Chapter 1: A Day To Remember

Mondays. Just the thought of the name of the first day of the school week brought a scowl to Skye's face as she pulled her textbook from her locker. She shoved the book into her ratty old backpack next to her precious laptop. Skye contemplated shoving her arm back into the locker before slamming the door shut, but then thought better of it. It would be much more of a challenge to use her computer with an injured hand; plus, if the nurse had to send her home she would call Skye's foster mom, and that was not someone she wanted to deal with today. Her foster mom hadn't even seen her in three days, and not even a text message had been sent to see where Skye had run off to this time. The only thing Skye disliked about not being at her newest "home sweet home" was that she had someone that would consistently wake her up for school, even when she really didn't want to go.

As all of these thoughts were running through Skye's mind, she failed to notice that she had been staring blankly into her locker for what was nearing a full minute. This occurred to her when someone slammed their shoulder into the locker next to her head before shooting her a snarky smile, "Did you finally find Narnia?"

Skye nearly jumped out of her skin as the tall, muscular guy she called her best friend shocked her out of her daydreams, and effectively woke her up for the second time that day. "You really think you're funny, don't you?" Skye barked at him with a slight smirk twitching at the corners of her mouth, "And to answer your question: if I did, I wouldn't still be standing here, would I Ward?"

Ward ran his hand through his short, black hair as he straightened himself up and shrugged his shoulders, "That is a solid point. I just thought that might be what had kept you so very captivated on the inside of your personal hole in the wall. Unless, of course, you were watching something not school appropriate. In that case, let me see."

Skye chuckled and rolled her eyes as she slammed her locker door shut, almost smashing Ward's hand in the process, "You know, there are some days when I really don't know why I hang out with you."

"It's because you secretly love me." Ward replied while putting on the most charming smile he could muster, "But next time, watch the hand. I need that for Friday."

Skye laughed and laced her hands together in front of her face in a pleading motion, "Oh no, that would be so terrible. I can see the headlines now! 'SLHS Star Quarterback's Season Slammed To A Close!'"

It was Ward's turn to roll his eyes and smirk as he put his hand on Skye's shoulder, "Very clever. Now get to class, you need to get your grade up in your Algebra class."

"How do you know my grades better than I do?"

"Because I actually look at your report cards. You need to get that grade up or there'll be a couple extra weeks added on to your tenure as a sophomore here at lovely Stan Lee High." Ward said, the last part being brought to life in his best Shakespearian accent as he waved his arm not on Skye's shoulder in the air.

Skye almost doubled over in laughter at the terrible impersonation, but continued walking with him, "Well, I guess we've reached prison cell number one for the day."

Ward grabbed both her shoulders, spinning her to look at him, "I was serious Skye. Get the math grade up unless you want to get put in summer school, or have the phone call made home." The last phrase of the statement being said with a look of sad knowing in his dark eyes, as he looked into her eyes, "Pay attention and don't get kicked out today. You know how, Mr. Sitwell is."

"Alright," Skye sighed out in false exasperation with a smile on her face, "I'll try my best."

Ward patted her on the shoulder then gave the crown of her head a quick kiss before running off, yelling at a wide receiver on the football team to wait up. Skye briefly considered just walking back to her locker then leaving school, but then remembered the Ward's face when he had looked at her. It was a look of caring, something Skye never tired of seeing. She ruffled her hair where Ward had kissed her before walking into the classroom they had stopped at right as the bell rang.

She walked to her usual seat in the back of the room and slouched down into the chair. Her head turned from side to side, observing the people around her, who were all oblivious to her presence. They were all too engrossed in their own conversations with their friends to even notice that the bell had rung to signify the start of class. Skye tried to keep herself from rolling her eyes at the people surrounding her; she didn't like any of them. They were all too arrogant or stupid for her to get along with. Judgmental was another thing she would call them, on a long list of adjectives that weren't exactly appropriate to a school setting. All Skye could think about was Scar from The Lion King with his face in his paw muttering, "I'm surrounded by idiots." That brought a smile to her face as she brushed the hair out of her eyes and settled down into her seat while Mr. Sitwell began to get everyone's attention.

