Unlike Loki

Chapter 59

(Anna)

I once again woke up in Loki's bed with no Loki in the bed. 

I sat up, stretching whatever I could. When I glanced at the door, I noticed that there were two guards standing in the doorway, they shined in their gold armor, but neither one looked my direction. They just stared straight ahead. 

I guess Loki didn't want the past to repeat itself. 

I got up, sore, but thankful to be alive. The sleeves and pantlegs of Loki's clothes hand rolled back down, making me feel like a child. But they were very comfortable, and I surprised myself when I found myself disappointed that they didn't contain his scent. 

I headed to the washroom to take another bath. I still felt like there was something I needed to clean off. I took of the clothes I had slept in and made a hot bath, and stepped slowly into the water. I let it wrap me it its warm arms. 

And that's when I realized how scared, how broken I really was. 

My body shook as I let out loud sobs. I was scared. Scared of my past and my future. I had just died for God's sake. The fact that I hadn't even realized that my life had been over when I came back. That I don't even remember what's on the other side. The fact that my short, horrible existence was over, just when it was starting to get better. 

It's as if the cosmos were trying to play a joke on me. 

I sat there, crying for a while, the water eventually getting cold.

And then I heard the bedroom doors open. 

Frozen, I listened as closely as I could, not breathing.

Then there was a knock on the door. "Anna? Are you alright?" Loki, sounding stessed, but it was still Loki. I let out the air I had been holding and began to cry again. 

"Anna?"

I tried to stop crying. "Yea, yea, I'm fine. Just a little shaken up is all."

"Alright. If you're sure." 

"Yea. I'm fine. I'll just be a few more minutes." 

He didn't say anything else, so I knew he had walked away. 

I sat there, in the ever chilling water, letting the tears fall silently from my face. 

When I felt composed enough, I decided to get out. 

But I found that I couldn't. 

"Loki-" my voice was already shaking. 

Nothing. 

"Loki!" I was crying again. 

He finally came to the door. "What? What is it? What's wrong?"

"I-I can't- I can't get out of the water." 

"What do you mean?" he sounded slightly panicked. 

"That I can't. I can't get out of the water." the water was cold, but the soap suds still surrounded me. I found that I could not move. I could not get out of this water. 

"Anna, I'm going to come in, alright?" He said cautiously. 

"Okay." Another round of sobs wracked my body. 

Loki slowly opened the door and stepped inside, searching for me. I saw his eyes were wide with panic, but turned sad when they landed on me. 

"I can't get out, Loki."

He stepped slowly up to me and knelt by the large bath. "Why not?" He kept my gaze. 

"What if it doesn't let me go? What if it sucks me down?" The tears were still falling. 

"It won't, Anna. I promise. This is just plain, old-fastioned water. No mystical properties about it. I swear." He still didn't take his eyes off of mine. 

"I'm scared. I'm scared of water goddammit." I leaned my head against the bath, my neck arched. 

"Anna. It's fine. It's just water. I promise you that if you stand up, you will walk away unscathed." 

I tried, but found I just couldn't do it. "I can't." I put my head in my hands and cried. 

"Here. I'll help you, alright? Just take my hand, I'll pull you out, safe and sound." I saw his hand reach toward me. 

"But I'm nake-naked." I sobbed. I swear there was snot involved somewhere as well. 

I heard him laugh. "What are you more afraid of? The water, or me seeing you naked?" He looked at me with those big blue eyes of his. 

I looked back. 

And then I took his hand.