The only thing weirder than Stiles playing first line was the fact that when he got home none other than Derek Hale was waiting for him in his room. The Derek Hale that was on the run from police for "breaking into" and "attacking" teens at the high school. As if his dad wasn't the sheriff of the town.
After Stiles got rid of his dad, Derek was on his ass, grabbing him by the collar and in his face, almost nose to nose as he roughly whispered, "if you say one word-"
Stiles was flustered at the contact and the threat of the wolf until he quickly thought of the predicament they were in. Technically he could be in control if he just hinted at the fact that a wanted murderer was in his room. He reminded Derek of the fact, "Like what? Hey dad, Derek Hale is in my room- bring your gun?"
Derek seemed to consider the idea, not saying another word but staring Stiles down instead. Stiles got some confidence at the wavering glare of Derek, smirking and whispering in the same tone, "yeah that's right- If I'm harboring you're fugitive ass then its my house and my rules, buddy."
They had a staring contest, Derek finally letting go and comically smooving out the wrinkles he had caused in Stiles' clothes. This was one of the most empowering days of Stiles' life. First line and putting Derek Hale in his place; He was feeling lovely. Still scared shitless. But empowered nonetheless. He got away from Derek, returning to his seat at his desk.
"Scott didn't get the necklace?" Derek asked, towering over Stiles.
"He's still working on it. But there's something else we can try. When we were trapped in the school that night Scott sent a text to Allison telling her to meet him there."
Derek was lost, shrugging in response. "So?"
"So it wasn't Scott," Stiles explained matter of factly, rolling his eyes. He felt like the mastermind behind this whole thing sometimes.
"So can you find out who sent the text?"
Stiles hummed. Okay maybe he wasn't the mastermind behind everything. He damn sure wasn't going to be able to track a text. If only he had some other friends besides Scott. Not friends. Acquintances. Like his team mates. But not just the dumb ones. Smart ones. Wait… "I might know someone."
Derek shrugged. "OK."
Stiles turned in his chair, ready to bury himself in his phone and somehow convince Danny to come to his house and do him this weird favor. He was first line now… maybe he could finagle something. As Stiles did that, Derek shuffled uncomfortably, trying to find a place in the room. He walked around in a circle, glancing all around the many decorations, pictures, and clutter in the space. His eyes landed on an old, old picture of a kid Stiles and Scott. Then his mind got to turning. "How long have you and Scott been friends?"
Stiles didn't even think when he answered, not even looking up from his texts, "Years. Since kids."
Derek noticed his aloofness, feeling like he could get information out of the boy with some more casual questioning. "So you've always known his sister?"
"Lucy? Yeah, she used to babysit the both of us all the time. Why?"
Derek didn't answer, leaning against the wall and picturing the girl. He seriously couldn't remember seeing her in school at all. Then again, he was into his own thing during that time. But he didn't think he would forget such a face.
Her cascading locks of dark hair fell in soft waves, framing her face like a halo. Her eyes were a mesmerizing blend of fox-like cunning and gentle sweetness, sparkling with nerves and excitement. And when she smiled, her plump lips curved into a radiant beam that lit up the room.
He still remembered her scent whenever she was taking care of him, even the feeling of her delicate soft hands on his warm skin. Lucy McCall. He had this slight infatuation with her and her beauty- and whatever else he could see was clearly wrong with her.
"Derek? You good?" The sound of Stiles' voice took Derek out of his daydream, him opening his eyes that he had unconsciously shut to get that perfect mental image of Scott's sister. It felt wrong of him to even think about it that way.
"Why are you asking about Lucy?" Stiles asked another question, definitely noticing the odd and random behaviour of Derek.
"No reason."
"What?" Stiles scoffed, smirking a bit, "You like her or something?"
Derek sighed, quickly getting annoyed at the teens' questions. This kid was such a nuisance. No, he didn't like Lucy- of course not - he didn't even know the girl. Was he curious? How could he not be?
Stiles broke his train of thought again, suddenly serious, "I hope not. You better stay away from her."
"You gonna get your friend over here or not?"
Fresh out of the shower, Lucy McCall was home alone, combing through her dark tresses that were previously tucked in a tight bun. She rubbed at her scalp and massaged the place where her hair had been giving her a headache. She wasn't exactly tired but there wasn't much for her to do so she felt like she had no choice but to settle down into her bed and maybe find a show to watch.
