Caring
Skye had come out of surgery hours ago but she was still critical. FitzSimmons stayed in the waiting area in case anything new developed. Coulson was pulled away to talk about what had happened and how to proceed. Ward and May stayed with FitzSimmons for a while, but their need to be alone to process the information and control their emotions got the better of them.
May was the first to leave. She wondered the halls of the SHIELD hospital for a few minutes before making her way back to the BUS. There were SHIELD agents surrounding the plane. The guards automatically moved to the side to allow her access. She made her way to where Ian Quinn was being held. An arm guard stood straighter as she approached.
"Anything new?" she asked, staring at the door.
"No, ma'am." The guard replied. May nodded and continued on.
Another guard was in the lounge area. Even if Quinn managed to get through the door there was no way he was getting off the plane. She stopped in the command center and saw Quinn with his head down on the monitor. She shook her head and continued to the cockpit. She would get her chance with him soon enough.
"Everything okay?" May asked as she entered the cockpit.
The young mechanic going over the controls nearly jumped out of his skin. "Oh, uh, yes, ma'am. Everything seems to be in order."
"Good." May moved to the pilot seat. She sat down and closed her eyes.
The kid stood still, staring at Agent Melinda May, the Cavalry. "Agent-"
"Get out."
MWMWMW
"Any news?" Ward asked as he walked up to the Bus.
One of the agents keeping guard replied, "No, Sir. I believe Agent May already checked on the prisoner."
"Agent May is here?"
"She arrived about 30 minutes ago, sir."
Instead of making a round on the plane, Ward pulled out the punching bag. He realized he had an audience with the other agents around. Instead of thinking about that and instead of thinking about Skye, he thought of Quinn. Ward imagined he had Quinn in front of him and swung his fist as hard as he could multiple times. When he was satisfied and sure Quinn would be dead, he made his way to the showers.
After his shower Ward made his way to the lounge, more specifically the bar. As Ward approached the lounge he saw a guard in the doorway. The guard quickly turned when he heard Ward approach and just as quickly moved out of the way. The first thing Ward saw was May sitting at the bar with her back to the guard. He knew there was a glass of scotch in her hand.
"You can leave." Ward said without even looking at the guard.
"Yes, sir."
Ward didn't hear the response. He was already at the bar sitting next to May. A glass of scotch was already waiting for him.
"It's weird to hear so many agents call me sir." He said as he took a drink.
"They are probably Level 2, maybe Level 3." May responded.
"How's Quinn?"
"Sleeping." May looked at his hand. "But alive. You broke skin."
"It's fine. At least I didn't break Quinn yet."
May almost smiled. "We'll get our chance."
They sat in silence. Both lost in their own thoughts. May was the first to stand. She started to walk away but Ward stopped her with a gentle hand on her wrist. She looked in his eyes and knew what he was asking. She barely nodded. He stood and gently pulled her toward his bunk.
MWMWMW
Ward was in his bed staring at the ceiling as May sat on the edge. She gently slid her bra over the cut on her chest. She let out a small hiss of pain.
"Do you need to re-bandage it?" Ward said quietly. He pulled himself up and sat next to her. Pushing her hair away he gently felt around the wound. She tried to pull away but he firmly rested a hand on her shoulder. "Stay still." He commanded.
"It's fine."
"Did you have a doctor look at it at the hospital?"
"They have more important things to worry about."
"You still need to take care of yourself." Ward said as he finished his inspection.
"If I thought something was wrong with it I would have it looked at." May snapped.
Ward picked up his pants and slid them on. "By Coulson?" The words were out of his mouth before he even realized it.
May's eyes narrowed. "What the hell does that mean?"
"Nothing."
May ran a hand through her hair and took a breath. She knew everyone was on edge. Ward knew it too.
"What is your problem with Coulson?" May asked gently.
"He made a bad call."
"Which was?"
"She should have never been in there." Ward almost yelled.
"Coulson had nothing to do with that." Ward was about to say something but May cut him off. "And don't even think about putting this on Fitz." May's lips formed a sad smile. "Skye does what she wants."
Ward interrupted, "If I was there, if you were there, this would not have happened."
"Probably not, but it did happen. Now we have to deal with hit."
"How do we deal with it if she –" He couldn't finish the sentence.
May gently rested her hand on his knee. "Then we move forward."
Ward's eyes snapped to May. May could see the anger at her words. Ward shot up. "How can you say that?!" He waved his arms. "We move on?"
"Yes!" May stood in front of him. He rested his hands on his hips, breathing deeply. "This is what working with a team is like, Agent Ward. You get close to someone and then, sometimes, you get hurt."
"You don't think I know that?" he sneered at her.
"I know you know about it, but it's not something you have experienced, is it?" She reached forward for one of his hands. He let her hold it. "She is still alive." She said lightly.
Ward finally sat back down. He took a deep breath. "I wish I didn't care…about anyone."
May sighed. "It seems like that would be easier."
"You don't think working alone is easier?"
"I've worked on teams and alone. I have had a lot of different experiences in my life. Some of them good some of them bad, but they all have made me who I am today."
"What happened the first time you lost someone you cared about?"
"I'll tell you that when you lose someone you care about." May said lightly bumping Ward's shoulder with hers. "But the first time I almost lost someone I cared about I punched a brick wall, broke my hand."
Ward chuckled. "I thought punching things doesn't help?"
"Well I didn't have someone as smart as me helping me deal with things."
"What happened to the one you almost lost?"
May looked at Ward. "He's currently sitting through a bunch of meetings barely listening because he's blaming himself for something that's not his fault."
Ward rubbed his thumb gently on May's hand. "I'm sorry. I know it's not his fault." May just nodded. "You have known each other for a long time." He observed.
"Since the academy. I was eating lunch. He sat down and started talking about comics."
"Coulson is kind of a dork, isn't he?"
May snorted, "Big time."
They fell into a comfortable silence. Ward reached over to the bedside table when his phone beeped.
"Coulson wants us all in the command center in 30." He stared at his phone. "What do you think it's about?"
"I don't know." May stood. "We'll find out soon."
Ward nodded his response. Before she opened the door, Ward said, "May," she turned to look at him. "I just want to say thank you."
"For what?"
"For being there, even when I don't want anyone around."
May smiled slightly and nodded her head. "It's what you do on a team."
END.