All righty kiddos here goes again…I hope you liked the second chapter, but as I said, it wasn't shippery enough for my standards. So here I go again, much more S/V action in this one…and if I get my reviews, dare I say, a date? And don't worry, its not all love and roses…the angst is coming soon. Ah yes, this chapter contains a song that I thought was completely appropriate if you think about it…
~ PG-13…its all just emotions
~ If I owned them, I wouldn't be writing this…then again knowing me maybe I would…look just don't sue me :D The song's not mine either, it belongs to Sarah McLachlan……
~ Feedback:
little_pink_monkeys64@hotmail.com~P.S. Thanks, Prin Daddy for telling me about Ch. 2's little "problem"! Fortunately I think it's fixed now…thanks for the support to all…keep it coming!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Angel~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
By: Lulu
Chapter III: Mon Ange
They sat around the coffee table on the antique floor rug spread on the hardwood floor, each holding a glass of wine between their fingers. They met at least twice a month to have these informal feasts together, merely to keep in contact and enjoy each other's company. That night they began to hone in on a topic that Sydney would rather die then touch: dating.
Both Francie and Amy argued the same thing: five years alone was five years too long. Everyone told her the healthiest thing was to just move on. Deep down inside she knew she needed to. But something kept her from it. Perhaps the hidden fear that she would be betraying Danny by even daring to dream of somehow loving another.
They were suddenly interrupted by the sound to footsteps pounding down on the rushes of shiny wood that lined the floor of the house. Two little girls ran through, one blonde, the other a brunette, through the hallway and out, crawling up the staircase. They were followed by Laura and Olivia, who moved at a slower pace towards the entrance to the second level, sodas in hand.
"Wait wait come back here," Sydney called out, snagging the belt loop of her daughter's overalls. Laura dramatically fell backwards into her mother's lap, taking her friend down with her. They giggled and sat up, straightening the scattered sofa cushions behind them, peering up expectantly, awaiting an answer. "Where's Aidan?"
"Well," Laura began, a strange twinkle in her eye," he was the backseat of your car foggin up the windows with some chick from eighth grade-aw c'mon Mom. He's outside playing ball like he always is."
"I could go get him for you if you'd like," Olivia interjected. Her unexpected answered commanded the attention of the room as they all gazed at the new one among them with unmasked interest. She smiled charmingly, her eyes appearing timid as Laura stood to introduce her.
"Aunt Francie, Uncle Charlie, Will, Amy, this is my friend Olivia Vaughn. Liv, that's my mom's best friend Francie, her husband Charlie, and the Tippins, Will and Amy." Olivia smiled and twirled about for them, curling in her right foot. They laughed and smiled at her exaggerated smile, her bouncy curls and her deep emerald eyes.
"Actually, sweetie, if you wouldn't mind…" Sydney replied, referring to the suggested offer proposed prior to her introduction. The girl flashed a bright grin and received a push towards the back of the house as the young Hecht swatted her lower back with a pillow.
"As I was saying-"Francie started, interrupted midsentence by the crisp cut ring of the doorbell. Both Sydney and Laura struggled to get to the door first, scrambling over each other. Suprisingly they were both beat to the punch by Francie, Amy on her heels. Together they flung the door open, their bright grins battling for superiority.
"Well hello there," Amy started, voicing her words so all in the room could hear. "What can we do for you?"
"Um, actually I'm here to pick up my daughter, Olivia," a voice replied, drawing a moan from Sydney. Save yourself Michael, she thought. Nobody can help you now.
"Come on in," Francie replied, grabbing the cuff of one of his arms as Amy grabbed the other to pull him in just before they thrusted the door shut. "Hey Syd," she stated, leading him into the room. "Look who I found lurking outside your front door."
Laura chuckled, quickly covering it up with a hoarse cough. A sympathetic smile lit the corners of Sydney's mouth as she stood and joined him.
"Michael I'm so sorry-"She began before Charlie stood up, his eyes gaping.
"Vaughn? Mikey Vaughn?"
"Singing Charlie?" They sung together in unison, greeting each other with vigorous handshakes and slaps on the back.
"Man, it's been a long time," Charlie began, the bright smile plastered on his face. "How's Alice?"
"Actually that's a good question, but unfortunately I can't answer that. Alice and I divorced after Olivia was born.
"Oh man I'm sorry."
"Nah, don't be. It was for the better." He smiled gently as he received a wink from Francie.
"You know what? You should join us for dinner on Friday." Francie's interjection surprised most of them. "I'm Charlie's wife, Francie, by the way."
He raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure three's not a crowd?"
