Authors Note: HEYO! XD Please tell me what you think; I would love to know XD I own nothing and no one, apart from the following: Sam Campbell, Charlie Jones, Zane, Chase, Ben and Mia.
JUST SO YOU KNOW: like everyone else, I have no idea what Stiles' real name is, so I'm going along with what everyone else puts :) and I've made his middle name up XD
Please, please review XD
P.S. I've been really busy with college, so I won't update as regularly as I used to. It's going to be work-work-work, so bear with me, please :)
You guys are all so amazing and I love you all! In a non-creepy non-psycho kind of way XD
Remember – you are all beautiful in your each individual ways ^_^
Chapter 41
Stiles
Sam and I had worked hard on our project, and we were almost finished. We had to hand it in on Monday and, compared to other people in our class, we were in a really good position. There was only a little bit left to do, so we decided to leave it for over the weekend – give ourselves a rest.
Even though I went into this very doubtful on how it was going to turn out, I had to admit that Sam and I made a very good team.
Anyway, so, Friday afternoon I was standing in the parking lot with the Pack, all of us waiting for Derek and, possibly, Peter to turn up – some cars weren't working yet again. It was fine though, because we just entertained ourselves with confusing Scott...
It was more fun than you thought.
As we waited, I had turned to see Sam walking out of the building. She was definitely looking better than the night before. Charlie had, actually, gotten to the house as soon as I had got there with Sam, the blonde sprinting over her as soon as she was out of the car. It was easy to tell that, even though she was only gone for – around – twenty four hours, it seemed like Charlie had been just as affected as Sam...
Anyway. It was easy to spot all the disgusted glares that Sam was getting, as well as the blatant avoidance but, as always, Sam just didn't give a damn. I hated the fact that the Pack, my own friends, were looking at her in the exact same way, as if she had just murdered a litter of puppies.
I mean, I should be the last person to trust anyone, especially after such a short amount of time, but Sam – and Charlie – was definitely different. There was something about the two of them, something I just couldn't quite pinpoint, but it made them different from the others.
As Sam rolled her eyes at the very vulgar thing one of her classmates – I assumed – said, she spotted the Pack and me. Immediately she was waving, looking so enthusiastic... It was quite funny, considering how small she was. The blonde jogged over, keeping a tight hold of her bag so it wouldn't slip, a wide smile on her face.
She jumped to a stop in front of me, babbling about something to do with movies and hanging out... She was speaking so fast that I couldn't actually put what she was talking about into context.
"Sam, slow down! I can't understand you." I laughed, gripping her shoulders to keep her still. "Start from the beginning and remember to breathe."
"I was wondering if maybe you would want to go to the movies with me." She tried again. "I'll totally pay."
Now, while I liked Sam and everything, I still wasn't ready to hang out with her alone. I mean, I know it's a weird thing to say, even after the whole issue with Charlie's family... But I just didn't know if I was ready with one-on-one with Sam at that moment.
Of course, before I could come up with something to say, Derek and Peter were suddenly in front of me – I hadn't even realised that they had turned up. It was like they were separating me from Sam, as if she was the supernatural beastie and I was the human...
Huh, that sounds strange...
I heard one of them mutter how we already had plans – lie – as Sam took a subconscious step back, trying not to looks as disappointed as she felt. I stepped to the right, so the two Hales stopped hiding me, rolling my eyes at the pair of them.
I swear, ever since we realised our history, they had become far more protective.
"You guys can join us!" Sam grinned, perking up again. "I can bring Charlie and the girls can go see come chick flick – she's always dragging me to see them – and we guys can go see something cool. I'll even pay!"
I could see that some were thinking about it – just because Sam said she'd pay – but Derek seemed to be absolutely set on 'no'. Of course, he'd probably add something to that 'no' that would make Sam avoid me forever, and it was quite nice having a friend outside the Hale Pack. So, quickly, I got in between Derek and Sam, giving the Alpha wolf a hard look.
"Text me a time to meet you two and I'll see if I can make these sourpusses agree." I told her, gesturing over my shoulder.
"Will do." she saluted, heading towards Charlie's car. "Laters, Stilino!"
"You bet, Samster!"
Now, you can probably tell that the Pack didn't really fancy going to the movies with Sam and Charlie. You can probably guess just how much they complained and whined and glared.
I didn't pay much attention to it, choosing instead to drop my backpack next to the couch, whilst I sprawled along it, trying to get comfortable as I waited to Sam to text. I could hear everyone saying my name, getting increasingly annoyed that I wasn't listening to their bitching. It was, actually, very entertaining.
Of course, after a while, they could tell that I was just doing it to piss them off... But, because I knew this, I completely expected it when Scott, Isaac and Jackson all piled on top of me, dragging me down to the floor. Well, when I say completely expected it, I meant that I knew at least two of them were going to do something that involved physical contact. So, you know, I was right in my own way.
"We're not going to the movies with her." Scott grumbled, sitting up as murmurs of agreement came from the other members of the Pack.
Sighing, I closed my eyes, letting my head hit against the floor with a solid thud – it didn't hurt so much, considering how many times my head had been bounced off of hard surfaces...
"Look, I lo–, care for you guys." I told them, quickly changing my original word choice. "And I like Sam and Charlie. Can't you do this for me? Please? You might actually start to like them."
"But we don't know them." Jackson muttered.
"What better way to get to know them then by hanging out with them! Come on; don't make me be a third-wheel."
"But–"
"Please."
For the first time in a long time, I pulled out my extreme puppy eyes. I had this talent, one I discovered when I was really young – I could make myself cry on demand. It was brilliant back then. I hadn't used that talent in almost a decade, but I knew I could still do it.
