You know what really sucks when your brother is a werewolf? Everything.
And that doesn't even come close to reality, Sasha's life has become so much more difficult since Scott was bitten by Peter. Having an asthmatic twin brother whose main concern in life was to pass his math class was boring, but it was safe and Sasha had the privilege of being the most extra of the two – ah good times ! But then of course Scott's asthma became a thing of the past, added to his new found super strength and speed, his popularity went from zero to ten real quick, leaving Sasha in the dust, far behind him.
Not that he wanted to leave her behind. Scott was the absolute best brother one could possibly dream of in terms of loyalty and support, but it just happened. He couldn't exactly fight against the natural course of the events while also learning to control his powers – and trying to win over Allison with his awkward charm. And then Peter happened, which only compelled him to push Sasha farther away for her own safety. At the time, she thought it was the worst thing that could happen, and once Peter was defeated, she thought everything was over and life would go back to normal.
Except it didn't. It only went downhill from there. And her only solace in this new, unwanted, unasked for life of hers, was Stiles. Stiles, the only other supernatural-power-less person in Beacon Hills apparently. Lydia was a high-grade ally of hers too, she was Sasha's closest and most cherished friend right behind Stiles whom she grew up with alongside Scott. The three of them – Stiles, Lydia and she – were not the strong ones, they were not mighty werewolves, they didn't possess super speed and inhuman healing powers, they were not physical people, they were the brains. The ones who untangled the ropes and cast light upon the twisted schemed of their enemies. Finding the solution to a problem was always a great moment of joy, but being physically incapable made Sasha a weakness – the others had to protect her, shield her with their own body even, and she stopped counting the number of times her, Stiles or Lydia were used against the pack. They were just easier to attack, to kidnap, to threaten. They didn't heal magically, nor did they have anything other than their intelligence to count on. Expect Lydia, who had the small advantage of being a Banshee.
During the last few years Sasha had been thrown around, mishandled, kidnapped, committed to a psychiatric hospital, her bones were broken, her flesh cut, her mind tortured- and yet... she was here. She survived all of it, and she went to school like any other person of her age. She struggled to open her locker, she arrived late to class, failed PE and finished her homework the night before the due date. She stressed over what she was going to wear, yelled at her brother for taking so much time in the bathroom, worried their mother because she come home late sometimes. Sasha was a teenager despite it all.
"Hey, you ready?" Scott asked her, his head showing through the door of her room that was ajar.
Sasha grabbed her zipped sweater from the chair back and her bag on the floor.
"I haven't eaten breakfast yet," she said, suddenly realizing they were running late for school – again.
"Mom bought croissants, you can eat them in the car," Scott said while running down the stairs, urging her to hurry up.
On her way down, she had had the time to throw her sweater on and secure her backpack on her shoulder. She made a quick loop by the kitchen to grab some food and followed Scott out the door.
"You say that like it's your car and it's up to you to decide if I'm allowed to eat inside!" She laughed, shoving the croissant in her mouth to free her hands.
Stiles was already here, parked in front of the house and seemingly too absorbed in whatever he was doing on his phone to notice them coming.
"Stiles' jeep is already garbage, Sasha," Scott pointed out while opening the door. He always rode shotgun.
"Hey! I heard that!" Stiles protested, putting his phone away. "Next time I'm just taking Sasha to class, and your sorry werewolf ass can just run behind the garbage," Stiles threatened, narrowing his eyes at Scott who didn't feel threatened at all.
"He'd be there before us," she laughed, and Stiles looked at her as if saying 'not helping Sasha'. She bit the inside of her cheeks to suppress her smile and pulled a severe face before saying, "I mean, yeah he'll be there before us but he'll be all sweaty and gross and we'll look fresh and fabulous."
"Nice try Sasha," Scott mocked her poor attempt at supporting Stiles. "But I wouldn't even break a sweat."
"Yeah, yeah we get it, you're a true Alpha, you don't sweat like us mere mortals," Stiles grumbled in defeat and started the car. "Life's so fucking unfair."
Before leaving the sidewalk, Stiles looked at Sasha in the rear-view mirror, and winked, a faint but still noticeable smile tugging at his lips. Through the years she had mastered the art of not blushing all the time, but she had yet to learn to steady her heartbeats in the presence of a werewolf.
"Sasha?" Scott turned around and gazed at her in concern. "You alright?"
"Yeah, I- I just remembered I forgot to read the book we were supposed to read for our literature class," she lied.
Fortunately her heartbeat was already going fast and her lie passed unnoticed.
