Eris' POV

Once I was out of the bath, I dressed myself and further explained to Loki what had happened. He laughed to himself when he heard that Matt was sent running just from my words but he also attempted to comfort me.

"I know little of these types of tragedies, but I will try my hardest to raise your spirits."

He proclaimed, pulling me into an embrace. I smiled and wrapped my arms around him in turn.

"Thank you. But you know what would raise my spirits right now?"

I inquired, grinning evilly up at my friend. He read my face correctly and narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"What?"

He asked, stepping back from me as a precaution. I giggled a little at his reaction.

"Give me that piece of paper that girl at the coffee shop gave you."

I ordered, holding my hand out for the scrap. Loki's brows furrowed in confusion and thought as he stared at my hand. He looked back up at me while his hand dug around in his back pocket. He unfolded it and placed it carefully in my hand, to which I had to resist rolling my eyes at.

"Gimme your phone."

I demanded next, still smiling at him. His eyes narrowed further at me but he complied, putting his cellphone in my other hand. I flipped it open and looked closer at the shred of paper. Gods, even her freaking hand writing was gorgeous. I hopped onto my bed and began to dial the number. The dark haired prince's eyes widened.

"Eris, what are you doing?"

He questioned, panic cracking his usually calm mask. I smirked and held off on hitting send.

"Calling Kara."

I answered simply with a wicked cackle as Loki scrambled onto the bed to retrieve the phone from me, crawling on top of me in the process. I hit send as he strained over my body to reach the phone, making me laugh more. He looked down at me with determination that only made me crack up more. He let out a growl of annoyance as his fingers stretched closer to the phone in my hand. When I heard a faint, sweet voice say hello from the speaker of the phone I finally handed it to the god so he would have no choice but to talk to her.

"H-hello? Ah, yes...this is Loki, you gave me your numbers this afternoon."

He began awkwardly. I had to shove my face into a pillow to muffle my howls of laughter. Oh lord, this was just too funny, seeing him so flustered! I glanced over at him from my pillow, receiving a glare from the god. I hid my face back in the pillow, laughing some more.

"Um...yes...I..."

Loki was at a loss for words, something that I had never seen happen before. I pulled my face from it's sanctuary and sat up, looking at him. He eyed me, begging for help.

"Ask her out on a date!"

I whispered urgently. He nodded quickly and took in a deep breath.

"I-I was wondering...if you would like to...go out on a date sometime...with me."

He stuttered out. I couldn't contain my giggles and face planted into my bedding, guffawing like a hyena. There were more words exchanged on both ends, but I was too busy laughing to notice. When I finally got a grip on myself, Loki was off the phone, glaring daggers at me with his arms crossed discontentedly. I sat up right and smiled brightly at him.

"So, how'd it go?"

I inquired with a wiggle of my eyebrows. He let out a sigh through his nose in irritation.

"Horrible, I made a complete fool of myself!"

He sneered at me. My smile fell slightly.

"What, silver tongue turned to lead?"

I jeered with a smirk. He narrowed his eyes at me.

"No."

He snapped, turning his face away in anger.

"Did she not accept your offer?"

I inquired, hoping she hadn't rejected his proposition. I knew that Loki didn't take well to rejection.

"No, she accepted graciously. But I have no clue what I am to do on this date."

He explained, meeting my eyes again. I thought for a moment before smiling to myself.

"I wanna show you something, come on."

I said, getting up from the bed. Loki watched me, confused, but followed me when I exited the room. I slipped on a pair of shoes and grabbed my keys. Without a word, we walked to my car and began to drive.

"Where are we going?"

The Aesir asked. I pulled my eyes from the road for just a moment to look at the god.

"You'll see."

Was all I divulged to him. He settled for that answer and as we approached Stark Tower, I slowed my car and parked beside the building. When he stepped out of the car and looked up at the tower, he was immediately on edge and his green eyes darted to me.

"Why have you brought me here?"

He asked, again tipping towards suspicion. I smiled kindly at him.

"I want to show you something, but we have to be quiet. I don't want to get caught."

