#step god

Regan's life has never been ideal. The moment she was born, her father abandoned her and her mother, Lisa. Being a single, seventeen-year-old mother, Lisa tried her best to raise Regan and give her a decent life, but her efforts were lame, and when Regan turned five, her efforts ceased completely. Lisa has always had a horrible taste in men. As long as they could support her and Regan, she'd spread her legs for them, and on some occasions, she'd spread Regan's legs for them too. Before Regan was six years old, her virginity had been stolen from her, and the photos and videos were circling somewhere within the underground pedophile rings. Luckily, Regan's age helped her block out the memories of the years of abuse – protecting her from being crushed under the weight of her pain. The newly-turned eighteen-year-old hardly remembers her father. Whenever he was present in her life, he was the source of most of her abuse, and when he wasn't, she felt the need to make up her own memories of him – disappearing into her own mind where everything is different, and no one hurts her. Often, the pain of her life tore her apart – feeling disgusted with herself and marking up her skin with cuts and welts – not even caring to hide them in the hopes that someone would figure out what was going on at home. Sometimes, she turned to the sky – praying for a God to come and save her – not even believing that there was any such God.

When Lisa left Regan to fend for herself, the then seventeen-year-old had no clue where her mother had gone. While she breathed a sigh of relief that her mother was gone, she knew she'd need to fend for herself. Regan got a job at the local bookstore, Paige's & Marc's, only a couple of blocks away from the tiny house that she and her mother shared. The owners, a married couple named Paige and Marc Turner, happily welcomed the shy and reserved teenager – giving her as many hours and huge discounts on any books she wanted. Regan spent most of her time at the small bookstore – getting lost in the fantastic worlds described within the pages of text. Some books were old, some were new, and some were extremely rare. When the rush of customers slowed, Regan would pick out a good book and sit in the back corner of the shop – feeling true joy as she left the real world and her problems behind – if only for a little bit.

Regan finished another shift at the bookstore, and she began her walk home – her earphones in her ears as she listened to her music on the new iPhone she had bought herself. She was starting to feel independent – feeling as though she was finally getting the chance to start her own life.

Then, the teenager arrived home.

A light in the living room that she most definitely didn't leave on was shining through the front window curtain. Regan approached with caution – pulling her taser out of her backpack and putting her phone and earphones away. Slowly, she approached the front door, and when she twisted the doorknob, it was unlocked. She took a deep breath and twisted the knob – quickly opening the door and aiming the taser at the people in the living room.

"Mom?!" Regan shouted.

It was her mother – naked on the sofa. She was having sex with a guy. He had long, shoulder-length black hair, a pale complexion, and gorgeous ocean-colored eyes.

"Woah!" he yelled – being startled by the teenager. In a flash of green, he and Regan's mother were dressed, and Regan's eyes widened in fear and confusion. "Who the hell are you?!" he demanded to know – approaching the startled teen.

Lisa sighed and crossed her arms. "My daughter," she said lamely. "Regan...who just loves to ruin everything." Regan's eyes searched the room, and they eventually landed on the man. "Why is the house so fucking messy? Have you just been sitting on your lazy ass all year?"

"Woah, wait a second, love," the mysterious man tried to calm Lisa. "You never told me you had a daughter."

Lisa shrugged. "Did I have to? She's a goddamn disappointment."

"I'm Loki," he introduced himself – reaching his hand out to shake Regan's, but she refused to uncross her arms to extend the greeting. "I'm...I am so sorry that you walked in on...well, that."

Regan's voice disappeared, and she tried to just push past the two of them. All she wanted to do was pack a bag and go find her own place for the night at least. However, Lisa stopped her – meeting her cheek with an open-handed slap that echoed through the small living room.

"What are you doing?!" Loki screamed with anger.

"She interrupted us!" Lisa argued back. "We're married...she shouldn't have walked in!"

Loki holds a finger up and silently looks around the house.

"Has...have you been here all alone for the last year?" Loki asked Regan – his voice filled with concern. She didn't say anything, but she nodded her head – confirming that she's been alone and left to fend for herself. Loki turned to Lisa with his mouth hung open. "You...you left your daughter alone for a year?"

