Prelude

Chapter 39: EMOTIONS ARE STUPID

Guinevere woke up on Thanksgiving with her ribs being crushed by Isaac's leg as he tried to move away from Stiles' flailing arms. She groaned and Isaac moved his leg. She shifted around a bit, moving from the pile and grabbing her phone from the table, noting the 20% battery sign. She had five voicemails, one from her mom, one from her dad, one from Drayton, one from a number she didn't know and one from Dallas. Grabbing a blanket from the couch, Guinevere headed out to the porch. It was still early and fog clung to the lawn and tree line, giving the yard a haunted kind of feel but the leaves on the ground were still so pretty that Guinevere didn't mind. She sat down on the steps and listened to the voicemail from Dallas first. 

"Hi, Guin. You're probably already asleep, it's pretty late. Um, I just wanted to tell you that your friend Liam is amazing. Anytime your dad would edge towards getting out of line, Liam was on him. There were a few times I thought Scott was going to have to physically restrain him but it all worked out. Scott, by the way, what a looker. You certainly know how to pick 'em. Well, I guess it was meant to be but you know what I mean. Every single one of your partners was amazing last night. They were patient but firm and so ready to defend you, it was heart warming, honestly. Anyways, I hope we see you tomorrow. We're still doing dinner with your parents around two but Dray and I are open for breakfast if you wanted to get together. Okay, I'll let you go now. I love you Guinevere. Good night." Dallas hung up and Guinevere saved the message. Guinevere opened the next message, this one from Drayton. 

"Hey, Guin. It's your favorite alien." Guinevere smiled, playing with her bottom lip. "Dallas is calling you from the other room so you might hear him every so often but, uh, I just wanted to call and tell you that I'm on your side here. I know it's probably not healthy to think of it as sides but that's not going to stop me from thinking of it that way." Guinevere huffed a small laugh. "Anyways, we're going to do dinner with your parents as planned but if you want to get together with Dally and I first, we can do breakfast. Dallas is even offering to give up the game for this, that's how much he wants to see you. Dallas won't even give the game up when I offer sex." Guinevere laughed again softly. "I love you kid. We're here for you. Bye." Guinevere saved that message too and then opened the message from the number she didn't know, figuring if it was from some spam call she could delete it and move on easily. Instead, she was greeted with the sound of the Sheriff. 

"Hey Guinevere, it's Sheriff Stilinski. Stiles just left the station with Derek in tow, arguing about pizza toppings so I wish you luck in that department," Guinevere smiled, "but he stopped by to tell me, rather crudely I might add, that you two are going out but there's the whole pack soulmate factor that I don't completely understand yet but we'll get there one day, I'm sure. He also mentioned your parents weren't too thrilled with the news. I'm really sorry about that. The supernatural world isn't always easy to navigate, although it seems you're doing a fantastic job," Guinevere smiled and felt her eyes start to water, "I just wanted to let you know that we're on your side and we're here for you. Once you're pack, there's no changing it. You're in for life whether you want to be or not and the pack take care of their own. Anyway, good luck, kid. Bye." The Sheriff hung up and Guinevere saved that message too, adding his number to her contacts as his office phone. She hesitated before listening to the message from her mom. 

"Hi, baby," her mom breathed out, her voice sounding watery and Guinevere remembered the sound from when she had been diagnosed with cancer all those years ago. "I know you're probably asleep, it's been an exciting day to say the least. Liam told us that you were staying with them for the night so that's good that you have a place to stay." She sounded like she was trying to keep herself together long enough to make the call. Everything sounded like forced positivity. "Your friends are really nice. Well, I guess they're not your friends, are they? Soulmates." She corrected herself. "I always believed that soulmates existed. Your dad thought I was crazy anytime I brought it up while we were dating but I just knew they were real. Kind of like how I just know you're absolutely head over heels for every single one of them. I haven't seen you this happy since Chicago. At first I thought it was the lack of hospital visits and meds." Her mom laughed a bit and it sounded shaky. "But then you started going out more, having a normal teenage life, and you were so happy. All the time. What I'm getting at," she took a breath and hesitated, "is I love you, Guin. You are going to always be my daughter and if you're truly in love with your soulmates, then I'm in your corner." That was the most genuine she had sounded the entire message. "Anyways, it's late and you're probably asleep. I hope you'll come to dinner tomorrow. There's still a place for you. I love you sweetheart. Good night." She hung up and Guinevere's finger hovered over the save button. She clicked on her dad's message. 

For a moment, there wasn't anything. Just the sound of someone breathing. Guinevere's eyes pricked with tears and she bit her bottom lip as she looked down at her lap. 

"Hey, Guin." Her dad's voice made her cry and she wasn't sure why. "It's your dad. Uh, I just wanted to call and tell you I'm sorry for not believing you. I've been suspicious of supernatural creatures for a while now, there's some things you see in the field that can't be explained by human bounds, like Dallas said. But seeing it is different than thinking it and I guess I freaked when I saw Liam. Well, I don't guess. I definitely freaked." There was a beat of silence. "Anyways, I love you Guin. Even when you're testing my limits by being in a relationship with seven and a half people. Sometimes I think I forget that you're grown up now and you're not an eight year old girl anymore." His voice sounded fond and a little amused, like he was smiling at memories. "There was a time when we weren't even sure you would make it this far. It seemed so far away. But look at you. You made it, and I couldn't be more proud of you. If you get this before you go to sleep, you can come home tonight. You can come home, Guin." Guinevere was close to sobbing, taking a big, gasping inhale as she cried. "I love you kiddo. Bye." Her phone slipped from her fingers and clattered to the porch as she cried. There were footsteps behind her and someone sat down next to her, strong, thin arms pulling her into their side. 

"It's okay." Melissa's soft voice said as she hugged Guinevere. "Everything is alright." She leaned her head on top of Guinevere's, staring out at the foggy morning.