I told him, pressing a finger up to my lips. His body relaxed slightly and he followed me inside to the elevator. I hit the top floor button and stood back with a smile as the doors closed. To my surprise, Loki didn't question this as we were carried to the top floor of the building. When we reached our destination, I stepped out into the dark room, gesturing for the god to follow me. The floor was only illuminated by the moon pouring in through the giant panel of windows to my left. I sauntered over to a black mass covered by a black cover. I ran my fingers fondly over the fabric before pulling it away to reveal the instrument. A lovely, shiny, black piano sat beneath the cloth and I smiled at it. Loki stood beside me, looking on it with curiosity.

"What is it?"

He questioned, perplexed by the new item before him. I sat on the bench and pushed the case up to uncover the ebony and ivory keys.

"It's a piano. An instrument we play here on Earth."

I explained to the prince, looking up at him with a smile. I scooted over and patted the space next to me on the bench. Loki took a seat next to me, still looking utterly confused and enchanted by the instrument, as well as to why I'd brought him here to show it to him.

"Tony used to have it here for me while I stayed here for college, but when I moved into my own place, it got stored up here. Now he only brings it out at parties."

I continued to inform him. When I felt like I had sat with him in silence for long enough, I began to press the keys with a song in mind. Loki's eyes tracked every movement of my fingers as they produced a charming, full sound in the mostly empty space. Eventually, I started to incorporate the lyrics of the song.

"Has anyone ever written anything for you? In all your darkest hours, have you ever heard me sing? Listen to me now. You know I'd rather be alone, than be without you. Don't you know?"

I trilled, giving a small glance over at my friend. He smiled fondly at me in return.

"Has anyone ever given anything to you? In your darkest hours, did you ever give it back? Well, I have. I have given that to you. If it's all I ever do, this is your song. And the rain comes down. There's no pain and there's no doubt. It was easy to say, I believed in you everyday. If not for me then, do it for the world."

The god was listening intently to the words I sang and rested a hand affectionately on my middle back as encouragement.

"Has anyone ever written anything for you? In your darkest sorrow, did you ever hear me sing? Listen to me now. You know I'd rather be alone, than be without you. Don't you know?"

I finished, slowing the rhythm of my hands and fingers, allowing the sound to slowly fade into nothing. I looked to Loki with a shy smile before he pulled me into a tight hug. When he pulled away he smiled down at me and stroked my cheek.

"Thank you for showing me this."

He spoke quietly.

"Well, I have one more thing I'd like for you to see."

I replied, standing up from the bench. I offered Loki my hand as we walked over to the roof access door. I led him up the stairs through the dark, feeling my way up to the door. I pushed it open, walking out onto the roof. I guided Loki to come with me to the edge and look out on the sparkling, bright city.

"We may not have stars here in the city, but the lights from here are almost as good."

I sighed, resting my cheek against my hand.

"It certainly is beautiful..."

The god murmured beside me. I turned my head to look at him and smirked when he met my gaze.

"What is it?"

He asked, raising a brow. I smiled.

"You know what they'd call this if we weren't close friends?"

I inquired, turning to him fully. He shook his head.

"A date."

I answered, grinning now. Loki's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"Really?"

He questioned, looking back out onto the city below.

"Yeah, I just took you out on your first date. And you did good, so don't worry about it when you go out with Kara."

I told him, trying to ease his concerns and encourage him.

"Do you know what you two plan to do for your date?"

I asked absently, turning back to the bustling city.

"I don't believe so. All she said was to meet her next Saturday at the coffee shop."

He explained, watching the cars down on the ground. I was silent for a moment, thinking.

"Well, perhaps you could take her out to dinner and maybe dancing? You know how to dance, right?"

I asked, finally looking at him. He gave me a sheepish smile and shook his head. My brow furrowed down in disbelief.

"You never went to any balls on Asgard? I know they were held frequently because Thor often told me of them."

Loki frowned a bit and turned his face from mine.

"I never fancied balls or celebrations like Thor, no one would have danced with me anyway. So no, I do not know how to dance."

He said, his voice bitter as his frown deepened. My heart fell a bit at the thought of him simply locking himself away during festivities. I placed my hand over his, grabbing it gently. I smiled warmly when his eyes found mine. I could lose myself in those eyes easily, but I refused to for the moment.

