"Debrief in ten minutes, Bristow," Kendall reminded Sydney as he hurried past her desk, on his way to collect the other agents hiding somewhere around the rotunda. Sydney sighed aloud and began to gather the massive mound of research she compiled in preparation for their upcoming op. to Trieste, Italy. She and Vaughn had avoided talking about the mission all week, but according to Sydney's calendar, she was almost exactly at the five month mark in her pregnancy. In the last months her role in operations had changed to accomodate her increasing limitations, but she promised Vaughn she would remove herself completely from active duty at five months. She knew it was time to step down, and honestly, she was a little relieved, but the sense of finality still bothered her just a little. It would be a long time before she was ready to go back in the field, and she hated the idea of just leaving Sloane and Derevko in someone else's hands. It had to be done, but she didn't have to feel good about it.
Vaughn seemed nervous and flighty all week, so Sydney suspected that he was a little worried about reminding her of her commitment. It took more than a few heated arguments to reach the compromise, and she would willingly admit she had been rather unreasonable and unfair. Still, he didn't need to be scared to tell her, because she was just uncomfortable enough to volunteer that information as soon as she finished with this mission. Shoving the last of her papers into the manilla folder, she left her workstation to look for Vaughn so they could head to the debrief together.
Her last mission was a simple recon op, and the debrief took less than a hour. As soon as they finished up, Kendall sent them home to get ready. Vaughn lingered for a few minutes in the conference room, shooting several brief glances towards her father. Sydney lowered her eyes in concern, a little unnerved by her boyfriend's strange behaviour this week. "Vaughn," she said softly, stepping up next to him and taking hold of his arm.
"I'll see you both on the plane," her father acknowledged before leaving them alone.
"Vaughn," Sydney said again. "I know this is my last mission. I'm fine with it," she assured him.
Vaughn smiled tightly, obviously trying (and failing) to seem at ease. "Thank you, Syd," he said appreciatively. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't relieved," he admitted.
"Me too," she laughed. "Flying across the globe while five months pregnant is not all that comfortable."
"I guess not. You ready?"
She nodded, and he led her out to the car.
"God dammit," Vaughn cursed hours later. "What the hell is wrong with the plane?"
"Vaughn," Sydney reprimanded gently. "It's not a big deal. They'll get us there in time."
Vaughn glanced irritably at his watch and shook his head in frustration, cursing lowly under his breath. Weiss looked at Sydney sympathetically and left the two alone in the room while he went to check with the pilot on the status of their flight. They were at an airfield in England, and mechanical difficulties currently grounded their plane, but the pilot promised to take care of the situation and get them to Trieste in plenty of time. She was only moderately aggravated with the delay, but Vaughn seemed ready to snap.
"Vaughn, it's okay," she tried again.
"It's not okay," he bit too harshly, taking out his frustration on her. "We were supposed to leave an hour ago."
"Yeah, but we don't have to be there until tonight. We have plenty of time," she reminded him.
"That's not the point," he shot back.
"And yelling at me isn't going to fix the problem with the plane," she said, raising an eyebrow in challenge.
Vaughn sighed in frustration and finally smiled at Sydney. "I'm sorry," he apologised. "I'm being an ass."
Sydney laughed shortly and walked to his his side, wrapping her arms around him and laying her head on his shoulder. He breathed out slowly to relax, and she felt the tension flood from his body. "Yeah, you are," she teased, "but I still love you."
"Mmm, love you too," he answered. "That's why I'm so upset. I...uh...I actually had plans for us. I was going to show you around the city. It's really beautiful, and I thought it would be nice."
"Oh Vaughn," she gasped. "That's so sweet, thank you."
"Yeah, well, we won't have time now, so there's no reason to thank me," he sighed.
"What about after?" she suggested. "It's a simple mission, Vaughn. It won't take us long. I know we won't have that much time, but it would still be nice."
Vaughn pulled back to study her face. "Yeah?" he asked doubtfully.
"Of course. It'll be fun. Just relax for now, okay?"
"Okay," he smiled happily.
They found a seat and curled up next to each other, and Vaughn dozed off for the next hour until the plane arrived. The flight to Trieste was relatively smooth, and they both slept a little. They only had an hour to prepare before they were scheduled to meet their contact, but since they were only picking up information and questioning a man who defected from Sloane and Derevko's alliance, there wasn't much to go over. Weiss monitored the meeting from the roof of a nearby building, and after twenty minutes or so, they were ready to leave with a large folder of valuable intel on Sloane's operations and objectives.
