Chapter 10: Ahead of the Pack

It wasn't a good time to have best friends. Melanie tried relentlessly to get Erica to talk to her but she got radio silence for the past two days. She tried showing up at Erica's house to drive her to school only to be told by Mrs. Reyes that Erica wasn't feeling well enough to attend. She tried calling and leaving messages and sending texts but got nothing back. She even had her mom send Erica her favorite flowers—daisies—and still nothing.

She was happy to see that Stiles and Scott were still on the outs and felt bad about being happy about it at the same time. But misery loved company. She was misery and Stiles was her company. They spent their free periods together, mainly so Stiles could dodge Scott, but lunch was when it became unbearable. Even if she was bothered by Scott abandoning them in a sense she tried to keep a conversation going hoping that Stiles would jump in and they could fix things but he stayed quiet. Even when Melanie asked about Derek teaching him how to become a better werewolf Stiles didn't take the bait.

Lacrosse practice was worse. Scott had been placed in goal and Stiles was taking every chance he could get to hit Scott with a lacrosse ball. Scott had apologized time and time again about not being around and for Sheriff Stilinski getting hit by a car but Stiles still sat around with his lips pulled back and a glare embedded on his face.

With those two fighting still she knew it wouldn't be a good time to bring up the idea that she wanted to talk to Derek about her dreams. Stiles still wasn't fond of the boy nor did he trust him but Melanie thought that he had to know something about why she was dreaming of the Alpha. The dreams couldn't have been precognitive, she didn't suddenly grow a fin or wings overnight but they had to mean something. Especially if the Alpha to be in her own neighborhood.

She had finally made up her mind and decided to ask about her idea when the ball rang to signal the end of class. Thankfully she was in the right place at the right time when she spotted Stiles and Scott coming out from a side door. Quickly closing her locker and replacing the lock, she clutched her books to her chest and raced after them.

"He wants you to tap into your animal side and get angry?" Stiles was asking. Scott nodded. "Alright, well correct me if I'm wrong but every time you do that you try to kill someone, namely me."

"Oh my god, have you two still not learned to whisper? You're in the halls!" Melanie said, elbowing her way between Stiles and Scott.

"Sorry," Stiles and Scott replied in unison.

"So have you two made up yet?" she asked. Scott and Stiles looked at each other over their heads. She shook her hers. Boys. "Never mind. What are you talking about?"

"Derek wants to teach Scott how to control his shifting," Stiles replied.

"How's he gonna do that?" Melanie asked, her nose wrinkling.

"I don't know," Scott replied. "I don't think he does either."

"When are you seeing him again?" Stiles asked.

"He told me not to talk about it. Just act normal and get through the rest of the day."

"When?" Stiles stressed, stopping them from walking.

"He's picking me up at the Animal Clinic after work," Scott said.

"After work," Stiles replied. "Alright, well that gives me to the end of the school day then."

"To do what?" Melanie and Scott asked in unison. She didn't like the tone he used or the look on his face.

"To teach him myself," Stiles said.

Melanie laughed. Stiles and Scott looked at her and the expressions on their faces made her laugh even harder. She doubled over, holding her stomach as her chest expanded and contracted due to her breathing. Finally she got herself under control and said in a high pitched voice, "I'm sorry, you just said something really funny. Stiles, come on. How in the world are you going to teach him?"

Stiles licked his lower lip. He was clearly affronted by Melanie's attitude towards his plan. "You don't think I can do it?" he asked.

"I don't think you know what you're up against," she replied. She lowered her voice, looked around, and said, "He's a werewolf, not a puppy. Someone who's been there could probably do a better job. Any sort of humanity in him goes out the window when the animal side kicks in. How are you going to protect yourself if something goes wrong?"

"I'm not going to hurt him," Scott jumped in.

"So you say." She rubbed the side of her head. "I don't mean to be a Negative Nancy but I'm just saying there's a difference between what we read in books and the real thing. Even my knowledge about them is limited."

