Evil Dead

Chapter 1


"Are you sure you're okay with this, Tony?"

Tony Stark took a long, deep breath as he gripped the stirring wheel tighter, a frown playing at his lips as he heard the same question again for the tenth time in the last two hours. He glanced over at the gorgeous blonde that he had the privilege of calling his boyfriend and forced a smile on his face. "Steve, I'm fine. Stop asking."

Steve sighed a bit, his worried blue eyes staring out the window as the trees rolled by. "You keep saying that Tony, but I know you can't possibly be okay with this." Steve looked over at Tony, taking in his features. At the age of 24, Tony looked like he held the weight of the world on his shoulders. He barely slept, barely ate. His body ran on nothing but alcohol and coffee, and Steve hated it. He loved Tony to death, but he sometimes wished the man would let him help him recover from his past. Tony's brown eyes always betrayed his words though—and right now, Steve could tell that going back to the Stark family cabin was something Tony really didn't want to do.

"Steve. Stop." Tony all but growled out as he gripped the wheel tighter, his knuckles turning white. "I'm fine."

Steve didn't want to give up though, not when it concerned Tony's well being. "Tony, I know you used to be with this guy—"

"Loki."

"—Loki, and I know it was for a really long time, I get that, I do, but are you sure you're okay? Seeing him after you broke up like that?" Steve asked, turning in his seat to look at Tony, giving his boyfriend his undivided attention.

Tony sighed, running a hand through his brown hair. "Look, I know Loki and I didn't end on good terms, but we were together for almost five years. He helped me through a lot, and I owe him this much." Tony looked over at Steve, finally smiling at him with some honesty. "I'll be fine, Steve."

Steve sighed a bit, dropping the conversation after that. It didn't take long to get to the cabin, and once there, Steve noticed two other cars parked in front of the run down, abandoned wooden cabin. A beautiful red haired woman stood in front of a black convertible, next to a blonde man with sunglasses. Both of them looked highly upset, and the moment they parked the car, the woman was walking towards them. Tony was the first one out of the car, walking around it to meet the woman's violent glare.

"Anthony Stark. Two hours." She hissed, glaring at the short man who was smiling at her, showing off his dimples. "You've been making us wait for two fucking hours."

"Relax Tasha. You should have known I was going to be late. Besides there was traffic." Tony said nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders at the woman—Tasha—that wanted nothing more than to stab him in the eye with her stiletto heel.

"Bullshit." She snapped, crossing her arms over her chest. She heard the car door close and looked pass Tony, finally noticing the tall blonde that had been in the car with him. "Who's that?"

"That is Steve. My boyfriend." Tony said as Steve came to a stop next to him, looking around nervously.

Natasha felt a visible tic in her jaw from how much she wanted to just punch Tony. "Boyfriend? Really?" She snapped, sighing a bit as she ran a hand through her curly hair. The blonde man that had been silent up until that point wrapped an arm around her and pulled her back, though he was much shorter than her due to her heels.

"Tasha, calm down. Go sit." He said, and even though Natasha looked as if sitting was the last thing she wanted to do, she left the three of them alone, not wanting to start a fight. "Hey Tony."

"Clint." Tony nodded his head as a greeting.

Clint smirked a bit and grabbed Tony's arm, pulling him closer so they were hugging.

"Come on, man. You can act like you've actually missed us. It won't kill you." Clint said as he patted Tony's back, having missed his high school buddy.

Tony snorted a bit but hugged Clint back, gripping the man's back before breaking it. "You haven't changed a bit."

"Oh? You have. You've gotten shorter if that's even possible." Clint smirked, and then ducked before Tony could smack him from making a comment about his height. Taking a couple steps back, Clint quickly dashed for Natasha, using her as a shield. It felt good, being able to fall back into old habits so quickly after so many years.

"Tony."

