Clint wasn't sure what it was he expected when he returned to campus a few days early. But it definitely wasn't what he found when he stepped into his dorm. Loki had been curled up in a corner of the sofa, a throw pillow clutched in his arms, and his eyes puffy, swollen, and dripping with tears. Clearly, Loki hadn't been expecting Clint either. Like a frightened bunny, he had jumped up, scampered off to his bedroom, and didn't emerge until the next morning.

When Clint had tried to ask him about it at breakfast, Loki clammed up and told him he didn't want to talk about it. Not one to push, Clint let it go. Loki's mood lightened a little, however, later that day, when Bucky showed up outside their door. Clint had never seen Loki latch on to anyone as quickly, and tightly, as he did to Bucky the moment he saw him. And Bucky seemed pretty taken aback by the force at which Loki's body slammed into him, as well.

When Natasha returned home that night, Clint went to her dorm to hang out with her while she unpacked and told him all about California. She made the decision to move there after college, she had loved it so much. After she finally stopped raving about the weather, Clint asked if she had known anything about what was going on with Loki. She hadn't but, as usual, after Clint disclosed what he found upon arriving at his dorm the night before, she had drawn her own conclusions. She assumed that whatever it was he had going on before winter vacation had ended, and not amicably. Clint figured she was right, put it on the backburner to worry about later, and welcomed her home the right way.

As odd as Loki's behavior had been the past couple of days, nothing prepared Clint for Tony Stark strolling into his dorm, uninvited and without knocking, the night before classes were to begin. Clint stared at him, a forkful of pasta suspended in mid-air, on its way to his mouth.

"Hey, Barton," Tony greeted cheerfully.

"Tony." Clint lowered the fork. "Can I help you?"

Tony shook his head, and Clint noted the way his eyes darted all over the place; his hands were constantly moving, snapping, clicking, tapping together, and he was grinning like a damn fool. "Nope. Just came by to say hey. Hey," he added with a wave.

Clint's eyes narrowed slightly. "Why?"

Tony scoffed, but kept grinning. "What do you mean why? I live across the hall and I can't come over to say hello?"

"You can. You've just never done it before. And would you stop smiling like that? You're creeping me out." He returned his attention back to his food.

Tony's eyes went to Loki's door over Clint's head. "Your roommate around?"

"No," he answered around a mouthful of chicken. "He went out with Bucky."

That made Tony's hands stop fidgeting. "Bucky's back?" Clint nodded, slurped up noodles.

"Yeah, I guess he got out of rehab, like, over a month ago and he's been working on getting back into school. Apparently, he succeeded."

"Oh." Tony pursed his lips and tried to look and sound casual. "Do you…know where they went?"

Clint shook his head, swallowed, and shoved around a piece of chicken into the pasta with his fork. "They were in his room for most of the day then they just came out and said they were taking off. I don't keep track of Loki's movements, you know. I'm not a spy."

Tony let out an insincere laugh. It wasn't that he was jealous of Bucky; he wasn't really. But Bucky and Loki had a history that he discovered he wasn't completely comfortable with. Besides, he had rushed back to campus just to see Loki, to spend some quality time with him, before classes got underway for the new semester. Added to everything, he had had a big fight with both Howard and Pepper before he left. He could have used some comfort in the form of long, squeezing hugs and slow, wet kisses. And other…stuff.

He was silent for about a half a second before asking, "So when you say they went 'out'…? Is that, like, in a couple kind of way?"

Clint stared at Tony coolly, his jaw muscles working as he chewed. "Who are you—Thor? I said I didn't know. Why do you care anyway?" Clint stabbed the last piece of chicken on his plate, stuffed it in his mouth, and rose to take his dirty dishes to the sink.

"I don't!" Tony cleared his throat. "I mean…I'm just concerned…for Bucky. You know, it's been rough for him. I would hate to see him fall back into bad habits."

Clint stopped, looked at him. "And you think Loki, the only guy who was able to convince Bucky to even go to rehab, is going to aid in that?"

"Of course I don't, Clint. I just—you know what? Forget it." He opened the door, took one step out then leaned his head back to look at Clint. "Can you do me a small favor and just tell him…tell him I came by?"

"Yeah, sure," Clint mumbled as he rinsed off his dishes. After the door closed, he shook his head, rolled his eyes. "Friggin' nutbag."

