Worthy

Chapter Eight

The next time I opened my eyes it was a little after 8am and Thor was still asleep making soft snoring sounds. Carefully I moved his arm off of me and slid out of the bed. I didn't know how well he'd been sleeping if the nightmares were back and I wanted to give him all the time he needed.

I made myself a cup of coffee and sat down with my laptop at the breakfast bar. God or not, he wasn't above needing a little help. I knew there were places where people could go to talk but wasn't sure what help he would need. A whole branch of therapy centers had opened in honor of Steve Rogers, funded by his numerous charities. They focused on helping soldiers return to civilian life and move on from the horrors of war. I thought this was a good start because he was, at his core, a warrior. Maybe they had some discrete therapists I could call on to make a house call for the time being. I wasn't sure how Thor would be going out just yet. I was happy enough I got him to leave the cottage.

I called up the closest branch of Roger's Returning Heroes and did a little bluffing until they agreed to send a therapist out that afternoon from 3pm to 4pm to do a basic assessment. All they knew was that my friend was high ranking ex military who was exhibiting signs of severe depression and social anxiety. The receptionist said we'd have forms to fill out before treatment could start but I doubted it would be necessary once they realized who the patient was.

I was catching up on emails when I heard Thor stirring down the hall. I dug up a few sugar packets and little cups of creamer from the kitchen and poured him a cup of coffee. I had it set up on the breakfast bar next to me when he came in. His footsteps stopped and I looked up to find him in the doorway looking at me, a big smile on his face. I was obvious he'd put effort into his appearance. His hair was brushed and his beard bound in an intricate braid. He wore the clothing I'd picked up for him the night before which fit him perfectly. If I didn't know better I would assume nothing was amiss with him.

"Hey you" I said as I crossed the room.

He wrapped his arms around me and I was engulfed in his warmth. "Do I smell coffee?" He asked.

"Yeah. I poured you a cup too."

"One of the many perks of Midgard."

"Agreed."

Thor released me and I returned to my spot at the bar. He joined me and started doctoring up his coffee.

"You have a lap computer." He commented.

I laughed at his description, "Yes, I have a laptop. They're quite useful."

"For what?"

"Well, everything. Keeping up with news, learning new things, sending emails to people, buying things, and sometimes just funny videos of animals."

"Show me some of these videos."

I exited my news and looked up a few videos. There were sleepy puppies, clumsy kittens, birds who liked to dance, and hamsters who stuffed their cheeks to no end. Thor enjoyed all of them thoroughly.

"I understand why Migardians have animals in their homes. They are wonderful creatures." He said as I closed the last video.

"Some of them are quite fun. I think I'd like to have a dog someday. If I ever settle down somewhere with enough space for one. I read about their care online. It's a lot of work."

"So you are staying on Midgard?" His tone tried to be casual but I caught his hesitant look.

"I think so. It's the most like Sajoren and I have gotten pretty used to it here. People assume I'm 'an American' when they meet me now which is funny. But I haven't really settled down yet."

"I think this is a fine planet to settle down on."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, it has everything I could want."

"Would you stay here? Close to New Asgard?"

"Mia, I will go where you go. I miss waking up to your face each day."

"Oh." His candidness surprised me. "We'll figure it out together then. Maybe we can look at a few places this week."

Thor's stomach rumbled loudly and he rubbed it good naturedly, "Time to feed this thing. Can we order breakfast?"

"Sure. What do you want?"

"A Bloody Mary"

"That is not breakfast!"

"It has vegetables."

"And alcohol. If you want to just sit around drunk all day long you can do that back at your cottage. Here we have stuff to do."

"Back in Asgard it was commonplace to enjoy libations with meals."

"I'll get you a beer with lunch, okay? For now, get some more coffee and let me know what you want to eat for breakfast."

"Alright. Alright. Get me some of those breakfast cakes please. And bacon."

"Pancakes and bacon. Got it."

I called down an order while he got himself more coffee and I made sure to get enough to satisfy his god sized appetite.

"Half an hour." I told him after hanging up.

"I can think of ways to wait." He said wrapping his arms around me from behind. He kissed the side of my neck and I shivered.

"That will take much longer than half an hour." I teased, "You're insatiable."

"Mmm. Indeed I am. Do you enjoy it?"

"Yes. But we don't have time right now. Come out on the balcony with me. We can enjoy some fresh air."

He groaned but followed me out on to the balcony. The city was bustling below and all around us. I noticed Thor scowling at the thriving city.

"What's the matter?" I asked.

"There is nothing really alive here." He commented.

"How so? There are millions of people in this city."

"Yes but how many trees? How many rivers? In Asgard the cities were built around the mountains and lakes. Here the cities extinguish them."

"There are places like that here on earth. You just have to drive outside the city for a bit. You should see some of the mountains and lakes here, they're breathtaking."

"I would like to see them someday."

"We can go. But how about we start with just getting you downstairs to buy clothes?"

"You say that like I'm an invalid." Thor grumbled but started shifting uncomfortably.

"Thor, how long were you cooped up in that cottage alone?" I tried to keep my tone gentle.

"It was not nearly as long as the time before."

"Based on when Rocket said he dropped you off it's been over a year. How many times did you leave once you got there?"

"Well there was no need to leave. Everything I needed was brought to me."

"Did you have any visitors who came to see you, not just drop things off?"

"Yes, I did"

"Who?"

"You" he conceded.

I sighed heavily, "Thor, you isolated yourself. And you were agitated last night just coming up to my room. We need to work on that so you can go out and see all the things you want to here on Earth."

"I'll be fine. Really I will."

"Okay. Then we'll go get some clothes after breakfast and take a walk around for a bit."

I was glad the therapist was coming that afternoon. I had a feeling we were going to need them after Thor's outing. It would be wonderful if I was misreading things and he was fine going back out into the world but I couldn't be certain until he tried.