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"YOU LOOK LIKE YOU'RE AVOIDING SOMEONE."
Malia squinted her eyes at Derek who seemed to avoid every camera, open door, or kid that walked the halls of the high school he currently was in like he was some (horrible) undercover spy that couldn't risk his identity known to someone.
"Am not."
"Are too."
"I'm not getting into this with you." He snapped.
She bit her lip and contemplated whether or not she should dig into this further. This was her first time mostly alone with Derek and she thought of him as...an interesting person to say the least. The man was ominous almost all the time, never revealed anything that wasn't necessary, but was absolutely terrible at lying.
Malia listened to his heart beat momentarily stop every time they walked past an open classroom door that was occupied. She didn't mean to get into his business, nor did she want to, but there was only one reason he could be this shaken up in a high school building.
"She's not here." Malia spoke, breaking the silence as they walked.
Derek abruptly stopped in his tracks and turned to her. "What do you mean by that?"
She sighed. There was one thing that she did know about him, for certain, that he was a stubborn little brat. "She, as in Olivia." The Tate observed how the name caused the man to stiffen only for a slight moment. "Scott told her to stay home and rest because of the almost-being-decapitated incident." she finished.
Malia is the only one who knows about Olivia and Derek's past. The talk consisted of a phone call, cursing, and some "questioning-the-meaning-of-life" stuff.
As far as Malia knew, she was the only one who Olivia told. She felt quite honored.
"The what– wait, I'm not even trying to avoid her."
"One, you're terrible at lying and two: are you dumb?" She cut him off. "I can listen to your heartbeat jump everytime we turn a stupid corner." Malia eyed him as he stood still as stone in his spot while his brows pulled together.
"Why are we wasting time on this? We have a case to investigate." Derek turned around once again and resumed walking, clearly sending the message that he didn't want to talk anymore.
"I'm just saying, you're going to have to talk with her sooner or later and I'm pretty sure I wasn't your first choice for this case. You most likely came here with her in mind to help you, but decided against it."
"If I pay you ten dollars, will you shut up?"
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The feeling of loneliness never seemed to leave her be for more than a second. It's always creeping up on her to be a constant reminder of the vacant area of her soul that was missing— stolen.
She often thought about how she came to be where she was now, having such luck with stumbling upon this new life that was unexplainably a miracle to her in beautiful yet harsh ways.
Olivia stared up into the wall that was above her, her eyes tracing the each and every indent that was within the paint. No one else was in the McCall residence except her. She was put on bed rest for a simple throat injury.
Her thoughts often drifted back to the incident of the night before. The scene was practically on replay in her head for hours on end, attempting to decipher every frame of it.
She had nothing other to do than stare at the ceiling and eat cereal out of the box, so why not put her mind to use.
Over the hours that she's been awake, her ears have been constantly ringing, sensitive to high frequency sounds. One time she even jumped when the washing machine finished and played that stupid high pitched tune that drove her insane.
Her stomach grumbled.
Popping up off her bed, almost fainting from the blood rush in the process, she opened her door and walked down to the kitchen.
The house was empty and soundless except for her occasional coughing and muttering of curses when she stubbed her foot on the corner of a specific wall that seemed to have it out for her. Olivia swore it laughed at her when she was hobbling around with a soon-to-be bruised toe.
Quietness was something she never particularly liked. Throughout her days living in Beacon Hills, the eeriness of it always clung to her like a shadow and being in a house all alone didn't help.
She reached the corner in which she always stubs her toe, and caught herself right before her left pinky toe was separated from her foot. "Now who's the one laughing?" she felt proud that she actually accomplished something in the three hours that she'd been up instead of uselessly wandering the house. But then she realized she was talking to a wall and then her laughing ceased.
It was daylight outside, the sun shining through certain parts of the unopened curtains. It was peaceful. Was peaceful.
Maybe it would have been nice to have a day off and take a much needed self care day, but unfortunately the universe clearly thought otherwise.
