I apologize for the extremely long wait on this fic. This will be the ending chapter of this story. The reason this chapter swaps from point of view to point of view is because I wanted to cover each character before I drew it in for a close. I realize that this story could have done with a few more chapters for greater detail, but I knew I had to finish it and I couldn't take any more time on it. I hope all enjoyed it and will continue to enjoy it time and time again. (I know, cliché.) Send me some feedback, let me know how I can improve my writing (other than not losing interest in it for a year). Thanks all!

The office was quiet somehow in the midst of chaos. It moved quickly though everything left a trail, as if it was grazing the air through slow motion. Josh watched it in fascination, positive that there were still some drugs in his system that would allow such harmonious movements and blissful silence during a mid-day slam at work. He nursed a bottle of water, taking tiny sips.

His work load was light, Leo had made sure of that. He'd been to only two appointments that day which had lasted a half an hour each. A very light load indeed. He was scheduled for one more before he would be sent home early for much needed rest. Despite Leo's overprotective advice on his first day back to work, Josh couldn't help but admire the older man for it and his wisdom. He'd have been a vegetable had Leo not stepped in and reached him. It was a clutch, a tight one at that rather than a hand reaching out, but it was enough to bring him back.

When he'd been all alone in that tiny room in his mind, it hadn't been cold and dark and dank like one would have suspected after hearing such traumatizing news. Instead, Josh found himself in an empty bedroom, where the afternoon sun cast rays of orange across his bed and over his face. Despite the comfort and the quiet in this little room, he'd found that he couldn't move. Laying on his side on that bed, staring into the light; panic gripped him, while Donna had been trying to talk him out of it.

Minutes passed and the bed lost its cushy luxury. It poked him in places, and his lower back eventually developed a crick. His shoulders knotted up. His eyes burned from staring into the light, and grew heavy. Most of all, his heart stung, a feeling like a thousand knives poking into his chest all at once.

He hoped he'd never see that room again.

"Josh?"

He peered up to see CJ standing in front of him, her blue gaze frosted over with worry. "You okay?"

Smiling meekly, he said, "Yeah. I'm okay." Forgetting himself, he stood up slowly and grabbed his blazer from the back of the chair. He snuck a quick look at his watch. "Oh, I'm going to be late."

CJ nodded. "I thought I'd just come by and remind you."

Josh stopped and regarded her momentarily. She'd come by because she knew he'd be spacey. He guessed he should have expected it. After all, he clearly hadn't been himself since the incident in the hospital. Part of him wasn't there. He knew over time it would come back to him and he'd continue his work like he always had. But for now, maybe he just needed that little bit of him to be somewhere else other than the White House. "Thanks." he muttered.

He strode out of the office, a manilla folder tucked under one arm and the bottle of water in his hand. As he took his first left at the end of the long hallway, Donna flanked him from another section of the Bullpen. "You'll need this." she stated shortly, holding out another folder.

His gaze locked on her sapphire eyes, deep and rich, filled with more with appreciation than duty. And then there was that other thing.

Something he'd recognized and known for as long as he'd worked with Donna though he couldn't pick a word for it that properly fit. It certainly wasn't lust, he didn't want to take it too seriously and say that it was passion. Maybe it was something between enamor and respect. He smirked at this. His mother had always told him that women found favor in those that they respected. That was the charm reflected in her stare.

"Donna, there's something I need to tell you." he spoke slowly, and ushered her around the corner.

She followed, unaware of what exactly his intentions were.

He squeaked open the door to a supply closet where Donna followed him unquestioningly in. After the door had closed, Josh stood mere inches away, and peered down at her.

She looked up at him and her heart began to thud fast and hard almost to the point where it hurt.

Reaching up, he let his hand brush her cheek, fingers mingling with her blond locks. She closed her eyes at his cool touch and exhaled. "Josh, I…"

That was when she felt it. Lips pressed against her forehead tenderly, both hands now cradling her head close to him. She leaned on him instinctively and felt her entire body relax. He held her for several seconds and kissed her hair, breathing in a wave of vanilla bean perfume.

When he pulled away, Donna was slightly disappointed but kept it hidden. She glanced up into his eyes, searching for an answer.

"I wanted you to know that I heard what you said." he whispered. "I'd do anything for you too."

He cupped his hand on her cheek one more time, and withdrew from the closet, sprinting down the corridor to reach his meeting.

Donna stood dumbfounded, frowning, trying to figure out what had just happened. Her initial hopes and expectations of what it might have been leapt to her mind and she felt as if she should shout "eureka!" or something like it. Josh felt affection for her. Cared about her. Loved her. He just had trouble expressing his emotion. And especially now where he was having a hard time trying to cope with his condition. No matter how strangely he acted or how difficult a time he was having showing it, Donna knew completely that she and Josh were one; moving, thinking, acting, and loving as one. No matter what happened in the future, she would always stick by him. And him by her.

"Donna?"

She looked up to see Toby standing outside the closet, regarding her with uneven brows.

"Yeah?" she responded still dazed.

"You're standing in the closet with a dumbfounded expression on your face."

"Yup."

His lip dropped a little. "Why are you in the closet with a dumbfounded expression on your face?"

She shook off the endless questions in her head. "Oh, I was just… organizing." she stated, picking up a stack of folders.

Toby quickly regarded the already spick-n-span area, tidy, and everything put in its proper place. He took a sip from his coffee. "Well, keep up the good work." He turned and left, shaking his head, not wanting to know anything about it.

