Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: Teen wolf is not mine in any way, shape or form :( Anyways, this is officially the rewrite of I'm no werewolf, first published January 13th, 2014 on fanfiction under the pen name TW-addict (7 1/2 years ago omg) and I was only like 16/17 at the time and I feel my writing has (hopefully) come a long way since then so I have decided to rewrite the book and then maybe the others so there's less typos and cringey ness and hopefully a better build up (and overall flow) :) the story will mainly remain the same, but there will be more expansion and development and maybe small changes in characters/character interactions/relationships etc... (and probably a more snarky Kayla- haha) I sure hope you all enjoy this new rewrite on the new platform ----------------------------------------------------

Here she sat, idly twidling her thumbs as she rolled her head back to stare at the ceiling above her head, letting out another frustrated sigh. She had been sitting here in this rather confining, dull looking office for the past half hour and no one had bothered to turn up to give her the schedule or even tell her anything about what she was doing, hence, the frustrated boredom.

'Typical half assed, under funded school' she thought bitterly, the sound of her teeth continually sinking into a piece of bubble gum filling the room, occasionally blowing a blue bubble from her lips and watching it pop in amusement.

She was glad to be away from Louisiana, having gone through hell and back this last year, but she did wonder why her mom had chosen to return to Beacon Hills of all places. It was nothing but a curse for their family... a curse that had followed them to Louisiana and torn away her dad and brother from her too. Beacon Hills, on the outside, a quiet and unsuspecting town but, in reality, a place filled with nothing but death and disaster for anyone even slightly supernaturally inclined.

She snorted to herself... maybe that's why her mom chose it. She was human, she was safe, her only 'crime' was marrying a werewolf. If any hunters came after her, she was fine. Maybe that's why her mom didn't see Beacon Hills as a threat, but Kayla did. How could she not? The people - the family - she had lost, all because they were supernatural, was sickening.

So here she was, unable to argue. Her mom had basically ordered her to get her shit together, pack her bags and get going. Their house sold quick. Of course it did. A beautiful five bedroom house with balconies and a pool, the most beautiful winding staircase you ever did see and a grandesque feeling vibrating from the walls. She was sad to see it go, but maybe it was for the best. Her dad had spent countless hours redecorating each corner of the house, knocking walls down and building new ones, creating the perfect home for their family... but ever since he died, her brother along with him, it never did feel like home again. In the space of twenty four hours she was forced to say goodbye to her friends, pack what she needed on the back of a loading truck, throw away what she didn't want to keep and catch a long draining flight with her mom across country to a town she hadn't been back to in, what, six years? Yeah, no wonder she was bitter.

But, as her mom had oh so kindly reminded her, several times in fact, she wasn't in a position to argue. Not after her behaviour for the last year. Yeah, because acting out was totally unexpected. What a god damn shocker. But, whatever.

"Sorry to keep you waiting miss… Hale" The principle greeted, slipping into the office and taking a seat opposite her on the desk, glancing down at his paperwork and seeming a little shocked at her name. After all, the Hales did have a bit of a reputation and she was sure she would too, soon enough. In fact, it would be an honour.

"It's no problem" She said blandly, her voice void of any emotion as she sat up a little straighter, extending her hand to him because, as her mom had drilled into her, 'first impressions matter' - pffft, yeah, whatever.

The principle shook her hand, appearing a tad nervous, glancing at her like he thought she should be burnt to a crisp. Oh for god sake, that fire was so y2k, wasn't everyone over it already? Or did a dull, nosey little town not have any other tragedies to gossip over?

"So, you've missed first period... classes here start at eight" Kayla glanced at the clock above his head, watching the hands tick closer to ten to nine as she swept some long chestnut coloured hair over her shoulder.

She resisted a snarky comment, forcing a charming smile on her face, "my apologies, it won't happen again"

She was sure it would, but he didn't need to know that.

"Okay, good" he smiled although his lips were tight, pulled back across his teeth as her presence made him feel uncomfortable, her last name still holding such power, even now, "uh, here is your timetable" he slid across a piece of paper to her, "English would've been your first class. Second on your timetable is chemistry"

She held back a groan but couldn't resist the sharp eye roll, "yay. Chemistry"

The principle smirked, "many students feel the same, though I suspect that is due to the teacher, not the subject"

She muttered a profanity under her breath, not looking forward to this day at all, "can't wait"

Her dry drawl was filled with sarcasm, rubbing at her eyes in tiredness. Her mom should've had enough sense to plan this cross country trip at least a few days before the start of a new school but no, that would be too easy. Instead, she was forced to turn up to a new school just hours after she had settled into her new house, her bedroom not even yet unpacked.

"Do you need me to show you to your class?" the principle asked and Kayla shook her head, stuffing the schedule in her messenger bag before throwing it over her shoulder.

"No I'll manage, I'm not scared of a couple of high school kids" She reassured him, standing up from the chair and straightening out her clothes, a simple pair of acid washed denim shorts fraying at the bottom and a semi sheer white long sleeved top, a black lacy bralette just barely showing underneath.

"That's good to know" The principle chuckled just as the bell rung overhead, signalling them to the fact that first period was over , "Good luck with your first day Miss Hale and if you need anything don't be scared to give me a shout"

"Oh trust me – I won't" She smirked, turning on her heel and striding from the office, escaping the dingy confined space into the hallway, the rush of kids suddenly exploding from their classes and pushing past her, no consideration in sight.

"Rude" she scoffed under her breath, hiking her bag up higher on her shoulder as she glanced around, looking for signs or directions as to where to go but there was none, leaving her standing in the hallway, lost, yet unmotivated in wanting to even find her class.

A part of her wished she could just run away... disappear again like she did before but instead she was stuck back in this shitty little town as punishment.

"Oh sorry" a brunette girl apologised as she bumped into her shoulder, "I didn't see you there"

"It's okay" Kayla said, "uh, do you know where the chemistry class is?"

"I don't but I'm trying to find it" the girl chuckled, shyly tucking some long brown hair behind her ear, "sorry, I'm new here"

"Oh... ditto" Kayla smirked, "so you're stuck in this hell hole too?"

The girl smiled a little uncomfortably, "for the foreseeable future, yeah"

"Lucky you" Kayla joked, "uh sorry" holding out her hand, "I'm Kayla"

The girl clumsily moved some books about in her arms, reaching out to shake her hand back, "hi, I'm Allison Argent"

A feeling of dread immediately hit Kayla square in the stomach, giving the girl a suspicious once over. See? She knew coming back here would mean trouble... already, Argents were in town and probabaly looking for blood - again.

Kayla dropped her hand, her demeanour turning cold as ice, "Argent?"

The girl - Allison - looked around a little self consciously, "um... yes?"

She decided to test the waters, keeping her guard up, "uh... I'm Hale"

She expected some sort of reaction, something close to disgust and maybe a little bit of fear but there was nothing. No reaction or twitch at the sound of her last name. Hmmmm... strange. Maybe this little Argent wasn't a full Argent yet. Maybe she was innocent to the blood her family had spilt.

Allison laughed a little uncomfortably, "cool name"

"Anyway-" Kayla changed the topic of conversation, "let's find chemistry shall we?" Allison nodded, looking relieved to not be the only one in the same lost boat as she was and they both navigated the endless halls of Beacon Hills high, tracking down the classroom - finally - and were the last to enter, all eyes falling to them.

It seemed Allison still hated being the centre of attention because she flushed red, her shoulders hunching over as she hid behind the curtain of her long hair, shyly looking around for somewhere to sit.

"Oh right, new girls" the teachers arrogant and self loathing voice floated to her ears, "one of you sit next to Lahey, the other next to Grimshaw" Jeez... she hated him already.

Allison rushed down down between the tables to grab her seat and Kayla just looked about, seeing countless pairs of eyes watching her every move, with interest and curiosity, no doubt thinking what the 'fresh meat' had to offer.

"Miss Hale" the teacher practically scolded, "is there a problem? Take a seat"

"Yeah yeah" she muttered under her breath, huffing out a sigh as she made her way to a table near the front, sitting down next to an incredibly shy, incredibly nervous blonde kid, hunched over in his seat, not daring to meet her eyes.

And there was something about this short twenty seconds snippet that made Stiles want to know more. He didn't know what it was, he couldn't put a finger on it, but he found himself intrigued and slightly hot under the collar, his gaze so focused and hypervigilant on this mysterious new girl.

"Dude – is that another new girl?" Stiles exclaimed, slapping his hand across Scott's chest to grab his attention away from the pretty and shy Allison Argent, impatiently nudging his elbow when Scott didn't break his staring right away.

"How would I know?" Scott retaliated, a little annoyed at Stiles for distracting him, "I know just as much as you"

"Is that supposed to be an insult?" Stiles smirked, raising his eyebrows. Scott rolled his eyes at his friends wit and returned to watching Allison take her seat, but Stiles - instead - was focused on watching the laid back and somewhat grumpy new girl stand up the front of the class, looking like she would rather be anywhere but here. But what intrigued him even more was what Mr Harris called her - Miss Hale. Wait, Hale as in...?

His eyes were wide with sudden realisation, watching her grab a seat directly next to him on the other chemistry table, perching on the stool and taking out her notebook and pen from her bag, pulling her long hair over one shoulder, eyes to the front.

"Dude" Stiles whispered, "oh my god... Hale. Hale"

"What?" Scott asked back in a hushed whisper, "what are you talking about?"

"Do you not remember...? Clearly not" Stiles added sarcastically, rolling his eyes, trying to keep his back turned to the girl, "remember that fire all those years back? The one that wiped out, like, an entire family?"

"Yeah" Scott replied, just as clueless as before, "what about it?"

"It was the Hale family" he whispered, "like, eight or ten of them burned to death. Arson. They didn't catch who did it though and the new girl is a Hale" he rushed out, "she's a Hale"

Scott's crooked jaw popped open slightly, his eyes surprised as she peered around Stiles to catch sight of the new girl and Stiles found himself watching too - for reasons he wasn't sure about. He was trying to be subtle but was failing miserably, his knee bouncing up and down as he stuck his tongue in his cheek, finding himself blushing a little as his eyes settled for too long on her bare legs, smooth and shiny, ankles crosssd under the table. She was pretty... stunning actually. Long wavy chestnut hair pooled around her shoulders, attire unusual and striking confidence, skin on show tan and flawless. But yet, remarkably, despite his hormones, Stiles found himself watching her face.

She was lost in the moment, aimlessly doodling on her fresh notebook and he watched just how sad she looked when she thought no one was watching and he knew that expression all too well because he had worn the exact same one many times before.

He must've been staring longer than he thought because she frowned and shook away that sad expression, twisting her head to look directly at him, then at Scott, a wide smirk pulling at her lips.

"You two are not all that good at the whole 'discreet' thing y'know? Ya may wanna work on that" She whispered in their general direction, twiddling her pen in her hands, clearly amused by their behaviour.

Stiles flushed, sharing a panicked look with Scott, "W-What… we w-weren't staring… what? No, we-we were just-" Stiles stuttered, his heart pounding against his rib cage as he thought about how bad of a first impression he just gave, to a beautiful girl none the less. Great Stiles, great.

"Yes you were" She interrupted, "Now why? Do we know each other?" She asked teasingly as though she already knew the answer but was just playing with them, messing with their psyche.

"No… n-no, do we?" He laughed nervously, right hand resting on his head, "I don't think we do, no, no we d-don't" Stiles added and the girl turned her head fully towards him, her bright green eyes sparkling with amusement.

"Try saying that without the stutter" she smirked, "or don't, it's kind of cute"

"Wait, what?" he asked in surprise, his voice going a few octaves higher as he let out a squeak, taken aback by the apparent flirting, "what do you-"

He was cut off by Mr Harris' sharp voice, his conceited tone cutting shards right through him, "Mr Stilinski, eyes to the front before I end up giving you a week's worth of detentions"

Stiles simply swallowed, nodding vaguely in Mr Harris' direction as he continued to stare at the girl from the corner of his eye who was smirking in his direction, all signs of grumpiness vanished.

"The name's Kayla and the pleasure is all mine" She whispered quietly before her lip quirked and she looked away, leaving Stiles completely and utterly speechless - quite a feat if he had to say so himself!

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Hope you all liked the (updated/new) first chapter... like I said there will still be the main storyline but I aim to add more details, more chapters etc... slight changes, for example, the first meeting between stiles and Kayla. Still basically the same but instead of the story staring like episode 2/3 it starts episode 1 :) Hope you all liked and please please review :) means the world to me. Published on fanfiction and wattpad (fanficanatic-tw)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way shape or form. 

Her self assured and confident, flirty attitude had obviously caught the buzzcut boy off guard because for the remainder of their class together she caught him staring at her from the corner of her eye, looking like he was wanting to ask her more questions but kept stopping himself. Maybe because of the fact she had a mega resting bitch face on or because he didn't have much practice talking to girls, who knew, but she found it amusing none the less.

Chemistry dragged, Mr Harris' authoritive and dry tone sounding like nails on a chalk board as he droned on and on and on, lecturing them about god knows what.

Every so often he would pause in his speech, his seedy eyes glaring between every single one of them and then settle on her for a long period of time, like he had already branded her 'trouble'. She didn't know what on earth could've caused him to make such an accurate assumption, probably just pushing her into the same box that he put every teenager in because, let's face it, he definitely seemed ageist. But she had no sympathy for him - why work with teenagers if he hated them? So every time his eyes found their way to hers she would just offer up a sickly sweet smile in return, watching his nostrils flare slightly with the effort not to chastise her.

If anything, it was quite amusing. Deliberately getting under his skin, watching his reaction - It's not like anything else exciting would happen in this god forsaken town.

The shrill ring of the bell overhead cut through her ears like a double edged sword, making her groan under her breath as she grabbed her bag off the floor, stuffing her notebook and pen in it and flinging it over her shoulder. The shy boy she had been sat next to, the one with the dirty blonde curly hair hurried past her, brushing her arm on the way past. She shot his departing back a strange look, rolling his eyes at his odd behaviour.

"So um..." a shy quiet voice spoke from behind her, a finger gently tapping her on the shoulder, "I just thought, seeming how we're both new... maybe we should hang out for the day? You know, like a buddy system"

She met Allison's kind but timid stare, her warm brown eyes brimming with hopefulness and, despite being an Argent, Kayla felt a little bit drawn to her. She wasn't sure why because usually the name 'Argent' brought a bitter taste to her mouth, but Allison seemed so innocent to it all. Just a simple highschool girl wanting a friend. There was no way this girl was, or could be, a ruthless killer.

And for the first time since she could remember, Kayla was now in that exact same position - friendless. Not that it overly bothered her too much, she hadn't exactly been wanting friends or being the best friend since losing her dad and brother, caught up in everything bad and corrupt, so maybe it was about time she turned that around.

"Sure" Kayla smiled in return, "I need to find my locker first though"

Allison breathed an audible sigh of relief, beginning to emerge from the curtain of her hair she was used to hiding behind, "me too"

They were the last to exit the class, Mr Harris' death glare following them out into the hallway as they managed to track down their lockers, coincidentally, just one apart from each other.

"They must've thought to stick the new girls together" Allison chuckled, putting in her combination and stuffing some books in.

"I'm not all that new here" Kayla said, doing the same to her locker, "I have... well, had family here. I used to spend a couple of weeks here every summer"

"Oh, nice" Allison commented, "so where did you move from?"

"Louisiana" she answered, before joking, "can't you tell by my annoying southern drawl?"

Allison giggled, "it's only very faint"

"But still annoying none the less" she playfully remarked, "lived there as long as I can remember. Apparently we moved around a lot when I was born. God knows why my parents chose there"

"I know the feeling" Allison said, "I usually move school every six to twelve months. It gets exhausting"

Kayla resisted a snort... well, yeah, when your family are werewolf hunters, they kind of have to go where the werewolves go, not sit around and wait for them.

"So why here?" Kayla asked, slamming her locker shut as she tried to understand why her family decided Beacon Hills was worthy of their attention, "why this little town?"

Allison shrugged, "my dad is a private security consultant and a firearms dealer-" of course he was "-I think it just means he has to go where the job takes him... and he takes us with him"

"... interesting" Kayla smiled tightly, "oh uh, I think you have yourself a fan" nodding her chin in the direction of the boys she was sitting adjacent to in chemistry, the quiet one with the floppy hair and squint jaw looking over at Allison in complete and utter adoration.

Allison glanced over, a small blush forming on her cheeks as she smiled back at the boy, an instant connection forming.

"Go speak to him" Kayla encouraged but immediately Allison shook her head, her eyes wide and surprised at that suggestion.

"Oh my god, no" she rushed out, "I... I don't do that"

"Well I do" Kayla was just about to stride over there to do her new friend a favour but Allison caught her wrist, pulling her back to the lockers.

"Not yet" she said quietly, "maybe I should settle in first..."

"Your loss" Kayla quipped with a smirk, glancing back over to the boys only this time it was the other one, the one with the buzzcut, that was looking over in their direction - or, more accurately, her direction.

She met his stare head on, her strong gaze probably somewhat intimidating because he gaped at getting caught, clumsily flailing about before jerkily raising his hand in the air and twisting it into a wave, his face slightly pink and flushed. She arched a single brow, a flirtatious smirk pulling at her lips as she watched him mouth "oh my god" in compete astonishment, turning back to his friend.

Her amusement was cut short by a flurry of curly strawberry blonde hair, pulling both her and Allison's attention away from the boys and to the perky little redhead standing in front of them.

"That jacket is absolutely killer... where did you get it?" this strange little person asked Allison, an overly friendly smile pulling at her lips.

"Oh uh... my mom was a buyer for a boutique back in San Francisco" Allison answered with a smile, awkwardly adjusting her back on her shoulder.

"And you are my new best friend" the girl laughed, pointing at Allison before turning her attention to Kayla, their headstrong and confident stares colliding and Kayla could tell by the glint in this girls eyes, that she knew Kayla could give back just as good as she got.

The girl looked her up and down, studying every inch of her like she was picking the best piece of meat down at the butchers and Kayla just cocked her head to the side, raising her brows.

"Is there something I can help you with?"

The strawberry blonde pursed her lips for a couple of seconds before smiling, "you... I like you" she decided, "I could work with this" she waved her hand out towards her figure, "effortlessly gorgeous. Though, not as gorgeous as me of course"

"Oh, of course" Kayla agreed sarcastically whilst nodding her head, making Allison hide a giggle behind her hand.

"I'm Lydia" the perky redhead declared, "Lydia Martin"

The girl said that as if it was supposed to mean something; like it held some sort of weight which Kayla was sure it did. One look at this girl and she could tell she ran this school. The perfect queen bee.

Allison began to introduce herself but Lydia waved her away, "don't be so silly. Of course I know who you both are. I've done my homework"

Again; this did not surprise Kayla one bit.

Someone new swooped in, some run of the mill good looking guy who wrapped his arms around Lydia's waist causing the latter to let out a delighted squeak.

"Oh, and this is Jackson"

Typical pretty boy name.

They both kissed, teeth and tongues clacking together before coming up for air, arms around each other.

"New girls" Jackson commented, looking them both up and down, "it's not often people move here - and look, two for the price of one"

She resisted an eye roll, trying to play nice. Lydia smirked, "so, this weekend, there's a party"

"A-A party?" Allison asked, beginning to look a little uncomfortable.

"Yeah Friday night, you both should come. It'll be a blast. Then you can meet everyone properly"

"Oh uh, I can't" Allison apologised, "Friday night is family night"

Family night as in board games and ice cream or family night as in toasting wereowlf hide over a bonfire?

Jackson moved his gaze to her, "what about you?"

"Parties don't really agree with me" she said, knowing she should stay well away from the party scene before her mom really did kick her out of the house.

"Are you sure? Everyone's going there after the scrimmage"

"You mean like football?"

Jackson scoffed, "Allison, football here is a joke. We play lacrosse"

"Yeah, you know, that game with the little sticks and the little ball that they fight over to get into a little net?" she asked Allison with a fake, overly enthusiastic tone of voice and Jackson glared at her.

"We've won the last three state championships" he remarked proudly, his voice cocky and arrogant.

"And all because of a certain team captain" Lydia said, bigging up her beau as she ruffled his hair, "and we will win again this year"

"Yeah. As long as those two stay on the bench" Jackson remarked, nodding his chin in the direction of the two boys from earlier, "if either of those get even two seconds on the field, we're dead in the water"

She glanced back at the boys, this time the floppy haired one was still gazing at Allison and the one with the buzzcut was in some sort of playful/exasperated debate or conversation with another girl, talking about what she had no idea.

"So we have practice in a few minutes" pretty boy hinted, "that is if the two of you don't have anything else..."

"Of course they don't" Lydia interrupted, reaching forward to grab a hand of theirs each, "we support our team here. It's important"

Kayla was just about to make some excuse as Lydia began dragging them away but before she could, Allison shot her a very pointed look.

"Don't you dare" she whispered, looking slightly panicked, "if I have to go, so do you"

Kayla just rolled her eyes in return, left to be pulled along by the boisterous redhead out into the cool air, heading towards the bleachers on the field.

"And this is going to be the most boring half hour of my life" she remarked, watching all the guys warm up, sitting down next to Allison with Lydia on the far side, "I could be napping right now, I hope you know that"

Lydia sent her a displeased look, "it's school spirit. Plus, you get to check out hot guys. Don't try and tell me that doesn't intrigue you"

She had bad luck with hot guys too... maybe she should avoid them as well.

She was too tired to retort back, wrapping her coat around her frame as she allowed her eyes to drag over each one of the players. Their firm, athletic bodies were appealing to the eye, she would be stupid to deny that, but she just knew each one of them would cause her nothing but trouble.

And trouble, she was trying to stay out of.

At least for the time being when things were still raw and delicate, her recovery still fragile and easily waylaid.

Lydia smirked knowingly, "don't worry, I can set you up with a deliciously hunky lacrosse player. Any one of your choosing"

"Tempting, but I'll pass"

Lydia let out an indignant sound of exclamation, "don't be so ridiculous. They're the finest pick of the bunch"

"And probably half of them spreads chlamydia" she retorted with a small laugh, "I'm done with boys"

Lydia quirked a brow at her, leaning around Allison to send her a knowing look, "do spill" she urged, "what boy made you come to that decision?"

"One with a very bad temper"

It looked like something clicked in Lydia, like she understood what Kayla was talking about and it didn't surprise her one bit - Jackson was clearly arrogant and cocky, probably a bully too, of course he would have an attitude and a temper, especially if things didn't go his way. She just got that vibe off him the meer five minutes she spent with him.

Within a split second, Lydia's knowing expression was wiped from her face, a devilish smirk pulling at her lips.

"Well, that's just not good enough. My girls need boyfriends" glancing between her and Allison, "don't worry, leave it to me. I'm better than Cupid"

Kayla just pursed her lips; sharing a dread filled look with Allison but she knew it would be futile to argue with the petite redhead. Somehow, she knew, the gorgeous strawberry blonde always got her own way - regardless of how it happened.

Practice was just about to start, the exuberant and loud coach blowing his whistle.

"Um... who's that?" Allison asked Lydia curiously, inclining her head towards the floppy haired boy that had been shooting Allison lovey dovey eyes earlier.

"Who, him?" Lydia asked, cocking her head to the side as she looked at the boy who, as Kayla settled her eyes on him, looked as if he was directly watching and reacting to what was being said, "I don't know who he is"

Kayla frowned as she watched his eyes behind the helmet suddenly narrow in annoyance and for a brief second she wondered... could he be a- Pfft, no. She scoffed at her own thoughts, shaking her head. There was absolutely no way this shy, awkward kid was a werewolf. No way.

"Why do you want to know?" Lydia asked, probably wondering why Allison was enquiring about someone so far down the food chain, because someone unpopular was obviously not to be looked at.

"Oh um... he's in my English class"

"And Chem class" Kayla added, "you were both basically having eye sex"

Allison's eyes circled into large orbs, mortified at the suggestion but Lydia didn't have a chance to say anything because the shrill of the whistle continuously being blown snapped their attention back to the field and what she saw made her suspicions from before increase.

The floppy haired boy collapsed into a heap in the net, his gloved hands grabbing at his head in the helmet and he looked in a great deal of pain, flinching and squirming at the sound.

Okay, now that, was sus.

She heard the other lacrosse players laugh at the boy as the lacrosse ball soared forward and hit him square in the front of the helmet causing him to fall back.

Hmmm, very weird indeed.

Something didn't feel right about this sitution, watching closely as he pulled himself to his feet, swinging the lacrosse stick around in his hands as he prepared for the second lacrosse ball that came flying at him only this time he caught it expertly in the net, casting a surprised look to his stick.

His reflexes seemed good - scarily good. Almost inhuman.

She wondered if this was unusual for him, if this sudden display of talent just happened overnight so she glanced around the crowd, watching as they all reacted in surprise and found herself following a voice exclaiming "yeah", glancing to the side to see buzzcut boy grinning at his friend in something close to disbelief.

Okay, so obviously, unusual.

She watched again as he caught the next ball and the one after that, continually catching them expertly as if he was born to do this.

"Huh... he seems like he's pretty good" Allison said almost proudly, clearly enticed by the boy even more.

"Yeah... really good" Lydia admired, new found interest burning bright in her eyes.

She sat there in silence, a frown etched between her brows as she watched Jackson, clearly unnerved and rattled by apparent talent of the floppy haired boy, push his way to the front of line and spin his lacrosse stick around almost threateningly, his stance offensive and aggressive.

She payed close attention to how the floppy haired boy nervously settled on placing his feet, holding out his stick as he waited for Jackson to aggressive throw the ball, soaring through the air at such a speed she almost couldn't follow it and, surprisingly, the boy caught the ball with ease, his movements fluids and smooth.

Everyone cheered, both in surprise and glee, even Lydia jumped up to shout out and she just sat there, her suspisions heightening.

Something was off.

Could he be a werewolf? Could he be a werewolf and not know about it?

She had grown up surrounded by werewolves, understanding and knowing their behaviour and, despite not being one herself, she had a pretty good grasp of knowing and sensing when someone wasn't entirely human.

Her attention was stolen again by the exuberant and boisterous shouting from buzzcut boy, yelling out in joy, his arms flailing in the air as he screamed out, "oh yeah, that's my friend - woooo"

She admired his devotion to his, very obviously, best friend, but it didn't distract her from the very clear fact that something wasn't right.

Guess she had to pay her big cousin a visit later.

When school was over she bid farewell to Allison and Lydia, making her way through the parking lot to her car, a Toyota rav4 in grey, slinging her crap into the passenger side as she slipped into the drivers side, starting up her engine and fighting her way through the busy parking lot.

She hadn't heard from Derek in months, her older cousin falling off the radar - which wasn't unusual - but just had the strangest feeling he would be back here. He often returned, for what she didn't know. It wasn't like he had much to return to. Their family dead and gone, apart from two. Derek's older sister, Laura, and his - their - uncle, Peter.

Unlike Laura who was a live wire, never staying in one place too long, Peter was unresponsive and basically comatose from severe burns from the fire six years ago, destined to live out the rest of his traumatised life in the long stay unit at Beacon memorial. A sad waste of a life, Kayla thought. Maybe it would've been kinder if he had died.

A sickening feeling erupted deep within her stomach the closer she got to the burnt down ruins of the house, driving slowly up the private dirt track split through the woods.

The house that once stood tall and proud was now just a shell of its itself, crumbling and rotting into the ground. The entire back of it had long since collapsed, the fire wreaking havoc through the bones of the building. She didn't know why the county hadn't deemed it a hazard and tore the rest of it down, but she assumed there was legal restrictions. Laura, being the oldest, had gained rights to the land, the multiple acres in her hands. But still... she didn't understand why she didn't get it torn down herself. Surely it was nothing more than a bad memory, a kick to the gut every time they laid eyes on it?

The tires crunched over leaves and broken twigs on the ground, her entrance anything but subtle. If Derek was here, he would know of her arrival. Werewolf hearing was a handy thing, after all. Not that she would know from personal experience but she had seen it in action plenty of times.

She slipped out of her car, deliberately slamming the car door shut a little louder than usual as she glanced around. The woods was silent, eerily quiet. Maybe, subconsciously, it knew what happened here. Knew of all the lives that had been visciously taken, forever tainting this once beautiful spot.

She swallowed thickly, wrapping her arms around her torso as she walked towards the burnt front porch, shivers erupting down her spine. She hated being back here... it was creepy.

She stopped before she reached the porch steps, something in her gut telling her not to go any further forward.

"Derek?" She called out, eyes darting from side to side, "come on Derek, I know you're here. I'm sure I saw your camaro parked around back"

A black silhouette caught the corner of her eye and she turned around, seeing Derek emerge from the side of the house.

"You don't call, you don't write... anyone would think you were dead" she joked lightheartedly but, secretly, was a little hurt. He was always like a big brother to her, so how could he just disappear for months on end without so much as a goodbye?

"Kayla" his stoic expression melted into a very small smile but there was pain in his eyes, his demeanour defeated, "it's good to see you"

"I should hope so" she quipped, folding her arms across her chest, quirking a brow in an accusatory manner, "where the hell have you been? I haven't seen you since... since the funerals..."

His gaze softened, remembering the funerals of her dad and brother just over a year ago, "I'm sorry. There was a lot going on"

"Yeah, I bet" she grumbled under her breath but knew he could still hear every word she said, "what are you doing back here? And please don't tell me you're staying here" she added, sending Derek a worried glance, "what's wrong with a hotel?"

Derek's expression tightened, almost unnoticeably, but Kayla noticed - she always did - a keen eye for perception.

"I came back for Laura"

"Oh" Kayla remarked, "Laura's here?"

Derek seemed to shrink into his leather jacket, new found vulnerability pulsating off him.

"Laura's dead"

His monotonous tone made the revelation all the more shocking, completely knocking all the air from her limbs in a surprised whoosh.

"W-What?" She asked breathlessly, "what do you mean Laura's dead? How?"

Derek glanced at the ground, his expression twisted into pain, "I don't know. But I plan to find out"

A sickening realisation crippled her, her throat burning with emotion. Could it be the reason the Argents were here? To finish off the job?

"Hunters?"

Derek's eyes burned with hatred, "possibly"

"... The Argents are back in town" she said quietly, watching Derek snap his head up in shock, "and not just for a passing visit. Their only daughter just enrolled in school today"

Derek's strong jaw clenched, his fists clenching as his claws emerged slightly, "does she know about us?"

Kayla shook her head, "don't think so. She's too... nice"

"Argents aren't nice" Derek contradicted, "be careful. If they think you pose a risk-"

"I'm no werewolf, just a Hale" she interrupted, "hurting me would go against their precious code"

"It hasn't stopped them before"

Kayla cocked a brow at her cousin, "you still think they did it?"

"Who else could it have been?"

"They aren't the only hunting family"

"No, but they are one of the best" Derek spoke coldly, "and one of the most ruthless"

Kayla sighed heavily, her tired and grief stricken brain beginning to put two and two together.

"Wait... is that..." she gulped back the disgust, "the kids at school were talking about finding a body in the woods - half a body. Was that Laura?"

Derek nodded once, confirming her worst fears.

"This fucking family is cursed" she muttered, sniffing back the onslaught of tears that were pushing forward, "haven't we lost enough?"

Derek closed the distance between them, reaching out a surprisingly gentle hand to rest on her shoulder, his unusually soft eyes meeting her exhausted gaze.

"I'll kill whoever did this" he vowed, "no one hurts my family"

She laid her hand over his, subconsciously leaning into his arm, missing her big cousin.

"I'm happy to see you Der" she whispered, "this past year has been... hell" she settled on saying, "and moving to this shitty little town is the last thing I wanted but if you're here... maybe it won't be too bad"

He smiled a little, his forehead still set in sadness.

"Watch your back" he warned, "I sense something is brewing. Something bad"

"Right" she muttered, his hand dropping from her shoulder, "that's why I came here. There's this kid in my class acting... weird"

"Weird how?"

"I don't know, but I could swear he could hear what we were saying from over a hundred feet away. And suddenly he's gotten really good at lacrosse - like scarily good. Too good, if you know what I mean"

Derek frowned, "you think he's a werewolf?"

She shrugged, "if he is, I don't think he knows he is. Does that mean there's an Alpha here?"

Derek gazed past her head, his eyes darting from side to side as his mind raced, "Laura was an Alpha... but I can't see her doing this. It's not her style"

"Unless... unless a hunter didn't kill her" she threw out there, "what if it was another wolf who killed her for her Alpha status and then turned this kid? What if he, she, they, whatever... what if they're starting a pack?"

Derek's eyes burned with realisation, "then we have a very big problem"

Kayla just sighed, "of course we do. When don't we?"

Derek's head inclined to the side, his eyes unfocusing as he concentrated on listening to something Kayla couldn't hear, making her feel out of the loop.

"Uh... care to enlighten me?"

Derek rolled his eyes, "trespassers. Stay here"

"Uh..." she glanced once more at the burned down house, the wood creaking lightly in the wind and frowned, "yeah, no way in hell"

She followed several steps behind him, ignoring his huffs for her to stay where she was but she didn't pay attention to him, following him deeper into the woods.

Derek suddenly stopped, making her crash into his back as she huffed out a grunt at his lack of due care and attention, stepping to the side as she laid eyes on the boys from before - floppy hair and buzzcut boy, the latter standing with his hands in his pockets as the other searched for something on the ground.

Huh... small world.

Buzzcut boy was the first to notice them standing there, Kayla with an amused smirk on her face as she stood there with her arms crossed and Derek with a deathly glare twisted on his features, the boy reaching down to slap his friends shoulder to alert him to their presence.

"What are you doing here, huh?" Derek demanded, taking a few steps forward closer to the boys, no doubt making them both shit their pants, "this is private property"

Buzzcut boy swallowed nervously, his right hand coming up to rest on the back of his head, "oh uh, sorry man, we didn't know"

She snorted to herself at the shitty excuse, buzzcut boys eyes falling to her, a nervous glint returning to his brown irises.

"Yeah, sorry, we uh... we were just looking for something... but it doesn't matter-"

Derek interrupted floppy haired boy, simply reached into his pocket, pulling out an inhaler and throwing it to him who caught it expertly, frowning down at the inhaler in surprise.

Derek, being the antisocial broody being he was, stalked away back they way they came, leaving her staring at the two boys in amusement.

"That's probably the most he's spoken this year" she opened with a lighthearted joke, trying to make the boys relax a little, "being polite isn't exactly at the top of his priorities"

"We can tell" buzzcut boy exclaimed, wiping his sweaty palms of his hands on his slacks, "uh, sorry for intruding"

"It's fine... you're not hurting anyone"

He shared a look with his friend, both clearly wondering the same thing but too scared to ask.

"He's my cousin" she enlightened them, rolling her eyes at their fear of asking, "my dad was his moms brother"

"Oh... cool" buzzcut boy mumbled, still looking like he had a million and one questions to ask, "that's... cool. Uh... did-did your first day go okay?"

She smiled, "you're the first one to ask me that"

"I-I am?" His voice squeaked, a few octaves higher than usual as he pointed at his own chest, glancing behind himself as if checking she was definitely still talking and referring to him.

"As okay as can be expected, I suppose" she mused, "It is school after all"

Buzzcut boy chuckled, "right, of course. Uh..." he glanced at his friend who was smirking at him, "maybe-maybe you heard but uh, there's this party on Friday and, yeah uh... just figured it was my duty to let you know. In case you were wanting to go. I don't know if parties are your thing or not..."

"Friday?" She questioned with a smirk, "that's a full moon... all the crazies come out then" she was playing with them, hinting at what was to come.

Buzzcut boy swallowed nervously, looking at his floppy haired friend and Kayla wondered if he was putting the pieces of the puzzle together because, let's face it, he seemed like the type.

"Oh, uh... yeah, if you believe that kind of stuff..." he added with an uncomfortable chuckle.

"Don't you?"

His eyes met hers, nervous energy pulsating off him in waves, "should I?"

She smirked, her playful yet calm energy unnerving Stiles to the core, "you don't want to see my crazy side..."

"All sides of you seem good. Uh... um-" he flushed, cursing himself for the lack of coolness he was exhibiting, "I didn't mean that. Well I did but-"

"I'll catch you later buzzcut boy" she interrupted with a chuckle, beginning to walk away but his voice called out to her again, some part of him compelled to not end the conversation there.

"It's-It's Stiles. I am. I'm Stiles" he shouted to her, "you can call me Stiles"

She simply laughed as she walked away, feeling his eyes on her the entire time, completely mesmerised.

Upon returning back to the Hale house, Derek was waiting for her, leaning against her car.

"Is that the kid you were talking about?"

She nodded once, "yeah. Strange for an asthmatic that he can play lacrosse that good, huh?"

"Keep an eye on him" Derek ordered, "it's a full moon Friday. We don't need more bloodshed"

She raised her hand into a sarcastic salute, "aye aye captain"

Guess, on Friday, she was going to that party after all.

A/N) eeeeek, I'm really enjoying this process. This is a brand spanking new chapter that wasn't included in the original book, because in that book Kayla wasn't here yet so I'm having fun really getting into the nitty gritty :) looking forward to hearing your thoughts :)

Chapter Text

She left her cousin shortly after, taking time to process the news without Derek's prying eyes and keen werewolf senses.

With her family it was just one thing after another. They couldn't catch a break. Just a continuous string of bad luck that seemed to follow them around. First the fire, then hunters murdering her dad and brother in cold blood and now Laura? Was this some kind of sick joke? What had they done to deserve this?

Honestly, she was sick of the discrimination her family got just because they were werewolves. It was repulsive. People's hatred of them rooted in fear of the unknown, which led to violence. What was wrong with just coexisting?

She hated it. She hated this. This war between humans and supernatural... it was beyond exhausting and ridiculous. She didn't understand it one bit. To her, it was futile. There was always going to be the supernatural and there was always going to be humans, it was just the way the world worked, so why such a narrow minded hatred for one another?

Maybe she had a unique perspective on this. Here she was, brought up and surrounded by werewolves, included in everything supernatural but yet not really belonging with them. Not completely. For some unknown reason her body had rejected the inherited werewolf genes that, by all accounts, she should have got. Her dad, a full and true werewolf by blood, belonging to one of the most prominent and respected werewolf families on this side of the ocean - the Hale family. The entire Hale lineage descended from the very first pack of werewolves to walk the western world.

He had passed those genes to his first born son, her older brother Dylan, but then she came along two years later and, for some reason, wasn't worthy of them. It didn't stop the pain every full moon though. A rare and basically unheard of occurrence she had to go through every full moon ever since puberty.

She had remembered her dad had been baffled by it, taking her to every emissionary, Druid and witch doctor along the entire gulf coast, even travelling as far as Mexico to find out what was happening with her body.

No one could figure it out.

It was an anomaly.

The best and most probable answers they got were the werewolf genes inside her were trying to turn, but the human genes were somehow winning that fight and, thus, no werewolf. Just a human girl fighting the crippling pains through her body every month.

Luckily, she had gotten better at managing it but it didn't make it any less painful. The only thing that took the edge off and made it bearable so she could function like a normal human was alcohol. Or drugs. Or both. But now she didn't have that crutch. Which meant most full moons she was curled up in bed, shaking and sweating from the excruciating pain that tore her up from the inside out, not even allowed a simple pain killer to try and help.

Mom's orders.

She resisted a scoff at that. Her mom and her had always had a difficult relationship. It had been better when her dad was alive to keep them in check but, since he died, they always seemed to disagree. Two strong personalities clashing.

She didn't know why, but she never had that connection with her mom that she had with her dad. A small part of her feeling unwanted, like her presence was a nuisance. Of course, her mom had never said that to her face, it was just a feeling she got whenever she spent time with her. A gut feeling.

She remembered the mess her mom had been in when her dad and brother died. She was, understandably, distraught. Kayla wasn't going to minimise that, but she still had a barely turned fifteen year old to care for and didn't. Leaving Kayla to grieve alone.

She had no support system, no one to turn to and talk to. For the first month after it had happened, her mom shut herself away in her bedroom, leaving Kayla to handle the funerals, the bills, the housework all whilst coming to terms with what she had lost. Kayla became the parent, the one trying to get her mom to eat, to drink, to take care of herself, all her efforts which got thrown back in her face with harsh words and blame.

It all just got too much, the pain and pressure making her fall headfirst into everything bad. It was a fast descent into hell, one she had welcomed at the time.Anything was better than the agony she had felt every single second of every single day, crushing her very soul into smithereens.

The drugs, the alcohol, the parties, the boys. Well, one boy in particular. One boy that ruined her life even more.

He was older than her, not by much, but enough. His own broken heart making him act out in violence. Yet, at the same time, he was addictive to her. He didn't judge, didn't expect anything, just enjoyed her company and her, his. Enjoyed it, until they were ripping each other to shreds.

It went on for too long, both bad influences on each other. Their habits of drinking and drug taking, always so extreme, landing her in the hospital several times. The third time, of which, her mom had shown up and warned her to 'snap out of it' and 'quit acting like an intolerant child'.

The words caused so much hurt to her at the time, the fresh wounds bleeding out so much anguish because, yes - she was a child. Just a child that had been forced to grow up far too soon, experiencing pain she should never have to feel. So she just disappeared. The lack of love and care from her own mother was the final nail in the coffin so she went off with Aiden on the back of his motorcycle and didn't return for months.

So yeah, she acted out.

She went through hell and back and no one cared. Not one single person. Not even her own mother.

When she eventually pulled herself from those depths, her mom had many 'terms and conditions' for her to abide by. A strict system of rules that, dare she break, she would probably end up homeless. And one of them was no pills, not even pain relief, hence the unnecessary agony she went through every month since coming back.

Her mom said it was for the best, that it was better to have no temptation, but it was a callous and uneducated approach. Yet she abided by it none the less, purely out of spite, not wanting to prove her mom right that she was a failure.

So yeah, they had their issues, but it wasn't all bad. It was sometimes alright. They could laugh and joke about things but still, she just had this feeling in her gut, that her mom was resentful of her very being.

Well, Kayla thought bitterly, should've had an abortion then.

She was so lost in her own mind, reliving each painful and bitter moment since losing her family, she didn't realise she had arrived back until she was turning into her driveway, tyres crunching over gravel as she drove up the small incline and parked outside the double garage.

It still didn't feel like home. She doubted it ever would really, but she had no connection to this house at all. It was beautiful, yes. A classy and elegant house situated in a very middle class community.

A plain but well maintained garden spanning the front all the way down to the sidewalk split by a wide driveway, a typical white picket fence surrounding the property, a red post box down by the edge of the garden and a 'SOLD' sign still hammered into the grass.

Now the property itself was maybe one of the most dominating houses on this side of town. Her mom had always had a flare for the finer things in life, enjoying showing she had money - and lots of it - and didn't care who knew it. So it was only fitting the house she bought showed that too.

It stood alone, surrounded by garden. The sandstone brick exterior, which apparently was quite unusual for this part of California, swept up over large arching windows and small balconies, three story's high - excluding the attic and basement. The roof made from dark brown tiles cut unusual shapes, hosting two large chimneys on either sides. The double garage, incorporated into the left side of the house, covered by a white electric door.

She stepped from her car, grabbing her school stuff and made her way across the cobbled entrance, making her way up the stone steps to the porch to push open the large oak front door, split down the middle with frosted glass.

It opened up into a large foyer, beautiful, but void of any sentiment. Just to the left, a large staircase leading up to the second story. To the right, an open plan living room, hosting not much more than two sofas and a television.

She dropped her keys into a small dish on top of a unit, slipping her shoes off and padding her way down the black and white tiles of the hallway into the kitchen. Again, another large room, dominated by the black marble breakfast bar in the middle of the room.

"You're late"

She resisted an eye roll, turning around to see her mom hovering by the cooker, the smell of spices tickling her nostrils.

"I went to see Derek" she shrugged, pulling a stool out from the breakfast bar and sitting down as her mom, dressed in all black, her hair, dark, but lightened with Caramel strands twisted into an elegant bun turned back to the dinner she was cooking, "he's back in town"

Her mom let out a rather bland sound of acknowledgement, "whatever is the mess he's in now?"

She bit her lip, resisting saying a scathing comment, "Laura's dead"

Her mom made the exact same noise as before, not even turning around from the cooker, continuing to stir the contents of the pot, "sorry to hear that"

'No you're not' almost slipped out but she resisted, rolling her eyes from behind her moms back.

"I told you Beacon Hills wasn't a good idea"

Her mom sighed heavily, the strong features on her face morphed into displeasement, "Kayla, let's not start this again"

"I'm not starting anything" she huffed, "just trying to understand why we had to come here of all places"

Her mom tapped the sauce from the wooden spoon, placing it over the pot and turning the heat down on the cooker before facing her, her expression bordering on annoyed.

"You know why Kayla. Your father had investments here, money in properties and-"

"Right, yeah, for the money" she interrupted scathingly, placing her elbow on the breakfast bar and placing her chin in it, "of course it's about money"

Her mom's expression tightened, "don't use that tone with me. It's your fathers money that paid for that brand new car out there that you're driving about in, the roof over your head, your college fund and let's not forget the very high allowance you get every month"

None of that mattered to Kayla, it really didn't, but clearly to her mom it did and she was dragging Kayla into it.

"You could've sold the investments, the shares-"

"No" her mom interrupted, "I'm not getting rid of anything of your fathers. And he was wanting to move back here for a while... I couldn't not after... after..."

She saw a flash of vulnerability seize her mom's face, the slice of innocence she rarely showed.

Kayla chose just to accept that because there was no point in arguing. Her mom never let her win an argument anyway.

Kayla sighed, reaching for a banana from the wooden fruit bowl placed in the centre of the breakfast bar, "this place is just so... so..."

"You loved it when you were younger" her mom reminded her, smacking the banana from her hand as she frowned pointedly and nodded to the dinner currently being made, a strict order to not ruin her upcoming meal, "and you can love it again"

"It'sBeacon Hills" she scoffed, "what is there to love?"

"Find something" her mom said, her tone lacking any form of sympathy, "because we are staying here from now on and you're just going to have to get used to it"

Of course she was, because, clearly, her opinion didn't matter.

Her mom broke the rising tension with a change of conversation, almost trying too hard to act like the perfect parent.

"How was school?"

"It was fine" Kayla replied glumly, "I even stayed till the end" she added sarcastically.

Her mom shot her a pointed look, "Kayla, you know what I said about no skiving school-"

"I know, I know-"

"You're lucky you even got to stay in school after last year. Do you know how hard I had work to not get you dropped down a year? Don't let that go to waste"

"I won't" Kayla exclaimed, "my god mother, a little faith please?"

Her mom simply cocked a perfectly manicured brow at her, "earn it"

Jeez, was her mother's approval even worth this much of a headache? Probably not.

She rolled her eyes, "if that's even possible"

Her mom, fed up with this never ending argument that always got brought up, turned back to the cooker and dismissed her with a wave of the wooden spoon.

"Go and finish unpacking, dinner will be ready in an hour"

Without even bidding farewell, Kayla slipped off the stool and left the kitchen, deliberately stomping just that little bit harder up the stone staircase and down the corridor to her room at the very end.

Her room, the one she had picked, was front facing onto the street, large arching windows spread across the whole side of one wall. The ceilings, unusually high, made the room feel more empty and cold and bare but she had come to terms with the fact that nothing would feel like home again. Her dad now, never again, changing a bland, dull canvas of a house into a loving energetic family home.

Her queen bed was propped adajecent to the full windows against a plain white wall, surrounded by many unopened brown boxes.

Her entire life packed into cardboard squares.

She shut the door behind her, heading straight to her bed and sitting on it cross legged as she looked around the empty room, hating it already.

Trapped into appearing like the perfect, modern American family, a facade for everyone to buy into.

And Kayla, quite frankly, was sick of it.

But what choice did she have?

Apparently, she was here to stay. Forced into a new start she didn't want with a mother that was more dictator than parent.This was just fucking fantastic.

Sleep hardly came that night, taunted with restlessness and bouts of anxiety that made her gut tight with tension.

Laura played on her mind a lot.

She hadn't been as close to Laura as Derek, maybe because - even when growing up - she wasn't around as much, but it didn't mean her untimely death hurt her any less.

Laura was still a strong, unapologetic female figure she admired and had looked up to. Teaching her it was okay to be brave and headstrong and different.

A strength burning bright, even in the darkness of days.

By the time her alarm started screaming at her, she had maybe managed an hours sleep at best - if that.

Resisting flinging the clock across the room, knowing her mom would probably come barging in and bite her head off and she was way too tired for that, she slapped it off and groaned as she forced herself up out of bed.

Her morning routine was relatively simple.She had a shower in her en suite wet room, shampooing and conditioning her hair, shaving her under arms and scraping the razor over her legs, catching any wild hairs she may have missed with waxing.Once done, she apppied aloe Vera gel to her skin, dried herself, sprayed deodorant and walked naked around her room trying to find clothes with a towel turban wrapped around her long hair.

She studied her double wardrobe, her keen gaze sweeping over everything that was hung up.

She wanted to feel confident and unfazed, a headstrong new girl that hopefully no one would approach unnecessarily.

So she settled for a pair of tight leather black pants, a white long sleeved bodysuit and a cropped red leather jacket, leaving the former off as she sat down at her vanity table and dried her hair before straightening it, taming the unruly kinks and curls in her hair.

"Kayla, come on, you're going to be late"

She rolled her eyes at her moms persistent voice from down the hallway in her own room, shouting back a disinterested "yeah yeah" and focused back on the mirror, gazing at her tired reflection.

She knew today she would have to try and sniff about, find out more about the Stiles kid and his cute, maybe-werewolf best friend like Derek had asked.

So, to look at least semi approachable, she added concealer to her heavy under eyes, layering a small coat of foundation against her skin, brushing through her eyebrows and applying some mascara and a small flick of black eyeliner across her top lid.

She glanced at her small make up collection, honing in on the stick of red lipstick.

Too much?

Probably, but fuck it.

She was on a mission, and sometimes missions required lipstick. Especially if said mission involved horny teenage boys.

She applied a light layer, already regretting it as she moved her mouth around, trying to get used to the tightness around her lips.

Bleh.

Definitely should've ate her morning bagel before this fiasco.

"Kayla"her mom's annoyed voice pierced through her ear drums, "hurry up"

She grabbed her bag, slipping on a pair of black boots and made her way down the stairs at her own pace, ignoring her mom's folded armed stance by the front door.

"What?" Kayla bit out, "It's like, half seven, calm down"

"I told you, I want you to-"

"-do good in school, yes, I know" she finished her mom's sentence with an audible sigh, "and I will"

Her mom cocked an arched brow, giving her a thorough look over, "you look as if you're going to start a riot"

"Huh" she mumbled, opening her messenger bag and pulling out her academic diary, frowning as she flicked through the pages and remarked in a very remorseless sarcastic tone, "that's strange, I could've sworn that was tomorrow"

Her mom, clearly slightly aggravated by her attitude, reached forward and snatched the diary from her hands, "I'm being serious Kayla"

"I know" she remarked, grabbing the diary back, "jeez, lighten up"

"You should go and change"

"Why?"

"It's not exactly appropriate now, is it?"

"I'm not going to church" she rolled her eyes, "now can you please move so I can go to school?"

Her mom just pursed her lips, clearly hating her behaviour but choosing - for once - not to say anything about it.

"Just stay away from the bad crowd" her mom warned, finally side stepping away from guarding the front door.

"Oh relax" she rolled her eyes, "I'm simply doing Derek a favour and following around a potential new werewolf. Not smoking pot behind the bike shed"

She managed to escape her moms wrath at her off hand comment, feeling like she was wrestling her way through god damn airport security just to get to her car and away from her mom's beady, suspicious stare.

That was another thing about her mom... always so god damn untrusting. Always thinking - and expecting - the worst of Kayla, never once giving her the benefit of the doubt.

She made it to school quite quickly, the bonus she supposed of living in a classy, family orientated neighbourhood. Less than a five minute drive, even with traffic, to the school.

She parked up, coincidentally choosing the space next to an old clapped out blue jeep and turned to look at it through the drivers side window and saw buzzcut boy - no, sorry, Stiles - too, turning to meet her stare.

Even through the tinted window she was sure he blushed a little, his mole splattered cheeks darkening to pink as he awkwardly, but immediately, waved at her. Playing it way too eager.

She snorted at his lack of composure but, at the same time, admired his gusto, smirking back at him.

Now, she wasn't stupid - she knew her good looks privileged her in a lot of ways. Whether it be flirting her way out of a speeding ticket or getting to the front of a queue, and she also knew she could use them to find out things.

A lot of things.

Stiles reacted the exact same way as yesterday, completely surprised by her willing interaction and glanced around almost self consciously, as if double checking she wasn't interacting with someone else.

It was cute... but she knew cute was also something she should stay away from.

She grabbed her stuff, slipping out from her car as she saw Stiles, from the side of her eye, do the same only he fell completely from the jeep onto the tarmac, letting out a loud yelp before scrambling back up, scratching the back of his neck and trying to play it cool.

She cocked a brow, completely unfazed, "you good?"

"So good" he gasped, his face twisting into pain as he stretched out his back, "no complaints here"

She bit her lip, holding back an amused smirk as she leaned back against the exterior of her car, "do you always act like this around pretty girls?"

Her confidence and complete lack of filter made Stiles do a double take, completely dumbfounded into silence as he gaped at her.

"Oh... u-uh, um..."

"I'll take that as ayes"

He swallowed thickly, "p-pretty girls don't usually talk to me so uh, yeah?"

She couldn't help but look him up and down, admiring his somewhat nerdy but still outspoken demeanour. She hadn't fully noticed before but he was more than just cute. He was attractive. Features surprisingly striking for a white boy.

"Well, you can now score that off your bucket list"

He snorted out a laugh, "already done"

She dropped her gaze, adjusting her bag on her shoulder as she reached into it to find her schedule.

"I don't suppose you could help me find art class, can you?"

He, again, looked around self consciously, pointing an index finger at his tee covered chest.

"M-Me?"

"Who else?" She retorted back, enjoying the way he reacted around her. It had been a long time since someone was genuinely taken aback and nervous in her presence and he, clearly, was crushing on her - hard.

He swallowed nervously, a new pink flush spreading across his neck."Sure... o-of course. Anything you want. I mean-" he coughed sheepishly, "-anything to help. You I mean. Anything to help you"

Her eyes, despite being heavy and tired, dazzled with new found pleasure, finding this strange new boy delightfully amusing.She could wrap him around her little finger if she wanted, that much was very obvious.

She started off in a slow walk towards the school, Stiles - still in shock - not following straight away before hurrying after her, clumsily crashing into her shoulder.

"Oh, uh, sorry"

"Maybe you should get 'L' plates" she suggested cheekily, readjusting her bag.

"Yeah, stick them on my forehead. Could act as 'loser' too"

A laugh bubbled from the back of her throat, "oh, he has jokes I see"

"It's all I've got going for me, of course I have jokes"

"I wouldn't say all" she playfully claimed, watching his eyes go bug eyed, "anyway-" changing the subject, leaving him hanging, like bait ready to reel in, "- what is there to do in this god forsaken town?"

"Um... not much" he finally said, keeping in pace with him, his steps a lot more bouncy and jittery, "there's an arcade, a bowling alley, a cinema, lots of fast food outlets, a mall and uh... that's about it. Oh wait, a couple clubs too"

"Great" she drawled out sarcastically, "I can add 'dying of boredom' to my schedule too"

He snorted, "sorry it's not some hot shot Louisiana town"

She cocked a brow at him, "how did you know I was from Louisiana? I never mentioned that"

He shone a berry red, his face lighting up like a god damn Christmas tree, "oh, uh... Um... the g-guys were talking about it in the locker room. You're new. They're disgustingly intrigued"

"I know about locker room talk" she chuckled, easing his nerves a little, "and my town back home was not what you would call 'hot shot', but it wasn't the place my family burned to death in either"

Her bluntness made him gape at her, completely thrown off by her unfiltered and shamesss personality.

"What?" She chuckled, "I know it's what everyone is talking about. No need to be coy"

"... I wouldn't say everyone" he added, "I mean, some people have tact"

"Unlikely"

He held open the door for her, a show of chivalry and attentiveness which she chose not to argue with it, walking through into the busy hallway.

"I'm sorry about that. The fire, I mean"

"It's fine, it's not like you started it"

He let out an uncomfortable grunt, "uh... obviously"

He led her down one corridor, turning left at the intersection of the next corridors.

"So... Stiles..." she deliberately drawled out his name, playing with it on her tongue to watch him basically fall apart by the sound of his name leaving her red lips in such a seductive and curious way, "-anything I should know about you?"

His expression turned blank, his jaw slackening slightly as he led them up a small flight of stairs.

"L-Like what?"

"Anything"

She was giving him free rein here, free rein to do or say anything he wanted, giving him the oppertunity to impress her but she watched as he went completely blank. All thought leaving his brain as he tried to come to terms with the fact someone like her was speaking to someone like him.

And, what he finally said, would haunt him for the rest of time.

His nerves, completely shot, were buzzing on high alert and he said the first thing that came to mind.

"I'm in love with Lydia Martin"

She looked at him, surprised and a little taken aback, watching as his face screwed up into complete mortification, slapping a hand to cover his mouth.

She couldn't help it. She burst out laughing.

"Good luck with that one" she playfully remarked, finding his expression of horror absolutely hilarious, "I'm rooting for you"

He was speechless, kicking himself and his stupid brain for saying that in front of her.

"Uh... I-"

"Allison likes Scott y'know" she changed the subject, "is he a good guy?"

Secretly fishing for some info.

"W-Who, Scott? Y-Yeah, of course, best of the best. Total nerd, but yeah. Sound guy"

"No... dirty secrets?" She smirked, "y'know, like a crazy ex? An alcohol problem? Turns into a werewolf every month?"

He whipped his head around to stare at her, completely taken a back by her statement but she merely kept a smile on her face, putting across she was joking.

But his reaction told her a lot - that Stiles, the perceptive and equally nerdy best friend - was maybe thinking that too.

His expression turned a little suspicious, looking at her, wondering if she knew something he didn't. But, surprisingly, she was unreadable. A closed book.

"He can't grow facial hair as it is, he would be a pretty disappointing werewolf" Stiles said, injecting a little humour into the conversation before suddenly stopping, locating the art class she had wanted him to find, "oh, uh, we're here" he said, a little disappointed their time together had come to an end.

"Thanks" she purred, one side of her mouth pulling into half a smile, "I owe you one" and with that she swept into the classroom, a flurry of thick hair sweeping out and hitting Stiles in the face as he watched her leave, standing there like a god damn love sick puppy, his palm coming to rest on his cheek where her uncontrollable hair had hit him, savouring the feel.

'I'm going to marry this girl' he thought to himself, not feeling quite this mesmerised or intrigued in, well, ever.

A breath of fresh air that he oh so desperately needed.

A/N) eeeeek, her prepared for slow burn stayla haha won't be as rushed as the first book, so lots of buildup after the friendship yayyy so hope you all liked and please please review and I shall see you all very soon :)

Chapter Text

She hadn't managed to do much snooping considering Lydia god damn Martin had basically kidnapped her and forced her into her little clique, much the same as Allison.

By the time lunch rolled around she had zero information on Scott McCall and his weird and dorky friend, Stiles Stilinski. Instead, all she got was an earful off Lydia about certain 'rules and regulations' and a lot of admiring looks from strangers.

She dumped her tray on the table, choosing to sit next to Allison, a few others beginning to surround them.

"-should make more punch, that's all"

Lydia pursed her lips as she sat across from them, chatting to Jackson and another girl, Amelia, her tray relatively empty apart from a salad and a water, "it's one of the biggest parties of the year, apart from my birthday of course-" she added knowingly, "-I want people to have a good time"

"Well, I'll never say no to alcohol" Amelia joked, twirling some blonde hair around her finger, "you coming Danny?"

The boy that chose to sit next to Kayla just smirked, "well duh, what else would I be doing on a Friday night?"

Lydia snorted, "don't be coy Danny, we all know about your late night shenanigans at Jungle every weekend"

Danny rolled his eyes, "I didn't realise Jungle was your sort of place Lydia"

Lydia simply smirked, "every place is my sort of place Danny" she added, oozing confidence and playfulness as she leaned into Jackson's arm wrapped around her.

"Oh, uh, sorry" Allison interrupted, "what's 'the jungle'"

"Gay bar" both Kayla and Danny answered at the same time, causing the former to look at Kayla in surprise and new found appreciation, arching a brow at her.

"How did you know that?"

Kayla snorted, "oh please? The Jungle? How much more obvious can you get?"

Danny glanced at her knowingly, "I knew you had some secrets up your sleeve"

"Nothing wrong with batting for two teams, if anything, it's just being fair" Kayla smirked as Danny dissolved into laughter and she dipped a handful of fries into her half plateful of ketchup before stuffing them into her mouth.

Lydia tried to hand her a napkin, "you're making a mess"

"Sue me" she mumbled through her mouthful of food, grabbing a couple more fries for extra measure and shoving them past her lips - an act of defiance.

Lydia deliberately pushed the napkin across the table with her index finger, an indignant gleam in her eyes, "I knew you would be trouble"

She couldn't help but smirk as she swallowed her food, "that's me, trouble with a capital T"

"Why do you like giving me a headache?"

"Because I'm bored" Kayla retaliated with a shrug, "this town is shit"

"Well, you know what would make it less boring?" Lydia leaned forward as the others chatted amongst themselves, a playful but devious shine reflecting from her gaze, "boys" and with that she deliberately inclined her head sideways to a dirty blonde haired guy, quite tall and buff, sitting next to Allison. He looked familiar, probably another cocky twat from the lacrosse team.

Kayla snorted, giving the guy a quick glance up and down, "uh, no chance"

"Why?" Lydia seemed thoroughly disappointed, keeping her voice hush as she pulled down her hair in front of her face, making their conversation a little bit more private, "he's hot. And successful. Plus that jawline? Anyone would kill for that"

"Then why don't you date him?" Kayla retaliated with a smirk to which Lydia just rolled her eyes in return.

"I'm dating the captain of the lacrosse team, not some measly player. But he'd be perfect for you"

Kayla allowed herself one more look at the boy. He was attractive, no doubt about it, his presence demanding attention. His jaw, as if carved from ice, was sharp and angled, a small dimple in his chin. Cheekbones high and dignified with the most piercing blue eyes she had seen in a while, all with a thick mass of dirty blonde hair atop his head, unruly, but clearly gelled to look like this. By all accounts, a Greek god.

Well, ish.

More like a Walmart knock off version.

He caught her looking, stopping mid conversation to meet her stare, his blue eyes dazzling with confidence as he began to smirk at her.

"No chance" she said, making sure he knew - right off the bat - that whatever doing through his head right now was never going to happen, "so don't even start"

He raised a hand in playful defence, "hey, you were the one staring first"

She rolled her eyes, turning away from him but Lydia kicked her leg from under the table, throwing her a pointed look.

"Okay, ow, that hurt. How can feet so little be so deadly?"

Lydia ignored her snark, her look twisted into a warning to 'play nice'.

"Not happening" she repeated, "he's not my type"

"He's just enough your type" Lydia whispered, "bad boy, but not too bad. Tall, strong, good in bed. A face chiseled from gold itself. What is wrong with you?"

"How do you know my type?" She asked, "and I told you I was done with boys"

Lydia smirked, "I have my ways, and no you're not. Not really. You have needs"

"Oh please" Kayla scoffed, "my vibrator can hit way more spots than any guy can"

Lydia just sat back, ignoring her dismissals and chose to look at the blonde haired guy, beginning to strike up conversation and ignoring Kayla's deadly glares in her direction.

"Ignore her Brian-" Lydia smiled sickly sweet, "-she just enjoys being difficult"

Brian. Of course. Typical white boy name.

Brian chuckled, "I gathered"

"She'll see you at the party on Friday" Lydia promised, acting as if Kayla wasn't there at all sending her exasperated looks whilst Allison giggled, "so dress nice"

Kayla settled on sitting back and shoving more fries in her mouth, clearly getting no where with her new friends.

"I'm going with Scott" Allison whispered, keeping her voice hush, "he asked me last night. I hit a dog, it was a whole thing" she waved off, "I haven't told Lydia yet"

Kayla swallowed the fries, looking at Allison a little in alarm, "you're going with Scott?"

Because, shit, if he really was a werewolf and he was getting all hot and heavy with Allison - on a full moon none the less - the results could be disasterous. She knew that first hand.

Allison frowned, "why? Should I not go?"

She didn't want to put her off, or alert her to anything supernatural related, especially given who her family were, so simply smiled, "just be safe"

In more ways than one.

"Safe?" Allison frowned in confusion, "you think I should take pepper spray?"

Probably not a bad idea, if she was being completely honest.

"I was thinking more a condom, but if you think he gets turned on by pepper spray then go for it. I'm not one to kink shame"

Allison blushed a light pink, "I-I'm not going to sleep with him on the first date"

"Why not? Try before you buy" Kayla smirked, "test the goods"

Allison laughed a little uncomfortably, "definitely not having sex with him yet"

"That's what I said, then the alcohol hit and bam - I was naked, he was naked, it wasn't very memorable" she chuckled, "alcohol does funny stuff to people. Funny meaning horny"

Allison looked a little horrified, "oh no... what if he expects it?"

She snorted, "who, Scott? Pffft. He looks like a kiss on the cheek would make him pass out. Calm down. He definitely doesn't expect anything apart from probably getting stood up"

Allison smiled, "I'm looking forward to it. He seems nice"

Let's hope he stays nice, she thought grimly.

"Lydia is going to get her own way you know" Allison chuckled, "you won't be going to that party alone"

"Oh, I know" Kayla rolled her eyes playfully, "but I can put it off for as long as humanly possible"

"Brian doesn't seem too bad though" Allison shrugged, "he's in my physics class. Seems very charismatic and charming"

"Yeah, those are the ones you have to watch out for" Kayla smirked, "or before you know it they'll be charming your underwear off and leaving you pregnant"

Allison laughed at her retort, "that's why you take your own advice and take a condom"

Kayla couldn't help but chuckle at Allison's humour finally beginning to show through, comfortable enough to laugh and joke around without the shyness or timidness.

"Touche, my friend, touché"

When lunch was over - well, deemed over by Lydia, ten minutes before next class was due to begin - they all stood up with their empty trays but when Kayla went to turn around she smacked head first into Brian, the contents of her tray smashing to the floor.

"Oh shit, sorry" he apologised, grinning in delight at her glare, like her lack of interest and defiance was a keen challenge for him as he patted his rock hard chest, "I guess my gym sessions have been paying off"

His casual arrogance made her scoff as she bent down to pick up the litter and broken pieces of her plate but he followed her down, helping her pick up the sharp ceramic pieces.

"It's okay, you don't have to admit you like me, I can already tell" he grinned, "but you're stubborn, I like that"

She grinned sarcastically, holding up her middle finger, "do you like this?"

He winked, "depends where it's been"

"In your eye socket if you don't stop being so damn annoying"

He laughed unapologetically, his eyes dazzling with amusement as he dumped the broken pieces of plate onto her tray.

"Where have you been all my life?" He asked, "because, god damn, I didn't realise it's been missing you"

"Cute" she retorted, "real cute mr macho, but I don't fall for that shit. Now run along-ow"

In her frustration, she didn't realise how unsafely she was handling the broken pieces of plate until the sharp tip sliced the curve between her thumb and index finger, blood beginning to pool from the injury.

"Oh shit" she cursed, throwing him a dirty look, "see what you made me do?"

He ignored her, catching sight of the blood and quickly pulled his dark blue tee over his head, leaving him barechested as he pressed his top to her hand, letting the material soak up the blood. She gulped, prying her eyes away from his clean bare chest which was surprisingly muscular, his skin, although pale, was clearly firm and unblemished.

Yes, his gym sessions were paying off.

He smirked as he caught her looking, deliberately flexing his pectoral muscles.

"Any excuse to take your shirt off" she mocked.

"Like what you see?"

She scoffed, unfazed and unbothered but secretly a little intrigued, "I've seen better"

"Doubtful"

He helped her stand, many eyes of the cafeteria now looking over in wonder and amazement, catching the sight of someone popular already half naked in front of the new girl - great. Why did she think this would end up written inside a bathroom stall?

"Are you always this clumsy?"

She raised her brows in something close to offense, "excuse you, I'll have you know I'm highly skilled in gymnastics, so no, I'm certainly not clumsy"

He quirked a brow, "oh, I see. So just around hot, half naked guys then?"

She escaped the grip on her arms that he had helped her up with, well aware of Lydia grinning at them from the side.

"You really like the sound of your own voice, huh?"

He chuckled, completely unfazed by her remarks, "yes, and something tells me you do too otherwise you wouldn't still be speaking with me"

She let out an annoyed noise from the back of her throat, unravelling his tee from around her hand and throwing it back to him, the material smacking him in the face.

"Goodbye, dickhead"

"I'll pick you up at seven, yeah?"

She was almost away from him, nearly safe from his obnoxious flirting, but his expectant tone made her turn around, immediately shaking her head.

"What? No way in hell. Why?"

His grin got even bigger, like a god damn Cheshire Cat on crack.

"For the party"

"I'm not going with you"

He chuckled, "we'll see" and with that he threw his bloodstained shirt in the trash can and sauntered past her, oozing nothing but confidence.

She scoffed to herself, "unbelievable"

Allison and Lydia appeared behind her, the former donning a wide grin, "he turns you on a little, don't lie"

"He has a penis, of course he turns me on. That doesn't mean I want to date him"

Lydia wagged a finger in front of her face, "if you show up alone, you won't be allowed in"

She narrowed her eyes at the strawberry blonde, "are you blackmailing me?"

"I'm sweetening the pot" Lydia laughed, "don't worry, I'll text him your address" before linking arms with Jackson and disappearing from the cafeteria, leaving Kayla standing there, secretly fizzing, with an amused Allison beside her trying not to grin.

"How in the hell does she know my address?"

Allison's eyes twinkled with amusement, "it's Lydia. I've learned not to ask questions"

Kayla groaned as she threw her head back, "I promised myself no boys"

Allison linked her arm with hers, "then just let him be your ride. You don't need to spend the night entertaining him"

"Allison-" she looked at her new found friend, "-I have no self control. I'm a horny sixteen year old, I'll probably end up jumping his bones because I'm bored"

Allison laughed at her lack of shame, "I won't let you do that, don't worry"

"You'll be too busy grinding on Scott to pay attention"

Allison flushed again, "I don't grind"

"I do. It's my downfall"

Allison simply shook her head in amusement, reaching into her bag and pulling out some napkins to press into Kayla's hand, soaking up the blood that was already beginning to slow.

"Maybe you should go to nurses office?"

"It's fine" Kayla waved away her concerns, "I heal quick"

Technically, true. Not werewolf quick , but quicker than the average human. Another perk of having the - albeit dormant - werewolf genes in her.

"Hmmm" Allison didn't seem best pleased with that idea, "it might need stitches"

"Nah, a band aid will do"

Allison chose not to argue, rooting through her bag again until she found a couple of bandaids, holding them out to her. Kayla accepted graciously, ripping open the packaging and placing the bandaid on the awkward part of her hand, covering up the fact it was already stopping bleeding, not wanting to make Allison suspicious.

"See? All sorted"

Her friend just smirked, "weirdo"

"I'll accept the compliment" she laughed, leaving the cafeteria with her new found friend as the bell overhead ring, signalling the start of their next class.

School dragged - yet again - but hey, nothing new there right? Same old, day in, day out. She walked back to her car, throwing her stuff in the passengers side as she climbed into the drivers seat, casting a glance to the baby blue jeep next to her. She had been tasked with finding out more about Scott, but failed today.

She would blame Lydia, that girl hardly let her out of her sight.

The information she got from Stiles this morning wasn't exactly the bees knees, but it was a start. She didn't know how she would find out for sure his werewolf status by tomorrow night, but at least if she was there at the party she could keep an eye on him.

Make sure he didn't rip out Allison's throat, or anything along those lines.

Cheery thought.

She decided to wait around for a bit, looking out for the two dorky friends who, after several minutes, were in her line of sight. She watched as they exchanged words, bidding farewell at the bike rack as Scott climbed on and disappeared into the crowd, Stiles lopping back to his jeep.

She watched him scratch the back of his neck as he reached his jeep, glancing over and meeting her stare in surprise.

She raised a hand into a wave: an invitation to friendship.

She watched as he swallowed nervously, replying back to her wave with one of his own, still a little gobsmacked at their interactions.

She pressed the button on the drivers side door to make her window come down, jutting her head out slightly and calling him over.

He swallowed again, half out of it as he raised his hand to his chest, his palm flat against his tee as he inched forward, his eyes a little wide. Cute.

She smirked, "guess I'll see you at the party after all"

"Wha-wait, you're coming?" he asked, taken aback by her words.

"Not voluntarily" she joked, "but yeah, I'll make an appearance. What do people normally wear to these types of things?"

"Oh, uh..." he chuckled nervously, "c-clothes, usually. Though sometimes that's optional"

Her eyes twinkled with hilarity at his words, "are you telling me I should show up naked?"

He immediately went bug eyed, his mouth popping open in shock as he shook his head quickly, "no, no, no, no. You-You should come with clothes"

"Are you suggesting I'd look bad naked?"

His eyes, if possible, got even wider, looking as if he wished the ground would open up and swallow him whole.

"Wh-no, no. You would look amazing naked, obviously. I mean-not that I've seen you naked or anything yet-not that I expect to-oh my god, shut up Stiles" he added, totally mortified.

She couldn't help but laugh at his embarrassment, finding his dorky ways sort of cute.

"You're kind of a mess, has anyone ever told you that?"

He pursed his lips as he nodded his head, "on a daily basis, yeah"

She snorted out another laugh, "well thanks for the advice. I'll try and remember to wear clothes"

He pointed a finger at her, "yes, you do that. There's a lot of pervs in Beacon Hills. Plus, it gets cold at night. It's still winter"

"Yeah, I kind of gathered" she smirked, "and thanks for the weather advice, I'll make sure to wear a bra than. Nothing worse than cold nipples"

His mouth popped open again, completely surprised at her words as she just grinned before reversing from her space and speeding off from the car park, leaving him standing there completely mesmerised and caught off guard.

She smirked to herself, 'yup, still got it'.

When she got home and told her mom of her plans for tomorrow evening, her mom wasn't best pleased. In fact, she was bordering on angry.

"Kayla, I told you, no more party scenes. It's not good for you"

She rolled her eyes, "I'm there to help Derek, not to shoot up coke. Relax"

Her mother's eyes went wide with simmering fury, "no. We came here for a fresh start, not for you to go back to how you were"

She rolled her eyes, "it's not like that"

"It will end up like that" her mom retaliated, "and I'm not going through that again"

'Of course', Kayla thought, 'because you're the important thing here'.

"You wanted me to fit in and make an effort, well here I am doing that and you're still not happy" Kayla fumed, "what do you want me to do? Stay locked up in my room forever?"

Her mom shrugged, "if it keeps you out of trouble, then yes"

"You're being ridiculous"

"I'm being reasonable" her mom retaliated, "you don't get to expect anything after the way you acted last year. The hospital bills, maxing our our credit cards, disappearing to do god knows what, lots of parents wouldn't have tolerated that and welcomed you back. I did, so count yourself lucky. I think following some ground rules so I don't have to do something I may come to regret shouldn't be too much of an ask"

Kayla was bubbling with anger, quiet fury burning through her veins.

"There's ground rules and then there's blackmail. What are you going to do if I don't abide by them, throw me out? Wouldn't be the first time"

Her mom clenched her jaw, holding back words Kayla knew she wanted to scream at her.

"And how do you suppose you'll fair at this party?" her mom demanded, "it's a full moon. You know how you get on a full moon"

Right. Shit, The intolerant pain. Great. Stupid werewolf genes.

