Hey all, thanks for the wonderful reviews! A little off topic, I just watched Ladder 49 and that movie was really sad. I was like, man... I need to go read some fics to cheer me up. If anyone has seen that, you know what I'm talking about. Anyways, here's the next chapter. I can't wait till Wednesday swings by!
Chapter 25.
Syd's POVA sledgehammer. That's all I could think of when I awoke the next morning. That someone was pounding my head in with a sledgehammer. It hurt all the way around my head. There was no specific spot to where the pain was hitting. It was everywhere. Attempting my best to get rid of the throbbing, I shoved my head under my pillow.
"Syd…" I heard Vaughn whisper. Instead of responding, I let out a loud groan.
"Are you awake, Syd?"
"No." I grunted out.
"Here… take these."
Slowly taking the pillow off of my head, I sat up and squinted at Vaughn. He held out a glass of water and two pills, which I assumed was Advil.
"How are you feeling?" I asked him.
"Like shit. I just took these. Figured you could use the same." He said, handing me the pills.
"Thanks, Vaughn."
I swallowed the pills slowly and took note of how soar my throat was. Placing the glass of water back on the nightstand, I laid back down and tried to make myself comfortable. I could feel Vaughn drape his arm around my stomach and pull me closer. His unshaven cheek tickled my bare shoulder when he put his head down next to mine.
I had no coherent memory of what happened after falling asleep on Vaughn's lap the night before. The last thing I could recall was kissing Vaughn's jaw, rubbing his shoulders, and then hearing Francie and Weiss arguing before I drifted off. Everything after that was a blur.
I assumed Vaughn carried me to his bed and changed me into shorts and a t-shirt. I was lucky I didn't have to get up in the middle of the night and empty out the contents of my stomach. I had a bad feeling that this morning would be different since the ceiling couldn't stop spinning.
When I was finally able to wake up and pull myself out of bed, I went into the bathroom and drew myself a bath. I figured a long soak in the tub might make me feel better. Thank god I had no studying to do or anything to take care of. I fully intended on lying around the whole day and attempting to get rid of the hangover.
I let my body soak in the warm water and closed my eyes, laying my head back on the edge of the tub. After a few minutes of peaceful silence, the door opened slowly as Vaughn entered with two cups of coffee.
"Hey…" He greeted me softly and handed me the cup.
"Hey… thanks for the coffee. I needed this."
"Are you feeling any better?" He asked.
"A little. After I took the Advil, my headache got a little better. Other than that, I still feel pretty shitty. What about you?"
"Same. Tequila is the worst."
"I know." I responded, nodding my head in agreement.
"So. I assume you were the one that brought me to bed and stripped me of my clothes." I said chuckling.
"Yeah, I mean, I couldn't let you sleep in your jeans, you know."
"I know, I'm just joking with you. What time did you get to bed?"
"Around 2:30 after Weiss kissed Francie."
I almost choked on the coffee I was drinking after hearing Vaughn's statement.
"He what?" I shouted.
"He kissed her. They were wrestling around on the floor and then he just reached up and kissed her." Vaughn explained.
"Oh my god. What did Francie say? Was she freaked out?"
"Yeah, you could say that. She just got up and went to the kitchen. Weiss said that this morning she left right when she woke up and headed home. None of us got the chance to talk to her."
"That's not good. How's Weiss?" I asked thinking about how crushed Weiss must be at the moment.
"Bummed out. I don't know. He'll be ok. He just feels like an idiot for doing it I guess."
"Aww, poor Weiss. I should go over and talk to Francie later and see how she feels. Damn, I must've been really knocked out if I missed all of that."
"Oh you were. You were snoring on my chest!"
Vaughn's POVMy whole day was spent trying to cheer Weiss up and dozing off on the couch. If anyone would've walked into our apartment that day they would've seen three people sprawled out on the floor and couch moaning in pain.
Weiss was so depressed, he tried to start drinking again saying that his hangover couldn't get any worse. Syd and I had to hide the rest of the beers from him. We didn't even have to bother with the tequila since the four of us managed to kill both of the bottles the night before.
Late in the afternoon, Syd announced that she was going over to check on Francie and that I was to make sure Weiss didn't start drinking anymore.
"Mike…" I heard him mumble from the kitchen table.
"What?" I answered.
"I think I ruined my all of my chances with Francie."
"No you didn't. You were drunk. If she asks you just blame it on the alcohol."
"Being drunk is what makes it worst. You know everyone's theory on how the truth comes out when you're drunk. That's completely true." He argued as he got up from the kitchen table and sat down opposite from me on the other couch.
"That's not true, Weiss."
"Yes it is! She thinks I'm a fool now. You were supposed to stop me!"