An hour later, which seemed like an eternity to Skye, her Algebra class ended and she found herself headed back to her locker. She was already tired and bored with school for the day, and was seriously considering skipping out on the rest of her classes. That is, until she turned the corner to the hallway that held her school appointed storage space and saw someone digging through her now open locker. Skye would normally beat the intruder with the overly large (at least in her opinion) math book she had in her backpack, but she recognized the form of the only person she really considered a friend. "Grant Ward, I should hurt you for this." She stated as she punched him in the arm.

"Just making sure you didn't have anything you shouldn't in here." Ward said as he pulled his head out of her locker, "And you should cool it with the Grant thing. No one actually calls me that."

"I guess that just means I'm special." Skye replied with raised eyebrows as she threw the math textbook past her friend into the locker.

She began digging in the mess that was inside her locker, trying to find the book for her next class. Her anger was beginning to show on her face as she heard a snicker behind her. Furrowing her brow, Skye turned to see Ward holding the book in his hand with a sly grin on his face. "You are such a loser, Grant." Emphasizing his name and watching his face drop to a look of disparagement. That brought a beaming smile to her face, "What are you doing here anyway?"

"Making sure you don't try to skip town on me. I didn't want you to think that I was going to let you off with just the warning I gave you earlier."

Ward leaned up against the locker next to Skye's the same way he did that morning, only more quietly, as she continued to push books into her bag. He made sure to check if she had paid attention in her first class, not taking her first answer as gospel. The question had been raised four more times before Skye looked him in the eyes and promised him that she had done exactly that. When Ward ducked his head, laughing at her frustration with him, Skye took a look over his shoulder. "Ward." She stated quickly and quietly.

"What?" He replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Dibs." Skye said looking into his eyes to make sure he had heard her, "I call dibs."

A look of confusion passed over his face before he saw that her eyes had redirected back to over his shoulder. He stood up and turned around quickly to see what, or rather who, had caught Skye's attention so raptly. A smile jumped onto his face, then quickly left as the realization hit him. "Skye, that's not fair, I didn't even have a chance."

"I don't care. I called dibs, you can't deny it."

"That's right, even I heard her." A voice said from behind Skye, causing both her and Ward to spin around.

"Come on Tripp! You're taking her side?" Ward yelled at his teammate.

"Hey man, you have to respect the dibs." Tripp replied, as he laughed.

"I'm beginning to like him, Ward." Skye said as she gave Tripp a smile.

"Yeah, yeah. Tripp, let's see how many passes you get thrown Friday." Ward replied, looking wistfully over his shoulder.

What had caught both Ward and Skye's attention was the two, obviously, new kids in school. They were obviously new because, well, Ward didn't know them, and by extension, neither did Skye. Being the star of the football team didn't stop Ward from being a good guy and getting to know everybody, which is why Skye knew she had to call this when she did. One of the newcomers was a thin boy, with short, curly brown hair. He had on an un-tucked dress shirt with a tie over his jeans, and his sneakers were not smudged in the least bit. He had his messenger bag over his shoulder as he used his hands to help while he talked to his companion.

This companion of his was who had grasped Skye's attention so quickly. She was slightly shorter than her friend, with long dark, almost red, hair. She was as dressed up as her compatriot, wearing a shirt and tie under her sweater along with her jeans and Converse. The straps of her backpack were tightly wrapped around her shoulders as she walked down the hall listening to her excited friend, looking both intrigued and disapproving. "I wonder who she is." Skye muttered under her breath, fear flashing across her face, along with a rising blush, when she realized that she had said it out loud.

"Well, there's one way to find out." Ward said as he pulled one strap of his backpack over his shoulder and began to walk towards the new students.

Skye grabbed his arm and spun him back around, "No, no, no. I am not just walking up on her like that. Not like this." Skye looked down at herself and noted that her face felt hot from the lingering blush that had spread across her cheeks.

Ward checked his watch and said, "You're right, you aren't going to walk up on her. You are going to go to class, which is on the other side of the building in two minutes. Thankfully, Tripp has class right next door, so he can make sure you actually go."

"Wait. Then what was all that about? Just trying to scare me?" Skye asked, confused by Ward's statement.

Ward just gave her a big smile, that reminded Skye too much of the Cheshire Cat to feel comfortable with it, then said, "You are going to class because you need to pull your grades up some, I'm going to be the welcoming committee for our new friends."

