Title: A Case Of You
Author: S@nd
Feedback: sydneyvaughnmailbox@yahoo.fr
Disclaimer: Everything belongs to J.J, Bad Robot, ABC… blablabla (you know). OK, OK, I don't own anything.
Summary: It's my version of the end of Season 1. In the previous chapters, Fran & Will played detectives as Sydney made one of her many visits to 'Joey's Pizza'. They discovered Vaughn...and now Fran wants to meet him! Will he and Sydney accept to have dinner altogether...?
A/N: Hi this is the seventh chapter. Yes, seventh! I can't believe it! So the BIG question is: DINNER OR NOT DINNER...um, just read to find out... I hope you'll like it. As always, whether you like it or not, let me know what you think about this chapter. I really want to have feedback. Please REVIEW. Thank you. S@nd
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CHAPTER 7 – CRUSH(Guess who's coming for dinner…)
Previously:
Then he picked up the phone again, and dialed a number…
The phone rang.
"Weiss?!"
"Vaughn? What's up, why do you call me so late? Do you have a problem?"
"Um, sort of, you're right…" he answered, awkward. "Well, there are so many things to say I don't know where to begin…". He paused.
"Well, do tell me, what happened, Michael?!" Weiss asked, puzzled.
"I have a date with Sydney…" he acknowledged.
"You have a what!!!!??" he shouted, shocked.
"I have a date with her, tomorrow. Err…it's a long story, Weiss" he confessed.
"Oh my God! Man, I just don't recognize you. What in the world made this happen? Do you really want to blow her cover, and have you both killed?!"
Vaughn didn't reply immediately, so Weiss pretty easily understood Vaughn was about to accept the dinner.
"Vaughn!" Weiss yelled.
Vaughn sighed. "It's just because I don't want to blow her cover, and have her and her friends killed that I'm about to accept. Her friend, Francie, and Will, the journalist, had doubts and followed her as I was meeting her. They found out, and she had to tell them I'm a colleague of hers from the bank, to prevent them from finding out about CIA, SD-6…It was the best solution. She had no other choice. The problem is that Francie wants to meet me…. And if I refuse to come, someday she might go to surprise us at the bank, and you perfectly know what could happen then…"
Weiss sighed. "I don't like it, Vaughn, you're going to be on a dangerous ground." He paused. "But you're not completely wrong, they better ignore about SD-6, the Alliance…" he acknowledged. "So, you have a date with Sydney Bristow, dude! Don't tell me you're not too emotionally attached to her now, I won't be taken for a ride, you do have a crush on her!"
"Weiss, stop it, she's my agent, I have to do my best to protect her, and…"
"And you really like it, don't you?" he teased.
Ahh, crush, ahhhVaughn smiled and blushed. He was right, but he couldn't tell him the truth.
"I care for her, she didn't deserve such a life, and I'd do anything to help her out, and to make everything easier… If that means I have to meet her friends, to protect them, I'll do that for her."
So let it be what it'll beWeiss didn't object anything. Even if it was risky, it was probably the safest solution.
"Okay, Vaughn, you want me to…"
"No, I don't want to involve you in that matter."
"Vaughn, you know…"
"Please, Weiss, no! And… Don't tell anyone about this, please, it's just between you and me…" he asked.
"Good luck, Vaughn, and be careful." He advised.
"As always, thanks, Weiss"
"Oh… Don't forget to bring flowers!" he said, smiling.
Vaughn chuckled, before hanging up.
Yes, he probably should bring flowers. It was the usual practice under such circumstances. Fran would expect him to bring some. And he would be pleased to offer something to Sydney. He just wondered what Sydney's favorite flowers were.
He picked up the phone again and dialed a number.
The phone rang. A sweet woman's voice answered the phone.
"Kathryn's Florist's. Hello, how can I help you?"
"Um, I'd like to order flowers…." Vaughn told her, hesitating. "I'd like a bouquet of white roses, please" he finally decided.
It was too late to change of mind. He had eventually made up his mind, and Weiss even agreed with him. It was the best decision to make, the best thing to do to protect her and her friends.
It was just amazing to imagine having dinner with them. "I'm dating Sydney tomorrow. I can't believe it! Even in my wildest dreams, I never would have expected it to happen. And it's going to happen tomorrow…That's so incredible. Oh, I can't wait! I'm sure I'm going to wake up and realize I've been dreaming, but no, it's true…" he thought.
