Thank you again for all your reviews, and thank you for your well wishes regarding my finals! :)
As promised, this chapter contains The Date.
Just as a warning: this chapter is a mix of fluff and angst. There are serious topics discussed. Mostly, Elizabeth's losses of her husband and her parents, the coup in Iran, and the bombing in "E Pluribus Unum."
"Are you sure you're okay with this?" Elizabeth asked as she stared at herself in the mirror.
It had been such a long time since Elizabeth had done this—dress for a date. It had been even longer since she'd had to dress for a first date. 35 years. She blew out a heavy puff of air in a futile attempt to relieve some of her nerves.
Sure, what she wore and how she looked was, unfortunately, a constant factor in her life, despite how much she hated it. Over the years she'd gotten better at tuning out the critics who judged her based solely on her appearance. And more than that, she'd worked hard to fight for equity so that her children, and maybe one day, grandchildren wouldn't have to face all the obstacles she's faced.
In the end, she'd settled on a nice pair of dark wash jeans and a pale Alice blue sweater with a simple stockinette stitch. In her younger years she might've worn a dress for a first date. She'd thought about it briefly earlier, but decided against it. She didn't even know what they'd be doing tonight, and it felt a bit odd to dress up for a date in your own house. Granted, she dressed up all the time for formal events in the East Wing, but that was different.
After she'd thought about it, she'd realized that, other than that one class as undergrads, her professional side was all Henry really knew of her. All he'd seen of her in the last eight years was the public figure clad in business attire or formalwear. She wanted Henry to see more than that. She wanted him to see the parts of her life that weren't quite so serious or glamorous.
It was a good thing she'd already decided that, because when she'd returned to the residence earlier to examine her wardrobe with this new lens, she'd realized that she didn't own a single dress anymore that didn't scream either "day at the office" or "state dinner." Neither of those looks would have been appropriate. She couldn't help but think that maybe she should listen to Ali the next time she told her that she needed more fun in her life.
She smiled slightly as she thought, that's what I am doing.
Her makeup was also relatively simple. A touch more than she wore to the office, but a far cry from an inaugural ball. Her hair was a different battle. It was arguably the most subjective decision regarding her appearance. Lately, she'd been wearing it up quite a bit, but in her secretary of state days she'd worn it down most of the time. Running with the theme of showing Henry a side of her he didn't get to see too often, she decided to wear her hair half up, half down.
Was she putting too much thought into this? Probably. After all, with his crack about Henry's behavior at graduations, Mike had pointed out that Henry just might find her attractive no matter what she was wearing or how her hair looked.
But Elizabeth needed to do this. She needed the distraction. In all honesty, she was terrified for tonight. And her appearance was an outlet for all that nervous energy. It helped her to feel like there was something she could control while she waited for Henry to arrive.
"Okay with this? Lizzie, you're 54 years old. You're well past the age of having to ask permission to go on a date," Elizabeth heard from behind her.
And yet, still young enough to be called "Lizzie," Elizabeth thought. "I know that. That's not what I—I mean…"
"It's okay to be scared."
"I know that too. It's just—it's hitting me harder today than it has in a long time. He's really gone." Elizabeth once again attempted to take a deep breath and exhale slowly. As much as she liked Henry, her mind had also wandered to thoughts of Greg throughout the day. She needed to know what Evelyn was thinking.
"I understand," Evelyn told her. "There are days when I find myself in denial about the whole thing. And in those moments, it's barely a ripple in a pond. But others, the grief comes crashing over me like a tidal wave."
"I was in denial for a long time," Elizabeth shared. "Those first few years when we were still living in McLean. That was our home. It was where we had started building our life together. I'd seen him walk through that front door so many times throughout the years, and a part of me never really accepted that I'd never see that again. Like maybe that day was all just a horrible nightmare, and any minute the door would open and I would hear Ali's tiny little feet running to greet him.
But then we moved out to the farm when I quit the CIA, and it all became so real. He'd never lived there, and I couldn't keep hiding from the fact that he was really gone. It felt like my whole world was falling apart all over again. I knew I couldn't risk my life by going to Baghdad. I couldn't leave Ali and Jace behind with no parents. They were even younger than Will and I were. It was the right decision not to become station chief. But when I had to give up my job at the CIA after everything else that had happened, I felt like the world was just slowly ripping away everything I loved. It's part of why I ended up burying myself in work for my Ph.D."
"Lizzie, why didn't you ever tell me?" Evelyn asked, genuinely concerned about what her daughter-in-law has just revealed.
"You were so wonderful for all of your help back then with the kids and the housework. And I couldn't stop thinking that I knew I'd lost my husband, but you had just lost your son. And then I'd look at Ali and Jace's tiny little faces, and I just—I couldn't imagine the pain of losing one of them. I convinced myself that I had no clue what you were going through, and I didn't want to be any more of a burden than I already was."
