Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"This is it, Stiles!"

The once sturdy jeep comes to a sudden and grinding halt, jolting the two young men that were sat in it quickly forward. One of them doesn't even falter, and continues to gaze longingly out at The Preserve in front of him. Stiles on the other hand winces in pain, and reaches a hand up to rub at his now tender neck.

Scott begins to shift around in the front seat, grabbing his backpack and unplugging his iPod from where it had been connected to Stiles' radio. The popular music stops playing instantly, and Stiles suddenly hears voices and laughter in the background outside the car. Clearly, Scott's 'wolfy' hearing had picked up the sounds and voices before Stiles had, hence his less than subtle command to stop the car. Stiles sighs, still rubbing his neck, and looks out of the car window onto The Preserve. The sun was setting, and the usually bleak looking place suddenly appeared much more welcoming. The man waiting just outside the jeep however, appeared to be anything but welcoming.

"You're late." Derek growls, not even bothering to smile at his pack mates as Scott gracefully jumps, and Stiles clambers out of the car.

"We got caught up at the gas station." Scott explains with one of his killer smiles. Unfortunately, the 'puppy dog look' that Stiles always mocked Scott for wearing seems to have little effect on the Alpha. Derek merely raises an eyebrow.

"Yeah, we got Red Vines!" Stiles interjects, holding up the tasty treat like a trophy. He hears a well known sigh, and turns just in time to see Lydia climb over the small incline in front of the car. No doubt, the rest of the pack were hiding just out of sight as well. Of course, Stiles would have already known that, had he been a werewolf.

"Yes. I'm sure you always need more sugar in your system, Stiles." Lydia scoffs, before crossing her arms over her chest.

Stiles opens his mouth to make a clever retort (as per his usual response) before he suddenly notices that Lydia and Derek looked eerily similar. They were both stood in a similar stance with their arms crossed over their chests, and their expressions were a mixture of exasperation and amusement.Huh, maybe hanging around with Sourwolf had some lasting effects on his Beta's. Stiles shakes his head as if to clear it, ignoring the very poignant 'what is going on in your head?' look Derek was sending him. He wouldn't even know how to answer that question if Derek actually asked him out loud.

Scott suddenly calls and waves down towards the small lake that was just ahead of the Jeep, before running off. Stiles bites his tongue to stop himself from making a joke about how his best friend looked a dog chasing after a Frisbee ...

He follows after Derek and Lydia at a slower pace, who were both muttering something about food and places to eat. Stiles perks up at hearing the two mention burgers and hotdogs, before he shoves a Red Vine into his mouth.

Boyd, Erica, Jackson and Isaac were wading near the edge of the water, laughing about something, and occasionally splashing each other with a childish abandon. Stiles is sure that the water must be freezing, but no one seems to be minding that. Another 'werewolfy' thing, Stiles thinks to himself, as he reaches the place were Lydia and Allison had set out some chairs.

Stiles wonders who had managed to make a fire, as he plops himself down onto a stripey beach chair. The image of Derek grinding two sticks together suddenly appears in his head, and he smirks to himself.

"What's with the kid's pool?" Scott asks all of a sudden, nodding his head towards the small red and yellow pool that was sitting empty but inflated at the side of the group.

Stiles hadn't even noticed it. His mind was admittedly elsewhere ...

"Yeah. Where did you even get that?" Stiles questions, before popping another Red Vine in his mouth. Derek reaches over without a word then, and takes the packet from his protesting hands. If Stiles wasn't so excited about hot dogs (or if he had werewolf strength) he is sure he would have fought harder to save his snacks.

"It's mine." Boyd suddenly interjects, as he makes his way over to the group. Water slowly drips down his bare torso, and onto his swimming trunks. Stiles tries not to stare too closely. "Well, it's my little sister's."

"It's to put the drinks in." Lydia explains with a smile.

She demonstrates her point, by picking up a few bottles of what Stiles assumes is beer, and a cooler. She places the bottles in the pool, before tipping over the cooler, and large pieces of ice pour out into the small plastic pool. Derek walks over then with another cooler, and empties it as well. Lydia stands back and watches, with a wide smile on her face.

"That's genius!" Stiles exclaims, and he means it.