Shielding my eyes from the sun peeking in through the shades, I looked at Weiss to see him pointing at me.
"How is it my fault that you kissed Francie? I wasn't over there pushing your heads together. You were the one that did it, not me." I defended myself.
"Yes, I did kiss her, but you were supposed to prevent me from doing anything stupid like that! You promised me when we were at the store."
"Ok… if I recall, you told me to make sure you didn't say anything stupid. Which I did, by the way. There was nothing about making sure you didn't do anything stupid."
"Oh, don't get technical with me. It's the same thing!" He argued.
I could tell Weiss was getting heated and I didn't want to tick him off even more. He was already peeved about Francie walking out on him and I didn't want to feed into his fire.
"Alright, dude. I'm sorry. I couldn't really do anything though. Syd was passed out on my lap." I explained.
"Ahh, it's ok, Mike. I just hope Syd comes back with good news."
"Good news?" I questioned curiously.
"Yeah… good news. Like, how Francie doesn't hate my guts."
Luckily, Weiss was able to stop thinking about it after he found the Victoria's Secrets runway show on TV. I seriously thought I'd have to wipe up the drool off of the floor where he was sitting. Some of the girls in lingerie were hot, but they were supposed to be because they were models.
I had more fun looking at the skimpy outfits and imagining my girlfriend in those. Then I thought about how hard Syd would slap me in the head for having those thoughts. But, I couldn't help it. I made a mental note to suggest to Syd to stop by Victoria's Secret on our next trip to the mall.
Oh, how I would give my left arm to see Sydney in that black lace bra. Weiss read my mind perfectly, looked at me, and told me to keep dreaming.
Syd's POVPicking up a jamba juice on the way, I drove back to my apartment. Somehow, it felt weird calling it my apartment still because it really wasn't. I only went back there to pick up extra clothes and stuff I had forgotten.
Thinking about my apartment got me wondering how life next fall would be like when I officially moved in with Vaughn. The only thing I feared was the pressure of living together. Sure it would be romantic and convenient, but what if living together puts a strain on our relationship?
Shaking the thought out of my head, I walked in to see Francie lying down on the couch and watching TV.
"Hey sweetie. I picked you up a Jamba Juice on the way." I announced while plopping myself down on the couch.
"Oooh, thanks Syd. It's just what I needed. How's your hangover?"
"It's a little better now that I'm out and walking around. What about you?"
"Eh, it's ok. My head hurts and my stomach is upset. But, other than that, I'm cool." Fran explained.
Silence filled the apartment for a few minutes while we both watched TV and sipped at our drinks. I don't think either of us wanted to bring up the Weiss situation.
"So… I heard what happened." I said, breaking the silence.
"Yeah? Is Weiss killing himself over it yet?"
"Pretty much."
"I knew that was going to happen." Pausing to stir around the contents of her drink, she continued. "Syd, I didn't mean to walk out on him like that. But, I didn't know what to do. He caught me by such a big surprise that I couldn't even say anything."
"I know how that is." I answered. "I think Weiss thinks you hate him now."
"Oh, Syd. I don't hate him. I don't hate him at all. I love Weiss. He is one of the sweetest, most caring guys that I know. "
"Well, how did you feel when he kissed you? Did you feel anything?"
Thinking to herself for a little, Francie looked down at her hands before answering.
"No… I didn't feel anything Syd and that's what makes me feel so horrible." She murmured.
"It shouldn't make you feel horrible Fran. It's not your fault."
"But it is. I guess I've sort of been leading Weiss on these last couple of weeks by staying at his apartment and giving him false hope. I shouldn't have done that. The last thing I wanted to do was break his heart and now I think I've lost a great friend too."
Tears were starting to form under her eyes while I reached for the Kleenex box and handed her one.
"It's ok Fran. You just need to tell him everything you've told me about the way you feel. About how you're not ready for a relationship but that you still want to continue to be friends with him."
"Thanks Syd. I also wanted to talk to you about something…"
"Oh ok, go for it." I urged.
"I know the four of us discussed moving in together and getting that three bedroom place over where the guys live. But, I was thinking about it this morning and I don't think it's a good idea. I think I'm going to stay here at our place."
"Oh…" I said surprised. "Well, if that's what you want. I guess I could put off living with Vaughn for another year."
"No! No Syd… I don't want you to feel like you have to live with me. If you want to go move in with Michael then that's fine."
"What about my rent and my room? You can't live here by yourself." I pointed out.
"Actually, there's this girl, Emily, in my business class that is moving out the dorms and she's looking for a place to live. So, if you're sure about moving in with Michael, then I'll really ok with it."
"Oh, ok." I said disappointed.
