Be My Cover Story

20

"So you and Derek are dating?" Parrish sat on the couch in Derek's loft, trying to process the new information. "Does your dad know?" 

"Oh yeah, my dad knows that his underage son is dating a 23-year-old Alpha werewolf who was a suspect for murder." Lydia smacked the back of Stiles' head at his sarcastic remark. 

"No, his dad does not know which is why he thinks Stiles and I are dating," Lydia reminded him. Jordan nodded, finally understanding what was going on. 

"So now that we've got all that figured out, we need to figure out how this arrangement is going to work for the future." Stiles, Lydia and Parrish turned to Derek. Since they had arrived, he had been relatively grumpy, opting to stay quiet while Lydia and Stiles explained what was going on. "If you don't want to do this, we can go back to just sneaking around," Stiles assured him, taking his hand. Derek glanced down at the contact before his eyes met Stiles'. He had to admit, it was nice to be spending more time with him. They had gotten more alone time in the past few weeks than they had the first few months of dating. 

"We won't do anything you guys aren't comfortable with," Lydia added, looking between Jordan and Derek.

"Last night," Derek locked eyes with Lydia, trying to decide whether or not he could trust her with this. "was a solution to a problem." He decided, nodding his head at her, assuring her that he did indeed trust her. "Do what you need to do to not blow your cover," Derek began. He lifted his hand and cupped Stiles' cheek, guiding him so they were staring into each other's eyes. "Just remember who you're coming home to." Stiles' blushed at the intimacy of Derek's words and the soft tone he wasn't used to hearing from the alpha. Lydia smiled gratefully, her heart swelling at the exchange.

"Whatever happens, it's me and you, right?" Jordan spoke softly, only to Lydia. She turned her head and nodded.

"Always. Me and you." She agreed, squeezing his hand. 

"Also...Don't think I didn't notice the extra effort." He commented, a grin forming on his face as he subtly ran his eyes down her figure. She winked with a smirk, knowing her plan had worked flawlessly. 

The four worked out some of the smaller details before Lydia finally decided it was time to inform Derek of their little situation. 

"My mom knows about the list," Lydia announced, startling the werewolf. 

"What?" The gentleness that had accompanied Derek acting as Stiles's boyfriend was replaced by the stern alpha facade she was much more familiar with. 

"She wants to talk about it when I get home." Lydia sighed, running a hand through her hair.

"We knew more people had access to this list but if the entirety of Beacon Hills gets ahold of it, it's going to be a much bigger problem than we thought." Derek realized. He quickly called the pack over for an emergency meeting, much to their dismay.

"What now?" Erica called into the loft as she leapt over the back of the couch, landing comfortably on the cushions. Isaac followed her, pushing her legs out of the way so he could sit down. She rolled her eyes at them before draping them across his lap. 

"The list has gotten out. We need a new game plan." Derek announced after the rest of the pack filed in. Erica sat up as everyone gathered in the living room. "Where are Jackson and the twins?" The pack exchanged worried glances.

"I haven't seen them." Scott shrugged. Lydia frowned, pulling out her phone.

"I haven't seen them since we got back," Boyd added, looking concerned. Derek knew he would be able to sense if something was wrong. He wondered if he had been too distracted by Stiles to notice. 

"Jackson's not answering his phone." Lydia jumped up, heading toward the front door. 

"Lydia wait." Derek ordered, freezing the strawberry blonde in her tracks. "Somebody try reaching out to the twins, it's possible Jackson just isn't answering. Kira, Stiles, Allison, Lydia and Jordan, you guys are staying here. Erica, Boyd and Isaac, I want you guys to search the city and see if you can track their scents. Malia, Scott and I will check the forest. 

"We can help!" Stiles protested but Derek snarled at him. 

"My priority right now is protecting my pack, not making you feel included." Derek crossed his arms and glared down at Stiles to make sure he knew he was being serious. Stiles scoffed and stood up. Everyone watched as he walked away, slamming Derek's bedroom door behind him. 

"What just happened?" Allison asked, glancing down the hall where Stiles had disappeared.

"Keep trying to get ahold of Jackson and the twins. Lydia, keep an eye on Stiles," Derek advised. Lydia gave him a nod before Derek led the wolves (and werecoyote) out of the loft. 

"I should go check on him." Lydia sighed. 

"I'll go." Parrish offered, worried that Lydia might leave him alone with two girls who were far too curious about his (nonexistent) sex life with the alpha. Jordan pushed past them and went to talk to Stiles, softly knocking on Derek's bedroom door.

"That's kinda weird," Allison commented as Lydia sat down next to Kira. 

"Stiles has been helping him figure out what he is. I think he feels indebted to him." Lydia shrugged, trying to smoothly play off the situation. "I'm scared." She admitted, hoping to change the subject. 

"They'll be okay," Allison assured her. "You really think Jackson would go down without a fight?" She pointed out, trying to comfort her best friend. 

"There's a target on all of our backs. What are we even supposed to do if the entire town knows the truth about us?" Lydia bit her lip, slightly stressed. Allison grabbed her hand and Kira leaned on her shoulder. 

"We'll be fine, Babe," Allison promised.

"Easy for you to say, you're not on the stupid list in the first place." Lydia sighed. She shook her head, pushing the thoughts away. "I'm going to go check on Stiles."