Derek shrugs nonchalantly as he places the now empty cooler down near the circle of chairs. "Simple, yet effective."

"Well, my IQ is over 170." Lydia mutters, although it is loud enough for everyone to hear her.

Without warning, Scott begins to take off his plain white t shirt. Boyd copies the action without a word, taking off his own shirt and throwing it down onto a nearby chair. Seeing what his best friend was wearing underneath his denim shorts, Stiles sighs, and rolls his eyes heavenward.

"Seriously Scott?"

"What?" Scott replies, with a quizzical look on his face.

"Is there even any point in you wearing those?"

Scott looks down at his swimming shorts, or more like trunks. Boyd laughs, mostly to himself, as a wolf whistle sounds from down by the water.

"What's wrong with them?" Scott asks loudly, throwing his arms up as he speaks.

Stiles snorts. "You may as well be wearing see through swimming trunks."

"Someone sounds a little bitter." Jackson says. Stiles hadn't even noticed that the young man had made his way over to the group from the water.

"Ah yes, here comes Mr black speedo."

On seeing what Jackson is wearing, Stiles rolls his eyes once again. It was almost as if the cast of 'Magic Mike' had appeared in The Preserve. Lydia and Allison seem to agree with Stiles' internal monologue, as they both look at their boyfriends approvingly.

"Looking good babe." Lydia says sincerely, but Jackson just looks like he hadn't expected her to anything else.

"I know."

"And so modest!" Stiles exclaims, with a huff of a laugh. "A perfect catch."

Boyd shakes his head, as does Derek. "Can we please not argue for once?"

Just as Stiles is about to reply to Derek about how completely impossible that would be, a strange whizzing sound rings near the young mans human ears.

"CATCH!"

The Frisbee hits Stiles in the back of the head with a comedic 'clunk'. Stiles was beginning to think that someone, somewhere out there, enjoyed watching him get hit in the head. 

"Ow! What the hell Isaac?" Stiles exclaims, as he rubs the tender spot at the back of his head.

Isaac jogs up towards where Stiles was sat, looking sheepish. Damn, it was always hard for Stiles to stay mad at Isaac ...

"Sorry man. You okay?" The young Beta asks, before leaning down to pick up the Frisbee. Stiles glares at it for good measure.

"Yep. The breakable human is okay."

"You're no more breakable than me Stiles." Allison interjects, as she and Lydia continue to short through the coolers near the circle of chairs.

"I'm pretty sure that's not true." Stiles argues, because of course it's not true. The young man probably had a concussion from the cursed piece of plastic, whereas Allison had fought monsters, and they had always been the ones to walk away rubbing their heads. "Where's Erica?" Stiles asks, because it was definitely too quiet.

"In the lake." Boyd answers quickly, smiling over in the general direction of the water.

Ew, Stiles thinks as he actively tries not to roll his eyes again. Yet another werewolf madly in love.

As Stiles contemplates the likeliness of spending a life time alone, everyone suddenly begins to move. Boyd, Jackson and Scott all head down towards the Lake, now wearing nothing but their swimming trunks. Isaac and Derek shed their t shirts, just as Lydia and Allison close up the coolers.

Stiles looks around with a frown. What was this, a hive mind? How did everyone always know what was going on when he didn't?

"You're all going swimming?" The young man asks, making no move whatsoever to get out of his comfy deck chair.

"Well yeah, that's why we're here." Jackson replies haughtily.

Stiles sticks his tongue out at him.

"C'mon man!" Scott says suddenly with a inviting wave of his hand, ignoring his best friends childish antics.

"But it must be freezing!" Stiles protests.

The last thing he needed to get was a cold. The jokes about a sneezing human running with fearsome wolves would go on for years.

"It is freezing cold." Boyd concedes, and Stiles smiles. The man was always the voice of reason. "It's good for you." The Beta continues, and Stiles' smile slowly falls from his face. Well, maybe he wasn't always the voice of reason after all.

"Yeah, good for you to get ill." Stiles mutters, sinking deeper into his chair.

