Hello there! So here I am back, I managed to finish that new chapter before I'm leaving, so in the end I should be able to keep the same kind of rhythm with the updates.
Thank you very much for the reviews. And as always, I hope you'll love this chapter, and please leave a review! See you soon ;)

CHAPTER 16 - A lingering sense of déjà-vu

A couple of days had passed since that night. It had been terribly hard days for both of them. Aaron had tried to talk to Emily more than once, in vain. He had called her again and again after she had hung up on him in the evening. The morning after, he had tried to talk to her, he had even tried to ambush her in one corner of the White House to make her talk, but nothing. She was shutting him out every time he would try to talk, pushing him away when he was standing in her way. She had texted him at the beginning of the afternoon to tell him she would be the one picking up their daughter from daycare in the evening, and since then, nothing. Every time he was trying to talk to her for something other than work, she would just build her walls back up instantly, pushing him away and leaving him alone. He had tried calling her every day, and he had even tried to come to her place late at night when he knew that she would be there. Nothing. He was desperate and he still didn't know what had happened exactly or what Ryan had told her. He had not heard back from Ryan, and he really didn't want to. He was so pissed at him he didn't even know if he could ever forgive him for what he had done.

So, on that third day without a word, Aaron took all the strength he had to finally talk to Gemma. He was afraid of how the red-haired would react, she was Emily's best friend after all. He was persuaded that she would take Emily's side, of course, and that she would yell at him for all the terrible things he didn't know he had done. He was even surprised that she had not yelled at him sooner and that she had kept it highly professional with him even though her best friend was in a terrible state of mind. It took the end of a meeting with several colleagues for him to be able to talk to her privately.

"I didn't think it would take you that long to talk to me…" Gemma said when she saw him coming toward her.

"I… I didn't know how you would react." Aaron admitted.

"I'm sure, but you can relax, I won't bite."

Aaron rose an eyebrow, unsure of how to react.

"Emily's too stubborn for her own good…" Gemma continued.

"Wait, so you're not on her side?" he asked, shocked.

"Don't push… I'm still her best friend" Gemma chuckled, rolling her eyes. "But she's done shit the other night…"

"I don't even know what happened, I came back to the room, she had slammed the door and Ryan was just his usual self with his cocky grin and attitude." Aaron admitted.

"You didn't ask him?" Gemma questioned.

"He just told me that he told Emily the truth about her, Liv and me." he said, quoting in the air. "I threw him out of my place right after, I was just so pissed…"

Gemma sighed, considering what she should say or not. She was annoyed her best friend wouldn't take the matter in her own hands and talk to Aaron, but she didn't want to betray Emily either. Soon though, she realized that Aaron was not responsible for anything that had happened —except having a crappy best friend— and that she should tell him everything she knew. He didn't deserve any of this crap, and she could see that he was suffering too. And truth was, she wanted Aaron and Emily to get back together, they were great together and she couldn't deny it.

"I don't know anything more than what Emily told me, but…" she started.

Gemma told Aaron everything, and little by little she could see him crumple, realizing that it was even worse than what he thought. He was at a loss for words with everything. It all started spinning in his head, trying to think of how he could make it up to Emily, how she could possibly want to come back to him after everything Ryan had said. The problem was, nothing was untrue in what Ryan had said, it was just things Aaron didn't think anymore. Of course, a few months back, when he was hurt and depressed, he had said stupid things, but he wasn't his normal self at the time. He had done stupid things, but he couldn't even remember most of them…

The only thing reassuring him was that Gemma was nice to him. It relieved him a bit to know what the red-haired wasn't an enemy on his path to win back Emily, even though he didn't really understand why.

"She's exhausted, I heard her crying most of the past two nights. I don't understand why she is so stubborn with all of this, she should at least talk to you…" Gemma admitted.

"Well, be reassured she's not the only one who isn't sleeping well…" Aaron sighed.

"I do not doubt it… I'm working on it though, at least to make her talk to you…"

"Thank you…" Aaron said, nodding. "I'd like to see my daughter too…" Aaron admitted.

"She won't prevent you from seeing her, don't worry. It's not her type. But you'll have to pick up Olivia from daycare I guess."

Aaron nodded and thanked Gemma for being so understanding with everything. He was truly surprised with her, and in a good way.

The rest of the day went by at the same pace, and the day after too. It was breaking him to see Emily run away from him every time they were crossing paths, to see her shut down completely when she couldn't help but work with him, when she was sending Phil instead of her in a one-to-one meeting.

At the end of the fourth day, he texted Emily, telling her he wanted to pick Olivia from daycare for the weekend. He had not seen his daughter in four days, and it was too much for him. He couldn't take it anymore. She agreed without resisting, even though he knew that it would be hard for her not to see her daughter for the whole weekend. He almost considered offering to drop Olivia at her place on Saturday night, but he knew it was the best way not to see his daughter from the whole weekend, because he knew Emily didn't want him near her apartment and she would shut him out again.

On Saturday afternoon, Aaron decided to take a walk with Olivia in her stroller. Nadia joined them, as well as Seth after a little while. They grabbed coffee down a place the three of them knew, and then walked toward the river, along the Potomac. Aaron knew this city by heart, having run there, walked there, and lived there for the past 12 years. Talking with his friends was reassuring him, it seemed that everybody was on his side, supporting him even though they knew he had said some pretty stupid things back when he was in California. They all remembered the state of mind he was in at the time, when he had just learned about his paternity, and they didn't seem to hold it against him.

