This is a female Stiles story so if you don't like, I suggest you turn tail
In a small diner sitting in a booth, Scott McCall does a spit take of his soda while beside him, Lydia Martin nearly chokes on the croissant she had been eating for breakfast. Across from them, Stiles Stilinski occupies the other half, watching them recover from their reaction to the news, she has shared with them.
Lydia clears her throat, recovering first, "I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you clearly." She places a finger on the table, "You think you want to what now?"
"I'm thinking about becoming a surrogate," Stiles repeats slowly.
Lydia stares at her wide-eyed before changing her glance over to Scott, who is looking anywhere but at Stiles right now as he cleans up his mess. She lowers the croissant in her other hand, onto the plate, pushing it a few inches across the table, "You invited us out for breakfast to announce that you are considering being a surrogate?"
Stiles wriggles uncomfortably in her spot, "Yeah, in retrospect that might have been a bit of a distasteful choice."
Lydia takes a sip of her juice, the expression on her face tells Stiles she is trying to process her announcement.
Scott, on the other hand, finally gives a response in a mild tone, "What the hell are you thinking, Stiles?"
"What do you mean?" Stiles questions, trying to sound casual.
"What do I mean?" He repeats back her, getting louder with each word. "What do I mean? I mean what the fuck are you thinking?" He takes a second to compose himself when he realizes that they're getting attention from other customers. He leans forward across the table, dropping his voice to whisper, "You're just going to go bear some stranger's spawn?"
"The couple has extensively been screened and provided ample information to all of the applicants." Stiles tells him easily, "There are tons of contracts involved and everything. It's not as shady as you're making it out to be."
"I'm not making it out to be shady. I'm making it out to be weird as hell," Scott counters back. "What good reason could you possibly have to do that?"
"Beacon," She replies simply.
"What?" Lydia questions with horror and anger falling out of her voice. "What do you mean?"
"Beacon," Stiles repeats, looking between them steadily. "The payments aren't up to date and if I don't catch them up soon, they'll stop the restoration."
Scott's expression relaxes at the shared news, "When did you find this out?"
Stiles really wishes Scott hadn't asked that question, but answers anyway, "Right after finding out Dad's ailment." She tries to offer a smile but could manage a weak tremble from her bottom lip. "I thought that everything was fine, you know?" Tears began to swell in her eyes, "I thought that he was still taking care of the restoration, even before he had gotten sick, and making sure that everything was fine. I assumed that he was doing everything that he promised mom that he was going to do."
"What happened?" Lydia questions her softly.
"It's really my fault," Stiles answers as a tear rolls down her cheek. "It really is. I shouldn't have left him to handle everything as I did."
Scott offers her a napkin, "Stiles, we were just children..."
Stiles nods, wiping her eyes, "But I shouldn't have done it." She sniffs, "It is my responsibility, not his. I don't know why I didn't think about it sooner. When I met the contractor, he told me that the payments were behind. I was able to scrounge up enough to pay a couple of months of work." She shakes her head, "We knew that this was going to a process, but-"
"Stiles," Lydia says, placing a gentle hand over Stiles's fist.
And God, the gesture makes Stiles want to cry even more, "I know."
"Then why are you so concerned about rebuilding?" She questions her. "The attack on Beacon Academy occurred a decade ago. Your mom didn't sacrifice herself for you to run yourself into the ground trying to restore it," She says tenderly. "She saved us all so we could start a new life. Don't you think she would want to you let it go? Especially now with what's going on with your father?"
Stiles swings her head, "No," She answers, struggling to regain control over her voice. "No, I can't. That place is all I have left of her. That's all I have left of her legacy."
"I wish that you would have told us this," Scott speaks. "We could have supported you. I don't make a ton, but between us, I'm sure we would have been able to get together enough that you wouldn't have to rent out your womb."
Stiles sniffs, grinning at him, "I know, and I love you both for that. I know that you would have helped me, but that's why I didn't tell you." She takes their hand in hers, "I need to be able to do this for myself. I owe it to her and the Community."
"You don't have to go through this alone," Lydia tells her. "You have us. We love you and we want to be here for you."