Suddenly, Stiles hears some splashing. Without even taking the time to think about it, the young man pulls his hood up and covers his head, just in time to stop Erica rubbing freezing cold water into his hair. The young woman pouts, and Stiles smirks in victory. After being friends with the wolves for so long, he knew what to expect. With Erica, he'd always learned to expect the worst ...

"Next time, we should all go to a water park." The blonde Beta announces, with a flick of her long hair.

A few beads of water land on Stiles' lap.

"You mean, as a pack?" Derek asks, and Stiles notices the genuine surprise in his voice at hearing the suggestion.

"Yeah!" Erica exclaims, as Scott and Isaac nod furiously.

"With our luck, something would go wrong." Lydia interjects in a dry voice.

Buzzkill, Stiles thinks. Although, he had to concede that she was probably right. The last time the pack had gone somewhere together, Hunters had happened. Stiles still had the scar to commemorate the day trip.

"Yeah, there would probably be a haunted water slide or something." Allison replies with a laugh, but Stiles is sure that she is only half joking.

Stiles smiles himself then, and looks over to his best friend. "That sounds like a Supernatural episode."

"Jerk." Scott says instantly.

"Bitch." Stiles replies just as quickly.

The pack all wear matching looks of genuine confusion, except for Jackson. He just sighs, before beginning to make his way down to the water.

"Nerds." The Beta mutters under his breath. 

Stiles laughs as the Pack follow Jackson to the water, shaking their heads in a mixture of exasperation and amusement.

"You got the reference!" Stiles calls, with a disbelieving laugh. "I'm proud of you Jackson."

Stiles watches from his position in the circle of chairs as the Pack all enter the water. Boyd, Jackson and Allison all begin to swim out into the centre of the Lake, apparently racing, whilst the others linger near the very edge of the water. Stiles couldn't remember a time when he had seen everyone appear so happy and carefree. There was no lingering threat, or even any school drama that they had to worry about. Even Derek was smiling, his white teeth gleaming underneath his sunglasses every time he would cast a casual glance in Stiles' direction. Stiles waves when Erica does, but just shakes his head when his friend widely waves at him, clearly wanting him to come into the water. He was comfortable where he was. After all, he didn't want to cramp anyone's style.

Everyone else in the Pack was just so ... awesome.

He was human. Not even a human like Allison or Lydia; he was something entirely different. He didn't have any powers, or a arsenal of weapons that could take down anything. He was just a pale mess. A bunch of breakable bones controlled by a very dysfunctional brain.

Sometimes, Stiles wonders what God of Fate had intervened to allow him to be friends with the coolest people, not only in Beacon Hills, but in the whole world. Who else could say they were best friends with a True Alpha, or did Biology homework with a Banshee? Not only that, all of his friends were hot. Like, super human hot.

Stiles looks down at his own body with a sigh. He'd always been the scrawny kid, and never really minded. But when your best friend suddenly pops a six pack, and you hang out with the most popular people in school, (not to mention the most attractive), you can't help but notice just how different you look.

Stiles was no popular kid.

"Anyone want a fruit Popsicle?" Lydia calls down towards the water, just as she approaches Stiles and the sitting area.
She opens a cooler, and Stiles squints his eyes in suspicion as she begins to look through all of the food. Knowing Lydia, this wouldn't be some ordinary Popsicle. It had to be a trick. Some sort of super health Popsicle that secretly contained vegetables ... Stiles shudders.

"What flavour?"

Lydia rolls her eyes at the accusatory tone in Stiles' voice, before throwing her friend a Popsicle. Stiles only just manages to catch it before it falls into the dirt. "They're Pineapple."

The rest of the Pack appear slowly, casually dripping water, and not appearing to be out of breath, or even bothered by the freezing cold water of the Lake.

"Like you care what flavour it is." Jackson says, casting a glance over to Stiles as he begins to shove the now dripping Popsicle into his mouth. "You'd eat it if it was ass flavoured."

"Jackson!" Lydia scolds with a glare.

Stiles doesn't know how Jackson manages to continue his calm expression and casual stance. If Lydia had looked at him like that, Stiles would have run away, screaming.

"I'm going take that as a comment on the fact I love Popsicle, and not on the fact that you seem to think I eat ass." Stiles replies calmly, before licking the delicious treat once again.

