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Stiles wasn’t an idiot. He wasn’t.
Okay, sometimes he was.
But then there was this one stupid alpha werewolf that Stiles would deny to his grave that he had feelings for, even though he just might. Because Stiles was the side-character. Stiles didn’t get the guy or the girl. And from the moment he’d looked at Derek and realize ‘oh’, Stiles had decided he was going to never say a word.
Because the last thing he wanted to do was take a good thing and make it sour.
Stiles was pretty sure he wasn’t that smooth.
It wasn’t like he was a terrible liar or anything, but werewolves, man. Werewolves with their unfair super sniffers, their unfair hearing, and their unfair unfairness. Nothing about them was catering to the rules. Stiles had one minor heart palpitation when Derek came out of his bedroom with his shirt off and Erica refused to ever let it go.
Maybe it was just Erica. It was all Erica’s fault. Man, Stiles hated her sometimes.
“I’m just saying,” Erica said, grinning at him from the couch. “Every time he has his shirt off, you have a heart attack.”
“Shut up,” Stiles said, glaring. “You’re in a room full of werewolves right now, oh my god.”
“Derek’s not here,” Erica said, waving a hand through the air. “Isaac has been complaining for days that there’s no good food around, so Derek finally went grocery shopping. I think it was either that or he was going to kill the beta.”
“A lost opportunity,” Stiles grumbled. Erica’s grin widened.
“So, Derek.”
“Would you drop it already? It’s been months.”
“Can I help plan the wedding?”
“I hate you,” Stiles said, covering his face with his hands. “I swear to god, I had a minor heart attack when he came out of nowhere shirtless once. That is not a wedding proposal you terrorist pup. That’s a normal bisexual-panic reaction.”
“So you’re not in love with our alpha.”
Stiles just glared and didn’t say a word. See? Stupid werewolf super-hearing and his inability to lie. Ever. Or appreciate the view when Derek walked around in nothing but sweatpants. Erica cackled and he glared harder, situating himself better in his seat.
“I hate you sometimes.”
“You won’t when I totally set you two up.”
Stiles’s blood went cold. He sat forward, pointing a crooked finger at her, and Erica’s laugher died away. “You will not say a word, pup, you understand that? I need to not mess up a good thing and right now, a good thing is Derek not wanting to always rip my throat out. I like that asshole’s abs, but I do not love him.”
Erica was completely silent now, her face pale and eyes wide. But she wasn’t looking at him. She was looking straight over Stiles’s shoulder and he went stock-still, his heart stopping. It took of all Stiles’s willpower to force himself to turn around and when he did, he saw Derek standing in the doorway with a couple bags of groceries.
And he was just… standing there. Silently looking at Stiles with an unreadable expression.
Stiles swallowed hard. “Hey, Derek.”
The man didn’t say a word. Just set the groceries down, turned around, and walked right back out. Stiles’s heart stuttered and he stared at the empty doorway for a moment.
Then he shot Erica a withering look. She dropped her eyes and Stiles shoved himself up, stumbling toward the door. The hallway was empty and Stiles made for the stairs. By the time he stumbled out of the loft though, the parking lot was empty. There was no Comaro in sight.
Stiles’s heart sunk into his shoes. He swallowed hard.
He’d just soured a good thing.
-
Stiles didn’t sleep that night. He tried to, he really did, but then he kept getting panicked. About Derek, about how the idiot dealt with emotions, and about whether or not Stiles could ever show his face up at the loft again.
He didn’t know what was worse. Derek heard him and didn’t realize he was lying, or Derek heard him and did. The man either thought Stiles hated him, or he knew Stiles loved him and was disgusted by that.
Stiles didn’t know which was worse.
Groaning, he dropped onto the edge of his bed and thumbed out his phone. He stared at the screen for a moment before unlocking it and scrolling to Derek’s name.
He couldn’t call him, could he? The day Derek had shoved a phone number into his hand and growled ‘for emergencies only’ Stiles had nearly had a heart attack. So far, he’d only used it to call when he was about to die, when one of the pack was about to die, or… well actually, that about summed it up.
Stiles had followed the rules. And his anxious feelings didn’t count as an emergency, did they?
No, definitely not. Stiles wasn’t going to make Derek madder.
Then he pressed the man’s name.
Stiles panicked for a moment, dropping his phone onto the bed and scrambling way. It was like two in the morning, he had no right to call Derek. Stiles was a side-kick. The idiot best friend of the True Alpha. Derek was going to come over and rip his throat out for interrupting his Growly-Sleep.
