Chapter Text
Lydia Martin loved packing. She loved squishing in all her tiny bikinis and bright coloured tank tops into her giant suitcase, desperately trying to fit it all in. When she did this, it meant she was setting herself on an adventure that would last maybe a week or two. But when it was packing to go to her Aunt Julie's in Beacon Hills, well that, that that had a whole other meaning.
Don't get me wrong, Lydia loves her aunt Julie, so much. She just loathed the town she lived in.
Julie and Lydia are so close. The closest thing Lydia has ever had to a sister. She's one of those cool young Aunts that takes you shopping for lingerie or buys you and your underaged friends booze. She would buy Lydia the skimpiest clothing and flashy underwear on shopping trips. Her mother of course, did not approve at all. Natalie ridiculed her sisters actions, always scolding her for being a bad influence on her daughter. That's why they lived so far away.
But Lydia's mother will not be there to lecture her sister on "parenting". It will just be the two of them, in her small 2 bedroom apartment in Beacon Hills. Natalie had no choice but to send her to Julie's after the email came through that she was being transferred to Melbourne for a year. It was either ship Lydia off to California or start a whole new scary life at 17 years young in Australia. And as much as Lydia hated Beacon Hills, California it was.
Lydia also hated goodbyes just as much as the next person. Waving her mother off at departures was one of hardest things she's ever done,. However, she knew her mom deserved this fresh start. Ever since her dad walked out 8 months ago she has seen her mother smile a total of 3 times. It was bittersweet watching her walk away through security. But with Jackson? Not so much. Lydia and her long-term boyfriend had been struggling for a while due to his abusive behaviour that Lydia was too scared to acknowledge because... Jackson was familiar, he was all she'd ever known. So she did the only thing she could do and distanced herself enough without loosing him. But waiting for her flight to board she decided she’d had enough and finally typed out the long awaited message filled with 'sorry's' and 'I'll always love you' but before she could press send a blue bubble screamed at her. As she finished reading the harsh text filled with blame -pointed at her- she sighed and pressed her home button, leaving her confession unread but still present.
Arriving at the airport and running into Julie's welcoming arms after collecting her 500 ton luggage from baggage claim felt like every sad movie Lydia has ever seen combined into one. She hadn't seen her aunt for nearly 3 years after Julie and her mom's "disagreement" and she didn't dare ask her the full story.
It had just turned 9am by the time they reached her Aunts apartment, aka her home for the next year. The walls were a painfully silent white but the splashes of colour in the furniture made up for it. The luminous coloured cushions matched perfectly with her velvet soft rug in the middle of the living room. Lydia's bedroom was a decent size. Big enough for all her belongings, although, she did need to use some of Julie's wardrobe space for her summer dresses after she ran out of room in her own.
She sighed as she flopped onto her springy bed, exhausted from her flight and unpacking. She stared at the ceiling for approximately 53 seconds before she heard Julie's faint footsteps from the hall and her signature knock on her door and with one swift motion she was in sight.
"Finished Lyds?" Lydia loved the nickname. She was the only person to ever call her that. Julie appeared with a cheesy white grin on her face.
"Yup" Lydia popped the 'p'. "Jules, did I see a sign leading to a rooftop pool on the way up here earlier? You never mentioned a pool." She tied her strawberry blonde locks into a braided hairstyle as she headed gracefully towards her mirror.
Julie literally jumped onto Lydia's bed and sat criss cross. She watched at how effortlessly her niece could fix her hair into an intricate design, something her sister used to do for her when they were in middle school and not hating each other's guts.
"You did, but it's not as cool as it sounds.' She laughed, 'There's cigarette duds everywhere, it's small and there's only a few sunbeds that's why I never mentioned it. Doesn't seem like your cup of tea. Why? You thinkin' of going for a swim?" Lydia turns to face her Aunt.
"Sunbathe. I need to start on my tan before school starts, I can't be this pale forever." Lydia shrugged her shoulders with a faint smile and turned back around on her heel to head to her wardrobe. From it she pulled out a black 2 piece swimsuit with small gold Aztec prints, a pair of cotton black shorts and a navy floral tank top.
"You mean freckle?" Julie shouted just so her niece could hear it, Lydia flipped her off as Julie turned around so she could change..