The door was suddenly being knocked on, and Olivia being Olivia, put down the cereal box she was currently holding and instantly located the nearest weapon which just happened to be a bat that was laying near the front door. She wasn't aware that anyone was coming to see her or stop by— they would have at least called her beforehand.
She walked quietly to the front door and laid one hand on the top of the bat in case she needed to make a quick escape.
we Her hand gripped the handle, turned it quick and— and there stood an idiotic sarcastic dumbass that almost scared her shitless.
"Stiles," Olivia huffed as her heart rate slowed. "What are you doing here?"
Stiles stood on the porch with his hands in his pockets whilst rocking on his heels. Something he does when he's nervous about something. Olivia quickly observed. "Thought I would stop by and y'a know...just casually ask if you wanted to go to Eichen house with me to question Meredith about the third cipher key?" He rambled the last part so fast that Olivia had to pause for a moment and think.
"I honestly did not understand a word you just said other than 'Eichen House'." Olivia dead panned.
His hands fell out of his pockets once he realized he would actually have to say it in an audible way. "Do. You. Want. To. Go. To. Eichen House—"
"Okay, I understood that part," she sighed. "But why would you even want to go back there to begin with?" Olivia was still haunted by her days at that hellish jail. There was no way Stiles didn't feel the same way about it too, so there had to be some solid reason that he would want to willingly go back.
Stiles stepped into the house and Olivia closed the door behind her. "Because," he stopped mid way as he was turning to face her. His eyes then landed on what her hand was laying on top of. "Were you going to hit me with a bat?"
"Well, it was my original intention, but I didn't know it was you so I was taking precautions..."
"Did you think a burglar would knock politely on your door and ask to come in?"
"I don't know, we live in Beacon Hills for god sakes, I wouldn't be surprised if we had nice burglars!" Olivia exclaimed. "And stop trying to change the subject." she said as she laid the bat to the side where it originally was.
He bit his tongue from shooting another retort at her. "I wasn't trying to change the subject," the mumble spilled from his mouth. "I wanted to run it by you: the idea."
"Of going back?" Olivia asked even though she knew of what he was asking. She found it interesting that he asked her of the concept of going back to the place where they both endured pain of different levels. "I-I don't know, the thought has never really crossed my mind..."Lie.
Stiles scratched nervously at the back of his neck, "It would be for a good reason: to get the third cipher key like I said. But, I just wanted to know what you would think since.." he trailed off, eyes searching hers for some sort of indicator of how she felt.
Since we were both mentally and physically tortured there, it was bound to bring up some not so fun memories.
She stared back at him, still infatuated with his eyes.
They ended up in this sort of intriguing scavenger hunt within each other. Both desperate to find out what the other one was thinking. At the same time Olivia was looking for a simple answer to her question, Stiles was doing the same thing.
The question was: What would happen to them if they went back? Sure it would bring up some bad memories and some harsh feelings, but would it just bring up that? That place deeply affected both of them. They were there together so wouldn't it be better if they went back together? Should he even be considering going alone—?
Oh.
Olivia finally found what she was looking for. He wasn't asking her if she wanted to come along, he was here for a coin flip. He didn't want to go alone or go at all, but it would be better if she was there besides him. This wasn't an opinion of hers that he wanted, he was seeking a reason to go or to not. It was either they go together or not go at all.
"I would go if you really — and I mean you really need to go."
Stiles's eyes searched hers once more as if looking for instant regret, yet he found none. Her face was drained of vibrancy yet painted in every color. "I think she can give us the key to the next list."
She picked at her fingers nervously, "Then we have our answer."
"Are you sure? I'm giving you an out right now."
"I would rather be there with you than have you be in that place all alone."
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So, Olivia left a little sticky note on the fridge that just had: be back later tonight written in sharpie. She expected a lecture from Scott about searching up the definition of 'bed rest' which she wasn't exactly looking forward to.
It wasn't easy getting Parrish to get them into Eichen or agree to being their getaway car. They both pleaded but the deputy did not budge. That was until Olivia shut him up by telling him that they would buy him dinner after if they didn't die.
The broke deputy happily obliged.
