Two – Shot: Only Words Bleed
Author: Dark Wings Of Imagination
Genre: Drama/Hurt-Comfort/Family
Rating: K+
Summary: ""She can't die, Phil. She just can't" she whispered after some time of simply being held by him, loud enough just for him to hear, in his shirt.
His arms wrapped tighter around her, he hated seeing her like that. He knew just how much Skye meant to May. He could see how much she loved the girl – most times he concludes that it's probably that no one loves that girl more than the broken woman in his arms.
"She won't" he replied, trying to reassure both of them before dropping a kiss on her head. He just hoped he was right."
A\N: Hey there guys! So, this is my first AoS fanfiction. It was written under the influence of many songs, but it was inspired by 'If I Die Young' by The Band Perry, however the title comes from Ed Sheeran's 'Photograph'. I apologize in advance for any mistakes, and for having Skye getting shot again – I still don't know my way around inhuman so I went with what I felt it was right for me, hope it's okay with you. I hope you all like it.
P.S: Next chapter should be up next Sunday.
Not beta-ed, all mistakes are mine.
Chapter 1
"She's dead. Skye's dead" the words echoed inside her head as she stared at the body inside the hardwood coffin. She was surrounded by daisies, and in her little white dress she looked so peaceful - and for a moment Melinda let herself believe the younger woman was simply sleeping, because as hard as she tried she could not accept the fact that her protégé was dead. She couldn't. She wouldn't. Accepting Skye's death was accepting the fact that she failed once again, that because she was there the girl who meant the world to her – the daughter she never allowed herself to have – died.
And even if the team and Phil kept telling her it wasn't her fault, she knew it was. She was her SO, damn it, she was supposed to protect Skye not the other way around. It was not supposed to go as it happened. And once again May lost herself in the memories of the day that became her new Bahrain.
It was an easy mission: get in, free the new inhuman Hydra captured, take him with them and get the hell out of there.
And it all went as planned until Ward's men found them. They were outnumbered, of course - even if the whole team had been there they would still be – and so May and Skye took upon themselves to fight the enemy's soldiers while Fitz – who had been there to help access the systems – ran to the jet with the young boy they rescued.
Shots fired. Punches threw. Blood on their faces – from some mild injuries they had – and hands – literally and figuratively. They were almost out of there when Ward finally appeared, and catching her off guard he entrapped May in his arms. Gun aimed at her head.
"Hello, May" he greeted, voice sickly sweet as she tried to get out of his hold.
"Let me go" she gritted.
"Oh, no, I can't. Not when I have planned so many fun things for me to do with you" he said, a grin on his face as he remembered the tortures he had in store for her.
"What do you want, Ward?" she spat angrily, in between breaths, as he tighten the arm around her neck.
"Closure. You made me kill Kara, and now I'll make you suffer" he said before driving her into the nearest wall, hitting her head against it.
"MAY!" Skye – who as soon as she realized the older agent was neither beside or behind her turned around - screamed once she saw her SO on the floor and ran to her aid, but before she could get to her Ward got in the way.
"Stay out of this, Skye" he warned as he stood between her and Melinda.
"Get out of my way, Ward" she said coldly glaring at him in a way that reminded him very much of the woman he wanted to kill.
"I don't want to hurt you" he told her, and she believed him, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to hurt him if needed – she did once, she'll do again.
"Then let May go" she replied.
"That I can't do" he said.
Skye reached for her gun but before she could get a hold of it Ward aimed his at her.
"Don't make me do this, Skye. I already killed a woman I cared about because of her, I don't want the same to happen to you"
"Let her go, Ward" she pleaded once more.
"Kara is dead because of her. I won't let her walk out of here" he said as he still pointed the gun at her.
"Then you'll have to deal with me" she said as she kicked her powers into action making the entire building shake.
"Stop it, Skye" Ward asked.
"Give me May, and I'll stop" she tried negotiating, it didn't work though as Ward remained on the same spot.
