"What're you guys doing out here?" Stiles asked, looking between them curiously.
"We were supposed to go camping," Caden admitted with a sheepish grin. "We were taking a hike and it started to snow. I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised, up here this late in the year and all, but I had hoped it would hold off a bit longer."
Danny sat down on the sofa with a relieved sigh, rubbing his hands together. Caden sat next to him, placing one of his hands over Danny's. "I'm sorry the weather's ruined this."
"It's okay baby, we can try again in the summer," Caden replied with a gentle smile.
Stiles' heart flickered with a pang of loneliness that he was never quite used to. Since breaking up, Scott had been (understandably) a little mopey, but also smug with confidence that Allison would return to him when she was ready. And Stiles had been spending the last few days with his best friend, simultaneously trying to help improve his grades (which was a complete and utter disaster so far) and trying to cheer him up and keep him distracted. Lydia was miserable, but more unreachable than ever since Jackson and his family had suddenly packed up and moved to Texas for a job promotion. Stiles found that he couldn't be everywhere at the same time, and instead tried to make the best of things for Scott.
Well, at least things were going pretty good for Danny by the looks of things as the two of them cuddled on the couch. Stiles bit down the sting of jealousy, getting to his feet and walking to the bedroom where he knew Derek was hiding out. He was happy for Danny. But he also felt like he was intruding on the two of them, and being the third wheel always sucked. His pretend-boyfriend ought to be doing something to fix that problem, but, he was again, just pretend.
"They're... an interesting couple," Caden murmured, not quite low enough to avoid being overheard.
Stiles heard Danny's soft reply even as he walked into the bedroom to confront Derek: "You have no idea sweetheart."
He found Derek sitting in the farthest corner of the room, wearing his almost perpetual scowl. It wouldn't kill him to smile a bit more, it might actually be an improvement, all things considered. Derek's room wasn't really surprising in how little decoration it had. There were no family pictures -and with a pang in his heart, Stiles wondered if he even had anything when the fire was done with his house. It was almost militarily devoid of personal touch in this room, which hopefully said more about how rarely Derek came out here for camping or whatever it was that he did out here.
"Are you going to hide in here all night?"
"If I have to." The sullen glower Derek shot at him was not missed, but it was ignored.
"I don't think Danny is going to bite you, you could come out and have a nice conversation with him... even though last time you saw him, I kind of pimped you out to him."
Derek made a face, looking like he would rather face any other fate in the world than that one. "No."
"Please Derek, for me?" God, he didn't want to be stuck being the third wheel forever.
"No," he repeated with a scowl.
"Well..." Stiles started, thinking rapidly, "if you don't, maybe I'll just have to make up some stories about how sweet and romantic you are, and how amazing you are in bed." Honey worked better than vinegar didn't it? Stiles flashed a hopeful smile at the werewolf -did werewolves even like honey? He hoped they did, because vinegar smelled bad and the scent saturated everything.
"I will tell them about the Star Wars pajamas, the Angry Bird collection I have noticed and your Superman cape if you even think about it," Derek ground out.
Stiles wasn't sure whether he should be creeped out that Derek had noticed all of that, or impressed that he knew what they were. And of course, stubborn Derek couldn't just take the honey could he? Time to get the vinegar out.
"Go ahead -Danny already knows I'm weird. I could always tell them that you have a ridiculously small penis and that's why you're so insecure."
"I'll rip your throat out," Derek growled threateningly.
"Oh please, like you scare me," he half-bluffed.
Derek got to his feet menacingly and Stiles swore he could see the murder in his eyes. But he would be stay alive at least until Scott arrived. So he had approximately that long to live... he wasn't quite sure whether he wanted Scott to show up sooner or later with that knowledge. Stiles fixed Derek with an impressive glower.
"Since I will not be joining you... hun, you should go and astound them with your hosting abilities." And with that, Derek shoved Stiles out of the bedroom.
Stiles slipped on his socked feet, sliding almost all the way to the dining chair before catching himself. He threw a dirty look over his shoulder, but it was too dark to tell if Derek had even noticed. Not that he cared, but it would have made Stiles feel better about it. He looked over to see Caden and Danny clinging to each other for whatever excess warmth there was to be had. He felt a flicker of guilt; he hadn't even thought that they might have been cold. Their jackets had been practically soaked through with melted snow.
"Can I get you guys anything to drink?"
"Tea would be great, I can help you make it. Do you want anything babe?" he asked, smiling adoringly at his boyfriend.
Caden was about the same height as Danny and unusually pale for this area of California -unless he was from this part, or just simply new. His hair was damp, dark and slightly curly -no doubt kept under control with a lot of products. It was his eyes that stood out most to Stiles, every time he looked at the guy he would find intense blue-gray eyes following his every move. He wore a black form fitting t-shirt and jeans, a leather band clung to his wrist and there was a barely noticeable silver chain around his neck. Noticing the fine layer of scruff Caden had, Stiles was left wondering if he was older than he looked. They looked really good together, Stiles noted with some envy.
"Something warm would be great, please?" he murmured, smiling gratefully.
"Alright, tea it is." Noticing Danny start to move, Stiles stopped him with a shake of his head. "It's alright, you guys just... get warm."
Stiles turns back, jumping when he saw a tall, dark shape from the corner of his eye. He whirled only to see that Derek had left his room and was hovering near the kitchen. Whether it was his born werewolf-ness that let him blend into the dark like that or just some inate part of Derek, Stiles wished he could be more normal. Just a little.
"Jesus! Derek stop being creepy!" Stiles snapped, his heart pounding.
"Not my fault you didn't notice," he drawled with a grin and it was all predatory, his teeth flashing in the dim light.
"Oh god, go back to the bedroom you nerd, that seems to be where I like you best anyway."
