Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

January 2013 — six months after the Battle of New York

Isabella felt as though she could lay in his arms for an eternity, his arms holding her firmly to his bare chest. She knew by now the sun had begun to creep through the dark curtains, though she could not bring herself to pull away from the Captain’s hold. She smiled up at him gently, his peaceful form encapsulating her entirely. Steve had returned late the night prior with Tony and Barton, and by instinct he had found himself at Bella’s door — not that she had dared to complain.

“The Starks Captain— Bella’s gonna flip when she sees today’s headline” Clint muttered, dropping the day’s newspaper firmly against the centre table as he reclined into the couch.

“They’ve made headlines again?” Natasha muttered, leaning forwards and pulling the paper towards her. “Isabella Stark pictured with alleged boyfriend, World War Two veteran and fellow Avenger, Captain Steve Rogers”.

“I used to get the brunt of it, I imagine they were devastated to find out I had settled down” Tony scoffed, announcing his presence. He approached the sofa, setting his coffee mug against the centre table.

“I know you own the place but at least use a coaster, Stark” Natasha scolded, swiftly correcting the man's mistake.

“Why don’t we just hide the paper?” Clint muttered. He leaned forwards, taking in the glare from his two friends.

“And all the other’s in the city?” Tony commented. “Not that easy, trust me”.

“No, I mean this one. What’s the odds they’ll make front cover again tomorrow? They’re not the Royal Family for fucks sake. Saves Bella and Steve seeing it, certainly saves Abel from seeing it?”.

“That’s— That is a heavily flawed plan” Tony muttered, shaking his head. “But—”.

“We are not hiding the newspaper” Natasha frowned.

“Good morning, Captain Rogers” Bella smiled, her gentle hands brushing the few stray strands of hair behind his ear as he returned her grin, albeit groggy. “Morning’” Steve murmured in response, squinting his eyes slightly. “W— What time is it?”.

“Just gone nine” She said. “You’ve slept in, Captain. The team will rejoice in the fact you didn’t have them up at six for training”. She was almost laughing, the dim light that broke through the curtains illuminated her already radiant silhouette. Steve Rogers was admittedly smitten by the Stark before him.

“What’s on the agenda today?” Steve asked softly, sitting up slightly. Bella followed his movement, curling into herself beside him.

“Well, I’ve got a shit tonne of admin work to get through and Abel’s got soccer in the afternoon too, oh, and you’ll have your mission briefing later today I’m assuming?”. Steve nodded in response.

Steve’s thumb rubbed gently against Bella’s wrist, a silent rhythm he kept when lost in thought but did not want to speak.

“Did you sleep well?” He said finally. Bella bowed her head slightly, burying her face in the crook of his neck.

“Better than normal,” She said quietly. “Something screams safe about having Captain America in your bed”.

Steve stifled his laugh, shaking his head gently. “Perhaps we should get out of bed before the others notice…”.

Bella smirked gently, pressing her lips gently to the Captain’s cheekbone. “I’m sure they can handle another five minutes without us”.

“Tony, what’re you doing?” Bruce asked dubiously, leaning over the back of the couch. A mug of tea placed firmly in his hands.

“Tony, what’re you doing?” Bruce asked dubiously, making his presence known as his feet padded across the hard-wood floors of the tower.

Tony had moved from the couch, an apron slung around his neck, covering his suit. He stood over the stove, the scent of pancakes lingering in the air — burnt pancakes.

“He’s cooking,” Clint muttered, curled up against the sofa.

“You don’t cook, Tony?” Bruce muttered, only adding to his confusion.

“I do when my sister is about to find out she’s on the front page of every paper in New York playing tonsil hockey with America’s most wanted virgin” Tony remarked.

“What?”.

In silence, Clint took the newspaper from the centre table and handed it to Banner. Bruce seemed to read it carefully, even going as far as to find the page inside the paper dedicated to them too.

“Bella’s gonna rip into them, I’m telling you we should have hidden it” Clint said.

“And have her kill you?” Natasha replied, an eyebrow raised.

“Better him than me,” Tony said quietly. “One time—”.

The elevator dinged. And after a moment, Bella Stark emerged with a rather smitten Steve Rogers not far behind. Bella wore one of Steve’s shirts that ended just above her knee, paired with a pair of joggers. Bella paused, confused.

“Why’s everybody staring?” She asked cautiously. Steve halted behind her, his hand snaking along her arm before finally reaching her wrist. He took her hand in his gently. Tony gagged.

“PDA!” He yelled. “PDA—”.

Bella pointed her middle finger in her brother's direction, of whom mimicked a gasp of disgust.

“Have you— Tony, have you been cooking?” Bella asked suddenly, approaching the kitchen area. “You never cook, look at that. Is that— Is that meant to be a pancake”.

Bella was looking at a charred pancake. Her eyes wide.

“Breakfast in bed?” Tony grimaced, nudging the plate of charred pancaked towards Bella and Steve. Steve swallowed thickly, hoping he or Bella wouldn’t be forced to eat the atrocity.

“What did you do?” Bella asked.

“Why is it always me — I think the batter was too thick and the temperature was too high. It’s funny, cause I can fix a car in a heartbeat but suddenly I’m beaten by—”.

“No, I know you can’t cook,” Bella said, her tone hurried. “I mean, what have you done?”.

“Me, I’ve done nothing” Tony held his hands up in defence. “Can’t a man express his love for his sister occasionally?”.

“Not you,” Bella remarked. “You’re up to something”.

“Erm, Bella,” Steve muttered. Bella turned sharply. Steve was eyeing the newspaper that sat plainly atop the centre table, the front cover visible for all to see. In their failing attempts to distract Bella, it seems they had forgotten to actually move the newspaper to somewhere she wouldn’t find it.

“Oh, for God’s sake, what is it—”.

She had marched over to the centre table, taking the paper in her hands firmly. She unfolded it, her face dropping as she read the headline.

‘The Stark’s Captain — Isabella Stark pictured with alleged boyfriend, World War Two veteran and fellow Avenger, Captain Steve Rogers’

“Bella—” Clint started.

Bella stared at the image. She blinked, and then blinked again. The photo could have only been a week old. They had been pictured in Central Park. They were in the park with Abel and Izzie. She cursed beneath her breath.

“How did they get this?” She breathed out, finally looking away from the paper. She looked directly at her brother, a slight panic in her stare.

“I don’t know,” Tony said quietly, biting his lip.

“Oh my God,” Bella said quietly. “Is this on every paper?”.

“Pretty much” Clint shrugged, looking towards his friend.

“Is there nothing more important to print nowadays, or is it all just scandals and love affairs?” Steve said coldly, taking the paper for himself.

“Or spoiling TV shows,” Clint grumbled. “They spoiled Friends for me”.

“How many times is this now?” Steve asked carefully.

Bella shook her head, groaning loudly. “I miss when this was you” She said, pointing at her brother.

“I don't,” Tony remarked.

“Bells,” Steve said gently, taking Bella’s hand. “It was gonna happen eventually”.

Bella frowned. “I know. I know. I just— I wanted it to be on our terms, y’know”.

“It’s just a photo,” Steve reminded her. “We aren’t doing anything wrong”.

Bella smiled gently, looking lovingly towards Steve Rogers. Steve lowered his head carefully, his lips pressing lightly to hers. Her cheeks flushed a deep shade of pink. Tony gagged in the background, Bruce swatting him over the head. And Clint wolf-whistled at the pair.

Chapter Text

“This is a fucking nightmare” Bella exclaimed, slamming her handbag firmly atop the kitchen counter. Clint flinched at the noise.

“Welcome home, too,” He muttered.

“I thought, if we went public ourselves then all of this would be over in a few days” Bella continued, ignoring Clint’s comment. “But apparently, the American press is more concerned by my love life than the current state of the country!”.

“Amen, preach!” Clint droned, only half paying attention.

“I mean, have you seen the things they’re saying? I can’t even pick Abel up from school anymore, I have to send Happy. In fact, I’m considering switching schools, maybe homeschooling? Put him in that private school Izzie goes to— Is Steve in?”.

Bella sat herself on the couch beside Clint, a heavy sigh leaving her parted lips when she finally finished speaking. Clint shook his head.

“Maybe I’ll get a funko pop out of this” She remarked quietly, kicking her feet onto the centre table.

“Hey, if you get one, do you think they’d do one for the rest of us?” Clint asked. “‘Cause that’d be sick”.

Bell stared at Clint, dumbfounded. “Don’t you like, have a family?” She said plainly, staring at him coldly.

“Touche,” Clint grimaced. “Laura kicked me out again, so. At least your relationship is surviving the press”.

“Oh” Bella said, her anger melting slightly. “I’m sorry, I—”.

“Eh, it’s fine. We’ll sort it out, always do” Clint shrugged. “It’s nice having a place to crash though”.

The elevator door dinged, a mildly enraged Steve Rogers emerged from behind the metal doors. Bella swallowed thickly, a newspaper bound tightly in his right hand. He didn’t even look at Bella, instead sitting on the couch opposite as he handed her the newspaper.

“Oh, you have got to be joking,” Bella grimaced, reading the article that compared her to Peggy Carter: ‘Bella Stark: Replacement or Soulmate?’.

The atmosphere shifted in the room, a sudden tension rising between the couple. Clint eyed them both carefully, Steve’s eyes seemed to burn into Bella’s small frame as she read the article fervently. Neither of them had expected this response. Both had assumed that by addressing their relationship publicly, it would steer the press away. Neither had expected it to only feed the flame.

Tony entered the room, a glass of scotch in one hand. Knowing the time, Tony’s appearance with alcohol told Bella everything she needed to know.

The press had never gotten so personal with Bella. All eyes had been on Tony, always. Even when Bella’s son was born, she headlined for a day or two at most. And she didn’t mind it as much then because she was all she had to worry about. But now she knew Abel would get stick at school, more so than he already did. She had no idea that becoming an Avenger meant being given the Tony Stark press treatment.

“They’re not going to stop,” Tony said simply, briefly addressing the tension in the room. Bella had finally looked up from the paper, her eyes meeting Steve who had turned away almost immediately. “Not until they’ve dragged you through the mud. They want a narrative, and it looks like they’re going to tear you up until they get it”.

“What if we— Instead of just posting it on my twitter we go out there together, we make a statement?” Bella suggested quietly. Steve perked up, looking at her. She knew the Peggy comment had hurt him. “We show them a united front”.

“That’s either brave or… suicidal” Tony remarked. “I admire it”.

Bella’s stare was fixated upon Steve. His jaw was set, but his hand seemed to tremble slightly. Bella leaned forwards, stretching to reach his hand. He nodded.

“Okay,” He said. “Let’s do it”.

Tony audibly groaned from behind them. “Now I have to approve a press release”.

Bella stifled her laugh, her attention remaining upon Steve. He had to be madly in love with her to still be with her after all of this, to be willing to stand in front of the press in person this time and declare their love. The thought scared Bella a little, though she pushed it down. That was a can of worms she would open another day, once the dust had settled.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Bella sat down carefully, smoothing out her skirt beneath her. She wore the usual business casual that she did for these kinds of events. Steve sat rigid at her side. Bella placed a hand atop his thick thigh.

“Once this is over, everything will go back to normal again” Bella said. “Friday film nights with Abel, Soccer Sundays. You name it… unless we have to save the world again”.

Steve let out a low chuckle, a breath of relief following. Bella turned calmly, adjusting the mic before her. Her heart pounded against her ribcage, an abnormal twinge of anxiety. She kept her hand atop Steve’s thigh in an attempt to keep herself grounded. She had done this before, plenty of times too. With her brother, or alone.

“When did your relationship with Captain Rogers begin, Miss Stark?” One of the reporters questioned, a flash following from their camera.

“Erm—” Bella looked carefully at Steve. “We’ve been seeing each other privately for a few months now. It was never a secret, or something we were ashamed of. We just wanted to keep it to ourselves for a while. And I have my son, so we figured it would be easier for it to be just us three and close friends and family that knew. Of course, that’s not what happened”.

“Some of your fans feel deceived, Captain,” Another reporter said. “To have been in a relationship for so long and have kept it from them, they feel that you owed them the truth”.

“Neither Steve nor I owe anyone anything,” Bella said. “What we choose to do with our lives is up to us, not any of you. We’re not just Avengers, we’re people. He’s more than Captain America, and that’s what I love. And I’m more than Tony Stark’s little sister, infantilised by the press”.

Steve nodded, in agreement. “While I do appreciate my fans, this is all very new territory for me” He started. “However, the slander we are facing is entirely unfactual. Our relationship happened naturally, it was not forced by either one of us or by Fury as a PR stunt. Bella is more than a Stark, and she has done more for this team than you will ever know”.

Bella smiled gently, lowering her head slightly. A light blush had crept across her cheeks, highlighting her cheekbones.

“Look, to put it plainly. Steve and I aren’t here to ask for your permission, you or the fans. We’re here to set the record straight” Bella said. “Steve and I first met six months ago, yes. We moved into Avengers tower before we started dating, yes. We are dating now. I think that’s as much as you deserve to know given how this has been handled considering there is a child at play here”.

Silence coated the room, almost stunned. Bella was staring directly into the camera facing herself and Steve. The camera that broadcast this interview to the entire world.

“Is that all?” Steve asked quietly, eyeing Bella curiously. She seemed frozen in her seat, her eyes fixated upon the camera. Her fist had clenched beneath the desk.

“Yes, thank you” One of the reporters said, some already packing their things up. “That’s all”.

“I think we did it, Bella,” Steve said quietly, his tone of relief.

Bella nodded, inhaling sharply. She did not speak, instead wrapping her arms tightly around her Captain. He welcomed the embrace, holding her tightly, as if the pair could not bear to let one another go.

After a few minutes alone in the interview room, Bella led Steve towards the elevator. The pair's hands remained entwined. The doors closed behind them with a silent click, and finally Bella let out her sigh of relief.

“Do you think it worked?” She asked quietly, looking up at Steve.

Steve smiled faintly. “I think we reminded people we’re human”.

Bella stifled a laugh. “Oh, God forbid!”.

The elevator chimed, the doors opening as the pair emerged into Bella’s floor of the tower. The level's floor was a beautiful golden as the City’s sunset bled into the apartment. Bella kicked her heels off by the shoe rack beside the elevator, following Steve to the couch in the centre of the room. Steve took a seat on the couch, Bella resting her head against his thighs. He played with her hair gently as the pair revelled in the silence gained from the height of Bella’s apartment. Bella had always found silence to be a strange comfort, almost a solace.

“You haven’t been sleeping,” Steve said quietly. “You didn’t come to bed last night”.

Bella frowned. “I was watching Abel,” She admitted quietly. “He’s been through so much already, I— I couldn't stop thinking about how upset he might get if he saw some of the things they’d said. Or if someone at his school would mention it. He’s a sensitive kid, far too much faith in the world”.

“He’s a good kid, Bella,” Steve said. “He’s lucky. You both are”.

“I kept reading those stupid articles. People tearing me apart, tearing you apart—”.

“I don’t care what they say about me,” Steve said shortly.

Bella sat up carefully, eyeing Steve. “But you care what they say about me”.

Steve was silent, and Bella nodded, knowing her answer. Steve Rogers, the selfless patriot, the man out of time. Bella’s gentle Captain. He hadn’t asked for any of this either.

“I know, you didn’t sign up for any of this—”.

“I signed up for you, Bella” He said swiftly, his head turning to her sharply. “Everything. The chaos. The headlines. That incredible boy of yours. Even Tony”.

Bella let out a weak laugh, bowing her head slightly. “That’s some commitment, Steve”.

He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, each of his hands reaching up to cup her face gently.

“We will get through this,” He said. “Together”.

Bella hesitated for a moment. “Will we?” She said. “Because this— This is just the start of it all, Steve. Eventually, they’ll want more. And they’ll keep twisting it, they’ll dig deeper. And… Steve, you’re Captain America. People expect perfection from you, and I’m— I’m not perfect”.

“I don’t want perfect” Steve said softly. “I just want you”.

Bella could feel her eyes welling up, a week's worth of stress and emotion finally catching up to her. Steve pressed his forehead to hers gently.

“You don’t have to do this alone”.

Despite the flicker of doubt aching within Bella’s chest, she nodded gently. “I love you” She said quietly.

“I know,” Steve replied. “I love you too”.

Chapter Text

“Mmmm” Clint hummed, his nose leading him into the kitchen. The scent of Bella’s cooking had captured the man. “Something smells good”.

“It’s not for you,” Bella said sternly, eyeing her friend.

“Shame” Clint frowned, taking a seat at the island counter.

“You’re up early” Bella commented quietly.

“Been on surveillance, y’know. Hawks don’t need sleep” Clint said, flexing his left arm. Bella grimaced, she hated how outnumbered she was by the sheer amount of testosterone in the building.

Steve padded into the kitchen, his arms slithering around Bella gently as she cooked. He hummed, taking in the scent. Pancakes, this time, not charred.

“Good morning, my love” Steve whispered, planting a kiss atop her forehead.

“We’re okay, now, aren’t we” Bella said quietly, ensuring that Clint was not in earshot.

“I promise,” Steve said, smiling gently. He pressed a gentle kiss to her lips before moving to retrieve a set of plates from the cupboard. “Shall I wake Abel?”.

“Please” Bella said, thanking him with a smile as he left as swiftly as he had arrived.

The rest of the Avengers began to trickle into the kitchen, including Abel and Steve. Bella had ended up feeding the whole team, as per. She hadn’t minded, really, she never did. Thor was last to arrive, a trail of dirt following behind him upon the freshly cleaned floorboards. He set Mjolnir against the table as though the hammer were a paper eight. Bella marvelled at the hammer, almost tempted to try it.

“I have news!” The God of Thunder declared, taking the seat between Tony and Abel. Abel looked at the man funnily, of all the Avengers, Thor and Abel had only met a handful of times.

Steve immediately went rigid beside Bella, who froze as she reached for her fork. Tension in the room reached a high.

“The All-Father has passed judgement on Loki” Thor bellowed. Bella eyes Abel nervously, Tony catching Bella’s eyes.

“Kid, why don’t you get your homework out of my lab” Tony suggested carefully. “We can finish it after breakfast”.

Abel was old enough to understand that the group were about to have a conversation he shouldn’t be present for. He was almost twelve. Nonetheless, the boy did as asked and made the venture to Tony’s lab. Bella mouthed a quick ‘thank you’ towards her brother.

“Loki is to serve the remainder of his sentence here. On Midgard”.

All eyes fell to Thor, most in disbelief.

“As in, here. In this tower” Bella asked quietly.

“Yes,” Thor said solemnly. “Under supervision. For as long as deemed necessary. It is his punishment… and his test”.

“Absolutely not!” Tony said, standing up.

“Odin believe’s the isolation breeds vengeance” Thor tried to explain. “If Loki is to learn humility, he must be among those he wronged”.

Bella remained quietly, deep in thought.

“I vote no,” Clint said. “Can we vote? I’m starting a vote”.

Steve leaned forwards. “Is this a permanent arrangement?”.

“Open-ended,” Thor said.

“That’s worse,” Tony muttered. “God, it’s worse!”.

Natasha glanced around the room, eyeing her teammates carefully. Bella’s silence intrigued her, she had assumed Bella would be among the first to exercise her displeasure in the idea. “And we’re just supposed to live with him?”.

“Supervised” Thor insisted. “He will not be free to roam around”.

Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose, his eyes shut tightly. “The tower has barely recovered from the last time he visited. We’ve barely recovered”.

Clint eyed Bella, he too became intrigued by her silence. “Are you okay with this?” He said, nudging her with his foot beneath the table. Bella sat still, her eyes flickering from Thor to Steve and Tony.

“I’m… processing” She said finally.

Steve placed his hand against her knee gently. He did not speak, though his actions spoke volumes. Bella let out a heavy breath, the kind you push out of your chest to stop it from tightening.

“If Loki’s staying here… what does that mean for us?” Bella said quietly. “The press has only just gotten over me and Steve. Can you imagine the headlines tomorrow, ‘enemy God living in Avengers tower’. It’s insane. We’re a scandal buffet”.

Tony raised a hand. “Can I just say, on behalf of my PR team, and my liver, that I hate this plan”.

“I second that,” Clint said. “Third it. Fourth it. Whatever number we’re on”.

“He has lost much. His sentence is severe, but I believe Loki can still learn” Thor added.

Tony snorted in response. “What, manners!?”.

“Redemption” Thor corrected. “He understands the terms”.

“When does he arrive, Thor?” Bella said quietly, the room filling with silence.

“Tomorrow”.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Bella sat silently at the edge of her bed, head in hands as Steve emerged from the bathroom, a towel wrapped loosely around his waist. His usually neat hair hung loose, curling slightly. The buzz of the city below bled into the room, disrupting the strange silence.

“Is that my shirt?” Steve said quietly, leaning against the ensuite door frame.

Bella turned quietly, a brief laugh escaping her lips. “No, it’s Banners” Her voice rang with sarcasm. Steve rolled his eyes, shaking his head. He moved towards the bed, sitting beside Bella. “He’s really coming?”.

“First thing tomorrow,” Steve nodded. “We don’t have to talk about it—”.

“We probably should,” Bella said. “I want locks put on the floor, for Abel. He needs to be safe”.

“Okay” Steve replied quietly. “It’s a lot—”.

“It’s not ‘a lot’ Steve!” Bella snapped. “He could have killed me — he tried to. Loki’s dangerous. And I don’t trust him”.

“That won’t happen again” Steve said gently, pressing a hand to Bella’s thigh.

She shook her head. “You sound so sure…”.

“I’m not. But, I trust Thor. And I trust you. I trust the team”.

“I don’t think I do want him here” Bella said, her voice quiet as a child. “Not with Abel. I’m worried I might be putting him in danger”.

“You don’t think he’s changed?” Steve asked, turning his head slightly.

“I don’t think people like Loki change because they want to. I think they change because they have to. It’s not the same, Steve”.

There was a long pause, Steve’s hand falling from her thigh.

“You know, he barely even hesitated. In Germany”. Bella was looking at her hands, her fist clenched tight enough to turn her knuckles white. “I really thought I was going to die. I don’t know what stopped him. And if you hadn’t been waiting— I still dream about it sometimes”.

Steve reached forward, his hand covering hers. His grip was warm, and grounding. Bella sighed, leaning back into him. Steve adjusted himself, holding the younger Stark carefully.

“I don’t want to be bitter,” She said. “I’m not— I don’t like to hold grudges but, I can’t forget what he did. To me. To Clint. To this city. To all of us”.

“You don’t have to forgive him, Bella” Steve said, his voice soft.

“What about you?” She said, looking at Steve with sad eyes. “How do you feel about all of this?”.

Steve hesitated. “I don’t trust him. But, Thor could be right. Maybe punishment will lead to redemption, change. I’m not fond of the idea, but if he’s here to change”.

Bella curled into Steve, small as a child as he held her fragile frame in his arms. They revelled in this moment, knowing that tomorrow their bliss would be shattered. Bella had spoken to Tony, agreeing for Abel to stay in Malibu with Pepper and Izzie in Malibu for a few days, while the team themselves adjusted to the change.

“Do you— Do you think he’ll apologise?” Bella said quietly.

Steve pondered for a moment before letting out a gentle sigh. “No. But he might try something his own way?”.

“Hmm” Bella hummed. “That’ll go well”.

Steve chuckled. “We’ll need popcorn for the first team dinner”.

“We’ll need tranquilisers” Bella retorted.

“Same difference” Steve shrugged.

A brief silence fell upon them again. However, this one was comforting. Steve ran his thumb gently against Bella’s collarbone, his hand resting just beneath her loose shirt.

“Whatever happens,” Steve said. “We’re in this together”.

Bella looked up at him, her expression softening. “I know”.

Chapter Text

Bella stood still, her stare fixated upon the elevator on the far side of the room. She felt Steve’s arm loop around her waist, pulling her a few inches closer to him. He pressed a gentle kiss to her hairline. Nobody spoke, it was an eerie sort of silence. Nobody knew what to do.

As if on cue, the elevator door chimed. The silence grew intense.

Thor stepped out first, his heavy boots pounded against the ground. Bella swallowed thickly, her hand finding Steve’s. Loki followed, close behind his brother. He entered the room as though it belonged to him, his Asgardian attire still embodying that of royalty. There were no cuffs or chains. Loki’s expression seemed to hold no remorse.

Bella tensed. Steve didn’t need to look at her to know how she felt, he felt it too. The strange tightness in his chest. He felt the way Bella’s muscles coiled against his skin, her breathing growing shallow.

“Good morning” Thor said, his voice warm yet cautious. “Loki, I’d like you to meet my friends”. Thor began to gesture to each of the watching Avengers. “Clint, Natasha, Stark, Banner, Captain Rogers, and Bella”.

Loki seemed to pause, his stare lingering on Bella for a moment longer than it had the others. His green eyes pierced her soul. He cocked his head, raising a brow. When she didn’t speak or move, his face shifted into something unreadable. As though he were impressed by her notion of bravery. He remembered well how valiantly she had fought against him in Germany, how she had very nearly succeeded in taking him down. He almost wished he had finished the job, instead of succumbing to whatever feeling had led him astray.

“Stark” He said quietly, nodding curtly towards Bella.

Bella swallowed thickly, and Steve took a step forward. Not threatening him, just a caution. Loki smiled, understanding now. He eyed the pair carefully, a glimmer of mischief in his eyes.

“Captain” Loki said, amused.

Steve grit his teeth. He gave Loki a short nod. “Loki”.

His eyes flicked back to Bella, of whom had yet to move. She eyed him carefully, meeting his stare without flinching.

“Hello Loki,” She said flatly. “Still dressed for a funeral, I see”.

He smirked faintly. “I find it flattering—”.

“That’s enough, brother” Thor stepped in. “My brother will be housed in the east wing. He is aware of the security measures, and has agreed to abide by all tower protocols. He will not leave the premises without an escort”.

“And we’re supposed to trust him?” Tony asked, clearly unimpressed.

“No,” Thor said simply. “You’re supposed to watch him. Trust will come later”.

Loki stretched his arms slightly in gest. “I am not here to rule, Stark. Not this time”.

Tony gave a thin smile, shaking his head slightly. “No. Just a vacation”.

“If he breaks protocol, we can have Hulk babysit,” Bella said quietly, looking briefly at Bruce on the other side of the room. Loki’s smile fell, his face shifting. Bella fought a laugh. Her stare returned to the God of Mischief, desperate to uncover some semblance of the inner workings of his mind.

Steve spoke in a low tone, meant only for her. “What are you thinking?”.

“I want him to remember” She swallowed.

“He does,” Steve said steadily.

Thor gestured towards the hallway to his right. “Come, brother. I will show you to your quarters. Give the team… time”.

Loki looked around the room once more. “I look forward to our bonding exercises”.

And as they left, the room exhaled. Each Avenger relaxing one by one, sighs of relief filling the room like dominos. Silence clung to the room for a moment longer.

Tony turned to the room. “So, do we draw straws for who’s playing guard dog tonight? We should get a security detail…”.

Clint raised a hand. “I’m game. I’ve got ways around… shortcuts”.

Bella eyed the man curiously, her eyebrows raising. She shifted, pulling herself onto the barstool behind her. “Do we even know what we’re supposed to do with him?”.

Steve leaned against the edge of the island beside his girlfriend. “Thor said ‘supervise’. No real manual”.

Tony raised an eyebrow. “So babysitting?” He said sharply. “But the baby is a narcissistic, megalomaniacal God with the emotional range of a brick — anyone else feel the desperate need for a drink?”.

Tony moved from the centre of the room, heading towards the mini-bar by his sister. Bella eyed Tony carefully as he unswrewed a bottle of rum, drinking from the bottle. She frowned.

“We should probably talk about protocol,” Bruce said. “If he’s going to be here for… however long. We’re going to need house rules”.

“Rules for Loki?” Clint repeated, incredulously.

“He follows tower protocol, or he’s out” Tony said, finishing the bottle of rum. “Rule one”.

“JARVIS is already monitoring his movements, and we’ve doubled security around the building,” Bruce said.

“Rule two” Natasha started. “No one is alone with him unless absolutely necessary”.

Steve gave her a look. “We shouldn’t be scared of him”.

“I don’t trust him,” Bella said plainly. “We might never. But, we trust Thor. And if Thor believes this is penance. I want to believe it might actually work, just not at the expense of any of us”.

“Does he get a keycard?” Clint asked. “‘Cause I don’t want to run into him in the kitchen at two in the morning when I’m getting cereal”.

Bruce sighed. “You really think he’d sneak cereal”.

“No,” Clint said. “I think he’d judge cereal”.

“I think he’d poison it—” Tony muttered.

Steve moved his hand, massaging his temple in stress. “Guys—”.

“No, really,” Clint said, holding up a hand. “He walks in, sees me eating Lucky Charms, and suddenly I’m monologuing in iambic pentameter with glowing eyes”.

“Does he even sleep?” Bella said quietly, Clint picked up on her comment and turned to her sharply.

“Gods probably meditate while hovering six feet off the ground” He said. “Terrifying and inconvenient”.

Steve stood finally, casting a stare across the room. “If we’re doing this, let’s not pretend it’s normal. This is personal, he’s in our home. We need to adapt”.

“Which is why we make the rules now” Natasha said, her voice clear. “No loopholes, no slip-ups”.

“No second chances,” Bella added firmly. The group exchanged glances of silent agreement.

Tony clapped his hands together. “Alright, so we’ve got a God downstairs and Barton’s hoarding cereal. I call that a successful team meeting”.

Clint raised his hands, mocking surrender. “All I’m saying is, if he touches my Froot Loops, I’m out”.

A small burst of laughter filled the air. Small, but laughter all the same. It was not nearly as lighthearted as usual, but it broke the tension for just a moment. Steve gave Bella’s hand a gentle squeeze beside him. She finally looked at him, albeit carefully. There was something unreliable within her expression, though she did not pull away.

“Alright, what’s the plan for the day?” Natasha asked, sitting against the arm of the sofa. “Pretend everything’s fine until it explodes”.

“Isn’t that our usual plan?” Tony replied.

“I was going to take inventory in the medical lab,” Bruce offered. “Make sure nothing too dangerous is accessible”.

“Good call” Steve nodded, his Captain America voice slipping through. Bella shivered.

“I’ll reinforce the firewalls,” Tony added quietly. “He touches anything StarkTech, I want an alert. Preferably in the form of an airhorn in my workshop”.

“I’ll help Tony” Bella said, standing finally. Steve’s grip on her hand remained as he eyed her carefully, having been ready to offer a suggestion less Loki centric. He caught himself.

“Okay” He said. Steve pressed a firm yet gentle kiss to her hairline, a motion of reassurance.

Tony rolled his eyes, motioning towards his sister. “Alright, nerds and spies. Let’s get today over with”.

Chapter Text

Silence had finally fallen over Avengers Tower. Neither Loki or Thor had been seen since that morning. Bella lay atop her bed sheets, flicking through her phone. The sound of the city hummed below, contrasting the silence.

A gentle knock at the door pulled her from her bubble. She turned carefully, already knowing who awaited outside her door.

“Come in” She called, switching her phone off and sitting up.

Steve eased the door open, carefully stepping inside. He seemed tired. His hair was still damp from his post-gym shower. He wore a fitted navy t-shirt and sweatpants, opposing his Captain America persona. Bella let out a sigh of relief at the sight of her lover. Steve crossed the room in silence, shuffling onto the bed beside Bella. He propped himself up against the headboard and Bella shuffled so that her head lay against his chest. Their breaths fell in sync, neither of them speaking.

“I’ve been thinking,” Steve said, his voice low. “About how normal this feels. Being with you, after everything”.

