"So, then you take x from both sides and you get...?" urged Stiles across the table from Jackson at their usual spot in the library. There were only a few days before finals and then winter break. Jackson was supposed to be going to some resort in the mountains with his parents, but he was not sure if he wanted to.
"What are you doing winter break?" Jackson asked suddenly instead of answering Stiles' question.
The other teen looked confused for a moment before he answered. "Nothing, really. Derek is attending some convention thing in New York, so the pack's not doing anything; and, Dad's going to be working. Why?"
"You should come on vacation with me, then," Jackson stated, his voice sounding less nervous than he felt. He had never asked anyone to come up to the resort with him before, not even Lydia or Danny.
Stiles' eyes widened a little and he actually dropped his pen in surprise before he fumbled to pick it back up. "Oh, uhm," he said before he wet his lips, brow furrowing a little. "Yeah, okay. I'd, uhm... I'd like that." Stiles laughed softly with a smile, only slightly surprised that he actually meant it.
Things were still odd between him and Jackson. They would talk at school, and go out on Friday nights to see a movie or get something to eat. They never held hands or showed any public displays of affection, but they had kissed once, when Jackson had brought Stiles home after one movie. They weren't officially anything, but their friends seemed to be waiting with baited breath for the two of them to finally settle things.
"I don't really have anything for cold weather," Stiles stated after a moment of thought. He owned jeans, a couple long sleeved shirts, and some hoodies; but, it never got cold enough for Stiles to keep actual winter items, and he did not own a coat.
"We'll take care of it," replied Jackson with a nod. "Just bring whatever."
"Yeah, alright." With matching smiles, the two of them then went back to studying, though neither one could stay focused for too long and they ended up leaving to grab some pizza not much later.
"How'd you do?" Stiles asked Jackson with a smile as he came up to the lacrosse player's locker in the hall where Jackson was throwing away all the papers he would not need the next semester.
Jackson dropped the stack of papers in his hand into the trashcan that was left in the middle of the hallway for students to do just that. "One A, one C, and the rest are B's," Jackson answered with a smile.
A smile spread across Stiles' face and he laughed before he hugged Jackson and said, "See, I told you that you could do it."
Stiles seemed to realize what he was doing, then, and he quickly let go, stepping back as he apologized. "No," replied Jackson with a shake of his head. "I don't... I don't mind."
"Yeah? Cool. Uh, yeah." Stiles smiled sheepishly before laughing softly once again. "I should, uh, go. Gotta finish packing." More like he needed to start packing. He had asked his dad for permission to go, which he had been reluctantly given; but, he had made no motion to actually start packing anything yet. "So, I'll... see you in a few?"
Once Jackson nodded and stated when exactly he would be over to pick him up, Stiles waved and left to go find Scott so that they could leave. They talked about their test grades the entire way to the Stilinski house, and Scott managed to wait until they were in Stiles' room to say, "Keep your phone charged. If you ever want out of there, call. Any time. We'll come get you."
Stiles laughed, rolling his eyes fondly as he grabbed an empty duffel-bag out of his closet. "You sound like my dad," he stated, remember his conversation with the man when he had asked for permission to go. "Thanks, man, but I think I'll be fine."
"I know, it's just... it's Jackson." Scott frowned a little as he sat down on Stiles' desk chair while his best friend was shoving some clothes into the bag.
"Yeah, and Jackson is the one who punched a werewolf in the face to try to protect me." Stiles shot his friend a pointed look, earning a sheepish grin in response. "He's not always nice, and we all know that; but, I dunno. There's more to him than that. I'm really starting to like him Scott."
Scott let out a heavy breath, but he smiled at his best friend. "As long as he doesn't hurt you, we're good."
Stiles smiled in response and tossed a pair of socks at Scott, missing by a good few feet. "Now, be a good slave and go get me some soda."
"Yes, master," replied Scott, rolling his eyes as he went downstairs to grab a soda for each of them.
The two of them continued talking as Stiles packed (or rather, he shoved clothes into his bag, followed by toothpaste, toothbrush, shampoo, and all that good stuff), and then went downstairs to play video games and eat junk food until Jackson got there. Once he did, Scott said his good-byes and left to head over to Allison's face, squeezing Stiles' shoulder lightly with one hand as he went out the door. Stiles shoved his hands into his hoodie pockets with a smile at Jackson as he said, "Ready to go, then?"
