Alexander had said nothing about wanting Angelica there for himself. There were shouts from downstairs - George and Thomas encouraging the two of them to join the crowd gathering downstairs. The sound of them laughing and cheering snapped Angelica's attention back to the reality at hand; that she must remain with those two men and allow Alexander to return to Eliza, where he belonged.
"Good luck," She said, trying her best to ignore the tears stinging at her eyes. "You're going to do great."
"I hope so," Alexander grinned, untying his bowtie and starting for the door. "I've never been a father before."
"Give my love to Eliza," Angelica managed as she watched him run out of the building.
There was some vague chatter downstairs as Alexander explained to George and Thomas that he would not be able to attend the Federalist Society party, after all. George was excitedly trying to concoct a way to skip the party to attend the birth of his grandson. Thomas wasn't saying much, just reminding Alexander to leave.
Once the chatter died down, followed by the sound of the cab departing, Angelica risked leaving the office and walking down to the street.
"There you are!" George's face was red with delight. "Did you hear the news?"
"I did," Angelica forced herself to smile. "I was there when he got off of the phone with her."
"Are we going to spend all night standing around talking about Hamilton, or are we going to go to this party?" Thomas seemed to be the only one who did not care about the potential of the night ending with a new Hamilton in the world.
"Of course, of course," George was too flustered to take offense to the tone that Thomas had used. "The speech is only in a short while. Ah, has someone called for another cab?" He paused to look at Angelica apologetically. "I told Alexander to take ours."
"We'll take my car," Angelica sighed, fishing her keys out of her pocket. "It'll take forever to get a cab in the middle of the city at this time of night."
"Okay," George was surprisingly amenable to this plan. "After the speech, do you intend to go to the hospital?"
"Of course," Angelica threw a smile over her shoulder - a specialty of hers. "It is my sister's baby, you know."
They didn't leave the party until two in the morning. George's speech happened sometime around midnight, but the hand-shaking and socializing took much more time than anyone had anticipated. George grew into more and more of a nervous wreck with each passing minute. Each time he tried to escape to call Alexander, Thomas took a shot. Consequently, Thomas was drunk by 12:02am. Angelica was the only semi-sane person by the end of the night. It was proving to be a difficult position.
"He's already born?" George was on the phone with Alexander as Angelica drove them to the hospital. "Have you named him? Well, why not? Oh, alright. What does he look like? Does he favor you, or does he favor Eliza?"
"Ugh," Thomas groaned from the passenger's seat. In a drunken moment, he had raced George to the car (not that George had consented to, or participated in, the race in any way whatsoever) and claimed "shotgun." George had rolled his eyes and climbed into the backseat of the car before calling Alexander. "I hope it doesn't look a damn thing like him."
"Oh, it's his appearance that bothers you?" Angelica teased.
Thomas lolled his head to the side, staring at Angelica in a manner that was both drunken and somehow patronizing. "His looks are the least revolting thing about him."
"So you think that he's cute?" Angelica couldn't help but tease Thomas about his hatred for Alexander.
"I want to go home!" Thomas yelled at full-volume. Both Angelica and George flinched at the screeching sound of his voice.
"Yeah, that was Jefferson," George disapproved, glowering at Thomas through the rear-view mirror. He was still speaking to Alexander, who had undoubtedly heard Thomas yelling. "I don't know. Yes, we're only a few moments away. Is he still awake? Is Patcy there? Has she held him yet? Could you put her on the phone?"
"You can call a cab to pick you up at the hospital if you need," Angelica told Thomas, glancing at him disapprovingly. "We never forced you to come along with us."
Thomas sighed loudly, slumping in his seat. "It's the only way that I could spend time with you tonight."
"Tom, we spent the entire night together." Angelica reminded him, rolling her eyes.
"But that was work," Thomas protested loudly. Angelica glanced up into the rear-view mirror to see if George was eavesdropping on this wildly inappropriate conversation between his two employees. He had his phone pressed up against his right ear with his hand blocking his left ear, which hopefully meant that he couldn't hear anything other than what Alexander was saying. "I never see you anymore. Not without all of this."
