Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Pacing back and forth, Stiles was preparing himself for the call he knew would be coming at any moment. “Just calm down Stilinski” the boy said to himself “all you have to do is tell the truth and maybe things will go in your favor…for once” he sighed.

As if his track record would let him believe that there was any chance that this would go any way but horribly wrong, but here he is in another situation that would most likely lead him to yet another round of personal embarrassment.

Just then the chorus of Hungry Like a Wolf erupted from his phone. “This is it” he said to himself “this is the call we’ve been waiting for.”

“Hey there, Sour-wolf, how’s it going?” said Stiles as calmly as possible knowing full well that his voice was most likely betraying him and revealing just how truly nervous the boy was.

“Would you like to tell me why there is a random container of brownies waiting for me on my door step when I got home from the gym” Derek said in a gruff voice cutting right to the chase.

“I’m glad to hear you’re as chipper as always this morning” Stiles joked as he continued pacing throughout his room, hands picking at the hem of his shirt.

“Answer the question, Stilinski” the older man said with an irritated huff into the phone, clearly not in the mood for any of the boy’s antics this early in the morning. It was 9 am after all.

With that, Stiles’ plan flew out of the window. That always happened though. He would build his courage up to take a step out of his comfort zone only to clam up at the last moment and save face with some kind of joke, and that’s what was happening right now.

“Why would I know anything about your mystery brownies? Do I look like some kind of brownie fairy to you? I mean I know I have a great pair of legs that would look amazing in a tutu, but unfortunately I’m too busy to pick up such a demanding hobby” he chuckled “I mean imagine all the good little boys and girls of Beacon Hills who would demand I deliver them brownies once word got out” It may not have been his best save but he hoped it worked for the time being.

“They smell like you, Stiles. Your scent is all over them” Derek sighed sounding like he was growing more irritated by the minute “I’m not Scott, so that means I’m not going to fall for some ill-planned prank. So please tell me what’s wrong with them so we can both move on with our day”

“Dude, my pranks are never ill-planned and you know that” Stiles laughed into the phone with maybe a bit too much confidence “and if there was something out of the ordinary with them don’t you think your super werewolf senses would be able to detect it a mile away?”

“Don’t call me dude” Derek replied clearly ignoring the fact that Stiles was right “so if there’s nothing wrong with them may I ask why they’re here? Did you break something of mine again?”

“Dude, why are you acting like I left a dead kitten on your doorstep?” Stiles said getting slightly annoyed. “Why is it so strange to you that a friend whipped another friend up a batch of brownies, from scratch mind you, for his birthday?” he continued, getting slightly red in the face. “And don’t you dare try and tell me that you don’t like brownies because I seen the way your eyes lit up when Allison brought a batch to the pack meeting last month. Oh and I also seen how bummed out you were when no one even attempted to offer you any.”

Stiles knew this was a bad idea. He should have listened to his gut when it told him to stop while he was ahead, to bury the crush he had on the werewolf the moment it started because there was no way in hell that an alpha werewolf would ever want to date some spaz like himself, but of course he didn’t listen. Not to mention that Derek could barely stand him, so he should have seen that even a strictly platonic friendship was off the table. One day Stiles would have feelings for someone who will return those feelings…but clearly today wasn’t that day.

“I said don’t call me dude, Stiles” Derek said through slightly gritted teeth “and it’s not even my birthday, Stiles. My birthday isn’t until November 7th” he managed to add after a few beats of silence.

“Today is November 7th, you idiot” Stiles informed the older man.

So maybe this wasn’t a bust after all. Derek wasn’t put off by the brownies he just was an idiot who forgot his own birthday so the random act of kindness seemed even more strange than it actually was. He could work with this, there was still hope!

“Did you really forget your own birthday, Der-Bear? You’re not even that old yet” he added in mocking tone.

“It’s really the 7th already?” the alpha added sounding thoroughly surprised.

“It sure is!” Stiles exclaimed “Happy Birthday Sour-wolf!”

“Thank you, Stiles” Derek muttered in a tone that could only be described as…embarrassed, and if Stiles swooned at how adorable the man sounded at that moment then that’s no one’s business but his own.

“It only took a billion hours of you interrogating me for me to get a thank you out of you” Stiles teased in his most sarcastic tone “You’re welcome, Hale…but how does someone forget their own birthday? I mean, I could tell you weren’t really the “birthday extravaganza” type, but to completely forget it? I wouldn’t have pegged you as that guy.”

He really couldn’t. Stiles was someone who started planning his birthday months in advance. Sure, Stiles wasn’t someone with many friends and his “parties” in the past usually just consisted of himself and Scott gorging themselves on pizza and playing video games into the wee hours of the night, but that takes a lot of planning damn it.

“Well…” Derek started sounding like he was torn about what he should say next “You’re right, I never really was the “birthday extravaganza” type. Every year my parents would try to get me to agree to a huge birthday party with all of our friends and extended family and every year I refused only settling on a quiet dinner at a quiet restaurant with nobody other than my parents, sisters, and Peter.”

