By Saturday, Derek was done with the mural. It was impressive, it seemed that the forest had come into the room, although the green of the trees was more vivid than those of the preserve, but they seemed very realistic, as did the clouds that adorned the rest of the room. When Stiles saw it, he gave the wolf a hug even though Derek remained completely tense. He was looking forward to showing the work to the others.
"You have talent, dude," he praised him with a pat on the back.
"Don't call me dude," he replied with his annoyed tone, though he couldn't hide the blush that lit up his ears.
"Right, better cousin?"
Derek grunted and hurried out.
That afternoon everyone who could would go to see a movie and eat something together. It was a custom that began as weekly and mandatory for all members of the pack and now it was held two Saturdays a month at the most and only those who could or wanted attended. Stiles was upbeat and had already selected several movies that he thought they would like, and he was making some popcorn and several different snacks.
"They've arrived," Peter informed him, probably hearing the cars even from the kitchen on the other side of the house.
"Can you finish...?" he asked, indicating the pan on the stove.
"Go, I'll take care of it."
Stiles gave him a brief kiss and ran to the front door. He stopped short when he saw Malia's frown and Liam's face of disgust. The younger man covered his nose, and Scott made the same face when he came in after them.
"What's this? Paint? It stinks!" Liam complained in a nasal voice. "I'm not going to stay here with that smell."
He turned around and left the house just as he had entered. Malia shrugged and went after him.
"I have to drive him."
"See you later," Scott told them. "Why are they painting?" he asked confused.
"It's the baby's room, I'll move in here with him when he's born. Do you want to see it?" He started up the stairs without waiting for his answer. "It's great, right? Derek painted it. Who would've thought that there was a sensitive artist under that stone facade."
"Stiles, we need to talk," Scott told him in a serious voice.
"I'm not your girlfriend, so I hope you're not breaking up with me," he said in an attempt at humor, even though he had a bad feeling in his chest.
"You can't do this, Stiles, it's not right. You can't take care of a child by yourself, much less here. Why don't you talk to her? I'm sure you can fix things."
"Don't you understand? There's nothing to fix. We weren't even friends, we only hooked up a few times. I'm not going to marry someone for whom I feel nothing and be unhappy for the rest of my life so that my son grows up better, because he won't. Having two unhappy parents will not help him."
"Is it better to have just one? Do you want him to grow up like you?"
That made him go on the offensive. He squared his shoulders in a subconscious attempt to seem bigger, though in a physical fight he would never have the slightest chance against the alpha.
"The difference here is that I'm not an alcoholic. I'll take care of my son just like your mother took care of you. I remind you that you too grew up with only one parent from about the same age as me."
"And it wasn't easy, it wasn't perfect," he said as if he were demonstrating his point. "I had to grow up faster than the other children, and I didn't have all the love that they had."
Stiles couldn't contain a laugh.
"You're right, it wasn't easy, for your mom. But are you seriously going to tell me that you had such a bad time? One of the most spoiled kids in the whole school?" he asked, waving his arms in his attempt to show how ridiculous he was. "And what the hell did you have to grow up in faster? You don't even know how to cook yet, or do your laundry, or clean the house. Exactly what did you have to do that other children with two parents didn't do? And why don't you tell your mom that she wasn't able to give you all the love you needed? Let's see what face she makes. When you stop being a child, you can give me advice on being a parent! Now get out of my son's room and don't you dare tell me again that I can't be a good father!"
"Stiles-."
"I would listen to him," Peter interrupted. Scott turned to him and was immediately in a defensive position. Although Stiles couldn't see them, he was sure his eyes were shining, it was usual for them to do so when he addressed Peter.
"Who do you think you are to-?"
"This is still the Hale Mansion," Peter interrupted him again, and Stiles was sure he was doing it on purpose to annoy Scott. "You better go before I decide to forbid you to come back."
"I'm your alpha!" he exclaimed, trying to sound authoritative.
Peter snorted, and Stiles had to hide a smile.
