It had taken almost a year for Stiles to convince Derek to adopt. And he really had to beg him. It had always been 'No Stiles, we don't know how to handle children' or 'It's too dangerous' or just plain no. But finally, after months of arguing, he broke down and the next day Stiles was calling up the adoption agency in their town. The next week they had a homestudy evaluation, which involved a lot of cleaning, and after that there was an agonizing three-week wait for their fate. On the Friday that marked the three weeks after the evaluation Stiles went to check the mail. When he saw the letter from the Beacon Hills adoption agency he sprinted into the kitchen with the envelope clutched in his hand, the rest of the mail forgotten in the mailbox in his haste. Derek stared at it wide-eyed from his seat at the kitchen table.
"Open it." He demanded. Even though he was uncertain about being a parent, Stiles knew he wanted to know the results as badly as he did. Stiles slit it open eagerly with his finger and scanned the page. After a minute he smiled and he heard Derek let out the breath that he'd been holding. Stiles looked at Derek and nodded, tears flooding his brown eyes. Derek stood up from his seat and hugged Stiles tightly, kissing his forehead.
"We're going to be Dads Derek." Stiles muttered into his shoulder. He looked up at the Alpha and knew that he wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea yet, he saw it in his eyes. But he was going with it either way and Stiles knew it was because, 1. He wanted to shut him up and 2. Because deep down Derek really wanted this and Stiles pushing him to do it was the only way he would.
Stiles lay in bed that night talking about the child they were going to adopt while Derek listened to him ramble. He was good at rambling, Stiles was, and Derek never bothered to shut him up unless he got super annoying.
"Derek?" He asked after a silence had fallen, he'd run out of things to say.
"Hm?" Derek grunted, his stubble tickling Stiles' neck as he moved his head.
"Do you really want to do this?" Stiles asked, there was a pause and Stiles began to worry, not caring that Derek could sense his heartbeat rise or that he might have a panic attack or his asthma would strike.
"Yes Stiles," Derek said after a minute, "I do." Stiles calmed a little as he pulled the blanket up a little more.
"Ok," Stiles said, that was all he could think to say, he didn't want to pry. He didn't want him to change his mind because Stiles asked him if he was sure, even though he was dying to.
"I'm sure Stiles." Derek mumbled in his half-asleep haze. Stiles calmed down instantly then, his mind relaxing and his heartbeat slowing. He rolled over to look at his husband, asleep already, his hands wrapped loosely around Stiles' waist. He looked a lot calmer in his sleep, when a permanent scowl didn't reside on his face. Stiles leaned forward and kissed him on his forehead before drifting to sleep himself, the excitement of the approval still faintly running through his system.
One week later they paid a visit to the Beacon Hills Orphanage, where they were escorted by a nice woman with a very organized office to the playground where all the kids were. Most were young, 3 to 4 years old, with a few assorted older kids here and there. The babies were on the side in their carrier's, being watched by some workers. Stiles and Derek looked around the playground while the woman pointed out some children.
"That's Amy; she's a nice little girl, 5 years old. Oh and that's Ricky, bit mischievous but downright adorable and he's almost 3." She was saying, when Stiles noticed a small little girl on the edge of the playground, in the dirt. She had crazy blonde curls and appeared to be doodling in the ground, alone.
"Who's that?" Stiles asked the woman. She looked over to where Stiles was pointing.
"That's Erica, she's 4." The woman replied, "She's always been an outcast, kind of, the kids get scared when she has her seizures." Stiles looked at Derek, who was now studying the girl.
"Seizures?" Stiles asked the woman. She nodded.
"Poor dear has epilepsy. It's been going on since she was 3 and a half, the doctors think she'll grow out of it but they aren't certain. It's terribly hard to get her to take her medicine." She explained. Stiles walked over to the small girl, followed by Derek and the woman. She hadn't noticed them walk up, she was too focused on the doodle of what appeared to be a flower, or maybe a dog, Stiles couldn't tell. He squatted down next to the girl and said.
"Hello." Erica looked up at him with wide brown eyes.
"Hi." She said quietly, dropping the stick she was doodling with.
"I'm Stiles." Stiles said, a little smile flitted across her face.
"My name's Erica." She said in her small little voice. Stiles was beginning to believe that everything was small about her except her curls. They were even crazier up close and she kept shoving them behind her small ears which didn't hold them back for long.
