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The front door is locked, the lights are off, a couple of windows have been opened, and everything seems still for a moment.
Derek falls onto his back on the couch. He closes his eyes, props his hands behind his head, and exhales a little. Finally. Peace and quiet. It’s been a rough week. Between the latest bad supernatural guys in town, the bullies that had been bothering Stiles (not that he’d ever admit it), and the general drama that Jackson brings to the pack, Derek hadn’t had a moment alone in forever.
The only reason Derek even thought he stood a chance at quietness tonight is because everyone’s headed out on dates.
And yeah, that includes Stiles, which bums Derek out. But he can’t stop the guy from living his life. Stiles is human. He deserves a human boyfriend. That’s just how it is. Derek isn’t going to dwell on it though. He knew it would never happen with Stiles; he’d accepted that when he’d realized he’d grown feelings for him.
Still. Despite the fact that his crush is on a date with Danny, (who, Derek can’t even hate because he’s such a good guy) Derek is going to do everything he can to enjoy tonight. Scott’s taking Allison out to the new restaurant on Front Street. Erica and Boyd decided to have a romantic night in. Danny and Stiles are hitting up Jungle together. Lydia and Jackson are doing fuck-knows-what while Liam and Hayden are going to the new Marvel movie. And Stiles told Derek that he overheard Malia and Kira discussing their first date.
He wonders if he should feel weird being the single guy in the pack. It never really felt like it though. Besides, Isaac, Cora, Tracy, and Alicia aren’t seeing anyone. It’s not as though he was the only single guy.
But Derek does need a break from the couples. Lately, Pack Meetings had become a little suffocating with all of the touching, kissing, and flirting. All of the stuff he wish he could do with Stiles; the stuff he’s been wishing for since Stiles’ summer before going off to college.
Really though, Derek should’ve known that the quiet wouldn’t last longer than an hour. Dammit, he should’ve seen it coming.
There’s a knock on his door and he goes completely still. His eyes pop open at the second knock.
"Derek?”
He frowns, recognizing the voice.
“Der--Derek, I know you’re home--and if you could come open the door...well, that’d be real swell.”
Derek sits upright on the couch. Kira? He listens for her heartbeat. She’s freaking out. Why does she smell like sadness and anxiety? Derek jumps off the couch and jogs to the front door. It takes him a few seconds to unlock his door and when he finally does, a teary-eyed Kira lifts her head to look at him.
“Swell?” he blurts. Derek tries not to wince at himself. Kira shows up, ready to cry, on his doorstep on a Friday night and all he can do is question her word choice. Fuck.
Kira’s lips curl a little bit into a smile, and then her face crumbles. She wipes at some tears and Derek steps back. She rushes in, and hovers in the living room for a moment. He doesn’t know what to do, so he shuts the door and waits for a cue from her.
She turns to look at him, biting her bottom lip to keep herself from seriously crying. Then she shrugs and the tears flow a bit harder.
Derek walks across the floor to pull her in his arms. He’s seen the others do this before. Erica had once started crying because it’d been her late mother’s birthday. Boyd had wrapped his arms around her and it’d seemed to help. Derek hadn’t had much experience with crying women otherwise.
Laura’s the older sister, so she’s the tough one. She rarely lets Derek see how she actually feels, even now that they’ve grown up. Cora and Derek are close, but even she had never cried in front of Derek. Not after their parents’ death a few years ago. She’d vowed never to cry again, and Derek’s pretty sure she’s kept it so far.
“Kira,” Derek whispers, rocking her because he doesn’t really know what else to do. “What’s going on? Who do I have to kill?”
It gains a little hiccup and half a laugh from her. She lifts her head to look at him and she says, stuttering, “I--I don’t want to talk about it right now.”
Man, did Derek ever understand that feeling. He tugs her closer and presses his lips to the top of her forehead. Boyd does that to Erica sometimes. Even when she’s not crying. He always thought it was nice. Kira snuggles in closer to him and quiets down so he thinks maybe she thinks it’s nice too.
