A New Rose Chapter 4: She Thinks His Name Was Phil, a X-Men: The Movie + Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Crossover fanfic

A New Rose

Disclaimer:
As always, I own nothing!

Rating:
T

Genre:
Romance/Family/Angst

Pairing:
Coulsye

Lyrics Used:
Boys Like Girls - "The First One"
Linkin Park - "Castle of Glass"
Reba McEntire - "She Thinks His Name Was John"

She Thinks His Name Was John

Even though you're gone and far away | I feel you all around | I think about it every single day | Somehow you got away

I can't sleep, it's hard to breathe | And, I still feel you next to me | Now I can see

Phil and Skye lay next to one another on the bed, Skye's head on his shoulder with her arm draped lazily over his waist with his arms wrapped around her shoulders, lazily drawing random shapes on her bare back. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Phil had finally found a sense of peace. But, just when he thought nothing could shatter the paradise they'd found with one another, Skye had suddenly vanished from his side and Phil had suddenly found himself in his office watching agents from the 'real' S.H.I.E.L.D. storming his base and capturing his remaining operatives – Phil sat bolt-upright in his bed, slowly catching his breath as his mind registered that was – in fact – still in the same cheap motel he and Hunter had checked into, the night before.

"What's going on, mate?" Lance Hunter wondered, groggily, upon being awoken by the sudden rustling of the sheets on the other bed in the room. Reaching over to turn on the lamp, resting atop the nightstand between the two beds, he took in the image of Coulson catching his breath in a cold sweat and surmised that his partner had just woken up from a nightmare.

"It's nothing." Coulson reassured his partner. "Just stress." He finished. It was the truth. He had been stressing out, in increasing amounts, the longer he continued searching for Skye. It had been four weeks since Phil had taken off to search for her and he still hadn't come any closer to finding her than he had been on day one.

"Look, mate, I know you're worried about Skye – so am I –" Hunter replied. Even in his short stay with S.H.I.E.L.D., he could see that Coulson and Skye had always been rather close. And, he could see why. She was a good agent and bright, strong, individual. She was easily drawn to. However, before he could finish the thought, the director cut him off.

"It's more than that …" Coulson sighed, flopping back down onto his pillow. He hated feeling this lost and helpless. All he wanted was to find Skye and know that she was safe. Until then, he'd never be able to fully rest.

"Well …" Hunter sighed, propping himself up onto his elbow. "How about … you enlighten me?" He suggested. He knew, full-well, that neither of them was getting sleep any time soon. So, he might as well get the full story of his partner's obsession with the young hacker. And, perhaps settle a bet he'd made with the rest of the team while he was at it.

Phil stared at the ceiling, pondering Hunter's suggestion. Might as well … He thought, to himself, silently. After all … He had already promised himself he'd go public with his relationship with Skye once she was back with them, safe and sound. Sighing, he rolled over, propping himself up on his elbow – mirroring Hunter's position – as he faced his partner. "I love her." He began, simply. Unsure of where to begin, he figured he'd drop the bomb right up front and get it over-with. However, Hunter cut him off before he could elaborate, further.

"Yeah, we all do." Hunter interjected, simply, bating Coulson for more information. "Dysfunctional though it may be, we were a family unit … Some of us … more than others …" He trailed off, recalling Mac and his own ex-wife's betrayals.

"Yes, I suppose you could say that …" Coulson replied, knowingly. "But, that's not quite what I'm talking about …" Drawing a deep breath, Phil decided to rip off the band-aid. "I'm … in love with her." He finally confessed.

"Well, it's about time." Hunter replied, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

"Really?" Coulson questioned, quirking an eyebrow.

"Absolutely." Hunter replied. "The whole team's known about your feelings for each other. Hell, there was even a bloody pool among the team as to how and when you'd get together!"

"You're serious?!" Coulson questioned, somewhat incredulously. He couldn't believe his own operatives were betting on his love-life.

"Oh, definitely!" Hunter replied. "Speaking of which … Who made the first move? I'm already in the lead on the 'when' …"

"Oh, for the love of God …" Coulson muttered, under his breath, as he flopped back onto the pillows – staring up at the ceiling, once again. "This can't be happening …" He continued muttering to himself. "I am not having this conversation, right now."

"Oh, come off it …" Hunter chided. "Cat's already out of the bag." He reasoned, cheekily. "Might as well spill the rest of the beans."

Sighing in resignation, Phil knew Hunter was right. Let's just get this over-with. He told himself, silently, as rolled over and propped himself back up to look at his partner. "Oh, all right …" He sighed. "I was the one to confess my feelings first … " He began, before Hunter interrupted him, again.

