Disclaimer: I do not own Alias, it belongs to JJ Abrams, Touchstone, and Bad Robot. Sydney, Vaughn, and everyone else are not mine, and please do not sue, because I am a broke high school student!

AN: Thank you again to Amanda, this chapter is once again dedicated to you! What would I do without you to talk about our psychotic ramblings! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!
Chapter Two

Sydney, Francie, and Will walked into the club and were immediately blasted by the loud music coming from the speakers by the door. "Come on!" Francie shouted. "Let's go find a table." She led the way throught the crowded dance floor towards the tables near the bar.

"Look at all of these hot guys here!" Francie exclaimed. "Syd, we are making a pact to meet some guys tonight!"

"Yeah, I'm thinking I'll stay out of this one," Will declared. "I have no interest in meeting any guys. In fact, the only guy I want to meet is the bartender when I ask him for my drink. So, what do you guys want?" Sydney's attention was directed away from Will to the doorway of the club, where Vaughn and Weiss had just entered.

"Syd? Syd?? What are you staring at?" Francie's voice turned Sydney's attention back to her friends.

"Oh, nothing, Francie."

"Was it that guy over there? The one who just walked in? He's a hottie! You should go talk to him!"

"Francie, I don't know."

"Come on Syd, what about our pact?"

"That was your pact, remember? I said nothing about it, I didn't even agree to it."

"Whatever, you're coming with me. Look, he's even looking over here and everything!" Francie grabbed Sydney's hand and began to drag her across the club to the table where Weiss and Vaughn were sitting.

'Oh, here we go,' she thought.

* * * * *

Vaughn and Weiss stepped through the door to the club and Weiss immediately started weaving his way through the crowd towards the bar. "What do you want to drink, Mike?" Weiss asked as he ordered a beer.

"Just gimme a beer," he said. After receiving his drink, he turned around and glanced across the dance floor. Suddenly, he noticed Sydney sitting across the club talking animatedly with Will and another woman. 'That must be Francie,' he thought.

Weiss looked at Vaughn. "What are you looking at?" he asked, looking in the direction that Vaughn was peering. "Oh, look, there's your girlfriend! I didn't know that she was supposed to be here. Did you plan this?"

Vaughn glared at Weiss. "You are an idiot, aren't you? You invited me here!"

"Well, why did you agree so quickly?"

"Eric, will you just shut up! She doesn't even know I'm here!"

"She does now," Weiss replied, nodding back toward Sydney's table. Vaughn glanced toward the table, and for an instant, his eyes locked with hers. As he watched, Francie jumped up, grabbed Sydney's hand, and began to drag her toward the bar. Eric began to laugh. "What are you gonna do now, bro?" he gasped out as Sydney and Francie came closer.

"I have no idea," he replied when they were closer. He noticed that Francie seemed to be pulling Sydney straight toward him. 'Oh, here we go,' he thought.

* * * * *

As they got closer to Vaughn, Sydney tried desperately to think of an excuse for slipping away. No such luck.

"Hi! I'm Francie Calfo, and I couldn't help but notice that you were staring at my friend, so she came to say hi."

Weiss stepped up and shook hands with Francie. "Hi, it's nice to meet you. I'm Eric Weiss, and this is my friend Mike."

'Great,' Sydney thought. 'This is all a big joke to him.' She then turned to Vaughn. "I'm Sydney," she said, her eyes pleading with him to play along. "Sydney Bristow."

"Hi, Michael Vaughn," he replied. "Listen, could I buy you a drink?"

"Sure Vau--Michael. A drink would be nice." The two walked to the bar while Weiss stayed behind, chatting with Francie.

"What's going on, Syd?" Vaughn asked when he was sure Francie was out of hearing range.

"Yeah, what is going on?" Will asked, suddenly appearing behind them. "I thought you two were only allowed to meet in secret." Will's jealousy of Vaughn was obvious even to Sydney.

"Look, Francie saw us looking at each other, and decided that I need a date so she dragged me over and introduced us." Sydney was suddenly embarrassed that she had been caught breaking protocol in front of her friends, especially Will, whose face was becoming redder by the minute. "I couldn't exactly tell her that you and I know each other but can't be seen together in public, now could I?"

"I guess not," Vaughn relented, noticing that Will's face was still full of jealousy. "Will, I think Francie's waving you over there."

"All right, I guess I'd better go. Syd, we'll talk later, k?"

