you are going to stand on the couch and look him in the eye.
[ 5.01 ]
All was quiet at Derek's loft — a welcome absence of sound after the last year the pack had. Really, the only sound that could be detected was the occasional sound of Willow turning a page in her textbook or scribbling down words in a notebook. The coffee table, in addition to coffee, was covered in notes, highlighters, and glitter pens.
Finals week had arrived at Beacon Hills, and that meant every moment of Willow's time was spent on academics. If she wasn't studying for her own tests, she was helping Malia or Scott or Liam get ready for theirs.
But for the moment, as she sat on Derek's couch, all she was focused on was her anatomy study guide, which was a nauseating fifteen pages long, front and back — which made Lydia incredibly glad she didn't opt to take two science courses at once. But thankfully, it was the last high school exam that Willow would ever take.
And Derek, knowing how important this particular week was, did his absolute best to be as helpful as possible, doing anything Willow needed. But when she asked him to give her space so she could focus and study, he pouted like a child the entire time. But he did hold off on the affection and distractions for the most part. But the final exam was within sight, and Derek was getting a little impatient.
As Willow for the sixth time in fifteen minutes rubbed her sore head, fighting off a stress headache, and further messed up the already messy braid in her hair, Derek got off his bed where he'd been silently reading — or rather, staring at Willow. But who could blame him when she looked so damn cute wearing one of his shirts like an oversized dress? It was bunched around her thighs and hanging off her shoulder, showing off her neck that he just wanted to devour.
Willow hardly paid Derek any mind as he came up behind her, the back of the couch separating them. She didn't even pull her eyes off her notes when he started to gently rub her tight shoulders.
"Take a break." Willow simply hummed in response, shaking her head as she continued to study. Derek sighed softly and leaned down, placing a kiss to the back of her neck. "Take a break."
"I can't, Der," she said half-heartedly. "I have to pass this anatomy test if I want to graduate."
"Willow, you could make a seventeen and still pass the class with a C," he told her.
But Willow sharply cut her eyes to him. "Make a C? I can't make a C—"
"I sense I've said the wrong thing—"
"Oh, god," Willow whined, looking back at her notes. "I have to be able to label all the major muscles, and don't even get me started on all this vocabulary and the nervous system and—"
"Willow, you know all this," Derek said, moving around the couch so that he could sit next to her.
"But I don't know that I actually know it," she said anxiously. "I mean, what if I sit in front of the test and completely blank—"
Derek cupped the sides of Willow's face to have her look at him. Though most of her tests were over, it was clear her stress was coming to a boiling point. He just needed her to take a breath and realize that everything would be fine.
They'd faced alphas and a Nogitsune and assassins. Willow could easily survive finals.
"You know this," Derek told her. "And you're gonna go in tomorrow and kick that test's ass. Then you'll graduate with your impressive but also ridiculously high GPA that will make every college selection board swoon in hopes to get you after your gap year."
"It's not ridiculously high," Willow mumbled under her breath. It could be higher if not for the supernatural distractions in her life. Then Willow sighed and pulled her face out of his hands. "I still need to keep studying and make sure I know this. Especially labeling the muscles."
"How about I help you study?" Derek asked, raising an eyebrow. There was a sudden mischievous look in his eyes that Willow didn't trust one bit.
"You didn't take anatomy in high school, Derek," she reminded him. No way would he be able to actually help her retain information.
"No, I didn't," he admitted. Then Derek startled Willow by grabbing her by the waist and pulling her onto his lap so that she was straddling him.
"Derek, I don't have time for—"
Derek cut off her protest while taking her hands. "You've looked at the study guide and the diagrams, now put it to practice. No hints. Start naming the muscle names."
Willow let Derek guide her hands to his face. She thought it was an absolutely ridiculous idea and that he was wasting her time. But as soon as she got it over with, she could go back to actually studying.
So, starting at the top of his head, Willow began naming the muscles as she touched them. "Depressor supercilii," she said, her thumb moving across the arch of his eyebrow. "Zygomaticus major," she recited a little slower, trailing her fingers across his cheeks.
Then as Willow's fingers traced his mouth, she allowed herself to get a bit distracted. How could she not when his lips just looked so inviting? "Orbicularis oris," Willow whispered, leaning a little closer.
Derek playfully nipped at her fingertips, earning a yelp from her. "Focus," he instructed in a stern tone.
Willow blinked a few times before continuing, this time a bit more hesitantly. Derek never took his eyes off her face as her fingers trailed along his jaw and down his neck.
"Platysma," Willow said as she brushed along his collarbone.
Had he been without a shirt the whole time and she was just too roped up in studying?
"Deltoid," Willow continued, trying to keep her thoughts from clouding as she now focused on his arms. It certainly didn't help that he flexed at her touch. "B - biceps brachii."
It was a struggle to make her way down his forearms and fingers. Then she slowly moved back toward his shoulders to continue on his torso. It was more blatantly feeling him up now instead of just pointing out where the muscles under his skin were.
"P - pectoralis major," Willow whispered, fingertips trailing down his chest.
She let her hands stay there, but Derek soon put a stop to it. He squeezed her thighs as a warning to continue, earning a quiet gasp from her. Though it really didn't help her to focus. She couldn't help but move closer, settling down on one of his thighs and moving against it. Derek raised a taunting — and somewhat prideful — eyebrow as Willow lost her self-control and all thoughts of studying went out the window.
"Keep going," Derek ordered, seemingly wishing to torture her.
A somewhat pathetic sound escaped Willow's lips before her hands traveled lower and to his sides. "External oblique," she said slowly. Then she moved to his stomach, shamelessly tracing each of his abs, counting them. "Rectus abdominus."