"You were never a burden, sweetie. I loved helping you with the kids. Greg was robbed of so much of his life, but the only thing that kept me going was knowing that part of him was going to live on in Ali and Jason. And after everything we lost that day, being there to help while my grandkids grew up was not a burden, it was the greatest gift I could have hoped for."
Elizabeth's tears were falling steadily now. "I just don't want to let him down."
"Lizzie, you are the best mom, a kind and caring person, and the president of the United States. Do you know how unbelievably proud he would be of you? You think going on a date after waiting 21 years would 'let him down' somehow?"
"I don't know, I guess. I know it sounds ridiculous when I say it out loud, but even though he's gone, I still don't want to hurt him."
"You know what I think would hurt him then most, Lizzie?"
"What?" She asked, apprehensively.
"If you didn't follow your heart. Because I know this for certain, Greg's biggest concern in the whole world was that you were happy. You, and the kids once they'd been born. If there was any way for him to tell you himself now, he'd tell you that he appreciates the thought, but you've waited long enough."
Elizabeth chuckled through her tears. Greg had always been rather practical, and he somehow still managed to have the biggest heart too. It was one of the many things she'd loved about him.
"You sure?"
"Positive. Now alright, here's what we're gonna do. Three things."
"What?"
"Like I said, Greg would want you to be happy. We need to get you back on track, missy," Evelyn informed her, observing Elizabeth's tear-stained face. "So, right now, give me three things that you like about Henry McCord."
"His eyes." Elizabeth responded. She thought about it for a moment and smiled softly through the tears in her own eyes. "God, I think I could tell you three things I like about just his eyes alone."
"That's wonderful, Lizzie," Evelyn encouraged her with a small smile of her own. "What is it about his eyes?"
"Well, they're brown, and the depth there... they're just so… dynamic. I can see so much kindness in his eyes. But there's pain in them as well. He lost someone a long time ago too. And there are moments when you can see that, but it's subtle. It's like a glimpse at all the hurt he's been through. I'm not sure if anyone else would even notice it, but it struck me, it's the same look I catch in the mirror sometimes.
But what amazes me is that in spite of that, there's still so much hope there too. And it's like, when I see hope in his eyes, I can feel hope too. And when I smile, it makes him smile too. I just feel, I don't know, connected to him somehow. And even more than all of that, when he looks at me I can tell he sees Elizabeth, and not just "Madam President."
"Lizzie, I think everything you just described," Evelyn responded, attempting to suppress a chuckle, "That's what falling for someone feels like."
"I know. God, I can't even deny it. But you're right, it scares me, Evelyn. And I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing here."
"And that's a perfectly rational response. It is scary. Do you want to talk about it?"
"I guess, what I'm most worried about is that I could fall for him, and then he might wake up one day and decide that he no longer wants this lifestyle. Or… that he no longer wants me."
"Well, you're right, this lifestyle is certainly not for everyone, but what makes you think he might not want you?"
"Mike told me yesterday that Henry's had a crush on me for a long time, as in, before I was even secretary of state. What if he's built something up in his mind that's totally different from what reality will be? What if I'm not the person he's really expecting?"
"Oh, sweetie, if I know one thing it's this: reality will be completely different from any fantasy this man might be hoping for in his mind. And you will most certainly not be who he's expecting."
"What?! So you think this is doomed before it even begins?"
At that, Evelyn got up and drew Elizabeth into a tight hug. "No. Not doomed. Not at all. You will not be what he's expecting. But I firmly believe that once Henry gets to know you, he'll find that he loves who you really are even more than any fantasy."
"You think?"
"I really do." Evelyn stepped back. "How about three more things?"
Elizabeth smiled thinking about their lunch the day before. "He's really smart, and he's patient, and very sweet."
"Great. I think you're just about ready now. I'll be in the library if you need me. But I have a feeling you'll be just fine without me," Evelyn remarked as she left Elizabeth's suite.
Elizabeth turned to face the mirror one more time. After touching up her makeup, she steeled herself as she muttered, "Right, here goes nothing."
Even though Elizabeth had made the trek from her suite to the State Floor in far more formal attire more times than she could count, as she descended the Grand Staircase to the Entrance Hall tonight, Elizabeth felt a bit like a princess arriving at a ball. The difference was that she'd never had a man waiting for her at the bottom of these stairs before. Honestly, the whole scenario made her feel quite ridiculous. That was, until her gaze met Henry's and she realized that he couldn't take his eyes off of her.
"Hi," he greeted her once she finally reached the bottom of the stairs. "You look beautiful."