"You know my family has operated in the shadows for the otherworldly residents of Beacon Hills for centuries," Stiles reminds her. "I can't ask you two to stop your lives just to help me out with this."
"So, you're not pregnant yet?" Scott questions her.
Stiles breaks into a broken laugh, "Do I smell pregnant to you?"
"Well, you've never had a scent," Scott defends himself. "And you sound so convinced, I thought that maybe you got all swept up in it and just went ahead with it."
"I still have to go through interviews and briefings and meet with the couple and go to the doctor." Stiles explains, "There's a lot that has to happen before they even choose me if they're going to accept me."
"You're really going to go through this aren't you?" Lydia questions, sounding quite worried now rather than angry.
"I am," Stiles reassures them. She gives them an assuring smile, "I'll be fine. I promise."
Scott gives an intrigued expression, "So who's the couple?"
Stiles hadn't planned on sharing the answer just yet and opens her mouth to lie when a notification dings on her phone, reminding her of an upcoming appointment, "Oh shoot," She claims with a sense of relief, "I'm gonna be late." She tosses a couple of bills on the table while scooting out the booth, before Scott or Lydia had a chance of repeating the question, "Gotta go!"
Stiles hurries her way through the parking lot, thankful for the save. If she had shared what family she plans to be a surrogate for Scott and Lydia would've reacted more than just doing a spit-take and choking. They probably would've hauled her off to Eichen House, now a proper medical establishment, to get a psych evaluation.
Derek Hale and his long-time girlfriend Kate Argent sit in a conference room as they watch interviews being constructed in the office next door in search of their surrogate. None of the applicants are aware that they were being monitored by the Alpha of Beacon Hills himself and he wanted to keep it that. Choosing an applicant to carry their child was the most important decision that he and Kate would ever make, and they needed to make the right decision, especially if it was for the greater good for the Beacon Hills otherworldly population.
It has been a decade since the fires of Beacon Academy and the Hale House. It is originally believed that the fires were caused by an electrical malfunction, but there was always the suspicion of arson. By whom, no one knew, but Derek has a feeling. He always had a feeling and it stays in the back of his mind every day.
Which is why Derek feels that he is required to know everything that he can about the one who would deliver hope back to Beacon Hills, and it wasn't something that he could accomplish with just reading whatever Boyd had written about them. He trusts Boyd to handle the first stage of the screening process, which is mainly him going over medical examination and information sheets with them, but Derek wants to observe them as well so he can assess their character and personalities.
Kate wasn't too interested in the idea. She wanted to send the applicants to a doctor to weed out who was and wasn't healthy enough and then hold interviews and choose the most qualified candidate from there, but in the end, she did give into Derek's concept.
They watch as a woman wearing a large gray sweatshirt with a large mahogany S printed on it and fitting black sweatpants enter the office. Derek is immediately fascinated by her while Kate is the exact opposite.
"She looked like she rolled out of bed," Kate comments next to him, clearly not dazzled. She is already standing up while slipping her arm into the sleeve of her jacket.
Boyd apparently has the same thought, "You look comfortable," He tells the newcomer. There isn't a hint of malice in his tone, but the way the newcomer reacts is the exact opposite of how Derek had seen others react.
"I am comfortable thanks for asking," She says unashamedly with a teasing smile on her face. "How are you doing, Vernon?"
Derek watches as Boyd remains unaffected by being called by his first name. He despised it just as much as Derek despised being called "Derry" by Kate when she is angry.
Boyd takes a seat at the wooden desk with a leather chair in front of it, "You're five minutes late," Boyd counters, this time with mild impatience.
"I'll do better next time," She quips, taking a seat in the leather chair.
Derek swears he sees a twitch of a smile on Boyd's face.
"Don't waste your time," Kate says in a patronizing tone. A tone that she used whenever she felt like he was doing something wrong or something that didn't make sense.
Derek hates that tone, it made him feel like she was basically saying that whatever he planned on doing was either going to backfire on him or make him regret it. It has become more apparent in the months since they started discussing about having a baby.
