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“We should get matching jerseys we make such a great team.”
“But you're out of my league,” Derek frowned over at stiles. “That's why everyone thinks you're making a mistake.”
Stiles sits forward on the chair he'd been spinning on and stares at Derek going over what he'd said in his mind. Nope. Try again. Yup still the same. Stiles is out of Derek's league?
Stiles fell to the floor with a dull thump and the computer chair he'd been sitting on crashing beside him. Derek sprung to his feet and stared at his boyfriend. Stiles was laughing so hard he couldn't breathe gasping breathes barely escaping, tears streamed down his face and his hands clutched helplessly at his stomach. Scott stuck his head out from the kitchen shaking his head in exasperation before quickly retreating.
It took ten minutes for stiles to calm down. He popped his head over the edge of the coffee table to stare at Derek and couldn't contain another giggle. Derek though Stiles was out of his league. Man this would never not be funny.
Stiles sprawled across the coffee table head down on the cool glass as Scott arrived with a bowl of popcorn in his lap and shamelessly chewed as Derek waited with barely contained annoyance.
“Why was that so funny stiles?” Derek raised an eyebrow and frowned at the same time. How this expression came about stiles had no idea but the eyebrows managed it.
“Dude you are so far out of my league that it's more understandable that I drugged or blackmailed you into dating me,” Stiles grinned at Derek then shrugged because hey it's true. “So what makes you think telling me I'm out of your league would make me go to college?”
Scott rolled his eyes with a huffed sigh.
“Because you're throwing away the college experience! You could do so much with a degree or whatever but no you're letting getting laid distract you!”
Derek nodded seriously along to Scotts dramatic proclamation with a private smirk.
Scott had dragged Stiles over to Derek to get a good talking to about throwing his life away by nixing getting a college education. He knew everyone would tell him he was throwing his life away for a relationship he didn't know would last, that he was being impulsive or irresponsible. But he knew what he was doing if only someone would let him explain.
But he also knew Scott felt betrayed that stiles didn't want to go to college with him. He was lashing out from betrayal and loneliness and Stiles knew he had to do what he wanted this time not what makes Scott happy.
“Scotty it's not about that I already tried to explain it!” Stiles flailed his arms trying to convince the werewolf who jumped up and started pacing.
“You said a relationship is more important!” Scotts eyes flashed as glared at Stiles who jumped to his feet to yell at his best friend.
“Compared to the “college experience” yeah.” The sarcasm dripped off stiles’ tongue as he practically spat the hated phrase.
Scotty started growling low in his throat as the two locked eyes. Derek stepped forward flashing his red eyes at Scotty to calm down. The other alpha bowed his head briefly.
“I think I need to leave and go for a run,” he wouldn't look at stiles as he stalked toward the door. “Try talk some sense into him.”
The door slammed shut behind Scott leaving stiles and Derek in the loft alone. The silence stretched as Derek stared at Stiles face contorted in obvious disapproval.
“Stiles-“ he began only to be cut off by a harsh laugh.
“Oh you’re just going to lecture me aren't you?” The teen shifted his feet body swaying with rage. “Just going to listen to what he was saying and not ask my side? It is my future you know and my choice.”
“Stiles you don't know what you're choosing I can't let you ruin your future!” Derek's voice was slowly raising as his control slipped.
Stiles puffed up ready to yell and scream and defend his point to the death until suddenly the wind was let out of him. He sighed heavily and fell to the couch.
“Go ahead,” he waved a hand in a continue gesture and a voice full of sincere patience. “Lecture your boyfriend, who you have sex with and live with, as if he were a child. Go on.”
The two glared at each other for a brief moment as the tension mounted until finally Derek submitted with a low growl at stiles slumping to the couch in defeat.
“I'm sorry but it sounds like an irresponsible childish choice,” he held a hand up to stop the rebuttal stiles no doubt would have used with sword point precision. “So please O Stiles enlighten me.”
The younger man smiled and held out a hand which Derek took gladly.
“Derek I'm sorry but this is only like a quarter, at most, about you,” stiles grinned cheekily trying to relax. “And I'm going to have to share a secret with you that I should have told you already since we started dating but it's only been six months and it slipped my mind. And honestly I don't like talking about it normally. Because I never wanted to be different “
He took a deep breath and started to speak as quickly as he could to get everything out, hands making jerking movements as he spoke.
“I already graduated from college like years ago. It's called dual enrolment and I kind of forgot because it's not really been that hard and well it was a big deal before but then werewolves,” he stopped and waved a hand at Derek as if that explained everything which it honestly did. “So it fell to the back burner and I just did my courses like normal homework. School knew and I, well the only way I was allowed to continue is that I took high school seriously and wasn't gonna flake. But I couldn't ever tell Scotty because he's my best friend and he'd blame himself for holding me back because yeah I stayed in high school for him as much as any other reason because we were each other's only friends and frankly we were the nobody freaks. But now he's a werewolf and he'd have no trouble finding friends or defending himself so he doesn't need me.”
Here stiles stopped and watched Derek nervously. So far the alphas expression had stayed calm and unfazed by the revelations which the teen knew was a gigantic exercise in self control and not his real reaction at all. Which was both spooky and intimidating. And kinda nice that he knew that. Huh.
