Father || Teen Wolf

19 - Water Monster

Jamie's mother always used to say that silence was the best way to test a friendship. It was an odd little thing that she repeated sometimes, and it had stuck with Jamie ever since he was a small boy. He had put the theory to the test in the past, and he had always found that his mother was right.

That night, there was nothing but silence between him and Lydia as they sat in her car, watching the people go home from an eventful Lacrosse game and walking past them without sparing a glance. Lydia's car wasn't running. There was no music playing in the background. There had been no words spoken besides a greeting, and no sounds after the car door had shut and Jamie sat down next to Lydia. They were alone, together.

The silence between them wasn't heavy. It wasn't uncomfortable, and it wasn't anxious. It wasn't laced with anything pressing or anything negative, either. It was a pause in the sounds, a reprieve. There was a particular taste to the air, something comfortably familiar, like a fond memory of something nice, and neither of them spoke because they knew it would make the feeling go away. They didn't need words anyway.

Lydia's sobs had quieted. Her cheeks were dry, as they had been ever since Jamie had wiped the tears away with an unsteady hand, as if he had been afraid of breaking the porcelain of her skin with his monstrous fingers. He had moved slowly, leaving her the time to stop him if she wanted to, asking permission with his eyes. Leaning into the touch of his hand on her cheek had been her only reply, but it had sent a wave of relief flood Jamie's heart.

The proximity of her was something sacred he had made the mistake of neglecting. He knew, now, how much she mattered. Be deprived of something and you'll know its value, it went something like this – another little thing that Jamie's mother used to say.

"I missed you, you know," Lydia said in a small voice, softly ending the silence.

Jamie couldn't help but notice what tense she had used. Past, as in the feeling of missing half of himself was over, as if they didn't need to miss one another anymore. It made his chest swell with hope, and gratefulness.

"I missed you too," he replied, voice barely above a whisper. He wanted to reach out, take her hand, but he didn't dare make the first move. Everything was not mended. "I'm worried about you, you know? Allison told me what happened with you lately. I'm worried."

Lydia let out a long breath, shifting in her seat. The steering wheel prevented her from crossing her legs so she moved to the side, angling her body towards the right, where Jamie was. Her head was against the headrest, tilted to the side, and her hair cascaded down her shoulder in fiery waves.

"I worry about you too," she replied. She looked down and smiled. "Allison told me about you as well."

It didn't come as much of a surprise that Allison had been going between the two of them, doing her best to bring them closer together despite the gap a full moon had created. It was not a secret that the Argent girl felt like the rift between them was her fault, for not being there when they had needed her the most.

"Do you think we're losing our minds?" Jamie asked. The question came as a surprise to them both, almost child-like, something Jamie didn't know was in his thoughts until he heard himself say it out loud.

Lydia took her time to reply. She looked at Jamie and saw the earnest expression in his eyes, those same blue eyes she had always adored, only once feared. She had questioned her own sanity more than once yet she was surprised to hear that Jamie was questioning the reliability of his own head as well.

"If we are, then I'd rather we lose our minds together."

She spoke the words with a quiet strength, her tone as resolute as when she stated proven truths, as if her words were something certain, backed by science and laws. She only knew it because it was true. She knew it in her flesh and in her bones, like she knew she needed to breathe to survive.