Fifteen minutes later after their conversation, the sheriff has to go to work and Stiles decides to have some breakfast. He's just finishing when somebody knocks on the door. He gets up curious since he wasn't expecting anybody.

When he opens the door he finds a man of his height but who looks much stronger than him; the kind of guy who probably goes to the gym every day. For a moment there's a silence and neither of them say anything.

"Hi," Stiles says first.

"Hey, Stiles," the guy replies, smiling.

Stiles realizes that this guy is looking at him like he knows him, like he's expecting him to recognize him and after a few seconds he remembers one of the pictures at home. He remembers asking Jackson about him and his reply. Of course, he looks like Kane, Derek's husband.

"Sorry... Kane, right?"

"Yeah, exactly. That's me. I'm guessing Jackson showed you a picture or something, right?"

"Yeah, pictures... some videos too, but you're right, lots of pictures in my life lately. Anyway, come in," Stiles says when he realizes they're still standing in the front porch.

Stiles moves towards the living room. "Why don't you take a seat?" Stiles says as he sits on one end of the sofa. Kane mirrors Stiles on the other end. "Would you like something to drink?" Stiles offers, trying to sound less uncomfortable than he is.

"No, thank you, I'm good," Kane declines politely.

There's another moment of silence that makes Stiles really nervous. Kane is looking at Stiles with a very curious gaze which doesn't help at all to put Stiles at ease.

"I'm sorry I didn't call you before," Kane finally says. "I realize now that maybe," he licks his lips, "I probably should have."

"How did you even know I was here?"

"Jackson. I called him an hour ago. I asked him how things were, among other things, and well, he said you were here." Kane looks around for a second and runs his hand through his hair, tucking it behind his ear. "Look, like Jackson must have told you, Derek and I weren't here when you woke up. It was impossible for us to come back earlier, but you have no idea how relieved we were when we heard the news. I honestly haven't seen Derek so happy in a long time."

"It's okay, really, you don't have to give me any explanation. Derek called me when you came back two days ago. I know it was pack's stuff and all that... I know you weren't on holiday." Probably one of the weirdest calls Stiles has ever had.

"Still, it sucked not being here. We wish we had been here to help you."

Stiles snorts. "If it's any consolation, you can't really help me. Nobody can, you know. There's no medicine for this."

Kane shakes his head. "Shit Stiles," he sighs. "I wish there was something I could do. Derek, too. We wish there was something we could do. I came not only to see how you are doing obviously, but also, we were told that we could maybe help you to remember... Jackson said..." He hesitates for a moment, unsure of how much of what Jackson said he should actually repeat.

"Let me guess... he said you should talk to me about the past. That it would help me to remember, right?"

"Is that true? Isn't that what the doctors said?" Kane frowns.

"Yeah, that's true. The doctors said a lot of stuff. That it could trigger my memory or whatever. But here you are, I'm looking at you and I don't have the slightest idea about who you are. I mean, Jackson told me but except for that... you know..." And as he says that, Stiles realizes, "does Jackson know you are here? Did he send you?"

"No, of course not." Kane shakes his head. "Stiles, I think we started the wrong way. We're friends, y'know? I should have started by saying that, and you can count on me for anything you need."

"Jackson said you are one of his closest friends. That you met in college."

"Yeah, that's right, I'm not Danny... but we're close." He smiles a bit distantly in memory. "We met the first year of Law school. I remember thinking that he was something else..."

"An asshole?"

Kane can't help but laugh. "No, not that. Mysterious. He was... I don't know, he kept very much to himself. And I know, it was the first year and you don't know anybody, but he was different, you could tell he had a purpose like I had a purpose as well. I guess I could feel a connection."

"What do you mean?" Stiles asks slowly. "A connection like... y'know, like you had a crush on him?" He isn't sure how to feel about the idea.

Kane rolls his eyes, "Sort of." He bites his lip. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. And look, it's not a secret. You figured it out when we met. So you knew but at the same time, you couldn't blame me... I mean, he was hot, and smart, and I was hardly the only one who had noticed him, so yeah, you suspected I liked him when he introduced us. You aren't stupid."

Stiles just stares at him trying to process this new information and he realizes that he's not surprised, not in the least.

"Why?" Stiles finally asks. "Have we talked about this?"

