Halfway through the movie, Reese found herself sprawled out on the couch, no longer painfully aware of the space between her and Tom, instead completely entranced by the movie. She found herself watching Loki's expressions whenever he was on screen; his eyes especially, and how his face contorted when he smiled.

"Enjoying it so far?"

Tom's voice made her jump, and when she glanced up at him from her spot, nestled in between two pillows, he was grinning at her.

"Mmh, yeah, I do."

"What do you think of him?"

"Captain America? He's hot."

Tom chuckled and shifted in his seat. "No, I mean Loki."

"I think he tried to kill a bunch of people and take over the Earth."

"Well..."

Reese sat bolt-upright. "Don't try to defend him."

"He's possessed, though, by the Tesseract -- if you saw him in Thor, you'd know he loves his family."

"I don't believe you," Reese told him bluntly. "He's the villain for a reason."

Sugarcoating aside, Reese and Tom ended up watching both Thor movies that night, though they didn't get time to debate about it, because Reese fell asleep around three a.m after the last film. After watching Thor and Jane reunite, she'd let her eyes fall closed, unable to keep them open another second, shrouded in softness and warmth.

She awoke to bright sunlight filtering behind her eyelids... well, that and the loud thump, followed by hissed cursing that sounded in the next room. Reese lifted her head slowly, blinking sleep from her eyes as she looked around, thoroughly confused.

"Damn it!" a voice echoed from the kitchen.

Tentatively, Reese slipped out from under three layers of blankets, shivering as her bare feet made contact with the cold floor. As she moved around the couch, memories of the previous night came flooding back to her, along with a jolt of panic. Her brother didn't know where she was! Oh, God, the wedding! It wasn't today.... Right?

No, she was smarter than that -- Reese knew it would be one more day before the wedding.

"Tom?" A clatter of pots told her he was at the counter and surprised at her entrance.

"Reese! You're awake."

Reese smiled and nodded as she stepped around the corner, hugging herself, suddenly very aware that she was wearing only a tank top. Tom, however, looked messily handsome, she couldn't help thinking. His hair was tousled, and he actually had an apron tied over a crisp collared shirt and pants, and he held a spatula suspended in mid-air.

"Er, yeah. Morning," she stuttered, unsure of what else to say.

"You fell asleep," Tom said, reading her mind. "We watched two too many movies last night -- but at least I proved to you my Loki theory."

"Well, he's cute, I'll give you that." Reese slid onto a chair at the counter, facing the stove Tom was standing in front of. Steam rose in plumes around his head, fogging up the glasses perched on the end of his nose. "Whatcha making?"

"Pancakes. Thought you might be hungry -- I have work today, so I was planning on calling a cab to get you home." He paused in his cooking to turn and smile kindly at Reese. "It'd be completely rude for me to just make myself breakfast and disregard you, after all."

"Wow, thanks," Reese said lamely, then. "But, er, I can get my own cab-"

"Nonsense, it's my fault you're still here, I have to right my mistake."

Before Reese could object, Tom had plopped a plate of steaming hotcakes under her nose, accompanied with a coy smile. "Plus, I make amazing pancakes."

She thanked him again, and dug in, finishing her plate in record time and sheepishly accepting seconds, admitting that were indeed very good.

Tom sat down next to her with his own stack, peeling off his apron and draping it on the back of his chair. "Do you like them?" he asked, reaching for the syrup.

"They're... okay."

Tom touched his chest in mock offense. "Just okay? This is the best batch I've made all week!"

Reese laughed lightly and shook her head, cramming another bite in her mouth as she did so. "They're delicious, Tom, thank you."

He nodded, clearly satisfied with her praise, and leaned over his plate. "I'm sorry we got so caught up last night," he said after a moment's silence, not meeting her eyes. "I did, truly, have a great time, though. You're good company."

"You're not so bad yourself."

"Reese?"

"Mmh?"

"Is it weird... that I feel like I've known you for a long time? Kind of like an old friend."

Reese froze her fork halfway to her mouth, taken aback, then rushed into a smile as she saw Tom's face fall. Shit, he's got the wrong idea!

"Er, no, it's not weird at all -- I feel the same," she assured him.

"Good," Tom chuckled, "Then can we stop being so prim and proper now? Quite frankly, it's kind of exhausting." Eyes twinkling, he stuffed one last bite into his mouth and shoved his chair back before Reese could even swallow. "Okay, I've got to get to work, I'll call a cab, so you'll probably have about ten minutes or so before you have to be downstairs," he grabbed a black jacket of the coat rack and slipped his arms through as he spoke, "I'm terribly sorry to rush off, but I got called in early to do a few last-minute shoots. Please, let's do this again. Maybe not the falling asleep part, but the hanging out part."

"Yeah," was all Reese had time to say before he flashed her one more smile and was moving briskly towards the door. "Tom!" she called just as he was reaching for the doorknob.

"Yeah?"

"You're just leaving me in your apartment? How do you know I'm not a robber or something? That I won't trash your place and leave?"

He smiled again, more playfully this time. "Well, I guess I'll just have to trust you. My life is in your hands, Reese. Please don't destroy my apartment."