And then Willow's hands moved lower and lower, past his belly button and the trail of hair that led to the sharp lines of his hips that disappeared behind his jeans. She wasn't even bothering to say the words aloud — or even think them.
Suddenly, before her hands could do any more exploring, Derek snatched her wrists and held her hands up. Willow finally tore her eyes away from his tan skin and met his taunting gaze.
"I thought you wanted to study?" Derek asked innocently.
"Well, maybe a break would be okay," she mumbled quietly, biting her lip as her eyes trailed back down Derek's neck and chest. "Studied really hard."
"My smart girl always studies hard," Derek said, pulling her closer by her wrists. Then he let her place her hands on him once again, palms spread out across his chest. She instantly slid them up to wrap her arms around his neck and pull herself closer until their chests were touching. Kissing him seemed much more important than the anatomy exam now as she stared at his lips. "And I think she deserves a reward for all that hard work. What do you think?"
Willow nodded, eyes not leaving his lips until he was kissing her. She melted against him as Derek deepened the kiss. Now it was time for his warm hands to move along her skin, starting at her knees and working his way up her thighs. Derek's hands slipped underneath the shirt she was wearing before guiding her already squirming hips to meet his jean-clad thigh once more.
Then as he picked her up to carry her over to his bed, all thoughts about finals week and studying and grades and anatomy were gone from Willow's mind. Well, maybe not all thoughts of anatomy, and Derek showed just how well he understood hers.
☽︎
"Hey! Look at us. Who woulda thought? Not me."
"Stiles, you're not graduating, and there was literally never a single doubt that Willow would be able to," Noah said, sighing heavily at his son's antics.
"Can you just - can I just quote my Paul Rudd memes in peace? Okay?" Stiles asked, stomping his foot childishly.
Everyone that Willow cared about was gathered in the parking lot of the high school. She was wearing a maroon cap and gown, ready for graduation. She'd soon need to go find the other seniors as everyone else found their seats in the bleachers of the lacrosse field.
It felt weird, admittedly, to not be graduating with the people she'd known since she was a child. But at the same time, it was what she wanted. It'd only be a year before Scott, Stiles, Lydia, Kira, and Malia followed in her footsteps.
Technically, Willow should have been the valedictorian, but she passed on the offer, not wanting to steal it from the actual valedictorian of the class, Andrew Varagona. Willow would've been pretty bitter if she worked four hard years for the title only for some underclassman to decide to graduate early last minute and steal it from her.
So, since she didn't have to give a speech or anything, all that was left to do was walk across the stage and get her diploma. Unfortunately, that entailed Stiles and Scott doing all they could to embarrass her as she did, and their plan included air horns and obnoxious cheering — but at least Lydia warned her in advance.
"We'll take a few pictures once it's over, but no horsing around. We've got to be at Benihana by six to keep our reservation," Natalie said, knowing that this group wasn't the most punctual.
"I'm gonna catch so many shrimp in my mouth," Liam said, grinning while also moving his tie around. Mason rolled his eyes and swatted his hands so that he wouldn't mess it up.
"Malia's totally gonna kick your ass when it comes to the shrimp count," Stiles said, wrapping an arm around Malia's shoulder.
"Yeah. I helped her practice with popcorn the other day, and she caught like eight in a row," Kira chimed in.
Liam scoffed arrogantly. "Try twelve."
Malia narrowed her eyes at the youngest wolf. "You're lying."
"Swear to god!" Mason exclaimed, defending his boy. "I was there, but it was Skittles instead of popcorn."
As they continued to bicker about who would be able to catch the most shrimp in their mouth, Derek came up to Willow and held her from behind, letting her lean back against his chest.
"I don't know if I prefer discussions about Deadpools or this," he muttered, chuckling as Malia tried to kick Liam's shins.
"Is that because you can't catch more than eight shrimp in your mouth?" Willow asked teasingly, raising an eyebrow.
"I was once a teenage boy that loved cheating at showing off to girls with my secret supernatural powers — of course, I can catch more than eight."
"It's very cute that you thought catching food thrown at you is a form of showing off to girls," she said, giggling.
"Well, now I'd just rather you feed it to me yourself," he said, smirking at his own remark.
"Barf," Peter said while groaning. "You two have been extra nauseating since the whole Derek almost dying bit—"
"That was your fault," Scott interrupted, narrowing his eyes at Peter.
Peter just ignored him, as he ignored all the comments made about him in the last few months. "I'm kind of glad Derek's whisking you away so that we don't have to see that every day."
What Peter said was true. Four days after graduation, Willow and Derek would pack up and leave with Scribbles. The plan was to spend the summer in South America with Cora and Boyd, who were looking forward to their arrival. After the summer passed, there was no telling where they'd end up. Willow just knew she wanted to get out of Beacon Hills for a while.
After losing so much and nearly losing Derek, leaving didn't sound so bad to Willow anymore. Perhaps Jackson had the right idea when he left. They'd be back, of course, eventually. You couldn't keep Willow away from everyone she loved for long.
"Speaking of," Malia said, ending her spat with Liam to glare accusingly at Willow. "You're leaving! You're leaving me. How am I supposed to pass summer school and actually become a senior without you?"
"I'm literally right here," Lydia whispered, who was also a genius.
"Malia," Willow said, smiling softly, "Lydia and Stiles are both going to help. And you can email me your notes and we can go over them on video calls. You will be making it to senior year."
"Will I though?" she asked doubtfully.
"Yes," Stiles said, holding her hand. "We are going to make sure you survive high school."
"Can't I just go back to the woods?" Malia asked, sighing. "There's no math in the woods."
"Ah, but the woods don't have pizza," Stiles told her.
