Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. What the hell am I supposed to do?! And why won't anyone answer their god damn cell phone!

"Isaac, you answer your phone right now, you hear me!" I scream into his voicemail before hanging up again and attempting to reach Stiles for the fourth time, my fingers shaking as I hastily press the buttons.
Pacing frantically in the woods right outside Derek's house, I wipe my fringe back and breathe heavily. On the seventh ring, Stiles picks up.
"Emily, what-?"
"Why haven't you been answering me?!" I screech at him, curling my free hand into a fist.
"Um, I was in class? I saw your missed calls and managed to leave-"
"Okay great, but you have to listen to me. I just saw Kate." It's hard to splutter all my words out cohesively.
"Kate? What- But aren't you at home?" He asks, doubtfully, sounding a little stunned from my outburst.
"I lied!" I took a deep breath and tried to make him understand, "I was at Derek's. He wasn't home, Kate found me there instead. Listen to me, Stiles: She knows about Scott being the beta. She figured it out. He's in danger."
"Woah, what? How did she-"
I interrupted again, my words bursting out hysterically, "Something about history repeating itself? I don't know, she just figured it out. Just- Just keep your eye on Scott, warn him and don't let him out of your sight, okay?"
"Okay! Fine! What are you doing?"
"I have something I need to do, but I'll call you later."
"Alright, be careful," Stiles replied, and I hear him anxiously muttering under his breath.
"You too."

I hung up and tucked my phone into my jacket pocket.

All of a sudden, I was in my car, driving away from the woods like a maniac with my foot floored on the gas for most of the journey. Getting caught by the cops just didn't even cross my mind. Now that Scott's life was taken care of, I concerned myself with only one thing: Isaac.

My heart was in my throat, so tight that it was like an uncontrollable weight was clutching its fingers around my neck. Please be okay, please. I never got to tell you things that you needed to hear. Please.

I roughly pulled up outside Isaac's house and once I had checked that his Dad's car wasn't in the driveway, I threw myself out of the car with all the velocity I could muster. Sharply, my foot caught on the door frame and I skidded onto the side walk, my palms and knees grazing along the rough concrete. A pain throbbed up and down my arms- No, it doesn't matter, get up Emily, I told myself, and clambered up onto my feet again, slamming my car door shut behind me.

In a second, I was at his front door, pounding with my fists and calling out, "Isaac! Isaac, are you in there? Isaac! Open up! Please!"

No answer. No sign of movement. I peeked through the letterbox.

Silence. Quiet. Wrong.

Anxiously, I turned around in a circle and ran my fingers through my hair. What the hell do I do? Can Kate's warning be taken seriously? Isaac could be out. He could have made it to school late. She could have been messing with my head. Yet here I stand. The eerie silence of Isaac's house and the churning tension in my stomach would not let me leave this alone. There was only one thing to do: If Isaac wasn't going to answer the door, I was going to have to find a different way in.

There was a small pathway at the left of his house leading round to the back yard, which was separated from the driveway by a thick wooden fence that came up to the top of my head. So I made my way over to it, as naturally as I could, and placed both of my swollen hands of the top rim of the fence. It felt like tiny needles were pricking into the broken skin from my fall, so I grit my teeth and hoisted myself up reluctantly, my feet scratching against the wood in an attempt to climb over. Then I fell back down again. And pushed upwards again. And failed. I do not have a lot of upper body strength, it seems.

Letting out a cry of annoyance, I decided I need a different approach. I will get into this god damn house!

And then I saw the window. The window on the side of the house that led to the kitchen had been left on the catch. About half an inch of air was just enough for me to wiggle my fingers in and unlock the latch. I prayed that none of the neighbours were watching because I was looking one hundred per cent guilty of trespassing here. I caught the rim of the glass before it could squish my hand and pulled it fully open. Okay, the counter it opens out to is the exact part with the sink so this is going to get awkward. I take a quick glance around to double check no one was around before pushing myself up and swinging one knee inside.