Skye's eyes widened in what can only be described as pure terror, "Ward! You can't do this. I called dibs! And now your going to embarrass me, aren't you?"

Ward raised an eyebrow and replied, "Now would I do that to you?"

Before she could answer, Ward turned around and Tripp patted Skye on the shoulder then led her toward her next class. What came next was what felt like the longest three hours of Skye's life. The next time she got a break was lunch and, thankfully, Ward would be there too so she could beat the living daylight out of him. She went through the line to get her food, or the slop they called food she thought, and walked towards her and Ward's usual table. Skye was the first one there so she began to slowly choke down the slime that was labeled spaghetti. Her mind wandered to the classes of the day and how much she hated this place. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before raising her drink to her lips. As she did this, a lunch trap was dropped onto the table across from her. "Be careful there, Skye. You don't want to wear your milk." A smirking Ward said as he sat down in front of her.

"I should make you wear it and beat the—" Skye said between coughs before she noticed Ward's grin spreading even farther across his face, "What is so funny?"

It was just then she heard someone clear their throat behind her. Skye spun around as fast as she could and her jaw dropped when she saw who was standing behind her. The eyes of the two newcomers to the school were pointed directly at her. The boy had an eyebrow raised and a slight grin, but the girl had a brilliant smile stretched across her face, one that Skye thought may have brightened up the entire room. Skye turned back towards Ward as the blush crept up her neck to her cheeks. If looks could kill, Ward would have dropped immediately, but instead his eyes showed that he thought this was the funniest thing he had seen in a long time. Ward propped his head up on a hand, "Skye, I invited the new kids to join us for lunch today. This is Fitz and Simmons."

"Hey." Skye muttered quietly.

Fitz and Simmons sat down, Fitz next to Ward and Simmons across from Fitz. That placed Simmons right next to Skye, which elicited a small smirk from Ward. Skye shot him another look that threatened to bury him before nearly jumping out of her seat when she heard the voice of Simmons next to her ear, "Thank you for inviting us to sit here. I was worried we wouldn't quite fit in here."

"It's no problem. I like to at least know most people's name here." Ward replied, still with the grin that was causing Skye to want to knock his teeth down his throat.

"Simmons was really worried about not finding people to talk to here. I was just more concerned about not getting tossed in a locker." Fitz said mindlessly as he fiddled with an app on his phone.

"Have some experience with that, do you?" Ward asked as the smile fell from his face.

"We ran into some very—" Simmons began, with her smooth accent that was causing a shiver to run down Skye's spine, before Fitz finished her sentence.

"Aggressive and impolite members of a rugby team."

"Well, no need to worry about that here." Ward stated firmly, the movie star smile reaching his face again, "I'll see to it that no one tries anything."

"Well thank you, but you don't have to go out of your way for us. It's really not a big deal." Simmons said with a small, thankful smile.

"Two words from Ward here and you could be prom queen. Keeping assholes from pushing you in a locker isn't exactly a challenge for him." Skye mumbled, her eyes widening after realizing she had said it out loud.

"Thanks for joining us, Skye. Have a fun time in dreamland?" Ward teased as he reached across and patted her on the head, "But as much as she exaggerated there, I do have a bit of pull around school. I'll be sure to see that no one messes with you too much."

Skye snarled at Ward and swatted his hand away from her head, before becoming extremely interested in the red stains of sauce left on the tray in front of her. "How does one come about such pull in a school like this?" Simmons asked as she leaned towards Ward.

"It mostly comes from being the starting quarterback for three straight years, and the team making the state championship last year." Ward said as if it was something everyone did, and then checked the watch on his wrist, "But I'll catch up with you guys later, I have a class to get to. Skye, you want to come with? I know you'd hate to miss that computer class you have."

Skye tugged her bag onto her shoulder and began to stand up when the dulcet tones of Simmons' voice interrupted her, "With Mr. Stark? That's the one I'm in."

Skye and Ward looked at each other; Ward with raised eyebrows and a smirk, Skye with a look of pure fear in her wide eyes. "Really now? Maybe Skye can show you where it is."

Simmons stood from the table and bounced to the balls of her feet, "That would be fantastic!"

