Just a reminder: my story is not canon to the actual show with any episode through 7.12, "Duck and Cover." So, the huuuge moment in "The Cold" does not exist in my little world. Oh, and I might just inadvertently change some facts from season six – I've never seen it. :(
I love Kristin Chenoweth, even though I've barely seen Annabeth. I hope that the whole long speech she gives is remotely in character, but whatever.
THIS CHAPTER IS OH-SO SAPPY. Like, honestly, I'm somewhat sickened that I wrote it. But, whatever. Thanks for reading!
P.S. "Welcome to Wherever You Are" just completely saddened me with the confirmation of something between Leo and Annabeth. Oh, Leo. Let me take this moment to say you are sorely missed, John Spencer.
Oh, and on a lighter note, watching a Halloween episode of a TV show in March is pretty weird.
Donna had noted that the mood at headquarters when she walked in early that morning had seemed pretty normal. No one was being extremely moody and silent, no one was crying by the coffee maker, and no one was sitting around doing nothing – though that did happen from time to time. Well, not during the tail end of the campaign, or rather, recently.
Slowly the staffers filed in and began to get to work. Donna couldn't help but notice Josh's absence, but she didn't worry. He'd be in. Sleep was a good thing for the poor guy. Sometimes she wondered how he was still alive, comparing his lack of sleep alone to that of a non-political worker. Josh had worked in politics forever, and within the last ten years he had gotten a President elected, been the Deputy Chief of Staff for the guy, gotten him reelected, been Deputy for a few more years, and then left to start a campaign for another guy – and won him the Presidential nomination. How the hell had Josh not passed out from sheer lack of exhaustion? Maybe he's been injecting himself with a syringe of caffeine every hour, Donna laughed to herself.
The feeling of normalcy Donna had enjoyed for the beginning of her morning came to a crashing halt around 9:30, when a loud "DAMMIT!" was heard coming from the other room. Everyone looked up from what they were doing. Being the ranking leader in the room without Lou, Josh, or the Congressman at the offices, Donna walked over into the other room to see what was happening.
"Annabeth? You OK?"
The yell had apparently come from the petite blonde woman. Annabeth stood there, resting her elbows on the table, her head in her hands.
"Yeah, sorry," she responded, lifting her head up. "I know I shouldn't have screamed like that."
"No, it's fine. What's up?"
"It's just – I realized that I left something I needed."
"Where'd you leave it?"
"I had to go into Leo's apartment today to find a folder I had given him the other day. I just realized that while I brought the file I dug out there, I left the one about the media buys in Ohio in its place."
Donna sighed. Though she would have loved to just tell Annabeth to forget it, and not worry, the truth was that they needed the file for Ohio today. "Well—" Donna began, about to propose she and Annabeth leave to go find the file, until she was hit with a good idea. "Actually, I don't think it'll be a problem."
"It won't?"
"No. Is Leo's apartment unlocked?"
"Yeah. Mallory's coming by later to – collect his belongings, start to clear the place out a little, as awful as that sounds. I left it unlocked for her."
"Josh isn't here yet, and if he hasn't left his house I'm sure he could go in and pick the folder up."
Annabeth smiled. It was so unlike her to make such a stupid mistake, and she was glad Donna had apparently found an easy solution. "That would be great."
"Here, let me call," Donna said as she reached for the conference phone on the table. With lightening speed, Donna dialed Josh's cell number. She was a pro at calling it, with her fingers trained to dial at a high speed.
"Hello?"
"Josh? It's me."
"Hey," he sighed. "I'm about to come in – I just – I was on the phone with my mom."
"Oh. How's she doing?"
"Pretty well. What's up?"
"I need you to do Annabeth and me a favor before you come in."
"Sure, what is it?"
"Earlier Annabeth had to go into Leo's apartment to pick up a file that he had, and while she was there, she mistakenly left the media buy folder for Ohio in the new one's place. The apartment's open 'cause Mallory's coming later, and so if you could run in and grab it, that would be, well, awesome."
Josh's stomach dropped. Going into Leo's apartment? It… seemed strange. But whatever, he thought. There's no reason to be silly about this, and it'll save us time. "Sure," he replied, swallowing the lump in his throat. "Where is it in the house exactly?"
