Chapter 7 is up! I had fun writing this chapter so I hope y'all like it. I'm pretty sure there's going to be two more chapters after this left in this story. Sorry again for the sporadic updating, but it seems like the only time I have to write is the weekend. Thanks so much for reading my story, and a special thanks to gum-addict, AnnaSun, WithAPenInHerHand, aliasscape, Emily, BT and MB138 for reviewing! I really value your comments! Thanks again for reading!

Another week had passed. Sydney stared out her apartment window, streams of sunlight passed through the glass, illuminating her in the early morning light. Her mind was blissfully unaware as she sat motionless on the cold window frame. She looked down at the street below her, scattered with banks of snow. But the snow didn't sparkle, it wasn't like the kind you'd see in pictures, it had lost all of its shine. It was dirty and tainted.

            Normally she would be passed out right now, from her activities the previous night. But last night was different. She didn't pass out, only kept going. She remembered little, but her heart still beat rapidly in her chest, her eyes still glazed, but she felt good. The corners of her mouth turned up a little at that thought, she felt good. Her smile disappeared as she heard a noise behind her. 

            She looked up, seeing a form that occupied her doorway. She blinked in her stupor and stared at him with quizzical eyes. She staggered over to the doorway in silence where he stood frozen. A small smile took over her mouth again but didn't reach her eyes as she furrowed her brow in confusion

            "Hey, you look like someone I used to know." She said, taking him in briefly. She turned away, stumbling back to her spot at the window. She fixed her eyes on the window again, this time studying the old white paint chipping off the panes, and the snowy frost that formed around it. She pulled her knees up to her chest and pulled her tee shirt around her tighter in the cold. Sydney turned back to the man in her doorway. "You know, you're kind of cute." She said flirtatiously, tilting her head as if to get a better view. "How'd you get in here anyways?" She finally asked.

            She watched him take a step forward, and then he paused. Sydney sighed. She was getting bored with him; she needed something more fun, more interesting. Bright sunlight shone through the window, illuminating the entire small apartment in an early morning glow. Her eyes scanned the room and caught on something shiny. It was her needle on the nightstand. She stood up slowly, making her way around her bed and to the nightstand. "I forgot, did you come here for something?" She asked as she sat down on her bed. He simply stared at her, yet to say a word. She picked up her needle, looking at it with a brief amazement as it reflected in the light before she bent down for a hit. Suddenly she felt strong arms grab her wrist, pulling her up off of her bed, causing the needle to drop to the floor.

            "Syd!" She heard a male voice accost her sharply. "What do you think you're doing?" He said angrily, shaking her slightly.

            "Hey, you're ruining my fun." She complained in a whiney voice, trying to wrestle free from his strong grip. He let go of her, the force of her struggling causing her to lose balance as she wound up sitting on her bed again.

            "Sydney, you have to stop this!" The man commanded.

            "Who the hell do you think you are?" She questioned vehemently as she stood up to face him, but she had lost her spark. Her eyes didn't blaze with fire; her cheeks didn't flush with anger, but stared blankly at him, her eyes foreign to him, her pale skin eerily bright against the sunlight. He locked eyes with her for a moment before she shut her eyes as if in a daze, and collapsed before him.

            "I'm your guardian angel." He answered softly as he picked her up, and gently laid her on the bed.

He had arrived, he knocked on the worn door but after getting no response he decided to go in anyway. He froze the moment he saw her. He didn't know how long he had stood there before she noticed him. His breath caught in his throat when she turned around. Her face was pale, her once long dark hair was now chopped short and dyed a cheap blonde. Her deep brown eyes were glazed over, her hair damp with sweat. She stood up, and he noticed how her tee shirt hung limply over her thin body. He swallowed and reminded himself to breath. Vaughn studied her intently as he lost himself in thought. He recognized that she had just spoken to him again as she made her way over to the bed. But he was still in too much thought to speak, not that he would have know what to say anyway.

            He couldn't believe she was doing this to herself. Suddenly aware of her current plans, Vaughn bolted from his spot at the door, striding the short distance between him and the bed before he grabbed her. She had looked at him, looked deep into his eyes and still didn't recognize him. At least she was sleeping now.

            He had pulled up a chair and sat next to her bed. His eyes were locked on her, and for some reason he couldn't tear them away. Her hair splayed out across a pillow as she lay in silence, the sun sent streams of gold across the white sheets, its brightness seeming to mock the situation. He sat for a moment, and knew the reason why he couldn't tear his eyes from her. This was his fault, he had done this to her.

He sighed, shutting his eyes as his thoughts chased through his head. He could feel the beginnings of a headache starting to form. He leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees as he reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose. 'How did this happen?' He thought, events of the past days, past weeks and even past years playing in his head. The image of her disheveled apartment played out in his mind over and over. Finding the blood, finding Will, finding the double, finding everything except for her. The sight still haunted him, even though Sydney was now right in front of him. Only now she was more unreachable than ever.

            Glancing around her barren apartment, he finally realized just how fragile she was. He rubbed his hand over his face, then stopped in mid motion, feeling the wedding band that still adorned his finger. He paused, brought his hand down to his lap, staring at the gold band that caged his finger. He took a quick breath as he toyed with the ring on his finger before he quickly slipped it off, placing it in the inner pocket of his jacket. His thoughts stole back to his wife, and the way he had left her behind.

            "Michael," She spoke steadily as she clung to the doorframe of their bedroom. "This isn't working." She said, watching him pull clothes from the dresser, folding them neatly into the suitcase that lie open on the bed.

He stopped as he heard her words. He paused, a shirt still in his hand as he took a breath. "I know and it's my fault."

She sighed loudly and looked away from him. "When were you planning on telling me this?" Her voice rising in anger, "You can't just pick up and leave whenever you feel like it."

"I, I can't deal with this now." He said, his face worn, as his tired eyes met the blue of hers. 

"Michael talk to me." She begged, her voice softening as she stared at him.

He looked at her and saw her honest face, raw with emotion. Sincere concern covered her delicate features as she waited for him. She had waited for him for over a month now, waited for him to come fully back to her. She had expected it'd last a couple days, but days turned into weeks and weeks into months, and she was tired of it. "Michael if you can't talk to me I don't know who you're looking to talk to. And if you are looking for someone else then we have a problem."

            "Alice..." He began but trailed off, not knowing what else to say. He avoided her eyes, knowing they'd be full of pain. "I'm so sorry, but I can't do this." He spoke, his voice raspy.  She nodded but kept her head down and her eyes glued to the floor. She finally looked up at him, blonde hair straying over her face, covering her pleading eyes.

            "Michael, if you're going to leave," She paused fighting for her breath as she fought off tears, willing herself to be strong. "Don't bother coming back."

            He jerked his head up at her words, surprised, but then again they both knew they'd be spoken eventually. He walked over to her, standing close, she pursed her lips as she waited for him to speak.

            "I'm sorry that I hurt you Alice." He said, reaching up to brush a strand of hair behind her ear, but she shied away from his touch, her body stiffening. He looked down at the carpeting. A long silence ensued, unbroken by any noise. Finally he spoke, "I'll just leave."

He had booked the next flight to Chicago. The entire flight, Irina's threatening words seemed to echo through his mind,  "Do not let my daughter break."

Vaughn glanced up at the broken woman that lay before him on the bed. "Oh Syd." He whispered quietly, before letting a solitary tear roll down his cheek.

TBC…….

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