All mistakes are mine
Warning: The POVs switch back and forth between Loki and Darcy so be aware of that.
"So you're going to a club? Should I be scared you're going to almost die from alcohol poisoning?"
Darcy rolled her eyes, from the screen in front of her Steve's grin widened.
"That was one time and besides Jane is going to be there to take care of me." Which he would never let her forget, which she guess was fair since she did go a little overboard with the tequila that one time.
"Well, I guess everything will be fine then. I have to get back to work but remember that Bucky will be home if you guys need a ride back to your place." Steve was ever worrying about her, which she admitted to herself was charming at the beginning of their relationship and while it still was, she felt some annoyance creeping up at the thought of Steve being so overprotective.
"We'll be fine! Go be one with nature and all that." She envied his job sometimes, being an artist gave him a lot of liberties and being good at it gave him money and people throwing even more money at him to paint what they wanted him to paint. Even if it meant sending him to places she couldn't follow.
While she was stuck in her apartment trying to put on fake eyelashes, Steve was in Amazon jungle painting its exotic animals and landscapes. She hadn't seen him in person for over two months.
"Have fun, love you." Steve gave her a sweet smile and she smiled back before murmuring a 'you too' and logging out.
She pretended not to notice the kiss he blew her through the laptop's screen.
"I'm heading to work."
Loki looked up from his book, giving his wife Sigyn a surprised look.
"You barely got back." Less than twelve hours by his count, almost all them spent sleeping.
"Yes I know, but you know how it is." Sigyn's smile was gentle but Loki could hear the condensing tone creeping up behind it, that told him he should know better than to ask by now.
It grated on his nerves just like it had started to awhile back.
"Won't you at least eat? I-" Because heavens knew Sigyn would forget food even existed once she got to the hospital, he supposed that the saying about doctors having the worst health was true.
"I'll eat something on the way. Aren't you suppose to be getting ready for Volstagg's party?" Sigyn never forgot details, it was one of the many things Loki had been attracted to about her since the very beginning of their relationship.
"I will, Thor wants to arrive fashionably late." Which he didn't mind because it just meant he had to be there less time.
"Well have fun, please don't show up at the hospital." Her tone was teasing and he smiled at her before nodding his assent.
She gave him a tender kiss before walking out the door.
Loki stood up to go to the kitchen, where the place of food he had set for her sat untouched.
The club was the kind of club she loved.
It was big enough that it wouldn't feel full even when it was, the music was a great mix of old and new and the open bar outside was big and comfortable for when the noise inside became too much, Darcy followed her group of friends outside for a some light chatting before the true fun began.
"Jane come on! You know you need to get laid!" Their friend Sharon blurted half way through a conversation about eyeliner. Jane looked at her with a bland look at her face.
"I'm busy with work." Jane told her plainly and Darcy rolled her eyes.
"That's been your excuse for the last three years, get a better one." Darcy told her teasingly and the group laughed at large and even Jane cracked a smile at her.
"Jane no one is saying you need a relationship...just someone to relieve stress with. It will help your work, I promise." Natasha ever the logic person she was, tried to make the argument logical.
"How about you give us until midnight and if we don't find someone for you, then we won't complain about your lack of love life for the rest of the day." Darcy promised, Jane looked skeptical but she sighed and nodded in consent.
Natasha took control of the situation and made a short list of attributes they could find in the hour they had to work with.
The search didn't take very long when Natasha spotted a man with sandy blond hair walked by past their table, his name was Donald and he had all the right muscles in all the right places, the look Jane was throwing him didn't hurt either.
Jane walked out the club doors at little over twelve in the morning, hand dangling from a very well tone muscle. The blush on her cheeks noticeable even by the dark lights in the club.
The whoops and whistles from her group made Darcy giddy with good energy.
They made it to the VIP section without much incident, even if Loki thought the limousine and the way Thor led their group to make sure the club goers parted before him was a little too much.
Loki leaned back into his seat, a glass of scotch on the rocks in hand. It was his third but the effects the alcohol usually took was absent.
The club was full to the brim by the time they got there, Loki was grateful for the small reprieve of the VIP section which was secluded on a balcony over looking the dance floor. Fandral said it made the picking of conquests that much easier.
Equally, however, thanks to the glass panel that served as a wall the party goers could see them which is why Loki wasn't surprise when a group of girls waved at them.
"Should we invite them up?" Fandral asked, waving back.
"And let them suffer from your company? I think not." Loki replied cheekily, a headache starting at the back of his head and moving slowly up.
"Come one brother! Let us have some fun! After all we are not to be going to strip clubs." Thor shook his head mockingly at Volstagg, who laughed. Loki suppose he should be grateful Volgstagg's bride was firm on the idea of no strip clubs.
"Fine, do as you will." He told them while a waitress brought him another drink.
"Ladies, you have cordially been invited to the VIP booth." A guy in a suit told them while they took a break from dancing.
Darcy looked at the rest of her group, the question in her eyes was clear. The VIP booth was full of dudes who probably wanted to get their flirt on and she couldn't do that.
"We accept." Natasha, as their group leader, told him and they all gathered their drinks and made their way up the closed off stairs leading to the balcony.
The music almost stopped once she walked in, the song a low background noise.
