Alright y'all. I present to you the final chapter of Extirpation. I hope y'all like it! Thank you so much for reading my little story, I hope you enjoyed it!
Another special thanks to aliasscape, aimee, Emily, WithAPenInHerHand, Raina Elizabeth, UConn Fan, Rachael, AnnaSun, WhooHaa19, Lioness1, Breezy Walsh and willow-22 for reviewing, Y'all have said so many nice things, thanks so much, I love knowing that people enjoy reading my stories! Thanks again!
The song is My Immortal, by Evanescence, I do not own it.
Another week had passed. Vaughn gave an exhausted sigh and sunk into a deep armchair. His green eyes wearily scanned the brightly lit room. Unopened boxes were piled high, open ones lay scattered across the thick beige carpeting, miscellaneous items protruding from their cardboard walls. He turned to the end table next to the solitary chair and opened a beer. He leaned back in his chair, holding his beer in one hand, and rubbing the other over his tired eyes.
"You know when you asked me to help you move in, I just figured the word 'help' meant to be of assistance, not to be your slave."
Vaughn looked up. Weiss stood in the doorway leading from his bedroom with a box in his hand and a look of disgust.
"Hey," He looked up at him, "Sorry I was just taking a break."
"I see that." Weiss replied, setting the box down on the kitchen counter and grabbed a beer out of the fridge and walking to the living room to join him. He leaned against the wall, as there was no other furniture in the small house yet. "So you're now officially a bachelor again, you going to spiff up the old bachelor pad?" He suggested playfully.
"I can't believe you just referred to my house as a bachelor pad. You know if I didn't know you better I'd think that you're already drunk." He said. Weiss replied with a sardonic grin just as his cell phone rang out.
"Weiss." He answered. "Oh hi baby." Vaughn watched him with interest. "No, no I'm not too busy." A brief pause followed, "I'm positive. Okay, I'll see you in twenty." Weiss clicked off his phone, looking back at Vaughn.
"Uh, yeah that was Ashley." Weiss explained, trying to avoid Vaughn's smirk that played upon his face. "She just got off work, so…"
"So you mean you'd rather go make out with your girlfriend than unpack with me all night?" He asked with feigned surprise.
"Shut up." He said good-naturedly. His tone suddenly turned serious. "You gonna be alright?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine." Vaughn spoke in a low tone. He noticed Weiss' concerned expression. "I'll be fine, baby." He added sarcastically.
"Alright, alright I'm leaving." Weiss spoke, throwing up his arms in defeat for dramatic effect. He grabbed his keys off the barren counter as he headed out the door. "I'll call you tomorrow." He added.
"Okay." He called out as he heard the door shut, leaving him with only his thoughts.
Vaughn surveyed the room, they had finished unpacking most of his bedroom and kitchen, but the living room was littered with boxes. He closed his eyes, too tired to deal with it all now. He leaned back in his chair, his thoughts wandering back to her. It was inevitable, she'd always be on his mind. His dreams were plagued by her eternal presence, a picture of her grave face, never ceasing to haunt him.
He remembered waking up to the sound of her retching. He hadn't known what to expect. This was the worse he'd ever seen her. And it scared him. He had left, his mind overwhelmed and his heart heavy. He wanted to save her, he truly did. Only she didn't want to be saved. He was naive to think he could, to think she had based her entire existence solely upon him. His mind still struggled to comprehend how such as strong woman could become so weak.
Guilt then crept into his consciousness as he began to patronize himself over the past, as he had done countless times before. He shouldn't have dropped her off that night, he shouldn't have gotten married, he should have been there for her, and mostly, he should have stayed. But he had booked a flight back to L.A. Flying out of Chicago and out of Sydney's life, that's what she had said she wanted. He half expected Irina to come and kick his ass for leaving, he still hadn't completely ruled out that possibility.
I'm so tired of being here
Suppressed by all of my childish fears
And if you have to leave
I wish that you would just leave
Because your presence still lingers here
And it won't leave me alone
He looked around his house again. It felt so empty, and he felt so alone. Suddenly something moved off to his left. His head whirred around, and he saw a stubby dog waking up from his spot near the door. Vaughn watched the short dog spring on his feet and come trotting over to him.
"Hey Donovan." He spoke, his own voice breaking the quiet, as he reached down to pet the lazy dog. Vaughn sighed and forced himself to his feet, there were still piles of boxes to be unpacked, and wasn't like he had anything better to do. He glanced at the clock on the microwave, blinking 8:19 in confident red letters. He vaguely remembered that there was a Kings game on tonight, too bad he hadn't hooked up his television yet.
Two hours and six boxes later, Vaughn laid exhausted on the floor of his living room. His eyes threatened to close, they had been moving in since seven AM that morning. He halfheartedly made an effort to get up to go to bed but failed miserably, as he remained stretched across the still desolate living room. He sighed audibly, and heard the gentle jingling of Donovan's collar approach as he saw his dog faithfully pat across the floor, and lay down contentedly next to him. The sharp sound of his cell phone ringing jolted him out of his slightly stupefied state. He groaned as found his way to his feet, his ears following the sharp ringing as he tried to remember where he had last thrown his cell phone. He finally found it in the pocket of his coat that lied haplessly on the kitchen table next to his keys.
He picked it up, an unknown number displayed across the screen. He shook his head a little as if to wake himself up a bit before answering.
"Hello?" A short pause followed. A small voice came on the other end.
"Joey's Pizza?"
He froze as he heard the words. His heart pounding wildly in his chest and he was suddenly wide-awake, adrenaline coursing through him. His mind started working a thousand miles a minute before he realized he hadn't replied.
