It’s always darkest before the dawn
By Heidi and Lisa
 
Disclaimers-These are not my characters and I am 
making no money off of them.
 
Ratings Info-School Ties Series, Sam/Donna, 
SUICIDE
 
Spoilers-20 Hours In LA, Somebody’s Going To 
Emergency Somebody’s Going To 
Jail, Pilot, Noel, 17 People
 
Special Thanks to Lisa for being my co-author and 
helping me find inspiration when the well was 
drying up. This series has taken a life of its own 
and is far from being done.
 
Special Notes-I am certainly not meaning to 
glorify suicide in any matter in this story and would 
never take that lightly. Suicide is never the 
answer to any problems that someone may have.
 
Special Notes-The timeline has huge jumps. This 
is a plot device to move this story forward, so 
that we can get to the good stuff in the next 
stories that follow this one.
 
Special Notes-I don’t know anything about suicide 
attempts or the counseling that someone seeks 
after this. The “therapy” that is described in the 
story is general information and questions that 
are in a psychology textbook. I am certainly not 
a therapist or anything like that. This is 
purely for the sake of fiction and I don’t mean to 
insult or upset anyone.
 
 
 
 
 
Hospital Waiting Room.....
 
 
The senior staff sat quietly, lost in their own 
thoughts. They had all been directed to a private 
waiting room, once hospital personnel recognized 
them.
 
CJ felt guilty. She felt that she should have 
seen what Donna was going though. She felt like 
the sisterhood was hurting.
 
Toby felt like he was responsible for what was 
happening. He knew that he shouldn’t feel like 
this, but it was hard. He felt like he had put 
undue pressure on Donna to admit her feelings for 
Sam.
 
Josh kept pacing. He thought that he should have 
seen it coming. Donna was with him everyday and 
even he missed it. He had been through his own 
emotional upheavals and Donna was with him at 
every step and he was damned sure that he wouldn’t 
let her fall.
 
Sam watched Josh pace the room. He saw CJ and 
Toby sitting in chairs looking sick. He lived with 
this woman and couldn’t see what she was going 
through or even prevent it. Everyone shared the 
same feelings of guilt and regret over what had 
happened.
 
 
The doctor took a deep breath and pushed open the 
doors to the waiting room.
 
 “Are you all here for Donna Moss?” Dr. Lisa 
Keyes asked.
 
 “Yes. How is she?” Josh asked.
 
 “Okay. Everyone needs to calm down and listen 
very carefully to me.” Dr. Keyes said.
 
 
The senior staff settled down and waited for the 
doctor to speak again.
 
 “Miss Moss is currently in a drug induced coma 
and in stable condition. We pumped her stomach 
and removed the additional drugs in her system. 
She is in a coma right now because she needs to 
rest and let her body build itself back up to its 
normal strength. Suicide is a very serious event 
for someone to try. This should not be taken 
lightly because Miss Moss is very ill at this time.” 
Dr. Keyes explained, her eyes coming to rest on 
every member of the senior staff in the room.
 
 
 “Can we see her?” Josh asked.
 
 “She is resting right now and I don’t want to 
bother her. If you want to remain here, I can see 
if she is up to visitors when she wakes up.” Dr. 
Keyes said.
 
 
The senior staff continued to wait for Donna to 
wake up. She was one of the only assistants that 
was with the senior staff wherever they went. 
Donna had gotten to go to LA when no other 
assistants had been allowed. Josh made the difficult 
decision to call Leo and let him know what was going 
on. Leo had insisted that a senior staff member 
remain there at all times in case Donna woke up. 
CJ was the one who volunteered to stay through 
the next morning when the guys had to go back to 
work and handle business. Donna was their friend 
and they wanted to be there for her, but the White 
House and federal government didn’t stop because 
a friend was hurting.
 
 
The loud beeping of machines woke her up. She 
thought to herself that the sleep had been one of 
the best she’d gotten in a long time. Donna 
looked around the room at all of the machines. She 
logically knew that suicide wasn’t the answer to 
any problem, but the walls had started to close in 
on her and she looked for the easiest escape 
route. A nurse walked into the room and started 
messing with the IV on her hand.
 
 “Can you tell Dr. Keyes I want to see CJ 
Cregg?” Donna asked.
 
 “Yes, I will tell her right away.” the nurse 
said and left the room.
 
 
 
Dr. Keyes was in her office when the nurse said 
that Donna Moss was asking to see people. She 
took that as a good sign and went to find the person 
in question.
 
 “Excuse me, CJ Cregg ?” Dr. Keyes asked of the 
woman with the computer.
 
 “Yes, I’m CJ Cregg.” CJ said as she stood up.
 
 “Miss Moss would like to see you now.” Dr. 
Keyes said.
 
 
CJ stuffed her things in her briefcase and 
followed the doctor out of the room and back to Donna’s 
room. CJ opened the door and stepped into the 
room.
 
 “Hi CJ.” Donna said.
 
 “Hey yourself. How are you feeling?” CJ 
asked.
 
 “Sore and really tired.” Donna said.
 
 “Donna, why did you....” CJ trailed off and 
couldn’t finish asking the question.
 
 “I did it because everything was closing in and 
getting to be too much. Between my parents, 
Jacob, Sam, and life in general, I couldn’t handle 
the way my own life was spinning out of control.” 
Donna said.
 
