"I am so bored." Jamie closed the magazine she'd been paging through. She smiled at Ainsley and Donna as they entered the hospital room. "As bored as . . . as a very bored thing."
Donna sat on the edge of the bed and took the magazine from Jamie's lap. "I thought you'd stopped reading Scoop."
"One of my friends brought it for me. There's a nice picture of Ainsley in it, though."
Donna chuckled. "All pictures of Ainsley are nice."
Ainsley shook her head. "Do I even want to know what the caption was?"
"Probably not." Jamie wrinkled her nose.
"How are you feeling?" Ainsley sat in the visitor's chair.
"I'm bored."
"Like a very bored thing." Donna laughed. "But you get out of hospital this week, right?"
"Yes, but then it's more bed rest!"
Donna and Ainsley exchanged glances. "We've been chatting," Ainsley said, "and we have a proposition for you."
"I'm being propositioned by the former White House Counsel and the current assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff. Do you think Scoop would be interested in my story?"
"Or we could leave you to be bored." Donna tilted her head towards the door.
"I'm listening."
"I'd like you to come stay with me while you're recovering," Donna said. "My roommate moved out a couple of weeks ago, so there's plenty of space."
Jamie stared at her. "You want me to live with you?"
"You don't have to answer right now."
"But wouldn't that be, like, seriously inconvenient for you?"
Donna shrugged. "I like taking care of my friends."
"And you're probably a much easier patient that Josh," Ainsley added.
"Donna, that's – Wow. I don't know what to say."
"Say you'll think about."
Jamie grinned. "My friends are going to be so jealous."
Sam was going over notes he'd made for a speech when Ginger knocked on his door. "The President wants to see you."
Sam knew better than to keep his boss waiting; he set the speech aside and stood. When he reached the Oval Office, Charlie told him to go on in.
"Good afternoon, sir."
Bartlet smiled. "How are you doing, Sam?"
Not sure where this was leading, Sam said, "Fine. How are you, Mr. President?"
"I need a vacation." He gestured for Sam to sit on the couch, and got up from his desk to join him. "How's married life?"
Sam couldn't help the smile that sprang to his lips. He didn't have time to speak before Bartlet continued.
"What exactly are your plans for when I'm no longer in office?"
"I'm not entirely sure yet. I want to stay in politics, I know that much." His smile softened. "Ainsley wants lots of children."
Bartlet chuckled. "Do you see yourself back in the White House at any point?"
"Sir, I—" Sam's gaze strayed to the desk.
"Go on, try it out."
"I couldn't—"
"I could make it an order."
Sam didn't need to be asked twice. He practically jumped up, then approached the desk almost reverently. Running his fingers across the surface, he circled it, then sat in Bartlet's chair.
"How does it feel?"
"Umm." Sam leaned back the chair.
"You look good there. I'd vote for you."
"Do you really think I could do it? A Democrat married to a Republican?" Sam ran his hands over the desk again. "I told her father I'd never put politics above her."
"If you remember that, you'll do just fine. Just think about it, Sam."
"I feel like I've stepped into Oz," Josh said as he entered Donna's apartment, followed by Sam.
"Well, we're definitely not in Kansas."
Josh just shook his head. "And you write speeches for the President."
"You guys are late," Donna called from the direction of the kitchen.
"What happened to your apartment?"
"It's Jamie's favorite movie." Ainsley entered the living room carrying two bowls of chips. She put one on the coffee table, within easy reach of Jamie, who was on the couch. She kept the other for herself and curled up in an armchair.
"And Jamie thought she wasn't crazy." Sam walked over to Ainsley. "Welcome to the nuthouse."
"I had nothing to do with the decorating." Jamie held up her hands in a gesture of innocence. "But I do like it."
Simone and Nicole came skipping from the kitchen, each dressed as a munchkin. Josh's eyes widened. "Donna, was this your idea?"
As he went to find Donna, Sam leaned to whisper in Ainsley's ear, "Guess who's going to be dressing their kids one day."
"Actually, I dressed the girls tonight."
Sam didn't skip a beat. "You're not dressing our children."
Jamie giggled. "But, Sam, they look so cute."
Nicole started climbing onto Sam's lap, then he picked her up and settled her comfortably. "I'm a pixie, Uncle Sam."
"No, you're not," Simone said. "We're mun . . . munch . . . umm . . ."
"Munchkins," Jamie supplied.
"I want to be a pixie," Nicole said.
"You can be my pixie." Sam straightened her hat, then smiled. "Okay, Ains, you win. They do look cute."
Jamie reached for the chips. "Someone's getting broody."
There was a knock at the door. No one moved to answer.
"I'm an invalid, sorry," Jamie said.
Sam grinned. "I have a pixie on my lap."
Ainsley stood. "Don't touch my chips."
When she opened the door, Simone squealed, "Daddy!"
Nate took one look around, and shook his head. "Ainsley, what have you done to my daughters?"
"It was a good party." Ainsley sat on the edge of the bath and watched Sam brush his teeth. "Jamie looked a little tired towards the end, didn't you think?"
"Mm-hmm."
"But she's looking much better than she did . . . before, you know?"
"Mmm."
Ainsley fidgeted with the end of her ponytail. "Did you notice Nate, oh, I don't know, do you think he was looking at her more than he usually does?"
Sam rinsed his mouth and turned to face her. "I don't know. I'm a guy. I'm clueless."
She threw a towel at him. "I'm serious. I thought he was paying more attention to her than usual."
"Ainsley, she's a pretty girl. Not that I've noticed," he added quickly.
"You don't think he's a bit old for her?"
"What about Calleigh and whatsisname? Her boss?"
"They're not actually together. But I see your point." She sighed. "It's just; Nate's been hurt really badly. Holly died in a car accident and I – I'm probably reading too much into this. Right?"
Sam sat next to her. "Right."
"So you'll talk to him?
"What? Ainsley—"
She kissed his cheek. "Thanks, Sam."