It may have sounded corny, but as Henry had already mentioned to his daughter last night, he seemed to be a walking cliché when it came to Elizabeth Adams. He just couldn't believe they were really standing here about to go on their first date. He'd been waiting a long time to be able to tell Elizabeth all the thoughts and feelings he'd kept bottled up throughout the years he'd known her. More than half his life.
"Thanks," Elizabeth responded, blushing slightly. "You're not so bad yourself." She smirked at the fact that he was also wearing a nice pair of dark wash jeans. His were paired with a charcoal grey sweater and pigeon blue collared shirt underneath.
In the following moment, both Henry and Elizabeth were a bit too wrapped up in their nerves. And after a beat of awkward silence, Henry was desperate to break the ice. He blurted out the first thing that popped into his head. "You're wearing your hair down. You don't do that too often anymore."
Henry was silently berating himself for saying such a stupid thing, and he hoped she didn't think he sound like a stalker for the "anymore" bit of the comment. But he had noticed that she'd taken to wearing her hair up more often than not since the inauguration.
"Huh? Oh I guess not." Elizabeth was taken aback by his comment. It wasn't that she was necessarily surprised that he'd noticed, even though she had no clue if hairstyles were something that Henry paid attention to. She was just a bit startled that he'd mentioned it so abruptly. Then again, she dreaded to think what nonsense she might've blurted out if Henry hadn't seen fit to take the initiative.
Henry's grimace at what he'd said was minuscule, but Elizabeth caught it. She thought it was sweet how badly Henry wanted this to go well. She felt the same way. And yet, due to her own nerves, she couldn't stop the know-it-all side of her (as her brother so often loved to tease her for) from correcting him. "Well, technically it's half up, half down," she informed him with a nervous smile. "I uh… couldn't decide, so I went for the compromise." Am I admitting that I put too much thought into how I looked tonight? Elizabeth wondered briefly.
"Ah you found the Middle Way," Henry responded.
"The road between sensual indulgence and self-mortification?" Elizabeth asked skeptically, remembering what Arlen Maxwell had told her in Myanmar.
Henry felt as though his heart skipped a beat. He loved that she knew that. He considered what he'd said for a moment and agreed, "You're right, I don't think it quite applies here."
"Maybe more like the path between 2020 Elizabeth and 2021 Elizabeth," she teased him.
"I'm sorry, my religious references are usually more on point than that." You just make me nervous, he thought, but didn't dare admit out loud.
She chuckled a bit, "Don't worry, Henry. I'm sure there will be plenty more opportunities for religious references going forward." Truth be told, she didn't give thought to religion too often in her own life. Of course she did her best to learn and respect other cultures and religions as it pertained to her work, but it had never really been a part of casual conversations she had once she'd gone home.
It excited Elizabeth that Henry's area of expertise was different from her own. She knew they were both nervous right now, and she trusted that Henry had a wealth of knowledge that he could share with her as time went on. But for tonight, they needed to dive right in, and hopefully, work past some of their nerves. "So, what's on the agenda for the evening?"
"Well, if you'll accompany me to the East Colonnade, our movie awaits," he informed her while making a slightly cheesy, but completely adorable gesture indicating she should join him on the short walk to the hallway that leads to the East Wing.
As they started walking, Elizabeth couldn't help giggling at Henry's behavior. "Mike was right. You really are a dork."
Henry stopped abruptly. His face fell. He was desperate to make a good impression tonight, and he was terrified that he'd already ruined his chance with Elizabeth before the date had really even begun. "What?" Henry asked, looking dejected.
Sensing her mistake, Elizabeth quickly turned to face him. She grabbed his hands in hers the way he had the day before as she rushed to assure him, "No, don't be embarrassed. Please. I like it."
She smiled up at him as she inched closer. She planted a kiss on his cheek and said, "Come on, let's go watch a movie. I haven't seen one in almost four years. It sounds perfect."
The moment they entered the theater, Elizabeth stopped short, and Henry just barely managed to stop himself from bumping into her. Elizabeth turned around and wrapped her arms around his waist while leaning back to look into his eyes. With a smile that was brighter than he'd ever seen from her, she asked, "Popcorn?"
The smell of one of her all-time favorite foods had hit Elizabeth as soon as the door had opened, but until she saw the classic red and white striped bucket sitting on one of the center seats, she'd wondered if it was too good to be true.
Henry chuckled as he turned her around and guided her to their seats. "What else are you going to eat at the movies?" he asked, while silently thanking Stevie for her advice.
Elizabeth couldn't get over it, though. "How did you get it approved?"
Henry gave her a devilish grin, hoping that despite his dorky side, he might also be able to win her over with his cooler intelligence agent side. "Well I can't reveal all my secrets, but let's just say there may have been some tradecraft involved."
Elizabeth was shocked. "Contraband?" she asked practically at a whisper. "How did you get it past the Secret Service?" she demanded to know. And he could swear that the look on her face indicated that she liked the thought of him sneaking something past her security. That the notion actually made him more attractive in her eyes.