Just as she had finished lotioning up and slipping into pajamas, her phone started ringing. The sound did make her heart drop, especially from reliving the last moments she spent with Tyler earlier today with Scott. It was impractical for her to just never check her phone everytime she was home alone. This wasn't Scream.
It was her mother. She picked up pretty quickly, hoping for some good news. "Hello?
"Hey, honey. What you up to?"
"Nothing. Just finished showering. Maybe going to watch a novela or something…" she trailed off, eager to know why her mother was calling in the middle of her shift.
"Well I'm calling because they need some help on the rehab floor. I just got moved and asked my supervisor if they would allow you to help. Free overtime and free money just sitting there!" Melissa sounded ecstatic at the idea of Lucy going to work in the hospital with her. After getting ready to relax, Lucy would never consider the idea of getting back up and ready to do more nurse type of work but her mom was right. It was free money and working in the rehab center meant doing rounds to check on recovering patients that mostly wouldn't need much of anything. She was living with her mom again and wouldn't mind having extra money to help her around the house and such.
After a quick consideration, Lucy answered, "Okay, yeah- that's fine."
"We can get a late dinner together after at the diner, right?" Melissa was really happy on the other side of the phone, Lucy could not tell her mother no.
"Okay, I'm coming. Give me an hour to get there - is that okay?"
"I'll let them know."
With a heavy sigh, Lucy ended the call and immediately sprung into action, abandoning her plans for relaxation. She rummaged through the cluttered mess of her room, searching for her scrubs that she knew must be buried somewhere. After a few minutes of digging, she finally found them - a crisp white top and vibrant pink scrubs. As she slipped them on, she couldn't help but smooth out any wrinkles and adjust them to fit her body perfectly. When she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, adorned in her work uniform, she couldn't help but think how much she resembled her mother when she was younger. It was both comforting and unsettling at the same time. How crazy was it that she was following in her mother's footsteps, toxic relationship and all?
Not wanting to dwell on her situation for even a second. Lucy grabbed a bottle of water and her car keys, making her way out of the house and into her vehicle. Again, her phone buzzed, and before pulling off she checked the message that was sent. It was her brother asking about her coming to the lacrosse game that night. There was an ache in her heart at the idea of missing out on his game. She hadn't been to one school game yet- not like the girl was that present for many other big events in her little brother's life but still, you get in where you fit in. Of coure, she let him know that she had agreed to helping her mother at the hospital, as sad as it made her feel.
The drive to the hospital felt like a never-ending rollercoaster of emotions. On one hand, she wanted desperately to see her mother and make sure she was okay. But on the other hand, she couldn't help but feel disappointed that they would miss the big game together. She couldn't shake off the uneasiness and frustration as she made her way through traffic towards the hospital.
At the hospital, Lucy walked in, getting blinded by the bright white luminous overhead lights. Her mom was at her usual place behind the receptionist's desk, her smile beaming as bright as the fluroescents above her. Melissa got up to give her daughter a hug, the pair embracing at the desk.
"Thank you for showing, it's not hectic but you never know with all the attacks going on now," She paused after pulling away, leaning on her desk. "Mostly everyone is in the emergency room now, I think there's only one rehab nurse. I'll call my boss. You're not on the payroll so they're going to clock me as a double. I can give you the money from my check at the end of the week."
Lucy nodded, the idea sounding good to her. She wasn't fiending for any money or anything like that and as soon as her mother made it clear how exactly she would get paid, the idea was already set on not even asking her mom for the money and letting her keep it for whatever bills or household items she would need. Even if she kept it for herself. She waited patiently for the head nurse to show up, a tall and older looking man showing up then.
"You're Melissa's daughter?" He asked as his greeting, "Wow, it's like a splitting image to her when we were in high school."
Melissa beamed, nodding in agreement and rubbing her daughters back. Proudly she exclaimed, "She's my twin, right?"
"Yeah the resemblance is there," The supervisor trailed off, "So you're okay working in the rehab center for the night? You familiar?"