Tony stayed up all night waiting for Loki. By three am, he figured he wasn't going to be getting a call or a text, much less a visit. He tried to sleep but couldn't. Once he finally had succumbed, he ended up oversleeping and nearly missed the first class on the first day of the semester. Thank god the class was being taught by Dr. Banner and he let him slide.

After another class, he ran into Jane and she divulged the tale of meeting the Odinsons over the break. He asked about Loki, again as casually as he could, and she said he seemed fine if quiet at dinner, almost happy. Tony left that meeting feeling a little blue. He'd continued to call and text Loki to the point where he knew it was bothersome. And when his calls began going straight to voicemail, he stopped.

He hadn't seen Loki once on campus or in the dorm since he had been back. After the second day of school, he was worried. After the third day, he was depressed. After the fourth, he was pissed. By the time the weekend had rolled around, Tony was ready for a fight. He tried barging into the dorm again, but, to his surprise, the door was locked and no one answered his knock. When he asked around neighboring rooms if anyone had seen Loki or Clint—to make it seem less obvious his focus was on Loki—he was told Clint was probably with a girl somewhere and that Loki was probably out with Bucky.

Tony was livid. He had no idea why Loki was avoiding him. He racked his brain, thinking back to their last video chat, wondering if there was something he had done or said that would have angered the gorgeous idiot. He couldn't come up with one damn thing.

And why was he spending his time with Bucky all of sudden?

Tony had always thought if this thing between him and Loki had ever ended it would have been on him, that he would have been the one to call it off. Maybe Loki had been stringing him along all this time…

Ridiculous, he thought with a shake of his head. Loki didn't have that in him. Did he?

By the end of the second week of school, Tony was delirious. He hadn't slept, he had barely eaten. The only thing in his system was alcohol. Everything came to a head when he got called into Banner's office in the middle of the third week. Banner demanded to know what was going on with one of his most intelligent students: why his work had been so sloppy, why had he missed classes, and why—even when he was present—his mind was elsewhere. Tony gave him no real answer. Banner gave him a stern warning and sent him on his way.

Angry, confused, hurt, self-conscious—that was a new feeling—and running on fumes and a little bit of vodka, Tony pouted his way back toward the dorms. Except instead of going to his or Loki's, he stormed straight to Peggy's, where he knew—from his good ol' pal Steve—that Loki's old poetry group now met for a Shakespeare class they were all taking together. Without thinking, without hesitating, he stomped up the steps and pushed into the room. Four pairs of eyes—two wide and full of fear, one full of confusion, and the other, narrowed and glaring emerald—were on him.

He glared right back. "You. Outside. Now!"

What in the name of all the gods?

Loki's heart nearly jumped out of his chest when the door to Peggy's dorm flew open and slammed with a loud smack against the wall behind it. His blood began to boil as he watched Tony storm in afterwards, standing before them and demanding—demanding!—that he be joined in the hall. Who in Hel did Tony Stark think he was?

Loki calmly got to his feet, since Tony's finger was clearly aimed in his direction, as were three pairs of female eyes. Frightened, except for Natasha; hers were more astute, more so than Loki would like them to be. He knew he would have to answer to her later.

"Excuse me and Mr. Stark, ladies," he said softly, pleasantly, digging his fingers into the skin of Tony's arm, and leading him into the hall. He shoved Tony forward as soon as the door closed behind his back. "Have you completely lost your mind? How dare you burst into Margaret's dormitory like a mad, spoiled child? And to speak to me like that—in front of them? You have lost your—"

"Ah, shut up, Loki!"

Loki blinked once, his jaw clenched. "Excuse me?" He glanced down at Tony's chest, rising and falling with his rapid breaths before lifting them to them to his eyes. He noticed the heavy bags under them, the wan look of his skin, and his hair—the fact that it was spiky and sticking up in every which direction told him Tony hadn't been taking care of himself. Good, he thought bitterly.

"It's your fault," the shorter man nearly whined and winced with it. That black eyebrow rose and Tony cheeks flushed a pale red. Embarrassed, he dropped his eyes to the floor. "It's your fault I did that."

"I would ask you to enlighten me as to how your juvenile and immature behavior has anything remotely to do with me, however," he stressed, cutting off Tony when the other's lips parted, "I am not going to." He had started to turn away, pausing when Tony grabbed for his arm. "Unhand me, Stark." He heard a sound—something like a muffled cry—and promptly ignored it.

