Hey, guys, I revised the hell out of this chapter...which made it longer, sorry. It was crap, I know it was crap, and I shouldn't have published it in the first place, I apologize. The next chapter should be out soon I've been writing like crazy so...yeah. Enjoy. ;)
Disclaimer: Does not own Marvel Universe
Warning: Meh just language
Comments and critiques are welcomed!
(Also...SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THE SCARLET WITCH RUMORS FOR THE NEW XMEN MOVIE!)
"All students that have received any 'D's' or 'F's' on their Midterms must return their Midterms signed by a parent or guardian to homeroom by Monday—and now for your morning announcements..."
Steve stares down at his midterm and sighs. There was no way he was going to be able to explain his grades to his mother. Most students with bad grades just forged a signature but Steve wasn't a bad student—normally he got straight A's but—he'd been a bit distracted. Of course the last time he received bad marks in school his mother threatened to send him to military school so that there wouldn't be any girls to confuse him. It wouldn't exactly matter since Steve liked guys too but he wasn't quite ready to open that chapter with his mother just yet. He wanted to spend as much time with Loki as he could before his mother inevitably found out or became suspicious enough that Steve was forced to admit something to her. But if he didn't pick up his grades his mother was going to put him on lockdown and he'd have to find other ways to be with Loki.
Of course there was college to worry about as well but college wasn't going to scream and smack him in the back of the head.
"…thank you and have a great day."
Ms. Maximoff sighs when the announcements finally end, swerving on her chair in the front of the room to face them. Wanda Maximoff was the eleventh grade English teacher. She'd started as a substitute the year before and was asked to stay permanently. In a way she was intimidating which made her desirable. While the guys drooled all over her, the girls practically worshiped every word she said. She was an excellent teacher but she had a difficult class and according to Steve's midterm he was crashing and burning—hard. Normally he'd simply switch classes but he needed this class in order to graduate with honors.
"Alright everyone," Ms. Maximoff gives them a smile, crossing one leg over its twin. "You've all gotten your midterms and you're probably all wondering if that includes last week's test and the answer is no, it does not. That may be why some of you have lower grades than you were expecting-"
The door opens and everyone shifts their eyes as Loki Laufeyson slips into the room. He ignores their stares and gives Ms. Maximoff a cheeky grin as he walks by her desk. "That's a lovely shade of red you're wearing today, Wanda." Loki makes his way to the desk next to Steve's where Darcy was waiting for him. The class murmurs to itself. Darcy however was making a noise that sounded very much like a teapot that was ready to boil and her face was turning bright red from containing her laughter.
"Nice of you to join us, Mr. Laufeyson," Ms. Maximoff clears her throat again and swerves on her chair to push herself up gracefully. "Now it is a Friday…I'm sure all of you are ready to go home, you're tired, you're ready for the weekend but you still have homework. And that means—you'll be analyzing what I have assigned for you to read-" Everyone in the class groans. "Knock it off. If you have any questions you're welcome to email me over the weekend, I'll respond as quickly as I can." The bell rings, everyone scrambling to get up and out to move on with the day. "And no SparkNotes, I know when you use them!"
Darcy pulls Loki forcefully along with her and Steve smiles at them. While he couldn't interact with Loki the way he wanted to during school it was still nice that things felt like they'd finally settled between them. Loki gives Steve a small smile when he catches his gaze and Steve has to force down a grin. Too many people would notice and Steve could barely contain himself enough to be subtle. And smiling still hurt his face. His lip still had the stitches in it and his eye was still a little swollen but the pain was completely worth it. Loki had stopped questioning Steve's want to spend time with him and was even starting to initiate. Steve packs up his things. All of his friends would probably wait at their lockers for him, shoving at one another like idiots which could give Steve at least a few minutes with Loki. He glances at the door where Darcy was still pulling Loki along but he turns slightly to give Steve a little wave. Steve could feel his stomach jump.
"Can I help you with something, Mr. Rogers?"
