Chapter 6
Later that night
After cheerleading practise Sydney headed over to her father's house, the events of that day running through her mind. She couldn't believe how Danny was acting. She had seen Vaughn at the end of lunchtime, she would have stopped to talk to him, but Francie and co dragged her away. He looked generally concerned for her, his forehead wrinkling indicating that he was worrying. She had to admit that he looked cute when he was worried, but she knew that he had no right to be, as it wasn't her fault or his. It was Danny's.
She finally arrived outside her dad's house, trying to clear all thoughts about Danny and Vaughn from her mind. There was an extra car in the driveway, which she assumed belonged to his date. Sighing she walked up the path and put her key in the door. She could hear music coming from the living room, and voices talking and laughing. She walked in to greet her father, hoping that the evening would soon be over.
"Hi Daddy!" She hugged her father. After breaking apart, Jack Bristow looked proudly at his daughter and then at his guest. "I would like you to meet Anna Barnett. Anna this is my daughter Sydney." Anna stood up offering out her hand for Sydney to shake. Picking up on this gesture Sydney politely shook her hand. "It's nice to meet you." Syd said, not meaning a word of it.
"Likewise. Your father's told me a lot about you Sydney." Anna replied smiling. Sydney looked at her in shock. "Really?" Anna nodded. "That's funny. He's never mentioned a word about you!" Sydney knew that her father was glaring at her right now. She didn't have to look at him to know what his face was like. She had seen the 'Jack Bristow glare' a thousand times before, and she knew that he would yell at her later for being rude to his guest.
Jack cleared his throat, and quickly changed the subject. "Dinner's ready." He led Anna to the dining room leaving Sydney to follow silently behind. Jack had cooked pasta for them, he was never much of a cook, that had always been her mother's job.
"This smells great Jack!" Anna exclaimed from the other side of the table. Sydney couldn't help but notice how much this woman was sucking up to her father. And she didn't like it. They began eating, and sharing pointless chitchat, most of it being about Anna.
They eventually finished dinner, which relieved Sydney. Just as her father began to clear away the dishes, Sydney decided to make her move. "Er...Dad, I gotta go. Mom's expecting me back soon, and I have some homework to do." She lied.
"Okay honey. Be careful on the way home. Ok?" Sydney nodded as she kissed her father on the cheek.
"Bye Anna. It was nice meeting you." She lied again. God, I'm making a habit of lying. She thought to herself. Anna smiled at her. "You too Sydney. See you again soon!"
Over my dead body you will. Sydney forced a smile, and then made her way home.
Sydney got home fifteen minutes later. Her mother was curled up in a chair, reading some Russian novel. Syd always forgot about her mother being Russian, you couldn't tell just by looking at her. But there always was a slight trace of her accent as she spoke. "Sydney! Your back." Irina put down her book, and greeted her daughter. "How was dinner?" She asked.
"It went ok I guess. But don't worry mom, she's not a patch on you." Sydney winked at her mother and they both started laughing.
"Oh, before I forget, Danny phoned earlier. I told him that you where at your father's and he wants you to call him back."
"It's late. I'll just speak to him tomorrow." Sydney tried her best to put off talking to him. "I'm off to bed. Good night mom!"
"Night sweetie!" Irina smiled lovingly at her daughter, and then picked up her book.
The next day
Sydney's first lesson that day was English Lit, with her mother as the teacher. She strolled into the room with Francie, and immediately noticed Danny sitting next to Leo. She refused to make eye contact with him, choosing instead to keep her sight focused infront of her. She took her seat next to Piper and waited for the lesson to begin. Weiss was sitting behind her, with an empty seat next to him, probably reserved for Vaughn. She was quite please about this as it would give her a chance to talk to him.
"So how was dinner with your dad last night?" Piper asked tapping her pencil on the desk.
"I've had better. I didn't really like his date, and I'm sensing by the way I acted around her that she kinda picked up on that." Sydney laughed. Just then Vaughn walked in dressed casually in jeans and a black T-shirt. He walked past her and smiled. "Hey Michael!"
"Hi Syd." He replied. Piper and looked at her friend and she could tell that she has a crush on this guy. And judging by the smile on Michael's face, he felt the same way.
Irina entered the room, carrying various books and folders. The class quickly hushed waiting for her to begin the lesson. Irina walked around the room handing out versions of Romeo and Juliet, which gained a few moans from a couple of members of the class. "Right class as you may have guessed, we are going to read William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Now before we begin, can anybody briefly share with the class the main themes of this play?" She asked as she looked around the class. "You." She pointed to Michael. "What's your name?"
