I can’t apologize enough for the amount of time it’s taken me to write more for this story. Please know that I do intend to continue writing for it though!
The support for this story has truly been overwhelming. Thank you, thank you!! I’m so grateful for all your comments and kudos! =) And huge THANK YOU to @katrinacornwells, who continually encourages me. I love you so much!
Also, here’s to hoping for some good Philinda moments in this next episode!!
Phil flipped on the lights in his apartment before shutting and locking the door behind him. He made his way through his tiny kitchen, grabbing an orange as he went. He’d been awake since 4am to get some hours in at the bakery before hurrying back to his apartment, showering, and leaving to meet Dr. May. Melinda.His thoughts drifted to their afternoon together. She was a captivating woman, that Dr. May.
He was about to settle down and watch some Food Network when the music to “The Star Spangled Man With A Plan” broke through his cloud of exhaustion. He picked up his phone and answered it to stop the ringing.
“Hello?”
“Phil! How did the meeting go?” Tony’s voice filled his ear. “Ol’ grim-faced May didn’t scare you away, did she?”
Phil thought about the soft look on May’s face when she described her daughter, and the one time he’d made her laugh. “She was nice. Maybe she’s only ‘grim’ around you.”
“Nah, that can’t be it. Mel thinks I’m great. But that is interesting, because she usually hates meeting new people and–Pepper, no, I’m talking to Phil…" Phil heard rustling noises, like Tony was moving quickly. “Wellsomeone’s gotta warn him about May. Aw, come on, Pep! I’m just telling him-”
Phil shook his head in amusement and tuned out their argument. Naturally, Pepper eventually got the upper hand (with some threat no doubt, Phil mused) and, in her usual chipper voice, demanded he tell her everything.
“I thought the talk went well. I may have rambled a bit. They had this amazing quiche that I managed to get the recipe to! Definitely going to try that soon. I couldn’t figure out why I liked it so much, but then then Sif’s cook told me they used-”
“Phil. Focus.” Pepper interrupted him. “What did you think about May? ”
“Uh, shouldn’t you care what I think about Daisy more?” Phil replied, eyebrows drawing together.
“Of course, but you met May first. Let’s go in order.”
Phil sighed, but gave in to Pepper’s insistence. “She’s…” He paused and thought about the woman that had captured his attention so effortlessly. He’d known what she looked like before meeting her, thanks to the pictures Pepper had shown him, but they didn’t do her justice. She was stunning. And, despite her seemingly solemn air, every once in a while he would catch a glimpse of something intriguing in her dark eyes. Maybe it was interest? Or something more like mischief? Humor? He wasn’t able to decipher it before it disappeared behind a polite mask. The spark made him want to learn more about her, and he remembered his disappointment when she didn’t share anything about herself.
Phil cleared his throat, realizing he’d kept Pepper waiting. “She’s a good interrogator.” He grimaced as he recalled the intense gaze that had caused him to babble even more than usual.
Pepper huffed through the phone. “That’s all? ”
“Well, she was pleasant enough to talk to, even though she’s not very open about herself. And Daisy is just as cute as can be. I’ll have to work to keep up with her though.” Phil hoped she would accept the switch in topics and move on. He didn’t want to admit to himself how fascinated he was by Dr. May. Not if she was going to become his employer. In his (albeit limited) experience, acknowledging any attraction in that kind of a relationship would just be asking for trouble. It would be better to be professional, ignore it, and focus on Daisy, Phil was convinced.
“May said to come to the house early on Monday and she’ll show me around. Then I’ll pick up Daisy from school later and watch her until May gets back from the hospital.” He finished.
“Great! I really think you’ll fit right in with them, Phil.” Pepper sounded happy. “And I’ll want to hear all about the first day, so don’t you forget to call me.“
Phil chuckled tiredly. “I’ll try. Thanks, Pepper.”
“You’re welcome. Have a good night.”
“You too.” Phil hung up and leaned his head back against his couch, closing his eyes with a sigh.
His mind wandered back to the afternoon at The Tower—the gym Tony owned. May had asked him to meet her there after she picked up Daisy from school, which he happily agreed to. The four-year-old had been very energetic when they arrived, especially after being cooped up at school all morning. But she had shown a little interest in him when May first introduced them in the lobby of the huge building.
“You’re a babysitter?” She asked, a mixture of doubt and suspicion on her face as she looked up at him.
Phil bit back a smile at the adorable look of distrust she was giving him. He wanted her to know he would take her seriously, even if she was cute as a button. He squatted down to her level. “Well, sort of.” Phil decided to be frank with the girl. Children could see through lies more easily than some adults could, he’d learned over the years. “I’ve babysat a lot of kids, but I mainly work as a baker.”
At that, her brown eyes lit up, causing Phil to grin back without thinking. “You mean you know how to make cakes and cookies?”
Phil laughed. “Yeah, lots of other things too.”
“Cool!”
After their exchange, Jemma and Peggy came out from the back office to meet them and Daisy ran off to play with her friend. Peggy and Phil chatted for a bit before she excused herself to see to another matter. Although Tony owned the gym, Peggy, along with Maria Hill, were the ones who ran it. Without the children or Peggy, Phil and May were left alone again. Phil stood there a bit awkwardly before May brought up the possibility of him watching Daisy for her.
“It would still be a trial, just to make sure this is a good fit, but…how about starting as soon as Monday?”
Phil smiled reassuringly at her, sensing her hesitation and caution. “Absolutely. I’ve already mentioned the possibility to my boss at the shop. He’s not very happy about it, but he still needs me, no matter how few hours I’m able to work.”
May nodded, and Phil could see some relief on her face. “Till Monday then.” She reached out her hand and he took it, shaking it to seal the deal.
If he also took note of how nice her hand felt in his (strong, yet soft), that was neither here nor there.
A loud knock startled Phil from his daydreaming.
“Phil, it’s me.” Garrett’s voice came from the other side of the door as he knocked again.
Phil winced and, not for the first time, wondered why he ever decided that getting an apartment in the same complex as his friend and boss was a good idea. He’d known John Garrett since they were young, but something had changed over the years—and not for the better. Since Phil started working at the bakery Garrett owned, he’d begun questioning if he was really a man he wanted to continue claiming as a friend or not.
In spite of his negative feelings, Garrett was still one of his employers and it wouldn’t be a good idea to get on his bad side.
“Took you long enough.” Garrett snarked playfully when the door opened. “Getting harder to get those old muscles moving, huh?”
“You would know, with you being 2 years older and all.” Phil replied dryly.
Garrett scoffed with a grin. “I just came to check and make sure I’d have you working all day at the shop tomorrow. No snotty-nosed germ-carriers you’ve gotta abandon me for then?”
Phil chose to ignore his passive aggressive question. “I’ll be at the shop.” He confirmed.
“Good. We’ve got a big order for 9am pickup, so I’ll need you at 4:00 sharp.” Garrett clapped him on the shoulder before turning to leave. “Better get your beauty sleep while you can. Can’t have you scaring away the customers.” He called behind him.
Phil shut the door and made his way to his bedroom, already feeling the weariness settle on top of his shoulders.
May’s house was beautiful, Phil noticed as soon as he pulled into the driveway early Monday morning.
The house sat on a tall incline, and the front yard was green and freshly mowed. Its walls were painted white while all the accents were a dark, wooden brown. The cozy covered porch he stepped into as he walked up the front steps contained two wooden chairs and a porch swing, and was probably perfect for watching the sunset. The main characteristic that struck Phil was the simplicity of it. It was definitely larger than the average house, and looked very well-kept, but it wasn’t…excessive or elaborate. May was a specialist, and a very good one, according to Natasha and Pepper. She could probably afford an entire mansion if she wanted it. But perhaps he was just used to the overly-lavish, expensive look of Tony’s home.
As Phil knocked on the door, he had to admit he thought the elegance and style of the home was very pleasing, and he was even more intrigued by the owner than before.
The door opened after a moment, “You’re early.” were May’s first words.
“Oh, yes, sorry. It’s a tendency I have…” Phil rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, trying not to stare at May in her dark purple scrubs. “But,” He stuck out his other hand toward her to show off the brown paper bag he’d brought with him from the bakery. “I did bring muffins! I, uh, hope you two like blueberry though.”
A ghost of a smile appeared on May’s lips as she took the bag from his outstretched hand. “There are worse habits to have. And who doesn’t like blueberry?” Phil looked relieved as she tilted her head in a gesture for him to follow her through the house.
Despite Phil sensing that May herself was a fairly organized person, there was still a four-year-old living in the house, and the very first room Phil was introduced to made that rather obvious.
“That’s the library in there, which mainly acts as Daisy’s playroom now, as you can see,” May nodded at the French doors on the right as soon as they walked in. Through the glass Phil could see open toy bins, dolls, and books scattered across the carpet, as well as an upright, plastic easel with a half finished drawing still attached to it and a spilled crayon box on the ground.
Phil sent a charming smile to May. “Multi-purpose rooms are the best.”
The side of her mouth lifted slightly at that. After taking another couple steps forward, May pointed out the living room and dining room on the left, the latter containing an open archway that led to the kitchen. Before taking him in there, however, she walked him straight ahead and showed him a long hallway that contained several doors.
“The first one here is my bedroom,” May indicated the closed door on the left side of the hallway. “The second is the guest bathroom, the last one is Daisy’s room. The door at the very end of the hallway leads to the garage, and the one door on the right side leads to the basement floor.” May rattled off quickly, as if giving out orders. Phil nodded and tried to commit them all to memory.
He had to admit, the house was larger than he originally thought only a minute ago.
“Basement floor?” Phil questioned as May lead him back to the kitchen.
“Yes. This house used to be my parents. They built the bottom floor for me for…after I finished my residency.”
Phil noticed the hesitation in her voice, but didn’t pry, and instead chose to smile at the girl impatiently sitting at the breakfast table. She sat up immediately when they entered.
“Hi, Daisy. Remember me?”
“You’re the baker babysitter!”
Phil chuckled and glanced at May, seeing her shake her head affectionately.
“His name is Mr. Coulson, Daisy. Or Mr. Phil?” She looked at Phil with her question.
“Either is fine,” Phil nodded. “I’ve been called worse.” He thought he saw May’s lips quirk up again briefly before she turned away to add one of the blueberry muffins and what looked to be a peanut butter and jelly sandwich into Daisy’s lunch box.
“Does that mean we could make some cookies today?” Daisy asked after taking a bite of her cereal. Lucky Charms, Phil noted. “I made sugar cookies at school before.”
“Sure thing, Daisy. That sounds fun! When I pick you up from school, we can swing by the store and pick up a few groceries for my famous chocolate chip cookies.” Phil grinned at Daisy’s “Yay!“ of excitement.
He looked around the spacious, black and white kitchen to see what May could have eaten for breakfast, but the sink was empty and all he saw was a forgotten coffee mug on the island. That wouldn’t do. The best way to start the day is with a good breakfast, his mom always told him. Phil vowed right then and there to make sure Daisy and May had a hearty, home-cooked breakfast whenever he was here.
“Just keep those receipts and I’ll reimburse you for it.” May spoke to Phil, her voice didn’t leave any room for arguing. “Daisy, go find your backpack and shoes while I finish speaking to Mr. Coulson.”
Daisy hopped up and started to run out of the room.
“Daisy.” May spoke without so much as glancing her daughter’s way.
The little girl settled for skipping the rest of the way out the room, much to Phil’s amusement.
“Here’s the key for the front door.” Phil took the silver house key and put it in his pocket, while May continued without pause. “I made a few more notes about things you may need to know and left it on the fridge, as well as the hospital’s phone number in case you can’t reach me on my phone. You can also call Peggy with any questions. There’s an SUV in the garage that you’ll use when taking Daisy anywhere. It already has her car seat in it. Car keys are next to the door. I trust you’ll drive carefully in it.”
Phil began to assure her of his caution and vigilance, but she cut him off and started ushering him back towards the front door. “You can familiarize yourself with the house more later, I’m running a bit behind today.”
“Oh, I completely understand. Thank you, Dr. May. I will–”
“One last thing,” May interrupted again, glancing behind her as if to check that Daisy was out of earshot. She stepped close to him. Phil swallowed at her sudden proximity, as well as the the cold stare she fixed on him. All at once he knew exactlywhat Tony was trying to warn him about. Petite and beautiful as she was, he was 100% convinced that this look from Melinda May could bring the most deadly assassin to their knees.
She spoke slowly and carefully, voice low. “If you do anything that could even potentially hurt my daughter at any moment, I willfind out, and I promise I will make you regret it for the rest of your life. Understood?”
Phil felt like he couldn’t breathe for a solid moment, but shook himself and nodded vigorously. “I-I’ll take the very best care of her, I promise.” He stammered nervously.
May nodded once and slowly stepped back. “I’m looking forward to hearing all about your day. See you later tonight, Mr. Coulson.” She smiled at him politely before swinging the door shut.
Phil blinked at the front door, unable to remember when he had physically stepped outside of the house. As he took in a deep breath and made his way back to his car, he couldn’t help but wonder if he knew exactly what he was getting into, and if he was prepared for it or not.
Despite his stunned thoughts, a small grin began to grow on his face as he drove. He’d rarely seen a woman so direct and fiercely protective of their child before. And he had definitely never been threatened so convincingly by anyone. He was certain she meant every word she said, unlike the complaints and empty threats he received from time to time as a high school teacher. It was fascinating, admirable, and more than a little bit frightening.
And it really brought a whole new level to the term “Mama Bear.”
Terrifying or not, Dr. May and her daughter had complete hold over his attention, and he was absolutely eager to embrace this new challenge they presented.
Even though it seemed like a very reasonable idea to attempt to prepare himself for being scared out of his wits the majority of the time.
I am completelyoverwhelmed by everyone’s amazing and encouraging responses to my first chapter. It’s hard to explain just how much your comments mean to me! You guys are just the best. I hope you enjoy everything to come!
Special thanks to Corinna, my amazing Mandarin translator!! And always Kaiya and Liz. Love yall. =)
“Do I haveto go to school today?” Daisy looked up at Melinda imploringly from behind her bowl of cereal.
“Eat another bite, Daisy, and yes.” Melinda answered, glancing at her daughter from the island where she was assembling a turkey and cheese sandwich for Daisy’s lunchbox. The disappointment on Daisy’s little face made her want to change her mind, but her shift started in an hour. She couldn’t call out now unless there was some kind of emergency.
“But-but I wanna go to work with you.” Daisy sounded like she was on the verge of tears.
Melinda set down the sandwich and immediately went to crouch beside her little girl. She was used to Daisy’s reluctance to part from her. Especially when she was a baby, her separation anxiety had made it difficult for Melinda to go anywhere alone. But this was something different. She usually wasn’t this clingy anymore unless she was sick…or something was upsetting her.
“Daisy,xiǎo huā,” Melinda had given Daisy the Mandarin nickname when she was still just a baby: little flower. Melinda put a hand on her back and switched to Mandarin, as she frequently did at the house with Daisy. “What’s wrong?” She probed.
Daisy put her spoon down and threw her arms around Melinda’s neck for a hug. “I don’t wanna go to school. And I don’t like aftercare. I wanna stay with you.” Daisy’s voice was muffled by Melinda’s shirt.
Melinda held onto her and stood up, rubbing her back soothingly as Daisy straddled her waist. “I know you don’t like aftercare, xiǎo huā, but Mama has to go to work.”
She was loathe to leave Daisy in the daycare program after school. Her previous nanny, who moved away in January, usually picked her up right after her class ended. The past couple of months without a nanny meant that most days, Daisy had to stay in aftercare until she (or Peggy or Maria) were able to pick her up. Even though the school was good and the teachers were kind, Daisy expressed how much she disliked it. On particularly long or bad days, she would cry in class about having to go. Ms. Anne Weaver, Daisy’s VPK teacher, explained to her that Daisy played by herself most of the time in aftercare. She thought it had to do with the fact that many of the other students in aftercare were older, and none of her classmates stayed after school. Melinda hated that her daughter had to be in a place where she felt she didn’t fit in, but without a nanny there was just no way for her to make sure Daisy was taken care of for those few hours without being at the school. Part of the burden of being a single mother, she supposed.
Melinda could feel Daisy relaxing in her arms the longer she held her, and finally Melinda pulled back to look into her daughter’s face.
“Hey,” Melinda moved the brown strands of hair away from Daisy’s face. “Guess what tomorrow is? My day off! You know what that means.” She saw the beginnings of a smile start to creep up. “We can do Tai Chi in the morning, and after school we’ll go to Aunt Peggy and Aunt Maria’s classes at the gym. Then at night we’ll eat ice cream. How’s that sound?”
“And play Chutes ‘n’ Ladders?”
Melinda groaned, causing Daisy to let out a giggle. “Okay, Chutes and Ladders too.”
Daisy hugged her once more. “Wǒ ài nǐ, Mommy.”
I love you. The phrase warmed her soul. “Wǒ ài nǐ,xiǎo huā.” Melinda set her down. “Now, finish your cereal.”
Daisy peered into her bowl and wrinkled her nose. “But it’s all squishynow.”
Melinda sighed and quickly began packing Daisy’s lunch away. Their little heart to heart (though she cherished every second of it) had left them with little time to linger. Looked like it was going to be another protein bar breakfast kind of morning.
“Okay, go get your shoes and backpack on, I’ll be right there.”
Melinda was sitting at her desk, reading through a few patient files and filling out paperwork when Natasha barged through her doorway, knocking once as if that was all the warning she needed.
“What are you waiting for?” Natasha demanded, hand on her hip.
“This mother’s latest report from her OB/GYN.” Melinda replied without looking up.
“I’m talking about Phil. You haven’t called him yet.”
