Becoming The Shadows (Shadow Series #4)

25 - Strong

"You're stronger than you give yourself credit for." Parrish comments and hands back the coffee mug I borrowed from the cabinet at the station. 

Not wanting to be alone, I declared I would be pulling his all-nighter with him whether he wanted me to or not. Of course, Parrish being Parrish tried to get me to go home and get a good night's sleep, but when I told him what happened with Derek, he made both of us coffee. The two of us went back and forth with telling each other lame jokes and I told him more about the supernatural world. 

I roll my eyes and sit back in the chair that used to belong to Haigh's desk. I had dragged it over to Parrish's to be able to talk to him better. "Why are people always telling me that?" I test to see if my coffee is too hot and end up burning the tip of my tongue. I frown at the unusual sensation on my tongue now. 

"Maybe because it's true." Parrish raises an eyebrow at me. He sits back down in his chair, setting his own mug down by his computer. 

I spin the chair around to bring myself closer to his desk. I set my mug down for a split second to bring my legs up on the chair. "I don't feel strong." I sigh while reaching back for coffee. I hold it with both of my hands and resting on the top of my knees. 

"You went through your sister dying then to yourself dying. You came back to life, attended your own funeral, couldn't tell anyone that it was you, still managed to protect all of your friends, told Derek to move on, and you're still standing. You're trying to tell me that you aren't strong?" 

"Actually, I'm sitting." I correct him before taking a sip of my coffee once it's a little cooler. 

Parrish shoots me a glare. "You know what I meant. You're still here." He picks up some reports that he has to go through that Sheriff Stilinski and Lydia wanted him to check. Names that were left from the code that Lydia's grandmother left for her. "Most people wouldn't still be able to keep going after going through all of that."

"What makes you think I can?" I ask kind of curious to know why he has so much faith in me. 

Parrish spins his chair to face me full on. "The deadpool is still out there with assassins trying to kill everyone. What are you going to do?"

"Protect my friends." I reply with no hesitation.

Parrish nods his head. "That's what I mean." 

I quirk an eyebrow beginning to release what he means. No matter what happens to me- no matter how severe- I will always protect my friends. My heart has been broken several times and I never stop putting my life in danger to save theirs. It's just what I do. If I were to do anything else, it would just feel wrong. People have tried to steer me away from being a protector, but nothing ever worked. Sometimes, it feels like I was born to be a protector. 

I bring the coffee back to my lips. 

"Things might be hard right now, but you'll get through it." Parrish turns his chair back towards his desk. He picks up the papers to read through them. "You always do."

I analyze Parrish's face with a look of awe. Parrish and I have only been this close for less than a year. He seems to know me better than I know myself. He's become an a best friend and almost like an older brother to me. He can't really be an older brother to me because, let's be honest here, Parrish is not ugly. Now, I wouldn't date him because I don't see him that way and I've picked up on the way he looks at Lydia. 

There's, like, a love pentagon going on in my circle of friends. Thankfully, I'm not in that mess. 

I place my coffee back down on his desk and shift my butt to the left to make the chair slide across the floor closer to his own chair. Our chairs bump into each other. I pick up the papers from his hands, determined to help make his night a little easier. Something catches my eye near the bottom of the paper. My brows furrow together as I flick to the next piece of paper.