far away; surfacing
I actually forgot I wrote these a few weeks ago, after seeing Transition. Just small little drabbles.
title: far away
pairing: josh/donna
rating: pg
summary: sometimes he couldn’t believe it was donna he was looking at. post-transition, season 7.
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The comforting lull of sleep was more than a little unfamiliar, and he rolled on his side, reminding himself that he was allowed to enjoy it. Savour the pull. He rubbed at his cheek, leisurely opening his eyes, and glanced at the woman lying across from him. She gazed at him slowly, blonde hair rumpled from sleep, eyes glazed over pleasantly. A small smile tugged at her lips. Sometimes he couldn’t believe it was Donna he was looking at. Donna. His mother would probably ask him why it had taken this long.
“Morning,” he said, slowly, unconsciously returning the smile.
She shuffled into her pillow, and seemed to be tracing the lines of his face with her stare. “Morning.”
“I feel like I should be wrangling people or something,” he said, looking briefly over his shoulder at the hotel room around them. Sunlight gleamed in through the Venetian blinds, illuminating the foot of the bed. They were definitely not in Washington anymore.
“No wrangling,” she reminded him, mock sternly.
He smiled again. He couldn’t help it. “Right.”
She shifted forward, burying her face against the crook in his shoulder. Her breath fanned against his neck, and her silky hair caressed his skin. He let his fingers linger languidly over her head, running them through her hair. “So,” he asked idly. “What do you want to do today?”
“Mmm. Nothing.”
The smile continued to pull at his mouth. He buried it against her hair. “Yeah. Me too.”
Vacations were nice.
--
title: surfacing
characters/pairing: josh, cj, josh/donna
summary: “way to finally get your ass into gear, lyman.”
--
“Heard you had a nice vacation.”
Josh glanced up, surprised, when CJ appeared in his line of vision. He was in the White House, waiting for a meeting with the President concerning the President Elect. When he was in this building, he was reminded of the rapport they once shared, and it was nice to see that traces of it still surfaced occasionally. Sometimes it felt like they were working on opposite sides of the fence.
“Yeah. Uh, you know. The tropics. Little umbrellas, nice little spot on the beach. You should do it sometime.”
She blinked, and looked vaguely amused. “Josh Lyman lecturing me on how to have a vacation. This is new.”
He shrugged, leaning against Debbie’s desk. For a moment, it felt like they were waiting for a morning briefing session. Like nothing had changed at all. “I had a few things put into perspective.”
She smiled. “I’ll definitely have to try it then.” She continued to study him, with those incisor sharp eyes of hers, the ones that could always read him so accurately. There was something oddly appreciative in them.
“Way to finally get your ass into gear, Lyman.”
He stopped drumming his fingers on the desk long enough to stare up at her, and she smirked, shaking her head. “It’s been a long time coming.”
He opened his mouth, and the door to the Oval Office opened. Its occupants started to filter out. He straightened from the desk, nodding at Debbie as she gestured him forward.
He glanced back at CJ. If there was anyone from the old crew who could understand his relationship with Donna, it was her. It felt nice to share that significance with someone. “Thanks.”
She smiled, clutching a folder in her hands, and started to turn from the room. “Anytime.”
He couldn’t help a smile forming on his face as he walked into the Oval. Just a little one.
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