Natasha woke to the shrill sound of her phone ringing. Cursing quietly and trying not to disturb Clint who was grumbling next to her, she grabbed it and squinted at the screen, the bright light hurting her eyes, confused as to who could possibly be calling her at three in the morning.
Jemma’s name was the last one she expected to see.
It wasn’t just because Jemma had been meticulous about following the rules that Nat’s mum imposed on all her kids and so it stood to reason that Jemma should be asleep right now, but because, of all the family, Natasha was definitely the one who had gotten to know Jemma the least over the past few months. Hell, even Clint knew the girl better.
It wasn’t that she didn’t like the girl – Nat thought she was sweet and polite, and nothing but a good addition to their family – but their paths just hadn’t really crossed all that much. Bobbi had always been Jemma’s main confidante in the house, which made sense considering Bobbi had known Jemma for years longer than the rest of them. Recently, though, she’d noticed a friendship blossoming between Jemma and Skye. She’d been glad that her youngest sister seemed to get on so well with the quirky, quiet girl, and Jemma had been nothing but a model friend, no sign of the problems that had led her to live with them in the first place. It must also have been nice for Jemma to have someone in the house close to her own age, even if she was years above Skye academically.
And now her phone was ringing, and the person calling was supposed to be sleeping on the other side of the wall.
“Jemma?” She answered, whispering so as to not wake her parents. Clint rolled over, and Nat ignored his questioning gaze as she waited for Jemma to reply.
“Natasha? I’m so sorry to wake you, but I’m not sure what to do - ” Jemma broke off and Nat heard muffled voices in the background.
“Where on earth are you, Jemma? Are you okay?” Nat whispered hurriedly, panic beginning to rise.
“Um. Everything’s okay, it’s just that Skye… Skye’s had a bit too much to drink and I can’t get her home, and Grant offered to drive but he’s drunk too. I’m… I’m so sorry.” Nat realised that Jemma was crying, her breaths shaky down the phone. Now that she knew what was going on she felt calmer, more in control. Teenagers getting too drunk; that she could handle.
“Hey, calm down, Jemma, it’s okay. Clint and I are coming to get you okay?” She told the girl firmly, giving Clint a shove and ignoring his grumbles as she climbed out of bed and pulled on a pair of trousers and a t-shirt. “Where are you guys?”
Jemma gave her the address and she hung up, promising to be there in ten minutes.
“Do we wake your parents?” Clint whispered, looking slightly amused. Nat had to admit she was enjoying this too, being the responsible one. All too often it had been her in Skye’s position, and she could hardly count the number of times someone, usually Clint, had called Bobbi to help sneak her home and hide from her parents – not that it had ever actually worked; her parents were far too aware of the goings on in their own home.
“Lets give them a chance to explain themselves to us first. If we wake them then they’ll just insist on picking them up, and I don’t really feel like throwing them to the wolves just yet.”
They snuck out the window, same as they had done when they were Skye’s age, and Nat looked back to see Skye’s window propped open, clearly ready for their return.
……………..
Jemma, Skye, Fitz and Grant Ward were all sitting along the curb outside a house where a party was clearly still raging. All four of them looked a little worse for wear, clothes rumbled, the girls’ makeup smudged. Jemma and Grant were both still holding beer cans.
Jemma saw them first, the can slipping from her hand like it had scalded her and rolling onto the road, the contents spilling out. Jemma’s eyes dropped to the can, staring at it as it continued to dribble.
Nat couldn’t help thinking that Jemma looked utterly devastated over something, her face tear streaked and her eyes dark, and Nat prayed that nothing bad had happened to the girl. She didn’t need any more crap in her life just now. Fitz had his arms around her and she was leaning into his chest as he whispered something into her ear. Whatever he said seemed to calm her a little, and she nudged Skye who was resting against Grant, grinning goofily at something that Grant had said, her eyes unfocused. She tried to stand when she saw Nat, lurching to her feet and would have hit the ground hard if Grant hadn’t grabbed her just in time.
“Natty!” Skye said happily, letting Grant drape her over Nat.
“You are in so much trouble.” Nat replied, grinning as she hooked a hand under Skye’s shoulder and guided her to the car, where Clint was holding the back door open. It took a bit of effort, but eventually she managed to slide Skye in, buckling the seatbelt for her as Skye thanked her over and over again, giggling sleepily. Finally she backed out of the car, ready to do the same with Jemma, but when she turned to the girl she stopped in her tracks.
Grant had left, and Jemma had clearly started crying again over something. Clint, being the perfect man that he was, had taken her into his arms. He was holding her tightly, letting her cry against his shoulder. Nat could see Jemma’s back shaking beneath his hands, her head buried in his chest as he comforted her. Fitz was saying something quietly to Clint.