"Michael Vaughn." He replied. Irina's face froze. So this is the guy that Sydney told me about. She had been silent for a couple of minutes, causing a few of the students to look up to see what was wrong. Irina looked at Vaughn then at Sydney, who was glaring at her mother and shaking her head. "It's nice to meet you Michael. Please continue." She smiled to herself, as she could see why her daughter liked him so much. He seemed perfect for Sydney.
"It's about love and hate, you know being in love with someone that you shouldn't be. Romeo and Juliet fall in love, even though their families hate each other. Their death then buries the feud." Sydney listened intently to what Vaughn was saying. She knew that she wasn't in love with him, and that he didn't love her. But it still felt like somehow he was speaking to her, when really he was just answering her mother's question.
"Great answer Michael. Now let us read on." She opened her book at Act1 Scene 1 and began to read. Sydney was just drifting off into a dream when she felt something hit her arm. She looked down at the floor and found a piece of folded paper. Picking it up, she opened it to reveal a note:
Hey Syd, your mom seems nice!
Sydney smiled as she recognized the writing scribbled on the paper. She picked up her pen and wrote back.
Yeah, she is. I'm sorry about what happened yesterday with Danny...he can be a jerk sometimes.
She folded the paper and passed it back behind her. She noticed that Piper was watching her through the corner of her eye, an amused smile spread across her face. "What?" Sydney whispered, but Piper remained silent and just smiled.
Vaughn quickly passed back the note. Don't worry about Syd, it's not your fault that he doesn't like me. Is everything ok between you two now? He hoped that she would give him the answer that he wanted, but he doubted that it would happen.
Honestly, I don't know. We haven't talked at all since yesterday, and I'm not sure if I'm ready to talk to him yet. She turned to pass the note back, and glanced over at Danny. He was busy doodling on the desk. Looking like he was about to fall asleep.
Well if you need a friend, you know I'm here for you! He wanted to be more than just her friend, but for now he would just have to settle for being just that.
Thanks Vaughn! So are you still gonna show up at the party? She knew that Danny would be there, after all he was one of Leo's best friends. But at least if Vaughn was there then he could help to take her mind off the jerk known as her boyfriend. Of course, I promised someone special that I would be there and I never break a promise! Sydney turned around and smiled at Vaughn, which Danny noticed.
"What is she doing?" He whispered to Leo, but obviously he didn't whisper it quietly enough.
"Mr Hecht, is there a problem?" Irina stared over the edge of the book, at her daughter's boyfriend. She had never been a big fan of Danny, sure he was a nice enough guy, but she thought that Sydney deserved somebody better. Somebody like Michael perhaps. Danny quickly tore his eyes away from Sydney and looked at Ms. Derevko.
"No, no problem." He lied.
The rest of the week went quite quickly. Sydney continued to ignore Danny, which only made him get more jealous. Syd was hanging out more with Vaughn and Weiss much to the dismay of Danny. Saturday came, and Sydney was over at the Halliwell house, getting ready with the girls. She had chosen to wear a red dress, which showed off her slender figure. Her hair was loosely pinned to the top of her head, with some curls falling down onto the sides of her face. She walked out of the bathroom, to see her friends already dressed ready to go. Phoebe was wearing a sky blue halterneck top, accompanied by a white gypsy skirt, and Paige had also chosen to wear a skirt and a top she had sneaked out of Phoebe's wardrobe. Piper had picked a black dress, which she really suited her.
"You all look great!" Patty Halliwell exclaimed as she walked up the stairs. She looked at her daughters proudly, amazed at their beauty.
"Thanks mom. We best get going, we don't wanna be late!" Phoebe said as she picked up her purse. The other girls agreed, and said their goodbyes to Patty and made their way out of the house. Leo's house wasn't that far so they decided that they would walk. Arm in arm they made their way down the street.
"Sydney, is Michael still coming tonight?" Paige asked curiously.
"Yeah, he said that he was gonna come. Why do you ask?" Sydney knew that Paige had a crush on him and she didn't like it.
"Great! I was just wondering. You and him are quite close aren't you?" Sydney didn't answer so Paige continued. "Does he have a girlfriend?" Piper glanced at Sydney and she could immediately see how uncomfortable she was even though Paige couldn't.
"He hasn't mentioned anybody." Sydney replied sighing.
Paige's smile widened. "So you think that maybe..."
"PAIGE!" Piper yelled. Everybody looked at Piper in surprise. "Look, the guy has only just moved in. At least let him settle down before you try and start something with him. Just give Sydney a break, okay?" Paige nodded in defeat.
Sydney breathed a sigh of relief. When Phoebe and Paige weren't looking, she turned and mouthed: "Thank you!"
Piper knew that Sydney's attraction to Vaughn was more than just a crush, even if she wasn't ready to admit it yet.