"Welcome! I'm Thor!" The giant blond dude greeted them with literally open arms. The guys hanging out behind him shouting similar greetings.
"Hello there, I'm Fandral and who might you be?" Another blond dude stepped into her space before she could even take another step inside the room.
"Uh uh, this one is taken." Natasha cut in before Darcy herself could, she gave her leader a grateful smile and Natasha tried to steer the blond's attention towards her.
Fandral gave her a confused look before it cleared.
"You should go talk to Loki then, he's married and not being fun because he would rather be home waiting for his wife to get home." Fandral's tone made it very clear his thoughts on that.
Natasha nodded her approval.
"Sure." Darcy was quickly steered towards a man in the corner of the room, who she could barely see through the darkness he was sitting in.
"Loki, this is Darcy. Like you she's not allowed to play like the rest of us, take care of her yeah?" Saying so Fandral walked back to Natasha, who Darcy had no doubt, would make sure he spent a small fortune in alcohol before she even thought about sleeping with him.
There was an awkward moment of silence before the man pulled himself back from the shadows by standing up.
"I'm Loki." He was good looking, in a way Steve wasn't. The black slacks and crisp white button up shirt he wore adding to the good looking effect.
"I'm Darcy, were you going to go somewhere?" She didn't mind being alone, maybe she could go back downstairs and back to the dance floor even if her shoes were killing her.
"Not at all." Loki gave her a small smile before waving his hand at the empty seat besides his, she sat down slowly.
"Sorry they threw me at you, I'm in a relationship so stuff like this is less fun for me." She waved her hand at their mutual friends, some who were already heavy into the flirting.
"It's quite alright, I feel the same."
The silence with Darcy was nice.
She had lean back in her own seat and was now on her phone, Loki watched her through the darkness of his seat.
She was certainly a gorgeous looking woman and he wondered why all the males in the VIP section weren't throwing themselves at her. They were improper thoughts, he knew but it wasn't like he would act on them. He, after all, loved his wife very much.
"What is that?" He hadn't noticed her turn her attention to him and he gave her a quizzical look before she pointed at his drink.
"Scotch on the rocks." He drown the small amount that was left of his drink before the waitress appeared and asked him if he wanted another one, "Yes and one for the lady as well."
"Wait, hold on. I don't want that." Darcy protested but the waitress left without another word and Loki chuckled at the offended look on her face.
"Apologies, the look on your face made it hard to resist."
"It's just...scotch sounds icky." She pulled a disgusted face which only made him laugh harder.
"Well nobody drinks alcohol for the taste, do they?" He raised his eyebrows at her, though she more than likely couldn't see it.
"No but it can still taste good with other stuff." The waitress walked briskly towards them and deposited the two drinks in the small table between their seats.
"Go on, tell me what you think."
Darcy wasn't ashamed to say she pulled a face when she sipped the scotch, it was bitter and it left a dry taste on her tongue.
Her new buddy laughed next to her.
"That was disgusting." Though she gave the drink another look and drowned it like a shot, because it was still good alcohol and shouldn't be wasted.
"Perhaps you shouldn't have done that." Loki said next to her and she shrugged while the lightheaded feeling after the shot disappeared.
"YOLO and all that." She looked at her phone again, hoping from a text from Steve even if he hadn't promise to text, he always did.
"Are you waiting for a call?"
"No, not really. I'm hoping for a text from my boyfriend. He's out of country and working so I don't like to text him because I don't want to interrupt him." Darcy knew she could text Steve and he wouldn't be mind regardless of what he was doing, still though she rather not bothered him unnecessarily.
"I understand, my wife works more than I would like and I rarely get to see her anymore." Loki's tone was fill with sympathy and Darcy was glad to have someone who understood, because all her friends were single and carefree and unaware of relationships that crumble thanks to distance. Except Natasha, but Darcy was terrified of bringing up the subject when they both knew the man she left behind.
"It sucks doesn't it? I mean I know Steve loves me but...he's gone all the time." This two month long trip wasn't the first one he had taken, Darcy was more used to seeing him through a screen that in person.
"My wife, Sigyn, recently started her residency and she only comes home to sleep and eat and sometimes not even that." He chugged the rest of his drink much like she had and Darcy silently waved at the waitress to bring them more drinks.
"It's just hard, I feel like he's growing up to be a completely different person while he's away. I feel like when he comes back I won't recognize him anymore." And Steve was learning and growing without her, he had so many stories and seeing things instead of just hearing about them had changed his feelings and thoughts and Darcy felt like she couldn't keep up.
It was odd, how quickly the conversation how gone to their shared abandonment issues. Not that he minded, he rarely had anyone to talk to about things like this so maybe it was time he took advantage of it.
"I miss her. She used to spent her weekends with me doing nothing at all, many call her my soul mate because she understand me in ways I do not. I have never begrudged her work nor will I but the fact remains that it takes her away from me." Loki confessed to the stranger sitting next to him, aware that he would never see her again and so no harm could be done by his confession.
"I guess we're just a pair of neglected puppies." Darcy laughed without much humor and Loki joined her.
"Have you talked to him about this?" Loki wanted to know if he was the only coward.
