Thanx people and enjoy, this is dedicated to my "dying"(lol) readers, Alpineracer88, Sheeplover, Abby and Nicole Jackson. You all are wonderful. Please, enjoy. And catch you later!!!!

" The other side of the Story"

Part V

" Don't stand there, have a seat. I'm here to have a conversation with you," Jack scolded the agent who only had eyes for his daughter. Right now, if he could have, he would have yanked those eyes right out of the pretty boy's sockets. " Not blow your head off."

" I wonder why I don't believe you," Michael muttered grimly, still standing. He didn't want to be in a comfortable position while in the same room as him. Jack was unpredictable, especially after having lost his daughter for a period of time. He knew he had to be on his guard when dealing with Jack.

" If it's all right with you, I'd like to stay as I am. I just prefer standing," Michael informed Jack as respectfully as he could, but Jack didn't seem to be interested in a word he was saying.

" I don't really care what you prefer," Jack retorted and pulled out a seat for emphasis. " Sit down, now."

Michael cleared his throat then casually lowered himself into the chair. Jack took the seat across from him and folded his hands in his lap, wearing a cheerful but cold grin.

" Good, I think we're both comfortable now."

Michael shrugged his shoulders.

" Well, this is where comfortable ends. Because what I'm about to say is going to scare you, maybe push a few buttons but that's what you asked for when you decided to welcome yourself into the Bristow family picture."

" You didn't have the family together long enough to take a picture," Michael said haughtily, leaning back in his seat.

" That much may be true," Jack admitted, looking a bit disappointed in himself. " But we're not here to discuss the traumatized history of my family, are we?" he chuckled.

The sound sent a chill down Vaughn's spine if the promotion to Jack's speech hadn't gotten him first.

" Then what are we doing here?" Michael questioned, hoping he didn't look as nervous as he felt.

" I think we both know, there's only one reason I would privately want to talk to you," Jack pointed out, his expression hardening more than it already had. " It's about Sydney."

" Sydney," Michael repeated to himself. Just hearing her name conjured up so many moments he'd had with her and also conjured up ones he wished he could have if only his conscience would let him. It almost had the power to transport him from his current setting into something that was a bit more inviting.

" I need you to be honest with me, Vaughn. I need to know how you feel about my daughter."

A long pause.

Michael knew the answer to that question, it was clear to him as daylight.

He loved her.

So why couldn't he say it?

" Not to cause you any disrespect but I think that answer should be something I should tell Sydney," Michael asserted, sitting up straight in shi seat.

" Michael, I know that I'm not much of a father figure. You may wonder why I would think this subject would affect me at all."

Michael nodded in agreement.

" Well this is the truth. Sydney is my daughter, even if I wish I could kill her mother. I didn't know at the time what I had done to my daughter. In truth, I thought I was doing her a favor. Not everybody has a job when they leave Highschool Not even a college degree ensured a career after graduation."

" I would say you meant well, but it's questionable that you ever really loved your daughter," Michael retorted.

" I just don't want her to make the same mistakes I did with my life. We couldn't give her many memories during childhood that she could be fond of. I really hope her future would give her the kind of love she can trust and embrace."

Michael was taken aback. Jack didn't seem like he was bluffing.

" And I'm wondering if you are going to be the one to give her that," Jack continued, his ice-blue eyes staring into Vaughn's.

" You have no place to ask me these questions!" the young man shouted at Agent Bristow.

" Vaughn, I see fear in your eyes, I know you have been informed of Sydney's next mission," Jack said gently, letting the act of subordination slide.

Michael nodded slowly.

" I also understand she hasn't given Kendall the okay to proceed with it."

Michael wasn't sure he'd heard Jack right.

" How do you know that? That information is only supposed to circulate between Sydney, Kendall and Cowell?" he asked and then couldn't help but add to himself, " anybody but me."

" I'm her father, Michael. I am born with a sixth sense and therefore, I know everything," Jack answered, matter-of-factly. " I see you are relieved."

" Yes, I am," Michael replied with a smile.

" Can you tell me why?"

" Why?" he asked, perplexed..