"Maybe it will get better, I mean, she has to talk to you for that little one here at least…" Nadia tried to reassure, tucking Olivia in her stroller.

"Yeah, well apart from a few very cold texts, Olivia didn't do a miracle this time…" Aaron sighed, desperate.

"She will realize she made a mistake." Seth assured. "I mean, she loves you, everybody can see it so… She will come around at one point or another…"

"Does she, though?" Aaron asked, unsure.

"Oh, come on man, you're not that blind, are you?"

Aaron didn't answer, he just shrugged.

"Aaron, I'm sure it will be fine…" Nadia said, putting her arm around his and her head on his shoulder.

"It's been almost a week, nothing has changed. She shuts me down every time it is not for work or for Olivia. And even for work, I mean, she sends Phil to talk to me most of the time…"

"It just feels so similar to the last time you weren't talking…" Seth admitted.

"Yeah? Well I just hope it won't take her that long to come back…" Aaron said, bitter.

"Oh no, I'm sure it won't. Gemma is already tired of her bullshit, she's going to yell at her sooner rather than later." Seth laughed.

"Don't know if that will do any good though…" Nadia commented.

"Oh trust me, it will. Gemma could frighten Lucifer if she wanted…" Seth said, making them all laugh.

In her apartment, Emily had done nothing but walk around in circles all day. She was exhausted but couldn't sleep more than two hours in a row, suddenly woken up by Olivia's cries popping in her mind, or a nightmare of Aaron yelling at her all the terrible things she had done. She couldn't help but think about everything Ryan had told her a few days ago, and she was starting to seriously consider packing and leaving, taking Olivia with her and running away somewhere, in Canada or even in Europe. She had even packed a bag and hid in the corner of her room, thinking about it sometimes, still not sure of what she should do. She was relieved though, that Aaron had finally stopped calling her to try and talk, that he had stopped trying to ambush her in an empty room of the West Wing. But she knew it wasn't the end of it, she knew he would try again one day or another.

She needed to keep her mind busy and had undertaken to clean the whole apartment, vacuuming and moping the floor, cleaning the windows, doing the dusting and other things here and there. She had woken up Gemma with the noise and the red-haired had yelled at her, but Emily couldn't care less about it. She was exhausted physically and mentally. She was trying her best not to think about Aaron, or Olivia for that matter since she was with him at the time, but of course it didn't work. How could it work? How could a mother not think about her almost five-month-old daughter all the time?

In the afternoon, Gemma came out of her bedroom once again, grumpy from hearing Emily make so much noise all day long.

"You know what?" she snapped. "I think you really need a good fuck to make things up with Aaron. I'm really tired of hearing you cleaning that damn apartment while it's already clean and there is no baby to cry for once!"

"And you just lash out at me like that for no reason?" Emily asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No reason, that's what you call no reason? Goddamnit Emily! I swear you are the most stubborn woman in the world. You have a man that loves you and cares for you after everything you've done to him, and you just push him away because his asshole of a best friend said some shit on you?" Gemma raised her voice.

"He doesn't love me…" Emily announced.

"He doesn't? Have you looked at him recently? He does everything he can for you and Olivia, I never thought I could say that because believe me, I really didn't like him when I met him, but damnit he truly is an amazing guy. Every time he sees you exhausted at work, he takes over you and drowns with the workload because he helps you instead of leaving you deal with you own shit. He takes Olivia at night with him even though he only sleeps for four or five hours, just to be sure that you and I can have restful night away from a crying baby. His life his dedicated to you and Olivia since he came around the idea of being a father" Gemma argued.

"It's just the aftershock, he will soon realize that I'm not worth it and that he would be better off without me." Emily answered.

"Oh my God!" Gemma yelled. "Emily, please listen to what you say. Why are you so damn stupid sometimes?"

"You're supposed to be on my side…" Emily told Gemma.

"I am and I always will be. But you need to realize that you made a mistake, that the guy will not leave you. HE. LOVES. YOU." Gemma insisted loudly.

"Just leave me alone, will you?" Emily grumbled.

Gemma sighed and left the living room, slamming the door of her bedroom to make it clear that she was annoyed. She couldn't understand why her best friend was so stubborn and why she didn't want to talk to Aaron. As for Emily, she suddenly burst into tears, kneeling on the ground and taken with spasms. She curled up, sitting on the floor in the kitchen, and let it all out. It was all too much, and for the very first time in years, she felt really alone. Even Gemma was not on her side, and she could feel that she had lost everyone around her.

From her bedroom, Gemma heard Emily cry. And though it was breaking her heart to hear it, to hear her best friend in such a state, she knew that it was needed, that maybe Emily really needed to be alone for once to realize that she had people behind her, to help her, and that if she was willing to let them help her, she didn't need to be alone in all of this. People loved Emily, but she wasn't willing to let them love her, ands she needed to realize that she couldn't continue like that.

"I'm tired of this crap, we need to do something."

-Gemma

"Do you have an idea?"

-Seth

"Yeah, text Nadia, I'll text Phil. We might need their help. Meet in an hour at the Irish pub downtown."

-Gemma

Seth did as told, and they all met an hour later at their usual bar. They didn't know yet when they would do this, but they had a plan and it was in motion.