“How, exactly,” she said through gritted teeth, swearwords bouncing off the inside of her skull like slung stones, “were you planning to help?” Blood dripped out of the gash on the top of her arm, and her body tensed and twitched in tune with the high, sharp hum of pain.
Isaac edged closer to her, gently resting his hand on her wrist. “I can help with the pain,” he whispered, focussing himself. Sure enough, his veins turned black as he took away a bit of her discomfort. Some of the pain she was feeling entered Isaac but he didn’t care. She was pack, he cared about her.
“How?” she started to snap, and then he was touching her, and the pain seeped away. Literally seeped, running into his skin and veins and sliding away into him, and she gaped for a second before snapping her mouth shut.
“Are they gone?” she asked instead. She needed to put pressure on the slice to stop it bleeding, but it was too long to just compress with one hand. They had to get back home before she could do anything about it.
“How, exactly,” she said through gritted teeth, swearwords bouncing off the inside of her skull like slung stones, “were you planning to help?” Blood dripped out of the gash on the top of her arm, and her body tensed and twitched in tune with the high, sharp hum of pain.
“A preoder of Batman: Arkham Knight. Triple chocolate brownies with andes mint chunks. A necklace with an amethyst stone.”
Her head came up, attention zeroed in on him. “Are those available right now? Because I just assumed you would have to make them, and I want sweets right now.” She grabbed Stiles’ shoulders. “I need the brownies now Stiles.”
Stiles laughed, swaying with the force of her grabbing him. “Dude, would I tease you about brownies?! I thought you knew me better than that, Summer,” he said, shaking his head as he walked to the microwave, producing a plate covered in the brownies.
“Well, you said Secret Santa, so I wasn’t sure. Christmas is a time of teasing, so, you know.” She picked up a brownie and sniffed deeply, eyes closed and with an expression of bliss. Biting into it, she chewed slowly, making little noises of enjoyment. “If I was going out with you instead of Isaac, I would kiss you so hard right now … ” And then she filled her mouth again.
A huge yawn interrupted her attempt to respond. Rubbing at her forehead and swallowing another yawn, she nodded. “You should go back to bed, then. At least winter break will give me a few days to figure out how this is supposed to work.” Getting up from the stairs, she went back down, digging out a bottle of painkillers and a soda from the cabinets of her tiny kitchen and mumbling, “Gotta find a way to make that couch more comfortable … “
“No, you take the bed. I’m used to sleeping on a sofa, honestly I’ll be fine here,” he insisted, taking a seat on the seat. It wasn’t too bad, far better than the forest floor he’d been sleeping on for the past few days. He tried to stay calm, convince himself he was safe, but he just couldn’t. He knew it was inevitable that he’d be having a nightmare or two tonight… The omega rearranged the bedding to get himself comfy, smiling up at Summer. “Thanks again,” he whispered softly.
She started to object, but the only thing that got out of her mouth was a chopped off sound of negation before he had snuggled his long self down into the cushions. “Isaac,” she said, putting her hands on her hips, “this is not what I meant.”
She reached out and made him look at her. “You don’t get to decide if it’s a burden for me, okay? If there’s a problem I’ll let you know. It’s a burden if you refuse to have opinions. So I need to know, are you gonna be okay here, where it’s pretty small, or should I try to come up with something different?” She pointed down the stairs.
“The space I rent is basically a studio space. One bedroom, one bathroom.”
Isaac nodded, a grateful smile cast upon his lips. “If that’s okay, I’d love to stay here. I’m used to staying in small apartments so that’s no problem. If there is anything I can do for you just let me know, okay?” He wanted to make this beneficial for the both of them, not just him. If he could help out around the house, help pull his weight, then at least Summer had a reason to keep him there.