 “Why didn’t you come to me or at least talk to 
someone?” CJ asked.
 
 “I didn’t want to add to everyone else’s 
problems.” Donna said.
 
 “Donna, you know that we would have helped you, 
no matter what was going on.” CJ reassured her 
friend.
 
 “Yeah. How are Josh and Sam?” Donna asked.
 
 “Josh is angry that he didn’t see what was 
going on. Sam feels like he is responsible.” CJ 
honestly told her.
 
 “Oh my god. Now I have upset everyone.” Donna 
said and covered her face.
 
 “Donna, you are not responsible for how 
everyone is acting. I can handle them. Right now, you 
have to concentrate on getting better and coming 
back to work.” CJ said.
 
 “Thanks, CJ. You are a great friend, but I’m 
getting kinda tired.” Donna gently hinted to the 
other woman.
 
 “Okay. Get some rest and take it easy while 
you are here. No one is going to screw anything up 
too badly while I’m on the case.” CJ tried to 
get a smile on Donna’s face before she left the 
room.
 
 
Donna never wanted to hurt anyone and that is 
what she had done. She resolved to tell Josh, Sam, 
and Toby that this wasn’t their fault and they 
weren’t responsible for what she had done.
 
 
CJ went back to the White House and told the guys 
that Donna was awake and ok. They all wanted to 
go and see her, but the doctor had warned them 
that it might be too much for Donna and to wait 
until she asked to see people. Josh was still upset 
and taking it out on the temp. Sam was keeping 
his door shut, yelling at people, and slamming 
said door. Toby was very offish and not really 
talking too much. There was still a huge guilty 
feeling going around and would not go away until 
Donna talked to them and came back to work.
 
 
Donna was watching the tv in her room when a 
doctor walked in. She turned off the tv and looked 
at the woman.
 
 “Hi, I’m Doctor Kate Masters from the mental 
health ward. Dr. Keyes referred you to me.” Kate 
said.
 
 “Okay” Donna said.
 
 “Let me reassure you that I understand your 
situation and the need to be discrete. I have 
treated many high profile patients in the past and 
know the routine. I have also spoken to Leo McGarry 
and he informed me that I need to give him an ok 
when I feel that you are ready to return to 
work.” Kate explained.
 
 “Do I have to stay in the hospital or can I go 
home?” Donna asked, wanting to be around her own 
stuff.
 
 “That decision is completely up to Dr. Keyes, 
but why don’t you tell me what has been going on 
in your life that would drive you to this point.” 
Kate asked her.
 
 “Well, I moved in with a guy who is a friend 
and a co-worker, my parents didn’t approve and 
showed up on my doorstep after he kissed me, my 
parents tried to have me committed with help from my 
ex-boyfriend, I had to go to court, and then tried 
to kill myself when the walls started closing 
in.” Donna said in a plain as day way.
 
 “Well, we have a lot to talk about, but lets 
start with the easy stuff. You and I will meet on 
Mondays at 2 p.m. for as long as it takes and 
when I am satisfied that you are dealing with 
things. When I am happy with the progress that you are 
making, I will call Leo McGarry and tell him what 
he needs to know.” Kate again explained to 
Donna.
 
 “Okay.” Donna said.
 
 “Why don’t you tell me about this guy that you 
are living with that kissed you and your parents 
don’t approve of.” Kate asked Donna.
 
 “His name is Sam and he is a great guy. When I 
went back to school, he supported me and helped 
me out a lot. I asked him to move in with me when 
my search for a roommate was going horribly and 
his apartment was becoming a slum. We are friends 
and it seemed like the right thing to do.” Donna 
said.
 
 “What about this kiss?” Kate asked.
 
 “He kissed me and we never talked about it 
because my parents showed up.” Donna said.
 
 “Did you like the kiss? Do you want to be more 
than just friends and co-workers?” Kate asked, 
but had a feeling about the answers already.
 
 “The kiss was wonderful. It was lazy and sweet 
and demanding nothing more.” Donna said.
 
 “But?” Kate asked.
 
 “We haven’t talked about it because my parents 
showed up and when we did, he said to wait until 
everything else was done.” Donna said.
 
 “And you want to know where you stand with him 
after this, right?” Kate asked with a knowing.
 
 “Yeah.” Donna said.
 
 “My best advice on this is to talk to him and 
tell him how you feel. Tell him where you want 
this to go. Offer him a chance to tell you how he 
feels. You both need to deal with this thing 
before you can devote time and energy to healing the 
rest of the things in your life.” Kate 
instructed her.
 
 “Okay.” Donna said and resolved to call Sam 
after the doctor left.
 
 “Well, I think I will leave, so you can make 
that call. I will see you tomorrow morning again.” 
Kate said and left the room.
 
Donna thought about what she wanted to tell Sam. 
She knew that she had feelings for Sam, as Toby 
pointed out on another morning. She wanted him to 
feel the same way, but the fear of rejection was 
something that she didn’t want to deal with right 
now. Donna picked up the phone and dialed a 
familiar number.
 
 
Sam was alone in the apartment working on his 
laptop. He missed Donna being there. The apartment 
just felt weird. Josh and Toby had come over to 
help fix the door and CJ helped clean up the 
apartment. He was so into missing Donna’s smiling 
face and reassuring presence, that he almost didn’t 
hear the phone ringing.
 
