The drive back to Beacon Hills was pleasant but tense, as Derek was annoyed with me for keeping information about the pack from him. I’d explained that it would’ve ruined our amazing weekend together, and that they were okay on their own for at least one night, which had made Derek reasonable enough to get in the car and drive for four hours with me. The minute we got home, however, he made me drive somewhere else while he went in to talk to them.
“They need me right now, Chris” was the only apology he offered me before Derek handed me the car keys and entered our apartment building. I sat, rather shocked and insulted, in the passenger seat for a few minutes before I decided I would drive over to Scott’s house. I could use some best friend time with the two of them, and when I knocked I was greeted by a grinning Melissa.
“Chris! It’s been a while, sweetheart. Come on in, of course,” she exclaimed happily, giving me a tight squeeze as she pulled me inside and locked the door. Not too long ago, Melissa had become aware of all the supernatural happenings in town, including the fact that her only son was a werewolf, and it had changed her for the better. She accepted what he was and the world he lived in and even helped out when she could. Melissa was the ideal mother. I wish my mom was that open-minded, I thought bitterly before Scott and Stiles came barreling down the stairs and crushed me in our signature three-way bear hug. I inhaled their overly-applied cologne with a smile, pulling back to suck in fresh air and look from one face to the other; something was wrong, I knew it, as they exchanged a worried glance and then proceeded to drag me upstairs.
“What’s going on?” I asked quickly, crossing my legs on Scott’s bed as Stiles paced in front of me and Scott reclined in his desk chair. They looked at each other again – the sort of look that you give someone when you’re not sure how much you should tell the other person.
“Oh come on, guys. It’s me.”
“Okay, fine. Do you remember my childhood friend Heather?” Stiles said finally, beginning to gesticulate dramatically as he spoke and paced in equal measure.
“Sure, the one who went missing a couple days ago?”
“Right. Well she turned up dead…along with another guy that Lydia found.”
“Wait, Lydia found a dead body?”
“Yup,” Stiles responded, popping the “p” and raising his eyebrows in a way that signaled agreement with my unspoken thought. Girl’s one crazy bitch.
“Okay, so what? Someone’s going around killing people?”
“Not just any people…virgins.”
“What?” I cried, my eyes widening as I took in the deadly serious faces of my two best friends. Stranger things had happened, but still.
“Yeah. Exactly. And Stiles thinks it’s somebody sacrificing virgins because they were all killed in the Three Fall Death or something like that,” Scott deadpanned, nodding grimly while Stiles rolled his eyes.
“Threefold Death, you idiot.”
“Whatever. The point is, we have no idea who might be killing virgins-“
“Or why,” Stiles finished, a small crease permeating his otherwise fairly emotionless expression. I nodded, my mind wandering to Derek and how things might be going with Isaac and Monica. I’d worried about them all weekend, and now the curiosity and anxiety was killing me. If I’d thought Scott and Stiles would offer some relief from the drama, I was sorely mistaken.
“Well I’ll keep an eye out for all the virgins in town,” I joked, standing up and grabbing a video game at random off of Scott’s desk. Stiles and Scott followed me as I slid the disk into the TV and grabbed a console.
“We’ll figure something out,” Scott added, selecting a player and gearing up as we began to play World War III: Zombie Invasion.
“Easy for you to be so relaxed; you’re not a virgin,” Stiles grumbled, knocking Scott with his elbow. “Chris and I aren’t so luck-“
“Um, Stiles? I’m actually not a virgin,” I mumbled, my cheeks igniting with heat when Stiles turned to gape at me.
“What?”
“Well you knew I was pregnant! How do you think that happened exactly?”
“I dunno…I just never thought...well I’ll be damned. You had sex with Derek Hale,” Stiles cried, chuckling as I ducked my head and blasted the limbs off a reanimated nurse on the screen. We played amicably for a couple hours, teasing each other and discussing lighter topics, such as how well Scott was doing in school now and who was asking who to the Homecoming dance next weekend. When I finally received a text from Derek late that night, I said my goodbyes to Scott and Stiles and promised to ask Derek about the murders.