With a flick of her hand she sent him and the gun flying and rushed to May, who thankfully was starting to wake due to younger agent's powers.
After quickly inspecting the older woman for more serious injuries and receiving several 'I'm fine', Skye helped Melinda to her feet, and seeing how unsteadily the other woman was as she tried to stand the young inhuman placed her SO's right arm over her shoulder and began to carry them out of there.
Focused on getting them out and more importantly getting May medical assistance Skye failed to listen Ward getting up from where he landed, but the sound of him pulling the trigger felt like there were dynamites exploding in her head, and before she could think of anything else, she spun May around placing the other woman in front of her as she used herself to shield the woman from the bullets that had her name all over them.
When Melinda realized what her protégé had done was already too late. The girl fell to the ground blood coming out of her wounds and some spilling from her mouth, and before she could process anything else she went for Skye's gun and didn't think twice when she pulled the trigger and put a bullet in Ward's head.
"Agent down. I repeat Agent down, anyone copy that" she said into her com but apparently it had been damaged. "Damn it!" she cursed.
As she looked down at the girl in her arms she had a hard time trying to suppress her tears – it was not the time for her to break down.
"C'mon Skye, you can't die. You just can't, ok?" she said as she tried to find a way to stop the bleeding, but with more than one wound there wasn't much she could do. And just when she was giving up on hope she heard static – and for a moment there she thought she had gone mad already – and she thanked whoever was listening Fitz had insisted Skye took a walkie-talkie with her.
Pressing the button May was sure she had never been so happy hearing the young engineer's voice "Skye, where are you two? We have to leave"
"Ward shot Skye, we need to get her to a hospital soon" May said as she tightened her hold on the girl.
"Oh my god! Okay, we're going down there to help you. Just hold in there May" Fitz said and she could hear him move around nervously as he rushed to get to them.
"They're coming, Skye. You're going to be okay." Melinda said as she turned her attention back to the other agent. "Please, Skye, I can't lose you" she pleaded, tears spilling from her eyes at their own accord.
After what it felt like an eternity Fitz and the younger boy they rescued finally reached them, with the uttermost care in the world the boy who conveniently had super strength lifted Skye in his arms and carried her to the jet.
"You're okay?" Leo asked as he helped Melinda up.
"I'll be as soon as we get Skye some help" she answered "Find the nearest hospital, give me the coordinates and see what you can do to help her" she demanded just as they set foot inside the plane.
Fitz did as he was told, and soon they were on their way to the hospital he had found on line. However when they finally got there it was too late.
She had lost too much blood and one of the bullets had hit an artery, there was nothing they could have done.
And that was what led her to be standing in a cemetery, barely forty-eight hours later, as she watched the girl she loved so much be buried. She lost whatever was left of herself that day.
-/-
Melinda awoke gasping for air, her hands fisting around her sheets, her hair sticking to the sweat on her face. It all had felt so real.
Ever since she left The Playground she regretted not having talked things through with Skye, she knew the younger woman didn't really mean to hurt her, and she wanted to tell her she knew it – and apologize for everything she's done as well - but she thought that perhaps the talking could wait 'til she was back. It wasn't like the girl would go anywhere else, right?
She had been ignoring the nagging feeling for the whole two weeks she'd been away but that nightmare it had set off something within her and whatever it was she didn't like it not even a bit.
Driven by her emotions she grabbed her phone intending to call Skye to check on her – if only to calm herself – when she saw what time it was.
"4:03 a.m. Great" she mumbled grumpily, knowing she couldn't call at the moment, after all she was in the same time zone they were – assuming of course they were at the base – and wake up the young girl.
Fighting the urge to call despite the early hour – she had a feeling Skye was taking advantage of her being away so she could sleep in – she got up and went on with her morning routine knowing that for her there was no going back to sleep.
For the next seven hours or so May tried finding ways to keep herself entertained and not to call straight away.
"Everything's all right. Skye's fine. Nothing happened" she repeated those words like a mantra and just when she was beginning to actually believe them her phone ringed and immediately she felt her pulse quicken at the sight of Coulson's name on her screen.
