Chapter Two

I rushed through the door to my tiny apartment, slamming it behind me and chucking my purse onto the bed. I sat down in front of my computer and pulled the business card out of my pocket, typing in the link as quickly as possible. It didn't work, because I was faster than I was accurate, and I sighed in frustration before going back and typing through the whole damn thing again, this time much more slowly.

I held the card up to the screen and double checked the address, then pushed enter when I was sure it was right. My computer quickly loaded the website, but instead of anything even slightly interesting, I was greeted with a completely black screen. I couldn't even see the address bar anymore!

"What the heck?" I muttered, staring at the screen and waiting for something to happen. When nothing did, I checked that my computer was actually still on, which it was. So what was happening?

I leaned in closer to the screen and squinted, trying to see anything that might be hiding with the help of low contrast. My nose was barely an inch from the screen when glowing, white text popped up and a terrifyingly loud voice read out the words:

WELCOME, POTENTIAL AGENT.

"Ah!" I screamed and fell back out of my chair. The screen shifted to the a spinning logo that matched the one on my business card, and the bright light was blinding even from six feet away. My speakers had been off, but the computer didn't seem to care as the voice continued to blast around my room, threatening to make me completely deaf as I tried to calm my racing heart.

SHIELD PROTECTS THE WORLD FROM THREATS IT IS NOT PREPARED TO DEAL WITH. THE JOB IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. ARE YOU PREPARED TO DO WHAT IT TAKES?

Then, flashing at the bottom of the screen:

YES, I WANT TO BECOME AN AGENT

NO, I WILL NOT JOIN SHIELD

"That's it?" I exclaimed, talking to myself. This Agent Coulson person had made it seem like this website would answer all my questions, but it hadn't answered any!

Well, I guess it had proved that this offer from SHIELD was real. I doubted seriously that anyone who wasn't with a powerful government agency could make a website this elaborate and terrifying.

I didn't move an inch from my new seat on the floor as I stared back at my now-quiet computer. The question and two potential answers were still floating on the screen, taunting me with every passing second they sat there.

I stayed like that for a little over half an hour, just staring and thinking about the choice literally sitting in front of me. Finally, I stood, still not taking my eyes off the screen.

Every instinct I had was screaming at me to click yes. The shelf full of Paula Pinske novels over my desk seemed to be agreeing, and I was having a seriously hard time holding back. But I made myself walk away and get a cup of hot chocolate first, before sitting back at my computer to actually think through this decision.

I would not decide my entire future on an impulse.

Okay, okay, I started, mulling over my choices as I sipped my hot chocolate. Pros and cons. What are the pros and cons?

Con: It's incredibly dangerous, I thought.

Pro: I don't care.

Well con, you'll never be able to have a normal life.

And pro, I really don't care.

You could die.

Or I could save the world like Paula Pinske.

Life is not a spy novel.

But mine could be!

I shook my head to clear it, then plopped my drink onto the desk. Without another thought, I turned back to the screen and clicked the "yes" button. I'd been dreaming of this for years. How could I seriously make any other choice?

WELCOME TO SHIELD.

The screen went black again.

"What the-?"

Before I could finish, my apartment door flew open. I whirled around to see three men in suits walking in, Phil Coulson leading the charge.

"Hey! I have to pay to fix that!"

"I'm glad you decided to join," said Agent Coulson, completely ignoring my complaint. He and the other two guys came to a stop in front of me, staring me down through their sunglasses.

I just stared back at them blankly. I'd barely clicked "join" ten seconds ago, and already three agents were standing in my house like they owned the place. How was that even possible?

"We're here to take you to SHIELD," Coulson continued.

"You're..." I shook my head, deciding not to comment on the broken door or how quickly he'd responded to my answer. "Agh, alright, uh... I need to pack..."

"You don't need to pack much, SHIELD will provide most of your clothes while you're training."

"Okay..."

I looked around at my room, then stood in a daze to pack a small duffle bag. I set the duffle on the bed, then turned to look at the three agents still standing in my house.

They took the hint and walked back into the hallway to give me some privacy. I took a deep breath, trying to get a hold of myself. I knew my life would change when I chose to join SHIELD, but I never thought it would change so fast!

I let myself wallow in the shock for a few more minutes, then I forced myself to keep moving. Not one, not two, but three secret agents were waiting outside my door to bring me to some top secret headquarters where I'd start learning how to do my dream job. I didn't want to keep them waiting.

