"What about this one?"
"I don't know, Lyd. You think that's a little too formal?"
"It won't hurt for her to look her best."
"I don't think it really fits the date though… What about something like this?"
"Allison, she wears stuff like that all the time. This is a date! It has to be special!"
"It's gonna be special no matter what you stick her in."
"Ooh! I like this one!"
"Too short!"
"No one asked you, Sadie."
I rolled my eyes at Lydia's response, slouching forward at my vanity and letting my head fall into my hands.
Allison, Lydia and I were all scattered around my bedroom, and had been for the last few hours or so. It'd been torture trying to get homework done, but since it was a school night, there was really no way around it. I couldn't decide if it was a blessing or a curse. On the one hand, it gave me something else to think about besides my nerves. Allison and Lydia were finally forced to stop talking about every little detail of the night ahead of us, and I could enjoy the quiet. Or at least, in theory. But at the same time, the work was torture. It was impossible to get anything done efficiently when my mind kept drifting away from the words on the page every few seconds, Stiles's face popping up behind my eyelids and making me squirm in my seat. I was too nervous to focus on my work. I was too nervous to focus on the date. I was a disaster.
Luckily, or maybe unfortunately, I wasn't the only one who was anxious. Lydia was tapping her pen almost incessantly, watching me like a hawk as I tried to finish my work. The moment I had set my pen down, she pounced, snatching me up out of my chair and pushing me out of my room to the bathroom. I'd tried arguing that I still needed to check my answers, but she was simply not having it. She promptly informed me that she would check over everything for me, and that I needed to stop making excuses and start getting ready. She'd shoved me into the bathroom with a bathrobe, wordlessly pointed at the shower, and then slammed the door behind her.
When I returned to the room, Allison and Lydia helped me do my hair, pulling half of it up and curling the ends just enough so that they bounced gracefully on my shoulders. I'd had to beat them away after that, insisting that I could do my own make up without them breathing down my neck. Lydia had made a joking, doubtful remark, but pulled Allison away to my closet just the same. I'd tried to help them after I finished with my face, but I'd been sent into a sort of time out in my vanity chair.
It was quickly getting darker outside, and with each passing hour my nerves seemed to be getting stronger. If I sat in thought for too long, my hands would begin trembling, and I had to grip the back of the chair to steady myself.
Allison must have sensed my anxiety, because after one glance, she decided to side with me. "Maybe Sadie's right, Lyd. Let's build up to the short skirts. It's only their first date, and if things go as planned, there'll be plenty of time to wear the rest."
Lydia heaved a sigh and stuffed the short, unworn dress back into the depths of my closet. "Fine, fine. Ruin all the fun. What about…this?"
"Oh yeah, I like that," Allison said, pulling the offered hangers from her hands and flipping them back and forth in the air to show off the outfit. "What do you think, Sadie?"
I glanced over, trying to beat down the anxious voice that reminded me that it wouldn't matter what I was wearing if I was so nervous I made myself sick before I could actually go on the date.
It was a pretty simple outfit, just a basic shirt and skirt combo. The shirt was white, form fitting with cap sleeves. It was more than a little low cut, presumably to make up for the lack of pattern, but it had a flattering neckline and a line of buttons on the bust. The skirt beneath it was a silvery grey, also fairly plain. It had a high waist, but the shimmering waves only reached down to maybe my mid-thigh. I was about to comment on it before Lydia held up a pair of light grey leggings, anticipated my qualm and silencing me before I could even open my mouth.
"It's perfect," she replied for me. "Sadie, come on. Up. You get into that and we will find you a nice cardigan to go with it."
"Maybe a hoodie too?" Allison suggested quietly as the garments were tossed at my face. "And we need to get her gloves."
"Where are we going that could possibly require a short skirt and gloves at the same time?" I asked, shedding the bathrobe and tugging on the leggings.
Lydia rolled her eyes. "Why should I know? I'm only getting dragged along as a last minute fifth wheel."
I exchanged a look with Allison, both of us sending soft smiles that weren't returned. It had taken quite a bit of convincing for Lydia to agree to go on the date with us. We couldn't tell her that there was an Alpha turning teenagers into werewolves left and right and we weren't comfortable leaving her alone. We couldn't tell her that we didn't want to go out on a date and abandon her in solitude after she'd had such a rough day with Jackson. So instead, I'd had to flatter her into it. She was reluctant, but after hearing me rant for ages about I didn't know what I was doing, and I'd really love to have her there to help me if I panicked, and how if she came along she'd be able to spy and watch the date first hand instead of worrying about getting the story through Allison or me with missing details, she finally gave in. She wasn't happy about it, and reminded us every couple minutes, but she was coming nonetheless.
"Well it certainly sounds like Allison told you where we're going."
"Hmph. Maybe. But that doesn't mean we're telling you."
"Oh, suddenly you're respecting Stiles's wishes?"
"No, but I know that it's bugging you. So, I'm not saying a thing."
"Wow, thanks, Lyd. That's super supportive," I groaned, carefully tugging the shirt over my head to make sure I didn't mess up my hair or makeup.
"Excuse me, I've been being supportive all day, and I haven't exactly gotten a lot of thanks for it. So this is what you're getting. Deal."
"Okay, guys, let's just chill," Allison giggled, pulling one of my sweatshirts out of my closet. "Lyd, you wanna bring the bag of…uh, stuff down to the car?"
Lydia huffed, pursing her lips but tossing her hair over her shoulder in some sign of assent. "Fine, fine. I'll meet you guys downstairs. Five minutes! Miss Claire still has to freak out for a little bit before we go." She looked at me with some cross between an annoyed and affectionate smile, then strutted out of the room to prepare whatever mysterious supplies I was not allowed to know about.
Allison was kind enough to let out the deep breath that I was holding in, shaking her head with a smile as she laid my hoodie over her arms. "She means well, I guess."
"I know she does. I just…I'm…"
"Hanging in there?"
I gave a non-committal shrug, smoothing out the fabric of my skirt and playing with the waistband, assuring that my top was tucked in properly.
Allison smiled, walking over and grabbing my hands and pulling me to my feet. She walked me over to the mirror, placing her hands on my shoulders and looking at me in the mirror, just as Lydia had on my first day of school. Now I was just struggling with a whole new set of nerves.
"Sadie, it's going to be fine. You and Stiles get along great. It's adorable. Actually, it's kind of ridiculous. I'm gonna be right there with you, and Scott and Lydia. We're all gonna be together. We're just…calling it something a little different tonight."
I wrung my hands together in front of me, twisting and pulling nervously at my fingers. "But what if that word messes everything up? I mean, I'm just…I'm so nervous, and I don't know what he's expecting and I don't…I don't want to mess this up… What if I say something wrong and he…?"
"Okay, you seriously do not need to worry about Stiles," she said with a giggle. "Sadie, he already invited other people on your date."
"It was an accident though. He knows I'm not mad about it."
"That doesn't mean he's not still freaking out about it." She let that sink in for a few moments, but evidently I didn't look convinced. She sighed, turning me around and staring at me dead on. "Sadie, you know all those little things you love about Stiles? All those little quirks like how he stammers or how he acts when he's nervous? He's probably the exact same way about you. You're both new at this. If you mess up a little, so what? You're just gonna laugh about it and like each other even more. Okay?" She sent me a sweet, reassuring smile, coaxing a small grin out of me as I let my hands fall to my sides and took a deep breath.
"Thanks, Allison. You're wonderful."
She beamed, tucking her lips in and shrugging innocently. She spun me back around, guiding my arms into the sleeves of my cardigan and then the grey hoodie she'd picked out for warmth. She let me step into a pair of heels and grab my purse before hooking her arm through mine.
Allison kept up the words of encouragement as we walked down the stairs, finally clearing her throat to announce our arrival as we entered the kitchen.
Lydia looked up from her conversation with her mother, both of them wearing small grins.
My mother just sat on her stool with her hands clasped under her chin, looking a little bit like she was going to explode. She waited for Allison to step out of the way before jumping out of her seat, scampering over to me with a wide grin and spinning me around to appreciate my outfit. She let out a sort of dreamy sigh, grabbing my shoulders with shaky arms, like she was still trying to decide if she wanted to pull me into a hug or just stare at me some more.
