When Loki visits Earth, you try to make the most of it. Only, Loki doesn’t like Earth. He likes you.
AN: This is written without a lot of background plot so just keep an open mind! Trust me, this is soooo sweet!
“Every play?” You raised your eyebrows in disbelief.
Loki looked up from the book he had been studying to meet your eyes. His features were relaxed, for the first time in a long time. “Every play.”
You let out a hum and nodded as Loki peered at you. Ever since he had arrived, he had been watching you and you certainly felt it. It seemed as if every place you took him, Loki could have cared less. After trying the new cafe near your house and a failed attempt at getting Loki to paint pottery, you had resorted to your fail-safe: Dove’s Quill.
The cramped, musty bookstore had caught your eye the day after Loki left the first time. After he had zapped off Earth’s material plane, you had let yourself wander the streets to replay the memories of his stay in your head. You were across the street when you caught sight of the sign and worn, leather books in the window that reeked of mystery. In that instant, you knew you had to take Loki inside whenever he returned.
And judging by the softest of smiles you have ever seen on his thin lips, you knew you had been right. “Which is your favorite?”
“Hm,” Loki placed an old looking book back on the shelf before him. “That is difficult to pinpoint.”
“Really?” You squinted your eyes at him as you took slow steps towards him. It was funny stern his profile looked as you grew closer. His jaw was clenched, strained as he focused his gaze on the books in front of him. Almost as if he were trying not to watch you.
“Yes,” Loki replied flatly. His eyes were still faced forward, away from you, and his jaw was still tense. You leaned against the shelved and tried to steal a glance at his face. Loki’s bright blue eyes were glued to the same spine of a hardcover book, rereading the title over and over again. You clicked your tongue and shook your head.
“You have a favorite,” you teased, “you just don’t want to tell me.” Your accusation pulled Loki’s eyes to yours for a split second. His pupils were blown when he saw how close you were but he quickly focused on a new book and let out a chuckle.
“Because,” you stepped towards him again, “you’re not looking at me. You’re lying.”
You leaned in towards Loki as you spoke in the hopes of teasing him further. When Loki turned his head he met your gaze with cold eyes. You waited for him to protest, tell you that you were wrong to assume such a thing and rattle off the titles of Shakespeare’s plays to taunt you.
“I don…” Loki’s eyes softened and his furrowed brow relaxed once more. You raised a questioning eyebrow at him and you saw his chilled expression melt away entirely.
“Care to finish that sentence?”
Loki grinned and turned his eyes back to the shelf. “No, I don’t.”
“Macbeth, maybe? I could see you enjoying the drama of it all.” You watched as Loki pulled a novel from the shelf and how he pretended to read the introduction.
“No,” Loki sighed as his long fingers flicked through the pages. You narrowed your eyes at him and, as if he sensed your more pointed gaze, Loki looked up.
“Hamlet,” you mused, “it must be Hamlet.” The instant the title fell from your lips, Loki’s brow furrowed. It didn’t hit you until he spoke up.
“Too true to life for my taste, murderous brothers and all.” He waves a hand in the air as if gesturing towards the realm of his home. Loki and spared you most of the details but given you enough to know what you needed.
“Aren’t you the murderous brother?” You pointed a teasing finger at Loki who, unamused, crossed his arms over his chest. The material of his black shirt stretched with the motion and you tore your eyes away from his shoulders.
“Aren’t you smart enough to know better than to mock a god?” You stifled a laugh and dared to meet his eyes. There was a coldness in Loki’s features that, even when warmed, never entirely left him; but when you looked at him, you saw past it. He wanted to smile.
“Maybe the bookstore wasn’t my brightest idea,” you sighed and pushed yourself off of the shelves. Books shook with the absence of your weight and Loki gave the old wooden shelves a wary glance.
“Everything on this horrible planet is broken, weak,” he poked at the splintering shelf and sighed. “I need some air.”