"Yeah. I mean, years later, when I was with Derek we talked about those days. It was interesting, I'll tell you that."

"Did anything ever happen between you two?" And Stiles can't help but be surprised by his own question. He's asked without thinking but he can't deny it, some irrational jealousy was building up inside him as he heard how Kane and Jackson's relationship started.

Kane's eyebrows shoot up. "What? No!" He says louder than he intended. "Are you kidding? Of course not," he shakes his head. "Shit, Stiles. Jackson... he would never cheat on you. You are his mate and back then, even if it wasn't official, he loved you and he already thought of you that way. I just... I didn't know. Of course I had no idea, I was totally clueless."

Stiles is not sure why he feels relieved but it's a weird feeling. He simply realizes that it's comforting that nothing actually happened between his boyfriend and this guy.

"So you tried something?" Stiles asks acting as nonchalant as possible although he's not sure he's totally fooling Kane.

"Yeah, tried being the key word. I made a fool of myself, that's what I did. If I had known everything I found out years later it would never have crossed my mind. But I thought, high school boyfriend, how many people break up with their high school boyfriend at college? Y'know... But anyway, I tried to kiss him, he stopped me, nothing happened. He made it crystal clear then that he wasn't interested and that was it, end of the story."

"And I knew all this," Stiles says, sounding unsure.

"Oh yeah, he told you and that's why we weren't exactly friends at first. You didn't trust me which made sense obviously. But it also proved to you that you could trust Jackson, so if anything, you also had me to thank for that." Kane smiles wryly. "So, for a while, I tried to avoid you - or we avoided each other I guess - and when you went to visit Jackson, I simply wasn't around. Eventually, things kind of got back to normal. You sort of got over it and we could move on to being friends. It took a while of course, but we got there."

If anything Stiles truly appreciates Jackson being honest and of course, not cheating on him. He's sure long distance relationships aren't easy and a good looking guy like Kane must have been difficult to resist for anybody. Stiles is not sure why but, despite what he's heard about that time, his brain didn't picture Jackson that way at college and he didn't picture them being that close, which is stupid considering they ended up living together soon after that. He can't help it but something inside him feels badly for having made those assumptions. Something is telling him that Jackson didn't deserve it.

There's another awkward silence for a minute where Kane can see that Stiles must be considering everything he's just found out.

"What did you think of me when we met?" Stiles finally asks.

"What did I think?" Kane sighs. "God, it was so long ago. There was a party at the campus one day you were coming to see him, so I don't know, when we met, the first impression, it didn't match the idea I had created I suppose. But don't ask me why. I just thought you would be different. Which is stupid, I know that," Kane says matter-of-factly.

"What were you expecting?" Stiles asks curious although he can sort of imagine it.

Kane snorts, "I guess it's more, what wasn't I expecting..." Kane has a distant look as he remembers. "You were just... very different from him. I only knew Jackson for a few months but I thought..." Kane hesitates trying to find the words. "You didn't seem like his type." Kane smiles. "You talked a lot... you were very friendly... you obviously didn't invest a lot of money in fashion... it's all stupid, I've told you."

"No, I'm not surprised in the least that you say that because hell, I would have thought that myself... if you know... I had been you and not me. But I was me, so... yeah."

Kane smiles at that because it reminds him of that Stiles instead of the one he's gotten to know.

"You have to understand, I'm one of the few people in the pack who didn't know you in high school. Everything I know about that time is because Derek and the others have told me, I didn't see the kanima, I didn't live any of the shit that went down those days, so you were already together when I met you. I've been told that you two didn't have the best relationship at school but I've never seen that, so for me it's actually difficult to imagine you as anything else than a couple. As long I've known you, you've been in love with him."

Stiles closes his eyes and sighs. It gets to him every time and the thing is that the most he hears it, the more real it feels... the easier it gets to believe that they had something real and meaningful. It's like if the pictures he's been looking at don't feel like the product of photoshop anymore. The cocky smirk from across the lacrosse field still makes him clench his jaw, but that wistful, happy smile that Jackson's had every time Stiles has seen him since waking up… that can't be faked, right?

"Well," Stiles continues when he opens his eyes. "What they've told you is true. Things weren't great between us in high school. Did they tell you that he had a restraining order against Scott and me once? That I wanted him dead? If it wasn't for Scott, chances are that he would be dead right now."

