Sydney really liked her life the way it was going, more or less. Sure, it was crazy, but it was a crazy she had a handle on, and she was almost comfortable. And then her father arrived, and suddenly everything is upset again. She's not happy.
She's quiet as she slips into the coffee shop, wandering over to the table where Vaughn's sitting with a vague, tired smile. "Hey."
"Hey." Vaughn gets up, and, even though something in his head, the logical sometheing, is screaming 'NO NO NO DON'T MAKE THINGS AWKWARD!', he wraps his arms around her in a brief, friendly hug. He pulls out of it just as quickly, but in that moment, god he misses being with her so much, he misses loving her. He still does love her, but...
But that's not what this is about. He gently touches her shoulders and pulls back, a concerned sort of smile on his face. "You okay? Do you want coffee? Pastry? Cake?" Because he'll buy her coffee, or a doughnut, or anything to make her feel better.
And Sydney, possibly surprisingly, doesn't mind the invasion of personal space. Just about now, she could use a hug, and she wraps her arms around him without thinking, leaning into it just a little before she pulls back. She smiles a little at that concerned look, trying to reassure him it's really not necessary.
"Caffeine is good. Or chocolate. Absolutely anything with chocolate." Yes, because that's the natural antidote to fathers. Lots and lots of chocolate.
Vaughn sends her a quick smile before rushing off to buy a coffee and... a chocolate bar. And a chocolate doughnut. And a regular doughnut for himself. And then he stops because he knows he only has so much money, and to ask Bianca for money for things like this... it would get awkward. And besides, he figures it's enough. He hopes.
He brings it back to the table, grinning again at her as he sits down. And now what? Awkward moments of silence? Apparently, as he tries to think about what to say. What is there to say? This is a different Sydney than he's used to, he doesn't really know how she would feel about having her father here. He had a vague idea, but...
"How're you doing?" he asks finally. Because breaking awkward silences neatly is not something that Vaughn does very well.
"Thanks," she says with a smile as he returns to the table, and takes a long drink of the coffee. It might be to give her time to think of an answer. "I'm... It's complicated. The last time I saw him was..." People trying to kill her, the truth finally coming to light after a lifetime of lies, and... "I don't know if you know about that." She's kind of taken to assuming people know about her life whether she's told them or not. It's usually right.
Vaughn's not sure what to say. He's sure that it's creepy to know everyone around you knows everything about your life, and it feels weird, even to him, to bring up how much he knows.
"I... don't pretend to understand the steps your father took to protect you," he begins slowly. "I don't really want to understand them." Because oh god that would mean he was turning into Jack, and he was done with that now, he had gone through the Rift and turned over a new leaf and things were okay. He had Bianca. He had a Syd. He wasn't going to go down that path again.
"But..." he licks his lips, trying his hardest to make sense of the things he's saying. "I think he was just trying to protect you Syd." Vaughn takes another sip of his own coffee, shaking his head. "I'm so sorry," he mumbles under his breath, not really at her but for her.
"I get that," she sighs into her coffee. "I just wish there was a way to convince him I don't need it. Especially not here." Here, where she doesn't have to deal with SD-6, where she doesn't have to deal with that part of her life ever again if she doesn't want to... Unless parts of her future are just going to keep falling on top of her. That might be a problem.
"I swear, if I see Arvin Sloane here," she mutters, barely audible, "I'm just going to shoot him." Because that's clearly the next step in the Rift's evil plan to make her miserable.
Vaughn coughs when he hears her say that, almost choking on his coffee. "Oh god," he says to her, shaking his head, a little grin on his face. "Please, don't tempt fate." Because Vaughn's head would explode a lot if that happened.
He looks at his coffee and then back up at her. "Do you miss it?" he asks. "Home?"
She smiles a little at him when he chokes on his coffee. "Sorry. It won't happen again." Because she sure as hell doesn't want to tempt fate any more than he does.
The question brings a pause, and she bites her lip, looking down. "I- I don't know. I mean, Will's here, and... And there's no SD-6 here. It could be worse." She misses Francie, but that's about the only thing she's got left there.
