I.E.D. :
"So, then I taught him some basic defensive techniques." I concluded casually as I rested my elbow on the window frame of Derek's SUV and sent smile to the werewolf in the driver's seat as I shifted to get more comfortable.
"You taught a werewolf with anger management issues how to attack someone?" Derek asked in amusement as he raised an eyebrow at me and I scoffed indignantly as I rolled my eyes at his question.
"I taught him how to defend himself against an attack. And in this town, it's bound to come in handy." I justified myself pointedly with a smirk on my lips as I raised an eyebrow back at him and he chuckled silently as he shook his head without looking away from the road. "BTW, you can't say a word to anyone about Liam's anger issues. I promised him I wouldn't tell anyone. And trust me, he has more issues than Vogue."
"If you promised you wouldn't tell anyone, why'd you tell me?"
"Because you don't count. Everyone knows that secrets don't apply to the person you're in a relationship with." I told him as though it was obvious as I tucked a strand of brunette hair behind my ear and I quirked an eyebrow questioningly when I caught him stifling a smile. "Why are you smiling like that?"
"No reason." He muttered as he wiped the smile off of his face and I looked at him weirdly for a second before turning my attention out the passenger side window. It was extremely rare that you could find someone you could talk to about anything and sit with in comfortable silence but that's how I felt when I was with Derek.
"Thanks for breakfast. I had no idea that café even existed, but they make the best French toast I've ever had." I commented happily with a grin as I turned my head to look at him and a smug smirk spread across his lips as he glanced at me from the corner of his eye.
"Well, you've never had my French toast."
"You make French toast? God, you're perfect."
"And you haven't even tried my chocolate chip cookies."
"Okay. Pull over." I demanded in a serious tone as I reached to unbuckle my seatbelt and he frown at me in confusion as he pulled the car over to the curb on one of the back streets of Beacon Hills. The moment the car was parked, I climbed over the console and straddled his thighs with a wicked grin on my lips. I could feel the warm radiating off of his body as I ran my hands up his muscular chest and his hands rested firmly on my hips as he pulled me forward until I was pressed up against him.
My fingers tangled in his dark hair as I pressed my lips against his passionately and one of his hands slid under the back of my shirt as sparks erupted over my skin where he touched. A gasp escaped my parted lips as he moved his lips down my jawline and I tilted my head to the side to give him better access as my eyes fluttered closed in pleasure.
"You know, kissing burns 6.4 calories a minute?" I asked him breathlessly as his lips travelled further down my throat and he hummed against my skin as his gently sucked on my collarbone.
"Tell me some more facts about kissing." He ordered in a rough voice as he pulled back to look into my eyes and I almost melted into his arms at the lust burning in his light green eyes.
"One kiss requires 146 muscles to coordinate, including 34 facial muscles and 112 postural muscles. It reduces anxiety and increases the level of oxytocin in your system. Two-thirds of kissers tilt their heads to the right." I recited softly as I tried to catch my breath without looking away from him and he grinned at me as he grabbed the back of my neck to pull me back into a desire fuelled kiss. Our lips moved in synchronisation as I grabbed a fistful of his shirt in both of my hands and I pressed my chest against his so that I could feel every inch of his body underneath me. I released the breath I was holding as I pulled back from the kiss and I brushed my lips across his cheek as he reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear.
"God, I love your brain." He murmured quietly as his gaze flittered over my face like he was trying to memorise every inch of it and I froze for a moment as his words drifted over me like the first snowfall of the season. I couldn't remember the last time a guy had complimented me on anything other than my looks and I could tell that Derek meant every word by the sincere glint in his light green eyes.
"That is the sweetest thing a guy has ever said to me." I told him honestly with tears gathering in my eyes as I cupped his cheeks and I leaned my forehead against his with a small smile as I dropped my hands down to his shoulders. "Thank you."
"I would get used to compliments now that we're in a relationship."
"Oh, my God." I muttered in realisation as I gasped inaudibly and a grin broke out across my lips as he frowned at me in confusion. "Is that why you were all smiley before? Because I said we were in a relationship?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." He denied with a shake of his head as I cupped his face in between my hands and I giggled in amusement as I watched his light green eyes lit up with happiness at the sound.
"Is badass, scary, leather jacket wearing Derek Hale with the brooding scowl actually all soft and gooey on the inside?" I asked mockingly as I playfully squashed his cheeks with a smirk and he narrowed his eyes at me as he wrapped an arm around my waist to pull my body flush against his. A startled gasp left my lips as I tightened my grip on his shoulders and he grinned wickedly at his accomplishment as I gave him an annoyed look but a small smile spread across my lips.
Derek roughly gripped my chin as he tilted my head to meet his lips in a passionate kiss and his fingers dug into my skin so hard I knew that if I were human it would leave a bruise. One of my hands shot out to grab the back of the seat to keep myself balanced as I rocked forward on his lap and the other tangled in his dark hair as one of his hands trailed underneath the back of my shirt. Fiery sparks shot down my spine as I gasped into his open mouth and I sucked his lower lip in between my teeth as he pulled away from the kiss with a groan. His fingers released my chin as the skin tingled while it healed and his hands rested on the back of my bare thighs as I draped my arms around his neck.
"Point proven. You are both soft and gooey, and sexy as hell." I declared huskily with a smirk as I played with hair on the nape of his neck and he returned the smirk smugly as he traced random patterns on my skin.
The sound of my cell phone ringing in my handbag interrupted our moment and I groaned out loud as I threw my head back with a pout on my lips. Derek pressed a kiss to the side of my neck as I reached over to grab the phone and I scowled when I saw my brother's name flashing on the caller ID.
"What?" I asked irritably in greeting as I answered the phone and Derek continued to distract me as he bit gently down the side of my throat.
"Where are you? You weren't home when I left for school." Scott said in an annoyed tone of voice as I tried not to moan in pleasure when Derek sucked on my collarbone and I pushed his head away from me with a mock scolding expression.