Stiles refrained from making a wise crack about the ever psychotic Peter. Derek never opened up to him like this, and Stiles would be damned if he’d let his instincts to insult Peter any chance he got ruin this moment, so he remained silent.

“Then the fire happened and the next thing I knew Laura and I were in New York. I hated it there. It was too loud; too busy…it wasn’t home.” Derek sighed, clearly not enjoying the memories of the past. “Each year when my birthday rolled around Laura understood that I didn’t want to make a big fuss of it so we’d order take out and she’d bake…something for me and then we’d watch movies all night” Derek sighed again, but this time it was a sigh of contentment.

“I guess without Laur’ here to remind me the date kind of slipped my mind” the werewolf finished in a quiet, almost broken voice.

Now Stiles just felt like a total dick for making fun of the older guy. Of course Derek’s extensively horrible past was the cause for him to forget his birthday. He couldn’t blame the guy, if he came from something like that Stiles would probably be the same around any festive occasion, but being the person that he is Stiles couldn’t just sit back and let Derek wallow in his bad memories…especially if Stiles was kind of the reason that those memories got dug up today.

“Do you have any plans tonight?” Stiles said in the most chipper voice he could muster. He knew where he was going with this, and he needed all the false confidence he could muster up or else he would completely chicken out.

“Uh, no…why?” Derek replied seeming to slap on the most confused voice he could find.

It’s now or never, Stilinski. You’d better go for it now that you have an opening.

“So I was thinking” great, here comes the nervousness “that maybe you’d want to hang out?” he sputtered

“I know it won’t compare to the birthdays you’ve had with your family and then just your sister in the past, I wouldn’t even dare to compete with those memories, but if you’d like I could come over with pizza and some movies and we could hang out and I promise I won’t talk too much, annoy you too often, or even spoil any of the movies for you” Stiles paused to catch his breath. Why was he even out of breath? He really needs to get his nerves under control.

“But I understand if you don’t want to. It was just a suggestion. I don’t want to over step my boundaries and I definitely don’t want to accidentally soil any of the good memories you have of your family.” He ran out of confidence, this was now about trying to retreat with as minimal damage as possible.

“The brownies were probably enough, maybe even too much. I just noticed your reaction to the brownies and thought you would enjoy them. I’m sorry I was a creep and just left them on your door step, the plan sounded SO much better in my head. Kind of like how it sounded better in my head to ask you to do, with me, the exact same thing you just told me you used to do with your deceased sister…god I’m so stupid. Please don’t come over here and rip my throat out, with your teeth” He was on a roll now. He was full out rambling with no one stopping him, classic Stilinski.

“Shut up, Stiles” Derek said with a chuckle.

“Shutting up” Stiles said fully ready for whatever shit storm was coming next.

“Come over around 8? I’ll eat any pizza topping except mushrooms and you can bring any movie except The Notebook, because that is one horse that Lydia has beaten way past death” Derek said sounding oddly…pleasant? And Stiles…well Stiles only thought he was ready for the shit storm that was coming his way. His mind raced through every possibly response Derek could have given him and somehow him agreeing wasn’t one of them. He wasn’t prepared so he kind of just…silently sat there.
“I’ve never heard you this quiet before, are you alright?” Derek said breaking Stiles out of his daze.

“Yes! Yes, I’m alright. I just didn’t expect you to want to actually hang out with me” Stiles said finally remembering how to get his mouth to form words. “8 o’clock is fine, the movie will be a surprise, and the pizza will be hot.” He figured he’d keep it short. He could freak out all he wanted once he ended the phone call, but now was time to be as cool as a cucumber. He’d start by never using that saying ever again.

“Sounds good to me, thank you again Stiles. I really appreciate the offer and the brownies” the werewolf said sounding completely genuine “and I’m sorry for accusing you of trying to poison me.”

“You’re welcome, Sourwolf…and apology accepted” Stiles was keeping things nice and simple to avoid saying anything that would make Derek change his mind. “I’ll see you later?”

“It’s a date” Derek said before hanging up the phone.

“A DATE?!” Stiles yelled into the phone even though it had went back to its home screen after Derek ended the call. He wasn’t against the idea of going on a date with Derek, he just wasn’t sure if Derek said that because he meant it was an actual date or if he was just the kind of person who says “It’s a date” as more of a casual saying…and for that reason he was now freaking out.

“Get it together Stilinski” the boy said looking at himself in the mirror “whether it’s an actual date or not…we’re still hanging out with the man of our dreams tonight.”

Chapter Text

            “It’s a date” Derek said aloud to himself over and over, trying to figure out what possessed him to use those particular words. Sure he thought Stiles was physically attractive, and contrary to popular belief, Derek was actually quite fond of the spastic ball of energy that is Stiles Stilinski, but the kid clearly just felt bad for him and was trying to make it up to him with a pity party.

