It wasn't that Thor Odinson was bitter, per se. It wasn't even that he was angry or that he wanted to kill his brother or Jane (anymore).
He saw that they were in love with one another, and he was a big enough person to let go some of that ire in favor of soft acceptance.
He simply imagined that he would have time to soften, at least, longer than ten days.
But that was all that his brother had allowed.
He received the text Loki sent with a frown.
He was admitting that he was in love with her; admitting it to him. His brother, his lover's former lover…
But Loki did not condescend to openness often, so Thor regarded the text with some clemency. He loved her. Of course he did. He saw evidence enough of that within five minutes of his ignoring her at lunch.
Jane did not share that observation, apparently, and if Thor was wise (which he was), he would say that she wouldn't believe Loki even if he confessed.
Loki was many things. But he was no fool…he likely recognized this fact as well.
All of these things played on in Thor's mind as he stared at his phone.
Congratulations. You are in love for what, the first time in your life?
Send.
He saw Loki typing a response. He smiled.
How very droll, brother, to play upon that particular aspect. I suppose that you deserve your own back, so there you have it. You also are able to enjoy some smug pleasure in the fact that I am asking you for advice in how to handle this.
Send.
Ordinarily, Loki would never have done this. Ordinarily, Loki would rather have eaten his own cooking than ask his brother for anything.
But while he was indeed asking Thor for some advice, he was also planning on having his not-brother speak to Jane in the not-so-distant-future on his behalf. Jane would listen to Thor, for she felt guilty. She would listen to him, because she would not believe that he would lie to her…
Even if she did think that it was possible that Thor would mislead her, he stopped, for she understood the depth of Thor's anger, she would consider Loki's love for her as a possibility. And that, he decided, was worth whatever imbroglio he should suffer as a result of this experiment.
You are asking me for advice? Here it is: if you love her, leave her alone.
Send.
Thor smirked at his text. There was some hint of truth in this rather cruel statement. Even though he saw his brother as having changed a bit, he couldn't deny that he saw this potential relationship as rather bad on all fronts.
How could you be so callous and cruel? Would you deny me any sort of happiness in this regard? I am, after all, a man. I desire things just as any other man might. And you, there in your posh London flat, dictating my path to romantic bliss.
Send.
What a prat. Even if Loki deserved that.
I'm not in the habit of ensuring a brother who is nothing but a liar and a cheat any sort of anything. Let alone aiding him in his attempts to discover happiness. What of my happiness, Loki? You thought nothing of that.
Send.
There. Thor knew that he'd be helping Loki. He was a better man, no matter what his brother's objections were. And he was over it. Over Jane Foster and her deception. Over Loki and his manipulation. He smiled at his moral superiority.
You are quite right. I didn't. I was angry and vindictive. But I was wrong. Does that please you? Having me admit to such a weakness? Fine. Now will you help me?
Send.
And Loki sat on his smart sofa in his opulent flat and stewed in his irritation that he was groveling to Thor. Thor, of all people. He ran his hands through his hair and a grimace formed on his face.
To stoop so low, for a woman! It was not to be borne.
But bear it he must, for he loved this woman, despite his better judgement. Loved her, and he seethed.
What is it that you need?
Send.
Thor sat now. It was seven am in London…he needed to start getting ready for work.
I need some advice on how to convince her that I am in earnest.
Send.
Humiliation, thy name is love.
You need to undo everything you did, Loki. She doesn't trust you.
Send.
What the actual fuck was he doing…?
Never let it be said that you aren't quick, Thor. How, is the question?
Send.
Jesus. How could he have ever thought that they were related?
Befriend her.
Send.
And Thor laughed at the thought. Loki…befriending a woman?! This would be amusing.
Befriend her? How?
Send.
He would not condescend so much as to take Jane shopping, for god's sake.
Take her to the cinema. Take her to coffee. Take her to lunch…no dinner. Listen to her. Ask her questions. Be there for her.
Send.
Thor was getting antsy. This was tedious, and he needed to get going…one more text, and he would be done.
I have done these things! She remains skittish and overwrought.
Send.
What did the oaf think, anyway? Of course he was doing these things! He was no idiot!
Do you insult her and still make inappropriate sexual innuendo?
Send.
Of course he did. It was who he was.
Well…yes. Occasionally. But the things you mention are intrinsic to my character! I cannot change everything for a woman.
Send.
Absurd for him to suggest such a thing.
That isn't what I was suggesting. I rather meant that in order for her to open her eyes to you, you need to soften her. Show her demonstratively that you care. I need to go, Loki. Work, you know. And you ought to be in bed, no?
Send.
He switched off his phone and left the flat. Loki could wait.
And Loki threw the phone on the table, vexed as he was. He was doing the things Thor had suggested!
But he was also being pushy…overbearing. Perhaps giving Jane some space might help…
He didn't like that, either. Giving her some space! He was aggressive in matters which interested him. Jane interested him.
No…and he went to the bathroom to ready himself for bed. There were things about what Thor suggested that made a lot of sense. Jane didn't trust him. Not really, anyway. He would need to see to that, and when she began trusting him, he would tell her.
And Loki Odinson smiled as he climbed into bed.
It had been about four days since Loki had barged into her apartment and scared the shit out of her.
And Jane was wondering how he was doing. She decided to text and see…what harm could it do to check in on him?
Haven't heard from you…everything alright?
Send.
She had gotten home from work and was folding laundry. She had been asked out by Greg-something, a barista at the coffee shop she'd go to, but turned him down, lying that she had a boyfriend. Greg was nice, but he seemed kinda young, and Jane really wasn't in the mood to go on any dates.
Why, she couldn't say.
Her phone rang out a receipt of text.
