Just One Kiss

Author: Janet (SkyGirl5)

Genre: S/V, AU

Summary: Sydney and Michael have been best friends practically their entire lives. Friends and nothing more. Suddenly, Michael tells Sydney he's getting married in four days and she is stunned. Has Michael truely lost his mind? Will Sydney be able to stop him from making, what she thinks is, the biggest mistake of his life and what will she discover along the way?

Disclaimer: Sydney, Vaughn, etc are properties of JJ Abrams and ABC. This fic was inspired by the movie "My Best Friend's Wedding", property of [whatever company made that movie].

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Chapters 1-10 // Chapters 11 - 20 // Chapters 21-25 + Epilogue

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Chapter 1

Sydney Bristow groaned at the annoying, shrill ring of her cell phone. She was already juggling her purse, her briefcase, a file folder full of her latest article and a frappaccino from Starbucks. Digging in her purse for her phone would surely prove disastrous, but she was waiting for a call from her editor which was imperative so, she had no choice but to answer. Pausing at the nearest telephone booth on the crowded streets of New York City, she set down her styrophome cup, tucked the file folder under her arm and wedged the brief case between herself and the phone booth so she could dig through the messy contents of her purse. Already, this was a horrible day. However, the moment she saw the caller ID on her phone she smiled and her day brightened immediately. It was her absolute best friend in the whole world, Michael Vaughn.

“Hey you,” she answer the phone, her voice light and chipper.

“Hey loser did you get a real job yet?” he said, his voice clearly teasing her. He loved pushing her buttons more than anything.

“Oh, I see we’re just as snarky as ever,” she said smiling broadly even though she knew he couldn’t see her.

“You know it.” He laughed. “Seriously, how are you?”

“Well, I’m a bit frazzled at the moment to tell you the truth.” She sighed.

“Frazzled? Oh no! I don’t like my Sydney frazzled. I like her medium rare.”

“Ha. Ha. So how are you Mr.-I-haven’t-called-in-two-whole-weeks-leaving-my-pitiful-best-friend-abandonded?”

“Hey!” He exclaimed with a laugh. “I did not abandon you.”

“Uh huh,” she said, sounding unconvinced.

“I didn’t!” He insisted.

“Right, I see you were just too busy wooing millions of single women.”

“Exactly,” he laughed.

“So, what do I owe the honor of this call?”

“Well Syd... we need to talk,” he said sounding very serious.

For a moment, Sydney was taken aback by his tone for her best friend was hardly ever serious, but she recovered quickly. “Oh no, Michael, are you breaking up with me?! Whatever shall I do without your monthly calls?!” she said, trying to sound very distraught.

“I call more than that and you know it. But seriously we need to talk,” he told her.

“Well, unfortunately, now is a horrible time for me. I’m running late, I need to turn in my article, and I’m about to kill my editor. Can we talk maybe this evening?”

“Absolutely Syd, what time would be good for you?” he asked.

“How about seven? That will give me enough time to toss my hair, throw on some JLo perfume, and pull that sexy teddy out of the back of my closet...”

He laughed. “You are one sick puppy Bristow.”

“Yeah but you love me,” she sighed.

“You’re right, I do. Tonight. Seven.” He repeated their plans.

“Ciao,” she said before hanging up the phone. She tossed her phone back in her purse, rearranged the items she was carrying back into their original positions, and dashed down the steps to the subway. She managed to squeeze perfectly in the doors before they closed and the train departed.

Once inside, she collapsed into an empty seat and sighed with relief. She was not going to be late turning in her article after all and to make things even better she had another call from Michael to look forward to later that evening.

Sydney was twenty eight and had permanently moved to the city six years earlier after graduating from NYU. Her intention at that point in time was to become Broadway’s next big thing. But, after her acting career had lasted a whole five seconds she fell back onto plan B: write the next great novel of the 21st century. Unfortunately, novels didn’t write themselves over night and living in New York City was expensive, so she had to find a job for the meantime.

After searching and searching, she finally settled for writing articles for a New York architecture magazine. It bored her to tears and she loathed it but hey, at least it was still writing. She also wrote a few freelance articles here and there to pick up extra cash. Still, she barely made enough to cover the rent on her hole in the wall on the 30th floor which she shared with two other women: Francie, the struggling singer and Amaretta, the struggling photographer. But after five years of coffee stains, late nights and slaving through rough draft after rough draft, Sydney had finally finished her novel and found an editor willing to read it. That was the phone call she was nervously waiting for, her editors verdict on her novel.

As for Michael, well, he was simply her best friend. They had never been anything more than friends and somehow that worked for them.

Sydney and Michael grew up in the small town of Huntsville, Pennsylvania. It was located in the north east corner of the state, only about an hour and a half outside New York City. They had lived there their whole lives but only met in the 8th grade at a mutual friend’s pool party. That was the beginning of their friendship. Sydney began hanging out at Michael’s house every day after school. Since Sydney’s mother died when she was only eight years old, Michael’s mother, Amelia, became like a surrogate mother to her and Sydney and Michael became like siblings.

During their 11th grade year of high school Sydney and Michael had a huge fight over something they no longer remembered and they didn’t speak for almost four months, but after they reconciled they continued being best friend from that day on. They comforted each other through breakups, watched hockey games together, even shopped together on occasion. Mostly though, they talked. They would talk for hours on end and never grow tired of each other’s voices.

When they both attended NYU, they grew even closer since they were all each other had in a big city full of eight million strangers. They had even shared an awkward, drunken kiss on a dare which had only seemed to reaffirm the fact that they were just friends and would never be anything more. After graduation, Michael moved back to Huntsville with his degree in marketing and took a job in larger city near their home town while Sydney stayed back in New York.

Since they had been separated they hadn’t seen each other as frequently as they would have liked but, they still managed to get together a few times a year along with their much more frequent phone calls. Still, Sydney missed her best friend very much.


The subway jolted to a stop and Sydney collected her things before rushing out the doors and up the stairs, back out onto the busy sidewalk. She skidded into the magazine’s office with only two minutes to spare on her deadline. “Here,” she smiled as she handed her article to the editor.

“Almost late again Bristow,” the editor sighed.

“Yes but I was almost late.” Sydney smiled proudly.

Unamused, the editor gave her a stern glance. “Your next assignment is in your mailbox,” he sighed before walking away.

“Great,” she groaned as she grabbed it and then headed back out the door.



Chapter 2

For the rest of the afternoon, Sydney ran errands and then picked up some Chinese from her favorite take-out place for dinner. By the time she arrived back at her apartment, it was after six. Sydney found it best to spend as little time at her apartment as possible since it was overly crowded as it was. Their apartment was only two rooms and the three women slept on mattresses on the floor which, unfortunately, usually had roaches or other unpleasant insects crawling on it. Luckily, she had the one room to herself but it wasn’t much of a room. Her single mattress fit in there with hardly and room to spare and her clothes were hanging on random tacks she had nailed into the wall. A few crates on the floor provided combined seating and storage for her, but otherwise, that was it.

She unlocked the three locks to their apartment, slipped inside and then locked all three again.

“Hey!” Francie smiled when she saw Sydney walk into the apartment.

“Hey Fran, how was your audition?” Sydney asked.