"Shit, me too," he swore.
She sighed silently in relief and focused on the landscape. There were in fact a lot of things that changed over the years since Scott was bitten, and no matter how many times Sasha would be beaten and bruised because of a supernatural being, nothing, absolutely nothing, was worse than having a twin brother with heightened senses.
Now try to hide from said brother that you're dating his best friend behind his back.
000
Luckily for Sasha, Stiles was very resourceful and while it sometimes weighted on her shoulders to lie to her twin brother, the perspective of the conversation they would need to have if they decided to come clean to Scott kept her guilt at bay. Stiles was not keen on imagining the kind of threatening tone Scott would use on him to passive-aggressively promise him major bodily harm if his beloved sister's feelings were hurt. Sasha tried to convince Stiles that Scott was his brother too and that he would never do anything against him, but then Stiles cracked a joke about their relationship being kind of incestuous based on her reasoning, which caused Sasha to smack him upside the head.
"Don't be thick!" Sasha affectionately scolded Stiles. "It's not like he can do anything about it, and it's in his nature to be understanding. He wouldn't be mad."
"He would be upset that we lied," Stiles pointed out, shutting his locker. "Shouldn't we have this conversation elsewhere? There are way too many werewolves in this school, and most of them are part of the pack – I'm betting they'd tell on us first chance!"
"You're exaggerating!" Sasha sighed, shrugging off her jacket and shoving it into her own locker. "Lydia already knows and she hasn't told a soul," she added, causing Stiles to choke on thin air.
"What?" He squeaked out. "How does she always know everything?"
Sasha's face lit up and she raised her hands in defeat.
"Right! That's exactly what I asked her, word for word!" She said, both of them stunned at the strawberry blond's ability to somehow always know what was going on before anyone else.
"And what did she say?" Stiles inquired, curious to know the answer.
"Nothing, she just looked up from her nails, raised an eyebrow at me as if asking 'are you serious right now' and I let it slide because I thought some things are better left unsaid," she told him, grabbing a couple textbooks and closing her locker too.
"Yeah, it's probably better this way, if we had the answer to that question it would deprive the world of some of its mystery," Stiles snickered and scratched his chin.
It was their sign. It meant Scott was coming this way.
"Absolutely," she agreed and hugged her books closer to her chest. "I should go, my French teacher doesn't like tardiness," Sasha said as she walked a few steps backwards and waved goodbye before turning around and smiling to her brother.
"What were you two talking about?" Scott inquired when he reached Stiles.
"Oh uh, nothing," he said in a rare instance of lack of inspiration. "Who even takes French classes? This language doesn't make sense! Half of the words are food related," Stiles said in hope to drift Scott's attention to something else.
"I could use some food right now," he said, placing a friendly hand on Stiles' shoulder. "Let's go to the cafeteria."
000
Nine times out of ten it went pretty alright, although it was mainly due to Stiles and Sasha putting extraordinary effort into not getting caught red handed by Scott or any of their friends for that matter – apart from Lydia who knows everything apparently. The trope of the teenager who climbs out of the window – or has someone else climb in through the window – was an easily avoidable cliché for them since Scott's acute senses would immediately work against them and tell him that either Stiles was trying to sneak into his house or Sasha was sneaking out.
It required a little help for them to see each other privately, at night that is. Since Lydia found out, Sasha put her to good use and asked her – told her – to lie and pretend they established a weekly girls' night at her place. This way Sasha could simply walk out the door, with a bag stuffed with her belongings and say goodbye to both Scott and her mom, without having to worry about anything.
But that's far too perfect of a plan to really work out on the long term. Came a moment when Lydia was tired of spending her Tuesday night alone in her room, pretending to be with Sasha to cover her. She couldn't go out because what if someone saw her when she was supposed to have a girls' night?
"I have a life, Sasha," Lydia told her with a scolding look on her face as she secured her bag on her shoulder. "Actually, some might even say I have a busier social life than you-" she ventured, trailing off when she saw Sasha squinting her eyes at her.
"It's a Tuesday night!" She protested, raising her hands. "What else do you want to do on a Tuesday night?"
"I don't just stay inside and study, you know?" Lydia sighed. "I'm already five years ahead in math and physics, and I've ran out of textbooks that challenge me."
"Heavens, Lydia!" Sasha giggled with a small frown of utter disbelief on her face as she grabbed Lydia's arm to walk with her to her next class. "I was thinking about some light reading or binge watching, not school stuff!"