Hmm, it didn't taste like any vegetable ...

"Don't you?" Jackson whispers, even though he must know that the rest of the Pack can hear him. Because hello, werewolves? "Eat ass?"

"No!" Stiles exclaims.

Scott growls.

"Cut it out." Derek interjects, effecting silencing the group, and that particular topic of conversation.

Stiles sends him a grateful smile, as everyone else continues to eat. The Pack begin to sit around, but Scott immediately shoots out of his own chair just as he is about to sit down.

"Oh god!"

"What's wrong with you?" Allison asks with a smile.

Scott hops around in the centre of the group, rubbing his hands around his swimming trunks, and pulling a ridiculous face.

"I've got something in my shorts ..."

"It's probably just sand." Lydia answers calmly, not really seeming to be interested in the least.

"Or dirt." Allison continues.

Scott shoots Stiles a look as if to say 'help me!' but the young man just shrugs. "I once heard that if you don’t get sand in your undies it means you were a gladiator in a past life."

That comment is met with complete silence. Even Scott stops jumping around for a minute to give his friend a look of pure confusion.

"What the hell Stilinski?" Jackson asks.

Stiles looks around the group with a look of confusion. They were looking at him like he'd just sprouted wings. Or maybe another head. Someone growing wings wouldn't have been the widest thing that the Pack had encountered. "What?"

"You need to stop going on Google at three in the morning." Scott mutters, as he makes an attempt to rearrange his shorts.

Allison and Lydia laugh, and Erica whistles while Boyd quickly moves to cover his girlfriend's eyes.

"And you need to be careful you don't flash the neighbours."

"Oh shit! Sorry!" Scott exclaims as the group laughs.

"Hey, you should tell your puppies to stop mooning." Stiles says to Derek, who had moved to sit next to him when Scott had jumped up. Derek gives Stiles a deadpan look, and it takes the young man a few seconds to realise his mistake. Or genius. "Ha! Mooning! Get it!"

The group groan, before Erica, Lydia and Allison stand, and move towards Lydia's car that was parked a small distance away.
Boyd and Isaac stand up to play Frisbee once again, but not before sending Stiles a wary smile in answer to his warning glance.

Getting hit in the head once was enough.

Suddenly, music begins to come from Lydia's car, and Stiles smiles brightly.

"Oh, I love this song!" Stiles exclaims, before waving towards the girls.

"Who's in charge of the music?" Derek asks warily, before taking a long swig of beer. Sometimes, Stiles forgets that Derek is older than everyone else in the Pack.

Stiles hadn't even seen the man grab a bottle of beer, and he quickly wonders how he'll be able to grab one under the watchful gaze of a group of werewolves ...

"Lydia." Scott says in answer to Derek question, and the man rolls his eyes.

"Great ..."

"What?" Stiles questions, tapping his feet quickly to the rhythm of the music that was still coming from the car.

Derek doesn't say anything about the tapping, even though Stiles knows it must be driving him mad.

"We don't exactly have the same music taste."

"Really? Shocking. I thought you two were practically twins." Stiles replies, tilting his head as if in genuine confusion.

Scott laughs, but Derek just sighs. "Shut up Stiles."

"Derek obviously isn't interested in listening to Justin Bieber all afternoon." Isaac says then, from somewhere behind Stiles.

"Me neither." Scott replies, with a grimace.

Boyd laughs then, and Stiles turns to him just in time to see the young man nod his head in agreement with the others. "Yeah. I hate that guy."

Stiles' mouth falls open then, and he moves to put his hand over his heart, as if the words had personally offended him. He wasn't so sure that they hadn't. Sure, he had to concede that the guy was a dick, but his music was another story.

"What do you mean you don’t like Justin Bieber?" Stiles questions with mock horror.

"Yeah, WHAT DO YOU MEAN!" Erica screams, and Stiles laughs.

"No. No singing." Derek growls in warning.

Stiles takes a huge inward breath, before throwing his head up into the air ... "OH - OH - OH!"

"WHEN YOU NOD YOUR HEAD YES ..."

"... BUT YOU WANNA SAY NO!"

"Skip it!" Derek yells, or more like growls, towards the girls, as Erica and Stiles laugh.