Natasha wished she could be more helpful. Bobbi had hinted a few times that Jemma was taking the absence of her brother hard, and that she still felt guilty about her father’s arrest despite constant efforts to convince her otherwise, but Nat hadn’t really made that much effort with Jemma even when Bobbi suggested that it could be good for her to talk to Nat.
She glanced back at the car, smiling when she saw Skye fast asleep, drooling down the window, and then moved across the road to sit beside Jemma. Fitz stood, leaving the space on Jemma’s other side free and she quickly filled it, sandwiching the girl between her and Clint.
Jemma must have sensed her arrival because she eased herself away from Clint, wiping her eyes and taking shaky breaths. Clint kept an arm wrapped around her though, and Jemma leaned into his touch as he continued to whisper soothingly to her.
“You want to talk about it?” Nat said finally, and Jemma shrugged, looking startled.
“Um. Oh gosh. I’m so sorry. It’s so late and Skye… is Skye okay?” Jemma said quickly, not meeting Natasha’s eyes as she avoided the question. She pulled away from Clint and made to stand up, but Nat took her hand before she could. Jemma looked at her, confused.
“Hey, Skye’s fine, just drunk: she’ll be feeling a whole lot worse tomorrow. And you don’t need to be sorry about calling me either. I’m glad you did. And all this -“ She gestured to the car where Skye was sleeping and the house, still throbbing with music behind them. “…It’s a rite of passage, trust me: just ask Bobbi about all the times she was called to pick Clint and me up. So if that’s what is bothering you, I promise you nobody is mad… well, maybe mum, but she won’t be any more mad at you than she will be at Skye. And it’s her job to get mad.” She ended with a small smile. Jemma continued to stare at her trainers, although she leaned slightly into Nat’s touch. “Please tell me Jemma, is that what you’re worried about?” Clint was nodding at her encouragingly, and she hoped that she’d said the right things.
Jemma shrugged. “I just didn’t want to wake you. “ She said weakly, and Nat knew she was lying from the way her hands twisted together.
“Jemma.” She said, this time more sternly. “Please tell me the truth. You can trust me. Or if you’d rather, I can call Bobbi and she’d be here in a heartbeat.” She thought of how much her older sister loved Jemma, knowing that Bobbi would be mad in the morning that Nat hadn’t woken her, and would be there in an instant if Jemma needed her.
“No.” Jemma gasped, tensing. “Don’t, please. I don’t want to be a…” She trailed off.
“Don’t want to be what, Jemma?” Clint prompted when it became obvious Jemma wasn’t going to say more. Nat thought she knew exactly where Jemma’s mind was headed, but she wanted the girl to say it herself.
There was a long silence, and Nat was just about to suggest they start heading home when Jemma spoke again.
“I don’t want to be a… a nuisance.” She croaked. “I’ve already caused so much trouble, and Melinda and Phil have been so good to me, helping me with the court case and teachers whilst Lance is away, and just letting me live with you guys. And I’m so grateful, I really am, and I promised Lance that I’d make this work out and I’ve just screwed everything up. Again.” Tears streamed down Jemma’s cheeks as she spoke. Nat let go of her hand and wrapped her tightly in a hug. “I’m so sorry.” She gasped into Nat’s shoulder, and Nat held her tighter.
“You are not a nuisance, Jemma.” She said quietly, smoothing Jemma’s soft hair in a way she hoped was comforting. “Mum and Dad, they’re so happy to have you in our family. And I know you haven’t been around long but they already love you, I know they do. And we both know that Bobbi utterly adores you, and Skye talks about you the way she only talks about her best friends, and I… well, I know we haven’t spent that much time together, but even I can see that you have done nothing wrong. Absolutely nothing, and Hunter is so proud of you, of the way you’ve handled everything these past months. You’ve been nothing short of extraordinary.” She said firmly, and she looked up to find Clint staring at her, nodding along.
“But tonight I –“ Jemma began, but Nat cut her off quickly.
“Tonight doesn’t matter, Jemma. You’re sixteen. You’re supposed to mess up like this. So you went to a party and got drunk. Trust me, Mum and Dad have seen it all before. They’ll be disappointed, sure, but only as much as they’ll be disappointed in Skye.”
“Someone offered me some… stuff.” Jemma whispered, and Nat tensed, the night suddenly feeling much colder. Jemma and drugs; that wasn’t something her mother would take lightly, especially not with the events that led Jemma into their lives in the first place. “I didn’t take it.”
