Work Text:
Skye was still hesitant about the order. Sure, they needed to disappear, but this? Erasing all traces of them would mean that she'd no longer be part of S.H.I.E.L.D. At all. After years and years, she'd finally found a place to belong. Not 48 hours later, that had been ripped away from her, like everything else.
She shook her head and continued searching for all their files, as well as the ones containing details of missions involving them. She'd just spoken to Ward and wiped his. She'd felt tempted, but didn't want to peek. It was Ward's business and she wanted to respect that. She wished he was here with them. Having the drink he'd promised her would certainly take her mind off this.
She next searched for the files for Fitz and Simmons.
She saw the basics on there, security clearance, age (Jemma was nearly a year older than Fitz, she hadn't called that). Skye was pretty certain that neither of them had a shady past. They were the golden children of the group, and she felt a little guilty that she had to erase their past; the details of awards and honours they'd received at the Academy in particular. Although she felt REALLY guilty that she'd had to erase records of their pHds.
She continued scanning other files for mentions of them individually. Soon, it had also occurred to her to use the keyword 'FitzSimmons', as they were often known as a single entity in logs. She quickly found more details of their missions where evidently, now putting a smile back on Skye's face, Coulson had referred to them as 'FitzSimmons' when filing paperwork.
What really caught her eye was the mention of 'FitzSimmons' in another file, not anything to do with their work on the Bus. After she'd finished wiping the other files, she swiped her fingers across the table to access the file. Surely, one quick peek wouldn't hurt?
"Skye? I need you here a moment!" May called from the cockpit. Skye quickly fumbled for the off button on the table and walked off, not realising that it was still on and projecting.
"I did tell you, Fitz, that those wires were- Hey, Skye!" Jemma beamed at Skye as she walked past them on the way to her rendezvous with May before continuing "-out of place. Agent-"
"Agent Know-it-all made it perfectly clear, Jemma." Fitz grumbled.
"Oh look, Fitz! These must be the files that Skye was working on." Simmons wandered over to the table.
"It's none of our business, just turn it off, will ya?" Fitz said, subtly signalling for her to move away from the table. Unfortunately, Simmons had been on the same wavelength as Skye.
"I guess so...oh, but look, Fitz! This file's about us!"
Simmons pulled the file so it was at her end of the table, before frowning at the name of it.
"'Agents of concern regarding regulation 25845-B'. What is that?"
There was no need for Jemma to wrack her brain terribly about it, as Fitz had shifted awkwardly.
"Jem, that's an...er....."
Fitz ran his hand through his curly hair, and had gone rather pink at the cheeks.
"It's a....well...."
"Oh come on, Fitz, tell me."
Fitz shuffled again. "It's one of the anti-fraternisation regulations, Jem..." he said quietly.
"Oh...." she replied, looking at the file again. Her face had tinted nearly the same shade as Fitz's.
"Why would they think that....Fitz?" She turned to her partner.
"Excuse me, Jemma, I have work to do." Fitz mumbled and walked off in the direction of the lab. Simmons caught his arm.
"Fitz....tell me what you're thinking. Please."
"I can't, Jemma. I'm sorry."
He gently shrugged off her touch and walked out of the room. Simmons turned her attention confusedly back towards the file, cautiously opening it and scanning the page.
Childhood friends....well that was certainly true.
Codependency......okay, also, maybe a little true. She didn't like working with anyone but Fitz in the lab.
Strong emotional affection witnessed.....when was that? She looked at the footnotes. The F.Z.Z.T. incident, when she'd jumped out of the plane, was there. In the notes, Fitz's emotional reaction had been vigorously detailed. It didn't say by whom.
Okay, so Fitz had been pretty....distraught, for lack of a better word, when she'd seen him back on the Bus. And there was the time he'd come and sat on her bed and they'd talked...and she'd kissed his cheek. That didn't count as affection, though, right?
She looked at the next heading.
Blah blah blah....academy....blah blah blah.....confession from one party but.....but refusal to pursue in order to follow regulations?! WHAT? She expanded the file quickly. It had been filed by someone other than May or Coulson. Not even Coulson. It had been filed by....by.....
The file was left open as Jemma ran down the corridor at top speed.
~
Fitz was fiddling with wires in the lab. "Stupid, stupid." he kept thinking to himself. Why didn't he just wipe that file right there and then? No, he was going to do that. Right now. He stood up from his work station, placing the screwdriver he'd been holding down and running a hand through his hair. He turned around just in time to see Simmons standing in the doorway of the lab, her mouse-brown hair slightly dishevelled, bits of paint from earlier flecked on her chin and with a strange expression on her face that Fitz hadn't seen before. And as far as he was concerned, she'd never looked more beautiful.
"Fitz.....can I ask you something?"
"Make it quick. I mean I just finished this and I have to get to that fuel leak-"
"This can't wait." Simmons walked right up to him and put her hands gently on his shoulders. "Were you really so concerned about things that you filed a conjunction?"
"You read the file?!" Fitz blurted, turning red. "I...."
"Fitz, it's okay."
"I only-wait, what?"
"You did the right thing. Except at the wrong time. I was going to cite regulation. And I should have. I should have done this a long time ago."
"Do what, Jem? You're not making sens-"
Fitz was cut off by Simmons reaching up gently to cup his face. "I'm not afraid anymore, Fitz. We have no security, no S.H.I.E.L.D, no-one to tell us this is wrong and that we can't."
"Jem..."
"Fitz you don't have to lie anymore. It's okay. I'm here. I'm right here. And I love you, Fitz. I always have. And you know that. And I don't want to hide it anymore. If the world really is chasing us, I'd much rather spend these last hours with the one person on this earth that I can't be without."
For a few mind-numbing seconds, Fitz didn't say anything. And Simmons began to think that maybe she'd just made the biggest mistake of her life and that she'd just lost him forever on a mad impulse. What if that data had been false, what if...?
Fitz's voice had brought her back to reality. He'd also gently taken hold of her waist. "Oh, Jemma. You have no idea how long it took you." Fitz chuckled. And with that Fitz brought his lips gently to hers. And everything made sense.
~
Skye returned to the table and was surprised to see the projections still running. She glanced at the file in front of her. Wait, was that about.......oh my god.
She quickly walked towards the lab to do a hell of a lot of apologising, but paused when she could see Fitz and Simmons kissing in the doorway.
Skye stepped back and smiled to herself. They were as they always were. Together. FitzSimmons. The single entity. Never one without the other. And as she backed away towards the main chamber and the files again, she only had one word pop into her mind. It was a simple one.
Finally.
~Fin