Lucy, who had previously been stoicly watching the exchange between the two elder nurses, pursed her lips and nodded. The agreement to help in the rehabilitation ward was partially due to the idea of being able to relax and not have much interaction with other people beside the patients. As nice as she was, she wasn't interested in the small talk that other nurses were going to provide.
"That's great!" He said, still in an upbeat chipper mood. "Just follow me and I can give you a refresher!"
Lucy gave a curt nod to her mom as a bye and followed behind the superior, half listening to their instructions of the ward. Rehabilitation was something learned as a CNA and Lucy was far, far from those days. Becoming a RN was one of the hardest but fulfilling decisions she made in her life and having someone attempt to dumb down her job was kind of insulting to her.
"And lastly, we have this burn patient, Peter Hale. He has a private nurse but just in the off chance, this is his room." The pair stopped at the end of the hall where the last of the patients resided.
"Okay, I should be fine," Lucy forced a smile, "thank you for the tour!"
"Well I'll let you get to it. Anything you need to log can be written manually since you won't have a log in for the computer- but I don't expect for you to see much. Thanks again." At his words, the head nurse trailed off and started to exit out of the recovery ward.
It was definitely intimidating to be on her own but she found some solace in the fact there were only a couple patients on the floor. And at least that private nurse was there. Even if she was only taking care of the Hale guy. Suddenly wheels started turning in Lucy's head. Derek Hale and Peter Hale. She wondered if it was a brother, uncle or father, even a cousin.
She pondered on the thought, standing behind the nurses station and imagining what the Hale family looked like. If they had the same genes as Derek they just had to be super attractive. That stupid idea was just stuck in her head now, the curiosity of finding out what this other Hale guy looked like.
Lucy couldn't help but picture Derek in her mind: tall and lean, with a warm olive skin tone that made him stand out in a crowd. His features were sharp and chiseled, giving him a rugged and handsome look. And of course, his trademark bushy brows that always seemed to be furrowed in concentration or amusement. She smirked to herself as she fiddled with some paperwork on the desk, lost in her thoughts about Derek. The memory of her attempt to ask him out resurfaced, causing her to cringe and shake her head at her own foolishness. It was moments like these that reminded her of how painfully shy she could be when it came to matters of the heart. But even now, as she couldn't even recall what she ate a week ago, that embarrassing moment was still fresh in her mind, haunting her like an unwelcome ghost.
The nurse shivered, trying to look at literally anything else to get the idea out of her head. Suddenly Derek was the only thing she could think of. How could she focus on anything else when there was nothing going on? Lucy was not the type of person that should be left alone in silence with her thoughts.
Even though it wasn't necessarily professional, Lucy pulled out her phone, scrolling through her home screen as if a magic boredom curing app was going to appear. She didn't even have social media since deactivating it so her ex couldn't stalk her. Ugh, now her ex was on her mind. Okay. Time for a game or something to pass time.
As soon as the girl opened up her App Store, a dating site was being advertised to her as if the phone was reading her thoughts. She laughed to herself at the idea. Yeah right.
Lucy's indecisiveness was palpable as she nervously bit her lip, her gaze fixated on the app icon. Her finger wavered over the install button, torn between giving in to her curiosity and resisting the temptation altogether. She couldn't shake off the conflicting thoughts swirling in her mind, unsure of whether downloading the app would be a mistake or a life-changing decision,
A sigh flowing out of her mouth filled the silent space and with haste she tapped the button and dropped her phone, completely in shock that she had downloaded a damn dating app. As if her new soulmate was going to be some Beacon Hills resident just waiting to sweep her off of her feet. Would she have been more stressed at home? Well it was too late to ponder on that idea now.
A fiending for caffeine started itching on her skin, boredom and anxiety getting the best of her situation. Some crappy break room coffee sounded absolutely fantastic, she thought, sliding out of her position behind the desk and looking around for her fix. She hoped there was some weird sweet flavor there that she would've never tried under her previous circumstances.
Silently, she padded down the hallway, her footsteps echoing off the sterile walls. The only sounds were distant beeping and the occasional rustle of a nurse's uniform. The hospital was unnervingly quiet, and she couldn't help but shiver as she made her way through the empty corridors. With every step, she became more aware of how alone she was, and she quickened her pace to escape the unsettling stillness. She had never thought hospitals could be scary, but now, with a world full of werewolves and other supernatural beings, even a simple hospital hallway felt like a potential danger zone. The hairs on her arms stood on end as she imagined unseen eyes watching her from the shadows. In that moment, she couldn't wait to reach the safety of her destination.
