Chapter Text
Skye opens the door wearing only a huge red T-shirt that doubtlessly belongs to her roommate and looks like a dress on her. She smiles, but it doesn’t really reach her eyes. She gives Jemma a quick kiss and closes the door behind her.
“I assume Grant doesn’t know you’ve been sifting through his closet.”
Skye shrugs. “He has a thousand identical shirts, won’t even notice I took one.” She hugs herself with a faint smile. “They’re comfy.”
Jemma is concerned and wants to ask Skye what’s happening, but it doesn’t feel like Skye is purposefully hiding something from her; instead, it looks like she just doesn’t feel comfortable talking about whatever is bothering her right now. Jemma believes that Skye will open up to her when she wants to, and decides not to press the issue.
The TV is turned on and displaying the Netflix homepage. Skye’s laptop is on the coffee table next to her phone and the TV remote. There’s also a near-empty glass of Coke and a small bowl of peanuts. Jemma tilts her head. “Have you been watching shows all day?”
Skye looks down shamefully. “Maybe.”
“Why didn’t you call me earlier?” Jemma takes a step closer to Skye and rests her hands on the other girl’s waist. “I could’ve come here sooner if you’re not feeling well.”
Skye shakes her head. “Nah, I’m fine, don’t worry.” She brushes a lock of hair behind Jemma’s ear and kisses her again, which is an effective way of taking Jemma’s mind off the matter. “Grant won’t be home anytime soon, he’s working all night today. Would you rather watch a movie or marathon another show?”
A smirk crosses Jemma’s lips. She slides her purse off her shoulder and slowly pulls out something she’s sure will make Skye happy. “Oh, I don’t know, though I do have a suggestion…”
As soon as Skye sees the Doctor Who seventh series blu-ray she lets out a happy chuckle and sways forward to cup Jemma’s face in her hands. “I want to watch the shit out of this right now but I also really want to kiss you.”
Jemma wiggles her eyebrows, glad that she could make Skye smile at least. “Those are not mutually exclusive options if you ask me.”
Skye laughs softly and presses a kiss to Jemma’s lips.
* * *
It takes Jemma only the first episode to notice that Skye is not very focused on the show.
They sit next to each other in the beginning, but Skye lazily spreads her legs across the couch and uses Jemma’s thighs as a pillow, as she often does when they’re watching something together at home. Jemma spends the rest of the episode gently stroking Skye’s hair, and she knows this always makes Skye sleepy, but now Skye is just fidgeting with hair nails, seeming contemplative.
Halfway through the second episode, Skye suddenly sits upright and grabs the remote to pause the show. She turns to a confused Jemma and says calmly, “It’s my birthday today.”
Jemma's eyes widen and she panics for a split second before realizing that Skye isn’t mad at her for forgetting, because she didn’t forget. She never even knew in the first place. Skye never told Jemma the date of her birthday and Jemma remembers that not even the fans who made that fanpage that Jemma saw several weeks ago knew the exact date.
She finally understands that Skye is a bit sad today not because Jemma didn’t know it was her birthday or any other reason, but simply because it is.
Instead of asking Skye why she kept it a secret, Jemma pulls her into a hug. Skye wraps her arms tightly around Jemma’s waist and buries her face into Jemma’s chest. Jemma whispers into Skye’s ear, “You deserve the happiest of birthdays."
Skye lifts her eyes so that their gazes meet. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, but... I never tell anyone. Actually, you and Grant are the only ones who know, I think."
Jemma runs a hand through Skye's hair, still holding her close. They don't say anything for some time until Jemma pulls away gently and asks, "Don't you like celebrating your birthday?"
"It’s not that I don’t like it, it’s just…” Skye exhales deeply, trying to find the best way of explaining it. “My birthday always makes me kinda sulky. Besides, I don’t see the point in celebrating it unless it’s with the people that you care about… And that care about you the same way.” Skye sounds a bit uneasy and Jemma knows that she’s telling her something that she rarely ever admits. “I don’t want people to say ‘happy birthday’ to me unless they truly care about me and aren’t just saying it to be nice. I know it’s silly, but…” Skye stops talking when she raises her head and notices that Jemma has quite the thoughtful look on her face. She reaches for Jemma’s hand. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”
Jemma places her other hand over Skye’s and says, “Do you think that grocery store around the corner is still open?”
