"So…" Kyle handed Stiles a mug of steaming coffee, and sat down on the opposite side of the couch from the teenager. "What are you doing here at 2 AM?"

"I talked to Scott today, and Derek a couple of days ago, and…" he shrugged his shoulders. "They said some things that sort of changed what I was thinking."

"Oh?" Kyle tilted his head to the side, and right now, Stiles wished more than ever that he had at least some of Scott's abilities. He wanted to know if Kyle wanted him, he wanted to know if any more lies were being told, he just wanted to know what was going on in general.

"Yeah, I just...I don't have...I mean, I clearly have a lot of people in my life who care about me, but I don't have any who care about me the way that I cared about you when we were together, when I thought you were, you know, a teenager in high school dealing with all of the same stuff that I am."

"Stiles," Kyle stated. "I don't think that any teenagers are dealing with the same stuff that you are. Werewolves? Druids? That's not normal."

"No, I know that, I meant, you know, the awkward...hormonal stuff, that you're clearly past."

"Oh." Kyle nodded. "Right. That."

"Yes. You see, Kyle, I...I really, really liked you, or at least the version of you that I got to know, and when I found out that you'd been lying about who you were, and what you were doing there, I figured that I was done, that everything you'd told me, everything you'd been to me, and with me, had been a lie." He paused, taking a sip of his coffee. "But then I talked to Scott, and he made a damn lot of sense when he said that if you'd been lying a lot, he would have picked up on it, which meant that you were mostly telling the truth, or...you're an impeccable liar, and-"

"I wasn't lying about how I felt about you," Kyle stated. "None of that was an act. Sure, for a moment, when the idea first presented itself, when you first presented yourself, I thought that it would be an easier way to get close to you, but spending time with you...I was a goner from date one."

"Oh." Stiles looked down at his coffee, watching the steam rise from the mug, trying to get his head around, well, all of this. "I…"

"You don't have to make any decisions right now, Stiles - in fact, I wouldn't expect you to, but the feelings that I have for you, they're real, and maybe I'm a few years older, and maybe I'm your father's deputy, but that...that doesn't change what I know about myself." He looked at him. "You're not just some kid, Stiles. You've been dealing with adult situations with an adult level of maturity for awhile now, from the sounds of things, and I think some part of me picked up on that, picked up on the fact that you're not like most teenagers. You're grown up, Stiles. Maybe you're only 17, but you've dealt with stuff most adults never will, and your grace in all of that...the fact that you left your house at 2 AM by yourself not that long after being kidnapped? Do you have any idea how strong you are?"

"I…" Stiles shrugged. "I guess I hadn't thought about it, no."

"If you're worried that I don't see you as an equal, you're wrong. When your dad first gave me the job to watch over you, to protect you from harm, yes, I felt like it was a babysitting job, but I don't think I've ever met someone who needed to be babysat less than you."

"Yeah, right," Stiles scoffed. "I got kidnapped."

"You got angry, anger makes you vulnerable, they just happened to be ready for that. What's important is that you kept a cool head. You didn't freak out."

"Well I knew." He shrugged. "Scott...I know what he'd do for me, and I know what he can do, I knew that he'd find me. And my dad? I know that I'm all he's got left. He'd do anything for me, too. Maybe being taken away from everything familiar was scary, and being knocked around definitely hurt, but at the end of the day, I knew that I wasn't going to die in that house. Scott, my father, they wouldn't let that happen."

"See, that's another thing," Kyle stated. "The faith that you have in the people that you love, it's unwavering, undying. Your loyalty to them, and theirs to you - you don't see that in teenagers, Stiles, you just don't. There's none of that petty drama going on with you guys. It's just trust and understanding."

"Yeah, well, when you've been through some of the stuff we've been through…" he trailed off.

"I can't even begin to understand," Kyle stated. "But back to your question, the big one - do I want you? Stiles. Yes, I do. I think I've made that clear, but I understand that you don't trust me right now, that I betrayed the trust you'd given me before, and for someone like you, who trusts so blindly in the people around you, having someone that maybe you don't trust so much isn't easy, so I think the bigger question here is, do you want me."

Stiles shifted a bit, taking another sip of his coffee to buy him some time, because yes, he wanted Kyle, he really did, but he was also scared. This sort of thing wasn't easy for him, and there were so many factors, so many things playing into all of this.

"I do," Stiles said finally, looking up at Kyle after several very, very long minutes. "But only if you can be okay with it taking me maybe a little more time to fully trust you again."

"I wouldn't expect anything less, and Stiles, if you ever want to know something from me...just ask me in front of Scott, and he can tell you if I'm lying."

Stiles smiled, biting his lip. "I...that's an amazing offer, and thank you, but I really...I really would like to be able to trust you on my own."

"Yeah." Kyle nodded. "I really want that, too."

They fell into a silence after that, and Stiles took a few more sips of his coffee, though he didn't really need it to stay awake. All of this thinking already had him wide awake, and that wasn't likely to change any time soon. He had just said that he wanted something, something that might not be the easiest thing to live with, but he wanted it, wanted Kyle, and maybe this was the start (the second start, really) of something that could be really amazing.

"I should go," Stiles said once he finished his coffee. "It's late, really late, but I'll call you, we'll talk."

"Sounds good." Kyle stood up, taking Stiles' mug from him and setting them both on the coffee table. "I'll walk you to your car."

"Thanks."

Stiles got up, and started walking out to his keep, smiling as he turned around to say goodnight to Kyle.

He was surprised, though, to find that Kyle was standing, his hand outstretched as though to be shaken. For a second, Stiles was confused. That seemed...like backtracking, it seemed frigid, and unromantic, until Kyle began speaking.

"Hi, I'm Kyle Parrish." He smiled. "I'm 24 years old, I'm from Pittsburg Kansas. I was in the army for two years doing HDT, and now I'm a Sheriff's Deputy here in Beacon Hills. I like to go for runs, eat healthy, and I don't know if the color red that I see is the same red that you see, and I don't know if there's a parallel universe where you and I make different choices, but I'd love to discuss that all more."

"It's nice to meet you, Kyle," Stiles said with a smile, shaking the offered hand. "I'm Stiles, I'm 17, almost 18, my dad's the Sheriff here, all of my friends are werewolves or other supernatural beings, and...I would love to take you up on your offer of discussing parallel universes further."

"Friday night?" Kyle asked.

"Friday night sounds great."

Stiles let go of Kyle's hand and climbed into his jeep, starting the engine and driving off.

It was the middle of the night, or rather, closer to the morning, but he was wide awake, and feeling better than he had in a long time.

A/N Alright, I hope that you enjoyed the conversation between Stiles and Kyle, and thanks so much for reading! I honestly feel incredibly lucky to have as many regular readers as I've gotten with you guys! Thank you so much for sticking through! :) I hope that you're continuing to enjoy the story!