As much as he enjoyed that look, he still felt that he should be honest. "No, I did not sneak something in past the Secret Service; I do value my life," he added with a teasing smile. "Let's just say it took some convincing, but I got the chief usher to give Chef Cindy a couple of days off."
Elizabeth was still impressed by this feat. She was clutching the bucket of popcorn as she leaned in and informed Henry in the flirtiest tone of voice she'd used in a very long time, "My, Dr. McCord, you sure are useful."
"I hope I'm a bit more than just that," Henry admitted, attempting to reciprocate her playful attitude. But Elizabeth could still see his insecurities he had buried beneath the surface.
Elizabeth removed one of her hands from where she was holding the popcorn. She ran her hand from his shoulder down his upper arm in an attempt to comfort him as she told him seriously, "You are, Henry."
She smiled at him warmly, hoping he could see that, despite her hesitation to agree to the date yesterday, she wanted tonight to go well just as badly as he did.
"So tell me, what are we watching?" Elizabeth asked.
"We are watching the new Ashley Whitaker movie. And I know some of her work in the past has been geared more toward the YA crowd, but as of late, she has been breaking into the romantic comedy genre."
Elizabeth eyed Henry suspiciously, but she was also quite amused. "Why do you know all this?"
Henry hesitantly admitted, "I might've done a little research."
What the hell could this possibly have to do with his research? Elizabeth wondered. Then it hit her. "Research for our date?" Much like yesterday, Elizabeth was finding that a simple gesture from Henry McCord had the power to make her feel butterflies. "Thank you, Henry."
"For what?" He asked as he absorbed the sincerity in Elizabeth's eyes.
"For helping me believe that I made the right decision about tonight."
"How did I do that?" Henry asked. He wondered what exactly it was that he'd done to make her feel so sure about tonight already. He needed to know these things, because Henry wanted more than just to fall in love with Elizabeth Adams. He wanted to understand her. He wanted to know her, because he wanted to take every chance he got to make her as happy as he believed that she would make him.
"Just by being you," she told him, because truly, that was enough for her.
Reveling in the moment, Henry clasped Elizabeth's hand in his and reached to move the bucket of popcorn from her lap to his.
"Hey—" she started to protest before he could explain.
Wow, Stevie really wasn't kidding about how passionate Elizabeth was about food, Henry thought.
"Don't worry. I just don't want you to have to let go," he explained with a kind grin and a gentle squeeze of her hand. Noticing the flash of guilt on her face, he amended his statement. "Any more than I already know and completely understand that you'll have to."
Elizabeth visibly relaxed at his confirmation that he understood that she would probably be dragged away for work for a decent portion of the movie. Feeling comforted by Henry's words, she took a chance and slid down in her seat just enough to rest her head on Henry's shoulder.
Henry took the final minute before the movie started to close his eyes and appreciate the calming sense of pure joy he felt in this moment. He knew his neck might hurt like hell the next day when he moved to rest his own head against hers, but he couldn't resist the opportunity to be even just a little bit closer to Elizabeth.
Henry and Elizabeth managed to make it through the movie with Elizabeth only being pulled away six times. And most of those incidents only lasted a few minutes. All told, she had missed less than half the movie. In truth, that was actually better than what Elizabeth had hoped for.
The credits began to roll, and Henry shifted to stand. "You're not gonna watch the credits?" Elizabeth asked.
Why does she sound disappointed about that? Henry wondered. "Well, it's not like it's an MCU movie."
Henry thought Elizabeth seemed a bit distracted as she'd begun to ramble a bit about the credits, "... and all these people put in so much time to make the movie—" Just as Henry was about to ask if everything was okay, it seemed as though Elizabeth had finally registered what he'd said, "It's not a what movie?"
Henry chuckled, "MCU." Upon being met with a questioning look from Elizabeth, he explained further, "Marvel Cinematic Universe. It's the company that's been making all of the more recent movies that are based on the Marvel Comics. Iron Man, Captain America, The Hulk, The Avengers."
"Ohh, you know what, Ali and Jason dragged me out to go see Iron Man 2 to celebrate me finishing my first year of teaching." She laughed at the memory, "I think it would have made sense, though if I had seen the first one."
Without a doubt, he thought. Those movies could be difficult to follow for people who had seen them all. "Well," he explained, "those movies have scenes in the middle of and at the end of the credits. Otherwise I guess I have to admit, I don't usually watch them."
"I'm sorry for babbling," Elizabeth began. She figured she should just be honest and stop wasting their time. "I just didn't want you to leave yet."
Elizabeth bit her bottom lip and nervously awaited Henry's reaction.
