Attraction, Wealth, and Power (Scallison)

How's He Doing

Stiles was video chatting Lydia in his room at 4 in the morning. I was sitting up against the wall beside his room door.

"You look exhausted. Did you sleep at all," Stiles asks.

"I couldn't. I needed to be awake while he was in surgery. He wasn't awake so I needed to be because for some weird reason, I felt like if anything did go wrong, I could fix it just by being here. He's my brother I'd give up anything to keep him around forever."

"How did the surgery go?"

"The doctor says it was successful but that he'll need a few months to heal. Scott's gonna be just fine."

"So now you can sleep?"

"Not yet. He hasn't woken up from the anesthesia. I need him to wake up first." I heard Lydia yawn through the door. "I'm tired but I'd rather be sleep deprived than have Scott wake up without a friendly face to greet him."

"I'm sure he'd love to have you there even if you were asleep."

"I know but he stayed outside my room door all day when we were six because I was crying about how much I missed my mom. I woke up the next morning and he was still sitting there, fighting sleep. The first thing he did was ask me if I was ok. Do you know what I told him?"

"No, I don't think you've ever told me this story."

"I told him that I wasn't but that I would be soon if he promised to never leave me. Every year on the anniversary of my mom's death, he sits outside my room all night to make sure I'm alright. He's kept his promise, it's time I waited for him all day."

"You're amazing, you know that?"

"I'm Lydia Martin, amazing is practically my middle name." There was a long pause. "Stiles, in all seriousness, I'm not that amazing. Scott's the amazing one. He's the peacemaker. He's the forgiving one. He's the heart of the family. I can't imagine how my life would be without him."

"You won't ever have to."

"I'm sorry for keeping you up late."

"You're not. I'm staying up late to make sure you're ok."

"I wish I could kiss you right now. You make everything better."

"If I told you I'd slept with someone else, that you weren't my first, how would you react?"

"I thought we had shared our first time. I thought it was new ground for both of us? Was I better than her? Am I prettier than her? What's her name?"

"Baby, you were my first. I was just curious."

"I'd hunt her down and kill her. Then I'd kick you so hard you'd need surgery to retrieve your balls."

"Thank you for that lovely visual."

"Anytime baby."

A woman's voice then says "Ms. Martin, can I speak to you for a moment?"

"Is something wrong? Is Scott ok?"

"Your brother is going to be just fine. I just need you to keep him off his feet for too long and away from stress while he's recovering. I think the task will be simple considering it's summer vacation for you all."

"But other than that, he's perfect?"

"Your brother's quite the fighter. He's gonna be just fine, especially with a sister like you. He'll need you at your best though so get your rest sweetheart."

"I will. The minute he's awake, I'll get my rest. I just need him to be awake first."

"I completely understand that. If it was my brother, I'd be the same."