"Tom, I'm busy. We both are," Angelica tried to remind him lightly. She had been dancing around this subject for quite some time.
Thomas shook his head. They both knew that Angelica was lying. "You're busy. You have your husband, your baby, your job, Alexander…what do I have?"
"You still have me," Angelica suggested with a small smile and a shrug.
"Do I?" Thomas asked glumly. "I'm so low on your list. I'm after your son, after your husband, after Hamilton, for Christ's sake, after your sister, after your job…"
"Eliza always goes before Alexander," Angelica tried to lighten the mood with a small laugh. It did not work. Thomas was not amenable to humor when he was drunk.
"And Alexander always goes before me," He sifted Angelica's eyes with his own, daring her to tell him otherwise.
Angelica just stared at the road ahead, unable to argue. It was true - Alexander came before Thomas, came before Church…Johnny and Eliza were the only two people in the world that Angelica would choose over him.
"We're here," George's excited tone snapped Angelica out of the mental haze that Thomas had created. He began struggling with his seatbelt as Angelica found a parking spot in front of the hospital. He was out of the car before Angelica had even turned off the car. "I'll meet you two inside!"
He was out of sight in a matter of seconds.
"He's told me to stop talking to you," Thomas remarked, gesturing towards the direction that George had disappeared in. "He knows that you don't love me. Everyone knows it except for you."
"He knows?" Angelica's face reddened. "Did you tell him? Tom, this was never -"
"But you're not embarrassed that everyone knows that you love Hamilton," Thomas's eyes knit together, as though he were considering something very confusing. "Just me. Because you don't want anyone to think that you're a bad person. It's okay for Hamilton to be in love with you, because he already loves your sister. He isn't dependent on you. But I am. And the idea that someone could see that and judge you for not caring -"
"Tom," Angelica's voice cracked as she interrupted him. "Stop. Just…stop."
She climbed out of the driver's seat and started for the hospital, not caring if Thomas stayed inside the car or not.
"But I'm not your only victim, Angelica!" Thomas was now screaming in the middle of the parking lot. The farther away from him Angelica got, the louder his voice became. "Everyone knows that you don't love Church, either. Everyone knows that you're toying with your little sister's husband. How do you think that looks?"
Angelica's eyes stung as she pushed through the doors to the hospital. She hurried to the nurse's station before Thomas made it through the doors. "Where is Eliza Hamilton's room, please?"
"Down the hall there, to the left," The nurse smiled at Angelica.
"Thank you," Angelica nodded, starting in the direction that the nurse had sent her.
"Angelica," Thomas pushed through the doors. He didn't bother with the nurse's station, choosing to walk after Angelica down the hall towards Eliza's room. "Why don't you want to talk to me, Angelica? Did I say something that was too honest for you?"
"Tom, this is neither the time nor the place," Angelica ground out, still trying to walk faster than Thomas. Thomas's legs were twice the length of Angelica's, though, so he caught up with her in a matter of seconds.
"Don't act so high and mighty," Thomas snapped, glaring down at Angelica. "The only reason that you're here is because you're desperate for anything that Alexander will give you. You're even willing to push people down - be it me, Eliza, or anyone else - to be first in line to receive anything he's offering."
"Tom, I really think that you should -"
"Annie!" Alexander's voice filled Angelica's senses. She had been so focused on her argument with Thomas that she hadn't been keeping an eye out for Eliza's room. She turned around and forced a smile, hoping that Thomas would have the good sense to shut up and let Alexander and Eliza enjoy their happy day. Any other qualms he had with Angelica could wait for the parking lot.
Angelica's eyes were drawn from Alexander's tired but still handsome face to the little bundle of blankets in George's arms. Eliza's baby.