Somehow, my talk with Francie made me feel saddened. It felt like she wanted me to move out and bring in this new girl who I didn't even know. Fran was my best friend and I couldn't imagine not living with her. But, I really wanted to live with Vaughn. I had a decision to make and I wasn't sure about what I wanted to do.
Vaughn's POV"God, when is Syd coming home? How long has she been Mike? Maybe you should call her. She has been gone for awhile." Weiss said frantically as he paced around the family room.
"Chill out Weiss. She's only been gone for a couple of hours. She's probably just hanging out with Francie."
"But, I need to know what Francie said! It's killing me. Why was I such an idiot?" He shouted.
"We already had this discussion, dude."
After pacing around nervously for 20 more minutes and me yelling at him to out of the way from the TV, Syd finally returned him carrying a bag of groceries in her hand.
"Hey beautiful." I greeted her as she walked in.
"Hey handsome. I bought stuff for dinner. I'm going to cook you guys fettuccini Alfredo. Does that sound good?" She asked, swiftly planting a kiss on my lips before making her way to the kitchen to put the groceries down.
Meanwhile, Weiss was following Syd everywhere waiting for her to tell him about her talk with Francie. Syd knew what he was doing and decided to mess with him a little.
"Syd? Sydney… Talk to me. What did Francie say?"
"What? What are you talking about Weiss?" She said innocently while trying to hide the smirk that was creeping up on her face.
"You know what I'm talking about!" He yelled from the top of his lungs.
"Ok! Damn Eric, you need to calm down. Vaughn, what's wrong with him?" Syd shouted in my direction.
"He's gone completely insane. You missed the whole hour of him freaking out and telling me to call you." I yelled back.
"Alright… I'm really just going to let her talk to you instead of me spilling out everything. But, to put you at a little ease, she doesn't hate you. She's not mad at you at all and only left because she was a little weirded out by the kiss." Syd explained.
"Weirded out? That doesn't sound good."
"I'll just let her explain things for herself, Weiss. That way you can understand because it'll be clearer coming from her."
"Fine." Weiss answered, walking into his room disappointed.
Both Syd and I were feeling a lot better by nighttime and the dinner she made was incredibly delicious. The pasta was cooked just right and was overloaded with sauce and cheese, just the way I liked it.
Although Syd seemed cheery, there was something that was bothering her and it was apparent to me. I could tell in the way she was staring off into space and biting her lower lip like she was deep in thought.
I always had this way of knowing when something was wrong with Syd. It was like a sixth sense to me.
I decided to leave her alone for a while, leaving her to think about whatever was bothering her. I learned that sometimes you just have to give your girlfriend space and if she wants to talk to you about it, then she will. I was proven right when we slipped into bed and turned the lights off.
Propping herself up on one elbow, she began to speak to me.
"When I went to talk to Francie today, I had the feeling that she was trying to replace me. I know I'm probably just being overly sensitive, but I couldn't help but feel bad about it." She said quietly.
"Why do you think that?"
"Well, she explained to me that she doesn't want to move in with us next semester because of the whole Weiss situation and doesn't think that's a good idea."
"Ok… that seems logical. What else did the say?" I asked, curiously.
"That if I wanted to move in with you then it's ok with her because there's this girl Emily that she's friends with and is looking for a place to live. That's when I felt that she was trying to replace me because it's like she wanted me to move out."
"I don't think she wants you to move out Syd. You guys are best friends. I just think she doesn't want you to feel guilty for leaving her and moving in with me."
"I don't know Vaughn… maybe moving in with you isn't a good idea." She said doubtfully.
"What?"
Sitting up to lean against the headboard, I took her left hand in mine.
"Syd, don't you want to live with me? I mean you practically live with me anyways. It wouldn't be any different than it is now. Except, I would clear out half of my closet and a couple of drawers for your clothes."
"No, Vaughn. It's not like I don't want to live with you because I do! I think it's a great idea. But, what if something goes wrong with us? Where am I going to live? What if there's just too much pressure of officially live together and we can't take it?"
I could tell Syd was stressed out about the situation. She had every right to ask those questions because they were a concern.
"Listen to me Sydney. I'm in this relationship for the long run. I have no intentions on screwing this up at all. I want you to live with me because I love you. If I have to spend another night with you not in my bed, I don't know what I'm going to do." Bringing my hand up to her face, I brushed away a few strands a slowly awaited her response.
"Oh my god, why do you know exactly the perfect thing to say in every situation?" She asked laughing.
"I don't know, maybe it's a gift."
"I feel the exact same way, Vaughn. I guess I'll make it official and tell Fran tomorrow. So, for the last time, are you sure about this?"
"I've never been more sure of anything in my life." I responded bringing my face down to hers and planting a slow kiss on her lips.
Reviews are welcomed and appreciated :)