Archive of Our Own

Jane Foster was a sweet woman. It was a conclusion Loki had come to some years ago - sweet, intelligent, entertaining, and very good for his brother.

When Thor had first wanted to introduce her as his girlfriend, Loki hadn’t been anticipating much. Thor had been talking about her with stars in his eyes and Loki had been half expecting a gold digger who’d caught whiff of the Odinson fortune. After all, why else would anyone date Thor voluntarily?

But what he’d found was nothing like he imagined. Jane was... smart, stubborn, nice. He’d actually liked her, which had surprised Loki. He even found himself spending more time with Thor; unable to say no when Jane started to invite him over for dinner every few months.

It was his growing fondness for her that made Loki agree to help Thor pick out an engagement ring when he’d asked. It was also why he hadn’t hung up on his brother immediately when Thor had called him to excitedly announce their engagement. He’d phoned at some god awful time in the morning a week after purchasing the ring and while Loki had congratulated him, he had still hung up the phone and gone back to sleep moments later.

Loki had thought that would be the end of it. He wouldn’t have to worry about the wedding beyond marking a place in his calendar and listening to the chatter that would spring up over their frequent dinners. When Thor had asked him to be a groomsman it had been unexpected and awkward and rather impossible to refuse.

It also meant being unable to avoid the bachelor party that would come with it.

He knew Thor and his rambunctious friends far too well and he knew what such a night would entail. He also knew that the drunker they became the more vulgar, rude and offensive they would be. And Loki wasn’t entirely talking about their treatment of women. There was a good reason why he hadn’t had much to do with his brother for quite a few years.

Still, he’d resolved himself to suffering through it and had spent the months of their engagement dreading the eventual invite.

It was just over two months before the wedding, when he’d been attending another dinner with the couple that the most unexpected had happened.

They’d just finished eating and were sitting at the table sipping wine when Jane had remarked, “I was disappointed to hear you couldn’t go to the bachelor party, Loki. I was hoping you’d keep him from getting too intoxicated.”

She was smiling and teasing them both, but Loki had just frowned at her, burying the sting of hurt down deep. It really shouldn’t have mattered, but... “I didn’t know it had already happened.”

He looked over at Thor who was frowning with as much confusion as him. “I was told you didn’t want to attend?”

Ah, Loki thought, already having a fairly good idea of what had occured and unable to stop a hint of his bitterness from seeping through. “Who was in charge of it?”

“Volstagg and Sif,” Thor answered, confusion being replaced with shock and horror. “I can’t imagine-”

“Sif relayed my answer, I take it?” Loki queried, leaning back in his chair and feeling irritation quickly drown out the majority of his hurt. He knew he shouldn’t be surprised that Thor took Sif’s words at face value - he always had been oblivious to her spite - but it didn’t mean Loki didn’t feel angered by it. “What were her exact words on my refusal?”

Thor shifted awkwardly in his chair and stayed silent. Jane was the one who eventually pressed him, “Thor?”

“She, erm, said that you did not wish to be surrounded by items and people that weren’t to your taste.” His eyes were wide and sorrowful. “I knew you weren’t fond of my friends when they were drinking so I didn’t question it. I’m sorry, Loki.”

Loki gritted his teeth, but not only had he noticed the part that had flown high over Thor’s head, Jane had too. “Something tells me, Thor,” and she sounded quietly furious. “That it had a lot less to do with men being men and rather Loki being surrounded by men talking about women.”

“But why would Loki care-”

“I wouldn’t,” Loki answered stiffly, “but Sif doesn’t like me and takes great pleasure in mocking my sexuality, as you cannot possibly have missed over these many years, Thor.”

“Thor?” Jane demanded, making him shift in his seat again.

“Uh... I...”

“Thor? Does this have precedence?”

Thor muttered something and Loki vaguely heard ‘high school’ in it. Loki, far from feeling generous towards his brother at the moment, crossed his arms and told Jane, “I was rather the punching bag, the ‘weird little queer who had no friends’. Thor’s friends took great pleasure in tormenting me the moment Thor’s back was turned or he was out of earshot.” Loki smiled tightly. “Sif in particular loved spreading rumours over who I might be crushing on from one week to the next.”

The fact that Sif had inadvertently gained him his first boyfriend was something he still refused to see as any kind of silver lining for her viciousness. He had punched Thor once for daring to imply it.

“They were just kids, Loki,” Thor tried, beseeching him to listen.