In fact, as soon as she was secure in the break room, fiddling with the keurig, the unnerving sound of a couple thuds and a loud crash broke the silence, making her jump. Lucy stood frozen, listening on in the bangs coming closer and closer.
She struggled with the thought of rushing out to investigate- not knowing what it could possibly be, the fear of monsters fresh in her mind. But what if it was just a patient who had recently undergone surgery and was now wandering around aimlessly? She would feel foolish if she admitted being scared to check on her own patients. This situation felt like something out of a dream.
A little self pep talk gave her some false confidence, and Lucy swung open the door, immediately getting greeted by the sight of Derek getting thrown into the glass of the nurses station. She yelped, jumping backwards to protect herself from the shattered glass flying down the hallway.
She looked up, the monster doing the throwing being an average man, standing tall and looking quite psychotic. The sight of his half burned face sending goosebumps down her spine as they locked eyes, hers petrified and his absolutely emotionless.
"Derek?" She stuttered without much hesitation. It was strange, but she found herself looking to the bleeding man writhing on the floor for guidance. And there he was, gazing back up at her.
"Go!" He shouted seriously, his tone of voice surprisingly not even scaring her anymore but instead reassuring her to be able to move.
Lucy turned to sprint out of the rehab ward, but felt like she got nowhere as the other man snatched her up almost immediately, gripping her arm so tight that she couldn't move. She screamed, the forceful act sending a panic into her burning blood from both the terror and ptsd.
"I can't just let you go, you understand that right," the rank smell of the psycho's breath fanned over her face as he towered over her, the empty look in his eyes causing her to shrink into herself.
Derek noticed the way Lucy seemed to so willingly accept her fate, enraged by the way she so easily cowered to his uncle. He barely had time to process the situation as Scott's sister had now somehow become his main priority.
"Let her go!" Derek growled, getting to his feet and charging at Peter, using the fact that he was occupied to his advantage, finally landing a blow to the man's head. Even though Derek hadn't even come close to making contact with Lucy, she still screamed as he swung and blocked her face as if she was the one expecting the impact.
Peter easily disregarded her, tossing her aside and refocusing on his wild nephew. He was aware that she was Scott's sister, and perhaps that was why Derek felt obligated to come to her defense. But none of that mattered in the moment; Peter returned to his task of getting his nephew to back off and pay attention to him.
As her body hit the cold, hard tile, Lucy crawled away, half expecting a kick or something to be delivered to her stomach. She had completely forgotten where she actually was, putting herself back into that small space she would get into when she was previously getting abused. There was more thumping and commotion from behind her, and she looked up, peeking at the fight going on between the two men.
"Lucy!" Stiles was there suddenly, cautiously touching her arms so as not to startle or offend her anymore, "come on, we have to go!"
Stiles was as close to safe as she was going to get, she thought, and actually a little embarrassed at her show of defeat- Lucy hurriedly took his hand and let him pull her up. Stiles knew exactly what he had witnessed, more rage than he had ever felt before bubbling in him when he saw how Lucy had gotten treated. Knowing what happened to her whenever she wasn't in Beacon Hills and then seeing an almost reenactment play out with Peter Hale hurt him. He knew he couldn't tell Scott either if he didn't want Scott to get himself killed trying to kill the alpha. Right now all he could help with was getting Lucy out of the predicament and at least to the safety of his jeep parked outside. So much for first line.
"I don't know what happened, I left to grab some coffee- came back and she was knocked out and the glass was all broken. I swear," Lucy was grievously explaining to her mother what happened last night in the hospital, trying her best to give any sort of explanation that could resolve her of fault.
"I don't know Lucy, I don't think they're going to let you work in the hospital again regardless," Melissa sounded sad as she dried the clean dishes Lucy handed to her as they washed together. It was uncommon for them to do anything like that together but Lucy felt like it was bonding time she had missed out on for years and gladly offered to help with dishes just for the mother daughter time together.