            “There’s no way he’s into me” Derek continued to think about this situation out loud thinking he was alone.

            “There’s no way who’s into you?” came Isaac out of literally nowhere. Derek made a mental note to check on how often the beta was hanging out with Peter because Isaac’s newfound stealthy nature was clearly the work of his uncle.

            “Nobody” the alpha said trying to sound annoyed by the younger boy’s presence knowing full well they both were aware that Isaac was his favorite and could never annoy him…no matter how hard he tried. That’s a lie, Isaac definitely possessed the ability to annoy Derek, but it was much easier for Derek to get over it with him than it was with any other pack member.

            “We’re werewolves, Hale” Isaac said matter-of-factly “I could hear that lie a mile away”

            That’s why he was Derek’s favorite. To most people Isaac still came off as the quiet and timid kid that he was before he was turned, but what those people don’t realize is that since he was bitten Isaac became quite the bad ass and wouldn’t hesitate to call Derek out on his shit no matter how hard he tried to shut him down.

            “Just some guy I met at the gym” Derek said trying to keep his heartbeat as even as possible “you don’t know him.”

            “Another lie” Isaac chucked, clearly enjoying making his alpha squirm.

            At this point, Isaac knew the man like the back of his hand so there was no getting out of this without telling the truth.

            “If I tell you I need you to promise that you won’t tell a single soul” he said adding a tiny bit of his alpha voice into his tone to let Isaac know he meant business.

            “Duh” the beta said with a roll of his eyes, because he knew full well that this was yet another stalling tactic of Derek’s.

            “I mean it, Lahey” Derek grumbled knowing he had done all the stalling he could possibly do and if he didn’t spit it out soon Isaac would be on the phone calling Erica to come over and help pull it out of him.

Surprisingly Erica wasn’t as fearless as Isaac when it came to getting their alpha to open up, but Isaacs powers combined with Erica’s was sure to get it out of him pretty quickly. Derek weighed his options, stalling was what he really wanted to do but he also knew that if Erica found out that he was crushing on Stiles it was only a matter of time before the rest of the pack knew and Derek wasn’t having that…so he spilled.

He nervously told Isaac everything he could possibly tell him about the gift he came home to this morning and the phone call that followed. He told him how Stiles’ voice was riddled with nerves all the way up until the call ended. He told him how Stiles picked up that he loved brownies during the pack meeting when Allison brought a batch. He even told him how he slightly opened up to Stiles about his past birthdays. He ended his impromptu speech by telling Isaac how he ended the call by saying “It’s a date” and how he wondered if that was going to make tonight awkward.

“So that’s what he was up to” Isaac mumbled to himself then added “He’s definitely into you” loud enough for Derek to hear.  

“You think so?” Derek said trying to ignore the butterflies growing in his stomach.

“His actions alone today are pretty telling.” Isaac stated.

“Not only did he go out of his way to bake you your favorite dessert, after stealthily figuring out what it was” he chuckled “but he’s also the only pack member who knows when your birthday is even if he probably found it out by having his dad do a background check on you back when he thought you were a murderer.” 

“That doesn’t make him interested it just makes him a good friend…and someone who doesn’t want to get murdered” Derek said pointedly.

It was obvious Stiles cared for him, that Derek could see, but he had a hard time believing that those feelings were anything but platonic…and honestly he had a hard time even believing that. It’s not like Derek had been the friendliest individual on the planet what with the slamming the boy into countless surfaces and saying as little as possible no matter what the situation.

Not to mention that he was pretty sure that Stiles had no idea that Derek himself was also bisexual; the only living people who know are Peter and Isaac. It’s not that Derek is ashamed, it’s just that if anyone else knew he’s sure there would be an endless string of “blind dates” that the pack would try to set him up on. Though knowing Stiles, Derek’s sexual orientation would hardly be a deterrent if he was really into him. He could see it now “ The 10 year turn Derek gay so I can get him to fall in love with me” plan.

“You didn’t let me finish” Isaac said bringing Derek out of his daydream.

“As I was saying, his actions tell that he definitely cares about you” Isaac slowly stated, clearly trying to torture Derek by drawing this out as long as possible.

“We’ve been through this part” Derek huffed growing irrationally impatient with the situation at hand.

What more is there to say? What more does Isaac know? What should he wear tonight? That last question has been weighing on him since the phone call ended. Derek didn’t really have much of a wardrobe. He had many articles of clothing but they were all either dark jeans, dark V-necks, or dark henleys, or leather jackets, but there was more than enough time to go shopping if he needed to…which is why Isaac should hurry up and finish the damn story so he can figure out if he needed to.

“Patience, Hale” Isaac said with a laugh which he quickly stifled once he seen the no-nonsense look on his alpha’s face.

“Okay, he came around some time last week while you were out and asked me what your deal was, and by that he clearly meant “What team does Derek play for?” I guess he picked up on me being your favorite pack member, and that makes me the pack member who is most privy to all of your secrets.” the beta said with a grin so big it almost looked painful.

