[Hey.

I don't own anybody except my OC. STOP RUBBING IT IN!]

It was Monday and Alexis was sitting in a coffee shop on 42nd and 6th, drinking a peppermint hot chocolate. She still had a good amount of time to get to work, so she balanced her time between reading the newspaper and drinking. She frowned at the pages, not finding anything particularly uplifting.

Shooting in Pennsylvania.

Bombing in Syria.

Is Obama the right choice for a president?

Why are we in debt?

Blah. Blah. Blah.

"Why can't anything be happy anymore?" She muttered, setting the paper aside, swigging the last of her cocoa and leaving. She was a nurse at a major hospital here in the city, the hours were shit, but she was really lucky to do something she was passionate about. Working in the pediatrics ward was something that always made her smile. She had to watch her mouth when talking to the bitchy moms, but other than that, the kids were (usually) sweet and adorable.

She stopped walking as she passed a window shop. In it was an oversized photograph of a man and a woman, the latter having a ring slipped onto her finger. It was ruby's and emeralds, a Christmas ring. Under it, white cursive letters read: "All she wants for Christmas, is you"

Her heart twinged a bit as she read it, knowing that Clint couldn't buy her a ring. If he did, people would ask where she'd gotten it from, and there was no way she could just be like "Oh yeah, my boyfriend the top secret spy got this for me."

There was a time when she had to check in with her badge at the front desk, but now the lovely old lady just smiled and let her through the sliding glass doors. "Morning Alexis,"

"Morning," She smiled back as she unzipped her jacket. She wore Christmas-light printed scrubs, and her mandatory white sneakers. Luckily they weren't the icky kind of sneakers that squeaked on the tile floors when she walked around.

"Feeling up to working with Dr. CatBrain?" She asked, pushing a lock of gray hair out of her eyes.

Alexis laughed, "Good thing I forgot to pack a lunch."

"Sorry dear,"

"It wouldn't be so bad if he had all his marbles in one place," It wasn't that Dr. Ivo was mean or a slave-driver or anything, he just was a little scatter brained. Whoever was working with him that day had to go around tying up all his loose ends. Sometimes he forgot to sign prescriptions, log off his computer, or leave a CD in the PC. It was a little frustrating, but nothing she couldn't handle. A lot of people said he should get fired for forgetting things like that, but he was an excellent doctor. He was really great at making sure the kids weren't scared of the hospital and that they understood what the problem was. His treatment plans were always helpful, even if it was something as little as a cold.

"Lucy?" Alexis called, smiling at a little ginger girl as she hopped up from her seat. "How are you feeling today?"

"My wrist hurts," She pouted, holding up a bandaged arm.

"Well, let's see if we can't do something about that."

She had a quick lunch break, only enough time for a cup of tea and an apple. Passing by a treatment room, she had to do a double take. There was a set of x-ray photos pulled up from the little girl who had broken her arm this morning. Alexis sighed and entered the office, removing the disc from the computer and logging off of Dr. Ivo's account.

"Excuse me?"

Alexis whipped around; a tall, well built man took up nearly the entire doorway. He was dressed all in black, and clearly not an employee.

"Yes?" She asked politely, though this man was intimidating just by looking at him. He stepped in further, and shut the door. He looked thoughtfully at the sink and the set of otoscopes, leaning against the table that patients sat on.

"I'm looking for a Mr. Clint Barton," He said coolly in an unfamiliar accent.

Alexis stiffened, clenching her jaw, "I'm sorry, but patients are kept in the hospital wings."

"Ah," He sat down in the chair that parents used while their children were being examined. He laced his fingers together, but pointed one index digit at Alexis. "But you. You know where he is, don't you?"

"I'm not sure what you're talking about." She said a little too quickly.

"Miss Merlot, I believe you'll be coming with me."

In a rush of adrenaline, she threw her arm out, grabbing the cart of blood pressure gages and swinging it at the man. He grabbed it and pushed it back against her, slamming her against the wall. Her hands flew to the cart, trying to keep it away from her throat when she felt the sting of a needle in her arm. Where the hell had he been keeping a syringe? Did he just carry them in his pocket?

"Who …are…" She muttered as she slid to the floor, her vision becoming fuzzy. There was a dull pain in her forehead as she fell unconscious.

[I know these first two chapters have been short, but I promise the others will be a little more lengthy. I hope y'all had happy holidays and… stuff.]