"Fine!" Lydia answers, already changing to song.

Clearly her love for that song was overshadowed by her hatred of Stiles' and Erica's singing.

"Skip it!" Isaac calls, as another song begins to play.

"Hey, I love that song!" Boyd protests, as Erica voices her agreement.

Stiles nods rapidly in agreement, as he turns to face Derek and Scott once again. "Me too! Isn't that from Shrek?"

"That movie is the best." Scott replies, almost like a dreamy sigh.

"Lydia! We are not listening to Cher." Jackson hollers, and Lydia turns to glare down towards her boyfriend.

Stiles chooses to keep his opinions about the music to himself this time.

"I'm in charge of the music!" Lydia calls down, much to the apparent annoyance of Erica, who moves to change the song.

"Shrek vs Cher." Stiles mutters to Derek, who was smiling to himself. "The epic battle of century ..."

The Alpha laughs once quickly, before turning to his companion, and raising an questioning eyebrow. "How many beers have you had?"

Stiles frowns himself then. Where had that come from?

"Zero?"

Scott laughs. "That sounded like a question."

Stiles glares at his so called best friend, before lifting his nearly eaten Popsicle to his mouth. "That sounded like a question ..." The young man mutters childishly.

Derek rolls his eyes.

"C'mon Scott!"

"Scott, Allison is calling you." Stiles says, nodding towards the Hunter and her friends, who had walked away from the car, and were heading back towards the Lake.

Scott shoots out of his seat instantly.

"Aren't you going in?" Derek questions, as he stands from his own seat, apparently ready to follow his Pack back into the freezing cold water.

Stiles tries not to look at his bare chest too closely.

"Nah. I'm good."

"It's good exercise." Derek argues, although Stiles is surprised as the Alpha sits back down in his seat, and waves to Boyd and Isaac to go on ahead without him.

Stiles tries not to over think that small action too much.

Stiles and Derek watch as the rest of the Pack play around in the clear water of the Lake. The sun was shining over the tops of the trees, and Stiles leans back into his chair, enjoying the warm summer breeze. Derek mimics the action with a smile.

Stiles doesn't think he's ever seen the Alpha look so content, or happy. Suddenly, Stiles' mood changes as his thoughts drift away into darker territory. He sits up quickly, turning towards Derek with a smile. The Alpha cracks open one eye slowly, almost warily.

"Hey, are werewolves good swimmers?" Stiles asks, and he is mostly being sincere.

Derek sighs as he opens both of his eyes, and sits up in the chair a little bit straighter. "Is that another dog joke?"

"I'm just saying, they all look like they'd be pretty good swimmers." Stiles replies, nodding down towards the water where Isaac and Boyd were racing each other.

Erica was screaming like a mad woman.

"Being a werewolf doesn't make you a better swimmer." Derek answers, ignoring the chaos that was happening just a few feet away. "A were-seal on the other hand ..."

"Were-seal?!" Stiles exclaims. "Are you serious?!"

Derek turns to look at Stiles, and his serious expression melts into an amused smile. "No."

Stiles huffs, before sinking back down into his seat. "Tease."

Stiles watches the Pack continue to play around in the water as Derek dozes next to him. He feels contented and comfortable, and yet something nags at the back of his mind. Something was holding him back, and stopping him from diving head first into the water with his best friend and his Pack. He just couldn't seem to figure out what it was.

"You okay Stiles?"

Stiles whips his head around quickly to look at Derek, who was gazing at him with a frown. He merely shrugs in response, and looks back towards the water. 

Derek shifts around in his seat, before leaning forward, and resting his bare arms onto his knee's. Stiles hears the Alpha sigh, and braces himself. Here comes the questions ...

"I can hear your heart Stiles. Remember?"

"How could I forget?" Stiles replies, somewhat sarcastically. "You all know everything about me."

"That's not true." Derek says, with a shake of his head. "I don't know everything about you."

Stiles smirks, but keeps his gaze fixed firmly onto the water. "There's not that much to know about me. Falls down a lot, get's into trouble a lot-"

"Stiles I'm not a mind reader, but I can tell something's wrong."