Derek draws in a breath, reminding himself for what felt like the hundredth time that day that this was the woman he is supposed to be sharing his life with, and smiles at her, "I actually want to see this."
"Why?"
"I'm not sure."
That is only half true. He is impressed that the applicant had somehow managed to get under Boyd's skin in a short amount of time, which wasn't an easy feat to do and has only been accomplished by Kate from time to time. There is something else about her that seems to captivate not just him, but something deep inside him.
"Why do you want to be the surrogate?" Boyd questions her.
Derek watches as the applicant isn't taken back by the basic question. Her behavior shifts from taunting to seriousness in a drop of a hat.
"My father is sick and there are things that I need to have taken care of," She answers confidently.
"So, it is a financial motive?"
Again, the applicant isn't at all taken back by the question, just as others had been. She remains unfazed and she keeps her eyes on Boyd, unflinching, not intimidated by him.
"Absolutely," She claims. "This is a business transaction, anyone who states otherwise really hadn't thought the whole situation through."
That line sold Derek. He wanted her to be the one. He watches Boyd give her a brief look over, "Give me a moment."
He gets up from the desk and walks through a door behind him, which leads into the conference room where Derek and Kate have been watching.
"She seems to know you," Derek comments, remembering how the applicant called Boyd by his first name.
"We went to school with her," Boyd says plainly.
"She attended Beacon?" Derek questions in astonishment.
"She mainly kept to herself," Boyd tells him nonchalantly. "Only with friends with a few people."
"Her attending Beacon is a bonus. Not having to have the "Werewolves and otherworldly creatures are real" talk is an extra bonus. Starting with no secrets is the best way to begin this relationship we're going to be in together," Derek decides.
"Relationship?" Kate questions with revulsion. "What do you mean by that?"
"She is going to be carrying our child, the Hope of Beacon Hills, don't see how it's possible to not develop one," Derek tells her, focusing back on the screen, "What's her name?"
"Stiles," Boyd answers.
Kate snorts crossing her arms, "What the hell is a Stiles?"
In the office next door Stiles is still sitting in the chair where Boyd has left her, staring at the chair that he had vacated almost as though there is still someone there. She didn't move for several seconds, and then suddenly flung herself forward, her head dropping down between her knees and her arms dangling down by her sides, so her hands graze the floor. Once in this position, she lets out a long breath.
"Invite her back," Derek settles.
Kate stares at him, dropping her arms to her side, "Are you serious?"
"Very," Derek declares. "Invite her back for another interview tomorrow."
Derek turns off the image of Stiles still and stands up.
"You aren't going to stay to watch the others?" Kate questions him.
"Nope," He answers simply.
Stiles sits alone in her father's empty hospital room in the ICU, listening to the sounds filtering in from the hallway beyond. The unchanged beep of heart monitors, the endless inflation and deflation of automated blood pressure cuffs, the distant sobs of a person who'd lost someone dear.
That will be her in the near future.
Her father is still alive, for the moment, but given the rapid progression of his ailment, he would not be much longer. he'd already lasted well beyond his initial prognosis and that was really just thanks to the power her mother gave to him before she died.
But now Stiles has at last, come to terms with the fact that her father would never get better. Not even the Bite can cure him, not that he would want it in the first place. This was it. The end of the line.
She sighs, staring up at the ceiling.
She wonders why it had taken so long for her to accept reality. And the only reason she can think of was that she loves her father. It had been just the two of them since her mother died and he always made sure to her remind her that she still had him.
"You still got me," He would say, but now it won't be long before she wouldn't.
She blinks away undesired tears, going back to watching over him. She takes one of his hands in hers, "It's okay," She whispers. "I'll take care of everything, don't you worry about a thing," She promises thinking about the second interview request she had gotten.
Derek watches Kate as she takes a sip of her black coffee as if she never had black coffee a day in her life. He wonders if it was almost as black as her soul. The thought comes to a shock for him, and he berates himself for it. Just because Kate is the daughter of renowned werewolf hunter Gerard Argent, didn't mean she was anything like her father, whom Derek suspected had caused the fires.
