When Fitz woke up, he found himself tied to a chair in what appeared to be an empty warehouse.
How had he gotten here? He remembered leaving the lab. He remembered walking towards the apartment he shared with Simmons. There were footsteps behind him and then...nothing. He must have been drugged. By whom? What did they want?
Simmons would have realized he was missing. Maybe he could try to call her...except his phone was no longer in his pocket. His kidnapper had taken it.
Simmons was probably worried sick. He had to get out of here!
As Fitz struggled to free himself, an old man emerged from the shadows. "I apologize for the restraints, and for the manner in which I brought you here," he said. Fitz was surprised to hear a Scottish accent. The old man sounded like he might be from Glasgow, Fitz's hometown. "I wanted to have a private conversation with you and I didn't think you'd come willingly if you knew who I was. I promise I mean you no harm, Leo."
"Don't call me Leo."
"What should I call you?"
"Agent Fitz. As in agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. My fiancee was expecting me to come straight home after work. I bet she has all of S.H.I.E.L.D. looking for me. Any second now, a tactical team is going to burst through the door and put a bullet in your head. If you want to live, you'll let me go."
"I'll let you go soon enough." The old man smiled. "So you and Jemma Simmons are engaged now? Congratulations! I hear she's a lovely young lady and a brilliant scientist."
"Who are you?!" Fitz demanded, although a part of him was starting to suspect the truth. The old man's jawline, complexion, and hair all looked similar to his own.
"I'm Leo Fitz," the old man said. "I'm your father. But you knew that already, didn't you, son?"
"I don't believe you."
"Your mother's name is Fiona. You were born in Glasgow on December 29, 1987."
"You could have found that information on any number of online databases," Fitz said.
"When you were a baby, your favorite toy was a little monkey stuffed animal that I bought you. It went everywhere you did. Could I have found that information online?"
"Maybe not," Fitz admitted. "Maybe you are my father. So what do you want from me?"
"I want you to know that I've always loved you."
"Are you serious?! You left me and Mum when I was a baby! You broke her heart! And now you show up all these years later to drug and kidnap me, tie me to a chair, and say you love me? You're bloody mental!"
"I can see you're upset, and I don't blame you. But you don't know the whole story. Please, just hear me out, and then I'll release you. Do we have a deal?"
Fitz was too angry to speak.
"I'll take your silence as a yes. Alright. How can I make you understand? Let me start at the beginning. When I was a boy, I was curious about everything. I used to take things apart so I could put them back together. It drove my mum crazy. Eventually I enrolled in the University of Glasgow's engineering program and graduated at the top of my class. A lot of labs were competing over me. I decided to work for an organization that offered me not only a generous salary, but unparalleled resources with which to pursue my work. I'll admit that a little voice in my head told me this organization wasn't completely above board, but I ignored it. I had grown up poor and didn't want to stay that way for the rest of my life. You can understand that, can't you?"
"If I say yes, will you let me go?" asked Fitz.
"Soon, son. Be patient. So, I was young and greedy, but I still had principles. It took me years to uncover just how sinister my employer really was. When I realized the truth, I wanted to quit, but I was sure they'd kill me. Then I took a trip home in the summer of 1985, and that's when I met your mother. She was such an amazing woman. So beautiful and smart and kind. I knew right away that I'd marry her. Our wedding day was the best day of my life...until the day you were born. I loved you from the first moment I saw you."
"Not enough to stick around," muttered Fitz.
His father sighed. "I'm getting to that part. Being your father inspired me to want to be a better man. I decided I was finally going to leave my employer. I marched right into my boss's office and said that I was done. He told me how valuable I was and offered me a raise. I refused. Then he said that if I quit...he would kill my family. So I stayed."
"And then you left me and Mum..."
There were tears in his father's eyes. "It wasn't an easy decision, son. I wanted to be a husband and father more than anything, but I was afraid that being with you and your mother made you potential hostages. Or targets. I believed it would be safer for you both if I just...went away."
"Why are you telling me this now? After all this time?" Fitz asked.
"Because my employer is gone now. Your S.H.I.E.L.D. has taken care of anyone who was in a position of power or influence. There's just a few of us minions left."
"Are you saying that your employer was Hydra?!"
"Well, technically speaking, I worked for a lab that was a subsidiary of a company controlled by Hydra, but-"
"YOU EVIL BASTARD!" Fitz shouted, lunging as far forward as his restraints would allow. "Hydra murdered S.H.I.E.L.D. agents! They tried to kill Simmons and me by dumping us in the ocean! They tortured her until I agreed to go to another planet and help them bring back a monster!" Fitz felt tears running down his cheeks. "I still have nightmares where I hear her screaming over and over again. She has nightmares too."
"I know Grant Ward did terrible things to you," said his father. "He was a horrible person. I wasn't like him. I was just a scientist; I never killed anyone!"
