Author's note: This was the first fic I ever wrote, so keep in mind that it isn't my best work. And it isn't my favorite of all my stories but it's special to me, and it led me to create dozens of different settings for Stydia stories from then on. Most of all, it got me to write, something I've wanted to do for a long time.
Please take notice that the events of this story take place in between S4 and S5, diverging from canon as the story goes. In the beginning some characters may come off as a little OC although as the story progresses they're more fleshed out.
Enjoy :)
= As of January 2019, this story is ON HOLD, and so it will be picked up once some of the on-going stories are finished. =
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Rating: Mature
Tags: Sexual content, Camping, Mutual pining, Friendship, Friends to Lovers, Fluff and smut, Angst, Humor, Emotional hurt/Comfort, Canon divergence
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Scott has been aware of the banshee's feelings towards his best friend for a while now. Of course he knew something was up between Stiles and Lydia before, but neither of them would really open up or do something about it, so Scott figured they were just teasing; god knows they both love that.
But he really noticed it in one of the many afternoons the pack had been spending at Derek's loft lately, as Lydia's heart skipped a few beats when Stiles accidentally bumped into her; she even blushed, only Stiles didn't see it because his phone dropped to the ground and he was hurriedly trying to pick it up, and then Malia came into the room and led Stiles to the couch with her. If Scott remembers correctly, Stiles didn't even apologize to Lydia or helped her pick up the books she'd been carrying and that were now on the floor, where they had fallen along with his phone.
Lydia, who had frozen on the spot, was trying to find somewhere to look at but at the boy she started to have feelings for long ago, obviously failing at the attempt. He was curled up on the couch with Malia sitting on his lap, whispering in his ear god knows what. It made Lydia sick to her stomach, but she always tried her best to keep her emotions hidden.
But Scott noticed.
He could see the turmoil in her eyes, though she wouldn't show it in her features. In a second, he was next to Lydia helping her pick up her things and offering to walk her home. She didn't hesitate to accept.
Since the whole Deadpool thing three weeks ago, life in Beacon Hills had been relatively calm. Still, Derek offered the loft for the pack to hang out since they were stronger in numbers, and since then everyone would occasionally stop by and do their own thing. Some would read while others would train. Sometimes, they would all play some games or watch a movie and have some fun. Even the Sheriff or Melissa would make an appearance to make sure everything was okay.
On that afternoon Lydia had been reading and translating the bestiary with Scott and Derek's help, while the others were in another room having some stupid argument about what they wanted to have for dinner, with Derek screaming at them every other minute because they argued every single time. It was when Stiles came to tell Scott and Lydia what the others had agreed on that he'd bumped into her.
She was already suffocating from all the PDA that Stiles and the werecoyote insisted on shoving down everyone's throats (which really wasn't all that much but it sure seemed like it to the banshee), so when Scott offered to walk Lydia home she gladly accepted. She was not even sure if Stiles had seen them leave.
They have been walking in the sidewalk in utter silence for half an hour when Lydia slowly breaks into tears, seeking comfort in Scott's arms. He doesn't say a word until she eventually calms down, trying to steady her breathing.
"I'm so sorry, Scott. I didn't mean to..." she says, her voice trembling.
"It's okay. I know." He nods reassuringly.
She pauses for a moment to catch her breath, letting the realization kick in. "You really do, don't you?" She blushes, looking down at her hands nervously.
Scott tentatively places a hand on her chin lifting her head up, and nods again. "I won't tell anything, I swear. But you know I could hear your heartbeat in there, right?"
"I figured as much," she admits, embarrassed. And a second afterwards all the blood drains from her face and she looks like she's seen a ghost. "What if someone else did too? Oh god..."
Scott quickly pulls his friend for another embrace, not sure what else to do to ease her pain. "I don't think they did," he whispers in her ear. "If that was the case, someone would have said something and everyone was being so loud..." He sure hopes that no one else heard it, or that would make for one weird argument between the banshee and the werecoyote. "I guess you'll just need to figure out what you want to do about it."
Lydia takes a step back, suddenly looking taken aback, confused. "What do you mean?"
Scott takes a moment. "Lydia... Stiles has been in love with you since the third grade. He worships the ground you walk on and would gladly lay down at your feet just so you could step on him. I'm even positive he'll have a heart attack as soon as he finds out that you actually have feelings for him, like for real," Scott chuckles, raising his hands for effect. "Hell, I've been waiting for this for as long as he has." Scott raises his tone a little, as if the words were to make more sense if they were emphasized.
"Scott, I..." she interjects.
He quickly interrupts her, lifting a finger. I wasn't finished. I get that things are not ideal right now and that a lot has been happening lately and that everyone is emotionally exhausted, but you need to figure it out. Sure, everything is different and it's hard, but he has the right to know about this, Lydia." Scott sighs. "You can't take that away from him."
Somewhere in the middle of his speech, tears began rolling down her cheeks. Lydia looks appalled, like Scott had blurted out some forbidden truth. Feeling numb, she sits on her ankles in the middle of the street as if in slow motion, her knees falling to grasp the rough asphalt.
Of course she knew Scott was right, but the problem is he's not seeing the whole picture.
