The morning sun was shining right in his eyes, but Derek didn't want to move. After the movies were finished and the food was done digesting, the pack started dropping off like flies. Somehow it was always Boyd who fell asleep first, probably due to his naturally calm demeanor and the comfort of having Erica by his side. Stiles could worry himself into a frenzy about anything and never let himself sleep, but Boyd relished in that contentment and comradery he'd never felt before and was lulled by the sounds of casual chatter from the others.
Erica was next, burrowing into Boyd's chest and moaning in pleasure as she drifted off. Derek hadn't really seen that relationship coming when he gave them the bite, but it made sense now. They were on such opposites when it came to personality, but when they were together, they pulled each other toward some sort of middleground. Boyd came out of his shell a bit and Erica was more careful with her words. Derek could imagine them growing old together and raising pups of their own.
Speaking of pups, the baby of the bunch was currently tucked in Stiles' arms, an impressive feat due to their size difference. Isaac had always been able to squeeze himself up impossibly small, and thinking of why always made Derek want to scream and tear through the afterlife to pay Mr. Lahey a visit in hell. Derek forced himself to calm, not wanting to wake his pack up with feelings of anger flowing out of him.
The rest of the pack were laid out in the rest of the space, all falling asleep soon after the first couple. It was like the smells of dozing were contagious and no one could resist the pull of sleep. Derek always made sure he was the last to go though, needing to make sure everyone was safe and settled before he let himself do the same. It was his responsibility and honor to watch over his family. And now that this house was getting fixed up, it would be easier than ever.
"Oh my God, I can practically hear you thinking right now," Stiles groaned, turning his head to face where Derek was lying behind him. Stiles always knew when Derek was falling too deep into his own head, ready to pull him back every time. Mates truly were your better half. Derek rolled his eyes, giving him a chaste kiss on the forehead. He wanted to go further, but they didn't need Stiles popping a boner against Isaac's back. They'd learned that lesson the hard way.
"Just thinking about how happy I am," Derek sighed, wrapping his arm more firmly around Isaac to bring the three of them closer together. Isaac let out a please murmur, not fully waking from the noise or movement. Isaac could probably sleep through a tornado when he was in their arms. The rest of the pack not so much, so Derek wasn't surprised when Jackson started grumbling from where he was sleeping back to back with Boyd. Jackson was always the most grumpy in the morning. And the afternoon. Hell, at all times. But it was becoming less annoying and more endearing, especially since he was apt to drop more soft moments in here and there nowadays. Jackson was probably more similar to Derek than he'd like to admit.
"Do you always have to wake up bitching?" Erica snapped, stretching like a cat and waking Boyd up with gentle kisses along his neck. Derek thanked his lucky stars that Erica and Jackson hadn't ended up together. That wouldn't have been good for anyone. He'd been a little worried about that possibility when he'd heard about the little three way distraction ploy from the night of the rave, but the second Erica had gone back to the den and saw Boyd hurt, they'd been together.
And he didn't even want to think about Jackson and Isaac together. That he wouldn't have stood for. Jackson needed someone who wouldn't take his shit and Lydia fit the bill perfectly. It wasn't as if Isaac was too weak, but he didn't deserve to have to work that hard for love. Lydia and Jackson enjoyed the push and pull, but Isaac needed stability.
Which brought his mind back to the revelation from last night. He knew deep down that Scott was a good kid and a good person to have on his side. That was evident by how hard Derek pushed to get him into this pack. But even though Derek would trust Scott with his life, could he trust him with Isaac's heart? As much as he didn't want to say it out loud, Isaac was his. That was his kid. It was easy with his other Betas, because they were all his family, but he wasn't their only family. It was Derek and Isaac, and eventually officially Stiles, but that was a little down the line still. Parents were supposed to have years to prepare for this stage, but he was thrust into it after only a few months.
And he really didn't know what to think about Allison. They'd had some hard talks after her mother's death and she'd accepted the circumstances around it, but she was always the one he'd been the most wary of. Maybe it had something to do with her family's history of murdering his kind. She hadn't shown any signs of wanting to do the same after they finished up with her crazy grandfather, so he was fine with having her around, but throwing Isaac into the mix changed things up a bit.