"Don't call me Stark," Tony said quietly. His fingers squeezed around Loki's arm. "I'm not leaving until you tell me what the hell is going on with you." Loki still hadn't turned back to face him and now Tony forced him around. "Why are you ignoring me?"

Loki refused to be pulled in by those tempting pools of chocolate and lifted his chin, effectively looking down at Tony. "I have been busy."

"Bullshit. You're avoiding me."

Loki looked away. He didn't have the time or patience for this. And he thought that just being in Tony's presence again was going to deepen that already severe crack in his heart. "I need to return to my study group."

"No!" Tony sprinted around him, blocking his way into the room, his arms spread wide, doorjamb to doorjamb. "You can pull this dodging crap with Thor all you want, but not me. You know me, Loki. I won't stop 'til I get what I want."

Loki made that familiar sound of annoyance, crossed his arms, and looked away again from the pleading look Tony was giving him. "Very well. You may meet me by the Social Sciences building tomorrow night. My class is finished at nine. I'll give you ten minutes."

"I'll be there. But will you talk to me?"

Loki glowered at Tony, jerked a shoulder in an apathetic shrug. "I haven't the faintest idea what you want from me. Now, remove yourself from the doorway."

Seeming reluctant to let Loki pass, Tony hesitated before moving aside. Loki waited for him to move behind him before reaching for the doorknob.

"Do make sure you apologize to the ladies," Loki suggested, not looking at Tony. "You gave them a scare and interrupted quite rudely." Loki didn't have to turn around to know that the noise he heard behind him was Tony swiping a hand under his nose. And sniffling.

"Can you do it for me?"

Loki closed his eyes, sighing at the small voice Tony had asked the question in. He had to force the picture of Tony and Pepper kissing into his mind to remind him why he had to fight the urge to turn around and gather Tony in his arms. "No." He clenched his jaw again. "Perhaps there are others willing to do your bidding. I am not one of them." Without another word, Loki pushed open the door and stepped back inside, forcing a smile on his face when the three women immediately stopped whispering amongst themselves. "My sincerest apologies for the interruption, my dears. Now, where were we?"

Loki took his seat on the floor, and looked at Peggy, Maria and Natasha in turn when there was silence. "Is there a problem?" Maria and Peggy's eyes went straight to Natasha.

"What the hell was that about, Loki?" she asked.

"Oh," he laughed softly, "Stark and Thor seemed to have had a row and Stark mistakenly believed I could do something about it. Shall we continue with The Taming of the Shrew?"

The rest of the study session went smoothly, but, like a coward, Loki never looked at Natasha directly. He tried to get out of walking her home, but ultimately, his chivalrous side won out. They weren't but two steps away from the building when Natasha wasted no time with the small talk.

"So?" Loki cast one of his sly glances her way. "Are you going to tell me what actually happened?"

"I already have."

"Oh, Loki…" Natasha shook her head, bundling her fists in the pockets of her jacket. She was really missing that California sunshine right about now. "You might get Maria to believe that. And you could definitely pull the wool over Peggy's eyes. But you can't fool me." She looked at him, purposefully kept her eyes locked on his profile. She could tell she was getting to him when the muscles in his jaw clenched.

"Natasha…"

"Since when are you and Tony Stark friends?"

"We are not," he answered softly. Too softly.

Natasha got the dreadful feeling all of her suspicions had just been confirmed. She couldn't take much joy in being right; not with that pained look on Loki's face. She laid a gloved hand on his arm, stopping him. "Loki…"

"I don't wish to speak about it."

"But, Loki—" She went quiet when he gently took her chin in his hand.

"At least not tonight. Forgive me, but I must part with you here. Will you be all right getting home?" Still shocked by the non-revelation revelation, Natasha could only nod. Loki tugged her closer, pressed a kiss to her forehead, and left.

She watched his tall frame fade away from her, wondered if those were tears glistening in his eyes, and her face hardened—more than usual. She started toward her building, which wasn't far off now, thinking that Tony Stark had better be thanking his fucking lucky stars tonight. If it had gone her way, she would have known exactly what he did to her best friend.

And he would have half of her knee-high, steel-toed boot straight up his million dollar ass.

