Thank you all so much for your feedback- I am thrilled that you all seemed to enjoy the last chapter, because it's one of my favs (out of all the fics). I actually had the idea to marry Weiss and Ainsley and end the chapter in the way I did when I was half way through writing All That They Need. By the time I got to it, I couldn't wait to write it and then I couldn't wait to see what you all thought!
Taking a deep breath, Sydney looked down at the white stick in her hands. Her eyes went back to Vaughn and then returned downwards. She had to check if she had seen correctly.
"It's positive."
Before Vaughn had the chance to react, the door to their room flew open, and an ecstatic looking Weiss and Ainsley burst in.
"Oh, you're here!" Ainsley exclaimed. "We hoped you would be."
"You are never going to guess what happened!" Weiss bellowed, throwing his arm around Ainsley's shoulders. He looked at her before turning back to Sydney and Vaughn. "We just got married!"
Sydney and Vaughn could only stand, thunderstruck, as they tried to digest the two massive pieces of information they'd just received. They were going to be parents and two of their best friends had just got married in a quickie wedding in Vegas.
Weiss and Ainsley, so wrapped up in their own euphoria, were still talking, oblivious to the expressions on Sydney and Vaughn's faces.
"We were just sitting there when Eric spotted the chapel…" Ainsley was saying.
"So we just did it." Weiss finished.
"And if you hadn't been pikers, you two could have been there!" Ainsley planted a kiss on Weiss's cheek. "Never have I ever imagined getting married that way, but…"
"Now I couldn't imagine it happening any other way." Weiss smiled down at her.
Sydney shook her head slightly. "Uh, congratulations," she managed to stammer, concealing the white stick in her hand behind her back.
"Yeah," Vaughn rubbed the back of his neck. "Congrats."
Weiss and Ainsley, at that point, suddenly picked up on the feeling that they had just walked into the middle of something.
"Did we interrupt something?" Weiss asked, his eyes moving between Sydney and Vaughn.
"Um," Sydney glanced at Vaughn. "Yeah, sort of…"
"Oh god." Ainsley's eyes widened. "I'm so sorry. We just come barging in here…Come on Eric, let's go."
"Hey, it's ok." Vaughn stepped forward as they turned to the door.
"Yeah," Sydney agreed. "We are so happy for you. This is fantastic. Really. If you could just give us some time, and then we'll come celebrate, ok?"
Out in the hallway, Ainsley grabbed Weiss's hand as they headed towards the elevator. "It felt kind of serious in there. You don't think we walked in on a fight?"
Weiss shrugged. "Who knows? But that was definitely a weird vibe."
"Ah," Ainsley sighed. "Married life. We've got stuff like that to look forward to."
Weiss laughed. "So what do you propose we do Mrs Weiss…Mrs McPhee…Mrs McPhee-Weiss…Mrs Weiss-McPhee?"
"Hmm, I'll have to think about that whole name thing." Ainsley grinned. "But as for what to do now…" Her eyes lit up. "Let's go call our mothers!"
"Yeah!" Weiss exclaimed. "Do you reckon we could get them on a three-way conversation? That way we can break it to them at the same time."
"Ooh, I can't wait to hear their reactions." Ainsley replied gleefully. "They are going to be so mad at us!"
Vaughn closed the door behind Ainsley and Weiss and then turned to face Sydney. "Ok, before that period of insanity, did you just say that it was positive?"
Sydney nodded. "Yeah, I did."
Vaughn's face erupted into a grin as he crossed the room and swept Sydney up in his arms. "It's positive?" he asked again, feeling as if he needed the information to be verified over and over.
Sydney nodded. "You're going to be a dad."
He looked at her in awe. "And you a mum…Syd." He pressed his lips into hers in a long and hard kiss. "I love you so much." He kissed her again. "This is incredible."
Sydney wrapped her arms around his body, pulling them tighter together. It was still sinking in for her. She was having a baby. She was going to be a mother. She and Vaughn were going to have a baby. Her mind was a crazy mess of thoughts.
"Hey Syd." Vaughn cupped her face in his hands. "You ok? You're kind of quiet."
"I'm fine. I'm just in a bit of shock."
"Good shock?" Vaughn asked, a little concerned that Sydney was not quite sharing his enthusiasm for the news. But those thoughts were dashed as she looked in the eyes and flashed him a glowing smile.
"Great shock." She replied, kissing him softly. They stood, staying wrapped in each other's arms for a few minuted until Vaughn spoke.
