Chapter Eight: One More Day
Jackson Whitmore stood outside of McCall's house, and he wasn't sure what he was going to say to them when he got inside. Derek Hale was with him. They had been in the car with Peter when he'd hit the sheriff. Jackson had been supposed to end up in college, but he had stayed behind. His boyfriend Danny Mahealani had gotten him to stick around town, Jackson still wasn't sure how that had happened. Oh yeah, Danny could do things with his tongue that Jackson had dreams about. He took a deep breath and looked at Derek. "What are we supposed to say to them?" Jackson and Danny had been sort of friends with McCall and Stilinski, but not super close. And Jackson knew that it had to be hard, not having your dad anymore when you'd already lost one parent. Jackson had been adopted, and both of his parents were fine. They'd told him when he was 9, and he was fine with the ones he had. And he knew how he'd feel if he lost his. "We were in the car but we didn't know how high Peter was."
He wasn't even sure why he'd been in a car with them in the first place. Okay he did, he'd needed a ride since his car was on the fritz and he'd promised Danny he would come over, and Derek and Peter had stopped him on the street to give him a ride. Jackson should have said no, he was regretting this. Danny had offered to come with them, but Jackson had told him it should just be him and Derek for now. The funeral was in a couple of days, he'd just died the day before. Jackson knew that they might not want to see them, but he had to talk to them. Jackson had to tell them that he hadn't known that Hale was that high. Jackson didn't even know if it was weed or prescription. With Peter, you didn't know for sure. He was still in the jail, he had the money to pay to get out, but Derek wouldn't go down and pay it, and since he was paying for Peter's lawyer, the lawyer couldn't do it either. Jackson was sure that Derek was going to just leave him in there until the trial began.
Derek moved past Jackson to ring the bell. He knew the two boys were home, Melissa had gone off to work, and he knew that they were home because Scott's bike and Roscoe sat in the driveway. Derek didn't know what he was going to say to either of them. Derek had the town reputation for being the town's recluse, and so he wasn't sure what excuse he was going to make for Peter. The Hales were the richest in Beacon Hills, and Derek lived downtown (usually with Peter) in a loft apartment. Derek just didn't know if Scott and Stiles were going to want to hear his apology. He had to try though. He had to get them to see that he really and truly was sorry for letting Peter drive when he was that high on Oxy and Vicodin.
"We're going to tell them that we're sorry and then listen to what they have to say, Whitmore."
That was when the door opened and Stiles stood there. He looked out over his porch, Derek Hale and Jackson Whitmore were standing there. "What the… what are you guys doing here?" Stiles asked, trying to make heads or tails of it. He was wearing a pair of Scott's UCLA sweatpants despite the heat, and nothing else. His hair was a bit in a disarray fashion, and he had some stubble going on. Light, but it was there. Stiles didn't know why they were here. Sure, he and Scott were kind of friends with Jackson and Danny, but Danny wasn't here now, it was Derek Hale. Then it hit him. They wanted to talk about the accident. Stiles' eyes brushed with tears. He wasn't sure he could do this. But he knew that he had a better chance with Scott. So he led them inside reluctantly.
When they got into the living room, Jackson and Derek's intake of breath was sharp. Stiles knew that it was because they hadn't seen Scott in awhile, and he was paper thin practically, and he wasn't wearing anything on his head, so his baldness was on display, and he was covered in like four blankets. Steve the puppy was curled up on Scott's lap, clearly knowing who the alpha male was in the house. Plus, Stiles knew that the dog knew what a hard time they both were having. Stiles had been going through papers that told him how much his dad's house was worth. It's not like they could move into it, what with Stiles wanting to be close to Melissa in case something happened, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to sell or not.
"Just say what you came to say, Derek."
Scott lifted his gaze to Derek, who to his credit, was having trouble seeing the younger man like he was. He met those eyes head on, and he knew that Derek was here to talk about what Peter had done. He'd gotten a bit off track, since it was Derek's first time seeing Scott so sick. He didn't leave the house much, only for the chemo. He was too weak to travel anywhere. So if no one came over, they wouldn't have any idea how Scott was dealing with any of this. Scott didn't know what he was expecting, the whole town knew now about Scott being sick and exactly how bad it was. Especially since when Stiles found out about Noah was at Scott's chemo treatment. Scott petted Steve carefully, as he looked at Derek. Scott's eyes brushed with tears. He saw Jackson, who actually stepped past Derek, who had seemed to stall, and wrapped his arms around Scott. Scott hugged him back, and he found that Jackson was crying. That seemed more important, and so when Jackson pulled back, Scott looked him in the eyes.
