I always try to look for the best in people. Most of the time, I figure I've gotten pretty good at it. I can see the good and bad parts of one person, rationalize their actions even when I think they're wrong. You have to take the good with the bad, and I try to be a believer that there is always some fraction of good in people. Benefit of the doubt, right?

But sometimes—sometimes that doesn't matter. You can know that someone has positive attributes, understand why they do what they do, and still hate being anywhere you might come close to sharing the same air. You can't really describe what sets you off about them—you might not even have a reason—but their entire being just grates at your patience until there's nothing left. Sometimes I feel like we are just not destined to be friends with everyone, and that's okay.

Matt Daehler was one of those people for me.

"Why him?!" I asked Allison as we walked through the hall. "Of all the people in this godforsaken school you could go on a date with, why him?!"

"It wasn't exactly a conscious decision, Sadie." She was laughing at my exasperation, but still managed to sound a little embarrassed about the whole thing. "I mean, I bumped into him when I was trying to talk to Jackson in the locker room the other day. I just said yes to get him off my back, and I didn't realize what I'd said yes to until later."

"See, that's exactly what I mean. He ambushed you. He got you in a situation where you couldn't say no and attacked you."

"Sadie, there's no way he could've known I was in a rush to talk to Jackson," she said, rolling her eyes. "He didn't force me into it. I was just flustered, and I said yes before I realized. It might not even be a date! It's fine."

"Fine? Mhm. Right. So have you told Scott yet?"

Allison faltered in her step, meeting my knowing look with a guilty one.

"Okay, but before you say anything, I am totally going to tell him! I just…haven't found the time yet. But ever since the library, my parents have doubled up on the security. I think it would be good for me to go out with someone else, just to get them off my back. Scott will get that, so—so it's fine…"

I cocked an eyebrow at her self-assuring tone, but refrained from commenting on it. "I just think Matt's a creep. I don't like him."

"Really? I hadn't noticed." I shot her a mild glare, but it only made her laugh again. "Well, he went to the hospital with a concussion after the library thing, if that makes you feel any better."

"Hm, does it make me an awful person if I say yes?"

"Yes."

"That's too bad, because it does make me feel better."

Allison rolled her eyes at me. "You're horrible. Seriously, I don't get it."

"I'm being serious too, Ally. I'd rather you be going on a date with—with Jackson than with Matt."

"Okay, that is a lie and you know it."

"…Alright, so that's a lie, but you at least could have tried asking Lydia out."

"Yeah, I don't think my parents would have bought that."

"Why not?" I asked with a shrug. "Lydia's beautiful. You're beautiful. I think you would be beautiful together."

"Thanks for your blessing," she chuckled, pushing my shoulder gently, "but Lydia doesn't seem like she would be up for it, especially these days."

The reminder zapped the small smile right off my face.

Unfortunately, Lydia still didn't know the truth about the supernatural. After our detention, the kanima attack, and Erica's near death experience, we got home too late to sit down with her. I'd dragged Scott and Stiles into the house with every intention of putting on a presentation, only to find that Lydia had already gone to bed. According to her mother, she'd gone for a walk and come home with her feet scratched and dirty. She'd taken a shower, retreated to her room, and hadn't come out for dinner.

My first assumption was that Lydia was mad at me. The next morning, I got up early to help with breakfast, curated the most Lydia-approved outfit I could think of for school, and drafted up an apology speech. I would explain everything in the car if she wanted me to. I would force Scott into the back seat of the Beetle and have him flash his golden eyes or whip out his claws, something subtle enough that wouldn't be picked up by the security cameras. I would do whatever it took to make it up to her.

But Lydia didn't seem to be angry. In fact, she didn't seem to be anything at all. She walked through the house in a daze, responding to questions with short, vague answers and carrying on with her routine. Mom and Natalie had both picked up on it, but assured me that Lydia was just tired. She'd been under a lot of stress lately, so it was natural for her to be worn out. I wasn't sure if they even believed themselves, but they didn't have a better explanation; I did.

It wasn't so much an explanation as it was a connection. Lydia's spacy behavior was cropping up again and again: the woods, the guidance office, the night she'd been out on the porch. It had started with Peter's bite, and instead of recovering, she seemed to be getting worse. She locked herself in her room and went on long walks without telling anyone she was leaving. I was surprised her mother hadn't put bars on the window yet, but everyone seemed to be hoping that whatever was happening to Lydia would just…stop, if they let her deal with it.

I knew it had to be something supernatural, but in order to figure out what was happening, I needed more details. I needed to talk to her, but these days, Lydia rarely wanted to talk about anything. It felt like she was avoiding me, even when we were in the same room. More than the concern or the guilt, the separation was slowly killing me. I just wanted my best friend back.

"Did you talk to her today?" Allison asked gently.

"A little. I got a violently happy wake up call, but she was back in her room before I could say anything. And I wasn't allowed to talk in the car, because she made me a special playlist. Apparently I wouldn't have gotten the full effect if I was speaking."

"Now that sounds like Lydia."

"But that's the thing," I sighed. "It's like I can feel her trying to be Lydia. She acts like herself just enough that she seems normal, and the rest of the time she locks herself away. She hasn't asked about what we were going to tell her. She hasn't asked about Jackson and the restraining orders. I mean, the real Lydia wouldn't have left my side today. This…this just feels wrong."

