Archive of Our Own

“You should go.” Phil whispered into the silence of the morning, tracing patterns over Melinda’s hip as he laid behind her. He was referring to Robin’s birthday party. She had received the invite the day before and he noticed her shoulders drop a little as he read the message over her shoulder. She shook it off but he knew it still bothered her.

“Robin doesn’t need me, she has Polly, I never took care of her. I need to stay here with you.” She responded almost tiredly, a bit of sadness touching her words as she reasoned more to herself than him.

“Melinda,” he sighed, pulling at her hip until she turned to face him. “As far as Robin’s concerned, you’re her mom too and she loves you. You should go.”

“Well, I won’t leave you and I can’t be in two places at once so-”

“What if I went with you?” he interrupted before she had a chance to make her decision final. He knew he had her attention by the way she looked at him, squinting her eyes as if truly considering the validity of his offer. She still wasn’t convinced though, still concerned he wouldn’t be able to handle the trip, that he wouldn’t make it back to Tahiti if they went. She closed her eyes against the thought.

“Come on,” he attempted to sway her, brushing her hair behind her ear as a calming gesture, “we could have Daisy come with and make Davis bring up the quinjet, you could fly there and back, we could just make it a day or two and then be back here.”

He could tell he was convincing her by the way she settled into him, no longer holding so much tension in her spine.

“Can you promise you’ll be okay if we go?” She whispered, still weary at the thought.

“We both know I can’t promise that,” he began tracing over her spine to soften the blow of his words, “but I feel fine Melinda, I think I can handle a day or two out. Besides do you really think Robin would ask you to go if she thought I was going to die while I was there?”

She let out a long exhale, burrowing further into him, “I’ll think about it.”

Daisy would have been lying if she had said she wasn’t excited to see Coulson but she was also nervous. She thought the last time was a final goodbye but even as she and Davis flew out to pick them up she couldn’t get rid of the nervous feeling, like he was just going to drop right in front of her.

She caught sight of May and Coulson just before they landed. May looked worried as ever in her subtle May-like way, about as nervous as Daisy felt. That wasn’t surprising. What did surprise Daisy a little was how quickly they seemed to have transitioned to the comfortable stage in their relationship, as if they had been together for years. She noticed the way they held hands as they waited back in the tree line for the quinjet to land, fingers interlaced, and how Coulson said something in May’s ear before pressing a kiss to her temple which seemed to calm her a bit. That was definitely something Daisy wasn’t used to but she couldn’t help but feel giddy about it, excited to see they finally accepted their feelings for each other.

She tried to play it cool when they landed but quickly found herself running to hug both of her former superiors. She felt like they seemed as happy to see her as she did to see him, that was comforting.

Melinda couldn’t help but feel a little nervous as they approached the Hintons’ front door, but having Phil’s hand in hers and Daisy at her side offered much comfort. Once they were a few steps from the door, it opened and Robin ran out to meet them. Of course Robin knew we were coming, May thought to herself, her heart warming at seeing Robin safe and happy again.

“Mom!” Robin shouted, running to Melinda, throwing her arms around her. “I knew you’d come,” she smiled up at the woman. Melinda allowed herself to hug the girl back with equal enthusiasm. She couldn’t explain their connection but she knew she loved her and would do anything to keep her safe.

Crouching down in front of her, she brushed Robin’s hair away from her face, smiling softly, “Of course I did.” This prompted to girl to smile, a look Melinda was glad to see after how much she had been through.

Robin led them into the house, taking Melinda by the hand, and lingered near her until she was called over by someone else. She looked at Melinda, as if debating what she should do before Melinda urged her to go, assuring her it was okay. “Go ahead, I’ll be here for a while.”

“We’re so glad you could make it,” Polly welcomed, making her way over to them, “make yourselves comfortable, there's food and drinks over there,” she gestured to a table in the corner, “feel free to sit or stand wherever you’d like.” She smiled before being pulled away into the kitchen by an older woman.