"Whitmore, I promise, I'm going to be okay." He knew that he wasn't, and he could tell by the look on Jackson's face that he knew that he wasn't. Scott didn't mind, he was mostly saying that to Jackson for his husband's benefit.
Jackson forgot why they were actually there and focused on Scott. Stiles was sitting next to Scott, watching, and Derek was hanging back, waiting for his turn to speak. Jackson's eyes were pouring tears as he ran his hand along Scott's head lightly. Then he set his brown eyes on Scott. "Scott, I know that you say you're going to be fine…. And maybe you are. But I have something to say before Derek gets into his spiel." He noticed that Stiles was watching Jackson when he said that, and he wasn't a bit surprised. That was just how he was. When Scott was listening, Jackson began to speak. "Scott, because of you and Stiles, because of how happy you guys were and out and proud and everything, it gave me the courage to tell Danny how I felt about him."
It was true. Jackson had finally realized that he had feelings for Danny, who had been his best friend just about as long as Scott and Stiles, Whom Jackson called "Sciles" in his head. Never once had he used it out loud. He didn't want to use it and then someone mock him. Although he knew that most likely wasn't going to happen. He wiped some tears off his cheek. "You… whatever I can do to help, Scott, please let me know." Jackson had been a bit of a tool back in the day, but as he'd begun dating Danny he'd relaxed and everyone was liking him much more than they had before. "I owe you my whole life."
The tears filled Scott's eyes, and he was honestly touched that Jackson was saying this to him. He was quiet for a moment as he digested this information. He knew that the other boy had meant them, and he didn't know that he could reply right now that he knew exactly how he felt. Scott was so glad that he'd been able to help Jackson come out, and be happy with Danny. He was still a bit shaky with his voice when he began to speak. He reached out and took Jackson's fingers. "You have no idea how much that means to me, Jackson. And it does, I swear. I can…. I can die happy, I've had a really good life." The tension and fear in the room increased when he said those words. Scott ignored it, he had to get this out, tell Jackson, life was too short, they were finding out.
"I told my husband that while yes, I am going to fight this disease, and I am going to fight it hard, I know that the chance of survival is very low. I know that. I have lived an amazing life. Yes, I had a crappy father, but I found the love of my life when I was four years old. I was done. I didn't have to wonder that there was someone else out there for me. He's it. We've been together for nearly 6 years. I can die knowing that I had that kind of forever love that everyone is always looking for. I can die knowing that my ma will be okay, she'll have Stiles and Argent to keep an eye on her." Scott was sniffling by this point. "And now just by being me, I was able to make your life and Danny's life better. I really…. I can't ask for more than that. I have already lived so much in my life that most people only dream of."
When his voice faded, Stiles was just crying, and he moved to wrap Scott in his arms, this just wasn't fair. His first thought was to tell Noah and then he was crying even harder because he knew that he never could tell Noah. Stiles was truly glad that he was able to help make Jackson's life easier. He was. He knew how hard it was to be out in the world, Stiles had known he was in love with Scott since he was four, and that hadn't been without issues. But most of the time it wasn't that hard. Stiles cried in Scott's shoulder, until Derek cleared his throat, and then he was reminded that they were actually here for something. He pulled his head out of Scott's neck, and set his gaze on Derek.
"What were you going to say, Hale?" Stiles knew that there was nothing he could say that was going to make this okay. Stiles was going to make sure that Peter got the maximum sentence, whatever he had to do. Stiles wasn't going to let him get away with vehicular manslaughter. That's what it was in the eyes of the law. He looked at Derek, sizing him up. "No matter what you say, it's not going to change any of this. I'm still going to make sure that Peter serves the maximum sentence. He was driving under the influence and I LOST THE ONLY PARENT I HAD LEFT, HALE!"
