The Dream

Chapter 14: Declaration of Love

A/N: Sorry it took so long to post this chapter, but I've been really busy since softball started, and my teachers either seem to think that I have absolutely no life outside of school, or that there are somehow more hours in the day in which to finish all the stupid work they give me. Anyway…You know how it is, and I'm sure you don't really care about this, and would much rather read the story, so I'll finish babbling later.

His strong arms around her, holding her, protecting her; his lips almost touching her ear. Sydney thought that she was going to melt. Just the fact that he was there, that he had his arms around her, was making her dizzy. He was tantalizing all of her senses. The touch of his hands, his breath against her ear, his scent…Will was right. God, Vaughn smelled good.

The only sense that wasn't satisfied was taste. She turned to capture his lips. Her thoughts were racing dizzily through her head, and her mind was having trouble keeping up with them.

Her brain caught up with her thoughts just as her lips were about to brush his. She stopped. She wanted so badly to forget everything, everything except him. Just for an hour, a minute, a second.

But she couldn't tease herself; she couldn't forget. Her life would always come back to her, to haunt her. She could kiss him later, if he still wanted to, but first they needed to talk.

Sydney was in his arms and he was rejoicing. He could have held her like that forever.

Vaughn felt Sydney relax in his embrace and lean back against him. To hold her felt so right, she belonged near him, with him, in his arms. It was paradise; no, it was better.

She turned to him, to bring her lips to his, but stopped. Vaughn felt her become tense.

"Wait," Sydney whispered, and then added in a tone so low that Vaughn almost didn't hear it, "Please"

He would do anything she asked, anything she wanted. She had had a rough day…no, she had had a rough life, and it seemed to be catching up with her. There was only so much one woman could take. Vaughn wished he could stay with her that night and simply hold her, comfort her. But he couldn't and he knew it, so he had to do his best to comfort her now, while he had the chance.

He slowly, gently turned Sydney around so that he could face her and look into her eyes. He brought one hand up to her cheek and softly kissed her forehead. Then he did as she asked; he waited.

"Will…" Sydney began.

"Is gone," Vaughn interrupted her. "Don't worry, he didn't see me."

"No, I know. It's just that he came here to borrow those books…"

"Your mother's books."

"My mother's books," Sydney repeated. "My mother…" She trailed off and looked away.

Vaughn watched Sydney for a moment. He could see the pain in her eyes. It took him a moment to realize the cause of it. Her mother, his father…God, the thought hadn't even crossed his mind. That it would pain her, that she thought it would hurt him…

"Sydney." Her hair had fallen over her face and he gently brushed it back behind her ear. He tilted her chin up, forcing her to look into his eyes. "I hadn't even thought of it."

"Vaughn, she's a part of me. I have her plates, her pictures, her memories, her blood. I have those books with the damn codes. The codes that…that…"

"Sydney," Vaughn interrupted her. "What your mother did was…" He paused for a moment, searching for the right word. He didn't want to say something that was too harsh, that would upset Sydney further. But what her mother did wasn't her fault and she needed to understand that.

Luckily, she saved him from having to choose a word. "Terrible," she whispered.

Vaughn nodded slightly; that was the word he had been thinking of. "But, Sydney, you are not your mother."

"I look just like her. Doesn't that bother you?"

She looked away and he brought his hand to her cheek, tilting her head up again, but this time, not taking his hand away from her face.

"I don't give a damn who you look like. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on. Even if you do look just like your mother, or like anyone else in the world, you would still be so different from them, so much better. Sydney, you're smart, funny, resourceful, and you're strong. And not just physically, even though you probably could kick my ass."

Sydney gave him a small smile and he almost forgot to breathe.

Vaughn paused for a moment before continuing; he simply looked at her, wishing that he never had to take his eyes off of her again.

"Your mom, my dad," he continued. "None of that matters. All that matters is you and me, and I would never let that come between us; I would never, could never hold that against you…We won't always be able to be together, but we'll always have now."

Her eyes were shining with unshed tears and her cheeks were flushed a light red. Vaughn hadn't thought it was possible for her to become any more beautiful; he had been wrong. God, he wanted to kiss her.

But he held back and continued, "Sydney, I love you too much to let you go; I could never lie about that."

He had just poured out his heart to her, but how would she take it? There were some women, like Alice and almost ever other girl he had ever been with, who would dismiss this sort of speech as superficial and untrue. But he knew Sydney was different, and he had truly meant every word.

