Through the years

37.

Beacon hills - 2023

"I believe we're nearing the time when you kidnapped Stiles, right?" Cora said with a happy smile as she glanced at the visibly blushing Derek. Of course, it was very subtle and only the trained eyes of Cora and Peter were able to catch it. 

But it was there nonetheless. 

"'Kidnapped'?" Scott repeated, finding it hard to believe what he had just heard and Cora nodded, her smile never faltering. 

"I didn't kidnap Stiles." Derek grumbled stubbornly under his breath but they all heard it anyway while the wolves all heard the jump in his heartbeat. 

It was a lie. 

"Why, may I ask, would you feel the need to kidnap my child?" Noah asked with an arched brow in the brooding wolf's direction and Derek let out a loud sigh of defeat, closing his eyes for a brief moment before opening them again only to throw a nonchalant shrug. 

"It was...a surprise trip.." he finally admitted and more than one of them thought it weird. But they brushed it off as that wasn't the first weird thing the alpha had told them since Stiles had left.

"With Stiles?" Lydia asked with an arched brow and Derek nodded once. "Only Stiles?" she asked and although the alpha seemed reluctant to agree, he still did so and avoided her piercing gaze. 

Now, Lydia wasn't stupid, she knew there was something right there. It was as if they were all missing something important, like a key information in the story of the Hale pack's encounter with Stiles which had been missed by everyone. Something the Hales were all purposely keeping to themselves since the very beginning. However, what Lydia had suspicions about was simply too big to be true and she couldn't possibly imagine it really happening in any lifetime or universe. So, just like everyone else, she brushed it off and focused on the conversation. 

"Where did you go?" Liam asked, curious at that. His alpha really wasn't one for trips like these so it truly was a surprise that the wolf would go on one and that he'd be the one organising it. It really made Liam curious as to where Derek would go for a trip like this and what they'd do. Maybe they could all go on one in the near future. 

"At the foot of Beacon Hills mountain." 

"That’s quite far but not as far away as I thought it would be." Erika couldn't hold back her remark and Derek sighed. 

"I didn't want to go too far in case the pack would need us for anything. It was the safest place to go to for the trip."

"Did Stiles like it?" Noah asked this time. "He's not the best hiker in town.."

"Oh, I'm sure he loved it." Peter snickered before winking at his nephew. "Isn't that right, Derek?"

"Shut up."

"What did you guys do?" Allison asked. She gathered that if Stiles, of all people, loved the trip when he never enjoyed hiking in the first place, then that must mean the trip was incredible. 

"Yes, Der, what did you guys do?" Cora teased, wiggling her eyebrows for only her older brother to see and he let out a low growl at that which got a laugh out of the young woman. 

"Nothing that concerns you, you brat." Derek grumbled and they all held back a noise of surprise. Their alpha was behaving like a real older brother being annoyed at his bratty little sister and it was the first time they were witnessing such a sight. 

"How long did you stay there?" Jackson wondered, putting an end to the unusual display and Derek turned his attention back to his pack. 

"A week."