Disclaimer: As we know, I don't own them, if I did I'd be driving a much better car.
Author's note: This is a stand alone story and has nothing to do with Healing over Coffee. Sorry. This one is entirely different. Josh and Donna meet at the Lincoln Memorial a long time ago. Slowly other people from the West Wing show up, but no one knows each other. By the way, at the end of the story Will talks about two speeches, it the "I have a Dream" speech and the Gettysburg address. I didn't want any questions about that later. I want to thank Damom- for your love and support. You ROCK! Kissofthespiderwoman, thanks a billion, she helped write the ending. Feedback is loved and appreciated. ENJOY.
She sat on the marble steps staring at her freshly painted toes. She wiggled them, liking the way the light made the pink look; it was a pretty contrast to her white sandals. She had been waiting for her family to get back and was keeping herself entertained. She had been there for a while, people watching, surveying the landscape and the monuments. She was perfectly content until a big head blocked her view.
"Are you lost?" His brown eyes questioned her, his hair covered by a Mets hat. He was holding a pink peppermint ice cream cone in one hand and he tilted his hat up with the other.
Her forehead creased as she crossed her arms, "No, I know exactly where I am, sitting in front of the Lincoln Memorial."
"Well, you've been here for a while. Where are your mommy and daddy? Do you want me to find them for you?" His words were slow and soft. While she understood he was trying to be nice, she hated people thinking she was a baby.
"I'm ten, mister, not retarded."
His head jolted as he stepped back, "Well fine, I guess you don't need any help."
She watched him, feeling sorry for her mean words realizing that that she could not take them back. His ice cream started to collect on the rim of the cone, swelling into one glob.
"You're ice cream in going to drip." She pointed as his eyes followed her fingers, but it was too late. One giant pink stain surfaced on his khaki pants.
"DAMN!" He cursed.
Her blue eyes grew wide. "um… sorry." He scratched at his head as he fumbled a little for the right words.
She smiled a little. "Its ok, I've heard that word before." He looked relieved that he hadn't tainted her. He sat next to her, licking the path of ice cream the drip had created. Two young men approached him; one slapped him on the back.
"Come on man, Camelot waits."
The Mets fan checked his watch then looked at the blonde girl with pigtails, "It's not open yet, Mike, and I'm not leaving her."
"She seems fine…come on, its CAMELOT!" Mike whined.
The other one shifted his weight and looked uncomfortable. "We really don't have to go…"
The one with the Mets hat and pink stain on his pants shook his head, "No way, Skinner, we're getting you some tonight. I'll hang here for a little bit and catch up with you."
She looked up at him. "Getting him some what?"
His eyes grew wide and color drained from his face, "Ice cream."
She pointed to the cone. "Couldn't he just have yours?"
"Um, no, I licked it and he doesn't want my germs."
She looked at him with disbelieving, questioning eyes. "Hmm." The two other men, known as Mike and Skinner, waited until the one with the Mets hat waved them away.
"Camelot is where King Arthur lived. Do they sell ice cream too?" The small girl said as her vision returned to her toes.
He swallowed deeply. He tried to make small talk and wanted to change the subject, "Do you know where your parents are?"
She placed her arms behind her, supporting her weight; "They're with my brother. Mom told him not to run up the stairs, but he did anyway. He had an asthma attack and a bloody nose at the same time. I'm not sure how that happened, but it did. Mom and Luke went to the pharmacy to get his inhaler refilled."
"So they left you here."
She shrugged a little. "It's ok, I wanted to be here. I don't like blood."
The young man agreed. "Me either."
She glazed longingly around. "Besides, can you think of any safer place? I've got Lincoln watching my back." She smiled at him. "Plus, the security guard's been watching me." She pointed behind her and then nodded down towards the Reflecting Pool. "And that police officer's checked up on me twice now."
As if on cue the officer came over to the young girl and the young man. "Is everything alright, kiddo? He isn't bothering you, is he?"