"I have it figured out," she whispers.
Scott sits beside her, his arm around Lydia's shoulders. Her hands rest against her chest, fists clenched like somehow it helped her breathe. Her mouth goes dry and she feels like her head is about to explode.
"It's not like it's new. I guess I've known for a while now." Lydia's voice comes out barely audible. Without his super hearing, Scott wouldn't probably be able to hear her. "It's in the little things, you know? The way he'd always be there to protect me or to give me everything without expecting anything in return. He saw me, the real me, way before I did." She pauses briefly, shaking her head slightly as to put her ideas in order. "But the girl he was in love with and had on a pedestal, it's not me, Scott. He just got to know the real me, and next thing you know there's a pack of alphas running around, and he gets possessed, and people died and now the stupid Deadpool..." Lydia stops to try and catch her breath again, her hands attempting to wipe away the tears. "Things are not black and white anymore. It's not that simple." She pauses. "And he's got Malia now."
Scott knew it would eventually come to this, but even if he was happy that his best friend was trying something new and that Malia seemed to be getting along with the pack, for some reason their relationship bothered him but Scott never really brought it up. Stiles seemed happy and the guy needed a win for a change.
"You know he'll always choose you tough, right? I don't even think there's another way," Scott ventures, smiling softly at the banshee.
Her response is quick, as if she's given thought to this before. "But that's just it. Why would I deprive him of his first real relationship," or whatever it is, she thought to herself somewhat bitterly, "when he waited all those years for someone I'm not anymore? The Lydia Martin he grew up to idolize doesn't even exist. She was just a shallow, stupid girl who eventually turned into whatever the hell I can call myself now, which is all his doing by the way," she emphasizes, "and I'm grateful for it. I'll never be able to thank him enough for that." She takes a deep breath before the confession comes out from her lips. "I miss him so much, Scott."
She hides her face in her hands, like she isn't supposed to be saying such things out loud. "I don't even spend time with him anymore. The last time we were alone was with Brunski, and we all know how well that turned out." She was mumbling at this point, something Scott would normally point out it's something Stiles is used to do. Still, he chooses to remain silent and Lydia goes on. "It's not fair to him. As much as it hurts me to say, he seems happy away from me and with Malia. And I can't interfere with that. It's not right to want him just when he's unavailable. It's... It's not fair to either of us."
And Scott gets it. He knows that she has a point. Well of course she does, she's Lydia Martin. But she's still lacking some perspective, in his opinion. "You shouldn't diminish yourself, are you kidding me? The Lydia Martin standing right in front of me is a strong, independent, incredibly smart, beautiful young woman, even as you are, crying and kneeling on the side of the road and pouring your heart out to one of your best friends about being in love with Stiles Stilinski, for crying out loud."
Lydia lets out a laugh, she can't help it. Scott with those puppy brown eyes could get everyone to smile. Recomposing herself, she stands up and wipes away what remained of her tears. Extending her hand to Scott, she helps him get up.
It doesn't escape to Scott how her knees are scrapped and bleeding a little.
"She would be proud of you, you know?" Lydia murmurs almost shyly, and Scott knows she's talking about Allison. "She would be proud of us. Two years ago I wouldn't even acknowledge your existence, let alone imagine that Scott McCall and Stiles Stilinski would ever be my close friends, and look at us now. You're one of my best friends and you're listening to me rambling about my crush on our other best friend. I don't even know if I can call him that anymore..." She's whispering again, but quickly recomposes. "If she was here right now, she'd be climbing walls and saying I told you so to my face, I'm sure." Lydia smiles, memories of Allison filling the hole in her heart even if only a little.
"She was trying to set you two up from the very beginning." Scott admits, smiling too, knowing that Allison would be in the clouds right now. "Kira has her suspicions too, about you and Stiles. She asked me the other day."
"She's good for you." Lydia's smile widens. "Something good had to come out of our crazy lives eventually. And I like Kira..." Lydia tries to justify why she doesn't spend too much time with the girl; god knows she could use a girlfriend. "Maybe I'll tell her all about it."
"You should give her a try. She hasn't even been with us for that long and she's already thinking of starting a poll for when you two will get together," Scott confesses, only half-jokingly. "But I have to warn you. She mumbles a lot, kind of like Stiles when they don't know what to say and are socially awkward. And even though it's the cutest, it takes a while to get used to." He beams. "You'll love her when you actually get to know her."
Lydia smiles in return. "I'm sure she'll be all over you, trying to find out why you snatched me out of the loft so quickly then, so you might as well tell her. Maybe Kira and I could have some girl time tomorrow, if she wants to. I'd like that."
"Definitely. I'll tell her to text you." Scott starts walking again, taking Lydia by the arm with him, both smiling now and feeling slightly better, Lydia much calmer. "Do your knees hurt? You're bleeding."
"Oh," she says, looking down. She hadn't even noticed. "Not so much, it's fine," she tells him, waving a hand dismissively, then wrapping her arm around his tighter. "Thank you, Scott. For being here."
"Don't mention it."
As soon as he returns to the loft, Scott leaves with Kira and later he makes sure to tell her everything.
For the rest of the day, they try and come up with a plan.