There was a moment of prolonged silence as Stiles realized what he had just said, aware of the heat in his face as he heard Danny attempt to stifle a laugh and what had to be Caden sniggering. And then there was Derek's too cold silence and if they weren't careful, Danny and Caden would know and there would be so much for him to try and explain that he never could and this would just be bad and he'd probably never live it down and then Lydia would find out and soon the whole school would know -because really, Lydia always knew everything no matter it was -and he was going to have to pack up and move out of the city in order to escape his shame -
"Not tonight you won't," Derek growled snidely, stalking off to the bedroom. The door shut behind him with more force than necessary.
He let out a breath he hadn't been aware of holding, feeling a lot of tension ease out of him. Of course Derek would understand what it meant if he didn't play along with Stiles' scenario to some extent. His position was a whole lot riskier than Stiles' was -partly because it involved Stiles no doubt. Stiles moved to the kitchen automatically, seeking out the tea he had spotted earlier as he made a cup for both Danny and Caden. He wasn't even aware of it until he was gently moved out of the way by Danny, that his friend had taken over for looking after himself and his boyfriend. In hindsight, Danny had probably done it so that Stiles could go and make up with his "boyfriend" but at the moment Stiles wasn't really thinking about that particular aspect even as he made an extra mug of tea just the way his mother had always taught him.
It had been a long, long time since he had made tea this way. The last time was probably when he was twelve years old and his father was sick and he brought him the one thing that he knew always made everyone else better -his mother's tea. He stirred in the teaspoon of honey, feeling the familiar bubble of grief embrace him as he thought of her and missed her and then it slipped away. He could remember when he was younger, how she would make the tea whenever he was upset or sick. With a silent sigh, he took the prepared mug and walked over to Derek's room, letting himself in easily.
He offered Derek the tea, surprised to realize that the older man had lit two candles and was sitting comfortably in the semi-dark. He could have turned the lamp on or something, but... he was probably more content with the candlelight. Derek took the tea, regarding Stiles almost suspiciously.
"I'm sorry I keep making inappropriate jokes," he said quietly. "Just... nerves, I guess?" He laughed nervously, looking away.
Derek nodded briefly, taking a cautious sip of the tea. His eyes widened in surprise and he took another sip. Stiles let himself smile.
"It's good," Derek admitted grudgingly. "Now go host, go entertain your guests."
Stiles stuck his tongue out at Derek before going back into the living room. They had set their empty tea mugs on the coffee table; Danny covered a yawn, his head resting on Caden's shoulder.
"I think we're about ready for bed now," Caden murmured, kissing Danny's cheek softly. The lacrosse player smiled sleepily and Caden glanced over at Stiles.
"Follow me!" he offered helpfully, leading them to the room that he had woken up in.
Danny sleepily followed after them. "Thanks for everything Stiles, sorry we crashed your romantic getaway with Derek." Danny didn't wait a moment longer before laying down on the throw-cushion floor, tugging the blankets up over him.
Caden smiled apologetically. "Really sorry about that; I bet he had planned something special planned for you and we ruined it. He seems like one of those guys." And, unexpectedly, he hugged Stiles. "Thanks for letting us stay here," he added, letting go and shutting the door behind him.
"It's okay," Stiles told the door before awkwardly turning away and heading back to Derek's room. He shut off the lights one by one as he followed the dim glow of candlelight.
Derek lays comfortably sprawled across the bed, his empty teacup on the nightstand. It was impossible to tell whether he was asleep or just resting, Stiles realized as he dug around in the dresser for something to wear to bed. He had to hide a smile when he found his old Star Wars pajamas and, once more, wasn't sure whether to be touched or creeped out as he padded back out to the bathroom to change into them. They were definitely better than nothing, and quite honestly they were his favorite pajama pants. Not because of the design so much, but because they were just comfy. Or so Stiles had been telling himself for years.
Stiles crept back into the room, blowing out the candle closest to him before sitting precariously on the bed. Derek didn't leave a lot of space left. He nudged the werewolf with a toe to his side cautiously, surprised to find that the man was so much warmer than he was in this cold house. The chill had probably been creeping in all night, but Stiles only came to this realization as he sat there in his relatively thin pajama pants. Derek was also laying on top of all the blankets -convenient. Derek opened one eye, watching Stiles suspiciously.
"It's cold," he mumbled sheepishly.
"Then use the blankets."
"You're laying on them!" he hissed.
Derek grumbled, getting up. Stiles took the opportunity to grab a fistful of the blankets and relievedly pulled them over his body, looking at Derek apprehensively. And then he realized that there was no way this could be worse than the Kanima poisoning situation where he had been stuck to Derek for quite some time. At least this way, there was a great space divide between them, made even greater when Derek set his pillow behind his hip as he sat back down, blowing the last candle out.
Sleep came easier than he expected, whether because he had spent so much time arguing and fighting with Derek that he had exhausted himself or just because it did, Stiles wasn't quite sure. What he was aware of though, was that overnight it had gotten a lot closer and he woke up sometime close to dawn practically freezing before moving closer to the source of heat. At home, the equivalent would have been towards his wall. However, in this case, it was closer to a pillow which he kicked out of his way shortly thereafter and then to his nice warm solid wall...
But this was one of those hazy moments, late in the night and too early in the morning that Stiles would later, not recall, aside from knowing that he had been cold.
Wow! Thanks so much for the response guys. I would love to hear from all you, I'm not used to getting this much feedback after posting just one chapter. So here's another. I'll have a lot of free time this weekend and I'll probably get another chapter or two out. I really love feedback, so if reviewing isn't physically painful I'd love to know what you guys are interested in seeing happen next and what you think might happen. And what do you think of Caden? Just... whatever you feel like saying, I love hearing it. And again, thank you so much for the faves and the follows and the reviews. :)