The little girl laughed. "A little but it's ok."
A quiet calm washed over the female officer. "You remind me of my son, this is his favorite Memorial."
The little girl nodded. "That's because of its greatness."
The officer chuckled. "No, I think he likes running up the stairs and letting his baby sister follow. I'll be back in a little while to check on you."
The little girl waved to the officer as she left, "Bye Officer Young!"
The young man questioned why this child was so relaxed in such a strange and busy place, "Are you sure you're ok here? Aren't you bored?"
She shook her head, "Nope, it fun here. I like watching the people. I'm trying to figure out who's gonna come back… you can tell it in their eyes." As if being instructed, both turned and watched the tourists gazing at the larger than life statue. Some stopped to read the inscription behind the statue, others looked up at his face, but nearly all of them looked for no more than two minutes and moved on. All the chaos, children playing, parents screaming, tourist talking, faded away as both the young girl and the young man focused on a Marine in full uniform. He stood in the same place for quite some time. The Marine was thinking about something and his thoughts were broken when his friends called, "Matt, let's move we're going to miss the bus." The Marine took one more look at the stone president, nodded with approval and left.
The young girl nudged him in the shoulder. "He'll be back. I can tell." The young man in the Mets hat smiled at her as she turned her attention to a very tall red head, "She's been here like five times." His eyes followed the red head. His mind declared her as being attractive, slightly older than him, a Berkeley Feminista and light years beyond his league.
"I'll bet she's got a big decision to make, "he whispered to the little girl.
"Yeah, if I had a big choice to make I would come here to think, too."
He knew the answer, but he wanted to hear what she had to say. "Why?"
The pig-tailed girl tore her eyes away from the statue and the people gazing at it. "I don't know, maybe because whatever problems you have or big decision you have to make couldn't be as big or as bad as what Lincoln had to make."
He was surprised by how articulate she was and teased her about it. "You're in all the smart classes, aren't you?"
She nodded proudly. "Yep."
"Do you know who else spoke here?"
"Martin Luther King. He gave the "I have a Dream" speech right here." The girl patted the step they were sitting on.
"It was a great speech."
The little girl and the young man turned their heads in the direction of the voice. The fourteen year old boy with dark brown hair started to speak, "The words were so simple, but the message so complex. One speech changed history."
The fourteen year old boy was with a younger girl with light hair, "Yeah. It was good, but it would have been better if Martian Luther King opened with a joke."
The teenager rolled his eyes. "You're an idiot, Elise!"
She punched his arm. "Shut up, Willy," she taunted him with that last word, mocking and sneering.
"Don't call me that!" Willy pushed Elise. Another male voice resonated over the crowd calling them to him. Willy called, "Coming Dad." and with that, the siblings where gone.
A man in his late twenties walked passed the young girl with blond hair and the young man with the Mets hat. The stranger, who had a rather large forehead and beard, commented to no one in particular, "It would be cool to write a speech that changed history." The young man chuckled at the thought that the stranger would be bald in a few years.
The stranger then walked through crowds and disappeared.
The little girl played with her pig tails, "They both seemed so proud of their observations; I didn't have the heart to tell them they're wrong. It wasn't one that changed everything…"
The young man nodded. "It was a whole lot of people working together that made a difference."
"It's called the Civil Rights Movement."
He became defensive; "I know that."
"I was just checking." She teased him.
Once again, he changed the subject, "Is this you're first time visiting DC?"
"Yep. I wanted to see where the laws are made. My brother is mad at me because he wanted to go to California. But it was my year to pick the vacation, so he can bite me."
The young man ignored the last part of her comment, "I came here when I was your age."
"It must have been a long time ago," she giggled.
"Twelve years isn't that long ago." He huffed. She giggled more, but he ignored her, already lost in his own memories. "I was taking one of those tours of the White House and I distinctly remember turning to my mom and dad and telling them, 'I'm gonna work here one day.'"