"Sure Will," Sydney replied, then sighed with relief as Will left. She then turned to Vaughn. "Thank you. I'm too overwhelmed right now to explain anything or deal with him."

"You're welcome." Vaughn looked at her and smiled. "Look, since Francie already introduced us and everything, do you want to dance?"

"Sure, I would love to." Sydney grabbed his hand and let him lead her into the crowd on the dance floor.

* * * * *

Francie watched with Will and Weiss as Sydney and Vaughn wove through the crowd to the dance floor. "Wow, those two really clicked, didn't they? I mean, Syd definitely wouldn't dance with just anybody."

"Mike wouldn't either," Weiss agreed. "It's weird, it's like they've known each other for years." As he said this, he caught eyes with Will and slowly smirked. Will turned away and looked toward where Sydney and Vaughn were dancing, talking, and laughing.

"I don't think it's that big of a deal," Will retorted, the jealousy creeping into his voice. "She just wants to have a little fun, since she hasn't had much fun since Danny."

"But that's just how Syd is, she's not the type of girl who just goes out and parties all night, she wasn't even like that in college," Francie argued back.

"I think she just realized that she just needs to have a little fun in her life!" Will snapped as he looked back toward Sydney, wondering what she and this Michael could be talking about.

* * * * *

"No way!" Sydney exclaimed as she danced along with Vaughn. "Weiss still plays with yo-yos?"

"Yep, I almost never see him without one, I bet there's one in his pocket right now," Vaughn replied, his eyes twinkling as he laughed.

'Wow,' Sydney thought. 'I never realized how beautiful Vaughn's eyes are before.' Vaughn caught Sydney's face as she looked into his eyes and she blushed deeply.

"What's the matter?" Vaughn asked.

"Nothing. I was just thinking how I'd never noticed how your eyes are so green before."

"That's the majority of our time together is spent in a dark warehouse," Vaughn teased as he thought. 'Wow, she noticed my eyes.'

"I guess so," she admitted. "But really, what are we going to do about tonight? This has to be against protocol, especially for a double."

"Well, technically it's not really our fault that Francie decided that you need a man and it should be me!" Vaughn explained. "You told me yourself that when it comes to guys, Francie is very stubborn, so we have no blame in this."

"We didn't have to get along so well!" Sydney retorted. A crestfallen look came upon Vaughn's face, and Sydney knew she had said the wrong thing. "Vaughn, I didn't mean it like that, you know that."

"Then what exactly did you mean, Syd?" Vaughn asked, slowly looking into her eyes.

"I don't know, I guess I'm just scared for you."

"Why do you need to be scared for me?"

"Because every other man that I have let into my life has either been hurt or killed because of me: Danny, Noah, even Will was kidnapped. I just don't want anything to happen to you."

"Sydney, I am in your life right now because I choose to be, and being a part of your life is worth the risk of everything, including my life."

Sydney's eyes began to shine with tears. "No one has ever said that to me before, thank you." She sighed as a slower song came on around them and she fell into his arms. "I am glad you said that because I need you. You are the one stable thing in my life, the only person I can count on and the one person I don't have to lie to on a daily basis. And, I . . . I . . . I . . . I think that I am in love with you, Vaughn." Vaughn opened his mouth to speak but Sydney stopped him. "No, let me finish, I know I love you. And it scares me, because I can't lose you, not like everyone else." By this time, Sydney had tears cascading down her cheeks, and Vaughn slowly wiped them away with his finger gently.

"Syd, you won't ever lose me, I won't let that happen, and I love you too," Vaughn cut in to try and stop her tears. "I need you, and I want to be with you and spend the rest of my life with you." Before she could respond, he lifted her face to his and kissed her gently. Slowly, they pulled apart and looked into each other's eyes. "Well, OK then," Vaughn responded, and he kissed her again.

* * * * *

"Awwww, look, he's kissing her!" Francie exclaimed as she watched Vaughn and Sydney together on the dance floor. Weiss began to laugh as he looked toward where Francie's eyes were pointed and he saw them together.

"Well, it's about damn time," he muttered under his breath.

"What did you say?" Will asked, a spark of jealousy evident in his voice.

"Oh, just that Mike hasn't connected with someone like he has with her in a long time. Maybe not since Alice."

"Who's Alice?" Francie asked, curious about this man that her best friend seemed to have this instant connection with.

