***
V. turn a new leaf over
***
"Hey, Syd, I'm home!" Eric shouldered the door open and began the long and laborious process of sorting out his stuff. Keys on table; jacket on coat rack; laptop on desk. Shoes in the middle of the floor. Well, he wasn't entirely domesticated yet.
"I'm in the gym!" He was halfway down the hall when he heard, "And you better pick your shoes up before I run over them!"
He sighed and went back to move them.
She was sitting on the weight bench, concentrating on bicep curls when he stuck his head in, so he leaned against the doorframe and watched her for a while. It was his favorite spectator sport, watching Sydney exercise. Her hair was bundled back into a braid, her face screwed up in concentration, and--hello, nursie--she was wearing his favorite sports bra. The black extra-skimpy one.
"This is the best part of my day."
"It's the bra, isn't it?"
"No, it's the free weights." He walked over and snuck a kiss in while she was switching arms. "You might hit me over the head with them. Mmm, violence."
"Wasn't that in a movie once?"
"Honey, everything was in a movie once."
"I sense a bad day." She pushed her wheelchair out so it faced the weight bench, locking the brakes. "Sit down and tell me about it."
He eased into it and propped his feet on the bench, avoiding the weights stacked behind her. It was a bit awkward, as the table was elevated to accomodate Syd's workout and not his aching feet, but he didn't much care.
"I hate my job."
"You love your job."
"I love *television writing,*" Eric said. "I loathe and despise writing *for this show.*"
"What happened today?"
"It was like Attack of the Stuffy Suits. Sloane from the studio, and Devlin from the network."
"At the same time?"
He shuddered. "At least Devlin is just ineffectual. Sloane's an ass."
"I know. I met him at the wrap party last year, remember? He wouldn't stop looking down my dress."
"Well, you were wearing that red sparkly--" Sydney smacked him on the leg. "--stylish dress that I would never be so crass as to leer about."
"Uh-huh."
He cleared his throat. "Anyway, he hates my new script."
"Bastard."
"Executive."
"What was it this time? Did you use a word with more than two syllables?"
Eric snickered. "My plot is too complex."
"Too what?"
"Keep that expression on your face. You'll need it." He leaned forward. "So I'm showing him the part in Act One where I set the twist up, right, and saying see, here's how it all comes together in the last few minutes. He says, 'Mr. Weiss, if you want a gun to go off in Act Four, it needs to be in a holster in Act Three.'"
The weight thudded to the bench, narrowly missing Eric's foot. "That's just--just--*wrong.*"
"I think this guy read _Writing for Dummies_ once. In the dark. In a moving car."
She was giggling helplessly.
"And that wasn't even the best part of my day. No, that would be the part where Laura fell down a flight of stairs and demanded that her stunt double do the shot instead."
"Well, a flight of stairs!"
"It was two steps high."
"...oh."
"Syd, she's such a bad spy," he groaned.
"Poor baby." She leaned over and grabbed his arms; with one practiced move, he swung her into his lap, arranging her legs over one side of the chair as she snuggled against him. "Poor, poor Eric."
"And Jack backed her up, the shit." As always. "Dragged Irina all the way out there. She did a great job, of course."
"Of course."
"Laura has been the star of this show for three years and she can't talk and hit a mark at the same time. Irina would be a million times better as a secret agent."
"Honey, *I'd* be a better secret agent."
"You would. Man, I could write the best show around you."
"Secret Agent Sydney?"
"Yeah. No, Double Agent Sydney." He wasn't really sure who she'd be a double agent for, but who cared? "Grad student by day, spy by night."
She started laughing.
He hammed it up. "Agent Syd works for an agency so dangerous, so secret, that not even her closest friends know what she does. And then she tells her fiance, er," he cast about for a name, "Danny--"
"Danny? Why not--wait." She sat up straight. *Doctor Hecht?*"
"Shh. I'm brainstorming here. Anyway, she tells Danny, and you know how they say if I tell you, I'll have to kill you?"
"Ooh, really?"
"Yeah."
"Bold choice."
"I'm a bold guy."
"Uh-huh. So what does she do after they kill Dr. Danny?"
"She turns on them. Offers herself up to the enemy to bring them down, and their evil leader Sloane, who killed her boyfriend and looked down her dress." She laughed, but his brain was already in overdrive. "But--but here's the twist, see. She finds out that the enemy really isn't the enemy. She finds out that her secret agency is really the bad guys, and they'd lied to her. So not only did they kill her guy, they've been lying to her about the fundamental nature of her job all along."
"Okay, kind of confusing, but really cool if you can pull it off."
"Yeah, so she ends up working for the good guys, spying on the bad guys, who still think she thinks they're the good guys..."
"You remember what I said about kind of confusing? I take the 'kind of' back. But don't stop!" she said when he halted. "You can make it work. So she goes to the good guys."
"The CIA."
"Of course. She has a love interest there, right? Right? Is that where you come in?"
"That would be weird, don't you think?"
She rolled her eyes at him.
"No, her love interest is...let me think. He should be her agent on the inside, you know." He grinned. "Oh, it's perfect. Vaughn."