Kayla didn't let her expression waver, tilting her chin up in defiance, "if someone let me have morphine, it wouldn't be a problem"

"Not happening" her mom replied without hesitation, "I don't trust you with any opioids"

"Of course you don't"

"You'll thank me one day Kayla, I can assure you that"

She very highly doubted it.

"Dad would let me"

Her mom's eyes narrowed, "well your dad isn't here and be thankful he isn't, you would've broken his heart acting the way you did"

That stung. A lot.

She grabbed her stuff off the breakfast bar and threw her mom an angry look, "fine, whatever, you win. If anyone gets ripped to shreds tomorrow it's your fault"

She ignored her mom's retorts back to her as she stomped up the stairs, hurrying to her room and slamming the door. Of course her mom wasn't going to win that easily. Kayla was going, regardless. She just had to be smart about it. And she had plenty of experience in sneaking out and keeping her dear old mother clueless.

On that Friday after school, instead of driving straight home she headed downtown to the art gallery her mom was director of, making some lame ass excuse to see her mom in her office.

"Yes Kayla?" She asked, raising her brows above her computer station, "is everything okay?"

"Yeah, just came in past to tell you you were right about the whole party thing. It's a bad idea"

Her mom glanced at her a little suspiciously, "oh is it now?"

"Yeah. This full moon is making me extra tired and cranky, I can hang out with my friends at the weekend"

Her mom 'hmmmm'd' in response, standing up from behind her desk, "I'm glad you're starting to see things from my perspective"

Oh, shut up.

She gave her mom a small smile before doubling over in pain - well, fake pain - an arm around her torso as she winced. Her mom, despite clearly not being the most maternal, frowned and approached her, gently placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Is it starting already? It seems to start earlier every month"

Kayla faked a grimace before nodding her head, "y-yeah, it's fine though"

Her mom patted her back, "stay here, I'll go and get you some water"

She waited until her mom had closed the office door behind her before standing up straight and pulling a USB drive from her bag, hurrying around to her mom's work station and tapping the keys on her computer to get the screen to light up, being faced with a password prompt. She typed in her mom and dad's wedding date, 15/06/1990, and unsurprisingly was let in.

It was almost disappointing how easy this was.

She plugged in the USB device, downloading the nasty virus onto the hard drive and setting up a time for it to completely wipe and damage all the files - half past six. Plenty time to allow her mom to realise, get out of the house and give Kayla enough time to finish getting ready and leave.

The perfect plan.

Anything to get her annoying ass mom off her case, because if there was one thing - well, actually, a lot more than one thing - her mother loved more than being a mom (which wasn't hard), it was her work.

She tapped her fingers on the desk, impatiently waiting as the virus slowly seeped into and corrupted the computer silently and as soon as it reached 100% she yanked the USB drive from the port, discarding it into her bag and haphazardly logged off the from the computer and rushed back to hunching over the desk, just in time as her mom walked through with a glass of water.

"Here dear" she said, passing it to Kayla, "drink this and then get home to your bed. Will you be okay or do you need a ride?"

She took a few sips before placing the glass on her desk with shaky hands, pushing herself up carefully as if the pain was slowly going away.

"I'll be fine" she told her mom, "it's not too bad yet. I think a comfy bed, lots of snacks and crap reality TV should do the trick"

Her mom nodded, "okay then, well off you go. I'll be home soon, I just have a couple of things to finish up"

She nodded, leaving the office and closing the door with a smile on her face.

Kayla, 1. Mom, 0.

Honestly, it should be scary how easy it was for her to lie but growing up with a dictator of a mom and a family full of werewolves, being able to lie to savour the last sliver of privacy had became a necessity.

She knew she didn't have long before her mom really did decide to come home, probably wanting to keep a very close eye on her, so sped over to Beacon Hills memorial hospital and slipped in with a mass of people, keeping herself small and invisible. Luckily, she seemed to come at a busy time as rows of people were sitting waiting to be seen, nurses and doctors scurrying about like headless chickens. The pure chaos of this small A and E department made it relatively easy to swipe some nurses key card, passing herself off as innocent as she looked around slyly for the medication store.

It didn't take long to find - she had swiped enough drugs from hospitals in her time - to recognise the door, glancing over her shoulder to make sure no one was looking before slipping in, unnoticed.

She knew what she was looking for, locating the small clear vile labelled 'Duramorph', the medical name for this particular brand of morphine and slipped it into her pocket, grabbing a syringe and needle and pocketing that too.

She was fed up of listening to her mom's so called rules. How she could just sit back and watch her daughter struggle in pain when a simple dose of morphine could take most of that away was beyond Kayla.

Morphine was never a problem with her... surprisingly. Every other drug was, maybe, but not morphine. It didn't give her the same kick, the same high, the same feeling of euphoria so she really didn't understand her mom's problem.

She pressed her ear to the door, making sure no was blocking it before slipping out unnoticed.

Mission accomplished.

She smiled to herself, holding the key card as she approached the front desk, recognising the nurse she had swiped it from looking around frantically.

"Excuse me, hi" she turned her charm up to a high ten, giving the frazzled nurse a beaming smile, "sorry, I think you dropped this, uh... Melissa" reading her name off her name tag.

Melissa McCall... as in Scott's mom?

The nurse with dark curly hair tied back breathed an audible sigh of relief, "oh gosh. Thank you so much"

"You're welcome" Kayla handed her back the card, realising just how much alike this nurse was to Scott, "McCall. Are you Scott's mom?"

The woman raised her brows, "yes. Why, what has he done?"

Kayla chuckled, "nothing, I just know him from school. Sort of. I'm new"

"Oh... are you his date?"

Kayla snorted, "no, that's the other new girl. I'm Kayla. Kayla Hale"

Melissa couldn't stop the surprise from lighting up her features, giving her a quick glance over.

"Right... um... your uncle is still here, by the way. He doesn't get many visitors"

Kayla swallowed thickly, her heart clenching a little, "yeah... yeah I know. I just haven't had a chance to come by. Hospitals aren't really my thing"

Melissa smiled kindly, "I'm sure he would appreciate it"

She just nodded, taking a couple steps back, "uh anyway, I should probably go-"

"Wait-" Melissa called out, "-what are you here for? Anything I can help with?"

Damnit - this woman was too perceptive.

Kayla shook her head, "no, I'm good now, thank you"

Melissa frowned, "are you sure?"

"Dandy" she grinned, "thank you" before taking her leave, squeezing between people to escape through the double doors and out into the fresh air.

She should probably feel bad, stealing hospital supplies from people in need and all, but she was also in need too. If she rocked up to the hospital in the state she was usually in on a full moon, they would probably pump her full of a lot more than just morphine. If anything; she was doing them a service. Freeing up the doctors and nurses time to treat others. She was more than capable of looking after herself.

She headed home, making it back - thankfully - before her mom did, climbing the stairs quickly and looking through her wardrobe to pick out an outfit.

Stiles never really did tell her what sort of things people wore to these kind of parties, he was too busy shoving his foot in his mouth and no doubt drooling over the image of her naked body to get the words out. So she was clueless. As usual.

She doubted Lydia would want her to rock up in a leather cat suit - ah, that Halloween was fun - or a see through halter neck dress and as she was standing there, lost and clueless, her phone buzzed and strangely enough it was Lydia - like that girl could sense Kayla was looking through her wardrobe. She opened up the text, seeing a picture that Lydia had screenshotted and circled of herself at one of her wild parties last year, probably stalking her Facebook to get it.

'Wear this' Lydia had texted following the picture and Kayla could tell it wasn't a suggestion. She looked at the photo, seeing herself wearing a short sleeved tight dark blue denim playsuit, fitted to her figure. Hmmm... it could've been worse. She was sure Lydia would make her wear some sort of flowery dress. Or worse - something with sequins.

'What, no dress?' Kayla joked back, rooting through her wardrobe to find the denim outfit.

Her phone buzzed again and she opened up the text, 'it's tight. Brian likes tight things'.

She rolled her eyes, pulling out the outfit and admiring it. She was sure Mr Macho did like tight things, but he wasn't going to get to touch her in it, that's for sure. She ignored Lydia's text, choosing a cute lacy matching underwear set to wear under it and a pair of short top black doc martins and, in case it really did get cold, a simple black cardigan to throw over the top of it.

She hid the outfit in her ottoman by the foot of the bed, hearing her phone go off again and glanced at the text, seeing Lydia's name flashing up at her.

'Remember, leave a few buttons undone. Show off your assets'.

She rolled her eyes but couldn't help but smirk at Lydia's words, her amusement taking her mind off the pain already beginning to slowly seize her body.

Deciding it was best she shouldn't wait, she grabbed the vile and pierced the top of the rubber sealant with the needle, pulling up 15mg of the liquid. Enough to take the worst pain away, but not too much that it knocked her out. There was still some left over in the vile so she hid it in her vanity drawer desk, twisting her arm around so she could see her bare upper arm. She was an expert at this by now, barely even flinching as she plunged the needle subcutaneously into her upper arm, drawing the syringe back slightly to make sure she hadn't hit any blood vessels or anything she wasn't supposed to before slowly pressing the shringe down, watching the liquid disappear into her arm.

Immediately, she felt the sweet lick of relief begin to dampen her pain, riding that small high for several seconds before pulling out the needle and discarding it to one side. See? She was fine. A little morphine was always fine - now only if her mom could see that.

She heard the front door open and quickly grabbed her dressing gown, wrapping it around her before jumping into bed, holding the covers up around her and pretending to sleep as her mom came up, opening her bedroom door without so much as a knock.

"Here, I brought you some hot chocolate" her mom greeted her with, walking in and placing the mug on the bedside unit, "extra whip and marshmallows. How are you feeling?"

"Crap" Kayla lied, "I hate the full moons"

"I know, but it'll be over before you know it. Hungry?"

She was, starving actually, but she was pretending to be in pain. Kayla, without pain relief, on a full moon, couldn't keep anything down. So she had to play it that way. She shook her head, moaning slightly into the pillow.

"Okay, well, I'll leave you in peace. Let me know if you need anything, I'll be downstairs"

Her mom departed, throwing one more look to Kayla over her shoulder before shutting the door behind her.

Kayla rolled her eyes at her mom's complete lack of worry, throwing back the covers and getting back out of bed to have a quick shower to freshen up and put on her denim playsuit, sitting down at her vanity to put a few loose curls in her hair before applying some foundation, a little bit of brown and gold eyeshadow, a layer of mascara and applied some liquid eyeliner to her top lid, making it flick out at the end into a subtle cats eye.

See, ready. Half hour later and she was ready to rock and roll.

She checked the time on her phone... nearly 6.25, so wrapped herself back up in her dressing gown, hiding back under the covers and holding a blanket over her head so when her mom would, undoubtedly, come up to tell her there was a disaster at work and she needed to leave, she wouldn't notice the state of glam her daughter was in when she should be in unbearable pain.

She waited several more minutes and, just as expected, she heard her moms heels clip clop towards her bedroom and open the door.

"Kayla, I have to go to work. Our system has been hit by some sort of virus. All our catalogues and indexes for the auction tomorrow have been wiped. I need to go and reload everything or we can't do the auction and we'll lose out on thousands of dollars. Will you be okay for the night?"

She resisted a smirk, "yeah mom, I'll be okay" she said meekly, "focus on your work"

"I'll try and be back before midnight but no guarantees. Remember and drink plenty of water"

Her mom closed the door behind her and Kayla threw back her covers and grinned to herself. She knew all she had to do was mess with her mom's work and, predictable as always, she would put her work first.

The curse of a career and money driven woman.

She straightened out her clothes, grabbing the cardigan and putting it on, fixing her hair in the mirror and then applied a deep matte pink lipstick to her lips, making them pop even more than usual. The morphine was working, the pain was minimal, more annoying than anything else but she knew it would ware off quick. Hopefully nothing too exciting happened at this party so she could be back before the pain really did become full on, but she doubted it. Guess she would have to grin and bear it.

Making sure her mom's car had left the driveway, she exited her front door and came face to face with a set of headlights beaming at her and she raised her hand to cover her eyes. A deep chuckle sounded as the lights turned off, the car door opening as she squinted to see who it was, groaning under her breath as she recognised all six foot two of Brian.

"Trying to sneak off without me?"

She rolled her eyes, "you said seven. It's six forty five"

"I thought you might try and wiggle your way out of going with me, so I came early. Seems my instinct was correct"

She despised his cocky, full of himself tone just as much as his shit eating grin that pulled at his lips and folded her arms across her chest, quirking a brow at him.

"It's not a date" she declared, "let's just get that straight"

He shrugged, "it can be whatever you want it to be baby"

"And no nicknames"

"Sure, sugar"

She grunted out an annoyed sound of exclamation, "stop trying so hard, it's annoying"

"You love it"

"I hate it"

He strode around the car, hands in his pants pockets as he stopped in front of the passenger side door of his black Ford Mustang - typical - and opened it, quirking a brow at her.

"You coming?"

"Just keep your hands to yourself" she warned, rolling her eyes as she brushed past him and sat on the heated leather seats and he leaned down to smirk at her.

"No promises"

She sent him a deadly glare as his smirk faltered a little bit, her green eyes as deadly as the tip of a knife. He got into the drivers side, starting up the engine and revving it, as if trying to impress her.

"Don't over compensate" she mocked, "it's fine if you have a small penis, it's the twenty first century"

He blushed a little, exiting her driveway, "it's certainly not small"

She scoffed, "sure"

"Get your pretty little mouth down there and find out"

She couldn't help but snort, "I'm no where near drunk enough for that, so don't even go there"

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, admiring him dressed smartly in a pair of black suit pants that hugged his thighs and a dark grey shirt, the cuffs rolled up above his elbows, showing the veins in his firm forearms bulge. Damnit, she was always a sucker for veiny arms.

He caught her looking, deliberately tightening his hands around the steering wheel to flex his arms a little bit more, "so... I didn't know there were more Hales" he opened with, "I thought most of them burned to death in that fire"

She scoffed at him, "wow, that is how you try and get into my pants? Bringing up my dead family?"

"Just trying to find out a little bit about you"

"Why?" She asked, a little thrown off guard by his interest.

"Because new girls are fascinating" he grinned, "so come on then... what are your secrets?"

She arched a single brow, cocking her head to the side, "now why would I tell you that?"

"I can keep secrets"

"Highly unlikely"

He was obviously trying to repress his smile, but failed, glancing over at her, his bright blue eyes lingering on her bare legs for longer than necessary.

"Excuse me" she interjected in annoyance, "my eyes are up here"

"Oh, I know" his eyes twinkled with mischief, "but the view down there is so damn good"

She slapped his arm, pointing at the road, "focus on driving moron, I want to get there in one piece, thanks"

"You're safe with me" he promised flirtily, "as if I'd let anything happen to something so prescious"

She ignored him for the rest of the drive, keeping her gaze turned out the passenger side window as a few minutes later they pulled up into this massive driveway, already tens of cars parked along the road and on the grass. Her stomach flipped a little, having not been to a party this size in months. It brought back a lot of chaotic memories for her, many of which involved her doing bad things or taking bad things - usually both at once.

Her mom, unfortunately, was right. She had no self control when it came to environments like this. She literally became the life and soul of the party. Uncontrollable.

Brian touched her arm to grab her attention and she simply raised a brow at his fingers dancing along her bare skin, her eyes burning with warning and he - rightly so - pulled his hand back.

"Beacon Hills knows how to do parties" he grinned, "come on"

She climbed out, adjusting her fit as he went to wrap an arm around her waist and she smacked him away.

"No chance that is happening"

He rolled his eyes playfully, "my god woman you're killing me over here" he threw his head back in frustration, "looking that god damn good should be illegal"

She smirked, deciding to play it dirty because she enjoyed having him lusting after his, his need more than apparent - even if he did annoy the living shit out of her, it didn't mean she couldn't have some fun.

"I said no touching, I said nothing about looking" she smirked, watching his expression melt into complete and helpless lust, his eyes becoming the epitomy of the heart eyes emoji. She could feel his eyes following her every movement as she climbed the steps, squeezing past some already drunk teens, one spewing over the edge of the stone fence, and into the bright and spacious home of Lydia Martin.

Of course, she expected nothing else from miss Queen Bee. It was a given her house would look like this. Although, the sight of reckless, drunk and no doubt high as fuck teens made something so exquisite look tacky.

The music pounded in her ears, the smell of alcohol and smoke tinging her nostrils as suddenly a small shot of something clear got thrust under her nose.

She quirked a brow at Brian who simply winked, "loosen you up a bit" he joked.

She narrowed her eyes but took the shot glass from his hand, throwing away all promises to her mom as she chucked back the taste of cheap nasty tequila that burned her throat on the way down.

"You're going to have to do a lot better than that" she challenged, "I can hold my liquor"

He gazed at her in something close to astonishment, then admiration, his expression turning to delight, "I think I love you already"

She slapped his chest, rolling her eyes as she left him standing there and made her way through the crowd to find the closest table of alcohol which was positioned in the living room, right beside the large glass doors that led to the patio's garden and - of course - a pool. She grabbed a red plastic cup and poured half of it full with vodka and the other half of sprite, topping the rest up with more vodka until it was nearly overflowing. Her mom always exaggerated... she may take things too far but she could control it. She knew she could. She just had to stop before she took things too far. Plus, the alcohol would definitely help with the dull pain seizing more of her body.

Someone brushed up next to her and, half expecting Brian, she jabbed her elbow out and heard a surprised yelp of pain.

"Oh shit, sorry Stiles" immediately recognising the distinctive voice before she turned around, despite not knowing the owner of it very well, "I thought you were someone else"

"Nope, just little old me" he winced, rubbing his ribcage with one hand as the other held a half full bottle of beer, "you're stronger than you look"

She grinned, "I know"

His expression smoothed out into humour before he got distracted by her outfit, swallowing thickly as he adjusted his stance awkwardly, no doubt feeling a little too aroused.

"Oh, uh... heh... you um, found some clothes then"

"Yeah, in my wardrobe, shocker right?" she joked back, taking a couple mouthfuls of her drink and wincing slightly at the strong taste, "although, fair warning, if I get too drunk I usually end up taking them off"

His cheeks darkened considerably, his blush painting all the way down to his neck as he moved from one foot to the other, his mouth opening and closing like a dying fish.

"Oh, um... heh... that's um... good to know" he forced a chuckle, scratching the back of his neck and choked on his own words as she took off her cardigan, throwing it over the table and into the corner, "uh... wow"

She smirked as his innocent gaze trailed down the neckline of her denim playsuit, happy she took Lydia's advice to pop open a couple extra buttons, her push up bra also doing an amazing job.

"See something you like?" she grinned, basking in the clear lust and awe he was swimming in.

He slapped a hand across his own cheek, shaking his head to clear his brain fog before shyly meeting her knowing stare.

"W-What?"

"It's okay Stiles" she reached, slowly rubbing his upper arm through the salmon pink shirt he was wearing, "you can look all you want"

He swallowed again, his throat dry as he tried to form words but failed - miserably.

She laughed - completely care free, pain forgotten - at this strange but endearing boy standing before her, enjoying getting under his skin.

She tapped her plastic cup to his beer bottle, sending him a half smile, "cheers"

It didn't take her long to down the contents of her cup, a master of alcohol she had once been and, still, clearly was. Back home, in the party scene, she was still undefeated in many binge drinking contests, a feat she was more than proud of.

Stiles watched her as he sipped his own beer, her hands already going back for more.

"Are you trying to get dragged out of here on a stretcher, or...?"

She raised the cup to her pink painted lips, smiling around the raised rim, "wouldn't be the first time I ended a party flat on my back" she joked, her eyes twinkling with teasing devilishness.

Despite their conversations always somehow ending up sexual or flirtatious, he still seemed taken aback by her shameless and confident tone.

"Not with Brian though" he said, making her cock a brow at him, "I mean, he's a dick"

"How did you know I came here with Brian?"

"I uh, watched you. Saw you I mean" he corrected quickly, "guy is nearly a bigger douche than Jackson"

"Oh, trust me, I'm well aware" she promised, taking another few sips, "dude's a perv. Surprised he hasn't slipped anything into my drink yet"

Stiles chuckled, "something tells me you'll give him a black eye if he does"

She grinned, "see? Getting to know me already"

He pursed his lips as they wrapped around the rim of the beer bottle and she allowed herself just a second of admiration. He wasn't usually her type - but then again, she never really had a type. All her choices in boys were drink and drug fuelled mistakes, always somehow ending up in the bad crowd. But this boy? He wasn't part of the bad crowd. He was cute. Innocent. A breath of fresh air.

Interesting.

"I should probably go and find Lydia" she settled on saying, "I'm actually surprised she hasn't hunted me down already"

"R-Right, yeah, of course" he nodded, "just um... be careful. Sometimes these parties can get out of hand" he hinted, "and uh, I wouldn't want anything to happen to you"

She was starting to feel the buzz from the liquor begin to seep through her body, mellowing her out and making her even more confident and flirty.

She smirked, "oh baby... I don't need a knight in shining armour..." she purred, reaching out to play with the collar of his shirt, "but your worry is very... much... appreciated..."

He shuddered out a breathless exhale of air, stiffening up as she leaned forward to press a kiss to his cheek, smirking as she did so, leaving a perfect print of her lips painted on his fair freckled skin. She pulled back, playfully squeezing his cheeks together and leaned forward to caress her tongue across his lips, feeling him melt in her grip.

"You can watch my back anytime though. And by my back, I mean my ass" she smirked, "see you on the other side Stilinski"

And so she left him, a complete puddle of hormones, his eyes - obviously - trained on nothing but her ass as she grinned to herself in delight.

A/N) this chapter got super long I'm sorry haha I'm just having so much fun fleshing it out and making Kayla so fun and flirty and confident and badass and exploring relationships before the drama starts haha so please please if you liked it etc and I'll see you all super soon ;)

Chapter Text

She downed the contents that was in her red plastic cup, discarding it to one side and picking up a couple of shots on the way past another table and, upon swallowing them in concession, she recognised it as snakebite and allowed her expression to crinkle up in disgust for several seconds brides shrugging and going back for more. She grabbed another two, already starting to neck the first one as Lydia suddenly appeared in front of her, a tight dark dress gripping her figure, a perfectly arched eyebrow raising in quiet surprise.

"Having fun?" the beautiful strawberry blonde quipped, a knowing and playful smirk pulling at her red lips.

Kayla swallowed the first shot, allowing herself a second to shake off the brief bitterness and disgust before raising the other shot glass towards Lydia, "I'm not drunk yet, so no" before swallowing the next shot in under a second.

"I see you never came alone" Lydia said, jutting her chin out around Kayla towards Brian who was throwing her admiring looks from across the room, huddled between a group of his jackass friends, "good girl"

"I didn't really have a choice" she grumbled, reaching for her next couple of shot glasses that clinked together and spilt slightly, dribbles of alcohol dripping down the clear glass, "he's kind of a stalker"

"Nonsense" Lydia laughed off her comments, "he's hot. Go take him for a test drive"

She raised both shot glasses to her lips, downing both at once to, hopefully, block out Lydia's voice but unfortunately she was still conscious after she swallowed.

"Don't encourage me" Kayla groaned, "I need to stop making bad decisions"

Lydia simply smiled, grabbing her hand before she could reach for more alcohol and spun her around, pointing at Brian through the crowd.

"That is not a bad decision. That is a good decision" her new friend corrected her, "look at him and tell me you don't want to ride him till the sun comes up"

Kayla groaned again because she knew that, if she wasn't trying to exercise control, she would probably already be jumping his bones because she was idiotic and reckless like that, but she was trying not to let that happen. No more going down that same path again.

"I mean, I wouldn't say no usually but-"

"Exactly" Lydia interrupted, reaching down between her cleavage under her dress and pulled out a condom packet, pressing it into her hand before she could object, "so take this and have fun"

Kayla was beginning to get a bit bleary eyed, frowning down at the silver packet as Lydia winked at her.

"A condom?"

"Yes" Lydia rolled her eyes, "a condom. Obviously. Safe sex or no sex"

Kayla was sure Brian was watching the whole exchange, his eyes lingering on her form as he watched her with lust and need, clearly thinking he was going to get lucky tonight.

"And what if I don't?"

Lydia just sent her another eye roll, "then you can use it for a water balloon for all I care. Use it or don't, but the option is there for you. All I'm saying is have a little fun, it won't kill you"

'Oh Lydia', Kayla thought as she chuckled to herself, 'if only you knew'.

"Well thanks" Kayla laughed, pocketing the condom packet, "I appreciate you trying to get me some dick"

Lydia nodded proudly, "what are friends for, right?" and in a flurry of curly red hair, disappeared into the dancing crowd, leaving Kayla staring at Brian through the mass of people.

A part of her thought 'y'know what, fuck it', what was the harm in a little distraction? A little fun and casual sex? It's not like she was looking for a boyfriend or girlfriend, or the expectation to fall in love because that shit was hard and complicated, but sex? Sex she could do.

It was all she could do.

Just the thought of falling for someone, letting a person into her already broken heart was a dangerous game. She didn't want to feel such pain ever again. To give someone that level of power over her, her fragile heart in their hands to break wherever they wanted, was terrifying.

So no feelings... but sex didn't have to involve feelings. It was a lot safer than trusting someone with her life. It was a lot safer than loving someone to then lose them. She knew the fierce pain of grief and heartbreak, she had been through it many times before, and she was just barely hanging on by her fingertips, holding on for dear life. Her head dipping in and out of water, trying not to drown.

No... she wasn't prepared to go through that pain again. She had to keep her heart safe.

She turned back to the table, grabbing another red plastic cup and filling it with a blend of different alcohols and mixers, needing to get drunk and drunk fast.

She brought the cup up to her lips, tilting it against her mouth to cough back the strong bitter liquid but was interrupted by a firm hand landing on the small of her back in an almost possessive but desperate manner.

"I think someone is getting a tad drunk" Brian's amused voice tickled her ear, his lips brushing against her lobe, "you've been here, what? Twenty minutes?"

She smirked around the rim of the cup, not moving an inch, "I don't do things by half measures"

"Clearly" he chuckled, "but that's what I like about you"

"Are you ever going to stop trying to get into my pants?"

"Unlikely" he pulled back, standing up straight behind her but kept his body pressed against her back, his presence dominating and unwavering, "especially if you keep dressing like that"

She took a few gulpfuls of her drink, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, the curve of her ass deliberately brushing against his thigh as she did so and she heard him groan under his breath at the touch.

"Dressing like what?" she asked in faux innocence, trying to repress her smirk as his hand moved slowly from her back to her waist, his fingertips clenching spring the denim material.

"You know like what" he replied huskily, an animalistic groan shuddering from the back of his throat as he inched even closer to her, his body nearly knocking her over the table, "so why don't we just skip the formalities and go upstairs now, hm?"

She laughed to herself, admiring his effort as she turned around, her nose skimming along his chin as she glanced up at him.

"And why would I do that?"

His smirk was devious and lustful, his fingers dancing up her body to sweep patterns across her bare and exposed neck and fuck... this had to stop turning her on.

"You're hot, I'm hot, it's the perfect combination" he whispered, "and you know damn well fine I can rock your world"

"Big talk" she replied playfully, "are you sure you're not overestimating your abilities?"

He slowly shook his head, hovering his thumb pad over her pulse point, "I've had no complaints"

"Well, those other girls aren't like me" she smirked, "I want a lot"

"Like what...?"

She was teasing him, slowly building the heat, his pupils darkening with arousal as they got even closer, his breath warm against her face just millimetres away from his own.

"Now that would be telling" she grinned, using every inch of her willpower to playfully push at his chest so he stumbled backwards, "figure it out yourself"

A boisterous laugh escaped his mouth as he gazed at her needily, enjoying the chase.

"I like a challenge" he remarked, "but don't worry sweetheart, I always win"

"We'll see" she shrugged, turning away from him back to the table but he wasn't done with her yet, stepping closer to her and allowing his hand to twist into her pocket and pull out the condom, holding it up for her to see.

"And don't worry about this" he chuckled before throwing it away to the side, discarding it like trash, "I like to go raw"

She rolled her eyes in amusement as he finally left her alone, slinking back into the crowd and a part of her hated how much he turned her on and left her wanting more because he, clearly, was a massive dickhead but when she was let loose and wild that was exactly her type.

Here she was, a few days back in Beacon Hills, and already falling back into old habits.

She downed the rest of her drink, ignoring the dizzy buzz she was feeling as a small crowd of fellow school pupils came over to her and started introducing themselves, offering her more alcohol and some company and she was getting too drunk to be annoyed by their incessant need to be liked, over compensating because she was new and impressionable and apparently friends with the Lydia Martin.

She joined them out in the garden, accidentally slipping down some concrete steps that led to the large concrete groundwork before the pool, managing to catch herself by grabbing onto someone's skirt. A few laughed with good intentions, her new 'friends' helping her stand passing her more alcohol, clearly amused and in awe of her drinking abilities.

"Everyone is talking about you, you know" this one girl said whose name Kayla had completely forgot but she was pretty, long blonde hair curled into elegant waves, her curvy form evident in the tight bandage dress she was wearing, "not only are you new and a Hale but you turned up here with Brian Murdock. One of Beacon Hills most eligable bachelors"

Kayla snorted, "he kidnapped me"

The girl laughed, "well, he could kidnap me any time"

She shouldn't go there with him, she knew that, her brain was telling her it was a horrendous idea but her vagina clearly had other plans, aroused and turned on by his words.

A very slippery slope.

"You should go for it" the girl continued, encouraging her just like Lydia, "I heard he has a massive penis. I'm talking-" she help up her arm, pointing to her forearm, "-and twice as girthy"

"I doubt it" Kayla chuckled, "that is nearly anatomically impossible"

The girl laughed, "well, regardless, it's big. And he clearly likes you, he's been staring at you all night. You're very lucky"

Oh yes, so lucky to be considered another notch in his bedpost.

"We'll see" Kayla settled on saying, "I haven't decided if he's worth it yet"

The girl winked, "don't wait too long. Something that good deserves to be eaten"

She ended up drinking some more, talking a load of shit with these new people she had just met and even started dancing in tune with the music, quickly getting drunker the more the night went on. In fact, she was so out of it she forgot she was meant to be watching out for Scott what with it being a full moon and all, all logical thoughts completely out the window.

It wasn't until she felt a familiar gaze lingering on her did she turn around and see Derek hovering in the shadows by a big metal gate, his eyes piercing straight through her.

Uh oh... she was in trouble.

She kept a hold of her cup, squeezing past a load of hot sweaty bodies, trying not to fall in the pool as she approached Derek, a drunk lazy smile tugging at her lips.

"Cuz" she greeted although it came out as more of a slur, "what's up?"

He frowned at her, his big broody forehead creasing in disappointment.

"What happened to watching Scott?"

She waved her hand out, dismissing him, "he's not here yet. At least, I don't think he is"

"Not the point" Derek exclaimed through gritted teeth, "I asked you to do one thing Kayla-"

"And I'm screwing up, I know" she interrupted with a bitter eye roll, "no surprise there though right?"

His eyes softened ever so slightly, seeing her state of disarray, clearly more drunk than she was pretending to be.

"Don't go back there" he whispered, "it's not worth it"

"I'm not going back anywhere" she exclaimed, pointing a drunk finger at what she assumed was him but she wasn't sure, seeing double, "certainly not home anyway"

Because this, here, was not her home. It was just a town a lot of bad things had happened in that she was forced to stay in by her bitch of a mom, no consideration or thought for her feelings at all. Her home, her life, was back in Louisiana. Her memories were there, her friends, everything that she had ever known was now thousands of miles away. She wasn't going to apologise for having an adjustment period.

Derek looked like he was going to reach through the gate for her arm but stopped, his shoulders hunched over awkwardly as he saw her sadness come out, too drunk to hide it like she normally did.

"Sober up" he suggested, "and keep an eye on Scott when he arrives. Shout if something happens"

"Yeah... sure" she mumbled, not bothering with an argument as she turned on her heel and walked back into the crowd, fighting the urge to just go off the rails completely, the alcohol not helping her judgement.

For some unknown reason, her brain thought it was a fabulous idea to bee line straight towards Brian and his group of friends, hovering in front of one of the large white pillars with fairy lights on it, bottles of beers in hand.

He glanced up at her arrival, a flirty grin tugging at his lips.

"Back so soon?" He joked, lustfuy trailing his gaze up her body, "I knew you couldn't resist me-"

She cut him off by slamming her lips to his, surprising not only herself by her rash and sudden actions but apparently everyone else around them too, many gaping and letting out wolf whistles.

It didn't take him long to get over his surprise though, smirking at her complete lack of inibition as his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her up to the tips of her toes to deepen the kiss and put him in control, holding and grabbing at her swaying body. She knew she would regret this but oh, what the hell, fuck it. She had regretted a lot of things and had to live with it, what was one more to add to the list?

Her hands were tight against his jaw, the kiss turning into a fierce battle of wills before suddenly, without warning, he picked her up and slammed her around into the white pillar, the prickle of fairy lights digging into her back. His hands, desperate and urgent, slipping down to squeeze the curve of her ass, clearly wanting it and wanting it now.

Yes... it was a slippery slope indeed.

One she had always fallen down. But did she actually like him and was attracted to him? Or was her damaged brain simply so used to doing bad things that it was now on auto pilot?

She pulled back for breath, her head dizzy and numb as she peeled her eyes open slowly to see Brian's gleaming blue gaze clouded with desire, glancing down at her puffy and bruised lips, clearly craving them once more.

"Wow" he smirked, "I knew you were good but not that good" moving his hands up to squeeze her hips, "I'm going to enjoy fucking you"

She held her finger up as he leaned down to kiss her again, rolling her eyes at his expectant behaviour.

"And who said that was going to happen?"

He smiled against her finger, slowly moving his mouth around it before playfully nipping at the tip with his teeth.

"Your mouth did" he said shamelessly, "when it was trying to suck my god damn soul from my body. Don't deny it baby... you want me"

Yes... No... Maybe... She didn't know. She had to sort out her shit and stop hooking up with unsuitable, horny boys. She was too much of a disaster for her own good.

She quirked a brow, confidence oozing from every pore of her body, "no, actually, you want me" she corrected, much to everyone's amusement who "oooooh'd" and "aaaaah'd" at her cocky tone, "you chased me, remember?"

She could tell he admired her confidence, resisting a grin as he shrugged, "yeah, and?"

"Well, chase over" she whispered, "take me somewhere"

He grinned, grabbing her hand and wasting no time began dragging her through the crowd, holding her close as she swayed a little, her body tingling as she struggled to stay focused.

She expected him to take her upstairs but instead he chose the downstairs bathroom, throwing out whoever was in there to then drag her in, locking the door behind them.

"You're too fucking hot" he gasped, quickly undoing his belt and popping open the button on his pants, tugging down the zip in a hasty manner, "get over here and show me what that body can do"

Urgh, she was so fucking drunk. Every shot and every disgusting mix of multiple alcohols finally settling in her stomach and making her want to barf. It felt like getting hit by a car at 100mph, completely throwing her off her guard.

She blinked hard, trying to refocus her stare but she was seeing double, the lights of the bathroom dazzling like orbs in front of her.

Instead of waiting for her, he pulled her forward by her wrists, her body slamming into his as he begun fervently kissing her neck as his hands roamed her body, his drunk mouth urgent and dominating on her pulse point. She was struggling to stand straight, her knees beginning to fold and he chuckled against her skin, mumbling something about her having jelly legs and turned her around and picked her up to sit her next to the sink, standing between her legs.

"I think someone is a little drunk" he observed, his own alcohol ridden breath wafting over her face as he smirked at her.

Her head was resting back against the mirror, shaking her head back and forth as she tried to focus, her body all but useless as he made some sort of comment about drunk girls and begin unbuttoning her playsuit as his lips attacked her neck once again, clearly desperate and wanting more. His hands, then resting on her own, guided hers down to a very prominent bulge trying to escape the confines of his pants and he groaned at the touch, thrusting into her grip. She allowed herself a few seconds of self hatred, shame - and most likely sickness from the alcohol - swelling in her stomach as she closed her eyes, hating how she always ended up like this. Ended up doing this. She was all for casual fun, but why did she end up having casual fun with people she didn't even like?

She felt him unbutton her playsuit all the way down to her stomach, his fingers reaching up to squeeze her breasts as she finally came to a little bit of sense and pushed him back, shaking her head again.

"Don't act all shy now" he chuckled, moving back in front of her, "you were all up for this"

He, too, was clearly drunk, his eyes clouded with tipsiness but they were interrupted by a hasty series of knocks on the oak door, clearly impatient.

"Go away" Brain grumbled, "kind of busy in here"

The knocking didn't stop, in fact it just got more incessant, a voice muffled through the door exclaiming, "yeah, that's why I'm knocking. Do you always take advantage of drunk girls?"

Kayla frowned at the voice as Brian rolled his eyes, "just go away"

"Yeah, not happening" the voice called back, "so you either stop being a creep or I just call my dad, y'know... the sheriff"

Brain simply groaned, taking a step back and pulling his pants higher on his hips, zipping and buttoning them back up.

"Sorry sweetheart" Brian apologised with a roll of his eyes, "someone's trying to ruin the fun. We can pick this up another time"

She didn't really catch his words, sliding off from the unit and falling to her knees in front of the toilet, the alcohol twisting her gut a little too much as she begun being sick into the bowl.

Brian's expression contorted into dismay as he shrugged, "yeah, definitely another time" before striding to the door and opening it.

"Stilinski" he muttered, narrowing her eyes, "thanks for that" he added sarcastically, "always a kill joy huh?"

"Nah, just not an advocate for sexual assault" Stiles fired back.

Brian rolled his eyes, "she wanted it. Well, did before-" jutting his head to her still being sick over the toilet, "-that happened. Just as well I didn't stick it in"

Stiles scoffed at his crude behaviour, watching him with narrowed eyes as he brushed past him before turning back to the bathroom and sliding in, shutting the door behind him.

"Uh... oh, wow, okay" he murmured, watching with a wince as Kayla continued to retch, "that is... kind of impressive"

Kayla rolled her forehead on the cool plastic of the toilet seat, letting out a groan as the nausea flipped her stomach, the pain of the full moon beginning to seize her body once again.

"Oh, right, sorry" Stiles flushed, rushing to the sink and wetting a face cloth with cool water, shaking the excess water off before dropping to his knees next to her, "you okay?"

She groaned in response, grabbing the cloth and slapping it on her forehead, swallowing back the burning sickness.

"I'll take that as a no"

She couldn't help but smirk at his tone of voice, rolling her head sideways to look up at him, "I think I may have alcohol poisoning"

He snorted, "if you don't, it'll be a miracle"

She narrowed her eyes at him playfully, "I always take it too far"

He gingerly reached out, awkwardly lifting his hand to touch her back, "I can't really comment on that seeming how I've known you, like, a few days. Well, I don't really 'know' you, I just, y'know, am aware of you"

She snorted, "I can tell"

He flushed, "oh uh, you're um... your clothes are, they're kind of... I mean-" he indicted to his own chest, "not that I was looking, I wasn't, I just couldn't help but notice-" he rushed out and she sat up, glancing down at her playsuit that was unbuttoned.

"Huh" she muttered before letting out a chuckle, "told you I usually end up naked"

His face was bright red, clearly trying to be respectful and keep his gaze away from her chest but his eyes kept dipping back down, like her obvious cleavage was calling out to him.

She reached down, trying to do the buttons back up herself but she was dizzy and her eyesight was blurry, unable to coordinate her movements. She pouted in disappointment, letting out a frustrated sigh before glancing up at him, her hair askew and sticking to her sweaty face, her expesssion clearly asking for help.

He flushed an even deeper red, pointing at her chest, "uh... you want me to-to-"

She pouted even harder, her bottom lip sticking out, "Stiles, I can't see"

He swallowed, carefully reaching forward with shaky hands to begin buttoning back up her playsuit, trying to be respectful and screwing his eyes shut, only peaking out when necessary to check he was doing it right, forcing down a nervous gulp as his fingers brushed the curve of her breasts spilling from her bra. He buttoned it up higher than before, protecting her dignity before slapping his hands on his thighs to indicate he was done.

She smiled lazily, "thanks Stilessssss"

He coughed, clumsily jumping to his feet and bent down to help her stand, pulling her up by her arms and had to hold her close as she stumbled, grabbing fistfuls of his shirt.

"Um, okay, ah- oh god" he mumbled, closing his eyes momentarily at the feel of her against him, "yeah, I should sober you up"

He helped her from the bathroom, keeping her close as he squeezed through the mass of people and into Lydia's large kitchen, sitting her down on a stool and passing her a bottle of water. She took it, struggling with the cap so he took pity on her, reaching out and taking the lid off. She smiled in thanks, taking a few sips and he watched her, finding a small smile tug at his lips.

"Urgh" she groaned, "did I just hook up with the dickhead?"

He snorted, "kind of. Y'know, I did warn you about him"

She rolled her eyes, "I know, I know. He was just... there. I told you I always take things too far"

They slipped into silence again, Kayla drinking some more water and Stiles just sitting next to her, stealing small looks to her every now and then.

"I'm sorry" she whispered, "for uh, needing a reality check"

"Anytime" he grinned, "do uh, do you want me to take you home?"

"Oh, I um... can't" she mumbled, "I'm supposed to keep an eye on Scott"

Stiles frowned, catching onto her word choice, "keep an eye on Scott? Why?"

"Just... for reasons"

"You're very mysterious, you know that?" Stiles chuckled, "I can't figure you out"

"You're not meant to" she joked, "that's part of my charm"

He smiled back, still a little nervous but managed to hold her gaze for longer than a couple of seconds.

"Is spewing your guts out also part of your charm?"

She winced, "you weren't supposed to see that"

"Well, I did and now I can't unsee it" he laughed, "so how about I just take you home and-oh, Wait, Scott are you okay?" Stiles interrupted his own sentence, glancing away from her to watch Scott stumble through the crowd, head in his hands, sweating profusely, "Scott, bud, you okay?"

Despite her drunk state, she recognised those signs. She was right... he was a werewolf. He was a werewolf and he was turning - now.

Scott ignored Stiles, escaping out the kitchen and bee lined to the door.

"I swear, he gets weirder every year" Stiles mumbled with a laugh but his expression turned serious as he caught her worried gaze, frowning down at her.

"What's up?"

"We need to get him" she rushed out, jumping off the stool but misjudged the height and face planted into Stiles' chest, "we need to get Scott"

"Why?" he helped her stand, his face twisting into confusion, "he's fine. He probably just drank too much - y'know, like you" he added pointedly, "which is why I really think I should take you home-"

She ignored him, escaping his comforting grip and stumbled after Scott, Stiles flailing about after her.

The fresh air hit her like a ton of bricks, making her whoozy as she grabbed a hold of the fencing around the porch, trying not to black out.

"Wait, hold up" Stiles panted, sliding up next to her in typical clumsy fashion, "why do you want Scott?"

She didn't have the time, nor the patience, to sugar coat anything, especially given the dire urgency of the situation as she turned to face him.

"Because your best bud is now a werewolf" she stated very matter of factly, watching his eyes go wide, "so unless you want him to go on a murder spree, I suggest you help me find him"

Stiles' incredulous stare was fixated on her, measuring her expression and finally letting out a chuckle, shaking his head.

"You're drunk"

"And you're stupid"

He looked at her, affronted, "excuse me?"

"You were thinking something along the same lines too, I can tell"

Stiles laughed awkwardly, "yeah, if we lived in fantasy land. There is no way-"

"He got bit right?" she asked, quirking a brow, "probably sometime before school started up again? Suddenly started getting really good at lacrosse despite most likely benching it with you before?"

"Okay, now that's rude" he pointed at her, "I don't always bench"

"Not the point" she groaned, "you've thought about it too, I know you have. You're smart. You're putting the pieces together"

He bit the inside of his cheek, chewing over her words, suddenly weighing up if she was trustworthy or not.

"You can trust me" she reassured, "I'm on your side"

"Are you a werewolf too?"

She rolled her eyes, "no. I just come from a family of them, so can we please-"

"Wait, family?" he squeaked, "so Derek-"

"Yeah. Werewolf" she confirmed, "an annoying one at that"

"So did he-"

"-Bite him?" she finished his sentence, already sensing what he was thinking, "no. He wishes he had that ability"

Stiles shook his head, completely overwhelmed by her words, "okay, stop, this is all totally mind boggling-"

"We don't have time for this" she groaned, stepping forward and reaching into his pants pocket, grabbing his keys and feeling him stiffen by her forwardness, gaping down at her.

"What are you doing-"

"Let's go" She grabbed his hand, dragging his flailing and uncoordinated body down the steps, heading straight for his baby blue jeep.

"No way in hell" he exclaimed, stopping her before she got to it, grabbing his keys back, "you're not driving roscoe. Especially not drunk"

She rolled her eyes, "I'm fine"

He quirked a brow, raising his hand, "how many fingers am I holding up?"

She squinted, "uh... two?"

"No, four" pushing her towards the passenger seat, "I'm driving"

"Fine" She managed to climb into his jeep on the third attempt, blowing her wild hair from her face as she impatiently pointed at Stiles to drive but he rolled his eyes, leaning over and clipping her seatbelt into place.

"I don't need a knight in shining armour, remember?"

"Road safety is no joke" he quipped, starting up the engine, "uh, where am I going?"

"How do I know, he's your friend"

"You were much more likeable before, you know that right?"

"And you were much less annoying before too" she shot back, "just drive"

"Yeah yeah" and with that he skidded from Lydia's drive into the night, his whole view on the world becoming a whole lot clearer.

A/N) eeeek bonding (and bickering) haha so ready for the stiles/Kayla/Scott friendship bonding over the supernatural lol hope you all enjoyed and please review and I shall see you all very soon :)

Chapter Text

"You should have just let me drive" Kayla grumbled, peeing her head from the window it had got slammed against for the fifth time, "I can drive way better than this"

Stiles threw her an exhausted look, "if I wanted to crash, then yes, I would have given you the keys but I don't so..."

"And how is your rallying any better?"

"I know how to drive roscoe, so pipe down"

She rolled her eyes, "don't tell me to pipe down. You pipe down"

"I never pipe down" he retaliated, their bickering gaining momentum.

"Where are we going anyway?" grabbing a hold of the door handle to stop from being thrown across the front seat as Stiles turned a corner rather hastily.

"Scott's house" he answered, "seems like a good starting point"

"And if he's not there?"

Stiles just threw her a sideways glance, "enough of the negativity please"

"Sorry, it's a character trait of mine" she muttered sarcastically, "but that doesn't answer my question"

"And you haven't answered mine"

"You haven't asked" she pointed out with a smirk, "and I don't have the ability to read minds"

"Thank god for that" he murmured under his breath, his tongue sticking out slightly as he concentrated on the road, jittery in his seat as he fidgeted.

"Well, I am sorry for telling you like that" referring to the bombshell she dropped about lycanthropy, "but I know you were thinking it"

"Thinking it and knowing it are two completely different things"

She smirked, watching him closely. He was on edge, that much was clear, but she admired his loyalty to his best friend, the pure frantic worry evident in his very behaviour. It was love. Brotherhood. Something so true and honest it was actually kind of sweet.

"What do you want to know?"

He threw her a cautious look, mistrust gleaming in his eyes.

"And how do I know you're telling the truth?"

She shrugged, "you don't, but I am" she said confidently, "I have no reason to lie"

He looked her up and down once more before turning back to the road, his grip tightening on the steering wheel, glancing nervously at the full moon shining down overhead.

"So you're... not a werewolf?"

"Nope" she confirmed with a playful smirk, "I drew the short straw from the gene pool"

He breathed an audible sigh of relief, relaxing ever so slightly but still mistrustful of her, that much was obvious, but that seemed to be his negative character trait. Much the same as her.

"And... and what's happening to Scott?"

"It's his first full moon" Kayla explained, "that is, by far, the worst change. The pain, the fear, the bloodlust... completely at its peak. He'll be nearly uncontrollable"

"And you didn't think to mention this before, say, I don't know... the full moon?" Stiles demanded, his voice gaining a few octaves higher with stress and worry but still maintaining that typical sarcastic tone, "like lunch hour?"

"I didn't know for sure" she sighed, "I just suspected because of his behaviour. Derek didn't know either. That's why I came to the party tonight, so I could keep a look out and-"

"Only thing you were looking at were Brian's tonsils" Stiles grumbled and she rolled her eyes at the blatant attack.

"Yeah, I know, I'm a shit lookout" she exclaimed, "but if you suspected too, why did you let him come?"

Stiles' expression turned a little guilty, his jaw clenching almost unnoticeably. "I uh... I tried to stop him but, uh, he got mad. Slashed up my desk chair. And let's just say normal fingernails couldn't do the damage that he did"

"It wasn't him. Not really" she reassured, "emotions are heightened drastically on a full moon. He probably wasn't in control of himself"

"Yeah, well, tell that to my desk chair. That thing cost two hundred dollars"

She snorted in amusement, "you're not going to bill him for the damages are you?"

"Depends if he tries and rips my throat out tonight"

"As if I would let him do that" she chuckled, "that throat is way too pretty to be slashed open"

He flushed a light pink, beginning to relax in her company once again.

"But if you're not a werewolf then how can you-"

"Stop him? Protect myself?" she asked rhetorically, "dude, I grew up with werewolves. I learnt a thing or two about protecting myself by the time I was like, eight. The joys of being seen as the most vulnerable" she added sarcastically, hating being seen as weaker compared to her werewolf family counterparts. Hence, the intense training schedule she abided by to always, constantly, be at the top of her game.

Stiles cast her a glance, his brain working quickly to decipher what she was saying, trying to understand the inner workings of her brain. He may have only known her four days, but in this last four minutes he was finding out more than he had before, chipping away at her outer layer.

"And what about Derek?"

Kayla smirked, "what about Derek?"

"He's a werewolf"

It wasn't a question, more of a dubious statement. His brows knitting together in confusion.

"Duh"

Stiles ran a hand down his face, "I knew there was something off about him"

"There's a lot of things off with Derek" Kayla chuckled, "and being a werewolf is way at the bottom of that list"

"He gives me bad vibes"

"That's just Derek" Kayla snickered, "he's a sour wolf"

Stiles suddenly slammed on the brakes on the road outside a house, rushing to unbuckle his seatbelt.

"Oh, here already?" she wondered, going to open the door and jump out but forgot she had the seatbelt wrapped around her and, as she went to jump, she got yanked back, her feet not so graciously dangling out the jeep as her bum began slipping off the seat.

"Uh. Little help here?"

Stiles rolled his eyes but backtracked none the less, untangling her from the belt and helping her stand on wobbly legs.

"Still drunk huh?"

"Nonsense" she declared, holding her head high and taking a step forward but her stubbornness was short lived as the toe of her boot caught the kerb and she stumbled, falling forward onto her hands and knees on the cement sidewalk.

"...Ow" she muttered, pouting as she glanced down at the scrapes on her palms, "I got an ouchie"

Stiles rolled his eyes, grabbing her forearms and helping her to her feet, pushing her back to the jeep.

"You - stay here" he ordered, holding her with one arm as he opened the jeep door and encouraged her to sit in it, "I'll check Scott's house. Last thing we need is you attempting stairs"

"Oh, more ouchies" she mumbled, glancing down at her bare legs that were dangling from the seat in the jeep out the door, touching the bloodied scrapes on her knee caps, "whoopsies"

"Told you. Still drunk" Stiles muttered, beginning to rush towards the house, "stay there. Don't move"

She wasn't really paying attention, waving him off as she touched the scrapes on her knees and giggled as they stung a little, the skin blotting with fine pin pricks of blood. Okay, maybe she was still a tad drunk. Just a little though.

It was dangerous territory, she knew that. It was too much temptation - parties, that was. She didn't know why she went all out, but she did. She acted out because, deep down, she was hurting but she had no one to tell that too. No one to open up to.

It was a big change, moving here to Beacon Hills. She might not show it but there was a lot of traumatic memories here for her, memories that brought her nothing but pain and sorrow and she was just expected to accept this change without so much as an ounce of rebellion? She hadn't long been back on the straight and narrow before her mom had packed them up and moved here. Still such fragile territory, so ready to break. She had made a promise to herself and she broke it. She let her emotions get in the way and almost ruin her progress... her recovery. She was stronger than that... she knew she was. She didn't want to fall back into the pattern again. She couldn't afford to because she knew, if she did, there was a big chance she wasn't getting out alive.

She had been lucky before. Multiple times being saved by hospital staff, pumping her stomach before it was too late to do any permanent and lasting damage but she had been playing with fire. All it took was one bad batch of drugs or one dumpster to fall into and she might not have ever wakened again. Eventually, her luck was due to run out. She couldn't keep getting close to that flame or she really would be burnt. It was only a matter of time.

She had to do better.

She had to.

Living was hard. It was. Excruciating sometimes, but she had to remain positive. She had to remember what her therapist told her - that life wasn't all bad. That good things happened too. She just had to wait for the scales to tip in her favour, to breathe some life into her exhausted and bitter body.

She had to do better... to honour them. To honour her family. The thought of disappointing them tore her heart in two, shattering her already so fragile soul.

She did not want to be that person again.

When she thought back on those months of reckless and dangerous behaviour, it was like she was watching a movie, unable to recognise herself.

She had always been a bit of a loose canon, but not in a selfish or dangerous way. Just a bit fiesty and untameable, attracting nothing but bad luck and trouble but still managed to keep her heart. After her dad and brother were murdered, it was like she, too, had died. The Kayla she had been before, a little damaged and hot headed but still endearing, had been killed. Instead, in its place, was this wild, thoughtless, insensitive person that dove head first into danger, toying with death.

She had no purpose, no sense of right or wrong and certainly no morals. She let the pain and grief eat her whole, ruining months of her life.

She didn't feel worthy of living, of being in a world that her family wasn't, so she turned to drink and drugs and boys to dampen her pain but it was never permanent. It only lasted as long as the hit did and then the pain slammed into her again, ten times worse than before, and so the cycle began. More alcohol, more drugs and less time being a functioning human being.

She had lost so much time it was humiliating.

Days of her life riding a drug binge high before crashing for hours at a time.

Getting involved with Aiden, the worst kind of person to hang with, didn't help. They encouraged each other down the path of self destruction. The violence they shared in their time together was brutal, and sometimes she wondered how she got out of that relationship alive.

So why, knowing all that, did she almost ruin her second chance?

Did she really hate herself that much?

She sighed, pursing her lips as she swung her feet back and forth out of the jeep, waiting for Stiles. She didn't want to be this person... this negative, self destructive version of herself. She wanted to be better, do better, be the kind of person that was worthy of a second chance.

But, deep down, the guilt was still there.

Survivors guilt.

One of the last remaining Hales.

So much pressure.

So much expectation.

She needed to handle it better. She wanted to have a good life. She wanted her soul to find peace. In order to do that, she needed to be stronger.

She needed to try harder.

No more excuses.

'Just own your fucking pain Kayla' she thought to herself, 'own it and get your shit together'.

She glanced down at herself, still clearly - at the very least - tipsy, and sighed in disappointment.

She couldn't afford to fall at any more hurdles.

She had to do better.

A movement from Scott's house caught her attention as she glanced up, prying herself away from her destructive thoughts and trying to shake off the negative energy that was accumulating around her and squinted through the bleariness to see Scott - or who she assumed was Scott - leap from a second story window, landing gracefully on the ground without so much as a falter.

She swallowed, watching nervously as he threw his head back, a startling roar escaping his throat and she recognised that type of roar.

Scott was angry. Vengeful. Something had happened to make him furious.

She carefully stepped down from the jeep, keeping her jelly legs in check as she took a few steps forward, hesitantly at first, unsure of Scott's motives but he wasn't paying attention to her, hyper focused on something completely different.

"Scott?" she called out, "Scott, it's okay, let us help..."

He roared again and she instinctively covered her ears with her hands, the sound penetrating right through to her very bones as he suddenly took off on all fours, leaping past her without another look and disappeared through his neighbours across the streets back yards.

Huh... okay, that was different.

A new werewolf normally displayed so much bloodlust, so much unpredictability and were usually never able to control themselves around humans. He should have seen her, caught her scent and wanted to rip her throat out but instead she doubted he even saw her.

Something had taken his interest... something more than the bloodlust.

... interesting. Very interesting indeed.

She didn't have time to ponder that thought as Stiles suddenly came skidding out the front door and down the path, his lanky limbs swirling around like helicopter blades as he stopped in front of her, huffing and puffing.

"Uh, do you need an inhaler?"

He ignored her, pointing in the general direction Scott went, "he... he... he took off"

"I know, I saw"

Again, he ignored her, wiping the sweat from his brow, "he thinks Derek has Allison"

"Derek doesn't have Allison" she mumbled, almost offended by that suggestion, "why would he have Allison?"

Stiles was panting, gasping back breath as he placed his hands on his knees, "he thinks... that Derek... is the Alpha"

Kayla raised her hand, flicking Stiles on the forehead, "and you didn't think to correct him?"

"I was too busy getting the door slammed in my face" he retorted, "and how do you know Derek isn't involved in this?"

She rolled her eyes, "because I know. He's my cousin"

"Exactly" Stiles stated, "which means you could be in on it too"

She couldn't help but scoff at the boy in front of her, coming up with endless possibilities, his imagination clearly running wild.

"Me?" she laughed, "yeah right. That's too much effort"

He narrowed his eyes at her, "well I'm going to check, regardless. I'll swing by Allison's house and make sure Derek did just drop her off and didn't rip her head off"

"You're wasting your time" she shrugged, "he doesn't have her. He probably has something of hers to lure Scott with" it all finally making sense, that's why Scott ran off so determined, he was wanting to protect Allison.

"Yeah, like her head" Stiles exclaimed, "and I'm still going to check. Nothing you say can convince me otherwise"

She rolled her eyes but didn't argue, her morphine well past worn off and the alcohol burning through her system which meant the pain was coming back in waves, bordering on unbearable but, like always, she grit her teeth and pushed past it - like nothing was happening.

She climbed into the jeep before he decided he didn't trust her and took off without her, slamming the door shut a little harder than necessary so he turned to quirk a brow at her.

"What?" She asked.

"Don't hurt Roscoe"

"I can't hurt inanimate objects Stiles"

"Shhhh" he hissed, covering the sides of the steering wheel with his hands, "she'll hear you"

"She?" she chuckled, "you definitely haven't been laid yet, have you?"

He clenched his jaw, his lips forming a tight line and he bit back whatever insult was dying to escape his mouth as he flushed an adorable pink.

"Wha- that is none of your business"

Another bubble of laughter escaped her lips as she flailed a hand out towards the road, kind of enjoying winding him up.

"I thought you were driving to Allison's?"

"I am" he declared, starting up the engine, "and she better be there"

"Of course she's going to be there. I told you already"

He grumbled out a sound of indignation, starting up the engine and letting it splutter to life, taking off down the road like a bat out of hell. She went to place her feet on the dash so she could sit back and relax but Stiles shot her a dirty look at she did so and she just held her hands up.

"Okay, sorry. Jeez-" she muttered, putting her two feet firmly back on the floor of the jeep, "-someone's touchy"

"My best friend just turned into a furry four legged creature who may or may not want me dead, of course I'm touchy"

She smirked, "it's kind of cool though, right?"

He looked like he wanted to argue but as soon as his mouth opened in his haste to bicker with her, he soon snapped it shut and shrugged.

"Admit it" she encouraged with a laugh, "you find all of this awesome"

"Well, obviously. Who wouldn't?"

"Sane people" she declared, unable to keep the laugh to herself. Stiles, by all intents and purposes, was trying to act frosty towards her, unsure if he was trusting of her or not, but their playful banter was wearing him down and he soon cracked a small smile.

"See?" she cheekily poked his side, "I'm not that bad. You can laugh with me y'know"

He pulled up outside Allison's, "hold that thought"

He sprinted to the front door, banging on it impatiently, dancing about like his ass was on fire until a stern looking woman with short red hair opened the door and, without thinking, she ducked a little bit, pressing her back further into the seat.

Probably Allison's mom. An Argent. The last thing she wanted was for her to recognise her and set her sights on burning her alive.

They exchanged a few words and then both looked into the house, watching as Allison came down the stairs to speak with Stiles, her mom leaving them to it. They spoke for a brief moment before Allison glanced past Stiles and noticed her in the jeep, frowning between the two of them. Kayla rolled down the window, giving Allison a small wave.

"Yeah, I'm just... taking her home" Stiles lied, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly, "she's drunk"

"I'm drunk" she clarified, making a pretend drinking motion with her hands.

"Yeah, that's maybe for the best. Thanks Stiles" Allison said, "and thanks for checking in but I'm fine. Like I said, Scott's friend gave me a lift. Total life saver, I didn't want to have to phone my dad. That would have been mortifying"

"Yeah, totally, uh..." Stiles forced a laugh, "anyway, glad you're fine and uh... sorry about Scott" he started walking backwards, quickly trying to exit this situation, "he's just weird like that. I'm sure he'll talk to you on Monday" before quickly side stepping to the drivers side of the jeep and clambering in, trying not to be suspicious but being suspicious anyway as Allison watched them leave from the doorstop, a wondering frown etched between her brows.

"See?" Kayla smirked, "I told you she'd be fine"

Stiles breathed a sigh of relief, reversing out from Allison's driveway, one arm on the back of her seat as he shot her an apologetic look.

"Just had to make sure"

"I wouldn't let anything happen to her. She's my... friend. I suppose" she added, "huh. Friends"

Stiles snorted, "is that concept a little hard for you to grasp?"

She rolled her eyes, "I left all my friends in Louisiana. Didn't expect to replace them so soon, that's all"

He shot her a pitying look, "sad thing is, you've been here all of five minutes and you still have more friends than me"

"I can be your friend"

He swallowed thickly, beginning to get a little nervous as he cast her quick looks from the side, biting down on his bottom lip.

"You-You want to be friends? With me?"

"Well, someone has to keep you two idiots out of trouble" she laughed, "I can be your werewolf confidant"

Stiles pursed his lips in thought, "that would be handy"

"Exactly. See? I'm useful"

He snorted, "we just have to find Scott first. He could be anywhere"

"I wouldn't worry too much" she reassured, "Derek used Allison's scent to lure Scott out. He won't let him hurt anyone"

Stiles quirked a brow, "and you can be a thousand percent sure on that?"

"Yes" she answered confidently, "I know my cousin Stiles... you can trust him"

"Hmmm" he replied back, focusing on the road, "dude is still creepy though"

They drove around for another hour, driving up and down every single road Beacon Hills had, keeping an eye out for a half naked Scott but no joy. Stiles' jeep was soon nearly hitting the red for gas so he decided to pull in to a small rest stop on the side of old oaks road, trees on either side of them blocking out the light of the moon, and when he shut off the engine they were thrown into darkness.

"I'm sure he'll be fine" Kaula reassured, reaching out to touch his shoulder, "the sun will come up soon anyway"

"I hope so" Stiles muttered, "because this night has been... exhausting"

She snorted, "wow, thanks a lot Stiles" she muttered sarcastically, her tone dripping in playfulness, "and here I thought you liked hanging out with me"

Despite the darkness, she could practically sense his eye roll, "that's not what I mean"

"Oh. I know. I just like teasing you"

He chuckled, "you're hard work you know"

"Thank you"

"That wasn't strictly a compliment"

She shrugged, "was to me"

"So uh..." he started off saying, the outline of his figure beginning to get jittery again, finding confidence in the darkness when they didn't have to look at each other, "now I know about werewolves and stuff... maybe you can tell me why you moved here?"

She swallowed nervously, her hands beginning to wring together as she toyed with her cuticles.

"What uh... what do you want to know?"

"Why you came here" he replied, "was there a supernatural reason?"

"Um... not really. My mom didn't give me much of a choice"

Despite the dim light, she could see Stiles turning in his seat to look at her, concentrating solely on her words.

"Why not?"

"I was... causing trouble" she said delicately, "acting out"

"So she moved you across the country? Harsh" he commented, "what was wrong with grounding you?"

Kayla snorted, "I wasn't just setting off smoke bombs and staying out all night. I was uh... doing a lot of bad things. My uh... my dad and older brother were killed and I guess I didn't take it too well..."

"Oh... oh god, I'm so sorry" Stiles rushed to apologise, immediately feeling bad he ever brought it up, "you don't have to tell me anything-"

"It's okay" she reassured, kind of happy to get it off her chest, no one else in Beacon Hills knowing her secrets, "um... yeah, I lost them just over a year ago. November 17th to be precise" She could Stiles' foot tapping nervously on the jeep floor, his entire aura seeping nerves as he fidgeted in his seat, unsure what to do or say.

"I'm... I'm sorry. Uh... what happened?"

"Hunters" she said simply, "werewolf hunters"

"What?" Stiles screeched loudly, "there's werewolf hunters?"

"Yeah, that's the not so cool part about being a werewolf" she chuckled though it was without humour, void of any real emotion, "and still to this day I don't know why it happened. My family we... we lived by our code. My dad never hurt a fly and Dylan uh... there was one person he hurt, but that was accidental. They stayed clean. They didn't out themselves. Yet it still happened" she mused, "they were taken away from me and I... I lost it"

"Understandable" Stiles said, "it's a massive trauma"

"Yeah..." she settled on saying, "I guess. I don't know... I just... became this completely different person. Fell in with the wrong crowd, endless parties, lots of alcohol, drugs, you name it... I just lost myself. Just like I lost them"

"And... and that's why your mom moved you here?"

Kayla snorted, "I guess. My dad has investments here so she took them over instead of selling them on. As soon as I got back on the straight and narrow she sold our house and moved us here. I didn't really have much of a choice. I don't exactly have much family left"

Even through the dim darkness she could just make out his eyes widening in realisation, his jaw slack.

"The fire... was that... I mean, was that because they were werewolves?"

"Just because they were werewolves it didn't mean they deserved burning to death" she snapped, not meaning to but the grief was creeping back up again, swallowing her whole, "and it wasn't all werewolves in there. There were humans too. It was cold blooded murder"

"O-Of course, I-I didn't mean... I wasn't insinuating, um... sorry" he apologised, dipping his head in shame.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips, immediately cooling down from her burst of anger.

"No, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. It's just... touchy subject" she settled on saying, "my family were very well respected, and feared" she added, "so whoever did it had a lot of balls"

"Do you have any idea who?"

"...We have theories" she settled on saying after a long pause, "but that's all they are. Theories"

"And... and why are you human?" he exclaimed, "I mean, if your family are werewolves, surely you should be one too?"

"I wonder that too" she mused, "but sometimes, occasionally, the werewolf gene just doesn't take. No one knows why"

"Bizarre" Stiles muttered, his brain clearly going into overdrive.

"Glad you think so" she snorted. She couldn't see him, but she could imagine his face turning a very light shade of pink in embarrassment.

"Sorry. I'm just... taking this all in"

"Understandable. I did just turn your world upside down in the space of a few hours"

"I know, how rude" he joked back, his demeanour, although still nervous was more relaxed than before, eager to learn more.

"Terrible" she agreed, her lips quirking in amusement.

"Um... so uh, you're here to stay then?"

"I guess so..."

"Good" he murmured shyly, tapping his fingers along the steering wheel, "that's... good"

"Oh?" she quipped, "and why is that?"

She heard him gulp, stiffening in his seat, "oh, uh... because um... y'know... uh... w-werewolf help... and uh, and stuff"

She bit her lip, holding back a laugh at his terrible excuses, "well, the two of you will need all the help you can get, trust me"

They fell into comfortable silence, enjoying the peacefulness and after a short while, although the pain was still there, it was ebbing away slowly which meant it wasn't too long until the sun came up. Half hour, maybe an hour at most. She pressed her head against the window, closing her eyes momentarily and shifting her weight to get more comfortable, tucking her legs under her.

"You should get some rest" Stiles advised, "you've been drinking and drinking always makes people sleepy"

"Yeah... yeah I might just grab a few minutes" she muttered just as she yawned, letting her head loll against the cool window. In fact, she was so tired and already slipping into sleep that she didn't feel Stiles jostle about to remove his grey suit jacket and place it over her gently, keeping her exposed body warm from the chill night air.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

She awoke to something shuddering and immediately sat up straight, un-kinking her body from the awkward, half sitting-half laying position she was curled into and looked around in a frenzy, her wild curled hair sticking to her face.

"Whoa, it's okay" Stiles rushed to say, "it's just my stupid jeep"

She spat out a mouthful of her hair, the grey suit jacket that had been tucked around her shoulders falling to the floor as she blinked away the sleep, watching trees pass her by quickly. Oh... Stiles was driving.

"Shit" she cursed, "how long was I out?"

"Just a couple hours" he replied, one hand on the wheel and the other resting by his side, "I didn't want to wake you. Had a feeling you might try and strangle me"

He actually wasn't wrong. She did hate getting woken up. She snorted, raising a hand to wipe the side of her mouth.

"Oh yeah, and you were totally drooling"

She shot him a glare, "I was not"

"Was too"

"Stop looking at me in my sleep you werido" she joked, stretching out her body a little as she repressed a yawn, "still no Scott?"

"Not yet, but I'm hoping if I keep just driving up and down this road then-oh" he cut himself off in surprise, "nevermind. He's there"

Kayla glanced out the windscreen, seeing a topless Scott limping along the road, his arm held against his torso as if he were in pain.

"Oh goody, he's alive"

Stiles looked at her in alarm, "you didn't expect him to be...?"

She shrugged, "shit happens" undoing her seatbelt and clambering over the front seats so she was on the back as Stiles slowed down, ready to pick Scott up.

"Oh, and uh..." she popped her head forward, so close to Stiles' he nearly head butted her as he turned his head to the side, "what we talked about earlier... y'know... all that stuff... I would really appreciate it if you could keep it to yourself. Just for now"

"Um... yeah, yeah of course" Stiles gulped, the jeep stopping completely as Scott opened the door to climb in, "pinky promise"

Scott looked exhausted, resting back against the seat to glance at Stiles before realising she was in the backseat too and shot her a surprised look.

"Uh..."

"We were looking for you. All night" Stiles exclaimed, "you owe me a tank of gas by the way"

Scott turned around to look at her fully, his brows knitting together, "Derek says that I should trust you. That you can help me"

She shrugged, "I can certainly try"

"But you're not a werewolf...?"

She rolled her eyes, "nope, not a werewolf. But I know a lot about them"

He was still suspicious, that much was obvious, but Stiles reached over and cupped his shoulder reassuringly.

"It's okay man, I vetted her, she's cool"

Scott simply sighed, resting against the jeep door as he huddled to stay warm, looking like a god damn kicked puppy.

"You know what the worst thing about all of this is?"

"If you say Allison, I'm going to kick your ass"

Kayla snorted, "of course he's going to say Allison"

"She's going to hate me" Scott moaned, "I just left her at that party-"

"She won't hate you" Kayla said, "I'll put in a good word for you"

"Oh, uh... thanks" Scott mumbled, "I really don't want her to hate me-"

"Just come up with a really great apology and you'll be golden" Stiles advised with a smirk, "or, y'know, you could just tell her the truth and revel in the awesomeness of the fact that you're a frigging werewolf"

"Uh-" she butted in, her head between the two of them, "-don't do that. That's terrible advice"

"I agree" Scott mumbled, "I want a second chance, not to scare her off"

Stiles just rolled his eyes, "kill joys, the pair of you"

She pushed herself back in the seat, pulling her legs up again and letting herself relax as the two best friends bickered back and forth and she was almost asleep again until her phone pinged and she manoeuvred it from her pocket, wondering who would be texting this early, to see her mom's name flashing up at her. Oh great... busted.

She groaned, "Stiles... you need to take me home"

"Why?" he asked, his eyes flitting to meet hers in the rear view mirror, "I thought we could all have a sit down and you could talk to Scott about-"

"Mom found out I sneaked out to go to the party. She's pissed. Maybe another time though?"

Stiles simply nodded, focusing back on the road as she repocketed her phone without even opening the message.

She hated Beacon Hills, she really did.

It was a place of pain and suffering and not much else.

But maybe, just maybe, she thought to herself as she looked between the two boys... maybe she could find a purpose here. A reason for trying.

Maybe this was where she was meant to be.

Chapter Text

When she walked in the front door, shoes in hand, make up smudged under her eyes and hair fluffed into extreme curls she was immediately faced with her mothers wrath.

Standing there, arms folded across her chest, her black pant suit and slicked back hair making her chiselled face appear much more sharper and extreme was not a pleasant sight. She was clearly not happy, her eyes blazing with fury.

"Uh... hi" Kayla shut the door behind her, dropping her shoes by the rack, "guessing you haven't made breakfast today then?"

Her mom's lips thinned into a hard line, clearly channeling all her restraint to not hurl words of abuse at her.

"What did I say about going to that party?"

"Not to go"

"And what did you do?"

"Went to the party. Clearly" waving a hand down to her attire, "but not for reasons that you think"

"Oh really?" her mom scoffed in disbelief, "so that isn't alcohol you reek of?"

She sniffed the collar of her denim playsuit, "I don't smell that bad"

"You smell like a brewery"

Kayla scoffed, "don't be so dramatic"

"This is meant to be our fresh start" her mom began her rant, her heeled shoes beginning to tap the floor in frustration, "and not even a week here and you go off the rails - again"

"I'm not off the rails" Kayla groaned, "look, I was there to keep an eye on Scott. A new werewolf" she explained, "we were just making sure no one got hurt"

"And drinking too. God knows what else" her mom said sternly, "do I need to drive you to the pharmacy to get plan B?"

"Mom"

"What?" she shouted in response, her tone sharp and authoritative, like a drill sergeant, "I can't imagine this was a Christian gathering"

Kayla rolled her eyes, "nothing like a little slut shaming from your mother, huh? And no, of course I don't need plan B. I meant what I said. A better me"

Her mom quirked a perfect plucked and arched brow, "you're not exactly making a good start to that, are you?"

"Evidently not" she grumbled, "anyway, believe what you want. I was just trying to help a new friend"

"You're grounded for the weekend" her mom said, not taking on board anything she was saying, "and don't even think about leaving when I'm at work. I got the outside security cameras working so I'll know"

"Sure, fine, whatever" she grumbled, brushing past her mom, "I'm going to bed"

"And I expect this house to be cleaned, top to bottom, by the time I get back"

She was up the first step of the stairs as she turned around in exasperation, "what? We just moved in. What is there to clean?"

"No arguments" her mom said, slinging her bag over her shoulder, "trust is earned Kayla"

She watched her mom leave with bitter eyes, resisting getting in the last word as she watched the door close and lock behind her.

Great. She was in the bad books - again. No wonder she struggled so much getting, and staying, on the straight and narrow when she didn't really have any people in her corner. In her mom's eyes, she could do no right. Never could. Like she expected Kayla to get lost completely.

She sighed, stomping up the stairs and made her way to her bedroom and, without even pulling back the covers, fell face first onto her mattress and closed her eyes, for the first time in months sleep coming easy.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Upon waking, later than what she had anticipated, she groaned to herself at the sight of her alarm clock's hands pointing to the time of 2.41pm.

Great, she had slept in.

She went straight for a shower, stripping herself of the tight, alcohol soaked clothes and scrubbed herself free from her make up and sweaty skin, letting the hot water gently burn her skin.

She had a pounding headache, clearly from a little too much alcohol, so popped a couple of ibruprofen from her secret stash that she had to conceal from her mother and got changed into some grey sweats and a black vest top, leaving her long tangled hair to dry naturally down her back.

She made her way from top to bottom, putting in a pretty half arsed attempt at cleaning and tidying the large, semi empty house they now called home. Hoovering the carpets, brushing the concrete floors, cleaning the window ledges, dusting the shelves and scrubbing the kitchen, even putting on a couple loads of laundry too.

Just as she was washing up the few dishes in the sink did her mom come home, placing her bag on the breakfast bar and coughing gently to grab her attention.