I'm fine, thanks. How are you?
She stared at it for a moment. He wanted to know how she was…he wasn't making any digs…
I'm good…what's been going on?
Send.
She was puzzled by the answer. He said he was fine, which he almost never is, and he asked her how she was doing. Something was up.
The usual. Work and such. What about you? Gone out at all?
Jane almost checked to make certain that she had the right person.
Then she did.
No…it was Loki alright. What the fuck was going on?!
No. No, not gone out. You?
Send.
She proceeded to ignore her laundry in favor of anticipating Loki's answering text.
And there it was…
Well, no. Not really. How would you like to meet later for some coffee or something?
Her mouth fell open. Coffee. Later. No demands…no…well. No usual Loki.
Umm…alright. Where?
Send.
Jane started playing with her ponytail. She was nervous…this wasn't like Loki, not at all. He didn't casually suggest that they meet for coffee. He didn't ask her how she was…
Seven pm. Stumptown?
Ooohhh…she liked that place.
Hang on. He knew she liked that place…
Ok. 7 pm.
Send.
Jane sat back. This sounded suspiciously like a date…
But no. Couldn't be, not really. If Loki wanted to take her on a date, he would have told her outright, and told her they were going to some upscale restaurant. Definitely not a cafe.
Jane finished folding her laundry. It was six-thirty. She could start getting ready now…maybe read a bit while she waited for Loki…
Jane went to the subway, thoughts churning, desperately trying not to think about what this meeting meant. Probably nothing.
Likely nothing at all.
What if it meant something…?
No. Unless he meant to tease her or kill her, it meant nothing. Loki was just in a place that he had never been before, and it was unsettling. He was vulnerable, and Jane was the only person with whom he felt comfortable.
She stopped her thoughts as she exited the train and went above ground.
She refused to think further until she reached Stumptown and sat with her drink...
He does feel comfortable with her. She had to admit that, at least. And, though she was loathe to concede this point, she was comfortable with him.
He was just such an asshole. So selfish, and even, occasionally, cruel. Jane stirred her coffee…and she began to think about why she loved him once more.
She had indulged in this particular reflective activity on more than one occasion…
She loved him because he made her laugh. She could admit that now.
She loved him because he could be charming.
Because she understood him. Mostly.
Because he was brilliant, and Jane liked that in a person.
She shrugged and sipped. And…he was handsome, she thought…
And she saw him enter the cafe, and it occurred to her that when she had initially done this activity, sex was a big part of why she loved him.
Now it didn't even make the list.
What did that mean?
"Hello, Jane," Loki sat down opposite her.
She smiled, then narrowed her eyes. "You cut your hair," she observed. It was true…his black locks had nearly touched his shoulders, but now, though his hair wasn't really short, it was a lot shorter…
"I did. Got sick of the length. A change, you know."
She nodded. "So…what have you been up to, besides cutting your hair?"
He shrugged. "Nothing much. Work…been reading a bit," he paused. "How is work, Jane? Michael still steadfastly clinging to 'Mike'?"
She laughed. "Yeah…he's a real character. Reminds me of Stephen Wright without being funny…at least not intentionally so," she added as an addendum.
"Must be fascinating to sit next to him every day," he smirked.
"Oh yes…I can't think of anything more invigorating," she replied sarcastically.
Loki chuckled. "What are you currently studying in the lab?" he sipped.
"I'm currently working on an article for the publication PLOS ONE. It is dealing with the exposure to certain chemicals during pregnancy and IQ in those offspring."
Loki's face contorted a bit. "But…don't you want to study the stars?"
Her eyes fell. "Well, yeah…but it simply isn't in the cards right now, Loki. Those jobs are difficult to come by. And even though I have most of the credentials, I still need to finish my PhD…" her voice trailed. She was making excuses.
"What is preventing you from obtaining your PhD?"
She looked at him. "Life."
"No…I mean to say…what else do you need to do in order to complete it?"
She smiled and shrugged. "Well…I was here…at Columbia…but it's ranked like fifteen or something in my field…so I applied to Princeton, which is number one, and Harvard, which is like, four or something…the problem was, was that I was already half done with my dissertation. No one does that. Stop halfway through a PhD program and applies someplace else…but I was young. I got angry, and I pretty much quit."
"Hang on," Loki replied. "So…you thought that you were smarter than fifteen, wanted to go to one or four, was rejected, and so you gave up your dream to work in a field you have no interest or training in?"
"Well…sorta. I wasn't rejected by Harvard. But they wanted me to start my entire dissertation all over again."
"What was the topic?"
"Exploring prospects for detecting gravitational waves from stellar-mass compact objects spiraling into intermediate-mass black holes with ground-based observatories," she replied quickly.
His eyes went wide. "Jane…get out of your lab."
She giggled. "I can't…I need to live. And I just…there's just…it's too complicated."
"You're making excuses."
"Maybe," she agreed.
"You're smarter than that."
Jane looked at him crookedly. "Are you paying me a compliment?"
"Perhaps," his eyes fell in a very slight smirk. "You are smart enough to write intelligent papers in a field you haven't studied."
She shrugged noncommittally.
"You should do something about that," Loki persisted.
"Like what?" she downed her coffee. Damn, it was good.
"Like…finish your dissertation."
"I don't want to talk about this anymore," and she didn't. Did he think that she was pleased with how things were going for her? Of course, theoretically, she wanted to finish her dissertation. But she didn't want the hassle of applying again…living sparsely…all that went along with student life.
He sat back, nodding. "Then tell me, what subjects am I allowed?"
"You can tell me that you are doing better, for starters."
And they carried on in this manner for another hour…all the while Jane thinking…why wasn't he ever like this before…?