It was stupid and more than a little bit embarrassing, but Isaac had a worn old teddy bear that he couldn't sleep without. One of the ears was halfway to falling off and its eyes were long gone, but it was still as soft and comforting as it had always been. To Isaac, it was essential.

And it was missing.

Derek had packed his bag for him, and in the shock of being abruptly thrown out, Isaac hadn't thought to check if everything was in there. It wasn't until he'd gotten to Scott's house and started shucking off his rain-soaked clothes in the guest room that he opened his bag and realized it wasn't there.

Isaac reasoned with the part of himself that instantly started to panic, reminding himself that he was a big boy and he'd been through too much to crumble over the loss of a stuffed animal. And even if he did need it, what could he do? He couldn't go back to Derek's and ask for it, not after what happened.

So Isaac settled into bed, turned onto his side and balled up some of the covers into a makeshift bear replacement, but even with his eyes closed it felt wrong.

After about an hour or so of restless tossing and turning, Isaac heaved a sigh and went to knock on Scott's door. Scott was still awake; Isaac could hear the pages of a book being turned from across the hall.

"Come in, Isaac," Scott called out, soft enough that only Isaac would hear it.

Isaac stepped into Scott's room, letting the door click shut and leaning against it. He hadn't really thought much about what he was going to say, just that he knew he needed to see Scott. It calmed him down, for whatever reason, and that was enough for Isaac to go on for the moment.

"Uh, hey," Isaac said, worrying his lower lip between his teeth. "Am I bothering you? Because I can-"

"Isaac," Scott interrupted, brows knitted together in a look of concern. "No. Come here and talk to me."

Scott tapped the spot next to him on the bed, and Isaac hesitantly sat, scrubbing a hand over his face and sighing. "I don't even know what to say."

"Maybe you wanna talk about why you can't sleep?" Scott said, flashing Isaac one of his gentle 'you can tell me anything' smiles.

And this is why Isaac came to him. This is why Isaac trusts him.

Because no matter what, Scott always knows exactly the right thing to say. Scott asks what's wrong and actually listens. Scott genuinely cares, and Isaac thinks maybe that's a first for him.

Isaac shook his head. "You'll laugh at me."

"If you're not laughing, I'm not laughing."

Isaac nodded. If it were anybody else, he wouldn't believe them. But it wasn't.

"I have this thing. A bear, a stuffed bear. I sleep with it every night, and… I think it's still at Derek's."

"And you can't sleep without it," Scott said, voice soft and sympathetic, and Isaac felt a flush creep onto his cheeks. Of course Scott would be nice about it. Of course he'd understand.

Isaac bit his lip. "I've had it since I was three. It's falling apart but it's a comfort, you know? One of the few things I can't be without."

"I can go get it," Scott offered.

"It's still raining."

"So I'll get wet," Scott said, leaning over to nudge Isaac's shoulder with his own.

"You're already doing too much for me," Isaac said, and he knew it was wrong the second it came out of his mouth because Scott's hands moved to his shoulders and he was suddenly faced full-on with deep brown eyes.

Scott's gaze traveled over Isaac's face, considering every feature before he spoke. "You have to stop thinking like that, Isaac. Because I'm not gonna stop being nice to you, and eventually it's gonna get weird."

"I get that, and I appreciate it, but I can't let you go out in this," Isaac said, insistent.

"You could always sleep in here tonight. I mean, I'm not exactly a teddy bear, but I'm a really good cuddler. I have references."

Scott had a lopsided grin on his face when Isaac looked at him, and Isaac forced himself to chuckle.

"That's- yeah, that's a good one."

"I'm serious, Isaac. You can stay with me, if you want."

Isaac sat frozen on the edge of the bed. His heart was thumping in his chest, as though it was trying to say 'yes' for him. He let out a whoosh of breath and tried to calm down, but his palms were sweating and he was practically vibrating with nervous energy and why had he thought it was a good idea to sit this close to Scott McCall in the first place?

He was pulled from his thoughts by Scott's hand on his chest, wordlessly guiding his head onto a pillow.

Scott lay facing him, that concerned look back on his face, only much closer now. Isaac's stomach lurched.

Scott pulled a blanket over both of them, letting his hand rest on Isaac's back. He finally seemed a little hesitant, nervous even. Isaac was thankful for that, too.

The hand on Isaac's back starting rubbing slow circles.

"Scott?"

His hand stilled. "Yeah?"

"Just… thanks," Isaac whispered, draping an arm over Scott and pulling him a little closer.

The soothing circles resumed, and Isaac closed his eyes and clung to Scott like he was essential.

Because he was.

Isaac fell asleep with Scott's fingers carding through his hair, and Scott was right. He wasn't a teddy bear.

He was better.

In the morning, Scott disentangled himself from Isaac and rode to Derek's loft to get the bear.

He found Derek still asleep, curled up in bed with Isaac's bear tucked under one arm.