highway lanes (stydia)

t h r e e

(Song- Imagination by Shawn Mendes)

The Jeep pulled into an old motel late that night. Lydia was asleep in the front seat and Stiles was rubbing his eyes; he has driven for a long time. Lydia had told him to wake her if he wanted her to drive, but she had looked so peaceful. He checked in for a two bed room at the front desk and went back to the car to grab Lydia's overnight bag and a change of clothes for him. When he opened the front seat to wake Lydia up, the cool air hit her skin and she shivered, shifting in the seat. Stiles debated whether or not to wake her. He knew she'd hate it if she woke up and realized he had carried her to the room like a child. Screw it, he thought and wrapped an arm under her lanky legs and another behind her back. He picked her up and began walking back to their room. She cuddled into him, nuzzling her head into his chest and Stiles felt a flicker of pride. But he shook his head and opened the door.

Their room was small and simple, but it would do for the night. Stiles carefully laid Lydia's sleeping figure on the bed closest to the window, and quietly went into the bathroom to shower. The hot water helped him relax and organize his thoughts. This lake trip was going to be fun, but he worried about Malia. After the breakup, Stiles hadn't really felt much different. He was glad, to be honest. But he didn't make that known. When they had been dating, he felt like more of her babysitter than her boyfriend, always having to take care of her when she got drunk and always cleaning up after her messes, both literally and in other ways. Sometimes she would say things to their friends that she didn't realize were mean, especially to Lydia. That left Stiles to explain and apologize for her frank words.

As Stiles got out of the shower, he wondered if dating Malia had really been worth it. He was never as happy with her as he was with- but he pushed that thought to the back of his head. Guilt washed over him whenever he thought of Lydia. He knew that he had contributed to her change in mood lately. Ever since dating Malia, he hadn't made much time for her, his number one girl. They used to be so close, ever since they were kids. Now they weren't anymore. But he was determined to change that.

~

Lydia woke up in a bed with the sound of a shower running. It took her a minute to process where she was, they must be at a motel. She checked the clock and it read 12:48. She sat back in bed and remembered what had happened that day

* "Lydia, you can only pick three things to have if you were stranded on an island. That's why it's called '3 Things.'" Stiles said, laughing as she struggled to narrow her long list down to one more thing.

"I'm pretty sure you just made up this stupid game, Stiles. So if you're such an expect, what are your 3 things?"

Stiles smirked as he turned the car onto the next exit ramp. "Easy. Star Wars- Empire Strikes Back of course-, a five pound bag of cherry licorice, and you."

Lydia froze. "Me? Why would you bring me?" She swore she saw him blush.

"Oh, uh, so that I could have someone to entertain me and argue with the whole time. Duh."

Lydia smiled, "Well I'm happy to hear that you would drag me down with you in a situation like that for your own self-indulgence."

Stiles laughed and they started playfully arguing over the best movies of all time.*

Lydia smiled at the memory sat up on the edge of the bed. By then the water had stopped running and Lydia was stretching her legs. Stiles opened the door in a gray tshirt and three sizes too big flannel pants. His hair was wet and messy, and he ran a hand through it when he saw she was awake.

"Uh hey. I didn't wanna wake you up earlier, sorry. I know how cranky you get when people interrupt your beauty rest," he said, winking.

Lydia threw a pillow at him but grinned. "I'm gonna go take a shower." She mumbled, grabbing some pajamas from her bag.

"Alright, I'm gonna hit the sack. After all, I did drive the whole way today." He said, looking at Lydia with raised eyebrows.

" I told you to wake me up to drive! It's not my fault you didn't!" She said, raising her arms in mock surrender.

"Whatever." Stiles said, grinning.

~

When Lydia had finished showering, she walked out of the bathroom quietly, trying not to wake up Stiles. She wasn't tired, so she opened the door and stood outside their room on the balcony. Leaning on the rail, she breathed in the night air and thought about what was to come. She had a lot of fun with Stiles today, though she'd never admit it. But a piece of her kept reminding her that as soon as they got to the cabin, things would go back to the way they were. Lydia hated herself for thinking it, but she wished Stiles had never been with Malia. She wished it was her. A long time ago, Stiles had loved Lydia. But she hadn't felt the same at the time, and she didn't realize what she'd had until he was gone. It was clichè, she knew. Lydia shivered as a breeze kissed her bare arms. Just then the door opened and Lydia turned to see Stiles, looking tired.

"Hey, what are you doing out here?" He asked, and his voice was husky. Lydia felt another chill, but there was no breeze.

"Oh, it's okay. Go back to bed. I just wasn't tired, so I was out here thinking." Lydia said, playing with the strings on her pajama pants waistband.

"Can I join you?" He asked.

Lydia smiled, "Sure."

They stood on the balcony, side by side for a while after that. No words were spoken, but they were both content to be where they were. Finally, Lydia broke the silence.

"We should probably get to bed if we want to be on the road early tomorrow."

A flicker of disappointment could be heard in Stiles's voice. "Oh yeah, you're right."

They walked back into the dark room and Lydia was about to climb into her bed when Stiles whispered, "Lydia?"

"Yeah?" She said, not turning to look at him.

"Will you, uh, stay with me tonight? Like when we were kids?" He asked nervously and Lydia's heart sank. She was grateful for the darkness that hid her blush, but Stiles could probably hear her heart beating uncontrollably. She stood there for a minute, hesitating whether or not to move from where she was standing.

"Yeah, sure." She murmured after a minute. She crawled into bed next to him, like they had done so many times before as kids. But this time felt different.

"Thanks." Stiles whispered in her ear, innocence evident in his voice. Back when they were little, Lydia's parents were always away on business, so she stayed at Stiles's house. He always got nightmares. So one night, she slept on his twin size bed nuzzled up with each other, and they had done that ever since. It stopped as they got older, but Lydia hadn't realized how much she'd missed this. She fell asleep to the sound of his steady breathing and a faint smile on her face.