Work Text:
Theo climbed up Liam’s front steps, his hands shoved deep into his jacket pockets to keep the frigid night air at bay. It was snowing, a rarity for this part of California, and Theo found himself unaccustomed to the chill. Even with his healing, the bitter cold nipped at his skin, harsh and unforgiving.
It didn’t help that he was living in his car, unable to fully escape the nightly drop in temperature. The paper-thin throw blanket hardly did anything to help, and—after being littered with bullet holes on more than one occasion—the doors weren’t the best deterrent against the dangerous weather conditions just beyond.
His only hope of salvation was the 24-hour diner at the edge of town… and Liam’s house.
Theo wasn’t exactly on the best terms with the McCall pack—for good reason, he supposed—but Liam was different. Somehow.
Don’t get him wrong. Liam still hated him. Every time they saw each other, they always ended up fighting for some reason or another. Theo would always say the wrong thing—or intentionally get under the Beta’s skin just to watch that spark of gold flicker in those blue eyes of his, and Liam would always break Theo’s nose.
And yet, it was a cycle neither of them could seem to break. Because, like clockwork, a day or two would go by and Liam would always ask for Theo to come over… and Theo would always go.
It was their unspoken bi-weekly tradition.
Ready to get the cycle started again—and to get the hell out of the cold—Theo knocked on Liam’s door.
He had barely pulled his hand away when the door flew open.
There, standing in the doorway, was Liam. Adorned with the ugliest, loudest, brightest Christmas Sweater Theo had ever seen.
“Theo!” Liam grinned as he locked eyes on the Chimera. “You’re just in time.”
Theo had an overwhelmingly sinking feeling about this.
Before he could act on that by back pedaling and sprinting full speed to his truck, Liam reached out and grabbed his wrist. Theo stilled under his touch, the warmth of the beta’s fingers sending goosebumps up his skin. It must’ve been that—the sudden warmth, the shock of it—that short-circuited Theo’s brain. Definitely the heat against his freezing hand that caused his brain to switch off and follow Liam’s pull into the house and through the entryway hall.
Christmas music reverberated through the house, some cover version of Jingle Bell Rock he’d never heard before shaking the floorboards beneath his feet. Under the music, in the distance, Theo could just make out the voices of the rest of the Puppy Pack. Alec was arguing with Mason—something about the merits of Die Hard as a certifiable Christmas movie—and Nolan and Corey were laughing like they’d been starved of joy for years and this was the funniest thing they’d heard in centuries.
Every single chemosignal smelled happy. Merry.
It made the Grinch inside Theo want to run for the nearest mountain and hide in the depths of a cave to get away from the Merriness and the ugly sweaters and the noise. The noise, noise, noise.
And yet—Theo followed the gentle tug of Liam’s grip without a second thought. Without a singular thought, really; it was just his body on autopilot, his feet moving without his say-so, moving behind Liam and yet so in-sync, too. Like a rhythm that he knew so intuitively, so completely, that it was like breathing.
“Look who made it!” Liam said once they reached the rest of the pack, raising Theo’s wrist in triumph, like he was some kind of prize.
“I’m pretty sure you lured me here under false pretenses,” Theo growled under his breath, but Liam just smiled, a mischievous spark in his eyes.
“I never lied,” Liam said, “I just didn’t tell you what we were doing.”
“And what are we doing?”
“We’re decorating for Christmas!” Nolan declared from the other side of the room, his arms overflowing with tinsel and string lights.
“And making gingerbread houses after,” Liam added, his voice sugary sweet.
It grated against Theo’s ears.
“Great,” Theo grumbled, pulling his hand from his Liam’s grasp—despite his now-cold wrist protesting him not to.
“Don’t be a Grinch.” Alec whined, “I vouched for you.”
Theo rolled his eyes, even as the brown puppy dog eyes had his cold demeanor softening almost against his will. “Fine. Whatever. Just hand me some lights or tinsel or whatever other Christmas horrors you have in your decoration arsenal and let’s get this over with.”
__
Decorating wasn’t terrible, all things considered. He almost found himself enjoying the mind-numbing simplicity that came with hanging up the tinsel in whatever spot Liam pointed him towards, finding a groove in working with the Beta. He supposed that he also didn’t mind that, when Theo needed a second pair of hands, Liam’s fingers would brush the tips of his own. Even the music didn’t grate his nerves as much as he thought it might. He found himself listening more to Liam’s quiet humming than the actual song itself anyway. The Beta’s voice somehow grated on his ears less, even if it wasn’t always the right pitch.
Really, Theo could think of a few worse ways to spend his evening.
It all came to a head, though, when they got to the last of the decorations and found another small box sitting there at the bottom.
Liam picked the box up with careful fingers, like it were ready to explode at any moment.