"She was seventeen," Lisa brushed off. "Oh, didn't you turn eighteen or something?" she asked – not even looking to the teenager.

Loki looked towards Regan, and she nodded.

"Great, so that means you can get out of my fucking house now," Lisa smugly smiled.

"No," Loki fought back. "I think I should leave now."

Lisa scoffed.

"Seriously, Loki?" she asked – not believing her new husband wanted to leave. "Just because I didn't tell you about her?"

Loki shook his head and chuckled incredulously. "No," he answered. "I'm not going to watch and standby as you abuse her."

"If you want her so badly, take her with you then," Lisa scoffed – pulling a bottle of whiskey out of the refrigerator and taking a large gulp of the liquid.

During the time that Loki and Lisa were arguing, Regan managed to sneak off to her bedroom – locking the door to make sure no one would come in. She sat on her twin-sized bed and pulled her knees to her chest – sobbing quietly as her cheek continued to burn. Throughout the night, she could hear her mother and new step-dad arguing through the thin walls. She was only waiting for the man to come into her room and spread her legs – taking her just as every other man had before. Deep into the night, at almost five in the morning, there was a gentle knock at Regan's door.

She pulled her earphones out and set her phone on her bed – hesitantly making her way to the door to open it. It was better to just go ahead and get it over with, right? The door slowly opened, and Loki was standing on the other side with a warm smile.

"Hi, Regan," he greeted the teenager.

Loki stuck to his word, and he walked Regan home that night after she got off work. Normally, Regan felt jumpy – scared to see anything coming out of the dark shadows to attack her. However, this feeling was becoming familiar with the eighteen-year-old – having walked to and from her place of work and sanctuary for over a year. This time, however, she felt secure. She felt like no one in the shadows could harm her because her stepfather was right there to fight them off. The fall season had just arrived, so the night air that hit Loki and Regan's faces had a bit of a nip to it. Regan shuddered at the cold, and Loki immediately took his own jacket off and draped it across her shoulders. Her large, doe eyes looked up to the god – confused and shocked as to why he did such a thing.

"You're cold," he pointed out with a warm smile. "I'm use to the cold, so you can use my coat."

Regan blushed and pulled the jacket tighter to her body. "Um...th-thank you, I guess." Regan could smell his scent in the borrowed, black wool peacoat. Her five-foot-four-inch stature made the oversized coat go down to her knees. She was beginning to notice just how tall Loki actually was. It was a perfect fit on him. His scent enveloped her nose, heart, and even her soul. He smelled of mint mixed with firewood, a tinge of his Armani cologne lingering in the threads. Regan hoped the marvelous mixed smell would make its way into her skin and be with her for longer than their walk. She purposely tried to get her hair covered as much as possible in the coat – wanting to be able to smell his scent when she went to sleep – if she went to sleep that night. Part of Regan was afraid to sleep – terrified to wake up and realize that someone – a man – a man that her mother had married – was being so kind to her. Surely, it had to be a dream – actually, it was a nightmare. It was a nightmare tormenting her – getting her hopes up for something that could never happen. Someone who her mother brought home being kind to her? Loki, the God of Mischief, of all people showing her care and gentleness? Regan decided she did actually want to go to sleep as soon as she got home. She wanted to wake up as soon as possible from the nightmare.

"Rae," Loki said softly – gently bumping Regan's shoulder. "Did you hear me?" Regan shook her head – getting her thoughts to leave her.

"Huh? No, I didn't...sorry."

"That's alright," Loki smiled. "I asked if we could get each other's numbers – text sometimes or something?"

Regan gave a flat smile. "As long as you don't give it to my mother."

"I promise she'll never know it," Loki swears – holding a hand up as scout's honor. "Yeah, okay, it's um," Regan took out her phone to look up her phone number. The only

people she had in her contacts were her employers, a couple of friends at school, and now her stepfather. "It's uh, 478-324-1919."

