As she finishes up a letter full of suggestions for the Board of Education, Charlie rubs tiredly at her eyes. Maggie had warned that fatigue can occur during the first trimester and she certainly hadn't been kidding. So far this week, she's had to take a nap before lunch everyday and even took one after lunch on Tuesday. She grabs another carrot from the bowl on her desk to munch on with the hopes that it might give her some energy. There are a few more things she would like to get done before succumbing to that afternoon nap.

There is already a plan to help her deal with the added stress of the pregnancy, she just hasn't had the time to put it into action yet. What she plans to do this afternoon will definitely cause an uproar in the house, but frankly, the baby has to come first. No matter what.

XxX

Nora is waiting patiently at the little cafe a block away from Independence Hall when Charlie finally arrives for lunch.

"Hey, sorry I'm late. I fell asleep." Charlie tells her apologetically.

Nora waves it off with a smile. "Don't worry about it. How are you feeling?"

"Tired. I'm just tired all the time."

Nora frowns slightly and gives her a worried look. "That's normal, though. Right?"

Charlie laughs and nods her head. "You sound just like Miles. He caught me napping in my office yesterday and asked if he needed to send for Maggie."

Nora smiles good naturedly, but stays silent at the mention of her uncle. They order their food and sit quietly for a moment. Charlie is used to this reaction from her where Miles is concerned, it's been going on for years, and plows on to why she really asked Nora to lunch without further chitchat.

"I need a favor," she says quickly.

At that, Nora raises her eyebrows in surprise but urges her on with a nod. "Sure. Whatever you need."

Charlie licks her lips hesitantly, knowing full well that her friend is not going to like this particular favor. "I need you to take my place as Vice President."

A moment passes in complete silence as someone brings them their drinks. Nora ignores the water glass placed in front of her and stares at Charlie with wide eyes.

"Are you insane?" She finally asks.

Charlie considers this. Perhaps asking her uncle's not-girlfriend to take her place is risky, but Nora is by far the best option available.

"Possibly," Charlie admits. "But I think the pros outweigh the cons in this situation."

Scowling at her diplomatic approach to the subject, Nora waves her hand around in front of her face. "Go on then, tell me all about how you've already got it all planned out."

"Well for one thing, the Vice President has to be someone that Bass and Miles will take seriously and that they will listen too. And since the boys both respect you on a professional level, you wouldn't have a problem with that."

Nora snorts. "Bass and Miles don't listen to anyone except for you."

Charlie hesitates, knowing that that's actually true. "Yeah, but they respect you enough to at least hear you out and that's more than I can say for most people."

Nora frowns at her from across the table as someone drops plates of food in front of them. She picks up her fork and plays with the food on her plate, avoiding Charlie's eyes.

"Listen," Charlie says gently. "I know this isn't ideal, but with the baby coming I can't be the Vice President. The Republic needs someone who can afford to give it their undivided attention and I'm just not that person anymore. But I can't walk away from the office without knowing that someone I trust is sitting in that chair."

Nora sighs and Charlie can see her resolve breaking.

"Why don't you just ask Maggie?" She asks in whiny voice.

"Because Maggie doesn't know anything about the military aspects of the job and if the boys need help with something they're going to need someone that knows what they're talking about. Which means you."

Nora shovels a fork full of food into her mouth and chews on it aggressively, as if she thinks that might help the situation. After a few minutes of her silent brooding, she bursts out, "I hope this isn't some stupid plan to get me and Miles back together or something."

Charlie huffs a laugh but frowns. "Wait, I thought you guys were already back together."

"Why would you think that?"

"Well..." Charlie stops, suddenly unsure, making Nora raise her eyebrows questioningly.

"I woke up the other night and went down to the kitchen for a snack. On my way past Miles' room I thought I heard - well I thought it was you - talking."

Nora's shoulders slump a little bit, her lips tilting into a tiny frown before she pulls herself together. "Well it wasn't me," she says flatly.

Charlie can see the hurt in Nora's eyes and wants desperately to make it go away. "I'm sure I just heard wrong. Maybe I just imagined it."

"It's alright, Charlie. Miles can see whoever he wants. We aren't together. He's a free man."

The pain in her voice breaks Charlie's heart, but before she can try to soothe her friend, she gets up from the table.

"I forgot there's something I need to do today," she says vaguely.

"Nora, wait-"

"-I'll do it." She cuts her off before she can say anything else. "I'll be the Vice President, but I really have to go. I'll see you later." She kisses Charlie's cheek and leaves the cafe with her back straight and her head held high.

Charlie eats the remainder of her lunch in silence, her heart aching on Nora's behalf as her brain slowly processes the fact that Miles not only broke her best friend's heart, but that he also apparently has a new girlfriend and hasn't said a word about it.

As she walks back to Independence Hall, her anger over the entire situation grows so that by the time she barges into Miles' office, her temper is at a tipping point. The General's office door slams shut and he hastily pulls the reading glasses perched on his nose off of his face as he looks up at his intruder.

"Oh, it's just you," he says distractedly as he shoves his glasses back on and turns his attention back to the papers on his desk. "What's up, Bug?" He asks, not bothering to look her way.

The anger swells in her chest but Charlie stomps it back down, determined not to shout loud enough for all of Philly to hear. She decides that remaining silent might be her best option. Maybe Miles will come clean on his own if she gives him the chance.

After another moment of silence Miles looks up at her over the top of his glasses, his eyebrows furrowed with concern. "I know that look," he says grimly. "What did Bass do this time?"

Charlie knows that if she speaks it will just end with her yelling, so she stays silent and shakes her head, causing Miles to frown.

"Uh oh. What did I do, then?"

She blows an angry breath through her nose and puts her hands on her hips. "I spoke to Nora this morning."

