Blame Aristotle

Ch. 5

Changes in Latitude,

Changes in Attitude

Disclaimer: Title and lyrics belong to Jimmy Buffett & company, the characters to Wells, Sorkin, et al. I will put them back when I'm done.

Summary: Josh and Donna – a snowdrift, then a conversation

A/N: The Buffett song just jumped into my brain – seems to be an apt description of how life sometimes goes for Josh and Donna

Previously on the West Wing: Donna takes a big step, Josh finds himself a new candidate, and a long overdue realization finds the light of day…

Changes in latitude, changes in attitude,

Nothing remains quite the same.

Through all of our running

And all of our cunning,

If we couldn't laugh

We would go insane. Jimmy Buffett

Two weeks before Christmas

'Leo, she's here, we're fine, it's gonna be okay. Relax, will ya?' Josh implored.

'Good, good. Take the rest of the day for yourselves. I'm sure there are things you need to discuss'

'Thanks, Leo, for everything.' Josh said.

"Just stay outta trouble, will ya? Talk to you later.' Leo hung up and sighed.

He sat back in his chair, an ever-widening grin on his face.

Finally. Those two kids can finally have a chance. Thank you, Lord.

Across town, Josh turned to Donna with a small smile on his face as he ended the call. She cocked her head to the side, trying to figure out just what he was thinking about.

"What are you thinking about?

"You," was his reply.

"Oh. Should I be worried?" Donna wondered aloud.

"Nope, not at all. Are you hungry?" Josh asked.

"Well, since we haven't had breakfast and here it is almost 11am – yes, hungry would be a basic yet apt description of my current condition." Donna replied with a grin

'You go girl, way to sock it Mr. 760 Verbal there' Ahh, Snarkgirl returns triumphantly!

Josh chuckled wryly, "Does that mean yes?"

Without a word, Donna crossed to the closet and grabbed their coats – pausing only long enough to fling Josh's coat at him before bolting out the door. At the landing, she stopped, waiting for Josh to lock the apartment.

As soon as Josh pocketed his keys, Donna yelled "Last one to the sidewalk buys lunch!" And with that, she was racing down the stairs to the entry door, barreling through at breakneck speed with Josh in hot pursuit.

Now, as luck would have it, it had snowed overnight and consequently things were just a wee bit slippery on the sidewalk. Donna had almost made it to the public sidewalk when she lost her balance and fell sideways into the snowdrift along the walkway. Facefirst.

Josh, not one to let the opportunity for retribution pass him by, skidded to a stop and contemplated the situation before him. Chivalry or deviltry, hmmmmm. Now there's a tough decision….

Opting for chivalry, Josh leaned down to see if she was okay.

"Donna, you alright?"

"Yeah, I think so." came the muffled reply from the snowdrift.

"Do you want me to help you up?"

:No, Josh, I think I'll just lay here in the snow until my clothes are totally soaked, and then I thought maybe I'd walk home and change! OF COURSE I want help, you idiot!! Get me out of here!!!

Josh reached his hand towards Donna, who had finally managed to roll over so she could wipe the snow out of her face. Smiling ever so sweetly, she grabbed his hand, but instead of pulling herself up, she yanked Josh down into the snow beside her. Josh let out a yelp that ended abruptly when he wound up with a face full of snow.

Donna just sat there, giggling giddily as she watched Josh try to figure out how he wound up in the snow. He turned to Donna, and launched himself towards her, knocking her back down into the snow.

Caught by surprise, all Donna could do was lay there in the snow, looking up into Josh's face, just mere inches above hers. Josh's eyes were warmly staring at her, as a small smug grin tugged at his mouth.

"Donnatella Moss, do you know what happens to people who pull me into snowdrifts?" Josh's voice was a silkily quiet growl, laced with a hint of mock severity.

Breathless, Donna could only shake her head, her eyes not leaving Josh's for even a second.

"This." was his reply.

Josh lowered his lips to hers, nibbling at first, then increasing the pressure until she allowed herself to respond with total abandon long suppressed. At last they came up for air, both dazed and amazed at what had just occurred.

Josh rolled over to his back, pulling Donna with him so that she was now resting atop his body. He smiled at her and held her close. Donna sighed and rested her head against his chest, reluctant to break the spell.

Minutes pass – strangely, pedestrians don't….

"Donna?"

"Hmm?"

"I hate to say this, but.."

"Then don't.."

"Donna, I hate to end this, I really do, but I need to get up now."

"Why?"

"Eh, well, if you must know, I seem to have snow down my pants, and unless I address the situation soon, ahh, well, certain parts of my anatomy aren't gonna be too happy, 'kay?"