Bella glanced at him sideways. “You mean after Aliens and Gods?”.

He smiled faintly, stroking her hair. “Yeah, that. And now, Loki”.

“Downstairs” Bella muttered. “I can practically feel his ego radiating through the floorboards”.

Steve laughed quietly, pulling Bella closer to him. “You okay?”.

Bella turned to her side, her back pressed firmly to Steve’s chest. She wrapped herself in his arms as though they were a security blanket. Steve felt her relax.

“I don’t think I can sleep tonight” She murmured.

“I know,” He said, his breath catching the side of her neck. “Neither do I”.

His voice was low, almost gravely. Just for her. His hand reached beneath her linen t-shirt, landing gently atop her lower stomach. His thumb ran in small circles, a soothing motion. He pulled her in, closing the short gap between them. He brushed her hair from her shoulder, planting a soft kiss upon it.

“I hate that he’s here,” Steve said quietly. “I hate how he spoke to you earlier, like he owned you. I hate that we have to look over our shoulders”.

Bella turned in his arms, facing him now. The space between them disappeared instantaneously. Their legs became tangled, foreheads almost touching. Her fingers moved, pressing firmly against the line of his jaw.

“Nothings going to happen to me,” She said.

“That’s not what I’m afraid of,” He whispered. “I’m afraid you’re bottling up your feelings. That you’re carrying this weight alone, when you don’t have to”.

“I’m not alone. Not when I have you”.

Steve closed his eyes, finally pressing his forehead to hers. His hand slid up her back reverently, as though he needed to memorise every inch of her presence.

“I love you” Steve said, as though to hold it back a moment longer would break him. “I really love you”.

Bella smiled faintly. “I love you too”.

He leaned in then, his lips finding hers. It wasn’t a desperate kiss, it was soft and slow. As though the pair had every second the world had to offer them. Bella melted into him, tugging against his shirt. Steve pulled away then, pressing his head to her forehead once more.

“Captain America, in love huh?” She toyed softly.

Steve smiled, sheepish. “Wasn’t it obvious?”.

Bella laughed quietly, tucking herself into his chest. “You were. It’s just nice to hear you say it”.

“I’ll say it again” He murmured, planting a small kiss atop her hairline. “As many times as you need”.

“Don’t tempt me. I’ll hold you to that”.

Steve stayed quiet for a moment, holding Bella tighter than ever. His hand traced intricate patterns against her back, his fingertips moving with grace as though he had painted something invisible across her skin. He leaned towards her ear, speaking quietly; “You make me feel like I have a future again”.

Bella’s breath hitched. Steve was not the kind of man to make such empty promises, to say such a thing with little to no meaning behind it. Every word he spoke carried weight. And when he said something like that, it didn’t just simply sit in the air and fade. It stayed. She looked up at him carefully, her fingertips brushing his cheek.

Steve leaned in and kissed her again, a little deeper this time. His hand cupped her jaw with an aching desire, he kissed her as though he could not believe her existence. Like, Isabella Stark might disappear at any given moment. When they parted, his forehead rested against hers once more.

“I know things are going to be complicated,” He said.

“They already are”.

“But I’m serious about this, Bella,” Steve continued. “I want you. I want this. Not just in stolen moments”.

“Then don’t steal them” Bella said quietly, her tone almost seductive. “Stay, with me”.

“I wasn’t planning on leaving”.

Steve leaned down, kissing her shoulder, then her jaw, then the tip of her nose. Bella smiled gently, snuggling into the crook of his neck. Her body curled into him, fitting almost perfectly. Bella let her eyes close softly, content in his arms.

Steve could not take his eyes away from the woman wrapped around him, their bodies entwined with one another. Her fingers stayed tangled in his shirt, even as she relaxed further. He marvelled at her beauty, her radiance. The light her persona radiated, the very thing that had drawn him to her. Her steady demeanor and patience of a saint. There was so much he wanted to say, too much for this moment.

“You scare me,” He said finally.

Bella opened one eye lazily. “That’s not the most reassuring thing to hear from your boyfriend”.

Steve chuckled softly. “No, I mean… how much I love you. It scares me. I don’t think I’ve felt anything like it in a long time”.

Bella’s eyes opened, blinking softly. Something vulnerable fell across her face like a shadow. “You don’t have to be afraid of that”.

“I’m not,” He said. “Not really. Not when I’m with you”.

She reached up, her hand cupping his cheek gently. Her thumb caught the edge of his lip. “Do you know what I’m afraid of?”.

Steve shook his head.

“Losing this” Bella whispered. “You. This version of us. The security Abel finally has. I don’t think I’d survive it”.

Steve kissed her hand gently. “I’m not going anywhere, Bella”.

Bella buried her face against his chest, breathing in the unmistakable scent of his cologne that clung to his shirt. He rubbed her back, slow and comforting.

“Promise me we’ll make it through whatever’s coming” Bella said suddenly, looking back up at Steve.

Steve did not hesitate. “I promise”.

Chapter Text

Bella had slipped from her bedroom, leaving Steve to rest. Sleep had been minimal the night prior and so she did not dare to wake him. Steve’s navy shirt from the night prior hung just above her knees, her shorts barely visible beneath the oversized shirt. The tower was eerily silent, calm. It made Bella shudder. She enjoyed most silences, but something about this particular silence seemed to unsettle her. Perhaps it was the unnerving nature of their situation, the idea that the man that had tried to take over the planet resided in the floor beneath Bella. Thor’s floor.

Bella took her mug from the rack, fiddling with the coffee machine.

“Morning” Natasha said as she shuffled into the kitchen, rubbing tiredly at her eyes. Natasha grabbed a banana from the fruit bowl, plopping down against the bar stool at the island. Natasha grabbed a second, throwing it towards Bella. “Eat. You’ll need the energy”.

Bella raised an eyebrow, snorting slightly. “What for? Passive aggressively glaring at our war criminal houseguest all day?”.

Natasha gave a small, amused shrug. “It’s cardio”.

A second set of footsteps approached, this time heavier and rehearsed. Steve Rogers entered the kitchen, his eyes settling upon Bella. Bella smiled gently towards him, though her smile soon faded. A small, purple mark had settled against his firm neck. A hickey. Bella inhaled sharply, stifling her laugh.

“What?” Steve said, his voice rough.

“Did someone have fun last night?” Natasha mocked, biting into her banana. Bella laughed, and Steve blushed.

“W— What?”.

Bella stepped towards him carefully, adjusting his shirt to cover the blemish. “Hickey” She said quietly, and Steve’s face fell as red as a beetroot.

“Don’t let Stark see that, or he’ll have your head” Natasha snickered, her chest heaving as she held in her laughter. Steve pursed his lips, clearly embarrassed.

Bella shook her head, her right hand pressing to his cheek as she guided his face to hers. “How did you sleep?”.

“Define sleep” He muttered, low enough for only Bella to hear. Bella giggled modestly, shoving the man playfully.

“You should stay with me more often,” Bella said quietly.

“I think I will,” Steve replied, moving behind Bella and snaking his arms around her shoulders. He held her there for a moment, pressing his soft lips to her hairline.

Bruce was next to enter, his nose buried deep in a book as he took to reclining on the sofa. Clint had appeared at some point, though had disappeared as quick as he had come upon realising there was no freshly brewed coffee left. It was almost normal, a similar routine having ensued on everyday prior.

Bella was laying on the sofa, her head in Steve’s lap when the elevator chimed. Bella sat up, turning towards the elevator expectantly. Her brother was usually next to enter the lounge. It was not Tony. It was Loki.

He stepped out slowly, the Avengers tensing at his presence. He held his hands firmly behind his back, his green tunic catching the morning sun in a subtle shimmer. His expression seemed unreadable, though Bella felt the way the air changed around him. It became cooler, heavier. Loki made no move to speak. He simply eyed each Avenger, his gaze gliding across their faces as though he were analysing them closely. Perhaps even judging them.

Then, his stare met Bella’s. Bella did not look away as he had expected, instead, she returned the meticulous stare. Loki took note that there was no fire in her stare, lacking the energy and fury she had both yesterday and the first time they had crossed paths. Loki tilted his head slightly. Not smug or apologetic, simply curious. He marvelled at the inner workings of the mortal mind. Then, he turned without a word and disappeared down the hallway.

Steve’s hands had found themselves against Bella’s waist, firm but gentle. “You okay?”.

Bella nodded. The moment had faded, though she seemed overcome with a feeling she could not shake. Bella was reminded of the way he had looked at her in Germany, as though he might devour her, starved of her. She shuddered. “I don’t think I’m going to get used to that”.

Steve nodded quietly, electing to ignore the way Loki had looked at her there. Bella took a long sip of her coffee, as if the caffeine might somehow burn away the tension in her chest.

“Where’s Thor?” She asked quietly.

“Monitoring,” Natasha said. “He’s taking it pretty seriously, actually”.

“Look on the bright side,” Bruce said. “At least we’re all so dysfunctional, it’s not just Loki who’s the problem”.

As if on queue, Thor stepped into the lounge. His heavy feet bounding across the floor as he approached his teammates. His presence filled the room in a way that opposed his brother, almost their personal ray of sunshine, emitting warmth throughout the room. Thor offered a respectful nod to the group before zeroing in on Bella.

“Lady Stark,” He said gently. “If I might have a word”.

Steve straightened, almost too protective. “Anything you need to say to—”.

“Steve” Bella cautioned, sitting up entirely. She eyed him strangely. Their eyes met, and Steve seemed to search her face for some kind of reassurance, for hesitation. He found nothing of the sort.

Bella got to her feet, following the God of Thunder carefully down the corridor. The pair entered into one of the meeting rooms that overlooked the city, the Statue of Liberty visible from afar. The morning sunlight poured in the room, highlighting the wooden flooring.

Thor stood tall beside Bella, almost towering over her. He held his hands firmly behind his back, an almost regal posture. “Thank you for giving me a moment”.

Bella leaned against the table that ran across the centre of the room, watching Thor closely. “What’s up, Thor?”.

“I expect you’ve seen him now,” Thor said.

“I have”.

Thor looked at Bella strangely, something softer than regret clouding his eyes. “He has changed, but not enough”.

Bella tilted her head. “And yet, you’ve brought him here?”.

Thor shifted slightly. “This was not my choice alone, Lady Stark. The All-Father has decreed it, Midgard is where Loki must serve his sentence. To witness his wrongdoings, and the aftermath”.

Bella’s jaw tightened. She shook her head. “Poetic”.

“Cruel, too,” Thor admitted. “For all of us, not just him”.

“I’m not afraid of him, if that’s what you think, Thor” Bella said. Her arms folded across her chest. “But I haven’t forgiven him, not yet”.

Thor nodded. “I’m not asking you to”.

Bella swallowed thickly, her fingers twitching at her sides. “So what are you asking?”.

“Give him the space to be more than what he was. Watch him. Judge him, if you must. But please, be patient”.

Bella laughed, a small and bitter sound. “He nearly destroyed New York”.

“I know,” Thor said, looking briefly to the ground. “But he deserves the chance to be better”.

Bella opened her mouth to speak, then she closed it. Her thoughts consumed her, hating how Thor’s words had stirred something deep within her. Something reluctant, something buried. Thor had a point, she knew as much.

A knock at the glass broke their silence, both heads turning slowly. Steve stood just outside the meeting room, leaning in the doorway. His face held a familiar look, something he got when he wasn’t quite sure what to say or whether he should interrupt. She nodded once, and he stepped inside.

“Everything alright?” He asked.

“Yeah,” Bella said, straightening her posture slightly. “Just finishing up”.

Thor nodded, looking at Bella. “Thank you, truly, Lady Stark. For listening”.

The couple watched as Thor left, presumably in search of his brother. And Bella turned to Steve quietly. He crossed the few short steps towards her, his hands landing firmly atop her shoulders. Bella gave a meek smile.

“So?” Steve asked quietly.

She grimaced. “He wants us to give Loki a chance”.

“And?”.

“I think I might hate the part of me that wants to”.

Steve was quiet for a moment. Then: “Wanting to forgive someone doesn’t mean you have to trust them”.

“I wish that made it easier,” Bella sighed.

He slipped his hands into hers, pulling them towards him as he landed a gentle kiss atop of knuckles. “You don’t have to figure it out today”.

“I don’t think I have much of a choice”.

Chapter Text

Bella wandered into the lounge late that afternoon. Her hands buried deep within the pockets of a pair of Steve’s joggers. She had entered the lounge with the vague idea of finding some coffee, or perhaps a few uninterrupted moments alone with her thoughts — neither of which was likely in a tower filled with Avengers and a cosmic war criminal.

Bella paused, pursing her lips gently. Loki sat alone in the corner armchair, his legs crossed almost elegantly. An open book sat in his lap, the pages turned wordlessly, without being touched. Loki didn’t look up right away, which meant he knew exactly where she stood.

“You were up early” Bella said quietly, her fist clenching within the pocket. She swallowed thickly.

“I don’t sleep much,” Loki replied, still not looking up. “Your realm hums too loudly at night… it’s distracting”.

Bella stepped forwards cautiously, her head tilting slightly. She eyed the book, recognising it instantly. “That book’s from Tony’s antique shelf. He only keeps it there to look smart, I think”.

“Then it’s a good thing one of us is reading it”.

Bella’s lips curved, just slightly. Almost forming a smile. “I bet he’ll love that”.

Loki looked up finally, and for a moment, his expression was unreadable. Calm, and collected. Not malice as it had been the first time they had met. His eyes flicked over her, not in the way she was used to men ogling at her, but instead like he was studying unfamiliar.

“I thought your kind slept late after a battle” Loki said finally.

“We didn’t fight,” Bella said simply. “You were handed your sentence and then crammed into our living room. It’s not quite the same”.

Loki hummed, seemingly in agreement. Bella took his silence with caution, stepping further into the room. She settled by the far couch, not sitting, but not leaving either. She crossed her arms loosely around her chest, frowning.

“You seem different, like this,” She said.

Loki dipped his head, looking back towards his book. “Less homicidal?”.

“Less smug”.

He smiled. It was a small smile, but noticeable nonetheless. It warmed something within Bella, almost comforting her at the sight. Loki kept his eyes up the book before him, no longer acknowledging Bella.

“Don’t get used to it” Bella added sharply, before she gave him the opportunity to twist the moment.

“I wouldn’t dream of it”.

The room settled into a strange silence, different from the one that had lingered upon her first entrance. Less hostile, she supposed. Bella’s eyes drifted to the cover of the book, curious.

“I didn’t think you read Midgardian history?”.

“I don't,” Loki replied. “But I find the way you write your stories telling. So much fiction wrapped in the illusion of fact”.

Bella tilted her head, raising a brow curiously. She settled against the arm of the chair behind her. “You mean we lie to ourselves”.

“You romanticise your victories”.

“Maybe we like second chances”.

Loki’s head snapped up from his book, staring towards the woman before him imploringly. He made a desperate attempt to read her, to no avail. There was something about Isabella Stark that continued to hunger him strangely, something inviting. Loki shook his head to himself and Bella raised a curious eyebrow. Loki closed the book carefully, his fingertips lingering against the leatherbound sleeve.

“Do you believe in them?” He had asked. “Second chances?”.

Bella’s throat tightened, her expression hardening. “No”.

“You surprise me”.

“Don’t read into it” Bella bit back, almost too quickly. And Loki studied her with an unsettling stillness, not threatening or challenging, just there. Almost as if he were waiting for something to happen.

“You hated me,” He said finally.

“And I still do”.

His head tilted slightly, a short grin etched upon his face. It unsettled something deep within Bella. “Yet here you are”.

“I didn’t know you’d be here” Bella shot back, almost instantly.

He smiled faintly. “Liar”.

Bella almost laughed. Almost. Instead, she felt her eyes roll as she returned to her feet, a low groan escaping her lips. She turned for the door, shaking her head gently. “Try not to steal anything”.

Loki watched meticulously as Bella left, his stare remaining fixated on the exact spot she had stood moments prior for almost too long. Almost as though he was making a desperate attempt to understand the strange connection between the pair.

Loki glanced down at his book, though he did not reopen it. Silence had fallen over the lounge once more, yet it felt different somehow. As though Bella’s presence had altered the air. Loki leaning back in the chair, a short sigh escaping his lips.

His eyes narrowed on the empty space that had been filled by Bella only moments ago. His mind lingered on her words. There had been truth in her eyes, painted as clear as day. Loki recalled the way Bellas had looked at him when they had first faced one another, a memory lingering in his mind much longer than it should have. She had impressed him, that much had been evident to the pair. He had not forgotten the way she had looked at him then, nor would he forget the way she had looked at him just now.

“She doesn’t trust you” A voice came from the doorway.

Loki sighed, dropping his head slightly as he feigned a laugh. Thor.

“No one does,” Loki replied, not looking up.

Thor entered slowly, his arms crossed firmly across his chest. “That is not entirely true, brother. There is a difference between suspicion and hatred”.

“I’m well acquainted with both”.

Thor was quiet for a moment before speaking again. “You should speak more plainly with her”.

“That would ruin the fun,” Loki replied.

“You’re testing her?”.

Loki finally looked up, meeting Thor’s accusing stare. “She’s testing me”.

Thor’s jaw tensed, he pursed his lips. “And she has reason to”.

“Perhaps,” Loki said softly, looking away from his brother and towards the elevator that Bella had vanished inside of. “Reason is overrated”.

Thor’s brow furrowed in uncertainty. “What do you mean by that?”.

Loki did not answer. He simply stood, smoothing out his tunic with elegance. He turned his back to his brother and walked from the room, not towards his quarters, but the elevator that would lead him to the rooftop. Where he hoped Bella might find him.

Chapter Text

Bella stood in the kitchen, a warm mug of coffee in one hand, the other pressed firmly to the island countertop. The early afternoon sun bled into the common area, highlighting the furniture that decorated it. Loki had been living with the Avengers for three weeks now. And today was the day that Bella’s son, Abel, would return to her.

Abel had been staying in Malibu with Tony and his cousin, Izzie, while the remainder of the Avengers worked on settling Loki and adjusting security in the tower. Bella remained fortunate that Tony still chose to reside in the Stark’s Malibu mansion.

Steve stood beside Bella, silent. Both eagerly awaiting the return of the children. The tower seemed livelier, brighter with the innocence of their kids around. For just hours at a time, the Avengers were no longer Avengers and merely normal, everyday people without a care in the world. Just for a few hours.

“You okay?” Steve asked without looking up.

She smiled. “Yeah”.

“Tired?”.

“Yeah. But the good kind” She hesitated. “Abel’s back soon”.

Steve paused for just a fracture of a second. “And Izzie”.

“And Izzie,” Bella said with a fond smile. “Tony’s probably more exhausted than either of them”.

“I bet he’s counting the hours until he can drop them off”.

Bella gave him a look, one filled with love and patience. “He loves those kids”.

“I know,” Steve said easily, pressing a kiss to her hairline. “But, he’s also the one who gave them coffee last month”.

Bella chuckled lightly. “Rookie mistake”.

“Exactly”.

“I miss him,” Bella said, after a few moments of silence. “I hate how quiet it is without him”.

“He’s a good kid. He’ll be happy to be home”.

“He’ll be more than happy to terrorise you with his Nerf arsenal”.

Steve smiled, a short laugh escaping his lips. “I’ve been training”.

“He’s eleven, Steve,” Bella reminded.

“And I’ve fought Aliens”.

Bella laughed, sipping her coffee. And Steve reached for her hand, tugging her gently toward him. She followed willingly, curling into him without hesitation. Her arms shifted around his neck like second nature, and his hands settled instinctively against the small of her back.

“You feel good,” She murmured against his neck.

“So do you”.

She brushed her nose gently against his jaw, skin still warm from the shower he had taken prior. He kissed her then, slow and sweet, one hand sliding up into her hair. And she melted into it, the safety of being held exactly how she liked. They had dozens of moments similar, yet each moment felt brand new. Steve pulled back finally, just enough to rest his forehead against her.

The elevator door chimed, Bella practically leaping from Steve’s firm hold. She turned, just as Abel launched himself from the elevator, grinning from ear to ear. He leapt into her arms as though he were still a toddler.

“Oh my God— Abel!”.

She caught him with a huff, all breath escaping her. She stumbled slightly, Steve pressing a hand to lower back to prevent her from hitting the counter. Abel was laughing with childish glee, burying his face in his mothers neck. His dark curls had grown in the three weeks he had been away, almost wild. He smelt of whatever cologne he must have found layint about in Tony’s old lab.

“I missed you so much,” He mumbled, his voice muffled.

“You’ve only been gone three weeks,” Bella said quietly.

“Exactly” The boy exclaimed, as though Bella had proved his point.

“You left without me, Abel!” Izzie Stark yelled, emerging from the elevator by her fathers side. Izzie was the spit of her father, from her nose to the brains. Her strawberry hair was pulled into two small pigtails, likely courtesy of Pepper Potts who had raised her, as her own.

“I was sprinting!” Abel declared proudly, slipping from his mothers hold once more. He looked to his mother. “She was in Crocs, so I had the advantage”.

Tony strolled in behind his daughter, sunglasses pressed firmly to the bridge of his nose. “They ate six snacks before eight, almost rerouted my jet mid-flight, and someone hacked the on-board WiFi. I need a nap… and a therapist”.

“You have both,” Bella smiled sweetly, engaging in a brief side hug with her brother. “Thanks for taking him, for the past few weeks”.

“You’re welcome. I think”.

“STEVE!”.

Steve had no time to react before Abel had launched himself at him, the eleven year old climbing him like a tree. Bella stifled a laugh.

“Woah— Hey, buddy”.

“Still got the shield?”.

Steve nodded, raising a brow. “Still have the shield”.

“Do you sleep with it next to your bed?”.

Steve gawped, blinking. “What? No—”.

“That’s a yes,” Tony said. And Bella nodded, laughing.

“I knew it!” Abel grinned. “Izzie owes me five bucks”.

“Knew I should’ve bet higher” Izzie muttered, sulking next to Tony, he ruffled her hair gently.

Within a matter of hours, the common area of the Avengers Tower had morphed into some sort of battlefield. Nerf bullets lay scattered across the ground. Snacks littered the room, and all couches had been overturned, mimicking barracks. Abel and Izzie had quickly asserted control, music blaring over the scene.

Loki appeared, lingering in the shadows. He had watched the battle unfold, the two children stood proudly atop the centre table, their team rejoicing and the others playing dead. Loki leaned in the doorway in silence. Loki’s eyes scanned the room, eventually landing on Bella, who was standing beside her son who seemed deep in conversation with his mother.

Bella caught Loki’s stare from afar. It was brief, only a flicker of a connection. But a connection nonetheless. Then she looked away, ruffling Abel’s dark curls. And Steve appeared behind her, his hands settling atop her shoulders. His thumbs gently massaged circles into her neck, the picture of the beginnings of a perfect family. And Loki’s jaw ticked. Just barely.

Chapter Text

For a Saturday morning, Avengers Tower was suspiciously quiet. In the weeks since Loki had been with the Avengers, things had gradually returned to normality for the team. They had settled into a pattern around the God, almost natural. The scent of fresh toast lingered in the kitchen's air, Bella tugged at the sleeves of her sweatshirt, pulling them over her hands.

She entered the kitchen, rubbing her eyes gently. Steve was standing by the sink, leaning firmly against the counter. A half full bottle of water in one hand, his hair clinging to the beads of sweat on his head. It was evident he had been for a run. Steve glanced up, placing the bottle against the bench. He smiled as she entered, a short, warm smile. He was entirely hers.

“Mornin’” He muttered gently, his Brooklyn accent seeping through.

Bella hummed a reply, wrapping her arms firmly around his waist from behind. He rested a hand over hers. And they stood there, for what seemed like hours. Warm and content in one another's presence.

“I’ve been thinking,” Bella said eventually, resting her chin against Steve’s back.

“That’s never good,” Steve chuckled, teasing her lightly. He turned in her hold, looking adoringly down at his girlfriend.

She pinched his side, matching his laughter. “I’ve been thinking… about Loki”.

Steve’s smile quivered, an eyebrow raising curiously. “What about him?”.

“I think we should train him,” She said. “Not in combat, not yet. But, the basics. He’s been here for over a month now… he’s trying, Steve”.

Steve was silent for a moment, absorbing Bella’s words. His jaw twitched slightly, as though he was measuring up his response.

“You don’t think it’s too soon?” He asked carefully.

“It’s not about soon or late. If Loki’s staying, he needs some structure. Some boundaries. And I’m willing to train him if no-one else will”.

Steve exhaled through his nose, and Bella softened. “I’m not saying that I trust him, Steve. I don’t. I haven’t forgotten what he did. But, I do think he’s changed. Thor was right”.

Steve looked down. “You’re sure?”.

“No,” She said, leaning into his chest. Her fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt. “But it has to be worth a try”.

Steve was quiet again, planting a small kiss at the top of her head.

“I won’t stop you”.

Bella looked up, a bright swirl in her eyes. “Really?”.

“I don’t love it,” Steve admitted, almost sheepish. “But, I trust you”.

Bella reached up, her lips finding Steve’s as the pair engaged in a long, slow kiss. The kind that held a thousand unsaid thank you's. They pulled apart when the team began to filter into the room. Normality bringing the couple from their bubble, grounding them once more.

Tony sprawled across the couch, flinging grapes into Clint’s mouth with surprising accuracy. An act that had started as a dare given to them by the children, and continued long after they had lost interest. Natasha was perched in the arm chair, reading. Thor was sat cross legged on the floor, munching on a box of Pop Tarts. Clint eyed Bella curiously, watching her laugh at something Steve had said.

“What’s got you glowing?” He asked, chewing.

“Nothing” She said, almost too quickly. “Just a good morning”.

Tony gagged, turning away. “That’s disgusting” He said, glaring at the pair.

“Not like that, dickhead!” Bella laughed lightly, nuzzling gently into Steve’s shoulder.

Steve was silent. He did not say a word about Loki or Bella’s sudden desire to train the God of Mischief in combat. He did his best to hide his worry, but Bella still caught the faint crease between his brows. Still, he smiled when she reached for his hand.

Loki himself had been absent from the morning's festivities as usual. Though he had begun to take part in their days now.

Natasha tilted her head towards Bella, her stare full of curiosity. “You’re thinking of something dangerous”.

Bella met her gaze. “I’m going to start training him”.

Tony looked up, turning to his sister. “Training who?”.

“Loki” Steve answered on behalf of Bella, his voice quiet but even. Perhaps even a little salt to his tone.

Clint choked on his grape. “You’re not serious!?”.

Thor seemed pleased. “A wise decision, Lady Stark!”.

And Tony sighed dramatically. “Okay, but if he shape-shifts into any of us, I reserve the right to throw him out of a window”.

“He already did it to me last week,” Clint muttered. “I did not appreciate the commentary on my fashion”,

Tony pulled a face. “You wear the same shirt everyday,” He said. And Clint flipped him off.

Bella smiled, looking around at her team. The chaos that ensued in the rare moments that they were all connected, together.

“I’m not doing this because I trust him,” Bella said. “I’m doing it because if we’re going to hold him accountable, he has to be allowed to rise to something. Even if it’s slow. And even if he fails”.

Silence followed, and in it, Steve gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

“Just… be careful,” He said quietly.

“Always,” She whispered back.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Steve Rogers had always enjoyed the quiet of early mornings. The kind that came before anyone else stirred, when the Tower was still. He used to find peace in hours like this, however, today he felt restless.

His coffee had long gone cold on the table beside him, though he had yet to notice. His gaze was fixed on the skyline visible just outside of the window. The day was beautiful. Calm. Yet, the Captain could not shake the strange tightness in his chest.

He had left Bella asleep in bed, curled into her bed sheets the way she always did. Her arms tangled beneath the pillow, her hair strewn out across the bed. He had planted a gentle kiss upon her shoulder before slipping out that morning, reluctant but thoughtful nonetheless.

The door slid open behind Steve, a familiar set of footsteps following. Steve didn’t need to look behind him to know it was Natasha that approached.

“I figured you’d be here” She said quietly, perching against the arm of the chair.

He nodded. “Just thinking”.

“You do that too much”.

Steve didn’t answer, his stare remaining fixated upon the horizon. Natasha followed his stare, the morning sun beaming down upon the city.

“You’re not the only one who’s worried about her,” Natasha admitted.

“Are you going to try to talk her out of it?” Steve asked.

Natasha smiled faintly. “Would it work?”.

Steve laughed gently, albeit a short laugh. “No”.

“She’s stubborn. She always has been. But, she’s not reckless”.

“She’s empathetic. That’s almost worse”.

Natasha tilted her head curiously. “You think she’s too soft for this?”.

“No,” Steve said. He ran a hand through his hair, exhaling slowly. “I think she’s the only one soft enough for the job. And that’s what scares me. Loki’s manipulative, Nat. Charming. He’ll dig until he finds a crack”.

“And what? She breaks?”.

“She’s been through enough already,” Steve said quietly. “She doesn’t need to shoulder his redemption, too”.

“You’re not just afraid of what he’ll do… you’re afraid of what he might become to her” Natasha said quietly, the pin dropping. Steve was jealous that Bella would be spending more time with Loki, and Natasha knew Bella. “Steve. She loves you, that’s not going to change”.

“But things do” Steve said, his voice soft.

“She’s not going to. I’ve known Bella for years, I’ve never seen her happier than she is now”.

After a few moments of silence, Steve finally spoke again: “I didn’t sleep much last night”.

Natasha raised an eyebrow. “First night since 1945 you’ve been out of step?”.

“Not the first. Just the hardest in a while”.

She nodded once. “Then maybe take the day off. Train. Hit something. You’ll feel better”.

He finally looked at Natasha, offering her a half-smile. “Are you volunteering?”.

“I’m always happy to bruise your ego”.

Natasha got to her feet once more, turning to leave. She paused by the door.

“For what it’s worth,” She said. “I don’t think you’re wrong to worry. But Bella loves you, more than anything”.

Steve stayed quiet, simply watching as his friend left. He knew he had been given no reason to worry, Bella had not changed around him. She still appeared to be very much smitten by the Captain, she was vocal enough with it. Though he could not keep the thought from seeping into his mind. The thought that the first girl he had fallen in love with since 1945, could be stolen away from him in an instant. The feeling that, for the first time in awhile, Steve Rogers might not be enough.

Chapter Text

The training room was quiet upon Bella’s entrance. The afternoon sun filtered in through the windows, reflecting against Bella’s lightly tanned skin. Bella had spent more hours in this room than anywhere else in the Tower. Yet today, somehow, it felt unfamiliar. She wouldn’t be training with her friends, or even her boyfriend. Both things she had become accustomed to. No. Today she was training with Loki.

Loki had already been there when she had entered, his back to the door as he faced the weapons rack. He wore all black. No armour. No cape. No sceptre. Though his posture was unmistakable. Regal, and proud, and impossible to ignore.

“You’re early,” She said, stepping onto the mat.

Loki glanced over his shoulder, and he raised an eyebrow. “Habit. One develops time management in prison”.

His tone was casual, almost flippant. Though Bella did not miss the flicker of something deeper buried within his expression.

“Right” Bella nodded. “Let’s just… keep things simple today, okay? No illusions, no weapons. Just hand-to-hand”.

Loki turned. He gave her his full attention. “You assume I’ll obey?”.

Bella offered him a flat look. “No. I assume you won’t, but I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt”.

“Very well,” He said. “No magic”.

Bella motioned for Loki to follow as she moved into position. She grounded herself, her feet pressed firmly to the training mat beneath her. She rolled her shoulders back, her body light. Loki’s stance was much looser, more fluid. There was an element of grace in each step, as though he were performing an intricate dance rather than a fight.

