A/N::: Words cannot describe how sorry I am. But I hit a major writer's block. And school absolutely buried me. But I said I wouldn't quit, and I won't. Thanks for all of you that stood by me :)

You'll absolutely LOVE the ending. Or HATE me.

Disclaimer::: I don't own Gallagher girls series, nor do I know a guy named Brad Rickshaw. Sorry if I tarnished your name =/

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Chapter 7: Hot Water

Cammie POV

"So…" I mused loudly after a moment of awkwardness, "what brought you two to our nation's capital?" I caught Josh and Dee Dee sharing a look, Josh's opposing, while Dee Dee just shot him a glare before turning to us, her eyes bright and cheery. As per usual.

"Well, the thing is," she started, leaning in closer, her voice going down an octave from her usual bubbly tone. I found myself leaning in as well, to my surprise. "I work for the Associated Press. You've heard of them, of course?" She paused, waiting for my confirmation. "And rumor has it that the government is stirring up some heat in Nigeria. Something about the uprisings happening across Africa. And they sent me to cover the news quietly. Of course, it's on the DL, so I'd appreciate it if you both didn't say a word?" She bit her lip, something as a teenager must've helped her get her way. She could still pull it off.

"Of course," I lied through my teeth, nodding assuringly. "I mean, Zach and I, both work in offices, nothing governmental. But if it assures you, I'll make sure not to say anything." The thing about being a spy is that as you age, as you learn how to survive, you learn to sacrifice an individual's feelings for the greater good. Besides, it wasn't us who started it. The Nigerians did.

"So, because of my job as a political journalist, we've come to Washington D.C, as well as to go sight-seeing," she finished happily, her posture straightening as she leaned back next to Josh, who was watching Zach curiously. I glanced down at my plate of food, rearranging the food with my fork to stall.

"So," I said, sounding casual, "does that mean you scope out things like the government's spies and secret missions?" I meant it as a joke, but an eerie quietness passed, or maybe being a spy made me paranoid. Because after I admitted that Zach and I work office jobs, something passed through Dee Dee's eyes, like mistrust and doubt.

"Yes," she admitted slowly, as if not to alarm me. "But if it helps, I don't go around stalking people and risking my life to expose the identities of people trying to keep us safe," she said, looking directly into my eyes. The hairs on my neck rose, my senses tingling, a small voice screaming in the back of my head, She knows!

"Well that's nice to know," Zach said jokingly, grinning widely. "We wouldn't want our lives to be all over the newspaper for being friends with a high ranked journalists." He let out a laugh, one that was infectious and had all of crinkling our eyes in happiness, laughing along with him and his infinite humor.

"Oh Zach," Dee Dee said, a smile still plastered onto her face, "I didn't know you were such a joker."

"Well, it's one of the reasons Cammie here stuck by me all these years." He wrapped her arm around my shoulder, and I leaned in on impulse. Zach and I weren't fans of public displays of affection, so I knew that as he leaned in my ear to appear as if he was whispering sweet nothings to me, I smiled and made myself blush, as if he actually was.

"Stay calm, Cammie dear," he whispered. I rolled my eyes for show, making sure Dee Dee and Josh, who pretended he wasn't watching, were. It got strangely quiet, and I couldn't help but change the subject quickly.

"So, you guys don't have any kids of your own, do you?" I asked. But regretted it as Dee Dee's face was wiped clean of any lingering joy, replaced with an expression of sorrow. Josh's jaw was set, his gaze avoiding everyone else's. No one spoke, which made my face burn red with embarrassment. It didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply—I didn't know—"

Zach cleared his throat quietly, and I shut up instantly. I started berating myself mentally when Josh, for the first time, spoke up.

"It's not a hundred percent impossible," he said quietly, finally looking at us. He glanced at Dee Dee, whose head was ducked, her blonde hair hiding her expression. "We've been to the doctor, and he said that there were some difficulties. We've been trying for a kid for a year now, but we haven't given up." He reached over, his eyes on his wife as he spoke, grasping her limp hand in his. He placed a sweet kiss on her knuckles, murmuring to her quietly.

I glanced at Zach, feeling horrible for bringing up a delicate topic. He shot me a look that clearly said I wasn't at fault and shouldn't blame myself, but I couldn't help it. Zach and I had accidently gotten pregnant, and here were these two, desperately wanting a child, but unable. I wanted nothing more than to rush home and hug the crap out of my children.

"I'm sorry, Cameron," Dee Dee piped up, her voice still lacking its usual cheerfulness, but at least she was speaking to me. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, especially since you asked something that I should've known would come up eventually."

"You're apologizing?" I asked in disbelief. "I should be the one. I brought it up." She shook her head, about to speak, but I beat her to it. "Dee Dee Abram, you are too nice for your own good," I stated, cracking a grin. To my relief, she smiled back. I ignored her red-rimmed eyes, mustering up a serious voice and gaze and said, "I bet you've been told that by every person you've ever met." She gave a weak laugh, which was enough for the tension to disperse, leaving a light, almost happy feeling in the air as we conversed, taking caution to stay off heavy topics and tiptoeing unknown ones. Hell, even Zach and Josh were able to hit off, talking about football, which I knew Zach didn't waste time watching, yet knew more than I thought he would.

Dee Dee and I talked to each other excitedly (mostly her) about political gossip, which she was, to my surprise, very knowledgeable about.