A huge yawn interrupted her attempt to respond. Rubbing at her forehead and swallowing another yawn, she nodded. “You should go back to bed, then. At least winter break will give me a few days to figure out how this is supposed to work.” Getting up from the stairs, she went back down, digging out a bottle of painkillers and a soda from the cabinets of her tiny kitchen and mumbling, “Gotta find a way to make that couch more comfortable … “
She shrugged uncomfortably. “It’s nothing. This is what I do.” He had a nice smile, though, when he bothered. “So. Plans. Uh … I only really rent the downstairs bit? So while you could move in with me, I’m not really sure how comfortable that would be.”
“Whatever is easiest for you, I don’t want this to be a burden for you…” He had a small flat further down the street that he’d been sleeping in for a few weeks, but he’d stopped going there after the hunters found it. He could never stay in one place too long, so it was nice to know he could stay here without needing to worry.
She reached out and made him look at her. “You don’t get to decide if it’s a burden for me, okay? If there’s a problem I’ll let you know. It’s a burden if you refuse to have opinions. So I need to know, are you gonna be okay here, where it’s pretty small, or should I try to come up with something difference?” She pointed down the stairs.
“The space I rent is basically a studio space. One bedroom, one bathroom.”
“I already know I can trust you enough for that. The question is if you can trust me.” Summer spoke softly. “You don’t have my ability to cheat.” She turned her head, still hunched over her knees, and looked at him. “It’s up to you, if you can trust me. If you’ll let me take care of you.”
“Yeah, I do now,” he admitted with a slight shrug. A hint of a smile appeared on his lips as it sank in that he would soon have a pack mate. He would be a beta. He would be stronger. He could survive. “Thank you, for everything.”
She shrugged uncomfortably. “It’s nothing. This is what I do.” He had a nice smile, though, when he bothered. “So. Plans. Uh … I only really rent the downstairs bit? So while you could move in with me, I’m not really sure how comfortable that would be.”
She considered him for a long time, mulling over options in her mind. There were only two choices — and only one of them was a real choice, honestly.
“Then I guess I’ll be your pack.”
Isaac was surprised by her reply to say the least. It took him a while to respond, going over in his mind just what that meant for both of them.
“Do you know what pack is like? We’d be a family, always there for each other no matter what. Are you up for that? Do you think you can trust me enough for that?” If they were going to be pack mates they had to trust each other completely.
“I already know I can trust you enough for that. The question is if you can trust me.” Summer spoke softly. “You don’t have my ability to cheat.” She turned her head, still hunched over her knees, and looked at him. “It’s up to you, if you can trust me. If you’ll let me take care of you.”
“There were no tracks,” Summer stated positively. “From here to the lake shore, there were NO tracks. Nothing to follow. It’s impossible to track a teleporter in that length of time. Someone must’ve been out in the woods, watching to make sure you died.” She shuddered convulsively. “You need a pack. How can we get you a pack?”
“Like I said, they always find me. It wouldn’t surprise me if they had someone stay behind to make sure they finished the job…” He let out a shaky breath. “Summer, you don’t get it. No pack wants to take me in. They all know I’ve got hunters on my tail, if they take me in it puts them all at risk.” The last thing he wanted was to get more wolves killed.
She considered him for a long time, mulling over options in her mind. There were only two choices — and only one of them was a real choice, honestly.
Rubbing her hands over her face, she blew out a sigh. “A lone wolf. And you were going to leave — how did you even imagine that you would be safe? Which reminds me — how the /hell/ did they find you here? That should not be possible.”
“I’ve lasted this long on the run, I thought I could manage on my own…obviously I was wrong.” He ran a hand through his tangled curls, letting out a shaky breath. “They always find me… It doesn’t matter how well I cover my tracks, it never works. They’ll be back…”
“There were no tracks,” Summer stated positively. “From here to the lake shore, there were NO tracks. Nothing to follow. It’s impossible to track a teleporter in that length of time. Someone must’ve been out in the woods, watching to make sure you died.” She shuddered convulsively. “You need a pack. How can we get you a pack?”