"Actually, they'll deliver to parties in the woods, so they'll probably deliver to her," Derek chimed in. Stiles rolled his eyes, not needing Derek to encourage Malia to run away and avoid her education. Derek simply shrugged, knowing he definitely would've rather lived in the woods than go to school. If Talia hadn't been so strict, he might of.
"Alright," Melissa said, clapping her hands to get their attention. "Enough shrimp and living in the woods talk. Willow, Sweetie, you need to head inside and line up with the others."
Willow nodded and stepped out of Derek's arms. He kissed her on the cheek before letting her go. Both Noah and Melissa took the time to hug her as well. Then Natalie stepped forward and adjusted her somewhat crooked graduation cap and straightened the tassel.
"Perfect," Natalie whispered. There were happy tears in her eyes, seeing the girl who was just as much her daughter as Lydia ready to graduate. Natalie squeezed Willow's hands tightly as she smiled. "He is so proud of you."
"I know he is," Willow said quietly, her own eyes watering. Surrounded by the pack and all her friends and their parents, but the most important person wasn't there. Graduating just wouldn't mean as much without her father present. Nothing would really ever mean as much.
"We'll find you when it's over," Lydia told Willow, excited for her best friend.
"Alright. And I'm putting in my bet now — Liam's gonna catch the most shrimp."
"I can't believe you have no faith in me!"
☽︎
The summer passed slowly, something that Derek and Willow would never complain about. It was spent at Cora's beachside property in Argentina, which was substantially larger than Derek's loft. It was a summer of walks in the sand and bonfires where Boyd and Cora told funny stories and not a single minute was spent thinking about the Deadpool or Berserkers or evil spirits.
Well, that wasn't completely true, as Willow couldn't control her thoughts when she was asleep. It seemed like every other night, she was waking up from terrible nightmares. All the traumatizing and horrible things they'd faced made their way to the front of her mind when she went to sleep. Willow dreamed about lots of things — Gerard, the Nogitsune, Matt, the Darach, her father. What she dreamt of the most though was Derek's death.
He was alive and healthier than ever, but that didn't stop Willow's mind from replaying his death over and over again, plaguing her dreams. Sometimes it was the Berserker that killed him, other times it was Kate or Jennifer or even Deucalion — though she'd never hold that against Duke. And then Willow would either wake up screaming or Derek would gently wake her after hearing her in distress. Then he'd hold her through the night, whispering comforting words in her ear and assuring her that he wasn't going anywhere.
Derek had his own nightmares as well — though not as frequent as hers, it was a given after dying. But he feared losing Willow just as much. He'd jerk awake, trying to control his breathing and heart rate, then set his eyes on Willow's sleeping figure next to him and realize that everything was okay. Then Derek would pull her closer and bury his face in her neck, taking in her scent to help calm down.
But aside from the nightmares, nothing could burst the happy bubble surrounding them. Not even the pack back in Beacon Hills, who, thankfully, weren't facing anything dangerous either. Willow kept in contact with everyone — she told Lydia all about Argentina, helped Malia with her homework, checked in to see how Liam was at adjusting to werewolf life, let Kira complain about how boring their summer trip to New York was.
Everyone was just excited to see Willow in person again, as three months was a long time. Thankfully, she had a trip to Beacon Hills planned just in time for their new semester of school to start. Given that she decided halfway through the year to graduate early, she never got to participate in the Senior Scribe tradition, so, she'd be making her way back home to do it with the rest of her friends.
There was one tiny little hitch in Willow's trip plan, as it didn't include Derek. That, of course, annoyed him to no end. And he was refusing to let her travel alone, which was understandable given all they'd been through. He just wasn't going to let her go back to Beacon Hills without being at her side for protection. And Willow, though she understood his points, kept arguing that she wanted to go alone. She thought he needed to wait for her in Argentina.
Willow wasn't even going to be gone that long. Just three days, and then she'd be back before her birthday. But Derek wasn't having it.
"You just need to assert your dominance," Boyd said after listening to Willow complain.
The two of them, along with Cora, were lounging around the living room while Derek was off on a morning run. Though Cora didn't have a particular stance because she didn't care, Boyd was taking Willow's side simply to not take Derek's.
"When has Willow ever asserted dominance?" Cora asked, letting out an amused snort. "She does everything Derek asks her to — wants to be his good girl."
"Cora!" Willow hissed while throwing a pillow at her. Her cheeks were on fire, remembering how halfway into the summer, Cora came across Derek and Willow in a rather compromising position and heard far, far more than a little sister ever should. But after her initial disgust faded, Cora took every chance to embarrass Willow — to her annoyance, nothing seemed to get to her brother.
"Ignore her," Boyd said, waving off his girlfriend. Cora responded by launching the pillow at his head. "Look, if you want to go back to Beacon Hills on your own, then he should give you the freedom and space to do so."
"It's not even about freedom," Willow mumbled, sinking deeper into the couch. Willow hadn't been honest about her real reasons.
"Look, young lady—"
"I'm older than you, Vernon," she reminded him.
"Here's what you're gonna do," he said, ignoring her comment. "Cora and I are gonna clear out in case there's yelling or fucking—"
"Gross," Cora muttered, fake gagging for effect.
"When he gets back from his run, you are going to look him in the eye—" Boyd paused and glanced at Willow's form. "—You are going to stand on the couch and look him in the eye. And then, you will stand your ground and use your Charmspeak to force him to stay here."
Willow sighed and rolled her eyes, knowing none of that was sensible. She wasn't going to use her abilities and take away Derek's free will just for the trip. It was a misuse of power, and not fair. She also didn't appreciate him poking fun at her height, even if she did need a chair to match Derek's height.