There had been suspicions that Kate even playing a part in the tragic events, but Kate insisted that she had no idea what her father had been up to. Making a point to say that her father would certainly kill his own daughter just at the expense of killing shapeshifters and otherworldly creatures. Needlessly to say, Kate broke from away her family years ago.
He focuses back to his menu, "What's looking good to you this afternoon?"
"I know what looked good to you," She retorts.
Derek looks up from the menu, narrowing his eyes at her, "What is that supposed to mean?"
"I saw the way that you were staring at her," She answers, her icy eyes scowling at him from across the table.
"I wasn't staring at her in any way," Derek states in a simple tone. At least, he thought he wasn't.
Kate laughs bitterly, "I know that expression." She gives him a raised eyebrow, "Remember, I used to be the one who was on the receiving end of those expressions."
Derek had always been faithful to Kate. Even when she was under investigation for her father's actions, he stayed by her side despite what everyone else told him. Even when the Community had been against their relationship.
Derek reaches across the table, taking her hand, pulling it close enough for him to lean over and kiss it. He is almost surprised that she doesn't pull her hand away, "I wasn't staring at her in any other way than as the possible carrier of our child." He shares, "That's it. Just a few more interviews and meetings and with any luck in a month or two we will have a baby on the way."
"Are you sure this is what you want to do?" She questions him, "I mean, really sure?"
Derek is confused, "What do you mean?"
Kate reaches across the table with her other hand, taking Derek's in both of hers, "You've heard the talks about Gerard," Kate tells him. "I just want to make sure that you are completely sure that you want to go through with this. It's a really big, and possibly dangerous, decision."
"I know that, but so far they have proven just to be rumors," Derek reminds her. "I know this situation isn't ideal since we found out you couldn't have children, I know that was hard for you, but we talked about this."
"I know," Kate replies, squeezing his hands comfortingly. "I'm just having more trouble with this than I thought that I would."
"I'm with you every step of the way," Derek assures her. "We're in this together."
"All right," Kate agrees, looking slightly happier now.
"All right."
Derek picks up the menu and starts reading the specials, but he can't stop thinking about what Kate had said about him looking at Stiles. There was no way he could've been looking at her the way Kate claimed he had. He didn't believe he could look at Stiles the same way he would look at Kate. They were just too different.
Like orange and blue.
That following morning, Stiles has managed to dodge Scott and Lydia's inquiry of the couple she plans to be a surrogate for. She knows she is going to have to tell them at some point, but for now, she just wanted to get through the process. She was genuinely surprised that Boyd hadn't told Scott about the interview, considering they have been on the same rec league for lacrosse for years now. It just confirmed how severe and delicate the situation was for everyone.
She forgoes the comfort of sweats and dresses in a pencil skirt and a black sweater, which was about as fancy as she can get without feeling like she was out of her skin.
She returns to the Hale House, pasting on as big and bright a smile as she can muster when she sees Boyd, "Boyd!" She addresses, using his preferred name. "So lovely to see you this morning."
"Stiles," He says in way of super-abbreviated greeting. He notices her shivering, "Are you nervous?"
Stiles hears the underlined teasing, "No, it's cold out there." She gives him a knowing glance, "Not all of us can run hot naturally. Am I late again today?"
He glances down at his watch. Which she isn't surprised about, "Three minutes," He answers dryly.
"So close."
"This way," He directs her, starting them on a path through the foyer, passing a pair of glass doors, and into a waiting room.
Stiles notes that the group was smaller than the one from yesterday. She settles into a seat and they went through the same basic process as before, which consisted of filling questionnaires that now had more invasive questions. A nurse, just like last time, comes in and takes their vitals, but unlike being ushered into the office where she had her first interview, she is sent back to the waiting room.
Upon returning she notices that numbers have dwindled down even more. She tries not to think about it.
Nearly half an hour had passed before, Boyd peers into the waiting room, scanning the remaining applicants. He calls a name and an applicant across from Stiles nearly jumps out of their seat and scurries over to him. The same method is repeated for another hour, with each of the applicants returning and leaving before the next is called back.