So, biting my lower lip a little, tilting my head down slightly, eyes widening and welling up, I stared right at my housemates, hoping that it would set off some sort of guilt within them.
Which it did.
Almost immediately, they seemed to panic, quickly repeating over and over how they would go. I had to bite my lip harder to stop from grinning and giving away my little secret, instead sniffling a little to keep up the act.
"And you'll actually try to get along with them?" I asked, trying to sound as timid as possible.
They agreed so quickly that it startled a little laugh out of me. But I managed to keep the act up.
Before anyone could say anything, my phone vibrated in my pocket
Friday, April 25th 2014 – 2:58pm – Sam: Yo! 6 ok for you guys? We can grab a bite to eat before/after.
Friday, April 25th 2014 – 2:58pm – Stiles: Sounds good! See you then.
Reluctantly, but not whining, the Pack followed me towards the movie theatre as soon as we were out of the cars. They dragged their feet as we walked, yet none of them tried to turn back. Honestly, they were a bunch of kids!
Charlie and Sam were waiting just outside of the theatre, just like Sam had told me, standing hand in hand. It just looked so funny, their height difference – I mean, Sam was just so small, and Charlie was at least a foot taller than her.
"You actually got them to agree?" Sam laughed as we got closer.
"Of course I did, Samster. I'm amazing." I winked.
"Samster?" Charlie frowned, saying the nickname I gave her girlfriend slowly.
Shrugging, I grinned as I Sam rolled her eyes, already knowing what I was going to say.
"I went to call her a hamster the other day, but it came out as Samster." I chuckled.
"Why a hamster though?!" Sam demanded for, what felt like, the hundredth time.
"Because you're so cute and fluffy and–"
"NO! I am evil, ok?! I'm not cute!"
Before Sam could start to rant, Charlie cut her off, saying how Sam would be sleeping on the couch if she kept arguing... I swear, Charlie was now my go to person to get Sam to agree with me – yes, I'm a bad person; it keeps me awake at night.
As Sam glared slightly, with a small smile on her face, she turned to everyone else and said that we should pick the movies already.
Surprisingly, the girls chose quickly – they all wanted to see 10 Rules for Sleeping Around – the rest of us, on the other hand...well, it was a little harder for us. Some wanted to see Haunt, some wanted to see Special ID, and some wanted to see Locker 13. Yet, somehow, in the end, we decided on Skinless.
Skinless was supposed to be a horror movie, but I couldn't help but wonder if it was going to be one of those overly cheesy, tongue-in-cheek movies. But, hey, why not? It could be a good laugh.
Sam handed Charlie the money for the tickets, the red head walking to the back of the line as the rest of us waited. I could see that the others were a little confused, but as they looked around and saw the disgusted looks that Sam – and me – were getting, they understood pretty clearly.
I stepped a little closer to Sam – you could never tell what someone would do – just in case... I mean, she was my friend – I didn't let anyone hurt my friends.
The line moved quickly, everyone being in a group of a minimum of two and a maximum of six – we were the biggest group. Everything was going fine, nothing out of the ordinary... That was, until the guy in front of Charlie went to buy his tickets. The guy was, easily, in his early thirties, worked a nine to five job for minimum wage...but just because his life wasn't what he wanted it to be and he was in a bad mood, gave him no reason to be yelling at the ticket guy.
He was talking to fast that it was quite difficult to pick out everything he was saying, often slipping into another language – Italian, I noted. The poor guy behind the counter was trying his hardest to calm the guy down, trying to explain the issue – whatever it was – it looked as if he was about to have a complete breakdown right there and then.
I didn't notice that Sam had moved until she was jumping over the counter, grabbed a spare apron and turned with the fakest smile I had ever seen her use.
"Good evening, sir." she said, lightly. "I'm the manager and I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
"I will not–" the guy started to yell.
"Sir, leave or I call the cops on you for harassing my employee."
With a glare that was nowhere near as effective as Derek's, the guy turned on his heels and stormed away, cursing in Italian as he went. Then, just as quickly as she had gotten behind the counter, Sam took off the apron, jumped back over and made her way back over to where I was standing.
"God, some people really need to learn how to behave in public." Sam sighed, not able to keep a grin on her face.
In the movie, we all sat in a group, not a line like you'd expect. We grabbed the two back rows – Sam sat by the wall, I sat next to her, with Derek, Peter and Scott taking the rest of the row; Jackson, Boyd, Danny and Isaac took the row in front of us.
As it played, Sam ended up pointing out loads of flaws in the movie – bad lighting, possible line mess ups, how fake the blood was and things like that. It took all I had not to start laughing and disturb everyone in the theatre, trying to keep myself quite by eating popcorn. But Sam kept talking and making it increasingly difficult for me to keep myself from laughing.
Of course, it wasn't just what Sam said that made it difficult not to chuckle. I mean, she also joined me in throwing popcorn into Isaac's hair, seeing if he would notice. It was extremely hard when a handful of popcorn bounced off of Isaac and landed on Danny, the Hawaiian turning around with an amused glare. I swear, my stomach hadn't hurt in a good way in such a long time. Isaac didn't even realise that his hair was serving as a bowl to the popcorn that had been thrown at him, not until Danny started removing it from his hair.
This night was turning out to be far better than I had expected!
As Sam and I started to calm down a loud, shrill scream came from the movie – the one that I had completely forgotten was playing at that moment – pretty much scaring me half to death. The sound echoed through theatre and I hadn't even realised that I was clinging to Derek, hiding my face in his shoulder, until my heartbeat had started to drop, taking in his scent.
For some reason, his scent calmed me. I suppose it was because it was familiar, but it felt like it was more than that...