Tony couldn't help the smile that spread over his lips at the voice he had missed these seven years. He turned around to see Bruce walking out of the woods, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose, a small smile on his face. "Bruce!" The genius smiled and moved over to him, hugging Bruce tightly. "It's so good to see you." He smiled as he pushed the other away enough to be able to look at his face, seeing his own reflection in Bruce's glasses.

"It's good to see you too, Tony." Bruce smiled at the man. They had been lab partners in chemistry their freshman year and had been inseparable since then. Each year they were always in the same science class, Tony being the smartass and Bruce being the only one that can calm him. "He's waiting for you out back."

Tony's smile fell slightly and he nodded. "And Thor?" He asked, knowing that if Loki was here, Thor was somewhere nearby.

"He's in the woods taking a piss!" Clint called out from behind them. Tony looked back at the couple sitting on the hood of the black convertible, then towards Steve who still looked awkward in this environment.

"Bruce, can you please make sure Tasha and Clint don't kill my boyfriend?" Tony asked his friend as he began making his way to the back of the house. Bruce nodded, heading towards Steve to introduce himself.

Tony hated to admit it but the place looked like shit. The last time he had gone to this cabin he had been five years old, and it had been for Gregory's 15th birthday. He didn't remember much of it, but that was to be expected from a five year old. The woods had all but reclaimed the structure, and he was beginning to wonder if it was a good idea to stay here. The thought didn't last long as he came around back, seeing the grass so high he was sure they could play hide-n-seek in it, and in the middle of the overgrown glass was an old, broken and rusted car that used to belong to Howard. On its hood was Loki, looking exactly how he remembered him.

Loki had always been stunning. A long pale frame; skinny yet muscular. His hair had grown out, pass his shoulders, but still pushed back and still as black as the night. The only thing that seemed different about Loki was his presence. Before just being around Loki Tony felt confident, powerful. Now it was like Loki himself wanted to just curl up into a ball and die. He hadn't been told the story on what had happened to Loki, but from seeing the dark bags under his eyes, his hands shaking and Loki hugging himself as he read a book he must have read about a hundred times already, Tony knew it had been bad.

Hearing a twig snap made Loki's head lift up, taking his gaze away from the pages of Macbeth to look up at the face of his ex-boyfriend. His heart was hammering in his chest as he closed the book slowly, Tony coming to a stop in front of him. Tony Stark had changed since the last time he had seen him. He was taller—not by much—and had grown a beard. It suit him though, which made Loki almost smile. Tony walked with such confidence Loki was sure he didn't feel that it reminded him of the days they used to spend alone in his room, Loki reading a book to him until Tony calmed down from an anxiety attack.

It hurt.

"Well, well, well. Look who decided to show up." Loki said as he set the book down next to him, leaning back; his black sweater was zipped up all the way, leaving nothing exposed except his long pale neck. Tony stared at him for a while, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I thought you were simply going to ditch us again. I must admit, I'm very impressed by your appearance."

"At least your attitude hasn't changed a bit." Tony said as he looked down at Loki, who seemed even smaller than he was; vulnerable.

"Ooh. Did you hit puberty finally? It didn't improve your height." Loki smirked a bit as he noticed Tony's visible twitch. He had always been sensitive about his height.

"Look, I'm not here to fight with you." Tony said, not wanting to start anything with Loki—not after how they ended things. He didn't know if Loki was still mad at him, but by the way he was acting he wouldn't put it pass the other. Tony moved to take a seat next to Loki, moving the book behind its owner. "Do you want to tell me what happened?"

"No." Loki answered without hesitation, looking away from Tony and towards the ground. His black jeans were smeared in dirt almost as if he had been crawling on the ground.

Tony sighed again, running a hand through his hair in frustration. "Loki, I'm here to help you."

"I don't need your help." Loki snapped, standing off of the car and glaring at Tony. "I never asked for your help. You came here out of pity, Stark. You haven't had contact with me or with anyone in seven years. What makes you think I, or any of us, want to do anything with you?" Loki hissed at him, each word was pure venom. His pale hands were trembling at his side and he had to hug himself to keep calm. His black hair was a mess behind him, the gel he had put in it not working the way it's suppose to.