She turned around, quirking a brow, "hi"

"Hi" her mom repeated, casting a curious gaze around the kitchen, "thank you for cleaning up. I didn't think you would do it"

Kayla almost winced at the backhanded compliment. "I can look after a house, I'm not completely inept"

"I didn't say you were"

Kayla chose not to reply, placing the last mug on the draining rack and rinsing the bubbles from the basin, patting her hands dry on the towel.

"I'm... sorry for earlier" her mom said gingerly, enticing Kayla to turn around, "I was a little harsh, but I expect you not to lie to me anymore Kayla. If it's going to work here then you need to do better than before, am I clear?"

She swallowed, "I'm trying. Maybe you need to give me a little leeway too"

Her mom pursed her lips, "oh really?"

"Or... or at least trust me a little" Kayla added, "I want to be better and I think I can be. I can help people here, like Scott. His world has just been turned upside down and I can help him through that. But I can't have you here always expecting the worst of me. It's a shit feeling"

Her mom nodded, "I understand, but your behaviour-"

"Yes, I know my behaviour sucked" Kayla exclaimed, "it did, it really did, and I'm sorry for that but I was lost okay? I was fucking devastated. But I got control over it and I sorted my shit out. Please just... just believe in me, for once just be in my corner"

Her mom stood still, taking that all in but somehow still remaining stoic and, Kayla sometimes wondered, if that woman even had a heart at all.

"We all go through stuff Kayla and we choose how we react. You can't blame your grief on everything"

"I'm not, okay? I'm really not. I just-"

"I lost my husband, my son... do you not think that kills me inside? But I keep going. I remain true to myself. You let your emotions get the best of you and you put yourself into very dangerous situations"

She blinked back the tears, regretting ever saying a thing. Her mom, lacking empathy, thinking very much in black and white.

"Right. Forget I said anything" Kayla mumbled, "just... forget it"

She ignored her mom's requests to stay down for dinner, saying she had frozen a chicken casserole earlier for them and made her way up the stairs and into her bedroom, shutting the door behind her.

She didn't want sympathy, she didn't want anyone to make up excuses for her behaviour, she just wanted a mom. A mom who didn't always think the worst of her.

Her stomach ached with hunger but she was not giving in and going downstairs, choosing instead to munch on a candy bar she had found at the bottom of her bag, sitting in bed and opening up her laptop.

She logged into Facebook, immediately being greeted by multiple notifications and even more new friend requests, people from Beacon high obviously having tracked her down and snooping for some juicy gossip. She didn't care, accepting them all without thought but a very familiar and unusual name made her stop, a small smile tugging at her lips.

'Stiles Stilinski''

She hit confirm, trolling through her notifications - most of which was Lydia - adding her to groups and tagging her in upcoming events when she heard a ding, alerting her to a new message.

She opened it up, seeing Stiles' name above a message of 'hey, took you long enough. I was beginning to get offended. You good?'

She appreciated his concern, one of the only people that had really shown any.

'I was enjoying a little something called sleep' she typed back, 'and all good. Just bored. Grounded'

'Wow, your mom's harsh huh?'

She snorted - oh, if only he knew.

'Pretty sure she's possessed' she replied with a smirk before quickly typing out another message, 'how are you handling things?'

'Now that my best friend is a furry mythological beast? Great' was his reply and she could pretty much sense his sarcasm through the screen.

'You're kind of excited about this, don't lie'

He replied with a shrugging emoji then 'would I be a bad person if I said yes?'

She laughed to herself, finding his behaviour oddly entertaining.

'Trust me, you'll get bored of it real quick'

'Doubtful' he shot back, the three little dots coming and going as he debated on what to say next, probably typing out something and then deleting it two seconds later.

'Spit it out Stiles' she typed back, followed by grinning emoji, 'what do you want to say?'

It took him a couple of minutes but he finally replied with, 'Brian is a douche, don't go out with him'

'I wasn't intending to. Surprisingly enough, I got plenty douchery vibes from him last night'

'Oh good. That's good' his reply was quick, quicker than what she thought possible before being followed up by, 'I couldn't be friends with you if you did'

'Oh really?' she typed, using a playful winking emoji.

'Just kidding. I'd always want to be your friend. I don't have many as it is. I can't be picky'

She laughed to herself, completely amused by him.

'Guess you're stuck with me. Anyway sorry, gotta go. Have homework. See you at school Monday?'

'Right on' was his response, followed by a thumbs up emoji and a smiley face and she smirked to herself as she clicked out of Facebook and opened up a word document, beginning to type out her English essay.

She was determined to turn over a new leaf, even if people like her mom still had their doubts. She just had to prove them wrong.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The first thing she was greeted with when she slipped from her car was Lydia Martin's smirking face.

The petite redhead had her hip cocked to one side, a red handbag slung over her outstretched arm as she pointed at her.

"Well?" Lydia asked, "you can't just disappear from my party and not give me the juicy details"

"Huh?" Kayla asked, adjusting her denim shorts and unhinging her bra that was digging into her left boob, "what juicy details?"

Lydia's laugh was light and airy, "why, you and Brian of course. So, what happened?"

"Nothing" Kayla said, shaking her head.

"Yeah right" Lydia scoffed, teetering along next to her in her ridiculously high heels as they walked towards the school, "last I heard, you were making out with him next to the pool"

"He's a dick"

"But does he have a nice dick?"

"Can't comment on something I never saw" Kayla replied, "we started hooking up and then I spewed. Then I left. No sex"

Lydia pouted, "that's a shame"

"Meh, not really. He looks like a one and done kind of guy. Or at the very least expects oral but doesn't give it"

Lydia's smile was wide and untamed as she sent her an almost flitasious look, "you know what you want, I admire that"

"No point beating around the bush"

"My thoughts exactly"

They entered the school, many eyes falling to them because - duh - the infamous Lydia Martin and Kayla just chuckled to herself, carrying on walking to her locker.

"We should hang out after school" Lydia suggested, "Allison too. I need to go shopping"

"Shopping for what?" she asked, punching in her locker combination and grabbing a couple books for her first class.

"Clothes of course" Lydia said, "and because I'm nice I'll even treat you both to a new wardrobe"

"My wardrobe is fine"

Lydia pursed her lips at her outfit of choice, "no, it's really not"

"What's wrong with shorts?" Kayla asked, a little offended and completely dumbfounded, "they're practical, cute, and when I bend down I don't flash everyone my thong"

"Exactly my point" Lydia smirked, "be daring. Be Marilyn Monroe and let the wind work in your favour"

"Why would I want that?"

"You have cute cheeks, show them off"

Lydia and her seemed like polar opposites just now but there was something about this petite redhead that Kayla actually liked.

"I can't think of anything more boring than clothes shopping. Count me out"

Lydia gasped, "no friend of mine says such a thing. Take it back"

Kayla smirked, "no"

"Take it back or I'll get you to go on a date with Brian"

She narrowed her eyes, "you can't do that"

"Wanna bet?"

Actually no, Kayla thought, she did not want to bet. For someone so tiny, Lydia sure did have a lot of power and ways about her.

She sighed, "fine, I'll go shopping with you"

Lydia clapped her hands together, "yay. We'll have a blast. I'll pick you up at four"

"Can't wait" Kayla said with faux enthusiasm, shaking her hand in the air, "should I bring a shotgun? Y'know, to shoot myself in the head with?"

Lydia rolled her eyes, "drama queen"

"Says you"

"But I do it so much better" her new found friend grinned, backing away slowly, "remember, four on the dot. Don't be late"

"Wouldn't dream of it" Lydia disappeared down the corridor in a flurry of hair and hips and she watched her go, unable to stop the smile from tugging at her lips.

That girl was hard work, but kind of entertaining. Maybe she would make real friends here after all.

She made sure her locker was shut before turning around, about to make her way to her first class but she saw Stiles dragging Scott up the corridor towards her, his arm waving about enthusiastically, trying to grab her attention despite already having it.

She found herself constantly amused by their enthusiasm and naivety, something she wished she hadn't lost a long time ago. Their freshness and hopefulness was nice to see, her involvement in the supernatural world only ever ending in pain.

"Hey guys" she greeted with a small tired smile, "how's things?"

"Fantastic" Stiles beamed, clearly the enthusiastic part of this intrinsic duo, "tell Scott what else he can do now he's a frigging werew-"

Scott nudged him at the exact same Kayla slapped a hand over his open mouth, immediately shutting him up. He mumbled what she assumed was an apology against her palm, his tongue intentionally licking her hand as he did so.

She pulled it back sharply, letting out a small giggle, "oh, that's tickely"

"Sorry" he mumbled in response, splotches of red decorating his cheeks as he reached up to awkwardly scratch the back of his neck, "uh... subtlety isn't exactly my strong point"

"I've gathered" she replied with a chuckle at the exact same time Scott said, "no, it isn't"

"Don't you two gang up on me" Stiles stated, "I'm the brains of the operation here"

"Oh really?" she laughed, crossing her arms, "and what exactly do you know about the supernatural world?"

"Uh... that my best friend is a werewolf"

"Uh huh... and?"

He gulped loudly, "his... his eyes glow"

"Very good. Gold star. What else?"

Scott chuckled as Stikes shot him a glare and elbowed him in the side, "he's gonna PMS on us once a month. Can't wait for that" his voice dripping in sarcasm.

"Yup, you're just a fountain of knowledge aren't you?"

He sent her a playful glare, "I'm new to this too"

"I can tell" she smirked, "and just to put your minds at rest, no, you can't be killed by silver so don't worry about using your mums letter opener" she joked, knowing that their only source of information would likely be Google and that, in itself, was incredibly misleading and above all - wrong.

"Garlic?" Scott squeaked, "because I really like garlic. Mom makes the best naan bread-"

"That's vampires" she interrupted, finding him absolutely adorable, "garlic isn't going to do anything to you except give you heartburn"

"Th-There's vampires?" Stiles wondered with a surprised look and slack jaw, "vampires are real?"

"I don't know, how would I know?"

"But you just said-"

"I was referring to the myth" she chuckled, "calm your tits"

"Okay so, and uh... what other neat tricks can he do?" Stiles whispered, his face back to one of delight and intrigue, "read minds? Turn invisible?"

"No" she laughed, finding Stiles' complete investment in his best friends change absolutely hilarious, "he's a werewolf, not a magician. He's faster, stronger, slicker. No more asthma either huh?"

Scott placed a hand against his chest, "haven't used it since that night"

"Yup, say goodbye to chronic long term health conditions and hello to cheaper health insurance" she grinned, "Seems great huh?"

Scott's face lit up, "mom won't have to do as much overtime then"

"Just uh... keep everything on the downlow. I'm sure Derek explained why?"

Scott's expression dropped, "hunters?"

"Yeah. There's people out there that despise anything that's different. Most werewolves aren't bad people, but there's a few that taint the rest of them. And fear in the unknown, and probably a bit of jealousy too, is what fuels the hunters anger. So they hunt them down, torture them and then kill them"

Stiles and Scott's face was a picture - contorted like they had been hit by a cement truck.

"But I'm sure you'll be fine" she continued, waving her hand, "just stay 'hush hush' around Allison"

Scott frowned, "Allison? Why Allison?"

"Oh... did Derek not say?"

"Say what?"

She winced, "her family are hunters. I thought you knew"

Scott's eyes went comically wide, the books he was carrying by his side falling to the floor.

"Her family are what?"

"Oh dude" Stiles grimaced, "that's rough"

"If it helps any I don't think she knows anything" she continued, "her family appear to be keeping her clueless - at least for the time being"

"Oh god... oh god" Scott winced, "this isn't happening... this definitely isn't happening..."

Stiles reached into Scott's backpack, pulling out his inhaler and passing it to him.

"Uh... that won't do anything"

Scott ignored her, shaking it a few times and gasping back a couple of breaths from the blue inhaler, waiting for it to work but still panicking.

"I told you it wouldn't do anything"

"... Oh god" Scott continued, running his hands through his hair, "she's going to kill me"

"She won't kill you" Kayla chuckled, "and if she tries, you'll heal. Unless she does it with wolfsbane of course"

Scott blanched, "I... I can't believe this is happening"

"Yeah, sorry buddy"

Kayla playfully slapped his upper arm, "you don't have the best of luck huh?"

"Dude, it'll be fine. There's plenty more fish in the sea. And by fish I mean girls" Stiles stated, "you're a big bad werewolf now, you got options"

"Girls who don't like getting being likened to things with scales" Kayla said, rolling her eyes at Stiles, "but Allison is nice. Really nice. I can't imagine her wanting to hurt anyone. Trust me, I wouldn't be friends with her if I thought any different"

"Righttttt" Stiles drawled out, snapping his fingers in her face, "because you're from a werewolf family and all"

"Glad you can put two and two together" Kayla smirked, "and, well, because of the fire"

Both boys immediately turned to look at her, their eyebrows near enough reaching their hairline in surprise and a little bit of confusion.

"My family were a target" she deadpanned, "there's rumours it was the Argents but there was never any proof and they feverently denied it. God knows what to think"

Scott groaned, "oh my god, I'm going to get burnt alive"

"You're not going to get burnt alive" Stiles reassured, grabbing his friends shoulders and keeping him upright, "it'll all be great, I promise"

"Like I said, just avoid the wolfsbane and you're highly unlikely to die. Unless you get decapitated" she smiled, "no one can survive that"

"Not helping" Stiles groaned.

"I wasn't trying to"

Stiles' eye twitched in annoyance but before he could bite back with a snappy retort the bell overhead rang, alerting them to the start of their next class.

"Perfect timing" she grinned, "have fun boys. Remember - don't die"

"Don't die" Stiles mimicked to her retreating back, "how about you don't die?"

She flicked her hair over her shoulder, shooting him a wide smile, "wasn't planning on it cowboy"

Stiles flushed, spluttering out a few letters of the alphabet before shrugging, "cowboys are cool. I'll take that as a compliment"

She snorted to herself, continuing to strut down the corridor to her first class, the ghost of a smile still etched on her face the entire way there.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

"It was Allison's father that shot me"

She jumped at the sudden voice next to her ear, turning around to see Scott standing next to her, rolling backwards and forwards on the balls of his feet with nerves, dressed in full lacrosse kit, ready to hit the field and practice.

"Excuse me?"

Scott swallowed in fear, "the other night, after the party. It wasn't just any hunter it was Allison's dad"

She let out a long whistle, "I stand by what I said. Your luck really does suck"

Scott groaned, "what am I supposed to do?"

"Uh... I'm not really the best person to give advice here" Kayla said, watching as all the players begun filling the field as they stood by the sidelines, "keeping people alive isn't really my forte - my family can attest to that"

Scott shot her a confused look, "but you said you would help me"

"And I will. I'll help - didn't say anything about keeping you breathing"

Scott's brown eyes filled with fear, "oh my god-"

"Relax" she encouraged, cursing her blunt ways, "just uh, take a deep breath, focus, and you'll be grand. Forget about Allison just now. Just try and not rip someone's head off when you're out there"

"I will... try" Scott sighed, "should I even be playing?"

"Probably not, but something tells me you aren't going to sit this one out. Practice for the big game on Saturday right?"

"Right" Scott sighed, "I hate my life"

"Ditto" Kayla grinned, "join the club"

She patted him reassuringly on the shoulder, trying to keep his spirits high but knowing she was probably failing and failing miserably.

"Go get 'em tiger. Or wolfie. But not too hard" she added quickly, "people are breakable"

She watched him disappear into the crowd and moved to sit next to Stiles on the wooden bench, who still seemed a little surprised that she chose to be seen with him in public, before shyly grinning at her.

"You not playing?"

"I don't really play" he mumbled, chewing on the fingertip of one of his gloves, "I sit and observe and die a little on the inside"

She smirked, bumping her shoulder against his, "you never know. If Scott goes crazy and kills half his teammates you might get a shot then"

Her smile showed she was joking which he seemed dazzled by, biting his bottom lip as he glanced down at her mouth, staring at it for several seconds until she gently punched his arm.

"What? Do I have food in my teeth?"

"Wha-no, n-no, no food" he mumbled, dropping his stare, "I was just-uh, never mind"

"Weirdo"

"That's me" he smirked, "oh uh, I think Lydia's calling you"

She sighed, turning her head to the side to see Allison and Lydia on the bleachers, the former standing up and waving at her, calling out her name several times in a row.

"I guess I'm being summoned" she grumbled, but her tone was playful as she just stuck her thumbs back up to Lydia, letting her know she got the message, "I should, uh-"

"Y-Yeah, of course. Obviously" Stiles replied, somehow getting even more awkward, "I don't know anyone alive that can say no to Lydia"

She stood up off the bench, dusting off the back of her denim shorts and gave Stiles a gentle smile.

"I um... I also wanted to apologise for the other night. At the party" she clarified, watching Stiles tense up with nerves as he remembered what had happened, "I was a wreck. I tend to get like that with alcohol involved. I guess I was just being bitter about moving here and wanted to blow off steam and uh... you actually saved me from making a pretty bad decision" referring to dickhead Brian, "so, yeah... I'm sorry you saw me like that"

Stiles' smile was faint as he basked in the warmth that gave him, proud that he had left that much of an impact.

"Oh, it's fine. Totally okay" Stiles coughed, "I've dealt with worse"

"Worse than a half naked girl spewing in the toilet?"

Stiles' blush deepened, "uh, well... when you put it like that..."

She laughed, totally at ease with this strange boy that she found quirky and endearing and rolled her eyes.

"Don't worry, you don't have to pretend you didn't jerk off to the image of me half naked" she joked playfully, snickering as he wheezed, "I am pretty hot"

"Wh-what-why-wh-oh my god"

She winked, "catch ya later Stilinski" turning around and bouncing towards Lydia, leaving the buzzcut boy a sweaty, breathless, bag of nerves.

A/N) yay, another chapter. Sorry it took so long, had lots of work and essays and life lol hope you all enjoyed and please please review see you all soon :)

Chapter Text

"God dammit" she cursed under her breath as she watched Scott ram so forcefully into Jackson he ended up on the cold grass, the brutal sound of bones crunching making everyone wince.

The unpredictability of Scott right now was terrifying. One wrong move and he could wipe out his entire team in broad daylight and the last thing they needed was exposure.

Lydia let out a small scream and rushed to Jackson, Allison following a little slower as everyone surrounded Jackson in worry but that wasn't what Kayla was focused on - it was Scott, hunched over in pain, breathing heavily and most worrisome of all, his eyes glowing a bright amber.

She made her way over to him but before she could reach them, Stiles had already helped him to his feet and was half carrying-half dragging Scott back to the school, away from prying eyes.

She was just about to follow them when Allison reached out and grabbed her arm, one hand flying up to cover her mouth in shock.

"Oh my god... Scott did that"

Kayla glanced down at the small hand that was gripping her forearm, seeming completely taken aback by what she was seeing.

"I'm sure it was an accident" Kayla reassured halfheartedly knowing, in fact, it most likely wasn't an accident. Some part of Scott had probably wanted to do that for years. And honestly - she really couldn't blame him.

"Where did he go?"

Kayla pretended not to know, glancing around stupidly before shrugging.

"He's probably feeling bad" she lied, "wanted to get away from everyone looking at him"

"Yeah... I suppose"

With all the commotion, she managed to slip away unnoticed as Lydia and coach helped Jackson off the field and to the hospital so she went to the one place she suspected the two boys were at - the locker room.

By the time she rounded the corner, she saw Scott push Stiles away harshly and almost jumped in to seperate the two but Scott relaxed, his eyes fading to their normal deep brown.

"W-What happened?"

"You tried to kill me"

"Yeah, and almost succeeded" she said, giving both boys a fright as they never noticed her standing by the doorway, "those claws can do a lot of damage you know"

Scott looked a little guilty, glancing down at his now human hands and wincing, "I-I didn't mean to"

"I should hope not" Stiles interjected, "I like my throat intact thank you very much"

"You need to learn how to control your anger" she suggested, walking up to them with a serious expression on her face, trying to get it into Scott's head that he now had a level of responsibility that he didn't have before, "if you don't, you will kill someone"

"So basically his anger gets his pulse rising" Stiles said, "it triggers the change?"

"Yeah, if you don't know how to pull yourself back" she shrugged, "and you seem to be getting yourself into a lot of pulse rising situations lately"

"It's lacrosse" Scott said sheepishly, "it's a pretty violent game if you hadn't noticed"

"Well, it's gonna be a lot more violent if you end up killing someone on the field. You can't play Saturday. You're gonna have to get out of the game"

"I have to agree with Stiles" Kayla winced, "if you can't control it then going out on that field will be a death sentence for a lot of people. I doubt you could live with that"

"But... but I'm first line"

Kayla and Stiles shared a look, both feeling a little guilty for dashing his dreams - even if it was for the best.

"What if I learn to control it by then?" Scott asked, "what if I'm not a danger to anyone?"

"Learn to control the change in a matter of days?" Kayla asked incredulously, "a bitten werewolf? That's nearly impossible"

"So it's not completely impossible?" Scott asked, clearly grabbing at straws, "it could be done?"

Both boys looked at her, waiting for an answer that she really didn't have. Being a werewolf, especially a new werewolf, was unpredictable. Even the most emotionally capable werewolves had their off days.

"Uh... theoretically yeah, but you need to have amazing emotional intelligence, and drive. What makes it worth it?"

Scott shrugged, "playing Lacrosse. Uh, and Allison"

"I guess I could speak to Derek" she suggested, "maybe he could tutor you, so to speak"

"Derek?" Stiles laughed, "the creep factor is high with that one"

"Do you know any other werewolves?" she quirked a brow in exasperation, the ghost of a smirk playing on her lips.

"... Do fictional characters count?"

She rolled her eyes playfully before turning back to Scott, "I'll speak to Derek. I'm sure he could teach you a few things"

"Can't you teach me?" Scott asked, "you're, well, nicer"

"Me? Nice?" she laughed, "I've not been described as that before"

"Well, nicer than Derek" Stiles said, "by a long shot"

"That's because you haven't gotten on my bad side - yet"

Stiles gulped, "y-y-yet?"

She smirked, "exactly"

"I need to play on Saturday" Scott continued, "I have to"

"I know some things, sure, but I don't know enough to get you to control the shift in a few days. I'm not a miracle worker" she said bluntly, "or a therapist. The best I could do would be Derek and I'll try and get him to play nice, although after that tumble with the hunters the other night, he's not best pleased with you"

Scott winced, "I didn't get caught"

"No" she smirked, "but you did almost get your arm taken off, and trust me, that's getting off easy. Next time it'll be your head"

"Oh god..."

"Deal?"

She held out her hand, waiting for Scott to shake it which he did rather reluctantly, still looking panicked out of his head.

"Deal"

"Good" she grinned, "but in the meantime, I would suggest some simple breathing techniques. Anything to try and keep your pulse under a hundred and twenty. Start there"

"Thank you"

She nodded her head, beginning to excuse herself from the rather messy and odour filled locker room rich with the smell of dried B.O but Stiles beginning to say something made her turn around.

"Derek has given us no reason to trust him" he said, "for all we know, he killed that girl"

A wave of sadness hit her square in the chest, the reminder of losing Laura knocking her completely off guard, especially coming from Stiles' mouth.

"He didn't" she said coldly, her tone giving no room to argue. "What do you know about it?"

Stiles seemed a little dumbfounded by her sudden icy demeanour, sharing a nervous look with Scott before lifting a hand to scratch the back of his neck, flushing a deep red.

"She was cut in half. Seems pretty werewolfish to me"

The warmth that she had towards these two boys was beginning to evaporate by the second, annoyance that they dare even suggest Derek did this. Derek who, unbeknownst to them, was grieving the loss of his older sister.

She stepped closer to Stiles, her expression blank but brimming with pinched anger to which Stiles subconsciously stepped back, keeping a couple of feet distance between them.

"You know nothing" she hissed, "nothing about Derek and nothing about that girl. So keep your wrong thoughts to yourself"

Her protectiveness over Derek and Laura came out full force, like some kind of mama bear, hating their innocence getting questioned - yet again.

Stiles gulped nervously, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as he looked sideways to Scott for backup but the floppy haired boy was just as dumbfounded by her sudden shift, rooted to the spot.

"Uh... um... o-okay-"

"I mean it" she said harshly, "because if you can't trust Derek then why the hell bother trusting me?" and with that she stalked off, not giving them another second of her anger before she took things too far which is how things normally ended when she got mad.

She heard Stiles fumbling about after her but kept her back turned, gritting her teeth as to not lose her temper, determined to keep it on check.

"Hey Kayla, wait-Kayla, wait, hold up-"

He was somehow brave enough to gently grab hold of her elbow and, partly admiring the balls it probably took him to do that, she slowed to a stop, turning to cock a brow at him.

"Uh... heh... look, I'm sorry, I know he's your cousin but-"

"But what?"

He swallowed thickly, worried about riling her up.

"But he's given us no reason to trust him. He's secretive, he's overly aggressive and he's down right creepy. How do we know he didn't kill her?"

She shrugged, "think what you want, I don't care, but don't expect me to play nice with you both and help out when you openly accuse my cousin, one of my only remaining family members, of murder" she said bluntly, "sorry, but no chance"

"So you... won't help us?"

She scoffed, "can you hear yourself right now? Why would I put you two idiots above my cousin, huh?"

"Uh..." he chuckled nervously, "because you... like us?"

She folded her arms across her chest, "you're testing that"

"Oi, Hale" she heard to her right and twisted her head to the side to see Brian lopping towards her, kitted out in his lacrosse gear and she sighed to herself, already thinking of ways in which she could escape.

"Yes?" she replied in an abrupt tone, conveying to him just how little patience she had with his bullshit.

"Long day?" Brian smirked before noticing Stiles there and grinned, "must be if you're talking to Stilinski"

"What do you want?" she retaliated with an eyeroll, not in the mood for his games.

"Just wondering when we're getting our second date. You kind of left me hanging"

She scoffed, "second? We didn't even have a first"

"Oh so, getting to second base in Lydia Martin's bathroom doesn't count huh?"

She was about to shoot him down but before she could she heard Stiles scoff, showing his annoyance at Brian's interference in their original conversation.

"Something to say Stilinski?!"

"Nothing your ego would like" Stiles striked back, his sharp toungue making her smile to herself a little.

Brian's jaw clenched a little, clearly annoyed at Stiles' words but he held back whatever hurtful remark he was no doubt wanting to say, his eyes finding their way back to hers, completely cutting Stiles out of the conversation.

"So?" Brian grinned, "what do you say?"

"No" she replied bluntly, not bothering beating around the bush much to Stiles' amusement as he sniggered but she shot him a glare, still annoyed about earlier and he soon shut up, "now if you'll excuse me, I have much more interesting places to be"

She went to step around him but he side stepped back in front of her, a charming smile plastered across his face.

"What's the point in playing hard to get Hale? Let's just save ourselves some time and admit you want to see what else I have to offer"

She scoffed at his remark, tilting her chin up defiantly.

"Oh please, the only thing you could offer me is a plate of disappointment with a side of chlamydia" she stated with an eyeroll, using his surprise at her jab to brush past him, "now leave me alone"

She left the two boys gaping after her, one enamoured by her sharp wit and the other's ego deflating by the second but fuelled by the challenge. The chase. Knowing the prize would be worth it.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

She thought - or rather, hoped - that after Jackson's injury on the field just a few hours prior, that Lydia would have forgotten about the 'shopping spree' she had planned with her and Allison.

No such luck.

Lydia tracked her down to her car before she could escape, demanding to know why she was leaving when they 'had plans'. Kayla pointed out that, well, Jackson was injured and she just assumed Lydia would want to spend time with her in which Lydia responded with a scoff and a delicate wave of the hand that Jackson was "fine" and nothing would come between her and shopping.

Kayla had groaned at that, wishing Jackson got injured just a little bit harder but didn't put up much of a fight as Lydia dragged her to her own car, a Volkswagen Beetle, that Allison already sitting in the back.

"See you've been kidnapped too" she greeted Allison, clambering into the front seat and trying not to bang her head off the low frame.

"I was promised donuts" Allison smiled, holding her bag on her lap as Lydia just pursed her lips at both of them.

"Well, I want donuts too" Kayla said, pointing an accusatory finger at Lydia as she started up the car, "with chocolate sprinkles"

"A moment on the lips, forever on the hips" Lydia sing songed as she pulled out from the parking lot.

"Worth it though"

"So what exactly are we shopping for?" Allison asked, "and I didn't think Beacon Hills would be big enough for a mall"

Lydia shrugged, "it's not exactly the 'mall of America' but it has a Macy's and Macy's have the best clothes"

"Didn't the other one close down?" Kayla mused, "I remember it had the best Chuck E Cheese"

"Chuck E Cheese?" Lydia snorted, "out of everywhere, you favour Chuck E Cheese?"

"I was here every summer until I was ten" Kayla shrugged, "the arcade there passed many, many hours of boredom"

Lydia 'ahhh'd' in realisation, "that's right. Sometimes I forget you're a Hale"

"How could you forget?" Kayla laughed, "I thought you did your research on us" turning around to share an amused look with Allison.

"Oh, I did" Lydia vowed, tapping her manicured and polished nails along the steering wheel, "but my research didn't include your favourite spot being Chuck E Cheese"

"Well, it's obviously not now" she laughed, "I prefer somewhere that serves something a bit stronger"

"That's my girl" Lydia grinned, "so, I've decided that you two need a new wardrobe if you're to be seen with me, hence, this little shopping spree"

"Oh, uh, I don't think my allowance will stretch that far" Allison laughed a little uncomfortably from the back seat, glancing out the windows as Lydia drove.

"That's why it's my treat silly" Lydia said as she pulled down her visor and pointed to the row of credit cards lodged into the holder, "I don't have an allowance"

"Is that a platinum American Express?" Kayla chuckled, reaching past Lydia to grab the silver card and turn it over in her hand, "there's no way your credit is that good"

Lydia shrugged with a smile on her face, "cards don't lie"

Kayla snorted, "apparently not" but whilst Lydia was smiling proudly, Kayla reached into her own bag and pulled her own platinum express card.

"Huh" Lydia murmured, a surprised but appreciative look on her face, "I knew there was a reason I liked you"

She laughed in response, handing Lydia back her card, "ah yes, because silver is totally my colour"

"With your skin tone, nearly everything goes" Lydia smirked, "let me gues... Mexican descent right?"

"Yeah" Kayla said in surprise, not expecting Lydia to catch on, "my mom's grandparents were from Mexico. That's about all I know about them. How did you-"

"Know?" Lydia asked, "I just know these things"

Kayla shared a raised eyebrow look with Allison in the rear view mirror.

"Creepy" Kayla remarked, "anyways, I don't think I need a new wardrobe"

"And that is exactly why you do" Lydia chirped, "you aren't in Louisiana anymore hun. It's time you adapt to our ways"

She glanced down at her - what she assumed - was a normal outfit and then looked sideways at Lydia.

"Louisiana is still in America, you know that right? It's not like I'm dancing around in clogs or wearing tartan"

"Might as well be" Lydia grumbled, "and you Allison, I had such high hopes for you but it's beginning to dwindle" she offered to Allison who tried to resist smiling, "you both need my help - and fast"

It was incredibly pointless to argue with Lydia, they both knew that, so just went along with it and Kayla was kind of glad to be somewhere that wasn't her house right now. Spending too much time with her mom always ended in disaster.

They parked and took the escalater up to the top floor where Lydia headed straight to Macy's.

"Why do I feel like she's going to kit us out in flowery dresses and six inch heels?"

Allison laughed, keeping close to Kayla as they followed a few steps behind Lydia.

"And chunky belts"

Allison laughed, "and don't forget the accessories"

"Gun, mouth, now"

Lydia handed each of them a basket but not before wiping the handles down with alcohol wipes.

"What?" Lydia defended herself, "you never know who has touched these"

Kayla decided to stick with Allison, walking close to the brunette as they skimmed the clothes whilst Lydia had the time of her life, picking out clothes, holding it up to their bodies and then deciding if it was worthy of being placed in the basket or back on the rail.

"You know, you should come around for dinner one night" Allison offered, "my parents have been bugging me to meet my friends"

"Oh, the uh... the infamous parents" Kayla said with a dry chuckle, "they want to meet us?"

"Sure" Allison said innocently, her hand dragging along the vibrant clothes hanging on the rails, "they um, like to know who I'm hanging out with"

'Ironic' Kayla thought to herself, 'if only they knew'.

"Will they run a background check on me?" Kayla joked, but knew as soon as the Argents found out she was a Hale, all hell would break loose.

"Potentially" Allison laughed playfully, "would they find anything interesting?"

"Probably a lot of speeding tickets and a couple of warrants"

Allison lost her smile, sending Kayla a surprised look.

"It's all good though" Kayla dismissed, "it got wiped from my record"

Allison chuckled, like she thought Kayla was just playing some kind of trick on her but when Kayla just stood there with a blank expression on her face did she finally believe her.

"Wait, really?"

"Why would I lie?" Kayla asked cluelessly, not really understanding why Allison was struggling with her statement.

"Uh... heh..."

"Don't worry, I'm not felon" Kayla reassured her, "I just had a bad year"

"... Right..."

"So, what do you think?" Lydia interrupted, holding up two outfits, one a leather skirt with a ruffled top and the other a caramel coloured check pinafore dress with a plain white top to go under it.

"Lovely" Kayla said blandly and Lydia just screwed her face up in return.

"This one for you-" handing the skirt and top to Allison, "-and for you" giving Kayla the pinafore dress and white top, "wear it to the game on Saturday" "

Do I have to?"

"Yes" Lydia said in response to Kayla's whine, "no arguments. This is what you're wearing, end of"

She shared a knowing look with Allison, both knowing they would not win against Lydia, no matter how hard they tried.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Over the next two days she managed to avoid Scott and Stiles but did keep an eye on them from a distance, just in case Scott's anger got a little out of control, but since that incident in the locker room there was nothing.

Yet early on Saturday morning she didn't expect to get woken up by an SOS call from Derek, saying he was about to be arrested because of "those two idiots"

Even without names she knew exactly who he was talking about.

Scott and Stiles.

It was ridiculously early, like sun just coming up early and she could barely see let alone think straight in her haste to tumble out of bed, grabbing an oversized hoody to throw over her white vest top and bed shorts as she raced to her car and skidded from the driveway.

She was furious. She told them - she warned them - to leave her cousin alone, that he had nothing to do with any murder but they just couldn't leave well enough alone could they? They just had to interfere, and for what? For a stupid game? Children.

She assumed that they had just found the other half of Laura's body. That Scott had sniffed it out. They probably went snooping at Derek's house - at their family house - and came across the grave.

She had told Derek a couple of days ago that burying Laura there wasn't a smart move, that it was basically inviting a pair of cuffs on him if anyone found her but he was adamant. Said it had to be here, where they grew up. That she deserved to be buried somewhere meaningful.

Guess he wished he took her advice now.

She sped up the dirt track leading to the burnt down ruins to see a couple of police cars and, lo and behold, a familiar baby blue jeep.

Keep your anger in check, keep your anger in check, keep your anger in check she chanted to herself, slamming to a stop just several feet away from the jeep, skidding across the leaf covered ground grabbing Scott's attention who was leaning against the jeep and Stiles who was nervously hovering near the police car which she assumed had Derek locked up inside.

Both boys suddenly looked incredibly guilty, sharing a nervous look with each other as she glared at them, climbing out from her car and slamming the door hard enough to make the windows shake.

"You better not have done what I think you've done" she said harshly, stomping up to them and then realising there was two police officers inside a taped off area, taking samples from the unearthed ground.

"Kayla uh-" Scott said hesitantly, "-hi, w-what are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" she asked incredulously, "on my family's land?" she added, "I think the better question is what the hell are you doing here"

Scott was lost for words, looking helplessly at Stiles as his friend came over, equally terrified and voiceless.

"Well?" she demanded, "don't go mute now. You clearly had a lot to say to the police"

"Right. That. Uh-" Stiles chuckled uncomfortably, bouncing from the balls of his feet to the tips of his toes as he glanced around nervously, "-we uh, well we found-"

"I know what you found" she snapped, not impressed with their faux innocence, "and the first thing you do is call the cops huh? Ever think there was maybe a good reason for it?"

Stiles opened his mouth, no doubt about to defend himself but then noticed her attire - or rather, lack of - and flared up a bright red.

"What?" she barked in response to his sudden quietness, dropping her arms to her side and quirking a brow, "if you have something to say then just say it"

"Oh, um... uh... it's just... you uh... you're..." he stumbled, suddenly clenching his fist and biting down hard on it as he groaned under his breath.

"Well?"

He dropped his hand which now had very visible teeth indents in the delicate skin, hyper focusing on anything but her neck downwards.

"It's just uh... you... you're sort of... not... exactly... dressed..."

She frowned at that unusual statement, glancing down at her bare legs in her bed shorts and her very thin vest top with the hoody thrown carelessly over her shoulders.

"I'm dressed" she said, "just very minimally. That's what happens when you get a phone call saying your cousin is getting arrested at dawn"

"Right. Um... well... that's just... good. Great. I mean, aren't you cold?" he chuckled, but was clearly uncomfortable.

"A little, judging by how hard my nipples are" she said nonchantedly, ignoring how both boys suddenly began coughing, "why do you care?"

"N-No reason" Stiles stuttered, "uh... Um..."

"Derek didn't kill that girl" she said, changing the subject, "just because he buried her it didn't mean he killed her"

"Well who was she?" Scott asked, stepping up to her, "she was a werewolf right?"

Kayla sighed, "yeah, she was. A werewolf he didn't kill" she emphasised, "and now you've gone and got him arrested. This is not gonna end well for you. Either of you"

Scott shared a worried look with Stiles before facing Kayla once more.

"We did the right thing" Scott said, "we believe he killed her and now the police do too"

"Not for long" she stated, "and you're fast making more enemies than friends right now and, trust me, you need all the friends you can get" she added, "so until you come to your god damn senses count me out"

She went to turn away but Stiles leapt forward in front of her, stopping her from getting into her car.

"Wait-wait-wait, we could really use your help" he said, his eyes darting up and down, really trying to focus on anything but her lack of clothes like that night of Lydia's party but failing miserably.

"Well you should've thought about that before you got my cousin arrested for murder" she said bluntly, "now are you going to move, or are you going to keep staring at my nipples?"

His jaw slackened, a rush of blood darkening his neck and cheeks and whilst he was too stunned to speak she pushed him out the way and climbed into her car, pushing the button to wind her window down.

"And FYI-" she added, "-when you both come to your senses, maybe then I'll help. Until then, you're on your own"

A/N) yay another chapter, taking a little longer but that's just because this is all new content :) be regularly updating again real soon. So please please review and let me know what you think :) see you soon xxx

Chapter Text

Apparently, this lacrosse game was a big deal.

She didn't really know why, team sports weren't really her thing, but for the entirety of Saturday that was all that was all over her facebook page, including multiple texts from people requesting her presence.

Honestly, it was the last thing on her mind right now, especially considering Derek was still in jail but she threw on the outfit Lydia picked out for her, the camel coloured checked pinafore dress with the white rounded long sleeve top and matched it with a pair of brown ankle boots, throwing on a black leather jacket to protect from the chilly night air and left her house.

Luckily her mom wasn't about as she was pulling extra hours at work so she didn't get the third degree when she left earlier than planned to head down to the station, hoping that maybe she would get a chance to speak with Derek before the game.

She pulled up and parked outside the small station, following a couple of deputies in through the front door and stepped up to the front desk where a female officer was typing on a computer, glancing up when Kayla tapped her fingers impatiently along the worktop.

"Can I help you?"

"Yeah, I'm here to see Derek Hale" she said, ignoring the woman's surprised expression, "can I do that?"

"Oh, uh… I don't think so" the woman replied, "he's being questioned"

"Well, can I post his bail. Do you take amex?"

The woman was clearly baffled, the crease deepening between her brows as she watched Kayla pull the silver card from her purse and try to hand it to her.

"He doesn't have a bail set. Like I said, he's just being questioned" she reiterated, pushing the card away with her finger, "are you family?"

"Yeah" she sighed in annoyance, carelessly shoving the card back in her purse, "I'm his cousin"

"Oh"

Kayla had heard that enough times since returning to Beacon Hills. The surprise and shock of learning of yet another Hale, one that hadn't been brutally encased in fire, was enough to make people not only untrusting but a little unsure too.

Humans, despite not knowing about the supernatural world, were inclined to feel a little wary around a Hale. No human could pinpoint why, but that feeling never really did go away. Not properly.

"The sheriff might want to talk to you" the woman said, "stay here. I'll be right back"

Kayla rolled her eyes to herself, leaning back against the front desk as she watched some deputies come and go.

She wanted to try and be better, to make a difference and help others and she thought she was doing that. She thought that by actually starting to make an effort here and help out with the supernatural stuff she could make up for some of the shit she had done. She began to make friends only for two of those people to turn around and get her cousin arrested for murder.

To say she was pissed would be a severe understatement.

"Miss Hale?"

She turned at the weathered voice, seeing a man standing there in the sheriffs uniform, his face pinched with lines and creases no doubt from years of working in law enforcement, hair peppered with strands of grey. Despite this he seemed kind, his eyes soft but inquisitive.

"Yeah, uh, sheriff..."

"Sheriff Stilinski" he confirmed, reaching out a hand for her to shake which she did so a little hesitantly, latching onto his last name, "can we have a word?"

"Sure" she nodded, following him through the door and into the bullpen, "Stilinski. Your son is Stiles"

The older man groaned, "yes, he's my son" as if admitting that was making him age even more, "you know him?"

"Unfortunately" she mumbled under her breath, stepping into his office as he shut the door behind them, "he uh... makes a lasting impression"

The sheriff scrubbed a hand down his tired face, no doubt used to getting told that and a lot worse when it came to his hyperactive, troublemaker son and waved a hand out towards the seat next to his desk.

She sat down opposite him, trying to keep the annoyed expression off her face as he shuffled about a couple of folders.

"Derek didn't do this" she declared, "I know it looks like it but he didn't"

"No one's accusing him of anything, we're just asking a couple questions" the sheriff reassured, "but it doesn't look good, you understand that don't you? Having half a dead body buried on your property is... condemning... to say the least"

"If Derek did kill someone, he'd know better than to bury her in his backyard" she replied very matter of factly, "there's much better ways to dispose of a body"

The sheriff quirked a brow at her, taken a back by her lack of tact and questionable social skills, seeing many similarities between this young girl and the man he had in lock up.

"And how would you dispose of a dead body?"

She smirked, "acid. Or a pig farm. But obviously I'd pull out the teeth first. Can't have those pesky dental records ruining the fun"

"... Right"

"You asked"

"Wish I didnt" he mumbled under his breath, opening another folder and pulling out a photo and sliding it across the desk to her.

"Do you recognise this girl?" he asked, tapping the photo a couple of times to draw her attention down to it, "we're running photo recognition and dental records but it's taking longer than anticipated"

She glanced down nervously, trying to not let any emotion waver her expression as she saw a picture of Laura's face, dead but peaceful, clean and dignified to what she was expecting.

She had two options here.Either she lie to the sheriff's face about Laura, pretend she didn't know her which she knew would come back to bite her in the ass because - eventually - he would find out about their familial ties and she would probably end up being a suspect next.

Or... she tell the truth. She explain who she is and why Derek couldn't have done what they suspected him of.

She knew it had to be the latter.She sighed, tearing her eyes away from Laura's still face and met the sheriff's curious soft stare, using the pad of her finger to push the picture back.

"Her name is Laura" she said, "Laura Hale. My cousin and... and Derek's sister"

Sheriff Stilinski allowed a moment to let his alarm at that simple sentence morph his features into surprise, his forehead creasing with confusion and something close to astonishment.

"This girl is Laura Hale?"

"Yeah" she mumbled, "so why on earth would Derek murder his own sister? You've got no proof, no witnesses, just half a body buried on Hale property"

The sheriff frowned, "you don't look too taken aback by this discovery?"

"I'm a Hale" she said matter of factly, trying not to act too cold and distant, "in case you weren't aware, we tend to get murdered an awful lot. At this point, it's to be expected"

"You didn't know about her murder?"

"Do I need a lawyer?" she retaliated coolly, "because this is beginning to border on suspicious questioning and I'm a minor"

The sheriff sighed heavily, "of course not. I uh... I'm sorry for your loss"

"Yeah... me too"

The sheriff looked away awkwardly, taking back the photograph of her dead cousin and placing it back inside a file which he stored away in one of his drawers.

"I'll speak to Derek again but uh... I think we can let him go for the moment. Give me some time to process his paperwork and then you can take him home. No bail money needed" he added with a small smile, standing up and stretching an arm out, indicating for her to do the same.

She accepted his offer, softening a little at his calm and sympathetic nature. He was different, this sheriff. Most other police officers she had come across in her days could be brutal, overpowered and a little dickish but not this one.

Not Sheriff Stilinski.

She stood up, meeting his tired stare and felt a little sympathy for this man. This man who, she knew, was way out of his depth. Anything supernatural that happened here he was automatically at a disadvantage to.

She wondered if, and when, Stiles would open his dad's eyes to all the things that go bump in the night.

"I'll wait in the car" she said, "can you tell Derek I'm there?"

"Sure thing"

He walked her out to the front door, guiding her with one arm as he opened the door for her but before she could walk out, he gently tapped her shoulder, drawing her attention back to him.

"Yeah sheriff?"

"My son... Stiles..."

She inhaled a sharp breath at the sound of that name, resisting the urge to clench up from the frustration she felt at the human boy that, somehow, got under her skin and on her god damn nerves.

"... He's a pain in the ass, but he means well" the sheriff continued, "maybe you can find it in your heart to forgive him for this?"

That was a big ask, one she hadn't even considered yet, not until Derek was out of there and off their radar, her protective instinct for defending her family coming out full force.

"If he plays his cards right" she smirked, "then I'll consider it"

The sheriff smiled kindly, "you remind me of your aunt. Talia" he said, "I didn't know her well, but you have the same... energy. I hope you don't mind me saying"

"... Thank you" she whispered, "but uh... I'm not that special. I'll be by my car"

She left the sheriff standing by the door, watching her as she walked away and sat waiting in her car.

She wondered to what extent the sheriff knew her deceased aunt. Talia had been big into helping build the community, maybe that was how. Maybe they had attended the same town meetings. Maybe she worked with the police on unsolved cases, using her supernatural expertise to close cases as best she knew how. Kayla wasn't sure, but it was moments like this that Kayla fully appreciated just how much of a loss her aunt was.

Not just to their family, but the supernatural and human community alike.

The Monarch of fairness and balance.

She sighed to herself, relaxing back into her seat as she watched the entrance for Derek and sometime shy of thirty minutes later did he appear looking incredibly and utterly pissed off.

He spotted her sitting there, making a beeline towards her across the parking lot as she leaned over and opened the door for him as he jumped in, slamming the door shut forcefully.

"I'm going to kill them" Derek fumed, nearly vibrating with the intense rage he was feeling, "I'm going to rip their heads off"

"Maybe not the best idea" she smirked, "because then you might actually end up back in there-" nodding to the police station, "-and for a lot longer than a day"

Derek huffed out an annoyed breath, sulking in the seat as he glared out the windscreen.

"What the hell were they thinking?"

"That you're a tad creepy" Kayla shrugged, "maybe ease off that huh?"

"You're defending them?"

"Hey" she snapped, "I got you out of there, alright? And I'm pissed at them too"

Derek took a calming breath, noticing the sun already beginning to set.

"Scott's playing in the game tonight, isn't he?"

"Yup" she rolled her eyes, "teenage idiocy. I tried to persuade him otherwise but he's stubborn"

"It's too late now" Derek murmured, "keep an eye on him. I'll be there too"

"Alright" she agreed, starting up the engine, "I'm heading there now, you may as well catch a ride with-"

She turned to look at Derek but instead just came face to face with an empty seat, the passenger side door left wide open.

"-me" she finished her sentence, rolling her eyes at her cousins disappearing act and leaned across to peer out the open door, seeing no sight of him.

Gritting her teeth, she grabbed the door handle and shouted "you could've at least shut the door. Rude"

By the time she turned up to the game the night had closed in, the sky was black and the pitch was lit up with fluorescent lights. All the players were lining the field, the bleachers were full and the shouts of screams of excited fans were already getting on her frigging nerves.

Yeah, team sports were really not her thing at all.

Damn Scott and his little human friend for making her turn up here.

She blended into the last of the crowd trying to find a seat, looking around for the two culprits that she really wanted to scream at but before she could she heard an excited shriek of her name and looked to the left to see Lydia waving her hands at her, beckoning her forward.

She ignored her, only giving her new found friend a small incline of her head to show she heard her before glancing around again, trying to pinpoint Scott and Stiles from the crowd.

"Kayla" Lydia's yell was more prominent this time, demanding her attention, "we saved you a seat"

Right. Blend in.

She resisted an eye roll, pushing her way past the mass of strangers to climb the bleachers and perch next to Lydia who gave her a complimentary look, eyeing up her outfit.

"You listened to me"

"Didn't really have a choice, did I?"

Lydia grinned in response, "I'm so glad you're realising that now"

She bit back a smile, leaning around to say hi to Allison before catching sight of the man next to her in khaki slacks and a black pea coat with the collar sticking up.

She knew straight away, without any form of introduction, that this was an Argent.Call it a gut feeling, intuition, whatever... but just one look at the man made her feel sick.

Was he apart of the brutal murder of her family?

She knew they all denied it but she wasn't so sure.It was one of them... it had to be.

He caught her staring and looked up, smiling widely as he looked between her and Allison.

"Are you one of Allison's friends?"

He sounded kind, nice, charming even... but she knew it was all a facade. Once he learnt her name, he wouldn't be all that nice anymore.

"Yeah, this is Kayla" Allison raised her voice above the cheering, "Kayla this is my dad"

"Chris" he extended his hand towards her, reaching across Allison and Lydia, still smiling, "pleasure to finally meet you"

Could she keep it together sitting just a few feet away from one of the most notorious hunting families of the last few centuries? Could she smile and play nice despite knowing just how many werewolves he had slaughtered in cold blood?

She supposed it was a price she had to pay for hanging out with Allison.

Allison may be innocent to all this, but her family weren't. She knew that before she ever instigated a friendship with her and this, right now, was her price for that.

Without so much as breaking facade from the innocent teenage girl she had got used to playing around authority figures, she lifted her hand and placed it in his, not meaning to grip it so firmly and shake but, despite how good of an actress she was, she couldn't shake the bitterness that seized her body at the feel of his bare hand around hers.

Hands that, underneath the weathered wrinkles and rough skin, were stained red with the blood of many innocents.

"Firm grip" Chris observed, glancing down and seeing his skin turn slightly white, a flare of suspicion swelling in his pale blue irises.

"I weightlift"

"Oh"

He slowly let go of her hand, his eyes settling on her longer than she liked as he tried for a pleasant smile.

"What did you say your last name was?"

She shrugged nonchalantly, "I didn't", before turning towards the game just as the coach blew the whistle and the players all rushed onto the field.

His eyes were still fixated on her for several seconds after, but Allison soon grabbed his attention and he focused on his daughter who began explaining the rules of lacrosse to him.

"He's kinda hot right?" Lydia giggled, leaning across to whisper in her ear, "I mean, for a dad and all"

"Are you referring to Allison's dad as a DILF?"

Lydia pursed her lips knowingly, "bet he has experience"

"Yeah" Kayla mumbled under her breath, "in tying people up and cutting them in half"

"What was that?"

"Nothing" Kayla dismissed with a sickly sweet smile, "and no, I don't think he's hot. Well... that hot anyway"

"Poor taste. Poor, poor taste" Lydia tutted, "I'm disappointed"

"You're speaking about taste when you're dating Jackson? Really?" Kayla scoffed, biting back a laugh, "ironic"

Lydia allowed herself a moment of shock at Kayla's clap back before steeling her expression, her lips upturning into an amused smirk.

"I knew there was a reason I liked you" Lydia declared, obviously pleased with her shiny spine, "but, just FYI-" her smirk pulled wider in a grin, her beautiful green eyes dazzling with mischief, "-he's a beast in the bedroom"

"If you say so"

Kayla rolled her eyes playfully as Lydia focused on the game about to start and she resolved herself to sitting here, freezing her ass off for the next hour when she could be doing something way more exciting with her free time.

She felt the hairs on the back of her neck begin to stand on end, as if someone was watching her intensely. She frowned to herself, glancing along the pitch until finally she met Stiles' gaze from a hundred feet away.

At first she thought he was staring at Lydia because, duh, wasn't he head over heels in love with her? But as soon as their stares clashed he tried for an apologetic smile, holding out an imaginary olive branch.

She supposed he found out about Derek getting out of jail and wanted to make amends.

Hm. Little late for that, she thought. A betrayal of trust like that wasn't easy to get over. Especially when it came to Hales.m

She narrowed her eyes a little, watching from a distance as he gulped from fear, wisely choosing to pick his battle and drop the matter for now, lowering his gaze.

She knew she shouldn't be mad but she had really tried with them. She tried to give them advice, to be nice and helpful but they didn't listen. They turned on her cousin and in doing so, their stubbornness and eagerness for approval could result in death for any poor sucker on this field tonight.

She understood they were new to this but, by god, were they just a little infuriating.

She pushed those thoughts from her head, focusing on the game as it began and kept a close eye on Scott. He needed her complete and undivided attention in case anything happened.

Initially, it started off fine.

However as more minutes ticked by, Kayla realised the entire team weren't passing Scott the ball and it was beginning to piss him off - big time. She could tell just from his body language how agitated he was getting, even more so when Lydia made Allison help her with a sign in support of Jackson and didn't like the outcome if things kept going this way.

She excused herself from her friends, feeling Chris' suspicious gaze on her as she jumped down the bleachers and made her way towards the bench, slotting herself down next to Stiles who jumped at her sudden intrusion.

"Whoa. Uh... hey" he gasped, the glove he was biting dropped from his mouth as he stared at her in surprise, "so, um... about that thing this morning-"

"Which one?" she quirked a brow, "getting my cousin arrested for murder or staring at my nipples?"

His jaw dropped, completely taken aback by her blunt nature and stuttered over words that never came.

"Well? Which one is it?"

"Um... uh... well, now you mention it..." he grimaced, "both?"

She rolled her eyes, pointing to Scott out on the field.

"I really thought I got it through to the two of you how dangerous a new, untrained werewolf could be but maybe I wasn't being blunt enough. So here"

She lifted the bottom of her dress up over her hip, showing him the bare skin of her very upper thigh and hip covered by the thin lace band of her underwear, pointing to four delicate white scars that stood out against her bronzed skin.

"See these?" she said firmly, ignoring his gobsmacked expression as he eyed her bare skin in the most vulnerable of places, gulping loudly at the sight of her curves, "this was from my brother. A born werewolf" she emphasised, "even though he had genetics on his side, he still struggled on the full moon. I got lucky and scars heal. But not everyone is that lucky. It could've been my throat"

Stiles gulped, unable to tear his eyes away from her skin and the thin white lines torn along and across the curve of her hip, branching upwards before fading into her waist line and he almost reached out to touch them, wanting to trace his fingers along the raised skin but she made an indignant sound and pulled her dress back down, snapping him from his staring.

"Oh, uh... sorry, I just-"

"Scott could do that and a whole lot worse" she continued, pretending he didn't speak, "a stupid lacrosse game is not worth someone's life. Being a werewolf isn't always this amazing thing... it's dangerous and comes with a whole new level of responsibility. I thought I got that into your heads but clearly not"

"I'm... I'm really sorry" Stiles apologised quietly, completely disconnecting from the game of lacrosse going on in the background, "I... I just-"

"And now you've both made an enemy of Derek" she shrugged, "that wasn't smart. I know you don't trust him but he is on your side. And... at the very least..." she added, "I thought you both might've trusted me"

Stiles frowned, his eyes darting from side to side as he analysed her expression, remorse and guilt flooding his features.

"We didnt know that girl was Derek's sister" Stiles said, "why didn't you tell us?"

She shrugged, "trust goes both ways"

Stiles sighed, allowing his gaze to move back towards the field as Scott, yet again, didn't get passed the ball.

"If he keeps getting angry-"

"-then he could turn at any time" Kayla finished his sentence, "and guess what?" she asked, pointing to the bleachers where Lydia, Allison and Chris Argent were sitting, "Allison's dad is here. Y'know... the werewolf hunter"

"Oh shit"

"Yeah" she agreed blatantly, "oh shit indeed"

She chose to continue sitting next to Stiles in silence as they watched the game continue until Scott finally got the ball and dodged every player rushing towards him and managed to Score an impeccable goal.

Everyone screamed and leapt up, even Stiles, as the scoreboard changed to 'home: 4 away: 5', the entire school realising all was not lost.

"Oh great" she muttered to herself, standing up and shaking her head to herself. Was it good he controlled it thus far? Yes. But would this give him an even bigger ego trip and confidence? Most likely.

She left Stiles to his cheering, moving away from the bench and blending in to the sidelines as she continued to watch closely, but not knowing what she was going to do it if it went tits up.

It was down to the final 39 seconds... the whistle was blown as the final stretch of the game begun but she noticed something different about Scott. Something more animalistic in his behaviour as he stopped on the field, the prescious seconds beginning to tick down.

She panicked, glancing around desperately to see if Derek was close by in case the worst happened but he must've been hiding well as she caught no sight of him and felt truly alone.

If that Argent saw... Scott was dead. No doubt about it.

Luckily, Scott seemed to pull through at the final second as he pitched his stick forward and the ball went soaring through the air and straight into the net at such a speed no one had time to process it.

The buzzer sounded just after and everyone on the field erupted into screams and shouts of glee except her.

She didn't care who won, only that no one died.

She didn't even realise she was holding her breath until she went a little dizzy, finally exhaling all that pent up energy and anxiety as she glanced around trying to find Scott but no such luck.

Oh well. He made it through the game, she didn't care what or where he went afterwards to cool down.

"See?" Stiles appeared next to her, almost careening into the side of her body in his typical clumsy nature, "he did it"

"This time" she sighed, "congratulating him right now is like saying well done to a drunk driver for not crashing"

"Just trying to look on the positive side"

"Well don't" she said, "or actually, forget I said that. You never take my advice"

"Hey, wait wait wait" Stiles rushed out, hurrying to step in front of her before she could take off, "I'm sorry about before, I really am. We both are. We made a massive mistake and... and I'm sorry"

She folded her arms across her chest, trying to resist a smile.

"Is Stiles Stilinski actually apologising?"

He rolled his eyes but didn't hold back a smile, "yeah yeah, doesn't happen too often so lap it up"

"Damn, should've recorded it then"

He grinned at her, his eyes dancing with amusement as he assumed he was out of the clear now from her anger but soon became somber, the smile dropping from his face.

"I'm sorry about your cousin... Laura, was it?" he asked hesitantly, "do you know what happened?"

"We have some ideas" she said briefly, not wanting to dive into the details of losing yet another loved one, "and when we do... we'll deal with it our own way"

"And that way is..."

She smirked, "let's just say it doesn't involve law enforcement"

Stiles gulped, clearly a little on edge from her tone but still intrigued, for some reason not wanting to end the conversation there.

"You're kinda terrifying, has anyone ever told you that?"

"All the time"

"Yikes" Stiles laughed a little uncomfortably, "definitely not getting on your bad side again"

"Probably for the best"

He chuckled to himself, turning a little sheepish.

"So uh... friends?" he asked hesitantly, half shrugging as he quirked a brow at her.

"... Yeah... sure" she replied, "but uh... what I showed you. Y'know... the scars-"

He gulped, flushing slightly as he remembered her bare skin and tried to not fixate on that.

"-keep that between us. Please" she added, "it's not something I like to explain"

"Uh... s-sure. Sure thing" he promised, "t-totally forgotten about"

She snickered to herself, "I'm sure it's not. But hey-" she winked as she walked away, "-just another part of my body you've seen"

Yet again, for the millionth time, he was left speechless by her as she turned and walked away through the crowd, his eyes lingering on her until the crowd ate her up and she disappeared from sight.

She was prepared to head home, to settle in for the night and escape the celebrations of lacrosse but, before she could, she accidentally bumped into someone as she squeezed through the crowd.

"I'm sorry" Chris Argent apologised, reaching out to help stabilise her, "that was my fault. I forget how boisterous high school sports can get"

She immediately stiffened in his company, a surge of hatred flooding her veins at the sight of him and pulled away from his grasp.

"I'm sorry, I don't know where Allison is if that's who you're looking for" she said, her voice stern.

He frowned a little, inspecting her closely as she looked away from his blue stare, knowing if she continued staring she would want to break his nose.

"You never did tell me what your last name was" Chris mumbled, "I wonder if there's a reason for that"

She bit the inside of her cheek, resisting the urge to wipe that smug smirk off his face as she finally tilted her head up to meet his stare.

"I think you know already"

Chris' eyes gleamed, putting all the pieces together.

"Hale"

"That's the one" she sing songed, her hands coming together in a slow clap, "you're getting rusty"

"And you're getting sloppy" he retaliated, "a Hale in Beacon Hills never ends well"

"Is that a threat?"

"Depends"

"Oh right" she scoffed, "your little code. Well... you can save your bullets. I'm not a werewolf"

"Maybe not" he looked at her, "but you're still a Hale"

"And you're an Argent" she replied, "you killed my family"

He shook his head, "that wasn't us"

"Maybe not" she repeated his own words against him with a sarcastic tone, "but it doesn't change anything. Just like how you can't go against your code so, if you don't mind-" she nodded past him to the parking lot, "-I'll be leaving now. Both halves attached"

He chuckled to himself as she brushed past him, clearly having to use all his self restraint to not retaliate.

"I'd still watch your back" he warned as she walked away, "Hales don't have a very long lifespan"

A/N) ahhh so sorry it took so long, just busy and unmotivated and bleh haha but I'm back yayyyy hope you all liked and please please review it means the world thank you :)

ALSO - tumblr is fanficanatic-tw come join me for fun stuff about the series, as well as edits videos etc, it's always fun to interact with you guys :) x

Chapter Text

She had to admit, following the game on Saturday night and her run in with a Chris Argent, she was a little wary to do much on Sunday in case the supposed 'code' they were meant to follow was non existent.

She wouldn't be surprised. Anyone that could ruthlessly kill another, simply fuelled by their hatred for the supernatural, was someone without morals. For all she knew, they would set her house alight when her and her mom slept.

She spent the Sunday keeping a low profile, finishing unpacking and sorting her room and throwing a lick of paint on the bland walls, a gentle shade of sage green, reminding her of the soothing feel of the forest.

When waiting for the paint to dry she changed her bed, hung up some clothes and gave the place a quick tidy. It wasn't anything special, just a large space completely void of any attachment but she wanted it to look as close to her room back home as possible, trying to find a way to make this transition more bearable.

So come midday, she changed into some denim shorts and a deep blue halter neck vest and took herself down to the local Walmart and picked up some oak rustic shelving with matching drawers, computer desk and a bedside table, throwing in her cart a few cactai plants - the only thing she could keep alive - and some translauscnet white net curtains instead of the heavy, old fashioned ones her mom had picked out. On the way to the checkout she noticed a cute little deep green velvet ottoman and put that on top of her cart too, throwing in some fairy lights and an unusual glowing moon light, finding the irony hilarious as she popped that in the cart too.

She stuck the 800 total on her credit card, shoving everything in her car but unfortunately it didn't all fit because, as usual, she went a tad overboard so knew she would have to call someone.

Her mom? Definitely not. That would involve her asking for a favour which her mom would no doubt turn down.

Derek... well, she wasn't even sure if Derek still had a phone, let alone knew how to use one correctly. She should probably teach him.

She could try Allison, but after her talk with Chris yesterday, she was hesitant to involve Allison in anything in case it came back to bite her in the ass.

She texted Lydia but she was out with Jackson and, clearly, not much else was going to fit in that shitty Porsche.

She was still a little annoyed and Scott and Stiles, at their obtuse behaviour that landed Derek in jail and their inability to see the dangers in being a werewolf.

There was a couple others she could call, people she knew from Lydia's circle of followers, but honestly? She didn't really care for them.

So that just left... Brian.

She groaned to herself, hating that he - out of all people - was her last resort. Scott, and even Stiles, seemed like a more appealing option in that moment of time.

She sucked up her pride, clicking on his contact and letting the phone ring and, within a couple seconds, it clicked to life.

"Kayla" Brian greeted cheerfully, an air of cockiness about him, "for what do I owe the pleasure?"

She resisted rolling her eyes, wishing that instead she had called Stiles. At least Stiles, although sometimes annoying, was bearable.

"You know what? Forget it" she snorted, just about to hang up the phone but the rev of an engine just behind her and she jumped, turning around to see - to her shock - Brian's car pull up next to her - honking obnoxiously as a form of greeting, leaning across the seats and grinning at her through the open window, his eyes glinting with mischief as he winked at her over the rim of his sunglasses.

"What?!" she exclaimed, pulling the phone away from her ear and bending down to look at him in aggravated surprise, "how did you know I was here? Are you following me?"

He revved the engine once one before shutting it off, taking off his sunglasses and folding them shut along the rim of his tee.

"Tempting, but no" he chortled, effortlessly slipping from the front seat to grin at her as he stood, "Lydia called, said you needed help"

"That little bitch" she screeched, quickly shaking her head at him as he rounded the car to approach her, "nuh uh... don't think you can just swoop in out of no where and try and charm me. I don't need help"

"Isn't that why you called?"

She bit her tongue, holding back the spew of insults as he smirked at her.

"I changed my mind" she shrugged and she avoided looking at the outline of his firm, prominent muscles flexing in the tight white tee he was wearing, telling herself not to go there - he was a dick, and she had had enough of dicks to last a lifetime.

"Well I'm here now" he shrugged, glancing at the sight of her car full of flat packed furniture and the last remaining items spilling from the back seats, "and unless you want to waste gas doing two trips, I suggest you use me"

She quirked a brow at his flirty use of words, knowing he was just trying to get under her skin.

"Oh yeah?" she asked, playing along with whatever game he was amusing himself with, "in what way?"

"Any way you want angel"

"Oh" she smirked, tutting as she shook her head, "I'm no angel"

"That's what I was hoping for"

She shook her self, trying to clear her foggy brain that had been taken over by a rush of hormones affecting her normally good judgement. Nope. No. She was not going to get involved with him. He was selfish and cocky, arrogant and full of ego - the exact combination she had sworn off of. Boys like that were not worth it.

"Urgh... fine" she gave in, pointing a warning finger at him, "but that's it. You'll drop my shit off and leave. Not even your toes are getting past my front door, got it?"

Twenty minutes later, those words were kapoot.

He followed her home and parked behind her in the driveway, lifting the flat packed furniture from his car and, despite her half hearted objections, he insisted on helping her carry them up the stairs. At that, she had told him to fuck off. That she was perfectly capable of lifting some boxes up a flight of stairs but he had then said, "what's the point of throwing your back out for something as boring as that? That's my job"

She knew that, if she retaliated and kept up this back and forth bickering, it would end with them hooking up - again - because she had embarrassingly low standards when it came to boys and a severe inability to exhibit self control, her hormones completely out of control.

So she just sighed and let him inflate his ego even more by helping her take the stuff to her room, watching from the corner of her eye as he slyly looked around her space, clocking some fresh clothes folded on her bed and whistled in admiration as he picked up a black thong, spinning it around his finger.

"These are nice" he grinned, "kinda slutty though"

"Give me those" she reached forward, attempting to grab them from his grip but he just lifted his arm above his head, continuing to smirk at her.

"What if I want to keep them?"

"Why are you so unbelievably difficult?" she huffed, going on her tip toes to reach up but he towered over her, his hand completely out of reach.

"Why are you playing so hard to get?"

"I'm working on my standards" she retaliated, giving up trying to get her underwear back and rolled back to the balls of her feet, sending him an unamused glare.

"There's no fun in that" he purred, slyly pocketing her underwear in his jeans as he stepped forward, "and I can tell... you're a lot of fun"

"I am. Shame you're going to miss out"

"Oh come on, don't be like that" he drawled out, stepping into her personal space and tilting her head up, "you wanted me at the party... don't deny it"

"I'm a horny wreck" she declared, "not because of you, but because I'm a young woman who is confident and secure in her sexuality and knows what she wants. You ain't special"

He grinned, clearly happy he was succeeding at unravelling her.

"So let's get naked and have some fun" he suggested, "I promise, once I'm done with you, you'll be addicted"

"You don't take no for an answer, do you?"

"Not when the thrill of the chase leads to a prize this good" he replied, stepping back and stripping off his tee, kicking off his shoes and unbuttoning his jeans so they fell to the floor, leaning him standing there in a pair of tight Calvin Klein boxers that hugged his prominent bulge. She cocked a brow, giving him a steady once over and tried to subtly press her legs together, willing herself not to react but the pheromones went wild in her brain, all sense of reason and logic as well as morals disappearing into thin air.

Sex, to her, was completely natural. It was fun and normal and she never understood the embarrassment surrounding it. Maybe because her family had, in most ways, been sex positive (apart from her mom, she loved to shame her on it), or maybe because she lost her virginity young but it had never been a big deal to her. She had hooked up with lots of people, the drink and drugs fuelling that behaviour, but Aiden was the only one she had gone 'all the way with'.

She licked her lips, prying her eyes away from the bulge desperate to escape the confines of his boxers and raised her eyebrows at him in something close to wondering.

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" he grinned, giving his hips a little wiggle, "showing you what you're missing, of course. So is your bed okay or do you want to spice it up a little and take it elsewhere?"

She burst into laughter, mockingly slapping his chest.

"I'm not having sex with you"

"Your pupils dilating say otherwise"

She tried to remain cool and calm, forcing herself not to look at his deliciously toned body as she folded her arms across her chest, like a barrier between her and a very bad decision.

She scoffed, "for all I know, you've stuffed a sock - or ten - down there"

He ran his tongue over his lips, not even bothering to hide his smirk as he shamelessly tugged down his boxers so they pooled around his ankles, showing off all his goods.

She tried not to look, she really did, but temptation got the better of her and she stared long and hard at his long erection, enticed as to what exactly he could offer her.

... To be fair, it had been a while. Like, seven or eight months. She was surprised she had that level of control for so long, especially because she had a taste of what sex had to offer but the trauma of her past relationship and all the shit that went with it had put her off.

He was a dick, and definitely not her type outside of a simple hook up, but if he could hit the spot and stop her feeling so sexually frenzied, maybe it could work...

She was annoyed at herself for debating it, for even bothering to weigh up the pros and cons in her head, but before she could either step forward and accept his offer or throw him out, the sudden rattle of her door knob turning and her door opening made them both look sideways to see her mom walk through, stopping short at the sight of the naked teenager in the middle of her room.

"Thanks for knocking" Kayla remarked sarcastically, "I see you're really working on your boundaries"

"Kayla Hale" her mom sternly exclaimed, "what the hell do you think you're doing?! Who is this?!"

"No one important" she remarked, "in fact, he was just leaving"

Brian was cupping his groin but, realising her mom was kind of hot, started to give her bedroom eyes too. Sleezeball.

"He has ten seconds to get out the front door or I'll call the cops" her mom stated, pointing out towards the hallway and Brian, clearly sensing the tension, wisely (for once in his life) pulled back up his boxers and jeans, trying to remain smiling with ego but it was faltering at her mom's seedy stare.

"Right. Guess I'm leaving..."

He slipped away from Kayla and past her mom, dipping his head at her glare and a few seconds later they heard the front door open and close and the loud engine of his car start up.

Her mom's harsh and unforgiving stare found her way to her, judgement as tumultuous as ever shining in her steely gaze.

"What?" Kayla asked defensively, "you should've knocked"

"Who was that?"

"Someone from school" she replied uninterestedly.

"And why was he in your bedroom, naked?"

"Because he wants to fuck me - obviously" she rolled her eyes, "wasn't that blatantly clear?"

Her mom, as exasperated as ever with her behaviour, simply shook her head and Kayla could pretty much see the flashing neon sign above her head reading 'I wish I had an abortion'.

"You exhaust me Kayla" her mom sighed, "two weeks here and you're already getting a reputation"

"Maybe" she agreed, not having the energy to bother arguing with her mother on 'principles', "what did you barge into my room for anyway? I have furniture to build"

Her mom looked around her room, only just clocking onto the multiple boxes of flat pack furniture and the new look of her freshly painted room, that coldness slightly ebbing from her gaze as she seemed to approve of the idea of Kayla finally settling in and accepting life here in Beacon Hills.

"Just to say I won't be home this evening, myself and some others from work have a business meeting. I trust I can leave you alone here without any funny business?"

"You can say sex mother, it wont kill you - sadly"

The harshness of her mom's face seemed to tighten, their fragile and already strained relationship reaching new heights the longer they stayed in Beacon Hills.

"Just... stay out of trouble" her mom sighed, "I'm not having a repeat of last year and I certainly don't want you hanging out with those sorts of boys. Look at all the trouble you got into with the last one"

She knew her mom wasn't just meaning the police involvement or the drink and drugs, the careless reminder only fuelling Kayla's bitterness.

"Okay mom... whatever you say"

The tension was thick and suffocating, the room suddenly seeming ten times smalller so her mom just bowed her head and left and Kayla let out a frustrated groan, kicking one of the boxes and letting out a curse as she stubbed her toe.

It was times like these she wished her dad was still here... he was the complete opposite to her mom. Fun, relaxed and had a way of connecting with her like no one else. Except he wasn't coming back, she had long since accepted that, but still a part of her - the awful, most selfish part of her - wished that the universe had left her with her dad, not her mom.

Oh, how different things could've been.

She didn't get much sleep that night, tossing and turning as waves of grief and loss hit her, tormenting her through the night.

Sometimes she was okay and able to function.

Other times, like during this night, she wasn't.

Feeing the pain, the loneliness, the rush of overwhelming sorrow hitting her square in the gut was enough to render her useless.

Even now, fourteen months on, it still tore her apart. Constantly replaying it in her head over and over again, playing the same heartbreaking scenario out time and time again. Remembering, incredibly vividly, the desperate attempts to save her brother and dad. The foul stench of copper blood mixed with the floral, nutty scent of wolfsbane which still, to this day, was just as fresh in her memory as if it had just happened.

She didn't know if she would ever truly get past it. Be able to move forward with her life, not replaying the images of her dead family in her head like some sick horror show. That's why this past year happened. Why she went off the rails... because it helped her cope. It lessened her pain, even just slightly, to make it bearable. Or rather, numbed her to the intense, painful stabs of grief that - over time - would've killed her.

By the time 06.30 rolled around, she knew more sleep was futile so climbed out of bed and went for a steaming hot shower to wash away her torment.

She didn't hear her mom up so had assumed she left for work early so took her time in getting ready. She put her thick mass of hair into a messy side braid, leaving some strands out to frame her face and applied some foundation and bronzer, taking a bit extra time to perfect the flick of black liner on her top lid. When it came to clothes, she chose a simple short, white, pleated tennis skirt and a baggy green graphic sweater with a white shirt underneath so the collar sat nicely along her neck line. She finished the half arsed look with a pair of white air forces and grabbed her bag, heading to her car.

When she arrived at school there was an unusual buzz of activity that piqued her interest, catching mumblings of a murder and something to do with a bus.

She made her way around the school, pushing to the front of the crowd to see a school bus taped off, the back door completely ripped off it's hinges and splatters of bright red blood painted across the yellow metal.

Only one name entered her head: Scott.

She left the gossiping crowd, making her way into the school and quickly searched the corridors, searching for dumb and dumber to get some answers before Derek found out about this and lost his shit about 'exposure'.

It didn't take her long to see Stiles hovering by a set of lockers so she made a beeline to him, poking his side to get his attention.

"Ah-ow, wha-oh... hi"

"Did Scott do that?" she asked, not bothering beating around the bush as he gulped, his eyes giving her a slow once over in approval at her outfit choice, "where is he?"