Later that night
After cheerleading practise Sydney headed over to her father's house, the events of that day running through her mind. She couldn't believe how Danny was acting. She had seen Vaughn at the end of lunchtime, she would have stopped to talk to him, but Francie and co dragged her away. He looked generally concerned for her, his forehead wrinkling indicating that he was worrying. She had to admit that he looked cute when he was worried, but she knew that he had no right to be, as it wasn't her fault or his. It was Danny's.
She finally arrived outside her dad's house, trying to clear all thoughts about Danny and Vaughn from her mind. There was an extra car in the driveway, which she assumed belonged to his date. Sighing she walked up the path and put her key in the door. She could hear music coming from the living room, and voices talking and laughing. She walked in to greet her father, hoping that the evening would soon be over.
"Hi Daddy!" She hugged her father. After breaking apart, Jack Bristow looked proudly at his daughter and then at his guest. "I would like you to meet Anna Barnett. Anna this is my daughter Sydney." Anna stood up offering out her hand for Sydney to shake. Picking up on this gesture Sydney politely shook her hand. "It's nice to meet you." Syd said, not meaning a word of it.
"Likewise. Your father's told me a lot about you Sydney." Anna replied smiling. Sydney looked at her in shock. "Really?" Anna nodded. "That's funny. He's never mentioned a word about you!" Sydney knew that her father was glaring at her right now. She didn't have to look at him to know what his face was like. She had seen the 'Jack Bristow glare' a thousand times before, and she knew that he would yell at her later for being rude to his guest.
Jack cleared his throat, and quickly changed the subject. "Dinner's ready." He led Anna to the dining room leaving Sydney to follow silently behind. Jack had cooked pasta for them, he was never much of a cook, that had always been her mother's job.
"This smells great Jack!" Anna exclaimed from the other side of the table. Sydney couldn't help but notice how much this woman was sucking up to her father. And she didn't like it. They began eating, and sharing pointless chitchat, most of it being about Anna.
They eventually finished dinner, which relieved Sydney. Just as her father began to clear away the dishes, Sydney decided to make her move. "Er...Dad, I gotta go. Mom's expecting me back soon, and I have some homework to do." She lied.
"Okay honey. Be careful on the way home. Ok?" Sydney nodded as she kissed her father on the cheek.
"Bye Anna. It was nice meeting you." She lied again. God, I'm making a habit of lying. She thought to herself. Anna smiled at her. "You too Sydney. See you again soon!"
Over my dead body you will. Sydney forced a smile, and then made her way home.
Sydney got home fifteen minutes later. Her mother was curled up in a chair, reading some Russian novel. Syd always forgot about her mother being Russian, you couldn't tell just by looking at her. But there always was a slight trace of her accent as she spoke. "Sydney! Your back." Irina put down her book, and greeted her daughter. "How was dinner?" She asked.
"It went ok I guess. But don't worry mom, she's not a patch on you." Sydney winked at her mother and they both started laughing.
"Oh, before I forget, Danny phoned earlier. I told him that you where at your father's and he wants you to call him back."
"It's late. I'll just speak to him tomorrow." Sydney tried her best to put off talking to him. "I'm off to bed. Good night mom!"
"Night sweetie!" Irina smiled lovingly at her daughter, and then picked up her book.
The next day
Sydney's first lesson that day was English Lit, with her mother as the teacher. She strolled into the room with Francie, and immediately noticed Danny sitting next to Leo. She refused to make eye contact with him, choosing instead to keep her sight focused infront of her. She took her seat next to Piper and waited for the lesson to begin. Weiss was sitting behind her, with an empty seat next to him, probably reserved for Vaughn. She was quite please about this as it would give her a chance to talk to him.
"So how was dinner with your dad last night?" Piper asked tapping her pencil on the desk.
"I've had better. I didn't really like his date, and I'm sensing by the way I acted around her that she kinda picked up on that." Sydney laughed. Just then Vaughn walked in dressed casually in jeans and a black T-shirt. He walked past her and smiled. "Hey Michael!"
"Hi Syd." He replied. Piper and looked at her friend and she could tell that she has a crush on this guy. And judging by the smile on Michael's face, he felt the same way.
Irina entered the room, carrying various books and folders. The class quickly hushed waiting for her to begin the lesson. Irina walked around the room handing out versions of Romeo and Juliet, which gained a few moans from a couple of members of the class. "Right class as you may have guessed, we are going to read William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Now before we begin, can anybody briefly share with the class the main themes of this play?" She asked as she looked around the class. "You." She pointed to Michael. "What's your name?"