“And you told him…?” Derek said not even attempting to deny that last accusation because he was too focused on hearing the rest.

“I knew I was your favorite” Isaac gloated.

“You live with me and I tell you everything, it’s painfully obvious…also me being bi isn’t a secret” the alpha said trying not to growl.

“Touché” Isaac said putting that part of the conversation on ice before Derek lost all patience and ripped his throat out

“And I told him that his guess was as good as mine” Isaac added with another smile and a tone that let Derek know he was holding something back.

“What else did you tell him, Lahey?” Derek said as he crossed the room. He had every intention of wrestling with the beta in order to get every ounce of information from him.

“I didn’t say anything else” he said with blatant amusement written all over his face “but I did give him the ol’ wink and the gun to let him know he was on the right track, because seriously Der, I can smell you pining for him even when he’s not around so I figured you needed the help.”

 “I do not” Derek barked out.

It wasn’t his best come back but that’s all he had because what Isaac said was true. Derek would usually deny it, even to himself, but if he was brutally honest with himself for a moment he’d have to admit that he has always had a soft spot for Stiles. He wasn’t madly in love with the guy, but he definitely knew wanted to get to know him better from the first moment he laid eyes on him.

“You do to, and now you have your shot so do us a favor and let yourself enjoy tonight, okay? Don’t make it this end-all-be-all moment, just let yourself enjoy his company and he yours” said Isaac as he cut through Derek’s stream of consciousness with a look that conveyed such sincerity and lacked an ounce of judgment.

“I’ll try” Derek said while staring at the ground sounding so honest and raw.

He’d try, that he was sure of. He knew he’d have some bumps along the way and would have to forcefully, yet metaphorically, rip himself out of his shell in order to do so but he was willing to try. He was tired of feeling like he didn’t deserve happiness and even if a romantic relationship didn’t come from this evening he’d still be making gains with become better friends with Stiles.

“You better…oh, and Derek?” Isaac said putting on his coat and heading for the door, probably headed off to hang out with Scott or another member of the pack.

            “Yeah?” Derek muttered

            “Happy Birthday, Alpha!” said the beta as he was closing the door, but not before shooting Derek the good ol wink and the gun.

Chapter Text

     At 7 o’clock Stiles hopped into his Jeep and headed out. He knew it was way too early to go over to Derek’s but he couldn’t bear to spend another second at home. He decided to stop by the store and pick up a few movie-(date)-night essentials. Sure he would be ordering pizza, and had already baked those brownies for Derek, but Stiles’ opinion on movie night was “there is no such thing as too many snacks” and he firmly stood by it. He also knew there was a high chance that Derek had already destroyed the brownies because as much as the alpha tries to hide it, he has no sense of self-control when it comes to sweets.

     “Popcorn, sour patch kids, soda, and a birthday cake” Stiles said aloud, going over his mental shopping list as he walked into the grocery store. He was still unsure whether or not the birthday cake would be an over kill, but who doesn't love birthday cake?

     As Stiles walks up to the pre-made birthday cake section he realizes that he has no idea what kind of cake Derek likes. EVERYONE loves birthday cake but everyone also has a specific kind of birthday cake that they like… and more importantly, everyone has a specific kind of birthday cake that they don’t like.

     As much as Stiles wanted to hear Derek’s voice again he decided against ruining the surprise by calling him and called probably the only other person in the world who would know Derek’s cake preference, Peter.

     Peter, while still quite the creep, has gotten to a point where not everyone in the pack hates him anymore. Most still keep him at a distance but he’s seen as pack and therefore whenever someone’s in need they know Peter will be there and vice versa, which is why Stiles only slightly hesitated before dialing his number.

     “What now?” Peter answered the phone with an exasperated tone.

     “That’s not the proper way to answer the phone, Uncle Pete” Stiles responded, using the nickname he knew the older werewolf despised.

     “How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that, Stiles? You’re so lucky Derek forbade me from killing you a long time ago. Now what do you want?” Peter growled, giving Stiles the irritated answer that he expected.

     “Why does there have to be a pressing issue for me to ring up a pack mate? Maybe I just wanna sit and chat about our feelings. Doesn’t that sound fun?” Stiles decided to press his luck since the werewolf couldn’t really injure him through the phone.

     “You called me for a reason now spit it out before I hang up, and once I hang up you will be dead to me for the rest of the day, and since I’m assuming you only called me because no one else knows the answer to the question you have I think you should get to the fucking point” Peter said sounding amused with himself, knowing he had just called Stiles’ bluff.

     “You’re no fun” Stiles said with a huff.

     “You’re not ready for my brand of fun, kid. Plus, I don’t need my nephew trying to kill me…again for showing you the ways in which I have fun. Now please ask me whatever trivial question you have about him so I can go have some of that aforementioned fun” Peter said in almost a purr.

