Chapter Text
Year: 2032
Ben doesn't know what he expected to find when he came home. But seeing his wife, esteemed Governor of Indianna, pacing their daughters room in a frenzy was pretty low on his list.
Drawers were open with papers and folders askew. Boxes from underneath Sonia's bed were piled across the floor. And right in the middle stood the culprit, pacing in a small square while violently flipping through the pages of a small blue journal.
"Leslie..." Ben tried to make his way across the now incredibly cluttered room. Sonia had definitely inherited his tendencies for extreme organization and he could only imagine the explosion that this mess would cause.
"Leslie," this time when Ben spoke he managed to reach out and hold his wife's arm, stopping her pacing square. "Leslie what are you doing?" He had that stern-Congressman-fighting-against-an-unjust-bill voice that also doubled as confused-and-worried-and-a-little-annoyed-husband-voice.
"Nothing!" Leslie tossed the journal cross the room. Eyes wide and arms crossed defensively. Ben quirked an eyebrow and felt a smirk tug at his lips, but he resisted.
"Well we both know that's not true."
"Ben Wyatt! Are you accusing me of not speaking the truths? I, the-the audacity and the nerves I can't even believe-that my own husband! Would just- The outrage!" Leslie flung her arms around her in offense before stumbling backwards and falling on top of a pile of stuffed animals. Her brow furrowed and her face scrunched up in the usual way when she's mad or annoyed or frustrated. Ben offered Leslie a sympathetic smile before sitting beside her on the floor, absentmindedly holding her hand and running his fingers over her knuckles ever so softly.
"Is this because she hasn't told you what Universities she's applying to?" Ben always knew exactly what was troubling her, every single time.
Leslie grumbled.
"She's 17 now, Leslie, I think you've got to let her make her own choices."
Leslie groaned and through her face into her hands. "She wouldn't even talk to me Ben! I was gently reminding her that the deadlines for University of Indiana and Harvard were quickly approaching and she grumbled at me, Ben. Grumbled! And then- then! She completely changed the subject!"
"So... You went through her personal stuff in her private bedroom because she didn't say if she applied to a few universities?" Ben had that confused and slightly concerned look across his face, furrowed brow and pursued lips like he was contemplating what to say.
"Well, yes! I had to, Ben. Sonia is hiding something from me. She's not telling me something and I need to know what's going on. And she's my daughter, I can read her diary. It's a parenting rule."
"I don't think that's an actual thing-"
Ben was cut off by Leslie continuing her ramble. "But it's no use because I went through all 137 volumes of "The Story of Sonia Knope-Wyatt," and there's not a single entry on colleges or universities or applications or even me! I'm her mother, Ben, I expected at least 1 entry about me embarrassing her at school or something."
Ben nodded and wrapped his arm around Leslie, gingerly rubbing circles against the small of her back while she leaned into his shoulder.
"Do you think that maybe, just maybe, this might have less of something to do with Sonia not telling you about her college applications and more about Sonia, Stephen, and Wesley leaving for college in less than a year?"
Leslie tried to hold back the sniffle and the way her voice cracked and betrayed her when she said "No, what that's crazy talk I've totally accepted the fact that they're leaving," but it was a failed attempt.
The next thing Ben knew Leslie was curled up in his lap crying into Ben's shirt like a small child.
"I'm gonna miss them so much." The words came out in more of a wail while Leslie sobbed.
"Me too, babe, me too."
~~~~~~
"Please tell me the reason Mom is sitting on your lap in my room is completely G-Rated."
Ben wasn't sure how long Leslie had cried for, but after a while she tuckered out and ended up sitting in his lap quietly before dozing off. He must've fallen asleep too because now Sonia was standing in the doorway of her room looking worried and borderline disgusted.
Ben narrowed his eyes at Sonia from across the room and mouthed "You need to tell her, now."
Sonia groaned and mouthed back, "She'll freak out! She'll steamroll the entire thing!"
Ben gave his daughter a deadpan look and stared her down. Waiting.
Sonia lost this round.
"Hey Mom? Mom are you awake?"
Leslie rubbed her eyes, face still a little red from crying.
"Sonia! You're home!" Leslie climbed off of Ben's lap and enveloped her daughter in a hug.
"Yeah and I've got to tell you something. It's kind of important and I didn't want to tell you before because I knew you'd want to take control of the whole thing and I wanted to do this by myself. Take charge on my own and-"
"What? Take control? I am not controlling, Ben? Tell our daughter I'm not controll- sorry never mind. Keep going, sweetheart."
"I applied for early admissions to the University of Indiana's Honors Program and I got in." Sonia lets the words run straight out of her mouth without so much as taking a breath between words.
Leslie smile radiated pure sunshine in that moment. Pulling her daughter in for another hug, "I am so glad you didn't write that in your diary because that was all the more wonderful coming from you in person."
"Thanks mom, I- wait, you read my diary?"
"Shhhhhh lets just stay here and enjoy the hug about my daughter being the most genius woman on the planet."