Melinda finally lifted her head to roll her eyes. “I’ve been a little busy. And how did you even know about that?”
“Pepper told me.” Natasha sat on her desk, which she knewMelinda hated, and leaned on some of her papers. “Phil was one of Clint’s teachers in high school, so when he moved back here, Clint introduced us. I think you and Daisy would like him.”
“Good to know. Now get off my desk and go find someone to patch up.” Melinda knew what Natasha was doing. She was trying to annoy her into contacting the man.
“Are you going to call him?”
Melinda sighed. “Nat, you’re more of a four year old than Daisy is sometimes.”
Natasha folded her arms. “Well where do you think she gets it from?”
Melinda shook her head, concealing her smile. “For your information, I was going to call him today.”
“Hmm, well let me help you with that.” Nat swiped up her phone from her desk faster than she could blink and, moving just out of reach, began dialing Phil’s number.
“Natasha!” Melinda lunged and grabbed the phone back, but it had already started ringing. The glare Melinda sent the redhead would have caused every intern (and some doctors, for that matter) to apologize profusely and run the opposite way, but her friend just grinned back.
“You’re welcome!” Natasha called out as she left, shutting the door behind her.
Melinda huffed in annoyance, but quickly turned her attention to the phone…which had just stopped ringing.
“Hello?”
“Dr. May? Hi.” The man stuck his hand out, his blue eyes betraying some nervousness despite his easy smile. “Phil Coulson.”
“Most people just call me ‘May,’” Melinda stood briefly to shake his hand. “Thanks for agreeing to meet on such short notice.” She gestured for him to sit in the chair across from her before sitting back down.
Melinda chose her favorite breakfast cafe as a meeting spot for her interview with the renowned-yet-surprisingly-ordinary-looking Phil Coulson. The mid-morning sun peeking through a few clouds and the gentle breeze made for a very pleasant day for an outdoor brunch.
Phil thanked her as he seated himself, looking around the quaint patio and the rest of the cafe and nodding in appreciation. “I’ve never been here before, but I find that those little, lesser-known restaurants are usually the best ones, don’t you think?”
Melinda nodded in agreement, gazing at the property fondly. “I’ve been coming here for years. The owner, Sif, and her husband are good people.”
“How long have you lived here?” Phil asked, leaning forward with eager eyes.
Melinda cocked an eyebrow. “Aren’t I supposed to be the one asking questions here?”
“Oh-geez, yeah you’re right. Sorry.” Phil seemed to deflate slightly as he looked away from her to study his menu instead.
Melinda suppressed a smile at Phil’s obvious embarrassment. It was healthy to be a little nervous at an interview-it meant that he cared about what she thought about him.
All the same, Melinda could almost hear her mother’s voice in her head, chiding her for speaking without thinking first.
“It was just a joke, Mr. Coulson.” Melinda’s voice broke the silence. No need for him to already think the worst of her.
“Phil,” he responded immediately, looking back up at her. A slightly more cautious smile tugged one side of his mouth back up. “You can call me Phil.”
“Well, Phil, Pepper said you work at a bakery and substitute teach at a high school?” Melinda picked up her menu. “After we decide on what to eat, I’d like to hear about how you got into that.”
Melinda’s first observation was discovered less than a minute after ordering their food: Phil Coulson was a talker.
She listened, making internal notes of his appearance while he spoke: he had brown hair (thinning at the top), blue eyes (the blue button down he wore really made them stand out), average height (still a good amount of inches taller than her), nice smile and voice (sincere and pleasing), he wore a suit jacket over his dress shirt (disguising what appeared to be a strong set of arms). Hmm. Perhaps he wasn’t as ordinary as she thought he’d been when he walked up.
In fact, she mused to herself, he’s actually kind of attractive…
Was all of this information she needed to know about a nanny?
Probably not.
Melinda mentally shook herself and forced herself to tune back into Phil’s story. As his bacon and spinach quiche cooled on its plate, he told her about his difficulty in choosing a subject in college to focus on. He’d bounced around for a while until he’d finally graduated as the only history major with an excess amount of culinary electives. It was there, apparently, that he’d met and roomed with Tony Stark.
“Which was just as fun as you can imagine, if you know Tony at all.” Phil stated dryly. Melinda snorted in understanding before swallowing a forkful of her own ham and cheese quiche.
“Has he changed at all since then?” Melinda inquired.
Phil chewed a bite of his (nearly forgotten) food thoughtfully. “He likes to act the same as he did in college, but it’s more of a front now. He’s grown up a bit since then, thanks to Pepper and Fitz.”
Melinda scoffed again and muttered. “Could’ve fooled me.”
Phil grinned at her, and Melinda was surprised at how easy it was to smile back at him.
Sif chose that moment to swing by, refilling their drinks with expert precision. The brunette raised her eyebrows, glancing between her and Phil as she poured. “Enjoying everything?”
Melinda sent her a look, knowing exactly what she was hinting at.
The double meaning seemed to go right over Phil’s head as he nodded enthusiastically. “This quiche is delicious. Is there any way I could convince you to give me the recipe?”
Sif smiled. “I’ll speak to the cook.” She walked away to serve another guest, but not before throwing another smirk over her shoulder in Melinda’s direction.
She pretended not to notice.
“And after college?” Melinda prodded him.
“Oh, right. I taught history at a local high school here for a while. That was interesting since I was only a few years older than some of them. Then my father passed away suddenly and I moved back to my childhood home to be with my mom.” Phil’s eyes looked distant. “She helped me rediscover my love for baking, and she’s also the reason I came back here.” His smile was back, though it held a bit of embarrassment. “She basically kicked me out and forced me to pursue my idea of opening my own bakery.”
“She sounds like a great mom.”
“She is. She taught me a lot. She’s also the reason I love kids.” Phil fiddled with his fork. “She taught me to take care of them when I was still young myself. With a bunch of younger cousins, I was basically the family babysitter. Until, unfortunately, college forced me to retire from my budding career.”
Melinda let out a surprised chuckle at the joke. At the sound, Phil’s blue eyes snapped quickly to hers and he beamed back, looking delighted with himself for causing her to laugh.
“I’ve been rambling. I’m sorry, I’ve been told I do that a lot.” Phil tilted his head as he looked at her. “What about yourself? And Daisy?”
“Daisy’s four, she’ll be five this July.” Melinda subtly ignored the prompt to speak about herself. It didn’t matter what Phil thought or knew about her personally, as long as he took good care of her daughter. This isn’t a date, it’s an interview, Melinda told herself firmly. She pulled out her phone as she spoke. “She loves dressing up, Chutes and Ladders, ice cream, and playing outside. Here’s a picture of her, in case you haven’t seen one yet.”
Phil studied the photo with a smile. “Yeah, I have seen some of you before, actually.” Melinda glanced at him quickly and watched his ears turned pink. “I mean you as in plural, like the two of you. Y’all, as some might say. Pepper and Natasha have shown me a few of you and Daisy.”
Melinda bit back a smile at his stammering. With anyone else, the admission might have sounded creepy, but with Phil it was almost…cute. In a dorky, kind of endearing sort of way.
Phil cleared his throat to break up the awkwardness. “She looks sweet.” He finally stated.
Melinda squashed down the urge to tease him, deciding it would be more professional to just ignore the exchange. “She is.” A little, affectionate smile crossed her lips as she looked at the picture. “She can also be a bit of a handful. Many of the other nannies found her difficult to keep up with.”
Melinda’s eyes suddenly focused above the picture to see the clock in bold letters. She nearly groaned aloud. When did it get so late? “I’m sorry, I need to go pick up Daisy from school now or she’ll be waiting on me.”
She stood up and grabbed her purse, then hesitated and considered Phil in front of her. He was now on his feet as well and he looked at her with slight concern in his eyes. “Would you…like to meet her?”
Phil’s eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly grinned and nodded. “I’d love to.”
Dr. Melinda May has been looking to hire a nanny. But between her and her daughter, Daisy, Melinda is starting to think she won’t be able to find anyone who can make both of them happy. When she hires Phil Coulson to do the job, however, Melinda finds out just how untrue that belief had been.
Melinda closed the door behind Nanny Candidate #14 before turning around and letting out a short sigh.
Another failed attempt.
Each person she interviewed seemed so promising in the beginning, but none turned out to be a good fit. She was too protective of her four-year-old to leave her with just anybody, and Melinda’s gut instincts told her she hadn’t found “The One” just yet, even though she’d given several a chance. As if Melinda wasn’t picky enough herself, Daisy hadn’t liked a single one of the potential nannies that had watched her for the past month either. Between the two of them, Melinda was starting to think there was no one in the world who would make both of them happy.
Melinda checked her phone for the time. Her young back-up babysitter wouldn’t be able to stay overnight, so it looked like she’d have to call Peggy to watch Daisy again while she worked her night shift. Not that either Peggy or Daisy would mind the extra time spent with each other. Daisy and Peggy’s daughter, Jemma, were the best of friends–as close to each other as sisters. And ever since her brother and his wife died years ago, Peggy was also the guardian of her two older nieces, Sharon and Bobbi. The four of them loved getting a chance to have a “girls night” together.
Melinda pressed Peggy’s icon on her phone and put it to her ear, moving into her kitchen as it rang.
“Let me guess, #13 didn’t work out?” She asked immediately, foregoing a normal “hello” and getting straight to the point. Typical Peggy.
“14. And no.” Melinda replied shortly as she reached into her fridge for a bottle of water.
“Sorry, darling. Want me to keep Daisy over here for the evening?”
“Would you mind? I know it’s a school night, but if you can take her in the morning before your 8 o’clock class, I can pick her up after and–”
“Say no more. You know she’s welcome here anytime.” There was a lower voice in the background. “Steve says he’ll start popping the girls some popcorn.”
Melinda shook her head and her brief smile faded. “Sorry to impose on you two again. I really am trying to find someone…” Melinda shut the door to her fridge and gazed at the most recent picture stuck to the outside. A wide-eyed Daisy at Christmas time, holding up an unopened present to show to the camera. Melinda’s lips turned up involuntarily (as they always did) at her little girl’s big grin. “It’s just never the right person.”
“Have we begun discussing your non-existent love life or are we still talking about finding a nanny?” Peggy asked, her English accent clipped with barely restrained humor. Melinda’s eyes narrowed at the jab. “You’ll find someone, don’t you worry. Not another word, now, Melinda. Bring her over whenever you’re ready and I’ll tell the girls.”
Melinda shook her head as a grateful half-smile tugged her lips upward. Peggy always knew what to say. Melinda grew up an only child, but she imagined that having an older sister would be a lot like having a Peggy. They’d relied on each other through some of the most difficult times of both their lives and now, with daughters of their own, they were closer than ever.
Melinda hung up the phone just in time to hear the sound of Daisy’s footsteps nearing the kitchen. She skip-hopped in, dark hair swinging.
“I’m all dressed, Mama!” She announced proudly, showing off her mismatching pajamas. “I’m glad you sent that nanny away. She was boring. Who were you talking to?” The four-year-old spoke all in one breath, her high, young voice causing Melinda’s heart to melt as it always did.
Melinda set down her water and held out her arms. Daisy jumped into them without hesitation, settling on Melinda’s hip with both arms around her neck. She’d always been very slight in stature, and Melinda was thankful for it. She wanted to be able to hold her baby girl in her arms for as long as possible.
“That was Aunt Peggy. You’ll be having another sleepover tonight.”
“Yay!” Daisy hugged Melinda, grinning, before wiggling out of her arms. “I have to go get my dolls ready–we’re makin’ a team that’s gonna save the world!”
With that, Daisy raced off to her room. Melinda shook her head fondly and called out to her daughter. “Slow down, Daisy.”
Picking her bottle of water back up, Melinda followed behind Daisy (who obediently slowed her pace down a fraction) up the stairs to put on her scrubs.
It was going to be a long night.
“May! I have the perfectcandidate for your nanny problem!”
Melinda turned from her meal (consisting of a PB&J sandwich and carrot sticks) to see Pepper hurry through the door of the break room to the table where Melinda was sitting–alone, as usual. Her smile was one that put all her young patients, their parents, and even other doctors, at ease. Which, along with her intelligence and compassion, made her a naturally talented head of pediatrics and a good friend. There weren’t many doctors at Providence Hospital that Melinda trusted fully, but she and Pepper had become close colleagues and friends over the past few years–despite the fact that several other doctors were very intimidated by Melinda’s personality and intelligence.
Melinda prompted Pepper to speak with an “I’m listening” eyebrow raise before biting down on another carrot stick.
“His name is Phil–”
Melinda’s internal commentary immediately began interjecting: A boy?
“–and he moved back into town recently–”
Okay, so an adult. Most likely doesn’t live with his parents.
“–he’s super great with kids–”
Hmm. No word on professional experience.
“–and he’s an old friend of Tony’s–”
Ah, there’s the catch.
Melinda raised her hand to stop Pepper from continuing. “Never mind. I’ve met some of Tony’s ‘old friends’ and have alwaysregretted it.” She took a bite of her sandwich as if to finish the conversation.
Pepper opened her mouth to protest, then closed it and shrugged. “Point taken.” Her smile returned. “But this guy is different. Ask Clint or Natasha. I think even Steve and Peggy know him! He’s always been great with kids, so Tony asked him to watch Fitz for us a few times and Fitz adoreshim. Makes Tony jealous sometimes, actually.”
Melinda considered it. Male nannies were not as common as females, in Melinda’s experience. There weren’t many qualified men looking to nanny a child. But she was getting nowhere with her current findings, and Pepper wouldn’t trust her son with anyone who was incompetent or dangerous, of that Melinda was sure. But still, this was Daisy…
Pepper continued her pitch. “You know, just the fact that he has patience enough to be friends with Tony should tell you he could handle anything. Plus, he’s excellent in the kitchen, which would be good for both Daisy andyou.” Pepper looked pointedly at her PB&J, which had grape jelly oozing out of one of the sides.
Melinda sent her an exasperated look, which Pepper received with wide-eyed innocence. “Plus,” she continued. “He’s very reliable and trustworthy. He’s older, probably around your age.”
Melinda folded her arms in mock offense.
“Okay…yours and…you know, Tony’s age.” Pepper grabbed one of Melinda’s carrots and grinned when Melinda rolled her eyes. They both knew Pepper wasn’t all that much younger than her.
“Have you asked him what he’d think about being a nanny?” Melinda finally asked aloud.
“No, but I think he’d love it. He’s been talking about trying to find a better job so he can save up enough to start his own bakery. He works at one now but hates the management. And he’s taught in public schools for years, although he’s just a substitute now, butthat means he’s already cleared a background check.” Pepper bit into the stolen vegetable and nudged her. “What do you say?”
Melinda sighed in surrender. “I’ll look into it.”
“Great!” Pepper’s smile lit up the room. She popped the rest of the carrot in her mouth and took out a folded piece of paper from one of her pockets, sliding it over to Melinda before standing. “I’ve got a patient to see, but you should call him.” With that, the strawberry blonde strode out of the break room.
Melinda opened up the piece of paper and looked at the name and number there, written in Pepper’s neat handwriting. Phil Coulson. Already had a background check, Pepper said? Well, no harm in checking twice.
Melinda picked up her phone, but instead of calling the number on the paper, she dialed the number of a old police friend she knew could help her.
Fury and Peggy had worked with each other years ago back when Peggy had been a part of the county’s police force. He always told Melinda she could have been a policewoman rather than a doctor. More than that, despite his off-putting personality, Daisy had him wrapped around her little finger. He wouldn’t mind doing some sleuthing if it was for her, Melinda was sure.
Natasha was leaning on the wall, clipboard in hand as Pepper exited the lounge.
“Well?” The ER nurse prompted.
Pepper smiled proudly. “She’s gonna call him.” The two women gave each other a subtle high five and began walking down the hallway.
“Daisy will love him, and I think Melinda won’t be too far behind her.” Natasha smirked, pleased with their matchmaking plans.
“Agreed. And Phil will be head over heels, no question.” Pepper added. “They’re definitely going to owe us.”
“Agreed. And I’ll officiallybe Daisy’s favorite aunt. Peggy and Maria can’t top this.”
The two redheads shared a quiet laugh before going their separate ways.
“You’re sure?”
“I’m telling you, May, the guy hasn’t done a d–” Fury caught Melinda’s glare and glanced at Daisy eating macaroni and cheese at the kitchen table. He corrected himself with a huff. “A darnthing when it comes to breaking the law, except for that one speeding ticket when he was in his twenties. And if I owned hiscar, I know myrecord wouldn’t be that tame.”
Melinda nodded and pulled the broccoli out of the microwave, spooning out some onto Daisy’s plate.
“Look, you know I’m instantly suspicious of any ‘old friend’ of Tony’s too, but I’ve actually met this guy, thanks to Steve, and he’s good. One of those nerd types, talks too much, but clean.”
“How has everyone met this man but me?” Melinda muttered before sighing and nodding again. “Thanks, Nick. Want to stay for dinner?”
“Yes, stay! I wanna hear your eye patch story again!” Daisy bounced at her seat excitedly. “Please?”
“Well…okay, just for one quick story.” Fury held up his pointer finger and raised his eyebrows seriously. Daisy nodded back with a smile.
I. Your tattoo is only half complete and it completes itself the moment you meet your soulmate.
Melinda May’s curiosity about the soulmate tattoo on her wrist had faded long ago.
She was in her thirties, already a successful lawyer, and had no free time to sit and ponder about a soulmate she would likely never meet anyway.