♚♞♚♞♚♞
“Wanna talk about it now?” Derek asks after he’s cooked them dinner. Kira’s curled up on the couch, wrapped in her favourite blanket of Derek’s, and he put on a dumb action movie that neither of them cared about. He sits back down on the couch, handing her a drink and a plate of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies.
Kira blinks at the cookies and then she nods. “Okay. Um. I thought Malia and I were going on a date--”
“Weren’t you?” Derek asks, surprised.
“Apparently not. We ran into some girl from her swim team and she called me her friend. When the girl tried to tease about us being more, she completely shut her down.” Kira takes a bite into a cookie, and with a full mouth, says, “This is--reall’ good.”
Derek smiles. “Thanks. But maybe Malia just didn’t want her to make you feel uncomfortable because you haven’t...you know, defined your relationship yet?”
Kira shakes her head. “That’s what I thought. But nope. We sat down and she apologized for what the girl implied.”
“What did you do?” Derek asks after a moment. He caves and grab one of his cookies.
He lifts his legs up onto the couch. Kira covers his feet with the blanket. “I fucking ran, Derek! I just got up and started running and I didn’t even stop when I got out into the parking lot. I didn’t know where to go. Everyone’s busy tonight but I knew you’d be here, obsessing over Stiles and his date so--shit.”
Derek can’t help himself. He lets out a laugh. This may be the most he and Kira have ever really talked one-on-one before. He’d always felt protective over her, and he’d die to keep her safe. But he’d never bonded with her like this; spoke openly and freely. “No, you’re right. I was actually doing my best to not obsess over Stiles and his date.”
Kira perks up. “I won’t tell anyone.”
“I know,” Derek says, with a nod. “But why did he have to choose Danny? I mean, I can’t compete with him. I wouldn’t even want to. He’s such a nice guy.”
“I have a secret,” Kira says, eyes twinkling. She doesn’t look so sad now. “Danny and Stiles are only going out on a date so that Danny can make Mason jealous.”
“What? Danny and Mason?” Derek asks.
“I know! I didn’t see that coming at all. Mason isn’t exactly Danny’s type. I mean, Aiden made sense. But Mason is so sweet and Danny usually goes for the rough guys, y’know?” Kira says. She takes a deep breath. “How long have you liked Stiles?”
“Probably since the moment we met in the woods, if I’m honest.” Derek shrugs though. He likes this. He likes talking with Kira. It’s surprisingly easy. It’s also why he says what he does next. “But I don’t know. I think it was always there, in the background. I didn’t really realize until we almost lost him to the Nogitsune.”
Kira looks down. She rubs her thumb over her glass. “Yeah. Yeah, that was too close.”
“I think that’s when I figured it out,” Derek mumbles.
“That you loved him?” Kira asks. He nods, unable to say the words himself. They’re silent for a few minutes and then Kira quietly says, “I think I knew I loved Malia when she threw that witch across the room. The one that was trying to burn her with wolfsbane and she just fought to get to me. You know, when Lydia and I had been taken.”
“Fuck, that was a tough few nights. We were so worried,” Derek mutters. He looks at Kira and says, “Alcohol?”
“Always,” Kira says, smiling. Derek gets up, pausing when he passes the back of the couch to kiss her head again. She beams at him and he feels a little lighter.
♚♞♚♞♚♞
Derek starts to expect Kira to show up when things become quiet in Beacon Hills for a few hours here and there. Now, he always leaves the light on in case that Kira comes over in the middle of the night because it’s habit she’s started to acquire.
Other days, they’ll get drunk together. Alcohol mixed with some wolfsbane goes a long way on a rough day. There are a few days when Kira comes to study for her college finals. They don’t speak much, but he makes her food and enjoys her presence.
Things with Malia don’t seem to get any better for Kira. Derek swears that his cousin really does care for Kira but doesn’t know how to show it. Kira doesn’t agree though. She thinks it’s doomed. They talk about it, but never stay on the topic for too long. Derek still doesn’t know the exact words to make things better, but he’s learning that maybe he doesn’t need any.
