If they ever aren't all together, it's usually when Skye is on a mission or Fitzsimmons are sent on a recruiting trip to the best universities in America and Britain. The first time they were all apart was a complete coincidence, having nothing to do with the prank war that the three of them had started and that nothing could stop for the whole month it had gone on for.
Skye was taken on an educational tour around all three of SHIELD's academies by May, simply being told that she needed to become more familiar with the usual ways people become agents without worrying about being on a mission.
Ward took Fitz to a training branch in the Fridge to help him think faster when in the field although they all thought if he thought much faster, he'd have the solution before the problem even arose.
Simmons was brought to the Hub under Coulson's supervision to share some of her research in person and decide which hardware tech they would be bringing back to the Bus.
They skyped every night when they were finally allowed to be alone in their hotel rooms, bundled up in blankets with the lights dimmed trying their best to keep the noise down and avoid waking up their travelling companions. Skye was used to being away from the other two so it wasn't so hard on her, it was Fitz and Simmons that seemed most confused by it all. "It's strange waking up alone," Simmons had whispered, eliciting small smiles from the other two.
"Two more sleeps, babe," Skye replied just to see them roll their eyes at her. The only pet names they could get along with were the British ones that sounded just plain weird when Skye tried them so she stuck to the teasing kind. Bae was a definite favourite for her.
Skye was first back on the Bus, May had only left it in a bunker a few miles from the final academy so they could pick up the others after a week apart. Fitz was picked up next, being hugged tightly by Skye as soon as he stepped foot on the ramp. "Skye," He breathed, his arms loosening slightly around her frame. "Skye, this bag is really heavy,"
"Oh, right," Skye murmured with a slight smirk as she let him go and he dropped the duffel to the ground. "You didn't starve while you were gone then," She teased while running a hand through his curls just to make him pout with annoyance.
"You're kidding, right?" Ward said before Fitz could respond, joining the duo with the equally heavy duffel easily slung over his shoulder. "He wouldn't stop eating. The sandwiches Simmons made, the pretzels and twizzlers you packed,"
"Don't forget those peanut butter cup things," Fitz reminded him with a slight smirk. "We don't have those in Britain. It's one of the few things the US does better,"
"I'd be surprised if he hasn't put on at least three pounds," Ward stated causing Fitz to pull a face but not challenge it as he grabbed his bag and began walking the rest of the way up the ramp. "May said you've been keeping up on your daily exercises," Ward continued as they wandered up the stairs and along the corridor to the lounge.
"You and May spoke while we were away?" Skye questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"You're not the only one who knows how to use a phone, Skye," Ward said, barely resisting the temptation of rolling his eyes at her. "We had to keep an eye on all three of you while you were away, make sure you weren't pining too much," He couldn't resist adding that with a smirk though.
"I do not pine, Ward," Fitz stated in a tone so defensive they both grinned at him. "I don't,"
"Whatever you say, Fitz," Ward said, that same smile tugging on the corner of his lips. "You should unpack, Skye and I are due a training session,"
"Ward," Skye whined even if she already knew he wouldn't let her off. "We were gonna bake cookies for when we picked up Simmons. Can't this wait?"
"You've gone a week without any supervision during workouts," He reminded her as they stepped into the lounge, both boys dropping off their bags there. "Come on, a couple hours and you'll be free,"
Skye reluctantly agreed and followed Ward back to the cargo hold, leaving Fitz to unpack and eat the leftover candy tucked into his bag. He waited in his bunk an hour before boredom eventually took over and he wandered down to the cargo hold too. It was nice watching Skye training, all snark and jokes in an attempt to past the time quicker. It would have been even nicer if Ward would let him stand in the same room instead of being stuck in the lab so as not to distract her.
Simmons was picked up nearly three hours after Fitz was. Skye didn't even bother asking to finish the session early, simply wiping the sweat from her forehead and jogging down to hug the girl tightly. Fitz wasn't far behind either, wrapping one arm around Skye and the other around Simmons to breath in the mix of sweat and coconut shampoo.
"Aren't you meant to be training?" Coulson asked with a ghost of smile making all three of them jump then laugh softly.
"I thought we could catch up first, it's been a whole week, Sir," Skye pleaded and batted her eyes in the sweetest way she could manage. Fitz would have been tempted to tease her for it if he hadn't been craving time alone with the two of them.
"There'll be plenty of time to relax later," Coulson stated, all three of them sighing and crossing their arms. "I need to debrief Fitz, Simmons needs to manage the loading of our new equipment and you have training to get back to," He reminded them.
