Best Birthday Ever

Daisy knocked on the door to the apartment, trying to suppress the nerves in her stomach at having to see Lincoln again. She hadn’t seen him since their adventure on the Iliad and she didn’t know how he thought about her. True, he had saved her from Alisha, she had confided in him about her mother trying to kill her, and they had traded phone numbers and contact information, but she hadn’t seen him in-person since. 

The door to the apartment opened and Daisy was greeted with seeing her Inhuman transitioner for the first time in almost a month.

“Hey!” she said. “Long time, no see!”

“Skye?” Lincoln looked startled to see her. “What are you doing here?”

“No, hi? No, it’s good to see you? No how have you been doing these last few weeks?” Daisy asked, smiling teasingly at him.

Lincoln gave her a faint smile. “Hi,” he amended his statement. “How are you?”

“Been better,” Daisy admitted. “I need your help.”

Lincoln rubbed his forehead. “Skye, I -”

“Actually, it’s Daisy now,” Daisy corrected. “I, uh...well, I kinda came to terms about my parents. Or at least...as much as I’m going to. And because I know who I am...well, I figured accepting my birth name is part of accepting who I really am.”

Lincoln sighed. “That’s...great. I just want to get away from who I am. Away from Afterlife, away from our powers, away from….” He paused. “Wait, why are you here?”

“What do you mean?” Daisy asked, a little confused. “I’m here to see you? And to ask for your help?”

“On your birthday?” Lincoln asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

Daisy stopped in mid-sentence. “Wait...today is July 2nd?”

Lincoln smiled at her, but it was just a faint reminder of all the happy, genuine grins that he had previously given her in Afterlife. 

“Okay, Daisy,” he said, still smiling. “Accepting who you are means that you have to accept that today is your birthday as well, you know. And you...shouldn’t be working on your birthday.”

“It’s about Jemma,” Daisy protested. “She got swallowed by the Monolith, the Monolith that Raina saw in her vision. Do you...do you know anything about that? Fitz has been going out of his mind with worry and I honestly don’t blame him because I’m really worried too and -”

“Whoa, Sk-Daisy,” Lincoln said, raising his hands in an attempt to prevent her from rambling. “Calm down. You’re going to burst a blood vessel.”

“Is that the med student in you telling you that?” Daisy teased.

“Actually, I graduated,” Lincoln said, giving her a rueful smile. 

“Wait, you graduated?” Daisy asked. “Lincoln, that’s amazing! We need to celebrate!”

“Today is your birthday and you want to celebrate my med school graduation?” Lincoln asked. “If we’re celebrating anything today, we’re celebrating your birthday.”

Daisy paused. “I have...never celebrated my birthday before.”

“Well, it usually involves cake,” Lincoln said teasingly. “Cake, candles, friends...don’t your friends at S.H.I.E.L.D. know that today is your birthday?”

Daisy shrugged. “I mean, I forgot about it, so….”

“Friends remember friends’ birthdays,” Lincoln said. “Come on. Let’s celebrate your birthday.”

Daisy and Lincoln wandered the streets of Cincinnati, chatting about anything and everything, and it felt like old times, back when they had been at Afterlife, when everything had been easy. No S.H.I.E.L.D., no wars, nothing. Easy. Simple.  

“Do you have a favourite cake place?” Daisy asked as they walked past a bakery.

“There’s this one around the corner that my sister and I always got birthday cakes from,” Lincoln said. “I don’t think I ever told you about her. She’s not Inhuman...doesn’t know anything about that side of me. But she’s...she’s all I’ve got.”

Daisy gave him a rueful smile. “Family is complicated.”

That was probably the understatement of the year.

“What’s her name?” Daisy asked.

“Amanda,” Lincoln replied. “She’s the lucky one in the family...the Inhuman gene didn’t manifest in her.”

“Wait, so you know how to...monitor that in Inhumans?” Daisy asked, turning to face him, deliberately ignoring the fact that he had called Amanda lucky for not inheriting Inhuman powers.

“Yeah,” Lincoln said, shrugging, his hands in his pockets. “I’ve been studying it. In addition to med school, I mean. I’ve been studying how it affects us, changes us...trying to see if scientifically, that change is reversible.”

