The paramedics had come to Erica only a few minutes after she begun to seize. They had swooped in, placed her on a stretcher, and rushed her out of the school much to the student body's entertainment. I had to restrain myself from giving them a piece of my mind as they began to insensitively chatter about the entire incident. I wasn't exactly close with Erica, but I had never bullied her the way other kids did. I felt the same way about Isaac who I had noticed later that day had been conveniently absent.

As for the rest of the day, it went along relatively normal aside from my intent to avoid Stiles and Scott at all costs. I didn't even want to think of the emotional ambush I would receive after the stunt I had pulled after getting off the rock climbing wall. Not to mention, I hadn't exactly been subtle with Stiles when he had asked me if there was anything I needed to talk about. Guilt gnawed at the back of my brain yet I managed to shove it aside-focusing on other matters at hand. Based on what Allison had told me earlier that morning, we had another round of chaos heading our way that made Derek and Scott the main targets. Not that I particularly cared about Derek's being, I still didn't want to see him dead as backwards as it seemed to me. Seeing as Peter insisted that there was more to my relationship with him, I had to internally battle with my self conscious-the same one that had always tried to save Derek's life.

I ended up sitting with Allison and Lydia at lunch. Fortunately for me, that had both opted out of questioning me any further about what happened during gym and made girly small talk. It was almost refreshing to pretend as if our world wasn't a total crap storm and that our main problem was Jackson being a colossal douchebag. I had nearly forgotten that I wanted to see his head on a stick after the Isaac situation and just as the mere mention of his name, I felt my blood boil. Allison had swiftly changed the subject and talked about something she had read in a magazine. However, my attention faded in and out quickly, something I knew Allison could sense. She saved my ass every single time when Lydia tried to ask me something pertaining to the conversation. My relationship with Allison was slowly on the mend and I couldn't have been more relieved.

It wasn't until I had gotten home, informed Andre about my day, ate dinner, and then went up to my bedroom that my phone began to chime. I simply ignored it but then it began to rapidly chime. With an exasperated sigh, I pulled it out of my pocket to reveal Stiles' name all across my screen. Each text message was more frantic, worried at most, wondering if I was okay and then he was apologizing profusely. Before I could even finishing reading all of them, his name popped up in large letters as it began to ring.

Part of me wanted to ignore the call and go lie in the bath until my entire body resembled that of a prune. The other part of me did want to answer, hear his voice, and assure him that he hadn't done anything wrong. I was the one who was afraid of confrontation and...feelings. I was the one who had already convinced myself that Stiles had only kissed me because he thought he was going to die or it was just to shut me up. I wanted to tell myself that so that he didn't have to. Hearing it directly from him would only make it hurt worse.

"Stiles-"

"Tessa-"

I clamped my mouth shut, seeing as we had spoken at the same time. I clenched my hand around my phone, pressing it tightly to my ear as I swallowed hard. "Sorry. Go ahead."

"Yeah, that's what I thought. You're acting weird. So weird." Stiles responded as if he were writing some kind of essay.

I frowned and narrowed my eyes. "Did you call me to insult me or…"

"No! No, uh, I mean, sorry. I was just...I thought something was off today after gym and I didn't want to think I was crazy." Stiles quickly said, his voice high pitched and spastic as it always was when he was nervous. "And before you even begin to conjure up some little sarcastic comment about me being crazy, save it."

"Bookmarked." I snorted, rolling my eyes and taking a seat on the edge of my bed. "So that's it? You called me just to confirm that I've been acting weird, which I haven't, and then you're on your merry little way to watch Teen Titans and obsess over Lydia Martin's strawberry blonde hair?"

Stiles made a sound that closely resembled that of a fish out of water and I bit down on bottom lip to keep from laughing out loud. "Wha-no!" He defended, sounding less than amused. "And, don't even try to deny that you aren't acting weird. Scott said he could, like, sense something when you ran off to the bathroom."

I raised my eyebrows. "He could sense something?" I repeated flatly. "Right."

"Tessa, I'm serious." Stiles grunted. "He said he felt panicked-like his chest was swelling up."

"Like...chemo signals?" I clarified quietly, the thought making me purse my lips as I mulled it over. "Is that a thing that werewolves can do? Well, I mean, animals can usually sense when someone is sad or-or happy. Especially dogs."