"Ignore him," Cora told Willow. "Look, just be honest with him about your reasons. I know it's not because you want distance from him, even if that's what he's thinking. Derek's annoyingly stubborn, but eventually, he'll probably understand. He won't like it, but he'll understand. You're the only one that ever succeeds at making him change his mind."
"I must admit," Boyd muttered under his breath, "that as far as advice goes, that was slightly better than mine."
Cora raised an amused eyebrow. "Only slightly?"
"I stand by my plan."
"To have her stand on a chair?" she asked, laughing. Then Cora got out of the recliner she was sitting in and walked over to Boyd, offering him her hand. "Come on, babe. He'll be back soon. Let's clear out before the passionate 'I don't want to say goodbye' sex begins."
"Cora!" Willow again hissed in embarrassment. Cora simply laughed and pulled Boyd along with her out of the house. They would head to the nearby market for a while, giving Willow and Derek space to actually settle this argument. Well, it wasn't a full-fledged argument, but still.
Cora's estimation wasn't far off. Willow only had to wait seven minutes before Derek came in the house, finished with his run. He swung by the kitchen to get some water before finding Willow in the living room.
"Morning," he greeted, coming over and kissing her on the cheek.
"Sweaty," Willow complained. In response, Derek wrapped his arms around her, making her laugh as he did so. "Derek, I just showered."
"But now you smell like me," he replied smugly. Then he leaned closer, lips brushing her ear. "And you're always free to join me for another one."
Though the offer was tempting, Willow didn't want to get distracted. And a sweaty, shirtless Derek that was wrapping her in his warm embrace while whispering dirty things in her ear was definitely distracting.
So, Willow moved quickly, and before she knew it, she was standing on the couch, just as Boyd suggested. Derek looked at her expectancy as she placed her hands on her hips.
"You look as if you have something to say," he noted.
"I, um, I'm gonna book my plane ticket this afternoon," Willow said, nervously.
"Great," Derek said, smiling tightly as he realized what she was talking about. "I'll book mine too."
"Derek," she said, sighing. "I - I'm going to Beacon Hills, and I'm going alone."
"And I've made it very clear that I'm not comfortable with that," he told her, shaking his head. "Willow, how many times have you been kidnapped? Almost died? What if you leave without me and — what am I supposed to do if something happens to you?"
"I understand, but can you just trust that I can survive three days on my own?" she asked.
"Why are you so against this?" Derek asked, frowning. "Why don't you want me with you? I mean, I know - I know we've been together every day, but I didn't think that bothered you. Now it seems like you can't wait to get away—"
"No, Derek," Willow interrupted. It was easy to gently cup his face given her height advantage. "You know that's not it."
"Then tell me what it is," he said, covering her hands with his own. Of course, Derek knew Willow didn't want space. But he didn't know what other questions to ask.
Willow sighed and glanced down. "I'm just scared."
"You know I'll protect you," Derek said, brushing his thumbs along her knuckles. That was his whole point — he wanted to protect her in Beacon Hills.
"Not that kind of scared," she whispered. "If we both go, what if we don't leave? I want you to stay here so that I know I'll come back. I don't want us to be dragged into another supernatural distraction-turned-battlefield that takes you away from me permanently."
Derek understood where she was coming from, but he had his own fears about them splitting up. "What if you don't come back? What if there's a perfectly timed distraction that keeps you there and away from me?"
"Getting back to you will always be the most important thing," Willow told him, pressing her forehead to his. "Frogs could fall from the sky and the water could turn to blood, but I'd still come back for you first."
"How biblical," he noted, managing an amused smile. Derek studied her face for a moment longer, taking in her wide, caring eyes and soft expression. "If I were to stay behind, it wouldn't be so crazy of me to want you to check in. A lot. And call if anything happens. You'd be surprised at how quickly I can get to you. And stay near Scott or Malia or Liam for extra protection."
As Derek went over his requests, just wanting to make sure she was safe, Willow smiled softly. She loved him and how much he cared for her. And she wouldn't let Beacon Hills keep her from him, no matter what it decided to unleash when Willow returned.
☽︎
Thunder rumbled in the familiar Beacon Hills air. Sat on the hood of Stiles' jeep and leaning against Scott's arm, Willow stared up at the full moon. She hoped that Derek, Cora, and Boyd were having an easy time, though the moon hit its peak in Argentina about five hours before it did for them. She was out at Lookout Point with Scott and Stiles, trying to help Liam through yet another full moon. Stiles had a map spread out on the rest of the hood that Willow and Scott weren't sitting on and he was making notes and marks with a red marker.
"All right, so I found some cool two bedrooms in the Mission District, but they're pretty expensive. A couple in Haight and Ashbury, also expensive," Stiles noted. Though their graduation was a long time away, he wanted to have every little thing mapped out for everyone. That included sharing an apartment with Scott.
"I can help with rent," Willow offered. "We'll definitely be back in Beacon Hills permanently by then."
"Will, I'd rather scoop my eyeballs out with a spoon than share an apartment with you and Derek," he told her flatly. "No amount of your family money will change my mind on that."
"Yeah, Boyd says you guys have been really... affectionate," Scott muttered, scratching the back of his neck.
"We need to FaceTime everyone that's ever associated with this pack and have a conversation about gossip," Willow said, huffing as she crossed her arms. "It's a sin, you know?"
"Well, it's also a sin when you let Derek—"
"What about Berkeley?" Scott then asked, cutting off whatever inappropriate thing Stiles was about to say. "Don't a lot of students live around there?"
"Yeah, yeah, we could try Knob Hill," Stile said, looking at the map as they got back on track. "The jeep would probably burn through a lot of clutches, but Will can finance that since she never offers to drive."
"You're bringing the jeep?" Scott asked, eying the car that was practically falling apart.