 “Hello?” Sam asked.
 
 “Sam.” Donna said.
 
 “Hey. It’s so good to hear your pretty voice.” 
Sam said.
 
 “Thanks. It’s great to hear your voice too. I 
miss you and I miss my own apartment.” Donna 
said.
 
 “When are you being released?” Sam asked.
 
 “The doctor and the psychologist said that I am 
being released tomorrow morning. I wanted to ask 
you if you would come pick me up.” Donna said.
 
 “Of course I will be there, no problem.” Sam 
said, confused that Donna would think there would 
be a problem.
 
 “I just wanted to make sure that I wasn’t gonna 
take you away from anything important.” Donna 
said.
 
 “I would make arrangements to come and get you 
anyway. There is nothing in this world more 
important than you.” Sam said with a smile that she 
couldn’t see.
 
When Sam told her that there was nothing more 
important than her, she smiled her own smile that he 
couldn’t see either.
 
After talking for a few more minutes, they both 
hung up the phone with happy smiles and good 
feelings.
 


Sam walked into the hospital room where Donna 
was and found her packing up stuff.
 
 “You shouldn’t be doing that. Get back into 
bed and let me get this for you.” Sam said.
 
 “I am perfectly fine to pack up this stuff.” 
Donna said with a little pout on her face.
 
 “You are still a patient, so get back into that 
bed and wait for the doctor.” Sam said with a 
silly smile on his face.
 
 “Fine.” Donna relented, climbed back into bed, 
and watched Sam pack up all of the stuff she had.
 
 
 “I can’t believe that Josh sent these beautiful 
flowers all on his own.” Donna commented.
 
 “He really cares about you and hopes that you 
will be back at work soon. The temps finally 
refused to come up and Ginger got stuck working for 
Josh until you come back.” Sam filled her in on 
the latest office gossip.
 
 “I am so sorry that I scared everyone like 
that. Please believe me when I say that it will 
never happen again.” Donna said, looking directly at 
Sam.
 
 “I know that it will never happen again, but 
don’t be afraid to bring your problems to us. We 
are your friends and hear for whatever you need. 
If you just want to talk or vent about things, we 
are here for you.” Sam said, looking directly 
into Donna’s eyes.
 
 “Thanks for being here for me. I know that we 
need to talk about that kiss and what it means.” 
Donna said.
 
 “We do need to talk about it, but I don’t want 
to rush you.” Sam honestly said.
 
 “I am not rushed and want to talk about it and 
what it means for us.” Donna said with a small 
smile.
 
 “Donna, don’t get me wrong, I want to talk 
about what the kiss means, but lets talk about it at 
home where we are both comfortable.” Sam said.
 
 “That’s probably a good idea.” Donna said.
 
 
They both looked at each other and kept eye 
contact until the doctor entered the room.
 
 “Good morning.” Dr. Keyes said.
 
 “Good morning.” Sam and Donna both responded 
to the greeting.
 
 “Okay, then. I have all your paperwork here 
and just need some signatures on them.” Dr. Keyes 
handed Donna a stack of papers.
 
Donna looked over the papers, signed them, and 
handed them back to the doctor.
 
 “Here you go. Can I go home now?” Donna 
anxiously asked.
 
 “Not yet. We need to discuss your counseling 
appointments.” Dr. Keyes said while giving Sam a 
wary eye and looking back to Donna.
 
 “It’s okay. We can talk about it. He knows 
everything.” Donna said.
 
 “Fine, then. We will be seeing you every 
Monday at 2 p.m. for a private session with Kate. She 
will make a determination as to when you can go 
back to work, per Leo McGarry’s instructions.” 
Dr. Keyes explained the details.
 
 “I totally understand, but am I free to go 
now?” Donna again asked.
 
 “She’s anxious to get home, huh.” Dr. Keyes 
said to Sam.
 
 “Yeah, she wants to go home.” Sam said with a 
smile.
 
 “Well, then, you are completely free to go home 
now.” Dr. Keyes said with a smile and left the 
room.
 
 “Let’s go home then.” Sam said and helped her 
into the waiting wheelchair.
 
Sam got all of Donna’s flowers and balloons 
loaded into his SUV and headed for the apartment,
 
 “What are you going to do with your time off 
from work?” Sam asked, as they sat in traffic.
 
 “Well, I have the counseling in the afternoons 
and just hang out around time. I made a decision 
regarding school for next semester, too.” Donna 
said.
 
 
Sam swung into the apartment parking lot and 
announced that they were home. Donna was so glad to 
be back in her element. She had never been so 
glad to see something in her life, ever. 
 
The apartment was just like she remembered. She 
noticed that the bathroom door had been fixed and 
the place cleaned up. She headed for her bedroom 
and slipped into jeans and a Harvard tee-shirt 
that was a get well gift from Josh. Donna walked 
back into the living room and sat down on the 
couch.
 
Sam noticed that Donna was sitting in the living 
room. He quickly tied her balloons to a chair 
and brought her mail into her. Sam sat it on the 
table in front of her.
 
Donna looked at the stack of mail sitting in 
front of her. She had finally climbed out of the 
hole of debt she gotten in when Cheryl left, only to 
be on administrative leave from a job that she 
loved. She was worried if she was going to be able 
to pay the rent and the rest of her bills.  Donna 
didn’t know what she was going to do.
 