“Great! I got a gig tonight so I’m just about to run out the door but- oh! You got a call from Michael today didn’t you?” Francie smiled.

Sydney laughed. “How did you know that?”

“Because you have your Michael smiled plastered across your face.” Francie smiled.

“Shut up I do not,” she said sounding slightly embarrassed.

“Yes, you do. So when did he call?”

“This afternoon but he’s calling back at seven since I was busy earlier.” Sydney explained.

“Ah, well I’ll leave you two alone then.” Francie winked.

“Fran...,” Sydney sighed.

“What I’m serious. You two are crazy, both of you. You’re like perfect for each other.” Francie sighed.

“Except we’re not,” Sydney said.

“Mm whatever,” Francie said as she picked up her soda and dress bag from the kitchen table. “I’ll be back later.”

“See you, have a nice show!” Sydney called after her. After Francie left Sydney took a quick shower, threw on her favorite sweats and began to pace their tiny apartment, waiting for Michael’s call. At 6:59 her cell rang and she grinned broadly. “Hello you’ve reached the answering service of Sydney Bristow,” She said in a deep voice upon answering the phone.

“You’re such a freak.” Michael laughed.

“I know.” She sighed. “So what’s up?”

“Well... I sorta have to tell you something,” Michael said. Sydney could tell he was nervous and she was confused. Michael had never been nervous with her except for the one time she had accidentally walked in on him peeing in the bathroom, which was awkward for both parties involved.

“Okay...,” she said unsurely.

“Syd, I’m getting married,” he said quickly, so quickly in fact that Sydney thought it was a joke and burst out laughing.

“That’s a good one Michael.” Sydney snorted.

“Syd.... Syd!” He shouted, trying to regain her attention.

“What?”

“I’m serious.” He sighed.

Sydney was in utter disbelief. Her throat had gone dry, there were tears in her eyes and she could barely even breathe. She wasn’t any where near her mattress, but she collapsed back against a wall and slid all the way down to the floor. “W-what?” She choked out, her voice just a whisper.

Michael sighed heavily. “Remember that girl I told you about? Alice?”

“Alice...,” She repeated dully. “That... that girl Eric set you up with like last month?!” She asked in disbelief, her voice slightly stronger.

“Yeah,” he sighed dreamily.

“Michael Vaughn are you fucking kidding me?!” Sydney practically shouted. “Is this some sick joke? Because it’s not funny Michael, not funny at all.”

“No, of course not. This isn’t a joke,” he said. “Syd are you upset about this?”

“Are you seriously engaged?!” She retorted.

“Yes, I’m getting married on Saturday.” He told her.

“Sa-sa-Saturday.” She gulped, sliding further down the wall.

“Yes.”

“But today’s Tuesday,” she said weakly.

“I know. We’re doing it fast.”

“No shit.” She muttered.

“What?”

“Michael you’re insane!” Sydney shouted. “And... and I... I just can’t talk to you right now.” She screamed as she hung up her phone and violently threw it onto her mattress. Her hands were shaking violently, she felt nauseous and she couldn’t even sit still. She began pacing the apartment as she shook and cried. She didn’t know what happened. Five minutes earlier she had been having a perfect conversation with her best friend but now... everything was changed.

“How could he be so stupid?!” She wondered aloud. “Married after barley a month!! That’s insane!! They’ll just divorce. What is he thinking? Who is this whore?” She asked no one at all. Suddenly, she was furious. Furious with Alice or whatever her name was. She was a conniving tramp who was trying to steal her best friend. Yes, that had to be it, right? Michael was a level headed guy, wasn’t he? He wouldn’t just jump into something, right?

Truthfully she didn’t know anymore.

“I need... I need to lie down...,” she whimpered as she shakily shuffled towards her mattress on the floor and collapsed on it. She landed on something hard. Noticing that it was her cell phone she tossed it aside, grabbed Captain Binky, the bright purple stuffed bear Michael had given her in high school, and cried herself to sleep.



Chapter 3

The next morning, Sydney awoke with a throbbing headache. Crying herself to sleep had made her eyes red and swollen, her nose stuffed up and her head painful. She shuffled to the kitchen and grabbed an aspirin, trying to be as quiet as possible so she wouldn’t wake her still sleeping roommates or rather roommate. She actually hadn’t seen Amaretta in a few days.

As she stood in the kitchen, taking slow sips from her bottle of water, the events of the night before washed over her. Michael was getting married and possibly making the biggest mistake of his life. She had to do something about it. This certainly was not a situation that could be handled over the phone either. She had to do it in person. She cringed at the thought of returning to Huntsville since she hadn’t been there in seven years but, for Michael, she would.

Quickly, she began to think over the necessary steps for leaving the city for potentially four or five days depending on how long it took to talk Michael down from his ledge. She was still waiting for the call from her editor, who had promise to call sometime in the next week but, she would be calling on Sydney’s cell so it didn’t matter where Sydney was in the country, she’d still get the call. Assuming she wasn’t on some mountain or in some cave where there wasn’t cell phone reception.

She had her next article assignment due the following Tuesday which, unfortunately, she had failed to even look at. Crap, she thought. There was no way she could afford to loose her job. Her savings account only had a hundred dollars and some change in it; that was all.

“Oh no,” she exhaled quietly as she walked back to her bedroom. Money. Train tickets were expensive and she had no other means of transportation. “Damn it,” she groaned as she dug through her wallet and only found a twenty dollar bill. For the next ten minutes, she quietly but determinedly tore apart her room but only managed to find seventeen more dollars. The ticket to Huntsville would cost almost a hundred dollars and therefore effectively make her broke. She only had one other option. The one and only credit card she had but kept only for absolute emergencies.

“Oh well,” she sighed. This was an emergency so, she’d just have to charge the ticket. Maybe I can get Michael to pay me for the ticket, she thought hopefully. After all it was his own stupid fault she had to do this.

She collapsed down onto her mattress and reached for her next article assignment. Reading through it she realized that it wasn’t hard at all, she just had to visit a building on the complete other side of town. Great, she thought, more money wasted. But she decided it was better to get it out of the way before she left just incase she didn’t have time when she got back or she had to stay an extra day because of the fact that she had to ‘accidentally’ incapacitate Michael to keep him from marrying the whore.

She called the train station and found that there were three trains leaving that day that she could take. One at 10:00 am, one at 2:30 pm and one at 7:00 pm. The 10 would never give her enough time and the seven would be too late, so she had to take the 2:30. She quickly gathered up her things, tossed them in her bag and headed out the door. If she started walking, then she could save some money not to mention keep her mind off her growling stomach since there was no way she was eating that day. She had to save all she could for the train ride.

“This is pathetic.” She groaned as she rubbed her stomach lightly when it gurgled. “I feel like a homeless person or something...,” she sighed. It was just one of those unavoidable factors of living in the city: rent ate up more of her pay check than she ever thought possible.

“Oh well.” She thought hopefully. “Maybe this will give me good inspiration into my next novel... assuming the first one gets published that is...”



Chapter 4

For the entire day, Sydney had a feeling in the pit of her stomach that she couldn’t quite explain. At first she thought it was hunger, but when she finally broke down and ate a bagel it didn’t go away. So, she ignored it, or tried to.