"Well hi Erica, it's nice to meet you. What are you drawing there?" He asked her, motioning to the drawing. She glanced down.
"It's a puppy; I've always wanted a puppy." She told him happily. He glanced up at Derek, who was obviously not finding the irony of this whole situation funny.
"Puppies are cute aren't they?" Stiles said, Erica giggles and nods. A bell sounds within the orphanage.
"Lunchtime children!" The woman called out from behind Derek. Erica stood up and ran off with the other kids.
"I'm not a puppy," Derek hissed as they walked indoors.
"Yes, but you are cute." Stiles told him, Derek shook his head and Stiles laughed.
An hour or so later Stiles and Derek were driving home. They had spent more time playing with different children after lunch, but Stiles was always drawn back to Erica. Something about the little girl just made him smile. Derek had even talked to her, which Stiles considered a big step for him. They had told the woman that they would talk it over tonight and make a decision tomorrow about the child they wanted to adopt.
"I liked Danny." Derek said as the talked it over in the kitchen. Stiles nodded, Danny was a 6-year-old, smart and funny. "And I know you liked Erica." He told him. Stiles grinned at the thought of her.
"She was probably my favorite." Stiles told him. Derek raised a brow.
"Probably?" he asked, "She was your favorite Stiles. I've never seen you like that before. You were like, instantly hooked. You weren't like that with the others."
"I want her Derek." Stiles looks up at him, "I really do."
"Even with her epilepsy?" Derek asked. Stiles nodded. He hadn't felt this sure since he had wanted to marry Derek. Erica was the one that Stiles wanted to have as his own. He didn't care that she had seizures, he had asthma. It was something they could easily learn about.
"Then she'll be ours." Derek said, squeezing Stiles' hand with his own. Stiles smiled and stood, kissing his husband.
"I love you." He muttered. Derek smiled softly and kissed him again.
"I love you too, Stiles." He replied, "You're going to be a great Dad." He told him.
"So are you, Derek. Whether you think so or not." Stiles tells him, and he truly does believe that. Derek may come off hard and unfeeling but under his hard exterior there was a heart, Stiles knew this. And even thought he might have a tough time adjusting when they do adopt Erica, Stiles knows that he will be a good fatherly figure.
Well the next week was eventful, to say the least. Derek and Stiles had to finish prepping Erica's room, which involved a lot of shopping (much to Derek's protests). Then they had to finish paperwork and more paperwork and even when they picked up Erica they had to fill out another form. But on the next Saturday after their first visit to the orphanage, Stiles scooped Erica up and told her it was time to go home finally. Erica was over the moon about being adopted. She had a small amount of clothing and a ragged teddy bear in a pink suitcase that she dragged along behind her and her blonde curls bounced as she skipped down the hall singing.
"I'm going home with my new Daddies, I'm gonna have a family." And she held onto Stiles' hand and he wouldn't stop smiling because he was already her Daddy even though it had been a couple of minutes since official adoption. Derek was silent, but he was the one who buckled Erica in her car seat so Stiles took that as a form of acceptance.
As soon as they reached the small home on the edge of Beacon Hills and she was unbuckled, Erica rushed up the steps and hopped up and down as Stiles fumbled with the keys.
"Calm down, Munchkin." Stiles chuckled as he turned the key in the lock. The door opened and the small girl slipped past him into the house.
"Wow." She whispered as Stiles stepped in behind her with Derek behind him. Stiles took her hand and led her down the hall and showed her her room. Her brown eyes grew wide as she looked around the small pink colored room. She jumped up on her bed and laughed and tugged Stiles over to lay on it with her. Derek stood at the door until the small girl tugged him over too and she laid in-between them and told them stories she had just made up in her head until she just fell asleep. When they left her room Stiles turned to Derek and felt as if his heart was going to burst because he was so happy.
"She loves it here Derek. She loves it." He said as they returned to the kitchen. Derek nods.
"She does, and she loves you already." He tells Stiles. Stiles placed his hand on Derek's.
"Loves us, Derek, she loves you already too." Derek only nods.
The next week Stiles' dad paid a visit to the house to see his new granddaughter. Erica hid behind Stiles as he walked her to the kitchen.
"Erica, come on out sweetie, it's only your grandpa." Stiles said to her. Erica peeked out from behind his legs to see Derek and Mr. Stilinski at the table.