"I went to breakfast with Derek. We're just having dessert now." I quipped with a sly smirk on my lips as I tried not to laugh at my own wit and Derek rolled his light green eyes in amusement with a small upturn of his lips.
"Well, I need you at the school. I want to test Liam's control. I've been trying to ring Derek but he's not answering."
"Yeah, he's been busy. But he can hear you and he'll be there with me in five minutes." I told him pointedly before I hung up the phone and I made a disgruntled noise of protest as I tossed my phone onto the passenger seat. "I don't like my brother."
"You love your brother. You just don't like his timing." Derek countered knowingly with a quirked eyebrow and I hummed in acknowledgement as I climbed off of his lap onto the passenger seat. I pulled a compact mirror out of my handbag as Derek started the car and I checked my makeup for an imperfections as we drove towards the high school in comfortable silence.
A bunch of students were milling around the parking lot as Derek pulled into an available parking spot and I rolled my eyes when I caught some of the girls leering at him as we climbed out of the SUV. I blocked out their whispers as I lead the way into the back of the school and I could feel my blood boil with jealousy as the other girls, and a few guys, raked their eyes over Derek's physique. My heartrate accelerated and I was overcome with the urge to shield him from their prying eyes but deep down I knew that Derek would even glance in their direction. I could hear his heartbeat whenever I entered a room, could see him smile in my direction when he thought I wasn't looking, could remember every touch like it was a handwritten poem composed just for me.
We made our way to the boy's locker room because I figured that Scott had been keeping an eye on Liam in the gym and I rounded the corner to see my brother leaning against the wall outside the locker room with two lacrosse sticks in his hands.
"Hey. What's up?" I greeted him with a smile as we approached and he turned to look at us with a relieved expression on his face.
"Thank god. Liam's nearly done working out." Scott informed us in a rush as he tossed one of the lacrosse sticks towards Derek and the older werewolf caught it instinctively as I frowned at the stick in confusion. "Derek, you know how to gauge a werewolf's strength better than anyone. Plus, he doesn't know you. Get him angry. I want to see how he reacts."
"Sure, if there's one thing Derek can do, it's piss people off." I teased with a smirk as I patted his arm mockingly and he glowered at me as he headed into the locker room while I giggled in amusement. Scott glanced between us in confusion but didn't comment as I looped my arm through his and we ducked into the locker room quietly as we stayed hidden from view.
"What the hell? Where's my stick?" I heard Liam ask in an angered tone as I glanced down at the lacrosse stick still in Scott's hand and I watched Derek walk out into view as he scrapped the stick in his hand along the metal lockers. Liam turned around at the sound with a confused frown on his lips and he stiffened defensively when his gaze landed on the stranger standing in the middle of the room with a lacrosse stick in his hand.
"Is this yours?" Derek asked the young Beta curiously with his eyebrows raised and then he made an impressed expression before he snapped the stick in two with ease. An angry growl escaped Liam's lips as his werewolf features became apparent and his golden eyes glowed as he sprinted towards the elder Beta. Derek rolled his light green eyes as he caught him by the throat with one hand and pinned him against the wall of metal lockers with a blank expression as Liam struggled in his hold.
"Liam." Scott called out as his voice echoed with Alpha authority and I cringed even though it wasn't directed at me as we both stepped out into view.
"You're right. He is angry." Derek commented idly as he glanced at us over his shoulder and Liam instantly calmed down as his werewolf visage retracted. I gave Derek a pointed look as I placed my hands on my hips and he rolled his eyes at me as he released his hold on Liam's throat before taking a step back.
"This one's yours." I told the freshman as I took the undamaged lacrosse stick from Scott's grasp and tossed it towards Liam as he caught it instinctively. The overhead bell that signalled the beginning of the school day rang and I glanced up at the ceiling before turning my attention back to the young Beta. "Get to class, Liam."
Liam glared heatedly in Derek's direction but the older werewolf only raised his eyebrows in amusement, almost daring him to make a move and I patted his arm when he passed by me on his way towards the exit of the locker room.
Scott let out a tired sigh as he closed his eyes for a moment before looking over at Derek and a confused frown passed over his lips when he saw the slight grin pulling at the corner of the older man's lips. "What are you smiling about?"
"You're gonna be good at this." Derek told him honestly with pride shining in his light green eyes as his smile grew and I couldn't help agreeing with the sentiment. I moved to lean against the metal lockers with my arms crossed over my stomach and I stayed silent to let the boys have their little moment.
Scott stared at him incredulously as his arms flailed in a 'Stiles-like' manner and he held back a disbelieving scoff as his eyebrows pinched together. "Are you kidding? I am totally unprepared. Remember how you said you could teach me a few things? I think, right now I could use a full-on training manual."
"I'll tell you one thing. That anger he's got? It'll make him strong."
"And dangerous."
"Very."
"He's going to be fine. He has a strong support system." I added to the conversation as I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and they both nodded in agreement as we all shared a soft smile.
"This was supposed to be the semester I could focus on school again. But Kate's back. And I've got a Beta. And there's a dead pool." Scott listed sadly as he sat down on the closest bench with his shoulders slumped in defeat and I couldn't help but feel guilty that scholastics came so easily to me when he tried so hard.
"If all our names are on that list, then that's what we should be focused on. Do you think Lydia can get that second key?" Derek asked carefully as he looked between us for an answer while taking the seat next to Scott and I shrugged unknowingly because when I left her at the lake house she was still staring blankly at the record player.
"She's working on it. I haven't spoken to her still I left her yesterday. She texted me this morning but it just said 'I'm fine. See you at school'." I informed them in a dejected tone of voice as I ducked my head and I was so worried about my best friend but didn't have time to thinking about it when there was so much going on. I took a deep breath to cleanse my scattered mind as I shook my head rapidly and I plastered a small smile on my lips as I looked at the boys. "Derek, you have that meeting with Chris."
