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Theo Raeken was pissed off.
He had done a lot of shitty things in his life and he isn't exactly perfect, but, for once, he hadn't done anything bad at all and he was getting punished as if he had.
It literally started when he was just minding his own business, sleeping in his car, keeping out of trouble (except trouble with the police, that apparently didn't like his choice when it came down to where he slept). The point is, he hadn't done anything, but he was paying as if he had in fact done something.
He was chained up and that crazy psycho from Eichen House kept pressing the button to send shocks through him, torturig him for something Theo still couldn't understand. That man really should be careful with what he did, or else he would be screwed once Theo managed to set himself free. Because there is no doubt in his mind that he will be able to free himself.
The only logical explanation as to why he was there was that the man thought he was from the same pack the two losers chained next to him were, or that he at least thought that he had some business with them. All in all, he had to be there because of those two, since he didn't do anything wrong, it must have been one of them.
What the fuck had the two of them done? Theo was gonna kill them for getting him in that situation.
Or, at least, that was the thought going through his head before he noticed his pass to get out of there. After that, the only thing in his mind was that he was gonna get out of there and that the psycho that had been torturing him for no reason would suffer. The two losers weren't important.
So, after understanding how he was gonna get out of there, Theo proceeded to do what he loves to do and does best. He started pissing the man off, the faster he was angry and the more he pressed the button the better. Theo didn't think he would ever say that he wanted the man to press the button, but he did.
Theo had taken great pleasure in pissing him off and making him mad, but chaining him and leaving him there to die with the shocks once he was free and ready to go was even better. Maybe he enjoyed it a little too much, but oh well, can anyone really blame him?
It was a shame that he had to take the losers with him, but he would manage. Or so he thought before being with them came to bite him in the ass.
Of course the Sheriff would appear and of course the two losers had murdered someone and gotten caught, how typical. Theo was really getting tired of people.
And because of those two, now he was in a holding cell in the Sheriff's station, again, as if the shocks hadn't been enough to punish him for whatever he hadn't done.
Getting them to talk hadn't been hard, Theo had always been good at annoying people enough to make them lose control of what they say. It didn't take much effort, but it was a bother and he would have been much better away from the station.
When Parrish finally opened the cell so he could get away, it had felt good to leave the losers behind, closed up in the cell while he walked away, ready to finally be free. They had caused him enough problems in the little time he had known them.
But of course something would interrupt him before he could actually go away. Again.
He was really getting tired of both people and having his plans interrupted.
Of course Scott McCall and his pack would be there. And of course there would be a bunch of hunters surrounding the station. What a surprise, really.
And why was Liam threatening to kill him? The last time he had seen him Theo I had saved his life, more than once. What was Liam's problem?
Actually what was wrong with all of them and who the fuck was that annoying girl near the window? He had had enough with annoying people that were a pain in the ass for the day.
And surprise, surprise, Scott McCall, ever the True Alpha, decided that they would fight, and since Theo was there and was a chimera he was apparently part of the plan.
Theo wasn't going to fight with them, he preferred to make sure he was alive the next day and fighting the hunters could easily get himself killed, but he had always wanted a pack and then Liam had looked at him and Theo really couldn't say no after that look.
So he showed his claws with a roll of his eyes; he would fight with them, but that didn't mean he was happy about it.
But not even that plan went as it was supposed to. Even that plan was interrupted. Theo was getting really frustrated with that, was it really that hard to get a plan to work?
And to top it all, that Nolan kid had cut the power. Was he stupid? Did he seriously think that no one would be able to catch him? Did he know that he was at a police station full of deputies? It seemed like he didn't.
Theo was completely annoyed by the kid, but then Liam talked and his feelings towards the boy lying on the floor became others. From the way Liam had talked and looked at the kid, Theo had understood that they obviously knew each other and that Liam didn't like him all that much, he didn't know if the kid felt the same about Liam, he couldn't bother to look at him enough to understand. He went from annoyed to pissed off by the kid he didn't even know in a matter of seconds.
What had happened between the two of them that had left Liam like that? Theo had a feeling he wouldn't like it one bit once he figured out what that had been, but he still wanted to know.
That was the reason he had grabbed Liam and pushed him into the bathroom, he wanted to know. But, the moment, he was there and Liam was in front of him, the moment they were looking at each other, Theo lost focus and forgot what he was meant to say, he forgot what he was supposed to say, what he should say and so he started talking about the first thing that came to his mind. It started with talking about the hunter, but then friends dying had came into the conversation and next thing he knows Liam is punching him because, once again, Theo couldn't keep his words inside. He shouldn't have said what he had said, even if it was the truth, it wasn't what Liam needed to hear, hell, looking at Liam's sad and guilty face made him want to take the words back so bad he thought he just might give up anything for that to happen.
And then Liam was gonna walk away and Theo just couldn't let that happen.
"Liam, wait," he called out before Liam was out of the bathroom.
Theo got up from the floor, a hand over his nose, glad that it wasn't broken, and Liam stopped at the door, his back turned to Theo.
"I..." Theo sighed, the words burning in his throat. "I'm sorry," he finally choked out.
Theo heard Liam take a sharp intake of breathe.
"What did you say?" He asked, turning to finally look at Theo.
"I know I don't say it enough, mainly because I don't think anyone is worth the bother, but..." He shook his head. "I shouldn't have said what I said. I'm sorry, Liam."
