Author's Note: Okay, fair warning – this is gushy. That is all!

While in the car, Nathan tried to call Susan to let her know he would be bringing Sydney home, but she didn't answer the house phone or her cell. She told him she was staying in, so he assumed her music may have been too loud. They walked in the house, Nathan carrying Sydney's small duffel (she opted for a shopping trip), and within a few minutes he saw why Susan hadn't answered her phone.

"Both my girls are exhausted," he said softly. Susan was asleep on the couch, a box of tissues next to her. He looked over his shoulder at Sydney. "She wasn't feeling the best earlier." Sydney didn't respond, she was too caught up on the way Nathan said "my girls." She was beginning to want things…and she realized it wasn't scaring her. "Everything okay?"

Sydney nodded. "I'm going to sneak upstairs." She turned and let her smile through.

"Susie Q." He gently stroked her hair. "Honey, let's get you to bed."

"Hmmm…" Susan groaned and didn't open her eyes. "Dad?"

"Yeah, honey." He helped her sit up. "How're you feeling?"

"Stiff neck…but a little better." She stretched. "Bed…" She stood up. "Is everything okay at Sydney's?"

"Um…she's going to spend the weekend here."

Susan smiled. "Cool, but is everything okay?" Nathan was silent, unsure of how to answer. Seeing the look in her father's eyes, she continued to press at him. "Dad? What happened?"

He shook his head. "Nothing you need to worry about, I promise."

Susan looked sad. "Don't do it, okay?"

"Don't do what?"

"Not talk about whatever it is. I don't mean not with me, I mean with Sydney. When you start to bottle up…"

"No, no…it's nothing between us…"

Susan started to walk to her bedroom. "Doesn't matter, just…don't. Promise?"

Nathan understood why Susan was concerned. When he and her mother kept things from one another, things began to go downhill. "I'll talk to her tonight."

His daughter smiled. "Night, Dad."

"Night, honey." They went to their respective bedrooms, Nathan ready to let Sydney know what happened with David. He opened the door and immediately forgot everything he was going to say. Sydney was already changed and beneath the covers, her face serene as she slept. "Morning's okay too," he said to himself. He stripped to his boxers, turned off the light, and slid in beside her. He kissed her shoulder and nothing else that happened that night mattered. She was in his home now, warm in his bed and he wanted to do nothing more than keep her safe.

The following morning, Sydney woke feeling completely relaxed for the first time since…truthfully she couldn't recall ever once feeling this relaxed. She turned over and kissed his chest, waking him. "Morning," she whispered, smiling.

"Morning." He shifted, taking her into his arms, her head resting above his heart. "Sleep well?"

She traced circles around his bellybutton, something she was infatuated with. "I am so sorry I crashed before you came to bed."

"No, baby, I'm happy you're comfortable here." He kissed the top of her head, remembering the previous night and his anger with David.

"So, still want to go shopping for some – Nathan, are you really sure about this? I don't want you to think you have to make room for me here."

"Syd, there isn't anything I want more than for you to feel at home here. If you can't relax in your own house…"

"Ridiculous, isn't it?" she interrupted. "I'm thinking about looking for an apartment. I wanted to wait, but…" She sighed and looked up at the man she was so very in love with. "You'll only ever be honest with me, right?"

"I promise."

"Do you think – I don't think it's on purpose – but do you think maybe the boys are taking advantage of me?"

His answer was far too swift. "I do." He quickly added, "You put others before yourself, Sydney, it's not a bad trait at all, just one you have to be careful with.

"I would do anything in the world for Arlen." Her voice was sad. "His life…"

"Arlen isn't the one I'm worried about," Nathan muttered.

"What did David do?" Sydney asked with a sigh, her hand now flat and unmoving against Nathan's abdomen.

"I want to have a nice weekend with you."

"How nice will it be with something eating at you?" She left the warmth of his skin and propped herself up on her elbow. "Whatever it is, I'm not going to let it take away from my time with you. I swear."

Nathan swallowed and turned onto his side to face her. "He came home drunk last night and said some…things…about both of us that made me want to…" He closed his eyes. "He's possessive, isn't he? He acts like he could snap his fingers and you'll fall right back into his bed! He…" Nathan took a breath. "Aside from telling me I'm not good enough for you, he said things about you that were so…I didn't mean to, but it just came out and I told him I knew about his little problem."

