Empathy ⌯ Stiles Stilinski

[23] the inhaler trick

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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄
the inhaler trick

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( lunatic; pt.ii )

( trigger warning —— panic attacks )

MADDIE was already up when she heard the knock on the door. She had been sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed and a blanket up to her neck to shield her from the cold of early winter mornings. She's just thankful spring is coming in a month, and it'll at least be slightly warmer. Stiles came down a few minutes ago, his feet sliding against the floor and tired groans falling from his lips. It made her feel a little guilty that she hadn't stopped him from drinking when she knew he had probably had a little too much, but it was also very hilarious to watch him drop into the chair and rest his head against the table to get an extra five minutes of sleep.

The handles of two bags hang on Harry's index and middle finger, marking them white due to the weight. He offers them to her with a smile——a forced smile that tells her he's absolutely overjoyed to be up and out at seven in the morning to deliver supplies to his cousin who made the stupid decision of sneaking out the night before.

He was asleep by the time she had called him at nearly one in the morning, but she knew she had to because she didn't have anything around Stiles' house that she could use. Another thing that made her feel bad because the meds that Harry is taking for his injury make him seriously tired. If the bags under his eyes are any indication, he hasn't had a good night's sleep in days, and considering what he went through five days ago, there's no reason to question why he wouldn't. She wonders if he's having nightmares. The thought of her being the cause of it all makes her stomach drop.

Maddie takes one bag in each hand, careful to not drop the bags or injure her cousin any more than he already is in the process. She gently places her school bag by the shoes, keeping the bag with a change of clothes in her hand. Her attention is caught by the engine running behind him, looking over to see his friend Kyle resting his arm on the open window as he looks over to the house. He offers a smile and a civil wave to Maddie when he spots her. Since Harry can't drive——due to both the medication he's on and the fact that his right arm is caught in a sling for at least a month (according to the doctors anyway)——he has to be chauffeured everywhere that's not in walking distance.

Maddie wishes she could be there to see Coach's heartbroken face when he gets told that one of his best players is out of the game for some time.

She gives Kyle a tired smile, waving kindly to his girlfriend sitting in the passenger seat before she looks back to Harry. He doesn't waste any time after her attention is back on him before he says, "Dad wants to talk to you after school."

Harry wasn't the only one who found out she had snuck out——what was she expecting when her aunt and uncle are now paranoid about leaving them alone for more than ten minutes and keep checking up on them both to the point where it was seriously starting to annoy her? Honestly, she hadn't expected to be gone for so long, planning to be back by eleven the latest, but one thing led to another and then. . . boom, it was midnight and her one way home decided to walk out and leave her stranded at the house she's currently standing in. She is still trying to process why Scott would do that.