A/N: Hey guys! So this is a one-shot that I've been working on sporadically for a while now, so if there's a little inconsistency in the writing, don't worry about it. This particular story is going to stay a one-shot, as I've got too many other stories to work on without adding more chapters.
DISCLAIMER: I only own this story.
Enjoy! :3
Simmons swore she was going to kill him. He knew that. He remembered her viciously promising that, if she ever saw him again. Standing in front of Skye as he said her name.
He knew why, too. He'd almost killed her and Fitz, and Fitz had been damaged.
He just wished that she'd checked that there was no one else in the room before she sealed it.
"You're a liar!" she screamed at him. "A vile, selfish, cruel, manipulative–"
"I know I did bad things, Simmons, and I resent even considering doing them." Ward said, trying to reason with her, his hands raised above his head as he slowly backed away. "But calling me evil doesn't make it true."
"Save your breath! Nothing you say can change my mind!" Simmons hissed, a slightly maniac gleam in her eyes as she aimed the gun in her hands directly at Ward's heart.
"Are you even listening to yourself?"
BANG.
Simmons had re-aimed her gun at his right leg and fired. Ward grunted in pain and staggered back, blood pouring onto the floor of the lab.
"Keep moving." She said, uncaring. "And keep your hands up."
His face and leg spasming in pain, Ward stumbled backwards, tripping over the edge of the oxygen chamber.
"Get in."
When all Ward did was look at the open chamber doorway and back at Simmons as though she'd gone mad, the scientist aimed at his foot and fired without another word. This time, Ward let out a yell of agony.
"Get. In."
Worried that she was going to push herself to kill him, he scrambled into the chamber, but didn't bother standing up. That was, until he noticed Skye. Sitting wide-eyed in the corner, out of Simmons' line of sight with her laptop on her crossed legs.
"Simmons! Wait!" he cried, struggling to get to his feet, and using the wall to prop himself up.
"I'm not waiting to listen to you."
"What are you trying to do?!"
The door slammed shut before she spoke over the comms built into the machine. "Make you suffer as Fitz did."
"No." Skye said. "Simmons!" but her voice went unheard.
A haunting, sucking sound grew from around them. Ward and Skye looked at each other in horror.
"Can you reach Coulson with that?" Ward asked, gesturing to the laptop.
Skye glanced down. "I don't know. I left the door open before to allow for signals and so I don't suffocate, but with it shut and sealed…"
Ward grunted slightly, muffling it with pursed lips as he slid to the floor.
Skye's face screwed up in empathy. She knew what it was like to suffer gunshot wounds, but saying 'Ward, you're bleeding.' seemed a little obvious.
"Where did she shoot you?" she asked softly, moving over to sit next to him. The vacuum stopped, and the air felt extremely thin.
"Leg. Foot." He ground out, trying to limit the air going through his lungs. "I think she hit the metatarsals."
Skye reached for her shirt and pulled it over her head, ignoring Ward's shocked reaction.
"Skye! What are you doing?" he said this quietly, trying to preserve the limited oxygen supply they had.
She didn't respond, ripping the bottom of the clothing item into a wide strip, aiming for a makeshift bandage.
"Oh."
"You're injured, Ward. I wasn't trying for that."
Ward looked a bit sheepish as Skye pulled his leg out straight and gently removed the shoe. He hissed in pain and peeled off his sock, revealing less of a mess than Skye expected. The wound was still bleeding freely, however.
"Okay, try not to yell. We don't have oxygen to spare." She ordered, placing the edge of the bandage over the gaping hole.
"Really? Hadn't noticed." Ward replied, his teeth grinding together. Skye shot him a look of Really? and went back to tightly wrapping her shirt shreds around his foot. Once she had finished, using her entire garment, she pulled his sock back on and did her best to elevate his foot, placing it on his shoe.
"How's your leg?"
"Painful."
"…helpful." She said flatly, unamused by his snarky remarks. "Undo your belt."
"What?"
"Undo your belt. I need to see." At his raised eyebrow expression, she sighed exasperatedly. "Your wound, moron. You're wearing underwear, aren't you?"
Ward nodded, feeling stupid for repeatedly assuming that Skye actions were of a sexual nature. Of course she's not interested, you idiot.
Reaching for his belt buckle, he swiftly undid it, yanking the belt out of his jean's loops. Skye took it off his hands and placed it out of the way while he unbuttoned and unzipped the jeans, sliding them down far enough to expose the bullet hole in his upper right thigh. At the sight of the blood and torn muscle, Skye sucked in a breath and winced.
"Right…" she thought out loud, glancing down at herself, then at Ward. "Take off your shirt."
"You might want to use the belt to limit blood supply to my leg." Ward suggested as he attempted to sit up straighter. He fell back against the wall with a thump, the effect of slight windedness amplified by the increasing lack of breathable air in the chamber. "I can't take it off myself." His words were starting to slur, and that alarmed him.
"Okay, hold on." Skye reached for the belt again, fastening it tightly enough around Ward's thigh, just below the hemline of his boxer briefs. Grasping the bottom of Ward's shirt, she pushed it up to his armpits and he tilted forward, leaning against Skye rather than sitting up. Her heartrate picked up slightly as worry for his survival of the situation increased. Pushing those time wasting thoughts to the side, she tugged the garment over his head, gently pushing him back against the wall. Hurriedly, she tore the shirt into one long strip.
Checking on the wound in his leg, she was minutely relieved to find that the belt had already begun its work. Less blood was pouring out of the hole than before, but still too fast. Skye performed the same process that she had on his foot, covering the bullet hole repeatedly until she was out of cloth.
"Can you pull the jeans up?" she rasped, the effect of the air quality making itself more known. God knows how much Ward is suffering. Was that Simmons' intention? Turning to face Ward, as he had yet to answer her, she found him with half closed eyes and an absolutely slack expression. "Ward!"
"Hmm?" he jumped a little at the sound of his name.
"We need to pull your jeans up. Can you hold yourself in the air?"
"Ah. Maybe." He mumbled, and placed his palms on the floor, raising his backside in the air and Skye swiftly pulled the trousers up, zipping and buttoning the front for good measure. Ward hit the floor, exhausted. "How are you gonna make it out?" he panted, knowing that he had very little time left before he passed out. He was so oblivious to most of what was happening, he hadn't noticed Skye had been limiting how much she breathed so as to give him a better chance.
"Me? What about you?" she said quietly, moving to hover her face right in front of his and placing her arms around his neck. They needed to properly hear one another.
"I don't think…" he struggled to draw breath. "That I'm gonna survive this."
Skye's face crumpled in despair at the truth of his words, tears welling up and breaking free from her eyes. "No…Grant…"
"Don't worry about me."
Shaking her head, Skye inhaled a deep breath before leaning in all the way and kissing him. Ward, though surprised, kissed her back with as much energy as he could muster. Which wasn't much. The kiss was sloppy and didn't have much strength, but the emotional meaning behind the action surpassed all describability.
Pulling back, Skye managed one last weak smile before she collapsed in Ward's arms.
"Skye." He shook her limp form, and panic rose within him to encompass all thoughts. "Skye….Skye…"
The door to the chamber opened and Ward looked up to see the blurry face of Coulson, then he too succumbed to the blackness.
A/N: This is a bit unsatisfactory, but that's the point, so make up whatever kind of ending you'd like :) They might have died, they might have not. Either way, Simmons is in a lot of trouble.
Yes, Skye does have her seismic abilities in this but as she needs to keep her heart rate under control, it doesn't surface.
Reviews would be awesome guys! :3 So keep 'em coming!