*** *** ***
This Monday morning, like all Monday mornings, started off pretty poorly. Derek and Isaac had been fighting when I’d gotten home, and when I’d gone into Monica’s room to see what she was up to, I’d found my friend lying on the floor in the dark with earbuds in. I’d asked to come in but she’d yelled at me to leave and then practically slammed the door on my heels as I exited. It was apparent that she wasn’t handling Erica’s death too well, and I struggled to remind myself that as sad as it might be, Derek and Isaac and I had already been through the loss of a dear friend and pack member: Boyd. Maybe it only gets easier with time, I’d thought at the time, walking into my room and crawling into bed so I could try to forget the chaos that was unfolding around me.
Now I was on my way to school with Derek, who’d been grumpy and angry ever since he woke up to the sound of my phone ringing at five-thirty a.m. To make matters worse, the call had been from Aiden, and although I’d declined, Derek was still pissed at me for multiple different reasons. Needless to say, it was a quiet and uncomfortable ride to Beacon Hills High, especially with a fuming Isaac and a borderline-catatonic Monica in the backseat.
“So I’ll see you later tonight?” I asked Derek uncertainly, lingering by the passenger window once I’d gotten out of the car. Derek was dressed in a dark gray Henley that accented his strong muscles and dark sunglasses that hid his guarded green eyes from my prying brown ones. In a very similar fashion, I was wearing black skinny jeans and a gray hoodie that had the words “Son of a Bitch” splashed across the front in red. It was daring, sure, but I was in too much of a bad mood to care about what people (or teachers) would think of my top; besides, it was a Dean Winchester reference!
“No I’m going over to talk to Cece. She’s pretty torn up about Erica as well,” Derek explained shortly, not meeting my eyes and revving the engine as soon as he was done speaking.
“Okay, bye then,” I said softly, sadly, as Derek sped out of the parking lot and turned right onto the street. I watched his taillights get smaller and smaller until I couldn’t tell them apart from the others, and then I headed inside to start one of the worst days of school I’d ever had.
*** *** ***
Detention. Lunchtime detention is what I got for wearing an “inappropriate and blasphemous” shirt to school. I stormed into Mr. Harris’s classroom two minutes late, my face beet red and my jaw clamped so tightly that it was starting to ache. Surprisingly, Isaac was also in detention, and I quickly slipped into the open seat beside him.
“What’re you in for?” I asked under my breath as Mr. Harris made some snarky comment about my tardiness and then began to pair up the other losers in detention with us.
“’Inappropriately putting my hands on another student,’” Isaac replied with air quotes, rolling his eyes exasperatedly. I snorted, cracking a smile when Isaac looked over at me with a less-than-pleased expression.
“What?”
“Nothing, it just…well, it sounds like you raped somebody, Izzy!” I teased, using a playful nickname that Erica had come up with. To my astonishment, Isaac’s face darkened and he jumped up from his seat.
“Don’t you dare call me that! Erica called me that! Not you! You can’t replace her, Chris; you can’t act like she was never here!” he yelled, lashing out and shoving me off my stool. I hit the ground hard, banging my head back against the linoleum floor and flinging my hand out to break my fall; unfortunately I’d also knocked a beaker off the lab table, and the shattered glass dug into my palm painfully. I let out a piercing scream as Isaac ran out of the classroom, and the other students crowded around me quickly. I saw Mr. Harris run out after Isaac, but I was too preoccupied getting to my feet and appraising my injuries to care.
“Oh my god Chris, are you okay?” Allison exclaimed, pushing to the front and taking my bleeding hand in hers. I nodded rapidly, trying to hide the tears that threatened to spill over – both from the pain in my palm and the harsh words Isaac had yelled at me. I hissed when Allison gently plucked the long shard of glass out of my hand, and immediately blood began to gush out.
“You need to get her to the nurse,” somebody else said, and the crowd seemed to part to allow Aiden to approach. I scoffed, cradling my bloody hand against my chest as I turned to go into the hallway; my balance was off, however, and I wobbled violently. Luckily, Aiden caught me before my knees could give out and send me crashing to the floor again.
“I’ve got you,” he said warmly in my ear, scooping me up and carrying me down the hallway amidst my vehement protests.
“Set me down, Aiden!” We were passing by Ms. Blake’s classroom when I caught sight of Derek’s familiar gray Henley, and I smacked Aiden across the face to get his attention.
