It was finally lunchtime. Natasha had made it through the morning with only being able to see Loki briefly at their lockers and during English. As Natasha made her way through the crowded cafeteria towards the large double doors that led towards the courtyard, she noticed something out the window. It was the familiar tall, dark, and handsome figure of her favorite bad boy, sitting underneath a shade tree. As she made her way out the large doors and towards the figure, she completely ignored her friend's laughs and words of invitations for her to join them. Instead she made her way towards the edge of the courtyard, sitting her tray and bag down next to Loki.

"Hey you. Need company?" Natasha asked playfully, plopping down next to Loki, who was eating a green apple while reading a book.

"Sure. Why aren't you sitting with your friends?" Loki asked, a hint of flirtation in his voice. Natasha blushed at the way he looked at her briefly before continuing reading.

"I figured I sat with them everyday since sophomore year, they won't miss me for a little bit." Natasha replied, subconsciously messing with the silver necklace hung around her neck. Loki noticed the necklace earlier and recognized it from the photos in Natasha's home of her mom. He had enough knowledge on diamonds and stones to know it was the birthstone for December.

"Nice necklace." Loki stated randomly once she finished her sentence, putting the book in his bag and putting the apple back in his brown lunch bag.

"Oh this?" Natasha questioned looking down; just noticing she was playing with the stone around her neck. "This was my mom's. After you started to ask about her, I remembered she actually left a few things behind." Natasha answered sadly, looking away from Loki's intense gaze upon her face.

"I'm sorry I asked." Loki repeated his familiar words from earlier to her.

"It's ok. I'm actually glad you reminded me of it. It was hidden in my closest with a box of her things. I should probably go through them." Natasha stated, looking off towards the east. She remembered her move out here like it was yesterday, the look upon her father's face when they had to pack up their small townhouse in the Bronx. Her father hadn't wanted to leave the house he and her mother had bought together, but he couldn't afford it and raise his daughter in a dangerous neighborhood. So instead he opted to move further from the city, picking the small county of Marvel, and settling in the heart of the county.

"Do you need a ride home?" Loki asked, changing the subject and drawing Natasha out of her thoughts.

"No. Jane and I are going to hangout after school, so she'll probably give me a lift. Thanks though." Natasha blushed lightly; she had her own car parked in her garage, but somehow she enjoyed riding with Loki. "But you can come over once I get back. We should probably go over this English assignment, especially since I can't quote anything about Fitzgerald." Natasha added, slightly blushing at the thought of spending more time with Loki.

"Sure thing. Just text me and I'll come over." Loki replied, smiling back at the blushing redhead.

Soon the lunch bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. The students began to file back inside the school, resuming their classes. Natasha headed towards the school's roof, deciding to spend some more time outside. She had lost sight of Loki once the school bell had ringed, he probably was back at the garage working on some car. She was slightly disappointed that she wouldn't be able to see the dark haired Odinson, but decided to push those feelings and thoughts out of her mind. As she opened the door to the rooftop gardens, her eyes instantly fell upon the dark haired and even darker dressed teen sitting on once of the benches continuing his book.

"Hey, are you following me?" Loki joked, hints of sarcasm within his tone. He smiled nonetheless at her, and moved over to make room for her. Natasha nodded her thanks.

"No, actually I didn't realize you knew about this place. It belongs to the science lab; Professor Selvig wanted it made to test some outside experiments and stuff. I don't think he intended it to be used as a place for teenagers to hangout at. But it works both ways." Natasha concluded, pulling out her laptop and clicking the Safari app, deciding to do more research on F. Scott Fitzgerald.

"So what do you need to know about, 'The Great Gatsby'?" Loki asked, eyeing her screen.

"Just some basics of the story, plot, characters. Stuff like that." Natasha said, eyes still scanning the SparkNotes site that she pulled up, quickly skimming over the contents on the screen.

