A/N: After some heavy days, I needed to write something silly and fluffy and sweet, so here's this. Skimmons. Warnings for childbirth, obviously.
Thanks to everyone who reads/reviews/favorites!
Enjoy!
"Hey, Jem."
"Daisy! Where have you been? Coulson's absolutely frantic!"
"Coulson is? 'Cause you sound pretty frantic too."
"You're bloody right I'm frantic! Darling, you've been gone for three hours!"
"I know. It's just…" Daisy felt the same pain grab her, arcing across her swollen abdomen. She leaned in, doing the breathing they'd been practicing. "The traffic. Is at a standstill."
Hoo-hoo-hoo.
"Is there something you're not telling me?"
The contraction ebbed away and Daisy grit her teeth and tried to readjust her position. "Nope. Just… sitting here."
"You sound nervous. Did the meeting not go well?"
"It went… fine," Daisy managed to gasp out.
"Okay." Jemma didn't sound convinced, but she continued on happily. "Well, soon you'll be home and your maternity leave can begin in earnest! I'm looking forward to having a nice meal, just you and me."
"That sounds nice," Daisy said. "Just you and…"
Another contraction cinched around her belly, stronger than the previous one, and she let out a scream.
"Daisy?" Jemma's panicked tone returned. "Daisy, talk to me!"
Daisy tried to breathe through it, rocking a bit in the seat, gripping the steering wheel until her knuckles were white. "Oh, God," she moaned. "Oh, God. Shit."
"Daisy… are you in labor?"
The contraction loosened and Daisy went limp against the seat. "Yeah. Definitely pretty sure of that now."
"And have you been in labor?" Jemma started to sound irritated.
"Well, define in labor."
"Experiencing contractions that grow closer together in time while similarly increasing in intensity? Concurrent with the loss of a mucus plug and-or one's waters breaking?"
"Mucus… gross," Daisy muttered. "Oh – do you mean that weird clump of gooey stuff that…"
"Jesus," Jemma said, cutting her off in a hurry. "You mean to say you've lost your mucus plug and…"
Daisy let out a low moan again, rubbing her lower back with the heels of her hands. "Unnhhhh…"
"I'm coming to get you," Jemma said decisively.
"You… can't…" Daisy panted.
"I can do whatever I want. And you're in labor, with our daughter, stuck in a traffic jam," Jemma said succinctly. "Also, can you honestly tell me that you don't want me there?"
The contraction eased a bit and Daisy gulped for air. "I want you here."
"Then I'm on my way," Jemma said.
"Bring… ohhhh…" Daisy curled in towards her belly. "Shit, Jem – this hurts like crazy."
"Well, from what you've described, you've been in labor for at least eight hours." Jemma swore under her breath. "I told Coulson not to let you go to the meeting."
"I had to! I'm the only one the contract trusts! Our track record with Inhumans lately is not exactly stellar. And…" The contraction built and Daisy moaned. "I want to get out of the car but…"
"But what?" Jemma's voice now sounded like she was moving down a hallway. "You're stuck in traffic, no one's going anywhere. According to the traffic reports there's a multiple semi-truck accident crossing the freeway in both directions about two miles from your location – no one's going anywhere, sweetheart."
Daisy grit her teeth through the contraction, rocking back and forth in her seat. "Jem?" she whispered as it ended.
"What is it, love?"
"I'm scared."
"Of course you are, you're in labor in a car stuck in traffic."
"No, that's not why I'm scared." Hesitantly Daisy put her hand against her taut belly. "I'm worried…"
A contraction grabbed her and she moaned, arching her back and panting. Pressure built in her pelvis and she felt something, something big, forcing its way downward. It receded slightly as the contraction ended. "Jesus," she breathed.
"Daisy, keep talking," Jemma said. "I'm getting in the car now. We'll be there soon, okay? Just hang on."
"Jemma, what if…" Daisy grit her teeth again. "What if I can't control it?"
"Our daughter?"
"No," Daisy said, glad for the laugh Jemma had forced out of her. "My… my gift."
Jemma fell silent at that. Finally she spoke. "Well, has anything started shaking and quaking?"
Daisy laughed again. "No. Not yet."
"Okay. Then we'll worry about that if and when it starts happening," Jemma said. "Now, if you want to get out of the car and walk around, you can do that, but don't get too tired out. You'll need your strength."