"It is light reading for me," she replied, her left dimple popping out when she pursed her lips. "Sasha I just don't wanna do this anymore," she stopped walking and took her arm out of Sasha's grasp. "I don't see what I get out of it?"
"My eternal love and gratefulness?" She tried and miserably failed according to the ginger's face.
"It's been months," Lydia deadpanned. "You and Stiles should just tell Scott! Or just go back to how you did it before getting me involved!
"Oh my god Lydia, could you speak a little louder? I think all the werewolves in this High School haven't heard you," Stiles suddenly said, seemingly coming out of nowhere.
"Scott is the most understanding person I've ever met, what bad could happen? He might be happy for you," she said.
"Or-" Stiles began, "-he could be mad. Is it worth the risk when we could just dodge the problem?"
"Exactly!" Sasha added, siding with Stiles to try and make Lydia be reasonable. "That's a great philosophy of life; just avoid the problem until it goes away by itself."
"That's a terrible philosophy," Lydia said with an eye roll before resuming her walk – they were going to make her late for class. "I won't change my mind, now sorry-" she said as she squeezed Sasha's hand, "-but I have to go."
"Lydia!" Sasha called behind her but failed to make her turn around.
"You're being unreasonable Lydia!" Stiles shouted in the middle of the hallway.
Just then the bell rang and soon waves of students flooded the hallways, making it impossible for Stiles to do anything more than give a wink and a goodbye wave before parting ways with his girlfriend as he walked to his next class. Less than a minute into her History class, Sasha felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She knew it was Stiles before checking it. She pulled it out discretely and read the text.
From: Stiles
We'll figure it out, already working on it!
"Sasha!" Mrs. Martin called her name to get her attention. "Please don't fall asleep in my class and pay attention."
"Yes, ma'am," Sasha said sheepishly and nodded her head. It took another ten minutes before Lydia's mom stopped constantly checking if she was indeed giving the lesson her full attention. In a swift movement she grabbed her phone and typed an answer, then she put the device back in its rightful place and actually paid some mind to the lesson.
To: Stiles
If our joined super brains can't find a solution then no one can.
000
"That's a stupid plan Stiles," Sasha said for the tenth time in a row while watching her hyperactive boyfriend gesticulate all over the place and explain all the details to his 'brilliant' and 'flawless' plan.
"Oh please Sasha!" Stiles protested. "When has one of my plans ever failed us?"
She barely had the time to open her mouth to answer before Stiles interrupted her.
"Never mind, don't answer that." He put his hands on his hips and zoned out like he usually did when he was thinking hard about something. "Listen, you'll just pretend you're still going to Lydia's tomorrow, this'll give us one more week to figure something out. What are the chances Scott runs into Lydia on a Tuesday night?"
"I'd rather not think about this right now. Probabilities never work in our favor," Sasha shook her head.
She distractedly played with her empty milkshake glass with the tip of her fingers and chewed on the straw. They have been sitting in this diner for hours, initially working on an impossible math assignment due in a couple days but now surrounded with notebooks, scribbled paper sheets and empty plates.
"Did you just make a math joke?" Stiles asked, lifting up a paper with one of their inconclusive math problem on it. "I'm rubbing off on you!" He exclaimed proudly, a huge smile on his face.
"What?" Sasha cringed and raised both her hands up in defeat. "I can slow down my heart beat to a normal pace but I can't stop from speaking like you!"
"You're right we can't get busted like this, it'd be way too anticlimactic," Stiles agreed.
"Hey, what about we tell Allison?" Sasha suggested.
Stiles looked at her with wide open, bewildered eyes and blinked a couple times before saying, "No, Sasha! The point is to not let people know!"
"But Lydia already knows so why not Allison? She's reliable - she could tell me when she's hanging out with Scott and when the coast is clear."
"You're making a point, but I still cannot come to your house because he or your mom could come back any time and also Scott's werewolf super sense of smell will-"
"Yes, yes, I know! I'll just come to your place, it's safer this way," she said, pushing away the empty milkshake before she ate the entire straw. "We're making this so complicated."
"We could just go to the movies or drive to the next town if you wanna go on a date without looking over your shoulder all the time," Stiles suggested – though he didn't sound convinced.
"That does make sense!" Sasha agreed. "Do you think there's enough room in your Jeep to have sex?"
"We won't know unless we try it," he said with his low, full-of-wisdom voice, and Sasha nodded with a conniving smirk tugging at her lips. "You know I'm seriously considering asking someone to turn me so we can finally fight on equal footing – we should get a medal for managing to keep our relationship a secret so long!"
