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Just for a little while
“I drunkenly tried to fight you and knocked myself out but you were kind enough to take care of me till I woke up.”
Everything is blurry, Derek think as he throws back another beer. He just needs to get a bit drunk, for now. He needs to get drunk tonight.
He got fired from his job, for fuck’s sake.
Julia turned out to be Jennifer – or was it the other way around – and took off with his car.
And he just bought an engagement ring.
He needs to get drunk right now.
Because tomorrow morning – well, early afternoon – he’s expected at the monthly family dinner and they will ask about it.
Maybe if he’s drunk enough, he’ll be too sick and have an excuse not to go.
He’s pretty sure Laura is going to announce being pregnant, and Cora is bringing her brand new – I just graduated from Harvard Law – boyfriend to meet the family.
He orders another drink, scotch on the rocks, and nurses the glass in his hand before pouring it down his throat and deciding that he’s definitely drunk enough.
His decision is confirmed when he stands up and the world turns for a second before turning – more or less – back to normal.
He finds the door and staggers outside, bumping into someone who throws him a worried look.
“Dude, are you okay?” he asks, he has really nice eyes. Not like Jennifer – Julia, who the fuck cares. Her eyes were dark and cold. He should’ve known sooner.
“Fuck off” he says sluggishly, hoping he sounds a lot tougher than he looks, “Just leave me alone.”
“Are you okay to get home, though?” the man asks, clearly concerned – and Derek really doesn’t know why. Then again, with the amount of alcohol he has consumed, there’s a lot he doesn’t know anymore.
“Mind your own fucking business” he replies, stepping forward to throw out a punch and losing his balance when suddenly –
He blinks slowly.
Fuck, his head hurts.
“You back?” someone asks, and his head hurts even more, “You took a pretty bad fall there. Could’ve split your head open.”
“Ouch” he lifts his hand and touches his head. Yup, that’s definitely blood.
“Ouch indeed” the man smiles brightly – fuck, he’s gorgeous, “Ready to get up?”
“I don’t want to” he pouts, closing his eyes, “Just leave me be.”
“No can do, man” he smiles again, “I called an ambulance for you. You need to get up.”
“Just for a little while” he sighs, the world’s balancing out for a millisecond before becoming blurry again.
“That bad, huh?” the man asks, sounding empathic.
“My girlfriend left me” he says slowly, “With my car.”
“Okay, that’s pretty bad” the man agrees, Derek’s vaguely aware he’s holding Derek’s hand – checking his pulse?
“I just bought an engagement ring” he complains, “And the car was new, bought it last week.”
“What a fucking bitch” the man shakes his head, he seems to mean it. Derek agrees. She is a total bitch.
“I also got fired” he continues, “Downsizing due to crisis.”
“You got anything good going for you?” he asks, Derek shakes his head – at least he thinks he does. He gets dizzy and stops trying to shake his head.
“I got nothing to lose” he sighs, the man strokes a strand of hair out of his eyes.
“Look on the bright side” he smiles, Derek gives him a confused look, “You got nothing to lose.”
Derek snorts, still feeling slightly light headed as he hears the ambulance siren approach.
“You feeling better?” the man asks, his hand on Derek’s head.
“You’re really pretty” he mutters, “What’s your name.”
“You’re really drunk. And my name is Stiles” the man – Stiles replies.
“Stiles. That’s a weird name” Derek smiles, noticing the EMT kneeling down next to him.
“Rude” Stiles says, Derek pouts.
“I’m sorry” he says, “Please don’t leave me. Stay?”
He grabs Stiles’s hand and squeezes is tightly before whispering, “I really don’t like hospitals” and glancing at the ambulance as he’s loaded onto a stretcher.
“Can I ride with?” he asks the EMT, the man nods and Stiles smiles down at Derek.
“I’ll be right by your side” Stiles says, “How about you tell me your name.”
“Derek” he says, looking into Stiles bright eyes, “Thank you for staying with me even though I tried to punch you.”
“You can thank me by letting me take you on a date when you get out of the hospital” Stiles says, Derek smiles again.
“Okay” he smiles, “You seem a lot nicer than my ex.”
“I promise I won’t steal your car” Stiles smiles, and Derek snorts.
“Way nicer than my ex” he says with a smile, “Prettier too.”