"Is this him?" She looked at Alexander in askance before walking closer. His little face was wrinkled and red, but the moment he opened a pair of lavender eyes that were exactly like Alexander's, Angelica all but fell apart.
"Oh god," Thomas murmured from beside Angelica. "Not another Hamilton."
"Tom, you - " As Angelica turned around to say something snarky, Thomas doubled over and threw up all over her shoes. They weren't just a pair of old sneakers, either. These were a pair of heels that had cost Angelica $750.
"Okay," George sighed, handing the baby back to Eliza. "I think that I had better call you a cab, son. Let's go."
Thomas was too far gone to protest. He nodded meekly, allowing George to lead him out of the hospital room and towards the hospital exit.
In their absence, Alexander burst out laughing. "Well, I guess I shouldn't have expected anything else from him."
"Honestly," Eliza tried to sound annoyed, but she was smiling. "Who ever heard of someone saying such a thing about a baby?"
"Could I hold him?" Martha asked with a hopeful smile. "I didn't think that George would let that little darling out of his arms for a single second, but it appears that this is my window of opportunity."
"Of course," Eliza handed the baby over with a smile. Her smile faltered when her eyes met Angelica's. Angelica's heart sank involuntarily; had they heard what Thomas had been saying to her in the hallway? "Um, Angie, I meant to ask you sooner, but I thought that I still had time…"
"We wanted to name him Philip," Alexander took over for her, smiling at her reassuringly. "We've always loved the name. It was taken off of our list when you named your son Philip, but now that you call him Johnny, we thought that maybe…"
"Y-yeah," Angelica was so relieved that she couldn't bring herself to care about whatever stupid name they gave this baby. "You don't have to ask my permission - name him anything that you like! The more Philips, the merrier."
"I don't know if that's true," Eliza reminded her with an amused smile. "Mama would probably say the exact opposite."
"I told you that she would be fine with it. That's what makes her cool Aunt Angelica," Alexander brushed a strand out of Eliza's face with an affectionate smile. Eliza caught Alexander's hand before he could pull it away and pressed a kiss to the back of it, her eyes full of adoration.
"I'm going to go get you another pillow," Angelica remarked, not really wanting to watch Alexander and Eliza fawn over each other for an indefinite period of time. "It looks like you could use one."
"I'll go with you," Alexander surprised her by offering. "I can tell from the look on Martha's face that she's dying to give Betsey some advice once I'm out of the room, anyway."
"Oh, you," Martha grinned at Alexander, but didn't bother protesting.
Angelica smiled at Alexander as they emerged from the room and began to slowly wander down the hall towards the nurse's station.
"You said that I would be cool Aunt Angelica," Angelica scrambled for words, never satisfied to waste her precious time with Alexander in silence. "Am I not going to be cool Aunt Annie?"
"No," Alexander shook his head, grinning. "Annie is just for me."
Angelica rolled her eyes, stepping to the side as another anxious nurse ran between them. Alexander leaned against the wall in front of her, still grinning. Angelica made the mistake of looking straight into his eyes, and just like that - the hospital around them disappeared.
He was going to kiss her. If he didn't, Angelica was sure as hell going to kiss him. They both leaned forward without realizing it, never breaking the intense eye contact that had started what felt like a lifetime ago. The smile on Alexander's face faded into something darker. Goosebumps erupted across Angelica's skin despite the fact that the hospital was warm with the humid city weather surrounding them.
He was close enough that she could see patches of stubble that he had missed when shaving. She could see his pupils dilate, could smell the scent of his warm cologne.
"Excuse me!" A nurse pushing a pregnant woman in a wheelchair ran by. Angelica and Alexander were narrowly able to jump out of her way in time.
That pregnant woman was like a douse of water thrown over Angelica.
She was at the hospital to help her sister celebrate the birth of her first son, and yet, here she was - about to kiss Eliza's husband!
"I should go," Angelica whispered, her voice barely audible among the din of the hospital.
"Annie," Alexander disapproved, his eyes pleading.