"Yes!" Hunter cheered, rolling over onto his back. "Simmons owes me twenty bucks!" Rolling back over, Lance took the incredulous gaze as his cue to stop talking. "Sorry … Continue …" He added

"As I was saying …" Coulson drawled, half-glaring at Hunter. " … one thing led to another … and, we were intimate … before I was called back to the Playground."

"Way to go, Coulson." Hunter grinned, before being silenced with another one of Coulson's famous glares. "Sorry …" He replied, quietly.

Shaking his head, slightly, Coulson completed his thought. "Anyway … That's … that's why I have to find her. I need to know she's safe."

Hunter understood where Coulson was coming from. Finally, he settled down and got real for a moment. "And, that's why we will find her …"

Coulson appreciated Hunter's attempt at reassurance. "I just hope you're right." He sighed, rolling back over on his back – staring at the ceiling while he waited for sleep to overtake him, once more.

Unsure of what more he could say, Lance Hunter just silently rolled back over to go back to sleep. Deep down, he wanted to be as sure as he sounded. But, he had to be realistic. The longer it took them to find Skye, the more likely it would be for something to happen to her.

Bring me home in a blinding dream | Through the secrets that I have seen | Wash the sorrow from off my skin | Show me how to the be whole again

'Cause I'm only a crack in this castle of glass | Hardly anything there for you to see | For you to see

'Cause I'm only a crack in this castle of glass | Hardly anything else I need to be

'Cause I'm only a crack in this castle of glass | Hardly anything there for you to see | For you to see | For you to see

"Ready to go, again?" Logan asked his young, protege. He'd been working with Skye for about a month and she'd blown him away from day one with her skills in the art of hand-to-hand combat. She'd even managed to teach him a thing or two. And, since they'd started, she'd only grown stronger every day. But, he had to admit … Today, she wasn't looking too great. He could tell she was feeling weak, and, it had him concerned. Watching her leaning against the wall, water bottle clutched haphazardly in her hand, he could tell something was off.

"Yeah." Skye panted, more out of breath than she'd expected to be. She suspected she knew what might be causing her to feel weaker, but, she couldn't bring herself to face that possibility. The fact of the matter was that her period was three weeks late. And, she'd been experiencing nausea on a near daily basis. But, with everything else on her plate, she just didn't have time to think about what she would do if she was pregnant. "Yeah, I'm good … Juss …" She began, only to find her vision blacking out as she lost her balance.

Watching the water bottle fall from Skye's hand to the floor, Logan snapped to action, rushing across the room to catch the young hacktivist as she began to fall to the floor – successfully grasping her in his arms before she hit the ground. "Skye?" He called, worriedly. Upon receiving no response, he gently shook her limp body in his arms as he called out to her, again, with an audible note of concern in his voice. "Skye?!" When he still received no response, he muttered to himself "Shit!" as he took off at a dead run toward the infirmary.

"JEAN!" He called out, his eyes scanning the room. "JEAN!" He called out again when the doctor didn't respond, the first time.

"Logan, what is it?" Dr. Jean Grey replied, rounding the corner as she followed the sound of her friend's voice. "What's wrong?" She asked, before she saw the unconscious woman in his arms. "Oh God …" She muttered, ushering Logan over to the first open exam table. "What happened?!"

" I don't know." Logan replied, racking his brain for any sort of answers as to why the young woman he'd grown so attached to over the last month just suddenly collapsed on him during their training session. "We were taking a break during our training session and when I asked her if she was ready to go again, she just … collapsed …" He offered, hating the helpless feeling that was taking over him with a passion.

"I … might know why …" Marie replied, timidly, as she stepped forward into the hospital. Swallowing hard, she pressed onward as she felt a pair of intense gazes on her. "I think I might know why Skye passed out during training day." She elaborated.

"You do?" Jean questioned, curiously, as she prepared to examine the young hacktivist.

"Marie, what can you tell us about what happened to Skye?" Logan asked, fighting to keep his voice calm. He wasn't angry at the young mutant before him. He was just worried about Skye.

Marie couldn't help squirming ever so slightly under Logan's intense stare. She knew he wasn't angry at her, just worried about Skye. Although she'd only been with them for a month, Marie and everyone else could see how attached Logan had become to the young hacktivist Charles had ordered him to bring in. They'd all noticed the two of them had grown close – they acted like siblings whenever they were around one another. And, right now, Logan was playing every bit the role of overprotective older brother. "Well, it's just … Skye and I were talking the other night … She mentioned that she had been feeling nauseated and she'd been having dizzy spells …" She paused as Jean and Logan watched her, expectantly. "She also mentioned … that she … she said she was … late." She finished, finally, unsure of how to phrase what she wanted to say.