"No. Have you?" The waitress came back with more drinks and Loki took a second to pull his thoughts together.
"I haven't. I thought about it, but I thought maybe it was all in my head? Sigyn doesn't seem any different, maybe I'm the one that has changed?" Maybe it had been a mistake to get married so young, Loki was afraid of saying this out loud because it had the power to make it true.
They sat in silence then, sipping their scotch and observing the rest of the party drink and have fun.
It was almost two in the morning and he had too many drinks to count when Darcy spoke up besides him.
"I think it's time to go home." She stood up and lost her balance, Loki tried to stand up to help her only to realize he was as dizzy as she seemed to be.
They laughed together over their drunkenness before they moved together to where Fandral was sitting with a redhead.
"Nat, I'm gonna go." Darcy waved drunkenly towards the door and Loki stifled the giggle that rose up in his throat.
"And how are you going to get home exactly?" The red head named Nat, gave them both a pointed look that made him feel uncomfortable.
"I'll walk her out and wait with her until a taxi gets here." His speech was a little better than Darcy's but not by much.
The red head gave them both hard looks before she nodded and went back to her conversation with Fandral.
"You know you should give me your number!" Darcy screamed as they walked towards the club's doors.
She was holding tightly to Loki's arm because the high heels shoes weren't going to hold up much longer, he thankfully didn't seem to mind.
The cool air outside felt nice and she let go of his arm to leaned against the wall, the street was empty and the music was gone and it felt nice.
"Are you alright?" Loki stood in front of her, the light above them let her see him better and she realized that he was more handsome than the darkness of the balcony had let her see at first.
"I don't know." She felt drunk and sad and careless and oh so very lonely.
"I don't know either." Loki told her in a breathless whisper.
"Do you want to do something stupid?" The sick feeling in her stomach told her this was a bad idea but the thought of not doing something, anything at all was more painful.
"Yes." Loki replied without hesitation and by the way he was looking at her he had the same thought she did.
She held on to his arm again as she guided them to the very back of a quiet parking lot, where Natasha had parked her car.
She was going to open the backseat with the spare key Natasha had given her in case of an emergency but the idea of being out in the open where anyone could catch them was more thrilling, so she guided Loki to the hood of the car.
She heard his breath stutter as she sat down on the hood and let her legs fall open.
Darcy's dress rode up her thighs as she let her legs open and Loki had the sudden itch to touch and to taste.
He knew as soon as she asked if he wanted to do something stupid that this is where they would end up, he said yes anyway because it was exactly the only place he wanted to be. It was indeed very stupid of them to do this, the consequences would damage their delicate relationships but Loki hadn't felt and certainly hadn't seen something so perfect in a such a long time.
Loki took the last steps to her, a fire burning inside him soothed by the touch of her skin in his fingertips. He gripped her thighs tightly afraid to let go, Darcy looked up at him with pleading eyes and he did want she requested and crashed his lips to hers.
She tasted like scotch, but the bitterness on her tongue only enhance the experience they were both sharing. Her hands traveled down his back before she abruptly moved to the zipper of his slacks, a desperation in her hands and mouth that he hadn't known could exist.
The desperation told him this wouldn't last long, it wasn't meant to be the sweet, soft exploration he often did with Sigyn. Instead this would be fast and hard and painful.
He didn't want to step away from her to get rid of her panties so instead he ripped them apart, thanking her with his mouth on her neck for her help with his pants.
He was about to enter her when she spoke.
"Wait, condom." Her voice was breathless and Loki mentally cursed the alcohol for the lapse in judgment.
He quickly put on the condom he kept in his wallet, the one Thor had given him because according to him you just never knew what would happen.
Loki entered her then, slowly because he suspected it had been awhile for her just like it had been for him.
The feeling was something he couldn't describe.
It hurt.
Darcy wasn't sure why or how, not physically because every time Loki gave another thrust the euphoric feeling only grew but at the same time something felt awkward and wrong and painful.
It hurt but she liked that it did.
Loki was trying to keep her moans quiet with his tongue but he couldn't stop the tears leaking from her eyes.
Before she knew it the feeling of euphoria grew and she was coming, Loki following close behind her.
Loki was quick to move out of her, she was grateful for the minute he gave her to gather her thoughts together while he stood aside to get rid of the condom and fix himself. She tried to do the same, closing her legs and standing up on wobbly legs. The sticky feeling between her thighs would have to wait until she got home.
"Darcy." Loki called her tentatively, probably unsure of what was suppose to happen now.
"You were suppose to call me a cab." She told him with a small smile on her lips while she tried to pull down her dress to hide her lack of underwear, which she had no clue ended up.
"Yes, of course." Loki took out his phone, still looking unsure but willing to follow her lead.
They walked back to the street in silence, awkward now after what they had done.
"You asked me for my number, do you still want it?" Loki looked away from her and towards the empty street, that would be crowded in less than an hour when the club closed.
"I don't think that's a good idea." Because then they might continue this and the feeling of horror at what she had done was already settling in the pit of her stomach.
"You're right."
The cab got there just before the silence became unbearable.
"It was nice meeting you Darcy." Loki's tone was sincere and she gave him a peck on the cheek as a goodbye before she entered the cab.