Sam read her face like a book and knew what she 
was thinking about.
 
 “You don’t have to worry about money. Josh 
made sure that you were on a paid leave. Leo loves 
you and only did this because he wants you to get 
better. Everyone wants to make sure that you are 
ok.” Sam said.
 
 “I owe Leo and everyone else such a huge 
apology. I was so mean and hateful to him.” Donna 
said and covered her face.
 
 “Leo understands that you were going through a 
huge upheaval and didn’t mean the things that you 
said.” Sam said.
 
 “I need to write him a letter of apology. 
Would you deliver it to him tomorrow?” Donna asked.
 
 “Of course I will.” Sam said with a smile and 
moved to sit down on the couch next to her.
 
 “Thank you so much for being here for me 
through everything.” Donna said as she leaned over and 
gave him a huge.
 
 
Sam wrapped his arms around Donna and held on 
tight. He wanted her to know that he would be there 
for her, no matter what happened in the future.
 
Donna wrapped her arms tight around Sam. She 
wanted him to know how grateful she was that he had 
been there through everything.
 
 
They both pulled away and looked at each other.
 
 “We really need to talk about that kiss.” 
Donna said.
 
 “Yes, we do. It was a surprise that it 
happened between us, but I don’t regret it.” Sam 
honestly told her.
 
 “Good, because I don’t regret it either. I 
really liked kissing you. It was a surprise to me 
to kiss one of my closest friends. I know that we 
agreed to not get romantically involved when you 
moved in, but....” Donna trailed off.
 
 “Do you want to get romantically involved?” 
Sam asked her.
 
 “How involved would we be? Where would our 
friendship be? I like kissing you and being with 
you, but I don’t think I’m ready for a more 
physical relationship right now.” Donna explained with 
a blush.
 
 “Hey, don’t be embarrassed. I’m glad that you 
feel comfortable enough to talk to me.” Sam 
said, taking her hands in his.
 
 “Thanks for understanding, but how is this 
going to work?” Donna asked.
 
 “First thing, we agree that nothing is going to 
destroy our friendship. We were friends first 
and will be friends after.” Sam said, squeezing 
her hands.
 
 “Okay. The friendship isn’t going to be 
damaged by anything.” Donna said.
 
 “We keep this relationship quiet and private. 
We don’t do anything to draw attention to each 
other. Our friends already think that there is 
something going on and we should tell them that 
there is something going on between us. We still 
deserve our private lives, no matter what our job 
titles are.” Sam said, thinking about his friend 
Laurie and the flack that the administration had 
gotten over that indiscretion.
 
 “Thanks. I’m gonna go take a nap and I know 
that you need to get back to work.” Donna said.
 
 “Nope. I’m working from home today. If they 
need me, they’ll call or page me.” Sam said, 
grabbing his laptop out of his bag.
 
 “You really didn’t have to take the day off.” 
Donna said with a smile and was glad that he did.
 
 
 “I wanted to, so go take your nap.” Sam said.
 
 “Thanks for doing it.” Donna said.
 
 “See ya later.” Sam said and watching Donna go 
into her bedroom.
 
 
 
Sam worked on several speeches and emailed them 
to Toby. He was sure that he’d find printed 
copies of the speeches on his desk with red ink all 
over them. He emailed his parents and a few 
friends to let them know how he was. While he was on 
the computer, Ginger sent him a message and he 
chatted with her for a while. Ginger was happy that 
Donna was ok and getting better. Most of the 
assistants were eagerly waiting for the time when 
Donna would be back at work. Sam knew that Donna 
would be a little distressed when she heard that 
she was the topic of that morning’s staff meeting. 
Leo had suggested that Donna should move out of 
her job with Josh and become Sam’s assistant where 
things were a little more slower paced.  Josh had 
gotten pissed that Leo didn’t think Donna could 
handle it anymore and said that there was no way 
that he would loose his assistant. Sam would have 
loved to have Donna as an assistant, but knew 
that she would miss Josh tremendously. They were 
all taking a wait and see attitude until Donna came 
back to work and Leo made a decision.
 
 
Counseling Session..................6 weeks later
 
 “Good afternoon, Donna.” Kate said as she 
entered the room.
 
 “Hello doctor.” Donna replied.
 
 “I noticed that your friend was out in the 
waiting room again.” Kate said, knowing that Sam had 
accompanied Donna to each and every session for 
the past 5 weeks.
 
 “Yeah, Sam insisted on bringing me.” Donna 
said with a smile because she was grateful to see a 
friendly face after her sessions.
 
 “Today we are going to talk about why you don’t 
feel like you deserve to be happy.” Kate said as 
she flipped on the tape recorder and opened her 
notebook.
 
 “I know that it all goes back to what happened 
with Jacob.” Donna honestly said.
 
 “Then why don’t you tell me what happened in 
that relationship for you to get to this point in 
your life.” Kate said and waited for her patient 
to speak.
 
 “I was a lonely college girl. It was my first 
time away from home and my family. Jacob was in 
one of my classes and we hit it off right away. 
We had been seeing each other for a while and 
were pretty serious and then came the change in what 
was going on.” Donna stopped to take a breath.
 
 “What changed ?” Kate asked.
 