"Oh, sweetheart, you look beautiful. Stiles won't know what hit him."
"Thanks, Mommy."
"You really do look lovely, dear," Mrs. Martin agreed as she wandered over, patting me on the shoulder and giving me a wink. "Good luck."
"Thanks, Miss Eleanor," I said shyly, bouncing a little on the balls of my feet.
Mom pouted for a moment, crossing her arms over her chest. "Is it really necessary for you girls to drive there? I mean, it's the first date. Isn't it tradition for him to pick you up? Shouldn't I at least be allowed the privilege of scaring the crap out of the guy with the whole 'have her home by curfew' talk?"
Allison and Lydia laughed lightly behind her and I bit back a groan. "It's just cause we're all going, and it's supposed to be some sort of surprise. I'm sure you can save the parental death threats for next time."
Mom's pout disappeared in a flash, traded for an excited schoolgirl grin. "You think there's gonna be a next time?"
The butterflies in my stomach batted at the walls, desperate for some sort of release as I bit my lip. "Hopefully."
"Oh, there will be a next time. There'll be next time if it's the last thing I do," Lydia scoffed, pushing off the counter and marching to my side, Allison mirroring her on my left. "Don't worry, Miss Claire. I'll make sure everything goes off without a hitch."
"Thank you, Lydia," she replied with a grin. "But I don't think you'll have too much to worry about."
I fidgeted as they all turned to smile at me knowingly, each with varying degrees of amusement as they watched me squirm.
Finally, Allison took pity on me, reaching out to rest a hand on my arm. "We should probably get going. Knowing Stiles, I wouldn't be surprised if he was already there."
"Alright, alright. I won't keep you. I know you girls would rather be there than here with me." She clapped her hands once and then winced, raising a finger to each of my friends with an apologetic grin. "Actually, do you girls mind heading out? I just want to talk to Sadie for a few seconds."
The girls nodded in understanding, assuring me that they'd be waiting in the car before they hurried out of the room. We waited until their giggles had disappeared beyond the front door before looking back at each other.
Mom smiled softly, grabbing my hand and pulling me over to the counter. "You ready?"
"No?"
She laughed quietly, pulling out my dog tags and motioning for me to turn around. I let her pull my hair to the side, gently clasping the necklace and straightening it on my collar. Then she let everything fall back into place, brushing the stray hairs out of my face and smoothing my curls.
"How about now?"
"Still no," I sighed. My fingers danced over the familiar, metal surface. Playing with the dog tags was something I did so often, I was sure I must have had them memorized. Someone could give me a thousand pairs of dog tags and I'd be able to find mine with my eyes closed. My fingers were so used to the tiny bumps in the engraving. They had to be.
Mom watched me for a few seconds before taking one of my hands again, holding it between both of her own as she leaned forward slightly. "I'm sorry he's not here."
"Yeah. Me too."
"I know he always…joked about how you were never gonna be allowed to date, and how he was going to arrest the first guy that tried something with you, but… He wanted you to be happy. I'm sure he'd be really excited to see you going out with Stiles."
"I guess…"
"Well, I know. I mean, he is the son of the sheriff, after all."
I grinned slightly, briefly recalling all of the laws I'd broken since I started hanging out with Stiles. Clearly there were some circumstances in which being the son of the sheriff didn't really mean shit.
But all my mom could see was my grin and, assuming it was merely the thought of Stiles that had made me smile, she beamed. "Okay, now come on. It's taken you two entirely too long to get together. Let's not leave him waiting any longer."
She wrapped an arm around my shoulders and walked me to the front door, kissing the top of my head before ushering me out the door. She called out about twenty different variations of "good luck" in the time it took me to get in the car, sliding alone into the backseat, and she walked to the end of the driveway so she could wave at us until we disappeared down the street.
The moment she disappeared my stomach lurched. We were out of the house. We were officially on our way.
Or I thought we were. Until we pulled up to Allison's house.
"This is the big surprise?" I asked, scrunching up my nose. "First date with Argents. Fun."
"Shut up," Allison giggled from the front. "I just have to grab a few things. Five minutes tops, I promise."
If Allison had come from a normal family, it might have only taken us five minutes to get in and out of the house. Unfortunately, the Argents were far from normal.
We had to take an excessive amount of time in Allison's room so it didn't look like we were all suspiciously darting off. Allison needed to explain to her parents where she was going to be for the night, without actually hinting that she was going to be going anywhere. She had to come up with an excuse for where she'd been all day, why she was choosing now to grab a few things from home to study instead of directly after school. And then there was the ordeal of keeping Lydia and I as far away from her family as possible, since we could both be potential targets, depending on the hunters' moods. There was a close call with Mr. Argent stopping by to talk to Allison, but he only held us back for a minute or two. If we'd figured that would be the only interference we'd have to deal with, we were wrong.
A couple minutes later, there was another knock at Allison's door.
She groaned, throwing her head back with wide eyes before rounding on the door. "Oh my God, Dad! I told you we're just studying over at…! Oh… Hi, Gerard."
I froze in my seat on the bed, slowly turning around and moving my gaze from the dark sky out the window to the older man standing in Allison's doorway.
He smiled kindly, moving cautiously into the room and chuckling when he noticed Allison's irritation. "Sorry! Sorry, dear. Just wanted to stop by and meet my favorite granddaughter's friends."
It took every ounce of my self-control not to shoot a worried glance at Lydia. Gerard was good at the amiable grandfather act, I'd give him that, but I wouldn't let myself believe that it was just coincidence that the head of Allison's hunting family was interested in meeting our friend who'd survived a werewolf attack.
But Lydia couldn't know to be suspicious. All she knew was that there was a new adult standing in her path, waiting for her to make a good impression. So she hopped out of her chair with a wide smile and skipped over to him, holding out her hand. "Lydia Martin. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Argent."
Gerard laughed, beaming down at her and giving her the same speech he'd given me about not calling him Mr. Argent.
I chanced a glance over at Allison, finding the same panic in her eyes as was probably lurking in mine. I quickly tried to push it down, to bury it beneath a grin so Gerard might not be able to tell just how much I hated that he was talking to my best friend.
But as he smiled over at me, I knew that it was futile. His sharp, hunter's eyes darted over me, taking in all of my mannerisms and analyzing them in a mere second. He grinned, and I hoped it was just my imagination that was placing a sense of victory on his face. "Sadie, it's nice to see you again. How's that hand holding up?"
"What? Oh! It's fine, it's fine." I forced a laugh out of my throat and a smile onto my face, experimentally waving around the hand I'd used to punch Jackson. "And it's nice to see you too."
"So, what do you girls have planned for the night?" he asked, rubbing his hands together with an air of excitement. "Fun night out on the town?"
"We're just studying at Lydia's house," Allison repeated firmly.
"And I'm sure your chemistry textbooks will sincerely appreciate you dressing up for them." He winked, gesturing to our dresses with a knowing smirk. Allison opened her mouth to give another excuse, but Gerard waved her off. "No, no. It's fine. I understand the appeal of being a rebel teenager. But don't say anything else. If I don't talk to you, then I don't have to tell your father you lied to me." He chuckled at his own joke, Lydia joining in with a polite giggle, but they were the only ones. Gerard lifted his hand again, silently pardoning himself as he shook his head. "My apologies, girls. I suppose my jokes aren't quite as good as they used to be. But, I was wondering if I might be able to talk to Sadie for minute. No need to worry," he added when my eyes widened with fear, "just some boring school stuff. Better than calling you down to the office and having you miss class. Come on." He nodded his head toward the door, not bothering to wait for me as he stepped out into the hallway.
I shared a terrified look with Allison, my stomach turning to stone, but before I could come up with any sort of decent excuse, Lydia was pushing me toward the exit.
"Just go, Sadie! The sooner you get this over with, the sooner we can get to the fun stuff. Chill!"
I shrugged her off with a glare, squaring my shoulders off and facing the door. But my stomach rolled over with anxiety, even just at the sight.
Allison stepped up and patted me on the shoulder, offering what I assumed was meant to be a strong, reassuring look. But she just seemed as afraid as I was. "We'll be right here."
I nodded feebly, taking a shaky breath before I forced myself out into the hallway.
