Hate Because | Theo Raeken

Chapter Two

As they drove through the streets toward the high school, Darcy leaned against the window and watched the trees fly past. They had shifted so Liam could sit in the middle and badger the seniors about the secret thing going on tonight which was, of course, senior-inclusive and underclassmen-exclusive. She could care less, but Liam on the other hand wouldn't let up.

"Is it a party?" He pestered.

Stiles replied, his irritation tainting the air, "It is not a party."

"Then what's at midnight?"

"Your bedtime."

"Why aren't the other girls going?"

"They're meeting us there, okay? And just stop asking questions, all right?"

The more questions Liam asked, the more Stiles's irritation grew. It was funny to get Stiles all worked up, so Darcy didn't plan on interrupting any time soon.

"It's a senior thing. You'll know when you're a senior," Stiles explained. Liam huffed, unimpressed with the vague answer.

"You guys having trouble with your phones?" Scott asked. Before they got a chance to answer, the jeep's engine suddenly sputtered. Despite Stiles's relentless foot on the gas pedal, they started to decelerate.

"Oh, what the hell?" their driver muttered under his breath.

The jeep coasted to a stop, its headlights flashing and dimming before going completely dark.

"You out of gas?"

Stiles sighed before answering Liam's question, "No, it's electrical. Probably the alternator again." He glanced at Scott and the two of them hopped out, rounding the sides to meet at the front. Stiles lifted the hood, blocking Liam and Darcy's view of them.

Darcy sat back in her seat, accidentally ripping the earbud out of Liam's ear. "Shit," she muttered. "Sorry." He shrugged and picked it up off the seat to put back in his ear.

She was too busy watching him to see the lightning bolt strike behind them, but she felt the air change. The hum of electricity echoed in her ears as she and Liam turned to look out the back window.

Darcy's eyebrows fell down in confusion at the sparks dancing in the air.

"Guys..." Liam said loudly, trying to get the seniors' attention.

Their hearts began to race as lightning hit the road again, close enough to make the hair on their head and arms stand up.

"What the hell?" Darcy asked, blinking rapidly to get the burned image out of her eyes.

Liam yelled for the other two again.

"Yeah, give us a second, please," came Stiles's impatient reply.

"Guys, stay in the car, okay?" Scott's request followed, much kinder.

Darcy leaned forward ready to bolt, but then the hair on her arms and the back of her neck stood straight up. A second later, she saw the flash of lightning right outside the front of the jeep, dangerously close to Scott and Stiles.

Both she and Liam jumped back in surprise. After a beat of hesitation, Liam leaned forward and turned the key in the ignition. The jeep started up without an issue. Darcy heaved a sigh of relief, relaxing back into the seat.

Liam stuck his head outside the window and asked, "Can we go now?"

Stiles slammed the hood closed after a moment then the two seniors got in the vehicle. They took off without a word and nobody said anything the rest of the drive.

-

They were parked at the high school for barely a minute before four became five. Malia moved into the backseat with Darcy and Liam, climbing over the seats to squish in between them. There was definitely not enough room for all of them back there, but the younger two kept their mouths shut and didn't complain.

As soon as the three had settled, albeit squished, Scott and Stiles turned around in the front seats. Darcy envied them and their mobile limbs.

The other four passengers of the jeep looked at Malia. "What?" she asked, squirming under their expectant gazes.

"Did you find out yet?" Stiles pushed.

"Find out what?" Liam asked.

"They're gonna email me."

"Is this about summer school?"

"You told him?" Malia looked at Stiles, betrayed.

Liam answered, "All they said was you had to go to summer school 'cause the principal said your test scores weren't good enough and you might have to repeat junior year."

The werecoyote sighed like she was keeping in barely controlled anger, her gaze trained on her boyfriend in the driver's seat. Darcy peered over Malia's chest and shot Liam a look that said, "Shut the fuck up right now. I don't want to be killed."

"Did you know, too?" Malia asked, her attention suddenly on Darcy, whose eyes widened in fear at the force of her stare.

"I may have... heard," she said, blinking far too much to be normal.

Malia turned her gaze to Stiles, and Darcy deflated in her seat.

"We should've left them chained to the tree," was all he said before turning around and starting the jeep.