THE NEXT DAY, as soon as Jenna had woken up, she insisted on feeling better already, and since Evan had promised to let her help after getting some rest, he had no choice but to allow her to get up from the bed and do just that. Luckily, her shoulder was actually healing, and the bullet hadn't done much damage as it had flown directly through her flesh, which meant that as long as Jenna wore the shoulder immobilizer given to her, she could participate in whatever was going to happen next. Although, naturally, Evan had zero intentions to let her back in HYDRA headquarters, and while he was at it, he also decided to keep a close eye on her in order to make her stay inside the underground S.H.I.E.L.D facility.

The first thing that Jenna was supposed to do, was meet the Inhuman director of the agency, and with curiosity rising within her heart, the blonde eventually stepped out of the room she had been stuck in for a while now, and headed to his office.

"He seems kind of scary. The director, I mean", Jenna admitted quietly, murmuring towards Evan while her eyes remained on the few agents that passed them on the broad hallways.

Her confession earned a chuckle from Evan, who gently nudged his sister's good shoulder and shook his head. "He's a good guy. He wants to help others and bring justice to those he's lost over the years. I'm sure you can relate to that. Trust me, Jen, you have nothing to worry about", he reassured as they approached the right room, and in response, Jenna inhaled deeply and forced a nod, putting her faith in Evan's words.

Jenna's hand was already going for the handle, but before she could grab it, the door opened and she stepped back as tall figure left the office — Grant Ward himself, and as soon as he noticed Jenna, he directed her a suppressed smile before walking away. Narrowing his eyes at his friend, Evan's stare followed Ward until he had disappeared behind the corner, and in return, Jenna smacked his brother in his stomach — however, he couldn't start a loving fight with his sister, when the leader of S.H.I.E.L.D had already called out their names, encouraging them to enter the room.

"I'm Jenna Rivers, pleasure to meet you, sir", the youngest Rivers cleared her throat once she had stepped in, and carefully, she offered her working hand to the tall man that gladly accepted the gesture and nodded approvingly.

"Jeffrey Mace. Welcome to S.H.I.E.L.D, Jenna. I've heard a lot about you — your family is why I'm taking you in with open arms", he introduced himself, and although his face remained serious and stoic, like one of a carefully sculpted statue, Jenna couldn't help but smile soflty. She directed a grateful look towards Evan, but before she could say anything, Jeffrey had already continued. "Yes, your brother convinced me that you would be a great ally for us. But initially, I heard about you from your father, Henry", he explained, and with wide eyes, Jenna turned back to the director in utter shock and disbelief.

"O—oh", she whispered, "you knew our dad?", her heart skipping a beat at the mention of Henry. Not a day passed that she didn't think about him and miss him dearly, but admittedly, she had not expected to meet an old friend of his — though it did make sense. He had died fighting for S.H.I.E.L.D, and that was the same story that Jeffrey proceeded to share.

"I've lost many friends and allies fighting against HYDRA. Your father was one of them. He was a great man, and he certainly didn't go down without a fight. He inspired me in a lot of ways, to be honest", he sighed, and unable to smile at the heroic memory of her father, Jenna allowed herself to imagine the motivational quotes Henry probably had shared on a daily basis. He truly had been a good man, and even if this world wasn't real, his bravery and heart of gold never ceased to be true.

"Let's just say, I'm glad you're both here. Now, we have a mission to go on, and you should stay here and heal, Jenna. Getting shot is never an easy experience to kick through, no matter how much we insist it is. Your friend, Ms. Simmons will stay behind with you", Jeffrey then continued, and reluctantly, Jenna nodded in obedience — but that didn't stop her from letting out a sigh of disappointment. He was right, though. She wasn't taking the whole shot-in-the-shoulder thing too lightly, but instead of focusing all that, she was merely thinking about Fitz and how she felt like she was wasting time.

But, it wasn't like she could argue with the leader of S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Yes, sir. Good luck on the mission", Jenna smiled, before giving a more serious look to Evan, "and you — you better come back in one piece", and with that, she pulled his brother into a hug.

"I always do."

—————

AFTER EVAN HAD left the secret, underground headquarters of S.H.I.E.L.D to embark on a rather risky mission with the director and Phil Coulson himself, Jenna was encouraged — or more like forced, to stay behind and dwell on her own troubles, drown in the thoughts that were swimming in her head so talentedly, they made sure to reach every corner and nook. But, since she knew that they were right, that taking her along would have been stupid, Jenna didn't blame them for flying without her on board, and decided to make herself some tea.

And, since she knew her best friend well enough, the blonde prepared a mug for Simmons as well, whom she then began to hunt down — it felt like she and Jemma hadn't talked in ages, although in reality they had done that last night, but nonetheless, she preferred the idea of her safe company rather than wandering the halls all alone.

Eventually, Jenna noticed a familiar girl standing in one of the rooms filled to the brim with beds for those needed shelter and help, and as a smile spread out over her lips, she began to approach Simmons. The bio-chemist was in the company of a tall man, a Framework history book resting on her hands as the two chatted, and even if Jenna wondered if interrupting would be okay, it was only a second of hesitance and soon enough she was already joining their company. From the corner of her eye, she could also spot Grant Ward sitting on the other side of the room, and that same annoying feeling landed into her heart, but she chose to ignore it — just like she proceeded to ignore him.