The door flew open, and he disappeared around the corner, leaving Reese to stare at the spot he'd been standing in only seconds before, not sure what to think.

***

Reese found, upon stepping out of the cab Tom had so graciously hailed for her, the fee had already been paid, as the old driver sternly refused her sad wad of money when she offered it up. She watched the cab drive away, her hand still outstretched, a confused frown still plastered on her face, until it was out of the hotel's parking lot and sailing smoothly down the nearly empty road.

Sighing, she turned and trudged down the stone walkway and into the lobby, dreading a confrontation with Amy. She could imagine the conversation (Where were you all night? I thought you had died! What would your brother think, slinking off with some guy the day before our wedding?) She was a nice girl, but too motherly for her own good.

The woman behind the counter didn't pay Reese one glance, in all her rumpled, sleep deprived glory as she stepped through the door, setting off a little bell tied to the top, and she was able to make it all the way into the elevator and up to her room without running into a single person. She pulled out her phone along with her key card as she moved to unlock her door, only to realize it had died. She shoved it roughly into her back pocket, slid open her door, and let it slam closed behind her, suddenly desperately missing her own bedroom back in LA. At this point, she'd be happy to just have the wedding over and done with.

Knowing she shouldn't lay down, lest she risk falling asleep for another five hours, Reese stumbled over to her nightstand to plug in her phone, then let herself sit back on her bed, trying to rub the heaviness from her eyes. In the end, Reese decided to suck it up, put on some workout clothes, and go for a run; it had been way too long, and she could already feel her heart racing in anticipation.

She kicked off her shoes, slipped out of her top and jeans, and stepped into a pair of lightweight running pants, which were enough relief as it was. After brushing her teeth, pulling a top over her head, and gathering up her phone and earbuds, she was out the door at a brisk walk within twenty minutes. The lobby was still deserted (thank God), and Reese slowed down at the door to power on her phone. She had two messages from her brother, wondering where she was, then that she'd better not be lying dead in a ditch somewhere for him to find.... And six missed calls from the princess herself.

Reese sent a courtesy text to her brother, telling him she was fine and going out for a bit, and cleared her calls, not even wanting to think about Amy or the wedding in that instant. She started up her music as she neared the end of the parking lot, stuffed her phone in her back pocket, and set off at a slow jog.

It felt so good to be running again, and as she turned a corner, heading for the beach, Reese took a deep breath, letting the saltiness of the ocean and crispness of the air fill her up. Her legs started aching about thirty minutes in, on account of this being her first run in about two weeks, but she opted to just ignore it and turn directly onto the beach. Her feet kicked up sand behind her, setting it into the wind, creating a sort of dusty, swirling cloud above her head.

God, how she'd missed this.

Her breath, heavy in her chest, her lungs bulging and her heart about ready to beat through her ribcage. Though, she decided, it wasn't as good as running on a clear, cold winter evening, when the wind pierces through you in a delightful flurry of ice and the prospect of snow hangs low in the air.

About two miles in (and right in the middle of a great song, mind you), Reese's phone began to ring, and she was forced to slow her pace to a walk to stop her music and answer.

"Hello?" she panted, wiping sweat from her forehead that was dripping down around her eyes.

"Reese? It's mom. How are you, honey?"

"Er, I'm fine -- what's this about?"

Why now? They hadn't talked in months!

"I'm just calling to deliver some wonderful news!" she exclaimed. "I've found you a date for the wedding!"

Reese felt her breath catch in her throat, involuntarily stopping in her tracks, her sneakers sinking into the wet sand.

"What?"

"Oh, don't be like that! He's sweet, and young, and quite handsome-'

"Mom!" Reese snapped, her anger bubbling up all at once. "I don't need your help finding a date! I'm a grown woman who is completely capable of taking care of herself; and for your information, I know plenty of people who would gladly accompany me to a wedding with a chocolate fondue fountain."

"Reese, when was the last time you've been on a date? A real date." her mother sighed.

"I don't know," Reese said, propelling her legs forward, back the way she had come, "But I do know that my love life shouldn't concern you. At all."

"Well," her mom huffed, "then maybe you'd like to be the one to call that nice young man back and break the news to him because I'm certainly not going to do it."

"You're the one who set it up!" Reese shouted. A few heads turned at this, and she ducked down, picking up her pace a little. "Without my permission, might I add."

"Honey, I'm just trying to be a good mother."

Oh, yeah, that's why you up and left me and dad when I was just a kid to live in your rich boyfriend's castle.

"Whatever," Reese said finally, feeling drained. After a pause, "Where are we supposed to meet, anyway?"

"I told him to pick you up," her mother said, the aggression leaving her voice almost instantly. Reese sighed and slumped her shoulders in defeat. Perhaps, if she just went with this guy, her entire broken relationship with her mom would miraculously be fixed. Then again, maybe not.

"Fine, but you have no right to be angry if I dump him at the end of the night."

"Great, I'll see you at the wedding!"

The beach was starting to fill up now, and Reese was forced to accept the fact that her perfect run had been ruined. Maybe she'd try again after the wedding. Maybe she could convince Tom to run with her.

Reese broke into a grin as the thought passed through her brain, bouncing a little as she resumed her fast-paced jog back to the hotel.