The look on Miles' face is completely clueless. "OK. Usually that makes you happy. But you're mad. Care to share why?"

His obvious confusion makes it difficult to stay mad so she plops down on the couch against the far wall and gives her uncle a tired look. "The other night I went down to the kitchen to grab a snack and on the way past your room I heard you talking to a woman." Charlie notices the way Miles' jaw clenches but decides to wait until she's done explaining to find out why.

"At the time, I just figured it was Nora and went about my business. But at lunch today she told me that it wasn't her. So now I have two problems: Nora is upset because you have a new girlfriend and you didn't tell me that you have a new girlfriend."

Miles takes a moment to remove his glasses, taking great care to set them aside before rising from his desk to slowly pace the room in front of her. After a few minutes of this, he looks down at her seriously.

"First off, I want you to know that I do not have a new girlfriend." When Charlie opens her mouth to object, he holds up a hand to silence her. "And second, Nora made it very clear that she was done with me so she doesn't get to be mad about me seeing other women."

"So you are seeing someone, she just isn't your girlfriend. Yet." Charlie clarifies.

Miles shakes his head. "Your mom came to see me-"

"-You and my mom? Miles!" Charlie closes her eyes in horror. "Ew!"

He rolls his eyes at her, shaking his head. "Will you listen for five seconds?"

Charlie pouts a little but nods her assent.

"Rachel wanted to talk to me. Talk. That's it."

"Oh." Charlie lets out a relieved sigh. "In the middle of the night? What did she want?" She can see the hesitation on Miles' face, his reluctance to share yet another secret. "I'm tired of all these secrets, Miles. Just tell me. I promise not to freak out."

"OK." He sits down next to her on the couch and takes her hands in his, staring determinedly at their fingers. "I guess when Rachel heard about the baby she was... upset. She came to me and asked me to send you someplace far away where Bass wouldn't be able to find you."

"She did what?" Charlie stares at her uncle with wide eyes. "And she thought what? That you would just do as she said? That you would pack me up and send me away from my family?" She pushes up from the couch quickly, the anger coursing through her too much to be contained sitting down. "I can't believe her! What the hell makes her think that you would ever do what she said?"

Turning to see Miles' face, she catches a glimpse of something like guilt in his eyes.

"You didn't actually consider doing it, did you?" She asks.

"No, of course not." He assures her, though the guilt is still showing on his face.

"Then why do you look so guilty?"

Miles sighs heavily, his head dropping into his hands. Charlie can count on one hand the number of times she's seen her uncle look so defeated. She drops back onto the couch next to him and gently rubs his back. "It's alright, Miles. You can tell me anything. You know that."

His head rises slowly and he smiles over at her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her to him. "I know. It's just... it's not exactly fond memories."

Charlie says silent, giving him room to gather his thoughts and letting him explain it in his own time.

"A long time ago, before you were born and before your parents got married, Rachel and I... we kind of had a thing."

"A thing? You mean, you and my mom were..."

"Yeah. I mean, sort of. I don't know." A few seconds pass and he adds, "at least I thought we were."

"What happened?"

He gives her a sad smile. "Me and Bass got shipped out and when we got home Rachel and Ben were already married. She wouldn't even look at me, nonetheless speak to me."

"Why, what happened between you two?"

"That's just it, I have no idea. When I left I thought she'd be waiting for me when I got back and then she just wasn't."

"And Ben, your brother, just married your girlfriend without even telling you?"

Miles shrugs. "We were never very close and I honestly don't know if he even knew that Rachel and I had been together."

Charlie looks up into Miles' brown eyes and can see the hidden pain in them. She wraps her arms around his neck and hugs him close. "You loved her, didn't you."

A moment passes before he nods. "Yeah. She was my first."

"And she broke your heart," Charlie finishes for him, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes. "So when she asked you to send me away..."

"Rachel told me that if I ever really loved her then I would protect you from him, even if it meant sending you away."

"And what did you say?"

"I told her she was crazy and that I never loved her."

Charlie gives him a weak smile. "Bet she didn't like that."

He shakes his head, a smile forming on his face. "No. She slapped me and called me a bastard, then ran off to her room."

"She slapped you?" Charlie asks incredulously.

Miles shrugs. "Nora hit me with a frying pan the last time she left and you're worried about a slap?"

"Well... I like Nora."

He laughs and kisses her temple. "Yeah, me too."

"Then you should her. Tell her everything."

Miles sighs and gets up from the couch, moving back towards his desk as a way of saying that the conversation is over.

"I'm serious," Charlie persists. "If you and Nora are going to work together then you can't have personal feelings getting in the way."

"OK first of all, you and Bass are married. It doesn't get any more personal than that. And second, me and Nora don't even work together."

Charlie bites her lip hesitantly. "Well not yet, but you will."

"What are you talking about?"

"When the baby comes I'm not going to be able to preform my duties as the Vice President, so Nora has agreed to take my place."

Miles' mouth drops open in shock but he shuts it after a few seconds, then he nods as if he understands. "She's a good choice."

"I know. That's why I picked her. And that's why you two should talk. You guys can't work together if you can't even stand to be in the same room for more than five minutes."

Miles nods in agreement. "Fine. If I say that I'll talk to her will you go away?"

Charlie grins, nodding her head up and down.

"Great then get out of here. Some of us have work to do you know."

Charlie runs over to drop a kiss on his cheek before leaving the room, calling over her shoulder. "Love you!" She hears his grumbled, 'love you too' as she shuts his office door behind her.

Out in the hallway, her mind races around the new information in her head, focusing on the one thing that Miles was probably hoping that she would forget. Rachel broke her uncle's heart like it was nothing and then tried to use that against him to get what she wanted.

"Oh, hell no." She grumbles to no one in particular. "That bitch has got to go."