Annie Montrose lived, breathed, and slept stressed. How could she not? She was the PR Director of NASA, one of the largest government funded programs in the country. She managed every possible scandal that could be thrown their way and never batted any eye. Even when the botanist on the Ares III mission was left behind on a desolate planet, she handled the public. And now her biggest issue was dealing with one Mark Watney.

The Ares III crew had landed back on Earth nearly six months ago, and they spent the majority of the first month back in quarantine, healing and being checked to make sure that their extended stay in space wasn't going to have lasting effects on their bodies, especially Watney. After they were cleared, Annie's job had been to organize a press conference, with the crew present to answer questions related to the rescue of their crewmate. And that had gone well, Mark had been well received and behaved himself, no swearing or, severely, inappropriate jokes. When all had been said and done, Mark was given time off to spend with his family and reconnect with society.

Now, back in the present, Annie was ready to strangle him. He had been doing so well, so well. He was meeting with the psychologist twice a week, going to every press conference she scheduled, and was on several talk shows without a single incident. She was actually starting to feel a bit relaxed, like this would be easy and she wouldn't need to worry too much about the public's reaction to the current Mark Watney, who hasn't been around hardly any people in over two and a half years. But no, he had to make her life a living hell with his most recent endeavors. Despite his return six months prior, he was still in the spotlight, which meant he had to keep behaving well and not do anything stupid. An example of something stupid, such as…going out drinking with old college buddies, becoming so intoxicated to the point of throwing up in front of the bar, and leaving with an EXTREMELY questionable woman. Was he out of his goddamn mind?!

Annie paced the conference room, phone in hand, arms crossed, waiting for the culprit of her recent irritation to walk in the room. Director Teddy Sanders sat in a chair with his hands full of papers, reviewing the incident that was on the cover of too many newspapers.

"Annie, sit down. Pacing isn't going to help your stress levels." She paused mid-step, turning towards Teddy. She put her hands on her hips, looking at him in question.

"Are you SURE I can't punch him in the face?"

"Yes."

"What if I just break his nose a little?" Teddy released a deep sigh and rubbed his forehead, he understood her anger, but violence wouldn't get them anywhere. He was about to respond when there was a knock at the door, before Vincent Kapoor peaked his head in the room.

"We're all here, ready for him?" Annie was more than ready. She might be a seething pit of rage, but she was ready. Annie Montrose always is. Teddy told him to come inside, and Vincent opened the door to it's full width, revealing a sheepish looking Mark Watney, followed by his psychiatrist, Dr. Peg Allen. They all walked into the room and sat around the long conference table, with Annie being the only one left standing, but she couldn't sit down right now. She took a deep breath before speaking, addressing everyone in the room.

"Let's get started. It's fairly obvious why we're all here, seeing as Mr. Watney thought it would be a fantastic idea to look like an obnoxious college kid and have it become the cover of every national news site in the country."

"Hey! I was bored, and I haven't seen any of those guys in literal YEARS, so sue me, for wanting to have a night where I could have fun." The glare Annie gave Mark made him shut his mouth.

"Mark, right now you are the face of NASA. It doesn't matter if you don't like it or if you're bored, that's how it's going to be until the next 'big thing' in the country takes you out of the spotlight. But until that happens, my job is to make sure you represent us in a positive light, which you did not do in the least, by the way." Mark looked around the room for help, but everybody was simply waiting for his reaction. He threw his hands up in exasperation.

"Oh come on, seriously? I've been good! I went to every conference, every talk show, I meet with Doctor Allen, and I've been living with my parents because my apartment got sold since everybody thought I was, you know, dead. Forgive me for trying to live again, Mom." He leaned back in his chair, arms over his face, the tension and exhaustion evident in his body language. He had been through hell, and now that he was home they expected him to be a perfect person? Not fucking likely. It was his life, damn it! He lost over two years up in space, was he not allowed to try and make up for lost time?

Annie looked at him, feeling a majority of the anger leave her. Everybody in the room was quiet. Teddy was the first one to speak after the extensive silence.