"Right. Thank you for reminding me." He said gratefully as he stood up from the bench and he stepped forward to press a lingering kiss to my lips as his hand cupped my elbow. I couldn't help smiling when he pulled back and I ignored my brother's gaze as I watched Derek leave the locker room to meet up with Chris.
"So…You and Derek, huh?" Scott asked knowingly with a smirk on his lips and I turned my head to scowl at him in annoyance.
"Shut up." I said bluntly as I narrowed my eyes at him and he held his hands up in surrender as my gaze softened slightly. "We're trying, okay? Leave it alone."
"I didn't say anything. But for the record, I approve. I think Derek's good for you."
"Thanks. But for the record, you're approval is kind of a red flag." I told him teasingly with a smirk on my lips as I headed towards the exit and he made an offended noise as I walked out the door with a laugh. The corridor was empty of students as I walked towards my locker to put away my handbag and I reached into my purse to retrieve my cell phone before typing out a text.
Sophie: Hey. Where are you?
Lydia: Art room w/Malia.
I stashed the phone back into my handbag as I stopped in front of my locker and I unlocked the dial as I set the bag on one of the shelves. I tried not to look at the inside of the locker door where the photographs of Allison, Boyd, Erica and Aiden where pinned up and I closed the metal door as I headed in the direction of the art room.
The door to the art room was closed when I approached and I knocked on the wooden frame before pushing it open as I stepped inside. Both girls snapped their heads around in synchronisation and I froze for a moment at how freaky the movement was before walking further into the room.
Lydia was sitting in front of a blank canvas set up on an easel with a piece of charcoal in her hand and Malia hovered behind her so that her chin almost rested on the strawberry blonde's shoulder. I offered them both a small smile as I walked over to sit down and Lydia turned back to the canvas with a sigh as she attempted to draw something but inspiration didn't come.
"Please stop hovering." Lydia hissed through gritted teeth in Malia's general direction as she dropped her hand to her lap and lolled her head to the side in frustration.
"I'm not hovering. I'm waiting. Draw something. Write something. We need to know who else is on that list." The werecoyote stated bluntly with an innocent expression on her face and Lydia looked at me with annoyance in her eyes but I knew it was due to the situation, not Malia.
"You mean, you need to know if you're on the list."
"If someone's coming to take my head off, then, yeah, I'd like to know."
"No one is getting their head taken off." I told her placating with a quirked eyebrow as I reached forward to rest a hand on Lydia's thigh in comfort and they both gave me a pointed look as I remembered the werewolf that had been killed at the party. "Okay. No one else is getting their head taken off."
"Can you please just sit down? You're making me nervous." Lydia told the werecoyote as she turned her attention back to the canvas and I pulled my hand to give her room as I placed my clasped hands on my knee.
"Sorry." Malia whispered apologetically as she held up her hands in surrender and she sat down next to me as she flipped through one of the books on the table. It was silent for a moment as I played with my fingers, Lydia stared blankly at the canvas and Malia lolled her head back and forth as she landed on a page in her book. "Lydia."
"What? Oh, my God, what?"
"Maybe we need help. From another banshee."
"Meredith."
"I don't think Eichen House is a place you can just waltz into." I commented idly with my lips pursed as I rested my chin in my hand and Lydia let out a tired sigh as she ran a hand through her hair. "I'm sure you can call and make an appointment. Or if that doesn't work, we do have connections in law enforcement."
"Yeah. Do you think Sheriff Stilinski would help us?" Malia asked hopefully with wide eyes as she looked between us and I bit the corner of my lip as I thought it through.
"Scott and Stiles told him about the deadpool and he did a search on the names. I don't think he'll mind helping us get the other thirds of the list." I murmured in a positive tone as the bell rang overhead and my eyes widened in horror as I remembered that there was somewhere I needed to be. "Oh, crap!"
"What? What is it?" Malia asked in concern as I stood up from my seat abruptly and I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration as I headed towards the door.
"The bus from Devenford Prep is about to arrive. Liam was kicked out because he destroyed his lacrosse coach's car. And I'm thinking that his teammates are going to have a problem seeing him again. And Liam has anger problems coming out the wazoo. And I'm afraid he's going to do something insane. And bleh!" I ranted in a rush as I waved my arms in the air without turning around and I pushed open the door with an irritated exclaim as I walked out into the crowded hallway.
"What's a 'wazoo'?" I heard Malia ask in confusion and I couldn't help but smile as I found her naivety adorable. Students milled around in the corridor as I hurried pass them forcibly and some of them glared at me but didn't say anything in complaint.
The Devenford Prep bus was just pulling up out the front of the school when I ran outside and I glanced around wildly until my gaze landed on Liam's figure heading towards the bus. I groaned out loud as I hurried to follow after him in concern and I saw one of Liam's friends running after him as I pushed my way through the gathering of students.
"Brett!" Liam called out in an angry voice as he stormed his way towards the seemingly leader of the opposition and I cringed in anticipation as he stopped in front of the tallest member of the Devenford team. Liam's shoulders were tense as he flexed his fingers like he was holding back and then extended his right hand towards the leader. "I just wanted to say... Have a good game."
Time seemed to freeze for a moment before Brett burst out in mocking laughter and then his grin faded into a blank expression as he turned his attention back to Liam. "That's cute, Liam. Is that what they told you to say in Anger Management? Apologize and everything's fine? You demolished Coach's car."
"I paid for it."
"Yeah, you're going to pay for it. We're gonna break you in half out there. And it's gonna be all your fault."
"Oh, shit." I breathed out when I noticed that Liam was clinching his fists so tightly that blood was dripping from between his white knuckles and I hurried over to the Beta's side before he could do anything. I rested a hand his tense shoulder to calm him down and I noticed that Scott and Stiles had approached from the other side with matching panicked expression. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, let's go."