"Well see, that's the difference between you and me," Stiles said, "you give up when the information you get runs dry. I can think outside the box." He paused. "Give me until after lunch and I can come up with something."

"Five bucks you're in over your head," Melanie shot back.

"Deal." Stiles held out his hand and slapped her palm.

"Guys! I can't believe you're betting on me," Scott said, appalled.

"My pride is on the line," Stiles told him.

"Yeah and apparently it has a cheap price," Melanie said with a teasing smile, pressing her elbow into her side. She lifted her head as the lunch bell rang. "Okay guys, I'll see you after lunch." Scott reached out and grabbed the top of her backpack. She jogged in place, trying to get out of his grip and then finally stopped to look back at him. "Why aren't I going anywhere?" she asked.

"I need you to do me a favor," Scott replied.

"Scott, as much as I want to, I'm not a licensed cosmetologist so I can't give you a haircut," Melanie replied. She giggled when Scott's eyebrows lowered and he ran his hands through his hair. He paused and then shook his head.

"No, not that," he said. "I kinda have to stay away from Allison." Melanie snorted. Scott sighed. "Derek's orders. But I can't sit with her at lunch so…I need you to distract her."

"That's what Lydia's for," Melanie pointed out, turning to walk away. Scott grabbed onto her backpack again.

"Please," he begged. "Just…talk to her about something. I've been dodging her all day, she'll want to try and sit with me. Talk to her about girl stuff. Makeup…clothes…boys! Only…only not me."

Melanie scoffed. "You have a very skewed view on girls if you think that's all we have to talk about," she pointed out.

"Melanie, please!"

"Okay!" she cried out, throwing her arms into the air. "Okay, fine, I'll sit with her. But you owe me!" Boy, would he owe her. Somehow he forgot that she and Lydia ate lunch together all the time ad she and Lydia had as many things in common as cats and elephants. What in the world would they be able to talk about? She didn't now but whatever it was she knew it would have to last at least an hour.

She groaned. An hour eating lunch with Lydia. What fun. Sighing, she followed the mass of students to the cafeteria and looked around. It was only when she stood in line and spotted the two girls talking that she remembered she had promised to sit with Isaac that day. She didn't want to eat lunch alone in the music room again and he had offered to keep her company. She twisted her mouth to the side as she pulled out her phone to send him a text. She knew he would understand but it didn't stop her stomach from sinking and disappointment and regret from washing over her.

Mel: There's a bit of a change of plans. Sitting with Allison and Lydia today.

She bit her thumbnail as the text was sent off. She peered through a few heads over to a round table that Isaac had been sitting at. It looked uncomfortable for him. He had to scrunch his tall frame down at a low table. His long legs were curled in awkwardly beneath his chair. She bit down harder when he reached for his phone. He checked the screen, lightly grabbed at his hair, and then tapped his thumbs against his phone before setting it aside. Melanie jumped when her phone buzzed in her hand.

Isaac: Oh, okay. I'll see you later then. Rain check?

Melanie let out the breath she was holding and felt herself bounce on her toes in elation. Great! He still wanted to sit with her. Smile spreading across her face she shot back a quick reply and then turned to gather some food on her tray. It was nice not to have a friend mad at her.

She shuffled down the line, gathering any food that grabbed her eye (in a good way, she wanted to avoid the green-tinged meat even if it was just her eyes playing tricks on her) and then paid for it. Smiling her thanks at the worker, she grabbed her tray and made a beeline for Allison's and Lydia's table.

"Heyyy," she dragged out, garnering their attention, "is it alright if I sit here?" She nodded at the seat across from Allison.

"Oh, uhm," Allison stammered. She looked over at Lydia who looked at her nails. Allison turned back to Melanie and said with a dimpled-smile, "Sure, sit down."

