Who: Leo Fitz and Cisco Ramon Where: Facility Medical When: Monday, January 24, 2019 What: Cisco tries (and moderately succeeds) at convincing Fitz to get out of the lab Rating/Warnings: None Status: Complete
While it was unusual for him to be anywhere other than the lab during the day (or evenings after Alya went to sleep, or the middle of the night), today Fitz had a question for Jemma that he didn't feel could wait. Some of today's research had reminded him of other work they'd done, and no matter how many times he'd gone through old notes to try to jog his memory, it simply wasn't the same as bouncing ideas with her. He'd resisted for as long as he could, but it was quickly clear that he wasn't going to get anything else done that afternoon without some assistance. He'd finally tucked away his pride and gone to find her in Medical.
Except, she wasn't there at the moment. Instead, he found one of his fellow science types. He knew who Cisco was, of course, and had done a fair amount of his own research related to the theories the man had presented in their last group meeting, but his own projects were currently adjacent at best. "Feeling better?" he asked as he looked around for a piece of paper to leave Jemma a note. He could have sent her something over the network, but this came with less pressure for an immediate reply.
Cisco was doing much better actually. He was even able to use a tablet on the day that Fitz had shown up. He was no longer unconscious, but very much awake. On far less medication than he had been in the previous days. “Oh hey, yeah. Uh Fitz right?” He was pretty preoccupied when Fitz had made his reappearance, and he had only vaguely known Jemma’s husband before. Ben was around somewhere but had stepped out for a moment. “Jemma actually just left.” He stated, figuring the guy had come in looking for her.
On the tablet there was some sort of movie playing, guys in colorful long sleeve shirts talking on a space ship. Star Trek to be exact. Cisco was starting to even eat a little more on his own. Day by day improving. “How are things on the outside world?” He hadn’t left the medbay, nor had he made contact just yet.
"Yeah, that's me." Fitz had found a post-it and was now digging for a pen, but he paused long enough to glance back at the other occupant of the room. He was so used to everyone remembering other-him that it was simultaneously annoying and refreshing for someone to ask. He nodded as he found a marker, which would do. "I'll leave her a note."
EMP shielding microthin vibranium shell remote activation . . . Ring any bells?
He was so focused on writing this and placing it at her workstation that it took him a moment to realize Cisco had spoken to him again, and another few seconds to comprehend what he'd said. "I haven't left the lab." Which was true in spirit but not in specifics, so he added, "Except for storytime and—and sleep." Even meals he mostly took at his desk, which was nothing new.
When Fitz went for the marker, Cisco peered at the note. What else was he going to do? He was bored, and stuck in a room with very little entertainment while Ben was off doing what he needed to do. Cisco wouldn’t call him back just for the sake of boredom after how long his boyfriend spent watching over him, but it was all encompassing. “Vibranium shield?...” He looked up at Fitz curiously. He’d actually recently been in contact with Shuri, wanting to get his hands on some of that material as well.
“...Yeah, when I get out of here, that should probably change you know. Leaving the lab, getting air. Remembering basic things like the sky is blue is occasionally a good thing. Even for us.” Before he’d met Ben he’d been the same way. “What are you into? Science obviously yes. But what’s your poison, video games, museums?” Cisco didn’t like the idea of someone just living solely in the lab, that was enough for anyone to go insane…ask him how.
"An old design I need to talk to Simmons about," Fitz said, but didn't elaborate any further. He might have, if he could actually remember the details of it in any coherent way, but then he wouldn't be asking Jemma in the first place.
The other's question confused him, not because he had trouble comprehending it, but because it was unexpected. So far, most of the scientists he'd met preferred to keep the talk to their work, which was absolutely fine by him. Henry had been a bit of an exception, because they at least had Alya to talk about, but otherwise he hadn't connected much with anyone.
Not even Simmons.
"I dunno. I've lived in a—" Bus, supplied his brain, but while that was right it wasn't right to say now. "In an airplane the last two years." Even when they'd been on the ground, his work left very little time for anything more complicated than reading in his bunk. But he found he very much didn't want to sound like that guy, so he said, "I play video games sometimes." Because it helped build his coordination and cognitive functions, but did it matter why?
Cisco was a very different type of scientist. Exceptionally smart yes, but also worldly. In a literal sense. He believed living in a lab wasn’t where all the science was discovered. “There’s a whole big ass world out there my friend. And you're in a possibly entirely different timeline version of it. Just saying, if it were me? I couldn’t keep it contained to one place. My job for a short period of time was chronicling worlds.” In a sense of the word anyway. “Sure you can learn a lot from a book, but going and experiencing is a whole different perspective.” And one he intended to share with the others. He was interested in the experiment that Fitz wrote down, but he was more interested in the guy himself
When Fitz answered with his confusion, he just chuckled. “Excellent. I can work with that. Ever been to an arcade?” Yes Fitz, as an adult. Cisco was itching to get out of that place. Even more so to an arcade would be the actual best thing. He’d taken Ben to one on one of their first dates, so depending on how Fitz answered he’d probably bring him there.”The best thing about these science teams is we’re friends first. You’re no exception.” Cisco already considered the man one, and would until he had reason to otherwise. He was just that kind of person.