After a good few minutes of difficult shuffling about, I landed on my tiptoes in Isaac's kitchen as quietly as I could. Although to be honest, anyone in the house would have definitely heard my ridiculous breaking and entering attempt. Then, I returned the window to looking how I found it and blew out my cheeks to release some of the high wire tension coursing through my body. Now that I was in the house, the worry that Isaac was in a bad way had been kicked up a notch. The air was electrified.

Creeping into the hallway, I spotted a familiar door. Oh god. No. The one from my vision. When I freaked out on the lacrosse pitch. Isaac's Dad dragged me towards it and forced me down the stairs and into that… suffocatingly claustrophobic box. My heart rate sped up rapidly and pounded against my ribs with each step I took towards it. I would have shrugged it off, but I had learnt how important my visions were and how truthful they have been. But that one had felt different, like it happened in the past and future at the same time. I was shaking with fear as my hand reached towards the handle. I need to look. Oh god, I can't look. Just open the door!

Suddenly, I heard a floorboard creak upstairs. It scared me right out of my skin and I had to cover my mouth to muffle the small shriek that I had let out. Isaac?! My hand shoots away from the door handle like it was on fire. My feet carry me towards the stairs before I have time to think and I leap up it two at a time. I am about to call out for Isaac when a sight makes me stop dead.

No.

My eyes widen at the sight of Isaac's collapsed body lying on the landing. He was sprawled as if he had been crawling, trying to reach his room but had to stop. I find myself more scared than worried.

This is horrible. What the hell happened here?

I take a few shaky steps forward and kneel at Isaac's side. His eyes are covered by his hair and I'm about to reach out to wipe it back, but the amount of bruising and redness on his skin makes me halt. I don't want to hurt him even more. Who knows what evidence is hiding underneath the hoodie? His mouth is open and puffed on one side. This is just- I can't- I don't even know what to say.

"Isaac," I whisper out softly, and pluck up the courage to lightly touch his shoulder, "Isaac, baby, Isaac, please open your eyes. It's Emily…" I take as much care as I can when I stroke back his dark blonde hair away from his forehead and feel my lip wobbling. "Isaac…?"

I inhale sharply as his blue eyes flicker open blurrily. He seems to not understand where he is or what has happened for a couple of seconds. Then all of a sudden, something clicks and his whole body jerks backwards. His blood splattered hands fly up to cover his face in a panic.

"Isaac! Isaac! It's okay! It's me, it's Emily!" I hold up my open palms and bite my lip to stop the tears.
The panic doesn't seem to dissolve at first because he continues to kick out his legs and shuffle forcefully away from me. Then abruptly, Isaac's wild gaze finds my eyes. He locks there for a moment before visibly relaxing, as if warm water was pouring down his back. Leaning against the wall, short of breath, Isaac just stares, a slight wince on his face.

"Isaac?" I ask, kneeling up and holding out my hand, "You're okay now. You're safe. I'm here."
He pants and runs one hand through his hair very slowly, like he was testing this his muscles still worked properly.
"Isaac, we need to get you to a hospital," I advise delicately, keeping my eyes glued to his.
That does not sound good to him as he frantically shakes his head and clenches the hand in his hair.
Bringing one knee up to his chest, Isaac finally speaks in a quiet, fragile voice, "N-no. No, I-I'm okay. It's my fault."
My heart drops to the bottom of my stomach and weighs me down during the silence that follows his words.

"…Isaac, you're hurt. Really bad. Please," I choke out and scuff my knees along the carpet towards him, outstretching my hand again.
"Don't-! Don't touch me," Isaac grips the sides of his face and stares intently at the floor. I notice how his knuckles are covered in dried blood. From what? Defending himself? Did the Alpha try and attack him? …Or was it someone closer to home like Kate suggested?
"It's okay, it's just me," I hush and my fingers rest a heartbeat away from his face. I pretend not to notice the tears that are weaving down Isaac's cheeks.
"I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, Emily…"
"You have nothing to be sorry for," I reply, gently moving my fingers to pick up his hand and bring it into mine. Isaac doesn't flinch away at my touch. I run my thumb over the back of his hand in soothing circles. His skin feels whole and strong, but I treat him like a porcelain doll who will fracture at any minute.
"I do-" He lets out a sob and screws up his face, "I do, I do! It's my fault. You shouldn't see me like this. You should hate me. I sent you away so you wouldn't see me like this! You shouldn't be here! Just leave me here! I deserve this- I deserve to be alone!"