Derek knew that he couldn't really say anything in defense of Peter. "Stiles, I didn't come here to defend my uncle, okay? I came here to apologize. I didn't know how high he was, and I wished that I had taken over for him. Jackson's here because we were giving him a ride to Danny's. He didn't know how high Peter was either. I am never going to be able to make up for what happened. But I want you to know that anything you need, I'm going to take care of it. I know that you might not want to take my help, but it's there. And I'm on your side in this whole thing, I will make sure that Peter pays for what he did. Your father was a good man and if you need someone to yell at, you can yell at me. Whatever you need from me."
The words Derek said had really thrown Stiles for a loop. He could only stare at him. He was aware of Steve trying to get attention, but he couldn't look at him. Stiles stared at Derek. He honestly hadn't expected Derek to admit that his uncle deserved to pay for what he'd done. He blinked, and Scott's hand tightened in his. Stiles turned to look at Jackson, who nodded, as if he knew what Stiles was silently asking. Stiles' mouth worked with no sound, and he didn't know what he was going to do, he couldn't yell at Derek now, even if he'd said that Stiles could if he needed to. He couldn't stop his chin from trembling, and he didn't know what to say. He just stared at Derek, tears slipping off his chin. Finally he spoke.
"No fair, Hale, that's not what I expected you to say."
This caused a laugh, from all four of them. Scott leaned back into the couch, coughing a bit. "Stiles ordered some pizza if you guys want to stay." He said. He knew how hard Stiles was taking this whole thing, and he wanted something that would distract him from all he was worrying about. It really wasn't fair, Stiles was supposed to be thinking about college instead of funerals and cancer. Scott looked at Jackson then, who was looking at him with this wide teary gaze. He didn't know how he was going to get that gaze to go away. Scott knew that everyone was going to feel sorry for him, and he couldn't stop that. He nudged Jackson lightly on the arm. "I'm okay, Whitmore. I swear." He said, smiling at him. "Cheer up."
Jackson met those eyes, and he sniffled, but he stopped crying. He wiped his eyes and reached out, holding Scott's hand, squeezing his fingers lightly. "I know." He said, and let go when he caught Stiles looking at him. Jackson knew that Stiles knew that nothing was going to happen, but he also knew that Stiles had always been fiercely protective of Scott. Jackson understood that, Scott was drop dead gorgeous, and there wasn't a girl or guy who liked other guys who wouldn't want to be with him. Jackson looked at Stiles. "If you don't mind us staying, we can stay for some pizza." He told the other boy, who looked torn. Jackson knew he was weighing the decision, knowing that Scott wanted them to stay, but Stiles didn't. He knew that Stiles wasn't going to be able to say no to Scott, he never could. It was one of the reasons that Jackson loved them together.
"Come on, Stiles, you know you can't say no to Scotty." Jackson said, and watched Stiles' eyebrows raise, no one really called Scott that except Stiles.
It was decided that Derek and Jackson would stay, and they were there for a couple of hours, before Jackson said that he had to get over to Danny's, they were supposed to hang out. Stiles had accepted Derek's offer to pay for the funeral, but only because he knew that there was no way he could talk him out of doing so. Stiles didn't really like the idea, but he also was kind of relieved that the funeral was one less thing he had to worry about. They were now snuggled on the couch, watching Scream, Stiles had a feeling he knew who the killer was, but he knew that Scott had no idea. Scott wasn't dumb, by any means, but he usually didn't figure stuff like that out. Stiles had to admit, it was one of the reasons that he loved him.
He was stroking Scott's arm, tracing circles. He was surprised that Scott was still awake. He spent so much time sleeping nowadays. Stiles wished that he could do something more for him than he was doing. It was hard to see him like this. Stiles was trying to think about anything but his dad. Stiles kept thinking that he didn't have his dad anymore. They both needed Noah, and now they had to get through this without him. Before Stiles could think about this some more, there was a key in the door, and Argent came in, carrying some food bags. Stiles looked at him. "Since when did you get a key?" He asked, not even caring that Argent could be super scary when he wanted to be. Stiles was concerned that Melissa had given him a key and hadn't told them.
Chris looked at him, wondering how he was going to answer that. He didn't know how to tell them that it had just happened that day. He wasn't really wanting to question what Melissa had decided, because he was glad that he was with her, and he was glad that she was starting to take this relationship more seriously. "Why don't you talk to Melissa about that." He said, heading for the kitchen. He'd picked up some Chinese on the way home. "I brought home some Chinese, Melissa should be home shortly. She asked me to stop and get it, Stiles." He said, he didn't want to argue with him. He also knew how much Stiles was going through, and he didn't want to argue with him at all if he didn't have to. He knew that most of what Stiles was feeling was due to that.
