Drabble 16: The Leaves That Fall
A/N: A drabble that takes place back in the Academy days. Could be seen as a bit childish, but I feel like this is something that could have happened when Fitz-Simmons was just starting, and maybe not as mature as they are now. Give it a chance, and try not to judge too harshly! Enjoy!
Fitz looked out his window one morning, and then back at his textbook. He started reading again, but before he could get very far his head snapped back up as he inspected the outside. The leaves weren't all green anymore, a bad sign for Fitz. It meant fall was coming.
From that day on he carefully inspected the outside every morning. He kept a record of how far the decaying process of the leaves had gone, and when all the leaves on one tree were yellow and orange he stopped.
It's done, he thought. Summer is dead.
He stood up and put on a light jacket, walking out to the courtyard. He immediately felt the cold, and tightened the jacket around him. He had been noticing the slight drop in temperature every day over the past month, but now it was especially apparent. He walked over to Jemma's dorm and knocked on the door.
She opened it up quickly, giving him that bright smile he could always rely on. "Hi Fitz! What's up?"
"It's autumn." He said.
"It certainly is!" she beamed. "It's beautiful, isn't it?"
He stared at her, and she realized he wasn't happy.
"Oh, come on." She lessened her smile and looked him over. "Why are you upset about the season changing?"
"The trees are sick." He said. "The leaves are dying. How can I be happy about that?"
She frowned. "Everything has to die eventually, Fitz. You have to think of the good things."
He sighed. "I know, Jemma. But it's getting cold outside, the leaves are falling, and summer is completely gone."
Jemma thought for a minute. "Come with me, Fitz." She walked inside her dorm room and grabbed a jacket, then came out into the hallway, closing the door behind her. "I know you like the fall. Every year you get like this, thinking you hate it and turning into a Grinch for some time. But I've seen you in the late fall, when you start acting like yourself again." She smirked at him over her shoulder. "You're not doing that this year. I'm teaching you to accept the fall, all of it, with a smile, or at least a tolerance."
"Jemma, you don't have to do this." Fitz said as she led him along.
"Do you like the fall?" she asked.
"No."
"Then I have to."
A few minutes later they were in the courtyard, standing under the tall tree that Fitz could see from his dorm room window. The leaves were all different shades of orange, yellow, and brown, and probably a quarter of them were on the ground around the trunk.
"Are we having a funeral for the leaves?" Fitz asked.
"Haha." Jemma said. "No, Fitz. So you think it's depressing that the trees lose all their leaves?"
He shrugged, and then nodded. "Yeah, I guess."
"What purpose do leaves serve?"
He looked at her questioningly. "You know that. They take in the sunlight necessary for photosynthesis, and help keep the tree alive."
She nodded. "You're right. But aside from their literal purpose, leaves have one that every school-child knows. They show us exactly when the seasons are changing. In the summertime, leaves are a solid green. No one pays them any mind." She looked up at the tree and at the leaves on the ground, and then bent and picked one up. "But in the fall, everyone notices leaves. People comment on their beauty, and smile when they fall."
She handed the leaf to Fitz. "Maybe it is dead. Maybe it does leave the tree bare. But how would it fare in the winter?"
"It would probably die." Fitz muttered, inspecting the leaf.
She smiled. "Exactly. So why not admire how they die in their own time, in their own way, instead of being buried in snow?"
Fitz looked at the tree and then back at Jemma. "I can see your point. And I honestly don't know why I don't like fall when it starts. It's just how I've always been."
"And that's not a bad thing." Jemma said. "But if you like the second half, you have no reason to not like the first. You know me. I hate change. But this is one of my exceptions. I love seeing the seasons change; because it makes me know that the environment is steady on its course. You know what I mean?"
"I actually do," Fitz said, "though I doubt many others would."
She laughed and looked him over again. "Are you feeling any better?"
Fitz threw up the leaf and watched it fall to the ground. "I am. Don't get me wrong, it'll take time for me to learn to completely like fall." He smiled. "But I don't hate it anymore."
Simmons smiled. "I was hoping you'd say that. Help me make a pile of leaves."
Fitz raised an eyebrow as he watched her crouch and start to collect leaves. "Are we really doing this?"
She stared at him until he started helping. "If you've always hated early fall, you must have never jumped in the leaves. We're fixing that now."
They formed a pile with all the leaves around the tree trunk, and Jemma looked at Fitz with a sparkle in her eyes. "Are you ready?"
He smiled, a bit excited simply because of how happy Jemma was. "Yeah."
"Then jump!" She stepped back and took a running start, landing in the leaves and falling to her knees. Half of the leaves flew up around her, and she laughed a bit and looked at Fitz. "See? It's not hard, and you only have to do it once."
She moved to the edge of the pile and waited for him to move. "Here I come!" he cried as he ran forward. But he didn't jump. He ran straight through the pile, sending the leaves flying and scaring Jemma.
He ran back to her and grinned. "How was that?"
She looked flustered as she stood up. "You sort of failed the jumping part, but at least you did something!"
"I wanted to give the leaves a new life." He said.
Jemma smiled and put a hand on his arm. "Fitz. That's so sweet. I think we've done it! You like the fall!"
He blinked and smirked. "You're right."
They stayed outside for a few minutes, and then walked back to Jemma's dorm room.
The next morning Fitz looked out the window and smiled. The leaves were dying. But they were going out in style. And besides: the leaves that fell made the season much more enjoyable for the kids… and the occasional Academy students.