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Chapter Text

May 18th, 2025

Washington, D.C.

Josh

Josh Lyman hasn’t been running this late since his eldest daughter was three years old and he accidentally left her daycare. That was the day he had decided to retire and become a stay at home dad - coincidentally the very reason he hadn’t been late in years. Today though, today, he had taken a flight from Wisconsin to Washington a week earlier than his wife. That had been his first mistake in hindsight, booking a flight without Donna who seemed to know exactly the perfect times that would ensure a seamless transition from airport to traffic. Given the fact that Congress was in recess for another week and he was fairly sure that what he was about to do would take a good amount of convincing, he decided to come back home alone.

Hence, why he was now on his third run around the Dupont Circle. He looked at the clock again. 3:57 PM. His appointment with Sam was at 4:00 PM (and the fact he had to make a appointment to see his best friend to begin with was ridiculous but that’s neither here nor there) and he was still about twenty minutes away from Constitution Avenue. That is if there wasn’t a blockade of Secret Service agents by the White House, something which Josh had learned only happened when you were already having a bad day in this God forsaken town.

He could call Ginger, let her know he was running late, but then she’d make fun of him and reschedule his appointment for a weekend where Donna would just happen to need to be in her district so he decided to take it on the chin and accept that he’d have to sit outside Sam’s office for about three hours before Ginger thought she had punished him enough and let him into see Sam.

When he did finally arrive, it was to the exact glare he was expecting from Ginger who said “Senator’s in a important meeting. He’ll see you when he sees you.”

“Okay,” sighed Josh who knew that the “important meeting” could range from being about Sam winning reelection to the bugs in California.

About ten minutes later though the briefers on whatever the hell left the office and Ginger swooped in. “You’ve got the economic people in ten, a scheduled early dinner with Riley from Georgia and Josh Lyman is waiting outside.”

“Josh? Well why didn’t you let him in earlier, could’ve saved me the trouble of entertaining dumb and dumber.” Said Sam. Ginger started to protest talking about the importance of keeping punctuality but Sam had already stepped outside his office waving Josh in.

“How you doing buddy?” Josh grinned shaking his hand.

Sam smiled back. “I honestly didn’t know if you were gonna make it or not, and seriously man, you don’t need an appointment to see me you’re family.” Josh grinned and said “Okay” deciding to save his comments on his executive secretary being a hardass around scheduling for another day.

Sam sat down gesturing at Josh to do the same. Josh, however, was to nervous to sit.

“So what was so important that you couldn’t wait a week?”

Josh fidgeted a bit before finally gathering the courage to say it. If he didn’t say it now, he wasn’t going to say it ever.

“I’ve got a few old buddies at the DNC and they, uh, they’ve been throwing around a name a lot for next year.”

Sam raised his eyebrows. “Another one? Race is already tight isn't it?”

“Yeah but…I think this guy might actually win.” Said Josh. “And you know that I’m pretty good at picking them by now.”

Sam let out a soft chuckle “Yeah, I do. Alright, let’s hear it then.”

“You.”

Chapter Text

Josh only looked up after a few seconds of silence.

“You’re kidding.”

“I’m not”

“You’re kidding!” Said Sam, who now was looking at Josh like he was concerned about his mental health.

“I’m not.” Josh repeated, slowly this time.

“I can’t win a presidential election.”

Josh let out a breath. “Me and a ton of other guys that are smarter than you say you can.”

Sam smiled but there was no humor in it. “I’m not running for president.”

“I think you are.”

Sam stood up now, looking as anxious as Josh had felt coming in. “I’m not - I haven’t - look, say I do run, what do you come out of retirement?”

Josh nodded “For the campaign, yeah, Donna and I talked about it already. Different story if you win.”

Sam looked physically ill at this “Donna? Donna’s onboard with this?”

“She’s ecstatic.” Josh said, grinning. He was about to suggest Sam sit from how pale he was looking when he walked over to the chess set that sat in one of the tables in his office. He picked up a piece and quietly said, almost to himself “I need to talk with Ainsley.”

