Title:
The Path Which Has Led to the Present (25/30?)
Author:
Aerial312
Rating: PG-13. Our friends have bad mouths when they've
been drinking.
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: I got it in today after all. Well, I guess its technically tomorrow, but just barely.
"What a fucking day!" CJ flopped down in the chair besides Donna.
"Tell me about it."
"Let's go get drunk. I heard a bunch of people are going to one of the pubs down the street."
"Can't. I've got a lot to do."
"Come on, Donna. Have fun for a night."
"We were in meetings all day, dealing with planning this last debate, so everything else we were supposed to be doing got shoved aside."
"One night. Make the asshole let you go early for once."
"Have you already started drinking?"
"Sam and I cracked open a bottle of wine as soon as the Governor left for the night."
"Was it that rough a day?"
"From stupid jokes, to spilling drinks, it was just one of those days where we looked like idiots."
"Sounds like I'm glad I missed the rallies today."
"For nit-picking about debate preparations?"
"It wasn't that bad. Maguire's staff is kind of ridiculous about some of this stuff. Especially after Governor Bartlet tore into his energy policy in the last debate. They want to make damn sure that we have as little opportunity as possible to do it again."
"Of course."
"Which of course is exactly what we want to do, after seeking out all opportunities to do so after the disaster of the first debate."
"Josh really didn't give up trying to poke holes in our stuff."
"He found a bunch."
"I know. Is going to do it again?"
"It was a lot of work."
"Do you two ever sleep?"
"A few hours a night."
"It's all well and good for him to work all night, but he should let you go."
"I don't mind."
"No, of course you don't. Samuel! Bring that bottle in here."
"Hey there ladies. Coming to the pub?"
"I am. This one claims she has to work."
"I do."
"We can kidnap you."
"Sam!"
"We could."
"You should come to the bar with us."
"I have a ton of work to do."
"When was the last time you stopped working before 1am?"
"Uh…"
CJ snorted. "Usually its later too, isn't?"
"Usually its closer to 2 or 3."
"Your roommate must love you."
"I'm sure Ginger appreciates knowing that Donna isn't going to be home until late," Sam grinned.
"Yeah, she does."
"Oh yeah?" CJ asked.
"Did you not hear how Donna walked in on Ginger when we were in Texas?"
"Walked in on?"
"You know what I mean."
"Oh. So do you guys have a system now?"
"Yeah, its called she's hardly ever there."
"Right…" Donna smiled, nervously. That was essentially the system…though it was more that she was never there.
"Does it happen every night? Is she that popular?" CJ asked.
"I wouldn't know."
"Cause she's never there," Sam laughed, pouring wine for both the women.
"Got it. More than that."
"We're about to go to the bar."
"I said more than that."
"You can have mine, CJ. I have to finish this."
"No," Sam said. "You are drinking that, and we are kidnapping you. Before Josh gets back."
"He'll kill me if I leave without tell—"
"We'll leave a ransom note."
Josh bounced back into the war room after meeting with Leo. He was in a good mood after the debate preparations. He loved shoving their success in the other campaign's face.
"Donna!"
Josh threw a bunch of papers down on the desk, and fished through his filebox for the reports on social security. This was the issue of the week for him and Donna. Where the hell was she?
"DONNA!"
Josh sat down in his usual chair, and pushed the files he's thrown on the table aside. Underneath them was a messily written note, scribbled on the back of the morning memo.
Josh,
We've kidnapped Donna. If you want her back, you must come to Muldowney's. We'll be there. We make no guarantees of her condition.
Your kidnappers,
Sam & CJ
It was sort of funny, but Josh didn't have time for that. He had planned on them working on all of the reading on social security till 3am. Sighing, he stood up, and left the room.
"Have another!" CJ yelled. "One more for all of us, Sam!"
"Oh, I'm buying this round am I?"
"Indeed."
"I don't need another. I should be getting back."
"You, are our captive. You leave when we say so, right Sam?"
"Or when she's re-kidnapped. Look who just showed up."
"Get him a drink too."
"Joshua!"
"CJ"
"How are you this fine evening?"
"I was great. Until I found you'd kidnapped my assistant."
"Josh. This girl needs to have some fun. You need to let her go out and have some. Now sit down and drink."
"I am retrieving my assistant."
"Sit the fuck down. Sam is buying another round of drinks, for you as well, and you will drink it."
"I don't have time, CJ."
"Read in the morning. Or go back to your room and read all night. But don't force her to stay in the war room all night."
"We don't read in the war room."
Sam returned with beers for them all. "Where do you read?"
"The…my room. Reading's uncomfortable in the war room."
"So you hide your assistant away in your room until 1am? You know that's not much better looking than when she was spending the night with you."
"CJ…" It looked exactly the same, because it was exactly the same.
"Josh, be careful. Read in common rooms."
"CJ, if I'm reading until the middle of the night," Donna began, "I want to be comfortable."
"My only concern is how things look. Be careful."
"Good night, Ginger!" Sam called.
Ginger waved at them, as she walked by with a handsome man.
"I wish I had that kind of luck," CJ sighed. "Don't you, Donna?"
"Not my style."
"He was certainly mine. I'd take that any day."
"Or at least any day you've had half a bottle of wine and four beers." Sam joked.
"Shut up Samuel. Let's play some pool."
"You want to lose again?"
"I'm going to kick your—"
"Are we playing teams?"
"No, you guys go ahead," Josh answered. Sam looked to Donna, who nodded.
"You're going to escape while we're gone."
"We'll be here when you get back."
"Well, I'm off to beat CJ."
Josh leaned back against the booth, and took a large sip of his beer.
"This wasn't my idea."
"I know."
"They forced me."
"I saw the note."
"I was actually looking forward to reading tonight."
"Sure you were."
"No, really. We'd found our new topic to push, and then we spent the whole day in meetings."
"Yeah, sorry about that."
"Its okay."
"I just wanted you there because you retain data like no one else."
Donna smiled.
"And you proved valuable."
"Yeah?"
"When you spouted that data about the ratings for the debates from the last election…that was incredible."
"Really?"
"And we got our way because of it."
"Good. Was Leo pleased with our results?"
"Very."
"You want to head back and read?"
"Nah. Let's drink."
"We really missed quite a day. CJ and Sam started drinking the second they got back to the hotel."
"I heard about spilling the coffee on the mayor."
"And there were stupid jokes."
"Oh, no."
"CJ had quite an eventful day."
"Its all we're going to hear about tomorrow too I bet"
CJ plopped into the booth beside them.
"More drinks are coming, courtesy of Sam, because I won."
"You won?" Donna laughed.
"Let me guess," Josh grinned. "Sam sunk the white ball."
"I still won."
Josh nodded, and gulped down the rest of his beer.
"Only one of mine had gone in, and he had the black one left…"
"The black one?" Josh snarked. "Ow!"
Donna pinched his thigh. He caught her hand and held it captive in his.
"Yes, it was the black one…the 8. There was the black one and the white one, and the white one ended up in the hole."
Donna laughed.
Sam returned to the table with a new round.
"Did she tell you that I sunk the only ball of hers that went in?"
"No!" Josh laughed.
"Oh yes. I sunk every ball that went in."
"Including the white one!"
"Yes, the white one."
Donna smiled as CJ and Sam went back and forth. Josh was playing with her captive hand. She was glad that their tablemates were too drunk to notice, because she didn't want to let go.
