Shatter My Reality

Eternal Life

Stiles' vision swam as he stared at the meaningless runes on the page in front of him. His head was starting to ache. He pushed the book back and rubbed his eyes. He'd been at this for hours. He'd been able to read and understand one spell. It wasn't the one Sareen wanted. However, it looked really useful.

"Tired?" Gatlin asked, leaning against the doorway. He'd stopped hovering about an hour in and now only checked in on occasion.

"I've never read runes like this. I'm still new to my magic, and this is..." Stiles sighed. If he didn't parse this spell soon, Derek was gonna pay.

"Not to scare you into hurrying, but Sareen just went to make sure your alpha isn't up to anything nefarious. He strikes me as the type to not give up on a taken-pack member."

Stiles ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah."

Silence hung. Gatlin looked at him with a sympathetic frown.

"Can I help in some way?" he offered.

Stiles rubbed his temples. "I dunno. Talk to me about something, help me clear my head."

"Talk about what?" Gatlin asked, pushing off the door frame and reclaiming his spot on the edge of the bed.

"I dunno. Tell me what you plan to do with eternal life." Stiles waved a hand through the air.

Gatlin's shoulders tensed.

"What no grand plan to take over the world?" Stiles snickered.

Gatlin's eyes cast to the window. "No," he answered simply.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but usually people who are about to get eternal life are a little more excited."

"You ever met someone with eternal life who is happy?" Gatlin snapped.

Stiles frowned. "Can't say I've met anyone with eternal life."

"Exactly. We aren't meant to live forever."

"Eternal life doesn't mean you can't be killed. It just means—

"It means watching loved ones die. It means never having a family. Do you know the price of eternal life?"

Stiles shook his head. This was not the way he thought this conversation would go.

"You're essentially dead. You have no need for food or sleep. You can't reproduce."

"Do you also crave blood and gain a garlic allergy?"

Gatlin shot Stiles a glare.

"Sorry." Stiles held up his hands. Maybe that was too far. Gatlin seemed genuinely distressed.

"If you don't want it, why not tell Sareen?"

"I've tried talking to her about my concerns, but she won't listen. This is what our lives have been consumed by for the past seventeen years. Finding Claudia and that damn book." He gestured to the tome in front of Stiles.

"Why stay then?"

"She'd have me killed if I tried to leave. She'd see it as a betrayal, abandonment."

Stiles tilted his head. So there was doubt and resentment. Stiles had been waiting for his moment to dig into that more.

"Isn't her whole thing taking out unworthy alpha's?"

"Yeah?" Gatlin frowned.

"Sounds like she's pretty unworthy to me."

Gatlin's eyes dropped to his hands. Stiles had to hold back a smile.