“You’ve trained before,” Bella observed, circling the God.

“Of course” He replied, mirroring Bella’s movement. “Mother insisted I be as skilled as my brother. At least in some areas”.

“Can’t imagine Thor has much finesse”.

Loki smirked. “He doesn’t. I do”.

They met in the centre of the mat. Their first exchange was brief. Bella went left and spun low, aiming a sweep at his ankles. He hopped over it effortlessly and reached to grab her wrist. She twisted away before he could lock his grip.

“You’re faster than I expected,” She said.

“Most people underestimate me,” He replied, not quite breathless just yet. “It’s become advantageous”.

They began to circle again, and this time, Loki struck first. He feigned high, followed by a sharp elbow to the ribs. She blocked, pivoted, and brought her knee up. He caught it, but not before she had landed a clean jab to his side.

He stepped back, his eyes narrowing slightly. She was holding back, that much was evident. Though she seemed to have adhered to new techniques since their fight in Germany.

“You’ve been trained by the Widow,” He noted. “And your Captain”.

“Among others”.

“And yet you chose me?”.

Bella’s movements slowed by just a fraction. She seemed to study him carefully. “I didn’t have many options”.

“Ah,” He said. “So this is charity?”.

“No,” She replied. Too quick with her response. “This is necessary”.

Loki tilted his head imploringly. “I wonder if you’d say the same thing if you weren’t sleeping with Captain Rogers?”.

Bella coughed, freezing. And Loki smiled faintly, strangely amused by her reaction. “They way he looks at you. Like you’re the sun and he’s afraid you’ll burn out”.

Bella didn’t answer. Instead, she reset her stance, gritting her teeth. “I’m not here to talk about Steve”.

“No?” Loki asked, taking a step forward. “Then why mention him?”.

Her eyes flicked to him, sharp. Intent burning within them. “Because I have a date with him tonight. And I don’t want to be late because you’re trying to provoke me”.

That halted him. His gaze shifted, not outward or smug. He looked as if he was calibrating something.

“I see”.

Bella narrowed her eyes. “Do you?”.

“I see that you’re more careful around me than you want to admit”.

Bella was quiet. Loki wasn’t wrong. It wasn’t out of fear, certainly not anymore. There was an underlying tension between the two. Something that had lingered in the air the very first time they had met, and something that continued to stir between the two curiously. She hated how aware she was of him. And even more so, she hated that it wasn’t entirely unpleasant.

“Let’s get back to it” She said finally, her voice brisk as she raised her fists.

They went again. Longer this time, and more aggressive. Loki was relentless — fast and fluid. He smiled persistently, as though he were enjoying himself much more than he should have. But he didn’t seem to be mocking her, or taunting. There was no malice in his strikes, only curiosity. By the time they called a halt, they were both breathing hard, sweat clinging to their skin.

“You didn’t use magic,” She said.

“I said I wouldn’t”.

“I didn’t expect you to keep your word”.

Loki’s mouth twitched. “I’m full of surprises, Stark”.

Her lips curled into a faint smirk as she watched him. “You’re full of something”.

A moment passed in silence, the pair simply staring at one another. The underlying tension seemed to grow. They both shook it off simultaneously.

“I’ll have JARVIS book us the room again tomorrow” She said, grabbing a towel from the bench.

“Same time?”.

“Sure,” She shrugged. “Unless you’re planning on escaping in the night”.

“Tempting” He replied, accepting the towel she had tossed him. “But I suppose you’d just hunt me down”.

She gave him a tight smile, standing by the door. “Don’t tempt me”.

Loki watched as Bella left, his lips parted as if he would have liked to say something. He did not. Instead, he watched as the door shut behind her. And for the first time in weeks, Loki stood in the middle of a room and did not feel entirely alone.

Chapter Text

Bella’s muscles ached from her training session with Loki. He seemed much more calculated in his fighting skills when he wasn’t trying to kill her, she had realised. She dropped her bag by the foot of her bed, tugging her hair free of its loose braid. A note sat atop her dressing table.

Pick up at 7. Don’t be late x
Steve.

Bella smiled to herself, tracing Steve’s delicate handwriting with care. She placed the note back against her desk, turning towards her ensuite.

By the time she had stepped out of the shower, a towel wrapped loosely around her, her body had already softened. Her muscles relaxed after the tense training session with Loki. She took her time getting dressed, carefully picking out a modest but seductive dress. She had a faint idea of how she would like the evening to go. Bella eventually found herself wearing a dark green silk dress, simple and flattering, not too flashy. Her hair fell against her back in soft waves. She wasn’t making an obvious attempt to impress him — she wanted him to smile the way he always had when he saw her. As though Isabella Stark was his entire world.

At 6:58, there was a knock at the door. Steve stood on the other side, watching the door open carefully. His face was smooth, clean-shaven, the scent of aftershave clinging to him gently. He wore a dark-navy button down and slacks. His jaw hung agape, looking down in marvel at his girlfriend.

“Wow” He said with a slow smile, taking her in.

Bella raised an eyebrow, cocking her head slightly. “Wow good, or wow bad?”.

“Wow, stunning”.

Bella smirked blissfully, stepping forwards to smooth out the collar of his shirt. “And you’re lucky you clean up well, Rogers”.

Steve blushed lightly, leaning in to plant a soft kiss upon her cheek. “Come on. Let’s get out of here”.

Steve did not take them far. A black SUV had dropped them off in Brooklyn, Steve’s childhood neighbourhood. Steve held Bella’s hand tightly, holding her close to him as he led her through the streets. He stopped when they reached a small, tucked away diner that looked as though it hadn’t changed since the 1950’s.

“The owners a friend,” Steve said, holding the door open. “Keeps it open after-hours for me when I need to disappear”.

Bella nodded, blinking in mild delight. “So… I’m on the Captain Rogers VIP tour?”.

Steve laughed, leading Bella towards a booth in the back. “More like the ‘nostalgia and pancakes’ experience”.

The couple settled into their booth, and a server took their order without writing it down. “Is this your actual regular spot?” Bella asked once the waitress had left.

He shrugged, a little sheepish. “One of ‘em. I used to come here with Bucky. I thought it would feel weird bringing someone else”.

Bella’s face softened, and she reached forwards, placing a gentle hand atop Steve’s. A comforting notion. “And does it?”.

He looked up at her with a smile, his blue eyes clear. “No. It feels right”.

A long moment of quiet passed between them. Comfortable and warm. Bella stared lovingly towards Steve, and he returned the motion.

“So…” Steve finally said. “How’d it go with Loki?”.

Bella let out a dramatic groan, rolling her eyes. She leaned back in the vinyl seat, her hand slipped from Steve’s. “We didn’t kill each other, if that’s what you’re asking”.

“That was part of what I was asking,” He replied with a grin. “Did he behave?”.

“He was fine, actually. Kind of focussed. Less snarky than usual”.

Steve’s jaw flexed slightly, but he nodded. “Good”.

She reached across the table once more, brushing his fingers gently. “I know it’s weird. I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think I could handle it”.

“I know” He said, his voice was quieter now. “I trust you. It’s him I don’t trust”.

“I don’t either,” She said honestly. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t keep trying”.

Their food arrived shortly after. A stack of pancakes, bacon and eggs. Bella thought this might be the best date she had ever been on, the simplicity of it all beat the grandeur of her usual dates. Even with Steve, this had been the simplest of the date thus far. Bella was looking at Steve carefully, as though she was studying him, taking in every last feature of his face.

“Stop looking at me like that” He muttered, trying not to smile.

“Like what?”.

“Like you’re trying to make me drop my fork”.

Bella leaned in, her voice low. “Maybe I am”.

Steve chuckled, blushing. “You’re trouble, Stark”.

“I’m your trouble”.

Steve reached for her hand, holding it gently in his hand across the table. “I forget how easy it is to be with you”.

Bella blushed lightly, touched by his sentiment. “Even when I’m pushing you to let me train the God of Mischief?”.

He laughed softly. “Even then”.

She shifted her fingers so that they wove through his. “I like this. Us. Away from the Tower. No mission reports or team meetings. Just… pancakes and jazz music”.

He nodded. “I’ve had a lot of different kinds of nights in my life. But the quiet ones with you? They’re the ones I remember most”.

Bella felt her heart flutter beneath her ribcage. She leaned forwards, reaching across the table. Her lips brushed his gently. A kiss that was not rushed or urgent. And the world seemed to fade away. In that instant, it was just Bella and Steve, for all eternity.

“Come back to my room tonight,” She whispered.

Steve blinked at her. “Are you sure?”.

“I’m always sure about you”.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

The ride back to Avengers Tower had been quiet, filled by stolen glances and fingers intertwined between them on the backseat. Steve hadn’t said much, not that he ever did when he seemed to be feeling something big. And when they had stepped into the elevator, Bella leaned into him, her shoulders brushing against his chest.

“Pancakes and jazz,” She murmured. “You really know how to seduce a girl, Rogers”.

Steve looked down at her, laughing softly. “Is that what I was doing?”.

She turned into him fully, pressing a hand to his chest. “You’re dangerously good at it”.

He swallowed thickly, his gaze flickering momentarily to her lips. “That wasn’t my intention”.

“I know,” Bella said. She pushed up slightly against her toes, her lips brushing the underside of his jaw. “That’s why it worked”.

The elevator chimed as it reached her floor.

“Abel’s asleep” She said quietly, a mischievous glint in her eye. She motioned for him to follow her, and he did.

Inside Bella’s floor, the lights were low, casting the room in a soft golden haze. Bella slipped her heels off by the elevator, her bare feet now padding across the wooden floorboards. She glanced back over her shoulder when she realised that Steve hadn't moved.

Bella raised an eyebrow. “Something wrong?”.

He shook his head slowly. “No. You just look…”.

“Like what?”.

“Like trouble” He said, finally crossing the room towards her.

As Steve approached, Bella moved into him with purpose. She caught the front of her shirt, and pulled him gently into her space. He followed willingly, his hands settling at her waist. His touch was careful, reverent, almost as though he could not quite believe she was his.

“You’re always so gentle with me,” She whispered.

Steve’s lips brushed the corner of her mouth. “Would you rather I wasn’t”.

“I didn’t say that,” She murmured. She traced her fingertips down the buttons of his shirt. “I just don’t think you know how badly I want you sometimes”.

Steve blushed, his breath hitching as she began to fiddle with the top button of his shirt. Steve glanced about the room quickly, distracting her before leaning down and picking her up bridal style. Bella let out a squeal, kicking him gently as he led her towards her bedroom. Shutting the door behind him, he placed her down.

“Full of surprises tonight, Captain” Bella said, her voice hoarse. She resumed her earlier position, her nimble fingers gently working their way down his shirt.

“You’ve had a long day” He said, his voice husky. “You must be sore?”.

Bella smiled slowly, tracing kisses along his now bare collarbone. “Then maybe you should help me unwind?”.

Steve groaned, deep in his throat. “You make it very hard to be the gentleman, y’know that?”.

Bella fell onto the bed, Steve following in pursuit as she shuffled back towards the headboard. She pushed the shirt from his shoulders. “That’s funny, Steve. I’m not asking you to be a gentleman tonight”.

He kissed her then. A kiss filled with all the things he couldn’t bring himself to say out loud, a desperate kiss. Bella melted into the kiss with ease, her fingers threading through his hair. She pulled him closer, almost as though she needed him to feel how much he mattered to her.

He pulled her forwards, into his lap as though she weighed nothing. She wrapped her legs around his waist, laughing softly against his mouth.

“God, I love you” He whispered.

Bella paused, smiling at him. A phrase they had said so many times to one another, but never quite in this situation. Never quite with such vulnerability.

“Say it again,” She whispered.

“I love you, Bella” He repeated, his voice barely above a breath. “More than I’ve ever loved anything”.

And she kissed him like an answer. He moved her slowly, never breaking the kiss. He lay her down against the bed once more, hovering over her as if she might break…

Chapter Text

Bella awoke early, the morning sun seeping through her dark curtains. Her cheek rested against Steve’s bare shoulder, his arm draped protectively around her waist. She could feel the rise and fall of his chest. She found the rhythm reassuring as she woke, a gentle reminder of the world around her. For a while, Bella did not move.

Steve stirred beside her, his voice warm. “You’re staring”.

“Because you look so peaceful when you sleep,” She said.

“And that’s a rare thing?” Steve asked, squirting tiredly at her.

“For you? Yeah,” She said, cracking a smile.

“Not when I’m with you”.

Bella moved to kiss him slowly, until his hand found her hip and pulled her into him. He deepened the kiss, only slightly.

“I don’t want to move,” Steve muttered, leaning into Bella’s soft waves.

“You don’t have to,” She said. “But I do”.

Steve let out a groan, watching lazily as Bella slipped from his arms. She took one of Steve’s training shirts from the chest of drawers by her bed, making her way towards the bathroom. He watched as she went, his expression torn between affection and amusement. He propped himself up on the bed.

“Training again?” Steve asked.

“I know how it sounds—”.

“You don’t have to explain yourself, Bella. I know what I signed up for, and you’re stubborn as hell”.

Bella leaned forwards, pressing a gentle kiss to Steve’s temple. “Trust me. Please”.

“I do,” Steve said, catching her wrist. “Just… Be careful with him. Not because I think he wants to hurt you. But because I think he’s going to want to understand you. And not everyone deserves to”.

Bella smiled softly. “I’ll keep my guard up”. And Steve let her go, leaving the warmth and comfort of her bedroom behind her.

Once again, Loki stood expectantly on the far side of the room, already awaiting her arrival. He seemed unnervingly composed. He turned only when she approached.

“You’re late” He said accusingly.

Bella looked at the clock that hung on the far wall and frowned. “I’m four minutes early?”.

Loki’s lips twitched as Bella stepped onto the training mat. She had dumped her bag by the door. “Ready to stop brooding and throw some punches?”.

“Is that how you Americans request combat?”.

She tossed a practice blade towards Loki, who seemed to eye the weapon in marvel. She would allow him weapons today, as opposed to yesterday. Loki had caught the dagger mid-air, without pause. And they began.

The first few minutes had been wordless, filled with anticipation. Loki was a cerebral fighter, his moves calculated and well thought out. He seemed to analyse Bella’s movements in an attempt to stay one step ahead. Bella had begun to find herself almost expecting his lunges now, understanding the way his stance shifted whether he were to dive high or low. When he eventually spun and disarmed her, she retrieved her blade without complaint.

“You’re not going so easy today,” He said.

“Don’t act so surprised” She retorted.

“I’m not. I’m just curious”.

Bella looked up at him sharply, her stare studious. “Are you trying to flatter me?”.

“I wouldn’t waste flattery on someone who doesn’t need it”.

Bella blinked. His words had landed strangely. Her stomach swirled, almost disturbed. She moved to resume their fight, pushing the bizarre feeling that had overcome her aside. The fight slowed, almost becoming something choreographed. His blade slid against hers in a clean arc. She pivoted, catching him off balance. She stepped into his space too quickly.

Loki stood still, less than a breath between the pair. Her hand rested firmly atop his shoulder, his hand settled by her waist where he had caught her. Neither of them seemed able to move, frozen in their rather intimate position. The silence between them fell heavy, like iron. It was not charged with danger, although it was not empty either. As though something was waiting to be said but neither of them knew how to articulate it.

Bella pulled back first, her cheeks a light shade of pink as she turned from the God of Mischief. She tried her best to shake away the swirling that settled at the pit of her stomach, the unnerving sense of dread that seemed to have appeared out of thin air. A feeling eerily similar to that which she had felt in Germany when she had first fought him, and again during the Battle of New York.

“Same time tomorrow?”.

Loki nodded slowly, almost stunned. “I look forward to it”.

Bella did not dare to look back as she took her bag and slung it over her shoulder, leaving the room. Loki’s eyes, however, followed her. And as the door closed behind her, her heart beat a little faster than she supposed it should have.

Chapter Text

Tony Stark leaned firmly against the kitchen island, steaming mug in his hand that read ‘IRON DAD’. He hadn’t bought it of course, it had been Izzie’s fathers day gift the year prior. She had bedazzled it herself, the words still shimmering beneath the sunlight.

A loud bang echoed from the hallway, followed by the skittering sound of sneakers and yelling.

“I didn’t touch it!” Abel yelled, zipping past his uncle in a blur of dark curls and a grey hoodie that hung far too big on the boy.

“You literally hit the console!” Izzie Stark shouted after her cousin, chasing him with the ferocity of a Stark at war. Tony was reminded fondly of himself and Bella as teenagers, when Tony would steal her barbie dolls and she would steal his tools in return.

Clint, passing through with a plate of toast, gave them a sidestep as if it had become routine. He looked at Tony. “They’re your blood, man”.

Tony sighed, massaging his temple. “Unfortunately. DNA test confirms it”.

Bella looked up, sitting on the couch. And Steve stood behind the couch, watching the exchange play out before him as though it were a dream he could not quite wake up from. His gaze lingered on Bella longer than necessary, though she did not seem to notice. Tony rounded the island, the bickering children’s voices fading into background noise. He made his way towards the sofa, sitting across from his sister.

“Stilly training with Loki today?” Tony asked her carefully.

“Yeah,” She replied quietly.

“Maybe let him win this time, eh? The poor guy looks like he’s actually trying”.

“Loki wouldn’t want me to go easy on him,” Bella said. “Neither would you”.

And Tony smirked. “That’s fair”.

Steve set his mug down, staying quiet. Clint raised an eyebrow at the man's abnormal silence.

“Everything alright, Cap?” Clint asked. And Bella turned, eyeing him carefully.

Steve blinked. “Yeah. Just didn’t sleep well”.

For the first time in months, Bella and Steve had not shared a bed the night prior. Bella had returned late from training with Loki, she had both fallen asleep alone and woke up alone.

Abel reappeared, his hands full of Pop Tarts. He paused when he saw Steve, his grin fading a little.

“Are you doing the morning run?” He asked him, his voice hopeful.

Steve hesitated. “Not today, kid. Rain check?”.

“Oh. Yeah. Sure”.

Abel hadn’t pressed. Instead, he turned and disappeared back down the hallway. As Abel left, the elevator chimed and Natasha stepped out. Her braid was damp with sweat, clearly having just returned from the gym.

“You all look so tense” She commented, glancing about the room. “Who died?”.

“No one important,” Tony quipped.

“Not yet” Natasha smirked, opening the fridge to retrieve a bottle of water. Natasha looked at Bella then, an incredulous look etched upon her face. “She’s been letting Loki throw knives near her. And she hasn’t killed him yet”.

Bella rolled her eyes. “He’s not going to hurt me”.

Steve turned to leave without a word. Bella turned sharply, leaning over the sofa, confused.

“Steve—”.

He waved her off, still walking away. “I’m good. Might head for that run after all”.

The silence left behind in his wake did not settle. All eyes had fallen to Bella, the tension unmistakable. Perhaps the couple's unending honeymoon phase had finally ended.

“Trouble in paradise?” Tony asked quietly, eyeing his sister.

Bella frowned, sighing. “He’s just been quiet lately”.

“Uh-huh” Tony cocked his head to the side. “And you training the guy that threw him off a building once has nothing to do with that?”.

“It’s been months, Tony”.

“And you’ve trained with Loki everyday for the past three”.

“Steve said that he was fine with it”.

Nat crossed her arms, chiming in. “He said he was fine with it. But we’re not all idiots, Bella. You used to orbit each other. Now it looks like someone’s pulling away”.

Bella did not respond. She didn’t feel like she should. Natasha was right, someone was pulling away. And Bella was only acutely aware of the fact that the hours she spent with Loki were to blame.

A sudden boom echoed from the floor below. Everyone jumped, Bella and Tony simultaneously sinking into their seats, knowing it was their children causing trouble once more.

“Not it,” Tony muttered, nodding towards his sister.

Clint looked around the room, and then at Bella. “Want me to banish them to the vents for a week?”.

Bella laughed lightly, a faint smile crossing her face. She waved him off. “Let them be kids. God knows they don’t get to be for long”.

Tony looked at Bella for a moment longer. “Are you sure everything’s okay, sis?”.

Bella nodded. And somehow, Tony didn’t quite believe her.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Bella Stark stood with her back to the wall, the corridor empty and dark. The sun had set long ago, and Bella had spent the hours prior alone with a punching bag and weights. Her gym bag sat by her feet as she breathed, exhaling through her nose in an attempt at regulating her rigid breathing. Her heart had yet to slow from her lengthy gym session, though she had reason to doubt it raced from the session alone. She ran a hand through her hair, cursing just beneath her breath.

There was nothing going on. She knew as much, she had made that very clear with Loki, as subtle as she could. That she still loved Steve, and that she and Steve were perfectly okay with one another. She hated the way Loki’s hand’s often lingered on her wrist just longer than they should have. Or the way his voice dropped an octave when he said her name. Bella was in a relationship, a good one for what felt like the first time. Steve didn’t steal from her or others, nor did he attempt to kill her brother. Steve provided stability for herself and her son, something Abel had lacked through his life. He was kind, and steady. He adored Abel. And she loved him. She did.

Therefore, she could not understand where the aching feeling she had felt around Loki of late had come from. The tightness in her chest from just a second of contact. The butterflies that swirled in her stomach as though she was fifteen once more. Bella refused to believe the chemistry and tension between them was romantic. It couldn’t have been. She put it down to trauma most days, the proximity and unresolved tension.

“It’ll pass,” Bella said quietly to herself, her fists curled into tight little balls.

She said it with such affirmation, anyone else might have believed her. And for a moment, Bella truly had believed it would pass. But that moment had passed long ago. Bella was determined, however, to not let this ruin her love for Steve. Steve didn’t deserve that. Abel didn’t deserve that. And Bella did not have the energy to be that woman.

Bella Stark would bury her feelings, until they shrunk and disappeared. She would pretend there was nothing there between herself and the God of Mischief and hope the lie became a truth before Steve became any more suspicious than he already was.

Bella straightened herself out, and grabbed her bag. She walked away from the training room and did not look back.

Steve was sitting by the kitchen island when Bella walked in. Her hair had been tied back, an old MIT jumper hanging loosely by her hips. She looked tired.

“Hey” She said lightly, approaching the counter. “You eat yet?”.

Steve eyed Bella carefully. “No. Not yet”.

“Perfect” Bella grinned. She turned and opened the fridge, producing a handful of eggs and whatever form of vegetable she could find. “Omelettes?”.

Steve leaned forwards, his elbows firm against the counter. He watched her carefully. “Sure”.

Bella cracked the eggs against the bench with just too much force, the shell made a hard crunch as she split it into the bowl.

“How was training?” Steve asked with a gentle voice.

Bella did not flinch, though Steve could see her shoulders tense ever so slightly. Almost as though she had anticipated such a question.

“It was fine,” Bella said. “Productive”.

And Steve tilted his head, his brows creasing slightly. “Is that it?”.

“What else would it be?”.

Bella’s tone, albeit casual, was sharp around the edges. Almost defensive, as though she was trying too hard to control the narrative, to hide something. Bella had never been like that, at least not with Steve.

“I don’t know,” Steve said softly. “You tell me”.

Bella froze. Only for a moment. And then she continued to beat the eggs, a little harder this time — a little too hard. She kept her back turned from him.

Bella forced a small laugh. “I’m just tired, Steve. That’s all”.

He nodded slowly, though something within him seemed to twist. “Okay”.

Steve had not pushed, he never had. Bella had been used to hiding struggles beneath sarcasm and poorly timed jokes, a trait she notably inherited from her brother. Steve never pushed, never demanded what she didn’t offer. But neither was he blind.

Steve rose quietly, his steps silent as he moved behind her. His arms found their way around her waist, and Bella stiffened for only a moment before she melted into him like always.

Steve kissed the top of her head, his voice low against her hair. “You don’t have to carry whatever this is alone”.

Bella closed her eyes. And for a moment her knuckles whitened against the whisk. She stayed quiet, turning carefully in his arms. She cupped his face, and kissed him. Reassurance in the shape of affection.

“I know,” She whispered. “I’m okay”.

Steve seemed to believe her. Or at least, he pretended to. He smiled, and brushed a strand of hair from her cheek. “You’ve got yolk on your shirt”.

Bella snorted. “Perfect”.

And just like that, the conversation had ended. Tucked away between omelettes and easy smiles, a facade of what once was. The fracture line remained.

Chapter Text

Until today, Loki had never been permitted to enter the war room. Not by Nick Fury. Not by the Avengers. Not by anyone. Until today.

The God of Mischief stood near the far end of the table, his arms crossed and expression unreadable. He didn’t speak, nor did he move. The rest of the Avengers had entered one by one, tension pooling around them.

Bella had already been seated, flipping through the mission file JARVIS had uploaded onto the central display. Steve stood behind her, jaw tight, and eyes on Loki.

Nick Fury was the first to break the silence. “Intel says they’ve built some sort of Chitauri-tech hybrid. We don’t know what it does yet, but if it glows blue and hums, we blow it up”.

Tony leaned back in his chair, fingers steepled. “And let me guess, no back up, no time, and no air support”.

Fury didn’t blink. “Correct”.

Bruce breathed slowly. “So, what’s the plan?”.

Fury rounded the table, gesturing to the screen. “Strike teams. You split into groups. Rogers leads team one. Thor and Stark on team two”.

“And him?” Clint asked, nodding towards Loki. “What’s his role, exactly?”.

All eyes fell to Bella. She looked up slowly, glancing about the room. “This mission has global threat potential. Loki’s unique skill set could help”.

“You’re serious?” Tony muttered, glaring towards his sister.

“I didn’t say I liked it” Bella bit back, returning Tony’s accusatory stare. “But I trust my judgement”.

Steve remained quiet, his arms crossed too tightly for comfort across his chest.

Fury sighed. “Loki states with team one. That’s Rogers, Bella, and Banner. I want someone watching him at all times. He deviates from the plan, he gets benched”.

“I don’t need babysitting,” Loki said dryly.

Loki turned to Bella, his eyes narrowing faintly. She did not flinch, standing.

“This is a test,” She said, speaking directly to the God. “Try not to fail it, Loki”.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Bella sat at Steve’s side in silence, her hand entwined with his. She rested her head gently atop his shoulder, grounding herself before the mission. An action that had almost become a ritual aboard the Quinjet. Bella, however, could not keep her mind from wandering, to Loki, to the decision she had made that day, to the fire she was tempting.

Loki was sat across from the couple. His posture infuriatingly relaxed. If the God of Mischief was nervous, he certainly did not show it.

“Thirty plus Hydra operatives,” Steve said quietly. “Modded with stolen alien tech”.

Bella did not respond, Steve’s words barely registering in her mind.

“You sure about this?” He asked finally.

Bella shifted her head from his shoulder, looking up to meet his eyes. “No. But if we don’t give him the chance, we can’t say we were better than him”.

Steve did not reply. He simply nodded once, his jaw tightening.

The Quinjet landed hard at the edge of a forest, kicking up dirt and gravel in a deafening roar. No one spoke as the rear hatch dropped. The air outside had been bitter, though not one of them flinched as they stepped into it.

Steve led them forwards at a clipped pace, shield strapped tight against his arm. Bella followed close behind her Captain, gun drawn and gaze cutting through the trees like a blade. Her swords had been strapped to her back in caution. Loki walked in silence, every inch of him calm and smooth as though he belonged in the chaos before it had even begun.

The faculty appeared through the treeline like a ruin, looming tall across the horizon. Somewhere inside, Hydra had been stockpiling stolen tech they barely understood. If the intelligence they had received was correct, Hydra was only days away from weaponising it.

“Keep tight” Steve said, turning back to the team. “Thor and Tony, you sweep the west wing. The rest of us hit the south entrance hard and fast. Barton and Romanoff, stay with the jet”.

“So we get benched before the guy that tried to take over New York last year? Charming” Clint muttered beneath his breath.

A flash lit the treetops, and the first gunshot rang out. Steve threw up his shield just in time to intercept the blast. Bella pivoted low, driving a boot into the nearest soldier’s chest as she fired on the next. The man dropped. Another shot whizzed past her head. She did not flinch.

“South entrance compromised,” She barked into her comm. “Engaging”.

Hydra soldiers began to swarm from the outer gate. Steve charged the front, shield crashing into armour and sending two men flying. Bella flanked left, weaving between cover. Her pistol barked clean, controlled fire. A soldier attempted to reach her blind side, Loki’s dagger slipped across his throat in one effortless motion, and he dropped without sound. The God did not look at Bella when she turned to find him. He had already gone, vanishing into the smoke.

They reached the side door in under two minutes. Inside, the facility appeared to be a maze of reinforced corridors, echoing with the hum of unstable energy. The further into the facility they went, the worse it became. Hydra had gutted the interior, replacing it with patchwork Chitauri tech. The walls were pulsing with a sickly blue light. It was enough to make Bella’s skin crawl.

Steve signalled silently, motioning for the three of them to split up. Bella nodded and moved ahead silently, sweeping right through the corridor. Loki trailed just behind her, almost too quiet to track if Bella hadn’t already memorised the cadence of his boots. They had reached the central chamber without alerting the guards, then it all fell apart.

An alarm screeched throughout the facility, Hydra operatives beginning to flood the corridor. Bella didn’t wait for Steve’s orders. She fired, point-blank into the first soldier's chest, ducked and twisted, taking out another's knee. Steve met the rush head on, his shield absorbing blow after blow as he forced their line to break.

Bella felt a short snap of movement from behind her. She kicked the agent behind her, narrowly avoiding a blade headed for her ribs. The agent hit the wall with a thud, slumping to the ground.

“Well,” Loki said slowly, his arms outstretched. “That escalated quickly”.

He hurled a green blast down the corridor, scattering the guards. Bella swore, ducking as the ceiling cracked from above, debris raining down upon them. Loki caught Bella’s wrist, catching her as she stumbled. He pulled her back to her feet.

“Careful” He cautioned. “I’d hate to explain to your brother—”.

“Don’t touch me!” She snapped, prying her hand free of his hold. She moved past him swiftly, finding Steve.

Bella found Steve at the entrance to the inner core chamber. Half a dozen crates of power cells had been arranged around some form of makeshift fusion reactor. A blue light pulsed from the core, almost like a heartbeat.

“That’s not a power source,” Bruce’s voice broke through the comms “That’s a weapon”.

“Disable it?” Steve asked.

“Not safely. Not from the jet”.

“Then we do it the hard way,” Bella said.

A lone Hydra agent stood in the centre of the room. A mask drawn across her face, her eyes the only notably visible feature, gleaming with malice. For only a moment, she assessed her targets. The Captain, Stark and God of Mischief. The agent stormed forwards, a blade in her hand, aiming straight for Bella.

Bella blocked the Agent’s first strike with ease, her forearm taking the brunt as she impact rocked her bones. She returned with a right hook to the jaw, though the Agent did not seem to flinch. Her blade sliced towards Bella’s side, seeping into the skin between her ribs. Bella twisted free, ducked, and drove her shoulder into the other woman’s chest. They hit the ground with a firm thud.

Bella grunted, rolling to avoid the Agents next strike. The blade nicked Bella again, sinking deeper this time. Pain exploded into Bella’s side, though this did not stop her. She grabbed a loose pipe from the floor and swung hard. The Agent staggered, then vanished.

Loki stood over Bella, his hand outstretched as he pulled her to her feet.

“You’re bleeding” He pointed out.

“I’ve had worse”.

“Not recently”.

“Just cover me, Loki,” Bella said, shoving him away.

Steve barged past the pair, his shield raised as he collided with another Hydra squad that had entered the chamber. His strikes remained precise and unrelenting. Bella flanked right, ignoring the shooting pain in her side as she made a move for the reactor console.