"Hey, what's going on prep students? Welcome to our little public high school. How you doing?" Stiles asked in loud false cheerful voice as he extended his hand but everyone just stared at him until he dropped his hand to his side. "That's a firm handshake you got there. Uh, we're very excited for scrimmage tonight. Uh, but let's keep it clean, all right? No rough stuff out there. All right, see you on the field."
"Come on, sweetie." I whispered soothing to Liam as I pushed him towards the school and Scott wrapped an arm around his shoulder as he guided him in the direction of the boy's locker room where no one would see if Liam wolfed out.
I could feel Liam's muscles convulsing underneath my hand as I pushed open the door to the locker room and a loud growl echoed through the room as I used my hearing to make sure there were no extra heartbeats in the room. My brother pushed the Beta towards the showers as I used my Druid powers to turn on the cold water and the overhead nozzle sprayed riotously as he held a thrashing Liam underneath. Stiles rushed forward to help hold him under the running water and Liam's eyes glowed gold as he snapped his elongated teeth angrily in his direction.
"Okay, you calm yet?" Stiles asked loudly over the sound of water hitting the tiled floor and Liam roaring angrily as he struggled to free himself from their grasp. I focused my Druid powers on thickening the air around the Beta so that he couldn't move and Scott and Stiles slowly released him with uneasy expressions.
"Okay! Okay!" Liam exclaimed as his werewolf visage receded back into human and I released my hold on the magic keeping him frozen as I redirected it into turning off the shower. The beta slumped forward in exhaustion as his knees gave out underneath him and he sat in the middle of the shower with his back against the wall as he pulled his knees up to his chest.
"That car you smashed. I thought you said that was your teacher's." Scott stated pointedly as he crouched down just outside the puddle of water on the floor and Stiles stood off to the side with his arms crossed over his chest.
"He was also my Coach. He benched me for the entire season."
"What did you do?"
Liam looked over at me with wide blue eyes like he was asking for advice and I didn't think I'd ever seen someone looking so vulnerable as I offered him a reassuring smile. He looked down at his hands with a small frown as he fidgeted with his fingers and he released a sigh as he looked up at Scott nervously. "I got a couple of red cards."
"Just a couple?" Stiles asked incredulously with an eyebrow raised and I shot him an annoyed look because I knew how hard this would be for the younger boy.
"You gotta be honest with us. What else happened?" Scott asked compassionately as he ducked his head to meet Liam's gaze and I wrapped an arm around my stomach as I leaned back against the closest locker.
"Nothing." Liam snapped as anger flared in his eyes and Stiles' eyebrows raised in surprise at the immediate response. I gave Liam a pointed glance when he looked in my direction and he held my gaze for a moment before sighing in defeat as his shoulders slumped. "I got kicked out of school. They sent me to a psychologist for evaluation."
"What did they call it?"
"Intermittent Explosive Disorder."
"I.E.D? You're literally an I.E.D? That's great. That's great. You gave powers to a walking time bomb." Stiles quipped sarcastically as he leaned forward to offer his best friend a thumb's up with a wink and I noticed Liam bow his head in shame as I scowled at the human.
"Really, Stiles? You're going to mock him for having a disorder? Like you have control over your ADD? Or Scott had control over his asthma? Or Erica had over her epilepsy?" I asked sardonically with a pointed look as I crossed my arms over my chest and he held his hands up in surrender as his face twisted into an abashed grimace.
Scott closed his eyes as he tried to stifle an eye roll at our conversation and then opened his dark brown eyes to give Liam a reassuring look as he spoke softly, "Did they give you anything for it?"
"Risperdal." Liam whispered as he avoided looking at anyone in the eye and Scott's forehead furrowed in confusion as he turned his head to look at me with a questioning frown.
"It's an antipsychotic." I informed him with a shrug of my shoulders and his lips parted in understanding as he nodded once before turning back to the Beta.
"Oh, this just gets better." Stiles muttered under his breath as he ran a hand through his hair and I ignored him as I shook my head at his inability to let a situation go without commentary.
"But I don't take it." Liam told them in a desperate attempt to sway their opinion and his light blue eyes were wide with sincerity as he looked between the three of us.
"Obviously."
"I can't play lacrosse on it. It makes me too tired. And Sophie said it's bad for me."
Scott and Stiles both turned to look at me simultaneously with matching betrayed expressions and I closed my eyes tightly as I tilted my head back against the metal locker. I groaned slightly before opening my eyes with an innocent expression and Liam offered me an apologetic grimace from his position on the floor.
"You knew about this?" Stiles asked in outrage as he gestured wildly towards the Beta and Scott raised an eyebrow at me as he awaited my response.
"I may have known something to that effect." I answered in a mumble as I looked down at my nails like they were the most fascination thing in the world and Stiles made an indignant noise in the back of his throat.
"Okay. We'll talk about you keeping secrets later." Scott told me pointedly with a small frown before he turned his attention to his Beta. "I think you should bail out of the game. Tell Coach your leg is still hurting."
"No, no!" Liam exclaimed immediately with wide eyes as he scrambled to stand up and he looked between me and my brother with a pleading expression. "I can do this. Especially if you're there."
"Aww…" I cooed appreciatively as I clutched my clasped hands over my heart mockingly and he scowled at me for a second as I shot him a wink.
"But, Liam, it's not just about the game. We think whoever killed Demarco might be on our team." Scott explained patiently as he stood up from his crouch and I tilted my head to the side with a frown on my lips as I looked over at my brother questioningly.
"Who's Demarco?"
"The one who brought the beer to the party. The guy who was beheaded. Remember?" Stiles asked meaningfully as he waved his hands frantically in the air and I hummed in realisation as I remembered the werewolf that had been murdered at Lydia's lake house.
"We think the person who ordered the keg killed Demarco." My brother informed us with a tired sigh as he crossed his arms over his chest and Liam's eyes widened slightly as he snapped his head around to look at his Alpha. "Liam? What, you know something?"
"I don't know who ordered the keg. But I know who paid for it." Liam told us sheepishly as he shifted nervously on his feet and I waved a hand in the air encouragingly when he didn't continue. "My friend Garrett."