"Do you guys want something? I got lots of things, Melissa was wanting a little bit of everything." He said, doing his best to sound as lighthearted as he could. He knew that Stiles didn't want to talk about his grief, and Argent wasn't going to make him speak about it if he didn't want to. He moved into the living room, and reached out to touch Scott's forehead, he looked flush. Stiles bristled, but he didn't say anything. Argent looked at Scott. "Kiddo, you're burning up." He wasn't supposed to get sick like that. "Scott, did you eat okay today?" Chris asked, feeling Scott's cheeks. They were tinged pink.
"Okay, no." Stiles said, shaking his head hard and standing. "I can take care of my own husband, Argent. Back off!" His tone was loud. He ignored the tugging on his shirt Scott was doing. "Argent, I know that you think you and Melissa are going to work, but you're not. As soon as you realize that your wife really is gone, you're going to dump Ma and then it's just going to be awful for all of us. We're still going to be here, and you're going to be walking around town and she'll be crushed. We'll have to deal with picking up the pieces. You know why she'll be crushed? Because she's not in love with you, Argent!" This was said loudly, and both his husband and Argent looked at him with surprised looks. No one had said that out loud just yet.
In the stunned silence, Stiles kept talking. "She's in love with my dad, Argent. She always has been. And he didn't feel that way about her until it was too late. And now he's gone, and she can never tell him that she felt the same way he did." His eyes had brushed with tears. "You're not Scott's dad. You're never going to be Scott's dad. Because this relationship isn't going to work out. Do you understand me? This has a short shelf life, Argent. It would save us all so much time if you'd just move on." Stiles waved his hand at Scott, who was still tugging on Stiles, his shirt was all he could reach from the couch. Stiles didn't want to hear Scott's admonishing. He knew that this wasn't really called for, and it wasn't going to stop him. Stiles didn't really care if it was called for or not. Stiles had to get this off his chest. "Seriously, I don't want you home when Ma gets home from work tonight. Go. And I can take care of Scott just fine."
Before either of them could say anything, Scott was reaching for his bucket and he was tossing his cookies. Stiles shoved Argent back and put a hand on Scott's back. "Babe, you okay?" He asked, hating that this might be his fault. That his yelling at Argent may have done this.
Scott emptied his stomach. He thought Argent might be right, he might have the flu. Which was bad, he wasn't supposed to get sick like that. Scott looked into Stiles' eyes, who was feeling his head and frowning. "I'm okay." He managed to say, before he began to cough uncontrollably. He was going to have a discussion with Stiles later about butting into Melissa and Argent's relationship, but now was not the time. He took a sip of the ginger ale Stiles held out, it was from a straw, it was easier for him. He promptly coughed some more as soon as he was done drinking. Stiles looked incredibly concerned. "I'm…." He stopped, he couldn't get the words out before he was coughing again. He tried to protest when Stiles scooped him up in his arms. Stiles insisted that he was taking him to the hospital, and went outside, Scott's head buried in Stiles' neck.
Two hours later, and Scott was hooked up to machines, and he'd thrown up more times than Stiles could count. He definitely had the flu. Stiles was wearing a mask, he was trying not to get Scott sicker. He had to stay in the hospital until his fever was gone. Stiles didn't know that he ever wanted to see this hospital ever again. Stiles didn't like that every time they were here, he thought about how Scott might not leave it alive, and the fact that Noah hadn't. Stiles brushed his hand through his hair. He was outside Scott's room, Scott was asleep and he needed a break. Melissa had seen him and Scott had insisted she go home and get some sleep, and Stiles would call her if something happened. Stiles caught sight of Jackson, who was coming down the hall. Stiles wondered what he was doing here. "What's up, Whitmore?" He asked, as Jackson came to a stop next to him.
