This is the sequel to my other story 'You Say Goodbye and I Say Hello'. Sorry for the long wait.

Old Scars/ Future Hearts

"Grant, are you ready yet?" Skye asked from the bottom of the stairs of their beachside condo.

"One second!" He called down.

Skye rolled her eyes and sat down on the stairs with a harrumph. "I swear, you take even longer to get ready for a beach day than literally anyone else on the planet. All you have to put on is a pair of shorts. How long could that possibly take?" She spoke aloud more to herself.

Finally, he came down skipping down the stairs with sunglasses, sandals, and shorts on. "Sorry, I had trouble picking out the right sunglasses."

"Our dog eats faster than you take to get ready." She said with another roll of her eyes.

"Speaking of which, where is Buddy?" Grant asked standing beside Skye.

"Probably asleep on the couch." She shrugged.

"Bye Buddy, we'll be back in a couple hours!" Grant called out opening up the front door.

Buddy barked but didn't come to say goodbye to them. "Come on, I'm ready to go swimming and check out all the hot dudes."

"Hey!" Grant protested, his lips forming a pout.

"I'm just kidding." Skye teased playing with his stubble, a smile on her face.

Grant loved when Skye played with his stubble. A pleased smile would always appear on his face and he'd close his eyes and tilt his chin towards her. She laughed and kissed his lips.

"Maybe we could just stay in instead?" He asked wanting her to play with his facial hair again.

"No way. You have to be out interacting with people and I get an excuse to stare at your body for a few hours."

"You do that anyways." Grant furrowed his eyebrows.

"Yeah, but now you're shirtless." She said patting his chest with a smile before taking his hand and dragging him down to the beach.

Grant followed behind her unable to contain the smile on his face. He didn't know where he'd be other than in a grave if Skye hadn't shown back up in his life when she had.

The first couple months had been rough adjusting; the first thing Skye had done was break him out of his routine of waking up at 5:30. Then she'd taught him about random acts of kindness for strangers. The next step she'd taken was helping him find a normal 9-5 job that didn't have anything remotely to do with espionage. After that Skye had gotten him into therapy. He hadn't seen or touched a gun in almost six months and as time progressed his paranoia that someone would come after him slowly began to dwindle. Of course it helped when Skye would come into his room and comfort him from the nightmares plaguing his sleep.

Somewhere along the way he finally felt the change himself and found himself in a position where he was confident enough to ask Skye on a date. She'd responded with the words 'what took you so long' and a kiss. After just a few weeks of dating Skye slowly began to take over his room and now they just shared a room and bed. After living under the same roof for nearly nine months Grant finally got the courage to ask about getting a dog. This little condo of theirs was his home and he wanted a furry companion to add to it. They'd had their pound adopted Labrador for just about a month now, and Grant could honestly say he had never felt such freedom and happiness before. And it was all because Skye had seen something worth saving in him and for that he was eternally grateful to her.

"Come on slow poke!" Skye said excitedly dragging him along.

Grant just rolled his eyes but picked up the pace, jogging alongside of her. They'd already run a few miles this morning, together with Buddy but it seemed as though her energy never died. Even after a run and sex in the shower she still had bundles of energy, and not for the first time, he wondered how she was built like the energizer bunny.

When they finally got down to the shoreline Skye laid out their towels and sat down on one getting the sunscreen bottle out and handing it up to him. He knew the routine; they'd been doing it for the past ten months they'd been here. He knelt down behind her and started rubbing it into her shoulders. He always massaged her as he did it knowing she loved it when he massaged her. It was one of those acts of kindness she taught him about that he loved to do for her after a stressful video conference with SHIELD. She'd taken him away from that life and shown him a whole other one he could have but part of him wished she'd do the same. She only ever became angry and stressed where SHIELD got involved and he wished that he could convince her to leave it behind and just live the way she'd taught him too.

"Mmm, your hands are made of magic." She moaned in delight as his fingers kneaded the sunscreen into her skin and worked her muscles.

