They are all interviewed by the police. (Sorry guys, I totally forgot about Erica and Boyd for while. The investigation is ongoing.) The sheriff's words are working and they actually try to live as normal as possible. The normality doesn't work for Isaac, but it has nothing to do with Hester. At a little party in the woods they are being watched. Stiles is horny, but he's intimidated by his dad's presence at the loft. Alex makes a move, but Isaac doesn't respond; or maybe he does.

"I didn't know." Stiles was sitting in the interview room at the station trying to sound convincing. "Nobody told me anything." He threw his hands out. "Boyd was there, he saw it happen, but he didn't tell us who did it. He didn't tell me, anyway."

They had all been called in to explain what they knew about what happened to Erica and Boyd. After concocting a story based on the sheriff's knowledge of the investigation, Stiles had volunteered to go first.

"If the guy or the guy's that raped her want me dead because I knew too much, they got it all wrong. I don't know anything. Boyd and Erica were never friends of mine. We never hung out. Why would he tell me."

To make the tale plausible, they had tried to get it as close to the truth as possible. And the truth was that they didn't know shit about what happened to them before their bodies were found. Erica and Boyd had vanished and hadn't been heard from at all. Everything they knew about this had been discovered later.

Allison and Scott had more or less the same story to tell. They didn't know the two victims very well either. For Derek and Isaac, it was a little different. It was common knowledge that Erica and Boyd had hung out with the two of them on a more or less regular basis.

Isaac had been the closest to a friend Boyd ever had and in the interview, he'd told them that he knew about the rape. Technically he didn't no anything about any rape, and he was pretty sure Erica and Boyd had had sex with each other completely voluntarily. "He didn't tell me who did it. Boyd was adamant about pursuing the guy himself. I tried to stop him, but what could I do." He looked down at his own body. "Boyd was much stronger than me. I couldn't fight him, and I promised not to tell anyone."

Derek shook his head and tried to put up a sad face. "I should have known. He should have told me. I could have helped him." He scratched his chin absentmindedly and sighed. "Isaac told me about it after. I tried to look for him, for Boyd, but I couldn't find him." He huffed. "It saddened me to learn that he was dead, but he was trying to revenge his girlfriend. It was commendable."

The officer had cocked his head, and stared at Derek for a moment before he threw a glance at the papers in front of him. "His girlfriend, uh? About that. There are some rumor going around that she was your girlfriend. That you used to pick her up from school..." He let the sentence hang there waiting for Derek's reply.

With a scoff, Derek shook his head. "Oh, no. I really don't care for girls that much. I mostly play on the other team."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Everything went back to normal. Maybe not quite, but they managed to push the fear away and get on with their lives. After their visit to the station, the police hadn't bothered them much. Mr Stilinski had collaborated their story and even on suspension, he had some kind of authority in the force. They believed that he hadn't taken the evidence to screw up the investigation, but that he'd just wanted to keep his son out of it.

Derek spent all his days at the Hale-house, tearing it down. Isaac was at his side most of the time, showing no signs of exhaustion after hours of work. When he wasn't there, he hung out at the McCall house, with the excuse that Melissa needed someone to protect her when Scott couldn't.

Scott was working at Dr Deaton's clinic every day now. Melissa went back to work also. Scott or Isaac followed her to the hospital for every shift. When it was over one of them was there to take her home again.

Chris and his daughter came to the Hale-house ever so often and lent a hand. Allison was earning a few bucks doing paperwork for her dad, but business was slow in the summer so they both had a little bit of time on their hands.

It took less than three days to tear down the remnants of the house. Derek decided to leave the foundation as it was, saving the basement. Stiles looked at the bare floor. He tried to picture a house in front of him, and he also tried to picture himself living in it. He loved Derek and he loved this part of the woods. If his dad would let him, he'd move in with Derek in a heartbeat.