“No, they were bullies,” Jane interrupted fiercely, looking as if she was mentally eviscerating them. “Did they ever apologise for what they did to Loki?”

Thor remained silent and averted his eyes; Jane looked to Loki, searching him for an answer. Loki gave a one shouldered shrug. “Fandral did.”

Fandral had also come out, privately, to him as bisexual and they’d had a few trysts in college closets but, that was neither here nor there. Fandral had a nice enough girlfriend now and Loki had never been particularly interested in Fandral outside of small, enclosed spaces.

“I cannot believe you haven’t said something about this Thor,” Jane told him, sounding horrified. “This is your brother.”

Thor only seemed to sink further in his chair, looking seven shades of guilty. Loki was honestly impressed at Jane’s ability to do it. Loki had tried for years to scream, hit and shake sense into him with little avail; it was why Loki had only taken to seeing Thor at family get-togethers until Jane had come along.

“Loki, I am so sorry,” she told him, looking genuinely guilty and apologetic for something she hadn’t done or had any part in.

He just smiled at her. “You didn’t do anything, Jane.” He pushed away from his seat, telling her, “But I think I’ll call it a night.”

“Of course,” she agreed, standing up and walking him to the door. Thor had tried to do the same but the glare she shot him made Thor sink back down in his chair and mutter a goodbye. When he reached the door, Jane leant up and placed a kiss to his cheek, surprising him. “I’ll fix this, Loki.”

He raised his eyebrows. “I rather thought rendering Thor to his current state of pathetic was more than enough.”

Jane sent him a withering look but he just smirked at her before leaving her to rip further holes through his brother with her disappointed fury.

Loki hadn’t been lying when he said that was enough to satisfy him. He’d been dealing with thinly veiled insults and outright offensive language from Thor’s friends for most of his life, it rolled off his back now. Their continued vindictiveness had also allowed him to avoid a bachelor party he hadn’t wished to experience. It wasn’t great, but it wasn’t the worst thing that had happened to him either.

He’d expected to receive a large apology from Thor the next day (which he did), but he hadn’t expected anything else. He certainly hadn’t been prepared for a phone call from a woman he’d never met.

She introduced herself as Darcy, confirmed he was Thor’s brother and then asked, “So, cupcakes or a giant cake?” without giving him any further details.

He'd blinked a few times, tried to make any logical connection to what she was on about before eventually giving in and asking, “Pardon?”

“Bachelorette party, Jane Foster; cake or cupcakes?”

“Pardon?”

“Jane said Thor’s friends are dicks, and hello, I was telling her that from the start,” she began to ramble. “She said that they didn’t let you attend his party and then we said that you should attend hers. Jane also kept asking me ‘are you sure you can do this by yourself?’ and I told her of course but now I’m thinking, how much better would it be having a gay guy help me set up a bachelorette party?”

“What-”

“And okay, I know that’s stereotyping and that’s cool if you aren’t like, the kind of gay guy who wants to organise parties, but I’m still telling people I’m rocking this thing because I’ve got you helping me. So. Cupcakes? Cake? What do you think about this? I was thinking about showing up at some of the places and taste testing the food. I also have to buy the penis straws. Do you think I should get the multi-colour pack or just the single purple ones?”

“I, uh, excuse me a moment.”

“Er. Kay. But there is like, a deadline on this.”

Loki had murmured something, not even a hundred percent sure what before ending the call. He stared at his phone for a long moment before he dialled Jane’s number. She answered, surprised but happy, “Loki? Hey.”

“Why is my cell number in the possession of a woman named Darcy?”

There was silence on the line before Jane let out a soft curse, followed by, “She got your number from my phone.”

“That doesn’t answer my-”

“I’m sorry, Loki. I meant to call you sooner.” She interrupted, “I’ve been thinking and I would be delighted if you could attend and help plan my bachelorette party for next month.”

Loki felt his mind stutter to a stop and his thoughts went completely blank for a long moment. He’d known it was what Darcy was talking about, but he still hadn’t quite believed it. He knew he was repeating himself, but he found few other words could express his confusion so succinctly, “Pardon?”

“You’re part of the bridal party, and I want you to be a part of my bachelorette party.”

“Because I wasn’t involved in the bachelor party?”

“Because I like you. I would also like to have you be there to keep Darcy from doing something too embarrassing or drastic. I trust you to make it a lovely night, and I’d love to be able to share it with you.”

