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When they rebuilt the Hale house, each of the pack members was assigned a room. Erica and Boyd soon switched to one together and the other was turned into a study-slash-library. Isaac set up camp in the attic, with its huge windows and skylights, as far away from any dark corners -- and the basement -- as possible. Scott and Stiles took the rooms with a common bathroom in between, and Lydia picked one in the quietest corner, one of only two with its own bathroom.
The other one -- it was basically a small apartment on its own -- was Derek’s. It even had a small corner that could have served as a makeshift kitchen, but it mostly housed an assortment of cups and plates that Derek brought up from the dining room whenever he felt the pack’s noise was a bit too much. He didn’t distance himself from them, but there were times when he declared that a pack of teenagers wasn’t what he wanted to deal with at all times. Stiles, of course, never failed to point out that it was Derek who made the pack.
Then after Jackson came back and claimed a space, and even Allison got a room, there was still the basement that no one seemed willing to claim. Eventually, several exercise and home gym items found their way there. When Scott brought over an old stereo and set it up in there, the rest of the pack -- well, Lydia and Stiles mostly -- insisted on soundproofing the whole basement. After that, the only way to know that anyone was in there was by the slam of the door as the person went in. Or by the lack of their presence anywhere else in the house.
Of course, the one who ended up using it the most was Derek. None of the others figured out if it was genuinely for exercising, or if it was only to escape the rest of the pack for a while. It only took a few weeks though for Stiles to automatically head there if he needed Derek for something. Like now, when he’s stuck researching diplomatic pack relations, and knows that Derek’s the only one who might be able to provide some genuine information.
He’s expecting music when he opens the door to the basement staircase. Scott always has something blaring when he’s there. On more than one occasion, that earned him a slam of the door he tends to forget to close despite the reminders that there’s a reason why they soundproofed the basement. What Stiles is not expecting is the song that he’s greeted with.
We're gonna burn this damn place down // Down to the ground
“Jeez dude, morbid song much?” Stiles says when it comes to a close just as he gets to the bottom of the stairs.
He almost turns right around when he is met with the sight of shirtless and sweaty Derek, who’s jumping down from the pull-up bar.
“What?” Derek asks, then he reaches for a towel and wipes his face.
“I just,” Stiles starts, and he has to pause and take a deep breath before continuing. “The song. Possibly not the best choice.”
Derek frowns, and he hits the back button on the stereo to replay the same song.
“I mean, Def Leppard is cool and all,” Stiles says in the short pause and as the song begins playing. “But…”
As the song plays, Derek seems to focus on the words with a frown. He hits the stop button before the first chorus begins.
“I wasn’t paying attention,” he says to Stiles. “It’s a good workout song.”
“Maybe don’t tempt fate playing it in this house?” Stiles suggests, his voice soft.
Derek shrugs, and he drops the towel back on the chair he grabbed it from.
“Did you need anything?” He asks as he’s walking towards the weights bench.
“Yeah, I…” Stiles stumbles over his words as he watches Derek pick up a dumbbell and start flexing his arm with it. “I was…”
He takes a breath, and watches another few flexes.
“Look, could you pause, this is kind of distracting,” he says.
“What is?” Derek asks, trying to sound innocent.
He is failing miserably, because Stiles doesn’t miss the glint in Derek’s eyes as their eyes meet. He glares at Derek, who grins, but puts the dumbbell down.
“Okay, okay, serious time, I guess,” Derek says, and he almost convinces Stiles that he's being apologetic.
Almost, because he walks closer instead, and wraps his arms around Stiles’ waist.
“Ugh, fine,” Stiles grumbles, and leans in to brush his lips against Derek’s. “I’ll wait. It’s about the pack meetings we have coming up. Come talk to me when you’re not all this,” he ends, stepping out of Derek’s reach and waving a hand at his body.
“You just pointed to all of me,” Derek deadpans.
“I’m revoking Erica’s movie choice privileges,” Stiles grunts on the way up the stairs. “We’re not watching How To Train Your Dragon again.”
Derek’s laughter follows him until he slams the basement door behind his back.