"Do you want to be president?"
The young man shook his head, "Nope. I want to be the guy who helps the president to decide the big issues. I want to make the world better in my own small way."
She nodded with approval. "You would be good at that."
He beamed. "You think?"
A devilish smirk crossed her face. "As long as you don't have to eat ice cream for the job."
His eyes narrowed and his voice was filled with a faux anger. "You're sort of a smart ass, aren't you?"
She laughed. "That's what Dad calls me!"
"You're going to drive some man nuts one day."
She leaned back and stretched out her legs. "Dad says that too."
For a moment the two sat watching the people. She told him about the Washington Monument and why it was two different colors. He pretended it was the first time he had heard it. His ice cream became a drippy mess and she suggested he throw it out. Once it was disposed of, they talked about the benefits of peppermint ice cream. She liked the way the candy would get stuck in her teeth and she would have a treat for later. He liked the way it made his breath smell.
The tall red headed woman was still wandering around the Memorial, gazing up at the regal marble face.
The young man admitted, "This is my favorite place in DC."
"I thought the White House was."
"Nope, not until I start working there; until then, Lincoln is."
The blond girl stared across from the reflecting pool. "Mine too. I've been here four times since the beginning of our vacation." She paused to think. "I like the way he looks, like a grandpa, smart and kind. That's the way all presidents should be."
The young man thought it over for a second. He was going to speak, but a woman who looked like an older version of the little girl started to approach. The woman called out, "DONNA! Donnatella Moss!"
The young man nudged the little girl, "I bet that's you."
Donna smiled. "Hi Mom!" The woman stepped up to her daughter and looked over to the young man. Donna jumped into her mom's arms and hugged her. "I missed you." The woman kissed her daughter on her head.
"I missed you too. Who's your friend?" She looked over at the young man. Donna suddenly realized she had never asked him his name.
The young man stood up and shook the mother's hand. "Josh, Josh Lyman."
The mother patted her daughter, "Why don't you say good bye to the security guard." The little girl nodded and hopped up the stairs. The mother turned to Josh, "I hope she wasn't a bother. She tends to talk a lot."
Josh dug his hands in his pocket, "Honestly, it was the best conversation I've had in a long time."
Donna's mother started to dig through her pocketbook to pay Josh for his time. He adamantly refused. He did ask about her son, though. "How did he get a bloody nose?"
The mother laughed, "Donna punched him because he said the Republicans were right about something."
Josh's eyebrows went half way up his forehead. This was so contradictory to the little girl he had been spending his time with. He turned his head to watch Donna shake the security guard's hand.
Donna paused for second to get one last look of the kindly and grand figure in stone, waved and called out to the statue, "See ya later." Josh's heart clenched for a second. Had he ever been that kind and innocent?
She bounded back to her mother and Josh. Josh smiled down at her, "Are you coming back?"
With one determined nod she answered, "Oh yes, but not for a while. We're leaving tonight. But I'm gonna see Abe again."
Josh agreed. "I know. I can see it in you eyes."
The little girl blushed a bit. "You'll be back too."
"No doubt about it. It's because of the greatness."
Donna's mother was getting impatient. "Come on, honey. Say good bye to Mr. Lyman."
Josh leaned down to shake her hand, but she raised herself on her tiptoes and planted a soft kiss on his cheek. "Bye, Josh." She scampered off down the steps as Josh placed his hand over this cheek.
"You'll make an interesting adult when you grow up, Donna." He called after her.
She turned back to him, eyes bright. "You too, Josh!"
His dimples flashed for a second before he realized what she had said. The redhead started to laugh. "You were just insulted by an eight year old." The redhead chuckled as she walked down the stairs.
Josh called back to her. "She's ten!" as if that made it any better.
Donna entered Josh's mind once or twice during the day. But as time passed, her image and laughter faded away, until she was forgotten entirely.
26 years later.
