A/N: My dear agents, I am sorry this took so long. But life happened, and more specifically job happened. These past weeks I had a lot going on at work, and when I got home I just wanted to unwind with some "Big Bang Theory" or the occasional murder-solving-show. I hope you don't get too mad. For those of you who watch "Agents of SHIELD", how cool was the last episode? And who is looking forward to the season finale? I sure am. Hours after this week's episode aired, #AgentsofSHIELD was trending on Twitter. So, yeah, one of the best episodes of the season.
Enough about that. Here is a new chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter 24: Normal life. Take "lost count". Action!
It has been a week since the Sokovia incident. Tris decided to go back to work right away, not wanting to dwell on the events of the mission. Tobias wanted to protest, arguing she should rest, but Tris was stubborn and he finally gave in.
Tris knew that her parents and the Eatons would want to know where she was, and if she was involved in the Sokovia incident. So, she decided to invite them along with Uriah to her apartment that evening for dinner.
As expected, the parents all freaked out, and even Tobias seemed nervous and filled with questions. Tris tried hard not to let that bother her, especially since in the past she never had to explain herself the way she had now. Both her and Uriah gave them a summary description of the events, keeping the classified information classified, and tried as best they could to avoid words like "corpses", "body parts", "scattered brain mass", and other ones similar.
Tobias could read it in his wife's eyes how hard she tried to keep the truth from their parents. On one hand, he was glad she did. After being with her and seeing how both elder couples reacted to the slightest bruise, he understood Tris's pathological need to keep her agent persona far away from them. They could be overwhelming with questions and advice, despite not understanding half of it. He knew much more than them and still had a hard time to wrap his head around half of it.
But as he watched his wife and her friend play down what happened, he wondered how much she even told him. How much was true and how much was sugar-coated?
"ENOUGH!" Tris yells, having enough of all their questions and complaints. "Shut up! All of you. I don't give a fucking rat's ass anymore. I didn't have to tell you shit. Be grateful you know this much. Now, shut up and eat your freaking dinner!"
With that, the questions stopped. Tobias could tell, though, that none of the parents were pleased, both with the idea of not knowing more, and the way she talked to them. Inwardly, he smiled. He had one badass wife.
It was past nine p.m. when everyone left. Tris was sitting on the couch searching for something to watch, while Tobias put the dirty dishes away in the dishwasher.
"You want some tea or hot coco?" he asks from the kitchen.
"Coco, obviously," she replies and grins. He smiles to himself, already having anticipated her answer. She has a sweet tooth, just like him. It doesn't take him long to join her in the living room.
"What we watching?" he asks, making himself comfortable.
"Pearl Harbor."
They both snuggle close together, pulling the warm fluffy blanket over themselves. Tris isn't paying much attention, having seen the movie before. All she really wants is to be close to Tobias, but not giving him the opportunity to ask more questions about what happened. She told him almost everything, including the strange transformation she went through. What she left out, was that heavy feeling of despair she felt in the final moments before she passed out. She didn't tell him about the regret she felt in her heart, the scorching desire to be alive, and be with him, the hatred she then felt for the world, for SHIELD and Hydra both, for her friends for being so stupid to build a real-life Terminator that could wipe out life as we know it. But that was her job, that was her life. Or at least it was. Once.
Tobias happily holds his wife close to him, glad she is safe and sound. He knows there is more to the Sokovia incident than she let on. Sure, she told him in many details, probably going against SHIELD rules by doing so, but he knew her well enough to know there is more. It wasn't even hard to figure that part out. Tris didn't talk to him, she briefed him. She gave him details about the mission, about what happened, including to her. She told him of the injuries she sustained, but it felt robotic. She purposefully avoided to truly open up about how it felt, what she felt, and what she wants to do next. She promised him she wouldn't go on missions again, but she made that promise before, and he couldn't help but wonder if this time she would keep it. She was a soldier after all.
Halfway through the movie, Tobias notices that Tris has fallen asleep. He slowly manages to extract himself from the couch, and gently lifts her in his arms. She is so light, almost like she is made of feathers. Walking slowly into their bedroom, Tobias makes sure he doesn't wake her up. Once he deposits her on the bed and tucks her in, he returns to the living room to turn off the lights and TV, and check their front door. Happy everything is in order, he too goes into the bedroom. Not caring to put on his PJ's, Tobias strips off his clothes and climbs into bed wearing just his boxers. As so often, he pulls Tris close to his chest, inhaling her unmistakable scent, wondering for the millionth time how it happened that he fell so madly in love with this woman. He kisses the back of her head and whispers a sweet "I love you" before slumber claims him as well.