Hydra tech or not, it was still Stark-coded and stolen. She slammed her hand to the interface, overriding the firewall with only a few sharp commands. Sparks flew and the core's humming increased.

“Shut it down!” Tony yelled through the comms.

“We’re working on it” Bella bit back.

She inputted one final line of code and the pulsing came to a halt. The lights in the facility went dark. Breathing hard, a hand clutched to her rib cage, Bella slumped forwards against the edge of the console. Her vision blurred. Steve was at her side in seconds.

“You’re bleeding, Bella” He said, catching her under the arm.

“I’m fine” She muttered, waving a hand weekly.

Steve’s jaw clenched. He did not argue, he simply held her steady. Across the room, Loki stood unscathed. Blood on his collar. Thor and Tony entered a moment later, smoke still clinging to their suits.

“We clear?” Tony asked.

“We are now,” Steve said.

Bella did not look at Loki, not directly. Not yet. However, she could feel his eyes bore into her the whole way back to the Quinjet.

Chapter Text

The lights in the conference room were too bright. Bella sat at the far end of the table, her jacket draped over the back of her chair, a field dressing still pressed to her side. The cut from the blade had been shallow but messy, a dull reminder of how much worse it could have become.

Across from her, Loki was lounging in one of the chairs as though he belonged there. His arms had been crossed loosely. Thor stood behind him with an arm planted firmly to the wall, silent and brooding. Steve had not sat down.

He paced the perimeter of the room, his jaw tight and shield still strapped to his back like he hadn’t come down from the fight. Tony leaned against the far window, reviewing drone footage from the operation. Clint and Natasha were scrolling through intel.

“Well,” Fury said. “No one exploded. That’s new. You got eyes on the core?”.

“Shut it down,” Bella said quietly, her voice strained. “Stark-tech stripped and kinda Frankensteined into something untraceable. If we’d waited another twenty four hours—”.

“It would’ve gone nuclear” Tony finished.

“Which means we got there in time,” Fury said. “Good work”.

Fury turned to Loki next, noticing just how comfortable the God seemed. “You broke from formation”.

“I neutralised a threat,” Loki replied smoothly.

“You vanished without a signal”.

“And returned with results”. He tilted his head. “Was that not the point?”.

Steve stopped pacing. “You’re not a solo agent. You don’t get to make that call”.

“I was not aware that I needed permission to be effective, Captain”.

“You do if we’re supposed to trust you”.

Bella closed her eyes for a short second, breathing through the ache within her ribs.

“Enough,” She said, her voice low yet firm. “He covered me. That’s why he moved”.

Steve’s expression barely shifted. “He shouldn’t have had to”.

Fury raised a brow, eyeing the three. “And yet, he did”.

The air in the room seemed to shift at that. A subtle change, but sharp nonetheless. Steve looked at Bella, and Bella could not quite work out what the stare carried. Perhaps worry or disappointment. Or worse — doubt. The kind that grew in silence and only got harder to shake the longer it remained unspoken.

Fury glanced between them curiously. “We’re done here. File your reports. Stark, I want your analysis of the core on my desk by midnight. Rogers, debrief with field logistics. Bella, get that stab wound looked at before it gets infected”.

Everyone began to move at once, pushing back chairs and murmuring soft acknowledgments. Bella stood slower than the rest, and Steve was already at the door when she spoke.

“You’re not saying what you’re thinking”.

Steve turned halfway, though he did not approach. “Don’t need to”.

“Say it anyway”.

“I don’t trust him”.

“I know”.

“I don’t think you do, either”.

Bella found herself unable to respond. A part of her was unsure whether she disagreed. Steve only nodded once, his jaw set, and then left.

Bella had not realised Loki was still in the room until she turned, finding him watching from his chair, unmoving.

“You fought well,” He said quietly. “Despite the wound”.

“Don’t start, Loki” Bella bit sharply.

“I’m not starting anything,” He replied, holding his hands up in defense. “Just… observing”.

Bella reached forwards, grabbing her jacket from the back of her chair. “Observe someone else”.

As she passed him, Loki stood. He did not block her path, though he stood close enough that she was forced to meet his stare.

“You’re angry with him,” Loki said. “For not trusting me”.

“No,” Bella said tightly. “I’m angry with myself for making it harder for him to”.

Steve hadn’t gone back to his quarters. Nor had he gone back to Bella’s. Instead, he had found himself in the gym as nightfall surrounded the tower. The compound buzzed, quiet but not quite asleep. Somewhere above him, the labs still hummed with energy. Bella was in medical or ignoring medical, most likely the latter. And Loki, Steve didn’t care what Loki did in his own time, when nobody watched. Or, at least, he pretended as much.

Steve slammed his fists in the punching bag repeatedly, each punch hitting with more force than the previous. His words from the debrief had sunk into his mind, swirling around as though they taunted him. They had come out sharper than intended, though he did not take them back. Loki shouldn’t have been allowed to improvise like that, nor should he have gotten away with it. Steve should have been the one to cover Bella, to notice that she had been wounded. Not Loki. Steve should have been there, he should have known. That was the part that Steve Rogers couldn;t quite shake.

Steve landed a final hit before the bag tore from its chain, hitting the ground with a firm thud. He leaned forwards, hands braced on his knees and sweat dripping from his forehead. It wasn’t just the mission that plagued his mind. It was Bella.

He had seen the way she moved in the field before. Today was different. She had been reckless and dangerous as opposed to composed and fighting with an instinct that came from experience and muscle memory. Bella didn’t hesitate around Loki anymore. Not in the way she had only months prior. And that was what scared him.

If Steve could not only feel that shift, but see it with his own eyes. Then surely Bella must have felt it too. And from Steve’s perspective, she did not run from it. He trusted Bella. And most of all, he loved her.

But tonight, when he watched her at the conference table. When he watched her speak up for Loki against him, and the way she had not looked back at Steve when he had left. Steve had felt something crack open that he did not wish to give a name. He hadn’t meant to accuse her, not really. He had only wanted her to deny it with more conviction. But she hadn’t. She had defended Loki over him.

Steve Rogers was sat alone on the gym floor, shrouded in the darkness and covered in bruises. And he could not help but wonder if he had begun to lose something that he had not even realised was slipping away from him.

Meanwhile, Bella had not gone to medical despite promising Fury and Tony that she would. Instead, she found herself at the rooftop of Avengers Tower. Her side wrapped in a makeshift bandage, and a discarded bottle of antiseptic beside her.

The city below stretched wide and endless beneath the night sky. The buzz of the city loud and vibrant below her. She used to find comfort in the city’s lively nature at all points of the day, the constant rhythm that remained proof that something out there had made sense even if nothing else did. Though it did not seem to have this effect tonight. No, tonight, everything felt tilted and strange. Steve’s voice echoed in her mind.

She hated how much it had hurt. Not because it had been cruel, but because it was honest. Steve was always honest, it was a part of his mantra. It had been a part of him that had always made Bella being with him feel so safe. So easy.

She couldn’t help but wonder if things had become just too easy. Because the thing she couldn’t stop thinking about hadn’t been the fight, or her injury, or even the stolen tech that Hydra had commandeered. It was the faint memory of Loki’s cool hand against her wrist. The way he had caught and held her with such ease. Steady, like she was something fragile that needed saving.

And while Bella knew she wasn’t fragile, she had proved that time and time again. But for half a second, she had allowed herself to feel that way. And worse, she had let him be the one to give her room to.

She hadn’t lied to Loki either. She was angry, though it wasn’t just at herself. She was angry at everything. At the mission, the chaos, the way her heart had jolted when Loki disappeared into the fight, and again when he reappeared at her side. She didn’t want to feel anything when it came to him, she had made that deal with herself long ago. The first time she had realised what that strange connection between the pair might have been. Though feelings did not tend to follow rules.

Bella closed her eyes, bracing both arms against the balcony rail. She pressed her forehead to the cold metal. Her ribs throbbed with every breath. She did not move.

She knew Steve had every right to be upset. And Loki hadn’t done anything wrong. He had done exactly what he had said he would, and perhaps that was the problem. Maybe the danger wasn’t in what he had done, it was in how much she’d started to believe he would keep doing it.

Ignore it. It’ll go away.

Bella Stark repeated the thought again and again, a sickening feeling swirling in the pit of her stomach. But tonight, the silence didn’t make it go away. It just made it louder.

Chapter Text

Tony had ordered six boxes of pizza. A bizarre assortment. He had declared it a ‘mandatory, post-mission, still-alive team party’, despite the general lack of enthusiasm. The Avengers were gathered in the lounge, twenty four hours had passed since the mission.

Steve was sat on the far end of the couch, legs stretched out and silently nursing a bruised shoulder. He hadn’t spoken to Bella since the debriefing, nor had he really looked at her. Bella was sat on the floor near the coffee table, her back firmly against the couch. She held a slice in one hand, her other arm draped tenderly around Abel. She laughed a little when Thor had retold a story about flinging a Hydra soldier into a dumpster. It sounded genuine, even felt genuine. Even if only for a moment.

Natasha raised an eyebrow when Loki entered the room.

He didn’t make a show of it. He didn’t lounge or posture or smile like he usually did. He simply poured himself a drink from Tony’s bar, and then claimed the usual empty armchair in the corner, far from Steve, and even farther from Bella.

Bruce handed Bella a bottle of water without comment, and Izzie was curled up beside her father on the other couch. For a while no one had spoken about the mission. Until Tony spoke up.

“You know, for his first time out, Reindeer Games didn’t completely tank it”.

Clint gave a theatrical sigh. “Don’t jinx it”.

“I’m complimenting him,” Tony said, gesturing towards Loki with his crust of pepperoni. “This is growth. We’ve lived another day. Loki hasn’t stabbed anyone, and I haven’t been sued yet. Frankly, I think that’s a record”.

“Days not over yet” Clint muttered.

Steve didn’t smile at their jest. He was watching Bella subtly, as though he were trying to memorise something he was already afraid he might lose. Bella kept her focus on her friends that surrounded her, her family. She laughed too loudly at jokes, even when they weren’t all that funny. The kind of laugh that hid secrets. The kind meant to fill space. No one called her on it.

Natasha told the story of the last Hydra operation she and Clint had run. Clint mentioned yet again how he had been benched before Loki. Bruce kept mostly to himself, only interjecting to correct Tony on the physics of explosive plasma cores. Then the conversation shifted.

They began to talk about nothing at all. Movies and food. The time Tony had tried to cook pancakes and almost set the kitchen on fire. The mood had softened, albeit slowly. Almost naturally. Naturally.

Bella shifted positions on the ground when she thought no one was looking. She suppressed a wince. Loki noticed, and so did Steve. They both remained silent, but something had passed silently between them at that moment. Something far too deep to put into words.

Izzie got up with Tony, helping him with the backup fridge once they ran out of drinks. And Abel had followed behind like a lost puppy. As the room thinned, Natasha and Bruce settled into a corner with Clint, laughing quietly over a shared meme thread. Only a few remained in the centre of the room. Bella, Steve, and Loki were positioned like three points of a triangle that had never quite lined up.

Steve cleared his throat. “Are you going to let Bruce take a look at your side?”.

Bella didn’t look at him. “Already did”.

“A real exam?”.

Bella didn’t respond. Instead, she got to her feet, slowly. “I’m going to get some air”.

Steve rose too, catching her forearm. “Need company?”.

Bella hesitated for a moment. “I’m okay. Just need a second”.

She didn’t wait for a reply before disappearing into the hall. Steve didn’t follow, and neither did Loki. But they both watched her go.

It was the second time in twenty four hours that Bella had found herself stood at the edge of the rooftop. The night air engulfed her, the brief chilling biting through her thin hoodie. The lights of New York shimmered in the distance, unbothered and eternal. It was quiet on the rooftop, the kind of quiet that Bella had always sought solace within. She leaned her hands against the railing, and didn’t wince this time. Her ribs still ached, but not as badly now. The cold helped. Or perhaps she was simply getting used to it.

She could still feel the heat of the debrief room the day prior in her bones. Steve’s voice, and Loki’s. Her own, taut with a self-control she hadn’t felt in days. She had thought the mission might help. That going out there and doing something, saving people, would silence the chaos within her. It hadn’t. In fact, it had only made it worse.

Loki had fought beside her like someone who gave a damn. Not because he had wanted to prove himself, but because he knew her. He knew where she’d be in the fight. He knew how to move around her now, no longer against her. No fear or judgment, simply instinct.

Steve had looked at her today like she was slipping away. That had felt worse. She wrapped her arms around herself and looked up at the glimmering stars that littered the night sky.

What am I doing?

She didn’t say it out loud. Not to herself, not to anyone. She didn’t need to. Bella didn’t know the answer, and she wasn’t yet sure if she even wanted one. The door behind her remained closed. No one had followed. For that she was grateful. She did not wish to explain the heaviness in her chest, or the guilt that had begun to stir within her stomach. Not even the whisper in the back of her head that said you’re not lying to Steve, not yet.

Bella swallowed hard. She wasn’t telling him the truth either.

Chapter Text

Bella found herself stood in the kitchen in the early hours of the morning. Steve had not joined her in her quarters that night, though she had not expected he would. The Tower still slept, mostly, which suited her perfectly. She liked the silence when it wasn’t heavy.

Steam curled from her mug as she leaned back against the counter, staring blankly out of the window and over the sink. She’d been awake since just after five. It had been the kind of rest that left her body untouched and her mind aching. She had not gone back to the gathering the night prior, she hadn’t needed to.

Bella had felt everything she had needed to by simply watching them. Steve, avoiding her eyes and Loki, watching her too carefully. And Tony, pretending not to notice anything at all. She had stepped out before the weight of it pinned her in place. But now, the quiet seemed worse. It felt worse.

A door creaked somewhere behind her.

Bella didn’t turn. She didn’t need confirmation. “There’s coffee. If you don’t mind it kind of shit”.

“I’ve had worse”.

Steve’s voice was lower than usual. Rough from sleep or whatever he had spent the past two nights carrying in silence. He crossed the room and grabbed a mug, pouring the coffee without another word. Bella and Steve stood in parallel stillness for a long moment, silence passing between them.

“You disappeared,” Steve finally said.

She sipped. “So did you”.

“I went to the gym”.

“I went to the roof”.

Steve didn’t look at Bella. He couldn’t.

“Are you okay?” He asked quietly.

Bella stared absently at her reflection in the coffee's surface. Her bruises had yellowed overnight and her ribs aching had begun to subdue. Her chest still felt heavy.

“I’m not sure,” She answered in truth.

Steve nodded slowly. “Me neither”.

That had surprised her. The way he had said the words without judgement or accusation, just with tired honesty. Bella finally looked towards him. He was leaning against the fridge, eyes on his cup like it held all the answers. His shield was nowhere in sight, neither was his anger.

“I don’t want to fight with you,” Bella said.

“I’m not fighting,” Steve replied with a sigh. “I’m trying really hard not to”.

Bella felt the sting behind her eyes before she could blink it away. She looked down again, her stare returning to the reflection in her coffee.

“I didn’t ask him to protect me”.

“I know”.

“I didn’t expect it. And I didn’t… want it, not like that. But he did”.

Steve finally looked at her then. Not angry. Just hurt, and tired.

“Do you trust him?”.

“I trust myself,” She said softly.

“That’s not what I asked”.

Bella swallowed hard. “I’m trying to”.

Steve nodded once more, albeit slower. As though he understood what she had meant, whether he had liked it or not.

“I love you” Steve said, his voice quiet and timid like a child.

And Bella felt her heart break ever so slightly. Because it was true, Steve did love her, perhaps from the very moment they had met. That much was clear. But perhaps, now, that simple phrase that had once been more than enough, was no longer that.

“I know,” Bella whispered silently.

Steve set his mug down on the counter beside him, his hands braced against either side of it like he was unsure whether he was holding himself up or keeping himself from reaching out to Bella.

“I’ve never doubted you,” Steve said after a long silence. “Not once. Even when I didn’t understand”.

Bella turned slightly, facing him once again. She crossed her arms tight over her chest.

“I know,” She said quietly.

Steve looked at her then. And for a brief moment, Bella could see it all. The ache behind his perfectly blue eyes. The exhaustion. The love he didn’t know where to put anymore.

“I still don’t” He continued. “But I don’t know how to stand next to you when part of you keeps moving further away”.

Bella’s breath caught in her throat, Steve’s words landing like a bruise. She looked down at her hands. “I’m not trying to”.

“I know you’re not. But it is happening”.

There was no accusation in Steve’s voice, no resentment. Bella thought that made it worse. She could have argued, had he been cruel. She could have fought back had he yelled. But Steve didn’t yell. Steve was hurting, quietly and with too much grace, because of Bella, and that was harder to bear than any fight the couple could have had. Bella stepped toward him, slowly, until she stood just a breath away.

Her voice was barely above a whisper. “I don’t want to lose this”.

“And you think I do?”.

Steve’s hand found hers, gently and almost uncertain. Bella held onto it tightly, her fingers curling around his with the kind of desperation she was too afraid to show.

“I still love you,” She said.

“I know”.

And this time, Steve didn’t say it back. He didn’t have to. But the space between them was evident. It was there and real. And even though they were touching, it felt like they were holding hands across the surface of something broken. Still together, but no longer stood on solid ground. Bella leaned her forehead into his chest, and Steve wrapped his arms around her like a man trying to hold onto something he couldn’t name. They stood there for a long time, in the quiet of the morning kitchen. Not fixed, nor were they falling apart.

Just… still.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Bella had found Loki in the library later that afternoon. Sunlight filtered in through the tall windows of the top floor of the Tower, long shadows cast across the floor. The room was silent, save for the crackle of a fire and the occasional rustle of paper. Loki was sat in one of the far chairs by the fireplace, a leatherbound book open in his lap, though he did not appear to be reading it. He hadn’t looked up when Bella entered, though that didn’t mean he hadn’t noticed her.

Bella stayed stood in the doorway for a moment, uncertain of why she had come or what she had wanted to say. But her feet seemed to move anyway, slow and soundless until she stopped a few paces from where he sat.

“You always read when you’re pretending not to think,” Bella said quietly.

Loki turned a page, still not looking at her. “And you seek solitude right before you say something you’re going to regret”.

“Probably”.

Bella fell into a chair across from him. She ignored the ache in her ribs as she sat. The silence between them stretched long and taut.

“You shouldn't have interfered,” She said finally.

“I didn’t interfere,” Loki said. “I stepped in when you were wounded and no one else seemed to notice”.

“I didn’t need saving”.

Loki looked up sharply, his gaze pinning her in place. “That’s not what it looked like to me”.

Bella’s jaw clenched. “Don’t twist this, Loki”.

“I’m not. I’m telling you what I saw. You may not like it, but that doesn’t make it untrue”.

Bella looked away then, her fingers tightening around the arm of the chair. The afternoon sunlight made everything feel too exposed. She wished to shrink into the ground and disappear, perhaps everything might be easier then.

“I didn’t come here to fight with you”.

“No,” Loki said, his voice softening. “You came here to confirm what you already know”.

Bella frowned. “Which is?”.

“That you feel something,” He said plainly. “Even if you won’t admit it, you do”.

Bella felt her chest tighten instinctively. Not with anger, but instead with fear.

“I’m with Steve” She said quietly.

“Yes,” Loki said. “And yet, here you are”.

The silence that followed Loki’s statement settled between them heavier. Not sharp like guilt, but something deeper. Like recognition. Like the unspoken tension between the pair had finally been spoken and laid out between them. Deep down, Bella knew Loki was right. Annoyingly so. Bella looked at him carefully, almost studiously. He held himself as though he expected her to leave, his expression never wavering though his hands had stilled on the page.

“I don’t know what this is,” Bella said finally.

“You don’t have to name it,” Loki said. “But we cannot continue to pretend it isn’t there”.

Bella swallowed hard once more. She rose to her feet slowly, her legs heavier than perhaps they should have felt.

“I can’t do this. Not now”.

And Loki did not stop her. He simply watched from where he sat as she left. And this time, Bella Stark did not look back.

Chapter Text

The late afternoon light seeped through the Towers tall windows, throwing soft gold across the hardwood floors and polished countertops. A rare hush had settled over the Avengers’ shared space. It was not the kind that brought peace of solace, instead the kind that clung to corners and filled the spaces between words.

Bella was sat on the edge of the couch, her legs curled into herself. She sat in one of the many t-shirts she had stolen from her brother over the years. She had not quite relaxed. She wasn’t the only one. Steve stood by the window, his hands tucked tidely behind his back as he watched the clouds roll over the city. He hadn’t spoken much all day, nor had anyone expected him to.

Loki occupied his usual armchair across the room, quiet and composed. His legs were crossed and his eyes flicked occasionally, first to Bella, and then to Steve. He did not look bored, though he also did not look interested in anyone else being there, either.

The rest of the team had scattered around the space in varying states of casual discomfort. Natasha sat at the kitchen island, and Clint leaned back in one of the barstools. Bruce scrolled through data on a tablet. Izzie and Abel sat cross-legged on the floor, surrounded by crumpled chip bags and half-finished homework. Everyone was present. Though not a soul spoke freely.

“I can feel it,” Clint said silently, at last. “Like, tangibly. You know when someone forgets to discharge static and everything in the room just buzzes? That’s what this is”.

Natasha didn’t look up. “Then stop stirring it”.

“I’m not stirring anything,” Clint replied in defense. “I’m describing the weather”.

Natasha arched an eyebrow, but said nothing. From the couch, Tony closed his laptop with a snap.

“As festive as all this simmering, unspoken drama is, I’d like to remind everyone that we are rapidly approaching December” Tony declared.

Bruce glanced up. “You’re changing the subject”.

“Yes. And you’re welcome”.

Tony stood and stretched. “I, Tony Stark, in all my genius and goodwill, am officially planning this year’s Avengers Tower Christmas Party!”.

Clint perked up, almost excited. “Will there be ugly sweaters?”.

“Whatever floats your boat, Barton,” Tony replied, shrugging slightly. “I want us to survive the next month without imploding. That includes sparing JARVIS the trauma of filtering emotional tension out of the security footage”.

Izzie snorted, and Abel grinned behind a handful of tortilla chips. Bella still did not look up from her tea. Steve did not turn from the window. And Loki continued to watch them both from the corner.

Not one of them had said what they were thinking. And not one of them acknowledged the truth hanging in the room like fog. But Tony’s announcement had done its job, and done it well. The air felt less pressurised, if only for a moment.

“I’m serious,” Tony continued. “Tree, music, gifts, the whole thing. We need something not mission related to look forward to”.

“I’m in,” Clint said.

“You’re always in”.

“Still counts”.

Bruce shrugged. “Sure. Just… let me know if I have to wear antlers”.

“You do,” Tony mocked. “I have a prototype ready, Hulk friendly too”.

Bella finally looked up, something short of a smile twinging at the edge of her lips. And Tony caught the flicker of something behind her eyes. Gratitude maybe, or perhaps guilt. Or even both. Tony would not press it, he knew Bella would speak to him when the moment was right, when she was ready.

Steve finally turned from the window. He said nothing and made his way toward the kitchen. Bella stood as he paused, brushing her hand lightly across his arm. Steve paused, though they didn’t speak. The silence rang throughout the room louder than ever. Loki’s gaze flicked guiltily down to his drink.

“God help us all,” Tony muttered into the quiet. “It’s going to be the most awkward Christmas since Rogers quit being a Capsicle”.

Clint nodded solemnly. “May the eggnog be spiked and the mistletoe well avoided”.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

The hallway outside the common room was quiet that evening. Save for the soft, low hum of the ceiling lights and the muted echo of laughter that leaked from the living area. Bella leaned her shoulder against the wall, her arms folded tight. She hadn’t said anything when she left the room. No one had followed, except Tony.

He had waited a minute before joining his sister, his hands delved into his pockets and casual as ever. Though his eyes had that familiar glint, the one that said I know exactly what I’m walking into and I’m doing it anyways.

“You bailed early,” He said. “Didn’t even stay for the part where I announce a mandatory Secret Santa and threaten anyone who gives me socks”.

Bella gave him a tired look. “You always complain about socks”.

“And yet they keep appearing under the tree. A mystery”.

Bella huffed a faint laugh. “I wasn’t trying to kill the mood earlier”.

“You didn't,” Tony said, leaning against the wall beside her. “But you and Steve aren’t doing a great job of pretending nothing’s wrong”.

She stayed quiet for a moment. “I didn’t ask for this”.

“I know”.

“I didn’t mean for everything to get… weird”.

“I know that too”.

Bella stared at the floor, helpless. “I don’t know what I’m doing, Tony”.

Tony stayed silent for a minute, allowing the silence to settle before cutting through it the only way he knew hot to. Sharp, honest, and weirdly gentle.

“Look,” He said. “I may not be the poster boy for stable relationships or clean boundaries, but I do know how to read a room. And right now? The Steve-Bella-Loki triangulation has reached ‘low-level containment breach’ status”.

Bella winced. “Please don’t give it a name”.

“Too late. You’ve got the supersoldier in one corner pretending he’s not hurt, and the God of questionable decisions in the other pretending he’s not interested. Which, by the way, is a hilarious lie”.

“I didn’t—” Bella stopped herself, swallowing her words. “It’s not that simple”.

Tony cocked his head to the side. “I never said it was”.

He paused, watching her. “But I know you. And I know you don’t half-feel things. So, if something’s shifted, even a little, you either need to talk to Steve or take some serious space before this gets worse”.

When Bella didn’t respond, Tony nudged her shoulder lightly with his. “For what it’s worth, he’s not angry. He’s just scared”.

“So am I,” She whispered.

Tony looked at her carefully, and the sarcasm drained from his voice.

“I’ve seen you drag yourself out of hell. You can handle this. And if you can’t? Then I will. Big brother privileges”.

Bella cracked a smile. “Thanks, Tony”.

He ruffled her hair like he had when they were children. “Don’t mention it”.

Chapter Text

The morning of December first, the day Tony had declared ‘Christmas Prep Day’ had begun with JARVIS blasting Wham! Throughout the tower at seven that morning.

Bella sat up in bed and blinked. The space beside her still empty. By the time she dragged herself into the common area, Tony was already in the process of yelling at Clint for stealing the mini marshmallows out of the cocoa display. Bruce, visibly exhausted, was untangling lights that Tony claimed had been ‘stored efficiently’. A blatant lie. Steve entered mid-chaos, just behind Bella. His eyebrows were already pinched.

“Tony,” He said. “It’s only the first. The party isn’t for another week”.

“Exactly!” Tony exclaimed, stringing tinsel over the backs of barstools. “And I’ve done the math. For maximum morale boost, you need three full weeks of holiday build-up. Four, if you include emotional repression.

“I second that,” Clint said, his mouth full of his stolen marshmallows.

“You’re really doing this?” Bella said, trying not to smile.

“I’m single-handedly saving Christmas,” Tony corrected. “We’ve had aliens, Hydra, global crises, and whatever the hell is going on—”.

“Tony,” Bella said sharply, her stare cautioning.

Tony held up his hands in return. “Too soon. Noted”.

Loki appeared from across the room, a cashmere sweater clung to his upper frame. He paused by the foot of the stairs, his eyes sweeping across the unfolding events. Loki didn’t say anything, he hadn’t needed to.

Tony spotted him in an instant. “Antlers! You’re on tree duty”.

“I am not decorating anything,” Loki replied with a grimace.

Tony tossed him a glitter-coated ornament nonetheless. “Too bad. I already assigned everyone roles. I even got you a hat”.

Tony held up a green, velvet Santa hat, the tiny gold bells jingling as he shook it. Loki stared at it as though it were a personal attack.

Abel and Izzie had wandered in together soon after, eyes half shut and both in their pajamas. Izzie headed straight for the cinnamon rolls and Abel made towards his mother, his arms wrapping groggily around her waist. He had hit a growth spurt recently, where he once barely reached Bella’s chest, he now stood steadily at her shoulders. He was tall for his age.

Loki never put the hat on. Nor did he engage with the ongoing holiday activities. He stood begrudgingly beside the tree, his arms crossed. He watched the team carefully, his expression that of someone being dragged through a ritual he did not understand but had decided to tolerate out of morbid curiosity.

Izzie and Abel had assigned themselves to playlist duty, bickering at first over the music. Izzie had selected an array of newer, pop Christmas songs, whereas Abel had wanted the older, classic songs. In the end they had decided on a nice in between. Clint tried to hang mistletoe over the kitchen door until Natasha gave him a look that made him pretend he’s never heard of mistletoe at all. Bruce, now knee deep in string light, muttered something about existential crises and went to get more batteries.

Bella found herself stringing ornaments beside Abel and Steve, her fingers dusted in glitter she was certain might never come off. She laughed when Tony dropped a box of decoration and Steve caught it with one hand.

Bella reached into a box and pulled out a small, carved ornament she recognised. Steve recognised it too, he had reached for it at the same time. Their hands touched, briefly if only for a moment. It was a snowflake, with wood-burned edges. The Stark family crest inscribed into one side.

Steve smiled. He remembered it from the Christmas prior, his first Christmas with Bella. “You made this? Right”.

“Abel” Bella corrected quietly, looking towards Steve. She brushed her thumb over the curve. “He was five. He made it at school. He made it for Tony, and Tony gave it to me”.

“Because he didn’t want it to hang next to his Iron Man snow globe?” Steve asked gently. And Bella laughed, a small and very real laugh.

And then, silence warped the moment, engulfing them once more. Not cold, just uncertain. And Steve cleared his throat, taking a step back. Bella did not chase the moment. And across the room, Loki attached a gold ribbon to a tree. As though he wanted something to do with his hands while he pretended not to look over his shoulder.

Tony clapped his hands. “Okay, people. Final challenge. Tree lighting. Romanoff, flick the switch. We’re going for real holiday ambience, not spectral Yuletide horror”.

Abel and Izzie started the countdown, and Natasha leant down to the switch behind the large tree. The lights flickered on one by one, white and gold. The room gasped. The sight a true beauty and for a second, each one of them was still. No tension. No chaos. No impending doom. Just the glow of something ordinary, something normal.

And in that glow, Bella stood between her son and niece, her brother behind her, and the two men she couldn’t quite figure out standing on opposite ends of the same room. Bella smiled nonetheless, despite the aching that remained faintly within her chest.

Chapter Text

A week had passed since Tony’s decorative spree. And the day of the party had arrived. The compound had been quiet that day, in a way it had only ever been before a Stark-hosted event. Energy bubbling beneath the surface, muffled by closed doors and the occasional argument with JARVIS over playlist permissions.

Bella’s quarters of the tower were warm, the central fireplace crackling lightly. Her dress for the evening hung carefully against her bedroom door. She had not dressed yet, she avoided the activity and intended to until the very last minute.

Bella was sat on the edge of her bed when the knock at her door came. A familiar set of three knocks, a secret code shared only between herself and one other. She didn’t need to ask who was at her door.

“Come in,” She said, her voice quiet.

Steve Rogers stepped inside, freshly showered, in jeans and a dark sweater. His hair was slightly damp, sticking to his forehead, almost as though he had rushed to see her. He glanced about the room like it had once been familiar but was no longer. He held a bottle in his hands.

“Hi,” He said.

Bella looked up at him, offering a soft smile. “You brought a bribe?”.

“Cider,” Steve said, holding it up. “The real kind. Not whatever Tony’s pouring”.

She shuffled, making room beside her on the bed. Steve, however, opted for the armchair across from her instead. The space between them remained unspoken..

“You look—” He began, then stopped. “You okay?”.

“Depends on the hour”.

Steve nodded, quiet. “Tony’s party is a lot”.

“He’s going all out,” Bella smiled softly.

“He’s compensating”.

“For what?”.