Stiles didn't start worrying until everyone had left and she was the last one. This time she did start wondering if someone else had already been chosen and they decided that there wasn't any real point in even talking to her. That had to be it, right? Someone who had been in the same room as she had somehow caught the attention of the Alpha and Kate and was going to be carrying his baby for them.
She needs to get out of this room before her own thoughts drive her crazy. She is just about to call it quits when the door opens and Boyd pokes his face out, "You can come with me."
"Saved the best for last, did you, Boyd?" Stiles questions with sass, stepping past him.
She knew that while he couldn't smell her false confidence, he could hear the nervousness of her pounding heart. He at least had the decency of not calling her out on it. He leads them toward the office where they had their interview the day before. She readies herself to meet the Alpha and Kate who would potentially change everything, just like she would.
Boyd opens the door, Stiles takes a deep breath, and steps inside only to see that there isn't a couple waiting for her at the desk. But someone else she hadn't anticipated.
"Erica?" Stiles questions confused. Though when she really thought about it, she shouldn't have been surprised that she is being seen by another pack member.
Erica looks up from the papers she has been reviewing, "Stiles," Erica says with a wicked grin of her own. "Please, come sit."
Boyd closes the door behind him without saying anything. At least, it made sense as to why that one applicant had been crying as they left earlier. Stiles crosses the room, taking a seat in the same chair. While Boyd was the most relaxed one out of the couple, Erica was the opposite.
"How you been?" Stiles questions, not really knowing what else she could say to ease the stuffy feeling in the office.
"Pretty good, you?" Erica answers, not taking her eyes off Stiles.
"Surviving," Stiles answers plainly. "I thought I was meeting with the Alpha and Kate." She is hoping that the she-wolf will ease up on the stare down that she is giving, but Erica doesn't relent.
Erica shakes her head, "No, I'll be interviewing you today." She flutters through papers before finally breaking eye contact. Stiles takes a breath of relief, going into a staredown with Erica was hard, "As I'm sure you know by now, this is a pack operated manner and I recently have been granted permission to specializing in surrogacy law."
"Congratulations," Stiles says honestly.
"Thanks," Erica responds. "As you know, my client is a prominent figure and does not want others, to know about the surrogacy plans until he is prepared to release such information. To protect his privacy and the privacy of his girlfriend, he has asked that I handle this stage of the interview process and provide legal information and details to those who have been shortlisted."
"Girlfriend?" Stiles questions slightly surprised by the word.
Erica looks up from her papers, "Yes," She answers in full-business mode. "My client is not yet married. Do you have some sort of moral objection to that?"
"No," Stiles answers, trying to keep the conversation on a professional level. "No moral objection. I'm just surprised."
Surprised that's it been ten years and they still hadn't got hitched that is. Not that Stiles is judging because she knew marriage wasn't for everyone, she was just surprised considering everything that Derek and Kate had gone through...
Erica doesn't bat an eye, "My client has extremely high pressure, tightly scheduled business and personal life. He must decide for any and all pursuits in his life, including his desire to have a child, according to the time that he has available." Erica continues watching Stiles, "Recent events have made it possible for him to begin this process. But I assure you, he has every intention of marrying his longtime partner."
Derek knew that Erica was going to pick on Stiles. He knew the moment he saw that mischievous smirk on her face when Boyd told her who they had left and her comment, "This will be fun."
While Derek didn't support his pack members displaying their dominance over others, especially none shapeshifters, Derek needed to see just how Stiles would handle Erica's uptight attitude that she reserved only for business. But he is more fascinated with Stiles being able to hold down on her own.
However, Erica's phrase "longtime partner" remains stuck in his head while Erica goes over all of the legal details about the arrangement.
Derek hadn't really considered Kate to be his partner. Girlfriend, yes. Partners felt like a whole different, meaning altogether. Even the way Erica had said it made it sound like it had a different meaning. He heard the disdain in her voice when she responded to the marriage comment. Yeah, he was very aware that his packmates didn't like Kate.