I burst into tears and cover my face with my hands. He can't think that. Not when I care so much. How can he- My heart shatters into pieces at the thought of Isaac feeling this way about himself. But suddenly, he's there, hugging my body to his chest and holding my head gently in his hands. I sob into my palms, so hard that my throat feels like it will be ripped out. No. He can't feel like this. Not my Isaac. No one should have to feel that way. Especially not him.
"I'm sorry, Emily, I'm sorry," Isaac whispers into my hair, sounding a little calmer than before, "I didn't mean it. I'm sorry. Don't cry, please." He holds me close until my tears dry up and I can finally breathe again.

Leaning back, I wipe my wet face and blink at him. I see his bruised face and almost crack again. Managing to hold it together, I take a shuddery breath and whisper out his name. He smiles in response and cups my jaw lightly with one hand.
"I think there are a lot of things that we aren't telling each other," I attempt to joke, but my smile fades as quickly as it arrived. "You're hurt," I say, after another short silence.
"Yeah…"
"We should get you some help-"
"-No hospitals. I'm sorry, I just… can't," Isaac bits his lip.
I shake my head, "That's not what I meant. My- My parents are doctors, they'll patch up your injuries. You…" I take in a deep breath, building my confidence, "You should come and live with me for a while. Take a break from… everything."

Isaac's expression does not change for a good few seconds and I am convinced he is going to frown and push me away. Instead he softens into a small smile.
"…That would be nice, but I don't think my Dad would allow that," Isaac says, with what I first think is pity, but then I realise – he does want to come, he's just convinced himself that he has to put himself and his feelings last.

"Screw your Dad. He'll have to come through me and I am never letting anything happen to you again," I spit out my words and frown in response.
Isaac takes interest in the floor again and doesn't speak. I take his hands in mine again as he blinks a tear away. He knows I have figured it out. It was his Dad. He doesn't have to say it. I know. There were so many clues that would usually go unnoticed, but not to me. Isaac has never let anyone this close before – that's why no one has ever reached out to help in the past. Well, I'm here now and I am getting him out of this house whether he comes quietly or not.
"Isaac… if you're scared, then I'll protect you. I promise," I say sincerely. I didn't want to spell it out and say anything inconsiderate so I chose my words carefully, "But first, we need to get your injuries looked at. Please, let yourself be helped."

It takes a couple of seconds for him to react, but eventually, Isaac raises his head to look in my eyes again and I see him smiling through his tears.
"Emily," he says, and tightens the grip between our hands. His voice is a shaky whisper of forced confidence, "Will you help me?"

…

I pack some of Isaac's clothes and school things into a bag and put them in the back of my car whilst he sits on the floor, unable to move much, just giving instructions to where things are in his room. After, I help him up, flinging his arm over my shoulder and we hobble down the stairs with extreme caution. I drive him to my house without looking back once. I notice he doesn't look back either.

Isaac set me conditions during the drive and one of them was that we don't involve any authorities. I think it's because he's scared of it backfiring and coming back to hurt him. Sometimes the kids aren't believed and the last thing I want to do is make things worse, so I agree. Everything I do about this has to be approved by Isaac first. The other condition is that if his Dad comes knocking, I am not allowed to get in between them – Isaac doesn't want me involved as much as possible. It doesn't feel real to me at all. I wished that Isaac and I could have kept driving and driving and lived in our own bubble, no werewolves or family or any other problems to bring us down.

But all too soon, we pull into my driveway and I turn off the engine. We sit in silence for a moment and Isaac stares at my front door, all of a sudden completely nervous.
"W-will your parents be okay with this?" He stutters out, wringing his hands in his lap.
"Definitely. You can stay as long as you want," I smile at him, pushing down the nerves in my own stomach.

