You've been inside of many nightclubs in your life, but every time you enter one it's an entirely different experience. Behind the double doors from the lobby was the actual club full of flashing neon lights, electronic music with a heavy bass, and intoxicated people shoulder to shoulder sweating on each other. Not only did you see all of this, but the smell was thick with sweat, alcohol, and smoke from the fog machines. The first time you were in a nightclub it was in Germany for a mission. You were seventeen at the time and never had alcohol, so before the mission you were forced to drink to the brink of intoxication to build a tolerance, which would explain why you can down three shots in under an hour and still feel fine. You were so nervous that your cover would be blown, you almost puked on your target as you flirted with him. Fortunately you managed to take him out successfully with no witnesses and no vomit. After that there was only one other time you went to a club for business rather than pleasure, but living with Maya and Lilly you learned to enjoy the blaring music and fancy light shows. You didn't have to look over your shoulder expecting a gun to your head. You could finally have fun.
Your attention shifted to Loki, his expression vacant. You couldn't tell if he was overwhelmed, underwhelmed, the right-amount-of-whelmed. You nudged his shoulder, his focus on you now, "Let's go find my friends, they rented a private booth somewhere." You yelled over the music. He nodded, allowing you to take the lead.
You squeezed by people, looking at every table and booth trying to recognize your friends. At one time you thought you found Maya dancing on the table, but it was some other girl who definitely had too much to drink. You finally spotted them on the side of the club opposite of the bar with some other girls. They all had drinks in hand, laughing and dancing along with the music. You didn't recognize the other girls, but you trudged your way towards them. The crowd got a bit tighter as you moved, without thinking you grabbed Loki's hand so you didn't lose him. You didn't realize what you've done until the crowd cleared, allowing you easier access to the booth. You let go of his hand the moment you were in clear sight of the table.
"Oh my God Y/N!" Lilly squealed, bending over the velvet rope divider to give you a tight hug, "I'm so happy you came! I want you to meet Gabby and Kat, they're my coworkers, and this is Ana, my roommate from college." They waved to you except for Kat, who was dancing, lost to the music. She noticed the present you bought her, "Is this for me? Thank you!" Lilly grabbed it and placed it in a small pile of other gifts.
Maya stepped out from behind Lilly, going in to give you a hug as well, "It's good to see you girl. You scared us when we found-" Maya's eyes shifted to the tall figure by your side, suddenly adjusting her hair, "And uh, is this your plus one?" You found Lilly also goggled to Loki.
"Guys, this is Loki. He lives in the headquarters with me. And he's only being limited to two drinks tonight so don't even order anything for him."
Loki scooted you over to be in front of the girls, "The pleasure is all mine. Y/N never told me I would be in the presence of two goddesses." If you were in a cartoon, you'd roll your eyes right out of your skull. Maya and Lilly were instantly swooned by his charms. You were already second guessing yourself, now for sure you regret bringing him along.
"Drinks? Anyone? Me, yes. I need a drink." You interjected between them, eyeing the self service bottles on the group's table. From what you could tell there was a bottle of champagne, vodka, two skinny pitchers of cranberry and orange juice, and a container filled with ice. You poured yourself a glass filled heavily of vodka with a splash of orange juice, knowing that this was going to be a long night.
After an hour of drinking, present opening, and listening to Loki schmooze his way with the group, you were beginning to feel mentally drained. You didn't want to leave yet however, you wanted to at least stay to make sure everyone went home safely. Somehow you felt protective over Lilly and Maya. Not in a controlling matter, but you would do anything to make sure no harm came to them. Maybe it was because they were the first people you met that showed you an ounce of compassion. Your years on your own weren't kind to you. Getting a job was near impossible, which left you living in abandoned cars and homeless shelters. It wasn't paradise, but it was better than your previous situation. On the other hand, when Maya and Lilly offered you a home, you thought there was some twist. You even thought they were Hydra agents trying to take you back. After a week of staying with them, you realized they were normal people who could offer you a normal life.
You began to zone out when Loki started talking about himself. Again. As interesting as it is to learn about Asgard and space, it's not as interesting when they're only footnotes and him the main focus. The girls were all ogling from his captivating words, maybe a few of them weren't listening at all while they were too mesmerized by his looks. Not that you were thinking about his attractiveness, you only noticed some of the girls weren't blinking for a solid minute, their gaze only at Loki.
"And then, I let go." Loki finished. You snapped back into reality when everybody erupted into a fit of laughter.
"Y/N, your friend here is something else. Have you been keeping him to yourself?" Ana, or maybe it was Kat, teased.
You gulped down some of your drink before speaking, "Uh, no. Technically he's not even supposed to be out of the building, let alone in the city."