Skye narrows her eyes. “Probably, why?”
“Because I know how to make a delicious mug cake, if only we had the ingredients. And birthday candles.”
Skye throws her head back and closes her eyes as she laughs softly, and in that moment Jemma knows that she understood the message.
* * *
“Hey, is your phone close?” Jemma asks as she pulls the ingredients out of the plastic bag and lines them up on the kitchen counter.
“Yeah, what do you want?” Skye has her phone in her hands.
“Will you please look up ‘mug cake recipe’?”
“I thought you knew how to make it!” Skye protests in disbelief, her tone playful as she smiles, making Jemma glad that she’s managing to lift Skye’s spirits a little bit.
“I do, but I didn’t memorize the exact measurements of the ingredients!” Jemma justifies.
“Yeah, right,” Skye says jokingly. “I bet this is the first time you’re trying to make this.”
“Stop questioning my cooking skills and just google the bloody recipe, Skye!”
* * *
They don’t sing happy birthday to Skye because they both agree it would be pathetic but Jemma insists on lighting up the little candle she bought and making her blow it out.
“Is it good?” Jemma asks when Skye eats the first bite of the cake.
“Yeah, it’s delicious,” she answers and Jemma immediately fist-pumps and laughs, utterly self-satisfied. “You’ve never really made this before, have you?”
“No,” Jemma confesses. “But I read about it the other day and thought, how hard can it be?”
The blissful look on Skye’s face as she takes another bite of the cake makes Jemma wonder if she ever expected it would take her such a short time frame to care this much about the ridiculously cute girl sitting in front of her. Looking at Skye now, she knows it was inevitable.
* * *
Jemma wakes up with her arm draped across Skye’s stomach, and finds that the other girl is already awake, staring with a blank expression at the wall in front of them.
“Good morning,” she says as Jemma retracts her arm and yawns.
Jemma checks the clock on Skye’s bedside table. She thinks about getting up but remembers it’s Saturday and reasons that she might just stay in bed a while longer.
“Since when are you awake before eleven?” She asks, groggy. “Something on your mind?”
Skye hesitates for a moment before answering. “I was just thinking…” She trails off. “It’s nothing.”
“Tell me,” Jemma insists, rolling to her side so that her body is pressed against the side of Skye’s.
Skye sighs as if gathering the courage to say something. “Jem, are we dating?”
Jemma feels her heart thump against her chest. They’ve never, not even once, discussed the state of their relationship. “I don’t know. Are we?”
“If we’re not, would you like us to be? Because I would, I want you to be my girlfriend.” Skye blurts out.
Jemma raises her eyebrows in shock, only because she wasn’t expecting Skye to say something like this out of nowhere at nine in the morning. Skye apparently thinks her reaction means she has doubts, which is far from true, but she doesn’t give Jemma time to say anything.
“Look, I know it’s soon and I’m completely clueless because I never had a relationship nearly as serious as I feel like ours is. And I tried not to rush things with you for some reason but waiting is just not my style. Clearly, since I called you ten hours after our first date.” She chuckles nervously. “I mean, why wait? I like you a lot. I always thought that I’d be better off alone but made me question that for the first time. I’d love to-”
Jemma lets out a giggle because she’s never felt so speechless in her entire life. She then realizes how awful it is to laugh after someone says something like what Skye just said to her and covers up her mouth, completely awestruck. Jemma’s lips quirk upwards and she gaze at Skye like she’s the most precious creature in the universe.
“Don’t you dare give me those damn puppy eyes, Jemma,” Skye protests apprehensively, rolling her eyes.
Jemma laughs as she shifts in bed until she’s straddling Skye and Skye supports her weight on her elbows. “You know I’d love to call you my girlfriend too, right?”
Skye exhales deeply and she looks so relieved that Jemma’s smile widens. “If I already knew that I would’ve spared you the romantic rambling.”
“Don’t be so dramatic,” Jemma jokes before she leans in and kisses her girlfriend.
(Yeah, she definitely can get used to calling her that.)
* * *
Jemma barely even hears the door opening but it's enough for Skye to stop kissing her right away.
"Oh look, Grant's here!" Skye pulls away from Jemma and jumps out of her bed.
Skye starts pulling the sheet that's covering Jemma but Jemma promptly grasps its edges, firmly keeping it over her body. Skye opens her closet and pulls out a pair of shorts and a tank top; Jemma groans at Grant's god awful timing.