The situation in the hospital was more than tricky to explain even with the mastermind brains of Scott and Stiles giving their older sister an alibi. As much lying as she was able to do- things like this were way too trivial to make sense of to her and that extended onto her story telling when relating it to the police, hospital staff, and her mother.
"It's fine, mom. It was way too creepy for me to want to go back, anyway," Lucy shrugged off the topic, putting the tense energy she had into scrubbing a particularly stubborn stain.
Melissa watched her daughter closely, trying not to laugh as she witnessed the feisty behavior. Despite feeling that there was more to the situation than Lucy was letting on, Melissa trusted that she had it under control with the sudden outbursts that had been occurring. She wasn't entirely sure what had happened that night, but from Lucy's tone and body language, it was evident that something had occurred. Her maternal instincts kicked in, prompting her to gently take the dish from Lucy's hands.
"Let me do it," Melissa offered, making Lucy stop and relax her tense shoulders. Lucy agreed and stepped back, drying her hands on a dish towel and allowing her mom to wash the plate.
Bedore Lucy could walk away, Melissa changed the subject to ease the tension in the kitchen, "so do you have any plans? I noticed you've been going to the gym."
"No. I wish. It's so boring here." There was a pause, a contemplation of the idea of finally being more open with her mom. She bit the bait, "I downloaded a dating app."
"Ooohhh! Nice! Any takers yet?"
"I haven't exactly made a profile yet," Lucy giggled out, rolling her eyes at herself.
"Well I'm all for it. You know there might be some cuties hidden around here."
"I'm sure of it." With the dishes now done, the McCall woman stepped back and silently tidied up the rest of the kitchen together. These were the things that Lucy had wished she experienced way before but instead of dwelling on the negatives- her near death experience had definitely changed her mindset on these things.
Once the women were done, Lucy stretched and shrugged her shoulders, the only thing crossing her mind being the idea of what else she was going to do with her evening. Times like this if she wasn't waiting on her ex hand and foot, she could at least talk to her friends and spend time with them. It hurt a little to just have disappeared out of their lives but she wasn't sure how she would go about telling them about where she went now without coming up with an even more elaborate story because of how much time had passed.
"I think I'm going to go to the gym, mom." Lucy finally spoke, making her way out the kitchen and to the steps where she was going to get her gym bag.
"That's fine, I might stay here and watch a couple movies solo then." Melissa called back, going the opposite way to the living room. Both of her kids were gone for the night and she didn't mind the alone time at all with the drama they had been causing her. With how dangerous their town had seemed lately, all she could do was hope her kids were staying smart and safe.
The 'danger' of Beacon Hills, Peter Hale, was feeling more alive than ever, finally back to his dashing and charismatic self with nothing trivial like a wheelchair or burn mark holding him back. He couldn't tell exactly if he was getting closer to his goal of getting Scott to join his side like he had manipulated Derek to do but sooner or later that would all come to fruition… he just had to do a little convincing.
With Derek here now, it had to come easier. They sat in an abandoned train station that Derek was calling home, turning it into a little loft of some sort with hanging lights and cheap furnitire. A little too homeless looking for Peter's style, but he wouldn't complain. He sat on a drab, flimsy couch, pondering to himself as his nephew did push ups on the floor across from him. How to get to Scott…
"That girl, that was Scott's sister. Probably a little too young, right? But I could still…." Peter said aloud, aiming his words at no one in particular.
At the mention of Lucy, Derek paused what he was doing in an instant, his curiosity peeking at his uncle's interest in the girl. Any business Peter had with couldn't be good. A heat raised in his chest, for some reason a little anger building up quickly at the thought of him doing anything to her. "What do you want with her?"
"Scott is so protective of his little friends…. Imagine how he would react to his sibling," Peter murmured, wheels turning behind his icy blue eyes.
Derek's brow furrowed. His workout was completely put on ice so he could focus on what this man was thinking about. He knew Peter wasn't a good man and he definitely was not fully trusting of the predicament he was in. His sister was still dead afterall.
Annoyance started building in Peter's own brain, his nephew distracting the plan making he had going on. He sucked his teeth, hopping up and beginning to pace. "If I could just get to her. I could just turn her. Scott would have no choice then."
"That's not a good idea," Derek said quickly. Almost too quickly even for his own liking.
"Why not?" Peter was dead serious.