Loki felt... very torn all of a sudden.

He hadn’t wanted to be a part of the bachelor party and had been happy to wipe his hands of it beyond holding his irritation over Thor’s head at every available opportunity. But Jane sounded so... genuine, so hopeful that he would help and attend and, well, Loki liked her. He also appreciated what she’d done from the moment she’d found out what had happened to him, not only recently, but years earlier.

He still tried to protest, even if only weakly, “It’s unorthodox. And what about the other women attending? What if they’re uncomfortable?”

“I’ll talk to them, but I’m certain they’ll be fine. Please, Loki?” Her next words were soft. “I’d really like to have you there.”

Loki found himself folding. He found himself far too touched by her inclusion and far too fond to be able to disappoint her. Loki sighed and admitted his defeat by asking, “When is it?”

“Four weeks,” she answered promptly and he brought up a hand to pinch his nose. How was this his life? How?

“I’ll see what I can do about reigning in Darcy.”

“Thank you,” Jane told him, heartfelt and excited and replying to a lot more than what he’d actually said. Loki just nodded at nothing and no one before bidding her goodbye.

He closed his eyes for a long moment after hanging up the phone and wondered just what he was getting himself into. He still made himself message Darcy with answers to all the questions that she’d posed in their brief phone call. When she only called him back to ask more, Loki had to wonder if he would have been better off suffering through the bachelor party instead.

It turned out though, that while entirely unintentional and much to his surprise, Loki actually found himself enjoying the days he spent planning the party.

Darcy was incredibly amusing, wickedly sarcastic and very much in need of someone to keep her from mortifying Jane too thoroughly. He also got to know the other women in Jane’s life; most of them were scientists or professors but all of them were lovely and enthusiastic about his involvement in the evening.

There were only ten people attending in total and that included Jane, Darcy and himself. Loki found he was even growing faintly excited as the night drew near. He was arriving early with some of the other women to set up the function room as, despite the wealth that would be at her disposal when she became Mrs Odinson, Jane refused to spend a great deal of money on it. Loki had been faintly amused, but hadn’t argued about the budget Jane and Darcy had put in place long before he’d been dragged into the situation.

He’d been chatting with everyone as they set everything up, laughing over some of the more ridiculous stories the women had told of their own bachelorette parties. It was when they had finished and Loki was leaning against the private bar and sipping from a margarita that Darcy and Jane had arrived.

Jane looked embarrassed and was fiddling with her bride-to-be sash while everyone had let out a cheer and flocked around her. It didn’t take long from there for the night to come into full swing. While there were a few games befitting of a bachelorette party (and far too many penis shaped items) for the most part, it was just about music, dancing, drinking and socialising. It was far more to Loki’s tastes than what Fandral had relayed to him about the bachelor party. He liked it, he was having fun.

Jane had come over to him an hour into the party with a wide grin. “Thank you, Loki. It’s lovely.”

Loki had shrugged. “You should thank Darcy, I merely oversaw her decisions.” He smirked. “I’m the sole reason you aren’t wearing a penis veil.”

Jane winced before dryly saying, “Thanks.” She then flicked her eyes over him. “You look very nice.”

He smirked. He was wearing one of his favourite suits; a three piece black outfit that was tailored for him. “Yes, I do.” Jane rolled her eyes and lightly hit him. He just chuckled before telling her honestly, “You look lovely as well.”

“I’m really glad you’re here,” she told him. “I’m-”

She was interrupted before she could finish when Darcy called her name. She turned to look over her shoulder and Loki did the same. His eyes widened at seeing Darcy practically bouncing on her heels and smiling incredibly smugly. That wasn’t the main reason for his reaction; the fireman at her side was the problem. He had a small smirk curling his mouth that was surrounded by a trimmed, stylish goatee. His eyes were chocolate brown and full of wicked mischief. He was gorgeous and Loki knew exactly what Darcy had hired him for.

Shit, Loki thought, his eyes travelling over the man’s temporarily clothed body. This could be a problem.

“Darcy? What's going on?” Jane asked.

“I’m supposed to do an inspection,” the fireman told them, never once losing his grin.

Darcy had a hand on the man’s arm and was looking so proud of herself. “His name’s Tony. Jane, Loki, you should totally come sit down with us. We don’t want to be in the way when he inspects things.”

“Darcy,” Jane hissed, but before she could offer up any further protests, the rest of the woman had come over and were herding her and Loki over to the lounges in the centre of the room. They’d set up a makeshift stage while he’d been distracted and talking. How could he have been so oblivious?