I help him out of the car and unlock the front door. We shuffle over to the sofa in the living room and I lay him down carefully before going back to the car for his belongings. On my way back inside, I make sure to double lock the door behind me.
Placing Isaac's bag at the bottom of the stairs, I call upstairs to see if either of my parents are home.
"Mom? Dad? You home? Moooom?"
No answer. Must still be in work.

I'm on my way into the kitchen to check their schedules when something makes me stop dead. From the hallway, I can see into the living room where Isaac is resting on the sofa. But there's someone else in the room. A shadow of a figure behind him. My heart stops and my feet are frozen to the spot. No. It's the Alpha. It must be. No. No.

"Isaac!" I yell and find the energy to fling myself back into the room.
The figure ignores Isaac and paces stealthily towards me. I see his face and the anger behind it and freak out. Derek.
Isaac whips up into a sitting position in surprise, forgetting about his injuries and lets out a yelp of pain almost a second later. Derek reaches me and grips my shoulder tightly, shoving my back into the wall behind me. My head smacks into the wall with a crack and all the breath is knocked out of me. I hear Isaac calling my name, probably feeling helpless. Derek is growling under his breath and glaring at me, his face inches from mine.
"Hi, Derek," I splutter, shocked by his appearance, "I came looking for you before."
"I know!" He almost shouts, narrowing his eyes, "You sent Kate after Scott?!"
"No!" I gasp, "No, I didn't!"
"I can't go home, she's watching my every move. You know she's capable of breaking the code. She'll kill both me and Scott and it'll be your fault!" Derek whacks his hand against the wall next to my head and I squeal from fear.
"I- I didn't do anything! You're the one who left us all for dead at the school! Thanks, by the way!" I find my confidence and fight back, staring him down.
"I left you for dead! I'm pretty sure it was the other way round from where I was standing, or rather, lying, on the ground, bleeding to death." Despite being obviously pissed off, Derek still managed to be a snarky little shit.
"Well, I can't heal like you!"
"You could have seen it coming! But no, your little superpower doesn't seem to warn me against that near death experience. "
I grit my teeth at the blow and snarl, "Fuck you. You know it doesn't work like that."

Derek takes a deep breath and removes his hands, stepping back slightly. All the anger slips away and in its place seems a desperate man. He presses a hand to his forehead and closes his eyes for a second, and I realise that I actually feel really sorry for him. Scott and I, we're his only chance. Derek has to count on teenagers to get his revenge and get his life back. And so far, we haven't done a good job.
"Derek…" I start to say, but he holds up a hand to stop me.
"Don't."
"…Alright. But it's going to be okay, you know."
"How can you know that? Did you foresee us playing happy families in the future?" He sarcastically folds his arms and shoots daggers at me with his eyes.
"No, but I'm not giving up easily, and neither is Scott or Stiles," I remembered what Stiles had said the other night and smirk as I repeat it, "Don't be such a sour wolf."
Derek growls again and turns away.

It's at this point that my eyes fall to the sofa, where Isaac is sat, an utterly blank expression on his face. It seems that Derek notices him for the first time too.
"Um," I muster out before Derek questions his injuries, "Derek, this is Isaac."
"Isn't this the guy who was supposed to have been trying to kill us at the school?" Isaac asks, very slowly, cautiously eyeing Derek with his bruised eyes.
"…Yes. But no. It wasn't him."
"Then who was it?"

I sigh and push my shoulders down. Meeting Isaac's eyes, I bravely smile and say to him, "This is the part where I explain everything."

A.N.

Hi, guys! I'm really sorry about the wait, again. Uni work pretty much takes up all of my time, but it's coming up to Christmas break, so do expect more over the holidays!
I really like how this chapter came out and hope you do too!
Thank you to everyone who has followed this story and favourite, and especially those who review, because you inspire and motivate me to keep going and get these chapters out quicker! Thanks, guys and see you soon! x