Gerard was waiting patiently for me just outside Allison's door. He had his hands clasped in front of him, and gave me a soft smile when I emerged. I managed to pull one on myself, but it rapidly faded when he reached out to close the bedroom door behind me.
"If you're trying to find out where we're going, you really grabbed the wrong friend, Principal Argent. I have no clue what we're doing tonight."
"Oh please, Gerard! Gerard is fine, Sadie, so long as we're not on school grounds. And not to worry. I'm not going to interrogate you about your plans for the night. To be honest, I'm sure I'd rather not know." He chuckled to himself again, but it was soon replaced by a solemn stare. "I just hope you girls are going to be careful, keep an eye on each other. All these deaths and attacks… I'd hate for something else to happen."
"Of course we'll look out for each other. But I wouldn't worry too much. Allison knows how to take care of herself."
"Oh, it's not Allison I'm worried about."
The solemn stare fleetingly turned into a probing one, and I pressed my lips into tight light, trying to contain my nerves.
"I heard about the…attack on you and your friend, Lydia. Terrible that it had to happen on a night like that, when you're meant to be having fun. I can only imagine the…effect it must have had on you girls."
My lips pulled up into a tight smile, keeping myself from gagging as the fear rose in my throat like bile. I hated holding myself back while he as good as threatened my friends, but I had to. Because if he had confirmation that I knew what was going on, I was sure that the threats would get a lot worse.
"Well, we're fine," I insisted with a terrible attempt at a thankful grin. "No lasting harm done. Besides from a little bit of residual shock, we're just as normal as you are."
Gerard chuckled, raising his eyebrows slightly as he shook his head. "Oh, now, I'm not sure you want to go using me as a standard for normality."
"We're as normal as anyone can hope to be."
"I'm glad to hear it. Still, you can never be too careful times like these. It's hard to tell who the real enemy is."
"We were attacked by a mountain lion," I said, narrowing my eyes in mock confusion. "I wasn't aware there was an enemy to find."
Gerard smiled at me for a moment, bobbing his head before he leaned forward a few inches. "You know, Miss Bennet, this game is so much more fun when we're talking in code. You're a lot better at coming up with interesting half-truths than you are at lying."
That knocked my composed look of confusion right off my face. As much as I hated to, I stared at him in complete shock. I'd suspected that he'd figured out that I knew what was going on, but I'd never expected him to call me out on it. Not so soon, or like this.
That seemed to be the reaction he was looking for, since his face broke out into what almost look like a completely genuine grin. "You're a smart girl, Sadie. I just want to make sure that you're prepared. I was…going through some of my daughter's belongings earlier, and I found something. Small but, I think Kate would have wanted you to have it."
He patted himself down, feeling through his pockets and muttering to himself as he tried to locate his treasure, looking for a moment like a completely harmless old man. But finally her found what he was looking for, holding it up to the light with a triumphant grin.
Between his fingers, Gerard was holding a small golden key. It was nothing special. Not old fashioned, no engravings, no mysterious box that it unlocked. It wasn't even marked. It was just a single, run-of-the-mill, gold key on a plain key ring.
He held it out to me, smiling again when he noticed I was biting the insides of my cheeks.
"Sorry. I don't know what it is."
"Now what did I just say about lying?" he scolded playfully, taking my hand and dropping the key into my palm. "Just use it wisely. And use it right." Then he closed my fingers over it and patted my hand. He seemed to be getting an immense amount of enjoyment watching me struggle, fighting to maintain my act and keep myself from saying anything I might regret. He grinned, patting my shoulder as he walked past me. "You girls have a nice time tonight. Send my regards to Mr. Stilinski."
My heart dropped into my stomach. I felt a chill run over my skin, and it felt is if my entire body had sunk about two inches into the ground. I was frozen, pulse pounding in my ears. Maybe it wasn't a rational reaction. I should have been far more worried by Gerard calling me a liar than I was about him knowing how I felt about Stiles. But I wasn't. In fact, I was infinitely more worried. He knew too much about us, how we worked, what was going on. And the moment he decided we were getting in the way, I knew that he would act on it.
I'm not sure how long I stood there, staring blankly at the end of the hallway as I tried to get my thoughts back under control. Today had just sucked, colossally. Erica freaking out in gym, Lydia getting yelled at by Jackson, Erica getting the bite, Gerard knowing too much about my personal life. What a day to have right before my first date.
And for some reason, that thought brought me back to reality. My date. I was going on a date with Stiles. And if there was one person I felt like I could count on to turn my mood around, no matter how upset I was, it was Stiles Stilinski.
I thought back to what he'd said at school, about enjoying the night while we could because we didn't have control over anything else. So what if Gerard knew I liked Stiles? There was nothing I could do about it now, and at the moment, he seemed to keen to play his game with me to pull anything. That meant that Stiles was safe. And I'd be damned if I let any more worries get in the way of spending time with him.
I pushed my way back into the room, interrupting the conversation that Allison and Lydia were having as they hung off the bed.
Allison immediately lifted her head, face full of concern. "Hey, you okay?"
"Fine. Let's get out of here."
I did my best to ignore the curious looks they sent me as the scrambled off the bed to collect their things. I just walked back over to the window, flipping my new key between my fingers. Even just looking at it, I could hear Kate's laugh rising from the back of my head. I closed my eyes, shaking my head as if she might physically tumble out, but the laughter persisted. Finally I opened my purse, throwing the key inside and piling everything on top of it. I wasn't sure if I could get rid of it, but I could at the very least try and forget about it.
I let Allison and Lydia usher me back to the car, and didn't reprimand them once for their chatter or advice. Allison put on a mix of music that she had made for the occasion, and Lydia kept calling tips to me in the back seat. I nodded and smiled, even as the anxiety began building in my stomach again. But this time, I didn't try and push it down. In fact, I put all of my attention into it, listening to every word they said and laughing at every teasing joke. Focusing on my worries was a distraction from…well, the rest of my worries. And it was a hell of a lot better to be worried about me messing up on my date with Stiles than it was to be worrying about how Gerard might hurt him if I made a wrong move.
Besides, there was no point trying to avoid the anxiety any more. It was time for my date with Stiles, whether we were ready for it or not. I just had to hope that everything would be okay.
Even with my nerves to anchor me to reality, it felt like only a few seconds before we were pulling into a parking lot in town. I raised my eyebrows as I glanced up at the building.
"Um, not that I don't love winter sports, but isn't the rink closed?"
Lydia promptly shushed me and I rolled my eyes, turning to look out the window. My eyes immediately found the only other car there, the pale blue Jeep parked under a streetlight by the double doors to the building. There were two figures standing outside, one leaning casually against the vehicle while the other paced and hopped the length of the car.
I felt the telltale flutter in my stomach when I saw Stiles, a smile easily conquering my features. The butterflies had started up again, but they weren't throwing themselves against my stomach lining and colliding in disarray. It almost felt like they were flying in formation, giving me a tingling, lighthearted feeling that just seemed to make sense. It calmed me down almost as much as it excited me, and I had to force myself to take a few deep breaths as we parked the car a few spaces away.
The engine cut out, music dying abruptly as Allison and Lydia turned around in their seats to look at me.
"You ready?" Allison asked with a supportive smile.
I bit my lip, but nodded decisively, a motion that Lydia didn't seem to catch.
"Don't answer that. Of course you're ready. You've only been obsessed with him since like the first day of school."
"What? No!" I protested, my jaw hanging open slightly. "I have not!"
"Oh, you have so. Come on, let's just get this over with. Remember, you're in control here."
"Don't worry, Sadie," Allison whispered as Lydia slid out of the car, slamming the door behind her. "Everything will be fine. It's just Stiles."
"Easy for you to say."
She smirked, winking cheekily before she followed Lydia's lead and hopped out of the car.
I gave myself another few seconds to collect myself. I was nervous. Stiles was nervous. We were both nervous, we were both new to this, and we both liked each other. I could do this. It was just Stiles.
I forced myself to climb out of the car, smoothing down my skirt again and flattening my cardigan. Anything that would keep me occupied for a few more seconds. But eventually I did have to look up. I had to face the fact that I was standing in the parking lot with my best friends, three of whom were looking between Stiles and I like some sort of tennis match. And I had to look at Stiles, his eyes slightly wide, his mouth slightly open, and his hands wringing together in front of him so tightly that I could make out his white knuckles from where I stood.