“It’s a little hectic in here, huh?” Daisy commented once they were left relatively alone.

“They’re probably just excited. Robin doesn’t have to be so deep in hiding anymore so a party is actually possible,” May answered, watching over Robin, even as she spoke.

“Who is that woman Polly, and why is Robin calling her mom?” Polly’s aunt asked, eyeballing the strange woman who had a vice grip on the hand of the man she came with ever since they arrived and the younger woman with them which she assumed was their daughter.

“It’s a long story,” Polly sighed, “but she’s very important to Robin and was there for her when I couldn’t be.”

“If she’s so important then why have we never met?” Her aunt challenged, not quite ready to let it go.

“That’s just how it worked out,” Polly shrugged, not quite sure how to explain the whole situation, rather preferring to shield her family from the knowledge of past events. “But Robin loves her so we’ll be including her when we can.”

For a large portion of the party, Polly’s aunt and other members of her family eyed the strange woman who lingered in the corner and kept to herself, only smiling or talking to the man she came with who looked lovestruck the entire time, the young woman that hovered around them, and of course Robin and Polly. They had even created theories on who the mysterious group was, the most popular being a woman who cared for Robin when they isolated themselves who was accompanied by her husband and their daughter who was home from college. They were mostly just trying to fill in the blanks of times in Polly’s life when she didn’t tell them what was going on. Eventually, she could no longer handle the suspense of not knowing.

“Hi I’m Polly’s aunt.” She took it upon herself to find out who they were. They introduced themselves and she attempted to break the ice. “Such a beautiful girl you are,” she said, smiling at Daisy.

Daisy blushed, laughing a little, “thank you.”

“Oh and polite too. You both must be very proud of your daughter.”

“Yeah we are,” Phil replied, looking at Daisy with amusement and sincerity in his eyes. It was easier and funnier to just agree rather than correct her. They all picked up the charade easily, finding it equally entertaining.

“So, how do you know Robin and Polly?”

“We’re just friends.” Melinda, answered, here expression giving nothing away.

“How did you meet?” She pressed a little further.

“It’s kind of a long story, I’m sure Polly would be better equipped to tell you,” Phil interjected, sensing Melinda’s discomfort and knowing her distaste for conversation.

Realizing she wouldn’t get anymore information out of them, she made an excuse and quickly left them alone.

“Well that was kind of weird.” Daisy commented, laughing a little at the way the woman shook her head as members of the crowd looked to her eagerly, Daisy assumed they were hoping she would get answers.

“They’re probably trying to figure out why Robin is calling some strange woman they’ve never met Mom.” May reasoned.

“But they keep staring,” she whispered, leaning in a little closer, “maybe they’ve never seen a biracial family before.” She shrugged, her theory earning her a look from May, the one she had dubbed as a mom-face. The comment Phil was about to make was interrupted by Robin’s approach.

“Mommy come sit next to me.” Robin reached her hand out which May dutifully took and sat next to her, ignoring the looks she was getting. Phil could tell Melinda was uncomfortable with all the eyes on her by the way she squared her shoulders but they relaxed just as quickly when Robin leaned into her side, her head coming to rest against May’s shoulder, awaiting the presents Polly was bringing her way. He knew she would go through a lot worse just to see that little girl happy.

He always knew May would have made a great mom, she was always so gentle and understanding around children. His point was proven further as he watched her whisper something to Robin that made the girl smile, as they were seemingly comparing hands, Robin’s hand palm to palm with May’s. It was just a shame things had turned out the way they did. That being said, he couldn’t have asked for a better way to live out the remainder of his life, right next to his best friend, no matter how short. To be able to see her happy, if only for a short time.

“So, how are you and May?” Daisy asked, breaking him out of his reverie, a mischievous glint in her eye.

“We’re good.” He smirked knowing what she was hinting at.

