Chapter 6: Midnight Rendezvous

Author's note: Hi guys. I'm so sorry this chapter took longer than the others. It's just that I've been very busy with school and everything. I swear, sometimes I really hate real life. LOL. Anyway, as always, thank you so much for your reviews. I love them!!! Keep them coming. Oh, I wanna clear up something about flashbacks. For those of you who ere slightly confused: they DON'T follow a chronological order. I forgot to mention that. That's why there's a flashback where Vaughn is comforting Sydney about her mother's death and in the next, Sydney's mother is alive.

Ok, now, about the poem. I want to thank Jacey925 for translating the poem for me. Really, thank you so much Jacey. I appreciate it a lot. You'll find the translation at the end of this chapter.

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Sydney opened the door of her hotel room and stepped inside. She had no idea how she'd managed to jump out of that window without breaking any bones. Dixon had been waiting for her and was incredibly relieved after making sure that she was alright.

She closed the door behind her and tossed her purse aside. Taking a look at the room, she noticed the décor. The walls were painted green, but it wasn't the nauseating kind. There was a double bed in the right corner with two nightstands next to it. One of them had a phone on it and they both had simple brown lamps that matched the green shade of the walls perfectly. Then, on the other side of the room, stood a medium-sized dresser and next to it was the door that lead to the small bathroom.

Sydney opened the door to the bathroom and looked at the woman staring back at her in the mirror. Her hair was a mess and her eyes had black circles under them. She turned to take a look at her back. The wound had stopped bleeding a while ago, but it still hurt like hell. It wasn't too deep so, hopefully, she wouldn't need any stitches.

She was about to take her dress off so she could take care of her back, when there was a soft, almost tentative knock on the door. Of course Sydney didn't need to ask who it was. She already knew.

"I thought you'd show up later." Sydney told him after he'd stepped inside.

He checked his watch, "It's midnight already. I thought you'd like to sleep before going back to L.A. tomorrow."

"Oh." She managed to say.

She watched him closely. He wasn't wearing that sexy tuxedo anymore. Instead, he'd changed into more comfortable clothes. His hair was still tousled, but for some reason, Sydney thought it had looked better earlier. Or maybe it was just her imagination playing games on her. Still, to say he looked good was an understatement.

He handed her a file, "This is the replacement you'll give Sloane tomorrow."

"Right." She said, still thinking about how good he looked. Why was he affecting her so much? "I'll get you the file."

She turned around to grab the real file, but her movements were stopped by Vaughn's soft, yet demanding voice.

"What happened to your back?"

He reached out to touch the cut and she winced at his touch. It was funny how his warm hands could ease and strengthen her pain at the same time.

Sydney shrugged it off like it was no big deal, "One of the guards had a knife. It's not deep, though. It'll probably heal in a few days."

"Let me take a look at it." Vaughn took a step forward.

She was about to tell him that it really wasn't necessary, that she would clean the wound later and that he should just go in case someone, namelessly Dixon, came to her room, but something prevented her from doing so. She wanted… no… she needed to feel his touch. What was happening to her? He's just Michael Vaughn, she kept telling herself. However, she wasn't too convinced of that herself. He wasn't just Michael Vaughn. He was the guy who had always been there for her as a child, the person she had always been able to count on, her first kiss… Her first kiss. She tried to sing her mantra over and over again in her head, but it was useless. Even though it had only been two days since they had found each other again, it felt like they had never been apart to begin with. They felt at ease with each other, like they had, when they were kids.

"You're right, it's not too deep, but it still needs medical care." He agreed.

Sydney felt his hand leave her skin. He disappeared into the bathroom only to return, moments later, with a first aid kit.

"Let me take care of this." He wasn't asking her permission. "Here, sit." He motioned for her to sit on the bed.

He carefully rubbed the small cotton ball against her skin to disinfect the wound.

"Damn. That hurts." Sydney moaned.

She closed her eyes, willing the pain to go away. Suddenly, she was assaulted by the memories. Memories of a distant and wonderful past.

"I told you not to jump, Syd."

"How was I to supposed to know I'd land on my arm?" She snapped and rubbed her arm.

Michael came closer and took a look at it, "I think it's broken."

"No kidding." She said and groaned at the pain.

"We have to get you to the hospital." He told her softly, not knowing what else to do. "Let's go to my house. My mom will drive us."

She felt a single tear fall from her eyes, followed by more.

"It hurts." She sobbed, "It hurts a lot."

"I know, Syd. Here," He took off his jacket, put it around her injured arm and tied it behind her neck, to keep the arm in place.

