Finding something about the soul mate problem was not at all easy, on the contrary, it turned out to be more complicated than you two could imagine. You and Lola found yourselves devouring piles of books looking for real answers, for days and days, without closing your eyes. She was more than willing to help you, although this included spending whole days and nights reading manuals with incredible words and things that didn't even come close to your problem. But she was there. And for that you were grateful.
You and Loki hadn't spoken for days. Sometimes you could hear him confess to Thor about how sorry he was for ruining everything, and your heart was clutching, but you couldn't let his words distract you. You had a mission to accomplish, and as much as it might have helped you to receive a few words of comfort from him, it just didn't seem appropriate. Better not to spoil the balance again. And he probably didn't even do it intentionally, since you couldn't hear the whole speech, but only little pieces that moved you every time.
Lola used to say every time she would like to eavesdrop to understand. You laughed together, but it didn't last long, before a veil of sadness could fall on your face again. Before that, it was difficult to explain the whole situation to her and try to make her understand that you were not kidding at all. She, too, thought it might have been just a stupid joke by the other person, but you were both willing to try until the end.
And together you found the right answers. One book, in particular, talked about how it was possible to be connected to people who lived in an alternative reality, how rare the cases were and how tragically such stories ended, as it was mostly impossible to meet.
Lola reads the words out loud. "In ninety percent of the cases, those connected to people belonging to an alternative reality simply opted to abandon the idea of being able to approach it, living alone or joining other people living the same situation, and...",
"Lola, please", you interrupt, bringing your hands to your face. A sigh leaves your mouth.
Your friend closes the book, giving you a worried look. It is not easy to think that, most likely, her best friend would never have been able to meet the love of her life as everyone else around her was doing. She sighs, and after placing the book on the desk in your room, she sits next to you.
"I know what you're going to say", you go on again, not feeling able to face such a speech at all. It's amazing how, of all the opportunities there could have been, the worst one had happened to you. "I don't even know what to think."
She shrugs her shoulders, before placing a hand against your back, giving you small caresses in an attempt to comfort you, however absurd reality might be. "Trying doesn't hurt", she starts by biting her lip. "I mean... We are talking about a God. You know a lot more about him than I do, don't you? I don't think that can stop you."
Still, she had a point. You straighten up in a second, looking at her. You shake your head and, "You're a genius," you whisper to her before you throw your arms around her neck.
Lola backs down for a moment, not understanding the situation, but then she hugs you back and laughs. "I don't know what I did, but you're welcome," she says.
Talking to Loki would have helped, right? He certainly could have known more. With his knowledge, with his powers... It could have worked. Of course, the books didn't specify how to meet a God, a friend of superheroes, but never say never... Right? Maybe clinging to that last drop of hope that lies within you is the right move. As disappointing as the information found in the books may be. They talked about ninety percent, so there's still a ten percent chance to test.
Lola returned to her house a few hours later, and before she left, she had told you to stay calm and explain the whole situation to him, which Loki would understand and that there would be no problems.
And yet, when you lie in bed again, looking up at the ceiling, your stomach starts to groan and you feel in your heart that maybe he might take it badly. You are a bit scared, to be honest. But he had to know the whole truth. You had to face it together.
So, after you hugged a pillow, you just say "Hello?". You don't get an answer immediately. Maybe he doesn't want to talk to you. You sink your face between the covers, ready to let yourself go to an interminable crisis of nerves. Why does nothing good ever happen to me?
You shouldn't expect a response after ignoring him for days, yet "You're talking again," he says, in a slightly bitter tone.
Despite everything, your heart seems to lighten a bit. So you sigh. You need to find the right words, and being so tense could not help you in any way. "Loki, I... I'm sorry. I want to apologize for disappearing. I needed to do some research," you reply. He needs to know everything, you can't hide the truth from him. Hearing his voice once again makes you slightly happier, although everything you are feeling is making you lose your mind. It's something to hold on to in the hope of not letting go of sadness and discouragement, and you want to take advantage of it to the last. It's amazing how he has such a strong power, even from a distance... Extremely far away.
"Research about what?" he asks, and the tone of his voice helps you understand how worried he's starting to get.
"I need to talk to you. It might take a while, do you have time?".
"Sure."
Meanwhile, on another planet...
He listened to her for what seemed to be hours. Endless hours. Contrasting emotions within his heart. Those words, that truth... One way or another, he didn't know how to take them. Should he be relieved? Should he be afraid of them? Why is he behaving like this? He's never been so weak. Not for his father, for his family, for the crown. Why now?
He should have talked to Thor. Knowing that, in fact, she was not a Midgard inhabitant but a person from another reality, another universe, used to seeing their faces in films and comics, makes him lose his mind. How could this happen?
She was trying to calm him down, telling him that surely together they could have found a solution, but ninety percent of the cases that went wrong don't sound as positive as he would have liked. And only now does he understand why she reacted, and above all, why for days she hadn't wanted to speak to him.
"So, I don't exist. I am not real," says Loki again, lying on the sofa in his room, his gaze lost in the void. He breathes a big sigh. Is this really how it was supposed to go?
