Chapter 3

Ice Pick/Nobody Said It Was Easy

Grayson easily propelled down off the rock wall currently erected in the gym. Although she didn't have gym, this was her free period and she had gotten permission from the coach to use this time as her normal workout session. Ergo, she didn't need to get a gym membership.

She placed her feet firmly back on the ground and released her body from the harness. She passed to a blonde girl with a baggy sweatshirt on. She smiled brightly and stepped back to stand beside Allison. "You don't even have gym right now, why are you here?" The brunette asked, a soft laugh could be heard in her voice.

Grayson smiled and shrugged. "Coach gave me permission and it's cheaper than a gym membership." Allison laughed and watched the young blonde girl climb the wall. When she stopped half way up, Grayson grew nervous. She leaned into Allison. "Is she okay?" Allison shook her head and shrugged.

Grayson grew extremely worried when the girl looked like she was having a panic attack. "Erica, it's okay just slowly lower yourself using the harness. There you go. Good." The blonde, Erica, shakily released herself from the harness and self-consciously walked out of the gym, several students laughing at her. Grayson glared at a choice few and sadly watched the girl walk away. "I hope she's okay." Allison nodded, sharing her worry.

Both girls were getting changed in the locker rooms when they heard a commotion from the boys' locker room. They made their way to the hall and saw Stiles and Scott rushing from the locker room. They quickly followed and all four were in time to see Erica start to fall from the rock wall.

Scott easily caught her before she fell and Grayson narrowed her eyes. That shouldn't have been possible. She pushed it to the back of her mind, for now, and went to the seizing girl. "Turn her to her side." Scott did as he was told and Erica grabbed a hold of one of his hands. "How did you know that was going to happen?" Scott glanced at Grayson before exchanging looks with both Stiles and Allison.

He looked back at Grayson and shook his head. "I just…got a feeling." Grayson nodded, her bottom lip pulled between her teeth. She didn't believe him but she would figure it out later. She was more concerned with Erica than anything else.

Grayson made her way to her locker after gym and pulled it open, barely catching a fluttering piece of paper before it fell to the floor. She shoved her books inside before actually glancing inside the locker. When she looked up, her breath stopped. Her eyes melted and she fingered a petal of the single red rose lying tenderly at the bottom of her locker.

She unfolded the note and bit her bottom lip to control her smile. A BEAUTIFUL FLOWER FOR A MORE BEAUTIFUL GIRL. WISH I WAS THERE. –I She sighed and quickly tucked the note into her purse. She ran her fingers over the petals again before closing the door on her gift.

She made her way to the cafeteria and quickly found a seat beside Stiles. "I'm so ready for today to be over." Stiles was on the verge of agreeing with her when literally everyone in the cafeteria's attention was pulled to the doors.

Grayson turned her eyes to the doors and her jaw dropped. Erica, at least she thought it was Erica, walked, no, strutted into the cafeteria wearing leopard print heels, a tight leather skirt that barely hid the goods, an even tighter white tank top that clearly displayed her black bra and a leather jacket. Her hair was shiny and wavy as if flowed down her back like a waterfall. Her brown eyes were brighter and lined with black as she smirked at everyone who was able to make eye contact.

She stopped at a table, bent over at the waist almost flashing the whole cafeteria and bit into a helpless boy's apple. She swiped once at her lips and, with a quirked eyebrow and a smirk, exited out the way she'd come.

Lydia stopped at their table and placed her hands flat on the wooden surface. "What, in the holy hell, is that?" Scott gaped and shook his head. "Erica." Both boys suddenly bolted from the table and followed the voluptuous blonde out the doors. Grayson scoffed and stood, walking at a slower pace out the doors towards her locker to grab her books and head to the library.

Maybe she'd have some luck figuring out what was going on with Scott there.

She stated dazedly at her flower as she twirled it in her fingers. She was lying flat on her back in the middle of her bed with a dopey smile on her face and the flower centimeters away from her nose. A swift knock echoed throughout her room before the door was pushed open.

