CHAPTER THREE:
it was night time, stiles, liam and marcie were watching theo go into the woods.
"i told you he was up to something." stiles said.
"we just spent three hours watching this dude play video games in his bedroom. he better be out here covering up a mass murder." liam said.
"let's find out. you still got his scent?" stiles asked liam.
"don't need it." liam said pointing to a shoe print made in the mud.
"what? what's wrong?" stiles asked liam once he stopped following them.
"i forgot, i was supposed to meet mason at the school gym." liam said.
"okay, why didn't you just tell him?" stiles said.
"tell him what?" liam asked.
"anything." stiles said.
"i can't just tell him anything." liam replied.
"why not?" stiles asked.
"because i haven't... i haven't told him everything." liam replied.
"still? we said it was okay." stiles said.
"yeah, i know, but it's not that easy. it's a lot to accept." liam said.
"liam, mason won't freak out as much as you think he will." marcie said trying to ease his nerves.
"he watched my dad blow up a berserker with a land mine. i think the groundworks been pretty throughly laid for acceptance. scott, marcie and i have been through this. okay? more than once. it's just- it's always better when they know." stiles told her.
"but what if he freaks out? what if he doesn't want to talk to me? what if he tries to stab me with something sliver? or what if-" liam stopped talking out of the blue and they heard a thud.
marcie and stiles turned around to see that liam was gone but now there was a hole in the ground. they walked over to the hole to see liam was in it.
"liam, get out of there." marcie said.
"what the hell are you doing?" stiles asked him.
liam looked at him and shrugged while marcie laughed at him.
"i... there he is. hurry up. stop screwing around." stiles told liam as him and marcie went to see theo was on a bridge.
liam got out of the hole and stood beside marcie and stiles.
"try and get his scent. get anything?" stiles asked liam.
"soap, it's nice. it smells good." liam said.
"i don't think that's what he meant." marcie said.
"not his soap, his emotional state. chemosignals, remember?" stiles said.
"oh, yeah. okay. uh, he's sad." liam said.
"he's sad?" stiles asked.
"yeah, well, not just sad... it's more like... grief." liam explained.
"grief?" stiles said.
they watched theo pick up a flower and drop it into the water.
"stiles, his sister." marcie said looking at her boyfriend.
"oh, my god. go. we have to go." stiles said.
"what? why?" liam asked.
"go. right now. just go." stiles said as they started to walk back to the jeep.
"that's the bridge where they found his sister." stiles said.
"what sister?" liam asked.
"the one that got lost and died from exposure. he's leaving a flower for her." stiles said.
"that doesn't sound evil." liam said.
"no, no it doesn't." marcie said.
"i know." stiles said.
they stopped walking when they saw theo was standing on a tree branch. he jumped down and looked up at them.
"what are you guys doing?" theo asked approaching them making liam growl at him.
"whoa. why do i get the feeling this kids tougher than he looks?" theo said looking at liam with his hands in the air.
"only when we let him off his leash." stiles joked.
"stiles, we were in little league together. and marcie me and you would always talk in history class. why are you so suspicious of me?" theo asked.
"because of these." stiles said passing him some papers.
"one of them is a speeding ticket signed by your dad eight year ago. the other one is a signature on the transfer form to beacon high. they're different signatures." stiles explained.
"huh. yeah, they do look a little different." theo said.
"no, they're totally different. signed by two different people." stiles said.
"care to explain?" marcie said crossing her arms over her chest.
"so my dad's not my dad? like he's an imposter?" theo asked.
"yeah, something like that." liam said.
"who do you think i am?" theo asked.
"we don't know yet." stiles replied.
"want me to give you a DNA sample or something?" theo asked.
"no. i don't have anything from the fourth grade to match it to." stiles said.
"you know, stiles, i came back here for scott... but i also came back for you and marcie. someone like you guys. someone who's willing to walk into the woods in the middle of the night to protect their friends. i don't have anyone like that, but scott does. you all do. i know i'm in the right place. i'm meant to be here. i'm meant to be a part of this pack." theo said.
-
when they got back to stiles' jeep, they saw that scott was parked beside him waiting by his motorcycle.
"find anything?" he asked.
