Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Hawkeye & Mockingbird

Hey everyone! Sorry this chapter is so short, I decided to end it there because I'm switching to Natasha's POV in the next one. Honestly, I don't have much of an idea of what Barbara Morse's personality is like except from what I've seen of her in Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, so I apologize if she is/will be OOC. *No one is a perfect writer, so if you have any constructive criticism, comments, ideas, or suggestions, please let me know.* I'll try to put up a third chapter ASAP. Happy reading! :o)

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Tony drummed his fingers on his desk in impatience. He was waiting for Jarvis to find a suitable agent to be set up with Clint. The AI system finished scanning through all of the current female SHIELD agents and created a compilation of the best-looking and most skilled ones. Tony thought they were all pretty hot, but he knew Clint wouldn’t want just anyone. Narrowing it down to four agents, he watched all of the video footage of them, and decided the most talented yet still attractive one—some chick with the codename “Mockingbird”—would be the best match for Clint. Of course, there was always the risk of Clint actually falling for her, but then again, watching Natasha get jealous would be good entertainment.

            “Jarvis?”

            “Yes, master.”

            “Call up Bobbi Morse.” 

                                                              ❂    ❂    ❂

            Clint buried his face in his hands. How could he be so stupid? Tony was the worst person to know your secrets. He was surprised Tony hadn’t walked outside and screamed “Bird Brain loves Black Widow” to the whole world already. Still, it wasn’t worth dwelling on. Natasha would never love him back. Everyone knew Black Widow and Hawkeye were partners, best friends, but Natasha Romanoff was also famous for her for being independent, and cold. She was abandoned and trained at a young age. She didn’t know her parents; she didn’t know what love was… Their talk on the helicarrier after Clint was released from Loki’s control meant a lot to him because of just that. It was one of the few times she displayed signs of caring...maybe even love? Clint wasn't sure. Natasha Romanoff was hard to read.

            All of a sudden, Tony burst into Clint’s room. The door was supposed to be locked, but since the Avengers technically did live in his house, he could even enter an occupied bathroom if he wanted. “Hey, Big Bird!”

            Clint scowled. “Ever heard of privacy?”

            Tony pretended not to notice Clint’s bad attitude. “Of course I have. I just choose not to respect other people’s.”

            With a glower, Clint got up, ready to leave. “Well what the hell are you doing in here? Go annoy Steve or something.”

            Feigning an exaggerated hurt expression, Tony pouted at him. “I was just wondering if you wanted to grab Starbucks with me.”

            Clint chuckled. “I didn’t think you’d be caught dead hanging out with me in public. Or drinking ordinary coffee.” 

            “Normally, I wouldn’t be caught dead hanging out with you in private. And I’m sorry I’m not in the mood for kopi luwak coffee.”

            “Then what’s the special occasion?” inquired Clint. Frankly, he was a bit relieved that Tony had offered. Anything to take his mind off Natasha.

            The billionaire studied Clint, who was staring into space, evidently deep in thought. He was probably thinking about Nat, but Tony decided to keep her location (which was the mall, with Pepper) to himself. If he brought Natasha up, Clint would be too distracted to notice Bobbi. “Nothing. I just wanted you to meet a friend of mine.”

            Clint wondered what was so special about the so-called friend, especially when Tony insisted he change into something nicer. It was bizarre that Tony was making such a big fuss out of going out to a coffee shop, especially when Natasha didn’t seem to mind him in jeans and a long sleeved shirt. Still, it was hard to have a rational argument with Tony Stark, so he obeyed with reluctance.

            As he sat in Tony’s Audi, the giddiness radiating from Tony was starting to worry him. Clint shook the thought off. How many bad things can happen at a coffee shop?

            Tony parked the car with a flourish, swerving quickly and stealing someone else’s space. Clint groaned. Going out in public with Tony was a very bad idea. He exited the car and followed Tony into Starbucks. After saving the world with the rest of the Avengers, it was kind of hard going out in public without getting bombarded by fans. It’d taken some getting used to, but it wasn’t always such a bad thing, especially when it involved hot girls.

            He went up to the barista to order his drink, but Tony blocked the way.

            “I’ll pay for you. I am a billionaire, anyways,”

            Clint rolled his eyes. Tony just loved rubbing his wealth in other people’s faces. “How very gracious of you. But seriously, I’m a SHIELD agent. I think I can pay for my own drinks.” He shoved past Tony and ordered and paid for his venti green tea frap. Being kind of a celebrity, his drink was made much quicker than usual. He took a cautious sip. Fortunately, it tasted exactly how he liked it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a blonde woman sitting at his and Tony’s table. The pair was conversing enthusiastically, but about what, Clint had no idea. Tony sauntered over to Clint, retrieving his trenta white chocolate mocha.

            “Go talk to Agent Morse.” He sipped his drink, and then went to complain to the baristas.

            A SHIELD agent? What the hell did Tony do now? Clint furrowed his brows in confusion. Why was Tony trying to set him up with another agent when he knew he loved Natasha? Could Tony be thinking the same way as Clint, that Natasha would never be able to return his love? Maybe under his huge ego, Tony Stark wasn't such a jackass after all. Clint glanced again at Agent Morse, who was staring at him expectantly. She knew he was going to come over eventually. And, now that he thought about it, she was pretty cute. She had something that Natasha lacked. Friendliness? Compassion? He pushed the thought away. Thinking about Natasha wouldn’t help him get over her. Maybe talking to Agent Morse would.

            He walked over and sat down across from her with his drink, flashing her a friendly, open smile. He decided to introduce himself on a first name basis. “Hey, I’m Clint.”

            She grinned back. “I know,” she extended a hand. “Barbara Morse. But you can call me Bobbi. Do you have idea why Tony brought us here?”

            Clint chuckled. He liked Bobbi Morse. If some guy had done something like that with Tasha, she would’ve retreated back into her emotionless shell and told him off. Of course, his feelings for her lingered, he’d probably always love her somewhere deep in his heart.

            He took a sip of his drink and turned back to Bobbi. The two connected instantly, easily making conversation.

            Clint didn’t even notice that Tony was gone.