Disclaimer: Most of the characters mentioned in this story belong to J.J. Abrams. Minor appearances made by some of my own creation.

Distribution: Just ask me first and tell me where so I can visit.

Feedback: Yes, please, it really makes my day.

Spoilers: None, really, since the season's over, but I guess you could say this takes place some time before the Season Finale. Vaughn is not waterlogged somewhere in Taipei and Weiss is still the lovable, supportive friend he's supposed to be.

Summary: Sydney sees Vaughn with Anna Espinosa and demands to know why.

Author's Note: Hello again! I know it's been awhile since my last fic, but I've been waiting for the time when the site would be up and running again full-time. Hope you enjoy!

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"Sydney, I'm telling you you should have bought that red dress!" Francie scolded her as the two of them left the clothing shop. The two best friends were out shopping, the one bit of normalcy Sydney had experienced in recent weeks.

"Like I would have anywhere to wear a clingy red sequined gown!" Sydney chimed back at her with a laugh. "Maybe I could wear it the next time Will takes us to El Grande Taco for dinner!"

Francie giggled. "Well, it would fit in perfectly with the sombrero hats and the papier- maché burro."

"Hey, do you want to go grab some lunch now or hit one more shop?" Sydney asked, looking down the street at the little sidewalk café she'd always wanted to try. She gathered the restaurant was French from the name, Café du Monde, and it looked so quaint with the open-air dining area, the white umbrella-topped tables and the yellow Provençal table linens.

As they neared the restaurant, Sydney caught sight of one of its patrons, who was sitting at a table for two in the outdoor courtyard. Her mouth dropped open as she recognized her handler, smiling and laughing as he took a drink from his glass of wine. The first thought that popped into her head was: Why was Vaughn drinking in the middle of a workday?

She was so flabbergasted by this that she failed to notice his dining companion right away. Then she saw the long mane of hair gathered into a sleek ponytail and the shapely legs not quite hidden under the table. He was with a woman. An irrational burst of jealousy bubbled deep within her. She pointedly ignored it and instead was overcome by an overwhelming need to find out exactly who this woman was.

"Syd, why are you stopping in the middle of the sidewalk?" Francie's voice brought her back to reality.

Sydney glanced at Francie, who was giving her an odd look. She needed time to scope out this situation. "Francie, I just remembered I need to make a phone call to my boss about a deal I'm working on. Go on into the shop and I'll be with you in a minute."

Okay." Francie shrugged and walked into the shop by herself.

Sydney turned back to the matter at hand. She squinted at the couple before her. The woman had her back to her, but there was something about her that was familiar. The long dark hair, the slender neck, the cocoa skin…all of a sudden, the woman threw back her head and laughed, a rich, throaty sound that made Sydney's eyes widen in shock.

What the hell was Vaughn doing with Anna Espinosa? Talking and laughing like he was having a grand old time? Had he gone completely insane?

This couldn't be happening. Vaughn would not be having lunch with Anna Espinosa of K-Directorate of his own free will. There had to be a reason for this. And she would find out what it was before she spontaneously combusted.

Sydney ducked into a phone booth. Dialing the number she knew by heart, she punched in Vaughn's pager number and sent him an emergency page that she was only supposed to use in the direst of circumstances. It had always struck her as an odd bunch of nonsense that such a thing even existed between them because if she had been in an At-Death's-Door situation, what good would it do to page him? But Vaughn had insisted, anyway, and being the good little agent she was, she let him have his way. Sydney let out a self-satisfied cackle. Little did he know his Boy Scout "Always be prepared" compulsion would prove to be the perfect solution to getting him away from Anna's clutches.

Sydney watched as Vaughn felt for his pager. His eyes flickered briefly when he saw the Emergency Code, but he covered it within a split second. If she had blinked, she would have missed the flash of concern that disappeared as quickly as it came. As it was, Anna didn't even notice that anything was amiss.

"I'm sorry, it's the office." Vaughn looked apologetic. "And apparently, it's an emergency because they want me to get back there on the double."

"What a pity we have to cut short our luncheon." Anna sounded regretful.

"Will you let me make it up to you by letting me take you to dinner tonight?"

Anna smiled serenely. "That would be most enjoyable."

"I'll come by your hotel at 7:30?"

"I'll be waiting."

Sydney was watching Vaughn take his leave and was miffed that he appeared to be dawdling. I could be on my deathbed for all he cared! She thought indignantly. What good was an Emergency Page if he wasn't going to hop to it the moment I called?

When Sydney saw Vaughn finally tear himself away from Anna, she headed into the shop to tell Francie she had to split.

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Sydney drove like a madwoman in order to beat Vaughn to the warehouse while still being cautious enough to be on the lookout for an SD-6 tail. When she was satisfied she was not being followed, she headed to the warehouse and arrived just minutes before he did. As it was, she had just managed to plop herself down into a chair when she heard the door open and hurried footsteps along the concrete floor.