"Did you ever try to stop Hydra from killing people?!"
"What could I have done? I'm only one man. Maybe if I was a superhero like Captain America, I could have done something, but-"
"I'm not a superhero, Dad! I don't have inhuman powers. And I wasn't trained to be a soldier. I was 'just a scientist' when I started in S.H.I.E.L.D.. But when Hydra came out of hiding, I chose to stand against them. I chose to fight to protect my friends. You knew what Hydra was doing and you chose to do nothing?"
"I'm sorry I wasn't a stronger man. I'm sorry I wasn't a better father to you, and a better husband to your mother. I know I don't deserve it, but maybe someday you could forgive me."
"Not bloody likely. Please, just let me go. If you ever loved my mother, let me go home to the woman I love."
"I did, and I will. There's just one more thing: I want you to know I'm proud of you. I've heard about your accomplishments at S.H.I.E.L.D.. I know that you solved the Maveth problem to save Jemma. You're a good man, son. A brave man. And I know I can't take credit for that, but I'm still proud of you. When I look at you, I see the man I should have been. I'm glad there's one decent Leo Fitz in the world." He took a knife out of his pocket and used it to cut the ropes binding Fitz. "Any chance you'll let me give you a ride home?"
Fitz shook off the ropes and stood up. "No. I'll find my own way."
"Alright." He gave Fitz his phone back and patted his shoulder. "Take care of yourself, son. I hope you and Jemma have a long and happy life together." He gave Fitz a sad smile and walked back into the shadows.
Fitz turned his phone on and saw that he had seven missed calls and one voicemail, all from Simmons. He called to let her know he was coming home and promised that he would tell her everything when he arrived.
Fitz opened the front door to their apartment and called out to Simmons.
She ran to him and hugged him. "Fitz! I was so worried! What happened to you?"
He allowed himself to take comfort in her warmth for a few moments before answering. "My father kidnapped me."
She ended the hug abruptly, pulling back to face him. "What?! Why? Did he hurt you?"
He took her hand and they walked to their couch to sit down. "He didn't hurt me. Not physically, anyway. He wanted me to know the reason he left me and my mum. He thought he was protecting us from his 'employer.'"
"Who was his employer?"
"Imagine the worst possible answer to that question."
"The worst possible...No. Not Hydra."
"Yes, Hydra."
Simmons shuddered as she thought of Ward and all the pain he had caused them. "What did he do for Hydra? Was he involved in the takeover of S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
"He says he never killed anyone, that he was just a scientist. But he knew they were evil for decades and did nothing to stop them. My father's a bloody coward!"
"Oh, Fitz." Simmons put an arm around his shoulders. "I'm so sorry."
"I remember when I was young, I used to dream that someday he would come back and take care of us and everything would be perfect. As I got older, I accepted that was never going to happen. I was fine; I didn't need him anymore. I had other people in my life who cared about me. My mum. You. Why did he have to come back after all this time and be horrible and then say he was proud of me? I..." He trailed off as tears clouded his vision.
Simmons embraced him again, rubbing his back as he cried into her shoulder. They stayed like that for several minutes.
"I wish my father were someone else," Fitz said when he was able to speak again.
Simmons continued rubbing his back. "I believe everyone has two families. One you're born into, and one you choose for yourself. S.H.I.E.L.D. has become our second family, and I know that Coulson loves you like a son."
"Really? He told you that?"
"Yes. When you were in the coma. He visited you in the hospital almost as much as I did."
"Coulson has been more of a father to me than my real dad." Fitz wiped tears on his sleeve. "He asked me to forgive him. I can't forgive him! I don't want to see him ever again. Does that make me a bad son?"
"No," Simmons assured him. "You're not a bad anything, Fitz. You're the best man I know. I love you."
"I love you too." He laid his head in her lap, hoping she would run her fingers through his curls. She did. "When my dad was a kid, he took things apart to put them back together, just like I did. And he was valedictorian at university, just like I was. But if we have a child, I won't be like him. I would never leave you to raise our child alone."
She caressed his cheek. "I know, Fitz. You'll be an excellent father."
"You think so?"
"I'm sure of it."
"Thank you." He grinned at the thought. "Maybe after the wedding...we can start trying to have a baby."
She smiled. "That won't be necessary. We're actually ahead of schedule on that front."
He sat up so his eyes met hers. "You mean you're..."
"Yes. I was planning on telling you earlier, but then you got kidnapped."
"Jemma, that's wonderful!" He threw his arms around her and kissed her. Then he put a hand on her abdomen. "Hi. I'm your dad. I'm going to do everything I can to take care of you and your mum for as long as I live. I promise."
They spent the next few hours discussing baby names and ideas for a nursery until they fell asleep on the couch, wrapped in each other's arms.
Note: The date I used for Fitz's birthday, December 29, 1987, is Iain De Caestecker's birthday.
Thanks for reading! All comments are greatly appreciated.