"Flirting" Loki x Reader – Chapter 2
The sound of a glass bottle smashing against a wall made you jump, the sudden movement caused stray tears to glide seamlessly down your cheeks "… maybe it's the reason you can't see how much I love you…" you murmured to yourself before heading back towards the main lounge room, hoping the others had returned…
When the lift finally opened, the loud voices of all The Avengers reached your ears. You took a steadying breath and force a smile onto your face, wanting to forget the altercation you had just had with Loki.
"(Name)!" Steve called, trotting over to you with a large smile, "where have you been?" Your eyes moved to his cerulean blue orbs,
"I was downstairs-," Tony turned to look at you before you had a chance to finish the sentence. Telling Tony he had barely half the amount of wine and whiskey was not the best idea… Sensing your hesitation, his features dulled and a suspicious frown formed on his face,
"What were you doing downstairs exactly?" he asked. You softly chewed on your lower lip, and offered him an apologetic smile. His features became stony, "you did not…" he jumped up from his place on the couch and headed towards the lift, you turned and watched as he started to leave,
"Don't be mad at me! It was Loki's idea!" you called just before the doors to the lift closed. Steve sighed and took a soft hold of your wrist, attempting to lead you back to the other group. He only succeeded in pulling you off of your feet, and sending you hurtling towards the ground.
After helping you back to your feet and apologising profusely, Steve called someone over to the two of you, and introduced you to his friend. If you were being completely honest, it was a little odd. Steve rarely spoke with people outside of his small social circle, many people thought it was because he was shy, but you could never be one hundred percent sure...
"Buck, this is (First Name) (Last Name), (Name), this is Bucky Barnes." That name… you smiled widely when you remembered where you had heard that name before, he was Steve's childhood friend, the one who had been unfortunate enough to serve as HYDRA's assassin for several years. You offered the tall, brunette man in front of you your hand to shake, which, after a sideways glance at Steve, he accepted. You did notice that the metal arm he used was exceedingly cold, and held your hand a little tighter than you would have liked.
"It's nice to meet you," you soothingly rubbed your sore hand behind your back, not wanting Bucky to feel uncomfortable. He nodded, acknowledging your greeting, before Steve guided the two of you back to the group of other people.
The night wore on quickly, Bruce had retreated to the solitude of one of Tony's many laboratories pretty much as soon as you had arrived, Natasha disappeared halfway through, and Tony and Loki had yet to reappear from the lower levels. Once Nat left, Clint found himself growing bored quickly and decided to 'find something fun to do', so that left you, Steve and Bucky alone chatting. You had grown to like Bucky rather quickly, he reminded you of a slightly more rugged version of Steve, only with what many would consider to be a 'dirty' sense of humour. You had lost count of how many times Steve's cheeks had flushed a deep shade of red or how many times he began stuttering in response to what Bucky had said.
A sudden crash from downstairs and raised voiced caught everyone's attention. Apparently Loki and Tony were throwing something heavy and breakable at each other. Bucky looked uncertainly at both you and Steve. The blonde man let out an exasperated sigh and excused himself,
"Good luck!" you called just before he was out of earshot. He looked over his shoulder and rolled his eyes,
"Thanks," he said sarcastically, causing both you and Bucky to chuckle.
Steve had been downstairs for nearly an hour and had not returned once. You had heard a few more glass bottles break, and raised voices, but you refused to move. If Loki was in a bad mood, then screw him. You were quite content to just talk with Bucky, who you had come to realise, was extremely nice and funny beneath the cold gaze.
"So wait, how tall did Steve used to be?" a cheeky grin covered your face. Bucky laughed, and held his hand at his sternum. You giggled,
"I've seen some of the S.H.I.E.L.D. records, with before and after pictures, but… wow…" you eased forward and rested on the railing of the balcony.
"Well, isn't this a sight?" a voice called. Both you and Bucky turned back towards the doors leading inside. Loki was leaning against the glass sliding door frame, a scowl covering his features. Great… just great… he had somehow managed to slip past Tony and Steve. "Come now (Name), I thought you'd be happy to see me." He looked over his shoulder just as Steve walked into the room. The blonde man had obviously seen Loki's expression and quickly hurried towards him, however, just before he was able to join the three of you on the balcony, Loki slammed the door shut, and walked closer to you and Bucky. "This will be the last time I listen to those oafs." He growled to himself.
Just before Loki could reach you, Bucky intervened, stopping the raven-haired man dead in his tracks.
"This does not involve you," Loki spat, trying to reach around Bucky's large stature to get to you. However he intervened once again, taking a tight hold of Loki's wrist within his metal hand.
"When you approach someone in such an irate manner, it does involve me." He snarled. Loki laughed at his words and ripped his hand free,
"You think yourself better than me?!" he bellowed, a pale green tinge of magic colouring his hands. This was definitely not good. You stepped forward and raised your hands slightly, trying to calm the God of Mischief,
"Loki, st-," before you could finish, Loki threw his arms forward, encasing Bucky in the green magic. You tried to move and stop him, but Loki was faster than you, and swiftly stepped forward to clutch the other man's collar tightly. "Loki!" you yelled, reaching for his arm, however, just as you were about to touch his arm, he disappeared, along with Bucky. You were left guessing as to where he was going to appear again, you quickly searched the small balcony, noticing for the first time Steve banging harshly on the glass. He gave you a concerned look, which you returned.
A flash of light drew your attention from Steve. Loki has reappeared with Bucky, and was brutally hitting the brunette man in the face.
"Loki!" you yelled, walking forward. There was no response. Blood began to stream down Bucky's face, and covered Loki's knuckles. "LOKI!" You screamed. Immediately the raven haired man stopped, and released Bucky's collar. Quickly you moved to Bucky's side, gently prodding around the open wound on his cheek with the tip of your finger.
