The Dendrochronology of Lincoln & Daisy // a Staticquake fanfic

Lincoln & Daisy

THIS IS A HUGE TIME JUMP. This chapter takes place somewhere in the middle of season 3. Let me know if you guys want a chapter before this, I'm sure I can come up with a few ideas! Thank you for reading & being patient on the updates :) 

The two of them don't get a lot of days off. No one really does when you work for SHIELD, especially right now. Jemma came back from space, the ATCU is everywhere, and Coulson is still being wary of Lincoln's loyalties. But despite the obstacles, Daisy and Lincoln managed to get a couple days off and they were now heading to some surprise location.

"You really aren't telling me where we're going?" Daisy reached for Lincoln's hand, tangling their fingers together as he continued to drive along the unfamiliar highway.

Lincoln smiled as he shook his head. "I told you, it's a surprise." He gave Daisy's hand a reassuring squeeze.

Daisy sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. But after your surprise, I get to show you my surprise, okay?"

"Whatever you want, Daisy. We have plenty of time."

Daisy looked over at him.

"Okay. Maybe not plenty of time. But we have enough." He took his eyes off the road to smile at her sweetly.

"We do." This time it was Daisy's turn to smile.

They drove on for the rest of the day, enjoying the uninterrupted time together. Neither of them could remember a time when they weren't being watched by the people around them and they relished the privacy. Lincoln drove the whole time, making a few stops here and there.

"If I let you drive, you might figure out where we're going!" He argued when Daisy offered to give him a break. "Then the surprise would be ruined."

Daisy just laughed at him, a warm and familiar feeling rising in her chest. Daisy never could figure out where the feeling came from, but ever since she met Lincoln, a part of her seemed to feel at peace. Like she had known him her whole life. It was this feeling Daisy was thinking about as she fell asleep in the passenger seat. With her head against the window and her hand in Lincoln's, she slept better than she had in a long time.

Lincoln wanted to stay in that car forever. For a moment he worried about the last time he was driving a girl somewhere, how he wrecked the car and almost killed them both. But he knew that wasn't going to happen today. He had grown up since then, changed. He honestly wished to spend the rest of his life holding Daisy Johnson's hand. He knew they hadn't known each other long, but something about her just felt right. She felt like home, like a safe place for his heart to rest.

He shifted his gaze off the road and over to the sleeping agent in the passenger seat beside him. A small smile from don his face as he squeezed her hand a little tighter. He didn't want to wake her up, but they were almost there. He knew exactly where they were going.

"Daisy. Daisy," Lincoln whispered gently before using a normal voice as he tried to wake his sleeping girlfriend.

Daisy opened her eyes, startled by the sudden movement and the sound of Lincoln's voice. She sat up then, realizing they were outside. She looked around in a panic.

"Where are we?"

"This is my surprise! It's my favorite place on earth. I wanted to share it with you." Lincoln's hand reached up to grab a tree branch above him, a beaming smile revealing his excitement. He had waited a long time for this.

Daisy smiled at him, too distracted by the sight of him to take in her surroundings. She stared at him for a few more moments before finally moving her gaze to the world around her. Suddenly that familiar feeling returned to her as a few tears sprang up in the corner of her eye.

"What?" She half whispered as she took in the park around her. It had changed since the last time she was here, but the basic architecture had remained the same. The benches were in the same spot, the running trail had clearly been repaired, and the street lights had been replaced.

Daisy finally collected her courage and looked above her. The oak tree, now a massive giant, stood tall around the two of them. The branches tangled and full of the early spring leaves had grown over the years. She let the tears fall from her eyes as she turned to smile at Lincoln.

"What's wrong?" He immediately asked at the sight of her tears, hurrying to reach a hand out to her.

Daisy shook her head, trying to reassure him that nothing was wrong. She hugged the blonde tight and took a breath before stepping back.

"This is my favorite place, too. This was going to be my surprise." Daisy gestured to the oak tree, the same one she had played under as a kid. The same one she hid under when the world didn't seem fair. The same one that's been in her dreams ever since. This is where she met her first friend. The one who gave her a name. Her...

"Sky friend." Lincoln's voice finished her thought.

"It's you." Lincoln reached a hand down to Daisy's cheek, tears of his own starting to form. "You're my sky friend."

Daisy laughed as she wiped away his tears. "It's you. You're the one who gave me a name!"

The two of them stared at each other in silence, slowly taking it all in. For the past 20 years, they've both been thinking about this tree, about the person who met them here. They've both visited, their paths meeting or crossing. The two of them helping each other, being there for each other, this whole time. Can you meet your soulmate so early in life and then forget them just as fast?

"Mary Sue. Your name used to be Mary Sue," Lincoln whispered to himself.

Daisy scrunched her nose up in disapproval. "Don't remind me! I hated that name. I never really told anyone except for this little kid, his name was...."

"Lincoln." Both of them whispered at the same time.

A new set of tears started as the two of them hugged each other tight. "I can't believe this," Daisy whispered.

"I can." Lincoln's voice was sure. "I can believe it."

"This whole time... this whole time it was you!" Daisy shook her head, wiping a few stray tears away.

Lincoln gave her one last hug before reaching around the tree to reveal a picnic basket. He pulled out the picnic blanket, setting it up while Daisy looked up at the tree in awe. When Lincoln had the blanket settled, she took a seat and laid back to see through the branches.

"That one looks like a rabbit." Lincoln's eyes followed Daisy's pointed finger through the branches. He smiled wide and laughed as he laid down next to her.

"You always think the clouds look like a rabbit."

Daisy turned to look at him then, a wide smile of her own on her face.

"Always," she whispered. "Because we've done this before."

Lincoln reached to wrap an arm around her shoulders. "We have. Several times if I'm remembering correctly."

They both laughed then, beginning to recount the times they met here before. The days they spent playing under the tree, hiding from foster parents, or trying to get over a girl. They realized there were times when they just barely missed each other by minutes. Daisy told him about the time she had come in the middle of a Rising Tide mission. Lincoln mentioned how he always used to make Ellie drive past with him. They both used to come to the tree, hoping for a glimpse of the other.

And now here they were, reunited with each other at last.

"This is still my favorite place," Lincoln said aloud, reaching for Daisy's hand.

"Mine too." Daisy smiled at him. "Mine too."