"Thanks." Melanie rounded the table and pulled back the blue plastic chair. It scraped against the tile floor. She set her tray down and dropped into the chair, setting her books and bag down in the empty chair next to her. Curling her legs around the legs of the chair she scooted herself forward and looked up to see Allison and Lydia watching her. "So!" She clasped her hands together in her lap. "This is cozy." Lydia turned her attention back to the piece of meat on her fork and took a bite. Melanie nodded her head and looked over at Allison, noticing the large book propped up on her knee. "What are you reading?" she asked.

"Some book my Aunt Kate showed me," Allison replied. "I was telling Lydia about the Beast of Gevaudan." Melanie paused with her fork full of greenbeans halfway to her mouth. "You've heard of it?" Allison asked excitedly.

"…Kinda," Melanie replied, slowly. She remembered reading a little bit about the story in one of her supernatural books but it was nothing more than a few sentences. How did Allison have so much information on it?

"Listen to this," Allison continued. She cleared her throat and began reading. Melanie sat still and listened to every word as she recounted the story, ignoring Lydia's interruptions to mention that the story was 'boring'. But Melanie was captivated. She didn't dare to breathe, wanting to catch every word that Allison spoke. Something about it rattled her deep in her bones. Something about it wasn't just a story for her ancestors. It was Lydia's dismissing comment about killing a big wolf that snapped her out of her trance-like state.

"Not just a big wolf. Take a look at this," Allison said while flipping some pages. Melanie had successfully taken a bite of her food when Allison turned the book around. She almost launched her chewed food across the table in her surprise when she looked at the picture. It was a big, shadowy wolf-like creature with red eyes.

The Alpha? Melanie's breath caught painfully in her throat. She grabbed her water bottle and chugged some of it, noticing the looks that Allison and Lydia were giving her out of the corner of her eye. "Sorry–thought I was choking!" she explained once she swallowed and resealed the cap.

Lydia's eyes narrowed. "If you were choking—"

"Hey! So!" Melanie interrupted her. "What did that look like to you?"

Lydia looked at the picture again. Melanie lowered her head to scoop more food into her mouth and looked up when Allison called Lydia's name. One of Melanie's eyebrows dropped at the sight of Lydia staring at the book. She stared so long Melanie was surprised her eyes didn't burn a hole through the book. She had to hide her sudden smile. That would be an interesting power indeed.

"Lydia," Allison called again.

Lydia's gaze on the book broke. Allison's mouth twitched with an unasked question. Lydia sat up straight, regained her composure, and said, "It looks like a big wolf." Her smirk-like smile replied to her face as she trilled "See you in history", gathered her things, and left the two girls at the table.

Allison closed the book and set it aside. "That was weird," she noted.

"Mhm, very," Melanie agreed, looking over her shoulder. She nearly fell out of her chair when she spotted Scott trying desperately to hide behind his textbook. That was his plan to avoid her? By using that book as a shield? She groaned and held her face. Boys!

"Are you alright?" Allison asked, noticing the sound that came out of Melanie's mouth and the way she was holding her face. "Do you feel sick? Do you need the nurse?" They weren't the best of friends but if Melanie was sick Allison wasn't against helping her there. She would hope that someone would do the same if she were in need.

"Me? No! I'm fine! I'm great! I'm good!" Melanie said, sitting straight up. "I was just…thinking about how I…how I…" C'mon Mel, think! Think! Her eyes roamed the room, avoiding Allison's concerned gaze, and then they rested on Isaac who was still eating by himself. That's it! "How I…meant to add something to my project on Greece before I turned it in. Would've tied it all together."

"Oh," Allison said simply. "Oh, well, I'm sure it's okay. You got an A on it, didn't you?"

"A+," Melanie corrected. She couldn't help it, she was proud of the work she and Isaac did on the project. It didn't even feel like a project to her, it was fun. Not only did she get a chance to learn more about Greek Mythology but she got to get to know Isaac from it too and she couldn't have asked for a better result from it. Now if only she could stop jumping onto his lap… "What about you?"

