Here is the New Year's one-shot that I promised you! It's a sequel to my story Extraordinary Merry Christmas!
Enjoy it, guys!
The year was coming to an end, which made me think about all the things that happened to us during the year, mostly about the good stuff, happy moments together with my family, the day I officially became a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and finally got my super awesome ID-card, and of course, finding out I we were having a baby and Grant proposing to me on Christmas day. I smiled, my hand subconsciously reaching my stomach. Grant and I decided to keep our news about a new addition to our family to ourselves just for a little while, so as we could get used to the idea of becoming a Mom and Dad soon. I was certain no one suspected anything, except for one person.
Jemma. She could smell a thing like that from a mile, probably. Not smell though, but see, she could see I was pregnant. For a few days, she didn't say anything, and I thought that I imagined it and she didn't really know. I was wrong, because when we were left alone, she couldn't resist asking me about my interesting condition.
- Skye? I… uhm, pretty sure that you… that you are expecting a special someone.
She said it, smiling and pointing to my stomach.
There was no point in denying it, and I put my hand on my stomach, and said, smiling brightly:
- Yes! It's still pretty hard to believe, you know… But don't tell anyone else just yet, please.
- Does Grant know?
- Of course. You know it's impossible to keep anything from him. He is so suspicious.
- Oh yes!
- There is just one thing I wanted to ask you. Could you give me a check-up to make sure the baby is fine? I've been so worried.
- Of course, Skye. And I am sure this little Ward baby of yours is perfectly fine!
I smiled at her nickname for our baby, it was so sweet. I couldn't believe there was three of us already, just like in that dream that I was not entirely sure would ever come true. But we got there, almost.
We told everyone about our engagement on Christmas morning when the family gathered in the lounge area. Everyone was so happy for us, and we got a hug from each team member. I kept thinking that it wasn't everything that we had for them and that they were going to receive some more good news.
We were lucky not to have any missions during the holidays. Grant became more protective of me than ever before, if it was even possible. He was nervous about my being involved in missions, saying that they always involved danger and I didn't need to put myself in any dangerous situations in my condition. He said he wouldn't allow me to go into the field and that was an order.
- Skye. You realize there is no way I am letting you go into the field. Having you involved in missions is dangerous enough.
- Grant, please! I'm not even showing yet, there wouldn't be any difference…
- Are you out of your mind? We are not putting our baby in any possible danger!
Did he think I would do anything that could hurt my own child? I said in a shaky voice:
- You think I'm not thinking about our baby? Do you think I'll be a bad mother?
He looked at me with disbelief.
- How can you even say that? I know for sure you are going to be the best mother in the world. All I am trying to do is to keep you both from harm's way!
I kept silent, stupid tears slowly making their way down my cheeks. Stupid hormones. He noticed that I got upset and asked me with concern in his voice:
- Baby, did I upset you? I'm so sorry.
He pulled me to his chest, wiping my tears, and kissed me on the side of my face.
- I love you, Skye, and our little baby girl.
Did he just say baby girl? How would he know for sure that we were having a girl? I looked at him, raising my eyebrows.
- Baby girl?
- Yes. We are having a daughter.
- How do you know that? What if it's a boy?
- Trust me, I just know, that it's a 'she'.
He put his hand on my stomach, saying:
- Hayley Ward, can you hear me?
- Grant, I think she's too small to hear you…
- Maybe she can hear us. She's a Ward, she gotta listen to what her father says.
I looked at him lovingly, putting my hand on top of his and giggling. Hayley Ward sounded so beautiful. Hearing him say that made it somehow more real. The child already had a name, but we still had to choose a middle name for her, and I couldn't wait for that. I already had about a dozen of names that I really liked, so Grant would have to like at least one of them because I was going to give our daughter one of them as her middle name whether he liked it or not. Anyway, I was sure we were going to agree on something.
On the morning of New Year's Eve, when we just lay in bed enjoying the piece and silence and each other, I decided it was time we told my Dad that he was going to become a granddad soon.
- We need to tell my Dad.
- Tell him what?
Grant was either very slow this morning or pretended he didn't understand. I raised my head that was resting on his shoulder to look at him.
- Tell him he is going to be a granddad soon, of course!
He just chuckled, without saying anything. I slapped him lightly on the chest.
- Hey! What's so funny?
He started laughing, his chest moving up and down.
- It's just… I want to see his face when he finds out he will be a grandfather soon. He is going to feel old.
- Stop laughing at my Dad! I'll look at your face when your daughter tells you the same news!
- Oh, no, no, no. That would be at least in thirty years' time!
- Grant. I'm only twenty two.
- And I am thirty. Maybe she is going to be like me… Although, who am I kidding?
