Author's Note: I do not own Teen Wolf or its characters. This is set in an alternate universe where everyone (for the most part) lives.
Alpha Sparks
Laura was in over her head, and she knew it. She did have help, and she was pretty sure that she would have made a whole mess of being an Alpha without it, but even having a mentor didn't make things not be completely overwhelming. Alpha Evans had been absolutely wonderful in getting Laura the training she needed, and she was pretty sure that if it hadn't been for the older woman, Derek would be a complete mess. The problem was that even around the older Alphas, Laura still had to be Alpha Hale. Derek was her only beta at this point, and he needed her to be the strong one right now. So there was really no one around that she could just be Laura with.
And on top of her responsibilities as an Alpha, she was still going to school. Derek was also starting college per both Alpha Evans and his therapist's suggestions. Thankfully, the two of them didn't have to worry about working as well as going to school. The insurance money took care of that. Still, nothing was the same. The friends and people she used to hang out with seemed so shallow now, and there wasn't much attraction to going out to clubs and parties like she used to. The fire had changed her in ways that most people didn't seem to understand, and all she really wanted was someone who saw Laura.
Letting out a groan, Laura dropped her head into her hands. There was no way she was going to finish studying for the upcoming midterm at this rate. She wasn't going to get anything done while her mind kept running in the same circles again and again. Sighing, Laura closed her book and slipped it back in her bag. Maybe a quick study break would help, and she could definitely use some chocolate. Hopefully, Derek was having a better time with studies than she was. She wasn't entirely sure she could handle a midterm breakdown from him right now.
There were a number of coffee shops littered on and around campus, but Laura's favorite was about a fifteen minute walk from the library. The walk was always good for her. Being in the city wasn't the same as being at home with wilderness just in her backyard, but as long as she spent at least a little time outdoors every day, she did fine. There was a line when she arrived at the Copper Kettle, but given their hot chocolate, she was willing to wait. She took her place in line and waited her turn. The line moved at a brisk pace, and before long she was placing her order.
It was when she turned to find a spot to wait that Laura ran into trouble. She was nearly run over by a group of frat boys, and while being a werewolf meant that she wasn't hurt, it didn't keep her from being knock over. Except, strong hands caught her elbows and steadied her as well as drew her out of path of traffic.
"Are you all right, miss?" A pair of worried green eyes were watching her and the smell of heat and spices filled her nose.
"I'm fine. Thanks for the save."
He smiled. "Good. I'm Jordan."
"Laura."
"Nice to meet you."
Laura's hot chocolate was placed on the counter along with a latte.
"I'd better grab that."
Jordan shook his head. "I've got it. Don't want to risk you getting trampled again."
Somehow the two of them ended up sitting at one of the tables by the café window, chatting about their lives in general. Laura couldn't quite put her finger on what it was, but there was definitely something about Jordan that just pulled her in. Of course, it helped that he was cute, had a good sense of humor, and had a better understanding of what Laura was going through than most people. He was also currently on leave and was due to be shipped overseas for a tour of duty either in Iraq or Afghanistan sometime in the next six months. When Laura finally headed back to the library, she left with Jordan's phone number and a promise to text him.
Texting Jordan very quickly became a lifeline for her. He always seemed willing to listen, and even if he couldn't reply right away, he always tried to get back to her sooner or late. Laura didn't really realize how much the whole relationship was affecting her until Derek mentioned it.
"Laura, did something happen? You seem happier now?" Her brother's voice was hesitant as if he wasn't sure he was allowed to ask.
She blinked at him. "Sort of. There's this guy. I've been texting him. He's really nice."
"Oh." Derek was quiet. "You haven't mentioned him before."
There was something in his voice that made her pause before answering. She had been about to tell him that it wasn't any of his business who she saw, but the fact that he looked nervous, that she could tell his was scared stopped. She bit her lip. Laura knew what Kate Argent had done to her brother, and she knew that the relationship had been a secret.
"It's pretty new. He doesn't know about the supernatural, and I don't know that it will last once he gets deployed." Laura shrugged slightly. "I only met Jordan last week."
Derek's shoulders relaxed a little at that. "What's he like?"
Laura laughed. "He's interesting. Not what I expected from an army guy at all."
She ended up spending almost an hour talking to Derek about Jordan, and by the end of it, she'd realized that this was probably the most that they had just hung out in a long time.