"Go a B," Allison replied. She tried to smile but it didn't reach all the way to her eyes. Melanie stared at her, probing her continue. "Buuttt," she dragged, "I kinda wish I had a better partner. I ended up doing all of the work."

"Yeah, that's the risk you end up taking on projects." Melanie grabbed the brownie that was sitting on her plate and took a bite. The rush of chocolate and sugar hurt behind her jaw but it was a pain that she found pleasure in. "I got lucky," she added, looking over at Isaac again. Allison turned in her seat, her hair making a brief halo as it whipped around. When she turned back her eyes were sparkling and her lips were pressed together as if she were trying to keep in a secret that wanted out. Melanie didn't miss the expression on her face. "What?" Melanie asked.

"Nothing," Allison replied, poking at her food. The smile never left her face. "Just that you two seem to have gotten close, that's all."

"Yeah, we're friends," Melanie stated.

Allison brought a forkful of food to her mouth, her eyes twinkling in a way that settled Melanie more than she'd like to admit. "I bet you are," she replied.

Melanie paused her chewing. She didn't like the tone Allison used. And what was that supposed to mean? 'I bet you are'?. She just said they were friends, what else could they be? Melanie shook her head. She always thought Allison was a bit weird. That just confirmed it. She swallowed the bite she had been chewing and went for her carton of milk. A commotion made her turn her head. Stiles had grabbed Scott's books and was leaving the cafeteria with it. Scott grabbed his backpack and hastily ran after them. If they were trying to be subtle it wasn't working. Allison noticed right away.

"Scott?" Allison called out. But her words fell on deaf ears as Scott and Stiles kept walking. "Scott, wait!" Allison called again as she gathered her books

"Wait, Allison," Melanie said hastily wiping milk off her lip. "I need to ask you something!"

"Later," Allison replied. "I need to catch Scott."

Allison was already out of her seat and across the cafeteria before Melanie could stop her. She sighed. She hoped she had bought Scott enough time to get out. Looking around, she noticed that others at the long table she was sitting at had left and she was alone with their empty trays. Clicking her tongue, she gathered her own books, her bag, her tray, and crossed the room to where Isaac was sitting. He seemed to straighten up as she approached.

"Hey," she greeted him. "That rain check still good?"

He smiled.

# # #

The period after lunch was a free period for her. After saying goodbye to Isaac she checked her phone and jogged to the locker room where her lacrosse stick was held. Stiles had texted her, asking her to bring it along and meet him and Scott at the practice fields. She didn't mind spending her free period practicing her shots and her skills if it gave her a better chance to make first line. It was also the right distraction she needed to get her mind off of Erica.

She expected to get good use out of her stick but she didn't expect her target to be Scott. Stiles explained how, in his opinion, that the key to Scott controlling his werewolf powers would be to control his heart rate. Melanie frowned at that. Not that she had lost out on five bucks but because there was nothing like that in her books, nothing like that in the bank of information stored in her head. Hell, there was nothing like that written in Harry Potter and yet Stiles came to that conclusion? She shouldn't have been surprised being that it was Stiles, he was a smart kid, but it was that she said she could help them out but how could she when Stiles had all the answers?

Her jaw clenched. Did she really get into all of this for nothing? Scott had Stiles, what use could she be? Identifying wolfsbane? Derek was there for that. Where did she fit? Back in the world of normalcy? She couldn't just abandon them now. Not when she was that far in and, supposedly, had a connection to the alpha. Sticking her lacrosse stick on the ground, she scooped up a ball that Stiles had rolled out onto the grass for the exercise. Their goal? Get Scott angry to see how well he could control his heart rate and to do that they were to throw the lacrosse balls at him.

