The phone rang early the next morning, waking Alex up early. "Hello," she asked, answering the phone. She pushed the hair out of her eyes, fumbling for the the alarm clock. It was almost nine in the morning.
"Hey sweetie. What're your plans for the weekend?" She recognized the voice as being that of Abbey Bartlet.
"Not much," Alex said. "Why?"
"Your father and I were going to go to Nantucket. Care to come along," Abbey asked.
"Uh…sure," Alex said. She knew not going would raise suspicions.
"We'll be there in half an hour. Pack an overnight bag with a sweatshirt. It's kind of cool there now," Abbey said.
"Okay," Alex said, "I'll see you in a few." She hung up the phone, then buried her head beneath the pillow. She screamed at the top of her lungs. How was she going to get through this weekend?
Half an hour later, Alex waited outside, wearing a pair of khaki cargo pants, a sweater and boots. She found a drawer with clothes that Zoey must've been too big for, because they fit her well. She saw a limo pull up and took a deep breath. It stopped in front of her and an agent got out, placing the bag she had packed in the back.
Another agent opened the door for her and she climbed in. Across from her sat Zoey's parents. "We're taking Air Force One," the president explained. He had misinterpreted the look on Alex's face.
"Oh," Alex said as the car pulled away.She looked out the window; everywhere but at Zoey's parents.
"Did you finish your paper," Abbey asked, studying the girl in front of her. To a mother's eyes, she saw that she was thinner and had a different look to her eyes, a darker, haunted look.
"Yeah. I finished it," Alex said, "Wasn't too hard."
"What was your favorite part of the book," Abbey continued.
"Ophelia going mad and Hamlet's famous soliloquy," Alex responded quickly. She had read the book in case questions came up.
"One of my favorites too," Jed said.
"How're you doing in calculus," Abbey asked. Jed looked at his wife with a raised eyebrow. She rarely drilled their daughter about classes.
"Fine," Alex replied. "I got an A on my last test." She had found the test in a stack of papers on Zoey's desk.
"Good job," Jed said. He nudged his wife gently, trying to figure out what had gotten into her.
They arrived at Andrews Airforce Base and were lead by Secret Service Agents into the awaiting plane. Alex had never been on one before, so she sat down and quickly buckled her seatbelt. She tried to fight the awe that she was feeling.
She was sure her face was turning white. "Do you feel alright," Abbey asked, noticing the color drain from the teenager's face. She moved from her husband's side to sit by Alex. She put her hand against Alex's forehead, trying to detect a fever.
"I'm fine," Alex said. She leaned into Abbey's touch slightly. She had never been touched so lovingly by someone before. "Just didn't sleep well last night."
"Lay down," Abbey instructed. She set a pillow laying the chair next to her on the couch and spread out a blanket, covering Alex with it. "I'll wake you up when we get there."
Alex nodded and laid down, curling up on the couch. Abbey sat by her, running her hands gently through her youngest daughter's hair. Alex closed her eyes, feeling Abbey's hand running the her hair. She was close enough to smell the older woman's perfume. It was scent that was oddly calming to her. She fell asleep in minutes, curled up on Air Force One.
Alex slept peacefully the entire ride. They were absent of the events that had scarred her as a child. The car crash, the pranks other kids would play on her, her life on street- for the first time in a while, they weren't haunting her.
Abbey left Alex's side after she was sure the girl was asleep. She found her husband in his office, going over paperwork. "What're you working on," she asked, sitting on the edge of the desk, facing him.
"Just go over some notes from a meeting yesterday," he said, sliding the glasses off his nose. "What was with the twenty questions for Zoey?"
"Something's off about her," Abbey said, "I can't put my finger on it, but there's something different about her."
"And giving her ninth degree on her classes is going to tell you what's wrong," Jed asked. "She'll come forward if something is wrong. Besides, she looks okay to me."
"She's at least ten pounds lighter than she was the other day," Abbey nearly shouted, "There's something not right about her."
"Abbey, calm down," he said, standing up. "I'm sure she's just stressed about classes." He rubbed her arms gently, kissing her softly. "Go back and sit with her. I'll be there in a few." She nodded, walking back out to the main cabin.
The plane was deserted, save for the Secret Service Agents and the First family the entire way to Nantucket. Alex slept the entire time.
Alex felt a soft touch on her shoulder and opened her eyes slowly. "Hey, we're almost there," Abbey said, helping Alex to sit up. Alex nodded, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She pushed the hair from her eyes and straightened her ponytail as the plane touched down.
She stood up, waiting as her parents exited the plane, following them closely. Members of the press were there, so she took their lead and waved to them.
She climbed into the limo behind the First Couple, settling into the middle of the seat. "Did you bring a jacket to wear? We were going to get out on the water this afternoon," Jed said as they limo left the airport.
"Yeah," Alex said, "I looked online and it said it was starting to get cold."
"Good," he said.
Alex watched as they stopped at a large bay house set on the coast of the ocean. It had been painted a pale yellow and had a porch that wrapped around entire back portion of the house.
"We're here," Jed announced.
"Obviously," Alex muttered under her breath. She caught the first lady's sharp glare and just smiled. She blushed as she climbed out of the car. She forgot who she was supposed to be for a moment.
"Go on up and get everything unpacked, then we'll go for a sail," Jed said.
"Right," Alex said. She saw a set of stairs leading up to the second floor and based on the president's statement, Zoey's room was up those stairs.
She climbed the stairs slowly and walked down the hall, checking each room. She let out a sigh of relief as she saw a room with a wooden Z on it. She pushed it open and dropped her bag on the floor. The room was painted a sage green color, with a green and white bedspread. Black and white pictures decorated the room.
She moved to the chest of drawers and began to unpack all of her belongings, hanging them up or folding them gently. She slipped on a thick fleece pullover she had found and went back downstairs.
"You parents are down with the boat," Gina instructed her. Alex nodded her thanks and walked down the dock towards where her parents were already on the boat, getting it ready to sail.
"Hey, you all ready to go," Abbey asked as Alex carefully climbed onto the boat.
"Yeah," Alex replied. "Need any help?" She didn't know how to do anything on the boat, but she felt as though she ought to offer her help.
"I think we're all set," she replied, untying the rope that held them to dock.
"Great," Alex said, hoping the relief didn't show too much in her voice.
She heard the motor start and the boat slowly pulled away from the dock. "Feel better," Abbey asked, sitting down next to her daughter. She propped her feet up on the seat across from her.
"Yeah," Alex replied, "I was just tired. I didn't sleep well last night. "
"Anything on your mind," Abbey asked. Alex shook her head, forcing a smile to make the older woman happy.
"We brought champagne and chocolate dipped strawberries. Did you want some?"
"Sure," Alex said with a grin. A couple of agents were present on board the ship, standing at various places on the boat. She could see a motorboat not far away. In the past few hours alone, she understood why Zoey had so desperately wanted to trade places with her.
Jed walked over a few minutes later, carrying a carton of the chocolate covered strawberries and the champagne. Alex laughed as he uncorked the champagne and poured each of them a glass. Alex noticed her glass had a little less than her parents. She had never had alcohol before, so she was relieved in a way.
Jed sat next to his wife, placing his arm around her shoulders, propping his feet next to hers. Alex watched with a soft smile as he told a joke, making both of them laugh. She could tell the couple across from her were still deeply in love. He would gently kiss her temple, his fingers toying with a curl of her hair. She would hold his hand in hers, playing with his fingers while he spouted of some inane piece of trivia or told some story about some foreign leader.
A pang hit her heart as she realized that for the first time in her life, she felt apart of a family. But, it hurt her even more to know that it wasn't her family.