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Scott’s dream restarts for the fourth consecutive time and just like the other times he has to crawl out naked until he breaks through the deserted school hall. And just like every single time he did, his clothes magically reappear on him and he is left to catch whatever object is suddenly thrown at him.
Even though he has seen this scene play out three times before already, somehow, in his dream-state, the object that is thrown at him always catches him off-guard. It isn’t until Scott catches it that he is able to decipher what it is.
This time however Scott has to use both hands as he catches two tomahawks while turning around at the sound of Liam’s voice only to see his beta smirking up at him with pride as he delivers that line that dictates in which way Scott is going to fail Liam next.
The monster that Scott fears he is becoming has already failed Liam as a team captain, as an alpha and as a friend. How else could he fail his beta now?
“That’s why you’re my anchor,” states the fifteen year old with a sincere sparkle in his eye that leaves Scott completely paralyzed with the new title assigned to him.
“Anchor?” Scott mutters in disbelief. Of all the possible things he expected to come out of Liam’s mouth, that was definitely not it. Scott was already half-convincing himself that his brain just farted and he had heard wrong when all of the sudden he remembers the locker room scene where Liam told him that he’ll be able to keep the shift under control if Scott was there. Especially if he has Scott’s presence there.
Is this what Liam had meant then?
Because of his momentary distraction Scott did not see the Mute appearing behind him. But Scott definitely feels it in every inch of his skin as the Mute instigates Scott to kill his beta. This time from beginning to end without missing any of the gory details.
Scott’s eyes flash red as he approaches Liam. The beta takes a step back as his natural blue eyes look up at his alpha with clear hurt and confusion.
“S-Scott?” he almost whispers, fear clearly encompassing his whole being. And seeing himself in those blue eyes is what makes Scott falter in his step.
The dream… its meaning has completely been changed by that word. Anchor.
Before the focus was entirely on Scott becoming a monster. But now… now it is way more than that. If it is true that Scott is Liam’s anchor then the dream is no longer just about Scott becoming a monster but about preventing Liam from feeling like one.
If Scott is in fact what keeps Liam human then Scott can’t afford to lose himself. If he does then there will be nothing preventing Liam from walking the same path. It is Scott’s duty to show him another way. Scott refuses to fail his beta where the alphas before him have failed with Scott. He simply refuses to let Liam go through this alone.
“Kill,” urges the Mute once more. And when Scott doesn’t move the Mute decides to take matters into his own and produces another tomahawk and is all of the sudden behind Liam raising the axe down and ready to hack it into the young beta’s flesh.
“NOOOOOOOOOO!” Scott roars as for the first time in his dream he launches forward and with the two tomahawks in his hands he swings and effectively buries them on the Mute’s shoulders.
All of the sudden everything disappears and it’s just Scott and Liam standing in the hallway with not a spec of blood on their person.
“Why did you do that?” Liam asks, flat-toned yet curious. “You killed him. That’s what monsters do.”
“No,” Scott answers, placing his hands on Liam’s upper arms and leaning forward so that his beta has no choice but to pay attention. “Monsters murder. We protect. That’s the difference.” Scott states, searching for understanding in Liam’s eyes.
“I don’t understand,” Liam replies. He brings his hands up and to take a loose hold on Scott’s forearms and questions his alpha further. “Are you saying that it’s okay to kill as long as you have a reason?”
At that Scott shakes his head. “No Liam, it’s never okay to kill,” Scott explains before standing up straighter. He raises his hands to cup his beta’s face to make sure Liam is looking straight at him as he says the next part. “But from now on I promise that I will never hesitate to protect you from those who want to harm you; even if I need to get drastic to do it. And you know why?”
Liam can only shake his head, which makes Scott smile.
“Because to me you are more important,” Scott states and tries not dwell on how shock his beta looks at hearing that. “Killing is wrong. But not protecting you is worst.”
For the longest time it looks like Liam’s face can’t settle on an expression. That’s why Scott is a little surprise when all of the sudden he is being hugged tightly by his beta.
“Promise you’ll tell me that when you wake up,” Liam mumbles into his chest. And before Scott can ask what the fifteen year old is talking about, he feels a sudden shock of electricity zap his heart and everything fades.