Melanie glanced at Stiles out of the corner of his eye and noticed the half smile on his face as he grabbed his own lacrosse stick. it was almost a little sinister. It was a weird addition to his face. Either way she waited for him to give the go ahead to throw the ball. She hesitated but he went ahead and lobbed it at Scott, hitting him in the stomach. She gasped as Scott doubled over in pain. His pain seemed to bring Stiles some joy as he giggled before getting another ball. He lobbed that one without hesitation as well, smacking Scott in the face.

"Maybe you fixed his jaw with that one," Melanie couldn't help but joke.

"Gee, thanks," Scott grumbled.

"I'm sorry! The opportunity was there," she said, laughing.

"You throw some too," Stiles told her. "Get some target practice in."

"Wait a minute," Scott protested.

"Quiet. Remember you're supposed to be thinking about your heart rate, alright? About staying calm," Stiles reminded him. He regarded Melanie. "Come on, throw some at him too."

She didn't need to be urged twice. Silently apologizing to Scott, she drew back her arm and threw the ball at Scott. It flew past his head. Frowning, she scooped up another one and threw that. It smacked him against the chest. She and Stiles went back and forth throwing balls at him. They rained down on his chest, stomach, arms, and legs. One shot even hit him in the crotch which made Melanie fall over laughing despite his obvious pain. She regained her composure and threw a few more. But it was Stiles's last throw that got Scott angry. When he fell to his knees and began breathing heavy they both stopped what they were doing. Stiles went to the beeping phone and Melanie rushed to Scott's side.

"Scott?" she asked, apprehensively.

"Stay back," he ordered, still breathing heavy.

She backed away rapidly, eyes widened, pulse racing as he wrenched his arms from behind his back, ripping through the tape like scissors through paper. He dug his fingers into the soft earth and continued to breathe heavily as the beeping raced. Despite it all, a surge of excitement shot through her. Because she was right! And she was seeing it all first hand. Something that'd only unfolded in front of her face nestled within the pages of a book or on screen. And so she stood back and waited and watched with bated breath, etching every moment in her memory. Because if this was possible, if werewovles were real, that elft open a door of possibility for everything else.

Finally they backed off and Scott's breathing eased. Melanie and Stiles took that as a sign that it was safe to approach him.

"You started to change," Stiles noted.

"From anger," Scott breathed, "but it was more than that. It's like the angrier I got…the stronger I felt."

"The animal side was kicking in," Melanie commented.

"So it is anger then," Stiles concluded. "Derek's right."

"I can't be around Allison," Scott said. She didn't miss the sad tone that had molded around his words. It made her heart ache, hearing such raw emotion.

"Just because she makes you happy?" Stiles asked.

Scott shook his head. "No. Because she makes me weak."

Melanie deflated, her shoulders sagged and her eyes drooped and she stared at Scott as if he had said that clouds were made of cotton candy. Hearing that was the dumbest thing she had ever heard. But she kept her mouth shut. She learned a long time ago saying anything remotely bad against Allison around Scott was not a good idea. Instead they grabbed their gear and went back to the locker room. Melanie even insisted on entering the boys' locker room so as not to miss whatever conversation they were about to have. She didn't want to be left out.

"So you have to stay away from Allison for a few days," Melanie stated. She carefully sat down on the bench. There was no way she was going to touch anything in the locker room. She reached out and rubbed Scott's shoulder. "A few days isn't that long. It's just until you gain some control. It'll be okay."

"You don't understand," Scott groaned. "I just…I can't be away from her."

I've noticed flashed through her mind but she squashed it down, hating the ugly tone attached to the words. Allison wasn't that bad, she really wasn't. And Melanie liked her. They were friendly. So why did she keep getting sucker punched by that ugly voice in her head?

"But is it a few days or is it forever?" Scott asked. They didn't miss the worry in his voice.

"You know this whole women makes you weak thing is a little too Spartan warrior for me," Stiles commented. "It's probably just part of the learning process," Stiles continued.

"But you've seen Derek," Scott moaned, "He's all alone. What if I can never be around her again?"