While the rest of the team returned to the van to wade through the sea of papers and reports, Sydney quickly opened her suitcase, hoping to find something halfway appropriate, and smiled as she realised Vaughn had packed one of her favourite new dresses. She still felt a little self-conscious about wearing maternity clothes, but Celia picked out the dress for her, and Vaughn swore she looked absolutely gorgeous every time she wore it. She threw on the dress and quickly fixed her hair, adding an extra touch of eyeliner and a light mist of perfume.
"You look amazing," Vaughn praised as he breezed into the room.
Sydney scanned his body and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you. You look great. I love this suit," she noted, fingering the collar of his deep blue oxford shirt.
"Yeah, I know," he grinned. "Why do you think I picked this one?"
"Smart man. Are you ready?"
"Of course." He grabbed her hand and led her to the car he rented. Their plane was scheduled to leave again in two hours, so he furrowed his brow in concentration as they sped down the road towards some unknown location.
"Where are we going?" Sydney asked curiously.
He shot her a brief glance and smiled enigmatically. "You'll see when we get there."
"Vaaaauuuuuggghhnnnn," she whined.
"Good try, but no," he laughed.
She pouted and tried to look angry, but his insistence on surprising her was actually adorable, and she loved that he went to so much effort to make an otherwise boring mission a romantic date that she would remember while she sat at home on desk duty for the next eight or nine months. He knew she had mixed feelings about temporarily suspending her field rating, and this sweet evening reminded her of all the reasons she wanted to stay at home and prepare for the baby. Yes, she had been doing her job for a long time, and she wasn't entirely sure what she would do with herself while her colleagues went out on missions and she read the reports, but since he promised not to go on missions without her he was in the same boat, and she was sure he would do everything he could to make it more bearable.
Vaughn drove the car away from the city, and Sydney just relaxed so she could take in the sights. Italy had always been one of her favourite countries, but it was so rare that she actually had the time to enjoy the sights in all the cities she visited. There would probably only be time for dinner and a quick drive around the little port village, but even that was more than missions usually afforded them. And for now, travelling was out of the picture. When the baby was old enough, she would return to the field and complete her operations, but she and Vaughn really wouldn't have many good opportunities to go away just the two of them for a relaxing weekend or a spontaneous vacation like they always talked about.
Right as Vaughn took a sharp turn along the curvy road, a loud pop sounded from beneath the car, startling them both. The whole car started to shake and bounce awkwardly down the already bumpy road, and Sydney winced at the harsh jarring. Vaughn cursed loudly and jerked the wheel to the right to pull off the road and stop the car. As soon as they were safely parked, he looked over to Sydney in concern. "Are you okay?" he asked worriedly.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she assured him. "What happened?"
"I think we just lost a tire," he sighed. "Stay right here and I'll go check."
Sydney watched him walk around the car to ascertain the problem, and his face twisted in anger and obvious frustration as he kicked the now flat tire. He dropped his head into his hands and tried not to scream, but she could tell this really upset him. Ignoring his instructions, she stepped out of the car to comfort him. "It's okay, Honey," she promised.
"No, it's not," he argued. "Nothing is going right. We'll never get this fixed in time to do anything tonight. I just wanted to make it special."
"I know," she murmured, hugging him tightly. "And I really appreciate that, Vaughn. Yes, it's disappointing, but you went to a lot of effort and I love you for it. We can go out when we get home. Let's just call Weiss and have someone pick us up so we can get back to the airfield."
Vaughn stepped back and looked again at the car as though he expected it to miraculously repair itself. When it didn't, he shook his head sadly. "I'm so sorry, Syd," he apologised again. "I know you're not thrilled about this being your last mission and I really wanted to take you out tonight. I know we can go out at home, but I thought it would be so nice to see the city together, and now the whole night is all fucked up."
"Vaughn," she scolded mildly. "Don't apologise. This isn't your fault. Things happen. It's really okay, and I'm not upset."
Vaughn cursed again and kicked the tire, so Sydney took a step back and bit her lip. She really wasn't mad at him at all, and just the fact that he tried so hard to give her a special night meant everything to her, but it was obvious her assurances weren't going to help the situation at all. Even if she didn't mind the spoiled plans, he did. He went to a lot of trouble to arrange everything, and a few bouts of bad luck ruined it. "Dammit," he swore, turning and running his hands through his hair as he looked out over the sea. She watched him carefully, trying to figure out how to help.