Loki had almost forgotten he was supposed to meet with Tony. Until he stepped out of his classroom, laughing with a classmate, and came upon Tony pacing just a few feet away. How Tony knew his class was on the third floor, he didn't care to find out. Once Tony spotted him, he motioned for Tony to follow him, in the opposite direction all the other students were walking in, toward the door leading to the flight of stairs. Tony tried to keep up with him as Loki descended the steps at a much quicker pace.

Once they were outside, Loki slowed, waited for Tony to begin. He planned to keep this as short as possible. Let Tony have his say and then he would be on his merry way. "Are you going to speak or not?" he asked after several moments of silence between them.

Tony stepped in front of him, halting their walk. "Tell me why you're avoiding me." Loki opened his mouth to respond but Tony went on. "Tell me why you don't take my calls or answer my texts. Tell me what's wrong with you. Why are you mad at me?" He had to pause, emotion causing his throat to constrict, and he had to swallow it back.

Loki raked a hand through his dark hair, irritation growing because he was beginning to feel sympathy for the damn fool.

"Why are you spending so much time with Bucky?"

Loki finally looked up at that; both the surprise of the question and the softness of Tony's voice touched a nerve. "Who are you to question who I spend my time with?"

"Loki…" The one word came out as a scoff, a whine, a groan, or some combination between the three. Loki started to move around him and Tony's hands came up to press against his chest. Instinctively, Loki shoved them away. "Just tell me one thing…" Loki's eyebrows bobbed up and down, a gesture for Tony to continue. "Were you just…killing time…with me until he came back?"

"What?" Loki shouted the word in genuine shock. "No, you imbecile! I was with you because I like you!" Frustrated, he started forward again, shoving Tony with his shoulder, aiming for the path to the dorms.

"Then what changed?" Tony asked as he ran to catch up.

"I did."

"Why? Loki, stop!" Tony moved in front of him again, holding his arms out to bring Loki to a stop. "Talk to me. Tell me what happened between the last time we talked and now that has you looking at me like…that." He pointed with his hand at Loki's dark expression. "Looking like you hate me."

Loki sighed, his eyes drifting closed. "I don't hate you, Anthony," he murmured.

"I'm having a really hard time believing that. You've been actively making sure you are nowhere I am. Now I know how Thor feels." Loki's eyes flashed to his, a low snarl passed through his lips as he stood in a face-off with Tony. "Got your attention."

Loki's lip curled. "You insensitive creature."

Tony's eyes went wide. "Oh, I'm insensitive?!"

"Yes, you are! You know Thor is a sore subject for me. How dare you throw that in my face?"

"You haven't spoken to me in nearly a month, Loki! If anyone's insensitive here, it's you!"

"You vile—"

"Stop using your big vocabulary—"

They stood, nose-to-chin, shouting insults into each other's faces, trying to one-up the other. Some students were passing by, sending them curious glances, but not getting involved. At one point, a man jogging by tried to intervene and both Loki and Tony yelled at him to back off. His rage building, Loki screamed the only thing he knew would shut Tony up.

"I saw you kissing the redhead!"

Tony took a step back, a comically confused look on his handsome face. "Wha…what?" Loki didn't bother to repeat himself. "When?"

Loki's breath was coming fast with the relief of finally getting that off his chest. "New Year's Eve," he said, his voice hoarse from the yelling match.

Tony's face scrunched even more. "But…I didn't see you on New Year's."

"I made sure you didn't."

"Wait. You came to New York?"

"I did."

Tony just about melted. "Loki." He reached for him but Loki snatched himself away. He scoffed and pressed his fingers to his forehead. "Fine. Gimme a minute," he muttered. Squeezing his eyes shut, he concentrated, his brilliant mind sorting through the bits and pieces of that night—that he could remember—like he was flipping through a file cabinet. His brain focused on that moment on the balcony with Pepper, almost like a projector in his mind, showing him a movie clip. The memory suddenly came to him and he chuckled wryly, his hand dropping to his side. Loki glared at him over his shoulder, having turned his back to him. "Oh, man…"

"I'm glad you are amused."

"I'm not." Tony slipped his hands into the back pockets of his jeans and moved closer to Loki. "What you saw was a misunderstanding, Loki."

His lips pressed into a thin, red line. "I know what I saw, Anthony."