"Well if you're not dead that could be a good thing," Stiles deadpanned.

"I'd rather be dead," Scott mumbled.

"Alright, you're not gonna end up like Derek. We'll figure it out."

"Yeah, there has to be some way you can have both if you want it so badly," Melanie added. "Have your cake and eat it too." She sighed in a wistful manner. "Now I want cake…"

Stiles snorted and ruffled her head. "Come on, let's get out of here," he said.

Melanie stood, fixing her hair, and Scott grabbed his backpack. "Something smells terrible in here anyway," Scott said.

"Really? In a boy's locker-room? That doesn't make any sense at all," Stiles said sarcastically. Melanie shoved him forward.

"Nah, it's like something's rotting or dying," Scott clarified.

"Ew," Melanie said, making a face. "Glad I don't have to deal with the nose of a bloodhound." She patted Scott's back. "Sorry for you."

The trio left the locker room while, behind them, a pale and gaunt-looking Jackson stepped out from behind a bank of lockers.

# # #

Economics with Coach Finstock was their next class that they had to sit through. Melanie sat in front of Stiles and next to Isaac while Allison managed to squeeze her way into the seat behind Scott. Coach Finstock started out the class as he always did, asking for those who read the homework to raise their hands. It was a tactic just to weed out those who didn't so he could put them on the spot, everyone knew. This time his target was Scott.

Those who knew Coach as unbearable on the field didn't know how he could be in class towards his own players. He didn't let up on them. Melanie bit her lip and fidgeted in her seat as Coach fired question after question at him, demeaning him. She tried sitting one way and then shifted so she was sitting on her hands. She bit her lip and tried to think of a song to keep herself from giving into the pressure of defending him. It just wouldn't be a good idea to step in and try to save Scott. She didn't want Finstock's wrath off the field as well.

Anger built up inside of her. It just wasn't fair! Why didn't he pick on someone else? Then she heard it. The beeping from the phone that Stiles stole from Finstock. Her eyes widened and she sat up straighter. Couldn't he turn down the volume or something? How stupid could Stiles be? She gritted her teeth. C'mon Scott, relax. Keep it under control.

"Are you okay?" she heard Isaac whisper across the aisle.

She managed to send a reassuring smile his way. "Yeah, just, uh, just a little tummy ache," she replied. But that was an understatement. Her stomach was flip-flopping all over the place. She couldn't even begin to imagine how Scott was feeling. The beeps got higher pitched and occurred faster. She held her breath. Don't wolf out, don't wolf out.

And then the beeping slowed. She sat up straighter in her chair. What in the world could have caused his heart beat to slow down? She half turned in her chair and saw it. Allison had leaned forward and grabbed a hold of his hand. She turned around all the way to look at Stiles. He looked as exasperated as she felt. Of course it was Allison. Her face scrunched up and she shook the offending thought from her mind. She was beginning to get tired of its presence.

Class went by as a boring blur and the next thing they knew school was over. Melanie gathered up her things and waited for Scott and Stiles before leaving the room with them. They left in silence and didn't bother talking until they got into the halls.

"It's her," Stiles announced.

Scott looked around, his eyes clouded in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"It's Allison," Stiles explained. "Remember what you told me the night of the full moon? You were thinking about her, right? And then the night of the lacrosse game? You were thinking about her so you could score. And in the locker room you didn't kill her. At least not like how you were trying to kill me." Scott stared at him.

"I don't think he gets it," Melanie relayed.

"She brings you back, is what I'm trying to say," Stiles said.

"But it's not always true," Scott protested, "because literally every time I'm kissing her or I'm-I'm touching her—"

"No, that's not the same," Stiles interrupted him. "When you're doing that you're just another hormonal teenager thinking about sex." Melanie tilted her head as a smile inched its way onto Scott's face. The look wasn't lost on Stiles who immediately read Scott's mind. "You're thinking about sex right now aren't you?"