"Phil" she greeted trying not to sound as apprehensive as she felt.
"May. Skye, she's…" he trailed off and it just made Melinda even more nervous and desperate.
"She's what, Phil? Please tell me she's alive" she said, dread filling ever cell in her body.
"She is, but barely. Perhaps you should come" he elaborated and the tone in his voice sent her the exact message she had tried all morning not let go into her head: she was going to lose her little girl.
"I'm on my way" she said as she moved around throwing whatever she deemed necessary in her duffel bag and before she knew it she was out of her hotel room.
-/-
The one hour and half plane ride was horribly agonizing but worse than that was the sight of Phil's haunted expression as she awaited her in the airport. She couldn't help herself from running into his arms when she finally saw him. She knew he was confused at the gesture but he didn't mention. Judging by the day's events he needed of her just as much as she needed him.
They walked hand in hand to the car – both too caught up on their worries to actually care about what the gesture could mean in their quite complex friendship. Silence reigning over them until they were inside it.
"Please, tell me I'm not too late" she asked after buckling up and he started the car.
"You're not. The doctors said her surgery was going to be long" he said eyes on the road, unable to look at her at the moment.
"How bad is it?" she asked and couldn't disguise the dread she felt.
"Very. We were trying to bring in an inhuman girl, she's sixteen, she has the power to move objects, and everything was going fine until the girl's brother appeared, he is older than her, about Skye's age, he thought we were going to hurt her and tried attacking us, he went for me first since I was the one holding his sister's hand, but Skye got in the way and he ended up getting her" Phil explained and she could tell he was trying very hard not to let his emotions get the best of him.
"He was inhuman?" she asked, she hated making him talking about it, but she needed to know just what she would be dealing with when she went to kill the bastard who put the lives of the people she loved in danger.
Phil nodded before answering "Super-fast. He had a gun. He shot her on her right side"
She felt her insides turn uncomfortably at the horrible resemblance between what happened to them and what happened in her nightmare. He looked so devastated, and she understood it, Skye had taken the bullet for him and because of that she was in a hospital bed getting cut open so the doctors could try and fix her, she would feel the same if it had been her.
Reaching out she took his hand in hers and laced their fingers together in attempt of comfort.
Sooner than she thought and longer than what would have liked they reached the hospital Skye was in – Jemma insisted she was taken to a hospital instead of The Playground, it was faster and they had the right resources and specialists needed in that case.
Once in the waiting room Phil waited for Melinda to greet the rest of the team – which actually meant seeing May get more hugs than he ever thought he'd see, but he knew that with all that was happening they just needed to assure themselves of each other's presence – before turning to them asking if there were any updates on Skye.
"I talked to a nurse, Sir, and she said we should be looking into a little more than just a couple of hours. Apparently the bullet damaged extremely sensible areas and they're doing everything they can to solve it, but it will take time" Jemma explained tears prickling at her eyes as she felt her heart clench at having her friends in a situation like this for a second time.
Phil breathed in deeply before turning to her once more, "Okay, thank you, Jemma. Why don't you guys go to the cafeteria and find something to eat or drink?"
Protests of 'I'm no hungry' and 'I'm fine' were said before Coulson spoke again, "It was not a suggestion, agents"
Soon enough the rest of the team scurried away and he and May were left alone. He had seen the horror in face as listened to Jemma's words, she needed a moment to process everything, and therefore he ordered the team to go.
No long after they were out of sight she buried herself in his arms, silent tears making their way down her face and staining his shirt.
"She can't die, Phil. She just can't" she whispered after some time of simply being held by him, loud enough just for him to hear, in his shirt.
His arms wrapped tighter around her, he hated seeing her like that. He knew just how much Skye meant to May. He could see how much she loved the girl – most times he concludes that it's probably that no one loves that girl more than the broken woman in his arms.
"She won't" he replied, trying to reassure both of them before dropping a kiss on her head. He just hoped he was right.
Thanks for reading it.