"The hot blonde?" I asked curiously as I pushed myself off of the locker and the boys all looked at me incredulously as I shrugged my shoulders innocently. "It's just an observation. I'm not going to do anything about it. Especially if he's an assassin."
"Why not? Mass murderer sounds like your type." Stiles quipped in a joking manner as he quirked an eyebrow at me with a smirk and I felt my muscles tense at the veiled mention of Aiden. My gaze dropped to the floor as a mixture of grief, sadness and guilt ate away at my stomach and I felt tears spring into my eyes as I subconscious covered my wrist where his name was permanently etched onto my skin. Stiles' expression dropped when he realised what he had said and he immediately opened his mouth to apologise but no sound came out.
"Hm. You're right." I said in a raspy voice as I forced a small smile and I ran a hand through my hair as I looked towards the young werewolf in the room. "Come on, Scrappy. Let's find you some dry clothes."
"Yeah, okay." Liam agreed hesitantly as he walked towards me and he shot Stiles a heated glare as he came to my side. I placed a hand on his arm as we headed towards the exit while Scott gave his best friend a reprimanding look. "I have a change of clothes in my locker."
"Let's go that way then."
We walked in silence down the now empty corridor as I tried not to think about the past or cry over something that I couldn't change. I could feel Liam glancing at me in concern every now and then but I just kept my gaze locked ahead of me. We came to a stop at the freshman's locker and he unlocked the door as I leaned my back against the metal locker next to his.
"Can I ask you a question?" Liam asked me cautiously as he peeked at me for the corner of his eye and I nodded silently with a small smile as he pulled out his spare pair of pants from inside his locker. "Who's Aiden?"
My gaze immediately flickered down to my tattoo as my shoulders tensed and my fingers curled around my wrist to cover the word as I licked my lips unsurely. I lifted my eyes to meet Liam's curious gaze and he tried to look nonchalant but I could see the desire to know burning in his blue eyes. "Aiden was my boyfriend. My first boyfriend. The first guy I ever loved."
"What happened? I mean, you loved him enough to tattoo his name on your wrist, so where is he now?"
"He died."
"Oh, I'm sorry." He apologised instantly as he looked at me with wide eyes and I offered him a reassuring smile as I shook my head slightly. "I shouldn't have brought it up."
"If you're going to be a part of the pack, then you're going to find all of this out eventually. And it's not like it's a secret. I loved Aiden, but he's gone. And I'm moving on. That guy you met this morning? Derek? We kind of have a thing."
"Ugh." Liam groaned out loud with a grimace on his lips as he closed his locker and I laughed genuinely in amusement as we both started walking down the hallway towards the boy's restroom.
"You know, you're going to have to get a handle on your anger. Meditation, big bag of weed." I told him teasingly with a smirk as I nudged his side with my elbow and he chuckled lowly as he ducked his head. "When I first turned I did yoga two times a day. Once in the morning and once at night. I also sparred with Derek, to burn off excess energy and adrenaline. You need to find some way to relax. Because this rage-a-holic thing you have going on is going to end one of two ways: one, you're going to give yourself a conniption trying to stifle that anger. Or two, you're going to wolf out and hurt someone."
"My stepdad says when kids get angry they deal with it in one of two ways: hurt themselves or hurt someone else."
"Which is basically what I just said, but with more wit and intellect."
"More intellect than my stepfather, the doctor?" Liam asked sceptically with a mocking frown as he stopped in front of the men's bathroom and I made an 'eh' noise as he used his back to open the door. He raised his eyebrows at me dubiously as he backed into the bathroom and I stuck my tongue out at him jokingly as he disappeared with a laugh.
The cool breeze out in the night air made me glad that I had time to go home and change into some pants before the game. The crowd of gathered spectators milled around the outfield as I made my way through the people and I looked around for any of my friends on the team. I nibbled on my lower lip as I headed towards the players bench and I saw Scott, Kira and Stiles sitting together talking in their uniforms. On the other side of the benches, I noticed Liam was standing with a dark skinned boy I had seen him speaking to during school and my curiosity peeked as I changed course in their direction.
A small smirk spread across my lips at the prospect of embarrassing the new Beta and I knew I was going to enjoy having a younger member of the pack to tease mercilessly. I practically skipped forward with a giddy smile on my lips and I cupped my hands around my mouth as I called out teasingly, "Oh, Liam!"
A loud groan erupted from his lips as he tilted his head back in despair and his friend looked at him with a confused frown before glancing over his shoulder as his eyes went wide in awe. I grinned widely as I rushed up behind the blue eyed boy and wrapped my arms around his shoulders from behind as I pressed a sloppy kiss to his cheek.
"Ugh. Sophie." Liam grumbled with a scowl as he exaggeratedly wiped his cheek and I giggled in amusement as he pushed my away from him. "You're so embarrassing."
"Please. Do you know how many guys want my salvia on them?" I asked rhetorically with a quirked eyebrow as I smugly fluffed my hair and he made a disgusted face as the dark skinned boy stared at me with wide eyes.
"Whoa. You're Sophie McCall. Oh, my god." The dark skinned boy muttered in shock as he blinked rapidly and I glanced at him in surprise that he knew my name before looking at Liam with a small frown.
"Yeah…?" I drawled as I elongated the word questioningly and the boy gaped at me like he had just met Madonna as he stepped back with a grin spreading across his lips. "You know me?"
"Everyone knows who you are. I've heard all about you. You have the highest GPA in the school. You were voted most likely to win anything she entered in last year's yearbook. You took the SAT's your freshman year. You were offered a spot on the lacrosse team. A member of the Latin club and French club. And you're front runner for prom queen."
I forced a small smile onto my lips as I leaned towards Liam discreetly and I tried not to move my lips as I whispered, "Is he dangerous?"
"Sophie, this is my best friend Mason. Who is normally not this fanatic." Liam told me as he gave his friend a pointed look and Mason waved a hand dismissively as he continued to stare at me in a way that was starting to creep me out.