"Sydney?" Vaughn arrived at the chain-link fencing, his green eyes full of worry and concern. She felt a stab of guilt for being so deceitful in how she had lured him there, but a small part of her was also thrilled that he appeared so distraught that something might have happened to her. It was like an admission of his feelings for her, that he cared and feared for her safety and well-being. "Are you all right?" He wrenched open the gate with a mighty force and rushed over to her.

"I'm fine." Sydney replied calmly. Was that a new tie? She thought to herself. For Anna?

Vaughn frowned. "Then what's the deal with the Emergency Page?"

"I'm sorry. That was a mistake." She remembered to look contrite.

He shot her a skeptical look. "You expect me to believe it was an accident that you sent me our 'Matter-of-life-or-death' code?"

"I must have pushed the wrong numbers." Sydney gave him a helpless "Don't be mad at little ole me" shrug. "I didn't interrupt anything important, did I?" She was the picture of wide-eyed innocence.

"Well, I wouldn't say that." He mumbled.

"Oh, I just realized it was probably your lunch hour." Sydney acted out in an exaggerated manner, stopping just short of slapping her hand to her forehead. "Did I catch you in the middle of a meal?"

Vaughn gave her a penetrating look. He knew her well enough to know when she was behaving strangely. He also knew it was probably no finger slip-up that she had summoned him here with their Emergency Page, knowing he'd break every traffic law to get to her. The question was: Why?

"Why do you care?" He asked blandly.

"Oh, I'm always on the lookout for a good restaurant." Sydney said pleasantly. "So how is the food at the Café du Monde?" Her voice grew razor-sharp as her smile faded.

Vaughn went pale. "The Café du Monde?" He echoed.

"I saw you." Her eyes were shooting daggers at him. "I saw you with her."

"Maybe it was someone who looked just like me." Vaughn suggested, feigning innocence.

"Well, then I saw someone who looked just like you dining with someone who looked just like Anna Espinosa." Sydney said scathingly. "You did know your lunch date was Anna Espinosa, didn't you?"

"I believe I know what your archnemesis looks like, Sydney." Vaughn retorted.

"Don't make fun of me." She said warningly. "You and I don't exist in the pages of some comic book."

"Sorry, I get confused." He said dryly. "Sometimes our real life feels as if it should be between the pages of a comic book."

Sydney threw him a frustrated glare. "Can we please get back to the reason why you were with Anna?"

"I'm sorry, Sydney, but I don't see how that's any of your business." Vaughn replied in an annoying unruffled manner.

She gaped at him. "Are you saying you're not going to tell me?" she said incredulously.

"I just don't understand why you need to know." He said evasively.

"Were you…with her in order to extract information from her?" Sydney stumbled over what to call whatever Vaughn was doing with Anna. "I hope you'll reconsider because I think you're in way over your head."

It was Vaughn's turn to stare at her. "Sydney, do you realize how condescending that sounds? I'm not some wet-behind-the-ears rookie." He sounded angry with her and she didn't like it.

 "I was merely offering my advice as a concerned third party." Sydney said, unaware she was pouting.

"Well, your concern is duly noted and your advice is being respectfully ignored." Vaughn said coolly. "Syd, don't assume you know anything about what's going on. Because what you think you know couldn't be further from the truth."

"How do I know what the truth is if you won't tell me?" She countered.

"There are no covert spy operations involving Ms. Espinosa." Vaughn looked her straight in the eye. "What you saw when you saw me with her at the café was what it looked like."

She stared at him. "You were on a date?" She couldn't have been more stunned if he'd said the moon was made of green cheese.

"I'll kindly thank you not to look as if the concept completely boggles your mind." He sounded pissed. "I'm not exactly the Elephant Man, am I?"

"Far from it." Sydney murmured before she even realized what she was saying. An embarrassed look appeared on her face as she wondered if he had heard her.

"Vaughn, you can't handle her!" She blurted out, a tactic she used in order to distract him from her previous comment. It was not an indication of how she truly felt. "I know what she's capable of and you don't and I don't want to have to worry about you getting hurt!" She hadn't meant that the way it sounded. Like he was a total incompetent who couldn't be trusted to take care of himself.

"I don't recall asking you to be my babysitter, Sydney." Vaughn's voice turned frigid and she could feel herself growing cold.

Sydney was taken aback by the venom in Vaughn's voice. "Vaughn, I didn't mean--"

"You have implied more than once during this conversation that I am not savvy enough to handle myself against Anna Espinosa." His eyes narrowed at her.

"It's not a put-down." She tried to get him to understand what she was trying to say. "I'm just saying that you don't have the experience of handling someone like Anna." She finished lamely.

 "I may not have your superior fighting skills, but I am perfectly capable of holding my own, Sydney." He cut her off brusquely. "So if this is all you wanted to see me about, I'd say this meeting is terminated." He stalked off, leaving her alone.

As Vaughn reached the exit of the warehouse, he had to physically restrain himself from going back to her. Picking that fight with Sydney was one of the hardest things he ever had to do. The look of shock and dismay and hurt on her face when he lashed out at her made his heart ache, but there was nothing he could do. It was better that she think he was angry at her for butting her nose into his private life than for her to know the real reason he was spending time with Anna.

To be continued

P.S. If you think I should continue, please review! Thanks!