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******
Derek genuinely thought a black and white world was a good thing. It was routine and familiar. In fact, with the help of his mother's eyesight, he'd realized that the color he loved the most was indeed black.
Derek’s parents had been teenagers when they'd visited the movie theatre for the same show. It had been pure coincidence and both of their worlds had suddenly transformed into mesmerizing color.
Derek used to love to hear their story even though he already had it memorized word for word. His lips always curved upwards as he watched their dreamy, goofy smiles when they recited the story again together once more. His parents had been one of the very few lucky soul-couples who had visited the same place on the same day and managed to follow the newly colored path that their other half had left. They'd tracked each other down before their worlds could go back to black and white.
It allowed you a world full of color for one single day. A day.
The universe was cruel like that.
It gave soulmates a single day to find each other and seal the bond between them permanently or the color would vanish forever… and so would the bond.
Never meeting a soulmate was one thing, manageable and quite bearable. But, losing them after getting a glimpse of a promising future was utterly devastating. He’d heard stories about people losing their minds after losing their soul-bond and Derek preferred to be un-bonded than face such a terrible fate.
His parents had died in a car accident.
Together, like all the bonded soul-couples did.
Experts said it was to shield them from the despair of living the rest of their lives without the bond. Soulmates were said to be the fortunate ones who got a chance to know selfless love. Whatever, the topic of soulmates was never Derek's favorite. It wasn't easy when you lost both your parents to some cliched bond.
Derek never fantasized about meeting his soulmate like his sisters did, but the colors always intrigued him. Especially when he stared at his wardrobe for full fifteen minutes and struggled everyday over what different shade of grey to wear for a meeting. He would certainly have liked to see the olive green which, according to his mom, matched well with his eyes, or a rainbow which had made his dad grin like a child. Other than that, he was pretty much contented in his colorless world.
Until one day.
He was in Beacon Hills for a week trying to secure a business deal with Mr Whitmore. Laura had successfully stepped into their father's shoes as the CEO of the Hale Enterprise. After finishing his degree Derek had recently joined the company, devoting his life to nurturing his parent's dream.
It was a sunny morning, and he was out running circuits around the beautiful town, following his usual routine when he noticed an area near the lake had suddenly become alive with color. All unknown, breathtaking colors which made Derek freeze on the spot.
Wow… was his first thought.
Shit… was his second.
His soulmate was here.
He came to his senses with a start and ran like a madman, following the bright path over fresh fields which were splashed in heavenly shades of green. Yes, it was green, he'd heard of it. It melted his heart and his eyes watered. He blinked at the the gorgeous creation of the almighty as a traitorous tear rolled down his cheek.
His soulmate was here, his brain provided again, heart pounding. He needed to find them, track them down before -
His throat went dry on the unfinished thought. He’d got a single day. And, that was it.
His legs never stopped, dashing forward to stretch their limits, determined to cover as much distance as they could with each passing minute. He didn't have time to take in the beauty around him, the clock was already ticking.
Derek skidded to a halt when he reached - what looked like - the busiest part of the town. He always hated markets, but clearly, his soulmate didn't.
The entire area was lit with vivid colors. He wiped sweat beads from his forehead, gulping in the thick air to get his breathing right. Derek never thought the colors would ever make him so vulnerable. They were making his search almost impossible.
He strolled around the area, eyes constantly searching. Everything felt new, dazzling in a complete contrast to his routine dull world - intricately decorated shops, vegetables and flowers stalls, even the Sheriff's station - he hoped his soulmate wasn't in trouble.
“Laura… I see colors.” Derek pressed the cellphone to his ear, barely avoiding bumping into passersby as he made his way along the busy sidewalk. “I can't find them, Laura… my soulmate. I can't-” his voice cracked and he pursed his trembling lips to suppress a wave of overwhelming emotion.
Through the haze of rising tension, his sister's surprised, soothing words barely reached his brain.
******
Derek cancelled all his scheduled appointments for the day. It was a matter of just a single day.
He visited the local library, wandering through the shelves stuffed full of books, all colored. His soulmate definitely loved books, especially the comics ones. That section was particularly dense, screaming - I was here - mocking him. Derek scowled at it.
