Post-Campaign Promises
Originally posted by fragrantwoods at Post-Campaign Promises
Title: Post-Campaign Promises
Rating: T
Word Count: 1700
Follows the following AU drabbles and stories
The Old Man, the Old Lady , Running Late . If He'd Only Known..., Presidential Abstinence, Driving Lessons, "Let Me Go Crazy", Autumn Leaves, Ivy Covered Hallowed Halls , Separate Lives, Dotted Line, Coming to the Table, Memories of Sweeter Days, Time Machine , "Long and Low and Sleek and Fast" , Anything for Love , Community Roots, Rotten, I'd Lie for You(and That's the Truth), Shame at the Gate , "One Wing in the Fire" , Outreach, Arrangements, Stolen Illusions. Something New, Time, Trouble, Patch Party
The lights were hot and bright in the convention center hall. Tired supporters with colored ribbons and confident placards were now renewed, bursting with energy as the final counts were electronically tallied. The race was done: Richard Adar was the next President-elect.
Laura’s cheeks were aching from smiling all night. It had been a good campaign, she thought, and she felt a flash of pride that she’d made it to the finish line, even with her work load increasing as the Secretary of Education had edged closer and closer to retirement. For months, her nights had been filled with catch-up work from her (and her boss’s) office, occasionally spiced with unexpected but welcome hours with Richard.
She had gotten used to looking out hotel windows afterwards and seeing two cars pull away; one with Richard and his driver, one for his security detail. Sometimes she would look at the faces of the black-suited men who hovered near his office, trying to see if there would be a spark of recognition, of judgment. There never was, and she eventually stopped looking, letting them recede into the background of her and Richard’s outside relationship.
She stood at a respectable distance as President-elect Adar hugged his wife at the podium before launching into his acceptance speech. She surreptitiously checked her watch. Forty-five seconds of thanking “the love of my life, my biggest supporter", one and a half minutes of thanking the voters, two minutes of reiterating his immediate promises and plans after being sworn in as the new President of the Twelve Colonies, one minute of bipartisan reconciliation, and finally, fifteen seconds of thanks to all those who had worked tirelessly on his campaign.
She pushed the grin a little wider as she began to applaud along with the crowd. Her real thanks would come later, she thought. She wondered about herself sometimes, why it never really bothered her to see Richard and his wife in public, looking so close and happy these days. The thought ran through her mind that maybe she was secretly part Cylon and didn’t know it, like the late-night horror stories she and her roommates would tell in her dorm room when they were all a little stoned and giggly. That thought made her want to break into giggles right there on the stage, as she bit the inside of her cheek and tried to get herself under control. She glanced towards the forest of microphones and cameras from the news agencies and wondered if Bill was watching television tonight.
She suddenly didn’t feel like giggling anymore.
Three days later, she and Richard were finally able to steal some time alone. The days had been a flurry of transitional planning sessions and meetings as Richard prepared to become the most powerful man in the Colonies. Laura found new chunks of time during her day as the campaign apparatus was dismantled. Free time, she thought wryly. What’s that going to be like? She examined Richard’s face and saw that some of the harsh lines in his face had softened, the dark circles under his eyes a bit lighter than they had been a week earlier.
“You look ten years younger, Richard. Winning agrees with you.” She smiled as she went into his arms and let herself relax into his kiss as his hand cupped her shoulder.
“Thanks, hon. I think we’re all trying to catch up on our rest.” He tugged her down to the couch in his private side office. “You ready?” He looked like he was about to burst with a happy surprise, but there was a hint of worry-wrinkles at the corners of his eyes.
“For what?” she said with a smile, her eyes trying to read the concern in his.
“Your appointment, Madam Secretary.” He handed her the large manila envelope with a flourish.
She began opening the metal clasp, hands shaking slightly. “Thank you, Mr. President.”
He put an arm around her as they sat side by side, reading the formal document appointing Laura Roslin as the new Secretary of Education. ”It won’t be official until I’m sworn in, but it’s practically ready to go.”
Practically?
“Richard, I thought you said-“
“I know, I know. The Secret Service wanted to clarify a couple of points with your security clearance. As soon as that’s taken care of, I’ll sign it.”
The room seemed to get a few degrees colder. “What do you mean, a couple of points? I had a background check done before I became superintendent of schools. You saw that when I joined your campaign...we even talked about it, remember?”