But when Derek’s voice came through, he didn’t sound angry. “Stiles?”
Stiles stared at his phone for a moment, as if it might grow arms, legs, and come for him. Derek said his name again and hesitantly, he moved back over, picking it up.
“Uh, that was a butt dial?”
“At two in the morning.”
“Please don’t come over to rip my throat out.”
For a moment, his only answer was silence. Then there was the sound of his window opening and Stiles yelped and Derek pulled himself inside. He dropped his phone, stumbled back, and Derek quickly raised his hands, his own phone still on the call.
“Stiles, I’m not going to rip your throat out.”
“Were you just sitting outside of my window?”
Derek looked at him for a long moment and then shook his head. “No.”
“Really.”
The tips of the man’s ears turned red. “I was nearby.”
“Like, right outside of my window.”
Derek turned around like he was going to leave and Stiles leaped forward, catching the man’s sleeve. Derek froze and Stiles’s breaths caught as he quickly let go again. When the man turned back toward him, his face was unreadable.
“I can go, Stiles.”
“... Do you want to go?”
Derek didn’t say a word. Stiles swallowed hard.
“I’m really sorry, dude.”
“For what.”
“Earlier?
Derek raised an eyebrow and Stiles wet his lips. He didn’t want to say it. Derek wasn’t actually going to make him say it, was he? After a long moment of silence, he internally cursed.
“I don’t just like you for your abs.”
Derek’s eyebrows climbed higher. Like annoying, judgemental caterpillars. Stiles frowned, folding his arms over his chest.
“Usually.”
“So you’re not in love with me.”
Stiles froze, his heart leaping into his throat. A dozen excuses came to mind but suddenly, he couldn’t form words. Stiles just shook his head and started to back away but Derek caught his wrist. Carefully, gently. The man’s grey-green eyes searched Stiles’s face and he still shook his head.
“Not at all.”
“No?”
“No. I totally hate you.”
“You know I can hear you lie, don’t you?”
“Nothing about werewolf abilities cater to the rules, you know.”
Derek just rolled his eyes and let go. Stiles swallowed hard, retreating one more step back, before going nervously still. He could still get out of this, right? Clearly, Derek didn’t totally hate his guts. Stiles could work with that! He just needed to figure out a way to lie to a werewolf.
That was easier said than done.
“Stiles,” Derek said softly and Stiles shook his head, raising his hands. The last thing he wanted was pity or an apology or anything like that.
“Look, dude, you don’t need to let me down or anything. It’s not a thing! I was in love with Lydia Martin for a good chunk of my childhood and totally got over that. Eventually. I can get over this too! Just…” he broke off, heart dropping. “Just don’t, Derek.”
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t let this be what ruined a good thing.”
The man studied him for a moment. Then Derek moved forward, hand touching underneath Stiles’s chin, thumb touching his lower lip. Stiles froze and then gentle lips brushed against his.
Stiles made a startled noise, his brain short-circuiting. Derek kissed him carefully. Giving him an out. But the second Stiles’s brain was back online, he was kissing the man back. Harder, with more want. Because he could deny that he’d ever fallen in love with Derek Hale all that he wanted, but it would always be a lie.
Derek’s other hand cupped the back of his neck and then carded up through his hair. Stiles let his eyes flutter closed, making a strangled noise of agreement as Derek’s grip tightened a little.
He’d totally never imaged it, but Derek kissed exactly like he’d always thought. Smelled exactly like he’d always thought. Tasted exactly like he’d always thought.
Stiles was so totally head-over-heels.
“You were definitely sitting outside my window waiting,” Stiles said in a daze, the moment Derek pulled away. The man rolled his eyes, but a fond smile tugged at the corners of his lips. Stiles tipped his chin upward, studying the man’s face. “You were, weren’t you?”
“Shut up.”
“Because you so totally love me too.”
Derek’s face softened. He moved closer, thumb brushing over Stiles’s cheek, and nodded. Stiles’s heart skipped a beat. “Maybe I do.”
“Wait, seriously?”
“No, not at all.”
“Asshole,” Stiles said. He tried to hit him in the chest but Derek just smirked. When the man kissed him again, Stiles totally didn’t bite at his lower lip, just to be petty. But then Derek growled and a shiver raced down Stiles’s spine. He might have done it again, just to hear that sound.
Because Stiles wasn’t an idiot. He wasn’t.
Okay, sometimes he was.
But if being an idiot earned him soft kisses and sexy growls at two in the morning, Stiles was so for it. He could be an idiot for the rest of his life. Because he hadn’t ruined a good thing.
Apparently, he’d just made it better.