"Sorry." I whispered, quickly letting go of him and starting to move back.
As quickly as I had let go, Derek had gotten his arm around my shoulders, moving the armrest between us out of the way. The unexpected move caused me to tense up a little bit, but as soon as his hand enclosed over my arm and his scent started to fill my senses again, what little tension there was drifted away.
"It's fine." Derek whispered back.
I couldn't explain why I started smiling, nor could I explain why I felt the need to burrow closer to the Alpha wolf sitting next to me in the darkened movie theatre. It felt nice though – don't get used to it, I reminded myself, nothing can happen.
But I didn't think about that. I just sat back and watched the rest of the movie.
"I totally ship it." Sam muttered, knowing full well that she said it loud enough that the two of us were the only ones that could hear it.
I will forever, until hell freezes over, deny that I blushed.
We were finished with our movie before the girls were – Skinless was eighty minutes long, whilst 10 Rules for Sleeping Around was ninety four minutes long. As we waited for the girls to finish their movie, the rest of us sat on a group of chairs in the lobby, casually discussing movies that had captured our attention.
As it got to me, I mentioned these two movies that I had stumbled across – Truth and Shelter. I had been researching movies online, so I could listen to the music, see how it was made up. Those two movies popped up, they interested me, so I watched the trailers. Surprisingly, both movies were about gay guys. It didn't make a difference to me if the characters were gay, straight, bi, asexual, pansexual, whatever...but you didn't see many movies about gay guys – well, I didn't anyway.
"Typical guy, thinking about sex." Sam sighed, rolling her eyes. "No offence."
"Oh, like you wouldn't be interested if it was two chicks?" I teased, nudging her slightly.
"Touché, my friend."
Our conversations went on like that – everyone talking, Sam making a comment, me teasing her... It was a lot of fun, better than I thought it would be, if I was being honest. I could actually see that the Pack was trying to be civil, for my sake obviously, but at least they were trying.
It didn't take long for the girls to appear, the four of them giggling as they walked out of the theatre, making their way over to the rest of us.
"We need to do this more often." Charlie grinned, sliding onto the arm of Sam's chair.
"Sounds like a great idea." I agreed, glancing quickly at the rest of the Pack, hoping they didn't say anything.
"You know what else is a great idea? Dinner." Jackson nodded. "I vote we go get some."
"There's this great diner just down the street." Sam suggested.
Charlie had then mentioned the burgers and curly fries there and, I swear, everyone else agreed just because they knew I would stop at nothing until we went there. I found it funny how these people that I had only met and started living with back in September knew me better than anyone, and they knew how I would react to...well, almost anything.
It was a really nice feeling.
So we walked out of the theatre and started to walk down the street. Surprisingly, it was quite quiet on the streets for a Friday night. I mean, you assume that loads of people would be out and about on a Friday night, but apparently not tonight.
It was nice out, thankfully, so we all walked a little slower, talking as we made our way to the diner. Everything was going great – until someone came right up to Sam. Immediately, understandably, everyone was on edge – I mean, some random guy walks up to someone in your group...you're bound to be creeped out.
"Sammy!" the creep beamed, sniffing and looking around wearily. "What's been shaking?"
Sam took a step back, moving further towards Charlie, gripping her hand to calm down a little.
"Who are you?" she asked, warily.
"Ah, come on, you know me! Say, you got anythin'?" he coughed, twitching slightly, nervously glancing around.
"What?"
"Do you have anythin'?!"
Drugs. He meant drugs. It was permanently mixed into his scent, making me light headed and sick. I hated that smell; I've always hated that smell... It was the smell I had to put up with when I was around Zane and I thought I had gotten away from that. Just like Sam moved closer to Charlie, I stepped a little closer to Derek, trying to drown out the scent of drugs with something far more pleasant.
"I don't do that anymore, leave me alone." Sam spat, dragging Charlie away as quickly as she could.
The rest of us followed behind her – Derek made sure to scare the guy off first – keeping a small distance as Charlie tried to calm Sam down, telling her that everything was ok. It was better to give those two a bit of space; it was usually the best thing to do. Besides, I very much doubt they would want us crowding around.
Now, getting to the diner, Sam was calmer; we noticed that we could get our order to go – it was a new diner. So, deciding to get it to go and go back to the house, we placed our order and waited for it to be handed to us. We kept away from the topic of what happened a few minutes ago, talking about safer things, like the movies we had just see.
Sam was starting to relax a little, but as soon as she hid behind Peter, we knew something was about to go wrong again. This time, it was some greasy, creepy, sleazy, forty year old guy that slid up right next to Sam, leaving only a little bit of distance that even made me feel uncomfortable.
"Hey, Chick. What's up?" he grinned, showing off yellow-ish teeth.
Sam just nodded, keeping a calm outer shell, whilst her heart was thrumming inside her chest.
"Still need some extra cash, Doll?" he winked, looking her up and down.
I think everyone was about to throw up and wanted to do some serious bodily harm to this guy, just out of principle. Of course, Charlie took that off the table as she stepped in front of the slime ball.
"No, she doesn't." Charlie growled. "Now, unless you want me to call the cops and taser you in the balls, leave.
Suffice to say, that was enough to send the old creep running.
Thankfully, it wasn't long after that that our food came out – Charlie and Sam thought it best that they just got home...we didn't argue, thinking that it might make Sam a lot more comfortable.
Getting back to the house, the first thing any of us did were got get changed into pyjamas and grab blankets and pillows and duvets for a puppy pile. It was something that we all just knew was going to happen tonight, no need to ask.
We arranged it how we always did, got into the exact same places as we always did, turned the TV onto some random channel and just sat down to eat.
