2 weeks.
2 full weeks she spent resting herself and she only did it to keep Sheriff stilinski happy. The worry from him was enough to guilt her into promising those two weeks at home.
The only remotely exciting thing of those two weeks was going to the school to talk about her situation.
To her surprise she found an older man in the position of her principle. She learned quickly from Stiles that he was Allison's Grandad who came into town not long after her murderous Aunt had been killed.
Scarlett was over a year older then her best friends. She met Stiles when she moved. She was originally from New York and was 6 when she was taken to Beacon Hills. She then made friends with her mams old best friend Claudia's son. Her mam was a Beacon Hill's native so it was easy for them to settle back and she was then inseparable from Stiles and Scott.
So when Gerard Argent offered her a place in Junior year along her actual friends starting in August she took it.
She knew herself she wasn't ready to go back. The rumors and whispers would be too much. Her nightmares were bad, but she'd never admit that to the Stilinski men. She often found herself awake watching TV in the sitting room most nights after getting somewhere between 2-4 hours sleep. She would wake up in a sweat and crying at least once a week but refused to take the tablets left untouched on her drawer.
Her sleep didn't worry her as much as Scott and Stiles did. She noticed a difference in them straight away after being admitted.
The secret looks between them, the subtle nods and Stiles creeping out at all times in the morning.
They played a game where Scarlett didn't say anything it him about it and he didn't question why she was always in the sitting room in the early hours.
The store in which she worked at had closed down. The couple who owned it decided Beacon Hills wasn't as safe as they thought and pretty much upped and moved 2 weeks after she disappeared.
She did however find a lump sum of money in her account. Much more then she remembered. Upon discovering the money in her account the next day she received a letter from the couple explaining how they felt guilty she was taken outside the store and they didn't even have security cameras to help the investigation. They had given money to help the search for her and we're now giving her a profit they received from selling the store.
Pretty much it was guilt money. She couldn't even return it as they left no forwarding address.
"What's the plan for today?" Sheriff stilinski asks drinking coffee from the cup number 2 of the day.
"Going to go grocery shopping and maybe to a bookstore I've not really decided"
"Good no heavy lifting ask for assistance" as much as she wanted to argue her ribs were still giving her problems.
"I'll leave money on the table" He says leaving the cup bt the sink.
They both knew she wouldn't take it not for the next while anyways, had to get rid of the pity money somehow.
"Have a good day, I'll have dinner cooked for 8"
"You too Scar" The sheriff then walked out leaving her to continue writing her list.
Stiles was in school and she almost envied that he had his life mostly in order exact for him sneaking out. He was in school and the world moved on while she wasn't there. She was now 3 months behind everyone else and couldn't get past the fact winter had come and gone without her.
She grabbed her purse and made her way to her small black car and then headed to the store. She sang along to the radio at an obnoxiously loud tone which lead to a lot of people glancing at the car as she drove by.
When she arrived at the store it seemed fairly empty a few cars parked outside here and there. She grabbed a trolley making her way into the shop glancing for help, but finding no suitable characters she decided she could do this herself. She got through the first aisle before she needed to reach up to grab something. Shooting pains ran through her bottom ribs as she grunted her fingers almost grabbing the packet
"Need a hand?" A voice asks as stops struggling and turns her head way too fast.
There stood in his tall stature Derek Hale
"What do you do wait around to find needy girls?" she asks raising an eyebrow as he grabbed the packet by stretching his arm to the top shelf. Scarlett was no way small only an inch or two smaller then Stiles and Scott but Derek had a good few inches on her.
"I noticed a struggle, thought you'd appreciate not hurting yourself more"
"Excuse me I was not struggling" She's scoffs as he rolls his eyes at her a smirk on his face
"That's not the expression you had on your face"
She thought about lying, claiming she was fine. Then Sheriff stilinski popped into her head and the fear of him somehow finding out like he normally did.
"I'm having problems with my ribs" She sighs giving up the macho act.
"Your ribs?"
"Yeah apparently fractured a few before I was found and they should nearly be healed but I don't know they don't seem to be... "
"Maybe you should get that checked out and not be reaching for items on top shelves"
"Sheriff stilinski did tell me to ask for help"
"But" He asks as she looks over at the two cashiers chatting between themselves and the small young boy trying to restock shelves that look twice his height.
"Do they look like they want to follow me around and help?"
He scowled at the three uninterested employees as if making a personal reminder in his head.
"I'll help"
"I'm sure you have better things to be doing Derek"
"You need help, I want to help as you said I like to hang around and help needy girls" He smirks waiting for the reaction out of her.
"Needy?" She fakes sobs putting her hand to her head.
"What could you ever mean by needy? I like to look lost til someone comes and saves me"
He smiled at her as she notices a basket with a few items in his hand.
"Put your basket in the trolly if you're following me"
"Oh now we've gone from helping to following?"
"Sorry, helping" She rolls her eyes as he places the basket down in the trolley.
