Of all the ways he'd considered he'd die, gunned down by his werejaguar sister in the Mexican desert wasn't one of them. Especially with Derek Hale right by his side. If the man hadn't been so stubborn and just gone with him when he asked, they wouldn't have been sitting ducks for Kate's ambush. But there they were, with matching bullet wounds.

They were busy snarking at each other, a bit too flirty for his taste after everything, but all Chris could focus on right now was not passing out. He needed to do something before Derek set off Kate even more and got a bullet to his skull for his troubles. Murder was her nature and she rarely needed an excuse to do it. Chris was just about to grab his gun and shoot when someone pulled it from his reach and did it for him. Kate ran for cover and Chris tipped his head back in shock, looking into the face of the boy he'd left in France all that time ago.

"Isaac?" Chris mumbled, blinking to try to clear his vision.

"Who the hell are you?" Kate spat, groaning as she gripped her bullet wound.

"I'm Isaac. I think I dug your grave."

"Well, I guess I didn't really like the accommodations."

"Eh, put it in a Yelp review," Isaac smirked, holding the gun down in offer to Chris. He took it back, letting Isaac help him back to his feet. Kate and he yelled back and forth to each other long enough for her to reveal her evil plan and for Derek to recover enough to follow after her as she took off. Derek gave Isaac a look before telling him to stay with Chris as he ran off on his own.

"I see the time away hasn't made him less bossy," Isaac scoffed, turning around to look over Chris.

"What are you doing here?" Chris asked, wincing as he rolled his injured shoulder.

"I heard Mexico is a good place for a vacation," Isaac snorted, pushing Chris' hand away so he could place his own against his bare neck. He felt the pain leaching from his body and he sagged in relief.

"Better than France?"

"I haven't been in France for a while now," Isaac said, and Chris was immediately hit with a wave of guilt. He'd left him at the Argent family compound and hadn't looked back. They'd told him a few weeks after that Isaac had taken off, but they didn't know where he was. Chris had briefly worried that they'd gone back on their word and killed him, but he wasn't in the right place mentally to deal with that possibility. He had to tell himself that they didn't really owe each other anything and their tie to each other was truly gone.

"I'm sorry-"

"So, where are we going?" Isaac asked, cutting off his apology. The eager to please teen in search of a father figure was long gone.

"We need to get back to Beacon Hills, try to find a way to stop Gerard," Chris muttered, stalking to the back of his car to get something to wrap around his wound.

"Of all the people to have survived this long," Isaac sighed, shaking his head. Chris couldn't help but agree.

"Who all knows you're back?" Chris asked, walking over to the driver's side door before being blocked by Isaac.

"Only Melissa. Keys," Isaac demanded, holding out his hand for them.

"I can drive," Chris grumbled, trying to maneuver Isaac out of the way. He wasn't budging though. "Why wouldn't she tell me?"

"Why would she tell you?" Isaac asked, snapping his fingers once before flattening his hand out again. That was new.

"Well-"

"Are you two dating?" Isaac asked, sniffing the air with a look of disgust.

"Would that be a problem?" Chris shot back. He felt like a kid getting interrogated by his girlfriend's parents.

"We'll see," Isaac warned, snatching the keys out of his hand before he could react. Maybe if his reflexes were that slow, being the passenger wasn't such a bad idea.

"Was that a threat?" Chris chuckled, easing himself into the car.

"Does it need to be?" Isaac asked, pressing his foot on the gas and barreling them down the dirt road.

"You've changed," Chris noted, matter-of-factly. It wasn't meant as an accusation or dig, just an observation. Isaac smirked, sending him a look that solidified his suspicions.

"Yes, I have."