"Oh., all right, I suppose I need to change into some dry clothes too." Donna pushed herself up and helped Josh regain his footing on the slippery sidewalk. Without releasing her hand, Josh led the way back inside to the apartment. As they shed their coats and shoes, the hilarity of the moment struck again when Donna lost her balance and fell against Josh. This time he saw her coming and was able to catch her in his arms before she could come to any serious harm. Turning her to face him, he leaned in for another gentle kiss. She responded in kind, then stepped away with a twinkle in her eye.

"What?" Josh could tell she was up to something.

"Race ya!" With a giggle, she was away and racing to the bathroom, slamming the door just as Josh got there.

"DONNA, that's not fair! I'm the one with snow in his pants!! All he heard in response was laughter.

C'mon Donna!"

A LITTLE LATER…

After changing into dry clothes, Josh and Donna finally managed to leave the apartment in search of lunch. They decided to go to Tony's, a quiet diner with good food and a pleasant atmosphere conducive to private conversations. After placing their order with the waitress, they sat there, just looking at each other. Donna took the plunge and hesitantly broached a subject that needed to be discussed.

"Josh, what do you really think about my taking the job with Russell's campaign?" She waited for his reply, knowing that he would have a definite opinion on this topic.

"Well, I understand your reasons for it, and I want you to be happy, but I don't think Russell will win the nomination. I have faith that you will be a definite asset to the campaign. You deserve this chance, and given what's happened since you came back to work, with CJ and all, my situation at the White House isn't exactly as clear cut as it used to be. Your getting out now may be a good thing…." Josh's voice trailed off as he remembered a conversation that took place just yesterday. 'Was it only just yesterday?' he mused, 'sure seems like more than that.'

"But you don't think Russell's going to get the nomination, do you?" Donna queried.

"Not unless he is the only Democrat running, and that's definitely not happening." Josh replied.

"Josh, I've been meaning to ask, where were you yesterday? I tried the office, no one there had a clue, Leo wasn't much help and you never answered your cell phone. Were you on the hill all day?"

"No, actually. I don't think you are going to believe where I was." Josh said.

Something about his demeanor piqued Donna's curiosity even further. She raised her eyebrows and replied "Oh really? Try me!"

Josh looked at her and said, " I was in Houston."

"Houston? Santos???" Donna shook her head, as if clearing cobwebs. "Did I hear you correctly?"

"Yup."

"Why?"

Josh leaned forward and clasped Donna's hands in his and looked into her eyes.

"Have I told you the story of how Leo came to me while I was working for Hoynes and asked me to go to Nashua to hear Jed Bartlet speak?"

"Yes, I remember – when you asked Leo why, he said it's what sons do for old friends of their fathers." Donna recalled.

"Well, a little while ago, Leo told me it's time for me to step up and find the right candidate to succeed President Bartlet. That it's time for me to find my Bartlet and get him elected to the presidency. And Leo's right. We've survived re-election, we're almost halfway through the second term. Now is the time for me to answer the question: What comes next?" Josh paused.

"Do you think Santos is the one?" Donna asked.

"I do." Josh replied.

"Why?"

"Because he's not afraid to speak plain, honest truth. He had quite a tenure as mayor of Houston, and his efforts in Congress are quite impressive as well. Remember the healthcare bill? He worked a way around the Republicans and managed to get a fairly comprehensive bill passed, a bill that was originally deemed impossible to pass. And it's more than that, Donna. There's a passion, a determination, something about him makes me believe again. Something that President Bartlet had when he first started campaigning. Matt Santos just may well be another Josiah Bartlet."

"Except that Matt Santos is 6'3", Hispanic and doesn't have a Nobel Prize for economics." Donna couldn't help but make the comparison – the visual was just too good to ignore.

"Donna,." Josh just shook his head – sometimes her whimsical side came out when you least expected it.

"Sorry, got carried away." Donna giggled, then she sobered.

"Is he going to run?"

"Santos? Well, let's just say that he hasn't said no yet, in fact when I left him yesterday, I could see that he was already giving the proposition serious consideration." Josh said.

"Well, now I wonder if I should have taken the Russell job." Donna wondered.

"No, you were right to do that, because if you came to work for me with Santos, you might still question how much of what you would accomplish would be truly your own. You need to be able to know without question what you are capable of doing in this business, you need to think independently of me and I don't want to influence you in any way. As much as I want you by my side, working to get Santos elected, I want more for you. I want you to prove that your incredibly smart, vibrant personality isn't just an extension of me. You have been an important part of the things we've done in this administration, and I am not the only one who has appreciated your talents and contributions. There is one thing I want, though." Josh paused, looking her straight in the eye.

"What would that be, Josh?" Donna whispered, returning his gaze steadily.

" I still want to be the one you turn to for comfort, support, whatever you need. I don't want to lose what we have. In fact, I want more, I want to be the one you come home to, not some empty apartment three flights up. I know that working on opposing campaigns will be a challenge, but I'd like to think that it would a challenge we are both ready for, now that we have finally allowed ourselves to admit the truth about how we feel. I need you in my life, you have been a part of me for so long now, sometimes I can't remember how I used to get along without you."