“We have to be careful with this one,” Liam explained before taking off the lid.
There, sitting all snug inside, was mistletoe.
Theo involuntarily stiffened at the sight, his breath catching in his throat.
He could lie—say that he was suddenly aware that he was trapped in a house with an incredibly dangerous, incredibly toxic, plant that had been used to terrorize the McCall pack before he’d come into town. He could say that it was alarming, being so close to something that caused some pretty nasty symptoms—even to werewolves.
In truth, though, he didn’t care about the toxicity of it; he was sure the Dread Doctors would have made him immune to something as basic as Mistletoe. Instead, he had become all too aware of how close Liam’s body was to his own; aware of the Beta’s warmth, and his careful breathing. Aware of how separated the two of them were from the rest of the pack residing on the opposite side of the house. How alone.
“Where…” Theo swallowed thickly. “Where do you want to hang it up?”
“I was thinking we could hang it in the entrance of the hallway? Right over here?” Liam gestured with his hand, his fingers so close to Theo’s face that he could feel the heat radiating from them. He didn’t follow Liam’s gesture, his gaze instead down on Liam’s ever-close arm, his body, his muscled bicep. Eventually, his eyes fell on Liam’s ocean blue eyes that were locked on him.
“Okay,” Theo said, breathless. He tore his eyes away, turning his attention to the mistletoe instead. “I can do that.”
“Just be careful.”
Theo huffed out a laugh, taking the box from Liam. “What, are you worried about me, Little Wolf?”
Liam didn’t dignify him with a response, which was just as well. They both knew the truth.
Trying to forget how close the beta was, Theo grabbed the step stool with his free hand and moved to the entryway. He climbed up the steps and took a breath to calm his nerves before grabbing the bright red ribbon that was carefully wrapped around the mistletoe.
The plant was deceptively pretty there in his fingers. Even after being trapped in a box for how many days, it was still a vibrant, healthy green—a color accentuated by the red of the ribbon. The berries, a cream off-white, balanced out the bright vibrancy of it all, creating a beautiful decoration.
It wasn’t really beautiful though, was it? It was just a parasite. A poison in disguise. A toxin that managed to disguise itself so well that thousands of people found themselves right there under its dangerous toxins, putting themselves in the most vulnerable positions of kissing without being any the wiser. It was a tradition, right? Kiss under the mistletoe at Christmas—stand right under its toxins and breathe in the air that surrounded it, distracting yourself with fantasies of love and romance and happily-ever-afters.
Everyone fell for a good disguise. Everyone craved a romantic, holiday kiss.
Except—it was always a trap. A ruse. This fake thing that slipped through their grasp, just like anything good thing did.
Theo knew that better than most.
Shaking his thoughts away, he reached up with the ribbon between his fingers. Soon, though, he realized that he had no way of tying it to the ceiling. No hook, no nail, nothing.
“Hey—” Theo started, turning to Liam, but the beta was right there by his side. On the stepstool, Theo found those blue eyes looking up at him, suddenly so close—so intense.
“Here,” Liam said, stretching up his hand.
It took Theo a syrupy long second to tear his eyes away from Liam’s in order to look at Liam’s outstretched hand—at the thumbtack between his fingertips.
Theo swallowed down a growing lump in his throat as he reached out to grab the thumbtack, doing his best to ignore the shiver that ran down his spine as their fingers brushed together.
“Thanks.”
Maybe he should’ve been embarrassed at the breathlessness of his voice, at the way his heart was roaring in his ears. Except—all he could think about was that tingling against his fingertips, and the heat of Liam’s body so close—too close—to his own.
Liam studied him for a moment, this odd smile playing across his lips as he did so; a confused thing, with a furrow of eyebrows and a quirk at the edges of his lip, but still—happy. Theo supposed that was all that mattered. “You’re welcome.”
It took everything in the Chimera to turn away from Liam and bring his attention back to the actual act of hanging the Mistletoe. His fingers were trembling as he tied the ribbon to thumbtack—probably a side effect of the toxin. Definitely a side effect.
“You know,” Liam said, as Theo began the work of pressing the tack into the ceiling, “Scott’s always warning us about Mistletoe around Christmas. Everyone thinks it’s this dangerous, dark thing. But—I don’t think that Mistletoe is that scary.”
“That’s the kind of thinking that got Balder killed.”
“No. Zeus overlooked Mistletoe, took it for granted, and Loki used that to his advantage. It’s only when we forget about the potential of Mistletoe that it becomes dangerous.”
Liam paused, and Theo became aware of the way the Beta was looking at him—intense and serious, but with a voice that was soft and warm and almost comforting. “I think people forget that Mistletoe isn’t just a toxin. Many druids believed that it also had medicinal properties—that it had the same amount of potential to heal people as much as it could hurt.”
