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Drop a review to tell me what you think about this chapter: I love to talk with you and reading what you think makes my day(and makes me smile rather stupidly..).

Off we go!

P.S: This story has been re-edited. Thanks to StarryDreamer01 who has become my wonderful Beta. :)

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN AGENTS OF SHIELD.

Chapter 2

First Impressions

She couldn't shake the question off her mind.

Were these two agents?

She looked at them as they settled into the meeting room while she was sitting down on a chair in a corner after having handed over the driver's license she took from Mike Peterson.

They were both pouring over the information appearing on the tablet -like table. The very cool tablet-like-table that allowed windows with information of Mike Peterson to appear on it's whole length after his license ID was scanned. Scanned on the moment. Just who invented this thing?

She tried to curb her inner enthusiasm and watched the odd pair: they were standing close to each other, opposite Agent May. Fitz and Simmons didn't even blink an eye as the dozen of windows appeared and located themselves on their own. They must have seen this stuff countless times..

Coulson briefed the two scientists, Scary Woman and herself with all the info about Mike. Hearing his story and understanding that the guy just went through a bad moment that then snowballed into a whole series of bad events, made her guilty and angry all together.

She got up and started pacing through the room, vaguely listening to Coulson's words and watching: the others' expressions, the room, the outside of the room..

She refocused only when he addressed the scientist, Fitz, about the footage of the security cameras before the blast.

This got her attention.

'How did they even get a footage after that hell of a blast?' She wondered, standing near May. Not too near though.

Fitz straightened and tapped a screen on the table and an image appeared on the monitor in front of her. Seriously, the whole table was touch screen?

'Focus, Skye...' She told herself and looked at the image. It was grainy and not that clear: it showed two men, one clearly mad.

"What are we seeing?" May asked, voicing her thoughts.

"Well, the man is angry.." Fitz said slowly, "..at the other man."

She stared at him. As did Coulson and May.

Seriously?

What the hell was this SHIELD-nerd thinking? She could have come up with the same information using her plain laptop and without any qualifications or anything..!

"The data is very corrupt," Simmons explained. She was defending Fitz, she realized, probably noticing the not-too-subtle stares.

"Yeah, like cold war Russia corrupt," Fitz remarked, scoffing.

"Yeah.."Simmons nodded in agreement.

"I can't sync the time code-"

She decided to pitch in and help these sort of lost scientists/agents.

"What if you had the audio?" She asked.

Fitz and Simmons's heads whipped around. Coulson and May turned to her as well.

Feeling slightly nervous for all the attention, she explained about the digital files in her van, taken before the blast.

"There's too much background noise but you could probably-" She tried not to seem too doubtful but Simmons cut through her sentence.

"You can take care of that, can't you?" She asked Fitz who looked thoughtful as she started speaking in some language that was English to her ears (and with their accents, it was full UK English..) but whatever words she heard didn't make any sense to her brain.

Fitz wasn't having her problems because he retorted about something in the same language and the two started to discuss quietly between them.

Okaay... so maybe these two were some serious, brainy scientists after all..

She stared, unsure of what they were saying and how they even understood each other. She stole a glance at May, who was staring at the two scientists like she did and then at Coulson who just looked at them with a patient, mildly amused look. She had the feeling that this wasn't the first time he watched a scene like this.

"Brilliant!" Fitz exclaimed, brightening at something Simmons had said and she smiled at him. Both turned towards her.

"That audio would be great. Thank you very, very much," Fitz said.

"We will take the audio, please." Simmons said at the same moment, smiling broadly. Did she always smile like that..?

She blinked, nodding slowly with a weak smile, unsure on how to react to these two. Them being so... in-sync was startling.

When Coulson told her that they had found her files but couldn't open them, she told him about the GPS encryption and stole a glance at Fitz and Simmons who looked impressed.

She couldn't fight the rush of pride and just talked her way out of the plane, telling to let her to the van and get the files.

Maybe this would allow her to leave -escape- from here and maybe get to help Mike.

But her plans were thwarted when Coulson said that Agent May would escort her.

Hell...

-:-

"Audio file should be coming soon. It's not compressed: it might take a minute," she said, clicking on the send button from her laptop. Being in her van again was just..good. If only Agent May was standing in front of it's open door, it would be better..

She heard a rustling noise and then Fitz's muffled voice.

"Yeah..Yeah, yeah, yeah..I'm getting it," she heard typing noise. "So.." His voice was clearer now.

So..when you get back, I'll show you my thing. Ah..thing. It's not- My hardware. My equipment!"

She arched a brow at the phone.

"Let's hang up.." Fitz's voice dropped to a pained whisper and the communication dropped as well.

She stared at her phone for a second and then put it away.

Great.. Nerd-SHIELD-Guy was trying to hit on her...

-:-

This wasn't what she wanted.

None of this.

She was standing here behind Coulson as he talked to Mike, trying to calm him down but the guy was totally out of it. He was losing it...

She saw May standing behind her and a part of her was actually glad to see her in one piece after Mike had slammed her against a wall before kidnapping her.

The other part was wondering if the man May had beat the crap out of was still in one piece when she saved her.

The station was crowded and people were gathering around them, away from Mike who was hitting

and breaking anything around him.

Coulson dropped his gun and approached Mike, talking to him. Getting him to calm down.

And he actually succeeded.

The SHIELD agent wasn't that bad after all. He cared for the people around him, even this complete stranger. He did look as though he cared for her as well..

Maybe not all men in dark suits were scary...

And then Mike dropped to the ground.

Shot.

Her mind just went blank for a moment, hardly grasping what just happened.

Then it was a jumble of thoughts.

Mike had been shot. By whom? SHIELD or the other group?

If it was SHIELD... Had Coulson been playing along just to buy some time..?

Her brain was overcome by thoughts, doubts.. and then she thought of Ace. Ace who wouldn't have a father anymore.

Ace would be an orphan like her.

'No,no..' She wasn't going there now.. 'No-'

A blur ran past her.

'Simmons?'

The girl ran past Coulson and crouched down next to Mike. She saw her checking him and then turned her head around to look at them. Her face was strangely sombre but then broke into a smile, relief clear in her eyes.

She let out a sigh of relief and saw May calling other agents. Way behind her, she caught a glimpse of Ward, carrying a gun, and of Fitz who was giving her a thumbs-up.

No, wait.. not her. She turned to look behind her and saw Simmons, standing up and smiling at him.

She couldn't help but smile slightly herself: Mike was alive and these SHIELD agents had saved him.

When Ward and Fitz had gotten to them and Mike was being hauled away by the other agents. Coulson turned to the two scientists.

"Seems that you found the third option," he remarked and smiled. "Good job, FitzSimmons."

"Thank you, sir," they replied as one, sharing a smile.

She stared at them.

They were odd..but they had just saved a man from hurting himself and many others.

These nerd-scientists weren't that bad...

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