Skyler had spent nearly an hour getting ready. Her hair was curled in loose ringlets and then twisted into a bun on top of her head. She was wearing tight, black leather pants, a black crop top and black leather jacket. She had applied her makeup to perfection, and she was just sitting down slipping on her combat boots. She still had about twenty minutes before Stiles picked her up, so she wandered back into the bathroom, touching up her eyeliner slightly. She took a minute to appreciate just how good the black make up made her green eyes look.
She strolled back out of her room and downstairs. She had the house to herself tonight. For a while at least. Nick had arrived home on Thursday morning and he was going to be gone again by Saturday afternoon, so he and Rebecca had gone out for dinner. She was invited but Skyler would rather be doing just about anything else than watch her father and his girlfriend interact. She wanted to throw herself down on the sofa, but she settled for sitting down gently so as not to fuck up her outfit. Skyler spent the next fifteen minutes vaguely watching a Sons of Anarchy rerun on FX.
The doorbell rang at exactly half seven. She was so excited she practically skipped to the door. Skyler freaking loved parties. She pulled open the door and grinned at the boy standing on her doorstep. He was wearing a blazer, purple shirt and black tie. It was an unspeakably strange combination for a party but it somehow worked perfectly on the hyperactive teen. Skyler had been spending a lot of time with Stiles over the past week and he was rapidly becoming one of her favourite people. They had similar tastes, they shared the same scathing sense of humour. They were both total nerds. The only drawback was that Skyler was falling totally head over heels for Stiles, and Stiles was totally in love with Lydia. Lydia, who was Skyler's new best friend.
"H-hey," he stammered, glancing for a second at her exposed navel, then back up to her visible red bra strap, "You look nice really nice."
"You're not too shabby yourself, Stilinski."
Skyler loved that she had that affect on the boy. She gave him a coy smile and puffed her chest slightly, pushing her breasts out. She stepped out the door, pulling it shut behind her. She checked her to make sure she had her phone and keys, then looked up to see Stiles still watching her chest. She raised an eyebrow and stood there until he noticed that she was watching exactly where his eyes were. He stepped back, clearing his throat and looking at his shoes.
"Right..." Stiles looked back at her, then blushed furiously and had to turn away.
Sky let out a little laugh, and began to follow Stiles towards his car, that was parked at the end of her driveway. She stopped in surprise as she saw the baby blue Jeep stopped on the road.
"Stiles... Where you at the preserve last Sunday night?"
Stiles' eyes flickered towards her's, his face a mask of confusion.
"How did you know I was there?!"
"I passed the entrance to the preserve my first night here, just before I crashed. I was admiring your car," Skyler laughed softly, "Talk about serendipity."
He let out a soft chuckle and jogged ahead of her to open the passenger door. Stiles took her hand and helped her step up into the Jeep. She settled into her seat, taking a deep breath. The Jeep smelled of cinnamon and pine and something else that was distinctly Stiles. He clambered in the driver's side and quickly attempted to throw his lacrosse gear onto the back seat, almost smacking Sky in the head with his gear bag. He shoved his keys into the ignition and turned them several times, the car refusing to start. He shot a few glances her way, chuckling nervously. He managed to get the car started on the fourth or fifth try, eliciting a cheer from both of them.
"So have you ever been to one of Lydia's parties before?" Skyler asked, fiddling with the Batman bracelet around her wrist.
"No," Stiles cleared his throat again, "I've never exactly... well, you know."
"Been invited," she finished for him.
Stiles looked embarrassed and Sky felt like a piece of shit for bringing up the fact that he was not one of the popular kids.
"That's probably because most people there are uppity dickheads," she continued airily, "Such as Jackson and his friends and about ninety percent of the people Lydia surrounds herself with."
She turned to look at him to find him already watching her, a faint smile gracing his features. He didn't reply. He didn't feel a need to. Instead he turned on the radio and tried to find a song they would both like. It seemed impossible, as the only artists the radio stations played were Nicki Minaj and Justin Bieber.
"You can have a look in the glove box for some CDs if you want," Stiles seemed annoyed at the range of music on the radio.
Skyler opened the compartment and began to root though Stiles' music collection. His music taste was near perfect, she would just introduce a bit more classic rock into it, but that could be done over time. She flicked through the cases, occasionally taking a peek at Stiles. He was concentrating on the road so hard that his tongue was poking out of his mouth slightly. Sky wondered casually how his mouth tasted.