"You know I've actually red the book, instead of opting to watch the movie. I could tell you more about it then this website." Loki said, motioning towards the screen. Natasha sighed, she guessed it wouldn't hurt to have her project partner's opinion. She closed her laptop and placed it back in her backpack.

"Ok shoot." She said, turning her body towards Loki and watching him with her blue eyes.

"Ok well, the narrator is Nick Carraway, who is telling the story from his perspective on how he meets Jay Gatsby and his overall impression of the man throughout their friendship. Daisy Buchanan is Nick's cousin and Gatsby's old lover. Jay Gatsby is the protagonist in the story, although he's not the narrator. He's in love with Daisy. He's filthy rich, young, and handsome. He lives in West Egg, a fictional part of New York where the newly rich lives. No one is quit sure how he made his fortunes, but it's from doing something illegal. The story basically is; Nick visits his cousin Daisy and her husband Tom. Then he meets his neighbor; Jay Gatsby. The two become friends and Gatsby learns that Daisy is Nick's cousin and wants him to invite her over for tea so he can see her again. After that, Gatsby and Daisy have an affair. Finally Tom, Daisy's cheating husband, finds out about the affair and confronts Gatsby. In the end, Tom's lover is murdered, accidently, by Daisy, Gatsby takes the blame for it, Tom's lover's husband is so heartbroken he murder's Gatsby because Tom told him that he killed his wife. And then he takes his own life, Tom's lover's husband. In the end, Gatsby, Tom's lover, and her husband are all dead. Nick moves back to the Midwest and Daisy and Tom live happily ever after even though they were the cause of three people's death." Loki finished. They were already halfway through their free period.

"Wow sounds like a whole lot of crap thrown into a book." Natasha concludes, feeling somewhat sad even though she's never red the book.

"It is. Such a tragic love story." Loki admits, looking back towards the horizon. Natasha follows his gaze and sighs, subconsciously leaning her head against his shoulder, not realizing how close they were actually sitting. It felt so right, neither Loki nor Natasha wanted to return to class when the bell finally rang.

After free period was over, Natasha resumed her classes, barely listening to her teachers, thinking more about her family issues, and especially Loki.

How could he come so close? I've known Jane since seventh grade and even she doesn't know the whole story about my mom. Snap out of it Romanoff! You can't like Loki. I mean sure he's handsome and cute, funny and he-oh God! You're falling in love!

Natasha suddenly felt sick to her stomach at the thought of being in love with Loki. She had just met the guy, and suddenly her teenage hormones were kicking it into high gear.

Finally the final bell rang, signaling the end of the day. Natasha had just finished pulling on her clothes and reapplying her make-up. It was after gym and the girls and her were all talking. It was only Tuesday, but they were all making up their weekend plans together.

"So we're all going over to the mall after school on Friday then we'll head back to Jane's house and spend the night?" Maria was asking the girls, getting a confirmation. The other nodded in unison and suddenly turned towards Natasha.

She hadn't spoken a single word during their entire conversation, and she had a faint blush and a light smile on her face, causing the rest of the girls to question her sudden happiness.

"Hey Tasha, what's up? Why you're suddenly giddy?" Maria asked, stepping close to her friend and looking at her directly in the eyes.

"Oh you know, normal hormone stuff." Natasha lied, giving her friends a reassuring smile. She knew it wouldn't be good to mention Loki to them just yet, she heard from Jane that Pepper and Peggy didn't particular like the new boy. Apparently he had "insulted her" after lunch yesterday and she decided he wasn't to be trusted. Natasha knew better then to stir the pot, especially if Pepper was fired up about a subject.

"Ok, well you're still going over to Jane's after school come Friday right?" Maria asked, grabbing her book bag and shutting her locker with a bang. The other girls were all ready; Natasha just grabbed her stuff and walked with them through the doors and towards the parking lot of the school.

"Yup, wouldn't miss it for the world." Natasha replied, smiling when she noticed Loki at the far end of the school's campus, talking with his brother and the rest of the guys.