Kara smirked when she saw her sister lying on her bed with a single rose twirling in her fingers. "Secret admirer?" She raised her eyebrows when her sister shook her head. "Date?" She shook her head again and Kara leaned, confused against the doorjamb. "Boyfriend?" She nodded slowly when Grayson shrugged.

"So, you don't know what he is and yet he's giving you flowers?" Grayson rolled her eyes and sat up. "We've discussed our feelings and we know exactly how the other one feels but…" Kara nodded, prompting her sister to continue.

Grayson sighed and stood up, abandoning the flower on the bed and standing in front of her window. "But I didn't exactly get the chance to ask him what we are before he 'disappeared'." She made air quotations. Kara drew her eyebrows together before it clicked.

Grayson knew she understood when she heard her sister suck in a breath through her teeth. "Isaac? As in across-the-street possible-father-murderer escaped convict Isaac?" Grayson sagged and rounded on her sister. "He hasn't been convicted and he didn't kill his father?" Kara crossed her arms over her chest. "How do you know?" Grayson mirrored her sister's pose. "Because he said he didn't do it and I believe him. He wouldn't lie to me, Kara."

Kara shook her head and sat quietly on the edge of the bed. "You don't even know him, Gray. Don't you think you're moving a little fast?" Grayson took a deep breath and leaned back against the window. She licked her lips and thought about how she felt around Isaac.

"I dream about him every night." Kara looked up at her. "When I'm not with him, he's all I think about and even when I am with him, he's all I think about. When I'm with him, I can't think of a single time where I've been happier. I worry about him when I know I don't have to and I trust him with my life just like he trusts me with his." She shrugged and looked away.

Kara sighed, skeptical. "I don't know, Gray. I'm just afraid you'll get heartbroken." Grayson snapped her eyes up to her sister.

"I've already been heartbroken, Kara. More than enough times." Kara drew her eyebrows together. "When mom died, I didn't understand and sometimes I wonder if I even understand now. When I was twelve years old, you left me." Kara opened her mouth to speak but Grayson held up a hand.

"This is all I can think about when I'm around you, Kara so you need to hear it. You left me after you graduated high school. Didn't even tell me where you were going. You just left in the middle of the night without even leaving a note."

Kara looked away, ashamed. "I wanted to tell you…" Grayson cut her off. "But you didn't. You only called after school had started up again and I pretended not to be mad at you. God, I tried so hard to make it so that you couldn't see how angry I was at you." She was breathing heavily now and she could feel the tears burning behind her eyes.

"I was twelve and dad was a functioning alcoholic but he was an alcoholic none the less and you left me with him. Alone. I was twelve, Kara. Twelve. I could barely take care of myself let alone a grown man. How could you do that to me? How could you leave me without even once looking back? Who does that?"

Kara stood up and faced her sister's bedroom door. "And then, four years later, dad dies and you come back like you were just at a friend's house or the grocery store." Grayson shook her head and her chin trembled. "And then you decide to move us back here, where mom died, in the house where she died and proceed to act like nothing's changed."

Kara rounded on her sister. "Nothing has changed." Grayson laughed bitterly, voice rising. "Everything's changed, Kara! Everything! I'm not twelve anymore! I've been taking care of myself for four years and I don't need your help! I don't need anything from you! You ruined my life!" She pressed her hands to her lips and stared, shocked, at her devastated older sister.

Grayson was the first to recover and she quickly muttered around her room, grabbing her purse and her backpack, shoving random things inside as she moved past her sister. "Where are you going?" Kara's shaky voice called her back. She didn't turn. "I just need to think for a while. I need to get out of this house."

Kara watched helplessly as she walked down the stairs. She heard the front door slam and the car start before she lowered herself, shattered, to Grayson's bed. She held herself and rocked back and forth as an endless flow of tears leaked out of her eyes.