Nat felt her heart swell with pride. “Jeez, you scared me, Jemma.” She said gently. “In that case mum is going to be so proud of you. And so is Hunter.” Jemma shrugged and then shivered, and Nat decided that it was time to head home. “You need a lift, Fitz?” She said, looking at the pale boy who was still lingering in front of Jemma, clearly worried about his friend.
“Um. Sure, if that’s okay.” He mumbled. He helped her get Jemma to her feet, and then hooked an arm around her and led her to the car. Nat smiled at how perfectly the two of them fit together, Jemma’s head resting on Fitz’s shoulder. It was good that she had a friend like him.
………
The kitchen light was on when they got back, as Nat had suspected it would be. Nothing got past her parents. She glanced in the rear view mirror, taking note of Skye’s green pallor as she parked, and was relieved that Clint was the one who helped her out of the car, especially when Skye dragged him to the flowerbeds and threw up, mumbling about never drinking again.
Jemma remained where she sat in the back of the car, looking terrified.
“Come on Jemma. Time to face the music.” Nat told her sympathetically, guiding her from the car and holding the front door open for her and Skye, who was looking a little better.
Her Mum and Dad were standing in the door to the kitchen, clearly not taking any chances with them sneaking upstairs. Mel looked furious, her face pinched and white, like it got when she was really mad. Phil was more sympathetic, clearly ready to assume his role as good cop.
“Who’s going to do the explaining then?” He said quietly, his arms folded across his chest.
“Yeah. Whose going to apologise for me being woken at two in the morning?” Bobbi’s voice came from the kitchen, and Nat peeked around the door to see her older sister sitting at the table, wrapped in a blanket and looking pissed.
Phil ushered all four of them into the kitchen, to the table, and they all sat quickly.
“I’m sorry.” Jemma spoke first, looking firmly at the table. Nat slipped her hand into Jemma’s lap, squeezing Jemma’s hand softly.
“That’s not an explanation, Jemma. Want to enlighten us on why we were woken by the sound of Nat and Clint sneaking out of the house, only to find that you and Skye’s beds were the ones that haven’t been slept in?” Nat knew that her dad wasn’t really mad, probably more disappointed, but she felt Jemma tense anyway.
“It was my fault.” Skye mumbled. “Trip was having a party and I convinced Jemma to come with me.”
“Hmm.” He frowned at his youngest daughter. “And you knew that we would never give you permission to go to a party with a kid in a class two years above you.”
“He’s in Jemma’s year.” Skye protested weakly. “And Grant and Fitz were there too.”
Her father chose to ignore Skye’s comment, turning to Nat and Clint instead. “And where do you two come into this?” He asked.
She shrugged. “Jemma called us and asked for us to pick them up.
“And you didn’t think to wake us?” Her mum spoke for the first time, and Nat found herself cowering a little at the fierce expression on her face.
“Call it solidarity.” She shrugged again. “That used to be me calling Bobbi, I was just following tradition.”
“We always caught you and Bobbi, too.” Phil said dryly.
“Can’t blame me for trying.” Nat said, grinning at Bobbi.
“Sure.” Mel said, her eyes narrowed to slits. “Well –“
She was interrupted by a crash as Skye’s elbow slipped off the table. Skye looked up quickly, eyes wide. “Sorry!” She gasped.
Mel harrumphed. “Well, we clearly aren’t going to get much sensible discussion tonight. All of you go to bed. Skye, Jemma, I’ll see you down here at seven am tomorrow morning. You can make us all breakfast.”
“Score!” Clint grinned, straightening his face quickly as May shot him a piercing look.
Phil took sympathy on his daughter as she stumbled to her feet, and guided Skye upstairs, Jemma following quickly, clearly eager to be away from Mel’s stern gaze.
Nat was about to follow when her mum spoke again, her voice far softer this time. “Thank you, sweetie. You’re a good sister to them.” Nat shrugged awkwardly, before her mum continued, her voice more tentative. “Was Jemma okay? She looked like she’d been crying. She didn’t do anything, did she?” Nat saw Bobbi tense in the corner of her eye at the worry in her mum’s voice.
“No. She didn’t. She… she told us someone had offered her something, but she said no.” Clint said, jumping to Jemma’s defence before Nat could reply. Bobbi’s face was one of clear relief; her mum’s was a little harder to read, but Nat could tell they’d both been considering the possibility that Jemma would do something she’d regret.
“Was that why was she upset?” Bobbi asked, concern painted on her face. She glanced up, as if she could see through the ceiling and into Jemma’s room. “Should I go talk to her?”
Nat shrugged again. “Maybe not tonight. She was upset that she disappointed people; she thinks she put a burden on everyone by being here, and getting wasted at a party is just going to make you think that you shouldn’t have offered to have her live with us.”