He walked to the information desk, trying to decide if to inquire about frequent visitors. He wondered if that would look stalker-ish, Derek didn’t care.
The librarian looked pissed, babbling about someone spoiling his brand new thesaurus. Derek leaned in to get a casual look. Oh boy, it looked messy, scribbled in thick lines of red, green and yellows all over. Indeed, it was no less than a crime in its own right, Derek totally sympathized with the fuming librarian.
“What?!” the man barked at Derek, making him jump.
And, he slipped out of the library door without uttering a single word.
******
His next destination was a park.
Derek loved parks. He always visited them with his nephew, Mike, but today he certainly preferred the less crowded space.
He watched the kids running around, flushing an adorable pink as they enjoyed the swings and slides. His eyes drank in the way the tiny flowers peeped out of the green swathes of grasses and bushes. He'd never thought flowers came in such variety. He continued his march, marveling at the textures of pebbles and stones surrounding the joggers track.
The colors were thick. His soulmate, sometime in their lives, must have visited the park on a regular basis, whether as a child or with a young sibling, Derek couldn't be sure. He wondered how many others there were in their family.
On his way to the park’s exit, Derek noticed a snack kiosk. It was surrounded by a bunch of regular customers. He made his way across to it, lured by the smell of fries tickling his nostrils. The curly ones especially made his stomach grumble. He was hungry, so damn hungry.
That was the moment he realized that he hadn't eaten anything since that morning. But, he didn't stop, not even for a quick snack.
He had so much space to cover in so little time.
******
Derek’s heart skipped a beat when a well defined color trail ended in front of the Beacon Hills Hospital.
He lingered around a metal gated entrance until the gateman started giving him suspicious looks. He didn't want to get in any trouble, so he entered the building, the smell of medicines making his head heavy.
He hated hospitals, they always triggered tragic memories. He swallowed, cautiously avoiding the sights around him. He headed straight to the desk where a middle-aged nurse with wavy hair was busy reading something.
As Derek approached, she looked up from her file, an open, welcoming smile on her face. “Are you looking for someone?”
Derek froze at the question. Yes, of course, he was looking for someone, he just didn't know exactly whom or even have a clue how to put it in sensible words. He struggled. “I am… I uh-”
His nervous stutter was interrupted by the buzzing of the nurse’s cellphone. She swiped through the screen, throwing an apologetic One sec, it's my son at him.
“Scott,” she commanded, all the softness in her voice vanishing instantly. She looked angry. “Ask your best friend to move his Jeep from the hospital’s parking.” She paused, probably listening to her son explain his friend's actions. “By the way, where is he? The kids here are waiting for story time,” she bellowed and disconnected the call after giving her son a minute long lecture.
The welcoming smile returned to her lips.
“Sorry about that,” she shrugged. Derek nodded, thoroughly intimidated. “What's your patient’s name you said?”
Derek swallowed. “Um, Mister… Weasley?” he blurted out the first surname that popped up in his mind. He should probably limit his binge watching of Harry Potter movies with little Mike.
“Room number one o’ three.”
“Huh?”
“One hundred and three,” she said, slowly this time. “The third room on your right.”
Derek had no other option but to visit the room and listen to a stranger, a man in his nineties, ramble on about his upset stomach for a full fifteen minutes.
When he managed to escape the hospital, he didn't miss the blue Jeep in the parking lot. It was old, some CJ-5 model from the eighties. It looked dilapidated, but pampered as if some precious gift, some memento.
Derek could definitely relate to that. After all, he'd been wearing his dad’s black leather jacket for years. He refused to give it up. Finally, Laura had taken pity on him and fixed its torn sleeve.
******
Derek wasn't prepared when a quiet winding lane led him to a cemetery.
His step faltered, chest shrinking tight. His soulmate had lost someone. Someone so dear that the colors were prominent and clear, as if he’d been there very recently.
Derek slumped down on a concrete bench under an oak tree, his legs giving out for some reason. Death was a touchy subject for him, his own heart was yet to heal from the loss he’d suffered years before.
