Senior Staff

"Sam's meeting with him about the…"

"Wait, why do I have to meet with him?  Toby he's on your schedule."

"Yes but I'm more importa…"

"Sorry I'm late, I got stuck on the Metro," Josh ran in, interrupting Toby.

"Nice of you to join us Josh," snickered CJ.

"What'd I miss?"

"Well I was just telling Leo, that Sam is meeting with Heinzur about the riders to the educational bill."

"Yes and I was just telling Leo, that he was…."

"Alright already! Sam meet with Heinzur, he doesn't like Toby anyway.  Moving on, Donna's resignation.  Josh, I'm assuming you'll be starting the interviewing process soon."

The room was silent.  CJ finding the ability to speak first, "Donna resigned?"

"Yes, well more like a transfer.  Josh you didn't tell them?  The First Lady offered her a position, yesterday.  Actually, if I got the story right, Amy offered the job to Donna."

"Josh you knew about this and didn't tell us?"

"I didn't know Sam.  Leo when did you get this?"

"It was on my desk this morning.  You mean you didn't know?  What the hell has been going on?  I noticed the tension but work was getting done so I wasn't going to play camp counselor.  What did you do?"

"I …um… Amy offered her the job?"
"Yea Josh."
Josh silent for a minute looked up from the hole he was bearing into the carpet and lied to Leo.  "Nothing has been going on.  It's a great opportunity for Donna, she had to take it.  I'm happy for her."

As they left Senior Staff, Sam and CJ tried to approach Josh.  Josh rebuked their attempts and just said "later." The three of them followed him to his office as he stomped his way there and slammed the door in front of their face.  While the others were concerned for Josh, Toby watched Donna as Josh re-entered the bullpen.  She looked sickly; she realized that he learned at Senior Staff.  Toby watch as Donna seemed to realize something and become even paler.  Toby realized her resignation letter was probably sitting on his desk.  He was pissed off in his office reading her letter.  As Toby, CJ and Sam headed back to their offices, Donna headed towards Josh.

Knock. Knock.

"Leave me alone."

"Josh."
"Especially you."

Donna was fed up with all of this stupidity.  She opened the door walked into his office and slammed it shut behind her.  The sound startled Josh.  He looked up at her waiting for her to say something.  She noted that the hurt had returned to his eyes.

"Look, I'm sorry.  I didn't plan for you to find this out this way.  I wanted to tell you myself.  But you were running late and I didn't even get to see you.  I tried to get the letter back but Margaret must have already brought it in because it wasn't in his Inbox." As Donna rambled on nervously she twisted a small piece of paper between her hands.

"I see," were the only words he spoke.

Donna gaining some courage, moved further into the office, sitting in one of the visiting chairs.  Now she was directly across from him. 

"Josh you can't argue that this isn't a great opportunity for me.  Regardless of the state of our relationship, this is a huge step for me."

When he remained from answering, she continued.

"Look I didn't finish college as you know, so I don't expect many of these opportunities to come my way.  And when the do I've got to seize them.  I'm not going to lie to you, our relationship, or lack of one, and my current demotion were big reasons for me accepting this job.  But the main reason was that they are going to let me make a difference.  They aren't going to send me on stupid tasks because they don't trust me."

"Is that what you think?" Josh's voice was so low it was almost a whisper.

"Well why else would you stop giving me important assignments?  You obliviously don't trust me, and I know I have screwed up personally, but I didn't think that my work had been suffering."

"God Donna," Josh leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes and rubbed his temples, "it's not that I don't trust you."

"What is it then? Because I don't know what I did that was so wrong?  Why are you treating me like an intern?"  Donna pressed him further.

"I don't know."

"Oh don't give me that bullshit; you knew exactly what you were doing.  I want to know why?" Donna yelled getting angry at his refusal to give her any answers.

"What did you do wrong? How about not telling me you took another job?  Leaving me to find out in front of the rest of the staff?" Josh yelled back.

Donna had risen and leaned forward over the desk, "Stop avoiding the subject Josh,"

Josh rising to meet her, mere inches from her face, "You want to know what you did wrong? You led me on.  You let me believe that you had feelings for me when clearly you didn't.  You broke my heart and left me to pick up the pieces.  I stopped giving you work because it was too damn hard to work with you, " yelled Josh back.  He closed his eyes and sank back into this chair.  He didn't trust his voice and practically whispered, "Being close to you hurt, knowing that you don't feel the same way about me.  It hurts that I don't know what it's like to kiss you.  But mainly it hurts that I can't make you smile anymore."

Donna sat back down, silenced by his speech.  Her eyes filled with tears.  Why hadn't she thought of that?  Now she felt a little stupid insinuating that he didn't trust her.  He didn't trust himself around her.  When she looked up she noticed that his hands were covering his face.  Wiping the tears from her face, she got up from her chair and came around the desk to stand beside him. Half leaning, half sitting on his desk she called his name.

"Josh."

He didn't move or respond.  She reached up and gently removed his hands from his face.  Her suspicions that he was crying were correct.  His eyes were closed and he refused to look at her.

"Please just leave me alone, Donna."

She reached over and wiped the tears from his cheeks.  She kissed his check and whispered, "I'm so sorry Joshua."

His eyes remained closed but he moved his face towards Donna's, resting his forehead on hers.  The only sound in the room for several moments was the two breathing.  Finally Josh broke the silence, "I wanna make things right again, Donnatella."

"Me too," she whispered back.

He reached up to wipe her tears away, finally looking at her.  She smiled back at him.  He thought for a moment and then asked her, "What are you doing tonight?"

"Not much, my boss has become a softie and lets me out early."  Donna earned a smile for that remark.

"How about you, me and some Chinese food at my apartment tonight?"

Donna smiled at him, "it's a step."

Josh smiled back, "good."

Donna headed back to her desk, ignoring the glances from the other staffers who more then likely heard their exchange.  'I have to remember these walls are thin,' Donna thought to herself.

----Okay I'm a little stuck, but I'll work on it! I'm not sure how to keep going where I want, but I'll try.------