A/N: Gosh, I really hope you guys like this last installment. I had a really rough day today and I kind of used this chapter as an outlet of sorts, so sorry if it's a little angsty. I wasn't planning on it being this way, but it is what it is. I was contemplating on whether I should post this now or wait until tomorrow, so that I could change it up a bit, but I figured ya'll wouldn't want to wait much longer, so here it is. I apologize in advance.

Warning: I think there's a swear word or two in here somewhere…

Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel or anything in its Universe. If I did, Skye and Ward would have hooked up by the end of the first episode…

Grant lay in bed, careful not to jostle the sleeping girl beside him. He'd been awake for almost an hour, but Skye seemed to be in a peaceful sleep, and he'd be damned if he woke her up from that. So, instead of doing his regular morning routine and heading to the gym, he'd opted to catch up on some reading. However, that had proven difficult, considering all he could think about was his frightened rookie.

He was almost 100% sure that whatever was going on with Skye, had to do with her past. He'd been stuck at the Academy for a few hours without her, but when the team had come back for him, Skye had seemed… different somehow. More subdued and withdrawn.

He should have talked to her then, but he wasn't exactly an expert at the whole sharing and caring thing… at least until now. While he didn't like to admit it, being on this team had definitely softened him up a bit.

One member in particular…

Ward glanced down at the person in question, feeling her shift beside him.

He smiled softly, watching as her eyes fluttered open.

"Morning." He said quietly, setting his book down.

Skye smiled up at him shyly, taking in their current position.

Her body was pressed to Ward's side, her head resting on his shoulder, one arm pinned between their bodies and one stretched across his waist, and one of her legs tangled between his. Even if Ward had wanted to move, she pretty much had him trapped.

"I'm sorry." She said, beginning to untangle herself from him self-consciously.

Ward brought his arm around her and kept her in place, secretly loving the closeness between them.

"Hey, it's ok." He assured her softly. "Stay."

Skye nodded silently and laid her head down on his chest, the soft beat of his heart helping her relax.

They both remained quiet for a while. Skye thinking about how she was going to tell Grant everything Coulson had told her, and Ward drawing soothing circles on her back, giving her the time she clearly needed.

"Thank you for letting me stay." Skye said, breaking the silence first.

Ward glanced down, not stopping his ministrations on her back. "Did it help?"

"Best sleep I've gotten in a long time." She said honestly.

Ward smiled, glad he could help her.

"I guess we should talk about it, huh?"

"We don't have to if you don't want to, Skye."

Skye sighed, reluctantly pulling away from him and sitting up, immediately missing his warmth.

Ward pushed up on his elbows and shuffled back so that he was upright and leaning against the wall.

"It's bad." She said, biting her lip nervously. "And it scares me to tell you."

Ward reached out and grabbed her hand in his; trying his best to reassure her that it was ok.

"Don't be scared. Not with me." He said, squeezing her hand lightly. "Whatever it is, I'll still be here."

Skye nodded silently and looked away, not feeling strong enough to face him while she explained.

"Coulson and May know, but they made me promise not to tell you, Jemma, or Fitz." She said quietly, "But I'm sick of all these damn secrets, Grant. I don't want to do it anymore… not to you."

Ward leaned forward, gently turning her head with his finger, so that she was looking at him.

"Whatever you tell me right now, will not leave this room, Skye." He promised. "Trust me, please."

She closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. "I do trust you. I trust you more than I've ever trusted anyone in my life."

Ward's chest tightened at her words; the conviction behind them causing a flurry of emotions to pass through him. Fear, protectiveness, happiness… love?

What the hell was happening?

Skye pulled away and sat back against the wall near the window, careful not to pull her hand loose from his. She needed him.

"Remember the day Coulson and May dropped us off at the Academy, while they went off to "deal with something" on their own?"

Ward nodded, remembering how suspicious they'd all been when May had told them they'd be going on the mission alone.

