' distance, inches in between us, i want you to give in, i want you to give in '
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WANDA AWOKE WITH A START, shooting up as she shivered, pulling the covers up to her shoulders. The silk sheets creased as she heard shuffling somewhere in the darkness besides her, and the arm wrapped around her waist tightened, fingers burying into the soft fabric of her shirt. She winced as her new position seated on the bed applied pressure to a bruise on her upper thigh, shifting to get in a more comfortable position.
"Wanda?" A croaky voice broke the torturous silence, but a slight guilt rose in her at the thought that she had awoken him.
Tugging a loose strand of hair from her ponytail behind her ears, she leaned her bare arms against her knees and took in a deep breath before responding softly, "I'm fine, go back to sleep."
Nonetheless, he sat up despite her refusal, taking a hand to rub his eyes of the lingering sleep, leaning forwards to look at her, as if he was inspecting her critically. "Are your wounds troubling you?" He asked warily, the darkness concealing the glint of concern in his eyes, which diffused as she shook her head.
"Can't sleep," she opted for as an excuse, the sheets ruffling as Loki leaned back against the headboard, and she imitated the motion. The air between them felt thick, tense, and she couldn't tell why, but the urge to push everyone away overcame her.
After a jet ride of overbearing questions, Loki had managed to quite effectively banish everyone away from her to allow her to rest as he tended to her wounds. It was- for the most part- silent, even when she stumbled through the doors of the compound and made a beeline to collapse in her bed. That brought them to now.
"So," he spoke again finally, eyes glued to the ceiling as he continued, "Do you want to talk about it."
She tore away her gaze from where it was trained on the door, turning her head to face him as she contemplated for a few seconds. She took the time to survey him, assure herself he was real and she was safe, because the nightmare awakening her wasn't a particularly gentle one. Eventually, once she had soaked in her own comfort, she turned away again.
"No, I don't."
He raised a brow, clearly caught off-guard by the response, but he didn't pressure her, he let the silence return, more tense than ever. The burden of carrying the conversation felt it weighed on his shoulders, because after the whole situation, she shouldn't be expected to. But nonetheless, he could feel her unconsciously pushing away his presence, and he opted to give her space.
"I called out of the mission tomorrow," he spoke unexpectedly, not having had intended to speak just yet, as he wanted to give her time to process everything, but now that he had started, he had to continue, "I wanted to make sure you were alright first."
