VII

FRIDAY:

"CJ?"

"Hi." CJ spun around from where she'd been contemplating the framed picture of her father that now stood beside the one of her and her brothers, and looked up at Carol.

Carol waved a package. "I got the manuscript."

"The presidential biography?"

"Yeah."

She adjusted her glasses and sat up. "That was quick."

"I think they're hoping to get a foreword out of somebody at the White House."

"We can probably spare an intern from supplies."

Carol grinned, and held out the manuscript. "There's pictures, too."

"Pictures?" CJ tipped the package out with more enthusiasm, and Carol leaned in.

"Between you and me? They're really kinda cute."

CJ smirked, and flipped quickly through a few black and white photos of the youthful president. A school picture and a baby photo that she'd seen before. A candid college-era shot of the president displaying a broad grin that she had to concede Carol's point on, and one that made her snicker of him looking like a James Dean impersonator complete with moody pose and cigarette. Not to mention- "Aww."

"Isn't that adorable?" Carol agreed.

"We should see if the First Lady wants a copy of that." Apparently, the future First Couple had been near-sickeningly sweet together even as teenagers. For a moment the picture made her sentimental about the days when dating had been as simple as waiting to see who would ask you to the prom.

Then reality caught up, and reminded her that she'd hated those days with a fiery passion. She shuffled the photographs back together and stashed the manuscript on the edge of her desk.

"I'll have a flick through that later, see if there are any embarrassing teenage exploits for me to take notes on."

"Embarrassing for the administration?" Carol queried.

CJ gave a wicked grin. "Well, you know. That too."

Josh arrived back in his office and quickly sought out his assistant.

"Okay, Donna, now that we're actually back at work, could you possibly see your way to setting up-?"

"It's at eleven," she cut him off without looking up from her typing.

He was silent for a beat. "Your psychic powers have improved."

"They have."

"I didn't even tell you who I need to meet with!"

She rolled her eyes at him. "Sam told me."

He frowned. "You spoke to Sam?"

"Sam doesn't sleep in for like, two hours in the morning."

"That's because Sam is currently sharing his bedroom with forty-seven boxes of junk."

"Not to mention Steve."

"Are you suggesting I should get a boyfriend?"

"Would it help you get to work on time?"

"I doubt that very much."

"Then I'll leave it to your own discretion."

"Thanks for that," he said dryly. Suddenly at a loss, he decided to sit on the edge of Donna's desk for a while. She paused in her typing, and looked up at him.

"Don't you have a job to do?"

"Yes, but I had a few minutes pencilled in for talking to you."

"'Annoy Donna' is an actual timetabled activity now?"

"No, it's a hobby." He was silent for a moment, thinking, then said "It's weird..."

"Your desire to annoy me? I know."

"No. Sam. It's weird to think of him and Steve, you know, setting up home together..."

Donna folded her arms and gave him a curious look. "Is this a delayed 'my best friend's dating a guy' wig out?"

"What? No. It's not Steve, necessary, it's just... you know. Sam's been dating him for what, three, four months almost, they're moving in together... that's a... that's a relationship. And Charlie and Zoey are getting married, and it's just... it's just weird."

"Yeah," Donna sighed.

"I don't know, it just seems like..." He shrugged.

"Everybody else is leaving Singledom Station, and some of us missed the train?"

Josh almost made a smart remark, and then sighed. "I was just thinking about the whole, you know, the whole 'settle down and have kids' thing. How come I never did that? It's not like I didn't want to."

"Josh," she chided him with a gentle smile. "It's not like the world ends on Saturday. You still have time."

"Yes, but I'm..." He struggled for a moment. "...Approaching the latter section of my manly prime." She snickered. "Hey!"

Donna, he felt, failed to make a suitable expression of contrition for mocking his manly prime. "What brought all this on, Josh?" she asked.

"Charlie asked me to be his best man," he confessed.

Her eyebrows shot up. "You?"

"Yes."

"Best man?"

"Yes."

"Doesn't that involve you being, you know, best? Not to mention a man?"

"I am also confused. But one-hundred percent man."

"Of course you are." He suspected that was sarcasm, but decided not to challenge it.

"That means I'm going to have to do... things. Best-manly things. I believe rings are involved. And possibly a speech."

"Boy, Charlie sure picked himself a winner," Donna said dryly.

He gave her a look. "I feel you could be more sympathetic to my feelings of... overwhelmed-ness."

"Hey, at least you don't have to be a bridesmaid."

Josh shrugged. "What's hard about that? You don't have to be in charge of complicated weddingy things, like I do."

She glared. "Do you know what being a bridesmaid means, Josh?"

"Uh... wearing the same dress as the other bridesmaids and, um, maiding the bride?"

"It is the death-knell of the single woman, Josh. There is a great celestial clock ticking off the number of times you appear as a bridesmaid. One, twice, three times; boom! Doomed to die a crazy old lady surrounded by cats."

"Wow."

"Indeed."

"Do all bridesmaids know this?"

"Why do you think CJ and I are going out together tonight and getting drunk?"

"You and CJ are going out and getting drunk?"

"Yes. You're driving us."

He blinked. "I am?"

"Yes."

"That's nice of me."

"It is."

"It's good to know I have a volunteer spirit."

"We thought so too."

"Were you actually going to... you know, ask me?"

Donna shrugged. "It seemed counterproductive."

"Okay."

He decided to wander back into his office before he discovered he'd offered to pay for the drinks as well.