Grant smiled, pleased with himself for making her happy. "You always say that."

"Because it's true. I love when you give me massages!" She exclaimed.

"Well…I love you." He confessed sheepishly. Skye froze and craned her neck to look at him.

"What?"

Grant reprimanded himself. He'd carelessly let those words leave his lips for the first time here? He had planned to tell her over a nice dinner where it was romantic, not here."

"I shouldn't have said that yet, I'm sorry. Please don't feel like you have to say it back."

"Grant. Shut up and kiss me already."

"You're not upset with me?"

"God you're such an idiot." She said with a roll of her eyes. "Of course I'm not upset with you! You just told me you loved me! My heart has swollen to a thousand times larger than it was before you told me that."

"I don't think that's actually pos-" He began to correct her but Skye cut him off with a kiss that quickly began to escalate. Without ever breaking contact with his lips she managed to turn around and straddle his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck, hands getting lost in his hair, as she deepened the kiss. Grant never expected her to react this way to his confession and he now really wished he had just said it to her while they were in their bedroom earlier. Grant was the one to break the contact needing air. Normally he could hold his breath underwater for almost three minutes but he'd been taken off guard by Skye. She took the time to regain her own breath and once they were breathing normally again she leaned her forehead against his and looked into his eyes, a smile occupying every inch of her face and meeting her eyes.

"I love you too Grant." His smile matched her own.

"Really?"

"Of course." She said pecking his lips. Grant's smile grew in size and Skye thought his face would explode from smiling so wide.

"Can we…" He asked looking at her imploringly.

"Let's go." She said replied quickly getting off her towel and throwing it, as well as the sunscreen into the bag. She took off with a brisk walk, Grant trailing behind her reaching out to grab her hand. She laced their fingers together and started to jog back to the house. Forget a day at the beach, it was going to be a day in bed instead.

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She wasn't sure when she'd started referring to herself as Skye again but she knew it had to do directly with being surrounded by Grant 24/7. She didn't feel like Daisy or Quake around him, she felt like his rookie again, like Skye.

So laying curled up against Grant, Skye could honestly say this was where she wanted to be at the end of each day, in the arms of the man who loved her whole heartedly. The Grant she spent her days with now…he was the person Skye always knew he could be. He was tender and loving, kind and passionate, he knew right from wrong and he believed in himself. He'd come so far in ten months and she couldn't be more proud of the sleeping man under her. Skye stroked his face gently and smiled at him from where her head lay on his chest.

Just the other day they'd been on a date when a homeless man had walked up to them and Grant had pulled a twenty from his pocket without hesitation and told the man not to give up hope. The hardest thing to break him from hadn't been the killing, it'd been the negative way he viewed himself, and waking up every day at 5:30. It had taken Grant almost two months to break out of that morning habit and now he was able to sleep in until seven when he had to get up and get ready for work. He was a history professor's assistant and despite the negative connotations of the position, Grant loved his job. Of course Skye didn't like hearing the stories about all the girls who would hit on him, but she couldn't fault those girls. He was a very desirable man, especially now.

While he was off at work she spent her time doing some work for SHIELD and playing with Buddy. She could tell Grant didn't like her working at SHIELD anymore. He didn't have to say anything for her to know that. It was the look he would unknowingly give her after a conference call. She also knew that he wanted her to quit and a part of her wanted to as well. The life she'd built with Grant for him in Miami…she loved it. It was everything she had once dreamed about as a teenager. There was finally a place where she belonged and she couldn't take Grant back to SHIELD with her. He would be absolutely miserable there for one. Another thing...she quite frankly didn't want them to corrupt him. He was happy where he was and he didn't need old scars being re-opened. She kissed his lips softly and moved to get out of bed when a strong arm suddenly pulled her back. A squeak was emitted from Skye and a deep chuckle from Grant who still had his eyes closed.

"You're not going anywhere; I was rather enjoying you playing with my face." He mumbled through a thick, gravely, sleep voice.

"Grant, I have to pee." She whined.

