Chapter 21: In which we learn what Syd meant by the phrase, "Frost the
pie."
Vaughn groaned as he heard Weiss get out of bed. He sat up, looked at his watch and shook his head. Why was Weiss up so early? They had at least 45 minutes before they had to get up. Speaking of which, he looked down at his lap. Then he looked back at his watch, then at Weiss. Hmm.
"What?" Weiss asked suspiciously.
"So how long a shower you planning on taking this morning, anyway?" Vaughn asked.
"Why? Oh." Weiss said knowingly. He nodded and said, "I'm thinking.say, thirty minutes?"
"Works for me."
"I'm thinking three minutes would work for you at this point," Weiss smirked.
"Shut up and go away."
Weiss chuckled as he went into the bathroom. He called out, "I'm turning on the water and I hear nothing, nothing, I tell you. Nothing at all." And the idiot began humming the song, "Kiss the Girl," from that movie Vaughn never wanted to hear about again. Ever.
Vaulting out of bed, he went over to the dresser to change his shorts. While Syd had been dutifully working on that blasted list of hers yesterday, or rather talking to Weiss about board games (and what was up with that, he wondered absently), he had gone into town for a little shopping of his own. No hockey pucks today, thank you. Blue silk, he thought Syd would appreciate that more than the Kings motif cotton or the much more plentiful Hawaiian floral motif available in Lahaina.
He walked over to the door and listened for a moment. He could hear Syd moving around and without a second thought, opened the door. He jumped, she jumped - she had been reaching out to open the door herself. They both smiled. Vaughn began, "Weiss is in the shower and-"
"He can't hear anything. I know. I heard him. These walls are really thin," Syd said quickly as she pulled him into her room.
Vaughn grabbed her around the waist and kicked the door shut behind him as he said, "I know. Let's make the most of the time we have."
"It's thirty minutes, I think I heard him say."
"Did you also hear him cast aspersions---"
"Hey, I don't know about you, but after waiting all this time, it's not going to take me thirty minutes.."
"Well, maybe we can frost the pie more than once then." Vaughn said archly.
Syd looked up at him, perplexed, then giggled. "I don't know, you tell me, just how much frosting have you been saving up for this occasion?"
He laughed aloud, "Enough, let me tell you. Don't worry about that." He pulled back and made a face at her Little Mermaid tshirt. "Take that off." She raised her eyebrow and did not move. He knew she was teasing, but had reached the end of his rope as he growled, "Syd, I swear to God if you don't."
"What?" she asked sweetly.
"That's it. I'll show you creative problem solving in the field." And he reached down and pulled the nightshirt off, picked Sydney up and tossed her gently onto the bed. Then stopped and let out his breath in a hiss. When his eyes finally made their way back up to her face, she was staring at him with a smile.
"Vaughn, as much as I appreciate the silk boxers over the Kings pucks and sticks, what I'd appreciate even more is if you were not wearing anything at all."
He raised his eyebrow. "Well, then take them off me."
"We're into the orders this morning, aren't we?"
"Syd, we all know how this is going to end. Don't waste our time."
"Okay. Come on over."
He stopped for a moment, slightly surprised that she had acceded so rapidly. She caught his look and explained, "Now that you told me how you feel, THE explanation can wait a little. I'm ready, if you catch my drift," Syd said with a smile.
Inwardly, Vaughn groaned. Damn it, Weiss was right again! Outwardly he smiled and said, "Good. I've run out of patience, I'm beyond ready.."
He leaned over the bed, grabbed her hands and put them on his waist. Instinctively her hands curled around the waistband of the boxers and she pulled them down. Looking at him, she said, "I guess you are."
A while later, Syd sighed and said, "Well, I'm ever so glad to see you got your backbone back overnight. I mean, really glad. I mean, ecstatically glad."
Vaughn laughed and shook his head.
Syd commented with a wrinkle to her own brow, "I was starting to worry that I'd pushed you too far."
"Nah. You know me well enough to know just how far to push. That wasn't the issue. It was my own guilt. It was better to, what did your mom say? Accept my punishment and then move on? Besides it was actually just that first day that you gave me a hard time. Yesterday was me waiting for a sign from the heavens or the writers to come up with an explanation, neither of which happened. You weren't giving me a hard time yesterday really."