"No, you don't. If you had stuck around you would have seen me push Pepper away. I didn't kiss her; she kissed me."

Loki blinked once before his eyebrows came together. "Do you think me stupid?"

"No! Loki…ugh." Tony dragged both of his hands into his hair, groaned. "Look, Pep made a joke, I laughed; she took it as something else and made a move on me. I pushed her away, she got pissed and took off. I finally got to talk to her again before I left and—you'll be happy to hear this—she is still pissed off at me 'cause I told her I didn't want to get back together 'cause I was…" He let out the breath his next words got stuck on. He pursed his lips at Loki's questioning look. "Because I was seeing someone else."

Loki's eyes remained on Tony, his eyebrows quirked up, silently questioning, before looking away, digesting the information. Warmth spread through him when his face was turned, held in hands that smelled faintly of grease and soap; his lips met smooth, firm lips. He wanted to give in, badly, but he remembered Tony and Pepper kissing again and tore himself away. "Anthony! You cannot simply kiss me and expect that to fix everything. I know too well the nature of your relationship with Pepper."

"Just like I know the nature of your relationship with Bucky." Tony didn't move even as Loki stormed toward him again.

"I do not have a relationship with Bucky!"

"And I don't have a relationship with Pepper! I blew her off for you, you fucking moron! Because I…I…" Tony let out a long breath, shocked at himself. "I don't love her, Loki."

Loki hesitated; it took several tries before he could form his words. "Well…how do you feel about me, Anthony?"

Tony froze. Feelings. Emotions. Kryptonite for Tony Stark. But it's Loki, he said to himself, swallowing to soothe his dry throat. "I don't know…" he said, moving closer and taking Loki's hand before the taller man could move away. "But I do know that whatever it is I feel for you, is way stronger than anything I ever felt for Pepper. Or anyone else."

Loki frowned, struggling to believe him, to let go of his fears and insecurities—yes, gods be damned, he had them—and looked at their joined hands.

Tony's fingers tightened around Loki's, drawing his gaze, and he mustered up the courage to say what he wanted to say. "I care about you, Loki. A lot."

It was Loki's turn to swallow. Because he knew how he already felt, he decided to throw caution to the wind, and ask Tony. "Do…do you love me, Anthony?" His heartbeat thudded heavy in his ears as he awaited his answer.

A lightning bolt of panic struck up Tony's spine instantly. He clamped down on it immediately. Firming his grip on Loki's hand, he pulled him closer. "I don't want to lie to you, okay? I don't know. I don't know anything about love or loving someone. But I know that I don't want to lose…whatever it is that we have going on."

Loki took his hand from Tony's grasp, sighed in frustration. Ignoring that annoying little stab of pain in his chest. "Obviously we don't have much if you cannot put a name to it." He started to leave but a light touch on his arm stopped him.

"I don't have a name for it because before you, with everyone else—with Pepper, the other girls here and a few girls back at home—"

"Stop bragging."

Tony couldn't hide the grin that curved his lips at Loki's strained statement. "Not bragging, babe. Just stating facts." Loki rolled his eyes. Tony touched his fingers to his arm again. He needed to touch him, to make sure he stayed, that he didn't run. "Loki, they all meant nothing. They were just sex; a fun thing to do 'cause I was bored and needed to get my rocks off."

Loki made a semi-disgusted face, looked away. "Classy, Anthony."

Tony stepped forward, cupped Loki's chin, forcing him to look at Tony. "It's not the same with you. You're different. You're…special."

Loki felt that warmth again, wanted to smile, to gather Tony close and kiss him until he begged him for air. But he still couldn't allow himself to believe Tony's sentiments. "We've not had sex yet, Anthony. How do you know I'm…different?"

Tony tugged on Loki's chin until their mouths met, placing a soft, tender kiss on his lips. Their first kiss since before they left for vacation. The kiss was so sweet, it had tears stinging Loki's eyes. Tony kept Loki's face in his hands, even after he pulled back, and swiped at his tears with his thumbs. "I'm not gonna say I love you until I know for sure that I do. But just know that when I do finally say it, I'll really fucking mean it."

Loki blinked through damp eyes. "How… Do you think you could love someone like me?" His voice was barely above a whisper.

Tony's lips curved. "If you let me."

