Chapter 52 – Soon

It had been a little over seven weeks since Skye had seen Ward, since the night she'd needed Sif's help to make it back to the team. In those seven weeks Skye had been through a lot. For the first two weeks she was on bed rest, Simmons had barely allowed the hacker out of bed for bathroom breaks and actually going to the dining area to have meals with the team was out of the question. Skye would have gone crazy in the first week if it wasn't for the texts from Ward but that hadn't lasted long, the phone finally running out of battery within the week.

The second week had been torture, still stuck in bed and unable to contact Ward. Skye was meant to be staying calm but considering Ward had managed to warn her of her father's likely arrival staying completely calm was difficult and had to lead to several stern conversations with Simmons over the past seven weeks, especially during the second week.

When she was finally allowed out of bed in the third week all Skye wanted to do was run to Ward but she knew that wasn't an option. Simmons had informed the hacker that she wouldn't be running anywhere, that even a light jog would be pushing it. However what was worse was the fact that Coulson had Skye under constant surveillance, she had at least one member of the team babysitting her at all time and after five weeks it was beginning to get annoying. It had taken all of Skye's skill to convince Coulson to let her leave the house but even then the hacker had only been allowed as far as the porch. However Skye had taken what little freedom she was given and used it to her own advantage. She managed to make the trip outside at least once a day, just to give Ward a chance to see that both her and the baby were fine and the fresh air wasn't exactly a downside either. Unfortunately over the last couple of days Skye had found it increasingly difficult to make the trip outside. At thirty weeks the baby was making even the most basic of tasks difficult, not to mention the constant bathroom breaks that made sitting outside for an extended period of time next to impossible but still Skye had made the trips outside deciding that after seven weeks this was the time Ward need to know they were okay the most.

One of the highlights of the last week was that Simmons had given Skye another ultrasound. Skye had held back tears at the sight of her baby and wishing that Ward had been there to see it too. Simmons had commented on the tears that the hacker had failed to hold in but Skye had blamed hormones and thankfully the biochemist had let the matter drop. Simmons had also offered to let Skye know the gender of the baby but Skye had wanted to be surprised but it still was a little awkward having Simmons knowing if she was having a boy or a girl and not knowing herself. Skye also wondered how long it would take the biochemist to tell her engineer boyfriend, who would no doubt let the secret slip out to the rest of the team before long. However Skye still wanted to be surprised, even if it was by Fitz slipping up during dinner, which was thankfully yet to happen.

Skye carried a copy of her latest ultrasound at all times, in fact she carried two. One so she could produce it on request for one of the team to comment on, surprisingly it was usually Trip or Coulson. The other picture she carried was one Skye hoped to be given the chance to slip to the baby's father. Unfortunately the opportunity was yet to arise, she hoped today, however, might be her chance. It all depended on how observant Ward actually was.

Today was the first time in seven weeks that Skye had been allowed out further than the porch, in fact she allowed to actually go into town, even if it was under the watchful eyes of both Trip and Simmons, at least it wasn't May. Skye had been surprised by the trip into town, apparently Simmons had managed to convince Coulson of need of items for the baby. Despite being surprised Skye was going to use the trip to her full advantage and Trip and Simmons would no doubt be able to slip away from for a couple of minutes than Coulson or May. The town wasn't exactly busy, so there was no chance Skye could lose her shadows in a crowd, especially since Simmons' idea of sticking close to Skye was to link their arms together as they walked down the street. At least Trip was chivalrous enough to take the shopping bags, which with Simmons in charge of the shopping list meant there was a lot.

They had almost finished Simmons' list when Skye saw signs that Ward was around. It wasn't much, mostly feelings and glimpses out of the corner of her eye but enough for the hacker to know it was him and not anyone else. In fact Skye was surprised Trip hadn't noticed.

