// ᴅᴏʙ ɪᴍᴀɢɪɴᴇs //

no happy endings

author; @timotheechalamet

characters; stiles x reader

warnings; fluffy vibes, angst/fighting, and death

word count; 5,671 words

I was six when I had learned about fairytales. I was sitting in an old wooden chair, my mother lying in a hospital bed next to me, trying so hard to smile through the pain but we both knew it was just getting worse. I was too young to know about frontotemporal dementia, my dad sticking with "mommy is just really sick right now, but she needs us to be strong." I always knew my mother was sick, but like my dad said. I had to be strong.
It wasn't until one rainy night, I had asked her about happy endings. It was then that she told me about the story of Sleeping Beauty. She said it was one of her favorite fairy tales growing up and read me the book. I was so fascinated with the idea of love that I had told her I couldn't wait to find the love of my life and show her off. She laughed and told me something that I never stopped thinking about to this day.
"Love is a beautiful thing. When you find someone you love, you tell them no matter what. It's not silly and it's not dumb because loving someone can be a great thing if you try hard enough. You were always my strong boy and one day, you'll find someone who will love you more than I do. So be brave for me Mischief and love with every bone in your body. Promise me?" I nod my head, seeing my dad in the doorway, wiping his eyes from the tears streaming down his face.
She squeezed my hand three times to say she loved me, it was our thing we did when words couldn't do enough justice. I squeezed her hand back three times, a tear falling down her face before her eyes softly closed, her hand falling out of mine. I was six when the light and the beautiful soul that was my mother had left my life.

I was twelve when I had my first crush. Her name was Lily and she was a beautiful redhead. Her freckles stood out when the sun directly hit her face, a smile curling on her lips as she enjoyed the warmth on her olive skin. We had a winter dance coming up and my best friend Scott already had someone he was going with and I definitely didn't want to be third wheeling. I knew Lily didn't have a date so I took it as a sign to ask her.
She was eating lunch when I walked up to her, her friends giving me dirty looks and whispering in each other's ears while Lily smiled up at me. When I had asked her to the dance, her friend Janice laughed and walked away with two other girls, Lily shaking her head. I quickly apologized to her, mentally kicking myself in the head for actually thinking she'd want to go with me. As I walked away, I heard her voice say yes. I had to make sure I wasn't dreaming as she repeated it again. I remember being so happy that day, as soon as school was over I had asked my dad to take me to get a suit at the mall.

A year after my mom died, my dad started to drink more and often falling asleep on the table late at night. In the daytime, he'd lock himself in his room, only coming out to grab another bottle from the store. I never said anything because I didn't know what to say or do. How could a small ten year old boy like me help? Scott and his mom would come over every weekend, Melissa making sure I always had a full fridge and a clean house. She was always like a second mom to me, making sure that I had a motherly figure in my life.
One night while Scott and I were sleeping, I was woken up by the sound of glass breaking coming from downstairs. I tiptoed down the steps, stopping just until they weren't able to see me. It was the first time I heard Melissa yell. I sat down, looking at my dad with his head between his hands while she stood above him.
"For God sakes Noah, look at yourself. What the hell made you think that drinking a whole bottle in one sitting was the answer?" She screamed at him, my dad not saying a word.
"You have a problem. And it's not going to go away unless you get yourself sobered up."
"I'm nothing without her." He mumbled, Melissa scoffing. She sat down, her hand on his shoulder.
"You have a beautiful boy that is upstairs right now and you want to tell me you are nothing? You're a father. And a hell of a one at that. Stiles doesn't need this, he already lost his mom. Don't have him lose you too." My dad shakes his head, Melissa pulling him in for a hug as I walked back upstairs, getting into bed and never speaking about what I heard to anyone.
The next day, Melissa had told me that I was going to stay over at their house, just until my dad was feeling better again. I noticed he was still in the same clothes as last night, his eyes red from the lack of sleep. He gave me one last bear hug and told me that he loved me. I looked him in the eyes before whispering in his ear. "Be brave dad." Two years later, my dad still hasn't touched a bottle.