"She's way too timid and sweet. She wouldn't help you and you'd be back at square one."
"Well I can't just kill her."
Derek's heart dropped to his stomach as he processed what had just left his uncle's lips. Was he seriously contemplating hurting Scott's older sister to get his way? He didn't know whether to be shocked or not. This was Peter but he wasn't always so ruthless. The fire and paralysis had changed him for the absolute worst.
"That's not going to help your case. Scott loves his sister and his mother, but there's something about his sister- he is way too overprotective. He would lose it," Derek was surprised at how much of a case he was making for Lucy, saying anything minuscule thing he could think of that would get Peter off her trail. Last Derek knew she didn't work at the hospital- not like he was keeping tabs. The girl just had to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and now he had no idea if he could save her from this impending danger that he felt partially responsible for. Save her? Why did Derek suddenly feel any responsibility for Scott's family? And once he got his mind on something…
"That could work." Peter had a devious smirk on his face. "That could work perfectly."
Feeling exhausted after getting a strenuous pump in to relieve her stress, Lucy was hobbling to her car parked in the back of the gym parking lot. The cool night soothed her aching muscles and the small gusts of wind whipped at and chilled the sweat that was resting on her skin. It only took a few steps before she became aware of the fact that she was alone in this weirdo town in the dead of night and she began picking up her pace, starting a light jog towards the vehicle.
She fumbled with her keys as she approached the driver side door, having to push some curls out of her face as she did to see the unlock button. As her finger connected with the button, pressing down, the car didn't beep as if the door was already open. Lucy hesitated, stopping to try and remember if she had locked her car or not. Choosing to ignore it, Lucy rushed to get inside of the car, swinging the door open and hopping inside.
As Lucy reached for her keys, she caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of her eye. Her heart skipped a beat as she froze, every muscle tensed and ready to flee. Slowly, she turned her head to look in the rearview mirror, dreading what she might see. A chill ran down her spine as she met the intense gaze of someone sitting in the backseat, their breathing heavy and ragged. The hairs on her arms stood upright as she realized that she was not alone. Gripped by fear, Lucy could only stare back at the stoic figure locked in a silent exchange with her through the reflection in the mirror.
Lucy screamed, jumping back into her door as far as she could from the intruder, fully turning to be met by Derek Hale studying her. He moved quickly, hushing her and speaking over her shouting, "Calm down! Calm down!"
"Why are you in my car?!" She shouted back, struggling to steady the heavy rising and falling of her chest.
"I didn't know how long you'd be. Relax." Derek rolled his eyes and gently touched her bare arm, trying to give her another form of solace. "I came to check on you."
"Check on me?"
"Yes. It's a lot to explain." Derek looked back at Lucy's now wary face. "There's a lot going on. I wanted to make sure you were going to be okay for the night at least."
Lucy couldn't help but chuckle, finding the whole situation comical now. Now she had some personal protector waiting in her car in the middle of the night scaring her half to death. She didn't even know what he was talking about. "Does this have something to do with the hospital? Who was that?"
"Yes. My uncle. He wants to get to Scott. Through you."
"Through me? What does that mean?"
"I don't know. That's why I'm here."
Lucy stood quiet, suddenly not knowing what to do or say. This was quite a predicament she had found herself in at the hands of Scott. She had no clue how he had been juggling all of this as a teenager- no wonder it seemed like his world was falling apart.
She felt guilty for not being there to support him during his games and now she was only showing up to ask about the chaos in his life. She had hoped coming to Beacon Hills would provide her with some rest and relaxation, but it seemed that wouldn't be the case.
"So what? Do I have to watch my back now?" Lucy was joking but Derek was dead serious when he answered.
"Yes!"
She sighed, rubbing a hand down her face. Just as she was feeling the most stress, like clockwork, her phone began buzzing like crazy. She tried not to think about who could be behind that call, getting irritated at herself for still not changing her number. Derek looked at the phone intently, waiting to see if Lucy was going to even check her phone. It was like eleven oclock and that had to be a booty call he thought.
"Are you going to get that?" Derek asked impatiently once the phone began to ring for the second time.
"No." Lucy sighed again, grabbing the device and simply turning it all the way off. It wouldn't be the first time she had to go a night without a phone because of the harassment. "It's no one."