"Michael," she said softly, stepping behind him to loop her arms around his waist. He remained tense, unmoved by her gentle tone. "I'm so sorry this didn't work out," she murmured sincerely.
Vaughn turned around in her arms to gape at her incredulously. "Why are you apologising? This was supposed to be your night."
She smiled and cupped his cheek. "It's your night, too," she reminded him.
He nodded and rested his head on her shoulder, trying to calm his haggard breathing. She stroked his back lovingly, hoping to calm and soothe him. "I've been planning this for so long," he murmured, his breath tickling her neck.
"Really?" she asked in surprise. "But we didn't even know we would be here until this week."
"I'm the one that decided on Trieste," he admitted. "I set up the meeting here because I wanted to bring you. I was here once a few years ago, and I knew you would love it, so I convinced your dad to help me set it up." He stepped out of her embrace and looked at her seriously. "I had it all planned, Syd. I bought food from a little restaurant and had Weiss bring it back for me, and I was going to take to you to this great spot for a picnic. Then there's this museum - the Revoltella - and you can go up on the roof. It has the most amazing view of the whole city, and I knew it would be perfect."
"I don't understand," she shook her head in confusion. "Perfect for what?"
"Syd," he began slowly, reaching his hand into his pocket. Suddenly everything slid into place and she realised what was happening. His frenzied, anxious behaviour the whole week, the guarded looks he shared with her father, the hushed phone calls to his mother...she was honestly amazed she hadn't figured it out before. Tears began to stream down her cheeks without warning, morphing into full sobs when he pulled out a small velvet box and produced the most gorgeous ring she'd ever seen. The platinum band bore a single diamond in the perfect princess cut, so pristinely clear she knew it cost him a near fortune. Tiny emeralds sparkled all along the band, accenting the already elegant design. "Sydney," he said again, his face now lit with nervous excitement.
"Vaughn...oh my God," she breathed, shaking her head in disbelief.
"I wanted it to be romantic. After we talked about getting married I knew it should be something really special so you would know how much I love you and want to be with you. But I brought you here to do this, and I don't want to go home without you wearing this ring. I never planned on doing this on the side of the road, but what the hell, right?" he grinned crookedly.
Sydney couldn't bring herself to speak, so she just nodded as the tears continued to fall.
"Syd, I don't remember when exactly you made me fall in love with you the first time...I think it started the day you walked into my office, and it grew a little more every time I saw you. I realised it that night on the pier, but I remember the exact moment I realised I needed to be with you for the rest of my life. It was right after I woke up after the accident - and just for future reference, I never want to wake up to Jack Bristow's face ever again," he joked lightly. "But he told me about the baby, and I convinced the doctor to let me go to your room. You were asleep when I got there, so I sat down and touched your cheek. As soon as I did, you smiled and moved towards me. And that was it, Syd," he said simply. "It probably sounds so insignificant, especially considering everything we've been through, but...I don't know," he shook his head. "It just amazed me that you were with me, that we were going to have a baby. And I felt like the luckiest man alive when you just moved towards me in your sleep."
"Because I knew you were there," she said tearfully. "I always want to be with you."
He nodded seriously and grabbed her hand. He slowly knelt to the ground, not caring that his expensive suit was resting in the dirt on the side of the road. "When we went to visit my mom, I told her about how many times I came close to losing you. There have been way too many, Syd, but the thing is, they always just remind me that I don't want to waste a day. I know things are crazy, and I know it's going to be hard to take care of a baby and balance work at the same time, and I'm sure we're going to scream and yell at each other sometimes. But I promise you, Sydney, I will get you out of this life."
"But you have to be there," she added adamantly. "You have to promise me we'll get out of it together."
"I promise, Syd," he agreed. "If you'll marry me, I will make sure that we get that normal life. Together." He laughed softly and looked down at the ground. "God, I keep babbling, and I haven't even asked the question." He looked up at her again, his green eyes full of love, pleading with her to accept him. "Sydney Bristow, will you marry me?"
Sydney nodded, still unable to stop crying.
"Is that a yes?" he asked nervously.
Sydney pulled him up off the ground and into her arms, hugging him fiercely. "Of course. Yes. I want to marry you. You know I will," she breathed into his hair.
"Well, I kind of hoped," he quipped.
"Can I have my ring now?" she asked hopefully.
"Oh God! Of course! I'm sorry!" he apologised, fumbling to step back and pull the ring out of the box simultaneously. He grabbed her trembling hands, his shaking a little as well, and held his breath as he slid the ring onto her finger.
