Charlie puts the finishing touches on the sophisticated bun in her hair and moves to the closet to pull on her long, black dress. From the front, it appears to be any ordinary boring dress but the back scoops down low, showing off much more skin than Miles or Julia will approve of. She grins at her reflection in the mirror as she slips on her ridiculous high heels and makes her way down to the small room attached to the banquet hall.
As per tradition, Miles will be introduced to the party guests first. After that the Vice President is supposed to be introduced and then the President, but Bass has insisted that since they are now married that they will share the spotlight.
She opens to door to find Miles, Bass, Jason, and Danny already heavily into the booze. Miles is leaning back against a table with a drink in his hand with Bass by his side while Jason and Danny giggle over by the window. The boys all turn as she enters the room and smile, nodding approvingly.
"You look good Bug," Miles says quietly as she approaches, even going so far as to kiss her cheek.
"And you've had too much to drink already," she scolds him. He pouts but doesn't bother denying it. They both know he gets sentimental when he's drunk.
She moves sideways, keeping her back from Miles' view and steps into her husband's embrace. Bass wraps an arm around her waist, his eyes going wide when his fingers brush against bare skin. Charlie shakes her head just a fraction of an inch, telling him not to say anything just yet. He hums in response, kissing the corner of her mouth as his fingers dip below the fabric barely covering her butt.
"You look beautiful," he murmers. Charlie merely chuckles in response.
Julia pops into the room, letting the noise from the party in as she closes the door behind her. Charlie quickly turns so her back is pressed against Bass' front, hiding her sure to be disapproved dress from her view. Julia's eyes take quick stock of the room and she narrows her eyes at Jason and Danny giggling and drinking at the window.
"You two aren't even supposed to be in here," she grouches, snatching away their glasses and shooing them into the banquet hall. The boys whine and groan, but grin as they pass Charlie on their way out, winking as they go.
Once they're gone, Julia turns to look at Miles. "Couldn't you have waited until after your entrance to get drunk?"
"Oh come on, Jules. This is the tenth time we've had this stupid party. At this point, if I don't show up drunk people might get worried."
Julia smiles in spite of herself and ushers him to stand by the door, instructing them to wait for their names to be called. She snatches the drinking glass out of his hand right before she dissappears into the banquet hall again.
Miles rolls his eyes. "Here we go again."
They hear the noise in the hall die down and Jeremy's booming voice sounds throughout the room.
"Ladies and gentlemen, let's give a big warm welcome to our country's biggest savior; General Miles Matheson."
Miles grunts something, most likely and insult meant for Jeremy, but plasters on his best fake smile as the door opens and he stomps into the hall to the deafening applause.
Bass grips Charlie's hands and gives her a knowing smile, talking over their introduction. "You didn't want Miles to see the back of the dress, did you?"
As the door to the banquet hall opens and they're rushed into the crowd, Charlie yells in his ear. "I didn't want him to make me go change."
Bass barks a laugh, which is probably interpreted as a good thing by the people crowded around them. It's so loud that Charlie can barely hear and for a while she lets Bass guide her around with a hand on her lower back. They make the appropriate small talk with all the right people - Julia lingering approvingly in the background - before it's finally time for dinner to be served.
Since Charlie got to help plan the party this year, she at least gets to sit with people she actually likes. The Presidential table is set up on a platform at the front of the hall where she, Bass, Miles, Jeremy, Maggie, Danny, and Ben are all seated. She looks curiously at the empty seat next to Ben who catches her eye and shrugs.
"Your mom wasn't feeling in the party mood. I'm sorry." It isn't like she had high hopes for Rachel's attendance anyway so she gives Ben a big smile and moves on.
When it seems like everyone has finished eating and people are stating to get antsy, Jeremy stands up and takes his place center stage.
"This anniversary gala is a tradition that was started ten years ago and one that we hope will continue on for a long time to come. Now I don't know if any of you remember this, but ten years ago on this very night, our President chose the General's niece to have the first dance with. At the time we all thought it was just a cute joke, but now..."
Jeremy turns and gestures to Bass and Charlie sitting snugly together at the table while Miles gives an exaggerated roll of his eyes, causing the audience to chuckle.
"In her first year as our First Lady, Vice President Charlie Monroe has made a difference in every way you can possibly think of. We are lucky to have her, and President Monroe is just plain lucky."
Bass glares at Jeremy, which he completely ignores.
"So let's have them down here, our President and our beautiful First Lady!"
As Charlie dismounts the stage she hears Miles gasp and say, "What the hell happened to the rest of her dress?" She can't hear Maggie's whispered response but she's sure it must be entertaining.
