A/N: Here is the fluffy one shot I promised after the angst over the past few months. As always I don't own anything other than the words in this order. Warning for slight mention of abuse. I hope you all enjoy.
Jemma was seven when they took their first big family trip, driving across Scotland, visiting all the beautiful sights. She spent most of the traveling time looking out of the window, fascinated by the various fauna and flora native to Scotland. Her brothers were beside her, insisting she sits in the middle after the next bathroom break, something she knows won't end well for them, a fact that her mother reminds them of. Freddie sulked from the middle seat but Eric just laughed at the situation his brother was in, smugly sitting in the other window seat. Their father diplomatically resolved that they would swap seats just like they'd been doing the entire way.
She fell asleep somewhere between Gretna Green and Glasgow, waking up to find that they'd stopped moving. She rubbed her eyes, bleary from her extended nap. Outside the window, she saw her brothers wrestling with each other, unable to hold back her smile seeing them letting off steam. She also saw her mother talking to a woman she didn't recognise, a boy around her age hiding behind the woman's leg. She knew they were in a car park of some sort but none of the buildings looked like their hotel. Curious, she opened the door, walking towards her mother, stumbling only slightly where her legs had gone to sleep during the drive.
"Mum, why have we stopped?" There was no whining tone in her voice as there had been in Freddie's when he'd asked that question moments earlier, Jemma more grown up than her brothers despite being the youngest.
"We got a flat tire sweetheart but it's okay. Your father has gone to find help with this ladies husband. I was just about to wake you." Jemma nodded at her mother's words before turning to the woman, smiling politely to her as a thank you for her kindness to her family, replicating a gratitude she was sure her mother and father had already expressed a dozen times.
"I'm Jemma Simmons. Thank you very much for stopping to help us." Jemma extended her hand to the woman before offering the gesture to the boy, confused when he didn't accept her hand but instead decided to hide into his mother's leg further.
"Leo, don't be rude. I'm very sorry Jemma, my son is a little shy. I'm Linda and this is my son Leopold although he doesn't like being called that." Linda shook Jemma's hand again, before moving her hand to her son's hair, trying to comfort him.
Jemma stood by her mother's side for a while but soon grew uninterested in the adult conversation. She asked her mother if it was okay for her to go and look at the flowers over on the far end of the car park, something her mother agreed to so long as she stayed in sight. She passed her bickering brothers, sticking out her tongue when they complained about her being allowed to be alone. She was much more mature than them but at her heart she was still a child. Listening to parents talk politics made her feel an overwhelming sense of boredom and yet she always felt a childish sense of superiority when she was treated as if she were older.
She sat cross-legged on the small patch of grass, inspecting the colourful patch of flowers, checking them against the large book she had borrowed from her father's extensive library, finding that they weren't tropical flowers as she had hoped but simple daisies. Still, she picked a few, beginning to make a daisy chain like she'd seen other girls do on the playground, a whim that fascinated her when watching from a far distance. She clumsily tied the crown, placing it on her head before picking another flower so she could compare it to the findings of the book. When a shadow lurked over her, she frowned, almost certain it was one of her brothers coming to join her in her scientific curiosity.
"Do you need help with that?" She frowned at the accent, turning to see the boy, Leopold, forcing a smile despite how uncomfortable he clearly was. Jemma knew better than to act distant but she was still hurt after the rudeness he'd shown when he'd ignored her polite greeting.
"You may be able to help. Although this is rather a large book with some large words." She knew it sounded slightly rude but she had experienced teasing from other children at school when they saw the books she read. Her brothers and parents were impressed by her intellect, even most of her teachers but the other children would call her names, keep a large distance around her. It wasn't much of a stretch for her to imagine he would have the same reaction.
"I like science. Mum and dad don't really get it but I like it anyway." He sat beside her, looking over her shoulder at the work she was conducting. "Your writing is a lot neater than mine." He followed her loopy letters with his finger, smiling shyly to her.
"Thank you. I'm looking at the daisies, not exotic but still interesting." The boy, Leopold, reaches forward to pluck the daisy, Jemma gently pushing his hand away from the flower. "That won't help. Not without my chemistry kit. Mum wouldn't let me bring it with me so we can only observe."
Leo nodded, placing his hands back in his lap. Maybe she was right, maybe the words were too long for him, the book too large. "I like to take things apart. Dad won't let me use his tools but mum got me a toolbox for Christmas last year." Leo beamed at Jemma, her eyes brightening at his excitement.
"That sounds brilliant." She reached out, squeezing his shoulder, frowning when he flinched away. "Sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."
Leo ran a hand over his shoulder, shaking his head softly. "No. No it's okay. Not your fault." She could see his eyes darting back to his mother, Linda's smile reflected in his own moments later.
They sat for what felt like hours but in actuality was only minutes, losing themselves trading stories of scientific discovery in both gardens and kitchens. When her mother's voice broke through their chatter, she couldn't help but feel disappointed.
"Jemma, Freddie, Eric. Your dad is back. Time to get ready to leave." Jemma frowned, for once in her life considering throwing a tantrum, despite knowing that they were childish and usually ineffective, especially on her parents. Reluctantly, she pushed herself up, dusting off herself off.
The two shuffled back towards their mothers, being sure to drag their feet slightly in order to prolong their conversation. "Mum wouldn't let me dissect the bird on the kitchen table so dad started to build me my lab. Well it's a shed but I can dissect creatures there." Jemma beamed at him, noticing he wasn't nearly as excited as she was.
"My dad doesn't like my science. He says I should focus on important things like football." He shrugged but Jemma couldn't help the scowl on her face. She turned to the man who was scratching his head as he looked at the car and the tire. How on earth could he not think science was important?
Jemma took Leo's hand, squeezing it tightly. "Never give up. You'll get a lab one day bigger than my shed. You'll be as inventive as Howard Stark just promise you won't give up." She extended her pinky finger towards him, smiling brightly as he wrapped his own finger around her own. She quickly gave him a hug, handing over one of the daisies she'd picked once she pulled back. "Don't lose that, it'll remind you never to give up." With that, they rushed towards the car together, smiling towards their mothers. "It was lovely to meet you Linda."
Freddie barreled over towards them as the Fitz family said their goodbyes, bumping into Alastair, an apology spilling from the boy moments later. Alastair raised his hand towards Freddie but quickly regained his composure when he remembered where he was. Freddie scuttled into the car, quickly followed by Eric and their mother. Jemma could see her father's knuckles turning white, the entire situation confusing her. It had been an accident and Freddie has apologised. Why on earth would a man resort to such brutish behaviour?
"Jemma get in the car now sweetheart." She followed the instruction given to her by her father, her hand pressed to the window as they drove away. She listened to her parents gossip about the family they'd just met but her eyes focused on the surroundings again, scanning the buildings they drove by. One day she would find Leopold again. She would save him from his brute of a father and they'd live happily ever after in the perfect lab, or perhaps in one of the quaint cottages they'd passed on the drive. It didn't matter really.
She didn't get to realise those dreams until almost ten years later at the academy when she saw his name on their chem lab register, only just remembering the boy from the trip to Scotland. She saw him across the room, smiling to herself when she realised maybe they could have their happily ever after, after all.