"Yeah," Scott laughed, unashamed. He quickly changed his tune when Melanie cleared her throat and glared at him. "Sorry."

"Look, back in the classroom when she was holding your hand that was different okay? I don't think she makes you weak, I think she actually gives you control."

"Like an anchor," Melanie supplied, catching on.

"Exactly," Stiles said.

"Yeah, because I love her," Scott said easily. Melanie stopped walking and gaped at him once the words slammed into her brain. Her ears buzzed. What did he just say? It seemed that his mind was thinking the same thing because he stopped short.

"Did I just say that?" he whispered.

"Yeah," Melanie replied, still stunned. He loved her. He loved Allison. She stared at him, trying to really get a good look at him. He'd said it so easily. How did he know? What was the difference between a strong feelings and love? How could he come to a conclusion so easily? How could he say something so easily? Why was it so easy for him? She forced herself to focus on the conversation rather than wondering just how everything seemed to be falling in his lap while the rest of them were floundering with their relationships.

"I love her," Scott repeated.

"That's great," Stiles said, unimpressed, "Now moving on—"

"No, no, no. Really. I think I'm totally in love with her."

"And that's beautiful. Now before you go off and write a sonnet can we figure this out please?" Stiles asked. His tone was borderline impatient at this point.

"Because you obviously can't be around her all the time," Melanie added, a bit of an edge to her voice. It was enough to snap Scott out of his reverie.

"Yeah, sorry," Scott said, blinking rapidly. "So what do I do?"

"I don't know!" Stiles cried out, clearly frustrated at this point. He spun in a circle as he thought and a light appeared in his eye.

"Oh no, you're getting an idea aren't you?" Scott groaned.

"Yeah," Stiles replied.

"Is this idea gonna get me in trouble?"

"Maybe."

"Is this idea gonna cause me physical pain?"

"Yeah, definitely."

"Ooh, then I'm out," Melanie said, holding up her hands and backing away. She didn't want to be involved in another one of Stiles' plans. "I need to take Erica some homework and I gotta help Mom out today. Text me later!" She called out and then ran down the hall. Ran away from the nagging bursts of envy that shot through her. Especially when she couldn't properly place where her envy resided.

# # #

Melanie tapped her fingers against the steering wheel as she sat in the parking lot of the Animal Clinic. She had been on her way to Flowerworks when she remembered Scott saying that Derek was going to meet him to try and train him. So she deviated from her normal route and drove to the Animal Clinic instead. The parking lot was nearly empty save for the smattering of cars parked. She pulled into a parking spot and waited for Derek to show up.

The time ticked by slowly. She glanced at the time on her phone every two minutes and when that wasn't driving her crazy she was obsessively sending Erica texts. Some were asking how she was, some were telling her how much she missed her friend, and others were of kittens in baskets. Erica couldn't resist kittens in baskets. But each text got no response. Like usual.

Melanie got comfortable in her seat. It felt weird sitting in her truck by herself. Erica was always right there next to her, criticizing her taste in music but singing along as if her life depended on it when a song they both enjoyed came on the radio. Melanie cracked a smile when she thought back to the day she first got her truck.

It was two days after her sixteenth birthday. Her father had surprised her with it after he picked her up from school. The first thing she did once she got the keys was jump in, grab Erica, and drive to the local ice cream store for a float. They had a taste of freedom that day. With the wind flowing through the air and their worries quickly fading into the distance the open road was ahead of them, full of possibilities. Their future was bright. She only expected Erica to be there right next to her like on that day, to experience the ride of her life with her. And one small argument was putting the brakes on that. She knew Erica could be stubborn but this was ridiculous!

Melanie had started to compose another text but her thumbs froze. The hair on the back of her neck stood up. Her breath caught in her chest. As if being pulled by a thread, she lifted her head and looked out the window.