"You know the plan, okay? No one gets left behind. That's the plan. Lydia's not gonna have a problem getting into Stanford. Kira's thinking USF. Willow can literally get accepted anywhere. Malia's, uh, gonna, you know, she'll figure something out, okay. The plan's perfect," Stiles insisted.
"Or we could also wait until we actually get into college and then figure out where to live," Scott suggested.
"I have a vision, dude. Okay? And it is a beautiful vision. Don't ruin the vision," he said sharply. "Okay, we can check out the East Bay. Haven't looked at Oakland yet, you know." When Stiles glanced at Scott again, he saw the wolf staring up at the moon. "You're all right? You're starting to feel it?"
"No. Just thinking."
"About what?" Willow asked, resting her head against his shoulder.
"Senior year."
Stiles scoffed. "Senior year, come on, that's - that's nothing. That's going to be easy. Willow breezed through it."
"It's more like something Deaton told me once," he told them, not actually worried about his grades. "You ever hear of 'regression to the mean?'"
Willow shook her head as Stiles responded. "No, I don't think so."
"It was his way of saying that life can't ever be all bad or all good. You know, eventually, things have to come back to the middle," Scott explained. "So, think about the last few months. Things have been good, right? But not amazing."
"Yeah, but no one's tried to kill us in six months either," Stiles noted chipperly.
"Right," he said, nodding. "We've been pretty much in the middle for a while. Which means, at some point, the scale has to tip one way or the other. Things are gonna get really good again."
"Or really bad," he muttered.
"I see things have gotten really dark and gloomy in my absence," Willow said, pouting.
"Yeah. Our little ray of sunshine ran off to have beach sex with her annoying as shit boyfriend," Stiles couldn't help but say, tugging on Willow's ponytail.
She swatted his hands away while sputtering. "We don't - haven't - not on the beach, Stiles! Sand!"
Stiles snorted and shook his head. He had missed making Willow flustered and embarrassed at any given time. It was just so easy, no matter how long she and Derek had been together. "Think it's been long enough?" Stiles asked, looking at the moon as well.
"Yes!" Liam shouted, clearly having been listening in.
The three of them turned to look back at the boy who was chained to the base of a huge tree. He looked incredibly bored and annoyed. "Hey. Trying to have an adult conversation over here," Stiles snapped.
Liam rolled his eyes. "All right, you're two years older than me, and I'm fine. Just let me go."
Scott slid off the Jeep and then helped Willow down before walking over to Liam. "It's not that we don't trust you—"
"—It's that I don't trust you," Stiles interrupted.
"But after that last full moon," Scott mumbled, looking at the chains. He wasn't sure if enough time had passed.
"Hey, now!" Willow spoke up. "Liam said it was just a little slip-up. Scott, you've had some pretty big ones yourself."
"A slip-up?" Stiles asked, exasperatedly. "A dozen calls to the Sheriff's department about a monstrous dog boy running around the streets of Beacon Hills? Naked?"
Liam cringed as Willow looked at him with wide eyes. He may have left out a few details. "Why were you naked?" Willow asked, though she wasn't sure she wanted the actual answer.
"It was really hot out that night, okay?" Liam answered sheepishly. Then he wiggled his shoulders, emphasizing the point that he was still chained up. "Let me go!"
After a moment and a pleading look from Willow, Scott gave in with a sigh and began to unchain Liam. "You sure you're okay?"
"It won't happen again," Liam assured him as the chains dropped and Stiles began piling them into the carrying bag.
"You're in complete and total control?" Scott asked, wanting to triple-check as he headed back to the jeep with Stiles.
"Yeah," Liam said under his breath. "Complete and total."
But when Liam pulled his hands out of his jacket pocket and uncurled his fist, Willow saw the fresh blood from him digging his claws into his palms. Instead of telling on him, she simply leaned in and kissed him on his cheek.
"I'm very proud of the progress you're making," she told him softly.
"Thanks, Will. I'm still your favorite, right?" he asked, letting her loop her arm with his and lead her to the jeep.
"Obviously," she assured him, grinning. Then she nodded ahead to Stiles, who was struggling greatly with the simple task of folding up his map. "I mean, that's your competition."
"I can hear you, Willow!"
☽︎
"Is it a party?"
"It's not a party," Stiles said, sighing in annoyance. Liam hadn't stopped questioning them about what was happening at the school and why it was so important for Willow to leave Argentina for it.
"Then what's at midnight?" Liam asked.
"Your bedtime," Stiles shot back.
Liam frowned and glanced at Willow, who was in the backseat with him. "Why aren't the girls going? Why just Willow? Is this an OG Three thing?"
"They're meeting us there, okay? And just stop asking questions, all right? It's a senior thing. You'll know when you're a senior," Stiles told him. "And OG Three? You can come up with a better name for me, Scott, and Will than that. Three Musketeers, Three Amigos, Han, Leia, and Luke—"
"I don't know anyone named Han," Liam interjected.
"Oh, my god!" Stiles groaned. "Watch the fucking movie—"
"Are you guys having trouble with your phones?" Scott suddenly asked. He hadn't even been paying attention to Liam and Stiles' bickering — he'd learned to tune it out.
"I've not gotten any new messages," Willow noted, pulling out her phone. It was likely due to the storm that would continue to get worse through the night.
Before Scott could complain about not being able to reach Kira, the jeep suddenly let out a sputtering noise before slowly coming to a stop in the middle of the road. "Oh, what the hell?" Stiles complained, hitting the steering wheel.
"You out of gas?" Liam asked.
"No, it's electrical," he muttered, getting out of the car. "Probably the alternator again."
While Scott and Stiles went to see what was wrong, Willow stayed in the car with Liam, who was putting his headphones in to wait it out. Willow glanced around the surrounding trees, knowing they needed to get a move on if they wanted to pick up Malia and drop Liam at the hospital in time.