Looking back and forth between Marie and Jean, Logan could tell they both clearly understood something that was completely lost on him. "What … Would somebody please clue me in on what's going on, here?" He demanded, almost desperately.

"Logan, I know what Marie's trying to say …" Jean replied, calmly, preparing the test that she needed. "But, I'm going to have to run a blood test to be sure."

"Well?" Logan demanded, impatiently. "What is it?! … What do you suspect?!"

Knowing that Logan wouldn't give her any peace without any sort of answers on her part, Jean sighed as she elaborated "Logan … I think there's a chance that Skye could be pregnant …"

"'Pregnant'?" Logan repeated, still as confused as he was when he'd brought Skye into the infirmary. "What the hell do you mean, 'pregnant'?! How is that even possible?! If she's not sparring with me, she's working with Storm to control her powers. She's never been alone with anyone long enough to get pregnant."

"She told me … there was somebody … before she came here …" Marie offered, timidly.

"Logan, why don't you go with Marie and see what you can find out about Skye's previous relationship while I work on the blood-work?" Jean suggested, hoping to get some peace and quiet while she worked with Skye.

"Come on …" Marie added, gesturing for Logan to follow her. "Come on, Logan … I'll tell you everything I know." She added, hoping to entice Logan to go with her.

Looking back at Jean, he watched as she nodded for him to go. "Go on, Logan. I'll take care of Skye. And, I'll let you know the minute I find anything." She added assuring him that his protege would be in good hands. Trusting Skye would be in good hands with Jean, Logan reluctantly tore himself away to go with Marie and find out whatever he could about Skye's past.

She can account for all of the men in her life | Where they are now who they married how many kids they have | She knew their backgrounds, family and friends | A few she even talks to now and then

"Okay, Marie …" Logan replied, forcing his voice to remain calm as he paced back and forth in front of the young mutant. "What, exactly, did Skye tell you?" He asked, levelly. "Did she say anything about who the baby's father could be?"

"Yes, she did." Marie replied, summoning every ounce of self-confidence she had as she prepared herself for what she knew, full-well, could be a very difficult conversation with Logan. "But, what she told me was a rather long story. She told me she first met him when he brought her in for questioning in a S.H.I.E.L.D. investigation." She added, elaborating on all the information Skye had given her. "She said his name was Phil Coulson. They worked together for a couple of years before H.Y.D.R.A. Infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. and forced them to rebuild the organization. Now, he's the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and when she came into her powers, he took her to a secluded log cabin where she could relax and try to get control over her powers."

Logan, for his part, listened – patiently – to Marie's story of Skye's past. She was right … He thought to himself. This is a long story. He decided, as he waited for her to finish.

"Anyway …" Marie continued. "Phil Coulson was the only man Skye's ever mentioned being with, recently. So, he's got to be the father." She reasoned, finally, sitting quietly waiting for Logan's reaction.

"Okay, then." Logan replied, finally halting his pacing as he turned to face Marie. "I'm gonna find him-"

"What?!" Marie questioned, curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I would think a man would want to know he's got a kid on the way …" Logan reasoned, bluntly. "Wouldn't you think?" He asked, sarcastically.

Seeing Logan's point, Marie replied "Yeah, I suppose you're right." Pausing, she appeared pensive, for a moment, before speaking again. "But, you're not gonna tell him, are you?"

"The hell's that supposed to mean?" Logan questioned, growing irritated.

"Well, I just think that news like that would be better coming from Skye, herself." Marie argued, finally standing up for her point of view.

Sighing, Logan ran a hand through his hair as he conceded her point. "Yeah, I suppose you got a point."

"You probably won't have any trouble getting him to come in, though." Marie warned, watching as Logan quirked an eyebrow at her.

"What do you mean?" Logan questioned, curiously.

"Well, Skye told me that things sounded pretty bad at S.H.I.E.L.D. when she went on the run." Marie reasoned. "She said that her supervising officer ordered her to run." She elaborated. "And, from what Skye's told me about their relationship, he'll probably be searching for her and be desperate to know if she's all right …" She added. "Just tell him you know where Skye is and that you've been keeping her safe." Before either of them could say another word, Jean joined them in the room. "What's the verdict?" He asked, anxiously.

"The blood-work came back." Jean replied, quietly. "Our suspicions were correct … Skye's pregnant." Even though they'd all suspected it, the news of Skye's pregnancy sat in the air like an elephant in the room. Logan simply turned and left the room – preparing his search for Phil Coulson.

Author's Note:
Well, I hope they all enjoyed this chapter. I hope to have chapter 5 up in another couple of days. In the meantime, don't forget to drop me a review! Remember! I do take requests!

~Skye Coulson