"Hi there," Stiles' dad said, "I'm your Grandpa Stilinski." Erica looked up at Stiles and he nodded.
"Hi," Erica said, stepping out from behind Stiles.
"It's nice to meet you." Mr. Stilinski said. Erica smiled.
"So you're Daddy Stiles' daddy?" She asked. The sheriff nodded and smiled at the small girl.
Before he knew it, Stiles was watching Erica play with her grandpa in the living room. Her small pile of stuffed animals was sat in a circle having tea with them. Erica was coaching Mr. Stilinski how to hold a teacup and making him stick out his pinkie as he sipped the 'tea.' Stiles couldn't believe that he was complying to this, but it amused him to watch it.
Later, after Mr. Stilinski had left, Erica was curled up with Stiles in her bed and Stiles was helping her struggle through Goodnight Moon.
"And two…" Erica was reading, she couldn't read the next words so she looked up at Stiles expectantly.
"Little kittens." Stiles finished for her. She scanned the next line.
"And a-a…" The look came again
"A pair of mittens." He completed. This went on until Erica had finally struggled through the last line. "Good job baby." Stiles said, kissing her on the top of the head.
"Thank you Daddy." She whispered as she began to drift off. Stiles slipped out of her room and joined Derek in theirs. Derek rolled over as Stiles slid into bed.
"Erica asleep?" He asked.
"She was almost asleep when I left." Stiles told him. Derek wraps his arms around him and pulls him closer. Stiles nuzzled his head into Derek's shoulder. "I can't believe it's already been a week." He mutters.
"I know," Derek muttered. "I can't either."
"I'm proud of you you know." Stiles told him. Derek moved a little.
"Why?" He asked Stiles.
"Because I know children aren't really your thing, you've been doing so well with Erica." Stiles told him, "I know she's grown on you Derek." Derek grumbled.
"She's a handful." He said, Stiles frowned, "But she's our handful, and she has grown on me." Derek admitted. The smile returned to Stiles' face and he leaned up to kiss Derek on the cheek.
It's almost a month when the first seizure comes. Stiles and Erica were playing with her teddies when she began to shake and make small noises.
"Erica, baby?" Stiles asked. She began to shake even more. Stiles' body flooded with fear and he called for Derek, who was there in two seconds flat as Stiles held the shaking girl on her side. Stiles cried out.
"Call 911 Derek, do it now." He said as Erica continued to convulse. Stiles heard Derek talk to the dispatcher as he held back tears. "It'll be ok Erica, baby." He whispered as her small hand squeezed his so tight, tighter than a four-year-old should be able to, he feared it might break but he really didn't care. He kept a hold on her even when the paramedics arrived and as he rode in the back of the ambulance. He was forced to let go when they reached the hospital but Derek had followed in the car and he held Stiles' hand as they waited in the lobby. Stiles ended up crying onto his shoulder as Derek comforted him.
"It's going to be ok, Stiles." He whispered to him. A half-hour later a friendly looking nurse came and got them. Erica was asleep in a hospital bed, looking too small in it. Stiles rushed over and grabbed her little hand.
"She's going to be alright, Mr. Hale." A doctor told him as she entered the room.
"I don't get it though." Derek said, "We've been giving her her medicine every day." Stiles nodded as he moved Erica's matted blonde curls away from her face.
"I think it was due to all the new excitement in Erica's life. Her body wasn't used to it so she had a seizure." The doctor said, "She'll be ok though, just some extra caution on how much daily activity she's getting and monitoring her heart rate a little." Erica began to awaken as the doctor spoke.
"Daddy?" She murmured as she opened her big brown eyes.
"Daddy's here Erica, don't worry." Stiles whispered to her. She gave him a small smile and then closed her eyes again.
"We should keep her overnight for some monitoring but she'll be good to go tomorrow." The doctor said. Stiles nodded and glanced down at the sleeping girl, his daughter. He watched her carefully as her chest rose slowly up and down as she slept. She would twitch from time to time and that sent Stiles into such a panic that he had an asthma attack and had to leave the room. He stayed as long as he could, and so did Derek. He watched Erica as carefully as Stiles did, the sole difference being he was calmer because he could sense her heartbeat. Finally, they had to leave and they did, reluctantly.
The next morning Stiles and Derek were sitting in the cafeteria of the hospital waiting for final tests to be completed. Stiles was staring at a half-eaten bagel and Derek was sipping coffee.