Steve gave her a look. “Everything”.

She nodded. “Yeah”.

“You look tired,” Steve said.

“I am”.

“Are you sleeping?”.

“Some”.

Steve leaned back and rested his hands on his thighs. He did not hold back. “I miss you”.

It hadn’t been said as a plea, or even a confession. It had been a simple truth laid out between them. And Bella’s eyes dropped.

“I miss you too,” She replied finally. And Steve could tell that she meant it, every word.

Steve nodded. He looked as though he had known that already, but needed the assurance that came from Bella saying it herself.

“I don’t know what’s happening,” She admitted quietly “Not really. Not with… all this”.

“I don’t need you to have answers,” Steve said. “I just need you to be honest”.

She looked at him then. Properly for the first time in weeks. Her eyes had glossed over and her vision had gone blurry.

“I’m trying,” She said. “But everything feels so much heavier lately. And the closer I get to figuring it out, the more I feel like I’m betraying you”.

“You’re not,” Steve said quietly.

She stared at him. “Aren’t I?”.

“No,” He said. “You’re trying to stay. That’s not betrayal. That’s… just love, when it’s changing”.

His words seemed to hit Bella much harder than she had expected. And Steve did not move. Nor did he ask for anything more.

“I’ll still be beside you tonight,” He said finally. “If you still want that?”.

Bella nodded, her voice barely above a breath. “I do”.

Something in the stillness between the pair had begun to soften. Not quite a resolution, but perhaps an understanding. Perhaps their relationship was not beyond saving after all.

“I’ll pick you up at eight, then”.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Bella was the first of the pair to step out of the elevator. Her velvet green dress clung to her figure with elegance, her hair swept into a soft updo with loose strands framing her face. Under the glare of flashbulbs, she looked simply radiant.

Steve stepped out beside her in a sharp charcoal suit and navy tie. His posture was flawless, and his smile was just warm enough. He offered his arm without a word, and she took it. They stepped forwards in sync, pausing for just long enough for the camera shutters to explode in a staccato rhythm.

“Captain Rogers! Ms Stark!”.

“Bella, who are you wearing tonight?.

“Steve! Can we get a kiss for the camera?”.

Steve glanced briefly toward Bella, who smiled through it. “You first”.

The crowd erupted in laughter, followed by a dozen flashes that might have blinded them had they not grown so used to it.

“Neither of you have been seen publicly together in over a month,” One reporter called out. “Is this an official return to the spotlight?”.

“We’re not big on the spotlight,” Bella said smoothly. “But we’re here, together. That should speak for itself”.

“Steve!” Another called out. “Any truth to the engagement rumours?”.

Bella felt her smile falter, if only for a second. Steve didn’t blink. “No comment”.

The couple turned away, shifting away from the bombarding press. Bella kept her arm looped through his until they were well past the crowd and into the elevator that would take them to the party floor. The doors slid shut behind them and the silence between them was instant.

“You okay?” Steve asked, his voice low.

“Fine,” Bella said.

Neither of them moved, nor did they look at one another. The elevator chimed.

“They’ll talk more when we walk in,” She added.

“I know”.

“Are you still with me?”.

Steve’s voice was steady. “I always am”.

Bella did not answer. And when the doors opened to the main event, Bella and Steve stepped out together, arm in arm. The epitome of picture-perfect, just like always.

The glass walls of the room gave way to the magnificent city skyline. Music played softly in the background, a holiday jazz band stood in the far left corner. Stark Industries staff in tuxedos circulated the room with lavish champagne flutes. Each guest had been dressed to the nines. Bella and Steve stepped into the party as though nothing had been wrong at all.

Tony swooped in with a glass in each hand, a grin that looked as though it had been carved from ice and ego.

“You’re late,” He said to Bella, handing her a drink. “Which is rude, because I gave you the prime entrance window”.

“We were stopped,” Bella said, gratefully accepting the champagne flute. “Something about engagement rumours”.

Tony raised a brow. “Let me guess. You danced, dodged, and Steve went full ‘no comment’?”.

Steve took a steady sip of his own drink, the burning liquor hardly reaching him due to his fast metabolism.

“Classic,” Tony said. “Ten out of ten. Can’t wait to see what happens when the slow dancing starts”.

“Tony,” Bella warned.

Her brother smirked before slipping away in the crowd, calling out something about harassing Clint under the mistletoe.

Abel waved from the far side of the bar, mid-conversation with Izzie, Bruce, and Loki. A trio that seemed to surprise Bella. Loki stood half-shadowed, dressed in black. He seemed entirely unfazed by the marvel of it all. The lights, the noise, even the celebration around him. Loki did not look at Bella, not yet.

Steve’s hand hovered lightly at the base of her back as the couple weaved through small groups of guests that seemed to have clustered together. Every smile Bella gave was genuine enough to pass. Every polite laugh from Steve was quiet enough to go unnoticed as forced. The pair reached the edge of the dancefloor just as Nat joined them, a red satin dress clung to her figure.

“You two clean up well,” She said. “A very united front”.

“Just like the PR manual recommends,” Bella murmured.

Natasha arched an eyebrow curiously. “You holding it together?”.

Bella met her eyes. “So far, so good”.

Steve had stepped aside politely to greet one of his newer friends, Sam. Apparently Steve had met him on a run last month.

Natasha leaned in, just enough to keep her voice low. “He looks like he’s about to break”.

Bella swallowed the lump that had begun to rise in her throat. “I know”.

Natasha didn’t press. She nodded once, then melted back into the crowd. And Bella stood alone for a breath, just long enough to feel the emptiness creep in. For it to seep beneath her skin and cling to her.

Steve returned a moment later. “Want to dance?”.

Bella hesitated, if only for a second. “Sure”.

Steve held out his hand, and Bella took it. The music shifted as they found their way to the centre of the dance floor, Frank Sinatra’s ‘Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas’ echoed through the building. And for a moment, the world around them seemed non-existent. They moved easily together, almost muscle memory. For the smallest moment, they looked like everything the cameras had captured earlier. Perfect, poised, unshaken. Only an idiot would believe the facade.

“You were right,” Steve said eventually. “If we had this conversation here, it wouldn’t be a conversation”.

Bella kept her eyes fixed upon him, taking in the smallest details of his face. The slight curve in his nose, or the hint of green in his otherwise blue eyes. “Then maybe we shouldn’t”.

Steve’s voice was almost too soft to hear. “That won’t hold through the night”.

And deep down, they both knew it.

Bella stepped away first, under the pretense of needing a drink. And Steve had let her go, watching as she disappeared into the crowds. Almost as though he was unsure if he should follow or let her slip away yet again.

Bella crossed to the bar, setting her empty glass down. She braced her hands on the counter for a moment too long, a heavy sigh falling from her parted lips. When she looked up, Loki was standing by her side.

“Careful,” He said lightly. “Any longer and someone might think you’re brooding”.

Bella gave a small breath, almost a laugh. “That’s your job”.

“True. But you’re starting to do it well”.

Bella didn't answer. Instead, she accepted the drink Loki had slid towards her. A clean pour of whisky — exactly what she had needed. Loki’s eyes flickered to where Steve stood a few feet away, locked in conversation with Sam and Clint. Though he continued to glance towards Bella every few moments.

“The Captain watches you,” Loki stated.

“I know”.

“And yet you’re still here”.

Bella gave the God a look, and shook her head.

“You’re not pretending very well tonight” Loki continued quietly.

Bella took a sip of her drink. “I’m tired”.

“Of him?”.

Bella’s eyes snapped to him. “Don’t, Loki”.

Loki didn’t smile. “I wasn’t trying to provoke”.

“Then don’t start, please”.

Loki gave a small, yet respectful nod before taking a step back. The crowd of the party engulfed him as he disappeared without effort. Bella had not yet noticed Steve’s approach.

“You okay?” He asked quietly.

“Yeah,” Bella repeated, finishing her glass of whiskey. She would not look at Steve.

“Are you sure?”.

“Yes, Steve”.

“You’re somewhere else tonight”.

Bella looked at him, her stare accusatory. “I’m right here, Steve”.

He seemed to study her for a moment. He frowned. “I don’t mean physically”.

Steve looked past Bella when she had remained silent. “I’m trying, Bells. I keep telling myself you just need some time, space. That if I hold steady, it’ll bring you back”.

“I know,” Bella said softly, dropping her head. “That’s why I stay”.

Steve seemed to freeze. He looked down at her, his brows furrowed. “What do you mean?”.

“You’re steady, Steve. You always have been” Bella replied, still refusing to meet his gaze. “When everything else is a mess or too much, you were the one thing I could count on. You made everything… quieter”.

Steve’s breath hitched. “And now?”.

Bella finally met his eyes. “Now I feel like I’m holding on because it’s safe”.

Steve went still. He didn’t seem angry, not did he seem hurt. Just very quiet.

“But you don’t feel the same way, do you?” She added.

“I don’t love you because it’s easy,” Steve said gently. “I love you, because it’s you”.

Bella’s eyes dropped once more, averting her gaze. “I know”.

Steve took a short step forwards, his hand finding itself pressed to the side of her face tenderly. His eyes had glossed over. “That doesn’t scare me, Bella. Whatever this is, we can face it. But if I’m the only one still choosing this, then I need to know”.

“I don’t know, Steve,” She said plainly. “I don’t want to lose this. I mean, Abel is happy. I just— I don’t know anymore. I think I need some time to figure it all out. I don’t know if I’m still reaching for you, or the feeling you gave me when I needed someone to hold me”.

Steve looked away, his jaw tight. They stood there in the soft lights of the party, the room glowing behind them. They pretended for a moment that nothing had changed, that it didn’t continue to change.

“I need air,” Bella said quietly, pushing past Steve.

Steve did not follow. He stayed still, watching the space Bella had left empty. A reflection of the growing hole that gaped in his heart. It was evident that she was slipping through his fingers, now more so than ever. And no matter how much they might try to kid themselves, deep down Steve knew there was no longer any chance of salvation.

Loki had watched the scene. He had watched Bella leave. He moved like a shadow, slipping unnoticed from the far side of the room. Nobody had noticed, not even Steve.

Chapter Text

The rooftop of Avenger Tower was cold, snow had begun to fall as the night had gone on. Bella could not feel the cold, welcoming the bitter sting. She stepped onto the open terrace and allowed the door to shut behind her, sealing off the music and the laughter from the floor below.

Bella Stark was alone.

The wind cut through her dress, tugging at the edges of perfection she had wrapped herself in like armour. Her heels clicked faintly against the tile as she walked to the railing and braced both hands against the cold metal. Her chest rose and fell with sharp, shallow breaths. And her fingers shook. Unsure if it had been from the cold or simply the conversation she had just shared.

Her own words echoed in her mind, the conversation replaying over and over again. Bella squeezed her eyes shut. Steve had stood there still, and absorbed it with a strange quiet, and heartbreaking grace. He hadn’t tried to stop her. He hadn’t fought her. He understood.

Bella blinked fast, trying to will the sting in her eyes away. She would not shed tears over this, not now. Not yet. Bella felt a hundred miles away. And somewhere beneath it all, she felt the weight of something else. Something she could not yet name. Something that had green eyes, impossibly magic, and had followed her through shadows long before that evening.

She pressed her forehead to the cold railing, feeling the light layer of snow crunch beneath her. She let the wind take the rest of her breath. And behind her, the door shuffled open.

Bella hadn’t had to turn to know who it was. Loki’s footsteps had been soundless, though she had felt him anyway. The way the air shifted subtly, or the way her body knew his presence before her mind could comprehend it.

Loki did not speak immediately.

“I said something to him,” Bella said, her voice low and steady despite the growing tightness within her chest. “I told him something I shouldn’t have. He just… He let me walk away”.

Loki stepped closer. Just enough for her to feel his warmth at her back.

“Love is meant to be held. Not clung to” Loki said quietly.

Bella turned, facing him. “Then what is this?”.

Loki met her gaze, steady and unguarded in a way he had only allowed himself to be for Bella. “Something, I think, you’re still afraid to name”.

Bella looked away. She didn’t speak. And after a moment, her gaze found his once more.

“You’ve been quiet lately,” She said quietly.

“I’ve been waiting”.

“For what?”.

“For you to admit this”.

A breath caught in Bella’s throat. She swallowed thickly, acutely aware of the little space between herself and Loki. “You didn’t know I would”.

“I hoped,” Loki said softly. “And Odin help me, I hoped it wasn’t just because he had let you go”.

“It wasn’t” Her voice cracked. “I can’t keep pretending you don’t matter to me”.

The pair fell silent, Bella’s words lingering dangerously between them. Loki did not move, though something in his eyes changed. The hunger in them grew, almost ravenous.

“Say that again,” Loki said, his voice barely audible.

“You matter to me”.

Loki’s hand hovered by Bella’s waist, uncertain. And Bella reached up, her hand resting gently against his cold cheek. Her thumb brushed against his jaw, just enough for him to close his eyes. And when he opened them, something within him began to unravel.

“I’ve wanted to stop pretending for so long,” She whispered.

And then, he kissed her. It was not rushed, nor was it desperate. It was inevitable. The sort of kiss that happens when two people run out of ways to deny each other. Slow at first, reverent. Then deeper and fiercer. Her hand curled into his coat, his hands pressing into her spine like he intended to hold her broken parts together. He kissed her like she was something sacred. And when they finally parted, neither of them moved far. Loki rested his forehead atop hers, a short smirk crossing his lips.

“I’ll never be a safe choice, Bella,” He said.

“I don’t want safe” She whispered into him. “Not anymore”.

Bella stood in Loki’s hold for what felt like an eternity. Neither of them spoke, the silence between them no longer charged but full, and terrifyingly real.

Bella allowed her eyes to drift shut for only a moment, as if it might still the ache twisting in her chest. When she opened them again, Loki was watching her longingly.

“I don’t know what happens now,” She said, barely above a whisper.

Loki nodded. “You don’t have to”.

Bella turned slightly, the realisation that the world inside the Tower had continued to spin dawned upon her. She felt it now, a reminder of what she had left inside the building.

She looked back at Loki. “I’ve been gone too long”.

Loki’s gaze flickered away. He looked down, almost disappointed. “Do you want to go back?”.

“I have to”.

She would have given anything to have stayed there, in that moment with Loki. But deep down she knew her absence would be noticed. The real world would seep in and ruin their moment. The guilt of what had transpired began to tug at her heart, quiet and sharp.

She touched his wrist gently. “You should stay out here a little longer”.

Loki didn’t protest. And Bella nodded, stepping back into the building.

The air felt different. The elevator was waiting just beyond the stairwell, glass and polished chrome. She pushed the bottom for the floor below. The silence that encased her grew heavy. Her dress clung to her body agonisingly. Her chest ached heavier, and her heart beat fast. As the warmth of the party rose to meet her, the guilt came with it.

The elevator doors opened, and Bella stepped out into the warmth. For just a heartbeat, she stood still. Just inside the door, separated from the party by no more than a few feet. The world continued to move on, despite her lapse in judgement. If she could even call it that. Nothing had changed at that party, except for Bella herself.

Bella soothed out her dress, inhaled deeply, and took a step through the door. She passed Natasha and Clint by the bar. Natasha had given her a long glance, yet said nothing. Clint had merely winked and continued picking at the label on his bottle of beer.

“Bella”.

She turned sharply, almost jumping. Steve stood just a few feet away. His expression unreadable. He was calm, but in a controlled way that meant he had waited.

“I didn’t mean to be gone so long,” She said, before he had the opportunity to ask.

“I figured you needed space”.

She nodded. “I did”.

“Everything okay now?”.

Bella hesitated. “It’s better”.

And Steve didn’t press. But the way his gaze had lingering on her, as though he awaited something more, made her stomach churn. She glanced past him in search of a distraction, finding none. Only the soft pressure of what she had yet to say.

She looked back at Steve and forced a smile. “Sorry I worried you”.

“You didn’t,” He said gently. “Not exactly. I just… noticed”.

Bella folded her arms across her chest. She dug her fingers into her skin anxiously. “There was too much noise, I needed some quiet”.

“And you found it?”.

“I did,” She said.

Bella decided that she would not tell him. She couldn’t. Not tonight, and perhaps not ever. Whatever the kiss between her and Lok had been, she decided it had belonged to a different version of her. One that could only exist outside of her world. Not standing beside Steve, with the memory still pressed to her skin. If she spoke it aloud, something would shatter that could still be fixed. Or at least, she told herself that.

Steve looked at her carefully, almost studying her quiet expression. She turned before he could see too much. And as she moved back into the crowd, her smile was careful and her steps steady. She passed Loki only once. He didn’t speak, or move. But his eyes met hers, just for a moment for him to realise her decision.

Chapter Text

Bella stood alone in the kitchen, her nimble fingers fiddling with a neat red ribbon as she wrapped a stack of books for Izzie. Bella hummed alone to the music that played faintly in the background, a festive smile plastered upon her face. Everything, however, was not quite on beat. Almost as though the music played half a second behind.

Loki had not spoken to Bella since that night. Not a single word, nor a glance, not even in passing. Bella could not yet decide whether it had been avoidance or restraint, or perhaps even both. Bella hadn’t sought him out either. She did not regret the kiss, but the truth of it scared her more than any lie she had ever told.

Steve entered the kitchen mid-laughter, brushing snow off his sleeves. Abel was at his side, tugging a woolly hat from his head as his damp curls sprung to life. His gaze swept the room like it always did lately, and he kissed Bella’s forehead to keep the facade in front of Abel. Though something in him paused, if only for a moment

Later that evening, the team had gathered in the common room. Clint hosted his annual screening of Die Hard, a tradition Bella had been forced to endure since their early SHIELD days together. Bella sat beside her son, whose head rested firmly atop her shoulder, half asleep and full with hot chocolate. Steve sat on the floor nearby, leaning against the ottoman a few inches from Bella.

Loki had been the last to enter. The atmosphere shifted slightly. Loki took a seat in a chair far from the rest of the team. He opened the leatherbound book in his hands, though did not read it. His eyes passed over the room once more. And Bella felt it, his sharp eyes against her skin like a flicker of heat. She didn’t look up. Steve did. And just for a moment, his eyes tracked Loki’s stillness. He watched when they shifted to Bella, the way she held her breath when it did, the way her shoulders tensed though she never turned. Steve stayed quiet. Deep down he knew, something had changed beyond salvage.

Clint narrated half of the movie, his mouth full of popcorn and spluttering it out on the odd occasion. Despite the gentle reminder not to speak with his mouth open. Izzie was quick to dispute the film's classification as a Christmas film, a notion that had the team in an even divide. Though Thor seemed confused by the yelling but delighted all the same. Bruce had fallen asleep in the first twenty minutes.

Bella laughed at the right time. She made the right expressions. She couldn’t feel any of it. Not with Steve sat in silence just inches away from her feet, just close enough to touch. And Loki across the room, far enough to feel unreachable. Her fingers tapped restlessly against her knee.

Halfway through the movie, she stood. “I’m just gonna grab another blanket”.

Steve looked up. “Are you cold?”.

She smiled. “Just need to move”.

Steve nodded and turned back to the screen. Bella slipped out of the room before anyone could follow.

The hallway stood in a dark silence. Bella walked slowly, allowing the darkness to bleed through the haze in her mind. Her chest ached with a strange numbness that had consumed her since the fateful night on the rooftop. She reached the linen closet and opened it. She didn't need a blanket, she just needed to breathe.

The door to the hallway bathroom opened just down the corridor. She glanced up with instinct. She froze. Loki stood, half-shadowed by the light emitted from the bathroom. He stilled when he saw her, like a deer in headlights. As though the sight of her had knocked something loose inside him. Neither had spoken since the rooftop, since their kiss. Not a single word.

Bella felt her throat tighten, and Loki did not move. His eyes held hers for a long moment, one that longed for each to say something to the other. Though neither did.

A set of footsteps echoed from behind. Bella blinked and turned, just in time to see Steve trailing behind. The Captain paused when he saw them. Bella and Loki just stood there, the weight of their silence finding him. Steve’s gaze shifted in slight suspicion, though he brushed it off — he trusted Bella.

Bella seemed to spring to life. She turned quickly and took hold of the first blanket she saw. She shut the closet carefully.

“Got it!” She said, almost too brightly. “Heading back now”.

Bella did not touch Steve as she walked past, nor did she meet his dazed stare. She did not look back to Loki either. She hadn’t needed to. She could feel the shift behind her. The unspoken questions, Steve’s suspicions. Bella was actively choosing to hide.

Steve didn’t follow her. Not immediately. He stood in the hallway for a few seconds longer, watching as Bella disappeared around the corner. The blanket held in her arms looked much more a shield than anything intended to provide warmth. Behind him, Loki remained frozen in place. Neither of them spoke. Steve did not look at him, he couldn’t. The quiet that passed between them was enough.

Eventually, Steve turned and walked back toward the common room. Though he didn’t rejoin the circle. Instead, he stood by the entrance and watched the people he had grown to call his family as they shared in holiday cheer. He caught Bella’s profile in the soft glow of the screen, her smile delayed and eyes fixed too hard on nothing at all. He knew the smallest shift in body language, a flicker of tension. He had been trained to notice it all. He had seen Bella lie before. To enemies, to press. More than once to Tony. But never to Steve, not like this. Not once.

Steve looked back towards Loki’s empty chair, and something fell into place in his mind. It clicked, not all once and not with certainty. But with the kind of dread that crept in quietly and settled like a slow snowfall.

They haven’t spoken.

That’s what Bella had told him. Perhaps she had meant it, maybe even technically true. But it was blatant that something between them had shifted. Steve felt it in her silence. In the way she kept space between them, even when they were sat inches apart. In this way Loki avoided her as though he were afraid of what might happen if he stepped too close.

Steve folded his arms tightly across his chest, his jaw tensed. He couldn’t believe it. But he knew what it looked like when someone held the burden of a secret. And Bella had begun to look like someone unravelling beneath the weight of one.

Chapter Text

Christmas morning broke quietly across the city. Snow fell gracefully beyond the tall windows of Avengers Tower. The warmth inside the tower held laughter that echoed throughout the building. The festive cheer ringing out as though the past month had not consisted of Bella drowning in her own thoughts.

Bella was stood by the window, watching the snow fall gracefully. Christmas morning had gone off without a hitch. Izzie and Abel had found themselves knee deep in a pile of colourful presents, spoiled by the team for a second year running. Izzie had dragged Abel off shortly after, insisting they tend to her new chemistry set.

Bella found herself smiling at all the right moments, and laughing when she was supposed to. Though every few minutes, her eyes would flicker towards the elevator. Loki had not appeared yet.

Steve brushed past her with a smile, a coffee in one hand. “Tony said we’re not allowed in the kitchen until we ‘understand the stakes’. Whatever that means”.

Bella laughed lightly. “Probably means he’s already on his third espresso and hasn’t found the sage”.

Steve leaned on the window beside her. “You okay?”.

And Bella nodded without looking at him. “Of course”.

Tony declared the Avengers’ gift exchange open with a dramatic clap and a warning about emotionally manipulative packaging. The chaos that ensued arrived worse than the chaos of the children opening their gifts. Bella had joined the pile slowly, kneeling beside the tree as she handed out presents. Her smile was soft though it never quite reached her eyes.

Loki appeared partway through, quiet as a shadow and with no visible intention of partaking in the Midgardian tradition. He leaned against a far bookcase, watching without comment.

Tony had gifted Bella a blade, her initials inscribed along its edge. He claimed to have made it himself, and whether there was any truth to the statement, Bella was grateful nonetheless. Steve gifted her a thin silver bracelet that fit perfectly around her wrist. Bella smiled at her Captain gratefully, though the lie began to feel like glass cutting at her mouth.

By the time dinner arrived, the Tower glowed with a festive buzz. Candles flickered perfectly along the long table. The Turkey was absurdly large, though cooked perfectly. Tony took the credit, of course, though Bella suspected Pepper might have had something to do with its perfection. Despite its size, there was no doubt that no food would go spare. Clint was trying to put a Santa hat on Bruce, and Thor drank wine like it was water. For a few, simple hours. Everything was as it should be.

Bella sat beside Steve. She smiled at Izzie and laughed at Clint’s poorly made jokes, though her chest remained tight. As though she could not breathe, at least not properly. Steve’s hand hadn’t reached for hers once during dinner. Loki was seated as far away from her as possible, beside his brother who had forced him into wearing a paper crown. He hardly touched his plate as the meal went down. He hadn’t looked her way all day.

Bella hated how aware she had become of the distance. She hated how it had only made her crave his presence that little bit more. She hated that she was lying to Steve.

As everyone collectively finished their second or third helpings of Christmas dinner, and the air had grown warm with the eight of wine and roasted sugar. Clint leaned forwards and smirked, topping up his wine glass.

“So, we doing a New Year’s thing here?” he asked, glancing around the table. “Or are some of you planning to disappear again?”.

There was a moment of laughter, quick and harmless albeit brief.

Until he added, “Like you did at the party, Bell”.

Bella’s hand froze on the stem of her wine glass. She choked on air.

Steve blinked, dumbfounded. “What?”.

Clint grinned, clearly having had one too many wines. “Come on. You disappeared for, what, forty minutes? And came back looking like—” He gestured vaguely, winking. “Like someone had shit in your cornflakes”.

Bella’s heart stopped. She became overly aware of the tightness that had clung to her chest these past few weeks. The claustrophobia she had felt around Steve or Loki, even both. The weight of the lie she was not only telling herself, but the man she was supposed to love, her team, her brother, and most of all, her son.

“Clint,” Natasha said quietly, picking up on the rising tension. Abel had gone quiet, his stare flickering between his shocked mother and Steve, whose expression remained unreadable. Loki had stiffened across the table.

“I mean, it’s not like it was subtle,” Clint shrugged.

Steve’s gaze sharpened. “What are you talking about, Barton?”.

The silence that followed was thick enough to drown in. Bella found her eyes meeting Tony’s, pleading with him. Tony did not halt the conversation. He shook his head, and looked away.

Clint shifted in his seat. “I… nothing. Just that Bella disappeared. And Loki disappeared. At the same time, and now they’re not speaking.

No one laughed this time. And Steve turned to Bella sharply, the weight of his gaze unbearable. She had been caught out.

“You said you were alone” Steve said, his tone accusatory.

Bella opened her mouth to speak. She had meant to say nothing happened. To continue to lie, or perhaps sidestep it. But something in her broke beneath the pressure. And before she could speak, Loki’s voice cut through the air like a blade.

“We kissed”.

Time stopped. Bella felt every heartbeat like thunder in her ears. Abel’s fork dropped to the table, his gaze now solely fixated upon his mother.

Steve stared at her, hoping he had misheard. Then again, softer. “You kissed?”.

Bella swallowed. “Steve—”.

“When?”.

She couldn’t answer, she looked away and hung her head.

“Was it that night?” Steve asked, more forceful now. “The night of the party?”.

“Yes,” She whispered.

Steve leaned back in his chair, his hands braced against the arms like he might push up from it and not come back down. “You came back. You sat next to me. We danced”.

“I didn’t know what to say”.

“You could’ve told me the truth, Bella!”.

“I didn’t know how!”.

“You didn’t even look guilty”.

Bella inhaled sharp, her top teeth chewing against her bottom lip. Steve stood, the scape of his chair deafening in the silence.

“I can’t do this,” He said finally. “Not right now”.

Bella didn’t look as he left. She couldn’t. She felt the eyes of her team boring into her, their stares flicking between herself and Loki. Bella did not move, nor did Loki. And the silence only grew. And in the glow of Christmas lights and candles, the holiday splendor hung like a thick curtain between them; beautiful, brittle, and suddenly painfully false.

Chapter Text

Avengers Tower sat in silence that night. The lights continued to twinkle on the pine tree. Plates sat half-cleared on the table. Chairs stood at odd angles, some pushed back in haste and others left where they’d been knocked aside.

Bella sat alone in the now empty dining room, her chair still tucked neatly beneath her. She had not followed Steve, no one had. The rest of the team had drifted away in fragments. Abel had left first, Izzie following quickly after the boy. Clint had left in silence, horrified with himself. Even Tony had left Bella alone. The worst part was the fact that no one had stayed behind to ask her why. Or perhaps that was the answer.

Bella exhaled, not a sigh or a cry. Just a breath. She knew it couldn’t stay a secret forever, in a way she was surprised it had lasted this long. She had been naive enough to believe that if she had just kept it between herself and Loki, if she just ignored it, then life would go on as though it had not happened. That she could continue to live the lie, to protect Steve. She stared at the remains of the meal, the beautiful disaster of a day meant to remind them all of their familial bond. Bella Stark had broken it.

Steve’s voice rang in her memory, sharp and soft all at once. You didn’t even look guilty. But she had felt it. God, she had felt it. She had been choking on the weight of it for weeks. And now it was out, ripped open in the middle of the table like another present no one had wanted to see.

Her hands curled into fists in her lap. Bella did not regret the kiss. It had felt like a breath of fresh air. Like she had been drowning for months and she finally found her way out. She regretted the lie that had followed. The silence. The way she had looked Steve in the eye and told him nothing. And now, the fallout was not his pain alone. It was everyone's.

Bella remembered the rooftop, a memory she was not keen to forget. The way Loki hadn’t moved until she did. The way her body had leaned into him before her mind had the opportunity to catch up. She had known, even then, it was so much more than a kiss.

Bella rubbed her pals over her knees, grounding herself against the cold rising inside her. She had broken something. Not just Steve’s heart, or her own certainty, but something in the room. Something in all of them. She had shattered Christmas Day with a kiss she hadn’t meant to become a secret. Bella breathed in, she held it, then let it go.

She heard the footsteps before she saw him. Soft, careful. Loki didn’t approach her like someone who belonged in this moment, he never had. He moved like a shadow, like he had thought a dozen times about turning back. But he didn’t. Loki stopped just at the edge of the doorway, saying nothing at first. Bella didn’t turn, she knew it was him.

“I wasn’t going to speak,” He said at last, his voice low and raw. “But I thought silence might be worse”.

Bella closed her eyes. “It is”.

“I’m sorry,” Loki said quietly, bowing his head.

Bella exhaled, almost a laugh. Bitter and short. “For what? The kiss? Or just saying it out loud?”.

“For all of it,” Loki continued, stepping into the room slightly. “But mostly for not giving you the chance to decide how it was revealed”.

Bella finally turned toward him, only slightly, enough to look over her shoulder. His expression was unreadable beneath the dim light. He wore no armour or arrogance. He was just Loki, tired, still, and unmistakably honest.

“I wasn’t going to tell them,” She said, “Not today. Maybe not ever”.

“I know”.

Bella shook her head. “I told myself it was just a moment. That I could go back and fix everything”.

Loki stepped forward once more. “Can you?”.

“No,” She whispered. “I don’t think I ever could”.

Bella stood slowly. Not out of anger. Not to leave. She rose like something too full to stay still, her heart pressed tight to her ribs, her skin buzzing with the ache of everything she had left unsaid. And Loki watched her, unmoving.

“I keep thinking that if I just keep my head down long enough,” She said, her voice breaking. “The pieces will arrange themselves. That time will make it make sense. That Steve will stop looking at me like I’ve stolen something from him”.

“You didn’t,” Loki said, firm now. “You chose something”.

Bella’s eyes found his. “You,” she whispered.

“Yes”.

The words hung between them. The truth lingering through the air. The final admittance, the final choice. She took one step toward him, and then another.

“I’ve always been told who I’m supposed to be,” She said quietly. “Tony’s little sister, Abel’s mother, Steve’s… everything. And When I kissed you… I stopped being any of those things. For one moment, I was finally me. A me I haven’t been since Abel’s dad”.

