Laura had said that she wasn't blaming him but Derek found that hard to believe. He hadn't detected a lie in her words but he'd been living with his guilt for too long to just take her word for that.
Stiles made them tea and after another stern look at Laura, they left to inform their dad about Kate. At some point, John would want to talk to Derek directly and he was not looking forward to that but for now, it was just him and Laura.
"We're alone." Derek let the warmth of the hot mug seep into his palms. He felt cold inside. "You can tell the truth now."
Laura mirrored his position, rolling her mug between her palms. Derek tried to read her but her scent was just a cloud of mixed feelings and her face was closed off.
"I didn't lie," she said after a long moment. "I don't blame you. I blame her. But Derek, you slept with a hunter. She used your pillow talk to …" She couldn't finish the sentence. "I need some time to process that." She sniffed and nodded to herself.
It kind of sounded as if she was blaming him, at least partly, but that was only fair. He should have been more careful. He shouldn't have trusted that easily.
"Are you …" Derek had to clear his throat. "Are you still my alpha?"
"Of course I am." She hurried to set the mug on the table to have her hands free to reach for him. "Derek, you're all I have left. We're family, we're pack. You're my beta, we belong together."
Derek hadn't known how much he'd needed to hear this. Suddenly he could breathe again.
"Derek." She ran an assuring hand down his back. "Did you think I would kick you out?"
"You have every right to kick me out," he reminded her. "My actions caused the death of our whole family."
"You are not responsible for what that bitch did," Laura said sharply. "Okay, finish your tea and then put on your fur. We're done talking."
Derek raised an eyebrow at her but did as he was told. He finished his tea and then he stripped. She did the same and a second later they were both on four paws. With a tilt of her head, she told him to follow her into her bedroom. Derek felt too restless for this, he would rather run than take a nap but he jumped on the bed with her and a second later she was lying half on top of him, her nose in his neck. It kind of reminded him of his first night in Stiles' bed. He'd used his body weight to calm them down as well.
Accepting that he wouldn't go anywhere any time soon, Derek let out a huff and settled more into the mattress. In this form, it was easier to not think. He took in the scent of his alpha and he let the closeness reassure him that he still had this. They were still pack.
They stayed like this for hours. They both dozed off for a while but even awake they stayed in their fur. Derek kind of lost track of time but he rose when he heard his phone buzzing with a new message.
Stiles was his first thought, who else would text him, but it still took him long minutes before he found the energy to switch to a form with opposable thumbs.
Stiles was wishing him a good night but Derek got that they were checking in with him to make sure that he was okay. Derek wrote a good night in return and added a see you tomorrow. He wasn't in the mood for long explanations but he counted on Stiles to read between the lines.
"We kind of fucked up our sleep schedule," Laura spoke up behind him. Like him, she was still naked, not that either of them was bothered by that.
"Fits the rest." Derek put the phone down. "What is not fucked up right now?"
Laura stepped closer to place a hand in his neck, drawing him close until their foreheads touched. She didn't say anything but she didn't have to, the gesture was enough. They had stayed hours as wolves, they were still thinking mostly non-verbal.
"How about a movie?" She asked. "Just you and me, a bowl of popcorn and a beer?"
"Nothing with werewolves and or flamingos."
"Do I even want to ask?"
"Kind of did the same thing with Stiles yesterday." The only difference was that he'd put on the fur after the movie and not before.
"Great minds think alike." She smiled at him and then she sent him off to get dressed for a movie night. Five minutes later they were both back in the living room, dressed in soft sweatpants and worn shirts. Laura had put popcorn in the microwave and she had two bottles of beer in hand.
"Okay, we need a comfort movie," Laura said. "Ideas?"
They watched Groundhog Day. Derek hadn't watched it in years but it felt like coming home. He still knew a lot of the lines and it was just easy fun without too much drama.
Laura had drawn a blanket over both of them and they were sharing a bowl of popcorn.
They went to bed early in the morning, each in their own bed, but for once sleep came easily for Derek. He knew that Laura was trying but that she needed time. However, the evening had shown him that they were okay.
The next day Laura had to go to work in the store. Which was still a new concept for both of them. They had a late breakfast together and then Derek was alone in the apartment. He had another late shift today and he intended to spend the afternoon with Stiles but he still had a few hours to kill before Stiles would be done with work.
On a whim, Derek asked Stiles if he could pick them up after work and treat them to lunch. Stiles didn't answer immediately, they were at work after all, so Derek used the time for a light workout. Nothing too serious, if he wanted to have lunch with Stiles he didn't have the time for his usual routine, but he needed to get rid of some energy. Going through the motions left his head free for other things. Usually, it went blissfully blank when Derek counted out the sets but it helped to sort out his mind as well. Right now he had a lot to sort out.