As the communication's director paced down the hall towards CJ's office, he thought briefly about Michael Foxe. The man was booted from his post by the President after an unexpected meeting. Bartlett knew what he'd been doing and knew that if he hadn't amputated Foxe from the Executive body, so to speak, they would be facing more trouble regarding the entire Natalie Waitier scandal. Luckily, she too had resigned from her post without much of a scuffle. Now they could move on to more pressing matters.

He halted in CJ's door and waited for the press secretary to end her phone call.

"Alright. Yeah. Okay. I need that by tomorrow morning." CJ spoke, acknowledging Toby leaning in the door frame casually with a nod. "Okay." She put the receiver down and leaned back in her chair, pushing papers out of the way to make room to prop her legs on her desk. "You need something?"

Toby paced into the room quietly, dragging his heels a little with his hands tucked in his pockets. "I just found Donna standing in a supply closet in the hallway."

CJ bobbed her head a little. "Let me guess, was she getting supplies?"

"Staring into space."

"Well, she's deep in thought. I'm not surprised, Toby." the red head defended, sipping her coffee and turning to look out the window.

He put up his hands in surrender and took a seat on the other side of her desk. "And how are you doing?"

Her green eyes slid over to him. She took almost ten seconds before answering. "I'm fine."

He cocked his head. "Are you sure?"

Here, CJ took a breath and stared him directly in the eyes. Something in them seemed to dig right down into Toby's soul. "He's different. Josh."

Toby's face grew stony. "He needs time. He needs to adjust." The communications director stood up and cast a glance out into the hall where Donna was emerging from the closet. "After that, he'll be fine."

A nagging feeling within CJ was telling her that things wouldn't be the way they used to. Instead of voicing this, she merely nodded placing a hand over her eyes and answered, "I hope your right."

She heard a light shuffle and when she looked up, Toby had left.

Sighing, she reluctantly stood up from her desk and moved to the doorway. "Carol!"

The brunette secretary appeared moments later, alive and ready for orders.

"Do me a favor and call Katie over at the Hill. We need to schedule a meeting--"

"Is this a bad time?" Danny Concannon appeared behind Carol and gave a tiny smile.

CJ was sure her heart was doing the jump, jive, and wail and had broken her ribcage in the process. "No, come on in." she waved him in and turned back to Carol. "An appointment for three o'clock if she can. Thanks."

She closed the doors behind her. When she turned, she barely had enough time to register Danny standing right there leaning into her. She accepted the kiss welcomingly and melted into it, her hand grasping one of his arms. Pulling away, a smile wiped across her face, so large it could have probably been seen from California.

Danny chuckled and took a small step back, shifting from foot to foot. "I've been wanting to do that for a long time."

She brushed a wisp of hair from in front of her eyes and cleared her throat. "Well, I'm just sorry I didn't know what I was missing." she replied, leaning in for another kiss.

The office door swung open and Sam poked his head in, staring at some folders in his hand. "CJ, I needed to ask you--"

The press secretary leapt away from Danny and lost her balance, falling into the chair in front of her desk gracelessly. Danny reached forward in order to catch her from falling and was pulled down with her, falling on top of her.

Sam's head shot up from the reports and his eyes bulged at the scene before him. "….oh, God! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to--"

"No!" CJ and Danny shouted simultaneously.

CJ put up her hands and pulled herself up in the chair. "Its not what you think!"

Danny scrambled to get up, straightening his tie and blazer. "We were just talking."

Sam frowned. "Okay." He looked back and forth between the two of them. "Right." Down at the report. Back at CJ, who had distanced herself from the reporter. To Danny, who was eying the rest of the office as if he'd never been in it before. Back to the reports. "I'm going to go now. I'd like to go." he answered quickly. He whirled around and closed the door behind him before either of them could say anything.

Stalking down the Bullpen hallway, he started towards his office, trying to shake what he'd just seen from his head. When he couldn't wipe it, he physically started shaking his head.

Leo, standing out in front of his office, watched as Sam passed by, his head writhing from side to side furiously. "Do you have water in your ears or something?"

Sam stopped in mid step and glanced up, his eyes shifting about. How embarrassing. Had anyone else seen him? After a quick sweep of the area, he determined that no one had. "No…no." He shook his head some more and when he noticed one of Leo's eyebrows rise, he stopped. "I just saw something that… I want to forget."

Leo frowned. "What?"

Sam opened his mouth to say it but nothing came out. Instead he shook his head again. "I want to forget." And he kept walking.

Turning from where Sam had come, Leo watched as Danny left CJ's office, seeming a little flustered and headed out of the communications Bullpen. CJ emerged seconds later, her face contorted with a look of desperation. Catching his gaze, she headed towards him. "Have you seen Sam?"

Leo pointed. "He went that way shaking his head like a wet dog."

Her eyes widened slightly at this. "Damnit." She quickly moved around him heading in the direction of Sam's office.

Deciding it was better not to know what was going on, Leo headed back to his office. Once inside, he moved to the door that connected to the Oval Office. Inside, he found President Bartlett scribbling away at a piece of paper on his desk. Charlie stood nearby.

"Leo," Bartlett welcomed, not looking up, "how are things going?"

"Oh the same as usual. Josh was on his way to a meeting in the Roosevelt room, Donna was organizing an already organized closet, and I think Sam walked in on CJ and Danny."

Bartlett raised his head, his eyes widened. "What were they doing?"

"I don't know, but Sam went by me shaking his head saying he "wanted to forget what he'd just seen."

He turned back to the report. "Great." he sarcastically droned. "So I take it everything is back to normal?"

Leo sighed heavily. "Pretty much."