Even If I Could

Chapter Four

Five years later...

Suede hadn't meant to get drunk. Neither ha he intended to stumble through his door at ten past three in the morning, laughing like a lunatic. Nearly tripping over the doormat, Suede fumbles around in his trouser pockets. Chuckling when he doesn't find his keys, he searches his jacket pockets and his fingers close around the set of keys. He holds them up high.
"Huzzah! Low and behold, I have thy keys in thine palm!" He calls out, giggling uncontrollably. Suede eventually manages to lock the door, only to turn around and see Steve.
"Ohhhh shit." Suede bites his lip to contain another laughing fit, grinning broadly.
"Language." Steve says, straight-faced and deadly serious. Suede's grin falls and he adverts his eyes.
"I-"
"No, Suede. Don't even start. You nearly woke Peter up when you were stumbling up the drive, singing something unrecognisable really loudly. Your father's not at all impressed." Steve sighs, talking in a half whisper.
"Well I'm sorry." Suede rolls his eyes, suddenly irritated. He speaks in an exaggerated stage whisper. "I didn't know it was illegal to enjoy yourself."
"Stop being stupid." Steve shakes his head.
"Stupid?" Suede scoffs.
"You're drunk, Suede! Where have you been?" The older man raises his voice slightly.
"Out. Having fun. With my friends." The teen sighs, talking to him like he is five.
"You mean 'friend', Suede. You don't have friends." Steve runs a hand through his hair and yawns. Suede falls silent and scowls, walking past Steve in a huff.
"Thanks, Dad." He spits as he passes. Suede nearly trips on the stairs and makes his way to bed, leaving Steve at the bottom of the stairs.
The next morning, Steve and Tony don't even bother with Suede. It's a Friday and, after Steve tried to wake him and received a pillow to the face, they decide it's best to leave him be.
"Where's Suede?" Peter wanders into the kitchen, rubbing sleep from his eyes and yawning.
"In bed, Petey. He's not...well." Tony ruffles his son's hair and pecks Steve's cheek. Peter frowns before shrugging and innocently makes a bowl of cereal.
"He said he'd be back by ten, not three in the morning." Steve grumbles, not looking up from where he's frying bacon.
"I'll ask him when he decides to get up. Before you interrogate him." Tony sighs, tapping his foot impatiently as he waits for the coffee machine to finish up on his latte. Steve mumbled something inaudible and tips the bacon onto two plates, handing one to Tony.
"Thanks." Tony smiles sweetly, kissing Steve's cheek again, and grabs his latte and bacon. He heads over to the door.
"Where are you off to?" Steve frowns, already knowing the answer.
"The lab at the Tower. Work and all." Comes the response, presumably because of a mouth stuffed with bacon.
"Thought you were going to talk to Suede?" The blonde sighs, trying to peer round the doorway whilst attempting to clear up.
"I'll call him." Typical Tony. He probably wouldn't. There's the sound of a plate being placed on the side and then he's gone, with a slam of the door.
"You ready for school then, Petey?" Steve says brightly after a moment of silence.
"Yup!" Peter springs up, taking his bowl and glass to the sink. He scoops his rucksack up off the tiled floor and flings it over his shoulder. Steve smiles at him, shaking his head. The doorbell goes and Peter rushes to answer it.
"Wade!" The ten year old leaps at his best friend and wraps him in a bear hug. The two boys had known each other since when Peter started primary school. Wade has shaggy and cropped Brown hair, like Peter's, and the pair are inseparable. Peter is in the year below Wade and looks up to him. However, what the younger doesn't know is that Wade has the biggest, gayest crush on Peter. Yes, Peter is only ten and Wade twelve, but Wade has never felt anything like this for someone. Ever.
"Steady there! You'll blow my brains out with that voice of yours." Wade chuckles before pushing Peter off of him.
"Wade." Steve nods to him with a neutral expression.
"Mr America. Oh, sorry. Mr Stark." Wade grins up at him. Peter breaks the tension by hugging Steve tightly.
"See ya later, little soldier." He waves them off before returning indoors to the lonely house.

"So you're saying that my kid has some form of...gift?" Tony asks, frowning.
"C'mon, Tony. You know how long we've been looking at Suede." Bruce sighs, running a hand through his matted hair. It is clear he's only operating on nine cups of coffee and half an hour's sleep.
"Five years." Stark mutters, analysing the display of scribbles, notes and diagrams before him. "You said you had a breakthrough."
"I do!" Banner leaps into action, pulling up several screens full of information. "Here," He points to an image of a brain.
"What am I looking at, Bruce?" Tony shakes his head.
"I tapped into his hippocampus and there isn't this empty void like we thought. More of a barrier." Banner rambles. "Its like a big blockage that we've only a tiny piece of." He grins.
"Wait...what? A piece? What piece? Bruce, I thought I made it clear not to tinker with Suede's head." Tony sighs into his palm.
"I know, I know but-"
"Adopted or not, he's still my son." Stark says sternly. There is a tense pause before Banner takes a deep breath.
"I know who Suede really is." He says calmly and quietly.
"You...what?" Tony frowns at him. Sighing yet again, Bruce pulls up a screen with a distinct image of the scene just before Loki was cast out to Midgard. Studying it closely, Tony saw the unforgiving scowl on Odin's face. The adverted eyes of Heimdall. The tears in Thor's eyes.
"What...where's..." Stark's eyes widen as he realises. Banner nods with a pitiful look.
"It's him, Tony. It's Loki."

BEEP BEEP.
Steve looks up from his art pad at his phone. Tony. Oh well, he'll answer it later.
BEEP BEEP.
Heaving out the chair, Steve scoops up his phone, slightly irritated, and reads the messages with a frown.
Get to the lab. Now.
Running over as quick as a super soldier could run, Steve burst through the double doors to find a silent Bruce and a very pale Tony.
"What's wrong?" He asks, confused.
"It's Suede." Bruce explains. "He's actually Loki."
Steve's jaw drops and he shakes his head.
"Just look, Steve." Tony murmurs and motions to the frozen image of Asgard.
"No..." Steve blinks, his heart plummeting. It really is him.

It's Loki.