Allison gave me a sympathetic smile, sliding her hand up my arm to shake my shoulder a little. "Well, at least she's excited for today, right?"

"I guess…"

"Are you excited for today?"

"I guess? I mean, I love spending time with Stiles. Part of me doesn't see what the big deal is, and the other part feels so nervous that I want to puke and die."

"Okay, well there's no need to be that nervous." She laughed and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. "It's okay though. I will be excited enough for all three of us, and I will be right by your side to coach you through the whole thing…until the actual study date starts. I love you, but I don't want to be there for that."

She tousled my hair and released me so she could open her locker. I grinned, watched her closely as she spun in her combination, totally focused on her books and what she needed to get through the day.

"You're really important to me, you know that?"

Allison paused for a moment and looked at me with surprise, then a slightly confused smile. "You're important to me, too."

"Sorry," I chuckled, shaking my head at myself. "This whole thing with Lydia's just got me…"

"Sadie, I get it. We're all a little out of it, but I know that everything happening to Lydia is hardest on you. You're my best friend, and I'm here for whatever you need."

"Thanks, Allison. Really."

"Of course. Right now, we just need to focus on the important things. Like your impending make out session." She slammed her locker shut and, with a manic smile uncannily similar to Lydia's, hooked her arm through mine she could drag me down the hall. "So, what time is the date?"

"Right after school. He's driving me back to my house and then we'll…yeah…"

"Your house?" she repeated skeptically. "You live with three other people and your mom works at home. Why aren't you going to his house?"

"Because of his dad. Between the detention and the restraining order, we figured it'd be better to give him some space. Lydia's mom should be at work, I heavily insinuated to Mom that today would be a good day to go grocery shopping, and…well, I don't really worry about seeing Lydia, so…"

"That sounds like a good plan," Allison said, before I had the chance to be sad again. "And if you're in your bedroom, you have home field advantage. I think you'll be a lot more comfortable."

"Ha, hopefully, because I have…no idea what I'm doing."

"Hey, that's what I'm here for. There's nothing really right or wrong. Just do what feels comfortable. But try to go easy on him. Stiles is…excitable and, to quote a really sweet and awesome friend of mine, you don't want to break him the first time around."

She winked, making me laugh. I vividly remembered the phone call I'd gotten from Allison after her first study date with Scott. Hopefully, mine would turn out better than hers had.

"But," she continued, "just in case, I brought you this."

I looked up from my locker just as she raised her hand, a square, silver package between her fingers. There was a second of silence as the sight processed in my mind, and the mischievous smirk grew wider on her face. Then the whole world snapped into fast forward.

"Allison!" I snatched the condom and shoved her hand back down to her side, looking up and down the hallway in terror while she laughed. "Oh my God! No! Not funny! Stop laughing at me!"

"Sadie, it's really okay," she assured me through giggles. "You don't have to—"

"I know! But you're just gonna hold it up in the air two minutes before first period?! It's bad enough you, Lydia, and Scott know! You think I want the whole school to know?! Or—or your mom and your grandfather staring at us on the security cameras?! I do not need them to know!"

"Know what?"

I yelped and whirled around, shoving the condom in my back pocket and coming face to face with Stiles. "Ah! Hi!"

He raised an eyebrow, looking between our red faces, mine flushed with embarrassment while Allison fought to control her giggles.

"Is…everything okay?"

"Yup! We're good! Everything's fine! Walk me to class?"

I forcibly pulled Stiles's arm around my shoulder, giving Allison a pointed look as we walked away. She only wiggled her fingers in a wave, and actually dared to wink at me before she walked in the other direction.

Stiles might have been able to save me from Allison's hazing in the morning, but she didn't let up over the course of the day. Evidently, she felt it was her duty to be at least three times more excited and annoying than she normally would have been to make up for Lydia's disinterest. I kept trying to lure Lydia into the conversation, but she never engaged for long. She played along with a vague smile, then went back to staring into space, sometimes moving her lips as if she were talking to herself. When class was over, she would leave as soon as possible.

I knew Allison was just trying to distract me from my worries, but that didn't make it any easier to handle. It was like she'd spent the whole week thinking up puns and sex jokes to slip into conversation…actually, I wouldn't be surprise if she'd done just that.

There were the traditional study date jokes that Stiles and I had shot at her and Scott months before: "Are you going to be studying anatomy?" "Math and the reality of multiplication?" "Testing your chemistry?"

Then there were the straight up sex jokes, and the strange mix of academic puns she'd come up with: "So, are you planning on making anything go up besides Stiles's grade?" "You guys really need to buckle off and study. Ahem, I mean buckle down." "What exactly is going down later? Besides Stiles."

I was sincerely impressed by her efforts and ceaseless energy, but there was only so much a girl could take. The jokes were not alleviating my anxiety. If anything, I was now so nervous at the thought of touching Stiles that I wanted to melt into a puddle and seep into the soil to never be recovered again. Allison weaned off the jokes throughout the day, but at some point she must noticed how bad my nerves were getting. I walked into lunch to find that she was nowhere near our usual table. Instead, Scott was sitting in her seat, waiting for me with a slightly sheepish smile.

"Hey, Sadie. How are you feeling?"

"Um…good?" I dropped my tray on the table and took a seat across from him. "Not that I don't love your company, but what are you doing here?"

"Allison texted Stiles asking if he wanted to have lunch together. I guess we both decided you guys could use a break from us."

"Aha. Well, so long as I'm not the only one receiving the luxury study date hazing, I guess."

