Loki oneshots

LMTAPS Chapter 158 (IceCap's Version)

READ CHAPTER 158 FIRST IT HAS THE CONTEXT FOR THIS (unless you're not here from LMTAPS and you just want to read about Steve and Loki, in which case, welcome and I hope this makes sense idk)

He can hardly see, he can hardly hear, he can hardly walk, but somehow, he makes it out of that room, and now, his only thought is that he has to get somewhere far, far away; somewhere that nobody is going to find him.

So he teleports to the roof.

He stumbles on the landing and falls to his knees, but he hardly notices the stinging pain it brings. He squeezes his eyes closed and clutches his chest. He can't breathe. He can't breathe. He's breathing, but he can't breathe.

He can feel his whole body going numb, like he's not really here, like he's watching from the outside, and yet he can still feel every strained breath he takes. He's on fire, sweating even in the cool nighttime air, yet all he wants to do is pull his sweatshirt tighter until it swallows him whole.

It's okay, he tries to tell himself. It was just a movie.

But it wasn't just a movie.

And he's not sure he's okay.

He chokes out a sob. He hates this. He hates this. He hates that the littlest thing can set him off. He hates that something as simple as a kids' movie can send him into a panic like this. He hates that he can hardly move. He hates that he can hardly breathe. He hates that he can hardly think. His whole day is ruined – whatever's left of it – because of a stupid animated princess movie.

He can just barely hear the soft grunting from below, and he swallows back any more sobs threatening to escape. As hard as he tries, he can't relax. He feels like he's stuck how he is, arms pulled tight against his chest as he kneels helplessly on the ground, but at least he's not sobbing. It could always be worse.

Steve climbs his way onto the roof, and when he makes it up there, he sits down a few feet away, giving his friend plenty of space. "Hey." He gives him a small, sympathetic smile. "What's up?"

Loki shakes his head. He can't talk about it. He can't talk at all.

"Are you okay?" Steve asks.

Not at all.

But Loki just nods.

Steve frowns. "Loki..."

Loki swallows hard and tries to take a deep breath – though it's really no different than an ordinary breath, he's sure. "I'm fine." He can't find it in him to raise his voice above a whisper.

"No, you're not," Steve says. "What's going on?"

"I..." He shakes his head helplessly. "I don't like that movie."

"It was the movie?" Steve repeats, confused. "What's wrong with the movie?"

"It just... It felt too real." He doesn't know how else to describe it. It felt real. To him, that movie – that scene specifically – was real.

Steve sighs. "It wasn't real," he says gently. "It's a movie. That's all it is."

"No, you don't understand," Loki insists, and he can feel that panic rising again as he thinks of it more. "It felt real. It felt..." He shakes his head. He can't finish that thought. He can't explain it. It just felt real.

Steve slides closer and puts a comforting hand on Loki's shoulder. "It wasn't real," he repeats. "Nothing about that was real."

Loki closes his eyes.