You Play the Game Though It's Unfair
''You still sore about that kid? You need to get over that''. Skye looks up from her plate of food and carefully glances at John. It's been a few weeks since Brandon's death and Skye has made sure to let none of her grief show whenever John is around. ''I'm fine''. He doesn't believe her. ''You forget I know you sweetheart, all your tells. You're upset with me''. ''No John I'm really not, I understand why you did what you did''.
He puts down his napkin, ''do you now?'' ''Brandon was a weakness. You come first and I shouldn't of doubted that''. The sad part is, Skye believes this. While a small part of her hates John and probably always will for what happened, she shouldn't of even tried to have a life outside the mission. Garrett comes first, always. That's how it's been all these years and until they save his life that's how it's going to stay.
''So you're not angry?'' Skye takes a sip of wine and tells him no. This makes him happy, he gives her a smile and there's relief in her chest. ''Good. Didn't want you wasting away in this apartment pining over some boy, there will be others you know''. Skye smirks when he winks at her, but it doesn't reach her eyes. As long as John is in her life she'll never be able to have a healthy functional relationship (she doesn't even want one anymore.)
''Tell you what I have a mission in Italy next week but when I get back I'll take you somewhere''. John and his trips, she's grateful for them. ''Where?'' ''It's a surprise''. They finish dinner in silence and soon after Garrett leaves. It's another month before she sees him again. Her and Kebo are eating leftover take out from the night before watching some stupid comedy on TV when the front door swings open.
John comes inside, throws his bag on the counter and grabs a beer out of the fridge. Skye automatically walks over to him, checks him over for injuries. ''How did your mission go?'' ''Good. I need you to hack into some files for me''. ''Of course''. She gets out her laptop and does as he asks, ''John all of these accounts are backed by Shield''. ''Fully aware, take everything''.
At her incredulous look he sighs loudly. ''Skye when I tell you something I expect results, that's how this works did you forget in the month that I was away?'' ''No sir I'm just saying these are important people with a lot of money. Someone is going to notice''. ''Not if you do your job right''. Skye bites the inside of her cheek and he glares at her, ''am I going to have to find someone else to do this?''
''No''. ''Good get to work. How long will it take you?'' ''Only a minute or two''. He smiles and ruffles her hair as he passes, ''that's what I like to hear''. She refuses to look at Kebo as she starts the hack, it takes her seventy seconds. ''Done. Everything is in your account off shore''. ''Perfect. Remember what I said before I left?'' She nods and closes the laptop. ''Pack a bag and let's go. I'll be in the car''.
Without looking at either of them Garrett leaves the apartment and Skye can almost taste Kebo's disapproval. ''Don't''. ''I didn't say anything''. ''You don't have to''. Skye takes a duffel bag from the hall closet and goes into her room. Throws clothes and whatever else she might need into it. ''Where is he taking you now?'' ''Don't know. It's a surprise''. ''Oh John Garrett and his surprises, those are always good''.
''Popeye just don't okay?'' ''I don't understand why you stay with him. Okay I do, but you know if you ever want to leave I'll help you''. ''Why would I want to leave?'' Skye goes to the pantry and stuffs some of Garrett's favorite snacks into the bag. ''You're kidding right? The man is a monster. A month ago he killed your boyfriend or did you forget about that?'' Skye sucks in breath and clenches her jaw to keep from crying.
''Of course I didn't forget. But John warned me before I should of listened to him''. ''Skye, honey, you're allowed to be happy. This wasn't your fault it's John's. He is not a good man Skye''. She turns to Kebo and scowls, ''yes he is. He can be. He took me in when I was nothing''. ''I know that. But he also made you into his own personal weapon, you literally just stole millions of dollars for him''.
''He needs it, and it's my job to give John whatever he needs''. ''It doesn't have to be''. ''I owe him everything Popeye''. ''No you don't''. Skye finishes packing and doesn't say another word to him, just leaves the apartment slamming the door on the way out. John takes her to Germany, she's been there before but it was only because she had to work. This time though Garrett seems to just want her to explore, do whatever she wants.
He has a safe house resting on a hill and the view from her bedroom is amazing. ''Do you need me?'' She asks him as she steps into the near bare living room, John is standing in front of the fireplace with a glass of scotch. ''I'll call you if I do. I have a meeting in a few hours so be back before then''. ''Yes sir''. Skye has always loved sight seeing, taking pictues of the beautiful places she's been to.
This time is no different. She gets lost in small shops, in the food, the bars, everything is bright and shiny she loves it. Loses track of time, it isn't until the sun has long set that she remembers John expected her back. Ice shoots down her spine when she glances at her watch to see she's two hours late, her phone on silent has six missed calls and ten messages. All from Garrett.
If anyone sees her sprint down the road with fear plain on her face, they don't stop to ask why. She ends up getting lost a few times so when she makes it back to the safe house she's so stressed and panicked she empties her stomach out into the bushes beside the front door. Sweat is already pouring down her back as the porch light flicks on, dread licks up into her belly like fire, burning everything.