Before I even touched my food, I sent a quick text to Sam:
Friday, April 25th 2014 – 8:05pm – Stiles: Hey, Samster! We had a great time, have to do it again. Hope you're alright, dude – see you tomorrow.
Only after I put my phone down did I let myself lean back, eat, and just enjoy the company of the first friends I had found in this town.
"Do you guys realise that I've been living here for seven months and four days?" I asked, staring down at the box with my burger and curly fries. "I mean, it feels longer than that."
"That's because you fit so well." Erica smiled.
"You're one of us." Lydia added, nodding.
"One of us, one of us." Boyd and Jackson chanted quietly.
Grinning, I ran a hand through my hair – I did prefer it with a little length, instead of buzzed.
"I really don't know where I'd be without you guys." I told them. "Ok, actually, no, lie. I would, most likely, be alone and dead somewhere because I would have finally killed myself, or Zane would have found and killed me."
Just like at the theatre, Derek dropped an arm around my shoulders, his hand closing around my arm.
"We would have found you before that happened." Derek said, matter-of-factually.
"You don't know that." I countered.
"Yes, I do. Now, shut up and eat."
Yeah, I was happy to have these guys. To be here. I finally found a reason – or should I say reasons to keep going.
The next day – Saturday, April 26th 2014, it was a horrible rainy day – Sam was acting like nothing happened. Like she hadn't been asked if she had any drugs or had been propositioned the night before.
No one mentioned it; we were fine with not mentioning it – as long as Sam was ok.
For once, the Pack had decided to join us in the living room, all of them sitting around and having their own conversations, sometimes watching us as we added a splash of colour here, a few pencil strokes there... That used to make me feel uncomfortable, self-conscious...now it just felt weird if they weren't watching me draw – I felt like I had come a long way in the seven months I had lived in the house.
Now, Sam and I had been working on the project for a few hours or so, just talking casually about things – Fandom things, because we somehow loved the same ones – to take our minds off of the depressing nature of our art project. Of course, it was as we were talking about the awesomeness of Doctor Who that she crossed a line.
"Hey, why is Nine mad at Ten?" she asked, trying not to smirk.
"Why?" I asked cautiously, glancing at her out of the corner of my eye.
"Because Ten lost Nine's Rose."
The others just seemed so lost and confused – I was, obviously, the biggest fan out of the eleven of us that lived in the house – wondering what the hell we were talking about. I, on the other hand, turned to Sam slowly, taking note of the impish grin on her face.
"I am going to kill you for breaking what little was left of my feels, you cruel person." I told her, shaking my head.
Sam just laughed – she had told me how great it was to finally be able to talk to someone, besides Charlie, about all things Fandom... I knew exactly what she meant. I was never able to talk to anyone about anything like that until I started getting comfortable with the Pack. It just felt so nice.
"I could tell you one about the Winchesters if you want." Sam smirked.
"You do and I will sell your soul to Crowley!" I snapped. "I can do it; he's a close personal friend of mine!"
"I've got Lucifer on my side!"
"I have Michael!"
"You won't win with that bag of dicks!"
"At least I'm not a Mud Monkey!"
Sam and I just started at each other, right in the eyes.
No one moved, no one blinked.
And then we just couldn't stop laughing.
It was one of those ridiculous moments where you just started laughing and you didn't know why. I mean, sure, our situation was kind of funny, but it wasn't like anyone else would start laughing with us.
It was wonderful to have a friend like Sam.
It only took a few moments for Sam and me to calm down and return to the project. I mean, we were so close to finishing – at the rate we were working at; it would be finished by tomorrow!
Despite the topic of the project, we were both proud of what we had achieved... And if we didn't get a high grade for it, I was going to be beyond pissed, because it was epic and no one else would have had an idea quite like this!
We were so focused on the work that I only just noticed Charlie walking into the living room – Sam, on the other hand, did not. I could see Charlie frowning at Sam, and it was only then that I saw how tense my friend was.
But then I caught a glimpse of something in Charlie's eyes. It was the same one Sam got when she was about to do something that she viewed as funny – like the Doctor Who joke. So I just sat back and waited to see what would happen.
"Babe? This is the guy you're replacing me with?" Charlie asked, dramatically, feigning heartbreak. "I'm so hurt!"
Sam stopped for a moment, glanced up at Charlie and then to me, a slow smile of understanding spreading across her face.
"Oh, yeah, totally." Sam laughed. "We've got matching rings."
It was hard not to notice that the Pack had started to get very protective of me, the scent coming off in waves from them. If they weren't careful, they were going to out their fury little secrets to Sam and Charlie...
"How could you leave me like this?! I love you!" Charlie cried – she was a remarkable actress!
"Sorry, Hon, I've fallen for the opposite gender." Sam sighed. "We're in love, as you can see."
It was hard not to laugh. I could feel my face turning red as I tried to keep it in, loving the Packs reaction as well as the improvised sketch going on between my new friends.
"Ow. Feeling the love." Charlie sniffed, pressing a hand to her chest.
Of course, that was when Sam decided that the game wasn't so much fun anymore – she loved Charlie too much – shoved the coffee table out of the way and jumped up. She strode right up to her girlfriend and – no lie – Sam went up on her tip-toes to kiss her – proof of how short she was!
The Pack, though looking confused, started to back down a little, and that did nothing to stop me from laughing. If anything, it's what pushed me over the edge. I was laughing so much that I actually toppled over and was laughing on the floor, clutching my stomach.
That was when Scott decided to jump on me. A few members of the Pack – mainly Scott, Isaac and Jackson – had taken to doing that...a lot. I didn't know why and it was all very sudden, but they had a habit of suddenly jumping on me – or sitting very close to me. It was quite strange, if I was being honest, but something felt familiar about it – I mean, it was something I used to do with my mom...