Jackson looked at Stiles. "I heard that Scott was in the hospital, I wanted to come and see him. I was out getting something for Danny and I to eat and I ran into Argent." He didn't tell Stiles that he knew what had gone on with Argent and Stiles. Jackson personally was on Stiles' side for that one, it sounded as if Argent was overstepping his boundaries. Jackson met Stiles' eye, and he saw tears forming. He knew that Stiles was too stressed, and his one stress reliever, his dad, was gone. Jackson reached out and touched Stiles' arm. "You can talk to me, you know. I know we're not like, bosom buddies, but I am here. I know that you can't really talk to anyone about anything. I'm an unbiased third party, and you can tell me anything and I won't even tell Danny if you don't want me to."
That was exactly the thing that Stiles had expected Jackson to say, and the tears began to pour out of his eyes and he actually moved into Jackson's arms, letting him hug him. Even though he had always been into Scott, he could appreciate how hot Jackson actually was. Stiles didn't know what he was going to say, if he started to talk about all of what he was feeling it was going to just come out in the floodgates. Stiles wasn't sure that he wanted to open those right now when Scott was so sick. Stiles felt them coming out though, in a rush of breath. "I just… he's so sick and I lost my dad, and I know that Melissa shouldn't be with Argent…. I just can't hold any of this in anymore." Stiles didn't want to keep going but he couldn't stop.
"I can't… I can't get Scott to admit that he's… I can't get him to stop saying that he's going to die. I can't…. I can't lose him, Jackson. I can't. He's been in my life since I was four. What am I going to do if I lose him too?" Stiles stopped to breathe, and he didn't know what he was going to do if that happened. Stiles couldn't lose him. He just didn't know what he would do. Stiles stepped back, and wiped his eyes. He looked at Jackson, who had a sympathetic look on his face, which Stiles wasn't used to seeing and it kind of threw him. He wiped his eyes and then said, "I'm not used to you actually looking like you feel empathy for other people."
Jackson rolled his eyes, but he knew that Stiles was right. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to him. Stiles actually smiled. "I know, handing the girl the handkerchief is so old school. What can I say, I used to date Lydia before I came out." He watched as Stiles wiped his eyes. Jackson brushed his hand through his hair. He didn't know how Stiles was doing any of this. Jackson shook his head when Stiles tried to hand it back. "It's okay, keep it. I get them cheap. Look, Stiles, you have to have someone to vent to about all of this. You can't keep it all inside like that. I don't know what the term for it is, but you know that it's not going to be good."
He didn't know what he was going to say to get Stiles to realize that if that didn't work. "I know that we're just sort of friends, but that's why it's perfect. You can tell me anything, and I will keep it to myself. If you don't want me to tell Danny, that is. You need someone to use as a sounding board, and that can be me. You won't have to worry about what I'm going to say in response, because I'm outside the situation." Jackson knew that all of this had to be so hard on Stiles. He reached out and touched Stiles' shoulder. "I know how hard it is to see Scott going through this. I can't even imagine what it would be for me if it was Danny." He said, his voice actually shaking a bit at the thought of it. "But you have to be realistic about this. I know that you don't want to think about it.." As he spoke, Stiles was shaking his head. "I know you don't want to, but this is stage four cancer, Stiles. It's hard to beat stage four cancer. If I have to be the one who is realistic for you, I'll do that."
As much as he hated to admit it, he knew that Jackson was right. Stiles sighed and put his handkerchief in his pocket. He sighed again and said, "I know you're right, Whitmore. I may not want to admit it, but I know that you're right." Stiles slid the mask down, since he was no longer in Scott's room, and looked into the room, Scott was sleeping. He kept his gaze on his husband as he spoke. "I know that you're right about all of it, even if I don't want to admit it out loud. But I've never not had Scott in my life. He's the best thing that ever happened to me." Stiles brushed his hand through his hair. He wished that he could just wave a magic wand and fix this. It wasn't fair. Scott was one of the best people that he'd ever known. Of all the people who deserved to have something like this happen, it wasn't Scott.
"He just, he doesn't deserve this." Stiles said, turning back to look at Jackson. "He's the best person that I've ever met in my entire life. I can't believe that he loves me. Scott is like Captain America. He is so good, and he trusts everyone. I don't trust anyone, and I'm so sarcastic. Scott sees the good in everyone. I don't know how he does that. I don't. He's, people don't exist like him anymore." He said, and he was starting to cry again. His chin trembled. "How does he deserve this?" He asked, wiping his cheeks. Stiles didn't know how God could exist, not when this was happening to Stiles. "I lost my dad… and my mom. I can't lose Scott too." Stiles didn't know what he was going to do if he lost his husband. They hadn't even been married a year. They hadn't even been married more than three months before Scott had turned out to be sick. Stiles couldn't handle losing him, and he knew it.