"Please," Scott scoffed. "Like you and Stiles weren't making fun of me and Allison all day before our first one."

"Excuse me," I gasped, scandalized. "I'll have you know that Stiles and I were actually keeping each other in check. We could have been worse. We could have been so much worse, but we spared you, so—you know, you're welcome."

"Well, that's what Allison and I are doing right now. Sparing you…for now."

I chuckled and looked around the room, finding Allison and Stiles at the boys' usual table. I caught Stiles's eye and waved, rolling my eyes at our friends' antics. He lifted a hand in response, but quickly dropped it and jumped when Allison nudged him in the ribs. She leaned in and whispered something, and even at this distance, I could see his cheeks turn pink. He tried to swat at her, which turned into a slap fight, which quickly ended when she grabbed his hand and squeezed. I could almost hear his squeal of pain, and laughed with Scott as Stiles shook himself off. I felt a pang of longing go through my chest, and my smile soured.

"It was just a lot easier when we were all sitting together."

Scott smiled sadly and folded his arms on the table so he could rest his chin atop. "You didn't even know I was a werewolf back then. Feels like forever ago."

"Wasn't it?" I asked with a bitter laugh. "God, we…we had so many less problems back then…"

"That's life, though. We're never gonna not have problems."

"Yeah, but I wouldn't mind some normal ones. Passing tests and getting caught making out, not trying to solve mysteries like the Scooby Gang."

He ducked his face into his arms to laugh, but he was still grinning when he looked up again.

"Yeah, we've gotta work on that. In the meantime, I can promise you that you and Stiles are gonna have a lot less problems than Allison and I did on our first study."

"Hm, now are you referring to the part where Derek almost died, you tried to steal a wolfsbane bullet from a lethally trained hunter who was your girlfriend's aunt, or Mr. Argent's generally murderous attitude toward you?"

"Actually…none of the above…?" I raised an intrigued eyebrow, and Scott actually blushed. "Well, uh…when Allison and I first got together, I—I was still learning to control my powers. And there were a few times when I would get…um…I—I'd get excited and I…"

He trailed off, his eyes flicking toward the security camera in the corner. Instead of finishing, he bared his teeth and raised his hands in fake claws. I nearly slapped myself in the face as I tried to cover my mouth, though I wasn't sure if I was holding in a gasp of horror or a bark of laughter.

"Oh my God! Scott!"

"Nothing happened! But, uh…I had to stop everything a few times because I was afraid I was going to hurt her."

"Did she say anything? I mean, what did you even tell her?"

"That I was afraid I was going to impale her through the chest." I gave him an unamused look and he chuckled. "No, I just told her I was afraid of pressuring her. I think she probably just thought it was nerves, you know?"

"You know, now that you mention it, I do remember her saying something about that. She thought you were the perfect gentleman."

"Well, that too," Scott replied proudly.

"Did you ever tell her the truth? Like, what was really happening?"

"Ha, yeah. She's familiar with the situation."

He winced the moment he said it, and my salacious smile spread wider.

"Wait, so does that mean it still happens? Like when you two are…?"

Scott covered his face with his hands and let out a small whining noise. "Yes, okay? Are you happy? Sometimes my claws still slip when we have sex. I haven't hurt her, but…there's been a few bedsheet casualties…"

"Alright, Scotty!" I tried to smother my squeal for his sake, but kept laughing as I punched him on the arm. "Animal in the bedroom…literally."

"You are the actual worst," he groaned, and I winked at him. "Okay, can—can we please change the subject?"

"Fine, fine. Have it your way." We turned back to our lunches, and I chewed thoughtfully on the end of one of my fries until another thought occurred to me. "Oh! What'd you get called down to the principal's office for the other day?"

To my surprise, Scott nearly choked on his food. His head jerked instinctively toward the security camera, but he stopped just short. Instead, he slumped down in his chair with a terrified and defeated expression.

"That is…actually not a subject change…"

"…you got called down to the principal's office to…have sex with Allison…?"

Scott gave me a hard look and shook his head. "I thought Gerard was just gonna yell at me about the locker room damage. Maybe threaten to cut me in half with his longsword if I didn't tell him who the kanima was or something."

"That's what I thought too, but you're still in one piece, so it couldn't have been that bad."

"Oh no. It was worse. Instead, Allison's mom yelled at me about the locker room damage, and then asked me point blank if I was having sex with her daughter."

"…Yikes. That's…"

"Yikes, yeah," he agreed, shivering at the thought. "There was a lot of glaring and aggressive pencil sharpening and the whole thing just made me very nervous for the wellbeing of certain parts of my body."

"A reasonable fear," I said as I patted him on the arm. "Gerard'll cut you in half, Chris'll shoot you dead, but I am actually terrified of what Victoria is capable of."

"Tell me about it."

"I mean, she gets her hands on you, you can pretty much kiss your balls goodbye."

"Really. Do you have to do that?"

He groaned, and I fought my hardest to hide my smirk. "So, are you going to back off? Not for good, obviously, but you know. Just to lay low?"

"I mean, I should, but…"

I grinned as I watched him scratch the back of his neck. It was probably a really stupid decision on his part, not to mention dangerous. I knew that Allison was thinking about asking for some distance, if only to keep Scott a little safer. Even knowing that, Scott's complete devotion to her was adorable. It was so pure and real, I couldn't even think to point out the downsides to him.