"We didn't," Sasha pointed out, leaning back against the seat. "Lydia knows, your dad has suspicions and-"
"Oh yeah, my dad definitely knows, he saw you coming out of my room three weeks ago," Stiles cut her off.
"What does that prove? I'm always hanging out at your place to do homew-"
"-in my flannel," he finished with a pointed look.
"Okay yeah, that must have given it away."
"He's happy for us by the way and he said he called it," Stiles added with his lips pursed as if he had just eaten something bitter. "I don't see what we're doing wrong."
"Maybe if we didn't spend so much time alone in a diner after school or at one of our places it would seem less obvious?" Sasha said sarcastically, earning a squint-eyed stare from Stiles.
"Nah it must be something else," he replied with an equally sarcastic voice. "It's getting dark outside, this is our cue to leave and go back to pretending we're just platonic friends with no romantic feelings for each other whatsoever."
"God we suck at his, don't we?"
"Totally."
000
"I can't believe it's working out," Sasha laughed before plopping down on Stiles' lap – he was sitting on the old leather chair in the corner of his room.
This was her favorite place to be – Stiles' lap but also in the old leather chair. It was so worn out they practically sunk down to the floor but it was the comfiest chair in the world. If tried to throw it away, Sasha would probably chain herself to it.
"Told ya – I'm a genius and so are my plans," Stiles grinned and wiggled his eyebrows before planting a possessive kiss on her lips.
"I kind of remember this being my idea though," she giggled. "It's not nice to take credit for your girlfriend's ideas – haven't you reached that chapter yet in your copy of Relationships for Dummies?"
"You know what? I was just starting it but then my dog ate it," Stiles said, looking all sorry.
"Stiles you don't have a dog," Sasha laughed.
"Actually I was talking about Scott," he replied and earned a shove.
"Werewolf joke, so subtle," she giggled. It was a little mean but not nearly as much as it was funny.
Sasha's hands traveled upwards to Stiles' chest then his shoulders, and she gently massaged them through his shirt while leaning in. The tip of her nose brushed against his cheek and lightly traced the outline of his jaw. She felt Stile's breath hitch up and for a second he held back his breath and silently endured the teasing. When she placed the first kiss on the soft spot right under his ear, Stiles had to bite down on his lip – it wasn't fair, she knew his weak spots.
"Sasha-" he mumbled.
It made her smile against his skin but not stop kissing his neck and jaw. She had this kind of influential power over him even without supernatural powers and that was exhilarating.
"I thought tonight was just studying and cuddles? You know, PG rated stuff," Stiles snickered even though he didn't do anything to stop Sasha.
"Are there any kids in this room Stiles?" She laughed, pulling away enough to look at him and slightly tugging at his shirt's collar.
His brows suddenly knitted together in concentration. He was thinking about it! He was actually giving a though to her sarcastic question.
"Would you say eating Count Chocula in the middle of the night is something an adult would do?" He asked. When Sasha's expression contorted into one of confusion, he added, "Hypothetically of course."
"Sure," she answered, unconvinced. "It's definitely an adult thing though."
"Good. I guess I'm an adult then – maybe not legally but at heart," Stiles said.
It made her laugh – he always made her laugh. Stiles was silly and sometimes unintentionally funny, but either way Sasha was the happiest when he was around to make her smile.
"You're a dork. You're the dork king of dorkdom," Sasha told him. "Instead of 'male' there should be written 'dork' for your gender on your ID, because that's what you are."
"I think you got your point across Sasha. Also ouch!" Stiles clenched his hand over his heart to illustrate.
"C'mon," she giggled. Sasha touched the tip of Stiles' nose with her finger, making him blink and sigh fondly. "You know I love you."
"Even if I'm a dorky boyfriend?" He asked, obviously fishing for some compliments.
"Especially because of this," she reassured him. Her hand was still on his collar bones, occasionally smoothing out Stiles' shirt or wandering all the way to his shoulder blade then back to his chest. "I have to say cereals sound real good right now. I'm starving and we haven't had a break from that stupid homework in two hours!"
"Three, it's been three hours," Stiles corrected her, gesturing to his alarm clock on which red digits showcased what time it was. Past eleven. "I say we deserve a reward, something more gratifying than cereals."
"Are we thinking the same?" Sasha asked in an excited tone.
"I think we are," he replied.
"Pizza!"
"Thai!"
"What?!" Stiles squealed out the question and raised his hands in a what the hell gesture.
"I thought we were good this time!"
"Never mind, one day we'll get it right," he assured her. "We can always order both. Or a Thai pizza? Does it even exist? I feel like it should exist."