Of course, Melinda had her fair share of fantasies about her soulmate when she was younger-what her tattoo would look like when it was complete (now it just looked like the outline of a raindrop about to trickle off her wrist), if her soulmate would be thrilled or disappointed when they found out she was their other half, if shewould be excited or disappointed…Melinda had wondered all these things in her youth, but it was time to face reality. And reality, at this present moment, was staring at her rather rudely in the face.
“You want me to do what?”
“You heard me, May. These kind of opportunities don’t come often, and we’d be fools not to take him up on his offer. He’s been very successful.” Fury leaned back in his chair, staring one of the top lawyers in his firm, daring her to disagree.
Melinda’s voice was stiff and her posture was tense. “I work alone, Nick. It’s what I’ve always done, and I think I’ve succeeded just as well as he has by doing so.” Her arms were crossed, and she had the intimidating stare that had won her several cases in the past at full heat, but Fury seemed unfazed. Melinda shook her head angrily. “What do we even know about this ‘Phil Coulson’?”
“I’ve known him since he was in high school. Had him as an intern for a while. A good man and a good lawyer. He wanted to branch out, find his own niche, so he went to work for Gonzalez’s company. He’s done well there, but now he wants back in with us. And,” Fury pierced her with his gaze. “He wants to work with you. I think you two would make a great team. One that could potentially bring this firm more success than before. Any other questions or concerns?”
Melinda could tell from her boss’s tone that his question was rhetorical. His explanation had provided her more answers than she thought he’d give. Much as she wanted to protest further, it would have to wait. She was still recovering from the sudden proposition of taking on a partner. She’d do research on this, come back with all the reasons why it was a bad idea, and convince Fury of it then. Melinda forced herself to be calm. “Just one, sir. When do I meet him?”
At Fury’s smirk, Melinda felt her dread grow. “I’m glad you asked. He’s waiting in your office now.”
Melinda’s mouth gaped open for a moment before she clenched her jaw and turned on her heel to leave. Fury’s voice stopped her at the threshold of his door. “May,” Melinda turned her head back towards her boss. “I believe you’ll warm up to him. Just make sure you don’t kill him on sight, okay?”
Melinda sent him one last look before stalking out of his office and making her way toward her own. She knew Fury had a sixth sense when it came to business ventures-it was what made him so successful. But she did notneed a partner. And she was going to prove her and Phil Coulson’s incompatibility the first chance she got.
Melinda paused briefly outside her door to straighten her spine and smooth her hair back into its bun before she entered her office.
She immediately spotted the man that was turning her professional life into disarray, looking…not at all like she expected him to. Her mind had conjured up several images of handsome, tall, arrogant-looking man. The lawyer was certainly handsome, but in a very honest way. His suit was a navy blue and his tie had different shades of blue lines striped across. He was several inches taller than she was, but not above average. And the blue eyes that shot her way as she shut her office door were open and genuine, as was his smile.
“Melinda May? I’ve heard so much about you. It’s great to finally meet-” Coulson started to reach his hand out to her, but Melinda maneuvered around him to stand behind her desk, subtly rubbing the sudden itch she felt on her wrist against her black pencil skirt. “-you.” He finished, studying her closely.
Melinda cleared her throat and reminded herself that she wanted nothing to do with this man, charming smile or no. “Find anything worthy of note during your investigation of my office?”
The smile vanished, replaced with concern and confusion at her cold tone. “Oh, I didn’t…um, I apologize. Fury seemed to think there wouldn’t be a problem if I waited in here.”
Melinda didn’t appreciate the immediate regret she felt. She didn’t care about Phil Coulson or his feelings, and yet…something inside her wanted to reassure him. “There isn’t.” She stated, but she still crossed her arms in front of her body for good measure.
Phil cocked his head to the side as if he didn’t quite believe her, but he conceded. “I…did see a few books that I thought were interesting. You read Mandarin?”
Melinda nodded once. “I speak it too.”
“That’s amazing. I’ve always wanted to become proficient in another language. I mean, not to brag, but I have been told that my Spanish is mucho bueno .”
Melinda couldn’t help the smile that flickered on her face at his awful accent. The grin Phil sent back to her was delighted, as if it pleased him that he was able to make her smile.
Melinda could already feel the anger draining out of her, so she quickly reasoned with herself. She didn’t necessarily have to be rude to him to convince Fury that they would be a terrible team. They could be friendly and still be ill-suited for each other.
Melinda sighed and relaxed her arms. “I apologize for my unprofessional behavior. I’m still a bit shocked at the notion of us being partners.”
Phil frowned. “You don’t like the idea?”
“I work alone. I always have, and it’s how I work best.” Melinda stated firmly.
It was Phil’s turn to cross his arms. “Have you ever had a partner?”
Melinda raised an eyebrow. “Why would that matter to you?”
“Well how do you know you work best alone if you’ve never tried anything else?”
Melinda felt a spark of anger at his question and opened her mouth to retort, but Phil didn’t give her a chance to answer. He immediately held up his hands in surrender. “I’m sorry, that was uncalled for. I’m just, ah. Let’s start over. Hi, I’m Phil Coulson.”
Phil held his hand out over Melinda’s desk for her to take, and something about the intense way his eyes searched hers caused her to relent and meet him in the middle.
Their hands met in a firm handshake. Instead of retracting his hand back immediately, Phil lingered, and Melinda let him…until a sudden burning sensation forced her to withdraw. Melinda gasped and gripped her wrist tightly, squeezing the skin right over her soulmark to try and relieve the pain.
Melinda glanced up at Phil, shocked to see him clawing at his chest. She looked back down at her wrist and her world spun all over again when she saw an addition to her tattoo.
It had completed itself.
What she used to think of as some sort of teardrop had transformed into a very clear infinity sign. And the man, her soulmate, who’d caused it was currently unbuttoning his shirt, revealing the same marking on his chest.
Phil looked up at her, wonder lighting up his blue eyes. “I knew it was you.” He breathed.
Melinda rounded her desk to stand in front of him, unable to tear her gaze from Phil’s black soulmark standing out against his skin in the center of his chest. She didn’t care about the inappropriate position they appeared to be in, right in her own workplace. She held up her wrist beside his chest-a perfect match.
“You…youknew?How?” Melinda blinked rapidly, her thoughts going a mile a minute.
“I followed one of your cases. Watched you in the courtroom.” Phil’s ears turned slightly pink and he began stuttering. “I-I mean, I was presentduring a case that, you know, you happened to be a part of.” He gestured awkwardly and cleared his throat. “You were brilliant. You had the whole audience transfixed on your every word. And the way you presented all your information left no room for an argument. I’ve rarely seen anyone with that kind of powerful presence and…wow, I sound like a stalker.”
A tiny smile crept up Melinda’s face as she shook her head, unable to speak but feeling surprisingly flattered by his rambling.
“Anyway, one time you reached for something and I noticed a marking on your wrist, and it was so familiar.” He reached out cautiously and gently took her wrist in his hand. Melinda let him trace the black tattoo with his fingers, completely captivated by this moment-entranced by his tender touch. “Then I realized what it was and…I had to meet you. Just to make sure I wasn’t dreaming it all up. I already knew I would love to work with you, but this just sealed the deal.” Phil sighed as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. “An infinity sign. I always wondered.”
Phil turned his gaze away from her wrist and into her eyes, looking positively elated. “It’s beautiful.” He whispered reverently. He leaned his head down just a bit…
The spell was broken by a knock on Melinda’s door.
“Ms. May? Mr. Fury would like to see you and Mr. Coulson in his office, please.”
“Yes, thank you, Bobbi. We’ll be there shortly.” Melinda said, tearing her eyes away from Phil’s.
Phil dropped her hand and buttoned his shirt back up quickly. “Well, ah, shouldn’t keep the boss waiting, I suppose.”
Melinda nodded and signaled for Phil to walk in front of her. Internally, Melinda reeled from all the revelations from the past 30 minutes. How was she supposed to prove her and Phil’s incompatibility when he was apparently the most compatible person in the world for her?
One thing was for sure: this was definitelygoing to complicate her plan.
II. After meeting your soulmate, you’re able to feel their pain as if their injuries happened to you too, whether it’s a paper cut or a broken leg.
“Coulson?” A female’s voice broke through the fog of pain caused by his two broken ribs. And his sore wrist. And knee, ouch. He didn’t even remember getting hit there.
Phil turned his head and was both delighted and embarrassed to see Melinda May leaning against the door to his hospital room. He was battered and bruised and probably looked like he’d been run over by a truck and-oh no. He was in a lousy hospital gown . Ugh. Not how he wanted to look when he met up with his cru…colleague…again.
“Agent May,” Phil straightened up in the bed and winced at his ribs, not noticing Melinda’s own grimace. “Fancy meeting you here.”
“What’d you do?” Melinda crossed her arms and gestured toward Phil with her chin.
“The usual, you know,” Phil breathed deeply and attempted a smile. “Talked myself out of a couple of bad situations, then the bad situations caught up to me and I had to get my hands dirty a little bit.”
Melinda smirked. “Didn’t have me there to save your-”
Phil interrupted her. “I did pretty well on my own, thanks.” Melinda just smiled at him, and he cursed his heart for beating a little faster because of it. “And you look like you were a little busy anyway.” He raised his eyebrows at bruises on her face.
The woman shrugged and moved into Phil’s room stiffly, closing the door behind her. “One of them got a good kick to my knee. And I landed badly on my hand, may have sprained my wrist.”
Phil nodded, secretly glad she seemed to be settling in for a visit. They’d been on separate missions for the past several months. It felt like ages since their mission together in Sausalito. Figures they would meet back up at a hospital, both with their own injuries.
Phil watched Melinda as she moved to sit in the chair beside him. She looked great, as usual. Even with a cut lip and bruises. Her hair was longer than the last time he’d seen her. Maybe now he’d have the courage to ask her out for that drink…
Melinda tried to steady herself as she sat carefully in the chair, but accidentally reached out with her injured hand and hissed at the sudden pain. She plopped the rest of the way into the chair and bit her lip at the jarring of her knee.
Phil’s immediate reaction was to reach for her. “Are you oka-uhh.” He groaned suddenly, feeling his wrist and knee flare up in pain again. He didn’t even hardly move, what the he-
Phil recoiled back at a sudden suspicion, the movement causing his ribs to protest, but he ignored it. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Melinda grip her stomach as if feeling the same pain he was.
Wait.
What.
It couldn’t be.
The two agents looked at each other in confusion.
“Phil…”
“May,” Phil’s throat was dry. “Which wrist did you hurt?”
“Left.”
“Knee?”
“Right.”
He breathed in. “And-and your ribs, have they been bothering you since approximately 10 hours ago? Even though you never took a hard blow to them?”
Melinda nodded slowly, her eyes wide with the realization.
Stories about soulmates had been around for millennia. Everyone had heard tales about strangers who would meet and realize afterward that they suddenly possessed a unique bond with that person-one that allowed them to experience each other’s pain. Cuts, bruises, broken bones, they could feel it as if the injury had occurred on their own body. Some people dismissed the stories as old fables, including Phil. But now…
If Melinda was truly feeling her ribs ache without having broken any as he had…and if hewas feeling his left wrist and right knee act up even though none of his enemies had caused it, then…
He was literally looking into the dark eyes of his soulmate.
“Wow,” Phil breathed out.
“Do you really believe in those stories about…soulmates?” Just hearing Melinda say the word made Phil’s chest feel warm.
“I didn’t, but now…” Could she really be his other half? He’d always felt a connection with her, but he’d never been so bold as to consider this.
Melinda stood. “Only one way to find out. Relax.” She sat herself on the side of his bed and gently pushed him back into a reclined position. “Close your eyes. Don’t move a muscle.” Phil obeyed, immediately understanding her plan. Melinda’s hand stroked his arm lightly. Phil barely controlled himself from shivering.
“If you’re just messing with me, May, I will-”
Phil’s eyes flew open and he sat up at the sudden jolt of pain in his knee, causing his ribs to spasm. Both he and Melinda gasped and gripped their stomach in unison.
“What a pair we make.” Melinda groaned, but laughter was evident in her voice. “This is just sad.”
Phil panted with pain, but he grinned back at her, internally crowing with excitement. Melinda May was his soulmate. Would she be as ecstatic about this development as he was? Or would she completely reject their bond and their budding partnership would be ruined?
No sooner had the thought crossed his mind that Melinda’s hand found his on the bed. She squeezed it and gazed back at him. Her dark eyes held a glow he remembered from their undercover op in Sausalito where they acted as a couple on vacation.
His heart had skipped a beat then, too.
Phil leaned toward her, but she stopped him quickly. “Please don’t. We both know what happens when you do that.”
Phil looked away from her and opened his mouth to apologize, thinking he must have misunderstood, but Melinda just scooted herself forward until she had closed the rest of the gap between them herself, resting a hand on top of his chest gently.
“I’ll lean foryou, because I’d rather not feel any pain when I do this.”
The last thing Phil saw was her grin, then Melinda’s lips were on his and pain felt like a distant memory.
III. You have an emotional bond that begins once you meet your soulmate, in which you can feel their strong emotions and even share/transfer feelings between each other.
The pain was blinding.
He felt the physical pain first. She must have gotten a bullet to the leg, and her whole body ached with bruises. The kicks, the punches-the hits just kept coming. Phil was doing his best to transfer the agony of some of her wounds to himself while focusing on negotiating with Bahrain’s authorities, but he could barely restrain himself from either falling over from the pain or running inside to enter the brawl alongside his partner, his wife, who he was sure couldn’t keep this fight up for much longer.
At the sudden noise of a loud gunshot, Phil spun around in horror, feeling like his heart was breaking inside his chest. No,he realized, not his heart… hers.
He ran.
When he found her in that room, bodies of men scattered along the floor, cradling that little girl in her arms, he understood why there seemed to be an endless amount of grief emanating from her. It wasn’t a physical pain-it was worse. Whatever happened here had wounded Melinda’s very soul, and the resulting sense of despair wasexcruciating.
Phil did the only thing he could think to do. He got her out, murmuring about how she’d saved so many lives, how she did good, how she needed to let the girl go . But the pain didn’t dull. And like a dam whose barriers had taken too much stress, Melinda broke down in his arms, tears flowing down her face as she gripped his jacket, anchoring herself to him.
Phil muttered into her hair and kissed her head all the way back to the plane. He helped her inside and stood by her as she was patched up. He held her to his chest again in his bed later that night as they flew home, struggling not to sob with her as he desperately tried to draw the pain out of her and into himself instead.
“Stop.” Melinda whispered suddenly, feeling a tremor run through her husband from the weight of her sorrow. Her voice was harsh from her tears. “Stop trying to take it, it’s too much. There’s too much.” Her broken voice cut deeper than a stab wound.
“You’re my partner, Melinda. My wife, and my soulmate.” Phil replied, his determination was strong even though his breath was uneven. “You mean everything to me. I won’t let you go through this alone.”
Melinda took in a shuddering breath and slowly let go of him, hands visibly shaking. Phil touched her face tenderly, brushed a few tears from her cheek, then frowned when he felt her retreat.
“Melinda,” Phil started, panicking. She was blocking him. Denying his help. He could no longer transfer any of her pain to himself. He couldn’t even feel her anymore. “No.”
With difficulty, Melinda turned her back on him, literally and emotionally. She was with him, next to him in his own bed, but he couldn’t reach her. He was cut off, and his grief over the loss of their connection nearly overwhelmed him.
“Please, Lin,” Phil begged as he stretched out his hand to touch her, but he only felt her withdraw further into herself.
Phil closed his eyes and brought his hands to his face, anguished tears leaking out of his eyelids. He felt completely helpless. Like he’d utterly failed the most important person in his life. He knew the weight of her pain had to be crushing her, but no matter how badly he wanted to, he wouldn’t be able to lift any of her burden until she let him back in.
Ifshe let him back in.
No, he refused to think that way. She would. He just had to keep trying.
“I’m still here. I’m not giving up.” He whispered into the dark.
“I love you.”
He woke up to whimpering days later.
It was the first time in almost a week Phil had been able to convince her to sleep in their bed, desperately hoping the familiarity of it would comfort her enough to let her sleep. But the nightmares still came.
Nightmares were no strangers to Phil or Melinda, but as soulmates who had been together for years already, they were able to sense each other’s distress and draw it out of the other, replacing misery with comfort and love. They were each other’s guardians, and they faithfully kept each other’s nightmares at bay.
Phil listened to her quiet cries, his heart breaking all over again when he thought about the fact that his wife would deny his help in an attempt to spare him. If he could take every bit of pain from her, he would. His love for Melinda was so great that he knew he would never be able to express it out loud to her. It was one of the reasons he was so grateful for their unique connection, she wouldn’t have to hear him try to stutter aloud about how much she meant to him, she could feelit.
Wait.
Maybe that was it. Phil had been trying so hard to put all Melinda’s pain onto his shoulders that he forgot to give her something in its place-love.
With a renewed sense of purpose, he tried reaching out to her again, hoping he could at least help enough to let her rest peacefully. Melinda’s barrier on her emotions was still there, but weakened by her fitful sleep.
Phil shut his eyes and began sharing his love for her through their link. He played memory after memory of them being together-the first time they met, the first time they realized they were soulmates, the one time Melinda forced him to feel what her period cramps felt like (Phil was still traumatized), the first time Melinda trusted him enough to confide in him, the first time he felt affection coming from her and the giddiness he was sure she felt coming from him, their first kiss, their first mission, the first time he knewshe loved him as deeply as he loved her, their wedding, the time he discovered she secretly loved cuddling and how she tried to keep her warm feelings away from him so he wouldn’t find out, the pure sense of happiness he felt every time he woke up with her in his arms…their story went on and on.
Phil focused on their life together, keeping those thoughts and feelings flowing between them as he attempted to take away her torment little by little.