As she looked out the back window, she saw a huge bolt of lightning strike the ground only twenty feet from the car. She flinched, and Liam noticed, pulling his headphones back out.
"Guys," Willow called hesitantly.
Lightning struck once more, now even closer than the last.
"Guys!" Liam shouted, crawling to the front of the car to get their attention.
"Yeah, give us a second, please," Stiles said, not hearing the concern in their tones.
"Liam, stay in the car, okay—"
A third bolt of lightning hit, no more than five feet from Scott and Stiles. As Scott and Stiles stared at the scorched spot on the pavement with wide eyes, Liam reached for the key and started the jeep. Thankfully, whatever Stiles duct-taped together seemed to do the trick. Then he stuck his head out the window. "Can we go now?"
"Please?" Willow asked, not ready for more lightning to strike. She didn't exactly trust that Roscoe could hold up against one as big as those.
With the car running, they high-tailed it out of the preserve. Knowing that Malia was still home and helping her father and neighbors move a couple of fallen trees off the road, Stiles headed to get her. When they arrived, she was standing at the end of their driveway with Mr. Tate.
"Sorry we're late," Stiles said as they pulled up.
Malia rushed over as soon as the jeep stopped. Stiles leaned out the window to greet her with a kiss, not really hindered by her father's watchful gaze. He hummed happily as Malia pulled away.
"I'm sorry, too," Liam said, leaning forward and grinning sheepishly. It was his inability to control himself that made them late.
Mr. Tate eyed the three guys in the car, who outnumbered the two girls. "You boys do remember I own a gun, right?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Vividly," Stiles mumbled, his smile falling.
"And bear traps," Willow noted. She smiled when she saw Mr. Tate wink at Malia, knowing not to take any threats seriously.
Malia quickly scrambled into the car, squishing Willow in between her and Liam in the backseat. She quickly noticed the four sets of eyes glued to her.
"What?" Malia asked slowly.
"Did you find out yet?" Stiles asked, and Willow nodded enthusiastically, wanting to know.
"Find out what?" Liam questioned.
"They're gonna email me," was all Malia said, clutching her phone tightly.
"Is this about summer school?" Liam asked.
Malia glanced at him before glaring at Scott and Stiles. "You told him?" she asked accusingly.
"Uh..."
Before Stiles could stammer out a response that only angered Malia more, Liam spoke up. "Oh, no! All they said was you had to go to summer school 'cause the principal said your test scores weren't good enough and you might have to repeat junior year."
Malia let out an annoyed growl as she looked at Stiles. He literally told Liam everything. Stiles sighed and focused back on the road. "We should have left him chained to the tree."
Willow giggled before looking at Malia. "I love the haircut. Very edge."
"Thanks. Makes my fur way shorter when I'm a coyote," she explained.
"Oh, like the wolves in Twilight," Liam said, joining in.
Stiles scoffed from the driver's seat. "The kid's never seen Star Wars but can state obscure facts from a trashy vampire romance?"
"It is not trashy!" Willow said, crossing her arms. "I mean, it's not well written and has a lot of horrible plot points and I could complain about how problematic both Edward and Jacob are for hours, but that doesn't mean it's not good."
Scott glanced back at Willow over his shoulder and shook his head in disbelief. "It kind of sounds like you don't enjoy Twilight at all."
"Tell that to my heavily annotated copy."
☽︎
When they arrived at the hospital, Stiles and Malia waited in the lobby while Scott and Willow took Liam up to the floor his dad was working on. They wanted to make sure he was safe at the hospital before leaving him. And Liam was not happy about being left behind, even if he wasn't a senior.
"My dad's helping out in surgery. He's not gonna be done for hours. So, I'm either hanging out here or, I could still go with you guys," Liam argued as Scott called the elevator to go back down.
"Show me your hands," Scott suddenly said.
Liam shot Willow a worried look, who simply nodded. Of course, Scott would've smelled the blood. Liam pulled his hands out, showing the dried blood on his palms and fingernails. He sighed, disappointed at himself. "Okay, so I'm still having trouble."
"No, you're still learning," Scott said softly, an understanding smile on his lips. "What do you do to stay focused on not changing?"
In response, Liam lifted his headphones, which were still connected to his phone. "But it's not working."
"It's working enough," he told him. "Listen, Derek told me that you were one of the strongest that he'd ever seen at your age. Now, coming from him? That means a lot. Maybe means that things are gonna be harder for you for a while. But it also means something else, doesn't it?"
"That I'm really strong?"
Scott smiled and stepped onto the elevator. "Hell yeah."
"Just stay here and in control tonight," Willow told Liam.
Before she could leave, he grabbed her hand. "I'll see you again before you leave for Argentina, right? You're not just leaving right away?"
Willow smiled and kissed his cheek. "No way am I leaving without saying goodbye."
After leaving Liam, Scott and Willow went back to the bottom floor. Stiles met them at the elevator, anxious to get a move on and meet Lydia and Kira. The only problem was—
"Still can't reach Kira," Scott told them. The cell towers were all out from the storm as the wind continued to pick up.
"Okay, you reminded her about tonight, though, right?" Stiles asked nervously as they walked toward the front desk.
"I think so," Scott mumbled. "She only texted me once this week."
Both Stiles and Willow looked at him in disbelief. Kira had texted Willow at least ten times in the last six days, but Willow kept that fact to herself, not wanting Scott to feel even worse.
"Once? How'd you guys leave things when she left for New York?" Stiles questioned.
"Well, they were good. Yeah, I just said, you know, don't worry about anything. Just go and have fun."
Stiles cringed. "No... You told her to go have fun?"
