Falling for My Dirty Uncle

How many times prior to announcing Ms. Draper as his fiancée has the President jumped out of a speeding car to start fighting with a knife-wielding mugger?

That’s right. Zero.

To be fair, one incident by itself doesn’t make the case that the President is going from single bachelor with a dedic

ated focus on clearing the cave and making America tremendous again, but it falls into a pattern. All of a sudden we’re seeing this President out on Date Night. He’s sticking up for his girlfriend. He’s doing everything that a normal fiancé would.

Except there is nothing normal about this situation. There is nothing normal about dating and getting married to the most important man in the free world. The man who with the touch of his fingers on a button, could bring blackness and death upon the world.

And no, not that button! The nuclear button! Get your mind out of the gutter. We’re talking about Austin Bain and his rapidly evolving First Lady to be.

He’s the President of the United States. So unless they are doing the whole thing as a show for our benefit where they pretend to be in love, the President really is changing to suit the moods of his lady.

All I have to say is let's hope that it’s a good change. After all, two people cleaning the cave is way better than one!

Ashley

I look out the window, watching the blanket of clouds below us. The steady hum of the engines makes my mind drift off and, if it weren’t for Austin being here with me, I’d fall asleep like a baby in a matter of minutes.

“What are you thinking of?” he asks me, looking up from the handwritten sheets of paper sitting on his desk.

“Nothing and everything,” I reply, yawning lazily as I stretch. We’re sitting inside the President’s office inside Air Force One, and I’ve been keeping him company while he goes over his speech.

“Now that’s a politician's reply,” he chuckles, his eyes once more dancing over his speech. “You’d do well if you went into politics, Ash.”

“I’m doing well already, in case you haven’t noticed,” I laugh, wiggling my hand up in the air and showing him the diamond ring on my finger. “I might not be a politician, but I guess I’m doing a good enough job on the backstage. And, you know, backstage is where the real magic happens.”

“I won’t argue with that,” he whispers without taking his eyes off his speech, his lips slowly moving as he tries to rehearse his words silently.

“I want to do more than just work in the backstage, though. I’ve planned some visits to local schools.”

“Oh?” he says, finally raising his head to look at me. “You don’t have to do that, Ash.”

“I know, it’s not like that,” I tell him with a smile. “I want to do it. I’m in a position where I can do some good, and I want to use it. I guess your passion for changing the world has rubbed off on me,” I laugh, my eyes never leaving his.

“I think I rubbed more on you than just my passion for changing the world,” he shoots right back without wasting a breath, his eyes narrowing deviously.

“Definitely more than just that.” I fold my legs, patting the front of my dress, and lean back against my seat by the window. “My mother used to be a teacher, you know? It isn’t easy for teachers, especially when it’s so hard for schools to get proper funding.”

“I guess you did your homework, didn’t you?”

“I did,” I reply. I’m not just a pretty face, and it feels good to have Austin acknowledge it. When I knew we’d be flying to Arizona, I decided to wield whatever influence I might have to try and do some good. I figured that visiting a few local schools could be a good thing to raise awareness. All it took was one call to Tracy, and she loved the idea. “We blow so much money on so many other things, I just think we could use some of that money on raising our youth.”

“See? That’s why I said you’d do well as a politician. In the good sense,” he adds after he seems me frowning. “I’m glad to see you’re more than just what meets the eye… Most women in your position would be happy to just take the money and do as little as possible.

“That isn’t me.”

“I know… and that’s why I’m glad Tracy chose you,” he says, getting up from his seat and walking around his desk. He comes over to me and takes the seat in front of mine. I look at him with a gentle smile, completely unable to wipe it off my face. It just feels good to be appreciated; most men just look at me as some kind of sex object, and I couldn’t be happier that Austin sees more than that in me. Women like to be seen as beautiful, yeah, but sometimes they want more than just that. They want to be seen as equals.

“And you? Ready for the Town Hall?”

“Guess so. I have a perfect speech, and this is where I fucking shine…” He gazes out the window and falls into a deep silence, and I can tell that he’s thinking about Walker. More than a thorn in his side, Walker is a time bomb about to go off. And that without warning.

“Is it safe to push his buttons?” I ask him, not sure if this Town Hall is the best course of action for Austin. He’s trying to wage war with Walker, and flying over to Arizona means that Austin is willing to meet him in the battlefield and fight for the voters face-to-face.

“Fuck Walker,” he breaths out, but I notice the lines on his forehead deepening. “That guy is a bastard. America is lucky he isn’t in the White House now. The government would be overrun by all kinds of bullshit.” Turning to me, he then offers me a pale smile. “You voted for him, didn’t you? I know he might look like someone who cares about this country, but that couldn’t be any further from the truth.”

“I didn’t vote for him, Austin, I voted for you,” I confess, returning his smile. “I told you I hadn’t just to piss you off.” With that, I go up to my feet and close the distance between us; sitting on his lap, I throw one arm around his neck. “Back then, I wasn’t sure if you were the right man to be sitting in the White House, but now… now I believe you, and I’m glad I voted for you.”