Her mum gave her a sad smile. “Who does that remind you of?”
Nat knew exactly what she meant; she’d been exactly the same when she’d arrived at the Coulsons, thirteen years old and convinced she was nothing but a waste of space. “You convinced me otherwise though.” She smiled. “Couldn’t get rid of me even if you wanted to now.”
Her mum raised an eyebrow. “Don’t test me.” She warned teasingly, getting up from the kitchen table as Bobbi yawned pointedly. “Go get some sleep, all of you. We’ll talk more in the morning, when the girls are more with it.” She paused at the door. “And I’ll have a talk with Jemma, make sure she knows we’re all in her corner.”
Nat leaned against Clint as she heard the sounds of her mum going up stairs after her dad. By the faint sounds coming from the bathroom, Skye hadn’t quite recovered yet, and Nat didn’t fancy getting roped into clean up.
“You really think she’s okay?” Bobbi asked, interrupting the silence. Nat looked up at her sister, taking note of Bobbi’s creased brow and the way her hands twisted together like they did when she was worried. “I just… why didn’t she call me? I mean, I don’t mean this in a bad way, but you two really haven’t spoken much. Doesn’t she trust me?” Bobbi said, her voice pitching higher as she finished, and to Nat’s amazement, her sister’s eyes grew wet.
Clint answered before she could. “I think it’s the opposite actually, Bobbi.” He said gently. “She doesn’t want to break your trust because she’s closest to you. Tonight, when she was upset, it was because she knew you’d be disappointed in her. She felt like she’d betrayed the trust that you’d given her. I’m sure she knew it was hopeless to actually try and hide it from you and Mel and Phil, but she probably felt like she had to try, and she had the least to loose with her relationship with Nat.”
Nat knew that he was right, and it seemed to make sense to Bobbi too. “I’m so glad I’m not a teenager any more.” Bobbi said finally. “All those crazy emotions and thought processes. And Jemma, I mean she’s pretty incredible, and I know she’s in a class with kids who are almost adults and she’s about to be with actual adults at college, but she’s not an adult, not even close. She’s still a kid. I wish I could make it easier for her.” Bobbi sighed heavily, pulling her blanket about her as she stood from the table. “Come on, let’s get some sleep.” She left the kitchen, and Nat and Clint followed, shutting out the lights as they slipped back into their rooms.
Nat stuck her head in Jemma’s room before she joined Clint in hers, noticing that the light was still on. Jemma was sitting on her bed, tears dripping silently down her face. She hastily tried to wipe them away when she saw Nat.
“Hey, no need for that.” Nat said gently, letting the door shut behind her as she crossed the room to kneel beside Jemma.
“Sorry.” Jemma mumbled, looking at her hands and sniffing quietly.
“Don’t apologise, just promise you’ll listen to what I said, about how much we all care.” Nat said, taking Jemma’s hands and forcing her to meet her eyes.
Jemma gave her a small smile. “I know that it’s true. Honestly, I believe you. I, um, I was actually thinking about Lance.” She admitted, glancing at her desk where a picture of the two of them sat.
“Miss him huh?”
Jemma nodded sadly. “I don’t think I ever realised how much I relied on him before.”
Before Nat could reply there was a knock on the door, and Bobbi stuck her head around. The second she saw Jemma’s damp eyes she was at her side, wrapping her in a warm hug that Jemma sank into.
“We were just talking about your boyfriend.” Nat offered as explanation, and Bobbi smiled.
“How’s that idiot upset you?” She asked gently, and Jemma shrugged, resting against her. “Hmm. It’s weird without him, isn’t it?” Bobbi said, voicing Jemma’s thoughts.
“It would just be nice to know when he was getting leave.” Jemma mumbled, and Bobbi nodded.
“You know, last time I spoke to him he said he was really glad at how close you and Skye had gotten since his last visit. I think he might take that back when I tell him about tonight.” Bobbi teased, poking Jemma in the shoulder. Nat was relieved to see Jemma give a small smile.
Nat was relieved when Jemma gently suggested she was going to sleep, and she wished the girl a warm goodnight before slipping out with her sister. She was surprised when Bobbi wrapped her in a hug outside her bedroom door.
“Thank you so much for tonight.” Bobbi whispered, squeezing Nat’s hand.
Nat shrugged. “It was nothing, Bob. You’d have done exactly the same. I’m sorry I haven’t really made an effort to get to know her. I promise that’ll change now.” She admitted, thinking of all the times she’d barely acknowledged the sweet girl.
“This family just keeps growing, doesn’t it?” Nat grinned at her older sister. “And it just gets better.”