A Drop Of Ink In Water

V & VI

Stiles is late for work. It rarely happens to him but he couldn't just let his dad like this, not in his state. It's been four days since his dad told him about the loss of his sheriff badge. He still can't believe his dad lost his job. He's never seen his father so lost before. He wanders in the house worn and lifeless. And there's nothing Stiles can do to cheer him up. He tries again and again but his dad's smiles never reach his eyes. He will have to check on him more often from now on, make sure he didn't depress. He really hoped his dad would get his job back soon.

Stiles begins to walk down the stairs mind still preoccupied by his father. He suddenly stops in the middle when he catches a glimpse of black leather. He completely forgot about Hale! He tries to make himself as small and as invisible as he can when he goes down the few steps left.

"What are you doing?"

Danny eyes him curiously as he crouches behind the bar. Stiles makes a wide gesture with his arm to shut him up but the barman ignores it and keeps talking.

"Is this because of Derek Hale?" He questions with a mocking brow. "You can stop hiding he's not there."

"Really?" Stiles articulates a disbelieving look on his face.

Danny chuckles and shakes his head.

"See for yourself." He replies.

Stiles slowly stands up scanning with his eyes the room, his friend snorts at the sight.

"This is what you get from acting too cocky." Danny accuses, hands meticulously working at wiping a glass with a white cloth. "I still don't get why you didn't accept his offer." He continues frowning. "I would have accepted it." Then he adds more to himself, "Maybe I should give it a try and give him the eye…"

Stiles eyes him, scandalized. "Yeah, maybe. And why don't you offer him your ass on a silver platter next time you see him? I'm sure he will appreciate the attention." He comments, cheeky. His mouth is twisted with disgust when he gets out of behind the bar to go sit at the counter.

The bartender rolls his eyes.

"Just think about it for a second. He's hot and apparently loaded. Okay, he doesn't have the best people skills…"

"He's a creep!" Stiles interrupts.

Another eye roll.

"What I mean is that you should be the one paying him." Danny ends in a chuckle. He doesn't try to avoid the punch Stiles throws at his arm.

"Wow, that flatters my ego so much. Thanks, dude."

"You're welcome."

He was really starting to regret telling Danny about 'the Derek situation'. He couldn't tell Scott and had the time he felt the need to share the story with someone. He had tried telling his goldfish but Iron man seriously lacked concerning feedbacks. So he had thought of Danny. They got along well, Danny was a nice, trust-worthy guy and he wasn't going to go around and spill his life to people. So, he had told him about Derek cornering him the first time he showed into the bar – but he had obviously witnessed the scene -, his visit uninvited in his office and about his offer. Of course, he hadn't said a thing about the whole Derek being a werewolf thing, it would have been over-sharing.

Stiles looks at the almost empty of people place snubbing Danny's playful wiggle of eyebrows. It was one of those non-crowded night. Most of the hosts were out on business outside so the regulars, unable to spend time with their favorites didn't come. He could see a couple of new faces, some people he had already seen who came just to drink and a few host customers. Scott was there, sitting between two middle-aged women who giggled at his jokes like teenagers.

Stiles was actually surprised not to see Derek sitting alone at the back of room thoughtful and observant, sipping at the same glass of whisky all the evening as if he didn't really want it but ordered it because he had to consume – which was probably true. Derek rejected every host that offered to keep him company. He never talked to any customer and they didn't try to converse with him either. Derek attracted eyes but something about him seemed to dissuade people from approaching him. His cold stares had possibly a lot to do with it.

He had been coming every day since he first showed up with Peter. He now came alone and it didn't seem to bother him. Stiles was getting used to feel his iron stare at the back of his neck.

"Oh, speaking of the devil. Look who is coming."

