Blood Suckers and Blood Letters

Josh watched his best friend's only child kissing his youngest daughter with abandon in the middle of Admissions at GW hospital with a sense of the inevitable. Donna wasn't the only one to tell him that Billy had feelings for his baby girl, but like any other father he hadn't wanted to acknowledge that someone's son had those kind of feelings for his daughter. Sara had been dating for quite some time of course, but somehow this time it was different. This was Sam and Ainsley's precious baby boy.

"You were right," Josh murmured watching the younger couple kiss. Sara, he noticed, hadn't put up any protest. "Wonder when they'll come up for air?" It was of course, at that moment that the media descended on the hospital looking for information about those injured in the riot.

"Sara! Billy!" Donna called breaking up their kiss. Sara approached her parents amazed at the kiss Billy had just given her. "Take it somewhere more private," her mother advised. "There's a lounge down the hall that I'm sure your father can get them to let us use while we wait."

"I'll talk to the press," Josh offered.

"NO!" the others protested together.

"Secret plan, Joshua" Donna reminded him.

"That was a long time ago!"

"Secret plan..."

"Sir," the clerk called. "Dr. Fowler can talk to you now about Mr. Young's condition."

"Fine," Josh acquiesced. "You talk to the blood suckers, and I'll talk to the blood letters."

Donna stepped towards the gathering crowd of reporters to give a statement for the family. She couldn't tell them much, but it kept them at bay long enough for hospital security to arrive and move them out of the way. She then walked back down the hall to where the others were talking to the doctor.

"...still unconscious," she heard the doctor explain. "We've sent him up for a cat scan. We'll know more once that's been done."

"What are you looking for with the cat scan?" Deena asked.

"Bleeding on the brain....what we call a sub-dural hematoma," Dr. Fowler explained.

"And if there is bleeding?" Josh asked.

"We'll most likely want to operate to relieve the pressure, but we won't know anything until we complete the scan. Just wait here, and I or another doctor will come once we have more information."

"Thank you, Doctor" Donna mumbled.

"Wait, Doctor!" Billy requested. "Sara has someone looked at you yet?"

"I'm fine," she replied.

"I'll take that for a 'no'," Dr. Fowler replied taking Sara by the elbow. "Come with me, and we'll take a quick look."

"I'm fine," she repeated.

"Go, Sara" Billy ordered worry plainly evident in his voice. Sara shut her mouth on whatever protest she was about to make and allowed the doctor to lead her towards an examination room.

Donna studied the young man she'd known since his birth in this very hospital. Donna remembered how close they'd come to tragedy that night as Ainsley had struggled to bring her son into the world. After more than a day in labor the doctors had finally decided to perform a caesarean section. Ainsley had fought the necessity until the very end, and it had finally taken Abby Bartlet to convince her to let the doctors perform the surgery. When she'd woken after the surgery Sam had been forced to tell her that they wouldn't be able to have more children. The doctors had managed to deliver Billy safely, but Ainsley had continued to bleed. To save her life, they'd performed an hysterectomy. She had seemed to take it well at first, but weeks later when Donna and CJ had dropped in to visit she'd lashed out at Donna whose second pregnancy was just beginning to show.

"Go away!" Ainsley had cried.

"Ainsley, what's wrong?" CJ had asked as Donna stood in shock on the Seaborn's doorstep.

"I...I..." Ainsley hadn't been able to continue but the look she'd given Donna's swelling middle had been enough of a clue for the other woman.

"Because Donna's pregnant?" CJ had asked leading Ainsley gently back into the house with Donna close behind. "Ainsley, do you realize how jealous I am of you? You have Billy, and no matter what Toby and I put ourselves through I can't get pregnant. I don't mean to sound callous, but be grateful for what you have, honey. You have a wonderful, beautiful baby boy."

Ainsley had continued to cry though.

"I'm jealous," Donna had suddenly admitted trying another tact.

"Jealous?" Ainsley asked incredulously.

"Jealous....no more PMS, no more cramps..." Donna had told her.

"No maxi pads, no more tampons, no more bloating..." CJ had added getting into the spirit.

"And best of all....spontaneous sex whenever you want it without worrying about birth control," Donna had said. "No more pills, no more condoms, diaphragms, spermicide...No counting days. Sex whenever you feel like it."

CJ and Donna had both sighed dramatically then causing a tiny giggle to escape their friend. The rest of the visit had gone well. Weeks later Ainsley admitted to her friends as she blushed that they had reason to be jealous. The three women had laughed so hard they'd drawn attention from the other customers in the restaurant where they were eating.

At first, Sam and Ainsley had gone overboard protecting their son from all of life's hurts. They had both been sheltered children, but Billy was being smothered by their overwhelming concern. One visit from Grandma Abby had mostly cured them of that though. Billy had joined the Lyman children and later the Ziegler children as well, in summer visits to Grandma and Grandpa Bartlet's Manchester farm, and whatever over-protectiveness his parents continued to display was balanced by the freedom he experienced during those summer weeks.

Donna's musing were interrupted when she heard her name being called by a familiar voice and looked up to see Zoey Bartlet-Young enter the room.

"How is he?" she demanded.