He groaned but released his hold on her so she could run to the bathroom. He cracked an eye open just to watch her naked form fleeing and smiled before closing his eyes again. Out of everything Skye had taught him, his favorite lesson had been learned after the first time they had sex. He had made a move to get out of bed but she pulled him back and said, 'It's perfectly acceptable to stay naked in bed all day with your girlfriend.' Of course she didn't really mean all day since they definitely got out of bed to eat, but they stayed in a few extra hours and got distracted a couple more times. When Skye returned she jumped on the bed, clearly making her presence known and disturbing his somewhat half-awake sleep.

"Really? Did you have to do that?" He asked with an eye cracked open.

"Yup." She replied with a grin, leaning down and kissing him. Her hands wandered under the sheets and Grant knew he was not going to be sleeping anymore.

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1 Week Later

"No! Coulson that's not right! You can't just lock them up!... They're people too!... I don't-….NO! Listen to me! Yo-" Skye angrily said through the monitor before it went black. Looking around for an explanation as to why the computer suddenly shut off she found Grant holding the plug to the computer, a worried and disappointed frown on his face. "Grant!" She cried.

"I'm sorry, but I couldn't stand it anymore. You get so stressed and worked up every time you talk to him Skye, our neighbors just came by wondering if we were okay. I told them you were having an argument with your Dad. I think you should consider quitting. You only get this way whenever you bring SHIELD back into your life."

"I know. I know but…what about the other Inhumans, those like me? He wants to lock them up and observe them. How am I supposed to just leave when they need my help? They're people Grant! People he wants to lock up because he's afraid."

"Shh, it's okay Skye." He soothed, beginning to massage her shoulders as she leaned into him and began to let her tears fall silently.

"If you keep waiting for a good moment to leave you're going to be miserable for the rest of your life."

Skye couldn't help but let out a chuckle through her tears. "When did you become so wise?"

He huffed a laugh and smiled, tilting her chin up to meet his eyes. "When I let you in to help me. So let me do the same for you now."

Skye smiled and hugged his waist, resting her head against his stomach. "I love you."

"I love you too. And because I do love you, I'm telling you you need to quit, completely break away from SHIELD. You can find a normal job. The University is looking for a new tech guy. I could put in a good word, get you an application if you'd like."

"I'll think about it Grant." She relented with a sigh and closed her eyes, allowing herself to be caught up in her surroundings. He rubbed her back and began to run his fingers through her hair humming to calm her down.

Buddy came over and rubbed his snout on her leg, grabbing her attention. She chuckled and let go of Grant leaning down to pet him. "Looks like Buddy doesn't like seeing you so upset either."

"Sorry for disturbing you and the neighbors. I didn't mean to be so loud." Skye apologized as she scratched behind Buddy's ears.

"You can make it up to us with a night out. There's a new movie out that Sebastian and I want to see." Grant replied bending down to also pet Buddy.

"Deal." Skye smiled and kissed Grant, leaning over Buddy.

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6 months later

"Honey, I'm home!" Grant announced walking in the door as Buddy ambushed him, tail wagging, and tongue hanging out, jumping up to hug Grant. "Yes, hello Buddy, I missed you too." He scratched the dogs' ears for a moment before grabbing Buddy's paws off his chest and setting him back down on the ground. At that moment Skye came walking down the stairs. He took off the satchel and tossed it onto the couch so he could properly greet his fiancé.

She smiled and stood on the first stair so she was at eye level and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Welcome home Professor." She smiled. "How was your first day on campus as professor and not assistant?"

"Great! The class was mainly just girls but you would know, wouldn't you? Don't think I didn't notice you in the back row wearing a baseball cap." Grant asked with a knowing smile on his lips.

"Guilty." She replied with a grin. "But it was so easy to sneak in. Being the senior tech advisor for the University does have its' perks. I just told them I had been called in to do some repairs in your room and bam, I was in."

"You know…you still haven't welcomed me home yet."

