Disclaimer: Not mine, song's not mine either. Don't sue, I have no money.
Author's Note: 7th in my POV series. This one's Toby.
Archive: Sure, just tell me.
Feedback: Makes me very, very happy.
Harry got up
Dressed all in black
Went down to the station
And he never came back
They found his clothing
Scattered somewhere down the track
And he won't be down on Wall Street
in the morning
He had a home
The love of a girl
But men get lost sometimes
As years unfold
One day he crossed some line
And he was too much in this world
But I guess it doesn't matter anymore
I quietly open the door to the apartment, trying not to make a sound. It's 1 a.m. and Andi's probably asleep. Nope. She's sitting on the couch and she looks pissed. Uh-oh.
"Hey, what are you doing still up?", I ask, dreading the answer.
"Well, since it's our anniversary, I was waiting up for you, but I'm no longer in a celebratory mood", she says, standing up and grabbing her coat. It's then that I notice that she's not wearing pajamas, but jeans and a sweater.
Crap.
In a New York Minute
Everything can change
I follow her to the door, trying to keep this from elevating to what it usually does. "Andi, I'm sorry, with the election coming up so soon you know I'm working a lot of hours, I just forgot..."
She cuts me off, "yeah, well I'm getting tired of always being forgotten", she snaps, walking past me to the door and leaving me standing dumbfounded in the living room as the reverberating sound of the door slamming shut rings around me.
In a New York Minute
Things can get pretty strange
An hour later, I'm standing in front of a dark bar, looking at it doubtfully. It's pretty bad looking, but it's one of the few still open and I haven't been able to find Andi anywhere else. Sure enough, as I enter I spot her sitting at the bar with several glasses spread around her.
In a New York Minute
Everything can change
She looks up when I approach her. "You always do this", she slurs, "you piss me off, I leave and you come find me to bring me home, we pretend it never happened and keep on going until the next time."
I just stand there, looking at my shoes. I don't know what to say, everything she said was sadly accurate.
She sighs, "lets go."
In a New York Minute
I open the door for Andi and she stumbles in. "You get the couch tonight", she informs me as she heads towards the bedroom.
Lying here in the darkness
I hear the sirens wail
Somebody going to emergency
Somebody's going to jail
A couple of hours later, I'm lying on the couch, trying to sleep. It's not working. I faintly hear a siren far off as I think about Andi and I and I wonder how in the world things got to be this bad. I'm scared to death of losing her, but I don't know what to do to stop it.
If you find somebody to love in this world
You better hang on tooth and nail
The wolf is always at the door
Over the next couple of weeks, I do my best to make amends. I manage to make it home in time for a late dinner most nights and I'm always home before 11 p.m. I even give her a necklace for a belated anniversary present and take her out to dinner.
In a New York Minute
Everything can change
Then one night I'm swamped with work. I look at the clock and sigh, there's no way I'm getting home before midnight tonight. I pick up the phone and call Andi.
"Hello?"
"Andi, look, I'm really sorry, but-"
"You have to stay late tonight", she finishes for me.
"Yeah, look-"
"It's fine", she cuts in, slamming down the phone. I set my phone down, letting out a sigh.
In a New York Minute
Things can get a little strange
The next morning, Andi ignores me as she moves around the kitchen, making breakfast.
I try to explain again, "Andi-"
In a New York Minute
Everything can change
She turns on me, eyes ablaze, "NO, no, I don't want to hear it anymore! I'm tired of your excuses and apologies! This is where it stops!"
In a New York Minute
I stand, not knowing what to say. So instead, I grab my briefcase and leave the house without a word.
And in these days
When darkness falls early
And people rush home
To the ones they love
You better take a fool's advice
And take care of your own
One day they're here;
Next day they're gone
I come home from work early that day, hoping to be able to try to talk to Andi one more time. Instead, I find that all of her stuff has been cleared out. She left a note: "I'm sorry, I can't live like this anymore. I'll call when my head's cleared a little. -Andi" Underneath the note are the divorce papers.
I pulled my coat around my shoulders
And took a walk down through the park
The leaves were falling around me
The groaning city in the gathering dark
On some solitary rock
A desperate lover left his mark,
"Baby, I've changed. Please come back."
I call everybody I can think of, but no one knows where she is. Finally giving up, I pull on my coat and take a walk. This can't be it, there has to be something I can do, I think. The election's in two days, I know he's going to lose, surely Andi can stand two more days. Maybe I could give up politics, it's not like any of my candidates ever win. I could get a teaching job or something, that would make things easier. There has to be something I can do to stop her from leaving forever.
What the head makes cloudy
The heart makes very clear
The days were so much brighter
In the time when she was here
But I know there's somebody somewhere
Make these dark clouds disappear
Until that day, I have to believe
I believe, I believe
As I return back to my apartment, I make up my mind, I'll leave politics. It's the only solution I can see. When I open the door, I see Andi's waiting for me. She gives me a small smile, "I was hoping we could talk."
"Of course, can I go first?", I ask. She nods. "I've been thinking and I've decided to quit politics." Her head snaps up and she looks at me. I hold up my hand, "wait, let me finish it's the only thing I can think of to change the way things are. I don't want you to leave", I plead.
In a New York Minute
Everything can change
Andi gives me a sad smile, "Toby you could no more quit politics than I could. It's not work that's the real problem, it's us. We just don't work, I'm sorry. But I'll always love you." She gives me a kiss on the cheek then leaves.
In a New York Minute
You can get out of the rain
That's it, she's gone, it's over and I don't know what to do. I sit in the living room, drinking my Scotch. Then I pick up the phone and call the one person I could always rely on.
In a New York Minute
Everything can change
"Hello, CJ Cregg's office"
In a New York Minute
Finis
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