"That can be fixed," he replied with that smirk of his.
"Scott, go away, I don't want you to stain my baby's room with blood."
Scott looked up at him (yes, his eyes were glowing) and quickly turned back to Peter. At least he realized who the biggest predator was there. He made a strange sound of frustration and left the room, making sure not to touch Peter on his way. Peter stood still for a moment, Stiles knew he was following Scott with his hearing. He could hear his motorcycle in the parking lot in front of the house, and when the noise disappeared, Peter walked over to him. He put his arms around Stiles and kissed him on the cheek.
"How are you feeling?" he asked.
Stiles felt the anger dissipate and instead of relief there was a great sadness that for a moment he could not hold back. He leaned against Peter and let the wolf hold him. He felt the tears burn in his eyes. He was willing to defend that he would be a good father against anyone, but he couldn't help Scott's words stirring fears in his head.
"He's not going to have a mother," he murmured with a sob. "I miss her so much, and he's not even going to meet her."
He didn't even want to imagine what it would have been like not to have his mother in those early years of his life. Her loss had hurt, but he loved her so much and would not exchange those few moments he remembered for anything.
"It won't be the same, sweetheart," he whispered softly. "Not having met a mother is not the same as losing her. He won't even miss her with us by his side, with your love he won't need anyone else. He may be curious about her when he grows up, but it won't be because he needed her presence. He'll never lack love or anything he needs."
Stiles squeezed him tightly around the waist for a moment and took a deep breath.
"God, I'm lucky to have you," he murmured in an affected voice.
"That goes for me too." He pulled away, just a little, so he could look at his face. "I hadn't been so excited in many years."
"Excited?" he asked with a smile growing bigger and bigger on his face.
"For you, for the baby, for all this... I didn't think that I'd ever feel this happiness again."
His face looked so sincere, so vulnerable. There were so many feelings and memories behind those words. He didn't know what to say. Stiles took his face in both hands and kissed him, soft and comforting, with all the love he could muster. For a moment it seemed that Peter was clinging to him desperately and then he scooped him up and carried him into his room.
Scott was walking home from work because his motorcycle wouldn't start for some strange reason. He would have to take it to the garage, but he had no money for that, he had spent his last pay on video games. He would ask his mother for a loan.
"Wah?! What the-."
He almost jumped out of his skin when Derek appeared out of nowhere. The wolf grabbed him by the jacket and pulled him into the alley from which he had emerged. Scott looked at him offended, he was no longer a kid that he could drag around like the first year, now he was his alpha. Still, his body froze like in those days when the wolf looked at him from his advantage point with eyes shining brightly. His face was not shifted, but it was already quite scary in human form.
"Don't ever bother Stiles again," he warned in a voice that sounded more like a growl.
"It's not okay-."
"Shut up," Derek interrupted him dryly.
"If the sheriff-."
"He knows it and supports him. Don't bother him either." He'd say his eyes glowed even brighter if that were possible.
"You can't-. I'm your alpha!"
"That can change. It wouldn't be difficult to find another alpha or someone who wanted to become one," he threatened in a hissing voice.
The way he put it, Scott was the alpha they would offer for another wolf to take the alpha spark. Derek must have been pleased with his reaction because then he turned and left.
The baby's room was painted, so they spent the next few days moving the furniture into it and assembling the closet. As Stiles guessed, one closet wasn't enough for everything Peter had bought so they had to go get another one. All three of them were quite proud, and rightly so, when the room was finished. The white and brown of the furniture contrasted with the blue and green of the walls, all peppered with the bright colors of ornaments and toys. Even the sheriff was amazed to see it.
"I have to admit, you know how to go all out, Hale," he commented and Stiles watched as Peter preened.
"It's the least I can do for the next Stilinski," he replied.
Noah glanced at him, an expression on his face that Stiles couldn't decipher. The sheriff ended up watching a baseball game on television with Derek.