" Yes, why? Why do you care about Sydney's missions when you have been taken off the position as Sydney's opp's officer. You don't care about her anymore, right?"

" Um."

" I mean, you couldn't answer the question that I just asked about how you feel towards my daughter. I personally am disappointed. I thought the answer would be immediate."

Michael bit his lip. Didn't Jack know how much he wanted Syd? Probably not. Jack and he weren't exactly on a father-son basis.

" I have not been informed of this mission," Jack announced bluntly, staring down at the table. " I don't know what to expect and therefore, it scares me. Had I any say in her decision, I would urge her to get out of this organization and resume a normal life as she can. But I have now say," Jack exhaled after a beat.

" What does that have to do with me?" Michael heaved, not sure if he wanted to hear the answer.

" You do," he sniveled.

Michael was sure he was going to fall out of his seat. " Me?" he stammered.

" You."

" Why though? Why would she confide in me? I have done nothing but hurt her. She's given up on me, on us."

" No, she hasn't," Jack corrected him. " She's still yo-yoing between hope and reality. If she didn't care what you thought, she would have given the answer on the spot, knowing her, she would have asked for immediate transfer as well. But.she's still here, isn't she?"

Vaughn tried to evade Jack's piercing stare.

" Whenever I talk directly to her, she puts on this façade to keep her old man from worrying so much. But when she's not focused one hundred percent on something, her thoughts wander and tears fill her eyes. She's putting everything on the line right now. This project is not going to be just some other mission, this is going to be her choice, on whether she's going to be wait for you to come to your sense, or if she's going to go forward and not look back."

" You have all this figured out, don't you?"

" I'm not joking around here. Her next course of action depends on what you convey to her."

" That's impossible. She wont' let me get a word in. She's doing this on her own, or with that new idiot, Cowell. Don't you think I've already tried to stop her," Michael berated through gritted teeth.

" Michael, you can't just talk to her. You have to tell her you love her. That Jess is nothing to you," Jack pleaded, out of character.

" I.I can't do that," Michael stammered, reluctantly, his being full of dread.

" Why not?"

" Because I married Jessica. I wouldn't have done that if didn't love her," the agent replied, firmly. " I wasn't brought up that way."

" That's a lame excuse! And I suppose you're going to tell me that you were brought up to be a secret agent."

" What do you want me to do?" Michael cried angrily. " Get a divorce? I'm sorry, I can't hurt somebody who hasn't done anything except love me and heal my broken heart."

" Is that so?" Jack harrumphed. " Well, I guess I have been very wrong about you, and by the looks of it, Sydney as well."

" Are you saying you doubt that I ever loved your daughter?"

" Maybe."

" Well, I did, and Sydney knows that!"

" That doesn't matter anymore, though does it? What matters is what is going on now."

" If you're done biting my head off and lowering my self-esteem."

" Michael, what I'm trying to say is, Sydney is lost, and she's trying to find herself. You're the only familiar thing in this world, probably the only real thing she had and she needs you, now more than ever. And this may be your last chance to make things right between you two. Do you understand?"

" Jack, I do understand what you're trying to say. But like I said, I can't hurt an innocent woman, no matter how much Sydney needs me."

" No matter how much I want her."

" If that's how you feel, fine. I'm telling you, as of now, you've got two choices."

" Wait a minute, who ever gave you the right to treat me like this?"

" Interrupt me again and I tell Kendall you were sexually harassing my daughter," he threatened, a hungry look in his eyes as though he were hopeful this would play out that way. " Now listen up, because I'm only saying this nicely once. Your two choices are to tell her how you really feel and to pursue it, or make the most miserable mistake of your life and stay with this so-called Ms. Cozier. But that means you break ties with Sydney, for good."

" But, we work together. I have to establish some level where we can feel comfortable around each other," Michael argued, his forehead breaking out with sweat.

" Kendall has already dismissed you from your former position, so unless you go up to her yourself, there is no reason why you must talk to her. But, if you think you cannot adhere to my requests, put a transfer order in and go to a part of this building where it's less likely to run into Agent Bristow," Jack replied, simply.