The man, Tony, was striking up teasing conversations with any of the women who got close to him and his voice had a smug arrogance that Loki was instantly attracted to. The man practically personified Loki’s preferred type and Loki was torn between wanting to leave the room and avoid the whole thing, and hoping that he put on a good show.

“And what about you, Loki?” Loki startled when he realised the man was talking to him. He glanced over at Tony and found those sharp eyes already locked on his own. His smile was still relaxed and easy as he asked, “Do you have anything that I need to inspect?”

Loki swallowed and his eyes travelled over the other man before he could stop himself. When he brought his gaze back to Tony’s, the man’s smirk had only spread a little wider. Loki cleared his throat and wished he hadn’t drunk so many margaritas. He wasn’t drunk, but he sure felt flushed.

“I thought that was the question you asked the bride-to-be?” He finally managed.

“Oh, I’m equal opportunity.” Tony told him, winking. “Anyone can have an inspection.”

All part of the show, Loki reminded himself sternly if only so he wouldn’t do something embarrassing like flirt back.

It was horrendously difficult when the man was everything he’d have picked for an indulgent fantasy or a one-night stand. He was also who Loki would have flirted with and asked out on a date. He would have done that under any other circumstance. But a male stripper at a bachelorette party was not the ideal circumstance for a romantic overture from another guy.

So Loki remained silent and let himself be led to one of the lounge chairs. He sunk into it gratefully and watched as Tony swaggered over to Jane who was opposite Loki. He couldn’t hear what Tony said, but the way she blushed made Loki think it was one more flirtatious suggestion. Darcy was sitting beside her and she smirked and nodded vigorously before saying something in reply.

Whatever it was made Tony laugh, it was rough, wicked and the kind of laugh that drew you in and made you want to chuckle with him and smile back. Tony made his way to the cleared floor space when he finished his conversation with them and Loki saw him pull out a remote from his pocket. Loki recognised it as the control for the sound system. They’d all been fiddling with it throughout the night, repeating and skipping songs as needed. Darcy had obviously included whatever song Tony had chosen into the mix and prepared it for his arrival.

Loki found himself watching in a mixture of anticipation and trepidation. His outfit was the typical yellow uniform worn by firemen and he even had the helmet. It was what was underneath it that had Loki worried.

Tony smirked, trailing his eyes over everyone and Loki swore he lingered on Loki rather than on the bride-to-be that he was actually there for. But before Loki could start to wonder about that, Tony pressed the remote before tossing it over to Darcy who caught it, grinning widely.

The second the music started, Tony had his hands on his hips. There was the brief sound of man singing before the guitar riff started and Tony started to swivel his hips to the music while his hands ran up his chest, catching and pulling on pockets and buttons but never quite opening them.

When the drums came in, he grabbed his helmet and flicked it off, letting it hit the floor. A few of the women cheered and when the beat changed again, it was perfect for undulating his hips and thrusting sinuously on each drumbeat. But he didn’t just move his pelvis; he brought his whole body into the motions, looking like he was enjoying himself as much as his audience.

Damn, Loki thought, his eyes unable to tear away from the beauty of the man’s movements, on wanting to be the hands that were running over Tony’s clothes. Tony had started to pop the buttons of his jacket in time with the music and it made Loki flush at how quickly his thoughts took a dive into the gutter. Tony didn’t even stay in one place as he did it, he was slowly walking around the room and winking at anyone whose eye he caught.

His brunette hair was sticking up, hardly deterred by the helmet and Loki just wanted to stroke it, to see if it was a soft as it looked. Tony did a circle of the lounge not even shying from the hands that came out to stroke his arms through his jacket. He caught Loki’s eyes when he came close, but Loki kept his hands firmly on his legs so he wouldn’t reach out and pull the other man closer or down on top of him.

Tony ended up in front of Jane and was sliding his jacket off his shoulders when the singer began to sing in earnest. Loki vaguely recognised the song, but was mostly distracted as a blue shirt was revealed with red suspenders over the top. The jacket hit the floor and Loki swallowed thickly as his blood pounded. Tony continued to sway and move to the music, his fingers only brushing his shirt like a tease now. He was a tease, and Loki couldn’t bring himself to care, not when it allowed him the chance to watch.

