Take me to church → derek hale [2]

12: unwelcomed visits

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Grace took a deep breath before going inside Derek's burnt house. She'd been there during the full moon but going in now just felt so different. Derek looked back at her from inside the house, his green eyes sparkling from the daylight. She stood frozen in place, the house reeking of nostalgia from where she was standing. "You coming?" Derek asked, his voice velvety and soft as he opened the door wider. Grace looked down at the leafy ground, taking another deep breath before walking towards the door and entering the house. Derek closed the door as soon as Grace entered, her body standing completely still. The air was thick with memories and feelings and Grace refrained from touching anything, scared of the countless memories she would encounter if she touched a single spot laced with one.

Derek touched her forearm, taking Grace out of her trance. She turned towards him, her back facing the wall, gasping softly as she looked up at him, their bodies in the same position they were when they confessed their feelings for each other, when it ended in them hooking up. His face reflected worry at her behavior, his hand still on her arm. "What's wrong?" Derek asked, examining her features. Her eyes were glued to his lips as he spoke, remembering how they had collided, how they moved as if they belonged together, how he carried her upstairs and everything that happened after that. She closed her eyes, looking down as she chewed on her bottom lip.

"This place," She said softly, "It's so full of memories."

Derek inhaled softly, pursing his lips as he realized what she meant, only beginning to imagine the things she could be seeing in that moment. He nodded softly, directing her to the room on the left side of the stairs, his hand resting on her back. He got out a bunch of cardboard boxes, each full of different kinds of books, opening them and looking through each and every one of them. Grace furrowed her eyebrows, "What are you looking for?"

"I'll tell you when I find it."

In that moment, Erica and Boyd entered the house, both Derek and Grace turning around at the same time to face them. Grace furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as she saw that both of them were carrying bags. "What's going on?" Grace asked, Erica and Boyd looking at each other with pain in their eyes.

"So you've decided?"Derek asked, a hint of sadness in his tone, probably only heard by Grace, "When?"

"Tonight," Erica answered.

"Everyone's gonna be at the game," Boyd said, looking at Erica for a sight second, "We thought it was the best time."

"You're running away?" Grace asked, her stomach dropping.

"You could come too, Grace," Erica said, making Derek's heart skip a beat as he looked at Grace, crossing his arms over his chest, "It's not like we want to."

"What do you want?" Derek asked, stepping forward.

"Since I just turned sixteen a month ago, I wouldn't mind getting my license," She said, making Grace look down, the realization that they were all kids hitting her like a brick, "I can't do that if I'm dead, you know."

"Well, I told you there was a price," Derek retaliated.

"You didn't say it would be like this," Boyd said softly, Grace's eyes watering.

"Yeah, but I told you how to survive. You do it with a pack. And you're not a pack without an alpha," Derek said, sighing.

"We know," Boyd said, making Grace and Derek look up at them with bewildered features.

Derek scoffed, "You wanna look for another pack?" he asked, making Boyd sigh as Erica looked down, "How are you even gonna find one?"

"We think we already did," Boyd answered, making Derek look at them with furrowed eyebrows, Grace looking down.