Lydia ditches Liam not five minutes later, saying she'd rather see Melissa instead of the school's nurse. It would raise suspicions and Lydia would have to explain how she got hurt like that. Liam hesitates seeing that Stiles was pretty clear – and not that he'll admit it out loud but, to the beta, Stiles is like a second alpha -, but Lydia insists and he ends up letting her go without him.
Melissa doesn't say much about it. When she asks Lydia what happened, the redhead only replies "Malia" and Scott's mom thinks it's best to not push the matter for the moment. Cleaning the wound and closing it, Melissa wraps Lydia's forearm in bandages and gives Lydia some pills for the pain. The redhead ends up skipping school for the rest of the day.
She doesn't let Stiles know that she met with Melissa or that she went home right after, mostly because during the whole afternoon Stiles didn't say anything either. However he's dealing with Malia, it sets a disconcerting feeling under Lydia's skin for Stiles hasn't said anything back to her and she can't help but to let her mind wander, to read into the unknown. Maybe Stiles just can't get to his phone, she knows that, but maybe he's sorting things out with Malia. It was his first breakup after all and it's probably not that farfetched that he'd be torn, maybe actually consider giving Malia another chance and if that's the case, Lydia is not only going to let him do his mistakes by himself as she'll also not mess with it. It's not fair that she'd come between them when their relationship is none of her concern, the same way she told Malia that her own relationship with Stiles was none of the other girl's business, the difference being that Stiles actually had a relationship with Malia and not Lydia. And it's also Lydia's fault that this happened. The coyote might have started their argument but she incited the fight and it's starting to make the redhead reevaluate her choices. She can only hope her friendship with the boy is not lost again.
The guilt that Lydia feels because she might have done more harm than good by (sort of) admitting her feelings for Stiles consumes her as she lies awake on her bed until dinner time. Even after she eats, she finds herself with her back against her mattress for a little while longer. She doesn't move, barely breathes and her mind just won't stop visiting the memories from the last few days. She only comes out of her reverie when her phone starts beeping, and for the better part of the next half hour Stiles calls her non-stop; she doesn't pick up. And it's stupid, she knows, that she's actually behaving like a brat but she's jealous and she's bitter, and she doesn't want to get hurt with whatever he'll say to her when they eventually speak again. She's scared that because he went for so long without saying anything, things are back where they were between them or worse. She's confused and she can only say that these have been some excruciating hours.
She knows it's not an emergency. If it was, other members of the pack would try and reach her, but it's just Stiles. After 19 missed calls and a few text messages, the beeping comes to a halt all of a sudden and that's when Lydia actually starts getting concerned about the situation she put herself in. Because when Stiles started calling her it was probably because he found out that she left school and is mad at her for it, but now that he stopped and hasn't tried to reach her for over twenty minutes, what does it mean? What does it mean for them? Time passes and she doesn't come up with a good enough answer for the life of her so, trying not to think about it, Lydia puts her phone on silence and starts getting ready for bed.
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He's mad. Dammit, he's furious. Why the hell hasn't Lydia said anything since he left her? Shit, I left her, he thinks conflicted. He had to, he knows that. No one knows Malia like he does; he's the one who had to make sure the girl wouldn't do something stupid after her argument with Lydia. But at the same time, he shouldn't have left the banshee behind. He's been doing it for so long now, it makes him sick.
After trying to get Lydia to pick up the damn phone for what feels like the hundredth time, he's had it. Next thing he knows he's parking the Jeep on her driveway, his nerves so on edge that he feels like he could rip his own skin out. Lucky enough, Natalie notices the lights from the Jeep and opens the door for him before he even rings the doorbell.
She looks at him concerned. "Stiles, honey. Is everything okay? It's almost ten..."
"I know, sorry. I just... I really need to see Lydia, she hasn't answered my calls all afternoon. I just want to see if she's okay," he murmurs, hands shoved in his pockets to hide his nervousness.
Natalie had noticed something was off with Lydia but her daughter wouldn't open up to her, let alone tell her mom that she'd been injured. Back at the school, Natalie had heard in passing something about Lydia and Malia but no one would give her much details. Now, the woman has a good idea of who is behind Lydia's lethargy. "You can go up, she's in her room." She gives him a devious smile. "I'll be downstairs. Just don't get too loud."