-x-x-(Later that night)-x-x-
It is forty minutes past midnight and Scott for some reason finds himself outside of Liam’s window.
Kira is already own her way out of Beacon Hills to be with her mom; Stiles is dealing with Malia and promised to call later; and Lydia texted them to join her at the lake house first thing in the morning for a pack meeting. Technically Scott has already spoken with Liam over the phone about their plans—and there is the fact that Liam’s stepdad wants to perform tests on Scott after coming back to life when the doctor had already proclaimed him dead—but somehow Scott still feels himself being drawn to here.
Just a light tap at Liam’s window and Scott can practically hear his beta sitting up on his bed before stumbling out of it in his rush to open the window.
“Scott!” Liam exclaims taking three steps backwards to give his alpha space to slide in. “W-What are you doing here?” he asks and Scott can perfectly hear how Liam’s heart spikes up in nervous excitement.
“Um,” Scotts starts while scratching the back of his neck because he didn’t really come with a plan. He turns to close the window to buy himself some time and stops to stare at the Moon. “I guess I just wanted to see how you were holding up,” he finally says.
“You guess?” Liam inquires, raising a questioning eyebrow.
Scott turns and smiles at his beta’s expression. “Yeah,” he starts. “With everything that’s been happening lately and everything that’s going to continue to happen tomorrow, I haven’t really had the time to have a one-on-one with you. You know, to check on how you are processing it all. I guess I thought I should find out now before something else happens.” And as Scott says this he spots the alarm clock by Liam’s night table. “I probably should have called first instead of showing up all of the-“
“I don’t mind!” Liam’s quick to integrate, flushing a little at the loudness of his own voice. “I mean I… don’t mind,” he finishes lamely, giving Scott an apologetic look. The alpha can only smile at that while placing a reassuring hand on the younger teen’s left shoulder.
“Good to know,” Scott answers before letting go of Liam’s shoulder. He tries to not get caught up in Liam’s embarrassed smile. “So!” Scott starts with put-upon enthusiasm to keep things light as he circles the room. “How are you adjusting? Did you stop wanting to kill me for biting you or are you just waiting for things to settle down before letting me have it?” he jokes, not really looking at Liam but still paying extreme attention to how his beta reacts.
“Oh definitely the latter,” Liam jokes back, turning his body around to follow the older teenager’s steps with his eyes. “I’m going to make you take so much responsibility for me that you’re practically gonna have to adopt me.”
Scott chuckles at that and turns to face Liam with a closed-lip smile. “So no plans to kill me then?” he asks good-naturedly, but something in the distance he places between them makes Liam drop his smile.
“No,” the beta answers, searching Scott’s face for something. “Why?” he eventually asks.
The seventeen year old shifts his gaze to the ceiling for that. “There’s a rumor,” he begins speaking softly. “That if a bitten beta kills the alpha that bit him then he might turn back to being a human. Never got to try it out though.”
Even Scott doesn’t know why he is revealing that to Liam. It’s true that Derek took Scott’s only chance to become human away when he stole Peter’s alpha powers by killing him. But even if that wasn’t the case, Scott is not really sure he would have taken someone’s life away even then. No matter how desperate he might have been to be human again back then.
“Are you serious?” Liam asks before shaking his head furiously and clenching his fists at either side of him. “N-No, I would never do that.” He closes his eyes to try to stop the shaking. “Even if… No I, wouldn’t, I-“
The shaking stops once Scott gathers his beta in his arms and hugs him close to his chest. “I’m sorry,” Scott apologizes, internally admonishing himself for triggering his beta like that. “I didn’t mean it that way. I wasn’t thinking. Forgive me.”
Liam nods against Scott’s neck and mumbles: “Just don’t say that again,” yet doesn’t move from his alpha’s embrace.
“I won’t,” Scott promises; and once he feels the rate of Liam’s heartbeat settle he asks his beta if he is going to be okay. When Liam nods, Scotts slowly extricates himself from the younger teen and swears that his beta almost follows him. “I should probably go,” Scott reluctantly states, ruffling Liam’s hair soothingly. “Sorry to have kept you,” he finishes before sidestepping Liam and making his way to the window.