"Right, but let's not refer to Scott as a dog, alright? He's very defensive about that. Mostly why he cut his hair actually, but the point is I think so." Stiles agreed. "He said he could just sense that Erica was out on the rock climbing wall and that something was going to happen. Like he could feel her fear and panic."

I bobbed my eyebrows and then nodded my head slowly, as if impressed. "Cool. That's handy."

"Exactly, because now you can't deny that something was wrong today." Stiles responded quickly, sounding very proud of himself to which I let out an aggravated sigh. "Checkmate."

"I'll hang up."

"Please, for the love of God, do not hang up."

I honestly debated with myself on whether or not I should but the desperation in his voice swayed me towards staying on the phone. "Fine, I'm afraid of heights. Case solved. Congrats, Sherlock."

"You are an absolutely terrible liar."

"Am not!"

"Uh, yeah, you are." Stiles scoffed and I clenched my jaw tightly. "You aren't afraid of anything except spiders. Heights have never bothered you."

"10 points for Gryffindor!" I chimed unenthusiastically over the line.

"Look, if it's something I said-"

"Stiles, it wasn't you. I-I just have been caught up lately. Just leave it alone, please?" I sighed, shutting my eyes and placing a hand on my forehead.

There was a long beat of silence where I was convinced Stiles had hung up the phone, but then I heard him clear his throat. "Sure." He finally relented. "For now."

"You know, after your little freakout yesterday in front of our class, you're very lucky I'm giving you a ride to school this morning."

I rolled my eyes and held my tongue, throwing my bag in the backseat of Lydia's car. I shut the door and then forced a smile onto my face. "Consider me a four leaf clover."

Lydia smacked her lips and then scoffed, pulling away from my house. "Your determination to commit social suicide is almost inspiring, Tessa." She hummed and I let out a laugh.

"You act like I'm trying." I responded, propping my head up on my fist. "We all know I don't try at anything."

Lydia made a noise in her throat. "Well, that's a lie." She argued. "You try to make me kill you every day."

"That is just natural, Lydia." I countered, smirking slightly. "I have yet to succeed."

"There's something redeemable about you. I just haven't figured it out yet." Lydia sassed, smiling venomously at me before flipping some hair out of her face and focusing on the road. "Now that we've gotten our daily assessment of you out of the way, there are other things we need to talk about."

"Like?" I inquired, cocking up my eyebrow and giving her a puzzled look.

"Stiles."

"Huh?"

Lydia glanced at me and nodded her head curtly. "I know you heard me."

"What-what about Stiles?" I stammered, feeling my face heat up and I tried my best to hide it from Lydia but I knew she could probably sense it. "We've had this conversation before. There's nothing."

"We all know I am not an idiot." Lydia hummed and tipped her head to give me one of her infamous smiles again. "I see how you look at that weirdo."

"He's not a weirdo." I bit out, shooting her a glare to which she smirked back.

"Right," She whispered proudly. "When are you just going to own up to the fact that you are totally into him?"

"I-I…" I choked on my words and then shut my eyes, letting out a deep sigh. "I haven't denied that I like him, Lydia. I do. Except, he-it just-he doesn't feel the same way."

Lydia was silent for a few moments and then she snorted softly. "Gosh, you must not use your slightly talented brain sometimes." She murmured, shaking her head. "You really don't see it, do you?"

"See what exactly?" I questioned, narrowing my eyes in her direction.

At that moment, we pulled into the school parking lot and Lydia parked her car. "Figure it out for yourself. You're a big girl. I won't spell things out for you, mkay?" She answered flippantly, shrugging her shoulders and then got out of the car. She swung her bag over her shoulder and then marched up towards the school leaving me in her wake.

I let out an aggravated groan and then let my head tip forward into my hands. "I need new friends." I mumbled to myself and then grabbed my bag out of her car.

Once again, the morning passed with ease whilst I managed to avoid everyone I normally spent time with. I needed space to deal with the thousands of different thoughts inside of my head and trying to navigate them with another presence had proven too difficult for me. Instead, I waited until lunch to interact with my friends and that was when Allison threw yet another wrench in my plans to not spend time with two members of the opposite sex.

"We have plans tonight." She said excitedly as soon as I sat down with her at the lunch table. She was grinning at me with the intensity of a thousand suns and I visibly flinched.

"Since when?" I mumbled, recovering from her statement and stabbing at my fruit cup.

"Like...ten minutes ago." Allison answered, tipping her head to the side briefly. She then leaned in closely, lowering her voice. "Stiles' is getting us the keys to the ice skating rink."