"He was just giving blood, and he finds out he has cancer?! How is that fair?! After all he's been through?"
Jackson knew none of it was fair. He didn't know how to commiserate. "I know, but if you start thinking about how not fair it is, you're going to drive yourself nuts. Scott needs you to be there for him. But you're right. If anyone deserves this, it's not Scott. You can't think about all of that because it's not helpful to either of you." Jackson was going to say more when he saw his boyfriend walking up to them. "Hey, babe." He said, leaning out to kiss him as he approached. He wondered if Danny had come to see Scott or if he just missed him. They didn't really spend that much time apart. Jackson smiled as Danny wrapped his arms around his waist, and he couldn't help it, he leaned back into him. Jackson was so happy. They'd been best friends for a long time too, and it was kind of like one of those crappy teen romance novels that Danny loved to read.
Stiles couldn't stop tears from brushing his eyes when he saw how happy they were together. He almost wished that they'd invited them to the wedding. "Hey, Danny. You guys are adorable." He heard noises from Scott's room. "Oh, Scotty's awake. I'll go in and talk to him and then you guys can come in if you want to see him. I know he'd like that, even as sick as he is." They shared a look, and Stiles ducked into Scott's room. "Hey, bae." Stiles said, as he got up to the bed, sliding his mask back into place. He sat down next to him and reached out, taking Scott's hand. He laced his fingers through Scott's tightly. He didn't think that he could tell Scott how nervous he was. Scott being sick with the flu was dangerous right now. He was so scared of losing him now.
It was nice to see Stiles when he woke up. Scott smiled at him weakly, and squeezed his fingers. Scott didn't know how to tell Stiles he was afraid this was it. He knew that Stiles thought that too, because he could tell by the look on his face. Scott knew that he had to tell him how he felt, because even if he wasn't sick, there was no guarantee of tomorrow. He licked his cracked lips, and sighed and half smiled as Stiles moved to put some Blistex on them. Scott waited until he'd finished, and had sat back down before he spoke. "I love you, Stiles. I know that you don't want to admit it, but this could be it. I'm not supposed to get sick, and I've got the flu." He watched the tears brushing in Stiles' eyes. "You can do this, Stiles. I'm not saying that it's time, but you know that you can do this. I know that you think you can't."
Before Stiles could protest, Scott kept talking. "Baby, do you know how amazing you are? I have so many things that I've been afraid to do, and because I have seen you just do the most amazing things without even thinking twice that I know I can do anything. Even die." Scott knew that Stiles didn't want to admit that that could happen, no matter how many times Scott tried to talk to him about it. He knew that Stiles didn't want to admit it, but Scott couldn't just hide his head in the sand like that. He had to be honest and keep things in the open. He stroked the back of Stiles' hand with his thumb. "You are so brave, and you tackle just about everything that you attempt." Scott didn't know how he could ever have done anything if he hadn't seen how strong that Stiles was.
"No, Scott. Please. I can't…" Stiles shook his head. He knew that Scott was wrong this time. He wasn't going to bounce back from losing Scott. There was no way he could ever get through that. He was barely holding it together and Scott was still here, still hanging on. As thin as he was, as bald as he was, and his normally olive skin was pale. "I know that you think I can do this, but I can't. And I can't talk about it. Please, we have to talk about something else. Jackson and Danny are here, do you want to see them?" He asked, and watched Scott's face light up in a smile. Scott was truly the most magical person Stiles had ever known in his entire life. Stiles turned towards the windows by the doors and waved to them, and they stepped inside. Stiles grew quiet as he watched Scott talk animatedly to Jackson and Danny.
It was nice to see Scott happy, even if it was because he had visitors while he was in the hospital. Stiles excused himself and left the room, sliding his mask down as he got into the hallway. This was going to break him. Stiles started to cry as soon as he reached the hall, and he sank to his knees. Scott was the best thing in his life. He had lost his parents. All he had left was Scott. Stiles buried his head in his hands as he sat on the floor. He didn't know how he was going to get through the rest of this week. The funeral may be paid for, but that didn't mean that he was going to be able to get through it. It was so much. Stiles sighed and tried to stop crying. "I miss you, Dad. I can't even remember the last thing I said to you." Stiles' voice was quiet, he was choking on the words.