This time, I laughed. He looked at me intensely and moved closer, then suddenly started tickling me. I squealed and screamed, and he had to let me go but then he brought his lips to mine, capturing them in a deep passionate kiss, making me moan. We got rid of the little clothes we had really fast and indulged ourselves into steamy love-making. Being pregnant caused me to want sex all the time, I swear. Almost every time I looked at him I had to restrain myself from laying my hands on him, which was taking all my willpower. Grant thought it was funny and it was a payback for my being such a tease. Whatever.
So later we headed to my father's office to tell him about our new addition to the family and found him and May making out right on his table. I was glad they weren't naked. Yet.
- Dad? That's gross!
Both of them jumped at the sound of my voice, and May quickly moved away from my father and headed for the door, her cheeks slightly blushing (was she really showing emotions). My Dad looked at me with that guilty expression on his face and said "I'm sorry", then "WE're sorry", and then corrected himself:
- Although, you know what? Why should we be sorry? YOU two do it all the time, literally everywhere, not even caring to GET A ROOM. While WE did it at least in MY office, in privacy, where you, by the way, have to KNOCK first before entering. So we don't have to be sorry.
I listened to his rant with wide eyes, looking up at Grant from time to time to check his reaction. As much as he tried to hide it, I still could see surprise and at the same time amusement on his face.
When my Dad finished his speech, I said tentatively:
- Okay.
- Just okay?
- Yeah, just okay.
He looked at us questionably and said:
- So did you want something?
His question made me remember the reason we had come there, which I completely forgot after seeing my Dad and May making out. Suddenly I didn't think I could tell my Dad about the baby.
- We? Ah, yeah, kinda…
I looked at Grant, who was standing right by my side, for help. He just rolled his eyes, and let me know with his eyes that he wasn't doing the job for me.
- So what is it then?
I laughed nervously and bit my lip. Grant felt my anxiety and took my hand in his.
- Nothing big. Just something, someone…
I hesitated and thought that I should have rehearsed that speech.
- Skye, what is it? Did you do anything stupid again?
- No.
My heart started beating fast and my breathing became faster. I heard Grant say:
- Just tell him.
- Oh, I think I need a minute…
My Dad looked at us with worry. I had to take a seat because I felt kind of dizzy, and Grant kneeled near the coach and held my hand, squeezing it soothingly.
Okay, Skye, I thought, it is now or never.
- You are going to be a grandfather soon!
We looked at my father, who was sitting in his chair unmoving and not saying a single word.
- Dad?
- Phil? Are you okay?
My father then got up and went to his mini bar, opened a bottle of whisky and poured himself half a glass, drinking all of it immediately. We were still watching him, a bit worried. I called him again, waiting for a reaction.
Finally, after filling another glass and drinking it, he managed to utter:
- Never thought it would happen so soon.
- Dad, are you okay?
- I will be. It's just shock.
I asked him, my voice filled with worry:
- You're okay with being a granddad, right?
- Oh, of course! I'll be glad to have a little boy or girl running around the bus…
Grant couldn't help correcting him, with a grin on his face:
- A little girl actually.
- You already know the gender? Wait, how far along are you?
He looked at my stomach, which wasn't showing a single sign of pregnancy.
- Dad, we just think, Grant is absolutely sure, that it's a girl.
He gave us a crooked smile and after a while of thinking, said:
- I'd love a granddaughter. I hope she looks just like you. I haven't got to see you growing up… so I'll be more than excited to have a little version of you.
- And I bet she is going to be as stubborn as Skye.
- Oh, Grant, you make it sound like a bad thing.
That made both of them laugh, and I was sitting there, sighing, rolling my eyes and thinking how annoying both the men were.
Two done, still two to go. May and Fitz had yet to find out about the family expansion.
It was after midday when Simmons took me to the lab for a check-up. She took a blood test, took my blood pressure and then asked:
- How far along are you, Skye?
- I don't know… 8 or 9 weeks? I only found out last week.
- Ok. How have you been feeling lately?
- Good. Sometimes dizzy.
- What about nausea?
- I feel nauseous when something is cooking in the kitchen, like that time when…
- Yeah, when Fitz was cooking his special.
- Yeah, that one.
She continued talking cheerfully:
- So about your first ultrasound, you can have it after you reached 10 weeks. So you can see your baby and hear the heartbeat, and find out your due date.
Hearing that we were going to see the baby soon made me smile. When Jemma finished her check-up on me, I said:
- You know, Grant says it's a girl. He already got a name.
She smiled, sat down beside me and asked excitedly:
- Oh, really? Tell me the name!
I smiled widely and looked at Jemma, then down at my stomach.
- Hayley Ward.
- Oh, such a pretty name for a little girl! I'm so happy for you guys!
She reached out for a hug, wrapping her arms tightly around me, and I said on the verge of tears:
- I love you, Jems. You're like a sister to me.