"Did Scott do... what?" Stiles squeaked, clearly trying to play the oblivious card and failing - miserably - "I don't... I don't know what he could have done..."

"Do you think I'm stupid?" she asked, "I have two perfectly functioning eyes. I saw the bus"

"Oh... that" Stiles chuckled uncomfortably, awkwardly scratching the back of his neck, "yeah, someone went a little OTT with their ketchup on the hotdog huh?"

She sighed in frustration, his excuses truly and utterly scraping the bottom of barrel and he noticed how not in the mood she was and groaned, looking around before dipping his head towards her.

"Scott had a dream that he killed Allison on a bus. She's fine though" he quickly added at her mortified look, "see? He's talking to her" pointing down the corridor and down the several steps where Scott was helping Allison with her fallen books, "so he didn't do anything"

"But he dreamt about it? Specifically that bus?"

"It's just coincidence... right?"

"Yeah... unlikely" she frowned, "this is bad"

"I mean, maybe the person isn't dead" Stiles shrugged, "people can survive werewolf attacks, right?"

He was clearly referencing what she showed him at the game, the four claw marks scarred along her hip.

"Rarely" she replied with bluntly, "I need to tell Derek"

"Whoa... what?!" Stiles grabbed her arm, stopping her from moving away, "why? What if he kills Scott?"

"He's not gonna kill Scott" she said, quirking a brow down at his hand that was cupping her elbow and he wisely dropped it, "but, if it turns out it wasn't Scott for whatever reason, he needs to know. Unless you think your Laurel and Hardy double act with Scott can sort this mess?"

He opened his mouth, about to retaliate but was left gaping when he realised he couldn't think of anything to say.

"Exactly" she grinned, having one upped him again.

"Unless it was Derek" he pointed out, wincing at her annoyed expression.

"It wasn't Derek" she stated, "we've been over this"

"Or it could be Derek"

"You're like a broken record Stiles"

"Just pointing out the obvious. If it was a werewolf, Derek is the only other one we know around here-"

She scoffed, interrupting his theory.

"Oh please, this is Beacon frigging Hills... there's a lot more werewolves than Scott and Derek as well as everything else that goes bump in the night"

"Uh... what? What do you mean-"

"Nevermind, I gotta go" she interrupted as the first bell for class rung, "I've said too much"

He watched in flabbergasted wondering as she turned on her heel and walked away from him, pleated skirt swaying around the tops of her thighs and he just threw his arms out in exasperation.

"We're in the same class"

She smirked to herself, flipping him the bird and he just rolled his eyes, hiking his bag up his shoulder as he scrambled forwards to catch her up, shaking himself from staring at her long bare legs as he stumbled into her shoulder.

"Slow down" he puffed, "you don't hate me that much"

She resisted the full blown grin that tried to pull at her lips as they walked, feeling him falter a little next to her.

"... Do you?"

She flashed him a playful grin, "you're tolerable"

"Wow, thank you very much" he smiled sarcastically, "you flatter me"

"That wasn't my intention"

"So... back to that little bombshell about the other werewolves-"

"Stiles" she interrupted, pausing in the doorway of chemistry class, "one day I'll tell you all about the true history of Beacon Hills and the full extent of the supernatural world but today is not that day"

"But there are others-?"

"There's always others" she shrugged, "it ain't an extinct breed"

With that she simply brushed past him and took her seat at one of the tables at the back as all the other students filtered in, Stiles in the table across one and in front of her and Scott on the one in front of that.

She ignored his repeated attempts to get her attention, sort of finding his obsessive nature around this kind of thing endearing and eventually he turned to Scott to engage in some not so subtle, nor quiet, conversation.

"Mr Stilinski" Mr Harris called out in his usual depressive tone that made Kayla want to blow her brains out every time she heard it, "if that's your idea of a hushed whisper, you might want to pull the headphones out every once in a while. In fact, I think you and Mr McCall would benefit from a little distance, yes?"

"... No"

Mr Harris pointed at opposite parts of the classroom and both boys seemed to sulk, picking up their stuff and heading to where Mr Harris pointed which, to Stiles' newfound delight, was at her table.

She rolled her eyes, "stop interrogating me"

He threw his hands up, "no interrogation. Uh... so um... heh... kind of a strange question... well, not really strange, but maybe... I mean... if you want to maybe... I dunno..."

"Stiles?"

"Yeah?"

"Spit it out"

"Heh... yeah, well... um..." he coughed nervously, rubbing at the build up of sweat on his forehead, "... eat food...?"

"What?" she frowned at his incoherent mumblings, "do I eat food?"

"No, no um... if you wanted to eat food...?"

"Like right this second?"

"N-No... like... later on... with me-"

Whatever ramblings were attempting to come out of his mouth were cut off by the girl sitting next to Scott standing up suddenly, pointing out the window.

"Hey, I think they found something"

Just those words caused chaos in the classroom with everyone getting up from their stools to rush to the windows and Kayla rolled her eyes at their nosiness but soon joined the crowd, elbowing her way to the front inbetween Scott and Stiles to see the paramedics rushing some guy on a gurney into the ambulance.

"That's not a rabbit" Scott muttered in dread and Kayla frowned, sending him a confused look.

"No, it's a person. If it was a rabbit, they would send a vet"

Scott didn't have a chance to reply as the guy on the gurney suddenly jumped up and began screaming loudly, causing everyone in the classroom to jump.

Stiles jumped back to reassure a guilty Scott, no doubt trying to calm his nerves as she slipped her phone out, searching for Derek's contact. Who knows if he even still had this number or even used a cellphone these days, his complete lack of communication using anything technological borderline embarrassing, but she quickly typed out a text alerting him to the situation, querying if this was indeed Scott or the Alpha that bit him, before they all got sent back to their seats.

For Scott's sake... she really hoped it was the latter.

By the time lunch rolled around Kayla just wanted to go home - maybe play a bit of grand theft auto, maybe stuff her face with some home baked chocolate chip cookies - anything rather than stay here in this hellhole.

She got her lunch first, ahead of Allison in the queue and heard Lydia say they were going to sit with the 'two dorks' today. Considering the fact the 'two dorks' looked to be in a rather intense and private conversation Kayla speed-walked to their table, dumping her lunch tray piled high with food next to the empty seat next to Stiles.

"Hey boys - just a heads up, there's gonna be a few people sitting with y'all today" she said and when all she received was identical confused glances she nodded her head to the direction Lydia was strutting towards them, all puckered lips and hips and strawberry blonde hair.

"I'm guessing by your flabbergasted looks she doesn't normally do this" Kayla stage whispered, laughing as she sat next to Stiles in the hard plastic chair and Danny took the other seat, sandwiching a confused Stiles between them. Lydia then took the seat on Scott's left and Allison took the one on the right, another girl who Kayla didn't know that well called Ava then sat next to her and, to Kayla's dismay, Brian was last to appear, sitting his tray down next to her.

She cocked a brow at him as he perched next to her, clearly unamused with his boundary issues.

"Out of the hundreds of chairs in this cafeteria, you just had to choose this one, huh?"

"It has the best view"

She scoffed at his continued and useless attempts to win her over, turning back around and finding Scott and Stiles staring at her in confusion, looking at her as if to say 'what the hell?' but she just shrugged, digging into her bowl full of fries.

"So I hear they're saying it's some type of animal attack. Probably a cougar" Danny divulged, always willing to fish out the gossip.

"I heard mountain lion"

"A cougar is a mountain lion" Lydia said knowingly, looking around self consciously as she realised what she said, "I mean... Isn't it?"

Jackson scoffed unsympathetically, "who cares? The guy's probably some homeless tweaker who's gonna die anyway"

"Tactful as ever Jackson" she remarked, pausing to swallow a fry, "remind me not to let you speak at my funeral"

Jackson just smiled at her sardonically and she blew playful, sacrastic kisses back at him, both always willing to get under each other's skin with their love and hate relationship.

"Actually-" Stiles said, tapping on his phone, "-I think I just found out who it is. Check it out"

He held his phone out as they all huddled closer to see the small screen, seeing footage play out from the scene.

"The Sheriff's department won't speculate on details of the incident but confirmed the victim, Garrison Meyers, did survive the attack. Meyers was taken to a local hospital where he remains in critical condition"

"Not for long" Brian snickered carelessly, "did you see the state of him? He'll be dead before the day is out"

She elbowed him harshlyin his side, a warning to shut the hell up and he just grinned in response, not at all sorry for his coarse words.

"I... I know this guy" Scott mumbled in shock.

Brian clapped his hands together loudly, pointing at Scott obnoxiously.

"Well maybe you killed him McCall. Got to get your freak on some way or another, am I right?"

"Shut up" she muttered to Brian, "no one here wants your useless input"

That wiped the smug look from Brian's face, annoyed and a little embarrassed at getting called out, she could tell, and felt Stiles snigger from next to her.

"Wait, you do?" Allison asked in concern, "how?"

"Yeah, when I used to take the bus back when I lived with my dad. He was the driver"

"Can we talk about something slightly more fun, please?" Lydia interrupted, "like, oh, where are we going tomorrow night? You said you and Scott were hanging out tomorrow night, right?"

Allison choked on a bite of her lunch, sending Scott a helpless look.

"Um, we were thinking of what we were gonna do..."

Lydia nodded, "well, I am not sitting home again watching lacrosse videos all night, so if we're going to hang out, we are doing something fun"

"Hanging out?" Scott asked in dread, "like... hanging out together... us and... you?"

Lydia smiled, "the more the merrier Scott. Actually, on second thoughts-" Lydia's conniving gleaming gaze settled on Kayla as she tried to hide from the conversation by eating her fries, "-Kayla? Why don't you come too? And bring some candy"

Her devious and suggestive look which slid towards Brian indicated she wasn't referencing a sharing bag of M 's.

"Yeah, no" she immediately exclaimed, "I'll pass"

Lydia pursed her lips, clearly annoyed at her stubbornness and continuous rebuttals from her attempted matchmaking.

"Come on Kayla - then we can all get to know each other a little better... some more than others" Lydia said suggestively, twirling the fork around as she smirked, amping up her charm.

"Still a nope - sorry" she said in that tone of voice which indicated how very un-sorry she actually was and noticed Stiles trying to hold back a pleased smirk.

Lydia sent her a pointed glare and a very obvious look saying 'You better agree or else'.

"Oh, I think we know each other pretty well" Brian piped up, sending her a flirty grin as he pulled the thong he had swiped from her bedroom yesterday from his pocket, holding it up with his finger proudly.

A couple of people at the table wooped, Danny laughing a little and Lydia just grinned in approval.

"In your dreams" Kayla smiled sickly sweet, not at all fazed by his power play, "underwear thief"

"Can you blame me?" Brian chortled, "they're cute"

"Will my fist breaking your nose be cute too?"

The blonde haired boy simply whistled, like he found her threats funny, and slipped her underwear back in his pocket, making a point of patting it to show it would be safe there.

She just rolled her eyes, willing herself not to buy into his creepy ways and turned back to her plate of food but Stiles nudged her harshly, looking at her in judgement.

"I thought I warned you about him?"

"You did" she shrugged, "and I listened... for the most part"

Stiles stared at her, open mouthed, "did you-"

"It would be fun" Allison declared, interrupting Stiles' hushed whisper, trying to find a way to break the growing awkward tension, "I mean... a group date"

"You know what else sounds fun?" Jackson asked, sarcasm oozing from his tone, "stabbing myself in the face with this fork"

"Can I help?"

Jackson just threw her a glare, not amused by her input.

"How about bowling?" Lydia suggested "you love to bowl"

"Yeah, with actual competition"

Allison leaned around playfully, "and how do you know we're not actual competition? You can bowl, right?"

Scott shrugged helplessly, "... sort of"

Jackson moved his tray out the way, placing his elbows on the table.

"Is it sort of, or yes? "

"Yes. In fact, I'm a great bowler"

Kayla did not believe that for one second, especially when she glanced to the side and saw Stiles shoving his fist in his mouth, his eyes screwed shut.

"It's sorted then" Lydia clapped her hands together, "the six of us are going bowling. Tomorrow at seven"

"No, no, no, no, no" Kayla shook her head, "nope, not me. Count me out. I didn't agree to a triple date. That's weird"

Lydia simply shrugged in faux innocence.

"We'll see about that"

A/N) I'm addicted haha I'm so enjoying this rewrite and adding more details and changing a few bits at the start. I always wanted Kayla more involved from the start but I remember being in a rush when I wrote the first book, so I skipped a couple episodes and it's always been a big regret of mine so I'm happy to revisit it :) I really hope you all enjoyed and please please review and I will see you all super soon. Tumblr is - fanficanatic-tw come along to chat, ask questions and see edits and videos etc xxx

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form :( thank you so so much for the amazing support with this rewrite - I am really thoroughly enjoying it and I'm glad you all are too :)

 "You're a terrible bowler"

"I know!" Scott exclaimed, looking like he just wished the ground would open up and swallow him whole, "I'm such an idiot"

"God, it was like watching a car wreck" Stiles shook his head, not even bothering to hide his wince as they walked side by side, "I mean, first it turned into the whole group date thing - which, by the way, worst idea ever. And then out of nowhere comes that phrase-"

"-Hang out"

Stiles nodded, "look dude, you don't hang out with hot girls, okay? Especially girls as hot as these. It's like death. Once it's hanging out, you might as well be her gay best friend. You and Danny can start hanging out and taking notes"

"How is this happening? I either killed a guy or I didn't-"

"I don't think Danny likes me very much"

"-I ask Allison on a date, and now we're hanging out. Hanging out. With Lydia and Jackson. With the guy that wants my head on a stick"

"Don't forget Kayla and that douchebag" Stiles added with a very bitter eyeroll, "which is a terrible idea. I warned her about him you know. Does she listen? Of course not"

"I make first line and the team captain wants to destroy my life-"

"Maybe I could make her take Danny instead" Stiles thought out loud, "at least he wouldn't be trying to get into her pants at every opportunity. Speaking of which, do you think Danny likes me? Am I attractive to gay guys?"

"-and now-" Scott groaned, glancing down at his phone, "-now I'm gonna be late for work"

"Wait, Scott-" Stiles shouted out to his retreating figure, "-you didn't - am I attractive to gay gu- you didn't answer my question"

Stiles just watched Scott leave, throwing his arms out in exasperation as he nodded his head sarcastically.

"Thanks for the support dude, much appreciated" He blew out a long breath, hiking his bag and lacrosse stick further up his shoulder, lanky limbs bouncing around him clumsily as he escaped from school and bounded down the steps, running a hand over his short hair as he made a beeline to his jeep.

A part of him worried that he was going to get left behind. That Scott would excel in lacrosse, get the sweet girl that everyone loves and join the popular crowd and he would be forgotten about.

It was already sort of happening.

Scott always used to warm the bench with him, both making jokes about jackass Jackson and how they wished the lacrosse ball would take out a testicle - or two - of his, but now he doubted that would happen. He would have no company on the bench, left to ponder in his own pool of inferiority.

Before, they had both faced the prospect of being single and alone for the rest of high school, but again, Scott was winning on that front. He was getting the new girl and Stiles was left to just watch from a distance.

He climbed into his jeep, throwing his stuff in the back seat and went to start up his engine but saw Lydia and Jackson coming down the steps followed by a, very clearly fed up, Kayla.

He stopped what he was doing, focusing on the little group dynamic.

Lydia, as ever, was breezy and self assured, a wide confident smile pulling at her lips as she spoke whilst Jackson, as attentive as ever - note the sarcasm - sauntered next to her, an arrogant air of cockiness around him.

Stiles rolled his eyes at that, seeing clearly that Lydia deserved way better than that jerk. Honestly, he didn't know what she saw in him apart from his popularity status. It was about time she dumped his ass.

He focused on Lydia for a few seconds, gulping nervously as he watched her walk but then his stare slid to Kayla, getting completely distracted by her presence.

Although noticeably weary and bored, she still had the most fascinating expression on her face - never stiff and still, but constantly changing. Whether that be a quirk of the brow, the subtle crease in her forehead or the crinkle in her nose as she reacted to whatever was being said, it captured his attention.

Despite being very expressionate, he still didn't know what it was she was actually thinking. She hid it well, sort of disconnected from everything. He wondered if maybe she was annoyed at Lydia for pushing her to go on that 'group date' with Brian.

Well, he hoped she was, but it was hard to tell. She had rebuffed his advances very publically on a few occasions but then seemed amused and flattered by his flirting and that was not even counting the whole thong incident which - by the way - how the hell did he even get her underwear in the first damn place?

But maybe that was just the way things went.

Lydia, who was popular because she was drop dead gorgeous, dated Jackson the Jock who was equally as popular as a result of his athleticism and money.

Scott, the up and coming star of Beacon Hills Lacrosse, dated the pretty alluring new girl who Lydia, queen bee of Beacon high, had taken under her wing.

Kayla, spunky and stunning, a breath of fresh air would of course, naturally, end up with that annoying Greek god lookalike Brian, yet another popular womaniser with money.

It was just the way highschool worked.

He revelled in the bitterness for a few seconds, allowing himself some exaggerated self pity before watching Lydia and Jackson part ways from Kayla, them going to one end of the car park and Kayla, throwing them a half hearted wave, heading to the other.

His eyes darted between the two, trying to concentrate on what both were doing but getting dizzy in the process, giving his head a small shake and finding himself watching Kayla instead.

He didn't know why but she just intrigued him. She was beautiful, but fractured, like she constantly had the weight of the world on her shoulders but pretended she didn't. The way she spoke, playful and sarcastic with a hint of that southern drawl that clung to her words, unable to fully shake the cute twang was mysterious and sweet, always drawing in his attention. Even the way she moved, constantly self assured and radiant, never fazed or timid, an electrifying energy buzzing around her.

Then, on the flip side, she was hard and unyielding, full of secrets - an enigma to say the least, difficult to figure out. He didn't know her intentions or her desires, what it was that made her tick.

He wanted to find out.

His curiosity was spiked.

One of the last remaining Hales.

He watched her stride back to her car, swinging her keys around her finger as she yanked the passenger side door open, throwing her bag on the seat carelessly and then groaned, her face scrunching into annoyance as her bag fell from the seat, spilling its contents on the floor of the car and the concrete ground of the car park.

He found himself jumping from his jeep, ungracefully sliding between cars to reach her, making her jump as she kneeled down next to her.

"Stiles" she exclaimed, kneeling back and cocking a brow as he gasped back some air, unflatteringly squatting, "what are you doing?"

"Uh..." he smiled awkwardly, reaching down to grab the first thing he could find scattered along the ground, picking it up and shrugging, "helping?"

She snorted, her lips twisting into an amused smirk as she fluttered her eyelashes at him.

"Oh yeah? By, what... saving my tampon?"

He was sure he flared red, eyeing up the small plastic cyclinder with the string dangling down, awkwardly coughing and holding it out for her.

"Uh... well... that's not... I didn't...-"

She chuckled, taking the tampon from his hand and putting it in her bag.

"Chill, you look as if you have a stick up your ass" she smiled, deep green eyes glinting with amusement as she picked up some fallen pens, "and thanks, but where did you come from?"

"Uh..." he scratched the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact as he then reached down and picked up a couple of books, shoving them into her bag, "I was just... around"

She wasn't even bothering to hide her pleasure in his awkward squirming, glancing past his shoulder to spy his jeep parked with the drivers side door wide open.

"Did you run all the way over from your jeep?"

"What? No" he exclaimed, "why would I... do that? That's... that would be stupid"

"You tell me" she grinned, grabbing the last notebook from the ground and then zipping up her bag, "anyways thanks, but I gotta go"

"Yeah, yeah of course"

He watched her stand gracefully, body uncurling to stand up straight as he went to do the same thing but misjudged how much balance he had and yelped as he pitched forward, smacking his forehead off her open car door.

"You okay?" she laughed, grabbing his arm to help him stand as he rubbed his forehead.

"Yeah... yeah, so good" he rushed out, blinking the bleariness and black fuzzy dots from his vision, "so totally good"

"Okay, well... I guess I'll see you tomorrow..."

He watched her place her bag more carefully on the passenger seat, shutting the door and moving around to the drivers side and climbing in and he was helpless to watch her, pining after her through the pane of glass.

"Wait, wait, wait, uh - hello, hi" he knocked on the passenger side window, crouching down to wave at her as she pressed the button for the window to come down, "um, sorry, quick question - that bowling thing tomorrow..."

"Yes?"

"Maybe... maybe you should take Danny" he suggested, giving an exaggerated shrug of his shoulders as she stuck his head through the window, "Danny loves bowling"

She bit her lip, clearly trying to hold back her pleasure at his desperate attempts to ensure this bowling thing didn't turn into an actual date whilst he swallowed nervously, unable to tear his eyes away from her full bottom lip caught between her teeth, something so innocently sexy about it he found himself wholly attached to the sensuality of it.

"Take Danny?" she asked, "like... additionally? Or instead of someone?"

She was toying with him, playing with him like a cat does to a mouse but he didn't mind, just happy she stuck around long enough to actually keep having conversations with him.

"Probably instead" he clarified, "I mean, wouldn't want to make him feel like a third wheel or anything - uh... or in this case, seventh wheel"

"Right, of course" she nodded, trying to be serious and playing along with his suggestion as she held back a smirk, "because you're just thinking of Danny, right?"

"Of-Of course" he mumbled, much to her amusement, "everyone likes Danny. I-I like Danny"

"Like him or like-like him?"

"What?" he squeaked, hoping she didn't think he was gay as that would give any slight shot of ever getting to go a date with her completely out the window, the mere suggestion making him jump and bang his head on the car door frame, "ow, crap. What? I-I'm not gay"

"Relax Stiles" she laughed openly, the sound like sweet music to his ears, "I'm just messing with you. I've seen the way you've looked at my boobs, you're definitely not gay"

He flared red again, removing his head from the window and rubbing his skull, this whole conversation going tits up.

"And trust me, if I thought Lydia wouldn't make my already sucky life a whole lot suckier, I would take Danny - or you" she added with a shrug, "but instead I'm stuck with dickhead Brian for the night, because what Lydia wants Lydia gets, right?"

"R-Right" he swallowed, his hectic brain just catching up to what he said, "wait, you would've taken me-"

"Stiles" she interrupted, flashing him a dazzling smile, "I have to go. Catch you later, alright?"

"Wha-uh, oh... of course. Course" he muttered, stepping back as she started up her engine, glancing in her mirrors and reversing and he just watched her leave, raising a numb hand and waving at her like a god damn moron.

And here he was, standing in the middle of the car park, watching her car disapear like some ridiculously infatuated, love sick puppy. Still just as intrigued as ever, yearning to find out what, and how, made her tick.

When Allison invited her and Lydia around to her house to get ready before bowling, she fully expected to get turned away at the door.

Surprisingly though, when Allison answered, her parents flagging her on either side, she was allowed over the threshold though couldn't help but look around in case it was booby trapped, casting a suspicious glance around her as Lydia waltzed right in.

"Good evening girls" Allison's mother smiled tightly, her suspicious gaze falling to Kayla who just smiled back innocently.

"Mrs Argent" Lydia sing songed, "Mr Argent. Lovely home"

"Thank you" Chris said, lifting his arm out towards the stairs, "have fun"

Allison rolled her eyes, seeming a little embarrassed by her parents involvement and skeptically analysing her friends, and nodded them both up the stairs.

Lydia followed straight away, giving a flirty little wave to Chris but, before she could follow, Chris stepped in front of her, blocking her moving up the stairs.

"Not yet" he said quietly, "we need to have a word with you"

She rolled her eyes, folding her arms stubbornly as she looked between the two Argents, their gazes fiery and suspicious.

"Kayla? Kayla, you coming?"

Allison's voice rung down the stairs and, not wanting her friend to think she was having beef with her parents, she pulled her phone from her pocket and raised it to her ear, pretending to be speaking on it as Allison leaned over the railings in curiosity.

"Uh... yeah, sorry, just had a call, I'll be up in a minute" she apologised, forcing a sweet smile on her face as Allison whispered a quiet sorry, apologising for interrupting and then bounding to her room.

She dropped the act, her expression melting into one of annoyance as she pocketed her phone, her stare cold and calculated.

"What?" she asked blandly, "because we've already been over this... I'm not a werewolf"

"Just as rotten" Mrs Argent fumed, keeping her voice deadly quiet as she almost vibrated with fury, her gaze full of anger.

"Discriminatory much?" Kayla scoffed in response, "my god, all you hunters are as dense as each other"

Chris put his hand out, blocking what was to no doubt be a vicious, bitchy argument, "enough. We're only letting you into our home for Allison's sake. A friendship we do not approve of, by the way"

"I'm not going to tell her if that's what you're worried about" she said, "I have no reason to"

"Good, then let's keep it that way" Chris warned, "or we'll pay your cousin a visit... and you can't afford to lose any more family members, am I right?"

She clenched her jaw, holding in every ounce of anger and fury that threatened to escape, her fists clenching at her sides and nails digging into the palms of her hands, enough to draw blood.

"I'd like to see you try, I really would, but Derek would have you on your asses in no time" she smirked proudly, bordering on arrogant as she tried to show them they weren't getting under her skin, "plus, he hasn't broken your sacred code - though, I suppose, that's never stopped you before"m

Chris tensed, annoyance sparking inside him from the continuous accusations.

"I told you before, we didn't set that fire" he growled, "we live by our code"

"Then we should have no problems here" Kayla smirked, "right?"

The Argents shared a tense look with each other but appeared to know that, in this instance, there was nothing they could do. Without Allison knowing about the supernatural, there was no reason for them to try and cut Kayla out of Allison's life.

"Glad we agree" she continued, pointing to the stairs, "can I go up now? Or do I need a special password?"

Chris clenched his jaw but side stepped out of her way, his clear blue eyes still suspicious.

"I'll be keeping a close eye on you"

"Not too close though" she joked, "I am sixteen, that could get you landed in jail"

His irritation sky rocketed at her witty quips, obviously trying to hold back completely losing it but by that point she was already halfway up the stairs, giving him a little sarcastic wave.

She followed the direction of Lydia and Allison's muffled voices, stepping into Allison's room and almost tumbling into stacked boxes.

"Oh shoot, sorry" Allison apologised, "I'm still unpacking"

"Still?" Kayla asked, manoeuvring around the boxes, "Why?" Allison shrugged, "I don't know... I move around so much, nothing really feels like home. Sometimes I wonder what the point is to unpacking. I'll just have to pack it back up soon enough anyway"

"Deep" Kayla muttered before smirking, showing Allison she was just playing, "but you never know, maybe this is where you'll stay until you die"

"Unlikely" Allison smirked, "we never settle down"

"Well I, for one, think you should" Lydia quipped, splayed out on Allison's bed like she owns the place, "Beacon Hills is dull, I need some exciting people around me"

They chatted back and forth, settling into a familiar routine with each other before Allison begun to get a little nervous about the whole 'group date' thing, panicking about what she was going to wear.

"It's Scott, he'll love you in whatever you're wearing - or, whatever you're not" she added with a playful gleam in her eyes, "that boy does not need impressed. He's already obsessed with you"

"I still want to look good" Allison said shyly, making her way to her wardrobe, "what about this?"

"Pass" Lydia said.

"This?"

"Pass"

"I don't know" Kayla shrugged, "that's kind of cute. For Allison obviously, not me. Too much colour and pattern"

Lydia rolled her eyes at her, "no it's not. My god, how do neither of you have any taste? Here, lemme see" stepping up from the bed and looking through Allison's wardrobe.

"Pass. Pass. Pass. Uh, pass on all of it. Allison, respect for your taste is dwindling by the second"

"I think the same thing about you and guys" Kayla smirked, "like how you think setting me up with some dude called 'Brian' is a good idea is beyond me"

Lydia threw her an unamused look over her shoulder, "he's hot and popular. You have to play the game Kayla, it's high school. If you want to be someone - play the damn game"

"Sounds exhausting, think I'll pass"

Lydia sighed, clearly fed up with her little quips and pulled out a black sparkly top, holding it up against Allison.

"This one"

"I didn't realise we were in the y2k era" Kayla joked, "sequins are tacky"

Lydia placed a hand on her hip, raising a perfectly plucked eyebrow in her direction.

"They're pretty" she emphasised, "I know fashion, okay?"

"Wasn't doubting you didn't, was just throwing in my two cents"

"And I suppose you're just going like that, are you?"

Kayla glanced down at her simple attire of some black denim shorts and a 'Queen' T shirt sloppily tucked into the front, paired with her comfiest pair of bubblegum blue Doc Martins.

"Yeah. I ain't trying to impress anyone"

"You're lucky Brian isn't fussy"

Their playful banter got interrupted by Allison's dad just barging in without knocking, a forced pleasant look on his face before realising what he did, sending an apologetic look to Allison.

"Right, I'm sorry, I completely forgot to knock"

"Dad" Allison stated, "do you need something?"

"You girls okay?" he asked, glancing around suspiciously before his eyes fell on Kayla and she just smirked back as if to say 'c'mon, it's not like I'm a serial killer or anything, calm down'

"Yes?" Allison muttered, glancing down in embarrassment, "we are fine in my room"

"Okay. Well, uh, I wanted to tell you that you'll be staying in tonight"

"What? I'm going out with my friends tonight" Allison protested, her normally well put together and mature behaviour turning stroppy.

"Not when some animal out there is attacking people"

She scoffed under her breath which she thought was inaudible because, animal? Really? She couldn't believe people were buying that, but it couldn't have been that silent as Chris threw her a warning glare.

"Dad, dad, I'm—uh-"

"It's out of my hands. There's a curfew. No one's allowed out past 9:30 P.M anyway. Hey, no more arguing" he added, sensing Allison's frustration, giving her a warning look before leaving the room.

"Kill joy much?" Kayla joked, "what does he think is going to happen at bowling?"

"He's overprotective" Allison mumbled, "annoyingly so"

Lydia grinned, "I can see someone is daddy's little girl"

"Sometimes" Allison agreed but her tone held an air of defiance, grabbing a purple woolly hat and pulling it over her curls, "but not tonight"

"Uh... what are you doing?" Lydia asked, eyes wide as she watched Allison lift her window, step out into the roof and flip off it, lancing gracefully on the grass.

"Eight years gymnastics" she smiled, "you guys coming?"

"Hell yeah" Kayla smirked, brushing past Lydia and stepped out onto the roof, ignoring Lydia's shrieks before back slipping gracefully off it and next to Allison.

"Twelve years and some good genes" she shrugged before looking up at Lydia, "come on, it's not that hard, we'll teach you"

Lydia grimaced, clearly thinking 'who the hell am I friends with?' before pointing her thumb behind her.

"I think I'll take the stairs" Kayla sniggered, sharing an amused glance with Allison.

"Boo - boring"

Kayla could not think of a worse night.

She just really wasn't vibing with this whole 'group date' idea. 

Firstly, because it was cringe. They weren't in some 80's, budgeted, teen chick flick.

Secondly, she would really rather not be socialising with the likes of Jackson Whittemore for more than five minutes at a time - dude was exhausting and she did so not have the energy to nurture his fragile and bruised ego.

And lastly, the fact she was - yet again - being coupled up with Brian.

God, he just annoyed her. Everything about him was cocky and arrogant and, she was determined, not to let him get under her skin.

She could do way better than that.

When her, Lydia and Allison approached, the boys were already waiting for them outside the bowling alley, Jackson and Brian in cahoots with each other whilst Scott stood awkwardly to the side.

She folded her arms across her chest as she approached Brian, her glare clearly wanting him not to try anything.

"You look hot" Brian greeted her with, a lazy, egotistic smile pulling at his lips, "but also like you're going to drive by and smash some mailboxes with a baseball bat"

"Can I swap the mailboxes for your head?"

"Peppy - I like it"

She rolled her eyes, brushing past him and into the noisy bowing alley.

"Now-" he appeared behind her, placing his hands on her hips which she slapped away, "-if you need any help, I'll be more than willing to give you a few tips. Or one tip" he added with a sly smirk, "preferably in someplace special"

"Do these lines actually work on girls?" she asked, "because you're making me dryer than the Sahara Desert"

"I wasn't the other day"

"No, the sight of your dick did that" she corrected, "the rest of you was severely off putting - like mouldy cheese"

"Ouch" he chuckled, playing a hand over his heart in faux hurt, "trying to hurt a guys masculinity?"

"No, but I could do that with my foot and well aimed kick"

He chuckled but wisely took a step back from her, trying to look amused and play it cool but had an edge of weariness about him.

"That's okay Hale, you keep playing hard to get" he smirked, "we all known you'll loosen up eventually"

"You keep telling yourself that" she mocked, turning away and following Allison and Scott down to the the bowling alley, sending them both a warm smile.

"So uh..." Scott said quietly, leaning in to whisper in her ear as they raided the shelves for the perfect bowing ball, "I didn't attack that bus driver"

"Congratulations"

Scott glanced around, making sure no one was listening in, "but I was there. I tried to stop it"

She smirked, "do you want a medal or...?"

"Kayla... I'm sure it was Derek"

She scoffed under her breath, picking up the medium weighted ball and slotting her fingers in the hole, "you're way off the mark Scottie"

"He's the only other werewolf I know-"

"Yeah, that you know" she interrupted, "I told you, Derek didn't bite you, so maybe focus your detective skills on the real issue instead of going out of your way to blame my cousin"

Scott stared at her, trying to figure out what to say, his forehead lowered in contemplation before Lydia called out to them, urging them to hurry up.

"Just saying" she muttered, beginning to walk to the bowling lane as he hurried to catch up with her.

"You both know more than you're telling me" Scott whispered.

"Yeah, well, trust works both ways"

"Finally" Lydia clapped her hands together, sitting next to Jackson, "what are you two whispering about anyway?"

"How shit this whole situation is" Kayla smirked without missing a beat, taking a seat on the row next to Allison and Scott, ignoring Brian who beckoned her over to the other side and leaned towards Lydia, "you know you totally cock blocked them right?"

Lydia smirked, twisting a strand of curly hair around her finger, "I don't know what you're talking about"

"Sure" Kayla snorted with a smile, "playing dumb doesn't suit you Lydia"

Lydia went first - aided by Jackson - no doubt faking being crap to boost his Ego, it was so blatantly obvious she wondered how no one had figured it out by now.

Brian sent her a wink, taking the stand and bowling a strike, cockily fist bumping the air.

She ignored him, seeing her name flash on the scene and begrudgingly went up, getting into position and aiming the bowl straight down the middle and, as expected, got a strike.

She turned around to see Allison and Lydia's surprised looks.

"What?" She muttered, "I did used to have hobbies before I went off the rails - shocking, I know"

Before she could make her way back to where she was sitting before, next to Allison and Scott, Brian called her over, clearly not letting up.

"What?"

"Come sit here"

"Why?"

"Because you're my date"

"This isn't a date"

He smirked, "fine, it's a 'hang out'. Come on, keep me company"

She rolled her eyes, fully ready to ignore him for the rest of the night but Lydia sent her a painful kick to her shin, jutting her chin in Brian's direction, the clear message being 'get your ass over there or I'll use you as target practice'.

She leaned towards Lydia, giving her a forced smile.

"Okay, you win, but the only balls I'll be touching are the bowls so don't get your hopes up"

"Trust me sweetie-" Lydia smirked devilishly, "-I'm not the one getting something up"

She snorted, rolling her eyes as she accepted her fate and sat next to Brian, ignoring his delighted smile.

Allison went next, getting yet another strike and despite having no super werewolf senses or hearing she could feel Scott's panic across the lane.

"Somebody brought their A game" Lydia congratulated.

Then went Jackson, very obviously getting a strike because that guy just had to be great at everything he turned his hand to, arrogantly smiling at them as if he had just done something miraculous and not simply bowled a bowl.

"You're up McCall"

"You can do it Scott" Allison nudged encouragingly and they all watched as Scott stood up nervously, grabbing the green bowl he picked out earlier, stepping up to the lane.

"Dude looks about ready to shit his pants" Brain laughed, "he's gonna gutter it"

"Clearly" Jackson sniggered.

Scott seemed to look around self consciously, building himself up before swinging his arm back and giving a sloppy throw, the bowl immediately going in the gutters.

Jackson begin laughing, aided by Brian and she elbowed his ribs painfully, a warning to shut up or she would do a lot worse.

"Jackson! Jackson! Mind shutting up?" Allison demanded.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm just flashing back to the words 'I'm a great bowler'"

"Maybe he just needs a little warm up"

"Yeah, or the kiddy bumpers"

She watched as Allison shot Jackson an annoyed and disgusted look, admiring her ability to call out the bullshit.

"God knows what she sees in him" Brian chortled, "she could do way better"

"Like who? Like you?" she scoffed.

Brian smirked, "she would be my second choice, after you of course"

She ignored him, twisting away from his presence as she watched Scott look down in embarrassment, grabbing his green bowl as it rolled back up the rack.

"Just... just aim for the middle"

"How about you aim for anything but the gutter?"

She snorted under her breath, "funny a guy talking about aim when he probably can't even find the clit"

Jackson gritted his teeth, unamused by her snide remarks.

"You talk too much"

"I know - it's, like, my religion"

"Become an atheist then"

Lydia broke up their bickering with a pointed look, unamused by their back and forth sass as Scott stepped up to the lane, looking like he was giving a silent prayer and swinging the ball back again.

It went well... to start with, then careened sideways and went in the gutter just before it could hit any pins.

She felt a little bad for Scott - he was just wanting to impress Allison (and probably have a date that was just them) and Lydia had subjected him to this awful night of embarrassment and mocking.

She pulled out her phone, sending him a quick text.

'You do know you have werewolf senses now, right? USE THEM'

He glanced down at his phone, eyes widening as he hid the text, sending her a quick head shake, obviously scared if he tapped into that he could lose control.

She just shrugged in response, sitting back in the seat and wishing for this awful night to be over.

After bowling, in which Scott actually came first, (surprise surprise), she made her way to the vending machine to get a pack of m 's to snack on but apparently she couldn't even do that in peace.

Brian had sauntered up to her, leaning against the bending machine and sending her a smirk.

"What do you want?" she sighed, ripping open the corner of the packet to shake a couple of the sweets into her hand.

"Isn't it obvious by now?"

"You don't ever give up do you?"

"No" he grinned, giving her a sleezy once over, "come on, quit playing hard to get. It's cute but gets boring real fast"

"Oh" she smirked, feigning playing along, "is that what you think I'm doing?"

"Yeah. You clearly like guys chasing you"

"Acute observation"

"Just speaking the truth"

She snorted under her breath, popping a couple more sweets in her mouth.

"Actually, Einstein-" she corrected sarcastically, "-I go after what I want. If I wanted you, I would've had you already. So maybe, shock horror I know-" she mocked, "-maybe I'm just not that into you"

He got that defensive glint in his eyes, clenching his jaw at the rejection.

"Quit lying"

"Oh, of course, I forgot" she laughed, "because you're popular, hot, rumoured to have a big dick and play on the lacrosse team, girls are just meant to drop their underwear for you huh?"

"I've never had any complaints before"

"That's what you've think" she smirked, "I can guarantee you, however 'good' you think you are, reality is you don't even come close to half of that"

He moved his jaw from side to side, obviously trying to hold back a slew of insults, trying not to drop his facade of charming playful jock.

"Won't know till you try" he shrugged.

"And I've said before, I'm not going there again" she said, "I've been with guys like you before - you're all the same. I'm worth more than that"

He scoffed, "arrogant much?"

"I call it knowing my worth" she smirked, "trust me... the next guy - or girl - that gets this..." she purred, "... will be appreciative. Not just for another notch in the bed post"

"So, what, you're turning over a new leaf?"

"Reevaluating my decisions" she corrected, "so quit annoying me... it's never going to happen"

"Slut"

"Sure, go ahead and insult me when you don't get your way" she shrugged, totally unfazed, "I couldn't care less"

She peered around him, watching the others slowly make their way over, speaking about playing a few arcade games.

"Hey guys, I'm going to head off" she called out, "this whole night went hellishly. Never again"

Lydia pursed her lips, "it was fun. And how are you going to get home? I drove us"

"I have legs"

"And there's also a dangerous animal out there killing people" Allison said, "just wait a while and we'll drop you off home"

"It's chill" she smirked, waving her arm out, "don't worry about it. See you at school tomorrow"

She brushed past Brian, well aware everyone was watching her leave and pushed open the double doors that lead into the car park, taking a big deep breath of fresh air.

Thank fuck that night was over.

She just wasn't made for group dates. Hell, even socialising like that usually required a lot of alcohol, so she was surprised she made it through those two hours without any incidents.

She went to set off through the parking lot, having to Google map her way home as this place - although small - was still relatively unknown to her, but before she could start she noticed a familiar baby blue jeep tucked away along the edge of the parking lot.

She frowned, squinting her eyes and raising a hand to block out the glare of the street light dazzling her and was sure she seen the figure in the jeep jump, quickly ducking down so violently the vehicle shook from the movement.

She smirked to herself, amused by his not so stealthy hiding and begun walking over there, fully prepared to tease the shit out of him.

When she reached the jeep she glanced in the window and saw Stiles laying across the front seats, his arms crossed over his chest as though he was preparing for a plane crash.

She grinned, tapping on the window to get his attention and his eyes flew open, looking at her like a deer caught in the headlights as he jumped out, pretending he had just been looking for something.

"Subtle" she remarked sarcastically, indicating for him to roll down the window which he did, sending her what she was sure was meant to be a smile but turned into more of a grimace.

"...Heyyyy..." he drawled out, "funny seeing you here..."

"Yeah. Funny" she agreed with a smirk, "totally not like you knew we were all here or anything"

"O-Oh" he pretended to look around cluelessly, "that-that was tonight?"

She nodded, enjoying watching him squirm as he tried to think up an excuse - any excuse - as to why he was hanging out in the bowling parking lot by himself.

"Heh... uh... well I... I uh... I was just..." he cringed, raising a hand to scratch the back of his neck, "... being here in case... in case Scott needed me. Yeah" he nodded, clearly deciding to go along with that lie, "in case he wolfed out and went for Jackson's throat"

"C'mon" she sniggered, "you would secretly like that"

"True" he remarked, "but I have less of a conscience than Scott. He's very goody two shoes"

"I've noticed"

"Uh..." Stiles winced, "this looks really bad, doesn't it?"

"A little" she agreed, trying to hold back her smile, "but you're here now so you could give me a ride home?"

He spluttered, going red and blotchy in the face.

"W-What? A ride? To your home? Your house?"

"Pretty sure that's what I said, yeah" she replied in amusement, "I mean... unless you want me to hitch a ride with Brian-"

"Get in" he said quickly, nodding his head, "you can get in"

"Thank you" she grinned, throwing him a dazzling smile as she skipped around to the passengers side, climbing in next to him.

"Thanks" she said, "I just couldn't wait in there any longer, that whole night was a disaster"

"Did Scott suck?" he asked, "because he sucks at bowling"

"Actually, he won"

"Whoa" Stiles exclaimed, starting up the engine, throwing her a surprised look, "no way?"

"Yes way"

"That's my boy" Stiles cheered, swinging out of the parking lot and onto the main road, "guess this whole werewolf thing has its perks"

"I don't know if it had much to do with that, but maybe more with the fact Allison made him imagine her naked" she added humourlessly, "apparently that made him hyper focused"

Stiles snorted, "guys"

"You're one of those 'guys'" she sniggered, "don't be all high and mighty, I've seen the way you've looked at my boobs, remember?"

"Yeah. Well..." Stiles coughed awkwardly, "they're nice boobs. Very nice boobs in fact. They sit up very... straight, and perky-"

"Thank you for that detailed analysis" she laughed, "I'm glad you approve"

He flushed again, the blush reaching down his jaw line and spreading to his neck, tracing like a pattern across his pale skin.

"Anyway-" he emphasised, desperate to change the subject, "-do you now believe me when I say Brian is a massive dickhead?"

"I believed you before" she pointed out, "I just don't listen - apparently"

"Y'know..." he shrugged, very obviously trying to play it cool, "you could do way better than Brian. He's like garbage. Rotten garbage that's been left in the sun. For, like, a week"

"Descriptive" she smirked, "and thanks for the support... I guess?"

"I was just... just saying" he added, "that maybe, y'know, there's someone better out there for you"

"I hope so" she joked, "I'm way too fabulous to be stuck with morons like him forever. I've had my fair share... enough to last a lifetime"

"Oh?" Stiles asked, trying to play off that he wasn't intrigued or interested about her past, "l-like who?"

"Like my jerk of an ex" she smirked, "worst idea ever getting on the back of his motorcycle and disappearing with him for months"

"He-He had a motorcycle?" "Why do you sound shocked?"

"Just... a motorcycle?"

"Yes Stiles, a motorcycle" she chuckled, "a motorcycle and a temper so..."

"Oh. Sorry" he muttered, "I didn't know. Did he... like, hit you?"

"We fought" she shrugged, "a lot. It was... volatile. So yeah, probably best I don't choose the same kind of guy huh?"

"Yeah, maybe not" Stiles agreed. "It's chill, I'm sure we all have exes we regret"

From the corner of her eye she watched Stiles twitch, his hands tightening around the wheel nervously.

"Wait... never?" she exclaimed, "I know you're pretty awkward around girls and you may as well be walking around with a neon sign on your head that says 'virgin', but like, no exes? Not even from like 5th grade?"

"Wha- I... I... of course I have... I mean... I..."

"Oh wow" she mumbled, "that's actually kind of sweet"

He swallowed thickly, "sweet?"

"Yeah" she grinned, "obviously just saving yourself for the right person"

"Oh yeah, totally not because every girl is repulsed by me or anything"

"That's not true" she denied with a gentle smile, "you're not repulsive. You're cute and charming and funny... someone will notice that" she observed, "well, someone being Lydia right?"

"What?" she shrieked, not expecting the conversation to turn in this direction, "Lydia... why... why Lydia?"

She frowned, "aren't you, like, obsessed with her or something? As in unrequited love since third grade..."

"Oh. Uh... no" he said, "I mean, probably not. I don't even really know her so I don't know why I obsessed about her for years"

"Okay then..." she grinned playfully, "someone else. Someone better. Someone that notices you"

"Heh... uh... any suggestions...?" he asked meekly, trying not to be too obvious.

She pursed her lips, "I don't know. But be bold. Just try shooting your shot, worst thing that can happen is they say no right?"

"Which is my case will most likely happen"

She nudged him playfully as he turned into her driveway, "stop doubting yourself. You're a catch"

"I-I am?"

"Oh totally" she nodded, "and thanks for the ride. I honestly just couldn't face another second in there"

"O-Oh, you're welcome" he rushed out, watching her jump from the jeep, "see you at school tomorrow?"

She leaned in the open window, giving him a playful wink.

"Yeah..." her mouth splitting into a delighted smile, "see you at school tomorrow"

A/N) another long chapter yayyyyy... also STAYLA BONDING - I hope you all enjoyed and please please review it would be much appreciated, see you soon ;) xxx

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form :( thank you so much for the continued support - it means the world, hope you enjoy.

Wednesday was uneventful, at least in Kayla's eyes.

She went to school, being the dutiful daughter her mom expected all the while hating the strict regime she felt controlled by.

She understood - to a degree - why her mom was so untrusting of her. Honestly, if she was in her mom's shoes she would probably be the same, but it didn't mean she had to like it. If anything, wasn't positive risk taking supposed to be encouraged? It wasn't like she was going to go off the deep end again. She was stronger than that now, more resilient. Didn't her mom see that? Didn't she see the effort she was putting in?

She had long since accepted the move to Beacon Hills. At this point, she wasn't even bitter about it anymore. She had come to terms with the change, with starting a fresh and leaving behind everything she had known.

She still missed home though.

She missed the way of life there.

The food, so flavoursome and plentiful, with spice and seasoning like no other. Fresh and locally sourced, with portions to feed an army. Here it was a lot plainer, mass produced and dry, and filled with chain restaurants. Not much sense of individuality.

The music and festivals was another thing that wasn't the same here in sunny California. The streets weren't lined with buskers or bands playing on the sidewalks or in the parks, nor did she hear of any festivals. Near enough every week back home there was a festivals full of Indy singers and bands, the kind that could last days and meant you had to camp out at it. She and her friends would often go on the weekend, sneaking in drink and smoking the odd spliff. But here? Non existent. The most they did was play some overused song from a pair of speakers.

Even the oppressing heat she found herself craving. The smothering humidity that made breathing hard and caused you to sweat through your clothes in minutes. It was different here, a lot more sun but less humidity, able to get a cool breeze.

Beacon Hills was a beautiful place, it really was. The scenery, the lakes... stunning. Not that far from the beach either, but back home... oh back home it was indescribable. Stunning bodies of water, beautiful old trees and incredible sunsets. Buildings full of history with many stories to tell.

It was home.

... Except now it wasn't.

So she settled for the cards she had drawn. Accepting her fate.

She spent Thursday after school getting back into running, carving a route around the preserve. She even ran all the way to the tops of the cliff at the lookout point overseeing the entirety of Beacon Hills, spending a while there and enjoying the peace and quiet.

It wasn't quite home beautiful... but it was beautiful none the less.

She enjoyed the tranquillity of the outdoors, the bliss that it offered. Out here she didn't have to pretend. She could just be herself, not someone she was expected to be.

When the sky started to darken she headed home, not wanting her mom to blow her top, and spent the rest of her evening in the basement, setting up her gymnastic training equipment.

It was nothing special. Just a balance beam, a pommel horse and a bar, also setting up some weights and a salmon ladder, preferring to exercise more outside. Maybe getting back into this would give her something to focus on. A way to burn off some much needed energy.

By the time she sorted out the basement though it was nearing midnight so decided to head to bed.

What she didn't expect though was to get woken up before her alarm to someone clumsily climbing in her bedroom window.

Without thinking she shot up, grabbing the bedside lamp and pulling it free from the plug, raising it above her head in an attempt to knock out whoever was intruding but at the very last second she recognised the outline through the hazy darkness of her room.

"Derek?" she shrieked, loosening her grip on the lamp as she let her arms fall to her sides, "what the hell are you doing climbing through my window at... five in the morning?" craning her neck to see the time on her alarm clock.

"I was shot".

"Wow, blunt as ever" she remarked before helping him stand and move him to sit on her bed as she turned her other lamp on in which Derek cringed, jerking his head in the other direction.

"Is that a necessity?" he bit out, annoyed and cranky.

"Not all of us have heightened werewolf senses" she retorted, rolling her eyes, "are you healing?"

"That's the thing... I'm not".

She frowned, "you're not healing?"

He held out his arm, rolling the sleeve of his leather jacket up so she could see the circular bullet hole that had caved a good chunk of his arm out, spider like veins beginning to branch out from the wound.

"Nasty" she stated, ignoring the roll of his eyes, "who shot you?"

"Argent".

"Chris argent?" she demanded, "he did this?"

"No" Derek shook his head, "the other one. Kate".

The name rung a bell, but she couldn't place where she heard it from.

"His sister" Derek clarified at her confused look, "she's come back to town".

"Oh great... another one" she muttered sarcastically, "just what we need".

Derek winced a little, trying to straighten out his arm but she could tell it was hurting he just didn't want to admit it.

"I'll clean it up" she said, "wait there".

She went into her bathroom, opening the storage cupboard under her sink and pulled out a box of first aid supplies, carrying it back and laying it on the bed as she perched next to Derek, reaching for his arm.

"Be gentle!"

She rolled her eyes again, grabbing the disinfectant.

"I always am".

She cleaned the wound, not too sure if it would help or not, then used a pair or tweezers to pull out any dirt or bits of fabric that clung to it, tapping it dry and applying a little disinfectant cream around it before sticking down some clean gauze to stench the gunk, blood and pus that slowly seeped from the wound.

"It looks bad" she observed, "is it wolfsbane? Because if it is... Derek..."

"I know" he sighed, rolling his sleeve back down, "I know".

"We need to find out what kind" she said, "wolfsbane works fast".

"I'm sure that's what they're planning on".

"If Kate is back then she'll be staying with Chris and Allison right?" she wondered out loud, "maybe between Scott and I, we could see if we could find the bullet?"

"Not you" Derek immediately said, "it's too dangerous".

"And so is leaving you like that" she exclaimed, "Derek... you'll be dead within two days if we don't fix this".

"You're a Hale" he said tightly, his pale face nearing on grey, getting clammy and sweaty, "they'll be watching you like a hawk, looking for any excuse to hurt you. You can't go".

"So, what? Leave it in the hands of Scott?" she chuckled, "I love the dude but he's a bit..."

"Impotent?" Derek suggested, a small smirk playing on his lips.

"Soft" she chuckled, realising that analogy wasn't much better, "what if he can't do it?"

"He'll have to" Derek shrugged, "I should go speak to him-"

"Uh, no" she stated, pushing on his shoulders to keep him on the bed, "you stay here. I'll speak to Scott at school. I'm sure he has a study date with Allison later so he can snoop around then".

She knew Derek mustn't be feeling like himself because he didn't put up much of a fight, laying back against her headboard and slowly lifting his legs onto the bed.

"He's not going to want to help me" Derek gasped, "he doesn't trust me".

"He trusts me" she stated, "uh... kind of. Don't worry, I'll make sure he helps".

There was no point getting a short nap in before school, especially considering she was worried about Derek, so chose to just get ready and let Derek rest in her bed as she did so, watching him slip in and out of consciousness.

Seeing Derek like this... it reminded her too much of her dad and brother.

They died by getting shot multiple times by wolfsbane bullets. Poisoned too quickly to save them.

Would Derek end up the same way?

She couldn't lose anyone else... she just couldn't.

She threw on a pair of faded denim jeans on and paired it with a simple oversized striped shirt tucked into the front of her jeans, leaving her hair down and wavy so it bounced around her shoulders.

"Stay here and rest" she ordered, "I'll let you know what he says".

"My phone's broken".

"Of course it is" she stated blandly, resisting another eye roll, "you're terrible with technology"

"It fell out my pocket!"

"A.K.A, you threw it at the wall in annoyance".

He glowered at her, "well, if they didn't make them so breakable"

"Anything is breakabale to you, you're a werewolf".

His energy was clearly getting sapped fast because he kept his mouth shut, his glare half as deadly as normal.

"Look... I'll sort it, alright?" she said softly, walking over to him and grabbing a blanket from the ottoman by her bed, giving it a shake and draping it over his lower body, "just rest".

"Don't be putting yourself in danger" he said quietly, "it's not worth it".

"You're worth it" she emphasised, "you're just about the only family I got left. If I say I'll sort it, I'll sort it, alright?"

"Be careful" he warned, "the Argents are dangerous. Make sure Scott knows that too".

"I will" she vowed, grabbing her bag from the floor and swinging it over her shoulder, "I'll be back by four. Help yourself to some food downstairs".

She left him resting, hurrying to school to try and catch the terrible twosome before class started, scurrying the halls in search of them and luckily it didn't take long, seeing them heading to the boys locker room for early morning practice.

She took off after them, pushing open the door and squeezing past the bunch of half naked guys that stared down at her in wonder, ignoring the few flirty remarks and wolf whistles she got as she poked each of them in their bare backs.

Stiles yelped, jumping at the sudden intrusion and spun around hastily, his eyes widening at the sight of her standing there and quickly grabbed his lacrosse top, bunching it across his chest to keep modest.

"K-Kayla. W-What are you doing here-"

"You're going to Allison's after school today, right?" she asked Scott, a desperate sense of urgency in her tone.

"Yeah..." Scott replied, looking around in confusion as he tugged on his top, "and I know, werewolf hunters-" he whispered, "-but there's no need to worry".

"I'm not" she said, "but I need a favour. We need a favour".

"We?" Stiles asked, clumsily pulling on his top as she tried to hide as much of his chest as he could, "who's we?"

"Derek and I".

"No" Scott shook his head, "no way. I'm not helping him".

"He's hurt Scott" she said, "badly".

"Awwww, did the big bad wolf get a splinter in his paw?" Stiles mocked, a small chuckle escaping his lips at his own joke. Kayla simply glared at him, completely unamused, as Scott whacked his friend over the head.

"Are you not done with the dog jokes?" Scott demanded as Stiles just shrugged with no shame.

"Kayla, look-" Stiles stated, "-Derek's a big boy - I'm sure he can look after himself".

"Usually, yeah" she agreed, "but not this time. He was shot with wolfsbane".

"That's a shame" Stiles remarked, "not really seeing how this is our problem?"

"Because Derek is your one ally against the Alpha Scott" she warned, "he knows more about being a werewolf than you can even imagine. If he doesn't teach you, you'll get found out, caught and die" she said bluntly, "usually by getting chopped in half".

"Pleasant image" Stiles muttered, his face screwing up at the gory thought.

"So please..." she continued, "go to Allison's today and find the bullet. If not for Derek then for me. I can't lose anyone else".

Scott's eyes softened, his expression wavering between sympathy and sadness.

"Okay. Okay I'll do it" Scott nodded, "but he owes me for this".

"Thank you" she beamed, surprising even herself as she brought him into a hug, "thank you. We're both grateful".

"Uh... sure" Scott mumbled awkwardly, "it's no problem".

She smiled at him, readjusting her bag and spinning around to leave the locker room just as Stiles called out, "what? So I don't get a hug too?"

"I still think it's ridiculous" Stiles stated, rolling his eyes as he took a bite from his apple, "we have better things to do than save Derek".

"We?" Scott asked, raising an eyebrow from across the lunch table, "I don't remember you being a part of this plan".

"Moral support" Stiles quipped, "ruining, what was to be, an eventful study session I'm sure".

He watched as Scott blushed a little, digging his fork into the plate of goo that was meant to be food.

"I'm sure studying means studying" his friend said and Stiles just scoffed at that, sometimes wondering how on earth he had survived all these years of friendship with someone so dense.

"Dude, everyone knows studying is code word for third base".

"I don't think Allison is like that..."

"Is she inviting you over when no one's home?"

"Yeah".

"Then you're getting to third base" Stiles smirked, "or maybe second. But definitely some sort of base".

"So what do I do?" Scott asked cluelessly, "do I... like... take a condom?"

Stiles winced, "see, that's tricky. Take one and you're expectant, don't take one and that's how you end up a teen dad".

"Stiles" Scott groaned, "you're not helping".

Stiles tried to hold back his laugh, enjoying his friends' uncomfortableness and all-around awkwardness.

"Dude, how the hell would I know? In case you're not already aware, I've been to no base. Nada. And the likelihood is I won't get to any base - ever. I'm going to be a virgin forever".

"You could always pay someone" Scott joked under his breath and Stiles just leaned forward to flick his forehead in annoyance.

"Like I have that kind of money".

Scott rolled his eyes, "so, condom or no condom?"

"You just really like rubbing it in my face don't you?"

Scott resisted another eyeroll, deciding to bench the conversation about him and Allison's potential sex life and watched as his friend perked up a little, his gaze softening slightly as his eyes followed the direction of something slowly, seeming captivated by whatever the sight was.

Scott was beyond sure it would be Lydia, having seen Stiles drool over her since third grade and had become accustomed to his fantastical stares but, to his surprise, as he swivelled around in his seat, he saw Kayla walking to the other side of the canteen towards the vending machine.

He frowned, turning back to look at Stiles who seemed to shake his head a little, focusing his bleary gaze back on him as he shrugged.

"What?"

Scott smirked, knowing straight away what was going on with him.

"You like her, don't you?"

"W-What?" Stiles asked in a high-pitched tone, his voice breaking a little as he fidgeted uncomfortably in his seat, "what do you- like-like who?"

"Kayla" Scott said knowingly, "you have a thing for her".

"T-That's ridiculous" Stiles stuttered, becoming flushed as the tips of his ears burnt a bright red, "she's... she's uh... you know... she's..."

"Listening to this is painful" Scott joked, "what a terrible liar you are".

"Urgh" Stiles groaned, dramatically throwing his head down on the table, "is it that obvious I'm crushing on her?"

"Kinda".

"Crap" was the muffled reply he got.

"Dude" Scott chuckled, "she would eat you alive".

"I know" Stiles' faint groan was almost whimsical, imagining the scenario in his head as he lifted his forehead off the lunch table, "but, come on, can you blame me? She's hot. I mean... insanely hot" Stiles emphasised, "and she's actually said more than two words to me which, y'know, automatic boner alert".

Scott scrunched his face up, "I didn't need to know that".

Stiles waved him off, glancing sideways to see Kayla grab her pack of Reese's and head back to the lunch table with Lydia and Allison, sitting back casually in the chair with her legs slightly opened in a relaxed stance, opening the packet and breaking one in half before putting it in her mouth.

"Doesn't matter anyway" Stiles shrugged, "I definitely don't stand a chance with her".

"You never know" Scott replied lightheartedly.

"Oh, I know" Stiles muttered, "girls like that don't go with guys like me. They go with guys like Jackson or Brian".

Scott smirked at the obvious bitterness towards Brian, knowing it was simply because he had been all up in Kayla's business multiple times now.

"Kayla hates Brian".

"Didn't stop her going to second base with him though did it?" he grunted, completely unamused, "like ew, he definitely did not deserve that".

"Just ask her out".

Stiles let out an exagggeated laugh, "haha, yeah, funny Scott" he remarked sarcastically, "let my pale, 147 pound nerd ass ask out the hottest girl in school. Sure. That doesn't spell disaster or anything".

Scott quirked a brow, "oh so... Lydia isn't the hottest girl in school anymore?"

"What? I-I don't know" Stiles spluttered, "why are you talking about Lydia?"

"Because you've barely mentioned her in the last few weeks" Scott pointed out with a smirk, "you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because you're crushing on Kayla - hard".

"I... I wouldn't say hard" Stiles muttered, "she's... she's a friend. A friend who's hot. I have a small crush okay? Of course I do; I have eyes".

"Sure Stiles, a 'small crush'" he quoted with an eye roll, "just ask her out".

Stiles swallowed nervously, "y-you're right though. She'd definitely eat me alive. She seems like the dominant type. God... I would let her do whatever she wanted to me" he daydreamed, staring off into the distance.

"Dude, stop" Scott kicked him under the table, jolting him from the day dream he was in, "don't drag me into your perversions".

The end of the school day came around too slowly for her liking.

As soon as the bell went she headed out to meet Scott and Stiles outside by his jeep, waiting impatiently for them to arrive.

Five minutes later they turned up and she sent them a thundering look, chastising them as if she was their parent.

"Derek's dying you know. You could've walked a little quicker"

"That would then be classed as running and I'm not running for Derek Hale" Stiles snorted sarcastically to which she just sent him a mocking look.

"I get you two are new to this but this is serious" Kayla stated, "an Argent shot him. If he dies... it's war. I'm sure you don't want that Scott".

"Uh... why the hell is Derek here?"

"What?"

She spun around at Stiles observation, seeing Derek stumbling towards them before collapsing in the middle of the parking lot in front of a moving car.

"Shit" she cursed, quickly racing over to him, "shit shit... what did I say about staying in bed?"

He was flat on his back on the tarmac, blinking up at her blearily as Scott and Stiles skidded up behind her, looking around nervously.

"It's the Potpourri" Derek exclaimed, "it stinks".

"What?" she asked, beginning to wonder if this wolfsbane infection had truly gone to his head, "what the hell are you talking about?"

"Your mom's Potpourri" he said through gritted teeth, "I can't stand it".

"What? That little bowls of dried plants she has?" she snorted, "that's what you ran all the way here from?"

Derek shot her a glare, "werewolf senses, remember?"

Before she could retaliate, a bunch of horns started blasting at them impatiently, a queue of traffic beginning to build.

"Crap" Scott said, bending down to grab Derek from the ground, "you can't be seen here".

Kayla grabbed the other side of Derek, helping Scott lead him to Stiles' jeep, bundling him inside the passenger side and shutting the door.

"W-Wait, what are you doing?" Stiles hissed, "why is he going anywhere near my jeep?"

"Scott, go to Allison's. Get that bullet" she said, "Stiles and I will deal with Derek" ignoring Stiles' astonished face and Scott's affronted expression by getting ordered around.

"I'm sorry, did you just say 'Stiles and I' - since when do I want any part of this?" he asked, foot tapping against the ground.

"Since your best friend got turned" she shrugged, "come on, let's go".

"No we are not taking my jeep, I'm not some personal taxi service for dying werewolves, werewolves who want to personally rip my throat out" He exclaimed, running in front of Kayla as Scott watched the two of them argue like an interesting tennis match.

"Stiles, please? I need your help on this one" She said, jutting out her lower lip for extra effect - it usually always worked, she was known to have a certain charm about her. Stiles' jaw worked from side to side, as if he was ingesting a frigging crocodile instead of his own saliva. A few seconds later he relaxed his position, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation.

"Fine, fine - but you're buying me a cheeseburger after this... actually, make that two - with extra fries" he warned, opening the door for her and letting her climb into the back, quickly jumping in too as the impatient honks of the horns got louder.

"We save him..." she smirked playfully, jutting her head forward between the seats, "I'll buy you a hundred" she promised.

"I'll hold you to that" he warned with a small smile, putting the jeep in gear and flooring it from the parking lot.

"So where are we going?" Stiles asked, "gonna need directions here".

"Back to my house. The place you-" throwing the back of Derek's head a pointed glare, "-shouldn't have left".

"I'm not going back there" Derek objected, as stubborn as ever.

"Oh my god, enough with the potpourri" she exclaimed, "it doesn't smell that bad. Stiles, you remember where I live?"

"How does he know where you live?" Derek interjected rudely, throwing them both a suspicious glare.

"Because I invited him over for hot kinky sex" she retorted back without missing a beat as Stiles started choking at her words, "obviously".

"W-What? I... no... we didn't-"

"I was being sarcastic" Kayla said, smirking as Stiles fidgeted uncomfortably, "why do you think Der? It's a small town. Anyway, do you remember?"

Stiles raised his eyebrows, meeting her gaze in the rearview mirror as he swallowed nervously, feeling the hot sweat trickling down the sides of his forehead

"Uh... yeah, you live, like, a few streets away from me".

"Do I?"

"Yeah... we're like neighbours. Maybe. Ish. Well, not really-"

She found his stumblings and stutterings oddly cute, holding back a smile in amusement.

"No" Derek interrupted, "if I go back there... they'll know" he said, "it'll be one of the first places they'll check".

"Do you have any better ideas?"

Derek sighed and stayed quiet, clearly accepting the fact he had no plans.

"Exactly" she smirked, "so my house please Stiles".

"Uh... so am I just dropping you all off or...?" Stiles asked, hesitant and wondering.

"No, you're gonna come in and help in case we need to cut his arm off".

"In? Like... in your house?" Stiles asked slowly, "me? In your house...?"

"Yes Stiles, in my house" she smirked, "why, do you not want to?"

"What? No, of course if I do. Yeah. I've always wondered - well not always, that would be weird. I just wonder what your house would look like. And your bedroom. Not in a creepy way" he rushed out, starting to sweat again, "oh god".

"Stiles? Chill" she advised playfully, "no need to get your panties in a bunch. And Derek? Put away your k-nines".

She watched, amused, as Stiles sharply looked to the left to eye up Derek cautiously, making the jeep swerve to the other side of the road.

"You better not try anything cause the way you're looking a nine-year-old could take you down" Stiles threatened, "and I punch harder than a nine-year-old".

"Just drive" Derek demanded, eyes flashing blue again.

"You know what? I'm getting fed up with your 'attitude' - I'm driving, you answer to me now buddy" Stiles replied back and Kayla leaned forward between the two of them, like a referee in the boxing ring.

"Drive and shut up before I rip out your throat... with my teeth" Derek threatened and Kayla rolled her eyes. Honestly. They couldn't even perform one simple task of getting from point A to point B? Men.

"That threat would be more effective if you didn't look like those zombies from 'thriller'" Stiles replied back sharply and Derek hands clenched, his jaw set rigidly in frustration.

"Okay, there is seriously too much testosterone going on here" Kayla complained as they rounded a corner, Stiles deliberately yanking the wheel of the jeep harder than necessary so Derek's head hit off the glass of the passenger side window.

"That was to establish who's in charge here" Stiles pointed his finger in Derek's face who just glowered back in response as she blew out a long exhausted breath, sagging back in her seat with her arms folded.

This was going to be a long day.

A/N) yay another update, I'm really enjoying this hahaha, love Scott noticing Stiles crushing and the banter between them all haha so please please review and I shall see you all super soon as I need to get back to posting here and not just wattpad and  fan fiction :)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form :( Hope you all enjoy this chapter :)

She had long since tuned out the snappy bickering between Stiles and Derek, too mentally drained to bother trying to play referee with their childish behaviour and pointed to her house towards the end of the street.

"That one Stiles".

"I know" he immediately said confidently before blushing a little, "uh... I remember. It's... it's a beautiful house".

"Just didn't want you to miss it" she smirked, enjoying his awkwardness a little too much as he slowed the jeep down to turn into her driveway, his tyres skidding across the gravel as he parked haphazardly in front of her double garage - garage that was just filled with boxes of stuff they had yet to go through.

Derek's pale, sweaty face glared at Stiles as he shut off the engine, no doubt about to make a snarky remark - or threaten, possibly threaten - but Kayla stuck her head between the seats, sending Derek a warning glare.

"No".

"I didn't say anything".

"You were about to" she remarked, "and y'all are giving me a headache. Shut up".

Derek rolled his eyes, making a move to the door handle but she just reached around and slapped his hand away.

"Are you stupid? You can barely walk, wait for me".

She clambered over the seats, limbs twisting into awkward positions as she landed in the middle of them, shuffling towards Stiles' door and trying to open it.

"Oh, uh... um..." Stiles stuttered, "wh-what's-"

She managed to unclick the door, trying to push it wide open but had somehow landed on Stiles' lap, her legs tucked around his hips as she half fell against the door.

"Uh... heh..." he swallowed nervously, pressing himself back against his seat, "you-you could've just asked me to move".

Her back was awkwardly digging into the steering wheel as she straddled him, a playful smile pulling at her lips.

"Now where's the fun in that?"

He exhaled shakily, his eyes nearly rolling into the back of his head as he uncomfortably held his hands to the side, unsure where to put them that would be appropriate and for a second - just a second - she wished he would touch her - her waist, her thighs, hell even her god damn shoulders but she shook that thought away, leaning sideways to push the door open and hop out the jeep, deliberately doing a playful grind against his hips as she did so. Why? Because she was a flirt. Sue her.

She rushed around to the other side of the jeep and saw Derek beginning to stumble out and hurried over, grabbing his arm before he fell.

"I told you to wait".

"You were giving that fumbling idiot a lap dance. I wasn't staying to watch".

She rolled her eyes, moving an arm around his waist to keep him steady.

"I wasn't giving him a lap dance. I would put a lot more effort in if I was".

Derek scoffed under his breath, clearly not happy with her loose lips as she just looked up to find Stiles exiting the jeep, awkwardly trying to adjust his slacks and tugging his tee down as far as it would go.

No surprise why. Teenage boys and their easy boners.

"Hey, Stiles? Could you open the front door please? The key's in the soil in the plant pot" she asked and Stiles let out a nervous laugh.

"You're willingly telling me where the key to your house is? The key that opens your front door? The... the one into your house where your bedroom is?That key?"

It was clear he wasn't used to this, to someone being so forthcoming and laid back, flirty and openly sexual towards him but she found it cute and endearing, enjoying playing with him.

"Yeah" she shrugged, "it's not like I have anything to worry about, right?" she smirked as Stiles rocked back and forth on his heels, hand rubbing the back of his head as he tried to come up with an answer that wasn't just gibberish.

"Wha-? N-No" He stuttered, "why-why would you have to worry?"

"Just checking you don't go around rooting through girls underwear drawers" she snickered, "though, if you do, mine are in the top drawer".

His eyes widened, breath catching in the back of his throat as he looked completely and utterly stunned, a shiny sweat breaking out along his forehead.

Derek's weight begun to get heavy though, an annoyed grunt being huffed out which Kayla recognised as 'hurry up before I rip someone's head off'

She rolled her eyes at his impatience, helping walking him forward.

"Stiles. Key" she repeated to him because he was standing there awkwardly, as if he had forgotten what he was supposed to do. He cleared his throat and looked around in confusion before running up the steps onto the front porch.

"Right. Got it".

"I would rather get shot again than watch the two of you 'flirting'" Derek said as he rolled his eyes, breathing heavily.

"Shut up - we're not flirting... I don't even think Stiles is capable of 'flirting'" Kayla replied, rolling her eyes because Stiles' awkwardness was what made him... well, him.

"Because I do have a set of K-nines and extremely large cla-"

"Oh my god Der - you're dying and you seriously wanna discuss my relationship status?" she asked in shock, helping him up the few steps.

"Well you're still my cousin and-"

"Right okay, well - let me say this loud and clear. Stiles is my friend. I'm his friend. we share certain interests. We share the same friends. And we both agree you're the world's biggest douche. We are not in a relationship okay?"

Derek watched her face carefully as they passed by Stiles who was holding the front door open.

"Whatever" He grumbled, "but I mean what I said about the claws".

Kayla smirked. Derek was an ass - sometimes - and often didn't show his emotions but when he did it showed what a decent, caring person he was. It was a nice change from the brooding, dark Derek that people saw all the time.

"Yeah... whatever" she mimicked him before placing him gently on the couch and pointing to the pristine white material of the sofa.

"Try and not bleed on the couch - mom just had it steam cleaned" she advised, putting her thumbs up as she prepared to walk away to the kitchen to get the first aid kit, and maybe get Stiles to help because he looked like a little lost puppy standing there not knowing what to do.

"Your level of care is overwhelming" Derek said sarcastically and Kayla just smirked.

"So is your level of sassiness Der - be right back" she called over her shoulder, dragging Stiles into the kitchen and getting prepared for a really really long day.

Stiles stumbled after her, feet tripping over each other as he looked around her house in amazement, letting out a long whistle in appreciation.

"Oh, you got money money" he exclaimed, "my entire house could fit in this kitchen".

She frowned, pausing to glance around.

"It's a normal-sized kitchen, Stiles".

"Normal?" he chuckled, "dude, this is impressive. What is this-" he rapped his knuckles on the breakfast bar, "-real marble?"

"I guess so?"

"What is it your family does again?"

"My mom is the director of an art gallery. My dad... my dad was in business".

"Oh" Stiles muttered, seeming a little disappointed, "so no secret werewolf societies?"

She snorted, "not that I know of".

"That sucks" he muttered, unable to stop himself from taking a walk around the breakfast bar, his eyes zig zagging across the glossy black kitchen, soaking up every inch of high-end decor.

Oh, how the other half lived.

She found his behaviour somewhat humorous, watching as he spun around her kitchen, his busy fingers touching anything and everything that was left out, acting like a kid in a toy shop.

"Wow" she smirked, "if you're impressed by this, wait till you see my bedroom".

He stopped short, quickly turning to face her with an amazed slack look on his face, his eyes widening in surprise.

"W-What?" he wondered, taking a couple of seconds to compose himself by swallowing quickly, "y-your bedroom? As in... your room... with your bed in it...? I can... see that...?"

She simply shrugged, keeping a playful smile on her face.

"Play your cards right, and you just might".

He was like a deer caught in the headlights, overwhelmed by her words and she was having fun playing with him like this, enjoying the way he seemed to melt around her. They bounced off each other well, an ease to their new found friendship.

"Jeez, relax" she chucked, playfully slapping his chest as she laughed, "I didn't invite you around for an orgy. You really need to learn how to act around girls, Stilinski".

He gulped, rubbing his chest where her hand had smacked him a little too boisterously, willing away the redness in his cheeks.

"Heh... uh... Hm-"

She smirked at his inability to string a complete sentence together, climbing onto the worktop to reach the top shelf where the medicine cabinet was and pulled out the large box, holding it out for Stiles to catch.

For someone on the lacrosse team - albeit; mainly the bench - he wasn't very coordinated, stumbling as he reached up to grab it, the contents nearly falling onto his head as she grabbed his shoulder as leverage to push herself down.