"Oh really?" Syd said archly. "What about at the car? Or this morning?"
Vaughn laughed. "Speaking of which, we still have some time left, you know. So did you want to see if you could-"
"Squeeze any more frosting out of the tube?" Syd asked trying to keep a straight face, then convulsing with laughter. Vaughn stared at her with his mouth agape, then broke up himself. "Sure, I'm game," she finished.
"Speaking of games," Vaughn asked, "Was this one better than Risk?" When they finished laughing, Vaughn asked her, "So, we already know I'd gotten my backbone back this morning, but what were you thinking? I thought maybe you had wanted to wait for the explanation."
"Like that would have made a difference to you this morning?" she asked with a smile.
"Syd?"
"Don't worry. I liked it. As if you couldn't tell. But next time, it's my turn-" She said teasingly.
"You got it. No arguments. Then it's mine again. But give me a minute."
"I'm sure we can work out a schedule. Anyway, I just decided this morning when I heard Weiss talking about taking a thirty minute shower, that this was an example of taking advantage of a wild card in the field. You know?"
"Oh?"
"Yeah, otherwise known as the 'screw it' chapter in the field op manual." She laughed as she continued, "And too, I thought I'd take pity on you." She bit her lip to keep from laughing.
"Pity on me!"
"Yeah. Before you exploded."
"That was pity sex? Uh-huh. Right. I'm not THAT stupid and clueless," Vaughn laughed. "But then, I can't wait to see what it's like when you really mean it."
"Hmmm. And when we have the time and don't have to worry about how much noise we're making and.."
Vaughn groaned, "Don't start. Now we really don't have the time."
"We could save some time by taking a shower together. I see by the obvious that you're up to the task now."
Vaughn stood up quickly and pulled Syd up with him. Heading in the direction of the bathroom, he noted, "I always did appreciate your creative problem solving skills in the field, Syd."
"And I appreciate the way you wield the umm, knife, when you frost a pie, Vaughn."
Vaughn groaned as he heard Weiss get out of bed. He sat up, looked at his watch and shook his head. Why was Weiss up so early? They had at least 45 minutes before they had to get up. Speaking of which, he looked down at his lap. Then he looked back at his watch, then at Weiss. Hmm.
"What?" Weiss asked suspiciously.
"So how long a shower you planning on taking this morning, anyway?" Vaughn asked.
"Why? Oh." Weiss said knowingly. He nodded and said, "I'm thinking.say, thirty minutes?"
"Works for me."
"I'm thinking three minutes would work for you at this point," Weiss smirked.
"Shut up and go away."
Weiss chuckled as he went into the bathroom. He called out, "I'm turning on the water and I hear nothing, nothing, I tell you. Nothing at all." And the idiot began humming the song, "Kiss the Girl," from that movie Vaughn never wanted to hear about again. Ever.
Vaulting out of bed, he went over to the dresser to change his shorts. While Syd had been dutifully working on that blasted list of hers yesterday, or rather talking to Weiss about board games (and what was up with that, he wondered absently), he had gone into town for a little shopping of his own. No hockey pucks today, thank you. Blue silk, he thought Syd would appreciate that more than the Kings motif cotton or the much more plentiful Hawaiian floral motif available in Lahaina.
He walked over to the door and listened for a moment. He could hear Syd moving around and without a second thought, opened the door. He jumped, she jumped - she had been reaching out to open the door herself. They both smiled. Vaughn began, "Weiss is in the shower and-"
"He can't hear anything. I know. I heard him. These walls are really thin," Syd said quickly as she pulled him into her room.
Vaughn grabbed her around the waist and kicked the door shut behind him as he said, "I know. Let's make the most of the time we have."
"It's thirty minutes, I think I heard him say."
"Did you also hear him cast aspersions---"
"Hey, I don't know about you, but after waiting all this time, it's not going to take me thirty minutes.."
"Well, maybe we can frost the pie more than once then." Vaughn said archly.
