Burn It Down || Stilinski || Book One

Thirty-Five

"THERE'S SOMETHING I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND," Stiles commented aloud as he drove down the road. His brown eyes flickered over to the girl in the passenger seat, who looked up at the sound of his voice. The whole drive had been spent just listening to the radio, with the occasional hum to sing along, because the two were actually a little nervous about the night to come.

They still didn't know for sure about who was controlling Jackson, and they also didn't know if the blonde was going to attend the party tonight. Stiles insisted that the master was Matt, mainly because he couldn't stand the guy, but Sierra could actually see it. He was kind of creepy and was always taking photos of everyone, not to mention he was the one who got 'punched' by Jackson in the library. He was also at the rave with Allison; too many coincidences the pair couldn't ignore.

Unintentionally, Stiles and his dad had figured something about the kanima murders while they were conversing in his room. All of the victims, including Mr. Lahey, were a part of the Beacon Hills Swim Team of 2006. Nothing was adding up, and the frustration of not knowing where the pieces fit was driving them crazy. "What?" Sierra asked softly, fiddling with her thumbs.

"You, Allison and Lydia all got ready at Allison's house, but I'm taking you to the actual party while Allison drives by herself," Stiles thought through the situation with his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

A small laugh escaped through the dirty-blonde's lips. "That's what you've been thinking about?" she questioned in amusement.

Stiles held one hand up in defense, keeping the other on the wheel. "I'm just wondering!" he defended. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm flattered you're letting me escort you, but it's weird that you and Allison didn't carpool."

"You don't even have your story straight," Sierra chuckled with a shake of her head. "We didn't get ready at Allison's house. We were helping Lydia decide what she was going to wear tonight."

His face was pulled into a puzzled expression with his eyes squinted. "Nope, can't tell the difference," he announced. At the sound of another laugh, he smiled. "You do look really pretty," he told her honestly, and glanced over in her direction just in time to see her cheeks flush.

"You've already told me like ten times," she replies bashfully and he slightly smirked.

"Maybe it's because it's something you deserve to hear every day." His comment only made her redden more as he pulled into the driveway of the Martin household. Once he parked and Sierra grabbed Lydia's present from the backseat, the two made their way up to the front door with their hands intertwined. Another reason why tonight could be awkward is that they, including Scott and Allison, haven't really bothered to explain everything that went down at Scott's house to the birthday girl. It wasn't intentional, but they've kind of isolated themselves to avoid confrontation-which left Lydia hurt and angry.

Stiles squeezed her hand in reassurance after they rung the doorbell, and waited patiently for the door to open. "Happy birthday!" Sierra announced cheerfully, holding up the medium-sized bag that held her gift as soon as she saw Lydia's face. The sophomore of the hour was clothed in a classy grey striped dress and her bright red lips grinned while her left arm held up a tray of drinks.

Lydia managed to give the girl a hug without spilling a drop and thanked her for coming and for the present that she'd open up later. "Everyone's kind of just hanging around right now," she informed the pair, her green eyes hiding a mischievous gleam, "though I'm sure more people will be here soon." Just before she completely stalked off, Lydia called back over her shoulder. "Don't forget to try the punch!"

Sierra couldn't help but chuckle at her attitude, and Stiles smiled widely as she led him further into the house. As they observed the area, Sierra realized that there wasn't many of her classmates around and a little frown made its way onto her mouth. "I really hope more people show up," she whispered to Stiles as they passed a guy they didn't know. "I'm scared no one will because of what happened to her when, you know, she ran off and went missing?"