Author's Note: Thank you so much for reviewing! This chapter has a lot of set up. But I'm finding it really fun to point out similarities between Stiles and Lydia.

Stiles considered himself a pretty likable guy. He'd even go as far as to say that most people liked him. But Lydia did not.

And something about that drove Stiles crazy.

He couldn't remember the last time someone had treated him like that. Stiles had never even met her before and she hated him. How could she hate him? She didn't even know him.

For the rest of the day, he tried to focus on other things but it kept creeping into his mind. He was in math class and he forgot his homework, but his teacher gave him the benefit of the doubt and said he could turn it in tomorrow. He thought of Lydia refusing to talk to him. Someone smiled at him in the hallway. He thought about the look on Lydia's face when she told him about the pranks people had pulled on her. Why couldn't he shake this?

"How'd it go?" Scott asked, pulling Stiles out of his reverie.

"Huh?" Stiles shook his head, trying to get her face out of his mind.

"You were going to talk to Lydia's friend," Scott reminds him, like he's an idiot.

"Uh, okay," Stiles lied. Something about this was incredibly embarrassing for him. He'd won state for lacrosse, been elected class president, and been asked to senior prom when he was a freshman. He should be able to sweet talk some random girl.

"Did you ask her?"

Stiles looked at his friend. He really wanted a chance with Allison and he was too scared to make the first move. Stiles had to help him.

"Not yet," Stiles admitted. "These things take time. I can't just open with, 'Hey, my best friend is practically stalking the new girl who only seems to talk to you, can you help me out here?'"

"I'm not stalking her," Scott's cheeks reddened.

"What's her third period class?" Stiles asked.

"History," Scott replied without loosing a beat.

"I rest my case," Stiles grinned. "Give me a little time with Lydia. I can handle her."

"Who's that?" Allison asked her, pointing across the hallway.

Lydia turned around to look.

"Don't stare!" Allison yelped.

"How am I supposed to know who you're talking about?" Lydia rolled her eyes.

"That guy with the dark hair," Allison looked over Lydia's shoulder.

Lydia looked behind her, trying her best to be inconspicuous. She saw Stiles Stilinski in mid conversation with Scott McCall. She clenched her jaw. She was still annoyed from their interaction yesterday. What did he want with her? Just seeing him across the hall made an angry flush creep up her neck. Almost like he knew she was thinking about him he turned and locked eyes with her.

"Hey," he mouthed, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Lacking an interesting comeback, and caught off guard by him suddenly noticing her, Lydia waves at him awkwardly before turning back to Allison.

"The guy who waved? That's Stiles Stilinski."

"No," Allison shook her head. "Next to him, his friend."

"Oh," Lydia felt a rush of relief. It was good to hear that her friend wasn't sniffing around Stiles. She was way too good for him. "That's Scott McCall. Why do you ask?"

"Umm, nothing. He's..." Allison trails off as if she was searching for a cover and failed.

"What?" Lydia asked.

"He's really cute," Allison kept her eyes on the ground, embarrassed.

"Do you like him?" Lydia was giddy, this was her first secret. Allison was confiding in her and that was new and different.

"I don't know," Allison shook her head.

"He's nice," Lydia told him. "I don't really know him, but I've never heard anyone say a bad thing about him. Except Jackson, but I think he's just jealous of him for making first line."

"He plays lacrosse?" Allison asks, leaning forward eagerly.

"He does," Lydia can't help but smile at how excited her friend is.

He sees her waiting outside, her books clutched to her chest. He realizes that her hair is strawberry blonde, not red like he thought. He looks at her carefully. Flirting hadn't worked, he couldn't even look at her without making her scowl. He racked his brain for what he could do to appeal to her. But he stopped himself. He was Stiles Stilinski. He didn't have to do anything special. Yesterday was a fluke. This time will be different.

He makes a beeline for her. She doesn't see him. She's staring off into space.

"Hey," he tried. No response.

He waves a hand in front of her face, snapping her out of her daydream. She glares at him.

"Can I help you?"

"I thought maybe I could help you," Stiles responds. "I saw you staring at me in the hallway earlier today-"

"In your dreams, Stilinski," Lydia scoffs.

"Okay..." he trails off. He doesn't know her last name. It's awkward.

"Martin," Lydia supplies, her voice much quieter. "Lydia Martin."

"Did I do something to upset you?" Stiles asked, completely exasperated.

Lydia looked up at him, brow furrowed. She opened her mouth to respond.

"Hey guys!" Allison called to them, beaming. She and Scott were side by side. One of them must have bit the bullet and talked to the other. Stiles' money was on Allison.

"What's up?" Scott grinned. Maybe he had grown a pair and asked her out and Stiles was free of having to convince Lydia he was worth her time.

"Nothing much, I don't think we've met. I'm Stiles," he offered Allison his hand. She took it. She had a firm grip and she looked Stiles in the eye when she told him her name. Stiles couldn't help but think that Scott chose well.

"I had to grab my lacrosse stuff out of my car, so I thought I'd walk with Allison." Scott explained, even thought nobody asked why he and Allison were walking together.

Stiles can't help but notice Lydia's smile. For the most infinitesimal moment, Stiles thought that Lydia had a crush on Scott. And it threw him into a small panic. Of course it did. Lydia couldn't like Scott. Scott wanted to date Allison. And if Allison found out Lydia liked Scott there was no way she would ever go out with him. Scott deserved a win and Stiles wanted to help. But then she saw that Lydia wasn't looking at Scott, she was exchanging looks with Allison. Allison liked Scott. And Lydia knew it.

It was all Stiles could not to thrust his fist in the air in victory.

"Scott, you know practice is cancelled today, right?"

"Huh?" Scott asked, tearing his gaze away from Allison.

"Yeah, so..."

"Allison, you should give Scott a ride home," Lydia suggested. Stiles nodded in agreement.

"Sure you can come with me and Lydia," Allison's smile widened.

"I can take Lydia home," Stiles interjected.

"Are you sure?" Allison asked.

"Yeah," Lydia replied. "My place is closer to his than it is to your anyway."

"It is?" Stiles asked.

"It is," Lydia said pointedly.

For someone who had never had friends before, Lydia was really good at it if she said so herself.

After all, she had gotten Allison and Scott in a car together even though it meant she had to ride home with Stiles. A guy who didn't know her last name even though they'd gone to the same school together since first grade. She'd be lying if she said that didn't hurt just a little. Lydia had spent years telling herself it didn't matter what people thought of her. Finding out they didn't think of her at all... well, it wasn't great.

The ride was awkward. Once she told him her address they rode together in silence until they got to her house.

"Scott's a good guy, right?" she blurted out. Stiles seemed surprised.

"Yeah," he said.

"By real standards, not just yours?" she pressed him for information.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Stiles asked, bristling.

"Is he or isn't he?" Lydia asked insistently.

"Scott's the nicest guy I know. We've been best friends for years and he's stood by me through everything. Allison would be lucky to have him."

"Well, he'd be lucky to have her," Lydia retorted.

"If either one of them ever has the guts to ask the other one out, maybe we'll see who's the lucky one."

Lydia almost laughed. But she stopped herself.

"Thanks for the ride," she said before darting out of the car, putting as much distance between herself and Stiles as she could.