Stiles would have wanted to help, but his foot was still hurting so he couldn't really do much. With some of the scrap materials and some bricks from the old chimney, he'd helped Alex and Chris build a outdoor stove. Alex had been full of energy and enthusiasm when they started the work. He wasn't particularly skilled in construction – or deconstruction – but nobody could complain about the effort he put into it.

They all decided to celebrate the progress with a little party in the woods. Alex volunteered to cook. He wasn't much of a builder, and Chris had been about to rip his hair out when they made the brick stove together, but he quickly managed to find out how to use it.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The last few days had been exhausting. It wasn't the labor that took it out of him, and it wasn't the fact that he wasn't sleeping enough. Hanging around Scott's house guarding Melissa when she had to sleep after a night shift, wasn't particularly strenuous either. The thing that tired him the most was to avoid Alex.

They spent hours together working at the Hale-house, but it was only when they took a break that thing became a little awkward. So, Isaac didn't take breaks. He scheduled his days after Melissa's and Scott's work hours and managed to keep himself busy at all times. They both claimed that he didn't have do it, but hanging at the loft in his spare time with Alex so close wasn't an option.

The kiss had not been mentioned, and Alex hadn't done anything to suggest that it meant anything more than he'd said that night. Maybe it 'was' just a payment for a debt. Maybe he wasn't interested in Isaac on any other level. When Isaac let him off the hook, telling him that he didn't have to redeem himself in any way shape or form, Alex was probably satisfied with that.

If Alex manage to act normal around Isaac, it didn't quite work the other way around. Isaac couldn't even look at the guy without feeling sorry for himself. His gay adventure was over. It would never become anything of it, and he wasn't sure if he could feel the same about any other guy. He'd tried to ease the pain with porn magazines, jerking off looking at pictures of hot, naked girls. It didn't really work. Even if he managed to cum, it wasn't the girls that did it. He tried to tell himself it was, but he had to admit that it was the memory of the kiss that put him over the edge every time.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

She could hear them long before she could smell them or even see them. They weren't too loud, but sounds travel a long way in forest in the dead of night.

Joy kept her distance as she scouted out the crowd. There was a fire burning in the middle of the open area. Derek Hale was sitting on a wooden stool with his arms wrapped around the Stiles-boy. Stiles was on the ground leaning his head on Derek's chest. There was a sparkle in his eyes as he turned his face upwards and smiled to his mate.

Chris Argent – Hester's archenemy – was standing next to them, feeding the fire with a some twigs. He assessed his work before he grabbed a couple of beers from a cooler and handed one of them to an older man propped up in a dingy rocking chair. A woman was standing next to him, staring into the flames with a lopsided smile on her face. Joy didn't recognize them, and wondered if they were hunters or werewolves.

Soft music was playing from a boombox sitting on the remnants of a front porch. In the background, she could see Scott McCall in a tight embrace with – could it be? – Allison Argent. They were moving slowly in sync with the music on what seemed to be the foundation of a house. Joy suddenly recollected a memory about this house. She was only a little girl back then, so it was a little blurry, but she knew she'd been there before. She also knew what had happened to the Hale-family later.

She recognized Alex flipping burgers on a somewhat crooked brick construction resembling a stove. He was laughing at something she couldn't really catch, and seemed happier than she'd ever seen him before. At the far end of the front yard, where the light from the fire didn't reach him, a tall lanky character was walking around by himself. Ever so often, he picked up something, maybe some firewood. She nodded to herself when she remembered him. It was Isaac Lahey. He seemed a little lost and didn't join in when the others occasionally laughed out loud.

Suddenly, Stiles started struggling to get to his feet. Derek practically lifted him up and whispered something into his ear. Stiles smiled and pointed to the treeline, before he gave Derek a quick kiss on the cheek.

He was limping heavily as he moved directly towards Joy. She was pretty sure he couldn't see her, but she still ducked down between the bushes. At the edge of the clearing, he peeked over his shoulder before he took a few more steps in between the trees. He leaned on an old oak as he started to unbuckle his belt.