"Uh, sorry wrong number." He managed to squeak out before hastily grabbing his keys off the table and bolting out the front door.
His footsteps seemed unbearably loud as he walked into the warehouse. It was dark, it always seemed to be dark. But a full moon hung in the night sky, and he was sure there were stars, but the obtrusive lights of the city masked their radiance. He breathed deeply, the familiar scent of the warehouse flooded back to him, spurring on a hundred memories. His heart was pounding so loudly that it reverberated in his ears, a combination of anticipation and unadulterated fear. He both dreaded and welcomed each step he took across the cold, gray cement. He pulled back the metal fence, rattling it loudly, and immediately he saw her.
She was standing tall, yet hiding in the corner, her arms crossed in front of her chest, hugging herself. It was dark, the only light coming from a naked bulb hanging far up on the tall rafters, but she looked better, her face had color, she didn't look as ragged. But the solemn expression on her face was still one of pain, anguish and fear. She looked at him tentatively, glancing down at the floor before he could make eye contact. He entered the cage; she was distanced as far away from him as possible.
"Hey." She spoke softly, gazing at the cement floor as if she held an intense fascination with it.
"Hey." He replied, wrinkling his forehead in concern. He watched her as she bit her bottom lip before she struggled to speak. A million unspoken words begged to be spoken, but their pleas were in vain. A cold draft wafted across the room, chilling them to their cores. She shivered faintly.
"I, I just wanted to see you." She offered meekly, finally raising her eyes to his as she gripped the chain link fence tightly, her fingers curving around the cold metal.
"Here I am."
She nodded, uninvited tears suddenly springing into her eyes. She tucked a piece of stray hair behind her ear. He watched her as she visibly fought a battle from within. She unexpectedly looked up at him.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have called. I can't, I can't…" She whispered almost inaudibly, turning towards the exit quickly.
These wounds won't seem to heal
This pain is just too real
There's just too much that time cannot erase
But he moved swiftly and caught her arm, spinning her back around. He wasn't about to let her go. She looked up at him with brown orbs, filled with panic and fright.
"Why are you doing this?" He asked her urgently, tired of seeing her in pain, tired of letting her pain torment him. She was silent, her bottom lip trembled as tears dangerously threatened to spill from her eyes. "Sydney!" He called out to her desperately. She pulled away from his grip but didn't back away. "Why are you doing this?" He repeated, this time his voice softening.
"Because I'm terrified of you." She cried faintly, her voice cracking, a single tear escaping as it fled down her cheek. Her answered shocked him, he furrowed his brow in concentration as he studied the woman before him.
You used to captivate me
By your resonating light
But now I'm bound by the life you left behind
Your face it haunts my once pleasant dreams
Your voice it chased away all the sanity in me
"Why?"
"Because I need you to love me!" She whimpered in distraught, a look of pure honestly shown across her face. She backed away from him, tears now streaming down her broken face, forming rivers around the curves of her face. His eyes softened as he heard her words, his heart still jumping in his chest. He was stunned yet again, her brutally honest confession striking him. He moved closer, closing the large gap that separated them. She watched as he moved closer, but she didn't edge away. He silently took her face in his hands, gently brushing away the streams of tears. Her eyes slid shut as she took in a breath, trying to compose herself but failing miserably.
When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears
when you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears
and I've held your hand through all of these years
but you still have all of me
"Syd?" He questioned quietly, waiting to finish until she looked into his eyes. She looked up him their eyes locking. "I love you." He stated simply. A small smile shown through her tears, as she sobbed in relief. She took a moment before gazing into his eyes, which were now laced with evidence of his own tears.
"I love you too." She replied softly, smiling up at him. She laughed briefly, imagining what the two of them must have looked like, but was cut short by the feeling of his lips on her own.
She got lost in his kiss; her head was spinning, her heart doing flip-flops in her chest as she reveled in the once familiar feel of his lips. Her hands wandered up his strong arms, making their way into his hair. She felt his left hand stroke her face ever so gently as his right hand drew her closer to his body as she left herself get lost in the feeling of bliss.
At last they were forced to break away for air. She leaned back, breathing deeply, staring into his eyes, finding them filled with love, mirroring what she held in her eyes for him. He smiled and pulled her tightly against his body. She indulged herself in his touch as memories flooded back to her of times when they were together. A smile formed on her face as she thought of all the times they'd have together in the future. She needed him, and he needed her just as much.
He stroked her hair, breathing in her scent, in disbelief about how he could have gone this long without her. A comfortable silence filled every inch of the warehouse as he reflected on what it took to finally be here. But it was worth it. She was worth it. A smile played upon his face as well.
"Don't ever leave me." He spoke softly, not wanting to break the beauty of the moment, but was unable to fend off the tears in his own eyes any longer.
Sydney up into his eyes, now saturated with tears. She shook her head slightly, "I won't." She replied gravely, looking deep into his eyes. She sunk into his chest as she whispered. "Never again."
FIN
A/N- Thanks again for reading my fic! Please review! I hope you liked it! Constructive criticism is welcomed! Also, I don't really know how well the story played out as far authenticity in the whole suicide and heroine thing-as I've never been a drug addict and didn't do much research on it, so comments are appreciated! But anyways, drop me a note!
P.S. If you're desperately awaiting the season premiere (like I am), you can check out my other post-telling fic, Recrudescence, and maybe it'll quench your longing for at least 10 minutes. Lol. Or, ~insert shameless plug~ check out my other two Alias fics, The Nearness of You, and One Fish, Two Fish.