Henry was over the moon. He'd been so nervous all night about what was going on in Elizabeth's head. Nervous that at any minute she might decide that she really didn't have time to date, or that she might not like him enough to want to try to make this work. But she'd said that she wanted him to stay. It was a relief to know what she was thinking.
With a new found confidence, Henry stood and held out his hand for Elizabeth to join him as he happily informed her, "Well then, fortunately, I have planned a part two for the evening."
Elizabeth accepted his hand with a hopeful smile and told Henry to lead the way.
Henry led Elizabeth up the stairs toward her suite in the Residence. He'd never actually been to the Residence, but he had studied the schematics of the White House before. He wasn't quite sure if that was a result of his so-called "dorkiness," if it was simply a matter of fact that any intelligence agent would study the blueprints of a building they worked in, or some combination of the two.
Henry stopped outside of the door that led to the living room of Elizabeth's suite.
Noticing that Henry perhaps felt awkward just walking into her space, Elizabeth asked, "Are we here?" With the confirmation from Henry, she opened the door, and for the second time that night, she was instantly met by the smell of one of her favorite foods.
On a dime, she turned to Henry, pulled him into the living room while shutting the door behind them, and asked without hesitation, "All right, I want a name. Who is it?"
"Excuse me?" Henry asked, taken aback by her sudden shift in mood.
"Your source? Who is it? I was willing to let the popcorn slide, seeing as how it was the movies and everything. But this? You just happen to pick my favorite food for dinner too?"
"I—"
"Don't even try it, McCord. You're in way over your head. Now I'm going to ask you again, and you're going to give me an name this time, because I think we can both agree that we don't want a leak in my inner circle right now."
"Okay, okay. You got me. It was my daughter."
"Aha! I knew it!" Elizabeth was so caught up in the excitement of being right that it took her a moment to fully realize what he'd said. "Wait, what? Your daughter? How the hell would she know—" that was when it hit her. "McCord. Stevie McCord is your daughter!" Elizabeth exclaimed excitedly.
It all made sense to her now. It was the only logical explanation. She knew that in addition to being Russell's intern, Stevie McCord had the unique distinction of being Blake's best friend. Come to think of it, Elizabeth almost dreaded to think what details about her life the young woman could have gleaned through the years. Although she had to admit, Stevie's memory for detail was quite impressive.
"That makes so much sense," Elizabeth told him, happy to have added a rather significant piece to the puzzle that was Dr. Henry McCord, Ph.D.
That was when she noticed the discomfort on Henry's face, and she realized how what she just said could have sounded. She'd seen her own kids panic enough times over accusations of nepotism to know the signs.
"It wasn't—" Henry began to defend his daughter before Elizabeth cut him off.
"I'm sorry, Henry. That's not what I meant." She gave his hand a gentle squeeze for comfort as he had done for her earlier, and told him, "What I meant was that she's a brilliant, kind, and brave person. Just like her dad."
Henry was relieved that she hadn't meant what he'd feared she meant, and a bit embarrassed that he'd briefly worried Elizabeth would think that about him and Stevie. But mostly, he was overwhelmed with a sense of pride that she thought so highly of his daughter, and a feeling of joy that she thought that highly of him too.
Elizabeth and Henry made their way over to the couch to eat their dinner, and Elizabeth smirked at him. "I gotta say, McCord, I'm liking the whole eating on the couch idea you've got planned here. It's cozy," she added leaning close to Henry as they sat down.
Henry was glad she liked the plan. He knew it was a bit of a bold choice for a first date, but after what Stevie had told him last night, he was thinking that Elizabeth might enjoy something more casual as opposed to all of the protocol and procedures she was forced to follow every day. "I was thinking it would be… I don't know, fun, I guess."
Henry was worried that she might not appreciate the assumption that she needed some more fun in her life.
Elizabeth was grateful that he'd thought of it. And yet, she was frowning. She hadn't even noticed until Henry asked her what was wrong.
"It's nothing," she told him. "I was actually thinking earlier today that I needed more fun in my life. Ali, and on occasion Jason, were usually the ones who reminded me to put down my work and have fun every once in a while. I guess I was just thinking about how much I miss them."
"Hey, I understand," he told her while taking the opportunity to gently brush a loose lock of her hair back behind her ear. He then guided his fingertips along the side of her cheek and lifted her chin so that her eyes met his. "It's hard to let go. I mean, my daughter lives in the city, and I still miss her like crazy."
"Wait, doesn't your daughter live with you?"
"No. Not anymore. What made you think that?"
"Well your Wikipedia page said—" Elizabeth stopped immediately once she realized what she was saying. What she was admitting. Thankfully, Henry hadn't noticed.
He was too surprised. "I have a Wikipedia page?" he asked in shock.
"Uh, yeah," Elizabeth laughed. For someone so intelligent he sure can be a tad oblivious to certain things, she thought.
Then he realized, "Wait you read my Wikipedia page?"