"Why?" Scott asked, not seeing the big deal. "What's wrong with that?"
"Just, I don't know, that can be interpreted a lot of different ways," he told him.
"Like what?" he asked.
"Stiles," Willow said, shaking her head. "Don't say things to worry him—"
"Well, like, 'Don't worry, we're not exclusive — go have fun with other guys,'" Stiles said, ignoring Willow.
Scott stopped at the desk, the thought not even crossing his mind beforehand. "No. No way."
To try and prove his point, Stiles turned to Malia, who was leaning against the reception desk. "Malia, if you were going away, and I told you, 'Don't worry, go have fun,' what would you think I was talking about?"
"Fun like bowling? Or sex with other guys?" Malia asked bluntly.
Scott looked at all of them, now insanely concerned that Kira met a guy in New York. "Okay, yeah. Now, I'm worried."
"Scotty, Kira's not the type to have that kind of fun on a family vacation, and you know it," Willow said, trying to reason with him. "Stiles is just riling you up. And once you talk to her, you'll realize that you're freaking out about nothing."
"You're - you're probably right," Scott muttered, though he didn't sound convinced. Then he noticed the inflow of people on stretchers, brought in from the emergency entrance. "Hey, Mom? Where's all this coming from?"
"A jackknifed tractor-trailer on 115," Melissa replied, following after the new patients. "Caused a major pile-up."
All four teenagers shared a look. "Okay, okay, there's only one way back into Beacon Hills from the airport," Stiles said nervously.
"115."
"Kira's never gonna make it," Stiles said, sounding crushed.
"I can get her," Scott said determinedly, heading toward the exit. "You guys head to the school. Lydia's probably already there. We'll meet you by midnight."
"How are you gonna get to her in the middle of a traffic jam?" Stiles asked before Scott could rush off.
"We'll make it. Trust me," he promised.
"Stiles," Willow said, smiling. "You do remember that he's a werewolf, right?"
☽︎
After separating, Stiles drove himself, Malia, and Willow to the school. By the time they reached it, the rain was pouring down so hard they could hardly see through it. If Scott went home and got his motorcycle before going to pick up Kira, they would no doubt be drenched.
"Nothing from Scott or Kira," Malia noted after a good twenty minutes of waiting outside.
"And nothing from Lydia, either," Willow added, shivering slightly. She wanted everyone to get there so she could go inside and get warm.
"And I still don't know if I passed," Malia said, sounding so disheartened. She looked around at all the other seniors rushing into the school with their friends. "I don't want to do this unless I'm actually a senior."
"Yeah," Stiles mumbled, clearly bothered by more than just Malia not knowing if her scores were high enough.
"What's wrong with you?" Malia asked, walking up to Stiles. "You smell terrible."
"Yeah, it's called anxiety," he informed her. "Should be a familiar scent for you by now, since it's pretty much a constant state for me."
"Why's this thing so important to you?" Malia asked.
"It's not. It's not. It's, uh..." When he saw the looks that both girls were sending him, he knew he couldn't get away with lying. "I don't know, maybe it is. I asked my dad the other day about his high school friends. Guess how many he still talks to? None. Not a single one. You know, these were his best friends, and he just says he lost touch with them, you know. So, I started thinking about things, like I always do — obsessively. And so, I'm thinking, what if - what if Scott's my best friend now, you know, but he's not my best friend for life?"
As Stiles finished his spiraling rant, Willow finally understood why he was so bothered. And she could see his point, as she was scared of the same thing. It was why she scheduled so many phone calls over the summer and never missed any. She didn't want to drift away from her friends just because she needed a break from the nightmare that was living in Beacon Hills.
It seemed Malia wasn't as bothered by the notion. "Well, doesn't that just happen sometimes?"
"Yeah, but only because we let it happen," Stiles told her. "You know, that's what I'm saying — how come when we graduate, we're just expected to go our separate ways? If I've already found the best people in my life, why aren't I not trying to stay with them, you know?"
"Well, I thought that was the plan. The dream," Malia said, waving her arms around.
"The vision," he corrected, thinking she was making fun just like Scott and Lydia did. "And don't mock the vision!"
"I - I like the vision. Especially if I'm part of it," she said softly. "So that's why you wanted everyone here tonight — wanted Willow back from South America — because you don't want to lose all your friends after senior year."
Stiles nodded a little in confirmation. "And I hope they don't want to lose me, either."
"We don't," Willow assured him, smiling. "And don't worry about the fact that your dad doesn't talk to his high school buddies. Something tells me they don't have countless life or death instances and supernatural ties to bind them together."
"Yeah, probably not," Stiles said, managing a real smile.
"Feel better?" Malia asked him. After Stiles nodded, she leaned forward to give him a kiss. However, she paused a few seconds later, sensing something they couldn't.
"Mal?" Stiles questioned, wondering why she'd stopped kissing him.
"Someone's coming," she told them, looking around. "Someone fast."
A second later, the someone fast reached them. Malia had him pinned to the ground as soon as he rushed upon them. It was at least someone they knew.
"Oh, my God!" Stiles exclaimed, looking down at Liam.
Groaning and trying to get Malia's hand off his chest, Liam looked up at them. "Scott's in trouble."
That was all Malia needed to hear before she started running, the others following as she picked up Scott's scent. He was already at campus, on the other side of it. Malia led them to the underpass of the walkway.
They arrived at a horrible scene. Kira and another unknown boy — a werewolf — were laying on the ground, clearly roughed up. A huge man covered in a thick black substance was standing over Scott, his long, glowing, blue claws digging into his chest.