"No... and no. Is this about that kanima stuff? Or was that later?"

"Yeah, it was about that time. Things were out of control. He was killing people. I didn't see any other way out of it. And I liked Lydia who was still in love with Jackson. And that's how things were at the time. Everything was a huge fucked up mess."

"And that's all you can remember, right?"

"Exactly." Stiles nods.

"Shit, man. If it happened to me... if I didn't remember Derek. Being with him, the whole werewolf thing... I just can't imagine it. It would suck so hard."

"When did you meet Derek exactly?" The truth is that Jackson didn't tell him much about Derek and Kane's relationship, and although Stiles has done nothing but ask questions since he woke up, he figures, why stop now.

"It was during our second year at college. I guess that meeting Jackson really changed my life. He talked to Derek about me and he arranged for us to meet. I know Derek refused many times before he finally caved in and I don't know, when we started dating, it just worked out." Kane can't help but smile as he remembers those days.

"And when did you find out?"

"You mean, the whole werewolf thing?"

Stiles nods.

"Around ten months later. And I know Jackson had something to do with that."

"Jackson?"

"Yeah, I told him I thought Derek was really it for me. I fell for him really hard but the more I got to know him, the more I knew that he was hiding a part of his past from me. There were many things I didn't know about him and his family. I asked Jackson if he knew something I didn't, I asked him all these things that Jackson couldn't answer, and he just said that those were things that only Derek could tell me. Of course, later I found out that it was killing Jackson not being able to tell me his secret either, so he was hoping that Derek would tell me first and that way, he could tell me as well. I know I put Jackson in a very difficult position for a long time."

"How did you react? I mean, did it shock you?"

"Oh yeah," Kane snorts. "It shocked me. Of course, it shocked me. But it was such a relief, too. It was a relief to finally have the answer to so many things. Many situations and things that happened... they finally had an explanation. Everything started to make sense. You included... I mean, you and Jackson. Though by then, you already made sense. A long time had passed since I first met you, but I found out what happened -or Jackson's version of it, y'know- and I finally got it. So it was great. I got the whole picture and it brought Derek and I closer together."

"To be honest, I've only seen Derek with women and I know they brought him nothing but trouble and pain, so I'm glad he's got you now. I'm glad he's happy," Stiles says with sincerity.

"Derek and Jackson... they have a lot in common. They've both been through a lot, they're proud and they fight for what they want; they're both loyal and they love with the same intensity that they would use to protect what's theirs and that's how I know the kind of hell that Jackson must be going through right now. I was there when he almost killed a wolf who hurt you last year. I know what you mean to him. So, if I tell you the truth, I'm not looking forward to seeing him, I don't know what I'm supposed to tell him. That's another reason why I wanted to talk to you first."

"When was the last time you saw him?"

"Around a month ago. We went to the hospital to say goodbye and see how you were doing. And I have to tell you, I had to convince Derek to get on the plane after that. I mean, Jackson has family here, it's not like he needed us and we had already planned the trip and the meetings. But I also understood Derek. He was worried. You were in the same condition and Jackson wasn't doing well physically or emotionally. He tried to hide it but he was a mess so yeah, leaving wasn't easy."

Stiles's stomach clenches as he listens, and he knows none of this is his fault, but he can't help feeling badly. He tells himself it's for worrying Derek, but somehow he can imagine Jackson pacing in a hospital room, like his dad did all those years ago. He swallows hard and stares at the floor. After a few moments, Kane continues.

"I'm curious, what's the last thing you remember? Do you remember anything of the coma?"

"What? Like listening to voices?" Stiles frowns. "No, I don't remember anything. The last thing I remember is practicing lacrosse with Scott." He snorts. "I remember telling him not to use his wolf powers." He shakes his head. "We were just teenagers. We had our life ahead of us... and now..."

"You still do. You are young and you can start again."

"Do you really think I can do that? Start again?"

"Of course I do. There's nothing stopping you."

"Well, everything I've done since high school is stopping me. What would you do if you were in my position?"

"No way I'm responding to that. I'm nobody to give you that kind of advice. But I'll tell you something Jackson doesn't know. When you found out about the whole kiss fiasco, you told me something like, 'try something like that again with my boyfriend and you won't live to regret it' -"

"No way," Stiles interrupts him rolling him eyes.