"Got it. Can't beat the classics."
She sat up straight again and cracked open the case. She searched for the CD slot for a minute before realising that she had no idea what the layout of this car was.
"Uh, Stiles," she held up the CD and waved it at him slightly, "Where does it go?"
He took his hand off the wheel and plucked the CD from her fingers and slid it into the CD port underneath the volume control. Sky relaxed back into the seat as the opening bars of Semisonic's 'Closing Time' played through the speakers. Stiles began to nod along with the song.
"I love this song."
"Me too," she told him, "You know, it was the first song I learned to play on guitar."
"You can play guitar?" Stiles asked her, an eyebrow quirked.
"Yeah, started when I was five. My mom used to teach me."
Stiles already knew that Skyler's mother was dead. She had told him the day after she met him when he asked why she had moved to Beacon Hills. He hadn't gone through the whole 'I'm so sorry for your loss' bullshit. Instead he had explained how his mother had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia and died when he was ten years old. He understood what Skyler went through and told her that she could always come to him if she needed someone.
"I play the drums. We should jam sometime!" Stiles exclaimed, making them both laugh.
"We totally should," Sky agreed excitedly.
Stiles took his hand off the wheel and high fived Skyler as hard as he could. They both sat back, Stiles focus shifted back to the road, and Skyler's focused her attention's on the music. She found herself beginning to sing subconsciously, the way she usually did when she was listening to a song she liked. She heard a faint humming coming from next to her. Stiles was bopping his head to the beat, humming the tune under his breath. She raised her voice slightly, and Stiles matched her, beginning to sing along too. She went louder again, and once more she was matched by the teen sitting next to her. Stiles only seemed to notice that he was singing when they were both screaming it out at the top of their voices. He laughed loudly and continued singing. Skyler rolled down her window and let the fresh air fill her nose. She felt better than she had since she arrived here.
The party was one of the best Sky had ever been to. Lydia's house was huge, the music was loud, there were people everywhere, she had strung fairy lights out the back all around the pool, and best of all, there was a non stop supply of free drink. Skyler had been here about an hour, and had lost Stiles after the first twenty minutes. It was a bad move seeing as he was her ride home, but she had seen her friend Lyla and wanted to talk to her. Now, she was absolutely hammered. She had had about four of these shots called purple nurples and she wasn't just seeing double, she was seeing triple at this point.
"I love this song!" She cried to a stranger with whom she was dancing to a song that she nether knew, nor actually loved.
She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to face who she thought was Danny, but she couldn't be sure.
"Skyler... Skyler! SKYLER!"
Oh, Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling..." Sky tried to sing at him. It ended up sounding something like a cassette tape when the ribbon's gotten tangled.
"Sky, I think you've had enough now."
"I have not had *hiccup* nearly enough, Danny *hiccup* for I am still standing."
She slipped past Danny and wobbled her way over to the drinks table. She plucked two more purple nurples from the tray they sat on and began to shove her way through the crowd to where she though she had seen a flash of blazer and buzzcut. She ran into Stiles by the poolside, not met up with, she literally walked straight into him.
"Whoopsie," Sky giggled, and grabbed at his chest.
"Jesus, Sky. How much have you had to drink?" Stiles took hold of her arms and steadied her.
"Nothing, Stiles. Not a thing," she shoved one of the purple nurples into his face, "Now drink with me."
"Sky, you know I can't. I'm driving you home," he told her gently, pushing her hand down slowly.
"One won't hurt, Stiles! Please," she widened her eyes and jutted her lower lip, "Have a drink with me."
Stiles rolled his eyes and removed one of the shot glasses from her hand.
"I will have one, and only if you promise me that you won't drink anything more."
"I promise Stiles, hand on heart," she placed her hand over her heart, and raised her glass to Stiles, "Party on, Wayne!"
"Party on, Garth!" He replied and tipped back the shot, Sky copying his actions a moment later.
"Holy shit! That's awful," Stiles sputtered and gagged on the mysterious purple liquid.
"You stop tasting it after the third!"
"The third! Skyler, how many have you actually had!?" Stiles was the only thing holding her upright right now.
"That was my fifth," Sky grinned, collapsing forward into Stiles' arms.
"Alright, Sky," Stiles said, hauling her upright, "Coffee time."