Loki’s hand twitched at his side. He didn’t move to touch her. Not yet. But his eyes? God, his eyes burned for her.

“I haven’t known what to do since,” She admitted. “But I haven’t stopped thinking about it. About you. About that moment on the rooftop. About what it meant”.

Loki’s voice dropped to a hush, the space between them growing smaller. “And what did it mean?”.

“I want to stop pretending I don’t feel it,” She breathed. “Even if everything else falls apart”.

A silence beat between them, like a second heartbeat. Then Loki stepped forwards, slowly, giving her the chance to move. She did not. He reached down, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. His hand lingered at her cheek, barely there.

“Say it again,” He said, not commanding, just needing. And Bella leaned into his palm and smiled, the first genuine smile he had seen in weeks.

“I don’t want to pretend anymore”.

Loki kissed her then, as though it were the only way he knew how to stay upright. There was no hesitation this time, nothing tentative about the kiss. It was raw, and real. Bella curled her hand into his shirt, pulling him closer to her like she intended to hold onto the only solid thing left in the room. Loki’s fingers pressed firm against her spine, grounding her, reverent in every touch. It wasn’t the kind of kiss that fixed anything. But it was the kind that made surviving the wreckage feel possible.

Chapter Text

Steve didn’t sleep that night. Not really. He had given up trying at some point around three am. He stopped shifting beneath his bedsheets, stopped staring at the ceiling. He lay still in the dark with his hands folded over his chest, his heart heavy and slow in his ribs.

Avengers Tower was quiet. Almost too quiet for what it held.

Steve’s thoughts circled without rest. Over and over, he replayed the moments that unfolded at the dinner table. Bella’s voice, the look on her face when she realised she had been caught out, the silence before she confessed. The way Loki hadn’t hesitated. The way Bella couldn’t deny it.

When the soft grey of morning finally crept in through the crack in his curtains, Steve got up. He moved on instinct, everything mechanical, meaningless. His chest stayed hollow.

Abel was sat at the kitchen island, legs swinging off the chair. A bowl of cereal sat before him, untouched. He didn’t have the heart to eat, nor the appetite. He poked at it with the spoon, swirling the cornflakes about the bowl.

He hadn’t spoken since dinner the night prior. Not when he heard his mother come back to her room across the hall from him the night prior. Not when Izzie sat with him all night. He liked that she didn’t talk too much when she knew something was wrong. She just sat there with him, playing with the cuff of her sweater, not asking questions.

She had fallen asleep on the couch not long before Clint had passed through. He had covered Izzie with a blanket and given Abel the bowl of cereal, telling him he needed to eat something.

The kitchen lights were too bright. And the Tower was too quiet. Abel felt it in his bones, the shift in the air. The weird tension that no one seemed to want to talk about or acknowledge as of yet. But Abel was stupid. He knew what had happened at dinner. He knew what his mother had done. He knew it meant she had cheated on Steve, whether she meant the kiss or not. Abel knew.

Abel’s stomach twisted at the memory, almost churning. He looked back at the bowl of cereal and pushed it away. He didn’t know the details, and he knew no one was willing to tell him.

Steve stepped into the common room, and paused by the door when he saw Abel sat alone at the kitchen island. Izzie asleep on the couch. He looked small in the chair. His dark curls flopped against his forehead, almost covering his eyes. His hoodie hung just too big around his small frame. He was staring at the bowl of cereal before him like it had personally betrayed him.

Steve crossed to the counter, poured himself a cup of coffee, and leaned on the island beside him.

“Hey, buddy,” Steve said quietly, watching the boy closely.

Abel nodded.

“You get any sleep?”.

Abel shrugged. “Kinda”.

Another silence passed. Then: “Is everyone mad?”.

Steve exhaled slowly. “Some people are upset. Yeah”.

“Are you mad at Mom?”.

Steve looked at Abel carefully, and something in his chest cracked again.

“No,” He said, after a moment “I’m not mad”.

Abel frowned. “But you left. You didn’t come back last night”.

“I had to”.

“She looked scared”.

Steve’s jaw tightened. “I know”.

Abel didn’t ask more. He fell quiet, his legs swinging beneath him. Steve reached out and squeezed his shoulder gently. “It’s gonna be okay”.

Abel didn’t say anything, though he did not pull away. Abel wasn’t sure he believed Steve, not really. But even if it was a lie, it felt better to hear him say it.

Bella hadn’t moved in hours when the knock came at her door. She was sat on the edge of her bed, legs pulled into her chest, and a blanket draped over her shoulders. Her phone sat untouched on her nightstand beside the bracelet Steve had gifted her. The second knock was firmer. And Bella didn’t answer, she hadn’t needed to. Tony opened the door anyway.

He didn’t say anything at first. He stood in the doorframe, dressed in yesterday’s jeans and an old band t-shirt.

“Are you hiding?” He asked eventually. “Or just playing dead?”.

Bella didn’t look up. “Bit of both”.

Tony stepped inside then, the door clicking shut behind him. He didn’t sit.

“I didn’t come to yell,” He said.

“Good,” Bella muttered.

“I’m here because you’re my sister, and you’re hurting, and I want to shake you by the shoulders until something useful falls out”.

Bella stared at the wall ahead of her, fumbling with her fingers.

“I didn’t mean for it to happen”.

“Which party?” Tony asked, his voice calm. “The kiss? The cover-up? Or the Christmas Day implosion?”.

Bella flinched. And Tony ran a hand through his hair. “What is this, Bells. Do you love him?”.

“No— I don’t know”.

Tony sat in the chair by her desk and leaned forwards, his elbows dug firmly into his knees. “Okay, let’s just pretend for a second that that’s true. Let’s say it was just one kiss. Why didn’t you tell me?”.

Bella’s voice cracked. “Because if I said it out loud, that made it real”.

“I was real, Bells. You kissed another guy, Loki of all guys. You kissed him while you were still with Steve. And then you came back, and lied to all of us for weeks”.

Bella’s eyes snapped up. “I didn’t lie”.

Tony raised an eyebrow, cocking his head slightly. “Omission is a designer lie, it’s Gucci. Same cost, better packaging”.

Bella looked away once more, and Tony’s expression softened, if only slightly.

“I’m not angry you kissed someone, okay? I’m pissed because you kissed someone who carries a mile-long trail of destruction and didn’t think about what it meant. I’m pissed because you’re better than this, Bella, and you know it”.

Tears burned at her eyes, and Bella was taken back to her youth when it was just herself and her brother. Taken back to the times Tony attempted to assert his authority as her guardian and Bella wouldn’t listen.

“I didn’t know how to tell him,” She said, her voice barely above a whisper.

“You’re a Stark,” Tony said. “We’re genius’, you could’ve figured it out”.

Bella said nothing, and Tony stood once more. He walked halfway to the door, then turned back. “You want to chase this thing with Loki? Go ahead, whatever makes you happy. But don’t drag us through another lie, Bells”.

Bella looked at him then, a thousand apologies in her stare. “I’m sorry”.

“I know,” Tony said, feigning a smile.

Tony did not slam the door when he left, though the silence that followed stung like he had. There was a version of Tony, ten years younger, more explosive and selfish, that would have slammed the door hard enough to echo through the building, and left Bella to stew in guilt until she cracked. He had done it plenty after their parents died. But Tony was much older now. The hallway was still, encased in the kind of quiet that only came after a storm had passed, or before another began.

Tony stood there for a moment, staring down the hall as if the answers might come to him. He had none. Not for Bella. Not for Steve. Not for the fact that he hadn’t seen this coming. Loki, of all people.

Tony let out a sharp breath through his nose and finally turned, heading for the common room. Steve wasn’t there, and neither was Loki. He supposed it was good that neither of them were present when he entered. He wasn’t sure what he might have said, or what part of himself he’d have to suppress to keep from making everything worse.

Chapter Text

The rhythmic thud of the punching bag echoed through the otherwise silent gym. Sweat clung to the collar of Steve Rogers’ SSR t-shirt. His fists had been wrapped tightly, punching the bag with the kind of discipline that masked everything unspoken. The world could have burned around him, and Steve Rogers would still go down swinging. But tonight, it wasn’t the world that he was fighting. It was the silence that had haunted him since Christmas dinner, since he had left the dinner table. The silence that had followed the truth.

Bella stood in the doorway for an entire minute before speaking. She had crossed her arms firm across her chest, the sleeves of her hoodie pulled over her hands like armour. She took a deep breath as she watched his movement, firm and precise as ever.

“Not even going to talk to me?” Bella asked finally.

Steve’s fist paused mid air, the bag rocking in the absence of his contact. Steve looked as though he had not even noticed her.

“I’m trying to figure out what to say, Bella” He replied “Haven’t landed on anything that doesn’t sound like it’ll make things worse”.

Bella stepped closer, cautiously. “Say it anyway”.

Steve exhaled, stepping back from the bag. He tugged at the wraps around his hands, peeling them from his skin with practiced efficiency. “You kissed him”.

“I know”.

“Loki, Bella” He said sharply. She saw his eyes then, the red-rim around them, though they were not wet. “You kissed Loki”.

Bella swallowed hard. “It wasn’t planned. It wasn’t— I didn’t mean for it to happen like that”.

“But it did,” Steve said, his voice cracking, if only slightly. “And it clearly means something, I don’t think you’d be here otherwise”.

Bella nodded slowly. “I know”.

Steve looked at her then. He really looked at her. “Was it a mistake?”.

Bella did not answer right away. Nor did she cry, though she almost wished she had. She was close enough to Steve now to see the damage she had done, the way he held himself too straight, too still. He had never been too good at being wounded in front of others.

“I think,” Bella said carefully, biting her lip. “I think we’re trying to hold on to something that isn’t real anymore”.

Steve clenched his jaw. “You mean us?”.

“I mean the version of us that existed after New York. The version that existed before Loki was sent here, before….” Bella trailed off, her voice thinning. “Before I realised I was feeling things I shouldn’t have”.

Steve dropped his head slightly, as though Bella’s words alone held weight. “And now?”.

“I just… I don’t think we fit anymore”.

Silence ensued between them. Steve was the first to break it.

“Were you ever going to tell me?”.

“Yes,” Bella said plainly. Her stare almost apologetic. “I just didn’t know how. And then dinner happened, and everything just came out wrong and— I didn’t want it to be like this”.

Steve moved to the edge of the mat and sat down, his arms resting firmly atop his knees. He hadn’t invited her to sit with him, but she did anyway. Not too close, but not so far either. They both stared out across the empty room, like the answers might be etched into the walls.

“I feel like I’ve been trying to be perfect for you,” He admitted. “Like if I just loved you the right way, maybe it would have been enough”.

“You were enough, Steve. You always were”.

Steve turned to her, his brows furrowed. “Then why do I feel like I’ve been replaced?”.

Bella flinched.

“Do you still love me?”.

“I— No,” Bella whispered. “Not in the way I used to”.

Steve closed his eyes then, nodding slowly as he turned away. It wasn’t a surprised nod, as though a part of him had known for weeks.

“So what now?” Steve asked, his voice low.

Bella looked down at her hands in resignation. “I think we have to end this. For each other. For Abel’s sake”.

“And what about him?”.

Bella hesitated. “I don’t know”.

Steve didn’t speak right away. Then, finally: “If he hurts you…”.

“I’ll handle it”.

He nodded once. “I know you will”.

Bella and Steve sat in silence for a long moment. Then Bella stood, brushing her palms against the front of her hoodie.

“I’ll drop your things off later”.

Steve rose too. “You don’t have to rush”.

“I think I do,” She said. “If we’re going to stay friends, we have to do this now. Before things get messy”.

Steve stared at her like he was memorising her. Not the woman she had become, not the one who had kissed another man. But the woman that once fell asleep in his arms, the one that made pancakes just the way he liked and wore his sweatshirts when she was cold. He stepped forward, just once, and pressed his lips to her forehead. It wasn’t a goodbye kiss, not particularly, it was simply an ending.

“I’m always going to care about you, Isabella Stark,” He murmured.

“I know,” Bella replied, her eyes glistening.

Bella turned and left, leaving Steve stood alone in the centre of the gym. The hum of the city rang through the walls, and when he finally moved, he did not seek out Bella. Because his love for her meant now was the time to let go, before what was once good became something bitter. And sometimes, the kindest thing to do for the person you loved, was to say goodbye.

Chapter Text

Steve Rogers did not move for an hour. The gym lights had dimmed around him as time passed, long shadows cast across the mats. He sat with his back to the wall, legs bent, arms resting firmly atop his knees.

Steve could not recall the last time he had felt truly exhausted without throwing a single punch. The ache in his chest had long since settled, like a bruise budding beneath the skin. Steve rubbed his eyes and exhaled through his nose.

The door opened quietly, a short shuffle of footsteps following. Steve hadn’t needed to look up to realise who it was. Her quiet footsteps echoed through the otherwise silent gym, followed by the soft thunk of someone sitting a mere few feet away.

“You gonna talk, or should I guess?” Natasha’s voice was low and unintrusive as always. Steve shook his head once and Natasha did not push.

“I thought maybe I should come and check you hadn’t punched a hole through the floor yet” She had said eventually, after a long silence.

Steve gave the slightest hint of a breath, though not quite a laugh. “Give it time”.

Natasha eyed him carefully, Steve’s gaze intent upon the floor of the gym.

“She ended it,” He said, voice low but steady.

Natasha didn’t react. “I gathered”.

“She was kind about it,” He admitted, shrugging slightly. “As kind as you can be when you’re… ending something”.

“She still cares about you”.

“I know,” He said. “But she’s not mine anymore”.

There was a pause, and Natasha watched Steve curl his fingers into his palm.

“She said we were holding onto something that doesn’t exist. That we don’t fit like we used to”.

Natasha kept her voice even. “And do you believe her?”.

“Yeah”. Steve looked down at his hands, fumbling with them gently. “I knew she was pulling away, I just hoped it would pass”.

“You holding up?” Natasha asked, watching the Captain carefully.

Steve let out another small breath, not quite a sigh nor a laugh. “I’m fine”.

“Steve—”.

He glanced at her finally, and Natasha’s gaze was unflinching. “You don’t have to be fine”.

“I’m not mad at her,” He said finally. “I’m not even mad about Loki”.

“That’s generous”.

“It’s not generosity,” Steve said. “It’s a choice. We all live under the same roof. We’re teammates. At the end of the day, we have a job to do”.

Nat was quiet for a moment before she nodded. “So.. you’re okay seeing her around?”

“I’d rather see her than pretend she doesn’t exist”.

There it was, the truth in his voice. Bruised but composed. The quiet ache of someone who still loved her, and likely always would.

“I figured you’d say something like that,” Nat said, standing slowly. “Doesn’t mean it won’t sting”.

“I know,” Steve murmured, bowing his head. “But I’m not going to avoid her. That’s not who I am”.

She reached for his shoulder then, grounding albeit brief. “She’ll respect that. So do I”.

With that, Natasha moved towards the exit. Though she hollered in the doorway. “If you need anything, Steve. You call me. Anything”.

He nodded once, grateful. “Thanks”.

Then, Steve Rogers was alone once more. Though this time, there was something steadier in the silence. The ache remained, deep and dull, but he had sat with it now. He had faced it head on. And he would continue to do that, every day if he had to. Because that’s what he did. He moved forward, even if it hurt.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Bella didn’t cry. She pushed the ache in her chest way, leaning back against the door to her quarters for a long, silent moment. It had taken everything to say the words aloud. Not because they hadn’t been true, but because Steve didn’t deserve the pain that came with them. Not after he had shown her nothing but kindness, which was more than any man ever had.

She walked silently into the room, pulling her sweatshirt over her head and tossing it onto the back of the chair. She stood there for a moment, basking in the silence. She felt hollow. Not broken, just cleared out.

Her eyes flickered to the framed photo sitting atop her dresser. A shot Abel had taken at the Fourth of July fireworks just a few months ago, her and Steve sat close, her head on his shoulder. She didn’t move to pick it up, or hide it, or throw it away. She just looked at it for a while.

They had been good, yes. But something had shifted, and Bella simply couldn’t pretend anymore.

She crossed the room and sat on the edge of the bed, her fingers twisting the hem of her shift. The weight in her chest was not that of regret, it was release. A quiet, aching release. The kind that ensued after holding your breath too long.

She thought about Loki. About the way he had looked at her that night on the roof. Not with possession or pressure, but instead with clarity and recognition. He hadn’t touched her first, she had leaned in. A choice that still echoed in her bones. Bella closed her eyes, tight.

She didn’t feel guilty over the kiss. She had already known, deep down, what the kiss had confirmed. Her heart was elsewhere. Perhaps it had been for longer than she would care to admit.

Bella laid back on the bed, exhaling through her nose, her arms folded beneath her head. There was a lot she didn’t know about what came next. But one thing was certain, the hardest part was done. She had told the truth. And for the first time in weeks, she felt as though she could finally breathe.

Chapter Text

Normally, at this time of day in the Avengers Tower, Blla could hear Tony arguing with the espresso machine. Or Izzie and Abel running about the hallways while Clint shouted empty threats about tripwires and booby traps. Even the occasional sarcastic hum from Natasha’s end of the corridor, or Bruce asking JARVIS to lower the ambient temperature in the lab by exactly one degree.

The silence should have been the first sign.

Bella’s sneakers made the only sound, padded and even against the wooden floors. She walked slowly, hands buried deep in the pockets of her cardigan. She didn’t feel like someone who had detonated her relationship that morning.

In comparison to many of Bella’s previous breakups, she might have argued it had gone well. No shouting or accusations. Just understanding. Painful, but quiet understanding.She hadn’t been cruel, and he hadn’t been angry. Though, somehow, that made it worse. The clean break of it all.

The elevator doors opened with a soft ping, and the second she stepped into the common area, she knew. Something had shifted.

It wasn’t just the silence. It was the way Natasha had looked up from the window seat and hadn’t gone back to her book. It was the way Bruce flanked up from the kitchen counter and then, very suddenly, found something interesting in his tea.

Clint was stretched across the couch in a ridiculous position that no one his age should be able to manage, absently tossing a tennis ball against the wall. He didn’t stop, but his throw paused for just half a second when he saw her. Barely noticeable, but not exactly discreet.

Then, there were the kids.

Izzie was sitting cross-legged on the floor in the centre of the room, chewing gum and sketching in one of her endless notebooks. Abel lay beside her on his stomach, chin propped on his hands as he stared blankly at the homework book in front of him. Neither of them had looked up, and that was sign number two.

Bella walked into the kitchen and made herself a cup of coffee in silence, no one said a word. She stirred slowly, the clink of the spoon seemingly echoing throughout the silence. No one was being rude, nor were they being obvious. Which almost made it worse.

Bella could feel it, pressing at the edges. She turned, leaning back against the counter and let her eyes move around the room, one face at a time.

Tony was the next to enter.

He stopped in the doorway when he saw her. He hadn’t smirked, or gave her that older brother eyebrow raise or made some kind of flippant comment as usual. He just nodded at her. Bella swallowed thickly. They all knew.

“... Who told you?” She asked quietly. Her tone was not angry, merely tired.

There was a beat of silence. Then Clint, helpfully and unapologetically as ever, offered from the couch: “Thor. Loudly. In the hallway. Honestly, impressive acoustics in this place. We should start a band—”.

Natasha threw her book at Clint, earning a sharp ‘ow’ from the Agent. Bella closed her eyes, chewing her bottom lip gently.

“Apparently Loki was standing behind him at the time,” Natasha added, her voice soft and calm.

Bella opened her eyes again. “And did he…?”.

Tony shook his head. “Didn’t say a word. Just left the room”.

Of course he did. Bella turned her gaze to the ground for a moment. Then she straightened herself out, taking her coffee with her as she walked towards the living area. She stopped in front of the kids.

Abel finally looked up then. There was no outburst as Bella had expected. Just a question, plain and simple.

“You and Steve broke up?”.

“Yeah,” Bella said gently, a slight frown etched upon her face.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”.

“I was going to,” She replied, crouching beside him. She ran a hand through his unruly, dark hair. “I just needed to be sure you were okay before I said anything”.

He looked at his mother for a long moment, his brows drawn. Then, more quietly, “Did he do something?”.

Bella shook her head. “No”.

“Is it because Loki said you kissed?”.

“I don’t know, kid” Bella said truthfully. “It just wasn’t right anymore. And it’s not nice to pretend”.

Abel looked down again. He said nothing. Bella sighed.

“I love you” She said softly. “You know that doesn’t change, right?”.

He nodded, though he still didn’t meet her eyes. And that hurt more than anything else so far.

Bella stood. Tony was still leaning in the kitchen doorway, his arms folded tight across his chest.

“I don’t suppose you know where Loki is?” She asked, her voice quieter now.

Tony didn’t move. “Rooftop, probably. Or brooding in his quarters. It’s hard to say these days”.

Bella exhaled through her nose. “I was going to tell him”.

“I know,” Tony replied.

And that was the worst part. They all did. They all knew.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

The rooftop was quiet, save for the hum of the wind and distant sounds of the bustling city below. Loki stood near the ede, his arms folded and eyes locked on nothing. He hadn’t slammed the door when he had left. He hadn’t said a word.

The sky was dull and overcast, a winter sky. He liked it that way.

Loki wasn’t angry, not in the way others would expect. He didn’t want to throw things or lash out or shift the planet’s axis. He simply felt… removed. Detached from the moment. From the building below. From himself. And for the first time in days, from Bella.

Bella and Steve had broken up.

The words had come from Thor’s mouth in the middle of the hallways, like a particularly loud thunderclap. A clumsy display of empathy. “Loki, brother, I thought you ought to know — Lady Stark has parted ways with the Captain”.

Loki had not replied. He hadn’t blinked. He simply turned, and left. Because if he had stayed, he would have asked why she hadn’t told him herself. And that question, he feared, would hurt more than the answer.

He tilted his head back slightly, allowing the evening breeze to brush against his face. It was cold and bracing. His mind, always a storm of half-formed thoughts and buried griefs, was unusually quiet. Until he heard the door open behind him.

Soft, familiar footsteps padded against the terrace floor. Loki hadn’t turned around, he knew it was her. He knew her cadence by now. The steady, certain rhythm held by Isabella Stark, the woman he feared he might have already fallen in love with.

“Loki,” Bella said.

Just his name. He let the silence stretch for a moment before replying. “It seems I am not the last to know”.

She stopped a few feet behind him. “I was going to tell you”.

“You didn’t”.

“I know”.

Loki turned his head slightly, just enough to see her in his peripheral vision. Her arms were crossed tight over her chest, posture relaxed but watchful. She wasn’t defensive, nor was she apologising. And for some reason, that steadied him more than if she had.

“I would have preferred to hear it from you,” He said. “Not from that Baffoon they call my brother. Not in the middle of the corridor like… like something gossiped over wine”.

“I know,” She said again, this time, her voice was softer. “You deserved better than that”.

He turned fully now, his gaze intent upon her slender frame. He studied her, and Bella did not look away. There was something in her eyes, not guilt, but gravity. The weight of choice. A sorrow that didn’t ask for forgiveness, only understanding.

“I needed time,” She admitted. “To process. To be sure. I wasn’t trying to hide it from you.

Loki took a step closer, slow and deliberate. “And what are you sure of now?”.

Bella held his gaze. “That I couldn’t stay with Steve and lie to myself anymore”.

Loki’s jaw tensed, but he said nothing.

“It wasn’t fair to him,” She continued. “Or to me. Or… to you”.

The wind caught in her hair, loose strands brushing against her cheek. She didn’t reach to fix it. Loki looked at her for a long moment, trying to read what wasn’t being said aloud.

“You still could have told me,” He said at last, his voice quieter now. “Before the rest of the Tower got there first”.

“I wanted to”.

“Then why didn’t you?”.

She hesitated. “Because I didn’t want you to think I had made that choice because of you”.

Loki blinked. And Bella’s voice remained calm, but her hands were tightening slightly at her sides now. “You weren’t the reason I ended things with Steve. You were a catalyst, maybe. But Steve and I were never going to last, Loki. This was about me, about finally being honest with myself”.

“And yet,” Loki murmured. “You kissed me long before you left him”.

“I know,” She said.

And this time, it wasn’t just gravity in her voice. It was remorse. Not for the kiss, but for the timing. Loki looked at her for a long time, longer than he had meant to.

“I’m not angry with you,” He said finally.

That had surprised her. She didn’t move, but something in her expression had shifted. A brief flicker of relief, followed by confusion.

“I thought you might be,” She said.

“I was,” He admitted. “But not because of the breakup. Not even because of him”.

“Then why?”.

“Because I thought I mattered enough to be told,” He said simply.

Bella stepped towards him now, just one step, though close enough to close the distance slightly.

“You do,” She said. “More than I know how to explain”.

They stood in that silence, not hostile nor warm. Just real. Loki’s posture loosened, just slightly. His expression too.

“I don’t know what this is,” She said. “Or what it’s supposed to become. But I meant what I said the other night. You matter to me, Loki”.

He nodded once. And after a moment, he offered quietly. “So did I. Every last word”.

The wind blew between them once more, crisp and biting. This time, neither of them turned away. Bella took another step forward, leaving only a foot of space between them now. Her eyes searched his, not uncertain but open.

“You waited,” She said.

Loki’s voice was quieter than the wind when it came. “I would have waited a thousand years for you”.

And then she moved, slow and steady, as if giving him enough time to stop her if he had wanted. He did not. Her hand lifted, fingers brushing gently against his jaw, his cheekbone. He didn’t lean into the touch, nor did he flinch. He simply stood there, unmoving, as though he was trying to memorise the moment in case it shattered.

Bella rose up against her toes, and kissed him. It wasn’t like the kiss they had shared at the Christmas party, not desperate or stolen, not a mistake waiting to happen. This was something else entirely. This was quiet and unhurried, and terrifyingly real.

Loki didn’t move at first, not from surprise, not from disbelief. Then, slowly, his hand found her waist, his fingers curling just enough to steady her, to hold her there like she might disappear. She didn’t. Her hands came to rest against his chest. And when she finally pulled back, it could not have been by more than an inch. She looked up at him with adoration in her eyes.

“I’m not going anywhere,” She said. “I’m all yours”.

And this time, Loki closed the space between them.

Chapter Text

Three Days Later

The Tower had long since grown silent by the time Bella Stark reached his door. She could have asked if he was awake, or even waited one more night. But she didn’t want to. Not because she was afraid of what might happen, but simply because she wasn’t anymore.

In the three days since their shared kiss, since she had walked away from Steve, Bella and Loki had not spoken. Not in private, nor in public. They weren’t avoiding one another, they simply had not wanted to cheapen it. To reduce what they had to something so quietly important, to hallway glances or awkward meals in the common room. Bella didn’t need space, she needed intent.

Now, almost at midnight, she stood outside his door. Not with uncertainty, but with purpose.

The corridor was silent, save for the tremble of Thor’s snores that echoed from the end of the hallway. The lights were dim, and the floor hushed beneath her bare feet. She hadn’t bothered with shoes. Just sweatpants, an old t-shirt, and the faintest pulse of adrenaline in her chest.

She knocked twice. And the second stretched long. Then — the soft click of the door unlocking. It opened slowly.

Loki stood on the other side, barefoot and silent, dressed in dark sleep clothes that somehow made him seem taller, sharper — more like himself. He didn’t say anything. Neither did Bella.

Bella entered without a word, brushing past him into his quarters. They were much warmer than her, not just in temperature but feel. The lighting was low and golden. There were books stacked in uneven piles on the desk and a half-finished bottle of wine on the corner table. Magic shimmered faintly around the corners of the room, an illusion spell perhaps, or something much more ancient and personal that she was yet to have a name for. Loki shut the door behind her.

“I wasn’t sure if you’d come”.

Bella turned to face him. “Neither was I”.

A weighted, but no awkward pause ensued. The pair holding their gazes intent upon one another.

“I couldn’t sleep,” Bella added quietly.

He gave a quiet nod. “Nor could I”.

She crossed the room carefully, running her fingers along the edge of a low shelf lined with strange objects and little trinkets she didn’t recognise. Things that look like they didn’t belong anywhere else. She liked them instantly. Loki remained near the door.

“This isn’t about… anything,” She said, turning back to him.

“I know”.

There was another silence, this time more comfortable. Like they both stood on the precipice of something that did not yet require a name. Bella glanced toward the fireplace, and Loki followed her gaze. With a quick flick of his fingers, a fire sparked into existence. Soft, low flames. Nothing grand.

She smiled, albeit small. “Showoff”.

And Loki almost smiled back.

Bella walked over to the rug and sat down cross-legged before the fire. And, after a moment, Loki joined her. They didn’t speak for a while, they hadn’t needed to. The fire crackled softly. They did not touch one another, but his knee was close enough to hers that she could feel the coolness of his skin.

Loki sat with his hands folded loosely in his lap, watching the flames with a calm, unreadable expression. Bella studied him quietly from the side, a profile she had seen hundreds of times by now. The sharp lines. The careful posture. The stillness that came with effort, not ease. The demeanor of a prince.

“I didn’t know what to say,” She murmured.

Loki didn’t look at her, but his voice had been steady when he replied. “You don’t owe me words”.

“I want to anyway”.

Now, Loki turned. Bella met his gaze. There was no fire behind it tonight, no teasing smirk or walls of ice. Just quiet.

“This isn’t simple,” She said. “But that kiss… it wasn’t a mistake. You know that, don’t you?”.

He held her gaze. Then, quietly: “I do”.

She nodded once. “Okay”.

They hadn’t needed to say more than that, not tonight. They were here. They had both shown up, and that was enough.

As the night drew on, Bella found herself leaning back against the low couch behind her, tilting her head toward the fire. Her legs stretched out in front of her, feet crossed at the ankles. She was tired, admittedly, but not the kind of tired that sleep might fix.

Loki did not move for a long time. Then, almost imperceptibly, he shifted closer. Not touching, just nearer. And Bella didn’t lean into him, she didn’t have to. And when the fire burned low, and the Tower slept around them, and when Bella felt her eyes finally drift closed. He was there, guarding the silence. Guarding her.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

The next night, Bella hadn’t left her door open. But she hadn’t locked it either. There was something almost exciting about the invitation being unspoken. Something that made it feel more like a choice, just a decision he’d had to make again.

She didn’t check the clock or wait with her arms folded like someone expecting answers. She just curled up in the corner of the long window seat in her quarters with a soft blanket, a cup of lukewarm tea, and the city lights spread like starlight across her feet.

Snow fell gently outside, not quite enough to stick, but just enough to blur the skyline and soften the world below.

Her eyes had just started to close when he felt the shift. The sound of the door easing open, then the soft click of it closing again. She didn’t turn, and he didn’t speak. Just the quiet pad of steps on the carpet, and then — his presence, steady and grounding, settling near her.

Loki did not sit right away. He moved slowly around the room, as if reacquainting himself with the space. He had been here once before, if only briefly, he had never quite had the opportunity to marvel at the elegance of it all. Bella finally looked over her shoulder.

Loki was studying the books on her shelf. Not reading the titles, just tracing the spines with his fingertips, almost as though he could sense the stories without needing the words.

“I didn’t know if you’d come,” She said softly.

“I wasn’t sure I should”.

Her heart didn’t race. Not like before. She nodded. “Long day?”.

He turned towards her carefully. “Too many eyes. Too many careful silences”.

“Yeah”.

There was a pause. Then, gently: “Come here”.

Bella patted the seat beside her, gesturing for Loki to join her by the window. She hadn’t said it like a common, just an offering. Loki seemed to watch her for a moment longer before he crossed the room. He sat beside her in the window seat, his posture angled towards her ever so slightly. One foot drawn up beneath him, the other resting against the floor. He didn’t reach for her, nor did she reach for him. They simply sat there, shoulder to shoulder, their reflections painted faintly into the glass.

