Sinbound: Armageddon

Part 32

We arrive back at Tony's house about two weeks later. The honeymoon was beyond perfect... the sex, the food, the exploring. It was amazing to watch Loki step away from his snarky, brooding attitude for a while and see him happy.

When we arrive, my dad is there to give me a big bear hug. "How was Paris, kiddo?" He asks.

"Exhilarating!" I say, to which Loki smiles to himself. I catch it out of the corner of my eye, he likes the way I worded that. 

"Well, I'll let you two weirdos get settled, I'll be in my workshop if you need me." He says, patting my shoulder lightly then heading downstairs. Just then it begins to rain, and I admire the window getting wet as I walk over to it. Loki joins me, and we watch the city get covered in a cloud of grey.

"We've reached the inevitable, Ayca." He says, his tone serious for the first time since the wedding.

"I know what you're referring to." I say quietly. We're back on earth, the wedding is over, the honeymoon was had, and the truce has been made. Asgard needs a king, and I need my family.

"Have you made up your mind?" He asks, not looking at me. 

"No." I admit.

"For the first time, I believe I do not know what to say." My god, he's actually speechless.

"If you're about to break my heart, just do it." I say, almost crying. He looks at me, his face full of sorrow and regret.

"I could never do such a thing." He breaths.

"Then stay here." I demand, turning to face him completely.

"Ayca, you know as well as I that Asgard-"

"-Enough with Asgard!" I cut him off. This hurts him and I immediately regret saying it. This is his home I'm talking about, and I basically just said 'fuck you' to his homeland. "I'm sorry, I..." I say, trailing off and studying his face.

"Perhaps we should discuss this somewhere else." He mentions.

'The rooftop."

"It's raining."

"It calms me down." I retort back, and he holds my hand to take me to the top of the Stark tower. A low roll of thunder echoes through the city. "We need to decide this once and for all, and I don't want it to be my decision alone. I know you keep telling about what Asgard needs, but my god Loki, what do you need?"

He thinks on this a moment, as if it never crossed his mind to take his own heart into consideration. He looks around at the city, then back at me.

"All I know is that I need you, Ayca. I..." He trails off, trying to collect his thoughts. I can't tell if he's crying or if his face is just wet from the rain, but I'm sure as hell starting to cry.

"Tell me." I whisper, cupping his face with my hands.

"I need to return home." He says, backing out of my soft grasp on his face and disappearing into the storm.

I stand there, choking on my tears. Did he mean for good? For the moment? What just happened?

I croak in pain, clutching my stomach. The knot in my throat is overwhelming, and I sit on the wet concrete of the roof. The sour and floral smell of the wet stone around me fills my nose, and all I can think about is the moment before he left, when I was touching his face. I lay on my back in the rain, closing my eyes. I force myself to, just in case, come to terms with the thought that it may have been the last time. Like always, Loki is unpredictable at best.

-------LOKI'S POV-------

I enter Asgard without a moment to waste. I hasten towards Heimdall, demanding a horse. I must set this in order before anything else continues.