Loki typed the number into his phone, and he sent her a text so that she could have his. Right as he finished, he put his phone in his pocket, and the two of them arrived at the driveway leading up to the small house. Much to Regan's dismay, her mother's car, her red 2007 Chevy Malibu, was parked – signaling that her mother was home for the night. Before they entered the house, however, Loki stopped Regan by placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Should you ever need anything," he spoke softly – his eyes looking directly into Regan's. "Do not ever hesitate to call or text me, alright?"

"Okay," Regan quietly answered with a nod.

Loki took a deep breath and opened the front door to the house, and lying on her back on the living room sofa was Lisa. She had one leg crossed over the other, and she was scrolling through her phone. Loki looked over to Regan, and the teenager tried to sneak away, but she was no match for her mother's peripheral vision.

"Nu-uh," Lisa grumbled – stopping Regan in her tracks. "You need to get in there and clean the...excuse me, but why are you wearing his coat!"

Regan's voice left her, and she looked to Loki to answer her mother.

"Regan was cold, and she didn't have a coat," Loki nonchalantly explained – instinctively stepping in front of Regan to protect her if Lisa tried anything.

Lisa scoffed and stood up from the couch – glaring at her daughter with a disgusted expression.

"If she forgot to bring a coat, then she should've just fuckin' froze, Loki!" Lisa argued. "God, you're going to become an enabler, aren't you?"

Loki chuckled incredulously and shook his head.

"Regan, go to your room," he told the scared teenager. "You can keep the coat."

Regan turned around and walked into her bedroom – closing and locking the door. What Lisa and Loki didn't know was that a big smile spread across Regan's lips upon hearing Loki's permission to keep the coat. Regan got ready for bed – brushing her teeth in her room and using a water bottle to wash her mouth out. She absolutely hated the possibility of her mother seeing her out of her room. She had grown accustomed to brushing her teeth in her bedroom mirror and opening the window to wash the toothpaste and mouthwash out. Regan dressed in a pair of comfy pajama bottoms – pink and green plaid and an oversized t-shirt. Of course, she put Loki's coat back on before crawling into the twin-sized bed. Regan put her earphones in and scrolled through social media – reading fanfictions about the Avengers and listening to her favorite music. Doing so had different motivations, but one motivation was so that she didn't have to listen to the blow-out that Loki and Lisa were about to have in the living room.

"What's your problem?" Loki asked Lisa – his eyes narrowing as he glared at her. He didn't care that she looked offended at his words. "Why do you seem to hate your daughter so much?" "You don't know her like I know her," Lisa scoffed – placing her hands on her hips. Lisa was hot – Loki had to admit that much. Unfortunately, it seemed that her personality was the complete opposite. Her breasts were large – one of the very first things that he noticed about her. Her hips had the perfect curve to them, which made it easy for his hands to rest there and hold her.

"She's eighteen," Loki reminded her. "What could she have possibly done to deserve such hatred?"

"She's a little slut!" Lisa yelled – getting tired of Loki's questioning. "Every man that I've ever brought home, she'd spread her legs wide open for!" Loki scoffed and shook his head – not believing a word coming from his new wife's mouth. "Why do you think I left to find a good man?! She would've taken you away from me if you knew her in the beginning!"

"That's such bullshit!" Loki yelled back. "You can't make me believe that's the reason why."

"Why do you care, huh?" Lisa sighed in desperation. "Baby, let's just go to bed and have some...fun." Lisa began to caress Loki's chest – trying anything to get him to let it go, but she was shocked when Loki pushed her away.

"No," Loki refused. "If we're going to be married," he continued – pointing to Lisa and himself. "Ragen is going to be my stepdaughter, and I want to know why you're so cruel to her." "I've already told you!" Lisa yelled – trying her hardest to get Loki to side with her. "Are you really that old that you forget things that fast?!"

Loki spent the morning in the house by himself. Lisa had gone out with some of her friends, and Regan had to be at work from 8 AM to 8 PM. The god's mind wandered as he picked up around the house – trying to get familiar with his new surroundings. The house was small – the front door opening up to a medium-sized living room and a small kitchen to the right. To the left of the living room, there was Regan's bedroom and one of the two bathrooms. Across the hall, there was the master bedroom that had an attached bathroom. It wasn't too cramped, but it wasn't a palace that Loki had grown up in.