I bit my lip, trying to think of something to say that would sound natural in front of our eager audience. Thankfully, Stiles took care of that for me.
"Aw, come on, guys! You didn't even blindfold her?! This was supposed to be a surprise!"
"Blindfold?" Lydia repeated incredulously. "Why would we think to blindfold her?"
"Because I told you I wanted you to blindfold her!"
"Oh my God, you were being serious? That's got to be the tackiest, stupidest idea that's ever come out of your mouth."
"Hey!"
"Trust me, it's really not."
"Wha-? Dude!"
"Hey, it's fine," I interrupted, meekly wandering up to Stiles's side and trying to smile. "I'll be just as surprised. Promise."
Stiles jumped slightly, like he'd momentarily forgotten while he was arguing about me that I was actually there. He gaped like a fish for a few seconds before clearing his throat, blinking hard and nodding vigorously. "Yeah…right, um…hi…"
"Hi," I echoed, the tiny grin quickly growing into a wide smile that I knew might hurt my cheeks later.
He chuckled awkwardly, running his hands over his hair, down his face, patting his shirt and then stuffing them into his pockets as he rocked back and forth on his toes. "Hi."
We stood there for a few seconds, grinning like idiots before Allison gently cleared her throat, snapping us back to the present with a start.
"Uh, Stiles? Inside, maybe?"
"Wha…? Yes! Yeah, that's—that's probably a good idea." He spun on the spot for a moment, patting his car and then patting his pockets before finally collecting himself. He took a deep breath, then looked over to me, offering his arm for me to take. "Um…Miss Bennet…"
"Mr. Stilinski," I replied with a nod. I smirked as I looped my arm through his, as we both pointedly ignored the blushes creeping onto both of our faces. My stomach tumbled a bit as he tugged me toward the building, our eager spectators trailing behind us. "So, um…not to be doubtful or anything but, the rink's closed, right?"
"Yup!"
"So uh…how are we getting in?"
"With our handy dandy front-door keys," he said, sweeping his arm out of mine. He jogged the last few steps to the door, fishing a set of keys out of his pocket and jingling them proudly before actually unlocking the door. He pushed it open with a near maniacal grin, holding it for us as we filed past him into the lobby.
It was dark and slightly creepy inside, and a shiver ran up my spine. I had to remind myself repeatedly that is was the ice rink, and it was probably normal for it to be a little cold. I was cold, not nervous. I managed to stick to that excuse until the door slammed shut behind us, and I involuntarily jumped a few inches.
Stiles scampered over to us, holding his fingers up and waving them frantically in front of him. "No! No, just… Don't say anything yet!"
He grabbed my hand, pulling me along and leading the way through a progressively darker and colder hall. He stopped when we reached a pair of double blue door, and jerked his head to call Scott forward. He tossed him the keys and then turned to me with a sheepish smile.
"Um…sorry, but since we don't have a blindfold…" He hesitantly lifted his hands, stepping behind me so he could cover my eyes.
I heard Lydia grumble some snide comment about how there was no way I could guess what was behind the doors, but she was quickly silenced by a hiss I assumed came from Allison.
There was a slight scuffle of activity as the doors opened and people moved around us. Stiles gently nudged me forward, guiding me to a specific spot before he finally pulled his hands away with an enthusiastic, "Tada!"
I had to blink a couple times to get my eyes to adjust. The view was just what I had expected it to be. We were at the ice skating rink, lights shining bright overhead, walls and ice a startling white. It was stark, forced me to squint a bit, and but the space was completely empty. There wasn't a soul in sight, the only sound the hum of electricity and the laughter and chatter of my friends as they piled into the room after me. And yet somehow, despite the fact that I'd known exactly what was going to be there when I opened my eyes, it wasn't a bit less magical.
My jaw dropped into a wide grin as I looked around, taking in the space with a bit of awe, and fully aware that Stiles was watching my every move with apprehension. I spun on the spot, showing him my smile. But the next second it slipped slightly, as my brain caught up to the situation.
"Wait, but how are we supposed to skate? I don't have…"
"Ahem!"
I glanced to my side, where Lydia had appeared without warning. She lifted her hands, the laces of a pair of skates hooked over her fingers while the others offered me a pair of gloves. She dropped the items into my arms with a wink, then scampered off to the bleachers with Scott and Allison.
I turned back to Stiles, nervously picking at the laces of my skates as I tried to keep my smile from looking manic. "You really thought of everything, didn't you?"
He shrugged off the praise, but looked immensely pleased nonetheless. "I wanted it to be a surprise, so I had to do a little asking around."
"So you talked to Lydia about me?"
"Yeah. Well, no, not exactly. I uh… I talked to Scott, who talked to Allison, who talked to Lydia about you." He winced, scratching nervously at the back of his neck. But the anxiety seemed to ebb a little bit as I subsided into giggles, and a small grin broke out on his face. "Yeah it was a pretty intense game of telephone. I'm almost surprised she knew to bring you ice skates and not some nice rakes or something."
His grin widened as I laughed again, and I ducked my head. God, I hated being the giggly schoolgirl. But at the same time, it felt nice—to have someone who could make me laugh like that, even after the shit day I'd had. So what if I stood there giggling? I had to keep reminding myself that Stiles already knew that I liked him. He was trying to make me laugh. And all I had to do was sit back and let it work.
"So…" he mused, rubbing his hands together as he shifted his weight a bit. "Do you…? I mean, shall we…?"
"Yes. Yeah, absolutely." I followed him over to the benches, just a little farther off from everyone else as they sat down to lace up their skates. I let myself gaze around the rink for a second before plopping down next to Stiles, slipping my boots off so I could tug on my skates. "So, private ice skating. Think you're setting the bar a little high there, Stilinski?"
He chuckled, pausing as he pulled his own skates out of his bag to send me a nervous, heart-melting smile. "Nah, I'm just, uh… Just making up for lost time."
I felt my cheeks heating up and quickly turned to face my laces. Fine, we were on a date and he knew that I liked him. But I wasn't going to make it that easy for him to realize the kind of effect he had on me.
"And, uh, what about what you said about law breaking?"
"What? Ice skating is not a felony. At least, not the last time I checked."
"Mm, and are we allowed to be in here?"
"…Technically…?"
I had to repress I small snort as I rolled my eyes, neatly finishing off my skates with a bow as he fidgeting next to me. "Yeah. That's what I thought."
"I'm sorry," he said instantly, dropping his laces and tapping his hands anxiously against his legs. "I—I just wanted to do something really cool, you know? And I didn't think that you'd mind all that much, but…"
"Hey, I don't," I assured him, leaning down a bit to catch his eye as he stared down into his lap. "I'm just teasing you. This? This is all just…really, incredibly sweet… You're incredibly sweet…" I clamped my mouth shut just a tad too late, but watching Stiles's cheeks quickly staining pink made it worth the bit of embarrassment. I cleared my throat, finishing off my laces and pushing myself to my feet. "Well, if we're destined to be delinquents forever, we might as well make the most of it, right?"
Stiles looked up at me for a moment, his wide maple eyes darting back and forth between my face and the hand I'd offered him. It took him a few seconds, but his lips finally pulled back into a smile and he nodded. He rushed to finish off his laces, then grabbed my hand, lacing our fingers together as he tugged me down the stairs, hardly letting me keep my balance. I nearly toppled into him at the bottom, making us both laugh, but the sound was immediately cut off by a groan.
"You were right, Sadie. Third wheeling sucks," Lydia huffed, tugging on the laces on her skates almost to the point of violence. I sent her a sympathetic smile, but she just grumbled on, addressing her shoes more than us. "Those two are disgustingly cute, you two are disgustingly cute, and you know what I am? Disgustingly cold."
"Oh, well here," Stiles piped, dropping my hand and dashing back to grab his backpack. He sifted through it for a moment before he pulled out a bright orange hoodie, and offering it to her with hopeful eyes.
Unsurprisingly, Lydia's only response was to scrunch up her nose, staring at the jacket like it might be infested with tiny insects. "I'm wearing blue."