He sat down, leaning back in his chair, daydreaming about what was to happen the following day.
*****
* - * SydNey's HouSe – The FolloWing daY* - *
All dolled up, Fran was in the kitchen, stirring the sauce and trying it.
"Fran, could you come here now, please?!" Sydney shouted from her room.
Fran noticed there was some kind of panic in her voice. She chuckled. Sydney seemed to be nervous. That just meant she was partly right, Sydney had sort of feelings for HIM, even if she still didn't want to let out what her true feelings were.
She headed to Sydney's bedroom and opened the already half-open door. Sydney was standing in front of her full length mirror, wearing a wonderful black dress.
There were clothes scattered on the bed, and over the floor. It looked as if a storm had ravaged the whole room. Everything was in such a mess Fran didn't know where to sit.
Fran grabbed some clothes and put them in the closet, before sitting on the bed. She stared at Sydney, waiting for her to explain what she wanted from her.
"Oh, Fran, tell me, please, how do I look? Frankly?" she asked, looking distraught.
"Absolutely perfect, as always, Syd! And tell me…why are you so nervous, uh? Do you still swear he's nothing to you?" she asked, roguishly.
"Oh, please, stop it, Fran! It's your fault! You've got me talked into that! I told you I was thinking it was not a good idea, and I still think…"
"Sydney, be honest" she interrupted. "Aren't you happy, deep inside, to have dinner here with him? I can read your mind, I'm sure you are. You just look like a teenager getting ready for a prom! But what are you afraid of? I won't bite him!" she teased.
"What am I afraid of?" Sydney repeated for herself. "Just to have you all killed. Simply, Fran!". But she couldn't tell her the truth.
"It's just that…I haven't dated anyone since…Danny died" she replied, tears in her eyes. It was true, but what she was dreading was facing Vaughn, her supposed crush. She was just wondering how to play lovers with Vaughn in front of Fran without disclosing her true feelings.
Fran stood and hugged her. "Everything's going to be alright, Sydney, don't worry!" she reassured her.
"Thank you, Fran, I'm so lucky you're my friend!" Sydney confessed.
She broke the hug and sighed. "I better hurry up now, I'm not ready yet, and he can arrive at any time, Fran!" she stated, still nervous.
"And I better rush to the kitchen, otherwise my sauce will burn!" Fran recalled, running out of the room.
Sydney watched her go, with a strained smile.
"Calm down, just breathe, Sydney, everything's going to be alright!" she murmured to herself. She grabbed her hairbrush, and finished tidying herself.
She had been tense ever since she had woken up earlier that morning. She didn't know why, but she had the feeling something was in the air, something was to happen, and she was afraid she had to take the consequences.
Suddenly the doorbell rang, breaking her train of thoughts. It was nearly eight, so she pretty easily guessed Vaughn must have arrived. "Always on time, that's just like him…" she thought, smiling. She took a deep breath, here they were. The time had come and she couldn't step back in time. It was too late.
Fran had rushed to open the door, as she was too impatient to wait any longer.
"Hi, you must be Michael!" she asked, with a large smile.
"Hi…Err, that's right, and you must be Francie…" he replied, feeling awkward.
"Exactly! Do come in, Sydney is not ready yet, but I'm sure she won't be long…" Fran suggested.
"Hi!" Sydney greeted.
Fran turned to face her, a bit surprised to hear her voice from behind her. She seemed to be ready and she looked really pretty.
It's raising my adrenaline
You're banging on a heart of tin
Please don't make too much of it baby
Vaughn stared at Sydney, struck dumb with astonishment. He couldn't believe his eyes. Never had he imagined she could look so appealing, even in a simple black dress. For a second he wondered how he'd be able to resist the urge to kiss her, as he'll probably have to face her the whole evening long.
Vanilla skies (vanilla skies)
White picket fences in your eyes
A vision of you and me
"Hi" he finally managed to answer, awkward.
"I'm glad you are here…"
Of course she was. She had expected him to refuse to come, she had thought he would call at any time to cancel the dinner, but he was there eventually, her guardian angel, always there when she needed him.
"I'm so glad you are here too, Mr. Stone" Fran thought. "I can't believe he's in front of me, Sydney's crush! I thought it would never happen again, and here we are, I just can't believe it!". But Fran just couldn't imagine how unlikely Sydney and Vaughn were to meet at Sydney's house. It was against all odds. But it was for real.