The last she saw of Loki was his silhouette as the cab turned the corner.
Loki stared at the empty street long after the cab had vanished.
There was something nagging at the him, something that felt too much like regret for his liking.
He went back inside the club to wait out the rest of the celebrations, ignoring the red head's suspicious look as he passed her and ignoring his brother's cries of merriment. He settled back into his old seat and asked for a glass of water, pretending like the last couple of hours hadn't happened.
Even as the feeling of regret made a home in the base of his spine.
"I'm sorry I was gone three months." Steve was hugging her tightly and she couldn't quite let go yet.
"You're here now." And even though it wasn't all that matter, she can't help but not care.
"Let's go home." The smile he gave her is award winning and the small bubble of self hatred grows a little bigger.
"Home." Naively she hopes the love she feels for him carries them through her mistake.
Even if that bubble felt ready to pop.
"You're beautiful." Loki told his wife as they dance to a slow song, the floor filled with couples sharing the same sentiment. Volgstagg and his new bride in the center of it.
"Thank you." Sigyn took the comment gracefully, just like she always does.
"Do you remember our wedding? It felt very much like this." Loki still remembered it vividly, Sigyn looking ethereal in her wedding dress and the rushing of happiness when she had said 'I do'.
"Of course, it wasn't so long ago. I still love you as much as I did then." Her eyes softened and Loki felt the weight on his back get a little heavier.
He pulled her closer so he doesn't have to look at her eyes.
The doctor came back, a thin lipped smiled telling her what she already knew.
"Would you like an ultrasound? We can determine the time of conception better if we can get a peek, and wouldn't be nice to see your baby?" He said it sweetly, with the bedside manner she supposed all doctors had.
She didn't need the ultrasound to know who it belonged to, Steve had only been back for a month but it wasn't her first missed period.
Darcy knew perfectly well the baby wasn't Steve's but Loki's.
"I'd like that." If her eyes were swimming with tears the polite doctor didn't mention it, only pulled up her gown to reveal her stomach.
"It's going to be a little cold, so hold on okay?"
She stayed quiet through the set up, her eyes drowning in tears because how had she let things get that bad? What was she going to tell Steve?
"Ah, there's the tiny person." The doctor gently guided her eyes to the screen where something that resembled a bean showed in the white and black screen, she thought the thump thump she heard in the room was her own heart beating out of her chest but realized brokenly that it was her baby's heartbeat she was hearing.
"Would like a copy of the ultrasound?"
"Yes."
Dinner with his parents was quiet, Thor wasn't there to entertain them with his antics and Sigyn was once again too busy working to bother with their family dinners.
It was just the three of them and Loki couldn't quite handle what was sure to be an interrogation.
"Sigyn working again?" His father asked, nothing but forced politeness in his tone.
"What else?" He winced at his own sulky tone.
"Loki, is everything alright?" His mother ever the worrier asked him, Loki nodded and continued to focus on his soup.
"If there's something wrong you have to tell us." His father's tone wasn't caring but icy and Loki knew it had more to do with the fall out of a divorce rather than his well being.
"Nothing's wrong." He looked at his father straight on, wondering if word had gotten back to him about his meeting with the divorce lawyer, the meeting he had arranged that morning still heavy on his shoulders.
His parents let it rest and they went back to their silent eating.
"Thanks for helping me pack." Though there wasn't too much too pack since most of everything was Steve's, still she appreciated the company of her best friend.
"No problem, you know I'm here for anything." Jane threw her a smile from her spot on the floor, where she was busy putting books in a cardboard box.
Steve was gone again, an art gallery opening in Paris where he was the main attraction.
He wasn't coming back for another week which meant she had plenty of time to move out, before he came back and she lost her courage to do the right thing.
She still had to tell him everything, she owed him that much but it was hard to think about breaking someone's heart and it was also hard to think that when she found a way to contact Loki, she would be breaking a marriage too.
That was, of course, if Loki even wanted to do anything with her and the baby.
The three quick knocks on the door surprised her and Jane, her friend gave her a panicked look before going getting up to see through the peephole.
"It's Bucky." Jane mouthed to her and Darcy felt her heart stop for a second, Bucky was going to break her in two.
"Let him in." He had to find out at some point and maybe she wanted a chance to explain herself, even if the excuse was as thin as paper.
Jane opened the door slowly and said a quick hi to Bucky before running to the kitchen, Darcy braced herself as she saw Bucky come in with all the carelessness he usually did.
"What's up with Jane? She okay? She sound a little-" Bucky stopped abruptly when he saw the half full boxes littering around the room.
"I'm leaving Bucky, I'm leaving Steve."
Bucky's furious expression was just a sweet preview of what expected her when she told Steve.
Loki wondered sometimes if Darcy's relationship was going better than his, if their indiscretion actually helped to solidify her relationship instead of breaking apart like it was his.
He wondered a lot of things about Darcy, which was an infidelity in and out of itself.
"My parents want to have dinner with us, soon I think. Mother is still trying to talk us into having children, I'm so tired of reminding her you and I talked about waiting for my career to grow before we have children."
Which was odd, because Loki couldn't remember touching on the subject of children before or after their marriage. Another red flag he had missed, how many did that make now?
