Manchester, New Hampshire
The former Bennett girls had a strange way of dealing with loss. Abbey had started the tradition the year she turned fifteen. Jamie Metzger, her boyfriend of two whole months, had broken up with her on account of she wasn't Jewish. It was the first time anyone had broken up with her- she was used to doing the breaking up. That afternoon, Abbey gathered her sisters, as well as her best friend, into a room and, between them, they devoured five pints of mint chocolate chip ice cream. Since then, in the event of any loss, this had been their source of relief. Break-ups, deaths, bad grades, high school drama, marriage dilemmas, divorce, struggles with careers and parenthood, and other various forms of rejection.
So, it was no surprise that, following Nick Bennett's funeral, Abbey Bartlet, Millicent Griffith, Julia Bennett-Meluard, and Michelle Brady congregated at the Manchester house with five pints of mint chocolate chip ice cream and a cherry cheesecake- just for kicks.
Of course, things had changed a lot since the last time they'd gone on a food binge. Abbey was now separated and dating an English arisocrat, though clearly in love with her husband; Millie and her husband, Scott, had gone through a messy divorce, tangled up in affairs and deception; Julia had been widowed five years earlier by her French artist husband, Andre, who had died in a train wreck; and Michelle's marriage was even more complicated. Michelle had married Dallas Brady at the impressioable age of twenty, then, after graduating from the University of Massachusetts with a degree in English, gave everything up to become a wife and mother. Their marriage had been relatively solid up until their twenty-second anniversary, after which things got a bit trickier. The thrill was gone, and they would both freely admit it. Just weeks after the anniversary celebration, both Michelle and Dallas took up with other people-openly. They remained chained to each by the bonds of holy matrimony, but their varied and numerous affairs were no secret. In fact, they had eventually gotten to the point where they would have their respective lovers over to the house for dinner and ate as a family. Ten years later, they were still married and enjoying their freedom.
Yes, things had certainly changed.
"God, I am going to miss that man," Millie said. "I mean, I know he was your father, but he was like a father to me too."
"We know, honey," Michelle replied.
"You know," Julia began. "Dad was perfectly healthy when he saw the doctor two months ago."
"He was 82 years old, Julia," Michelle pointed out.
"I know, I'm just saying."
"Sometimes I wonder if he did it just to get me home," Abbey stated.
They all snapped their heads and stared at her, bewildered.
"What?"
"All summer, he'd been begging me to come home. You know, and make things right with Jed. And I wouldn't. Dad was big on the whole 'desperate times' mantra, after all."
"I think that's a little presumputous of you," Michelle answered, shoving a spoonful of ice cream into her mouth.
"What do you mean?"
"What I mean is, you don't think that's a little self-centered? Dad died of a heart attack and you think it was so you'd come home?"
"Well..." Abbey trailed off.
"Hold on a sec," Julia said. "Let me get this straight. Abbey, you're saying that you think Dad's death may have been a subconscious thing, that his desire to get you home overcame whatever strength he had and..."
"Not neccesarily," Abbey said. "Okay, maybe. I don't know. I just think it's ironic. Dad spends months begging me to return from London to fix my marriage, among other things, and he must have known that inevitably, his death would bring me home without hesitation. That's all I'm trying to say"
"Which brings us to our next topic of discussion," Millie said, as she squirted whipped cream directly into her mouth.
"Ah, yes," Julia agreed. "The ultimate question."
"What are you gonna do with Jed?" Michelle inquired.
"What am I gonna do with him?" Abbey repeated. "I'm not gonna do...anything with him."
"Abbey, he's here. He came. Is it not clear to you that he cares?" Julia asked.
"Oh, I know he cares. And I care. But that doesn't solve all the problems between us."
"And...bringing another man with you to your father's funeral does?" Millie retorted.
Abbey shrugged.
"I honestly don't know what to tell you about that. Tony wanted to be there for me, and I'm grateful. His concern is really touching. I couldn't leave him behind."
"I'm sorry, what did you say his name was?" Michelle said. "I've always just called him Nobility Man."
"Not in front of his face, I hope," Abbey replied.
"This is the way I see it," Millie said. "The sooner you show Nobility Man the door, the sooner your marriage can be on the mend. If you two would just put aside your pride for two minutes and talk about this, I see no reason why your problems couldn't be solved. Sure, it'll take time, but it'll happen."
"We did."
"What?"
"Well, we didn't solve anything. But we did put aside our pride for two minutes," Abbey said.
"What are you talking about?" Julia asked, sitting up straight.
"This morning, at the funeral home. I was alone with Dad and Jed showed up out of the blue."
"And you were civil?" Michelle asked, surprised.
"More than civil. We were...married."
"Okay," Julia said. "What does that mean? I don't know what that means"
"It means that, for two minutes, it was as if nothing had happened between us. As if things were as they had been a year ago."