"I think he needs a bit more than antiseptic cream" Stiles quipped.

"Surprisingly, my mom doesn't stock new arms" she smirked, raking through the box Stiles was still holding as she picked out some cream, alcohol wipes, bandages and tape and placed it on the breakfast bar.

"I still don't get why he needs the bullet" Stiles murmured, "surely if it's got wolfsbane in it, he should stay far away from it?"

"It's complicated" she shrugged, "but there's different kinds of wolfsbane, each with varying degrees of seriousness and symptoms. Once we know the kind, we know how to treat it".

"And how long do we have?"

Kayla's stomach sunk, briefly pausing in her search for some scissors as she remembered just how time sensitive wolfsbane was.

"Honestly? I... I don't know".

Stiles must've sensed her sudden shift in demeanour from flirty and care free to being haunted by something, her face pinched with grief.

"This is how your dad and brother died, wasn't it?" he asked, keeping his voice as gentle as possible, tinged with sympathy.

Her eyes shot up to meet his, surprised by his deduction. How did he know that? She was normally so careful about her past, her emotions... never letting anyone get too far past her defenses, but he knew. He somehow knew.

"How did you...?" she wondered, unable to finish her sentence, "I didn't say anything about wolfsbane when I told you about their murders".

He shrugged, "your eyes got sad".

Such a simple explanation, but somehow, it cut deep.

She tried to keep the sadness at bay, to not let people see her insecurities, but she let her guard down.

She let her guard down around this hyper, awkward human kid.

She finally found the scissors in the mess that was their medicine box, holding the blades as she looked down.

"It was meant to be our family movie night" she muttered, keeping her voice low and quiet as she focused on playing with the small scissors, "that morning I... I just left for school like normal. Dylan was going to pick up the popcorn, and dad had asked me to please try and keep things civil between mom and I. He said he just wanted to be a normal family. But that night I was running late. I don't know why... it couldn't have been anything important, but I got home late and they were already there. The hunters. I... I froze" she explained, "I just froze. All I could focus on was the spilt popcorn all over the carpet and... and then they got shot. Multiple times with wolfsbane bullets. By the time I tried to save them, it was too late. The wolfsbane was already working its way to their hearts. They died en route to the hospital. The doctors tried but... but there was nothing else that could be done".

She could feel Stiles' gaze burning with intensity as he stared at her, watching and listening to her intently as she made herself vulnerable to him, baring her heart and soul.

"So yeah..." she shrugged, looking up and trying to lighten the mood, "wolfsbane sucks".

"Wow... uh... that's... that's heavy. I'm so sorry" Stiles said, "were they ever caught?"

"No" she shook her head, "they got what they came for and then disappeared. I wish I followed them - did something to stop them or catch them, but I didn't. But Derek? Derek I can save. We have time - not much, but time. I'm not going to let the same thing that happened to them, happen to him. No way".

"I understand" he nodded, "it's not the same but... my mom died. Health reasons" he added, "I know what it feels like to be powerless to help the people you love. To just watch everything play out, and yeah, it sucks" he agreed, "it's the worst feeling in the world".

"I'm sorry. I didn't know" she said, "the dead parent club is kinda depressing huh?"

He smirked, "oh, 1000%".

"Don't even get free doughnuts here".

"Just a lifetime of trauma".

"I would prefer the doughnuts" she chuckled, grabbing the stuff off the breakfast bar before smiling softly at Stiles, "but in all seriousness... I really am sorry. No one should lose a parent so young".

He simply smiled back, both connecting and understanding each other on a whole new level as they bonded over their shared pain. But, of course, she couldn't let it get too sappy as she made her way back through to the living room, surprised to see Derek still sitting where she left him.

"Holy shit, you did as you were told".

He sent her a glare, holding his bad arm.

"Jeez, touchy touchy" she muttered, perching on the edge of the sofa next to him, "how are you feeling?"

She pulled back his bandages and squinted at the damage. The wound looked awful - bruised and black, oozing a think bloody substance and Kayla was just glad she wasn't squeamish.

"Like death" was Derek's short reply, making Kayla roll her eyes.

"Really? I never guessed with it being a wolfs bane bullet and all" she quipped back sarcastically, undoing his old bandages and wiping gently at the wound with alcohol wipes, "If Scott doesn't get this bullet... what're we gonna do?" Kayla asked carefully just as Stiles walked in, holding the phone up in his hand.

"Yeah... Scott doesn't have it yet but he will" Stiles said, somewhat nervously as the two Hales stared up at him.

"I trust him" Kayla said, turning back to Derek, "but seriously, do you have a plan B - everyone needs a plan B and C and D and hell, the whole of the frigging alphabet".

"I have an idea - not sure if it'll work or not".

"Wow, you're just spilling with positivity - I mean, really" Stiles spoke up and the two males just glared at one another from across the living room.

"What's the idea?" Kayla asked, trying to think about what his plan was but coming up a blank. Surely if there was a cure then she should have found it out before it killed her dad and brother, "because if it's cutting off your own arm, that should be a last resort".

Derek simply sighed, proving to her he had no other plan.

"Oh my god you're gonna cut off your arm" Kayla exclaimed, "why do you have to jump to the most dramatic option?!"

"What? No, no, no, that is just wrong and... ew, no" Stiles said, arms waving around, "I'm not watching that".

"If it works, I'll heal".

"Yeah, and that's a big maybe" Kayla said, "there has to be other things to try before that".

"Hopefully soon, because dude... you are seriously starting to smell like death" Stiles piped up, swallowing thickly as the two Hales glared across at him once again.

One thing about Kayla is that she did not have a lot of patience.

She hated waiting. She found it a waste of time. She despised being forced to wait things out, not knowing the outcome.

So every time Stiles' phone beeped, she found herself sitting up straight, ready and raring to go but Stiles just shook his head and she deflated back on the sofa, going back to twiddling her thumbs.

A few minutes later she heard the shrill ring of Stiles' phone ringing and perked up, sending him a hopeful look and he simply nodded as he accepted the call.

"Scott hey, how's it going?"

Pause.

"Have you found it yet?"

Pause.

"Well what are we supposed to do with him - Kayla and I are way outta our league here".

"Hey, speak for yourself, amateur".

Stiles simply rolled his eyes, focusing back on the call.

"What? Aw dude, you owe me big time... he smells like death. Why would we take him there?"

Pause.

"Okay, yeah I got it"

"Wait, what?" Kayla demanded, standing up and striding over to Stiles, pulling the phone from his hand and putting it on speaker, ignoring his flabbergasted facial expression.

"Scott, what the hell?"

"Take Derek to the animal clinic - it's closer and I uh... I dunno where you live" Scott admitted sheepishly.

"Do you have the bullet or not?" Derek demanded loudly, an edge of anxious worry in his tone.

"Look - their house is basically a Wal-Mart for guns okay? I need time".

"Derek doesn't have time Scott" Kayla said, closing her eyes briefly, "If you don't have the bullet within the hour, I'm coming over".

"You can't-"

"I can and I will" she said determinedly, "and I don't care if I have to chloroform them all to get it. That would put a real dampener on your date, huh?"

"I'll get it" Scott reassured, his voice just barely shone a hushed whisper, "I'm on it. Don't worry".

'Yeah, easier said than done Scott' she wanted to say but, instead of being her usually snippy self, she simply ended the call, not wanting to say anything she would regret.

She wasn't all that keen on taking Derek somewhere she didn't know. At least in places she was familiar with, she knew the exits and entrances, the best hiding places and where the weapons were. This animal clinic was unknown territory and Kayla hated unknown territory.

Unfortunately, Derek's health took a sharp decline and made the decision to suck it up and go there.

The jeep ride there was mainly uneventful - Stiles and Derek took a few digs at each other but no one got their throat ripped out so Kayla guessed that was as good an outcome as any.

"S'okay... I can manage" Derek said through gritted teeth, pulling himself out of the jeep. He was damn stubborn that's for sure - If he could just let go of his pride for two frigging minutes then maybe Kayla could actually help him.

"Just don't blame me if you face plant the ground then" Kayla said in a sarcastic tone, helping Stiles open the side entrance door that slid up and watching in worry - though she covered it up with a poker face - as Derek stumbled in, sitting down on the piles of dog food clumsily.

It was then Stiles' phone went off and Kayla's head snapped up - Scott better have that damn bullet or so help her god the outcome would not be pretty.

Stiles answered it quickly, shooting them both a confused look.

"... Nordic blue Monkshood..." he muttered, "I thought you said this was a wolfsbane bullet?"

"Same thing" both Kayla and Derek said at the same time, causing Stiles' eyes to go wide and stare at both of them cautiously.

"So creepy" he murmured under his breath.

"It's really rare" Derek said, eyes sliding shut for a few seconds, "Just... just make sure he gets the bullet".

Stiles spoke to Scott for a few more seconds before hanging up, meeting their expectant stares.

"He's gonna try and leave now".

"Try?" she asked, "what do you mean 'try'? We're kind of on a time crunch here".

"Well, y'know-" Stiles shrugged, "-it is a date".

"Oh my god"she exclaimed, "this is ridiculous. He's had enough time. Stiles, can I have your keys please?" Kayla asked, holding out her hand expectantly.

"What? Why?" he asked, sharing a confused glance with Derek who was shaking his head at her in warning.

"Because, in case you hadn't noticed, Derek looks to be on his last legs".

"Oh I noticed - just didn't think it was important" Stiles replied offhandedly and Kayla saw Derek glare at the back of Stiles' head.

"Oh for god's sake" Kayla murmured, striding forward, invading his personal space and sliding her hand in his pants pocket, fingers scraping his upper thigh as she grabbed his jeep keys.

"What're yo- Oh god... I-"

He froze, completely stilling as he held his hands up in surprise, mouth slack as her hand accidentally grazed his crotch as she pulled the keys out.

"Don't be such a guy" Kayla said, holding the keys up with her thumb and finger, shaking them in his face, "thanks for the keys though" she added with a wide smile, ignoring both Derek's and Stiles wide eyed stares.

"Kayla, you can't go round there - it's dangerous" Derek said, shakily pulling himself to his feet, holding onto the wall for support.

"And who says you can drive her without my permission?" Stiles demanded, holding out his hands for the keys back. Her, seriously? Such a guy, Kayla thought with a shake of her head.

"First off - I doubt you could stop me anyway, what with you looking ready to be buried six feet under, and Stiles... well, I could probably kick his ass" she said confidently.

"Gee thanks" was Stiles' snarky reply as he folded his arms across his chest, but made no move to correct her because - duh - of course she could kick his ass.

"Look, I'm just gonna go and drag Scott outta there, nothing more... it's either that or you drop dead screaming in pain, there's not a lot of choices here Der" she told Derek, standing in front of him stubbornly.

Derek blew out a long exhale of air, his expression tense and taut as he realised their options were seriously lacking.

He sighed heavily, "I can't believe i'm saying this but... fine - in and out, that's it" he warned, pointing a finger in her general direction, "you're not staying any longer than necessary".

"Of course - I'm not gonna willingly hang out with those hunters anyway" she told him, preparing to run out the door and zoom off to Allison's house but stopped and turned around, realising if things went badly this was the last time she could ever see Derek again.

She stepped forward and gently wrapped her arms around his torso, feeling him clench up for a few seconds before relaxing, patting her back awkwardly.

They weren't a 'lovey dovey' type of family... affection did not come easy to her, but she had lost enough people. People she didn't get to say goodbye too. More recently, Laura being one of them. She wasn't going to make that same mistake.

"If we're not back in time... do your last resort- no arm is better than no life" she whispered in his ear, feeling him nod before pulling back, all three of them silent. Stiles watching them like they were some frigging complicated science experiment or something.

"Right... bye" she said, jogging out the side door, jeep keys held tightly in her hands.

"Be careful with my jeep - she grinds in second" Stiles warned as she climbed into the drivers seat, biting his finger nails nervously. Kayla just waved her hand in acknowledgement before stepping on the gas pedal and racing out of the parking lot at full speed, tires squealing against the concrete.

"If she gets a speeding ticket for doing this for you, you're paying for it" Stiles warned, pointing an accusatory finger in Derek's direction who was slumped up against the wall in exhaustion, wondering why the hell his cousin left him with such an annoying teenager.

Reckless should've been her middle name, because that's what she was.

Not necessarily in the self-destructive kind of way, but she was rash and impulsive, not always thinking things all the way through. Usually, it got her in trouble. Either by her saying the wrong thing, or doing something risky that others would raise their eyebrows at.

So why should her driving be any different?

She paid no attention to the speed limit, let alone the road. Her whole focus was on getting to Allison's as soon as possible, even if that meant nearly upturning the jeep every time she took the corners too quick or cutting through a red light, resulting in many horns getting honked at her.

She easily cut her journey time in half though, slamming on the brakes she skidded into the Argents driveway, jumping out without even bothering to turn off the engine or close the door and ran up to the front door, banging on it repeatedly and urgently, no subtlety in sight.

It didn't take long for Chris Argent, the slightly creepy and intimidating man, to open the door wide, his ice cold stare glaring down at her in confusion.

"Is Scott here? It's an emergency" Kayla said quickly, not bothering with the polite formalities as it was a complete waste of time - especially to this family - and just as she said that, Allison and Scott came up behind him, Scott looking like he was ready to leave and Kayla silently thanked whatever God was out there.

He must have the bullet then, hallelujah.

"Kayla, what's wrong?" Allison asked, frowning in worry, "has something happened?"

"Oh, um... Deaton needs Scott, something about a dog and an earring - I never really heard" she rambled as another Argent, Allison's aunt she assumed, came and stood next to the little group.

"And who's this? Another one of Allison friend's? It's a pleasure to meet you" Kate grinned, though there was an underlining menacing tone that Kayla didn't like one bit.

Kayla forced herself to take a calming breath, reminding herself what was at stake her. She couldn't be her usual, snarky self... not with Derek's life on the line.

"Yes, yes I'm new too, yada yada yada, but we really need to-"

"What's your name?" the woman asked, raising her eyebrows and smirking slightly, her caramel locks bouncing around her shoulders.

Kayla couldn't resist what happened next. She just had to get under her skin. Why? Because something about this woman just pissed her off.

"Hale" Kayla said, her gaze strong and unwavering, not willing to back down, "Kayla Hale".

It may be stupid to out herself like this, especially to another Argent, but it was worth it to see the woman's eyes widen slightly in surprise, her forehead creasing in alarm.

'Guess you didn't get us all like you thought you did' Kayla thought angrily. The Argent family were suspects in starting the fire but, to be honest, Kayla had no idea if they did actually do it or not. They were a small group of suspects out of hundreds of hunters, but certainly the family with the most balls.

"Hale? Well..." Allison's Aunt smirked, "it's so nice to finally meet you. I'm Kate" she held out her hand, her voice dripping with faux niceness, "me and your family go way back".

Kayla felt that burning, red-hot fire curl inside her stomach, her anger - usually quick to rise - was desperate to be freed, to be allowed to lash out at this despicable excuse of a human being, but she used every ounce of self-control to swallow it back.

That wasn't usually like her. She was quick to react, her negative emotions usually getting the best of her, but she couldn't allow that to happen.

Not now. Not with Derek's life on the line.

She forced a sickly sweet smile on her face, reaching out to shake her hand back but made sure to squeeze it tightly, letting Kate know she wasn't playing.

"Oh, really?" Kayla asked, feigning innocence, "they never mentioned you" she shrugged, referencing the snide remark Kate had made about knowing her family, "guess you weren't that important".

Kate laughed, throwing her head back in delight as she threw her a wink.

"Ask your cousin. He'll remember me".

She wondered what that meant, her stony stare briefly twisting into confusion. What cousin? Laura, or Derek? Why would they know Kate personally?

"Anyway-" Kate continued, taking Kayla's silence as a way to change the topic of conversation, "I know this is an emergency, but I have a very important question to ask brown eyes over here" snapping her attention towards Scott who perked up in surprise and a little bit of guilt.

"Me?"

"Yes, you Scott - now... I hate to be the one pointing the finger but... what did you take from my bag?" Kate asked, crossing her arms intimidatingly but keeping that butter wouldn't melt smile on her face.

Psychopath much?

Kayla gulped nervously, her entire body lighting up with new found anxiety as Scott's panicked eyes flickered in her direction, begging for help.

"Uh... what?" Scott asked in shock, and Kayla admired how he tried to act genuinely confused - she just hoped it paid off.

"My bag - what did you take from it?"

Scott stayed silent, looking between her and Allison and Kayla felt like kicking him into making up an answer - nothing says 'guilty' more than staying silent and looking like a damn criminal.

"Do you want me to repeat the question? Maybe enunciate more clearly?"

"What are you talking about?" Chris asked, glaring at them all with new found suspicion and Kayla just wanted to grab Scott by the arm and high tail it the hell out of there before things got worse.

"My bag was open in the guest room and when I left it was shut - Scott goes to the bathroom and then it's magically opened, care to explain how that could happen Scott?"

"Scott didn't take anything" Allison protested and it was then Kayla felt something touching her hand. Without looking down or doing anything that would give herself away, she kept her hand still, slightly turning the palm inwards. Whilst the Argent family was focusing on Allison, Scott's warm hand touched her open palm and pressed something cool into it.

The bullet.

Kayla closed her hand around it, keeping it tucked away in her grip as Scott pulled his hand away, leaving his arms free and dangling by his sides as she carefully stuffed the bullet into the back pocket of her jeans, remaining poker faced.

"Something was taken from my bag" Kate continued, unwilling to let the subject drop, "now, look - I hate to be the accuser here Scott, because I really do love those adorable brown eyes, but I don't know if you're a klepto, if you're curious, or if you're just stupid. But answer the question. What did you take?"

The whole situation was tense and awkward, and even Kayla was getting a touch of second-hand embarrassment.

"Nothing. I swear".

"You don't mind proving it, do you?"

"Are you serious?" Allison protested, looking mortified, "this is ridiculous. Stop this".

"How about you show us what's in your pockets?" Kate shrugged, "then you can go on your merry way and help... that dog, or whatever".

"Dad?" Allison asked desperately, but Chris simply shook his head, beginning to look intrigued and a little suspicious.

"Come on Scott... prove me wrong" Kate challenged and Kayla stood there awkwardly, just glad Scott had enough sense and passed her the bullet before it was too late.

Scott sighed, but knowing he was in the clear thanks to her showing up at the last minute, began to turn out his pockets, appearing completely innocent, when suddenly Allison whipped out a small package, holding it up for all to see.

"See? Scott didn't take anything - I did" She said, her face twisting into an embarrassed, horrified stare, like she wished the ground would just open up and swallow her whole and Kayla could clearly see why.

Allison was holding up a condom packet - thankfully, unopened and unused - and Kayla couldn't help the amused snort that escaped, biting her lip to at least try and hold back her chuckle.

"Dude-" Kayla chortled under her breath, "-at least steal the good kind. Those suck".

Her effort to lighten the mood fell on deaf ears, no one paying even the slightest bit of attention to her.

"Well..." Kate trailed off, everyone completely silent, not knowing what to say.

"I'm sure you would want some 'family time'" Kayla broke the silence, grabbing Scott's hand and dragging him over the threshold, almost making him trip, "so we're just gonna... go... there's a dog and an earring needing our help" 

Unsurprisingly, no one protested their exit, Chris slamming the door shut behind them.

"Holy shit Scott" Kayla exclaimed, dragging him towards the jeep, "Allison wants to bang you. That's, like, front page news".

"She likes me" he muttered, face breaking out into a cheeky grin, his eyes clouding over as he began most likely daydreaming about getting laid - again, such a guy.

But Kayla couldn't deny one thing: Allison was totally and completely infatuated with him.

She wondered what that was like... to be so head over heels in love and lust with someone that everything else became small and unimportant. She doubted she would ever find that.

"She really does and I'm super happy for the two of you but why don't you grab your bike and let's get going eh? It's kind of a life or death situation here" She said and Scott nodded, still looking to be in a daze as grabbed his bike off the ground and placed it in the back of Stiles' jeep.

"Wait... how did you get Stiles' jeep?" Scott asked, sliding in next to her, "he's very protective about his jeep".

"I stole his keys" she shrugged nonchalantly, not really seeing anything wrong with that as Scott looked at her with wide eyes, "what? It was an emergency".

she started the engine and, without missing a beat, took off, the sudden on burst of speed making Scott fly back in his seat as he tried to grab onto the dashboard in alarm, getting thrown about like a rag doll.

"Whoa" he exclaimed, suddenly looking like he had aged ten years as she gingerly reached for his seatbelt, buckling up even though - hello - werewolf healing, "a little warning would've been nice".

Kayla was about three inches away from crashing into the animal clinic but managed to slam on the brakes just in time, hurriedly turning off the engine and jumping out, ignoring Scott holding his chest and muttering a quick prayer.

She followed him into the clinic, skidding into the back room only to come face to face with the sight of Derek leaning over the table, Stiles getting ready to chop off his arm with a tiny electric saw.

"What the hell are you doing?" Scott exclaimed, completely mortified.

Stiles let out an exhilarated chuckle as he pulled away the saw from Derek's arm, running his hands over his short hair.

"Oh, you just prevented a lifetime of nightmares - thank you" Stiles said as Kayla raced past him to grab a hold of Derek who looked deathly pale, holding him up.

"Please tell me you have it" he gasped, his whole body shaking.

"Yes, yes of course" Kayla replied, pulling out the bullet from her pocket and handing it over to Derek.

"Do you know what you have to do?"

"I need to... I'm gonna... I..."

He was fading - and fading fast. She only just managed to wrap her arms around him before he could drop to the floor like a stone, the prescious bullet slipping from his grasp.

She tried to reach for it, to catch it before it fell but Derek's weight made her off balance and, as she leaned to the side, Derek's body pushed into her and they both tumbled to the floor, Kayla wincing as he fell on top of her legs.

"No, no, no, no, no" Scott was murmuring as he raced forward to try and grab it while Kayla used all her strength to pull Derek onto her lap, tapping his cheek.

"Der? Der can you hear me? Derek?" she demanded in worry, tears beginning to blur her vision.

This could not be happening again.

Not again. Not to Derek.

Stiles slid down beside her, leaning over Derek as he shook him to try and wake him up.

"Not again, not again, not again" she chanted, holding onto him for dear life, "this is not happening again, it's not happening again, it's not happening again-"

Stiles was watching her, a little worried and a little in surprise, not used to seeing this delicate side of her. She had always come across as so... hard, he supposed. So composed. Never did he expect to see her get upset.

"Will punching him work?" Stiles asked desperately, placing his hand on her shoulder to try and get her attention.

"What?"

"If I punch him, will it wake him up?"

"Maybe. But he'll also be very pissed".

"Scott, what're we gonna do cause I think he's dying... I think he's dead" Stiles exclaimed in worry as Kayla manoeuvred Derek's body off her, gently placing his head on the concrete.

"I don't know, hold on" was Scott's strained reply, trying with all his might to reach for the bullet that had fallen down a drain.

Stiles shook his head, already seeming to regret whatever idea had sprung into his head as he muttered a quiet "please don't kill me for this" and pulled back his arm, punching Derek square across the face.

To her surprise; it worked. Derek gasped, his eyes flying open as he bang coughing and Kayla just simply wordlessly grabbed him, helping him to stand. He was unsteady but still alive - which meant they had time.

"I need the bullet" Derek said as Scott ran over, having used his claws to reach the bullet, and thrusted it into his hands. She just stood there, steadying Derek with a well placed hand on his back, watching in an equal amount of fascination and fear as Derek opened up the bullet, spilling it's wolfs bane contents and lighting it on fire before pushing it into his open wound.

She grimaced as he let out a howl of rage and fell to his knees on the floor, Scott grabbing her arm to stop her from going after him. After a few seconds Derek stopped screaming and his wound was completely healed.

"That was awesome! yes!" Stiles said and Kayla had to agree as she let a small smile grace her lips. Derek was completely fine, thank god. There was one thing she couldn't lose, and that was more family.

The next few minutes consisted of Scott warning Derek to stay away from him and threatening to go back to the Argents but, before Kayla could smack him over the head for being so stupid, Derek shouted at him, saying they were hunters and couldn't trust them. Kayla had to agree with that - she trusted Allison, sure - well maybe - but the rest of them? No way in hell.

"Wait... you're gonna take him to Peter?" Kayla asked in shock, lowering her voice and leaning forward, "you can't... he's... he's in bad shape Derek".

"I have no choice - it's either this, or those two jackasses get us all killed".

Their uncle Peter still remained in a near comatose state, nearly his entire body covered in harsh burns. If that didn't open Scott's eyes to what hunters - what the Argents - were capable of, she didn't know what would.

"Fine" she shrugged, not having the energy to object, "but you can go alone - I hate hospitals".

That was no word of a lie.

She despised hospitals. They gave her the ick. They were depressing - too clean and clinical. They were the place that people died... why would anyone like that?

Derek nodded in understanding, turning to face Scott.

"I'll show you just how nice you think they are".

She was surprised Scott willingly went with Derek, given their already strained relationship, but in a way was thankful. Maybe this was a turning point? Maybe, just maybe, it would open Scott's eyes to the dangers of being a werewolf, and how it wasn't all becoming good at sports and getting the girl.

She watched them leave, wordlessly following Stiles to his jeep that she had parked haphazardly squint, the front of the bonnet nearly crashing through the wall.

"Oh my god" Stiles exclaimed, biting down on his fist to no doubt stop the torrent of swear words that wanted to escape his mouth as he saw his jeep, cringing at the lingering smell of burning tyres.

"What?" she asked cluelessly, "I didn't crash it".

"Oh my god-"

"And I only hit like, three curbs"

He squeaked against his hand, his terrified eyes giving the jeep a thorough once over as he rounded it, inspecting it for any new bumps or scratches.

"Stiles, I can drive" she reassured, "I'm an excellent driver. I just drive fast... and get distracted sometimes..."

He was inspecting the back of the jeep but she still heard the terrified whimper and simply chuckled to herself, climbing in the passenger side and waited for him to get in too.

Once he was finally done scrutinising every inch of his jeep, he climbed in and threw her a warning stare.

"You are never driving this jeep again".

She snorted, unable to hold back her amusement.

"Relax" she chuckled, "I don't want to. It feels like every time you turn a corner, something very important falls from the hood".

"If anything does fall, it's not important. Everything that is, is duct-taped".

"Is that meant to make me feel safer?"

He threw her a sheepish look, "doesn't it?"

She just laughed, choosing not to reply as Stiles started up the engine and reversed from the parking lot, tilting his ear to the steering wheel as if trying to listen to make sure she didn't damage the mechanics of it.

"Stiles?"

"Hm?"

"Relax, your jeep is fine" she chuckled, "well... fine as the condition you gave it to me in".

"You mean stole" he corrected with a smirk, "I didn't have much of a choice".

She just shrugged playfully, letting him know their banter was keeping her occupied but it didn't take long for Stiles to work up the courage to ask about one person: Peter.

"What was Derek talking about in there? Y'know, about showing Scott something? And someone called Peter?"

"Our uncle Peter was the only survivor of the fire and he's uh... he's burnt pretty badly" Kayla explained, meeting Stiles' gaze as he glanced over, "he's in the long term care facility, pretty much comatose. I guess Derek wants Scott to see the truth about the Argents the hard way".

"Oh, I'm... uh, I'm sorry" Stiles said awkwardly, "can he not heal?"

"No" she shook her head, "the damage was too extensive. He's healed a lot, physically, but his mind is damaged. I can't see a way back for him".

"So fire is dangerous to werewolves?"

"It's dangerous to anyone Stiles" she chuckled, trying to keep the mood light, "but yeah. It's dangerous to werewolves. Superficial burns? They're fine. They'll heal. But the fire was started with accelerant... it made it burn quick, and hot, and burned right down to the bone. They couldn't escape because of mountain ash... so they were trapped. There's only so far supernatural healing will get you... and it doesn't bring you back to life".

She watched as Stiles swallowed the disgusted lump in his throat, his face screwing up at the thought of burnt flesh.

"But I'm sure I read somewhere that it was an electrical fire...?"

"Nope. Whoever runs those investigations were corrupt. They lied on the report, why? I don't know, And by the time my dad tried to get it reinvestigated, all the evidence was gone".

"Why would someone falsify reports?"

"Why would someone kill ten members of one family?" she retaliated with a one-shouldered shrug, "because people suck. People are the worst. Hunters-" she emphasised, "-are the worst. If it's not fire, it's wolfsbane. If it's not wolfsbane, it's chopping people in half. If it's not any of those despicable ways, then they'll fry them like an egg with thousands of joules of electricity and get off on it. I'm happy Derek is showing Scott their true colours, I really am. Because I know - I know - if the Argents ever found out about him, he would end up like my family, or worse".

Stiles was listening contently, his eyes darting over every few seconds to watch her ramble, so much conviction in her voice - strong and unwavering, burning with a fierce passion for justice.

"And I like Allison, I really do" she continued, "but I'm also being very, very cautious of her. She may not know about werewolves, but I bet when she finds out she'll follow in her family's footsteps. Which means Scott, and me, become prime hunting targets".

"But you're human-"

"It hasn't stopped them before" she muttered, "sometimes, just being associated with werewolves is enough".

Stiles had then turned into her driveway, parking just outside the double garage and Kayla was pleased to see her mom's car still not here.

"I'm sorry... that was really insensitive of me to ask-"

"It's fine - it happened years ago, I can talk about it without breaking down y'know" she reassured him, playfully nudging her elbow with his, "could I do with a few thousand hours of therapy? Probably. But I'm fine".

He seemed relieved, happy she wasn't going to bite his head off for prying into her personal life.

"Anyway, thanks for the ride Stiles and thank-you for helping Derek - he appreciates it but just doesn't like to show it, he hates being in people's debts" she chuckled, grabbing her bag before leaning forward and giving him a quick peck on the cheek, ignoring his flabbergasted expression as he looked at her as if she had just propositioned him for sex.

"Oh, uh... um, n-no problem, I'm all about saving the weak - y'know like batman, though Scott would claim he's batman and I'm robin but seriously, I wanna be batman" Stiles rambled nervously, cheeks flushing again as Kayla watched him in amusement, probably unaware he was still holding the cheek she had kissed, like he was savouring the lingering feel of her lips.

Remembering the promise she made to him she pulled a pen and paper from her bag, quickly scribbling something down on it and folding it up, placing it in his hands.

"Good night Stiles - I'll see ya tomorrow" she bid farewell as she slid from the jeep, jogging up the path and unlocking her front door, giving him a quick wave before disappearing from sight.

Stiles shook his head to get him to focus, bleary and overwhelmed with confusion, finally dropping his hand from his cheek as he looked down at the paper in wondering. What could be written that she couldn't just say to his face? Some part of him hoped it was maybe an invite to her bedroom at some point, but he knew he wouldn't be that lucky.

He unfolded the paper and let out an amused chuckle at what he read, caramel brown eyes lighting up with something close to adoration.

I.O.U

100 x cheeseburgers like I promised.

And I always keep my promises, even ridiculously expensive ones like this.

Thanks for all your help, Kayla :)

Stiles smile was wide as he pulled out of the driveway, carefully folding up the bit of paper and placing it in his pants pocket, eyes flickering to the rearview mirror as her house disappeared from sight.

A/N)  I seriously cannot wait for more flirting and more moments between these two. Defo gonna be more of a build up haha so hope you all enjoyed and please please review, I shall see you all super soon I promise :) x

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form. I hope you all enjoy this next instalment and please keep reviewing and supporting, thank you :)

To her complete surprise (and annoyance), she was woken up not long after eight the next morning.

A Saturday morning.

The incessant knocking was sending shocks through her body, so loud that even covering her head with her pillow wasn't working. Nothing drowning out the thumps of bare knuckles against wood, combined with the high-pitched chime of the doorbell bouncing off the walls.

"Oh my god" she muttered in frustration, throwing the pillow off her face and groaning as it knocked over the lamp on her bedside table, "I am coming!"

Her yell clearly wasn't enough to deter whoever was at the door, the impatient determination of the knocking seeming to get quicker as she growled under her breath, throwing back the covers and stomping down the stairs, her bare feet striking the floor with loud slaps.

She could barely see, her eyes still bleary with sleep as she reached the front door and turned the key, yanking it open and getting hit with the harsh brightness of the low, early morning sun.

"Oh... hi" the voice said in surprise, "um, sorry, did I wake you?"

She squinted, throwing a hand up to cover her eyes, her wild knotty hair covering her face, but was still able to recognise the fidgety silhouette of none other than Stiles Stilinski.

"Stiles" she muttered through gritted teeth, "what the fuck? It's a Saturday. Of course I was sleeping. What the hell are you doing here? I saw you less than twelve hours ago".

He held up a binder, trying to keep his smile light and playful but was unable to stop the sheepish look that twisted his features.

"Chemistry project, remember? We got paired up".

She glanced down, totally unamused at the binder, and then back to his face, her annoyed stare making him gulp nervously.

"Last night you said 'see you tomorrow' which I thought was you implying you wanted to work on the project today, y'know, as it's due Monday?"

"So you thought it was a good idea to turn up, unannounced, at 8am?"

"I did text. Several times in fact. You didn't answer".

"Oh jeez, I wonder why" she remarked sarcastically, "maybe because it's a Saturday morning and I was sleeping".

"Yeah" he winced, "I kind of gathered that now".

"Why aren't you sleeping?"

He shrugged, rolling backwards and forwards on the balls of his feet, "I was wired after last night. Couldn't shut off".

She was beginning to soften a little, eyes adjusting to the light as she dropped her hand and sidestepped a little, holding the door a little wider.

Stiles seemed confused, his brows furrowing at her movement and she just rolled her eyes, extending her arm out sarcastically.

"Well?" she asked, "are you coming in or not?"

His expression screamed 'holy hell' as he looked at her like she had six heads, letting out a nervous laugh.

"In your house? Again?"

"It's just a house Stiles" she muttered, "not my vagina, calm down".

He flushed a little, still not used to her unfiltered way with words as he shrugged.

"Sorry. Just assumed you'd want to go to the library or something".

Despite her tolerance level for Stiles being much higher than for most, she was tired and cranky and annoyed at getting woken from her blissful slumber, especially considering she didn't get a decent sleep most nights anyway, and he wisely didn't argue, stepping into the foyer.

"Wasn't Scott a part of this group project too?" she asked, shutting the door behind him.

"Yeah but he sucks at Chemistry. Thought we could make a start without him" Stiles explained, allowing himself a few seconds to gaze around the magnificent entrance to her home, still amazed by the sheer size before finally allowing his eyes to settle on her, finally realising her state of undress.

"Should I be flattered or creeped out you want to spend time alone with me?" she joked, folding her arms across her chest.

She watched him swallow, eyes seemed much wider than usual as he hyper-focused on her stare, his freckled cheeks becoming an adorable pink.

She knew why straight away.

All because she was simply standing in front of him in some short short flannel sleep shorts and a white vest top.

She smirked, immediately brightening up at his embarrassed and uncomfortable stance, wondering what else he expected at eight o'clock in the frigging morning.

"I'll go get dressed" she smirked, rolling her eyes playfully as she made her way to the bottom of the staircase, turning around to cock a brow at him, "well? Are you coming?"

He gulped, pointing to his chest before his eyes glanced up the staircase, like she was suggesting he go into unknown dangerous territory, sort of like a minefield.

"U-Up there?"

"I mean, you're more than welcome to hang out by the shoe rack, but my room is much more comfortable" she said with a smirk, beginning to make her way up the stairs and it took him a few seconds to respond, nodding to nothing but thin air and clumsily following her up.

She didn't know why he got so clumsy and nervous around something so simple, but it amused her nonetheless, constantly finding herself hiding her smile when he acted like that.

It was just a room. Literally, just a room. But then again, maybe he hadn't been in many girls' room before.

She padded along the hallway and into the room at the very far left, keeping the door open and waiting for Stiles.

He hovered over the threshold, looking like a nervous puppy as his quick eyes flitted around, soaking up the image of her bedroom like it was the most fascinating thing he had seen.

"Oh my god" she muttered, her patience running out as she simply grabbed his wrist and pulled him in with a smirk, "you need to chill out. It's just my bedroom".

He clumsily flapped about for a few seconds, getting his bearings as he tried to shake the anxiety from his limbs, swallowing back the twitchiness.

"Heh... it's... it's nice" he murmured, scratching the back of his neck as he allowed himself to glance around, "very... earthly".

"Oh, I'm sorry" she smirked, "did I disappoint? Did you expect glittery pink walls and fluffy pillows?"

"With you? I never have any idea what to expect".

Her playful smirk faded into a delicate, genuine small smile, quietly pleased with the assumption.

"I'll jump in the shower. Take a seat, snoop about, I don't care" she shrugged, "just don't break anything".

He nodded helplessly, watching her like a puppy dog as she slipped into her en-suite and pushed the door over, not enough for it to click shut, but enough that it left just a sliver of a crack for him to be able to peer through it he was nosey enough.

The shadows of her moving around kept catching his eye, leaning sideways to see her darting from one side of the bathroom to the other and, only when he caught glimpses of her bare skin, did he jump back and slap himself across the face.

No Stiles, don't go there.

Once he heard the shower turn on, he felt safe enough to allow his eyes to peer around the room, soaking it all in.

Her room was big - really big - a king size bed placed against the wall, adjacent to large arched windows that opened up into one of those small balconies, covered in thin white nets that were draped back.

The walls were a light sage green, with framed pictures decorating the wall, rustic oak furniture spread around the room. A vanity table next to her bed, a large mirror standing atop it with random bits of make up strewn across it. On the opposite end of the room, a desk with her laptop and notebooks spread across it. Built-in wardrobes were opposite the window next to the bathroom, the doors slightly open so he could see an array of colours.

Next, her bed.

The bundle of covers were in disarray, half falling off the bed in her haste to answer the door, a pillow fallen on the floor next to a knocked-over lamp.

Surprisingly, no brown boxes still filled with unpacked things. He supposed she had finally accepted the move to Beacon Hills, despite how she felt about it.

He walked around her bed and towards her desk, looking at the mess. She seemed like a cluttered person, much like himself. Things not organised in a neat order.

His eyes fluttered upwards to the pinboard above the desk, his gaze drifting across photos pinned to the board. People he didn't know smiling at him, Kayla featured in most of them.

Some, he guessed, were her family.

Others, he supposed, her friends from back home.

Regardless, in all of them she seemed happy.

He thought he had seen her happy here, but evidently not. Her smile was never as wide, her eyes never quite as bright as they were in these photos. A brief moment captured in a split second, conveying so much happiness - a true free spirit.

It was like, here - in Beacon Hills - she wore a mask. A pretend facade of being okay. He had bought into it. Assumed she was okay. In his defence, she did seem okay. But, in comparison to these photos, he could tell she actually wasn't.

It was actually kind of heartbreaking, really.

He heard the shower turn off and, in his surprise, quickly turned around and accidentally knocked over a pot of pens, the different coloured markers spilling across the cream-coloured carpet.

"Shit" he cursed, dropping to his knees to hastily try and collect the pens, hurriedly shoving them back in the metal pot but they kept springing out, bouncing off the carpet and rolling further away.

He looked like he was on ice skates as he shuffled forward, grabbing the pens hastily as he slid across the carpet and just managed put them back in the pot and stand up as she opened the bathroom door, hot steam rolling into the bedroom.

"Didn't I say not to break anything?"

He could hear the smirk in her voice before he even turned to face her, holding the pen pot to his chest as he spun around, trying to think of some half hearted excuse as to why he was nosing around her desk but the words died in the back of his throat as he saw her.

She was wrapped in nothing but a fluffy white towel, the material grazing the tops of her thighs, long hair dripping wet as clear water droplets cascaded down her bronzed skin, his stare hyperfixating on the complete lack of clothes.

"Oh… um… I just… I was, um… heh-"

He was tripping over his own tongue, his brain coming to a complete stand still as he tried to formulate a coherent sentence to respond to her but, yet again, he was making an idiot of himself.

"This isn't… I didn't… I-oh god-" he cut himself off, his clumsy hands accidentally knocking into each other as he hit the pot of pens from his grip, the contents spilling out all over the floor yet again.

"You really need to learn to relax" she chuckled, her eyes dazzling in amusement as he turned a beetroot red, dropping to his knees to pick up the pens, "we're friends. Friends see each other in a state of undress all the time".

"I wasn't-I didn't mean to look-" he stuttered, keeping his eyes diverted downwards as he hastily picked up the markers, "I just didn't expect… expect that".

She seemed to take pity on him, carefully kneeling down opposite him, her bare wet knees indenting into the carpet as she finished picking up the remaining pens, slotting them into the pot and smirking at him.

"Stiles?"

"Hm?"

"Are you always this awkward?"

He exhaled a snort, trying - and failing - to play it cool.

"Ninety nine percent of the time, yeah".

"Well, how can I make you feel less awkward?" she asked, both still kneeling on the floor, "because if every time we hang out you verge on having a stroke, I don't think our friendship will last very long" she added with a chortle.

It still surprised him she even considered friendship with him out of all people. He didn't really have friends. He had Scott. That was basically it. Why would some random girl ever want to be friends with him?

"Heh... maybe-maybe by wearing clothes?"

His simple, innocent suggestion sent her into a fit of the giggles, throwing her head back and laughing freely.

Just the sight of her happy made him smile, his embarrassed awkwardness beginning to ease up.

"Right" she muttered inbetween the laughs, "well, that I can do".

She was still chuckling under her breath as she unfolded herself, standing up and holding out a hand to help him up.

Wordlessly, he accepted, letting her pull him to his feet as he tried to repress the memory of the last two minutes, wishing he could just play it cool without acting like a total douche, but she didn't seem to mind.

"I'm sorry" she smiled, "I forget I can be too much sometimes".

"No" he immediately said, "don't think that. You're just enough".

Her expression melted into something close to appreciation, seeming grateful for his words. Words that he completely meant.

Was she full on? Yes. But she was a breath of fresh air. Carefree and free of societal expectations and pressures. He enjoyed how unrestricted and unfiltered she was. She said what she thought, without apology. It wasn't often - or ever - he had met someone like that.

"Tell that to my mom" she said lightly, but he sensed the brewing bitterness in her tone, "apparently-" creating air quotations with her fingers, "-I'm a handful. Or two. Or ten".

"You don't need to apologise for being yourself" he shrugged, relaxing a little more, able to focus on more than just the fact she was still standing in a towel, "I can handle it".

That playful smirk returned, her green gaze swimming with delight.

"You think you can handle me?" she grinned, "is that a challenge?"

His cheeks flared bright red again, knowing play flirting was just a big part of her personality, but he still felt overwhelmed by it, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

"Relax" she teasingly slapped his chest, "I'm just messing with you. Now turn around" she spun her finger around in a circle, "I need to get dressed".

He silently turned around, shaking his head at himself as he heard her snigger, gently padding around her room, opening drawers and her wardrobe to find some clothes.

He was on hyper alert, unable to see her so his other senses seemed to kick into overdrive, listening intently to the sound of her bare feet curling into the carpet, the scrapes of hangers being pushed along the rail, the soft thud of clothes being thrown on the bed and, most shockingly, the whoosh of her towel hitting the floor.

Okay Stiles, he chanted to himself, just relax. Don't think about the fact there's a naked girl behind you... don't think about the fact there's a hot naked girl behind you... don't think about the fact you're in the bedroom of said hot naked girl...

God dammit. He was working himself up. Why did he always do this to himself? Why couldn't he just be normal? God... she must really think he was an incompetent idiot.

He shook himself from his overthinking, realising she was calling his name.

He quickly spun around, seeing her dressed in a simple pair of denim shorts, a cropped baggy v-neck jumper settling around her waist, her midriff on show.

She waved an arm out towards her bed as she brushed her knotty wet hair, the smell of strawberries and cream floating to Stiles' nostrils.

"Sit down. Relax. I need to grab a coffee if I have any luck in staying awake. Can I get you anything?"

He was startled by the invite to relax on her bed, expecting to maybe sit at her desk or go downstairs to the kitchen, but he tried to play it off as best he could, pretending the idea of sitting on her bed wasn't a total knee jerker.

"Uh... ju-just a water, please?"

"A water?" she asked incredulously, "you want a water?"

"If I have coffee, I'll just be more of a hyperactive mess. Trust me, you don't want to see that".

She chuckled as she placed her hairbrush down on the vanity table, nodding and agreeing with what he said.

"Okay. One water coming up".

She left her room, heading to the kitchen and he breathed a sigh of relief when she was out of ear shot, smacking himself on the forehead.

"Idiot" he cursed, "a water? So lame".

He shook his head at himself, muttering obscenities under his breath as he carefully perched himself at the end of her bed, immediately sinking into the mattress.

"Bet this mattress costs more than my entire house" he muttered under his breath, allowing his hand to skim over the sheets that still seemed a little warm, her body having been curled up here less than half hour ago until he rudely woke her from her sleep.

He didn't know what drove him to turn up, unannounced. He just wanted to see her, maybe try and bond a little outwith school or some supernatural life-and-death situation.

Why? Because she intrigued him, as simple as that.

Ever since she said those first words to him in Chem class, he was fascinated. It was like her energy called out to him, making him want to know more.

Plus, she was involved in all this supernatural chaos... a girl with secrets. Of course he was fascinated. He would be a fool not to be.

He heard her coming back up the stairs so tried to make himself look innocent (which he was, he had done no more snooping), trying to sit and look relaxed as she came back into the room carrying a large white mug and a bottle of water, chucking him the latter.

He fumbled to grab it, the bottle - expectantly - slipping from his grasp.

It seemed his clumsiness amused her as she snorted out a laugh, placing her mug on the bedside table as he leaned down to pick up the bottle of water.

"Thanks" he remarked playfully, "don't think I can tip with service like that though".

She shrugged, throwing herself next to him on the bed.

"Worth it though".

He inhaled sharply at the feel of her body so close to his, the scent of strawberries and cream getting stronger.

"So, what's this project on anyway?" she asked, "I wasn't listening".

"Uh, well-"

"Actually, on second thoughts-" she waved her hand, "-don't tell me. I may be tempted to jump from the balcony".

She reached sideways for her mug, the steam from the black liquid drifting up and wafting the strong scent of bitter coffee up his nostrils, making him want to sneeze.

"Oh wow, that's strong" Stiles remarked, plugging his nose, "you actually drink that stuff like that?"

She cast him a sideways glance, her lips already moulded around the edge of the mug as she took a few sips.

"Yeah" she muttered, like she didn't understand why he was quizzing her on her coffee habits, "why?"

"Nothing" he laughed, "just surprised you don't need a shovel to get through that sludge".

"Ha-ha" she remarked, playfully elbowing him as she took a few more sips before placing the mug back down again, "well, if someone didn't force me out of bed at 8am, I might not need it"

He felt a little hot under the collar but was definitely relaxing more, getting more comfortable in her presence.

"Touché".

She laid back on her bed, her legs swinging off the edge as she looked up at the ceiling, placing her hands across her bare stomach.

"How is Scott?" she asked, "really?"

"He's... adjusting surprisingly well" Stiles shrugged, "although, right now, I don't think he really cares about anything other than Allison. A meteor could come flying out of the sky and wipe out half the population, and he'd just be obsessing over Allison".

"Yeah" she laughed, "dude is whipped".

"So whipped".

A thoughtful expression twisted her features as she kept glancing up at the ceiling, mulling over something he was none the wiser of.

"Did, uh... did Scott tell you what Derek showed him last night?"

Stiles gulped, the conversation he had with Scott on the phone sparking in his mind.

"Yeah. It sounded just as bad as you described".

She turned to look at him, giving him a once over before tugging on his arm so he was laying down next to her, his back hitting the mattress with a gentle thump.

"I haven't been to see him, y'know" he heard her say, her stare a little vulnerable and sad, "my uncle Peter. I haven't been to see him. Not once. Not even since moving here".

The awkwardness of laying on her bed next to her suddenly flew out the window, turning to watch her speak.

"That makes me a pretty sucky person, huh?"

"Not at all" he reassured straight away, "he sounds in a bad way. It wouldn't be nice to see him like that. Were... were you close?"

She gave a half-hearted shrug, her eyes glazing over slightly as she spoke.

"Not extremely. My dad and him seemed to have a lot of unresolved tension. Don't get me wrong, they were cordial and respectful, but there was something going on between them. I think that's why we only visited every summer for a few weeks".

"You don't know why they didn't get on?"

"No idea. It's been that way for as long as I can remember. I don't even think my dad visited him in the hospital before he... well, before he died".

"But uh..." she continued, "regardless of who actually started the fire, whether it was the Argents or not, Scott needed to know exactly what the risks are to being a werewolf. I hope it opened his eyes a little".

"Well, I think it worked. Colour him terrified" Stiles chuckled, "I had to talk him down from an anxiety attack".

"Poor Scott" she commented lightly, "he's a good guy".

"Sickenly good" Stiles agreed, "like, bordering on nauseating".

She threw him a sideways smile, her eyes tracing their way across his face, studying his expression with delight and amusement.

"Stiles?"

"Yeah?"

He didn't know what she was going to say because her phone beeping suddenly went off which broke their eye contact, Kayla reaching for her phone next to her and raising it above her face to read.

She grunted out a displeased groan, throwing her phone back down.

"Uh... everything good?"

"Yeah. Just Brian being a pain in the ass. Lydia must've given him my number. I'm going to kill her".

"And... and you're ignoring him?"

Her gaze twinkled with amusement as she smirked at him, their previous heavy conversation forgotten about.

"Believe it or not, yeah. I know-" she dramatically exclaimed, her tone bordering on sarcastic, "-give me all the awards. I'm actively turning down dick. Wish I did that before the last guy. Would've saved me a boatload of trauma".

Yup. There it was again. Her unfiltered comments that, somehow, still surprised him.

"Heh... well uh... good for you. You can do so much better than Brian".

"You think?"

"I know".

For the first time since he met her, she actually seemed a little... overwhelmed by his words, like she was surprised he truthfully thought that about her. But then, how could he not? Of course she deserved better than Brian.

She deserved the world.

A/N) yay another chapter haha wanted just a Stiles x Kayla focused chapter because, hellllloooo bonding haha all new content here. Enjoying developing their relationship :) so I hope you all liked and please please review and I shall see you all soon :) x

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form. Thank you so much for the continued support, it means the entire world, and I hope you all enjoy :)

"I hate this".

"Join the club" Stiles groaned, rolling his head forward in defeat, "Harris definitely has it out for us".

Finally, after a couple of hours, Stiles had relaxed.

In fact, he was so relaxed, he was actually laying adjacent to her on her bed, their legs dangling off the edge as they rested on their stomachs, staring at her laptop screen in front of them.

She was honestly pleasantly surprised. She had gotten so used to him being twitchy and self-conscious around her, always exhibiting this nervous energy whenever they interacted, that she finally got to see the goofy, entertaining person he was, not just the side filled with anxiety and hyperactivity.

Maybe simply having the two of them hang out doing normal things allowed him to just see her as a person, a friend - not just a girl that was actually speaking to him.

It was nice.

Really nice.

Probably the most natural interaction she had had in a long time.

There was just something surprisingly easy with him, but she didn't know what. She couldn't put her finger on it. Didn't understand exactly what it was about him that put her at ease, but there was something. Definitely something.

"I vote we give up for now" she suggested, "maybe we get together with Scott later on or tomorrow and finish it up?"

Stiles' head was basically buried in her duvet but she was sure she heard a muffled sound of agreement leaving his throat, his fingers tapping patterns across the back of his head as if he was trying to will away a brewing headache forming.

"Okay, plan" she chuckled, closing the laptop and pushing it to the side, thankful to be done with their project - otherwise known as a piece of crap - because they kept hitting a brick wall over and over again, both getting frustrated and fed up.

It appeared the soft thud of the laptop shutting seemed to awaken something in Stiles though as he lifted his head, glancing around in something close to disappointment.

"Oh... uh... I should probably head off then. I'm sure you've got more interesting things to do today-"

"I don't" she blurted out with a shoulder shrug but he quirked his brow at her, clearly not believing her.

"What? I don't" she insisted with a smirk, "I've been ignoring Lydia's texts since yesterday about going shopping, and I'm not replying to Brian trying to get into my pants. Plus, it's Beacon frigging Hills, what is there to do anyway?"

He snorted, nodding in agree, "that's true. That's actually very true. This town needs some serious TLC".

"So stay" she suggested, "hang out, keep me company. Only if you want to though" she added, "I wouldn't want to impose on any of your plans".

He gulped nervously, forcing the awkwardness down as he tried to play it cool with a half-hearted shrug.

"M-My plans?" he asked, pursing his lips in thought, "my plans are... uh... yeah, I can't think of anything remotely exciting".

She smirked playfully, that flirtatious glint returning to her eyes.

"So you're all mine then?"

He tried to swallow his bundle of nerves but his throat was dry, an uncomfortable ball forming the more he tried to swallow.

"Heh... yeah... yeah. I suppose I am".

"Good" she grinned, pushing herself up off the bed and reaching for her phone that was on the bedside table, her fingers flying across the screen.

"Do you want pizza? Or tacos?" she asked, "or maybe waffles and milkshakes?"

"Uh..."

"It's prime time brunch hour and I'm starving. Aw C'mon, my treat" she smiled, "I'll even pay extra for priority delivery".

A girl after his own heart.

"S-Sure".

"Waffles and milkshakes sound good?"

He was still a little overwhelmed, unsure just how exactly he got gotten himself into this situation. Not that he was complaining - he was so god damn happy to be in this situation - but he wasn't used to it. Girls didn't willingly went to hang out with him... ever.

"The best".

She nodded absentmindedly, scrolling through the menu on her phone, deciding what she wanted and clicking the screen a few times before passing the phone to him.

"Uh... oh wow, okay. Um..."

He sat up, sitting along the edge of her bed as he scrolled through the menu, deciding on a simple strawberry milkshake and waffles with maple syrup and bacon and passing her back her phone.

She smirked as she glanced at his order, twisting her face up in playful judgment.

"Safe order there Stilinski. Thought you were a bit more adventurous than that".

"Can't go wrong with the classics".

She pursed her lips in thought, giving him a thorough once-over.

"Basic, yet effective. Still, I took you as more of a chocolate shake kind of guy".

"Oh, I am" he nodded, "I just haven't had one of those since three years ago where I had four in a row and barfed for two hours straight".

"I bet that was a lovely sight".

"Yeah, my dad was not best pleased" he muttered, "it took him a year to get the brown stains out of the carpet".

"I can imagine" she laughed, pressing the screen a few more times before he heard a ding, "that's it ordered. Shouldn't be too long".

He knew this wasn't a date, but was this what a date felt like? Just playful, easy banter whilst doing things like homework and getting food? Because if so... he really wanted to go on one.

"Well, uh... thanks" he muttered, "next time it's on me".

"Next time?" she grinned, cocking her head to the side in delight, "there will be a next time of us having food alone together?"

He blanched at her, completely lost for words as he tried to think of something to say - something that didn't sound so imposing - but no words came.

She snickered, her face lighting up in amusement.

"Okay, deal" she said, "next time-" she insisted with a playful wiggle of the eyebrows, "-you can buy me all the food you want".

Oh god, was this actually happening? Did he seriously just manage to spend a whole three hours alone with her, in her bedroom, and now they were going to hang out and have food?

How the hell was this happening?

He nodded silently, agreeing with her words as she placed her phone back on the bedside table and took a seat next to him on the bed, playfully nudging her elbow against his arm.

"This has been fun" she said, "you're just about the only person in Beacon Hills that doesn't make me want to blow my brains out".

"Really?"

"Obviously" she smiled, "I get to be myself around you. With everyone else... I feel like I have to pretend. I have to hide all these secrets from Allison because her family are complete psychopaths and Lydia is, well... Lydia. She's pushy and wants me to fit a certain image that she creates. My mom... she uh... nevermind" she added, forcing a quiet laugh, "you don't need to hear my drama".

"I like drama" he shrugged, "uh... I mean... I-I can be a good listener".

"Really?" she asked cheerfully, "Stiles, you never stop talking unless you're staring at my boobs".

"That's... that's accurate. And fair" he nodded, "I mean, you do have great boobs - uh, th-that's not the point. I was just trying to say-"

"That you'll be a friend?"

She seemed sincere, her gaze holding his as he just simply nodded, willing to be anything she wanted in that moment.

"Were you close?... With your mom?"

The question caught him off guard, not expecting her to ask something so personal and upfront but, then again, that was just who she was.

No beating around the bush.

He liked that though. It made him feel... somewhat comfortable.

"Yeah" he nodded, "she was great. She was... attentive and fun and she would bake the best cookies".

"She sounds lovely" Kayla smiled, "like she was made to be a mom".

"She was" he agreed, "she really was".

"My mom was never like that. At least, not with me" she murmured, "she's always been... cold, I guess. And I know I was an accident, I know that, but we just never connected. I could cure cancer and she would still find something to put me down about".

"Why is she like that?" he asked in curiosity, "she can't hate you because you were an accident?"

"Honestly? I never figured it out" she mused, "but what I'm trying to say is... even with my own mom, I have to pretend. I have to be someone else to get even a sliver of respect. I don't have to pretend with you. You just take me how I am and you have no idea what that means to me, especially after the last shitty year I had".

He was touched, completely buying into her words, his heart warming at the compliment.

"Leaving home-" she continued, "-leaving my life, my friends... it sucked. Big time" she chuckled, "I got on that plane and I was mad and bitter and I just wanted to scream. But I guess it's not so bad, after all".

"So... you think you'll stay?" he asked hopefully, not even hiding his eagerness.

"I think..." she trailed off, a thoughtful glint in her eyes, "I could be fine with that. You just gotta do me a favour though?"

"Oh?" he quirked a brow, his eye twitching, "wh-what favour?"

"Keep me away from dickheads" she chuckled, "you seem to have a good grasp on people so use that keen perception of yours to save me from making any more bad choices".

"Any more?"

"Obviously" she smiled, "I'm a walking talking disaster. My whole life is one big string of questionable life choices, mainly boys. And a couple girls" she added, much to Stiles' surprise, "I really need to work on that".

"Um... I mean, uh... you-you're practicing already. You've snubbed Brian for, like, a whole 24 hours".

"Yeah. Yay to self control" she exclaimed, sarcastically throwing her arms up in celebration, "except for the fact I did almost sleep with him. Twice".

"Twice?"

"But I didn't" she pointed out, "I came to my senses. Somehow".

"Kayla, honestly, he is such an-"

"-Asshole, I know" she nodded, "and that's what makes it worse. I always seem to go for the assholes. Why do I do that?"

"Um..."

"I should go for someone like you" she said, making him recoil in shock, "someone that's not an asshole. You're not an asshole, are you?"

"W-What? I-"

"Of course you're not. The goofy guys are never the assholes".

"Um-"

"That was a compliment, by the way" she added, "goofy is hot. Goofy gets the girls. Funny drops underwear".

"Sure" he snorted, "that's why I have girls lining up around the block to date me".

"Then the girls here have no taste" she smiled, "you're a catch Stilinski. You wouldn't be in my bedroom if you weren't".

Holy shit, was this actually happening?

Did she actually say that to him, or was he daydreaming again? Because, honestly, that explanation wouldn't surprise him one bit.

She leaned towards him, her arm brushing against his as he started breathing a little heavier, hyperfocused on her expression that was turning a little more serious, her stare darkening a little in something close to what he guessed was lust.

"You're a good friend Stiles" she whispered, "it's been, what, nearly three weeks since I met you and I feel closer to you than I do my own mother. It's refreshing".

"I-It is?"

"Yeah... yeah it is. So..." she shrugged, pursing her lips in thought, "do you wanna have sex?"

"What?"

"What?" she asked with a chuckle, seeming completely amused by his wide eyed look, "I'd be down for a friends-with-benefits type of relationship".

He was genuinely and utterly gobsmacked. Her words truly shocking him to the core.

"Uh... w-with me?" he stuttered, "me?"

"Yeah, you're right. I was being too forward" she nodded, pulling back, much to Stiles' disappointment, "I need better ways of controlling my horniness than having sex. You would think I would've learnt from the last guy".

"No, it's okay, go back-"

"He was an even bigger asshole than Brian, y'know" she continued, rambling and not aware of his slack expression, still stuck on the fact she actually said she would have sex with him, "you need to get better at cockblocking me Stilinski. You've failed already".

"Wait. Rewind. Did you just-"

"Oh" she muttered, the sound of the doorbell cutting into their rather complicated discussion, both on completely different pages, "the waffles are here".

Without missing a beat, she swept from the room, her mind jumping from one thing to the next whilst Stiles was left sitting on her bed, nearly passing out.

"Yes" he muttered to himself and the empty room, hearing her opening the front door, "the answer to that question would always be yes, just FYI".

They ate their waffles and milkshakes, Stiles still a little overwhelmed and side tracked by their earlier conversation - well, conversation was a little extreme, more like proposition - but he didn't have the balls to bring it up again and it seemed the food completely distracted Kayla because she was back to her usual self, no more talk of the potential benefits part to their relationship.

"That was so good" Kayla sighed, rubbing her tummy as she threw the cardboard boxes in the trash can and threw herself back on the bed, "urgh, I'm so bloated. That chocolate extravaganza shake was the final nail in my coffin, I think. I can see how you spewed after four".

"Hence why I took the strawberry".

"Meh" she shrugged, "what's a little pleasure without some pain, right?"

He was sure she didn't even realise what she was saying half the time, oblivious to the blunt and sexual nature of her vocabulary.

He turned his head away from her, hiding the blush that seized his cheeks.

What he said to Scott the other day was so true... he was crushing on her - hard. And he was scared it was very obvious by now. Hell, he was sure she knew but just didn't bring it up, choosing to playfully tease and flirt with him instead. Or maybe she did that to everyone, he didn't know, but what he did know was he was completely intrigued and wanting to spend more and more time with her, even getting up hellishly early on a Saturday morning to do that.

"You okay?"

"What? Yeah. Yeah of course. Uh... I just need to pee" he said awkwardly.

"You know where the bathroom is".

He pointed awkwardly to her en suite, raising his brows questioningly and she just nodded.

"Yes Stiles. That's the bathroom".

"It's your bathroom though".

"Yeah. A bathroom used to pee in, and you need to pee".

"Your private bathroom..."

"Stiles?" she said sweetly, "go pee".

"Right" he scampered up off the bed, tripping over his own feet as he hurried into the en-suite and shut the door, catching sight of her amused expression before he did so.

Now, he wasn't exaggerating when he said the bathroom was nearly the size of his room.

Black and white patterned tiles lined the floors, with three white marbled walls and one wall painted black, the black wall was where the toilet and sink was attached, a large rectangular mirror above the sink.

No, wait, two sinks?

Oh, who was he kidding. Of course this house had two sinks. Because one just wasn't enough right?

The shower was large, the fancy jet shower a deep gold and a simple glass door spanning from floor to ceiling. It even had a stand-alone bath tub in the far corner, bath towels hanging over the edge.

He walked further in, spinning around as he looked and yes, he was being nosey, wasn't that obvious by now?

His eyes caught sight of a bundle of clothes bunched up near the shower and he went bug eyed, seeing a very colourful pair of blue lace underwear next to a matching bra.

"Nope. Don't look Stiles" he whispered to himself, shaking his head as he tried to deter himself from looking at her very private undergarments, "don't go there. Don't go there. Don't go-holy god"

He found himself looking, enticed by the show of delicate lace.

Bet she'd look hot in those, he found himself thinking, catching onto his sordid thoughts and digging the palms of his hands into his eye sockets, forcing his vision to go painfully bright.

Get a grip Stilinski, he chastised himself, using every ounce of strength to turn away and head to the sink, glancing around.

Just like her desk, the counter top was a little cluttered. A toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste, the minty paste spilling out the top next to a hairbrush and some bobby pins, bottles of lotion and cream scattered across the marble.

He glanced down, opening some drawers and only when he came across some packets of feminine products did he gulp and slam the drawer shut.

Karma for snooping, he supposed.

He was such an idiot.

He honestly really was.

Why the hell was he hiding out in a girls bathroom instead of talking with her, getting to know her more, maybe even spend enough time with her to pass the afternoon and take her to dinner?

Why? Because he was an idiot. Plain and simple.

He wasn't used to situations like this.

For years he had pined over Lydia, focused on her for so long that he didn't even think of anyone else.

Then the first day of the next semester started and, for the first time, he looked at someone other than Lydia. Someone that actually spoke to him. Someone that treated him like a person. Someone that made him laugh and, equally, just as nervous.

Should he give it a go? Shoot his shot? Or would that be stupid?

Would it be stupid to fall for a girl that was unavailable?

Probably. But apparently that's what he was good at.

He decided he had spent to long in the bathroom, flushing the toilet to pretend he had actually gone and took a few long breaths to steady his erratic breathing.

Maybe he should just flirt back. Try loosening up a little and giving back as good as he got. Could he do that?

He shook out his nerves, flapping about the bathroom as he decided, 'to hell with it', what's the worst that could happen?

Well, he could die of embarrassment, but at least he wouldn't be around to live through the humiliation of getting shot down.

He inhaled one more time, turning the knob of the bathroom door and was just about to open his mouth to say something - anything - he didn't know, but his eyes fell on Kayla who was curled up on top of her bed, blankets tangled around her ankles.

He stopped short, his mouth closing slowly.

Right. He woke her up. Of course she would be tired.

He tried to creep forward, being extra cautious not to be too clumsy or loud as he watched her sleep, her face surprisingly peaceful.

"Sorry for waking you" he whispered, untangling the blankets and pulling them up around her body, tucking them in around her, feeling surprisingly calm next to her which he supposed was because she was sleeping, completely oblivious to his presence.

His gaze lingered on her face for a few seconds - or maybe a few minutes, he wasn't sure - enjoying the peace and quiet before realising what he was doing was maybe kind of creepy.

"Right. I should... I should go" he muttered, pointing to the bedroom door, "it's been... fun. Great. You're great. We should do this again sometime. Right. You can't hear me. Urgh".

He near enough sprinted from her room, wondering why the hell he always got so whipped.

Yay, another one. Sorry it's slightly shorter, but k wanted more stayla and it's nice to write them hanging out and flirting lol next chapter... 'The tell' :) can't wait haha so hope you all enjoyed and please reviewing thank you :)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form. Thank you so much for the continued support, hope you enjoy :)

She didn't mean to fall asleep, honestly.

The continuous late nights, the tossing and turning, the early mornings and rude awakenings just got the best of her.

When she woke four hours later, Stiles was nowhere to be seen. The last time she remembered seeing him was when he rushed to her bathroom... then nothing. She must have passed out on her bed not much longer after that.

She was still a bit dazed and bleary eyed, pushing herself up on the bed as the blanket that was wrapped around her slipped down and bunched around her hips.

She didn't remember getting all tucked up and cosy because she didn't mean to fall asleep. Which meant, the only logical answer to that, was Stiles.

Did he come out of the bathroom, see her sleeping and made her comfortable? Did he take the time to cover her up, protecting her from the chill?

Unless she had Casper the ghost around here, it must've been Stiles.

She rubbed at her eyes until she saw stars, repressing a yawn as she reached and fumbled for her phone, ignoring the countless messages and notifications she had and opened up her text conversation with Stiles, typing out a quick, lighthearted message.

'Heyyy. Sorry I fell asleep, that's my bad. I'm the worst company sometimes.'

She didn't even have a chance to put her phone down to stretch before the sharp beep alerted her to a message, smiling to herself as she opened it.

'Don't sweat it, you were tired. I understand'

Of course he understood. She wasn't oblivious. It was so obvious he was crushing on her, unable to be annoyed by anything she did - even falling asleep on him when he just went to pee.

'I assume you found your way out the house okay? she asked, followed by a laughing emoji, or are you actually hiding in my closet?'

She managed a quick full body stretch before her phone pinged again, Stiles clearly very eager to talk to her.

'No closet lurking for me, unfortunately'

Even just his use of the word 'unfortunately' showed he was getting much more comfortable around her, maybe even trying to flirt back a little.

'That's a shame... you might've seen something good' she fired back, adding on a little winky face for good measure.

This time, Stiles wasn't as quick with his reply. No doubt trying to decide if he was hallucinating or if what he read was real - lucky for him, it was totally real.

She waited patiently for a response, giving him a few extra seconds before his message flashed up on her screen.

'Good? Think you may be underestimating yourself there'

Simple, yet effective. Much like his waffle order.

She found herself laughing under her breath, appreciating the fact it probably took him one whole panic attack and a sudden growth spurt of his balls to type that out and send it.

'Cute Stilinski. You got game'

'Now there's something I've never heard before'

She smirked, their easy flirtatious banter keeping her occupied.

'Just remember what I said... funny drops underwear' followed by a cheesy smile emoji for good measure but, for whatever reason, his text back was just as quick, his anxious fingers no doubt flying across the screen as he probably sat back and waited with baited breath, chewing on his thumbnail.

Something she noticed he sometimes did in high-stress situations.

Not that she was studying him or anything creepy like that. She was just aware of these sorts of things sometimes.

'Do you think I'm funny?'

Yup. He was definitely having a heart attack by this point.

'Unfortunately-' she teased, '-I think you're hilarious. You're getting close to getting me to break my no boy rule' adding in the suggestive face emoji.

It was true. She supposed she was attracted to him. He was just different. Wholesome. He never expected anything, thankful for whatever interaction he got. Not like all the others that treated her like some cat and mouse game - she being the mouse.

This attraction though was unusual in itself. She was usually always lusting after the 'bad boys' - the ones that you knew would treat you like shit, but you still went for anyway.

Stiles was the complete opposite to that. He was an anxious hyperactive mess with absolutely zero experience in girls whatsoever, but she still found him adorable.

And funny. Always with the funny.

Funny could drop her underwear any day.

After the utter mess that was her last relationship, she wasn't looking for commitment. She wasn't even looking for a boyfriend - or girlfriend. Hell, she couldn't even properly manage her own emotions, let alone being responsible for somebody else's... but she was still open to connection. Someone - or something - that made her feel.

Surprisingly enough, that was Stiles.

She did briefly remember saying something earlier to him before they got their waffles and milkshakes... something about being open to friends with benefits but she got distracted by the doorbell ringing.

He never actually gave her an answer to that, no doubt tripping over his own tongue and tonsils as he fumbled, but it was cute. He was cute. And maybe she needed cute for a change.

She could no doubt teach him a thing or two... or a hundred. She guessed he would be inexperienced, but attentive. Intense, but careful. Probably incredibly nervous but equally as fascinated. Obviously. Didn't you see the way he stared at her boobs in a shirt? Imagine he saw her fully and completely naked...

She shook herself from those thoughts, trying not to get too engrossed in her very vivid and very horny imagination, opening up his text.

'I am?' It simply read, followed by three consecutive dots.

Her bottom lip found it's way between her teeth, biting back her smirk as she played with him.

'We'll see' she replied, not forgetting to add the winky face just to add fuel to the fire - or, more than likely, an extra inch or two to his boner - and stretched out her neck and spine one more time to make them crack before jumping out of bed, a new found energy pumping through her veins.

She had wasted her afternoon sleeping and, although it was much needed, she didn't want to squander away her Saturday.

She quickly changed into a pair of tight red patterned sports leggings, a sports bra and a fitted white tee, deciding to go for a run.

She hadn't been out in a few days to train, what with everything that had happened with Derek, so now was as good a time as any.

By the time she got dressed and threw her hair into a high ponytail, her phone buzzed again and she smirked as she swiped at the screen, reading Stiles' text.

'You're very very very mean, I hope you know that'

Of course she did. It was one of her favourite character traits.

'No risk, no reward Stiles' she simply replied, plugging in her earphones and slotting her phone into her armband, setting off on her run.

"-I mean, that's an invite right? To ask her out?"

Scott simply peered up at him from his bed as he paced the length and breadth of Scott's room, nervously chewing on his thumb nail until it was a short stump, retelling the entire story of his morning with Kayla - and her texts that afternoon.

"... You started that group project without me?"

Stiles stopped pacing for a moment, sending Scott a displeased look.

"Really? That's what you took from that whole conversation?"

"I hope you're both going to put my name on it".

"Scott" Stiles exclaimed, snapping his fingers in front of his friend's face, "your grades aren't my biggest concern at the moment, thank you! Have you even been listening to a word I've said?"

Scott nodded innocently, "yeah. She's flirting with you. But doesn't Kayla flirt with everyone?"

"She hasn't flirted with you".

"Well, I mean, her tone of voice is kinda suggestive-"

Stiles cut him off with a jumble of exclamations, waving his arms out.

"Okay, jeez. She flirts with everyone, I get it" he mumbled, "she's a free spirit. But, I don't know, it feels different. It feels like she wants me to do something about it".

Scott snorted in amusement, a dopey smile pulling at his lips.

"You don't have the guts to ask her out".

"What? I-Of course I do" he defended himself feebly, knowing Scott was, in fact, right, "I could totally ask her out".

Scott simply rolled his eyes, not buying Stiles' words one bit.

"Really?" Scott asked, "dude, I've said this before and I'll say it again - she will eat you alive and leave no crumbs".

Honestly, the more he got to know her the more he realised just how true that was. She had a big personality - fun, sarcastic and confident, embracing her wants and needs, never being shy. He struck her as the kind of person that got what she wanted - always.

"I-I could-I could handle her" he muttered insecurely, his voice barely above a whisper, "I could... could..."

Scott just quirked a brow knowingly, that shit eating grin spreading across his face.

Stiles just blew out a long breath, not even having the ability to defend himself as he returned to pacing.

"I couldn't" he sighed, "I really couldn't. But it still feels like she wants me to do something. I mean, she basically said she would have sex with me-"

"What?" Scott interrupted, his eyes widening in shock, "she said that? With actual words?"

"Yeah" Stiles shrugged, jittery and anxious as he chewed on the side of his cheek, "I mean... that's an indication she likes me right?"

"Maybe" Scott muttered, still in shock, "I don't know. Girls are complicated".

"You're telling me" Stiles puffed out a long sigh as he plonked himself next to Scott on the bed, "half the time I think she's just joking around, then she comes out with stuff like that and I'm like 'whoa', y'know? Maybe I should just leave it alone" he continued in something close to disappointment, "I don't want to make an idiot of myself - again".

She had gone for a long run around the preserve, clocking up as many miles as she could until her legs were burning and her heart was pounding, beads of sweat tickling her forehead and the back of her neck.

She had mixed up her run between simple jogging and sprints, keeping at a steady pace for a couple of miles before running flat out, her trainer clad feet thundering across the forest floor.

Running helped clear her head from all the cobwebs, focusing solely on herself and her steady heartbeat. It was, in a way, freeing, and gave her a sort of high.

She had found herself running a lot more since her 'recovery'. Sometimes spending hours just running to no where in particular, fuelling the feelings of euphoria. It was a safe way to get high, but never quite as good as the real thing.

Darkness fell quicker than she expected, or maybe she had been running for longer than she thought, but she decided now was as good a time as any to head home, despite her stomach curdling at the thought.

It still didn't feel like home.

Don't get her wrong, it was a beautiful house and she was incredibly lucky to get to experience that, but it just did nothing for her. She had no connections to it. It was, really, just fours walls.

Plus, it had her mom in it.

The tension that had build up between them had only worsened since she returned home and got clean. And, quite frankly, she just didn't have the energy to deal with the passive aggressiveness.

She began to make her way out of the preserve, keeping a wide berth of The Hale house, but just as she was passing the signs that read 'Welcome to Beacon Hills Reserve, no entry after dark', a sudden touch to her shoulder made her jump.

indistinctively she turned around and lashed out, her hand balling into a fist in preparation to knock out whoever the fuck was getting all up in her personal space, but what she didn't expect was for that someone to grab her fist just inches away from their face.