"nope." stiles replied.
"nothing." marcie said getting in the passenger seat while stiles got in the drivers seat.
"i fell in a hole." liam said.
scott went by stiles' window while liam stood beside him.
"it was the bridge where his sister died, wasn't it?" scott asked.
"yes, it was. very embarrassing. so we're gonna leave now." stiles said.
when he went to start the engine, it stopped.
"son of a... liam, just do me a favor, get in the car and turn the ignition when i say." stiles asked as he got out and lifted the hood.
liam got in and sat in the drivers seat beside marcie.
"stiles?" scott said.
"be with you in a sec. try it." stiles said and liam did as told.
but the engine stopped again.
"stiles." scott said again.
"yes. okay, we followed him out here. what do you want me to say? that's i'm a stalker, huh? that i'm crazy, totally paranoid? none of this is new information." stiles snapped.
"now you're gonna try to at least give him the benefit of the doubt?" scott asked him.
"i give people the benefit of the doubt. i've given a lot of benefit to a lot of people." stiles told him.
"like derek? kira? liam?" scott said.
"i was right about peter. try it again." stiles told liam.
liam turned the engine back on but still, it stopped.
"you know, i bet you still think that there's something about him that can be saved." stiles said.
"maybe." scott replied.
"try it again." stiles said angrily.
the engine stopped once again and marcie could sense that stiles was about to snap.
"why can't you trust anyone?" scott asked calmly.
"cause you trust everyone!" stiles shouted as he punched the jeep making marcie and liam jump.
marcie could see that stiles regretted doing it. he probably just hurt his hand badly.
"are you okay?" scott asked him.
"i'm fine." stiles replied.
"you could've broken it." scott told him.
"it's not broken." stiles told him.
"let me see it." scott said.
"i'm fine." stiles said again.
"let me see it." scott said again.
this time stiles held his hand out for scott to see it. scott placed both his hands on top of it and took his pain away from his hand and it was all better.
-
the jeep finally started back up and they got back inside the jeep.
they dropped off liam at the school leaving stiles and marcie alone in the jeep.
their were driving and suddenly marcie noticed the radio stations kept changing. her magic was doing it again.
"uh, mars." stiles said.
"sorry." marcie mumbled before she closed her eyes and made the music go back to it's original station.
"you know, i hate it when you two fight." marcie said breaking the silence.
"i know. i just... i don't trust theo." stiles told her.
"i get it, you wanna protect us all. you don't want someone coming into the pack and trying to hurt us. you're not crazy for wanting to protect us, babe." marcie said as stiles looked back at her.
"i love how much you understand me." stiles told her as she smiled.
stiles parked his jeep beside the preserve making marcie look at him strangely.
"what are you-" marcie began but got cut off after stiles cupped her cheeks and smashed his lips on top of hers.
marcie and stiles felt the moment get heated pretty quickly.
they kept kissing until marcie hit her knee against something making them pull away.
"sorry." marcie said as they both laughed.
"maybe we'll have more room in the back." stiles said.
marcie nodded her head and she got into the backseat and stiles joined her.
the two of them went back to kissing each other and stiles started to unbutton her shirt.
marcie pulled stiles' hoodie over his head and they attached their lips back together.
"i love you." marcie said after they pulled away.
"and i love you." stiles replied.
-
stiles and marcie went back to his house and marcie was sitting on his bed while he wrote theo's name on his board.
"usually, we wait until they do something wrong before we declare them guilty." stiles' father said coming into the room.
"well, he's guilty of something." stiles said.
"we just have to figure out what." marcie said.
"accusations require proof. and proof always trumps instinct. it has to." his father said.
"i know, dad." stiles replied.
"let it go, stiles. get some sleep." his father said.
"he's right, you look tired." marcie said.
"hey, dad. i got it. there's something different. i know what it is." stiles said.
"okay." his father said.
"you're not wearing your wedding ring anymore." stiles told him.
marcie saw his father's face drop and she felt her heart break at them.
"you're sure this kid's guilty?" stiles' father asked him.
"absolutely." stiles replied.
"then all you gotta do is wait. if they're really guilty, eventually, they make a mistake. they always make a mistake." his father told him.