Getting them to stay on track was more effort than seemed worth it for the next three hours that passed, even keeping Skye from staring at Simmons was work enough, not to mention the amount of mixed orders Simmons was giving and the number of times Coulson had to snap his fingers to get Fitz's mind back in the room.
But finally Ward finished training, the loading was complete and Fitz's debrief was finished. They all knew where they were going, no one had to say a word. Fitz's bunk was set in the middle of the girls' bunks so it only made sense to meet there.
"Ward will start making dinner soon," Simmons stated, last to step inside and close the door behind her. "We should probably wait till after," Her tone wasn't all that convincing when Skye began kissing down her neck and Fitz's hand had slid up her shirt to her bra line.
"Screw dinner," Skye murmured onto her flushed skin, running her teeth from her jaw to shoulder with enough friction to make Simmons softly moan as Fitz came up to meet her lips with his.
There wasn't much persuasion needed to guide her to the bed, Skye and Fitz lying her down while kissing at any bit of exposed skin they could find. Skye was beginning to unbutton Simmons' shirt when she sat up with a confused look, reaching behind her to grab something. "Why am I sitting on a bag of twizzlers?" She questioned while trying to refrain from laughing too hard.
"Snacks for later," Fitz answered with a slight shrug. "It's been a week, I thought we might need something to keep our energy levels up," He added as if this were the most obvious thing.
Skye couldn't muffle the laugh that escaped her lips, throwing her head back as Simmons tried to cover her smile while dropping the bag at the end of the bed. "Aw, Fitz," Simmons murmured when she noticed the blush creeping onto his cheeks which quickly disappeared when she pressed a soft kiss to his lips.
"It's a good idea, boo," Skye encouraged, her lips taking over for Simmons when she took a breath. "Where would we be without you?"
"Undressed, for one," Fitz answered, smirking as he began unbuttoning the rest of Simmons' shirt while Skye kissed down his neck and undid his tie.
Simmons' shirt was hanging off her back and Skye was halfway down Fitz's when a knock came on the door. "Hey, I made burgers for everyone if you're hungry," Ward called through the door making all three of them sigh. "You guys in there?" The door began to creak open and Skye quickly jumped into action, being the only one fully clothed still.
"We're just, uh... playing scrabble," She answered while stepping from the bed to the door in one swift movement and blocking the majority of the other two from view with her body. "We'll be right out, just gotta tidy the board up,"
"Oh, okay. Do you-" And then Ward froze when he heard Fitz very distinctly whisper 'have you seen my tie?'. "Are you..." He stopped again, the closest thing to a blush creeping onto his cheeks before he vigorously nodded and took a large step back from the door. "I'll, uh, see you in a minute,"
"Oh my God," Skye grinned from ear to ear as she shut the down and almost collapsed onto Fitz's lap with a fit of giggles running through her. "You... He heard... Oh my God... You should have seen his face,"
"It's not funny, Skye," Fitz whined while suppressing the tug of a smile on his lips and concentrated on tying his tie. "I could have just taken it off to play scrabble, right? It doesn't necessarily mean we were doing anything else,"
"If you two take much longer getting ready then he'll definitely know it was something else," Skye answered as she straightened her shirt and hair that had been ruffled with all the hands running through it.
They gave each other the once over, wiping any trace of themselves of the others before they stepped out into the corridor and found their way down to the lounge. The food was laid out ready for them, all three other agents waiting. Ward's blush was slowly beginning to fade but May and Coulson couldn't look more amused as the three of them sat down and started eating as casually as possible
Conversations eventually warmed up and broke the awkwardness, even if super spy Grant Ward couldn't keep eye contact with any of them for more than a few seconds at a time. Skye and Fitz tried to eat as quickly as they could, receiving an occasional nudge from under the table to pace themselves. Eating quickly wouldn't just tip off their eagerness but indigestion was one hell of a mood killer.
But eventually everyone had finished, the plates were in the dishwasher and they were edging back to their bunks again. "What about a game of scrabble?" Coulson suggested. Simmons was just about to politely except the offer when Skye noticed the corner of his lip turned up in a smirk.
"Actually, Sir, we were thinking of watching a film in Fitz's bunk then turning in for the night. Maybe tomorrow," She answered and then, before the other two could undo her work, lead them out of the lounge.
"Skye," Simmons whined as she tightened her grip on the other girl's hand. "He might figure it out if we don't play scrabble with him,"
"He already knows, babe," She stated with a smirk while skipping the last couple steps to the bunk then sliding the door open. "Now, both of you get in and get naked. No more interruptions."