The sunshine and bright skies that day seemed shockingly out of place, in comparison to Aaron's inner storm; the never-ending hurricane of depression.

Talk less, so they won't know you're hurting, you're weak, you're angry. They don't care about your feelings. Only say what's necessary.

Smile more, so they don't feel obligated to help you when you break down in tears in the middle of senate, because you're pointless, you're worthless, and nothing you can do could ever change that.

Socialize, because otherwise they'll think you cold and aloof.

These were the words ringing like church bells in his head, that morning.

"Ah, Mr. Secretary!" Burr forced a smile as he passed his friend in the street.

"Mr. Burr, Sir!" Alexander stopped in his tracks, and greeted Burr with a genuine smile. If only he could have the same optimism as the secretary of treasury. "What's up?"

"Not much." Burr chuckled, pretending to be careless. Not much was right. When Alex was in the room to steal your opportunities, there really wasn't much you could do. "Just a few cases. But did you hear the news about good old General Mercer?"

Alex shook his head.

"You know Claremont street?" Burr smirked, glad to finally know something Alexander didn't. "They renamed it after him; the Mercer legacy is secure."

"And all he had to do was die…" He murmured to himself.

"Well, that's a lot less work." Alex laughed, obviously not understanding the feeling caged up behind that statement.

"We ought to give it a try." The lawyer laughed, blowing his moment of vulnerability off as a joke. It was the easiest way to deal with it. Smile more, that was how he worked. It was terrifying how much a smile could hide. They went on to speak of politics and other things, but the darkness had settled in his mind, again.

As he made his way home, that evening, his mind was not on his work. He was lost in the endless spiral down, down, until there was no way for him to crawl out.

Hamilton would always be better than him. Hamilton would always be one step ahead, soaking up opportunities like nothing else could compare. Hamilton, no matter how hard Burr tried, would always be stealing his career, and if anyone was going to have a legacy in this world, it wouldn't be him.

Maybe some people weren't meant to have legacies?

Perhaps some souls were born into this world simply to pass out of it again with no mark on the world as we know it?

Possibly.

There was a line between the winners and the losers; a line between the chosen and the rest. Burr would always be on the south side of that line, no matter how hard he tried.

As he trudged into his house, his feet feeling as heavy as his heart, he made up his mind. Why wait for something that was never going to happen? Why pretend he was ever going to get his one shot? He was a waste of space, a vapor in the wind, a wave tossed in the ocean. After he was dead, no one would remember him, anyway, no matter what he did, so why wait?

"Daddy?"

Aaron jumped, startled, and locked eyes with his tiny daughter, staring up at him with wide, adoring eyes. "Hey, Theo." He greeted in a small voice. "What are you doing up? It's long past your bedtime."

"I heard you come in…" She smiled mischievously. "'n I wanted to say hi."

"Hello." Burr smiled with more positivity than he felt. "Now, you really ought to sleep, little mouse."

"But I missed you, Daddy!" She whined, and pattered forward, wrapping her little arms around his leg. "You were gone all day!"

Burr laughed incredulously, and swept her up into his arms. "That's not so long a time. You really missed me?"

"Uh-huh." She smiled, her eyes wide in innocence. "I miss you every time you're gone! And I'm only happy when you hug me, again!"

Burr's heart was touched. His little girl was, by far, the cutest being ever to grace the face of the earth. But, deeper than that, she had just given him the answer he'd been looking for.

Ordinary people weren't built for grand legacies that would outlive them. Perhaps not. But maybe he didn't need fame and renown to be remembered. Theodosia missed him when he was gone to work, so of course she'd miss and remember him if he was gone permanently.

In a way, she was his legacy, for as long as Theodosia, being her adorable little self, it was proof that Aaron Burr had done something right, as well. He had brought her into this world, and maybe that could be enough.

He didn't need a statue of him in a national park to be making the world a better place. All he needed was to be doing what he could, day by day, and if he was granted an opportunity, he should take it. Until then, he was more than willing to wait.

It gave him time to spend building the greatest achievement he'd ever had.

"Come along, Theo." He sighed. "Let's get you a bedtime story, alright?"

TheOnlyHuman.