"Alice? That's Mike's ex-girlfriend. They were the kind of people who just kind of stayed together just so they wouldn't be alone. About a year ago, Mike finally got up the nerve to break up with her, and he hasn't really dated anyone since. Partly because of work, partly because I think that he was afraid."

"What do you mean, because of work?" Will asked, trying to sound innocent. Weiss glared at him as Francie chimed in for an answer.

"Mike and I work for the government, in the State Department, and sometimes our schedules are really crazy and we don't have much time for things like friends and dating."

"Oh my God!" Francie broke in. "What a coincidence! Syd is the same way! She has this crazy bank job, and she takes all these trips, and we almost never see her, it's nuts!"

"Wow, they do have a lot in common," Weiss said as he inwardly smiled to hear Francie complaining about Sydney's job. 'I guess they really do belong together,' he thought.

* * * * *

Sydney and Vaughn were dancing, talking, laughing, and having a great time when Francie appeared behind them. "Geez, Syd! I haven't seen you in forever and the one night that you come out with us I don't even get to talk to you!"

Sydney glared at her. "And whose fault is that? In all fairness, sweetie, you were the one who dragged me over and introduced us!"

"And are you sorry about that?"

"No," Sydney smiled. "No, I'm really not."

"And I couldn't be prouder of you for actually meeting a guy who isn't a total sleazeball like Noah was!" At the mention of Noah's name, Vaughn reddened a little as he recalled the circumstances revolving around Noah's death and Sydney's attachment to him. "Anyway," Francie broke in, although puzzled by the look on Vaughn's face. "We're taking off now, and we're giving Eric a ride home. Do you think you can manage to get home sometime tonight?" she asked teasingly.

"I'll make sure she gets home all right," Vaughn replied, and he wrapped an arm around her waist protectively.

"All right, then, I'll see you later, sweetie," she said, giving Sydney a quick hug and then turning to Michael. "And you! I hope to be seeing a lot more of you, Michael, I think you are good for Sydney!" Francie gave one last, meaningful look toward the two standing before her and left the dance floor, heading toward the exit to find Will and Weiss.

"Well, I guess it's just us now," Vaughn remarked, smiling down at Sydney. "But really, what are we going to do about protocol?"

Sydney thought for a minute. "Wait, I have an idea!" she exclaimed suddenly, her face lighting up. "We could have a one-night stand!"

"What!" Vaughn looked down at Sydney with a shocked look. "How the hell is a one-night stand following protocol?"

"No, we're not actually going to, I mean, unless you want to," she teased with a sly grin. "I mean that's what we're going to tell SD-6."

"I'm still not really getting it," Vaughn replied, puzzled.

"If SD-6 catches us, I can just tell them that Francie introduced us at a club, we had a one-night stand, and I don't really know that much about you. Then we tell the CIA that Francie introduced us and we faked the one-night stand to protect my cover!"

A grin spread across Vaughn's face as he listened to the plan that Sydney had come up with. "Syd, you're brilliant! That's a great plan!" he exclaimed, and leaned down to give her a kiss. She readily responded, and the kiss became deeper and more passionate, until Sydney pulled away.

"Come on, let's get out of here," she whispered softly into his ear. "It'll look more realistic." Vaughn nodded, and he took her hand and led her toward the door and out into the parking lot. "So, your place or mine?" Vaughn asked as they got into his car.

"Hmmmm, mine, it might look less suspicious to both SD-6 and CIA if we go to my place where there'll definitely be surveillance, so it won't be like we're sneaking around."

"Syd, you're a genius!" Vaughn smiled, and he kissed her softly again.

"I know, I know," she teased. "You only love me for my brain!"

"Oh, it's definitely more than that," he teased back. "Your body is really hot, too."

Sydney playfully punched him on the arm. "Shut up!"

* * * * *

As they walked up the stairs to Sydney's apartment, she noticed something taped to the door. As she got closer, she realized it was a note. 'It must be from Francie,' she thought. She picked it up and began to read aloud.

"Syd- I'm staying at Will's tonight, I thought you could use the privacy (hint, hint). I'll call you in the morning before I go to the restaurant. Maybe you and Michael can grab some breakfast! Love, Francie."

Vaughn looked at Sydney and began to laugh. "She really is pushy, isn't she?" he commented.

