Title: Heart Condition Chapter Eight
Rating: Teen
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the West Wing characters etc. Just trying to play a little, so please don't sue! Sylvia Lyman is a little bit mine, but mostly her own… she went in a completely different way than I expected.
Author's Note: Getting close to the end- another chapter or two I think. Now that the West Wing and the Santos campaign are doing the political battle, it just might take a mother to do battle with Josh and his neurosis.
Chapter EightSylvia Lyman swept into Josh's hospital room amidst several dark suited Secret Service agents, a tiny woman who emanated the same fiery passion that attracted Donna to Josh. She embraced Donna, immediately clucking over her like she was her own child.
"Donna, I am so glad to see you. Can you believe this chaos? A mother needs armed guards to see her son in the hospital? What kind of life are the two of you living?" The older woman shook her head sadly. Donna had to bite back a grin at Josh's mother's dramatic response to the situation.
"I know Sylvia, but don't worry about it. Leo McGarry and Matt and Helen Santos are personally taking care of this mess. It will be over before you know it." Donna hoped dropping Leo's name would do a lot to reassure Sylvia about the situation as he had been very close to her late husband.
"Leo is taking care of this? That poor man should be retired, not futzing with this political craziness. That's all Joshua needs is one more reason to idolize Leo McGarry. He's a good man, but I don't want his life for my Joshua." Donna found it hard to argue with Sylvia's concerns, for there was very little Josh wouldn't sacrifice for politics. She hoped that would be changing from the hints he had dropped in their last conversation, but couldn't be sure. Sylvia turned her laser like gaze to Donna's face and smiled.
"I am so glad you are here. I don't know what Joshua would do without his Donnatella, even if he won't admit it. That boy is as stubborn as fifty mules. I could shake him, but I don't think it would help. So… have you talked since all of this started?"
"We did talk a bit last night, but that was before we knew about the scandal Will cooked up for us. I called CJ Cregg after he went into surgery and she told me what happened. Josh doesn't know anything as far as I know. It would probably be a good idea for us to keep it that way as long as possible. I have a hunch he won't be up for any political battles when he gets back. They were going to give him some pretty major sedatives for the procedure." The two women both burst out laughing, both able to predict the state Josh would be in when he returned to the room.
A few minutes later they were not disappointed. The orderlies wheeled Josh back into the room and he looked up at both women with a glazed smile.
"Mommy! Donna-la-la! You're here! Isn't this a cool bed? It has wheels on it. We should get you beds like this and have these guys race."
"Feeling no pain, Lyman? I think we will wait a little bit on the racing. See if you're still up for it when the painkillers wear off." Donna teased Josh. He looked over at her, his brown eyes having difficulty focusing.
"Ok, Donna-La-La. If you think so." Josh agreed happily. Sylvia chuckled at her son and dropped a light kiss on his forehead.
"You do have a sensitive system, my son. I think in this case, that is a blessing. Why don't you try to rest a little bit, Joshua. We'll be here when you wake up." As had been the case the evening before, Josh's eyes slid shut before Sylvia finished speaking.
Donna and Sylvia were content just to watch him sleep. After a few moments, the older woman turned to Donna.
"Donna, why don't you head home, take a shower and change your clothes? Josh should sleep for a little while and you look like you could use a little time to yourself. It's been a long day or two for you and I have a feeling it won't get much better right away." Sylvia's tone was gentle, but her gaze was firm. She would not take no for an answer even if it meant using force to get the younger woman to take care of herself.
"Sounds lovely, but if it was difficult for you to get through the press, I'm sure to have a horrible time since I am apparently the flavor of the month." Sylvia opened her mouth to argue, but was interrupted by the entrance of Josh's physician.
"Hello ladies. I see Josh has been thwarted by the pain medication yet again. I just wanted to stop in and let you know that things went beautifully. We'll keep him in the hospital over night, but that's just a precaution due to his history. Do either of you have any questions?" Dr. Newman smiled encouragingly at the two women.
"Dr. Newman, does this hospital have family rooms? Donna could use a little rest, but due to the mess of politics we won't begin to involve you in, is unable to go home without creating a three- ring circus. Since I'm quite certain the nursing staff would appreciate her being available as soon as Josh regains consciousness, it would be wonderful if she could use one for a little while." Sylvia jumped in before Donna could begin firing the many questions she knew the younger woman had prepared for the physician. Donna gave an exasperated sigh at her meddling, but had to admit to herself that a shower sounded really good.
"Of course. I'll check with the nurses. Ms. Moss, before I do, can I answer any questions for you?" Donna pulled the notebook out of her purse she had been scribbling random questions in all morning.
"Will Josh know if the pacemaker is working? How long does it last? How do you know if the batteries are charged? Will Josh need to be careful around security X-ray machines or metal detectors? What about cell phones?" Donna rattled off her list with very little pause for Dr. Newman to give any answers.
"Josh will not really know if the pacemaker is working unless it is not working. If the pacemaker fires and shocks his heart into a better rhythm, he won't feel it. It may work continuously all day, once in a while or never. Most pacemaker batteries last about five years. We will set up a testing plan that he will have to keep up to be sure the pacemaker is operating properly. He can probably do it over the phone, so it won't matter whether he's here or on the road somewhere. I'm not entirely sure about international travel and his check ups, but we can look into that if it's necessary. As far as your other questions, I have some information you can look through that should answer them all. I'll be right back with it and the key to the family room."
"Thank you for checking on the room, Sylvia. I didn't know hospitals had rooms like that. It would have come in handy when Josh was in the hospital last time."
