We got to the den and Derek took my hot chocolate out of my hands. I whined in protest and he smirked at me. He set my hot chocolate on the end table before sitting on the couch. He held his arms out and I stared at him warily.

"Sit with me?" He asked softly. I slowly sat down next to him and he huffed in frustration. Arms wrapped around my waist and tugged me so I was sitting on his lap. I blushed furiously but my body unconsciously relaxed against Derek. He grabbed my hot chocolate and gently pressed it into my hand. I sipped it as he grabbed the TV remote. He pressed the on button and The Avengers DVD home screen showed up. I couldn't help but snort at him as he started the movie.

"I didn't take you as the kind of person to like The Avengers." I teased. He smiled.

"I haven't watched it yet. It's Laura's movie." He clarified.

"Laura is my kind of person." I mumbled. My hot chocolate was almost gone, my cookies were long gone, and I was starting to doze off. My eyes were stinging because I had been crying and I was physically and emotionally tired of facing the world… even if that world included Derek Hale. I finished the hot chocolate and set the cup on the table then turned so I was sitting sideways on Derek's lap. I laid my head on his shoulder and his arms tightened around me. He tilted his head so he could rub his cheek against my forehead. If I didn't know any better I would think he was nuzzling me. "You sure do like to cuddle."

"Mmm-hmm." Was his response. I glanced up, seeing his eyes glued to the screen as he started to…wait…was he purring? Yup, there's definitely a rumble in his chest. Humming maybe, although he wasn't making any noise other than a rumbling sound. Whatever it was, it was soothing my frayed nerves. I could feel the tightness in my chest that had been there since my dad told me the news start to loosen. My whole body went nearly limp and I started to fade into sleep.

"Stiles." Someone was shaking me gently and whispering my name. I whined, burrowing deeper into the warmth next to me. I heard a chuckle and I cracked an eye open. My eyes met amused green ones as I suddenly remembered where I was. I realized I currently had my face buried in Derek's chest and he was trying to wake me up. I sat up quickly and wiped my mouth, checking for drool. I was relieved I found none. "Good morning." I blushed.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep." I apologized. Derek shook his head.

"You needed to sleep. I just woke you up because it's getting late and I figured you should go home." He explained. I started to nod before I froze. I started to internally panic at the thought of going home. If I went home then mom wouldn't be there. I tried not to show my panic but Derek obviously noticed it. He raised his hands to cradle my face and soothingly rubbed his thumbs over my cheeks. "Hey, hey, hey, I'm sorry. Come here." Derek pulled me back to him and massaged the back of my neck. My breathing was fast and my chest was tight again. I started to pull back but Derek held me tight. I slumped against him and waited until my breathing was normal. I attempted to pull back again and he let me, just enough to face him.

"I- sorry- I just…if I go home mom won't be there. There's cake in the freezer and stuff to make my birthday dinner and everything will smell like her and everything will remind me of her and I-" I cut myself off, taking a deep breath. "I shouldn't be dumping this on you. I'll…go home." My voice broke and I cursed it. I didn't want Derek to pity me, but when I looked into his eyes all I saw was understanding. I slid off of him and stood in front of him. A hand reached out and grabbed my wrist, stilling me.

"Stiles, you can stay here if you need to. Tomorrow's Saturday so it shouldn't be a problem. I can understand if you don't want to go home yet." I turned, relieved at his words. As much as I wanted to, I knew I couldn't agree to stay.

"I can't, Derek. I don't want to impose on you guys anymore." I said softly. He pulled me closer to him.

"Mom would be thrilled, Laura would love to meet you, my dad won't care, and I…I want you to stay…with me." My face flushed a deep crimson at his words. I smiled and bit my lip shyly. Derek's eyes immediately flew to my lips and watched as I bit it. I released my lip with a pop, and it must have been a trick of the light, because I could have sword Derek's eyes flashed light blue when I did. "Stay." Derek's voice sounded more strangled now, pleading almost.

"We should probably ask your mom first." I muttered. Derek's face lit up and a grin broke out on his face. I couldn't help but grin back. He pulled me to the stairs and then up. The top of the stairs opens up right to the kitchen, so I wasn't prepared to be faced with the rest of Derek's family. Hannah was standing at the stove stirring something in a pot. The girl I assumed was Laura sat at the table with an Advanced Chemistry book and notebook open in front of her. She was a mirror image of her mother, with long dark hair and green eyes. Mr. Hale was tall, at least a head taller than Derek, with dark hair and, unlike the rest of them, had blue eyes. All three of them turned to us and I involuntarily flinched. I was surprised when a pair of feminine arms wrapped around me.

"You must be Stiles!" I didn't recognize the enthusiastic voice so I assumed it was Laura. She pulled back and grabbed my face in her hands. "You're adorable!" Laura was two years older than Derek and in her second year of college. I don't know what she was studying but something to do with science. "Derek you didn't say he was so cute!" She scolded. Derek, whose hand was still holding my wrist, pulled me away from Laura. I was nearly smothered as one arm wrapped around my waist and the other around my head, my face buried in this chest.

"Mine. Don't touch." Derek growled, a playful lilt to his voice. My heart thumped loudly in my chest when he said it, though I couldn't explain why. Sure, I had a crush on him, but no one had ever made my heart skip a beat. Maybe mom was right. Maybe I did love…mom. My breath hitched and tears sprang to my eyes. Derek immediately loosened his grip. He tilted my head up, eyes scanning my face, finally resting on my eyes. "Did I hurt you?" he questioned. I shook my head.

"No, just…mom." I choked out. He slid his hand up to my neck and squeezed. It was strangely comforting for such an odd gesture. I managed to smile weakly up at him. I suddenly remembered his whole family was watching and I blushed, my eyes darting to them. Hannah was, thankfully, pretending to focus on cooking. Laura had gone back to pretending to study. Mr. Hale's eyes were still on us though, his gaze curious. He stood up and walked over to us. When he reached us he held his hand out to shake mine.

"Nice to finally meet you Stiles. I've heard a lot about you." I felt Derek stiffen next to me. I glanced at him and he was blushing-blushing- and his eyes were huge. He was embarrassed. I couldn't help but grin at him and he relaxed.

"It's nice to meet you too Mr. Hale." I replied.

"Call me Andrew." I smiled and nodded. "Are you staying for dinner?"

"Oh, right, that's what we came up here for. Can Stiles stay here tonight?" Derek questioned.

"Of course! You're welcome here any time." Hannah trilled. Her face looked like a Christmas tree with how happy she was.

"Told you she'd be happy." Derek whispered in my ear.