True Mate » Sterek

Chapter 6

"Scott, I'll be right there, okay? I knew you shouldn't have gone on this stupid track meet."

"Derek. Is...is there any sign of Derek?" Scott wheezes out through the other line. He clutches his side, screwing his eyes shut. Stiles sighs, he had been searching, he knows Derek being missing—and probably dead—is eating up at his best friend, him too. "..no. I'm leaving now."

Stiles rubs his eye with the backside of his hand, being there for his best friend is probably better than searching for a lost cause. "God damnit, Derek, you better be alive," he mumbles to himself in distress.

A palm slamming against his Jeep widow brings him abruptly from his thoughts. Stiles jumps at the sound and slowly turns to look. Blood accompanies a hand print until it slides down, a glimpse of Derek's exhausted face showing before he collapses to the pavement. A wave of relief and a whole new one of worry washes over the teen.

"Derek," Stiles says sternly after quickly getting out of his vehicle, "Derek, I swear to god." He pats the side of Derek's now unconscious face, groaning in frustration. He made it this far, so be better not die now.

***

"Dude, I can't hold you up any longer," Stiles grunts, wobbling just inside the door of Derek's loft. He goes to protest, but it's too late. He hits the ground with a 'humph', his weak arms unable to soften the fall. "Oh, god, sorry. Are you okay?" His response is a soft groan, and Stiles takes that as a no. "Okay. Okay, let's just get you up, and uh, let's get you to your bed." Stiles throws an arm around Derek's side and lifts him back to his feet, the injured wolf doing what he can to help.

Stiles lays him down gently with a sigh, but when he opens his eyes he notices Derek's are closed. "Oh, no. No, no. Please don't be dead, come on, man," he pleas quietly. Stiles places his head on Derek's chest, releasing a held in breath when a steady heartbeat fills his ear like music.

While Derek takes a much needed rest, Stiles does everything between sitting on the bed to watch over him, to pacing the loft anxiously, his fingernails between his teeth.

Hours later he comes to, sitting up with a pained noise. "Hey, you probably shouldn't be doing that, okay? Just stay there." Derek glances up to meet Stiles brown eyes and gives him a slight nod. He sits hunched over, both arms covering his open wound. "Did you tell them? Do they know I'm alive?" Stiles scratches the back of his head. "No. Honestly, I was afraid you wouldn't pull through...I didn't want to do that to Scott."

"Stiles, he thinks I'm dead. They all do."

"You think I don't know that? I thought you were dead three hours ago, okay? And maybe it's better this way. Give yourself some time to heal, you're like an open wound sitting in front of me," Stiles explains with a small shake of his head. Derek looks away, his gaze meeting the floor. "You shouldn't be here. You should be with Scott..it's not safe," Derek mutters. He did show up at Stiles Jeep, but it's the first thing he thought to do. Now? Now it's a danger for Stiles to be anywhere near him. The alphas will come looking for him, and they don't dwell much on collateral.

Stiles stands directly in front of Derek, observing him with curiosity. Doesn't Derek know that he means as much as the others? "I couldn't leave you alone," he states, how could he? "Stiles," he says seriously, strained through his teeth, "People around me get hurt."

"I've been hurt before. I'm not new to this whole werewolf thing, and I'm not new to injured werewolves either. Especially you. So I'm staying, got it?" Stiles puts his foot down, mostly because Derek is in no position to be fighting back. "But you could get hurt." Stiles nods, "I know. I'm okay with that."

"I'm not," he whispers back. Stiles smiles faintly through the fear, even now Derek can't help but worry. Even if his worry is shown through threats, it's always there, always evident in his voice. Sometimes on his face, the rare moments he lets his blank expression falter. The alpha tries so hard to conceal his emotions, yet carry all of the baggage, and it hurts Stiles to think about.

"I'm about to do something incredibly stupid," Stiles murmurs, making Derek look up at him. Instead of hesitating, of showing how scared he really is to take this chance, Stiles closes the small gap between them. He presses his lips gently against Derek's, his eyelids fluttering closed as a complete feeling takes over his entire body. Derek does hesitate though, but only in fear of what this could truly become. Of allowing someone in and being vulnerable, but if anyone, he's glad it's Stiles.

They pull apart for a brief moment, staring at each other in wonder. Derek's over not taking a leap, he stops thinking and lets his want take over. His hand goes to the back of Stiles neck as he guides the teen back into a more meaningful kiss, one that creates a sensational flow throughout his body of relaxation and comfort.

Stiles makes a bold move and lays the wolf back down, crawling one top of him. Derek ghosts a smile, his hands holding onto Stiles hips as he leans down to meet those already addicting lips. And as much as Derek would love to flip the teen over and be on top, his body isn't ready for it, but he's healing. He can feel it. Derek doesn't know if it's the power refilling his body or that craving he has for Stiles, but he's eager for more. His tongue is gracefully slipped into the teens mouth as Stiles pushes more into it, using his right hand to hold himself up to avoid the scratches lacing the wolf's body.

Derek winces but chuckles as Stiles hand grazes his abdomen, making Stiles mumbles a 'sorry' against the other males mouth.

A breathless Stiles pulls back, his eyes raking over Derek. "Am I hurting you?" His question is answered as he's flipped onto his back and Derek is hovering over him with a grin.

"Healing, actually."

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Boom. Sterek.

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