She doesn't want to go inside. But knowing this was her fault she has to take whatever John does without complaint. After all he did tell her when to be back and she disobeyed. With shaking hands she opens the door, low light has filled up the house. Jonh is sitting on the couch scotch in his hand again, glaring at her when she steps farther into the room. ''John?'' ''I've done everything for you, have I not?''
She gulps and whispers out, ''yes''. ''I don't ask for much''. ''No of course not''. ''I've put clothes on your back, fed you, given you a warm bed to sleep in. And how do you repay me? I ask you to do one thing and you can't even manage that''. Excuses don't work for John he hates them, so she keeps her mouth shut. The one way to appease him is to agree to whatever he says, keep quiet and eventually it will pass.
''I didn't have to pick you up off the streets, no one told me to take in a sad little girl that no one loved. But I did. I trust you Skye, and I don't trust just anyone. When I ask you to do something I expect you to do it, when I tell you to be home at a certain time you need to be there. God sometimes I wonder why I even bothered, you'll always be that weak girl who tried to steal my wallet''.
Skye holds her breath as he stands and sets the glass on the coffee table. ''Where were you?'' ''I got lost, I'm sorry''. He laughs but it's not full of humor. ''So you got lost and missed my meeting, the one I needed you at. What do you have to say for yourself? I take you to all these places and never get a thank you, maybe you got too comfortable is that it? That when I tell you something you can just choose to do it or not''.
''No, no of course not''. He sighs and picks up his glass that's nearly empty. Holds it out to her, ''get me a refill''. She does quietly, manages to steady her hands when she gives it back to him. ''You're lucky my meeting went well''. He says taking a step to her, their noses nearly touching. If he notices her trembling he doesn't comment. ''You were nothing before I found you''.
He takes her chin in between his fingers so hard she'll for sure have bruises in the morning. ''Weren't you?'' She nods. ''Don't forget it''. ''I won't, I haven't''. Garrett looks at her in disgust before releasing her and taking a step back. ''I don't want to see you until the morning''. Skye retreats into the bedroom to find the actual bed gone, there's just a dresser and her bag on the floor. No sheets no pillows, nothing to sleep on or cover her in the night.
Punishment for not being here. (She thinks she deserves it, what if something happened to him and she wasn't here? That thought enough nearly sends her to tears.) So she takes it. Sits on the floor with her phone until it's late enough to actually try and sleep, uses her bag as a pillow. She gets maybe an hour of slumber, not nearly enough. When the sun rises she leaves the room, tiptoeing across the hall.
Only to find the house empty, the car they drove in on gone. The bag Garrett came with is gone as well, the bed in his room freshly made, his tooth brush and comb is missing from the bathroom. It takes a minute to sink in as she starts making coffee. He's left her here, in Germany by herself, he's not coming back. She'll have to find her own way home. Which really isn't that big of a deal she's fully capable of booking a flight.
It's the act. The fact that John is so angry at her he left her here without a second thought. And it's her fault. She feels so guilty, she let him down for what? To take a few pictures? How stupid could she be? After showering and drinking two cups of coffee, Skye books her flight and is soon on her way home. She has no idea the kind of mood John is going to be in when she gets back, he can go weeks at a time being angry with her.
''That was a quick trip''. Kebo greets her when she steps into her apartment, ''is John here?'' ''Nope, wait he isn't with you?'' Skye shakes her head and throws her bag onto the kitchen table. ''You okay? Did something happen?'' ''Don't want to talk about it''. She gets a beer out of the fridge while Kebo walks up to her. ''The hell happend to your face?'' Skye doesn't respond, just wraps her arms around Kebo and he is quick to hug her back.
''I'm so sorry Skye''. ''It was my fault it's always my fault''. She isn't just talking about Germany. ''Oh honey no it isn't''.
The next time she sees Garrett which is three days later, he acts like nothing happened, never brings up Germany and neither does she. She's doesn't let him down after that, never misses a meeting. (Which was his point all along.)
*
''This is a stupid plan''. ''We're running low on fumes we have to do something. Besides it's been a few days I highly doubt that god forsaken task force is still in town''. ''You probably just jinxied us Popeye''. He chuckles and slips on a baseball cap, ''probably. You didn't have to come you know''. Skye shrugs and pulls on her own blue cap. ''I couldn't stay in that hotel room any longer I was going to go insane''.
''You know we could of just ordered all this crap online''. Kebo tells her as they walk into the small grocery store. ''We won't be here that long''. She answers, easily hacks into the security feed and blinds them, her and Kebo were never here. ''We're not buying that''. Kebo is holding up a huge bag of powdered doughnuts. ''Come on why not?'' ''Because you're going to eat that entire bag in one sitting and then complain for a week that you ate all of them.