Stiles and Danny, however, go on at least six more dates with each other. Derek isn’t sure they’re fake dating anymore. They’re way too flirty and close to each other at Pack Meetings. Whenever they announce a date, Kira glances at Derek and he knows she’ll come keep him company.
Kira assures him that it’s still a ruse for Mason, and Derek wants to believe it. He does.
It’s on Stiles and Danny’s seventh date that Derek, Kira, and the rest of the pack get into trouble. There’s an emergency - there’s always an emergency in Beacon Hills - and if they’re going to fight the newest kanima in town, they’re going to need everyone’s help. They haven’t had the greatest luck previously.
Derek and Kira are the ones who show up at the restaurant to interrupt the date. Derek’s still unsure if they volunteered for the task or if they were told to get Stiles and Danny.
Before they find the couple on their date, Derek asks, “Think we’ll stumble in on them making out?”
“Nope,” Kira says. She points out the two of them. Derek follows her gaze. Stiles and Danny look bored. Danny is flirting with a guy at the table next to them, and Stiles has his phone out. Kira beams at Derek. “I think you’re safe.”
“Thank god,” Derek mumbles.
Kira laughs and it draws the attention of Stiles and Danny. Derek watches them jump into action. Suddenly, they’re holding hands and talking to each other as though they’re in love. But Derek knows differently.
He puts his hand on Kira’s lower back and follows her towards the table. Stiles leans into Danny and then he tilts his head up at Derek, as though he’s just noticing him for the first time.
“Der--Derek? What are you doing here?” Stiles says, eyes sharp on him.
“Kanima,” Derek states. He really hates how Danny’s rubbing his thumb all over Stiles’ hand. “Sorry to interrupt your...exciting...date.”
“You should be,” Stiles says. Derek wonders if he has any clue how relieved he looks. It makes him smile. “We were having fun, weren’t we, sweetums?”
Derek watches Danny’s eyes narrow at the sweetums. He smirks. He can’t help himself. Kira elbows him.
“We were. T’is a shame to break up this party. What do you need us for?” Danny asks.
Derek points at him and says, “Cell phone tracking.”
“Kanima experience,” Kira adds at Stiles. “C’mon, we can’t make Tracy, Liam, Hayden and the others deal with this. All hands on deck.”
“Let us pay for the bill. We’ll meet you outside in a few,” Stiles says. He stands up. “Go, go, get.”
Derek rolls his eyes. “Whatever, Stilinski.”
Kira giggles on their way out of the diner and Derek glances back at her, questioningly. “He’s watching your ass. Wiggle it.”
Derek snorts, amused. When someone cuts him off, he stops walking. He clenches his ass a little, and Kira bursts into laughter. She pushes him forward and says, “I told you those jeans were a good choice!”
“A bit impractical to deal with a kanima,” Derek murmurs.
“Who cares? Stiles is drooling!” Kira says when they step out into the cool air. “That felt good, didn’t it?”
Derek can’t help but smile. He bobs his head and rubs the back of his neck. He says, “Yeah, yeah, it really did.”
♚♞♚♞♚♞
It’s a Monday night, almost around ten o’clock, when Derek flicks the lights on to his front porch for Kira. They agreed to do a late dinner and play a couple rounds of cards.
It’s about a quarter after ten when Derek’s front door swings open.
He leans back on his heels and shouts, “In the kitchen, Kira!”
“Kira? Man, your werewolf senses suck,” Stiles’ familiar voice comes suddenly.
Derek almost drops his spoon in his pot. He sets it carefully to the side and turns to find Stiles standing in his kitchen. “Stiles.”
"Were you expecting Kira?” Stiles asks, sliding onto his usual stool at Derek’s kitchen island. “That’s weird. You two aren’t friends.”
Derek’s eyebrows come together. “Um. Yeah, we are?”
“Well, you’re pack. You’re not exactly friends though. Whatcha cooking?” Stiles asks, looking at the stove.