Derek appears at the top of the stairs. This time he's clothed in a green tee-shirt that matches his eyes. He stops for a second when they fall on Stiles. Stiles looks back, heart briefly reaching his throat. He can't move and can't quite manage to look away. As always, the man makes him feel like a prey. Derek came to hunt him down and like a wild animal encountering headlights in the night, he freezes, unable to run. The alpha has this effect on him, always does.

Derek breaks the contact and begins to walk down the stairs gaze everywhere but on Stiles. He nods when Danny salutes him then goes to his usual spot without a word, without looking back. They're used to it now, that's what Derek does. He arrives, puts a bill on the counter for his drink and always mute, sits on his black leather chair.

As the evening passes, the bar empties. The two women who spent most of the evening with Scott leave him, blowing kisses and promising to come back. Stiles watches his best friend moving to go sitting next to the other werewolf. Curiously, Derek doesn't send him off and even makes some more space for him to sit comfortably. Stiles watches in bewilderment as the two of them begin to whisper. He tries to be attentive at the sound of their voices but they are covered by the ambient noise, the background music and the two men are too far away. At this moment he wishes he had werewolf earing. Scott eyebrows are frown in a focused expression. What can those two talk about? Stiles ask himself. He hopes Scott isn't in trouble.

"Did you think he would wait and crave for you all his life? Not with that face." Danny asks putting his two elbows on the counter, leaning close, bumping his shoulder with Stiles' who makes a face.

"I'm seriously starting to wonder if you're not in love with the guy."

He watches them converse wondering what the hell they were saying. Derek's face is unusually human and friendly. He gestures with his hands as he talks and the cold aura that normally envelops him seems to have considerably reduced. Scott listens to him, not talking much, attentive to Derek's every words. Stiles has rarely seen him so concentrated. However, Scott doesn't look completely at ease in Derek presence. The way is hands are posed on his thigh and his leg are parted announce that he's prepared to fight if anything goes wrong. He doesn't trust Derek and doesn't even try to hide it. They discuss for a moment before Scott stands up, disappearing in the bathrooms. Derek apparently decides it's time for him to go home because starts walking toward the exit.

As Derek passes by Stiles grabs him by the arm. Derek slowly lowers his eyes to stare at the hand on his arm, expression unreadable. Stiles removes it as if he had been burned.

"Wait, what did you two talk about?" He questions after a moment.

Derek eyes him, face blank. Stiles wonders if he's considering ignoring his question and leave.

"Nothing that concerns you." He finally answers. Derek initiates another retreat but Stiles stops him again.

"Wait!" he says.

Derek halts midway but he doesn't turn around, only showing his back.

"Did you reconsider my offer?" He asks in a sidelong look.

Stiles is taken aback by the question. His lack of response seems enough for the werewolf.

"Then we have nothing to say to you."

He's gone before any sound come out of Stiles's mouth. Freacking werewolves.

"You're coming back late, these days." Isaac comments as a greeting.

He's sitting cross legged in one of the dingy chairs of the depot that is their home. Eyes glowing in the dark, he calmly observes Derek's movements as the alpha takes off his jacket and tosses it on the sofa. He notices the frown that arcs Derek's eyebrows is more pronounced that it usually is.

"Where are Boyd and Erica?" Derek asks ignoring his previous statement.

"Already in bed."

The alpha simply nods. If they listen, if they fully use their senses and not restrict them as they normally do, they can hear the regular beating of their hearts. Isaac can picture them curled in each other's arms, Erica resting her head on his chest and Boyd's hand protectively placed on her hip. These two shared a real bond. A bond so strong he, without a doubt, was convinced they'd die for each other. The pair they made had surprised him first. He didn't think two personalities that different would get along so well. Their loneliness had drawn them toward each other and now they were inseparable. He wasn't sure the love they shared was a romantic one but it was strong. Looking at them sometimes made his stomach twinge with jealousy.

