Silence Speaks (Book Two to Silence Series)

Twenty

Five months later
I woke up to Loki pressing kisses to my face. I smiled and reached for my hearing aids, quickly stuffing them in. "Happy eighteenth birthday baby." Loki whispered and I grinned, pulling him forward. He pressed our lips together and I hummed, gripping his hips. "Would you say you want breakfast now or later?" I pursed my lips, pretending to think. "Depends, would breakfast include you?" He chuckled and leaned forward to kiss me again.

We walked into the compound's kitchen, hand in hand. "Oh my god." Bucky burst into laughter and I playfully glared at Loki. "I told you that they'd notice!" I whined and put my hand over the one visible mark he left this morning. He shrugged with a smile and leaned forward to press a small kiss underneath my ear. "Well now we know Peter's present from Loki." I flipped everyone off and they laughed. "Happy birthday kiddo." Tony pulled me into a tight hug, Pepper joining. "Thanks guys." I was released and Pepper handed me a present. "Open it." They urged and I tore open the package. In it was a piece of paper and I read it over. "You named me as Morgan's Godfather?" I felt my eyes tearing up and I laughed quietly. "I thought that would've been Rhodey." "It was! They named you the Godfather because I'm older than Tony and therefore less reliable." Rhodey scoffed and I laughed loudly. "This means a lot, thank you guys." I sniffed and put the paper back into the package. "Have breakfast then you'll get the rest of your gifts."

I sat on the couch and was handed two presents and I grabbed one, looking at it slightly confused. "Why is it that none of you ever get me normal things?" I held it up the irregular shaped package and everyone laughed. "Its from the kids, that explains it." I quickly opened it and found a specially crafted Lego version of Spiderman. "We thought you could keep it in your lab." Cooper reasoned and I smiled, setting it carefully on the table. "Come here you two." Sage and Cooper ran into my arms and I squeezed them tightly. "I love it. Thank you." They sat back down in their seats and I grabbed the next box. "This one is from all of us, even Tony and Pepper." I narrowed my eyes and opened the box before pulling out two sets of keys. "The red pair is yours and the greens is Loki's." I tossed Loki his keys and he turned them over in his hands. "Karen's told me about you complaining about getting a regular car and I figured, since you've mentioned the kid thing, that you'd want one in case. They're only accessible with those keys and both keys are to the one vehicle." I smiled and set our keys on the table. "Don't make it a habit of getting me vehicles for every birthday." I teased and leaned into Loki's side. "Thank you, it means a lot."

"I know I haven't given you your present yet, but I wanted to give it to you tonight. I've set up a dinner, so all you have to do is trust me." I grabbed Loki's hand, the one resting on the center console and entwined our fingers. "I already do trust you." He smiled and brought our hands up to his mouth, kissing the back of mine tenderly. "I love you Pete." "I love you too Lokes."

Loki drove up to a hill on the edge of our property and parked at the base. "Come on." I got out and he grabbed my hand, leading me up the hill. "Thor helped me set this up while you showered." I grinned when lights came into view. We got to the top of the hill and there sat a picnic blanket, food and a bundle of christmas lights surrounding the area. "Lo." I whispered, loving every single detail. "You like it?" I nodded and he pulled me down on the blanket. "So I know you really like that italian place Sam showed you, so I had Thor pick up some and bring it here." He tore off the top of a box and handed me a breadstick. "I love you." I muttered before biting into the breadstick and laying back on the blanket.

The lights had been turned out and I snuggled into Loki's side. "We should do this more often." I muttered, my eyes trained on the stars. "I don't see why not." I smiled and leaned my head up, pressing my lips against his jaw. "Thank you for making my eighteenth the best." He squeezed my hip before sitting us up. "I have one more thing." I furrowed my eyebrows and he grabbed my hands. "We've known each other for seven months and we've been dating just as long. It feels likes it's been years since we first met, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Despite our mistakes and missteps, I still love you just as much as the day I met you. You were so kind to have brought me into your life with no questions and very little expectations. You've lit up my life and I hope to live the rest of our lives together. So no matter the fights, the nightmares and the oddities our lives bring, will you marry me?" He pulled out a box and popped open the top, revealing two rings. "Yes." I breathed out through tears and he smiled, grabbing my hand and slipping the ring onto my finger. "The second one is for me." He pushed the ring onto his own finger and I cupped his face, kissing him passionately. "I love you."

We went back home and got into bed. I have my head in his lap and he's sitting against the headboard. "So I was thinking, we would go to Sunday's dinner next week, then announce it." I hummed and grinned into the dark. "We could have some fun with it?" He looked down at me and tapped my nose. "How?" I played with the ring, twisting it. "We could see how long it takes before someone notices it and if no one notices, we'll announce it before we go home." I suggested and he laughed quietly. "Definitely, let's do that." I grabbed his hand, entwining our fingers. "Who's last name are we talking...or are we hyphenating?" He traced the muscles in my stomach and shrugged. "I think we should hyphenate. Thor would probably smite me if you didn't take my last name in some way." I chuckled and pursed my lips. "Loki Odinson-Parker. I like that." He leaned down and kissed me gently. "Let's get some sleep." He urged and I sighed, rolling over and taking him with me. "Only because I love you." "I love you too birthday boy."