There were footsteps, and Stiles looked up. Lydia and Allison stood there. It was so good to see them he burst into tears and stood, wrapping his arms around both of them.
The next day was the viewing. It wasn't until the evening, and Stiles wasn't sure how he was going to get through the day. He had woken up, he'd slept with Scott at the hospital. Although they said that if Scott's fever didn't climb in the next couple of hours they could discharge him. They'd loaded Scott full of antibiotics, whatever was safe for him to take while he was on his cancer meds. Stiles hadn't slept as great as he would have liked, he hadn't been able to fall asleep until Scott was asleep. It had taken longer than he might have liked. He got up and checked on Scott, who was breathing fine and still deeply sleeping. Stiles stepped out of the room, he needed some coffee. As he got out into the hall, he found his mother in law. "Oh, hey Ma." Stiles said, not sure what she was going to say. He was sure that she'd spoken to Argent and knew what he'd said to him.
Melissa looked at him, not sure what to say first. She knew that Stiles was upset, and she knew that she couldn't really yell at him for what he'd said. None of it had been untrue. She thought he could have picked a better time to say it, but she knew that she couldn't scold him for speaking the truth. Melissa sighed. She hugged him tightly, and felt Stiles relax against her. "I'm not mad at you, kiddo." She said, once she'd stepped back from the hug. Stiles' look of relief made her smile a bit. "You weren't wrong. And I know that my relationship with Chris is most likely going to be short lived." She said, shrugging one shoulder. "I was in love with your dad for a very long time. I was the one who missed out, because I never spoke up and told him how I felt. And now he's…" She couldn't say it, and she knew that Stiles was grateful that she couldn't.
"I'm not mad that you said those things to Chris. He is, but I can handle him. You are going through one of the hardest things that a person can go through in his life. You lost your father and Scott is so sick, and he's your husband. The only thing harder is when it's your child." Melissa met his eyes then, and Stiles looked chagrined. "I'm not asking you to be behind us, I can't make you be okay with that. And you know that no matter what happens with…. Scott, you will always be my family." She could tell that Stiles was relieved about that. "But all I ask is that you at least be civil to him. And I know you think I don't know about all of the money he gave you, but I do."
This was a surprise to Stiles, and he looked at her. "Ma, I promise that we just didn't want to hurt your feelings. You have given us so much more than he has. You are giving us a home, and we couldn't ask for more than that." He didn't know what they'd have done without her. "And if you want me to be civil, I'll do the best I can."" Stiles didn't know how she was dealing with Noah being gone, and while he had heard her use the past tense when speaking of how she'd felt about his father, he knew that she was still in love with him. Stiles didn't have to say that out loud though, he knew that she knew that. He didn't know what he was going to say to get her to realize that she and Argent should breakup now to avoid pain later on down the road.
He leaned out and hugged her again, he didn't know what he'd do without her or Scott, and Stiles was so glad that he'd never have to find out. He didn't know what kind of person he would be if they'd never come into his life, and he knew that there was no way of ever knowing. Stiles didn't like to think about it, because that meant that Scott would have never been in his life, and they'd never have gotten married. It was too scary to contemplate.
Last night I had a crazy dream
A wish was granted just for me
It could be for anything
I didn't ask for money
Or a mansion in Malibu
I simply wished for one more day with you
One more day, one more time
One more sunset maybe I'd be satisfied
But then again, I know what it would do
Leave me wishing still for one more day with you
One more day
First thing I'd do is pray for time to crawl
I'd unplug the telephone and keep the tv off
I'd hold you every second
Say a million I love yous
That's what I'd do with one more day with you
One more day, one more time
One more sunset maybe I'd be satisfied
But then again, I know what it would do
Leave me wishing still for one more day with you
Author's note: I am sorry it's so angsty still. It was my first time writing Jackson and Derek, so bear with me. I really do ship Danny/Jackson. The only straight ships I have for Teen Wolf is Scira and Noah/Melissa. The next chapter is either going to pick up where this left off or skip to after the funeral. I'm not sure which it will be. I hope ya'll are hanging in there. Review if you like!