“Wait, why?” Daisy asked, holding up a hand to stop him from talking. “Why are you trying to do that?” He of all people shouldn’t be against Inhumans going through the Mist. She paused. “Did you hear about the...start of the Inhuman Outbreak? The fish oil pills?” That was the only reason she could think of that might explain why he was suddenly against Terrigenesis. After all, he was one of the most kind and compassionate people she knew; his concern for the suddenly transforming Inhumans was the only reason she could think of that might explain his sudden reversal of opinions on Terrigenesis.

“Yeah,” Lincoln repeated. “I figured...these people don’t have a choice in what’s happening to them. They don’t know about Inhumans; it’s got to be absolutely crazy for them. Suddenly developing powers, no transitioners, nothing to explain why they’re suddenly biologically and fundamentally different? Plus, I don’t trust anything we were told in Afterlife anymore. If Jiaying told us that Terrigenesis is irreversible, well, I’m not sure if I believe that anymore.” 

“Lincoln….,” Daisy began, not even sure of what to say.

Lincoln caught her concerned look. “Hey, let’s not talk about it okay? Let’s just get cake and celebrate your birthday in style. It’s not every day you turn 27.”

Daisy laughed. He was right and she had never celebrated her birthday before. It made perfect sense that she would celebrate her birthday with the one person she still trusted who had been around when she had first found out about her parents, about her birthday, about her Inhuman powers. 

“Okay,” she said. “But one last thing before we drop the subject...you should join us at S.H.I.E.L.D.. We could really use you as a doctor, as a transitioner for Inhumans, as a powered person…. Coulson gave me the green light for an Inhuman team and you’re the first person I’d want on that team. I trust you. Even though you say I’m not a very trusting person.”

Lincoln couldn’t help smiling as she referred to one of the first things they had talked about on that first day in Afterlife. He had surmised that she wasn’t a very trusting person and now...well, he knew how much it meant when she said that she trusted him. 

Lincoln caught her gaze. “I trust you too, Daisy,” he said. “It’s S.H.I.E.L.D. I don’t trust.” He paused. “Let’s talk about it another time.” He gestured to the bakery just ahead of them. “Cake shop awaits.”

Daisy grinned. “Okay. Your med school graduation cake is on me.”

“And your birthday cake is on me,” Lincoln countered, making her laugh.

The night went...amazingly well. They bought two slices of cake and shared them, eating at a table in the street. When they finished their cake, they wandered around downtown Cincinnati, with Lincoln pointing out places that had been influential in his youth. Talking came as easily as breathing; it was like they were in Afterlife again, bonding, enjoying time together, having someone ‘normal’ to talk to. 

All too soon, Daisy’s S.H.I.E.L.D.-issued phone was vibrating; it was Mack, asking why she was still not back at the Playground and if she still needed a lift back.

“Does S.H.I.E.L.D. not know that you’re here?” Lincoln asked as they walked back towards his apartment.

Daisy shrugged. “Mack wanted to come, but I figured you’d trust me more if I came alone. Plus...the last time you met Mack, he clobbered you on the head, so I figured now would not be a good time for re-introductions.”

Lincoln laughed. “Yeah, well, he was protecting you. I can’t fault him for doing that.”

Daisy looked at him, a warmth seemingly spreading through her veins. It had been a while since she’d felt that; she hadn’t even realized at first that she had been developing...feelings for Lincoln. It had felt so instinctual, so natural...and now she was only just realizing it. But if he didn’t want to be a part of S.H.I.E.L.D., didn’t want to be a part of that world...she couldn’t just drag him back into it. It would be selfish of her, as much as she wanted him there.

“Thank you,” Daisy said.

“What for?” Lincoln asked. His voice sounded playful when he next spoke. “Showing you the Seven Wonders of Cincinnati?”

Daisy laughed. “No...well, yes. But also, for saving my life. From Hydra, from Alisha...even back in Afterlife. Thank you.” 

Lincoln smiled faintly. “You saved me too,” he reminded her. “Back with Hydra and you enlightened me to Jiaying and Gordon….”

“We saved each other,” Daisy corrected him. 

