Chapter Seventeen: Well, well, well . . . Look Who We Have Here.

The building was actually kind of cool, Alex had to admit. But who was she kidding - Derek Hale wasn't going to miss an opportunity to hold the fact that he was cool, broody and rich over everyone else's head. It was a large industrial looking building, more metal than brick. The windows were large and covered most of the side of the building. It was obviously much too large for only one werewolf - he could have started a brewing company in this size of a building.

It was definitely Derek's style, she concluded. More so than the dilapidated house of horrors he'd been surviving in prior.

Alex, Scott and Stiles had driven to the loft after school had ended and the two boys had to basically drag her into the Jeep. Alex had changed her mind about moving in with Derek several times over the course of the day and was now sporting one hell of a migraine.

Her boots smacked loudly on the concrete stairs they ascended before stopping at a huge metal door.

This was it. She thought miserably. I've officially hit rock bottom.

Scott pushed open the door revealing a minimally furnished loft - the floor to ceiling windows she'd spotted from the parking lot looked even nicer up close.

"Shoes off!" Derek barked from across the open concept kitchen. "Getting mud everywhere." He muttered under his breath.

Alex looked down at her and her companions feet. There was no mud. She groaned and rolled her eyes about to unleash a verbal lashing about how melodramatic he was going to be but Stiles nudged her gently in shoulder. His look was clear.

Don't piss him off already, please.

"Isn't that supposed to be my line?" She asked before she could stop herself. "After I get back from taking you for your walk?" Oops. She shrugged at Stiles who sighed deeply beside her. She slid her shoes off anyway - a show of respect. He was doing her a favour, after all.

Derek growled low in his throat and it echoed in the empty loft. This time it was Scott who nudged her. Another warning.

Alex smirked, turning to smile sweetly at Stiles and placing a gentle hand on his chest. "Uh oh, Sweetie," She cooed. "Looks like we may need to muzzle the mutt."

Alex knew she should stop antagonizing him. It would have been smarter to keep her mouth shut and let Scott and Stiles do all the negotiating on her behalf - but it was just too easy. Derek was an easy mark and she knew exactly what buttons to push to make him mad and it was fun.

Derek, however, didn't seem to think so. He was in front of her instantly, eyes glowing a bright blue and his teeth were bared in a clear threat. His body was coiled tight and Alex took a step back with another easy smile.

"Easy there, Cujo." She put her hands up in a mock surrender. "Didn't mean to offend."

"Eh, I think you did." Stiles piped in, hiding a smile of his own while sliding in-between Derek and Alex as a precaution.

"You do want to live here, right?" Derek questioned, the obvious threat looming in the air. He was seconds away from revoking the invitation but his eyes had returned to normal and his lips were able to close over his teeth again.

"Want?" Alex scoffed like it was the most ridiculous assumption she'd ever heard - because it was, and opened her mouth to make another snide remark before Scott slammed his hand over her mouth. Hard.

"She's very grateful, aren't you?" Scott's tone was condescending, like he was speaking to a child. Alex couldn't fault him for that. She was kind of acting like one. He clapped his other hand over the back of her neck and forced her to nod.

Scott screamed when Alex promptly broke his hand.

"AH!" His agonized shout turned into a howl as he backed away from her. "What the hell, Alex?" He was already healing when she wiped the back of her hand across her mouth like his hand had been dirty and revolting.

"Sorry dude," She shrugged, "but you should know better."

Stiles looked wide eyed between the two of them. He stuttered out a few syllables before falling silent. Surprisingly, Derek began to chuckle.

"She can stay."

"What?" Scott shouted. "She just broke my friggin' hand - that's the ticket into your good graces?"

"That," Derek confirmed with a nod, "and people who actually say 'fucking' instead of 'friggin'."

Alex chimed in with laughter of her own, nodding in agreement with Derek. "That's what I've been telling him. He howls at the moon, grows a fur coat and teeth but can't say 'fuck'. What kind of weird Disney movie did I fall into?"

"This was a bad idea." Stiles declared, looking quickly between Derek and Alex. "Really bad."

No one seemed to hear him, or if they did, he went ignored.

"Do you have any bags?" Derek asked, looking a little awkward as he stared at the ground and towards the door like maybe she'd dropped her stuff somewhere along the way.

