"According to this," Skye said, "the armor only increases feelings of protectiveness. What I don't get is how that's a bad thing?"

"Imagine a stalker who thinks it's the rest of the world that's putting the object of his obsession in danger," Grant said dryly as he flexed his fingers. They still itched from contact with the damn breastplate. Just once he'd like to find an alien object that didn't have some terrible side effect. An Amulet of Feeling Slightly More Positive maybe. Or a Belt of Remembering Where You Left Your Keys.

"Oh. I'll go brief Fitz and Simmons then."

"I can do it." Grant was already on his feet and besides, there wasn't much he could do up here. At least down in the cargo bay he could get a workout in.

"I," Skye drew out the word as she moved to cut him off, "don't think that's a good idea."

It was cute that she thought she actually stood a chance of stopping him from getting anywhere. "And why is that?"

She held up her tablet, still on the file on the armor. "'Increases feelings of protectiveness'? As in, the feelings you already have?"

"So? My job is protecting everyone on the Bus and I'm fine around you. Obviously the effects aren't so bad, so long as we're not in any danger." He stepped to his right. Skye stepped to her left.

"Maybe. Or they're slowly building up to that creepy stalker level you mentioned." She looked at him askance. "Are you? Having creepy stalker feelings?"

"About you? No." He grabbed her shoulders to physically move her out of his way.

The soles of her shoes squeaked against the tiled floor of the briefing room as she rushed to catch up. She managed to get ahead of him again at the stairs. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared her down, attempting to imitate Garrett's best angry S.O. face. She didn't seem nearly as cowed as Grant always had been by it though.

"What is this about?" he asked.

"Ward," she said seriously. "Come on. You can't tell me you don't know."

He angled his head a little closer to her, inviting her to enlighten him.

"Oh, wow. You don't know. This is awkward." She clutched her tablet to her chest and looked about for support. Finding none, she gave him a pleading look. "You seriously haven't noticed that you always save Simmons first?"

Grant blinked. And pulled back. And loosed his stance just a little.

"I…"

He…

His eyes widened as he thought back on their most recent missions, on all the ones that had put the team in danger. It wasn't always. But if Simmons was ever close enough? Yeah, he went for her first. Without fail.

"Shit."

Skye patted his shoulder comfortingly. "Yeah. So you go on back to the briefing room and contemplate your burgeoning crush, and I'll go downstairs. Alone."

Numbly, Grant did as she said. He called up the live feed from the lab and immediately spotted Simmons. Which did not mean he had a crush. Unlike Skye, he wasn't eight years old. It was only because they'd been talking about her. That was all.

If he tracked her movements and barely paid attention to Fitz or Skye unless they were near her, well, that was for him to know.