"Yipes!" she screamed when she saw Derek's intense gaze staring back at her. She took a deep breath to begin to slow her racing heart and shoved her phone in her pocket. Grabbing her keys, she popped open the driver's side door and dropped down to the ground.

"What do you want?" Derek demanded.

"How'd you know I was waiting for you?" Melanie asked, closing her door behind her.

"What do you want?" he repeated, ignoring her question.

"I need to talk to you."

"So talk."

Melanie hesitated. She remembered how she explained her dreams to Stiles and how they couldn't come to some sort of solution. She had a bit more of a blind faith in Derek but what if he couldn't help her either? What if she was just certifiably crazy?

"Today," Derek stressed.

Melanie jumped. "Right, yeah, sorry," she mumbled. "It's…it's this. For the past couple of weeks I've been having these dreams. I was…I dunno, a mermaid in one and a bird-human thing in another."

Derek snorted. "Sounds like you need to lay off the sugar before bed," he commented.

"That's not it. In them I…I saw these glowing red eyes." That statement seemed to grab Derek's attention. A muscle in his jaw twitched but he didn't say anything so she continued. "I thought they were just random eyes at first. A nightmare sort of thing. Then I got involved in this and found out what the Alpha was and…the eyes are the same. And-and he was outside of my house once and—"

"What?" Derek snapped, his eyebrows furrowing. "The Alpha was at your house? Did it do anything?"

"No! No! I just saw it's eyes in the bushes. Nothing happened. No attacks. Nothing weird. It was as if it was just…watching me or something," Melanie replied. Derek stayed as silent as ever. Melanie kicked at the ground, the rubber on the bottom of her shoes scuffed against the gravel. "Why would I dream about the Alpha before I even knew it existed? How is that even possible?"

"I don't know," Derek admitted. "But whatever you do don't try to approach it and don't think you can handle it by yourself."

Melanie huffed. Here she thought Derek could help her but he was being as big of help as Stiles and Scott. "What makes you think I'd try to approach it?" she demanded.

"You don't seem to have a problem with barging past boundaries that you have no reason to go past," he commented. Melanie opened her mouth to protest but stopped herself. He had a point there; even she had to admit that. "Yeah, so, unless you have anything else you'd like to share that I don't care about, there's something I need to take care of."

"What is it?" Melanie asked, following after him. She nearly ran into his back when he stopped walking and whirled around to look down on her. "Maybe I can help."

"What did I just tell you?" he demanded.

"Uhhh…to not approach the Alpha?"

"Exactly."

"Well, yeah, but what does that have anything to do with…?" her voice trailed off as she looked around. Her eyes were pulled over to the sign outside the building as if attracted to it. Beacon Hills Animal Clinic. "No way," she muttered. Derek's eyes popped up so he looked at the sky and then fell back to her. "You think Dr. Deaton is the Alpha?"

Derek held her gaze. "Only one way to find out."


a/n - I don't know about you guys when it comes to reading it but I love writing the dynamic between Derek and Melanie. Hell, I like writing the dynamic between her and a lot of people but something about writing her in scenes with Derek I find really enjoyable. We're getting close to my favorite episode of the season, Night School, and I can't wait for you guys to see what I did with it. Hint: it's so action packed that it had to be split into two chapters. So get excited for that! What did you think of this chapter? Please leave a review.

Also, to comment on Guest's review: I appreciate the passion you have for Erica/Melanie. Honestly, I had thought about writing them together since the beginning but wasn't sure how well received it would be/was afraid to attempt it just in case I ended up offending anyone or portraying something wrong. However, after thinking long and hard about it, I decided to give it a go. It has been reflected in the summary (I added in Erica/OC) and so I will have to tweak plans I had for the story a little bit to make it work but I hope you all enjoy what I have planned now. To go along with this, and just to get an idea of the people out there reading, I have a poll up on my profile that pertains to this story that I would like for you to answer just to get a feel of where you are.

Thanks for reading!

**Revised 3/2/18**