How To Get The Girl

How You Get The Girl

Stand there like a ghost
Shaking from the rain, rain
She'll open up the door
And say, are you insane?
Say it's been a long six months
And you were too afraid to tell her what you want
And that's how it works
It's how you get the girl
And then you say

"No!" The word ripped through him suddenly, so fast that he wasn't even sure he said it. Until he heard a crash and Scott came bolting into the room, Isaac behind him.

"What happened?" Scott asked.

"It smells in here. Did you have sex?" Isaac looked at him, face wrinkled with disgust. Stiles couldn't have cared less.

He held out the note. "She's gone."

Scott came forward and took it, looking completely lost. His eyes searched Stiles's, the concern obvious on his face. Stiles shook his head and let his eyes dart to the paper, feeling too exhausted to explain.

Scott stared down at the paper. "Holy shit." He held it out to Isaac, who had come up behind him. Scott stared at Stiles for a few moments without speaking before startling him with a harsh, "No."

"That's what I said," Stiles said dully.

"No, he means no," Isaac intervened, grabbing Stiles by the arm and yanking him to his feet.

"What the hell?" Stiles snapped, wanting only to curl up in bed and never move again. This actually hurt so badly that it was a physical ache, originating in his chest and echoing through his entire body.

"No," Scott repeated. "You can't let this happen."

"I've tried-"

"Do not say everything," Isaac said. "You have not tried everything. Not yet."

"You know her better than anyone," Scott said. "There has to be something.

Stiles stared between them for a heartbeat before his heart leapt in his chest. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days was playing in his head, or about two minutes of it anyway, as well as Love, Actually and a thousand others. "There is something." He took the note from Scott and crumbled it, tossing it to the floor as he walked to the dresser and pulled jeans on over his boxers. He then pulled on a shirt and grabbed his wallet.

He looked at the other two. "There is something I can do."'

"What?" Isaac asked.

"A grand gesture," Stiles replied with a grin. "By the way," he said slowly. "What do you know about a red string?"

I want you for worse or for better
I would wait for ever and ever
Broke your heart, I'll put it back together
I would wait for ever and ever

Lydia didn't want to admit how much she had cried on the drive to her apartment. She had pulled over multiple times, hugging herself as she sobbed. This was by far the hardest thing she had ever done- the hardest thing she would ever have to do.

But she knew it had to be done. Once trust was broken, there was nothing left. And the trust was definitely broken. So that was it, wasn't it?

By the time Lydia got to her sad little apartment and switched the light switch on, she felt like sinking into the floor and dying. But then she heard a small something that sounded like a bark and looked around. It was a bark. There was a puppy sitting on her floor.

And then Stiles came into the room from the kitchen. And then she realized that the stereo in the kitchen was hooked up and it was playing How You Get the Girl by Taylor Swift.

"You're right," he said, eyes tearing right into her soul. "I love Taylor Swift. You're right about a lot of things. The shirt I bought a year and a half ago. It's crap. I got rid of it. My Jeep? It sucked going a year without it. And us? I was an idiot. I shouldn't have assumed that you didn't know what you wanted. Ever. Or what you needed."

"Stiles..." Lydia stared at him, feeling completely lost, not knowing what to say.

"I know that this is pushing a lot. I know you said goodbye, that you didn't want to see me again, that it might be too soon after Prada. But this dog isn't a replacement. It's just... It's a dog that needed a home. Badly. And this... You... Me... Lydia..." He looked pained, brown eyes welling with unshed tears. "I will fight for you every day for the rest of my life. I would have chased you down at the airport if you had flown. Since you didn't, this was a pretty damned close second I thought."

"How did you beat me?" she whispered.

"Honestly?" His lips quirked with a small smile. "A lot of criminal speeding combined with shortcuts. But that's not the point." She started to ask another question but he took a step forward and shook his head. "Please let me finish. I need to get this out. Lydia Martin, I love you. I will always love you. If you don't want me, I'll take the hint. I'll back off. But Lydia, I want to make you smile again. I want you to feel safe. I want you to know that someone loves you just as you are, that someone will always be there to catch you if you fall."

He slowly pulled a small box out of the pocket of his jeans. "Lydia, you are imperfectly perfect. And that's okay with me. I know your flaws and I love them. And anything I don't know, I can't wait to find out over the years with you. And I know," his voice broke, "that you feel that way about me. I know that you know me better than anyone, I know that you still love me, and I know that you would happily take the bad days with the good."

He went down on one knee and Lydia covered her mouth, staring in shock as he looked up at her. "Lydia Martin, I love you. I will always love you. I found out, you know, about the red string of fate. Our string... It's the same string, Lyds. You know it is. You and me, we're soulmates. It's you and me, Lyds. Always." His brown eyes were filled with more love than anyone could ever deserve.

"And that's why..." He opened the box and slowly and pulled out a small piece of red string. "I don't have a ring. I didn't have time, really. So... I thought this would work. It's fitting, for us. Lydia Martin, I love you and I cannot imagine a life without you. I want to wake up to you every morning. I want to hold you when you're sad and I want to smile with you when you're happy. So, Lydia."

Stiles slowly held out his hand for Lydia's, which she handed him automatically. He gazed up at her. "Will you marry me?"

The answer was out before she had time to think about it, not that thinking about it would have changed things. "Yes."

Stiles was tearing up again but he carefully tied the string around her ring finger and got to his feet. They met in a soft, loving, passionate kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck, twisting her fingers into his hair, and he wrapped one arm around her shoulder blades and one around her waist.

It wasn't that she suddenly forgot every ounce of pain from the last year, it was that she could see again exactly how much he loved her, how much he wanted to protect her. She could see him, the good and the bad, and she wanted every bit of him, every bit of the life they would have together. It would be imperfect, but that was what would be perfect.

And that was everything she wanted.

And that's how it works
It's how you get the girl, girl, oh
And that's how it works
It's how you get the girl, girl
And that's how it works
It's how you get the girl, girl, oh
And that's how it works
It's how you get the girl, girl

A/N: Okay, guys. We're not quite done yet. The epilogue will be up soon. Thanks guys. This has been a ball and I hope you liked it.