He pulled his arm from her shoulder and turned to face her. “Laura, did your father ever do any work for the Defense Department? Any consulting or anything?”
She kept her face immobile, trying to hide her surprise. “Not that I know of. He never told me anything like that. Why?”
Richard took her hand, holding it with a light grasp that was a shade different from his usual firm touch. “Well, there may be some discrepancies in your father’s records. Things like a man he roomed with after college says he has no recollection of your Dad. And his last resume listed a couple of years teaching at an academy that they couldn’t find a record of ever existing.”
Laura pulled her hand back, hiding the slight shaking by resting it firmly on her thigh. “Richard, that must have been…that was over forty years ago! My Gods, are they going back to before the War?”
“I know…” he said in soothing tones. “I told them it’s probably due to records getting blasted during the fighting. And just this week, one of the officers in charge of the archives says he knew your Dad personally and would swear that there was no irregularities whatsoever in his history.”
“Well, there you go, then.” She leaned back and tried not to think of lockboxes and flags. The closeness they shared in their occasional trysts had never risen to the level of comfort she would have needed to share her father’s secrets, even if she could have spared the time.
He ran his fingers lightly along her shoulder. “Personally, I think the Service got a little uncomfortable about your Adama association.”
She stiffened slightly against his touch. “Richard, not that again. We’ve been over that.”
His hazel eyes grew hooded as he studied her face. “I know. That’s part of the problem as well. When we talked about this before, you didn’t mention you had been in a romantic relationship with him.”
She could feel her face staring to flush. “That was one summer, after I graduated from high school, Richard. I can’t believe-“
“A teenage summer fling, and taking his kids to see him…a few tire changes and tune-ups…that’s it?” He looked so earnest, she thought, although she didn’t miss the beginning edge of suspicion in his question. He wants that to be the truth so much, but there’s something in the way... She searched her memory for anything else that might have popped up. She doubted anyone knew about the break-in; she had seen the officer shred the forms after she told him she wouldn’t press charges. And she was sure no one knew about the one accidental meeting that night she was grieving again for her mother….
Grieving. Of course. She sighed with relief as a plausible explanation for his suspicion came to her.
“Richard, I didn’t even think of this until just now. I’d been such a wreck back then…but Bill Adama did help me with my father and sisters’ funerals. My Dad had named him to be one of the pallbearers. It was-I was…” her voice trailed off as she tried to find the words to describe her horror at their deaths.
Her eyes began welling up as he drew her close again, all distance between them seemingly obliterated.
“Gods, Laura, thank you so much for telling me this. I didn’t know what to think, trying to remember what you’d told me, comparing it to the reports I was seeing…I’m so glad you decided to not hold anything back.”
"I have to say, Richard, this seems a little extreme for security clearance for Secretary of Education." She pulled back and searched his expression. "This isn't about the appointment, is it? All this concern about my background, my family...this is about us. About you."
He rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hand, whether from emotion or tiredness, she couldn’t tell. “Presidential Security was this close to telling me they couldn’t support my continuing to…spend private time with you if you weren’t honest about this, on top of the questions they had about your father.” He opened his briefcase in front of him and took out a handful of photographs.
There were five shots of Bill with his arm around her at her father and sisters’ funeral. All looked like they’d been taken with a long-range lens.
“These showed up after the new security clearance had started. Somebody left them on the administrative assistant’s desk before she arrived for work.” Cautious relief was all over his face.
Laura ran her fingers over the prints. “I can’t imagine why someone would take shots of my Dad’s funeral, but that’s what this was. He was just being a good friend.”
Richard stood up, already beginning to strive for a Presidential demeanor. “I get it, Laura…I really do. I’ve got friends from the old neighborhood myself. But this guy and his gang are dangerous associates. He’s a convicted felon and there’s a lot of speculation in the Caprica City PD and the DA’s office about what the Tauron Outlaws are into. For your upcoming position, for me…promise me you’ll stay away from him.”
She stood as well and took his hands in hers. “Of course I promise, Richard. Why wouldn’t I?”
She looked down at the manila envelope still on the couch, her appointment papers peeking out of the top. She was almost positive she was telling the truth. She ignored the faint clenching in her chest as she thought about Richard’s request. She could do this, she told herself.