You only nodded in response and followed Loki out of Dove’s Quill. The older man with large, salt-and-pepper beard thanked you, but Loki didn’t say a word. You gave the kind shop owner a nod before you stepped outside. The nerves in your stomach and the worries in your head were as swirled at the colors of the dusk sky above your head.
Loki, on the other hand, could have cared less. “I assume you have a new location you wish to share with me?”
A frown made its way to your lips and you racked your brain for any spot nearby that might, at the very least, put Loki in a non-hostile mood. Sadly, you glanced back at the door of Dove’s Quill and silently cursed yourself. You had hoped Loki’s love for literature and knowledge would have overshadowed his disdain for Earth’s inferiority. Although, you imagined if you had grown up spoiled by the richness Loki had at his young disposal, a crumby bookstore would have little glory in your eyes. So with a defeated sigh, you shook your head.
“I don’t.” Loki turned to face you with a quirked brow.
“I’ve shown you every place worth knowing.” You shrugged and shoved your hands in your jacket pocket. “Where do you want to go?”
Loki’s lips parted with some readied retort but nothing came your way. Instead, Loki pressed his mouth into a thin line and let his eyes fall to the pavement. He was relaxed but not happy. If he hated Earth so much, why did he insist on coming back to it? Just as you prepared to let the question go free off your tongue, Loki stepped towards you.
The scent of the bookstore still clung to his dark clothes and it took all you had not to lean into him. “Where do you want to go?”
“You heard me,” Loki pressed. “Where do you want to go, Y/N?”
His eyes were searching yours, urged to find the answer before you yourself could even think of one. Loki took another small step towards you and you felt your cheeks warm. He was so close now. You weren’t sure if it was the setting sun that made you shiver in the newfound chill or Loki himself. It must have been the latter.
“Here. Give me your hand.” Loki’s palm laid flat in front of you. As you placed your hand on top of his, another shiver ran down your spine. “Now, close your eyes. Let your mind go blank. Let a place come to you.”
“Is this some Asgardian meditation practice?” You asked wryly. Loki gave you an unamused look and you closed your eyes. “Fine.”
Loki’s hand was soft and cold to the touch. You were overjoyed that your eyes were closed when his grip on your hand tightened. Your cheeks were warm despite the coolness of Loki’s presence and you knew he was watching you. It was impossible not to feel Loki’s gaze, especially when you were so close to him.
“Let your mind go,” Loki said, his voice so soothing you feared you might get drowsy. “Don’t think.”
You wanted to tell him that was impossible. Tell him that there was no way you would be able to silence your racing thoughts with him so close to you. All you could think about was how you wanted to fall into him or scream at him for making you feel that way. Yet, you stayed quiet and tried to lean into the sound of his voice.
The moment you did, a flood of warmth wrapped around your body. Even with the chill, evening air, you felt as if someone had kicked on a small heater in your chest. You tried to search for its source, think of how you could feel so warm, but your mind was blank. Only wisps of green danced under your eyelids and it was then you found the strength to open them.
“What was….that?” When you opened your eyes, Loki was there but the street you had been standing on was not. “What did you do?”
“I brought you to where you wanted to go,” Loki said flatly. As he took in the sight around him, his dark hair fell off his shoulders. “Where exactly is that?”
You too looked around and let out a heavy breath. The sky was a purple-pink now as night began to fall, completely hugging the city in darkness. You knew exactly where you were as you peered over the tops of oak trees to gaze up at the stars.
“The park?” You tore your eyes from the sky and looked at Loki. With a raised brow, he studied you, undoubtedly trying to surmise why you wanted to go to a park of all places.
“I mean, had I known you could just zap us anywhere, the park wouldn’t have been my first choice.” Loki sighed and it was then you remembered he was still holding your hand. Your eyes found his and Loki let his hand fall to his side immediately. So much for that.