She wriggled the shorts over her curvy hips and slipped the tank top over her head before grabbing her phone, sunglasses, earphones and a towel.
"You want company?" Julie springs up from her bed with enthusiasm looking down on a short 5"3 Lydia. Frustratingly, everyone over the age of 15 seemed to be taller than her.
"Julie, I love you. But how will I look if I'm incapable of going to the roof of my own home by myself?" And with that Lydia swiftly exited her room leaving her Aunt shocked. She somehow forgot how snarky her niece could be.
Finding the rooftop proved to be difficult as the elevator that lead to her Aunts place only travelled up so many floors before you had to take the stairs. The roof was located on the 10th floor which was pretty high, but the views were amazing.
Lydia's Aunt was right. The rooftop was tiny and low maintenance. Crushed beer cans and cigarette doubts were scattered across the peach tiles on the edge of the small pool, leaving traces of the night before from people she didn't know. At the edge lay a battered, plastic green table to match with the 6 plastic chairs scattered across the floor. Next to the pool was 3 sun beds which looked like they could fall apart with one touch.
Lydia is a perfectionist so laying her towel on the sturdiest looking sun lounger close to the wall took longer than 2 minutes. Flattening every bump and tucking in every corner until it was flat enough for her to lay on.
Carefully she wriggled her cotton black shorts down her painfully short, pale legs before laying down with a sigh, keeping her tank top on as she began to feel a breeze. After fumbling with her sunglasses she slid them onto her small ears.
Thinking was one of Lydia's biggest fears. Being left on her own to think was dangerous. Which was why Lydia was almost glad a group of teenagers who obviously didn't live in the apartment snuck through the "secured" front door.
There was 6 of them. 3 boys 3 girls. The first one to enter was a girl. Her short shorts complimented her legs that went on for days. Her highlighted short hair and knee high boots gave off the "I don't care about anyone but I secretly do I just can't let anyone know" look. Lydia rolled her eyes, she reminded her of her freshman self but with no style.
After her appeared a tiny Asian girl. Her style looked like it would match her personality, cute. She flounced into the roof in a green and black plaid mini skirt with a baggy tank top tucked in. Her black hair fell long past her shoulders. She looked like she wouldn't hurt a fly.
The final girl was different. The brunette was tall and her brown eyes matched her hair perfectly - which was tied up in a somewhat messy bun. She wore a floaty floral dress and a black & white cardigan to match. She walked in laughing at something the boy behind her said. Her smile was contagious. She didn't notice Lydia.
The first male to enter the rooftop was a tanned boy with a crooked jaw and a cute smile. He was the one making the brunette laugh. The sleeves on his white shirt wore high enough so that Lydia could see the 2 black bands tattooed onto his upper bicep. He was hot, but not her type.
Out from the door came another male, a really tall male. Everyone else had brown eyes except for him, he had the most piercing blue eyes which reminded Lydia of the ocean she swam in on her trip in Cape Town one summer. His dirty blonde curly hair was ruffled and looked like he had just rolled out of bed, but he made it look good.
The last boy entered, tripping on the small unnoticeable step and fixing himself back up. His hair was reasonably short but long enough for the ends to point up into a quiff at the front. His cheeks were dotted with moles that continued into his neck. Lydia wondered where they stopped.
Lydia became captivated in his eyes. Framed by thick long lashes. She envied them. They mesmerised her as flecks of gold danced within the deep swirls of cocoa making them appear to have a mystery hidden inside waiting to be discovered.
He wasn't tanned or incredibly muscly like his friends. He was a skinny, pale, lanky boy, but to say he had no muscle would be a lie. He wore a white shirt with black material along the ends of the sleeves (which hugged his biceps perfectly) and neck line along with light brown khaki pants. Lydia wondered how he wasn't dying in the heat. Of course, he's probably used to it if he lives here. Lydia though, not so much.
The eyes she suddenly became engulfed in were currently studying her face. When she caught him she cleared her throat. Startled he blinked about a million times before nodding at her and clumsily running after his group of friends.
Lydia sneakily watched as they made their way to the opposite side of the roof where the plastic table and chairs were located.