"Derek?" she gasped, sending him a displeased look as she grabbed her fist back, yanking out her ear buds, "what the hell?"

Derek simply sent her an unamused glance, his gaze moving to the sign that read 'no entry after dark' before looking back to her.

"It's just turned dark" she rolled her eyes, "chill".

"You shouldn't be out here alone. The alpha is dangerous".

"I know" she folded her arms stubbornly, "I can take care of myself".

"No, you can't" he insisted, much to her dismay, "you wouldn't stand a chance".

"Wow, thanks" she muttered, "glad to know you think I'd turn into shish kebab so easily".

He lifted up her earbuds that were dangling freely from her phone, the music still blasting from them.

"How are you meant to hear any potential danger with these in?"

"I need Avril Lavigne to motivate me".

"Kayla..." he sighed, his eyes softening a little, "this isn't Louisiana anymore. It's Beacon Hills. It's dangerous. Your dad isn't here to protect you, which means it's now my job".

"I know it's not safe" she replied, "I lost family that day too".

A brief flash of pain shot through his stare, the reminder of the fire all too prominent.

"I may be human, but I'm not defenceless - or stupid" she added, "I've trained my entire life to be able to be even half as good as the supernaturally inclined. You don't need to worry as much".

Derek's face was tense, clearly not happy with her chat back.

"As long as there's hunters here and the Alpha is still killing people, I'm still going to worry" he insisted, "I'm not losing any more family".

She glanced down at the forest floor, feeling a little bad for making Derek worry. She didn't mean to be so blasé about all this, but her whole life she had been treated like the weakest link when, in reality, she knew that wasn't true. She may not have any supernatural advantages, but she wasn't weak. She could handle a lot more than what people expected.

"Speaking of..." Derek continued, dropping his stern telling off voice, "he's killed again".

"What?" she asked in surprise, whipping her head up, "when? Who?"

"Just now. I heard it on the police scanner. Someone at a movie store".

"Shit".

"Shit indeed" Derek agreed, "which is why you need to be safe, at home, and not out here alone".

"Derek-"

"Kayla" he cut her off, "for once can you please do as you're told?"

She sighed, rolling her eyes but begrudgingly nodded.

"See... that wasn't so hard, was it?"

She was so tempted to punch his smug ass but somehow managed to restrain herself, throwing him a dirty side eye and was sure she saw him try and hide his smirk, pointing out of the preserve.

"Get in your car and go home. I need to go and get Scott".

"What?" she exclaimed, "so it's okay for you to drag Scott into this and not me?"

"He's already in this Kayla" he reminded her, "you're not. He needs to understand why I need him to help me catch the Alpha. So get going".

"I don't have my car".

Derek frowned, "how did you get here?"

She did a sarcastic point to her gym wear, striking a pose.

"I ran. Obviously".

"Do you have any self preservation instincts at all?"

"Do you have any self preservation instincts?" she mocked, "apparently not".

He sighed, reaching into his pocket to throw her his car keys.

"Take my car and go straight home" he warned, "I'll let you know if I find out anything".

He made sure to watch as she turned around and headed to the Hale house, making sure she was actually listening to him, and when she was almost there and turned around to see he had gone, disappeared into thin air.

"Dickhead" she muttered under her breath, dragging her feet through the leaves and twigs as she saw the the wreckage of the house in the distance, "discriminating against me because I'm human. Well, this human could kick your ass".

She continued to muttered obscenities under her breath, hating being made to feel like a spare point as she came up to the once magnificent Hale house, the burnt wreckage still feeling like a stab in the heart.

She didn't get why Derek still hung out here. It was freaking creepy - and she didn't get creeped out by much. But, then again, Derek was kinda creepy.

She kept her gaze down, walking around the side of the house and towards the Camaro, clicking the keys to unlock it, the dark night sky flashing a bright orange as the lights on the car lit up briefly.

She was just a few steps away from the car when a sudden whoosh swept past her, the loose hairs from her ponytail curling around her face.

She stopped short, her entire body tensing.

What the holy hell was that?

Her stomach twisted, her muscles clenching as she remained still, steadying her breathing as to regulate her heartbeat.

Could that be...?

No. Surely not. According to Derek, the Alpha has just killed at the movie rental store... why would he be back out here so quick?

No. If anything, it was probably Derek playing a prank on her. A prank to put the fear of god into her to make her stay away from the preserve.

She ignored the twinge in her gut telling her something wasn't right, swallowing the lump in her throat as she slowly turned around, staring out into the vast expanse of darkness, disregarding the feeling of a pair of eyes staring straight into her soul.

"Okay" she called out, "very funny Derek. You're hilarious. Quit trying to scare me. I'm not a child".

No answer. Typical.

She lifted the keys, rattling them in her grasp.

"I'm going, so chill. Don't crap your pants".

Again, no answer... but that feeling of being watched still remained.

"You're a dick, you know that?" she raged, "seriously, stop treating me like I'm ten" and with that she threw herself into the drivers seat, starting up the engine and skidding down the dirt track road, failing to see the pair of red eyes reflecting in the rear view mirror.

Did she listen to Derek?

The simple answer was no.

Why? Because she rarely listened to anyone. When people were forceful in ordering her what to do, it made her much more unlikely to do said thing.

You would think after sixteen years, they would know that already.

She decided to head into town and go to go the movie rental store and see what was going on, smirking to herself as she deliberately raced through a couple red lights and made sure to get flashed on a speed camera.

Sue her, she was petty. Derek pissed her off, so she was going to piss him off even more.

Payback was a bitch.

Payback in the form of a few hundred dollar fines.

It didn't take her long to reach the store, having to Google map her way there as she still wasn't overly familiar with the town, hoardes of people already creating crowds.

She parked as close as she could, deliberately almost running over a group of so called 'Karen's' who were blocking an empty parking space, clearly thinking their nosiness was more important, ignoring their displeased looks as she got out.

She heard them mutter under their breaths about "youths these days" and just how "inconsiderate" she was being as they "needed to know what was going on to protect themselves".

She simply responded by flipping them the her middle finger, smirking as they gasped.

Clearly, 'Karen's' were a world wide issue then.

She flipped them the bird. She didn't murder their entire family. What drama queens.

She saw some police cars and a couple of ambulances parked out in front and managed to squeeze her way to the front of the crowd, watching them load a dead body covered in a white sheet into the ambulance.

Her eyes scanned the crowd, subtly trying to see if there was anyone or anything suspicious, until her eyes found someone familiar.

Stiles was seated in the sheriff's car, the door half open as he was watching the scene unfold with pure fascination in his stare but that initial fascination seemed to melt into worry, a frown pulling at his brows.

She wondered why, following his gaze and saw Lydia and Jackson next to the other ambulance, clearly trying to be treated by the EMT's.

His worry clearly wasn't aimed at Jackson which meant...

Right. How could she forget. He was secretly in love with the unattainable Lydia Martin. He had all but said to that to her the first time they properly spoke.

That was the thing with the goofy, funny guys...

... they always liked someone else.

It wasn't hard to see why. Lydia, as much of a pain in the ass that she was, was drop-dead gorgeous. By all accounts, she was flawless. Hell, even Kayla had a small crush on her because - duh - she had eyes. She was sure Lydia Martin was the object of many people's affection.

She shook away the uncomfortable twist of her gut, recognising it as something close to disappointment, and decided to try and be sneaky, dropping under the police tape and snuck over to her two friends.

"Hey guys" she said quietly, stepping up beside the ambulance, "you two okay?"

Immediately Jackson's head swivelled around to face her, his eyes sparking with what many would assume was anger but Kayla could clearly see fear there, his pretty blue eyes wide and wild. On the flip side, Lydia continued to stare off into space, barely acknowledging her presence, most likely going into shock.

"How do I look to you?" Jackson demanded, drawing Kayla's attention to him, his voice trembling almost unnoticeably.

"Wow" she muttered, "you're somehow caught up in a murder and you're worried about your looks? But surprisingly... that doesn't surprise me" she added with a scoff because, after all, this was Jackson.

"No, I mean do I look like I have a concussion?" he growled, clenching his fists in an effort to try and contain himself, "these asshats won't let me leave no matter how much I try and drill it through their thick skulls that I am fine" he snapped and Kayla simply rolled her eyes, not at all deterred by his violent outbursts.

"You look and sound just as annoying as ever so yes Jackson, you seem fine to me" she muttered, looking towards Lydia who was shaking slightly, her usual immaculate face now running with make-up.

"Lydia" Kayla piped up gently, trying to be as gentle as possible - which was very unlike her. She didn't really do 'gentle' - she did blunt. Blunt she was comfortable with. Gentle, she was not. But she didn't want to add to Lydia's newfound PTSD, or whatever.

Lydia's glazed eyes met hers and Kayla didn't know what to do, the show of emotion making her feel a little uneasy, so she just reached out and took ahold of her hands to show her support – she really didn't know what else to do, she couldn't exactly reassure them that everything was going to be okay because that would be a massive lie. And Kayla did not like lying.

"How you holding up?" Kayla inquired and Lydia nodded slowly, her usual bright eyes now dull and lifeless.

"I'm fine" she replied mechanically, as if on autopilot, "I just want to sleep".

"I think the EMT's are about to let you go now" she reassured, looking around at the dwindling crowd that the deputies had managed to disperse, the EMT's packing up their bags.

"I swear to God if they don't let us go right now..." Jackson continued to rage selfishly and Kayla nudged him with her arm to shut him up. Honestly? Didn't he have any decency? His girlfriend was having a mental breakdown it seemed, and all he cared about was going home? God, even she wasn't this heartless.

"Jackson" She hissed, "shut up for a minute before they arrest you and then you'll never get home".

He just shot her a deadly glare to show how un-amused he really was, crossing his arms as he went back to huffing like a six year old child that didn't get the candy he was wanting.

"Okay, so you've been cleared by the... oh" a kind but gruff voice said, stopping short as he saw her there, "Kayla, right?"

She looked up at the Sheriff, seeing his confused look, his gaze sweeping between them and the now small crowds behind the tape, clearly wondering how she got past his line of sight.

"Right" she nodded, "hi again Sheriff".

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, clearly very confused by her sudden appearance, adding to the stress of an already stressful night.

"Uh... how did you get here?"

"I drove".

He raised his eyebrows at her very matter-of-fact voice, the straightforwardness of her tone making him feel a little bit like an idiot.

"No, uh... I mean, behind the tape?"

"I ducked" she smiled, "I used to win all the limbo competitions".

He ran a tired hand down his face, not having the energy to argue with a teenage girl as he looked between Jackson and Lydia.

"You've been cleared to go. We don't need anymore statements".

"Finally" Jackson exclaimed, taking off away to his Porsche without a second thought, leaving Lydia sitting on the back of the ambulance, still trying to contain her tears.

Kayla simply rolled her eyes again, her hatred for Jackson growing to biblical heights as she felt pity towards Lydia, knowing the feeling of being left and uncared for all too well.

"I uh... I can drive her home" Kayla offered, quirking a brow at the sheriff, "if that's okay?"

"Yeah, of course. You kids have got to stick together" the Sheriff advised, "but go straight home. It's not safe out here".

She nodded, reaching out to help Lydia stand on shaky legs, wrapping an arm around her waist as she helped her walk through the crowds and towards Derek's Camaro.

"Wait - Kayla" Lydia suddenly exclaimed, reaching out to gran her wrist before she could shut the car door, "can you stay over?"

"Stay over at your house?" Kayla asked, "like a sleepover?"

"Please?" the strawberry blonde asked meekly, more tears pressing themselves forward and Kayla felt her whole body begin to itch, not comfortable with this kind of emotion - she never knew what to do when people cried. It was just awkward.

"Uh..."

She wasn't particularly affectionate or cuddly, not for a long while, so just simply stared at Lydia like she had two heads, stiffly reaching out to pat the top of her head.

"... Sure. I'll stay" she said, gently pressing on Lydia's forehead with her two fingers, pushing her into the car, "just don't try and spoon me. I like my own space" then shut the door.

She wasn't exactly the best emotional support person, especially in circumstances as delicate as this, but she realised Lydia had no one else and she felt bad for her new found friend because no one should be left alone to be scared and fearful after seeing something as terrifying and confusing as what she just saw.

She went to walk around the car to get into the driver's side and, just before she slipped in, she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

She knew that feeling all too well, twisting her head to search for whoever was watching her and quickly saw Stiles leaning over the top of the sheriff's car, his eyes lighting up as they met hers, raising his hand into a two-fingered wave.

For whatever reason, seeing him sort of pissed her off.

Why?

She wasn't entirely sure, but she supposed it was the way he had been looking at Lydia earlier.

As soon as she thought that, she almost laughed at the ridiculousness of it all.

Why would she be feeling something as petty as jealousy?

She didn't get jealous.

And why would she get jealous over Stiles and Lydia?

It was ridiculous.

The whole situation was ridiculous.

He was her friend - one of her only true friends here, who knew everything - and she was only flirting with him to be playful... it wasn't like she was wanting anything with him...

Right?

No, of course not. No relationships. Remmeber the rule, Kayla.

She just forced a tight smile on her face, not responding to his eagerness before slipping into the car and driving off, heading in the direction of Lydia's house.

That confusing, albeit brief, encounter left Stiles completely bewildered, a little hurt that she blew him off.

Maybe she wasn't all that into him, after all.

A/N) I am powering through this recently aren't I hahah it's just so fun though; and I'm loving adding so much more detail to this. So I hope you all liked this varied chapter, it had a bit of everything; so please review and I will see you all soon :)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form. Thank you so much for the continued support, it means more than you could ever know :) 

A sleepover at Lydia Martin's house wasn't exactly at the top of Kayla's wish list but life was full of curve balls right?

Lydia was mainly silent in the car, her knees pulled to her chest as she stared blearily out the window, watching the world go by and Kayla just stayed quiet as she drove, tapping her fingers along to a tune she hummed under her breath.

In all these weeks, Kayla had never seen Lydia so reserved and quiet and it was a little unnerving. Normally the strawberry blonde was full on and opinionated, chipper and upbeat with an undertone of judgement, but there was none of that now. If anything, it was like she was a completely different person entirely.

She pulled into Lydia's driveway, slowing to a stop just opposite the front door and switched off the engine, sitting back in her seat and glancing at Lydia who made no effort to move.

"Uh... Lydia. You're home"

She watched her friend blink a couple of times, peeling her forehead off the glass as she looked around in confusion, taking a few seconds to register the familiar scenery.

"Right. Home..."

Luckily the awkward silence was broken by a screech of Lydia's name, a woman who Kayla assumed was Lydia's mom throwing open the front door and hurrying down the concrete steps, rushing forward in her high heels to open the car door and bend down quickly to engulf Lydia in a hug.

"I'm okay mom" Lydia said, but her voice was flat, still seeped in shock, "I just want to rest".

"Oh honey..." the woman muttered, soothing Lydia's hair as her gaze fell on Kayla over her daughters shoulder, shooting her a grateful smile.

"You must be Kayla" she deduced, "I'm Natalie Martin. It's so nice to finally meet you".

Kayla was a little thrown by the apparent familiarity Natalie Martin had for her, wondering why Lydia would talk to her mom about her. She didn't seem the type to discuss her loyal lackies.

"Uh... you too" Kayla plastered a smile on her face, hoping now Lydia was back with her mom that she would forget the whole 'sleepover' thing, "so, I'm just gonna-"

"Kayla's staying over" Lydia said very matter of factly, her tone leaving no room for argument with more emotion than she's had all night, escaping her mom's grasp, "come on Kayla".

Damn it.

She resisted a sigh, following Lydia out the car and up the steps to her house, her mom hurrying after them with the incessant clip clop of her heels.

"Can I get you girls anything? A hot chocolate... some cookies... maybe more blankets?"

"No, mom" Lydia sighed, appearing exhausted with her moms faffing, trying to dismiss her before Kayla could indulge in the glorious idea of cookies, "we're good. Honestly".

She frowned in disappointment, in that moment rathering the cookies than Lydia's company but again with the curveballs, right? Unable to do much of anything as Lydia grabbed her wrist in a vicelike grip to drag her up the stairs.

Yup. Her fate was sealed. There was no escape now.

Lydia's room was not what she was expecting. Like, at all. She expected pinks and purples, maybe some glitter and lots of fluffy pillows and fairy lights but instead the walls were a pale green, framed artwork hanging up and a simple white bedspread on the bed, a desk to the side with a large rounded mirror atop it.

Were they in the wrong room?

Lydia turned around to watch her, studying her expression and noticing her surprise, for the first time that night a small amused smile tugging at her lips.

"This is my temporary bedroom" Lydia said, "mine is in the process of getting redecorated. Again".

"Again?"

"Of course" Lydia answered, confusion twisting her tone like she didn't understand why Kayla asked, "I'm not committing to one style for the rest of my high school life".

Surprisingly, that didn't surprise her.

This was Lydia Martin after all. She probably had a bedroom change for each season.

"I should've guessed. This does not scream 'Lydia Martin' one bit".

"Oh?" Lydia cocked a brow, "well, what does?"

"There's no throne" she teased, only half playing because she honestly did half expect something as ridiculous and outrageous as that, especially from the queen bee of Beacon Hills herself.

Lydia's look softened, that vacant expression from earlier nearly gone as she reached into her drawers to pull out a nightie, throwing it to Kayla who caught it effortlessly, cocking a brow as she dangled it from her finger.

"Really? Silk? You trying to get into my pants, Lydia?"

The strawberry blonde rolled her eyes, placing a hand on her hip, "you're not getting into my bed in gym clothes. Speaking of-" pointing to the door next to her desk, "-go shower. You reek".

This time, it was Kayla's turn to roll her eyes.

"So would you if you had ran fifteen miles".

Lydia just kept pointing to the door, sending her an unimpressed look and Kayla just sarcastically saluted her, doing as she was told.

The bathroom was simple and white, which made sense if it was just a guest bedroom, some of Lydia's things sprawled throughout the bathroom.

She wasted no time, stripping off her tight gym clothes that were sticking to her a tad uncomfortably, pulling her hair from her pony tail and turning the shower to hot, giving it a couple of minutes to heat up and for the steam to fog up the bathroom before stepping into the shower.

She enjoyed the burning hot water soaking her skin, the drops bouncing off her reddened skin for several minutes before using the fancy bottles of shampoo and shower gel to wash her hair and body, the strong citrus smell tingling her nostrils and nearly making her sneeze.

Jeez, overpowering much? What was wrong with vanilla, or even strawberries and cream? Something subtle, but endulging. But then again, Lydia always went the whole nine yards, why would her shower routine be any different?

She could practically feel Lydia's impatience from the next room over, deciding to bite the bullet and leave the shower, patting herself dry with a fluffy white towel and slipping on Lydia's nightie.

It was a deep burgundy, the cool soft silk gently sliding over her curves as she let the material hang, draping along the tops of her thighs.

Given Lydia's small stature, the nightie naturally fell a little shorter than it should've, just barely covering her 'goods', the delicate lace rim dipping low on her chest, the straps surprisingly light on her shoulders.

Clearly, designer.

She ran her fingers through her wet hair, detangling as much as she could before giving up, letting the long wet strands tickle her back before opening the bathroom door, padding into Lydia's room.

Lydia was already changed into her own nightgown, the hot pink silk tight against her skin as she sat cross legged on the bed, a white fluffy pillow sitting atop her lap that she played with, trying to keep her anxious fingers busy.

She looked up though when Kayla entered, her piercing green eyes giving her a long and thorough once over, all the way from the tips of her toes to the hair protruding from her scalp, studying every inch of her body like she was some painting in a fancy art museum.

"Suits you" Lydia remarked, "you have a great body. You need better clothes to show it off".

"Is that a compliment?"

Lydia rolled her eyes, "of course it is. I never say things I don't mean".

Kayla simply did a sarcastic courtesy, grabbing the ends of the nightgown to pull it out as she did before walking around the edge of the bed and sitting on it next to Lydia, able to see right through her friends mask of pretending to be okay.

"Lydia... you could've had your pick of a hundred people to keep you company tonight... why ask me?"

Lydia sighed, keeping her gaze focused on the pillow she was slowly but surely picking apart.

"I don't have a hundred people I could've asked".

Kayla frowned, unsure why Lydia was saying something so ridiculous.

"Of course you could've" she said, "you have pretty much the entire school wrapped around your finger, including a bunch of girls that would've been ecstatic for a slumber party".

Lydia frowned, her face pinched in an effort to keep her emotions in check, her fingers continuing to pick and curl around the white fabric.

"None of them are genuine" she whispered, "they only speak to me because they want something from me... popularity, approval... they don't actually like me".

Kayla didn't expect Lydia to be so self aware. On the surface, it seemed she enjoyed being number one, loving all the attention it got her as well as the perks of being seemingly loved by everyone, but maybe it wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

"What do you mean...?"

"Girls don't like me" Lydia emphasised, "they see me as a threat. As someone to be feared of or jealous. Society pits girls against one another, so we tear each other down instead of supporting one another. I don't have friends. I have acquaintances. Followers. Users. But no friends".

"That's why I like you, and Allison" she continued, "you don't want anything from me. Not like what everyone else does".

"Oh..."

"Allison likes me for me, my company, which is refreshing and new to me. You have never asked me for anything, or seem to care about your status. You're headstrong and confident, a girl who knows her own mind and sticks to it. You're like me, in many ways, and you don't feel threatened by me. It makes a nice change".

She wasn't aware that Lydia knew all these things, but her keen sense of perception must've come hand in hand with her extreme level of smartness - something Kayla had picked up on the last few weeks. Something the strawberry blonde was always trying to hide.

"You're a pain in the ass" Kayla remarked with a shrug, before a begrudging smile tugged at her lips, "but you're alright".

Lydia peeked up at her through her eyelashes, her gaze unnervingly sharp. Like she was trying to read her mind.

"So that's why I couldn't invite just anyone" she continued, "because I see right through their facade".

"Highschool is full of that".

"Tell me about it" Lydia scoffed, "full of piranhas. They're just waiting for my downfall, which is why I'm not going to let that happen".

Kayla had to hand it to Lydia... her determination was unmatched.

"The queen won't willingly abdicate from her throne".

Despite her clear bouts of anxious fear, Lydia threw her a devastatingly confident smile, her lips pulling back across perfect pearly white teeth.

"Exactly. Tonight was just a blip. Whatever happened... whatever I saw... I'll get past it" she nodded, "I'll get some good medication and come back bigger and better than ever".

"Lydia..." Kayla said carefully, not wanting to send Lydia into a PTSD spiral, but wanting to know what they were dealing with, "what exactly did you see?"

Lydia's stare cracked slightly from the pressure of that question, her lips tightening into a thin line as she bit back her nerves.

"Something" she whispered, swallowing nervously, "I saw... something".

"Well... you're safe now" Kayla nodded, as reassuringly as she could, "I promise".

Despite their personalities sometimes clashing, Kayla did actually quite like Lydia, especially when she realised she wasn't as shallow and heartless as she pretended. She was one of the few people Kayla would go out of her way to protect.

Lydia's stare moved past her out the window, focusing on the silvery glare of the moon, only just over a week until it became full and all hell would no doubt break loose.

"Yeah... safe".

She didn't know what to do. She wasn't exactly the best at comforting people, especially in situations as delicate as this. But, it seemed, Lydia didn't mind. Maybe her company was good enough, helping her feel less alone.

Lydia's stare refocused on her, studying her again like some mathmatical equation, her lips pursed in thought.

"I meant what I said. That first day" the strawberry blonde clarified, "I did my research on you. I know a lot of things that you haven't told the people here yet".

"Do you want a medal, or...?"

Lydia rolled her eyes at her sass but despite her apparent playful annoyance Kayla could tell she was amused, finally having someone that could keep up with her.

"I'm just trying to say... I know you've had a difficult year. I guess, when you first came here, you were like a brand new project for me to play with. Someone I could reinvent. But you don't want to reinvented. You're totally okay with being you, and I admire that".

It was all starting to make sense now... in a weird, caring way Lydia was trying to make a connection by playing with them like dolls, helping both her and Allison in the way she knew how - through wardrobe changes, make up, social status and boys.

"So you trying to hook me up with Brian was your way of trying to help me through the transition of moving whilst dealing with grief?" she asked with a playful snort, amazed by the way Lydia's brain worked.

Lydia simply shrugged, "boys are a good distraction. I just thought he could take your mind off things".

It was actually kind of sweet. Maybe a little creepy, but mostly sweet.

"Well, I appreciate the sentiment" Kayla chuckled, "but I'm okay. Really".

"No, you're not" Lydia replied, a gentle smile tugging at her lips, "but that's okay, because you will be. I'll make sure of it".

"Another project idea?" she teased.

Lydia rolled her eyes, "projects are fun. It's good to have ambitions Kayla".

"Well, good luck" Kayla laughed, "I'm a lost cause".

"Enough with the negative self talk" Lydia chastised her, "you have potential. See-" she reached out, shamelessly grabbing her boobs in the silk nightie and pushing them together, "-these are showstoppers. Not to mention those legs? Killer" Lydia fawned, "so tell me what you want - what will make you happy - and I'll make sure you get it".

Somehow, she knew Lydia would make whatever she wanted happen.

She smirked, cocking a brow at Lydia who was still cupping her boobs, making no move to release her grip.

"Anything?"

"Within reason" Lydia rolled her eyes, "I'm not a fairy god mother".

She wondered what may actually make her happy. What could take her mind off all the hellish things that had happened. What would give her a few moments of peace.

Of course, the things she truly wanted were unreachable. She couldn't bring back those she loved from the dead, that was impossible, but there had to be something else that would make her feel... whole. Even for a brief moment.

"I'm fed up of expectations" she admitted, "of being judged. Feeling like a failure. I would love to go and just do what I want with no consequences or judgement. I miss my impulsivity".

Lydia smirked, seeming pleased by her answer.

"So you want to go 'bad girl' again?"

"No" she chuckled, "at least, not that far. Last time I did that, I ended up a junkie".

Lydia finally dropped her hands from her boobs, seeming glad to have something to distract her from the trauma of tonight, a playful glint shining in her gaze.

"You want to lose control".

"Kinda" Kayla shrugged, "it's exhausting trying to live for other people. I want to live for me".

"Then let's lose control".

"What?" Kayla laughed, "Lydia. You are the most in control person I know. You're a complete control freak".

"Ninety nine percent of the time, yes" she nodded, "but after tonight? It made me realise I can't control everything, unfortunately. And you never know-" she teased, "-your way of doing things might help me too".

"I wouldn't want to ruin Lydia Martin's prescious reputation".

"My reputation has been solid for years" Lydia smirked, "one night of mishap won't dethrone me".

Kayla liked this Lydia. This Lydia was someone she had never seen before. This Lydia wasn't so uptight or judgemental, but mischievous and playful, able to escape the pressures of being perfect because Kayla didn't expect her to be perfect. Not like everyone else.

"Fine" Kayla smirked, "and, bonus points for me, I'll even let you dress me up as you see fit. My body is your canvas".

Lydia clapped in excitement, scrambling from the bed as she begun to pick out make up and nail polish, setting up her curling iron and Kayla watched with a smile on her face.

This may be a controversial way to help her new friend, but Lydia wanted a project to focus on and Kayla was willing to be said project for a little while. Plus, it kept her distracted from the horrors she saw just a few hours prior, a win win in her book.

Surprisingly, she had fun.

Yes, she actually said that.

She had fun with Lydia Martin.

She got to sit there like a perfect doll as Lydia painted her nails a blush pink, curled her thick hair into wild curls and applied some make up to her clear skin, the strawberry blonde making sure everything was just perfect.

Lydia just reapplied some make up, wiping away the tear stains from her face as she fluffed up her hair before whipping open her wardrobe, meticulously studying each designer piece with careful eyes.

She didn't even say anything in protest as Lydia threw her a clingy white silk dress, halter neck, that was cinched in at the waist, little slits on either side of each thigh.

"And no bra" Lydia warned, "those perky puppies deserve freedom".

She rolled her eyes but said nothing as she simply dropped the nightie she was wearing so it bundled around her feet, much to Lydia's surprise - and delight.

"What?" Kayla asked, "girls get naked at slumber parties right?"

Lydia cocked a perfectly manicured brow, her intense stare rolling across her figure before she smirked.

"Stereotypical" Lydia snorted, "but I'm not complaining".

Lydia's character was freeing - unreserved and flirty, something that Kayla was beginning to see more of, feeling more and more comfortable around the queen bee herself.

So she simply slipped on the silk dress, the cool material clinging to all the right places as Lydia did the same to her own dress - a strapless purple number, not as revealing as the one she picked out for her, an air of class drifting off her, but it was still hot.

"Uh, no heels" Kayla said before Lydia could chuck her a pair of white stilettos, "I can't walk in heels".

"You can't walk in heels but you can balance and do flips off a four inch wide balance beam?"

Again, she hadn't told Lydia anything about her gymnastics training, nor her weight training, but somehow she still knew.

Kayla had learnt not to be surprised.

"It's a completely different skill set".

Lydia sighed but, without argument, simply changed out the stilettos for a pair of flats, much to Kayla's relief.

"Now-" Lydia smiled, "-just don't get us arrested. Anything else is fair game. Understood?"

"Understood"

Whoops.

it seemed getting arrested was fair game. Especially to Kayla.

She woke up though, thank god, not in a police cell but in what she recognised as Sheriff Stilinski's office, laying curled up on the old worn brown leather sofa.

Her head was splitting in half, the mountains of alcohol she no doubt drank making her brain feel like it was getting roasted over an open fire, the back of her throat not fairing much better.

Oh god... she bet there was singing involved. She always did end up doing karaoke.

She sat up slowly, her hair tangled and matted to her face as she realised her head had been resting on someone's lap and looked over, seeing Lydia nursing a coffee cup between her hands, mascara smudged under her eyes.

"Uh... morning" Kayla groaned, touching her forehead to make sure her head wasn't actually split in half, realising she had the sheriffs green oversized jacket wrapped around her shoulders, "what the hell happened?"

Lydia narrowed her eyes, her own face twisted into what Kayla assumed was a heavy as fuck hangover.

"You don't remember?"

"Thankfully, no".

"Well, you did out drink everyone at 'Jungle', I shouldn't be surprised".

Kayla let a lazy grin pull itself across her lips, nodding proudly.

"Another skill set I have".

Lydia rolled her eyes but there was no malice there, still looking effortlessly goegeous, even with her face full of make up sliding off her face and her hair like a rats nest, Kayla probably not fairing much better.

"And no, we didn't get arrested" Lydia said to Kayla's unsaid question, the words still stuck on the tip of her tongue as she looked around in confusion, "the sheriff found you passed out in the dumpster - classy, by the way - and I convinced him to let you sleep it off at the station. I, of course, came with you".

"Oh thank god" Kayla exclaimed, "my mom would disown me if I got more criminal convictions on my record".

Lydia arched a brow, still not surprised by her words.

"Those were expunged. Relax, clean slate".

"How did you know about them if they were expunged?"

"Like I said, I have my ways" Lydia said, not letting her hangover deter her as she suddenly thrust the half drunk cup of coffee into her hand, "now drink this and sober up. It's 7am. We need to get home before my mom finds out we left. Not that she'll do anything, but I'd rather save my energy".

The smell of the coffee was a welcome relief, soaking up the bitter smell as she inhaled the strong scent before taking a few sips. It had considerably less sugar than she would have liked, but she was currently not-officially-arrested in the sheriffs office... she couldn't really be picky, could she?

Hanging with Lydia was fun. And fun was something she had severely lacked recently. It was fun to just be a normal teenager - go out, dress a little provocatively, mess up... that's what teenagers were meant to do right?

Plus, it wasn't like last time. Last night she wasn't partying to forget the pain... she partied to have fun. To be the carefree spirit she had once been. She went out and drank, danced, sang, probably indulged in some drunken games, but she didn't feel the need to do anything self destructive.

That, in itself, was a step forward.

She watched as Lydia stood, straightening out her dress, dropping the blanket that was around her shoulders to pick up an oversized black blazer and slip it up her arms.

"If anyone asks-" Lydia warned playfully, "-you dragged me out against my will. Understood?"

Kayla smirked around the rim of the mug, "oh, understood".

Just as Lydia smiled, the door to the sheriff's office opened and in walked an exhausted and weary Sheriff, his weathered face set with deep lines around the eyes seemed a little surprised to see her up, concern building in his gaze.

"Oh. You're awake".

"Yup" she smirked, "not dead" throwing in a sarcastic two fingered peace sign.

He carefully closed the door, walking over to place a file on his desk before turning to face them, crossing his arms.

"I decided to let you two off the hook because of what happened last night" he sighed, "and I didn't want to get you into trouble. But underage drinking? The fake ID's? That could get you into serious trouble in the future".

"Oh, no" Lydia smiled, batting her eyelashes, "this was just a small slip. A one time thing. It definitely won't happen again".

"I hope so" the sheriff nodded, "you're both good girls-"

Kayla couldn't resist a snort at that, still - maybe - a little tipsy from the countless shots, finding it hilarious he thought that because her, good? Ha. Hilarious. She was a disaster. She never promised to be good.

The sheriff stopped, sending her a frown but she couldn't help the small chuckle that left her lips, not even bothering to hide her amusement.

"Sorry. Sorry" she mumbled, biting back another laugh, "I just... that is something I've never been described as before".

The sheriff reached around to pick up the file that he had placed on the table just a couple minutes prior, opening it up and briefly showing her it, seeing a picture of herself in a not so flattering mugshot, probably either high or drunk - or both - and frowned when she saw that.

"Because of this?" he asked, a hint of sadness and empathy in his voice, "this is meaningless. This is from a bad time in your life. I read the reports" he added, "I know about your family. So this-" he closed the file, giving it a small shake, "-means nothing".

"In fact-" he half shrugged, grabbing the thin cardboard and ripped the file in half, much to her surprise, "-it doesn't even technically exist".

She wondered why he was being so nice to her... why someone in a position of authority wasn't just writing her off as trouble.

Everyone else had.

"So, I'll say it again" he repeated, "you're both good girls. For future, try and stay out of trouble. Otherwise, the sofa may get replaced by a police cell".

The thinly veiled threat was just a kind warning, no doubt hating to see kids the same age as his son put themselves in dangerous situations.

"Uh... noted" Lydia gulped, "do you have to phone our parents?"

"If you do, for me you only need to make the one phone call" Kayla shrugged, "unless you own a ouija board. Don't think my dad has cell reception where he is".

It was meant as a morbid joke, a way to deal with her grief but her lack of filter, especially around taboo situations like this, was clearly not very socially acceptable if Lydia and the sheriffs shocked faces were anything to go by.

"No. no I don't need to phone your parents... or parent" he added to Kayla, "I'll let it slide this once. You are friends with my son. I think that entitles you to one free pass".

Right... Stiles.

She had actually completely forgotten about him, and her annoyance at him that had come from nowhere.

She could tell Lydia had no idea who the sheriff was going on about so Kayla just nodded, accepting their 'get out of jail' free card.

"Come on... I'll drive you home" the sheriff nodded, moving forward to open the door and escort them out the office, Lydia making sure she was hiding behind Kayla as best she could.

That Sunday, she spent half the day at Lydia's, both napping on and off as they tried to hide their hangover from Natalie Martin who was either oblivious as a wall of bricks or living in denial, choosing not to ask her daughter about her extra curricular activities.

They ate lunch, spoke a little, but Kayla could tell once the alcohol wore off, Lydia was back to being an anxious mess.

So, she suggested contacting her doctor for something to relax her. A.K.A - chill her the fuck out. Her poor pillows didn't need more assaults on them.

Lydia was on board and, within the hour, Natalia had a prescription for some benzodiazepines which hit Lydia even worse than the alcohol, giving Kayla some much needed entertainment for a couple hours before she passed out.

That evening she returned home, making sure she was presentable so her mom wouldn't pick up on anything 'untoward'.

Luckily, she didn't. In fact, she seemed more distracted than usual, barely paying attention to her so she retired to her room and finished the chemistry project her and Stiles had worked on the day before, sending it to both Scott and Stiles.

Barely thirty seconds had passed before Stiles had texted her, clearly having received her email with the attached project and using that as a way to start a conversation with her?

'You finished the project?'

'There wasn't much left to do. Just trying to be proactive'

'Right. Crazy what happened last night huh?'

Sbe blanched at her phone, wondering how on earth he knew about her Lydia's late night drunken shenanigans.

'How do you know about jungle? Were you there?'

'What? Huh? Jungle? I was taking about the the dude that died at the movie store. What are you talking about?'

She smirked, totally putting her foot in it.

'Oh yeah. Dead dude. Sad'

'Yes, sad. Very sad. What happened at jungle? Were you at jungle? That's a gay bar, you know'

'Wouldn't you like to know' she replied, followed by a suggestive face emoji before placing her phone on the bedside table and falling asleep, ignoring the constant dings from Stiles' texts, clearly eager and intrigued to know what she had been up to.

But, she was happy to let him wonder some more. Hopefully allowing his imagination to run wild.

Stiles has never been so eager to get to chemistry class that morning.

Why?

To get answers.

And no, not to chemistry. He couldn't care less about that. No. He wanted answers as to why Kayla was partying at 'Jungle'.

Well... and about the murderous Alpha attack. And to see if Lydia was okay.

But mainly about jungle.

He got there quick, one of the first people to sit down, sitting eagerly on the uncomfortable stools as he kept peering his head around every time someone walked in.

No Kayla.

Typical. Late as always.

Just before the final bell rang, he saw Kayla walk into the classroom with Danny by her side, both engaging in easy conversation.

She was wearing a simple pair of denim shorts and a white short sleeved shirt, the first few buttons undone. Long wavy hair thrown carelessly over one shoulder, her eyes alive and bright as she laughed with Danny.

He eagerly leaned forward, trying to catch her stare but she didn't look over to him, not once, dumping her bag on the floor and perching that cute little ass of hers on the seat.

What was he, chopped liver?

"Kayla-"

"-need to come out more" Danny laughed, "girl, you've got moves. Everyone loved you out there".

"Shame I don't remember" she chuckled, "seriously, after that tenth shot, it's all blank".

"So you don't remember singing on the bar?"

"Nuh uh".

"Dancing in the cages?"

"Uh, Kay-"

"Nope".

"Doing body shots off naked girls?"

"Unfortunately not".

"What?" He exclaimed loudly, attracting the attention of half the class, his wide eyed gaze flitting between Danny and Kayla, "wha-b-body shots?"

She finally acknowledged his presence, turning her head slightly to smirk at him.

"Yes Stiles. Body shots" she emphasised, "y'know... licking and drinking stuff off of naked girls tits. It's a blast".

He swallowed nervously, his cheeks flaring a deep pink as he gripped at his thigh tightly, willing away the boner threatening to protrude from his slacks at that insanely hot image.

She seemed amused by his silence, her eyes dancing with playfulness as she turned back to Danny.

"I'd be down" she said, "next time you go out, shoot me a text. The sheriff confiscated my fake ID but I can get a new one".

"What?" he exclaimed again, "the sheriff? My dad?"

She quirked a brow at him, not surprised by his constant interruptions.

"Last time I checked, yeah" she nodded, "you came from his balls. Your point?"

"Did my dad arrest you?"

"No" she said, "well, not really, it's a long story" she waved her hand, dismissing anymore questions, "so yeah, count me in. Lydia convinced me I need to have more fun".

"Lydia?" he was getting more bamboozled by the minute, feeling like he was playing catch up.

"Yes, Lydia. Y'know-" she muttered sarcastically, "-five foot three, strawberry blonde, green eyes. The girl you're hopelessly in love with?"

Okay... ouch.

Danny snorted, covering his mouth with his hand as Stiles sent him an unamused glare.

"Anyway-" she muttered, taking his silence as a way to finish her conversation with Danny, "-just don't tag me in the photos on Facebook. If my mom finds them, she'll go ballistic".

Danny winced, "ah too late. I couldn't resist. Plus, since I posted them ten minutes ago, I've already had eighty likes. Eighty" he exclaimed, "that dress you wore clearly is getting some attention. Just wait... you'll have people lining up around the block to ask you out".

He couldn't resist...

Just as Mr Harris started the class, speaking about the parent teacher conference tonight, belittling them all for being useless failures like he usually did, he opened up his phone and went to Danny's Facebook page, scrolling down to see the collection of photos he had posted.

Without meaning to, he automatically got the most instant and painful boner of his life.

God... even porn didn't get him going this quick.

The very first picture he saw was Kayla standing in the middle of Danny and his boyfriend, a silk white dress hugging and draping her curves, the peaks of her nipples pressing out the dress that hung low on her cleavage.

Fuck.

His phone clattered to the desk below, one hand awkwardly covering the bulge in his slacks and the other finding it's way to his mouth, biting down around his fist as he tried to will away the image from his head but it was burned there in perfect detail.

It should be illegal to look that effortlessly good.

It was like the dress was made for her. Following the curves of her body, showing just the right amount of skin to be teasing.

And those tits...

Oh dear god...

"Mr Stilinski" Mr Harris called out as the entire class looked at him, even Kayla and Danny turned around from the table in front, "do you have a problem? Well... anymore than usual?"

The class laughed at his expense - as per usual - and he tried to avoid Kayla's stare, knowing looking at her right now would do nothing to help the little predicament he was now in, unable to see anything but the pretty taut peaks of her nipples poking through the delicate satin.

Still biting his fist, he muffled out a barely audible "no", his teeth leaving sharp indents in his skin.

Fortunately, Mr Harris turned away from him, giving Stiles a little bit of privacy to try and get this situation under control.

"He likes you" he heard Danny whisper to Kayla, much to his mortification, "bet he wants to be doing body shots off you next time".

He choked down his embarrassment, willing away the heat from his cheeks as he pushed down on his crotch, as if he was trying to deflate the awkwardly large boner in his pants, but caught a glimpse of Kayla shooting him a sultry stare over her shoulder before winking at Danny.

"Mission accomplished, then".

A:N) yayyyy another chapter. This was soo fun. I really wanted to explore Lydia and Kayla really connecting, because initially I don't think they would get on so great until they bonded because they are opposites, but now Kayla has seen a rare side to Lydia. And stiles haha poor boy can't catch a break; but I love the sheriff. He's so nice haha hope you all enjoyed :)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form. Thank you so incredibly much for the continued support, it means the entire world to me and my little ol' story :)

What did that mean?

'Mission accomplished?'

Was she wanting to get under his skin? Did she want to mess with his head? Did she want him to be attracted to her?

Honestly, he was confused as hell.

Girls were confusing.

Why couldn't they come with a god damn manual or something?

He sat behind her, wanting to grab her attention but equally as embarrassed, muttering curse words under his breath as he slowly managed to ged rid of his boner until it was just an awkward bulge, making no effort to pick up his phone because he knew that, when he did, he would see that picture again and all hell would break loose.

Just a couple minutes later Jackson came in late, pale and shaky and, for once, appearing a little nervous with the countless pairs of eyes on him.

Stiles frowned, studying Jackson's sudden change in demeanour from confident and cocky to meek and mild, a nervous sweat breaking out across his skin.

Whatever he saw... it must've been bad.

He needed to know what he saw. What Lydia saw. Why wasn't Kayla keeping him updated on this?

Biting back his embarrassment from earlier, he leaned forward and jabbed the end of his pen into Kayla's back.

"Yes Stiles?" she asked, glancing at him over her shoulder, her own pen twirling around in her hand.

"Uh... what uh... what happened on Saturday?" he asked, "I mean... with Lydia? And Jackson?"

"They were about three seconds away from getting murdered" she replied bluntly, "you know this. You were there".

"No, I know but... um... was it..." he trailed off, trying to be subtle as Danny kept throwing him wondering looks, "was it... uh... y'know-"

Kayla rolled her eyes, knowing exactly what he meant.

'Was it the Alpha?' being the unspoken question.

"Obviously".

"So... they got a look at it? I mean him" he quickly corrected as Danny screwed his face up in wondering, "they saw him? The killer?"

Kayla shrugged, "they saw something".

"Something?" he exclaimed, "well what did it - he - what did he look like?"

She simply pursed her lips, seeming both a little annoyed and amused by his incessant questions.

"I don't know. Jackson took off and Lydia was a little traumatised. Our Saturday night involved shots, not revisiting her PTSD".

"Well, uh... d-did Lydia show up to-today?" he asked, determined to find out exactly what it was she knew.

"Dude is off her face on benzo's, I don't think she can even leave her room".

"She wasn't in our homeroom this morning" Danny spoke up when Stiles turned his intense, detective-like gaze to him, "and no, I haven't spoken to her about it".

"Well, what about Jackson?"

Danny sighed, glancing down shamefully.

"No, Jackson... he uh... he wouldn't tell me".

"But he's your best friend".

Danny didn't answer, embarrassed by getting called out and Kayla saw this, sending Stiles a tight look.

"Does Scott tell you everything?" she asked pointedly.

"Of course" he scoffed, "plus, even if he tried, he can't lie. I always figure it out".

"Cocky much?"

"I see myself as more of a realist".

"Oh really?" she smirked, spinning her whole body around on the stool to face him, like she was urging him to banter back.

He stilled, holding her stare as he tried to think of something - anything - to say but he was lost, every single thought leaving his brain.

Dammit. Why did he always get this way around her? Why couldn't he, for once, just be cool?

He cleared his throat, shaking his head a little to break his goggly-eyed gaze from her playful expression as he faced Danny, willing away the heat from his cheeks.

Right. Danny. Danny he could speak to.

"Um... Danny... could you maybe, I don't know, find out?"

"You want me to find out what Lydia and Jackson saw?"

"Yeah".

"Why?" Danny asked, completely bewildered, "why do you need to know?"

"Because I just do Danny" Stiles snarked back, "for reasons you don't need to know".

Danny rolled his eyes, sending Kayla a side glance.

"He's insufferable" he whispered, "you deal with him".

Kayla just giggled and shook her head, turning back to the table and looking down at her chemistry book, deliberately avoiding Danny's betrayed expression.

"And Danny?" he asked, leaning forward even more off his stool, "just uh... one more question?"

"What?" he exclaimed, annoyance creeping into his voice.

"Do you think I'm attractive?" tumbled from his mouth quickly before he could stop himself.

Danny simply screwed his face up in confusion, shooting him a displeased look before turning his bamboozled expression to Kayla, seeking help from her but all she did was giggle, shooting him a playful expression over her shoulder.

"Oh yes Stiles" she remarked, her smirk deepening into a white smile, flashing her set of perfect pearly whites, "you could be the new Miss America"

She managed to avoid Stiles for the next couple of classes, dodging his increasingly annoying prying questions as best she could, but unfortunately Scott wasn't here as a buffer which meant the only other one clued in on all of this, from Stiles' perspective, was her.

"Whoa, Kayla, wait up. Hey... hold on. Hey-"

She decided to put him out of his misery, stopping suddenly in the middle of the hallway and turning around, causing him to tumble into her clumsily and nearly knocking them both over.

"Yes Stiles?"

He blushed a little, hiking his backpack further up his shoulder as he stepped back out of her personal space, clearly a little flustered and uncomfortable.

"Uh... S-Saturday".

"What about Saturday?"

He blanched at her, sending her a look which she chalked up to be 'how can you be so oblivious' look, quickly looking around the busy hallway before pulling on her elbow and guiding her over to the lockers.

"The movie store" he whispered, "dead body, murderous alpha... ring any bells?"

"Of course it does" she rolled her eyes, "I don't have amnesia".

He gaped at her again, getting a little annoyed at her inability to just be forthcoming.

"Well?" he persisted, "what happened?"

"Dude got killed" she summarised, "what else do you want to know?"

"Dude got-what?" he asked, "Kayla... you and I both know it's not that simple".

"I don't know what happened" she shrugged, "I don't know why the Alpha killed him. I don't know anything more than you do".

"Well... don't you want to know?"

"Aw... I see what this is" she playfully grinned, "Scott left you to go suck face with Allison and you can't function without a partner in crime".

"What? No" he scoffed, but the look on his face told her she was actually 100% right, "that's not... that's not true".

"Oh really?" she crossed her arms, unable to stop the smirk that spread across her face, "then why have you been nipping at my ankles for half the day like a goddamn chihuahua?"

He clenched and unclenched his jaw, his tongue pressing into his cheek as he tried - and failed - to come up with a witty retort, his brain going to zero percent capacity whenever he was near her.

"Okay, look" she said, taking pity on him, "I'll go to Lydia's after school and I'll ask her what she saw. Happy?"

"L-Lydia?" he gulped.

"Yes Stiles. Lydia" she rolled her eyes, "because something tells me she'll be easier to get around than Jackson".

"Well, uh... could I... y'know-" he shrugged, "-come with you? For back up" he added as she quirked a brow at him, "teamwork, right?"

"Sure. Teamwork" she drawled our sarcastically, "not because you want to fill your daily quota of Lydia Martin sightings or anything".

He frowned at her bitter tone, having made no effort to hide it.

"Uh..."

"Sure Stiles" she interrupted, "whatever you want".

"You okay?" he asked in a hushed whisper, his brows creased in concern, "you seem a little... snarky".

"Snarky?"

He shuffled back a small step at her glare, trying to swallow the sudden nervous lump in his throat as her stare cut right through him.

"Uh... heh... you-you seem fine" he wisely corrected, not wanting to get on her bad side, "yeah. Totally fine".

She rolled her eyes, about to turn and head to lunch but standing right in front of her was none other than Brian. She managed to stop short before she crashed into his chest, sending him an unamused glare.

"What do you want?"

His lips quirked, not put off by her sharp tone as he leaned cockily against the lockers, his bright blue baby eyes sparkling off the fluorescent lights overhead.

"I'm guessing 'hello' isn't in your vocabulary".

"Why would I waste my breath on something so civil to you?"

He broke out into an award winning smile, clearly somehow getting off on their back-and-forth quips, like it was all just some big game to him. Which, quite frankly, it probably was.

"You know-" he teased, "-in middle school, kids tease and bully other kids because they're crushing on them. So one could interpret your cold behaviour as you liking me a bit too much"

"Yeah" she scoffed, "in your dreams".

"Aw, c'mon Hale you're killing me" he playfully groaned, "quit playing the hard-to-get thing and just go out with me. I promise you'll have the time of your life".

She could feel Stiles fidget behind her, clearly uncomfortable with witnessing this but she paid him no heed, focusing on the blonde, blue-eyed bombshell in front of her.

"You've done nothing to tip the scales in your favour" she shrugged, "so no".

"Tip the scales in my favour?" he repeated with a laugh, "babe... I've given chase more with you than I have anybody. Doesn't that tell you something".

"Yeah. That you suck at chasing".

Stiles snorted out a laugh behind her, for whatever reason a little proud that she kept knocking him back but Brian noticed, peering over her shoulder and sending Stiles a scathing look.

"Don't know what you're laughing at Stilinski. What's your body count? In the negatives?"

She waved her hands out, shutting both boys up before they could get into a dick-measuring competition, turning back to Brian.

"Go chase someone else, because I ain't interested".

"Not what you were saying on Saturday".

"What?" she asked, genuinely confused, "what do you mean?"

He smirked, still not dropping playing whatever game he was playing, enjoying being mischievous with a side of dickhead.

"Oh" he feigned ignorance, smirking in delight that he caught her off guard, "don't you remember? I guess you only hook up with me when you're drunk".

"I did not" she stated, "don't be so ridiculous".

"Okay sweetcheeks" he grinned, "believe what you want, but that dress was cute. You should wear it on our next date".

"There will be no next date" she exclaimed, "in fact, we didn't even have a first date".

"Our first date was in Lydia Martins's bathroom" he grinned, remembering their short-lived hook-up, "our second was that disaster of a group date night at bowling. Our third... that will be at my house. More specifically, my bedroom".

It wasn't often she was speechless. It took a lot to shock her and somehow his holier-than-thou pedestal he put himself on, combined with his cocky expectations, was astounding to her. How anyone could be so narcissistic was unbelievable.

He took her few seconds of silence as agreement, leaning in closer to her.

"And seriously... that dress?" he whistled, "super hot. But you'd look better without it... without anything. Just saying".

She rolled her eyes, unamused and borderline annoyed by his persistent pestering, clearly unable to take no for an answer and watched him walk away with narrowed eyes.

"Wow" Stiles drawled out, "really? Again?"

She turned around to shoot him a glare, not taking too kindly to the judgement he was oozing.

"Oh shush you" she reprimanded him, "I don't need your commentary".

"We've been over this" he exclaimed, "he's a dick, remember?"

"Kinda hard to forget" she muttered sarcastically, "and I may have downed a whole bottle of tequila but I would remember whose tongue I had in my throat thank you very much. He's just trying to get under my skin".

"Well he seems to know a lot of certain details about Saturday" he said with a gulp, flushing a little as he stuttered at the end of the sentence.

"If you're meaning the dress Stiles, then yeah, he probably saw the photos" she shrugged, "didn't you?"

His eyes widened, not expecting to be called out so casually and he didn't know what to respond with. If he lied and said no, she would know he was lying. If he said yes, he would definitely come across as some kind of perv.

His silence lasted longer than he thought, a couple of seconds turning into several prolonged seconds of awkward silence and even though he knew he should say something, he just couldn't.

The annoyance faded from her face as she glanced across at him, watching his lips twist and contort as he struggled to speak, left helpless and sweaty as he avoided her stare.

"Right" she smirked, "anyway, I'll meet you after school and we'll head to Lydia's okay?" she said, already beginning to walk away from him, an amused smile tugging at her lips, "don't be late".

"Who's the late one now, hm?" Stiles smirked, sarcastically tapping the face of his watch as Kayla approached him, a good ten minutes after the final bell had rung.

Her eyes dazzled, clearly in a better mood than earlier, waltzing over to him and skipping into an overexaggerated and sarcastic curtsy.

"Fashionably" she smirked, "and yeah, I know. It's a personality trait I'm trying to work on but, y'know-" she shrugged, "-miracles are rare".

That they were. The fact she was still even talking to him was a massive one.

"Just set your clocks back by five minutes. Or in your case, an hour" he teased as she shot him a playful affronted look, standing next to him by his jeep, "my dad taught me that. Means you'll be tricking yourself into being early".

"Army trick?"

"Huh?"

"Your dad" she said, "I saw his office. There was like, medals and shit. Is that why he's a stickler for time?"

"You mean you saw his office when he arrested you?"

She scrunched her face up in this adorable playful way, rolling her eyes.

"He didn't arrest me. He just let me sleep it off on his sofa. First law enforcement officer that hasn't tried to handcuff me".

He shook his head, trying to dispel the dirty images of her in handcuffs from his mind, swallowing the ball of nerves seizing his throat.

"Right".

She peered across at him, those tantalising green eyes swimming with amusement.

"So...?"

"Uh... um... s-so what?"

She snorted under her breath at him, placing a hand on her hip.

"Was I right about the army thing?"

"Oh. Heh... yeah. He served. A long time ago".

"Makes sense" she nodded, making her way around the jeep and then turning back to look at him with a cocked brow.

"Well... are we going?"

"Going?" he asked cluelessly, that lump in his throat bordering on strangling him, "go where?"

She simply gazed back blankly, like she was trying to decide if he was taking the piss or being serious.

"To Lydias"

Right. Lydias. How could he forget?

"Oh... yeah. Yeah, of course" he nodded, quirking a brow across at her, "you-you're riding with me? I mean... riding. In the jeep" he emphasised with an embarrassed flush, "w-with me?"

She simply shrugged, "saves gas".

He couldn't argue with that logic. The Queen of making a point.

He jumped in, reaching over to open the passenger side door for her, watching as she thanked him and climbed in, discarding her bag to the footwell by her feet.

"I would offer to rejig your memory of how to get there, but something tells me you probably have every single possible short cut there memorised" she teased, though there was a slight edge to her tone, like she wasn't all too happy with that idea.

"Oh ha-ha" he muttered, "very funny".

"What?" she smirked, "it's true, isn't it?"

"... That's besides the point".

"Knew it" she smiled, "but seriously, my advice" she said as he started up the engine and reversed from the parking space, "either grow some balls and ask her out, or move on from a silly third grade crush".

"Wow. Great advice" he muttered sarcastically, "you make it sound so easy".

"Because it is" she replied bluntly, much to his surprise, "feelings suck. Trust me, they do. But if they aren't being reciprocated, or it's unhealthy, then you gotta let go. Straight facts right there. And I gave you them free of charge".

"And you're speaking from experience..."

"Obviously" she laughed, "otherwise how else would I know? Do I look like a chic that reads cosmopolitan?"

"You look like a chic who would beat the crap out of anyone that crossed you".

"Touché" she smirked.

"And I don't... I mean, Lydia is... she's..." he stumbled over his words, "she's unattainable. I know I don't have a shot with her".

"So why are you still obsessing over her?"

"I... I don't know" he replied, "truth be told, I don't even know who she is. She's just always been the prettiest girl... until..."

"Until?" she asked, cocking a brow towards him.

"Until, uh... until..."

His throat closed up, the words dying in the back of his mouth. What was he going to say? 'Until you showed up?' Yeah, that was one way to make himself look like a complete and utter idiot.

"Until...?" she insisted, clearly not letting this one drop.

He snorted, finding her persistence somewhat endearing.

"Until I got my eyes opened. Jeez" he chuckled, "someone's nosey".

"Just curious" she shrugged, "that's all".

"I'm not in love with her" came spilling from his mouth in a heated, panicked rush, "I mean... I know I said that to you. Before. But I'm not. In love with her".

"Stiles?"

"Yeah?"

"Why are you telling me this?"

"I... I don't know. Just to, y'know, make you aware".

"Why?"

Her voice was light and teasing, teetering on the verge of being playful as he tried to will away the blush seizing his cheeks.

"Because I don't want you to think I'm a creep or anything" he stumbled over his words, trying to laugh it off and play it cool, "because I'm not. A creep that is".

"An eight year long obsession says otherwise" she smirked, enjoying playing with him.

"I wouldn't call it an obsession" he protested meekly, "more like an interest".

"Sure Stiles" she chucked, "whatever you say".

He was about to protest, to insist he wasn't some weirdo when he realised they were already pulling into Lydias driveway, the drive going quicker than expected.

"Just a fair warning" Kayla announced, "she's as high as a kite, so good luck getting anything remotely sensible out of her".

"Well. We have to try" he shrugged, slipping out from the jeep, Kayla going the same, "aren't you curious?"

She simply shrugged as they walked side by side up the winding path and up the concrete steps.

"I've seen my fair share of murders, newbie. Doesn't really faze me anymore" she said simply, "and all the murderous Alphas I've come across have an ego the size of Texas... they aren't that complicated to figure out. If anything, they're predictable".

"How many murderous Alphas have you come across exactly?" he asked, stunning himself into silence but was unprepared for her eyes to darken and turn steely, her face tightening.

"Enough" was her simple and short reply, letting him know by no uncertain terms that branch of the conversation was over.

They reached the door and Kayla reached out and rang the doorbell, shaking out the tension from her body before the door opened and she dropped that dark intense expression from her face, breaking out into an award-winning smile.

"Kayla" Mrs Martin grinned, "how lovely to see you again".

Stiles watched as she softened her entire stance, widening her shining smile that made him melt a little on the inside, his heart panging at how adorable she looked.

"Mrs Martin, hi" she said, her voice melting into the perfect melody, "I hope you don't mind us coming around... we just wanted to check on Lydia".

It was then Mrs Martin realised Stiles standing there, sending him a confused look as if not recognising him before smiling at Kayla.

"Of course. Who's your friend?"

"Oh" she said, jabbing her finger back at him as she stepped over the threshold, "that's Stiles. He's harmless".

Mrs Martin smiled politely at him, guiding them up the grand staircase.

"She's had a day in bed resting. That medication has really done some wonders" stopping opposite what Stiles presumed was Lydia's door, "and your company over the weekend was much appreciated".

Stiles scoffed a little under his breath, knowing Mrs Martin clearly had no clue about the girls' certain 'activities' and Kayla just threw him a sideways glance warning him to shut up before smiling sweetly back at Lydia's mom.

"Anything to help a friend. Don't worry, we won't stay long".

"No need" Mrs Martin waved her hand, "stay as long as you want" as she slowly turned to doorknob to open the door into Lydia's room before turning to Stiles, "and it was lovely to meet you".

"You too".

He made sure Mrs Martin was gone before following Kayla into Lydia's room, carefully shutting the door behind him.

"You're such a suck up" he accused her lightheartedly, "I've never seen you act that nice to, well, anyone".

"It's called playing the game" she chuckled, "parents love me".

"My dad arrested you".

"He didn't arrest me" she rolled her eyes, repeating the same phrase she had already said multiple times, "he was the real G and let me sleep it off on his sofa".

"Potato-Potahto".

She gave another eyeroll before approaching what Stiles now realised was a half-naked Lydia sprawled out on her bed, a skimpy midnight blue nightgown covering her body.

"Hey Lyds" Kayla greeted, not at all fazed by Lydia's lack of clothes as she perched next to her on the bed, "how you feeling?"

Lydia only seemingly just realised there was anyone in the room other than her, blinking blearily up at her friend before breaking out into a wide smile - a smile Stiles could see was wholeheartedly genuine. Something he didn't think Lydia was even capable of.

Today was full of miracles.

"Kayla" Lydia slurred, grabbing Kayla's cheeks and squeezing them together, "you're back".

"I'm back, yeah" she replied as best she could, her face all mushed together, "how you doing?"

"Better now you're here" Lydia grinned, "you're so pretty, have I ever told you that before?"

"Uh... not in so many words" Kayla chucked, reaching up and gently pulling Lydia's hands away, "I hope you don't mind. I brought a friend".

Lydia smacked her lips together, clearly in a land far far away.

"The more the merrier".

Great. Why did his horny teenage mind automatically go to a threesome?

"Right" Kayla chuckled to herself, "well, this is Stiles. You remember Stiles?"

Lydia frowned, screwing her face up.

"What the hell is a Stiles?"

"I asked myself that very same thing".

"Oh haha" Stiles hissed our quietly as Kayla shot him a playful smile over her shoulder, "proper comedian you are".

"Stiles is a person" Kayla smirked, somehow dealing with an off the face Lydia very well, "Scott's friend".

"Rightttt" the strawberry blonde drawled out, "Stilessss".

His heart skipped a beat at that, the sound of his name leaving her lips like a goddamn blessing from God himself.

"Anyway-" Kayla cut in, "-just checking in. Seeing how you're doing".

"And what you saw" Stiles blurted out, his curiosity getting the best of him, "y'know... at the movie store".

"And people say I'm tactless" he heard Kayla mutter under her breath but ignored her, focusing on Lydia.

"What I saw?" Lydia slurred, "I saw... I saw..." before bursting into a fit of the giggles, "I saw you naked" pointing at Kayla.

"Glad I'm unforgettable" Kayla smirked, much to Stiles' complete surprise, "but that's not what Stiles was asking".

Lydia snorted, giggling like a child, "I saw your boobies".

"You did see my boobies" Kayla mimicked Lydia's slurred, childlike voice, "thank you for bringing that up".

Lydia sloppily cupped her hands around her mouth, leaning forward to press them against Kayla's ear.

"Your boobies are very cute" she feigned a whisper but it came out as more of a shriek, much to Stiles' embarrassment, "I like your boobies".

"Lydia" Kayla smiled, "you're very high right now".

The redhead smacked her lips together again, giving a very exaggerated roll of her eyes before blinking across at Stiles.

"Hiiiii".

"H-Hi" he mumbled, placing a hand across his chest, beyond shocked she was actually paying attention to him.

"You look funny" she giggled.

"Um... thanks?"

"Great flirting" Kayla mock whispered to him with a smirk, "10/10 for effort. 1/10 for execution".

He screwed his face up at her, a playful show of annoyance at her input but she simply smiled, clearly enjoying this way too much.

"Anyway Lyds, do you have any aspirin or something? That funny looking person over there has given me a headache".

"How have I given you a headache?"

"You've been at me all day. That's enough to give anyone a headache".

He rolled his eyes playfully, watching with his arms folded as Lydia simply rolled over to reach for a bottle of pills on her bedside table and shake a few into the palm of her hand before sloppily pressing them directly into Kayla's mouth.

"Oh-okay" Kayla mumbled around the mouthful of white pills, "guess I'm dry swallowing".

"They'll help" Lydia smiled, "so what are you both doing here?"

Kayla had her face screwed up as she tried to force the pills down so Stiles decided to take the lead, stepping towards the bed.

"Just uh... we need to know what you saw".

"What I saw?"

"Saturday night" he prompted, trying to rejig her memory, "at the movie store..."

"I... I don't..."

"You did see something, right?"

A blank look spread across Lydia's expression, her eyes glazing over.

"I... I saw..."

"You saw...?"

"Something" Lydia mumbled, "definitely something"

"Something like...?"

"Like... something..."

He grunted in frustration, clearly getting no where with this.

"Something like what? A mountain lion?"

She frowned before behinning to slowly nod.

"Yeah. I saw a mountain lion".

"Are you sure you saw a mountain lion or are you just saying that because that's what the police told you?"

"A mountain lion" she repeated again but she sounded so totally out of it Stiles didn't believe a word that came out of her pretty little mouth. So, not taking any chances, he picked up a toy giraffe that was on her bedside table and held it up to her, shaking it in front of her face to grab her attention.

"What's this?"

"A mountain lion" she repeated and, despite a little annoyed he was getting no where, he chuckled at her behaviour, his nerves that were normally shot around Lydia Martin surprisingly gone.

Maybe because when she was off her face, she wasn't being a total bitch.

Yeah, it surprised him too.

"Whoa" he heard Kayla mumble to herself, blinking slowly as she looked around the room, "Lydia... that was not aspirin you gave me".

"What?" he asked as Lydia burst into giggles, "what did she give you then?" reaching around to find the bottle of pills and read the label.

"Oh crap" he mumbled, gulping as he saw the word 'benzodiazepines' printed on the label, "Lydia, how many did you give her? You're only meant to take one every four hours"

"Three" the strawberry blonde continued to giggle, "just three itty bitty pills".

"Oh crap" he repeated, glancing down at Kayla, "you're gonna overdose".

"I won't" she reassured, but her voice was beginning to slur a little, "I've taken a lot worse than this. I'll be fine".

"You sure about that?"

"I'm always sure about things"

He knew it was pointless arguing with her - she was, after all, a stubborn Hale and it would get him no where.

"Well I should probably drive you home-"

"What?" she shrieked, much to his surprise, "are you insane? With a mother like mine? She'll accuse me of going out and getting high... again".

"Right" Stiles winced, watching as she tried to shake away the bleariness, "um..."

She reached up, grabbing his sleeve and pulling him towards her.

"Under no circumstances are you to take me home... understand?"

"U-Understood".

"Good".

She patted his chest in thanks, lifting a hand to brush some hair away from her face but ended up poking herself in the eye.

"Ouchie".

Oh dear god...

He turned back to Lydia who had sprawled out on her bed, not a single care in the world.

Lucky her.

"Well. This was enlightening" he muttered sarcastically, "Lydia... nice chat. Thanks for drugging our friend".

Lydia just grunted, turning over on her front and passing out, ignoring even her phone going off.

"You gonna get that?"

All he got was a snore in response.

He reached down and grabbed her phone, curious if it was something important, but to his shock and surprise it was a video from Saturday night, a large big black shape with red eyes jumping past the screen.

"Holy crap" he muttered, quickly shoving the phone u der Kayla's nose, "look".

She watched the clip with drunk eyes, clearly not understanding a single thing she was seeing.

"Pretty".

"What? Kayla, it's the Alpha" he hush whispered, casting a careful look to a passed out Lydia, "look. Oh my god... Scott doesn't look like this. This... this is a monster".

"The shape you take reflects the person that you are" she hummed, letting out a small giggle, "so if you were a werewolf, you'd be a big teddy bear".

"What?"

"'Cause you're soft and squishy" she muttered, "he's obviously mean and scary. Rwar".

"Wow..." he whistled in astonishment, "you are out of it".

She simply giggled, not saying much else as Stiles decided to quickly send himself the video of the Alpha and deleted it from Lydia's phone, knowing when she came out the other side of this she didn't need the traumatic reminder of what almost killed her, let alone seeing something that she couldn't explain.

"Right" he murmured, pocketing his phone and turning to Kayla, "what are we gonna do with you?"

"Whateverrrrr you want" she slurred with a flirtatious smile in his general direction, "I'm very bendy".

"Oh my god-"

"I've got the whole 'Karma Sultana' memorised".

"You mean the 'Kama Sutra?'" he gulped, trying not to imagine her in any of those positions, but failing very quickly.

She snapped her fingers at him, nodding her head.

"That's the one".

He had no idea what to do. Scott and Allison were awol, Lydia was out of it, Jackson was a no go, Brian was a hell no, her mom was to be avoided - clearly - and he had no idea how to contact Derek (not that he really wanted to), so the only option left was...

Right. Him.

He sighed at her, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Guess I'm babysitting" he muttered to himself, sending her a dubious look, "can you stand?"

"Can I-? Hm" she scoffed, sounding indignant and a little offended by his question, "of course I can. I have legs. Duh".

He simply stood back and folded his arms, cocking a brow as he watched her try and stand on these new Bambi legs of hers, clearly suffering from a dizzy spell as she pitched forward and he had to clumsily reach out to grab her before she faceplanted the floor.

"Whoops" she giggled, her voice muffled against his chest, "my legs may have taken a small vacation".

He held her around her waist, keeping her upright as she tried to stand.

"I'll have to take you back to mine. You're in no condition to be unsupervised".

"Oooooh" she laughed, "is it my turn to see your bedroom?"

Thankfully she never saw the fiery blush that crept onto his face at that statement, ignoring her off her face flirting as he helped her from Lydia's room, just praying to god his room had no dirty boxers on the floor.

The jeep ride home was interesting to say the least. It consisted of Kayla singing at the top of her lungs, trying to stick her head out the window like a dog and playing with the gear stick for fun.

Yeah, it would've been a lot more fun if Stiles hadn't ended up almost driving into a ditch as he avoided an oncoming car. Yet, despite the near fatal collision, Kayla laughed and Stiles couldn't help but join in at the absolutely ridiculous situation they were in.

When they arrived at his house, he had barely managed to get the jeep into park before she opened the door and fell out, the harsh 'splat' sound onto the concrete below making Stiles wince.

He clumsily jumped from his jeep, racing round to see if she was okay but - surprisingly - she was fine, sitting cross legged on the tarmac as she grinned up at him.

"Okay then..." Stiles murmured, looking around to see if anyone was watching, not wanting to get accused of kidnapping or inappropriate behaviour as he squatted down and helped her stand, gripping her arms but she was no help whatsoever, getting distracted by running her nails over his short hair.

"It's fuzzy" she giggled, "and tickly. Oh, like a cactus".

"What exactly did Lydia give you? Because, holy crap, you've had a whole personality transplant".

"I don't know but it's gooood" she snorted, "I feel great. I feel fab. This stuff is better than crack".

"Yeah, well-" he murmured, grabbing her wandering hands, "-let's not make this a habit, hm?"

"Of course not" she said, pretending to be serious and somber but he could tell she was holding back a laugh, "I'm a good girl... aren't I?"

He swallowed, forcing himself to remain calm despite his dry mouth and heart hammering a million miles a minute as she teased him, having to use every ounce of willpower to not give in to her flirting.

"You're uh... you're..." he watched as her eyes dazzled, enjoying seeing him flustered, "you're off your face. You need sleep".

He tried to help her towards the house but she was in a disruptive and playful mood, making a game of trying to run away from him which resulted in him chasing her around the jeep, getting out of breath until he finally caught her elbow.

"Kayla!" he chastised, though it came out as more of a beg, "c'mon, work with me here".

"Tag" she grinned, slapping his shoulder, "you're it" before escaping his grasp and legging it.

He eventually caught up with her a couple minutes later, deciding he wasn't going to take any chances so, without thinking, picked her up and slung her over his shoulder, pleasantly surprised that he was able to comfortably lift her. He wasn't exactly a 'gym bro'.

She gasped dramatically, grabbing onto his hips.

"Oh my god... Stiles" she exclaimed, "gravity has stopped working".

He rolled his eyes, "no. You're just upside down".

"Oh" she muttered, immediately relaxing again, "my life flashed before my eyes right there".

He made it to his front door, balancing her on his shoulder as he used his key to open the door and step inside, carefully shutting it behind him.

"Oooooh" she exclaimed, swinging freely from his shoulder, "you've got a cute ass Stilinski".

At this point he was sweating with nerves, flustered and overwhelmed knowing she was checking him out as he climbed the stairs and she began to play the drums on his ass cheeks.

"If you drop me... I'll kill you" she sing songed, tapping his cheeks in beat with her words, clearly having the time of her life.

"Funnily enough, I'll try not to" he muttered, opening his door to his room, making his way towards his bed as he tried to place her down gently but ended up practically throwing her on it and, because she was gripping his shirt, he tumbled down clumsily on top of her.

"Oh my god.. I, Uh... sorry" he murmured, his entire face a fiery red as he hovered above her, acutely aware she was now - officially - on his bed. The first girl that had ever been there. What an accomplishment.

"It's fineeee" she slurred, "I like having you on top of me".

His breath caught, watching as she looked up at him with sultry eyes, clearly enjoying his company a little too much.

"Uh..." he glanced down at the fistful of shirt she was gripping tightly, keeping him sprawled out on top of her, "I... I totally would... because holy crap you're gorgeous... and I would love... love love love to, but uh... you're sort of, well, high".

"Yeah" she giggled, "I'm fucked".

"So, uh..." he pushed himself up, "I'm just gonna let you sleep it off".

"That's 'cause you're one of the good ones" she muttered, stretching out across his bed to get comfy, clearly beginning to crash from her high, "even if you are a little prickly".

He snorted, "wow. Thanks. You know how to boost my already fragile ego".

She giggled, turning her head into the duvet to get comfy, her eyelids fluttering shut and within a couple minutes had fallen into a soft sleep, Stiles just happily watching in contentment.

It wasn't even an hour later when Stiles resorted to leaving a threatening message on Scott's phone, fed up and annoyed with his best friend not answering.

Like, seriously? Shit was going down here and Stiles needed his friend and where the hell was he? Yeah... not here. In normal circumstances it would've been fine because he would've had Kayla - someone who was actually clued in on all this stuff - but she was currently out of commission with no sign of snapping back to reality anytime soon.

A knocking on his door made Stiles snap his head up from resting it on the computer chair and saw his dad leaning against the door frame, about to open his mouth to ask a question but stopped, eyes travelling over to Kayla who was spread out on his bed, head turned into the pillows, white shirt riding up slightly at all the fidgeting she had done in the past hour.

"Oh" his dad blurted out, his surprised eyes widening into a concerned look, "is that... is that The Hale girl?"

"Uh..."

"Do I even want to know what this is?" his dad asked, an eyebrow cocked in a questioning look, a lightly disturbed expression tightening across his features.

"What? No... no" Stiles said, making his dad's face morph into shock and Stiles realised how that sounded and blushed, trying to form coherent sentences, "I just meant, uh... it's not how it looks, we didn't- I mean... nothing happened, oh god..."

Why the hell was this happening to him right now?

He ran a hand down his face, completely mortified. Great. Now his dad was thinking he was the new town stud.

"Okay" his dad said slowly, still looking like he didn't believe him, "but why is there a girl sleeping on your bed?"

"Uh... it's... it's... it's a long story..."

His dad pointed at her, "is she drunk?"

"What? No, of course not" Stiles insisted but right at that time Kayla decided to begin tossing and turning, grunting in her sleep.

"Like I said..." Stiles gulped, "long story. She just uh... didn't want to go home yet. Her mom's a little... difficult".

His dad's eyes softened a bit, staring at her in sympathy and Stiles wondered if maybe she was right about earlier - about parents loving her. Despite being 'not arrested' by his dad for drunk and disorderly underage drinking, he didn't seem judgemental or annoyed towards her.