Vaughn collected his thoughts and went in. Fran closed the door behind him and smiled. Sydney came nearer, smiling.
Vaughn smiled and remembered the flowers.
"Oh, these are for you, I hope you like white roses" he said, handing the bouquet of flowers.
"Thank you so much, Vau… Stone, you shouldn't have…"
"Stone!? Why don't you call him Michael, Syd?!" Fran interrupted.
"It's just because I don't usually call him Michael at work, Fran…We're not supposed to be friendly with each other. Bad habits are hard to get rid of, you know" she said, smiling shyly, as she realized she nearly made a mistake.
She grabbed the bouquet of flowers, and leaned to kiss him softly on the cheek.
He felt a shiver run down his spine, as he smelt her perfume. "God, she smells so good" he thought. "She's simply…irresistible." He stated.
He tried to maintain his composure, but wondered how it could be to kiss her, as feeling her lips on his cheek almost made him stagger.
I see ya blowin' me a kiss
It doesn't take a scientist
To understand what's going on baby
He locked his eyes with hers.
If you see something in my eye
Let's not over analyze
Don't go too deep with it baby
"You look beautiful" he acknowledged.
"Thank you" she replied, blushing.
"Will, come here! Stop playing with that stupid video game, will you? Don't be so childish! We have a guest, after all!" Fran shouted, not noticing how awkward Sydney and Vaughn were feeling.
"Ok, Fran, Ok…I'm coming" he replied, a bit reluctant.
He stood up, and headed to the doorway. He had come. He just couldn't help it. He didn't want to miss it. Meeting Sydney's crush! However painful it was, he wanted to know.
"Okay, you know Fran now, and this is Will. Will, meet Michael Stone. Michael, Will" Sydney said, introducing them to each other.
She wanted to smile, but she tried not to. Calling Vaughn by his first name sounded weird, but she had to if she wanted to allay suspicion.
Will stared hard at Vaughn, looking mistrustful.
"How do you do? Pleased to meet you." Vaughn said to Will, shaking his hand.
"Nice to meet you too" Will replied, coldly.
Sydney swallowed hard. It was going to be as complicated as she had expected it to be.
"Come in, come in, Michael" Fran suggested.
Vaughn entered and looked around.
"So, this is where you live, Sydney…That's nice" he complimented.
"Can I get you anything to drink, Michael?" Fran asked.
"That would be great, thanks"
"Right, just come here, then." She said, heading to the living room.
"Um, I'm going to put the flowers in a vase, I'll be right back" Sydney explained, coughing.
She headed to the kitchen, and put the flowers on the counter.
"So, you work at the bank …" Will started, sitting on the couch.
"That's right…" Vaughn replied, a bit tense, sitting across from him.
"And how long have you been working with Sydney?" Will continued.
"Um, about a year, so far, I guess so" he replied, a bit nervous. He was going to be on a dangerous ground.
"Uh-huh…" Will acknowledged, dubious.
Fran had left to go to the dining room, to make sure everything would be okay for the dinner. So Will was alone with Vaughn, and was given the opportunity to keep asking more and more embarrassing questions. Vaughn was feeling more and more awkward, and was wondering how to get out of this trap.
"I've been saving money for a few years, you know, and perhaps it's high time I invested it." Will said. "You could give me advice to make good investment. Perhaps I could come and see you at the bank…"
Vaughn swallowed hard. That conversation was getting from bad to worse…
Suddenly a noise interrupted them. It sounded like glass breaking. Will and Vaughn both stood up at the same time, looked at each other, and both rushed to the kitchen.
Sydney had been listening to them, and was feeling awkward. "Will, please, stop asking him those embarrassing questions, leave him alone!" she had murmured to herself.
So let it be what it'll be
Don't make a fuss and get crazy over you and me
Here's what I'll do
I'll pay loose
Run like we have a day with destiny
She just couldn't bear Will torturing Vaughn like that. She just couldn't understand why he behaved so stubbornly. It was not like him. Of course she could understand he could feel jealous, but it was more than jealousy. It was as if he wanted to take revenge on Vaughn, probably for her keeping secrets from him. And she had to stop that.
