Handcuffs

Chapter 1

"How did I end up on Loki-sitting duty on a Friday night?" You grumbled to yourself, though you knew exactly how you'd ended up on Loki-sitting duty. And really, Loki-sitting duty wasn't bad. Loki liked you and apparently thought you were decent company, so you ended up with more than your fair share of Loki-sitting. You were friends, and on your way to more than friends. Or so you hoped. You still weren't quite sure if he reciprocated your feelings. You wouldn't blame him if he didn't. He was a thousand year old god and hot as all holy Hell. And you... weren't.

The team, and more to the point SHIELD, didn't trust Loki yet, despite that he'd been on Earth for nearly a year making amends and working with the team. He went out on missions on them, though only left the tower supervised and was technically not supposed to be in the tower alone.

That particular Friday night, the team were all going out for various functions and events and a couple even had dates. You'd gotten stuck at the tower as you'd been stupid enough to beg Clint to take your shift a couple weeks prior so you could go on an ill-fated terrible date. If you'd known how bad the date was going to be beforehand, you'd have just stayed in the tower and watched movies with Loki.

If you hadn't known better, you would have blamed Loki for sabotaging the date with magic. But Loki wouldn't do anything like that... ok, yes he would, but he had been in the tower with Clint Loki-sitting him, so he couldn't have... No, that was delusional, but you kept your delusion that he hadn't been involved in making your date night so miserable.

You still wouldn't put it entirely past the Trickster to have ruined your night to get back at you for skipping out on an evening with him. Especially since it had been a date.

Or was that just hopeful thinking that Loki was interested in you?

You sighed and shook the thoughts from your head. You'd have a fun evening with Loki and try not to be jealous at everyone else getting out of the tower. You dressed in comfortable clothes and sensible shoes. You never knew what kind of adventure Loki-sitting would turn into so you had to be dressed for anything. That didn't stop you from applying a bit of makeup and attempting to make your hair look reasonable.

Maybe he wouldn't notice.

No, he'd notice that you were going out of your way for him.

Would he appreciate it?

Gah....

You had to stop fretting over your stupid crush on the stupid handsome god and his stupid handsome face. He had no right to be that handsome.

You made it to the common room of the tower right as the last Avenger was leaving. Thor was even gone as he was off realm dealing with some trouble. Clint was the last one heading out with Nat to go drink and celebrate their latest mission. "We'll see you later, kid!" Clint called as they left.

Loki was sitting on his favorite couch reading, pointedly ignoring them. You wished them a good evening and went to sit on the couch with Loki. Maybe this would be a quiet evening with the god. You had a moment to watch him reading, to appreciate his beauty, the way his raven locks fell down to his shoulders, how they were perfectly styled, his chiseled cheeks, his emerald eyes, currently locked on the page of the book he was reading. He was slim, though no less muscled and strong for not being a hulking brute like Thor. You'd seen him shirtless while training and it was definitely a sight worth seeing.

Your moment only lasted that before Loki closed his book and looked up at you, practically as soon as Nat and Clint were out of sight. You knew from the look of absolute mischief in his eyes that this wasn't going to be an evening of quiet reading on the couch. Or watching movies and pretending you weren't cuddling on the couch. Nope, he had some mischief of chaos in mind. Probably in payback for you ditching out on him the other week. He had said he understood, but you doubted that more and more and kept waiting for retribution. You had a feeling that retribution was coming tonight.

"I know that look in your eyes, Mischief," you told him with a teasing grin, keeping your voice light and friendly. Whatever the look in Loki's eyes was for, it was bound to be fun. Everything about Loki was centered on him having fun. Since he liked you, you could practically guarantee that you'd be having fun too. Provided you kept Loki in a good mood. "What do you have planned?"

"Why do you think I have anything planned?" He asked far too innocently.

You rolled your eyes. "Because you are a creature made entirely of silliness," you teased him.

He huffed. "No, darling. I am the god of mischief and chaos, not silliness," he informed you with a scoff and a wrinkled nose at the idea. You were used to his silly nicknames and thought nothing of being called 'darling'. You couldn't let yourself think that it meant anything.

You laughed, delighted at the perfectly perturbed expression on his face at your teasing. "I know, Lokes, I'm teasing," likewise, you were the only one who could get away with calling him 'Lokes'. He would have stabbed anyone else who tried. You really had gotten close to him during the nights of Loki-sitting. You still weren't quite sure if you'd gotten close enough to take the step from friendship to relationship. He relaxed a little when he realized that you were teasing. He was still on edge, but he'd relax properly now that the rest of the team was gone for the night. You just needed to give him time and patience. "So, what are we up to tonight?" You asked, changing the subject to keep him in a good mood.

A happy Loki was much better than a stabby Loki. And doing whatever bit of mischief he was up to for the night would make him a happy Loki.

His smirk turned into a Cheshire Cat grin. "To investigate the contents of Stark's lab, of course. He has a new project he has been trying to keep secret. I wish to know what it is," he replied as he stood from the couch.

Despite knowing that this was a stupid-ass decision, you got to your feet to join him. "Alright, let's go, Mischief,"

You hoped that whatever was in the lab wasn't something that was too dangerous. That was all you needed, just not too dangerous.