The next morning, Tris wakes up early. Wanting to get up, she realizes something or rather someone is holding her back. She turns her head slightly to find Tobias's face close to hers, his lips parted as he breaths steadily in and out. He is still fast asleep and Tris hates to wake him up. She tries very hard to wiggle out of his embrace, and when she finally manages she hurries into the bathroom. After relieving her bladder, she washes up and leaves the en-suite and sneaks into the kitchen to make coffee and breakfast.
When Tobias opens his eyes, he fully expects to find his wife still curled up close to him, but is surprised to find her side empty and cold. He looks up, trying to find her in the room, but it is empty. He forces himself out of bed, making his way to the bathroom. It is as deserted as the bedroom, and Tobias groans. Where could she be? Just then, the smell of freshly brewed coffee hits his nostrils and he knows his wife is up and making them breakfast.
He walks out and makes sure he is undetected by the spy. Tris is so focused on making pancakes, that she doesn't notice him. Making no sound as he tip-toes closer to where she stands at the stove, Tobias wraps his arms around his wife, startling her, but the months spend with him, make her relax in his embrace, knowing full well he would never hurt her.
"You little shit!" she exclaims, and he laughs hard from his belly. He kisses her under her ear, causing her to tremble in his embrace.
"Sorry, I just couldn't help it," he says still laughing. Tris turns her head so that they can see each other and Tobias immediately presses his lips to hers. They forget the world around them, as the kiss deepens and both spouses moan lustfully. Only the smell of something burned pulls them out of their own little world, and Tris cleans up the now ruined pancake.
Tobias decides to let his wife cook breakfast in peace before they burn the whole place down. He takes a quick shower, since they can't afford being late today. Tobias needs to be in a board meeting at nine a.m. and Tris wanted to check up on things.
By the time Tobias emerges from the shower, Tris stands in the middle of the bathroom completely naked, causing obvious discomfort in her husband.
"You'll be the death of me," he says smirking. They kiss passionately and it is Tris's turn to let him walk away. As much as both want to lock themselves up and make love all day, they still have to be adults and go to work. Tris seriously needs a vacation. Maybe she can convince Tobias to take a few days off and escape to a tropical island.
The meeting takes longer than Tobias wants it to be. After Tris made sure that the Russian mobster didn't enter his father's company, Stevenson pressured everyone in getting rid of Tris. At that, both Eaton men protested vehemently and even the other board members weren't pleased. Despite Tris being part of the company for a short time, she proved herself valuable, not only in the eyes of the Eatons, but also the rest. Whether it was a department manager or a simple secretary, everyone in the company seemed to like the young Mrs. Eaton and appreciated her help. She was not only fluent in several languages, which helped them greatly with their foreign contacts, but she was a computer-wiz and helped make several people's jobs easier. She was well liked, and obviously that caused Stevenson to hate her even more.
After the meeting finally concluded, Tobias returned to his office, where he found Tris lying down on his couch.
"You okay?" he asks her as he sits down next to her. As he inspects her more carefully, he notices how cold and pale she is, and starts worrying.
"Not really. I just threw up. In your trash bin," she says with a chuckle.
"You do know you have your own bin," he jokes.
"I know. But this was payback for this morning." They both laugh, but then Tobias gets serious.
"You wanna go home?" he asks her filled with concern.
"No. I just need to lie down for a moment. Jemma warned me this might happen. After all the drugs she pumped into me, it was just a matter of time," she says and closes her eyes. Tobias thinks about arguing with her, but knows how futile it is. He lets her lie down, but covers her with a blanket, while asking his secretary to not redirect calls to him, but come and get him, so he can take the call outside at her desk.
What Tris intended to be a few minutes, turned into hours. Tobias didn't have the heart to wake her, and let her sleep for as long as she needed. Around noon, his dad came in to take them both out to eat, when he noticed his young daughter-in-law lying down. Concerned, he looked at his son, who explained that Tris felt ill because of the meds she took. Marcus nodded and offered to bring them some food, since Tobias wasn't hungry and didn't want to disturb Tris.
