Phil's Girl
IV.
A few months after she graduates, Skye meets the Avengers for the first time.
She's on her way to the kitchen for coffee, looking at the tablet in her hand, when her brain registers a shape in the conference room. Hey Phil, she mumbles through a yawn, her eyes never leaving the screen.
Hi, Skye, she hears him reply and smiles to herself. She didn't even have to look to know that he would be working already.
Hello. Hey! Hi. Hey. Hey. Greetings! Six different voices call after her, stopping her in her tracks. She lifts her head up slowly and sees Earth's Mightiest Heroes standing 10 feet away. Her eyes grow wide and she blinks rapidly, then pinches herself. They're still there. It's not a dream.
Skye, Phil walks over and gently ushers her into the room. She's grateful for his hand on her back because she's suddenly having a hard time breathing let alone walking. I'd like you to meet some friends, he says, giving her a nudge. Directory Fury finally told them I was still alive.
She stares at them blankly - Stark, Banner, Barton, Romanoff, Thor, Rogers - and tries to think of something intelligent to say.
You guys looked bigger on TV, is what comes out.
Thor is the first to laugh, a loud, booming sound as he approaches her. He clasps his hand on her shoulder with so much force that her knees buckle. Maybe it's a good thing he's not bigger.
Wow, she mutters under her breath. I really need coffee.
He laughs again and she can feel his chest rumbling. Coffee! I am quite fond of this drink as well! Come, he says with a flourish, let us procure such refreshment.
She lets him lead her out the door and whispers to Phil as she passes by.
May's going to be so jealous.
…
Despite the three cups of coffee she's inhaled, she's still having trouble processing the fact that the Avengers are here. In front of her. There's something comical about the way they're all standing in the conference room - they look out of place, but somehow completely at home at the same time.
Phil introduces them to the rest of the team when they arrive, and FitzSimmons are immediately starstruck over Bruce Banner. They drag him down to the lab and Thor follows behind, interested in learning more about their magic, as he likes to call it. Skye swears she sees May cast an almost forlorn look at him when he leaves. But a second later, Stark offers to spar with her, and the two of them disappear down to the cargo hold. She hears him grunting and swearing and knows May's winning.
Barton and Romanoff approach Grant, and Skye lets out a little yelp when they immediately grab him into a headlock. He shrugs them off easily and, much to her surprise, even laughs along with them.
Nat was my SO, Grant explains as she walks over. The three of us go way back.
It's nice to finally meet you, Skye, the female agent gives her a warm smile. Our boy's been raving about you for months. She gives Skye a knowing look.
I wasn't raving! He protests, a slight blush coloring his face. I don't rave, he says firmly.
Grant! She squeals, you've been talking about me to Hawkeye and Black Widow?
He's already planning the wedding, Barton jokes, slinging an arm over Grant's shoulders. You don't mind if we borrow him, do you? We've got a bit of catching up to do.
By all means, she laughs. Have fun, sweetie! She calls after them, emphasizing the last word and batting her eyes innocently when he glares at her.
You'll invite us to the wedding, won't you? Skye turns around and realizes that she and Rogers are the only ones left in the room. His smile is warm and reassuring, and she can see why Phil idolizes him so much.
Oh, absolutely, she grins, do you think Thor would let us have the ceremony at his place? I've heard Asgard is beautiful in the spring.
Rogers chuckles as he approaches her, then falls silent, his expression turning serious. We heard what you did for him, for Phil. How you helped save him from Centipede. Thank you. He looks into her eyes and she can tell how much he means it.
Skye doesn't speak for a moment. When she closes her eyes, she can still see the terror on his face and the desperation in his voice as he begged them to let him die.
Sometimes, she says, her voice cracking as she blinks back tears, I really hate them for what they did to him.
Rogers comes over to her and puts his hand on her shoulder. They won't ever hurt him again.
I wasn't talking about Centipede,she draws in a shaky breath and looks at him sadly. I was talking about SHIELD.
Confusion crosses his face and it occurs to her that he doesn't know the whole story.
After New York, she explains, when they brought him back to life, they did something. He never told me what, but it was traumatizing enough that he wanted to die. And as if that weren't enough, they told the woman he loved that he did die. She sighs and sinks into a chair. He'll never be with her again. He'll never get to marry her or start a family with her, and more than anyone else, he deserves that. He deserves to be happy.
A heavy silence stretches between them, her words hanging in the air.
Maybe you're right about SHIELD, Rogers finally says. Maybe they did take too much from him. But I've known Phil for a long time. And Skye, you're wrong. He is happy.
He smiles at her softly as she brushes a tear from her cheek. Maybe he doesn't have a wife, but he does have a family. He has you.
She exhales at his words and feels a weight lifted off her chest. Family.
Phil is her family.
And she is his.