When Skye saw her opportunity to slip away she took it. Their last stop had a disabled toilet, meaning more than one person could fit in the cubicle without anyone noticing. It also had a solid door, meaning even with Simmons waiting outside the biochemist wouldn't hear a thing. It didn't take much to convince Simmons that she needed a bathroom break and the biochemist wasn't as vigilant as May, Simmons didn't feel the need to check every room before Skye went in.

Locking the door quickly Skye turned around, only to have Ward's lips come crashing down on hers, Skye smiled when they pulled apart, "I've missed you."

Ward smiled at Skye as he rested his head against hers, "I've missed you too," He placed a hand on Skye's stomach, "Both of you."

Skye pulled back a bit, "We don't have long. Simmons isn't exactly patient."

Ward smiled, "Are you okay?"

Skye nodded, "We're both fine, Grant," She looked up at the specialist, "What about you?"

Ward smiled, holding back a laugh, "What could possibly be wrong with me?"

Skye sighed, "Don't lie to me, Ward. Not again."

Ward smiled weakly, placing a hand on Skye's cheek, "I'm fine, Skye. I'm always fine."

"My father?" Skye asked weakly, "Has he come looking for me yet?"

Ward didn't want to lie to Skye, so he didn't, "No, not himself. But he had sent people. There has been a couple of other groups too, but mostly Sir's." Seeing the panic on Skye's face Ward pulled her into a reassuring hug, "They're not getting anywhere near you, I promise."

"How can you promise that?" Skye hissed, afraid raising her voice would alert Simmons, "You can't watch us twenty four seven, Grant. You need rest. You need help."

Ward took a step back, pulling away from Skye, "I'm fine. I promise you."

Skye shook her head, "You're pushing yourself too hard. I just have to look at you to see that."

"Skye…" Ward sighed, rubbing his eyes.

"No," Skye interrupted, "You need help." She paused before getting straight the point, "I think it's time we brought the team in on this." Before Ward could interrupt Skye starred him down, "Give me one reason why not?" When Ward just raised an eyebrow Skye actually smiled, "Besides that. I mean you've spent almost a year protecting all of us, that's got to count for something. Not to mention you are this baby's father."

Ward was silent, taking Skye's words in, then he nodded, "Okay."

Skye was shocked, he hadn't actually expected him to agree with her, "Okay? Seriously?" She asked, a smile spreading across her face.

Ward nodded again, sighing, "But give me some time, okay. Not today."

"Okay," Skye agreed, "But this baby's is due in eight weeks and Simmons recons I might go into labour before that because of everything that's been going on." She smiled as she wrapped her arms around Ward's neck, "So you've got until I'm in labour to come join the team, otherwise I'm telling them the truth and sending May to drag you back, okay?"

Ward nodded weakly again, "Okay?"

Skye smiled, finally pulling the ultrasound picture out and passing it to Ward, "To remind you what you're fighting for."

Ward smiled when he looked at the picture, "Are you sure you want this, Skye?"

Skye lent in and captured Ward's lips with her own, when she pulled away she smiled, "There's nothing I want more."

"Okay," Ward smiled. He walked over to the bag he had stashed in the corner of the room and pulled a cord out, which he passed to Skye, "For the phone."

Skye almost laughed, "About time."

Skye was about to continue when there was a knock at the door and Simmons's voice called out, "Skye? Are you okay in there?"

"Fine," Skye called back. She hurried over to the toilet and flushed it, running water from the tap to convince Simmons she'd actually used the facilities, "Just a second."

Ward rolled his eyes, "We really need to stop meeting in bathrooms."

Skye smiled, "Soon."

Giving the specialist a quick kiss Skye motioned for him to hide behind the door as he had in Rome. Ward rolled his eyes again but complied.

Slipping back into the store Skye gave Simmons a reassuring smile, one she couldn't help but let grow at the thought of Ward. Soon she and Ward could actually be together, as a family. Soon.

Author's Note: People have been asking about when the team will find out about Ward, the answer: SOON.

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