Now what?

Ana sat in her room, thinking about what had just happened. She wasn't entirely sure about how she had gotten there from the woods; it was all quite a blur. Upon entering the house, she had vaguely noted that her mother greeted her. She was in such a daze that she hadn't responded; everything seemed surreal right now. Her mind reeled with thoughts and questions. What had just happened? What would come next?

But for the most part, she was still reliving what followed their kiss in the woods.

• • •

Suddenly, his lips were on hers. She didn't have time to react, so her body did it for her. She responded with such enthusiasm, that it somehow forced some sort of logic into Loki, who immediately detached himself from her and began to apologize.

"I-I'm sorr—," he began, but Ana was kissing him again before he could finish his sentence. She couldn't control herself, or at least she didn't feel like it. She was kissing him again, running her tongue over his soft lips and gripping his chest, feeling the smooth, toned muscle underneath his thin layer of clothes. After half a second, he responded back, mimicking her movements. One of his hands was in her hair, the other on her waist, and it was perfect. It felt complete. It felt as if finally, everything had clicked into place. It felt…right.

And judging by his response, Loki felt the same. They were both ravenous for the other's touch. Ana pushed harder against his chest, and he stumbled back for a moment before getting his footing. Ana threw her arms around his neck, and upon doing this, felt him shift to rest his back against a nearby tree. She pushed him against it and kissed him again, placing a hand along his smooth, sharp jaw. She felt him smile underneath her lips, and she smiled too. This is what she had been searching for. Something inside her burned bright and passionate, and she never wanted the moment to end.

But, as moments often do, it ended.

It was not her, but Loki, who finally pulled back. But upon doing so, Ana didn't feel rejected. She felt…invincible, as if nothing could go wrong. He merely watched her with a soft smile, his green eyes on hers as if nothing in the world mattered except for her. And for him, this was true. Ana realized that they were both breathing fairly heavy. She unhooked her arms from his neck and pulled back a little, but he gripped her arm and slid his hand down to twine with hers. A smile settled upon his lips—genuine, the most genuine she'd ever seen on him. She smiled back, unable to hold back. All of the mystery was gone, replaced with a deeper, more intense feeling that she could only describe with one word: love.

They were both silent for a long time, but it wasn't a painful silence as silences often are. It was a much needed, satisfied silence. Neither of them spoke, not because they didn't know what to say (though, truth be told, Ana didn't), but because they didn't need to say anything. Both parties were content to let the moment be, and let it last as long as possible.

Because once it was over, there was much to think about and much to be done.

A sense of dread began to take the place of the satisfaction in both of their hearts. Ana began to think of the consequences—of her mother's, her friend's, her family's reactions…. But nothing hurt her more than when she thought of Thor. Thor, the loveable boyfriend who could do no wrong. Thor, whose only flaw was being oblivious, and perhaps prideful on certain occasions. But never once had he wronged her—never once had he made her feel insignificant or inadequate, as Loki often had. Ana felt a nagging guilt beginning to grow in her heart, but she pushed it away for now. For now, there was this. There was him.

Ana was then pulled back to the reality of the situation. She looked around; they were sitting on the grass now. Loki was staring at her, and behind his eyes she could see dozens of thoughts floating in and out of his head. His expression, however, did not give him away. He was composed again—but not with the same coldness that was usually present. She could tell he was analyzing every breath she took. Her hands picked idly at the grass. His eyes flickered down briefly to note this before returning back to hers. She smiled uncertainly.

"I…" she began, swallowing. She didn't know why, but it still scared her to say it. "I love you too, you know."

There was a brief change in his expression—relief, perhaps? It was amazing how Ana could catch his emotions now; it was as if there was a miniscule crack in his armour that had been slightly widened moments ago. If she was watching closely, which she often was, she could catch small changes that gave him away. These changes mostly occurred in his eyes.

"I gathered," he finally said in a half-jesting tone. Ana smiled, hearing the underlying uncertainty in his voice.

"Yes," she replied, "well, I just wanted to be clear." She reached over and took his hand. Instead of pulling away, as he often did, he gripped it tightly. "Was I?"

He smiled fully, and it was brilliant. Ana had never realized how beautiful he was when he smiled, probably because it was not something he did often. His entire face lit up with an infectious joy that gave her no choice but to smile as well.

"Crystal."