Derek had told Stiles and Laura about Kate and he had survived. Both persons were still in his life and he was grateful that they were giving him a second chance.
By the time he was done with his routine, Stiles had answered. They wanted to see him for lunch and apparently, they knew just the right place for that. The message was ominous enough for Derek to dread lunch but he wanted to see Stiles. Take them out on a date, he hadn't done that so far.
With a spring in his steps, Derek went to take a shower and then he headed out to get Stiles.
Derek was on time but Stiles was nowhere in sight. Derek parked the car and then he waited for Stiles to come out of the building. After five minutes he sent them a message which Stiles didn't even read. Derek gave them another five minutes but when by then Stiles still hadn't come out and hadn't read his message either, Derek got out of the car. Hands in the pockets of his leather jacket he went inside and after a moment of orientation, he found the company Stiles was working for. There wasn't even a receptionist monitoring the entrance but he guessed that they didn't get visitors that often.
Derek followed the noises of people deeper into the office.
"Derek?"A woman crossed his path. "What are you doing here?"
Erica, he remembered.
"I was supposed to pick up Stiles." He'd caught Stiles' scent and now he could hear their voice as well. They were in a discussion with Isaac if he wasn't mistaken.
Erica looked over her shoulder and made a face.
"Come here." She dragged him over to a desk. "Have a seat, this might take a while."
"Problems?" Derek asked. They were in the office now and he could see Stiles who was absorbed in whatever they were doing at the computer. Isaac was leaning over their shoulder, looked like they were discussing something.
"Everything is a bit hectic right now." Erica shoved a chair under him and forced him to sit down. "We have a convention coming up in two weeks and we need to have a playable demo ready until then. With Stiles out of commission for a while, we're behind schedule."
She looked over to where Stiles and Isaac were still discussing whatever they were doing. Stiles was typing while Isaac watched with an intense expression.
"Cupcake?" Erica asked.
Suddenly there was a cupcake right in his face. It had a little plastic knife stabbed into the frosting.
"Isn't that one of Stiles'?" It was so close to his face that he could only look at it cross-eyed but he was pretty sure that this was one of the cupcakes Stiles had told him about.
"I don't see a name on it." Erica shrugged but put it on the desk for now. "I'll get you a coffee to go with it, it might be a bit dry by now."
Stiles still hadn't noticed him and Derek shamelessly used the chance to watch them. He didn't know this side of them. They were confident in what they were doing and even if they were visibly stressed, they had fun. The way they were talking to Isaac, showing him something on the screen, they were in their element. The usual goofiness wasn't gone but muted, this was a professional at work.
"You have it bad for them." Somebody spoke up next to him, startling Derek out of his thoughts. Boyd gave him a knowing smile.
Derek didn't deny it.
"Here's your coffee." Erica was back with two cups of coffee. She handed one to Derek and took a sip from the other one. "We might have to work the weekend as well," she said. "Boyd and I were thinking about hitting a bar when we're done here on Saturday. Just a few beers to wind down. Isaac will be there too. What about you and Stiles?"
It was a work thing. Going out with co-workers after a long day. Derek could see Stiles joining them, in fact, he thought that Stiles should join them. Since he'd met them Stiles hadn't been out, they should go out with their friends from time to time. However, Derek was not part of that circle.
"Thanks but I don't think that I would fit in," Derek declined. Once they started to talk about work, which they would rather sooner than later, he would be left out.
"Nonsense." Erica was not having any of that. "It's going to be fun. No offense but let me tell you, you look like you could use some fun."
She was probably right. Derek had slept well but the last few days had been rough.
"Derek?" Stiles had finally noticed him and was now coming over. "What are you doing here?"
"We were just making plans for Saturday," Erica spoke up before Derek could say anything. "He's going to join us for a few after-work beers."
"He did not say that," Derek grumbled but when he saw how Stiles' face lit up, he changed his mind. A few beers couldn't hurt.
Stiles opened their mouth to say something but then they noticed something on Erica's desk.
"Is that one of my cupcakes?" They asked and reached for it but before they got their hand on it, Erica snatched it. She grinned at them and without breaking eye contact, she licked over the frosting.
"Mine," she proclaimed.
"You are the worst." Stiles jabbed a finger at her. "You hear me? The worst!" They put their whole body into the words but Erica didn't seem impressed.
"Wasn't there something about lunch?" Stiles turned to Derek.
"Just waiting for you." Derek got up. "Thanks for the coffee." He gave Erica a nod.
"See you Saturday." She waved him off but made sure that Stiles saw it when she bit into the cupcake before they left. Stiles glared at her but then they were dragging Derek towards the exit.
"The worst!"