"You know, Weiss and Ainsley are probably wondering what we are doing."
"I guess we should go meet them." Sydney stepped back out of his arms, smoothing her hair down. "Before they come bursting in again."
"Do you want to tell them?" Vaughn asked as they walked out of the hotel room.
Sydney shook her head slowly. "I'd like to see a doctor before announcing anything. Make sure that everything is ok."
"Sure." Vaughn placed his arm around her shoulders as they headed to the elevator. "I guess we're lucky that Weiss and Ainz decided on a quickie Vegas wedding."
"Why is that?"
"Because when we get back and they announce that news, it's going to be a lot easier for us to fly under the radar."
"You did what?" Craig exclaimed, staring at Weiss and Ainsley. It was Sunday night and they had returned from Vegas about an hour before. They had jumped straight into the phone, inviting all of their friends over under the pretence of drinks, so that they could break their big news.
"We got married." Weiss replied.
Campbell was staring at his sister in shock. He had always expected that one day Weiss would become his brother in law, but never in this fashion.
"Does mum know?" he asked.
"Yes," Ainsley giggled. "We called her and Lillian last night. Actually, I would have thought that she would have told you already."
"She's probably incapacitated from the stroke you would have given her." Campbell replied. "How did she react?"
"By the sounds of it, she might have choked. She was making some weird noises."
"Yeah," Weiss nodded. "My mum on the other hand was a little more vocal." He continued in a high falsetto voice. "How could you do this to me, Eric? I carried you for nine months, was in labour for two days and kept you fed and clean until the age of 22 and then you rob me of seeing my eldest child getting married…"
"Your mum really said that?" Francie asked.
Weiss nodded. "And more."
"Aren't you worried that they'll never forgive you for this?" Will asked.
"Nah," Ainsley said flippantly. "They'll get over it. They'll have calmed down by the reception."
Campbell blinked. "The reception?"
"Yeah, we're throwing a 'reception' party," Weiss explained.
"Not this weekend, but the one after," Ainsley informed them. "So keep it free."
"You guys are insane." Craig laughed.
"Never tried to deny it." Ainsley shrugged.
"Hey," Francie piped up. "Where are Syd and Michael?"
"They went straight home." Weiss replied. "They've been acting weird ever since last night."
"Really? Why?" Will asked.
"I think they had a fight." Ainsley mused.
"Pfft." Francie waved a hand. "No big deal. You know the two of them- their fights never last long. What I want to hear is details." She leaned forward. "Tell me, was the celebrant dressed as Elvis?"
"Vaughn!" Sydney called out Tuesday morning. "Come here."
"What is it?" he asked, walking out the bedroom.
"Listen to this." Sydney said holding up the daily newspaper she had been reading. "One of our favourite radio personalities, Eric Weiss, shocked many of his fans- and quite possibly his mother- by marrying his long-term girlfriend, Ainsley McPhee in a wedding in Las Vegas Saturday night. Weiss and McPhee, who is a manager at the popular Phase One, had been dating for over three years, yet had made no mention of an engagement. Perhaps the question needs to be raise, is there a more 'pressing' reason for this sudden union?"
Vaughn burst out laughing. "Oh god. Lillian is going to absolutely love this."
"Well," Dr Carter smiled warmly at Sydney and Vaughn. "Everything is fine. You and the baby appear to be happy and healthy."
Sydney and Vaughn let out small sighs as the doctor continued to speak.
"Now. From my examination and the dates you gave me, I would say that you're already about three months gone, Sydney."
Sydney felt a flush of embarrassment. "Three months? Are all your patients as vague as me?"
Dr Carter laughed softly. "There have been a few. Now, that's all for today. Before you leave you'll be able to make an appointment for your first ultrasound for about a month from now."
"I liked her," Vaughn said as he pulled out of the car park at the doctor's surgery. "She didn't make us wait."
Sydney, who had been pawing through her bag in a search for Lifesavers, looked up at him. "Your dad thing?"
Vaughn laughed. "He hated it so much when people were late for appointments." He shrugged. "It was something he definitely instilled in me."
Sydney smiled as she reached across and ran her hand through his hair. "And I guess you'll be instilling it into your own child?"
"Yup." Vaughn grinned.
"Ok, but that is the only neurosis you're allowed to pass on." Sydney said.
"Oh ok, and what about you? Which one of your are you going to pass on?"
Sydney just smiled as she returned to her search for the Lifesavers. "I'll have to think about that."