"Right, well, nice to meet you, Mason. If we're going to interact with each other, which we are because I'm friends with Liam and you're friends with Liam, you're going to need to dial back on the crazy Britney-Spears-fan worship. But other than that, it's good to meet you." I said to Mason pleasantly with a smile as I patted his arm gently in a friendly manner and his eyes practically bugged out of his head as his lips parted in shock.
"That was amazing." He whispered in awe as I slowly pulled my hand back and I shifted closer to Liam's side in case he decided to kidnap me Misery style.
I linked my arm through the Beta's as his gaze drifted over to the other side of the field where the Devenford Prep players were preparing for the game. I followed his gaze to the captain of the other team and my stomach tightened with lust when I noticed he was changing his shirt so that his six pack was on display.
"I don't care if he's a foot taller than me. I think I can take him." Liam said confidently with a nod of his head without looking away from Brett and I nodded absently as I tilted my head to the side in admiration.
"Yeah." Mason murmured distractedly without really paying attention as he stared at Brett's body and Liam caught the matching looks of appreciation on our faces as he quirked an eyebrow in demand.
"What do you both think you're doing?"
"What? Me? Agreeing with you. I'm being agreeable." The dark skinned boy stated with a scoff as he forced himself to look away from Brett's bare chest and I just hummed vaguely as I bit down on the corner of my lower lip.
"You think he's hot, don't you?"
"No! No. Not at all. No way! Maybe. Yeah, maybe a little."
"I think he's incredibly hot." I inserted bluntly as Brett slipped a shirt on over his head and the spell was broken as I turned my attention to the blue eyed boy next to me.
"He wants to destroy me." Liam reminded us both pointedly with both his eyebrows raised and I opened my mouth to argue but no sound came out as I scrunched my nose up apologetically.
"I think you could definitely take him." Mason told him assuredly as he crossed his arms over his chest with a serious expression and I nodded in agreement as I rubbed the Beta's arm soothing. "…And then give him to me."
Laughter burst through my lips as I turned to look at the freshman with an appreciative expression and Liam chuckled in amusement as Mason grinned in accomplishment over his achievement. "No, no just go out there and kick their smug prep school asses."
"You have a sassy, gay best friend, Liam. I'm kind of jealous." I said with a pout on my lips as I let go over his bicep and Mason practically glowed at the compliment as he gave his best friend a fist pound before heading towards the bleachers. I turned my attention to Liam with a concerned frown on my lips as I rested my hands on his shoulders and he raised an eyebrow at me with a slight smile. "Just be careful out there. This is – "
My speech was cut off when my cell phone ringing and I closed my eyes for a moment before opening them to give Liam an apologetic look. He shrugged his shoulders as though it didn't matter and I pulled my phone out of my bra as he watched in amusement. Malia's name flashed on the caller ID as I frowned in confusion because she had never called me before and I clicked accept as I held the phone up to my ear. "Hello? Malia?"
"Sophie! The button worked!" Malia exclaimed happily in greeting through the phone and I couldn't help smiling slightly as I exchanged a looked with Liam. "Lydia told me to call you. The sheriff called her and said that Meredith, the other banshee, was found walking from the coast to the High School. Parrish found her and brought her back to the Sheriff's station. Meredith said she was looking for Lydia. And Lydia thought that it would be good if you were there when we talked to her."
"Um, I'm kind of in the middle of something here."
"It's okay." Liam assured me in a rush as he placed a hand on my arm and I quirked an eyebrow at him in question, silently asking him if he was sure as he nodded his head jerkily. "I'll – I'll be okay. I mean, I have Scott and Stiles and Kira. This is probably about the dead pool and they obviously need you. I'll be fine."
"Ah, fine. Okay. Come pick me up at the school. Scott gave me a lift here." I told them with a sigh as I offered the Beta with a grateful smile and Malia must have hung up the phone because the next thing I knew the line was beeping. I frowned at the phone for a moment before rolling my eyes as I slid the phone back into my bra and I turned my attention to the anxious looking boy in front of me. "Okay, are you sure you're going to be alright?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'm gonna be fine."
"This goes against all of my best instincts, but fine, whatever. I'm trusting you here, Liam. Playing lacrosse will get your blood pressure up and that's going to make it harder to restrain yourself. So, if you feel like you're losing control, you get the hell out of here. Scott, Stiles and Kira are going to be concentrating on catching Garrett so you're going to have to look out for yourself. And oh, my god, I should not be leaving you here alone!"
"Sophie, Sophie, Sophie…" he repeated in a soothing tone as he placed his hands on my shoulders with an amused smile and I tried to regulate my breathing as my breathing quickened when I started to imagine the worse possible scenario. "I'm going to fine. I'll use all the tricks you taught me. If I get too out of control, I'll focus on something. Um, I'll focus on…Mason's heartbeat. He's my best friend and it will remind me of my humanity, yeah?"
"Oh, you listen to me." I cooed jokingly with a pout as I wrapped my arms around him and he laughed in amusement as he returned the embrace. I pulled back to cup his face in my arms with a proud smirk on my lips and he rolled his blue eyes in mock annoyance as he tried not to smile. "If you need something during the game, Scott will help you. If you need to talk after the game, you can call me."
"You're embarrassing me." Liam groaned out through gritted teeth as I dropped my hands from his face and I patted his cheek patronisingly with an insincere frown on my lips.
"Yeah, I'd get used to that."
"But I don't want to get used to that!" he called out to me loudly as I started to walk away from him and I waved dismissively over my shoulder as I headed towards the carpark where Lydia was picking me up.
Lydia's familiar car was already idling in the drop-off point of the parking lot when I got there and I climbed into the backseat because Malia was in the passenger seat while Lydia was driving. I leaned forward in between the two front seats and Lydia immediately started driving out of the parking lot. "Hey, ladies."