He nearly sighed aloud in relief when he felt Melinda relax by his side.
Phil didn’t sleep the rest of that night, holding in her pain and trying to dispel it with his love for her. It was one of the most difficult things he’d ever attempted, but knowing she got a moment’s peace from her terror made it worth it.
When she turned over in her sleep, unconsciously moving closer to him, Phil’s smile could have lit up the room.
The next time Melinda stirred was at dawn.
Phil’s eyes felt gritty from lack of sleep, but he immediately turned to his wife and lightly rested his hand on her hip.
“Good morning,” he murmured when he saw her eyes open.
Melinda blinked slowly a few times, her brows knitting together as she looked up at him.
Hesitantly, Melinda reached up and touched Phil’s cheek for the first time since their trip to Bahrain. “Your eyes are red.”
Phil blinked. Out of all the things she could have said…
“You didn’t sleep.” She accused him gently, searching him with her gaze.
Phil slowly shook his head. He hadn’t seen so much life in her eyes in what felt like an eternity.
His heart squeezed in his chest when she gave him a watery smile. It trembled on her lips and her eyes filled with tears, but it was there.
“I saw you.” Melinda whispered, her voice was shaky. “Last night. Like you were speaking to me in my dreams, saying-” Her voice broke and Phil felt a tear slip down the side of his face. She wiped it away with her thumb and finished, “Saying how much you love me.”
“It wasn’t a dream.” Phil’s voice was raw with emotion.
Melinda nodded and bit her lip. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” She let out a sob and buried her face in his chest, clinging to him.
“No, no, no.” Phil drew her as close to himself as he could. “You have nothing to apologize for. Nothing, Melinda. You hear me?”
After a few moments, he felt her nod against him, and he pulled away to look into her face. The face he loved more than anything in the world.
“There’s nothing for you to to be sorry for. Just please. Please, Lin. Let me love you. Don’t ever try to stop me from loving you.”
All of a sudden, the hollowness in Phil’s chest was filled. Where he’d previously felt empty, lost without the bond between himself and his soulmate, he now felt her. Their link was reestablished. He was aware of the pain she still felt deeply, her fear of herself and the future was still present, but for the time being, all he felt was her love overwhelming his senses.
He crashed his lips to her and she responded, matching his desire and desperation.
“I love you.” She whispered.
Melinda’s lips were salty from her tears, but Phil was sure nothing would ever taste sweeter than her kiss.
Nine months later, the two soulmates shared another great pain, but also experienced the greatest joy of their lives in the form of a little baby girl: Daisy Skye Coulson.
IV. The only way for your scars to disappear is when your soulmate kisses them goodbye.
He’s home. He’s home.
It was all Melinda could think as she laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling.
She and Daisy had been the first to run into his arms when he came through the portal that morning. He’d gripped them both weakly and they held him up all the way to the lab. Before Jemma shooed them away for some privacy, Phil squeezed Melinda’s hand and sent her a smile that had brought tears to her eyes. She missed him more than she could express.
Jemma had looked him over and performed as many tests as she could, but the man was about to fall asleep standing up. Once she deemed him stable enough to stay in the lab’s side room for overnight monitoring, Melinda interjected for the first time.
“He can stay in my room.”
Jemma opened her mouth to protest, but she looked between the two senior agents and relented after a moment, understanding clear in her eyes.
Melinda sat up suddenly at the sound of her bathroom light turning off. Phil leaned against the doorframe, a slight smile on his face as he looked at her.
“What.” Melinda stated, trying not to give in to his infectious grin.
“That’s my t-shirt.”
Melinda looked down at her clothes and felt her cheeks heat up slightly. “It’s possible.” She wasn’t going to tell him how often she wore it while he was gone, how comforting it had been during their endless search. Or how she had more than one of his shirts saved in her drawer. That was a conversation for another time. She looked back up at him and stood up. “Want some help?”
“I wouldn’t be opposed to it. That shower did me in.” Phil replied, wincing and wrapping an arm around Melinda’s shoulder as she held him up around his waist.
“Are you sure you don’t min-”
Melinda’s look stopped him before he could ask the gentlemanly question.
“Good,” he said, relieved that he didn’t have to offer to sleep on the couch.
She walked him to her bed, lips curving upwards when he flopped face down onto the mattress, groaning contentedly. When she settled in on the other side and turned to face him, she was taken aback at the sight of Phil’s blue eyes shining with unshed tears from the pillow next to her.
“Phil? What is it?” Melinda reached to touch his face without even thinking, concern filling her body.
“It smells like you.”
Melinda raised an eyebrow. “The bed?”
Phil nodded and breathed in deeply. “I didn’t know if I’d ever get to see you again.” He whispered.
Melinda’s smile wobbled, and she traced his face with her finger. “I’m right here now, Phil.” Impulsively, as if to prove her statement, she leaned closer and kissed an old scar on his forehead, right above his brow.
Phil’s sighed at her touch, then brought his hand up to cover her own, which still lingered on his cheek. “Melinda, about what I said all those months ago, about taking steps back-”
“No.” Melinda’s tone left no room for argument. “Taking a trip to space was more than enough steps backward. I’m tired of waiting for the right moment-the ‘perfect’ moment. It’s never going to happen, and I don’t want to waste any more time.”
Phil’s lips parted slightly at her fierceness, but a smile soon began to grow on his face. “Are you sure?” He asked, leaning further into her touch. “This moment seems pretty perfect to me.”
Melinda tried not to smile. “Sap.”
“Closet romantic.” He taunted back.
Melinda shook her head and decided to throw all caution to the wind. She closed the gap between them kissed him full on the mouth, feeling a moment of giddiness when he groaned against her lips. Their kiss was slow and tender with an undercurrent of fire that they knew they would need to explore later, sometime when they weren’t exhausted from extraterrestrial journeys.
Melinda slowly pulled away, giving Phil one last gentle kiss before opening her eyes. She nearly laughed when she saw Phil’s own eyes were still closed, as if in a trance. Her gaze then caught on the scar-or what used to be a scar-on his forehead. Melinda frowned. She’d just kissed it, she was sure. She knew Phil’s face better than her own, and he definitely had a scar there…
A suspicion began to take root in her mind. A story she’d heard long ago from her mother, one about soulmates and scars and healing.
“Wow,” Phil finally opened his eyes, wide smile fading when he noticed Melinda’s furrowed brow. “Melinda? What’s wrong?”
Melinda brushed over the spot on his face with her finger. “It’s gone.”
Phil paused in confusion, but Melinda just took his arm in her hand and found two old faint knife scars she remembered seeing after Phil came back from an op in Rome. She sat up on her elbow and kissed the lines gently, then lifted her face to watch them closely.
“Uhh, not that I’m complaining, but what are you-oh. Oh.” Phil’s eyes went wide and alert as he realized what his partner was trying to figure out. Good, so he knew the stories too. It might sound ridiculous if she tried to explain it out loud.
Melinda inhaled sharply when the scars vanished into his skin, as if they’d never been there.
Phil gaped with her, then quickly took her wrist in his hand and, without a word, closed his eyes and touched his lips to a faint white line that she’d sustained from fighting around broken glass.
They both stared and held their breath. After a moment, they witnessed the line fade seamlessly into her tanned skin.
“I’ve only ever heard about this in stories.” Melinda blinked a few times, not believing her own eyes.
“You know, I’m really not surprised.” Melinda’s gaze shot toward him. He smiled back fondly and started to take off his shirt. “What about-”
“No.” Melinda declared, smoothing his shirt back down and putting her palm directly over the wound on his chest. “That scar means too much.”
Phil’s eyes were soft as he looked at her. After a beat, he spoke, “I love you.”
Melinda’s mouth dropped open in a silent gasp. “Phil…”
“It’s okay.” His special half smile warmed her body from her head down to her toes. “I just want you to know. I should have told you before I, you know, got sucked up into space. Even if we weren’t soulmates, I love you. Although…” Phil took her hand in his. “Being soulmates makes sense, considering how we always seem to find our way back to each other.”
Melinda couldn’t help but smile back at him. “Phil, I-” Melinda breathed in deeply. “I love you too.”
Phil’s grin turned goofy. “Really?”
Melinda rolled her eyes affectionately. “Yeah.”
It was his turn to lean in for a kiss, which Melinda happily obliged him to. He let go of her hand and ran it to the small of her back, dragging her closer to him.
“I thought you were tired,” Melinda asked breathlessly. She sighed when he nuzzled her neck.
“I’m not really-” A yawn interrupted his denial, causing Melinda to let out a little laugh. Phil grinned at the sound.
“Sleep.” Melinda kissed his cheek, marveling at how easy and natural the little kisses and touches felt. “We’ll have more time for that later.” She ran her hand through his short hair, relaxing him instantly, then slid it down to rest around his waist protectively. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”
“Promise?” He murmured, eyes already closing.
“Promise.”
Phil let out a contented sigh and fell asleep almost instantly, leaving one arm draped over her, as if to reassure himself of her presence.
Melinda nestled closer and pressed her ear to his chest, letting the soothing sound of her soulmate’s heartbeat lull her into sleep.
A not-exactly-canon-divergent-could-actually-be-canon missing scene from 4x22. Title from Michael Franti & Spearhead’s “Say Hey (I love you)”
Inspired by @skylandmountain1013 saying that Melinda’s smile at the diner was suspiciously large and beaming so this happened! (Can’t wait to read her own fic based on this same idea!!)
“But I know one thing: that I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you.”
“Anybody else hungry? I’m not saying we’re definitely gonna get locked up, but if we are, I wouldn’t mind grabbing a bite to eat first.”
Melinda could feel her smile grow as Phil’s eyes landed on her. The rest of the team nodded and glanced at each other, little smiles on their faces as they slowly started making their way toward the Zephyr. Mack grasped Fitz’s shoulder, unable to speak but communicating just the same, then he and Elena stayed by him as they walked through the remains of their base. Jemma drifted to the other side of the young engineer, her hand slipped into his for a brief moment to give a comforting squeeze. Daisy led them all, with Phil and Melinda bringing up the rear.
Melinda’s whole body ached with exhaustion, but watching the team surround Fitz as they left the base left a warm feeling in her heart. She meant what she said to him–they were going to shoulder this burden together.
As a team.
As a family.
Melinda glanced at Phil, who walked a mere arm’s length away from her as they boarded the plane. It was as if he sensed she was still feeling weak and wanted to be close enough to support her if she needed it. Melinda remembered how many times he’d hovered over her since they’d escaped the Framework. She remembered the feeling of his arms wrapped tight around her, setting her down as gently as his own unused muscles were able, the feeling of his hand cupping her head gently after she’d collapsed from her fight with the android. She knew they’d made a deal to take a couple steps back, but she would be lying to herself if she didn’t acknowledge how comforting his touch was to her, how safe it made her feel, and how she wished he would hold her again.
Melinda slid into her pilot’s chair and entered coordinates for a town close enough that the Zephyr could make it, but secluded enough that the townspeople hopefully wouldn’t recognize her or her teammates immediately.
She didn’t turn her head, but instantly recognized the sound of Phil’s footsteps as he entered the cockpit. Melinda busied herself with the controls while he seemed to have an internal debate on whether to stay with her or not. His words echoed in her head:
“Then, when it feels right, maybe we open another bottle.”
“Deal.”
“Deal. See you on the other side.”
Finally, Phil seemed to come to a decision as he slipped into the seat beside her. But he remained still and silent, elbows resting on his knees with his hands clasped together.
Surprisingly, Melinda was the one to break the quiet. “Daisy spoke well earlier, don’t you think?”
Phil nodded, his face softening. “She did.”
Melinda switched the plane to auto pilot and sat back in her chair. “Reminded me of someone–can’t think of who, though.”
Phil looked over at her and the two of them shared a lingering smile before Melinda stood, crossing her arms automatically.
“We’ll touchdown in 20 minutes. Is the team all together downstairs?”
Phil nodded and got up quickly beside her. The confined space left little room between the two, and Melinda could practically feel the air crackling with tension.
“May, about our deal earlier,” Phil spoke quickly, as if he had to get it out before he lost his courage. “What if–I mean, suppose we do end up getting caught at this diner, and then let’s say a whole new mess ensues after that-”
Melinda shifted closer to him, feeling the edge of his jacket brush against her arm as she looked into his eyes. “I think we can safely assume that there will always be another ‘thing’ that we’ll be pulled into.”
“Right, so what I’m saying is,” Phil paused again and then sighed, his shoulders deflating. “I don’t know what I’m saying. I probably shouldn’t have said anything.”
Melinda’s lips quirked up into a smile, even as her stomach knotted with nervousness. She reached out and grasped Phil’s hand, observing as he looked down in surprise, then looked back at her. His eyes pleaded for him to understand his meaning.
“I know we agreed to take a few steps back, and that’s fine. I think we should. But I just need you to know,” Phil brought up his other hand to gently touch her cheek. “I need you to know,Melinda. Before something else happens.”
“I know.” Melinda whispered. And she did. She knew how much he cared about her. She knew he wanted to say it, but didn’t know how. She knew that he wanted to move forward with her, but something was always going to come up.
Melinda recalled Robbie’s last words to Phil, “I don’t envy you.” She would have to ask him about that later, but for now, Melinda wanted Phil to know how she felt too.
She searched Phil’s eyes for a moment longer, then released his hand and slipped it around his neck instead, drawing him down to press her lips to his. Melinda felt him sigh as his arm found its way around her waist, bringing her closer to his body. She felt tingles spread all over her body as he deepened their kiss, and she had to remind herself that this was real, this was actually happening. Phil loved her and she loved him back, and there was always going to be another crisis, but at least they knew.
Phil gradually pulled away from her, leaving softer, lighter kisses on the corner of her mouth, her cheek, her ear. He felt Melinda grip the front of his jacket as he pulled her into a hug.
“But I didn’t even get a chance to buy you a new bottle of haig.” Phil said, his breath a little uneven. Melinda could hear his grin.
“Don’t worry, I don’t plan on letting you forget about it.” Melinda smiled into his chest.
“You know, I think this is the first time we’ve all been together in a really long time.”
She turned to him and smiled, then nodded as she looked around at her family. Her heart was full.
Melinda laughed quietly at Phil’s eager response to the question of pie, and he turned his head toward her, eyes warm and lips upturned. His finger brushed her knee lightly…then the room went dark.
It was apparently too much to ask for the moment to last.
Ness is one of the most amazing people you will have the chance to meet in the Philinda fandom. She is always supportive and so fun to be around. And yes, she’s an extremely talented writer too!
I can’t even explain how much this means to me! I never thought I would EVER be given such an honor. I only started writing because I love this couple so much. I never thought people would LIKE them or actually ask for more!!!! GAH!
I love this fandom and its people so much. I love what a great little community we’ve built and how we love and support each other’s ideas, headcanons, fangirling, art, gifs, and fics. You guys are the reason I keptwriting. I love yall. <3
I’m seriously so ecstatic and I will never get over this. Thank you so much, Philinda Library, and ELLE who does so much for this fandom!!!!!!
Kaiya “fed the fluff monster” with an idea about Philinda and butterfly kisses, so this happened. She’s basically my muse. Haha! Try to get to the end without rotting your teeth!
Phil woke up slowly and comfortably. He rubbed his eyes with his forefinger and thumb, lifting his head slightly to check his alarm clock.
A whole hour before he needed to be awake. Phil groaned internally.
That, of course, meant he would just have to wave goodbye to those 60 minutes because no way was his body going to let him fall back asleep now. Just one of those perks of being a spy for more than half your life.
Although he had to admit it wasn’t reallygoing to be a problem, considering the person sleeping beside him; her slow, even breaths bringing a contented smile to Phil’s face. He rarely woke up before her, so he cherished the mornings he did.
Melinda had gotten in late from a mission the night before, well after he’d already gone to bed. Phil had mumbled a greeting and she’d pecked him softly on the cheek before she settled into his warm embrace. (More like snuggled, but Phil knew she’d blatantly deny it if he ever attempted to mention it. Or worse, she’d stop doing it in punishment. He definitely wasn’t going to risk that). He drew her close and kissed her shoulder and they fell asleep together for the first time in weeks. According to their brief phone call, the mission had gone well, but still…
He’d missed her.
Phil moved closer to Melinda’s sleeping form, careful not to disturb her, then propped himself up with an elbow to see her better in the dim light emanating from their bedroom door.
Her body was turned slightly away from him, head facing the other side of the bed and left arm draped loosely over her stomach. Phil’s heart warmed at the sight of her wedding band glinting faintly on her hand. He never got tired of seeing it on her finger. Melinda’s face was relaxed, vulnerable even, when she slept. Phil knew her face better than his own, but he still ran his eyes over her beautiful features as if for the first time. Her dark hair fanned out across her pillow and even extended to his own–off her neck, the way she liked it when she slept. He loved her hair this long, even though she complained that it was always in her way. Between that, the tank top she wore, and the fact that the blankets were pulled down to her waist, there was a great deal of tanned skin exposed to him, slowly driving him mad the longer he stared at her.
Phil drank her in with his eyes, struggling between wanting her to get the sleep she deserved and waking her up so he could give her a proper hello. Knowing Melinda, her internal clock would probably wake her up in a half hour or so for Tai Chi anyway. What was a mere 30 extra minutes of sleep when he’d waited 30 yearsto get the privilege of being this intimate with his partner? Melinda would roll her eyes at his dramatics, he knew (but then she’d smile ‘cause she knew it was true).
Still, he had to nudge her out of her sleep gently or this wake up call would take a bad turn very quickly. Phil remembered very clearly the few times he’d startled Melinda since they’d gotten rid of the boundaries established between them so long ago.