Simmons' bubbly voice echoed in Skye's head as she gave Ward yet another death glare before muttering, "Alright, follow me."

Ward caught Skye and hugged her before she could walk away. As he hugged her he leaned down and whispered in her ear, "You're welcome."

Skye responded by elbowing him in the ribs then walking towards the door, followed closely by Simmons. Simmons caught up to Skye and noticed that Skye had her hands clenched into fists. She put her hand on the dark-haired girl's shoulder and softly spoke, "Does he get on your nerves a lot?"

Skye tensed up immediately when Simmons touched her, but then relaxed when she heard the shorter girl's voice. She took a deep breath and relaxed her hands, "Yeah. I think his goal every day is to hit my last nerve."

"Then, if you don't mind my asking, why do you spend so much time with him?"

Skye came to a halt in the middle of the hallway and looked at Simmons. Simmons' hazel eyes shown brightly and drew Skye almost into a trance. Skye felt like she was going to spill out her entire history to this girl she had just met. She was just going to let all her memories of the bullying and abusive homes and places she just never fit in at flow into the open. She stopped herself after opening her mouth for a moment and replied succinctly, "He's been there for me whenever I needed him."

The heaviness of the statement was not lost on Simmons, and she removed her hand from Skye's shoulder and they continued walking. The rest of the trip to the classroom was made in silence. When the pair reached the classroom, Skye immediately headed to her seat in the middle of the room. This was the only class she actually enjoyed, and so it was the only class she didn't sit in the back corner. Simmons, not knowing anybody else in the room, chose to sit in the seat next to Skye. Oh great, Skye thought, how am I supposed to concentrate when I can see her right there and smell that perfume? Skye hadn't realized she closed her eyes and breathed deeply in through her nose while she was thinking this. A small smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she tried to decipher what smell Simmons' perfume was, maybe lilac she thought. "Are you alright, Skye?"

Skye jumped in her chair and almost fell right out of it as she heard Simmons' voice. She was really tired of zoning out and this girl scaring her. Skye had called dibs so she was trying to make a good impression, but this wasn't exactly helping her. It wasn't until she had righted herself on her chair that she realized Simmons' hand was at Skye's elbow, having reached out to try and help her not fall off the chair. A blush creeped it's way up Skye's neck to her cheeks as she looked down and saw Simmons touching her, "Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry. My mind was just wandering. A million miles away, you know."

Skye was rambling and she felt stupid and embarrassed, but when she looked up Simmons was just smiling at her kindly. It sent butterflies through Skye's stomach, and she hated it. She couldn't figure out why this girl affected her so much and they had only met that day. "It's completely fine. Ward says you do that quite often." Simmons eyes went wide when she realized how that sounded out loud, "Not that there's anything wrong with that or anything."

Skye could only laugh and shake her head, "He's right. I do actually do that a lot."

It wasn't until this moment that both girls realized that Simmons' hand was still on Skye's arm. They looked down almost simultaneously and saw that. Both Skye and Simmons almost jumped backwards. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize I was still doing that." Simmons almost whispered as she crossed her arms across her chest.

Skye couldn't help but notice that Simmons was sitting ramrod straight, even as embarrassed as she seemed. She also couldn't help but observe Simmons' clothes more closely than she did from across the hallway this morning. Simmons' sweater was a dark pink overtop the white collared shirt and bright pink tie she was wearing. Her jeans fit her legs well all the way down and her red Converse shoes rounded out the strangely stylish ensemble. Skye's looked at herself and felt a wave of embarrassment wash over her. She was slouching too much for it to be healthy on her back, her loose fitting t-shirt looked very worn, her jeans were starting to get holes at some points, and her old tennis shoes were beginning to split at the sole. Skye just turned toward the computer in front of her and stared at the screen, hoping the glow of the computer would cover the glow that her blush was giving off.

Skye skipped the rest of her classes that day. After her computer class she through most of her stuff in her locker, thankful that Ward wasn't there to stop her, and went out toward the football field. She would sit there on her laptop until Ward got out of practice to drive her home. Skye found a bit of shade under the bleachers on one side of the field and engrossed herself in whatever she could find on the Internet that amused her. The sound of footsteps approaching fell on deaf ears, as she was entranced in the numbers flying across her screen. It wasn't until the shadow fell across her screen that she realized someone was standing over her. She raised her eyes from the screen to see Ward standing above her with a frown on his face. She checked the time on her computer, school had just gotten out. "Don't you have practice to go to?"