Syd looked up at him, perplexed, then giggled. "I don't know, you tell me, just how much frosting have you been saving up for this occasion?"
He laughed aloud, "Enough, let me tell you. Don't worry about that." He pulled back and made a face at her Little Mermaid tshirt. "Take that off." She raised her eyebrow and did not move. He knew she was teasing, but had reached the end of his rope as he growled, "Syd, I swear to God if you don't."
"What?" she asked sweetly.
"That's it. I'll show you creative problem solving in the field." And he reached down and pulled the nightshirt off, picked Sydney up and tossed her gently onto the bed. Then stopped and let out his breath in a hiss. When his eyes finally made their way back up to her face, she was staring at him with a smile.
"Vaughn, as much as I appreciate the silk boxers over the Kings pucks and sticks, what I'd appreciate even more is if you were not wearing anything at all."
He raised his eyebrow. "Well, then take them off me."
"We're into the orders this morning, aren't we?"
"Syd, we all know how this is going to end. Don't waste our time."
"Okay. Come on over."
He stopped for a moment, slightly surprised that she had acceded so rapidly. She caught his look and explained, "Now that you told me how you feel, THE explanation can wait a little. I'm ready, if you catch my drift," Syd said with a smile.
Inwardly, Vaughn groaned. Damn it, Weiss was right again! Outwardly he smiled and said, "Good. I've run out of patience, I'm beyond ready.."
He leaned over the bed, grabbed her hands and put them on his waist. Instinctively her hands curled around the waistband of the boxers and she pulled them down. Looking at him, she said, "I guess you are."
A while later, Syd sighed and said, "Well, I'm ever so glad to see you got your backbone back overnight. I mean, really glad. I mean, ecstatically glad."
Vaughn laughed and shook his head.
Syd commented with a wrinkle to her own brow, "I was starting to worry that I'd pushed you too far."
"Nah. You know me well enough to know just how far to push. That wasn't the issue. It was my own guilt. It was better to, what did your mom say? Accept my punishment and then move on? Besides it was actually just that first day that you gave me a hard time. Yesterday was me waiting for a sign from the heavens or the writers to come up with an explanation, neither of which happened. You weren't giving me a hard time yesterday really."
"Oh really?" Syd said archly. "What about at the car? Or this morning?"
Vaughn laughed. "Speaking of which, we still have some time left, you know. So did you want to see if you could-"
"Squeeze any more frosting out of the tube?" Syd asked trying to keep a straight face, then convulsing with laughter. Vaughn stared at her with his mouth agape, then broke up himself. "Sure, I'm game," she finished.
"Speaking of games," Vaughn asked, "Was this one better than Risk?" When they finished laughing, Vaughn asked her, "So, we already know I'd gotten my backbone back this morning, but what were you thinking? I thought maybe you had wanted to wait for the explanation."
"Like that would have made a difference to you this morning?" she asked with a smile.
"Syd?"
"Don't worry. I liked it. As if you couldn't tell. But next time, it's my turn-" She said teasingly.
"You got it. No arguments. Then it's mine again. But give me a minute."
"I'm sure we can work out a schedule. Anyway, I just decided this morning when I heard Weiss talking about taking a thirty minute shower, that this was an example of taking advantage of a wild card in the field. You know?"
"Oh?"
"Yeah, otherwise known as the 'screw it' chapter in the field op manual." She laughed as she continued, "And too, I thought I'd take pity on you." She bit her lip to keep from laughing.
"Pity on me!"
"Yeah. Before you exploded."
"That was pity sex? Uh-huh. Right. I'm not THAT stupid and clueless," Vaughn laughed. "But then, I can't wait to see what it's like when you really mean it."
"Hmmm. And when we have the time and don't have to worry about how much noise we're making and.."
Vaughn groaned, "Don't start. Now we really don't have the time."
"We could save some time by taking a shower together. I see by the obvious that you're up to the task now."
Vaughn stood up quickly and pulled Syd up with him. Heading in the direction of the bathroom, he noted, "I always did appreciate your creative problem solving skills in the field, Syd."
"And I appreciate the way you wield the umm, knife, when you frost a pie, Vaughn."