I don't own SHIELD and never will. No copyright infringement intended.

So the thing is, Ward's never actually gone on a date before (nobody likes to discuss the reasons why because it makes them sad) and he's a little panicked about it. The team finds it amusing (and a little bit adorable, but they won't admit that out loud to him). "What if I mess this up?" he asked Jemma.

"You are going to if you keep panicking like this. You both love each other and you'll figure it out. And if you screw it up, you'll recover and make up for it." She grinned at him.

He glared. "Thanks for the pep talk. Really appreciate it."

"You're welcome." She smiled and sat down in a chair to watch him panic.

Fitz made sure to look in Ward's eyes and resisted the urge to laugh because his best friend didn't need this from him right now. He needed to be calmed down. "Jemma was right about you loving each other. I know you've never been out on a date before and don't have much experience but it's nothing to freak out over. You're just going out to eat, yes?"

Ward nodded. "Yeah, we decided eating out was a good place to start."

And that's when Trip stepped in. "You've gone out to eat with her before haven't you? This is exactly the same except for that not going as friends thing. Calm down and relax, Ward."

"You'll do fine," reassured Fitz.

"Am I going to have to give someone the safe sex talk?" Ward cringed when Coulson stepped into the room.

"Sir, don't embarrass him. Ward's scared enough already," Jemma scolded. She couldn't stop smiling, an action that calmed Ward down just a teensy little bit.

May stared at Ward, looking completely unimpressed. "If you hurt her, you will face the consequences. Don't hurt her."

He stood up straight. "I won't hurt her, May. I've done that enough and I don't plan on doing it again." He still hated himself and felt guilty for everything that he had done for Garrett.

"Good. Have fun!" May waved and pulled Coulson away from the four of them, ignoring his protests that he needed to threaten Ward too.

"Are you 'picking up' Skye or is she meeting you out here?" Jemma wanted to take pictures of this momentous occasion but Fitz wouldn't let. Oh well, she can figure out a way to sneak some just so Skye and Ward could have some more memories of the night.

"We're meeting out here."

"Remember to walk her back to her door at the end of the night so she doesn't get hurt." Trip looked amused (as did everyone else).

"It's not that funny! I needed your help for real." Ward sat down and started pouting, setting off the others. He jumped up as soon as he saw Skye however. The sight of her took his breath away.

"I'm ready," Skye told him. Her gaze softened once she realized that he seemed to be freaking out a tiny little bit.

And that's when he found his voice again. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you. You look pretty cleaned up yourself, Grant." She eyed him appreciatively and he laughed.

Ward grabbed Skye's hand and waved goodbye to the others as they began to depart the plane.

"Be safe and don't knock her up!" Trip called. He let out an oomph when Jemma hit him in the stomach.

"Don't panic, Ward!"

"Have fun!" Fitz screamed, unsure if they could hear him or them (they had). He just wanted this to go well for both Skye and Ward's sakes. The whole team hadn't had an easy time of it since Hydra came out of the shadows, but they were all working to get back to normal. And he was finally recovered from his lingering health issues (Ward still felt guilty, but Fitz and Jemma had forgiven the specialist).

The drive to the restaurant didn't take that long so Ward's nerves didn't amp up – they leveled out and he slowly began to calm down. By the time they reached their destination, he was ready for this. "You picked a great place," Skye murmured as they sat down.

"Really?" He had debated for hours on where to go until Jemma, May, and Trip sat down with him and helped him decide.

She nodded. "Good job, Grant."

He sighed in relief. "So what are you going to eat?" Ward already had an idea but he really didn't want to fuck this up.

"I'm not sure yet." Skye thought his nervousness was adorable and just wanted to reassure him that this was going well so far and he had nothing to worry about. He'd realize that on his own soon enough, however. "You having fun?"

Ward didn't even hesitate when he answered. "A lot of fun. My first ever date is going well."

Her eyes sparkled with happiness. "Great – I'm really happy about that." She hoped his nerves and/or self-loathing didn't kick in and ruin the night. Neither of them needed that, especially him.

The waiter came back and took their orders a few minutes later, and the two sat there and talked about random topics while they waited. Since they spent most of their time together there really wasn't all that much to talk about. Fortunately, there weren't any awkward silences or anything like that so everything went as planned.

"Are you having fun?" Ward asked after she finished her dessert a little while later.

"Yeah, I am. This was a really great idea, and thank you for finally working up the courage to finally ask me. How about you?"

"Tonight was one of the most fun nights of my life. It was a pretty amazing first date." His beam lit up the entire restaurant and she melted.

"Great!" After they paid the bill, Skye grabbed his hand and they took a walk around the park near the restaurant.

Skye and Ward were nearly at the end when she stopped and kissed him. He ran his hand through her hair and moaned then pulled away with a dazed look. "I'll never get tired of that," Ward proclaimed.

Skye laughed. "I'm glad. You want to head back now?"

"Sure." They walked back to the car holding hands, neither able to stop smiling.

This was a first date that went extremely well for the two SHIELD agents. They would also go on many more whenever they had the opportunity to get away. And their family continued to be as supportive (and teasing) as they possibly could be. And Jemma and May pumped Skye for as much information as they could when she got home while Fitz and Trip did the same thing to Ward.