"Scott. Can't. Breathe." I gasped, still laughing.
As Scott rolled off of me – carefully – just grinning. Honestly, you wouldn't expect them to be so childish.
"Wait, wait, wait..." Sam said, slowly, looking directly at the brunette next to me. "Your name is Scott. Like, do people call you Scotty?"
Scott nodded, frowning slightly – he wasn't the only one confused at this. Sam didn't seem to think that she needed to explain, deciding to just beam and bounce on the balls of her feet, as Charlie laughed and placed a hand over her eyes.
"Wow, I think you've got a new best friend, Scott." Charlie giggled.
Now, Scott was about to ask what she meant but Sam didn't let him get that far.
"BEAM ME UP, SCOTTY!" she laughed, pointing towards the Beta next to me.
Suddenly it all just made a lot more sense.
Now, Isaac and I seemed to be the only ones that understood this – besides Charlie and Sam – yet none of us wanted to let the others in on the fun. I mean, the looks of confusion on their faces were just too much to pass up.
"Oh my God!" Sam yelled, spinning to face Derek and pointing towards him. "Spock!"
Understandably, that made Derek scowl, knowing that he was now being mocked – not that he knew how – whilst Charlie, Isaac and I were suddenly finding a little hard to breathe.
I didn't know this until Sam told me a little later but, apparently, the glare on Derek's face softened when he looked over at me, seeing me happy – just like how Charlie was with her... I told her she was being ridiculous, explaining the history to her – leaving out all the fury bits – but she refused to accept it. Instead, Sam decided to repeat her 'I ship it' from the cinema, causing Charlie to agree – she was in on the conversation – whilst Derek and the Pack just looked so confused, wondering why we were talking about ships...
I just hoped they never understood that meaning.
Sam and Charlie didn't leave right away – mainly because I decided to talk to the two of them and, you know, it was raining. But, after a few minutes Sam grabbed mine and Charlie's hands, grinning, the Pack following, quickly, behind us.
"Sam, what are you doing?" Charlie called over the rain as Sam ran towards the car.
Sam didn't reply so much with words, but she pressed play on the car's CD player and The Scientist by Coldplay was blaring out of the speakers. As soon as she had it up so loud that the song could be heard over the rain, Sam ran back to the porch, grabbed Charlie's hand again and started dancing with her in the rain.
It was kind of funny, watching Sam drag Charlie about in the rain, not even dancing in time to the song, just making it up to her own little beat.
"I thought you hate dancing and getting wet." Charlie grinned, pulling Sam to a stop.
"Well, for you, I'd do anything to see you smile." Sam replied, honestly, spinning Charlie before dropping down on one knee, digging a ring out of her pocket.
Yeah. That's right.
I knew Sam was a little bit more agitated today and she kept staring at her watch, but I never expected this to happen. I mean, wow. Even the Pack seemed amazed by this!
Charlie didn't notice what was going on until she stopped spinning, the grin on her face exchanged for one of pure shock, her eyes wide and her heart beating incredibly fast.
"Sam... What are you doing?" she asked, shakily, only just audible over the rain.
Taking a deep breath, I could see Sam trying to calm herself down, trying to gather up the courage to keep going. The whole time, the smile never left her face, just staring up at the girl she loved.
"Charlie Amelia Jones, you are the only person in my life that has loved me unconditionally. You're the only person that I've ever loved. You make me happy and...well, I dread to think where I would be without you." Sam yelled over the rain. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you, because I love you, Babe! Will you marry me?"
Charlie didn't exactly say 'yes' but, as they say, actions spoke louder than words. And, you know, the fact that she practically pounced on Sam, kissing her, well...that was a pretty big yes.
I think they would have quite happily stayed out in the rain, but when a flash of lightning cut through the sky, it broke the two out of their haze, grinning at each other. As Charlie ran back to the cover of the porch, Sam quickly shut off the car, slammed the door and locked it before running over to us.
As soon as Sam was under the porch, Charlie threw her arms around her neck, resting her chin on Sam's head – Sam, on the other hand, just moved her arms behind her, hugging Charlie like that.
"Right, we are getting you two back inside, you are going to dry off and warm up, we are going to celebrate this and I want no arguments." I told them, leaving no room for arguments. "I don't care what anyone says, but when I'm happy for my friends, I show them! Now come on, inside!"
Derek
Even though I didn't feel comfortable with Sam and Charlie – especially not Sam – in my house, I couldn't say no. Stiles just looked so happy and...well, he hadn't felt much of that emotion ever since his mom died.
Even though I wanted to, I just couldn't say no.
My wolf was content, seeing Stiles smiling, hearing him laugh...but he was still wary of the girls. I couldn't tell what it was that had me watching them so closely – I just knew there was something...off about the two of them. But Stiles was just so happy.
I had known for a while now that Stiles was my Mate. I had known when we were kids and he was still in Beacon Hills – not that I knew what it meant – and I had known ever since that first accidental kiss. I couldn't tell him though. After everything with Zane and Gabriel and Ben...I couldn't do that to him. Unless I knew he wanted it, I wasn't going to do anything about it. No matter how much it hurt.
As everything started up, Stiles kept Sam company as Charlie threw herself into helping out with the forced celebration – though I doubt she and Sam minded. I couldn't help but tune into the conversation the two were having.
"She said yes... I get to spend my whole life with this one amazing girl...I got her, Stiles, and I swear I'm never letting her go." I heard Sam tell Stileswhen Charlie was in the kitchen with the girls. "God I'm so happy. Really happy. None of that fake crap. She makes me happy. I don't even know how I got this lucky."
