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Stiles hadn’t been able to sleep ever since they got rid of the Nogitsune. He was plagued by nightmares of what happened. He woke up panicked and sweaty. It took him way too long to get back to sleep, only for him to just have another nightmare.
So, he just started staying up until he was so exhausted he didn’t have dreams or nightmares. The bags under his eyes were permanent and he had to have a continuous coffee supply to get him through the day.
But, it wasn’t enough. Soon enough, he started hallucinating his nightmares in the day. His nightmares leapt from his dreams and into his life. He couldn’t escape his nightmares, no matter what he did.
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Stiles had fallen asleep during a pack meeting in Derek’s loft. Derek covered him with a blanket, ushering everyone else out of the loft. He was worried about the teen and didn’t want to risk waking him. He simply turned the lights out and went into his room.
When a dark figure jumped out and grabbed him, Stiles woke to the sound of his own hoarse scream. His forehead was beaded with sweat, and his clothes and sheets were completely soaked through. In the darkness, the only things he was aware of are: the chills rattling his entire body and the hoarse wheezing of his worn-out lungs. Without thinking, he cried out Derek's name in the night. He yelled again. And again.
"What’s wrong, Stiles?" Derek flipped on the table lamp and squinted, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. It's all Stiles could manage to shake his head, raising two trembling hands towards Derek. He whispered Derek's name again, tears trickling down his cheeks. In two swift steps, Derek gathered a shivering Stiles into his arms and held him tightly, stroking his soaked hair and whispering comforting words in his ear.
“Shhhhh. I know you’re scared. It’s okay. I’ve gotcha,” He murmured as Stiles curled even closer to his chest.
After a few moments, Stiles shuddered, the sweat wicking all the heat from his body. Derek helped him slip out of the soaked clothes and wrapped him in a blanket before leading him down the hall to his own bedroom.
“Don’t you worry, Stiles. We’ll get you warmed up again. We will, at least, get you feeling drier, which will help out with those chills. No one likes soaked clothes, I can tell you that right now. Did I ever tell you…”
Stiles leaned heavily against the wall and dozed as Derek chattered on, and was only barely aware of Derek slipping dry, warm clothes back on him and helping him to bed. Derek smoothed down Stiles’ damp hair, and Stiles slid his fingers around Derek’s wrist.
“Stay?” He whispered, pleading.
Derek smiled and went around the bed, nestling himself under the blanket. He wrapped his arms around Stiles as he pulled his head to his chest. Stiles snuggled into Derek and, for a moment, neither of them said anything.
“Sor….Sorry,” He stammered out, not looking up at him.
“For what?” Derek asked.
“For making you…”
Derek sighed and hugged him closer.
“Stiles, you aren’t making me do anything. I understand the nightmares and feeling like you are to blame for something that happened. I’ve been there. For now, sleep. We will talk in the morning. I will even let you ask me whatever questions you have floating around in that ADHD brain of yours.”
It didn’t take long for Stiles to fall asleep, his head resting over Derek’s heart. The slow beat of the Alpha’s heart made him feel safe, and he drifted off into the first dreamless sleep he had in a while.
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Derek stuck to what he said. The next morning, he made Stiles breakfast and let him ask as many questions as he wanted. Most were more related, and what it was like growing up as a wolf.
“The touch thing,” Stiles said, taking a bite of the eggs that had been set in front of him.
“What about it?”
“I’ve seen you do it to the Betas, Peter, and myself, but never to Scott or Lydia. What is it and why do you do it?”
Derek turned and leaned against the counter.
“Scent marking is a big part of pack mentality. It calms Betas and it makes my wolf calm since it knows that I have a pack. I don’t scent mark Scott or Lydia because they have expressed that they don’t want to be a part of my pack.”
“They have?” Stiles questioned, genuine confusion on his face.
Derek nodded.
“If you don’t want me to…”
“I don’t mind it. It calms me down, which is something that most people can’t do. My dad might ask you how you did it since he’s been trying for years.”
Derek gave him a small smile and turned back to cooking. Stiles was lost in thought for a moment, eating. He was going to look into some stuff, maybe ask Peter about some other stuff.
“Any more questions?” Derek asked, glancing back at him.
“I know that werewolves are not wolves, but you have a lot of the same tendencies as wolves. So, do you have mates?”
Derek tried not to react, looking down at the pan of pancakes that he was making. He needed a brief moment to compose himself before turning to answer.
“According to Peter, we do. Supposedly, our wolf will pull us to the person that is meant to be our anchor, the one person who can pull us back when the wolf is too close. My parents were mates, according to Peter, and I can tell, looking back on them.”
Stiles nodded, his eyes lighting up when he saw the chocolate chip pancakes that were sitting on the stove.
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Stiles took a deep breath, making his way into Derek’s building. He had been doing a lot of research since their conversation, mostly on the nights where he couldn’t sleep. He had asked Peter some questions that he needed some clarification on. One question, in particular, had made the older man laugh.
“Stiles?” Derek questioned, pulling the sliding door open.
“Am I your mate?” Stiles asked, looking directly into the older man’s face.
Derek looked surprised, taking a step back.
“What?” He stumbled out.
“Am I your mate, Derek Hale? Everything that I can find, every book and article, told me about the way that Alpha wolves treat their mate. The more I read, the more I could see the similarities between that and how you treat me. So, I ask again, am I your mate?”
Derek sighed, holding a hand out for Stiles. The teen reached out and took his hand, letting Derek pull him closer.
“Do you want the answer, Stiles? Are you sure that is what you want?” Derek asked, looking into Stiles’ amber eyes.
Stiles nodded.
“Don’t lie to me, Derek. You are the only one who has never lied to me,” Stiles whispered.
Derek sighed, lifting his free hand to rub his wrist against the side of Stiles’ neck. The teen sighed, closed his eyes, and tilted his head to give him more space. Derek couldn’t help the happy sound he made, a direct reflection of the sound his wolf made.
“Yes, you are my mate,” He whispered.
Stiles opened his eyes, looking at Derek. He decided to throw caution to the wind and leaned forward to press his lips against Derek’s. The wolf sighed, returning the kiss. He wrapped his arms tightly around him, holding him close to his body. When they finally separated, Derek rested his head against Stiles’.
“Wow, I should have done that when you pinned me to the wall last week.”
Derek laughed at the comment, making Stiles smile. For the first time since he discovered the supernatural, he knew that he was going to be okay.