Rain battered against the windows, the only sound that could be heard besides Erin's soft breathing. Her body was splayed out on the bed, still dressed in the clothes that she wore to Devil's Dance Floor hours prior.
Loki stood over her, observing the young woman. Her hair was tangled from the wind whipping it around outside. The rain drops on the window cast shadows across her face, appearing like quiet black tears dripping down her cheeks. He noticed the soft skin next to her lips beginning to swell where she was struck, bright pink compared to the paleness of her flesh. Leaning forward, he used his thumb to wipe at the black makeup that collected below her eyes, only to smudge and drag downward further.
Startled, Erin opened her eyes quickly and scanned the room and causing Loki to jump back, embarrassed at being caught attempting such an act of compassion.
She sat up and gathered her knees to her chest, her back pressed into the wall next to her bed, "Who are y-you? How- What are you doing here?" her words were in such a rush out of her mouth, Erin could hardly contain her stammers. Her eyes were still adjusting to the darkness of the room, but she could clearly make out the shape of the man that stood over her bed, his eyes fierce and intimidating, the same qualities mimicking in his stance - tall and impenetrable.
The corners of Loki's mouth tugged, a thin smirk forming on his lips as he watch her body tremor ever so slightly. She tried to conceal her fear like a frightened animal, but to his delight she could not hide her emotion from her eyes, shining like saucers with his face reflected in them. "I am Loki, of Asgard," he stated, his tone growing deeper and commanding, "You, mortal, will house me here on your planet until I deem fit." As he spoke, he stepped into the moonlight entering through the window, the horns of his helmet glowing in its ethereal beauty.
Her response was much less theatrical. Her jaw slacked as she blinked at him, her face as blank as a sheet of paper. "What?"
Loki clicked his tongue, clearly irritated by her incapacity to comprehend his demands. "You will extend your hospitalities to me while I stay here. Surely, you can understand these words in that small brain of yours."
He watched her chew at her lower lip, fresh blood filling in for where the skin was missing. Her silence was like nails on a chalkboard to the god, ironically. Rolling his eyes and with a swift jerk of his fingers, he sent Anna Karenina flying from her nightstand and onto the floor with thud that shook the gears in her head back into motion.
"You! That was you in The Rabbit Hole, but how? You were the guy in the bar earlier too, I thought you looked familiar… the one who saved me from that fall in the book store… the one who saved me from that awful man…"
"Yes, yes don't get all wrapped up in that, "he rushed her along with a wave of his hand, clearing his throat embarrassingly. "I am in need of a room as it appears Midgard has limited my strengths. I must rest."
Erin stared down at her feet silently with a furrowed brow, wiggling her toes inside her stockings.
"This is not a request, nor do you have a say in the mat-"
"I'll do it."
Loki halted, surprised by her resolute tone.
"You helped me a lot recently and I… It's the least I can do for you helping me escape that man earlier." She gasped, turning to Loki, "Is he alive?"
He shrugged his shoulders, "I'm sure he is; I did him enough damage to keep him at bay-"
"Why didn't you kill him? He could come after you, call the police or hurt you himself!" She started rambling, gripping the leather material covering his forearms.
Loki shook her small hands from his sleeve, turning his back to her, "I will not be harmed, no one will believe a woman turned herself into a man and threw him into a wall."
Erin stood, turning on the lamp next to her bed, "They could believe anything, especially what happened after New York," she slowed as Loki turned to face her, a knowing look in his eye. "You were there. You, you were the one who brought those robot aliens things to Earth!" she clutched her forehead and sat back down on her bed, "Oh no, I'm harboring a fugitive. My mom would kill me if she knew."
"The Chitauri, as you so eloquently described, are but a small blip on my record," he stated with a wave of his hand, "You need not worry about a discovery in your involvement to aid me; that ridiculous band of idiots has kept me out of view from your people. I do not have to worry about recognition, nor do you. Only those closely involved with the attack know what truly transpired."
"Why did you do it?"
He turned to her, eyebrows raised, showing off his glistening teeth, "Because it's fun, exciting even!" As he turned to face her fully, he staggered, clutching the end of her nightstand.
Erin watched as the golden helmet vanished, disintegrating behind a veil of green light. She jumped from her bed and turned on her lamp, illuminating his ghostly pale face. The dark circles under his eyes weighed down onto his sickly white cheeks. His hair was matted and greasy, sticking to his neck with dampened sweat. She rushed out to grab him, "Woah, hey," she caught hold of his arm, attempting to steady him. She helped him onto her bed, withdrawing her hands as he shook her off.
"This pathetic body... I am a God, not a weak pitiful creature."
"What do you mean by 'pitiful creature?'" she questioned, offended, "Yeah, I may not be a magical elitist snob like yourself, but I'm pretty resilient given what I am."
He scoffed, "Not that you would understand, but when on Midgard, Asgardians are limited by the burden that you 'resilient' humans seek daily."