Skye puts on the shorts and then turns to stare at Jemma, a questioning look on her face. "What are you waiting for? Get your ass out of that bed and put some clothes on!"
Jemma protests by spreading her body across the bed like a child.
"Do you want Grant to see you wrapped up in my sheets, only in your underwear beneath it?" Skye asks in a challenging tone.
"What?" Jemma's plan was to stay in Skye's bed lazily waiting for her to come back and pick up where they left off due to the interruption.
When Jemma looks at Skye again she's already wearing the tank top and running her hands through her bed hair. "C'mon, Jem! I want to introduce him to my girlfriend."
"But I've met him before.”
Skye steps closer to the bed. "We weren't dating yet," she argues and then steals the sheet from Jemma, rolling it up in a ball and leaving Jemma almost naked on the bed.
"Bloody hell, Skye." Jemma reluctantly gets to her feet and gathers her clothes.
As soon as she's all dressed, Skye unlocks her bedroom door and steps out ecstatically. Grant is standing in the living room, loosening his tie, his jacket already hanging on the coat rack next to the door. There are dark circles around his eyes, and Jemma wonders for how long he's been awake. She doesn’t know much about his mysterious job except that he wears dark suits on a daily basis and that he can’t talk about it, even with Skye. Buddy, his dog, is barking hysterically and pawing Grant's legs. He looks a bit surprised to see Jemma there, though it's not the first time that Jemma spent the night at Skye's place. (He doesn't know that. Or does, who knows what Skye tells him.)
Skye strides toward him; he throws his arms around her and hugs her tightly, planting a sweet kiss on her forehead. He's been at work since before Skye woke up yesterday, but Jemma knows that he called her during his break to wish her a happy birthday. Still, he says again, "Happy belated birthday, Skye." She smiles. "And I forgot your gift on my car; I'll go down there and pick it up, I just need to take a nap first, okay? I'm exhausted."
"Sure, yeah, you need to get some sleep. Just one thing..." Skye gestures for Jemma, who's been awkwardly standing by the door of Skye's room, to walk closer to them, and Jemma does so. The height difference between her and Grant is so huge it's pathetic, she has to practically throw her head back to look him in the eyes.
"Hello, Jemma," Grant says friendly and then turns to Skye. "Is there something you want to tell me?"
Skye slips her hand around Jemma's waist. "We're dating now."
He arches his eyebrows and huffs out a breath in amusement. "Does this mean I can say she's your girlfriend without you smiling childishly and telling me that you're 'not officially dating yet'?"
Jemma can't stop the smile that splits across her face. Skye rolls her eyes, embarrassed. "You can go to bed now, Grant," Skye says.
"You two are such a lovely couple." He says sincerely before excusing himself to go to sleep.
* * *
"For the record, I didn't 'smile childishly', he was exaggerating to embarrass me," Skye says as soon as they walk into her bedroom again and close the door behind them.
"If you say so," Jemma says sarcastically with a cheeky grin that makes Skye sigh.
Skye gestures to Jemma's body and says with a wistful look, "You can take those clothes off again now. I'm just saying."
Jemma narrows her eyes and shakes her head slightly. "You're incorrigible."
* * *
Jemma and Fitz both snap their heads up when they're pulled out of their thoughts by longing doorbell ring. Fitz looks at her. "Are you expecting someone?"
Jemma shakes her head, so he stands up and heads to the door. As soon as he opens it, an enthusiastic Skye jumps into the apartment, her long waves of hair bouncing over her shoulders.
“Jemma!” Skye calls out. She turns to Fitz and waves excitedly. “Oh, hi, Fitz!”
“Hello, Skye, please come in,” he jokes, shutting the door and going back to his studies.
“Fitz!” Jemma scolds him. Skye stops in front of Jemma as she gets to her feet. “Hey, why are you so jumpy?”
“Remember when I told you we’d celebrate together if I found a job?”
Two months ago Skye started looking for a job, after several years where her only source of income was doing freelance jobs as a programmer, added to the small amount of money that she gets from the advertisements on her YouTube vlog videos. She considered giving up after plenty of interviews where the employers wouldn’t hire her because she doesn’t have a college degree. Jemma knows, however, that her computer skills put her far beyond a lot of professionals out there. Sky was only hoping she could find an employer willing to understand that her lack of superior education doesn’t mean she’s any less qualified to do her job, whatever it would be.
