𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐒𝐎𝐎𝐍, derek hale ✓

𝐓𝐄𝐍

┏━━━━⋆°.☾⋆.ೃ࿔*:⋆━━━━┓

OH WISE ADVICE GIVER

THERE WAS A KNOCKING AT THE DOOR, LACKING THE FAMILIAR PATTERN SHE WAS SO USED TO.

Hannah was already home, she always seemed to have Thursdays off, and was bounding towards the door. From Emerson's room, she could detect her voice and one she knew well. Only problem was, she had no clue was he was doing at her damn front door.

"Emerson! You've got company!"

Rather than move from her perched position on her bed, she merely yelled back for her aunt's sake— he'd be able to hear her whisper enough just fine.

"Send him up!"

The pair near the front door exchanged pleasantries before she heard the telltale footsteps ascending the stairs. They trekked all the way down the hall, stopping right in her doorway.

She looked up from her phone at the dirty blond, clad in what she would've deemed to be Isaac clothes (aka, he wasn't wearing that stupid leather jacket).

He fiddled with the hem of his brown sweater. "Your aunt seems cool," he said, all but hovering near the doorframe.

"She's not my real aunt," she brushed off haphazardly, only for her eyes to widen, "and I don't know why I just told you that."

"I'll trade you a secret for a secret?" he offered, and at Emerson's head nodding toward her bed, Isaac entered her room. He took a seat at the foot of her bed, leaning against the wall it was backed against. "Erica and Boyd want to leave Derek's pack."

The blonde girl was stumped, suddenly. Sure, Derek wasn't the best Alpha in the entire world, or in Beacon County for that matter, but to leave him so suddenly? "Why the hell would they do that?"

Isaac gave her a shrug. "With the Argents and the kanima, I think they know we've lost," he muttered out, albeit solemnly. "They know there's others out there now and, I don't know..."

She nodded slowly. "You came for some advice, then?"

"Even though I'm not your favourite person right now, I trust you," he said, and for some reason Emerson's stomach lurched. "Do you think they're doing the right thing? I mean, should I go with them?"

The Lahey boy had come for some advice, because for some god awful reason, he trusted Emerson; and for an equally as awful reason, she seemed to like that he trusted her.

Something in her started to thrum to life, something she knew was dangerous for her to feel. Not dangerous for her, no, she could handle anything— it dangerous for him.

"Never thought I'd say it, but you're better off with Derek than running off to god knows where," she told him, and that was her painfully honest opinion. "If you tell him I said that—"

He scoffed out a laugh, interrupted her train of speech. "You'll kill me, yeah. I know."

Going after a random pack like Erica and Boyd were doing was bound to be troublesome because packs simply didn't work like that. You couldn't storm up to the nearest Alpha and demand a place in their pack; a spot was either earned or offered, not by demand.

Silence dawned on the pair before Isaac spoke up. "Can't I say with you?" he asked a little quietly.

Emerson would be lying if she said that such a thought hadn't crossed her mind at least once in the past few weeks. She didn't have a clue as to why she felt so protective over this boy, but he'd never understand her true reasoning of what answer she had to give him.

"You can't, Isaac," she denied, the words sounding bitter as they left her tongue. "I'm more trouble than I'm worth, and that's something you don't need to worry about."

His eyebrows furrowed. "You wouldn't have to deal with the trouble alone, not if I was your—"

"Don't say it," Emerson ground out, almost pleadingly. "Please don't say it."

Maybe the pained look on her face was an indication to her dilemma, because Isaac's eyes flashed with something akin to pity. She longed for a beta to call her own, but she wasn't selfish.

"You're not the trouble," he stated, the words forming on his tongue as he thought them, "you're in trouble."

Emerson ran her tongue over her teeth anxiously. "My problems are my problems alone," she explained with a sigh. "Problems that innocent betas shouldn't have to deal with."

Isaac rolled his eyes. "I'm not that innocent," he tried, "I mean, I've been to jail, broke out of j—"

"People have died because of me, Isaac!" she snapped, the coil of anguish in her chest splintering. She hated the way he recoiled, but these were words he had to hear. "I won't add your name to that list. End of discussion."

Thankfully, he nodded. "I shouldn't have pushed it, I'm sorry."

Emerson huffed out a discontented noise. "You don't have to apologize," she said. "Just thinking about you getting hurt makes me sick, that's all."

This wasn't something she'd ever voiced aloud, partly because she had no clue as to why she was feeling such a way. It was always rare for her to interact with other werewolves, so perhaps that was why.

Isaac scratched at his neck. "Oh, cool," he mumbled out, though there was a hint of a grin on his face— like he enjoyed hearing Emerson say those very words. "Do you feel like that around other werewolves too? Like Derek?"

"Derek can choke for all I care." That earned a hearty laugh from the boy across from her. "No but seriously; I might not agree with Derek's methods, but he makes his intentions clear. You might not get lucky somewhere else."

"Got it," was his response, a small smile now on his face. "If it's any consolation, you'd be my first choice now."

Emerson had to avert her gaze to her hands at that declaration, trying to curb the smile of her own that threatened to phase onto her face.

Instead she rolled her eyes, feigning a carefully crafted sort of nonchalance.

"Yeah, I guess you'd be my first choice too, Lahey."

⋆°.☾⋆.ೃ࿔*:⋆

[ wyn's note ]

canon divergence where isaac sees emmy instead of scott @ deatons... you shall see why soon ;)

but this is literally brother and sister activities right here folks, no matter how much emerson tries to downplay it LOL

all my love!! thanks for 2k MWAH