Theo stilled, his whole body paralyzed. All he could do was stare up at the mistletoe, his arms stuck up above his head, braced against the ceiling.
“… It’s a parasite,” Theo said eventually, when he was able to breathe properly. “It was always meant to thrive at the expense of others.”
There was a long silence, and Theo was almost afraid to breathe through it. There was tension in his shoulders that grew the longer the quiet went on. It didn’t help that he could feel Liam’s eyes on him, studying his every movement—his every breath.
“Do you know why we use Mistletoe for Christmas?”
“Mythologically speaking, or actually?”
“Mistletoe is evergreen,” Liam said, ignoring Theo’s question entirely. “When everything around it loses their leaves, when everything around it dies, mistletoe preservers. Always.”
“Mistletoe is a pest, Liam.” Theo said, busying himself by pressing in the tack all the way into the ceiling. “It’s the reason many ornamental trees grow abnormalities, the reason the branches become deformed. It weakens the host until, eventually, the host dies.” He paused, then turned to Liam. “It was used in sacrificial ceremonies, you know. Maybe humans, maybe not.”
Liam shrugged, too carelessly for Theo’s liking. “Wedding ceremonies, too. That’s why we kiss under mistletoe; because some people thought that it would lead to marriage.”
“Well. Some people are stupid.”
“Is it?” Liam asked. “Is it really that stupid to believe that some…thing… can be good?”
Theo frowned, stepping off the stool, forcing Liam to take several steps back. “It is if all that thing does is hurt people—hosts.”
“But it doesn’t.”
Theo smiled darkly, flashing his canines. “Doesn’t it?”
Liam frowned, first at Theo’s teeth, then up at the Chimera himself. “No.”
Theo laughed as he took a step closer, letting gold take over his irises. “Are you sure about that?”
Gold seeped into Liam’s eyes in turn, his hands tightening into fists as he steeled himself. “You don’t scare me, Theo.”
“No one’s scared of me,” Theo sneered. “I am the weapon no one remembers. The parasite no one sees coming. The pest that leeches onto a host pack and never let’s go. I am the God Killer. The murderer of the True Alpha.”
“That’s not how I see it,” Liam frowned. He took a step forward, and it was Theo’s turn to stumble back a step or two—until his back pressed up against the step stool, nearly knocking it over in the process. “Everything’s always so clear cut to you, but you want to know what I think? I think that Mistletoe is a hemiparasite.”
“That’s a big word for Elmo.”
“You,” Liam growled, poking Theo in the chest aggressively, “are a hemiparasite. Able to live independently just as well as you can be a parasite. You are more than capable of good and bad things. You call yourself a weapon, but you’re also a person. A person with the potential to both break and create.” Liam took another step forward, and suddenly Theo couldn’t breathe. Not when he could feel Liam’s body heat, and Liam’s breath against his skin. “You’re not just the guy that killed Scott,” Liam murmured, voice low, “you’re also the guy that pulled me into the elevator. Twice.”
“A parasite needs it’s host in order to survive,” Theo said, breathless.
Liam smirked. “And what? I’m your new host?”
Theo swallowed thickly, his eyes trapped on Liam’s lips—the way they snaked upwards. A combination of amusement and cockiness—like he’d caught Theo in a trap. And maybe he did. Because, it was obvious now, wasn’t it? How much Theo needed Liam to survive. How much he had latched onto the Beta, held on so tight, that he just couldn’t live on without him.
“Maybe,” Theo admitted, “but a parasite kills its host.”
“You’re a hemiparasite,” Liam said. “You can survive on your own—and you have, all your life.” Liam paused, then took another step closer. Impossibly closer. “It’s just—sometimes, you need to ask for help. Or,” Liam’s eyes darted down to Theo’s lips. “Sometimes you just need to share some air.”
Theo swallowed thickly, his mind fuzzing over as he watched Liam’s lips move as he talked. For a moment, the words were almost lost on him—until they weren’t and his chest tightened. His—Tara’s—heart was nothing but a lump in his throat, barely beating as his whole system stopped.
Liam didn’t mean that. Of course he didn’t. He was just—messing with him.
Except Liam was there, his body practically pressed up against Theo’s own, and his breath was brushing against Theo’s face—his lips—and there was that Mistletoe right there above their heads, and the toxin had to be rushing to his brain because suddenly Theo was moving forward, his hands moving to Liam’s face.
The toxin had to be killing any working braincells, because suddenly—Theo’s lips were on Liam’s.
At first, it wasn’t even a kiss; it was a touch, a graze. But, before Theo could cringe away, Liam grabbed the back of his head, his fingers twisting in his hair, and kissed him.
Theo would’ve reveled in how soft Liam’s lips were against his, or how sweet Liam tasted, or how the feel of the beta almost elicited a moan from Theo.