"Oh, well I must fix that." Skye smiled and and kissed him languidly, relishing their moment together. She broke away as a thought popped into her mind. "Oh you should have heard what the girls in front of me were saying! I don't think they heard one word you said about World War II. They were much too busy undressing you with their eyes and fantasizing about the things they would do to you."

Grant chuckled. "Really? You stopped kissing me to tell me that? I may not be a spy anymore but that doesn't mean I lost my ability to observe my surroundings. I was well aware of the way some of them were looking at me. But it didn't matter because you're the one whose finger I put a ring on."

"The first one anyways. You've still got one more to put on my finger." She replied wiggling her fingers in his face.

"So impatient, aren't we?" He replied taking her hand and kissing her ring finger.

"I don't see why we can't just elope." She whined. "It's not like there's really going to be anyone at the wedding besides our neighbors and some of our friends from the university."

"I can only imagine what your Father would do to me if he found out that I didn't give his daughter a proper wedding. Just trust me, Skye." He replied with a smile and kiss.

"I do."

"Good. We're going to have a beautiful wedding in just 63 days…", he looked at his watch, "sixteen hours and twenty minutes."

"Wow, even counting down the minutes huh?"

"Absolutely." He replied snaking his arms around her waist and pulling her flush against him. "I can't wait to make you mine forever."

"I already am." She whispered before he kissed her.

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63 Days Later

There was a knock on Skye's dressing room door as she and her friends were getting ready.

"Who is it?" They all sang.

"Grant. I know I can't see Skye but I have a surprise for her. I promise my eyes are closed, I even have a blindfold on, but I need her to open the door."

Amy, (Skye's next door neighbor), and Clara (her best friend she'd grown close to fast since she started working at the University) both looked at her but she just nodded. She knew Grant wouldn't lie to her. She opened the door and sure enough Grant was standing there with a blind fold on and his hands over his eyes. But out from behind him stepped two people she hadn't seen in almost two and a half years. She gasped and ran forward embracing Fitz and Simmons with tears in her eyes.

"Oh my God! What are you both doing here?!"

"Ward-" Simmons began before both Skye and Grant cut her off.

"Grant." They corrected.

"Sorry, Grant called us and told us you were getting married and there was no way I would ever miss your special day." Simmons explained, hugging her friend once again.

"We've missed you Daisy." Fitz said, happy to see his friend.

"Skye." Both Grant and Skye corrected.

"I can't keep up with all these name changes." Fitz shook his head.

"Well you're going to have to keep up with one more." Skye beamed at them both and she glanced down to her stomach.

"You're pregnant?!" They both shouted. Grant chuckled and Skye couldn't help but laugh too.

"Yup! We just found out a week ago. It's still early on, I'm only five weeks along."

"Congratulations!" Simmons said once again hugging Skye.

"Thanks! We're really excited. Terrified, but excited."

"Speaking of excited, I need to go make sure Buddy hasn't gotten his fur all over my groomsmen."

"Dog?" Fitz perked up.

"Yeah! He's getting pretty big and he's sweet as can be, but an absolute brute, so if you don't mind possibly being knocked onto your back you can come meet him. I have to be getting back anyways, my arms are getting tired and the temptation to peel off this blindfold is getting hard to resist."

They all laughed but before Grant could turn around to walk away, Skye grabbed hold of his arm. "Wait! Thank you Grant."

"You're welcome Skye." He replied feeling for her hand and giving it a squeeze. She leaned up on her tiptoes and placed a soft kiss to his lips.

"Hey! Save it for altar!" Clara yelled from behind.

Skye broke away chuckling and gave his arm a gentle squeeze. "See you at the altar." He whispered breathlessly.

"I'll be the one in white." She joked. Grant smiled and waited until he heard Simmons and Skye disappear behind the door before taking off his blindfold.

"Good to see you Fitz. I'm glad you and Simmons could make it." Grant smiled to the man, stuffing the blindfold in his pocket.

"Thanks for inviting us. We didn't think Daisy, sorry, Skye, wanted anything to do with us anymore. Ever since Coulson told us she quit we hadn't heard anything from her."