Angelica shook her head, suddenly feeling suffocated by his presence. She pushed him arm's length away from her and spun on her heel, headed for the exit without looking back to see if Alexander was following her. Mostly because she couldn't bear to see him just standing there, his choice made.
"Hey," Church greeted her when she slammed through the front door of the house just an hour later. Angelica looked at him in surprise. She had just assumed that he had gone to bed at 10 o'clock, as he usually did. She had not expected to find him sitting in an overstuffed armchair in the living room, a book splayed across his lap. "How was the party?"
"Eh," Angelica shrugged, removing her coat and hanging it on the coat rack by the front door. "We were all dying to get out of there. Eliza had her baby. That's why I was so late in getting home - we went straight from the party to the hospital."
"She did?" Church's eyes lit up. "Was it a girl, or a boy?"
"Boy," Angelica rolled her eyes. He hadn't wanted anyone to tell him beforehand; he wanted to see if he could guess. He had guessed that it would be a girl. It was not the first time that Church was wrong.
"Damn," Church smiled, his tone far from angry. "What did they name him?"
"Philip," Angelica answered reluctantly. Church was oddly possessive about all things relating to Johnny.
"Philip?" Church echoed, arching an eyebrow. "Do they not remember our son's name?"
"We never call him Philip," Angelica responded, rolling her eyes again. "And besides, what does it matter? It's just a name."
"Mm," Church hummed noncommittally.
"I think that I'm going to quit working for Washington," Angelica ventured, placing herself in a chair just across from Church. It had been an idea that she had been mulling over during the drive home. Working with both Thomas and Alexander was no longer fun - it had crossed into dangerous territory that threatened to ruin her life, their lives, and Eliza's life. Such a risk was unacceptable.
"Really?" Church didn't seem upset by Angelica's suggestion, just surprised. "I thought that you enjoyed working for him."
"I do," Angelica sighed. "But I think that it's kind of a plateau for me. I think that I should probably be thinking about moving my career forward, right?"
"Sure," Church nodded agreeably. "Where are you going to move your career to, exactly?"
"Aaron Burr has connections at CNN," Angelica replied, running a hand through her hair. "He could probably get me an interview. I'd probably be doing puff pieces for a little while, but maybe my access to George and his employees would allow me some exclusive interviews; really great stuff for my film reel. What do you think?"
"I think that you should do it, if it would make you happy." Church answered, closing his book and smiling. "But I think that you should probably wait until morning to make such a decision. Such matters are hardly decided for the best at this witching hour. Why don't we go to bed?"
"In a minute," Angelica answered absently. She was already sculpting the perfect letter of resignation in her mind.
"Don't work too hard," Church chuckled, planting a kiss to the top of Angelica's head before shuffling up the stairs to retire for the evening.
As the bedroom door upstairs creaked closed, Angelica pulled out her laptop and began writing out the email that she was certain would be passed around the office the following morning.
Mr. Washington,
I am writing to inform you that as of tomorrow, I will no longer consider myself as an employee in your campaign.
It has been an absolute pleasure to serve you and the cause that you represent, but I have been offered a position at CNN which I cannot pass up for various reasons which I do not feel compelled to elaborate on. Rest assured, it is no fault of you or your other employees that I tender my resignation. I will miss you all immeasurably.
That said, if you were to use my departure as a means of forcing Alexander and Thomas into behaving, I would consider this letter used for a good cause.
Your employee-turned-constituent,
Angelica Schuyler
As she hit the "send" button, Angelica felt herself detaching from the hold that Alexander had had on her since high school.
Rewind
George won the Federalist Society's nomination, resulting in an invitation to a massive party where the food and booze would be free. George planned to give his speech early, then retire to the confines of Mount Vernon with Martha. Angelica, Alexander, Thomas, Aaron, and James Madison - who had been invited by Thomas, seeking a Republican ally during an evening with a bunch of federalists - all planned to stay out all night and make the most of the free amenities.