     “Why do you always have to take things to creep-town?” Stiles said, ignoring the chill that just went down his spine.

     “Goodbye, Stiles.”

     “Okay! I just wanted to know what kind of cake Derek likes?” he said hoping the werewolf hadn't hung up yet.

     “Why don’t you ask him yourself?” Peter said in a tone that resembled Derek’s patented “you’re weird/I’m confused” tone.

     “If that was an option don’t you think I would have chosen it over having this awkward conversation with you?” Stiles said avoiding the question.

     “I thought you just wanted chat about our feelings, sugar plum? Tell me, how do you feel about my dear nephew?” Peter said sweetly, enjoying every minute of Stiles’ agony.
“Just answer the question, Hale” Stiles said trying to sound as assertive and non-embarrassed as possible.

     “You’re adorable when you’re flustered. Any ways, he doesn’t like cake. Never has. Though I’m pretty sure he’d choke down a piece of anything you had to offer him” Peter said with a chuckle, still very amused with himself.

     “This phone call has turned out to be one of my worst decisions ever, and in the second grade I decided to jump off of my roof to see if I could fly! I’m hanging up now” Stiles exclaimed.

     “Goodbye future nephew in law!” Peter said in a sing-song tone of voice as he hung up.

     So along with Isaac there was now Peter who has led Stiles to believe that Derek just might be into him and usually that would be terrifying for Stiles because as much as he over planned he almost never planned for things to go his way, but this time he has decided to just let himself roll with it. If Derek was as into him as he’s into Derek then he would let this be a win for himself that he would not over analyze.

     After grabbing all of the things on his mental list (minus the cake but plus a box of Junior Mints for Derek), stopping by the movie rental store to pick up a few movies to choose from (even though he had brought a few from home), and ordering an extra-large all meat pizza from his favorite place, Stiles decided there was no more stalling left for him to do. So he headed over to Derek’s.

     At 7:45pm Derek heard the unmistakable sound of Stiles’ Jeep turn into the parking lot of his apartment complex. It had been 45 minutes of hell for Derek, because by 7 o’clock he had been dressed and ready for this, whatever it was, to start. He had to stop himself multiple times from calling Stiles to make sure he was still coming because deep down he still didn’t believe this was real.

     Deep down Derek kept thinking about all the low moments that Stiles was around to see. He kept thinking about all the times he had been a royal douche canoe (Stiles’ words not his) to the boy and yet he didn’t let that scare him off. He continued to come around, he continued to notice things that only a person who was paying special attention would notice, and most importantly he continued to care for the alpha’s wellbeing. Derek didn’t understand it. He didn’t understand why anyone in their right mind would continue to pursue anything with someone who treated them the way Derek had treated Stiles in the past, with someone who had been through and done such awful things in their lives as Derek had, but throughout it all Stiles remained ready and willing to be a part of his life and as much as Derek couldn’t wrap his mind around it, he still appreciated it immensely.

     Three quick knocks on his door took Derek out of the little self-deprecating day dream that he was having and brought him back to reality. Stiles was here. This was the moment he had been waiting for all day. Derek had been nothing but a bundle of nerves all day but somehow in this moment he found himself consumed by an overwhelming sense of calm, and if he was being honest with himself he’d acknowledge that the feeling stemmed from the slightly erratic heartbeat that he could hear through the door, the slightly erratic heartbeat of one Stiles Stilinski.

Chapter Text

     “Are you going to let me in sometime soon or are you just going to stare at me, dude?” Stiles said in a playful yet strained tone because he was carrying way too many things for someone as clumsy as himself to be carrying. It’s a miracle the pizza hadn’t hit the floor at some point during his journey up to Derek’s apartment.

     “Come on in” the werewolf said snapping out of whatever trance he was in.

     “and if you call me dude one more time I will kick you out, but not before I take that pizza from you” Derek added trying to sound annoyed but his tone ended up returning Stiles’ playfulness.

     “Whatever you say…dude” Stiles replied with a smirk as he entered Derek’s apartment, because even if he promised himself to be on his best behavior he wouldn’t be Stiles if he didn’t poke at the alpha every now and again.

     As Stiles walked past Derek the werewolf couldn’thelp but inhale the boys scent just like he would any other time the two were in close quarters. It was something he did upon instinct and he was never sure why aside from the obvious reason which was that Stiles’ scent was one of the most pleasant scents he had ever encountered in his entire life. Even more pleasant than brownies baking in the oven and to Derek that was the best scent in the world… well it was up until this Stilinski kid stumbled into his life. Stile’s scent was something that he could never describe properly because any words he came up with just didn’t do it justice. After spending hours each night (if ever asked, he’d deny staying up late at night thinking of the right words) Derek had settled on cinnamon, fresh cut grass, and a freshly extinguished fire to be the top three descriptors that even came close… the last one being the thing that that scared him yet interested him the most.

     “So… I stopped by the store on the way here and grabbed some snacks” Stiles said trying to break the ice.