Jeez... whatever charm she laid on, he wanted in on it.

"Hm" his dad said, giving up the interrogation and turning back to Stiles, "then please tell me I'm going to hear good things at this parent-teacher conference tonight".

"Uh... that depends on how you define 'good news'?"

"I define it as you getting straight A's with no behavioural issues".

"Uh... then you may wanna rethink that definition".

"Enough said" his dad sighed, glancing once more between Kayla and Stiles, looking like he wanted to say something but shook his head and walked away, something Stiles was ever so thankful for. He did not need a talk with his dad about the birds and the bees.

Stiles sighed, feeling like a major disappointment, drowning in worry and stress. Everything was just so complicated. People's lives were literally on the line and he had no idea what to do.

So, trying not to dwell on his decision much, he deleted the video from Lydia's phone, cringing as he did so and wondering if he would live to regret it.

When Kayla awoke later than night she was alone in a dark, unfamiliar room and jolted up off the bed, looking around in confusion.

What the hell had just happened?

Her head was foggy and bleary, like it was full of cotton wool, that familiar 'coming down' confusion hitting her like a ton of bricks.

Right. Lydia.

Wow. She didn't know how a few benzos wiped her out when, before, she could shoot up enough to kill three bodybuilders, but apparently her tolerance had sharply declined.

She pushed herself up, looking around the unfamiliar room but it didn't take long for her to remember that Stiles had taken her back to his house, letting her sleep it off in a safe environment.

How sweet.

She rubbed her eyes, slowly pushing herself up and peered around the curtains. No one was home apart from her, that much was obvious when she saw the jeep and the Sheriff's cruiser gone. Maybe some kind of emergency? It was kind of weird he would just leave her all alone in his house so fired off a quick text to check if everything was okay, but unlike usual, she didn't get a response.

She waited around for a short while, pacing around Stiles' messy room but m her patience was running thin so, with a tired sigh, she left the Stilinski household and had to google map her route to the school which turned out to be a nearly thirty minute walk away but that was probably down to the fact she was still trying to walk in a straight line.

She tracked down her car which was exactly where she left it at the school, slipping in and starting the engine.

She decided to take the long way home, stretching out the time she had away from that place as long as she could, trying to avoid her mom's presence. Maybe if she took a long enough drive, but the time she got home her mom would be in bed and wouldn't bother bothering her with a bunch of unnecessary questions.

Should she put in more effort with her mom?

Should she be the bigger person and suck it up, forgive her mom and just let her be a parent?

She didn't know. Right now she didn't think she was capable of forgiveness, let alone seperating herself from her emotions. It had been a chaotic and difficult year... she had been through a lot... maybe just working on forgiving herself and settling into a new environment was enough for now.

She snapped herself out of her daydream, looking around in confusion. Where the hell was she? She must have been so absorbed in her thoughts she just drove and drove and drove, completely unaware of the route she was taking.

She slowed her car to a stop and pulled over to the side of the road, climbing out and looking around at the vast amount of trees and complete emptiness, a sudden and eerie chill in the air making her shiver.

Glancing down at her phone, she tapped the screen so it lit up, trying to Google map her way out of here but she had a total of zero bars of signal, her phone all but useless.

"Typical" she mumbled, rolling her eyes as she looked around, "why is this the opening to ever horror movie ever?"

Just as she said that, she heard a noise coming from the woods beside her. Not a quiet, muffled sound either - like a twig snapping - no. This sounded a lot more like a whole frigging tree being snapped in half.

She checked her phone again, hoping maybe there was just a glitch and her signal had come back but there was still no bars along the top of her screen.

She wasn't stupid. She knew what went down in Beacon Hills. She knew it was dangerous. She knew what could happen to unsuspecting people and she wasn't about to be another statistic so walked back to her car and climbed back in, not bothering buckling up but made sure to lock her doors.

Beacon Hills was dangerous.

Even more dangerous with a murderous alpha on the loose.

She took off, driving along the empty winding road, the near full moon catching her gaze through the windscreen.

She had learnt over the years to trust her gut, and her gut was telling her something wasn't right. She ended up in the middle of no where which, yeah, could be because she was still crashing from her high but she didn't suspect that. She wasn't about to gaslight herself.

She was and always had been sure of herself. She wasn't about to let a few benzos make her doubt herself.

Something big and black, at the speed of light, passed right in front of her car just inches away from her bonnet, so close that it made her swerve, tyres squealing across the tarmac.

She kept her car going though, not willing to stop, clumsily reaching down for her phone and hitting Derek's name and praying he would, for once, pick up.

It rang several times, each shrill ring making her more and more nervous, her gaze rapidly moving between the road and her rear view mirror and, in her panic, was sure she saw a flash of red eyes.

"Kayla?" Derek's gruff voice appeared through the speaker, "what's wrong?"

She grabbed her phone, holding it up to her face as she drove with one hand, hitting speeds she didn't even know she was capable of.

"The Alpha" she muttered, "he's here. He's following me".

"Where are you?" Derek demanded, a newfound urgency to his tone.

"I... I don't know" she exclaimed, half watching the road as she clumsily tried to open Google Maps but her signal kept dropping, the app taking a while to load, "I was just driving and I ended up here. Urgh. Why isn't it working?!" her thumb aggressively tapping the screen as if that would make it work.

"Kayla, I'm on my way" Derek said, "I'm coming, just-"

The loud echo of a deep, bone-chilling howl cut right through her, the sudden intrusion making her drop the phone as a sudden pain erupted inside her skull, making her vision tunnel.

She struggled to stay focused, cringing and wincing as she grabbed the steering wheel, vaguely hearing Derek calling her name through the phone but before she could answer, something - or someone - careened into the side of her car hard enough to send her spinning.

No. Not her spinning... her car.

Her car spun, rolled and careened sideways, flipping several times before coming to a screeching stop off the side of the road, her unbuckled body getting thrown and tossed around like a rag doll.

She landed harshly in a sea of broken glass, her back now laying on the roof of the car as she blinked through the stream of blood seeping into her eyes, seeing nothing but red.

Red blood?

No...

Red eyes...

A/N) yayyy look how long that chapter is haha - hope it was worth it hahahaha and as always, your reviews would be much appreciated and welcomed because I'm excited to see what you think :)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form. Hope you like this next instalment :)

Red hot pain, intense and all engulfing, throbbed and pulsated its way through her brain, leaving a path of destruction in its wake. Agony like no other infiltrating and poisoning her mind, leaving her a screaming seizing mess in the wreckage of her car.

Behind her eyelids, all she saw was red, bright yet dull all at once. The kind of red that meant danger. The same kind of red that she had seen too many times, watching those she loved die. That very same red became a part of her at that moment, infiltrating her entire existence.

She knew she needed to move, to get the hell out of dodge but all she could focus on was the blinding pain paralysing her, willing in that moment to do anything to make it stop. To get rid of this unbearable burning.

Was today the day?

Was today the day she was going to die?

Was her story over?

She knew he was here, hovering above her. She could feel the heated puffs of breath from his nostrils as he eyed her up, toying with his prey. The red from his murderous gaze blinding her, despite her eyes being closed. And, for whatever reason, she suddenly knew why he was doing all of this.

Revenge.

She didn't know how she knew that, but she did. She was certain of it. Just as certain as how she knew he had lost people: family… just like her. His motives, although questionable, were somewhat understandable. Loss could either make you or break you. She got that. She did. Her losses had broken her time and time again, crushing her soul and spirit which led her to make so many wrong decisions, many of which she regretted. So yeah, in that moment, for whatever reason, she understood.

When her brain connected the dots and made that startling realisation, the splitting pain inside her began to dwindle enough so that she could open her eyes, gasping back big breaths of air.

…

No more red.

…

Through the hazy blurriness she looked around, seeing nothing but broken glass and gloomy darkness, gingerly raising a hand to touch the side of her head, wincing as it touched open flesh, the harsh stinging making her jolt.

Every inch of her hurt, every single atom in her body wanting her to just lay back and rest but she knew she couldn't do that. The alpha was still out there somewhere and, despite whatever brief connection they formed, she didn't trust that he wouldn't still rip her head off.

She took a few deep breaths, trying to steady her racing heart before she carefully shimmied herself towards the space where her driver's side window used to be, ignoring the shards of glass that cut into her skin, using the crumpled frame of the car to push herself to her feet.

A howl sounded in the distance, so fierce and taunting it made her neck break out into a nervous sweat, turning her tense stare to the soon-to-be full moon, the silvery glow bathing her in light.

Was tonight a warning? A warning that worse things were yet to come?

Copper blood seeped into her eyes, stinging her vision as she briefly glanced around to look for her phone but everything was blurring together, her consciousness beginning to fade until she forcefully jolted herself awake, giving her cheek a small slap.

Now was not the time.

Despite the bordering on debilitating pain, she groggily managed to slip and stumble through the grass, pulling herself up the small slope and onto the main road, her knees suddenly buckling and hitting the tarmac. She could feel the small glass shards deepening into her shoulders and back, her head thumping as it poured a steady stream of blood down her face, the ache of her knees as they dug into the hard concrete ground but she had no energy to try and minimise it, to stop any part of her from hurting.

She just simply kneeled on the road, half dazed, barely consciousness, bloody and torn up until the sudden invasion of a bright set of headlights shot right through her, making everything hurt ten times worse. She raised a shaky hand to half-heartedly cover her eyes, blocking out the brightness through bloody fingers, listening to the car suddenly come to a screeching halt just feet away from her, a worried voice calling her name.

"Derek?" she mumbled, watching through bleary eyes as the figure rushed towards her, "how did you… find me…?"

"I heard the howl" was his short response, dropping to his knees opposite her, "are you okay?"

She chuckled a little at that, trying to hide her wince.

"Do I look okay to you?"

His gentle fingers carefully touched the side of her head just above her temple but she recoiled in hurt, the stinging flaring up again.

"Sorry" Derek mumbled, looking down at his hands in alarm, covered in her blood, "I think you need to go to the hospital".

She immediately shook her head at that suggestion, her stubbornness breaking out. No. No hospitals. Definitely no hospitals. She hated hospitals. She didn't cope well with hospitals. There was absolutely no way she was going near one.

"No Derek... M'fine" she protested - if she went to the hospital they would probably do a whole bunch of tests on her and find her seriously abnormal DNA - they would poke and prod her, wondering why the hell she was different and that was something she was not prepared for.

"You don't heal like us Kayla and I think you have a concussion" Derek replied but Kayla felt like her ears were full of cotton wool because Derek's voice was muffled and slow and why the hell was her head splitting in two?

"I.. I-"

The world was spinning dangerously on its side, her stomach clenching and curling with nausea, sickness squeezing her stomach.

What had just happened? What was going on? Why… why couldn't she remember anything?

She blinked a few times, trying to clear the haze as she peered across at Derek, a blanket of confusion settling over her.

"Wh-where… am I?" she slurred in confusion before she felt her stomach heaving and lurched forward, Derek hurriedly moving with her to hold her hair back and cup her shoulders, his voice trying to relax her as she coughed up some acidic bile mixed with blood.

"Derek... what-" everything was tilting at an awkward angle, her entire body weakening and failing that she just slumped against Derek as her eyes slid shut, her whole body screaming and begging for sleep.

"Kayla? Kayla? Don't sleep - you can't sleep" Derek snapped, tapping her cheek to try and wake her up - he knew that people with concussions weren't supposed to fall asleep, it could cause complications that were hard to fix but, to his worry, Kayla's eyes remained closed and Derek felt himself beginning to panic.

No, no, no this was not happening again - not after the rest of his family, not after Laura...

He picked her up, sliding his arms under her legs and holding her to his chest as he raced back to his car, almost ripping the door off as he lay her down in the back seat on her side, peeling off his leather jacket and placing it gently under her head, being careful not to aggravate the glass wounds penetrating her body.

Derek stroked her cheek one last time, silently promising her that everything would be okay before jumping in the front of his car and taking off down the deserted road, breaking several speeding limits to get to the hospital, skidding to a sharp stop in front of the emergency room entrance.

"Wha-what happened?" Kayla slurred, beginning to rise from all the jostling, sitting up and holding a hand to her forehead and wincing as Derek breathed a sigh of relief at seeing her awake and talking, helping her sit forward.

"Do you feel dizzy? Sick? Tired?" he asked in worry, eyeing up her head that was still seeping blood.

"I feel like crap" she confirmed, shutting her eyes against the blaring lights from the hospital signs.

"Do you remember what happened? What you saw?" he rattled off again and, despite the situation, Kayla managed to glare at him.

"What's with the twenty questions?" she snapped irritably, accepting Derek's hand to help her stand from the car but immediately swaying, collapsing against him.

"Okay easy... easy" he coaxed, a lot gentler than most people would think him possible as he scooped her into his arms effortlessly, "you hit your head pretty hard".

"Really? No shit Sherlock" she groaned, a tense edge of sarcasm to her tone, "now let me down".

"No chance" he protested, tightening his grip around her as he strode towards the ER entrance, "you're hurt. Just shut up and let me help".

She was still half out of it, muttering out a half-hearted objection as she saw the hospital but Derek didn't listen, confidently carrying her in and asking for help, placing her on a gurney as nurses swam around them, reacting to the emergency.

He couldn't save his family, but Kayla? Kayla he could save… even if she did end up hating him for it.

Stiles had paced the length and breadth of the hospital hallways what felt like hundreds of times, his feet beginning to ache.

The doctor was taking his sweet ass time examining his father, leaving Stiles to be an anxious worried mess, his thumb nail beginning to bleed with how hard he had bit it. Every single paranoid and anxious thought racing through his head a million miles an hour.

What if his dad was badly hurt? What is his injuries permanently damaged him? What if there was a complication and he lost him?

He shook away those thoughts, his sneaker clad feet squeaking on the shiny floors as he turned around to resume his needless pacing but caught sight of a large dark figure leaning against the wall, his eyes widening in surprise.

"Derek" he exclaimed in shock, looking around wildly to make sure no-one saw him before fumbling his way over to the werewolf - who, by the way, still scared him. In response to his shout, Derek glowered at him, his forehead tense and furrowed as he stared at him in distain.

"Wh-what're you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?" Derek retorted, crossing his arms over his chest and narrowing his eyes.

"I-I asked you first" Stiles retorted, biting the inside of his cheek as he thought he saw Derek's eyes glow blue for a moment. Okayyyyy... maybe he would just answer the stupid question first then. There was no need for heads to go flying.

"At the parent-teacher conference my dad, he uh... there was this mountain lion and, uh... he got knocked over by a car".

He bit his lip, trying not to let his anger slip through the surface at the reminder of his dad's injuries - Scott was supposed to protect those people and where was he? Off with his girlfriend, having fun. Nice for some huh?

He was sure Derek could hear his heart beating a mile a minute and thought he saw a look of concern flit across the older man's face but put it down to his overactive imagination. Since when did Derek actually care? Stiles had never witnessed it and was pretty sure he would never - that man was as cold as ice.

"So..." Stiles shrugged, not waiting around for Derek's awkward apology, "what are you doing here? I was under the impression your own little werewolf ass could heal itself".

"I can heal myself" Derek said, a slight smug undertone breaking through, "unfortunately, my cousin can't".

Whoa... what?!

Stiles felt his chest tighten with worry, like a giant invisible fist was squeezing his heart. What the hell was going on? Kayla was hurt? How? When? Where? By who? He had left her curled up on his bed, throwing a blanket over her and tucking her in beifre racing to the hospital. He was sure she would be out the whole night - or, at least, the majority of it. What could've happened? Should he not have left her in such a vulnerable state?

"W-What? Kayla?" he exclaimed, "but- I left her sleeping on my bed... she was completely out of it".

Derek slowly tilted his head to the side, giving Stiles a full blown death glare, his expression tight and annoyed.

"No... no, not like... oh my god, not like that" Stiles exclaimed, rushing to try and explain to Derek before he went all K-niney and clawy and ripped his throat out, "I meant there was a mix up with aspirin and the benzos and then with the whole 'drugged up' thing, and I couldn't leave her alone and-and we didn't... I mean, we didn't do anything, nothing happened, no bodies were connecting or - I'm gonna shut up now" Stiles added, taking in a huge breath and placing his hands on his hips in an exaggerated manner, hoping to god he managed to convince Derek that nothing - nothing - was going on. Surprisingly, he actually liked having all his limbs intact thank you very much.

Derek just continued to glare at him suspiciously, obviously unimpressed with his mad ramblings before rolling his eyes.

"I don't know what happened, she wasn't making a lot of sense but..." Stiles hung onto Derek's words like a lifeline, leaning forward, "I'm pretty sure it was the Alpha".

"The ALPHA?" Stiles exclaimed, his voice going a few octaves higher in pure shock as a few curious people looked up at his shout. In response, Derek smacked him around the head and dragged him further down the hallway, away from prying eyes and ears.

"What the hell? Are you stupid? Shut up" Derek growled.

"Okay, okay sorry" he muttered, rubbing his head where Derek's palm had collided with it, "But wait... she's okay right? I mean, it's not serious or anything?"

"I don't know" Derek sighed, "she was hurt pretty bad. Her car crashed and she wasn't wearing a seatbelt".

Oh god... this was bad. This was very very not good, just bad. Very very bad. All kinds of terrible really.

"I thought you said it was the alpha-"

"It was" Derek insisted, his patience wearing thin, "he was following her, for what reason I don't know. The same way I don't know why he didn't kill her on the spot".

"Well uh... not killing her is obviously a good thing, right?"

Derek's glare was enough to make Stiles shut up.

"The alpha..." Derek continued, "he has a plan. And for whatever reason, keeping Kayla alive seems to be part of that. I need to figure out why".

That was... so totally terrifying.

"For the love of almighty god, would you stop prodding me like a frigging doll" Stiles heard Kayla snap and relief spread through his veins at the sound of her voice - albeit annoyed and shaky, but alive nonetheless.

Both he and Derek glanced at each other, obviously thinking the same thing as they took off down the corridor and into the examination room that Kayla was currently in.

"Oh Derek, thank god" she exclaimed, standing there covered in blood, her white shirt that had been stained red cut off and discarded to the side, "can you tell these people that I am completely fine" she demanded, looking between the nurses on either side of her in something close to anger.

No, wait... not anger.

Fear.

... She was scared.

He hung back, glancing to the side to see the raw concern that was once evident in Derek's stare fade into pure relief - okay... so maybe he did care after all.

He tried not to stare, realising he probably shouldn't be here as she stood shirtless in nothing but a bra and some torn up jeans, a mix of dried and fresh blood sticking to her skin. Skin that was usually so smooth and perfect now covered in small nicks and gashes, pieces of broken glass sticking out of her skin. The right side of her head, just above her temple, sporting a nasty bruised gash that still oozed blood, crusting into her wild hair.

To be honest, Stiles was surprised she was still standing. But - he supposed - that was her stubborn side shining through, determined not to show her weakness.

Kayla continued to glare at Derek, hoping and expecting him to get her out of the hospital but Derek did not seem one bit willing, striding forward and holding up his hand with two fingers held up.

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Four" she replied instantly, "now can I leave?"

"Certainly not" one of the nurses objected, "Miss Hale, it seems you have a very severe concussion. You need a CT to rule out any complications or bleeding on the brain, not to mention we need to safely remove these glass shards to cause minimal scarring. Now, if you could just relax and let us do our jobs, this whole procedure will go a lot easier"

"Is that a threat?" she demanded, "are you threatening me?"

"Kayla" Derek chastised, "you're injured".

"I am fine" she insisted, hiding her wince, "I just need to get out of here".

The nurses shared a look with each other, realising they were playing a losing game before looking at Derek.

"She needs a CT. Have a word with her and calm her down - please" one of them implored, "or we'll have to sedate her. What?" the nurse added as she removed her gloves, cocking a brow at an unamused Kayla, "we are just doing our jobs".

"Well-" Kayla scoffed, watching them leave the room to give Derek a chance to work some miracles, "-you can shove your job up your- Stiles?"

He jumped at the call of his name, looking up from the doorway he was awkwardly standing in and meeting her surprised gaze, the fire that was in there dulling slightly.

"What are you doing here? Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Uh... yes" he mumbled, "I mean no. Well, it depends on your definition of 'fine'"

"Well that made a lot of sense" she mumbled sarcastically, "I mean, I'm the one with the concussion and I think my body functions work better than yours".

"So you're admitting you're hurt and have a concussion then?" Derek interjected, much to Kayla's disdain.

"Shut up, I'm not talking to you".

Stiles cleared his throat nervously, a little scared of the tension brewing between the cousins.

"Uh... it was a, um... Mountain lion attack at the school - my dad got knocked over by a car in the chaos" Stiles explained and Kayla frowned at him, eyes turning sympathetic

"Is he okay?"

"Yeah, I think so... they're examining him now".

Silence fell in the room again, the three of them acting like they were in some sort of Mexican standoff.

"Kayla..." Derek sighed, "sit down".

"No"

"Kayla-"

"No Derek" she insisted, "why the hell did you take me here? You know I hate hospitals".

"What was I meant to do? You don't heal-"

"-Like you" she interrupted with an eyeroll, "I get it. I've heard it my whole damn life. But guess what? Even with the ability to heal people still die".

Stiles glanced down at the floor, adding two and two together. Right... even with werewolf abilities, her dad and brother still died in the hospital. No wonder she hated them.

Derek's look softened and, despite her glare, he took his chances and stepped towards her, gently taking her bare bloody arm and guided her to sit on the bed, picking up the small silver tray and tweezers.

"Yeah. People still die" Derek said softly, lifting the tweezers towards the back of her shoulder and gently pulling out a small shard of glass, "and I wasn't going to let you die on me too".

Stiles felt like an intruder at this moment, hovering and watching in on something personal but at the same time he didn't want to leave.

Derek continued using the tweasers to pick and dig the glass from her back and arms, being so gentle and attentive and for whatever reason she let him, the stubborn fire fading from her gaze. Or maybe it was the exhaustion kicking in, the pain returning to her body as she winced.

"Stilinski" Derek barked, "be useful and get over here and hold her hand".

He gulped, looking around to make sure Derek actually meant him but there was no one else in the room and, judging by the werewolf's glare, he was quickly running out of patience.

"R-Right. Okay".

He fumbled forward, trying not to be a complete and utter klutz as he stood in front of her, awkwardly holding out his hand palm up and she just smirked but accepted it, giving it a tight squeeze and making him wince.

"So..." Derek said, peeling another shard of glass from her shoulder and she screwed her eyes shut in response, "you going to tell me what the hell happened out there?"

"I don't know" she sighed, not letting go of Stiles' hand, the fresh blood congealing between their palms, "I just remember not wanting to go home and then... then ending up in the middle of no where. I don't remember driving there. Next thing I know I just... I get this awful feeling. And I just knew he was following me. I started driving faster and then he knocked into me. The whole thing is a blur".

"And he just left you alive?"

Stiles watched as she frowned, glancing down at her lap.

"I... I don't know" she sighed, "but I got this feeling like... like I knew him. Like I knew why he was doing this... he wants revenge".

"Revenge?" Stiles asked, "for what?"

"I don't know" she sighed, "but I felt so much pain coming off him. He's hurting".

Derek stopped what he was doing, dropping the tweasers into the silver tray and placing his hands on her shoulder gently to turn her towards him.

"You think you know him?"

"Maybe. I don't know" she murmured, "there was just something familiar about him and then I got this pain-"

She got interrupted by the door opening and the two nurses from earlier walking in, one holding out a nightgown.

"Miss Hale, if you could just change into this and we'll get you taken down for your head CT. Do you need help changing?"

Stiles knew straight away that was the wrong things to say to her because her glare turned icy cold again and he could practically hear her teeth grinding against each other in irritation.

"I'm pretty sure I can manage" she snapped, dropping Stiles' hand which suddenly felt very cold without her holding it, standing up and ripping the nightgown from the nurses' hands, "I can actually walk and talk - a miracle right?" she sassed, steadying herself on her feet and he definitely didn't envy their jobs right now, especially having to look after a seriously irritated and hard-headed Hale.

Stiles did not expect to be waiting in the hospital corridor with Derek frigging Hale of all people, but it was amazing what circumstances you could find yourself in.

Now, not only was he worried about his dad but he was worried about Kayla too. Yeah, she may have been semi coherent, talking and just able to walk, but she was covered in blood and her head wound looked serious. What if she started haemorrhaging? Bleeding on the brain? A clot? Head injuries were complicated things, and she was definitely sporting a nasty one.

He hasn't even realised he was pacing again until Derek grabbed his arm in a vice like grip, pulling him back against the wall.

"Would you stop already?" he growled, "you're annoying me".

"I-I'm annoying you?" Stiles scoffed, "this whole thing you got going on-" he waved his hand out towards Derek, "-annoys me, so..."

Derek rolled his eyes, holding him back against the wall.

"Stop pacing".

"I pace when I'm worried".

"Well stop".

"Stop what - pacing or worrying?"

"Both".

"How the hell am I supposed to do that?" Stiles exclaimed, "The alpha is going to kill us all".

"No he won't".

"He might".

"Yeah" Derek muttered, throwing him a sideways look, "one can hope".

Stiles screwed his face up at Derek, their back-and-forth jabs gaining momentum.

"Maybe I... maybe I shouldn't have left her" Stiles sighed, "I should've stayed until she woke up and drove her home myself".

"No" Derek said, "you did the right thing. You needed to be here with your dad".

"If I knew-"

"You didn't though. So drop it" Derek replied, "don't make this your fault".

She should've been safe in his house, in his bed, but instead she wasn't. She woke up, disoriented and out of it, making her way home herself and the Alpha sensed her vulnerability and used it to taunt and hurt her.

So yeah, he was feeling guilty. It seemed he couldn't do anything right lately.

He was saved in trying to think of a decent reply by the sound of a gurney getting wheeled down the corridor and he and Derek both looked up to see Kayla sitting up in the bed, her head freshly stitched and the blood cleaned off her.

"You good?" Derek asked, following Kayla into the room and Stiles simply did the same, not knowing what else to do.

"I'm good. See? All patched up" she pointed to her head, "where are my clothes?"

"Wait" Stiles exclaimed, "they're letting you leave?"

She shot him a glare, "why wouldn't they?"

"Uh-"

"Because you're hurt" Derek interrupted, "are you lying?"

"I'm not lying".

"You're lying" Derek accused, folding his arms across his face, "I can hear your heartbeat".

"Would you stop with that?" she snapped, "it's intrusive".

"I wouldn't need to if you didn't lie".

"Oh my god, you're infuriating" she snapped, "it's just a concussion".

"And we need to monitor you overnight" another voice sounded and they all looked around to see one of the nurses standing in the doorway holding her chart, "it's just one night Miss Hale. We don't want any fluid build-up"

"This is ridiculous" she raged, "I've had worse than a stupid bump to the head".

"I know you have. I've seen your medical records" the nurse sighed, "but it's our job to make sure you stay okay and trust me, this is for the best. It's just one night. If it helps, we can sedate you-"

"Sedate me?" she interrupted, "sedate me? Why the hell would I want to be sedated?"

The nurse, clearly fed up with the attitude, simply placed the chart at the end of the bed and walked out, Kayla making faces behind her back as she left.

"You're going to stay here" Derek ordered, "and be safe. I'm going to see if I can find anything where your car crashed. Maybe pick up a scent or something".

"Reckless" she muttered under her breath, "and stupid. You could die".

"I'm not going to die" Derek rolled his eyes before looking at him, "Stilinski, you're going to stay here and keep an eye on her. Make sure she does as she's told".

"M-Me?"

"Yes, you" Derek groaned, "trust me, if I had other options you would be my last choice".

"Wow, thanks".

"Stay here" Derek pointed at them, "both of you. I'll be back in the morning".

Stiles turned around to tell Derek this was a stupid idea but in the split second it took for him to react, Derek had already gone, disappeared from sight.

"Wha- does he always do that?"

Kayla scoffed and rolled her eyes, clearly still displeased.

"Yeah. He's annoying like that".

He awkwardly stepped further into the room, rolling back and forth on the balls of his feet as he tapped his fingers along the rails of the bed, catching glimpses at her from the corner of his eye.

"It was just a stupid car crash" she grumbled, "I'm fine".

"Well, you don't look fine".

"You saying I look terrible?"

"What? No. God no" he insisted, "I just... there was a lot of blood. You could've died".

"But I didn't" she shrugged, "still kicking".

"I uh... I was worried" he sighed, "about you. When Derek said what happened I... I was worried".

"Well I should hope so" she smirked, "you'd be a pretty shit friend if you weren't".

He rolled his eyes but couldn't help the small laugh that escaped his lips, her ability to always somehow make him laugh was somewhat refreshing.

"Let's just not make this a regular thing, huh?"

She grinned, "wasn't planning on it".

He relaxed a little, pulling up the little uncomfortable plastic chair next to to her bed, taking a seat and giving his sore feet a rest from the relentless pacing he had done over the last few hours.

"I'm guessing there's no chance I can get your help in sneaking me out of here, is there?"

"Yeah" he scoffed, "no chance".

"Well you can't just sit here all night, what about your dad?"

"My dad is... he's fine" he said, "he's still getting examined".

"Dad trumps friend. Go".

"Nope".

"I won't try and escape".

"Yes you will" he said knowingly with a smirk, "you hate hospitals".

She sighed, puffing out a long breath as she rested back against the pillows.

"Yeah. I do hate hospitals".

"Me too" Stiles offered up, somehow feeling comfortable opening up to her, "so why don't we hate them together?"

"Stiles, honestly-" she smiled, "-you don't have to stay. I'll just source myself some jello, watch some crap TV and count down the minutes till I can sign those release forms".

"I know I don't, but I want to" he insisted, "I want to stay, so please just let me".

Her look softened, watching him carefully as she studied his expression, scrutinising what felt like every fine line on his face for what, he didn't know, but it was slightly unnerving to say the least.

"I uh... I would really like that" she murmured softly, nodding her head, "a little company might be nice".

"So, you're stuck with me" he shrugged, "suck it up Hale".

She grinned widely, holding out her hand towards him which he looked down at, wondering what she was wanting but she simply rolled her eyes and reached out further, grabbing his hand in hers tightly.

"And you're stuck with me".

"Oh no" he joked, "how will I cope?"

Her smile was genuine, fading into a more relaxed expression as she watched him, her hand warm and tight around his.

"What?" he asked, flushing a little under her constant stare, "what is it?"

"Nothing" she shrugged, "I just like looking at you is all".

The entire contents of his stomach dropped at that, his eyebrows shooting high into his forehead at that admission.

"You... You like... at me..."

"Yeah. Yeah, I do. Is that a problem?"

He gulped nervously, shaking his head, unable to find his voice.

"Good" she smiled, "and uh... thanks again for staying. No one ever stays... it's... it's nice to find someone that does".

He followed through on his promise.

He stayed.

He stayed the entire damn night.

a/n) urghhhh connection hahhaha by more slow burn I mean like the chapters are more filled and there's extra stuff in there; the timeline of their relationship will still mostly be the same :) but they're killing Me I love them lol so I hope you all enjoyed and please please review :) thank you xxx

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form. You are all amazing. Hope you like this next installment :)

He didn't mean to fall asleep.

His plan was to stay awake, keep an eye on Kayla and periodically check on his dad to see when he was free to leave.

Unfortunately, tiredness got the better of him and he ended up slouched in the uncomfortable plastic chair at an awkward angle, his neck rolled backwards so he snored.

It hadn't taken her long to fall asleep. Maybe she had relaxed enough knowing he was there, because within ten minutes of their conversation she had curled onto her side and fallen asleep.

He had watched her for a bit, played on his phone then scooted down in the chair to stop his ass going numb and the next thing he knew he was getting shaken awake by a rough jerk of his shoulder.

"Wha-wait-what's happening?" he exclaimed, shooting up off the chair but, in his haste, misjudged his footing and fell to the floor.

"Stiles" his dads gruff but hushed voice immediately relaxed him, "it's 3am. What an earth are you doing?"

He hurried to his feet, awkwardly glancing between his dad and Kayla, suddenly feeling a hot flush spread across his cheeks as his dad frowned down at Kayla, realising exactly why he was still here at 3 am.

"Uh..." he gulped, trying to keep his voice quiet as she slept soundly, her face adorably scrunched up as she dreamt, "I was just, uh..."

"Is there something that I need to know about?" his dad asked, pointing a finger between him and Kayla.

"Wha-no" Stiles mumbled, "why-why would you think that?"

"Because earlier this evening for the first time in sixteen years, my son had a girl in his room. Then a few hours later the same son is camping out in the same girl's hospital room. So I'll ask again..." his dad folded his arms across his chest, raising his brows, "is there something going on?"

Oh my god, he was mortified.

"...N-No" he stuttered, "I just... I was here. Then she was here. So we were both here. This was completely coincidental".

"Hm" his dad hummed, clearly not believing a word he was saying, "what happened?"

"Uh... car crash" he said, obviously leaving the Alpha out of this whole mess, "animal on the road".

His dad frowned, "mountain lion?"

"...Yes" he lied, nodding his head, "yes. Mountain lion. It was the mountain lion's fault".

"Oh" his dad muttered, brows knitting together in concern, "she got lucky. Is she okay?"

"Um... I suppose as good as someone could be that got into a car wreck".

His dad rolled his eyes at his cheeky response, pointing to the door.

"I'm taking you home, you've got school in the morning. Let the poor girl get some rest".

"Wait- you're good? The doctor cleared you?"

"It's just a little soft tissue damage. Nothing serious" his dad reassured, "now come on. Enough stalling".

His dad limped towards the door, taking his time as to not aggravate his injuries and Stiles made no effort to move, turning back to Kayla.

He felt a sort of pull to be near her... to want to be here when she woke up. He didn't want to leave her at her most vulnerable, not when she showed her insecurities. After all, he did promise to stay the night.

Maybe 4am could be considered the night, but he still felt a little sad having to leave her. Who else was here to look out for her? What if the Alpha came back?

"Stiles?"

His dad's call of his name made him jump, snapping his eyes away from a sleeping Kayla to his dad, who was looking at him in sympathy.

"She'll be okay" he reassured, "she's in the best place".

"Yeah, I know. I just... she hates hospitals. I don't want her to wake up scared".

"Something tells me she's tougher than you think" his dad murmured, "why don't you go see her later on after school?"

"Yeah... yeah I guess" Stiles mumbled, running a hand over his short hair and making his way over to his dad, "but I need to ask a favour".

His dad cocked a brow, "oh?"

"Her car" he sighed, "can we drive past, get her stuff and maybe organise a tow? She shouldn't have to deal with that when she gets discharged".

"Sure" his dad nodded, "sounds reasonable" before taking a hold of his shoulder and guiding him down the corridor.

"You know..." his dad mumbled quietly, his pace a little slow as he limped through the hospital, "It's okay if you like her. She seems like a great girl. A little unpredictable, maybe a bit of a handful, but overall pretty great".

Stiles didn't know what to say to that, feeling a little awkward speaking about this with his dad when he wasn't entirely sure what he felt himself.

"Yeah, she is" he simply agreed, "she's different".

"Different to Lydia?"

"Different to everyone" he shrugged, "I don't know what it is, but there's just something about her that just... just makes me..."

"Happy?"

"...Yeah" he whispered, "I guess so".

"So what are you going to do about it?"

Stiles scoffed, finding it hilarious his dad thought he was in any position to make any kind of move at all.

"What am I-? Uh... nothing. Obviously".

He was sure his dad rolled his eyes, slapping him upside his head.

"Okay, ow, what was that for? That's child abuse. I could phone CPS on you".

"Talk to her. Take your shot".

"Definitely not" Stiles scoffed, "have you seen her? And have you seen me? It's not happening".

"I've seen a girl that has been to hell and back her entire life" his dad said, "in and out of trouble because that's what she's been surrounded with. Maybe she just needs someone good in her life".

"Dad-"

"No Stiles, stop underestimating yourself" he chastised, "you're a good kid and so is she. What's wrong with trying?"

"The embarrassing stench of getting turned down on an epic level?"

"You don't know she would turn you down".

"You don't know she wouldn't".

His dad sighed, exhausted with Stiles' retorts.

"And anyway-" he shrugged in defeat, "-she's got Brian Murdock chasing her. Who she already got way past second base with".

"He's a show off" his dad mentioned, much to Stiles' surprise, "nearly every week he gets a speeding ticket. He's arrogant and cocky. He doesn't stand a chance".

"Then you don't know highschool dad. Pretty people hook up. It's just the way things roll".

They reached the exits, emerging into the cool night air, the faint drizzle of rain tickling their skin.

"I'm not arguing with you Stiles. All I'm saying is... try. You might be surprised with the results".

Stiles didn't want to say anything else, not wanting to talk about his complete lack of love life with his dad of all people, both staying silent until they climbed into his dad's cruiser.

"Where did she have the accident?"

"Uh... just off state road 25. About five miles outside Beacon Hills".

His dad kept their agreement, finding her wreckage after about 20 minutes of searching, her car completely destroyed off the side of the road.

Stiles almost couldn't believe she came away with just a concussion and some scrapes and bruises, her vehicle completely turned upside down, the entire driver's side dented in and all the windows smashed.

He let out a long whistle as he pulled himself from the cruiser, looking down at the wreckage.

"Ooft. None of this is salvageable, right?"

His dad came to stand next to him, slowly shaking his head.

"I think the best place for this is the scrapyard. Shame. It's a good running car".

"Well, was" he corrected with a snort.

Stiles made his way down the soft verge first, instructing his dad to stay there as the ground was uneven and he didn't want him to injure himself anymore, much to his dads's playful annoyance.

He made sure to try and dance around the shards of glass, squatting down as he peered into the wreckage.

There was a few half empty bottles of water, a couple jackets and some random things now strewn around the wreckage. He grabbed her jackets, reaching in to hook the handle of her bag around the tips of his fingers and pull it towards him. He stood up, glancing around a little to try and find her phone and eventually spotted it about ten feet away from her car, the screen completely cracked but he tapped it a couple times and it stil lit up and worked, the screen filled with notifcations.

He pocketed her phone, keeping it safe as he kept a hold of her stuff as he climbed the small verge, coming to stand next to his dad as he just finished his brief call to the tow truck company.

"You good?"

"Yup" Stiles nodded, holding up her stuff, "safe and sound. I'll drop it off to her after school".

Stiles was sure his dad smirked a little, limping back to the cruiser and Stiles just mumbled under his breath as he followed him, the cool night air soothing his stinging red cheeks.

Stiles tried to avoid Scott at all costs the next day at school. He wasn't mad at his friend... well, screw that, he was, he wanted to tear his frigging head off but he knew that if he saw Scott, saw those puppy dog eyes, then he would forgive him - and Stiles didn't want to do that, at least not right away.

"Stiles! Stiles!".

He heard someone call his name through the busy bustle of the hallway and turned around, seeing Allison hurry towards him, a bright smile lighting up her face.

"Uh... hey Allison?" Stiles replied uncertainty, looking around just to make sure that she was, indeed, talking to him.

"Um... Scott's been looking for you all day" she said, hugging her school books to her chest, "he thinks you're avoiding him".

"Uh... I am?" Stiles said but it came out as more of a question than a solid answer.

"Anyway..." Allison gave him this look like 'yup-staying out of the friendship quarrels' and placed a hand on his forearm, making him jump slightly, "he told me about your dad... I hope everything's okay with him".

Allison was sympathetic, her big brown eyes concerned and full of worry.

"Uh yes, yes he's fine... I guess, a little beat up but it's soft tissue damage so it'll heal - thank god" Stiles rambled, knowing that Allison was probably going to tell Scott everything he had said but found he really couldn't care less.

"That's good then" Allison said, smiling encouragingly, "last night was scary. It could've ended a lot worse".

"Well, lucky for everyone your was dad was there" Stiles pointed out, "does he always carry a glock?"

Allison bit her lip, glancing down awkwardly.

"Yeah" she sighed followed by a forced laugh, "he's a little paranoid".

"A little?"

"He worries" she continued, clearly a little put out by the scene her dad caused, "he always thinks there's something out there ready to hurt us".

Allison had no idea how right she was.

"Anyway-" she took his silence as a way to change the conversation, a chipper smile tugging at her lips, "-do you know where Kayla is? I haven't seen her at school today".

"Oh" Stiles muttered, "uh... she is-wait" he gulped, "why would you think I know where she is?"

Allison smirked a little, pulling her phone from her bag as she begun tapping the screen quickly.

"No reason" she sing songed, "you two just seem to hang out a lot".

"D-Do we?"

"Yeah" Allison's face was nearly split into two with how wide she was smiling, "you should've been her date to the bowling last week. She was so disinterested in Brian".

"A-And you think she would've been more interested in me?" he blanched, hanging onto Allison's every word.

"Potentially" Allison teased, much to Stiles' surprise as he gulped, his hand finding its way to his chest to try and stop his heart from thundering from his chest.

"So do you know where she is?" Allison continued, quickly typing out a text, "I was hoping she would be in today so we could, uh... discuss things".

Stiles knew that 'discuss things' was really girl code for 'boy talk' - aka Scott - but was too distracted by what Allison insinuated, his brain racing a hundred miles an hour.

Before he could say anything back though a phone beeped in his pocket and Allison looked up at him in shock, having just sent Kayla a text at that exact same time, her eyes moving from his face to his pants pocket suspiciously.

"Uh... why do you have Kayla's phone?" she asked slowly, her eyes narrowing in dubious wondering.

Stiles gulped nervously, his blood running ice cold.

Crap. He forgot he had that. Keeping her phone on him for what reason, he didn't know, but now Allison was no doubt thinking he was some creep.

"Uh..." Stiles said, scratching his head awkwardly and looking around, avoiding Allison's suspicious gaze. She would probably accuse him of being a pervert or a stalker... most likely both. "she had a car accident last night... I was gonna give it back..." he trailed off, trying to look completely innocent.

"Oh my god... what?" Allison exclaimed, "what happened? Is she okay?"

"She's okay" he reassured, "a little banged up but okay. She was only due to stay in overnight - something she made very clear she wasn't happy about - and should be back home later today".

"But how did she crash?"

Stiles allowed a couple seconds of tense silence, swallowing nervously to take the time to charge up his lie.

"... Mountain lion" he murmured, "ran out on the road. She swerved to avoid it".

"Oh god" Allison was mortified, her doe eyes wide with worry, "I had no idea. I thought she was just cutting class".

"To be fair, your assumption is entirely logical. Uh... but yeah, that's what happened. My dad and I got her stuff and got her car towed. I'm not some creep that goes around stealing stuff".

"Of course not" Allison sighed, relieved and reassured by Stiles' answer, "let her know I'm asking for her. And I'll text her. Well" she giggled, "when she has her phone back".

"Will do".

The warning bell rang and both Stiles and Allison looked up at the same time, snapping them out of their conversation. They bid farewell and took off in their separate directions but, as Stiles rounded a corner, he almost ran into Scott head first, who was conveniently using his 'puppy dog' eyes to maximum power.

"Stiles, I'm really, really sor-"

"Don't Scott" Stiles sighed, pushing past his best friend, deliberately knocking his shoulder for emphasis. It made his heart hurt just snapping at his best friend but didn't Scott get it? His dad, the only person he had left, was injured - and Stiles partially blamed Scott for that.

"Stiles... please" Scott begged but Stiles shook his head determinedly - no, Scott needed to know there was consequences for his actions, so he just continued walking, trying not to let the bitterness show on his face.

Stiles was pacing.

This wasn't a new thing. In fact he paced most of the time, all of his pent up energy and anxiety spilling out into nervous tics.

He knew he shouldn't be nervous - there was nothing exactly to be nervous about - but the past couple of days had been a rollercoaster of emotions, and he had gotten closer to Kayla than he had ever thought he would get the chance to.

How should he act around her?

What should he say to her?

Was his dad right? Should he just take his shot?

Allison seemed to approve, or at the very least hint that Kayla may reciprocate any feelings he had, but he still couldn't help but be doubtful.

Why would someone like her ever have those kind of feelings for someone like him?

The more he overanalysed and scrutinised his anxious thoughts, the more he talked himself out of being here on her doorstep, her bag and jackets tucked under one arm.

He blew out a long breath and, for the seventeenth time that afternoon, haphazardly stepped towards the door, his finger faltering above the doorbell.

Nah, this was a stupid idea. He would just see her at school - a very social and crowded environment, with people there... yup, that's what he'd do. That was the smart thing to do.

He turned on his heel, fully prepared to just leave because he was already a sweaty anxious mess and did not want to make an even bigger fool in front of her than he had already had, but he only managed to get a couple of steps away before he heard the front door opening.

He whipped around, morphing into the look of a kid with his hand caught in the cookie jar, awkwardly looking at the woman standing staring at him.

She was standing tall and broad, a confident energy rolling off her as she glared at him somewhat sternly, her dark features sharp and scrutinising.

Just by looking at her, Stiles now understood why Kayla had so many problems with her mom.

"U-Uh... hi" Stiles stuttered, ungainly standing in the same spot he had turned around in, suddenly feeling like he had done something very very wrong.

The woman - Kayla's mom - raised a steely brow, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Who are you and why have you been standing on my front porch for the last twenty minutes?"

"Um..."

"Do I need to phone the police?"

"Oh god no" Stiles exclaimed, knowing if that happened his dad would ground his ass for weeks, "no, I'm just here to drop off some stuff. Kayla's stuff".

The woman narrowed her eyes, giving him a thorough once-over.

"Are you sleeping with my daughter?"

"W-What?" he muttered fearfully, his skin turning a sickly grey, "n-no. No. I... I just... her stuff. From the accident".

"Hm" she settled on saying, her eyes moving to the things he was carrying, "and why do you have them?"

"My dad's the sheriff" he squeaked, "that's all. And I know Kayla from school. We're friends. Sort of. I just wanted to make sure she got her stuff back".

This had been, by far, the worst thirty seconds of his life so far.

"I suppose the sheriff's son is trustworthy" Kayla's mom concluded, sidestepping and holding out an arm to allow him in, "but don't be staying long. As much as she protests, she needs her rest".

Stiles was too scared shitless to say anything, skirting into the foyer of the large house, trying to make it look like this was the first time he had been there.

"I'll show you up" she said, making her way up the stairs and expecting Stiles to follow, "but keep the door open. My daughter has very little control when it comes to boys. Men. Girls. Women. Anything with a heartbeat".

Stiles felt a little uncomfortable with the causal slut shaming Mrs Hale seemed to happily dish out towards her daughter, staying quiet as she guided him down the hallway and pointed to the room, the door slightly ajar.

"Remember-"

"Door open. Got it" Stiles interrupted, awkwardly putting his thumbs up as just stared at him, unimpressed, her expression more like Medusa than a loving caring mother, sending a suspicious glance to the room before walking away.

Stiles hadn't even realised he had been holding his breath, letting out a big whoosh of air as her mom disappeared down the stairs.

'Way to go Stiles' he thought bitterly, 'what a way to make a great first impression'.

He felt like kicking himself, realising he had made this situation so much more awkward than it had to be, having no choice but to face her now.

He creeped forward, peering his head around the edge of the door as he rapped his knuckles on the wood, catching her attention.

She looked up from where she had been sitting on her bed, cross legged and looking bored, her laptop open in front of her.

"Stiles" she exclaimed, "hey. What are you doing here?" she asked, pushing the laptop away from her as she sat up straight, "and how the hell did you get past my guard dog?"

Stiles chuckled at the reference to her mother, stepping into her room and was just about to close the door before remembering what her mom had said and opened it back up again, awkwardly clearly his throat.

"I dropped the 'my dad is the sheriff' bomb. Had to make myself trustworthy somehow" he joked, taking a couple of steps into her room, zeroing in on the fact she was simply wearing a strappy vest top and a pair of shorts, "uh... I brought you your stuff. You know, from your car".

"Oh" she mumbled, her stare dropping down to the armful of stuff he was carrying, "you didn't have to do that".

He shrugged, "it was the least I could do".

She smiled, inviting him forward to sit on her bed next to her which he did, placing her stuff between them, acting as a sort of barrier. Especially when he noticed she wasn't wearing a bra, the peaks of her nipples pushing through the thin material that dipped low on her chest.

"Oh, and this" he added, searching for a distraction as he fished her phone from his pocket, "it's kinda cracked but it still works. I mean, I think it works. Not that I've been going through your phone or anything, I just saw a bunch of notifications pop up and-"

"Stiles" she interrupted his rant with a breezy smile, "it's fine. Even if you did go through it, I've got nothing to hide. Hell, maybe you should've. I've got some pretty awesome nudes in there".

His breath got stuck in his throat, still amazed she was able to be so blunt and straightforward about such things, a blush tinging his cheeks.

She smirked at his awkwardness, clearly getting the reaction she wanted as she reached for her phone, running her fingers along the cracked glass.

"Now, not only does the Alpha owe me a car but also a new phone... I wonder where I could send the bill?" she mused thoughtfully with a playful grin and that made Stiles smile.

"Oh, I dunno... I'm sure he has some underground lair or something".

"A lair?" she chuckled, "you think he has a lair?"

"He'd be creepy enough to".

She rolled her eyes in amusement, discarding her phone to one side as she focused on him, giving him a thorough once-over.

"Uh... what?" he asked a little self-consciously, looking down at himself - was it him? His outfit? Did he spill something?

"Nothing" she murmured, giving her head a small shake, "you just always keep showing up when I least expect it".

"Heh... is that a bad thing?"

"God no" she laughed, "it's just... last night I-"

"You were hurt" he interrupted, "and you don't like hospitals. I get it. You don't need to be ashamed".

"I'm not ashamed. More like embarrassed" she corrected, giving a small smile before dipping her head, "I don't like being vulnerable. People take advantage of vulnerability".

"Well, I promise not to utter a single word about your near nervous breakdown".

"Thank you" she grinned, "otherwise, I really would have to kill you".

"Something I know you could easily do so... my lips are sealed".

She seemed thankful for that, happy that whatever she had shared in those moments were safe with him, locked away forever.

Her long wavy hair was bunched around her shoulders, slightly frizzy from her bed rest as she ran a hand through her hair, pushing in from the front of her face and he noticed the large nasty gash that had since bruised.

"Ouch" he said without thinking, reaching out to brush some strands of her hair to the side to get a better look, "that looks like it hurts like a bitch".

He noticed that she leaned towards his touch, whether she meant to or she did it subconsciously he didn't know, gently pressing her forehead against the tips of his fingers.

"I've had worse".

"I quite believe that" he whispered, running the pad of his two fingers under her cut, the gash easily stretching about three inches wide, "still, this is a pretty neat war wound".

She smirked, "I'll just add it to my collection".

He finally realised just how close they had gotten to one another, the fingers that had once been innocently touching her bruised skin now caressed her temple which she seemed to enjoy, tilting her head against his touch.

He cleared his throat, pulling his hand away before he could move it somewhere a little bit more inappropriate, his throat uncomfortably tight and sore.

"Uh... collection?" he asked, shaking his head in an effort to not get sucked into the sudden bouts of lust he was feeling.

"The scars on my hip aren't my only collateral damage" she whispered, holding his gaze, "I got plenty of others. Do you want to see?"

Did he want to...?

Oh dear god.

He could barely hear himself breathing through the rush of blood pumping around his body, thumping against his ears as his vision focused solely on her. Her stare, still full of playfulness, also shared something else: something he couldn't quite put a finger on. Was that lust? Eagerness? Want? Desire? He wasn't sure because no one had ever given him such a look before.

He was frozen on the spot, sitting there on her bed, helpless and enamoured by her. Watching slyly as she lifted a hand, the soft tips of her fingers running along her chest and across her collarbone, carefully tugging a single strap of her vest top off her bare shoulder.

He watched with bated breath as the thin strap slipped down her arm, bringing the top hem of her vest slightly down with it, exposing the fuller part of her breast.

"Maybe that's the wrong side" she whispered, watching his infatuated expression as he tried to keep focused on her stare but was unable to, his eyes flitting down to watch her chest as she slipped the other strap off her shoulder.

This could not be happening.

This, surely, could not be happening.

Why the hell was this happening?

Did he miss something? Did he miss the potential hints? Or was he dreaming? He didn't understand.

His gaze was drawn downwards, watching her skimpy vest top begin to slide down her chest, the only thing holding it up was the sharp peaks of her nipples.

"Or..." she continued, her voice full of allure, "maybe they're further down..."

His eyes snapped back to her face just before she tugged the material down over her breasts, exposing herself as she watched his face tighten with desire.

Stiles' mind went completely blank for a few seconds, completely melting on the inside and he didn't know who out of the two of them initiated the first move but he felt a soft pressure on his lips and his eyes suddenly widened.

What? How? Huh?

His mind went haywire as he tried to form at least one coherent thought but his brain waves must've been clogged or something, or maybe he was in shock because a girl was actually kissing him, because his train of thought was in shambles.

He honestly had no idea what to do.

Nothing like this had ever happened to him before so he sat there for a few seconds, stiff and overpowered with emotion as he tried to wrap his head around the idea before the feel of her prescious lips got too overwhelming for him to not cave into.

He always moaned and complained at those stupid rom-com movies where that 'one kiss' made them fall head over heels in love, but now... was that what he feeling? Because his chest burst with butterflies and his head was going fuzzy, unable to comprehend anything but the soft touch of her lips.

His eyes drifted shut, losing himself to the moment. Falling headfirst into the raw and unpredictable passion that was fuelling his every move and thought. Slowly, gently, moving his mouth against hers and was sure a groan escaped his throat.

Oh god... how did this feel so good? He had dreams, well, multiple dreams in fact, about something like this happening but in real life it felt one hundred times better - actually scrap that, one thousand billion times better.

Kayla's lips were soft yet firm as they pressed against his, her head tilting to the side as one hand reached up to grip the front of his checked shirt, crinkling the material as she pulled him closer, their chests meeting with an ungraceful slam of bodies, their need for one another fuelling their haphazard movements.

In that moment, he didn't even care that just a simple few seconds of her mouth on his made his entire body buzz with a new kind of electricity, his slacks becoming uncomfortably tight as he became so painfully aroused he couldn't stop his boner from pressing against his pant leg, the feel of her chest against his not helping the situation.

Then, just a mere few seconds later, Kayla slowly broke away from his lips, her green eyes alight and somewhat confused which made Stiles snap back to reality.

Holy shit - what the hell just happened?

That must've been a dream. It must've.

Did she just kiss him? Or did he kiss her?

No. Surely she kissed him, right? He didn't have the guts, nor the nerve, to do something so painfully out there. He wasn't the kind of guy to shoot his shot.

Despite that, he couldn't help but admit to himself that enjoyed it so very very much to the point where he had the sudden urge to grab her and never let go, push her back on that bed and cherish and explore her entire body, willing and wanting to get lost in her touch. She was his friend, but he wanted to - in that very moment - hold her tight and sink his throbbing cock into her and make her feel scream.

Friends weren't meant to think about their friends like that, were they?

Despite that, as much as he hated to admit it, it was a mistake. This couldn't happen. He wasn't the type of guy to get the girl. He was the sidekick, the lovesick puppy and, soon enough, whoever he got close to would see that and leave. He didn't want to ruin a blossoming friendship over his feelings - or whatever the hell it was he was experiencing.

"Um, uh... s-sorry, I-I didn't, ah... oh my god... I, that's uh..." He stumbled over his words and he almost tripped over his feet in a haste to stand up off the bed - yes, put as much distance between them as possible, that might work.

"Stiles, wait-" he heard Kayla say, tugging up her vest top but he was too wrapped up in his own panicking to take heed of her words, stumbling around her room like a blind man.

"I should - uh, I s-should go... " he stuttered, trying not to stare at her flushed appearance, somehow looking even more beautiful than ever, "...um, I-I didn't mean to b-bother you... everything just, ah... n-never mind, um, I'll see you tomorrow".

He was a mess, walking backwards to the door, bumping into furniture and tripping over clothes on the floor.

"I mean, or not. Just w-whatever... if you're feeling better, not that you have to show up, um... just giving you options and everything... wow, would you look at t-the time, uh... s-see ya".

His words were rushed and barely eligible, grabbing the door handle to her bedroom door and throwing it open, racing down the stairs faster than he ever thought possible, leaving Kayla sitting cross-legged on her bed, holding her clothes up as she watched him leave, eyebrows raised in exasperation.

A/N) ahaha sorry, but I fucking love that. Poor stiles. I could totally see him acting like this when he gets wayyy too horny and doesn't know what to do lmao. A little bit more sexual than the original, but it's big vibes haha Kayla isn't shy, and she knows what she wants and I really want to explore more of a fun, sexual build up between them. So yeah. This book will be more "adult" - I don't shy away from that stuff haha

Alsoooo the sheriff and Allison being the purest stayla shippers is the cutest thing ever don't argue with me haha

anyways; hope you all liked and please please review and I will see you all soon ;)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form.

In her sixteen years of life, Kayla had kissed – and been kissed – a lot of times. Almost too many to keep track of, especially considering for a lot of those times she had probably been drunk or high, but a kiss ending like that? That was a first.

She sat there on her bed, one hand holding her vest top up around her chest as she listened to her front door slam shut just seconds after Stiles had left her room, her expression twisted into confusion and a little bit of hurt.

What sort of reaction was that meant to be?

She understood he was most likely nervous because, well, that was about 70% of his personality, but c'mon! She was literally offering herself on a plate to him, dropping meteor size hints that she found him attractive and would be up for some fun and just as it was getting good, he bailed?

She wasn't stupid. She knew he liked her. It was so blatantly obvious, like he was wearing a flashing neon sign across his forehead announcing she gave him boners, but then why did he run off? Surely that kiss was exactly what he was wanting, right? Or maybe she was being dense. People didn't work the same way she did – blunt, straightforward and rash. Maybe he was scared.

Or maybe, she thought with a sad sigh, maybe it was because despite liking her, he still liked Lydia more. She couldn't blame him; Lydia was absolutely stunning.

She stood from her bed, making her way towards her large windows to look down and see the jeep speed from her driveway and onto the road, disappearing into the night with a deep rumble.

She couldn't help but be a little disappointed. Stiles was… well, interesting. He was different. He was fun and energetic, somehow always making her laugh. Infuriating her too, but more importantly making her laugh. She hadn't laughed like she had with him in a long, long time. In fact, she had nearly forgotten what it was like to be genuinely happy. Spending time with Stiles made her feel like that. Made her feel like she was able to be whole again.

She didn't know what that meant – if it meant she was liking him more than simply 'just a friend', but she wasn't going to put pressure on herself to find out. She hadn't been in Beacon Hills for even a month yet, and she certainly was not ready for a relationship. Her and relationships were not a good combination. She was too selfish, too wild, for one of those.

She sighed, pulling the straps of her vest top back over her shoulders as she padded back to her bed, sitting atop the covers cross legged and reached for her phone.

Stiles was right. It was fucked.

Despite the hundreds of cracks slicing their way across the screen, it remarkably still worked, opening it up and getting bombarded with hundreds of notifications. Like jeez, she'd been without her phone for less than 24 hours, why was there so many alerts and things to catch up on?

She thought she better reply to Allison and Lydia, letting them know she got her phone back and was completely fine and would be in school tomorrow. Lydia simply messaged back 'good' followed by 'better use make up to cover those cuts and bruises, people will talk' which Kayla just scoffed at, almost happy to see Lydia back to her usual self. However, shortly after firing off those texts she got an incoming call from Allison.

She was a bit surprised at that but accepted the call none the less, holding her phone to her ear.

"Oh my god" Allison exclaimed before Kayla even had the chance to open her mouth, "finally. How are you?"

"Fine" she replied nonchalantly, a little confused by Allison's apparent concern, "why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you were in a car accident".

"Oh. That" Kayla laughed, "it's nothing. Barely worth mentioning".

"Kayla" her friend scolded, "it could've been really serious. You were lucky to walk away with just a concussion and some cuts and bruises".

"Meh. I'm more worried about my car. Apparently, it's totalled".

"You can get a new car; you can't get a new you".

"Sadly".

She could feel Allison's disapproval to her casual, dismissive behaviour about her own wellbeing through the phone and didn't understand why someone she had only known a few weeks was worrying about her so much. It didn't really make much sense to her. She was fine, it was just a car crash.

"How are you feeling anyway?" Allison asked, changing the subject, "concussions can hurt for a few days. Are you sure you want to come back to school tomorrow?"

"Beats being stuck at home all day" she shrugged, "and honestly, I'm fine. I've had worse".

"Hm" the brunette murmured through the phone, "are you sure?"

"100%" Kayla replied, "and how do you know I have a concussion? I didn't say that in my text".

"Oh. Stiles mentioned it" she said, much to Kayla's surprise, "he seemed really worried about you".

"Did he?" she asked, not even realising her voice had gone a few octaves higher than usual.

Allison paused for a few seconds on the other end of the line, almost making Kayla think the connection had dropped or the call had been disconnected but then her friend's smug, sing song voice began giggling.

"What?" Kayla asked, completely oblivious, "did I miss a joke?"

"He likes you" Allison teased, "Stiles. I could see it today. He's totally into you".

"I know".

"Then why don't you do something about it?"

"I did" Kayla shrugged, relaxing back against her headboard as she gazed down at her nails, "we kissed".

Just like earlier there was a few seconds of silence, enough time lapsing that it made Kayla frown, pulling the phone away from her ear to see if it was glitching or finally dying and going to phone heaven when a loud screech erupted through the phone, making Kayla jump and nearly drop the phone.

"What?"

"Oh my god" Allison shrieked, "you kissed him? When?"

"I didn't kiss him".

"What?" Allison asked, her voice dripping in confusion and a little bit of disappointment, "but you just said-"

"He kissed me" she corrected, "after I showed him my boobs".

"H-He kissed you?" her friend muttered, sounding completely shocked, "Stiles did? Stiles made the first move?"

"That's the way I remember it".

"When did this happen?"

"Like, five minutes ago".

"And you're wasting time talking to me?" Allison demanded, "what's wrong with you? Go kiss him some more".

"That was the plan, unfortunately, he ran off".

"He what?" she asked, "as in…?"

"He saw my boobs, we kissed, then he took off" Kayla sighed, trying not to show any disappointment as she recalled that, "that's a first for me. Normally when I kiss someone, they want more. Not to brag, but I am a pretty great kisser".

"Oh no" Allison whispered, her tone filled with mortification, "that's not good".

"Tell me about it" she grumbled, "my ego took a bit of a hit, I'm not gonna lie".

"He was probably just nervous" Allison reassured her, "maybe you were his first kiss".

"Oh shit" she mumbled, flashing back to hers and Stiles' conversation not that long ago where he admitted he had not done anything with anyone… ever, "I was. Huh".

"See? He probably just got overwhelmed".

"Or maybe he's still crushing on Lydia".

"I doubt it" Allison replied, "he barely looks in her direction. Trust me. Whenever I see that boy, he's always looking at you".

She just shrugged, forgetting in that moment Allison couldn't see her as she resumed staring at her fingernails, picking in boredom at her cuticles.

"I know you like him too" Allison teased, "why not ask him out?"

"Allison, I don't do 'relationships'".

"No. You don't do relationships with the people you've met in the past. Beacon Hills is a fresh start, right? And Stiles is sweet. I think it would be good for you".

"Hm" Kayla muttered suspiciously, wondering why all of a sudden her friend was pushing the idea of Stiles.

"What?"

"Why are you being Stiles' number one fan? I don't think I've seen you speak more than ten words to him".

"… No reason".

"Allison…"

"Urgh. Fine" she sighed, "truthfully? Because I don't want to see you end up dating Brian. He's sleezy and arrogant and you could do so much better".

Huh. That was… kind of sweet. Allison was looking out for her.

"Yeah" she agreed, "but he also has a really big dick".

"Kayla" Allison chastised in embarrassment before beginning to giggle.

"What?" she smirked, "I'm horny. Do you know how much pent-up frustration I could take out on that?"

"Take it out on Stiles instead".

"It wasn't for lack of trying" Kayla grumbled, "and you're right. I like him. I would make out with him and fuck him all day and all night, but I couldn't give him a relationship" she admitted, "and uh… I think you've made me realise that a relationship is probably what he would want. Especially if you're right and he likes me as much as you say".

"… I understand why you're hesitant" Allison said softly, "you've been through a lot. You've lost a lot. It can be scary to put your heart out there, trust me, I get it. But it could be the best thing you'll ever do".

She scrunched her face up, not buying Allison's words.

"Allison, I'm not relationship material. I'm not sweet like you, or loyal like Scott. Hell, even Jackson probably has more emotional intelligence than I do. I don't have anything to give".

"Well, whatever you have is clearly enough for Stiles. He likes you – a lot. I think you two would be really great together".

"Hm. We'll see" she said, "it's a big decision. You never know-" she joked, "-it could end up killing me".

Allison scoffed playfully, "drama queen".

"Ouch. I'm not Lydia".

"Nope. There's only one of her".

"Thank god".

"You're terrible" Allison giggled, "anyway, I'm glad you're okay. I was worrying all day about you".

"Wasted energy" Kayla smirked, "I'm like a cat with nine lives. I always bounce back".

"Yeah, well, I'm still going to worry" she pointed out, "also I meant to ask - would you like a ride to school tomorrow? Saves you getting the bus".

"That would be amazing, yeah. Thank you".

"No worries. Get some sleep and I'll see you in the morning. And remember-" Allison smirked, "-dress cute. Make Stiles ever regret bailing on you".

"Cute?" she snorted, "I don't have cute clothes. I have 'I don't give a fuck' clothes, 'I will rip your heart out' clothes and 'don't test me, I could fuck your father and become your stepmom' clothes. Cute doesn't really fall into any of those categories".

"I could bring you something from my wardrobe?"

"Every offence Allison, but your style sucks. You dress like a nun".

"Pfft. I do not".

"Agree to disagree".

"Fine" Allison laughed, "just avoid the 'I will rip your heart out' clothes. Poor Stiles will probably already have a heart attack trying to build up the courage to face you, he doesn't need to be even more scared".

"Duly noted".

There was a brief pause as Allison considered her words, much to Kayla's amusement.

"…You're not going to take my advice, are you?"

"Hell no" she smirked, "and maybe he deserves to be scared of me and have a heart attack. Dude saw my tits for crying out loud… he should be worshipping me right about now" she joked, trying to cover up the little bit of hurt she felt that he still ran out on her.

"Well let's hope the school has a defibrillator" her friend laughed, "I'll pick you up at 7.30. Don't be late".

Telling Kayla not to be late basically guaranteed that she would be.

She didn't know why, but timekeeping just wasn't her strong point. Time just ended up escaping her one way or another, usually because she a) overslept, b) got distracted, c) was lacking any motivation to function like a normal human or d) she just didn't give a fuck.

Today was definitely d. And a little bit of a. And maybe b and c too.

She walked out her house at 7.39am, a travel mug half filled with coffee grasped tightly in her hand as she fought off her tiredness, her head groggy and tight. The concussion probably not helping her situation.

She saw Allison's car parked on the kerb and made a beeline towards it, barely even looking before she stepped across the road and ended up getting a car horn honked at her to which she simply raised her middle finger in response, continuing to cross.

"You're late" Allison smiled as she climbed into the passenger seat.

"By 9 minutes. Don't get your panties in a bunch".

"10, actually" the brunette corrected, tapping the screen on her dash that had the time of 7.40am flashing in the right-hand corner.

"10 minutes late is actually really early for me so, y'know, feel honoured in that".

She made herself comfortable, pushing the seat back a little bit so she could stretch her legs out, putting her bag in the footwell by her seat, placed her coffee mug in the holder and reached over to change the radio station because she was not in the mood for some sickly as fuck Taylor Swift love song at twenty to eight in the morning.

Allison made a whole show of turning around in her seat, inspecting her from head to toe with curious eyes as Kayla simply cocked a brow in response, wondering why her friend was scrutinising so damn hard.

"If you want to make out, all you have to do is ask".

"Just checking you're not wearing anything too terrifying" Allison smirked, referencing their conversation from last night, "except that is a lot of leg" she added, glancing at her legs on show, "that will make Stiles tongue-tied".

She quickly glimpsed down at her outfit, a simple pair of high waisted medium blue denim shorts and a thick strapped white ribbed vest top tucked in, her favourite pair of bubble-gum blue Doc Martins strapped onto her feet.

"I always wear shit like this".

"And he always looks at you in it" Allison teased, "also, uh… do you have your nipples pierced?"

"Oh. Yeah" she muttered, glancing down at her top, seeing the barbells sticking out her top, "I got them done a while back in some sketchy tattoo place in LA. Guy didn't even charge me because he liked my boobs so much. I thought the holes would've closed up by now, but they hadn't, so I stuck them back in this morning".

Allison was a little pale, intrigued and focused on the piercings.

"Didn't that hurt?" she gulped, caught between looking a little nauseous and interested, cocking her head to the side.

"I don't know, I was probably off my face on crack" she said bluntly, "want to see?"

Allison didn't even have a chance to reply before Kayla had untucked her top and pulled it up over her chest, smiling a little at her friend's shocked wide-eyed stare, spluttering on her own saliva as she nervously glanced around the semi-busy street, quickly reaching out to pull the top down.

"Kayla! There's people outside".

"So?" she shrugged, "I have fantastic boobs. Did you see how amazingly symmetrical they are?'

Allison shook her head, a little bewildered by her complete lack of shame as she chuckled under her breath, finding her new brazen friend a breath of fresh air.

"They're… very nice" Allison said shyly, "but I think you forgot a bra…?"

"I didn't forget".

"… Oh…"

"Free the nipple" Kayla playfully chanted, "but also, my back is still kinda sore from the glass shards that were embedded there. Bra straps would just aggravate it".

"Makes sense" Allison chuckled, starting up the car's engine, "so uh… why the sudden change in heart about the piercings? Is it because of Stiles…?"

"This has nothing to do with Stiles".

"Because, well… he's definitely going to notice those".

Kayla simply shrugged, "not my problem if he can't keep his eyes to himself".

Allison shot her a sideways look as she drove slowly down the street, studying every inch of her demeanour, clearly not buying a word she said.

"What?"

"Just trying to decide if you're trying to scare him off or make him regret running off".

"Honestly?" she snorted, "a bit of both. He had his chance, then he blew it. I don't chase people".

Allison pouted in disappointment, clearly not happy with her answer.

"Kayla".

"What?"

"He's nice".

"Yeah" she agreed, "but I'm not, so…"

"I think you're softer than you pretend".

"Nah" she said lightly with a smirk, "I'm dead on the inside".

"You're so stubborn, you know that?"

"Thank you" she beamed playfully, "so yes, hopefully these nipple piercings scream 'emotionally unavailable' and 'mentally unwell' enough that I don't have to entertain the idea of any relationships what-so-ever".

Allison rolled her eyes, "you're being ridiculous".

"No. Ridiculous was even considering your idea on the phone last night that I should get with Stiles. Not hook up with Stiles, no. Be Stiles' girlfriend. That is what is ridiculous" she ranted, "I don't do relationships. I do hookups".

Despite knowing that was the truth, aware enough of herself that she didn't have the capability to manage something as serious as a relationship, a part of her grieved that idea. She hadn't ever been overly sappy or sentimental, but she was getting to that age that everyone around her was having boyfriends and girlfriends, falling in love, and she was shutting herself off to that idea. Why? She pretended it was to protect herself when, really, she knew it was because she was scared shitless of letting someone in. Plus, she would deny it, but she was still kind of hurt he just ran off like he did. Who does that?

"Hm" Allison murmured, "we'll see".

Kayla furrowed her brows, shooting her friend a suspicious glance, trying to figure out what she was planning because the look on her face was far from innocent.

"Don't you dare" Kayla warned, "don't you be playing matchmaker".

Allison pouted, "why?"

"Because I said so".

"I want to be able to do double dates with people other than Lydia and Jackson" Allison whined, "the tension between Scott and Jackson completely ruins it. But Stiles is Scott's best friend-"

"No".

"Just like that? No?"

"Pretty much".

"But you like him-"

"He's alright" she interrupted with a grumble.

"You think he's more than 'alright'" her friend pointed out, "if it's the last thing I ever do, I'm going to get you two together. Watch me".

"I'd rather not".

Allison smirked as she pulled into the school parking lot, somehow managing to find a space near the front despite them running late because of her inability to manage time. However, despite Allison being a stickler for time and a little goody two shoes, she made no move to leave the car. It wasn't until Kayla was half out, juggling all her shit in her arms did she realise her friend was still sitting there, biting her lip.

"You good?"

"Yeah, yeah" Allison nodded, but her expression was a little tense and worried.

"Cut the bullshit" Kayla stated, swivelling back around in the seat, "what's up?"

"It's just… sometimes I feel like Scott is keeping stuff from me" she admitted, "it's just little things over the past few weeks. The secrets, the disappearing… that's weird right?"

She kept her expression neutral, despite knowing the massive secret Scott was keeping from her which, in Kayla's eyes, was logical. Allison's family were werewolf hunters. It would be premature to tell her anything yet.

"No" Kayla shrugged, "but then again you do have higher standards than me".

"Has Stiles said anything to you?" Allison continued, "about Scott? Do I need to worry?"

"No" she said with a shake of her head, "trust me, Scott's one of the good guys. Do you know how I know that?"

Allison's expression was serious, bordering on anxious as she cocked a brow at Kayla, urging her to continue.

"Because I'm only attracted to the bad boys" she joked, "and I'm not attracted to Scott, so you're safe. Don't worry".

Allison burst into giggles, relief spreading across her face and relaxing her expression, her cheeks glowing a light pink.

"You're ridiculous" Allison laughed with a wide smile, seeming distracted enough that she managed to push her worries and doubts about Scott to the side, "but I still love you".

"Good. Someone has to".

They both exited the car, joining the last remaining students who were running late as well, chatting absentmindedly as they walked into their first class – English.

It seemed they were the last to arrive because there were only two remaining seats left – Allison's usual one behind Scott and one directly in front of Stiles. She frowned, that not being her usual seat but, for whatever reason, someone must've nabbed hers which was weird because usually whatever seat you sat in at the start of the semester was your seat for life. Okay, not life, but close enough.

Before Allison could skip away to sit behind Scott, no doubt ready to hold hands and pass love notes – y'know, all that disgusting crap - she yanked on her arm and sent her friend a glare.

"Did you do this?"

Allison's expression was the perfect picture of innocence, her big brown doe eyes widening into faux confusion.

"Do what?"

Kayla narrowed her eyes, "make someone take my seat".

Allison's façade broke a little, her stare dancing with mischievousness that Kayla had never seen before, realising just how deadly serious Allison had been in her comments about setting her and Stiles up.

"No" her friend smirked, "how would I be able to do that?"

Translation: 'I worked my magic and did it and you're going to shut up and be happy I did so we all can go on double dates and be cute'

"You're dead to me".

Allison winked playfully, "you'll thank me later".

Kayla was too tired to argue, watching Allison breeze her way towards her desk, sending Scott the most disgusting heart eyes Kayla had ever seen, her friend's expression bordering on smugness as she sat and sent a deliberate pointed look to the desk in front of Stiles.

It seemed the second Kayla looked over at the desk was the same moment Stiles realised she was in class and was meant to sit in front of him, the pieces of the puzzle falling into place for him.

Within milliseconds he sat up straight in his seat, nearly jumping from the hard plastic in his panic, his knees banging off the underside of the table which made a loud obnoxious screech across the floor, drawing everyone's attention to him which didn't help with him embarrassment, his cheeks turning a dark spottled pink.

Before last night she would've thought that was cute. Now? Well… it was still cute, but she was also still pissed at him so was trying everything to not find it cute.

She rolled her eyes, making her way to the table as he stiffened in his seat, leaning back like he was trying to escape her very presence, his entire face morphed into fear as he puffed out small pants of air to try and regulate his breathing.

She ignored him and his ridiculous behaviour, dumping her bag on the floor and swung herself into the seat, making sure to send Allison another glare – she did not need anyone meddling in her romantic life, thank you very much.