“Yeah, I know.” Said Josh, trying to keep the excitement out of his voice.

“And the kids…it would affect…”

“Yeah, I know.”

“You’re really serious.” Said Sam as if seeing him for the first time.

“Yeah, I am.” Replied Josh, with no grin this time. “Call me when Ainsley says yes. Tell the kids I said hi.” With this, he turned and left the office leaving his best friend to think about God knows how many worst case scenarios. Josh knew he had him in the bag now though. He could always read Sam well.

Sam

Sam Seaborn had never been more sure he was going to have a panic attack in his life. Not when he had asked Ainsley to marry him, not when their first daughter was born, no this, this, was somehow the most stressful moment of his life. 

Something tells me you’ll be able to top it, said a traitorous voice inside his head but damnit Sam was in charge up there so he quickly shook it away.

“Everything alright?” Said Ainsley who was coming out of the bathroom and had seen his shake.

Sam looked at her like a deer in headlights. “Yeah I’m - yeah everything’s fine.”

“Really?” She asked, “Cause you were doing the thing where you shake your head like maybe your brain will decide its had enough of you.”

Sam tried to smile “No, I’m just…thinking.”

“Well that’s good, honey.” Replied Ainsley easily, getting into their bed. Sam however was too caught up in his own thoughts to come up with a witty remark, which is when the humor left Ainsley’s face.

“Sam.” She said seriously.

“Yes?”

“What’s going on?”

Sam sighed. Well. Now or never.

“Josh wants me to run for president.” The words came out quickly like his mouth was trying to get him to tell her before his brain could catch up.

Ainsley blinked. “President of what?”

“The United States.”

Ainsley blinked again, then said “Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh.” She covered her mouth with her hands and Sam immediately went into panic blurting “It’s just a thought - you know how Josh gets sometimes and - ”

“Sam.” Ainsley said grasping his shoulders now and to Sam’s surprise a huge smile was across her face.

“Ainsley.” He replied tentatively.

“You call him right now and you tell him your running.”

Huh. Okay. Now, Sam was sure he was going to have that panic attack. He had been counting on Ainsley to be his excuse, to tell Josh that it was a two person decision and that Ainsley hadn’t agreed but if Ainsley was agreeing…

“Well its not just that, we need to speak to the kids and…”

“Sam.”

“Yes?”

“You have wanted to be President of the United States since you were a little boy. Now that you have the chance you’re not gonna take it?”

“It’s not that I don’t want to run its just…”

“Just what?” Coaxed Ainsley, but as he racked his brain Sam couldn’t find a reason not to run.

“I’ll be damned.” He said softly as Ainsley kissed the top of his head and pulled him into a hug.

“You’re going to run for president.” She said.

“I’m going to run for president.” He repeated, almost dumbfounded. Josh was going to go crazy when he told him.

Chapter Text

May 19th, 2025

Washington, D.C.

Sam

In the five years that Betty St. James has worked for Sam Seaborn, he’s almost sure he’s never seen her this silent.

It unsettles him.

It might seem odd from the outside, that Betty be the first person outside of family that Sam tells he’s running for president. The silence lets him think of exactly who he could’ve told that would’ve gotten him out of the predicament he’s in.

There’s Donna, of course, and her and Josh’s kids of which Sam is the godfather of. Jed and Abbey, who no matter how many years out of the White House he has, he still calls President and Dr. Bartlet in his mind. CJ, of course, and Toby, really anyone from the old guard, he’s sure any of them wouldn’t be looking at them the way Betty was and really there was only a certain amount of silence that he could take before -

“Wh - did - who else knows?” Betty finally asks and Sam has never hated the fact that he can’t read her facial expressions more.

“Outside of my kids and Josh and Ainsley, obviously, you’re the first.”

“Why?”

“Because I knew if I told Ginger or Brooklyn first you’d have it out of them before the end of the day.”