"I uh—might have skimmed it you could say," she admitted.
It was now Henry's turn to laugh at her. "I'm not sure the taxpayers are giving their hard-earned money to the government so you can waste time trolling the internet for intel on your date," Henry teased her.
Elizabeth scoffed. "It's not like I was doing this during office hours," she replied just a bit too defensively.
Henry wasn't going to let her off the hook that easily, though. He eyed her with playful suspicion and told her, "Please, you're lucky I'm the only one here, because no one's buying that lie. It's okay, you can tell me. I won't blow the whistle."
Elizabeth could see she wasn't getting out of this one easily. "If you must know," she retorted with mock sass, "I was reading up a bit about you when I was down in my study yesterday morning. But that was before our lunch, and at the time, I thought you were there to look for a job. I was merely prepping for a meeting."
"And the president of the United States gets her information for her meetings from Wikipedia, does she?"
"Henryyy," Elizabeth complained, dragging out the last syllable.
He finally surrendered. "All right, all right. You win. Let's eat."
Elizabeth smiled, unable to resist one final jab in their playful battle of words, "Now that's the smartest thing I've heard you say."
Henry laughed at her joke and watched as she rushed to dispense the various dishes laid out on the coffee table onto her plate. He knew he should eat too before the food got cold, but he couldn't take his eyes off of Elizabeth. All he could think was that he couldn't even begin to imagine all of the wonders she had seen in her career traveling the world. And yet, she took so much pleasure in such simple things.
He wondered if maybe it was because he also couldn't dare to imagine the horrors she'd seen in her life too. Maybe it was actually the little day to day things that brought her the joy that provided her her refuge to recover from the terrors that she faced on a regular basis.
Dinner progressed, and Henry found time to eat once Elizabeth had gotten on a roll with her storytelling. She told him all about her kids, her fondest memories with her staff, and she told him how much she loved it when she got to work with kids. She was especially excited that because Jay's ex-wife was out of town, he had to bring his daughter Chloe into the office this weekend.
Henry thought he could listen to her talk all night. She was so different now than he had ever seen her. She looked so free just casually sitting on the couch and telling stories. She wasn't making a speech, debating policy, or negotiating with a foreign official. She was simply Elizabeth tonight. The fate of the world wasn't hanging in the balance, and nobody's lives were in her hand at the moment. Henry felt privileged to see this side of her that only a select few ever get to see.
Elizabeth was worried that she might be talking too much, but Henry didn't seem like he was going to be ready to stop her any time soon. And she could see it written all over his face that he was actively listening to her—practically hanging on every word in fact.
She could feel her smile getting bigger and bigger as the night continued. As much as she hated to admit that Conrad was right about her, she really did feel happier just having someone around to recount these stories to. Memories really were better if you had someone you care about to share them with.
After a while, Elizabeth began to settle down a bit more as she was getting a bit tired.
Henry was enjoying himself even more than he had imagined, but there was something that had been nagging at him throughout dinner. They were having such a good time, and Henry didn't want to ruin it. He was also more than a little afraid to ask Elizabeth what he wanted to ask her, but he had to know, "Why did you say she was brave?
"What?"
"Earlier when you were describing Stevie. You said she was brave. That's not—that's not a typical adjective used to describe the work of an intern with a desk job."
Elizabeth wasn't quite sure how to respond. She hadn't expected this conversation tonight, but she supposed it was her own fault for bringing it up, however indirectly.
She took a deep breath to prepare herself to tell this story.
"I was there—well I mean, I was just outside the White House when it was bombed back in 2018. I heard it happen, and I saw the smoke. What happened after was terrifying. No one knew what was happening at first, if there was going to be a secondary attack, or even—" she paused for a moment to collect herself, "or even if Conrad was still alive."
She let out a shaky breath and continued once again. "As soon as I was able to, I went to the hospital to visit the victims. I knew Prime Ministers Kharti and Wadelya and Minister Samant would be there, but Stevie was a surprise. She was just so young, and I'd noticed that Russell was sitting with her alone. I went into her room to talk to him. I asked him where her parents were. He told me that he'd managed to convince her father to take a break and run home to grab some personal items for her so that she could feel more comfortable when she woke up. And he said," Elizabeth choked up a bit, "He said that she lost her mother when she was 13."
Henry wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulled Elizabeth close to him, and grabbed her hand. It was an awful day for both of them to talk about, but he'd heard enough about Elizabeth's past to know why that last fact about Stevie would be particularly difficult for Elizabeth to discuss.
She went on. "He also told me that in the moments after the attack, all Stevie cared about was getting help for June."
Elizabeth had started crying now, and Henry was on the brink of tears thinking about that day himself. "She just reminded me so much of my brother. He was 13 too when we lost our parents, and he—he actually didn't tell me this until recently—but in the moments after the crash, all he cared about was trying to get help for my parents.