"Yeah. Where's your bag?" replied Jackson.
"Oh, right." Stiles picked the bag up off the ground next to the door, only to have Jackson take it from him wordlessly. He smiled and followed Jackson outside, locking the house up behind him. "Thanks."
Jackson put the bag in the backseat next to his own, and the two coats that were there; and, they both got in the car so that Jackson could start the drive. His parents were already up there, he explained to Stiles as he drove. They talked about anything and everything that came to mind, speaking over the quiet music playing on the radio. They were almost to the cabin when Jackson asked, "If you've been studying magic, why didn't you use it when we were in that place?"
Stiles worried at his lower lip, fiddling with one of his hoodie strings as he looked over at Jackson, trying to figure out the best way to explain things. "Well, firstly, I only know a few little things. Like, I can make healing teas or protective circles with mountain ash. I can do a few things with assistance of runes that are more self-defense related like throwing stones or something. But, uh, I don't want to give myself access to too much knowledge," he stated, shaking his head a little as he leaned back against the door so that he could watch Jackson as he talked. "It's addictive, very addictive. People die because they use too much, because they start craving more power and consume too much. It's... it's very dangerous and there's a fine line between what is safe, and what will be too much. I don't want to lose myself." Stiles shook his head a little, crossing his arms over his stomach. He had heard enough stories of magic consuming the user, seen videos and pictures. He did not want to be like that. "It's easier if the user has an anchor, something or someone to hold them back; someone important or a totem. Even then, a person can become lost."
Jackson nodded a little as he let the information sink in. He could easily see why Stiles would not want to learn too much. Stiles was one of those people who consumed knowledge of things, even unneeded information. It would be difficult to not use to the point of getting lost if he knew what to do. Jackson did not like that thought. He glanced over at Stiles for a moment before focusing on the road once again. "I doubt your... pack would let that happen to you." Jackson pulled a slight face at the word pack, finding it odd to say, and Stiles laughed softly at him, nodding a little.
"They'd do what they could to stop it, yeah."
Still, it was not something Stiles wanted to mess with too much. Dabbling was fine, as long as he kept it light. The draw of doing more was already there; but, Stiles would not do it, not unless he had to. Their conversation strayed away from the supernatural then, and only lasted a couple minutes more until they were parked outside the two-story, multi-room cabin. It was very nice, but judging by all the snow outside, it was going to be freezing the moment they stepped out of the car. Jackson's parents' car was not there, and he mentioned that they were probably in town at the store as he reached into the back seat to grab one of the two coats to hand to Stiles. "Here, put this on," he instructed as he grabbed the second coat to put on himself.
Stiles gave a small salute before he slipped on the slightly too big coat. It was too warm for it there in the car, but he was more worried about how cold it was going to be outside. They both got out, then, and Stiles helped Jackson with the few bags they had, making it into the warm cabin in one trip. There was a note sitting on the table there in the entrance, confirming Jackson's earlier statement about them having gone shopping. "Coats go into the closet here," Jackson explained as he tugged off his own and hung it on one of the many open hangers before moving aside to let Stiles do the same. "Snow-covered shoes go here until they dry." Jackson slipped off his own shoes and set them on the mat next to the closet. "Mom'll have a conniption if water gets tracked past the hall."
"I don't blame her," replied Stiles with a soft laugh as he took off his soaked-through Converse. "S'gotta be rough on the wood flooring."
"Yeah, there's a water mark stained into the floor by the kitchen. It's hidden under a table, now; but, s'still there from when I was young." Jackson laughed a little and Stiles smiled softly, gently squeezing the lacrosse star's arm. "C'mon, I'll show you to the guest room."
Stiles nodded and grabbed his bag once again, starting to follow Jackson over to the staircase. He smiled when Jackson took his hand without prompting, their fingers lacing together as they made their way up the stairs and down the hall to the right once they were on the landing. It did not feel as awkward as Stiles thought it should have. In fact, he just felt... well, good about being there. The cold kind of made his knee hurt; but, he had medication with him, just in case. He might even make some tea to help with it. As long as he did not start limping from it hurting so bad, Stiles would not bring it up. "Wow," Stiles mumbled as they passed one of the large, picture windows that overlooked the mountains and the rest of the resort. "S'pretty up here. Don't think I could handle all the snow for more than a few weeks though."