"W-What?"
"I'm wearing blue," she repeated, cutting some of the disgust out of her voice when she caught my scolding glare. "Orange and blue? Not a good combination."
"But it's the colors of the Mets," Stiles said, sounding very close to being affronted.
Lydia and I both fixed him with a disbelieving look before I shook my head. "Only you."
"Hey! Woah, um, what are you doing?" Stiles's eyes widened as I unzipped my hoodie, which had been firmly zippered up past the neckline of my blouse.
"I'm not wearing blue." I smirked as I threw the gray jacket to Lydia, then snatched the orange hoodie out of his hands. I tugged it on as I walked towards the gate to the ice, Stiles trailing behind me.
"Seriously? Already with the hoodie thing? Don't you still have my hat?"
I turned around as I pulled the zipper up, prepared to tug it up to my neck as I'd done with my own. But Lydia suddenly jumped up behind Stiles, silently waving her arms and pointing to her chest. I nearly rolled my eyes but, at her insistence, only pulled the zipper up to my bust.
"You complaining?" I asked, leaning on the plexiglass as casually as I could while Stiles's eyes shot over me.
"Uh…no. Nope. No complaining. Not here."
I laughed as he rushed over to me, grabbing my hand as he stepped onto the ice. But I hesitated for another moment, biting my lip as I looked down at the slippery surface. "Uh, I should probably give you fair warning, I haven't really skated in a while. So no promises."
"Hey, you've got nothing to worry about," he assured me with a lopsided grin. "That's what I'm here for." He skated back to the edge, taking both of my hands and slowly guiding me out onto the ice. "Easy, easy. Yeah! There you go!"
Stiles kept up the words of encouragement as we moved along. We started with simple laps around the rink, staying close to the edge just in case I needed to jump ship. Stiles left our hands clasped together, making some comment about keeping me between him and the wall that he immediately regretted when I burst out laughing. It took another few circles of the room before his face had returned to its normal color, instead of bright red.
After skating around for a bit, Stiles tugged me into the center, twisting our repetitive circles into a sloping figure eight. We had to dodge Lydia as she twisted and turned gracefully across the ice, jumping and tossing her hair to amuse herself. Allison and Scott were frequent obstacles too, but they tended to move much less, if only because Scott didn't seem to be able to manage it. The poor kid was like Bambi on ice, clawing at the wall and face planting every few seconds. Allison tried her best to coach him, but Scott was simply hopeless, a fact that Stiles never once failed to comment on as we went gliding past them.
I'm not sure when Stiles started to suspect that something was up. We kept up the conversation easily enough, teasing back and forth and discussing anything to distract us from all the shit that was really happening in our lives. We skated back and forth across the ice, weaved around each other, did loops on our own. It wasn't until we started racing each other across the length of the rink that he actually said anything.
Stiles slammed into the wall just half a second after I'd reached it, ramming his shoulder into the glass while I twirled in a circle to avoid collision.
"Ah, nice try, Stilinski, but I guess third time's not always the charm."
"Laugh it up, Bennet," he gasped, leaning his back on the wall while he tried to catch his breath. "You're cheating."
I cocked an eyebrow at him, crossing my arms over my chest. "Shut up! Across the ice and back, I made it first. How can I be cheating?"
"You're a hustler," he accused with a smirk.
"Excuse me?" I half laughed, raising both my eyebrows as I grinned.
"Textbook hustler. You expect me to believe you haven't been skating after you move like that?"
"Hey, I didn't lie! I haven't been skating in a while."
"Doesn't mean you're a newbie. Cause that? Those were not the moves of a rusty amateur. That was—That was a figure skater trying and failing to pretend she doesn't know what she's doing."
I bit my lip, trying to hide a guilty smile. Stiles gave me a pointed look, apparently expecting some confession, but I simply shuffled on the ice, giving a half-hearted shrug.
"So what, I guess now you're gonna tell me that on top of all the acting and painting you're an Olympic ice dancer too?"
"What? No!" I laughed, grabbing his hand again and pulling him back into motion. "Lydia just…taught me the basics…"
"Yeah, and she's a real beginner," he jabbed, as Lydia decided to go zooming past us with one leg extended behind her. "What exactly are the basics?"
"I don't know. Backward crossovers, couple small jumps, couple different spins…"
"Okay, correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that jumping and spinning don't count as basics."
"I'm a girl," I said with a wink and a shrug. "We decided that anything that makes my skirt flare out was a basic necessity."
Stiles rolled his eyes for a moment, before dropping my hand, coasting to a stop and crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't believe you."
"What? Stiles, you were the one who just told me I was too good to be a beginner."
"Yeah, but not that good. You could be bluffing."
I glared at him, but a self-satisfied smirk was the only response I got. I huffed, squaring off my shoulders and skating into the center of the ice. I knew it was probably exactly what he wanted me to do, but for the moment I decided that I didn't care. I let myself skate in a wide circle for a moment, trying to decide what exactly I wanted to do. I tested a couple arabesques, just to get myself warmed up.
More than anything, it alerted Lydia to the fact that I was trying to show off. She immediately skated over, gliding around me with a pointed look, and quietly singing, "Scratch spin!" She grabbed my hands and spun me in a tight circle before darting away, parking herself next to the wall nearby so she could watch.
I took a deep breath, easing myself in a circle before lifting my leg up and throwing myself into the turn. I slowly brought my arms in to cross over my chest, turning faster and faster as the world around me became a blur. Lydia was clapping somewhere nearby and I smirked, checking myself and gliding out of the turn before I could get too dizzy.
The expression on Stiles's face was not only extremely comical, but extremely satisfying. The cocky smirk had dropped away about a minute ago. Now he simply stood a few feet away, his jaw completely slack and his eyes almost unblinkingly staring at me in wonder. He didn't even move after I stopped spinning, just stayed frozen in place as if he hadn't quite noticed I wasn't doing anything anymore.
I bit my lip to suppress a giggle, glancing over at Lydia for direction. Following the directions of her waving hands, I skated over to him in his stupor. My stomach tumbled when I noticed that his eyes weren't in fact locked on my face, but the end of my skirt, which in retrospect was probably flaring pretty impressively just a few seconds ago. I blushed, skating around him once while he blinked himself out of his daze, before coasting to a stop in front of him.
"Hey, Stiles?"
"Hm?"
"Are you on a date with me, or my skirt?"
"Hm."
I waited for a few seconds for a proper answer that never came. I shot another side glance at Lydia and then, with a burst of confidence I didn't know I had, I grabbed Stiles's hands from his sides, tugging him forward until I bumped into his chest.
He jumped slightly, clenching my hands for balance and clamping his mouth shut. His eyes shot straight up to mine, and nearly doubled in size when he noticed how close I was.
"Hi there. My face is up here."
"Yeah. Yes. I can see that. Uh—what was the question?"
"Are you on a date with me or my skirt?" I asked slowly, enunciating every syllable clearly and raising a challenging eyebrow.
Stiles opened and closed his mouth a few times before pulling his lips into a thoughtful pout. "Both?"
I forced my face into a smirk, burying my nerves under the cover of the cloud of butterflies currently raging in my stomach. I held my ground, dropping his hands so I could place mine on his shoulders. I bit my lip for a moment before narrowing my eyes and leaning forward to stage whisper, "Unfortunately, I don't think the skirt's going to be nearly as receptive."
Stiles gulped, an action that both thrilled and terrified me. He mumbled something in agreement, and I didn't miss the way his eyes darted down to my mouth.
With him distracted, I glanced over at Lydia. She was practically beaming from the sidelines, giving me the thumbs up and then waving her hands some more.
I grinned in reply, sliding my hands down Stiles chest and then shoving him backwards. He slid away before he could really realize what was happening, his lips still parted and his eyes still glazed over. I giggled as he blinked furiously, head shooting up and looking back and forth in confusion.
"Tag, you're it!"
And I spun on the spot, speeding away from him while his brain struggled to wake up.
"W-What? Come on! That's—That's cruel and unusual punishment!"
I spun around again, high-fiving Lydia before sticking out my tongue at him. But by that point, he was already aware of his surroundings, and it was enough incentive for him to rush after me. I let out a shriek of laughter and darted away, skating as fast as I could in an effort to escape.