Except, his mind was too busy short circuiting to even notice all of those little things.
Theo prided himself on being the only person in the puppy pack that really observed anything; Mason was smart and Liam was a decent leader, but Theo noticed. Every scent, every breath, every micro movement—Theo was trained to notice it all.
But there was something about Liam that made all of that just—go away. That made his hyper focused mind stop. Something about the heat of his touch, the comforting scent of his chemosignals, the curl of his lips. Something about the curl of his fingers now, his breath against Theo’s own, the way his lips pressed up against Theo’s, suddenly desperate and hungry and perfect.
He couldn’t think. He couldn’t breathe. All he could do was grip Liam’s face more, his fingertips practically bruising skin, as he kissed Liam back.
Maybe he really was a parasite, maybe he really was meant to steal all of Liam’s oxygen, because even as his lungs began to burn and demand air, all Theo could do was deepen the kiss.
Not that Liam seemed to mind, his fingers tightening in Theo’s hair as he followed Theo’s lead.
Eventually, when the world was becoming light and off-kilter, Liam broke away with a gasp. His body flush against Theo’s, his hand still in Theo’s hair, Liam’s forehead fell against Theo’s shoulder. He gasped for air like he’d been close to death, and Theo found himself doing the same.
It dawned on Theo, slowly, what had just happened.
He’d kissed Liam Dunbar.
Liam Dunbar had kissed him back.
Somewhere deep inside, Theo understood why he’d kissed Liam; he was a pest, after all. He preyed on unsuspecting hosts, taking what he wanted with little regard for anything or anyone. Somewhere along the line, what he wanted was Liam. Only Liam.
What didn’t make sense, though, was why Liam had kissed him back. Why the Beta would want his mouth or body anywhere near Theo, when the Chimera had a habit of literally stabbing people when they were most vulnerable and unsuspecting. Why he’d want to be anywhere near Theo, knowing just how poisonous he could be.
“I think we should get you tested for Mistletoe poisoning,” Theo whispered.
But Liam just—laughed, his breath warm against Theo’s neck. The feel of it sent shivers down the Chimera’s spine. It felt almost nice—exhilarating. A tingling that rushed down his spine and through his body, all the way to his toes. His fingers felt like there were tiny pins and needles—or maybe electricity.
Yes. It was electric, his fingertips buzzing as he moved his hand to the back of Liam’s neck.
“Your hands are still cold,” Liam said, even as he nuzzled more into the crook of Theo’s neck, nearly burying himself into the cold of the Chimera’s skin. “I can fix that.”
“Now I know you’re not thinking straight,” Theo said, moving his hand away as he began to pull back. “Either that, or—”
“Or,” Liam said, cutting him off, pulling Theo back towards him, “I somehow convinced you to get under the mistletoe so you would finally kiss me.”
Theo frowned down at the Beta. “That’s stupid for a million different reasons, the number one being that that meant you’d have to kiss me.”
“I’ve invited you over for months, T. Just you and me. I’ve cornered you in every hallway of this house. I even pretended to spill Dr. Pepper all over my shirt so I’d be shirtless next to you. And yet, every time I tried to make a move, we’d be pulled into this cycle of fighting. Because that’s where we feel safe; when we’re arguing together.”
Theo blinked, molasses slow. He felt like he was trapped in quicksand in his own mind as he tried to piece together the impossible scenario Liam had just laid before him; every time he tried to reason through it, Theo would just sink further and further down until he was in danger of becoming stuck—until he was close to suffocating to death.
The only thing keeping his head above the sand, the only thing keeping him alive, was the sound of Liam’s heartbeat so loud in Theo’s ears—so steady, and calm, and honest.
“This wasn’t actually my idea,” Liam said, “Alec was convinced that the way to win you over was by a combination of sappy romantics and some ‘boring science facts about toxic plants.’”
Theo laughed, breathless. “And you listened to him?”
“Don’t pretend like that kid doesn’t know you,” Liam said. “Besides, it worked.”
“It did.” Theo hesitated before pulling away from Liam—just enough for him to actually look at the Beta. Just enough for him to take in those blue orbs. Slowly, he raised his hand to Liam’s cheek, stroking his thumb against the Beta’s skin. “It really did.”
Liam smiled. “Good.” He paused, his eyes moving from Theo’s eyes to his lips. Then, he leaned forward, pressing his lips against Theo’s.
Not a kiss, exactly, but—soft. A light graze of lips that had Theo’s mind fuzzing in the best way.
“Maybe we could do this another time,” Liam breathed, his lips brushing against Theo’s. “Without the toxic plant pushing us to do it.”
“Mm,” Theo pretended to consider the proposal. “Maybe. Then again…” He guided his hand down Liam’s cheek, to the back of Liam’s neck. “Why wait?”