Stiles looked himself over in the mirror, trying to decide if he should change. He wasn't too formally dressed, jeans, a plain grey t-shirt, and his tan suit jacket. He nodded, deciding it was just dressy enough to work with. He was posing, trying to figure out how best to display his undeniable attractiveness, when his dad peered into the room. Stiles jumped, embarrassed, and fell over. His father surveyed him quietly before asking,

"Going somewhere?"

"Uh…" Stiles said, getting back to his feet. "Yeah. Got a date." Stiles shifted nervously. He hadn't figured out how to tell his dad about his new relationship.

"With Derek Hale?" the Sheriff asked casually. Stiles gaped at him.

"How did you know that? Nobody… I didn't even tell Scott." His dad gave him his 'I'm the Sheriff' look. "Yes, with Derek Hale. Let's hear it," Stiles said, gesturing for his father to bring on the lecture.

"You're an adult; you can make your own decisions about who to date. Just make sure you're careful." He stepped into the room to give Stiles a hug. "Have fun tonight." The Sheriff headed back out of the room but paused when he reached the doorway.

"And Stiles," he shot back.

"Yeah Dad?"

"No more sex in cars." And without another word he left to start his shift. Stiles gaped after him, not moving till the doorbell rang. He raced downstairs to open the door and beamed at the man on the porch. Derek was dressed to match Stiles, almost as if they'd planned it, in dark blue jeans, a black shirt, and a black suit jacket. The werewolf looked extremely uncomfortable standing at the door.

"Do I need to check in with your dad or…" he asked.

"Nope, he's working. You've got me all to yourself tonight," Stiles answered. He stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Derek, and leaned in for a quick kiss. Derek tensed and hesitated before returning the embrace and deepening the kiss.

Tonight was their first official date but they'd spent time together several times since Derek had agreed to try. Every time it was Stiles who initiated contact. Derek would always hesitate, always falter, but then he would reciprocate warmly. It seemed strange to Stiles, the first few times, that Derek could jump into sex without a second thought but had trouble with a hug. But Stiles understood. For Derek sex was meaningless, a way to blow off steam, enjoy himself, and wipe out the memory of the first time. Hugs, and everything else Stiles did, were intimate.

Stiles leaned into Derek, smiling and content. Derek let him stay, enjoying the embrace even as it scared him. It wasn't just what happened with Kate that made this difficult; everyone Derek had ever loved had died. And Stiles was breakable.

"We should get going," Derek said eventually. "We won't have time to eat before the movie."

"I could live with that," Stiles said contently. Derek huffed.

"And fill up on candy and popcorn at the theater, I don't think so." He pulled Stiles around into a sort of side hug and leaned forward to pull the front door shut.

"Spoil sport," Stiles said, allowing Derek to lead him to the car. They drove to the local steakhouse, not too fancy but nicer than going to McDonald's. Stiles tried not to get too jealous when the hostess smiled at Derek and the waitress was so busy admiring him that she almost forgot to get Stiles' drink order. He tried not to feel inadequate when Derek smiled back at them, it helped that the smile was fake. He talked incessantly, pausing only so that the waitress could take their orders. Derek commented every once in a while but mostly just listened as Stiles wound through topic after topic. Finally, when their food arrived, Stiles stopped. Rather than plunge into his food he seemed to consider Derek.

"Are we doing okay? Are you okay?" Stiles asked.

"I'm fine," Derek answered, cutting into his steak.

"You're not thinking of, like, running away?" Stiles persisted.

"Are you?" Derek returned. Stiles gave him a shocked look.

"I'm the one that wanted this, remember? I'm just trying to make sure you're not freaking out or anything."

"Stiles, I'm fine." The younger man breathed a sigh of relief and began eating, a task which only mildly hampered his talking. After the meal he tried not to feel offended when the waitress asked if they needed separate checks. Stiles made a grab for the check when she brought it but Derek, alpha werewolf extraordinaire, had retrieved it in the blink of an eye.

"I could get it," Stiles offered, holding out his hand.

"I've got it," Derek replied smoothly.

"But you don't even have a job, how do you pay for anything?" Derek ignored him, slipping a credit card into the plastic sleeve and penning in the gratuity. Stiles couldn't help but be offended when he caught a glimpse of the phone number scribbled in at the bottom of the guest receipt, a fact which he made clear by complaining all the way to the theater.

"I'm paying for the tickets," Stiles declared when they stepped into line at the ticket booth.

"No you're not," Derek replied calmly.

"Come on, I'm not a girl!" Stiles said. His heart skipped a beat when Derek gave him a quick once over.

"I'm aware of that," he said with a smile.

"At least let me pay for the popcorn," Stiles whined.

"No."

Neither of them was very hungry, having just eaten dinner, so Stiles settled for Twizlers and a soda while Derek got nothing. Stiles only pouted a little when Derek paid anyway. Derek went straight for the seats at the very back of the theater and slid quietly into the first one in the row. Stiles followed without question and sat beside him. He got a small thrill when he saw the armrest between them had been left up by previous occupants. Derek didn't make a move to change it and Stiles quietly made plans to casually lean over later and initiate half-assed cuddling.