That's how we occupied ourselves for the next half hour or so—Stiles chasing after me until he could catch me, poke me in the ribs or on the nose, and then I'd skate after him to return the favor. At some point we pulled Lydia into the game, tired of watching her free skate and deciding the game was more fun with more than one target. We got Allison and Scott in on a few rounds too, but Scott only ever got pity tags from Allison, considering he didn't seem to be able to skate more than a few feet away from the perimeter of the rink.
We skated until my feet were sore, but I didn't mind all that much. I was having the time of my life, and I was content to stay there all night.
But Stiles, as it seemed, had other plans. He waited until after I'd tagged Lydia and darted away, then came gliding up to me along the edge of the rink, grabbing my arm and tugging me slightly toward the exit. "Hey, you wanna take a break?"
"Hm? Oh, sure."
I followed him off the ice and back over to the bleachers, looking around curiously. I'd only ever come a few times, but most of those were strictly on-the-ice-and-go-home kinds of situations. I knew there were other things to do, but I had never really gotten the chance to explore. But it didn't take long before my eyes set on exactly what I wanted to do.
"Oh my God, no way!" I snatched up Stiles's hand, hardly waiting a moment before I sprinted out the door, coming to a stop in front of the tiny, orange photo booth that was standing in the hallway. I jumped inside with a giggle, poking my head back out of the curtain. "Uh, sorry. I know they're kinda cliché, but…"
"No, no! I'm game."
He grinned, patting his pockets and pulling out a handful of coins before following me inside. We paid for the photos and I slammed my hand down on the begin button before he could say a word.
"1st SHOT"
"Woah, hey, hey, what?" Stiles stammered, frantically looking back and forth between me and the screen. "Y-You can't just press go! What are we doing?!"
"Uh—smile!"
I grabbed Stiles's hand and he scrambled to wrap his arm around my shoulder as the countdown bar reached the edge of the screen, both of us grinning at the camera.
"2nd SHOT"
Stiles and I both pulled the obligatory silly faces. I stuck my tongue out and crossed my eyes while Stiles pulled the most strained, confused face he could manage and held his fingers behind my head as bunny ears.
"3rd SHOT"
"Okay, uh, your turn," Stiles offered.
"Oh, well we've gotta do werewolf claws."
"Werewolf…? Seriously? That is the lamest idea ever."
"You're the lamest idea ever," I jabbed, raising my claws and growling at him.
Stiles rolled his eyes, but lifted his hands into claws just the same. Then he changed his mind at the last second, clapping his hands to his face and staring at me in mock terror as he let out a high-pitched squeal. He immediately began coughing the moment the flash went off, making me burst into another fit of laughter. He glared at me and poked my side, pushing himself to his feet and shaking his head.
"Great, well now that we've taken that horrendously poor excuse for a picture…"
He pushed the curtain aside, ready to step back into the hallway when I noticed that the counter was still going on the screen.
"4th SHOT"
I grabbed a fistful of his sweatshirt, yanking him back into his seat. "No, no, no! One more! There's one more!"
"What?!" Stiles turned to the screen with wide eyes, waving his hands frantically as the counter neared the end. "No! Wait! Stop! What do we…?!"
But there wasn't time to finish the question. Without letting myself think about it, I jumped forward, pulled Stiles back by his sleeve, and pressed my lips against his cheek just as the flash went off.
"PRINTING…"
I quickly released my grip on Stiles, pulling back and pursing my lips as my face flushed. "Um…sorry…"
"Uh, no!" Stiles replied instantly, his head snapping toward me with wide eyes and splotchy cheeks. "That's—That's fine. That is not a thing that you need to apologize for."
We both nodded awkwardly, shifting in our seats as the machine whirred around us. Finally, there was a clatter from outside, and Stiles jumped to grab the pictures from the slot. He shook his head, and his cheeks grew pinker as he stared down at the photo strip. "Wow, great. Yeah, that's a lovely photo."
I grinned, pulling it from his hands so I could look over the pictures. My eyes flicked down to the bottom, where my face was half hidden, my eyebrows high and my knuckles white on Stiles's jacket. Stiles's face was utterly blank, completely dumbstruck. There'd been just enough time for the look of shocked realization to come over his face, for his cheeks to just begin to flush, before the camera went off, catching his wide, panicked eyes perfectly.
"You're right," I agreed, turning to look at him with a wide smile. "I love it."
Stiles glanced at me through his long lashes, the excess color ebbing from his cheeks as he managed a small grin. I bit my lip, but before either of us could say anything, there was a loud bang from outside the booth.
"Move it, lovebirds!" Scott yelled, yanking the curtain away while Allison giggled at his side. "Professionals coming through."
Stiles and I both groaned in unison, but climbed out of the booth with playful glares. Stiles grumbled something about Scott that I couldn't quite make out, but the ultimate result of which was the werewolf shoving me into his best friend's chest. He and Allison laughed and ducked inside the booth before we could retaliate, leaving Stiles and I with no choice but to head back into the rink.
"Hey, Lydia, you good?" I called, sticking my head out onto the ice.
Lydia didn't bother giving me a verbal response. Instead, she sped up her skating, throwing herself into a complicated jump that made both Stiles and I gape.
"Uh yeah. I'd say she's good. Really good," he offered from my shoulder. "Come on, something else I have to show you."
"Seriously?" I laughed, following him back to the bleachers. "Something else? Just how much thought did you put into this?"
"For the sake of my pride, more than you are ever allowed to know." I chuckled as he patted the seat next to him, digging though his backpack in search of my surprise. After a few seconds of rummaging, he finally pulled up a large chunk of tinfoil. "No, but seriously, it's not that big. You uh…said I should buy you dinner first so I… Well, I know this isn't really dinner, but…"
"If that's what I think it is, then it is miles better than dinner and totally still valid." I snatched the package from him, tearing away the foil and grinning as the telltale smell reached my nostrils. I finally managed to pry it open, revealing the rich, orangey fries inside. I beamed, immediately curling one around my finger and popping into my mouth.
"They're still warm, right? I don't actually know how good tinfoil is at insulating and I know that it's cold in here…"
"Oh yeah, they're freezing," I insisted, grabbing the box and scooting a few inches away from him. "You don't want any of these. They're totally cold."
"Um, no, hey. Excuse me!" He slid after me, reaching around me to a grab a fry for himself before chuckling. "Um, right. Drinks. Be right back."
It only took him a minute or two to run to the vending machine in the lobby. Unfortunately, I was hungry, and it also only took a minute or two for me to make a sizable dent in the pile of curly fries. Stiles jogged back and handed me a Coke before pausing, narrowing his eyes as he stared at the damage I'd already done on the food.
"Unbelievable," he muttered. He collapsed next to me on the bleachers, waving off my apology but possessively tugging the container of food a little closer to himself.
I timidly grabbed another fry, vowing to take a little more time eating my food so there was a chance we'd end up with equal portions. "Oh, how much do I owe you for the pictures?"
Stiles looked up, eyebrows raised as he stuffed a longer fry into his mouth whole. "You're kidding, right?" he asked, slightly muffled. "You're not paying for them."
"What? Oh come on. I dragged you into the photo booth without even asking."
"Yeah, and I dragged you out on a date with me."
I pursed my lips together, trying not to smile to widely at the phrase. I stole another curly fry, buying myself time before replying, "But you asked."
"And I'm still adjusting to the fact that you said yes," he said, nodding slightly as he stared down at the quickly disappearing container of food. He glanced over at me, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees and a small, nervous smile on his face. I only managed to hold his gaze for a few seconds before I had to look away, grabbing another fry and breaking him out of his slight trance. "Okay, how about this? You can pay me back by making me a copy. Good?"
"Yeah. Good."
I chewed timidly on my food, jumping slightly when Stiles bumped me with his shoulder. I narrowed my eyes and pushed back, and then he shoved me. It turned into an all out war, both of us elbowing and shoving each other as we fought over the fries, until we were finally laughing at ourselves again.
Being the ravenous teenagers we were, it was only a few minutes before the entire container of curly fries had been devoured. We both pulled on our skates, agreeing for one last go on the ice before calling it a night.
"Dessert?"