Grayson didn't know where she was going. She didn't care. She just drove until she felt the need to stop. She turned the car off and hung her head between her shaking shoulders as tears coursed down her cheeks. She didn't move when she heard someone open her door. She didn't react when someone lifted her from the car.

She wrapped arms around a familiar neck and nestled into his chest, her body wracked with sobs. Isaac held her close as he slowly walked them towards the entrance to the subway station. Erica arched a perfect eyebrow and snorted when she saw Isaac and the pretty blonde from her PE class descend the stairs. She pretended not to care when she saw how upset the girl was but this was one of the only people in her class who acted even remotely nice to her.

Isaac ignored Derek who was practically staring daggers at them as they moved past him to the subway cart where Isaac's small amount of things were kept. He sat them on the edge of the mattress and slowly rocked, smoothing her hair down as he did.

She pressed herself as close as she could to him, her arms tight around his neck and her legs pressed between them. Isaac easily adjusted her legs so that she was straddling him with her legs wrapped around his back and her arms around his neck. Grayson buried her tear soaked face into his neck and gripped handfuls of his t-shirt in her fists until if physically hurt but she still gripped tighter.

Isaac rocked back and forth at steady pace as she slowly began to calm down. She was still crying but her sobs were mere hiccups compared to what they used to be. She slowly sat up and pressed her forehead to his. "I ruined your shirt." He smiled and cupped her face, brushing her tears away with his thumbs.

"It's fine." She swallowed thickly and tightened her arms, gripping her elbows in the opposite hands. Isaac ran a tender hand down her back and rocked still. "Do you want to talk about it?" Grayson sighed and licked her lips. "I got in a fight with Kara." Isaac nodded and rubbed her back. "We moved when I was six and Kara was twelve, after my mom died. My dad became an alcoholic albeit a functioning one but still, an alcoholic none the less." She shook her head and closed her eyes.

"When I was twelve, I woke up one day and Kara was gone." She shrugged as a fresh batch of tears coursed down her cheeks. "She didn't even leave a note. I knew she had left though because she had graduated high school the week before and everything that meant anything to her was gone."

Grayson sat back and licked her lips, looking down at her lap. "It wasn't until the following August that I finally got a call telling me she was okay. She only ever came to visit on major holidays and even then she only stayed for a few days. I was so angry at her."

She looked up and met Isaac's understanding eyes. She pressed her forehead to his and he ran his hands down her back to rest on her hips. "Then my dad died in a car accident about a month ago. He had been drinking and he wrapped his car around a lap post. They said he died instantly.

"She came back like nothing had happened. Like she'd been out shopping with friends or something. My 22 year-old sister, who left me, twelve years old, to take care of my alcoholic father while she goes off to do her thing."

She began to tremble again and Isaac brushed the tears away. "Then she brings me back to the place where it all started and expects me to be okay with it." She shook her head and pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. "She can't do that. She's not allowed to do that. To act like everything's the same. And she told me that, too. She said right to my face that nothing's changed."

A single sob fell from her lips and she buried her face in Isaac's neck again. He held her as she shook, his heart practically breaking at the sight of her. She pulled back so suddenly that he almost knocked his chin against her head. "But everything's changed, Isaac. Everything. I'm not twelve anymore. She ruined my life. She made it so that I didn't have a childhood. I had to grow up too fast. It's not fair."

He kissed her forehead and held her to him as she began to cry anew. He looked up when he heard movement at the entrance. Derek was staring at them with a raised eyebrow. Isaac shook his head and gently rubbed his cheek against hers.

It didn't take long for Grayson to cry herself to sleep and Isaac easily pried her hands off of his t-shirt before settling her on his mattress. He stepped out of the train and raised his eyebrows at his Alpha and fellow pack mate. "I like your girlfriend." He sneered at Erica.

