Disclaimer - I still don't own these characters. They are still the property of Josh Wells, NBC and the fabulous Aaron Sorkin. Wait, hold on, I do own Dr. Curtis West. Yum. I don't own Damian Lewis, though and that is a true crime against humanity. I will have to speak with someone about this. I definitely do not own the verbatim recitation of Bartlet's speech at the end of this chapter from "The Dogs of War."
Rating - PG.
Pairings - Josh/Ellie, Ellie/OC
Spoilers – The Dogs of War. Although you will find some of the plot here, I have taken significant liberty with it!
Summary - Josh Lyman meets Eleanor Bartlet during the campaign and falls in love with the young, married medical student. For the purposes of my story, Ellie is several years older in this story and very different than she is on the show.
The helicopter bucked precariously overhead, fighting the air disturbance caused by the swarm of news helicopters also hovering over the area. Ellie gripped a railing, not feeling entirely secure, even though she was buckled in tightly. The pilot indicated that he would be landing in just a moment, and began lowering the aircraft towards the earth. Ellie glanced out the window – seeing only a small white clapboard house with a red barn, situated on many acres of land. The lights from the ambulances and police cars reminded Ellie of Christmas lights from this far up.
Ellie looked down at the scene, wondering where in the melee Zoey was. Had she been hurt? Or worse, had she been sexually assaulted? Ellie closed her eyes and shook the thought from her head. As an emergency room physician, she'd seen more than her fair share of rape cases, and she knew the physical scars were only the beginning. She said a quick and quiet prayer as the helicopter descended, finally landing about 100 meters away from the house.
Ellie jumped out behind her mother and father, with her sister Liz and Charlie on her heels, following Ron Butterfield over to a group of ambulances. Ellie's heart stopped as she noticed Zoey sitting on the edge of one the vehicles, being treated by a paramedic. Tears flowed immediately and Ellie's heart lightened. Whatever had been done to her – Zoey was alive at least. Her arm was in a sling, and she looked slightly dazed, but otherwise fine. Ellie patiently waited her turn, finally gathering her baby sister into her arms and weeping uncontrollably. "I'm sorry," she whispered.
Zoey pulled away and placed her hand on Ellie's cheek. "Don't you ever say that again," she warns. "This is not now nor will it ever be your fault." She pulled Ellie close again. "I'm the one who is sorry," she said.
Josh raced through the halls of Walter Reed hospital, following C.J., Sam and Toby on their way to Zoey's hospital room. C.J. threw open the door and stepped inside, relief washing over her face. Josh entered and stepped to the side, quickly taking inventory of the scene inside. Charlie held tight to Zoey's hand and Abbey and Jed had taken up residence on either side of the bed. Ellie was sitting at the foot of the bed with Curtis was standing behind her, holding the hand Ellie had draped over her shoulder. Liz and Doug were on the couch, watching over their family. Leo was standing beside Curtis, keeping a vigilant eye on everyone.
"Hi!" Zoey said, somewhat brightly, enveloping C.J., then Sam in a hug. When Josh reached her, he bent down and kissed her on the temple. "Hey, Bubba," she said quietly, offering up his brotherly nickname. "I'm sorry to put you through hell."
He hugged her tightly, careful of the sling on her arm. "Don't you ever be sorry, Zoey. It just made me realize how much I really care about you."
He glanced quickly over at Ellie, who was watching the display with a soft smile set on her face. He returned the smile and stepped off to the side, allowing Toby access to Zoey.
C.J. turned to Jed, asking quickly, "Not to be the one to talk politics, sir, but..."
"Yeah," Bartlet answered. "We'll do it as soon as possible. I want this whole thing resolved."
"Yes, sir," C.J. responded, "I'll get that set up." She turned to Sam, Josh and Toby. "Boys, we've got work to do."
"Okay," they responded in unison. Josh followed Sam and Toby out the door, but was stopped in the hallway by Ellie's voice. "Josh?"
He spun to face her, finding himself quickly lost in the bright smile on her face. "I just wanted to say thank you," she said quietly.
"For what?" he asked gently.
"Everything," she said assuredly. "For comforting me, for always being there for my family. It means a lot to me."
His heart leapt for joy with her admission and a smile spread across his face. "Well, your welcome," he answered.
She dipped her head shyly and pointed to the door. "I'm gonna get back in there."
"Okay, bye," he said quickly, watching her retreat intently before starting down the hallway and out of the hospital.
Ellie sat on the couch in Zoey's hospital room, curled up against Curtis's side, watching the coverage of the Press Conference with her family. The Senior Staff flanked the President on either side, with Leo securely to the President's right. The image was meant to assure the American people that the Administration was back in power and that the President's family crisis had come to an end.
"The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away," Bartlet began. "Words I did not fully understand until our daughter was taken away from us three days ago. But now we can rejoice, because that which was lost has been found."
Abbey stood facing the window, her back turned to both her family and the television screen. Ellie noticed this and stood, crossing over to her mother and laying her head on the older woman's shoulder, wrapping her arms securely around Abbey's waist. "Mom?" she asked quietly.
"If he hadn't run for re-election..." Abbey began, letting bitter words trail off without completion.
"You should know better than anyone that we can't live our lives on what ifs," Ellie chided gently.
"What about you?" she asked quietly. "Have the what ifs returned now that you're home?"
Ellie sighed and closed her eyes. "I love Curtis, Mom."
"That's not what I asked you."
"I'm keeping them at bay," she admitted quietly.
"And you should know that we can't live our lives avoiding problems, either," Abbey warned bitterly. She shrugged away from Ellie's embrace.
"Where are you going?" Ellie demanded.
"Coffee," Abbey answered with a wave of her hand, storming out the door and leaving her children and sons-in-law in her wake. Ellie just stood there, leaned against the window ledge, contemplating the new crisis brewing in her family.
TBC...