Life with Loki - short stories

Radiant Smile.

Summary: When wondering the streets of New York on your lunch break, turns into something else entirely.
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"Look! That's Thor from the Avengers!". Your work colleague's hand grasped your arm,  stopping you in your tracks. "Oh my god!".

"Literally". Playfully rolling your eyes as you watched her jump with excitement at seeing the hero in front of her, that she had come to rather admire. Your sarcastic comment earned you a friendly smack to your arm, as you giggled the action off, you pulled her forward in the direction of the God of Thunder. "Ask him for a photo, girl". She said she couldn't, that she 'just couldn't'. As you saw nerves take over her, you persisted as you knew how much she had admired him.

The closer you came to the God, you saw an equally tall man standing next to him, styled in an all black suit with hair matching the same shade of darkness. As you were gently guiding your friend up to the hero she admired, your eyes locked with the dark suited man, realising who he was. Loki. The God who tried to take over New York a few years ago, apparently now redeeming himself here on  the planet he once tried to rule.

"Um excuse me – ah- I'm just a real fan of yours and wondered i- if –

"My friend wondered if you would be happy to take a photo with her? She admires you greatly". Her mouth could not communicate the rest of the sentence as she looked up into the Gods eyes, the blushed that exhausted her face made you quietly laugh to yourself. A school girl blush on the face of a grown woman.

"Of course!". The God bellowed with delight, pure friendliness leaking from his smile. He put his thick arm around her, pulling her in for a hug as you grabbed your phone from the pocket of your black coat, ready to take a photo of the God and his fan.

Occupied as you were, you hadn't noticed how a pair of sparkling green eyes, hadn't left your face.

As your coworker reluctantly moved out from under Thors arm, he extended the same arm to you, welcoming you in like he had welcomed your friend. You hesitated. "Would you like a selfie too my lady?". Clealry he was up with earth slang.

"Oh! Oh, I'm actually not a fan – sorry I didn't mean that to sound rude I –". As the Gods face fell, a humorous laugh erupted from his brother standing next to him as he slapped his pale hand down on the back of this brothers slightly sunken shoulder. 

Luckily your friend stepped back in to distract the embarrassed God with some questions for him, stealing his attention back from the awkward moment you had just created. You stood there trying to restrain an awkward laugh, the laughter that always threatened to release from your mouth at the worst of times.

Soon, the other God, Loki, had moved himself close to you. "Hello. I am Loki -the God of Mischief- and I wondered If I could have a photograph with you?".

"What? You want a photograph with me?". A stunned smile broke across  your lips, as well first of all, the God of Mischief was introducing himself to you -smiling at you in fact- and second of all, he had just expressed his want of a photograph of you and himself.

"Yes, a 'selfie' as you Midgardian's call it. I want to take a selfie with you".

"Oh, I don't usually like having my photo taken,  I-

Before you could finish your sentence, Thor had heard his brothers unexpected request and had grabbed your phone from your hands, readying it to take a photo of you and Loki. He took a series of photos, and in between snaps, your friend encouraged you to pose. Loki, for perhaps the first time in his existence, listened to a midgardian and gently, and respectfully, placed his hand around your waist, pulling you ever so closer to his side. This shocked you but you couldn't help deny the feeling that spiked through you as stood partially in his embrace.

"You hold such a radiant smile my dear".

His soft lips whispered those surprising words into your ear. What a statement that was for you, as you truly hated having your photo taken, always feeling like you could never get your smile 'right' no matter how many times you may had practiced whilst you were alone.

Before your brain could comprehend words to say back, you randomly threw up your middle finger to the camera, and without a moment of hesitation, the god who had his hand gently placed around you copied your action with a matching playful smirk on his face.

Thor handed your phone back to you with a stunned look over his face, shocked at the behaviour that had possessed his brother for the past five minutes. You and Loki were still giggling as you thanked Thor and proceeded to look at the photos. Loki remained close to you, looking over your shoulder at the photos of the pair of you. The pair of you standing together, both matching in sleak full black outfits, whilst holding up the angsty middle fingers just for the hell of it.

"Would I be able to have a copy of these photographs my dear?".

"Of course Loki, I can send them to you now?".

"I am not carrying my mobile device with me today. I'm still not quite use to carrying it around with me. If you would share your number with me I could make contact with you once I am back with said device?". Calling upon his pockets of subspace , the God held a bit of paper and a pen in front of him, ready for your digits."Sure, no problem".

Since you locked eyes with this jaw-dropping God, you had butterflies flying within the realms of your body, but now as he shared the want of making direct contact with you, you felt the butterflies turn to  a state of chaos.

You wrote your number on the paper that he held in his hand, and as you looked up you saw that his sparkling eyes had not moved themselves from you, his green iris were glued to your every movement. "Until next time... ". Introducing yourself, he repeated your name back to you. His silkened tongue shaping the letters of your first name. "How radiant you are my dear".

The heat that surged throughout you was near embarrassing. 'What a lunch time break this turned out to be', you thought to yourself as your coworker started pulling you away. Your eyes still locked with his until you had no choice but to turn your head towards the direction your colleague was pulling you in. 

You had forgotten in that moment that there was a world around you, that you and Loki were not in fact the only two beings standing on this earth. "I think the God of Mischief just fell in love with you!".

You couldn't speak. You truly had no words.

..

"Brother... you're acting .. happy?". In all their years together, Thor had never seen his younger brother act in this way over someone else. "That is because I just had my photograph taken with the most beautiful woman I have ever laid my eyes upon. The most beautiful being of all the nine realms. And no, I'm not acting, brother".

Loki eyes had not left your figure as you walked down the busy street of New York. Your long black coat, black heels and lengthy hair that he was already dreaming on roaming his hands through, was the the centre of his vision -and he hoped from that moment forward- that you would eventually become the centre of his universe.

The radiant light within his darkened universe.

..

In the midst of working on the current work design plan that evening, as you hovered over your drafting table under the lone light of a lamp that hung overhead, your phone beeped, signalling a message.

'Hello. Is this the radiant woman I had the pleasure of having my photograph taken with earlier this day? – Loki Laufeyson'

..