"Is that what she is? Your girlfriend?" He turned his eyes to Derek and shrugged. "I think so. We haven't really talked about it, it happened so fast." Derek nodded and looked at Erica before turning ice blue eyes to Isaac. "Be careful. If she finds out, I'm not handling it." Isaac nodded and watched his Alpha walk away.

Erica stepped up to him and smirked. "She seems nice." Isaac rolled his eyes and made his way back to the train. Erica skipped up behind him. "What? I can't like her." Isaac glanced at her. "No." She huffed and stepped in front of him, keeping pace. "Why not?" Isaac stopped and snorted. "You don't like anyone, Erica." She rolled her eyes and let him walk past her to the mattress. "Well, I like her." Isaac nodded. "Yeah, okay. Whatever you say."

He laid down beside Grayson and curled an arm around her waist, pressing his nose to the shell of her ear before easily drifting off to sleep.

Grayson woke up to a warm body pressed behind her and a heavy arm wrapped around her waist. She blinked and memories form last night slowly seeped into her mind. She raised her head and looked back at Isaac as he slept soundly beside her. She turned over and examined his face as he slept.

He looked younger, more peaceful as he slept. Like the weight of the world wasn't on his shoulders. She smiled and brought her hand up to trace his face. She ran the tips of her fingers down his sculpted cheekbone and then across his prominent jawline. She pressed closer and raised her head, pressing her lips to the curve of his jaw below his ear.

She smirked when she heard him moan and felt his hand tighten around her hip. She continued her path down his neck and ran her nose up the column of his throat before pressing her lips to his in a chaste kiss. He smiled into her, definitely awake now, and pulled her closer. She giggled and cupped his face in her hands.

She drew back when she heard a throat clear behind him. She looked up and drew her brows together at the sight of a tall, dark and brooding man. His blue eyes were a shock against his not only pale skin but his midnight black hair.

She dropped her head down to the mattress as Isaac slowly disentangled them and stood, helping her up when he was done. She sighed and stood, hiding partially behind Isaac as they confronted the dark man. "Grayson this is Derek, the guy…hiding me. Derek this is Grayson Becker my…" Grayson noticed his hesitation and helped him out. "Girlfriend." Derek quirked an eyebrows and glanced at a smiling Isaac. He nodded once and licked his lips.

"It's nice to meet you, Grayson but I'm afraid you're late." Her eyes widened and she looked at her watch. She had already missed first period and was well on her way to missing second. "Shit." She gathered her things and, kissing Isaac once, addressed Derek. "Is there somewhere I can change?" He jerked his head to the left and she dashed around him to a dingy looking bathroom with no running water. "Nice."

When she was done, she stepped out in a pair of skinny black jeans with her black combat boots and a gray cropped sweater with a pink see through heart in the middle. A black tank-top completed the ensemble and she scurried over to Isaac.

She kissed him once on the lips before smirking up at him. "Miss me!" He smiled and watched her walk up the stairs. "Every day!" She giggled and dashed up the steps to her car, hopping inside and speeding away towards the school.

She got there five minutes before the start of third period and she quickly made her way to her locker and started pulling books from it. She stopped when she heard Scott and Stiles walk past her. "Go to the ice rink and see if he's there." She narrowed her eyes and turned to look at them.

"And if he's not at home you call me, you got it?" She saw Stiles hesitate and she quietly made her way towards them, hiding behind a wall behind the conversing boys. "What?" Scott asked. Stiles sighed. "Maybe we should let him. Boyd, you know? You said Derek's giving them a choice, right?" Grayson perked up when she heard Derek's name.

What did Derek have to do with this? "No we can't." She saw them begin to walk and she quickly followed staying far enough behind to not be spotted but close enough to hear. "You've got to admit, Erica looks pretty good. The word sensational comes to mind." Grayson's eyebrows flew up. So Erica was involved now?

"How do you think she's going to look with a wolfsbane bullet in her head?" Grayson had to cover her mouth to keep form gasping. Bullets? Wolfsbane? What world was she living in right now? Wolfman? Van Helsing? She had half a mind to think Hugh Jackman was going to pop up behind her.

