Catch Me If I Fall (PJO/Avengers Crossover)

74

Percy didn't move a muscle for a moment, just taking in Loki's features. The small smile, the twinkling eyes, the hands outstretched for an embrace. He couldn't believe his eyes, nor could he even begin to comprehend how he was truly feeling- he wasn't sure he could do anything but stare.

He lifted up the plastic bottle he'd been drinking water from and threw it straight at Loki's forehead. It bounced straight off, earning a grimace from Loki.

"Thanks for that. I-" he groaned, but was cut off when Percy stepped forward and kissed him passionately, his arms around him, never planning to let go. Fireworks went off in Percy's stomach, suddenly realising that Loki was real. He wasn't a projection, wasn't a trick; he was alive. When they stopped kissing, they were nose to nose, and Percy didn't open his eyes, for they were already producing tears that were threatening to spill.

"Don't you dare leave me like that ever again," he said softly, his voice shaking the way it did when he was going to cry.

"I swear, I won't," he replied, so quiet that Percy probably wouldn't have heard if he wasn't a god. "I was so worried about you. I thought you were-" his voice caught.

"I thought the same about you," Percy backed away to get a better look at his lover- husband, now. Nothing felt real anymore, but something about Loki's touch made everything that much more vibrant and so much more bearable. Something told Percy that Loki knew about all the people that Percy had lost, because no more words were exchanged between them. Just a hug, and Percy was thankful for it. For a few moments, he could pretend that nothing was amiss, that his family was safe, that Wanda was safe, that everything was so much less complex than it truly was. He could pretend.

*

"So... you and Loki, huh?" Natasha grinned at Percy as he loaded a few more boxes of the stuff in his room into his car, rolling his eyes and smiling back.

"What, did you bet on it or something?" He looked at her, then lost his smile when Natasha raised her eyebrows in confirmation. "Oh gods, you did, didn't you?"

"Thor and Steve were the only ones who were really denying it," she said. "The rest of us all betted on it. To be honest, I forgot all about it until Clint cleared his throat and told everyone to pay up this morning after we spotted you both watching a movie the night before."

"Loki will be absolutely furious if he knows about this, you know," Percy warned, beginning to smile again.

"Furious about what?" Speak of the devil, Loki was now helping Percy put the boxes in the car after giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies," he winked, closing the rear of the car when he was done. Natasha smiled.

"I'll leave you both to it," she turned on her heel. Percy sighed.

"Well, I have to say, I'm quite paranoid now," Loki told him with a grin, taking his hand. They'd been touching each other a lot more now, trying to reassure themselves the other was still there. That they hadn't been snapped away. There was always a small thought in the back of Percy's head that maybe Loki was gone and this was all a dream. Or, worse, he or Loki could be snapped away any second, never to come back. It frightened him immensely.

"It was a joke, don't worry about it," Percy kissed him again, even though they were both smiling a little bit too much to do it properly. "Natasha just explained the team made a bet on us a few years back and they'd forgotten about it until this morning."