"Hey Kayla" Scott whispered sweetly, their tables directly adjacent to one another, "glad to see you're okay. I heard what happened".

His eyes told her he knew it was more than just a 'car crash', his gaze bubbling with worry – worry about what this whole Alpha situation meant for both of them.

"Thanks Scott" she sent him a tight smile, pulling her books and pen from her bag, feeling Stiles' gaze bore holes into her back but she paid no heed to his obvious anxiety and awkwardness, deciding to just ignore him. If he wasn't going to apologise, or - at the very least - acknowledge they kissed, then she wasn't going to chase him to do so. She couldn't be bothered with the childish games. They were nearly adults. She wasn't going to sit there and hold his hand through whatever he was feeling.

Scott seemed to pick up on the awkwardness, or maybe he could smell the tension and lust between the two because he sent them both a curious look, his interest piqued, but before he could look too much into it the teacher started the class, much to both Stiles and Kayla's relief.

"I think the book is making it more obvious" Stiles exclaimed, holding back a smirk as Scott hid again behind the 'World History' book, "and anyway, she's reading" Stiles added with a quick glance over his shoulder, his leg beginning to jump up and down quickly as he tried to, subtly, look around. Kayla usually always came to lunch, sitting with Allison and Lydia but she was nowhere to be found which made him even more nervous. He would rather have her in his line of sight so he could actively avoid her. And yes, he was avoiding her. He was a pro at avoiding things.

"So did you come up with a plan yet?"

"I think so" Stiles replied, thankful for the distraction and bit into his apple.

"Does that mean you don't hate me now?"

"No" Stiles replied instantly but they both knew it was a lie, "But your crap has infiltrated my life so now I have to do something about it. Plus, I'm still a better yoda than Derek".

"Okay yeah, you teach me".

"Yeah, I'll be your Yoda".

"Yeah, you be my Yoda".

"Your Yoda I will be" Stiles replied in his best impression of one of his favourite characters, feeling the tension leaving his body by joking around with his best friend.

"Uh… I said it backwards".

Scott shot him a confused look, "yeah… I-I know".

"All right, you know what? I definitely still hate you. Uh huh. Oh yeah" leaning forward and getting ready to blow Scott's terrible cover when he saw, from the corner of his eye, Kayla make her way through the canteen.

His entire stomach dropped, every drop of blood draining from his face as he spotted her.

Last night was… confusing, to say the least. He didn't know what, or how, the things that happened had happened. One minute they were speaking then the next they were kissing – kissing. And not just a cute peck on the lips either, but a full-blown make-out session. In fact, he could still taste the sweet savour of her lips, his mouth still tingling from her touch. In that moment, struggling to understand what it could mean. Plus, it didn't help that she was his first kiss… ever.

"Oh god" he exclaimed, "gimme the book, gimme the book".

He ripped the book from Scott's surprised hands and held it up in front of his face, shameless hiding from her and praying to whatever God was out there she wouldn't see them, not mentally prepared enough to be within ten feet of her, never mind talk with her.

"You know... I think the book just makes it more obvious" Scott snorted, quoting back Stiles' words, much to his annoyance.

"Shut up".

"What's up with the two of you anyway?" Scott asked obliviously, "did you have a falling out?"

Stiles gulped, his cheeks flushing a deep pink yet again and he was thankful he was hiding behind the book. Doing everything in his power not to think about what happened last night because he knew, if he did, he would turn into a fumbling, awkward horny mess – even more so than usual.

"Uh… something like that".

Unsurprisingly, his crappy cover was blown by the book getting torn from his hands and thrown harshly to the table below and he peaked up, seeing Kayla roll her eyes at him, very clearly unamused.

"I think you need to take a lesson in subtlety Stiles" she snapped, "and whilst you're at it, maybe a class in basic decency too".

Ooft. Ouch.

He winced, feeling bad she seemed so upset with him and was trying to build the courage to apologise for his shitty behaviour but, before he could, she took a seat next to him and turned to Scott.

"Derek told me what happened" she stated, completely blanking Stiles as she faced Scott, much to his friend's confusion who looked between the two in wondering, "rookie move. You always need to have your phone on silent".

"Uh… yeah. Lesson learnt" Scott gulped, "not that it matters now. Derek broke my phone".

"You're lucky he didn't break your face".

"I suppose…"

"He has a weird way of helping, but he is trying to help" Kayla said, "he doesn't want the Alpha to kill you".

Scott chuckled uncomfortably, "I should hope so".

Stiles had been quiet that entire time, not knowing what to do or what to say, the fact she was sitting just a few inches away from him not helping. She was so close he could feel her warmth radiating off her, smell her strawberry and cream shampoo mixed with her vanilla body wash which was completely mesmerising him, his senses going into overdrive.

Up until now, he had done his best not to look at her because he knew that, if he did, he would have a very pleasant reaction, especially now he knew what her lips tasted like and wanted more, but he gave in, his eyes trailing up and down her body.

She was dressed casually, but confidently. Tight shorts hugging her thighs and showing off her small waist accompanied by a skin-tight white vest top that, to his surprise, was stretched tight over her chest, showing off her very clearly not wearing a bra.

He couldn't help himself, his eyes were drawn to her chest, noticing the large swell of her breasts that hung freely and – wait, what? Was that…?

Oh dear god.

A clenched fist was quickly brought to his mouth as a strangled gasp escaped his throat, screwing his eyes shut before he could see anymore.

He was sure – almost 100% - that it wasn't just her nipples piercing through her top, but also something metal. A.K.A – piercings. He did not remember that from last night whatsoever. Not that he saw much… well, he saw a little. He saw enough. Enough to know that she definitely did not have metal bars through her nipples when she dropped her top because, if she had, he would have been a puddle on the floor because, holy shit, that was so frigging hot.

He could feel Kayla and Scott's gazes on his but he daredn't open his eyes, trying to focus on anything but imagining her naked.

"Uh… Stiles?" he heard Scott ask, "you okay?"

"F-Fine" he squeaked, unable to stop his mind from being bombarded with images of her naked.

"Ignore him" Kayla dismissed, "Scott, look, I just wanted to say to you that Derek's lessons are important. The full moon is just around the corner and, because it's your first, it's going to be bad. Listen to Derek and maybe then you have a chance to survive it".

"Derek?" Stiles finally found his voice, joining the conversation, "listen to Derek?"

She finally met his gaze, their stares clashing as she narrowed her eyes a little, clearly still very pissed off.

"Wow, he speaks" she muttered sardonically, her lips forming a tight line, "that's unfortunate".

"Uh… what exactly did you two fight about?" Scott asked nervously, overwhelmed by the tension.

"Fight?" she asked incredulously, much to Stiles' alarm, "we didn't fight".

Stiles watched Scott frown in confusion, not understanding what seemed to be going on between the two of them – something they had in common. Stiles had no idea either.

"Am I missing something?"

"No" Kayla shrugged, "nothing important. Just the fact he put his tongue down my throat then ran off. I think that about sums it up, doesn't it Stiles?"

He was helplessly looking between his two friends, one annoyed and the other completely dumbfounded, Scott's crooked jaw nearly dropping to the table in surprise.

"W-Well… that's… that's just…" he stuttered, scrambling to join a coherent sentence together but his mind was failing him, his entire face burning red hot, "that's… you made out with me first".

He watched as she gaped at him, looking offended by that accusation.

"No, I distinctly remember you kissing me" she argued, very matter of factly as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"No".

"Yes".

"No" he emphasised, beginning to panic, "I-I didn't… I wouldn't…"

"Wouldn't what? Wouldn't kiss me?" she demanded, her anger beginning to bubble to the surface.

"What? No" he shook his head, "I would. I did. I mean-urgh. I wouldn't make a move. Everyone knows I would never make a move. I'm not the kind of guy to make moves".

"Well, you did".

"I-I didn't".

"You did" she stated, leaning towards him and pushing her finger against his forehead as if to say 'frigging idiot', "you saw my tits, you kissed me, then you ran away".

"I-I didn't look-look at your… at your-"

"Yes you did".

"I didn't".

"You're doing it right now" she pointed out, making him jump as he forcefully dragged his eyes away from her chest, much to his embarrassment.

"Well, they're right there".

"Okay" Scott interrupted, leaning across the table and holding out his palms to them, trying to calm the situation down, "guys, enough. Breathe".

They both fell silent, sitting back in their chairs like petulant children that had just been told off by their father, Scott thankful that he was able to break up their bickering fest.

"Okay, good. Uh… so are you both… dating now?"

"No" Kayla stated before Stiles could get a word in edgeways, "I don't date. And I certainly don't date guys that run away from me like we're in third grade and he thinks I got cooties".

"I don't think you've got- never mind" he added, cutting himself off when she glared at him, realising he was just digging himself an even deeper hole.

"I'm confused" Scott mumbled, shaking his head in bewilderment.

"Tell me about it" she muttered under her breath before changing the subject, "anyways, that's not the point of this conversation. I just wanted you to know how important it is to learn from Derek. I'm so over last night".

Okay… double ouch.

Before Stiles could even think about saying anything – maybe something along the lines of how sorry he was and that she was a fucking amazing kisser – their three-way conversation got interrupted by douchebag Brian.

"Hello" he grinned, perching himself on the other side of Kayla, "missed you yesterday".

Stiles grumbled an insult under his breath, rolling his eyes at the persistent jock that just couldn't take no for an answer.

"No you didn't" Kayla scoffed, "you just missed looking at my ass".

"Can you blame me?"

"No" she replied, "now what do you want so I can make this conversation short enough that it doesn't make me want to blow my brains out".

Stiles watched as Brian smirked, not paying attention to him and Scott, creepily hyper focused on Kayla that it made Stiles want to wrap her up in his jacket and hide her from his gaze.

"I have two tickets to this sweet gig this weekend in San Francisco. VIP" he added with a sleezy wiggle of his eyebrows, "thought I'd give you first refusal".

"Wow, I feel honoured" she muttered sarcastically, "lucky little me getting asked first".

"Well, you are my favourite".

Stiles rolled his eyes, even more fed up than usual by Brian's relentless behaviour, not even realising how intensely he was feeling the jealousy. However, Scott did. Getting hit by waves upon waves of nauseating anger and jealousy that made his head hurt.

"San Francisco is, like, hundreds of miles from here" she continued, "why would I subject myself to spending that much time in a car with you?"

"We can stay the night…"

"Oh, we can, can we?" she exclaimed with a chuckle, "and, yet again, why would I do that?"

"I think the better question is… why wouldn't you?"

Stiles scoffed under his breath, not even bothering to hide his frustrations as Kayla sent him a quick sideways glance, watching as his face pinched in anger.

To his surprise, instead of turning him down right then and there like she usually did, she simply shrugged, sighing loudly as she turned back to face Brian.

"What the hell. Fine" she muttered, making Stiles sit up straight in shock, "but you're paying. For everything".

It seemed he wasn't the only shocked one at the table. Scott and even Brian looked at Kayla as if she had grown a tail, each one silent with surprise as she grabbed her bag and stood up, oblivious to their astonishment.

"Oh. Great" Brian exclaimed, quickly standing up too, "want me to walk you to your next class?"

"No" she scoffed, throwing him a dirty look, "I'm perfectly capable of walking myself".

The three boys watched her leave, each with varying degrees of disbelief and judgement etched into their expressions. Especially Stiles. He genuinely couldn't believe what he had just witnessed.

"See that boys?" Brian grinned, sending them both a cocky look, "that's how you do it"

"Aw, c'mon" Stiles scoffed, his anger bubbling to the surface, "we all know she just said yes to get you off her back. You're basically stalking her".

Brian didn't seem fazed by Stiles' accusation, still grinning cockily.

"Don't hate the player, hate the game".

From under the table, Scott had to quickly stretch his leg out to step on Stiles' toes, stopping him from rising and punching Brian square in the nose, suddenly very angry and very annoyed that this douchebag always seemed to get what he wanted.

"Uh… right. Bye Brian. See you at practice" Scott hurriedly said, pressing down harder on Stiles' toes with his shoe as Brian waved them both off, sauntering from the canteen.

"What the hell was that?" Stiles exclaimed, "she hates his guts".

"Stiles-"

"No, I mean she seriously hates his guts. He's a creep. And she just agreed to stay the night with him hundreds of miles away from home? What the hell is that all about?"

"Stiles" Scott chuckled, amused but a little alarmed by his outburst, "that was payback".

"… What?"

"She's getting back at you for running out on her" Scott smirked, "you know… after you kissed her".

"I didn't kiss her" Stiles exclaimed, "she definitely kissed me".

"Whatever. There was a kiss, then you ran".

Stiles deflated in his seat, pursing his lips into an annoyed and embarrassed pout.

"Yeah" he grumbled, "I ran. But only because I didn't know what else to do".

"Well, first, you don't run" Scott snickered, ignoring Stiles' pointed glare, "what on earth were you thinking?"

"I don't know…"

"It's Kayla" Scott emphasised, "you've been crushing on her since she got here and you finally got to kiss her and you ran?"

"Can you stop mentioning the running please?"

"Dude" Scott laughed, "I'm never letting you live this down".

"Ten bucks and we never speak of this again"

Scott continued smiling and shook his head, "no way. This is worth way more than ten bucks".

"God, you're a pain in the ass" he muttered, rolling his eyes, "uh… so uh… you don't think she's going to go out with Brian then?"

"No. I think she's just trying to make you jealous".

"I-I wasn't jealous" her protested, the words not holding much merit.

"Sure dude. Whatever".

"I wasn't".

"I can smell it on you-"

"No, don't say anything more or I may be tempted to punch you" Stiles warned, grabbing all of Scott's belongings, including his bag and running off, effectively removing the barrier between him and Allison, the amused smile dropping from Scott's face as he was now the one doing the running.

A/N) Yayyyy long chapter, and lots of dialogue. I'm trying to make this rewrite more detailed than the last book, meaning more dialogue and more connecting. I really like how Allison is number one stayla shipper right now, its so funny haha.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: Teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form.

"Scott's ignoring me".

Her ass hadn't even touched the seat before Allison was leaning sideways to face her, a worried expression twisting her features.

"Is he?" Kayla asked, putting her history books on the table and reaching for a pen, feigning stupidity, "why?"

"I don't know" Allison mumbled, her fingers twisting together as she stressed, "do you think he's going to break up with me?"

"Definitely not" Kayla chuckled, "that boy is head over heels for you. He's probably just having an off day. He is a teenage boy – plus he's a little weird. Actually, a lot weird".

"You don't think I have to worry?" she asked, and Kayla didn't know when she became the person people asked for relationship advice – she didn't exactly have the best, most reliable track record.

"No" she stated, "maybe his time of the month is coming up" she joked, Allison not even realising how accurate that was, only his behaviour wouldn't be weird because of a uterus but because of a full moon.

Allison began to relax a little, trusting her words – for what reason, Kayla didn't know – but her eyes still held a glint of nervousness, chewing her lip like she wanted to ask a question but was too scared to.

"What is it?"

"Hm?" Allison squeaked, raising her brows.

"What do you want to ask?"

Her friend looked around shyly, making sure the classroom was still half empty before leaning closer to Kayla, a light blush tinging her cheeks.

"Last night, um… Scott and I… we… uh… we…"

"Did you have sex?"

Allison choked at her bluntness, swallowing her awkwardness as her eyes darted around the classroom to make sure no on heard.

"No. No. We didn't".

"Oral?"

"N-No".

"Did you at least touch it?"

"No" the brunette whispered, her face now the perfect representation of a burning tomato, "we got interrupted. But, well… if we didn't-"

"You would've fucked him?"

Allison's expression told her everything she needed to know.

"Okay. Uh" Kayla shrugged, "is that a bad thing?"

"No, I want to, I just… I don't really know how".

"It's really not that complicated" Kayla shrugged, "as long as he gets the right hole".

Allison chuckled a little under her breath, running a hand through her curly hair as she shook her head playfully at Kayla.

"Or are you wanting legitimate advice? Because I could give you some pointers-"

"Advice?" Lydia chirped, gracefully spinning into her seat in front of Kayla with a wide smile on her face as she turned to face her best friends, "advice on what?"

"How to fuck" Kayla shrugged, bluntly as ever.

"Oh god" Allison groaned, throwing her head in her hands, "I shouldn't have asked".

"No need to be embarrassed Allison" Lydia's eyes gleamed as she smirked cheekily, "we're all about girl power here. If you want to screw your boyfriend, go for it. Just make sure he covers up".

"Yeah" Kayla muttered, "or get on birth control. Trust me, you don't want to get pregnant".

Allison cocked a brow at her, as observant as ever as she picked up the change in Kayla's tone, about to ask if she had experienced a pregnancy scare or, God forbid, an actual pregnancy, but luckily before she could Lydia leaned forward, ecstatic with the 'girl talk'.

"Kayla's right. You definitely don't want to be tied down at seventeen with a baby" Lydia scoffed, like it was the worst possible thing that could ever happen, "you're too young and pretty for that. Plus, I heard if you have a girl they suck all of your beauty for themselves".

"Uh…"

"Lydia" Kayla laughed, "you're scaring her with the baby talk".

"Just making sure she knows ten minutes isn't worth eighteen years of responsibility".

"Unless it's a really good ten minutes" Kayla joked.

"Even then" the redhead scoffed, "you could give yourself ten times as many orgasms as a man could without any of the risk".

"Oh my God guys" Allison groaned in mortification, slamming her head on the table, "I wish I never brought it up".

"Too late" she smirked, "as far as positions go, well, that depends on what's most comfortable for you. Guys can get off in pretty much any way".

Allison lifted her head, her expression meek and mild but intrigued as she glanced shyly behind her two friends.

"How did you two lose it…?"

"On top, of course" Lydia scoffed, glancing down at her perfectly manicured nails, "like I would trust my virginity in any guy's hands".

"It was a bit of a mix" Kayla shrugged, "but don't trust my experience. It was crap".

Her brunette placed her hand under her chin, deep in thought as she considered her friends advice.

"Okay, makes sense" she acknowledged, "and I know it's not a big deal, I just worry".

To Kayla's surprise, it was Lydia who leant towards Allison, reaching for her hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"It is a big deal" she insisted, not making Allison feel small or stupid for her worries surrounding her virginity, "and don't let anyone make you feel it's not, or pressure you into it. You only get one first time. Now, after that? Yeah, nothing to stress over, but that very first time? It will have a lasting impact".

"Uh… yeah" Kayla shrugged, pointing to Lydia, "what she said".

Lydia rolled her eyes playfully, "how would you know? You lost it in a bar with someone you'd known for 30 seconds".

"Exactly, and look how I turned out" Kayla joked, flashing them both a grin, "I'm fucked up. I'm the poster child for how not to lose your virginity".

Her redhead friend simply shook her head in exasperation, letting go of Allison's hand and turning to her with a devious glint in her eyes.

"Speaking of sex-" she smirked, "-I heard you agreed to spend the weekend with Brian".

"What?" Allison demanded in surprise, sending Kayla a disappointed look, "why?"

"Why not?" she shrugged, her tone not exactly thrilled with her decision that she made in the spur of the moment.

"Kayla, we spoke about this" Allison pouted, "Brian is not good news".

"He doesn't need to be good news Allison" Lydia grinned, twirling some hair around her finger, "he just needs to be good in bed".

"Is this because of Stiles?"

"No" Kayla replied, rolling her eyes at Allison, "it's not".

"Is what to do with who?" Lydia interjected, "what have I missed?"

"Kayla made out with Stiles" Allison said before she could shut her up, throwing her friend an annoyed look, "then he ran off".

Lydia frowned and pursed her lips, a blank look etched onto her face.

"What, or who, is Stiles?"

"Scott's best friend" Allison smirked, clearly delighted with herself that she could now rope Lydia into their discussions.

"Oh great" Lydia sighed, placing a hand against her forehead as if she felt a headache coming on, "another nerd".

"He's nice" Allison insisted, "much nicer than Brian anyway".

"That wouldn't be hard, Allison" Lydia rolled her eyes, "Brian may be the stereotypical definition of an all-American jock, but he comes with his advantages. Advantages that are highly needed in high school".

"You did it to make Stiles jealous, didn't you?" Allison deduced, knowing Kayla still hated Brian and wouldn't agree to do something so stupid.

"So what if I did" she shrugged, "he blanked me all day. I got annoyed".

"You can't sleep with Brian just to get payback".

"I'm not going to sleep with him" Kayla was adamant about that, "I just got annoyed and before I knew what I was doing, I had said yes. Regretting it big time now, though".

"Then turn him down. Right now".

"Not so fast Allison" Lydia smirked, "that was a smart move, Kayla. Play them off each other. Make them fight over you".

"Ew, no" she muttered, "that's the worst idea ever. We're not in some tacky 90's highschool drama".

"Your loss" Lydia shrugged, "but you need some action. You're wound so tight" turning back to face the front of the class as the teacher began speaking, instructing them all to settle down.

"I promise you Kayla, you'll regret it if you go out with Brian" Allison whispered, "and I think deep down inside, you know that too".

She sighed, flipping onto the page the teacher told them too, silently agreeing with Allison because she knew her friend was right. She didn't like Brian…

… She liked Stiles.

She decided to cut her last class, too tired and fed up to subject herself to sitting through fifty minutes of hell to take a walk around the grounds to clear her head from all the so called 'advice' she had been given today, her friends apparently loving to try and stick their noses in her romantic life– or rather, lack of.

She wandered through the halls, earbuds in place as she blasted music from her favourite playlist, making her way outside and walking around the school buildings, the fresh air helping her ever constant headache since the other night. Her head still feeling delicate and spacey, like her brain was knitting itself in a jumper from her nerve endings.

She hated the situation she was in right now. She hated how complicated it seemed to get. Why couldn't she have just stopped being so flirty and overly zealous? Maybe if she had, they wouldn't have kissed and they wouldn't be fighting, and she wouldn't have rushed into agreeing to a date with Brian of all people.

Urgh. It was official. She hated herself – even more so than usual. She hated the fact she had feelings. Feelings sucked, big time. She would really rather not have them. It would make things so much more simpler.

She continued her stroll around the grounds, a permanent frown etched between her brows before noticing two familiar figures just off in the distance, not far away from a group of older jock boys – probably seniors.

Scott and Stiles.

Curiosity got the better of her, changing her route to walk towards them. She couldn't see what they were doing, but she had a gut feeling that it wouldn't be good - especially if Stiles was involved.

They hadn't noticed her, nor did the group of four boys engrossed in doing some kind of dodgy drug deal by the outbuilding. Stiles was grabbing Scott's hand and holding it up in the air before he walked alongside the side of brand new Ford truck, keying a large scrape across both doors.

What the hell?

Stiles' back was to her, exaggeratingly throwing his arms in the air.

"Hey, Hey, hey dude! What do you think you're doing to that truck, bro?"

The four jocks all turned around, becoming visibly upset at the sight of the damaged truck, one tall buff guy rolling up his sleeves.

"What the hell?" he raged, suddenly lunging at Scott, his sidekicks not far behind him as poor Scott got punched in the face and fell backwards to the hard tarmac.

"Ouch" she muttered, pulling out her earbuds as she came to a stop next Stiles who jumped at her sudden appearance, watching Scott get pummelled, "you not going to help him?"

Stiles gulped, ogling at her with wide nervous eyes as he wet his lips, trying to find the right words to say to her but, unfortunately for him, nothing came out. She wasn't surprised with his behaviour but rolled her eyes none the less, pointing to the commotion unfolding in front of their very eyes.

"Guess it's up to me then" she muttered as she stepped forward, fully prepared to break up this fight – well, more like ambush. A fight would suggest Scott was actually holding his own which he certainly wasn't. At this very moment in time getting the living shit kicked out of him, but Stiles just grabbed her arm and pulled her back next to him.

"No… uh… this is meant to happen" he explained nervously, his hand still hovering around her elbow, "trust me… it's in his best interest".

"How is being a human punch bag in his best interest?"

He simply held up his phone, a fitness app open on the screen, numbers flashing and slowly rising into the hundreds. His heart rate.

"He's learning control".

"By getting his ass beat?"

Stiles visibly cringed, "there's method to my madness".

Scott was cowering in a ball, hands covering his head as the group delivered countless kicks to his back and stomach. She assumed Stiles' heart was in the right place, but still! It wasn't like he had many friends to sacrifice.

She rolled her eyes but, subconsciously, in that moment, trusted Stiles' judgement that he at least had a general idea of what he was doing, standing back and watching Scott get the living crap beat out of him.

"Come on Scott" Stiles encouraged under his breath, giving his phone a nervous glance at the climbing numbers, "stay calm. Stay calm".

"I don't think this is like a massage" she muttered sarcastically, "he could wolf out and kill these guys".

"Not if he thinks of Allison" Stiles said, letting out another wince as Scott got a well-aimed kick to his chest, "she grounds him".

"An anchor" she whispered under her breath, focusing on Scott and finding herself hoping he would be able to control it. She was rooting for him. If anyone deserved control, it was Scott. He deserved every chance he could get in this fucked up world.

"Hey!" a sudden voice exclaimed next to her, "stop it right now. What do you idiots think you're doing?!"

Mr Harris was an unwelcome addition to this audience, his beady eyes narrowed and suspicious as he looked at Scott on the ground, his face bloody and bruised as he finally sat up, the four jocks running off into the distance. The creepy chemistry teacher then turned his steely stare to her and Stiles – Stiles who was grinning as he held up his phone, the numbers on the screen falling fast.

"The three of you-" Mr Harris pointed, "-after school detention. Now".

"Excuse me?" she scoffed, "this was their shit show" pointing an annoyed finger between the two best friends, "I had nothing to do with any of this".

"You're a Hale" Mr Harris grumbled, his expression pinched tight with annoyance, "you're always in the middle of something. I read your previous school's transcripts".

"So?" she rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest, "I was a delight to teach".

"You commandeered a teacher's car and drove it through the bike shed".

"That was a misunderstanding!"

He was unimpressed with her backchat, brushing past her to pull Scott up by the elbow of his hoody, taking a rag from his pocket and handing it to him to stop the blood from pouring from his nose, his lips thin and white as they didn't do as they were told.

"Detention. Now".

She scoffed under her breath, sending Stiles an unimpressed look who simply gulped in response, nervously pocketing his phone.

"This is all your fault".

"I accept that" he nodded in response, lifting a hand to awkwardly scratch the back of his neck, watching with careful eyes as she turned on her heel and stalked away in front of them, clearly not very happy – with what, Stiles could only assume with everything. From the incident last night to their awkward encounter at lunch to this.

Kayla kept at least ten steps ahead of them, brimming with a quiet furiousness as Mr Harris hung back behind them all, making sure they didn't run off, like he was herding sheep. She pretended to ignore their very existences behind her as she pulled her phone from her pocket, sending Allison a quick text to let her know she wasn't needing a ride as she had been given after school detention and didn't know how long it would last.

Allison's reply was quick, the one-line reading 'what did you do this time?'

'It's a long story' she texted back, choosing to be nice and keep Scott out of this, knowing Allison wouldn't be happy he got into a fight, especially given his recent behaviour. That boy was walking on thin ice as it was, she wasn't about to send a wrecking ball through their relationship.

As they walked, despite the small gap between her and Scott and Stiles, she was able to hear their conversation as clear as day – both lacking decorum. In fact, it was a miracle their talk of werewolves and hunters hadn't been heard by anyone not in the know.

"Dude, you did it" Stiles congratulated loudly, "see? Allison keeps you in control. Derek was wrong".

"She makes me stronger".

"Apparently so. Hey, maybe this whole love thing isn't overrated after all".

"So, this full moon… all I have to do is think of Allison and I won't go out and kill anyone?"

"Well, uh… let's not try to run before you can walk, heh. I'm still chaining your little werewolf ass up. Mainly because it's me you usually try and kill".

"Yeah. Sorry about that".

"Just let's not make me target practice in the future, alright?"

"I'll try" Scott chuckled, their voices fading for a few seconds before he spoke again, "um… so what are you going to do about, well…"

She could feel Scott's gaze bore into the back of her head as they walked, Stiles' soon joining his, but she just ignored them both, pretending she couldn't hear a word they were saying.

"W-What do you mean?" Stiles spluttered, feigning ignorance.

"Stiles, you have to do something" Scott insisted, "you can't just kiss someone and not talk about it".

She could feel the indecisiveness rolling off him in waves, a nervous kind of energy surrounding him and making him jumpy, clearly very far out of his comfort zone.

"I'm pretty good at ignoring my problems, actually. It's worked so far".

"Well, it's not going to work for this" Scott insisted, "dude, seriously, just ask her out. I know you want to".

Kayla listened intently; her expression twisted into deep thought. Did he want to, really? Or was she just the next best thing he could get because Lydia was unavailable? She wasn't going to be somebody's second choice.

"I-I can't" Stiles whispered, his voice a little sad and disappointed.

"Why?"

'Yeah, why Stiles?' she thought bitterly, pursing her lips in quiet anger as she walked.

"Because I like her dude, okay? I really really like her and I just don't think I could handle the rejection if she said no. That would suck. And I don't want to lose her as a friend either. So yeah, kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place".

She didn't know what she expected, but it wasn't that. In fact, she could think of a hundred other reasons Stiles could've told Scott that was nowhere near what he said. Colour her surprised. A feather could've blown at her and knocked her over she was so shocked.

She felt the bitterness that had built up inside her slowly ebb away at his hushed words, starting to feel a little bad for her behaviour. She was aggressive and mean, not realising that maybe he was confused and overwhelmed by his feelings – feelings that she didn't expect were so serious. She thought maybe he was just attracted to her for her looks, because she was pretty to look at and not much else. She put his shyness and tongue-tied behaviour around her down to his inability to talk to girls. She, wrongly, assumed he just thought she would be an easy lay like most of the people she had encountered.

Turns out, she was wrong.

He liked her.

Not because she was pretty. Not because she flirted. Not because she was confident and secure in her sexuality. No. He liked her because she was just, simply, herself.

She swallowed back the sudden onslaught of surprise she felt, tuning out of their conversation as she opened the door into the chemistry lab, Mr Harris' classroom, and took a quiet seat at one of the tables near the front, grabbing a notepad and pen from her bag that she dumped on the table next to her.

What the hell was she meant to do with this information? She supposed it was her own fault for listening in to conversations that were not meant to for her. Yeah, well, lesson learnt 'miss karma' - what a bitch. Now she was stuck knowing stuff she didn't want to know. She wished she could go back to thinking Stiles was just simply crushing on her for her looks, not that he was falling for her.

She didn't do feelings. She didn't cope well with feelings, whatsoever. When she felt things, she felt them intensely and all-consuming and, as such, they became difficult to regulate. The fact she spent nearly a year spiralling after her brother and fathers' death proved that. She almost died herself because the grief became too much, unable to manage her own thoughts, behaviours and emotions in a healthy way.

Same with Aiden. Their 'relationship' – well, if you can even call it that – was abusive and volatile, filled with so many lows and co-dependency that when things were simply okay, she took that as if she was riding a tidal high, finding herself loving him even though they were not suited for each other one bit. Then, when things were really bad, they were close to killing each other multiple times – in fact, she was surprised they didn't. They would go from hating each other to loving one another in such a toxic way, she didn't know that normal relationships weren't meant to work that way. Her formulative years experiencing the worst possible moments, cementing the idea in her head that relationships were a bad thing that was to be avoided at all costs. She didn't know it wasn't normal to have sex with someone she loathed. She didn't know it wasn't normal to argue with your partner multiple times a day. She didn't know it wasn't normal to feel fear with the person you let into your life, your heart, your bed…

Aiden was a complicated guy. Their relationship was complicated. She became a complicated person because of knowing him. They spiralled together, bringing out the worst in one another. Then, when she finally left him, she was left with the baggage of what their time together created. Not just a need for alcohol. Not just the impact of having to deal with the grief she had delayed through substances. Not just a dependence on drugs or the trauma from their fights, physical and destructive, but from the life they made-

No!

She refused to go there, shaking away those thoughts from her head. She wasn't going to think about that, too scared to feel what she knew she would if she let those emotions back in.

This is why she was the way she was. Why she shut herself off, refusing to feel anything too deeply. Because she knew, if she felt anything – good or bad – she was vulnerable. And Kayla hated being vulnerable.

She had learnt that the best way to live was by surviving – just surviving. Floating through life, avoiding the epic highs and disappointing lows. Simply just existing. She didn't know how else to function.

Unfortunately, realising Stiles' feelings were more serious than she thought came with the sudden burden of how to deal with her own. Feelings that, before today, she was able to play off. The cage around her heart starting to open.

She promised herself she wouldn't fall for anyone. Convinced herself that she could have casual relations because those were simple and uncomplicated, right? That's what she hoped she could have with Stiles. He was sweet and cute, someone she genuinely liked hanging with… a friend. Instead of falling for him, she thought she could simply flirt with him, hook up with him, keep things cool and rational.

But she knew, after today, that wasn't going to happen. Stiles would want more. He would want the whole package which was to be expected. He wasn't damaged like her… his view on the world and relationships not skewed by trauma. And, as such, this realisation had a knock-on effect on her. Knowing that he liked her as much as he did, inside her head she felt safe enough to admit she liked him too. How much? She wasn't sure. But enough that she felt something warm stir inside her chest, like something was slowly beginning to awaken inside her.

She broke away from her thoughts as Mr Harris began writing 'detention' on the board with chalk, the annoying squeal setting her teeth on edge as she sent him a disdainful glare to his back.

Scott and Stiles had too taken their seats on the table directly next to her, Stiles the closest. She didn't know if it was intentional or pure coincidence, but regardless it was now her that was starting to feel a little awkward.

How could she deal with this?

Should she nip it in the bud, turn him down? Start going out with other people? Follow through on hanging out with Brian to take her mind of things? Or should she just let things run their course and see what happens?

Stiles caught her looking, nervously meeting her gaze with shy eyes as he tapped his fingers along the desk, his foot jumping against the footrest of the stool. It looked like he was wanting to say something, his lips pursed and puckered but, as the seconds ticked by, nothing came out.

"Uh… Mr Harris?" Scott asked gingerly, making Kayla and Stiles break their stares, "I think I need more tissue"

The rag that Mr Harris had originally given him was drenched in blood, the excess blood beginning to drip to the table below.

The chemistry teacher simply nodded his head towards the door, indicating silently that Scott could leave for a few brief moments to get some more tissue, which he did, holding his head back with a hand under his nose as he left.

The classroom was silent, Mr Harris taking a seat at his desk as he began to pull out wads of homework from his briefcase, using his free time to babysit three teens and do some marking which, Kayla thought, summed up the fact he had no social life whatsoever.

She turned her head downwards, scribbling and doodling in her notebook as she ignored the growing tension – apparently, Stiles wasn't the only one good at ignoring problems.

However, to her surprise, just a few seconds later, Stiles had begun 'pssssting' at her to try and grab her attention, something she frowned at as she turned her head towards him.

"Yes Stiles?"

He swallowed nervously, casting a careful glance towards Mr Harris' desk to make sure he was preoccupied before turning back to her, a regretful glint shining in his stare.

"I… I'm sorry" he whispered, much to her astonishment, his expression genuinely regretful, "I… I did a crappy thing and I'm sorry. You deserve to hate me".

"I don't hate you Stiles" she mumbled, "so don't worry".

He breathed a visible sigh of relief, wiping the sweat from his brow as he gave her a gentle but somewhat awkward half smile, struggling again to find his voice.

"I promise… if we ever… uh, again-" he fumbled over his words, pink spottles covering his cheeks, "-um… I won't run off".

She simply raised an eyebrow, unamused. "I'm flattered" she whispered sarcastically, making Stiles bite back a groan of annoyance at himself.

She continued with her doodling, absentmindedly tracing lines and patterns across the paper, but it seemed Stiles, as persistent as ever, wasn't done. Where this sudden confident streak had come from to talk to her again, she didn't know. He dipped his head behind his grey backpack on the table, starting to 'psssst' her again.

"Stiles" she stated with an eyeroll, "I'm not a cat. I have a name, y'know".

"Right. Sorry" he winced, "Kayla, uh… I just uh… y'know earlier, when you agreed to go out with Brian… that was just… just a spur of the moment thing right? You're not actually going to go out with him, are you?"

"I don't know".

He didn't seem to like that answer, his brows knitting together in displeasure.

"You can't really be that stupid, can you?"

"Oh, I'm the stupid one here, am I?" she snapped back, making Stiles jump slightly at her tone.

"You're not stupid. Your decisions are" he whispered, his gaze turning a little softer, "trust me, Brian is not a nice guy. Remember Lydia's party? You were totally out of it and he was still going to have sex with you regardless. You could do so much better than him".

"Hm" she muttered, not really wanting to get into this right now.

"Kayla, please…" Stiles continued, his voice wavering a little as he was bordering on begging her to reconsider, "please don't…"

To her surprise, he looked genuinely distressed by the idea of her even entertaining Brian's advances, his gaze hurt and full of worry. Worry? She wondered why he was worried… did he not think she could hold her own against someone like Brian Murdock? Because, trust her, she had handled much worse.

"... You're worth so much more than that scumbag" he continued, using her silence as a way to continue speaking, desperate to change her mind, "and I... I couldn't... I just... I..."

He was fumbling over his words, clearly not knowing what to say but the desperation had won him over, willing to do anything to make her see sense.

"I... I can't stand the idea of you... of you... with... with..."

She didn't know what to say, holding his gaze for several seconds but just as she was about to open her mouth, not really sure what she was going to say back, the classroom door opened and Scott shuffled back in, holding a fresh tissue to his nose.

Her and Stiles broke their stare, watching as Scott came to take his seat and Mr Harris shot them all a suspicious look, a deep resentment burning in his gaze. She decided to end the conversation with Stiles there, not really sure where it was going, turning back to her notepad to resume her mindless doodling.

Well... what she had thought was mindless doodling. Instead of indistinguishable scribbles, there was just one word being repeated over and over again, stretching across both open pages.

ALPHA.

The pen loosened from her grip, tipping sideways and slowly rolling across the table before falling to the floor, grabbing the attention of Scott and Stiles who peered across at her curiously.

She didn't turn to face them, looking down at the pages with wide eyes, her heart thumping erratically against her ribcage. A desperate panic surging through her veins as she realised, with sickening clarity, the Alpha must've done something to her. Form a connection with her, get in her head – something. And that something wasn't good.

That realisation was followed by a sharp pain across her hairline, right where her cut was from the accident. A stinging, burning twinge causing her hand to quickly fly to her head, letting out a loud wince as she screwed her eyes shut, expecting to see darkness but instead was consumed by fire.

The flames were bright and all consuming, licking across her skin as the heat began to seep and melt her from the inside out, terrified screams and shouts fading in the distance. Feelings of intense pain, and rage, coursed through her veins – feelings that she knew didn't belong to her. Whosever they belonged to were dark and hateful, a kind of darkness that she hadn't felt in a long time. Murderous intent clawing its way through her very soul.

The Alpha was vengeful.

She broke free from the break from reality with a strangled gasp, beads of sweat seizing her skin as she looked around in panic, her skin still tingling from the crackling flames.

Scott and Stiles were looking at her in concern, both boys on the edge of their seats as Mr Harris peered over the tops of his glasses, his face tight with annoyance.

"I have to go" she muttered, her voice barely above a whisper as she grabbed her bag and started to hastily shove her notebooks back in, "I-I need to leave".

She stood, the stool scraping loudly across the floor as she threw her bag over her shoulder and started to make a beeline towards the door, but Mr Harris stood quickly, pointing an angry finger at her.

"Miss Hale, sit back down".

She ignored him, suddenly feeling too claustrophobic in that room, her chest tight as she escaped the classroom, Mr Harris' annoyed shouts following her but she didn't care, her feet hurrying into a run to push the double doors open at the end of the corridor and escape into the fresh air.

What the hell was happening to her?

Something happened in that accident… something she didn't remember. What happened during those seconds, or minutes, the Alpha was on top of her? What did he do to her when she was passed out unconscious?

She tried to catch her breath, placing her shaky hands on her knees as she took her time to regulate her breathing, not wanting the panic to take her over completely. She wasn't a panic type of person. So used to being levelheaded and borderline dissociated.

Once her breathing had evened out, she stood up, gazing across the empty grounds of the school. She didn't know what was happening, but she knew one person that might. One person that could help her figure this out.

She grabbed her busted up phone from the back pocket of her shorts, with shaky fingers quickly opening up Derek's contact details and pressing 'call'.

"Derek?" she asked as soon as he answered the call, "I… I need your help. We have a problem".

"No".

"Kayla-"

"No" she stated with a stubborn shake of her head, "I'm not going in there".

Here they sat in Derek's Camaro outside Beacon Hill hospital's long term care facility, Derek having picked her up from school as she told him everything that had just happened – her weird connection with the Alpha.

"He could help".

"How?" she exclaimed, "he's basically comatose".

"He's getting better" Derek insisted, "it's slow, but there's an improvement. He knows a lot more than I do".

"He's not going to get better Derek" she exclaimed, "Uncle Peter is fucked. He's fucked. He got burned so bad he can't even wipe his own ass. How could he possibly help us?"

Derek blew out a small puff of air, his gaze unwavering from hers.

"You said you saw fire, right? Well, what if this Alpha… what if it's one of us?"

"What?" she asked, not following his train of thought, "one of us?"

"A Hale".

"Unlikely" she scoffed, "we got wiped out. No one could've escaped that fire".

"Peter did" Derek insisted, "and-"

He cut himself off, like he realised he almost let slip something he wasn't supposed to say, raising her suspicions even more.

"And…?"

"And nothing" he shut her down sternly, putting that armour back on, "Peter did. Maybe someone else did too"

"So, you think the Alpha is a Hale?"

"I don't know" Derek sighed, "I hope not but… you said you had a sense of familiarity with him, right?

"Right"

"Who's more familiar than family?"

"Okay but, rational thought here, werewolves die or get hurt by fire a lot. The hunters use fire a lot. We're not the only family that had a 'tragic electrical fire'"

Derek didn't reply, turning his steely gaze to the hospital facility.

"Peter could still help. We need to try"

"I hate hospitals" she repeated with a grumble, but somewhat accepting of Derek's logic.

"I know"

She sighed but got out of the car, ignoring the uncomfortable shiver that she got down her spine as she followed Derek into the building, slipping past the empty front desk.

"Uh… you not signing in?" she asked, pointing to the logbook that rested on the desk. Derek didn't reply, heading down the long corridor which forced her to speed up to catch up with him, rolling her eyes.

Unlike her, Derek knew where he was going, his long strides leading to a room on the left near the end of the corridor. She was hesitant, hovering for a few seconds over the threshold as she saw her uncle sat in a wheelchair, back to the door, slightly slumped to the side.

This would be the first time she had seen him in over six years… never finding the confidence to visit. Scared to, as it was a reminder to all she had lost.

Derek sat on the edge of the bed and then turned to face her, beckoning her forward by patting the space on the bed next to him. She swallowed back her nerves, ignoring the voice inside her head telling her to get the hell out of here, putting it down to her hatred of hospitals, and slowly stepped past the door.

The room was bare and empty, clinical and lacking any personality. No flowers, no cards, no pictures. As if Peter had been completely forgotten about.

A rush of sadness hit her like a ton of bricks, regret bubbling up inside her as she took a careful seat next to Derek. She couldn't imagine what Peter was going through… trapped in his own mind and body, having lost most of his family. It must be torture. It must be so frigging lonely…

Maybe she should've visited before.

Derek slowly reached out, grabbing the arm of the wheelchair and spinning it around, the sudden sight of her Uncle Peter's wide, lifeless eyes making her jump a little. One side of his face disfigured and scarred; his skin having melted from his body.

"I need your help" Derek said quietly, "we need your help".

Kayla didn't know how much help someone in Peter's position could be, especially seeing the state of him with her own two eyes, but she let Derek continue to ask his questions, covering all his bases.

As Derek spoke, Kayla just stayed quiet and watched her uncle Peter for any signs of awareness or realisation, expecting to see him twitch or blink but there was nothing. As if his charred body was just an empty vessel. She didn't see him in there at all, his very essence and personality burned from him.

When she was little, she saw him most summers. He was always a little strange and eccentric, but she liked that. She had gravitated towards him, finding something familiar and accepting within him. For whatever reason, her parents didn't like that. Keeping him at arm's length and never really letting her spend time alone with him. She had always asked why her daddy and her uncle Peter never saw eye to eye, but she never got a response, her dad just telling her it was complicated and nothing for her to worry her pretty little head about.

She got that same feeling now. The very same feeling she had when she was little. That pull to him, like something inside her felt at home and accepted with him.

Before she could look too much into it, they got interrupted by a redhead nurse, her expression disapproving and annoyed as she caught them, just as Derek had started shouting in frustration.

"Let him go" she chastised, storming into the room as Derek had grabbed Peter's arms, "you think after six years of this, yelling at him is going to get a response?"

"Worth a shot" Kayla shrugged, not liking this nurse's tone, "might be more useful that what you've all done for six years".

The redhead sent her a glare, "it doesn't work like that".

"Well, do you have a better method?" Derek ground out through gritted teeth.

"Yes. Patience. He'll respond if you give him time".

"We don't have time" Kayla said, "we need him to speak. Now".

"I'm afraid that's not going to happen" the nurse said, "and, in the best interest of my patient, I'm going to have to tell you to leave".

Derek sent her a look of frustration but nodded, standing up and waiting for her to do the same.

"We're family" Kayla insisted, not backing down, "you can't kick us out".

"Family?" the nurse asked, her tone sharp and snippy, "I've worked here since before he came to our facility. He never gets any visitors. That doesn't sound like family to me".

Kayla was ready to throw fists, her anger rising from a solid 3 to a high 10 as she went to snap something back, but Derek placed a hand on her shoulder, a silent warning to stay quiet.

"Fine" she mumbled, "we'll leave".

She stood up, turning to face her Uncle Peter one last time. His expression hadn't changed, nor did the look in his eyes – still empty and vague. However, when she looked at him, she felt a stronger kind of pull to him, like visiting him had awoken something that had long been buried.

A/N) I am on a rolllllllll… haha. I like these varied chapters, and I like having more friendship building, it's fun. I hope you all liked, and are still loving Kayla and Stiles and the wee twists going on. I'm loving rewriting it for you all. Thanks for your continued support and I would really appreciate it if you could leave your thoughts, it makes my day – thank you and see you soon

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: Teen wolf does not belong to me in any way, shape or form – sadly. I hope you like this next installment :)

Leaving Beacon Hills long term care facility, she couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.

What that something was, she didn't know, but the feeling in her gut was telling her she should be uneasy and unnerved - which she definitely was. The hairs on the back of her neck standing on end.

She followed Derek from the building and down the path, his shoulders tense and his fists in a tight ball, clearly biting back his frustrations.

She stayed quiet, keeping a few steps behind him as she kept throwing confused glances behind her, trying to pinpoint her feelings of unease. She supposed it could be the sudden shock of seeing her Uncle Peter after all this time. Or maybe the fact she was in yet another hospital, which she hated with a passion. Or, potentially, the fact she was missing a massive piece of the puzzle - an Alpha shaped sized piece. A small part of herself feeling like she should know the answer... like it was right in front of her face.

They got to Derek's car but, before she could climb in, she noticed her older cousin had stopped and grabbed something from his windshield.

"You get a ticket?" she asked, knowing that wouldn't help with Derek's annoyance even though he had more than enough money to pay it, frowning down at the bit of paper in his hands.

Derek's entire demeanour shifted, suddenly becoming uptight and paranoid, his suspicious stare pinpointing around the parking lot.

"Derek...?"

He folded the bit of paper up, nodding his head silently for her to get in the car. Surprisingly, she did without argument, climbing into the passengers seat and turning her gaze towards Derek, an eyebrow cocked in wondering.

He simply handed her the piece of paper which she opened, seeing a copy of a police report of a dead deer. A dead deer with a spiral painted on it in its own blood.

"Revenge" she muttered, tracing the spiral with her fingers, "why was this left on your windshield?"

"That's what brought Laura back" Derek said, his lips a thin tight line, "and I think I know who the Alpha is".

"What? Who?" she asked, her eyes zig zagging across the page, "it doesn't say who killed it".

"No. But it does say who found it".

She frowned, gaze skimming across the paper to see the name 'Dr Alan Deaton' in big bold letters, title being 'veterinarian'.

"Wait... this is Scott's boss, right?"

Derek started up the engine, the exhaust spluttering to life as he spun from the parking lot, his fingers gripped tightly around the steering wheel.

"It's him" Derek ground out between his teeth, "or he knows who is".

"Or maybe he just found a dead deer".

"There's too many coincidences" her cousin said, "I've heard Laura mention his name before, I just didn't think anything of it. Then the spiral on the deer. Now the fact he knows Scott. I can't ignore this".

"It doesn't make any sense" she shook her head, "I don't know this dude. And I thought you said my connection or whatever would mean I knew him".

Derek's features were pinched and hard, his green gaze hyper focused on the road as he hit at least twenty above the speed limit, his grip jerking the wheel to side as they flew around corners.

"We'll soon find out" was all he said, clearly not wanting to hear her logic.

She could tell Derek was in a bad mood, the anger rolling off him in waves, the taunt of the police report just adding to his annoyance - like it was a reminder that he had yet to find out who the Alpha was.

"So, what, you're going over there to tie him up and beat a confession out of him?" she snorted, expecting Derek to be a little bit more level-headed than that.

He remained silent, his non reply telling her everything she needed to know.

"You're going over there to tie him up and beat a confession out of him, aren't you?"

"Yes".

Blunt and straightforward. A common trait among Hales.

"Scott will be pissed, y'know".

"Yes".

Another common trait with Hales - their inability to care what other people thought.

"Hm. Can I come?"

"No" he grumbled, throwing her a hardened look from the corner of his eye, "I'm taking you home".

"Why?"

"Because you're not getting caught up in the middle of this".

"I already am in 'the middle of all this'" she reminded him, pointing to the cut on her head, "and you can't do this alone. If he really is the Alpha, he could kill you".

"Or maybe I'll kill him first".

"Is that your plan?" she asked, "find the Alpha, kill him and take the Alpha status for yourself?"

Derek didn't reply, his gaze steely on the road.

"Oh my god" she muttered in realisation, "it totally is, isn't it? You want to be an Alpha".

"I didn't say that".

"You implied it" she argued, narrowing her eyes accusingly, "is this your plan?"

"No" he shook his head, "it's not my plan. But I think the only way to stop him is to kill him, and I don't think Scott has it in him. Do you?"

"No, of course not. Scott wouldn't harm a fly".

"My point exactly".

"Anyway-" she shrugged, crossing her arms stubbornly, "-I'm not going home. I refuse".

"Oh, you refuse?"

"I do" she nodded firmly, "we're family. We're in this together. If he kills you, he kills me".

Derek cocked an eyebrow but she saw the ghost of a smirk playing on his lips.

"You're lying".

"Of course I'm lying" she joked, "if he kills you, im outta there. Each man for his own right?"

Derek sighed, but she could tell he was considering her proposal, his stubbornness slowly starting to wear down.

"Fine" he said, "but you're waiting in the car".

"I'm not".

"You are".

"Make me" she challenged, making him raise his eyebrows.

"I will lock you in the car".

"I'll break a window".

He rolled his eyes, exasperated with her childish behaviour.

"You're very annoying, has anyone ever told you that?"

"Pretty much everyone I've ever met" she smirked, seeming proud of that fact, "just give in Derek. I'll always win this argument".

He rolled his eyes but never retorted back, Kayla knowing that she had worn him down enough to let her tag along, imagining herself punching the air in silent victory.

It didn't take much longer for them to get to the veterinarian clinic, Derek's car screeching to a violent stop outside it.

"Just stay behind me, okay?"

She rolled her eyes as she climbed from the car, sending him an exasperated look.

"I can take care of myself y'know".

"I know" Derek mumbled, "but just because you can, doesn't mean you should. Stay behind me".

She mocked his words silently but followed him none the less into the building, opening the front door that had a sign across it saying 'closed', that annoying chime tinkling overhead as they did.

"Scott, you're late again" an amused voice called out as they silently made their way through to the back, "I hope this isn't starting to be a habit".

She kept behind Derek as he rounded the corner, glaring into the room where the man's voice belonged to.

"Oh. Can I help you?"

She, naturally, didn't do as she was told, stepping next to Derek with her own calculating and curious expression on her face, seeing the man gaze across at them in surprise and - dare she say it - a little bit of recognition.

"Hope so" Derek said steely, "I want to know about the animal you found with a spiral on its side".

The veterinarian swallowed nervously, his stare flitting between the two of them in slight panic.

"Excuse me? What animal?"

"The deer. Three months ago" Derek said, pulling the bit of paper from his pocket, opening it up to hold it up for the stranger to see, "you remember this?"

She remained quiet, watching his expression change to forced relaxation, anxiously crossing his arms across his chest.

"Oh yes. It's just a deer. And I didn't find it. They called me because they wanted to know if I had ever seen something like that before".

"Your name's on the police report" she interrupted, trying to catch him out even though, deep in her gut, she didn't feel like it was him. He didn't strike her as evil, or even supernatural.

The veterinarian's stare moved to meet hers, that flare of recognition returning to his eyes.

"Yes. Because I consulted on the case".

"Not what that bit of paper says" she shrugged, "it says you found it".

"What is this all about?" he chuckled nervously, "what interest do you have in a dead deer?"

"I want to know what you think it means" Derek stated, his patience wearing thin, "the spiral".

"I... I don't know" he replied, "graffiti?"

Derek's hand crumpled the bit of paper up, slowly walking into the room much to the veterinarian's panic, taking a small step back as Derek approached.

"Did you hear that?"

"What?" he asked, stepping behind the silver examination table, putting as much distance between him and Derek as he could.

"That's the sound of your heartbeat rising".

"Derek" she hissed, quickly following behind him and grabbing the back of his leather jacket, "shut up".

"Look... I don't know what you're going on about-"

"It's a sign you're lying" Derek growled, grabbing the lapels of the veterinarian's white coat and pulling him over the silver table.

"Oh for the love of god" she muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes as Derek clenched a fist and sent it barrelling towards his face, "is violence your typical go to response to everything?"

He didn't reply, grabbing the disorientated veterinarian and throwing him into the opposite wall, breaking a bunch of cabinets and trays as he fell to the floor.

"Okay, whoa, slow down" she stepped in front of Derek, placing her hands on his chest, "enough. You're gonna kill the guy".

"That's the plan".

"Look" she snapped, stopping him with all her strength before he could step forward and continue his relentless beatings, "I hate being the voice of reason here because, let's face it, when am I ever reasonable, but this is ridiculous. He's not the Alpha".

Derek exhaled a quick puff of air through his nose, his fists still clenched at his sides, his eyes briefly flashing a bright blue.

"He could be".

"How?" she exclaimed, glancing at the poor guy unconscious on the floor, "he's bleeding and unconscious. Plus, he didn't put up much of a fight".

"You know we don't heal the same when we're unconscious" Derek argued, "he could be deliberately not letting himself heal to throw us off".

"Or, humour me-" she rolled her eyes, finally dropping her grip from his chest, "-you were wrong".

He looked at her, bordering on offended, "I'm not wrong. He was lying. I heard his heartbeat".

"Yeah, 'cause he was scared shitless. Derek-"

He cut her off, waving his arm out, "go find some rope. I'm tying him up".

He didn't let her speak, pushing her to the side as he bent down to pick the veterinarian up and place him on a plastic chair, putting him in the middle of the room.

She knew Derek, like all Hales, were stubborn and unrelenting, not willing to trust something so easily so did as he asked, searching through the drawers until she came across some thin white rope and passed it to Derek who quickly secured the guys hands behind the back of the computer chair.

"Great plan" she remarked sarcastically, "now what?"

"We wait for him to wake up".

She noticed the poor guy was completely out of it, his head lulling against his chest, a deep cut scraped along his cheek and blood pooling across the side of his head.

"Why? So you can punch him some more?"

He sent her an unamused glare, "do you ever stop talking?"

"No".

He rolled his eyes, standing in the corner of the room as he glared at the veterinarian with suspicious, steely eyes. On edge and clearly waiting for him to wake up and transform into some ugly, monsterous, big bad werewolf.

"Scott's going to be furious" she smirked, "dude loves his boss".

"Will he still love him if he finds out he turned him against his will and tried to kill all his friends?"

"Depends how much he wants a father figure in his life".

Derek rolled his eyes, pointing to the tied up man, "he's involved somehow, I just know it".

"If you're wrong about this, you'll be thrown in jail again".

"That's a risk I'm willing to take".

"Is that your kink?" she joked, "getting tied up".

He threw her a dirty look through the darkened room, clearly not in the mood to be joking around.

"Top tip - remove that stick from your ass. You're already getting frown marks and I don't know how well werewolves take to Botox".

He still never responded, his jaw clenched and his lips in a thin line.

"Nevermind" she mumbled with an eye roll, "clearly I'm just talking to myself".

They stayed in silence for the next ten minutes, both hovering in a state of anxiousness as they waited to see if Derek was right - if this stranger was, in fact, the Alpha.

Eventually though, Derek sighed. His gaze somewhat softer and curious as he looked up at her.

"You don't get any feelings off him, do you?"

She shook her head, not getting any strange of familiar vibes from the veterinarian - something Derek thought she may do, considering the Alpha had formed a 'connection' with her.

"He could be hiding it" he said, deep in thought.

"Is that possible to do?"

"Yes" he nodded his head, making her worst nightmare come true - that her intuition wasn't reliable. That she could come across the Alpha in human form and be none the wiser. And, for whatever reason, when he confirmed that, her brain went straight to her Uncle Peter.

"About Peter..." she started hesitantly, not really sure what she was trying to say, "when uh... when exactly did he start getting better?"

"It's not him".

"I didn't say it was".

"You implied it".

"I was just asking a question" she huffed, "don't bite my head off".

"If it was him, I'd know" Derek said quietly, "and he's not left that hospital in nearly six years. I check his records".

"Okay" she sighed, too fed up to argue with her cousin just as the veterinarian started to stir, wincing as he began to open his eyes and look around.

Kayla stayed back by the door, folding her arms across her chest as she supervised Derek... y'know, just to stop him from killing the poor guy.

"Oh god... oh god..."

"Are you protecting someone?"

"Look, the key to the drugs cabinet is in my pocket. Take whatever you want".

"I don't want drugs. I want to know why you're lying".

"Derek" she warned, watching him begin to shake with anger, approaching the veterinarian with malicious intent, "cool it".

"I don't know what you're talking about-ah" he exclaimed fearfully as Derek grabbed the arms of the chair and picked him up, his feet dangling off the floor, "what are you doing to me? What do you want?"

"Derek" she chastised yet again, stepping forward and grabbing the chair from behind and pulling it to the floor, "you want to use violence? That's fine by me. But use it on someone that deserves it. I really don't think he's the Alpha".

He was glaring at her from over the top of Dr Deaton's head, his hands still clenched around the arms of the chair as if he was getting ready to throw it, where as she held onto the back of it, using all her strength to stop Derek from tossing him like a rag doll like she knew he wanted to. She simply matched his glare with one of her own, her expression tight with warning.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

Both she and Derek turned their fiery stares to the source of the unexpected voice: Scott McCall.

"My sentiments exactly" she grumbled, still gripping the back of the chair as Scott rushed into the room, "apparently my cousin likes getting himself arrested".

"Scott, get out of here" Derek demanded, sending a punch careening towards Dr Deaton and knocking him unconscious, "and take her with you".

"Her?" she butted in, cocking an unamused brow at Derek, "her?"

"I know what I'm doing" Derek ground out, "trust me".

"Trust you?" Scott scoffed, "look at what you're doing".

"Look, when he's conscious, he can keep himself from healing, but unconscious, it's much more difficult".

Scott threw her a confused look, clearly very way out of the loop.

"What the hell is he talking about?"

"He thinks he's the Alpha" Kayla rolled her eyes, much to Scott's alarm, "I think he's wrong. Wanna join in on the bet?"

Scott's jaw dropped, turning his gaze to Derek.

"It's not him".

"We don't know that for certain" Derek insisted, "you want to know what the spiral means, Scott? It's our sign for a vendetta, for revenge. It means he won't stop killing until he's satisfied. If it's him-" he continued, turning his glare down to the terrified veterinarian, "-he's responsible for a lot of deaths. We need to find out".

Derek raised his fist, clearly very eager to prove his point by beating the veterinarian close to death but before he could, Scott suddenly grabbed his arm in a vice like grip. Both she and Derek looked at Scott in alarm, seeing him fully transformed: his claws sharp and digging into Derek's arm, thick dark hair having suddenly sprouted from his jaw and face, fangs sharp and eyes a brilliant glowing amber.

She smirked, knowing Scott had it in him to control what many others couldn't, using his strength to snarl at Derek before pushing him away from Dr Deaton.

Derek, however, wasn't that trusting. He grabbed her arm, pulling her back and away from Scott, like he thought the teenager was going to completely lose it and go ape shit, tearing apart everyone in sight.

She rolled her eyes at Derek's paranoia, pointing to Scott who was already starting to transform back.

"Relax" she scoffed, "he's in control and I'm not a porcelain doll".

Scott turned his furious stare to Derek, "hit him again, then you'll see me really get angry".

Both males were locked in an intense harsh glare, both as stubborn and unrelenting as the other.

"Do you want me to get a tape measurer?" she smirked with an eye roll, "y'know... for this dick measuring competition, or whatever this is".

Scott sent one last warning glare to Derek before moving towards the drawers and getting some sterile wipes and some tissues, hurrying back to his boss to clear the blood from his face and tend to his wounds.

"Why did you let him do this?" Scott murmured, a little hurt and betrayed as she shot her a quick glance, "he could've killed him".

"I wouldn't let that happen" she said, "but, unfortunately, this was the one lead he had. We had to check it out".

Derek, as inpatient as ever, had started huffing along with his persistent pacing, not liking the time Scott was taking looking after his boss and barged towards them.

"Do you have a plan?"

"... Give me an hour".

"To do what?"

Scott sighed, "to prove its not him. Meet me at the school parking lot".

She could tell Derek was furious, his expression tight and exasperated with the younger werewolf before turning his stare to Kayla.

"I want you to go with Scott. Keep an eye on him" he instructed, talking about the poor guy as if he wasn't even there, "make sure his plan doesn't suck".

"Excuse me" she muttered, "you can't boss me around like that".

"I can, and I just did" Derek replied sharply before turning back to Scott, "but I'm keeping the vet".

"Hop on".

Kayla simply quirked a brow at Scott who was already sitting on his bike, ready and raring to go.

"You want me to sit on your handlebars?" she asked dubiously, "what are we, 10?"

"Uh... sorry. I haven't saved up enough for a motorbike yet".

"I'll just Uber it".

"We don't have time Kayla. Derek agreed to an hour. After that, Deaton could be in real danger".

She knew she didn't have much of a choice, giving in and making her way over to Scott and his bike who, bless him, offered her his one and only helmet.

"I'll be fine" she smiled, climbing onto the bars, "just don't crash. Remember, I don't heal like you do".

"I'll try not to".

He took off, pedalling quickly down the road as he leaned around her to see, expertly dodging parked cars and traffic.

"Where are we going anyway?" she asked through the rush of wind whipping her hair around her face, shaking her head to try and clear her vision but was unable to use her hands, her fingers already gripping the handlebars underneath her for balance.

"Stiles'" Scott shouted back, much to her surprise.

"Why?"

"Because he has tools".

"He is a tool" she grumbled under her breath, knowing Scott could still hear her.

"Plus he has a jeep" Scott added, "if things go badly, we need a getaway car".

"That thing looks unsafe travelling at any speed above 40" she said sarcastically, "if things go tits up, I'm running".

She could feel Scott was wanting to say something, sending him hesitate from behind her as his pedalling became a little less quick and forceful.

"Spit it out Scott" she said, throwing him a look over her shoulder as he sent her a surprised look, trying to look innocent.

"What?"

"I know you want to say something, so say it".

"Uh..."

"Oh, c'mon" she smirked, "unlike the rest of my family, I don't bite".

"It's just... I... I've known Stiles since kindergarten" he began to ramble, "and I've only ever seen him care about Lydia. For years, she was all he spoke about. Lydia this and Lydia that-"

"Scott" she interrupted in frustration, her tone sharp and snippy, "if you have a point, I would suggest getting to it - quickly".

"Right. Uh..." he turned a corner unexpectedly, nearly making her slip but he grabbed her waist, pushing her back upright, "... I guess I'm just trying to say that he's different now. He doesn't speak about Lydia the same anymore. I don't even think he thinks about her all that much. Not since you got here".

"Look, Scott, I appreciate you trying to be his wingman or whatever, but it's not about Stiles. It's about me. I don't do relationships".

"I just think you two would be really good together and-"

"Really?" she chuckled, "you don't think I'd be too much for him?"

"Well..." Scott muttered awkwardly, "maybe. But totally in a good way. He clearly likes very dominant women".

She smirked, shaking her head and focusing back on the road as Scott turned another corner and cycled up Stiles' street, reaching his house and turning into his driveway.

Stiles was already out and waiting by his jeep, his expression suddenly turning to panic when he saw her. Clearly, Scott forgot to mention that little tid bit.

The bike began to slow, Scott pulling the brakes a little too hard so she lost her balance and slipped from the handlebars, face planting the concrete.

"Oh my god" Scott exclaimed, profusely apologising as he dumped his bike, ready to run over and help her up but, to her astonishment, the hands interlinking with hers to help her stand wasn't Scott's, but was in fact Stiles'.

She didn't notice at first, ready to cuss him out for his disasterous riding but, when she looked up, her annoyed expression immediately fizzled out as she realised just how close they were standing, their noses just inches apart.

Her mouth was already half open ready for a few choice words for Scott, her jaw suddenly stuck in place as his deep brown eyes, soft and magnetic, held her stare for what felt like minutes, his concerned gaze locking her in place.

She didn't know why but she felt herself softening, not wanting to pull away her hands from his reassuring grip. Unable to move or even think of something to say, suddenly feeling suspended in time. She didn't realise before, but his brown gaze was more of a melted caramel, flecks of gold swimming in his stare. It was mesmerising - almost captivating to watch.

'No Kayla' she thought to herself, 'don't do this. Not now. Not with him. Don't you let yourself let him in'

But it was like over hearing Stiles admit he liked her was a catalyst to her suddenly feeling a lot more than lust and attraction, something she hadn't felt in a long long time... or ever. Maybe not anything close to this level of spontaneity or intensity in her entire life.

Her gaze moved downwards, tracing the curves of his face until she was focused on his lips, watching the way they quivered a little, the tip of his tongue darting out to quickly wetten them.

She remembered what they tasted like... how they felt... how they were warm and soft and perfectly fitted with her own. In that second, wanting to close the gap and capture them with her own, quelling the neediness that burned through her.

"Uh... guys...?"

Scott's voice sounded muffled and isolated, like he was calling out to them from miles away but it did cause her to blink and softly shake her head, breaking her gaze from him.

Oh no... oh no... oh no...

She swallowed past the sudden tightening of her throat, pulling her hands from Stiles' hold and glancing at Scott, forcing her expression to be calm and neutral.

"Your braking needs some work" she said flatly, ignoring the sudden awkwardness that had erupted between all three of them - hers and Stiles because of the, now, very obvious tension brewing and Scott, feeling like he had just interrupted something personal and private.

"Uh... yeah, sorry" Scott apologised, his wondering stare flitting between her and Stiles, "I uh... I forgot how dodgy they were".

She could feel Stiles hovering next to her, his anxious energy infiltrating her space so she simply side stepped, putting a few feet of distance between them but daren't meet his stare, not sure what she would feel or find if she did.

"So, what's the plan?" she asked, folding her arms, "are you going to tell me now or...?"

"Right. Um..." Scott muttered, turning his stare to Stiles, "did you get the stuff I asked for?"

Stiles remained silent, simply letting out a squeak of agreement which she assumed was a 'yes', resisting a roll of her eyes.

"Good. Uh... we're going to break into the school".

She frowned, not understanding what his possible plan could be, "why?"

"Derek says I'm linked to the Alpha, right? Well, I can prove the Alpha isn't my boss by getting him to come to me. I just need the school's PA system".

At first, she honestly thought it was a joke. An ill mannered, badly timed joke which was definitely her favourite kind. She started laughing, chuckling away to herself as she pointed at Scott.

"Okay, now that's funny. Thanks for the laugh" she smirked, "so what's your real plan?"

Scott's face dropped, his already nervous and anxious look becoming crestfallen.

"Uh... that-that is my real plan".

She waited an extra few seconds for good measure, giving him time to tell her he was simply having her on, twisting her arm, yanking her chain - whatever - because there was no way he could be that stupid, right?

A few seconds came and went, Scott's face getting more and more scared and she finally realised he wasn't kidding. That was his actual plan.

"Well that's fucking stupid" she declared, not beating around the bush, "do you have a death wish?"

"Thank you" Stiles exclaimed breathlessly, the first words she had heard him speak since they got here, "it's a terrible idea".

"It will work".

"Yeah, it probably will" she half heartedly agreed, "if the plan is getting us all killed".

She slapped him upside the head, sending his floppy hair flying, letting him know just how stupid she thought - or rather knew - the plan was.

"Ow".

"You deserved that for you stupid ideas" she said, "seriously Scott, what the hell? You're going to call him out of hiding and - do what? Chit chat over tea and biscuits?"

"If I don't do something then Derek's going to kill my boss" Scott argued, "and we don't have time to think of anything else".

"Well, do you at least have weapons?"

"Uh... I think I have a bat somewhere-"

"Real weapons" she emphasised, interrupting Stiles as she cocked a brow at Scott, "because the Alpha will have real claws and real fangs".

The overwhelming silence was, very clearly, an outstanding 'no'.

"Great. Well-" she exclaimed sarcastically, clapping her hands together, "-have fun dying".

She turned on her heel and started to walk away, completely disinterested in this so called 'plan' but her conscience seemed to get the better of her, really not wanting her new found friends to die. It was hard enough for her to make decent friends, she couldn't really give up the ones she had just found to be tolerable.

She hadn't gotten far, just a few steps forward before she groaned and turned around, sighing loudly.

"If I don't come with y'all you'll definitely die" she muttered, rolling her eyes, "because this plan is ridiculously stupid".

"You've said".

"And I'll say it again" she replied to Scott, "this plan is ridiculously stupid and we're all probably going to die".

"It's a chance I have to take".

"Yeah yeah, superman, I get it" she rolled her eyes as she walked back towards them, pointing to the rusty jeep, "we doing this or what?"

She really didn't like this plan.

She thought there was a thousand better ideas than this if Scott would've just given them longer to think of one, but obviously he wasn't too eager to trust his boss' life in Derek's hands.

She couldn't blame him really... Derek did come across as untrustworthy and murderous, the leather jacket probably not helping that image, but she still couldn't help but think how ridiculous this was. Basically inviting the Alpha to come and tear them apart. Did no one in this town have any self preservation instincts at all?

She stayed mostly silent in the back of the jeep, watching Stiles and Scott bicker back and forth about the plan that - thankfully - at least Stiles thought was stupid too. Glad they could agree one one thing at least.

Several times she could feel his eyes hovering on her through the wing mirror but every time she glanced up he quickly looked away, reverting back to the epitome of awkwardness.

She didn't bother calling him out on his weird behaviour, finding herself being a little awkward too. God - she hated this side of her. Why did she have to have feelings? She didn't want them. She would rather just lock them up in a box and throw away the damn key.

Five minutes later they got to the school, skidding into the parking lot. She clambered over the seats yet again, getting out Scott's side who held the door open for her.

"If this plan gets us killed" Stiles warned, walking around to open the back door of his jeep, "I'm going to be severely pissed".

"Well, have you thought of anything better on the drive here?" Scott asked.

"Well, personally, I'm a fan of ignoring a problem until it eventually goes away".

"Yeah, we're aware" she muttered bitterly, her tone sarcastic and unamused and he simply swallowed back his embarrassment, turning his attention to the boot of his car where he grabbed the tools needed.

Just then, Derek appeared, speeding to park behind them.

"Does the plan suck?" Derek asked, climbing out the car and looking at her.

"The plans sucks" she confirmed, much to Scott's dismay, "and we're probably all going to die".

"Great" Derek muttered, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he walked over.

"Wait... where's my boss?"

Derek rolled his eyes, "he's in the back".

All three of them leaned to the side to see in Derek's back windows, seeing the veterinarian unconscious and tied up, duct tape across his mouth.

"Oh, well, he looks comfortable" Stiles muttered sarcastically.

"Better than his throat ripped out" she chimed in, ignoring the way Stiles' stare lingered on her, "you didn't rip his throat out, did you?"

"Of course I didn't".

"Okay, phew, just checking".

"Wait, where are you going?" Derek called out, watching Scott and Stiles make their way to the school.

"You said I'm linked with the Alpha, right? Well, I'm going to test that".

"Seriously, don't ask" she rolled her eyes as Derek looked at her in wondering, his eyebrow cocked. The idea too stupid to even say out loud.

"Uh... wait, um... K-Kayla...?"

To her surprise, it was Stiles' voice calling out to her, having turned back around to look at her, practically buzzing with nervous energy.

She was too surprised with his ability to even speak to her, especially in front of Derek, that she looked over, meeting his gaze.

"Um... can you, y'know, make sure your cousin doesn't perform any maiming or killing while we're gone?"

His expression was soft and gentle, clearly still nervous as he held her stare, skittishly licking his lips and she didn't know what to say back. Well, she did, but she couldn't find the words, hating the fact she was looking at him through new eyes.

Before, she didn't let herself look at him like anything more than a friend. Happy to flirt and toy with his sexual buttons, knowing exactly what ones to push, but these last few hours things were changing and she didn't know how to handle that.

She stared at him for a little longer than necessary, using everything in her to try and separate the feelings from the logic, nodding her head slightly.

"Sure" she muttered, "I'll kick his ass if need be".

For a second, she was sure she saw a playful smirk play on his lips before it had disappeared, replaced by that usual expression of anxious wondering, prying his eyes away from her and shaking his head, clumsily following Scott up the steps to the school.

She watched them for a few seconds, feeling this slight tug from inside her chest, something close to worry as they left, but shook it away and turned back to Derek who was narrowing his eyes at her, one eyebrow quirked in knowing.

"What?" she asked self consciously, feeling a little hesitant and flustered under his gaze - something she had never felt... ever.

"You know what" he said, "really? Stilinski?"

She could hear the disapproval in his voice, tight with distaste and judgement, his protective instincts ramping up a notch or two - or more like a hundred.

"No" she scoffed, trying to ignore the sudden thundering of her heart, "it's not like that".

"It better not be".

"Jeez, thanks for the disapproval dad" she mocked, "just because I don't have a dad anymore - y'know, 'cause he's dead - that doesn't mean I need another thank you very much".

"I'm just looking out for you".

"Well don't" she snapped, "it's annoying as hell. And FYI - I don't need your approval on who I want to fuck, okay?!"

His forehead creased, his eyebrows rising higher into his hairline.

"So first it's 'it's not like that' and now it's 'I want to fuck him'".

She shot him a glare, "back off".

Derek stayed silent for a few moments, leaning against Stiles' jeep, deep in thought, his thick brows furrowed in contemplation.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to look out for you" he finally said, scuffing his feet along the tarmac, "during that year. I should've stepped up and been there for you".

Her relationship with Derek had its up and downs, but regardless, they were family and they were loyal to each other. Her fond memories of him far out weighed the bad, but despite that, she didn't realise how much bitterness she had been holding onto until he apologised.

"My mistakes were my own Derek" she said, "I'm a big girl. I'm responsible for myself".

"I know that" he sighed, "but I still should've been there".

"But you weren't" she snapped, "I lost my family - again - and you weren't there. You went back to New York".