"All I'm saying is maybe this one isn't totally your responsibility." Scott scoffed. "They all are. You know this things going to get out of control. That makes me responsible." Grayson shook her head. "Alright, I'm with you. And, I've got to say, this new found heroism is making me very attracted to you." Grayson giggled and Scott huffed. "Shut up."

Stiles nudged Scott. "No, seriously." He pointed to his face. "Do you want to just try making out for a second?" Scott shoved him down the hall and he stood watching his best friend disappear. He turned to head in the other direction when he was stopped by a little blonde girl with her hands firmly planted on her hips and her lips pursed.

Scott balked and looked and every possible direction before meeting Grayson's eyes. She smiled wickedly and licked her lips. "Hey, Scott, I have a few questions." Scott nodded quickly and looked around. "Like, what does my boyfriend's roommate have to do with what's going on with Erica and what is with all werewolf talk?" Scott gulped and her eyes widened along with her smile.

"I hit a nerve." She gasped. Her face melted into a mask of fury as she grabbed his arm and pushed him into an empty classroom. She locked the door and rounded on him. "Explain. Now." Scott sagged and adjusted his bag behind him. "Everything?" Grayson glared. "Everything."

Scott was standing on the ice rink shaking his head. Boyd was making a mistake. "If you're looking for friends you can do a lot better than Derek."

"That really hurts, Scott." He whipped his head around to stare at Derek, Erica and Isaac, all with smirks on their faces. "I mean, if you're going to review me." He gestured to Isaac and Erica. "At least take a consensus." Derek looked at Erica. "Erica, how's life been for you since we met?"

The blonde smirked and twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "In a word, transformative." She opened her mouth and fangs appeared as she roared at Scott. H didn't flinch. Derek smirked and glanced at his head beta. "Isaac?" The blue eyed boy rocked back on his heels.

"Well, I'm a little bummed about being a fugitive but other than that I'm great." Derek smiled and folded his hands behind his back. "Hey, hold on. This isn't exactly a fair fight." Derek shrugged. "Then go home, Scott." Scott shook his head and narrowed his eyes.

Derek jerked his chin and Erica and Isaac made their way across the ice towards Scott. Scott growled and fell to one knee, bringing his fist down on the ice. He looked up, fully transformed. "I meant fair for them."

Scott tossed Isaac across the ice and threw Erica at the Zamboni. Isaac stalked towards him and pushed him back against the machine. Scott shoved a fist into Isaac's stomach and watched as the beta slid across the ice. Erica jumped on his back when Scott threw Isaac into the ground. He shoved her off and she collapsed against the Zamboni. Isaac came at him again but he punched the beta in the chest, causing him to double over at the waist.

Scott brought both fists down on his back and Isaac fell to his knees. Scott kicked him across the jaw and sent him sprawling across the ice. Erica jumped on him again and Scott shoved her against the Zamboni before throwing her to rest beside her fellow pack mate.

"Don't you get it? He's not doing this for you!" Derek smirked. "He's just adding to his own power. It's all about him. He's making you feel like he's given you some sort of gift when all he's done is turn you into a bunch of guard dogs."

Scott gripped the collar of Isaac's jacket and threw him across the ice where he landed at Derek's feet. Erica followed shortly. "It's true. It is about power." Derek slowly made his way towards Scott, bringing out his claws as he went.

Derek easily over powered Scott and Boyd found him on the ground. He jumped down from the Zamboni and stood in front of Scott. "Don't. You don't want to be like them." Boyd nodded. "Right." He lifted his sweatshirt and showed of his alpha bite. "I want to be like you." Scott sagged and watched as the group of four began to walk away.

One last thing.