"Would you like to meet Jordan sometime? I think the two of you might get along," she offered.
And it occurred to Laura that Derek might need a friend just as much as she did. He had classmates yes, but the only person other than Alpha Evans and his therapist that he was close to was Laura. Before the fire Derek had always had friends, even if they hadn't always been close friends. Though to be fair, he'd started pulling away from everyone after Paige. Making a new friend might be good for him.
"Maybe. Are you going to tell him about us?"
Laura just shrugged. "Only if this lasts. It's too early yet to think about that. Though now that you mention it, there is something about his scent that makes me think he might be one of us. Not a wolf, but some sort of supernatural. We'll see."
Introducing Jordan and Derek to one another was an interesting challenge. Laura didn't want to scare either of them off, but at the same time, they were both important to her, and she wanted them to get along. The fact that Jordan tended to be pretty laid back would help, but Derek was more than a little skittish when it came to meeting new people. Not that Laura could blame him, but it did make things a little more difficult.
And the truth of the matter was she was worried that it was a little too soon for Jordan to meet her family. They really hadn't known one another for all that long, and even if Derek was her only relative left, it seemed like things were going a little fast to her. But she knew that it meant something to Derek to be involved. Both Alpha Evans and Derek's therapist had mentioned that one of Derek's major worries was that Laura would ended up leaving him and that keeping him in loop would be helpful.
So the next time they met up for coffee, Laura brought up the subject.
"What would you think about meeting my brother? You don't have to, but he's a bit curious, and well, he worries. We're all one another has left, and unfortunately, Derek has a lot of trust issues these days." She knew she was rambling at this point, but she couldn't seem to stop herself. "But he'd like to meet you, and I think you'd like him, and-"
"Laura," Jordan cut her off. "I'd be happy to meet you brother."
She let out a sigh of relief and smiled. "Thank you."
That had been the easy part. Convincing Derek was a little harder. There were days that Laura just didn't know what to do with her brother. Objectively, she knew that what had happen with Kate and the fire had done its fair share of damage, on top of things that had already been festering due to the situation with Paige. But living the reality of that when there was little she could do to help her brother was a different story. For all that Laura had been being groomed to become the next Alpha, she wasn't even close to being the Alpha her mother had been.
Still, Derek eventually agreed, and the three of them met up at a coffee shop just off campus. It wasn't the Copper Kettle, but it wasn't bad either. And things went very well at first. Laura had to do a little work to get the conversation going between the two, but she had been right to think that they might get along. So she sat back with a smile and let the two talk, and that's when it all went to hell.
She had stopped being hyper vigilant about certain things about six months after they had arrived in New York City. Laura no longer felt constantly under attack and figured that she could let down her guard. So nothing really twigged for her when the blond woman approached their table and interrupted them. But the second she reached out to touch Derek, trying to flirt Laura was sure, it became clear that this was a problem.
To be honest, while Laura knew about a lot of Derek's problems, they were also things that he didn't like to share with her, and she had never seen him go into a full blown panic attack before. She had no idea what to except for getting the woman away from him. But once she was gone, Laura had no idea what to do next, and it was clear that someone needed to do something. Derek was having trouble breathing.
Laura wrung her hands, but Jordan was already kneeling in front of Derek, speaking softly.
"All right, Derek. I need you to breath with me. Nice calm breaths, in and out."
The calm cadence of his words were helping Laura at least, and she could hear Derek's heartbeat calming down. Jordan kept talking until Derek's breathing had calmed. Then he stood up.
"Why don't we get out of here? I think we could all use some fresh air."
Laura didn't have any complaints about that. Besides, it would better if something triggered Derek again to have a little more space around them. Plus, Laura got the feeling that Derek wanted to be anywhere without people right now. He was a clearly a little more at ease once they had some space between him and anyone else. Laura turned to Jordan.
"Thank you."
Jordan just shook his head. "Not a problem. PTSD isn't ever fun to deal with."
He turned his attention to Derek. "How are you feeling?"
Derek just shrugged. "I'm doing better. She was wearing the same perfume as Kate."
Laura winced. No wonder he'd had trouble. She glanced over at Jordan, but he let the reference pass without comment. She hadn't given him any details on what had happened before they'd moved to New York City, just that they had lost their entire family in a fire. In part because so much of the story was tied up in the fact that they were werewolves. And also in part because she knew just how hard it had been for Derek to speak about the whole mess, and that he didn't seem comfortable sharing that information around.