"Bring me some chocolate," Daisy said. "And some juice. And some booze."
"How about I just bring my medical expertise and an assistant?" Jemma asked, her tone amused.
"Hey," Daisy heard Coulson say. "We're coming. Hang in there."
"Sounds good," Daisy said. "I'll be here, just…"
She let out a low moan and swayed back and forth with the pain.
"Do you know how dilated you are?"
Daisy grunted out a "no."
"Okay. Just hang on," Jemma said. "We'll be there soon. Maybe twenty minutes."
The contraction built in Daisy's pelvis, shoving that something down further.
She didn't want to think about it; she forced her way out of the car and hesitantly took a few steps, swaying with the pain. She wanted to kick her shoes off, but it was July in Los Angeles, though the silly girly flats she wore were little better than nothing.
Daisy wasn't sure how many laps of the car she made, contracting and moaning and leaning against the SUV to support herself. She waddled as best she could, trying to ignore the confused and leering stares from other drivers, similarly trapped in their vehicles, although presumably not in labor.
"Ms. Johnson, what in hell are you doing out here?"
Daisy raised her head to see Nick Fury striding across the gridlocked freeway towards her, seemingly appearing from nowhere. "I'm… I'm…"
"'Cause it looks a hell of a lot like you're having a baby in the middle of the freeway."
"Yeah, that's a good…" Daisy felt a trickle of something run down her leg, followed by a gush of fluids splattering to the hot asphalt below. "Oh, fuck."
"What are you doing out here alone?"
"Went to a meeting with a… with a potential client," Daisy got out. The next contraction swept over her, so much stronger than the previous ones, and she curled in towards it, panting as she hung her head and her arms down towards her feet. Amniotic fluid was still dripping from the hem of her summery dress, and the thought of that caused Daisy to retch.
Fury caught her and held her somewhat upright while she vomited. She was suddenly more tired than she'd ever been in her entire life, and another contraction was building.
"Coulson on his way?"
Daisy nodded. "And Jemma," she managed to gasp out.
"Let's sit you down," Fury said. "Something tells me it won't be long."
"I need to move," Daisy protested, and she felt her powers rising in her arms, anxious, restless energy. "I can't stop."
She wanted to be touched. She didn't want to be touched. The pressure in her pelvis was enormous. She was upright in the middle of a gridlock with the supposedly-dead former head of SHIELD supporting her, panting and groaning through a contraction. It was the strangest experience she'd had lately, and that was saying something.
Then she heard a noise that made her rethink that completely – bicycle bells.
"What?" she grunted, turning to see who would be stupid enough to ride a bicycle down a freeway, even a gridlocked one.
Of course, she shouldn't have been surprised. It was Jemma and Bobbi on bicycles, both wearing backpacks, both smiling and waving as though they were on their way to a picnic.
Daisy groaned, and not from the contraction snugging around her belly and forcing itself against her pelvis. If people weren't staring at her before – straggly, in labor, being consoled by a large man dressed in all leather despite the heat – the sudden appearance of two women on bicycles wasn't going to decrease the looks.
"Hi, darling," Jemma said, sliding off her bike and setting the kick-stand neatly.
"Coulson?" Daisy panted out.
"He's waiting for our signal and then he'll arrange the extraction," Jemma answered. "Hop up in the back here and we'll see how far along you are."
"Anything for the… oh, fuck." Daisy's knees went loose with the pain and she nearly collapsed to the ground.
Bobbi caught her. "How close are the contractions?"
"They're almost… unnh… right on top… of each other… nnnnhhhh… now," Daisy grunted.
"Then you're nearly there," Jemma said. She opened the back hatch of the SUV and set her backpack down, pulling out supplies.
Fury scooped Daisy up and set her carefully in the back of the vehicle; Bobbi ran around to the front to lay down the back seats, giving Daisy more room to lay.
"Knees up," Jemma said briskly.
"Nnnhhh," Daisy groaned, a contraction seizing her.
"Good girl," Jemma said as Bobbi helped Daisy to raise her knees. "Hmm, let's see."
The scientist was practically giddy, and she gave Daisy a smile. "Isn't this wonderful? Our daughter – our daughter… she'll be here soon."