"Annie, how soon can this be dealt with?" She thought to herself for a minute, forming some semblance of a plan.

"Uh…press conference, tomorrow at five PM, central-standard time. It was already scheduled for discussions about the Ares V Mission, but we can reschedule that for Friday afternoon." Mark moved his arms off his face and watched her speak, "We're also holding a banquet at the end of the month for all the staff in helping bring Mark home, as a way of saying thank you. We can have Mark make a speech, thanking everybody involved."

"Prewritten, of course." Annie nodded her affirmative.

"Yes sir." Mark glared at them, he was so sick of all of this. He just wanted to move on with his life. Before he could add his two cents, Vincent spoke up.

"Is all this really necessary? I mean, so he went out drinking and had a few too many, he's not the first person to do this, sure as shit won't be the last." Annie was getting a migraine.

"It is necessary if we want to keep the program funded, you of all people should know this, Vince. Mark needs to stay on the public's good side, for all our sakes." Mark stood up, hands on the table in front of him.

"This is ridiculous! You," he gestured towards Annie and Teddy, "have no power over me, so why the hell are you making my decisions for me?" Annie gave him a steady look, finally sitting down in a chair directly across from Mark.

"You sure about that? Listen to me, Watney, and listen well," she folded her hands in front of her, "I don't care if you want to drink until you die of alcohol poisoning, it's your life. But right now? Every decision you make and everything you do is being watched by the entire world. You said you wanted all the memorabilia to be about you, remember? Well, you pretty much got your wish. If you want this all to go away as quickly as possible so you can have your life back and be as close to a normal human being as you can, you need to do what I tell you. It's been six months since you got home, after this big final 'thank you' party, the world will, hopefully, start moving on and towards another goal. But you have to listen to me, to all of us in this room. We only want what's best for you and for NASA." Mark visibly deflated, but he knew she was right. If he could get through the next couple of weeks, he'd be done with all the conferences and everything. He gave a small nod in understanding.

"But what about after all this? What about my job? Because honestly, I've had enough space for this lifetime." Annie didn't have an answer, that wasn't her department. She glanced at Teddy and Vincent, hoping one of them had something in mind. It was Vincent who spoke first.

"Actually, Mark…Director Sanders and I have been discussing the possibility of you becoming a survival instructor for the Astronaut Candidate Program. We feel after your experience, you have the best knowledge of what you should and shouldn't do in the event of an incident such as yours." Mark interest piqued, this was something he hadn't heard about.

"Whose idea was this?" Vincent gestured next to him.

"It was Doctor Allen's idea. She felt that everything you've been through should be put to use. And right now, I think she might know the best course of action for you, professionally and mentally, if you don't mind my saying so." Mark looked at Dr. Allen, giving her a silent thank you, and she returned it with a small smile and discreet nod of her head. The woman was practically a saint. Everything Mark had been through, she helped him cope and learn how to handle any possible PTSD triggers, because despite his constant positivity, he almost died on a planet, alone. He was bound to have some mental issues.

Back to the current meeting, Annie spoke up again. "I think that's an amazing plan. It's a great opportunity Mark, I hope you'll seriously consider it," Mark agreed that he would, "So then you now have a press conference tomorrow evening, and then the banquet in a few weeks. In the meantime, I think I speak for everybody present when I say to please stay out of trouble the next few weeks, and to try and relax for at least a couple weeks after this, just so it can blow over. Any objections?" Everybody shook their heads, which made Annie breathe a bit easier.

"Alright then, I'll see you tomorrow Mark. If you will all excuse me, I have speeches to write. I'll be in my office until nine PM if anybody needs me." Annie nodded her head and left the conference room, the door closing with a soft click behind her. The director was the next one up on his feet, with Mark, Vincent, and Dr. Allen following suit.

"You're free to leave, Mark. Please stay out of trouble." Mark shook Teddy's hand, before walking out the door and waving goodbye to Vincent and Dr. Allen. He stretched his arms above his head, feeling his back crack with a satisfying pop, walking down the hall.

He'd been walking for a couple minutes, turning every now and then when he realized he had no idea where the hell he was.

Well, shit.