"Are you ready yet?" Angelica demanded, bursting through the doors of Alexander's office. He was still getting dressed, scrambling for his pants when he heard the sound of the door swinging open.
James, who had been passing behind Angelica on his way to Thomas' office, wolf-whistled at the sight of Alexander standing half-naked in the middle of his office. Alexander held up his middle finger towards James with a grin.
"Shut the door, Annie."
Angelica obliged, stepping through the doorway before closing Alexander's office door behind her.
"Hurry up," Angelica perched herself on the edge of Alexander's desk, watching him prepare for the evening. "Nearly everyone else is ready."
Alexander paused as he buckled his belt, looking Angelica over slowly. Angelica tried to ignore him, despite the goosebumps erupted across her skin. "You got ready awfully fast."
"I took the rest of the afternoon off," Angelica admitted with a grin. "The Federalist Society took over press coverage of their nomination."
"Hm," Alexander pretended to disapprove, but his smiling eyes gave him away. "Lucky you."
"Is he ready yet?" Thomas called from the center of the office.
"We're leaving without you, son," George contributed.
"I think he and Angelica are…indisposed," Angelica could practically hear the blush in James' voice.
Angelica rolled her eyes and emerged from Alexander's office. Alexander yelped out a protest, as he was still buttoning up his shirt. Angelica tossed the door closed behind her carelessly; she doubted that anyone had gone so far without seeing glimpses of Alexander changing in his office before.
"I was just trying to help him get ready, James. Get your mind out of the gutter," Angelica looked at James pointedly before grinning at his now-wife, Dolley. "Why are you all so desperate to get there, anyway? We still have a little while before George's speech."
"Because the speech isn't finished, yet," Thomas answered impatiently. "We were waiting to get a read of the room before we put on the finishing touches. But Hamilton is taking forever to doll himself up, so there's no telling if we'll ever finish it."
"Calm down, Thomas," Alexander sighed, walking out of his office while straightening his bowtie. "Not all of us take centuries to finish a speech."
Thomas glowered as Alexander joined the group and slung his arm around Angelica's waist.
"Let's get moving," George was good at reading when tension built between Alexander and Thomas. "You can re-read your work in the car to make sure that you're ready to write when we arrive."
"Yes, sir," Both men grumbled, following George towards the door outside. As they moved, Alexander turned around to grin at Angelica stupidly.
"Did you see his tux?"
He was referring to Thomas' tuxedo, which was an off-gray color and appeared to be made from a cheap material.
Angelica rolled her eyes and tried to ignore him, but couldn't stifle a small smile.
The last thing that Angelica remembered about the Federalist Society nomination party was James crying and shaking Ted Allen's hand.
The beginning of this blackout night was George leaving the party but assuring them that he would pay for a driver to take them all home that evening. The moment he disappeared from sight, everyone scrambled for the bar. From there, it went from bad to worse very quickly.
Angelica's dress was torn. She didn't know when she had torn it.
Alexander's face was streaked with soot. There was no telling where he had stumbled upon soot during the course of that evening.
James and Dolley both looked as though they had been run through a washing machine. Their hair was soaked, their clothes wrinkled, and their shoes were missing.
Thomas' hair appeared approximately two inches shorter than it had been when they left for the party.
Aaron had writing all over his face. There was no telling if the writing was done in permanent marker, washable marker, or if it was a new tattoo.
The entire group - Angelica, Alexander, James, Dolley, Thomas, and Aaron - woke up the next morning in Thomas' overly expensive hotel room. It was just as well; no one else had purchased hotel rooms.
Angelica and Alexander were curled up on one end of the massive bed; Jefferson was sprawled at the bottom of their feet. James and Dolley were asleep in the bathtub; Dolley was spooning a bottle of champagne. Aaron was huddled in an armchair obviously not meant for sleeping.
Angelica was the first to crack her eyes open as light began to invade the room.
"Guys?" She rasped, looking around at the damage that they had exacted upon Thomas' room.