"You're rambling," Sasha gently point out and Stiles gave her a sorry pout. "Can I change my vote? On one condition though!"
"Oh so we're negotiating now?" He sniggered. "No pineapple on the pizza though, I use my veto."
"Fine," Sasha agreed. "But extra pepperoni."
"No need to tell me twice!"
Stiles pushed Sasha off his lap, making her land on the chair's armrest and stood up to grab his phone which was safely tucked away in his back pocket. He made an expeditious phone call while Sasha rummaged through her bag to find her own phone and check her messages. Stiles was quicker than her though and grabbed her phone from her hands.
"Wh-" she was about to protest but Stiles threw her phone on the chair before picking her up in a swift motion. "Stiles put me down!" Sasha began to laugh.
"No phones tonight, you're entirely mine!" He declared and dropped her on the bed. "I demand your undivided attention for the whole evening... night. The whole night," Stiles told her and leaned down to kiss her. Sasha wasn't resisting him and easily gave in and forgot about her phone.
Sex – or simply making out – was equally fun as all the rest. With Stiles there was no pressure for anything, it was comfortable. Soft and demanding at the same time. He kissed her once to shut her up. He kissed her a second time to wipe away her pout and make her smile. He kissed her a third time because he couldn't resist when he saw her bit down on her lip. He kissed her a fifth, sixth and seventh time for the sack of it.
It wasn't steamy, hot make out. Stiles apparently was in the mood for something sweeter than that. Which didn't mean there were no wandering hands. Sasha's hands were grabbing Stiles' neck, pulling at his hair in as gentle a manner she could. His hands where on her sides, sneaking beneath her shirt merely to be in direct contact with her skin. It was a little tricky getting Stiles out of his clothes sometimes because of all the layers he put on, but Sasha became a pro at taking off flannels. She on the other side was quickly in her bra and seconds before she returned the favor, her phone's jingle began to play. Had it always been this annoying or was it just the timing?
"Fuck," Sasha groaned and turned her face to the right. Stiles' following attempt to capture her lips turned into a kiss on the cheek. "I have to get it."
"Said who?" He asked as he rolled his eyes and certainly did not let her out of his grip. He merely planted a kiss on her jaw and Sasha giggled.
"Be reasonable," she replied, giving him an amused pointed look.
"That is the single most ridiculous thing you ever said to me. And yes, I'm counting that time when we got drunk because Scott and Allison had a fight, and you admitted that when you were a kid you thought Scott and I would get married one day."
Meanwhile the phone kept ringing.
"You swore you'd never bring it up again!" Sasha poked Stiles' chest with her pointer finger. He mimicked to zip his lips closed and smirked playfully.
Sasha finally wiggled her way out of her boyfriend's arms despite his weak protesting. Stiles was still slouched on the bed, leaning on one arm and watching Sasha walked away from him. He wasn't going to say it out loud but as much as he disliked having her walk away instead of towards him, he didn't exactly mind looking at her. He was the luckiest nerd in the galaxy. A faint, impossible to repress smile appeared on his face and he smirked until he saw his girlfriend's smile drop when she sat on the chair and picked up her phone. She had five messages and two voice mails from Scott.
"Shit!" She exclaimed as she jumped to her feet, standing straight as an arrow.
"What is it?"
Stiles' tone had suddenly changed entirely. The urgency in her voice must have alarmed him because he reacted the way he would in a dangerous situation. That was the biggest difference between them and other teenagers: they were constantly on edge, on their guard, watching out for potential threats. In a split second Stiles was standing behind Sasha and looking at her phone screen to see what the matter was.
"It's Scott, he's-"
The doorbell rang and any trace of color left their faces. Their eyes briefly met and there as no need to voice the panic that overwhelmed them. Sasha was in her bra in Stiles' room and someone – who was definitely Scott – was at the door. Stiles and her began to silently scream, their mouths open but not a sound falling from their lips, they gesticulated around as Sasha tried to find a place to hide. Except there was no place in the house she could have hidden. Playing hide and seek with her werewolf twin was a game she'd never win.
Sasha vehemently pointed at the door and tried to signify Stiles to go and open the door and act normal while she hid. It was a very difficult thing to explain without talking so she whispered.
"Go down and talk to him! Make him leave, I'll go out through your window just in case he stays."
"That's madness, you'll hurt yourself Sasha!" He whispered back. Stiles tried to reach out for her but she urged him to go when the bell rang again.