“What the hell-“
“Shhh,” I whispered, nodding towards the small glass pane that allowed me to clearly see Derek in the room, talking to a frightened looking Ms. Blake, who was brandishing a wooden pointer as though she was afraid of Derek hurting her. They know each other? I thought worriedly, nudging Aiden to the side as Derek approached the door.
“Quick, go!” I practically yelled, but just as Aiden turned to duck down the hall, Derek stepped out. Instantly recognizing the two of us, me in Aiden’s arms and Aiden smirking triumphantly, Derek’s eyes went down to where my blood was beginning to drip onto the floor. I expected Derek to ask what had happened or snatch me haughtily out of Aiden’s arms, but instead he just gave us a stony glare and then disappeared down the hallway. What?
After getting my hand bandaged up by the school nurse, Beverly, who once again told me to be careful, I ditched the rest of the day and took Stiles’ Jeep to our apartment to talk to Derek. When I arrived, I found the apartment vacant and in the same condition it had been in when I’d left that morning. There was a pile of bills on the kitchen table that Derek and I needed to deal with, and I made a mental note to get back in time to work my shift at Starbucks at five. I was about to head back to school, defeated, when I remembered Derek saying he was going to talk to Cece today. I bet he’s over at Peter’s awful place right now.
When I arrived at Peter’s apartment downtown, I was surprised to find a mysterious dark car parked outside the building, right next to Derek’s black Camaro. Weird – Peter doesn’t have any friends. Taking that as my first bad omen, I ran inside and jogged up the steps as fast as I could; the damn elevator had been broken for years, without anybody attempting to fix it. Out of breath and blushing, I took a moment to assemble myself outside the door before I used the key Derek had given me (much to Peter’s disagreement, I might add) to enter the apartment. My hand was throbbing and aching, and all I wanted to do was hug Derek tightly and have him tell me to calm down and that everything would turn out okay. With my luck, of course, I got the exact opposite of that.
The instant I burst in, my eyes widened at the scene unfolding before me; Deucalion stood with his back to me, cane in hand, while Ennis held down Cece across the room and Kali punched Derek across the face. I watched in horror as Derek fell to the ground on his hands and knees, and Kali spun around to grab a pipe off the uncovered ceiling.
“NO!” I screamed, flinging myself forward as Kali plunged the pole through Derek’s vulnerable torso, impaling him. Derek’s head flew back, eyes red, and he let out a loud animalistic roar of agony. I leapt at the long-haired, bare-footed she-devil with another battle cry of rage, but found myself being slammed back by Ennis’s large hand on my chest. He snarled in my face, his bulging arms flexing with the effort.
“No! Let her go. She has nothing to do with this,” Derek gasped, struggling to remain in control even though he was grievously injured and very much at the mercy of the Alphas. I didn’t hear what Deucalion said over the roaring in my ears, but I suddenly found myself being released from the crushing force preventing me from breathing. Stumbling to my feet, I rubbed my chest with a scowl as I huddled next to Cece, who’d come over to stand beside me when Ennis had let her go too.
“Now. Let’s talk, Derek,” Deucalion spoke slowly and surely, sending chills down my spine and raising goose bumps up and down my arms. I listened in mounting revulsion as Deucalion taunted Derek, describing to him the feeling of killing one’s pack, telling him that he only needed to kill one of them and then he’d want to kill the rest. It made my stomach roll, and I couldn’t help but think of Erica, who’d been murdered by the Alphas. Maybe even by one of the ones in the very room I was in. Bastards. It was only when Derek called Deucalion a fanatic that he actually enticed a real response out of the Alpha. As if summoned by Deucalion himself, thunder and lightning began to rage outside as Deucalion started to shout.
“I am the Alpha of Alphas. I am the apex of apex predators. I am death, destroyer of worlds. I am the Demon Wolf.” And with that, Kali tugged the pipe out of Derek’s chest and he collapsed to the ground.
*** *** ***
“Derek, you have to talk to me! Are you okay? What was that?” I shouted after my boyfriend as he stomped into the kitchen, grabbed his keys, and then made for the door. I beat him there, throwing myself across the entrance so that he was forced to look me in the eye. What I saw there scared me; gone was the handsome, playful, funny guy who’d won me stuffed animals at the arcade and tickled me in the ocean until I’d nearly drowned. Instead, Derek’s green eyes were weary and full of pain, like a war veteran or an old widow – like somebody who’d seen death firsthand and didn’t wish to experience it again.