He thought about the other applicants and how they handled Erica's business personality. They all seemed enthusiastic when they first come in, taking a moment to process that it wasn't the couple they thought they were going to meet waiting for them in the office, and then listened as Erica started outlining the expectations and responsibilities of the arrangement, the fees and financial support being offered, the guidelines that were made, and the legal protections being put into place to guard both sides.
Most handled it well, but a few minutes, right to where Erica started talking about medical expectations and lifestyle guidelines, the smiles on their faces started getting a little plastic, their eyes became glassy, and the noises that they were making no longer coordinated with anything in particular that Erica was saying. Erica, at one point, made one cry and the other three made it through and tried to ask questions about all of the information with varying degrees of understanding and sense.
Stiles, once again, had surprised him. She didn't wear comfortable clothing as she had done yesterday. Her appearance had completely taken a 180. Almost as if she were a completely different person. Derek, for a second, honestly thought that she was. She looked beautiful when he first saw her, but even now she more stunning. "Get you a girl who can do both," Laura used to say.
He watches Stiles listen to the explanation all the way, while not being intimidated or overwhelmed by Erica or the flow of information. He wonders just how many people she knew in his pack and why is it that they've never met.
She remains unfazed by anything Erica has said to her. But didn't seem cold or distant. She is very much in the present and involving herself in the conversation whenever she had a question.
"What do you think of her now?" Derek questions Kate.
Kate sits beside him, clearly bored out her mind as she picks at a nail rather than paying attention to what was going on at the screen. She at least gives a cursory glance before shrugging, "She's okay," She said.
"You do realize that's she is the same person who you claimed looked like she rolled out of bed, yesterday," Derek points out to her. "The same one who you thought I was showing more than enough interest."
Kate makes a face at him and Derek is struck, just like yesterday and many other times in their relationship, by how much Kate gave off the vibe of having a more superior attitude just like her father. He really did hate that he could compare her in that way. He wanted to feel what he could feel between Erica and Boyd and other couples. He wanted to look at her the way, Boyd looked at Erica.
He thinks about the times that he met other Alphas and their mates, along with other couples. He would see them holding hands, walking with their arms around each other's waists, and leaning in to whisper to one another, smiling and giggling at what each other said.
Kate and he weren't like that.
He knew they looked great together, but there was no warmth between them. They didn't seem to fall into their own world the way others did. Derek knew he shouldn't compare their relationship to others, but he longed for that kind of connection, the spark of passion and tenderness. Sure, after the loss of his entire family, there had been those feelings, but with time those seemed to have faded.
Erica and Boyd have been together just about as long as Derek and Kate, but it seemed that they were still riding the high of being in love.
And if he were completely honest, this wasn't the first time he has felt this way.
Erica had given Stiles permission to share the news with a limited amount of people if they were willing to sign consent forms. Which is understandable considering the sensitivity of the process. Of course, Stiles planned on telling her father, whenever he woke up, but there was no way she could not tell Lydia or Scott.
Which is why she thought a more appreciate time to share the news with them would be during their traditional Friday Night Flicks, while they were watching The Notebook, Lydia's favorite movie, as they had soda and popcorn.
This time it was Lydia who does a spit-take and Scott nearly choking on popcorn when Stiles shares the news just as a young Allie and Noah rekindle their relationship in the movie.
"Can you not wait till we don't have anything in our mouths," Lydia questions her, pausing the movie and gets up to get a towel to clean up her mess. Stiles pats Scott on his back as he continues having his fit. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you were trying to kill us."
"I'm not trying to kill you," Stiles counters as Scott finishes his fit.
"You're seriously going to the surrogate for Derek Hale?" Scott questions. "Hasn't your family done enough for his. Sacrificed more than his?"
"Scott, that's not fair," Stiles tells him.
"I'm just saying," Scott claims, holding his hands in defense. "You and your dad have done and sacrificed a lot not just for his family, but the Community as well."
"It's not like I'm not getting anything in return," Stiles explains as Lydia returns to wipe up her spit-filled soda from the floor. "The money I receive will be going to the reconstruction of Beacon and towards his medical bills." Scott gives her a worried expression, "Look at it this way, there's a chance that the baby will inherit the power of the Nemeton. What better way to be the Hope of Beacon Hills than being the descendant of the Legendary Hale Family with the power of the Nemeton?"