"Didn't seem like it."
"Don't remind me! I have enough to think about now that your crazy uncle is looking for me for some reason. Wait- was it him in the school that night? That almost killed you?"
The memory of Peter in his full on wolf form gravely injuring Derek annoyed him more than anything else. That was the problem now. He had to follow behind Peter and fake follow his plan while coming up with his own plan for revenge. For everything. Through his teeth he answered, "Yes. It was."
"He seems like a great uncle!" She said sarcastically, finally turning her car on and letting the warm air blow all over her face and warm her up. "And he wants to kill me- why?"
"To get to Scott. He needs Scott's help."
"For what? To kill people?"
Derek kissed his teeth. She had so many damn questions. "I'm not going to explain every detail!"
Lucy recoiled from his harsh words, her body shrinking in on itself. Derek couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt at the sight, knowing he was the cause of her reaction. He hated it when she acted like this – it made him feel both frustrated and protective. His conflicting emotions created a sense of inner turmoil, torn between wanting to know more about her and wanting to shield her from harm. The internal struggle only added to his frustration and self-loathing.
"I'm sorry," he apologized, trying to give his best version of sincere and caring eyes that he had the energy to muster.
"It's fine." Lucy began driving, not even giving a second thought about the man in her passenger. It took her getting down the street before she asked, "Well you came to warn me. I don't understand why but was that all?"
Derek was confused about the ungratefulness. He didn't have to do any of this. "What do you mean, why?"
"I mean that is your uncle…"
"What do you think I'm some kind of murderer?"
"No! I mean I don't understand this whole situation. But you somehow knew where I was and went through the trouble of breaking into my car when you could've found me in the school or something." Lucy left herself trail off and kept driving, still not deciding to tell Derek to get out.
"You do know your little brother painted me to be a mass murdering criminal, right?"
Lucy couldn't help but giggle. That was true. She still thought he seemed to be doing just fine considering the mess he was caught up all in. Maybe this really was the most incognito thing Derek could've done. Her heart warmed at the thought. "Well thank you. I don't know what chance I stand but I do appreciate the heads up. Not like Scott keeps me updated on things. I haven't even talked to him since the hospital. I don't even know where he is."
The man beside her struggled to come up with a genuine response to Lucy's statement. He couldn't recall the last time he had sat down and had a normal conversation with a woman who wasn't his sister, actually listening to her vent. There was no problem, but it felt... incredibly strange.
Lucy's cheeks flushed a bright shade of red, her racing heart betraying her nerves. She nervously bit her lip and gazed off into the distance, trying to calm herself down. Her words stumbled out in a rush as she fought back her embarrassment and pushed through, determined to speak her mind. "I'm sorry to ramble. Like I said- I do appreciate you."
There was a sense of pride building uncomfortably in Derek's mind. There was that saviour complex he didn't even know he had before he met Lucy McCall. Without thinking he said, "I just want to make sure you don't get hurt. Scott will keep you safe."
Lucy almost blurted out some flirtatious words like, 'how about you?' but bit her tongue before that came out and made things super cringey and awkward. "I know. Hopefully."
Derek smirked at that, knowing he could've said something super weird like he could be the one to protect Lucy- but he didn't.
As they drew closer to the point where he could make his escape and begin the long journey back to his newfound home, he gently tapped Lucy on the shoulder with the back of his knuckles. The touch sent a jolt of electricity through him, causing his cheeks to flush with warmth. It was as if their skin had been magnetically drawn together, sparking a connection between them in that brief moment. As they continued forward, his mind raced with thoughts of her and the unexpected bond that seemed to be forming.
Quickly so she didn't notice any kind of flustering on his end, he said, "stop here. I'm gonna get out."
"Okay." She said quickly. She had also felt that little flicker of heat at Derek's touch. She didn't want to acknowledge it either and stopped the car promptly in the middle of the road for Derek to make his exit. Without another word, Derek hopped out the car and began running towards the tree line, breaking into a steady sprint before leaping on all fours to continue his run.
From the car, Lucy watched intently, fascinated with the speed and swiftness that Derek was running at. She tilted her head, holding back a smile as she reminisced at his touch, smell, and voice. Oh God. Did she like Derek Hale?