"It's a nice change from home, though," replied Jackson with a slight nod, only letting go of Stiles' hand once they got to the guest room that the vents had been turned on in. The few other guest rooms were not being heated, as it was a waste of money to heat rooms that would not be in use. "Here. This is the room you can use. S'got its own bathroom."
Stiles walked over to the bed to drop the bag in his hand on it before saying, "Hey, where's the kitchen at? I'd really like to make this tea, 'cause it sounds really good and warm and yeah..."
"C'mon, s'back downstairs." Jackson nodded and waited for Stiles to grab the stuff for the tea out of his bag before leading the other teen down to the kitchen, stopping by his own room (which was right next to Stiles') to leave his own bag there.
They then went to the kitchen and Stiles started to make the tea. "It's one for relaxation and health," Stiles explained as he mixed the two types of leaves into the tea ball to go into the kettle. He warned Jackson before hand that he would be channeling some magic as he made the tea, which would amplify the healing properties and help keep his knee injury from flaring up.
Jackson was across the island in the middle of the kitchen from Stiles, sitting on one of the stools while Stiles used the stove top on his side of the island to make the tea. Stiles' eyes flashed gold for a moment before Jackson watched them turn entirely black and his brow furrowed. "Does that always happen?" he asked.
"Hmm? What are you talking about?" Stiles was not exactly sure what Jackson was meaning, never realizing when his eyes did that anymore.
"Your eyes are black."
"Oh! Right, yeah." He nodded a little. "Only if I'm using a constant stream of magic, though. If it's just a small burst, they'll change color for only a moment; sometimes if I get too worked up emotionally one way or another." Stiles reached up to run a hand through his hair absentmindedly, turning up the heat on the stove's burner a little more. "Scott says it's creepy."
Jackson shrugged a little as he got up to go around the island to where Stiles was. "I don't think it's creepy," he stated. "Does it effect your sight."
"I see better, especially in the dark. Which kinda hurts my eyes 'cause I've got my contacts in." Stiles stopped fidgeting as Jackson reached up to rest a hand on the side of his face, thumb brushing against the skin just beneath his eye. "What're you doing?"
He shook his head a little in response, smiling a little as he watched Stiles eyes fade from the solid black with a faint flash of gold back to their original color. "Just looking."
Stiles' face flushed a little and he laughed softly before leaning in to gently press his lips against Jackson's. He almost expected the other boy to pull away, but Jackson simply moved his hand to rest on the back of Stiles' neck, deepening the kiss a little. No matter what may happen between him and Jackson, Stiles decided he could really very easily get used to kissing him. Stiles slowly pulled away when the tea kettle started to whistle loudly, signaling that it was done. "Tea's finished," he mumbled, letting go of the front of Jackson's shirt as he just then realized that he had a hold of it in the first place. Stiles cleared his throat and stepped back a little more. "Where's the cups?"
"Oh, uh, right. Here," replied Jackson before going over to the cabinet that the coffee mugs were in. He grabbed one for Stiles and handed it to the teen, who then poured himself some.
"D'you want any? It's sweet already; won't really have any effects on you. Might just make you feel like you're in a really, really good mood." Stiles nodded a little with a smile over the edge of his cup before blowing on the hot drink to take a sip of it.
"What effects will it have on you?"
Stiles hummed a little, leaning against the island as he turned off the burner. "It'll help lessen the pain in my knee," he said, deciding he may as well just be honest. "S'the cold, making it hurt a bit."
Jackson frowned a little but nodded slightly as he said, "Yeah, sure. I'll try some."
"Here. Try some of mine first instead of dirtying a cup."
Jackson tried a little of the tea and found that he actually liked it; so, they got him a cup of it as well before going into the living room to sit on the couch and watch some television. Stiles rested his back against the arm of the couch he was closest to and stretched his legs out so that they were across Jackson's lap as they watched some stupid comedy movie. He smiled a little to himself as Jackson absentmindedly ran his thumb over the knee that was bothering him. It slowly dulled with the that he drank, and he soon found himself feeling completely at ease and unable to keep from smiling. All the tension that Jackson held could be seen easing from his shoulders as well.
