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The silence was suffocating. How else is it supposed to feel when for the first 18 years of your life, you could hear like any other teenager, and then one day, you wake up completely deaf? Stiles didn't adapt quickly. How could he when his life was crumbling around him? His best friend turned into a werewolf, the girl he was crushing on for many, MANY years is a banshee, and now kanima’s and...
Fuck. Stiles' life was a mess. On top of all the supernatural bullshit, he was also barely passing his senior year of high school.
Today was like every other. Stiles got out of bed, checked his phone for any emergency phone calls he missed, got changed into comfortable clothes, and got ready for school. He walked downstairs, expecting his dad to be in the kitchen. However, when he walked into the kitchen, his dad was sat solemnly at the dining table.
Upon seeing his son, Sheriff Noah Stilinski slid an already opened letter across the table. Stiles' gaze flicked between his dad and the letter, before snatching it up from the wood. He rips open the letter, and his heart does a flip as he sees the crest adorning the top of the letter.
It's from his dream college. His first pick.
"Dear Stiles Stilinski," it reads, "We are pleased to hear about how eager you are to join the community. We, here at the college, love hearing about our future students' excitement to join and take part in a growing community of wonderful young people. Unfortunately, however, due to your recent diagnosis you informed us of, we will have to deny your application at this time. The facilities here cannot accommodate a hard of hearing student at this time, as we do not currently have the equipment. It really is an unfortunate situation, as we loved your admission essay, and it was of such a high standard. I, especially, hope you are able to find a college that can accommodate such a well-articulated young man, such as yourself."
The letter ends with, "Good luck, and we wish you well in whatever the future holds for you," and the principle's name and signature.
Stiles didn't even realise he was crying until his dad laid a hand on his shoulder. He flinched away, "No...no!" Stiles whispered, or maybe it was a yell, he didn't know. With a shake of his head, Stiles turned on his heels and ran straight back into his room. High school be damned when his dream college denied him, all because of his hearing loss.
How long was he in his room for? Only God knows. It could have been 10 minutes, or three hours.
It wasn't until the bedroom door creaked open. Stiles glanced up from his spot beside his desk, his safe place to sit when things were too much, to see Scott hesitating in the doorway. "Sti..." Scott mumbled, staring at his best friend.
They've been best friends for years, told each other all of their secrets. Of course, his dad would call Scott as soon as he found out about the college letter. Scott hesitated for a second more before walking over, dropping to his knees in front of the other boy, "I heard. About the letter. Are you okay?" He asks.
However, Scott does not get an answer, as he suddenly is tackled in a hug, two arms wrapping around him in sympathy and affection. Stiles' throat betrays him, as a sob escapes and his arms flex around Scott.
"How could they deny me?" He asks. Stiles feels the vibrations in his throat but can't tell if he's yelling or whispering. He knew some ASL, sure, but he often forgot to use it, as if he truely thought he'd snap out of the hearing loss.
Scott rubbed his back, the same clockwise pattern Stiles has grown familiar with. But as soon as the affection came, it was gone. The werewolf had pulled away to sign, “You’ll be okay. I know it was your dream college, but you’ll get through it.”
It sounded so…mature, when Scott says it. It wasn’t condescending, but it was a reality check that Stiles desperately needed.
”I know, Scotty,” the human boy signed back, “but what if I never find a college that will accommodate me?”
“Then they don’t deserve you.”
”But-“
”No, Stiles.”
Even when they don’t say words, the two young men still understand each other well. When Scott says “no,” he means it. He wasn’t going to let his best friend in the whole wide world torture himself about “not being good enough” for his dream college.
“I’m going to hear again soon,” Stiles signed, “I know it.”
Scott just stared, his expression neutral with a hint of sympathy peeking through the cracks of this carefully crafted nonchalance.
Sure, maybe Stiles was crazy to believe that he'd get his hearing back. It had been 11 months, numerous doctor appointments, and many agonising shakes of heads telling him, “You’ll never hear again.” It was utter bullshit, he thought. But there was always that little, nagging part in the back of his head, telling him “It will come back.”
Stiles Stilinski will never hear again, end of story.
Meltdowns weren’t uncommon, since the sudden shift in life. The first was the day Stiles was diagnosed with the permanent loss of hearing. The second was when his dad said no to the possibility of hearing aids, as the two were already struggling with money enough as it was. And the third was at school, when Stiles was shoved into a “special classroom,” where a teacher taught him in sign language.
He didn’t know any sign language.
Today could have been the 11th…or the 30th. He lost count. Thoughts were spiralling everyday. “Everyone hates you now,” “No one wants a deaf kid for a friend,” etc.
”Stiles?” Scott murmured, snapping Stiles out of his thoughts.
”You won’t…leave me, right?” The other boy asks, hands trembling as he lifts one to his mouth. Nail biting, his worst habit in his opinion.
Scott sighs, gently pulling Stiles’ hand away from his mouth, holding it in his own, “Never. Best buds to the end, yeah?”
Stiles nods.
”Feeling any better?” The werewolf carefully asks. He doesn’t want to make Stiles break down again, but he needs to know that the other boy isn’t hiding his emotions from him.
Again, Stiles nods, “Yeah. Life moves on…”
”Yeah…life moves on, bud.”