“So when graduation came around and we had to decide on what we were going to do I went and talked to my dad and he said I could do whatever I wanted. So I talked to Dr Deaton and he said he'd train me. And if I trained with Dr. D then I'd be staying here in Beacon Hills which had the added perk of sexy boyfriend.” Stiles sighed. “So the list is: I already graduated, dads ok, Scott doesn't need me and Dr D is going to train me. Also it gives us a chance without long distance or balancing dating, disaster of the week and school. I'll have work and a purpose and even maybe an end game so what do you think?”
Stiles hadn’t realised just how important Derek's reaction would be until he stopped talking and had to look straight at him without the distraction of words.
When Derek finally went to speak stiles’ heart thudded so hard even his human ears could hear the desperate sound.
“Ok.” He nodded and turned to grab the Tv remote.
“What?”
Derek glanced over at the slack jawed teen. “Ok. I always knew you were out of my league smart.”
“But,” stiles grasped desperately for something to say. “Shouldn't you be telling me I'm doing something?”
“Doing something?” A single eyebrow rose is a judging movement.
“You know! Everyone's going to say I'm being lazy or childish. Why aren't you?”
“Because you're not. You told me everything and I can see you've thought about it and I'm happy with that.” Derek stared at stiles for a moment before grinning. “You had an argument you can't use now didn't you?”
“Well yeah,” stiles pouted. “Scott said I wasn't going to get the college experience and I thought well, I get something better you know?”
Derek just shook his head baffled.
“Well I get you. I know everyone says college is a great life changing experience and everything but when I discovered werewolves, kanimas, banshees and werefoxes I had a life changing and perception altering experience and now I'd like a normal life for a bit thank you very much.”
Derek pulled stiles into his side and rested his chin on the teens head.
“So your saying: you want boring?” Derek asked curiously.
“Well no not boring but as normal and boring as dating an alpha and protecting our town can be,” stiles wrapped an arm around his boyfriend and snuggles closer. “I mean it'll never be boring if I'm training to be a Mage. Let's face it that isn't a sensible plan however you spin it.”
The werewolf barked out a laugh and turned on the Tv. He trusted stiles to know what he was doing.
“Now I just have to tell Scotty.” Stiles slumped into the couch.
Without taking his eyes from the Tv Derek raised an arm and pointed at the door. Like a bad horror movie Stiles turned slowly to find an angry werewolf at his door.
“So you heard..?”
“Everything,” Scott was frowning thoughtfully at his friend. “You lied to me stiles. I'm a werewolf and you lied to me.”
“I'm sorry Scotty-“ the teen began to explain but was cut off by a low growl from his best friend.
“You lied to me because you’re my best friend and you didn't want me to be alone or feel guilty about you staying.” The were ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “But then I was a werewolf and you stayed with me. When my world went upside down you were there for me because I needed you and you knew that. I didn’t realise when you needed help but you knew I needed you. Even with a werewolves hearing I couldn't tell you were lying to protect me.”
Stiles didn't know what he could say so for once he sat in silence watching his best friend, his brother, work through the idea of stiles living a double life this whole time.
Scotty looked at stiles now face shattered with sadness.
“You've been watching over me since kindergarten and you're so smart but you think I don't need you now?”
The room fell silent except for the low buzz of the tv as Scott and stiles stared at each other eyes searching.
In the end Derek came to the rescue handing stiles and Scott a drink each. Scotts laced with wolfsbane.
They got drunk. They cried. Manly men tears. Promised eternal broship. And the next day a hungover Scott headed off to check out the nearby colleges with Kira.
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“You have no idea what you're doing,” the dust choked voice muttered in mortification. “Did you just see a spell and think why the hell not?”
Stiles tried to smile but instead his mouth twisted in a pained grimace.
“This stiles!” The red eyed alpha pointed to the wrecked furniture, scattered debris and knocked over pack. “This is why the hell not!”
“Derek calm down no ones hurt,” Stiles held his hands up trying to placate the alpha. “And I didn't use a spell it just kind of happened.” He shrugged and rubbed his head in embarrassment.
Stiles knew he needed better control.
Hell he could hardly make the spells work the way the books said they should. What Derek didn't know was he'd wanted a gale force wind, he'd been thinking about what it would take to knock a group of weres over and as soon as he thought of a tornado the warehouse had been filled with whipping winds and heavy crashing as the pack was thrown about.
It had centred on stiles who stood in a circle of calm and almost immediately stopped but the brief spell was enough to knock Boyd, Erica, Isaac and Allison to the ground. Derek had been standing beside stiles and managed to avoid being blown about. Barely.
Deaton hadn't been able to explain why the spark at stiles centre didn't respond to the structure and guidance of spell work but the results of accidents like this has proved stiles held a scary amount of potential.
“Ugh I wish you'd gone to the bloody college like Scott wanted,” Erica had started pulling bit of splintered chairs from her hair as she spoke. “We'd miss you but maybe we'd still have furniture to sit on.”
“Oh please Erica you heathen you never sat in chairs anyway. You always sat on us.”
“’Tis not the point.” The sniffed delicately like an offended lady. Stiles cracked up at the image.
Until he noticed Derek glaring at him.
“Ok I guess just thinking about having a werewolf knocking down wind and having it instantly appear isn't you know normal. How about I call Deaton later?”
The glare intensified.
“How about I go see Deaton like right now?”
Derek gave a barely contained sigh as Erica swaggered over slinging an arm around Stiles’ shoulders.
“You know for a smart guy you can be pretty stupid. But if you control this our pack is gonna be in a league of their own.”