At around two p.m. Tris finally wakes up. Marcus just brought them some food, and Tobias is now finishing a report. He is so focused on his task he doesn't notice Tris, until she stands up from the couch, still wobbly on her legs.
"How are you feeling?" he asks looking at her.
"A bit dizzy. How long was I asleep?" she asks, already figuring she slept more than a few minutes.
"About four hours. You still feeling sick? Or you think you can eat something? Dad brought us some soup and burgers."
"I think it's better now. But I wouldn't risk the burgers. I'm going to eat soup. You can have my burger too." Tobias nods and while she settles down next to him, he sets the take-out on his desk. They eat mostly in silence, with Tobias often glancing at her. He can tell she still doesn't feel well, but is glad she at least eats the soup.
During the meal, Tobias received a text from his secretary telling him a man is waiting to see his wife. Tobias frowns at reading that line, but doesn't say anything. Who could be looking for her here? If it were Uriah, his secretary would have said so. She already met him and knows his name. Clearly, it's someone else. But who? Like so often these days, Tobias feels jealous. He knows he doesn't have to be. Tris loves him, and he trusts her not to cheat. But he isn't blind. He sees how men look at her. Even in the office, he often caught some of his employees staring after his wife when they thought no one was looking. He can't help but feel bothered about this.
Tris, on the other hand, is oblivious to his internal struggle. She focuses on eating and breathing and not throwing up. Whatever shit Jemma gave her while she was at the base, really messed up her stomach. She needs to talk to her friend about that. She can't be sure, but something tells her this new development of her powers might be at the root of this bad feeling.
As Tobias and Tris finish up, Tobias wonders if he should tell his secretary to let the mysterious man in. Upon reflecting further, he convinces himself that Tris is too weak to receive any visitors and leaves the office to investigate who this man is. As he exits his office he sees a man sitting at his secretary's desk, scrolling through his phone. He looks about Tobias's age, blond hair, fairly attractive, if you like that sort of thing, Tobias thinks to himself. Before he can go over and introduce himself, the door to his office opens and Tris comes out.
"Lincoln, man, so good to see you," Tris says as she walks past her husband and toward the mystery man. The man stands up and quickly embraces the young woman in a tight hug. Tobias feels overwhelmed by jealousy and decides to throw all logic and manners out the window. He steps closer to the people hugging and coughs loudly, obviously trying to make them split. Lincoln looks up at the man before him, and measures him head to toe. Tobias is a little taller than Lincoln, but not by much. However, when he wants to, he can look very frightening, despite his businessman attire.
Confused by Tobias's sudden alpha male behavior, Tris soon recognizes the threat and decides to put her husband's mind (and jealousy) at ease.
"Tobias, this is Lincoln. We were colleagues before I came to work here," Tris says, mindful of the people in the room, who have no idea that she is a SHIELD agent. "Lincoln, this is my husband, Tobias." Tobias extends his hand and Lincoln shakes it awkwardly. Sensing that something might be wrong, Tris ushers both men into her husband's office to avoid an unpleasant scene in the middle of the workplace.
As soon as the door to Tobias's office closes behind the trio, Tris turns her attention to her co-worker and friend.
"Did Coulson send you for the special training?" she asks. Coulson had promised he would, but Tris didn't expect it to happen so fast.
"Yes. With the development of your powers, he thought it wise for me to train with you for a while. I know you did a great job the first time around, but you still need guidance," Lincoln says with a smile.
"What training?" Tobias asks confused. Tris looks at her husband, and sighs.
"Lincoln worked with Inhumans for a long time. When Uriah and I both first learned to control our powers, he was there to help us. With all that has happened in Sokovia, Coulson thought it better for Lincoln to help me with this new development."
Tobias didn't even think much of that part. Sure, he knew something changed inside her, and she needed help. But it would have helped him even more if the person helping his wife wasn't a handsome agent, such as Lincoln.
"Where you gonna stay?" Tris asks.
"With Uriah. Daisy took a few weeks off, and said she would come too," Lincoln says with a loving smile, which Tobias doesn't notice.
"Daisy is Lincoln's girlfriend," Tris says looking at her husband. Tobias nods keeping a straight face, but inwardly does a victory dance like athletes do when they score points on the field. Maybe this Lincoln guy isn't so bad after all, and Tobias won't have to kill him.
A/N: What did you think?