“Do you miss it?”.

Loki raised an eyebrow faintly. “Asgard?”.

“No,” She said. “Being invisible. Being unknown”.

He was silent for a long moment. “Sometimes. But I think… I prefer this”.

“This?” She echoed.

He looked at her then. Really looked at her. “You”.

Bella inhaled gently. She set her mug down, shifting slightly to face him.

“We can’t tell anyone,” She said. “Not yet”.

He hadn’t seemed surprised. “No?”.

She shook her head. “I don’t want to cause unnecessary problems, Loki. It’s not just me… I have Abel to think about too”.

Loki reached out slowly, as if testing the space between them. He brushed his fingers gently against her hand. Bella didn’t pull away. Loki took her hand full then, holding it lightly between both of his.

“I’ve had… very little in my life that was mind alone,” He said. “Everything I ever loved was someone else’s, or taken, or broken”.

Bella squeezed his fingers gently, offering him a small and gentle smile. Neither of them moved for a long time. Bella leaned her head against his shoulder.

“I don’t know what this is,” She whispered.

“Nor do I,” He said. “But I want it to be real”.

And Bella closed her eyes. “It already is”.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

On the third night, Loki came later than usual.

Bella had already been in bed when his quiet knock finally came. Two short taps, the same rhythm as always. She shuffled out of bed, twisting the door handle gently. She opened the door in silence, her hair unbrushed and loose by her shoulders.

Loki stood on the other side, snow melting against his dark hair, the faintest sheen of frost clinging to his coat. He looked tired, his posture stiff and eyes sharp. He hadn’t spoken when she stepped aside and allowed him into the room.

This time, when she closed the door, she hadn’t moved away from it. She stood with her back to it, watching him. Loki turned to face her, and neither of them filled the silence. It was already full.

The last three nights had been different. They hadn’t spoken about what they were doing, nor had they labelled it. They just kept showing up, every night, without fail. And tonight, something had shifted. She saw it in his eyes. She felt it in her chest.

“I couldn’t sleep,” He said quietly.

“Me either”.

His gaze moved slowly over her, not quite hungry or possessive, but open. Then, softly: “May I stay the night?”.

Bella’s heart ached gently. “You don’t have to ask, Loki”.

He nodded once, unfastening his coat. He draped it over the chair by her desk, and crossed the room in three careful steps. When he reached her, he simply looked down at her, as if memorising her. Not by the curve of her body or the slope of her shoulders, but simply her.

“You’re sure?” He asked.

“Yes,” She said without hesitation. “Are you?”.

He nodded. She reached for him first. Her hand came to rest against his chest, palm flat against his heartbeat. He covered it with his own, his fingers chilled. Their kiss was soft at first. Then again, slower and deeper, holding much more weight. Her fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt, and his slipped beneath the hem of hers. They moved toward the bed without a word.

She sat on the edge of the bed and looked up at him carefully, her bare legs drawn slightly apart as he stepped between them. He ran a hand down the side of her face, his thumb pressed lightly to her cheekbone.

“I haven’t done this in a long time,” He admitted, his voice low. “Not like this”.

“Neither have I,” She whispered. “Not like this”.

After the hours had passed, Bella lay curled into his chest, Loki’s arm wrapped firmly around her slender frame. His breath slow and steady as he drifted into sleep. Bella did not sleep right away. She stayed awake long enough to memorise the feeling of his hand resting cold against her spine. The way his fingers had twitched slightly in his sleep, like they still reached for her.

Chapter Text

Mornings in Avengers Tower had a rhythm. Even now — after Christmas, after her breakup with Steve. That rhythm had yet to change. People still drifted in and out of the kitchen at different speeds. Clint still ate leftovers at hugely inappropriate hours. It weirdly comforted Bella, the idea that the Tower had no interest in her secrets, just as long as she made it to breakfast.

When Bella entered the kitchen that morning, Natasha was already there, silently perched by the window. Bruce was seated at the counter pouring over the day's newspaper with a slice of burnt toast. Pepper, who Bella was surprised to see, was frowning at something on her company IPad. Clint dug through the fridge like a rodent in the trash. Abel sat at the end of the kitchen island in a hoodie, idly clicking his spoon against a bowl of soggy cereal. Izzie sat beside him, doodling in the margins of a textbook.

“Morning,” Bella said.

A chorus of mostly-grunted responses followed. No one looked up. Bella moved towards the coffee pot, poured herself a cup, and leaned back against the counter.

Loki entered not long after. Bella hadn’t looked up, she hadn’t needed to. She could feel the shift in the air upon his entrance alone. He crossed the room to the kettle and poured his tea in silence. The island didn’t shift as he sat, no heads turned and no glances were passed amongst teammates. That, more than anything, assured Bella that their secret was still safe.

Pepper set her tablet down and stretched. “Clint, if you leave another open jar of pickles in the fridge, I swear to god—”.

“It was sealed!”.

“It was loose, Barton. I nearly lost a hand”.

“Then you should work on your reflexes,” He muttered, his mouth full with someone else’s leftovers.

Bella took the seat beside Bruce, across from Abel, and allowed herself to settle. The buzz in her chest slowly dulled beneath the rhythm of shared space. The others weren’t watching her, nor were they watching Loki.

Izzie nudged Abel, pointed at the doodle she had drawn. “This is you. But a dragon”.

Abel blinked. “I look mean”.

“That’s your face”.

“Oh, wow. Okay”.

Tony wandered in a few minutes later, half-dressed with wet hair. He held a wrench and a protein bar like he’d only now remembered his body required food to survive.

“Who moved the toolbox?”.

No one answered. Tony turned to Pepper. “Did you?”.

“I haven’t touched your tools”.

“I touched your tools,” Clint said with a slight shrug.

Tony glared. “Why?”.

“I was building something”.

“That doesn’t explain anything”.

“You don’t need to know”.

Bella sipped her coffee, a smile playing against the edges of her lips. She bit it back. Loki had yet to speak, he hadn’t needed to. Bella was quietly aware of his presence, and he of hers. The fact that they currently resided in the same room, knowing the events that unfolded behind closed doors.

Loki did not look at Bella. But his fingers tapped once against the edge of his mug, a habit she had noticed. She matched it, brushing her nail once along the rim of her mug. It was nothing, and yet, it was everything.

Natasha stood and set her mug in the sink. “I’m going to spar if anyone needs to punch some”.

“I might join you,” said Bruce.

“Only if you don’t turn green this time”.

He feigned a laugh. “Can’t make any promises”.

They left together. A few moments later, Pepper took a call and disappeared down the hall. Tony wandered off after muttering something about electromagnetics. Izzie wandered behind her father, attempting to distract him with her dragon doodles. And Abel had ventured to his room.

Bella stood slowly. As did Loki. They didn’t leave together, not technically. But their footsteps followed one after the other down the hall. And no one noticed. Or maybe they did, and just chose, for once, to let it go.

Chapter Text

It was late afternoon, the kind of time where no one really knows what to do with themselves. The mission reports had been filed. The gym had been overused. Dinner wasn’t for another hour, and it was too early for a movie night. Outside, the sky was that soft winter grey that made it feel later than it was. Inside, the Tower hummed with its usual, subtle chaos.

Bella padded into the main common area in socks and an old Stark Industries T-shirt. Izzie and Abel were curled up on the big couch, a blanket sprawled over their legs, half-watching some weird old animated show.

Steve sat at the far end of the room, reading. Clint was upside down in an armchair, idly flipping playing cards at a bowl on the coffee table. Natasha sat with her feet up, and Bruce was at the counter in the open-plan kitchen, talking quietly to Pepper while she typed one-handed on her tablet.

Thor was stood by the fridge, considering a container of leftover lasagna like it had personally wronged him.

“You just ate,” Bella said quietly.

“This mortal food does not last,” He replied gravely. “It lacks thunder”.

“That’s because it’s cheese,” Clint muttered. “Not lightning”.

Thor turned the container upside down and squinted, examining it thoroughly. “It appears… compressed”.

“That’s the Tupperware”.

“Oh”.

Bella hopped up onto the counter beside Bruce. He barely blinked.

“Quiet day” She said, sipping from the water bottle she had swiped earlier.

“Usually,” Bruce agreed. “I’m suspicious”.

“Don’t say that!” Clint groaned from the couch. “You’ll jinx it”.

“Or summon Fury,” Natasha added.

“I swear he’s GPS-tagged to Clint’s attitude” Bella remarked with a slight snicker.

“I resent that,” Clint said. “Mostly because it’s probably true”.

Bella smiled, allowing the moment to settle around her. This was what she had missed when things were busy, the sound of her non-biological family simply existing around each other. No drama. No missions. Just them.

The elevator chimed, and Loki entered, his usual calm pace betraying nothing. He passed behind Bella quietly, and settled into the seat by the window. Bella didn’t look at him, not directly. But she felt him, and that was enough.

“Are we doing anything for dinner?” Bella piped up, glancing about the room briefly.

“I was thinking pizza,” Clint said, having returned to flinging his cars with worsening accuracy.

“You always think pizza”.

“Because pizza is always the answer”.

“I second pizza,” Izzie said from the couch.

“Third,” Abel added, without even lifting his head.

“You kids can’t just eat crap, ever heard of a vegetable?” Natasha piped up, raising a brow.

“I like potatoes,” Abel said, and Izzie hummed in agreement.

“Fries don’t count, y’know”.

“They should”.

Tony entered the kitchen then, carrying a tablet and muttering to himself. “Why is the kitchen light red?”.

“JARVIS and I had a little disagreement,” Bruce said.

Tony stopped his tracks, visibly appalled. A hand fell softly against his chest. “Define disagreement.

“I unplugged him”.

“He plugged her back in five minutes later” Izzie chimed, smiling up at her father who had grown pale with shock.

“You’re on probation, Banner,” Tony pointed.

“Noted”.

Loki turned a page in his book. Izzie kicked her socked feet hard against Abel’s shin until he grumbled and flopped away from her.

Bella glanced at them and smiled, reminded of her own antics against Tony at that age. “Can you two not fight for five minutes?” She reminded carefully.

“I’m not fighting,” Izzie said flatly.

Thor had finally abandoned the lasagna and strode into the centre of the room. “Let us settle this honourably! A contest”.

“No contests,” Steve said immediately, massaging his forehead gently.

“Especially not indoors,” Bella warned, slipping from the countertop. “And not involving my son and niece”.

“Lady Stark, I have yet to announce what kind of contest” Thor huffed.

“It’s always a contest involving throwing something,” Clint pointed out.

Thor looked about the room, wounded. “Only sometimes”.

Bella laughed light as she crossed the room. She stood by the couch and nudged her son aside, taking a seat between the children, allowing them to rearrange the blanket around her as though they were building a nest. Loki glanced over once, before returning to his book. Bella did not react, though the warmth stayed in her chest long after.

“Movie night tonight?” Clint asked the room.

Nods and chimes of “I’m in” echoed across the room, and Bella smiled at the sound of people who knew each other too well and still wanted to be here, all comfortable with one another. It warmed her slightly, to know she was secure in this mildly dysfunctional family she had built. Bella let her head fall back against the cushion, closing her eyes for just a moment. This was everything she had ever wanted, and more.

A moment of quiet. Her son at her side. Her niece doodled stars on the cuffs of her jeans. The people she trusted more than life itself moved around her like clockwork. And somewhere in the room, a mere few feet away, sat the man who had become the softest constant in her life. Unnoticed, and undisturbed. Exactly how she needed it to be.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

The hallway was dim, consumed by the silence that settled only when the whole Tower had finally fallen still. Abel leaned into his mothers side, too big to carry yet too sleepy to walk straight. His hair was a soft mess from having fallen asleep on the sofa. He clutched a half-folded blanket under one arm as though it might dissolve should he let go.

“You didn’t finish the movie,” Bella murmured, guiding him gently down the corridor.

“I’ve seen it,” He mumbled.

“Since when?”.

“Last week”.

“Then why’d you pick it?”.

“Cause Izzie hadn’t”.

Bella smiled gently. “That’s considerate”.

Abel grunted in response, the sleepy kind that suggested he didn’t have the energy to force a comeback. When they reached his door, Bella opened it quietly. She helped him shuffle inside, and pulled the blanket from his arm.

“Brushed your teeth?”.

“Yup”.

“Promise?”.

“Yup”.

She gave him a look. “Abel—”.

“Fine,” He sighed. “I will in the morning”.

She laughed gently. “I’m holding you to that”.

Abel collapsed onto the bed, hastily burrowing his small frame beneath his bed sheets. Bella leaned over, tugging the blanket over his shoulder. She smoothed it once instinctively, in the way she had for as long as Abel could remember. She planted a gentle kiss atop his forehead.

When she stood by the door, Abel’s voice came quiet through the dark.

“Are you okay?”.

Bella paused, her brows furrowing. She looked down at him in the dark.

“Yes,” She said softly. “Are you?”.

Abel nodded, his face half-buried in his pillow. “Yeah”.

“Good”.

Bella smiled once more, before slipping from the room. She pulled the door shut, the soft click echoing through the otherwise empty hallway. She stood for a moment, her back to his door before she began to make her way down the hall to her room.

She slid the door open gently, and there he was.

Loki sat on the edge of her bed, a book open in one hand. He looked up at her without surprise, as though he had been waiting. As though this was merely routine now. Her breath caught, in mild shock but still relief.

“You’re earlier than usual,” She said, her voice low.

He closed the book slowly, his gaze never leaving hers. “You’re late”.

She crossed the room towards him, without asking why he was there. She hadn’t needed to. The lamp beside the bed cast a soft gold over the room. Her sweatshirt still folded where she had left it that morning. The air smelt faintly of mint tea and whatever book he had brought with him. Bella sat beside him, and for a moment they said nothing at all.

“Abel asked if I was okay,” Bella said eventually, breaking their silence.

“He’s an intelligent child”.

Bella snorted as though Loki were stating the obvious. Which he was. It was no doubt Abel had inherited brains, being part Stark afterall. Unfortunately, he had also inherited his mothers emotional intelligence.

“You don’t have to sneak in like this,” She added, quieter.

“I don’t mind,” Loki said. “Not if it means I’m here”.

Bella turned to face him. Her eyes scanned his features as though she was first laying eyes upon him. The small curve of his jaw, the way his fingers still held the spine of the closed book. The quiet, but steady way he looked back at her like she wasn’t a secret, or a question, or a thing to be figured out. Just Bella, his Bella.

She leaned forward, slowly, and pressed her forehead firmly against his. And for a long moment, there was nothing but the soft hush of their breath, and the steady rhythm of everything left unsaid.

“Stay?” Bella said, her voice soft and barely audible.

He shifted, just enough to draw her fully into his arms. No urgency or hunger, just warmth.

“Always”.

Chapter Text

The rooftop fell silent, save for the distant hum of the city below and the occasional whisper of wind that fluttered through the crisp air of the night. Loki stood at the far edge of the rooftop, his back to the door. There was something nonchalant about the way he had dressed. A simple black button-up shirt, and dress pants. Quite the opposition from his usual grandeur. He did not present himself as the God of Mischief that evening, nor the reformed villain.

Bella stepped onto the rooftop carefully, pulling the door shut behind her. Her coat flared slightly as the wind caught it, and she pushed the few strands of hair from her face as she approached. Her dress was simple yet elegant, hugging her slender frame perfectly.

Loki turned at the sound of her careful footsteps, and his expression softened. “There you are,” He said with a soft smile. “I was beginning to think you had stood me up”.

Bella laughed lightly, rolling her eyes. “Only if you’d asked to meet you somewhere less freezing”.

“I would have conjured a fire,” He offered with a slight flourish. “But I thought the candlelight was more… romantic”.

Bella glanced towards the small table Loki had set up near the far wall. Two chairs, a bottle of wine, adorned by numerous candles. Real. No illusions. Loki could have conjured anything, but he hadn’t.

Bella smiled, taking a seat and smoothing the back of her dress beneath her. “Romance, huh?” She almost laughed. “What happened to not caring what Midgardians thought?”.

“I never said you were just any Midgardian,” Loki said smoothly, sitting across from her. “Besides, it’s hard to mock the idea of romance when it’s… you”.

Bella blinked. “Wow. That almost sounded heartfelt”.

Loki smirked. “Don’t get used to it, love”.

The pair shared a quiet laugh before falling into a rhythm of easy conversation — soft voices carrying through the rooftop air. Bella poured the wine while Loki passed her a plate of food. They talked about the team — Clint’s new obsession with noir films and Thor’s inept ability to detect sarcasm. They had been part way through dinner when the mood shifted, not abruptly, but like a slow tide rolling in.

Loki had set his glass down, his fingers tapping lightly against its stem. “You rarely talk about your life before the Avengers” He pointed out carefully.

Bella paused in hesitation. She twirled her fork absently. “That’s because most of it feels like another life. I was a whole other person back then”.

Loki waited, watching her carefully. Still, he did not press.

She sighed, her voice soft but steady. “The Avengers are the closest I’ve ever had to a proper family. I’ve always had Tony, but we were both so young when our parents died. It wasn’t fair that it was left to him to raise me, I was twelve. I can’t have made grieving any easier on him. I wasn’t much older than Tony was then, when Abel was born. His dad didn’t know until he was one, Scott’s always been in and out of prison since, so he’s never really been around for Abel. Bless him, he pretends not to care but I know deep down it hurts him. I catch him watching Izzie and Tony all the time”.

A quiet moment passed, in which Bella avoided Loki’s eyes, her gaze fixated on the wine glass before her.

“Oh” Loki spoke, his voice barely a whisper. “You’ve done an exceptional job with the boy”.

Bella looked up then, almost surprised.

“I can’t say I know him very well, but it would seem he’s all the best qualities of yourself. Which is surely a testament to how you raised the boy, he clearly has good morals” Loki added, and Bella blushed gently.

“You make it sound heroic” She said quietly, audibly touched by his sentiment.

“You are, a hero” Loki said. “And I should know, I’ve met a few”.

A smile tugged at her lips then, bittersweet and real. “And what about you, Loki?” She asked. “What was little Loki like?”.

He chuckled, but there was a strange sadness behind it. “Lonely. Clever, too much so for my own good. Always trying to prove myself, to the Allfather, to Thor, to Mother. Though, I only ever seemed enough for the latter”.

Bella frowned. “I think you’re plenty”.

Loki blinked at her then. Almost surprised. And for a long moment, they simply stared at one another. Merely two people caught in the quiet, yet terrifying beauty of being known.

Bella leaned forwards, her fingers brushing against his over the table. “I hate pretending this doesn’t exist”.

“Us?” Loki enquired, cocking his head.

She nodded. “I hate sneaking around. It’s not fair, to me or you”.

Loki studied her, his voice low and sincere. “Then let’s tell them. The team, your family. Let them grumble and squawk and throw things. I’m sure I can handle Stark’s dramatics if it means I get to stand next to you without hiding”.

Bella’s lips parted in surprise. “You’d really—”.

BUZZ.

Bella cursed beneath her breath, fumbling with her coat pocket. She groaned when she saw the blinking red light atop her pager.

“Of course” She muttered, her tone dripping with sarcasm. “Of course this is when they page me”.

Loki leaned back, a resigned smile etched upon his face. “Let me guess, duty calls?”.

“Yep. Urgent, apparently” She pushed her chair back reluctantly, grabbing her coat and slinging it over one arm. “If this is Thor because we’ve ran out of pop tarts, I might need permission to kill”.

“You don’t need my permission to harm the oaf” Loki mocked lightly, feigning a laugh.

Bella turned, pausing by the door. “This conversation isn’t over”.

“No,” Loki said. “Of course not”.

Bella smiled then, warm and soft and full of something dangerous, like hope. She disappeared inside, and Loki remained sitting on the rooftop. The wind tugged at his coat, the candle flames flickering stubbornly against the night. He waited there long after the door had shut, Bella’s words playing endlessly in his mind as he wondered when the rest of the world would finally see what they both already knew. That he was hers, and she his.

Bella moved through the quiet corridors of Avengers Tower, her pace urgent. Her fingers were clenched around the strap of her clutch, her knuckles white from tightly she had gripped it. The scent of Loki’s cologne still ghosted in the folds of her jacket.

She had said it, the very thing that had been on the tip of her tongue for days now. And then the pager had gone off, and reality had found her.

The door to the war room slid open with a mechanical sigh. Fluorescent lighting and the low hum of the display monitors flooded her sense, so starkly different from the soft warmth of the rooftop just minutes ago.

Tony was seated at the head of the long table, casually flipping through holograms with a stylus, legs kicked up as though he owned the place, which he of course did. Natasha leaned against the wall, her arms crossed and expression as unreadable as ever. Bruce was hunched over his tablet, already deep into whatever data had been pulled, while Clint balanced backwards on a chair like gravity had no hold on him. Steve stood by the projection screen, his posture rigid. Thor loomed near the window, arms folded and brow furrowed as though he was struggling to remember how he had gotten roped into yet another strategy meeting.

All six pairs of eyes turned to the door when she entered. Bella suddenly remembered her outfit, the weight of her dress clawing at her skin. She swallowed, bracing herself.

“Sorry I’m late,” She said, desperately attempting to steady her voice. She dropped her coat over a chair and slid into the seat beside Bruce, pretending not to feel the scrutiny of her teammates. Bella felt Steve’s eyes on her, not hostile but lingering. Like he was trying to see something, or confirm it. Her stomach flipped.

“Wow,” Clint said slowly, squinting his eyes.

Tony arched a brow. “That is suspiciously couture for someone showing up to talk black ops”.

Bella grimaced, offering her brother a tired smirk. “Maybe I was watching a movie. Alone. In a very fancy dress”.

Tony didn’t push, but his eyes lingered on her for a moment longer than she liked. Natasha stayed silent, though Bella could feel her watching.

Steve cleared his throat and pointed at the screen. “We’ll make it quick. We’ve picked up readings from a previously inactive zone in northern Albania. Two days ago, satellite scans registered an electromagnetic anomaly, sudden infrastructure where there wasn’t any before”.

A 3D map had been projected into the centre of the table. Blue outlines formed the image of a mountainous region and the faint heat signature of an underground facility.

“High voltage power draw. Shielded perimeter. Zero digital footprint,” Bruce added without looking up from his tablet.

“No coms, no network, no external chatter either,” said Steve. “It’s sealed tight. The kind of tight that usually means someone has something to hide”.

“Or, it’s a vacation bunker” Clint joked dryly.

“Then they’ve packed way too many EMP’s for a spa day” Tony muttered, briefly glancing towards the man.

Bella scanned the hologram tediously. “Who picked it up first?”.

“JARVIS caught the EM spike” Bruce replied, glancing to his right. “It’s not exactly subtle. We compared the tech signature to existing databases. It doesn’t match SHIELD protocols. Not Stark-grade either, at least not modern”.

Tony cocked his head slightly. “It’s almost like a jigsaw of tech. Bits of things I recognise, and some alien signatures that could’ve been picked up in the wreck after New York. It’s like someone stitched a Frankenstein circuit together and shoved it into a mountain”.

“No flagged files? Nothing” Natasha asked.

“Nothing we can trace,” Steve replied, his voice taut.

Bella tapped her index finger against the table lightly, her thoughts only half on the briefing. Loki’s face crept into her mind, flashing behind her eyes as she replayed the moment they had shared on the rooftop. The mere fact that they were in agreement not to hide anymore, yet here she was, buried beneath dozens of layers of protocol and silence.

Steve continued; “Bella, you’re with me, as usual. Romanoff and Barton. Stark, Banner and Thor. It’s recon and recovery only. No engagement unless we’re provoked. We touch down, get eyes inside, and pull anything we can back to the tower for analysis — alright, we deploy in thirty minutes”.

Thor clapped a heavy hand against the back of Clint’s chair as the team began to disband. “At long last, a chance to hit something!”.

“We’re not hitting anything, Point Break” Tony called after him. “It’s recon only”.

“I’ll keep my hammer holstered,” Thor replied with a grin.

Bruce sighed. “That’s never once been true”.

Bella lingered by the table, a short grin upon her face as she watched them bicker. She gathered her thoughts for a moment, her heart still pounding in anticipation after her conversation with Loki. She swallowed hard. They would know, in time.

Bella looked up finally to find Steve still watching her from the far side of the room. He didn’t say anything. Just offered a small nod, perhaps reassurance or a dangerous question he didn’t dare to speak aloud. She nodded in return. She would carry this secret a little longer.

Chapter Text

The Quinjet vibrated with the low hum of its engines, slicing through the thick layers of cloud. Bella sat opposite Steve, the dark of the night cast over the jet.

Nobody had spoken much since takeoff, which included Bella and Steve. It hadn’t been awkward, not quite, but something older that held a familiar weight. Perhaps even a glimmer of guilt.

Bella fixed her gaze upon the horizon through the front window, staring just past where Tony piloted the jet. Her fingers twitched slightly in her lap.

“You okay?” Steve asked gently, his voice breaking through the silence.

Bella glanced over to him carefully, Steve wasn’t looking at her, not quite. He just stared ahead, his tone gentle but curious.

“I’m fine” She replied, just too quickly.

He raised a brow, almost smirking. “You were dressed like we dragged you out of something important”.

Bella offered a wry smile to her ex lover. “Yeah. Something”.

Steve nodded but did not push. The console beeped quietly as the coordinates for the drop zone appeared. A small plateau halfway up the mountain, just large enough for a brief landing.

“Recon only,” Steve reminded her as he checked his shield’s position against his back.

“No touching” Bella nodded, flashing a dry smile and clipping her tactical belt around her waist. She slotted her swords into their holster against her back. “Unless they hit us first”.

The ramp lowered with a mechanical groan as wind rushed into the space. After a brief good luck ritual between Bella and Tony, the duo braced themselves as the cold air bit at the. And the quinjet departed. Bella pulled her hair back into a low twist and stepped forwards, snow crunching beneath her combat boots.

The two of them moved in practiced silence. Bella took point, her fingers looming by the pistol in her utility belt. Steve followed, shield secured against his back, eyes alert. They reached a rocky outcrop and crouched low. Carved into the side of the mountain below, was a facility that seemed familiar in its military precision, but wrong in its composition. Old StarkTech silhouettes twisted with hardware, like something that had been scavenged and stitched back together.

“No guards,” Steve spoke beneath his breath. “Not even cameras”.

“Not outside, at least,” Bella said quietly. She activated the thermal scanner attached to her wrist. “Internal heat signatures are faint. Maybe a handful of people, could be machines”.

He shifted beside her now, snow crunching faintly. “Are you thinking an old SHIELD base?”.

“No,” She said flatly. “SHIELD builds with redundancy. This is… bare bones. Frankenstein architecture. Tony was right. He said the power routing was inconsistent, and that shouldn’t be possible with the modern schematics”.

Steve exhaled gently. “We’ll do a sweep. Fast in, fast out. No heroics”.

Bella glanced at him and laughed gently. “You always say that right before something explodes”.

He smiled at her, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

They approached from the rear, slipping in through a cracked service door that groaned open under their override. Inside, the facility was much darker than they had anticipated. The emergency lights flickered low and red along the floor, casting long shadows that seemed to move when she blinked.

“Jesus,” Bella muttered, brushing a hand along the dusty console to her right. “Look at this tech, it’s gotta be decades old”.

“Some of it looks even old,” Steve added quietly. “Like… War era”.

Bella nodded sternly before they continued deeper into the facility, following the long and winding corridor. Their boots fell silent against the steel ground. There was a faint, distant hum beneath their feet, a low mechanical heartbeat of sorts. Everything about the place felt almost right. Almost modern. Almost safe.

It wasn’t.

They turned a corner and entered a large chamber filled with absurdly large vertical tanks. Most were empty, dark shapes floated about inside the ones that weren't, unreadable through the thick layers of frost and dust.

Bella felt her throat tighten. She felt her heart beat heavy against her ribcage. “What the fuck is this?”.

Steve moved to the nearest panel, his brows furrowed beneath his cowl. “None of this matches SHIELD database structures. It’s a custom system, maybe repurposed from something off-grid?”.

Bella approached one of the tanks carefully, wiping the frost away. The silhouette inside didn’t move, though something about its proportions sat wrong. Almost human, but still not entirely.

“Steve,” She said quietly. “I don’t think this is an old base… I think it’s a testing site”.

Steve turned sharply, his gaze darkening. He approached the vertical tank, standing a mere few inches behind Bella. “We need to report this”.

Bella nodded slowly, though her feet did not move. She turned her attention to a nearby console, brushing the thick layers of dust away to reveal a faded emblem. It was a stylised circuit spiral, a skull with embedded tentacles looping through the spiral. Something she had seen once in an old folder long buried in her father’s archives. Hydra.

“Bella?” Steve’s voice was low, picking up on her silence.

“Steve… This is Hydra gear”.

Footsteps echoed in the distance, and the Captain was left with no time to respond. The duo snapped into action, Steve raised his shield and Bella whipped a blade from its holster. A sigh of relief fell from their lips as a small drone skittered down the wall and scanned them with a red pulse, and then retreated into the darkness once more.

Steve exhaled. “Time to go”.

And Bella did not argue. They exited quickly, ducking into the snow as the facility sealed behind them, silent once more. Bella caught sight of a partially buried crate near the back wall, barely visibly before the snow claimed it. Her eyes scanned the faded serial number: 0731. And something about it chilled her deeper than the cold, mountain wind ever could.

Chapter Text

The war room was silent when Bella and Steve first walked in. They had been the last of the group to enter, still clad in their mission gear. It had not been the kind of silence that followed sleep or solitude, but the silence charged by anticipation. The others had already been there, faces taut and posture alert. The air inside was dense with tension.

Tony glanced up first, brows raised when he saw Bella’s expression. “Who shit in your cornflakes, sis?”.

Bella rolled her eyes, approaching the table. Steve slid the data chip from the quinjet’s main console into the main terminal. Tony stopped mid smirk and Bella took a long breath as the room dimmed when the holographic display flickered to life. The projection of the remote mountain facility glimmered above them, rotating slowly. Interior scans began to populate, rooms, corridors, clusters of tech terminals and crates. It looked like any other defunct military outpost — until the images of the crates, the twisted circuit symbols, and the familiar angular lines of weaponised tech came into view.

“Holy shit” Bruce muttered, stepping closer and adjusting his glasses.

Bella’s jaw tightened. “We thought it might’ve been old SHIELD tech, or even something repurposed from older Stark Industries tech at first. But… It’s Hydra”.

“That’s impossible,” Natasha said. “Hydra was dismantled decades ago. What’s left of it couldn’t fill a janitor’s closet”.

“Apparently someone forgot to sweep,” Bella said quietly.

“Look at the structure,” Steve added, pointing to the reinforced vaults beneath the floor panels. “They aren’t just storing tech, they’re hiding it. This facility’s been active recently. The snow cover was disturbed, and the heat signatures were real. It’s not abandoned”.

Bruce shook his head. “This could just be remnant tech, no? Scavengers or black market opportunists?”.

Bella shook her head. “The design is far too specific. The markings have been altered slightly, yes, but the architecture and the schematics? It’s gotta be Hydra. External redundancy, closed-loop systems, EMP shielding. It’s almost too obvious”.

A beat passed. Then Tony’s fingers flew across the interface, bringing up the footage Steve had taken inside. Grainy images of cold steel and buried circuitry lit the space, and with each passing second, the discomfort in the room grew.

“You’re serious,” Tony said finally. “Hydra. Actual Hydra”.

Steve nodded grimly. “That facility was alive, Tony”.

“And what exactly did you find?” Natasha asked. “Weapons? Research?”.