 “He gave me a promise ring and said that he 
wanted to marry me, but he couldn’t afford to while 
he was paying for school. I got a job and ended 
up dropping out of school because I thought that 
this was real. That he really wanted to marry me 
and have a life with me.” Donna said.
 
 “What happened to change the picture?” Kate 
asked.
 
 “He graduated and told me that I wasn’t smart 
enough, pretty enough, or good enough to be a 
doctor’s wife. Jacob told me to make sure my stuff 
was out of the apartment by the time he got back 
from a party with his friends.” Donna said.
 
 “How did it make you feel when he said those 
things?” Kate asked.
 
 “I felt like everything was my fault. Like I 
should have tried to work and stay in school. He 
left me and wanted me out of his perfect life.” 
Donna said.
 
 “I know that you ended up leaving and going 
back to him. What happened and why?” Kate asked.
 
 “He called me up and said that he was sorry. 
That he should have never let me leave and that he 
had an engagement ring ready for me.” Donna 
said.
 
 “What happened when you went back?” Kate 
asked.
 
 “He gave me the ring and we were happy for 
awhile. Then I got in a car accident and he stopped 
to have beers with his friends before even 
thinking about me. That was when I knew he wouldn’t 
change. I packed up again and went back. That’s 
where I’ve been ever since.” Donna finished.
 
 “Donna, you have made some wonderful decisions 
here. You made a choice to try and start a new 
life without your ex-boyfriend. That is something 
that most people don’t have the strength or 
courage to do. Although you had a setback and we all 
do, you chose to realize that this wasn’t what 
you needed and came back to the life that you had 
made on your own. You are such a strong person to 
be able to look at things and not want to repeat 
the mistakes again.” Kate explained.
 
 “Then why can’t Sam and I move past just 
kissing and into a physical relationship?” Donna 
asked.
 
 “I think you both need some time. He doesn’t 
want to push you into something that you are not 
ready for and that is so commendable. You are 
still dealing with the repercussions of Jacob and 
what he did to your life. I think that going slow 
with this new relationship is the best thing for 
both of you. Sam has been here with you and I 
don’t think that he is going to leave or find 
physical comfort somewhere else because you need 
time.” Kate said.
 
 
The session was good for Donna. She was able to 
talk to someone who understood that she felt like 
Jacob’s leaving was her fault, that she didn’t 
try hard enough to make it work.  
 
Kate watched Sam and Donna leave. She was glad 
that Donna was finally opening up to talk about 
her real feelings. She looked at the papers in the 
file and decided that next week would be the week 
where she told Donna the official diagnosis and 
filled out the papers so Donna could return to her 
job in the White House.
 
 
 
Staff Meeting.......................
 
 “Leo, it’s been a few weeks since we talked 
about Donna’s coming back. Where is she going to 
work?” Josh asked hesitantly, not really wanting 
to hear the answers.
 
 “We have to evaluate several things. Is she 
really ready to get back into the swing of things? 
Can she handle the stress without flipping out 
again?” Leo said.
 
 “I don’t think that reassigning her is for the 
best either. Wouldn’t that cause more stress for 
her-having to get used to a new job?” CJ added.
 
 “We will have to wait and see. I will be 
talking to Donna before she comes back and then a 
decision will be made.” Leo said and turned the 
conversation back to pressing matters of state.
 
 “Sam, could you stay a moment. I need to talk 
to you about something?” Leo asked as the rest 
of the senior staff filed out.
 
Leo walked over and shut the doors to his office 
before turning back to talk to Sam.
 
 “How is Donna really doing?” Leo asked.
 
 “She is doing so great. Every time she gets 
done with a session, Donna is so amazingly happy 
like a weight has been lifted off of her 
shoulders.” Sam said with a huge smile across his face.
 
 “What is going on between you and Donna?” Leo 
asked.
 
 “There is nothing going on between me and 
Donna. We are just friends.” Sam said, getting ready 
to go on the defensive.
 
 “There is more than friendship going on. I can 
see it in your face when you talk about Donna and 
no friend would take afternoons off for 6 weeks 
to go with her to therapy. So what is really 
going on?” Leo asked.
 
 “Donna and I have decided to see where things 
go with our relationship. We have only kissed 
once and I don’t want to pressure her into anything 
more right now while she is dealing with this 
crap from her parents and stuff.” Sam said.
 
 “Well, you guys are adults and I trust you to 
make the right decisions, but don’t end up on the 
front pages of any papers.” Leo said, hinting at 
Sam’s past indiscretions with women.
 
 “Leo, could you not say anything to anyone 
else. Donna and I want to tell the rest of our close 
friends.” Sam said.
 
 “I understand. Get back to work on the 
education bill.” Leo said and dismissed Sam.
 
 
Sam walked back to his office and made a mental 
note to tell Donna that Leo knew, but wasn’t going 
to say anything.
 
 
 
Sam and Donna’s Apartment.....................
 
 “Well, Leo already knows that there is 
something going on between us. He backed me into a 
corner and I told him the truth.” Sam said at dinner.
 
 “How did he react?” Donna asked.
 
 “He said for us to act like adults and be 
discrete about things.” Sam said.
 
  “Well, then we need to tell the rest of our 
friends.” Sam said.
 
 “Yeah, I’ll take care of telling Toby, CJ, and 
Josh. You can tell the other assistants that you 
are close to.” Sam said.
 
