Title: Stay Anyway 21/?

Author: Amber (Ambino1111@prodigy.net)

Disclaimers & other notes in Part 1

Previously, in Stay Anyway...

Sam sees his ex-fiancée Lisa as she takes a tour of the White House with her son Alexander. He talks with her and they decide to go to dinner the next night. A political snafu pops up before their dinner, and they end up eating with Josh and Donna in the White House. Lisa vows to hook up Josh and Donna, the latter becoming a new friend. Sam encourages Lisa to stay so they can talk about what happened between them, and as she is singing her son to sleep in Josh's office, Sam talks with Josh and Donna. He goes ballistic when Josh asks if he still loves Lisa. Sam and Lisa decide not to talk about what happened, although Lisa rhetorically asks "How did we get here?" Flashbacks: Lisa is a dentist and first meets Sam at an appointment. Fast forward to Sam and Lisa living together. A misunderstanding occurs when Sam's plans for a surprise party make Lisa suspicious. She tracks down the woman she thinks he's having an affair with, and discovers it was Josh, who had been helping Sam plan everything. At the party, she and Josh, realizing who they are, react strangely when introduced, which makes Sam wonder. He confronts Josh, who tells him the truth. Sam tells Lisa it was all just a misunderstanding and they drop it. Back to the present, where Lisa informs Sam that she and Alex are moving to DC He offers to let her stay at his apartment until hers is ready - she says she'll think about it. Instead, she accepts Donna's offer to live with her and refuses to call Sam and tell him. Sam and Josh have a heart-to-heart about women, and Josh learns about the office-wide pool betting on when he and Donna would admit their feelings. Meanwhile, at Donna's, Lisa comforts Donna, who admits that Josh treats her like a platonic wife. Josh shows up at her apartment, drunkenly informing her of his love, and Donna makes him leave. While waiting for the cab, Josh tells Lisa that Sam still loves her. In the middle of the night, Sam comes over to Donna's and demands to know where Lisa is. He and Lisa have a huge fight that ends with Sam yelling that he loves her. Later that day, Lisa calls Sam and tells him it's over - they shouldn't even see each other anymore. At lunch, Sam decides to ask Ainsley out to dinner and she agrees. Fast forward to Lisa and Alex waiting in the mess to eat lunch with Donna. Before she arrives, Lisa meets Ainsley, who is waiting to eat with Sam. An awkward situation ensues, in which both Sam and Lisa pretend to not know each other. That Friday, HR 206 passes, and everyone is happy. Sam and Ainsley decline the invitation to celebrate with Josh, Donna, Toby, and CJ, and instead go to dinner. After dinner, Ainsley offers to cut Sam's hair. They go to his apartment, where they both change out of their rain-drenched clothes into sweatpants. While Ainsley is cutting Sam's hair, he leans forward and kisses her. A knock at the door interrupts them. It's Lisa, who has just found out that her dad died. She can't get in touch with Donna and feels overwhelmed. She takes Alex on a walk in the rain and winds up at Sam's building.

*****

"Time is like a river made up of the events which happen, and its current is strong; no sooner does anything appear than it is swept away, and another comes in its place, and will be swept away too. " - Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, Meditations

*****

"Lisa!" I hiss, only opening the door halfway. What is she doing here? She's going to ruin everything. I look back at Ainsley, who has busied herself with sweeping the hair from the floor.

I desperately want to get back to our kiss.

"Sam, I... I don't know exactly what I'm doing here..."

For the first time, I realize how horrible she looks. She's absolutely drenched and starting to shiver (I recognize her jacket on the stroller) and her eyes are red. Something is definitely not right.

I close the door almost all the way. "I'll be back in a minute," I call over my shoulder and join Lisa in the hallway, shutting the door behind me.

"What is it?" We both notice the harsh, impatient tone of my voice.

She looks uncertain. Scared, even. And extraordinarily sad. Despite the current state of our relationship, I feel worried about her.

"Sam, I... I don't know why I'm here. I don't even know how I got here," For some reason she refuses to meet my eyes. I can't tell if she's crying or it's just the raindrops on her face.

"What is it, Lisa? What happened?"

She lowers her gaze and stares at her feet for a moment before swiping at her eyes.

"Oh, noth- nothing happened," She sniffs. "I just, uh, I wanted you to know how sorry am I. I acted so mean and hurtful, and there's no excuse for that. I was wrong, and I'm sorry."

I don't quite know how to respond to that.

"I also wanted to tell you something. I have to tell you two things, actually... just in case something happens to me, just so you know... I never stopped loving you either."

Oh.

My brain isn't functioning at its normal capacity.

"Okay. Okay," I'm nodding like an idiot. "And the second thing?" My voice is freakishly calm.

She looks slightly embarrassed and very guilty. "Well, the second thing, you see, is that-"

I must have the worst timing in the world, because it's at this point that the door opens behind me and Ainsley pops her head out. "Sam, is everything-" Her query abruptly ends when she takes in the scene before her.

What do I do now?

"Ainsley-"

"Lisa?!? What are _you_ doing here?" She's not upset yet, just confused. Lisa stares down at her feet.

"Ainsley, there's uh," I cough, clearing my throat. "There's something I didn't tell you. You introduced us the other day and we pretended not to know each other, but, ah... well... Lisa is my ex-fiancée."

Comprehension dawns on both of their faces. I wonder for a moment why Lisa, too, is upset, then remember that Ainsley is wearing a robe.

I feel like the biggest jerk in the world.

"Oh," Ainsley says after a moment, playing with the belt of the aforementioned robe.

"I'm sorry. I was just leaving," Lisa mumbles, swiftly turning the stroller around.

"No, Lisa, wait!" I call out suddenly. I'm about to run after her, but I remember that Ainsley is standing next to me. I want to be in two places at once, but I know I can't. I feel sick to my stomach.

We stand in the hallway for a minute or two after Lisa disappears from sight. I wonder if I should be the one to break the silence.

Ainsley beats me to it.

"What was that about?"

TBC