Chapter 6! So, do you like the progress? Did you survive the sonnet? xD I'll make this short, but thank you all for reviews, follows, and favourites, and generally…thank you for being lovely people!
Disclaimer – Ain't mine!
Now, on with the story!
-o-
Chapter 6 – The Woman was Completely Mad
Sunday night, Amber came into the living room, holding something. "So," she said, shrugging. "Since we have no idea what we are doing-"
"Who said I had no idea what I am doing?"
She froze, apparently surprised by the irritation in his voice. "All right, since I have no idea what I am doing – if you need to, I don't know, reach me while I'm not here or something – you should have this."
He gave her a puzzled look, and was surprised when she sat down in the sofa next to him - so close that he could smell the apple shampoo she used.
"A phone," she said, and leaned even closer.
-o-
The whole thing had been very uncomfortable, in a most comfortable way. She had been sitting so close to him, as if he wasn't something dreadful, as if she didn't mind being close to him.
Dangerous, he thought. Do not allow your mind to go in such directions.
He wasn't about to admit as such, but the idea of someone not afraid of him - someone who didn't mind sitting close to him - the idea was...something he yearned for.
But he was not about to admit to anything of the kind.
At least he knew how to send a text message. The idea made him want to laugh bitterly.
-o-
"Oh Jesus Christ!" Amber exclaimed the next morning as she looked at a small…thing. "It's five degrees outside! I'm going to freeze to death." He couldn't help but laugh, and she rolled her eyes. "Yes, yes, not everyone can be a frost giant," she said, and his laughter ended abruptly.
"What?!"
She wasn't paying attention to what she was saying, apparently, but froze when she heard the tone in his voice, and turned to him with apprehension. "You…are a frost giant? No?"
Yes, he felt every bit a frost giant in that moment, because his blood went cold, and he gave her a frosty look.
She looked at him, almost fearful now. "I shouldn't have said that, apparently. I'm really sorry."
"How do you even know?" he hissed. "Do you even know what a frost giant is?"
"I…" She trailed off, but then she sighed. "Northern mythology was somewhat of an obsession of mine for a long time. So I… That's how I know. I did not mean to hurt or insult you, however. I'm sorry."
"You speak of things you know nothing about," he said as he got up from the sofa in one, fluid motion. "And you speak of things you should fear."
"Why?"
Her tone was soft, and it made him even angrier. "Why? Because…because they are monsters," he hissed, and before he knew what he was doing, he let his glamour fall, revealing his true shape – blue skin, red eyes. A monster.
He had expected her to recoil, to shy away from him in disgust. She didn't. She merely looked at him.
"You are not a monster, Loki," she said quietly, and then she was out the door before he could say anything.
-o-
She had to admit she was rather distracted during her first lesson. The memory of Loki with blue skin and red eyes – and the utter pain she saw in those red eyes – it wasn't just something she could forget.
Father of the year award goes to – not Odin, she thought, and sighed. Jesus, what am I going to do?
She couldn't very well hide him forever. She couldn't – and wouldn't. It wasn't right. But for now – well – she would let him stay.
Also, he was totally hot with blue skin and red eyes. She wondered what he would say if she told him.
-o-
She was rather nervous when she stopped in front of her professor after the first lesson was over.
"I was wondering, professor, if there was a word limit on the essay you assigned?"
He looked up from the papers on his desk. "No, but I would of course prefer if it was, well, at least two thousand words."
She fidgeted. "Yes, well, I was thinking more of a limit. A maximum."
"A maximum?" he asked, puzzled. "No. Why do you ask?"
She pulled out the stack of papers from her bag. "Because this is mine."
"Oh, my - how many words?"
"Fifty thousand, or so," she said sheepishly. "It...escalated somewhat."
"Somewhat?"
She nodded. "I know there is still a week until we have to deliver, so I am wondering if I have to toss this and write another."
"That depends," the professor said, raising an eyebrow, "on whether you are willing to risk it or not. This might just earn you the highest grade you have gotten so far, or the exact opposite."
She took a deep breath. "I was worried about that. Well, no risk, no reward, isn't that what they say?"
"That is indeed what they say," the professor said, and gave her an amused smile when she gave him the papers.
-o-
She was packing her things, ready to go home, when her professor entered the classroom. She was the only one left, so when she realised he was in fact looking for her, she froze.
He stopped next to her desk, smiled, and placed her fluffy love story down.
She stared at him, and then at the papers.
A+ it read.
"What?" she squeaked. "Really? You – you already graded it?"
He nodded. "Couldn't put it down. Couldn't even find a single grammatical error. If this does not deserve an A+, I do not know what does. Brilliant work."
She squealed, hugged her professor – then realised perhaps one did not hug professors, but he merely laughed, so she ended up beaming. "Thank you!"
He nodded. "You earned it. Not to mention you should consider a carrier in writing. And I truly mean that."
-o-
Loki was in a rather gloomy mood. He had been spending all day alone with his thoughts, and it was not the best of ideas. He already knew he would snap and growl at Amber when she got home, and he knew he wouldn't be able to stop himself from doing it.
The door to the flat opened and slammed shut, and he was almost worried for a moment, but then he heard her voice.
"Loki!" she literally yelled, even though there was absolutely no need to do so. Puzzled – and slightly annoyed – he got up from the sofa, finding her in the hallway.
He didn't quite know what happened, all he knew was that he let out an 'omph' sound when she pounced on him. His arms came up on automatic, but before he could push her away, she stepped back, beaming.
"I got an A+ on my bloody essay!" she declared, and the utter happiness on her face made something in him soften. "A+!" she continued, and he felt the former annoyance turn to amusement when she proceeded to dance an impromptu victory dance right there in the hallway.
"I would never even dare to hand it in, if not for you," she said next, and before he knew it, she had pounced on him again.
She smelled like apple shampoo, cold, and something else – something sweet.
"Thank you, you lovely man!" she declared, kissed his cheek, threw her bag and jacket on the floor, and danced her way into the living room, leaving Loki there, completely gobsmacked.
She had just hugged him twice, called him a lovely man, and then kissed his cheek.
The woman was completely mad.
Loki wasn't annoyed any longer.
-o-
He couldn't help but watch her for the rest of the day, because she kept dancing around with a constantly happy expression on her face.
"How can you be so happy over something so…small?"
He realised it might sound rather offensive, but she just smiled. "I thrive on the little pleasures of life. I am infuriatingly optimistic, according to my sister, and she is correct. But if I am to go around just waiting for something huge to turn my life around – that wouldn't be very productive, now would it? My life is already lovely as it is – even if I have days where I would rather just toss the whole thing out the window."
"And what makes it lovely?"
She shrugged. "An A+ on an essay, a glass of wine, twizzlers, reading a good book, listening to music, having an interesting conversation – you know, the good things in life."
"Twizzlers?"
She laughed as she produced something from a kitchen drawer. "This. It's strawberry flavoured."
He looked with skepticism on the thing she was holding out. A red…something. She laughed, placed it on the kitchen island in front of him, and turned to focus on the food she was making.
He picked it up, and that was when he realised that this was the 'something else' she smelled like. She smelled like green apples and strawberry candy. It was...apt. Somehow.
-o-
Author's note: Is there such a thing as A+? They seem to get A+ left and right in movies, so I went with A+. xD (I'm Norwegian. Basically, I have no idea what I'm doing. I live in a town with 22k inhabitants. It's all terribly exciting xD)