Standing in front of the building that towered over them, blocking the sun which brought the shadows forth, she was shocked into silence. The memory of walking up the cobblestone steps for the very first time and hearing the echoing screams as she and Melissa were checking in, clouded her mind as the three of them were standing before the tall black gate.
"This just screams a warm welcome, doesn't it?" Olivia tried to lighten herself up along with Stiles who stood next to her whilst seeming to be lost in his thoughts.
Parrish looked over the building with uncertainty, "Are you guys sure about this? I'm not even sure if they'll let us see any patients unless your family." he said.
For the first time since they went to the police station, Stiles spoke up. "Might as well try." He mumbled as he pushed the buzzer quickly.
They awaited the click of the door opening to the gates of hell. In no time, it started to creak apart until it was wide enough for all three of them to walk through.
Olivia walked next to Stiles in a trance. She almost had tunnel vision; blocking out anything but what was infront of her. She didn't even realize that they were already in the building until her hand was squeezed.
She didn't even realize that she was holding his hand and tightly.
He peered down at her and asked a simple question with his eyes that translated to: are you okay? In response, she gave a slight squeeze back.
Parrish ended up doing most of the talking while Olivia and Stiles stood behind him and just glanced (mostly at their shoes) around trying not to make eye contact with any employees or patients.
Somehow the deputy got the nurse to grant them a pass to see Meredith. They were right at her door, keys were even in the lock when their luck ran out.
"Oh no, not this guy." Olivia turned to where Stiles's eyes were targeted. Down the hall stood the jackass of the jackasses. She felt his hand grow instantly stiff in her grasp.
"What the hell are we running here?"
"Obviously a shit show." Olivia muttered.
Brunski turned to her with a hardened glare and she just narrowed her eyes at him. "We do not just open the door for anyone with a badge and especially former patients." the last part directed to the teenagers.
"We need to talk to Meredith Walker. It involves a murder investigation." Parrish said.
The older man spun to face him after the other nurse left, "Well, you can talk to her all you want," he then turned to the pair, "but these two, especially these two...They're outta here." he spoke pointedly.
Olivia had never wanted to clock the man more and the urge to throw a thesaurus at his fucking head after hearing him use 'especially' twice, was strong.
Parrish tried his best to persuade him, "They're crucial witnesses in an ongoing investigation. I wouldn't have brought them if it wasn't crucial."
Brunski stepped closer to Parrish, his face cold. "Come back with a court order then I'll listen." Olivia thought that he would walk away or "escort" them out, but instead faced Stiles. "As for you, Mr. Stilinski. How about you come back with payment in full."
Instantly Stiles broke eye contact with him, anger and humiliation evident. "That's right, daddy may be Sheriff, but he's late on the bills. I guess those government jobs aren't as reliable as they used to be, huh?" Now he was alarmingly close to his face. As much as Olivia wanted to ram his head into the nearest wall, she knew that if she did so, Brunski would find some way to rain hell on Stiles and that would do them no good.
She stood right next to him, offering her hand as mental support.
As the tension within the atmosphere was rising, Parrish spoke up. "But they do help when you need a favor? Like how a month ago Canaan P.D. helped you come home after blowing a 0.1 on a breathalyzer."
Liv could not believe her ears as the deputy spoke. Not even a mere punch would give her this much satisfaction. The way Brunski's face dropped and immediately felt the tables turning on him had her floored.
"All right, I'm not against a little quid pro quo." The man pushed his hand against Stiles's chest with the keys while Stiles had the guiddiest smile upon his face. "Not at all." and then he walked away.
Olivia let out a laugh, "Where the hell did you pull that out from, Parrish?"
He sighed, "Oh, I just did some research before we came here...nothing much. That guy didn't make it too hard with having a shit ton of police forms..." he said nonchalantly with a smirk upon his lips.
Stiles, still having the stupidest smile on his face, handed the keys to him. "I like you, we are going to keep you!"
Walking into the room that creeped the fuck outta her, she saw the girl sitting straight up in her bed like she was expecting company.