After years of practice, she and Bass instantly fall in step with each other as the music begins. Despite how much he claims to hate it, Bass is actually a really good dancer. They aren't even two steps into the dance when he says, "not that I'm complaining or anything, but this isn't exactly your usual kind of dress."
Charlie bites her lip hesitantly. "Yeah, well... I figured I should wear it while I still can."
Bass' eyebrows furrow together in confusion. "What do you mean, while you can? No one can stop you from wearing what you want, Babe."
"Well... Maybe you or Miles can't stop me, but the baby growing in my stomach might have something else to say about it."
A moment passes where Bass' face is scrunched up in confusion, then he stops moving altogether and lets his hands drop to his sides, his mouth hanging open in shock. Charlie tries to ignore the party guests staring at them and focuses on her husband even as the band stops playing the simple waltz they'd been dancing to.
"Are you... You're... Are you sure?"
Charlie can't help but smile shyly up at him. "Yeah. I mean I haven't talked to Maggie or anything yet, but yeah."
His mouth is still hanging open and despite the fact that they had discussed having a baby, Charlie can't help but wonder if he's regretting that now. She opens her mouth to say something, anything, because she's starting to feel awkward with everyone staring at them and Bass is still just standing there like an idiot, but before she can even get a word out he silences her with his lips. It's a brief, hard kiss but when he pulls away from her his face is split into a huge, genuine smile. He looks at the people sitting around them, still staring, and yells.
"I'm gonna be a dad!"
And just like Bass, it takes a moment for the news to sink in but before they know it the crowd is screaming and shouting their congratulations, surrounding them with hugs and well wishes. Amidst the chaos, Miles somehow manages to find her. He pulls her into a bone crushing hug, his dark eyes usually wet.
"I can't believe you're gonna be a mom," he says into her hair.
"I can't believe you're gonna be a grandpa," she tells him.
Miles laughs and shakes his head but when she looks into his eyes she can see the confusion there, the little bit of hope. Her heart aches at the thought that Miles would even question his standing with her after so many years.
"They aren't my parents," she tells him firmly. "You are. Don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise."
There's a second where she thinks that Miles might actually cry, but it gets drowned out by the arrival of a very drunk Jason with his arm draped around Danny and who are both for some reason singing 'Happy Birthday.' The well wishers are eventually shooed away by a very serious looking Doctor Foster, who insists that she needs to check in with her patient. Maggie drags Charlie out of the banquet hall, Bass not far behind, and into a spare room.
"It's alright Bass, you can go back to the party." Maggie tells him.
He shakes his head resolutely, patting Charlie's abdomen with a gentle hand. "No way. I'm not going anywhere." Charlie looks over at Maggie who is digging around for something in her trusty medical bag.
"You know Maggie, an exam can wait until morning."
"No it can't," Bass says quickly.
Maggie smiles knowingly. "I'll be quick, but I'm afraid you might need to duck out of your own party a little early. You and baby need lots of rest."
"Forget the party. We'll go straight upstairs and go to bed when we're done here," Bass says.
Charlie rolls her eyes. "Bass, I'm pregnant not sick."
He gathers her hands in his, his eyes glued to the wedding ring on her finger. "I know that. But we still have to be careful."
Her resolve crumbles under his sad eyes and she gives in. "Alright. Just give me ten minutes to say goodnight to our guests and then I'll call it a night."
Bass nods, kissing her gently on the lips. "Deal."
After Maggie has cleared her and declared her officially pregnant, she and Bass say quick goodbyes to everyone and head upstairs for the night. Charlie kicks off her shoes before they even make it into the room and leaves them on the floor for Bass to grab as he follows. She stands in front of the mirror admiring the slender curves of her body for what she knows will be one of the last times while Bass puts her shoes away. Then his arms snake around her from behind, his lips pressed against her bare shoulder.
"You are gorgeous," he whispers against her skin. "And I love this dress."
Charlie smiles at his reflection in the mirror. "Me too. Maybe I can wear it again someday."
Bass spins her around in his arms, his eyes filled with understanding. "It doesn't matter what dress you're in Charlie. You'll be beautiful no matter what." He suddenly grins mischievously. "In fact, I think you're even more beautiful without any dress at all." Charlie laughs as he eases the dress off her shoulders, letting it pool around her feet while he presses wet kisses to her neck.
"I thought Maggie said I'm supposed to be resting." She says, even as she arches into his touch. Bass grunts something unintelligible, which she interprets as 'later,' and pushes her down onto their bed.