"You mean like, food and water?" she questioned, ignoring the condescending tone he used when addressing her status as a mortal.
"Precisely. I am forced to accommodate myself to the limitations of a mortal body."
Erin nodded, processing the information. "Well, let me get you some blankets. I have some extra sheets in my closet." She lifted herself off of her bed to go into her living room closet. Pulling a thick comforter and pillow from the top shelf, Erin busied herself with laying
them out on the couch for Loki. Once she felt that he would be satisfied with the couch, she made her way back into her bedroom to retrieve the god. "So, the couch can be pretty uncomfortable, but the trick is to put a thick blanket-," she stopped short when she noticed his sleeping form in her bed. He was perfectly still on his back, his breathing deep and slow. She reached for her blankets and covered him, tucking him in like a small child.
His face looked weathered and worn for someone that appeared to look not much older than she did. Underneath the the dark eyes and sallow cheeks, she could just make out the innocent face of a boy, and she smiled at the thought of a once happy young child while her heart hurt for the man - god - that he had become.
She picked up Anna Karenina from the floor, setting it back on the nightstand. Grabbing an oversized shirt from her closet, she quickly changed out of her dress and stockings, tossing them into the hamper and pulling the large soft material over her head.
After a quick glance back at his sleeping form, Erin retreated into the living room and settled into the stiff cushions on the couch. She lay awake staring at the ceiling until the sky turned pink to greet the sun, thinking about the god sleeping in her bed.
"Vince? Hey, I think I'm coming down with something. It's been a rough few days… are you okay with watching the store by yourself? Great, thank you so much! I appreciate it, buh-bye." Erin hung up the call, pressing her phone to her lips as she sat at her kitchen table, staring into her cup of coffee.
She received several missed calls from Anna, as well as a few worried text messages, but Erin didn't know how to explain to her that a god from another planet has been following her around for weeks and is now shacking up in her bed while she sleeps on the couch.
She kept herself busy throughout the day, completing a list of chores that had started to stack up over time. Every so often, she would pass by her room and stop to watch him, his body rising and falling in deep, rhythmic motions. Upon closer inspection, she could see that the circles under his eyes had lightened ever so slightly, but the sunken in state of him would only diminish after he filled his stomach.
Erin saw that he was still dressed in the strange clothes from the night before, the black trousers and vest and green overcoat. Worrying of his discomfort, she carefully pulled his coat from him, lifting his body slightly to maneuver it out from under him, surprised at how sturdy his lithe body was. Next, she removed his boots and placed them next to the bed gently as to not disturb him further. Understandably, he did not stir; it appeared as though he hadn't had proper sleep since he came to Earth. She hung his coat over the door to her closet and retrieved the blanket that she used on the couch to further protect him from the January chill.
Hearing her phone ringing from the other room, she rushed to answer it before the noise would wake him, seeing once again that it was Anna's name displayed on the screen. She answered it quickly, awaiting her friends worried anger.
"Hey, Anna."
"Erin? Goddammit why haven't you been answering any of my phone calls? What the fuck happened to you the other night, I looked over and didn't see you or that guy you were dancing with, so I thought you might have went with him, but to not tell me before you go? I was worried sick!" Her shrieking assaulted Erin's ears, scratching at her with the ferocity of a feral cat.
"I'm sorry Anna, I really am. I just, there was this guy at the bar and then at the club, and… God, you're going to think I'm crazy." She sighed into the phone.
"What are you talking about?"
"Meet me at Anything Goes in a half hour, I'll tell you then." Without waiting for a response, she ended the call and grabbed her coat by the door. Before she opened her door, she ran back into the kitchen and pulled out a notepad and pen from a nearby drawer, quickly scribbling a note down for Loki in case he awoke while she was gone. Leaving it in plain view on the kitchen table for him, she left her home and headed towards her bar, trying to figure out what she was going to tell Anna.
Entering the bar, she saw Gabe setting up the bar for the night.
"Hey Er, what are you doing in this early on a sunday? I don't even think all the old heads made it out of their noon time mass," he joked, looking up from the counter as he wiped at all the sticky surfaces.
"What's up Gabe, I'm just waiting for Anna. She and I separated at the club last night so we thought we'd meet up to share a few stories."
"Had a fun night then last night?" he asked, stopping what he was doing to lean forward on the bar, "You looked great last night, definitely had every man in here drooling."
Erin felt her cheeks heating up under his gaze, "Thanks, Gabe. I would've said hello but you seemed pretty preoccupied." she smiled, hinting at the women flocking around him the night before.
He laughed at her remark, his white teeth standing out against his warm golden skin. Erin couldn't help but wonder how he looked like such a typical west coast sun god in the middle of January in Philadelphia. "All those women couldn't hold a candle to you, you know that?" he asked, confidently holding his gaze on her.
"That's because I'm the one holding all the candles," she said sarcastically, avoiding his gaze as she glanced back at the door for her friend.
"Why don't you let me take you out to dinner sometime? It'll be great, spending time together just like we used to when we were younger."