Tony ended up back where he had started and curled his finger under one suspender, running his fingers over it almost thoughtfully before sliding it off his right shoulder. Loki watched it fall, hitting his thigh and bouncing. Loki found his eyes lingering on Tony’s pants and wondering what was underneath them. Loki shifted slightly at the thought and forced his eyes away from the beautiful man and to the women around him.

They were all giggling, smiling and clapping, but Loki hadn’t even heard them over the bass of the song and his intense focus on Tony. Jane was blushing slightly and avoiding looking at Tony who was making the rounds again. His arms were being stroked by the women and when he stopped right in front of Loki, he was forced to look up into that grinning face. Tony bent forward and asked him, “Wanna help me out?”

Tony glanced at his suspender and back at Loki. He received whistles and nudges from the women beside him until Loki had no choice but to reach up and grip the suspender before pushing it off Tony’s shoulder. Tony’s grin showed his teeth and he winked at Loki. “Thanks, babe.”

He moved away then and Loki let out a breath before tipping back the last of his drink. He mourned the distance between him and the bar. He could use another margarita, or several, but he didn’t want to miss a second of the show. When Tony reached Jane again, he placed his fingers under the hem of his shirt and made to offer her the chance to help him out of it.

Jane shook her head vehemently while Darcy raised her hand and Loki could just make out her saying, “I’ll do it!”

Tony laughed but didn’t take her up on the offer, moving away while pulling off his shirt in a slow motion that had Loki following every inch of revealed tanned skin. He’d had his back to them but when he spun around, Loki got a full view of him and had to bite down on his moan of despair. Gorgeous.

He was compact and muscled in all the right ways to make Loki want to push him up against a wall and kiss him. He wanted to see Tony arch against him before gripping his back and pulling him down. Oh he wanted him, and Loki knew with absolute certainty that this man would be the subject of his fantasies later tonight.

It was inescapable.

The shirt hit the floor and the women catcalled while Jane looked like she was trying to smother a laugh. Darcy gave a very impressive wolf-whistle and Tony sent them a smug smirk and a wink before he began walking towards them again. This time, the women were enjoying being able to stroke Tony’s muscled chest and Loki was so damn tempted to join them, but he dug his nails in to his thighs to keep his hands where they were. Tony’s eyes shot down to them when he walked past, likely realising everything Loki wanted to do in that brief glance, but he didn’t stop by Loki again, he moved straight back to Jane.

His dance seemed to focus on her and Loki mourned the inability to watch Tony’s face and eyes, but he did get the pleasure of seeing the defined curve of his bottom when the material of his pants pulled on certain moves. He also got to look at his back and imagine stroking it and whispering against his ear. Tony hadn’t been in front of Jane for very long though when she gestured him to lean down and he did. She spoke into his ear and Tony sent her a very confused look before questioning her for a moment before nodding and stepping back.

Tony gave everyone at the lounge a brief pause and a few seconds of his attention after that as he moved away from Jane. When he reached Loki he went to do what he had with the other women, but when he gained enthusiasm from the crowd, Tony paused, glanced at Loki and then stepped even closer to him.

Loki stiffened when Tony leant forward and over him on the seat. He put his face inches from Loki’s as he placed one hand on the back of the chair. He was sweating slightly, but had a beautiful cologne that was all Loki could smell. He smiled widely, looking as if he was having nothing but fun.

“Hey babe. The bride-to-be doesn’t want her dance. Want to take her place?”

“P-Pardon?”

The only response he got was a full body arch before Tony pulled back and continued his dance, rolling and thrusting his hips, running his hands over himself and through his hair - and all for Loki.

Loki could hear the giggling and cheering from the women but it was as if it was coming from a tunnel, even the music was secondary to the stunning man dancing in front of him, gyrating his hips and making Loki’s throat go dry. He couldn’t look away and his fingers twitched on his legs.

It didn’t seem a natural part of the dance but all of a sudden, Tony bent down again, his mouth pressing near Loki’s ear as he whispered, “You’re allowed to touch me, if you like.”

He pulled back and looked at Loki, his eyes darker than before and far too tempting - too encouraging, until Loki found his hand lifting without his permission. He lightly brushed his fingertips against Tony’s side and Tony smiled. It even looked genuine - looked delighted - and before Loki knew what was happening, Tony had placed one knee beside Loki’s thigh.

“Can I have a seat?” He purred. “For my inspection.”