“W-Wait!” Liam exclaims after a beat, turning around and grabbing Scott by the wrist with both hands to keep him from going. “You don’t have to leave yet,” Liam says rapidly, keeping his eyes focused on where he is grabbing Scott so that he doesn’t have to face him. “We still have things to talk about. And you still have to teach me stuff. And I-I’m not sure if I’m ready for all this. What if I mess up and disappoint everyone? I don’t-“
“Hey it’s okay,” Scott interrupts, turning around and replacing both hands on Liam’s shoulders to calm him down; his beta’s hands still holding tight to his right wrist. “It’s okay Liam. Everything is going to be alright,” he assures. “It’s okay to be afraid. Even I’m scared.”
“You are?” Liam asks, lifting his gaze and meeting Scott’s. His searching eyes remind Scott of how a two-year difference is still a lot for someone Liam’s age and how it is now Scott’s responsibility to look out for him.
“Yeah, I am,” Scott responds, absentmindedly rubbing circles with his thumbs on his beta’s shoulders to keep him from freaking out again. “Did I tell you that I dreamed while I was in the hospital?” Scott inquiries, consciously choosing not to use the word ‘dead’ because he doesn’t want to revive his beta’s worry about that situation. “Because I did. A lot. And you were in all of them.”
“I was?” Liam repeats, and it seems it is only now that he realizes he is still holding on to Scott’s wrist because he suddenly drops his hands to his sides while his cheeks redden. Still he powers through as if nothing has happened. “What where they about?”
“Nightmares. All of them,” Scott says bluntly and laughs when Liam’s face cringes. “But I learned something from them too so it wasn’t all that bad,” Scott reassures promptly, remembering the promise he made in his dream. “I learned that no matter what, protecting my pack is most important. So matter what it is that I have to do, I won’t let anyone hurt you. Ever,” he states with finality.
Liam, of course, couldn’t help but scoff at that. “And you needed a nightmare to tell you that?” he grins. “Sorry to break it to you Scott but I can take care of myself,” he accentuates by standing up straight and flexing his arms. “But don’t worry,” he says cockily, “I’ll protect you too,” he declares.
Scott can’t help to grin at that while he shakes his head in amusement. Technically he didn’t get a hug from his beta like he did in his dream, but just seeing Liam’s eyes alight along with that self-assured smirk is enough to put the alpha at peace. So Scott settles for just placing Liam in a headlock and ruffling his already messed-up hair viciously.
Finally giving in to his beta’s pleas to stop, Scott lets the younger teen go—who busies himself with fixing up his hair by running his fingers through it—before patting Liam once more reassuringly on the shoulder and deciding that it’s probably time for him to head back home.
It isn’t until he opens the window that Liam makes his first protest. “Wait!” the beta says. Yet when Scott turns around to see what is amiss, Liam flushes and interlocks his arms behind his back, looking abashed. “Um, ah… drive safely?”
Scott blinks yet smiles deciding not to call his beta out on his awkwardness. “Will do,” he states and begins to climb out of the window until his name is almost immediately called upon again.
“Scott wait!” Liam starts again but when Scott turns around Liam avoids making eye contact again. “I, I mean you… um…”
The alpha, starting to feel confused by this, listens in to Liam’s heartbeat and is puzzled as to why it sounds so erratic. “You know,” Scott begins a tad perplexed. “I’m starting to get the feeling that you don’t want me to go.”
“Well you’re already here,” Liam states, sneaking a peek the older teen before looking away again and rubbing his arms. “Why not stay the night?” he asks and immediately looks at Scott in alarm as he tries to justify it. “It’s not like I can drive myself to Lydia’s house anyway,” he reasons.
The older teen considers that for a moment. “I came on my bike,” he finally states and then sucks in his lips, finding obvious amusement in what he is about to say next. “If you wanna tag along with me you’ll gonna have to ride on the bitch seat,” he jokes, wiggling his eyebrows.
Liam flushes at that with even his ears reddening at the comment. “I don’t mind,” he states, looking at Scott with a hopeful expression that’s almost begging not to be left alone.