“But why this park?” Loki raised his hands and gestured to the path before you. It was a local park, nothing special aside from a few educational plaques near particular bushes and trees. Other than a few benches, lamp posts, and the paved path that cut through the man-made forest, there was little evidence that the park was made for people to use.
“It’s quiet here,” you mused aloud. You walked towards a nearby bench that was illuminated under the yellow glow of a streetlamp. “Peaceful.”
“Perhaps,” Loki agreed, his arms now crossed over his chest. You sat down on the bench, the wood was still warm from the sun which was now set on the horizon. As you made yourself comfortable, you looked up and met Loki’s gaze.
His blue eyes were glued on you, waiting and watching. You gave him a soft smile and scooted over enough to give him space to sit. Loki remained still, watching you watch him. Before you felt your cheeks heat up anymore, you turned your attention back on the stars. With your gaze averted, you could only hear Loki’s footfalls as he walked over to take the seat beside you.
“So you can just…go anywhere?” You asked, eyes still focused on tracing random constellations in the sky.
“Anywhere,” Loki replied and you looked to the side to steal a glance at him. Only, when you did, you saw that he was looking at you rather than the sky.
“Then why do you come back here?” Your breath made a little cloud in the darkness when you asked and Loki gave you a half-smile.
“You’re the one that brought us here,” he jabbed and you shook your head.
“No, I mean, here, like Earth in general.” Loki’s charming smile faded in an instant. He turned his attention to the sky to avoid your eyes. A new quiet fell over the two of you and you couldn’t help but frown. When Loki visited, you tried everything to make sure he saw the best that Earth, that mortal life, had to offer. Perhaps you simply weren’t enough.
The silence seemed to stretch on and on until you shifted in your seat. You readied to stand on your shaky legs and start the walk home. Loki would be leaving soon anyway, what was the point?
You gave Loki a puzzled look but when he turned his head to meet your gaze, you were smiling. “Romeo and Juliet?”
“It’s the peak of satire, in my opinion, dueling houses and all.” Loki let out a breath and let his eyes fall to his lap. You couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.
“You’re lying again,” you teased and leaned back against the bench once more.
“I am not,” Loki said, blue eyes widening at the claim. “I thoroughly enjoy Romeo and Juliet.” You squinted and held his gaze.
“That’s not what you were lying about,” you continued, “you like the romance.” Loki cringed and made a sound of disgust.
“No, I find that deplorable.”
“I’m sure you do,” you played along with a grin. Silence returned, only this time it was more comfortable.
“It is simply foolish to fall in love so quickly. To keep coming back to something you don’t understand.“ Loki’s comment hung in the air between you and made your heartache. Something about his tone was wistful yet it was mocking. Why must he be so hard to read?
You were fed up, filled with emotions that had nowhere to go. Anger at Loki but love towards Loki were muddled in your brain. How could he be so blind yet so bright? Why hadn’t he answered your question from before?
“Then why do you keep coming back to Earth?” You pressed the question again, even going as far as to lean towards Loki. His blue eyes lifted from his lap and met your eyes. The softness you saw in them was scary. You had never seen that before.
“Because I want to understand you, Y/N.” Never once did he look away. Loki held your gaze like a lifeline. He wasn’t lying or joking or tricking; he was telling you the truth.
“Loki, are you saying that-”
“I fell in love too quickly?” He raised a brow and you swallowed hard, but the joke came back up your throat.
“I was going to ask if that makes you Romeo or Juliet,” you teased, “but that works too.”
Loki let out a breathy laugh, something that was so rare you thought you had imagined it at first. “That makes me a fool.”
“We’re both fools then,” you replied. The humor your tone once held had been replaced with the same tenderness you saw in Loki’s eyes. He was still staring at you, the stars above your heads long forgotten now. He held out his hand to you and you took it. “Are you planning to take me somewhere?”
“Wherever you want to go, darling,” Loki drawled before he placed a kiss to the back of your hand. “I’ll take you there.”
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