She held up her hand to admire it and laughed in delight. "It's beautiful, Vaughn!" she exclaimed.
He beamed in pride and pulled her back into his arms, lifting her slightly and twirling them around. "I love you so much," he swore passionately.
"I love you too," she replied, still crying tears of bliss as she admired the gorgeous ring now adorning her hand. "This is perfect," she whispered. "It was all perfect. I don't care about the picnic or the museum. This is even better."
"Better?" he laughed incredulously.
"Yes," she declared firmly. "I'm sure I would have loved everything you planned, but this is us, Vaughn. This is real. Anyone can plan some big romantic night, and it would have been wonderful, but only you could propose next to a broken-down car on the side of the road in some little town in Italy because you couldn't wait any longer."
Vaughn blushed self-consciously and pulled her back into a hug so he could bury his face in her neck. They stood like that for a few minutes, holding each other and committing this moment to memory, until the wind began to pick up, causing Sydney to shiver. "I guess we should call Weiss, huh?" he asked, not incredibly thrilled to return to reality.
"We'll miss our plane," she reminded him.
"Yeah," he nodded. He grabbed his phone from the car and grinned as an idea suddenly dawned on him. "You want to freak him out?" he asked mischievously.
"Always," she laughed.
"Here, you call," he instructed, handing her the phone. "Tell him you need him to pick us up, and sound really annoyed."
"You're awful," she laughed, even as she smiled at the plan. She carefully schooled her expression to better aide her little charade and dialled the number, turning so she wouldn't see Vaughn and lose it completely. When Weiss picked up, she curtly ordered him to come pick them up immediately. He sounded a little concerned, but not nearly worried enough, so Sydney added a little fuel to the fire and covered the phone with her hand while she muttered angrily at Vaughn. "Sorry," she apologised to Weiss when she finished. "He got us stuck out here, and it's getting cold. I just want to go home. Will you please come get us?"
He began to interrogate her, but she fought her laughter and cut him off to beg him to leave it alone. When she finally hung up, she burst out in laughter, turning to Vaughn and returning the phone. "Did it work?" Vaughn asked.
"Like a charm," she nodded. "He kept asking me what you did to make me so upset. I'm sure he's already planning an evening of heavy drinking when we get home."
"That's his solution to everything," he rolled his eyes. Noticing her shiver again, he pulled off his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders. He led her to a grassy spot not far from the car and sat down, pulling her into his lap so they could keep each other warm until Weiss arrived. Sydney sighed happily and rested against him, closing her eyes so she could fully take in the sounds and the smells of the night. She knew he would eventually propose, but ever since their conversation at the cafe, she figured he would wait until after the baby was born. They weren't in any rush to get married, and they knew they would be together anyway. After picking a ridiculous fight with him over the matter of engagement, she didn't think he would be too worried about surprising her anymore.
But as always, he did surprise her. Just when she thought she could predict his every move, he pulled off something like this and blew her away again. He did it that night at the train station, the night she realised she was in over her head. She never planned on loving him, especially since she was still mourning the loss of Danny, but he surprised her that night by completely breaking out of character and tossing the rule book to the fray. He proved his devotion that night without even knowing if she could ever feel the same way about him. Until that point, she did nothing to disclose the increasing attraction she felt towards him, and she really tried to conceal the burgeoning feelings of something more than just attraction. Any woman would be crazy not to give him a second glance, but few earned the opportunity to discover the depth of his loyalty and the vast expanse of his loving, forgiving heart. Before Will was kidnapped, she knew he would protect her and do what he could to help her through this impossible sea of lies and betrayals and failures, but until he showed up at the train station to rescue her from an impossible fate, she had no idea how far he would go to keep her safe and happy.
When she returned home from Taipei without him at her side, she felt lost, helpless, completely alone in this horrible world. But somehow she knew she would find him, and she knew that when she did, he would jump right back into the line of fire despite his horrible ordeal at the hands of her mother and Khasinau. Michael Vaughn was not a man to give up because of the dangers imposed upon his own life, especially when someone else's life hung in the balance - particularly hers. As soon as he was home, he returned to the agency to be her handler, not even requesting a few personal days to allow the bruises to heal and the nightmares to ease. When they sat in the warehouse and discussed how he survived the crushing wave of water and the even more deadly schemes of Irina Derevko, she knew that he loved her. In the back of her mind, she decided they would be together, no matter what obstacles life or Sloane or the CIA threw in their way. But he surprised her then, too, by proving that even though he was the greatest and most caring man she had ever known, he was still human and fallible.