"The stuff you told me and Lilly was just the tip of the iceberg, wasn't it?" Maya slurred, the drinks already getting to her.
Loki turned to you, "Oh, you've told them about me?" He placed his hand under his chin in curiosity, his grin toying you, "Do tell, what did you share?"
"Nothing much," you shrugged, you had a feeling he was trying to play a game that you weren't going to fall for, "I only told them how you live across from me, how annoying you are, oh- and how you're the little brother of Thor."
Loki didn't like you bringing up his brother at all. However, that didn't stop him from showing off his cheerful facade. If you blinked you would have missed the flicker in his eye giving away his true emotion.
"Thor's your brother!" Lilly exclaimed, "What's he like? Oh he seems so nice-"
"Not to mention he's really cute," Kat, or maybe it was Ana, chimed in, "all of those muscles that could tear through a shirt…"
Gabby scooted in on the conversation, "Is Captain America really tall in person? I bet he's tall!"
Loki's mask was slowly falling as the girls discussed which Avenger was cuter instead of paying attention to him. You couldn't help but smile when his eye twitched in irritation from the mention of his brother. From the stories you were told you could tell he was outshined by his brother's fame and power, even if they were raised in a lavish royal lifestyle together. You would think that they would be treated as equals. Then again, Thor was the oldest, making him first in line to be king. Whatever, now wasn't the time to throw a pity party for Loki. You wanted a nice night out with your friends instead of being stuck playing nanny while Loki gets all of the attention. You might as well have fun with it.
The girls squabbled back and forth between each other for a while over who was the best and sexiest Avenger before Loki piped in, "As much as I love to hear you discuss about my, associates, you should really be asking Y/N here."
Where was he going with this? You thought, staring Loki down questionably.
"Y/N?" Gabby asked.
"Oh yes," he continued, "she has more of a relationship with them. Especially with the dear old Captain."
You choked on your drink. There's no way he would think that you and Steve were more than friends. True you thought of him as handsome, and nice, and funny, and you get along with him very well, but that didn't mean you had feelings for him in a romantic way. You respected him too much as a leader of the team. However, you'd be lying if you said you never thought about Steve in that matter for a brief second, except you would never act on it. It would be too weird to date a coworker, especially one in the same building where you live and work no doubt.
The girls scooted in closer, suddenly interested in you for the first time the entire night. "You didn't say you were getting close with Captain America." Lilly said.
You set your now empty glass down, "No- I mean yes, but not like that." You sputtered out, "Steve and I are friends. He was very kind when I first moved in and in general is a very pleasant guy."
"So you're saying he's single?" Ana, you were sure this time, asked. "You don't happen to have his number on you, do you?"
"I don't know. We don't talk about relationships much-"
"Is there anyone there you are dating?" asked Gabby.
"Maybe it's Thor, I can definitely see you two dating."
"No, no I can see her with that bow guy, Birdeye or something?"
"Hawkeye, and I see her with Falcon, he seems like the bold type."
You were at a loss for words. Lilly and Maya excused themselves to go to the bathroom, leaving you with Lilly's friends talking over each other. It was a constant string of questions and assumptions about your relationship with the group. Not even the blaring music could drown their endless jabbering.
You went to pour another glass when you realized the bottle was empty. "I'm gonna go grab something strong from the bar." Without waiting for an answer, you hastily crossed the velvet barrier to the bar on the opposite end of the room. You waited for the bartender, forcing yourself not to look back at your party who was just on the other side of the room, the view obstructed by a mob of dancers.
Anger was boiling inside you. How dare Loki ruin your rare night of fun. You didn't want to bring him in the first place, you had no other choice but to. Well, technically you could have stayed in your room to binge watch TV, but you already owed Maya and Lilly so much, the least you could do was show up and celebrate Lilly's birthday. Instead you had to listen to Loki ramble on and on about how great he is, the worst part that everyone was sucking it up. It wasn't like you expected to be the center of attention, however it would be appreciated if you could have a conversation that wasn't Avengers related for five minutes. That's what pissed you off the most. That was Loki's play. He knew that you needed a break from the team after weeks of being around them every second of the day. Bringing them up would get the girls going, therefore Loki winning this selfish game.
Your drink was brought yet you didn't move from your spot. You weren't ready to go back, not yet, until a presence appeared next to you.
It was none other than the prick of the night, "What do you want?" You spat.
"The ladies wondered where you slithered off to." Loki replied, flagging down the bartender for a drink, "They have so many more questions for you about your companions."
Your grip was tight on the glass. You refrained from breaking it into a million shards, "Tell them that after this drink we're leaving."
"So soon? The night is still young."
"Yeah, well I didn't want to leave either, but you proved that you can't be trusted one night outside of HQ."