Donna covered the receiver with her hand and turned to Annabeth, saying, "Where did you leave the folder?"
"In his study."
"Study," Donna announced.
"'Kay, I'll be there in – I don't know, half hour tops."
"Sounds good," she replied cheerfully hanging up the phone and looking up at Annabeth, who was staring aimlessly into space. "Hey," she said, snapping the other woman out of her daze, "let's go get a bagel or something."
"No, no," Annabeth replied, "I'm not really that hungry. Thanks though."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
"Okay. Well, if you—" Donna began, until Annabeth interrupted her, saying,
"Donna, could we talk for a minute?"
Dumbfounded, Donna answered "Sure," and closed the door to the conference room the two had been standing in. "What's up?"
"This could potentially sound very rude and invasive, but I need to ask you some questions and I want you to be completely honest with me. After you answer them I'll explain why you needed to tell me the answers, okay?"
"Okay." Donna felt almost frightened.
"Donna, you aren't dating anyone right now, are you?"
"No."
"I didn't think so. And you have dated people in the past, right?"
"Well, yeah, but it's been a while, actually."
"But, Donna, you're in love with Josh."
"What?"
"Well you are, aren't you?"
"Annabeth—"
"I'm not one to pry, naturally, but it's just that – I heard stories of those years back during the Bartlet Administration from Leo. How you and Josh were always so close, how when he was shot back at –"
"Rosslyn," Donna breathlessly whispered.
"At there, that you took care of him after he got out of the hospital. Leo told me of dresses, ski books, diaries, balls, commanders, Republicans, feminists, MS, growth, Gaza, Germany, photojournalists, final farewells, and everything from here to there, Santos campaign to Russell campaign.
"He told me that the two of you – that there was no doubt in anyone's mind that someday the two of you would finally wake up and snap out of this misty haze you'd been walking in all these years and realize how in love you were. That you two were it for one another. Sure, each of you'd find distractions for a while, but when it came down to it you were the ones in love and that everyone, and I mean everyone knew it, except for the two of you."
Annabeth paused for a moment, and then continued with a laugh, "Leo would always talk about how he wanted to knock your heads together, albeit he wanted to knock a lot of people's heads together, but knock your heads together and scream it so loud that there would be no way anyone could miss it: 'JOSH, YOU AND DONNA NEED TO STOP DANCING AROUND THIS AND ADMIT IT. YOU ARE IN LOVE, GOD HELP ME, AND I'M SICK OF JUST STANDING HERE AND WATCHING YOU CIRCLE FOR A LANDING.' He'd always say he wanted to yell that."
Donna watched as Annabeth's eyes began to tear.
"It's all about unrequited love, Donna. The love that can never be consummated, never be accomplished. If there is one single, solitary thing that I have learned from working with Leo, it's that life is far, far too short to just circle around love. Because, one day, just like that, you're putting him in the car and meeting him in a few minutes, but your plans get swiped away. Five minutes later you're driving up and you get to see his car wrapped around a telephone pole and you didn't get to say your real goodbye."
By this time Donna was letting tears fall down her cheeks, screwing whatever affect they would have on her make up. The thing with Leo had finally been announced. She finally knew that there was something there. "You loved him, Annabeth?"
"Yeah. But I never got to tell him that. We had our moments of dalliance and romance, but it wasn't enough. It was too soon. The love's not completely unrequited, but in a sense it mainly is. It's all over and it didn't really have a start."
"Oh Annabeth, I'm so sorry," Donna said.
The other woman smiled. "I know, I just wanted to tell you this because I don't want this to happen to you. If you truly love Josh, despite what he may have done to make you quit and the way he may have mistreated you, you've gotta get him and let him know how you feel. Otherwise, it's all over before it begins. I," she stammered for a moment, laughing, "I can give you expert advice on this subject now. But, of course, I can't remember to take the folder for media buys in Ohio."
It was Donna's turn to laugh. "Don't worry about it, Josh will be here with it soon."
"Yeah." The two paused in silence, but it was Annabeth to break it, saying, "Oh, alright, we better get back outside. Get rid of the ruined make up and go win an election."
"Yes," Donna said, going to open the door.
"I promised him we'd win," Annabeth said quietly.
"We will."