Daisy could do little more than grunt as another contraction rolled over her.
"She's going to be perfect," Jemma breathed. "Oh, and… oh! Her head's right here!"
"'S that the… unhhh… bowling ball thing…?" Daisy asked, gripping Fury's hand. "… trying to… hhhnnnn… break out of me?"
Fury, to his credit, said nothing, though he looked like he wished he was anywhere else.
"Sir, how did you find Daisy?" Bobbi asked.
"A man knows where he's needed," Fury replied simply.
"Okay, love, on the next contraction go ahead and push," Jemma said. "She's crowning now."
Daisy felt exhausted. "I can't," she whispered to Jemma.
"You can," Jemma said. "I know you're very tired, but you've done most of the hard work already!"
"And I'm pretty sure you've broken Fury's hand, so…" Bobbi added.
The contraction built and Daisy screamed, bearing down for as long as she could.
"Good! Good!" Jemma encouraged. "Keep going… five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten…"
Daisy gasped and fell back, limp, against Bobbi and Fury.
Cars from around them began to honk. Bobbi looked over. "Hey, those car windows are shattered…"
She cut herself off quickly.
Jemma's head jerked up. "It's okay, Daisy, don't worry."
"Can't," Daisy grit out. "Too busy. I have to… hmmmm… push again."
"Go for it," Jemma said.
The next series of pushes brought the head out into the world, and the one after that caused the shoulders to appear.
"One more, darling," Jemma said, squeezing Daisy's hands. "One more and she'll be here."
Car alarms were going off and more windows were shattering; Daisy herself felt like an entire drumline was doing their worst in her head. "One more?"
"One more," Jemma confirmed. "Let your body…"
But Daisy bore down, grunting and pushing and sobbing.
The baby slipped free into the world and began to squall, tiny starfish hands waving madly in the air.
"It's a girl!" Jemma said, awed, as though she hadn't known that already. "Hello, sweetheart."
Bobbi cut the cord, and Jemma cleaned up the baby as best as she could before wrapping her in a soft blanket and placing her, stomach down, on Daisy's chest.
"Oh, wow," Daisy breathed, tears streaming down her face. "Hi, little one."
The baby let out one final yell and settled, one fist snaking its way up to her mouth.
"Oh, Jem, she's gorgeous," Daisy whispered reverently as she stroked the baby's back. "Oh, you're gorgeous, little one."
The baby gave a soft mew and began rooting around on Daisy's chest. Fury propped up the semi-clothed agent and Daisy swaddled the baby close to her to breast-feed. "She's perfect," Daisy murmured.
When all was said and done, Coulson and May and Maria Hill showed up on the other side of the freeway, the empty side, landing the smallest quin-jet with extreme precision. May and Coulson bolted towards the car and found Jemma draped around Daisy, Daisy nearly limp with exhaustion, their daughter cradled against Daisy's chest.
"Oh, hi," Daisy said, as though she'd forgotten where she was.
"Did you…?" May asked, her brow furrowed.
"Give birth in the back of a car in the middle of gridlock traffic? Mm-hmm."
For a beat May said nothing. Then she nodded at Daisy. "Good work."
A burst of pride radiated through Daisy's chest. It was as good as if May had set off a confetti cannon.
"Who is this mysterious woman I have yet to meet?" Coulson asked.
Daisy looked up at him. "Director Coulson, this is Charlotte."
"Well, hello," Coulson said. He sat down on the edge of the tailgate, and Jemma gently handed him the baby. "Hello there, bright eyes."
The baby sighed contentedly at him and began gumming her fist.
"Charlotte what?" Coulson wanted to know, still entranced by the tiny person in front of him.
Daisy squeezed Jemma's hand. Her voice slightly wobbly, she said, "Charlotte… Charlotte Skye Johnson-Simmons."
May turned her head abruptly away from the little group in the back of the vehicle, trying not to let the others see the sudden tears that flooded her eyes.
"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," Coulson said, his eyes shining too. "What do you say we get you three out of here, back to some more comfortable accommodations?"
"Sounds like heaven," Daisy said.
On the jet Daisy cradled the baby against her, leaning against Jemma. "She's perfect."
"She's amazing," Jemma said, kissing the top of Daisy's head. "Just like her mother."