She had started getting irritated as far as Will was asking his tricky questions. And as she had realized she and Vaughn were about to be caught, she had been under such a stress that she had let the vase fall on the floor. It had broken noisily. Consciously or not, this had just been a way to come to Vaughn's rescue.
She had bent down, and was trying to pick the broken glass laying on the floor when they stopped in front of her.
"Let me help you, Sydney…" they both said at the same time. They stopped and stared at each other, quite defiantly.
Sydney was about to break down, and cut her finger while picking the glass. She started bleeding.
"Everything's going to be alright, Will, you better go and help Fran, leave us alone, please!" she said, losing her temper.
"Okay, okay, Syd, as you like…" he agreed, reluctantly. Just at the thought of leaving her with that Michael was making him sick. He just couldn't stand it. But he finally headed to the dining room to help Fran, who was laying the table.
Vaughn bent down, and started picking the glass.
"You ok, Sydney?" he asked, looking worried.
"It's nothing, it's nothing, Vau… Oh, God! I'm sorry, I can't help it!" she apologized.
"Um" he coughed. "Why don't you try to call me Michael? It would be more simple, and you wouldn't confuse the names…" he suggested, smiling.
"You're perfectly right, Michael, it'll help…" she whispered, blushing. Her finger was still bleeding.
"Let me see… "he said, taking her hand to check her wound.
"It's nothing, I just need to put a bandage on it, there are some in the bathroom…"
They both stood up, and Vaughn blushed as he realized he was still holding her hand. He finally let go of her hand, looking confused. They looked at each other in the eyes…
It's just a little crush (crush)
Not like I faint every time we touch
It's just some little thing (crush)
Not like everything I do depends on you
Sha-la-la-la, Sha-la-la-la
TO BE CONTINUED…* - * - Jennifer Paige - Crush * - * -
Ahh, crush, ahhh
I see ya blowin' me a kiss
It doesn't take a scientist
To understand what's going on baby
If you see something in my eye
Let's not over analyze
Don't go too deep with it baby
So let it be what it'll be
Don't make a fuss and get crazy over you and me
Here's what I'll do
I'll play loose
Run like we have a day with destiny
It's just a little crush (crush)
Not like I faint every time we touch
It's just some little thing (crush)
Not like everything I do depends on you
Sha-la-la-la, Sha-la-la-la
It's raising my adrenaline
You're banging on a heart of tin
Please don't make too much of it baby
You say the word "forevermore"
That's not what I'm looking for
All I can commit to is "maybe"
So let it be what it'll be
Don't make a fuss and get crazy over you and me
Here's what I'll do
I'll pay loose
Run like we have a day with destiny
It's just a little crush (crush)
Not like I faint every time we touch
It's just some little thing (crush)
Not like everything I do depends on you
Sha-la-la-la, Sha-la-la-la
Vanilla skies (vanilla skies)
White picket fences in your eyes
A vision of you and me
It's just a little crush (crush)
Not like I faint every time we touch
It's just some little thing (crush)
Not like everything I do depends on you
Sha-la-la-la
Not like I faint every time we touch
It's just some little thing
Not like everything I do depends on you
Sha-la-la-la
Not like I faint every time we touch
It's just some little thing
Not like everything I do
* - * - * -
END OF CHAPTER 7* - * - * -
A/N: Well, that's all… for Chapter 7. I'm sure you can't wait to find out what is going to happen next… Kiss, no Kiss… Good question. Just wait!
About Vaughn's phone call, it was difficult to make a decision, I had a plan, but you seemed to expect Vaughn to phone Weiss. So the question was: do I give you what you want, or do I surprise (or disappoint???) you. I finally decided to add the Weiss scene, just before the other scene, kind of 'tribute' or Xmas gift to my beta, Kat.
So, thanks again for your reviews, and for your help, Kat, my wonderful beta. You rock!
Okay, I STILL NEED YOU for CHAPTER 8! It's now or never, guys! Now, you all know THE dinner is about to happen, so I still need ideas for the dinner conversation between Fran, Will AND Vaughn... You know how curious Fran can be, and you can imagine Will's reactions, so... there are funny things to write. If you have suggestions... you know what to do, just press the button and send your review, remember Xmas is soon…;-))
Anyway, now, let me know what you think about that chapter. Please REVIEW.
Stay tuned for CHAPTER 8 – I ASK OF YOU… Coming soon, IF you don't forget to review. Remember, the more you review, the sooner I post…