Both of them looked at each other; Daisy thought she felt...something sparking between them. And she didn’t just mean his powers. It was something else entirely.

“Lincoln, I -”

At that moment, someone called, “Daisy!”

Both of them turned. Mack was standing in the street, his massive arms crossed over his chest. 

“Coulson asked me to come,” he said. “He was worried about you...he said you shouldn’t be alone.”

“Mack, it’s Lincoln,” Daisy said, raising her arms defensively. “He saved my life countless times; Coulson has nothing to worry about.”

“Don’t worry,” Lincoln said, waving her off. “Coulson cares about you, that’s why he’s worried.”

She glanced at him as he spoke; their eyes met. For a split second, it felt like Mack wasn’t there and they were the only ones in the streets of Cincinnati. Daisy bit her bottom lip before she realized what she was doing; her gaze had drifted down to his mouth as well.

“Lincoln...you should come with us,” Daisy urged. “S.H.I.E.L.D. would be happy to have you -”

Lincoln cut her off. “No. Thank you...but no. But you should come out again. It was...fun tonight.”

Daisy smiled. He really didn’t have anything against her; it was just his fear about S.H.I.E.L.D.. And she didn’t blame him, when he had first met S.H.I.E.L.D., they had seemed a lot like Hydra to him. And Hydra had cut him up, sliced him open and experimented on him, just like they had with Jiaying. She was just incredibly grateful that he didn’t hate humans the way her mother had. Lincoln’s attitude towards humans after his Hydra experimentation had reinvigorated her faith in both humans and Inhumans; her mother’s reaction to torture didn’t have to be everyone’s. 

“Yeah. It was really fun. I had fun,” Daisy said, looking up to meet his gaze. 

She wanted to touch him, to hug him or something to signal the end of their night, but it felt strange doing that in front of Mack. It felt like much more than a Bobbi-Mack hug or a her-Fitz hug…. It felt like...something. 

“Oh, and Daisy?” Lincoln called after her as she reluctantly turned away.

“Yeah?” Daisy asked, turning back to look at him.

“I’m really sorry I don’t know anything about the Monolith,” he said. “And I’m sorry about your friend. And...happy birthday.”

Daisy smiled. “Happy graduation.”

They shared a smile, eyes locked on one another. It was only when Mack made a slight movement to Daisy’s right that she remembered that he was there. Reluctantly, she turned to leave; Mack followed suit. Once they were out of earshot, Mack looked at her quizzically.

“Today’s your birthday?” he asked.

Daisy was pretty sure she blushed. “Yeah.”

“And you told Sparkplug about it and not the rest of us?” he asked. 

He didn’t sound hurt by her admission, but still...they were partners. Daisy felt a twinge of guilt all the same. But it wasn’t like that...or at least she hadn’t intended for it to be like that. She hadn’t meant it to seem like she had chosen Lincoln’s company above the rest of her S.H.I.E.L.D. team. Although she certainly felt differently towards Lincoln than she did towards everyone else on her S.H.I.E.L.D. team. 

Daisy shook her head. “It’s not like that,” she said. “He was with me when I found out about it, so there was nothing to tell. He just remembered, that’s all.”

“Right…,” Mack said, nodding his head. “So...date night, huh?”

“Mack!” Daisy protested.

Mack held up his hands. “Hey, I’m not judging. Or saying or doing anything. If anyone deserves a night off, it’s on their birthday. And if that’s how you want to spend your birthday, that’s cool with me.” 

Daisy was pretty sure her blush got even deeper. But she couldn’t help smiling at the thought of her night out with Lincoln. As she and Mack walked away, she glanced over her shoulder at where she had last seen Lincoln. Ironically, at that moment, he looked over his shoulder at her and their eyes met. Each smiled sheepishly at the other and then turned away. Mack raised an eyebrow at her; she bumped him with her shoulder.

“Don’t make a big deal of it,” she warned.

“He’s not Grant Ward,” Mack replied matter-of-factly. “And that makes me like him.”

Daisy laughed. “He’s definitely 100% not Grant Ward. He’s...so much more.”

“Hmm.”

As Daisy and Mack walked into the Quinjet, heading back to the Playground, Daisy couldn’t help smiling. Best birthday ever.