Title: Barren (Title subject to change)
Author: Chickiee-Dee
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I don't own Alias or its characters.
Summary: Sydney Bristow never wanted children, but after battling cancer as a teenager, it left her unable to fall pregnant. When she meets the man of her dreams, how will her opinion change? And how does she break the news to him? AU. S/V. S/N. Sydney POV.
Authors Notes: In this story, Jack and Irina are divorced. They still kinda get on, but Irina re-married. Jack has a son from a previous relationship, Damian (21), Sydney has a younger sister, Jessica (12), and Irina has a son with her new husband, David (8). This is just something that I thought of the other day. I have a rough idea of what I want to do with this story, but if I don't get AT LEAST five reviews for this chapter then I'm NOT going to continue with it, because I have other stories that I am trying to write at the moment. I'm not trying to be a bitch, I just really appreciate hearing what you guys think.
Chapter 1I was sixteen when it happened. Mum noticed a small lump on the back of my neck, and suggested that I have it looked at, just to be sure. There's a part of me that wishes I'd never listened to her advice, but then the other part of me chimes in and reminds me that if I hadn't, then well…I don't want to think about that. I don't like dealing with the 'what ifs?' of the situation. I'm alive and that's the main thing.
I'd sat in that pale, dreary waiting room flipping through a magazine for almost an hour before I was called in to see him. Mum, who'd come in with me, stood up and the two of us silently followed the Doctor into his office. He examined the lump and was instantly concerned, quickly booking me in for a series of tests at a local hospital. Admittedly, I thought he was just being paranoid, because after-all whatever this was, it could be taken care of with a course of antibiotics…couldn't it?
Mum and I left his office half an hour later and she drove me straight to the hospital, where I was promptly whisked away so that a series of Doctors' and Nurses' could take some blood and examine me more closely, in other words, poke and prod at the lump, and several other areas of my body until they were satisfied that they'd examined me thoroughly. I have to admit, I've never really been a Mummy's girl, I've always tried to be independent, but after sitting in a small room, shut off from the rest of the hospital for several hours, I wanted my Mum, not just for some human company, but because I was actually scared, there must have been something really wrong if it's taking this long for the Doctor to come back.
Later that evening, after sitting in that small cubicle for god knows how many hours, the Doctor finally returned, Mum in tow, her cheeks wet with tears. "Mum, what's wrong?" I asked, wondering what had my mother so upset. She looked to the Doctor to explain, "Sydney, I'm afraid that you'll have to stay here longer than first thought."
"Vague much? What the hell does that mean? I have to stay longer than first thought. What's wrong with me? I'm not a kid, I can deal with it." Mum came over to me, sitting down on the bed and wrapping her arms around me. 'That's good' I thought, at least whatever I have it isn't contagious. "Mum?" I asked, ignoring the Doctor, who obviously thought that I was too young to be told why I was really being kept in this dull place. "Sydney," Mum said quietly, "You have cancer."
"What?! There's no way! No," I said shaking my head. This guy's full of crap. I'm perfectly fine, well except for this annoying little lumpy thing. I don't have cancer. "I afraid it is possible Miss Bristow."
"No!"
"Sydney, sweetheart, listen to me," I looked over at her, "You'll be fine, I promise." My eyes filled up with tears, "How can you say that? I'm not a kid Mum, I know that cancer kills."
"Actually," the Doctor spoke up, "Patients who suffer from Hodgkin's Disease, the form of cancer that you have, usually recover, and since we caught it early your chances of survival are higher than someone who is diagnosed when the Disease is in its advanced stages."
"How do we treat it?" Mum asked, as I sat there trying to process everything. I had cancer, that was about as far as my mind had gotten in terms processing. "Well," I heard him start, "I'd like to run some more tests on your daughter," great so I don't have a name anymore I'm just 'your daughter' "before we decide on the best way to treat this. I'm going have her admitted, I'll make the arrangements for that shortly. We'll have the results in a day or so, and then we'll decide the best course of treatment." Mum nodded and held me close while arrangements were made for a room for me.
Fifteen minutes later a Nurse came back and motioned for us to follow her up to my room. We stepped off the elevator and walked onto the ward. Bright pictures covered the wall, and a sign above the swinging doors indicated that this was the Children's Ward, as if the pictures weren't enough of a hint, they had to state the obvious for anyone who was really dumb. The young woman left us at the desk after introducing us to the lady who was behind it. She flipped through a few pieces of paper that sat in front of her and indicated to a young man who was standing near her to show us to my room. My room, turned out to be occupied by at least four other children, the oldest looked about twelve. 'Mark' as he called himself, left us at a small bed next to the window, and shut the curtain surrounding the bed, so I could have some privacy while I changed. I noticed the paper gown on the bed and groaned, "I'm not wearing that," I complained to Mum, who told me that I had no choice in the situation. What is it with adults always telling you that you have no choice but to obey their orders? Hello, Free Will anyone? Haven't they heard of it? Mum graciously stepped out of the curtained area so I could change and once I had that god-awful gown on, I really started to feel like I was sick. It hit me all at once, I was sixteen years old, and I had cancer. I'd heard stories about people much younger than me dying from this…this disease. I was so scared. I didn't want to die. There was so much that I hadn't done yet. I wanted to graduate from High School and go to College. I had no idea what I wanted to study at College, but I wanted to go. I wanted to travel, to see the world. I wanted to fall in love and get married, although I didn't want children. I mean, one of me was enough, it was bad enough that I had two half brothers, one older, one younger and a younger sister, the world definitely didn't need another Bristow, or Derevko, whichever way you wanna put it. My family is dynamite. And there's more than enough of us in the world, if you count my cousins, all twenty-five of them. Like I said, big family, get us all together and…well put it this way, we went camping together one time, and we were politely asked never to return to that particular park, we trashed it, we being my cousins, and my siblings, minus David, 'cause he wasn't born yet, and me because I'd ended up with a concussion on the first day after being hit in the head by a flying bottle, and falling off the top of the playground. Let's just say it ruined my vacation.
Mum came back in a few minutes later, "Sweetie, I'm going to call your father and then I'm going to pick up some clothes and things for you, is there anything you want?"
"Yeah, to get out of here," I replied bluntly. She chose not to respond, instead giving me a quick hug and a kiss on the forehead. "Can you call Noah for me?" I asked, even though I knew that Mum hated my boyfriend with every fibre of her being, kind of like the way I hated my step-dad. "If that's what you want." I blinked stupidly, did mum just agree to call my boyfriend for me? Wow, having cancer has its advantages, and that is one of them. She gave me one final hug before leaving me alone with my thoughts and the constant chatter of the young children.
A/N: What did you think?? It sorta veered off in an entirely different direction there, but I kinda like it. Remember it's totally AU, hence Sydney having 3 other siblings and stacks of cousins. This will be S/V eventually, it may take a while, cos I wanna tell a bit of back story first before I get to where she meets Vaughn, (that's in the 'future' when she's older, like in her 20's or something). IF YOU WANT ME TO WRITE MORE, THEN PLEASE REVIEW, COS AT LEAST 5 REVIEWS WILL GET ME TO CONTINUE.