That’s when the questions that has been hanging on Scott’s head all this time finally cracks through Scott’s resistance. “Liam?” he begins before he can stop himself.
“Yeah?” Liam replies hesitantly.
“Remember when we talked about having an anchor to reel us back?” Scott questions and after a beat Liam nods his head in the affirmative. Scott swallows then before finally bringing the question out in the open. “Am I your anchor?” he probes. Silence is what reigns supreme when Liam doesn’t respond and instead chooses to fixate on the floor—his action sufficing enough as an answer. And still Scott couldn’t quite figure it out. “Why me?” he eventually asks.
“Are you kidding me? Why not you?” Liam nervously mutters before sneaking another peek at Scott. The older teen’s surprised expression proving to be the crack that Liam needed to break the dam for his words to start pouring out of him. “You’re like the best person I know!” Liam starts rapidly and can’t seem to decelerate. “Y-You don’t judge me. You never do! You also don’t belittle me or show your disappointment in me like Stiles does. And you’re always trying to help me! And not once have you asked me to help you with anything in return. It’s always me who volunteers! It’s like you are always trying to understand me without reprimanding me and I never had anyone like that before in my life! I trust you Scott. That’s why! You make me feel like, like- I just can’t help it okay?!”
Taken aback, Scott could only blink at the onslaught of praises directed at him. Even with Liam breathing hard Scott could only stare with a befuddled expression. He just couldn’t believe his ears. Every line that Liam has spoken ran true in the beta’s heart. This is no joke or a dream. This is real. And it’s only then that realization hits him square in the face.
“You like me don’t you?”
At the question Liam freezes but it’s already too late. Scott is making his way toward Liam and before the beta can think of a way to salvage the situation, Scott’s hands are already encasing his face and forcing him to look up at his alpha.
“Don’t you?” Scott asks again, and he probably shouldn’t be noticing how soft his beta’s skin feels under his palms right now but he can’t help it. Neither can he help how his eyes trail the way Liam wets his lips before giving a slight nod to his alpha.
“Can you blame me?” Liam mutters under his breath almost inaudibly as he brings his hands up to cover Scott’s own on his face. “You’re literally perfect,” he whispers and before he knows it his mouth is being covered in a heart-stopping kiss.
It only lasts a second, chaste as it is. But to Liam it made his world. Scott leans back a little and opens his eyes, wondering why he just did what he did. But staring at the bliss in his beta’s face, Scott wonders how he will ever be able to live with himself if something were to happen the younger teen. Liam is the first person Scott has ever bitten and even though Scott is not 100% sure yet, Liam will probably be the last person he ever bites. And because of that Scott can’t help but to want to give Liam the world. Scott hadn’t realized it until now but he has been falling fast for his beta ever since he almost lost him in the well.
“You’re heartbeat sped up,” Liam mumbles smirking as he opens his eyes and furrows his brow at Scott. “Aren’t you supposed to be an expert at controlling your heart rate?”
Scott can’t help but to return the smirk. “Maybe I liked what I did a little more than I expected,” he replies back, rubbing his thumbs affectionately under Liam’s eyes and grinning a little wider when the beta’s eyes glow momentarily yellow.
“Yeah? Well hopefully you plan to do a little more than that because I promise that I will kill you if you stop now,” Liam states trying his best to look threatening even though Scott can smell how nervous and anxious Liam really is. Maybe that should be his next lesson? Liam would probably benefit greatly once he is able to sniff out emotions from other people—even if it is not a perfect skill.
Alas that’s a subject for another day. Right now Scott can only concentrate on making sure his beta never feels nervous around him ever again. And so he leans forward to capture those willing lips once more.
“Just so you know,” Scott mumbles between the close-mouthed kisses he is teasing his beta with. “I’m not sleeping with my jeans on.” He warns.
“That’s okay,” Liam pouts encircling his arms around Scott’s neck to keep him place. “Just kiss me properly already or I might die.”
Scott grins at the dramatics. “We can’t have that happen now can we?” he states fondly as he relocates his right hand to the back of Liam’s head. “I’ll keep you safe,” he finally states before smashing their mouths together once more and producing a needy whimper from his beta.
This time the kiss lasts for far longer.