Bella leaned back against the eded of the console, folding her arms firmly. “Storage containers, containing what looked to be mod-weapon prototypes. Definitely not SHIELD issued either. They’re a hybrid design. There were small-scale drones too, stealth-enabled.One activated while we were inside. It didn’t attack, just sort of watched us”.

Thor stepped forward, brow furrowed. “Why not engage with the device”.

“Because we weren’t meant to,” Bella said. “Not yet. This wasn’t a defense perimeter. It was a test, a leak”.

Steve nodded. “Bella’s right. It felt staged, like they were waiting for us to find it”.

Steve’s suggestion hung heavy in the air, his words floating about the room.

Tony exhaled, massaging the bride of his nose in stress. “Okay, let’s back it up a sec. If Hydra’s back, or if this is some splinter group resurrecting their work, why show us this? And why now?”.

“Because we’re not ready,” Bella said quietly before she could stop herself.

All eyes fell to her as she straightened herself out. “Think about it. We’ve been pretty comfortable for a while now. Shield’s been reorganising, missions have been routine, and there hasn’t been a major threat since New York. The threats we have faced have all been isolated events. And from what I’ve read, Hydra doesn’t do isolated. They do sleeper programs, decades-long infiltration, systemic decay. That sort of thing”.

Natasha’s voice was quiet. “They wait until you think they’re dead. And then they come back stronger”.

“Cut off one head and two more take its place, or however the saying goes” Bella grimaced.

Tony glanced around the room. “Okay. So let’s say we assume this is legit. Hydra survived, or mutated. What’s the move?”.

“Containment first,” Bruce spoke up. “We need to know the scope before we make any noise. If this is a small operation then surely we can crush it quietly”.

“And if it’s not?” Clint asked gravely.

Steve looked around the room. “Then we remind the world who the Avengers are”.

Bella felt her heart pounding within her chest, though her face remained still and stoic. Tony turned to Bella, “You said one of the crates had a number?”.

She nodded. “0731”.

Bruce typed quickly, the digits echoing as they scrolled across the screen.

“Sounds like an asset code” Tony muttered.

“Or a program,” Steve added.

No results populated immediately. But something stirred deep within Bella’s stomach. She could feel the quiet dread seeping into her gut. Something big was coming. Something dangerous. Tony closed the file, sealing it under their highest encryption protocols.

“I want surveillance on every known Hydra site, defunct or otherwise. Thermal sweeps. Energy signature. Anything. I’ll have JARVIS digging through old SHIELD archives and comparing them to this schematic. We miss nothing”.

The team nodded, even Thor with his usual indifference now visibly tense. And as the team began to disperse, Steve stayed behind. And Bella lingered too.

“You really think it’s them?” He asked, his voice quiet.

“I don’t want to,” She admitted. “But yeah, I do”.

Steve nodded slowly. “Then we stay ahead of it”.

But Bella didn’t answer. Her thoughts weren’t in the war room anymore. They were back on the rooftop. On Loki’s voice in her ear. On the candlelight and that one moment of peace she had let herself believe in a mere few hours prior. And how easily the illusion had shattered.

Chapter Text

Bella sat on the edge of her bed late that night. She was yet to remove her boots, or even her mission gear. Her hands sat pressed flat against her thighs. Across the hall, Abel slept peacefully, none the wiser of the threat that had been discovered that evening. Bella had checked in on him twice. Once after returning from the mission, and then again twenty minutes later.

Loki hadn’t come, not that night.

He had looked at her carefully when they returned. Just long enough for the barest flicker of understanding to pass between them. The rediscovery of Hydra had changed things drastically. And that was it. That was enough. They didn’t need to share words to understand it.

So much of what was shared between them went unspoken now. Earned in glances and shared silences. On their first date on the rooftop that already felt like a distant memory belonging to another life. The rooftop where he had lit candles and conjured soft golden light like a promise. And then her pager had broken it all with a mission that raised the stakes drastically. They hadn’t spoken about their shared conversation since.

By the third day, the mood in Avengers Tower had shifted into something quieter. Everyone moved as though they walked across thin ice. Too much coffee and too few jokes. Steve’s shoulders had set into the tight line he wore when braced for a hit. Natasha had stopped making breakfast, which meant something. Thor was still storm watching on the balcony as though he awaited the All-Father’s guidance. And Tony had stopped singing along to AC/DC when he worked alone in the lab. The Tower had grown loud in its silence.

Bella walked the halls like she always had. Ate meals. Sat in meetings. Trained. Though her muscles never fully uncoiled. It wasn’t fear, not exactly. She had lived through fear. This was the knowing. The mere fact that Hydra had returned. And if they were back, it was almost certain it was only a matter of time before things got worse.

She saw Loki in little ways. A flash of green around a corner. A book left outside her door. The ghost of a smile across the common room when no one else was looking. A steadying glance before she stepped into the numerous briefings that began to fill her days.

And when she finally found him, or rather, when he had let her. It was late, and three days after the mission. Her room had been dark, lit only by the pale moonlight that filtered in through the closed curtains. She hadn’t been surprised when she turned and saw him stood there, half-shadowed by her bookshelf.

She didn’t say anything to him, she simply strode the short distance towards him. Loki did not open his arms, yet Bella fit into them regardless. A silence ensued before either of them spoke.

“It’s not time,” She murmured.

“No,” Loki agreed, his voice low against her hair. “It isn’t”.

“We can’t afford any distractions right now”.

“I know”.

“I still want this,” She added softly, before the ache of it all twisted too sharp within her chest. “I don’t want to go backwards”.

“You aren’t”.

Bella pulled back just enough to look at him then, to search his face. Loki appeared tired too, in a soul-deep way that only war and waiting could have carved into someone. Though his eyes remained soft. No expectation. No pressure. Just her.

“Then what are we doing?” She asked.

He tilted his head, something faint yet fond in the crease of his brow. “We’re exercising what you mortals call patience”.

She huffed, almost a laugh. “You’ve never been patient”.

“Until now I hadn’t cared enough to try”.

Bella smiled then, burying her head deep against his chest. They did not kiss, not that night. There was no time for softness, nor was there any place for it right now. But they stood close enough that felt the first of his breath against her ribs for a long time, and it steadied her.

The next morning came like a reset. The tension didn’t evaporate, but it dulled around the edges. Natasha had cracked a joke over coffee. Clint and Tony bickered over something that didn’t matter. Even Thor had grunted something that resembled approval when Bella had walked into the briefing room that afternoon.

Loki passed her in the hallway later that day. He brushed her shoulder with the back of his hand and did not look back. And Bella smiled.

By the sixth day, the Tower felt marginally much less haunted. No longer quiet, but comfortably loud once more. It had started with Thor, of all people.

Bella was halfway through convincing Abel that frozen waffles counted as real food, and that she wasn’t cooking anything better, when Thor had strode into the common area like a man with a quest and purpose, as he always did. He paused, lifted his chin dramatically, and declared: “Stark. I wish to prepare a meal”.

Tony, who had just burned his tongue on his espresso, blinked blankly. “I’m sorry?”.

“I shall cook. For the good of the household”.

Bella narrowed her eyes almost immediately, she had heard enough tales from Loki about Thor’s disastrous culinary skills to know this could not end well. “No. Absolutely not”.

“I have learned,” Thor said solemnly. “I have watched six instructional scrolls on the Midgardian talking device”.

“I don’t care if you studied under Gordon Ramsay himself, the answer is still no”.

“I will use the fire only in moderation”.

“Fire isn’t even required—”.

“I shall not summon lightning this time”.

“This time!?” Bella shrieked, her eyes wide. Abel giggled to himself.

Tony clapped a firm hand against Thor’s shoulder. “You know what? Go nuts, big guy. Just don’t bow out the power again. I have files open”.

Bella gaped, staring down her brother who could not contain the grin that spread his face.

“I shall prepare a banquet worthy of Valhalla!” Thor thundered, already turning for the kitchen.

Bella pinched the bridge of her nose and muttered, “I think you mean a meal that will have us entering Valhalla”.

From the couch, Izzie glanced up from her tablet. “If he uses the slow cooker again, I’m not eat it”.

“I don’t think he knows what a slow cooker is,” Abel said, stuffing his mouth full of waffles.

“I think he thinks it’s a ceremonial cauldron,” Tony remarked lightly.

“That would explain the lavender explosion last month,” Steve muttered as he entered the room, holding a dossier and appearing as though he had aged three years in the span of one week.

Natasha followed behind him, snagging an apple from the counter and biting into it. “What explosion?”.

Steve gave her a look and laughed. “Exactly”.

And just like that, they were all gathered once more. The old rhythm, though not entirely restored, had begun to inch back toward a sense of normalcy. Everyone in one place once more, without means for alarms or a mission countdown in the background. Bruce had been the next to wander in, blinking as though he had yet to realise it was already noon.

“You’re just in time for Thor’s culinary redemption arc,” Bella said dryly.

Bruce stared, dumbfounded. “He’s cooking again?”.

“Apparently”.

“Should I just go back to the lab?”.

“You missed your chance”.

Natasha leaned against the wall and took another bite of apple, arching an eyebrow. “You look like you haven’t slept all week”.

“I’ve been calibrating the threat matrix”.

Tony perked up then. “How’s it looking, Banner?”.

Bruce gave him a withering look. “Worse”.

Steve sighed, and Bella exhaled slowly. She pressed a hand to her temple. “Great”.

From the kitchen, something exploded. A small, enthusiastic sound, followed by Thor’s cheerful voice booming, “It is intentional”.

“Okay” Izzie grimaced slightly. “So we’re doing chaos today”.

“I think chaos is doing us,” Abel muttered.

Tony looked up from his tablet suddenly, glancing about the room. “Where’s Reindeer Games?”.

Bella kept her tone level. “Library. I think”.

She hadn’t looked up as she said it. She hadn’t needed to. Loki had spent most of the last few days keeping to the fringes. Present but subtle. He observed more than he participated of late, often retreating into study and silence. It was better that way, safer for the both of them. Still, Bella could feel him in the walls. The way his magic radiated from his very soul.

Steve cleared his throat then, glancing about the room. “It’s good to see everyone again. Like this”.

“You mean upright?” Natasha asked.

“I mean… together”.

Tony gave off a theatrical sigh. “Cap, if you’re gonna turn this into a kumbaya moment, I’m throwing myself off the balcony”.

Bella rested her chin in her hand, watching them with the kind of exasperated fondness that only came from surviving enough shared trauma to justify intense group therapy. She reached out absently and ran her fingers gently though Abel’s hair, flattening the chaos he had clearly let happen all morning. He grumbled under his breath though didn’t pull away.

A moment later, Bruce retrieved a fire extinguisher from the other side of the room. “Just a precaution”.

Chapter Text

Bella had mastered her exits over the past month, the art of slipping silently and unnoticed from Loki’s chambers. She had gotten good at it, almost too good at it. The time, the soundless latch click, the path of the least creaky floorboards. But it was apparent that on this particular morning, the universe had other plans.

She had just rounded the corner, headed straight towards the elevator. Her hoodie sleeves were pulled over her fingertips, Loki’s scent still clinging to her skin, when—

“Lady Stark!”.

Bella froze. She felt her skin go cold, her body tensing. Thor stood near the corridor junction holding two mugs the size of flowerpots, his expression lit with the full force of someone far too awake for this hour.

“Uh,” Bella managed, blinking hard against the overhead light. “Morning, Thor”.

“I did not know you rose so early,” He boomed, stepping forward. “Is this a training regimen? Or perhaps the young ones have summoned you for breakfast?”.

“Neither,” She said quickly, waving her hand. “Just… couldn’t sleep. You know how it is”.

“Indeed!” He bellowed. “The mind stirs in strange ways during times of tension”.

Thor’s voice echoed through the hallway like a war horn. Bella’s shoulders hunched on instinct. Thor stepped closer then, squinting slightly at her. His nose flared.

“That scent… it’s remarkably Asgardian”.

Bella felt her heart plummet. She smiled, too wide. “Erm— Laundry mix-up”.

Thor tilted his head. “We do not wash garments communally.

“Well, we do now,” She said, already backpedalling. “New policy. Tower-wide. Very progressive”.

“Are you injured, Lady Stark?” He asked suddenly, peering at her bare knees. “You appear… disheveled”.

“What? No. I— this is how I always look before eight”. Bella had begun to sweat profusely. “This is my vibe. Hoodie and shorts. Early-morning existentialism”.

Thor;s brow furrowed. He looked past her, toward Loki’s door. “I had come to see my brother”.

Bella swallowed thickly. “Now’s probably not the best time,” She blurted.

“Why not?”.

“Because—”.

And then, the door opened. Loki appeared wedged in the doorway, shirtless, and with his hair a thoroughly disheveled mess that screamed: I was in bed with someone less that five minutes ago.

He paused when he saw them. His eyes flickered from Thor to Bell. Then back.

“Of course,” He said.

“Brother,” Thor said, beaming. “You are awake”.

“Not by choice”.

Bella pinched the bridge of her nose. “This is a nightmare”.

Loki crossed his arms over his bare chest, entirely too composed for a man caught in the midst of a scandal. “Thor, perhaps a quieter tone—”.

“You have a guest,” Thor said, his eyes sparkling. “I knew it!”.

Bella groaned. “Please don’t make this a thing”.

Thor laughed, clapping his hands. “This is glorious! Are you courting?”.

“No,” Bella said.

“Yes”.

Bella turned to face Loki, glaring at him. “Seriously?”.

He lifted an eyebrow. “We are, are we not?”.

“Not to Thor!” Bella hissed.

“He asked”.

“I was lying”.

“Poorly, might I say”.

Thor looked positively gleeful. Bella wished the earth would swallow her whole. “You are lovers, then?”.

“Oh my God,” Bella whispered to the ceiling. “Kill me. Kill me now”.

“Oh, this is splendid news!” Thor continued, completely disregarding the palpable waves of discomfort radiating from both of them. “When shall I inform the others?”.

“Don’t” Both Bella and Loki said in unison.

Thor paused, his brows furrowing once more. “You wish to keep it secret?”.

“Yes,” Bella hissed. “For now. Please, Thor, I’m begging”.

“Then of course” Thor nodded solemnly. “I shall guard your secret as fiercely as I guard my hammer”.

Bella exhaled. Then Thor spoke again. “Unless someone asks me directly, of course. I am honour bound to speak truthfully”.

Bella turned to Loki once more. “He’s going to tell everyone!”.

Loki appeared vaguely amused. “Not if they don’t ask”.

“They’re going to ask, Loki!”.

“Then… I suggest we prepare for the inevitable”.

“You’re really not helping”.

“I never said I was trying to, love”.

Thor beamed at them both. “This is delightful”.

He turned on his heels, walking away humming. Bella stared after him for a long moment, then she turned back to Loki once more. “So that’s it. We’re exposed. It’s done. It’s over. We have to explain this to everyone”.

Loki leaned against the doorframe, nonchalant and entirely unbothered. “Would you rather we lie”.

“I’d rather we get one full week of peace before the whole tower starts placing bets again”.

Loki stepped closer, lowering his voice. “I’m not ashamed”.

She swallowed. “Neither am I. That’s not the point”.

“I know,” He said gently. “But it will come out. The truth always does. And when it does, let them talk”.

She looked up at him then. Tired, flustered, and already anticipating the fallout. But Loki was calm, and he was right.

“I can’t believe Thor caught me sneaking out”.

“He’s observant”.

“He’s a living, breathing, wrecking ball”.

“You like him”.

“Not right now, I don’t”.

He smirked, and for a moment, the panic faded. Then: “I have to tell Abel, before Thor does”.

⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

Bella hadn’t ran, not really. But her feet had carried her much faster than she had intended. Thor had disappeared in the direction of the kitchen, no doubt plotting how best to loudly not tell anyone what he had just witnessed. Bella didn’t trust his version as far as she could throw Mjolnir. Which meant she had a matter of minutes, perhaps even less.

But this wasn’t about her. This was about Abel. She couldn’t let him hear it from Thor. Or Izzie. Or, God forbid, Tony.

By the time she reached their floor, she was moving on muscle memory. Their hallway was dim and quiet. The kind of silence that only the earliest of mornings could conjure. She tapped on Abel’s door twice before easing it open.

Abel was sitting cross legged at the head of his bed. His hair was a mess, with sleep still clinging to his face. He blinked at her once, then again, like he was unsure whether or not she was real.

“Hey,” She said softly, stepping inside and closing the door behind her. “Did I wake you?”.

“No,” He said immediately, his voice the sound of a child that had been lost in sleep until thirty seconds prior. “What time is it?”.

“Early”.

“Is everything okay?” He asked, rubbing his eyes and pushing the blanket from his legs.

Bella crossed the room carefully, sitting at the edge of his bed. For a moment, she simply looked at him. All knees and elbows, and growing far too fast, but still her boy. Her reason for everything.

“I need to talk to you about something,” She said quietly.

That gained his attention. His posture straightened, even though he appeared confused.

“It’s not bad,” She added quickly. “I mean, not dangerous. You’re not in trouble. I’m not in trouble. Nobody’s in trouble. I just— I didn’t want you to hear this from someone else. Especially not from Thor”.

Bella exhaled, rubbing the base of her neck. Abel’s brows knit together curiously. “What did Thor do?”

“Nothing. Not really. Just… Caught me leaving Loki’s room this morning”.

Abel blinked, and Bella waited. She let it land. Let him catch up. He had seen it coming, at Christmas, of course he had. But it had been weeks, he thought perhaps it had fizzled out, whatever it had been.

“You and Loki…?” He said slowly.

Bella nodded, the air thick. “We’ve been seeing each other. Quietly. For a little while now”.

Abel looked away, his gaze falling to the crumpled duvet in his lap. He wasn’t angry, not visibly at least, but something about his silence made her stomach twist.

“You kissed him,” He said.

“I did”.

“Back at the Christmas party”.

She nodded again. “Yes”.

He didn’t speak for a long moment. She could practically see the thoughts stirring behind his eyes, piecing together everything he hadn’t understood until now. The tension. The strange silences.

“I didn’t plan for it to happen, not this way” She said gently. “It just… did. And I’ve been trying to handle it the right way. And find the right time. But I know this probably feels… sudden. Or wrong. And I didn’t want you finding out from someone else”.

“I’m not a baby anymore, Mom” He muttered quietly.

“I know”.

“I just— It’s weird, okay? It’s weird that it’s him. And that you didn’t say anything”.

“I know” She said again, her voice quieter this time.

“I mean, Loki’s… Loki”.

Bella almost laughed. “Yeah, I noticed.

“I thought you really liked Steve?” Abel said. “He was nicer than Hammer”.

Bella grimaced, but could not help the small grin that graced her face. “I did, and he was. But sometimes, something that looks right doesn’t feel right”.

Abel glanced at her. “And Loki feels right?”.

“I don’t know,” She said honestly. “I think so. I just wanted to be sure before bringing you into it”.

Abel looked down. He picked at a loose thread on his blanket, silent again for a while. Bella let him sit with it, she didn’t press any further.

“Does he make you happy?”.

She smiled. Soft, real, and unguarded. “Yeah. He does”.

Abel huffed, still not quite looking at her. “Then I guess it’s okay. Just no more sneaking around, okay?”.

Bella snorted. “Deal”.

“And I don’t want to see anything. That’s disgusting”.

“I promise, you won’t”.

“And if he ever hurts you, I’ll remove his access to JARVIS and lock him in the elevator”.

“That’s… That’s valid”.

He leaned sideways until his shoulder hit her arm, then rested his head there, still feigning nonchalance. Bella simply leaned into him, an arm wrapping around his frame.

“You’re still my number one” She whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to his hairline.

“I know”.

Chapter Text

Despite Thor’s loudness, Bella and Loki’s relationship had yet to become a Tower-wide scandal. Though the shift in the air would be unmistakable. And despite the God of Thunder’s vow of silence, Thor had somehow managed to ‘accidentally’ let it slip to Bruce Banner in the hallway that morning.

Bruce, to his credit, kept quiet. He said nothing. He blinked once as he processed it, then nodded and returned to his coffee. But Natasha noticed, and when Bruce didn’t immediately spill the beans during the short hour they sat alone together in the common area, she filed that way like a weapon waiting to be sharpened.

By lunch, Clint had emerged from the vents and casually asked Bella: “Are you and Prince Hissyface really fucking on the side?”.

Bella grimaced at his choice of words, recoiling slightly. “Have you been spying on me?”.

“Spying is such a strong word” He shrugged. “I prefer ‘ambient awareness’”.

Bella snorted. “Go ambiently die in a vent, Barton”.

“Noted” He said, already disappearing yet again.

As the day continued, it became all the more apparent that Tony did not know as of yet. Or at least, she thought he didn’t. Therefore, Bella had spent most of the afternoon dodging any rooms he might be inside. The lab. The lounge. The main kitchen. The workshop.

She ran into Pepper in the hallway once, who gave her a look. Not judgemental, merely knowing. “I liked Steve, but Loki has far better posture. Carries himself better. Must be the royalty”.

Bella spluttered, dumfounded.

“Relax,” Pepper smirked. “Tony doesn’t know yet”.

“You’re sure?”.

“Oh, please. You think if he knew, there wouldn’t already be an emergency, tower-wide alert? You’d have heard him screaming by now. ‘MY SISTER IS DATING A WAR CRIMINAL’”.

Bella laughed at Pepper's surprising impression of her brother.

“Enjoy the calm before the storm, Bells”.

Isabella Stark did not enjoy the calm. By the time the team dinner had rolled around that evening, she was on edge. Even Abel was giving her that too-casual tween side eye he often used when he was loring something over her head and waiting to cash in.

“You okay?” She whispered to him as they set the table.

“I’m fine, Mom” He muttered, straightening the cutlery so that it aligned with the placemats Bella had placed.

“You’re mad”.

“I’m not mad, Mom”.

“You’re being weird”.

“You’re being weirder”.

She sighed. “Look, I know this is awkward—”.

“Mom” Abel said, looking up at her. “I said it’s fine. I’m fine. You don’t have to keep checking”.

Bella stared at him, her forehead creasing slightly.

Abel shrugged. “You look happier, if it’s any consolation. Now that people know”.

“You’re growing up too fast”.

“Yeah,” Abel said. “That’s your fault, not mine”.

Dinner was as chaotic as ever. Tony had taken his usual seat at the head of the table, with Bella sat directly opposite him. To her right, sat Abel. To her left, sat Loki.

Thor had brought something questionable to the table, claiming it was taken from his private stash. Izzie had dared Clint to eat it, who hadn’t thought twice before doing so. He regretted it immediately. Natasha confiscated it, and Thor desperately tried to get it back. Tony was beside himself with laughter at the scene, even high fiving Izzie. Steve had muttered something about basic food safety. Bella had almost relaxed. Almost.

Tony stood up at the end of the meal, and Bella cursed beneath her breath. Loki looked to her, her head buried in her hands. She should have seen this coming. If there was one thing her brother did best, it was extravagance.

Tony raised his whisky glass. “Out of curiosity” His voice beckoned, and Bella shut her eyes tight. “Who else here also knows that my little sister is sleeping with the God of Mischief?”.

Bella did not look up. “Thor” She hissed beneath her breath.

“Traitor” Loki murmured, eyeing his brother from across the table.

“I did not tell Stark!” Thor exclaimed, his mouth full with whatever hellfruit he had managed to smuggle into the meal. “I merely informed Bruce in confidence—”.

“Which is exactly what we told you not to do” Bella cut in sharply.

Tony pointed. “See!? I knew it!”. He turned to Pepper. “You said it wasn’t true”.

“No, I said you weren’t ready to hear it”.

Tony cleared his throat. “Please, if this is the part where you issue threats, Stark, please do get it over with”.

“Oh no” Tony remarked, his arms folded firmly across his chest. “I’m saving the threats for something much more cinematic. Maybe next time we’re under siege. Really up the drama”.

“Perfect” Bella muttered. “Just, perfect”.

“I do have questions, though”.

“Of course you do”.

Tony tapped the table, eyeing up his sister carefully. Bella swallowed, grimacing slightly. “Number one. Was this happening while you and Rogers were still together?”.

Bella winced. “You know this, Tony. We kissed at the party, and I broke up with Steve on boxing day”.

Steve raised his brows, pursing his lips slightly. Clearly ecstatic that his tainted relationship with Bella was being aired out in front of the entire team.

“That’s not a no, Bella”.

“Well, it’s the best you’re gonna get”.

Tony narrowed his eyes, almost glowering at her. Loki remained perfectly still at her side, almost regal in his calmness, though still slightly smug. Which Bella deemed the worst possible attitude he could have chosen to deal with the situation at hand.

“And number two,” Tony continued. “How long were you planning on hiding it?”.

“Until we died?” Bella offered with a slight shrug.

And Tony snorted. Not quite a laugh, but enough to break the ever growing tension that had consumed the room. “Yeah, that figures”.

The siblings shared a look for a moment. Jokes aside. Then: “I’m not mad. Just… slightly horrified. But I’m sure that’ll fade, in time”.

Bella let out a breath she was not aware she held. “You’re sure”.

“No,” Tony admitted. “But if you’re happy, then… I’ll figure it out. At least it’s not Hammer”.

“Oh, I’m never living that down am I?” Bella huffed, slumping back in her chair. Tony laughed, shaking his head.

“If he hadn’t tried to kill me, you’d be married by now”.

“Thank you, Tony,” Bella grimaced. “Always so full of love and support, aren’t you?”.

“Just the best,” Tony smiled. And Bella returned it. “But seriously, Bells, one wrong move and I’m blasting his ass back to Asgard”.

“Duly noted,” Loki said. “I’ll pack lightly”.

And somehow, despite the mess and overwhelming chaos of it all, Bella exhaled finally. She looked towards Loki, only to find his gaze already intent upon her. They smiled. It was real. And the world, miraculously, still stood.

Chapter Text

Isabella Stark smiled as the warmth of the seeping sunlight reached her face. The curtains were drawn, yet the sun seemed to have crept into the dark room nonetheless. She smiled into her pillow as though she was fourteen once more, a giddy child on Christmas morning.

She first registered his cold, pale arms wrapped tentatively around her torso, his legs entangled with hers. The grounding weight of another person sleeping beside you, and the startling realisation that she no longer had to pretend the night hadn’t happened come morning. No more sneaking out. No more hiding if someone had knocked too early. Just… this.

Loki’s breath was steady and soft against the curve of her shoulder. His body temperature ran colder than most, something she had noticed in those earlier nights when he had crept into her bed after the Tower had long gone still.

She blinked slowly, not daring to move in fear she might disturb his sleep. She turned, only slightly, and studied the way his dark hair fell loose over his brow, how his lips parted slightly as he slept. He looked peaceful, safe.

Bella allowed herself one selfish minute, or perhaps it was two, of merely lying there in the silence. She smiled, knowing that not a soul in that building could claim they did not know. They did. And Tony hadn’t killed him. Steve had reacted… calmly. Abel was fine. She smiled once more, revelling in the small victories life handed to her.

Loki stirred then. One hand flexed against her stomach before curling again. His nose brushed her shoulder.

“You’re awake,” He murmured, voice low and thick with sleep.

“So are you”.

“I was pretending, darling”.

“Poorly”.

He huffed, a tired laugh. “This is nice”.

“You say that now. Wait ‘til we walk into the kitchen”.

He didn’t flinch. “Let them look”.

“I think they will. A lot”.

“Let them”. He shifted, pressing a gentle kiss to the base of her neck. “I have nothing to be ashamed of”.

Bella turned slowly beneath arm until she faced him. “Even after the interrogation last night?”.

“Especially after the interrogation”.

Bella studied him for a long second. “You only looked slightly smug. I think that helped your case”.

“I’ll contain my ego for your brother's sake” Loki said quietly. “Temporarily”.

“You’re generous”.

“I do try, darling”.

She smiled gently, nudging his thigh with her knee beneath the silky covers. “I am serious though. It’s nice, not having to pretend”.

He nodded slowly. “Do you feel lighter?”.

Bella hesitated. “I don’t know if I’d call it lighter. Maybe just… less like I’m waiting for the floor to drop”.

“That’s something”.

“Yeah. It is”.

They lay still like that for a while, noses almost brushing, warmth shared between them like a secret they no longer needed to whisper. Eventually, the distant clang of a pan in the kitchen broke the silence.

“Clint’s up” Bella groaned.

“Thor’s probably trying to make coffee again,” Loki muttered.

“God help us”.

“Would you like to stay here? Avoid the horror of communal breakfast?”.

“I would love to, but if we don’t show up, they’ll think you kidnapped me”.

Loki paused, the edges of his lips twitching. “Tempting”.

Bella laughed, swatting at him. “Down, Asgard”.

Albeit reluctantly, the pair slipped from Bella’s bed. Loki moved around the room with his usual quiet grace, tugging a shirt over his head while Bella rummaged through her own dresser for clean clothes. There was no rush, nor panic. Just the calm of the inevitable. They were out in the open. The hard part was over.

Bella brushed her teeth while Loki lounged across the bottom edge of her bed, idly flipping through her copy of ‘Wuthering Heights’. He twisted his face at its contents.

“Do you enjoy this?” He called toward the bathroom.

“It’s a classic”.

“It’s utterly deranged”.

“And you’re not?”.

“I’m refined. There’s a difference”.

Bella rolled her eyes, pulling a shirt over her head. She paused by the bathroom door.

“You ready?” she asked, almost timidly.

Loki looked up at her with a small, wry smile as he put the book down. “For them? Never. But you? Always”.

Downstairs, Clint had perched against the island counter, attempting to balance three pieces of toast on his forehead, a dare from the children. Thor was poking at something steaming in the microwave that appeared as though it might explode any second. Izzie and Abel laughed at Clint between bickering over the last of the cereal. Bruce looked as though he hadn’t slept the night prior and Natasha sipped her coffee studiously, almost awaiting the chaos that would undoubtedly ensue.

Loki was the first to enter the room, composed as ever. The room quieted then, just slightly. And Bella followed, her hands buried deep into the pockets of her jeans.

“Well, well, well. Look who’s alive” Clint remarked mockingly, immediately sitting upright. “Have fun last night, you two?”.

Bella’s cheeks flushed as she glared towards her old friend. Her jaw tightened. Loki’s hand found hers.

Thor emerged then, his large form appearing through the smoke of the microwave like some form of warlord. He beamed. “Behold! The lovers emerge!”.

“Oh God,” Bella muttered, dragging her palm across her face.

Loki glanced sideways at Bella, a hint of a smirk playing against his lips. “This is our life now, isn’t it?”.

Bella gave him a flat look. “This is mild. Just wait”.

Bella pushed past the counter, taking her usual mug from the cupboard and pouring herself her morning coffee as she had every day prior to this one. As though nothing had changed, and she hadn’t just declared a relationship with a literal Norse god in front of a room full of enhanced beings or assassins.

Tony had strolled in five minutes later, looking around the room as though he calculated trajectories. He saw Loki, whose arm was wrapped lightly around Bella’s waist.

“PDA!” He declared. “I hate it”.

Bella smirked behind her cup. “Better get used to it, Stark”.

Tony grunted in response. He flipped Clint off with the grace of a man who had done as much daily since 2012, and then left with his own coffee, without a word.

For what had felt like the first time in months, Bella did not feel as though she was bracing for sudden impact. She didn’t have to look over her shoulder anymore or wonder who had spotted her or Loki sneaking about the Tower in the early hours of the morning.

Bella and Loki sat on the couch after breakfast, amongst the team. They shared the corner seat, their knees bumping gently. Nothing big. Nothing dramatic. Just them, out in the open. And when she leaned her head briefly against his shoulder, not a thing was said. And that silence was all the permission they needed.