"Too loud? Wh-" His voice fails him as he realizes what she's implying and the smirk on Natalie's lips tells him he's right in his assumption. Stiles blushes hard and stutters. His heart starts beating so quickly he's sure the woman can hear it. "Oh, we're n- You mean...? We're not gonna do an-"
Natalie leaves him to his babbling with a smile, turning around to head towards the kitchen and Stiles, thinking better than to embarrass himself any further, starts pacing up the stairs. By the time he reaches Lydia's room, he's at a lack of words. He can't help the fleeting thought that crosses his mind of how this might not be the first time Natalie has let a boy in to see her daughter but he shakes his head vigorously, swearing lowly to himself to forget about it. By the time he knocks on Lydia's door, Stiles is more anxious than angry.
"Come in, mom. It's open," he hears from the inside, the strawberry blonde's voice sounding a little too faint for his liking.
He opens the door slowly to find Lydia in the same place on her bed she's been in all afternoon, only now underneath the covers and reading a book. "Uh, not your mom. It's just me."
She hadn't heard the Jeep, she hadn't heard the front door, she was not expecting him to stop by at all. Lydia sits up quickly, gasping, her book falling to the floor unnoticed. "Stiles? W- What are you doing here? How-"
He takes a step forward and closes the door behind him, reveling in the sight of Lydia Martin in a fluffy yellow pajama full of colorful teddy bears, which is something he's sure he'll never see again in his life. He'll have to tease her about that later; he almost flashes her a smile before remembering why he's there.
"I'm sorry to come by this late but I was worried, Lyds. You weren't answering your phone. I just wanted to make sure you were okay." He doesn't mean to let it out like an accusation but Stiles can feel how charged the room is; he just can't tell if it's all on his part or also Lydia's but it feels weird, standing there not sure of how to react. Things feel different for some reason and he's not sure that it is the tether's doing this time.
His voice comes out hurt, maybe a little tired, and Lydia feels her stomach twist at the sound. "I'm okay. I just didn't feel like going back to class," she murmurs, looking down at her hands.
He sits beside her on the bed but not as close as he'd like to. "How's your arm? Liam told me you went to see Melissa."
"She took care of it. It'll take some time to heal, though."
"Does it hurt?"
"Right now, not much. But it feels a little numb," she mumbles, letting her fingertips brush the bandages softly. Her forearm feels a little ticklish.
His voice is a mere hum. "Why didn't you answer my calls?"
Lydia fidgets on her lap. "I don't know how to answer that."
"Yes, you do. Don't... Don't lie to me, Lyds."
She sighs. "What I mean is that I don't know what can be a right answer to that. I didn't know what to make of you not calling me, okay? I was afraid that maybe you and Malia might have gotten back together," she says honestly, stirring in her seat and trying to keep her tone calm. "It's not like you and I actually got to settle for anything. And I get why you had to go with her, I do, but I wish you hadn't. And it's okay, Stiles. If you and Malia sorted your things out, I- I understand." She believes she's making as much sense as Stiles probably thinks she is. She doesn't even trust her own words and has to fight the urge to groan in frustration.
Stiles gets up, soon gesturing wildly like he does sometimes and raising his tone a bit. "Are you kidding me? Lydia, you don't think I would get back with... You should have picked up the phone. I was worried sick." Stiles stops in the middle of her bedroom and exhales sharply to rearrange his thoughts; he didn't come to argue. "Look, me and Scott took Malia to the woods because she was mad, okay? And I'll admit that when she's mad, she gets violent sometimes. We didn't want someone innocent to notice her outburst or to get hurt. And you know what else, Lydia?" He shortens the distance between them to stand right in front of her by the end of the bed. "You were on my goddam mind the whole time. Do you know how hard it was for me to not be there with you? To actually have to teach Malia, yet again, what is expected of her and what isn't while you were somewhere else, hurting?"
Lydia feels bad for what she's doing but it's what she knows. And what she needs to solve this is help. "I'm gonna need your help with this, Stiles, okay?" She gestures between them. "I- I never had something like this before. Yes, I've dated and yes, experience is something I don't lack, but only in terms of sexual relationships. Because come to think of it, it's all I know, it's all I have ever had." She feels as hurt by her own words as he looks after hearing them, giving her a saddened expression. "Dammit, Stiles. I- I never had someone like you before. I don't know what it's like to actually be with someone who cares about you, the same way I don't know what it's like to care about someone this much, okay? Well, now I do but I don't know what to do, I don't know what to say to not screw it up. I don't want to be selfish and I know I said I'm not going anywhere and I'm not, Stiles, I swear, but I can't help but to doubt my every move." She gets up on impulse. "I don't want to lose our friendship. I want to make this work Stiles, but I don't know how. I want you, but I don't know what to do." It's probably the most truthful she has ever been in her life and it makes her feel much lighter, better, even if a little out of breath.