Sydney's mouth was tight and her breath was shallow. She was seething and Nathan couldn't tell who, exactly, she was mad at. She sat up, her hands gripping the comforter so hard that her knuckles were turning white. He was unsure if she was ready to scream or cry, he honestly didn't want it to be either. He had never seen her upset like this before and found it unnerving. What if David meant more to her than he did? What if everything he had said last night about her was true, what if… "Good," she finally said.

"Good?"

She got up from the bed and walked to the window. There was a gap between her tank top and her pajama bottoms; her top had ridden up. Nathan could see goose bumps there, but was too unsure of her mood to approach her with his robe. "Yeah, good. I'm glad you told him you know. He knows I've never told anyone else, not even when I thought John and I were going to…" She was clenching her fists at her sides. "I'm going to have a little talk with him…after I cool off with you." She turned and looked at Nathan, her eyes soft again. "You are the best thing to ever happen to me, Nathan Gardner." She approached the bed and put her hands out to him. He got up and went to her, pressing his body to hers. "You're right. David has a tendency to get a little possessive when things aren't going smoothly for him. I've heard he and Arlen arguing a few times over the last couple of weeks, even before Alren's party." She ran her fingers through his hair, smiling at his adorable case of bed head. "Before I go home, I want to know exactly what he said. Not now, then. Okay?"

"I don't know that I want to have to tell you that."

"I'm going to need to know, but for now I just want to enjoy being here." She didn't want to waste her weekend being angry. She knew David well enough to push her disappointment in him aside for a couple of days…her wrath would depend on what Nathan told her tomorrow. "Now, how about I get dressed and make breakfast?"

"Absolutely not," Nathan said sharply. "You aren't doing a thing this weekend…and you know what? Neither am I. Let me take a shower and I'm taking you to breakfast." He kissed her cheek and left the room. Sydney refused to think about home at all.

Sydney dressed and went downstairs, finding Susan on the couch. "Hey," she said, still a little timid about the whole situation.

"Hi, Syd…um, ney," Susan said, just as unsure.

Sydney smiled. "Syd's fine." Susan smiled back at her. "Your dad said you weren't feeling well last night. How about now?"

"Better. I guess I just needed sixteen or so hours of sleep," she laughed.

"We've all been there." Sydney sat on the couch next to her.

"Everything…okay?"

"Um…yeah, why do you ask?"

"Dad said things at your place were a little hectic and, well, he looked like he had a lot on his mind. Did you guys talk last night?"

"I sort of passed out before he even made it upstairs." She saw the concern in Susan's eyes. "We talked this morning though and everything's fine, especially between your father and I…if that's what you were wondering." She bit at her bottom lip. "Is that what you were wondering?"

Susan blushed. "He's in a really good place and I know that part of that is because of you."

"I never would have expected a…no matter how I say this it won't come out right, but you care about him so much. It's…" Sydney was a little embarrassed.

"We're not exactly conventional around here," Susan interrupted with a laugh. "I think you already figured that out."

"Yeah." She cleared her throat. "So, what are you up to today?"

Susan shrugged. "Rodine's got stuff to do, Charlie's visiting his grandparents with his mom, so not much. How about you and Dad?"

"Shopping, actually."

"He can't need more stuff already," Susan replied, rolling her eyes.

Sydney took a deep breath. "Not for him, really, uh, more for me." She swallowed hard, deciding she'd use the opportunity to make sure this was all okay with Susan. "Susan, your father…you see, he and I…no, he…" She put her head in her hands for a moment.

"Sydney are you pregnant or something?"

Sydney shot up, her eyes wide. "No! Oh, no no, nothing like that." Her words were rapid. "Things at my house right now are just a little on the insane side and your father thought that maybe just keeping some things here would be helpful if there's a night where I just don't feel like dealing with any of it." She took another deep breath. "Are you okay with that?"

Susan looked confused. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"I know that asking you to keep this quiet isn't really fair and…"

The young woman's eyes softened. "I haven't even told Charlie. I love him and everything, but all he would have to do is slip in front of his mom and…I get it, honestly. I can wait until the end of the year. And, um, maybe, you know, you and I could hang out once in a while?"

"Thank you, Susan." She smiled, happy and at ease. "And I'd like that."

"I'll be honest though, I was kind of rooting for pregnant." She winked.

"You know," Sydney continued, doing her best to ignore the comment. "He's taking me to breakfast and we're going to the 'fancy pants' mall…"

"Yeah?"

"Uh huh, forty minutes away, hardly anyone from school, if anyone at all. Wanna join us? Cheesecake Factory for breakfast?"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. It'll be fun."