Seeing him weak and horribly sick, possibly near death, in the hospital nearly killed her. When she held his hand and looked into his cloudy green eyes, she felt the most pure and intense fear of her life. His eyes were supposed to be clear and focused on her, but he couldn't seem to fix them on anything, and though she still saw the man she loved through them, she could also see him fading away. Her fear only multiplied exponentially when he begged her to be careful. The fact that he could worry about her safety even as he lay dying from a cruel and painful virus just proved to her that she would never find anyone like him. She would never find another man that loved her so much, and she couldn't even begin to fathom what life without him would be like. Then his eyes fluttered closed and that horrid tone filled the room, and she couldn't imagine feeling anything worse than the sheer dread she felt as they rushed him out of the room so they could possibly save his life.
She was wrong.
She fought the tears that streamed down her cheeks, trying to remind herself that if she was just strong and brave enough she could recover the antidote and save him. Motivated by her need for him, she rushed towards the plane waiting for her, only to run into the last person she ever wanted to see. Hearing that woman speak of Vaughn with such familiarity, with that possessive tone only Ishe/I should be allowed to use, Sydney felt her world begin to crumble. If Vaughn died, he would be waiting for her. But suddenly she realised this life might be too much for him, even if he did survive. Maybe he would settle for Alice, get married, have adorable little children and eventually abandon his role as her handler in order to raise his family. Even losing him to death would be easier than losing him to Alice. She wouldn't have to picture him with her, smiling, laughing, touching her in that soft, intimate way she knew so well. And the worst part of it all was that she Iknew./I She knew he loved her more than he could ever love Alice, and it scared her more than anything that he would be willing to trade true love for the comfort and security of a wife that didn't drag him across the globe and through the front lines of the espionage battle on a weekly basis, for the mundane, casual life of a typical American suburbanite.
For a while she tried to accept that the one man she wanted was the one man she could never have, and she tried to convince herself she would be okay when he moved on with his life without her. Maybe Love and Sydney Bristow just weren't compatible. She was disappointed that he stumbled from the altar she put him upon, but she didn't begrudge him for being capable of sin and hurt. She couldn't possibly fault him for wanting something normal and safe - something she could never give him as long as Arvin Sloane walked the earth. Yes, it wounded her, and she lashed out at him in anger for the entire situation. A part of her believed it would be easier if they hashed it all out, unloaded all of the emotional scars and baggage they heaped on one another and unwound the complicated past so they could begin to hate one another. It would be easier if she didn't have to see him, didn't have to notice the look of longing in his eyes. But then he did the one thing no man had ever done before: he broke down her carefully constructed barrier, her shield of rules that kept him from coming to close to the part of her that bled. He found that one tiny chink in her armour, and he attacked.
She loved him all the more for refusing to let her surrender, and now, sitting in the grass as he sheltered her from the wind, she couldn't imagine him loving her more. But looking back over their long and complicated history, she knew he would find a way to make it happen. She sighed contentedly despite the cool breeze and the dirt covering her favourite dress and closed her eyes until she heard the motor of an approaching car.
"You awake?" he asked quietly.
"Barely," she nodded. "But I'm ready to go home."
He stood and helped her up, intertwining their fingers as Weiss bolted out of the car and gaped at the sight. He blinked in confusion as he saw the expressions of peace and happiness on their faces, and he rolled his eyes when he realised he had been played. The ring glinting on Sydney's finger gave away their little joke, and they both grinned widely as he wiped imaginary sweat from his brow. "You two really got a kick out of that, didn't you?" he accused them as they climbed into the van.
"We did," Sydney confirmed.
"Syd, did you actually agree to marry this buffoon on the side of the road?"
"Hey!" Vaughn protested with mock hurt.
"Aww," Sydney laughed, kissing him on the cheek. "Of course I did. Look at this ring. And he's not bad to look at, either."
"Gee, thanks Honey," Vaughn rolled his eyes.
"Okay, you can stop with the cutsey lovey-dovey stuff anytime now," Weiss informed them. "I already had to deal with him all week."
Sydney's eyes twinkled with a glint of mischief as Vaughn groaned and buried his head in his hands. "How bad was he?" she asked curiously.
"Syd," Vaughn pleaded.
"Bad," Weiss supplied immediately. "You remember how he came over to watch a hockey game last week? He was actually coming over to get completely hammered so he could ask your dad on Sunday."
"Weiss," Vaughn warned him lowly. "You really don't need to tell her all this. You don't need to know this, Syd."