“I’m fine. I healed.”
“That quickly? Derek, where the hell could you possibly have to be right now?”
“That’s something I’d like to know, too,” Cece added, strolling into the kitchen and facing the two of us with her arms crossed over her chest. Derek sighed, setting his jaw determinedly and fixing me with an icy stare.
“I have to find Isaac. Deucalion said he’s in trouble at the school,” Derek answered shortly before grabbing my shoulders and bodily moving me out of the way so he could slip out the door without another word. Cece and I exchanged a shocked look, neither of us capable of offering up any explanation or rationalization for Derek’s behavior.
“I’ve gotta go to work,” I finally mumbled quietly, snatching my purse from where I’d dropped it on the ground and following Derek’s footsteps out of the apartment.
*** *** ***
Later that night, I’d been home for barely an hour when Derek entered the living room and sat down carefully on the couch beside me. I slid my Physics book off my lap and turned to face him, worry creasing my forehead as I reached out to take one of Derek’s hands; surprisingly, he let me.
“I’m sorry,” he said in a hoarse voice, rubbing his thumb over my fingers before he realized it was the hand with my ring on it. I couldn’t get over how nice it felt to have the ring back on my finger; it was like a reminder that no matter how rough things got, I still had my relationship with Derek. I still had the promise of a summer wedding come graduation next year. I still had him.
“And I’m also sorry for ignoring you today in the hallway. What happened to you?”
“It was nothing. Just, um, a stupid fight I got into,” I responded vaguely, moving the attention back onto him right away.
“I accept your apology, but you’re going to have to do a little bit better than just say you’re sorry.”
“I thought you’d say that…which is why I got you this.” From his pocket, Derek produced a tiny golden box with a note taped to the top. I giggled, accepting the gift easily but hesitating when I started to open it.
“I really hope you didn’t spend a lot of money on this. You know we still have to pay our-“
“Just open it, Chris. I promise I didn’t spend a lot,” Derek whispered, releasing my left hand as I lifted the lid on the little box and pulled out the delicate piece of jewelry that was nestled amid the fluffy white cotton. Suspended from a thinly-woven silver chain was a black triskelion, identical to the tattoo on Derek’s back.
“Oh Derek, it’s so beautiful,” I cried happily, my voice several octaves higher than usual in my excitement. Derek’s lips twitched at my outburst of emotion as he reached forward to fasten the necklace around my neck so that the symbol hung right below my collarbone. It was dazzling and strong and sent waves of thick emotion rushing over me. Tears springing up in my eyes, I leaned forward to clasp my hands around Derek’s neck tightly and was relieved to feel his large arms wrap around my body snugly. I knew that the triple spiral symbolized Alpha, Beta, and Omega to Derek, but that he also carried a special place in his heart for the design. It was a mark of the stages of life, of reincarnation, and of family.
“Everything’s going to be okay, Chris. I promise.” And at that moment, cuddled up in my fiancé’s arms, I finally believed him.
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Hola mi readers :) I hereby present to you - chapter 30! *vigorous applause* Haha i hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, sorry I know it was kind of all over the place and the scenes were short and kept changing but I just wanted to move it along. Sorry :( But I thought it was really cute that Derek got Chris a triskelion necklace and there's a pic on the side right there >>> I really wanna get one now lol. But I also just wanted to take this opportunity to tell you guys that I AM GOING TO BE WRITING A THIRD BOOK! It's official! I think it's going to be called Forever Young, but let me know if that's too cliche or you don't like it cause I'm still kinda on the fence about that one. Also, what do you guys think about me starting one of these options for a new fanfic story?
a) Peter Hale love story
b) Story about one/both of the twins falling in love
c) Isaac/Alice spin off
d) Other! Comment if you have any other suggestions but those are the one I'm juggling around right now.
So please don't forget to vote and COMMENT! Thanks sooo much guys, I really love all of my dedicated fans who vote and comment on every chapter! A huge thank you goes out to all of you (you know who you are) and this chapter is dedicated to you! Love you! So i'll probably try to update again by Sunday or Monday. And who else is siked for Monday's episode of Teen Wolf?! Although i'm so sad because there's only two more episodes left until JANUARY 2014!!! Like WHAT NO! *sad crying SOBBING face* Curse you, Jeff Davis. Lol but thanks for reading guys! xoxxo