Suddenly a black SUV with government plates pulled up in front of the school. All the girls turned towards the vehicle, and the guys jogged towards the small group of girls. The doors opened and a tall man, about 6'4 stepped out. He was wearing an Army uniform and hat, and had aviator sunglasses on. He had dark hair and he had a clean-shaven face. He removed his sunglass and looked at the girls. The first thing Loki noticed on the man was his gun holster on his waist, and his piercing brown eyes. Loki looked from the man to Natasha and back, the resemblance wasn't obvious but there appeared to be love reflecting in the man's eyes. This was Natasha's father.

"Dad?" Natasha asked, looking stunned at the man before her. She dropped her school bag on the ground and hugged the tall man before her. He hugged his much shorter daughter back and lightly kissed her forehead.

"It's good to see you Scarlett." Her father's deep voice came muffed from his daughter's hair.

The girls looked from one to the other then to the boys. All of them shared the same look, "Scarlett"?

"Dad I told you, my name's 'Natasha'." Natasha smiled at her father, her blue eyes reflecting the sunlight that hit them.

"You always did like the name your mother picked over mine." He said, laughing a little and tucking a few loose curls behind her ear. "What do you say, I'll take you out to dinner and we'll catch up?" He asked, looking down at his much smaller daughter.

"I'd love to. But I promised Jane that we would study today. What about Saturday night?" Natasha asked, disappointment washing over her features realizing her busy schedule this week.

"I'm sorry honey, I don't know if I'll be in town till Saturday. What about tomorrow night?" Her father asked, hope reflecting in his dark eyes.

"I'd love to, but I have cheer practice late that night, our first time practicing on the field, and I also have an English project to work on." Natasha replied quietly. Clearly the two hadn't communicated much.

"Well I can come to your cheer practice and watch. Then I'll take you for a quick dinner and you'll still have time to work on your English project. Do you have a partner?" her father asked, looking down at his daughter.

"Yeah, Loki." Natasha said, smiling at the mention of his name, and turning around to see him standing with the rest of her friends. She nodded her head towards him and he nodded his in return.

Her father watched the short exchange and noticed the blush that crept upon his daughter's face at the sight of the tall, dark haired boy.

"Well them I'll take you and Loki out tomorrow after your cheer practice, then you two can work on your English project. Deal?" her father asked. Natasha nodded and turned to Loki for his input. He just smirked his signature smirk and nodded in confirmation. Her father was pleased at his response and nodded back towards the young male. "Then it's set." He answered, kissing his daughter's forehead again. "Do you need money for tonight or anything?" He asked, preparing to pull out his wallet if Natasha need anything.

"No, I think I'll just go over to Jane's house. Thanks though." Natasha said sweetly, hugging her father once last time, and picking up her bag and walking back towards her group of friends.

"Alright. Then I'll see you at home. Don't be too late." Her father called back behind her, as the group of teenagers began to walk away. Natasha just waved back and continued walking towards their parked cars.

"So, that's your dad? He's a big guy, why are you so short?" Tony's loud and obnoxious voice broke the silence that fell upon the group.

"My mom was short, I guess I get it from her." Natasha replied, not at all happy for Stark's comment. She always wished she were taller; it wasn't fair that her father had to be 6'4.

"Well he seems like a good guy. You didn't tell me he's in the Army." Steve said, looking back the black SUV pulling away.

"Yeah, he doesn't take about it much and I don't ask much." Natasha replied honestly. She honestly couldn't remember the last time she and her father had actually talked about anything together. She slightly was worried about tomorrow's dinner with Loki and her father. He didn't seem that impressed by the Odinson son.

"Well I'd love to talk to him, if you wouldn't mind." Steve continued, not even noticing Natasha tuning him out.

"What? Oh sure. Yeah I'll ask him, see when he's free." Natasha replied, smiling a small smile at the quarterback and then walking closer to Jane, trying to avoid Steve's question about his position and job.