It's the worst part. When you experience a trauma like that." Elizabeth's mind had wandered back to thoughts of Iran, but she'd had enough sessions with Dr. Sherman by now that she didn't believe she'd end up having a flashback at the moment. "The part where you see someone else caught up in the horror with you. And you have all this adrenaline you don't know what to do with, and you're forced to face the fact that you're powerless to stop what's happening."
Elizabeth felt Henry pull her tighter to him as she paused to wipe as many of the tears from her eyes as she could, and then she got back to the part about Stevie. "I stayed with her and Russell for as long as I could before I got pulled away on a phone call. When I came back, I saw that her father—you apparently—had returned, and I decided it would be best not to disturb you. So I left."
Henry was overwhelmed with emotion. He was always overwhelmed whenever he thought about that day, but despite the pain they were reliving in this moment, finding out that Elizabeth had been there at the hospital with Stevie, in a way, gave him hope too.
There were so many potential reasons why a relationship with Elizabeth could fail. One of the possibilities that had been weighing heavily on his mind since his initial conversation with Stevie was whether or not their families would get along when the time came for them to meet.
Henry hadn't really doubted Elizabeth, but the kindness she had already shown his daughter reaffirmed his belief that a relationship with Elizabeth would be worth anything the country, the world, or life could throw at them. And he had hope that they might able to lean on each other through difficult times in the future, just as they were doing now.
Henry stared at his and Elizabeth's hands joined in his lap. Elizabeth had thanked him earlier, but now Henry felt as though it was his turn. A tear had begun to fall down his cheek as he turned to face Elizabeth. A simple, "Thank you," was all he could manage at first.
Much like Henry had done for her yesterday, Elizabeth lifted her free hand to Henry's cheek and wiped away his tear.
She wasn't quite sure what she'd done. Other than make Henry cry. "For what? I mean, all I did was—" Elizabeth began before Henry cut her off.
For a brief moment, Elizabeth thought she saw a flicker of something akin to anger in his eyes as he told her, "Don't do that."
"Do what?" She asked, even more confused.
"Sell yourself short." It was then that Elizabeth understood what she'd thought was anger. Henry was gearing up to defend her. "You barely knew Stevie. And on a day when you had so much going on, you sat with her for as long as you could, just because you saw that she was hurt and she needed someone. How many other cabinet secretaries would have done that? Hell—how many other people? You are one of a kind Elizabeth Adams."
Elizabeth smiled bashfully. In her line of work she met sycophants daily, but it was so much rarer that she encountered praise as genuine and heartfelt as Henry's.
Sensing her unease, Henry decided to let the conversation rest. After they'd taken a few moments, Henry figured he should try to lighten the mood a bit. "So, I believe you also mentioned brilliant earlier too?" Henry asked with a smile.
Elizabeth was grateful for the shift in conversation. She chuckled a bit, but she deeply admired how much he cared about his daughter. And she understood quite well the feeling of pride you experience as a parent when someone compliments your child.
"Well, it's not every day an intern saves the day and gets a bill passed that helps make millions children's lives better."
Henry's eyes went wide. "She got a bill passed?"
"She didn't tell you?"
"I guess she's just modest. Maybe like someone else I know," Henry gently rubbed her bicep, indicating that he was teasing her.
Elizabeth rolled her eyes slightly. Normally she couldn't stand being teased, but there was something in the look in Henry's eyes that made her stomach flip when he smiled that way at her. She was starting to think that being teased was worth it if she got to see Henry smile at her like that.
"Did she tell you anything about Pandagate?"
Henry laughed. "You mean when she tweeted the National Zoo, and revealed Russell's Panda Cam habit to the whole world. I did happen to catch that one."
Elizabeth was laughing too thinking back on the memory. She tucked her knees underneath her to face Henry better as she began her next story. "You should have seen Russell that week. He was furious, but I had already learned from one of my more dicey negotiations with China that you do not come between Russell Jackson and his panda bears."
Henry was already enjoying this new story, and they hadn't even gotten to the part about Stevie yet. He loved hearing Elizabeth's laugh, and he loved the way her eyes were lighting up with glee as she shared what had happened.
"But anyway, back to Stevie. She handled the whole situation with grace beyond her years. We didn't want to tell Stevie this to make her feel self-conscious, but she became the NSC's favorite White House staffer that week. Russell's such a serious person," Elizabeth told him between gasps of laughter.
"As are the members of the NSC, I'd imagine," Henry pointed out. Although I'm starting to doubt that just a bit, Henry jokingly thought upon seeing that Elizabeth's tears had now been replaced by tears of amusement.
