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The lights in Stark Tower were dim, only the kitchen light illuminating both Thor and Loki. They stood towards each other, the traffic outside filling the empty apartment. The two of them hadn’t been alone together like this since they were children and would sneak off to go into their favorite hiding spot to talk about their days. Loki loved those talks and would reminisce when things got too bad between them because like it or not, they were brothers. They always would be.
“Remember the time we were younger and father was angry at us, so he tried to send us to our room?” Thor started, taking a slow sip of the beer Tony had provided for the both of them before finally falling asleep on the couch downstairs after being up for 72 hours. Loki chuckles, nodding.
“And we snuck out of our rooms to go in the greenhouse and sit under the two missing panels and watch the stars? Yeah, I do,” Loki looks at Thor, his eyebrows furrowed. “I miss that.” He says and watches as Thor tenses up slightly. The two of them, ever since Loki attacked New York, hadn’t been on the best of terms, though they were trying their best to rekindle their relationship. Loki takes a small sip of beer, grimacing at the taste, inciting a hearty laugh from Thor. He never would get used to the taste of American alcohol, and he wishes he had some of the mead from Asgard. “Remember the time I snuck a few meads from the dinner table and brought it with us? You acted as if you had never had a drink before!”
Thor rolls his eyes, a grin forming on his face. Of course, he remembers that; it was the first time he had a drink. Of course, he would never tell Loki that. He wouldn’t want his little brother to feel cooler than him for having a drink before, now would he?
“It was a different brand, Loki. I just wasn’t used to it,” Thor stops for a second, glancing over towards the balcony. He turns to face Loki, who was grabbing another beer for Thor, and grinned. “Want to go back?” He asks, catching Loki by surprise.
“Go back?” He asks, following Thor’s look. He laughs gently, shrugging. “Sure, let’s do it.” He hands the beer bottle to Thor, following closely behind him as they walk to the patio. Loki could feel his heart begin to beat faster as they stepped onto the porch. The last time he had done something like this with Thor, it was the last birthday he celebrated. The argument Loki and Odin had was a big one, and Loki had gone out to the greenhouse by himself and when Thor had gone out there to comfort him, he yelled. He berated Thor for what seemed like hours. Thor left and the two of them never went back out there together.
Thor groans as he sits down on the ground and shoots Loki a sour look when he laughs. “What? Why are you laughing at me?”
“Just because you’re getting old.” Loki snorts, and Thor slaps his arm before laughing himself.
“Well, you’re getting a little old yourself. Thought I might have seen a grey hair or two when you walked past me.”
Loki sucks in a quick breath before nonchalantly placing his hand on his head. Thor chuckles, sipping his second beer. The two of them fall into a comfortable silence, staring out into the New York skyline. Thor takes a deep breath, leaning back against the building. He takes a sip, eyeing Loki who was leaning against the glass window with one leg up.
“Loki, may I ask you something?” Thor questions, watching as Loki swipes his finger down the side of his bottle, the condensation annoying him.
“Hmm?”
“Do you remember when you and Father had the argument on your birthday? What happened?” Loki’s breathe hitches in his throat; he was hoping Thor didn’t remember that night. As they grew older, the two of them diverged into different paths. Loki grew to find Odin and Thor closer than ever and himself ostracized from them and, in turn, all of Asgard.
“Vaguely, yes. What do you remember?” Loki says simply, testing the waters. He looks at Thor but quickly averts his eyes when he looks up at him.
“Well, I remember you and Father fighting in his room. I saw you leave and then I remember going to the greenhouse…” Thor trails off and Loki fights the urge to get up and leave. The last thing he wants is to have a conversation with his brother about the reason the two of them began to diverge. He didn’t want to talk about the terrible things he said to his brother. Loki takes three large gulps of his beer, ignoring the taste because while the beer is one of the worst things he has driven in his time on Midgard, it does get you drunk quickly. He swipes the excess off of his top lip and clears his throat, closing his eyes.
“Okay. Father and I had been arguing about…” Loki takes another deep breath, trying to prepare himself for the conversation he would have with Thor after he finished retelling the story. “You. We were arguing about you and how I had felt that he treated you better than I. It was a petty, petty argument but at the time, it was all I could think about. That my own father treated me differently from my brother. I just wanted a reason. I never got that reason until later.”
Thor looks at Loki curiously. He had known the fight between his Father and Loki had been serious, and that it was the night that put a rift into their relationship, but it being about him?
“Why didn’t you tell me when I went to the greenhouse?”
“Tell you? What would you have done if I had told you our Father, who you have always looked up too, favored you more than I and that I hated it? That I was beginning to despise the both of you?” Loki spits, turning to face Thor, sitting straight up. Thor nods but remains silent. He knows what Loki said was true. His reaction would have caused them to grow further apart than they had.
“Loki, Father loved you like his own son. You do know that now, right?” Thor questions gently, trying to catch Loki's eyes. He ignored the tears he could see falling from his younger brothers eyes.
“Yes, I’m sure deep down I do. But I can’t help but hold onto the resentment I felt. Thor, it was nothing against you. Or Father. I had known from a young age I was different, and I also knew that you were the one who would become king of Asgard. Maybe that’s why I reacted like I did when you came to talk to me.” Loki looks back at Thor wiping the tears off of his face, trying to forget the bitter memory. “I never apologized to you for what I said. Those things, they were just the hurt and anger I felt coming out. I would never hurt you like that on purpose.”
Thor places a hand on Loki's shoulder and pulls him forward, enveloping him in a hug. It took Loki a moment to register it; he hasn't hugged Thor, or anyone for that matter, in years. He slowly wraps his arms around Thor, squeezing tightly. Hugging his brother again, after all of these years, was something that he never thought he’d get to feel again. He pulls away, smiling at Thor, who grins at him, holding his half-empty beer bottle towards Loki.
“To us, for becoming brothers again. May we never part.” Loki clinks his empty onto Thors and chuckles, refilling his before taking a sip. Thor watches in awe as the bottle refills quickly, laughing gleefully. “You have to teach me how to do that.”
"I will," Loki responds, standing up and cracking his back. "I shall get you and I a couple more beers. Considering that was our first topic of conversation, I'm sure we'll be getting into even deeper topics. Thank you, Thor."
"For what?"
"For being my brother. Forever and always."