One time he’d been in a particularly silly mood and had creeped up behind Melinda while she was doing Tai Chi. He covered her eyes with his hands and barely had time to say “Guess who?” before he was knocked onto the floor.
Another incident occurred the first time he discovered Melinda had a ticklish spot. That one had ended up with a black eye and a lot of moaning on his part. Phil could tell Melinda honestly felt awful for her automatic reaction, but he didn’t let up.
“Quick, tell me the truth, am I going to need to have it removed?” He’d asked, clutching his eye.
The only way she’d gotten him to stop was by giving him soft kisses around his throbbing eye. He told her it was the only way it would feel better. Melinda had rolled her own eyes at his sappy line, but her kisses and fond smile had made it all worth it.
It was always worth it.
Phil brought his mind back to the present and considered Melinda a moment longer before a mischievous smile started creeping onto his face. He knew just how to wake up his wife and have fun in the process (though it might earn him another black eye).
Phil lowered his head down and allowed his nose to just barely brush up against Melinda’s bare arm. As soon as he was close enough, he started fluttering his eyelashes quickly, giving her butterfly kisses all the way up to her shoulder.
Phil counted the seconds she allowed him to do it, grinning as he did, certain that she would wake up almost immediately and demand to know what he was doing. He thought he heard her take a deeper breath than normal, but he wasn’t sure. He popped his head up to look at her face, but Melinda still looked asleep.
Phil frowned suspiciously. Melinda was not a deep sleeper, but then again, it wasa long mission and a late night for her, and they brushed up against each other frequently though the night…
Phil tried again, nuzzling her a little more obviously before leaving more butterfly kisses on her arm and shoulder, inhaling the scent of her that he missed so much while she was away.
When her breathing pattern stilldidn’t change from its steady rhythm, he knew.
Phil grinned. She was faking sleep, obviously. He looked up from her arm quickly, seeing the a flicker of a smile that she immediately tried to hide from her partner of 30 years.
“I knew you liked it.” Phil’s low voice broke the silence and he started trailing small, real kisses from her shoulder up to her mouth. He slid his hand over her arm to rest over her stomach and drew himself even closer to her. But she still didn’t move.
Phil was soon frustrated with Melinda’s lack of response. She continued to lay there, pretending to be in a deep slumber. He lovedgetting to see this playful side of her, and he loved the thrill of knowing he was one of the only ones who got to experience it, but right now…ugh. He just wanted his wife to kiss him back.
“Melindaaa,” he whined, nudging her cheek with his nose. He tugged on her so that she rolled over slightly and laid flat on her back, but she just let her head loll, keeping up her charade with an annoyingly convincing sleeping face.
Phil huffed and weighed his options. He really wasn’t sure what she’d do to him (this time) if he tried this move, but it would definitely get a reaction from her, so…he decided to risk the possible decapitation.
Phil distracted Melinda with more kisses on her neck and chest, slipping a hand under her tank top. He pressed his lips to her cheek and, ever-so-lightly, brushed one finger down Melinda’s side. The responding shiver and the laugh that burst out of Melinda’s mouth made up for the knee to the gut she gave him a half second later.
Finally, he thought victoriously, even as he grunted and gasped for breath.
He’s winded, but grinning happily, as Melinda rolled on top of him, effectively pinning his arms to the bed right above his head.
“Morning, Sleeping Beauty.” Phil wheezed out. It could have been a worse injury. Heck, he might even have to try this move again the next time she was exhausted.
“Is there a reason you thought it was a good idea to wake me up before I needed to be?” Melinda asked threateningly.
“I missed you.” Phil replied simply, feeling his whole body warm as he watched her face soften. He never got tired of seeing her dark eyes gaze at him with such tenderness and affection.
Phil brushed a finger on the skin he could reach of the hand that was holding him down and looked up at Melinda imploringly. Melinda’s face broke into a smile and she shook her head before finally, finallylowering her head to his and kissing him thoroughly.
As she kissed him and whispered that she missed him too, Phil found himself breathless all over again, but this time for a muchmore pleasant reason.
The whole idea of this vacation spawned from his desire to read this book in Ireland. Granted, he wasn’t sitting in a pub at the moment–which had originally been part of the dream–but he was much happier with the way his idea had turned out instead.
Rather than a noisy pub, Phil sat in a beautiful old house with polished wood floors, a garden out back, and a view of the Irish country-side that was to die for. Currently, Phil sat on the couch in the cozy living room as it rained lightly outside, his sock-clad feet were propped up on the coffee table, and he was trying his best to keep his eyes from straying to the other side of the sofa, where the source of his distraction sat.
She was snuggled up to the arm of the couch, graceful legs folded underneath her and one hand twisting the edges of her hair idly as she read. The more he watched her, the more he wanted to throw the book behind him and drag her closer to him. That way hishand could play with her hair and she could cozy up to himinstead.
Melinda May turned the page of her own book slowly. “You know,” her voice broke the comfortable silence that had settled between them. “If you’re pretending to read, you should at least turn the page every once in a while.” She smirked as Phil shifted his gaze from her back to his book. “Our Academy instructors would be ashamed.”
Phil scoffed. “I’m not pretending. I really am reading, I’m just…taking it slow.” He met her eyes and lowered his voice. “Enjoying every little detail.”
Melinda’s eyes held more heat than they had a moment ago, and Phil knew she caught his double meaning. But instead of coming closer to him as he’d hoped, Melinda looked away and tried to fight her smile.
“Pass me an Oreo.”
Phil pouted. He knew she felt the same magnetic attraction that he did, but she was much better at resisting it than he was. (Well, usually, anyway. The other day when he’d tried to do Tai Chi in the garden with her, she ended up tackling him to the ground and kissing him till he forgot his own name. He’d made a mental note that Tai Chi was definitelyworth waking up early for.)
The Oreo cookies were resting on his side of the coffee table by his feet. Phil had bought them specifically for Melinda (who had a special weakness for them), but, feeling very much like a five year old who didn’t get his way, Phil decided to pretend he didn’t hear her.
“Phil,” Melinda said, warning in her tone. “The cookie.”
“Oh, were you talking to me?” Phil raised his eyebrows. “I’m sorry, I’m just so engrossed in reading Ulysses.”
Melinda rolled her eyes and held out her hand, staring him down. He picked up a cookie from the open sleeve and, without breaking eye contact, placed it in his mouth and bit into it with a loud crunch.
Melinda’s eyes narrowed, which would have been frightening, except that Phil knew her too well. He decided this could be fun, anda way to get her to come closer to him. That way he could hold her the way he’d been wanting to all afternoon. Phil set Ulyssesdown, knowing there was no way he’d be able to go back to reading now, and picked up the whole plastic tray of Oreos, holding it to his chest.
“Why don’t you come over here and get them.” Phil invited, smiling wolfishly.
“Have I ever mentioned how infuriating you are? Give me the Oreos.” Melinda reached for one, but Phil stood up and scurried behind the couch, effectively sealing his fate.
“Really, Phil? I thought we left all the kids on the Zephyr.”
Phil stuffed another Oreo into his mouth in response.
Melinda threw her book down and jumped over the back of the couch easily. “When I catch you, you’re dead.”
Phil wasn’t about to tell her how attractive she looked, stalking up to him slowly and threateningly as if she wasn’t barefoot wearing a (his) baggy t-shirt and a pair of black leggings. “You mean, ifyou catch me.”
With that, he turned and bolted for the kitchen.
He did pretty well, considering the limited running room in the small house. But despite his effort, his socks were his undoing.
Phil was dashing back into the living room, Melinda right on his heels, when he reached a particularly slippery area on the wooden floor and his feet flew out from under him. Oreos scattered everywhere, and Melinda had no choice but to ram into him, sending them both sprawling to the ground.
Phil groaned and tried to catch his breath. His back would likely complain–loudly–for a few days after this, but at the sound of laughter, his pain all but disappeared. He turned his head to see Melinda next to him, a wide smile on her face, her laugh still ringing in his ears. He hadn’t heard that carefree laugh in years. It brightened the whole room and made his heart so light that, if he hadn’t been quite literally knocked to the ground, Phil was positive his body would have floated at the sound.
After a moment, Melinda rolled closer to him and propped herself up on an elbow, her other hand coming up to rest on Phil’s chest, and he lost his breath over something else entirely.
“Gotcha.” Melinda’s brown eyes twinkled and she slid her hand over his chest seductively. His heart began to pound until he realized she’d reached over him to pick up an Oreo from the floor. She smirked and took a bite, enjoying her victory. “I win. What’s that make it now, 47 for me, 2 for you? 3, if I’m being generous.” She finished her Oreo as he laid there and stared at her, anticipation and desire coiling in his stomach.
“Depends on how you look at it,” Phil slid an arm around Melinda and pulled her on top of him. “From where I’m looking, I’m definitelythe one winning.”
Melinda snorted, but couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “You dor-”
He kissed her soundly, and Melinda took no time in deepening it. The sweet icing from the Oreo combined with the taste of her lips left him moaning.
Melinda hummed and pull back just far enough to whisper huskily, “We’ll call it a tie,” before falling back into him. Her hands were around his neck, and the pent up passion of her kiss told him he wasn’t the only one who’d been frustrated on the couch earlier. Phil buried a hand in her hair, his fingers getting lost in the brown waves, and flipped their positions, his other hand skimming the skin at her waist.
This wasn’t part of his original Ireland dream, but this–Melinda smiling in his arms, the ability to kiss her whenever he wanted to, laughing with her–this was a million other dreams rolled into one. This was a dream that he’d almost given up on, stopped saying “Someday” to a long time ago, but one that never really left his heart.
This was one dream he’d never have to put off again.
“They say the mother was the one that made everyone crazy with her powers. Agent May took them all on.”
Melinda looked down at her hands–still shaking from the fight. She felt a deep sense of relief that she couldn’t explain, knowing that the precious little girl behind her was safe. But there was a weight in her gut, telling her that something was off. Something about this felt…surreal.
“The Cavalry went in after all.”
Melinda drew her eyebrows together at the word “Cavalry.” Her fist tightened unconsciously. What was going on? She felt like she was still fighting, though the battle in the warehouse was behind her now. Something was wrong. Something was missing. Like a puzzle piece that someone was trying to force into a space it didn’t belong.
Melinda picked up her phone and dialed a familiar number, hoping that talking to Andrew would settle her down.
“I did it, Andrew.”Melinda’s voice wobbled as she spoke, the raw emotion bringing a teary smile to her face. She looked back for confirmation. Yes, she was still there. She wasn’t dreaming. She saved her. She saved the girl.
“Thank you,” the girl whispered.
Melinda turned back and repeated the thought out loud. “I saved the girl.”
Saying it out loud brought fresh tears to her eyes. At first, she thought they were tears of joy–she had been so worried about the girl’s safety. But the tears kept coming. And they felt more like tears of loss and heartache than of relief.
Melinda took in a shaky breath and looked around. Her thoughts felt muddled. Something was wrong. Something was missing. Someonewas missing.
Phil.
Maybe that was why she felt so unsettled. Phil never would have left without saying anything. Especiallynot before he had a chance to grill her about what happened during the fight. Where was he?
Melinda didn’t remember saying goodbye to Andrew, but she put the phone down, feeling the restlessness grow inside her. She stood up and looked right and left, blinking when the landscape began swimming in front of her.
“May,” Phil’s voice said. Melinda whipped her head around and took another step forward, her head felt like it was spinning. “Melinda, wake up.” He sounded desperate. Didn’t he know she’d done it? Completed the mission? Saved the girl? Why did he sound like he was in pain? She would have to tell him. She’d explain to him that she saved the girl. She didn’t have to let the girl g–
Agony pierced her heart at the thought, even as his voice continued to speak. No, she cried internally. I saved her. She insisted to herself, feeling tears slip down her cheeks.Isavedher!
“Phil!” Melinda stumbled forward, straining her eyes to see him. She needed him right now. Needed his comforting embrace, his warm eyes, his low voice. She had to reach him, but her body felt like lead–her mouth as dry as cotton. She couldn’t move. “Phil, I’m right here!”
“Melinda, please.” Phil’s voice begged her. Melinda fought to take one last step, her head and heart throbbing in pain. “Wake up!”
Her eyes flew open.
Phil’s heart jumped from his gut to his throat when he saw her.
Restraints, wires on her face, an IV in her wrist, and an oddly-shaped helmet on her head, but so blessedlyMelinda.
Phil ran up to her, barely glancing at the machine right by her. “May,” he breathed, quickly removing the wires and restraints off her face and arms, then gently taking out the IV. “Melinda, wake up.” He checked her body for any wounds and, not seeing any, carefully removed the helmet from her head. Her face screwed up, as if in pain, and her eyes were darting back and forth quickly behind her eyelids.
“Hey, come on. I’m right here.” Phil touched her face gently, noticing how his real hand had began to shake. Or had it been shaking the whole time? They found her. It hadn’t completely sunk in yet that she was really here, in front of him, in the flesh. “Melinda?”
Phil caught his breath when tears began leaking out from Melinda’s closed eyelids. “Oh, no, no, no.” Phil whispered, wiping the moisture away with his thumbs. He’d seen her do this before–cry in her sleep unknowingly–when having a nightmare after…after Bahrain. Oh no. She had to wake up. Now. “Melinda, please. Wake up!”
She jerked awake, startling him. Phil let out a breath of relief and his lips began to curl into a smile. His nightmares were wrong, she was alive.
“Phil?” Melinda’s voice was rough, and her chest heaved like she was out of breath. “Phil, I did it. I saved the girl. I saved–” She faltered and let out a choked sob, as if the real memory of Bahrain took physical form and gut-punched her. “I–I thought I–It was a dream, wasn’t it? I didn’t really–I couldn’t–”
“Shh, no, you’re safe. You’re not there anymore. I’ve got you, I’m here.” Phil kept his voice low as the urge to tear Radcliffe apart limb from limb grew stronger.
Melinda gulped and looked at him, trying to blink away the tears. Next thing Phil knew, she had collapsed in his arms, the weight of it all dragging her down.
Phil caught her and eased her into his embrace. He heard running footsteps as Mack entered the room.
“Quinjet’s here and Daisy is holding the Watchdogs off. Got her?”
Phil nodded sharply. “Go help Daisy, I’ll call for back up and get May to the plane.”
Mack ran off without a second glance, knowing May was in good hands.
Phil cradled his partner in his arms and waited for his agents to pick them up. Looking down at her face, Phil felt tenderness for this woman wash over him. He adjusted her head so it was on his shoulder–her left hand gripped the front of his shirt. He smoothed her hair out of her face.
“You’re safe, Melinda. I’ve got you.” He whispered in her ear, sure she was asleep. On a sudden impulse, he pressed a gentle kiss to her temple, wishing he could make the pain disappear from her face.
To his surprise, Melinda stirred briefly and his grip on his shirt became tighter, but he didn’t have time to think about it before his team showed up, helping him and May to the Quinjet.
The way he was holding her made her want to cry even more than she already had.
His soft words about being safe quieted and comforted her.
His kiss left her wanting more.
It was the last thing she remembered before drifting off to sleep.
When Melinda woke up next, it was to a familiar voice humming a familiar tune–although it didn’t sound as happy and carefree as it did when they were younger, driving around in Lola with the breeze carrying their off-key singing away. She squeezed the hand holding hers.
The humming was cut off abruptly.
“Melinda?”
“‘Livin’ on a Prayer’? Really?” Melinda muttered, her voice still scratchy.
She could see feel his blush, even with her eyes closed. “I asked how far out we were and the pilot said we were halfway there. It’s a natural reaction.”
Melinda cracked an eye open to look at him, a ghost of smile touching her lips. The white walls she saw behind him told her they were in a containment unit, most likely alone. If she hadn’t been so weak, she would have given a smart comment in return, but for now she was just content to look at him.
“I just had Simmons step out to get something to eat, she’ll be back in a few minutes to ask you questions.” Phil said, his robotic hand coming up to touch her shoulder gently. He watched as his hand lit up, then closed his eyes as if in pain. When he opened them again, he looked straight into her eyes and whispered, voice full of emotion. “I’m so sorry.”
Melinda squeezed his hand again. “Don’t. You found me. We’re here now. That’s all that matters.”
There was a beat of hesitation, then Phil lifted her hand to his mouth and, without breaking eye contact, kissed her fingers gently. His blue eyes were lit with an intensity that told her they had a lot more to talk about, but it could wait.
Just a really unpolished drabble fic about the Philinda scene from the library. I wrote this right after the sneak peek came out but didn’t have time to finish it, so I thought I’d just post it rather than delete it. ‘Cause I know none of this will really happen and it’ll go against canon in approximately 1 hour and 6 minutes! Lol
“Did you mean it when you said you’re ready for whatever comes next?”
He just looked at her.
Oh, the way he looked at her–saying everything without actually saying anything.
I shouldn’t be doing this, I shouldn’t be doing this, her mind kept chanting–but she couldn’t make herself look away from his darkened blue eyes.
It will only hurt him when he finds out, her thoughts cried.
As soon as Koenig brought them the book, she would have to take it. She would have to watch as Phil’s face turned from confused, to horrified, to livid. She knew that. But this, Phil looking at her with soft eyes, milliseconds away from brushing his lips against hers, thiswas what she wanted. She needed to bask in this moment before it all came crashing down around them. This was all she wanted–this one moment of selfishness before she did what she had to do.
So she leaned in and met Phil halfway, feeling his hand come up to touch her cheek. She grasped his jacket and let herself get swept away in the feeling of his lips on hers, committing the feeling to memory before she had to pull away at the sound of someone entering the room.
No, no. Not yet. She begged, feeling tears jump to her eyes. I don’t want this moment to end. Nothing will ever be the same. She looked at Phil, wanting to smile along with him, but unable to keep the fear off her face. She watched him draw his eyebrows in concern.
