Argentine | Stiles Stilinski (Book 1)

Chapter Twenty: Frenemy

Allison, Lydia and I pulled up outside her house, we stayed in the car and I turned to speak to Lydia, 'We need you to promise that you won't say anything about what just happened.'

'I'll promise not to say anything about what just happened if you can tell me what the hell just happened?!'

'It's... it's kind of complicated. I...' Allison tried to explain but had no idea of what to say.

'Well, how about you start with... why was Derek there? Or where Jackson went, or what is wrong with Erica?' we stayed silent, 'Oh, do you need a minute to come up with a plausible lie?'

'Part of the reason why we're asking is because Scott and I aren't supposed to be seeing each other, okay? So, it's better if you just keep what you know to yourself,' Allison sighed.

'Fine. I'll keep what I know about you and your boyfriend, which is nothing, to myself,' Lydia huffed before starting to get out of the car.

'Hey,' Allison gently pulled her back, 'He's not just my boyfriend. You get that, right?'

'Let me go.'

'Just for one second, please, try and remember-'

'Remember what?' Lydia shouted.

'Remember what it feels like. All of those times in school, when you see him standing down the hall and you cannot breathe until you're with him. Or those times in class when you... you can't stop looking at the clock because you know that he's standing right out there waiting for you. Don't you remember what that's like?' she asked Lydia. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat.

Lydia was quiet for a few seconds before shaking her head, 'No.'

'What do you mean "no"? You've had boyfriends,' Allison smiled slightly in disbelief.

'None like that.'

——————

From Stiles:
BH Preserve, please help

To Stiles:
What the hell did you do?

From Stiles:
We may have kidnapped Jackson and he may be locked up in a prison transport vehicle and I may need help from you right now
Please?

To Stiles:
Omw, don't do anything stupid

From Stiles:
Would I ever?

To Stiles:
No comment

——————

I was with Stiles, leaning against the van when Allison showed up. 'They know,' she panted.

'What?'

'They know Jackson's missing!'

Stiles frowned, 'No, they can't. I've been texting his parents since last night. They don't have a clue.'

'My grandfather told me his parents went to the police. They know,' she confirmed. Stiles gasped, holding Jackson's phone at arm's reach from himself as if it were on fire before dropping it on the ground.

We rushed to the van, watching him as he took out the police scanner. It beeped, 'All available units, proceed to Beacon Hills Preserve as instructed. Proceed with caution until Sheriff Stilinski's arrival.'

'Shit,' I murmured, making eye contact with an equally as nervous Stiles.

'Repeat. Proceed with caution.'

We met up with Scott at Lookout Point, going over his information. 'If Jackson doesn't remember being the Kanima, he's definitely not gonna remember stealing Danny's tablet,' Scott sighed.

'Why would he steal the thing if he doens't even know what's on it?' Stiles asked.

I sighed, 'What if someone else took it?'

'Then somebody else knows who it is.'

Scott's eyes widened him, 'Which could mean someone's protecting him!'

'Like the Bestiary says, "The kanima seeks a friend," right?' Allison asked.

'Okay, hold on. So, somebody watches Jackson make a video of himself turning into the kanima and then just erases part of it so he wouldn't know? I mean, who would do that?'

'Somebody who wanted to protect him?' I proposed.

'There's something else,' Scott added, 'You said the only thing you found online about the kanima is that it goes after murderers. What if that's actually true?'

'Well, no, it can't be. Tried to kill all of us, remember? I don't know about you guys, but I haven't murdered anybody lately,' Stiles pointed out.

Scott sighed, 'But I don't think that it was actually trying to kill us. Remember when we were at Isaac's the first time?' He turned to Allison, 'It just went right by us, didn't it?'

'You're right, it just ran off.'

'And it did't kill you at the mechanic's garage,' he turned to Stiles.

'Well, yeah, but it tried to kill me and Ari in the pool.'

'Did it?'

'It would've, it was waiting for us to come out,' Stiles sighed.

'What if it was trying to keep you in?'

Stiles struggled for something to say, 'Why do I feel so violated all of a sudden?'

'Because there's something else going on. We don't know what it is. We don't know anything about what's going on with Jackson or why someone's protecting him,' Scott huffed.

'"Know thy enemy,"' Allison spoke up, 'Just something my grandfather said.'

'Alright, I got it. Kill Jackson, problem solved!' Stiles said.

Scott had started to get frustrated, 'He risked his life for us. Against Peter, you remember that?'

Stiles scoffed, 'It's funny how he just got exactly what he wanted by supposedly risking his life for us, it's funny.'

'Yeah, it doesn't mean he's not still worth saving,' I tried to reason.

'But there's always something with him, though,' Stiles gestured to the van.

Scott rubbed his forehead in irritation, 'He doesn't know what he's doing. I didn't either. You remember when I almost killed you and Jackson?' he turned to Allison and she nodded silently. 'I had someone to stop me. He has nobody!'

'That's his own fault.' I growled a little at Stiles' remark, I didn't understand why he had to be so hard on Jackson. Sure, he was a complete and utter jackass, but he obviously had issues that nobody cared to help him with.

'Doesn't matter. If we can save him, we should try.'

I followed Stiles to his jeep, getting in with him. 'What?' he sighed impatiently, turning to look at me.

'Please can you go a bit easier on Jackson?'

He scoffed, 'Why?'

'Because you don't know what his life is like.'

'Oh, yeah. I'm sure that Porsche's and designer clothes and giant wads of cash are really traumatising.'

'Money can't protect you from everything, Stiles.' He rolled his eyes, not replying. 'I know why you really hate him.'

'Oh, really? Go on, psychoanalyse me, tell me why I hate him so much!' he shouted.

'Because of Lydia, because you love her!' A single tear rolled down my cheek as I spoke.

'You're wrong. I'm over her! I've spent ten years wasting my time on someone who'll never give me a second thought and I'm done,' he snapped.

'Liar. You just-' I was suddenly cut off as he crashed his lips against mine. My eyes widened in shock as I pushed him away, getting out of the car and sprinting off. I didn't turn back, no matter how much I wanted to.