"Vaughn? Who? Oh, no no no. Intern Vaughn? *Michael* Vaughn?"
"Yes, he's perfect."
"He babbles every time I'm in the same building as him. He spilled punch down my dress at that same damn wrap party, and left me with Sloane trying to wipe it up."
"You didn't tell me that."
"I handled it." She grinned. "He wasn't using that hand for a while after I was done with him."
"You rock. But yes, Vaughn. Only he probably wouldn't look like Vaughn. He'd look like Noah or someone."
She actually growled, and he blinked down at her. "Really? Damn, where was I at this party while you were being harassed?"
"I think Jack had you cornered and was patting you on the shoulder repeatedly while talking about your future in Hollywood."
"Oh, God, I think I would have rather had Noah groping me."
"So the show has me--"
"Babe, you're the star!"
"--and Evil Sloane, and Dr. Danny, and, God help me, Vaughn. And probably Jack and Laura and Irina too."
"Of course." He smirked.
"Where are you?"
"Huh?"
"In the story. What does Eric do? Is he my older, more experienced partner? My loving but clueless friend? A dangerous agent for the other side?"
"Eric..." He dropped his head back and looked up at the ceiling, which needed to be painted. "Eric is a company guy who does his job and doesn't cross the line. He's just in it for the money. Eric never does anything he shouldn't, even when he should."
"Eric." Sydney pulled his head upright and leaned her forehead against his. "Quit."
"I can't. You know I can't. You don't finish school for another year, and then we have baby plans. I need this job."
"Not that much. Come on. We can make it work. Or we can wait for the baby."
"No. Next year I'm Executive Story Editor and I get another raise."
"And you're still on a show you hate with people who won't listen to you." She huffed out an exasperated sigh. "Fine, but you can at least work on the pilot on the side. Running your own show would be a totally different experience."
"Well, ye--what pilot?"
"What do you mean, what pilot? The story you just told me." She smacked his arm. "Spy Sydney."
"That was just--"
"Oh, no. It was great. Funny and interesting and dramatic and sexy--"
"Sexy?"
"I get to wear all sorts of fancy costumes, right?"
"Of course. And wigs. I love wigs."
"See? Write me a show, Eric."
"Sloane will hate it."
"Sloane's is not the only studio in town."
"They all might hate it."
"They will not."
"Seriously, Syd, I could get shot down big time."
"Maybe." She kissed him. "Maybe not."
"All right. All right."
"Yes!" She kissed him again.
"Mm. I think I need to see some sexy costumes first. For, you know, inspiration. We could start with that red dress- -don't hit me, Agent Sydney! Ow!"
--the end--
V. turn a new leaf over
***
"Hey, Syd, I'm home!" Eric shouldered the door open and began the long and laborious process of sorting out his stuff. Keys on table; jacket on coat rack; laptop on desk. Shoes in the middle of the floor. Well, he wasn't entirely domesticated yet.
"I'm in the gym!" He was halfway down the hall when he heard, "And you better pick your shoes up before I run over them!"
He sighed and went back to move them.
She was sitting on the weight bench, concentrating on bicep curls when he stuck his head in, so he leaned against the doorframe and watched her for a while. It was his favorite spectator sport, watching Sydney exercise. Her hair was bundled back into a braid, her face screwed up in concentration, and--hello, nursie--she was wearing his favorite sports bra. The black extra-skimpy one.
"This is the best part of my day."
"It's the bra, isn't it?"
"No, it's the free weights." He walked over and snuck a kiss in while she was switching arms. "You might hit me over the head with them. Mmm, violence."
"Wasn't that in a movie once?"
"Honey, everything was in a movie once."
"I sense a bad day." She pushed her wheelchair out so it faced the weight bench, locking the brakes. "Sit down and tell me about it."
He eased into it and propped his feet on the bench, avoiding the weights stacked behind her. It was a bit awkward, as the table was elevated to accomodate Syd's workout and not his aching feet, but he didn't much care.
"I hate my job."
"You love your job."
"I love *television writing,*" Eric said. "I loathe and despise writing *for this show.*"
"What happened today?"
"It was like Attack of the Stuffy Suits. Sloane from the studio, and Devlin from the network."
"At the same time?"
He shuddered. "At least Devlin is just ineffectual. Sloane's an ass."
"I know. I met him at the wrap party last year, remember? He wouldn't stop looking down my dress."
"Well, you were wearing that red sparkly--" Sydney smacked him on the leg. "--stylish dress that I would never be so crass as to leer about."
"Uh-huh."
He cleared his throat. "Anyway, he hates my new script."
"Bastard."
"Executive."
"What was it this time? Did you use a word with more than two syllables?"
Eric snickered. "My plot is too complex."
"Too what?"
"Keep that expression on your face. You'll need it." He leaned forward. "So I'm showing him the part in Act One where I set the twist up, right, and saying see, here's how it all comes together in the last few minutes. He says, 'Mr. Weiss, if you want a gun to go off in Act Four, it needs to be in a holster in Act Three.'"
The weight thudded to the bench, narrowly missing Eric's foot. "That's just--just--*wrong.*"
"I think this guy read _Writing for Dummies_ once. In the dark. In a moving car."