Steve blinks and looks down at Ms. Maximoff who was smiling up at him from her desk. For a moment he couldn't think of what he wanted to say. She continues to smile at him as he collects his thoughts, pulling out his midterm. For some reason he couldn't keep his eyes away from her sweater. It was red. She always wore red. "Yes, umm—I was hoping we could go over why my grades are so, well…low."
"She said I'm not applying myself into my papers," Steve sighs, banging his head against Clint's locker. "I don't even know what that means…"
Bucky snorts, looking up from his phone. "Does she think you're not writing them yourself?"
"Maybe she thinks you're getting help writing them," Clint suggests. "Like off a website or something."
"But I'm not…I write all of them myself, I even follow the outline she gives us."
"Maybe she doesn't like you."
"Yeah, well, it's not like she likes you either, Clint."
Steve groans. Ms. Maximoff said he had to put himself in the author's place in order to understand the books. He sort of understood that—sort of—but he couldn't quite wrap his mind around it. Why did they have to analyze books anyways? Steve just liked reading and talking about books he liked. It wasn't like he didn't know how to read. Of course none of this was going to help him explain his grades to his mother, not that he really expected it to. There were still three other classes that his grades could be improved in but he at least knew why in those.
"Just go back during lunch," Bucky shrugs, shoving some books into his locker and slamming it shut. "At least she's giving you time to talk things over. She wouldn't even talk to Harry Osborn about his grades."
Clint scoffs. Bucky and Steve both turn to him, Clint shoving his hands into his pockets. "Isn't it obvious? She has some weird crush on Laufeyson. He's been hanging around her classroom during the day ever since his fight with Osborn."
"Dude…" Bucky laughs and shakes his head. "Maximoff's a total prude…no fucking way she has a thing for Laufeyson. The dude is so twisted that even homosexuals anonymous doesn't want to deal with him."
"You saw it in class! She barely blinked when he came strolling in like the fucking Queen of England." Clint scowls at the floor, scuffing his shoes. "Pisses me off…he just does whatever the fuck he wants because he thinks he's better than all of us. And of course the teachers don't do anything since he's not hurting anyone…they can't enforce anything because God forbid he becomes emotionally unstable…fucking…" He continues to grumble and frown at his feet.
"Alright, princess, go take your Midol it'll help with the cramps. Jesus…" Bucky rolls his eyes. He nudges Steve, furrowing his brow. "Yo, Steve—you alright?"
Steve blinks, coming back into focus. He relaxes his fists which had been clenched together and lets out the breath he'd been holding in. There was no helping it though. Bucky and Clint were Steve's friends...he'd known Clint since junior high and Bucky since elementary school he couldn't just dump them because he'd taken an interest in Loki. Besides Loki wanted things between them to stay just between them. If Steve started standing up for Loki whenever someone was mouthing off about him people would get suspicious and Loki might get pissed. Things were just starting to get good between them Steve didn't want to risk anything. Still…even if he wasn't romantically interested in Loki he was Thor's little brother and it didn't feel right to be slandering Loki the way they were. Even though Steve wasn't joining in he wasn't saying anything at all and that was just as bad.
He forces a smile. "Yeah, I'm good. Just—thinking about what I want to talk to Maximoff about." He glances at Clint who chips his nail against his teeth. Clint wasn't one to get riled up. He generally kept a very calm and collected demeanor, much like Natasha's but on a more…normal level.
Bucky clears his throat, drawing Steve's attention back. "Alright, well—you go talk to Maximoff now because we're all meeting after school on the football field. Thor wanted to build a snowman or something and Clint and I are going to try and build a snow dick like in South Park." Steve nods and slings his bag over his shoulder. Bucky hesitates, looking to Clint who chuckles. He furrows his brow. They'd been staring at him like he'd grown a second head all week.
"What?" Steve asks, looking at the pair of them. They shake their heads. "What?"
"Okay, I have to ask…what the fuck is up with your face?" Steve could feel a blush light up, his hand raising to touch the split in his lip. He kept forgetting it was there. He was sure he still looked like hell and it would explain why the teachers kept giving him strange looks. In fact that would explain why everyone was giving him weird looks. He'd been so giddy about the way his date with Loki ended that he hadn't even thought about what people would think about the bruises and cuts. Bucky's face falls slightly, still laughing. "I haven't asked all week, man, but I gotta know…were you in a fight? Did you get mauled by a cat? What?"