“Kira and I are friends, Stiles. We hang out all the time.” Derek turns back to the stove and continues making his homemade pasta sauce. He can feel Stiles staring at him and it’s making him a little nervous. “It’s just pasta. Why are you here?”
“God, it smells great. And I saw the lights on.”
"You just happened to be in the neighbourhood?” Derek asks, raising an eyebrow.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been around lately,” Stiles mumbles. Derek can hear his nerves and it makes him even more anxious. “It’s just, Danny asked me to help him make Mason jealous. And well, Mason’s such a good guy that he didn’t show any signs of jealousy for Danny because he wanted us to be happy.”
“So you weren’t happy?” Derek asks.
“We weren’t real,” Stiles corrects. “I didn’t mind spending time with Danny, but it’s not like spending time with you. I mean...it’s just that Danny and I ran out of things to talk about pretty quickly. At least with you, I know that we don’t have to talk and we can still enjoy ourselves. But anyway, last night, Mason got pretty drunk and left a voicemail on Danny’s phone.”
“So they’re together now?” Derek concludes.
“Sort of. Working on it, anyway. I hope you weren’t upset that I was a little MIA?” Stiles wonders. “I should’ve told you what was going on, but Danny wanted it to seem as real as possible. He specifically told me not to tell you.”
“Oh. Um, okay. I’ve missed you,” Derek answers, honestly. “But I wanted you to be happy.”
And I totally knew you weren’t really seeing each other. It helped me sleep at night.
The front door swings open and Kira shouts, “Yo, Derek! I’m sorry I’m late. You’ll never guess what happened to -- Stiles!”
Stiles’ jaw drops. He looks at Kira and then at Derek. “You two do hang out together?”
“Yeah. Problem?” Derek asks, eyeing him carefully.
Stiles snaps his jaw together before shaking his head. “No, not at all. I guess I just didn’t realize that that was a thing.”
“Well, it is,” Kira says, smiling brightly. “Guess who officially has a date with Malia?”
“You do?” Derek exclaims. “What happened?”
“Well, she happened to get drunk with Mason last night! They started talking about their feelings and she convinced him to call Danny--so they’re basically together now--and Mason convinced her to call me. It’s the cutest voicemail ever. She apologizes for being a jerk about only being friends and everything.” Kira doesn’t stop smiling the entire time she talks. Derek feels proud of her.
“Kira, that’s so great. Come here,” he says, holding out one arm. She rushes over to him, squealing, and he squeezes her tightly. “I’m so excited for you! Why are you here and not with her?”
“We had a dinner date,” Kira tells him. She nuzzles into his chest for a moment before she pulls away. “I wouldn’t cancel on you like that.”
“If you want to go spend time with Malia, it’s okay. I’m sure Stiles will keep me company for dinner,” Derek says, looking over at his one and only crush. Stiles nods.
"Free food? Count me in. Besides, I owe Derek some Stiles’ time. I’ve been busy with Danny lately,” Stiles says. “Congratulations on you and Malia. That’s awesome.”
“Thanks,” Kira answers, beaming. “You’re sure you don’t mind, Der?”
“Positive. Go make out with your girlfriend.”
“Eee! She’s not my girlfriend.”
“Yet,” Derek says with a wink.
Kira does a little happy dance and then hugs Derek really quickly again. “Thanks, Der. You’re the best. We’ll do dinner another night, I promise. I’ll cook.”
“Please don’t,” Derek teases. Kira laughs and then she gives Stiles’ a quick kiss on the cheek before she’s bouncing out of the house. He watches her go before he looks at Stiles again. “Thanks for staying for dinner. Kira would’ve been too upset if she thought I was going to eat alone. She wouldn’t have left.”
“Dude, you know me. Wherever there’s great food, there’s Stiles. We should watch Star Wars since you live under a rock and have never seen it before.”
“Another time?” Derek asks. “You’ll end up talking through the whole thing anyway.”
Stiles scoffs, as though he’s offended. But then he says, “I really missed you, man.”
