A Sort of Homecoming

It's the end of the saddest day of my life. We've won the election, the
thing we've worked so long and hard for, but with Leo gone there is little to
celebrate. What we've gained today is bittersweet because we've lost so much.

I'm sitting next to Josh on the couch in his hotel room. The lights are all
off except for a small lamp in the corner. I listen as he reminisces about
Leo -- some of his stories are sad, but most are really funny and he allows
laughs a little as he remembers. Many of the stories I've heard before, but I
listen because I know he needs to do this. He talks about how much he meant to
him, how much he loved him, how he always had Leo's back, no matter what, and
he knew that Leo had his. He says he knows he disappointed him on more than
one occasion but that Leo always forgave him. He talks about how Leo is -- he
stops for a beat -- was, he corrects himself -- his friend, his mentor, his
teacher, his inspiration to be a better man. He talks for a long time, and I
listen quietly, never taking my eyes off him.

Finally he sighs, runs his hand through his hair and leans his head against
the back of the couch. "God, Donna, I'm so tired. I'm just so tired. I don't
know...I just don't know how a person is here one day and gone the next."

I put my hand on his arm, stroke it gently. "You know those things Leo was
to you? He still is those things, and he always will be. Leo, and all the
things he taught you, will always be with you, Josh."

He turns to me then, his face a mask of such deep sorrow, his eyes rimmed
with the tears he's kept in check all day, and my heart breaks for him. He
smiles sadly, "I guess I'm not very good company am I? You don't have to stay, you
know. You must be exhausted, too."

I stand up, take his hand and pull him up, and lead him to the bed. I pull
back the covers, help him take off his clothes. He's so tired he lets me do
most of the work. He crawls into bed naked, looks at me questioningly as I
quickly remove my clothes. I lie down beside him and pull him to me, wrapping my
arms and legs around him, holding him as close and as tight as I can, wanting
no space between us. I want to love him, comfort him, take away his pain.
Finally I pull back just a little and put my hands on his face. "I'm not going
anywhere, Josh. Ever."

Something about the way he looks at me makes me believe - hope - that in that
moment he finally understands the depth of my feelings for him. Tears slip
from his eyes as he whispers, "Donna...really?"

I smile and kiss him gently on the lips, wipe the tears from his face with my
thumbs, but more come. He reaches for me then, buries his face in my neck
and we cry together for Leo.

The End