The days leading up the court date were quiet. Loki didn't interact like he did and he seemed back to how he was when Thor first met him, not even allowing the older boy to hold his hand anymore let alone kiss him.
The dark haired boy slept in his own bed and didn't even look at Thor unless it was necessary and Thor was starting to get desperate. The day before the court date, Loki was taken to Dr. Merrick's office to go through a few things about what he needs to do and he had his measurements taken so someone could get him a suit but Loki wasn't allowed to go with them. When he returned to their room, Thor locked the door quickly before pushing Loki against the wall and kissing his passionately. Loki didn't react at first, his eyes wide, but Thor eventually felt Loki's eyelashes flutter shut and his lips move against his own. He loosened his hold on Loki and smiled into the kiss when he didn't feel him pull away.
The kiss slowed and Thor eventually broke it to rest his forehead against Loki's.
"Tomorrow…" Loki muttered, his eyes still closed.
Thor kissed him lightly again before talking. "I asked Taylor if I could come with you…" Loki's eyes opened wide with hope. "He said if I can get my parents to sign me out for the day there's nothing stopping me going with him because he'll be there anyway. Not on duty, just as a friend,"
Loki looked surprised to hear that Taylor had referred to him as a friend and smiled a little. "Do you think your parents will sign you out?"
"I called them yesterday, they're coming down today and I'll ask them when they get here,"
Loki hugged Thor tightly and buried his face against his shoulder. "Thank you… But…"
Thor pulled away a little to look at his face. "But what?"
Loki bit his lip and Thor could see tears welling in his eyes. "Wouldn't it be easier to start distancing ourselves from each other now? That way when I move to England it won't be as hard…"
Thor shook his head quickly. "No, definitely not," He hugged Loki tight to him, still shaking his head. "We can still be together…"
"There'll be an ocean between us…"
"Well, I'll get out of here and move to England,"
"How are you going to persuade your parents to move to England?"
"When I'm twenty one I'll move to England,"
Loki stayed silent for a moment before whispering. "What if you forget me by then?"
Thor was floored by that. They both shared the same fear of being forgotten by the other. Before Thor could speak Loki continued, cupping his face to make him look at him.
"Thor, you're the best person I've ever met… Which isn't really saying much considering where I've spend a significant portion of my life… But you'll find someone who you'll like more than me and you'll fall in love with them…" He took a deep breath before continuing. "I never believed in love before I met you… I'm not saying I'm in love with you because that'll just make things worse. But you'll fall in love and you can't stop that. When you meet the right person you'll be happy. I don't want you to stop yourself from being happy just so you can be with me one day. When you're twenty one the chances are I'll still be broken and insane. You deserve a normal person, a happy person. But you have to let yourself meet them, don't close yourself off for me. I'm not worth it. There's someone out there who deserves you so much more than I do…"
Thor shook his head the whole time, willing himself not to cry. This sounded too much like a break-up...
"Loki? Are you breaking up with me?" He looked back at Loki with a childish fear written on his face.
Tear marks were evident on Loki's cheek as he nods. "I guess you could call it that… It's more of an 'I'm releasing you' kind of thing… If – when you're twenty one – you still want to be with me, you still want to move to England for me then my Grandfather's name is Anthony Grant Laufeyson, he's well-known so you'll be able to look up our address easily. But only come if you're sure you want to. Don't make yourself."
Thor couldn't hold the tears in anymore and shook his head. "Loki, I need to tell you something-"
Before he could continue Loki put his hand over his mouth. "Don't. Don't make this any harder. Please," He sounded almost like he was begging so Thor stopped talking.
"Can you stay with me tonight? Our last night?" Thor asked hopefully and managed a small smile when Loki nodded.
Taylor knocked on the door to tell Thor his family was here and he kissed Loki once more before leaving the room, discretely taking Taylor's lighter with him just in case.
"Mum, dad… I want to get out…" Thor saw their eyes light up as he said that and held his hands up. "But only for a day…" He then went on to explain how his friend – who they remember meeting – was going to a court date to be adopted and that he'll be moving to England. Frigga and Odin were both very understanding but Odin wouldn't leave it at that.
"Thor, this boy, Loki... He's just a friend?" He leant forward watching Thor with his one good eye, the other hidden under an eye patch from an unfortunate hunting trip.
Thor was suddenly nervous. He knew his parents loved him but he still wasn't sure how they'd react but he decided it wouldn't be very smart to lie to them.
"No… He' my boyfriend…" He looked down at the table, waiting nervously for their reaction. After a few minutes at silence Thor couldn't take it anymore and looked up to see Frigga smiling slightly as Odin handed her a fifty dollar bill.
"Um... What did I miss?" He asked, confused.
Frigga laughed and explained. "When you were fourteen I thought you were gay. Odin said he didn't see it so we made a bet. I won,"
Thor blinked. "You put a bet on my sexuality?"
Odin shrugged smirking. "We've got to have fun some how,"
Thor laughed.
When Thor returned to his room Loki was already changed into his pajamas and curled up under the covers of Thor's bed. He smiled as he snuck in beside him and Loki automatically clung to his side and snuggled against him in his sleep.
Thor wrapped an arm around Loki's shoulders and kissed his forehead before falling into a restless sleep, tomorrow weighing heavily on his mind.