 “I just wonder how everyone is going to take 
things.” Donna said.
 
 
 
Telling everyone they were close to had been 
easy. Ginger had won the Sam and Donna pool easily 
and was two hundred dollars richer. Carol, 
Bonnie, Ginger, and Margaret were very happy for Donna. 
They wished her all of the luck and happiness in 
the world. CJ was happy for them, but the ever 
present Press Secretary in her reminded Sam to 
keep it quiet and discrete and to not appear on any 
magazine covers. Toby smiled to himself and 
flashed Sam a rare smile. He was glad that they had 
gotten together. Josh was the one who everyone 
had assumed would take it badly. He shocked 
everyone by telling Sam that he was happy for them.
 
 
 
 
Counseling Session.............................8 
weeks later
 
 
Sam held open the door for Donna and rested his 
hand on the small of her back. They had just 
begun to feel comfortable with touching each other. 
Sam was happy and so was Donna. He noticed that 
Donna was smiling more and getting back to her 
old self.
 
 “Hi Donna. How are you feeling today?” Kate 
asked.
 
 “I am great.” Donna said with a big smile.
 
 “I see that Sam is here again with you.” Kate 
mentioned and watched Donna’s face light up.
 
 “Yeah, he wanted to come with me, even though I 
told him that he didn’t have to.” Donna 
explained.
 
 “He is certainly special.” Kate said as she 
put some papers down on her desk.
 
 “He is that.” Donna said with a smile.
 
 “Well, I think that you are ready to go back to 
work. You have dealt with much of the stuff that 
landed you in here to start with. I think that 
getting back to work and back into a routine will 
be good for you and good for those people around 
you.” Kate explained.
 
 “What is the official diagnosis that you are 
going to give to Leo McGarry?” Donna asked with 
trepidation.
 
 “It is going to be stress disorder and 
exhaustion.” Kate said.
 
 “What does that mean?” Donna asked.
 
 “It means that you need to take better care of 
yourself. You need to talk to people and let 
them know how you are feeling. You have a big 
circle of friends and I’m sure that they will help you 
out in any way they can.” Kate said.
 
 “What about our sessions?” Donna asked.
 
 “We will still meet on Mondays. This is a 
standing appointment and I think you can benefit from 
seeing me.” Kate said.
 
 “Ok.” Donna said.
 
 
Kate finished explaining some technical things to 
Donna and sent her home. Donna was quiet on the 
ride home and Sam wondered what was up. He 
unlocked the door and watched her sit down on the 
couch with her hands in her lap. She looked up at 
him with puppy dog eyes. Sam sat down in a chair 
and waited for Donna to speak.
 
 “Kate said that I am ready to go back to work.” 
Donna said.
 
 “Really?” Sam asked.
 
 “Yeah.” Donna said quietly.
 
 “Why aren’t you happy? I thought that you 
loved your job.” Sam said, confused by Donna’s 
reaction.
 
 “It’s just that everyone knows what I did.” 
Donna said.
 
 “Everyone also knows that it happened, you are 
ok, and want to move on. I really don’t think 
that people are going to look at you funny or harp 
on these things.” Sam explained to her.
 
 “Yeah, it’s just that.....” Donna trailed off.
 
 “Hey, you are going to be fine. If it gets out 
of hand, come find me. I’m sure that there are 
places in the White House that we can disappear 
to.” Sam said with a smile.
 
 “Thanks for being so supportive.” Donna said 
and gave him a smile.
 
 
 
After dinner, Donna went into her room and 
decided what to wear on her first day back. After 
destroying her closet and dresser, she decided on a 
pretty gray suit that she loved. 
 
 
 
Sam and Donna shared a quick breakfast before 
heading to work. She took a deep breath and headed 
through the door that Sam held open. People were 
happy to see her back and called out greetings as 
she and Sam walked to her desk. Josh came out of 
his office and swept Donna into a big hug.
 
 “Josh.” Donna said as he set her back on her 
feet.
 
 “What? I missed you.” Josh said with a smile.
 
 “Thanks for missing me.” Donna said and gave 
him a smile.
 
 “Now, get to work. I want an easy week and 
nothing this weekend.” Josh said as he headed back 
to his office.
 
 “And I worried about not getting back into the 
swing of things.” Donna joked and sat down in 
her desk chair.
 
 “Well, I gotta go to work too. I’ll see you 
later.” Sam said and headed out of the bullpen.
 
 
 
Donna watched Sam walk out of her vision. He was 
something special. He hadn’t let her fall and 
had been with her through every step. She truly 
appreciated him and even though they hadn’t done 
anymore than kiss and cuddle, he never pushed and 
she was grateful for him letting her take things 
at a slow pace.
 
 
A note was delivered from a messenger that Leo 
wanted to see her now. She took a deep breath and 
headed in the direction of his office.
 
 “Leo?” Donna timidly knocked on the door.
 
 “Hey Donna. Come on in.” Leo said.
 
 “Hi. I was told that you wanted to see me?” 
Donna asked.
 
 “Yes. I wanted to see you to talk about 
things.” Leo said.
 
 “I am so sorry that I did all of that stuff.” 
Donna said.
 
 “I know that you are sorry, but that is all in 
the past. We need to concentrate on the future 
and what it holds.” Leo said.
 