"Tea?", Jenna pursed her lips in a soft smile as she handed the other mug for Simmons, before turning to the man beside her. "You can have mine, if you'd like? I would have made some for you too, if I had known I'd find Jemma in some company", the blonde offered her own tea for him, but much to her relief, he simply waved his hand to decline the gesture, although a grateful smile appeared on his lips.

"Ah, it's okay, more of a coffee man, to be honest. I'm Alphonso Mackenzie, though people tend to call me Mack", he grinned before offering his hand for Jenna to shake, and smiling back at him, the scientist did just that, after putting down her mug, of course.

"Jenna Rivers. People call me, uh... Jenna. It's a, um, pleasure to meet you, Mack", she mentally smacked herself for the foolish introduction, but nonetheless, she meant the words and the smile on her lips was genuine — once upon a time, she had not been too okay with meeting new people, and she was still a tad out of character when socializing, but the Framework had changed her quite a bit. And, Mack did seem like a sincerely lovely person, and Jenna didn't wonder why he and Simmons seemingly got along.

Mack was just about to return the compliment, but before he could, a little girl had spoken up from one of the beds. "Dad watch, I can do five in a row!", she beamed, and unable to resist that, the man quickly excused himself and walked over to the child, praising her skills with the toy she had in hand.

Taking his place against the table Simmons was also resting against, Jenna smiled fondly at the adorable sight before drowning the expression in the hot tea that made her let out a satisfied sigh. If only every day was this relaxing, no worries or drama in sight. But, that peaceful state of mind was merely because meeting Mack had pushed away the painful thought of Fitz, and luckily, as it was about to raise its head again, Simmons spoke up.

"She isn't real", she broke the silence between the two friends, and confused, Jenna turned to look at Jemma, whose gaze never left Mack and his young daughter. "In the real world, she's dead. It won't be easy to get Mack back because of that", Simmons continued with a sad sigh slipping from between her lips, and shocked by the unexpected revelation, Jenna turned to look at the little family again, with a much sadder look in her eyes this time. Frankly, she didn't know what to say. But, she didn't have to, because Simmons had already done that — however, this time, it wasn't at Jenna.

"What are you smiling at?", her voice grew more bitter, and without even looking at the right direction, Jenna could tell she was glaring at Ward.

"Same thing you are. Big fake dad, loving his little fake kid, in this crazy fake world", he muttered, clearly unwilling to believe what Simmons had told him — but to be quite honest, Jenna was struggling to even comprehend the fact that she told him in the first place.

"You told him?", the scientist blurted out, eyes widening and her hands reluctantly lowering the tea mug, but she had to, for the sake of not spilling the delicious drink. If she could have, she would have crossed her arms, but due to being unable to move her other one, she settled for a questioning stare, which she blatantly directed at Simmons.

Snorting, Ward interjected. "Wait, don't tell me you believe in this other world too?", he seemed borderline amused, but the same could not be said for Jenna who narrowed her eyes at the man when she turned to look at him.

"I told him", Simmons sighed, "which was obviously pointless, as he refuses to believe. And, frankly, I can't really look at him, so...", her voice shadowed with a hint of disgust as she sassily sipped on her tea and avoided Grant with her usually so kind eyes. Just like that, without even realizing it had happened, Jenna found herself caught between the bickering of the two, with Grant responding with a bitter, "wow".

"What did I do, in this... other reality? Did I hurt someone? Did I kill someone?", his voice transformed into something softer as he eyed the two women carefully, and when Jenna could see the sadness forming on Simmons' face, the blonde took her hand gently, and then bravely faced Ward. It was hard to imagine him being so brutal, as his voice was full of regret for the things he hadn't even committed in this world, and his eyes were apologetic, making it hard for Jenna to blame him for anything. But, nevertheless, she stood up for her friend in the belief that in the real world, she would have hated Grant.

"From what I've gathered, you hurt everyone", she nodded to confirm his words, and looking away sadly, Ward took a seat and let out a careful sigh.

While he nodded as well, the man looked over to Jenna and Jemma, his eyes radiating with hope. For redemption, perhaps. And somehow, that reminded Jenna of Fitz, and how he had looked at his best friends at the island. With longing. Like he was trying to grasp his past. "For what it's worth...", Grant then began, "for whatever I did do, I'm truly sorry", before offering a small, apologetic smile to the two women. Simmons wanted to believe it so badly, Jenna could see it on her face, but the sad truth was that it was already too late.

But as he said those words, something shifted within Jenna. She wasn't sure what it was, or why it was, but her smile drained as he looked at his soft smile and felt the tension of his words linger in the air.

The silence between the three was suddenly split in half as Grant's transceiver began to receive a message from one of the agents on the mission to HYDRA's secret base. In an instant, Jenna's heart sank, and worry kicked in — was Evan alright? Coulson? The director? And, clearly, Simmons was thinking about the same.

"What is that?", she questioned, and sighing, Grant grabbed the phone.

"It's a potential breach. They've been discovered", the man explained, and groaning at the realization that her stupid brother was probably getting himself into some serious danger, Jenna stood up and gulped down the last of her tea.

And bravely, she smiled at Simmons and Ward. "Well, I guess we got to save their asses."

»»»

awww, my girl is making friends and becoming a part of shield ((': i love her omg

tbh, this update would have come sooner if it wasn't for the pile of work school keeps throwing at me, but luckily, i'm finally on a break! hopefully, i'll get a couple of chapters done next week since i have no school (:

and, this book is slowly coming to its end too! which, you know, is always sad but i'm really excited. how do you think it'll end? happy ending or nah?