"Hi." Malia chirped brightly as she turned around to face me with a grin and I smiled back at her in amusement as I wiggled my fingers. "Aren't you excited? We're going to interrogate someone!"
"We're not going to interrogate someone." Lydia protested in exasperation with a roll of her eyes, sounding like she had repeated the same thing numerous times. "We're just going to ask her some questions."
"Isn't that what an interrogation is?"
"No! Well, yes. But that's not what we're doing."
"Listen, 'Lia, we're just going to talk to Meredith. Obviously, she wants to help or she wouldn't have broken out of Eichen House and walked 15 miles down the coast to find Lydia." I explained to the werecoyote calmly as I tilted my head to meet her eyes and she frowned at me in confusion for a moment before making an 'o' face of understanding.
"Are we going to torture her?" Malia asked innocently as she looked between Lydia and I with wide eyes and Lydia tightened her hold on the steering wheel as she shook her head.
"No, sweetie. No, we're not." I told her in a soothing tone as I rubbed her shoulder gently and she nodded her head slowly as the words sunk in. Lydia shot me a pointed look, silently saying 'see what I was telling you about' and I scrunched my nose slightly as I shrugged helplessly. The rest of the ride to the sheriff's station was silent as Malia watched the scenery out the window and I leaned my chin on the back of Lydia's seat as I teasingly poked her side so that she squirmed.
We pulled to a stop outside the police station and we all hurried out of the car as Lydia led the way into sheriff's station. Deputies were milling around the office as I looked around for John or Jordan since they were the only two that were going to be any help at all.
"Sophie, Malia, Lydia." I heard John call out to us from behind and I spun around at the sound of my name as he approached us with an anxious expression. He waved a hand impatiently for us to follow him and we hurried after him as he led us in the direction of his office. "I'm aware this is probably about the dead pool, but I can't let her leave the station. And, in a minute, I'm gonna have to call Eichen House and let them know that she's here."
"Give us an hour." Lydia stated with a determined expression as we stopped out the closed door to his office and he sighed in exhaustion as he looked her a pointed look.
"You got 15 minutes."
"We can work with that." I told him assuredly as I patted his arm in sympathy because I knew that he was having a hard time dealing with the supernatural. He offered me a small smile of gratitude as Lydia and Malia entered the office but I lingered at the door to speak to John. "Are you okay? I know that this is the last thing you need right now."
"I don't know if you got the memo, but dealing with murders kind of falls under my job description as Sheriff." John reminded me with a quirked eyebrow and I shrugged my shoulders innocently with a small smirk on my lips.
"You called Lydia?" Jordan asked incredulously from behind as he approached us with a frown and we both turned to face him as I bit my lip guiltily while John sighed heavily with a nod. "Because Meredith asked for her or because of the other thing?"
"What other thing?"
"He thinks Lydia's psychic." I explained casually as I leaned against the doorframe with a fond smile and Jordan gave me an exasperated look with a small upturn of his lips.
"You think Lydia's psychic?" John asked in surprise as he turned back to his deputy and I ducked my head to hide my amused grin as Jordan moved closer so that no one would overhear us.
"Do you?" Jordan asked him as though he already knew the answer with a raised eyebrow and John froze for a moment before crossing his arms over his chest as he shook his head in denial.
"No, I do not. I think that she is, uh... Intuitive."
"That's what they used to call psychics. Intuitionists."
"Yeah, and I used to call myself a rational human being."
"Oh, my god. I'm meant to be at a lacrosse game right now. Get your ass in here and shut the door." I snapped in annoyance as I grabbed Jordan's arm with a roll of my eyes and I pulled him into the office as he stumbled after me with a surprised expression over how strong I was. I released my hold on his arm as John closed the door after us and I turned around to find Meredith sitting on the bench to the side of the room.
"Ask what you need to ask." John told us firmly as he moved to stand next to his desk and I walked over to stand next to Lydia as Malia and Jordan made themselves comfortable around the room.
"Hey, Meredith." I greeted the banshee politely with a smile and she grinned up at me nervously as her fingers twitched on her lap.
Lydia glanced around the office apprehensively as her eyes flickered with doubt and she rifled in her handbag for her cell phone before holding it out towards the other banshee. Meredith accepted the phone with a small frown as she stared down at it for a moment and Lydia raised an eyebrow questioningly as she waited impatiently. "Meredith, aren't you going to answer it?"
Meredith's forehead furrowed in confusion as she looked up at the strawberry blonde and then she stood up from her bench as she leaned into whisper in Lydia's ear, "It's not ringing."
"Meredith, you came here to help us, remember?" Lydia said tightly in a forced polite tone as her jaw twitched and I placed a calming hand on her arm as she forced herself to relax under my touch.
"You called me."
"What do you mean I called you?"
"I heard you." Meredith whispered conspiratorially with a small smile like she was sharing a secret and Lydia gritted her teeth in frustration as she turned away so that no one would see the irritation. My hand dropped from her arm as she moved away and I tried not to show my concern over her mental state because I knew she hated people seeing her weaknesses.
"Meredith, can I ask you a question?" Jordan asked politely as he walked forward with an inquisitive expression and she glanced towards me for approval before nodding hesitantly in answer when I smiled slightly. "When you need help, when you need to find something, is there someone you reach out to? Maybe someone you call?"
"It depends. Different people for different things." Meredith explained softly with a small shrug and I had to smile slightly at Jordan's initiative as he knelt down in front of the banshee with a soft smile.
"So maybe there's a number that can help us? Someone we can call."
"Yes."
"Would you be okay telling us?" I asked hopefully as I took a few steps forward and she looked up at me with wide eyes as she nodded hurriedly. I grinned happily as I gestured for Malia to grab her phone so she could write down the number and the werecoyote quickly grabbed her phone as she prepared herself take down the number.
"Yes. It's 2, 4, 3, 6." She recited slowly like she was trying to remember what the numbers were and I waited patiently for her to continue but she just stared over at me with a pleased expression.
