Yes (Parks and Recreation Fanfic)

Part 1 - Leslie

Excuse me. Are you Leslie Knope?" Says a voice behind me.
"Yes." I say, turning around to see a tall man in a suit.
"My name is William Barnes. Do you have a minute to talk?"
"Sure!" I say. He walks off, and I follow him, giving one last glance towards Ben. He sits down inside a conference room, next to a pretty girl with long brown hair. The girl starts talking.
"We really enjoyed the service. That fireball was truly amazing."
"I'm glad. Because it was planned." I say frantically. It wasn't at all. It almost killed Ron.
"You were also responsible for the Harvest Festival, correct? " says William
"Well a lot of people contributed to that."
"You don't have to be modest. " says William, raising a hand. "We know it was you. You did an amazing job."
"Thank you."
"We are part of a group that tries to identify potential candidates for a political office here in town. And we think that you might fit the bill."
I sit there, shocked by his words.
"Oh. Wow. Which office in particular?"
"Well there are a couple of city council seats that we think are vulnerable. Plus, the mayor's term is up next year."
"All we need to know is are you theoretically interested in running for office?"
I panic. This is really happening. Oh my god..
"Absotutley I am." Crap. I messed that up "Very sorry I just used that word. But yes, I just... I've dreamed about this moment for a very long time. Would I have to quit my job?"
"That's a long way off."
"Of course."
"But listen. When you run, even in a local election, your life becomes an open book. If you so much is stiff a waiter on his tip, or use the government stamp for personal mail, it will come out. So before we go any further, I need you to tell us. Is there a scandal out there?"
I glance up at Ben. I shouldn't lie to these people. If I do run, there's a large chance that it will come out anyways.
"Yes."
They both look shocked at my answer.
"Really? That's not the answer we were expecting. Ms. Knope, you seem like the last woman in the world to have a secret... no offense."
"None taken. Wait..." Oh my god! What have I done?!
"How big of a scandal?" The girl asks.
"Uh... what scandal? I never said anything about a scandal..." I say, trying to cover up my tracks.
"Ms. Knope, how big is this scandal?" William asks.
I sit and rock back and forth in my chair, not making eye contact with either of them. I know that the answer is "Big". Why did I tell them? Why?! My eyes start to water.
"I'm sorry Ms. Knope. I believe that will be all."
"Wait! But wouldn't it be fun to have a candidate with issues? A good challenge?"
"We aren't looking for a challenge. We're looking for someone who could win."
"This is outrageous! Dexhart has sex scandals all the time! He's still in office! He's been in office for 8 terms!" I say, thinking of every last piece of knowledge that might help me at this point.
"It's a sex scandal?"
"I never said that!"
"Look, Ms. Knope, I hate to say this, but being a girl in, well, frankly a sexist city is already a huge disadvantage. We're sorry." They stand up and walk out. I put my head in my hands. I just f***ed up the rest of my life. I hadn't been dating Ben for that long. I'd had this dream for decades. I sit alone for what feels like hours. Finally, a familiar touch grazes my back. Delicate and warm.
"Leslie? What's wrong?" Ann says, sitting down beside me. I say nothing for a while. I just sit quietly.
"I'm your best friend. Can you tell me?"
"They asked me to run for office" I say, suddenly becoming aware of the tears flying down my face."
"Oh my gosh! Leslie! That's good, right?" Ann asks, her beautiful voice optimistic, as always.
"Then they asked me if there was a scandal out there."
"Oh no." She whispers, her voice losing its optimistic tone.
"I said there was, Ann! I just let it slip! Now my dreams are crushed and I have no future and-"
"No. Leslie, you are an amazing, smart, talented woman. You have a future. Just you wait."
She strokes my hand for a while, until she finally whispers, "Would it help to have Ben in here now or no?"
Part of me hates him for being the cause of me losing my dream job, but I just want the comfort of my boyfriend here to help me.
"It would help."
I look up to see Ann nod at the doorway behind me. Ben comes running in and is at my side in seconds.
"Leslie! What happened?"
Ann gets up and closes all the shades on the windows overlooking the party. I see a few confused looks from Jerry and Donna, but I really don't care at this point.
"OK. Don't think that this means that you guys will be left alone" says Ann, sitting back down next to me. "I'm not leaving my best friend like this."
This makes me cry even more.
"Ann, you..." I can't even finish the sentence. I'm so choked up.
"Leslie, what happened?" Ben asks again. I look over at him, but the tears in my eyes have blurred my vision so much that I can't even see his gorgeous face.
"Do you want me to talk?" I hear Ann ask. I nod my head slowly.
"That guy who pulled her away asked her if she wanted to run for office."
"Oh my gosh! Leslie, that's amaz-"
"Zip it, Wyatt." Ann says sharply. "But... when asked if she had any scandals that would come in the way of the election, she said yes."
"I just let it slip! I didn't think! Or, I did kind of think a little, but I thought it was better not to lie! I may have-"
"How much do they know?" Ben asks in a surprisingly calm voice.
"I mentioned how many sex scandals Dexhart has had somewhere in there, so they assume it's a sex scandal..."
"Is it?" asks Ann.
"Yeah, what is this called?" Ben asks.
"Doesn't matter. They don't know anything else about this."
We all sit quietly for a couple of seconds, and at the same time, Ben and Ann both wrap their arms around me. I hear the door behind us creak open.
"Leslie Knope! What's wrong?" Chris' voice says from the doorway. Ben and I instinctively jerk away from each other. Chris is so nice. He would be so supportive. I want to tell him, but telling him would reveal our notorious secret.
"Leslie?" I hear from Jerry.
"Leslie?" Donna.
"Leslie?" Andy.
"OK everyone. I think Leslie just needs some time to breathe. I think that we should leave the comforting up to her friend." says Ron's voice over the chorus of my name. I notice that Ben is already moving towards the door, as to not cause suspicion. The "friend" is clearly Ann, and since it's not plural, it would be odd for Ben to stay.
The door closes, leaving me and Ann alone.
I realize then that I have the best friends in the world.
Maybe this protective bubble of love will keep away the fact that my government career went down the drain with one word.