Abbey and Jed looked up as the door to the room Alex had been in opened. Dr. Ross stepped out, her eyes meeting her friend's immediatly. "I'll have my secretary call tomorrow to arrange weekly appointments," Charlotte said. "This won't be easy, but I think she'll be alright, emotionally."
"Charlotte, thank you for all of this," Abbey said, kissing the woman on the cheek. Dr. Ross smiled and left the First Couple behind.
Abbey and Jed walked into the room, Jed pushing a wheelchair for Alex to ride in downstairs. "What's with the chair," Alex asked, looking from the chair to them.
"You to ride in to get downstairs," Jed replied.
"Do I have to," Alex whined, looking up at him.
"Yes," Jed said sternly. "The faster you get in, the faster we can get out of here." Alex hopped right into the chair without another word. She was more than ready to get out of the hospital.
"Where are Liz, Ellie and Zoey," Alex asked as Jed pushed her down the hall.
"They're at home, waiting for us," Abbey said as they waited for the elevator. "Did you like Dr. Ross?"
"Yeah," Alex said, "Friend of yours?"
"Yeah," Abbey said, smiling over at her husband. Seemed like little could get past their youngest daughter.
Alex could see the press from inside the hospital, flashes reflecting in the glass. Jed stopped the chair while Abbey bent down to talk to her. "There's a lot of press out there," she said, "We're just going to wheel you past them. You don't have to talk. CJ, the press secretary, will handle them."
"Okay," Alex said, "I'll be fine." She flashed a bright smile, which reassured Abbey that the girl would be alright.
"Okay then," Abbey said, "Let's go then." She patted Alex's knee, then stood up. She squeezed Jed's hand as they began to exit the hospital.
Alex was nearly blinded by the amount of flashes going off at once. People were screaming her name and the president's name. She wasn't afraid though. Her parents were right behind her.
Alex got out of the wheelchair with her father's help, then climbed into the waiting limousine. Abbey followed her, then Jed.
"You okay," Jed asked as he sat down.
"I'm fine," Alex said reassuringly. She smiled at both of her parents softly, trying to reassure them that she was really alright.
They arrived at the mansion half an hour later, the press lined up outside, behind a velvet rope. Alex climbed out, a little unsteady on her feet, but with her mother and father's arms supporting her, she walked inside.
"Let's get you upstairs to bed," Abbey said.
"I'm not tired," Alex protested.
"No, but you need to sit," Abbey said, "You've been in bed for the past five days. Your muscles need to work up to physical activity."
Alex groaned, but allowed her mother to lead her up the stairs. "Do I even have a room here," Alex asked as they took the elevator up.
"We have eleven extra rooms," Abbey said, "I think we can find one for you."
"Is there a lavender one," Alex asked as they stepped out of the elevator.
"If not, we can have one made for you," Abbey said. She walked from room to room, opening the door of each one. Finally, she found one suited for a teenager. "Do you like this one?"
Alex walked in and looked around. The room was large, with windows overlooking the lawn. A four-poster bed stood against the back wall with a quilt on it. "It's not bad," Alex said, "Beats a cot in the shelter."
"Yeah, it does," Abbey said, "We'll have it redecorated if you want." At Alex's grin, she knew she had said the secret phrase. "I have some clothes for you down the hall. You can change into something more comfortable, if you'd like."
"As long as it's not something resembles scrubs," Alex replied. She hopped up on the bed, settling on top of the covers. She looked around the room, a soft smile on her face.
She had her own dresser, a TV and a closet along with two nightstands. The room was huge and had a round shape to it.
She looked up as Abbey walked back in, carrying bags of clothes. "Here you go," she said, laying out a pink and black jogging suit. "I've got to go check my messages, then I'll be back up to check on you."
"I'll be okay," Alex said, "There's guards up and down the hallway. I'm not going anywhere."
"I know," Abbey said. "You'll just have to get used to your father and I. We're still getting used to the idea that you're alive." She kissed Alex gently on her temple, then left, allowing her to get changed in private.
Alex slipped into the jogging suit Abbey had brought her and grabbed her crutches. She had been given them to keep the weight off her legs. She walked over to the window, pushing the curtains back. The White House lawn stretched out below her window from four floors up. She could tell the glass was thick, probably bullet proof. She knew that outside her door, lining the hallway, stood marine guards to keep the First Family safe. She looked back around the room, still trying to believe everything that was happening.
She heard her door open and turned to see her father walk in, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. "Hey," she said, walking over to sit on the bed.
"Hey," he said, "You get settled in okay?"
"Yeah," she said, "How's work today?"
"The usual," he said, "Busy."
"I guess that would come with the territory," she said with a soft smile.