The caramel haired girl sat herself on the edge of the roof. Lydia had a mini heart attack as she almost slipped but she guessed it was just part of her bad ass front.
The rest found a seat to sit on and Lydia practically felt her eyes roll out of her head when the tanned boy pulled out a cigarette carton.
"Scott, hit me." The girl on the wall, Malia, shouted to the owner of the cigarettes. Holding her hands out to catch 'Scott' threw one, she caught it effortlessly, pulled out a lighter and lit it.
Lydia searched around for her trusty earphones as the group became loud in conversation. Every so often she would glance over at them, only to find the tall honey eyed boy already looking. Of course he would turn away as soon as she caught him, pretending she never saw.
Stiles couldn't keep his eyes off her. He kept imagining what her personality would be like, how her head would slot perfectly into the crook of his neck, how his large hands would fit into her considerably small ones.
"You know her?" Scott interrupted his best friends staring by nudging him on the shoulder.
Stiles grabbed where Scott's elbow had hit in pain considering he was 147 pounds of pale skin and fragile bone.
"I'd like to." Isaac butted in before Stiles had the chance to open his mouth. He eyed Lydia up and down with a sly smirk fixed on his structured face. His blue eyes twinkled.
This time Stiles was the one hitting. He whacked Isaac in the chest with the back of his hand. Wakening him up from his dirty thoughts of the redhead meters away. Isaac flung his hands up as if he'd done nothing wrong whilst Stiles rolled his eyes.
"No, he doesn't, she must be new or else she'd know this was our spot." Malia spat. Taking a draw out of her cigarette and blowing the smoke into the air above her head.
"Give her a break, she might be nice." The tall brunette, Allison, innocently planted her feet criss cross onto the table in front of her.
"Stiles?." Scott smirked as he watched Stiles watch Lydia. When he heard his name he jumped, startled.
"Hmm?" Clearly he hadn't been paying attention to what had just been said. "I'm gonna go see if she needs help" standing up from his seat he could almost feel Malia glaring at him, burning holes in the back of his head.
Sighing, Lydia continued to fumble with her knotted earphones. Minutes passed and she still couldn't get them.
"Need help?" Lydia jumped out of her skin. Flinging her arms in the air hitting the boy behind her who seemed to come out of no where.
"Oh my god. I am so sorry!" She stood up dropping the earphones in question and bringing her sunglasses up to rest on her head. The boy, also in question bent down to retrieve them.
"No! No no no it's a.. its my fault. I um, I shouldn't have snuck up on you like that." Stiles brought himself back up onto his feet to look down at the 5"3 wonder in-front of him. He stood at least 8 inches above her. Stiles awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck making Lydia distracted as she saw his bicep. She cleared her throat and quickly looked away before he caught her.
He became distracted in her wide doe green eyes, framed by thick lashes coated in a few layers of mascara. Apart from that her face was void of makeup. Her freckles stood out in the light and Stiles was studying every imperfection.
She smelled like berries. Raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries. Like the "summer forest" fragrances in shampoos you get at Walmart.
"Yeah you probably shouldn't have." Nonchalantly she pulled her sunglasses down from her head onto her eyes and sat back down.
"I- ah. I saw you, struggling and I thought I'd come help. I'm usually quite good at that stuff since my fingers are particularly skinny" He laughed awkwardly and gestured to the earphones. The mention of his fingers forced Lydia to look, and almost.. almost got distracted by how right he was and by the veins that travelled from his wrists to his bicep that were particularly prominent.
"Oh, um.." Lydia looked over to his group of friends, 2 of which were giggling and whispering to each other, obviously about her. "I was actually just leaving, but thanks." She grabbed her shorts and wriggled them back on as Stiles watched in awe.
He smelled like mints. Like the chewing gum you sneak in school. Like when you drink freezing cold water right after eating a mint. A strong peppermint smell. That was him.
"Okay well.. I didn't get your name?" She grabbed her stuff and her headphones from the boys outstretched hand and headed towards the door. "I'm Stiles."
Lydia opened the door but swung her head back, flicking her hair, to face the boy left standing on his own.
"Bye Stiles."
"Oh you're back! That was quick." Lydia walked through the door of her apartment, the cold from the air conditioner hit her in the face. She saw Julie spread out on the sofa watching Teen Mom.