"Really? She wrote letters every couple of weeks to you guys. She just thought maybe you guys didn't want to write back or couldn't, not since she was with me…anyways."

"We never got any letters." Fitz replied, eyebrows furrowed. "We would have written back."

"That's strange. Skye would write them after dinner while I did the dishes." Grant mused aloud, wondering where the letters could have ended up.

Fitz couldn't help but laugh. "Dishes?"

"Yeah. Skye doesn't like washing them so we set up a system where she puts them in the dishwasher and I'll clean any pots or pans that were used for dinner." He explained, not understanding why Fitz had said something.

"No, it's not that…I just…it's hard to picture. She told us you changed, but it's hard to reconcile the Grant Ward we knew with the domestic one standing beside me."

"I'm surprised you are standing beside me. I never expected anyone to forgive me for the things I did to them or be able to face me again."

"Well I am…cautious…but I trust her judgement and I've never seen her so carefree or happy before and the only reason for that is you so…I'm standing beside the person who had made my friend incredibly happy. Not the guy I knew."

"Well…she helped me be that happy first. I haven't seen or touched a gun in over two years and consequently I've never been more free. I know I can't reconcile with all the terrible things I've done but I know that I don't have to let it control my future. Skye taught me that, and I've built a life that I love. I get to teach about history every day, I live on the beach, I love who I am, I love my fiancé, our house, our dog, friends. It's everything I dreamed it could be…and all because Skye saw something in me worth saving."

"She's always seen the best in all of us." Fitz agreed with a nod and a smile. They came to a door and once Grant opened it Buddy ambushed them.

"Hi Buddy! Hi boy! This is Fitz. Are you gonna give him kisses?" Buddy wagged his tail and barked loudly jumping up and placing his front paws on Fitz's chest as he licked his face.

Fitz laughed and pet Buddy. "Oh such a good doggy. Yes, hello Buddy." Fitz cooed as Buddy continued to lick him.

"Alright Buddy, down." Grant commanded. The dog jumped back and walked back over to Grant happily wagging his tail. "Good boy."

"Who's this Grant?" One of the groomsmen asked.

"Oh, sorry. Eric, Sebastian, this is Fitz…an old friend from another lifetime. He's here for Skye."

"Nice to meet you." Eric extended a hand with a smile. He was almost as attractive as Grant was and the closest thing he'd ever had to a best friend.

"You too." Fitz replied.

"Always good to meet a mutual friend." Sebastian added holding out his own hand to Fitz. Sebastian was a next door neighbor with whom many dinners had been shared along with Sebastian's wife, Amy.

The group of them continued to chatter as they finished getting ready for the wedding before it was time for Grant to be down at the altar. He asked Fitz to join his groomsmen knowing Skye would have Simmons up with her. The ceremony itself flew by in the blink of an eye and before they knew it both had said 'I do'. The reception was a small party of fifty of their friends complete with dancing and food and of course…cake and weird toasts. It was after they had said their goodbyes to everyone and were on the drive home with Fitz and Simmons tailing behind that Grant finally got to ask his question.

"So…still think it would have been more enjoyable to just elope?" He held her hand as he drove with the other.

"No, you were right. This was better. It was beautiful, and you are the best husband ever. I can't believe you managed to get Jemma and Fitz here."

"That's why we couldn't just elope. I needed time to find how to contact them and get them here without you knowing." He felt a kiss on his cheek and smiled brightly. "I just realized…you called me husband and I love how it sounds."

"Husband." Skye whispered in his ear.

"My wife." He replied in a low gravelly tone of his own.

Skye shivered and put a finger to his lips. "Don't say that again until we're alone."

"Yes ma'am." Grant replied, a proud smirk on his face. Oh he was absolutely going to love marriage, especially since he was married to the only woman who'd ever caught his eye.

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1 Year Later

"It's your turn." Skye mumbled, her voice muffled by the pillow. Grant all but jumped out of bed to attend his crying children.