"Trusted?" Loki was taken aback, "Possibly what have I done to make myself untrustworthy?"
You turned to him, your eyes piercing like daggers, "Oh, I don't know, making this night all about you instead of my friend who deserves it, implying that I'm hooking up with one of the guys, which led to a tidal wave of questions that were a bit too personal about my colleagues."
"May I remind you that you were the one who started it?" Loki retorted.
"Excuse me?"
"You were the one who brought up Thor," the bartender brought Loki his drink. He ignored it, his focus on you, "if you didn't say his name then the night would have run smoothly. It's just like him to mess everything up, even when he's not here."
Jaw tight, you sneered your next words, "Is that what happened during your failed conquest?"
Loki stiffened. If he had his drink there would be no doubt that it would be shattered in his palm. "Finish your damn drink so we may go." With that Loki grabbed his glass, storming off back to the girls.
If only you could punch something right about now. All you could think about was how much of an ass he was before, but now he crossed so many lines. You were dreading the drive back home.
As you drank you calmed yourself down. You don't remember what number you were at with your drinks, but you could finally feel a slight buzz. This was your final drink before drinking some water and heading out.
You waved down the bartender for a glass of water when you felt another presence next to you. "Can you just leave me alo-" You assumed it was Loki, but you were greeted by an unfamiliar, yet attractive, face.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I just thought you were looking lonely by yourself here." He grinned, taking a sip of his own drink.
"Shit, no I should be the one apologizing." You rubbed the back of your neck in embarrassment, "I thought you were somebody else."
"This somebody else sounds like a not so pleasant person." He extended a hand, "I'm Nate."
You shook his hand, "Y/N."
"So Y/N, what's a girl like you doing in a place like this?"
You snorted, "You're really gonna use that cheesy phrase?"
Nate laughed, "Only if it works."
You sighed, "I'm here for a friend's birthday. I would stay longer but I have to take another… friend, home soon."
"Is this friend the one you don't want to deal with right now?"
"Yes. Not the one with the birthday, the other one."
"I'm sure they wouldn't mind if you stayed for another drink, I'll buy." Without a response he ordered two drinks, one for him and one for you.
You shook your head, "I really shouldn't. I'm the driver so I gotta stay as sober as I can."
"You don't have to finish it," when the drinks came he pushed one towards you, "I just want to make up an excuse to talk to you. Only if you humor me."
It only took one look to your table to see Loki, once again, charming the women with his egotistical stories. "Hell, we're here to have fun, right? One more drink couldn't hurt, he can wait fifteen more minutes." Nate and you clinked glasses before taking a swig.
Talking to Nate helped you get your mind off of not only Loki, but the Avengers as well. You talked about your favorite things, which you both had a lot similar interests. He didn't talk about himself much, he was more interested in you. For the first time tonight you were having an enjoyable time.
About twenty minutes passed while you were talking to Nate. "Do you want to go dance?" He motioned to the dancefloor, filled with sweaty people and flashing lights. "Just for a bit, I promise."
You looked again at your group, still enthralled with Loki. "Absolutely." Before the two of you stood, you took one last gulp of liquid courage, eyeing the table. Maybe it was the trick of the lights, but as you and Nate left for the dancefloor you saw Loki look at you with either wariness, worry, or maybe jealousy? Either way, you left with Nate to the flashing floor and blaring bass music.
The phrase "dance like nobody's watching" did justice for the crowd. So many people were so engulfed in the moment they didn't notice two more squeeze in. You wanted to follow along. Let everything go, get lost in the music, feel your limbs go limp.
That last part was happening a bit more quickly than you expected.
You thought at first that you danced too hard too fast, or maybe the drinks were finally hitting you all at once. Your arms felt slumped to your sides while your head was spinning in circles, black dots were darting everywhere. A body was keeping you from falling to the ground, but there were so many people you couldn't tell if it was Nate or someone else.
"Hey, you okay?" Nate asked, holding you steady.
"Y-Yeah, I just d-don't feel so hot." You slurred.
"Let's get you out of here." Nate wrapped his arm around your waist, his other arm on your shoulders to keep your balance.
"I-I can't, I need to get my friend home." For some reason you could only think about Loki. He needed to get home. You needed to get home.
Nate hushed you, "I'll make sure he gets home. I'll take care of you."
You vaguely remember Nate taking you outside, but it wasn't from the front entrance. There was another door that led to an alley where you started losing consciousness. A black truck was parked on the side. Fear immediately took control.
If only you could scream until your throat gave out. Yell for somebody to help you, to get you out of here. You wanted to fight with every ounce of strength you had, but all of it was depleted elsewhere. You wished you stayed in your room, ordered a pizza, take Lilly and Maya out another day, your treat. But that never happened.
Everything went black.