"That sounds like a lot of pressure to put on a baby," Scott comments.
Stiles huffs her nose at him, looking to Lydia for help, "Help me out here."
Lydia tilts her head to the side, clicking her tongue, "I have to agree with Scott on this," She tells her. "There is a low probability of it inheriting the Nemetonic abilities, especially since the lycanthropic gene is more dominant."
"But there's still a chance," Stiles points out with a pointed finger. She notices Scott and Lydia's discouraging expressions, "I thought you guys supported me on this."
"We are," Scott tells her. "And considering the reason behind all of this, do you realize just how dangerous, if not how crazy, that is?"
Stiles closes her eyes taking a breath, "I do, which is why this has been kept on the down-low."
"A threat that has been creeping it way back into our town for the past year," Lydia remarks. "Gerard has been gaining allies within that time span."
"And so far, nothing has happened yet," Stiles counters back.
"Only because your father is still alive," She makes a point to say. "God knows what will happen once-" She stops when she realizes how far she had gone and the broken expression on Stiles, "You know, I'm not saying this to hurt you."
"I know," Stiles assures her. "But if I have a chance of doing something that can help us survive, I'm going to do it."
A silence falls between the trio, "You know," Scott says, after a while. "You can always get a third opinion."
Stiles grunts at the suggestion, "We all know exactly what he would say and even then, he'll be as cryptic as possible." She shakes her head slightly, "No, this is something that needs to be done without cryptic influences."
"I guess it's better than jumping in this situation blindly," Lydia gets back up to return the rag to the kitchen. "When are you meeting them?" She questions while rinsing off the rag.
"Tomorrow."
"They aren't waiting around, are they?"
"Neither will Gerard," Stiles comments knowingly.
"Not late today," Stiles announces to Boyd as she walks into the foyer, the following morning.
Boyd decides to humor her by checking his water, "One minute."
"Dammit." Stiles mutters, "I'll get better. Promise."
He gives her something that could pass for a smile, "This way," He directs, leading the way. "They're waiting for you."
"Already?" Stiles questions impressed.
"Their time is very important," Boyd explains. "They don't have the benefit of just waiting around for people."
"And yet, here we are, me a minute late." Stiles quips, walking through the waiting room towards the door, "I must be pretty exceptional."
Stiles's confidence slowly fades and is replaced with the nervousness she experienced on the drive to Beacon Hills as she gets closer to the closed door. She stops but doesn't bother reaching for the door handle. Beside her, Boyd doesn't move to open the door either.
"It helps if you turn it," He informs her.
Stiles turns her head, giving him a slightly amused grin, "Have you finally turned into a joker after all these years?"
Boyd just gives her a minor glare, before opening the door. Stiles steps inside the office, coming face to face with another former schoolmate that causes her heart to flutter slightly. God, she hoped he didn't pick up on her heart racing.
"You must be Stiles," Derek greets her, standing up and reaching a hand across the desk toward her. "I'm-"
"I know who you are," She tells him, unknowingly interrupting him as she shakes his hand. She tries to ignore the warm sensation she feels when her and his hands connect as she looks for a missing Kate.
As if he read her mind, "Kate will be joining us later, hopefully," He tells her, sitting down and motioning toward the chair across from him. "She had a few other appointments this morning."
Stiles wasn't sure what other appointments could possibly be keeping her, considering that Stiles hadn't seen any other applicants in the waiting room. But she decides it was best not to tempt fate and keeps her mouth shut.
"I'm sorry about the bait-and-switch situation yesterday. This is a really important decision for me." Derek explains, his voice is soft and light. "For us. And I want to make sure I make the right one."
Stiles nods, "Regarding the situation, I totally understand." She tells him honestly, looking into his green eyes, "Is there anything else that you want to know?"
She wants to know how she can stop herself from staring at him. Let alone be attracted to him. He had grown up in the right places since they were in high school.