"Did you talk?" Millie wondered.
"Not much. He said he was sorry, and I broke down."
Millie, Julia, and Michelle all leaned in, thoroughly intrigued.
"Go on."
"I just took one look at him and fell to pieces. Then, he...opened his arms to me and I...collapsed right into them."
"Oh, Abbey," Julia whispered.
"Then what happened!" Millie asked, urgently.
"Then...Tony arrived on the scene. And that was that."
"That was that," Michelle repeated, in disbelief.
Abbey nodded.
"That was that."
The Bartlet sisters had a strange way of dealing with loss as well. While it did not involve five pints of mint chocolate chip ice cream, it did involve a few bags of Pop Secret (extra butter, of course) and a dvd player. After their grandfather's funeral, Elizabeth, Eleanor, and Zoey gathered at Liz's house in Manchester to indulge themselves. Liz sent the kids, and her husband, to bed and then joined her sisters in the living room. Ellie and Zoey sat prepared, complete with bowls of popcorn and cans of soda.
"So," Liz said, plopping herself down on the couch in between her two younger sisters. "What do we got?"
Ellie held up one dvd case.
"Bridges of Madison County."
Liz nodded and turned to Zoey, who held up a dvd case of her own.
"The Way We Were."
Liz took a moment to ponder this difficult choice, weighing all the options in her head. Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood or Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford. Meryl Streep with an Italian accent or Barbra Streisand with a '40s hairdo. She was torn.
"Which one do you think results in the biggest sobfest?" Liz asked.
"Some might say they're both equal," Ellie replied.
"But we say Bridges of Madison County produces buckets more tears than The Way We Were," Zoey added.
"All right then. Pop it in."
Two hours, three bowls of popcorn, and one cheap bottle of wine later, the Bartlet girls buried themselves in tissues as they watched Clint Eastwood drive away in his rusty pick-up truck.
"Damnit, Meryl, go after him!" Zoey shouted at the television.
Ellie shook her head desolately.
"She never does. No matter how many times we tell her to."
"Some people never listen," Liz said. "And they never learn."
"If she's not going to go after you then damnit, Clint, come back!" Zoey exclaimed once more. "Don't even tell me you really want to die alone."
"There, there." Ellie patted her younger sister's shoulder soothingly.
Zoey's failed attempts at persuading the actors to follow her advice left her drowning in even more sorrow. She rested her head on Ellie's shoulder and sniffled sadly. Liz reached for the remote and turned the power off once the movie ended, then held the tissue box out to his sisters once more. They each took a greedy handful and spent a moment composing themselves. "Wasn't Pop a Clint Eastwood fan?" Ellie questioned, trying desperately to remember her late grandfather's taste in actors.
"He was. Clint Eastwood and…who was that other one he liked?" Liz replied.
"Gregory Peck," Zoey answered.
"No, not Gregory Peck!" Ellie argued. "It was Jimmy Stewart."
"Right. Jimmy Stewart. Tony likes Gregory Peck."
Liz and Ellie turned their heads to look at Zoey with both confusion and exhasperation.
"Sorry," Zoey said. "Am I not supposed to mention Tony in your presence?"
"If at all possible, that would be my preference, yes," Ellie replied.
"I know it sucks, but you have to accept the fact that Tony's around. He's not gonna go away just because you don't like him. And he's a good guy. He's not out to get you," Zoey stated.
"Well, you're a little biased there, Zo," Liz said. "After all, you are dating his son."
"That has nothing to do with it."
"Sure it doesn't."
"Whatever," Zoey retorted. "Moving on. I have some very interesting information to share with you all."
"Oh, God, no." Liz cringed. "You and Oliver are getting married."
"No!"
"Praise the Lord!"
"Shut up, Liz."
"What's your interesting information, Zo?" Ellie asked.
"Dad told me that he and Mom had a…moment this morning."
"What do you mean, a moment?" Liz wondered.
"Well, apparently, they were alone at the funeral home this morning, probably by chance. Mom totally broke down and he ended up comforting her or something," Zoey explained.
"Then what happened?" Ellie questioned, anxiously.
"Tony walked in."
Both Ellie and Liz groaned and made disgruntled faces.
"Unbelievable," Liz muttered under her breath.
"On the upside," Zoey said, cheerily. "Leo and Millie are dating."
Liz and Ellie merely stared at her in response.
The motorcade, sirens silenced, came to a halt on the side of the road, in the shadows, by the President's Manchester house. Followed by two Secret Service agents, the President descended from the limosine and walked up to the mailbox. He opened it cautiously and placed a small, unidentified and unaddressed envelope inside. Careful to remain unnoticed, he returned to the vehicle and instructed Coop to pull away from the house.
