"I think I'm going to tell him," Jackson says quietly, looking up from his empty plate. "Not right away, definitely not today, but…before I leave."

"Oh." Isaac nods, not looking up from where he's pushing lo mein around on his plate. "Okay."

"Do you…is that not okay with you?" Jackson asks.

"No, it's…it's good, I think that he should know."

"But…" Jackson bites his lip. "You're afraid he won't look twice at you once he does."

Isaac doesn't say anything, he just shrugs, and Jackson thinks he understands.

For a while, it's silence. Jackson spoons more food onto his plate, while Isaac just continue to play with what's already on his.

"I think you're wrong," Jackson says finally, and Isaac looks up, brows furrowed in confusion.

"What?"

"I've known Danny since I was a little kid," Jackson continues. "We've been friends since we were 3 years old, and with everything…he stuck by me, even when I turned into an asshole, because who I was projecting myself to be wasn't nearly as important to him as who he knew I was on the inside. Danny has this ability to see right through people, to know that being an asshole was just my way of dealing with a bunch of other stuff that was going on, and I think he'll see it with you, too. That being a wolf, it's not…it doesn't erase the person that he's grown to care about."

Isaac doesn't know what to say. That's by far the deepest thing that Jackson has ever said to him, and he's not really sure how to take it. At all.

"He cares, Isaac," Jackson says softly. "As much as it may kill me to admit that he does, it's true, it's right there in the open. The way he looks at you, the way he talks about you…he's such a caring guy, and for that to be focused on you? And I can't even fault him for it, because you've been so kind to him. I haven't liked any of the guys Danny's been with, because none of them have ever been good enough. But you?" Jackson shrugs. "A few months ago, I'd have lumped you in with the rest of them – nowhere near good enough for him, but after what I've seen? What I've heard? I'm pretty sure I'd have been wrong."

"What?" Isaac looks up at Jackson, shocked.

"I think that you might be really good for Danny. Those other guys, it was selfish, they only wanted a couple things from him – his body, his popularity, to take advantage of his good nature, maybe his family's money, but you? You don't give a shit about any of that. You hold him while he sleeps, you wake up with him when he's uneasy, you sit at his sister's hospital bed and suck away her pain, even when it's hurting you, and then you turn right back around and do the same for him."

"Jackson," Isaac says softly. "Danny and I…we're not together."

"Really?" Jackson tilts his head to the side. "You had me fooled."

"What?"

"Oh come on, Lahey, seriously?" Jackson rolls his eyes. "You guys spend all of your free time together, you sleep in the same bed, you kiss, and you waited in the hospital for his entire procedure. Whether you've labeled it or not, I'm pretty sure that you and Danny are most definitely together."

"Well does Danny know that?" Isaac scoffs.

"Yeah." Jackson nods. "I'm pretty sure he does."

Isaac doesn't say anything else. He doesn't know what there is to say, because no matter what Jackson says, no matter what Isaac says, or even what Danny says, Isaac is stuck so far in his own head that he can't even sort of see how someone else might care about him like that. It's taken so long for him to get used to the fact that Melissa and Scott care about him, he can't even fathom that someone like Danny might choose him romantically out of everyone that's there.

"Are…are you okay here? Do you have this covered?" Isaac asks, looking up at Jackson.

"What do you man?" Jackson asks.

"His pain. Can you…can you handle his pain for a little while?"

"Are you leaving?"

"Yeah." Isaac nods. He doesn't think that he can be here, not right now. "You've given me a lot to think about, and I really want to process it."

"Oh." Jackson nods. "Yeah, okay. I'll…I'll call you if I need you, though."

"Yeah, that's fair." Isaac nods and stands up, washing his own dish before he leaves.

He starts off walking home, but he finds himself, instead, gravitating towards the hospital, where he walks to the nurses station. Luckily, Melissa is already there, and he doesn't have to wait long.

"Isaac?" She frowns. "What are you doing here? Is everything okay? It doesn't look like everything is okay."

"Yeah, I'm…I just…" He shifts, looking up at her. "I…I think I need some motherly advice."

"Oh…oh my god, of course!" Melissa nods. "Hey, I'm going on break," she calls out to her other nurses, and they all seem to agree.

She comes out from behind the station, and grabs Isaac by the arm, pulling him to the break room. Luckily, it's empty, and she sits Isaac down at the little round table.

"Do you want a cup of coffee?" She asks.