"Mer, we need a few more numbers."
"No. That's the number."
"Phone numbers are 10 digits." Malia argued with a frown as she held up her phone for proof and Lydia narrowed her green eyes in annoyance as she bit the inside of her cheek to stop from shouting.
"That's the number." Meredith stated firmly with a shake of her head and I nodded in understanding as my mind started to think of alternative meanings for the five numbers.
"Meredith, phone numbers always have 10 digits." Lydia insisted sharply with her lips pursed as her hands curled into fists and I looked at her in concern as she took a step forward almost threateningly.
"That's the number." The other banshee repeated in a shaky voice as she leaned away from the infuriated strawberry blonde and I positioned myself in between them as I reached out to grab the strawberry blonde's elbow.
"Lydia." I murmured softly as I guided her to the side of the room and I rubbed her arm gently with a concerned frown on my lips. "Hey. Come here. I think that's the best we're gonna get."
"No. There has to be more." Lydia said in a hard tone of voice as she jerked away from me and she stormed towards Meredith with a determined expression as her eyes flashed with ferocity. "What's the rest of it, Meredith? Hmm? Just concentrate!"
"But that's... that's... that's the number." Meredith stammered hysterically as her eyes filled with tears and she scrambled backwards on the bench as the other banshee marched towards her.
"Concentrate!"
"That's... That's the number. That's the number."
"It's okay, sweetheart. We're..." Sheriff Stilinski tried to intervene in a soothing tone as he stepped forward and I grabbed Lydia's arm to pull her backwards as she stared at the other girl in shock at her own acts.
"That's the number!" Meredith shouted loudly as she stood up from the bench with a frantic expression and she looked around wildly as though someone was going to attack her out of nowhere.
"Meredith! Mer, look at me." I cooed soothingly as I stepped forward with my hands up in surrender and she snapped her head around to look at me with wide eyes as I walked towards her slowly. "Hey, Meredith. Hey."
I smiled slightly when her breathing regulated back to normal as she slowly started to relax and I stopped next to her as I carefully placed a hand on her shoulder. Her whole body shuttered under my touch as she stared at my face with wide eyes and I wrapped an arm around her shoulders as I slowly guided her back down so that we were both sitting on the bench. Meredith leaned her head on my shoulder as I looked up at the others in the room with a frown and I gestured with my head for Malia to take Lydia out of the room. The werecoyote gently pushed the banshee out of the office as Lydia stared blankly ahead and Jordan walked forward to crouch down in front of me with a concerned frown.
"I think she's asleep." Jordan whispered to me as he ducked his head to look at Meredith and I tilted my head in an attempt to see her face but I couldn't see anything. "Hold still. I'll move her into the on-call room. We have some beds for the officers on duty overnight."
"Thanks." I whispered back to him as he carefully lifted Meredith in his arms and freed me from her tight grasp as he offered me a soft smile. "I know you're really confused about why we needed to talk to her. But I appreciate your help."
"Sure. It's my duty to protect and serve. Regardless whether or not I'm completely confused and out of the loop." He remarked jokingly with smirk as he started carrying Meredith towards the door and I chuckled in amusement as I stood up from the bench before following him out of the room. I watched his retreating back as he disappeared around the corner and I bit my lower lip as I shook my head to myself. I looked around for where Lydia and Malia had gone to and smiled slightly when I saw them sitting together in an interview room with a laptop in front of them.
"Lydia, what if it's like Algebra?" I heard Malia ask as I walked into the room and I closed the door behind me as they turned to look at me with a small smiles on their faces.
"What do you mean?" Lydia asked curiously as she rested her elbow on the table with her chin in her hand and I sat down next to her as Malia leaned over my shoulder with one of her hands on the table.
"What if the numbers are actually letters?"
"Wait a second…What were the numbers?" I asked in a hurry as I grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from the middle of the table as I waited for someone to read me the numbers.
"Um, 2, 4, 3, 6." Lydia recited from memory as she looked up at the ceiling and I wrote them down on my paper as my gaze flickered to the tattoo on my wrist. My eyes widened in realisation as my hand froze in the middle of writing and I closed my eyes for a moment before looking over at the other girl's confused expressions.
"I know what the key is." I told them softly as I dropped the pen on the table and ignored their gazes as I pulled Lydia's laptop in my direction. I sighed heavily as I typed in the letters A, I, D, E, N and a new part of the Dead Pool scrolled out on the screen as Lydia and Malia rushed around to look at the screen over my shoulder. "Oh, God...
Kate Argent - 12m
Noshiko Yukimura - 5m
Joanne McLaughlin - 1m
Steve Grace - 1m
Tom Hill – 1M
Brett Talbot - 1m
Reed Schall - 250k
Richard Benefield - 250k
Jack Marsland - 250k
Joy Waldrop - 250k
Cheryl Calix - 250k
"I need to text this to Stiles. Send it to me." Lydia demanded as she pushed on my shoulder and I snapped out of my depressed trance as I automatically copied the text before sending an email to Lydia's address.
"Sent." I assured her as the laptop made a ding noise and she nodded gratefully as she stepped to the side the room while texting on her phone. My gaze lingered on the last name on the list as I tried not feel a mixture of betrayed and frightened at the sight of it.
The sound of the door opening caused me to jump in fright and I slammed the laptop closed as I snapped my head up with wide eyes. Jordan sent me an amused smile as he held the interview room door open and I forced a smile back at him as I tucked a strand of brunette hair behind my ear.
"Sorry, I was just seeing if you guys were okay. You need a ride home?" Jordan asked politely with a smile as he looked between all of us and I immediately shook my head in protest as he turned his attention back to me.
"Uh, no. We'll be fine." I assured him quickly as I waved my hand dismissively with forced smile and he nodded in understanding as he closed the door behind him when he left the office. I breathed out a sigh of relief once he was out of sight and I slowly lifted the lid of the laptop as I frowned at the last name on the list.
Jordan Parrish - 5m