The Frost Giant & The Wolf

Chapter 20: Not What We Seem

As it was already getting late. Everyone just cleared the room and are headed to bed after saying hello to you and telling you they were glad you were back. In the meantime, you're being left to rest while doctor Adams checks your vitals and draws more blood.

Having heard you've awoken but not wanting to be noticed by the others, Loki finally makes his way down to the ICU to see you, now that everyone is gone. He looks into your room from afar as Doctor Adams adjusts your medication, noticing you awake and talking to Adams with a smile.

"She's alive." Loki breathes a sigh of relief as he rubs his hand over his forehead. He has been so incredibly worried about you and to just see you do something basic as smile, calms him.

As Dr. Adams leaves your room, he closes the curtain on the inside, slides the door shut, and disappears down the hall. Loki steps from the shadows, looking left and right, making sure he is in fact alone.

"Darling?" Loki's voice suddenly enters your head and you smile widely.

"Loki." You sigh in contentment. "I was wondering when you would come to see me."

"May I please enter?"

"Of course." 

In less than a second, Loki teleports into your room right beside the sliding door. His arms are crossed behind his back as he looks down at you, his lips pressed into a thin line. Although you are awake, you don't look quite like yourself. Your hair is still disheveled, and you have cuts and bruises all over your body from the rubble that fell on you. An uncontrollable sigh escapes his lips.

He regrets not finding you sooner. All this seidr coursing through his veins, and yet he couldn't locate you on time. His guilt is exacerbated by knowing he could have prevented you from getting hurt. He could even have helped you contain the blast if he had been there only a moment earlier.

"Why didn't you visit me?" You ask, breaking the awkward silence. Loki appears to bite his lip as he looks down at his feet.

"I ... I couldn't stand to see you like this." He utters, but his gaze remains fixed on the ground.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know how much you remember, but I found you just before the explosion went off."

"I remember."

"You were in rough shape before the explosion. But then after? You were in awful shape. I carried you to the Quinjet and I didn't leave your side until we got to the compound and they took you to surgery. When the surgeons came out after 14 long hours, they told us that your chances of survival were incredibly slim, even if you made it through the night. Your body gave up many times during surgery and I couldn't stand to watch any longer. I felt completely and utterly useless."

"So you decided to lock yourself up in your room instead?" Your tone is somewhat irritated.

"How do you..."

"Thor came to talk to me when I was in that coma. Told me you didn't want to leave your room." As Loki approaches the bed, he snorts a quick laugh. "I heard everyone. I know you haven't been here."

"I'm sorry, darling. I am just so relieved that you are alive." His lips brush against yours as he places a soft, loving kiss on them. As he pulls away from you, you place both hands on his face and pull him back to you, kissing him eagerly. You sigh happily as he wraps his arms around you and draws you close to him. It's been so long since you've seen him.

"Promise me that you will never do that again." His voice whispers in your ear, and you furrow your eyebrows.

"I can't promise that."