I don't want to listen to that''. ''God you sound like Ward''. Skye misses him so much, they've talked on the phone several times over the past few days but it's not the same. It's been nearly a week since she saw him last, and Ward has been nearly going crazy from worrying about her. Which she understands, but she can take care of herself. ''Put the bag down''. He pouts for a full fifteen minutes afterwards.
Skye is grabbing a tube of tooth paste when Kebo drops the jar of peanut butter he was holding. She doesn't even have time to ask what the hell is wrong with him because there's no telling when it comes to him, before he drops to the ground and gestures she do the same. ''What?'' ''We have company''. He points to the front of the store and Skye crawls over to see what he's talking about.
Flashes of broken glass, the taste of blood and the feel of being covered in it pass through her mind. She hasn't slept very much since they attacked Garrett's base in Cuba and killed John's friends that were helping her. She found out the leader last name Johnson, and five others have been hired to hunt her down. By whatever means necessary. Are all starting to spread out across the small store.
Kebo hands her a gun before loading his own. ''They aren't going to give up, we're sitting ducks here''. He says before moving to another aisle, she follows. ''We should split up''. She says and he agrees. ''You take the side door I'll take the back. Meet me back at the hotel room if I'm not there wait five minutes and then leave without me''. ''Popeye''- ''Skye I'm serious. If they catch me they'll question me and I can hold up to torture, Ward taught me''.
''I'm not going to let you be hurt because of me''. ''Skye''- ''I'm serious Kebo''. ''Oh dropping my first name''. ''Please don't''- ''Relax I'll just try not to get caught''. Without warning a strong hand comes to cover her mouth. Fear kicks in and she starts thrashing it isn't until a warm familiar voice fills her ear. ''Shhh relax it's me, it's me you're safe now. It's me Skye''. Grant. What the hell is he doing here?
She relaxes instantly, softening into his hold. Kebo sighs in relief, ''robot am I sure glad to see you''. ''Is this how you two handle situations like this? Arguing?'' ''We were not arguing''. Ward removes his hand and Skye longs to turn to him and say how much she's missed him. But now is not the time. Ward gets her off the ground and she looks into his warm brown eyes, trusting him.
He's in full mission mode though he's dressed in street clothes, an ICER and a gun is resting in the holster beneath his leather jacket. He takes her hand and kisses her palm softly before walking in front of her, leaning around the aisle. ''These guys are supposed to be better but there's no one watching the back door. Amateurs''. He mutters. ''Kebo go first, don't run it'll draw attention''. ''I'm not an idiot''. ''Just go''.
Before Kebo leaves Ward takes his hat and rolls his eyes. ''The patriots? Really?'' Slips it on and puts on a pair of dark sunglasses. He hasn't shaved in a few days either, so it would be hard for anyone on the task force to recognize him.
Skye holds her breath her hand on Ward's back as Kebo makes it safely out the door. Without even turning around, Skye wasn't even aware there was someone behind her until Grant pulls out his iCER and fires. All the while still looking at the door, one arm is braced against Skye from where he moved her out of the way. ''Did I not teach you to be more aware of your surroundings?''
He asks and Skye nearly sticks her tongue out at him. ''Not all of us can be Specialist robots babe''. Ward just shakes his head and quietly walks into another aisle. ''When we get outside there's a tan van to your left''. ''Got it''. ''If something happens you drive and don't look back''. ''Jesus can you and Kebo stop with the self sacrificing crap?'' Grant doesn't respond, tugs on her hand and together they walk towards the door.
And get out without a hitch. Well almost. One of the men does spot them but Ward is quick to knock him unconscious, lean his body on the side of the building. Skye jumps into the passenger seat, starts the van and when Ward closes the door they take off. ''How did you know where we were?'' ''Wasn't hard. Skye are you alright?'' She's still recovering from the car wreck, being shot and falling from a bridge into a damn river.
''I'm fine''. He glances away from the road to her face, removes one hand from the steering wheel to caress her cheek. ''I have a safe house a few hours away, we'll be safe there''. She nuzzles his palm before planting a small kiss on his skin. ''While I appreciate you saving us, I could of handled it''. ''I know''. ''Oh crap does Kebo know where we're going?'' ''He knows about the safe house, you should probably send him a message though''.
She does and then scoots across the seat to lay her head on his shoulder. Feels the tension slowly fall away from him. ''I missed you''. Skye feels rather than sees him smile. ''I missed you too''. She runs her fingers along the back of his neck, ''are you alright? No injuries?'' ''I'm fine. It's you I'm worried about''. Skye rolls her eyes and kisses his cheek. ''You don't have to worry about me Grant''. ''Can't help it''.
He kisses her hair, one hand resting on her thigh. ''I love you''. Those words bring her peace, warmth curls back in her chest. That's home, he's home and those three words are all the assurance she needs. Everything is going to be okay. Grant is here and that will always be enough, she's goinng to be just fine.