I looked up from my skates to see him brandishing a pack of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups in the air. I nodded eagerly and finished up the knots on my skates, graciously accepting one of the two pieces in the pack. "These are one hundred percent my favorite candy."
"Really? Never would have guessed, the way you terrified that eight year old on Halloween to get the last one when we were trick-or-treating." That earned him another jab in the ribs, and he laughed as he took a large bite out of the cup. "No but, I mean, I get it. Peanut butter and chocolate. It's a pretty good combination."
"A perfect combination," I corrected, grinning down at my own treat in satisfaction.
"It's weird, though, you know? Like who would have ever thought that chocolate and peanut butter would get together?" I glanced over at him to find him staring intently at his candy, half-devoured with the chocolate beginning to melt on his fingers. "I mean, someone says peanut butter, you automatically think jelly, like jelly is the only thing peanut butter would ever go with. And not that PB&J isn't good, but between that and a Reese's cup, I'd take the peanut butter and chocolate any day. But chocolate—like chocolate could go with anything. Chocolate could go with caramel, marshmallow, strawberries, anything. Chocolate's perfect when it's on its own. Just…who would have guessed that chocolate and peanut butter would ever work out?"
I finished the rest of my candy, biting my fingertips for a few seconds while I stared at him in his contemplation. "Are we still talking about Reese's cups, or is there something you want to talk about?"
Stiles jolted a little, remembering that he was actually speaking to an audience. His pale skin whited further, burnt amber eyes widening as he shook his head. "W-What? No. Sorry, uh… I'm gonna stop talking now."
"I'll tell you what I think," I offered, leaning forward next to him. "I like chocolate fine by itself. But I think that chocolate and peanut butter work really great together. And even though not everyone agrees, Reese's cups are my favorite candy ever. And they probably always will be."
Stiles let out a breath of disbelieving laughter, wiping a hand down his face. "Sorry, that…that was a really stupid…that was way too…I don't know, dramatic. That was ridiculous, I'm…"
"Hey, it's fine," I insisted. I pulled him to his feet and tugged him down the bleachers, then turned and grabbed both his hands as I walked backwards toward the entrance to the ice. "I'll tell you what. If you want, I'll forget the whole thing, on one condition."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah," I said with a smile. "I'm chocolate. You're peanut butter."
He chuckled a bit, dropping one of my hands and falling into step beside me as we headed back for the ice. "Why's that?"
"Do I really need to make a pun about you being nutty?"
He laughed, and I tried to ignore the tiny proud feeling I got in my stomach. "Okay, fine, fine. I would have made you chocolate anyway."
We stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, neither really sure what to do with ourselves. Dating was new to both of us in general, but I couldn't help but feel like Stiles and I had just had an extremely strange, intimate moment, bordering on cinematic. I wasn't really sure how to follow it up, and judging by the uncomfortable silence, neither did he. My brain started flicking frantically, looking for a new topic or a related subject that would help the conversation progress, and before I could pass it through any sort of mental filter, the words were coming tumbling out of my mouth.
"There's also a sex joke about placement in there if you look hard enough."
This was followed by a beat of silence, as the words processed in both of our brains. Contemplation turned to comprehension, awkwardness to absolute horror, or in Stiles's case, what appeared to be some aroused sort of shock.
"What?"
"W-What?"
"Oh my God, did…Did you just…?"
"No. Did I what? Nope."
"Sadie…"
"Just please forget I just said that," I pleaded, dropping his hand and speed walking toward the ice.
Stiles finally seemed to recover from his shock, letting out a loud bark of laughter. "You couldn't pay me to forget that you just said that. Nuh-uh."
I rounded on him, ready to make any assortment of threats and bargains, but before a single sound could escape from my mouth, we were interrupted by another.
An earsplitting screech echoed around the room, making Stiles and I jump and throw our hands out in fear and surprise. And it didn't die down. It continued—high and terrified—from whatever constant source. We looked around for a moment, but it was barely a second before I realized who was screaming.
I leapt onto the ice, nearly wiping out in my haste to get to Lydia. She was kneeling in the middle of the rink, crumpled onto the ice while her nails scraped over the surface in front of her. Her face was rapidly becoming red from the stress of screaming, her eyes screwed up and tears streaming down her face.
"Lydia! Lydia!" I slid the last couple feet to her side, wrapping my arms around her torso.
She immediately began thrashing, her scream spiking in volume and pitch as she fought to escape. "No! No! Ahhh!" And the panicked shrieking started up again.
"Lyd?! Stiles! Help!"
But Stiles was already a step ahead of me, falling on Lydia's other side and tentatively trying to contain her thrashing. I heard the door burst open behind me, undoubtedly Allison and Scott coming to see what the problem was, but I was too worried to bother checking.
I scrambled around until I was facing Lydia, grabbing her wrists and pulling them towards me. "Lydia! Lyd! Lyd! You're fine! Look! It's just me! It's Sadie, okay? It's just me!"
She continued to fight me for a few seconds, her fingers flexing as she tried to claw at the air, and her eyes squeezed shut tight to block out the world around her. But after a few seconds of persuading, she finally pried her eyes open. They were thick with tears, but the scream eventually died out. Her whole body trembled, shaking like the last fragile leaf on a tree in winter. Her lips quivered and gaped in attempts at speech, her eyes eventually growing wide as she became aware of the world around her. She looked back and forth in shock, then stared at the ice beneath her hands, seemingly marveling at the cold, white surface, as if she'd never seen it before.
"Lyd…?"
Without warning, she threw herself into my arms, hands wrapped around my neck as she sobbed into my shoulder. There were half words hidden among her cries, things like "petal" and "man" and "ice," but not enough to make an intelligible statement.
I shared a worried look with Stiles, settling for patting her hair down and rubbing her back. I whispered reassurances and words of encouragement in her ear, and after a few minutes the sobbing faded to silent crying, then crying to sniffling. It was a good while later that I finally pulled back, brushing her hair out of her face and letting her wipe the tears from her face.
"Let's just get out of here, okay? Yeah? Do you think you can stand?"
Lydia nodded, evidently not trusting her voice at the moment. She didn't even object when Stiles laid a hand on her shoulder, helping support her to her feet as she gripped my arm as if her life depended on it.
We slowly made our way off the ice, Lydia supported between Stiles and me as she stared down at the ground. Her face was almost emotionless, a slightly haunted shock. I knew that whatever she thought she had seen must have been terrifying, but I didn't bother asking what it was. She wouldn't—shouldn't be talking about it in this state, and after the scene she had caused, I knew she wouldn't want to discuss it in front of Scott and Stiles, maybe even Allison.
I gave each of them a warning glance as we stepped onto solid ground once more, fiercely instructing them to keep their mouths firmly closed without bothering to use my words. Then I pulled Lydia away to the bleachers, leaving Stiles, Scott and Allison to exchange their worries in low voices, casting dark looks over at us every few seconds.
Luckily, perhaps, Lydia didn't seem to mind. In fact, she didn't seem to mind anything at all. She removed her skates with effortless precision, pulling on her shoes by pure muscle memory. She just stared into space, her eyes glazed over and her face passive. She quietly followed any timid instructions I gave her, standing at my side while I slipped on my shoes and walking with me back to the group at the exit. She avoided their worried gazes with extreme care. She just wrapped her arms around her torso and stared at the floor—no apologies, no reassurance, no snark. Nothing.
I watched her with worry, finally turning to look at Stiles with bashful eyes. "Hey. I'm really sorry, but do you think…?"
"I'll meet you by the Jeep," he said, already nodding as he jogged over to the bleachers.
Allison and Scott both followed him with quick nods and smiles of encouragement, and I wrapped my arm around my fearfully quiet best friend, leading her out of the rink to the quiet asylum of the parking lot.
Our group ended up splitting up in the parking lot. Scott and Allison said their quiet goodbyes, heading for Allison's car so she could drive him home after enjoying a little more time in private. I helped Lydia climb into the back of Stiles's Jeep, hopping in after her to sit shotgun whiles Stiles climbed into the driver's seat.
The drive home was a quiet one. Stiles turned on the radio, but that was the only noise that anyone made. We just sat in silence, isolated by our own thoughts as the trees and scenery flew past outside.