"Well now it's not. Sydney's joining us as well. Fours a party." Both Sydney and Vaughn winced, having walked into a well-set trap that landed them both in a date. She opened her mouth to argue as Francie's saving grace came streaming in from the back door. A tall, exhausted-looking preteen with sandy brown hair and hazel eyes cradled a weathered basketball under his arm, followed by a disheveled Olivia.
"You got better kid," he called, smiling at Vaughn as he passed, nodding to the others. "Your kid's a pretty good ball player for a dancer," Aidan replied, pausing to catch his breath.
"Of course. I taught her how to play." That moment he crossed the room to envelop his daughter in a tight embrace. The girl squealed and responded with an equal affection that made the others in the room watch in awe.
The sun rises and sets in his eyes, Sydney thought. Then she had to wonder: what would her life had been like if she had a father like that? One who loved her and adored her as much as Michael Vaughn loved his daughter? Would she have grown to be what she had become? A spy for a secret branch of the CIA who saved millions of lives everyday. Yet the world thought she was another banking executive. Would having a loving father made it easier to lie to her family and friends?
"Well I think it's time for us to head home, kiddo," he began, ruffling her dark curls. Her lips puffed into a pout as she hugged Laura and said her good-byes. She waved to then all and caught the car keys that were tossed to her with a natural ease and retrieved her bags, heading out to the parked vehicle.
"Nice meeting you, Michael," Amy said, smiling.
"A pleasure," he nodded. "Thanks for watching my kid on such a short notice, Sydney."
"No problem," she replied, smiling brightly. Laura came and hugged her mother tightly. "Anytime."
"So we'll see you on Friday right?" Charlie inquired.
"Um sure-"
"All right. We'll meet here at seven thirty."
"But what about-"
" Liv and I can watch Cindy," Laura offered, smiling and winking at Francie.
"Great!" Francie replied. "It's a date!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
He needed someone to watch Olivia. Davenport needed him to recover some intel on a missing piece of the long discovered Rambaldi journal, which required a quick daylong trip to Madrid. First he thought of his sister Jackie in New York, as his flight from LAX had a connection at JFK. Yet he knew she was in the Hamptons visiting her husband's pathetically rich and pathetically snobbish parents. His mother, active as she was, was in Boston on a mixture of business and pleasure, and for a moment he even thought of calling Alice.
Alice. Alice, who gave up her daughter the moment she was born. Alice, who made the occasional phone call and sent the annual birthday car with a twenty tucked snuggly inside, the inscription after the pre-written ditty never changing. The Alice who had only met with her daughter three occasion in her lifetime. Whose phone calls only decreased in frequency with time, who child support checks were never needed. [AN: I have no proof whatsoever that Alice was this evil…it just helps the story..I'll shut up now]
But before he could stop himself he pulled out the student roster for the preparatory school Olivia attended and begun dialing the number stated after Hecht, Sydney, work. He bit his lip as the phone rang and was answered after the third ring. "Hello?"
Vaughn froze. Should I hang up? He thought. Shut up. What are you, twelve? Say something, anything!!! "Hello?"
"Um, hi Mrs. Hecht, this is Michael Vaughn, Olivia's father."
"Hi! And please, its Sydney."
He gulped. "Have I caught you at a bad time?"
"No, not at all. Is there anything I can do for you?"
"Well, actually there is something. I'm sorry, I normally don't do this. Its just that my sister's with the in-laws and my mother's out of town on business and Alice-well Alice is Alice. I was wondering if Olivia could stay with you Wednesday night. I have to go to Madrid on business so I'll be back Thursday night at the latest. If you can't its perfectly understandable-"
"Michael, don't worry about it. I'll pick up Olivia afterschool on Wednesday. Have fun in Madrid."
And before he knew what he was getting himself into he found himself paired up with the mother of his daughter's best friend in a premeditated trap to double date with his high school best friend and his wife. He sighed and checked himself out in the mirror, running his fingers through his hair. His attire was simple yet elegant. Dressed in all black, he wore a black dress shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and long black slacks, his eyes blazing a bright hazel against the dark material. He hadn't noticed Olivia standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame with a smug smiled plastered on her face.
"You look great, Dad," she replied, moving into the room to stand behind him.
"Are you sure you don't mind me doing this?" he asked, a concerned fatherly look on his face. She laughed and pushed him towards the door.
"Of course I don't mind. Now, if we don't get out of here immediately and you're late, then I'll be royally pissed." He chuckled and ruffled the back of her curls.