Forty five minutes and four cups of strong black coffee later, they were both sitting together on the kitchen worktop and Skyler was leaning her head on Stiles' shoulder. He had his arm around her and was doing his best to soothe her raging headache.
"I'm really, really sorry Stiles. I didn't mean to drink that much."
"It's fine, Sky. I know, those things are very strong.
"I didn't mean to get sick on your shoes either."
Stiles chuckled slightly, then hopped down off the kitchen counter. He wrapped his arms around Skyler's waist and pulled her down with him. She moaned and he led her into the hall, lowering her down on the stairs.
"Just wait here for me, okay? I'm gonna go make sure Scott's okay and then I'll bring you home," he tucked a few loose blonde curls behind her ear.
Sky nodded at him, and curled against the wall, closing her eyes a bit and letting her mind wander. Stiles disappeared back into the kitchen and was swallowed up by the crowds. Sky twisted the ring on her finger, trying to think of anything but the pounding in her head. She pulled the jacket tighter around her and pulled in a deep breath. She had been sitting there for a few minutes when she heard a commotion coming from the kitchen and moving towards the front door
"SCOTT! SCOTTY!"
Scott ran past her first. His head was bent and she could hear his heavy breathing from where she was sitting, a few meters away. He stumbled into the front door, grasping at the handle and wrenching it open. He practically fell into the front garden. Next was Stiles. He was shoving his was through the people hovering in the doorway and the hall. He raced out the open door after Scott and vanished into the dark. Sky pulled herself to her feet, using the banister as a support. She gave herself a few seconds for her body to adjust to being upright again before taking a step forward and immediately colliding with Allison.
"Shit. You okay?" Sky asked, grabbing her friend to steady her.
"I don't know," Allison ran a hand through her hair, looking like she was near tears, "Scott started acting weird and then he just ran off.
"Come on," Skyler took Allison's hand and pulled her outside, "Stiles has gone after him. I'm sure he's just sick or something."
But the front lawn was empty, save for a few couples making out in the bushes. They wandered down the the foot path at the edge of the road. She glanced up and down, still holding tight to Allison and took a step out onto the road. She had just left the pavement when she had to jump back on avoid being mowed down by Scott driving him mom's car haphazardly down the road. She fell back into Allison's arms, and both girls were forced to take a few steps backwards as Stiles sped by in the Jeep.
"What the hell is going on?!" Allison asked, her eyes wide and a look of hurt on her face as she suddenly realised, "Scott was my ride home..."
"And Stiles was mine," Sky finished despondently, "Oh, for fuc-"
"Allison."
They turned. There was a man walking towards them across Lydia's garden. He looked to be in his earl twenties, tall, dark and brooding. He had hazel green eyes and black hair, rough stubble coating the lower half of his face, and Sky could see his muscles underneath his leather jacket. In short, he was sex on legs.
"I'm a friend of Scott's," he told them, sidling up beside them, "My name is Derek."
Allison gave him a weak smile, but moved behind Skyler slightly. And Sky could feel Allison fear radiating off her in waves and from his little smirk, she assumed Derek could sense it too. She wondered if Derek could sense that she wanted to jump his bones.
"Scott wasn't feeling well, he asked me if I could give you a ride home," he smiled wider, probably in an attempt to look less threatening. It didn't work. He just looked like a psychopathic serial killer.
"How do you know Scott?" Allison asked, still not convinced that it was a good idea.
"Old friend of the family," Derek explained, still grinning like a murderer, "I know he only met you on Monday, but he seems to really adore you."
The adoration comment seemed to cement Allison's decision. She stepped forwards, pulling Skyler with her. Even though that guy was one of the sexiest men she had ever encountered, she would still not allow her new friend to leave the party with this man on her own.
"Your friend can come too, if she needs a ride," Derek gestured at Skyler.
"My name is Skyler, " she told him, pulling herself up to her full height (which was quite hard to do in her still semi intoxicated state) and bit her tongue to hold back a comment about the only kind of ride she wanted from Derek.
"Well then, Allison and Skyler," he waved a hand towards a black Camaro, "Shall we."
Skyler stormed forwards, claiming the front seat. If something did go down, she would rather Allison had a better chance of escape. Or maybe the drink had just made her paranoid. She heard Allison settle behind her and saw Derek seat himself behind the driving wheel next to her. The interior of the car was a bit too hot for comfort so Sky slid off her jacket and threw it in the back seat next to Allison.
