A year had gone by swiftly. Ever since the battle in New York, there has been huge talk about the Avengers either positively or negatively. I mainly ignored it all not wanting to be bothered by it. All any of us could do was distract ourselves and move on.
My friends and I hadn't heard much from any of the others in a long time. Though the only time we did hear was from Steve who had a motherload of questions on 21st-century objects and expressions. None of us blamed him for being confused after being encased in ice for decades. I know I would be too if I was in a similar situation as him. So far, Steve learned how to operate a microwave and turn on a TV. He even got the hang of using a smartphone, though the apps still confused him.
Craig tried calling me dozens of times not knowing that I blocked his number. My email inbox was jammed full of messages from him. Most of them were him begging me to call him up. I didn't care to answer back.
I took a shower after pushing myself hard at the gym downstairs. It had been a while since any of my friends and I had missions. And the gym was the best place to enhance our training and skills.
After drying myself off, I slipped on a bra and a pair of shorts. I was about to put on a tank top when I felt a familiar cold touch on my back. Jerking forward and turning around, I was face to face with the one being who dramatically changed things for everyone.
"I told you that I would return for you, Casey," Loki smiled at me.
He was supposed to be off world, in Asgard. I wondered how he managed to escape the realm. Then I recalled his shapeshifting ability and being able to get into places undetected. I turned toward the door and was about to head for it when I felt his cold hands yank me back.
My eyes shot open. I looked over at the digital alarm clock reading that it was after three in the morning. I groaned and slammed myself flat on the bed hoping to fall back to sleep, but nothing. So, I resorted to turning on YouTube on my phone.
For the past year, every night I've had dreams that involved Loki. It had been messing with my sleep pattern that I've taken longer naps during the day. I didn't say much about it to Peyton and the others feeling that I could pull through it myself.
A few hours later, it was already daylight. I was still awake, but tired. I slipped on a pair of sweats and a camisole before heading into the main room. I set up the coffeemaker before everyone came around and pulled out a tub of yogurt and some granola as my main breakfast.
To get my mind off the night's events, I turned on the TV and watched some reruns of CSI while I had my meal.
"Hey Case," Peyton smiled as she came out of her room and headed for the kitchen, "How are you doing?"
"Pretty good I guess," I yawned as I watched the show.
"You look and sound tired. Is everything okay?"
"It's all peachy."
I didn't want her to worry. After last year's events, I wasn't bringing it up, especially after the whole ordeal took a toll on all of us.
Sean, Vince, and Nicole came out and headed for the kitchen.
"Hey Case, can we put on something else?" Vince wondered, "I know it's an intriguing show and you're hooked on crime drama."
"Sure thing," I nodded and shut off the show, but had the TV still on.
Vince wasn't into crime drama shows like CSI, except he liked NCIS for the quirkiness and Psych for the goofiness. He scrolled through and turned on The Amazing World of Gumball, which I found to be corny.
"You look like you didn't enough sleep," Nicole pointed out at me.
"It's been going on like that for a while and you haven't said anything to us," Sean stated, "What's been going on?"
I could tell they were concerned. They didn't take these things lightly. Whenever something disturbed one of us, it affected all of us as a group.
"You know, this past year, it's been like a massive soap opera," I shrugged, "Though in an action-packed scene and hints of drama."
"No doubt about that," Vince remarked.
"Get to the point Case," Peyton suggested.
"Okay, okay. About every night, I've been having these dreams involving Loki," I answered reluctantly.
"What does he in do in them?" Nicole wondered sounding worried.
"He's managed to return to Earth, for me."
"Doesn't Thor's dad have some form of mumbo jumbo to keep him in place?" Vince asked.
"Yeah, he does," Sean turned to him.
"Can we just drop it already?" I was beginning to recall the events that led up to the massive New York battle, "I'm sorry, I wasn't planning on telling you guys since we were all trying to move on from it."
"It's nothing to be ashamed of," Peyton shook her head, "Last year took a toll on all of us. At times I get these dreaded thoughts of what if we lost the fight and Earth was overtaken."
"Me too," Sean nodded.
"You know you can talk to us about anything," Nicole assured me.
I smiled a bit at my best friends knowing that they were willing to hear my concerns, even the topic on my dreams.