Thor blinks and blinks again just for effect. This can't be happening to him, but apparently the world has a cruel sense of humour because it very much is. His eyes drift from where his brand new Bugatti's bumper has been nudged by some sort of– it looks like a tank and caravan had a baby and then the baby rolled in the dirty and someone made a sort of vehicle a human is meant to drive. Not well, from the clear scratch that is travelling the length of his back bumper. He can still hear the sound of metal hitting metal, it hurts him inside. He'll have nightmares about this tonight, he's sure.
The door to the demon hybrid car opens. Thor turns, setting his brow and mouth, because he knows how to look intimidating when need be and whoever the fuck just ruined his car is going to–
"Oh god, crap! Is this your car? Shit. I'm so sorry! That pothole totally caught me off guard. Crap, and it looks like it's a really nice car. Look, I have a meeting in about 20 mins that I can't be late for – grant meetings are well… shitty, but I can't miss it." A whirlwind of words and brown hair, brown eyes, and a brown… suit (the jacket and skirt look a little too big for the slight frame that carries them, that much Thor can tell.) steals him of his words.
Then there's a hand in front of his face. Actually it's about a foot and half below it but he's been unable to look away from the small woman that emerged from that thing (he can't very well call it a car) since she stepped out her eyes annoyed, embarrassed, fierce, and genuinely repentant. He takes the card she's holding in front of his nose.
"Look here's my insurance information and card. I'm really sorry, and I'll pay it if you want me to but it looks like just a little fender bender."
"Just?" Finally his mouth starts to work again and it might not have been the best response but, try? It's clearly her fault.
Something sets in her face however. "Well, it is. Literally. It's the bumper of car. And no offense, you look like you can cover it."
Why this makes him smile, he can't quite explain. "Maybe it's not my car at all, maybe I've borrowed it from someone. Maybe I'm just standing by it."
Her face tilts and she looks between him and the car. His poor baby, Thor thinks. He can cover it, he well knows, but she's speaking again and he can't make himself stop the conversation. "You looked like you were about to cry when you checked it over and you're holding an Hermes bag."
"I could be a personal shopper." It's a present for his mother. She loves a good silk scarf.
She laughs and shakes her head. "I doubt it, but sure. If your personal shopping client slash friend has a issue and wants me to cover it then I will," she winces when she looks at her watch. "Shit, I'm gonna be late." She spins around and like that she's gone. Thor blinks. Barely catches finds her in the crowd again as she rushes into… Ah, Stark Tower. Hmm. Interesting.
Smiling to himself, he looks down at the card in his hand and takes out his phone, dialling the number printed under Dr. Jane Foster. Ph. D
It rings and rings and goes to voicemail. He's somehow unsurprised and glad all at once.
This is Jane Foster, please leave a message.
"Hello, Dr. Jane Foster Ph. D," he reads of the card. "My name is Thor Odinson, we met earlier today when you bumped into my," he coughs, adding a teasing note to his voice, "–the car of my personal shopping client. I'd like you to know that he was very understanding of the situation, but would like some recompention. He is willing to take payment in the form of coffee. Tomorrow? At one pm? The…" Thor looks around and thanks Seattle for putting a Starbucks on the corner of every city in America. "The Starbucks across the street from Stark Tower. I hope you can make it."
He hangs up, smiling. He looks at his car and sighs. And his father calls him impulsivity a bad thing. With a sad smile he pats his car and hopes at least something good came out of this.
Thor is halfway done with his venti coffee trying not lose hope. It's 1: 33pm and he's sitting alone in the Starbucks across the street from Stark Tower. He tries not be disappointed. It's not the first time his charm hasn't won someone over, but there was something was her that struck him in that quick minute of meeting. He feels truly sad he might not ever see her–
"Darcy! I just got here! I swear I can't believe you're making me do this! … Well, maybe if you stopped listening to my messages and googling poeple! … I would too listen to–" Jane looks up from her bag where she's rummaging through it and catches his eyes. He notices how she stops for second, how her hands still, and she takes a breath. It reminds him to take one too.
She still feels like whirlwind brushing across the room, but she's calmer today. Thor wants to breathe her in. Her cheeks flush and she aborts a step forward, flushing more. Thor smiles. He mouths "hi."
Turning back to her phone, she hisses, "Darcy I gotta go– Uh, yes…. GOD BYE!" He can't help but grin wider at how she ends her phone call and stuff her phone in her bag.
This time when she walks forward he stands. Jane looks up at him and tugs at her jacket. "Um, hi. Nice to meet- see you again."
"You as well." Thor pulls a chair out and watches as Jane blinks, once, twice, before she eyes him and sits. "Thank you."
"I was beginning to think you weren't going to come."
"I wasn't," she blurts, and then cringes. "Sorry, I mean. I wasn't, but no offense to you. I don't check my messages often, but, D- my assistant saw it."
"Then I am very lucky. And I understand, but I have to say I would have been only the slightly bit hurt." He says, watching her. She's not nervous, but she is… he thinks, a bit self conscious. Thor clears his throat. "I'm sorry, I did not mean to make you uncomfortable."
At that she shakes her head. "I'm not, it's just. This is is weird. People don't do this."
"Have coffee?"
She smiles slightly, crooked an eyebrow at him. "Have coffee with people who scratched up their car."
"Who says?"
This makes her pause. "Got me there. So why did you call me?"
This Thor can answer easily. "Would it be odd to say I very much wanted to see you see you again, this time, with less vehicular damage."
"It would."
"Do you mind?"
She chuckles and shakes her head. "I guess I don't."
"In that case would you like some coffee, Jane?"
She shifts in her seat, plucks at her bag strap, and then seems to make choice and settles. He didn't notice before how ready she was to leave the table, but now she sits and shrugs off her jacket. It's worn and green, it makes her eyes seems an even darker brown. "Sure. Strongest they got. Triple shot it otherwise."
"Excellent, I'll get another for myself as well," he says, downing his coffee and excuses himself to walk over to the bar. Thor looks over his shoulder for a second. She's still there, smiling back at him.
That scratched up bumper might be the best thing to ever happen to him.