He stared absentmindedly at his wife, who was eating at a brisk pace since she only had enough time to talk and eat before dashing out the door again. It was a frozen meal and not home cooked, Sigyn hadn't noticed.
Darcy was waiting for him, sitting on the couch they had picked together more than two years before. Her things were still in boxes, waiting a destination in Jane's apartment.
Steve's face was radiant when he went through the door, the smile on his face slowly disappearing after realizing the living room was half empty.
"Darcy? What's going on?" The confused look on his face made her tear up.
"We need to talk." And that sounded so final to her ears, by the look on Steve's face it was the same for him.
He set down his things carefully by the door before sitting down on the love seat next to the couch.
"You're...leaving." Steve squeezed his hands together and looked at the floor, his usual stance when he heard something he didn't like.
"I'm..." A sob escaped her lips before she composed herself.
"I'm pregnant." And it was such a rush to say it because it had ruined her relationship with Steve but she was also hopeful and happy about something she didn't think she would have for a very long time.
"Is it..." There was hopefulness there and she hated to kill it.
"I'm almost three months pregnant." And then his expression completely fell, because he knew now what she had done. Something she said she would never do.
So she sat there and explained everything, how she had met Loki, how they had bonded over scotch and loneliness, how she had drunkenly propose they do something stupid and how Loki had accepted.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry I wasn't good enough for you." Her tears stopped, Steve's own tears making her feel hollow and unworthy of them.
There was nothing else to say, nothing else to do so she got up to give his wet cheek one final kiss before leaving.
"I love you." Steve murmured next to her ear and she almost broke again with the weight of Steve's broken heart in her hands.
"I loved you too." And then she was leaving without looking back and it would be a very long time before she saw Steve again.
Loki found that sometimes saying nothing at all was helpful, regardless if the only thing you wanted to do was speak your mind.
"I'm jealous, I only wish I could find something like you and Sigyn posses." Thor was eating his steak noisily, sudden midlife crisis presented by his brother who had never talked about settling down before.
"I assure you Thor, it's not that hard." Loki knew his smile was more on the grimace side than he would have liked.
"Nonsense! Are you going to eat your food or just stare at it?" Thor's expression was friendly even if the look on his eyes spoke more of concern.
Loki dutifully picked up a fork full of pasta and swallowed down, he knew he had to keep his family as far away from the talks of divorce that no one else and his lawyer knew about even if he had to pretend nothing was wrong.
His phone rang suddenly, interrupting the uncomfortable silence that had descended on their table. It was an unknown number but he decided to pick it up anyway, if only to break the uncomfortable silence.
"Hello?"
"Umm hi? Is this Loki?" The smooth, feminine voice on the other side of the line sounded familiar enough that his heart skipped a beat when he recognized it.
"Darcy?" And damn the incredulous look Thor was throwing him across the table.
"Hey Loki, I didn't think you remember me." The little breathless laugh at the end made him smile widely, during the couple of hours they had spent together Loki had learned there was much more to Darcy if he just bother to look. He wanted to look and he promised himself that if she was single when he finally got enough courage to go through with his divorce, he would call her and ask her to dinner.
Maybe she had beating him to the punch, even if he was still married.
"Don't be ridiculous, of course I do." Insane really, the notion that he would forget her.
"I hope you don't mind but I got your number from Fandral. I was really hoping we could meet, soon if that's okay with you?" There was something he couldn't quite detect in her voice, something that sounded like fear or apprehension. Regardless of what it was, Loki found himself giddy over the thought of seeing her.
"Yes, tomorrow for lunch?" Which suddenly didn't feel soon enough for him.
"That sounds great. There's this nice place I know, I'll text you the address."
"Great, I'll see you there Darcy." Thor's frown deepened and Loki noticed he had stopped eating too.
"Cool, bye Loki." And then she hung up and Loki went back to his food in better spirits.
"Loki, as your brother I'm asking to be careful with whatever this is." Thor motioned towards his phone and Loki had the sudden urge to snap at him to leave him alone.
"Relax Thor, it's just lunch. There's nothing to worry about."
Jane had asked if telling Loki was a smart idea, Darcy had been appalled at her question though she kind of understood the reasoning behind it.
Financially speaking she didn't need the support, the money she had in her savings account was a nice amount and her PR job at Stark Industries payed her incredible well, never mind that their maternity leave and daycare was the best in the country. Emotionally the baby would be fine, she herself had grown up with a single mom and knew what the job entailed.
She never thought of not telling Loki though, regardless of what he said, she knew he deserved to know. Deserved to know about the pregnancy and even if he said no to knowing him his kid then she could go to sleep at night with a clean conscience.
Darcy hoped he didn't say no because she couldn't imagine telling her own child that his father didn't want him, that maybe his dad had decided to make a family with his own wife, someone who he had pledged to love for the rest of his life.
It was that fear of ruining two lives that her kept rooted inside car, sitting alone in the parking lot of the restaurant she told Loki to meet her in. She had, unfortunately, exhausted all her courage when she broke up with Steve and she didn't have anymore to composedly tell Loki in front of other people that she was pregnant with his child.
So she sat there, phone buzzing next to her, as her tears started to swell up in her eyes for the million time that week.