Betty gives him a look that Sam knows isn’t meant to be taken lightly but he ignores it, because he isn’t looking for any expression related to his remarks, he wants to know what she actually thinks.

At twenty-four years old Betty’s more cynical than most politicians are at fifty. Underneath all the colorful outfits she wears and color coded notes on her desk, there’s an amazingly sarcastic speechwriter who gives Sam a run for his money on a bad day, let alone a good one. The only time period where she had told Sam anything but the cold hard truth had been her first three months at an intern, but once she’d figured out she was worth a lot more to Sam being herself then being another yes man she’s been nothing but ruthless.

Which is why Sam told her first. If it’s a stupid idea, she’ll tell him, and that’ll be that.

He’s about to beg her to put him out of his misery when she finally asks if he’s thought about what he wants his campaign to look like.

So not a stupid idea after all.

May 21st, 2025

Madison, Wisconsin

Josh

Josh could say that he’s never been so nervous in his life, but that would be a lie.

If he were to rank the most nerve-wracking moments in his life however this would definitely be somewhere in the top three.

It’s the wait that makes him more nervous. If he were still in Washington maybe, maybe, he wouldn’t be as nervous as he is, he’d have been able to distract himself meeting with old colleagues, getting Ainsley on his side, annoying Sam until he said yes which was the only right answer and if Josh had even a fraction of the talent and intelligence Sam had he’s sure he wouldn’t have taken almost three days to answer a make or break question from his best friend but. But.

But Theo had a fever and Donna couldn’t just stop schmoozing up her constituents a year before such a big election so here Josh was. In Wisconsin. Two hours and fourteen minutes away from Washington on plane. Thirteen hours and fifty two minutes by car. 851.1 miles away from -

“Your phone’s ringing Daddy!” Theo said in her hoarse voice which Josh would encourage her to rest if it weren’t for the fact that his heart leapt up to his throat and he almost tripped on Noa’s soccer cleats running to get the phone from where she had been watching Netflix after her tablet died.

“Thank you sweetheart,” he said taking it from her gently trying not to get his hopes up just as Theo said “It’s Uncle Sam’s office.”

“Is it?” Josh said, eyebrows raising, trying not to sound too excited. Theo however did not seem to share his enthusiasm as she let out a quiet “mh-hm” before rolling over and pulling her blanket over herself making it clear their conversation was over.

“Right, okay - right.” He said, almost to himself, as he began to pace. His daughter’s rejection didn’t hurt as much as it could’ve once, maybe before Leah’s Bat Mitzvah where she had flat out refused to interact with him after their father daughter dance. But that was besides the point, Josh reminded himself. The point was that Sam was calling and he didn’t want to make it sound like he had been waiting for days for Sam to call him and say yes.

There was also, of course, the possibility that Sam would say no but it wasn’t good for Josh’s heart to focus on such worst case scenarios.

So he picked up the phone.

“Hello?”

“Hey Josh” Came Sam’s voice from the other end. He didn’t sound nearly a quarter as stressed as Josh felt, but before Josh could express any of his thoughts Sam continued. “I’ve been thinking about what you said, I talked to Ainsley and the kids and a couple of my staff, you know, milling it over, and I wanted to know what you had in mind. It would be great if you could come down again talk to some people and get them together, I’d love to announce you as my campaign manager soon after I make the announcement.”

Josh was sure his eyebrows had never been as raised as they had been at this moment. “Campaign manager?” He managed to choke out.

“Yeah.” Said Sam like he wasn’t asking him to come out of his very comfortable job of being a full time stay at home dad. “Let me know when your flight comes in. Thanks buddy!”

Josh opened his mouth again but barely let out a breath before he heard Sam hang up. He had expected Sam to say yes, of course, he was what this country needed now but Josh himself? Josh very much just wanted to be the architect of the idea not whatever the hell Sam had concocted in his messed up mind before Josh could protest the sick son of a -

“Daddyyy” came Theo’s whine from the couch. “I threw up.”

Great, thought Josh. I want to throw up too.