"Who exactly is 'us'?"

"Uh, well, me, Scott, Stiles, Lydia, and...you." Allison responded hopefully, her face scrunching up slightly.

I stared at her for a moment before setting my fork down. "So, let me get this straight, we are going to a ice skating rink after hours with your secret boyfriend, my hopeless crush, and his hopeless crush?" I raised my eyebrows at my best friend. "Did I get that?"

Allison frowned and then sighed, slumping back in her seat. "No, you didn't." She denied, shaking her head. "He is not a hopeless crush."

A sharp bark of laughter slipped passed my lips before I could stop it. "That's cute. Did Lydia put you up to this?" I asked, picking up my fork and pointing it at her.

"No, Lydia did not put me up to this." Allison replied with a smack of her lips and roll of her eyes. "We're all friends, aren't we? Consider it a break from all the crazy stuff we've been through lately."

I thought for a moment, moving some fruit around in the cup with my plastic fork. I pressed my tongue to the inside of my cheek and then let out a resolved sigh. "Fine." I relented. "It-it sounds like it could possibly be fun. Except, how in the hell is Stiles getting keys to the ice skating rink?"

Allison said nothing but tipped her head towards the direction behind me. I furrowed my brow and then turned around in my seat to see a buzzcut head sitting across from Boyd, a boy I had only one class with last semester. They seemed to be conversing but Boyd looked less than pleased. Finally, after a few seconds, Boyd held out a pair of keys towards Stiles with a wide smile on his face.

"Wow," I murmured, nodding my head with an impressed look. "I didn't think he could actually do it."

Allison let out a laugh and then I turned around to look back at her when suddenly, something caught my eye that made my heart sink to the bottom of my stomach. It was like my world had suddenly turned into slow motion and the sound around me faded to a dull buzz. I could see Allison's lips moving, most likely calling my name and she tried to catch my eye but realized I was looking elsewhere.

Erica Reyes had just entered the lunchroom but who I saw was not the Erica had been with yesterday. She was dressed in a leather jacket, covering a white tank top. A mini skirt stopped just in the middle of her thighs and she sported a pair of cheetah print stiletto's. Her lips were coated in a bright shade of red and her blonde hair was curled valorously around her head. A normal person would be shocked by this transformation-thinking nothing else of it. However, something about it didn't sit right with me, as horrible as that sounded.

Erica strutted across the lunchroom, back in regular motion as my senses returned to me but I never let my eyes leave the girl. She stopped at a lunch table and bent down next to a group of boys. She reached out towards their lunch trays and plucked an apple off of one of them. Erica took a dramatic bite out of it, smirking as she stood back up to her new height.

"Is that-"

"Yup." I breathed out, finally able to find my voice.

Erica's head suddenly turned in my direction, the smirk still on her lips. She raised a hand and then twiddled her fingers at me. As if I was possessed by a robot, I lifted my hand and waved slowly, the blank look still on my features. Then, she turned on her heel and strutted out of the lunchroom. Then, as if though we were synced, the boys and I suddenly got to our feet. I immediately turned my head to look at them and we were all hurrying out of the lunchroom as if our own lives depended on it.

I met them right at the door and we all walked in a line together in pursuit of the new and improved Erica. When we got to the hallway, we realized that she was nowhere to be found. "Shit!" I swore and we all took of running. We scurried down the stairs and then took a hard left towards the front doors of the school.

What we were met with just outside those doors made my shock turn into that of pure rage. Erica was already looking at us, climbing into the passenger side of a black Camaro. Once she realized we were watching her, she grinned proudly and then finished getting inside the car. Then, the driver turned his head and took in the three of us. Mirroring Erica, Derek Hale gave us his own, egotistical grin before speeding off in his Camaro.

"Mother-"

As soon as I went to take a step forward, I felt two arms wrap around my biceps. They were holding me back, keeping me from sprinting after the black Camaro with everything that I was worth. Colors were all blending together creating a vibrant red in my vision and I felt like I had just been shoved inside of an oven. My heart thumped so violently in my chest that I thought it might burst through my sweatshirt.

"Tessa, not here." Scott warned me in my ear, his voice soft but something commanding. "It's not worth it."

"But he…" I trailed off weakly, falling limp in the grip of the two boys. "He can't-"

"I know." Scott replied softly and I felt both of them let go of me once they realized I wasn't going to go after Derek.