"Are you okay?" you asked while attempting to help him stand up straight. The brunette nodded,
"I'll be fine," Bucky looked up to the brooding raven-haired man before looking back to you. "I'm not so sure about him though…" he murmured in a low voice before heading off to explain what had just happened to a very confused and on-edge Steve.
Your chest was heaving erratically. ou tightly took hold of the metal, and leaned back against the cool railing of the balcony.
"Loki…" you said, just above a whisper. Your only reply was Loki crossing his arms, and looking away. Why was he being such a brat tonight? Why did he always ruin what little happiness you could find? And even after knowing all of this, how could you still have feelings for him? You could feel your chest heaving, but very little air was filling your lungs, the night's cool breeze felt unbearably cold, and all the strength disappeared from your legs, causing you to fall to the ground. Before you could register the pain from hitting the ground, Loki was at your side, his hand holding your shoulders flush against the deck railing. Damn him… he was always so… as you felt cold tears fall down your cheeks, you looked away, feeling ashamed to be crying for no real reason.
"(Name)…" his free hand moved hesitantly to almost rest on your cheek. However, just before his palm met your skin, he pulled away. You squeezed your eyes tightly shut, hoping to remove the last of the unfallen tears from your eyes, before wiping the cold trails of tears from your cheeks.
"Loki…" your voice cracked slightly. His emerald eyes slowly lifted to meet your own (e/c) eyes. There were so many things you wanted to say… I love you… Hold me, love me… Please stay with me… More tears blurred your vision,
"Do you wish me to leave?" he asked dully. No! No, you certainly didn't want that, but between your own overwhelming emotions, and a sudden inability to speak, Loki took it as a sign that you did. He nodded sharply before immediately getting up and leaving you… alone…
Why did your interactions with Loki almost always end up with you angry, or in tears, or hating him? You one again wiped the tears away while pulling your knees to your chest. Your body was numb, you didn't know if it was from what you had just experienced, or the cold. You had hoped it was the latter, but you had a sneaking suspicion that it was the former. Something warm wrapped around you. Your head snapped up, hoping it was Loki. You weren't so lucky though, Steve was carrying you back to the lounge room.
"You'll catch a cold if you stay out here…" he said with a sad smile. Apparently even he could see how you felt towards Loki… You sighed and rested your forehead against his chest,
"Thanks Steve…" you whispered as he placed you on the warm couch.
You looked around the room, only you and Steve were there, and Bucky was nowhere to be seen. You turned towards Steve, who was already prepared to answer your unasked question,
"He decided that it would probably be a good idea to head home for the night…" he said, taking the seat next to you. "But that isn't what's important now," he crossed his arms restlessly, "what is going on between you and Loki...?" he asked. Your eyes widened slightly, this was definitely not like Steve. Usually he stayed out of others relationships because of his own awkwardness, so why did he want to put both you and himself through the embarrassment…?
"Um…" you started, "well… I…" you felt your cheeks heat up a considerable amount.
"Do you… you know…" he rubbed his neck and avoided looking at you, "love him…?" Steve's question genuinely stumped you. Did you love Loki? Or was it just some 'school girl crush'? You closed your eyes and focused on all your memories of Loki. He was a smart ass, sly, and easily angered… but… he could also be kind, and caring… funny and even sincere… Thinking of the latter set of emotions sent a radiating warm quiver through your entire being. You smiled to yourself,
"Yes, I think I do…" Steve smiled,
"Well then, do you know what I think you should do?" he glanced sideways at you,
"Am I about to get dating advice from a 70-year old virgin…?" you asked with a smirk. A deep crimson blush coated Steve's cheeks, causing a smirk to pull at your lips. "I'm kidding Steve," you said, moving to hug him softly. His large, warm hand gently stroked your hair,
"Well-," Steve started before a knock cut him off.
"Just go tell him how you feel…" Tony piped up from the doorway. You and Steve both turned to face the billionaire.
"How long have you been standing there…?" you asked timidly, hiding your red face behind Steve's shoulder. Tony smiled softly, and walked towards you. "What are you still doing here?" he asked, ruffling your hair. You looked up to him sceptically.
"You're kidding… right? I can't just… just…" you groaned and buried your face in your hands.
"J.A.R.V.I.S. please playback the past few minutes please." Tony ordered.
"Of course," the artificial intelligence stated. A soft whirring noise echoed through the lounge, before the audio cut in.
"Do you… you know… love him…?" a mirror of Steve's voice asked. There was a slight pause, and an anxious knot formed in your stomach. No… had he really recorded the conversation with Steve…? "Yes, I think I do…" it was your own voice this time that was mirrored back at you. You hid your face in your hands and slid down to lay on the couch.
"So, (Name), the way I see it, you have two options." The billionaire said with a smug smirk, "One, go tell The Rock of Ages everything… Or two, have J.A.R.V.I.S. send a video file to everyone around the world, including Loki." You groaned and sat up,
"You are the devil Tony Stark…" you muttered while traipsing off towards Loki's room. You were sure you heard Tony and Steve softly chuckling at you. "Note to self, kill Tony when this was over…" you whispered to yourself.
You stood in front of Loki's door for a good ten minutes. You were trying to figure out what to say, what you were going to do… Your hand dropped to your side for the umpteenth time.
"How long are you going to stand out there exactly?" Loki called, his voice muffled slightly. The sudden question from Loki shocked you, because… well… you had thought you managed to stealthily sneak up to the door… Apparently not… You nervously placed your hand on the door knob and opened the door…