W.W. –Tuesday morning

"I don't want to go," Donna said, crossing her arms and pouting in the passenger's seat.

"Yes, you do," Josh admonished her. "I don't want you to go, which is not the same thing. Besides, this is big, right? A trip to New York for a day at the U.N., then rambling around doing the NGO thing for a few days without your annoying fiancé underfoot the whole time? Then a face to face report with Leo and President when you come back?"

"You're not annoying." She grinned. "Okay, not that annoying. But, by the time I get to New York, you'll be in the air to Florida. I won't see you for weeks."

"Six nights, Donna." He patted her arm. "I'll miss you too, but this is good, this is the job. When we get back, we'll still have two weeks before the rehearsal dinner."

""Wow. Three weeks from today. I wish we had more time, but I think Mom and Dad understand about wanting to do this before we move." She bit at her lower lip. "I hope they understood. I know they have a million things they want to get done before they come back with Chuck and Isabella."

Josh pulled up at the curb. He tried to put a happy face on his regrets and smiled warmly at his fiancée. Fiancée, that was a happy word. He'd hold on to that.

"Well, Washington National." No democrat called it by its new name. "You ready?"

"I guess, just drop me here. If you come inside the terminal I'll cry and not look at all professional." She was misty-eyed already. It had been hard enough sending her Mom and Dad back home to finish their planning for the wedding. Hopping a plane to take her on first liaison test mission seemed horribly rushed. Such was life in the semi-private sector.

"Okay, you got your bag, and your backpack?" He ran his hand across her hair for a moment, memorizing the feel of her. "Your lunch and your milk money are in your pack. Be nice to the other kids."

"I'm sorry this came up on such short notice, Josh. I was hoping we could look for a place in Florida together." She gave him a stern look. "You better not pick anything without either me or your mother signing off on it!"

He grinned. "Get going, you don't want to miss your flight, and I need to get over to Dulles myself in a few hours. This scheduling sucks. Know where I can find a decent assistant?"

She laughed and climbed out, a bag under each arm and her backpack slung across. She made one more quick check, and leaned in to kiss him quickly and unsatisfactorily.

"Listen," he said, checking the time, "we're going to be in phone tag hell with flights today, and it'll be tomorrow some time before I know anything anyway. Don't worry about checking in from New York, ok?"

"Okay, you too. You got your PowerBook, right?" she asked.

"Sure. If I can work out how to use it I'll have email access." He checked his watch, and as he did every time now he thought of her and her amazing gift, that she herself was an amazing gift. "Go now or we're both going to be late, Donna!"

"Love you!" She turned to go, motioning to a curbside attendant. "Going to be late," she thought, wondering about whether she would be using the EPT or the tampons packed in her bag. Either way, she wasn't sure how she felt about that either.

"Love you, too, " Josh called to her proudly and urgently. "Email me when you get to Gaza!"

ReverendKilljoy

Author's Note

This is the end of Book Two: Code 208, the story of Josh and Donna's return to D.C. and their last days as boss and assistant. It is not the end of their stories together. It is not the end of this series either. I hope you will be pleased to know that Book Three: The Myth of Closure, is being researched now and should start posting before April 2005.

Life, love, death (yes) and loss, plus Jed, Abbey, Leo, Margaret, Joey, Kenny, Will, Kate (yes) and spies, wars and remembrances, all coming soon.

What is up with Joey and Sam? Who the hell is Avi Maxwell, really? Is what happened to Donna in Gaza really going to be what happens to Donna in Gaza? Are Zoey/Charlie, Margaret/Kenny, Sam/Ainsley, Sam/Joey or whatever other pair you want to name, going to be a couple? Where the hell is Toby?

Is there more? HELL YES- as for the rest, see you soon.

-ReverendKilljoy