Joy knew that this could be her chance. If she hurried, she could catch him and subdue him without alerting the rest of the pack. The music and the laughter would possibly cover up the noise. After throwing a glance at Alex, seeing his bright smile as he handed out burgers, she hesitated. In the corner of her eye she could see that Stiles was about done peeing, but she didn't move. She'd never been directly unhappy with her life, but these people showed her a happiness that she'd barely known. Even if they were under a threat, they still managed to enjoy themselves in a way she could only vaguely remember from when she was little. Way back when her grandparents were still alive.

Stiles pushed away from the oak and turned towards the others. Joy knew her moment had passed, and she didn't regret it. Slowly but surely she walked backwards, retracting from the scene before she turned around and ran out of the woods towards the car.

-o-o-o-o-

Isaac felt a little lost. He could have joined the others by the fire, but he was afraid he'd kill the mood. The adults were chatting up a storm. Stiles and Derek participated for the most part, but in between they whispered to each other, giggling ever so often.

Scott and Allison withdrew from the others for a while, smooching and slow dancing, but now they were back by the fire. They sang along with the tune from the boombox, earning a few laughs from their parents and the rest of the crowd.

Alex was practically dancing around that weird construction they called a stove. He was tending to the burgers Chris had provided, but left the food alone from time to time just to share a word or two with his former prison guards. Everybody seemed so happy.

As far as Isaac could notice, nobody payed much attention to him. Alex hadn't even looked at him once in the last hour. The only one that had tried to pull him over was Allison, but she got distracted when Scott asked her to choose the music. That was about forty minutes ago. Since then, Isaac had just walk along the treeline, picking up some dry twigs here and there and dumped them next to the fire, before he went back to find some more. He got a quick 'thank you' from Chris, but other than that, he felt somewhat ignored.

He knew it was his own fault. He could just sit down with them and chat, but then he'd probably would have to interact with Alex also, and that would be too awkward.

-o-o-o-o-o-

"We could sleep here under the stars." Stiles nibbled on Derek's earlobe as he whispered. "Just the two of us." Derek chuckled a little and pulled away. "I'm not so sure it is a good idea. We would be easy targets if Hester comes." He knew perfectly well why Stiles suggested it, but risking their lives for a fuck wasn't worth it. "If you weren't so worried about your dad staying at the loft, you wouldn't even have thought about it."

Stiles pouted a little. "Would too!" He gave Derek a punch to the chest. "You think that's all I want from you?" He threw a quick peek around. Nobody was within hearing range. "Okay, so you're right, but..." Derek pulled him into an embrace. "We have time, don't worry about it."

The fire was about to die down. It was late, or early, depending on how you looked at it. It would still be a few hours till sunrise, but there was a faint glow on the horizon telling them that it was way passed midnight.

"I guess we have to head home then." Stiles unwrapped himself from Derek and looked around. Alex and Melissa had put the leftovers in one of the coolers, and Chris was carrying it to his car. He was the one who'd provided all the food for the party anyway. It was a warm summer night, so the blankets they'd brought were never used. Scott piled them up, before he and Allison stuffed them in the trunk of Derek's car.

Derek was still sitting next to the dying fire, seemingly indulged in his own thoughts. "One day." He sighed and looked at the others. "One day I will invite you to a party, and you can all spend the night in my house." He nodded towards the empty foundation. "I just have to start building it."

They all gathered around him. "We have a few beers left. Lets polish them off as we make a toast." Chris reached into the other cooler and pulled out a bottle for each of them. Melissa was about to protest when he started handing out beers to the teenagers also, but Chris waved his hand in the air. "Let them have one, relax."