Derek looked around before finally speaking. "Look, Jordan, it was really nice meeting you, but I have to go. I just need to go for a run or something. I'll see you back home, Laura."
He was gone before she could protest. Laura just sighed.
"I'm sorry about that."
Jordan shook his head again. "Don't be. Your brother needs to do what is best for him. He's got someone he can talk to?"
Laura nodded. "We've got a couple people working with him. This is probably the worst incident in a while. I just fell so helpless. I didn't even know what to do about his panic attack. I've never seen one of them before."
"Remaining calm and helping him get his breathing under control are probably the most important things." Jordan wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I'm going to guess that this is a pretty new thing."
Laura nodded. "It started after the fire. To be honest, I didn't know how bad things were until someone took me under her wing. Derek's getting the help he needs now, but I've been told that it might be a long recovery."
Jordan frowned. "Can I ask what happened?"
She sighed softly. "I can give you the short version. I can't tell you details without Derek's permission. The fire was arson, and we know who did it even if we can't prove it. But she used Derek in order to find out information she needed, and she hurt him in the process."
Jordan nodded, accepting that, and Laura felt a weight lift off of her. It helped to share with someone else, even if it wasn't everything.
Despite the fact that there had been a few hiccups in the first meeting between Derek and Jordan, they did get along quite well. Laura wasn't entirely happy to share Jordan with Derek, but her brother only really joined them about a third of the time. Things were looking pretty good up until the point when Jordan got news of his deployment. He was being sent to Iraq and wouldn't be back for at least nine months if not longer. Laura wasn't sure what to do. She had known this was possibility from the start, but she hadn't at all been prepared for how hard it would be.
Jordan at least had some ideas on how they could keep in touch, and as hard as long distance could be, she knew she wanted to try at least. She wasn't going to let him go so easily. So, they made plans for regular skype dates, and Laura started gathering lists of things to send in care packages. The day Jordan left was the hardest. Derek had come along too in order to say goodbye, and Laura was grateful for his presence at her side. She was pretty sure that he was the only thing keeping her from breaking down. Which she could do at home, but she didn't want to do it in front of Jordan.
He hugged them both and then leaned in to kiss Laura. "Take care of yourselves while I'm gone, okay?"
Derek nodded. "We will. Stay safe."
"I'll do my best."
He waved goodbye and headed off. Laura bit back a whimper, and Derek wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her in a half hug. She leaned into him and hoped that the time and distance between them wouldn't diminish that spark she was sure they both felt.
The separation was both harder and easier than Laura expected. Easier because Laura fond that she could throw herself into school work and taking care of Derek and forget that Jordan was gone and possibly in danger. But there were times when she couldn't forget. And she worried about Jordan. Laura couldn't help it.
She did have to admit that their long distance courtship did have some benefits. It was rather fun getting to know Jordan through his letters, and there was something about putting information on paper that made it easier to share then face to face. She found herself sharing more secrets than she had expected, even if she still held on the most important of them. But even that she was debating sharing. She and Derek had actually talked it over once or twice. The real question was would Jordan still want to stick around when he got back. They really hadn't known one another all that long.
The deployment seemed to warp time somehow. There were days when it seemed to stretch on forever, and others when the time was flying by. Still, Laura was more than a little nervous when the day came when Jordan was finally supposed to be come back. She was on pins and needles as she and Derek waited with a multitude of other soldiers' families and friends. Derek had shot her several concerned glances off and on over the past fifteen minutes. But she felt something in her ease when soldiers started to arrive. She kept a sharp eye out for any sign of Jordan amongst the throng of people, but she wasn't having much luck amidst the flood of people dressed in uniform.
Then Derek shot up his arm in a wave, and the next thing Laura knew, she was trying to keep from passing out as Jordan appeared. First he wrapped Derek in a bear hug and then he turned his attention to her. Laura wasn't sure what to do. She wanted to fling her arms around him and kiss him, but she didn't know if that would welcome or not. Jordan solved her dilemma for her by pulling her into a quick kiss. She smiled up at him.
"Welcome home."
He leaned in for another kiss. "Thanks."
In that moment, Laura knew that whatever else they had to deal with, Jordan was part of her pack now, and she wasn't about let go of this now.