     “You didn’t have to do that, Stiles. The brownies and the pizza are well enough” Derek replied and immediately kicked himself for not just simply saying thank you.

     “Sure, like you actually have any of those brownies left” Stiles said with a huff of laughter.

     “There’s…there’s a few left” Derek stammered, embarrassed yet impressed at Stiles’ ability to know him so well. “I figured it would be only right to share them with the person who made them for me.”

     “Don’t worry about it, dude” Stiles said clearly not caring one bit that Derek hated being called that. Though if Derek was being honest he’d admit that he used to hate being called dude, but now he doesn’t mind it… but only if it’s Stiles who’s calling him it, everyone else gets a death glare with actual heat behind it.

     “Plus, half of the pizza and snacks are for me. I may look like a skinny kid who eats nothing” Stiles said patting his stomach in a way that made the bottom of it rise to show a sliver of pale skin just above his dark jeans which turned Derek’s knees into jello. “but I assure you I can give you a run for your money when it comes to food… even with your super werewolf appetite:”

     “We’ll see about that” Derek said with a smirk, and as if on cue his stomach let out an audible growl.

     “We’d better get to it, it sounds like you’re just a tad bit hungry” Stiles said as he walked into the living room. Usually the living room was off limits when food was involved but he figured tonight was an exception since this wasn’t a pack meeting and Scott wasn’t around to spill soda all over Derek’s couch.

     Derek watched as Stiles set down the pizza and started to empty the contents of the store bags and onto his coffee table. There was something about the way that Stiles made himself at home that Derek loved. He knew it was from the countless pack meetings that Stiles attended, but to have him there without the other pack members or without the stress from having some lunatic out to kill them was nice. He liked knowing that the only reason Stiles was there was to hang out with him. He didn’t like the fact that he was dangerously close to blushing while having these thoughts, so time to change the subject.

     “So” Derek said clearing his throat, and more importantly his thoughts “what are we watching?”

     “That’s up to you, big guy” Stiles replied “I brought two movies from home and stopped at Family Video on the way here and picked up two more. I clearly couldn’t decide, so I’m leaving the burden of picking one to you. Have at it!”

     After briefly skimming through the selection before him Derek decided to go with The Avengers not because he was a super hero buff, but because heard Stile’s sigh of disappointment when he sat the movie down to examine the other three. The boy clearly had the movie he wanted to see picked out he just wanted Derek to want to watch it too…so Derek, being the complete gentleman he is pretended to pick it all on his own.

     “Let’s go with this superhero one, it doesn’t look too boring.”

     “You bet your ass it isn’t boring! You’re going to love it. No sit, eat, and enjoy the epicness that will soon come your way.” Stiles said nearly faceplanting as he ran over to start up the movie.

     Two hours twenty-two minutes and a surprise box of Junior Mints later Derek could honestly say that Stiles had been right. The movie was anything but boring, but Derek could also honestly say that it was Stiles himself that made the movie watching experience worthwhile. The movie itself was pretty good but the way Stiles would light up and spew out random blurbs of information about each character throughout the movie was both adorable and impressive. Derek loved seeing the passion in the boy’s eyes when he spoke about each character as if he had personally had a hand in writing their backstory. It made the werewolf curious about what other topics would elicit that same response. He could picture himself curled up on the couch on a lazy Sunday with the boy listen to him ramble on about any and everything that came to his mind. Stiles thought that his ramblings were an annoyance to everyone around him but he was wrong. Derek loved to hear the boy speak. He loved tuning out all of the other outside noises and just focusing on what the boy had to say no matter how trivial the sentence was. That’s the reason Derek hated when the boy spoke, it took him off his game. It lulled him into a sense of security at times when he couldn’t risk being distracted. Now, here in his home, on his birthday, he was as safe as can be so he let himself revel in the sound of Stiles voice. It was a moment he never wanted to end.

     “Are you even listening to me?” Stiles said with a smile on his face.

     “Sorry, I zoned out there for a second.” Derek said hoping the boy wouldn’t want further details of where his mind went.

     “No worries, you’ve lasted longer than Scott ever has. He would have told me to shut up way before the movie even started. The Stiles movie watching experience isn’t for everyone I guess.” Stiles said with a somewhat sad chuckle that rubbed Derek the wrong way.

     “I enjoyed The Stiles movie watching experience” Derek said in almost a whisper.

     “What’d you say?” Stiles asked, genuinely unaware of what the werewolf said.

     “I said I enjoyed myself. The Stiles movie watching experience isn’t too bad. In fact, it’s rather informative. Without you I would have never noticed that Captain America was the owner of the most perfect ass in the world.” Derek said mocking Stiles.

     “Hey, I had to make sure you weren’t too busy ogling Black Widow to notice. You straight boys have a one track mind.” Stiles said, clearly testing the waters.

     “Now who said I was straight?” Derek replied with what he hoped came off as a mischievous smile. “I am completely capable of ogling them both at the same time.”