Steve forces out a small laugh and starts to walk backwards away from them. "Naw, man, I was in a fight."
Both of them stare blankly at him. "A fight." Steve nods. "Like…the guy was an asshole and you just had to defend your honor? Or…?"
"Well he was an asshole," Steve snorts. "And it wasn't really to defend my honor…but yeah a fight."
Bucky and Clint share a look. "Steve, you're so crazy today…" Bucky chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck. "Seriously though, you were—you were fighting? That's stupid, man, don't do that shit."
He shrugs. "It wasn't so bad…besides it's not like I haven't done stupid stuff before. You're just jealous that my face still looks so good." Steve grins and turns on his heel to walk down the hall, the lunch bell ringing overhead.
"Was it for a girl?" Bucky calls after him. "She's not worth it!"
"Yeah, they are. I'll see you guys later, okay?"
"Wait—you have a girl?!"
Steve shakes his head and rounds the corner, Clint and Bucky's voices starting to drown out. Despite wanting to brag about his new relationship to his friends he couldn't betray Loki's trust like that. However, even if he could talk about Loki all he wanted his friends' reactions would vary. Some of them weren't reactions Steve was prepared for. Clint was already proof of that…just the mention of Loki's name made his lip curl.
Two underclass girls sheepishly squeak when they notice Steve walking towards them. They bashfully avert their eyes and bite their lips to contain their grins as he comes closer to them. He gives them a smile and they giggle, hurrying past him.
He has to stop abruptly when he notices a tiny brunette girl pacing around in front of the girls' lavatory. "Excuse me, I d-didn't see you-" Steve blinks. "Jane?"
Jane Foster gives him a small smile, barely acknowledging his presence as she continues to pace back and forth, her tiny hands wringing together. She was mumbling to herself and wasn't directly looking at anything around her other than the floor. Although Steve wasn't so sure her eyes were registering that the floor was there. She looked pretty today. Steve could tell why Thor liked her so much, there was a delicate kind of beauty about her that was really brought out when she wore clothes with a bit more color to them. The blouse she was wearing was frilly and had a floral print. It was not a look that Jane normally sported.
Steve looks around the hall where a few students were still making their way towards lunch or a classroom and furrows his brow. "You okay?"
"Fine, fine," she mutters, biting her lip. He watches her for a moment, his conscience telling him it wouldn't be right to just leave her in the middle of the hall doing…whatever the hell she was doing.
"Are…you sure?"
She stops. Jane lifts her head slightly to look at Steve as if she'd just realized he was there and greets him with a smile. "Oh, Steve—sorry, I'm…I'm a little distracted. I'm just waiting on Darcy." Steve glances at the bathroom.
"Oh. Is she…in the girls' room?"
"Yes."
"Oh." Steve looks around and back at Jane who was standing in one place now but still wringing her hands together. There were too many questions running through his mind to put to words. "Did she uhh—not want you to wait in there?"
Jane blinks, attempting to register Steve's question. "No." They both look around now, Steve feeling a bit flustered from the awkward irresponsiveness of the conversation. He catches Jane's eye and she forces a smile but quickly looks away. "Have you…have you talked to Thor today?"
"No," he laughs dryly, clearing his throat. "We umm—we haven't talked in a while."
"He asked me out today."
Steve hesitates but he can't help but to grin at her, feeling an overwhelming amount of excitement fill his chest. Thor had been contemplating for weeks whether or not he wanted to ask Jane out. "Finally, right?"
"Yeah, yeah," Jane laughs, blushing fiercely and rubbing her arm. "I uhh—I haven't given him an answer yet though. I told him I wanted to think about it…"
"Is…that why Darcy's in the bathroom?"
It didn't make a lot of sense to Steve but girls didn't make a lot of sense to him anyways. This did explain why Thor seemed so quiet today. If a girl he'd been pining over told him she needed to think about his want to share his time and affections he'd be freaking out too…then again that did happen to him and things worked out for Steve no reason they shouldn't for Thor.