She gathered enough information for her article, made it back to her apartment by a little after noon and found that Francie had just woken up.

“Hey, how was your gig last night?” Sydney asked.

“Ohh... it was good,” Francie said. “What’s up with you Syd, you look kind of... upset.”

“Oh it’s just... I have to go home.” She sighed.

“Oh? Is everything ok?” Francie asked.

“No.” Sydney groaned. “Michael is being an idiot and he’s getting married on Saturday.”

“Really?” Francie gasped. “Was he serious with someone?”

“No,” Sydney said in an annoyed tone. “He’s only known her for like a month or something.”

“Wow... that’s... insane.”

“Yeah, so I have to go try and stop him from making a huge mistake.” She sighed.

“...by marring this girl too fast?” Francie asked.

“Yes,” Sydney said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Why else?”

“Well... you don’t think they’re meant to be together?” Francie asked.

Sydney snorted with laugher. “After a month? No!”

“You think he should be with someone else...”

“Yeah... why? What are you getting at?” Sydney asked.

“Nothing, never mind. So when are you leaving?”

“Train is at 2:30. I’m just grabbing some clothes before going down to the station,” she said.

“Right... well good luck Syd.” Francie told her.

“Thanks.” She smiled.

~*~

Sydney arrived at the station at 2:00 pm and paid the eighty-nine dollars for her ticket to Huntsville. She began to pace the station just waiting for her train to arrive. She bought a black and white cookie, one of her absolute favorite things in the city and something she never grew tired of no matter how many millions of them she had eaten.

The train was five minutes early and surprisingly empty. Sydney took a seat facing forward next to the window and watched the passing country side as they made their way from New York to New Jersey and then finally Pennsylvania.

As she rode she mentally reviewed her reaction to Michael’s news the previous evening. Crying? Check. Swearing? Check. Screaming? Check. Irrational actions? Check. Yep, it was all there. But why had she reacted that way? Millions of reasons maybe. Partly, she was offended as a best friend that she hadn’t been consulted at all about this momentous decision. She had barely heard more than two sentences about Alice from Michael; that was all.

In the past, Michael had hardly made a decision about what shoes to buy without asking Sydney’s input. It wasn’t that he couldn’t make the decision on his own. In fact, he often went against her opinion whether to spite her or not. But, it was the fact that he asked her; he valued her thoughts and opinions on everything as did she value his opinions on things in her life. It was what they did; they were best friends.

But then suddenly, like slamming into a brick wall, it hit her and knocked the wind out of her. He hadn’t called her in weeks. He didn’t seem to think it was a big deal either. He just shrugged it off. He didn’t even ask her opinion about this huge, major decision in his life. Her worst nightmare had come true. She had been replaced. She wasn’t his best friend anymore, was she?

Why hadn’t Michael called? Because he was busy spending time with her. Why didn’t he consult Sydney on this decision? Because he didn’t need Sydney anymore, he had her. HER. That woman who had stolen her best friend.

Suddenly this wasn’t about just stopping Michael from doing something stupid he would end up regretting, like the time Sydney had talking him out of getting his ear pierced or the time she had almost talked him out of getting that tattoo which he now hated. It was about loosing her best friend forever. There was no way that could happen. It just couldn’t. Michael had been her best friend for almost fifteen years and there was no way she was going to loose him now.



Chapter 5

She was only halfway to Huntsville but feeling more depressed than ever. She was loosing her best friend. To top it off, one of her close friends was getting married and she was still hopelessly single, not that that was worse than loosing her best friend, it wasn’t, it just didn’t exactly contribute to her happiness at that point.

Lately I find I'm caught up in these thoughts

How will you come to me

How will we connect these hearts

Her dating life definitely left something to be desired. In high school, she didn’t date at all, in fact her prom date was Michael. At the time she couldn’t figure out why, but looking back, she realized it was because she and Michael hung out so frequently that most people thought that they were dating. So, it wasn’t that guys weren’t interested; it was that she was ‘unavailable’. In college, she had three boyfriends and a handful of guys she went out with once or twice. To her, all of them ended up being jerks. They were never as sweet as Michael or as funny as Michael or as caring as Michael. That was another problem she came to realize. She had been comparing everyone to Michael, who happened to be leagues ahead of them all.

Are you somewhere near

Hidden like a four-leaf clover

Are we getting any closer

After separating from Michael once they both graduated, Sydney tried her new outlook on men. She was no longer going to compare them to her best friend because although Michael was gorgeous, kind, funny, a good listener and basically everything she wanted in a boyfriend he was just a friend. What she needed was to find someone like Michael, or at least similar in some aspects. Unfortunately, even with all the people in New York City she came across every day, she had yet to find that person.

I already see us moving mountains

I already see us walking water

I already see the clouds we're flying

Over and under

I already see us having babies

Walking through the park and being lazy

I already see myself falling in love eternally

And I think that's just the way it's gonna be

She had dated, even gone out with one guy for almost a year but no one seemed to stick. Maybe she was just too picky, finding major faults in something as insignificant as the way someone chewed gum. Or maybe she really just hadn’t found the right person. Maybe it would happen in one instant and she wouldn’t even realize it until it completely blindsided her. Maybe.

The name of a familiar town being called over the train’s PA system jolted Sydney from her daydreams. She was only 15 minutes from her hometown now and suddenly she felt very anxious. How would Michael react to seeing her unexpectedly? How would she react to meeting Alice? And her biggest fear of all: what if she couldn’t talk Michael out of this huge mistake?

Sitting there on the train she made a very important resolution. She wasn’t going to hate Alice from the start. After all, Michael was a grown man capable of making his own decisions, and assuming Alice hadn’t physically strapped him down, he could have made time to make a short call to Sydney even if it was just a simple “hey I wanted to say hi but I don’t really have much time to talk right now.” So, this wasn’t entirely Alice’s fault and since Alice had done nothing to directly offend Sydney, loathing her with every fiber of her being off the bat would be unfair. And for all Sydney knew Alice and Michael may have made a good couple. She did want her best friend to be happy, she truly did and maybe Alice did make him happy. But married after only a month or so? That was just ridiculous.

Sydney knew that her best friend wasn’t one to rush into things so something must have short circuited in his brain, making him go temporarily insane and Sydney had to fix it. After all, if Michael and Alice were really meant to be together pushing back their wedding even for another two months would certainly do no harm. But it would let them think rationally and not let them get married in that giggly-can’t-keep-our-hands-off-each-other phase of the relationship (a thought that made Sydney gag). So, really she was just being Michael’s conscience and he would most likely thank her for it later. Or she hoped he would anyway.

“Huntsville! This is the Huntsville stop.” The conductor called over the PA system. Sydney grabbed her bag and the magazine she had been leafing through, but not really reading, and made her way off the train with about three other people. Stepping out onto the platform, the bright sunlight stung her eyes and she put her sunglasses on quickly. Sydney knew exactly where Michael lived but unfortunately, the train station was on the other side of town. She knew walking there would take half a day and taking a cab would suck up too much money. For a moment she debated calling Michael’s mother or even worse her own father, but she didn’t exactly want to make her reappearance in the town public knowledge quiet yet so she’d have to take a cab.

