Not Quite The Same (Hiatus)

Chapter Two

He liked being able to like something.

He liked the feeling of feeling something.

He never mentioned it to his doctors.

They would take this feeling away from him.

Just like his memories.

Just like his arm.

Just like everything that had belonged to him.

But he didn't complain.

He didn't speak unless spoken to.

He didn't.

He couldn't.

He was just an asset.

~*~*~

It had been 8 years since Scott had last seen his best friend-- his brother.

God, he missed him. Everyone did. His dad. His friends. Even some classmates. And, speaking of school, well college in this case, that's where Scott was at the moment.

He wished the day would go faster, he wanted to go to Stiles' bench. The town had built the bench in his memory, and it was now a routine of Scott's to go visit it daily. He would sit and talk into the open air, as though Stiles was next to him and was listening. Multiple times, Scott imagined Stiles telling him to stop moping and get up off his "furry, werewolf ass."

He chuckled every time he did. But today was more important than the last. Today was the day that Stiles had first been taken. He had made plans to get the pack together at Derek's old house and just sit in silence. When he brought up the idea to his friends, they agreed, saying that Stiles deserved that and so much more. They didn't say but thought that Stiles didn't deserve any of the bad things that had happened to him. His mom's death. The slow creeping depression. His dad's alcoholic desire. The Nogistune. Everything bad that had ever happened to him. He didn't deserve it. Any of it.

Finally, his lesson ended as did school. Scott quickly collected his stuff and walked out of the room, searching for his friends. Normally, he went to Stiles' bench alone, but today was different. Today was the eight year anniversary since Stiles had gone missing. He spent the week with his friends, not doing anything special, but instead taking a break from their problems and stayed together to watch movies at Scott's house and mess around. At the end of week, however, they stayed silent. They stayed in Derek's old house during this, just to stay in silence and to not be bothered. It was saddening to see them during this, just sitting there, staring into space with nothing on their mind but their lost friend.

Scott's face brightened slightly when he saw his friends coming towards him. He walked towards the group: Allison, Kira, Lydia, Malia, Isaac, Aiden, and Ethan. "Hey, guys." he greeted quietly.

The others knew how he felt, but kept the comments to themselves. Allison walked over and kissed him briefly on the lips and hugged him. She hadn't been as close to Stiles as him nor as close to him as the others, but she still missed him and knew how Scott felt. The same went for Aiden and Ethan, while Isaac had known Stiles pretty well. Lydia, Derek, and Scott had been the closest to him. They all missed him.

"You ready?" Allison asked softly.

Scott pursed his lips quickly and nodded once. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly, she knew that he was still struggling. They all walked out, where they found Derek waiting. Everyone knew that Derek had had feelings for Stiles but would never admit it. He still showed up to go with the others to the bench.

They all stayed silent as they walked from the school to the bench. The walk wasn't that long, but it was still plenty lengthy. Once they got there, Scott read the plaque that was on the wooden bench:

             In honor of Stiles Stilinski, a great son, friend, student and citizen.
                                                            You are greatly missed.
                                                                         1994-???

Scott felt a sinking feeling in his chest every time he read that. The words there didn't even cover a third of what Stiles was. He was more than just a great son and friend. He was more than words could explain. But Scott didn't spend a lot of time thinking about that.

He sat down on the bench with Allison sitting next to him. Derek sat down and leaned his back against the left side of the bench, his eyes closed. Aiden and Lydia sat down and leaned against each other, Lydia holding Aiden's hand tightly. Ethan leaned against a nearby tree with Isaas next to him, sitting down. Kira and Malia sat down on the other side of the bench, on the right side, and stared off into space like the others.

It was silent until Scott broke it. "Hey, Stiles." He murmured, his head in his hands as he leaned against his elbows which leaned against his knees. He continued, "It's the anniversary, buddy. You've been missing for 8 years-- 8 damned years. God, we all miss you. Sometimes, I wish we hadn't given up on you. We should've kept looking, and I know I say that every time, but it's the truth. We all miss you-- I miss you, Lydia misses you, Allison misses you, Kira and Malia miss you, Isaac misses you, the twins miss you, hell, even Derek misses you. Everything is so different without you here. It's just not the same."

He trailed off after he realized that he was crying. He sniffed softly as Allison hugged him tightly, crying softly herself. Whenever Scott spoke like this, everyone was touched. It was moments like this where they all realized how true Scott's words were and how much he really missed Stiles. How much they all really missed Stiles. Things just weren't the same without him.