Jane shakes her head. "She's talking to Loki."
"Ah." That made more sense. Jane was more of a pistol than Steve gave her credit for. Not a lot of girls Thor's dated recognized that breaking the ice with Loki was the easiest way to make things work out with Thor. Their relationship was complicated which of course gave Steve the anxiety he had about Thor ever finding out about him and Loki. Thor was his best friend…it would be different from Bucky finding out. Bucky would just shrug it off like he always does. He didn't really seem to pay Loki much mind and joined in with the crowd only because he thought it was fun. With Thor…well Loki meant a lot to him and so did Steve. Some kind of trust was bound to be broken. "So—I guess if things go well with Loki you'll be giving Thor a shot?"
She blushes faintly, hiding her face. "Ahh…I've wanted to date him for so long now I'm so excited he asked me out…" Jane hesitates. She tugs at her hair and looks anxiously towards the bathroom door and back at Steve. "Er—Steve? I'm sorry, but—did…did Loki do that? I mean…the gash in your lip…did Loki-?" Steve frowns at her. She makes a small noise and bows her head to stare at her shoes. "I uhh—I didn't-" Darcy pushes her way out of the bathroom.
"Hey, li'l mama," Darcy grins at Jane and turns her head slightly to give Steve a wink. Jane twists her hands together anxiously, biting her lip. "Brother Bear says he don't care."
They both stare at her.
Darcy snorts and rolls her eyes. "Come on, that was really clever! Steve? No?" She shakes her head. "Disappointing. Anyways…Loki says you're a dumbass and that if you want to hump Thor then go for it."
Jane squeals obnoxiously and jumps on Darcy, throwing her arms around her neck. Darcy laughs and stumbles back slightly to keep her balance. Steve smiles and takes a step back to avoid being hit. Darcy puts Jane down who paces around excitedly now and tugs at Darcy's arm. "Come on, come on, come on! I have to go find Thor, come on!" Darcy shoots Steve a grin, giving him a small wave as Jane drags her down the hall.
"Bye, Steve."
Steve waves back at her and sighs, checking his watch. There was still a few minutes left in lunch for him to go see Ms. Maximoff. If worse came to worse he'd just stop by after school before joining his friends in the snow. Steve sighs and rubs his eyes. Damn, he was tired. And touching his face still hurt. He starts to walk forward, shoving his hands in his pockets. At least Thor would be distracted by Jane. Steve had sort of been avoiding any direct conversation with Thor since Thanksgiving. He wasn't all that good with secrets. Steve feels a slight tug on his bag and isn't quick enough to react when he's pulled back into the girls' bathroom.
Loki gives him a coy smile as he backs Steve up against the door and latches it. "Well, well," he purrs, Steve feeling his stomach flip. "Look what I've caught in my web."
"Hey, babe." Steve chuckles. Loki presses a firm kiss against his lips, Steve wincing slightly. Before he gets a chance to take over Loki pulls away. Steve makes a frustrated noise in his throat. He watches Loki brush some hair from his face, looking him over. It was making him a little self-conscious.
"Your face looks better," Loki hums. "Has anyone asked?"
"Jane thinks you're beating me for some reason," he laughs dryly, Loki drawing away from him and rolling his eyes. "Which does raise a few questions…"
He watches as Loki climbs onto the small shelf by the window with fascination. There was such a nimble gracefulness to the way he moved. Loki props the window open and lights up a cigarette, taking care to exhale out of the room. Steve watches him for a moment and then glances at himself in the mirror. His face didn't look nearly as bad as Loki's…Loki's cheek and part of his eye was still noticeably swollen. No one seemed to be questioning or spreading rumors about this though which for Steve was surprising. Even Darcy didn't seem fazed by this and normally she panicked about Loki missing a class without knowing where he was or why he wasn't there.
"Jane saw us kiss at the dance."
Steve blinks, looking back up at Loki who was staring out the window. His cigarette was perched between his fingers, his other hand covering his mouth and elbow balanced against his knee, eyes narrowed in thought.