     “Oh buddy, wouldn’t stand a chance in a threesome with those two. They’d eat you alive. I’d definitely pay to see that…not that I’m some perv who wants to see you have sex! I mean, I’m sure it’s a lovely…I’m sure it’s a perfectly fine sight. What I’m trying to say is…” Stiles answered with a blush that spread wider as he spoke.

     “You totally want to watch me have sex, don’t you Stiles?” Derek said with a wink, enjoying being the one who was doing the teasing for once.

     “Oh god, never wink at me again!” Stiles said spitting out his soda. “For a second there you looked just like Peter. I never truly believed you were blood relatives, but after that I am convinced. I just had flashbacks to the phone conversation I had with him earlier today.”

     “You talked to Peter today?” Derek said becoming slightly defensive, if Peter was involved in this somehow then it had to be a trick. Was Stiles trying to make a fool of him on his birthday? He seemed so genuine. He thought the boy was really interested in him. How could he be so stupid? Of course Stiles wasn’t into him, this was just one of those practical jokes the pack played on each other that Derek never understood. Great, just perfect.

     “Whoa there, can you please tell your eyebrows to calm down?” Stiles said with a nervous laugh.

     “What was this phone conversation about?” Derek said in a tone that lacked any playfulness.

     “Well... if I tell you, you have to promise not to judge me too hard.” Stiles replied. He seemed to be embarrassed with whatever information was coming next.

     “Just tell me, Stiles” Derek said, still not letting his suspicions die.

     “Okay, so while I was at the store grabbing snacks I had this great idea to grab a cake, but I had no idea while kind of cake you liked. More importantly I had no idea if there was a kind of cake you hated and buying someone a cake they hate on their birthday is about as horrible as it gets. Once Jackson bought Lydia a chocolate cake for her birthday and she burst out in tears the second she cut into the cake and seen it was chocolate. There hasn’t been a year since then that she hasn’t reminded Jackson of his failures.” Stiles paused to take a breath.

     “So there I was at the store standing in the bakery section with no idea what to do. I would have called any other member of the pack, but I remembered how you didn’t even know it was your own birthday so I assumed none of the other pack members knew it was either. And if they don’t know something as simple as your birthday then I surely don’t trust them with something as important as your favorite cake flavor. So my best choice was Peter. Man, I never thought there would be a day when I’d say that sentence. He’s family which meant hopefully he’s been around you long enough to at least notice which kind of cake sent you into a rage.”

     “It’s just cake, Stiles” Derek said.

     “I will not dignify that with a response” Stiles turned up his nose

     “So I called him and asked him and he replied that you’re a weirdo who hates cake, he said some creepy stuff as usual, and then I hung up on him. End of story.”

     “That’s it?” Derek said, confused. All Stiles wanted to do was buy him a cake. All Stiles wanted to do was add yet another kind gesture on top of the already too kind gesture that was hanging out with the werewolf on his birthday and all Derek could do was assume the boy had an ulterior motive. What was wrong with him?

     “Yes, that’s it. What did you think we talked about, world domination?” Stiles said with a laugh.

     “I just…” Derek paused, he had to be honest. He had to let Stiles into his thought process. “I’m just not sure why you’re doing all of this.”
Stiles stared blankly at him.

     “Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate all of this. This has been the best day I’ve had in quite a long time, but I just don’t get it. I am constantly grumpy, I slam you into things, and I barely speak. I just don’t understand why you’ve taken so much time out of your day for me, and the only rational reason I can come up with is that this is some kind of practical joke you and the pack like to play on each other.”

     “How in the world does being nice to you equate to a practical joke?” Stiles said matching his tone of confusion.

     “I don’t know… you get me to like you so you guys can laugh about me behind my back like you do with Isaac” Derek said with a shrug. He was looking down at the floor, not wanting to make eye contact with Stiles after he kind of admitting that he liked the boy.

     “First of all, Isaac knows we laugh at him. Scott knows too, but neither of them knows that we know that both of them are into each other but are just too stupid to notice. Sure we could help them out, but where’s the fun in that?” Stiles said matter-of-factly.

     “Second of all?” Derek said, really wanting to hear what was next.

     “Second of all, you suck at noticing when someone has a crush on you.” Stiles said.

     “A crush? You have a crush on me?” Derek said because could this really be happening? Could Stiles really have just come out and said that he has a crush on Derek?

     “I paid close enough attention to you to notice that you have a love for brownies. I then went and made you brownies from scratch on your birthday. Oh, let’s not forget that I am, in fact, the only member of your pack that actually knows that today is your birthday. Sure, those are all things a good friend would do, but I don’t wanna just be your good friend.” Stiles said, grabbing Derek’s hand.