Malia and Liam growled, ready to attack and free Scott, who was growing weaker. But then the True Alpha managed to find some strength and save himself. He grabbed the guy's wrist and broke it, snapping the claws off his fingers completely. Scott rose to his feet while ripping the claws out of his body and tossing them carelessly to the side.
It seemed the man realized it wouldn't be as easy to take out Scott as he thought, no matter what he was trying to do with those claws.
"I don't know who you are, or what you thought you were going to do, but I'll give you a choice," Scott told him. "You can stay, and I'll break something else. Or you can run."
"I'd run," Stiles chimed in, earning a look from the man.
And the new threat did take Scott's offer. He didn't look back as he fled, leaving behind the claws on the ground and disappearing in the downpour. With him gone, Scott and Kira walked over to meet the rest of them.
That left the new wolf that tried to help Scott fight off the man. Willow studied him carefully, taking in his handsome face and soft expression. There was something familiar about it.
"You don't remember me, do you?" the boy asked, looking between Scott, Stiles, and Willow.
It was when he spoke that Willow managed to identify him. Or at least she hoped she did as she stepped closer with a smile.
"Second grade. Noah Eldori stole my Rapunzel Barbie doll at snack time," she claimed.
The boy grinned at her, remembering that day. "And I dumped a pudding cup on his head to get it back."
"My hero," she said, laughing.
"I didn't think you'd recognize me, Willow," he admitted. "I guess I look a little different since the fourth grade."
"Theo?" Scott questioned, now sure of who he was.
"You know him?" Malia asked skeptically.
"They used to," Theo told her. "Trust me, I never thought I'd see you guys again. A couple of months ago, I heard of an alpha in Beacon Hills. When I found out his name was Scott McCall, I just couldn't believe it. Not just an alpha, but a True Alpha."
"What do you want?" Scott asked him.
"I came back to Beacon Hills — back home with my family — because I want to be a part of your pack."
No one was quite sure what to say. This was the first time someone sought Scott out to join his pack. Most of the time, he was just being sought out so they could kill him.
"Watch out Hales," Willow said, nudging Scott's shoulder. "Scotty is making a name for himself."
Stiles eyed Theo warily, taking in his too-charming smile. Something didn't sit right with him about the new arrival, even if no one else cared. "Yeah, seems he is."
☽︎
As soon as Theo was out of earshot, Stiles didn't waste a single second before he began complaining. Even as Liam left to go back to the hospital and the rest of the pack headed toward the library, he wouldn't let up, paranoia creeping up on him.
"We haven't seen this kid in years. You don't find that highly suspicious?" Stiles asked.
"We haven't seen him because his family moved," Willow stated. "That's not exactly something a fourth-grader has a say in. Maybe one of his parents' jobs transferred them back to Beacon Hills."
"Yeah, and I'm kind of more concerned about the guy who just tried to kill me," Scott said, not really giving Theo much thought at all.
The cell towers must have been repaired then, as Malia stopped in the middle of the hall, checking the notification on her phone. With an excited grin on her face, she exclaimed, "I'm in! I passed. I'm officially a senior!"
Before anyone could congratulate her first, Lydia beat them to it, appearing through a crowd of fellow seniors. "Thank God! Where have you guys been? The whole senior class is here! Are we doing this or not?"
"Oh, I spent hours on two planes to get here. We're doing this," Willow said, grinning.
Lydia rushed forward and hugged Willow tightly. "Oh, my God, I've missed you. I know we talk on the phone, but you must tell me all about Argentina. Also, I'm loving the tan. So jealous of the sun you're getting."
While they waited in the long line in the library, Willow caught up with the others. Thankfully, Scott didn't bring up the guy that tried to kill him. It was just a nice, normal, human moment. The line moved pretty slowly — no doubt, everyone was taking a moment to savor the memories.
"I can't believe you brought your own pink marker," Danny said, having moved through the line to come and talk to Willow. Everyone was passing along the same black marker, but Willow came prepared with one in her favorite color.
"Of course, I brought my own marker," Willow told him, waving it around. "You can borrow it if you'd like to stand out as well."
"I'll pass," he said. Then with a smile, he whipped out a metallic silver Sharpie. "Brought my own."
"Fancy," she said, giggling.
"I always have to show off."
As their group reached the shelves, Danny went first, adding a 'DM' in his messy handwriting. Stiles went next, and then Lydia. She passed the black marker to Kira, who eyed the shelves nervously.
"This isn't vandalism, is it?" Kira asked, knowing her parents wouldn't approve if they found out.
Lydia pursed her lips as she thought it over. "Not technically," she told her. "I mean, Willow would never vandalize something, so you know it's fine."
Willow smiled comfortingly at Kira, who nodded and signed her initials. Malia went next. After writing the M, she hesitated, and they all knew that she was contemplating what last name to use. Then she made up her mind and wrote a T with a soft smile on her lips.
The next to go was Willow. Before actually signing, she glanced at the past years on the shelves below theirs. When she spotted the year designated for Derek's graduating class, it only took her a second to spot the 'DH' scrawled on the surface. She couldn't help but crouch down and draw a little pink heart by his initials.
Then Willow carefully added 'WW' next to Malia's initials. She hesitated for a moment, taking in the marks left behind by her friends, showing the future classes who came before them. Her eyes watered a bit as she added two other sets of initials because they weren't there to do it.
ER
AS
There was one more, but it wasn't Willow's name to add. With the addition of Erica and Aiden's initials, a sense of melancholy settled over the pack. Scott took the black marker and added his initials before slowly writing two A's under them, his hands shaking a bit.
"She would have been with us," Stiles told Scott as they stepped away from the shelf and let the line keep moving. "All of them."
"Yeah," Scott agreed softly.
Lydia squeezed Willow's hand, thinking of her other best friend and the first boy she loved after Jackson. "They still are."