" You've got the answer to all my problems, don't you?" Michael sighed, and ran hand through his hair.

" Michael, I've given you my ultimatum. I'm not going to hold your hand through this, you know what you need to do," Jack sniveled, concluding their meeting. He was past his threshold of patience with Michael Vaughn.

" You make this sound easy," Michael shot back, his voice shaking with anger and frustration.

" It is, Vaughn. Just think about it for a second. I've offered you a break from having to deal with Sydney, and what do you do? Come up with reasons why you must be around her. Just think about it Agent Vaughn," he finished, getting up from his chair. " And not to add any pressure but my daughter's life is literally, in your hands."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

" Nice digs," Sydney complimented as her eyes scanned the living room of Will Tippin's apartment.

" Well, it's comfortable," Will called back from an adjacent room. " You know, homey."

" Must be nice to have a "homey," place," Sydney thought to herself, a bit jealous. Will had been part of the CIA to some extent, and yet the only damage he'd been through was losing the now presumed dead, Francie, and the disappearance of Sydney herself. Of course, Sydney had grieved when her dear friend's status had changed from MIA to "deceased," but at least she was where the good angels are. She didn't doubt Francie was looking down at her, keeping her safe, maybe jealous that she was still living, but then again, Francie didn't know what it was like to come back to a world where you no longer existed, where you no longer matter. Where you had to face the people you knew well look at you as thought you were a stranger despite how strongly they attempted to fake that everything was normal. She'd gotten kicked out of her apartment and now she was rooming with a stranger, something she thought she'd never have to do after meeting Michael.

But things change.

" Sorry, Syd. I am a bad host," Will cringed as he hurried back into the main room where Sydney was seated on his sofa. " Just that Sydney needed her bottle and she's always a bit cranky when Jane isn't home," he explained, referring to Jane McDowell, his girlfriend who lived with him and their fourteen-month old baby daughter, Sydney.

" You don't have to explain a thing," she cut in. " I'm the one who barged in here. I should have called first."

" It's okay," Will told her, shaking his head. " You are always welcome in the Tippin household."

" That's sweet, but I still should have said something," Sydney argued, but her tight expression gradually relaxed as she smiled. " I always forget you're a father now."

Will let out a laugh. " Yeah, me too," he chuckled, but there was something about it that sounded mature. His gorgeous eyes shined with fatherly pride. " Who would have ever thought I could take care of another person's life."

" You seem really content with how things are going," Sydney told him, feeling the same way she did as with Vaughn. Out of Place.

" I am. Never did I think I'd get over you Sydney. After Michael told me the CIA had changed their statement from " missing in action," to deceased. I was sure Michael had you hidden on some tropical island, where he could keep you safe, and away from any other guy than himself," Will admitted. " But gradually I had to accept it, just like I had to accept.Francie died."

Sydney just nodded and listened, giving her best friend as much attention as she could.

" Jane, she's a great girl but it wasn't until I laid my eyes on my baby, Sydney that I felt whole again. It's amazing, Syd, what a child does to you. It fills a void you didn't even know existed, and of course, giving my daughter your name probably eased the pain a bit," he added, grinning at Sydney.

" And your girlfriend, didn't mind?" Sydney asked then, worridely.

" Oh no, she thought it was sweet and she was all for it. I think she's the one who told the doctor that her name was Sydney. It was a turning point for both of us, never in my life have I met somebody so understand and unselfish. I think really it was she who was happier about your return than me. You should have seen how happy she was for us."

" Wow," Sydney breathed.

" Yeah," he sighed and traced the side of her face with his finger. " It still amazes me that you found your way back to us," he reported. " You look really good."

" Thank you," the brunette replied, managing a small smile. That was the least she expected, not after the emotional turmoil she'd gotten tangled in with Michael, concluded with a very friendly hug.

" You want to drink something? I think we've got coffee. Jane sometimes needs it to stay awake. She works as an ER doctor, did I tell you that?"

A pause.

" Syd?"

Sydney was staring at nothing in particular but she was zoned out. It wasn't until she felt Will jostling her did she snap out of it.