"I'm happy for you, Samster." Stiles grinned, nudging her slightly.
"The next proposal better make my ship sale."
"Oh my God, shut up!"
Gradually, after that – in the space of an hour – Stiles ended up getting drunk – I made sure to keep a close eye on him at that point. It was something that happened rarely, but it still worried me... Allison ended up letting go and getting a little tipsy – though she could – whilst Sam and Charlie didn't drink, like the rest of us. I was surprised that Sam hadn't opposed to there being alcohol like she had with Peter...though, I suppose it was easier on her with Charlie there.
The drunker Stiles got, the thinner his brain to mouth filter became. He didn't notice if something he said sounded suggestive or if he started to just ramble on about anything and everything. I supposed it could have been funny – it definitely seemed to be that way for everyone else – but I just couldn't get into that mind frame.
However, I couldn't help but laugh when Stiles said this one thing in particular...
Now, everyone had been sitting around, talking, the night starting to wind down after a couple of hours. Lydia had started to hit a pencil against the edge of the table, absentmindedly, not paying attention.
"LYDIA!" Stiles suddenly yelled. "HOW WOULD YOU LIKE IT IF I BANGED YOU AGAINST THE TABLE?!"
Honestly, he really needed to stop drinking so much.
Stiles
The next day, I refused to listen to anything they had to say about my being drunk the night before, not wanting to know what I had done – I already knew I had done something stupid and I didn't want to hear about it.
I made sure Sam and Charlie knew exactly that when we met up with them for lunch. It had been decided yesterday during the little celebration – it was the last thing I really remembered – so we all met up at the diner Sam had shown us – luckily, creepy guy wasn't there. Sam and I were working on the project after – the last day we needed for it – anyway, so why not?
I think the Pack were far more accepting this time because they could band up with Charlie and Sam, mocking me for the night before... Of course, I could tell that they were slowly getting used to them – they were all going to be the best of friends and I would shove it in their faces! No kidding, that is what I intended to do, because it was what they deserved for doubting me – sure, they had a reason to, I understood that, but Sam and Charlie were different!
We ordered quickly, all knowing what we liked and exactly what we would have, which gave us time to just sit back and talk. The Pack actually started asking Sam questions about herself, actually trying to get to know her – asking about music, movies, books; things like that. They didn't touch on home life – before Charlie, anyway... After everything with Isaac and me, it was understandable as to why – you never knew what you could be trying to pry into. It was obvious that Sam wasn't used to being asked all those things as she started to fidget – her ADHD just made that worse – and Charlie had to take her hand, a silent gesture that she was ok. I took her mind off of the questions by talking to her about the things we have in common, meaning the Pack got some answers whilst Sam stayed relatively calm until the food arrived.
It was nice, everyone getting along – no one making comment, no one whining, and no one growling. For the first time in a long time, I was surrounded by people I knew cared about me and were my friends. I didn't have to worry about being beaten... I know, I had said it before about the Pack, but I just felt the need to reiterate it in my head as I sat there with the Pack and my two newest friends.
The only thing that would have made it all better was if my mom was still alive and at the diner with us. And, you know, if my dad wasn't an asshole... And if Derek and Peter's family were still alive.
There were a lot of things that would have made it better.
There were a lot of things I wished could have been different.
But I couldn't allow myself to dwell on that – I would miss out on all of this if I did.
It was as we had started finishing that it happened.
There was a couple at the table behind us, attempting to whisper to each other – they were so shit at it that Allison could hear every word and she was at the other end of the table. They were saying how Sam was probably around just to drink all 'their' alcohol. How Sam was just Derek's cheap whore – the guy made it clear that "No, she had a fiancée. Though she's probably using her for drugs."
They were saying how Derek and Peter had decided to house a bunch of teenagers because they were paedophiles that got off on that – well, that's basically what they said. How Isaac probably loved it. How Allison's parents – "Oh, sorry, parent" – must have been so disappointed in her. How Scott was a little shit because he hadn't had a male authority figure since he was a kid, and that's why Derek and Peter 'targeted him'. How Erica and Boyd would have been 'better off in the foster system'. How Danny should just go back to Hawaii. How Lydia was such a smart girl, but was being dragged down by the 'monsters'. How Jackson used to be such a respected young man, but was now as much scum as the rest of us. How I was nothing but a murdering, junkie, sex fiend that was just – basically – a paid sex slave, so I could score some cocaine or whatever and get my fix. How Sam was no better than I was. How Charlie was some stupid bimbo, who was more of a slut that anyone they had ever met.
It was all lies, we knew that, but the words still hurt. But, as soon as they spoke about Charlie, Sam snapped.
Sam spun around in her chair – she was closest to the couple – with her fork in her hand, casually stabbing at their food and eating it. Her anger was coming off in waves – an anger that I had only ever sensed from my dad – and it terrified me.
Thankfully, I knew she wouldn't hurt any of us.
Charlie had stood up quickly, as soon as Sam had turned around, her fists clenched at her sides – suppose she wanted to be ready, just in case Sam got a bit too angry.
"Yum, your food it great." Sam snarled, throwing her fork down forcefully onto their table – I was surprised that no one else in the diner had noticed.
The couple stared wide eyed and startled at Sam, not moving and not speaking, their mouths moving up and down, soundlessly. But Sam didn't pause long enough to speak, even if they wanted to.
"First, your whispering sucks. Second, you have no fucking right to talk about the Hales like that – he's done nothing of what you're accusing him of and, let me just say, I'm so not into what he's packing." Sam growled, ticking off the points on her fingers. "Third, you can talk about me all you want. You can say the vilest things imaginable about me. But not them and especially not Charlie! She is the love of my life and, I know, I've done some shitty, messed up things to people – I slept with people for food and shelter, but that's how I was raised. I did it for survival! I did it so I could live! So, you know what? Fuck. You."