Stiles opens his mouth to bite back a comment about Derek minding his own business, but he stops himself. After all, the Alpha was only trying to help. 

"I don't know what's wrong. I'm just feeling kinda ... bleugh."

Derek nods, as if he understands, but Stiles is sure that Derek can't have any idea what he was talking about. Stiles wasn't even sure what he was talking about. 

"What are you thinking about? Right now?" Derek questions, and Stiles turns to frown at his companion.  

"Why the sudden inquisition? I'm perfectly fine. Just sitting here ... thinking."

"I don't like seeing you like this Stiles."

Stiles frowns then. "Seeing me like what?"

"I don't know. You seem ... bleugh."

Stiles huffs out a laugh then, before turning back towards the water, where the Pack were still messing around. Lydia's hair was now soaking wet, and Stiles was sure someone was going to get into a lot of trouble for that. 

"When you were with your family -" Stiles notices the surprise from Derek at Stiles' sudden conversation, but he carries on. "did you ever feel, I dunno, out of place? Like you didn't really belong with them?" Derek let's out a breath, and Stiles winces. "Sorry. Forget I said anything. Stupid question."

"Yes."

Stiles turns to look at Derek once again. The Alpha was frowning, but he didn't look to be upset. The young human tilts his head, as if in question, and Derek smiles quickly. 

"My parents were really successful, Laura was ... well Laura. She was the most popular and beautiful person in any room. Well, except a room with my Mom in it." Stiles smiles at that. "And Cora -" Derek takes another breath then, and Stiles prepares himself to quickly change the conversation. "She was Cora. The funniest kid ever. She could make grown men laugh like children."

"And you?" Stiles questions warily.

Derek smiles to himself. "I spent a long time beating myself up about who I was. That I wasn't as successful as my Mom, or as popular as Laura, or as funny and likeable as Cora. Then I realised it was all in my head." Derek turns to Stiles then, and the young man has to fight the sudden urge he has to turn his face away. Derek had never looked at him so intently, like he was really seeing Stiles for the first time. "I was me, and they loved me because of who I was. Just like they love you for who you are ..."

Stiles freezes then, like a deer caught in the headlights. He thinks that this may be the longest conversation he and Derek had ever had, and it was certainly the most ... intense. Suddenly, the young man realises something that Derek had said, and he turns towards his companion with squinted eyes. 

"You said they."

Derek frowns himself then. "What?"

"You said they love you. Not we you."

Derek opens his mouth to reply, clearly going to say something along the lines of 'my mistake' or 'wrong choice of words' but then he stops. A small look of concern grows onto the Alpha's face, and Stiles can't but involuntarily gulp. What had he said now? 

"You want me to tell you that I love you?" Derek questions quietly, the and there was something unspoken behind his eyes that Stiles just couldn't quite figure out. 

Stiles flusters, hoping desperately that none of the others had heard the conversation. Scott would have a heart attack. "What? No .. I ... not that ... I mean ..." Suddenly, Derek's concerned face grows into a small smile, and Stiles glares."Oh screw you." 

Derek laughs then, loudly and freely, and Stiles notices that a few members of the Pack had turned towards where Derek and Stiles were sat, look at them questioningly. Scott waves quickly, and Stiles waves back.

True, Stiles was no bad ass, or supernatural creature. He didn't have ab's, or a 170 IQ, or a crossbow. But he had some amazing friends ... 

"That got deep." Stiles says then, and Derek nods in agreement. 

"Yep."

"I should probably make a joke, to lighten the mood."

Derek huffs a laugh then, before leaning back into his chair and closing his eyes once again. "Go for it." The Alpha replies, and Stiles knows that the man has no intention of really listening to his comedy gold. 

"Okay." Stiles shifts in his chair, sitting up straighter, before clearing his throat. "What do you call -"

"No dog jokes." Derek interrupts without even opening his eyes. 

Stiles pouts. "Oh great. That's me done then." 

"Stiles! Derek! C'mon!"

Stiles and Derek quickly look down at the Lake in unison, where the entire Pack had turned to face them. Stiles sees all of their waving arms and smiling faces, and he makes a decision ... Quickly, before he has time to change his mind, he stands, and sheds his tshirt and shorts. He ignores the fact that Derek is right behind him, and the fact that Erica is whooping.