"I'll be fine, I've climbed plenty of trees in my life, a house can't be that different."
It would be an understatement to say that Stiles was unconvinced by her logic. A severely flawed logic that was based a hope more than common sense. But he saw the determination in her eyes and he trusted her not to be reckless. She was already at the window the moment Stiles threw her shirt under the bed and stormed out of his bedroom and almost tripped on his way down the stairs.
He was out of breath by the time he grabbed the doorknob and abruptly opened it. As expected Scott stood on the other side. Scott as per usual simply stepped inside like he was home. Mi casa es tu casa, yeah?
"Hey man!" Stiles said, immediately wanting to roll his eyes at himself for so unnaturally stretching the syllables and going as far as leaning against the frame of the kitchen door. Play it cool dude, play it cool.
"Are you okay?" Scott frowned. He looked slightly worried but after a lifetime of friendship with Stiles he's learned not to draw conclusions too quickly; sometimes he just acted weird for no particular reason.
"Perfect, why wouldn't I be okay?" He shrugged and further leaned against the door frame. Does this look casual enough? "I stumbled down the stairs to open you the door man, what are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to spend the night with your girlfriend?"
This seemed to make him forget about Stiles' erratic breathing or odd behavior.
"I was but her dad walked in on us making out in her room and I had to leave. Well- I ran out actually. I forgot my jacket with my keys inside."
"You're a werewolf man why don't you force the door open?" Stiles asked him but Scott sighed.
"Mom's going to kill me if I break in once again," he told him and Stiles could swear he saw him shrink. Only Melissa could instill fear in an Alpha werewolf. "I tried calling Sasha to ask for her keys but she won't answer." He frowned and stared at Stiles. "She was here."
"Y-yeah uhm, she dropped by earlier. She wanted someone to review her History assignment," Stiles blurted out the first lie he could think of. It was a complete lie and everybody knew a half truth was always better than a complete lie. Sasha often asked Stiles to review her work and vice versa.
"Oh. And she's gone now?" Stiles nodded and Scott seemed disappoint. "Do you know where she went after leaving? She's not home."
"It's Tuesday, isn't she with Lydia?"
Stiles knew Lydia was out of the game but maybe she didn't tell everyone yet. Maybe she really is home reading some University level math book and could still serve as alibi. That is if Scott hadn't already contacted her to ask if Sasha was with her. If he thought she was having her weekly girls' night at Lydia then it would be the logical place to go.
"I saw Lydia drive to the movies earlier and she was with a guy," Scott told him. "Where else could she have gone?"
"I don't know, Malia?"
By now he just threw random suggestions around in hopes to make Scott leave without seeming to kick him out either. It probably didn't help that he looked out of breath and fidgety. Although by now you'd think his best friend knew better than to question his strange behavior.
"Malia doesn't like Sasha, and you know that. Are you hiding something from me? You're acting weird- weirder."
Or maybe Stiles was acting even stranger than usual. He had to check himself. Play it cool man, play it cool, he told himself.
"I don't know Scott, I'm not her babysitter. Sasha can take care of herself, maybe she's just running errands on her own, grabbing a midnight fro-yo or something." Stiles finally let go of the door frame and stood up straight.
"What is up with you tonight? Have I interrupted something?" Scott was beginning to be suspicious and kept frowning at Stiles.
"I'm sorry," he apologized. "I've been working on the Coach's assignment for two hours and I'm nowhere near finished," he explained.
"What?! But it's due tomorrow!" Scott exclaimed.
"Yes, I know, thank you for the extra pressure!" Stiles fired back. "I need to go back or I won't be getting any shut eye tonight."
"Yeah, yeah," Scott said and nodded. He was already turning around when he stopped and added, "If you hear of Sasha let me know, okay?"
"Sure."
The moment Scott's hand was on the doorknob, the doorbell rang again, and naturally he opened it.
"Two extra pepperoni pizza for Stilinski?" A guy dressed in black and white stripes and a red hat asked his rehearsed question. The look of boredom on his face spoke volumes about how much he loved his job.
"Yes!" Stiles pushed Scott aside and reached for the money in his back pocket. "Here, keep the change," he told the guy, whose expression didn't change in the slightest. He didn't shut the door and waited for Scott to follow the pizza guy but he didn't move.
"Two pizzas?" Scott asked with a raised eyebrow. "For you?"
Stiles could tell he was beginning to be suspicious. He suspected he was lying and that someone else was up there with him and that this someone else was his sister.
"Pfff no!" Stiles huffed. "No- I ordered one for my dad too. He's working late."