"So, tell me..." Skyler started as they pulled out onto the road, "Do you make a habit of hanging around teenage girl's parties?"
Derek let out a laugh that sounded more like a bark. He caught Skyler's eye and raised an eyebrow at her. She shrugged, and on impulse, reached for the radio. She felt something warm cover her hand. She looked down in shock to see that Derek had taken hold of her hand and, with a warning look, placed it back in her lap. He was obviously trying to communicate that no one touched his radio.
Skyler could sense the challenge in his gaze, and turned, looking him straight in the eye. She reached down and switched the radio on, and began to flick through the channels, all without breaking eye contact. He raised a single eyebrow as if he could not believe the impudence of the girl sitting in the passenger seat. She finally chose a station and sat back, eyes still locked with the handsome man that was driving the car.
"So, tell me..." Derek parroted her words from a few minutes ago, "Do you make a habit of being annoying?"
Sky laughed, giving him a coy smile.
"I just like this song. It's-"
"David Condos, the song is called 'Like Wolves'. It's good."
She gave Derek a surprised smile, her opinion of him was getting just a tad higher. She suddenly realised with a jolt that Derek hadn't looked at the road since she turned on the radio. She flickered her eyes towards the windscreen of the car, he appeared to understand the gesture and just smirked at her, pressing down harder on the acceleration. She gripped the edge of her seat and fought the temptation to let out a delighted whoop, the adrenaline pumping through her veins as they sped through the narrow streets of Beacon Hills.
"Uh, Derek," Allison murmured tentatively, "My house is the fourth on the right."
Derek didn't even acknowledge her, just continued his staring match with Sky who was grinning like a Cheshire cat. He didn't even slow the car as he took a sharp turn into the driveway of Allison's house and floored the brakes. Skyler didn't look away for a second, just stared into the deep eyes of the man sitting next to her.
"Yeah, um, thanks for the lift Derek," Allison stumbled over her words as she took off her seat belt, "Sky, do you want to stay with me tonight?"
She finally broke away from Derek's mesmerizing gaze to glance over her shoulder at the girl behind her. Allison looked slightly panicked and her eyes seemed to screamed 'I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU'.
"That would be nice, Ally," Sky spoke to her for the first time since they got in the car about fifteen minutes ago.
Allison shot out of the car, looking relieved, while Sky took her time. She swung her legs out of the car, turning her back to face Derek.
"Nice tattoo."
"Yeah, it is," she agreed, and stood, fully out of the car, "I'll see ya around Derek."
Sky shut the door and watched him pull away from the house. Allison took hold of her and tugged her inside, closing the front door behind them. She greeted Allison's mom and her oddly attractive father, (Skyler wondered why everyone in this town was so damn good looking) and headed up to Allison's room. Both girls were exhausted ready to curl up in bed and sleep for a week. They both got changed, making conversation about the party and how weird Scott and Stiles were being. They fell into Allison's bed, facing each other so they could continue to talk.
"What did Derek say when you were getting out of the car?" Allison asked, yawning.
"He told me that he liked my tattoo," Skyler muttered, already half asleep.
"I didn't know you had one. What is it?"
Sky turned around, pulling the back of her borrowed tank top down. 'Don't Dream It, Just Be It' was written in italics between her shoulder blades.
"That's so deep," Allison sounded slightly in awe.
"Eh, kinda. It's from the Rocky Horror Picture Show," Sky explained, her voice breaking a bit as she said, "It was a sixteenth birthday present from my mom."
She turned back to face Allison, and felt her rubbing her arm soothingly. She smiled, and let the comforting motion lull her to sleep.
After what could have been a few minutes, or several hours later, Sky woke to find Allison climbing back into the bed.
"Where did you go?" Sky's voice was barely above a husky whisper.
"Stiles called over," Allison was muffled as she pressed her face into a pillow, "He wanted to check that we got home safe. He said to tell you that he wants to make it up to you for being a dick by buying you pizza tomorrow."
"Pizza sounds good," she told Allison, but she found herself simply talking to soft snores.
Pizza did sound good, but what sounded better at the moment was a good night's sleep and a serious hangover cure for the morning. She would talk to Stiles tomorrow. Right now, Sky turned onto her front and rested her head on her arms, thinking about her first Beacon Hills party. In minutes, she was asleep.