He walked into his old room that had been turned into a nursery and picked up both crying babies from their cribs, holding them each in one arm. "Shh, daddy's here now little ones." He said lowly, a smile on his face as he looked down at each angelic face of perfection. The twins both quieted down until they were only whimpering, of which Grant understood to mean they were hungry. He set Riley and Ryder in their swings before going over to the mini fridge and grabbing two bottles of milk to heat up. Riley was much more well behaved than her brother as they both waited to be fed. She had been the first one to come out with Ryder literally riding out behind his sister, one hand on Riley's ankle.

They hadn't been expecting twins but when the Doctor told them, they were all the more excited and nervous with the second addition to their family. The moment Riley's eyes met his everything in the room disappeared except her. She stopped crying and just stared at him which all the nurses said never happened as babies don't tend to open their eyes until a couple minutes after birth. But here was this special little girl telling him with her eyes that he was the center of her world and it melted his heart. Ryder, didn't open his eyes until minutes later and even then he didn't keep them open long enough to stare at him the way Riley had. Both infants seemed more tuned to Grant's voice and commands than Skye's, especially Riley. Grant did so much as cough and Riley stopped speaking to listen to him. Somewhere along the pregnancy a bond had formed between them that only strengthened the moment Riley was born. This little girl was truly a new beginning for him and a chance to protect and love someone from the start.

Grant hummed a lullaby as he fed Ryder, knowing he was more impatient with feeding than Riley, and as expected Riley stared silently at her Father as he hummed occasionally singing to the tune. Once Ryder was fed and burped he kissed his son before gently placing him back in his crib. He then picked up his daughter who he knew had been patiently waiting for this moment when Daddy would hold her and devote all his attention to her. She cooed up at him before he gave her the bottle and Grant smiled.

"I love you too." As she ate he sang her the 'hush, little baby' lullaby that she loved. When Riley was finally asleep again as Grant turned to leave he noticed Skye standing in the doorway.

"I thought you were sleeping."

"I was but then I heard you singing, and I wanted to come see you interact with our children." She shrugged closing the door to the nursery as he walked out.

"Why?" He asked puzzled.

"Because I think it's the sweetest thing and it makes my heart swell looking at the man you've become in just three years and I'm so glad I trusted my instincts and followed Coulson into the portal that day, because if I hadn't you'd be in the ground rather than singing to our children."

"Thank you for helping me to believe all of this could be possible." He replied kissing her sweetly. Their innocent kiss soon began to develop and quickly brought them into the bedroom.

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3 Weeks Later

Grant had just gotten home from work when he heard a scream resound from his room. Throwing his satchel aside he ran up the stairs and burst into the bedroom looking for Skye. She was in the bathroom, with her back to him.

"Skye, what happened? Are you alright?" He asked worried.

She turned around and ran into his arms, a brilliant smile consuming her and she laughed as she hugged him.

"First you scream, now you're laughing. What's going on?"

Skye pulled back from the hug and looked him in the eye, joy pouring out from her. "I'm pregnant again!"

"Are you serious?!" He cried.

"No Grant, I'm smiling like this because I bought a new dress…in the bathroom." She retorted with a roll of her eyes, joy and happiness still on every feature even with her sarcasm.

He laughed and picked his wife up twirling her around, overcome by the news of another baby on the way. He set her down and kissed her happily.

"Here we go again." He said with a smile, placing a hand over her stomach.

This was his life now. Happy, peaceful, domestic. He had a wife, two kids with another on the way, a job he loved, friends, a dog, an apartment (that was going to now have to become a house), and he had a way of living that was neither fueled by fear or governed by someone else. He was a new person, a better person, and every day he strived to be a loving husband to Skye, a doting father, and a man of honor. He still had scars on his heart that would always serve as a reminder of where he came from, but Skye had told him he had to put behind the heart of his past to embrace the heart of his future. Some of the scars however remained from the past because they were too prominent to forget, but he would never let it hold him back again. Grant loved his life and never wanted to go back.

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So, what do you guys think? Personally I think it's one of the fluffiest things I've ever written.