The next was his room now that it had been emptied of furniture. First the paint, then all the furniture Peter had insisted on buying, including a large bed (not quite as large as Peter's but enough for two people) with all its accessories (he loved the lights over the headboard), a wardrobe, a desk with its corresponding chair and a shelf, all in walnut wood.
Peter was very proud of the result, until Stiles decided to put up his posters and other decorations. The wolf insisted on buying him a new wardrobe as well, but Stiles flatly refused.
Between one thing and another, the two and a half months passed faster than he expected. Stiles had offered to accompany Aurora on any medical visits she needed, even if it meant moving to Minnesota for those two months, but she had refused, so he only had to be there on the delivery day. It was a scheduled birth, so I had a set day and time. Peter bought two first-class tickets to arrive the day before. The wolf had made it clear that he was going to accompany him, and Stiles did not refuse.
Minnesota was just as he had imagined. It was the middle of June, and even so it was completely cloudy, pouring rain and cool (at least for a Californian). He didn't even bother to pay attention to the scenery as they drove in a rental car to the small town where Aurora lived. He spent the entire journey looking for information on his cell phone as he had been doing for the past two months. Peter hadn't even bothered to ask him to leave it, he knew nothing could stop his curiosity or concern. However, today it was more difficult to concentrate. The baby was going to be born, and he was going to be a dad. It suddenly seemed so alien, like it wasn't happening to him.
Peter placed a hand on his knee and Stiles stopped floating in his own mind and sighed.
"Everything has been so fast. How can I prepare to be a dad in two months?"
"You already had a good foundation," he replied and, as always, he knew what to say.
Stiles would sit on him and kiss him if that didn't cause an accident.
They arrived at the four-star hotel, unfortunately for Peter it was the best in town. They left their suitcases and went to the hospital. Aurora wouldn't be in until the next day, and they wouldn't be able to see her until then, but Stiles had become a bit more obsessive about everything that had to do with the baby and wanted to check out what the hospital was like. Peter waited for him in the cafeteria while he toured the maternity ward. He got some suspicious looks from the nurses, but it didn't bother any of the patients so they let him be. It wasn't much different from the Beacon Hills hospital, so he quickly learned the layout of the place. He stopped a few steps away from the nursery. He didn't come closer, he couldn't see the babies, he didn't want to imagine his son there, there was a certain limit of realism that he could bear. He went down to the cafeteria and sat opposite Peter at one of the tables. There was already a coffee waiting for him.
"It isn't bad, they have quite a few nurses. If a hospital has many nurses, it's well cared for," he commented.
"I found out they have a class for new parents. I signed us up for this afternoon class."
Stiles raised his head excitedly.
"Us? Are you coming too?"
"I haven't seen classes for the new father's boyfriend, so I guess I'll go to that one," he said sarcastically. Hearing him talk like this relieved his nerves a bit, it was something familiar.
"But you know more than enough about babies, you don't need classes." Although he was very happy that Peter wanted to go with him.
"Neither do you, but they'll make you feel calmer."
He was right, Stiles already knew everything they could say in those classes, he had watched videos on the internet, he had read books about babies, he had even sent questions to several dozen doctors (some of whom had ended up ignoring his messages).
However, the class was good for him, more so because it was a distraction so he wouldn't spend the rest of the day obsessing over something else. There weren't many fathers and they all gave them strange looks when they saw them together and even more so when Stiles briefly explained his situation. But seriously, he had more important things to worry about than the opinion of some guys he would never see again.
When the class ended, they went to dinner at a restaurant where they had curly fries. Peter didn't like that kind of restaurants, they didn't have enough class for him. During those two months he had tried to instill in him a taste for fancy restaurants by taking him to dinner whenever Stiles allowed him, but Peter knew that today he needed his comfort food and Stiles appreciated it.
They went to the hotel with another helping of curly fries. It was not a night for sex, it was a night for stress, doubts and anxiety, but with the pampering of the wolf he was able to overcome it with a few hours of sleep and be ready for the most important day.