The minute Koenig walked in, she felt her body begin to betray her mind. In under two minutes, the Darkhold was in her possession–an Icer was in one hand, the leather bag in another. Phil tried to get her to talk, to explain, to just tell him what was going on, but she shook her head, causing a tear to spill over and roll down her cheek. Her heart broke when the tenderness on his face was replaced with bewilderment and desperation.
“I can’t tell you why, but I have to do this. I’m so sorry, Phil. I’m so sorry.”
She fled.
She didn’t know how she knew where she was going. All she knew was that her mind was screaming at her to disobey her commands–her programming, she spat, disgusted with herself–to run back to Phil and tell him everything, but her feet kept moving, taking her farther away from him.
A few men she recognized from the Watchdogs group picked her up and tried to take the book from her, but she refused to give it to anyone but Radcliffe, and they dared not challenge her. When she finally came face to face with the scientist, she shoved the book into his hands, nearly knocking him to the ground with the force of her fury.
With the book out of her hands, she felt something inside her release with a snap. She’d done her duty, she had finished what she was programmed to do. There was nothing stopping her from…how did the doctor put it? Taking what she wanted.
Radcliffe was helpless to stop her without his remote control device, which she promptly found and crushed under her foot. The guards took more time to take care of, but before long, she had them all on the ground, groaning. But when backup started rushing in, she knew she would have to make a break for it–now.
She escaped through a heavy side door, locking it behind her desperately as they pounded against it. She looked around quickly and froze when she saw her, tied up with wires sticking out all over the place. Herself–or rather, the real–Melinda May.
This is so weird, she sighed to herself. But in seconds, she knew what she had to do. She had to get Melinda out of there. That was the only way she could make it up to Phil, to her whole team for betraying them–the only thing she coulddo. They couldn’t both escape from here, but if one stayed back to fight, the other would be able to leave.
She immediately began plucking all the wires off of Melinda, who almost instantly came to with a gasp.
“What the he-”
“We’re trapped. Radcliffe and AIDA have had you in some kind of coma using this,” she shook the simulator in her hand before tossing it aside and helping Melinda down. “…for days.”
“He made a robot of me.” Melinda’s voice was rusty from misuse, and her hands shook. Her eyes scanned the room as her mind tried to process everything.
She felt her stomach clench at the word robot, but she ignored the feeling. “Yes. And you need to leave right now and tell Phil–” Her voice broke. Melinda looked at her, alarmed by the emotion she expressed. She knew Melinda was about to ask if he was okay, because that was exactly what shewould do. She regained her composure and spoke before Melinda could ask. “Tell Phil what I couldn’t. Tell him what happened here and tell him that I…that you…love him.”
Melinda blinked and tried to control her breathing. Something about hearing it spoken out loud made it all the more real. Especially when it was herself saying it. Well, kind of, but not really. Everything about this was so messed up.
“Don’t waste anymore time, go.” Melinda caught the double meaning from the android, but only nodded once and escaped.
She looked back at the door, which was shaking with the force being applied to it, and finally felt at peace with her decision. No more fighting between her feelings and her programming. No more conflict and second-guessing what actions to take. This was the right thing to do. She was going to save her people and her love, and if she went down for it, then at least she could play the memory of Phil in the library, leaning down to kiss her, over and over again in her mind.
Melinda May stood next to him, fists up and facing the threat–ready to protect him, just as she always did. Her cheek and bottom lip had cuts and there were purple bruises forming as well. She looked exhausted and angry. He fought the urge to touch her injuries and make sure she was okay.
Melinda May also stood in front of him. Her body was still, but he could read the tell-tale signs that she was ready to spring as soon as she saw an opening. She was wearing the same clothes as earlier when they’d been talking over paperwork, her with her cup of tea and him with his coffee. They’d been talking about going to the gym and sparring a few rounds like they used to. He remembered the way her smirk made his heart beat a little faster in anticipation. He was a little concerned about his best friend–she seemed to be a little off ever since they shared that bottle of Haig–so he was happy to have an excuse to have some time alone with her (even if she wasgoing to wipe the floor with him).
Phil held his hands out in front of him as if to steady himself. He glanced between the two versions of his partner and shook his head.
“Notagain.”
“Phil,” Melinda’s steady voice came from his left. “I don’t know who she is, but she’s not me.”
“Funny. I was just about to say the same thing.” The Melinda that stood in front of him answered. “Step away from her, Phil.”
“The last time I saw you was right before I left to pick up AIDA and Radcliffe.” Melinda #1 (it was the only way to keep them straight in his head, okay?) glanced at him before looking back at Melinda #2–their glares held the same amount of fire. He’d been on the receiving end of that glare too many times to count, and he knew it well. This was all very confusing. “We talked about that bottle of Haig, remember?”
“We drank it already.” Melinda #2′s voice was cold. Phil could see her restraining herself, wanting to move towards him. “That was me, Phil, you know it was.”
Phil saw Melinda #1′s shoulders drop a fraction, as if she was disappointed by the other Melinda’s statement.
“This is some kind of trick to get you to doubt me and think I’m a traitor–again.” Melinda #2 looked at him with that last word, pain evident in her brown eyes.
Phil had a flashback to the time when he thought Melinda had betrayed him for HYDRA. His heart twinged painfully at the memory. Where in the world were Fitzsimmons and Daisy when you needed them? He needed ICERs, or some kind of non-lethal weapon. No way was he going to risk hurting the wrong Melinda. Something niggled him at the back of his brain, something he could use, but his mind was too focused on the two Melindas to figure out what it was.
“I-” Phil tried to answer her, but the words stuck in his throat. “Both of you need to just stay here until Fitzsimmons and Daisy get down here. They’ll help figure this out.”
“AIDA’s gone after them and Radcliffe, Phil.” The sharpness in Melinda #1′s voice betrayed her. She was hurting, he could tell. “We don’t have time for this. Just lock her up and we’ll figure out to do with her when we finish dealing with AIDA.”
“Or we could put youinto the containment module while wedeal with AIDA.”
“Stop talking, both of you.” Phil’s head hurt. Both Melindas turned their glare towards him. Naturally. As if one set of eyes burning into his scalp wasn’t bad enough.
Phil edged away from Melinda #1, putting his hand out when she tried to move with him.
“Don’t.”
His heart ached at the hurt that flashed across her face. He knew Melinda better than anyone. He should knowwhich one was her, but instead, he felt completely torn and helpless. Surely he would have recognized if the woman he’d been spending time with wasn’t his partner? But they looked identical–from their height, to their dark hair, all the way down to their legs (not that he had studied the exact shape of them or anything…he was just a good spy who noticed things about people). He couldn’t be sure.
Phil now stood in the middle of both of them, wracking his brain for a way to test their knowledge. Something only he and Melinda would know.
“Back at the Academy, we had a hiding place only a few people knew about.”
“Our atti-.”
“The attic above the main lecture hall.” Melinda #2 spoke over Melinda #1, whose glare only intensified.
Well,crap. That didn’t work.
“Our first undercover mission together?”
“Before we graduated–before Sausalito–we were a couple at a bus stop.” Melinda #2 looked into his eyes, pleading with him to believe her. “We received top marks for it–everyone knew what a great team we were, even then.”
“How do you knowthat?” Melinda #1′s face revealed a mixture of confusion and fear. “Phil, I don’t know where she got this intel from, but it has to be AIDA’s doing. You can’t believe her.”
“Even AIDA wouldn’t know that information.” Phil replied. His eyebrows were drawn, making lines across his forehead. He glanced at Melinda #2, seeing the beginnings of hope cross her face.
Phil looked between the two of them again and rubbed his forehead. Wishing, ironically, for Melinda’s advice. She always helped him when he was stuck on a problem. Even when she didn’t say a word, problems seemed smaller and were easier to solve when she was with him.
In despair, he whispered, “How am I supposed to know, May?”
They both moved toward him instantly, but Melinda #2 got to him first. She grabbed Phil’s prosthetic hand and squeezed it. Phil looked into her eyes, hoping it would reveal the truth. He’d learned a long time ago that even when May’s face showed nothing, her dark eyes gave her away. Her pain, her mirth, her compassion, her intelligence, her love, all shone through her eyes.
The cold metal of a gun, passed carefully into his right hand, completely scattered his thoughts.
Phil looked wide-eyed at Melinda #1, who looked back at him steadily.
“Wha-”
“Phil, look at me, you have to know this. You have to hear me.” Melinda #2′s voice implored him and his attention was turned once again. He hated this. Hated it. How dare she give him that decision? It wasn’t a decision at all! There had to be another way. He wouldn’t dare risk it. He could never shoot someone he cared so much about, someone he lo-
“I love you.”
Phil’s world spun.
Those three words, said so quietly and with such sincerity, pierced him right through the heart. Melinda #2 gazed at him with honesty and certainty in her eyes, an almost-smile making her lips turn up slightly. She stepped closer to him.
Phil’s heart thumped loudly in his chest. He unconsciously leaned toward her as his grip tightened on the gun. He’d wanted to hear those words from her for so long. He wanted to-
“Phil,” Phil turned his head at the raspy voice and saw her eyes. Melinda’s eyes, shining with unshed tears, looking at him desperately. Her head shook almost imperceptibly. “Phil…” She breathed out again, begging him with just that one word.
He knew.
In one smooth motion, Phil pulled his hand out of Melinda #2′s grasp and released the taser function in his robotic hand. Her eyes widened in shock as her body shook from the electricity. He caught the fake May as she fell, setting her down none-too-gently, then grabbed the real Melinda–hisMelinda, as her body sagged with relief and exhaustion.
The gun nearly fell from Phil’s hand in his haste, but he quickly stuffed it in his back pocket and proceeded to touch Melinda’s shoulders and face gently, his hands shaking all the while.
“Are you okay? What happened? I almost-” Phil couldn’t speak past the lump in his throat, so he ran a gentle thumb over a purple bruise on her cheekbone before pulling his partner into his arms, holding her close to his chest. “Why would you hand me that gun?” Phil choked out. “What if I chose the wrong person?”
Phil felt Melinda shudder and grip the front of his shirt before she answered, softly and simply, “I trust you with my life.”
At those words, his tears threatened to overwhelm him. He didn’t want to let go of her, but Melinda pulled away, her hands turning into fists as she looked at the impostor at their feet.
“We have to lock her up and find Daisy and Fitzsimmons. They could be in trouble.” Melinda’s voice was clipped, and he didn’t know if it was because of her emotions or because she was angry with him.
Phil nodded sharply once and was about to pick up the impostor, but before he did, he touched Melinda’s arm again. “Hey, after this is over, we’re talking about…” He paused, “Whatever just happened.”
“You mean how you knew she wasn’t me when she told you she loved you?” Melinda’s mouth was set in a harsh line. Phil winced. Of course that was what she’d think. “Not much to talk about. Grab her legs.”
Phil wanted nothing more than to argue, but his team was in trouble. He grabbed the fake May’s legs and promised himself he would straighten it out with her later. There would be no more dancing around his feelings–it was time.
An android.
She’d been replaced by a robot.
AIDA had used the scans of her brain and made her into an android so lifelike that Melinda herself couldn’t see a difference.
But Phil had. He’d known.
Only after she told him she loved him. Melinda’s heart ached bitterly at the thought. Was she so cold that she couldn’t ever admit her feelings aloud without raising suspicion?
Melinda sat on her bed in her room, long after they’d managed to shut down AIDA and save their team. She’d just finished the last Jemma-enforced medical test and was finally alone, trying–and failing–to not think about the stand-off between herself and the robot earlier. Where Phil had to make a decision about who was real, and who was fake.
She meant what she said–she trusted Phil with her life. Melinda had given him the gun, hoping he would understand her meaning. She wasn’t one to blurt out her feelings like the android had–no matter how true its words had been. It took years of denial, obstacles, and pushing thoughts and feelings away, but she loved him.
Shelovedhim.
But apparently that revelation was so shocking and unlike her that Phil knew immediately it couldn’t have been her saying it.
Melinda clenched her jaw and told herself she was being over-dramatic, but it didn’t stop the stinging in her heart.
At the knock on her door, Melinda closed her eyes and sighed. She knew it was coming, but she still wasn’t ready. Couldn’t he be unpredictable and notcome to check on her for once?
Melinda slowly got up and walked to the door, opening it and revealing Phil, looking like he was trying to appear casual. She knew what his forced-calm looked like. Their masks didn’t work well on each other.
“I’m fine.” Melinda stated, unemotionally.
“You’re not even going to invite me in so I can properly ask how you are?”
Melinda stared at him without any expression. He just raised his eyebrows at her until she sighed again and turned around.
She didn’t even make it back to her bed before he spoke.
“So about earlier-” Phil started.
“It’s fine,” Melinda said. Hoping if she said it enough, he’d just leave her alone. Oh please, a voice inside her whispered, like that’s going to happen. “I’m just glad you didn’t shoot me.”
Her attempt at humor didn’t move him. If anything, it made the worry lines on his forehead deepen.
“You think I couldn’t tell you were upset? We need to talk.”
“I told you, there’s nothing to talk about.” Melinda sat down on her bed and crossed her arms over her chest. She didn’t want to hear his explanation.
“Actually, there is.” Phil stated, determination on his face and in his tone. He stood in front of her. “Jemma and Fitz said the android essentially had your brain–with all its memories and thoughts and–and feelings.”
Melinda’s jaw clenched. Fine. He wanted to do this now, she’d let him have it. She prepared herself for an argument.
“Look, just because I don’t–and didn’t–say it doesn’t mean I don’t-”
“I know.” His answer and expression stopped Melinda in her tracks. His blue eyes were filled with compassion and warmth, the beginnings of a smile dancing at his lips. He slowly sat down next to her, the bed creaked slightly. “I knew you wouldn’t say it–not like that. Not there. The android said it to manipulate me because she knew it would affect my judgement. Get me to wantto believe her.” He paused and took a breath. “Melinda, you don’t have to convinceme about how much you care. I know it. I know it through your actions–like when you gave me the gun, telling me you trusted me to know–but in that moment, I knew it was you from your eyes.” Phil looked down at his hands, slightly embarrassed. “It sounds corny but it’s true. I looked into your eyes and I just…knew.”
They gazed at each other now, soaking in the meaning of his speech. There was a beat of silence before Phil reached out and cupped Melinda’s cheek with his hand–his real hand. Melinda leaned into his palm, blinking back her tears.
“I know how much you care.” He murmured, thumb stroking her cheek lightly.
“Do you?” Melinda answered softly, her brown eyes searching his blue ones. “The robot may have been trying to manipulate you, Phil, but she–it–wasn’t wrong…I do love you.”
Melinda heard Phil’s breath catch in his throat, and looking into his blue eyes filled with hope and love, she made a decision. Leaning forward, Melinda crossed that last boundary they’d been tip-toeing around for what felt like forever. She kissed him slowly, memorizing the feeling and the thrill when he responded, pouring her feelings for him into that one moment.
“If I didn’t know then,” Phil breathed, his eyes still half-closed as Melinda gently pulled back a fraction. “I definitely know now.” He smiled at her, then said mischievously, “But maybe you should tell me again, just to be sure.”
Melinda rolled her eyes and kissed him again, unable to keep from smiling as his arm wrapped around her waist to pull her closer.
A/N: Because, yes. I’m incapable of writing angst without having fluff in there too. Haha!
More notes: YES, Phil and Melinda’s attic and their bus stop operation are references to @ddagent‘s fic, “Partners.” So READ IT.
HUGE thanks to @b00k-freak for cheering me on and helping me come up with so many aspects of this fic! I adore her, even if she makes me write angst. And @philinda for being so amazing and looking over this fic. I love you!
A written-in-one-sitting drabble because I’m FEELING SO MANY THINGS.
Written as a tag to 4x05.
Phil could feelher eyeroll–despite the fact that he was staring at the back of her head. Her dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail as she changed Tai Chi positions. Phil found himself thinking about how much he liked her hair at this longer length before he was able to shove down his admiration and focus on the reason he was there.
“Is there even the slightest chance you’re going to let it go?” Melinda sounded dry and tired, and yet…hesitant? An unusual tone for his partner.
“Nope.” Phil kept his voice light as he clicked the door to her room shut and leaned against it. She knew he was the only one at base who would dare enter her room without waiting for a response to the knock, and she knew why he sought her out. He wanted to know more.
Melinda took in a deep breath and smoothly switched positions, turning to the side so Phil had a view of her profile. Watching Melinda do Tai Chi always relaxed him, ever since the Academy. Her graceful movements and serene expression eased away his tension, and she radiated in a way that made it difficult for him to look away.
“You said I was there, but you didn’t say what happened. Was it a dream?” Phil mused aloud, watching as her body grew more tense the more he spoke. “A nightmare? A memory? Something…else?”
Melinda finally dropped her hands to her sides and threw him a look of exasperation, and he raised his eyebrows innocently at her in response.
“Aren’t you supposed to be getting ready to go out on another mission?” Melinda gestured to his suit and tie.
“I’ve still got time,” Phil answered easily. Melinda shook her head and strode over to grab her water bottle from her desk, which stood right by the door.
“Well? I’m just wondering what could have happened, because you’re deliberately not telling me, which makes me think it must not have been good.”
Melinda’s water bottle barely touched her lips before she put it down, not taking a single sip. She just looked at him instead, her eyes intense with emotion Phil couldn’t decipher.