"Oh yeah," Kane continues smiling. "It was in a party and you had drunk more than usual and I knew you were pissed so that's all I thought at the time but of course, years later, when I was with Derek, I realized that maybe there was something else to that threat, y'know? What I'm trying to say is that you were sure. You knew perfectly what you wanted. And well, you should follow your instincts. It worked the first time, you were right. There's no reason why it shouldn't work again."

"Are you always this logical?" Stiles snorts.

"I may have been told that on some occasions, yeah." Kane smirks.

"I wish it was that easy. I know my father thinks I shouldn't be here. I know what he thinks."

"Your father wants what is best for you. He'll support you no matter what you do and so will everybody else in the pack, but -" Kane stops, uncertain.

"But?" Stiles frowns.

"But everybody cares about Jackson, too, and I know that's not how you remember things... so you can't expect anybody to be happy about you two breaking up. It's gonna be hard on everybody."

Stiles nods but doesn't say anything. He's not looking forward to being at the center of another pack drama, that's for sure.

"Did you...?" Kane hesitates, he's not sure how to ask this exactly. "Have you talked to Jackson about the baby?"

"No. I mean, sort of... but not really." Stiles feels a little ashamed about that. But what is he supposed to do? It's not like he actually remembers having matured enough to deal with the reality of having kids. Jesus, it gets to him every time. He has kids.

Stiles shifts to rest his elbows on his knees before hiding his face in his hands.

Kane gives him a moment and a minute later Stiles lifts his head and sighs.

"I don't expect you to understand it. I don't expect anybody to understand it because shit, I don't understand it myself. I know it's not rational or whatever." Stiles points out.

"You're wrong. I can't speak for other people but I get it. You just came out of a fucking coma and you're still trying to adjust to this new... y'know..." Kane hesitates, "this new reality. You just found out you have a mate and a son. I can see why finding out about a baby is adding too much information all of a sudden. I'm sure it must be overwhelming."

"Yeah, overwhelming... that's close, I'll tell you that." Stiles can't help but think that it feels good to hear some understanding words for a change. "And I'm pretty surprised you say that. I'm not exactly the most popular person in town right now." Sarcasm is obvious in his tone.

"Well, I'm sure your father gets it, right?"

"My dad..." Stiles shakes his head as he remembers. "Yeah, he says he does. He's all 'I'm here for you... for whatever you want and take all the time you need...' but he's also 'they love you and it's your home and give them a chance...' and so, I don't know, he gets a part of it but not everything. Even if he got it, he loves Jackson and Daniel and he can't help it, he's on their side too. He's in the middle. Their relationship changed during these years and of course, it's affected him. It's affected everybody. I'm the only one who is stuck in the past." Stiles sighs.

"Well, for what is worth, Derek and I, the pack, everybody is here to help you come back to the present. If you let us, we're here for you and, seriously, whatever happens, whatever you decide, you can count on us. You won't get rid of this crazy family that easily." Kane jokes with a smirk.

"Thanks... I guess," Stiles says, smiling.

"Y'know what? You need Derek." Kane says suddenly and Stiles raises his eyebrows at that. "I mean," Kane clarifies, "you need to talk to him, in person. I realize that there's only so much I can help you with. Obviously he's known you longer than me and you've been through a lot together so I'm not sure I'm really the best one for the job -"

"You are," Stiles interrupts him. "You helped. I'm sorry if I didn't..." Stiles licks his lips as he thinks how to say it exactly, "if I wasn't my usual charming self but I'm glad you came. At first most people treat me with kid gloves and it drives me nuts." Stiles shakes his head.

"Yeah, not my style." Kane smiles and Stiles smiles back.

It's not like Stiles doesn't want to talk to Derek because of course, he's going to, he's gonna end up talking to everybody eventually, but it's been refreshing talking to somebody who didn't know him back in high school; someone who could see things from a different point of view.

For the first time in a while he can feel some anxiety leaving his shoulders. Like Kane said, if trusting his instincts worked in the past, he should keep doing just that. It's obvious that he had real feeling for Jackson, especially since he married the guy, and the truth is that he'd like to find out why.