This is a short oneshot. I missed writing for Rylexis, so this appeared. Hope you enjoy! Leave a comment if you do :)
Alexis had just gotten off the phone with a very difficult person, which happened more often than she would have liked, but that was just the job sometimes. She'd learned a long time ago that she couldn't make everyone happy.
Working as an assistant at a veterinary clinic had not been her first choice, but it had turned out to be the one that suited her the best. She hadn't grown up with any pets, but that didn't mean she didn't love animals. She'd always had a soft spot for them.
Working at the clinic only heightened her love for animals.. She loved that she got to spend one-on-one time with the animals that came in—and not just cats and dogs either. She had spent time with more exotic creatures as well, like snakes, lizards, and even hedgehogs.
She'd seen so many animals and learned so much about each one of them, which would have never happened if she hadn't taken the job. Sure, the owners could sometimes annoy her to no end, but their cute pets more than made up for it.
Plus, she imagined that working with animals had to be easier than working with people. At one time she'd wanted to be a doctor, but she changed her mind when she began to lose the passion she originally had for it.
The door opened, bring a nice summer breeze through the lobby. Alexis looked up to see a little blonde girl walk in, carrying something wrapped in a blue towel. A man followed behind her and immediately made his way to the reception desk.
"Hi, I called earlier about bringing in my daughter's pet bunny?"
"Yes," Tiara, another receptionist, replied. "Could I get the name again?"
"Kevin Ryan."
The little girl had a tight grip on the bunny, keeping him close to her chest. "I'm sorry, I hurt you, I didn't mean to, Peter," she said softly to the animal.
Before Alexis could hear anything else besides the man's name, the door just to her left opened revealing, Jessica, another veterinary assistant. "Hey, got a second free?" she asked.
"Sure, what's going on?"
"Big dog in the back, we need help holding him down."
Alexis nodded and followed Jessica through the door. It wasn't the first time she'd have to help hold down an eighty-pound dog, and it wouldn't be the last.
When they walked into room three, Dr. Stafford and the dog's owner were talking back and forth while the German shepherd was sitting on the table with a muzzle on. Alexis walked forward with Jessica. While Jessica held down the dog's backside, Alexis held down the front. The dog, who the owner kept referring to as Sadie, was crying, but wasn't putting up too much of a struggle.
The owner was talking to Sadie, trying to put her at ease the best as he could. Sadie whimpered and let out a small moan as she was injected. She laid still for a few more seconds, before the Doctor motioned for Alexis and Jessica to let go. They step back and at the same time, Sadie hopped up and immediately started kissing the owner's face as he patted her on the back telling her what a good girl she was. Alexis smiled at the interaction before walking over to the counter to retrieve a treat.
Sadie took the treat, quickly swallowing it down.
"Thank you, girls," Dr. Stafford said.
Alexis and Jessica exited the room and then walked back into the main lobby. Alexis began working on some of the paperwork still left for her to do. When she looked up she saw the man, Kevin, who she had seen come in with his daughter. They were sitting in the lobby and the little girl was petting her bunny.
"What's going on with the bunny?" Alexis asked Tiara.
"The little girl accidentally fed him some chocolate late last night."
"Oh, no," Alexis said with a frown. She didn't blame the little girl of course, but she knew that—much like dogs and most animals, for that fact—chocolate could kill rabbits.
"Dr. Stafford is going to take a look as soon as she's done with her current patient."
"Poor bunny."
A few minutes later, Jessica came out of room one holding a folder. "We're ready to see Peter."
The man stood up, grabbing the bunny from the girl. Alexis assumed that the bunny was named Peter. He turned to look at the little girl. "I'm going to go in there alone, okay? Stay out here and be good. Don't get up unless you have to use the restroom, okay?"
"Okay, Daddy." She nodded.
Alexis stepped forward. "I'll keep a eye on her, if you'd like."
The man, Kevin looked at her and smiled a little. "Thank you. I'd appreciate it."
"No problem," Alexis said, waving her hand. Kevin walked back into the room, and the little girl looked at Alexis.
"My bunny is sick."
"I'm sorry, but you should know that we are going to take very good care of your bunny." She sat down next to the little girl. "What's your bunny's name?"
"His name is Peter."
"That's a good name."
The little girl smiled. "What's your name?"
"I'm Alexis."
"I'm Sarah Grace."
"That's a beautiful name."
"My daddy tells me that I'm the most beautiful little girl that ever lived."
"Wow. Sounds like you have a good dad, huh?"
"He is. He let me have Peter even though he doesn't like bunnies."
"How could he not like bunnies?" Alexis asked, faking her shock, causing Sarah Grace to giggle. "So, Sarah Grace, how old are you?"
"I'm six."
"So, you're in first grade?"
She nodded.
"Do you like school?"
"Yeah, I like math. It's fun."
"Wow. I don't hear a lot of people saying that they like math, but math happens to be my favorite."
"I'm pretty good at it. Daddy still helps me sometimes, though."
"My dad used to help me, too."
"He did? Your daddy is probably as good as mine is."
"I think so." Alexis smiled and then let the little girl start talking about her school, the friends she had made and about her dad, who she seemed to be infatuated with.
From what Alexis could gather it was just Kevin and Sarah Grace. She heard nothing about a mother and didn't want to ask in case it would make Sarah Grace sad. Sarah Grace looked up, bright-eyed, as she heard chirping.
