my mortal 🐍✨🖤

chapter 6

Weeks had passed. Sophie expected him everyday after work was over. She kept hoping he would come out of the shadows and surprise her or that he would try jumping the gate again. It saddened her. But why did it sadden her? It was obvious but she didn't want to admit it. She tried to push it out of her mind but she had grown attached to Loki . And life was strange without him. But what could she expect, she knew very little about him. Yet she felt so comfortable and safe with him, as if she knew everything about him.

Loki had been summoned back to the Chitauri and questioned for taking too long to find the tesseract. They had gotten restless, suspicious and frustrated with his pace and warned him to pick it up. They were planning on invading Earth very soon. He agreed of course, but wasn't really listening. He kept thinking about Sophie and what she may be thinking. What if she thought he was a traitor for ditching her? What if she was angry with him? Or worse, what if she forgot about him or simply did not care? He had a flashback to the night when she caught him getting over the neighborhood gate. He'd confided in her about his deeper feelings and sorrows and she did the same. They shared about topics that don't usually arise in normal conversations. Of course at one point Loki had spilled information too personal and risky he had to wipe her memory of the details of that night. But thinking back on spending time with her and feeling secure enough to share these inner thoughts made him both serene and sad. He already knew it but wanted to conceal it, even from himself: he was greatly attached to her. When he kissed her hand the other day, it came off nonchalant and casual, but really his heart was going at 200 bpm and he could barely feel his own hands. That rush really proved to him that she was different. Never had the God of Mischief trembled before a female mortal. All he wanted was to be released back to Midgard and find her. Complying with the Chitauri was the only method.

A full month had passed since that rainy day and he still hadn't reappeared again in her life. She decided to just forget about him as a random visitor who she happened to run into at one point, like another regular customer at the drive-thru who suddenly disappears.

It was Friday and school had just ended. It was quite an exhausting day, since it was the one Friday of the month that wasn't an early release. Her best friend Hana, who dearly loves and appreciates her even though she has major issues expressing and reciprocating sophie's enthusiasm and daily welcoming manner because she's a dumb butt with dumb emotional problems, hadn't been at school that day so she walked to the car alone. She stopped at the stoplight and walked across without much thought. When she reached the sidewalk, she noticed a figure on the other end of the street. Everyone passed by her, irritated about her stopping in the middle of the path, but she couldn't care less. She saw his stupidly greasy black hair on his shoulders and he was just standing there in his black suit, looking in her direction. She felt a wave of joy, relief and anger run through her veins.

"Sophie? SOPHIE."
She snapped out of it. Her brother was calling her.
"What are you doing? Come on, Mom's waiting." he urged, impatiently.
"Nothing, yeah uhm yeah let's go." She said glancing back to see he was no longer there.
The whole car ride home, she was silent, busy thinking about him and wondering when she could meet him again.
"Soph, you're unusually quiet." Her mom said slightly concerned.
"..wHat sorry yeah it's fine." she babbled.
------------------------------------------
She wasn't able to focus all through her shift, upset that she missed her opportunity to reconnect with him. At the end of the night, she grabbed her bike and started her way home, when it finally happened. He stepped in front of her and smiled.
"Hello dear." He said sweetly.
She stood frozen, letting her bike topple over.
"Where have you been? It's been-"
"A month," he finished. "I'm well aware."
"Well, I really missed you. You scared me, you know." she said with a look of slight annoyance.
He raised an eyebrow. "You... missed me..?"
She turned blood red. "Well, you know, uhm, yeah." She shrugged trying to seem careless.
He felt his face warm up into a blush. 'Look at yourself Loki, you've gone completely soft for this mortal girl.'
"Well that's unimportant at the moment. Come, let me walk you home." He said, picking her bike up from the ground.
She smiled and agreed. She felt that odd warmth once again.
-------------------------------------------
They walked in silence for the first few minutes until she couldn't hold it in any longer.
"Loki," she struggled. "I need to confess something."
He side-eyed her curiously. "You have my attention."
She decided to just go for it. She'd never felt so nervous and brave at the same time.
"I felt like something was.. missing in my life during that month you were gone. I know it's cheesy to say, but I feel like there was some kind of worldly link between us since the day I ran into you on the street. Trust me I'm usually not this direct, but there's something different about you. I feel like I'll miss my chance if I don't make my own opportunity. Does that make sense? Am I just being cringey? I regret this, I probably look like an idiot. Dammit.." she hung her head in embarrassment.
He stopped in his tracks and lightly put his hand on her shoulder. She freaked out and stared at him with huge eyes.
"You are not an idiot, I understand how you feel exactly, Sophie. Quite honestly, I actually feel the same way about you." He chuckled. "I guess it truly is a "worldly bond" like you claim." He gave her a small smile.
She turned away from his gaze completely shocked.
He entered into a brief state of deep thought. He had planned this approach of wooing her to get the tesseract when he found out it was in her possession. But it felt so natural. It was completely different from all the other times he had used this tactic to achieve his goals. He didn't feel a surge of power and greed everytime she blushed or stuttered. Instead, he felt his own face turn pink and his own heart started beating uncontrollably. What was going on? It was a constant inner conflict. He knew and occasionally admitted to himself that he did have genuine feelings for the girl, but other times he completely refused to believe it. This mystery was going to kill him. He had never felt so confused, happy and flustered before in his long life, especially due to a female.
They arrived after some talks about random yet personal occurrences and feelings.
"Oh before I forget! I still have your umbrella." She said opening the garage door.
This was his chance to find the tesseract and refocus on his mission to conquer this planet and make it his own.
"I'll go get it. Wait right here!" She called out running inside.
She rummaged through her closet where she had hidden it. "Got it." She mumbled to herself when suddenly her heart sank.
A sudden fear sent chills through her body, petrifying her. She had a sudden worry that he wouldn't be there when she returned. What if he left again? What if he was just her imagination? She felt insane but shook it off. Slowly she walked out, trembling from worry. She hesitantly opened the garage door and peered outside. She felt herself breathing again. He was right where she had left him, waiting patiently looking around her garage with interest in his sparkly green eyes. She sighed with relief and approached him.
"Well, that took you long enough, don't you thi-"
He froze in confusion.
She ran up to him and entrapped him in a big hug mid-sentence, burying her face in his chest. He kept his arm lifted up at his sides not knowing what to do.
"I was afraid you had left me again." She said in a muffled voice against his suit. He slowly wrapped his arms around her, one gently against her soft hair and another around her shoulders. He relished the moment and treasured the feeling. He felt complete; he didn't feel so empty anymore. As if he had found the missing piece in his puzzle of life. This was the turning point. It was all up to him now.

"I won't leave you ever again, dear. I promise."