I reached into my back pocket, pulling out the condom that Allison had surprised me with. I slid it across the table to him, and giggled when his jaw dropped.

"Ally gave it to me this morning as a joke, but I think you crazy kids need it more than me."

Scott blushed, but pocketed the small package with an air of pride. "Thanks, Sadie. You're…probably right…"

"I know," I said brightly, and tossed my hair over my shoulder.

"Plus, I don't think you and Stiles will need more any time soon."

I almost didn't notice what he'd said. He would've gotten away with it if he hadn't frozen the moment the words left his mouth. As it was, I narrowed my eyes at him and folded my arms over my chest.

"Excuse me?"

"Um…nothing…?"

"Scott."

He lifted his head a fraction at a time, finally meeting my eye with the utmost amount of caution. When he saw my steely look, he broke.

"Okay, so—so I may have done something similar to Allison and bought Stiles a big box of condoms as a sort of funny congratulations-on-your-first-study-date gift, but it's only because I really care about you guys and I really want this to go well, and I totally didn't tell him that he should use them, and I would never tell him that because that's totally between you and him and it's your choice, but I thought it would be funny. I'm sorry."

I really wanted to yell at him, but I didn't have the heart to do it. He was sitting there with his eyes screwed up tight, like he was waiting for the bomb strapped to his chest to go off at any given moment. So as funny as it would've been. I held back.

"And you say I'm the worst," I laughed weakly.

I reached across the table and shoved his head, and Scott looked up with a tentative grin. "Okay, so I'm kind of the worst, too. Truce?"

"Truce."

Scott and I finally managed to settle down and change the subject to something sex- and kanima-free. We spent the rest of lunch talking about different movies showing in theaters, which obviously none of us had time to go see. Scott had taken Allison once last semester, and I'd gone a few times with mom, but besides that, Team Wolf had been pretty much cinema-free since Scott had gotten the bite. We vowed that as soon as we wrapped up everything with Jackson, we'd organize some sort of movie trip. Allison could sneak out to come see it with us, and we'd drive all the way to the border if we had to. If we made it through this, we deserved one day of normal freedom.

After lunch, Scott and Allison switched back to their more traditional places, and I was under Allison's pun-heavy-thumb once more. Thankfully, the second half of the day was palpably more lighthearted, and she became more and more supportive as the final bell approached.

"Seriously, we're not joking because we want to pressure you," she said as she walked me to my locker at the end of the day. It was probably the twentieth time she'd said it, but the reassurance was still nice. "Obviously we want you guys to have fun, but don't do anything you're not comfortable with. And don't worry about what Stiles is going to think of you either. He is crazy about you, and I'm sure he doesn't want you to be uncomfortable either…even if he is dying to get on that. I'm sorry. I'm done. Just don't worry, okay? You can text me if you need a bail out, and remember—"

"Remember that the first rule of study dates is to have fun and be yourself?" I asked, slamming my locker shut.

She swatted my arm, but grinned. "Fine. Good luck, though. It looks like your time's up."

I felt the arm around my waist before I had the chance to ask what she meant, and Stiles leaned down to kiss me on the cheek. "Hey, you ready to go?"

"Uh, yeah. Are you ready to—"

"Yes."

Allison chuckled at his quick answer. "Sadie, are you really gonna ask him that? You're lucky he hasn't thrown you over his shoulder at this point."

"Excuse me, I am a gentleman. It'd be bridal style if anything."

"Okay, okay!" I interrupted, laying a hand on his chest. "Can we go now, please? Before this gets any more embarrassing?"

"You got it. Let's just—"

"Hold on." Allison grabbed his sleeve was we tried to walk past her. She narrowed her eyes at him and dug her nails into the fabric of his T-shirt. "Take care of her, and be nice. I am not afraid to come after you with my crossbow."

"Allisooon," I whined, but she was already smiling again.

"Have fun! Good luck!"

With that, she turned away and bounced down the hallway with her hair swinging behind her. I felt Stiles shiver next to me as he grimaced.

"We have some seriously scary friends, you know that?"

"Yeah. Yeah, we do."

I'm not sure when the full reality of the situation hit me. I'd been nervous all day, but it hadn't been debilitating. I'd spoken to Stiles with relative ease, carried on with my classes, gotten my work done. Now that school was over, it was a completely different story. By the time we were halfway to the house, I realized that my hands were clenched into fists in my lap. Stiles was coming over for a study date. I'd kissed him before, sure, but it'd always been spur of the moment. This time, I was inviting him over with the very clear intention of making out with him. As much as I'd teased Allison when it was her, even given her advice, I had absolutely no clue what I was supposed to do.

Stiles parked the Jeep on the curb, taking a deep breath that was all too audible to me. He glanced my way with a smile, but his eyes were quickly pulled to something behind me. "I thought you said no one was gonna be home?"

I turned to see Lydia's black Beetle snuggled in the back of the driveway, almost hidden by my mom's minivan. My stomach clenched.

"Mom's supposed to be grocery shopping, and…well, Lydia doesn't spend a lot of time home anymore, even if her car is here. She's probably on another one of her walks…"

Stiles must've picked up on the melancholy in my voice, because he didn't bother trying to say anything else. He jumped out of the driver's seat and marched around the car, opening the passenger door with a ridiculous bow.

"Miss Bennet."

I cracked a smile and grabbed both our bags before taking his hand to jump down. "Mr. Stilinski. If you would so good as to follow me—"

"Thank God."