"I hoped back then that you would go home now and then and give me a little time with my son to nag him about why he hadn't married you yet. I knew if you were anywhere on the premises he wouldn't tell me anything." Donna gaped at the Josh's mother, shocked that she had been onto them that long ago. "Close your mouth, dear. I knew my son was in love with you the first time he mentioned your name. He said it with a reverence formerly used for the Mets. Granted, it's taken him a few years longer than I would like to admit it, but he's loved you all along." Dr Newman returned before Donna could question her further.
"Here is the information on living with a pacemaker. And the nurse at the desk will show you up to one of the family rooms. Use it as long as you would like."
"Thank you so much, Dr. Newman. We really appreciate your help." Sylvia smiled warmly at the doctor, who nodded back at her and slipped out the door. She turned quickly to Donna. "Go. We'll have plenty of time in the next few weeks to discuss the insanity of my son and his undying love for you. For now, get some rest. I'll call this Helen person to help get some clean clothes for you."
"Josh is lucky to have you… so am I. Thanks Sylvia. Call my cell phone when our patient wakes up." Donna slipped out of the room and Sylvia settled herself in the chair the younger woman had spent the night in. She placed a quick call to the Santos headquarters and secured a promise of clean clothes for Donna within the hour. Smiling to herself at the idea of her son finally pulling his head out of the sand and loving someone outside of himself, she pulled a crossword puzzle book out of her black leather bag. She worked her way through two puzzles before Josh began to stir, grimacing slightly and straining against his left side.
"I wouldn't do that, dear. You don't want to pull the stitches out. Your mother is not so wild about blood, you know." She murmured teasingly. Josh opened his eyes slowly, still a bit bleary-eyed.
"Mom? When did you get here?"
"Not long before they wheeled you back in from surgery. You don't remember wanting Donna and I to join you in a hospital bed race?" Josh stared at his mother in mortification. The biggest down side of his "sensitive system" was the complete amnesia he almost always suffered the morning (or in this case afternoon) after.
"Were there other people in the room when I did that?" Sylvia chuckled at her son's humiliation.
"Well the orderlies seemed to get a laugh out of it, but there weren't heads of state here if that was your concern. Just your girls." The significance of her final comment was not lost on Josh.
"My girls… speaking of my girls, where's Donna?" Josh tried to cover his concern at her absence from his bedside, but failed miserably under his mother's watchful eye.
"I sent her to get some sleep. She should be back in a little while. By the way, since when have you called her Donna-La-La?" Sylvia tried to keep the mirth out of her voice, but failed. Josh stared at her as if she'd grown a third head.
"What are you talking about? I've never called Donna that in my life." He argued with disgust.
"On the contrary my dear, you called her that at least three times this morning. I don't think she liked it much. Darling or honey would be a much better term of endearment I think."
"What makes you think Donna would want me to call her that?" Now it was Sylvia's turn to stare at her son in shock.
"Shall I count the ways? One, I have eyes and can see the way she looks at you. Two, she dropped everything to be with you when you got sick. Three, she quit her job because of you. Four, she is basically a prisoner in this hospital, because of your stupid politics and is only worried about how you will react. Shall I keep going or do you get the picture?"
"What are you talking about? Donna's not a prisoner in this hospital. You just said you sent her to get some rest." Josh fired back in confusion. Sylvia immediately realized she had said too much, but knew there was no going back now.
"Donna didn't want me to tell you about this yet, but Will Bailey released a statement claiming you and Donna have been together for years and that you were conspiring against the Vice President. The press is all over the hospital, her apt and anyone who ever knew you right now. Don't get upset, the White House and Santos campaign are handling it. Donna spoke to CJ and Helen Santos while you were in surgery and feels pretty sure it will blow over soon." Fury darkened Josh's face and the beeping of his heart monitor picked up substantially. "Joshua, calm down or you'll have a nurse in here with happy pills again. Donna said it was being handled."
Josh struggled to take deep breaths to calm his temper. His mother turned back to her crossword, leaving him to digest everything she had just told him. After a few minutes of silence, he asked her the question that had been in the back of his mind since this whole scare happened.
"Why would she want to be with me now?" Josh's voice was so thick with emotion, Sylvia wasn't sure she heard him correctly.
"What are you asking me, dear?" She asked quietly, not wanting to overstep the direction he was steering the conversation.
"Mom, I'm an old man, a broken man with a very muddled future ahead of me. I may have cost her a very promising career in national politics. Why would she want to be with me now?"
"Joshua, you are not an old man. You are middle aged at best and have plenty of good years ahead of you. You have a minor heart condition, but I'll lay pretty good odds that walking around with a pacemaker is going to be a hell of a lot easier than the hole you've had in your heart since she quit. As far as your future goes, it's as muddled as you want it to be. Nothing Dr. Newman has said has given any indication you have to radically change who you are. You need to find a better way to deal with stress. I have a feeling our Donna might be good at that. Donna made a choice when she came to be with you, trust her in that choice." Josh let his mother's words settle into his heart for a few minutes before asking even scarier questions.
"What if I'm not enough for her? What if two weeks from now or ten years from now, she wants more than I can give her and regrets all that she gave up? How will I ever live without her again?"
"Joshua, I can't speak for Donna. I can tell you that in love we all make sacrifices. Your father and I made sacrifices every day for each other in the years we were married. Some were small like changing the brand of toothpaste. Some were life changing beyond anything we ever anticipated. But I never once regretted making any sacrifice for your father, because I wanted him more than anything else. I know in my heart it was the same for him. That's how you spend a lifetime with some one and I'm pretty sure that's what Donna wants with you." Sylvia took her son's hand and squeezed it gently. "Joshua, I love you more than you could ever know. I wish I could put all your fears to rest, but I think Donna is the only one who can do that. You need to talk to her."
"I'm scared." Josh responded in a whisper.
"I know. But it's worth the risk. Donna is worth the risk."