Loki wasn’t sure what he was doing. He blamed the margaritas as he only gave a jerky nod and shifted to make room. He more firmly grasped Tony’s hip as he was quickly straddled by a gorgeous, half-naked dancer.

Loki had leant back in his chair to further accommodate him and could only watch Tony’s bright eyes and quick smiles as he twisted along to the beat, raising his arms and grinding down against Loki. It made Loki’s other hand come to Tony’s hip. It made his head fill with images of Tony riding his cock and Loki’s mouth fell open on a soundless gasp and before he knew what was happening, before he could try and stop himself, he was growing hard.

He was getting an erection for a dancer who was on top of his lap and could feel it.

Loki knew the moment Tony noticed, he froze and his eyes shot up to look at Loki with surprise. Loki was certain he would have blushed if all the blood hadn’t been draining from his face at the horror of his current situation.

But instead of climbing off him, or getting offended or insulted, Tony just blinked at him and swallowed thickly. His hands came down on either side of Loki’s shoulders and he pressed forward. His smile was back and there was something soft, something interested in his gaze.

“Hey,” he whispered when he was close enough, and that single word was so simple and gentle, so free of any kind of act, that when Tony glanced down at his lips before back at his eyes, Loki knew what he was thinking.

It was also why, when Tony leant down, he tilted up and the next thing Loki knew, they were kissing.

His eyes fell shut and his fingers dug harder into Tony’s hips as the other man brushed their mouths together. Loki felt overly aware of the other man, the scratch of his facial hair, the heat of his thighs bracketing Loki’s own. It was also the weight of him and the smell of his cologne. It had Loki’s heart racing and he moved to press his mouth firmer, to deepen the embrace when the abrupt halt of the music and the loud wolf-whistles of the women made Loki snap open his eyes as Tony jerked back.

Fuck, Loki thought, feeling the crashing wave of reality roll over him. Shit. Fuck.

He’d just kissed a stripper. He’d just kissed a male stripper in public and he was hard. He’d never felt so incredibly embarrassed in his life.

Tony’s eyes were darting over his face but Loki couldn’t begin to know what he was thinking. He didn’t want to know what he was thinking. All part of the fucking act, he swore to himself, he’s unlikely to be hard, you idiot.

Slowly, Tony started to climb off him and Loki knew he had to let him go, knew he had no one to blame but himself for his current condition, but once Loki released his hips, Tony surprised him. He was very carefully blocking Loki from the view of the others and he offered his hand to help Loki up. Loki knew that sitting down wasn’t doing him any favours when it came to hiding his current state, so, without any other choice, he accepted.

Tony though, he spun around instantly, plastering his back to Loki’s front. He let Loki’s hand go if only to reach down and grasp Loki’s hip, tilting him slightly to further hide his reaction from the approaching women. That simple gesture made Loki’s heart race for an entirely different and far warmer reason. He made Loki look like he was part of the act and drew all attention to Tony who was already saying something flippant and teasing to Darcy. It only made Loki want the man in front of him even more and Loki swallowed and said abruptly and loudly, “I need another drink.”

It got him some laughs from the women and some teases, but Loki ignored it and pulled away from Tony’s surprisingly resistant grip to make his way, not to the bar as he’d said, but to the restroom that wasn’t far from it. He just needed to get away. He needed to be alone.

When he stepped inside, Loki went into the first stall he could reach and shut the door. He was the only man in the function hall aside from Tony and he used that to his advantage. He sat down on the closed toilet seat and buried his face in his hand. It didn’t help.

It only brought to mind images of Tony dancing, of watching Tony slide the buttons of his jacket free. It made him think of the feel of the man straddling his hips and kissing him. It made Loki’s arousal throb and only grow harder. He shifted his hand to look down at himself. Could he really...?

Licking his lips, Loki ran a hand along his thigh. I have to go back out there. I can’t stay in here, but I can’t go out there like this.

Loki was already reaching for himself, rubbing a hand over his clothed erection and letting his eyes flutter closed.

When he quickly unbuttoned his pants, he blamed the margaritas as he took himself in hand and stroked himself firmly. His thoughts drifted to Tony, of what would have happened if Tony had followed him to the bathroom, pressed him against a wall and kissed him. If Tony had ground their hips together without anyone watching. If they’d both need to stroke themselves to completion in a bathroom stall just to take the edge off and to hide how attracted to each other they really were.

With those images in mind, it wasn’t difficult to stroke himself to a quick orgasm, biting down on a moan and using toilet paper to catch and clean up the mess.