"No, no." He shakes his head. "I…god, you're gonna think I'm so stupid, but I don't know…I don't understand how this works…I…"

Melissa doesn't interrupt. She doesn't rush him or hurry him, she just sits there, a cup of coffee in her hand, smiling at him, because she's waited for this. Isaac has been living in their house for months, and the closest they've come to actually having a conversation like this was when he was sick. She knows, though, that it's hard for him, that he's not had family he can turn to in a really long time, and she's just glad that he's opening up to her.

"There's a boy," he says finally, looking up at her. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to disappoint you, I really didn't, but I can't…I tried, I tried hard, okay? I promise. I wanted to be into girls, I did, but I-"

"Whoa, whoa, Isaac, Isaac, honey." Melissa cuts him off, reaching out, covering his hands with her own, smiling gently at him. "I'm not disappointed that you like a boy. I'm just sorry that you thought I would be."

"O-oh." Isaac nods. "You're…wait, you're not?"

"No, honey, of course not. If you're gay, or bi, or whatever you are, that's fine, sweetheart."

"Oh." Isaac takes a deep breath, suddenly feeling much better. "It's…it's Danny."

"Well of course it is." Melissa smiles at him.

"You…you knew?"

"I suspected." She nods. "You've been spending an awful lot of time with him, and while there's definitely friendship where that's alright, and even normal – re Stiles and my son, it's not really like you, from what I've seen so far."

"Oh." He nods. "Okay, well the thing is, I…people have told me, a couple of people, that he likes me, and…this all sounds so stupid. God." He sighs.

"Isaac, honey," Melissa looks at Isaac, shaking her head. "It's not stupid, okay? If you have something to say to me, you are more than welcome to say it." She smiles gently. "You're a teenage boy, Isaac. You may have some crazy abilities that I will never understand, and you may have a horrible past that I will never be able to empathize with, thank god, but I was a teenager once, and I've had those crushes that you're unsure about."

"Thank you." Isaac looks at Melissa, nothing but utmost respect and care in his eyes, because this woman – she treats him the way he's sure his mother would if she were still alive, and while that's hard for him, because he wishes he knew his mother, that she were still here, it's nice to finally live under a roof where someone cares for him again.

"You're welcome, Isaac. Now, continue."

"Okay." He bites his lip. "He…when he was on pain killers, after the procedure…he told me that I was beautiful, and that he thinks he loves me, but…he was high as shit, and I just don't think that I could ever believe that someone like him would – could – feel that way about me."

"Oh, Isaac, honey…" Melissa looks at Isaac sadly. "First off, when people are under the influence like that, they tend to be the most honest, and second…is it really that hard for you to believe that someone like Danny could love you?"

Isaac looks down. He's embarrassed of his past, of what it did to him, of who it turned him into, but at the same time, he can't help it. He can't help that his father hammered worthlessness into every fiber of his being, that his father set him up not to believe that no one could ever love him – because if your own father doesn't love you, who else possibly could?

"Isaac," Melissa looks over at him. "You're a young, caring, compassionate man. That's the part of you that Danny has seen, and with those adorable blue eyes and blonde curls, frankly, I don't know how he could resist."

"You…you really think so?" Isaac asks, biting his lip.

"I do." She nods. "I also think that this conversation is one you need to be having with him."

"Right." Isaac shifts. "About that…"

"I know that sort of thing is never easy to talk about, but if he cares about you, and you care about him, why should you shy away from that? It could be really, really good for you."

"I just…" Isaac sighs. "I don't…I don't know if I could ever get comfortable with him, you know? I'll always feel like I'm not good enough."

"Oh honey," Melissa shakes her head. "I know it's hard, but please, try never to think you're not good enough for someone. You're always good enough, Isaac. I don't raise boys who are sub-par, do you hear me?"

She fixes him with a stare that could turn a man to stone, and Isaac's lips quirk into a smile.

"Yes, ma'am." He nods.

"Alright." She smiles back at him, dropping the façade. "And hey, if things don't work with him, just remember, you can always come home to me and Scott, and we will always love you."

"What?" Isaac looks up at her, shocked.

"Don't be so surprised, kid." Melissa rolls her eyes. "You're family."

Isaac can't help himself. He stands up and launches himself at her, hugging her tightly. It's been a long time since he had a family that he trusts, that he knows cares about him, and Melissa? She's making him feel truly loved and cared for, and for the first time in his life, he's able to believe that someone might actually love him. He hasn't felt this since his mother died, and right now, hugging Melissa, it honestly feels like he's hugging his mom.

It feels good.

A/N Okay I know that I RARELY post twice this quickly, but I finished this chapter and I really wanted to post it, because I LOVE writing the relationship between Isaac and Melissa. It might be like a week before the next update, and I probably should have spread it out, but...I was excited, so I'm posting it. Hope that's okay!