- I love you too, Skye. And I've always wanted to have a sister.
- You are going to make a great godmother, Jems.
- Oh my god, Skye! Are you serious?
- Of course! There is no other girl who is as close to me as you, sis.
We smiled at each other, Jemma was about to tear up, and I pulled her into another hug. It felt amazing to have a sister, and it didn't matter a little bit that we weren't connected on the biological level. Jemma was my sister.
When we were on our own with Grant, I thought I should tell him something.
- You realize I'm not going to marry you when I get fat and clumsy, right?
He looked at me with so much confusion and disbelief on his beautiful face, that I felt bad for saying it.
- What? Why?
I complained:
- I don't want to look like a cow in that white dress. I'm supposed to look beautiful on my wedding day.
I looked down, then raised my head to give him the pouty face, my favorite.
- Skye, baby, you will always look beautiful. Especially with a baby bump. You are going to look gorgeous.
- It's what you think. Anyway, the point is, I am not walking down the island when I have that huge baby bump, okay? I'm just not.
His face got serious as he started thinking, then said:
- Okay. I got it.
- Really?
- Yes. We're getting married before you start showing. Next week, next month, whatever you decide.
I looked at him, surprised, my eyeballs about to pop out, mouth wide open. That's insane! He looked at me and asked:
- What?
- We are getting married.
- That part I understand. How are we going to plan a wedding in just one month?
- Fitzsimmons will do the work. I am sure they will be happy to help. I am not waiting till the baby is born to marry you, Skye. Everything clear?
- You start sounding like my Dad.
He rolled his eyes and said "Whatever", and I thought just how much like me he was getting. I smiled contentedly and moved closer to kiss him properly on the lips.
- I love you. You light up my life, Grant Ward.
- I love you too, future Skye Ward. You are my sunshine. And you, little miss Hayley Ward, I love you too.
With these words, he gave me a sweet kiss on the lips, and then moved down to my stomach, lifting my shirt and kissing it gently, making my whole body shiver from the sensation.
I closed my eyes and thought just how lucky I was. He made me the happiest girl on Earth.
In the evening we were going to have a small family dinner, so Fitzsimmons occupied the kitchen, cooking something and arguing the whole time, which forced the rest of us to stay the hell away from the kitchen, although I had to admit that whatever they were cooking smelled pretty nice and I was beginning to get hungry.
So Grant and I made ourselves comfortable on the coach in the living area. We put on Home Alone and were generally enjoying ourselves; my head was resting on his lap, one of his hands was stroking my hair as usual, and the other lay protectively on my stomach.
The peace and quiet came to an end though when the movie got extremely funny and we started laughing our asses off and I actually had to sit up. So that was what caused the rest of the family to come to the living area to check what was going on. Once they came, they couldn't tear their eyes away from the screen, although all of them had probably seen the movie a hundred times before. It was still very funny and we couldn't stop admiring the smart kid who managed to fool two grown-ups. And he did it like a boss.
When the movie was over, Fitzsimmons suddenly remembered about the food in the oven and rushed back into the kitchen, Coulson shouting back at them:
- You burn down this bus, I fire you, both of you, do you hear me? Fitzsimmons!
I just hoped that they hadn't burnt everything and that we still get to eat something tonight, but I couldn't help laughing at my Dad, earning a glare from him.
- What?
- You, young lady, better behave.
- What if I don't?
- I fire you together with Fitzsimmons.
Was my own father threatening to fire me? I felt deeply offended. I frowned and gave him are-you-serious look, then said, pointing at my fiancé:
- I go, he goes. So basically, you'll only have May. You'll have no team, Dad.
He considered that for a short while, then quickly said:
- Skye, chill, relax, daughter. I was just joking.
- Oh really? Okay.
He took May and they left for his office. I was worried for our dinner, so I headed for the kitchen to see check on my food and Fitzsimmons.
Entering the kitchen I immediately felt the smell of something that was burnt. I hoped I wouldn't be sick again and asked Fitzsimmons:
- Hey, what did you burn? You better have something left for dinner because I am starving.
Jemma looked at me, while cutting some vegetables, and replied:
- Oh, it was Leo's cookies. And yes, don't you worry, we still have food for the dinner. We've got everything under control, right, Fitz?
- If you say so…
I looked around the kitchen that seemed to be full with food and half-ready dishes, searching for something to put into my mouth. I reached out my hand to try one of the dishes that our duo had made, only for my hand to be slapped by Fitz.
- Hey! Stop stealing food! I swear it's becoming a habit of yours.
I said, feeling deeply offended:
- Oh, god, just let a pregnant woman eat something! Seriously, I'm starving.
Leo's eyes became wide and he seemed to freeze in one spot. Only then I realized he didn't know about my interesting condition. In a moment he was able to speak again:
- Pregnant? You are pregnant?