"Coach cancelled it today." Ward replied, deadpan, "Didn't you have classes to go to today?"

"I went."

Ward raised an eyebrow at her and she felt like she was shrinking into the ground, "Well, I went to most of them."

Skye tried to give Ward a lopsided grin, but it didn't come across very convincingly. He sighed and reached his hand down to her to help her up off the ground. She took his hand and let him pull her up then threw her backpack over her shoulder. The walk to Ward's car was silent except for the sound of their feet on the pavement. Once they reached the car, they both climbed in, but Ward didn't start the vehicle. Skye smirked and said, "Um, Ward. I may not have my license, but I think you're supposed to put the key in the ignition and turn."

"Skye. You can't just keep skipping your classes like this. You promised me you would try." Ward said as he turned in his seat to look at Skye, the sadness in his eyes very obvious.

Skye's face fell and she couldn't look Ward in the eyes. She took a couple deep breaths before looking back up at him and apologizing, "I'm sorry, Ward. I—I really was going to go to all of them. I just couldn't do it today. I couldn't deal with everyone today."

Ward noticed the last part of this was said while she was playing with one of the holes forming in her jeans. Skye was quiet and wouldn't look at him and just kept tugging on the bottom of her shirt. He put his arm around her shoulders and she leaned into him, "What's this all about, Skye?"

Skye opened her mouth, and then quickly shut it before shrugging off his arm and sitting up. He knew better than to push her when she was in this kind of mood, he had to explain the black eye to everyone he saw for a week the last time he tried. Instead of arguing, Ward just started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. It wasn't until they got out onto the road that Skye spoke up, "I'll take back the dibs."

"What?" Ward asked, legitimately confused by Skye's statement.

"I'll take back the dibs. You go for her."

"Go for her? Oh!" Ward exclaimed, finally understanding what Skye meant, "Why would you do that? You were so excited you beat me on this one."

"I don't think I'm really her type. And—" Skye cut herself off as she played with the edge of her shirt again, "And it's not like I would actually ask or anything. You should take a shot."

"What's gotten into you? You were all into her earlier, and then when you actually meet her, and she's a sweet girl, you just drop off like this? I know you're shy and all that, but this is a new level. And what do you mean you aren't her type?"

"I just don't think she's into me, is all. I don't even know if she's into girls. She's just all pretty and British and fancy." Skye accented all this by pulling at loose strings coming off her jeans.

By this time they had reached Ward's house and he pulled into the driveway and turned the car off. He turned towards Skye and tried to get her to look at him, "Skye. What's this really about?"

"I told you. It's just that—"

"That's bull. I know it as well as you. Now come on, tell me." Ward interrupted her then put his hands on her shoulders and turned her towards him.

Skye looked up at Ward with tears threatening to fall from her eyes. She closed her eyes tightly and shook her head. She refused to let herself cry, especially over something like this. "I just," Skye stumbled over her words, "I just don't want her to think I'm the stray little puppy everyone else thinks I am. Everyone looks at me and just sees the little girl in the old, torn up clothes hiding behind you."

Skye finally let the tears roll down her cheeks and Ward held her against his chest. They sat in this position for a couple minutes before Ward pulled her back from him and looked her in the face. He waited for Skye to bring her eyes up to his and said, "Skye, you are not some little stray dog. You are a smart, charming, and, don't get a big head here, beautiful girl." Skye laughed at the last comment, "And whoever says anything else can deal with me."

"Thanks, Ward." Skye mumbled.

"But since when have you cared about your clothes?"

Skye laughed, "Um, since about noon today, I guess."

"Why would you suddenly care now?" Ward asked, extremely puzzled, before a flash of understanding reached his face, "This is about Simmons, isn't it? It's because how she was dressed?"

Ward lightly chuckled and Skye smacked him on the chest, "Don't laugh at me. She was all dressed up and proper, sitting up all straight. She's like the exact opposite of me. Give her a week and she'll forget about me. Keeping hanging out with that boyfriend of hers, Fitz."