The small area that held two beds brought back many memories of her past experience in Eichen. It seemed almost identical to the one she was in with Malia.
Coming into the situation, Olivia thought that Meredith would be at least a little bit helpful considering that she aided with the other key, but she was clearly wrong when Meredith dead panned and said she couldn't help them.
"What do you mean you can't tell us?" Stiles asked, "All we need is the third cipher key."
"I can't."
"Yeah, you said that already." Olivia sighed as she began to make herself comfortable. It was going to be a while.
The girl shifted in her bed, visibly uncomfortable by their presence. "Then why did you give us the second key?" Stiles pushed, frustrated that this was going nowhere.
"I wanted to help." Meredith said, "That's what I want to do. I want to help."
Olivia noted the strange behavior. She seemed hesitant, like someone was listening into every word she was saying. It was odd that Meredith appeared to want to help them, but then acted the opposite.
"Okay, so help us then." Olivia responded, observing her stiff posture.
Meredith paused as she stared at them both. "Things have changed. I...I can't."
That was the one sentence that Olivia needed to come to a small conclusion. She wasn't sure that she was even right, but it was worth the guess. "Meredith," Olivia scooted closer off the bed, "Is there someone you don't want finding out that you're helping us?"
The girl froze on the bed, posture going rigid.
Bingo.
Stiles looked at Olivia questionably, wondering how she picked up on the behavioral tics that proved her suspicions.
"H-he..."
"He?" Stiles jumped, "Who's he?"
The Flynn made the connection almost instantly. "The Benefactor, right?" She spoke carefully, her intention not to set Meredith off for any reason and lose their one and only lead.
Meredith nodded her head with her eyes trained on the floor, not daring to make eye contact.
She wanted to ask for the Benefactor's name, but knew to not push her too hard. Was it someone they knew? Could it be a person working in Eichen? That could be the reason she doesn't want to speak because they would know instantly-
"Can you tell us his name?"
Well, Stiles beat her to it.
Unfortunately, that question seemed to push Meredith off the cliff of sanity that she was desperately holding onto. Immediately, her eyes started to dart between both Stiles and Olivia, hands trembling at her sides. The rapid motions of her head being whipped back and forth started to scare Olivia as she continued to watch with wide eyes.
"I don't know. I don't--I don't know-" Meredith kept repeating the same sentence over and over again, muttering under her breath and then some other times yelling.
Olivia's ears had already been sensitive the morning before, partly from the incident of last night and with her abilities, so a loud ringing had begun in the back of her head. Somehow, she felt as if Merediths voice had more of an impact on her than usual, as if with each word it made her head pound furiously.
"Meredith, try and calm down-"
"I don't know!" Meredith let out the loudest shriek Olivia had ever heard.
She was shocked backwards and into Stiles who caught her before she fell into the wall. The pounding in her head intensified by one hundred as the scream hit her ears and traveled through her entire body. With her sensitivity being on high and nerves on alert, she felt completely on edge and utterly jolted.
The feeling was interestingly similar to the episode of last night: her hands having no weight, the rushing sensation of vibrations within her body. Everything felt unstable, even when Meredith stopped screaming. It was jaring. Her ears were still ringing and nothing felt still.
That was until Stiles's hands cupped her face. Everything but him felt unstable.
She had started taken notice how each time when a situation like this had occurred, Stiles had always been completely still unlike everything around her. The first being in the hospital after her encounter with Kali when Stiles found her. Her body wanted to cling to that stable was as long as she could each time.
His stable thumb wiped a liquid trickling down her ears as his eyes hardened.
Blood was dripping out of her ears.
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This was long. took 10 years off my lifespan.
If you didn't pick up on it: since Olivia's abilities "came back" after a while so it's bound to have some after-effects, so she's more sensitive to frequencies and vibrations therefore Meredith's scream (a banshee's scream) harmed her severely.
GUYS GUYS GUESS WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING IN THE NEXT CHAPTERS. YOU'LL NEVER GUESS BUT JUST YOU WAIT. YALL BEEN PATIENT AS HELL. I could never.