A/N: This is the fic I entered into the MTV Teen Wolf fanfic contest earlier this month. I hope you like it.
It's been a month since Gerard died. A month since Peter came back from the dead. A month since Jackson went from being the kanima to a werewolf. A month since Erica and Boyd left. A month since Allison broke up with Scott. A month since everything. It felt like it had been much longer though.
After all the weeks spent hunting the kanima, fighting the Argents, hiding from the Argents, and having to deal with three new betas it was nice to have a break from it all. Well, a break in the sense that even though there was a pack of alphas in town, they weren't actively hunting them or trying to kill anyone. As worried as Derek might have been that, he glad to have something else to focus on besides fighting for one.
Derek spent his time trying to teach Issac everything he could before the Argents, or worse the alphas, decided to make their move. Scott was too busy worrying about his grades, lacrosse, and Alison to spend anytime training with Derek. Jackson spent all his free time with Lydia, trying to mend their relationship, more concerned about her than himself. Given everything the two had been, Derek couldn't blame him. Jackson would come by often enough, asking questions, even staying during the full moon; but he still spent more time with Lydia than anyone else.
Sometimes Stiles would stop by, whenever Scott dragged him along, and Derek couldn't help but remember how human he was. He could still picture the cut on Stiles' lip and bruising on his cheek from that night a month ago, if he closed his eyes and concentrated. It made his stomach churn.
Stiles wouldn't tell anyone what happened, not what really happened at least. He said something about getting jumped by players from the team they played against that night. Derek knew he was lying though. He wasn't sure if Scott knew, since he had been too focused on Alison at the time, and he was pretty sure Jackson didn't really care. Alison and Lydia bought it of course, as did the Sheriff.
Stiles probably wanted it that way. It was such a simple lie, easy to tell and easy to believe. Derek didn't know why Stiles was lying. He had been tempted to ask once, while Scott and Issac were off being teens leaving him and Stiles alone, but decided against it. Derek was sure would tell them the truth if he wanted to, and didn't want to force it out of him.
Derek couldn't figure out why he wanted to know the truth so badly. Stiles was annoying, loud, rude, and constantly in the way. And that was on the best of days; unless Derek was being honest.
If Derek were to be honest; he would say Stiles was caring, loyal, smart, and one of the bravest people he had ever met. He didn't want that he cared about what happened to Stiles, because he didn't care.
Derek didn't care that Stiles complained about nightmares. He didn't care that Stiles was still heartbroken over Lydia. He didn't care that Stiles had been fidgeting more than usual. He didn't care that Stiles' relationship with his father was still tense. He didn't care that Stiles had taken to avoiding the Argents as much as possible.
Derek certainly did not care that Stiles, a very human Stiles, got hurt because his best friend was a werewolf and didn't want anyone to know. Because that's the kind of person Stiles is, and it bothered Derek more than he cared to admit.