"I can teach you..."

I suggested, guiding him away from the railing.

"Eris,"

He began tiredly, but I didn't allow him to continue his arguing.

"Come now, every girl loves to dance, as long as she has a partner to dance with. I promise it'll be easy."

I tried to assure him, batting my eyelashes. Loki sighed in defeat and followed me away from the railing.

"Now, I'll just show you a basic waltz. It's not too hard, but the man usually leads, so take my foot falls into consideration."

I said, taking his left hand in my right, guiding his right hand to my waist, and placed my left hand on his shoulder. He was trying-rather awkwardly-to put a comfortable distance between us but I just continued to press my stomach and chest to his. He gave up and looked down at me questioningly.

"I know you don't want to be this close, but the waltz demands that we stay stuck to one another."

I explained, trying my best not to blush at out closeness. Or maybe that's the fox trot...I thought to myself. Oh, well.

"So,"

I began, stepping back with my right foot.

"When I step back with my foot, you follow forward with your left-same goes for my left and your right, alright?"

I looked up at him to make sure he understood. He gave a nervous nod and gazed down at his feet for a while, like he'd forgotten which foot was which. But he eventually decided on the right one and moved it forward. This went on with each part the waltz I taught him-his nerves didn't seem to calm even after we were finished. I didn't understand why he was nervous, I had never seen him nervous in my entire life. So, why would he be nervous now? I decided to let it be and drove as back to the apartment. When Loki followed me into my bedroom when I said I was going to bed, I was very confused.

"What?"

I asked, turning to him half way. He raised his eyebrows and smiled a bit.

"It's bed time, is it not?"

He countered. I smiled and shook my head.

"You know, Loki, if you start seeing this girl, you won't be sleeping in my bed anymore. You have to sleep in your own."

I told him, regretting it when his face fell to confusion and slight hurt.

"What do you mean? Why?"

He asked, stepping a little closer to me. I frowned slightly and looked at the door behind him.

"You'll be romantically involved with her, so it would be wildly inappropriate for you to share the bed of another woman."

I tried to tell him delicately. His brows furrowed for a moment in thought, but he smiled up at me.

"Well, that's never stopped us before."

He insisted, closing the space between us. I sighed and shrugged.

"Let me put it to you this way, would you be very happy if you knew that Kara was sharing her bed with a man that wasn't you?"

I inquired, raising a brow. Loki was quiet before answering.

"I suppose I wouldn't."

He replied quietly, almost looking dejected. He cupped my cheek gently and placed a careful peck on my temple.

"Goodnight, Eris."

He whispered, his face unbelievable close to mine. I closed my eyes to hide from my embarrassment.

"Goodnight, Loki."

I murmured, clenching my fists tightly. When I dared to open my eyes again, Loki had left me alone in my room. I sighed to myself ruefully and plopped down onto my bed. I didn't sleep, I stayed up until about three reading when my curiosity got the better of me. I set my book down and went to check on Loki. Quietly, I opened his bedroom door to see him sitting up on the edge of his bed. He was looking out the window, unaware of my presence thus far.

"Loki?"

I called gently, he turned to me, surprised that I was there. He smirked.

"There aren't many who can sneak up on me."

He commented, shifting slightly on his bed. I smiled back and walked over to him, taking a seat next to the god.

"Why are you awake so late?"

I asked. Loki looked down at me and smiled.

"Why are you awake so late?"

He challenged. I thought of my response for a moment before speaking.

"Couldn't sleep?"

I inquired instead of answering his question. I looked past him, out the window at the city. The Aesir looked down at his lap.

"It would seem I can't sleep without you next to me."

He replied, not looking up at me. I smiled at hearing that. So he was sleepless without me too...it was comforting to know that he needed me, for something at least. I stood up from the bed, earning Loki's attention.

"Well, let's go to bed then."

I said, offering him my hand. He just looked at me blankly for a while before smiling and taking my hand. As I lay next to him, I worried. I worried about how this Kara girl would treat him, I worried about not being able to sleep without him. I worried about my feelings. I needed to find a way to stop feeling like this for him. What if he got married to Kara one day? I needed to be ready for that, I needed to be ready for anything that may happen between them.