Derek looks over the papers on his desk, flipping through them, his eyes scanning over them in the quickly flickering moves of speed reading, the same way Stiles did when she was researching on how to rebuild Beacon Academy.
"There are just a couple of questions that I want to ask you."
"Go ahead," She encourages him. "Anything you want to know. I'm an open book."
He gives her a light smile, "I have been told that you attended Beacon Academy, but for some reason, I don't recall ever meeting you."
Derek can't shake the ghost touch of Stiles's hand. He finds it strange and even more strange that he can't get a scent off her and he wanted to ask what exactly she was but didn't want to make her more nervous than she already was.
"I was two grades below you," Stiles explains, not missing a beat. "Different social circles and all that." She gives a casual wave of her hand, "But I'm sure you heard about the paper Coach had to read that had nothing to do with economics."
Derek remembers that whispers all too clearly. Apparently, it had been very researched and detailed.
"That was you?" Derek questions with quite impressed.
"That was me," She agrees, giving him an embarrassed smile.
An embarrassed cute smile.
You shouldn't be thinking like that, Derek. Stay focused.
"When is a door not a door?" He randomly questions.
"When it's ajar."
"What falls but never breaks and what breaks but never falls."
"Nightfalls and Daybreaks."
Impressive. Derek sits himself up, "As you know I am a werewolf and you know what abilities I possess," Stiles nods her head. "So, I have to ask…" Why can't I get your scent, he wants to know. But chooses to question, "Is Stiles your real name?"
Stiles has a bit a pride on her face, "It's both a nickname and family name." She seems rather proud at the fact, "My real name is too difficult for most people to pronounce, so I just stuck with Stiles, making it easier for everyone else." Derek doesn't respond for a second, taking in her words very carefully. "Even I had a hard time pronouncing it when I was younger."
"How far did you get?"
Stiles is silent at the question, for a moment, "The best I could do was Mischief."
From what he had seen with her interactions with Erica and Boyd and the memory of frustrating of Coach's rant about her paper, Derek couldn't help but laugh at the thought because honestly it was fitting.
"What is going on here?"
The sound of Kate's cool voice stops him from laughing, and Derek turns in the direction of the door that was behind the desk, "Oh, you made it. This is Stiles," He introduces her, "I was just asking her a few questions."
"I can't imagine what would result an answer like that."
Even though he knew that Kate didn't take a liking to Stiles, it didn't change the fact that he still felt that Stiles was the one.
"I thought that you were going to ask her things that pertain to the arrangement," She question, not even trying to enter the room. Derek knows she is ready to run away the moment she can.
He walks to the door, taking her hands, kissing both as they stand by the door. Surprisingly once again, she didn't pull away.
"I am," Derek assures her, turning himself so Stiles and Kate can see each other. "Don't you want to know that the woman we choose to carry our baby can think quickly and has a creative mind?"
"I'm not sure that her creativity has anything to do with her ability to get pregnant and deliver a child," Kate says offhandedly.
From the corner of his eye, Derek swears he sees Stiles' eyes flicker a white glow before she focuses on something on the floor, but despite her silence, Derek hears a vibration of a hum coming from her.
Stiles didn't like Kate either.
"I think it does," Derek says, trying to diffuse the situation. "It means that she will be adaptable to whatever situations might occur."
"So, I suppose that you're settled on her?" Kate questions him, ignoring Stiles all together.
"She is the one."
Derek know Kate is mad at him by the way she stares at him. Especially since she knew that he knew that she didn't like Stiles in the first place and it was obvious just in the way that she looked at her.
Thankfully, Kate decides to play nice as she offers a smile and walks towards the desk where Stiles is sitting.
"It's wonderful to meet you, Stiles," She tells her. She reaches a hand toward Stiles, who stares at her for a few unsure seconds and then takes her hand cautiously.
Kate pulls her to her feet, wrapping Stiles into a hug that was so out of character for her that Derek almost wants to pinch himself to make sure he isn't dreaming.
"Thank you so much for being willing to do this," Kate practically gushes. "You are an angel for making a dream come true not just for me and for my Derry, but for Beacon Hills."
Yep. Kate was pissed.