As she walked down the steps from the platform and was about to go into the train station, she heard someone calling her name. “Sydney? Sydney Bristow is that you?” Sydney groaned inwardly before turning around and squinting into the sun to see who was calling to her. “Don’t you remember me? Megan Sales well Megan Alberton now.”

“Ohh yes Megan hi, how are you?” Sydney asked recalling one of her good female friends from high school. She saw Megan approaching with her hand grasped firmly around that of a struggling toddler and a baby in a pink dress on her hip.

“Good, how are you?” Megan asked.

“Alright,” Sydney sighed.

“Did you come for Michael’s wedding?” Megan asked in a quiet voice.

“News travels fast hmm?” Sydney laughed slightly.

“No, not really. Actually the Vaughn’s are trying to keep it low key but you know how Amelia and my mother were close friends, so Amelia told my mom in confidence and then she mentioned it to me and well... to be honest I don’t think Amelia is too happy about it, if you know what I mean,” Megan said even quieter.

“I do actually,” Sydney sighed with relief, very thankful that Amelia was at least on her side; the sane side of things.

“So, where are you headed?” Megan asked, her voice returning to normal decibel.

“Oh I was just going to get a cab...”

“Where are ya going? I’ll be happy to take you.” Megan smiled.

“Oh no, I couldn’t put you out, it’s probably out of your way and...,” Sydney said.

“Where are you going?” Megan repeated.

“Michael’s place... over at Greenfield Circle....” She told her reluctantly.

“Oh, we live in the neighborhood right by there, come on.”

“Are you sure?” Sydney asked again.

“Of course, it’s my pleasure. That is assuming you don’t mind riding in a van that has Cheerios covering the floor.” Megan laughed.

“No, that’s fine. Thank you very much.” Sydney sighed as she followed Megan to her large blue van.

“So how have you been? I think Amelia said you’ve been in New York?” Megan asked.

“Yeah I live there now,” Sydney said.

“Perusing a career on Broadway?” Megan asked with a smile.

Sydney laughed. “No, definitely not. Broadway didn’t want me... I’m actually writing for some magazines and stuff...”

“Oh, that sounds nice. I’m just a stay at home mom now. I’ve got these two to take care of and another one on the way.” Megan laughed.

“Oh really? Wow, congratulations! You don’t look pregnant at all though.” Sydney smiled.

“Well I’m only about four months or so.” Megan told her. Sydney smiled and nodded.

“So um... do you know anything about this girl Michael’s marrying?” Sydney asked cautiously.

“You mean you don’t?” Megan asked in shock. Sydney shook her head. “Well... she’s not from around here. She lives in Scranton where Michael works you know. I don’t know much I just know that she’s very... well, blonde.”

Sydney nearly threw up right there. Michael was marring a Barbie. Fantastic. “Lovely,” she said rather dully.

“Yes, well, I haven’t met the girl so, I’ll refrain from judging. I’m sure that you’ll meet her and see for yourself,” Megan said.

“Definitely,” Sydney said in a very determined way.


Lyrics: Jessica Simpson, “Be”



Chapter 6

After thanking Megan profusely for the ride, Sydney got out of the van and made her way down the sidewalk towards Michael’s apartment. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was nearly 4:30 which meant she had to wait half an hour for Michael to arrive home from work. So, she sat down on the front stoop of his first floor apartment and pulled out the magazine she had been leafing through on the train.


“Oh jeez, I’ve got a homeless person living on my doorstep now, and I though I’d moved out of New York City.” A familiar voice groaned about twenty minutes later.

Sydney looked up and smiled when her eyes met his sparkling green ones. “Hey you,” she grinned as she stood up.

“Oh so now you’re talking to me?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. She shrugged, step forward and pulled him into a tight hug.

“I’m sorry I freaked,” she sighed into his shoulder.

“It’s ok I expected it,” he said quietly. “I missed you Syd.”

“I missed you too.” She smiled as she pulled back from their embrace. Michael kissed her forehead before walking over to his apartment door and unlocking it. “Uh oh you have luggage,” he said as he looked pointedly at the duffle bag next to his door.

“Well you didn’t think I was going to miss the wedding did you?” She smiled.

He laughed. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“Yeah me too, you big idiot. I can’t believe didn’t tell me sooner.” She groaned as she followed him into his place.

“Well, we just got engaged on Sunday,” Michael said. Sydney dropped her bag with a loud thud, turned around and gapped at him.

“YOU’RE GETTING MARRIED AFTER ONLY BEING ENGAGED FOR SIX DAYS?!” She shouted.

“Syd, we haven’t seen each other in almost a year, could we maybe get through the first five minutes without fighting?” He asked sounding as if he was going out of his way to keep his cool.

“Fine. You’re right, I’m sorry.” She sighed.

“Thank you,” he said with a yawn. “Oh man I’m tired... I didn’t sleep much last night.”

“Yeah neither did I...,” she said quietly.

“Can I get you something to drink?” He asked her.

“Since when do you do that? Usually I just take stuff.” She smiled.

“Right, how silly of me.” He laughed. Sydney smiled at him and walked into his kitchen, pulled open the refrigerator and gasped.

“Michael Vaughn there is no food here!” She groaned as she grabbed a bottle of water.

“Yeah I’ve been kinda busy.” He shrugged.

“Doesn’t what’s-her-face eat?” Sydney asked, her tone obviously condescending.

“Ok, first her name is Alice and she doesn’t live here,” Michael said. Sydney raised and eyebrow. “Are you going to let me explain or just as a million disjointed questions?”

“Well you know me.” She smiled. Then she took his hand and pulled him to his couch. “Explain, I beg of you,” she said as they both sat down.

“Alright,” he laughed. “So fifty two days ago...”

“Fifty two days?” Sydney asked, wondering why her best friend, who had barely managed to remember her birthday, knew how many days had passed since a certain event.

“Yes, I’ve known Alice for fifty two days,” he said in a rather dreamy tone that made Sydney want to gag. She refrained from lashing out at him for this and just let him continue. “So, anyway Eric set me up on this date right?”

“Yes, I recall you mentioning that,” Sydney said.

“And Alice walked in and she’s... she’s just amazing Syd.”

“Really?” Sydney gulped. Michael nodded. “Well who is she? What does she do?”

“Her name is Alice Watson. She’s twenty. She’s a-”

“Hold on back up.” Sydney interrupted, feeling more nauseous than ever. “She’s TWENTY?! As in it is illegal for her to drink champagne at her own wedding?!” She shouted sounding much more insane than she had wanted to.

“Sydney.” He said in his ‘let’s calm Sydney while she spazzes’ voice.

“Sorry, continue.” She sighed.

“Anyway she goes to Penn State, she’s majoring in...”

“Barbie.” Sydney interrupted. He glared at her. “Sorry, I’ll tape my mouth shut, I swear.”

“Anyway, she’s majoring in Agricultural Science.”

“You’re kidding? People actually major in that?” Sydney asked.

Michael nodded. “Yeah, it’s actually quiet interesting.”

“Yeah if you like cows...,” Sydney muttered under her breath.

“Sydney Anne.” He warned. She just grunted and looked away. “Anyway, she’s really sweet, you’d really like her. Actually, she’s coming over this evening so you’ll meet her.”

“Does she know about me?” Sydney asked, prepared to kill him if he said no.