"You ok Tasha?" Jane asked, looking over at her friend, slight concern in her voice.

"Yeah I'm fine. I just didn't expect to see him is all." Natasha replied, half truthfully. Jane didn't seem to pick up on the small change in Natasha's demeanor since her father's arrival. Only Loki seemed to notice her sudden change in mood and character. It wasn't like her to be so distant.

As the group made it to their parked vehicles, the group began to split up. Jane suddenly noticed the sick look upon Natasha's features.

"Hey Tasha, if you don't want to come over tonight it's fine. We can study some other time." Jane gave Natasha a reassuring half hug. Natasha nodded.

"Sorry Jane. Just a lot on my mind right now." Natasha replied honestly, looking over towards the setting sun. The September air was becoming cooler with the sunset and Natasha still had on Loki's leather jacket. Luckily no one had questioned her about it, since she hadn't spent much time with them.

"It's alright, I'll see you tomorrow. Do you need a lift home?" Jane asked, opening up her van and gesturing towards the passenger side.

"Um. No thanks. I'll be fine." Natasha responded, knowing well that it was out of the way for Jane, who lived in a different part of town. Jane just nodded and climbed into her car, starting the engine and pulling out of the parking lot, following the herd of other vehicles trying to quickly depart.

Natasha noticed Loki just leaning against the hood of his car, arms crossed in front of his chest watching her. She smiled brightly in his direction and walked towards him.

"I guess I'll need that ride after all if it's alright." Natasha said, smiling hoping he'd still be willing.

"Of course." He said, making his way towards the passenger side and opening the door for her. Natasha giggled lightly at the gesture, not used to being treated like royalty, and climbed end as Loki shut the door, and quickly climbed in on his own side. "You alright? You seem pretty…shaken up." Loki noticed, turning the engine on and racing out of the parking lot.

"Yeah I'm fine. It's just that I didn't expect my dad to show up. I haven't seen him in awhile." Natasha answered quietly.

She hadn't realized how much she had missed her father's presence until he returned. The warm feeling of knowing you have someone watching over you. It was reassuring, something Natasha didn't have nowadays with her dad being gone. He hadn't been around much after her mother left; she figured it was his way of coping.

"You know I'll listen if you ever want to talk about it." Loki offered. Natasha smiled at his offer.

"Thanks. I might take you up on it sometime." She said, half-joking, trying to brighten the suddenly damp mood.

The two rolled down Main Street and was stopped at a red light again.

"You know, my father isn't expecting me home for awhile, and I don't exactly want to see him just yet. Do you want to grab a bite to eat at the diner or something?" Natasha asked, knowing the Silver Diner was just a few stoplights after her turn.

"Sure. I'd like that." Loki responded, changing lanes, to avoid the turn lane, and continuing driving straight towards the neon lights of the retro style restaurant.

He parked the car close to the door, and the two walked in. they sat at a corner both, and the waitress, an elderly lady, whom Natasha recognized as one of the employees of the months, handed them their menus and took their drink orders. Natasha ordered a vanilla milkshake and Loki a chocolate one.

"If you don't mind me asking, but what is the deal with you and your father?" Loki asked, breaking the peaceful silent between them.

Ok sorry for the wait, I didn't exactly know how I wanted this chapter to go. But I finally found an opening I liked so YAY! Haha. Ok I'll go into more about Natasha's family and if y'all think that I'm making Natasha way to open to Loki, don't worry, he'll open up to her soon! I'll try to update more, but this weekend is going to be somewhat busy, and I have a lot of school to do, but I'll try to update before Monday! Thanks for all the reviews, followers, and favorites I got on this story! And if y'all can think of a better title for the story let me know. I kinda picked a generic title to match the theme I'm trying to work with. You'll see in later chapters why. But I don't like the title so any suggestions is greatly welcomed! Thanks!