He practically walked on top of me in his eagerness to get into the house, something that made me laugh even as my stomach tied into an anxious pretzel. I knew he was doing it to make me laugh, to ward off the tension, but it only worked for a few seconds. The moment I shut the front door, awkwardness crept in once more, expanding the air between us as we both stood in the front hall.

"So, uh…" I grabbed onto my backpack as an anchor, strangling the straps as I tried to figure out what exactly I was trying to say. "Do—do you want anything? Food, something to drink?"

"Hm? Oh, nah. No, I'm…good. Thanks, though."

I nodded, twisting a little on my feet. The next question was already rising in my chest like a bubble as it tried to escape from my throat. I kept it down for a few more seconds before it popped.

"Do you want to come up to my room?"

Stiles froze for a moment, his eyes wide, as if he'd forgotten what exactly we were going to be doing on a study date. But then he licked his lips, and I didn't miss the way he wiped his hands on his jeans. "Uh, yeah. Yeah, that's—let's go."

"Not so fast."

Stiles and I both jumped at the intruding voice, and I whirled around to see my mother walking in from the kitchen. She had a wide smile on, but at least she was holding the car keys. Hopefully she was leaving.

"Uh, hey mom."

"You weren't going to go upstairs without saying hi first, right?" She kissed my forehead and pulled me to her side. "How was school?"

"Fine. Nothing new."

"Well then, what ever are they teaching you?"

She was the only one who laughed at the joke, but I had a feeling it hadn't been intended for anyone else.

"And Stiles," she greeted. I saw her smile tighten as she clapped him on the shoulder. "How are you today?"

"Oh, I—I'm good. Great, thanks."

"Well, of course you are! You're here for a study date. Which I'm sure will be nothing but academically successful. Right, sweetie?"

I figured she must have winked at me, but I didn't catch it. I was too busy screwing my face up and praying for the whole scene to be over.

"Right, well, I'm off to go shopping and do boring adult things. Do you guys want anything? Dinner, snacks, condoms, pizza—"

"Mom!"

"What?" she asked innocently, even as I glared at her. "Oh, I was just kidding. I know Stiles is prepared enough to have condoms already. Right, Stiles?"

"Uh, yes, ma'am…no! I mean—I don't have them because we—well, I do have them, but not because we were going to—Scott thought it—not because I was going to with anyone else either! I just—"

"I'm gonna go now," Mom said abruptly. She headed for the door, but paused once more in front of Stiles. "If I find out that you're pressuring her into anything she doesn't want to do, your grades are going to be the last of your worries. Got it?"

"Um…y-yes, ma'am."

"Good. Sadie, be careful, I love you, and I'll see you later."

I actually buried my face in my hands as she grabbed her purse and walked out of the house. I did not want to see her wink goodbye. I did not want to see how Stiles pad turned pale with fear. I did not need anyone to see the disgusting look of mortification that was stuck on my face.

"God, I am so sorry," Stiles said eventually. I felt his hand brush my shoulder, and I peered through my fingers to find him watching me with a sheepish smile. "But uh…at least we've got the house to ourselves now, right?"

It was a terrifying sentence, and I wasn't really sure how to cope with it. My whole body seemed to be a pile of nerves, held together into the shape of a human body by one fact: I liked Stiles. I wanted him to come over and I wanted to make out with him. Maybe I didn't know what I was doing, but he didn't really know either. So long as we were both willing to try, it didn't really matter.

Before I lost my nerve, I grabbed his hand and took a few steps back. I pulled him toward the stairs, slowly at first, so I could enjoy his expression of awed anticipation. A moment later, we were both running up the steps, barreling down the hallway until we got to my room. Stiles made a big show of closing my door, and I grinned as I dropped both our bags on the floor.

"So," he said, approaching me cautiously. "What do you think we should start with?"

I hummed thoughtfully, closing the distance between us and wrapping my arms around his neck. "Hm, well, maybe we should start with Chemistry."

"O-our chemistry?" he asked hopefully.

"Actually, I was thinking about that crystallization lab that you and Scott failed."

I tried to smother my laughter as he sagged in front of me. Disappointed was not nearly a good enough word.

"Seriously, Sadie?!"

"It's called a study date, Stiles. I cannot, in good conscience, do anything else knowing that you might fail Chemistry and have to take it again."

He pried my arms from around him and grumpily grabbed his backpack. "You are the absolute worst, you know that?"

"Yeah, so I've been told."

Stiles collapsed on the floor like a toddler in time out which, I suppose, is kind of what he was. I walked around behind him, kneeling down for a moment so I could run my fingers over his hair and rest my chin on his shoulder.

"Just go through the corrections so you can figure out what you did wrong and balance the equations. Then I can check it over and…maybe we can take a break?"

He pulled my hand from his head with a pout and violently opened his chemistry book. "Yeah. You are definitely the worst."

As grumpy as Stiles was, he didn't bother trying to weasel his way out of the deal. He stayed hunched over on the floor, cursing out his textbook and calling out questions every time he got too stuck to move on. I'd answer them from my seat at my desk, where I was working on my math homework…and then my history homework…and then my English homework, all before Stiles managed to get his Chem lab done.

Finally, he jumped to his feel, slamming the paper down on my desk and making me jump.

"Sorry," he apologized. "It's done. You can check it, but I am pretty unbelievably positive that it is right and that it is done and that I never want to see it again ever in my life."