He misses home. A lot. He misses Weiss and everyone at the Agency, he misses knowing things and not feeling worthless, and he most of all misses his Sydney. He misses the days working with her, the nights that they just cuddled on the couch watching whatever chick flick she had picked out... He misses their lives together.
He swallows hard. "I'm going to Italy," he says finally. "With Bianca. For Christmas. We're going to meet her family." He smiles a little. Because Bianca is his savior in this whole mess, and spending time with her, rather than here in Chicago where there are so many painful reminders... not that he wouldn't want to spend it with Sydney, it just...
Sydney winces a little. She doesn't miss home, but it's a lot harder for everyone else, whose lives hadn't just happened to go to hell before they came through. She looks up at him again as he mentions Bianca, and actually smiles.
"That's great. There are worse places I can think of to spend Christmas... Tell Bianca I said hi?" She's only spoken to Bianca a little, over the journals, but she liked her, and she approves of the idea of Vaughn having a guardian angel in general. He seems like he could use it, of all the people she knows.
Vaughn smiles a little, because yeah, the thought of getting away with Bianca makes him happy. "If you need anything, though, you can reach me over the journals, I think," he says. "I mean, I would assume. Or something."
"I'll let you know if I need anything. Or if Bianca has a phone..." Yeah, Sydney goes for the obvious, rational option. We know, strange. "You'll let me know when you're back?"
"Sure." She smiles, and shrugs a little, tapping her fingers idly on the edge of her coffee cup. "It's not like I'm going anywhere any time soon." And honestly, she prefers it that way.
She's quiet as she slips into the coffee shop, wandering over to the table where Vaughn's sitting with a vague, tired smile. "Hey."
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But that's not what this is about. He gently touches her shoulders and pulls back, a concerned sort of smile on his face. "You okay? Do you want coffee? Pastry? Cake?" Because he'll buy her coffee, or a doughnut, or anything to make her feel better.
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"Caffeine is good. Or chocolate. Absolutely anything with chocolate." Yes, because that's the natural antidote to fathers. Lots and lots of chocolate.
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He brings it back to the table, grinning again at her as he sits down. And now what? Awkward moments of silence? Apparently, as he tries to think about what to say. What is there to say? This is a different Sydney than he's used to, he doesn't really know how she would feel about having her father here. He had a vague idea, but...
"How're you doing?" he asks finally. Because breaking awkward silences neatly is not something that Vaughn does very well.
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"I... don't pretend to understand the steps your father took to protect you," he begins slowly. "I don't really want to understand them." Because oh god that would mean he was turning into Jack, and he was done with that now, he had gone through the Rift and turned over a new leaf and things were okay. He had Bianca. He had a Syd. He wasn't going to go down that path again.
"But..." he licks his lips, trying his hardest to make sense of the things he's saying. "I think he was just trying to protect you Syd." Vaughn takes another sip of his own coffee, shaking his head. "I'm so sorry," he mumbles under his breath, not really at her but for her.
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"I swear, if I see Arvin Sloane here," she mutters, barely audible, "I'm just going to shoot him." Because that's clearly the next step in the Rift's evil plan to make her miserable.
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He looks at his coffee and then back up at her. "Do you miss it?" he asks. "Home?"
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The question brings a pause, and she bites her lip, looking down. "I- I don't know. I mean, Will's here, and... And there's no SD-6 here. It could be worse." She misses Francie, but that's about the only thing she's got left there.
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He misses home. A lot. He misses Weiss and everyone at the Agency, he misses knowing things and not feeling worthless, and he most of all misses his Sydney. He misses the days working with her, the nights that they just cuddled on the couch watching whatever chick flick she had picked out... He misses their lives together.
He swallows hard. "I'm going to Italy," he says finally. "With Bianca. For Christmas. We're going to meet her family." He smiles a little. Because Bianca is his savior in this whole mess, and spending time with her, rather than here in Chicago where there are so many painful reminders... not that he wouldn't want to spend it with Sydney, it just...
He doesn't know. It's all confusing.
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"That's great. There are worse places I can think of to spend Christmas... Tell Bianca I said hi?" She's only spoken to Bianca a little, over the journals, but she liked her, and she approves of the idea of Vaughn having a guardian angel in general. He seems like he could use it, of all the people she knows.
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That is, if he ever actually leaves town.
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