AN- I'm on a roll with editing my drafts. Enjoy!
REMINDER: Pay attention to the title and name of each chapter! They give away small hints and important notes of each chapter itself.
Chapter 3: Who are you, Really?
I woke up, disoriented and confused.
What happened? What time was it?
I looked at my window. Sunlight filtered through my curtains, indicating that it was early morning. When did I fall asleep last night? Memories came flooding back to me all at ounce and I almost panicked for a second, looking quickly to my right for the mysterious man I had saved and simply finding empty space.
I sighed, relieved. It had all been a dream. It was now Thursday morning and I needed to get ready for school. I threw back the covers, not remembering ever climbing underneath them to go to sleep last night but brushing that aside, and shuffled to the kitchen for breakfast.
"Good morning," Mom greeted me as I sat down at the counter. "How did that test go yesterday? I wanted to ask you last night when I came home from work, but your bedroom door was closed. Did you go to bed early?" my mom asked as she dropped some pancakes on a plate for me.
"Um…the test went well. I think." I mumbled. "I must have been so tired from all that studying. I can't even remember falling asleep, but I do remember my dreams. I had the strangest one last night. I have to tell you all about it! I was on my way home from school, and this crazy lightning storm struck the earth—"
Mom interrupted me. "Oh! That reminds me! Apparently the town had a lightning storm yesterday evening. Tons of thunder and everything! I heard it from Misty in the office and she had heard it from Ted…"
"Yeah, but it was so real and—"
"Sorry, sweetie. You're gonna have to tell me the rest later. I need to get to work early. Have a great day at school!" she said cheerfully, kissing my forehead and rushing to grab her purse. As she turned to shut the front door behind me, she stopped and asked, "Laurel?"
"Yeah, Mom?"
"What happened to your cheek?"
I brought my hand up to touch my face, feeling the scratch from the event in the woods. But I thought it was all a dream? "I…don't know," I answered softly. It wasn't all a dream. My confusion vanished and now I was alarmed.
"Mom?" I looked back up to the door, but she had already left after hearing my vague answer. I heard her car start up in the driveway and the sound of the engine fading as she drove away.
I instantly shot up out of my chair, quickly running to my room for some clue as to where the strange man could have gone. There was no trace of him. The towels I had laid down to prevent blood soaking into my sheets had mysteriously vanished. The rest of the mess—bandages, first aid kit, and spilled blood…I had cleaned up right before accidentally falling asleep.
But how did I end up under the covers?
Turning around quickly to leave my room in order to continue my search, I ran face first into what felt like a brick wall.
"Oww…" I mumbled, taking a step back to rub my crushed nose and swaying slightly on my feet. Arms came forward to grip mine firmly in their grasp, steadying me.
The stranger.
He was the wall that I ran into. His arms had been the ones to steady me.
And they also appeared to be previously holding up a towel around his waist. Now, since they were gripping onto my shoulders, the towel fell to pool upon the ground around his ankles.
I looked down briefly out of sudden reaction, my eyes widened, then shot back up to meet his piercing green gaze. I tried to turn around to give him privacy, but his arms held me stationary.
"Thank you, mortal, for saving my life last night" he stated. His voice was cool and velvety. The longer he led me there, gazing down at me, the more my blush deepened. I was only seventeen and a veryattractive and very naked man was holding me in his arms—literally. How old was this guy anyways? I bit my lip, trying to compose myself while his cool breath encompassed me. Finally, he gently released his grip on my shoulders and I quickly turned around to face my bedroom once more.
"You need clothes. Why are you naked in the first place?" I managed to speak.
I heard a low, rumbling chuckle behind my ear and finally a response, "Because I had to grab you before you fell just moments ago. It was either the cloth rag or you to hit the ground. I chose accordingly."
"No. I mean when I found you on my front porch. I found you without any clothes on. Why? Were you drunk? If you're one of the fraternity boys from campus, hazing is grounds for suspension. If you were told to get drunk and streak all over town, then—"
He stepped around me, strolling into my bedroom and turning to look at me. The towel now held back in place, thankfully. "I know not of fraternities around here and I was certainly not intoxicated. I fell."
"Fell?"