Jemma beams, the realization of what must have happened hitting her. “Of course I remember!”
“Well then you better go change because we’re celebrating!” Skye jumps into Jemma’s arms and Jemma wraps her arms around Skye’s waist, rubbing her girlfriend’s back as they both laugh.
“Skye, that’s incredible!” Jemma exclaims.
“I know!” Jemma doesn’t think she’s ever seen Skye so happy. “I just got out of the interview and came straight here. I need to tell you about the interview because it was wild.”
“I want to hear everything while I change so we can go out.” Jemma reaches for Skye’s hand and leads her to her bedroom.
Skye sits on the edge of Jemma’s bed and Jemma starts searching through her closet for an outfit.
“I was at home doing nothing and suddenly this guy calls me. I knew him, I’d done a couple of things on the system of his store, like, six months ago, and he called me today and told me that the small company where his wife is one of the higher-ups had suffered a breach on their security system and was looking for someone who could improve it and he thought of me. He gave me the address and told me I could go there and ask his wife to let me do an unscheduled job interview if I wanted, so I obviously went there immediately.”
Skye is too excited to be sitting down quietly so she stands up and startles Jemma by hugging her from behind. Jemma stiffens when she feels Skye’s lips brushing the side of her neck.
“Focus on the story, Skye!” Jemma chastises her girlfriend.
“Sorry, you’re hot and almost naked, I couldn’t help myself,” Skye laughs, sitting down on the bed again. “Back to the story. As soon as the interview started they asked me about my goddamn college degree and I was like, ‘well, fuck’. I told them that I know computer science very well even though I never went to college but they obviously only heard the second part and said that they couldn’t hire me, same thing as my other interviews. I was pissed and said, ‘You won’t find anyone better to improve your security system than a person who can hack it easily with a laptop she won in a bet’.”
“Bloody hell.” Jemma’s jaw drops to the ground. “Did you really say that?”
“You bet your sweet ass I did.” Skye looks utterly delighted as she tells the story. “When I said that, they laughed at my face like I had just told them a joke, so I pulled my laptop out of my bag and said, ‘If I were you, I wouldn’t doubt it’.”
“You can’t be serious,” Jemma says in disbelief.
“I’m dead serious right now. There were two dudes, one of them didn’t even want to let me try and the other was way more fun so he said, ‘Let’s give the girl a shot, what harm can it do?’ and the other was like ‘A lot of harm, she’s clearly a hacker!’ so I assured them that I’m not a hacker and that I was only going to show them that I could breach their security and not do any harm. Eventually they decided I could try, so they gave me twenty minutes and stayed in the room watching me as if they were understanding anything that I was doing on my laptop.”
“Did you hack it?” Jemma asks anxiously.
“Jemma, please,” Skye says smugly. “The system was ridiculous, it took me less than ten minutes to break the firewall and then I hacked the computer in that office to display a black screen with the message ‘Am I hired now?’.”
“You did not do this.” Jemma gapes at her, standing still in the middle of her bedroom, her shirt half unbuttoned.
“I swear I asked them if I could take a picture to show my girlfriend but they didn’t let me. By the way, I shouldn’t even be telling anyone about this but you’re an exception.”
“You’re unbelievable,” Jemma says, shaking her head, trying to process what Skye just told her.
“You mean, unbelievably awesome.” Skye holds Jemma’s waist to pull her closer and finishes buttoning her girlfriend’s shirt, proceeding to press their lips together. “So where do you want to go?”
Jemma argues that Skye should choose where they go since she's the one they're celebrating. However, Jemma ends up suggesting they could have dinner at the same restaurant where they ate after that boring party two months ago, which brings up a highly immature discussion on whether Jemma spent the whole night staring at Jemma's lips or not. (She did. She denies it. But Skye did too, and when Jemma accuses her she doesn't bother to deny it.)
Later, they both agree it’s fitting that they’re having dinner together in the same place where they had their first—and unplanned—date. When Jemma jokes that she still hasn’t thanked Fitz for setting up their first meet, even though two months have passed and he still bothers her about that, Skye takes it way too seriously and sends him a text saying only “thank you”. He has no idea what she’s talking about, but it’s the thought that counts, right?