Stiles never believed before that there would ever be a time that he would actually want Jackson's company, as awkward as said company may be. Yet, as he sat there in the warmth of the living room, listening to the movie playing and the crackling of the fireplace off to the side, tossing in comments here or there about the movie, Stiles found that there were not many places else that he would rather be. The only thing that would make it better would have been if his dad and Scott could have been there. Still, Stiles had a feeling that it was going to be a great vacation. His dad was just glad he was getting an opportunity to get away from the supernatural epicenter that was Beacon Hills, if only for a few weeks.
Once Jackson's parents got to the cabin, the four of them went back to the kitchen where they talked and made dinner. Maria, Jackson's mother, talked to Stiles more than his dad did, finding out different foods that Stiles liked and about holiday traditions that his family had. There were not that many. Decorating the tree was the biggest part, but beyond that, the only traditions they had died out when his mom passed. Stiles did not mention that, however, as he did not want to bring any negative emotions to the place that was feeling so cheerful and light.
He went to bed with a smile on his face for the first time in a long time; and, he was sure he would end up sleeping through the night without an issue. However, that ended up not being the case; and, Stiles woke up in a cold sweat at about three in the morning. He frowned as he panted softly, trying to catch his breath with his gaze up on the ceiling. Stiles could not remember what his dream had been about, but it made his side hurt and he shuddered a little. There was a lingering feeling of dread, that something else was going to happen. Hyper-vigilance; he had been told about it before. However, that time, it felt different. Stiles noted that information as he walked over to the window in his room to look out over the miles of snow-covered ground around the building that glistened a bit in the light of the nearly-full moon.
Stiles let out a slightly shaky breath and rested his forehead against the cool glass of the window, which made him inhale sharply through his nose as his eyes fell shut. "There's nothing there, Stiles," he mumbled to himself. "There's nothing there. Go back to sleep and stop this." When Stiles opened his eyes again, he took a practically stumbling step back away from the window when he saw a shape in the dotted shadows beneath the trees in the yard. The shape had red eyes.
He immediately rushed out of his own room to the one next door, knocking on the door before going in. Jackson was asleep, sprawled out on his bed with the blanket draped haphazardly around his middle, most of it having been kicked off on to the floor. "Jackson," Stiles said softly as he walked over to the bed, placing a hand on the other teen's shoulder to shake him awake.
Jackson jerked awake immediately at the touch of Stiles' cold hands, which he had not realized had grown cold from placing them on the window. "Stiles?" questioned Jackson groggily, reaching up to rub his eyes with the heel of his hands. "What is it?"
"There's something outside." Stiles spoke very quietly, wanting to avoid being overheard if what he had seen was really what he had thought. "Come here."
Stiles then led Jackson over to the window to point out the red eyes in the shadows, but Jackson's brow furrowed as he said he did not see anything. Stiles frowned a little, checking for himself to see that the eyes were no longer there. They both saw the dark tracks in the snow, however; and Stiles looked from them to Jackson as the other teen rested a hand on his hip, squeezing lightly. "S'probably just a wolf, Stiles," Jackson stated softly. "They have those up here."
"Yeah, you're right," replied Stiles with a soft sigh, nodding as he idly wet his lips. "I'm sorry for waking you. It just... freaked me out, y'know. I... yeah. Sorry."
"Don't." Jackson shook his head a little and gently squeezed Stiles' hip once more before nodding to the bed. "C'mon. Lay with me."
Stiles' eyes widened a little at the suggestion and he looked from Jackson to the bed and back again before nodding a little. He followed Jackson's lead over to the bed and the two of them lay down before Jackson grabbed the blanket to pull up over them both. Stiles tensed only a little when Jackson's arm wrapped around his waist, relaxing when the other boy softly asked, "S'this okay?"
"Yeah," replied Stiles with a faint smile, placing his hand on top of Jackson's before linking their fingers together like that. "Could get used to this."
"Yeah?"
Stiles nodded with a faint smile, gently squeezing Jackson's hand. "Yeah."
That was how the two of them fell asleep that first night, the night after, and the night after; the thought of werewolves fading from both of their minds as they fell into the preparations for Christmas. There were tense moments, and Maria commented on how the two of them argued a lot; but, they worked well together and while they did not always see eye-to-eye, there was respect between them; and, that in itself was something that meant a lot. Maybe, Stiles thought as he snuggled into Jackson's side, blowing on the hot chocolate in his hands while the other teen's dad put in some silly holiday movie, maybe it would be a great Christmas after all.