I was torn to say the least. I didn't want to ignore Lydia's problem. I didn't want her sitting in the back seat fearing everything around her, fearing herself, because she didn't know what was going on. I wanted to help her, to tell her everything that I could. But at the same time, I wasn't sure how to do it. How did I explain to Lydia everything that had been going on for the last few months? How did I explain that even with all that knowledge, I didn't know how to explain what was happening to her? How could I go through putting all that pressure on her shoulders only to tell her that I wasn't sure that her knowing would make a difference? And after debating for the entire ride, I decided that the answer was simple. I didn't.
By the time we reached the house, Lydia had raised her guard again. She jumped out of the Jeep a little more lightly, grabbed our bags from the back and marched up the driveway faster than should have been possible in her heels. She didn't say a word, but the fierce look she gave me when she turned around in the front doorway was very clear.
"I will not talk to you for a week if you do not give him a proper goodnight."
I actually grinned as she slammed the door in my face. She wasn't perfect. She was damaged and had no idea how to deal with what she was going through. But she was still Lydia.
"I'm sorry that I uh…colossally messed this up," Stiles confessed, digging his heel into ground as he stared at his shoes.
I shrugged, wringing my hands in front of me as I stood in front of him. I was too anxious to look at his face, so I ended up staring a hole into his chest, just a few inches under his collar. "You didn't."
"Didn't? I—I turned our date into a five person outing and we're—we're not exactly ending it on the best terms."
"I told you not to worry about Scott and Allison. It's honestly fine. You were inviting Lydia in an effort to make me happy, and as for everything else… Well, what's happening to Lydia isn't anyone's fault."
"Still. I…kind of feel awful about it."
"Well then," I said slowly, "I guess you'll just have to make it up to me next time."
Stiles's head snapped up from his shoes, maple eyes wide as they bore into mine. "N-Next time?"
"Yeah. I mean… I mean, only if you want to, but…"
"No! Yes! I mean…next time. Yes. That's…good…"
We stared at each other for a few seconds, this stretch slightly less awkward than it had been before. And thankfully, I wasn't forced to think of something to break the silence.
"So," Stiles mused, running a hand over his hair to pick at the back of his neck. "Thank you. For coming out with me tonight."
"Thanks for asking," I replied timidly.
He was shuffling forward a bit, and I suddenly seemed hyper aware of distances. Every inch he moved forward felt like a mile, and my heart felt like it was trying to force its way out of my ribcage.
"So, I guess I'll see you tomorrow. At school."
"At school," I agreed with a nod.
My resolve failed, and I found my eyes dropping to his lips, which were practically quivering as shaking breath after shaking breath washed over them. He was steeling himself, building up the courage. Every second found him closer, his own eyes dancing over my face and mouth. And he shuffled. A foot and a half away now. Shuffled. A foot. Shuffled. A few inches.
"I'm pretty sure I told you I don't kiss guys on the first date."
Stiles froze in place, already just a handful of inches from my face. His eyes flashed with panic, and a searing pain of guilt shot through my stomach in an instant.
"Oh. Um, y-yeah. Yes, no uh… Y-You did say that. I'll just uh…"
He scrambled back, already making a quick escape for the porch steps when I grabbed his wrist. I pulled him back with some difficulty, returning him to his position just in front of me with a smile.
"But I guess I can make an exception…"
Stiles's panic faded, quickly changing to confusion, then realization, then a supreme level of annoyance and anger. He pursed his lips, glaring at me but never moving away. "That was mean, Bennet. You can't just do stuff like that. That was awful."
"I know. I know, I'm sorry," I apologized, leaning forward only for him to pull his head a little farther back.
"That was ruthless. I mean, I'm scared out of my mind right now, and you pull something like that. You are a terrible, terrible person, Sadie Bennet."
"Shut up and kiss me, Stilinski."
I rolled my eyes as I grabbed the back of his neck, pulling his face to mine and meeting little resistance. Despite his feigned protests, Stiles's hands quickly found my waist, tugging me closer as his head tilted to accommodate mine. And for those few, brief seconds, everything else in the world seemed to stop. I wasn't worried about Derek or Isaac or Erica or Gerard. I wasn't even worried about my best friend right on the other side of the door. All that mattered was that I was kissing Stiles, and after a long time waiting, it felt good.
We had to pull away after a minute, both trying to catch our breath as we stood there staring at each other. We both left our hands where they were, both wore stupid little smiles on our faces. We both seemed reluctant to let go, desperate to hang onto our moment of happy normality for as long as we could before reality smacked us in the face again.
But we couldn't spend the whole night standing on the front porch. Stiles loosened his grip on my waist, and my hands fell from his neck to his shoulders, then slowly down to my sides.
"Right," he said softly, clearing his throat as he took a step backwards toward the stairs. "So…goodnight."
"Yeah… Goodnight."
I waited with my back against the door as Stiles walked back to the Jeep, climbing into the front seat and giving me a wave. I waved back with a wide smile, watching as the car revved to life, and then rolled away and out of sight.
I spent a couple more seconds outside by myself, back pressed against the front door and my front pressed against the cool night air. I let my tongue run over my lips, closing my eyes as I relived the all too recent memory of his lips on mine. And then I shook my head. He'd literally been out of my sight for less than a minute, and I had to get a grip on myself before all this cheesy, lighthearted romantic stuff got to my head and made me the kind of person that was nauseating to be around.
I took a deep breath and wiped my hands down my face, but instead of clearing my head, it just seemed to make everything more cluttered. I was overwhelmed by the smell of curly fries, and I looked down to discover that I was still wearing Stiles's bright orange sweatshirt. I let the sleeves fall down over my hands, lifting them to press against my face as I tried to force my manic grin away.
It shouldn't come as a surprise that it didn't really work. At all.
A/N: I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!
Jesus, I am so sorry guys. This has been the absolute worst 5 months for me. Things aren't particularly getting better, but I'm excited to get publishing again, because you guys are one of the best things about my life. So more than sorry, I want to say THANK YOU. Thank you for sticking with me, thank you for reading and messaging me with your best. I will never be able to express in words how much it's meant to me. I love you all so much, and I hope you all continue to enjoy the story.
Thank you specifically to all my friends who have been helping me through it, and to all of you who reviewed in my absence. Ready? Ready. Thank you to: RHatch86, jaa162, suzieS, Sonny13, Blazing-Melody, blahicantthinkofaname, Daenerys86, emele807, Red Constance, Guest1, Montanasmith5897, easythrowaway, enthusiastic-fan-and-reader, KennedyRaye, Guest2, BTR14, thorn94, tvdxobssessed, The City Of Books, see-me-clarely, MS. QUEEN21, Emmazz, a. Paper. heaRt, Lemmstrellicon, Rain2012, Bookiee, Nikkita Starr Ta, Lioness32, JenRiley16, Guest3, SilverAdvenger12, Emmalee Adams, tooclosefortety, DoingTheWormwood (preach), TWsos12345, therealjainasolo, MessintheMirror, kodt24, TameTheGhosts, Those rainy dayse, xJenzaFreakx, HeatherEnvy, AspiredWriterr, Ayine, AllThingWeird35, Guest4, Guest5, hinataonicha, Guest6, SK-Scatenato, Guest7, katiesgotagun, ShapedLikeStars, Layla Faye Sherwood, LionHeartMisfit, Guest8, marahh, LycanLove (you seriously made me cry, thank you so, so much), bagginsoftheshire666, Zelda Zonkk, FizzWizz2011, Guest9, ober22, she.s. .one, Asha, Alice, beenwithout, Guest10, Guest11, corazon11heart11, manon, Guest12, Guest13, Damselindistress98, prettyargents, MouseofAnotherNature, Otter, Guest14, Janine, Susie S, It Belongs In A Museum (honestly thank you for bearing with me I'm so sorry), papapapaloma, Iris RainbowWolf, and anyone in between I might have missed! Christ, you are all so lovely, and I hope you all come back to me, because I love you.
I'm sorry for the long wait, and I'm sorry for all the scares that I was stopping, and I hope the ridiculous amount of fluff in this chapter wasn't disgusting or smothering, and was a good enough apology.
Thank you all so much for everything, and there are no words to describe how excited I am to hear from you! Mwah!
-Brittney