 “Okay.” Donna said and not knowing what to 
expect next.
 
 “I wanted to ask you if you wanted to transfer 
into the Communications Office for awhile.” Leo 
asked.
 
 “Why would I want to or need to transfer?” 
Donna asked, confused.
 
 “I just want to make sure that you are 
comfortable with the speed and pace of Josh’s office. I 
don’t want you to get overwhelmed by things.” 
Leo said.
 
 “I am not going to get overwhelmed by things. 
I love working for Josh and wouldn’t be happy 
anywhere else. I do want to let you know that I am 
still seeing my therapist.” Donna said.
 
 “I am glad that you are confident and happy and 
ready to be back at work. Don’t ever hesitate to 
come to me if you need to talk. I’ve worn a lot 
of hats and walked in a lot of shoes before, so I 
am here if you need anything.” Leo said.
 
 “Thanks.” Donna said.
 
 
 
Leo gave her a hug and sent her back to Josh’s 
office. He hoped that this was the right thing for 
her and made it a point to check on her in the 
next few weeks to make sure that she was truly 
ready to be back at work and competent to perform her 
job duties.
 
 
 
 
 
3 Weeks Later...................................
 
 
Donna hesitated before knocking on Leo’s door. 
She didn’t want to have to tell him that she 
needed more time. He and the rest of the senior staff 
had been so supportive.
 
 “Come in.” Leo called, not bothering to look 
up from the files that he was reading.
 
 “Leo, I hope I’m not bothering you or 
anything.” Donna said as she stepped into the office and 
shut the door.
 
 
Leo looked up as he heard Donna’s voice and the 
shutting of the door. He immediately noticed that 
she didn’t look like her usual self.
 
 “What’s wrong Donna?” Leo asked.
 
 “I know that when I came back, you said that I 
could transfer into the Communications office if 
I needed to.” Donna stated.
 
 “Yes, I did. What is going on?” Leo asked, 
now even more concerned.
 
 “I hate to say this, but I can’t handle Josh or 
his office anymore. Everything is just too much. 
I can’t act like myself over there anymore.” 
Donna said as she was close to tears.
 
 “Donna, you did the right thing by coming to me 
and letting someone know that you needed some 
help. I will arrange for Ginger to switch with you 
for as long as you need.” Leo said.
 
 “Thank you.” Donna said.
 
 “Have you told Josh yet?” Leo gently inquired.
 
 “No, I was hoping that you might....” Donna 
trailed off.
 
 “I understand and will let everyone know at 
this afternoon’s staff meeting.” Leo said.
 
 “Thanks again.” Donna said.
 
 “You’re welcome.” Leo said.
 
 
He watched the young woman walk out of his 
office. She was a different person since the suicide 
attempt. Donna let people know how she was 
feeling and when she needed them. He was glad that she 
was finally letting people in. Leo would have 
never expected to hear her say that she couldn’t 
handle Josh, but the suicide attempt had changed 
them all and some not for the better.
 
 
Leo wondered how the senior staff would take the 
changes. Josh would be angry for awhile, but he 
would get over it when he saw that this was what 
Donna needed. CJ would hope that Donna was doing 
the right thing for herself. Toby would be 
worried about how things would look if Sam and Donna 
finally wised up and became a couple. Sam would 
be the happiest of the bunch. Leo knew that he 
loved Donna. He had seen how much Sam doted on 
Donna and how much Donna responded to him. Things 
would just have to be dealt with as they came up. 
Leo went back to reading his files and preparing 
for the afternoon staff meeting.
 
 
 
Afternoon Staff 
Meeting....................................
 
 “Ok, we just have a staffing matter that you 
all need to be aware of.” Leo said.
 
 “What. Are we getting some new assistants?” 
Josh asked with a smirk.
 
 “Some of you are. Donna and Ginger are 
switching places for a little bit.” Leo said.
 
 “Why?” Sam and Josh both asked at the same 
time.
 
 “Donna came to me and asked to be reassigned 
and I don’t want anyone badgering her over why.” 
Leo said and gave Josh a hard look.
 
 “So, Donna is officially working for Toby 
then?” Sam asked.
 
 “Yes, she is and that won’t affect your 
relationship with Donna.” Toby answered Sam and gave 
him smile.
 
 
Everyone went back to their offices to get some 
work done. Sam and Toby were walking back through 
the bullpen when they spied Donna sitting at her 
new desk. She looked up and caught Sam’s eye. 
He gave her a big smile and headed into his 
office. Toby nodded at her and stepped into his own 
office. He knew that Sam and Donna were “together” 
as a couple because they had told their close 
friends, but wanted to keep it quiet and private. 
The senior staff and a few assistants were the 
only people who were privy to the information.
 
A few days ago, Josh and Sam and Toby had gone 
shopping. They had hit every jewelry store around 
looking for a promise ring. Sam hadn’t found the 
right one on that trip, but he and Josh had made 
plans to go again. Toby was happy that Sam and 
Donna had found each other and were able to 
overcome what life threw at them. He smiled to himself 
and got down top work.
 
Josh’s Office..........................2 weeks 
ago
 
 “Josh, you ready to go?” Sam asked from the 
doorway.
 
 “Yeah, just let me put this away and we can 
go.” Josh said as he threw a file into a desk 
drawer.
 
