Chapter 110: The Quiet Hour

"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." – Martin Luther King Jr.

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep
And miles to go before I sleep."
-Robert Frost

"True silence is the rest of the mind; it is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment." – William Penn\


"SHHHH!" Will and Eric both hissed at her as she caught her breath, looking down at the couch.

She had feared the worst, but the vision in front of her was one of the sweetest she could have come up with.

Three men were still on the couch; largely in the same place they had been when she had left. However, Vaughn was asleep – his head leaning on Will's shoulder. Will looked like he might drop over himself; his eyelids were fluttering as he tried to deny sleep. Weiss seemed the most awake of the three. They looked the vision of three stages – one sleeping, one dozing, one wide-awake. Sydney smiled as she looked at the three of them. Vaughn was covered in a blanket, he seemed comfortable to the onlooker, but she knew his sleeping patterns too well. He wasn't sleeping soundly or he was disturbed in his sleep. His brow was furrowed slightly too, she thought, looking at him, maybe the angle was just wrong...

Francie finally came to join her, looking at Will and smiling when she saw Vaughn sleeping on his shoulder, "Aww...Syd...you should get the camera."

She tilted her head to look at Vaughn more closely, Weiss looking at her strangely. "He was over on my shoulder for a while, but I got tired...so it was Will's turn..." he said quietly.

Will yawned, looking down at the sleeping Vaughn. He looked to Sydney, "You think he's ok? He looks kinda...pained?"

"Yeah, that's what I thought," Sydney said quietly, "Let's get him to bed..."

"Ok," Will said, easing him off of his shoulder.

"Eric – can you help us?"

"Sure," Eric said, moving to grab Vaughn.

"Wait," Sydney instructed. Weiss backed off. "Can you get up?" she asked Eric. He nodded and got up.

"I'll take this side," Sydney informed him.

He didn't say anything, but nodded. Will took Vaughn's other side, and Weiss grabbed his legs. They walked him slowly to the bedroom, depositing him gently on the bed. Sydney maneuvered him so that his back wasn't on the bed and then turned, smiling at the other two men and Francie. "Thanks guys..." she said.

"No problem," Will said, yawning, "I think I'm gonna go to bed...you coming?" he asked Francie.

"Sure, night Syd...night Eric."

"Night guys," Weiss said and then turned back to Sydney, "Is he ok?"

"I'm not sure...he just looks...well...he looks like he's not really resting..."

"Yeah, I guess he kinda does..." Eric agreed, "You want me to stay?"

"No...that's sweet Eric, but we're ok..."

"Ok...well...call me if something happens...ok?"

"Yeah...was he ok after I left?"

"Yeah...he seemed fine. He was kinda quiet later on...but he was fine...I mean he wasn't in pain or anything...Will gave him his pills..."

Sydney smiled, "Well, thank God for Will, because I forgot to say anything."

"Yeah...but...yeah, he was ok..."

"Hmm...well, I'll let you know. Thanks for coming over. He really likes that...I think he misses you..."

"I miss him too. I'll call you tomorrow..."

"Ok, see ya Eric."

"Bye Syd."

Sydney dressed herself for bed and then did the same for Vaughn. She had to sit him up and everything, and he didn't wake. She laughed softly because after all the injuries and everything he'd been through, this was the first time she could remember actually dressing him alone, the first time he'd been asleep when she was doing it.

He seemed to snuggle into her though when she had him sitting up to change his shirt. She smiled as she felt him shift slightly, burrowing his head in her neck.

She lay him down and noticed that he seemed more relaxed. Perhaps he just knew she was there...

She got him settled and then left for a few minutes to brush her teeth and other necessities and then came back in. He looked tense again, the brow furrowed in subdued anxiety.

She got into bed, lying next to him, "Hey..." she said, "easy honey...try not to think so much..."

His face turned towards her, but he didn't wake. Some of the tension seemed to leave, but his body was stiff, rigid...like he was tensing his muscles for some reason.

She ran her hands up and down his chest, trying to calm him.

He woke suddenly, trying to sit, but failing to do so because Sydney was lying half on him.

"Vaughn..." she said softly, but confidently, trying to get him out of whatever mind realm he was in.

He didn't respond to his name at first. She tried again, a little louder, "Vaughn..."

He was breathing heavily, his gaze unfocused and distant.

"Michael..." she finally said. He turned his head towards her.

"Syd?"

"Yeah sweetie...what happened?"

"Weren't you shopping?" he asked confused.

"You fell asleep on the couch...I came back a while ago..."

"I...did Eric leave?"

"Yeah, a little while ago...after we brought you in here...what happened? Did you have a nightmare?"

"No...it wasn't really a nightmare...just...disturbing..."

"What happened?" she asked softly.

"N-nothing...I – I really don't want to talk about it if it's ok..."

"Yeah...sure honey, if you're sure."

"Yeah, I just...I'm ok..." he said, reassuring her.

"Ok...you wanna go back to sleep?"

"No, not really...not right now..."

"You wanna talk?" Sydney asked, hoping that maybe he'd tell her what he had been dreaming about.

"What did you buy when you were shopping?" Vaughn asked, deliberately avoiding the subject.

"Not much, we got our nails done...what did you boys do?"

"Watched the hockey tapes...that was about it. I really don't remember falling asleep."

She smiled, "Did you have fun?"

"Yeah, you?"

"Yeah, it was nice with Francie – girls night out or whatever, but I missed you...all I think about is you..."

"Me too," he said smiling.

"It was ok that I left, right? I really didn't want to."

Vaughn looked at her for a moment, "It's fine Sydney...you can go places...you can do stuff...more if you want...I'm ok..."

"I don't like leaving you..."

"That shouldn't stop you..."

She smiled, "You wanna tell me what your dream was about?"

He smiled, sighing, if he didn't tell her, she'd just keep asking until he did, so he figured he'd just get it out of the way. "It was just weird...we were having dinner – all of us...you, me, Francie and Will...it was normal...but then, I don't know – it changed somehow."

"Changed how?" Sydney asked.

"They just seemed different..." he looked over at her, "you did too..."

"What do you mean? Different?"

"Yeah...just acted different..." he paused, looking away, "resentful."

"Resentful! Vaughn...it was just a dream...we don't resent you..."

He smiled, "Yeah, it was just disturbing..."

"Honey," she said getting even closer to him, "it was just a dream...it's ok..."

"Yeah..."

"You ready to go back to sleep?"

"Yeah, ok," he said.

She smiled and laid her head on his chest. He listened as her breathing got deeper and deeper as she slipped off to sleep. He lay awake for a long time, staring at the ceiling, thinking.

His thoughts seemed to go all over the place, bouncing around inside his head like a pinball machine, passing in and out, lingering and fading.

'It was just a dream'...Sydney had told him. 'That's right...just a dream...get it together Michael'...he thought while he stared at that huge white square that was the ceiling. But as the silence of the room caught up with him, permeating his surroundings, it was as if his thoughts got louder, questioning, pondering, what if...what if?