He looked at me and then at Jemma, and noticed that she wasn't a bit surprised, then looked back at me, or rather at my stomach.
- Stop staring at my stomach. Yes, I'm pregnant. Now will you give me food or not? Fitz?
He seemed to be in a daze again and I had to wave in front of his face to bring him back.
- Oh, yes, yes, of course.
Poor Fitz, I wish I had told him about the baby in a less dramatic way… Fitz was going to be an uncle, oh gosh, maybe even a godfather if Grant wouldn't object.
I approached my father's office, hoping I wouldn't run into another make-out session, and knocked on the door loudly. It was soon opened by my Dad.
- Dad, did you tell May?
- Tell her what?
I smiled sweetly. Didn't he really get it? Or could he hide it from May because he didn't want her to know he was going to be a grandfather soon, which would make him look older? That was just my theory.
I asked him, my voice raising with every sentence:
- Dad, did you tell May that you are going to be a grandfather? Are you ashamed of that because you will seem older to her?
He looked at me in surprise, with a look of disbelief on his face.
- What on earth made you think that? I'll be happy to be a grandfather. You are my daughter and I love you, and I will love your children as much as I love you. Skye, you're getting very hormonal. Of course, May knows. She is happy for you and Grant. Right, May?
He called her name and she appeared from behind the door.
- My congratulations, Skye. You are going to be a great Mom, and Grant is going to make a great Dad.
She came closer and hugged me, which was quite a surprise. I really loved it when May showed her emotions. I hugged her back tightly and smiled contentedly.
- Thank you, Melinda. It means a lot.
When I came back into the living area, searching for my fiancé, I saw him lying comfortably on the coach, watching Home Alone 2. I became mad at him in no time, offended that he hadn't waited for me to watch the movie together. I approached him from the back without him noticing and smacked him on the head with my hand, getting a loud "Ouch" from him. He turned around and seeing me, asked, with a pained expression on his face:
- What was THAT for?
My eyes got wide.
- What that was for? You better think more, Ward!
Really mad at him, I turned to leave, but he got up from the coach and was in front of me, blocking my way, in a matter of seconds.
- Baby, I'm sorry. What is it? What have I done wrong?
He put his warm hand on my cheek and looked me in the eyes with that loving look that I nearly melted and almost forgot what he'd done wrong, almost.
I complained:
- You started watching Home Alone 2 without me.
- Oh god. Baby, I am really sorry. How can I make it up to you?
- Mmm, I am going to think about that…
He started putting small kisses on my face, then neck, I put my arms around his neck, pulling him as close as possible, my eyes closing from pleasure, my lips spreading into a big smile.
We were rudely interrupted by Leo's loud voice:
- Hey, guys, the dinner is ready. I believe someone was very hungry and begging for food… Guys!
Grant, not letting go of me, said:
- Coming!
I was more than happy to get to that dinner. Pregnancy made me want to eat all the time. Seriously, I woke up at night, craving food and there was no way I could go back to sleep before I stormed the fridge. Grant made me company in the kitchen more often than not, because he always woke up from my movement, asking what was wrong, being his usual protective self. He almost got used to waking up at night and going with me to the kitchen (what if something happens when you are alone?) for a very early breakfast (okay, a midnight snack, whatever you want to call it).
The first time I made a night raid on the fridge, I managed not to wake him, and later he came looking for me and found me in the kitchen, eating pickles with ketchup. The expression of utter shock and confusion on his face when he saw what I was eating was priceless!
During the dinner, everyone was yet again praising the food Fitzsimmons had cooked. Then I noticed everyone's attention on myself. I looked at the family, puzzled.
- Is anything wrong?
Fitz was the one to reply:
- You are really eating for two.
Did he really say that? Looking directly at him, I said with determination:
- Fitz. You really shouldn't make fun of a pregnant woman. It has bad consequences.
With horror in his eyes, he murmured "Sorry" and turned back to his food. I heard a chuckle from Grant, who put his arm around my waist, and, kissing me on the cheek, whispered:
- I love you, Skye.
- I love you too, Grant.
My father got up from his chair. He just loved making toasts.
- This is the last day of the year and all of us are still here, safe and sound, where we should be. And soon we're going to have an addition to the family. I am so happy to say I am going to be a grandfather, maybe a bit too soon, but still…
- Dad!
- Okay, okay. We survived another year, together, as a family. Our family is what matters most. So here's to many more years. Cheers!
Everybody smiled and cheered, and I looked at the man sitting beside me, at every member of my family, feeling extremely grateful for having each one of them in my life. These people was what made me so happy. That was a good year.
It took me pretty much time to realize that loved ones is what matters most. Now I know that and I wouldn't do anything to change any single thing in my life.
Happy New Year! can't believe this year is almost over! crazy!
PS: I hope you enjoyed this story!