"Just this." Alex presented her black duffle bag. The one she'd stocked full of her best weapons before the dance and the grey hoodie she'd stolen from Stiles' bedroom floor before school that morning.

Derek furrowed his prominent brow looking like he wanted to question her lack of possessions before he shook his head clear of the thought, subtly. "Alright," He cleared his throat, "Well, your bed is up there." He gestured to a small, tightly wound spiral staircase that lead to a private ensuite. "Make yourself comfortable. I'm going out. Keys on the kitchen counter."

Derek left without saying anything else, closing the large metal door and leaving the three teenagers to their own devices.

"It's nice." Scott declared, breaking the awkward silence that had settled over the room. He was subconsciously cradling his healed hand. "I didn't think Derek could afford something like this."

"Oh?" Alex said, rounding on Scott with a raised eyebrow. "You were going to ship me off to a shit hole, were you?" She flopped back onto the hardest couch she'd ever felt and frowned. "Only living member of a well off family? His trust fund might even be bigger than mine." She deduced, kicking her feet up onto the sturdy birch living room table.

Scott pulled out his phone from his pocket. "Oh crap. I'm going to be late for dinner. I promised my mom." He pocketed his phone again after typing out a quick reply and fixed both Stiles and Alex with a knowing glance. "She thinks somethings up with me and wants to spend more time together."

Stiles made a move to follow Scott as he left the loft. He was Scott's ride, after all. How was Stiles the one who's parent trusted him a with a car between the two of them? Stiles seemed to notice that Alex wasn't behind him and turned around to glance questioningly at her as she remained lounging on the hard as brick couch.

"Aren't you coming?" He looked genuinely confused.

"Uh, Stilinski." She gestured to the dimly lit loft with a careless shrug. "I live here now."

He flushed. "Right, I'm - I mean - you can stay at mine tonight." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Maybe just a couple more days. You know, if you want."

Alex pursed her lips. He was cute. "I think I should just accept my fate as Derek Hale's new roommate." She let out a humourless chuckle. "I can see it now. It'll be just like Sex in The City but with less brunch and more murder."

Stiles didn't laugh. He was too busy worrying his bottom lip between his teeth.

Scott had already left the loft, leaving them alone. Alex sat up from her slumped position, eyeing him curiously.

"What's up, Stilinski?"

"Listen, okay?" He questioned rhetorically, obviously gearing up for one of his long winded and unedited monologues. "I know that the last couple of weeks you were just doing what you needed to do - I get that. But, I really liked having you around. Sleeping in my bed and stealing my favourite hoodie - although you didn't steal it because I let you have it." He let out a breath. "I just knew you'd feel less weird thinking you stole it than thinking that I let you have it or trying to give it to you -" He heaved another heavy breath and Alex took the opening to stop him from word vomiting even more.

"Stiles." She said his name gently, surprising both him and herself. She stood from the couch and planted herself a few feet in front of him as he watched her intently. "What, exactly, are you trying to say?"

"I'd really rather prefer it if you didn't sleep in Derek's bed." He rushed out like the words like they burned on the way out and looked anywhere but at her.

"Stiles . . ." Alex trailed off, not really know what to say but knowing that when she did figure it out, she needed to tread lightly.

"I know we're not together or anything - believe me, I get that. These past few weeks, I mean - I just -" He was stammering. "It really is your fault, you know?"

She smiled. He was cute.

He took that as encouragement to keep rambling. "You're beautiful, smart, a total badass. Of course I have fucking feelings for you." He steamrolled right past the admission that she knew would be coming but still found surprising. "Sleeping in my bed every night - It's your bed, Stiles." He mimicked her voice. "For fucks sake, just get in - I won't bite. YOUR FAULT!"

His arms had been waving around erratically as he spoke and she just watched in silent fascination until he wore himself out.

"You done?" She questioned with a Cheshire smile.

"I'm not sure." He answered honestly. "I think I just blacked out."

Alex stepped towards him, reaching out one of her steady hands to take one of his shaking ones. "I won't be sleeping in Derek Hale's bed." It was a promise. "And I will definitely miss yours."