"Mm, go back to sleep, Annie," Alexander complained, trying to push her head back onto the pillow with his hand. Angelica swatted it away and struggled to her feet.
"No, guys, we should -" Her suggestion was put on hold by a sudden wave of nausea. She bolted for the bathroom, her limbs trembling under her like a baby deer's legs.
Upon reaching the bathroom, where James and Dolley were fast asleep in the bathtub, Angelica hunched over the toilet and began vomiting at a truly disconcerting volume.
James' eyes fluttered open at the sound of Angelica throwing up and immediately shouted "oh, fuck!"
The sheer volume of James' normally quiet voice caused Dolley to wake up and acquaint herself with the situation at hand. "Oh, my god. Alex? Alex, your wife is throwing up in here!"
"Annie?" Alexander questioned groggily from the room.
"I'm -" Angelica tried to answer him, but was forced to place her head inside of the toilet bowl and succumb to another wave of nausea.
"Annie," Alexander materialized in the doorway within a few seconds. He looked a mess, but he was obviously concerned. He approached Angelica, trying not to let her see that he was wrinkling his nose against the vile smell filling the room. "Honey, what's the matter?"
"I'm never drinking again," Angelica vowed hoarsely.
"Oh, god, the smell," James complained weakly. "I'm gonna -"
"No, no, no!" Dolley scrambled out of the bathtub just in time to avoid being thrown up on as James began to vomit. In her fit to get away from him, Dolley tumbled onto the tile bathroom floor and knocked into Angelica. This caused Angelica to smack her head against the countertop hosting the sink, sending another wave of nausea through her.
"What the fuck is going on in here?" Thomas demanded, appearing in the doorway and taking inventory of the situation.
"I've got to get out of here," Dolley crawled on her hands and knees between Thomas' legs to get out of the bathroom. She apparently could not wait even a second for him to get out of her way.
"Angelica…" Thomas was obviously torn about who needed tending to first. He took a hesitant step in Angelica's direction, reaching out his hands without knowing quite what to do with them.
"Oh, for fuck's sake," Alexander groaned, gesturing towards James. "I have this covered. Would you please help him?"
Thomas glared at Alexander but blessedly did as commanded. He set to work running the shower to get James cleaned off - though neither men were yet sober enough to think about taking off James' tuxedo.
Dolley, meanwhile, called the front desk and advised them to send an entire cleaning team up.
Angelica's stomach strengthened as the moments passed, until she was finally able to brush her teeth and return to the bed. Alexander watched over her the whole time, chewing at his thumb nail anxiously.
Aaron woke up to see James emerge from the shower, soaking wet and still wearing a tuxedo, Dolley glaring at James from across the room, Thomas trying to convince the cleaning crew not to charge him for the mess they made, while Angelica ignored Alexander continually asking if she was still feeling okay.
"What the hell is going on?"
"Questionable," Angelica answered with a small smile. "I think to answer that question fully, we would need to know what happened last night."
"What do you mean -" Aaron's eyebrows furrowed. "Oh,, god. What did happen last night?"
"A question for another time, I'm afraid," Thomas answered, having settled on an amount to pay the cleaning crew. "You all have cost me enough money for one weekend."
"We have to go so soon?" Aaron frowned.
"C'mon, Tom, be a good host," Angelica encouraged. "Let's order some room service and watch a movie."
"Actually," Dolley remarked from across the room, still looking James over critically. "We have to be at my parents' house in about an hour. They're watching John."
John was Dolley's son, from a previous relationship. He was young enough that James took John as his own son without much fuss.
"Do we have time to go home first?" James asked, eyes wide. "I don't want him to see me like this."
"You're not coming with me," Dolley looked at James like he was crazy for not knowing better. "You're taking a cab home. I cannot be in the car with you when you're still wearing that thing. Look at the bile stains on your pants!"
"Okay," James sighed, resigned. "Tom, could you ask the front desk to call me a car, please?"
"Okay," Thomas agreed reluctantly. "But you're paying for that."