Sam hadn't realised that, during her tirade, Derek had managed to sneak off and pay – without drawing attention to what was going on – or that the rest of us were gathered behind her for moral support. She didn't realise until she turned around, grabbed Charlie's hand and stormed out of the diner as fast as she could.
The rest of us followed, leaving a short distance between us and them again, giving Charlie sometime to calm Sam down without their being an audience. We just followed at a normal pace, making sure everyone was alright as we walked.
As soon as the door to the diner closed behind us, we spotted Charlie and Sam by the cars – Charlie had Sam's face in both of her hands, telling her is was ok, that Sam was with her...generally just trying to calm her down.
Watching that and replaying what Sam had said, it got me wondering if she had lived in an abusive environment growing up... From the sounds of it, she must have, but I couldn't be sure – I didn't like assuming. I didn't want to ask, either – it was private and it wasn't like I wanted people to know about Zane, let alone my dad! But it still made me wonder...
As Charlie continued to calm Sam down, I turned to the Pack, seeing that many of them were drawing comfort from their Mate, whilst Derek and Peter drew comfort from each other.
"Those assholes don't know what they were talking about. They don't know you guys – or me – and they have no fucking clue. You are all awesome and I don't want any of you listening to a word they said because it was all a load of bullshit." I told them. "They're a stupid goldfish that have no understanding of what the world is really like, and they deem it necessary to make up shit about other peoples' lives. Don't give them the satisfaction of letting it affect you, because it's all lies!"
I fully expected the hugs that came my way after that.
Sam and I gave each other a couple of hours after the diner incident to collect ourselves and spend some time with the people we lived with. It was a good idea and definitely what needed to be done!
So, when she pulled up to the house in her blue Honda Civic – a temporary car until she got hold of the one she really wanted – both of us were a lot calmer than before.
We both threw ourselves into the work, needing it finished by tomorrow and we were so damn close! There were only a few things left to do! Everything was coming together brilliantly, our little collaboration tying together better than what either of us had hoped for. It was amazing.
The Pack kept walking over, looking over our shoulders and making comments on the sheer awesomeness – if I do say so myself – of the piece, offering up congratulations. Sam even started to relax a little!
It took two hours from the moment Sam arrived to complete the project, the pair of us just staring at the finished product of it. Both of us just stared, wide eyed, not really believing that, yes, it was finished. We just kind of turned to each other, grins slowly working their way onto our faces.
"Talk about finally!" Sam huffed, flopping back onto the floor.
"Tell me about it!" I laughed. "Damn, that felt longer than two weeks."
Sam just kind of hummed, something she didn't really do. Looking down at her, I wondered how I didn't see it. I mean, the girl looked so tired I couldn't believe she had managed to stay awake as we finished working!
"You ok there?" I asked, frowning slightly.
"Yeah, just a little tired." she mumbled, blinking owlishly, trying to stay awake.
"How long since you last slept?"
She didn't say anything. Just turned her head away and tried not to make eye contact.
Now that was a little worrying.
"Sam?" I asked, slowly.
"I'm fine." she said. "I've been up for a week – have, at least, three or four more days until I pass out. I've just been so busy."
Sighing a little, I jumped out and held out my hand to drag Sam up, managing to take her car keys from her.
"I'm taking you home." I told her, walking out the door and getting in the driver's seat before she could argue.
Now, it didn't take long to drive from the house to Sam and Charlie's place, especially now I knew the way there. We sat in a comfortable silence all the way there. I glanced towards the small blonde every now and then, sometimes catching her pulling down the sleeve of her jacket with a slightly pained expression on her face...
It didn't take me long to zero in on her scars.
I didn't mention it for the whole drive, instead deciding to just stay quiet for now. It was only as I got to her place, we both had stepped out of the car and I had handed her keys back that I said anything.
"Remember what you said to me at the gym? About my scars?" I asked her, carefully."
"Yeah." Sam nodded.
Squeezing her shoulder gently, I gave her an understanding smile.
"You should take your own advice." I told her, nodding towards her arm. "I'll see you Monday."
With that, I started the walk home, leaving Sam standing there, speechless.
Later – way after dinner, after most of the Pack had gone to bed – Derek and I were the only ones still downstairs. I didn't feel tired enough to go to bed and I didn't really feel like being in my room...
Having some company made it better too.
We had spent most of the time talking and watching crap TV but, as it started reaching midnight; neither Derek nor I could deny that we were kind of hungry. I had made to get up, to see what I could make, but Derek had pushed me back down, saying how he would make something for once, since it was always me.
Now, who was I to say no to someone cooking for me?
I followed of course, figuring I'd be far more entertained in the kitchen, lifting myself up to sit on the counter to watch as Sourwolf cooked. I watched as Derek moved around the kitchen, taking out bits and pieces from the cupboard and the fridge, silently walking around the spacious kitchen.
"You're making waffles?" I grinned.
"Yeah... You still like them?" Derek asked, hesitating slightly.
"Dude, it's waffles! Who doesn't like them?!"
Nodding slightly with a small smile – he could pretend to be all stoic if he wanted to, but I knew the truth – he continued to weigh the ingredients out, place them in the mixer, etcetera...
It was all good, being there in companionable silence as Derek prepared the batter. He was doing quite well, all things considered – I mean, he didn't have the best history when it came to cooking or making things...
Everything was going well... Until he whacked the electric mixer up as far as it could.