"Turns out May had tracked down someone from my past." She sighed sadly. "A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent named Richard Lumley. Coulson said he had been hiding out in Mexico or something… that isn't important though. What is important is that he knew me."

"How?"

Skye shifted nervously, bringing her knees up to her chest, unconsciously wrapping Ward's hoodie tighter around herself with her free hand.

Ward noticed the way she wrapped the hoodie around herself protectively, bringing a small smile to his face. He was glad that something as simple as his sweater could make her feel safe and secure.

"Lumley and his partner, Agent Avery, had been assigned to track down a 0-8-4 in a small remote village of China. A team had been sent in a little while before them, but something had gone wrong, so their team got sent in as backup." She explained, starting to feel her anxiety rise as she got closer to the real truth.

"Hey, it's ok." Ward rubbed soothing circles on her palm, feeling her start to tremble lightly.

"Agent Lumley told Coulson that when he and Avery arrived with their team, everyone… the-"She took a deep breath, trying to keep the tears forming in her eyes back. "Everything was on fire. Everyone was dead. The people who lived in the village, the S.H.I.E.L.D team… everyone." She cried, unable to stop herself.

Ward pulled Skye towards him, wanting her closer. He had a feeling things were about to get a lot heavier than this.

"Agent Lumley and Avery fought their way into the area, along with their team, trying to look for survivors, and stumbled on one of the agents. He was already dead, but he was holding onto the 0-8-4, so Avery took it and got it onto the bus safely with Lumley."

Ward watched as the color slowly drained from her face and her breathing picked up a bit. He pulled Skye closer, practically sitting her on his lap, and took her face in his hands.

"Take it easy." He soothed, "Breathe Skye."

Skye leaned in closer, locking eyes with his. She had never been more terrified than she was in this moment.

Say it. Just say it. She ordered herself.

"Ward…"

"It's ok." He assured her, wiping away a stray tear with the pad of his thumb.

"I'm the 0-8-4." She whispered brokenly, watching his face for any reaction.

Ward remained still for a few moments, trying to process what he'd just heard come out of Skye's mouth. 0-8-4. Skye- his rookie- was a… an unknown?

"Ward, say something… please." She whispered, tears streaming down her face.

Ward pulled back suddenly, letting go of her in the process, and got off the bed.

"Grant—"

Ward looked over at her, a deep frown marring his face. He needed a minute. Just one minute.

Without saying a word, he turned his back on her and walked out of the room, shattering Skye's world in the process.

AoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoS

Skye felt numb.

She'd lost track of time at this point, so she didn't know how long she'd been sitting in his room for, afraid- unable - to move.

The tears had long since dried up, leaving nothing but white salty trails down her cheeks, and an empty feeling in her heart.

Ward walking out on her shouldn't have been a surprise. She knew it would happen. She knew it and she had been ok with it, because telling him the truth- trusting him- was a hell of a lot better than lying to him and risk him finding out later, and hating her for it.

So why couldn't she move then? Why did it feel like someone had literally ripped her heart out of her chest? Why was it so hard to fucking breathe without him in the room?

She knew this would happen.

AoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoS

Ward paced the length of Skye's bunk as he tried to process everything she'd told him.

He knew Skye was probably upset about him walking out, but he just needed a minute to get his head together.

The agent in him, all his years of training, told him that she was a threat. 0-8-4's were nothing to mess with. They were dangerous. But he knew her. He, Grant, not Agent Ward, knew that Skye was anything but dangerous.

Skye was the happiest, most positive, and selfless person he'd ever met. No matter how hard he pushed her or how many times he hurt her with his words or actions, Skye never held a grudge against him or anyone else for that matter. What he saw as complete disrespect for authority, she considered standing up for those who couldn't stand up for themselves. What he saw as collateral damage, she saw victims… faces… real people.

No, Skye was not dangerous at all. His rookie was all heart, and he was going to make sure she stayed that way.