"Yes. From the rainbow bridge of my realm. The Bifrost had collapsed and I went with it. I fell through a tear in the stars and sky. My clothing and armor were ripped away from the velocity of this portal," he stated simply like it was common knowledge.
"Uh…are you toying with me or something? 'A tear in the stars. Rainbow bridge. Bifrost.' Earlier you called me 'mortal'. Who on Earth are you?" I asked incredulously.
He smiled, "Not 'on Earth' as you say, but on Asgard. I am Loki Odinson, Prince and rightful ruler of my realm. Now who…are you?"
Not believing his crazy answer, I narrowed my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest. "I am Laurel Wilson."
"Laurel?" his eyes shone with humor and another emotion I couldn't quite place. Could it be joy? Disbelief? Whatever it was, it was odd. I nodded my response and he smiled again. I noticed how perfect his teeth were. Pearly white and straighter than mine. He must have had braces as a kid. Lucky.
"Then it worked…I wasn't sure where I would end up." He spoke lowly, as if to himself. "But what a peculiar surname. 'Wilson' should be used for the sons of your father. Traditionally, your name should be 'Laurel Wilsdottir' instead. You are the daughter of Will, correct?"
"Actually, I think my dad's name was Steve."
He laughed, "You mortals have the oddest traditions."
I sighed, sitting down on my bed and putting my head in my hands. "Ugh!" I groaned, overwhelmed. I was done with his antics. "You seem fine since I saved you last night—miraculously, I might add. Now you need to go. I have school to get to. Why don't you go back home or to whatever mental hospital you escaped from, okay?"
I looked to him expectantly, waiting for him to turn around and leave, but was shocked when he jumped at me.
He swiftly moved from his spot by the door in the blink of an eye and used his left hand to grab my throat. That move allowed him to push me onto my back, evidently pinning my neck down to the mattress. His eyes flashed full of anger and he growled lowly in my ear, "Do not test me, little mortal girl. I have strength and power beyond your people's understanding and I can crush you like a tiny flower in the palm of my hand."
My eyes widened. Way to go, Laurel. Now that you nursed a psycho back to health, he's gonna kill you, I thought to myself. My heartbeat was going crazy. My pulse raced like a frightened rabbit, desperately running from a predator.
"I could," he whispered. His other hand came up to brush against the scratch on my cheek from my trip in the woods last night. His fingertips were cold as they softly traced the line of my wound. "But I wont…"
In another instant, he lifted himself from my bed, releasing me. I sat up, moving away from him and clutching my throat. I glared daggers at him. "What do you want?" I asked.
He smiled, obviously bipolar and a psycho, and stated his response. "Right now, I would like some trousers and a shirt."
"I don't have any for you. I live with my mother only. You'd need to stop by the store or something…"
He stared past me and out my bedroom window. "What of your neighbors? Are any of them of the male gender?"
"Yeah…but—hey!"
The stranger, Loki, began to march down the hall and was soon enough out the front door. I stared at his form as he walked down the sidewalk and approached my neighbor's house. Oh well. Not my problem anymore.
This was my chance to get away.
I hastily shut the door and locked it. Packing actual clothes into my backpack for school, I figured I could run away to school and change out of my pajamas in the forest. As I was slipping on my shoes, I heard the neighbor's wife screaming shrilly, "Stop! Come back with the laundry!"
Huh. The psycho must have stolen from their clothesline hanging outside. I had to hurry.
I grabbed my things and ran out the back door, hearing loud thuds coming from the front of the house. Just as I hopped the tall, wooden fence of my backyard, I heard the front door break in.
My knees hit the earth and I rolled, quickly springing up into a run. I hoped he wouldn't come after me. The guy was violent and a thief. Who knew what else he was capable of! He had his wound all patched up and now he had clothes. The guy should just leave me alone and go home to his evil liar.
Worry struck me. What if he robbed the house?
I should stop by a pay phone as soon as I cleared the woods and call the cops. I didn't want to get in trouble with Mom if she found out that I let a naked stranger into the house last night. At least if I used the payphone, I could leave an anonymous tip, saying that I saw a strange man break into a house on my street. That would have to do.
I was almost in the center of the woods, following my ribbon markers, when I heard it:
"Laurel!" came his voice from a distance behind me.
Mentally cursing the universe, I looked over my shoulder to try and figure out how far away he was.