She was giggling helplessly.
"And that wasn't even the best part of my day. No, that would be the part where Laura fell down a flight of stairs and demanded that her stunt double do the shot instead."
"Well, a flight of stairs!"
"It was two steps high."
"...oh."
"Syd, she's such a bad spy," he groaned.
"Poor baby." She leaned over and grabbed his arms; with one practiced move, he swung her into his lap, arranging her legs over one side of the chair as she snuggled against him. "Poor, poor Eric."
"And Jack backed her up, the shit." As always. "Dragged Irina all the way out there. She did a great job, of course."
"Of course."
"Laura has been the star of this show for three years and she can't talk and hit a mark at the same time. Irina would be a million times better as a secret agent."
"Honey, *I'd* be a better secret agent."
"You would. Man, I could write the best show around you."
"Secret Agent Sydney?"
"Yeah. No, Double Agent Sydney." He wasn't really sure who she'd be a double agent for, but who cared? "Grad student by day, spy by night."
She started laughing.
He hammed it up. "Agent Syd works for an agency so dangerous, so secret, that not even her closest friends know what she does. And then she tells her fiance, er," he cast about for a name, "Danny--"
"Danny? Why not--wait." She sat up straight. *Doctor Hecht?*"
"Shh. I'm brainstorming here. Anyway, she tells Danny, and you know how they say if I tell you, I'll have to kill you?"
"Ooh, really?"
"Yeah."
"Bold choice."
"I'm a bold guy."
"Uh-huh. So what does she do after they kill Dr. Danny?"
"She turns on them. Offers herself up to the enemy to bring them down, and their evil leader Sloane, who killed her boyfriend and looked down her dress." She laughed, but his brain was already in overdrive. "But--but here's the twist, see. She finds out that the enemy really isn't the enemy. She finds out that her secret agency is really the bad guys, and they'd lied to her. So not only did they kill her guy, they've been lying to her about the fundamental nature of her job all along."
"Okay, kind of confusing, but really cool if you can pull it off."
"Yeah, so she ends up working for the good guys, spying on the bad guys, who still think she thinks they're the good guys..."
"You remember what I said about kind of confusing? I take the 'kind of' back. But don't stop!" she said when he halted. "You can make it work. So she goes to the good guys."
"The CIA."
"Of course. She has a love interest there, right? Right? Is that where you come in?"
"That would be weird, don't you think?"
She rolled her eyes at him.
"No, her love interest is...let me think. He should be her agent on the inside, you know." He grinned. "Oh, it's perfect. Vaughn."
"Vaughn? Who? Oh, no no no. Intern Vaughn? *Michael* Vaughn?"
"Yes, he's perfect."
"He babbles every time I'm in the same building as him. He spilled punch down my dress at that same damn wrap party, and left me with Sloane trying to wipe it up."
"You didn't tell me that."
"I handled it." She grinned. "He wasn't using that hand for a while after I was done with him."
"You rock. But yes, Vaughn. Only he probably wouldn't look like Vaughn. He'd look like Noah or someone."
She actually growled, and he blinked down at her. "Really? Damn, where was I at this party while you were being harassed?"
"I think Jack had you cornered and was patting you on the shoulder repeatedly while talking about your future in Hollywood."
"Oh, God, I think I would have rather had Noah groping me."
"So the show has me--"
"Babe, you're the star!"
"--and Evil Sloane, and Dr. Danny, and, God help me, Vaughn. And probably Jack and Laura and Irina too."
"Of course." He smirked.
"Where are you?"
"Huh?"
"In the story. What does Eric do? Is he my older, more experienced partner? My loving but clueless friend? A dangerous agent for the other side?"
"Eric..." He dropped his head back and looked up at the ceiling, which needed to be painted. "Eric is a company guy who does his job and doesn't cross the line. He's just in it for the money. Eric never does anything he shouldn't, even when he should."
"Eric." Sydney pulled his head upright and leaned her forehead against his. "Quit."
"I can't. You know I can't. You don't finish school for another year, and then we have baby plans. I need this job."
"Not that much. Come on. We can make it work. Or we can wait for the baby."
"No. Next year I'm Executive Story Editor and I get another raise."
"And you're still on a show you hate with people who won't listen to you." She huffed out an exasperated sigh. "Fine, but you can at least work on the pilot on the side. Running your own show would be a totally different experience."
"Well, ye--what pilot?"
"What do you mean, what pilot? The story you just told me." She smacked his arm. "Spy Sydney."
"That was just--"
"Oh, no. It was great. Funny and interesting and dramatic and sexy--"
"Sexy?"
"I get to wear all sorts of fancy costumes, right?"
"Of course. And wigs. I love wigs."
"See? Write me a show, Eric."
"Sloane will hate it."
"Sloane's is not the only studio in town."
"They all might hate it."
"They will not."
"Seriously, Syd, I could get shot down big time."
"Maybe." She kissed him. "Maybe not."
"All right. All right."
"Yes!" She kissed him again.
"Mm. I think I need to see some sexy costumes first. For, you know, inspiration. We could start with that red dress- -don't hit me, Agent Sydney! Ow!"
--the end--