That comment brought Ward to tears, from laughing that is. Skye entered a state of confusion instantaneously, "What is so funny, Ward?"

"Fitz and Simmons are not dating. I asked Fitz about that and he looked at me like I asked him if he liked making out with his dog. They are definitely not together."

That caused a small grin to spread across Skye's face, though she didn't think that comparing Simmons to a dog was funny at all, "You are such a jerk, you know that?"

"If I was such a jerk, then would I have also asked Fitz about her availability?" Ward asked slyly as he got out of the car and began walking to the house.

Skye jumped out of the car and chased after Ward screaming his name. She finally reached him and tackled him just as he got inside the door. "Hey you two don't break anything in here!" A female voice came from around the corner.

"Sorry Mom!" Ward yelled back.

"Sorry Mrs. Ward! Your son is just being a jerk to me!" Skye yelled as she stuck her tongue out at Ward.

"Now Grant, what are you doing to torture Skye this time?"

"Nothing! Skye's just being a baby because she has a crush on the new kid." Ward replied with his tongue shooting out at Skye.

"Ward!" Skye roared as she dove at him and tried to tackle him to the ground again.

This attempt was not as effective as the first one, because Ward knew what was coming. He was able to catch her mid-dive and put her over his shoulder. Ward carried Skye, as she flailed and yelled at him, into the kitchen where he found his mother at the sink. He put Skye down next to the kitchen table, which earned him a punch in the stomach, and then walked over to give his mom a kiss on the cheek. "So, who is this new girl you mentioned, Grant?" Mrs. Ward asked shooting a smiling glance to Skye.

"She goes by Simmons, and she's a cute little British girl." Ward replied with a teasing smile on his face and his eyes lit up.

"Simmons? That sounds like a last name. Skye, dear, did you catch her first name?"

Skye froze and frowned because she had never even thought about it, "Um, no. I guess I didn't."

"Well, I did." Ward smiled, "Her name is Jemma Simmons."

"Jemma." Skye whispered to herself, enjoying the way it rolled off her tongue.

The bright smile slowly stretching across Skye's face was not missed by Ward, though he decided to let it slide. Instead, he decided he was going to bring up something else, "Yeah, but she dresses a little too fancy for my taste. She definitely has a certain fashion sense about her. Well, so Skye says. I didn't really notice"

Skye's face went as red as she could even imagine. She stood up from the table she had taken a seat at and went to walk away. She was stopped in her tracks when something caught Mrs. Ward's eye, "Skye. What happened to your shoe?"

Skye looked down at her feet and saw that the slight tear near the sole of her left shoe had stretched to the point that her foot could almost slide out. "Dang. I liked these shoes." Skye whined.

"It's okay, darling. Later today we can go out shopping and get you some new ones. Plus, if you want," Mrs. Ward said with a wink, "we could get you some new outfits to impress this new girl."

Skye's mouth went dry. She mumbled for a moment before finally forming words, "You don't have to do that. It's fine."

"Nonsense." Ward took an opportunity to jump back into the conversation, "Mom loves shopping, and with me as her only kid she didn't exactly have a lot of chances for that."

"Grant's right. Well, mostly at least." Mrs. Ward said as she walked over to Skye and hugged her, "I like to think I have two children now."

Skye's blush that had not dropped since she entered the house burned even brighter. Ward was grinning after his mom left the room, even after dealing with a barrage of punches from Skye. He just laughed and said, "I'm not all bad to you, you know. So I did quiz Fitz a little about Simmons."

Skye cocked an eyebrow at him and clenched her fists. Ward was plagued by another fit of laughter and just smiled at Skye as she followed him to the stairs leading to the basement. She was sliding off her now torn shoes when Ward stopped his trip downstairs to turn towards her, "I asked him about the chances of a relationship and he told me 'fat chance'. He said she's really into her studies, so doesn't usually bother with stuff like that." Skye's shoulders unconsciously slumped upon hearing this, "But, he may have mentioned something about a relationship last year and he may have used the word 'girlfriend'."

And with that he was down the stairs, leaving Skye to process his words. When it clicked with her what word had said, her smile was ear to ear as she bounced on the balls of her feet then actually made a small jump. She planned to find a way to force Fitz's exact words out of Ward later, but for now she only had one thought in her mind. I actually have a chance!