Stiles stays silent for a moment before giving her a small smile. "Lyds, I don't know what the hell you and I have going on because we can't seem to find the freaking time to figure it out, but it's something, alright? I've known it long before I even got to know the real you. And Malia is a turned page. She has nothing to do with us, right here, right now. This is me and you, Lydia. It's just us."
Lydia can only let out a whisper and give him an apologetic smile, her heart clenching at his words as she hesitantly takes a step towards him. "I'm sorry, Stiles... I- I don't want to ruin this, that's all."
He smiles too, softly, heart beating a little faster. "I don't want an apology, Lydia. Do you know what I want?" She looks at him expectant and her eyes are sparkling, sending such warmth back at him that Stiles is awestruck for a moment. There's something in them that makes him melt, a slimmer of hope maybe. He blushes even before saying the words. "I want to make out with you. God, I just want ten freaking minutes of bliss, peace and quiet with you, okay? I'm so tired of waiting on the sidelines and we keep getting interrupted, it's not fair." His dissipating anxiety still leads him to run his fingers through is hair, but a grin escapes nonetheless when he sees his banshee blushing and trying to hide a smile from him. "Lydia, if we don't try, we're never gonna get anywhere," he states the obvious.
Lydia purses her lips and nods. Of course he's right. She feels her blood warming her up without warning. "I know, you're right. I just... I thought you deserved the chance of making things right with Malia, if that was your choice. And I wasn't sure about what your choice would be, I wasn't sure-"
Stiles stops her rambling with a kiss, hard and filthy. Lydia almost loses her balance at his sudden initiative but his hands find her lower back easily to pull her closer to him and keep her steady. Tilting his head, he deepens the kiss as Lydia parts her lips for him, her own hands moving up to pull at his hair not as gently as the situation calls for but she doesn't care and he doesn't seem to mind either. Stiles pulls at her bottom lip slowly before they part, making the lack of touch agonizingly aching when he actually stops kissing her. Lydia is more out of breath than Stiles is.
His voice comes out hoarse as he smirks. "Is this clear enough for you?"
That smug look on his face always makes something deep inside her clench and Lydia finds herself nodding despite herself, biting on her bottom lip at his flushed features and messy hair, which was her doing. She grins. "Yes." She sees the truth in his eyes as clear as day and she smiles. Lydia's lips brush his for a moment before kissing him again, tenderly this time. "Oh god, yes. Yes, it is." She steals a quick kiss. "Now what are we gonna do about it?" she teases, tugging at his shirt and blushing harder than she could ever feel proud of.
His pupils dilate and Lydia notices how he stands straighter – as if he isn't tall enough as it is -, a half-crooked smile making its way to his lips easily. He hovers over her and leans to whisper in her ear. Lydia inhales his scent and for a second she might admit she's getting high on him. "We are gonna turn our phones off," he pauses to kiss below her ear, "and we are gonna make our way to your bed." Another kiss, now on the crook of her neck as he takes his jacket off and lets it fall on the bed without even looking at it. "And then we are very quietly gonna make out until I actually have to leave, which I understand isn't that far off since your mom knows I'm here and it's a school night. Doesn't matter, though." He pulls her shirt to the side a little, leaving an openmouthed kiss on her collarbone before biting the flesh softly, playfully. Lydia sighs, her hands moving up to his hair again to bring him closer like everything she's breathing at the moment isn't Stiles already. "I just want ten minutes. Ten minutes to get me through the night or I might lose my mind for a fact because of you." He moves back up her neck, the tip of his nose brushing her skin and making it break in goosebumps before nibbling at her ear. Lydia gasps before stealing a kiss of her own, feeling the skin of his neck hot against her lips and his pulse quickening. "And trust me. I've lost my mind once, I know what I'm talking about."
Lydia chuckles when she feels his lips turn into a smile against her own skin, his warm breath almost distracting her. Almost. "You're forgetting the most important thing."
He looks at her quizzically and she giggles, amused. "Which is?"
Pecking him on the lips before pushing him away, Lydia smirks. "Go lock the door."
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A/N: Feel free to leave me a review to let me know what you're thinking of the story so far.
Until next time xx
Susana