I smirked at him and picked up the pages, dragging my fingers along the text. I was pretty sure that it was correct too, but that didn't mean Stiles had to know just yet.

I let out a noise of deliberation and pushed myself to my feet so I could pace the room while I read. Stiles shadowed me, wringing his hands a few steps behind me. We made it one whole lap around my room before I perched myself on the edge of my bed, squinting at the numbers on the last page as if I doubted their very existence. Stiles tentatively sat down next to me, and I was almost certain he was holding his breath.

"So…?"

I folded the lab neatly and placed it on the carpet next to my bed. "So, it seems to be correct."

"So, can we…?"

"Yes," I said with a grin. I swung my legs up onto the bed and grabbed his neck, pulling him on top of me. "Yes, we can."

"Finally! Thank you!"

He didn't waste any time clambering onto the bed, and he was kissing me before my head hit the pillow. I tried to giggle at my enthusiasm, but none of the sound made it out. Stiles had the high ground and initiating advantage, which meant that I was spending most of my energy trying to follow his lead. He was certainly more confident than he'd been last time, as if he were trying to prove to me that he'd learned his lesson. He dragged his teeth along my bottom lip, and I sucked in a small gasp of surprise. It wasn't anything audible, but he could definitely feel it, if his smile against my mouth was anything to go by.

I narrowed my eyes in my mind and slid my hands from his neck down his chest. I let my nails rake over the fabric, trailing down his sides and up his back. Cautiously, I slipped my hands under his T-shirt and ghosted my fingers along his lower back. I felt more than heard Stiles hum in approval. He pushed me harder into the pillow and I shifted to tangle my legs with his.

Ever so slowly, his advantage started to slip away from him. He slid one hand from my knee up to my hip, and I could feel his fingers trembling against my jeans. I tried not to smirk into the kiss. If there was a time to strike, it was now.

I quickly extended one of my legs and swiped Stiles's knees out from underneath him. In three quick moves, I'd flipped myself on top of him, one knee planted on either side of his waist. I sat back as he stared up at me in awe, his jaw slack and his arms laying haphazardly around his head.

"H-how…?"

"Allison taught me a few tricks."

"Oh, that's—that's cool…"

I trailed my fingers down his arms to hands so I could lock our fingers together on the pillow. I leaned down with a grin, pressing myself against him and brushing my lips over his gaping ones. I was ready to jump right back into kissing, but Stiles pushed his head back into the pillow and narrowed his eyes at me.

"Wait, why? Was this a defense class I missed or were you two talking explicitly about this situ—"

I cut him off with a kiss and, hesitantly, rolled my hips against his. I felt his entire body tense beneath me, and a sense of pride welled up in my chest. Suffice to say, he'd forgotten whatever question he'd been asking about Allison.

Stiles kept a tight hold on my waist after that, not so subtly anchoring me against him as he attempted to take control of our kisses again. But with me on top—literally—he seemed unsure how to proceed. I felt his fingers twitching on my lower back, rubbing circles on my shirt that trailed down the hem and then quickly retreated to higher ground as he thought better of it. I tried to encourage him without words, pushing myself up against him and humming every time he got close the edge of my shirt. It took a couple minutes of urging, but eventually he slipped his hands under the fabric. His fingers grazed my lower back, just like I'd done to him, and I sighed against his lips. The sound spurred him into further action, and the next moment, he'd pushed both hands under my shirt and splayed them wide across my back.

I jumped at the sudden contact, and Stiles immediately pulled his face back from the kiss. I was expecting some unnecessary apology for startling me, but Stiles's face was not remotely remorseful. In fact, he looked downright terrified.

"O-oh God. Okay, uh you—you're gonna have to—you should probably move now."

"What?"

"I just, uh—I think you should maybe move a little. Just so I—I can breathe. Um…"

"Oh." I was horrified to hear the hurt in my voice, and quickly cleared my throat. "Sorry, I—"

"NO!" Stiles grabbed my hips as I tried to sit up. "No, no, no. It's not—it's not you. O-or—or it's not bad. Ish. I just, uh…"

I narrowed my eyes in concern, sitting back on him despite his protests. "Stiles, what are you—oh!"

I jumped onto my knees, hands clapped over my mouth as I realized just why Stiles was trying to move me out of his lap. Or rather, as I felt just why Stiles was trying to move me out of his lap.

His face had turned a violent shade of pink, and he tried to hide his splotchy cheeks behind a hand. "I—I am so sorry! I just—I—I was trying not to think about it, but you keep moving your hips and I tried to get you to move but you wouldn't and—"

I weighed my options as I hovered over Stiles, who was continuing to babble. On the one hand, he was completely mortified; I was also mortified. I hadn't really expected to have my first run in with…this situation today, and I wasn't sure I was anywhere near mentally prepared to proceed. On the other hand, I'd invited Stiles over to be with me. What did this mean besides that we were doing something right…right?

"It's okay," I said softly, cutting off his rambling apology.

I hesitantly placed my hands on his chest, leaning forward so I could kiss him again. It was slow, deliberate, and even though Stiles kissed me back, he was so still that I wasn't sure his brain had caught up just yet. I took a deep breath and ground my hips against his again. Any doubts I had vanished when I heard the noise he made against my lips, a quiet groan that might have been trying to turn into a curse. I felt his fingers tighten as they pressed into my sides, his thumbs pressing hard against my hipbones.