Three way relationships weren't always doomed to fail, but they were harder than most. It was easy for a pair to splinter off and leave a third behind, and he didn't want that to happen to Isaac. And Isaac would be the type to let it happen, because he was the one coming into an established relationship and he'd never want to ruin what was already there. He needed to get Isaac alone sometime soon to discuss all this, because he wasn't going to sit back and watch his boy be hurt without letting his concerns be known.
"Language, Erica," Stiles moaned, dropping his head down in exasperation. Derek chuckled deep in his chest. He was such a mom.
"Why are we up so early?" Scott whined, hiding his face in Allison's neck.
"Do you even know what time it is?" Stiles scoffed, rolling onto his back in the tight space.
"No," Scott grumbled, tipping his head up to squint around the room.
"Then how do you know it's early?"
"Because I'm still tired."
"I guess you'll be too tired for my pancakes also," Stiles laughed, petting Isaac's head to gently wake him. Isaac had been used to being woken up with a shove or yell, so Stiles relished in these moments to have Isaac's first sight of the day be something safe.
"I'm awake!" Scott yelped, rolling out of Allison's embrace. Stiles' pancakes were legendary and not something to miss.
"Can they be chocolate chip this time?" Isaac mumbled, blinking his way back to consciousness.
"I think that can be arranged," Stiles grinned, pressing a kiss to his temple. Wolves were naturally more affectionate than others, but Derek was glad to see the non canine members of the pack were getting used to the idea too. At first Stiles had balked at being rubbed on by the different members of the group, but now he was initiating contact almost as much. He wore the scents of his family proudly, even if he couldn't smell them himself.
"No fighting over the showers and everyone has a ten minute limit," Derek directed, sitting up so his back was resting against the side of the couch.
"Even if we double up?" Erica asked, leering down at Boyd.
"Especially if you double up," Derek growled, not outright saying no sex in the shower, but meaning no sex in the shower. It wasn't very courteous to leave that smell behind when other werewolves were going to be using the shower right after you. That kind of thing lingered.
"Just because you're not getting any doesn't mean the rest of us shouldn't be able to," Jackson grumbled, running a hand through Lydia's hair.
"Someone just sassed his way into taking the last shower," Stiles smirked, sticking his tongue out at the smart mouthed teen.
"That's not fair!" Jackson argued, crossing his arms.
"And you're doing breakfast clean up," Derek growled, letting a little Alpha slide into his voice to show he was serious. He did not like to be reminded of his vow of celibacy. Jackson knew to back down now, but Derek made a note to give him a softer touch later, to remind him that even if they had little spats, he was always going to have a place with them. Jackson wasn't going to be ignored and overlooked like he was at home.
Everyone split off to start their morning routines, squabbling good naturedly as they climbed the stairs to the bathrooms. There were only two showers in the house, with the first floor bathroom only having a toilet and sink. One of the bathrooms was technically part of the main suite, but Derek was so used to sharing with his large family before that he was happy to do it again. It reminded him of better times when there were always children underfoot.
They were going to be focusing on Derek's and Isaac's bedrooms today, leaving the extra two bedrooms for after if they had time. Isaac was going to have his own room, of course, but he had a feeling most people would converge there at night when they were staying over. Derek had bought Alaskan king beds for a reason. They could figure out what to use the other rooms for some other time.
Stiles and Isaac were folding up the blankets from last night, giggling about some inside joke Derek hadn't been paying attention to. There was nothing better than sitting back and watching his mate and his kid together. Derek had never truly wanted to be an Alpha. He'd seen his mom do it with such strength and poise, and he never thought he'd be able to live up to that standard. He'd also never seen himself as much of a leader, which was evident by how poorly things had gone in the beginning. But somehow this twitchy mess of a human and sweet, soft spoken Beta had taught him that it was okay to not be perfect, as long as you tried your best. And then they did end up with something perfect.
