"(…)When I was three my mother packed her bags and run away. She didn't leave a note for my dad nor a goodbye letter for my younger brother and me: she cooked us dinner, forced us into bed with no goodnight kiss or bed story and waited for my dad to fall asleep to pick up her neatly packed clothes and left without a word.
It took me years to realize that what she did turned out to be the best thing she could have done as mother; rumor had it that she never truly wanted kids, that she only had Isaac and me to keep my father wrapped around her finger for eternity to waste his money around. The strong-willed and bull-headed woman who had become my mom by chance was overwhelmed by children's cry and nappies and simply escaped the trap she had built around herself.
My mother was abusive. To be her kid you had to be a genius, even at three, meaning that hurtful words were thrown at me whenever I didn't meet the standards she had put up to raise me: it was either doing things her way or getting punished, and such behavior led to a very low self-esteem on my part until I met someone who changed my life upside down.
I was eight, a new school year had begun and a new girl had joined my class: long red hair, deep green eyes and a persuasive technique that helped her convince her teachers to let her graduate a year earlier. Her name was Lydia, she had no mom like me and she would become my sister less than two years later. Because, you see, Lydia had moved to my town with her little sister and her dad, Stiles, a widowed teacher trying to tame the world into accepting his daughters as absolute leaders of the Earth. Much like his daughter, he is a bursting bubble of excitement and seriousness all wrapped together, which sort of explains why my father fell head-over-heels with him the first time he set eyes upon him. As they say, like father, like son.
With Stiles, Lydia and Erica our lives began again. My dad smiled more, cracked jokes (something not even my aunt ever thought possible) and seemed more relaxed; my brother Isaac, the shy one, suddenly realized he had a voice and he could use it to be heard, though that turned out to be a negative thing for us all, especially after he signed up for Lydia's debate club. As for myself, I discovered that mistakes can be made because we can't always say the right things or make the right choices, but we can fix what once was broken. It just takes some time and the right person which is why I have decided to become a psychologist, to help others see the good in them as my family did for me"
"Dad? What do you think?" Jackson fidgeted in his seat looking at his father pinching his nose where his glasses were a few minutes earlier.
"Did Stiles read it?" Derek asked setting down the paper his son had handed him ten minutes earlier to stand up and get a bottle of water out of the fridge. He took off the cap and gulped down half of the liquid whilst looking at his eldest son.
"I wanted your opinion first. Plus, pops usually focuses on the grammar first and sort of loses focus when it comes to content. Guess it has something to do with correcting first graders' papers" the boy said stealing the other half of the bottle his father had set in front of him.
"Whenever doesn't Stiles lose focus? Derek asked "Jack, it's good, it's really good and I'm sure the commission will like it too."
Jackson nodded, his eyes lowering on the paper he then proceeded to collect before bear-hugging his father and whispering a Thanks, dad in his ear and leaving the kitchen to join his sister Erica in front of the Tv.
So it really was time. Jackson was going to leave the following September and starting anew away from home and from him, away from his family and all his friends. Christ, he couldn't believe they had celebrated his eighteenth a few weeks back! Obviously Stiles had forced them into their usual birthday routine, with the cooking and baking and flour fight that erupted anytime the five of them spent time together in the kitchen. And if that had felt weird because of Lydia being away in college, the following year would be even worse, with two of the kids away. And it was Jackson he was talking about, the little boy he had held for three hours straight after he was born, the boy he had tried to teach baseball before having to rush to the hospital because his little brother hit him with a bat. The same little boy he had fought tooth and claw to keep when his bitchy mother decided to make a comeback: the thought of having nearly lost him still made his blood boil in rage. Hadn't it been for Allison and Chris Argent he probably would have killed Kate.
"Please, tell me you're not getting depressed over Jackson flying the nest? Please, I don't think I'd be able to stand another messy farewell like last year with our daughter" Stiles entered the kitchen holding the laundry basket and depositing it at his husbands' feet "You're folding all this stuff"
"If I remember correctly" Derek embraced Stiles, his hands resting firmly on the man's waist" You were the one crying like a child last year. And why should I fold all that?
"I wasn't crying, I had something in my eyes. And you're folding, sir, because that's your sons' lacrosse uniform and I already had to stay alive enough to clean it."
"How come they become MY sons only when something wrong?" he asked smiling and dropping a line of kisses on Stiles' neck, biting gently at the flesh resting at the base.
"Because Erica and Lydia are always my daughters when they mess up, which is rare considering they are, in fact, my daughters. Meaning they're perfect" the other man remarked kissing Derek hard on the mouth "I think Erica is going out for a movie and Isaac and Jackson are meeting their teammates for dinner"
"Really? Well then I guess we'll be alone for dinner?" Derek asked, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
They didn't have time to kiss again for a set of three groans came from behind them, revealing three very disgusted teenagers standing at the kitchen's counter looking for any kind a food available for a quick snack before heading off on their own paths.
"What? You're just jealous 'cause your dads can still tap each other" Stiles grinned earning a loud scream from Erica, a deep blush from Isaac and Jackson covering his eyes trying his best not to imagine his parents having intimate encounters in the room in front of his.
"We're out. But we'll be back" Erica said picking up an apple from the fruit bowl and kissing her father's cheek "And don't worry, papa, no matter what we do, we'll always come back" she said kissing Derek next and then skipping out of the house to her car.
"Excuse her. We read Jack's paper and we found it sort of sappy" Isaac intervened stealing the cookie his brother had been trying to focus on for the past two minutes "She's trying to cope by comforting you"
"It was not sappy, it was merely the truth. And we really have to go if we want to meet the others on time. Bye dad, bye pops" Jackson grabbed his brother's arm and dragged him out to their shared car.
"What are we going to do when they leave?" Derek asked, his face a mask trying to hide the true sadness behind his words.
"We'll manage. A few years and we'll have the grandkids to spoil. In the meantime, there's always Beatrix: you know how much Laura hates us when we feed her sweets before nighttime" Stiles said encouragingly massaging his partner's neck and letting a satisfied smile grace his face when Derek responded with a low moan.
"Let's go to the bedroom, now" Derek growled putting his hand on the small of Stiles' back to lead him to their bed.