I grinned, pulling back and watching his ridiculously long eyelashes flutter. "You okay?"

"O-okay? Yeah, I'm…Jesus Christ…"

"You're Jesus?" I repeated with a smirk, rolling my hips again. "Is that your real first name?"

His glare got lost as he squeezed his eyes shut, and I was confident that he'd stopped breathing. "You know what? Fine, Bennet. Two people can play at that game."

He grabbed my legs above my knees and, with a strength I didn't know he could muster, yanked me forward on the bed almost a foot. My hips were forced to rest somewhere over his stomach, out of reach from any more problematic areas. I pouted, but he ignored my disappointment and grabbed my neck, pulling me down to him with his eyes locked on my jawline.

Before he could do anything, something smacked him in the face. He spluttered a little, squinting as he tried to focus on the pieces of metal that had slid out from my shirt.

"Oh my God, I am so sorry," I giggled, grabbing the chain of my dog tags and pulling them out of his face.

He sighed, holding them gently and running his thumb over the inscription. "Why do I feel like this is some cosmic sign? Like a big 'don't touch my daughter' from the beyond?"

"Well, we are making out in front of his picture."

Stiles tilted his head back to survey the pictures I had stuck on the wall over my pillow. There was the picture of my graduation, one of my birthday parties, my dad holding me on his shoulders as a kid, a photo of him in his dress blues…

"You know, you look a lot like him."

"You think so?"

"Yeah," Stiles assured me. "You guys have the same eyes. I mean, I'm looking at him upside down right now, but I can see it."

I smiled sadly, letting my eyes fall from the gallery to the boy lying beneath me. Stiles was watching me carefully, a small grin pulling at his lips that was too light to be an outright smile. I could feel the soothing circles he was tracing on my legs, not trying to rush me away from the topic. He let me take my time, reassuring me that he was still there no matter what I decided to do next.

I closed my eyes for a moment, shaking my head as I tried to bring my thoughts back to the present. "Right. I can just take these off."

I reached for the chain on my dog tags, but Stiles was quick to grab my hand.

"Nah, don't worry about it. Sorry, Mr. Bennet, but I'm just gonna…"

He tugged gentle on the tags, slowly pulling me down toward his face and never once breaking eye contact. My stomach twisted into a knot, which pulled tight the moment Stiles's lips brushed against my jaw, and nearly suffocated as he dipped his head to explore the rest of my neck.

If I hadn't known any better, I would have said that he'd been practicing. Stiles had been good at it the first time he'd tried, but I'd figured it'd been partially because I was sensitive and it was my first experience. Now, every kiss seemed to be left as part as a plan, with purpose, following a predetermined path that Stiles had mapped out. They weren't the light nervous kissed he'd given me last time; they ranged from brushes that I could barely feel to open-mouthed kisses that tugged at my skin with the pressure. Once or twice, he dragged his tongue over my skin, something that send my brain into a straight up stall. My hands anchored on the back of his head, trying to stop him from pulling back. Fortunately, it didn't seem to be something he was considering any time soon.

I gasped when I felt his hands push under my shirt again. He traced the vertebrae of my spine, travelling up, up, up, weaving back and forth between the breaks in the bone. Just when he reached the middle of my back, he moved down again, splaying his fingers wide to brush every possible inch of my skin. Then he started over again, moving in cycle from the hem of my jeans to an inch below my bra. Each time he got closer, and each time, I found myself getting more and more anxious for him to get there. Finally, this thumb brushed against the clasp before darting back down my spine.

I pulled his face away from my neck, hyperaware of the sore spot he'd left on my skin. I had to fight the urge to brush my fingers over it, enjoying the cool sensation of the air washing over what I was almost certain was a light bruise.

Stiles grinned sheepishly at me as I pulled his hands from my shirt. "Sorry, I didn't mean to…"

I didn't let him finish the apology. I'd been considering it all day, deliberating, but Allison had told me to do what felt right. So I grabbed the hem of my shirt pulled it up over my head.

Just before it cleared my face, I had a moment of panic. This was crazy. What was I doing? Was I rushing things? He was going to be so flustered and embarrassed and think I was insane and be weirded out that I was being so forward. What the ever-living fuck was I doing?

But the shirt was already off. I bit my lip and took an extra second laying it next to us on the bed, anything to avoid looking at him. I heard him let out a long, slow breath, and finally gained the courage to peek at his face.

Stiles's eyes had blown wide; not a surprise. I was relieved to see that he didn't look confused or upset, just…awed. Stuck. Just like he had when he saw Lydia and I on the side of the road, when he'd tripped over himself in an attempt to give me his shirt. His mouth hung open as his maple eyes traced over the lacy, purple bra I'd let Lydia talk me into buying last summer.

"Sorry," I apologized, without knowing what I was apologizing for.

"No, I uh…you…wow…"

"Well…nothing you haven't seen before, right?" I joked, but he was too distracted to laugh.

I gently wrapped my fingers around his wrists, pulling his hands in front of me and laying my own over the backs of his. I bit my lip again as his eyebrows shot up, and guided his hands up my sides. I had to pace myself as I got used to the feeling of his skin on mine, but in a matter of seconds, his hands were cupping my breasts. The look on his face was priceless, and I had to purse my lips pretty hard to hide the proud smile that was begging to break free on my face. I leaned forward again, pressing my chest into his hands and matching my lips with his so I could physically close his mouth for him.