Her 0-8-4 status didn't matter. At least not when it came to their personal relationship and how he viewed her. She was still going to be his pain-in-the-ass, 'can't shoot a gun worth a damn', bleeding heart, rookie. And if anyone ever tried to take her away from him, a 0-8-4 would be the least of anyone's concern.

AoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoSAoS

Ward hurried back to his bunk, cursing at himself for losing track of time.

His door was the same as he'd left it, so Skye hadn't left.

Thank God. He thought, sliding the door open and stepping in.

He turned towards his bed and froze.

Skye hadn't moved from the spot he'd left her in, except for the fact that she was currently rocking back and forth. Her face was devoid of any expression as she stared blankly at the clock on his bedside table.

He walked to the bed, careful not to startle her, and took a seat beside her, wincing as he noticed the dried tear marks down her face.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

"Skye…"

Ward swallowed, his throat suddenly feeling dry.

"Skye, you with me?" he asked, tentatively touching her hand.

Skye startled at the touch, pulling her hand back, but not breaking the contact. She raised her gaze to Ward's, but he could tell that she still wasn't with him yet.

"I'm sorr—"

"You left." She whispered brokenly, cutting him off.

"I'm sorry. I just needed a—"

"I knew you'd leave me." She muttered, almost as if she hadn't heard Ward talk. "I knew it would happen..."

Ward's jaw clenched as he tried to keep it together. Skye looked… broken, and it was his fault.

"Skye, listen to me." He said taking both of her hands in his. "I need you to listen, ok?" he shook her a little wanting to make sure she was hearing him.

Skye locked eyes with him letting him know she was listening.

"I'm not leaving you." He started to explain.

"But—"

"Stop, just listen to me." He said cutting her off.

Skye nodded silently.

"I'm not leaving you. Not now and not ever." He assured her. "I just- I needed a minute alone to process it all."

Skye continued to stare silently, blinking a few times as moisture started to build up in her eyes.

Ward's gaze softened as her eyes watered, chastising himself for hurting her.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, leaning his forehead against hers. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

Skye closed her eyes and took a deep breath, the air around her suddenly not so thick anymore.

"Are you scared?" she muttered quietly.

Ward frowned.

"Of what?"

"Of me."

Ward pulled away a distressed look on his face.

"Hell no." He said without hesitation. "You're still the same Skye. You're still my Skye. Nothing is going to change that."

Skye gasped quietly at his words. She was his Skye?

"After today, we're not discussing this again." He said matter of fact. "May and Coulson will not know that I know. Nothing has changed." He said, looking at her sternly.

"But they have changed, Grant." She said, pulling back a little. "People are after me. The same people that massacred an entire village and killed dozens of S.H.I.E.L.D agents! I don't want anyone else to die protecting me. I don't want you to die. I can't lose you." She cried brokenly.

"No one is going to die, Skye. They can't hurt you if they can't find you." He smirked.

"What if they do? What if someone finds out what I am and—"

"No one is going to find out."

"Bu—"

"But if anyone ever did find out and those people came after you, they'd never get close to you." He promised. "I'm won't let anyone hurt you, Skye."

"What if they hurt you first? What if you die trying to protect me, Grant?" she said tearfully, shaking her head as images of Ward dying plagued her mind.

Ward sighed, pulling her closer.

"Skye-"

"I can't lose you." She whispered softly.

"You won't." he promised, wrapping his arms around her waist.

Skye shuffled forward, closing the gap between them, and threw her arms around his neck, pulling his body flush against hers.

"I got you, Skye." He whispered softly, rocking them back and forth soothingly.

"I know." She whispered back.

Ward smiled, hugging her just a little bit tighter. No one would ever get close enough to her to hurt her as long as he was around.

Skye relaxed into his hold, happy for once.

Safe.

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! See you on the next one! Reviews are love, so leave me some love please!

3 Pixiee