Once they were all showered and dressed, they all crammed into the kitchen to wait for pancakes like hungry baby birds. Stiles was mixing the batter in massive bowls while Derek was flipping them on the griddle. Isaac was sitting on the counter, tossing extra chips onto the bubbling cakes while laughing at a video Boyd was showing him on his phone.
"Hit me with some of those," Jackson called out, pointing at Isaac's bag of chocolate. Isaac grinned, flinging one in the air and landing it perfectly in Jackson's mouth. This of course started a tidal wave of candy throwing, all of the teens jostling each other to try to get the next toss.
"Don't spoil your breakfast," Derek warned, turning over the current set of pancakes.
"They'd be eating them anyways, only now some of the pancakes will be less chocolatey," Isaac snorted, pushing a chip between Derek's lips. Derek chuckled, tucking the piece of chocolate into his cheek so he could savor it. It wasn't too long ago that Isaac would've taken that comment as a reprimand and cowered in submission. Most of it was Mr. Lahey's fault, but some of it rested on Derek's shoulders too.
Some nights he'd wake up in a cold sweat, reliving that moment he'd broken Isaac's arm to teach him a lesson during training. One time it had gotten too overwhelming and he'd staggered over to Isaac's bed in the motel, sobbing in a way he hadn't in years and begging for forgiveness. Isaac had started crying too, opening up more about what he'd lived through and letting Derek assure him over and over that nothing like that would ever happen again. They'd slept the rest of the night with Isaac's face pressed against his chest and he'd kept his promise. That had been a big turning point in their relationship. There were no more flashes of fear in Isaac's eyes when Derek used his Alpha voice. He knew he wasn't going to be hurt again.
"That reminds me, we need to grab the whipped cream," Stiles grinned, sliding another full bowl in Derek's direction.
"I'm telling your father," Derek said, shaking his head.
"Everyone knows you eat chocolate chip pancakes with whipped cream instead of syrup!" Stiles scoffed, pulling the can from the fridge. "And this kind is made from real cream, which is dairy. Dairy equals calcium for stronger bones, which happen to break around here more than usual." Stiles grinned as he squirted a dollop onto Derek's nose.
"That's a good look for you, Derek," Erica laughed, snagging a chocolate chip out of the air that was headed toward Jackson.
"Good enough to eat," Stiles agreed, leaning up and licking the tip of his nose. All the kids in the room groaned, turning away from the sight of them being extra affectionate.
"I'm gonna barf," Jackson said, making exaggerated gagging noises.
"Oh get over yourself," Stiles chuckled, leaning against the counter to face the group. "When mommies and daddies love each other-"
"Stop!" Jackson interrupted, covering his ears. As if that would block any of his heightened hearing.
"Says the guy who announced to the pack how he wanted to pork Lydia in the shower," Stiles shot back, wincing at the glare Lydia sent him.
"Excuse me, I do not get porked!" Lydia hissed, flicking her eyes between the two of them.
"Sorry, he was planning on making sweet, intimate love to you in a shower with people waiting outside the door. Forgive me for my crude terminology describing what was to be a top romantic moment in history."
"Can we all shut up?" Derek interjected, snatching the bottle from Stiles' hand and squirting a mouthful of cream in his face. Derek had the urge to lick the mess away too, but he refrained because he was an adult. "No more sex talk in the kitchen."
"Aww, you're no fun," Erica whined, resting her chin on Scott's shoulder.
"You know what I think sounds fun? Running laps after breakfast," Derek grinned, turning a sly eye over the pack. They were all looking down now, hoping their submission would make him take pity on them.
"Aw, man, I was really looking forward to getting started on my bedroom," Isaac sighed, peeking over at him through those illegally long lashes. Derek hadn't formed a defense against that look yet. His kid was good. Derek took a page out of Isaac's book and shoved a finished pancake in his mouth, shaking his head fondly when Isaac moaned in delight.
"Time to eat, I guess," Stiles announced, setting a platter overflowing with pancakes on the table they were sitting around. They all attacked the food, not all of them even bothering with plates. The casual chatter started up again, with only light teasing sprinkled in. Derek stayed at the griddle, cooking the last few batches and chewing bites Stiles would pop into his mouth. This was a good way to start off the day of work.