You Know What That Was For! (A STRREK Fanficiton)

Chapter 17

Stiles' POV

I sit on the couch in Derek's study and wait for him to follow me in. It takes him longer than I thought, but soon enough he's marching into the elegant room and slamming the door shut behind him.

"I'm sorry" he sighs, flopping down next to me. "I shouldn't have done that to your neck. I wasn't thinking."

"Why did you do it?" I whisper, looking up at him through my lashes and see a torn expression on Derek's face.

"I... it's... it's a way of marking you that isn't permanent" he finally gets out and I think back to what I know about werewolves, I don't remember reading anything about marking.

"I don't understand." He sighs again and looks away, thinking about what he wants to say and it becomes obvious to me then, that Derek is keeping a secret, and he's keeping it from me.

"It's like, you know how dogs pee when you take them for a walk, to mark their territory, so other dogs know not to touch it, well werewolf marking is similar.

"You're not peeing on me!" I protest, holding my hands up in defence.

"No, no. Werewolves don't pee to mark, it's different for us, we only mark when- when we need to. So the bruise, whilst it looks like a normal hickey, is infused with my scent so other wolves know not to touch you." Derek shrugs like it's the most obvious thing in the world. But I'm only around the Pack and it's not like any of them are going to start kissing me.

"But why did you need to mark me, and won't they know that you've marked me so doesn't that, you know, give it away?" I frown, reaching up, I trace my fingers over the spot where the hickey is, like it will help me understand Derek's reasoning.

"They don't know about marking. When a werewolf finds it mate they mark for life and they do this by biting their mate, usually on the neck. It's an instinct for us to do that. The only members of the Pack that have been marked are Erica- by Boyd and Danny- by Jackson. But it was instinct for them, they don't understand what it represents." Derek hasn't bitten me. The bruise will fade. Does that mean he's not in this for a long term thing?

"Oh." I mumble, looking away from him, looking out the window where the wind is blowing leaves across the grass and shaking the trees so that they sway softly like they're slow dancing for the sky.

"W-what's wrong?" Derek asks, moving closer to me.

"Nothing." I lie, turning to give him a fake smile which he rolls his eyes at.

"Bullshit I can smell how unhappy you are. What is it? What did I say?" He pushes and I stand and walk towards the window to get some distance between us.

"It's nothing."

"Stiles don't lie to me!" He shouts and I flinch further away from him. A heavy sigh erupts from Derek's lips and when I turn to look at him he has his elbows resting on his knees and his head in his hands. "I'm sorry." He tells me, finally looking up at me and there's anguish in his eyes and there's a horrid pang in my chest. I go to him. Falling to my knees at his feet and burying my face in his lap. "Please talk to me." He whispers, running his fingers through my hair and I let my eyes fall shut at the sensation.

"You talk to me. Why did you need to mark me when this is supposed to just be causal?" I mumble into his thigh, I feel Derek's hand falter a beat before his fingers continue to weave through my hair.

"It's... complicated." He sighs, and I'm about to insist when he carries on talking. "The other day, after the fight you had with Jackson, your dad asked to speak to me. He asked me what was going on between us and I told him nothing, because at that point nothing had happened, but I told him I liked you..." he trails off to let me process his words and I cast my mind back to that day. "I told him not to worry about anything happening because you're still young and you've had a lot going on but he, well he gave us his blessing I suppose. Said you were eighteen soon and that I make you happy." I can't help but smile, my Dad is the best man I know.