"Isaac!" The head beta turned and stared at a staggering Scott. Scott lifted his head and smirked at Isaac. "She knows." Isaac froze and his heart rate picked up significantly. He could feel his hands starting to shake his eyes widening. Derek shook his head. "Shit. Come on!" They rushed from the rink, Erica dragging Isaac quickly behind.

Isaac raced down the stairs of the abandoned subway as soon as he saw Grayson's car in front of the building. The others were coming slower, to give Isaac time with Grayson.

He stopped on the bottom step, out of breath, when he saw her standing in the middle of the station. With his heart pounding and his hands shaking, he walked towards her and stopped a few feet away from her. She stared up at him.

He waited. It was her move. He barely saw it when her hand flew out and cracked across his cheek. His head was whipped sharply to the side. He took a deep breath and faced her. Her cheeks were red and angry poured off of her like a tidal wave. She was breathing heavily and her hands were shaking. "I thought you'd be more afraid than angry."

She narrowed her eyes and shoved him, hard, in the chest. "Afraid?! Isaac! I'm more angry at you for lying to me about it than the actual fact that you're a fucking werewolf!" He raised his eyebrows. "How are you even understanding this right now?" She screeched and shoved him again.

"I don't know! I have no idea how I'm coping right not but I am and you should be fucking grateful! God damnit, Isaac! After everything I told you last night, you still didn't tell me! I had to force the information out of Scott and eve then he almost didn't tell me! God damnit!" She turned away from him and paced the station.

Isaac felt more than heard the rest of his pack descend the stairs and stop just out of sight of Grayson. She rounded on him again and studied his figure. "Did it hurt?" Isaac met her eyes and nodded silently. She sighed and looked away, chewing on the inside of her cheek. "How long?"

Isaac racked his brain and puffed out his cheeks, searching his brain. "Uh, a few days before you came to town." Her eyes widened and she nodded. "Wow. Okay. Okay."

She ran her hands through her hair and continued to pace. Isaac slowly stood and made his way towards her. She stopped when he placed his hands on her shoulders. She looked up at him and sucked her bottom lip between her teeth. "Are you okay?" She asked. Isaac laughed and shook his head. "You find out that I'm a werewolf, something that shouldn't even exist, mind you, and you ask if I'm okay." He shook his head again.

She chuckled and shrugged. "You're all I think about. And trust me, I'm still wrapping my mind around the whole," She gestured to his body. "Werewolf thing. It'll sink in. Trust me." He laughed and pulled her into his arms. She nestled there for a few seconds before she pulled back. "Can you show me?" He chuckled and licked his bottom lip. "I guess."

She watched as he slowly rolled his neck and his whole face changed. When he looked at her, she slowly smiled. His nose looked like dogs, obviously, with the wrinkles at the top and tip squared slightly. His ears were pointed and his sideburns were longer. Four large fangs protruded from his lips and Grayson licked hers. The thing she didn't like though was the fact that his eyes were a bright yellow instead of his usual beautiful blue.

She had a feeling that this was a critical moment for Isaac. This could break him. She slowly reached out with her right hand and traced his ear, making him shiver. She smiled and brought her other hand up to his face, running her thumb across his nose and over his cheekbone. She glanced down at his mouth and brought the fingertips of her right hand to the length of his fangs and ran her fingers up the length, stopping before she reached the sharp tips.

He shivered again and brought her closer. "There's only one thing." He looked up at her, frightened for a split second. She smiled at him reassuringly. "I prefer your blue eyes to your yellow eyes." He sighed and brought his lips, fangs and all, down to hers. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. He moaned against her and licked her lips with the tip of his tongue, seeking entrance.

She sighed and battled his tongue with hers. They were getting sloppy when someone cleared their throat. Bringing the two of them out of their embrace. Isaac, in human form, looked back at Derek. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared at her. She gripped Isaac's hand and hid slightly behind him. Derek smirked and walked the remaining way down to the ground level.

"Now that you know, I have to explain everything to you. You might as well get comfortable. This'll take a while."