Stiles' words hung thickly in the silence of the air, as his eyes bore into hers. There they stood, in the doorway of Aspen's bedroom, with Stiles holding his arm out to stop her from coming any closer. He didn't care that there was blood splattered all over his face, or the amount of smoke he'd inhaled that night, or the ash that coveted his clothes.
All he cared about was the truth.
"Stiles what are you—" Aspen began to try and ask, but he cut her off, his voice laced with impatience and even a hint of venomosity.
"Stop," he murmured, shaking his head, "just tell me that this was another one of Theo's manipulation tactics, tell me he's making this up to get in my head—tell me he's lying, Aspen..."
"I—" Aspen's words stuttered as she tried to speak, a lump arising in her throat as she begun to shake her head nervously, "I can't tell you that if you won't say what it is that he told you—"
"Tell me you didn't sleep with him!" Stiles snapped aggressively, his raise in temper making Aspen jump slightly, "Tell me that while I was here, for months, losing my goddamn mind over not knowing if you were dead or alive— that you weren't having sex with Theo Raeken two thousand miles away!"
Aspen fell silent.
Her lips parted open, as if words were supposed to follow but they failed to be spoken. Her wide eyes stared into his, and she could see the betrayal in his gaze. His voice and his temper made it seem like he was angry—that anger and rage were his dominating emotions. But Aspen knew his real emotions could always be seen in his eyes—and she didn't see anger in them, only betrayal.
Growing more nervous and scared that she had fell silent, Stiles let out a deep shaky breath, and blinked as he tried to take a different approach. He shouldn't be yelling at her—he did not want to yell at her.
"Asp, baby—come on," his voice switched to a soft, intimate tone as he took a step forward, taking her hand in his and holding their clasped hands over his chest. His voice was nearly shaking in desperation as he added— "All you have to say is that it's not true, and I'll believe you—I promise. Just... just say that he was lying, just tell me that.... please."
The silence that followed his desperate words spoke louder than Aspen's voice ever could have.
The look in her eyes, the lack of denial— Stiles knew.
He slowly lowered their hands between them, and then let go of hers completely even slower. The look in his eyes shifted from one of desperation to one of defeat. He began to shake his head slowly from side to side, taking a step back.
