𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐒𝐎𝐎𝐍, derek hale ✓

𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘 𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍

┏━━━━⋆°.☾⋆.ೃ࿔*:⋆━━━━┓

LEAN ON ME

THE PRESCOTT FAMILY OWNED A SMALL CABIN JUST AN HOUR OUTSIDE OF BEACON COUNTY.

Emerson remembered her first time being taken there, only a few weeks after she'd been shuffled into Hannah's care and was still vaguely distrusting of the blonde woman. It was always like that whenever she moved from one guardian to the next, but it felt different this time around.

What happened in Rochester left a stain on the young girl's soul; she'd gotten too close, too comfortable, and lives were lost because of her. That was certainly something she would carry for the rest of her life, and was certainly why she'd made Hannah's life a living hell when she first showed up.

Emerson thought that if she pushed hard enough, perhaps Hannah would send her away. Maybe she'd send her to live on her own, or in some state sanctioned foster home where no one knew what she was. She hoped for that at first, because at least Hannah would be fine— at least she'd be safe from the curse that was being Emerson Avery's guardian.

But Hannah Prescott couldn't be fooled so easily, brushing off all the off-putting remarks and slamming of doors that the blonde girl could muster up. No, she let Emerson blow off all the steam she wanted before she hauled the pair of them up to the cabin.

Something changed between the pair that weekend, and although it wasn't an overnight fix, Emerson's comments and reservations about the woman eventually dwindled down into nothing. No one really knew about the rocky start to their relationship because they'd always seemed so close. Like they were really family.

"You're family now. This cabin is yours just as much as it is mine."

Every time Emerson needed a getaway, she just said the word and Hannah would have them packed up as soon as her request for time off got approved. It was the perfect place to hide— a place where time didn't exist until you wanted it to.

That was exactly why Emerson hauled herself and Derek into her car the next day, when everybody cleared out and what remained of Vernon Boyd was taken care of. She knew the look on his face all too well, because having someone close to you die because of who you were? Yeah, that was something Emerson had some expertise in.

She hadn't been in months, long before she revealed her true identity by finding Isaac in the utility closet, but it still looked the same. It had a weathered wooden exterior, stained a deep chestnut from years of sun and rain, which made it blend seamlessly with the surrounding forest.

The blonde guided them from the car and into the cabin, Derek remaining as wordless as he'd been since the night before. Granted, he was always a man of few words, but this time it felt different. This time he looked different, like this loss piled onto all the others was his tipping point. It was a miracle he even got in the damn car to begin with.

Shuffling their way inside, it was just as she remembered it. The few remaining members of the Prescott family would filter in every once in a while, a great uncle and a second cousin, but it was mostly just Hannah over the years until Emerson came along.

It was a cozy space, with a quaint little kitchen with an adjacent living room. There was one bedroom and a bathroom, though the couch was the pullout that Emerson had gotten well acquainted with throughout the years. The minute she crossed the threshold, however, was the minute she saw something on the fireplace mantle.

Dropping the two bags she'd packed on their behalf, she instantly migrated over to it. It was a picture frame, one she figured Hannah had brought up earlier in the year when Emerson had been gone for the weekend due to a quarter-finals  away game. It was of the two blondes, a selfie that the Prescott woman had taken, both smiling with their kitchen in the background.