"Of course we are," Elizabeth jokingly admonished while giving Henry a tiny playful shove. "But it's so rare that something funny happens at the White House, you gotta appreciate those moments when you can. I may have even gone out of my way to gain some further intel from Adele a couple days later to get the whole story," she admitted sheepishly, "Subtly of course, I was CIA, after all. It turned out that when the tweet went viral, dozens of senators and members of congress had sent stuffed panda bears to Russell's office in the West Wing. Then later that day, POTUS had a photo op with some children who were cancer survivors. It turned out that one of them recognized Russell as the "Panda Man" and asked him for a photo. And it was Stevie's idea to tag the senators who sent the pandas in her post on Instagram. So many Americans saw it, and the public forced Morejon and the other senators to back the bill."
Henry was amazed by all this. He knew how excited Stevie was when the bill passed, but she hadn't told him how big of an impact her social media posts had had on Congress.
"So, tell me, how is she doing? Is she happy?"
Henry smiled. Every time he heard Elizabeth speak he seemed to find another reason that he was falling for her. In a city rampant with narcissistic ambition, here Elizabeth was, not asking what Stevie had accomplished or what she was doing with her life. She'd asked if she was happy. That was what she cared about and what she hoped for for his daughter. Not wealth and power, but joy and happiness.
"She's great. She's fiercely devoted to her work, and," Henry paused, still not quite used to the idea of his little girl getting married, "her fiancé."
Elizabeth gasped. "She's engaged? To who? Do we like him?" She asked, partially joking, but also a bit serious.
Henry laughed, and even though he knew it was an expression, and she was joking, his mind was reeling having heard Elizabeth use the word "we."
"We do like him, he's…" Henry trailed off, not quite sure what Elizabeth's feelings were regarding or even how much she knew exactly about Dmitri. "Her fiancé is actually Dmitri Petrov."
Her reaction was better than he could have hoped for. "Really?" she asked, clearly excited for the young couple. "That's wonderful, Henry. Honesty, it was so horrible the way that—that everything went down with Igor Zhukov and the transfer to Alaska. I can't imagine how hard that must have been for her."
"It was rough for a while. But hey, she's got you to thank for getting him back. If you hadn't signed the amnesty deal—"
"Please, Henry. After everything that young man went through for this country, he deserved some peace, and his freedom."
Henry wrapped his arm around her shoulder again, and Elizabeth rested her head against his chest. She could feel Henry's heart beating faster, and she smiled, knowing that her own heart was beating faster as well as a result of Henry's touch.
They sat together in a comfortable silence, leaning on each other as they processed all the new information they'd learned about each other tonight.
Eventually, Elizabeth began to doze off. And as much as Henry wished he could revel in the fact that he could be the one who got to hold her while she slept, he knew that their date had to come to an end for the night. He placed a light kiss on the top of her head before he gently woke her.
"Elizabeth?"
"Yeah?" She asked sleepily.
"I think it's time I should go."
"Yeah," she responded again, sighing slightly out of disappointment.
She stood up and held out her hands to pull Henry to his feet too. With one of his hands still in hers, she walked him to the door of her suite's living room. She knew he was perfectly capable of finding his way out the rest of the way, and she didn't want to say their goodbyes for the night downstairs where any of the Residence staff could walk by at any moment.
"So…" Henry began.
"So," Elizabeth smiled as she repeated his word back to him, waiting for him to finish his thought.
"So what's next?"
"Well," she began with a hopeful grin, "lucky for us, one of those calls I got during the movie was from Ali. Her new flight lands early Sunday morning. So, we have more time tomorrow if you want to do this again."
Henry's heart was racing. Elizabeth had used the word "we" again to refer to the two of them. And this time, it wasn't an expression, and she wasn't joking in the slightest. She had even referred to them as "us." He loved the sound of that.
"I most definitely want to do this again," Henry managed to answer while desperately trying to keep his cool. "What do you say to a trip to the bowling alley?"
Slowly drifting closer to him, Elizabeth replied, "I say get the kitchen to make us some burgers and I'm there, McCord."
"Your wish is my command, Adams," he retorted playfully before turning serious. It really was time for them to say goodnight. Timidly, he asked, "Can I kiss you now?"
The word "yes" barely escaped Elizabeth's mouth before Henry's lips came crashing down on hers. Just as they had the day before, Henry and Elizabeth each wrapped their arms around the other as they kissed. And once again, they were left breathless when they pulled apart from one another.
Only this time, she wasn't overwhelmed by negative thoughts. The smile remained on Elizabeth's face tonight, and she allowed Henry to continue to hold her while they said their goodbyes for the evening.
All her fears hadn't suddenly vanished overnight, but now when she felt thoughts of panic approaching, she grounded herself in the moment by asking herself to think of three things. Three things that made everything worth all the risks she was taking. What she thought of was this: I like Henry, Henry likes me, and tomorrow night we get to do this all over again.