"That's fair," Dolley agreed, casting James another sharp look.
"I guess that we had better head out, too," Alexander sighed, climbing off of the bed and offering Angelica a hand to help her up. Angelica accepted it, struggling to her feet and closing her eyes to reign in her weak stomach. "Aaron, do you need a ride?"
"Sure," Aaron agreed eagerly, scrambling to his feet.
"Alright," Alexander ran a hand through his hair blearily. "I'll call a car."
"Do so outside, please," Thomas glowered in Alexander's direction. His stare softened when it fell upon Angelica. "Unless you still aren't feeling well."
"I'll be fine," Angelica assured him as Alexander called the car.
"I will be, too," James added reproachfully.
"That's different," For some reason, Thomas felt compelled to justify the fact that he was more concerned about Angelica than he was about James. "It's your fault that you got sick."
"She drank too much! How is that not her fault?" James bit back.
"Boys, you're making a scene," Dolley rolled her eyes, pushing past them on her way out of the hotel room. She turned around, sparing Angelica an amused smile. "At least wait until we leave."
"Car's here," Alexander announced cheerfully.
"Already?" James found a new subject to feel indignant about. He turned to Thomas expectantly. "Where's mine?"
"They said that they would call when your car was available," Thomas reminded James impatiently. "Did you hear the phone ring?"
"Let me know how much I owe you for this," Aaron said, collecting his coat as Alexander and Angelica followed Dolley towards the door. No one was particularly anxious to stay behind and find out how Thomas and James' quarrel played out. "I'll obviously pay you my fair share."
"Don't worry about it," Alexander typically opted for the stairs, enjoying a moment of exercise to break up the sedentary lifestyle of a political, but this time planted himself in front of the elevator. Angelica pretended not to know that it was for her benefit that he did so. "You're hardly breaking the bank for me."
"Just cover the check next time we go to dinner," Angelica suggested with a playful grin. "Then we'll call it even."
Alexander rolled his eyes as the elevator landed on the first floor. "You don't owe us anything, Aaron."
"When did we go to dinner in the first place?" Aaron asked, climbing into the backseat of the car with Angelica. Alexander sat up front, giving instructions to the driver.
"Don't you come to Friday night dinners?" Angelica asked, certain that she had seen Aaron at their crowded bar table at least a few times.
Friday night dinners had become a tradition when George forced them to leave the office for a breath of fresh air after Alexander and Thomas had gotten into a massive fight. They had eaten so much that they returned to the office and went straight to sleep. Now it was tradition to stuff their faces each Friday night, then lock themselves in their office for a nice, long nap. George had not yet caught on to the second half of their tradition.
"What Friday dinners?" Aaron's eyes widened in a way that instantly made Angelica feel guilty.
"Oh…" Angelica felt terrible. She looked at the rear-view mirror, hoping that Alexander would help. When he pretended to be focused on his phone, she cleared her throat and tried to smile. "It's just a stupid thing we've started to do lately. You should come, if you're not already sneaking off for dinner with your friends."
"I don't really…" Aaron didn't meet Angelica's eyes. "I don't really have friends. I'm in the office most Friday nights. And every other night. I've started hating being home alone. It's so…quiet."
"Do you want to hang out at our place for a little while?" Alexander finally spoke up. "We don't have any other plans for the day."
Angelica nodded, agreeing.
"You don't need to do that," Aaron responded, very obviously embarrassed.
"We don't need to do anything. We really have nothing on the schedule today, and we always like company. Should I tell the driver to take us only to our house, or not?" Alexander tried to sound careless, but it was obvious that he was trying to convince Aaron to come over.
It worked.
"Okay," Aaron sighed, but his smile betrayed his true feelings.
It was a Saturday well-spent. Alexander made a fresh batch of drinks, Angelica turned the TV on, and Aaron parked himself in one of the comfortable living room chairs. They hate-watched reality TV shows, growing progressively less coherent as the drinks began to take their intended effect.