     “Sure you have you’re an asshole who has his grouchy moments and sometimes aren’t aware that I bruise easily and sometimes have the speech pattern of a caveman” Stiles laughed “but beyond all that you’re passionate, you’re brave, you have taken in a pack of misfit wolves and have trained them to be warriors. You’re more than just some grouchy asshole. You’re my grouchy asshole”

     “Oh, you think I’m going to want to be yours after you’ve called me an asshole like five times?” Derek teased, knowing full well that Stiles had him hook line and sinker.
     

     “Hey, what about all the nice things I said?! Stiles said flailing his arms in order to make his point.

     “I don’t know, all I heard was asshole asshole asshole.” Derek said wanting to see just how long he could stand teasing the boy.

     “This is supposed to be a special heart filled moment that would rival the stuff shown on The Hallmark Channel, and here you are ruining it. You’re ruining our moment!” Stiles said catching on to Derek’s games.

     “We’ve never done things by the book now have we? I mean we met each other after my uncle bit a chunk out of your best friend’s stomach and now we’re here on my couch confessing our feelings for each other after I accused you of trying to poison me just hours ago.” Derek said as he relived Stiles and his’ story in his head.
It was true, they had never done things normally. They were the two least likely people in the world to cross paths let alone end up together. They were oftentimes the polar opposites of one another yet somehow when they got together things just seemed to work. There had been countless times that Derek had saved Stiles and Stiles had done the same in ways that no other member of the pack would have been able to. It was something about the two together that seemed to have the stamped approval of whatever god was in charge of fate, and Derek dare not question it.

     “As much as I love to watch the adorable faces you make when your mind goes off to whatever planet it goes off to I’d rather your mind come back to earth so you can hurry up and kiss me.” Stiles said as he swatted Derek in the back of the head.

     Derek took a few seconds to stare at Stiles. He had taken many stolen glances at the boy but it was so rare to be able to look at him so openly. He knew Stiles was beautiful, but in this moment he was completely taken aback by how absolutely perfect he looked. He started with his eyes, those whiskey-colored works of art. .Usually they bounced from object to object taking in as much information as possible, but right now they were focused right on Derek. He stared at the randomly placed moles and freckles that dotted boys face daring him to picture what other places on his body were kissed with those small brown dots. He went on to stare at the boy’s adorable button nose, just as perfect as everything else on the boy. Finally he landed on Stiles’ lips. For as long as Derek could remember he had dreamed of this moment. There’s something about the way that Stiles’ lips were always moving that made Derek want to capture them with his own and make them move in a completely different way. He dreamed about how sweet they would taste and how soft they would feel on his tongue. He dreamed about applying just the right pressure with his teeth in order to make them flush as red as the boy’s favorite hoodie. He dreamed and he dreamed and he dreamed, but he never thought this moment would actually happen and yet here he was.
Derek raised his hand and placed it on Stiles cheek, half to get even closer to him and half to make sure he was really there. At this point, a wolfsbane induced hallucination was still a more realistic scenario than the one at hand. He felt the boy relax into his touch, this was actually happening. Derek took one more second to look into Stiles’ eyes before he leaned in, pressing their lips together.

     It was as if a fire ignited with their touch. The kissed started off timid and soft but it quickly grew into something much more intense. The taste of Stiles’ lips was nothing like Derek imagined. They were as sweet as honey and the taste of them alone made Derek’s entire body tingle. He was lost in the sensations the kiss was creating for him. He never wanted this moment to end.

After a few minutes of pure heaven Stiles pulled away and gave Derek a look that told him that he felt just as drunk on the raw emotion of their first kiss as Derek did. The blush on Stiles cheeks matched the redness of his flushed lips and just staring at the boy filled Derek with the sense of pride. He was the reason the boy was smiling like he didn’t have a care in the world, and he loved knowing that.

     “So…that was fun” Stiles said, clearly not knowing what else to say.

     “Yes, yes it was” Derek said, returning the speechlessness

     “So what does this mean?” Stiles said cutting straight to the point.
     

     “It means whatever you want it to mean. I can’t promise that I won’t have my grumpy days, and I probably will always have the ‘speech pattern of a caveman’ but I promise to try and be the best caveman I can be” Derek said, hoping it was good enough.

     “I don’t want you to be anything you’re not. I don’t want to start things off with an idea that I want you to be something other than the person you are, Derek. Hopefully in time you will find reasons to be less grumpy, but other than that I wouldn’t dream of changing anything about you.” Stiles said looking Derek right in the eye.

     “As far as what I want, I want to see where this goes. I know we both have our own demons we deal with on a daily basis, but I think we’d do well together. So Derek Hale, will you be my boyfriend?” Stiles said in a completely serious tone.

     “Your boyfriend, eh? I think I could handle that.” Derek said forcing himself to use more than one word at a time.

     “You think? You’re truly horrible with words, Hale. What have I gotten myself into? Stiles said as he repositioned himself so he was sitting in Derek’s lap facing him.
     

     “You should have never made me brownies” Derek said reaching up to pull the boy in for another kiss.

     “Best decision of my life. Happy Birthday!” Stiles said as he leaned in to kiss his sourwolf.

The End