"I've heard that President Obama has been fighting the republicans on everything," she spoke in a serious tone, her facial expressions not matching those of the girl I remembered from years ago. "That bill he wants to pass, about raising the taxes on the rich, is completely justifiable. But the arrogant snobs, much of which are rich, want nothing more than to say no. If anything, they want to tax the poor, which absolutely makes no sense. And the news anchors, like that simpleton Brad Rickshaw on News Reporting Now, are making up statistics to make it seem like the poor aren't actually poor. Can you believe that?"

"I can, actually. I've met Brad Rickshaw, by accident." Her eyes grew to saucers, her blue pupils a contrast against all the whiteness of her eyes. "Yes, he was passing by our offices, said he wanted to prove he was part of the public, that he was just like everyone else. He's as douche-y as they get." Of course, it wasn't entirely true. I had actually been a part of his bodyguard group, during which I had to tackle an obese man and avoid getting slapped by an angry housewife who held a picture of a baby, claiming it was his.

"I knew it!" she shrieked when I told her about the angry housewife. "So his affair was true, and I bet my life's savings it's his. Oh man, Karen will get a kick out of this," she giggled, and I couldn't help but laugh along with her. We got strange looks, but for once I didn't care. For once, I didn't have to worry about the twins, or watch my back every second. I was finally at ease, and felt like a normal woman in her mid twenties. Finally.

"Wow, look at the time," Zach said, his eyes on his watch. "It's already nine pm, bordering on ten. We told Rebecca and Grant we'd be home by nine thirty. The twins should be asleep now, though." He was right, of course. We were so caught up on catching up we lost track of time, the restaurant already almost empty, save for a couple and the waiters who were eyeing us, as if they could will us to leave with their gazes.

"Yeah, we should be heading home soon as well," Josh said, who was visibly more relaxed than before. The champagne glasses were probably at fault, but only his cheeks were flushed. His gaze was still sharp, but of course, Dee Dee wouldn't have it.

"You are not driving us home," she said sternly, taking the keys from his grasp. He sighed, dragging a hand through his hair.

"You know I can drive perfectly fine. I only had one beer," he argued.

"One is enough on its own." We stood outside the restaurant, a breeze sending a chill through me. I had on a coat, but Dee Dee wore only her blouse, so I could only guess how cold it was by her shivers. And then Josh did something that proved that he really did love his high school sweet heart.

He automatically took off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders, letting his arm rest there, letting her head rest in the crook of his body. She smiled, blushing like a teen in love, and he planted a kiss on her head, chuckling when she let out a squeal. Watching him, I couldn't help but realize that not only did time change Dee Dee, but Josh as well. He's definitely matured into a man, and I couldn't help but think that I was happy for them. And ignore the empty feeling crawling into my stomach.

"We should do this again sometime," Zach said, his arm around my waist. I glanced at him, giving him a smile. He smirked at me, obviously proud of the set up of this first double date. But there was something in his eyes, something I couldn't decipher.

"Definitely!" Dee Dee chirped. "I have a pretty busy schedule on the weekdays, no doubt the both of you do as well. So maybe next Saturday? You're free that day, right Josh?" I couldn't shake off a paranoid feeling, the hairs on my neck rising.

He nodded, his already on his car across the street where their car sat. "Yeah."

I smiled, wrapping my arm around Zach's waist. "Saturday it is. Maybe at the cafe down the street?" I offered. And then I saw it; it was only a flicker in my peripheral, but I definitely saw movement down the street behind the couple. I squeezed Zach's waist, and he squeezed back, confirming what I saw.

"Sounds cozy," Dee Dee smiled. "Agreed." She shivered, a sign that we should be going. That and the waiter from the restaurant loudly banging the OPEN sign to CLOSED. I could feel my muscles tensing up, my heart rate speeding up slightly. Stay calm, I told myself, smiling, and don't alarm civilians.

I took a step back towards our car, nudging Zach along with me. "We'll see you around, I guess," I said, waving. They waved back until we disappeared from sight around the corner.

"You saw it, right?" I muttered, my pace going from walking to almost a run.

"The guy slipping into the alley? Definitely." We let go of each other but kept up, two of my strides matching his. We quickly covered the block, slipping into a short cut that took us behind the restaurant. But I stopped short, cursing myself for being too preoccupied with the black clad figure to realize his intentions.

"He might attack the Abrams," I blurted, my thoughts already churning. Zach stopped a few paces in front of me, cursing loudly.

"I'll go around and see if he's still in the alley. You go and check on them, make sure they're safe." I was already turning, running back around the corner to the hundred yards I needed to cover to reach them.

"Be careful!" I heard Zach say before I was picking up my pace, my veins thrumming with adrenaline. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to them.

I heard a scream as I neared the block corner. I bit back a whimper, forcing my legs to turnover faster.

Let them be okay, I thought, my heels clacking loudly. The cold air seared my throat as I spotted the last street light, the corner in sight. Don't do this, not today. The voices were undistinguishable but loud, and I knew I would never make it. I had to do something. But how?

"DEE DEE!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, which already burned. "JOSH!"

A gunshot rang as I rounded the corner, the noise so loud my ears rang as I hit the cement hard.

Do ya hate me yet? :D

For those of you who care, I had another version of this chapter. And it was NOT working. So I stopped, and next thing I knew, I haven't updated in almost a year o_o

I'm not someone who apologizes a lot, but I know I owe all of you. I was reading the reviews and knew that I had to get back to this. I HAD TO. So I whipped this up in about... 3 hours? 'Cause I owe you all so much. Hope I didn't make too many grammatical mistakes (which will probably come back to haunt me).

So Thanks for sticking by me, you won't regret it :)