Now, anyone could tell you that that was a big no-no... Derek found this out very quickly as the cupboards and counter got covered in batter. I was just outside of the splash-zone, thankfully...Derek, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. He actually faced the worst of the attack.
Now, honestly, you can understand why I laughed. I mean, he was a human batter monster!
"Shut up." Derek growled – it sounded more like whining.
"No, y-you did well, considering." I snickered, stuttering as I tried not to cackle.
Jumping up, I walked closer, until I was standing in front of the batter covered Alpha wolf. I couldn't keep a smile off of my face, the Alpha wolf seeming to find it a little difficult himself.
I didn't know what possessed me to do it, but I reached up and swiped my finger through the batter on Derek's cheek, sticking it in my mouth and sucking the batter off.
"Yummy... See, this would have been much better cooked." I grinned. "Shove over, I'll help."
In the end, we managed to salvage the waffles – but I didn't notice the look Derek was giving me.
Art was last thing on Monday – April 28th – and, understandably, Sam and I were both nervous and excited about giving in our project. Ever since we started getting along, Sam had moved over to my table – that way we could talk as we worked.
Now, most people used that lesson to finish off their projects – the idiots seemed to leave a lot of it until the last minute – whilst Sam and I handed ours in... Of course, that meant we left the lesson early – considering we had nothing else to do.
As Sam and I walked out to the parking lot, neither of us mentioned how we could both tell that our artwork was inspired from personal experiences. We could both tell – especially after our teacher mentioned that there was so much emotion behind each and everything picture. But we didn't mention it. It was easier than having to explain...and, I suppose, we could both tell that the other didn't want to speak about it – at least, not yet.
For once, Sam and I went our separate ways – she was helping Charlie at the garage and was just going to have the rest of the day to themselves. I went straight to the house – after letting everyone know that I was leaving, I mean, I didn't want them panicking. Besides, if I didn't let Derek and Peter know, then...well, they would go into this full-on overprotective mode thing... It could get rather intense.
It didn't take long for me to get home – I liked that word a lot – the ride always seeming so much shorter now. I suppose it had something to do with me having something to look forward to when I got there – people that cared.
I jumped out of my Jeep as soon as I had switched off the engine, continuing to sing the song that had been playing as I pulled up – Rest of Us by Simple Plan.
"Here's to the rest of us, To all the ones that never felt they were good enough, I wanna hear it for the dazed and confused, The freaks and the losers, Let's put 'em up, Let's put 'em up-up-up." I sang, shutting the door to my Jeep and locking it.
It was a nice song, one of the songs that I could – I guess you could say – identify with. I liked it, had a good beat, good lyrics. And, you know, I suppose the band members good be classified as good looking – in their own way... Weren't really my type, to be honest.
"Here's to the rest of us, We do it better than the rich and the fabulous, I wanna hear it for the nothing to lose, With something to prove, Let's put 'em up, Here's to the rest of us." I continued to hum, starting to walk up to the house.
"The lost, the geeks, the rejects, the losers, The wrong, the freaks, the hopeless, the future, The lost, the geeks, the rejects, the losers, The wrong, the freaks, the hopeless, the future, The rest of us." I finished, closing the door as I ended the last note.
Before I did anything else, I jogged up the stairs, to my room, placing my backpack by my desk, kicking off my shoes, chucking my jacket off and changing my shirt – it was rather warm and my shirt had been sticking to my scars, so I changed it for one of the baggier superhero shirts that Derek had bought me.
I grinned slightly, remembering that particular shopping trip back in September... It honestly felt like I had been living in the house with all of them a lot longer than I actually had been, and I wondered when and how I had gotten so relaxed with them all.
Not that I was complaining! God no! I loved being able to relax for once. I was just...curious.
With that thought in my head, I ran back down the stairs, skidding on the tiled floor of the kitchen in my socks, stopping in front of the fridge, grabbing a can of soda. I felt like I needed the sugar – though everyone in the house, plus Charlie and Sam, would say I didn't need it...
It was only as I took a drink that I heard the voices.
I heard Derek's and Peter's, but that wasn't what was strange. There was a female voice. A female voice that I didn't recognize.
Cautiously, I walked towards and into the living room, standing in the doorway for a quick escape – if need be. Looking into the room, I immediately didn't like what I saw. This chick was sitting so close to Derek that she may as well had been in his lap, touching him whatever chance she got, twirling her hair around her left index finger.
Inside my head, my wolf growled, my fox yapping distastefully. Neither of them liked the look of her, neither did I. Neither of us liked that she was flirting with Derek, either – I really did not liking this situation.
Of course, my, let's call us, discomfort at the situation, alerted the three of them to me being there, all of them turning around. Whilst Derek and Peter smiled slightly, the bitch just glared, looking at me in disgust – not that she let the two Hales see that.
"Stiles, this is Mia." Derek said, gesturing to the – at least – twenty four year old next to him. "She's the Alpha of the Pack in North Dakota."
Mia was, pretty much, a slut. Some people had gay-dar; I had slut-dar... Ok, not a thing, but still! She had long, black hair that reached the small of her back; she was mixed race so her skin was this gorgeous colour, no freckles or moles or anything, perfect skin – bitch; her eyes were this dark chocolate brown, to the point where they looked black... She was rather large in the chest area – not like Erica, but larger than most – her lips this shocking shade of pink. Her long nails had been filed into a point to look almost like claws. She had a skinny waist, accentuated by this God awful – in my opinion anyway, but others would have a different opinion...it could just be because I hated her already – pink dress. It was obvious that she was trying to make herself look like this innocent little girl, which, hello, was not working!
I hated people like her and, hopefully, she would be gone in an hour or two.
"She'll be staying with us for a few days." Peter added.
Oh, hell no!
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