“I mean, were you seeing me in the infected zombie form?” Phil continued, hoping she would get fed up with him and tell him before the curiosity ate him alive. He wasn’t sure what it was, but the way Melinda was acting made him suspicious. His heart was beating faster for reasons he didn’t stop to think about, and he felt like he needed to know what she saw. It was important somehow. A piece of a larger puzzle that he needed in order to solve it. “Was it–”
Suddenly, Melinda’s hand yanked at his tie and Phil stumbled into her. Her lips pressed against his in the most captivatingway. He barely had a chance to touch his hands to her waist before she pulled away.
“That,” Melinda’s voice was slightly breathless, making her impossibly more attractive as she looked up at him with dark, imploring eyes. “That’s what I saw.”
Phil just stared at her in disbelief, trying to process what this meant. For him. For them. He could see the uncertainty in Melinda’s eyes, and knew he had to assure her quickly before the curtains were drawn over her emotions and she withdrew from him.
“Well,” Phil said slowly. “Why didn’t you just say so?”
Melinda’s eyebrows drew together and she opened her mouth to respond before Phil stepped back into her space and smiled softly, one arm circling around her waist and drawing her closer to himself. His other hand slid around her neck. “It would have been nice to know that I could have done this earlier.”
He bent his head and caught a glimpse of her smile right before he kissed her.
It’s been almost a year since I’ve posted. Wow. Let’s just say that this hiatus has been brutal, especially for us Philinda fans, and it hasn’t been easy to write fluff, even for me! But since it seems like AU is all we can cling to in this depressing time, here’s a new chapter to one of my favorite fics I’ve written. My plans for this fic always make me happy, even when canon is hurting us beyond belief. I really hope you enjoy this and are able to feel a little bit of happiness from reading it!
THANK YOU to my unfailing beta, Liz. I love you so much, girl. And thank you to all of you SO SO MUCH for all of your absolutely wonderful comments you’ve already left on this fic!!
This chapter is dedicated to my favorite Mama Bear, Melinda May, and the person who no doubt is a huge reason why I love Phil Coulson so much, Julie Coulson. Happy Mother’s Day to these mothers, and to all you wonderful mothers as well!
“What are you drawing, Mr. Phil?” Daisy peeked over his shoulder curiously.
“Hang on, you’ll know in one…second…there.” Phil looked at her and grinned proudly. “It’s been a while since I’ve tried to draw it, but I think I did pretty well!”
It was late, the setting sun spilled golden light into the playroom as they sat together in comfortable silence. Daisy had been restless and missing her mom more acutely today, so Phil suggested she try and make a drawing for her before they got ready for dinner. She agreed and immediately pulled out her art supplies. Phil had been working on a list of needs for a cupcake order for a bit before he decided he may as well try his hand with the markers as well.
Daisy’s head tilted to the side as she examined his drawing. “You made a plate with a star?”
Phil’s mouth dropped open, offended. “That’s Captain America’s shield. The best superhero mankind has ever known! Are you telling me you’ve never seen Captain America?”
Daisy shook her head and giggled at Phil’s obvious shock.
“Well,” Phil finally said, “we’re gonna need to fix that for sure. Hmph!” He stood up and stretched. “I’m going to go see if our lasagna is ready yet. Do you want to come or stay and finish your drawing?”
“I wanna stay. I have to finish this for Mommy.” Daisy answered, her concentration already back on her artwork.
“Okay,” Phil smiled softly at her before he stood and made his way to the kitchen. It had only been a few weeks since he’d started watching Daisy, but he already felt a strong attachment to her. He hated to see her sad and would do just about anything to make her smile. Children are the easiest people to love, his mother always said.
Since he was thinking about it…Phil pulled out his cell phone from his pocket and hit “Mom” from his speed dial. It rang as he opened the oven.
“Phil, honey, aren’t you still supposed to be working?”
Phil smiled at his mother’s worried voice. “I am, Daisy’s just in the other room while I check on the lasagna I made.”
“Oh, is that what you’ve called for? I’ve told you if you want to make it less soupy you need to -”
“Undercook the noodles, I know, Mom. Thanks.” He took out the pan and set it on the counter, checking it on all sides.
“And don’t forget to-”
“Let it stand for a while, I remember.”
Phil heard her huff slightly. “Well…I suppose you did learn from the best.”
He laughed in amusement. “I know I did.”
As Phil decided he was satisfied with the lasagna, he explained to his mom about his discussion with Daisy.
“You still have my Captain America comics and videos, right?”
“As if you’d ever let me throw those old things away,” Julie responded affectionately. “Should I mail them to you?”
“That would be great. Thanks, Mom. You know I’d love to come see you, but between working at the shop and watching Daisy…” Phil leaned against the kitchen counter and sighed.
“You’re exhausted.” She finished for him. “Please make sure you rest, Phil. I can tell you’re happy with what you’re doing, but don’t let it kill you. Or I’ll have to march over there and and force you to rest myself.”
Phil laughed and felt some of the weariness lift off his shoulders. His mother always had a gift for that.
“Oh yes, and how is, ah, Dr. May doing these days?” Phil rolled his eyes at her obviously teasing question and was about to sass back when he heard a noise from behind him.
“Mr. Phil?”
He turned and smiled at Daisy in the doorway, looking at him curiously. “Who’re you talking to?”
“I’m talking to my mom. Would you like to say ‘hi’?”
Daisy looked hesitant, but she nodded and moved closer to him.
“Mom, I’m going to put you on speaker, Daisy wanted to say ‘hello.’”
“Oh, Daisy! I’ve heard so much about you!” Julie’s voice came through the phone, her excitement causing the little girl to smile shyly.
“Hi, Mr. Phil’s mom.” Daisy said cautiously.
“Aren’t you just the most precious. Phil tells me you like playing soccer, is that true?”
“Uh huh.” Daisy looked at Phil, who smiled reassuringly.
“Tell me, who usually wins when you two play together?”
A grin crept up on Daisy’s face at the question, “Me! I get goals on Mr. Phil all the time.” She leaned closer to the phone and said in a stage whisper, “He’s not very good.”
“That’s what I thought.”
“Hey!” Phil protested while Julie and Daisy giggled together. He huffed in mock offense. “Okay, time to say goodbye, we have dinner to get ready for.”
“Goodbye, Daisy, it was so nice to speak with you.”
“Bye!”
Phil held the phone back up to his ear. “Bye, Mom. Talk to you soon.”
“Talk to you soon, dear. I love you.”
“Love you, too.”
Phil hung up and faced Daisy once more. “So, you think I’m a bad soccer player, huh?”
Daisy nodded, her eyes sparkling with confidence.
“Well, then. I call a rematch tomorrow after school.”
“You’re on!” Daisy responded with her hands on her hips.
“All right, now let’s set this table for dinner.”
Melinda stepped into the house and hung up her keys that night, sniffing the air.
Italian? She thought.
It had become somewhat of a game to her, guessing what amazing meal Coulson had cooked up for that night. In her own realistic (or pessimistic, as Maria and Pepper would say) mind, she’d told herself not to get used to Coulson’s cooking, as surely he would get tired of trying to impress them and the delicious dinners would become more and more infrequent, but it had been weeks now and he was just as hard working. And obliging. And so good with Daisy. And-
Melinda cut herself off from that train of thought.
“Right on time.” Coulson’s smile was ready and waiting for her as she stepped into the kitchen, along with a plate full of lasagna and vegetables in his hand.
“Mama!” Daisy’s excited greeting was the only warning she had before her daughter slammed into her arms.
“Hello to you too, Daisy.” Melinda lifted Daisy and kissed her cheek, relishing the feel of her two little arms hugging her neck. She sighed and felt herself relax. This was all the therapy she needed after a long day.
“I missed you, Mama.” Daisy said, her voice wobbling.
“I missed you too, xiǎo huā .” Melinda held her tighter and ran a comforting hand through her daughter’s long hair. She waited until Daisy’s grip on her loosened before asking, “Did you have another good day at school?”
Daisy nodded and finally slid out of her mother’s embrace to return to her food sitting on their breakfast table. “I finished all my work and Mrs. Weaver gave me time on the computer today!” Melinda smiled briefly as her daughter picked up a half-eaten piece of bread from her plate.
“Daisy, I told you earlier that you can’t just fill up on the garlic toast. Eat some of those vegetables too.” Coulson spoke to the girl firmly as he set the other plate down on the table. Melinda was pleased, although she kept her face unreadable, that Coulson was encouraging healthy habits. Too many babysitters took the easy way out and let children eat whatever they wanted while they watched them. Melinda liked knowing she wasn’t the only “bad guy” when it came to eating better.
The little girl pouted Melinda’s way, as if asking for her to overrule what Coulson said. She merely raised an eyebrow back in response. Daisy sighed, but set the bread down and took her fork to the cooked food.
“We had a great day too, by the way,” Coulson motioned for Melinda to take a seat at the table, which she did without protest, eagerly anticipating the tasty-looking meal. “But there is one issue I have to bring up.”
Melinda paused and looked up at him. He wiped his hands on a towel before throwing it back over his shoulder, his tone and facial expressions serious. She turned her body toward him and nodded to show she was listening.
Coulson folded his arms and leaned back on the kitchen counter. “How does your daughter not know who Captain America is?”
Melinda blinked. “…Excuse me?” She let out a short, confused laugh. “You mean, that one superhero from those comics?”
“He’s not just one of those superheroes, he’s Captain America! And there’s more than comics, he has his own action figures, trading cards, TV show…how could you let this poor girl grow up without knowing one of the greatest men in history? It’s a huge oversight, Dr. May.” Coulson’s indignant speech amused Melinda to no end. She had sensed some nerdiness in him since their first meeting, now she knew where it stemmed from…superheroes, evidently.
“Infictional history, you mean.” Melinda couldn’t stop herself from teasing him, just a little.
He opened his mouth to retort, but Daisy piped up from her chair excitedly. “Mr. Phil says Captain America has a shield! And he uses it to protect himself from bullets, and he can hit bad guys on the head with it!” Melinda smiled at her enthusiasm. “His mommy is going to send some movies and comic books to us so we can read them!”
“With your permission first, of course.” Coulson interjected quickly, looking slightly embarrassed at the mention of his mother.
Melinda thought about it for a moment. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d watched or cared about a superhero franchise, but she had a few fond memories from her younger days of Peggy telling her about the different comics and shows, and she had actually enjoyed reading about the secret agents who worked alongside the powered characters. Melinda couldn’t remember any negatives about Captain America off the top of her head, and at this point, she knew and trusted Coulson enough to have good judgement about what to show her daughter.
“Please, Mommy?” Daisy’s big brown eyes begged her to say yes, and Melinda couldn’t stop a laugh from escaping as Coulson crouched behind Daisy’s chair and raised his eyebrows, mimicking her sad puppy dog look.
“Please?” He echoed.
Melinda held up her hand in surrender. “Fine.”
Daisy squealed and high-fived Coulson, whose blue eyes then beamed her way.
Melinda shook her head to fight a smile and broke their eye contact in favor of looking at her plate. “Can I eat my dinner now?”
“Of course!” Coulson stood back up and moved to check on the oven. “I have a fresh batch of garlic bread that will be done in just a few minutes.”
“Enough time for you to eat some too then,” Melinda stated. Her tone didn’t allow for protest. “Sit and eat.”
Coulson had begun resisting less and less when it came to eating with them, Melinda was pleased to note. She didn’t think it was fair for him to prepare the whole meal and not enjoy it along with them.
“Yes, ma’am.” Coulson served a plate and set it down on the other side of Daisy, across from Melinda.
“So, what’s so great about Captain America?” Melinda asked as she took a bite of lasagna.
And thus opened the floodgates.
If she didn’t already know how talkative Coulson could be, she sure knew now, she mused to herself.
Somehow, the stream of conversation didn’t bother her as much as it usually would with other people. Melinda sat and listened to his passionate views (in between interjections from her 4-year-old), saw the enthusiastic way his hands gestured and his eyes lit up even brighter than before, and found herself weighing in and becoming engaged in a conversation about supernatural powers, responsibility, morals, character, history, right and wrong, and more. They were so engrossed in their debate that Phil nearly burned the garlic bread before she reminded him. Their conversation continued long after Daisy had lost interest and went to play by herself, and went on as they finished their food and cleaned the kitchen together.
“Oh wow.” Coulson winced as he finished hanging the kitchen towel in its place on the stove, and catching a glimpse at the clock in the process. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to keep you so long talking about, well-”
“Your obsession.” Melinda cut him off with a smirk as she slid the container of extra lasagna into the fridge.
Coulson grimaced and rubbed the back of his neck. Melinda noticed his face looked more pink than it had a minute ago. “Yeah…not my most selling characteristic, I’ve been told. I usually start losing people after the first sentence.” He laughed self-consciously.
“It’s fine, Coulson. If I didn’t think it was interesting, I would’ve made it clear.” Melinda leaned back on the counter, chuckling internally at his embarrassment. Just to reassure him, she added, “I didn’t mind. And I’m a good listener.”
“Yeah, you are. And a great debater.” Coulson grinned at her.
Melinda cleared her throat to stop herself from smiling back too long. “Plus, I should know what kind of values they depict Captain America having anyway, since Daisy will be watching and reading about him.”
“Oh, yes. Of course.” Coulson nodded seriously. “I know how impressionable children are at this age and I wouldn’t show her anything that could potentially be a bad influence on her.”
“I believe you.” Melinda answered simply.
They stood there for another moment before Coulson excused himself to go say goodnight to Daisy.
As he walked away, Melinda mulled over the decision she’d been trying to make for a week now—whether or not she trusted Coulson to take care of Daisy more full time, which would include watching her at the house during Melinda’s night shift.
It was a big step for her—allowing someone else to be in charge of her daughter’s safety throughout the night—but she had a gut feeling about him. That he would be good for Daisy, and by extension, good for her as well. And her instincts were almost always right. Plus, she didn’t want to depend on Peggy’s good graces forever. Melinda knew her friend loved Daisy like another daughter, but she didn’t need to have her sleeping at her house at least once a week, every week. No, as hard as it was for her, Melinda knew it was time to take a leap of faith with Phi–Coulson, she corrected herself firmly–and see if this arrangement would work out or not.
Decision made, Melinda joined Coulson and walked out the front door to speak with him.
“I have something to ask you.” She hesitated, but then continued when he turned toward her. “It’s been close to a month since you’ve started watching Daisy and she’s clearly taken with you. I don’t think she was even this happy with Hannah watching her. And I have been happy with your service as well.”
Coulson half-smiled and looked down humbly. “Thank you. She’s an incredible kid, and she makes it easy.” He looked up at her, blue eyes sincere. “You’ve raised her extremely well.”
Melinda’s lips quirked up. “Thank you. I was wondering…what would you think about staying the night here? That is,” Melinda hurriedly finished as Coulson’s eyes widened a fraction. “For Daisy, I mean, to watch her during my overnight shift tomorrow?” Who’s the awkward conversationalist now? Melinda thought grimly to herself. “And instead of babysitter, I’d officially hire you as her nanny, which of course would come with a pay increase. I know you have your other job too, but…”
Thankfully, Coulson was already nodding with the close-lipped smile that somehow still managed to make his eyes crinkle at the corners. “Absolutely. I’d be honored.”
“Great.” Melinda smiled back in relief. “Would you be able to come tomorrow around 2:30 and we can discuss more details?”
“Deal.” Coulson held out his hand to shake.
She took it. “Deal.”
“Goodnight, Dr. May.” Coulson sent her one last grin before he walked away.
“Bye, Mr. Phil!” Daisy ran up behind Melinda to wave one last time. He waved back and disappeared into his car.
Melinda shut the door with a slight smile and then turned and spoke in Mandarin. “Time for bed, Daisy.” She said seriously.
“First come see the picture I made for you!” Daisy pulled on Melinda’s hand until they reached her bedroom. “Mr. Phil only helped me with the words a little bit! Here’s you and me and our house, and I’m giving you a flower, and this says ‘I love you.’ Mr. Phil said he didn’t know how to help me write it in Mandarin though.”
“Ohh, little flower, this is beautiful.” Melinda felt a slight sting of tears at Daisy’s shy, but proud smile and the stick figures on the page. Melinda took Daisy into her lap and wrapped her arms around her, soaking up this sweet moment with her baby. All the secret thoughts and doubts that plagued her every day about what a terrible mother she was became insignificant here, snuggled with the most important person in the world to her.
Melinda looked at the picture again. “Who is this right here?” She pointed to another figure on the page that had several circles drawn next to it.
“That’s Mr. Phil. He’s making us cookies to eat.”
Melinda laughed and pressed several kisses onto Daisy’s smiling cheeks. “Of course he is. How about we put this on our fridge and then get ready for storytime?”
Daisy nodded obligingly (even though Melinda knew it wouldn’t be that easy to put her to bed, it never was with her and her active little body. But at least she would be less likely to lose her mind about it tonight thanks to this precious moment), and they held hands all the way to the kitchen.
You all are so amazing for being patient with this story. Slowly but surely it’s being written and posted! I so hope you all are enjoying this fluff piece. I know I love writing it, and I am so encouraged by all your comments! Thank you so, SO much!!
Thank you, of course, to @philinda, for always being there to read my drafts! I love you.
“I have an SUV, you really think it’s a good idea to whip right in front of me, lady in the tiny car?” Phil muttered darkly to himself, finger tapping on the steering wheel in frustration as he applied the brakes…again.
Phil had been a full time history teacher for a few years after college, and still worked as a substitute every now and then when he could. He had many fond memories of his students and the content he taught, but pretty much everyone could agree that public school teaching wasn’t for the faint of heart. He’d dealt with many challenges as a teacher that helped him grow and mature over the years.
However, nothing he’d learned during his teaching career prepared him for the utter vexation of a primary school car loop.