"Michael Vaughn." He replied. Irina's face froze. So this is the guy that Sydney told me about. She had been silent for a couple of minutes, causing a few of the students to look up to see what was wrong. Irina looked at Vaughn then at Sydney, who was glaring at her mother and shaking her head. "It's nice to meet you Michael. Please continue." She smiled to herself, as she could see why her daughter liked him so much. He seemed perfect for Sydney.
"It's about love and hate, you know being in love with someone that you shouldn't be. Romeo and Juliet fall in love, even though their families hate each other. Their death then buries the feud." Sydney listened intently to what Vaughn was saying. She knew that she wasn't in love with him, and that he didn't love her. But it still felt like somehow he was speaking to her, when really he was just answering her mother's question.
"Great answer Michael. Now let us read on." She opened her book at Act1 Scene 1 and began to read. Sydney was just drifting off into a dream when she felt something hit her arm. She looked down at the floor and found a piece of folded paper. Picking it up, she opened it to reveal a note:
Hey Syd, your mom seems nice!
Sydney smiled as she recognized the writing scribbled on the paper. She picked up her pen and wrote back.
Yeah, she is. I'm sorry about what happened yesterday with Danny...he can be a jerk sometimes.
She folded the paper and passed it back behind her. She noticed that Piper was watching her through the corner of her eye, an amused smile spread across her face. "What?" Sydney whispered, but Piper remained silent and just smiled.
Vaughn quickly passed back the note. Don't worry about Syd, it's not your fault that he doesn't like me. Is everything ok between you two now? He hoped that she would give him the answer that he wanted, but he doubted that it would happen.
Honestly, I don't know. We haven't talked at all since yesterday, and I'm not sure if I'm ready to talk to him yet. She turned to pass the note back, and glanced over at Danny. He was busy doodling on the desk. Looking like he was about to fall asleep.
Well if you need a friend, you know I'm here for you! He wanted to be more than just her friend, but for now he would just have to settle for being just that.
Thanks Vaughn! So are you still gonna show up at the party? She knew that Danny would be there, after all he was one of Leo's best friends. But at least if Vaughn was there then he could help to take her mind off the jerk known as her boyfriend. Of course, I promised someone special that I would be there and I never break a promise! Sydney turned around and smiled at Vaughn, which Danny noticed.
"What is she doing?" He whispered to Leo, but obviously he didn't whisper it quietly enough.
"Mr Hecht, is there a problem?" Irina stared over the edge of the book, at her daughter's boyfriend. She had never been a big fan of Danny, sure he was a nice enough guy, but she thought that Sydney deserved somebody better. Somebody like Michael perhaps. Danny quickly tore his eyes away from Sydney and looked at Ms. Derevko.
"No, no problem." He lied.
The rest of the week went quite quickly. Sydney continued to ignore Danny, which only made him get more jealous. Syd was hanging out more with Vaughn and Weiss much to the dismay of Danny. Saturday came, and Sydney was over at the Halliwell house, getting ready with the girls. She had chosen to wear a red dress, which showed off her slender figure. Her hair was loosely pinned to the top of her head, with some curls falling down onto the sides of her face. She walked out of the bathroom, to see her friends already dressed ready to go. Phoebe was wearing a sky blue halterneck top, accompanied by a white gypsy skirt, and Paige had also chosen to wear a skirt and a top she had sneaked out of Phoebe's wardrobe. Piper had picked a black dress, which she really suited her.
"You all look great!" Patty Halliwell exclaimed as she walked up the stairs. She looked at her daughters proudly, amazed at their beauty.
"Thanks mom. We best get going, we don't wanna be late!" Phoebe said as she picked up her purse. The other girls agreed, and said their goodbyes to Patty and made their way out of the house. Leo's house wasn't that far so they decided that they would walk. Arm in arm they made their way down the street.
"Sydney, is Michael still coming tonight?" Paige asked curiously.
"Yeah, he said that he was gonna come. Why do you ask?" Sydney knew that Paige had a crush on him and she didn't like it.
"Great! I was just wondering. You and him are quite close aren't you?" Sydney didn't answer so Paige continued. "Does he have a girlfriend?" Piper glanced at Sydney and she could immediately see how uncomfortable she was even though Paige couldn't.
"He hasn't mentioned anybody." Sydney replied sighing.
Paige's smile widened. "So you think that maybe..."
"PAIGE!" Piper yelled. Everybody looked at Piper in surprise. "Look, the guy has only just moved in. At least let him settle down before you try and start something with him. Just give Sydney a break, okay?" Paige nodded in defeat.
Sydney breathed a sigh of relief. When Phoebe and Paige weren't looking, she turned and mouthed: "Thank you!"
Piper knew that Sydney's attraction to Vaughn was more than just a crush, even if she wasn't ready to admit it yet.
