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Steve awoke when Loki slipped into bed with him. Loki wrapped his long limbs around Steve and pressed himself into his back.
"You're not supposed to be here," Steve said while he wrapped an arm around Loki's.
Loki breathed in deeply, his nose nestled in Steve's hair. "I wanted to see you."
"If anyone finds out..." Steve hooked his ankle around Loki's. "Let's just say I don't want to imagine the consequences."
"Do you want me to leave?"
"No."
Steve closed his eyes. His moments with Loki were brief, and they'd grown less frequent since he'd moved into the Avengers Tower. He wanted to prolong the time they had as much as he could.
"Today... You celebrated the day of your birth?"
Steve chuckled. "We had a nice dinner, but that was about it. The cake was delicious." He'd received a few small tokens, but nothing extravagant. It had been a pleasant day, but more for the company than the occasion.
"There were fireworks," Loki said in Steve's ear. He nipped the lobe gently. "Your entire country was celebrating. That is no small affair."
"They were celebrating a national holiday. My birthday is a coincidence."
Loki's arms loosened around Steve. He took the opportunity to turn over. Steve could only make out a vague impression of Loki's features in the darkness. He looked somber.
"All of Asgard would celebrate on my day of birth. Feasting, fighting, dancing..." He laughed, once, but it was joyless. "But it was a day picked by chance. Not the true day I was born."
Steve pulled Loki in for a kiss and rubbed the sides of Loki's face with his thumbs. When they broke apart, Steve said, "Share mine."
"I don't want yours."
"Then don't think of it at all." Steve kissed Loki below his eye. "I've lost almost 70 birthdays. When you get to be my age, birthdays don't mean as much."
"You are a child, Steve," Loki said, but Steve felt him smile against his skin.
Steve entwined their hands together. "I do have one birthday wish, though."
"And that is?"
"Stay with me."
Loki granted his wish, but only for the night. Steve woke just before Loki left. With a gentle touch, Loki stroked his hair back, kissed him, and then disappeared.
A moment later, there was a knock at the door, and Clint yelled, "Hey, we've got a call!"
Steve breathed in slowly, held his breath, and then released it.
He began counting the time until he saw Loki again.
Two minutes. He stood from his bed and stretched. Three minutes. He dressed quickly and splashed his face with water. Six minutes. He opened the door and said to Clint, "What are we looking at?"
Seven minutes.