So what, he didn't look like the werewolves? That didn't need to stop him from having a great time with his friends.

Derek meanwhile, gawks at Stiles. Skinny? Weak? Human? Those were not words that popped into the Alpha's head when Stiles had taken off his shirt.  

"Derek? You coming?"

Derek looks up towards Stiles' face. The young mans head was creased in confusion, although he was smiling slightly, no doubt amused at Derek's vacant expression.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm coming." Derek replies, standing up from his seat, and following Stiles down to the water. He glances quickly at Stiles, before looking down at biting his lip to disguise his laugh. "I like your shorts."

Stiles glares, before looking down at his Batman swimming trunks like a protective parent.

"Shut up, Sourwolf. These are awesome and you know it."

Derek smiles sincerely, then. "Yeah." He concedes with a nod of his head. "Pretty awesome ..."

The End.

Chapter Text

Hi everyone! So here’s a little something to take you with us through the playlist we made for 'Everything’s Going Swimmingly' and to explain why we chose each song which is on it. Hope you will like it!

• Gorgeous by Orson

The thing about this one is about a kind of discovery (« don't believe I've ever seen you around
When did you get here? ») from Derek’s POV. It’s like he just saw how Stiles is and understood how attracted he was to the boy (« you’re so gorgeous, it’s killing me »).
Derek wouldn't be able to bear someone else being with Stiles («The hand that you are holding, 
should be mine. The lips you are kissing, should be mine, mine »).

• The Way That I Am by Tove Lo

This one is more from a Stiles’ POV. I found it perfect because it’s like Stiles telling Derek that he is in love with him despite how Derek is with him, grumpy, sometimes criticising («You can point fingers, all you want, I don't care, I love you anyway » ). Stiles is also aware that there’s some problems with him, well more things that people (including Derek) can find annoying («I've been told I am the problem, And the problem's my honesty, When it's worse than how it seems, And I tell you all the wrong things, All the things you don't wanna hear. ») but he hopes that it won’t stop Derek to love him because he won’t change himself («Yeah, I've fallen in love, And I hope that you want me, The way that I am, Fallen in love, And I know I can't change me, Do you understand? » ).

• Night Swim by Josef Salvat

Because it speaks of water, of taking a swim with the one you love… but here, take a closer look at the lyrics:
«Take off your clothes, The water is warm, I wanna take you for a night swim, Believe what you want, But there's no one around, Don’t play games, just get in, Oh, I spent all my money on this view, So I could be alone lost with you »
This part could really be Derek talking to Stiles.
«Whisper words into my ears, will you? As we dissolve into the breeze,You’re taking me back to the start, With you I forget who I've been, I'm clean »

• This River is Wild by The Killers

More from Stiles’ POV. For him, Derek is a bit hard to read through (and he’s a sourwolf!) and he wants to show him that he’s not just an hyperactive kid who does and says a lot of things Derek believes are stupid. He’s smart but nervous, and finally pretty shy when it comes to what he feels.
( «I just want to show you what I know, And catch you when the current lets you go /
I never did get along with everybody else, I’ve been trying hard to do what's right, But you know I could stay here all night, And watch the clouds fall from the sky /
Sometimes I'm nervous when I talk, I shake a little, Sometimes i hate the line I walk »)

• Find You by Zedd

This song could be a great definition of Sterek (in my opinion of course). It’s talking about silent love that brings faith and the fact that one person makes the other one moves forward, that « if you lose yourself, I will find you » (both Stiles and Derek to the other). We could have thought that their relationship’s fate was to end («We're fireworks with a wet fuse, Flying planes with paper wheels, To the same Achilles heels ») but they are (or will be) stronger than everything.

• Sweet Disposition by The Temper Trap

What can be love between those two? To me, the answer is in this song (plus, it’s a very summer song ^^):
« A moment of love, A dream, A laugh, A kiss, A cry, Our rights, Our wrongs /
So stay there, ’Cause I'll be coming over, While our blood's still young, It’s so young, it runs, Won’t stop 'til it's over, Won’t stop to surrender »

• I Found by Amber Run

A brilliant song that, to me, represents Derek in this fanfiction, discovering that love is right in front of him.
«And I found love where it wasn't supposed to be, Right in front of me, Talk some sense to me »

• Life in Colour by One Republic

Because I firmly believe that Derek will never be able to understand why Stiles loves him, with everything that happened with him («Well you've seen my worst, And yet you see some hope in me ») and this is a happy song and our boys deserve to be happy.