"That should help 'til we get to the hospital." He offered.

"Thanks, Mike. I'm sorry I snapped at you." She apologized.

He smiled and looked at her in the eye, "Don't worry."

Michael wiped the remaining tears from her eyes and took her right hand to lead her back to his house.

My guardian angel, Sydney thought to herself after the memories slowly faded away.

Vaughn tried not to think about how soft her skin was or how he wished he could be that cotton ball. He kept telling himself that this was strictly professional, that he would have done the same had he had another agent to handle. He fought the urge to kiss her pain away, specially after hearing her soft moans.

After he was done, he slowly traced his index finger along her bare back, having lost his internal battle.  He could have sworn he heard Sydney moaned his name, but he couldn't be sure. Maybe it was all starting to catch up to him. He started to rub her skin in a circular motion, drawn to the flawless flesh.

Vaughn's soft hands were driving Sydney insane. She closed her eyes and a sigh escaped her lips. This couldn't be happening. This shouldn't be happening. He was her handler after all. This went against protocol.

Vaughn's caresses eventually subsided and Sydney felt suddenly very cold and alone.

"Thank you." She could barely get the words out.

He smiled, unaware of the effect he had on her, "Anytime."

Silence filled the room. Neither wanted to break the spell that had descended upon them. Sydney knew that it probably wasn't the best time to discuss their current situation, but it wasn't like they'd have a chance in L.A anyway, so she made the first move.

"I hate this." She said out of the blue.

Vaughn frowned, "Excuse me?"

She got up from the bed and started pacing.

"I hate this." She repeated. "Michael, we haven't seen each other in years and now… now that we have finally found each other again… we can't even talk like normal people do. I hate this. I wanna be able to talk to you, I wanna know everything about your life, I want you to know everything about my life. There's so much I'd love to tell you. I… I… I hate this." She finished exasperated.

He looked at her and for a moment he didn't know what to say. Of course he wished things could be different. He, too, wanted to be able to be seen with her in public, to tell her about his life, to rebuild their friendship…

"Syd," Her name sounded like a whisper, "You know I want those things too. Do you think I like this situation? Do you honestly believe that this isn't affecting me? I want to be friends with you again, believe me. I hate this too. I hate protocol because it forbids me to establish a real relationship with you. I don't want to have to settle for those clandestine meetings at the warehouse, I don't want to have to look away if we ever encounter each other in the streets, I don't want to talk to you only about your counter-mission… I… you know that. You know me." His voice sounded defeated.

She looked up and met his intense, piercing emerald eyes.

"This is just… too much." She added, her voice tired.

He sighed, "We'll find a way to… to be friends again. We'll make time to talk about our lives, even if it's just for a minute during our meetings. Syd, this is hard for me too."

"Maybe we can start slow." She offered, "Like you said, we'll make some time to get to know each other again."

He smiled, "Of course we will, Syd." And he meant it.

They both let out a breath they didn't even know they'd been holding. They had discussed their current situation and somehow, that tangible tension between them had dissipated a little, at least for now. They both knew how the other felt and were incredibly relieved to find that they shared the same feelings. They wanted to be friends again, to talk to the other about everything, like they used to when they were kids, they wanted to share each other's company.

Vaughn took Sydney's hand in his and squeezed it lightly. She looked at their joined hands and smiled. Maybe it was going to be alright. Maybe they could have some sort of relationship together… as friends of course.

"You should go." Sydney told him after a moment of comfortable silence, pulling her hand away from his, "It's dangerous for you to be here. You never know who'll show up. Dixon is in a room near so…" She didn't get to finish the sentence.

He smiled again, "I know."

Sydney grabbed the original file and handed it to him. For a moment, their fingers touched and they both felt the spark. Maybe someday they could be more than just friends, but for now, they'd have to settle for a friendship.

"I'll see you back in L.A." Vaughn told her and then he disappeared from view.

"I'll see you back in L.A." Sydney said into the empty room, her eyes looking at the spot where he'd been standing just moments ago. And suddenly, she felt cold and empty again. She was missing him already.

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Author's note: So, did you like it? Don't forget to review please. And now, the poem's translation:

Our Friendship
 
In the days that passed, 
The people who we knew, 
Became our friends. 
 
In the weeks that passed, 
The problems that we had, 
Were solved by a friend.
 
In the months that passed, 
Tears fell, 
And a friend was there. 
 
In the years that passed, 
The happiness we felt, 
We shared with our friends. 
 
It's the life we had

With a friend by our side.