Why would she ever need to see Bill Adama again?
Title: Post-Campaign Promises
Rating: T
Word Count: 1700
Follows the following AU drabbles and stories
The Old Man, the Old Lady , Running Late . If He'd Only Known..., Presidential Abstinence, Driving Lessons, "Let Me Go Crazy", Autumn Leaves, Ivy Covered Hallowed Halls , Separate Lives, Dotted Line, Coming to the Table, Memories of Sweeter Days, Time Machine , "Long and Low and Sleek and Fast" , Anything for Love , Community Roots, Rotten, I'd Lie for You(and That's the Truth), Shame at the Gate , "One Wing in the Fire" , Outreach, Arrangements, Stolen Illusions. Something New, Time, Trouble, Patch Party
The lights were hot and bright in the convention center hall. Tired supporters with colored ribbons and confident placards were now renewed, bursting with energy as the final counts were electronically tallied. The race was done: Richard Adar was the next President-elect.
Laura’s cheeks were aching from smiling all night. It had been a good campaign, she thought, and she felt a flash of pride that she’d made it to the finish line, even with her work load increasing as the Secretary of Education had edged closer and closer to retirement. For months, her nights had been filled with catch-up work from her (and her boss’s) office, occasionally spiced with unexpected but welcome hours with Richard.
She had gotten used to looking out hotel windows afterwards and seeing two cars pull away; one with Richard and his driver, one for his security detail. Sometimes she would look at the faces of the black-suited men who hovered near his office, trying to see if there would be a spark of recognition, of judgment. There never was, and she eventually stopped looking, letting them recede into the background of her and Richard’s outside relationship.
She stood at a respectable distance as President-elect Adar hugged his wife at the podium before launching into his acceptance speech. She surreptitiously checked her watch. Forty-five seconds of thanking “the love of my life, my biggest supporter", one and a half minutes of thanking the voters, two minutes of reiterating his immediate promises and plans after being sworn in as the new President of the Twelve Colonies, one minute of bipartisan reconciliation, and finally, fifteen seconds of thanks to all those who had worked tirelessly on his campaign.
She pushed the grin a little wider as she began to applaud along with the crowd. Her real thanks would come later, she thought. She wondered about herself sometimes, why it never really bothered her to see Richard and his wife in public, looking so close and happy these days. The thought ran through her mind that maybe she was secretly part Cylon and didn’t know it, like the late-night horror stories she and her roommates would tell in her dorm room when they were all a little stoned and giggly. That thought made her want to break into giggles right there on the stage, as she bit the inside of her cheek and tried to get herself under control. She glanced towards the forest of microphones and cameras from the news agencies and wondered if Bill was watching television tonight.
She suddenly didn’t feel like giggling anymore.
Three days later, she and Richard were finally able to steal some time alone. The days had been a flurry of transitional planning sessions and meetings as Richard prepared to become the most powerful man in the Colonies. Laura found new chunks of time during her day as the campaign apparatus was dismantled. Free time, she thought wryly. What’s that going to be like? She examined Richard’s face and saw that some of the harsh lines in his face had softened, the dark circles under his eyes a bit lighter than they had been a week earlier.
“You look ten years younger, Richard. Winning agrees with you.” She smiled as she went into his arms and let herself relax into his kiss as his hand cupped her shoulder.
“Thanks, hon. I think we’re all trying to catch up on our rest.” He tugged her down to the couch in his private side office. “You ready?” He looked like he was about to burst with a happy surprise, but there was a hint of worry-wrinkles at the corners of his eyes.
“For what?” she said with a smile, her eyes trying to read the concern in his.
“Your appointment, Madam Secretary.” He handed her the large manila envelope with a flourish.
She began opening the metal clasp, hands shaking slightly. “Thank you, Mr. President.”
He put an arm around her as they sat side by side, reading the formal document appointing Laura Roslin as the new Secretary of Education. ”It won’t be official until I’m sworn in, but it’s practically ready to go.”
Practically?
“Richard, I thought you said-“
“I know, I know. The Secret Service wanted to clarify a couple of points with your security clearance. As soon as that’s taken care of, I’ll sign it.”
The room seemed to get a few degrees colder. “What do you mean, a couple of points? I had a background check done before I became superintendent of schools. You saw that when I joined your campaign...we even talked about it, remember?”