"Stiles…" Derek said quietly. Stiles looked up; his eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep, he had been up all night worrying.
"I told you no Derek." Stiles hissed. They had fought last night, Stiles and Derek had. Derek had suggested that he give Erica the bite, insisting on it practically. Stiles had immediately denied his request, there were too many risks. Erica could die from the bite and she was too young. How would they teach someone that young to control werewolf powers?
"My parent's managed to teach me." He hissed back, it was as if he had read Stiles' mind. Stiles shook his head.
"I'm not going to take that risk. Maybe, just maybe, when she's older." Stiles replied, standing up and tossing his bagel into the trash.
"I know there are risks Stiles, babe, but do you really want her to keep suffering?" Derek asked.
"Derek. What if she dies from the bite?" Stiles whisper-yelled, he had wanted this conversation to be over last night. "I'm not letting you turn our four-year-old into a werewolf and that's final." He snapped. He stood back up and walked out, going back up to Erica's room.
Erica was finally home, and Stiles and Derek were keeping a careful watch on her. They made her rest a lot and tried to keep her calm. There was still some tension between Derek and Stiles from their argument at the hospital but they tried to keep it from Erica. Stiles was giving her a bath when she asked about it.
"Are you and Daddy Derek fighting?" She asked as Stiles rinsed her hair out. Stiles froze for a second and then responded.
"No honey, why would you think that?" He asked her. She looked up at him as he started to drain the tub.
"'Cause you aren't lovey anymores." She told him. Stiles helped her out of the tub and wrapped her in a towel. He then crouched down to look her in the eyes.
"Daddy Derek and I are just getting used to being daddies still. We still love each other very much, ok E?" He told her. She nodded and they walked out of the bathroom to go get Erica dressed.
Derek was sitting on the bed when Stiles walked in.
"I heard you and Erica in the bathroom." He told Stiles. Of course he had, he had super human hearing.
"I came to talk to you about that." Stiles told Derek. He honestly didn't want to fight anymore, he missed his husband.
"Look, I'm sorry. My idea was stupid and you had every right to be mad at me for it." Derek said. Stiles shook his head, joining Derek on the bed.
"No, I should've been more open to your ideas and, even though I'm still strongly against it, I think your idea isn't bad." Stiles said. Derek looked at him with those green eyes that drove Stiles crazy.
"I think we were both acting like idiots that day." Derek said, Stiles nodded.
"I forgive you, Derek." Stiles told him, Derek kissed him lightly.
"I forgive you too, Stiles, and I love you." Derek told him. Stiles leaned his head onto Derek's shoulder.
"I love you too, Derek." Stiles said. An excited squeak came from the hall. Derek and Stiles looked at each other and smiled.
"I wonder who's in the hallway." Derek said a little too loudly.
"It better not be Erica, since she's supposed to be in bed!" Stiles said, they crept towards the door and heard the little pitter-patter of Erica's feet returning to her room. Stiles laughed and motioned for Derek to follow him. They entered Erica's room to find the four-year-old badly faking sleep.
"I told you it wasn't her." Derek said, "She's out like a light."
"Hm, we must have a squeaking ghost then." Stiles said, trying not to laugh. A soft giggle came from the bed. Derek tiptoed over to Erica's bed.
"I think the ghost laughs too, Stiles." Derek said, the giggle came again, "It's coming from the bed!" he said, then he pulled the covers off of Erica. She rolled over and said.
"There's no ghost Daddy! It was me, I'm sorry." Derek sat down on the bed and Stiles walked over.
"It's ok, E." Stiles said, "And just so you know, Daddy Derek and I are all better." She grinned widely and kissed them both on the cheek.
"Good, because I didn't like it." She said, Stiles smiled and squeezed her hand.
"We didn't either." Derek told her, Stiles nodded in agreement.
"Now, little missy, you need to get back to sleep." Stiles told her. She jumped back under her covers and Derek and Stiles kissed her forehead.
"Goodnight." She muttered as Stiles turned off her lamp.
"Goodnight." Stiles and Derek said at the same time. They smiled and walked to the door, standing there for a minute with their arms around each other. Stiles smiled wider because he knew everything was ok, and everything would be ok. No matter how many fight there were or how many seizures happened or how worried and anxious they got everything would work out in the end. And it would because Stiles and Derek, they loved each other, and they loved Erica. And they wouldn't give up on trying to make things work, ever.