He huffed out a heavy sigh, eyes tripping over the ten graves in front of him. A few were well maintained and others were overgrown with weeds, looking sad and lonely. But, Derek noticed, they all had a similar set of daisies placed against the base of their stones, paying respect to all those forgotten souls.
Derek couldn't figure out exactly which one belonged to his soulmate’s relative, but he couldn't complain about that.
******
Laura joined him in the Beacon Hills.
This is important for me too, Derek - she explained, wrapping an arm around his shoulder when he gave her a long suffering look. No matter how frustrated he was with her for abandoning all her clients without sparing a second thought, he was actually relieved that his sister was there, standing strong by his side.
They met an old family friend from the town, Mr Deaton, who was known as a soulmate expert. The man scrolled through thick books and lectured them on soul-bonds without twitching a single muscle, testing Derek’s patience to its limit. At least, the man provided a few contacts which helped them to narrow down their search.
“It's you who have to find them, Derek,” Deaton paused right there without explaining anything further, as if it was some kind of unspoken rule of the soulmate world.
Derek folded his arms over his chest, turning to face Deaton, his eyebrows furrowed. “What ‘you expect me to do?” He let out an annoyed huff. “Stand in the middle of a market and shout at the top of my lungs?”
“Why not, Derek. Why not?” the man hummed.
And Derek was done.
******
At the end of the day, nothing seemed to work.
All their visits to the people Deaton had suggested turned out to be nothing but waste of time. So, as a last resort, Derek gulped down all his pride and went for the final option..
He stood on a platform that had been left near one of the popular cafes and turned toward the gathered crowd.
A few heads turned in his direction, eyeing him warily definitely thinking he was some kind of idiot. Derek wanted the ground to split open and swallow him whole. His face was burning in embarrassment. When he hesitated, Laura gave him an encouraging nudge.
Finally, finally he cleared his throat, telling them his name. The crowd stared at him a little confused until he announced that he could see colors and was looking for his soulmate.
The crowd was stunned for a moment. A few amused gasps broke the silence. They cheered for him, all starstruck to meet someone so rare. Some shook hands with him, asking curious questions about different colors, promising him they’d spread the word.
Others shot him pitying looks, clapping him on his shoulder, dragging his attention to the setting Sun.
The day was almost over.
Derek felt his heart sink into his stomach, a wave of panic surging up from his gut. He couldn't breathe. The approaching crowd made it worse. He sucked in a breath, trying to focus on the fading colors.
No…
He wanted to shout. He wanted to cry.
It was all over.
“Are you alright, Der?” Laura's concerned shout rang in his ears.
“I… I want go,” he stuttered through a choking breath. It was Laura’s warm hand on his that kept him standing on his wobbly feet.
The drive back to the hotel was silent.
Derek sagged in the passenger seat, his head leaning against the window for support. He curled his hands into fists, hating the way they were shaking. He blinked outside the window hoping to lock the gorgeous colors of the evening sky in his memory. This would be his last chance to see them.
He’d failed to find his soulmate. His deadline was over. He shuddered at the thought.
Would he lose all the connections - his memory, all these tiny clues he'd collected so far? Would he go crazy like others had, or try to find a connection with that person without the magical bond? Would it feel the same after losing the bond? He didn't have the answers to all these screaming questions, but he was willing to try to find out.
******
“Derek Hale?” He wasn't expecting a call while passing through the hotel lobby like a dead man.
He turned around to meet the sight of a young man. His skin was pale, dotted with beautiful moles, cheeks flushed in an adorable pink for some reason. His body was fidgeting as he ran his fingers through his soft, brown hair making it stand up in every direction. Derek refused to break contact with the man’s big, amber eyes.
The man stepped closer, as Derek felt glued to the spot. Hell, he even forgot to open his mouth to answer.
“I'm Stiles.” The man offered a hand and Derek remembered to react.
He raised his hand, linking their fingers together and jumped as a sweet jolt passed straight to his heart.
“... Your soulmate.” The man smiled fondly, his eyes tripped all over Derek's face as if he was the most precious thing in the whole damn world.