"Yes I do!" she argued vehemently. "I think it's sweet! Did you really ask my dad?"
"He did," Weiss answered for him. "He was worried he would back out, so I got him really drunk so he would loosen up a little."
"This was entirely against my will," Vaughn defended himself. "I went to ask for his advice, and as I've said before, Weiss' solution to everything is to get so drunk you can't remember your problem to begin with."
"Is that why you were so sick Sunday night?" she asked sympathetically. Weiss laughed hysterically, and Vaughn shot her an evil glare. He managed to hold his alcohol pretty well after getting smashed at Eric's, but he lost it after finally approaching her father. He'd been so terrified, and as soon as it was over, he came home and proceeded to throw up the rest of the night. She just assumed he caught a touch of the stomach flu, so she took care of him all evening, dabbing the sweat from his forehead and making sure he drank plenty of Gatorade when he finally finished.
"Dude, you got sick?" Weiss asked, barely concealing his sheer delight with Vaughn's utter humiliation. "Syd, no hangover could be that bad, and your fiance here has had some practise with massive quantities of alcohol."
"Thank you so much, Weiss," Vaughn remarked wryly. "Yes, Syd, I was so scared to ask your dad that I came home and thoroughly made an ass of myself," he confessed.
"You really asked my dad for permission?" she asked softly, the teasing glint in her eyes replaced by a spark of affection.
"Well, not for permission exactly. I did ask for his blessing, but I told him I was going to marry you no matter what he said. And after a few well-placed threats and reminders that he could kill me and make it look like an accident, he gave me his approval."
Sydney wished he was kidding, but she had a feeling the scene played out exactly as Vaughn described. "Thank you," she said quietly, too softly for Weiss to hear.
"Man, no wonder you threw up," Weiss commented as they arrived back at base. Sydney and Vaughn climbed out of the car, shyly making their way through the cheering agents to grab their luggage so they could change into comfortable clothes before boarding the plane to fly back home.
Sydney bent over to rifle through her suitcase and gasped suddenly as a sharp pain pierced her stomach. She moved her hand to cover the small bulge and slowly let out her breath as the pain ebbed away, but Vaughn was immediately alert and by her side. "What happened?" he asked in concern. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she smiled tenderly, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "Baby was just reminding me that he or she is here too."
"Really?" he asked, his eyes glowing with excitement. "Did she move?"
"No," she shook her head. "Not yet. Soon, though. Pregnancy isn't all that comfortable, Vaughn," she reminded him. She bent over once more and yanked a pair of yoga pants from her suitcase. She quickly shed her dress and pulled on the soft pants, suddenly anxious to be in the most comfortable clothes she could find. Before she could even ask, Vaughn tossed her one of his sweatshirts. "You're the best," she grinned as she pulled on the oversized sweatshirt.
"Better?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Much," she nodded. He picked up her suitcase and helped her back to the van for the short drive to the airfield. The other agents gave them a little privacy and sat towards the front of the plane, leaving them plenty of room to spread out in the back. Vaughn raised the armrests between them and let Sydney lay down against him, her head in his lap while he ran his fingers through her hair.
"Are you really okay with this being your last mission for a while?" he asked after a long period of content silence.
Sydney made no effort to move, but looked up into his face. "Yeah, I really am," she assured him. "This," she said, indicating their relaxed position, "and this," she added, pointing to her stomach, "are the most important things to me. If that means I stay home for a while and do boring desk work, I'll stay at home and do boring desk work. I can live with that."
"I love you," he swore.
Sydney sighed and closed her eyes. "I love you, too." She grew silent for a while, and Vaughn thought perhaps she had fallen asleep. He shifted slightly to lean against a pillow so he could sleep as well, and Sydney stirred. She opened her eyes and rolled over, sitting up so she could look him in the eye. "Vaughn," she murmured urgently. "What you said before...about getting us out of this life..."
"I meant it," he interjected.
"I know," she nodded. "I just...I wanted to say...marrying you isn't contingent on that," she blurted. "I want this all to end, but I want to be with you more. You and the baby will always be my first priority. I just wanted you to know that."
He stared at her for a moment, and she met his gaze. Realising that she was being completely honest, he pulled her into a hug. "You're amazing, Syd," he breathed.
"So are you," she replied easily. "Oh, and Vaughn?" she asked, the teasing tone from earlier suddenly back in her voice. "I think it's really cute that asking my dad if you could propose made you nervous enough to throw up."