“Yes.” He smiled. “She knows that while she’ll be my wife you’re actually my ball and chain.” He winked. She laughed and nudged him with her elbow. “Yes, she knows all about you Syd and she wants to meet you too.”

“Mmhmm.” Sydney sighed. Then she looked at Michael very seriously. “You really love her, huh?”

“Sure,” he smiled. This answer threw Sydney completely off. Sure. What kind of person answers ‘sure’ when talking about being in love with the person they’re marrying?

“So do you want to hear more?” Michael asked.

“I’m all ears.” She smiled.

“Well, she lives in Scranton with her parents. Her father owns some printing firm or something there.”

“She lives with her parents?” She asked in an even tone, not trying to offend just trying to clarify.

“Yes in the summer, when she’s not at school,” Michael said.

“And so... when she goes to school and you’re married... is she going to live in the dorms?” Sydney asked.

“Well, we hadn’t really talked about that. Maybe, because I mean, Penn State is far away.” Michael sighed.

“Riiiiight.” Sydney rolled her eyes.

“Don’t you roll your eyes at me!” He scolded. She rolled her eyes at him again. He shot his hands to her waist and began to tickle her mercilessly for a few minutes until she had tears streaming down her face and she was begging him to stop while laughing so hard she couldn’t catch her breath.

“Okay... okay.” Sydney said trying to calm herself. “So tell me about how you proposed Romeo.”

“Actually, she proposed to me,” he said.

“You’re kidding!” Sydney gasped.

“No.” He laughed. Again, Sydney rolled her eyes.

They continued talking for another half hour, growing steadily more sluggish until they both fell asleep, not quiet realizing how tired they were. Then, they were woken up by a piercing scream.



Chapter 7

Hearing the scream sent Sydney’s heart rate sky rocketing as she jolted awake so quickly that she fell off the couch and landed painfully on the floor. “Ouch,” she groaned as she sat up and saw Michael sitting upright on the couch, looking horrified. There was however, still screaming in the apartment.

“Alice this isn’t...,” Michael began.

“You and... and... and you and...,” the girl stammered.

“Alice this is Sydney,” Michael said.

“Hey how ya doin?” Sydney grimaced as she got up off the floor and caught her first glimpse at the woman who would become her nemesis. Alice was tall and very blonde with blue eyes and a pale complexion. It was quiet obvious that she was 20 years old because if Sydney had been told that she was a teenager, she would have believed it.

“You... you’re Sydney.” Alice choked out.

“Yeah,” Sydney sighed.

“Why were you sleeping on top of him?” Alice managed.

“Oh, we were talking and we just fell asleep.” Sydney said, looking to Michael for assistance.

“Yeah, no big deal Alice. We’ve slept together before,” Michael said causally. Sydney grimaced; Alice let out a horrified squeal. “Wait that came out wrong...”

“What?” Alice gasped, horrified.

“I mean we’ve been asleep, together before... we haven’t slept together.” He clarified.

“Oh...,” Alice said somewhat shakily. “When did she get here?”

“You know what... I’m just gonna...,” Sydney said as she gestured towards the door. “Go... let you guys talk... Michael I’m taking your car,” she said before grabbing his keys and her bag and walking out to door to the sounds of the two of them arguing.

She found Michael’s green car in the parking lot and threw her bag in the back seat. For a moment she just stood there, wondering where she would go, but then she decided on going to visit Michael’s mother. As she was stopped at a stop sign waiting to pull out of the apartment complex, she caught a sight of Alice storming out of Michael’s apartment and him chasing after her. He caught her, pulled her back and kissed her. Sydney’s stomach nearly turned inside out at the sight of this. Tears burned in her eyes and she could barely focus on her driving.

She had seen women kiss Michael before and it didn’t bother her. But this... this was different. It gave her a feeling; a pain in her heart and in her stomach. When she pulled up in front of Michael’s house she took a few minutes to compose herself before getting out of the car, walking up the driveway and ringing the doorbell.

“SYDNEY!” Amelia’s face lit up immediately upon seeing her.

“Hey Amelia... I’m sorry to drop by without calling but-”

“Nonsense.” Amelia interrupted. “You’re practically family, come on inside.”

“Thanks.” Sydney smiled as she followed Amelia inside the house.

“Bill is away for work; he won’t be back until tomorrow.” Amelia told her. “I assume you’ve heard the exciting news?” she said in a rather dull tone.

Sydney laughed. “Exciting being a relative term, right?”

Amelia smiled. “Have you met her?”

“Well ‘met’ may be a bit strong of a word. Michael and I sort of fell asleep on the couch... she might have seen me lying on top of him. There was yelling.”

Amelia grimaced. “Not exactly the best first impression.”

“Not really.” Sydney laughed.

“Sydney can I get you something to eat?” Amelia asked.

“Oh no, I’m fine.” She said.

“Are you sure? Have you eaten at all? You’re stick thin!” She exclaimed. Sydney smiled softly at Amelia’s motherly tone; she had missed that. “Come on I’m going to force you to eat,” Amelia said as she walked back to the kitchen.

“Okay.” Sydney laughed.

“So, tell me about living in the city,” Amelia said as she began to set out bunches of food onto the table.

“Well... I dunno. It’s not all glitz and glamour. It’s really expensive. It’s sad really... I mean I have no money. I had to use my emergency credit card just to buy the ticket to come here,” she said, almost laughing at how pathetic she was.

“Oh that’s awful. You work for a magazine right?” Amelia asked.

“Yeah.” Sydney sighed. “I usually try to pick up a few freelance pieces a month too, but the past few months I haven’t had any extra time since I’ve been trying to find an editor.”

“Did you find one?” Amelia asked.

“Yeah, I’m actually waiting for a call back from her to hear the verdict on my piece but... I dunno.” Sydney sighed.

“What?” Amelia asked.

“Well... it’s just... I’ve been wondering if it was all a waste of time. I mean I thought coming back here was the last thing I wanted, so I stayed there. But what did I get really? A hundred dollars in my bank account, all my paycheck going towards rent and food. And five years spent on a novel that I’m going to be told sucks.” She sighed.

“I’m sure it doesn’t suck,” Amelia said. “I bet it’s wonderful.”

“I dunno.” Sydney shrugged. “But I come back here and... it’s nice.” She smiled.

Amelia nodded. “Have you been to see your father yet?”

“No,” Sydney said quickly as she shook her head. “And I don’t know if I want to. But anyway, enough about me. Tell me what’s been going on here.”

“Well, two weeks ago Michael brought Alice here to dinner. She seemed very sweet and all but they didn’t seem that serious to me... so, Sunday night when he called us to tell us he was getting married, I nearly had a stroke!”

“Understandable,” Sydney said.

“But then he said they’re getting married on Saturday and well...”

“He’s out of his freakin’ mind,” Sydney said bluntly.

“Well...” Amelia sighed.

“Seriously what the hell happened to him? Is it Alice? Is she tricking him or worse, pregnant?” Sydney asked.

Amelia’s face fell. “I actually hadn’t thought of that...,” she sighed.

“If she’s pregnant I’ll kill Michael,” Sydney said bitterly.

Amelia laughed slightly. “I don’t doubt you will. Anyway would you care to hear the schedule of events?”

