Prompt from fredngeorgefan: Can you umm make the chapter about cuddles? Like Y/N is super busy with work and loki wants cuddles but she's super busy? 

And also from StarKiller152: Hello! Could you write a chapter about y/n being emotionally burned out and Loki comforing her? I would be glad! 

A/N: this wasn't meant to be (hahah... it's late) two prompts in one but while I was writing it the second one just sort of happened, so here you go! I hope you enjoy what I did, and let me know if there are any spelling or grammar errors because it's 3am and I'm super tired:)

...

You're exhausted.

There's been a sudden, dramatic upsurge in the number of missions in the past two weeks; so much so that you've barely had time to get back to the Tower and sleep before you've been alerted to another mission which requires your assistance.

And of course, where there's a mission, there's a huge amount of paperwork to go alongside it. If you hear the words 'mission report' one more time you're going to scream.

Working for SHIELD and being part of the Avengers initiative is suddenly beginning to take its toll on you. It's exhausting. You'd known it was going to be exhausting, everyone had told you so.

"It's fine." you'd said confidently. "I can handle it."

You're starting to wonder if you can.

No one is more annoyed about this new increase in your workload than you. Apart from maybe Loki. You haven't had time to notice his annoyance with the situation, however. You've been far too busy.

Loki's still not allowed to leave the Tower or take part in any missions. Most people don't even know that he's being allowed to live in the Tower; it would cause an uproar. No one needs that at the moment, or indeed, ever, Fury had said.

For once you had agreed with him.

At this moment in time you're sat at the kitchen table on a bar stool, your seventeen million mission reports spread across the kitchen island like some sort of horrific paperwork explosion. Your head is pounding and all you want to do is sleep, but you have to get these finished.

No doubt tomorrow there'll be a whole new case or three for you to carry out and then write up about. The thought almost makes you want to cry. You are physically and mentally drained.

It's about eight pm and the kitchen is, unusually, empty. You're glad for it, you need to concentrate.

Right as you think this, Loki walks through the door. Great.

The second you think it you feel awful; he's so bored cooped up here in the Tower all day and night and you haven't seen him since early this morning. But what you wouldn't give to swap roles with him for just a day. You know that he feels the same way.

"Hi." you say tiredly, pushing your glasses up on to your forehead and rubbing at your eyes with the palms of your hands. The constant paperwork isn't doing your eyesight any favours, so you're using a pair of custom made glasses which Tony has given you.

"Hello." Loki replies, stopping behind you and putting his arms around you, resting his chin on the top of your head. You let yourself relax back against his chest, and then sigh. This is exactly what you can't do right now.

You sit forward again, pushing your glasses back down on to your nose.

"How was your day?" you ask, brushing your fingers lightly over the back of his cool hand before picking up your pen again.

"The same as every other day." he replies, quite bitterly, withdrawing his arms from around you. You turn to look at him in confusion, but then see Nat who has just walked into the room.

Loki hates being caught expressing any sort of affection around other people.

Nat strikes up conversation with you and Loki moves over to the sofas where he sits down and crosses his arms, looking for all the world like a stroppy toddler who has just been told that they're not allowed an ice cream.

You could really do without the conversation right now; you have to get this work done, but you can't interrupt Nat. Then Bruce walks in and joins the conversation, followed about ten minutes later by Tony.

Finally you can't take it anymore and gather all of the paper into your arms, apologising profusely to everyone before making your way down the corridor to your bedroom. Where it's quiet.

You drop everything on to your desk and heave a great sigh of resignation. There's still about an hours work sat in front of you, and that's only if you work fast.

Massaging your temples harshly to try and get rid of the pain in your head, you start to write again. This time you get about twenty five minutes through before you're disturbed again. It's Loki, again.

He knocks on your door and you close your eyes briefly before calling him in.

"Are you done yet?" he asks, coming to look over your shoulder at the progress you've made.

"No." you say, not letting yourself stop writing. If you stop you won't start again.

"Y/N, you've been out all day and you haven't stopped since you got back. You're tired; you need to sleep." Loki tells you. You nod absentmindedly as you write.

"I will." you say, trying to sound fine. You're not, and it doesn't fool Loki.

"Just leave it, for tonight. Please." he says, putting a hand on your shoulder. Your resolve cracks, but doesn't break.

"Just let me finish this..."

Loki's hand drops from your shoulder, and when you turn around he's not there. Guilt washes over you, and when you turn back to your desk you're seeing double. Loki is right. You need to stop.

You give in to temptation, finally heeding the call of your pyjamas which have been sat tantalisingly on your bed since you got home. Gingerly, you get changed (you've sustained quite a few injuries over the past few weeks) and resist the urge to fall face first on to your bed and pass out.

Instead you sneak across the corridor and knock on Loki's door. He smiles sadly when he sees you in your pyjamas.

"I'm sorry-"

You hardly get to the end of the two words before he has you in his arms. Finally allowing yourself to relax, fully, you realise just how exhausted you've actually been. A sort of relieved, tired sob leaves you and Loki sighs, holding you tightly.

About half a minute passes, after which you're not sure how long your own two feet are going to continue to hold you up for, and then Loki leads you to his bed where you can lie back against his chest, his arms around you.

"Is this what you wanted?" you mumble, smiling through your tiredness as Loki squeezes you.

"Yes. I've missed you." he tells you. You sigh, feeling awful.

"I'm sorry that you're stuck here all day. I wish I could do something." you tell him, fighting to keep your eyes open.

"That doesn't matter. The first thing you're going to do tomorrow is talk to someone about the hours that you're working. It can't carry on." he tells you firmly. The relief you feel at his words is almost overwhelming.

"Okay." you whisper gratefully, and Loki chuckles, his chest vibrating against your back. You close your eyes.

"Here, get under the duvet." he tells you, moving from behind you so that you can pull the blanket back. You do, and Loki turns the lights down with a gesture towards the other side of the room before climbing under the covers with you.

"Thank you." you whisper, your eyes closed as he pulls you back towards him, his cool fingers tracing the back of your neck.

He presses a kiss against your forehead.

"Go to sleep."

"I love you." you whisper, finding his hand beneath the duvet and lacing your fingers through his.

You don't need to look to know that he's smiling.

"I love you too."