Tony had been right on one account. Loki was vulnerable and he didn't like it. He was so used to seeing Loki bright and happy—his eyes glowing with mischief and wonder—that seeing him like this, so weak and pale and angry, it broke his heart. "Hey! I'm here now, so suck it up, Reindeer Games." He snapped, standing in front of Loki. Even though Loki towered over him still, he seemed smaller, like all of his energy had been drained out of him. "And I'm not going anywhere."

Loki stayed quiet for what felt like ages. His dull green eyes wide for a few heart beats. Loki dropped his gaze, looking down at the dirt for a couple seconds until he moved closer to Tony, wanting that warmth the other radiated. His chest hurt so bad he wanted to cry. Truth is, he had never gotten over Tony. He had never stopped loving him even though he wanted to hate the genius for leaving him the way he did. Truth was he still loved Tony even after seven years apart because Tony had been the only one who had ever understood him and cared for him.

Loki wanted that back, but he knew he couldn't have it. A part of him knew that Tony had made his own life, with someone new. It had been all over the papers; when Tony Stark turned 21 he had inherited his father's company. Stark Industries was now one of the wealthiest companies in the world. Tony was a billionaire, he was a genius, and Loki was sure that he had someone else in his life—there was no room for him. Not anymore.

That didn't stop the raven from pressing his body against Tony's, gripping the man's shirt so tight that he was sure he was going to tear it. He hid his face in Tony's shoulder, at the crook of his neck and took a deep breath, trying to calm down; his heart pounding a million miles per second. He wanted to believe Tony more than anything. "You promise…?"

Tony was taken aback from the sudden contact. He had been expecting another outburst, but this? Loki clinging to him like he was some sort of life vest? That he had not expected. Loki was shaking so bad that he was sure Loki was going to break. Tony wrapped his arms around Loki's small waist slowly, cautiously, before rubbing down Loki's back. This reminded him of when they were in high school, still together, when he himself had panic attacks so bad that he couldn't breathe and Loki was always there, holding him and soothing him. "What?"

"You promise you won't leave again?" Loki asked softly, his shaking seizing as Tony touched him.

"I promise." Tony answered as he pressed a soft kiss to Loki's forehead. This all seemed odd, but familiar—and good. He didn't want to pull away from Loki. "I promise, Loki. I won't leave."

A comfortable silence fell between them. The only sound around them was the sound of their heart beats and their breathing. No birds, or bugs, or any other living thing surrounded them—not even the wind. It was comforting to be in Tony's arms again; the silence around them only amplified the warmth that Loki felt wrapped in Tony's embrace again. It was nice, until Thor's booming voice called out to them from the front yard.

"Brother!" Thor yelled, louder than the first time. "Brother!"

Loki sighed and pulled away from Tony, rubbing his arms a bit as if trying to keep the warmth there. "We should head back." Before Loki could turn around, Tony grabbed his wrist, pulling him closer again.

"Wait. I got something for you." Tony said as he dug into his pocket, pulling out a long black braided rope necklace. Hanging from a silver hoop was a smooth gray stone, a symbol of the black widow, only turned on its side, was burned onto it.

Loki stared at the stone for a minute before reaching over and taking it. He ran his fingers down the smooth stone, then turned it in his head, reading the familiar symbol again and again. "I thought you didn't believe in these things." He said as he looked up at Tony.

Tony shrugged a bit, grinning at the taller man. "I don't, but you do so I thought it'd give you some luck."

Loki couldn't help the smile that spread over his lips at that. He looked down at the Nordic rune again before slipping the necklace over his head. The stone came to rest over his heart, and he touched it gently again. "Thank you, Stark."

"You're welcome, Princess. Now come on, let's head back before your brother thinks I killed you or something."