Unfettered (Loki x Reader)

Chapter 36 - Someone Else's Problem

"Y/n?" Steve's muffled voice calls through your bedroom door. "Are you awake?"

You lay on your back, eyes still covered by Eir's wrappings, nose raw from your plentiful tears throughout the night.

"Hey, I, uh...I came to get you. To take you down the hall to the living room. Tony wants to be there when you take your eye covers off. Are you ready for that?"

A tiny breath of life inflates your lungs - desire to finally see again. It's enough to cling to. Enough to push away your lingering heartache. Slowly, you sit up and throw your legs over the side of the bed. "Come in, Steve," you say.

The door slides open, but Steve's voice is still muffled - as if he remains behind the partially open door.

"Are you decent?" he asks.

"I have no idea," you scoff. "But probably. I managed to get into something last night."

"Do you...want me to go get Natasha instead?" he questions.

"Just open the damn door, Rogers," you frown, low on patience.

Steve hesitates, but a second later you hear the door slide the rest of the way open. Muffled footsteps draw near, and a weight at your side tells you Steve sits next to you.

"How are you feeling this morning?" he asks. "Thor said you weren't feeling well last night."

"How do I look like I'm feeling," you snap back.

Steve sighs, and wraps his arm around your shoulders, pulling you close. You let him guide you to his shoulder, and fight away the tears that once more threaten to fall at his simple gesture of reassurance.

"I take it your conversation with Loki didn't go well?" he questions.

You scoff, but remain silent.

"What happened?" he questions. "Judging by his outburst the night before our mission, I assumed the two of you were in a good place. Did something happen? In Asgard?"

Nausea pushes bile into your throat - the same sick feeling you've had every day since you learned the truth of Phil's death. The same sick feeling that seemed to get five times worse when you had realized that the Avengers likely knew the truth too.

You sit up, putting space between you and Steve as you angle your body toward him. "Can I ask you a question?" you ask somberly.

"Shoot," Steve answers.

"Did you know?"

"Did I know...what?"

"That Loki killed him? Killed Phil?"

Silence descends on the room like a blanket of snow - heavy and cold. It lasts for a long minute, until Steve lets out a long, low sigh.

"Oh boy," he exhales.

"So you knew," you say.

"Yeah. I knew," Steve says. "I think we all did. But, Y/n, you have to believe me when I say we assumed you knew too."

"What?" you question, incredulous.

"Yeah," Steve says. "We assumed you knew. Nat specifically asked me if you knew. I told her yes because...well, because I assumed that's why you were so driven to be the one to handle him. You were looking for revenge."

"How could I have known, Steve?" you say, aghast. "I didn't even know he was dead until Tony told me!"

"I didn't know Tony was the one to tell you," Steve says, a sincere regret laced in each word.