Title:
The Path Which Has Led to the Present (24/30?)
Author:
Aerial312
Rating: PG-13.
Category: Humor/Fluff/Angst/Romance
(a little of everything)
Spoiler Info: Pre-Series.
Disclaimer:
I own nothing…I just borrow.
Feedback: Greatly appreciated.
Sure. Just let me know where its
going.
A/N: 30 parts? Maybe not. I want to end on a nice round number, but I don't think I'll get it there in time. We'll see.
"What do you mean you've voted since you were 11?—"
"I—"
"—its not possible."
"My family is not very, uh, civics minded. I used to go with my mom—"
"Oh geez."
"And she'd vote for President, and Governor, mayor, etc, you know?"
"Right. And?"
"Then we'd get to something like the School Board. And mom would say 'I don't know any of these people. Donnatella, pick three names for mommy'."
"And I assume you did?"
"I did."
"I guess that does count as voting at 11."
"I'm not done."
"Oh dear."
"We were about to leave, and I noticed that she hadn't answered the stuff at the bottom, the referendums. It was one of those ones where you flick the little levers, then throw the big one outside the little booth when you're done—"
"And?"
"You're impatient."
"So you notice she didn't vote on the referendums. What then?"
"I pointed it out to her, an—"
"And?"
"Will you let me tell my story?"
"Continue."
"And mom goes, 'I can't bend down to read those, my back will kill me. But if you want to bend down and read them, go ahead'."
"So you read them to her?"
"Not exactly. I asked her if she wanted me to, and she said no, she didn't really care—"
Josh scoffed.
"—that much, that I could vote on them."
"So you did."
"Yup."
"So you voted for the first time at 11, and then when?"
"13. Then 15, and 17, and finally as myself when I was 19."
"Did you vote in the midterms that year?"
"Of course I did. I take voting very seriously."
"But not seriously enough to wait until you were of age to do it?"
"Is that worse than my parents leaving things blank?"
"I guess not."
"Have your parents been good voters?"
"Dad always was. Mom only voted in presidential years until I started working in Congrerss, then she voted in the midterms because I made her."
"I guess looking back I should be surprised my parents voted in the midterms, but we elected the mayor every 2 years, and that was the race they really cared about."
"Only the local stuff?"
"Yeah. Except the school board…no one ever knew who the hell the people running were."
"That's the sign of a poor campaign."
"I think a lot of people only vote in presidential years."
"Unfortunately, there's a lot of data to back that up."
"And even then they don't really care."
"Yeah."
"Do you think these Rock the Vote things actually help?"
"Help the general problem, no?"
"But they do help, because Governor Bartlet is handsome, and that's what matters at these?"
"That's a good way to put it."
"I guess whatever works."
"It shouldn't be that way, but…I don't know."
"What?"
"I really wish that more people cared. Really cared. About these issues that the whole country has to face. But they don't. People would rather know the answer to 'boxers or briefs?' than hear the Governor's health care plan."
"But that's not everyone.
"No, I guess not. But among the crowd we're trying to hit with this rally, yeah."
"My demographic."
"Yeah. I wished more people cared about it as much as you do."
Donna smiled. "Sam's working on a great speech for this. I heard him trying out bits of it on some of the volunteers earlier."
"Yeah?"
"He's trying to make policy sexy."
"Sexy policy," Josh laughed. "We need some sexy policy for the next debate, so we don't get our asses kicked again."
"Maguire didn't kick our ass."
"Yes, he did. He turned that question around in a way that Bartlet was completely unprepared for. Which is why I'm spending this bus trip trying to poke holes in all of our positions. We cannot let that happen again."
"Finding anything?"
"No. I'm too close to it. When you help draft it originally, you get stuck in a rut. It's driving me crazy. I want us to explore all the options, you know?"
"I know."
"Toby doesn't get it. He thinks we've poked all the holes that we can."
"You don't?"
"Maguire found one. We thought we'd prepared for every possibility. We hadn't. Why doesn't anyone think that there could be more? Why don't you?"
Josh sat back against his seat, and rubbed his eyes.
"I do think that there could be more. And I hope that we find them first, and prepare responses. But I think you've hit the wall tonight—"
"I haven't—"
"You're not going to find anymore tonight. You need to sleep—"
"We're on the fucking bus!"
"Shhh! Everyone else is asleep."
"You know I—"
"Hate the bus, yes."
"I need to work on this. Its going to drive me crazy."
"Going to?"
"Donna, I'm not in the mood for—"
"Sorry."
"Where are we?"
"Somewhere in Colorado?"
"Yeah?"
"I think so. We'll be in Denver by the morning."
"I wish we didn't have to drive so much."
"Campaign's tight on money, you know that."
"Yeah."
"Margaret was saying that they might end up tripling some of us assistants up if things get really tight."
"Then you can stay with me."
"Is that your solution to everything?"
"Ginger appreciates my generosity."
"She's taking advantage now."
"She makes friends easily, huh?"
"Apparently."
"Oh, you don't hate being forced into my room."
"Josh."
"You don't, right?"
"No, I don't. You know that. I just hate that she just assumes I'll give her the room."
"You should just stay with me again."
"I stay with you more than I stay with her."
"Right. So I'm saying that you should just being her roommate, and just pretend to be."
"Pretend to be?"
"Set up a deal with Ginger, that she can have the room exclusively, and she doesn't say—"
"CJ will kill me if she finds that out."
"No…"
"She will, Josh."
"She was patient before because I didn't really have another safe option. Now…"
"You have an inconsiderate roommate."
"I think CJ would prefer that I have an inconsiderate roommate to having my boss for a roommate."
"Well, in having an inconsiderate roommate, it causes you to have your boss for a roommate sometimes."
"True."
"So, it'll just be a little more frequent. Again."
"Why do you care so much?"
Josh shrugged. "We've been over this. Sleep is good."
"It is."
"And you're miserable after you spend the night in your own room."
"So are you."
"So?"
"If we keep it quiet—"
"Of course."
"People talk as it is."
"Quiet it is."
"Now, you need to find a way to sleep on this bus."
"That way you got me to sleep before was silly."
"It worked."
"We don't have big coats anymore. Too warm."
"Just put your damn head on my lap."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"Don't you need to lay down?"
"I can sleep sitting up on the bus. You'll get 4 hours if you do it now. Head down."
"Thanks," Josh leaned in and kissed her cheek, lingering a moment before settling . "You take good care of me."
Donna ran her hand through his hair, smiling. "I do, don't I."
