Part 5: New Old Friends

Sydney was at her favorite book store.

In her time, it had closed down, as a lot of bookstores were doing, but here and now while it was still around she intended to not take it for granted. She had been home with Will and Francie, but after a while of watching them whisper and make eyes at each other, she was sure she was witnessing the birth of their relationship again. She was thrilled and had ducked out to give them some time together.

She had planted herself on her favorite sofa in the bookstore, which was against the back wall where she had a perfect view of all exits (once again, old habits dying hard). She was leafing through one of her favorite series when a book came tumbling out of the air to land by her feet.

She heard the apologies before she saw who they belonged to and looked up to see Marshall Flinkman rushing from the other side of a bookshelf in the sci-fi section. "Sorry, sorry, sorry" he apologized even as a few more books tumbled from his arms as he rushed to pick up the one he'd knocked from the shelf.

"It's ok, really" she assured him, a soft smile gracing her features seeing another long-lost friend she thought she'd never get to interact with again.

She picked up the book closest to her, noting it was the latest in the Leandros brothers series. "This is a great series, right?" she asked as she handed it back to him.

He nodded aggressively. "Absolutely, Niko's the best" he gushed.

Sydney smiled at him. This was an old argument of theirs. "I'm rather partial to Cal myself. I love how he evolves physically in the series and the challenges the author puts him through."

"True, but where would he have been without his brother as his anchor throughout it all?" Marshall said, planting himself in a seat at the table across from her, setting his books down in a messy pile.

"Yes, but where would Niko be if he hadn't been a big brother? Cal being who he is shaped who Niko became as well."

"Yeah" Marshall conceded (as he usually did, Sydney noted privately). "They definitely need each other."

"I love how the books just keep coming" Marshall marveled.

'Enjoy it while it lasts, buddy' Sydney thought privately, knowing that in her timeline the final book in the series never did come out. She never got around to finding out why, but she remembers it being supremely frustrating.

"So, have you ever checked out the Never Hero chronicles?" she asked, holding up the copy she had been thumbing through. "Definitely a new take on sci-fi and the next in the series is due out soon" she commented, not able to resist bringing up the other series they'd spent many discussions dissecting.

"Haven't heard of that one, no" Marshall responded, and she blinked at him, surprised.

"Oh man, you have to check it out then" she told him enthusiastically, before handing over her copy for him to take a look. She was thrilled to be the one to introduce him to the series in this timeline. It meant that he'd always remember her, if only for the introduction to a series she knew he'd love.

He attempted to hand the book back after having scanned the back cover. She knew that along with Marshall's eidetic memory, he was also a speed reader, so even though it was quick, he'd definitely gotten enough to whet his appetite for the series.

She shook her head and pushed it back at him. "You take it. I already have a copy at home. You'll love it, I promise."

He beamed at her and said a quiet "Thanks" as he added it to his pile.

He glanced at her and then blurted out. "You uh-" he stumbled. "You're Jack Bristow's daughter, right? Sydney?"

Sydney's mouth fell open. "How-?"

Marshall rushed in. "Your father was showing us your graduation pics the other day and I never forget a face. I'm Marshall by the way. Would you mind if I gave you my number, so we could discuss books?" Then he flushed.

"I promise I'm not hitting on you" he said quickly. "Not that you're not attractive. You're very attractive. Definitely outta my league. It's just I that have a girlfriend. She's outta my league too. And well, Carrie and I have only been on a few dates, but it's going well and-"

"Marshall" she interrupted, knowing he could go on for a while and it would most likely get embarrassing for both of them if she let him. "Marshall, I believe you."

His mouth snapped shut and he beamed at her.

She pulled an old receipt out of her purse and jotted her number on the back of it, secretly thrilled to hear that his relationship with Carrie still managed to happen, even with the changes to the timeline.

She handed the receipt over.

"I'd love to discuss Cal and Niko some more and also hear your thoughts once you finish Never Hero" she said, tapping the top book on his pile.

"Definitely, definitely" he agreed. "It'll be pretty quick though. I'm a speed reader" he said, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

Sydney resisted the urge to say, 'I know' and just nodded. "Well I'm definitely not" she grinned. "But that's ok, since I've already finished it, so I won't be trying to keep up. Just let me know what you think."

"Ok great, thanks" Marshall said, smiling down shyly at his books. When they had been talking about books he'd come out of his shell but once they stopped the shyness had returned. She suppressed a fond smile and shook his hand when it was offered as he juggled his pile in the crook of his arm. "It was really nice meeting you, Sydney."

"You too, Marshall. Take care."

Sydney just shook her head after he'd checked out and the bell over the bookstore rang, signaling his departure. She sighed and collapsed back against the sofa.

It was definitely no coincidence that former friends of hers were popping up at her favorite places all of a sudden and especially already knowing who she was.

Her dad was quietly and systematically giving her her friends back. It was something that she thought she had made her peace with not having when she came back, but she found herself so grateful with every new old friend she encountered.

Leave it to her dad to do something she couldn't even fathom when she'd come back.

She pulled him up in the contacts on her phone and waited as it rang.

"Hey dad. What are you doing for dinner tonight?"

oOo

"Friendship is an involuntary reflex. It just happens, you can't help it." – tv quote "How I Met Your Mother"

A/N: The books referenced in this part are the "Cal Leandros series" by Rob Thurman and "The Never Hero (Chronicles of Jonathan Tibbs)" by T. Ellery Hodges. Both series I clearly highly recommend :-).