"I'll go change," Susan said, her smile bright.

"Fair warning, Susie Q," Nathan's voice filled the room. "We're going to hold hands and be affectionate in line."

Susan went to her room. "I'll give you a PDA pass today."

Nathan joined Sydney on the couch. "How much of that were you listening to?" Sydney asked.

"Most of it." He kissed her. "My daughter likes my girlfriend. I really can't ask for much more than that. Cheesecake Factory, huh?"

Sydney looked guilty. "They have crab hash for breakfast, it's amazing!" Realizing that she had just been far too excited, she added, "I like crab and I like breakfast, combining the two is brilliant."

About an hour later, they all enjoyed breakfast together. A while after that they were strolling through the mall, Nathan's fingers laced with Sydney's and his daughter at his side. They didn't have any real destinations in mind just yet, but Susan did quite a bit of window-shopping, reminding Nathan that her birthday wasn't too far off. It wasn't until they reached Macy's that Sydney actually had a few items on her mind.

"You're one hundred percent sure about this, Nathan?" she asked one final time. "A woman's body wash in your shower is kind of a big step."

Nathan pulled her close and let his lips touch hers as he answered. "Nothing I want more."

Sydney tried not to giggle, but couldn't help how happy she was. "Well, then I introduce you to an indulgence of mine." She led them both through the cosmetics department to a smaller, separate area. There were shower gels and lotions and Nathan didn't quite understand what could make them so special. She picked up a bottle and covered up the label. "Close your eyes," she said to him. "Now, inhale."

"I thought we were in the soaps and stuff," he said, pleasure in his voice. "This smells like cookie dough."

"Welcome to the wonder of Philosophy." She caressed his cheek and, seeing that Susan had already started to explore on her own, put her lips to his ear. "Why don't you have a little look around and let me know if are any scents you'd favor on my skin." She watched him swallow. "What do you want the steam to remind you of when you soap me up after making love to me?" She smiled and winked at him and Susan returned.

"This stuff is incredible, Syd," Susan said, all but gushing. "They smell edible…there's even…how do you make something smell carbonated?"

Sydney chuckled. "Why don't you pick some things out for yourself? My treat."

"Oh, no, you don't have to do…"

She smiled. "I know I don't, that's what makes it more fun. Go on." Susan beamed and went back to the shelves. Sydney looked back at Nathan. "The best part is that I know I'm not even buying her affection."

Nathan smiled back at her. "Today is stupidly perfect." He showed her the bottles he chose. "These okay?"

"Just a little more stupid perfection," she laughed. "And don't worry, I'm going to pick up a little something for you too." She took Susan up to the counter and paid for their things.

A few more stops were made and Sydney went off on her own for a half hour or so, stating she was on a mission; Susan didn't say a word, but knew exactly what Sydney was doing. In that time, Nathan was feeling nostalgic and, after come convincing, got Susan to go into Build-A-Bear…she was glad she did. As the lion she picked out was being stuffed, she hugged her father – in public – and let the act linger.

"Things just keep getting better now, don't they?" she asked.

"Mostly," he answered honestly. "When the school year ends…"

"You don't have to hide anymore, I know."

He nodded, then added, "When it ends, I want…I want to…" The lion was handed to Susan and she started to dress it in a set of striped pajamas she'd picked out. She knew this was going off to college with her in a year, along with the memory. "I know it'll be your senior year and all, but what if Sydney was living with us then?"

"You're going to ask her to move in?"

Her father blushed. "Too soon, right?"

Susan shook her head. "Dad, there's two and a half months of school left, you sure you can wait that long?"

"I'm not even going to tell her I'm thinking about it yet, but I thought having her keep some things…maybe she'd warm to it."

"She's not going to tell you no and I think it's one of the beset ideas you've had in a long time." He saw her face change, but was afraid to press…he didn't have to. "Why didn't we ever have days like this with Mom?"

Nathan sighed. He knew the day was too good to be without its problems. "Honey, all I can tell you is that none of it was because of you. I don't think…I'm pretty sure she never wanted to marry me. I mean, maybe she did at first, but…" He sighed.

Susan put her hand on her father's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Dad, I didn't mean to…"

"It's okay, honey. One day, I promise I'll…"

"Hey you two," Sydney walked into the store, her eyes bright and her heart warm at the sight before her. She then realized she had interrupted something. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, could be better with a pretzel though," Susan answered.

"Then let's go." She linked her arm with Susan's and the weight that had started to press down on Nathan vanished. He just wished the school year ended sooner.