"You have birds here?"
"Three parakeets."
"Can I see them?"
"Sure." Alexis smiled and led the little girl back to where the cage was. The little girl let out a laugh when she saw them fighting over food. "What are their names?"
"Charlie, Buster, and Chloe."
"They're really pretty. I like the green and yellow one."
"That's Chloe."
"She's pretty."
"And loud." Alexis added with a laugh.
"Can I hold her?"
"I don't think that's a good idea. She might fly away."
"That wouldn't be good."
"No, it wouldn't."
"Sarah Grace?" A worried voice called out.
"I'm over here, Daddy." She answered. "Look at these pretty birds! Is Peter okay?"
Kevin answered looking at Alexis with a smile on his face. Alexis couldn't deny how attractive he was, or that she was having a hard time not staring into his eyes. They were the clearest and brightest blue eyes she had seen, much like his daughter's. Alexis had blue eyes, too, but she knew that she couldn't compare to his.
"Peter is going to be okay. He has to take some medicine though."
"Medicine? Like when I get sick?"
He nodded. "Sweetie, you have to promise not to give him anymore chocolate."
"I promise, Daddy. I really do," Sarah Grace said, running over to grab her bunny. "Oh, Peter. You're gonna feel better once you get your medicine. That always makes me feel better."
Kevin turned to Alexis. "Thank you for watching her. I hope she wasn't too much of a handful."
"Of course not." Alexis answered. "She's a cute kid, and she helped me avoid some actual work, so I can't really complain."
Kevin smiled.
"Daddy, Alexis' favorite subject is math, too."
"It is?" Kevin asked, sounding shocked.
"Yeah, and when she was little her daddy would help her with math, like you do with me."
"Well, that is a dad's job."
Sarah Grace nodded and held up Peter. "This is my bunny, Peter."
Alexis walked over and bent down, petting the top of his head. He was very small and dark gray. "He's very cute. I told you that we would help him, didn't I?"
"You did. I just have to remember not to share my food with him."
Alexis nodded with a smile.
"Ready to go, Pumpkin?" Kevin asked.
Sarah Grace frowned. "I told you not to call me that, Daddy."
"I'm sorry." Kevin chuckled. "Are you ready to go?"
"Yes." Sarah smiled and then looked up at Alexis. "Bye, Alexis."
"Bye, Sarah! I hope Peter feels better soon."
"Me, too. Maybe you could come to my house and see him sometime."
Alexis stood still in confusion for a few seconds, trying to find a way to move forward without hurting the little girl's feelings.
Without even glancing his way, Kevin cleared his throat and looked down at his daughter. "Nice offer, Sarah Grace, but it's not nice to put someone on the spot like that."
The little girl nodded and then hugged her bunny closer. "Okay. I'm ready to go, Daddy."
Kevin smiled at Alexis and mouthed an apology to her. She smiled back, letting him know that it was okay. She watched them leave, feeling a little disappointed. Not only would she most likely not be seeing Sarah Grace again, but she wouldn't be seeing Kevin again, either.
She walked behind the front desk and sighed as she looked over at the files sitting off to the side. She caught Jessica smirking a few feet to her left.
"What?"
"He was cute."
"Who?"
"Um, that guy who was obviously into you. You know, that one with the cutest kid. Ringing any bells?"
Alexis sighed. "Yes, it's ringing some bells."
"If I were you, I would have been all over that."
Alexis laughed. "Didn't seem right, given that his daughter was standing right there."
Jessica looked over Alexis' shoulder, her eyes widening a bit, before she smiled at Alexis.
"Well, she isn't here right now."
"What?" Alexis asked, turning to see what Jessica was looking at. Her heart nearly skipped a beat when she saw Kevin standing by the door. She gave Jessica a glare before she walked over to him.
"Is everything okay? Do you have any questions?"
"I just wanted to apologize for my daughter putting you on the spot like that earlier, you know, when she invited you over to our house."
"Oh, that's fine. It didn't bother me. She's really sweet."
"Yeah, she is." Kevin looked nervous and glanced around the room.
"Is there something else?" Alexis asked, trying to help him out.
"I normally don't do this."
"Do what?"
"Find myself asking out someone I barely know, but I was wondering if maybe sometime you would like to go out? Like to get a coffee or dinner sometime?"
Alexis immediately felt her face turn warm, but she wasn't going to let herself get nervous and ruin the chance of getting know the handsome man in front of her.
"Ah, so Sarah Grace gets her boldness from her father, I see."
Kevin let out a nervous chuckle. "Yes, but I was kind of hoping that I might be able to pull it off better than she did."
Alexis licked her lips and looked around, catching the eyes of a few of her coworkers. She looked back at Kevin and nodded to him. "I think it might be working. I can give you my number and you can text or call me sometime."
Kevin pulled out his phone and as Alexis was giving him her number, she noticed him trying to fight off a smile. His beautiful eyes met hers and he smiled. "I'll call you soon."
"I'm looking forward to it."
It was a little strange that Alexis found herself giving a random guy her number, but something about his mannerisms made her feel like she wasn't making a mistake.
The next few minutes were filled with her c workers throwing comments left and right, Jessica being the loudest of them all, but all Alexis could think about was when Kevin would call her.
Whenever it happened, she'd be ready for it.
Thank you for reading.