She's really pretty. And he's an awkward mess. He knows she's not his type, but if there's anything that has been rubbed off on him by Jemma, its hopefulness.
It doesn't take him long to figure it out, though. Jemma was always so easy for him to read, and he notices. They're both glancing longingly at the same person, smitten. It's hard because they've never once liked the same person before, and he's heard horror stories of best friends fighting over the object of their affection only to break apart and never see each other again, and there was no way in hell that he was going to let that happen. She was his best friend, for heaven's sake.
Neither of them brought it up, but they both knew. It just didn't need to be communicated, because honestly, they understood each other, and both being analytically minded, logic based people, they could reason why the other was interested in the badass hacker.
They'd been in the lab for twelve hours straight when Jemma frowns and sways a bit on her feet. Fitz darts forward as quick as he can to steady her, and then gives her a frown.
"When did you last eat or hydrate?"
Jemma gives him a sheepish smile, despite her dizzy spell, and admits softly, "Yesterday. But I couldn't leave the specimen, they're evolving so quickly, I just didn't want to miss anything, it's all so fascinating-"
He rolls his eyes, because she always does this. Well, technically they both do, and they always end up calling each other on it, only this time he'd assumed she had eaten when Skye brought them sandwiches earlier. His gaze searches the lab until it falls on its target, the untouched, now stale, sandwich. "Bloody hell Jemma, you could have stopped for five minutes to eat. That was your favourite sandwich!"
She looks guiltily towards it and sighs, "I know, I'm sorry. But I still can't leave, this is the most important phase, I think they may grow tails soon," She gives him that look, the one that she's used to control him since the academy, and with a groan he nods.
"Urgh, fine, you just do your observing and I'll go and get you a damn sandwich." He mutters, thinking again that she should bloody well appreciate the things he does for her, and then remembering that she's done quite a lot for him as well.
"Thank you, Leo!" She calls sweetly after him, and he can't help the smile that grows on his face. he takes the stale one with him, and he's only just turned into the kitchen when he sees her.
She's got adorable down to a T. He offers a nervous smile, but she's not looking at him, she's looking at the sandwich he's holding.
"She didn't like it?" She frowns, eyebrows knitting together as she closes her laptop and gets up from the stool, "I thought it was her favourite, I got Ward to help me…was there too much lettuce? I knew I should have used less, but he was all, 'I'm Grant Ward and I've made sandwiches for the president' or something."
He can't believe he didn't realise it sooner. Her favorite sandwich. Skye constantly pulling Jemma back out of danger whenever she thought anything was going to happen at all. Why she was constantly in the lab. The way Skye's eyes often drifted towards he and Jemma, but no, it was Jemma she was looking at. He thinks he should be upset, but rather, he's picturing Jemma's face when he tells her Skye likes her back and he's thinking how proud he'll be to be the one to put that grin there. It's a little sad though, but he's happy as long as Jemma is.
"Actually, she would have liked it. Really, Skye. She's jus' very…focused on her work." He hopes he's worded this well enough to deflate Skye's worries, but now she just looks even more upset.
"She didn't even try it?"
"Er, not exactly. Its nothin' personal, Skye, she always gets like this when she finds something this strange. She's hardly left her bench. Don't think she's even used the loo." god, he did not just bring up the Loo and Jemma in the same sentence. He mentally slapped himself and tried to move the subject. "She didn't even change her shirt, and I know for a fact that its too tight on her, she won't stop complainin'." He gets the reaction he had suspected he might, and Skye smirks a little.
"Yeah, I noticed." She murmurs, biting her lip. He's a little annoyed with himself for still thinking her cute. "Hey, wait a minute, if she didn't eat the sandwich she can't have eaten in like…" She counts the hours and then scrunches up her nose. "A while," she settles on when she can't think of an exact number.
"Yeah, she was gettin' dizzy so I came to get her a new one. And weird thing," he's a terrible liar and he leans nervously against the counter, all awkward winces and grimaces, "I just remembered I have to do…something….so, uh, would you mind making her a new one and getting her to eat it for me?"
Skye looks so worried that he suddenly feels an immense warmth towards her, as well as his thankfuly receding slightly crush. He's just so pleased that she really, really cares about his best friend, that this won't be a fleeting thing. No matter how much he likes her, if there was a threat of heartbreak for Jemma, he'd have to take action. And by action make a few awkward threats and never follow through but hope that she took them seriously.
"Yeah, yeah of course. Are you sure she should be alone until then though?" She glances toward the door as if she wants to check on her right away, but Fitz gives her what he hopes is a tough look.
"She's been through worse than this, she'll be okay, s'long as you get on ta' that sandwich."
She nods as though she's just been given an order by Coulson, and starts pulling out ingredients. He feels kind of impressed with himself, putting this together. He hesitates on his way back to his bunk though, considering Skye's concern, but then remembers there's an alarm in the lab that sets off if any large weights hit the floor in the lab. (Courtesy of Dopey, flying about and keeping tabs on her).
Skye puts the sandwich together in a hurry, and then doesn't bother putting anything away (what? Jemma needs this sandwich ASAP, its got nothing to do with the fact she doesn't care for cleaning), just rushing downstairs. She sees Jemma through the glass doors, leaning over something and bouncing on her feet to keep herself sighs in exasperation at the biochemists antics, she was beyond predictable, but this was something she needed to stop doing. Some things really could wait a few hours for her to get fed and take a nap.
"Hey, what's that?" She asks as she strides through the door, and Jemma jumps, her goggles falling from pushed back over her hair to covering her eyes. She takes them off, blushing madly, and smiles brightly.
"Hello, Skye. This is what I believe to be, a form of alien living matter. Not quite sure of much else apart from it's accelerated evolution and that the cells aren't multiplying at all." She explains in terms Skye will understand, and her eyes catch on the plate Skye's holding. Did Fitz send her down here? That made no sense.
"That actually sounds kind of cool. Buuuut, not as cool as this sandwich. C'mon Jem, I know you're hungry."
"What about you?"
"I'm not hungry."
"Youre always hungry."
"Not after a tub of yoghurt and four slices of pizza, i'm not."
"Honestly, you have the most efficient metabolism I've ever known about."
"I think it's all the training, I'm probably burning 5 times my daily intake."
She takes a bite of the sandwich and actually makes this little adorable noise of contentment, and after she's swallowed it she looks at Skye with those big bright eyes, and says, "it's perfect. Thank you, Skye,"
Skye just smiles and nods, and when Fitz comes down to check on them later to see if it went to plan, he scowls and kicks the air like a cartoon character because it seems very much like they're just chatting, like bloody friends! Neither of them can take a hint obviously. He's going to have to up his game.
