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Coulson went to look for Daisy and ask her what happened with Fitz and found her sitting cross-legged on the green couch she had in her room, seemingly in deep thought.
Peering through the open door, Coulson knocked and waited for her to nod before entering. He came over and sat on the other end of the couch, watching Daisy fiddle with the bandage on her left hand.
“So,” he broke the silence, “you wanna tell me about this ‘long story’? If not, I can just ask May, but I want to give you a chance to explain.”
Daisy shifted to look at him, then back down at her hands. “Fitz... the anomalies were getting out of control again. He— or the doctor or whatever— programmed the mechs to work for him. One shot Mack, another knocked me out. Fitz was keeping everyone distracted to carry out his plan.”
“Wait,” Coulson stopped her, “The doctor? Like from the Framework?”
“Yep,” Daisy sighed.
“And he wasn’t an anomaly?”
She shook her head, “We all thought so, but no. Jemma called it a psychic split. Anyway, when I woke up, I couldn’t move. Fitz had drugged me and strapped me to a table. Even my head was restrained. He told me he was doing what had to be done, restoring my powers. He kept talking to himself and cutting into me. I was so confused and scared, but no matter how much I begged, he wouldn’t stop.”
Coulson’s was beginning to feel angry just listening. He knew that Fitz loved Daisy and vice versa and couldn’t image that he’d intentionally do anything to hurt her. He offered a sympathetic smile, urging Daisy to continue and ignoring the fact that his blood was boiling.
“He knew the risks, and even when Jemma came down and reminded him, he didn’t care. It was my life or the lives of billions, he thought. Suddenly it was like our years of friendship didn’t matter. He yanked the thing out of my neck— it was sort of barbaric, really— and he doesn’t even feel bad about it.” Daisy sounded so forlorn, it made tears form in Coulson’s eyes. “And it hurt. It hurt more than anything I’d ever felt. It ripped through my ear, neck and head and felt like literal hell. I’d rather be shot a dozen times than feel that again. I’d rather die.” There were now tears in her eyes.
“Come here,” Coulson said softly, wrapping Daisy in a hug. He felt the way his heart fluttered when she hugged back as tight as she could. She cried and he told her he would never hurt her.
When Daisy pulled away a few minutes later, she looked into her father figure’s eyes. “Thank you,” she whispered, “for hearing me out and understanding.”
“What Fitz did was wrong. No one expects you to forgive him or go on like nothing’s changed. If I was here when it happened—“
“No,” Daisy interrupted, “you did what you had to do.”
“Is there anything I can do now to make you feel better? I could give Fitz a serious talking-to when he comes back or work on getting better safety protocols so no one hurts you again.”
Daisy shook her head. “Just listening and not defending him to me is plenty.”
“Defending him to you— why would anyone do that? You’re one hundred percent the victim in this!”
“I know. And you’d be surprised.”
Coulson’s heart ached, and this time it wasn’t from deteriorating tissue. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am. I wish I could make it better or go back in time and stop him. You don’t deserve any of this.”
Daisy hugged him again. “I’m okay now, promise.”
“Please, you still wear your heart on your sleeve, kid.”
“Fine,” the girl rolled her eyes, “mostly okay.”
“You know, I’m still gonna give him that talking-to.”
Daisy smiled, “I’m counting on it.”