"So, Isaac and Erica, huh? What? Is he picking off kids who are bullied and-and antisocial?" I scoffed, shaking my head and shoving hair out of my face. "Innocent teenagers?"

"I don't know." Scott answered, shaking his head and looking stressed. "But, I-I'll figure this out after school."

"Let's get back to lunch." Stiles suggested and placed a hand on my back, gently guiding me towards the doors.

After the incident at lunch, I found it hard to focus on much else. I had been so caught up in my own business that I hadn't even realized Lydia's absence until Allison had mentioned it during a passing period. She hadn't shown up until after Erica had made her grand entrance and we didn't have many classes together after that. When I had gotten the chance to talk to her, she had made it clear it was something she didn't want to talk about. Although, she had leaked that it was something about Jackson which only fueled the rage I already held in my chest.

Allison had offered to let me go to her house after school, suggesting I could borrow some of her clothes before we went to the ice rink. Stiles was driving Scott and she figured it would be nice to spend some time with me and Lydia before we met up with the boys. I had a hunch she was trying to sugarcoat all of this to please me. I admit, her attempts were strong but I never let my guard down. I wouldn't let myself get tricked into thinking Stiles saw me as more than a friend-a nuisance at that. However, I couldn't turn down an opportunity to spend time with two of my best friends. Something normal.

When I arrived at the Argent household, both Mr. and Mrs. Argent were out. I had the sickly feeling that they were doing something that I was incredibly opposed of but I shoved the thought away. For a few hours, we made girl talk once again and Lydia seemed to be in higher spirits. Lydia spent another thirty minutes deciding on my outfit and a pair of mittens to match.

"It's an ice skating rink. Not Antarctica." I mumbled to my friends as Lydia held up two beanies in front of my face, deliberating which one she liked the best.

Lydia pursed her lips and then decided on a white one. "Have you never been to an ice skating rink? Or been around ice?" She asked, shaking her head and giving me a bewildered look. "Ice is cold, Tessa, in case you've been living under a rock. Which, as of lately, it seems like you might be."

I rolled my eyes. "For your information, I have been around ice." I argued and then crossed my arms. "I just...didn't think it'd be that cold."

"It's a giant patch of ice in an insulated room." Lydia shot back, still looking mystified. "Were you dropped as a baby?"

"Lydia," Allison scolded, but I could hear the smile in her voice without evening looking at her. "Leave her alone. She agreed to go to this so we should be okay with that."

"Yeah, like I want to fifth wheel." Lydia scoffed, plopping herself down into a chair beside Allison's desk.

"You are not fifth wheeling." I told her sternly, shooting her a sharp glare before taking my own seat on the edge of Allison's bed.

Allison laughed once again and slipped on her mittens, prepping to leave when a knock came at her door. I turned my head and the smile seemed to drop my features, bile rapidly rising up in my throat before I swallowed it thickly. I had hardly seen Mr. Argent since the winter formal and when I did, I felt the same impending doom as I always did.

"You headed out?" Mr. Argent asked, raising his eyebrows and then leaning against the doorframe.

"Studying." Allison lied easily, nodding her head.

Mr. Argent watched her for a moment before he tipped his head backwards, gesturing for her to come closer to him. I clenched my jaw as Allison walked over to him and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, turning their backs to us. I glanced at Lydia who looked like she didn't have a care in the world and looked down at my lap. I laced my fingers together and tried to slow my heartrate as I waited for the two of them to be done speaking. Lydia was kicking her feet in the air, turning her phone in various direction whilst she took photos of herself. In that moment, I wished I could be as carefree as she was. She had no clue what was going on around her and I envied her.

Finally, the two of them finished talking and Mr. Argent left. I let out the breath I had seemed to be holding and then put on my own mittens, tucking my beanie securely on my head. The three of this stood together and went out to Allison's car, driving in the direction of the ice skating rink.

Stiles and Scott were already there waiting for us once she arrived. Allison nearly skidded into the parking lot and then skipped out, a wide grin plastered on her face as soon as she saw Scott. I smiled to myself and appreciated the love between my two friends. I then let my eyes slide over to Stiles who gave me his own awkward smile and wave. I waved back and then watched as his gaze turned towards Lydia, his happiness wavering for a moment as it attempted to shift towards fear-like he was nervous. I blinked a few times and shook my head, following the group towards the front doors of the ice skating rink.

