Never Let Me Go (Derek Hale Fanfiction Book #3)

Chapter Three: Together

“And Ennis...he’s dead.” I didn’t phrase it like a question, but Aiden still nodded in confirmation.

“So that means…”

“Chris, there’s nothing I can do. Kali...she’s coming for Derek. And for you, so watch out. Be safe,” Aiden warned me, his warm brown eyes growing somber and concerned. I let out an exasperated breath, crossing my arms over my chest firmly and cocking one eyebrow up."

“I know you can’t stop her, or even try to convince her not to go after Derek; so all I’m asking is for you not to fight with her. With Deucalion. You and Ethan are stronger together, stronger than Kali. You don’t have to do what she says.”

“We owe Deucalion. He saved us. He taught us how to combine, to fight-” 

“Dammit Aiden! Do the right thing. You know Derek’s not to blame for Ennis’s death. It’s as much Ennis’s fault as it is Derek’s!”

“I’m sorry Chris-”

“Please don’t do this, Aiden. You saved my life. That means you care about me, even if you don’t want to admit it.” 

“Chris…”

“Please! Aiden, please, I’m begging you.”

“We won’t fight,” another voice joined the mix as Ethan approached, resting a hand on Aiden’s shoulder and fixing me with a steady, reassuring look. Aiden’s face, which had been contorted in pain and indecision, now melted away as he eyed his twin with shock.

“You won’t?”

“No. We can’t control what Kali does, but we will not stand by her, stand against Derek and Scott and the pack. We will not.”

“Thank you,” I choked out, warmth spreading from my heart throughout the rest of my body as I realized that Derek and Scott and the others could easily take on Kali and Deucalion. Without Aiden and Ethan, they could win. 

“Thank you,” I repeated, the desire to hug them surging forward. But before I could, the twins both gave me quick nods and hopped onto their bikes, roaring the engines and zooming out of the school parking lot without so much as a goodbye.

***                                                                    ***                                                                       ***

                         As I unlocked the door to our apartment and walked in, I felt my heart swell up almost painfully at the sight of Derek sprawled on the couch, reading a book. The navy henley he was wearing hugged the muscles in his chest snugly, contrasting nicely with his dark hair and hazel green eyes. I allowed myself to stand for a moment and just soak up the normalcy of the sight in front of me, to just treasure the time I had with Derek where I could pretend we were just a normal couple without any vengeful she-wolves out to kill us. Hearing my feet shuffle on the ground, Derek’s head lifted up from the page and a soft grin broke out across his features.

“Come here,” he called, and I shrugged off my bag as I approached the couch with gentle, swift steps. Derek wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me against his chest as I snuggled down beside him and rested my head against the curve of his collarbone.

“How was your day?” he asked me quietly, closing the book and focusing his attention on me as I twisted to a more comfortable position on my back, looking up into his eyes.

“Fine. SATs are coming up, so I’ve started studying for those.”

“Ah, I remember taking the SATs. I can help you cheat if you want,” Derek teased, smiling down at me as he trailed his fingers through my hair absentmindedly. I burst out laughing, turning my face into the soft fabric of his worn out t-shirt and subtly inhaling the sweet-and-spicy scent that was uniquely Derek.

“Thanks but no thanks.”

“Fine, you’re choice. But if you ever change your mind…”

“And how was your day Mr. Fancy Shmancy Werewolf?” I sang, changing the subject and grabbing Derek’s jaw in my hand and kissing him softly as I did so. He made a pleased sound in the back of his throat, stroking the tip of his middle finger down the side of my face as he answered.

“Just the usual. I ran through the forest a couple times, howling at the moon, before I stopped by the grocery store and ate all the raw meat I could find. Then I shaved my back, took another lap around the woods, and came back here to greet my girlfriend.”

                    I couldn’t control my laughter as Derek’s fingers clamped down on my stomach and he tickled me incessantly, turning my fit of attractive giggles into a full-blown laugh attack, complete with rolling around and screeching.

“Derek, stop! Stop it! Stop!” I squealed, the false panic in my voice escalating as I wriggled off the edge of the couch and fell onto the floor, pulling Derek with me. His warm, heavy body pinned me to the floor, but I refused to give up hope as I squirmed around, uncontrollable laughter contorting my features.

                         “Oh my god!” a loud voice called from above us, and in an instant Derek’s hands stilled on my body and the two of us looked up to see Cora and Isaac standing in the doorway, horrified looks on their faces.

“No, it’s not what it looks like-”I began, trying to pull away from Derek, but his arms only tightened around me, securing me against his firm chest.

“Could we have some privacy please, sis? I promise you we’ll keep things PG,” Derek groaned, and with a scoff and some swiftly murmured choice words, Cora disappeared in the direction of the kitchen while Isaac offered Derek an amused salute before heading towards his bedroom.

I sighed, rolling over in the vice of Derek’s arms to face my boyfriend. “That was embarrassing. Cora probably thinks we were messing around.”

“She heard us at lunch; I think she’s warming up to the idea that we’re a couple now.”

“Wait - she heard us at lunch? How?”

“Chris, baby, while Allison’s weak human hearing might not have been able to detect the sounds of me touching your-”

“Ah ah ah,” I interrupted, tapping my finger to my ears to signal that Cora and Isaac were both within earshot.

“-I’m afraid every single werewolf friend of ours at that table knew what was going on.”

I ducked my head down as a deep, penetrating hot blush coated my cheeks once more and I let out an infuriated groan. 

“Next time you have a ‘surprise’ for me at school, meet me outside please,” I mumbled, enjoying Derek’s momentary chuckle as his tipped my chin up and matched his lips with mine. I slid my fingers through Derek’s velvety dark hair, pulling his face closer to mine and thrusting my tongue into the hot cavern of his mouth as one of his arms snaked around my waist. When we finally broke the kiss, I leaned my forehead against Derek’s and breathed in his intoxicating scent.

“Have I told you how much I love you recently?”

*************************************************************************************

Hey there! Sorry for the long longgg wait for this update but here it finally is! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and if you did - PLEASE vote!!! and of course, leave a comment if you feel so inclined :) I always appreciate it and it motivates me to write faster because I feel like there are people out there who actually want to read what I'm writing! So thanks so much and I'll try to update soon! xoxoxo