Phil decided to just park where he was and grumble a few more complaints about the competency of the other drivers until he spotted Daisy and her teacher walking down the sidewalk beside the line of cars. He smiled and stepped out of the vehicle, annoyance forgotten, reaching out to shake the teacher’s hand.
“Hi, there. Phil Coulson.”
“Anne Weaver.” She returned his greeting. “Ms. May told us you’d be picking up Daisy today, and security told me you were cleared with them earlier.” The teacher looked down at Daisy, smiling. “She mentioned something about chocolate chip cookies?”
“That’s right! We’re going to make some this afternoon.” Phil grinned and squatted down in front of the little girl. “You ready to go?”
Daisy nodded bashfully before letting go of Ms. Weaver’s hand. Phil stood, opened the door, and helped her into her car seat, taking her backpack and ooh-ing over her art project. She waved goodbye to her teacher and, through some maneuvering, Phil was finally able to pull out of the exasperating line of cars.
Daisy seemed to be a bit more shy without May around, Phil noticed quickly. But with some patience, soon enough her answers became less “yes” and “no”’s, and more full length stories about school.
“So Wanda and Pietro are brother and sister?” Phil continued their conversation as they picked a shopping cart.
“Uh huh, they’re twins. But they don’t look the same. Ms. Weaver says it’s because they’re fur-furturner twins.”
Phil couldn’t completely stop his smile from emerging as he hoisted Daisy up onto the seat of the cart. She butchered the word, but she looked so proud of herself for using it that he swallowed his laugh down. “Oh, that’s a big word! So they’re fraternal twins?”
“Yep.” Daisy confirmed.
“Are they good friends with you?” Phil asked as they made their way into the store.
“Mhmm. But not as good as Jemma and Fitz, and Trip.” Daisy looked at him seriously. “They’re my bestfriends.”
Phil nodded solemnly. “It’s great to have a lot of good friends too.”
Daisy nodded with him, but then her eyes quickly darted to the bakery section of the store. “Can I get a cookie?”
Phil chuckled. “Isn’t that why we’re here? We’re going to get ingredients to make our own cookies. Homemade is always better, trust me.”
“Okay.” She was silent for a minute. “How long do homemade cookies take?”
Phil let out another quiet laugh. “Don’t worry, Daisy. We’ll have fun making them, I promise. Do you think you can hold this bag of flour? It’s pretty heavy.”
He managed to keep the four-year-old entertained through the store and on the way home. Once they got back to the house and took out all their ingredients, Daisy was more than ready to begin the cookie making process.
Phil looked at their assembled ingredients. “Perfect. Now we need measuring cups and a mixing bowl.”
“I know where the bowls are!” Daisy chirped happily, opening up one of the lower cabinets.
The two of them set to work. After finding the measuring cups, Phil gave Daisy instructions on amounts and she followed them perfectly—even if she did end up with a little bit of flour on herself and the counter…and the floor.
He was surprised at how much he enjoyed conversing with Daisy. She was bright and enthusiastic, and very willing to help. Truth be told, Phil usually preferred to be by himself in the kitchen, but Daisy was a perfect little assistant, and he told her just as much as they slid the last tray into the oven.
Daisy’s face blossomed into one of her infectious smiles as she beamed at him.
“I like to help bake things. Mommy doesn’t do it a lot.” Her tone became very matter-of-fact. “She’s not a very good cook. Aunt Nat said she made the oven get on fire one time.”
Phil laughed out loud. “Oh, really?”
“Yep. But that was when I was a really little baby.”
Now that was intriguing. May seemed like the kind of person who could do anything and everything. It was interesting to find out she wasn’t completelyperfect.
“That sounds like a fascinating story I’d like to hear sometime.” Phil said as he checked the timer. “Hey, since we’ve got a few minutes till the cookies are ready, why don’t you show me around your house a little more?”
“Okay!”
Naturally, Daisy wanted to show Phil her room first. It was fairly spacious, with toys scattered around. A large dollhouse was in one corner, a child-sized kitchen against the wall near it, and a dress up clothes bin near her closet. Two bean bags sat on the floor by a bookshelf bursting (literally, as there were several books on the floor as well) with all kinds of different children’s books, and several other fun play things that Daisy showed him.
Taking note of the recurring color Phil noticed on her bedspread, walls, and other decor, he came to a quick conclusion. “Your favorite color isn’t blue, is it?” He asked, teasingly.
Daisy nodded and grinned. “Yes! Like the sky!”
Phil laughed. “Speaking of, do you want to show me what your backyard looks like? Then I think the cookies will be ready.”
Daisy agreed and led him back to the kitchen where two glass, French-styled doors opened up to reveal a fenced, wooden back porch with a grill, picnic table shaded by an umbrella, and some comfortable-looking brown wicker seats. The porch had one wide set of stairs leading to the ground that was visible from the kitchen, and once Phil stepped out, he also spotted a smaller, spiral staircase on the far side of the long porch as well.
“Wow,” He murmured to himself as he looked around. “What a set up.” He realized quickly that the hill that led up to the front of May’s house cleverly disguised how spacious the back was. The landscaping was very well kept, there were a few trees that gave nice shade in different spots on the yard, and he spotted a garden on the side with the spiral staircase. Phil was impressed by the sheer amount of thinking and planning this beautiful house must have taken.
“We have a pool too!” Daisy pointed down at a path that led to an above ground pool off to the side of their yard. “Mama says in summer I have to take swimming lessons, so I can go in without my floaties.”
“Are you excited to learn how to swim?” Phil questioned. Her tone made him think she wasn’t too thrilled with the idea.
Daisy shrugged her little shoulders. “I like my floaties.”
Phil smiled and was about to answer when he heard the beepof the timer. Daisy jerked and locked eyes with him.
“Cookies!” She squealed and dashed back inside.
After taking them out and letting them cool for a few minutes, Phil gave Daisy the OK to take a bite.
“MMMMM.” She said, mouth full of chocolate.
“Agreed.” Phil answered, swallowing a bite of his own cookie. “Thanks to my good helper, we made the perfect chocolate chip cookies! Now what we need is a glass of milk to go with it. Here, I’ll show you how to dunk it without letting it fall in…”
Melinda clicked the button to open her garage door and sighed with exhaustion. It had been a long day at the hospital with various different emergencies that required her attention. As one of the more experienced neonatologists at Providence Hospital, her judgement had been needed several times throughout the day. But that was normal, everyday stress. However, Daisy–and Coulson–had also been on her mind all day, and that worry was enough to keep her on edge throughout the majority of her shift. As she parked the car, she wondered for the thousandth time what she would walk in to when she got inside.
Almost every time Melinda had left Daisy with a trial nanny before, all it would take was stepping back into the house on the first day to know whether it would work out or not. The house had either been a mess, Daisy still hadn’t eaten dinner and was watching her third movie that day, Daisy disliked the person and wouldn’t let go of Melinda as soon as she saw her (the most frequent reaction), or one time Melinda found out later that the babysitter allowed Daisy to do and eat whatever she wanted around the house while she had looked at her phone and watched TV the whole day.
Hannah, her previous nanny, had been the only successful babysitter so far. And she had been an easy find because they were introduced at one of Maria’s self defense classes. Both Maria and Hannah’s previous employers spoke highly of her, and she got along well with Daisy and Melinda until she decided to move out of state to be closer to her family and fiancé. Since then, Melinda had been trying desperately to find someone else to fill her shoes, but the candidates were all woefully inadequate.
Melinda had never been very trusting of new people in the first place, but through her various bad experiences, she was now even more wary of new sitters. What if Coulson turned out to be no better than them?
Or, potentially worse, what if he would make a great nanny, but she ruined it with how she spoke to him this morning? Melinda hated second-guessing herself, but her words to Coulson had replayed in her mind all day. She hadn’t lied to him, of course. The safety and well-being of her child was her top priority and she wasn’t afraid to say so. And there wasn’t anything wrongwith Coulson having a bit of healthy fear of her, but she hadn’t meant to sound so cold or harsh. Melinda was well aware of what people thought of her–especially the interns and residents at the hospital. They worked well together professionally, but most thought of her as icy and intimidating, and probably heartless as well. It hurt sometimes, but she’d learned to ignore their hushed whispers and gossip, and how they usually found a way to excuse themselves when she was around.
For some reason though, she didn’t want this man to have that same opinion of her.
After all, she reasoned to herself, it could affect the way he treated Daisy, and that was the last thing she wanted.
Melinda hesitated as she put a hand on the door knob, then rolled her eyes at herself for being so dramatic and pushed the door open.
The first thing that hit her was the smell. Sweet and syrupy.
The second thing she heard was giggles and clapping. Melinda peeked into Daisy’s room as she passed by, doing a double take when she saw the clean carpet. The toys and books were all lined up and put away where they belonged. It had been a while since her daughter’s room had been that orderly without Melinda’s help.
Melinda hung up her car keys and made her way through the hallway and to the kitchen quietly, beginning to make out some of the conversation.
“It’s all in the wrist action. Watch.” A slapping sound came next. “Ta-da!”
“Do it again!”
“Okay, last time. Then we need to eat.” Coulson’s voice became louder as Melinda neared the kitchen. She stopped in the archway and watched as Coulson flipped a pancake into the air, his position and concentration making him oblivious to her presence. He and Daisy had matching grins as he tossed it up a few times, the pancake gaining altitude with every turn in the air. Melinda waited one more moment before clearing her throat.
Startled by the sudden noise, Coulson lost his focus and flicked the pan a bit too hard.
The result was a full-sized pancake landing right on his face.
Daisy burst into laughter, and Melinda couldn’t help but laugh along at Coulson’s red face and Daisy’s mirth. “I see you two have been having fun.”
“Mommy!” Daisy hopped off the bar stool she had been sitting in and ran to hug her. “Mama, Mr. Phil and I made cookies and pancakes! And he let me walk next to him at the store and then hold the chocolate because I was being a good helper. And we played with my soccer ball outside!” As Daisy began rattling off more activities they’d done that day, Melinda picked her up and smiled warmly at Coulson, who was still blushing and wiping butter off his face.
“Sorry about that. I didn’t hear the door open. I, uh, I was on a roll and everything.” He joked after gaining some composure.
“I saw that. All in the wrist, you said?” The teasing words left her mouth before she could stop them.
“Oh, yeah. It takes talent andpractice, you know.” Coulson smiled, but Melinda could see a blush creeping back up his face. He turned back toward the stove. “I’m sorry she hasn’t eaten yet, but we were just about to sit down.”
“Mr. Phil says I have to eat the eggs.” Daisy made a face at Melinda.
“Mr. Phil is right,” Melinda confirmed, stroking Daisy’s hair away from her face. “And I see he put out some strawberries and blueberries for you too. You like those.”
“These are good scrambled eggs, Daisy. You’ll like them.” Coulson promised, showing her a plate with one small pancake, eggs, and fruit. “I forgot bacon while we were at the store, otherwise we’d have that too.”
“This looks great. Here, Daisy. Let’s have you eat at the table.” Melinda took the plate from Coulson and ushered her to a chair, then supervised her as she poured a small amount of syrup on her pancake. A moment later, Coulson set a full plate down in front of Melinda. She nearly protested before she saw how delicious it all looked.
“I wasn’t sure how you liked your eggs, so I figured scrambled was pretty safe. And they’re pretty good, if I do say so myself.” He grinned and turned away before she could answer.
Melinda stared down at the plate and thought about the protein bar and sandwich from lunch that had digested long ago. The sight of real food immediately sent her stomach into a ravenous state. It didn’t take her long to give in, taking one bite of the eggs and letting out a quiet, happy sigh.
“Aren’t you going to sit down and eat too?” Melinda asked Coulson, who was moving between the stove and sink, cleaning up.
He shook his head, “Oh no, I ate a few pancakes already. Thanks. Being the cook has perks.”
“And you ate three chocolate chip cookies!” Daisy piped up.
“Wow, ratted out by a four-year-old.” Coulson put his hand on his heart as if he’d been wounded, causing Daisy to grin.
“Almost five!” Daisy clarified.
“Analmost five-year-old.” Coulson amended, a smile tugging at his lips.
Melinda smiled at her daughter and asked her about school while they ate. After Melinda had eaten about half her plate and her hunger abated, she stood up and insisted that Coulson didn’t have to clean.
“I don’t mind,” he protested.
“Really,” Melinda interrupted. “You cooked, I can clean. We have a dishwasher anyway. You should go home, it’s already later than we agreed to. I apologize for that.”
“No need. It was a pleasure.” Coulson assured her, finally surrendering the kitchen towel from his shoulder. Daisy smiled and waved goodbye from her seat as Melinda led him out of the kitchen.
“She really is a lot of fun, no trouble at all,” Coulson babbled as they walked to the front door. “And I promise I don’t only make sweet things. I’ll make sure she eats healthy too.”
“And here I thought you were only a baker.”
“Well, yes. But I enjoy both cooking and baking. My mom taught me both, plus I, uh,” Coulson rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “I’m one of Food Network’s most dedicated viewers. It’ll be fun to try new recipes for someone other than myself.”
Melinda let out a small huff of amusement. “Well, it seems like Daisy enjoyed being with you. So…same time tomorrow?”
“Absolutely.” Coulson looked pleased. “Have a good night.”
“You too. And Coulson?” He turned back toward her. “Thank you for dinner. It was delicious.”
“You’re welcome. Leftover cookies are in the fridge.” He grinned one last time and left.
Melinda had worked with people of all kinds long enough to have pretty good instincts about them, and her gut feelings almost always proved to be correct one way or another. Coulson seemed like a good man, and he hadn’t acted afraid or hostile toward her after her stern words this morning, which was a bonus. She was still cautious, but she had to admit she was impressed by him.
Melinda shut and locked the door behind Coulson, deep in thought. She made her way back to Daisy and kissed her on the cheek, speaking in Mandarin. “ You like Mr. Phil, little flower? ”
Daisy nodded and ate a strawberry. “ He’s fun, and he plays dolls with me! ”
Melinda half-smiled and thoughtfully took another bite of her pancake.
Pepper looked up from her tablet as Tony entered their bedroom. She smiled at her husband and set her device down on her lap, “That didn’t take long. How boring wasyour bedtime story?”
“I tell the best stories, thank you very much.” Tony slid into bed next to her and poked her side, eliciting a small laugh from her. “He was just extra tired from school today. They’re exploring friction with race cars this week for science. He and Jemma probably questioned their poor teacher to death about it.”
“He knows they’re gifted, he must be used to it by now.” Pepper shrugged and turned to set her tablet down on the nightstand.
Tony circled his arms around her quickly, trapping her arms at her side and pulling her close to him. He rained kisses onto the top of her head as he spoke. “I love when you don’t have to work the night shift. Have I mentioned that? I can’t remember.”
“Only every chance you get.” Pepper squirmed in his arms until she was facing him, an affectionate smile on her face as she kissed him gently. “I like it too.”
Their kisses grew more heated and Tony was in the middle of pressing his lips to her neck when Pepper’s cell phone rang.
“Oh, that must be Phil!” Pepper immediately pulled away, leaving a confused and pouty Tony leaning on his elbow.
“‘Phil?’ I thought we agreed to call him ‘Mr. Coulson’ as an example to Fitz. And what’s he calling you for anyway? It’s late.”
Pepper shushed him and answered the phone. “Phil, hey! How did it go today?”
“Hey Pepper, I think I might be in love.”
Pepper’s mouth fell open and she hit Tony’s chest so hard he grunted. She gripped his shirt to steady herself, a grin starting to form on her lips. “In love? Already?” She repeated breathlessly. Oh man, wait till I tell Natasha. We both knew it was going to happen, but this soon? We’re better matchmakers than we even thou—
“Yes. May’s house is incredible . I couldn’t have designed it better myself! Her backyard is amazing and the kitchen has everything you could want!” He gushed.
Pepper deflated instantly. What a jerk, playing with her emotions like that. “Oh. Wow. Well, I’m glad you like it so much.” She shook herself, adopting a more cheerful tone. “How was Daisy? And May?”
“Good! Daisy and I had a great time. I think we get along really well. May seemed pleased enough…tonight anyway. Made me kinda nervous this morning.”
“Oh?”
“Yup. She threatened me… very convincingly. I think I know what Tony was trying to warn me about. But don’t tell him I said that.”
Pepper shot Tony an annoyed look. He was still rubbing his chest, but he smiled back innocently.
“But I think it’s a good quality–the protectiveness, I mean. And Daisy is a sweetheart.”
Pepper smiled again in victory before she heard Phil yawn through the phone. “Well, I’m glad to hear it went so well! Get some rest. It sounds like you’ll need it.”
Phil chuckled. “Yeah, for sure. Thanks again, Pepper. Goodnight.”
“Sweet dreams, Phil!” She hung up and set her phone down before turning back towards Tony.
“I can’t believe you hit me.” Her husband complained. “I bruise easily, you know.”
Pepper suppressed a smile and slid her hand under his shirt to stroke the skin at his chest. “Sorry, honey. I got a little excited.”
Tony raised an eyebrow. “You’re not seriously trying to set May up with Phil are you? She’s not his type. Plus, he’s a big talker, and May hatesthat. I would know.”
Pepper rolled her eyes. “She might hate it when youtalk, Tony. And I don’t know what you’re talking about. Why would I try to set anyone up? Also, what do you know about Phil’s type?” Tony opened his mouth to speak, but Pepper interrupted him. “Actually, nevermind. I’m up to nothing, so you don’t need to worry about it.” If Tony knew all the schemes she and Natasha had cooked up, he’d ruin all their plans before they could work. It’d be much better if he knew nothing.
Tony still looked suspicious, but Pepper’s lips on his distracted his questioning thoughts, and soon his protests were rendered insignificant.