When he was finished he exited the stall, washed his hands and looked at himself in the mirror. There was a high flush on his cheeks that wouldn’t disappear if he was forced to walk out and into a group of women who would only want to discuss his kiss with Tony. He closed his eyes and swore under his breath. He wasn’t ready for that. He didn’t want to hide in the bathroom though. He just needed some fresh air.

Stepping out of the bathroom, he made his way away from the bachelorette party, skirting the edges of the room and slipping out of the doors. It wasn’t hard to get from there to outside the building. He didn’t even run into anyone and he was beyond thankful for that. He stepped out onto the street and sucked in a breath of cold evening air and felt instantly better for it.

Five minutes. He just needed five minutes and then he could go back in and shrug off the teasing talk of how attractive Tony was. He could discuss Tony objectively once he’d had a moment to recover from... everything.

Leaning back against the side of the building, Loki closed his eyes, not even bothering to open them when he heard someone step out of the building. He'd ignore them and hopefully they'd do the same.

“Hey.” Loki did snap his eyes open at that. He jerked his head to the side and stared at Tony. He looked like he’d only just shrugged on his shirt. His helmet was in the crook of his arm with the jacket thrown over it while his suspenders hung around his pants. “Loki, yeah?”

Loki nodded numbly.

Tony came closer, using his freehand to lightly run through his hair. “So, I, uh, didn’t really get to introduce myself earlier.” His smile was softer than the ones he’d been using in the room during the bulk of his performance. “My name is Tony though, in case you weren’t sure.”

Loki nodded again, before clearing his throat and making himself actually speak to the other man. “Sorry, for uh,” he coughed slightly, refusing to elaborate. Tony seemed to understand though. “But thank you,” he continued, “for helping me.”

“Yeah, no problem. Happens to the best of us, huh?”

Loki smiled tightly and they fell into an awkward silence. Tony was the first to break it. “Look, I don’t... kiss the people I’m performing for, not normally. I just...” His mouth quirked up in small smirk, “well, I really wanted to, with you.”

“So did I,” Loki found himself admitting, before laughing a little ruefully, “obviously.”

Tony’s smile grew a little bigger and this time the silence only lasted a few seconds before Tony asked, “So, um, I was wondering if you would be interested in getting a coffee sometime?”

Loki blinked, shocked. “You’re asking me on a date?”

“Well, yeah.” Tony’s teeth drew over his lower lip nervously, but his eyes were still holding Loki’s, firm and hopeful. “If you’d like to?”

He couldn’t honestly believe it was happening, he really couldn’t. But he’d been attracted to the man from the beginning, he’d wanted to ask him out, he just hadn’t thought he could possibly manage a way to do it – but Tony had done it for him, and the thought made Loki grin. “Yeah, I’d like to.”

Tony’s next smile was absolutely blinding and it made him look even more handsome. He reached into his pocket, almost dropping his helmet and in the end; Loki had to take it from him with a chuckle. He eventually got out his phone and Loki exchanged numbers with him.

When they were done, Loki didn’t know what made him do it, but instead of handing the helmet back, he gently placed it on top of Tony’s head. Tony blinked up at him from underneath his eyelashes and Loki felt attraction rush through him. Tony just smirked at him before using one hand to lightly tip the hat back up a little further.

“I should tell you,” Tony murmured, holding his eyes and speaking a little roughly. “I’m not a stripper. Well, not anymore. I did this as a favour.”

Loki swallowed. “I have no problem with that.”

Rather, Loki liked the idea of fewer people seeing Tony unclothed.

“I still have all the costumes though,” Tony continued and Loki’s breath hitched.

“I have no problem with that either.”

“Good,” Tony told him with a smirk before taking a step backwards. “Then I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“I look forward to it.”

Tony gave him a wink before turning on his heel and walking away. He slipped on the jacket as he did and Loki took the moment to let his eyes trail over Tony’s form. He watched the other until he disappeared around the corner, but it didn’t stop the questions from rolling around in Loki’s mind. What did Tony do if he wasn’t a stripper? What other outfits did he have? Who had asked him for the favour and who did Loki need to thank?

He supposed he would get the answers to those questions when he met up with Tony for coffee.

Grinning, Loki slipped his phone back in his pocket and made his way back inside with an added bounce to his step. He didn’t know how well his date with Tony would go, but Loki was hopeful that just like the bachelorette party, it would go better than he expected.