"I told you! She's the worst!" Sydney replied. "But she has good intentions and I love her for that. She just wants me to be happy." She unlocked the door and led him inside. "We're okay to talk in here, my father gave me some bug killers after Will found out the truth. It's just outside that we have to be careful." She dropped her keys on the table by the door, threw her coat on the couch, and collapsed next to it. "So, what do you want to do now?"

"This," And with that, Vaughn sat down next to Sydney and kissed her hungrily.

"Mmmmm, no complaints here," Sydney sighed as she leaned her head on his shoulder. "Do you just want to hang out and talk for a while?"

"Yeah, sure," Vaughn replied. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Well, I don't know if you don't want to talk to me about this, considering the circumstances, but I'd like to hear about-" Sydney paused for a second and looked up at him. "-Your father."

"My father?" Vaughn looked down back at her, puzzled. "Why?"

"Because no matter how many times you tell me it wasn't my fault, I still feel guilty because my mother was the one who killed him. And I'm never going to get to meet him, so I just want to know what he was like."

"Well, okay," Vaughn concluded, and slowly began to speak. "My dad- he- well, he wasn't home a lot, he was dedicated to his work, but when he was home, he was all about his family. We used to play roller hockey in my driveway when I was about five years old, and he would always say that my sister Simone was going to be the first female to play for the Kings. He loved my mother very much, and he wanted me to be a lawyer, so I could protect the rights of people. That's why I went to law school before I joined the CIA." As Vaughn spoke, his eyes began to well up with tears. Sydney noticed this, and she gave him a hug, pulling him closer to her and wiping the tears from his eyes.

"Oh, Vau- Michael," Sydney sighed, testing out his name in front of him for the first time, and trying to stop her own tears from escaping. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked, it was too much for you." She couldn't hold back the tears any longer, and they began to roll down her cheeks. Vaughn looked at her and slowly kissed away a tear rolling down her cheek.

"Look at me," Sydney said, looking at him as he comforted her. "This started out being about you, and once again, it's all about me. I'm supposed to be the one making you feel better, and look at us."

"Syd, don't, it's not your fault. I wanted to comfort you. I wanted to tell you about my father. I want to be able to share everything with you." He paused, then lowered his voice, and continued, "He would have loved you, you know. My father. I know he would have."

"How do you know? My own mother killed him. Shouldn't that be reason enough for them all to hate me?"

"My family will love you, I swear to you that they will, because I love you. I really wish you could meet them, Syd."

"I will someday, even if I'm a stranger to them, but I thought you said that your mother hates all of your girlfriends. Why would she love me just because you do?"

"Because she was never really serious about them, and my mother desperately wants grandchildren. But I fell for you, Sydney Bristow, I fell hard, and I think that my mother will be able to see that I want to spend the rest of my life with you. She's pretty perceptive." Vaughn lowered his lips to hers and slowly their kisses became more passionate until they both pulled apart, breathing heavily. Sydney got up off of the couch and walked toward the kitchen, smiling to herself. "Syd!" Vaughn called after her, sighing. "Come back! You don't just kiss somebody like that and then get up and leave!"

"Well then, why don't you follow me?" Sydney called back, giggling as she spoke. Vaughn stood up and walked toward the kitchen where she had disappeared into. But Sydney wasn't there. Instead, he found a glass of wine sitting on the counter with a note attached to it. Vaughn slowly read aloud. "Follow the breadcrumbs." With a puzzled look on his face, he glanced around the kitchen and toward the opposite doorway, and noticed tiny pieces of bread in a little path heading toward another part of the apartment. "Sydney, what are you planning?" he whispered to himself as he followed the small breadcrumbs through the apartment. He arrived at the spot where the bread ended, and looked around quickly. He was in the doorway to what must be Sydney's bedroom, and he noticed a note lying on the table next to him. He read the note quickly, 'I'm hiding, come and find me.' He smiled and looked around the room, noticing a lump underneath the covers. He slowly crept over to the bed and quietly grabbed the edge of the covers, pulling up slowly. Suddenly, a hand reached up and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him down into the bed and under the blankets. Vaughn found himself laying next to Sydney.

"Really? Hiding under the covers?" he chided. "What are you, four years old? You couldn't find a better place to hide?"

"Are you complaining?" she questioned him back. "You find something wrong with you and me in the bed?"

"Nothing at all," he murmured into her lips as she pulled him on top of her and kissed him. "Absolutely nothing at all." He kissed her fiercely with a passion that would be felt through the rest of the night.

To Be Continued . . .