“Please,” Sydney said.

“Well, Michael is renting a tux and his fitting is tomorrow. Alice is using her mother’s wedding dress – apparently they’re the exact same size so it doesn’t need adjusting. Friday afternoon is the rehearsal followed by the dinner at that restaurant that you and Michael-”

“Andres,” Sydney said.

“Yes, that’s it.” Amelia smiled. “And then Saturday at noon is the wedding. It’s...”

“Ridiculous.” Sydney finished for her.

“Well... yes,” Amelia sighed.

“Haven’t you tried to talk some sense into him? Or at the very least – beat it into him?” Sydney asked.

Amelia laughed. “Sydney you know as well as I do that Michael can be stubborn.”

“Yes, I do, and luckily I’m just as stubborn. But, I also know he is a rational decision maker,” she said.

Amelia nodded. “Usually, yes.”

“So, you didn’t answer my question.”

Amelia sighed heavily. “Bill tried to talk to Michael but he got upset. Then Bill decided that it would be best for us to keep our mouths shut so that Michael wouldn’t get angry with us. And as for someone talking some sense into him...,” Amelia let her voice drift off as she looked up to Sydney.

Sydney smiled. “Well, luckily I don’t mind pissing him off and he deserves to know when he’s being stupid.”

“Good.” Amelia smiled. “I was getting worried though when you didn’t show up sooner. I was going to call you myself tomorrow.”

“Well, Michael didn’t call me until last night, something I’ll be beating him for later.” Sydney groaned. Amelia just nodded. “So, what do you really think of her?”

“Alice? Oh I don’t know...,” Amelia sighed. “I hardly know her but what I know...”

“You just want to kill,” Sydney said menacingly.

“Sydney!” Amelia laughed.

“You do!” Sydney insisted. “Or I do... I just want to choke that stupid blonde neck of hers which – oh by the way – she’s TWENTY!?!!!!!”

Amelia just shook her head. “I don’t even want to go there.”

“Yeah.” Sydney sighed. “Maybe we should give Michael a drug test.”

Amelia laughed harder. “Oh, Sydney I have missed you.”

“I missed you too.” Sydney smiled. “But I should... go I guess.”

“Where are you going?” Amelia asked.

“I don’t know.” Sydney laughed. “I shouldn’t stay at Michael’s... Alice might kill herself and I wouldn’t want that.” She sighed. Amelia laughed again.

“Stay here... up in Michael’s old room,” Amelia said.

“Are you sure I don’t want to...”

“Sydney, I insist.” Amelia smiled.

“Thank you so much. I’m just gonna run out to the car and get my bag.” Sydney smiled.

“Car? Did you rent one?” Amelia asked.

“No, I took Michael’s.” Sydney smiled. Amelia laughed as she watched Sydney rush out the front door.

When Sydney reached for her bag in the back seat of Michael’s car, she had a momentary flashback to earlier that evening when she had seen Michael kiss Alice. She felt heartsick and when she returned to the house she already had tears welling in her eyes.

“Sydney what happened?” Amelia asked in a concerned tone as she put an arm around Sydney’s back and guided her to the stairs where they both sat down.

“I just... I don’t want to loose my best friend.” Sydney sniffed.

“Oh Sydney... I don’t think that you could ever lose Michael as your best friend unless something horribly drastic happened,” Amelia said.

“I know that’s just it! What if this is it? What if he doesn’t listen to me... what if he marries that stupid whore anyway and he hates me!” She sobbed. “What if.... what if he doesn’t love me anymore?”

“Michael will always love you Sydney and you mean too much to each other to let this force you apart, I know it. You and Michael... you’ve got something really, really rare and really special. You’ve been friends for half your lives and you still love each other so much.”

“I know,” Sydney sighed. “I do love him; which is why I can’t loose him.”

Amelia nodded. “Why don’t you get some sleep? You look awful tired.”

“Thanks Amelia.” Sydney smiled as she leaned over and kissed the older woman’s cheek before grabbing her bag and walking up the stairs.

Walking into Michael’s old room was like stepping back in time for Sydney. It had hardly changed at all since the hours she and Michael had spent in there talking and hanging out. She set her bag down on the floor, pulled out her PJs and her tooth brush and went to the bathroom to change. After she was finished, she went back to Michael’s room and began examining all the things on the walls; all the things she remembered.

Kings posters, Mets pinups, hockey trophies and signed baseballs were everywhere. All the things that were quintessentially Michael. As she looked through the different items she came across a picture of the two of them from prom. She was smiling broadly with the flowers in her hair that Amelia had pinned in so meticulously and Michael was grinning too and hugging her tightly. For some reason, something Sydney couldn’t explain, the picture made her cry. She sobbed softly as she crawled into Michael’s bed and hugged his pillow tightly. She lay there, trying to sleep, but her mind kept running through the years and years she had spent being Michael best friend. It was then she realized it. She realized why seeing Alice had made her physically sick and violently angry. She realized why seeing Michael kiss her broke her heart. She realized why she was sobbing hysterically into Michael’s pillow. Though she and Michael had been best friends, somewhere along the way she had fallen in love with him and never even realized it.



Chapter 8

Sydney slept through the night after crying herself into an exhausted sleep. When she woke up to the sun practically blinding her as it shined in through the window she groaned and tried to smash her face further into the pillow.

“Hey, quit drooling on my pillow.” A familiar voice said quietly.

“Go away Michael.” She groaned.

“I see how it is.” He sighed. Then suddenly she felt the blankets being stripped off of her.

“Heyyyy.” She whined.

“You stole my car last night,” he said.

“Excuse me, I didn’t seal. I borrowed.”

“Without permission.”

“You were preoccupied. I had to make an executive decision,” she said.

“Right.” He rolled his eyes.

“Michael,” Sydney sighed as she sat up in bed and looked at him. He raised an eyebrow at her. “Is Alice pregnant?”

“What?” He laughed.

“I’m serious. Is that why you two are getting married so fast? Is she pregnant?” She asked again. Michael said nothing. “Michael Vaughn I am your best friend and if you lie to me I will find out and then I will kill you.”

He sighed, walked over to the bedroom door, shut it and then sat down very closely next to Sydney on the bed. “She’s not,” Michael said. Sydney glared at him. “She’s not I swear!! The truth is... Alice and I haven’t had sex,” he said quietly.

For a moment, Sydney didn’t know how to respond. Discussing sex between them had always been sort of taboo. They obviously never went into detail about their experiences at all. They only thing they discussed was losing their virginity and not because it was brought up in open discussion but because Sydney had turned up crying on Michael’s doorstep.


Sydney banged impatiently on the door of Michael’s dorm room. It was finals week and she was praying that he wasn’t in the library. She stopped knocking for a moment to wipe the tears from her eyes and sniff loudly before she continued her banging.

“Syd?” Michael asked sleepily as he opened the door of his room. “Oh god you’re crying, what happened?”

“Can I come in?” She sniffed.

“Sure,” he said as he stepped aside and let her go inside. “Sorry I was studying and I fell asleep. What’s wrong?”

Sydney sat on Michael bed like she had done so many times. It was the end of their freshmen year and they got each other through everything that year just by sitting on that bed. Michael was lucky enough to get a single room so they didn’t have to worry about an annoying roommate interrupting their private conversations. “I had sex.” She choked out.