Something tells me you want to be doing more than spending time together as friends, Gabe, Erin thought to herself as she tried to come up with an excuse for him.
"Erin!"
Thank God. Erin turned to Anna and returned her embrace as the Latina woman crushed her under her grip.
"You have a lot to of explaining to do missy," she started, removing her scarf and coat. "Hey Gabe."
"Anna," Gabe addressed her, sending a small smile. He stared at the two women as they exchanged a glance between them. He cleared his throat, "I'll uh, I'll leave you to it then. Call if you need anything," he tossed the rag over his shoulder and made for the back of the bar, his eyes flickering to Erin once again before he left.
"Sorry I didn't answer your calls I was just… so hungover this morning and couldn't bear to - is that a hickey!?" Erin pointed to the golf ball sized bruised skin on Anna's neck by her collarbone.
"Yes it is and that's not why we're here, so no deflecting! Start talking."
Erin sighed, "So, last night I was dancing with that guy. You know, the one with the brown curly hair? Well, we were dancing and I ended up going outside for some fresh air, and he followed behind me and wanted to go back to my place to screw around, but I wasn't really feeling it and when he started getting a little too pushy," she hesitated, choosing her words carefully, "this man stepped in and pushed him off. I was a little shaken up and not really in the mood for partying, so he offered to walk me home. I felt bad at how late it was and he's in from out of town so I said he was welcome to stay with me, as a thank you for helping me with that drunk asshole from the club."
Anna nodded slowly, "And he's there now?"
Erin nodded.
"To stay with you while he's in out of town?"
She nodded again.
"Is he hot?"
Erin hesitated. "He's handsome."
"Well, I couldn't have imagined it better myself!" Anna giggled like a school girl, "You, a tall, dark and handsome stranger staying with you after committing an act of chivalry - that's straight out of a romance novel! You'll have to tell me if he's good in the sack."
"Anna! I'm not sleeping with him."
"Not yet, you mean," she winked.
Gabe came back in through the bar with a case of rum, setting it on the counter below all the shelves of liquor, "How we doing? Am I missing anything?" he continued to sort through the bottles, placing them on their appropriate shelves.
"Only that Erin's getting laid by this mysteriously hot stranger for the next few days."
"Anna," Erin started, catching Gabe stop for a brief moment, the muscles in his shoulder blades taught from the tension on them, "We're not sleeping together. He's just a friend staying with me." she watched Gabe continue his work, appearing to look undisturbed by their conversation. "Let's talk about your hickey. Definitely wasn't your husband, I'm sure."
"You're right. Jackson, Recreational Therapist and sports enthusiast and hung for days!"
Erin rolled her eyes, completely unbaffled by her friends crude behavior. She laughed with her and listened to her night with Jackson the Recreational Therapist before she gathered her things to head to the store. "I'll see you guys later. Have fun at work tonight, Gabe."
He waved to her in response, smiling as she closed the door behind her, leaving he and Anna alone with a few other patrons that made their way in.
"You know," Anna started, "for having all those muscles, you sure are a weak ass bitch when it comes to just asking her out."
Gabe looked sideways at her, "Whatever." He grunted, rolling his eyes.
Hours later, Erin was pushing her whole body into the door as she struggled to open it with all the bags in her hands. It was dark in her apartment, as it usually was, and she found herself tripping over her feet as she made her way into the kitchen to set all the bags down. She noticed the note on the table lay exactly as it had been when she left. She entered her room to find Loki in the same deep slumber he had been in when she had left. She took all the bags and brought them into her room and cleared a drawer out for him, filling it with all of the necessities he will need for the foreseeable future. It was much later in the day than she had expected, and Erin had found herself tired from the little sleep she had the previous night.
She looked at Loki's sleeping form, unmoving, and pulled up the chair from the corner of her room to his bed, having a seat in the soft cushion.
She had no idea what the next few days, or even weeks would bring. He was a powerful, otherworldly being capable of ending her life with so much as a snap of his fingers, and she was supposed to keep him happy and satisfied. How for fuck's sake am I supposed to do that? She ran a hand through her hair, more tired and overwhelmed in the past twenty four hours than she had ever been in the past twenty four years of her life.
She glanced over at her nightstand, and saw Anna Karenina sitting there neatly, the cover worn from all the times Loki undoubtedly tossed it onto the floor with his magic. She picked it up and turned to the first page, reading aloud, "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. Everything was in confusion in the Oblonskys' house. The wife had discovered that the husband was carrying on an intrigue with a French girl, who had been a governess in their family, and she had announced to her husband that she could not go on living in the same house with him…"
Author's Note:
I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. How do we feel about our characters Gabe and Anna? They're an interesting pair but what friends aren't?
I apologize dearly for the delay - the holidays are tough, am I right? I hope to have another chapter out soon. Keep an eye out on my profile for an upcoming date.
Much love to all of you. Continue to review the story, or message me what you think.
Happy Holidays!