"Wow," Sydney finally whispered.

"What?"

"You…You're amazing."

"I am not amazing…"

He was blushing; he could feel the blood rising to his face. Her smile grew wider and he became an even darker shade of red. He loved it, that she could have this effect on him, and that he could make her smile. Just to see her smile made everything, the secrets, the little lies, all of it, worth it.

Michael Vaughn looked even more irresistible when he was blushing. Sydney found herself thanking God that she had been lucky enough to find this man. She had loved Danny, she still did. She couldn't compare them, say which she loved more; she didn't want to and knew that Vaughn wouldn't ever ask her to.

What she had with Danny had been special, but this was too. Vaughn knew everything about her, everything. She hadn't been able to say that about anyone in over seven years. And the fact that he knew everything and loved her in spite of it all…Damn, she wasn't going to let him get away.

Suddenly, Sydney realized that her lips were just inches…no less than that, because even as she thought of it, she was moving forward; they were centimeters, millimeters, away from his.

Then her lips were on his and he opened his mouth to her. She kissed him, and then she lost it. Every conscious thought, every worry was gone.

Her hands, his hands, were everywhere. His shirt became an obstruction and she quickly removed it. He pulled away and looked into her eyes, silently asking permission to take off her robe, and she nodded. He brought a hand up to her shoulder to pull the robe away, but paused and looked back at her.

She could see the desire smoldering in his gorgeous green eyes, but found something else there too. Concern flashed through the desire, the passion, but there was also something deeper: love. She had trusted him before, when he had told her that he loved her, but now she knew for sure.

It was difficult for her to easily trust the people in her life. People could lie; they could sit poker-faced and hide their emotions, but when they did let their emotions show through…People could lie, but their eyes never did.

"Sydney," Vaughn asked softly, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

He cared so much for her; he was so sweet that she almost started to cry. She was melting, she was dizzy, she was in heaven and she never wanted this moment to end. She wanted this; she needed this, this moment, this truth. But it too would all be a lie if she didn't act on her true feelings, if she didn't show him how much she loved him.

She responded by taking his hand and guiding it to her shoulder. Never taking her eyes from his, she pressed his fingers to the soft material and pushed his hand down, baring her smooth skin. Then she let go of his hand and pulled him back to her for a breathtaking, mind-numbing kiss.

It was better than anything she had ever dreamed of.

They both knew that there wasn't much time, and they didn't know exactly when they'd have another chance to be together. It was over quickly, but they had savored every precious second that they had together.

Sydney sat with Vaughn's arms around her. He truly was amazing.

Vaughn softly kissed the back of her head. They both knew that he needed to leave; he couldn't be there when Francie came home, but neither wanted to be the one to actually say the words.

Together, as if they were synchronized and could read each other's thoughts, they stood up and began slowly getting dressed. Vaughn finished before Sydney and pulled her close to him for one last kiss. The suddenness and the passion of it took her breath away and when he finally let go of her, she was gasping for air.

She looked at him and could see the desire still haunting his eyes. "I love you," he whispered. "Don't ever forget that."

Before she could respond, he kissed her gently on the forehead and left, without turning back. But Sydney knew that it was only because he wouldn't be able to leave if he looked at her again. She felt the same way, and although it hurt her that he hadn't been able to turn and wave, she was glad that he didn't because if she had looked into his eyes again, she wouldn't have been able to let him go.

The dream had been realized; they had declared their love for each other, but then he had had to leave.

One of them would always have to leave. That's the way it would have to be until…until SD-6 was brought down, until she could stop lying. But God, who the hell knew when that would be.

Sydney decided that it didn't matter. A day, a year, half a lifetime; she would always wait for the time when she could be with him without secrets, without worries; when she could stay with him all night and all day for every night and every day for the rest of her life.

A/N: I hope that was worth the wait. Thank you so much to everyone reading my story and especially to those who reviewed it. You guys are great.

Well, anyone who wants the story to end here can just stop reading it. As for the rest of you, as long as you keep reading and reviewing, I'll continue for a few more chapters. Besides, I came up with an idea that fits nicely with this story, and I love to write. Anyway, the summary does say that the dream will slowly become a reality, so I'll just make it take a little longer to get there.

Thanks again to all those who reviewed, especially the last chapter. You really made my day.