" Sydney? You okay?" Will inquired, his eyebrow cocked with concern.

" Oh yeah. I'm fine. I just, I've been working non-stop. I'm still going through slides, trying to get up to date," Sydney tossed off, resuming a calm expression.

" I see what you mean. If you asked some random person on the street what happened in the last two years, they'd tell you who won the SuperBowl, who had a baby. But in your case you'd be hearing about Projects, failed and successful missions and maybe the CIA got renovated some," he teased, trying to alleviate the mood.

" Yeah, it did. I'm just glad they didn't re-issue code numbers. I don't know what I would have done if I'd called and they couldn't recognize who I was," Sydney agreed, grimly. Just thinking of that possibility gave her the jitters.

" I'm glad your boss gave you a break," Will sighed with relief as he went into the kitchen. " It's obvious you need one."

Will came back into the room and set a piping mug before Sydney and then sat on his favorite chair and took a nice gulp of the caffeinated beverage.

" I'm actually on sick leave. I've been back at forth at the hospital for the past week, having my blood drawn and my scar prodded for the umpteenth time. I'm a little sore," Sydney confided and then took a sip of her coffee.

" They still don't know what happened to you?" Will asked her, knowing Sydney was tired of the suspense.

" No. They thought I could be pregnant but they said that's highly unlikely. My appendix is in tact and I have both kidneys," she listed in a nasal tone. " They think maybe something go implanted into my body but nothing abnormal has shown up in any of my results."

" Dang! Can't the doctors do one simple thing like diagnose a scar?"

" The doctors told me all they can make right now are assumptions. They can't know anything for sure until I can recall what happened to me," she groaned, in defear.

" I don't know how you cope with not knowing what happened to you," Will burst out, his eyes wide with amazement.

I try not to think about it. Every time I do, I get angry and I get depressed. It's better for me to just let it go and not worry about it until the doctors can tell me something," she replied with a shrug.

" Syd, I've got a question for you and if you can, I'd really like a straight answer," Will brought up in a serious tone.

" Shoot."

" This is your day off. Your only day off, why did you want to see me? Why aren't you with Michael? Or is he waiting down stairs in the car waiting to whisk you away to some happy place, away from this anguish that is your life.

" You know me and Michael are not like that," Sydney argued sadly.

" Is he still claiming he can't be with you because he promised to be devoted to that wife of his?" Will fumed, slamming his mug on the glass top of his table.

" He is, and it's okay. It doesn't matter anymore."

" If it doesn't matter anymore, why do you look so sad?" he demanded. " Sydney, what happened?"

" I.I told him that I love him," Sydney blurted out.

Will looked up at Sydney. " You did?"

" Yes, I know I said I wasn't going to but I do, Will. Even if I can never forgive him for marrying Jess, he's still in my heart."

" What did Michael say?" he asked gently.

" Nothing. I ran off before I could give him a chance to say anything. And like I said, I've been at the hospital so I've barely seen him all week."

" You've been avoiding him."

" I am. Will, you know what he does! He says he's sorry and that it hurts him to see me hurt, so I act cheery and he says I'm faking! He tells me he cares about me but obviously not enough to leave his wife! He doesn't deserve me! He doesn't!"

" I agree, Sydney. And I'm touched you felt that I'm good enough a friend to talk to about your delicate feelings," Will praised, feeling even better about himself.

" You're about the only friend I've got, Will. And I wanted to get your opinion before I choose to do something that will change my life."

That got Will's attention.

AGHHHHHHHHHH! Cliffie again. Man, I love those. And the decision that will change her life isn't going to be just taking on some mission, you'll see. Stay tuned for Part VI!!! AlpineRacer 88, sheeplover thank you for dying to read my story, I write with the image of you hanging onto a cliff begging for more. Thank you so much. Nicole Jackson and Abby, thanks for jumping on the band wagon, and welcome aboard. Hope you'll enjoy this much as I do. And last but definitely not least, Melody Anne. Thank you for the criticism. It will help me grow and I'm loving it. Please, criticize away, you all make me a better writer.