Loki called Darcy again, checking his watch just to make sure he wasn't wrong on the time and knew that no he wasn't wrong and Darcy was twenty minutes late.
Her phone went once again to voice mail and Loki found himself at a lost, had something happened? Had Darcy decided not to show up after all?
Defeated, he walked briskly back to the parking lot and stopped short when he saw Darcy sitting inside a car, eyes glued to the steering wheel.
Confused now, he walked towards her window and knocked. Inside the car Darcy jumped and turned to look at him, that was when he noticed the tears staining her cheeks.
It was an odd sight and Loki found himself unsure of what to do, for a minute they stared at each other before Darcy made a motion to the passenger seat. Loki dutifully rounded the car to do as told.
"What's wrong?" He asked as soon as he closed the door but Darcy didn't answer and simply went back to staring at her steering wheel, both hands gripping it tightly.
There was another moment of uncomfortable silence before Darcy laughed humorlessly.
"I'm the most horrible person in the world, I broke Steve's heart. I broke it and now I have to live with it the rest of my life, Steve has to live it with it the rest of his life. How he is going to trust someone again? How could I have done to him? God, to your wife?" Darcy was full blown sobbing now, Loki tried to touch her shoulder but she shied away and he dejectedly leaned away from her.
"Darcy, I'm sorry." He didn't know what else to say, didn't know what was happening.
"I'm pregnant." She turned to look at him then, her eyes red and tear filled.
"But then why did you and Steve-"
"I'm three months pregnant." And then she turned back to stare at her steering wheel while he processed in silent disbelief what she was trying to tell him.
Three months before had been the night of the party for Volgstagg, the night Darcy and himself had spent those few hours together. Three months ago when they had their little indiscretion, from which the worst thing he thought could result in was their broken relationships.
He had been wrong, which Loki was starting to realize was a new theme in his life.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry I messed up this badly." Darcy was looking at him again, a deep pain rooted inside her eyes.
"We both did this, you didn't make this decision on your own. Darcy, do not blame yourself for this, there were going to be consequences. We both knew as much." He was still swimming with the realization of his new found fatherhood, but he knew in that moment it was Darcy's feelings that were important.
"I...I don't know what's suppose to happen now." She looked so lost, so confused and he just couldn't help but to cup her cheek with his hand and wipe away her tears with his fingertip.
"We'll figure it out." And he knew that they could, knew they could make something good out of it even if didn't feel like it quite yet.
Darcy gave him a watery smile and offered to show him her ultrasound. Loki couldn't remember being more excited to see a picture in his entire life.
"Are you going to let it spread?" Jane held out a cup of water and Darcy gratefully took it.
"I'm sure Bucky already did." Bucky first priority would always be Steve and Darcy couldn't begrudged him that.
"Has Natasha called?" Jane's worried glace told Darcy that she had gotten a call.
"No, but she sent a text telling me we needed to talk." And if she had ignored said text then it wasn't no one's business but her own.
"Darcy I'm sure everything will be fine. When it's Loki going to talk to his wife?"
"Today." That was the reason why she was gripping her phone so tightly, the call she would get was hopefully from Loki telling her everything had gone okay.
It felt like her baby's happiness depended on it, even if she knew that wasn't true.
He was sitting down on their kitchen table, divorce papers stacked neatly in front of him.
The first thing Sigyn always did when she got home was go to the kitchen and look for food, which is exactly what she did as he waited for her.
"Loki, what are you doing?" Her puzzlement increased his anxiety, right thing to do or not the whole thing felt quite like torture.
"I want a divorce." He wouldn't talk circles around it, not when there was a baby on the line now.
There was a moment of shocked silence before Sigyn composed herself.
"What? I don't understand." Something in her voice broke and Loki closed his eyes for a long moment, he couldn't bear to look at her as he broke her.
"I have felt displeased with this marriage for some time now. It occurs to me that is not the way I wish to live." And it wasn't, it really wasn't. "There is another matter as well, something else that fuels my decision."
"What is it?" Sigyn sat down slowly in the chair in front of him, dazed look on her face.
"I got another woman pregnant." Loki wanted to close his eyes again because it just sounded so crude, so cliché.
"How? I don't..." Sigyn replied, looking at anywhere but him.
So Loki explained how he met Darcy the night of Volgstagg's party, how they have talked and bonded over their absent partner, how they had left together and finally how Darcy had told him a couple of days before about her newly discovered pregnancy.
He waited silently for her to say something, anything that would condemned him to a life of guilt or absolve him of it.
"When are you leaving?" Her voice was steady, her eyes clear and Loki knew she would be fine.
"Tonight, right now." There was nothing else left there for him, the apartment was hers per their prenuptial agreement and he could have someone pick up the rest of his things at a later date.
"Shall I call you to arrange for your things?" Sigyn stood again and he did so too. The strong set of her shoulders told him she would processed this like everything else in her life, clinically.
"I would appreciate it." He tapped the divorce papers and her eyes flashed with pain before she gave him a blank look.
"Goodbye Loki." Sigyn left to their bedroom, hers only now, for her usual after work shower.
"Goodbye Sigyn." Loki told to the empty kitchen where he once told her about growing old together.