Stiles withdrew the keys from his pocket and unlocked the door, opening it for us. The lights clicked on as soon as Scott stepped inside and Allison hurried in after him. Lydia came in on my left, Stiles waiting for us to enter on the same side as her. She stopped for a moment to assess the rink, a slightly venomous smile creeping onto her features. Stiles watched her hopefully, as if wanting to see if he had impressed her or not. When it seemed like she was pleased, Stiles nodded to himself and then continued on inside the rink.

Lydia grabbed herself a pair of skates and then shoved a pair in my hands. The rest of the group grabbed their own and I turned to take a seat on the bleachers when I realized that Stiles was already sitting next to Lydia. I paused for a moment as if to swallow my pride and then walked over to sit on the other side of Stiles. Lydia was humming to herself, seemingly off in her own world as she tied her skates onto her feet.

"Could it be any colder in here?" She finally said, sitting up and then rubbing her arms.

"Wow, you would say that." I gasped theatrically, looking at her with wide eyes. "It's cold in here."

"Shut it." Lydia snapped across Stiles, glaring at me to which I simply snickered.

Stiles reached down towards his backpack, unzipping it quickly as Lydia continued to rub her arms to warm herself up. "Here." He said and then handed a balled up orange jacket towards Lydia.

The redhead then gave him a look that resembled that of disgust. "I'm wearing blue." She said as if it weren't obvious. "Orange and blue? Not a good combination."

I cringed at the sass in her voice and watched as she went back to tying her skates. I shook my head to myself and then also bent down to fasten one of my skates.

"It's the colors of the Mets, Lydia. Show some athleticism, here." I joked, keeping my head towards my skates. I knew that the look I would be met with if I didn't. Yet, I felt a different vibe coming my way and when I peeked out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Stiles was staring at me with a concussed look on his face. "What?"

"N-nothing." Stiles mumbled, clearing his throat and then shoving the jacket back in his bag. He dug around in there for a few more moments before he found what he was looking for.

"Reece's? Do you have no good taste in chocolate either?" Lydia then whined and I tipped my head up to see that he had tried to offer her a pace of Reece's Peanut Butter Cups.

Stiles looked disappointed and his shoulders sagged before he then turned in his seat towards me. "The hospital." He suddenly said and I gave him a confused look.

"What about it?" I murmured back, sitting up fully.

"You said you wanted a Reece's. I told you it was an excellent choice." Stiles reminded me with a small smile and then he held the candy package out towards me.

I stared at it for a moment before I looked back up at him, not sure if the shock had registered on my face. My heart seemed to skip a beat, the sound of it loud in my ears for a few moments before it died back down.

"Yeah, I-I remember that." I murmured back softly, my own smile appearing on my face as I took the package from him and opened it, taking one out. I then began to eat it.

Stiles nodded his approval and, just like that, his head turned back towards Lydia. I focused intently on eating the candy in my hand, but my stomach almost felt queasy. It was almost like I was on some kind of twisted rollercoaster that kept taking me up and then throwing me back down.

"Okay, um, maybe orange and blue is not the best." Stiles said to Lydia and I couldn't help but eavesdrop. "But, you know, um, sometimes there's things you think wouldn't be a good combination end up turning out to be a perfect combination. You know, like, two people...together who nobody ever thought would be together...ever."

"I can see that." Lydia replied and I nearly choked on my own breath, my hand almost crushing the chocolate in my palm.

"You can?" Stiles asked, his voice a lot softer and I realized that the two of them were looking at each other.

The air was getting a lot heavier and shiver ran across my body. Was this what jealousy felt like? If it was, I hated it. I felt like I had a cold and that I had been simultaneously punched in the gut thousands of times over again.

"Yeah," Lydia responded, her tone a bit lighter than it had been since she started talking to Stiles. "They're cute together."

As soon as the realization hit me that Lydia had thought Stiles was talking about Allison and Scott, I nearly collapsed. My foot that had been propped up on the bleacher in front of slipped and slammed down onto the metal footpath below me. I caught myself before I flipped forward and a gust of breath escaped my lungs.

"Ah, yeah...them." Stiles said, obviously disappointed.

"Cute."

"Cute. Adorable!"

Lydia smiled and then stood up, climbing down the bleachers towards the ice where the other couple had just gone. I couldn't help the snort that left my nose as soon as she left and I quickly covered my mouth with my hand.

"I'm sorry." I quickly apologized through my hand, the amused smile still on my face. "But, that...that was brutal, dude."