Stiles watched the previews animatedly, commenting on each as he saw fit while Derek just watched him. When the movie started Stiles went in for his lean cuddle maneuver, missed, and practically fell into Derek's lap. He pulled himself back up into his chair gracelessly, deciding just to let it go. After a while Derek's arm slipped around him and pulled him close to his side, leaving Stiles with a big grin. Stiles made a few comments throughout the film, stifling the worst of it by chewing on his Twizlers. He was mildly distracted when Derek stole his drink. Overall it was a good date.

When they drove up to Stiles' house Derek got out and walked him to the door. Stiles was remarking to himself how it was downright gentlemanly when Derek pushed him gently against the door and kissed him with all the fervor of a love-struck teenager. Stiles wasn't complaining. On the contrary, he kept pulling Derek back in for more whenever the werewolf stopped for breath. They didn't stop until Derek's hand slid under Stiles' shirt and Stiles reluctantly pushed him away.

"I can't," Stiles said with a strangled whine. "This can't be about that." He watched Derek's expression, fighting the urge to pull him back in for more. "It won't work if it's just sex," he finished, trying to convince himself as much as Derek. Derek nodded and took a step back.

"Good night Stiles," he said before returning to the Camaro. Stiles bumped his head against the door, feeling certain he'd screwed up everything.

"Stiles!" Derek called over his car. Stiles jumped a little and looked at him eagerly. "Let me know when you want to do this again." Stiles answered with a sort of salute and Derek got in the car and drove away. Stiles went inside and collapsed on his bed, radiating pure joy.

"Why do you keep smelling like Derek?" Scott asked one day a few weeks later. Stiles hadn't told him yet. The conversation was inevitable but that didn't make it any easier.

"Because we're dating?" Stiles said nonchalantly. Scott gaped at him.

"Derek?" he asked incredulously.

"What, like Derek couldn't possibly like me?"

"You can't date Derek!" Stiles drew back, affronted.

"Why not?"

"Because it's Derek!" Scott said, as if that settled the matter.

"That's kinda the point," Stiles returned.

"He's a jerk!" Stiles sighed.

"No he's not, you just have to…"

"He's a bad guy," Scott interrupted. Stiles just stared at him a moment, chewing his bottom lip in frustration.

"You know in Harry Potter how like, every book Harry keeps saying 'Snape is evil, he's trying to kill me' and then in every book it turns out Snape's been busting his ass trying to keep Harry alive? You know how Harry never learns his lesson and it makes you want to strangle him because obviously Snape isn't evil and how can he not see that?" Stiles asked.

"Yeah?" Stiles gave him a 'well there you go' look. "This isn't like that!"

"Oh my god," Stiles yelled, looking around as if trying to find the common sense in the room, "Yes it is! This is just like that. Derek may not always make the best choices but he's trying to do good."

"I'm your best friend; shouldn't you at least care what I think about this?" Scott said, trying a different approach. Stiles looked at him like he'd grown an extra head.

"Did you?" Stiles asked angrily.

"What?" Scott asked stupidly.

"When you first started dating Allison did you care what I thought? When I told you not to go to the party because it was a full moon and you might kill her, did you care? When I told you playing lacrosse to impress her was dangerous did you care? When there was a psycho killer alpha murdering about town and Derek and I both said you should forget about Allison and concentrate on getting stronger, did you care? You never once listened to me back then, so no, I don't feel obligated to care about your opinion on this."

"That was different!" Scott objected.

"How?"

"Because I love Allison!" Stiles had never wanted to punch Scott more.

"I…" he started but was interrupted by his cell phone ringing. He started pacing as he answered. "Hey, Derek!" he said with a forced cheerfulness.

"Are you all right?" Derek asked, picking up on his tone.

"I'm fine, just telling Scott about my new boyfriend." Scott made a face, Stiles made one back.

"How's that going?" Stiles stopped pacing and sighed.

"About as well as you'd expect." Derek didn't say anything and Stiles guessed he was nodding on the other end of the phone.

"I was wondering what you wanted to do tomorrow night?" Derek asked after a moment.

"Uh, I don't know," Stiles replied, running his free hand over his head. "We could go bowling, I guess. Do you bowl?"

"We'll double!" Scott interjected.

"Are you kidding me?" Stiles asked incredulously.

"It's fine, they can meet us there at 8," Derek said, wolf hearing having caught Scott's suggestion.

"This is a bad idea," Stiles said flatly, not looking at Scott.

"I'll pick you up at 7:30," Derek said, ignoring the previous comment. Stiles sighed again.

"Okay, see you then."

"I'll see you tomorrow." Stiles hung up and turned back to Scott who was wearing the smuggest smile Stiles had ever seen.

"I hate you," Stiles said flatly, causing Scott to grin more.