 
The two men made their way out of the White House 
and headed for Tricia’s Tokens, a small jewelry 
store that specialized in rings. Sam hoped he’d 
find the perfect ring here. He had been all over 
town for the last few weeks trying to find a ring 
that symbolized what Donna meant to him. Josh 
watched Sam move from case to case looking for the 
perfect ring. He wasn’t too happy when he was 
first told that they were a couple, but he realized 
that Sam and Donna were happy and he got happy 
for them.
 
 “Josh, over here. I think I found it.” Sam 
called out to his best friend.
 
 
Josh walked over to where Sam was standing and 
looked at the ring. It was perfect for Donna and 
he flashed Sam a smile. Sam knew that this was 
the right ring for his girl.
 
 
The sterling silver ring had a band of small, 
shimmery diamonds that ran the length of the ring. 
The diamonds were all set into the band and 
glinted in the light.
 
Sam didn’t even bat an eye when the saleswoman 
quoted him a price of $. He simply took out his 
credit card and slid it across the counter.
 
 “Price doesn’t matter. I want this one.” Sam 
said.
 
 “Yes, sir. Would you like it gift wrapped?” 
the saleswoman asked.
 
 “No, just put it in a box.” Sam replied.
 
 
 
Sam took the bag and the two men made their way 
back to the White House.
 
 “When are you going to give her the ring?” 
Josh asked.
 
 “Soon. I am planning a romantic dinner at the 
apartment.” Sam said.
 
 “Sweet and you know she’ll accept it?”  Josh 
asked, teasing his friend.
 
 “I’m pretty sure that she’ll accept it. We 
both love each other very much.” Sam said.
 
 “Of course, she’ll accept. I have never seen 
her this happy. You both have something special.” 
Josh said wistfully.
 
 “Hey, you’ll find somebody special that makes 
you as happy as Donna makes me.” Sam said.
 
 “I hope.” Josh said and headed to his office.
 
Sam hoped that he never had to live through a 
tragedy to make him see the light. He could have 
lost Donna forever without telling her how he truly 
felt. Sam was going to make sure that Donna knew 
exactly how he felt and what she meant to him.
 
 
 
Weekend.....................Back To Present Times
 
 
It was nice to have such great friends, Donna 
thought. Ginger and Bonnie had invited her to go 
shopping. She’d tried to beg off, but Sam and the 
girls insisted that she go and have some fun. 
The trip had been nice. Donna bought some strappy 
black heels and a sexy new dress that the girls 
insisted she wear home. She had gotten some 
appreciative looks at the mall, but she knew that no 
one could be better than who she had waiting at 
home. 
 
 
Donna unlocked the door and walked into her 
apartment. She stood in the doorway, shocked. There 
was soft music playing, candlelight, and a dinner 
set up in the living room. Sam walked into the 
room and noticed that Donna was home.
 
 “Hey. I’d ask how was the shopping trip, but I 
can see that it was a success.” Sam said and 
gave her a hard male appreciative look.
 
 “Wow. What is all of this?” Donna asked, as 
Sam guided her to a chair.
 
 “It is a quiet dinner.” Sam said and slid into 
his own chair.
 
Sam and Donna ate dinner, She was surprised that 
he had gone to all of this trouble for her. No 
man had ever done the things that Sam had done for 
her, ever. She loved all of the attention that 
he lavished on her. Kate was right, Sam truly did 
love her and just wasn’t using her because she 
was available. 
 
 
 “Thank you. This was a wonderful evening.” 
Donna said as she sat down on the couch.
 
 “The evening isn’t over yet. I have something 
for you.” Sam said, taking the ring box from his 
pocket, opening it, and sat it down in front of 
Donna.
 
 “What is this?” Donna asked as she looked at 
the beautiful ring.
 
 “It’s a promise ring. I want to marry you, but 
later down the road when our lives have settled 
down.” Sam said.
 
 “Wow.” Donna could only utter the one word.
 
 
Donna looked at the ring and flashed back to 
another man, another time. She suddenly wasn’t too 
sure about things.
 
 “Donna, what’s wrong?” Sam asked.
 
 “It’s not you. The ring is beautiful, but...” 
Donna trailed off.
 
 “You can tell me anything.” Sam said.
 
 “It’s just that I’ve been in this place before. 
Jacob never gave me an engagement ring. All I 
got from him was a promise ring and a bunch of 
empty promises.” Donna said.
 
 “I’m not him. I would never hurt you.” Sam 
said.
 
 “I know, but I have been hurt by so many people 
in my life. It’s hard to trust in anything 
anymore.” Donna said.
 
 “Hey, no one is going to hurt you ever. I 
won’t let them and neither will the rest of your 
friends.” Sam said.
 
 
Donna looked at the ring again and thought back 
to what Kate had told her. She was a stronger 
person now and wasn’t going to let her past screw up 
her future. She looked at the ring and back to 
Sam and made up her mind. She took the ring from 
the box and slid it onto her hand.
 
 “Yes. I accept the ring, but I don’t want to 
get married right away. Let’s just give it some 
time before making any major decisions.” Donna 
said.
 
 “I’m fine with that. I want you to know how 
much I love and respect you.” Sam said.
 
 
 
Sam and Donna kissed away the rest of the 
evening. They both headed off to their respective beds 
with smiles and dreams for the future.
 
 

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