Surely, he had heard many, many destabilizing news in his life, but this one? He doesn't even feel able to react as he would like. His heart grows heavier and heavier, moment by moment, as darkness falls on the city of Asgard.
"No, no! Let me explain again", she starts talking again, a worried tone in her voice as she takes a breath. "You are real. But also, from another reality...", she concludes, trying not to aggravate the situation.
"Are you sure?" Loki asks her again, stupidly. How could she not be sure after reading whole books for days trying to give herself some answers? But perhaps he asks simply because he feels the need to have some certainty.
"Yes... Or at least, that's what I read in the books", she answers him in a low voice, probably as conflicted as he is.
Loki gets up of the sofa, crossing the large room to approach the window overlooking the magnificent city. He had imagined he could show her the most beautiful places in his kingdom, make her discover something different, live a life together. "Alternative realities...", he murmured, placing his hand against the glass. Perhaps, he shouldn't have dashed all his hopes. There was always a way, right? "It won't be very easy for us", he concludes, while the girl on the other side lets herself go with a slight melancholy laugh.
"Do you think that, maybe, by any chance... We could meet somehow?" she naively asks. Her voice makes him smile genuinely. It was a hope shared by both of them.
It's worth it. He repeated it for days when they weren't talking. He cannot let her go, he cannot behave as if it were not a matter of life or death. So he nods, even though she cannot really see him, and announces "I will find a way".
However, nothing mentioned being bound to a God, so maybe there was something to do. Magic, some friends of Thor's. Everything could have come in handy. He has to try, until he is sure he did everything in his power. He has to try for himself, for her and for them both as a couple.
The response he receives leaves him stunned for a moment. "I trust you," she says, unaware of the effect those words immediately have on Loki. His heart lightens, his face takes on a different light as he tries to suppress a small smile. A trivial phrase, but one he has never heard pronounced from any mouth.
"You do?".
"I really do", she still reassures him, aware that it was probably difficult to find even the slightest glimmer of hope under certain circumstances. But perhaps, by joining forces together, something could have changed for the better and they would have found the solution to their huge problem. Both laugh heartily. "I am happy to talk to you again."
And after talking a lot more about how those days had gone without each other, she tells him that she should have left him for a while to make up for all the sleep lost because of the research he had to do, which is why Loki begins to think: Undoubtedly it was risky to ask his brother's friends for help, especially after what had happened a few years earlier because of him, but maybe, with a little luck and some promises, they would have been willing to help him. Maybe Thor could have convinced them, also because for those few times he had seen them all together, he was a bit the child of the situation and all of them were willing to listen to him so as not to hear him insist for hours.
He thinks about it as he runs towards the throne room, where Thor is chatting with some of the guards, and as soon as he meets Loki's worried look, he sends them away with a nod and orders them to close the doors and not to disturb them.
"I have good news and bad news," he announces, taking a hand to his chest.
Thor squints, confused. "The good news first?",
"We've started talking again," he replies, releasing a smug laugh from his brother, who nods as if to say 'I told you so', but it turns back into a confused expression as soon as Loki continues his speech, saying, "But she's not from Midgard. Or Asgard. Or any of the Nine Realms. She comes from a completely different dimension, and in hers we are just... fictional characters."
"I can't understand what you're saying," Thor answers immediately, taking a hand to his chin. Loki looks up, already tired at the thought of having to explain everything to him, because otherwise he wouldn't have been able to understand anything even after making him read it with his own eyes.
"What I am trying to say is that, apparently from what is said in the books that talk about this whole soulmate issue, is that there are several parallel universes and that, in very rare cases, sometimes soulmates from opposite universes inevitably come together", he tries to be as clear and concise as possible, while Thor nods, inviting him to continue. "A joke of fate. But then I thought of you," he points a finger in his direction, forcing a smile. "Your friends, the Avengers. They must help me".
At that phrase, Thor shakes his head. "You know they don't want anything to do with you."
"I'm harmless," he replies immediately, raising his hands as a sign of surrender. "But I need you, otherwise I will never be able to meet her. Not even once."
Thor tightens his lips, and shakes his head again. Maybe by helping him, Loki would stop causing trouble around for real, and could he take him with him to Midgard to explain the situation to the Avengers himself to be as convincing as possible?
He rises from the throne, inviting Loki toapproach him. "We have a journey to make," he says, while his brothersmiles sincerely, this time, standing by his side. "Heimdall, take us toMidgard". A beam of light envelops them, and the next moment, without even realising it, they find themselves in the Avengers Tower, surrounded by superheroes watching them, confused, ready to ask for explanations.
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And this chapter is also gone. If you have followed the series on TikTok, you will know that I am trying to keep up with the different parts so as not to spoil the balance.
You are showing me a lot of love and for this I will never stop thanking you. Writing has always been a passion of mine, and knowing that there is someone who appreciates what I do fills my heart with joy.
SMALL QUESTION: I would like to record a kind of trailer for the story, and clearly publish it on TikTok. What do you think about it? I'm open to any kind of advice.
I love you, all of you,
Giada. xx