It was night time and the Memorial was the largest light source. The statue seemed more god-like. They met, maybe for the last time, on the stairs of the Lincoln Memorial. One reign had ended and a new one was about to begin. In a few weeks, Toby would be going to jail, President Bartlett would be leaving the White House and president-elect Santos would be taking over. Life was about to send everyone down his or her own path. It was nice to think that Lincoln Memorial would be a stepping stone on the way.
Will Bailey was the first to speak. "Two great speeches associated with one place. Those speeches changed the history."
Josh corrected him. "No, it wasn't the speeches. It was people coming together to make the changes that changed history… the speeches were just given all the credit."
Toby looked up at the statue and read the inscription behind it. "Still, it would be cool to write something like that."
Josh wondered about when and where he had heard something like that before.
Santos peered at the statue, not looking at the other people. "I came here to think about making the largest choices of my life. About twenty-six years ago I came here to ask Lincoln for some advice. I was still a Marine at the time and I wanted to do more for the country. This is where I decided to start my career in politics. Twenty five years later I came back here when I decided to run from President." Santos frowned at the statue. "Thanks a lot Abe. I never expected to win."
Charlie spoke next. "This place used to be on my mom's beat. I used to come here all the time as a kid. I loved running up and down the stairs with my sister." He paused, "Well that and all the greatness."
CJ laughed, "I used to come here whenever I felt lost. I still do, actually. I remember one time this college kid, real cocky, the kind of kid who always got everything right, got his ass handed to him by an eight year old girl. It seems weird that I would think about it now."
Josh muttered "she was ten," under his breathe and was fairly certain no one had heard him.
Donna pulled her eyes away from the statue for a second to look at Charlie and CJ. A strange feeling over took her, but she shook it off. However, one word filled her mind and left her mouth before she could control it. "Camelot."
Everyone else looked at her. Will laughed. "Donna wins the random comment of the night award."
Charlie looked at her strangely. "Do you mean where King Arthur lived or the strip club?"
Her eyes grew wide; "It's a strip club?"
Josh nodded. "Sure, it's up by Dupount Circle. I went there when I was in my early twenties with Mike Powers. We were trying to get Matt Skinner laid. We thought he was just really shy, turns out he's gay."
Toby pointed down at Josh's pants to a large stain on his leg. "What happened there?"
Josh frowned and feebly tried to wipe away the stain, "I dropped ice cream on it at dinner."
"Seriously, how old are you?" Charlie mocked.
The group shared a quick laugh before they decided it was time to leave. Will, Toby, CJ started down the steps. His secret service agents flanked Matt Santos as he walked. Donna lingered behind and Josh waited for her.
She said good bye to the security guard. She paused for a second in front of the mammoth statue of the President and gave a small wave, "see ya later." Josh watched her intently. His chest tightened and his heart clenched. He had a vague feeling he had witnessed this once before.
She sprung forward and ran towards him, eyes wide and bright with knowledge once forgotten and recently resurrected. Each time she looked at him now, he seemed different, older and yet, familiar. She had assumed it was due to the time they had spent apart as rivals .Their eyes met and in a soft mysterious tone she whispered, "You came back."
He looked at her, confused. "Well it is my favorite monument. You know, besides the White House."
She nodded, "I knew you would come back; I could see it in your eyes." She kissed him lightly on the cheek.
He accepted her strange behavior simply because he got a kiss out of the deal. When she pulled away she laughed a little. "Twenty six years later and you still don't know how to eat ice cream."
Josh stood at the feet of the 16th president with his hand on his cheek. Donna shyly put pulled a stray hair behind her ear. Josh studied her intently in the moonlight, in a low voice he expressed, "You know your dad and I were right about something."
Donna raised a questioning eyebrow, to her knowledge Josh and her father had never spoken much less agreed on anything. "About what?"
His dimples flashed and his eyebrows wiggled, "About one day driving a man crazy."