Stiles didn't notice at first, but there were two people that didn't participate in the toast. As they drank the beers slowly, sharing a few ideas about how the house should look, Stiles saw Alex and Isaac hanging by the treeline. They didn't stand very close together, and it didn't seem like they were talking with each other either. Stiles smiled to himself. It was still progress. Isaac seemed to have done his best to avoid the guy, and Alex hadn't even tried to make a move. Stiles had spent time with them both, and he'd seen the peeks they've thrown at each other when they thought nobody noticed. The last few days it had been even worse, but he'd decided to keep it to himself for the time being.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Alex was happy. He could almost feel his heart grow in his chest when he looked at the group gathered around the fire. He was part of this. He was part of this weird pack, and it made him a little emotional. The only thing that disturbed this joyous feeling was the fact that Isaac didn't seem to share it.

He'd been waiting for Isaac to say or do something after it was revealed that Alex hung with Allison only in order to save her life. When that didn't happen, he'd decided to take matters into his own hands. Isaac had still been evasive, forcing Alex to make that bold move. He'd hoped that the kiss would lead to something, but he hadn't been prepared for Isaac's reaction.

For three whole days, he'd only seen Isaac when they worked at Derek's house. In the evening on the first day, he'd actually tried to talk to him, but the moment Derek decided to call it a night, Isaac had left to got to Scott's house.

Maybe he'd got it all wrong. Maybe Isaac wasn't interested at all. Maybe he thought that Alex had gone a step to far with that kiss. Maybe Isaac was angry at him because he'd overstepped a boundary he hadn't been aware of.

During the party in the forest, he'd tried to make eye-contact with Isaac on several occasions. If it was true that Isaac didn't want him in that way, he had to make amends. Avoiding each other wasn't an option if they were going to be in this pack together.

It wasn't until it was all over that Alex finally had Isaac close enough to actually speak to him without shouting. The others didn't pay attention when Alex turned to Isaac. "I'm sorry." He wasn't sure what he was sorry for. It wasn't the kiss. He would never be sorry about that, but he had to say something.

"Sorry? You're sorry. For what?" Isaac didn't look at him. "You have nothing to be sorry about." He kicked at a small tree stump. They were both staring at the group standing around the dying fire. "I, uh, I'm sorry if I did... I mean. You are avoiding me! Why?" The words just slipped out, but Alex needed to know.

The tree stump was getting quite a beating, before Isaac covered his face with his hands and rubbed his forehead as if he wanted to pull the skin off. "I've been busy." He lowered his hands and sighed heavily. "You're too cocky and, and... you can't just go around kissing people. I'm not... You can't just do that."

Alex forced down a chuckle. He had to turn away so Isaac wouldn't see the smirk on his face. When he managed to compose himself, he took a step towards Isaac. "I can. I did. And you know what? You kissed me back." He lifted his head and managed to catch Isaac's eyes for a split second. "A kiss... is just a kiss."

Isaac's eyes widened. "You caught me of guard. I didn't know... I, eh. I didn't know." Isaac stuttered a little and Alex knew exactly what the problem was. "Okay then. I can kiss you again and give you a fair warning. Is now okay?"

Isaac took a couple of steps back crashing into a tree. It startled him somewhat, but he didn't avert his gaze. "I don't think. No. Not now. But..." In the darkness of the woods Alex could still see the blush on Isaac's face. "Later, how about later?" He stared into Isaac's eyes gave him a wink. "I'll tell you when I'm going to do it, and you can push me away if you want to. Is that fair?"

Isaac didn't answer. Suddenly, he just pushed passed Alex and walked over to Scott. Alex sighed. He'd tried, but it had been futile. Isaac was going to leave with the McCalls, and keep avoiding him.

When everybody was entering the separate cars to go home, Chris offered to take Mr Stilinski. "Derek's car is not made for passengers. I'll drive you to his place." Alex was already in the backseat of the Camaro waiting for Stiles to join him, but when his dad took the offer, Stiles could ride shotgun.

As Chris was about to take off, Alex saw that Isaac ran over to his car. "Can you take me too? I'm staying at the loft tonight. I mean since you're going there anyway." He nodded towards the Camaro. "You're right. It's not made for passengers."