• Angeles by Elliott Smith

Again, Derek believing that he’s bad for Stiles and that he doesn’t deserve him («And be forever with my poison arms around you / So glad to meet you Angeles »).

• Never Close Our Eyes by Adam Lambert

It’s all about living the moment and staying together, wishing that what we have never ends. Plus, it’s a song that could in one of those parties Teen Wolf has the secret of.

• All Of It But Me by TYP

To me, this is Stiles thinking about what’s inside Derek’s mind (« In your mind, what will I find? »). Pictures of his lost family, of his ancient and lost love, of everything but him because Stiles strongly believes that it’s impossible that Derek thinks about him and most of all, loves him ( «Memories of your father, Pictures of your mother, Boys you loved when you were 16 on the swimming team, Image of your sister and how much you missed her, Boys you loved when you were 19, All of it but me » ).

• Can’t Stop The Feeling by Justin Timberlake

Because it’s a summer song. But also because of that : « And under the lights when everything goes, Nowhere to hide when I'm getting you close, When we move, well, you already know, So just imagine, just imagine, just imagine ».

• The Kids Aren't Alright by Fall Out Boy

Derek to Stiles: We’ll never truly be ok but it doesn't matter as long as I’m with you, cause you’re my best friend Stiles and I love you. Stay who you are.
«And in the end, I’d do it all again. I think you're my best friend.Don't you know that the kids aren't al-, kids aren't alright? I'm yours. When it rains it pours. Stay thirsty like before. Don't you know that the kids aren't al-, kids aren't alright? »

• Far Too Young to Die by Panic! at the disco

Again, for me it’s Derek speaking to Stiles, thinking that he has never been so in love and that he never thought that Stiles would stay with all this mess around him. It’s a bit like they don’t know what will happen next and Derek needs to kiss Siles. Like now. And he’s so afraid of what will happen to himself.
«I've never so adored you, I’m twisting allegories now, I want to complicate you, Don’t let me do this to myself / Well I never really thought that you'd come tonight, While the crown hangs heavy on either side, Give me one last kiss while we're far too young to die (we're far too young to die).Far too young to die »

• Underneath the Sycamore by Death Cab for Cutie

Stiles and Derek are both broken in their own way. They’re the same. That’s why they fit together and now they’re safe.
«We were both broken in our own ways, Sifting through the rubble for the wrong things , I know you've got a vengeful heart, And I cannot be stopped as soon as I start , But you have seen your darkest rooms , And I have slept in makeshift tombs , And this is where we find our peace , Oh this is where we are at least , We are the same, We are both safe, Underneath the sycamore »

• The Trouble With Us by Chet Faker

Derek talking to Stiles:
«I see that look in your eyes, Heartbeats get in the way, I see that look in your face, I can't take it away, Ooh, God, That’s the trouble with me, I need the trouble with you, Ooh, God, That’s the trouble with us »

• Somebody Wants You by Oscar and The Wolf

It’s like a dialogue between Derek and Stiles. I’m in love with this song.
«Somebody wants you now, Control the heartbeat, Take me under, Focus on the breathing, Don’t watch my heart, Take me under, Shove me on the backseat, You give it to me slow, It’s you and I, I’m not making you choose, love, Don’t make me bite »

• Nine in The Afternoon by Panic! at the disco

I take it as how Derek really sees Stiles on this day in the preserve (and because Stiles has moon sized eyes), and how he falls in love with him.
«And your eyes are the size of the moon, You could 'cause you can so you do, We’re feeling so good, just the way that we do, When it's nine in the afternoon »

• Summer of Love by Cascada

Because everything’s in the title ^^ and it’s the song in the video made for this fanfiction!

Hope you liked 'Everything’s Going 'Swimmingly'
Love, Wandering Wolves