Stiles could tell the moment they arrived at the bowling alley that this was going to be a disaster. Scott and Derek immediately began exchanging glares and even Allison seemed to feel awkward. Stiles tried for all of five minutes to ease the tension before slumping in his seat in defeat. There was an uncomfortable distance between him and Derek brought sharply into focus by how sickeningly sweet Scott and Allison were whenever Derek stood up to bowl. Stiles' frustration was only compounded by the fact that he was wildly outclassed by his three companions and with each frame fell farther and farther behind.

By the time Stiles finally managed to get a strike he'd had enough. He marched straight back to Derek, flopped onto his lap, and kissed the daylights out of him, Scott be damned.

"That was a nice strike," Derek said, quiet and playful, when Stiles eventually pulled away.

"Yeah it was!" Stiles said proudly, drawing a friendly chuckle from his date. He jumped a little when Derek placed his hands firmly under Stiles' ass and picked him up. He deposited Stiles back in the seat and went to bowl. Scott gaped at his best friend in disbelief but Stiles just looked back at him with the biggest, goofiest grin he'd ever possessed.

It marked a shift in the evening. Now Derek casually threw an arm around him whenever they were both sitting. He kissed Stiles' forehead whenever Stiles did well and whispered pointers in his ear when he botched a shot. Stiles realized Derek must have been waiting for him to make the first move in front of Scott, letting him decide what he was comfortable with. Scott, for his part, looked like he'd smelled sour milk. Stiles didn't care, he'd get used to it.

It was only a few days after bowling that Chris Argent cornered Stiles at the store. He wasn't really surprised but he hadn't considered that going on a double date with Allison would mean announcing their relationship to the Argent clan.

"I understand you're dating Derek Hale," Argent said plainly.

"Nothing gets past you," Stiles replied sarcastically, pretending not to care about the hunter's presence as he eyed the goods on the nearest shelf. The other man played along, picking up a box and looking over the nutritional guide.

"Don't you think that's a bit dangerous for someone like you?" Stiles had his hand halfway to an item when the question was posed. He shifted, pushing against the shelf instead, bracing himself.

"I may not be super strong or fast and maybe I don't heal quickly, but I've been through a lot of tough situations and I'm still here," Stiles said firmly. Argent put the box down on the shelf and looked at Stiles.

"You've been lucky." Stiles clenched and unclenched his fist, suddenly filled with anger.

"It's not luck," he said coldly, turning to face the hunter as well. "It's Derek." Argent cocked his head slightly, inviting Stiles to elaborate. "I get in over my head all the time, but I survive because Derek is there to save me, to protect me, to keep me safe. He's there for me whenever I need him. Always." Argent looked as if he was about to speak but Stiles wouldn't have it.

"All due respect Mr. Argent, but aside from the very beginning when I didn't really know him, I've never been afraid of Derek, whereas you still scare the hell out of me. You might consider that it wasn't a werewolf that started the psycho killing spree in Beacon Hills, it was a hunter. So for all your high minded ideals about keeping an eye on the monsters, I think you've overlooked the one you should be most worried about."

They stared each other down for several minutes. Then Argent nodded and walked away. Stiles' heart was beating a mile a minute. He leaned slightly against the shelf and decided shopping could wait. Stiles slipped his phone out of his pocket, scrolled through his contacts, and dialed the number.

"Hello?" came the familiar voice. Stiles relaxed a bit just hearing it.

"Can you…" his voice cracked, "Can you meet me at my house?"

"What's wrong?"

"I just… need you," Stiles said wearily.

"I'll be there." They both hung up and Stiles made his way to the front of the store and into his recently repaired jeep.

Derek was waiting for him when he got home, leaning against the shiny black car with an obvious tension. He was beside Stiles the moment he was out of the jeep, looking him over with concern.

"Are you okay?" he asked, finding nothing but a still rapid heartbeat.

"I'm fine," Stiles answered. "Ran into Chris Argent," he added, aiming for flippancy. Every inch of Derek stiffened in anger. "It's fine, it's fine!" Stiles said quickly. "Nothing happened. Just… lecturing the scary werewolf hunter made me really need a cuddle. Is that stupid?"

"No," Derek said roughly, obviously trying to calm down for Stiles' sake.

They went inside quietly and headed into the living room. Stiles was surprised and relieved when Derek pulled him onto the couch without further prompting. He held him tightly and just breathed in his scent for a while, letting Stiles' heartbeat get back to normal, letting his own fury subside.

"Tell me," Derek said eventually, much calmer than Stiles had expected. So he told him. Not just what had happened but everything, how he had felt standing there, the way Argent implying Derek was dangerous had angered him and why, how everything he'd said was true and here Derek was proving it. Everything. And when he was done he cried, not really knowing why but not caring. Derek just held him and listened until Stiles fell asleep.

Hours later when the Sheriff got home they were still there, with Stiles asleep and Derek just holding him. Mr. Stilinski nodded at Derek, who acknowledged him with his eyes and the slightest tilt of his head. It was all the communication the two of them needed to exchange. This was all either of them really wanted; Stiles, safe, happy, and content.