Superheroes

Wake Up My Soul

Stiles wakes with a pounding head. He always has a headache after he cries, and when he has a full-on breakdown, he's almost guaranteed to get a migraine. Derek isn't in the room, but there's a glass of water and medication bottles next to it. With a groan, he sits up, reaching for the water and meds. He pops his Adderall and the heavy duty pain reliever that will hopefully help kill the pressure in his skull.

He sits there, letting his frame go loose and relaxed as he stares at the wall opposite of the bed. The hour before he finally fell asleep for good last night is hazy. His dad stayed on the phone with him, talking about nonsense until he finally drifted off. Derek woke him up to eat some protein bars and drink some water, but Stiles just couldn't get out of the bed.

There are some clothes laid out for him on the chair in the corner, but Stiles knows that he can absolutely stay in bed for the day if he needs to. It's tempting to stay hidden from... everything. Just for a little while longer. There's no way that he can go to Columbia today, not with how emotionally raw he feels. He'd do more harm than good to the people there.

His cell phone sits on the bedside table, plugged in and charged. Stiles groans as he pulls himself closer, feeling physically sore, as well. After sending texts to his study group and an email to his professor telling them about as close to the truth as he can - that he had a very emotionally charged discussion with the people he's under contract with and won't be in today - Stiles gets up and looks at the clothes Derek laid out for him.

The sweatpants are his but the t-shirt and hoodie are Derek's. A mismatched pair of Kira's fuzzy socks that he stole when they moved to New York are laid out on top. His alpha knows him so well. After changing, Stiles grabs his phone and cautiously heads out of the bedroom. It's still fairly early, but he can hear Derek moving around in the kitchen. There's also a fresh pot of coffee ready, if the smell is anything to go by.

Stiles is surprised to see Thor sitting at the island, watching Derek work. He jolts, because while he remembers asking Derek to have Thor block them, he assumed it would be a one time thing. He renewed the random information blocks when he thought about it, but part of his own magic was that it was always working, always in motion. Maybe it was that way for Thor, too.

Derek doesn't look up from the stove, but he does hold out an arm toward Stiles. He doesn't hesitate, walking over to Derek and snuggling into his side. Derek rubs a hand up and down his back, soothing away the last of the tension. They stand in silence as Derek stirs the oatmeal before removing it from the burner. Even though he doesn't want to eat, Stiles needs fuel for the day and he's even more grateful that Derek is here with him, taking care of him. He's always been absolute crap at self-care.

Placing a kiss to his temple, Derek draws back to look Stiles in the face. "You need to call Lydia. You can probably get away with a text to Scott, though. Your dad will fill him in. Melissa wants you to call her, too. She was with your dad last night."

He swallows, even though he knew that was to be expected. Stiles threw so much hurt and panic down the pack bonds that everyone felt it last night. And if Melissa was with his dad, then she knows how bad it really was due to the phone call.

The pack jokingly started to call his dad and Scott's mom Papa Stilinski and Mama McCall when they really settled, but Stiles has been using that name for her for years before. He needs to hear her voice just as much as he needs to hear his dad's.

"Can you run interference on Lydia for me?" Derek gives him an epic bitchface, because there is no such thing as running interference on Lydia when she really sinks her teeth into something, and she and Stiles are equally protective of each other. "Please? I'll call her tonight, but I don't want her hunting me down ready to break everyone's ears because I need a breather between the many emotionally draining phone calls I'm going to make. Parents and family trump ex-girlfriends." Not that he would ever say that to her face.