That was all Loki needed to hear. He pulled Tony to him, did what he had wanted to do since he saw the damn genius again, and kissed him hungrily—scraping his teeth along Tony's lips, sucking on Tony's tongue, dipping his own deep into Tony's mouth. His arms went around the smaller frame, his fingers digging into a cotton t-shirt and soft dark hair, his throat vibrating with a moan when Tony's fingers fisted into the lapels of his black coat, drawing him even closer.

Then Tony remembered where they were. "Loki." He chuckled as Loki's lips kept at him and his hand went to the back of Tony's head, pushing him back toward his starving mouth. "Loki, we're in the middle of the campus."

"I care not." His fingers clutched at him even as Tony tried to break away. Then his face was between Tony's warm hands again.

"Listen to me." Tony held Loki's face away from his own. Arousal had already changed soft jade to deep green pits, dominated by large black pupils

"Yes?" The word was a breathy sigh.

"I want to…" Once again, Tony Stark couldn't find his words. That happened entirely too much around Loki. "I want…"

"I want, as well."

Tony laughed, dodging Loki's eager lips. "I'm trying to tell you something, Loki!"

Loki settled for Tony's neck, latching on, nibbling, sucking, marking. "Hmm. Tell me later."

"Loki." The serious tone did nothing to halt his seductive attention. "I want us to…take this…further." The mouth on his neck ceased its attack and Loki pulled back, a frown creasing his forehead…before understanding had it smoothing again.

"…Ah…are you sure, my darling? I am not opposed, of course, but…that is a major step. For you. For us."

"I know. And I am. I'm not scared or nervous, because…well, it's you," he said with a shrug before lifting up to press a light kiss to Loki's lips. "And please don't feel the need to do, like, flowers and candles or some shit like that. It's not really my first time."

Loki closed the already small distance between them and rested his hands at Tony's waist. "But it is your first time with me."

Tony grinned then suddenly his mouth puckered into a pout. "How many V-cards have you taken?"

Because it looked so enticing, Loki leaned forward and nipped at Tony's bottom lip. "How many what?"

"V-cards. Ohh!" He yelled out on a groan at Loki's blank face. "How many people's virginities have you taken?"

Loki's mouth fell open in shock. He made such a noise before turning away, walking down the path again. "Insufferable, I tell you!"

"What?" Tony called after him, running to catch up. "It's a legit question. I should know your history before we do anything, shouldn't I?"

"My history?" Loki glanced at Tony briefly before shaking his head in disbelief. "You mean a list of my sexual partners?"

"Yeah. It's what couples do, Loki." Tony had taken a few more steps before he realized Loki had stopped. He turned and looked back at him. "What? What are you doing? Let's go."

"You said…" His eyes were wide, his face pale—more pale than usual. "Are we…a couple then?"

Tony scoffed with his entire body: he rolled his eyes, he threw up his arms, and he dramatically bent his knees, before walking back to Loki. He slipped his hand into the limp, pale one at Loki's side, linking their fingers, and dragged him along. "What do you want, a fucking pinning ceremony?"

Loki's grin spread from ear to ear. He tightened his grip and swung their joined hands a little between them. "No, that won't be necessary."

Tony made a face. "You need to learn when I'm being sarcastic, babe."

"I do know, dear. There is rarely a time when you are not. By the way, the answer is four."

"Four what?"

"Hm, what did you call them—V-cards?"

This time Tony came to a halt, staring darkly at Loki, his chin nearly on his chest. "You've taken four V-cards?"

"Hm." Loki started their walk again. Tony contemplated this new revelation.

"Uh…boys or girls?"

"Two young men, two female."

"Wow…"

Loki glanced at him. "What?"

Tony shook his head, lifted his shoulders. "Impressive, that's all."

"Is it? I didn't realize one should boast about such things?"

"No, they shouldn't. Especially you," he mumbled. Tony's mouth was in a half-hearted pout as they made their way back to the dorm. Until Loki threatened that as soon as they got there he would kiss it away. Tony couldn't wait. He pushed Loki into a dark huddle of trees not far from the dorm building and pushed him to the ground. Loki went willingly and that night, on the ground, in the dark, under the pine trees spread all over the campus, Loki finally got something he had been wanting since the first time he touched the genius billionaire heir: he got Tony Stark's mouth on him.