Lydia placed her belongings on the kitchen counter before joining Julie on the sofa, the apartment being so small it only took 4 steps to arrive in the livingroom from the kitchen as there was no wall from separating the two.
She stole a handful of her popcorn, receiving a death glare.
"Yeah some other kids came up so I left, it was getting kinda cold anyway." She threw some popcorn into the air and so it landed in her mouth. Mm salted.
"Your age?"
"Yeah but they don't look like my type of people? I don't know. I don't even know them. Well, one of them vaguely spoke to me and almost scared me half to death." Teen Mom had finished so Lydia started flicking through channels until she landed on 'America's Next Top Model'.
"Was she cool? Nice? A bitch? Any style?" Lydia couldn't help but laugh at the unintentional pun her Aunt had just made.
Julie got overly excited when Lydia spoke to new people as she barely left the house anymore. Her mom was worried about her which was one of the reasons she sent her to California. As much as she isn't her sisters biggest fan, Natalie knew she could bring out the outgoing side to Lydia she hadn't seen in a while, not since Jackson.
"No, yes, no and no, he did not." Lydia quickly shoved a handful of popcorn in her mouth. All sorts of flavours rushed through her tastebuds, distracting her from her Aunts sudden reaction.
"A boy?!" Julie's eyes went wide. "Only 1 day here and you're already hitting it up with the guys. Not that i'm surprised." Lydia rolled her eyes and scoffed once she had finished chewing the last of the popcorn left in her mouth.
"I'm still basically with Jackson, Julie. And I don't see myself moving on anytime soon if we do "break up". Her eyes self consciously fell onto the floor.
Lydia started to twist the ring on her middle finger with her thumb, a habit she had picked up when she got nervous or emotional. Julie picked up on it and didn't push the conversation forward. She knows how things are with Jackson and she knew how Lydia felt about he whole situation. Jackson treated her like shit and everyone knew it, even Julie who lived thousands of miles away.
Julie cleared her throat and broke the awkward silence, "Well you have to be prepared! Did you get his number?"
"Nope, just his name. I don't even think he lives in the building, it looked like they were sneaking in."
"Yea the front door isn't the most secure. I've been writing letters of complaints for years. Well what's his name?"
"Stiles" Lydia silently giggled at the thought of this strange name. Julie furrowed her eyebrows. "I'm guessing it's short for something? I don't know. Didn't ask"
And with that Lydia gradually made her way to her room. The coldness of the tiles underneath her feet made her flinch.
After spending what felt like forever scrolling through Instagram and unfollowing people from her old town, Lydia decided to change out of her lounging clothes and do something since it was only 12:30.
Lydia's fashion sense was unique. She had a million different outfits for every season and every event. Her style had matured over the last few years though.
She hardly ever wears the same outfit twice. As for shoes, she mostly had heels to make up for her height, or lack there of. She vaguely remembers buying a pair of flats one spring but they've never found their way onto her feet. They all have to match at least one of her outfits. She might go a week wearing the same pair before they hurt and her feet start to blister.
But as Lydia hates to admit, her hair is the most unique thing about her appearance. She has spent her whole tragic life being called horrendous nicknames such as "little red" which she finds completely insulting considering her hair is obviously strawberry blonde. Every day is a brand new hairstyle for Lydia. She could never brush and go.
By the time she had a shower, changed into a new outfit and done something with her freshly washed hair, it was 1:43 and the cafe which faced Lydia's apartment was now opening.
Her makeup routine was light. It consisted of concealer to hide her dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep, bronzer, baby pink blusher, nude eyeshadow and mascara. To finish off she scraped pink lipstick across her naturally plump lips who people had swore she'd had done.
Her hair was loosely curled, mostly because Lydia couldn't be bothered to tie anything back, she just wanted to go to the cute cafe and study, though she clearly didn't need to she had an IQ of 170 and a 4.0 in AP biology, not that she'd admit it.
Lydia wore a navy blue dress with pink floral print decorated all over it, she wore a belt at her waist for an added touch. It had mesh at the neckline about 3 inches long and the dress stopped about 5 inches above her knees, just enough skin but not too much.
