Drabble 69: One Little Moment

A/N: Quote given to me by Spitfire303. I hope you like it!

I started posting a new story called The Corrupted Shield, so please check it out! Anyway, enjoy this drabble!

Quote: One moment. That is all it takes, one stupid little moment. A single unimportant decision and that was the start. If I had decided to cross the street, to avoid the crowd. We wouldn't have met and nothing would be like it is now. One tiny decision changed everything and I wouldn't want it to be any other way.

Jemma Simmons was running late. And Jemma Simmons was never late. She was the most prompt person in her family, and that was saying a lot.

But today was her first day at the Academy. She had been so nervous that she hadn't slept well the night before, and when she finally had fallen asleep she had slept through her alarm.

Her class was starting in twenty minutes. So she quickly dressed and brushed out her hair, grabbing her bag of supplies and running out of her room, towards the class she had first: Physiology.

She was halfway there when she realized something. She had forgotten her journal. She knew exactly where it was, too. It was lying on her new desk, waiting to be opened with a brand new pen next to it. She had thought about writing in it last night, but decided against it.

Should she go back for it? She didn't need it for class. But it had been a parting gift from her parents, and she'd promised to write down important things in it. What if she learned something really important in this lesson?

As much as Jemma hated being late, she hated the thought of disappointing her parents more. Besides. It was the first day of classes. She would be given leniency. She hoped.

So she started running back to her room.

Leo Fitz was early. Very early, in fact. He had been so nervous for his first day at the Academy that he'd woken up an hour before his alarm, unable to go back to sleep.

So he'd gotten up and dressed, and sat on his computer for half an hour, playing one of the designer games he loved.

But he was too nervous to stay in his room. He needed to map out the Academy. So he decided to go exploring. He could do it anytime, but he still had thirty minutes before his first class started.

Physiology.

So he packed his bag with all his supplies and headed towards the classroom, walking at a leisurely stroll. This way he could map out his route to the class, and then wait by the door.

But the classroom wasn't very far from his dormitory. He reached it in ten minutes.

Ten minutes later he was practically bouncing as he leaned against the wall, his anxiety getting the better of him. He looked down the hallway and saw an adult walking towards him, a woman with a large briefcase, her face hidden by a folder she was looking in. She walked up to the door next to him and closed her folder, pulling out a key.

"Hello." Fitz said.

She jumped and then smiled. "Good morning. You must be one of my new students, right? I'm Professor Tyler."

"Leo Fitz."

Professor Tyler unlocked her door and walked inside, flicking on the lights. "You must be eager to start to beat me here."

"In all honesty, I'm more nervous than anything right now."

"Most of the Academy kids feel that way." She said sympathetically. "They haven't had the best experiences with schools before. Here, everyone is bright and ready to learn. You'll find out it's a very supportive place."

"Thanks." Fitz said.

"Sorry to ask you this, but could you wait outside for a few minutes?" she asked. "I have something special to set up, and I want everyone to see it at the same time."

"Okay." He said, stepping back out of the room. She closed the door behind him and he sighed. Back to where he was two minutes ago.

But there were more students coming this way now. Fitz was gripped suddenly by concern. Maybe the kids here were like Professor Tyler had said, but if they weren't… if they were like the kids in his old school, he would be a target for being the first one waiting outside the classroom. Fitz had been a big target in his old school.

He really wasn't a teacher's pet. But he was good at being prompt.

So he panicked slightly and started walking back to his room, quickly.

That was how he ran into her.

Jemma was racing back to the classroom, adjusting her journal tucked under her arm, when she ran into him. A boy with curly brown hair, walking with his head down in the opposite direction she was heading. Neither of them had been paying attention. She stumbled as they collided. Luckily neither fell.

"Sorry!" she said quickly.

"Me too." He said.

"I'm Jemma." She said.

"My name's Leo."

She looked at him and smiled.

"Are you new here too?" he asked.

"First day." She said with a nervous smile. "I'm actually running late for my first class."

"Physiology." He said.

"How did you-?"

"The textbook." He said, pointing at the book hanging out of her bag. "I have it too."

"Very observant." She said.

"Yeah." He said, looking down.

She thought he looked embarrassed. "Why are you walking away from the class if you're in it?" she asked.

"I just didn't want to be seen as the first one there." He said. "Why do you think you're running late? We still have five minutes."

Now it was her turn to look embarrassed. "I tend to think I'm late if I'm not one of the first ones to arrive."

"Then we should get going." Leo said.

She noticed how blue his eyes were as he looked at her and smiled at the kind look in them. Look at that, she thought as they started walking towards the class. Class hasn't even started yet and I've already made a friend.

Her first friend at the Academy.

Her future lab partner and best friend.

And she met him because in a moment, she had made the small decision to go back for a journal, and he had decided to walk away from the crowd.

It's funny how a moment can change your life.