He silently made his way to the door, ignoring everything he was leaving behind.
"Natasha! Come in!" Jane's voice reached the guest bedroom where Darcy was currently staying.
Darcy silently panicked, she thought of locking her door but knew that would never keep Natasha out.
"Darcy, you didn't answer my texts." Natasha was standing on her doorway, arms crossed and eyebrows raised.
"No, I didn't." She answered back like a scolded child.
"Why not?" Natasha came in the room, taking a seat next to her on the bed while Darcy tried to come up with a response.
"Because...because I care about what you think, I know Steve was your friend first and I don't want you to have to pick a side. I know how hard you tried to take care of me while Steve was away, I think you knew what I was going to do before I did it." Which was true, Natasha always made the guys hitting on her go away. Darcy hadn't realize how much Natasha was more like a babysitter to her than an actual friend sometimes.
"You know this isn't high school right? I don't have to pick a side, you're friend and I value you as much I do Steve." Natasha said softly, as if unsure of her own train of thought which Darcy didn't think was possible.
There was a pregnant pause before she continued.
"Maybe you're right, I did know what was going to happen because I recognized my own mistakes in the once you were making." The sigh Natasha let out was long and deprecating. "That was my own fault and I'm sorry for it. I knew Steve being so far away for so long was eating at you, I knew you were going to fall off the horse just like I almost did once and I knew as soon as Loki came back to the club what had happened and that I couldn't have stop it, no matter how much I wanted to. I didn't say anything because I hoped...but your relationship with Steve was already falling apart wasn't it? Even if Steve himself didn't know it."
"Yes, it was." She knew Natasha wouldn't say it outright, how her relationship with Bucky had deteriorated but knowing their own mistakes were so similar made her feel closer to her.
"I hate how things went down but you're my friend Darcy, I'm not going to abandon you." And Darcy knew she meant it, Natasha was a friend for life and Darcy hugged her in gratitude.
"So, Natasha is a really pretty name."
"I'll keep it in mind."
He purposely timed his talk with Sigyn only a couple before talking to his family, making sure the amount of them finding out before he told them was minimal.
Dinner was served on time and his parents went through the usual routine of small talk before the brothers were allow to talk about more pressing issues.
"Loki, where's Sigyn?" His mother asked politely and Loki sat down his fork, knowing it was now or never.
"Actually, I wanted to talk about something related to her." Loki swallowed hard, trapped between his mother's curious stare, his father's blank one and Thor's accusing one.
"What is it dear? Is she alright?" His mother put her hand on his and Loki looked down to his plate.
"We're getting a divorce." And if he felt like a child confessing to a misdeed then it was no one's fault but his own.
There was a moment of shocked silence before his brother erupted with angry questions. Loki chanced a glance at his parents while Thor continued to rant about the call he gotten from that girl, his father looked disappointed but not surprised and his mother had a worried look on her face.
"Thor stop." Thor's voice caught in a small scream before he did as told.
"Father, I-"
"Loki, I hoped this wouldn't happen but I did receive a warning." His father's tone was strict and Loki knew then that he didn't have a chance in hell of keeping his talks with his lawyer quiet, not when his father stood in the elite and everyone wanted to appease him. "I do, however, think you and Sigyn should try to give this another chance."
"I don't. It wasn't just my unhappiness in the marriage that made it fall apart, I had a little indiscretion you see and I got another woman pregnant." There was defiance in his voice, because this was his life now and because he couldn't change it. He wouldn't, not even if he was given the choice.
"Loki!"
"Sigyn is a good woman! How dare you!"
"Loki think about what people will say!"
It was that last protest, his father's, that broke something inside him.
"Yes father, indeed what will people say?" The anger feel freeing, because his father would only care about their image, about how other people saw his little indiscretion.
"Loki..." There was a warning in his father's voice but Loki matched the anger in his eyes and kept going.
"Do you think they'll condemned me? The same way they praise my relationship with Sigyn and told me getting married to my soul mate was the greatest idea, how they couldn't wait for our wedding even though we were children and hadn't grown up enough to make those kinds of decisions. Caring about what other people will say it's what got me into this mess to begin with, I will not make the same mistake again. You either accept this for what it is, or I walk away because in a couple of months I'm going to have a child to think about and he will not be raised wondering what other people will think of him." He got up, fully intending to leave. Already preparing for the heartbreak for when no one stopped him.
"Loki." It was his mother's tender voice that froze him.
"Sit down brother." Thor's anger about Sigyn seemed to vanish and instead he looked forlorn.
His father simply gave him a stern look before nodding, Loki gratefully sat back down.
"You do understand that at the very least we need a paternity test." His father told him and Loki nodded, remembering Darcy telling him that they were bound to ask and how she was completely fine with it.
"Well, when do we get to meet her?" His mother gave him a smile and Loki finally relaxed.
"Are sure this is a good idea?" Meeting Loki's parents was terrifying, she never had to meet someone's parents before. Steve's parents were both gone and before that none of her boyfriends lasted long enough to go that extra step.
"It'll fine, I promise." He helped her out of his car, his hand hot as he laid it on the small of her back. The sun was high in the sky and instead of guiding her to the big front doors, Loki guided her towards a beautiful pathway leading to the a backyard that look more like garden.