"You think she's the one who-?"
Loki shakes his head. "No…she's not devious enough. And she's intimidated by me." He snorts and motions towards the door. "As I'm sure you can tell since she asked for my blessing to date the oaf."
"So you're not…worried? I mean…do you think she knows about us?" Steve could feel his stomach drop, his voice hesitating. "Do you think she'll say something to Thor?"
"Oh?" Loki turns slightly to face him, a small smirk on his lips. "Would you rather I have told her no? She'd be going purely upon assumption and if Thor were to ask either of us would we not simply deny it? Jane Foster is not a concern of mine." He flicks his cigarette out the window and shuts it, hopping down from his perch. Steve grins when Loki walks towards him and wraps his arms around his neck. "So…why aren't you in lunch? Were you concerned for my wellbeing?"
He laughs lightly and pecks his forehead. "No, actually, I-" Steve hesitates when Loki rests his head on his shoulder with a sigh, making him smile. "I ran into Jane on my way there."
Steve waves to Bucky and the guys as he makes his way down the hall to finally talk with Ms. Maximoff. He knew he only had so much time with her though since the guys would get restless and she had a kid to get home to. Besides Steve didn't want to feel like he was being rude…he didn't like discussing his grades with his teachers. He didn't want to seem like he thought they were grading unfairly or doing something wrong especially since he knew teaching was a hard job. Of course having social anxiety didn't help much either. Steve glances over his shoulder when he hears Bucky and Clint making gagging noises to see Jane standing on tiptoe to peck Thor's lips, Darcy and a few other girls from the debate team squealing. He snorts. Steve expected to see a lot more crestfallen faces once word got around that Thor was officially off the market. He supposed it would take the weekend for everyone to let it sink in. Plus it wasn't official until someone put it on Facebook.
Maybe someday things with Loki will be like that. Steve could definitely feel a strange twinge of jealousy brewing in his gut. He was happy for Thor and Jane sure but…Thor got to show off his new relationship. Steve may never get to. Well, he knew he could with other relationships but he really liked Loki. Like—he really, really liked Loki. Steve didn't care about other people being in relationships but it was a little different when he had to listen to his best friends carry on about how great their special someone was when he knew he couldn't talk about his at all. He knew once things really started to take off between him and Loki he wouldn't care but right now he sort of did.
Of course none of this would matter once his mother throttled him for his grades. He sighs and scuffs his foot against the floor. That was definitely something he didn't want to think about. Steve knocks lightly on the classroom door, a smooth voice telling him to come in.
He opens the door.
Steve looks around the room at all the stereotypical maps and motivational posters that teachers seemed required to have on their walls. Ms. Maximoff did have a few notable posters of movies and book covers. He rolls his shoulders. This was not a conversation he'd been looking forward to. Steve approaches her desk, rubbing the back of his neck, and looks up. He frowns. Loki was sitting in Ms. Maximoff's chair, head propped up with his hand, and reading over what looked like a stack of essays. He was writing comments in the margins and circling words and crossing things out with a red pen…was he—was he grading them?
"Ms. Maximoff already left," Loki mumbles. He glances up and pauses, sitting up with a smile. "Oh, hey."
Steve stares at him. "What are you doing?"
Loki blinks. "Grading essays. What are you doing?"
"I—what? Why are you grading essays?" Steve hesitates, looking around. "Is this where you disappear to all the time? You just come in here to grade her papers?"
"Why are you yelling?"
"I don't know!"
"Alright, Loki," Ms. Maximoff walks into the room with an armful of books and papers, multiple bags slung over her arm and her hair slightly disheveled. "Here's the rest of the tests and my gradebook, just lock them in my desk when you're done-" She hands Loki all the papers and stops, noticing Steve and sighing, giving him an apologetic smile. "Oh, Steven…I'm so sorry, I told you I could meet after school…I'm afraid I have to run off, my son William got in another fight at school, you know how it goes…" Ms. Maximoff sets one of her bags down and straightens her hair. "You had a question for me though?"