His eyes widened at the minimal amount of empathy and honestly she'd shown him. He wanted more. He'd just bared his soul to her and he hadn't expected she'd be so kind. Now that she had, he wanted more.

"Wait-"

"Can we just leave it at that, for now?" She interrupted softly. It was almost pleading and Alex wondered just when in the world she'd ever been the kind of person who pleaded.

"For now." He nodded, slipping out of the front door with a smile that might very well have split his face in half if left there any longer.

Another promise.

Three Months Later

"You've gone soft since your dad stopped training you - you should've seen that one coming." Derek grunted before chuckling softly at Alex's expression and the blood dripping from her nose after his foot had collided with it.

"I've gone soft?" Alex questioned with a playful lilt to her voice as she eyed him up. He was shirtless, as usual, and sweat fell in rivets down the planes of his chest. "I remember a few more abs the last time we did this."

He dodged her right hook skillfully and caught the offending arm in a death grip.

Alex focused her mind, inhaling deeply before launching her body sideways - up and over his forearm which twisted awkwardly as he tried to keep hold of her. Alex smiled when she heard it snap. Derek howled as she pulled his arm forward, using it to leverage herself into a roundhouse kick that connected to his face. The impact broke his nose instantly and dislocated his shoulder in the process.

Derek fell to the ground, already healing when he he groaned, "That was impressive. A trifecta."

Alex breathed heavily, assessing the damage. "I didn't mean to dislocate the shoulder." She admitted, wiping sweat from her brow before it dripped into her eyes and stung them. "Good to know that move packs a punch."

"Yeah, several." Derek agreed, rolling over onto his back on the mats they'd set up in the open space on the kitchen floor. It was where they often sparred. "Now, can you help me up?" He extended his hand to her and she took it with a wry smile.

A smile that was gone in an instant when he pulled her down directly on top of him. She gasped when she felt his elongated teeth pressed against her pulse point. She could almost feel the smugness radiating off of the bastard.

"You never learn." He whispered, sending a shiver of exhilaration down her spine. She hoped he couldn't feel it.

"Neither do you." She answered back, putting pressure on the knife she'd had pressed against his groin the whole time.

There was a moment of tense silence before the unlikely pair began laughing, nearly hysterical. Alex rolled off of Derek and landed with a thump on her back against the mats.

There was an awkward clearing of a throat from the kitchen's threshold and they instantly stilled.

Derek, because any unannounced visitor was considered a threat to him.

Alex, because she was aware only a few people knew where Derek Hale lived and she hoped to God it wasn't who she already knew it was. The weird tension in her neck that prickled whenever he was near already alerted her to the fact that it was him.

In the commotion of sparring, neither Derek nor Alex noticed that Scott and Stiles had pulled open the door and walked right in.

"Sorry to interrupt." Scott announced, looking a little red in the face as he stared at the two sweaty people on the kitchen floor. Scott was flabbergasted - he'd never seen Derek Hale actually laugh.

Stiles said nothing. His arms were crossed over his chest and he averted his eyes like he'd rather be anywhere else but in Derek Hale's loft.

Alex hoisted herself up and Derek followed suit, grumbling under his breath about something only Scott would find audible due to his super human hearing abilities.

"Dumb? Dumber?" Derek addressed Scott and Stiles, "Ever heard of knocking?"

"Dude, you're a werewolf. You should have heard us coming, like, a mile away." Stiles declared without his usual level of manic excitement or charisma.

Alex watched him carefully as he kept his gaze firmly on either Scott or Derek. Never her.

They hadn't spoken to, or seen each other in a little under three months. Basically, the whole fucking summer. Alex grappled with the conflicting feelings of wanting to hug him and wanting to hit him. Stiles' eyes flickered over to her and he stared at the blood trickling down from her nose. Alex wiped at it self consciously and Stiles tore his gaze from her as soon as she did, knowing he'd been caught.

"What are you doing here?" Derek asked, "Besides giving Stilinski here a heart attack. I can hear it jackhammering against his ribcage."

Stiles flushed with the announcement but Scott wasn't fazed. He was here on a mission and his dark look the was unmistakably directed at Derek spoke volumes.

"What do you know about a new werewolf at the high school?" Scott demanded, his jaw clenched.