Scott nodded but his eyes remained squinted.
"But, didn't say you put him on a diet?" He inquired, still not dropping the subject.
"And he's been doing great!" Stiles exclaimed with emphasis on the great. "Gotta reward him to encourage him to keep up the good work."
This time Scott bought the lie and simply shrugged and walked out. Stiles put extra effort into closing the door gently and not seeming in a rush but the second it was closed, he dropped te pizza boxes and ran up the stairs two steps at a time.
"Sasha! Sasha!" He called her name but got no answer and his half undressed girlfriend just climbed out his window a few minutes ago. She obviously hasn't come back inside since the window was still wide open. "If you're not dead please say something!"
"I'm not dead you dramatic idiot, I'm stuck!" Sasha eventually told him. Stiles' head was sticking out of the window but he didn't see her.
"Where are you?"
"Up here!"
When he looked up and saw Sasha clutching at the gutter and trying to move back down unsuccessfully, Stiles didn't know if he should laugh or face palm. He settled for a good old 'what the fuck' look.
"Do no ask questions. Just help me down, my arms are tiring and I'll let go if I have to stay here one more minute," she warned him and Stiles didn't wait another second to rush out again, this time to his garage to get the ladder. He was quick to drag it to the backyard. He climbed up there and wrapped an arm around Sasha to help her get a grip of the ladder.
"I can't decide if that's the best or worst date we've had so far."
"It was way too close for comfort," Sasha told him. "And I'm freezing!"
"But we did good given the circumstances, right?" Stiles insisted. "It was an eventful evening, at least nobody can say we fall into routine."
"Nobody can say that because we're hiding Stiles," Sasha chuckled and fondly messed up his hair with her hand. "Only you can make this train wreck sound positive. That's why I love you so much."
"Love you too," Stiles answered with a kiss. "Now we need to go back inside before someone sees us."
It was a sensible thing to say since Sasha was still in her bra and the ladder was still there. They each grabbed an end of it and made their way around the house and to the garage as discretely as possible.
"Is this thing supposed to fit in there?" Sasha asked when Stiles tried to store the ladder away behind a door.
"That's where I found it!"
After a bit more pushing and forcing, they were done and good to go. Stiles' arm was around Sasha's shoulders as they walked inside the house. The second they stepped inside, they froze. Sheriff Stilinski stood there, speechless. They all stayed silent and still for a moment, until Stiles' dad broke the silence.
"I don't even want to know." He turned around and walked into the kitchen. Away from those crazy teens.
000
"You two are ridiculous," Lydia felt the need to tell them. "It's a miracle you managed to keep this a secret so long! If by the end of the week you still haven't been busted, I say there's divine intervention involved."
"Are you kidding? We nailed it!" Stiles exclaimed, shutting his locker. "It was Mission: Impossible level."
"She's not wrong Stiles," Sasha replied, causing her boyfriend's enthusiastic smile to drop. "Allison thinks the same, and although she agreed to text me whenever Scoot came over at her place, she doesn't wanna be part of this if it means lying to him."
"She's not lying, she not telling him something, there's a difference!" He argued but he merely earned him a slap on the shoulder from both the girls at his sides. "Aouch! Why did I say?" He whined and rubbed his arms in a way that suggested they hit harder than he expected.
"The definition of lying is not telling the truth Stiles!" Lydia pointed out. "Is there anything you accidentally forgot to tell Sasha?"
The brown haired girl glared warning daggers at her boyfriend and he swallowed down.
"I would never!" Stiles said in a somewhat shaky laughter.
Lydia rolled her eyes and decided she was done with these two. She gave a sympathetic pat on Sasha's shoulder and walked away with a stash of books piled up in her arms.
"C'mon, you know I'm not hiding anything from you. If there's anything I've learned over the past few years during which all the most ill-intentioned evil creatures in creation tried to kill us, it's that secrets are dangerous. Especially secrets you keep from a girl. Girls always find out."
"That's right," she scoffed but smiled nonetheless and uncrossed her arms.
She saw Stiles' hand reach out to push a strand of her hair behind her ear and she froze. It wasn't unusual for him to do that, he always played with her hair, but never in public. He must have realized because as soon as his fingers grazed her cheek his smile fell and he tensed up. Sasha felt her heartbeat speed up the moment Scott turned round the corner of the hallway and spotted them. Luckily for all of them, Stiles was quick to read the situation.
"Don't move! There you go, it's gone," he said. Sasha was confused, she didn't know what he had come up with to explain his gesture, she couldn't help him.