Theo knew that Liam would be able to see the truthfulness in his eyes, that he would be able to hear the true behind his words and smell the honesty in him and his first instinct was to find a way to hide his emotions, scared of letting them out, scared of letting anyone see what was going on inside his soul. But then Liam's angered expression softened, his eyes narrowed and then a smile stretched across his face.
"Well, that's something I never thought I would hear you say."
"Don't get used to it."
"You're right, you shouldn't have said that, I know it's the truth, you still didn't need to say it, though. But I appreciate you apologizing. Really, Theo."
Theo just smiled, not really knowing what to say. It wasn't like him to be at a loss of words, he usually had something witty to say, some sarcastic comment, but Liam always seemed to leave him without words.
"Hey, Liam, I know that I'll never be your first choice when it comes to this, but if you wanna talk and you don't feel like doing it with any of your friends, I'm here to listen," the words came rushing out of his mouth.
"Thank you, Theo," Liam smiled one last time before leaving the bathroom and Theo behind.
Theo sighed once he was alone. What was it he had wanted to ask Liam? He couldn't even remeber anymore. What was wrong with him?
"Get a grip, Theodore!" He told his reflection before leaving the bathroom like Liam had done.
When Theo went back to where the pack was reunited, he knew that something had happened right away, it was the smell, the look on their faces, the arrow on Malia's hand and the piece of paper on Liam's hand that gave it away. It all made sense once Liam said the paper had Brett's number in it, and Theo immediately became aware of Liam's feelings, the way he was getting upset and mad, the way his eyes changed from blue to yellow, Theo noticed it and he knew that the hunters had found the right way to rattle them. It was working.
They had managed to upset Liam and seeing Liam like that was making Theo really furious with the hunters. Who did they think they were? Theo knew that he wasn't exactly the best person, he was aware that just minutes ago he had upset Liam too, exactly with the same thing, and he regretted the words he had said. Now, while seeing Liam like that, he just really wanted to be able to reassure him that everything would be ok, make him believe that the hunters would pay for what they did to Brett and Lori, Liam's friends, Theo would make sure of that, he would make sure that they got what they deserved for hurting Liam and rattling him up with it. And he really wanted to hug Liam, but he didn't think that Liam would want it, and Theo really didn't know what he was supposed to do in order to hug someone; do you just go up to them and wrap your arms around them? Do you ask for permission?
So he didn't hug him and instead kept in the background, not wanting anyone to pay too much attention to him.
But of course, people had died and Scott had came up with a plan that included him, apparently he was useful for something and Theo hadn't felt useful in some time, so he took the opportunity and told Scott what he knew about the losers in the holding cell. Those two were proving to be a big pain in the ass.
While taking the bodies outside, Theo could feel the pressure of being in front of all those hunters armed to the teeth, there was a feeling of fear in his body that made the hair on his arms stand up, and he could definitely feel eyes on the back of his neck, people inside the station observing their every movement. Was Liam looking at him too?
And, guess what, yet another plan that failed, of course there would be something that wouldn't add up, something that would tell the hunters they were playing them, of course. Theo would be surprised if yet another plan hadn't failed.
But then Scott's dad appeared out of nowhere, taking over the situation and actually managing to, somehow, make a deal with the hunters. How did he manage to do that anyway? Theo really didn't care about that, his only concern in the moment being that, apparently, they were being kicked out of Beacon Hills and Scott had agreed? What was wrong with him? Did that we include Theo too? These hunters and this pack were really starting to get on his nerves.
Walking out of the sheriff station felt like walking to their death, nobody talked, nobody acknowledged that they were being kicked out of the city. The worst, however, had been the waves of sadness and guilt coming out of Liam when the two loser where being taken away. Theo knew that Liam was relieved that they weren't gonna die at the hunters' hands, but he was still upset that he wouldn't be able to do more for them.
Theo looked at Liam, trying to make sure that he was okay, trying to understand if there was something he could do. When Liam returned the look, Theo felt his heart skip a beat and hoped that Liam was too worried about everything that was happening to notice it. He looked away. Would it be okay if he reached out and held his hand? He thought about doing it, but he never did.
Theo wasn't that surprised when Scott told them the plan. It would have been good if Scott had told them before, it would have saved him a lot of distress, but he understood that there really hadn't been time for that. Anyways, Theo really wasn't sure about it and, even though they had been together in the animal clinic for a while now, even though Corey had came back looking heartbroken after he had gone speak with Mason not having to say anything for them to understand that Mason had believed him, even though Scott had said that his dad had believed him, Theo couldn't help but worry that this would be just one more failed plan. And the worry was still there some hours later when Mason showed up.
It was like Liam had understood what he was feeling, because while he was leaning against the wall, looking at Malia, Lydia and Scott talking between themselves and Corey and Mason speaking in soft whispers, probably clearing everything up between them, Liam walked up to him and, without a word, he put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it lightly.
"We'll be ok. I know we will."
Theo scoffed.
"How can you be sure?"
"Because, Theo, we are a pack, we are a family and we are together in this, all of us."
No one seemed to be paying attention to them and, since Theo didn't know how to answer, he reached out and touched Liam's arm softly, almost scared, waiting for Liam to pull away and punch him again. But he never did. Feeling bolder, after not being rejected, Theo slid his hand along Liam's arm until he found his hand and held and squeezed it in his own, loving the feeling that came with doing it.
Liam looked up at him, their eyes met and Liam's lips stretched into a beautiful soft smile that Theo couldn't help but return.
And maybe, just maybe, Liam was right and this would be the plan that wouldn't fail.