He never managed to get as close to them as he would have liked to. He had good laughs with Erica and he enjoyed Boyd's calm presence and honest eyes but he never achieved to be completely be himself with them. He wasn't able to open his heart, yet. Like a dog beaten for too long he had trouble to give his trust. He needed time to believe in people again, he knew it. But he started to be tired of waiting. Two years shared with the same people day by day was already a long time. He thought love and trust would come with being part of a pack. He was wrong. They were still humans after all.

Derek walks to the fridge and takes a beer. It opens with a quiet pop. Drink in hand, he goes sitting on the sofa. He looks absently at the ceiling as he takes a first swallow of the bitter beverage.

From his sit Isaac can only see the other man's profile. The two of them had lived together for two long years now but of the four members or the pack, Derek, their alpha, was the one he knew the least. Both Boyd and Erica had parents – even if they weren't in the best terms – to come home to, he didn't. So after he was turned into a werewolf and his dad passed away, he had started living with Derek. Even though the two other betas spent a large amount of time with them, there were also a lot of moments during which there were only Derek and Isaac.

Isaac knew little about Derek. He knew Derek woke up at six every day, that he barely ate anything for breakfast except a dark coffee and sometimes an orange or a piece of bread. That in spite of his wanting to appear all mature and strict he had a sweet tooth and liked sweets - he always put two sugar cubes in his coffee. That Derek needed to work out a least one hour to start the day in a rather good mood. That he didn't have any preference for music and that he liked winter better than summer. That he had a weird fascination for fire that was probably due to what happened to his family. That he sometimes had insomnias and made nightmares that would wake him sweaty and shaky. That he didn't fully trust anyone but himself…

He watches as Derek takes another mouthful of beer, eyes still glued to the cellar.

He had joined the pack, then Erica and finally Boyd. And step by step Derek had started to look less miserable, he had begun to smile more often and his eyes were clearer, shinier as if they came a little back to life at every simple joy, at every moment spent together. It was a slow process and Isaac doubted his heart would ever be totally eased. There was too much anger, too much remorse even after Kate's death. Derek never talked about his past so Isaac had had to do some research on his own to discover a little more about his alpha's history. He didn't know all the details but what he knew was enough to understand that what Derek had been through was terrible enough to create a wound that would never heal.

Even if their stories were different they both had lost their families in tragic situations and Isaac feared he would become like Derek, sorrowful and lonely.

Lately Derek was different from usual. He was more pensive and a little jumpy. Isaac frowns as Derek lets out an annoyed sigh obviously lost in his thinking.

"What's wrong with you?" The beta asks curiously. Derek doesn't even turn his head to look at him. Isaac wonders if heard him. His frown grows deeper at a sudden thought. "You were with Peter, right?"

This time Derek turns his gaze to him.

"No." He says in a tone that would normally stops the younger to keep talking.

"You're lying." Isaac retorts. He's up, pointing an accusing finger on the alpha. "You said he left town months ago! Why did you lie?"

"You didn't need to know." Derek looks right into his eyes as he says this, cold. His palms are pressed together on his lap in a tensed posture.

"He's sick!"

"He's pack."

"He tried to kill me!"

"He didn't mean to."

"You really believe that!?"

"He's family!" The alpha retorts trenchantly, words final.

The last statement makes Isaac gape in horror but Derek's gaze doesn't flinch. His jaw is resolutely clenched. He won't take his words back. The beta feels like he's been punched in the face.

"What's going on?" Erica and Boyd appear at the train's door, worried look on their faces.

Isaac glances at them before turning his eyes back to the alpha. He won't make a scene in front of them. Not again. He walks past Boyd and Erica without a word and enters the train to get his jacket. When he gets out he stops one more time in front of Derek. Fuck you, he wants to say, Fuck you. But his lips stay sealed. He leaves the depot quietly. Nobody tries to stop him.

TBC

I'm sorry for taking so long to update. But I'm slow, lazy, writing several fics and - because of an unknown reason - writing the first part of this chap was really hard. Anyway, I'll be back - soon I hope - for the next chapter !