Title: The Path Which Has Led to the Present (26/35?)
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: Real life's been a bit busy…

"How do we know when this game is over?" CJ slurred.

"I think it's when they stop handing us the darts," Donna giggled.

CJ doubled over laughing. "What are they doing now?"

Josh and Sam stood by the dartboard, haggling over Sam's last throw.

"It's 20."

"It's definitely 1."

"It's 20."

"No, it isn't. It's over the line."

"You're just saying that because you haven't closed 20 yet."

"No, I'm saying that because it plainly obvious."

"CJ! Come here! What number is that dart in?"

"You can't ask your own teammate. Donna!"

"She doesn't understand the game anyways. She just throws them when I tell her to.

Both women came up to the men.

"I want you both to look at the board silently, and write on this napkin which number you think it is."

"Aren't you taking this a little far, Josh?"

"We are very close to winning. We have more points than you, and we just need to close 20."

CJ scribbled on the napkin, flipped it over, and passed it to Donna. She made her assessment and passed it back to Josh.

"Ha! 1 and 1. You lose."

"I—"

"This throw, Sam."

"Right."

"Who's up?"

"Donna."

Josh held out the darts, as Donna stepped up to the line. "We need a 20."

"You need her to hit the board this time," Sam snickered.

"I can usually hit the board! I'm just a little drunk."

"Lean as far forward as you can…without tipping over…right, like this, and hold out your arm, nice and stead—"

"No fair holding her up."

"You guide CJ."

"I don't visibly hold her up. Drunken toppling over is part of the challenge."

"You couldn't hold CJ up."

"Excuse me!"

"CJ, I didn't mean it like that." Josh turned to CJ.

"You better not have, or—" CJ threw a piece of ice at him. She'd moved on from beer to a whiskey on this last round.

Josh laughed, and reached back out for Donna, stumbling a bit.

"Okay, I guess you're just as drunk as she is…you're not actually holding her up, just holding her."

Josh laughed, and pulled Donna closer.

"Can I throw now?" she pouted.

"Go ahead."

Donna threw the first dart. It hit, but in the 4. She threw again. It struck the corkboard wall above the dartboard.

"Oops!" she giggled.

"Concentrate."

Donna threw the last one, and it bounced off the metal of the board and camp flying back at them.

"Come on, CJ, we can do this!" Sam cheered, as Josh led a hysterically laughing Donna away from the line.

CJ threw the first one and it fell short of the dartboard. The second hit the 15."

"All right, CJ! Fifteen more points. We've almost caught them."

The third one missed completely.

"Sorry, Samuel." She sat down at the table and put her head down.

Josh grabbed the darts. "Let's end this game."

He threw. 20.

"Who's the man?"

"Fine, fine, you win," Sam sighed.

"We won?" Donna asked, jumping to her feet.

"We did!" Josh picked her up and spun her.

"CJ, Ceeeejaaaaay…come on…head off the table, let's go."

"Did we win?"

"No, we didn't."

"Awww."

Slowly she stood up and Sam led her out of the bar. Josh and Donna were a couple of paces ahead, swinging their linked hands.

"Do you guys have any idea what room she's in?"

"I am in 405!"

"Do you have any idea where your key is?"

"Um…"

"We'll get you a new one at the desk. G'night!" Sam called.

Josh and Donna were oblivious, in their own little world. They walked along, holding hands.

"It's nice tonight, for October," Donna sighed.

"You wanna stay outside for a minute?"

"Mmm,"

She leaned back against his chest. Damn, that felt good. He wrapped his arms tightly around her.

"Is the world spinning?"

"Seems that way, huh?"

"I can't remember the last time I had that much to drink."

"Me either. Its going to be a rough morning on the bus."

"Mmmhmm…hung over bus trip. And meetings," Donna sprung away from Josh. "Oh shit, you need to make sure that you drink some water and take some Tylenol before you go to sleep. You have that big meeting tomorrow."

"I'll be fine." They began to walk up to their room.

"Josh! You've had way more than your system can handle. You have! I lost count, because—"

"Because you lost track of how many you had too."

"Sam just kept getting rounds."

"Yeah."

Josh toyed with her hand, as she fished through her pocket for the door key. She stuck it in. Red light. She tried again. Red.

"Now you can't do it?"

"You're distracting me."

"You want me to stop?"

Donna looked intently at Josh for a moment. "Just long enough for me to get the door open."

"I think I can handle that."

Donna tried the key again, and they barreled into the room.

"Okay, okay, that was a little too fast. Spinning again." Donna paused, to regain her balance.

Josh grabbed her waist, pulling him towards her to keep her on her feet, but he pulled too hard, and they tumbled into the wall.

"You okay?"

Donna nodded. She was now pressed against the wall. Josh showed no signs of moving.

"You?"

"Mmm," His breathing was heavy. "You were gonna fall."

"You caught me."

"I'll always catch you."

"You're sweet when you're drunk."

"Only when I'm drunk?"

"Uh huh. Though you're in luck. I probably won't remember that you were so sweet."

"No?" His face was very close.

"No…"

She closed the distance between them, and in an instant their lips met. It wasn't clear who started the kiss, but it was happening. Josh pressed Donna harder against the wall, trying to get as close to her as possible. She ran her hands through his hair, up his back, pretty much letting them roam everywhere. Never breaking contact, she gradually backed him toward the bed. It approached quicker than she realized, and he fell backwards, pulling her with him. They landed in a heap on the bed, laughing hysterically.

"That was smooth."

"You didn't see it coming either!"

"I was moving backwards."

"I was distracted."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Josh rolled her onto her back, and resumed the kiss. It was intensifying, getting more frantic, and…Josh's cell phone rang.

"Your phone."

Josh kissed down the side of her neck.

"Your phone, Josh."

"It can wait," he whispered, kissing his way up the other side of her neck.

"Josh, its late…if someone's calling it must be important."

Josh sighed and broke contact.

"Hello?"

"Josh, its Leo."

"Hey, Leo!"

"Are you drunk?"

"I—"

"How drunk are you?"

"I've had a bit to drink…"

Donna giggled, and clasped her hands over her mouth remembering that she wasn't supposed to be there.

"I see. Tomorrow. I have some meetings with possible donors. You're going to have to take the meeting with the AARP."

"No problem."

"Let me stress that this is an important meeting."

"Leo, I'll be fine."

"Do you have a pen?"

"A pe—?"

"To write this information down with."

"Uh, yeah, hold on."

Josh climbed off of Donna, and crawled over to the bedside table. There was the hotel stationary, and a pen.

"Go ahead."

"It's here, in the 3rd floor conference room, at 1:00pm. The guy you'll want to really make feel comfortable is Ronny Ulrich."

"Got it."

"Have Donna grab my info files from Margaret in the morning. I'll be going ahead to St. Louis, and I'll be in and out of these damn donor meetings right up until the debate on Friday."

"Will do."

"And get some sleep."

"I will. I will."

"All right. G'night."

"Night, Leo."

Josh clicked the end button and tossed his phone on the bedside table. He turned back to Donna. She was laying on her side, sound asleep. He smiled softly and kissed her forehead. Struggling to his feet, Josh pulled her shoes off, and threw the blanket over her. He stripped down to his T-shirt and boxers and crawled in behind her, pulling her close to him. Oh well. This would have to do for now. It was probably all he was capable of in his state anyways, he sighed. He inhaled deeply into her hair, and fell asleep.