But drinking did not make Angelica's already-weak stomach grow any stronger. After just one full glass of coke and rum, she found herself lying on the bathroom floor once again.
"We're taking you to the hospital," Alexander's tone left no room for argument.
"I'll go with you," Aaron agreed. "I only had a couple of sips of my drink."
Alexander nodded. "That'll be quicker than calling another cab. Annie, do you think that you can make it to the car?"
"Of course I can," Angelica loathed to be treated like an invalid when she was perfectly fine, other than what she could only assume was a vile bout of food poisoning. "You don't need to be so dramatic about a little bit of nausea."
"Darling, drama is what I do best," Alexander might have smiled if he hadn't been so concerned. "Aaron, go start the car. We'll be right behind you."
He tossed the keys to Aaron, who moved to catch them but wound up dropping them on the tile floor. The tile cracked beneath the keys. Aaron looked at Alexander apologetically.
"Damn it, Aaron, I was trying to do something cool, there," Alexander sighed, using one hand to hoist Angelica to her feet before turning around to frown at Aaron. "You would make a terrible James Bond."
"Don't listen to him," Angelica huffed, shaking her head. "He says the same thing to me all the time."
"All I'm saying is, Bond would never throw up after just one drink." Alexander was getting his humor back as he placed Angelica in the car.
"I mean, do you want to fuck James Bond?" Angelica snarked, looking at Aaron as though they were the only people in the world capable of understanding how ridiculous Alexander was.
Alexander paused before climbing into the backseat. "Don't you?"
"We're leaving," Aaron declared, putting an end to the debate.
Once they reached the hospital, Alexander rushed Angelica to the front desk as though she were one of the people there who was truly suffering; never mind the man in the corner whose kneecap appeared to be exposed.
"What do you mean, she has to wait?" He didn't seem to understand that doctors were not put on reserves in the special event that Angelica needed help. "She's sick!"
"Alex, it's fine," Angelica looked at the nurse apologetically before grabbing Alexander's arm and guiding him over to a cluster of chairs in which Aaron was already sitting. "A few more minutes won't kill me."
"But what if it does? You could have a brain aneurysm." Alexander argued.
"Have you been on WebMD again?" Angelica inquired, smiling vaguely.
"Annie, I'm serious."
"So am I."
"What if there's something the matter with you?" Alexander's tone softened, but his eyes focused on his shoes.
"Then we'll deal with it," Angelica didn't like to think about such things, either. "What else are we supposed to do?"
"But that's just it. I don't…I don't know what I'm supposed to do if I lose you."
"Well, for starters, you sue for wrongful death and make a decent profit off of the tragedy."
"Annie…" Alexander shook his head, but he was smiling.
"Mrs. Hamilton?" Angelica would never grow accustomed to people branding her with Alexander's last name. Alexander nudged her, reminding her that yes, she was Mrs. Hamilton.
The nurse smiled as Angelica staggered to her feet. "The doctor will see you now."
"Pregnant?" A brain aneurysm seemed more believable than the doctor's explanation for Angelica's sudden bouts of nausea. "What…does that even mean?"
The doctor raised her eyebrows. "Judging from your reaction, I'm fairly certain that you know."
Angelica felt like crying.
She had just agreed to work on a governor's campaign with David once George's campaign had run its course. Alexander had already agreed to serve as George's Secretary of the Treasury, should George win the presidential race. She and Alexander were beginning to look for houses in D.C. They had just managed to get Alexander's student loan debt under control. A baby would bankrupt them and steal any hopes of a career from Angelica, maybe even Alexander.
"If this isn't happy news," The doctor ventured carefully. "There is another specialist that you could see."
Angelica looked up at her in surprise, tears pricking at her eyes.
"So, what was it?" Alexander demanded once Angelica joined him and Aaron back in the waiting room.
"Just the flu," Angelica responded, wiping away the remnants of her mascara, still leftover from the night before. "Nothing to be concerned about."