He pulled his arm from her shoulder and turned to face her. “Laura, did your father ever do any work for the Defense Department? Any consulting or anything?”
She kept her face immobile, trying to hide her surprise. “Not that I know of. He never told me anything like that. Why?”
Richard took her hand, holding it with a light grasp that was a shade different from his usual firm touch. “Well, there may be some discrepancies in your father’s records. Things like a man he roomed with after college says he has no recollection of your Dad. And his last resume listed a couple of years teaching at an academy that they couldn’t find a record of ever existing.”
Laura pulled her hand back, hiding the slight shaking by resting it firmly on her thigh. “Richard, that must have been…that was over forty years ago! My Gods, are they going back to before the War?”
“I know…” he said in soothing tones. “I told them it’s probably due to records getting blasted during the fighting. And just this week, one of the officers in charge of the archives says he knew your Dad personally and would swear that there was no irregularities whatsoever in his history.”
“Well, there you go, then.” She leaned back and tried not to think of lockboxes and flags. The closeness they shared in their occasional trysts had never risen to the level of comfort she would have needed to share her father’s secrets, even if she could have spared the time.
He ran his fingers lightly along her shoulder. “Personally, I think the Service got a little uncomfortable about your Adama association.”
She stiffened slightly against his touch. “Richard, not that again. We’ve been over that.”
His hazel eyes grew hooded as he studied her face. “I know. That’s part of the problem as well. When we talked about this before, you didn’t mention you had been in a romantic relationship with him.”
She could feel her face staring to flush. “That was one summer, after I graduated from high school, Richard. I can’t believe-“
“A teenage summer fling, and taking his kids to see him…a few tire changes and tune-ups…that’s it?” He looked so earnest, she thought, although she didn’t miss the beginning edge of suspicion in his question. He wants that to be the truth so much, but there’s something in the way... She searched her memory for anything else that might have popped up. She doubted anyone knew about the break-in; she had seen the officer shred the forms after she told him she wouldn’t press charges. And she was sure no one knew about the one accidental meeting that night she was grieving again for her mother….
Grieving. Of course. She sighed with relief as a plausible explanation for his suspicion came to her.
“Richard, I didn’t even think of this until just now. I’d been such a wreck back then…but Bill Adama did help me with my father and sisters’ funerals. My Dad had named him to be one of the pallbearers. It was-I was…” her voice trailed off as she tried to find the words to describe her horror at their deaths.
Her eyes began welling up as he drew her close again, all distance between them seemingly obliterated.
“Gods, Laura, thank you so much for telling me this. I didn’t know what to think, trying to remember what you’d told me, comparing it to the reports I was seeing…I’m so glad you decided to not hold anything back.”
"I have to say, Richard, this seems a little extreme for security clearance for Secretary of Education." She pulled back and searched his expression. "This isn't about the appointment, is it? All this concern about my background, my family...this is about us. About you."
He rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hand, whether from emotion or tiredness, she couldn’t tell. “Presidential Security was this close to telling me they couldn’t support my continuing to…spend private time with you if you weren’t honest about this, on top of the questions they had about your father.” He opened his briefcase in front of him and took out a handful of photographs.
There were five shots of Bill with his arm around her at her father and sisters’ funeral. All looked like they’d been taken with a long-range lens.
“These showed up after the new security clearance had started. Somebody left them on the administrative assistant’s desk before she arrived for work.” Cautious relief was all over his face.
Laura ran her fingers over the prints. “I can’t imagine why someone would take shots of my Dad’s funeral, but that’s what this was. He was just being a good friend.”
Richard stood up, already beginning to strive for a Presidential demeanor. “I get it, Laura…I really do. I’ve got friends from the old neighborhood myself. But this guy and his gang are dangerous associates. He’s a convicted felon and there’s a lot of speculation in the Caprica City PD and the DA’s office about what the Tauron Outlaws are into. For your upcoming position, for me…promise me you’ll stay away from him.”
She stood as well and took his hands in hers. “Of course I promise, Richard. Why wouldn’t I?”
She looked down at the manila envelope still on the couch, her appointment papers peeking out of the top. She was almost positive she was telling the truth. She ignored the faint clenching in her chest as she thought about Richard’s request. She could do this, she told herself.
Why would she ever need to see Bill Adama again?