"Show me your list and i'll pick it up as we go along"
She was going to refuse, tell him she could pick up anything in arms length. But Derek Hale didn't look like someone who was to be argued with, unlike Stiles who she always won the arguments with.
He noticed her pause before she took the list out of her bag and handed it to him no questions asked.
"No argument?"
"Would I win?" She asks as he let's out a small chuckle more to himself
"No"
"No argument then"
They padded up along the second aisle as he grabbed a few things from the list and for his basket, her adding a thing here and there.
"So tell me how do you know Scott and Stiles?" She asks tapping her nails on the handle of the trolley.
"They trespassed onto my house a few months back"
"They what" She asks
"By accident"
"By accident?" She questions
"They also got me arrested"
She stopped the trolley at that staring at him with wide eyes.
"They got you arrested for them trespassing on your house?"
"No no, they thought I murdered my sister"
She actually thought she was going to pass out looking at the figure in front of her. He was reaching up for something and had said it all so calmly.
"And you haven't beat their asses why?" She near yells as he looked at her smirking at her confusion, clearly knowing something she didn't.
"We sorted it and they apologised"
"I'm going to have words with them" She mutters
"Aren't you going to ask me if I did murder her?"
"You obviously didn't if you're standing there, besides I know how close you used to be with Laura"
"So you know I'm a Hale?" He asks her curiously, she looked at him as if that was the stupidest question he'd ever asked.
"Of course I do, why would it be a problem?"
"A lot of people would turn the other way" He responds low.
"That scowl doesn't scare me off Hale" She responds turning the corner to the last aisle.
"I scare Stiles"
She laughed at his response
"Stiles is scared of me when i yell at him, I can imagine your scowl reaches new levels with him"
"Your scary?" He asks
"Believe me you don't want to see me when I flip the lid, especially when you're Stiles and can't take anything seriously"
"Noted"
She stopped the trolley at the checkout and started putting the items on the Checkout as the cashier rolled his eyes obviously upset he had to stop his conversation.
Once she paid she looked back and Derek nodded at her to go outside without him.
"I'll be out in a minute"
She trudged the trolley along the path to her car and then start to put the bags in the trunk. Looking back to the window of the store she could see a scared cashier getting a stern talking to by Derek before he grabbed his two bags making his way to the exit.
"Guess Stiles isn't the only one you scare"
"He wasn't doing his job someone needed to inform him of that" He stated as he went to grab one of her bags the same time she did.
"Hey hey stay with me, come on Scarlett we're nearly there"
She shot her hand back letting out a deep breath she didn't even know she was holding in. Derek's face was suddenly 5 inches from hers as he held her side, probably from the fact she looked like she'd seen a ghost.
She jumped back yanking his arm off her, a look of fear on her face.
"Sorry sorry" She manages to mumble out taking a step back. Derek took this as the time to let her go and grab the last bag for the trunk.
"I'm sorry I'm just still a bit jumpy I keep having these flashbacks" She was upset with herself for jumping away from him. All he had done was shown her kindness whenever he saw her and she had to mess it up.
"What kind of flashbacks?" He asks
She didn't know why she felt the need to spill her guts to someone she barely knew, she couldn't even find it in her to tell Stiles. They told each other everything and we're pretty much seen as one person to most people. But she knew Stiles was keeping things from her, she could keep secrets too.
"Whoever found me telling me I'm okay and safe, I always feel calm but I just see trees and it's like a fuzzy signal"
"Fuzzy signal?"
"Yeah kind of blurry I can never see the person, maybe cause I was in so much pain I kept blacking out"
He stood there nodding his head as she put her hand in her hair pushing it back from her face letting out a sigh.
"That's it always just the same situation"
"Are you having nightmares?" He asks as she looks up to meet his eyes. She looked deep into his orbs before pulling away.
"I should be going Derek thank you for your help"
She watched him close the trunk as she nervously jingles her keys in her hands.
He kept quiet and just as he turned and went to walk away she found the courage to break the silence.
"No argument?" She asks smiling as he turned back to face her a small smirk on his face.
"Would I win?"
"No" She scoffs as he crosses his arms over
"No argument then"
She laughed at him as she reached into her bag grabbing a piece of paper and pen. Leaning on the car she scribbled her number down and handed it to Derek. He reached his hand out an eyebrow raised at her.
"My number, if you need a favour anytime let me know I owe you one"
"If I get girls phone numbers for helping I should help more"
"Ummmmhmm become beacon hills superman you'll have girls fawning at your feet"
She opened her car door and watched as he tried to not chuckle at her comment. She knew he was known for being grumpy and always scowling but something seemed to bring out his inner smile.
She watched him walk away to his car before starting the engine and pulling out of the car park. She drove to the closest book store suddenly in a better mood then she had been in weeks.
She was about to get out of her car when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.
Opening it up she had a message from an unknown number in her phone
Just so you have my number in case you need "following" around again
-Derek
AN - Thanks for all the support!