Steve hesitates, glancing at Loki who was pretending not to listen and had gone back to grading the papers. He had multiple questions now. "Well…I had asked earlier why my grades were so low and you said I was having trouble applying myself to my papers?"
"Yes, that's right…" she nods and gives him a smile. "You do very well recognizing metaphors and themes in the readings but you're having difficulty telling me why they're there. You aren't telling me why the author put them there."
"I…I still don't really understand."
Loki clears his throat, Steve looking at him and back at Ms. Maximoff who was picking up her bags. She motions towards the door. "Would you mind walking and talking?" Steve nods and follows her out into the hall, making sure to shut the door behind them. "In the type of literature we read in my class it's easy to identify what the author is basing from his time period into his writings. When I say I'd like for you to analyze the writing what I'm looking for is for you to take your recognition of the metaphors and themes you identify and view them as a window into the author's thoughts and everyday life. Understand?"
"I uhh—I guess-" No, not really.
Ms. Maximoff leads him to the back doors, turning to him. She hums, her finger tapping against her lips in thought as she examines Steve. He had to avert his eyes. "You're Coulson's prize student, aren't you? The one he brags about in the teachers' lounge?" Steve turns red. He could handle the praise in the classroom but did Coulson really have to brag about him? Ms. Maximoff smiles. "Think of analysis of the literature as if you were looking at the writing from a historical perspective. Many authors write based upon what's happening in their society currently. Fitzgerald is an excellent example because…?"
"Well he uhh…he lived during the…the Jazz Age, right?"
"And what did he write about?"
"The…Jazz Age?"
She smiles at him. "See? Easy." Steve supposed that made a little more sense. At least he had a general idea of what he was doing wrong. "May I…ask you something on a bit of a personal note? You and Loki…well the teachers are concerned with how the both of you have looked all week so I can't help but ask if—if it's anything you two need to work out with the guidance counselor?"
"No!" Steve's face burns red. "No, no, I…we…we talk sometimes but I don't think what happened to us is uhh—related at all, you know? Just…a weird coincidence I guess."
Ms. Maximoff hums and watches him for a moment. She smiles. "Well…if you're sure. You know Loki's my top student…even though you two only talk sometimes you could always ask him for help. I'm sure he wouldn't mind." She pushes open the door and gives Steve a small wave. "Email me if you have any more questions…oh, and—don't let Loki push you around." She winks at him, the door latching behind her.
Steve sighs. Of course the easiest solution for any of his school troubles would be to ask Loki. He probably made straight A's and he didn't even show up for class half the time. Though if anything had to be easy for Loki at least academics was one of those things…nothing else seemed to work out well for him. Well…most things didn't anyway. Steve smiles to himself. He supposed he was something that could work out well in Loki's life.
Loki blows on the back of Steve's neck, making him flinch. He grins at him when he turns around. "You should've told me sooner you weren't doing well in English…I would've given you a better grade." Steve rolls his eyes.
"Oh, yes, I'm sure you would've." Steve looks around the halls to see if anyone was watching. He grabs Loki's face and forces him into a kiss. It surprised Loki so much that he dropped all of his books and papers on the floor. Steve kisses him hard, biting at his lips and tongue and back him up against the wall. Loki somehow pulls his mouth from his to gasp for a breath, Steve continuing to kiss his face and jaw. He laughs when Loki smacks at his shoulder and pulls away slightly.
He receives a glare. "Are you insane?" Steve shrugs and rests his head on Loki's shoulder with a sigh. "It's one thing for us to fool around in the bathroom it's completely different to-" Loki cuts his lecture short and sighs, resting a hand on Steve's neck. "You're hopeless…" Steve smiles and hums, his hands absentmindedly rubbing Loki's sides. "You know…I don't mind helping you with your studies. You could've asked sooner."
"Will you…help me with English class?" Steve laughs into his shoulder, Loki chuckling.
"Yes, I suppose I could do that. What are you doing this weekend?"
"I won't be able to do anything this weekend."
"Oh? And why's that?"
"Because I'll be grounded."
Loki laughs, patting Steve's back.