It took a few minutes before I was able to stop my breath from catching as Stiles palmed at my chest. His fingers slid excitedly over the lace, tracing the edges and darting over my skin as he took advantage of the newly exposed space. He ran his hands over my back, toyed with the straps of my bra, ghosted down my sides and then back up to my chest. I sighed his name as he gently squeezed again, and ducked my head down to his neck in retaliation.

Bzzz. Bzzz. Bzzz. Bzzz.

I sat up in confusion as Stiles let out a choked groan. "Shit…"

"Is that your phone?"

"Yeah, can you get that?" He lifted his hips under me to indicate his front pocket and I raised an eyebrow. He smirked and pressed his hands into my chest again. "My hands are a little full at the moment."

I rolled my eyes, resisting the urge to smack him. I ignored his sharp intake of breath as I slipped my hand into his pants, pulled out the phone, checked the screen, and accepted Scott's call.

"Hello?"

"Hey…Sadie? Why are you…?"

"Why do you think I'm answering, idiot?"

"O-oh my God! He's still at your house! I—I am so sorry!"

"Did you actually manage to forget we had plans today?"

"No! I just…you know, it's been a couple hours, so I thought he might be home. You guys must be having fun."

"Scott!"

Stiles snorted beneath me, and responded to my glare by pulling teasingly at the lace edge of my bra.

"Sorry! I—I was just calling to ask how it went, but if he's still there then—then don't worry about it."

Stiles chose that moment to try sliding his thumb under the wire of my bra. He swept across the underside of my breast and grinned widely when I jumped.

"Stiles!" I tried to scold, but it came out as a gasp.

Scott made a strangled noise on the other end of the phone. "Oh my God! No! No, stop! I'm hanging up now! Bye!"

I shook my head as I ended the call, dropping the phone pointedly onto Stiles's chest as he laughed.

"Hey, serves him right for calling," he said with a shrug. "I hope he has nightmares for weeks."

"You're terrible." I forcibly removed his hands from my chest and picked up my shirt from the blankets. Stiles whined in protest, but I shook my head. "No, he's right. It's been a few hours since we got here. Mom's probably back from shopping, and you're supposed to finish your homework before you go home."

"Oh come on, you don't actually think my dad expects me to have my homework done, do you?"

"Exactly. We're trying to prove to him that you can be a productive student, and that I'm not a bad influence on you."

"You don't have to worry about that." Stiles rested his hands on my hips, sliding them down until they were dangerously close to grabbing my ass. "Everyone knows that I'm the bad influence in this relationship."

"Well, let's prove everyone wrong."

"Fine, fine…but can you at least leave your shirt off? For the view?" I flicked him on the nose and he yelped. "Ow! Okay! Just a question!"

It was a bit of an effort to get Stiles to complete his homework after that. I had to walk him through half the answers to get him to concentrate, and stayed on the floor with him so his mind would stop wandering. Even then, he was able to lure me into a few more study breaks, which usually ended with me in his lap until one of us kicked a notebook and remembered we were supposed to be working. But eventually, he got all his work done—something I hoped would ease the tension between him and his dad when he got home.

"You sure you don't want to come over for dinner?" Stiles asked as I walked him down to the front door. "Dad would love to have you over. Probably sing your praises for making me work."

"Thank you, but no thanks. Dinner's one of the only times I have the chance to see Lydia…if she even decides to come home today…"

He lifted up the hand he was holding and kissed my knuckles in a way that made my heart flutter.

"We're gonna figure out what's going on with her, I promise. And if you get her to come around, you can call us and Scott and I will be there in a heartbeat to explain…well, Scott will probably get there first. Werewolves don't have to worry about speed limits, and I really don't think Dad would be cool with me getting a speeding ticket."

I laughed lightly as we reached the landing, pulling him into a hug and burying my face in his shoulder. "Thanks for coming over, Stiles."

"Seriously? You're thanking me for coming over to make out with my girlfriend? I thought that was supposed to be like a privilege?"

I grinned, leaning back so I could kiss him again. He smiled against me, sliding his hands down to my ass with an appreciative hum. I pulled back with a pointedly look and he gave a dramatic sigh.

"Alright! I'm done. I'll see you tomorrow, Bennet."

"See you tomorrow, Stilinski."

I leaned in the doorway and watched as he walked out to the Jeep, honked the horn goodbye, and disappeared down the street. But even after that, I didn't move for a while. I stared out at the street, looking at the trees and the other houses and the road. It wasn't until a few minutes later that I realized I was waiting for Lydia. I had no idea where she was. I didn't know anything about her whereabouts physically or mentally anymore. After hours making out with Stiles, all I really wanted to do was gush about it to my best friend. Lydia would have come barreling down the stairs after us and pounced on me the moment he was gone. I would have been grilled for every last detail, and she would've screeched when I told her what I'd done. In the silence now, it just made it that much more obvious that wherever Lydia was, she wasn't herself.

My phone went off in my pocket, and I pulled it out to read the text from Allison.

"Is it safe to call you yet? I'm dying over here!"

I grinned, taking a step back into the house and dialing her number. Just because Lydia was gone didn't meant I was friendless. I had Allison. I had Scott. I had Stiles. Sometimes, I even had Derek. We had a lot to worry about, but I knew that they would be there for me. We'd figure everything out together, from Lydia to the kanima, and somehow…everything would turn out fine.