The three people waiting for them were standing in front of a big, circular table already filled with food.
"Darcy, this are my parents Odin and Frigga, and I'm sure you remember Thor, my brother." Loki motioned to each one and Darcy took all their hands hesitantly, unsure of her standing.
"It's a pleasure to see you again." Thor gave her a gently smile and she relaxed slightly.
They sat down to eat and the silence was more pensive than uncomfortable.
"So Darcy, what do you do for a living?" Loki's mom, Frigga, asked her kindly and Darcy threw Loki a look that reminded them about their earlier conversation about impressing his parents.
"I work in the PR department in Stark Industries, I mostly work image consultation for Pepper Potts but once in awhile I get stuck with Tony." She hadn't meant to say the last part, but Tony was a pain to deal with and she couldn't help it. Loki smothered a laugh next to her and she kicked him on the shin.
"I can't imagine that's easy." The question came from Loki's brother.
"No, Tony is his own brand of trouble. He doesn't really cooperate and he'll do something moronic just to give us something to do, or at least that's what he says" Tony was an enigma and she honestly wouldn't wish him on anybody.
"You know, I worked with him once and I decided that was enough." Loki's dad, Odin, said and for the first time since she saw him, he doesn't look like he's smelling something foul.
"I was wondering if it would be alright for me to join you in your next doctor's visit." Frigga asked her, once there is a lull in the conversation about the disaster known as Tony Stark, and Darcy didn't know what to say.
"Sure, that would great." She wondered how much Loki told his mom about her own lack of one, and how much she craved a parental figure to share her pregnancy with.
Loki looked puzzle but happy and Darcy knew this wasn't his idea, Frigga was actually willing to spend time with her.
Darcy squeezed Loki hand underneath the table, Loki gave her a smile and did the same.
"Where are we going?" Darcy was sitting next to him in his car, perfect picture of summer with her jeans shorts and ray ban sunglasses.
"Patience is a virtue." He laughed when she growled at him, clearly not amused.
He was driving them to house that he hoped him and Darcy would call home. He had only left Sigyn's apartment less then a month before and he was already tired of living with his brother, he knew him and Darcy needed a permanent place because as much as he could see Darcy adored her best friend Jane, they weren't going to last long living together.
The house had belonged to his grandmother, the last place where she lived and it was empty thanks to his mother's refusal to sell it after his grandmother's death. It was a perfect place, it wasn't too far from their jobs and it already came furnished.
"Here we are." Loki declared once they were standing in front of the house, it still had the same pale yellow shade his grandmother had chosen but it could more than do with another paint job.
"Where's here?" Darcy asked him as he guided them up the porch stairs.
"This is my grandmother's house, left to my mother and given to me. Darcy, I want us to live here." His voice was earnest, he had come to the sudden realization that he needed this. Needed to have a home, a family and he had a real chance with Darcy, if she let them.
"Live together? I mean I know we're going to have a baby but isn't this too soon?" He could understand the apprehension, silently he opened the door to the house and motioned her in.
The house was bright and lively, just like his grandmother had wanted it. Loki showed Darcy the living room and sat down, completely expecting them to continue their talk.
"When I was planning my divorce from Sigyn, I thought maybe I could contact you after if you weren't with Steve anymore." He told himself time and time again that there had to be a reason why Darcy had compelled him to do something, very much unlike him, that night.
"Did you?" Darcy looked unsure.
"Yes, Darcy I know it's very soon but I want us to try. There's no reason why we couldn't, unless you don't wish to." Which was a real possibility.
"No, I do...it's just...what if it doesn't work? And technically speaking you're still married." Darcy had tears pooling her eyes and he sighed knowing this wasn't going to be easy. Perhaps it wasn't supposed to be, maybe it was suppose to be hard and difficult so he and Darcy could appreciate all the more. His relationship with Sigyn had been the easiest thing in the world and maybe that had ultimately been their downfall.
"None of it matters, this matters." He pointed between, "It matters that we try, I want to try. I don't believe in coincidences, I like to believe everything happens for a reason and I believe we're sitting here, together, for a reason. Please, can we just try?"
"You talk so pretty, did you know that?" Darcy's laugh was strained but happy and Loki relaxed slightly.
"Well I may be an accountant but I did learn a thing or two from all the lawyers in my family." He gave her his best smile, the one he wanted to reserve only for them and their baby.
"We can try, we can live here." She looked around the room and Loki gave her hand a squeeze.
"Darcy, we know where we went wrong before, I know we can learn from those mistakes and not make them again." He stood back up, taking her hand to pull her with him.
"Now, why don't you let me show you around? There's a room upstairs that would work perfectly for a nursery."
I hope you guys enjoyed this, honestly I'm not into cheating stories but for some reason I really wanted to write this? Did you guys notice I tried to write a whole story in a one shot?
I'm actually wondering whether at the end of the story you guys felt more compassion for Loki and Darcy or Steve and Sigyn (or all four?), seriously I'm curious to know what you guys think about it.
As always I'm looking for a beta, I can't seem to catch one. You guys are elusive, but seriously if any of you have any experience being a beta and you like my writing enough to correct it, please send me a message or leave me a comment.
Thanks again for reading!