"Lets go then," he replied and they were on their way.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
He's not gonna show, Sydney thought to herself. Calm down, another voice inside her replied calmly. It's only two minutes to seven thirty. What are you getting so worked up about, anyway? I thought you didn't want to date. She crumbled at her own rational thoughts and ran her finger through her curls, bouncing them upward to give them the body they didn't need. She had chosen her attire carefully, finally settling on the outfit Francie chose. It was a beautiful scarlet number, thin strapped, its hem ending tastefully mid-thigh. Her brown locks chose that day to be as unruly as ever, yet they finally settled themselves down in gently curls that barely past her shoulder. White strappy open-toed heels boosted her height up two inches.
"Oh Syd you look amazing," Francie whispered in awe from behind her. Sydney smiled into the mirror, looking down at the vanity before her.
"Seriously, Mom, you're a knockout," Laura replied, entering the room moments later."Are you okay, Mom?"
Sydney reached over and gently stroked her daughter's cheek, wrapping her in a gentle embrace. "You're not cheating on Dad by doing this. He understands." Both adult women chuckled as the doorbell rang.
"Dry those tears babe, Prince Charming's here!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
They had decided on a quaint Italian restaurant right off the Santa Monica promenade. Its outdoor canopy was built of sturdy rafters, vines of ivy and white lights strung around and about the thick slabs of wood. It had been abnormally warm for the season, yet nothing was too abnormal for Los Angeles. Due to the sudden change in weather it seemed that the entire population had gather in the small café-like restaurant. The inside tables were deserted and a small classical group had assembled outside to serenade the eating couples.
Their reserved table was waiting for them, tucked in its own corner. They sat and order a bottle of white wine and began the small talk. It turned out that Charlie and Michael had gone to high school together and kept in touch ever since, until they recently lost touch. Their stories of mischief and trouble lit Sydney's face with none stop smiles as she tried to picture the handsome green eyed man before her as the king of pranks. His smiled was demure and gentle, yet something about it just soothed her.
After they ordered their food, the band began to strike up a couple of fairly recent tunes. Francie grabbed her husband by the arm and yanked him out onto the dance floor as they watched from their seats, merely buskin in each other's company. As the piano began to play the open chords to a familiar tune he stood and extended his hand to her.
"May I have this dance?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sydney stood and accepted his extended hand, her knees trembling underneath the tablecloth. He led her slowly out in midst the other couples, twirling her around until she settled into his arms. My God, she thought to herself, her breath catching in her throat. I never realized how green those eyes were. Their shade captivated her and eased her qualms as the young woman at the piano began to sing her song.
Spend all you time waiting
For that second chance,
For a break that would make it okay,
There's always some reason
To feel not good enough
And it's hard at the end of the day
I need some distraction,
Oh beautiful release,
Memory seep from my veins,
Let me be empty
And weightless and maybe
I'll find some peace tonight.
She felt her eyes slowly begin to cloud over with tears as each note ripped straight through her emotions and hit her in the heart. A good-sized lump began to form in her throat that she repeatedly tried to swallow down to no avail. She shut her eyes and felt a tear fight its way through her closed lashes, lightly dampening her check.
In the arms of an angel
Fly away from here
From this dark cold hotel room
And the endlessness that you feel
You were pulled from the wreckage
Of your silent reverie
You're in the arms of the angel
May you find some comfort here
He knew the moment he felt the tiny drop on his shoulder that she was crying. She tensed in his loose grip, her hand growing stiff in his. He knew it was the first time she had been in the arms of another man in close to twelve years, and he knew what it felt like to lose someone that close to him. He gave here hand a supporting squeeze and continued to let the music lead them around the floor.
So tired of the straight line
And everywhere you turn
There's vultures and thieves at your back
And the storm keeps on twisting
You keep on building the lie
That you make up for all that you lack
It don't make no difference
Escaping one last time
It's easier to believe
In this sweet madness,
Oh this glorious sadness
That brings me to my knees.
The squeeze in her palm made her smile. She knew he understood and she took comfort in his embrace. It was gentle, yet protective, perfect if possible. Her hand lay nestled in his and his hand had an electric touch at the small of her back. They swayed together, their movements trimmed with an involuntary chemistry and charm that made the others on the floor watch.
In the arms of an angel
Fly away from here
From this dark cold hotel room
And the endlessness that you feel
You were pulled from the wreckage
Of your silent reverie
You're in the arms of the angel
May you find some comfort here.
It was then and there that she let go. She let go of the past and the blame she held against herself for a death she couldn't help. She was in the arms of a man who knew why she pulled back and understood. She slid closer into his embrace and stared straight into his kind eyes. Danny had sent her an angel.
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Okay, so there it is. Long, yes I know…I intended to make it longer but it can wait for the next chapter. Keep the reviews coming…lest I shall be forced to hold the chapters hostage(yes they're written, just not typed…all I can say is insomnia is a great writing force) Thanks for the support!
~LuLu