Josh brought her hands up to his mouth and gently bestowed upon them a kiss. Then, drinking in the azure beauty of those incredible eyes, he said the one thing that mattered most.

" Donnatella Moss, you are the most incredible, amazing person I have ever known. You make my heart sing just by smiling, you can make my heart ache for you when you are sad or in pain. When you aren't near me, I feel an emptiness, a disquiet, that suddenly disappears the moment you come back into my life. Those days in Germany were worse than a nightmare, because I was living it – it wasn't a dream that I could wake up from and just forget. It made me realize that I needed you more than I had been willing to admit. It made me bargain with God for the chance to see you smile at me once more, to have a chance to tell you all those things that I've kept buried because I was terrified that you didn't feel the same way about me. I am so grateful that the good Lord saw fit to bring you back to me, because the alternative was just too awful to even contemplate. I did a lot of soul searching while you were in surgery, Donna, and the answers were all the same. I love you, and I need you to help me be whole."

Donna's eyes were brimming with tears as she gazed at the man sitting across from her. This man, who had every reason to be skittish about loving unconditionally, given the personal losses already suffered in such a short life. This man, whose capacity for loving should have been stunted by those losses, was at last able to open himself up to another, had found the ability to love again. She had always suspected that Josh was capable of it, that had never been the question. The question in her heart had always been, would she be the one for whom he would summon up the courage to risk his heart again?

Now it seemed the question had been answered – with a resounding and satisfying YES.

Donna smiled tremulously and the tears that had been gathering started to slip down her face. Josh came around the table to sit besides Donna and took her into his arms. He tipped her face up towards his, and lightly brushed the tears away with his thumb.

"Are you okay?" Josh quietly asked.

Donna nodded slowly.

"Good, now I have a question for you."

"?"

"What do you want, Donna?"

Without hesitation, Donna knew what she wanted.

"You. You, and everything that you ever were and ever shall be. I want to be a part of your successes, your failures. I want to be your rock in times of sadness, I want to be able to support you in every way possible. I realized that when I was in Gaza, before the… I wanted to be able to share with you the experience of that place, I wanted you to be proud of the work I did there. Then the bombing happened, and yours was the first face I saw when I woke up. You were my rock then, Josh. You didn't let me down, you helped chase away the fears even though you must have been scared to death by what you saw happening to me – God knows anyone would have been. But you stayed, you stayed even though you were powerless to do anything, you stayed. I've thought about that a lot since then, and I can't think of anyone else ever doing that for me. I am grateful for the support and strength you've given me, and I've come to the realization that you are an important part of my life and that trying to go on without you is not something I want to do. You make me whole, Josh. I need you."

Josh smiled through his own tears, slowly exhaling as he realized that he had been holding his breath all the while she had been talking. He squeezed her hands reassuringly and began to chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Donna asked, perplexed.

"Aristotle strikes again!" Josh replied, shaking his head.

""What's Aristotle got to do with it, or anything for that matter?" Donna said, really confused now.

"Remember when Horton Wilde actually won the California 47th race, and Sam wound up as the candidate because he made a promise to the widow?"

"Yeah, Sam told me how a whole bunch of seemingly unrelated events conspired to insure Horton Wilde's victory. He had a term for it, but I can't remember it right now." Donna replied, still confused.

"Yeah, he called it "a confluence of events of Aristotelian proportions. Basically it means that for a certain outcome to occur, it would require that a large number of random unrelated factors would need to occur in a particular order to ensure that the impossible, in this case – a dead man being elected to public office – would actually indeed occur. See what I'm getting at here?" Josh asked.

"I think so, at least in Sam's case. But what does it mean for us?"

"It has taken us so long, and with so many detours and speed bumps along the way, it's actually a miracle that we have managed to make it to this point. We've had so many things conspire against us, other people might have given up long ago. But we have stayed the course, for whatever reasons, and our "confluence of events" has brought us to this time and place where we are finally able to be honest with ourselves and each other and admit that we have a mutual need, a mutual love that can no longer be denied." Josh explained.

Donna absorbed this information quietly, lost in her thoughts. Josh waited patiently by her side, content to wait for the import of his words to sink in completely.

"Josh, are you saying…"

"Yes, Donna, I want you in my life now, and forever. I have never been surer of anything in my life. And I think you know that."

"Yes, I do. I think I've always known it."

Josh just smiled. Donna returned his smile with one of her own, reminiscent of one from years past, one elicited by a meaningful message inscribed in a book

"Josh, I just have one question."

"What's that?"

"What's next?"

Josh grinned and replied, "I don't know – want to find out together?"

Many thanks to those reviewers who wanted more. I had planned to start a sequel, but you all wanted this story to continue, so here it is.