Tiptoe { Allenski }

Gaps

Stiles

I woke to a pounding in my head and aching limbs. I sit up slowly and rub my eyes, trying to remember what had happened. Then it all came flooding back.

The bad flash.

As my mind ran over the situation I remembered the look of anger on Barry's face when the man brought me into the room. At first I smile, knowing that Barry cared for me, but then my detective brain kicked in and I was suspicious. That much anger for a stranger? Unlikely. Barry knew him.

Running my hands down my face I swing my legs over the side of my bed and stand up slowly. Making my way downstairs after I was ready for work, I hear Joe and Barry in the kitchen.

"Do I just ask him?"

"No Barry. You have to wait, you can't tell him anything until we find out what he knows."

My feet stop and a frown do on my face. Were they talking about me?

When I do come down, Joe smiles at me and Barry gives me this lost look that leaves me confused.

"Hey guys."

"Morning." Barry mutters, swinging his bag over his shoulder and making his way to the door.

"Hey let me get my breakfast Barry!" I say, confused. We usually ate breakfast before we left. "Are we eating on the road?"

"You can ride with me Stiles. Barry's having an off day." Joe says, rolling his eyes at me, trying to be friendly, but I can see past it.

I simply nod, and watch Barry slip through the door without saying more than two words to me.

***

"Well that was a long day." I laugh, throwing my bag onto the couch. I turn to Barry, who hadn't said a word since we left the station. "You ok Bear?"

"Um..." He looks dazed for a second, and then looks me in the eye, almost accusingly, and seems to stare at the splattering of bruises that covered my face from last night. "Yeah I'm just gonna... Go meet some friends."

"Oh... But tonight is the mets game, I thought we were going to watch it?"

He takes a minute to reply, silently looking down at his hands. "Sorry Stiles."

As he leaves me in the house on my own, I make up my mind. It's been a few weeks and I'm still not wanted here, so I'm moving out.

***

It's dark.

All I can see is the faint outline of  my school. BHH as it was when I saw it last. 

My heart pounds, school at night? That can only mean one thing. Danger.

And as I expected, I can suddenly hear footsteps behind me in the corridor. I turn slowly, afraid of what might be there.

Down the corridor from me is Donovan. My heart leaps into my mouth and I'm suddenly stumbling backwards. He's covered in sawdust and blood, a large hole in his chest from where I'd pierced him-

And suddenly he's not there.

It's suddenly the man in the mask, the man Barry knows- bad flash.

"Barry knows Stiles." His voice is a mixture of the gravelly electric tone from last night, and the hissing of a familiar figure. My mid flashes back and suddenly my back is against the wall and the nogitsune is standing above me.

"He knowssssss."

A bandaged hand slides down my cheek and then it's gone. My back slides down the wall an I'm trying to breathe.