Past Tense Rising - 11

All notes and disclaimers are in the previous ten chapters.

**

"Please?"

"No way."

"Pretty please?"

"No way."

"With a cherry on top?"

"No way."

"What if I... you know...?"

"Zoey!"

Charlie Young snapped his head up from the messages he was sorting
for the President at her words. He was completely flabbergasted, and
more than a little embarassed. He stole a glance at the closed door
to the Oval Office.

"Come on." Zoey cajoled. "You can't tell me the prospect of... you
know doesn't intrigue you. We're both adults."

"That's a matter of opinion." Charlie said, trying to clear his head
after that bombshell. "And it's your father's opinion I worry about.
Besides which," his voice dropped to a low murmur, "the fact that you
keep referring to sex as 'you know' doesn't seem exactly mature to
me."

"Why won't you do it?" Zoey asked, checking her watch.

"Because I happen to not like Romeo and Juliet." Charlie replied.

Zoey had dropped by the West Wing to try and convince Charlie to do
the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet with her for the talent show.
Charlie was turning out to be a tough cookie to break on the subject.

"How can anyone not like Romeo and Juliet?" Zoey tossed back.

"They die at the end! And if it was for love, maybe I wouldn't hate
it." he replied.

"It was for love!" Zoey exclaimed.

"No, it was the worst timing in the world. Juliet woke up right after
Romeo poisoned himself. If the idiot would have waited five more
minutes, they would have lived happily ever after." Charlie said. "I
hate sad endings."

"Well, we're not doing the death scene." Zoey said. "We're doing the
balcony scene. It's one of the most beautiful parts of the play."

Charlie hesitated. If he refused, Zoey would find some way to make
him pay for it. She was like her mother in that fashion. And if word
got to the President, Charlie was sure Jed Bartlet would find a way
to make him pay as well.

"I'll make you a deal." he offered. "I'll do the balcony scene with
you if you sing a Sonny and Cher duet with me and convince the
President's staff to sing 'Happy Days Are Here Again,' for him."

"Deal!" Zoey said happily. "It'll be great, Charlie, you'll see!" she
hugged him, then whispered, "And we can talk about you-know-what
later."

Before Charlie could protest, she was out the door. Shaken, he sat
down.

**

"You know what I was thinking, Sweetknees?"

"What's that, Gumdrop?"

Jed looked up from his desk at his wife, who was sitting in a chair,
going over a few things. "I was thinking about asking the Shepards
and the Marshalls to stay with us in the Residence."

"That means you already decided and probably already talked to Leo
about it." Abbey replied, barely looking up from her own work.

"Well...yes." Jed said. "But that wasn't what I was talking about."

"You're talking about that talent you're making everyone perform in."
she said.

Jed grinned evilly. "Yeah, it'll be fun."

"I hope it's as funny when you're in hell, my darling." she quipped.

"I was also thinking about making it a couple's night." Jed remarked
slyly, knowing that would draw her into his web of fibs.

He was right.

She put the folder down and looked at him. "You have my attention,
Mr. President. What are you planning?"

"Why, nothing, Abigail." Jed said innocently. "It's just that I feel
bad that my staff really doesn't have much of a social life and I
feel I've robbed them of that. There's potential for some of the
couples I've observed around the office."

"You mean like Josh and Donna? Sam and Ainsley Hayes? CJ and Danny?"
Abbey replied.

"You do understand." Jed grinned, getting up to sit in the chair next
to hers. "I was thinking more like Leo and Margaret and Toby and
Ginger."

"Toby and Ginger?" Abbey repeated. "Are you crazy?"

"Well, fate seems to be doing the job for me on some of the more
obvious couples." Jed remarked, waving his hand around the room. "CJ
went to North Carolina with Danny three days ago. Sam and Ainsley are
obviously palling around and I've heard that he's already asked her
to the state dinner. Everyone in the building knows that Josh and
Donna have a thing for each other. Lionel Tribbey wants me to get Leo
and Margaret together."

"That big softie." Abbey remarked.

"And since Tribbey so often does *not* get what he wants, I think
it's the least I can do to do this one little favor for him." Jed
said.

"Make whatever excuses you want." Abbey stood up. "I'll go talk to
Leo about it."

"What?" Jed looked injured. "Why you?"

"Because if the staff thinks it was your idea, they'll make your life
slightly harder until the state dinner. If they think it's my idea,
they'll just respect you a little less because I have you wrapped
around my little finger." she said.

Jed shrugged. "Okay." he checked his watch. "I've got a country to
run. And CJ's supposed to call to update me on the Danny situation."

"See you later, Gumdrop."

TBC

Past Tense Rising - 12

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