"Yeah, laugh it up. Your favorite sitcom is my humiliation." Stiles bit out, aggressively tightening the laces on his foot. "I didn't know you liked to eavesdrop."

"Really?" I questioned, cocking up an eyebrow and giving him a puzzled look. "I distinctly remember that day at the hospital where you-"

"Yes, I remember." Stiles cut me off loudly. "How did I get so fortunate to have you there for all my failures?"

"Wha-I have not just been there for the failures." I argued, holding up a finger. "I have seen many successes from you. The other times are just a lot funnier."

"Imagine that." Stiles mumbled to himself and then sighed, looking out towards the rink. There were a few moments of silence that passed where he simply watched Allison and Scott. "You know, I'm actually surprised you're here."

His revelation caught me off guard and left me speechless. I felt bad, for the most part. Stiles had been the one to orchestrate this for Allison and Scott, putting in the effort to pay Boyd and get the keys. He thought I would've wanted to ditch that all. A side of me had wanted to do that very selfishly.

"Well, uh, I am. So, count your blessings." I joked, a tight lipped smile popping up before dropping down as I cleared my throat. "On a real note, this didn't sound like the worst idea in the world."

"It feels...normal, doesn't it?" Stiles asked, a small crease appearing in between his eyebrows as he stared out ahead of him. "Like, we aren't all walking targets?"

I thought for a few seconds and then nodded. "Yeah." I agreed softly. "It does feel normal."

"Well," Stiles clapped his hands on his thighs and then stood. He turned to hold a hand out towards the ice. "Shall we?"

I glanced between him and his hand, and then a genuine curve appeared upon my lips. "I think we shall." I responded and took his hand, letting him help me stand.

It was then I realized the proximity between us on the small bleachers, my chest nearly pressed against his. When I looked up towards his face, it also then occurred to me how close our lips were. I could feel his breath against my face, minty and warm. His eyes were boring directly into mine and I found it incredibly difficult to look away.

"Tessandra Bradley!"

Stiles and I jumped away from each other at the shrill sound of Lydia's voice ringing across the ice rink.

"Coming!" I hollered back once I had caught my breath, adjusting the beanie on my head. I shot an awkward smile at Stiles. "I've been beckoned."

"And you must go." Stiles said and gestured with his arms towards the rink.

I let out a quiet laugh and then back up, turning around to climb down the bleachers. Once I got to the bottom, I removed the small pieces of cloth from the blades and then took a step out onto the side. I had gone ice skating a couple of times and picked up on the technique quite well. I was no Olympic figure skater, but I could move around without looking like a baby deer on a frozen pond. Lydia was on the other side of the arena and I skated my way over to her, the girl making perfect loops with her arms out at her sides. Her red lipstick mouth greeted me with a knowing smile and bobbed her eyebrows.

"Having fun?"

"Shut up."

After about fifteen minutes of Lydia skating circles around me, she stopped but only to nudge me and then gesture towards the other side of the rink. I turned my head and saw Allison holding both of Scott's hands, guiding him slowly around the arena. We both erupted into giggles before she suddenly went silent.

"Lydia, what's-"

"Gotta go!"

Lydia suddenly took off a quick clip in the other direction and I gaped after her, entire a confused mess before I heard another pair of skates in front of me. Stiles had made his way over to me and I now understood why Lydia had darted away.

"Hi," Stiles greeted.

"Hi," I responded.

For a moment, he just stood there. As much as I wanted to find this awkward, I had gotten used to his nervous demeanor. However, the underlying factor of everything that had happened up until this moment made it a bit more unbearable than usual.

"I-I think we need to talk."

My eyes widened and my eyebrows shot up nearly to my hairline. "Wha-right now?" I mumbled, the words falling out of my mouth like marbles.

"If this is the only time of normal, alone time we get to have then, yes, it needs to be right now." Stiles insisted, nodding his head frantically and then wringing his hands together in front of him.

"Stiles, I really don't think-"

"I know you don't but-" Stiles stopped and then took a deep breath, clapping his hands to his sides. "I'm drowning here, Tessa. You-You keep pushing me away and I keep wondering what is going on inside that manic head of yours. It's driving me nuts."

I clenched my jaw tightly and had to turn my cheek, staring at a poster on a wall outside of the ice skating rink. I shivered slightly as if the coldness of the arena was really starting to get to me but I knew exactly why.