The weather outside was definitely warm, but the wind was starting to pick up so she chose a light blue denim jacket which flared at the bottom of the long sleeves. Her shoes were simple nude ankle booties with a small heel.
After shoving her Archaic Latin textbook into her red handbag and chastely kissing Julie's cheek goodbye, she left.
Dario's was a cute Italian restaurant meters away from her building. It was in between a dog groomers and an old fashioned house that she hadn't seen anyone leave or enter yet.
She skipped across the busy road, excitedly for food. She hasn't eaten all day, (except for some of Julies popcorn) due to nerves.
Passing through the porch of the dog groomers, she made her way to Dario's, plopped down on a bench outside and started to read the menu.
About 5 minutes later, a small, skinny cheery looking man approached her. He could only be in his middle 30's and she could only assume he was Dario.
"Welcome to Dario's!" He spoke with an Italian accent. "You're not one of the locals, I've never seen you before. Are you visiting?."
Dario was obviously used to the whole town coming to his cafe as Beacon Hills wasn't the biggest place on earth. He knew everyone and everyone knew him.
"No, I'm Lydia, I just moved in with my Aunt, Julie." Lydia points to her apartment which can be clearly seen from where she's sitting.
"Oh, Julie! Its lovely to meet you Lydia, I'm Dario! Well what can I get you?" He whips out his notepad and pen from his back pocket.
Lydia studies the menu a few seconds more before ordering, "I'll have a strawberry milkshake and a chicken wrap please, Dario." She flashed him a bright smile.
"I'll have someone bring it to you as soon as it's ready, hopefully see you soon, Lydia." He flashed a smile right back at her.
Dario seemed like he was a family man, with a warm heart. Lydia could only guess of course, she just met him.
By the time she was halfway through her Archaic Latin textbook and her strawberry milkshake she heard familiar laughter and loud footsteps coming from the dog groomers. The sounds coming from people she hoped she would never have to see again.
The loud teenagers took a seat in the bench 2 tables away from Lydia. The only one who noticed her was the tall brunette, hair in a bun. She smiled at Lydia, letting her know she wasn't intimidating, it was a reassuring gesture.
Whilst Dario took their orders Lydia kept searching for something that wasn't there. The pale, lanky boy with the golden honey eyes was no where to be seen.
She didn't know why she was searching for 'Stiles'. He's a boy with a stupid name who had no idea what Lydia's was.
She dismissed the caramel haired girls whispers to the dirty blonde boy whilst they snuck glances at Lydia. Just because her head was buried in her text book didn't mean she couldn't see them.
She dismissed their immature behaviour with a roll of her eyes and continued her subtle search for naturally contoured cheekbones with moles and freckles dotted from the cheeks to the neck. She still wondered how far they went on for.
She was startled when he appeared out of what seemed like thin air. Lydia jumped a little, so lost in thought she never noticed him, like this morning.
"You finished?" His voice was just as hot and raspy as she remembered it to be. His lanky finger, pointing to Lydia's empty plate, she soon noticed he had a uniform on with Dario's logo located below his muscly right shoulder.
She placed her textbook down beside her and raised her empty plate, keeping her cool. "Yeah, thanks."
He took her plate from her hands and purposely let his hands linger on top of hers for a second too long. They locked eyes again, for the second time today, only this time they really took each other in. Lydia felt self conscious by the way he was looking at her, like he had x-ray vision.
Lydia broke the silence when she quickly pulled her hands away from the plate, already missing the warmth of his. She could spend a lifetime intertwining their fingers together, tracing the veins on his hand with her fi-
"Stiles!" Malia called from the opposite table, leaning forward with her chin on the ball of her hand just showing enough cleavage.
"Um, I should-" he threw his thumb behind him in the direction of his friends. Lydia gulped and nodded as Stiles scurried away.
She watched intently as Malia done what Lydia could only imagine doing. She seductively ran her hand up and down Stiles' arm, obviously wanting something. He nodded and swallowed hard at her order before quickly making his way back inside.
Malia glanced over to see Lydia's reaction to the whole ordeal. She looked unimpressed, Lydia wasn't granting Malia any of the attention that she craved. She was clearly threatened by her, Lydia couldn't help but laugh as she continued to read.