SHIELD Agent Eleanor Flint

Chapter 23

I watched the cars pass on the street below us. It was a cloudy day, it made the city look gray and ugly. My fingernails tapped against my glass of iced tea and Clint cleared his throat, breaking the long silence. I blinked out of my thoughts and looked at him. His hands curled around his cup of coffee and he watched me expectantly. 

"Hm?" I hummed. 

"You're quiet today," Clint said. 

I glanced down at the street again and sighed. "It's a gloomy day." 

I turned back to him with a thin smile and he nodded. 

"I've missed hanging out with you but I remember you laughing a lot more." Clint watched as two agents walked by us. 

I watched them as well and my eyes flicked to an agent ordering some coffee at our small coffee shop. The touch screen menu recorded his order and the coffee machine began brewing. It was convenient and popular, also good revenue for SHIELD. 

"Is everything alright?" Clint asked. 

I sat up and looked at him. "Yeah, I'm fine. How's Cooper?" 

Clint narrowed his eyes at my change of subject. "He's good. What was up with you and Reed in the hallway?" I sipped my iced tea and pressed my lips together. Clint cocked his head challengingly. "You change the subject, I'll change it too." 

"I know," I mumbled. "It's fine. Henry is just stressed out a lot, we talked at my apartment." 

"So, did talking at your apartment give you that bruise on your wrist and neck?" Clint pointed and I stiffened. 

The wrist bruise was from when Henry grabbed my wrist and twisted it. The neck bruise... well, technically that wasn't a bruise. And I'm not a very good makeup artist. I felt my ears turn pink and Clint turned pink as well. He readjusted in his seat and coughed. I propped my elbow on the table and rested my chin on my palm, covering my mouth with my fingers. Clint avoided eye contact and I suppressed a giggle. But then I started laughing. 

"You know what? Forget... forget that ever I asked," Clint spluttered. "Yeah?" 

"Sure," I snorted. 

Clint grinned with a small laugh and glanced out the window. "So, you and Reed are fine, then?" 

"Mhm," I replied. "We had a small argument, but we made up." 

"Clearly you did," he muttered as he took another sip of his coffee. I giggled and when he lowered the cup back down, his smile had disappeared. "How many arguments has that been with him so far?" 

I furrowed my brow. "I've only told you about two." 

Clint made eye contact and his brows raised. "So, there's been more than two?" 

I cleared my throat and pointed my eyes down. Clint set down his cup and folded his hands in front of his lips, waiting for me to answer. Of course there's been more than two arguments. People, friends, couples argue all the time, it's normal. I don't know why Clint was getting so worked up about it. 

"People argue all the time," I said, shrugging. "Don't you and Laura argue?" 

"Yeah, about who's gonna change the diapers," Clint replied sarcastically, but I knew it was true. "The two arguments you told me about were a little out of hand in my opinion-" 

"That's your opinion," I interrupted. "We always make up, it's fine." 

"Then why do you feel the need to tell me about them?" Clint questioned.