I threw a few of my favorite clothes into the bag, along with my laptop and all the Paula Pinske books I could fit. I stuffed my phone in my pocket, then took one last minute to look around my apartment.

I hadn't lived here for long, but it was the first place I'd been able to call my own. It was going to be all kinds of weird to leave it.

Finally, I took a deep breath and hefted the duffle bag onto my shoulder. I walked into the hallway without looking back, and met Agent Coulson's gaze with a confident smile as we came face to face.

"Ready?" asked Agent Coulson.

"Ready."

"Good. Then follow me."

Without another word, he turned on his heel and started heading for the doors. I followed him, and with the two other agents flanking us, I felt cooler than I'd ever felt before in my life.

The four of us cleared the doors of my apartment building to see a black sedan parked at the curb. Classic spy car.

The two agents behind me moved to the driver and passenger seats, and Coulson held the door to the backseat open for me. I got in, pulling my duffle bag into the middle seat, and Coulson filled out the backseat after me. Barely two seconds after he closed the door to the car, the agent in the driver's seat had us pulling away from the curb. I glanced backwards as my apartment building shrank behind us, unable to keep a ridiculous grin off my face.

I had always dreamed of being a super spy. Now, I was finally able to start towards my dream.

I turned my attention back to the people in the car as Agent Coulson shuffled next to me, shifting my duffle bag in the process.

"Sorry, I can move this if you need me to-"

"No no, it's fine. If you don't mind me asking though... what do you have in that thing?"

I looked up at Coulson to see him poking at my duffle bag curiously. The pointy corners of the books were sticking out, and the novels weighed a lot more than a few t-shirts and pants.

"Have you ever heard of the Paula Pinske series?" I asked.

"I can't say I have. It's a book series?"

"The best book series. They're a big part of the reason I actually said yes to your screaming website."

Coulson chuckled a little, then looked back at me with a small smile. "I might just have to read one of them then."

"If you want, you can borrow one of mine," I said, unzipping my duffle and fishing out my favorite book. I held it out to Coulson, and after a second, he took it. "That one's my favorite. I've probably read it at least a thousand times."

"Wow. Are you sure you don't mind me borrowing it? I'll be honest, I might not get an opportunity to return it to you," he said, turning it over a few times in his hands before meeting my eyes again.

I paused for a second, but it wasn't hard to make up my mind. I could always buy another copy of the book.

"I'm sure. Go ahead and take it, I'm sure you're going to love it."

"Alright. Thank you very much." He paused to tuck the paperback into his inner suit pocket, then turned to look at me again.

"So, I feel like you probably have some questions for me?"

"Oh, I have so many questions."

"Ask away. We have a long drive to our first stop, and this'll be a good chance to catch you up to speed."

"Alright, well... honestly, my first question is probably a little stupid, but... were you guys just waiting around outside my house until I clicked an answer on that website?"

A small smile pulled at the corner of Coulson's lip. "Maybe. That's just one of the many secrets of SHIELD."

I couldn't help laughing a little.

"Fair enough, I guess." I paused, trying to decide on a place to start for the rest of my questions. "Okay... you can tell me if this is too broad, but... what exactly is coming? What's the next step for me?"

"The SHIELD academy," Coulson said. "You'll have to decide what you want to do at SHIELD, and then you'll have to go through rigorous training to become an agent."

"How do I decide? I don't even know what my options are."

"Well, let's change that. There are three academies at SHIELD. Communications, Operations, and Science and Technology. You'd need at least one PhD to get into SciTech, so you'll be choosing between Ops and Comms."

I nodded along so Coulson knew I understood. Nothing too complicated so far.

"Communications focuses on data analysis and running things from the behind-the-scenes," Coulson continued. "Operations trains Specialists and Field Agents, who get in and get the job done. They're probably the closest to the spies you read about and see in movies, but you should know that more people wash out of Operations than any other SHIELD academy."

"Which one were you in?" I asked.

"Communications. It's a good program," he answered. "Ultimately though, the choice is up to you. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask them, but you need to decide between Communications and Operations by the time we drop off these two in the front seat. You have about half an hour to think things through."

I nodded and leaned back in my seat, turning away from Coulson to look out the window. Ops sounded like my dream, but I was suddenly nervous. What if I couldn't take it at Ops? What if I washed out?

I sighed and watched the scenery go past. Coulson said I had half an hour to think things through, and I intended to use all of that time. But at the end of the day, following my dreams and taking chances was the reason I was in this car in the first place. I'd come this far without backing down or chickening out, so I might as well go the rest of the way.