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thor groaned as his back slammed into the ground, winding him. “okay big guy, that’s enough for today” thor coughs out to the grinning hulk, looking down at him with triumph.
“better let bruce back now” thor felt that his pounding headache was a good enough reason to end their daily sparring session.
after ragnarok, hulk and bruce had come to an agreement, hulk was allowed to spar once a day, on the condition that he had to willingly give the reins back over to bruce once the session was over.
working together to help out the asgardians safely escape hela had strengthened their relationship, leading them to a mutual understanding. bruce would allow hulk to help when people they care about are in danger, but he had to be reasonable when it was time for bruce to come back. they were still getting used to their new relationship, but it was good.
and of course, having thor as the somewhat unconventional but effective peacemaker was a huge help.
hulk’s facial features shifted from triumphant to crestfallen - then to anger. thor, still laying on the ground shifted into a seated position, raising a hand towards hulk in an attempt to nullify the anger he could see rising in his companion.
“is everything okay?” thor asked carefully, not wanting to say the wrong thing that would cause hulk to trigger into a fit of rage.
“no banner.” hulk said simply, his hands curling into fists at his side.
thor’s mind began racing, trying to think of ways he could try and diffuse the situation. hulk - while often hesitant - had never gone back on the agreement between him and bruce before.
thor knew tony would be watching nearby, alerted that hulk wasn’t willingly returning bruce, monitoring if thor was able to handle it. thor picked himself off the ground, determined to prove that hulk was not a danger to them, and that he is willing to compromise if you treat him with the same respect you would bruce.
“you remember your agreement” thor said as a matter of factly, watching hulk closely for any changes in his expression.
“agreement not fair!” hulks fists tightened and his jaw clenched.
“hey, it’s okay buddy” thor took a slow step forward, still reaching his arm towards hulk “if you don’t think it’s fair then that’s okay. you can tell me why”.
hulk’s eyebrows furrowed, he looked conflicted, like he was deciding whether to tell thor or not.
“hulk like being out. banner out all the time” hulk’s eyes dropped to the ground, and he ground his teeth, clearly uncomfortable with revealing this to thor. thor felt his heart sink for hulk. hulk was usually only out for two hours at the most a day. while bruce was out for the rest. thor could see how this could seem unfair to hulk. thor was about to reply when hulk spoke again.
“thor like banner more than hulk”
thor frowned, shocked at what hulk thought. had he really been dismissing hulk’s feelings this much?
“no no no, of course not darling. i love you both-“ hulk waved a hand at thor, dismissing him.
“thor want banner, no hulk” hulk turned his back to thor, and dropped to the floor, causing the room to shake. his arms were crossed and he stubbornly looked straight ahead.
thor sighed, and started to slowly make his way over to where hulk was sat. he tentatively placed his hand gently on hulk’s arm, before sitting down next to him.
they were silent for a while, thor’s thumb was gently rubbing the muscles of hulk’s arm and hulk’s posture had begun to drop as thor’s touch relaxed him.
“bruce has a lot of responsibilities, as a scientist” thor began. “he needs all the time he can get. his experiments are very important-“
“hulk important!” hulk interrupted.
“yes, yes of course you are, love. but bruce’s experiments take a lot of time” thor continued using his thumb to try and soothe his friend.
“just because we need bruce out here for longer, doesn’t mean we like him more. it doesn’t mean i like him more”. thor moved his hand down hulk’s arm, slipping it into hulk’s.
hulk’s angry expression had begun to fade, and he brought his thumb up to cover thor’s hand.
“i am sad to see you go after our sessions, because i enjoy my time with you very much. and i only wish it could be longer, but it cannot.” thor brought hulk’s hand up to kiss the knuckles. “i have room in my heart for both you and bruce. i love you both with all my soul” thor looked hulk directly in the eyes, seeing the way they crinkled slightly at the edges as a slight smile graced his face.
thor felt his heart swell as he felt the love between he and hulk. he felt pride blossom at how well hulk had handle the situation and listened to him.
thor was suddenly pushed to the side, sliding across the floor. “blondie soft!” he heard hulk jeer.
thor laughed heartily, rubbing his arm as he sat up again.
“you’d better let bruce back now, love. if not he might not let you back tomorrow” thor picked up on the slight sadness in hulk’s face again.
“hulk come back tomorrow” hulk said, before he started to transition back into bruce.
thor ran forward and caught bruce as his legs gave way underneath him.
“thor...” bruce said, his arms wrapped tightly around his neck.
“hello” thor replied with a smile, his arms holding him at the waist.
once bruce had steadied himself he gently released thor’s neck, leaving one arm over his shoulder to help him walk to his change of clothes.
“how did it go?” bruce asked after he was changed, poking at the bruises that had begun to flourish on thor’s arms.
“it was good. afterwards i had uh- a little talk with the big fella” thor said, not quite sure how bruce would react.
“really? what was it about?” bruce was visibly nervous. one of his biggest sources of anxiety was not being able to remember anything that happened while he was hulked out, often causing him to panic once he was back. thor rubbed up and down bruce’s arms as a reassurance.
“he was upset he didn’t get as much time out as you did. he thought that I loved you, but not him” thor replied, still feeling the twinge of pain he felt when he first found out.
“oh.” bruce’s eyebrows furrowed, unsure of how to react. “and what did you tell him?”.
thor leaned forward, and pressed a gentle kiss to bruce’s cheek “i told him i have room in my heart for both of you. that i love you both with my soul”. thor said, leaning his forehead against bruce’s.
thor felt bruce’s hands curl around his middle, and he pressed a kiss to thor’s nose. “we really lucked out with you, huh?” thor chuckled and brought his hands to bruce’s face, “it is i who is lucky, for both you and hulk are in my life, and you both make me so, so happy”.