The walk of shame is a real thing. The walk of shame with a pack of werewolves is worse than anything in the entire world.

The werewolves of the pack knew instantly what the pair had been up to, even without noticing Stiles sudden change of clothes. The scrunching of noses and lewd jokes from Erica was a dead giveaway for the humans who couldn't smell Derek all over Stiles. Stiles blushed deeply as his werewolf proudly held his hand. He felt a smile cross his face when Boyd did a wolf whistle as Derek lead Stiles to one of the food stalls. Yep, he was never going to live down losing his virginity in the back of the mall. At least it wasn't in the back of a car.

The pack was crowded around one another in the food court. A few patrons got upset when tables were moved to accommodate the large group, but one look from Boyd and Derek made those people walk away. Stiles dug into his order of cheese fries, even as Erica commented, "I wonder what made Stiles so ravenous." Her eyes flashed at Derek. Was Derek actually blushing? Stiles nearly choked on his food. "Tut, tut, Stiles. Save the choking on objects for the bedroom."

Scott flung a piece of teriyaki chicken at the blonde. "EW! Knock it off, Erica. Some of us would like to eat here," he chastised. Erica laughed as she stole Boyd's chocolate milkshake and proceeded to deep throat it. Stiles smacked his forehead and refused to look at her. Surely, he was not required to listen to this right? He let out a loud laugh as Lydia began to educate Erica on proper techniques with a…straw. Stiles only half listened. Okay, he listened very intently as Derek's foot suddenly found his under the table.

Stiles glanced up at his boyfriend with a sly grin on his face. The look on Derek's face, the smirk, almost had Stiles wishing for more privacy right now.

He scanned the faces of the group and smiled at how casual everyone seemed. They were having fun. For the first time in a long time, the group was together for a relaxing day. Sure they were somewhat skipping school, but who could blame them? His eyes locked onto Isaac's for a moment. The werewolf's eyes were heartbreaking. Red rimmed and watery. Stiles had to look away. The happiness he felt a moment ago vanished. How could he feel so content when he was causing so much pain to his friend? His heart hurt for Isaac. What could he do?

Stiles grunted as he felt someone kick his shin. His eyes quickly darted to the suspect. Erica was glaring at him as she stirred Boyd's stolen milkshake.

"What?" Stiles whispered. Erica rolled her eyes and gestured her head towards Isaac. Stiles followed her gesture and caught the beta's eyes. The two stared at each other for a moment before Isaac stood and walked towards Hot Topic. Stiles breathed in a deep breath to steady himself before standing. He gave a small smile to Derek before following Isaac into the store.

Hot Topic used to be one of Stiles' favorite stores, until he found out about Spencer's. What can he say? He's a teenage boy with a healthy curiosity that Spencer's was uniquely able to help with. Heading to the back of the store, he easily found Isaac's head towering over a rack of Harry Potter merchandise. Dolores Umbridge silently judged him from the stand of figurines nearby. "Hey," he stated lamely.

Isaac bit his lower lip and glanced over at him. "Hey."

"I want to apologize."

"I'm sorry."

The two chuckled for a moment before looking seriously at one another. "I'll go first. I'm sorry you found out that way," Stiles muttered as his hand moved around the shirts. He silently judged anyone who would wear a Ravenclaw sweater that had a raven on the emblem. He shook his head as he turned more towards Isaac.

"It's not your fault. I reacted that way because you're one of my best friends," Isaac said, his eyes downcast.

"Excuse me?!"

"You are one of my friends too, Erica!" Isaac shot a smile towards the blonde at the entrance. She nodded triumphantly before pulling Boyd towards the more risqué corsets. Stiles smiled at her mischievous grin and Boyd's scandalized expression. Stiles focused back on Isaac.

"I care about you, Stiles. You hold us together. You're the reason why we are a pack now," Isaac said. Stiles did not understand what he meant. How could he be the one to hold the pack together? He's just a human with a bat. He isn't strong and is probably going to be a goner in a few months.

"Stiles, I don't want you to fight it."

"What?" Stiles shook his head in confusion. The werewolf pulled Stiles towards the corner of the store. His eyes glanced around the store to make sure no one was listening before he continued.

"I don't want you to fight whatever this is. You're not going to win. I think you should let Scott bite you," Isaac whispered seriously. His desperation apparent as he let out a whine. "If you let him bite you, you could be like me. And I wouldn't have to lose anyone else ever again." Isaac leaned over and touched his forehead to Stiles'. "You're like my brother. Like Camden." He embraced Stiles tightly. Stiles winced as Isaac touched his healing tattoo but hugged him back. Stiles felt something wet touch his shoulder. Isaac's tears.

"Please, Stiles?" the werewolf whimpered. "Please, for me?"

The werewolf quietly sobbed into his shoulder while Stiles took a few moments to process what Isaac said. He rubbed Isaac's back in little circles as he thought about getting the bite from Scott or Derek. Yes, he could take the bite and maybe become a werewolf. But what if he turned into a kanima like Jackson or worse? What if he died? He just couldn't do it. The few precious moments he shared with Derek in the little office meant the world to him. Holding Derek's hand and seeing his smile (especially with the bunny teeth) lifted his heart. He loved when Derek kissed him or nuzzled his beard against Stiles' cheek. He felt safe and protected in his werewolf's arms. Would it feel the same way if he were a werewolf?

Cold realization washed over Stiles. What if the bite didn't work? Panic rose quickly in Stiles' chest. Derek's first girlfriend died because of the werewolf bite. Derek had to put her out of her misery. As a teen, he had to hurt the one he loved the most. Could he do that to Derek too? His eyes watered as he flashed back to the nightmare from the jeep. Could he watch the sadness and pain in Derek's eyes if the bite didn't take? Would Derek recover from it a second time? He knew it would destroy Derek. He felt a tear slide down his cheek. He wanted to give Derek the world, not take it away.

But if he did take the bite, he would never have cancer again. But at what cost? Have no control over himself during the full moon? Hurt innocent people? Wolfsbane as his weakness? No, Stiles wasn't the type of person to be the superhero. He loved Batman because he was human and still made a difference in Gotham City. Batman had a ton of money to help him, but he was a true hero. He was human. And Stiles wanted to be human, even for only a few more months or weeks. No. He won't take the bite, even if the cancer took his life.

With a calm and confident voice, Stiles lifted his head and stated when he met Isaac's eyes, "I don't want to be a werewolf. I want to be human. I want to be me, no matter how long that will be." He gently wiped away Isaac's tears. "I know the werewolf bite would mean a cure, but it's not for me."

"But I love you," Isaac said softly.