"Not different, but future." Yes, it was possible his was an alternate world to this one, but everything he'd been able to compare so far had matched, right down to his own medical history and Jemma's descriptions of major events. "We came out of retirement for this—Jemma and I. So I'm, you know, not really here for seeing the world." She, at least, belonged in this world. Fitz wasn't sure where he fit right now.
"An arcade? Those still exist?" Cisco reminded him a little of Mack—a bit pushy, but in a friendly, almost jovial way. It made it difficult for him to dislike the other man, even if he didn't quite understand why Cisco was pushing to do something recreational with him. Maybe it was only that he'd felt like the team on the bus was his family, once, but that image had been shattered after Ward's betrayal. Now, he had Alya. He'd convinced himself it was enough. "Has anyone—is there anyone else who's disappeared? Been part of the science team and gone away?" Other than him, he meant.
That earned him a shrug. “There’s room for both.” He understood not fitting in, honestly Cisco wasn’t entirely sure where he belonged either. He’d gone from having a purpose to being a little lost recently thanks to his medical issues. Cisco decided not to push the other comments about not seeing things, he had opinions but those weren’t ways to make friends.
“They do.” He responded with amusement. “I was surprised too, but my boyfriend wanted to try one so we found one. And it isn’t just a skeezy underground operation either. It’s got crane games.” Cisco stated as if that was the draw. People thought nobody ever won those, but actually he was pretty good. There was a science to crane games. “On our teams? Yes. Actually. Darcy did. She came back older.” He’d nearly forgotten about that, god how long had he been in that place? Cisco wanted more science friends, there was literally no other motive than that. Friendships weren’t a thing most scientists had, and he liked to break that barrier.
Fitz had vague memories of going to an arcade when he was very young, but not much beyond being there. He'd tinkered with various machines over the years, even video games consoles. But otherwise he'd had little experience with them until recently. Crane games, though? He was familiar with those. "Rigged games for—ummm...prizes. Substandard prizes." Even saying that, he laughed a little at the memory of watching people playing for them anyway.
If someone else had gone and come back older, that meant it was possible for the same to happen to him. Fitz wasn't entirely sure how he felt about it. Maybe it would be easier. "Did she...remember?" The worst part would be going back and knowing so much about the future already. He could barely be around Simmons here, but there would be even harder. Had been even harder before he'd gotten pulled through the portal.
Cisco smirked. “That’s why you learn to cheat the game right back.” Oh yeah, there were ways. Just ask him how many knock off scoobie doo plush toys he had from that place. The answer was far too many.
“She did. There was also another recently. Though she was from this place, just a little further in the future.” He pushed some dark hair out of his eyes that had gotten annoyingly in the way. “There was another though, Tim. He used to work in the facility with us. Recently back after two years on his end…he remembered everything apparently.” Cisco stalked the network for a little while during his stay. What the hell else was he supposed to do with all his new found free time?
"Just my luck then," Fitz said rather sourly. He picked at a bit of imaginary fluff on his shirt for something to do other than frown at the other scientist. It was ridiculous and baseless to think the portal's logic had anything to do with his broken brain, but he couldn't help feeling like unfairness was piling onto unfairness all the same. It didn't much matter that it was illogical to feel that way. "I'm the one person who gets a-a…downgrade."
And suddenly he wished he could be anywhere but there, in the complex where things seemed even more sideways than they had back in his home dimension. "What do you do? Outside. Blue sky." He gestured somewhere above them. "I'm in. Whatever it is."
Cisco gave him an empathetic smile and shook his head. “I wouldn’t think of it that way though. More like a new start.” He was obnoxiously positive in a general sense. It was a blessing and a curse. He didn’t like to just think of the bad that came along with this place, because if he did it would just set him off in a mood and nobody would want that.
“So many things. Excellent. I think you’re going to like the things we get up to.” He wasn’t really into hiking and stuff like that, it was more like video arcades and mini golf. Museums, that sort of thing. “Oh, there goes Jemma though.” He pointed behind Fitz, if he still wanted to catch her he could. Cisco wouldn’t be offended by it.
Fitz gave Cisco a dubious look at that non-answer, wondering if he'd made a mistake after all in leaving the options wide open. Well, either he'd go along with it or he'd find a lot of urgent work to do that day. He glanced over his shoulder at the name, and though he didn't catch sight of her (his wife), he could still hear footsteps in the direction she had apparently gone. "Right. Um, yeah." He started to turn, stopped again and said, "Hope you keep feeling better. Get better. Everything."
Then he turned and went, still debating whether he'd actually track Jemma down or return to the lab and let her find the note he'd left.