He was fifty feet away, glaring angrily in my direction as he sprinted through the trees. At least now he was wearing pants and a shirt. But, hell, he could run a whole lot faster than I could. I tried pushing myself to run quicker, to no avail.
"Laurel…" he growled, thirty feet away. His voice was pointed and full of anger.
I'm gonna die! He's gonna kill me in the middle of the woods and bury me where no one can find my body. He got mad earlier in my bedroom just because I told him to leave. He said he could hurt me but wouldn't if I didn't test his anger. Now he was really mad! I was going to die!
The sound of his strides got louder and louder as he gained on me.
Then suddenly, he was right in front of me. I shouted in alarm and dashed off to the right soon after. He appeared out of thin air again, directly in front of me once more. Shocked and confused, I spun around only to find myself surrounded by a group of men…all completely identical. They all looked like him. The stranger. I was losing my mind.
I abruptly went crashing to the ground, tackled by what felt like a train slamming into my body.
My back hit the forest floor with a thud. The air left my lungs with an audible whoosh. My diaphragm refused to move and allow my lungs to function. Huh, so this was what getting the wind knocked out actually felt like. It was damn painful.
While I struggled to breath, I looked around desperately, trying to grasp the situation. Loki was holding me down on the ground. Behind him stood the group of psycho look-alikes. Loki lifted his left hand out behind his back towards them, all the while keeping his eyes locked on me. The copies glowed golden and then abruptly vanished.
"Stupid girl! How dare you flee from me!" he snarled in my face. His fist struck the earth by my head, as if to emphasize his anger.
Just then, the air returned to my lungs and I gasped, turning my face to the side to cough violently.
Loki's grip on me loosened enough so that I could roll over completely on my side to catch my breath. "What?! What happened? What did I do?" he asked quickly. "Surely you are not choking."
I coughed, uttering out a shaky response, "No…not choking. You knocked the air out of my lungs!"
He continued to look down at me like he didn't comprehend, so I elaborated. "When I fell—when you pushed me," I corrected, "the force of impact on my back stunned my solar plexus. It sends the diaphragm into spasms, rendering it unable to contract and relax properly, and thus, my lungs cannot inhale any air temporarily. It is a painful experience, but thankfully leaves no lasting damage."
He just continued to stare at me.
"What?" I demanded. My fear was pushed aside for the moment.
"You aren't as stupid as I stated earlier," he replied. "But you are still just as foolish. You shouldn't run from me, mortal. You stand no chance against my superior strength. I tried to warn you once before. How long until you grasp that concept?"
Eyes wide, shock and fear returning to the forefront of my mind, I had no response for him. He basically just threatened me. Again.
"Answer me!" he yelled, grasping my arms once more.
I flinched, "I—I don't know! Now, I guess? Yeah, you're stronger than me. I get that, okay? Now what? Are you going to kill me, Loki of Asgard? Obviously with your crazy cloning powers you aren't human! Did you chase me through the woods simply to tie up loose ends and kill the witness?"
His green eyes softened slightly and he paused to study my face for a moment. Was that remorse? Surely not…
He sighed and rolled away from me.
I blinked, surprised but relieved that he wasn't going to kill me. He released me from his grasp, but now what? "So…what happens now? If you're not going to kill me, why did you track me down and tackle me?" I asked.
"I came back to find the door locked."
"Then why didn't you just go home? Back to wherever you came from?" I inquired.
His mouth drew into a tight line. "I can't go back. Not yet."
"Why not?" I responded, sitting up and pulling my knees to my chest. I studied him carefully as he thought of his answer. If he wasn't so crazy, I'd say he was a very attractive man. He had a nice, pale, and even complexion. His eyes were an intense shade of green. Tilting his head slightly to the side, pushing his black hair backwards, and sighing, he spoke lowly.
"It is a long story."
I shrugged. "I have time. I'm already late to school, so I might as well skip it now anyways. It's not like we were supposed to learn anything important today…" I wanted answers. Why was this 'Loki' here in the first place? Why did he have to show up at my house, bleeding and needing medical care? Where did he really come from? Was Asgard real?
Loki smiled, sitting down cross legged and placing his elbows on his knees. He rested his chin in the palm of his hand.
"Okay, then. I will tell you everything."
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