Michael tensed and a strange feeling shot through his chest. “With Todd?” He asked as he sat down beside her. She sniffed and nodded; he handed her a tissue. “What happened?” Michael asked.

“I don’t know.” She sobbed. “He just.... he had been going on about it for weeks you know? ‘Sydney we’ve been together for four months’.” She said in a deep voice mocking his tone. “And with studying and stuff I was going crazy and he was driving me nuts so I just... I gave in and now I regret it.”

“Why? Did he hurt you?” Michael asked in his overprotective tone.

“Not really... it’s just.... it was my first time and it wasn’t even special at all!” She sobbed. Then she looked over at him and felt guilty. “I’m sorry... this is weird for us isn’t it... I just.... I didn’t know where else to go.”

“No, it’s ok; it’s not weird,” he said. She looked at him. “Okay it’s a little weird but we’re best friends right? You can always come to me Sydney,” he said honestly.

“I know.” She sighed as rubbed her face into his chest while he held her.

“Would it make you feel better if I told you about my first time? Which is actually a funny story, if you’re not me that is.”

“Ohh now I have to know,” she said.

“Well remember in February when I went home with Stacie for that weekend?” He asked.

“Yeah,” Sydney said.

“Well we were in her basement and... her dad caught me putting my pants back on.”

“Oh no.” Sydney sighed.

“Oh, it gets better.” Michael said. “He threw me out of the house, it was snowing and I only had boxers on.”

“Oh god,” Sydney laughed. “That did make me feel better.”

“Good.” He sighed as he kissed the top of her head.

“What would I do without you Michael?”

“I don’t know.”


For some reason though, the fact that Michael and Alice hadn’t had sex actually made Sydney feel better. “You haven’t?” She asked.

“No.” He shook his head.

“Oh god is she a virgin?” Sydney asked with a slight smirk.

“You’re such a nosey little perv,” Michael said as he hit her with a pillow.

“Hey! I was serious.” Sydney laughed.

“If you tell her I told you this I’ll kill you.” He groaned.

“Of course,” Sydney smiled, glad she was getting her way.

“Well she isn’t but her first time wasn’t...”

“Fun?” Sydney offered.

Michael rolled his eyes at her. “Whatever. But she wants the next one to be special so we’re waiting.”

“Aw that’s cute.” Sydney smiled.

“Yeah, yeah, come on, my mom has breakfast for us,” Michael said.

“Wait, shouldn’t you be at work?” Sydney asked.

“Nah I took today and tomorrow off. I’m getting married remember?” He smiled.

“How could I forget?” She sighed as she slid out of bed. “I’ll be right down.”

“Okay.” Michael said.

Sydney disappeared into the bathroom and caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror; she was smiling.



Chapter 9

“Morning Sydney. Would you like oatmeal or eggs?” Amelia asked when Sydney came into the kitchen.

“Umm oatmeal please,” Sydney said as she took a seat next to Michael.

“By the way I’m taking my car back.” Michael told her. Sydney stuck her tongue out at him.

“You can drive the pick up if you need to.” Amelia told her.

“You mean I can drive Michael’s precious piece of junk?!” Sydney asked in a fake touched voice.

“Ha. Ha. That’s a good car; don’t mock it.” Michael said.

“That’s true, it did manage to get us to school and back in one piece.” Sydney sighed.

“Exactly, plus it’s nostalgic which is why they still have it,” Michael said.

“Not for lack of trying to get rid of it mind you,” Amelia said to Sydney with a wink. She laughed.

“So, what’s up for today Romeo? Your mom says you have a tux fitting.” Sydney said to Michael.

“Yep, at 10 ohh yes that reminds me, Syd will you be my best man?” Michael asked. Sydney looked to Amelia, her eyes begging that Michael was joking but Amelia just looked away.

“You’re serious?” Sydney laughed. Michael nodded. “But I’m a girl!”

“Yes, I know that genius.” He sighed. “But Eric’s out of town... besides you are my best friend.”

“Ohh poor Eric’s out of town? He’s gonna come home and find you hitched? Poor guy will die from shock.” Sydney sighed.

“I know but he’s camping; I can’t even call him,” Michael sighed. “So, what do you say bud?” He asked as he punched her lightly in the arm.

“Well bud I suppose I’ll do it as long as I don’t have to wear a suit and tie,” she said.

“No suit and tie.” He promised. “Okay I gotta run.” He said as he got up and kissed Sydney’s head quickly. “I’ll call you later... oh by the way Alice is having lunch with you.” He said as he rushed towards the door.

“WHOA WHOA WAIT!!” She called after him. “Oh by the way?!?! OH BY THE WAY?!?! Thanks for telling me jackass.”

“My, my we are hostile this morning.” Michael smirked. She glared. “She’s picking you up here at eleven thirty. Love you bye,” he said as he slipped out the door.

“Ohhh I’m going to enjoy killing him,” Sydney said in one of her infamous tones.

Amelia laughed. “I know you will sweetheart.”

“It’s gonna be slow and really, really painful.” Sydney groaned as she plopped back down at the kitchen table and ate a large spoonful of the oatmeal in front her. “Honestly! I’m the best man?! This is like wedding-on-crack!” She exclaimed.

Amelia laughed. “I know, I know. Someday I hope we can all look back at this and laugh.”

“Ohh we will,” Sydney said. “I’ll make sure to bring it up every holiday.”

“So, what are you going to do until Alice comes?” Amelia asked.

“Plot my evil plan?” She suggested with a smile. Amelia looked weary. “I’m serious.”

“Sydney, don’t be too hostile with her. After all, she is just a child,” Amelia said, barely able to keep a straight face.

Sydney burst out laughing. “That’s a good one. Mm this oatmeal is good too.”

“Thank you dear.” Amelia smiled.

“Where is everybody?” A familiar male voice called from the other room as a door slammed.

“Kitchen, Bill!” Amelia called with a smile.

“Was that Michael I just saw leaving? Has he changed his mind yet?” Bill laughed as he made his way through the house. “Is-ohhh I was wondering when you’d show up.” He smiled immediately upon seeing Sydney. “Hey Syddie.”

“Hey Bill.” Sydney smiled.

“How is my almost daughter doing?” He asked as he sat down next to her at the table.

She laughed slightly. Bill had always been more of a real father to her than her biological father who always seemed to be too busy with working. It was Bill took her to high school soccer games and it was Bill who took obsessive amounts of prom pictures of her. Bill; not her father. “She’s about to kill your son,” she answered.

“Ah yes well... we were hoping you could beat some sense into him.” Bill winked.

“Oh, I’ve only just begun,” she said with an evil grin. “Anyway I have to go find clothes for my lunch date with Alice.... what is appropriate for a relationship’s funeral? Hmm,” She said with a happy little shrug of her shoulders as she skipped up off the stairs.

“That girl...” Bill laughed and shook his head once she had gone.



Chapter 10

“Oh Sydney you look lovely.” Amelia smiled when she saw Sydney skip down the stairs wearing a long, flowered skirt and a white tank with her hair curled.

“Oh, thanks.” Sydney smiled.

“Is this part of your plan? Intimidating Alice by looking more beautiful than her?” Amelia smiled.

