LIFE WAS BETTER OFF THE GRID || 1

Agent Thank You

We turned our heads to the terrace. I stood up and they gave me weird looks.

"What? Some has to go meet him." I mess with the skirt of my dress, trying to straighten it out so I looked like a normal person. Then I realized. 'Thor is a Norse god who doesn't know the difference between Luke and Anakin Skywalker so who cares!'

"Thor—hey!" I shout over the loud thunder and wind that had come with Thor. "What are you doing here!"

"Lady Romanova!" He bellowed as he came closer. "Why do you look like a female version of the Captain but with brown hair?" He asked once he was directly in front of me. "Good question." I lead him inside and pull a leaf from my hair. Nat locked eyes with me and mouthed 'what's going on?' I shrugged and headed to the kitchen. I grabbed pop tarts and brewed fresh coffee and headed back to the living room.

"So, Lightning Rod, how'd it go with Reindeer Games?" Tony asks as I returned. "Tony." Pepper warned and I glared at him. "That is what I have come to talk to you all about. Loki was sentenced to prison for life, it would've been to death if it weren't for our mother." Thor said gravely. I put a comforting hand on his arm and handed him the cup and plate. "Thor." I started. "I'm so sorry." He nodded in thanks.

"You're sorry?" Clint said venomously. "That bastard mind controlled me, Avianne. He deserves to rot in hell." Thor and I both flinched at his words. "He destroyed parts of New York." Natasha said. "He murdered Phil." The calm eeriness of Tony's voice when he said that send shivers.

"You're right." I say calmly. "Loki killed and destroyed and tormented. But he's Thor's brother. Clint, you can't look me in the eye and tell me that you would be OK if Fury said that they were executing Barney tomorrow. Nat, you can't say that you didn't want to die after you supposedly killed me. Tony, you can't say that you haven't done terrible things that resulted in even more terrible things." I take a breath.

"The truth is, all of us have done some pretty messed up things. Think about Darth Vader." That earned me some confused looks. "He fell from the light. All he wanted to do was protect Padme and he failed. He went down a path of pain and destruction. He killed thousands of people, blew up an entire planet for Gods sake, but in the end, Luke didn't want him to die. Luke loved him. He loved a man that worked for someone who tried time and time again to kill him. And while people celebrated the death of Vader and the fall of the Empire, there was Luke. Grieving. None of you can tell me that is not OK to be sorry for Thor."

I turned away from the group and and faced Thor. "Will you be staying the night or being returning to Asgard?" I ask him quietly. "I will stay." I think that was the quietest I had ever heard him. "Follow me." I say and lead him to the elevator.

"Thank you." He said once we were in. "For what?"

"Standing up for Loki. I know how much pain he has caused you, so thank you." I nod in response and hit the button that goes to the apartment floor above us. "I'd like to think any of them would do the same for me." I say and take him to a room we had set up in case something like this would happen.

~

When I got back to the living room only Steve remained, but he was out on the terrace. He stood looking into nothingness. I sighed and started picking up empty beer bottles and pizza boxes. After I threw them away I stepped outside with him.

"Are you OK?" His voice cut through the deathly silence.

"There are many ways I describe myself, Steve. OK isn't one of them."

There was a long pause. "Do." He started awkwardly. "Do you like Thor?"

I snorted. "Yeah he's handsome." Steve tensed. "But he's also loud, and slightly obnoxious. And I don't do long hair. So no, I do not 'like' Thor romantically, but as a friend and coworker, yes."

"I like you." He said so quietly that I thought I imagined it. After the shock had gone through me I let out a shaky laugh. "Ha, Barney owes me 20 bucks. He said no one could like me, so thank you Agent Shield for proving him wrong."

"Not like that." He finally faced me. By the look on his face I could tell he had thought about this. "I like you, Avianne Romanova." He took a step toward me and only now did I realize that he was a head taller than me. "And I don't know why or how but I do." He cupped my face in his hands. Man he has really blue eyes. "I like you."

Flashes came to mind. Me introducing him to Harry Potter and Star Wars, explaining how to text, really just helping him adjust to the 21st century. We spent a lot of time together. Mostly when Tony and Pepper were back in Malibu and Nat and Clint were away on a mission is when I'd show him something. We'd spar and train together. We'd sometimes just sit and talk.

But this man could like me. Even if it was a crush. Steve didn't deserve someone as damaged as I am.

But this idiot decided to kiss me anyway.