Drabble 4: Change is Hard
Idea from djpes. Hope you like it! Send me ideas for future drabbles!
Fitz was studying the D.W.A.R.F. drones again. For now at least, they were all functioning normally. He knew that wouldn't last, but he figured it was the perfect time to run maintenance checks on them, before they got mischievous. He predicted they would be needed soon, to analyze materials before they were brought onto the Bus.
He finished with five and turned to six. It was Grumpy.
"You better not give me any trouble." Fitz muttered as he started looking at the drone. It looked fine, but he had to check the inside for any signs of malfunction. This particular drone was feisty, and his name definitely suited him. He moved a few wires and grabbed a thin stylus with a bit of a point to it.
"It looks like two of your wires twisted." He said. "Just a quick adjustment…" he started to fix it, but made a mistake. His hand jerked at the wrong moment, and the wire came completely free. He hadn't fully turned off the drone, so it went into a defensive procedure and sent a shock through its body, which coursed up Fitz's arm and made his ears ring.
Of course he couldn't let go that quickly either, so he had to endure it the full ten seconds before the drone stopped. He gasped and took his hand away, doubling over for a minute as his head recovered. But it kept aching slightly. Two minutes later he mentally cursed and started walking out of the lab. He needed to talk to Jemma.
He found her pretty quickly: she was on her way to the lab. She saw him smile a bit tighter than usual and immediately grew concerned. "Fitz, what happened?"
"I got a bit of a shock checking the D.W.A.R.F. drones." He said. "Grumpy didn't like the inspection very much."
She took his arm and led him back into the lab, where she sat him down at his desk and looked into his eyes. "You look alright." She said. "How do you feel?"
He waited to answer until she stopped feeling his throat. "It's fading now. The ringing from the shock lasted longer than it should have, and I thought it hurt more than it used to."
Jemma studied him for a minute. "Let's go to the infirmary. I want to check you over more thoroughly." He started to object and she silenced him with a look. "I need to see if it's had more of an effect on you than it would have before. I know you're almost completely better, but I still need to check."
He sighed. This was what he'd been dreading. He'd been shocked by the drones before, and he'd felt fine two minutes later, just aware of the pain of the shock. This time it had taken longer for it to go away. And he had changed since their time in the ocean.
She led him to the lab and did an analysis, and found that he was just fine, and would feel perfect again after a few more minutes of rest. He already felt better, and thanked her for checking him over.
She stood and got ready to leave, but noticed Fitz acting strangely. "Are you alright?" she asked again.
He looked up, startled out of his thoughts. "Yes, you've just told me I'm fine."
She shook her head. "I don't mean physically, Fitz. What's wrong?"
He sighed. "The last time one of the drones shocked me, it took only about a minute before I felt better. This time it took longer. The only thing that's changed is me!"
Jemma walked over and sat down next to him. "Of course you've changed, Fitz! You've been through so much since then!" He closed his eyes and let his head droop down, looking defeated. "But you're still Leo Fitz." She said. "You're still the same person this team has always known and loved. So what if you have to think a bit differently sometimes? No one cares about that. They just care about you."
She rubbed soothing circles on his back as she said this, and when she finished he looked back up. "You're just saying that to make me feel better."
"Of course I am!" She said. She smiled at his confused look. "Everyone else already knew it. It's just you that refused to believe it. I can't believe how thickheaded you are sometimes."
He smirked and she laughed. "Thank you Jemma." He said. "I needed that."
"Change is hard for everyone." She said before leaving. "You know how much I hate it. But it's easier when you have people to help you through it."
He stood and started walking back to the lab. He knew Jemma would be waiting for him in there, but he walked slowly, reflectively. The not so subtle hint Jemma had left him made him think maybe it was time to talk to the others again. He had started to connect with the guys, but he hadn't truly spoken to Skye in quite some time. It was time to join the team again.