Sydney laughed and blushed slightly. “Well I gotta say that is one thing Barbie has going for her – she is pretty.”

“But not as pretty as you.” Amelia smiled.

“Aw thanks... oh! I see her pulling up. Wish me luck.” Sydney winked.

“Good luck sweetie.” Amelia smiled.

Sydney grabbed her purse and got into the passenger side of Alice’s car when Alice beckoned to her. The first thing Alice did was apologize. “I’m really sorry about yesterday; I overreacted.”

“It’s ok,” Sydney said, putting extra sweetness in her voice. “I mean if I had seen a strange woman on top of my fiancée I would have freaked too.” She laughed.

“Right,” Alice laughed. “I’m really glad you agreed to have lunch with me... I mean... I really wanted to meet you. Michael has told me so much about you though, I feel like I already know you.” She giggled.

“Has he?” Sydney asked.

“Yeah, he talks about you constantly.”

“You’re kidding!” Sydney exclaimed, having absolutely no idea.

“No, he does. He worries you know?”

“Worries?”

“Yeah, about you living in the city. He hates it.” Alice told her.

“Oh... yeah...,” Sydney said, really having no idea Michael felt that way. “Well he’s just...”

“Being a protective older brother type, I know.” Alice smiled.

“Right...,” Sydney said unsurely.

“Well do you mind getting a take out lunch? I figured we could sit in that cute little park in the center of town.”

“Sure, whatever,” Sydney shrugged.

“Excellent.” Alice giggled. Sydney wanted to kill that giggle. It annoyed her to the point of suicide. “I just love being out doors. I mean, I love being all pretty and all but I love camping out in the wilderness with like no one around and fishing in streams for dinner.”

“Seriously?” Sydney asked in disbelief.

“Uh huh.” Alice nodded.

Sydney almost snorted from holding in her laughter. Michael hated the outdoors. In fact, he loathed them. He always said he’d rather eat his own fingernails than spend a weekend away from civilization. “Does... Michael know this?”

“Mmhmm,” She said in her chipper tone. “He wasn’t too thrilled about camping but I promised I’d get him into it.”

“I bet,” Sydney said quietly. “So I was wondering... what are you going to do when you go back to Penn State?”

“Ohh well... I hadn’t quite figured it out yet, you know?” Alice giggled. “I mean, it’s only July so I have at least a month to figure everything out... but I think a friend of mine is going to get an apartment and maybe I could live with her so that when Michael comes down on the weekends we have some privacy you know?” She smiled.

Sydney almost threw up and lost all of her appetite for lunch. “Yeah...,” she said weakly. “But... Michael driving down every weekend? I mean, it seems unfair and expensive.”

“Yeah... that’s true. But I’d hate to be away from him for too long.” Alice sighed. “He’s just so great you know?”

“Oh, I know.” Sydney sighed. “He told me that you proposed to him.”

“Yeah isn’t that wild?” Alice giggled.

“Definitely,” Sydney said. “How’d that happen?”

“Oh, I don’t know... it all happened so fast you know? I mean one minute I was all ‘Michael I’m having a really great time’ and he was all ‘Yeah me too’ and then I was all ‘I love you’ and he was all ‘I love you too’ and then I was like ‘oh my god we should get married!’ and he was like ‘okay!’” She laughed.

Sydney honestly didn’t even know how to respond to that. She just wanted to laugh and cry or look for the hidden camera because it had to be some sort of sick joke that was being played on her. For a moment she looked around and tried to find Ashton Kutcher to prove that she was indeed being “punk’d” but he wasn’t there. It was only the horrific reality her life had become. “That’s so... great,” Sydney said fakely.

“I KNOW!” Alice giggled.

They grabbed their lunches at Subway and Alice continued her chipper, giggly banter the whole way to the park. However, once they were sitting in the warm sun on a park bench, Alice’s demeanor and tone changed one hundred and eighty degrees almost as if she had suddenly put on her ‘Mr. Hyde’ face. “Tell me what’s really going on between you and Michael,” she said, her tone now harsh, threatening and almost scary.

Sydney was so taken aback she stopped mid-bite on her sub and just stared at Alice. “Excuse me?” Sydney mumbled through the bread in her mouth.

“Let me get one thing clear Sydney Bristow; I. Don’t. Like. You,” she said harshly.

“What?!” Sydney gasped, no positively convinced that she was living some kind of sick nightmare.

“Have you ever slept with Michael?” Alice asked.

“Are you serious?” Sydney half laughed. By Alice’s stone expression Sydney knew she was serious. “I don’t have to answer that,” Sydney said defiantly.

“You have haven’t you?” Alice asked.

“What did Michael tell you?” Sydney asked.

“He just said you were his best friend and nothing more, but I don’t believe him.” Alice said.

Sydney shook her head, trying to clear her mind. “Ok first, Michael is right, we are best friends. And second.... shouldn’t you be believing and therefore trusting the man you marry?”

“Have you slept with Michael?” Alice asked again.

“No,” Sydney sighed dully. “I have not.”

“Have you kissed him?” Alice asked.

In that moment, Sydney finally regained her purpose with even more vengeance. “Michael kisses me all the time,” Sydney said defiantly. Alice’s eyes widened. “Yeah... on the forehead... on the cheek... occasionally on the lips...”

“What about make-out kissing?” Alice asked.

For a moment, Sydney almost retorted with ‘What are you 12?’ Then she almost snorted at her own joke because Alice practically was 12, well eight years off anyway. Sydney sighed heavily, seeing no end to Alice ridiculous line of questioning unless she gave her the answer she wanted. “No, Michael and I have only kissed like that once, first semester of freshmen year in college, we were both drunk it was... awkward.”

Alice’s eyes narrowed. “That’s what Michael said.”

“That’s the truth.” Sydney shrugged.

“Fine.” Alice grunted. “Now I have to tell you something. Once Michael and I marry things between you and him are going to change.”

Sydney, taking extreme personal offense to this, retorted in her best intimidating tone. “Are they?”

“Yes,” Alice said, fear slightly evident in her voice. “I don’t want you alone with him anymore. You’re not to be trusted,” Alice said. Sydney barked with laughter. “Things are going to change Sydney.”

“You listen to me Barbie.” Sydney snapped. “I don’t know what you’ve done to my Michael but one thing is for sure: Michael and I will always be best friend and nothing you do or say will ever change that. You can’t change that.” Sydney said.

Alice smirked with an evil grin. “Watch me.” And then as if her mask had been replaced once more she giggled sweetly. “So, Michael says you’re going to be the best man but you’re not wearing a suit. What are you wearing? Because my sister is going to be my maid of honor and I don’t want you two dressed the same; that would look weird.”

Sydney resisted the very strong urge to scream ‘What the fuck is wrong with you?!’ at the top of her lungs and instead just looked at Alice. “I don’t know.” She said dully. “I hadn’t thought of it yet.”

“Oh alright well Lianne, that’s my sister, is wearing daisy yellow.”

“I won’t be wearing that color.” Sydney assured her.

“Great! Oh I hate to run but I promised my mom I’d meet her for tea okay? But Michael and I are going to have dinner with his parents so we’ll see you later ok?”

“Yeah... okay...” Sydney sighed.

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Chapters 11-20