"What's going on?" Scott asked when he finally reached them, reading into his twin's stiff demeanor and odd expression of panic. She usually did way better than that, this took her off guard.
"A spider. Sasha had a spider in her hair but don't worry, I saved the day," Stiles' declared proudly, puffing out his chest.
"You know I hate spiders," she laughed nervously when Scott shot her a worried yet amused smile. "Small, hairy, eight-legged bastards," she grumbled.
Last time there was a spider related incident, Scott found her wrapped in the curtain shower, standing on the edge of the bathtub and screaming at the tiny creature. She couldn't possibly come up with a more believable explanation for her sudden increase in heart rate.
"The whole neighborhood knows it," Scott laughed, soon joined by Stiles. "Have you guys seen Allison? She said she'd bring me my keys and my bio textbook before class."
"Yeah, she said to tell you she's at the usual place?" Sasha told her brother hesitantly. "Whatever that means, she said you'd know."
"Cool, thanks! See you two at lunch?" He asked while walking away backwards.
"Yup!" Stiles answered for the two of them and waved goodbye. "You don't know where their 'usual place' is?" He then asked Sasha.
She shook her head.
"Should I? Do you?"
"Of course I know, who do you think I am?" He sniggered. "It's the bench outside the school. It's where he first saw her."
"So romantic," she chuckled. "We're going to be late to coach's class."
The hallway was now empty and that's exactly why they always ended up late to their classes. They always waited until everybody was in class before walking to their own; just so they could kiss.
Sasha was already inching closer to Stiles when they were once again interrupted.
"Hey guys what are you still doing here?" Scott asked them when he came back from his and Allison's spot. He was late too but that wasn't unusual either.
"Oh shit! I didn't see how late it was, better get moving!" Sasha exclaimed.
She grabbed Stiles by the strap of his backpack and dragged him to their next class, leaving a confused and amused Scott in their wake. Not another word was spoken between the two of them throughout coach's eco class. Then they didn't have class together before noon, so really there was no occasion for them to talk before the bell signaling it was noon rang. Unbeknownst to each other, Stiles and Sasha both ran out of their respective class and met half way to the cafeteria where all the other would keep seats for them at the table they all shared.
Stiles knew what Sasha was about to say before she opened her mouth. It was written all over her face.
"Don't."
It sounded final but Stiles merely wanted to tell her that this wasn't the right place to discuss the matter. They were surrounded by their fellow students some of whom had heightened senses. But she wasn't in the right state of mind to listen to his warning and talked anyway.
"You know we can't keep it secret any longer. It's bound to come out and it'll be better if it comes from us."
"Agreed, but it's still not the best moment to talk about it," Stiles said and made a funny face. He wasn't thrilled about the idea but she was right – like always. "Can't we keep it to ourselves a little longer? Give me time to think of a good way to break the news!"
Sasha shook her head. Stiles sighed in defeat. Yeah of course this wasn't something they could delay any longer, there was no running away from it. He had to trust his friend not to be mad or pissed because they lied to him. Or hid the truth. Whatever since there seemed to be no difference according to Lydia and Sasha.
"Stiles, I really think we should tell Scott soon, it-"
"Tell what Scott?" Scott's voice cut her off, making her jump back in surprise as he opened the door behind them wide open. For fuck's sake, they had to start this conversation right outside Scott's previous class!
Stiles' hand flew to his chest to cover his heart and Sasha felt her heartbeat accelerate. It was funny how she became hyper aware of this since Scott turned. It was never an issue before, but now she panicked whenever her heartbeat got out of control, as though it would give away where she was or what state she was in. Right now, she was quietly panicking and mentally cursing herself for not waiting until later to have this conversation. Or maybe it was a good thing?
"Man, never do that again!" Stiles said, still recovering from the shock. "I think my heart stopped beating. Is it still beating?" He asked, frenetically touching his chest as he visibility tried to distract Scott.
According to the look he was giving them, Scott wasn't buying it and after a sharp intake of air, Sasha bravely took Stiles hand in hers, effectively silencing him as he stared down at their joined hands in bedazzlement and fondness. Stiles stopped joking and gently squeezed her hand to reassure her while she stood there, biting down on her lip. He bumped his shoulder against hers and she looked up, smiling faintly and awaiting Scott's judgment.
Which never came. He simply crossed his arms over his chest and allowed a triumphant smile to stretch his lips. The tension was growing unbearable when he finally spoke up and erased the look of anticipation from Sasha and Stiles' faces, only to replace it with utter confusion.
"Tell me something I don't know."