Bend The Rules , Stiles Stilinski ² ✓

[ 20 ] but I'm not him

BUT I'M NOT HIM

"Derek?" Jennifer called out as she entered the Hale loft in a hurry, "Derek, where are you?"

"Right here." The Hale man revealed himself, but his expression was stern, and unforgiving.

"Thank God!" Jennifer faked relief rushing towards him, "Something happened at the recital, at the school, okay? I need to tell you before you hear it, before you hear it for any of them."

"From who?"

"Scott, Stiles... Aspen...." said the woman, "They're gonna tell you things— things you can't believe. You have to trust me, okay? You trust me."

"What is it?"

"Promise you'll listen to me."

"I promise."

But Jennifer could sense the hostile dishonesty from him.

"...They're already here, aren't they?" She concluded aloud, to which Derek nodded ever so slightly.

Seconds later, the trio of teenagers emerged from behind one of the walls.

Stiles' eyes were brimming with threatening tears over the thought of his father being in danger.

Scott's eyes were swimming in states of concern and worry for the same reason.

And Aspen's face revealed absolutely nothing.

She was choosing to feel numb instead of letting all the pain in. Physically, her wrists were covered in burns and bruises from the restraints of being tied up, but other than that, nothing would suggest the ordeal she'd been through that night.

She was blocking out the worry over Stiles' father, the pain over the running thought in the back of her mind about leaving her home behind, the evident trauma that Jennifer had inflicted on her earlier that night, the betrayal of her brother, the revelation of her father, and lastly, the feeling of guilt over absolutely all of it.

It was easier to feel nothing than let all of that in at once.

Because after all, there's only so much darkness a person can take before they're consumed by it.

"So, they told you it was me? That I'm the one taking people?"
Jennifer spoke more viciously now as she looked at the three teenagers.

"We told him you're the one killing people." Scott corrected.

"Oh, that's right." she scoffed, "Committing human sacrifices? What, cutting their throats? Yeah, I probably do it on my lunch hour— that way, I can get back to teaching high school English the rest of the day. Makes perfect sense."

"Where's my dad?" Stiles said tearfully, feeling more defeated than ever.

"How should I know?" Jennifer played dumb, making Aspen dig her nails into her palms to keep herself together, "Derek, tell me you don't believe this?"

"Do you know what happened to Stiles' father?" Derek asked bluntly.

"No!""Ask her why she almost killed Aspen and Lydia." Scott deadpanned, a bitter taste growing in Aspen's mouth at the reminiscence of it.

Above finding out her adoptive parents were dead, or the fact her brother was responsible, or being kidnapped in the middle of the woods after shifting for the first time, or coming face to face with her real father, she'd never felt more traumatised than she did tonight.