“Yeah,” Derek says, quietly. “I missed you too.”
♚♞♚♞♚♞
“I hate how good at this game you are,” Stiles says as he tosses his N64 controller on the footrest. He shakes his head. “Toad is the worst character you could ever play in Mario Kart and yet you always play him and you always win.”
Derek gives him a smug look. “You always choose Bowser. He’s the worst character you could ever play. And you prove me right every time you lose.”
Stiles laughs and shoves a pillow at him. Derek pretends to fight him off, but suddenly, the pillow is knocked out of the way and Stiles’ arms land on either side of Derek. His elbows are pushing into the giant pillow that Derek’s sitting against and his chest is pressed against Derek’s lower half.
“Oh, god, sorry!” Stiles says, eyes wide. He scrambles to push himself off Derek, but somehow manages to make it worst by losing his grip and ending with his face two inches from Derek’s.
“Stiles,” Derek breathes.
“Hi,” Stiles’ says, sheepish. “I’m a mess. Did I ever tell you that?”
“You didn’t have to,” Derek murmurs. His eyes drift down to Stiles’ lips. “I didn’t like you dating Danny.”
“No?” Stiles asks. He doesn’t move. Doesn’t even attempt it.
“No. Danny’s a great guy. He is. But he doesn’t understand you like I do,” Derek says. He braves brushing his thumb against Stiles’ cheek. “I look at all of the couples in the pack and I realize that...that I wish I was like that with you.”
“You do?”
“I do. Are you okay with that? Even if I’m a werewolf who’s crazy about you?”
Stiles shifts now, but it’s only to lift his face closer to Derek’s. He nods. “Yeah. I’m okay with that. In fact, I went along with Danny’s stupid scheme hoping it’d make you jealous too. I don’t need a boring human boyfriend. I need you.”
Derek lets out a small laugh. “It drove me crazy, the idea of you two together, but then Kira told me the truth. And I saw you at that restaurant. I’ve never seen you look so bored before.”
“I just kept wishing that I was with you and suddenly, you were there.” Stiles’ face goes a little red. “Can you hear my heart beat?”
Derek tries to focus but he shakes his head. “No. Mine’s too loud.”
Stiles breaks out into a huge smile and then he’s kissing Derek. And it’s really, really fucking nice.
♚♞♚♞♚♞
Derek doesn’t get home until after the sun has set the following day. He smiles, grateful that Kira left the light on the porch for him. He walks into his house to find her curled up on his couch, studying her textbook. He nods at her before entering the kitchen to unpack his groceries. She gives him a small smile and wave.
It takes him about fifteen minutes before he joins her on the couch.
“Stiles and I kissed.”
“Ten years later.”
“How’d it go with Malia?”
“We totally made out,” Kira says, laughing now. She shuts her text book. “In fact, we even went a little shirtless at one point. But nothing past that.”
Derek scrunches his nose. “Too much information, Kira.”
She grins. “You and Stiles?”
“There may have been some grinding through the clothes,” Derek admits.
Kira points at him. “A-ha! Don’t give me any TMI bull shit when you and Stiles were basically having dry sex.”
Derek raises an eyebrow and Kira groans.
“I heard what I just said. Please let me never say anything like that ever again. Ew, so, so gross.”
“I’m making tacos,” Derek says, changing topics smoothly.
“Fuck yes. Um. Don’t invite anyone over? I like when we just hang out,” Kira says, sounding nervous. Derek glances at her. The anxiety spilling out of her is ridiculous. He puts a hand on hers.
"Me too. But Stiles does want to go on a double date sometime,” Derek tells her.
"I’ll talk to my girlfriend.”
Then Kira’s squealing about the fact that she has a girlfriend and she makes Derek say that he has a boyfriend until he starts feeling the butterflies like she is. After their tacos are done, Kira goes back to studying, and Derek throws on the first Star Wars movie. After all, it is his boyfriend’s favourite movie series.
“Are you happy?” Kira whispers.
“Yeah,” Derek whispers back. “Are you?”
“Never been happier.”
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