In the end we were made to be apart, in separate chambers of the human heart
Still weak and boneless in the afterglow, they kissed at lazy angles, contented breaths sighing through their noses as they rode out the sweet wash of endorphins. Loki should have kept his mouth shut so they could drift blissfully into dozing, but there were matters that weighed on his mind that would not remain quiet. Tony wiggled his way between his arm and his body, and Loki adjusted his arm to rest comfortably and stroke the soft skin along the length of the boy’s back. It served him right for asking—what was the saying, ‘don’t ask questions you don’t want the answer to’? Neither outcome would have put his fears to rest; even the answer he might have dared to hope for would only have made him suspect that Tony was lying to placate him. But neither was honesty any more soothing. “That doesn’t sound like you’re all too happy with how things are,” he breathed. He tried not to take it personally. Tony was far from overjoyed, seeming more like he was admitting defeat than accepting something good. Loki hadn’t fooled himself into thinking there wouldn’t be some internal conflict involved, but he’d expected something more than Tony’s refusal to grow and change. As if loving Loki was some kind of step backwards.
"I suppose that’s enough," he mumbled sleepily, "Forget I said anything."
Tony was quiet for a few moments. He'd rather pretend to be asleep and face Loki in the morning-- or not face him if Loki woke up first and chose to leave, which was always a very likely option. Loki always seemed to know when he was faking though. He buried his face in a pillow and just breathed softly through his nose, concentrating on his lover's touch grazing up and down the smooth skin of his back. He turned his head after a moment, gently bumping his nose against Loki's. "Hey, don't be like that..." he murmured softly, reaching out to intertwine their fingers. "I am happy. I'm happy loving you. But I'm not going to be a foolish optimist like I once was. I can't trust myself to do that again and not get hurt. You know how I feel about you, Lo. Nothing's going to change that."
Tony laid there content for a few moments longer, listening to the steady thumping of Loki's heart beat. "It seems like I'm always saying the wrong thing, yet you always know exactly what to say," he murmured softly, nuzzling his way closer until their bodies were interlocked again, like two pieces made to fit together. "I don't want to leave you ever again," he confessed against Loki's collar bone. His relaxed fingers curled in closer to his palms, knuckles pressing into Loki's side. "Don't let me leave you ever again."