“Just good?” She teased, laughing when he gave her a pointed look. “That’s what I thought. This is like the first time you guys have been more than ten feet away from each other since we picked you up.”

“I think this is just the first time we’ve let ourselves relax in years. To focus on what’s really important in the present instead of our next move.”

“It’s good you have her.” The seriousness in her voice crept back in. He could tell Daisy was getting emotional again.

“Tell me about it,” he agreed, shifting his gaze to Melinda and as if she could sense it, she turned her head to look back at him, smiling softly at their unspoken connection.

“We miss you too, by the way.” He whispered to Daisy, pulling her closer to hug her to his side. He couldn’t ignore her shaky inhale as she laughed a little, resting her head on his shoulder.

“Yeah I got that from your letter,” she made an attempt at lightheartedness, “I really liked it.”

“I meant every word.”

When it was time to go, Phil, Daisy, and Melinda gave a vague goodbye to the group, May and Daisy also stopped to hug Polly goodbye.

“We’re so glad you could come. Thank you. For everything.” Polly whispered, her voice a little shaky with emotion as she hugged Melinda. May just smiled and nodded as they parted, not quite knowing what to say.

Finally, after saying a quick goodbye and thank you to Phil and Daisy, Robin wrapped her arms tightly around Melinda, pressing her face into her stomach. Robin’s eyes remained on the floor when they pulled back so Melinda crouched down to the girl’s level and lifted her chin using her first finger and thumb to reveal she had tears brimming in her eyes.

“What’s wrong?” May asked softly, brushing away a stray tear that had escaped down Robin’s cheek.

“We won’t see each other for a while.”

“But we’ll see each other again, right?” She asked hoping she was right about the answer, feeling relieved when Robin nodded an affirmative. The last thing she had wanted to do was make her more upset. “Then don’t be sad. It’s not forever.”

“You’ll be sad when I see you.” She whispered and Melinda felt a painful squeeze in her chest at that comment but quickly brushed it off. She knew it was inevitable, losing Phil and feeling his loss for the rest of her life, but it was good to know she would survive it at least.

“But I’ll be happy to see you.” She smiled, tracing her fingers over Robin’s arm soothingly.

She felt a bit of the weight leave her chest when Robin smiled at her comment. “Me too.” She replied giving her one last tight hug.

Melinda assumed that Robin’s family was not aware of her gift from the strange looks they were giving them, no doubt, about their talk of the future. She wondered if they questioned her drawings or just brushed them off as morbid nonsense. Did they think her imagination to be overactive or did they know it was all part of her gift?

When they landed back in Tahiti, Melinda said her goodbyes, hugging Daisy tightly, before she left to wait outside, giving Phil and Daisy time to say their goodbyes. She knew Daisy was like a daughter to him and the first goodbye was hard enough, let alone a second when he was closer to death than before.

Sure enough, when he stepped out and met her, taking her offered hand, his eyes were glassy. He smiled at her in attempt to brush off his feelings and she accepted it, not pushing it any further. They knew each other well enough to allow the other to put up a strong front when they knew talking would only stir up emotions.

“Come on,” she said, rubbing her thumb over his soothingly, “we can watch them take off from the shore.”

They remained in place after the quinjet had flown out of sight, leaning into one another and watching the sunset. The sky had become a swirl of soft pinks and blues by the time she spoke again.

“Thank you,” She whispered, resting her head on his shoulder.

“For what? Not dying?” He teased.

“Yeah that was very considerate of you.” She joked back, giving his hand a squeeze. “No, for
not making me choose.”

“You’ve made enough hard decisions, I don’t want to be the reason you have to make another.”

She smiled briefly at that before changing the subject, “Come on, let’s get you to bed before you drop.”

“No arguments here,” he smiled, lifting the hand he still held to press a kiss to the back of it, “let’s go.”

With that, they made their way back to their cabin, content to spend the rest of their time together in the quiet serenity that surrounded them.