"I don't know what to say to you." I finally responded, my voice paper thin as I looked back at him. I wrapped my arms around myself to provide some support. "If-If I could, I would and-"

"I get it." Stiles cut me off, but he wasn't bitter. His voice was smooth and soft, understanding at most. I could feel my heart seemed to clench tightly and I tried to keep my composure. "You haven't exactly been the most open about your feelings. So, I figured I should've this kind of response."

"Stiles, I'm sorry." I breathed out and went to move closer towards him but he held out a hand.

"It's cool. Don't worry about it." Stiles responded with a curt nod and began to back away.

I felt the panic starting to creep in and as soon as I opened my mouth to say more, a scream suddenly tore through the room like a million bullets from a firing squad. The sound made me gasp and jump, nearly slipping on the ice. My eyes darted around the room to find the source of it and once I had, I was racing.

"Lydia!"

Scott and Allison came running from another direction as I skidded to a stop in front of the girl. Stiles was close on my tail. I got down to my knees and grabbed Lydia by the shoulders, her arm latching around me tightly as she the scream died down into a desperate sob. I looked around hopelessly at my friends who looked just as horrified as I was. Lydia was still moving violently in my arms, her free hand clawing at the a spot on the ice.

Confused, I bent over to look and my eyes widened.

Peter.

A sharp ray of light pierced my eyelids, turning them a bright shade of red that made me stir much to my dismay. I inhaled deeply through my nose and then raised a tired hand to shade myself from the sun. I carefully blinked my eyes open and then noticed that my surroundings were much different from my bedroom. My brain quickly remembered where I was.

Lydia's room.

After the ice rink, she had insisted I spend the night. Once I had calmed her down, we had all agreed that we were finished at the ice rink. I had refused to even think about asking her why she had freaked out and so had the rest of us. We all knew Lydia would make up some excuse like she had been since she had been found in the woods and brush if off as if it were nothing. Allison had dropped us both off at her house and she had explained that I needed to spend the night because we "hadn't had proper girl time in a while". I met her with no argument and a text to Andre explaining the situation.

I sat up in Lydia's bed, locks of mangled hair falling in front of my face. I wasn't surprised to see her sitting at her vanity, brushing through her own hair. She looked at me through her mirror and then turned around.

"You're up before the alarm." Lydia noticed, eyeing me up and down. "Are you feeling well?"

"Ha ha." I deadpanned, rolling my eyes and then pulling the blanket off of my legs. In typical Lydia fashion, she was still sassing me before nine o'clock in the morning even though she had freaked out at the ice rink the night before. Yet, when I looked at her, I saw dark rings beneath her eyes that I knew she would cover with concealer.

"So, are we-"

"What's going on with you?" I suddenly asked, unable to even stop myself from doing so. I felt like I had given her a free pass last night but this morning was going to be a new story. I was worried about my friend and the fact that we had barely spoken about what happened was nagging at my concious. It was a disservice as a friend to not look out for her.

"What do you mean?" Lydia asked, narrowing her gaze at me. "Nothing is going on with me."

I shook my head and kept the serious look at my features. "I won't do this with you." I told her, swallowing hard. "And I will not ask again. You heard me the first time."

Lydia weighed her options in her head and I could see the gears moving. Her hand tightened around her hairbrush before she swallowed, turning to set the brush gently down on her vanity. Inhaling deeply through her nose, she darted her tongue across her lips and then laid her hands in her lap.

"I...I don't know." She finally admitted, her eyes avoiding mine as she focused on a spot on her bedroom floor. "Ever since I-I woke up in the hospital, weird things have been happening and I don't know what they mean."

"What weird things?" I inquired gently, careful not to test my limits. This was already more than i had hoped for.

"I-I don't know. Just things." Lydia answered, shaking her head. "But...they scare me, Tessa."

I felt my chest pang with sadness at the tone of her voice. I had never seen Lydia so worn out before and the vulnerable side of her was not something I enjoyed. Another part of me was horrified, knowing what I had seen in the ice. Had Lydia seen Peter, too? If so, did that mean something was going on with the bite that we didn't know about? It had healed, but did that mean it hadn't left some lasting effects on Lydia?

If Lydia was seeing Peter after being bitten, what did that mean for my own visions?

Shit.

A/N: AAAAAAAND SCENE! Wow, I updated quickly again. Woot! Go me. Anyways, I will finish up this episode at the beginning of the next chapter and then we will get into episode four. Thank ya'll so much for reading and make sure you leave a review! I love them so, so, so much.

Laura