"Yeah," he said, "We're having dinner downstairs around seven. Zoey said she'd be up to help you find your way downstairs. She went back to campus to work on a paper."
"Okay," Alex replied. "I could probably find my way down there. I've been before."
"Yeah I forget that," he said sheepishly. "You know, I can't get over how much you two look alike."
"Comes with the whole identical twin thing," Alex replied with a grin.
"Good to know someone else is a smart ass in this family," he said. Alex grinned and pushed the hair out of her eyes. "Have you given any thoughts to college?"
"No," Alex said, "I have the grades and a few scholarship offers, but I don't know if I'd be able to attend."
"What's your GPA?"
"2.5," Alex replied, adverting her eyes.
"That's not bad," he said. "What school?"
"Wherever I can get into," she replied.
"You'll figure it out in time," he said. She nodded, looking around the room. Talking to the president as herself had become awkward. "The staff wants to meet you at sometime. Leo, my chief of staff, was there when you were born."
"Really," Alex asked, relieved he had change the subject.
"Yeah," he said, "Toby, Sam and Josh all work in the communications office and CJ is my press secretary."
"Are they all here," Alex asked.
"Yeah, they're all here," he said.
"Then let's go meet them," she said, pushing herself back up on crutches.
"Your mother'll kill you for this," he said, leading her out of the room.
"I'll deal with her later," she said, walking out in the hall. The marines saluted them as they passed. It was something she was going to have to get used to.
They took the elevator downstairs, getting off at the first floor. "You know, the White House was built to intimidate foreign leaders," Jed said as he lead her down the hall. Alex rolled her eyes as she limped down the hall after him. She could hear him spouting more trivia as he showed her the various areas of the West Wing. She knew they were catching the eyes of everyone they passed. A lot of the eyes were focused on her.
They walked down a hall and into a smaller room where a young black man sat at a desk. "Sir, I thought you had gone home," he said, standing up as they entered.
"Relax Charlie. I brought Alexandria down here to meet everyone," he said. "Alexandria, this is Charlie Young, my personal assistant."
"It's nice to meet you," Alex said, leaning on her crutch to shake his hand.
"It's nice to meet you too. Welcome to the White House," he replied.
"Thanks," Alex replied.
"Charlie, would you mind calling everyone," Jed said, "Have them meet me in the office."
"Yes sir," he replied, "Alexandria, nice to meet you again." Alex smiled and nodded, following her father into the office.
Alex nearly dropped her crutches as she stepped into the Oval Office behind her father. She had seen it on TV before, but it was the first time that she had ever seen it in person. "Impressive, huh," he said, sitting down on one of the couches.
"To say the least," she said. She hobbled around carefully on her crutches, her eyes taking in every detail of the office. She ran her hand along the desk, looking at the pictures on top. She noticed a picture of her mother holding two small infants, both in white blankets with pink hats. She lay in a hospital bed, with her father behind them, his arm wrapped around her shoulder. Both had wide smiles on their faces.
"You and your sister a day after you were born," he said, "I kept it in a drawer and just recently took it out. It's the only picture I have of you." Alex nodded, reaching out to take it in her hand. She studied the picture closely. Her parents both looked so happy.
She heard the door open and set the picture down before turning around. Alex watched as four men and a tall woman entered. One of the men, the one she guessed to be Leo, was older and kept his eyes focused on her. She could see the shock in his eyes.
"Hello," Jed said, standing up, "Alexandria, I'd like you to meet Sam Seaborn, Leo McGarry, C.J. Cregg, Josh Lyman and Toby Zieglar." Each person nodded their head, their eyes focused on the teenager in front of them.
"It's nice to meet you," Alex said, "I'm Alexandria Bartlet." She smiled, hobbling over to sit down in one of the chairs. She could feel her face start to blush as she they stared.
"I haven't seen you since the day you were born," Leo said softly.
"Yeah. Dad had kinda mentioned that," she said.
"How have you been feeling," CJ asked.
"Okay," Alex said, "The stitches kind of itch and the cast is annoying. But, I'm okay. Just glad to be out of the hospital."
"I guess this has been a little overwhelming," Sam said. The group turned and looked at him, eyebrows raised.
"Sharp deduction, Sherlock," Alex replied with a bright smile. The others laughed slightly at her comment. The President shook his head, trying to keep back the laughter.
"Anyways, we better get down to dinner," Jed said, standing up. "I'll see all of you tomorrow."
"Yes sir," the group replied, standing. Alex pushed herself up on the crutches as the group left.
"It was nice to see you again," Leo said, coming to stand in front of her.
"It's good to see you too," Alex replied. She said goodbye to the rest of the staff, then turned to follow her father out of the Oval Office.