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The fact that so many things changed for Stiles after Scott was bitten by a werewolf and changed into one himself made him just take a deep breath and move on after everything that happened.
They found out that the crazy alpha on the loose was Peter Hale, Derek’s uncle who had been in a coma until he was let loose to kill Laura and bite several teens (only succeeding in biting Scott). It seemed very suspicious with how the Argents were suddenly back in town too.
Stiles tried to tie it all together, even if he felt bad for throwing that molotov cocktail on Peter when he went nuts even more so. Something almost stopped him from doing it, and some part of him was glad that it had been Derek who killed the other man. It must have hurt, Stiles could see it in Derek’s eyes. But it was for the best, Peter deserved the rest Death would give him.
What he didn’t expect was for the man to be able to come back to life. To be standing there where no one of them seemed to suspect him. He was a joy to be around, in Stiles’ opinion at least. The older man was just as witty as Stiles was, but tried to hide. And he was smart, as the former Left Hand of Talia Hale, he had a lot of knowledge and more than Stiles could ever get for himself.
Looking at himself in the mirror after getting home after the game, and the subsequent kidnapping by Gerard and his cronies, Stiles just liked that he was able to get into the shower. The bruises would be on his body for a while to come, but at least he was safe.
Looking at his phone when it blinked with a message, he opened it up, smiling as he saw an ok appear on his screen, followed by a text from Erica telling him that she and Boyd had been picked up by Peter and droven to Alpha Satomi. It might not be the best place, but it would be better for them to grow into being a wolf. She also asked him if he was ok to have contacted Peter to get them out.
It might not be the best thing to do, but Stiles didn’t know what else he could do. Erica and Boyd were still in that basement when he was taken out. He looked at Chris Argent when he crossed paths with the man on his way out. Something about his posture made him think that he was going to release Erica and Boyd, but that didn’t take away that they wouldn’t have anywhere to go.
He had called Peter as soon as he was close to his jeep, before the clusterfuck that was Gerard and the death of Jackson (as well as his resurrection) came to pass. Telling the other man what had happened and what he believed was going to happen.
The whispered, “I’ll deal with it, sweetheart”, was enough to comfort him that at least Erica and Boyd would be safe.
He had sagged in relief before getting into his jeep and getting Lydia for whatever was going to happen after. She was needed to get Jackson out of whatever he was trapped by turning into a Kanima, and back into a human. Or if Peter had been right, to make sure that he would turn in a werewolf.
Scott and Derek had left him alone as it was all over. Lydia and Jackson had left as soon as Jackson came back to life. Leaving Stiles to stand there on the field, his dad was working late again.
Biting his lip, he made his way home and into the shower. Hoping that he could at least do that on his own before crashing into his bed. He hoped that none of his wounds were infected, or that his ribs were bruised and not broken.
“The cubs are safe, by the way.”
Turning around, Stiles yelped as Peter stood there. The older man was looking him over, his eyes glowing blue as he took in the wounds littering his body.
“You didn’t tell me that you were hurt too, sweetheart. I had to hear that from Erica and Vernon.”
Stiles couldn’t look away even if he wanted to, he hadn’t heard anyone come in. Peter was the last person he was expecting to see here. Even more so as he should still be in Beacon County dropping Erica and Boyd with Alpha Satomi.
“What are you doing here?”
Keeping the towel wrapped around his hips, Stiles didn’t know what he needed to do. He had to be honest to himself that Peter was an attractive man, and he got along great after he had come back to life. But even that didn’t take away that he was standing in his bathroom where he was standing after coming out of a shower. A towel is the only thing protecting his modesty.
Peter looked conflicted, “I came to check in on you, sweetheart.”
His eyes stayed in Stiles' chest, and the words that were etched there, the cursive ‘sweetheart’ had been Stiles’ treasure for the longest time. It had been those words that got him through the darkest times in his life. His mom had called him sweetheart for most of the time, in part because it was that which had been his soulmate word.
Feeling self conscious about it, he covered them.
“You checked up on me, I’ll be fine soon enough.”
He could feel Peter’s eyes on him, and knew that the werewolf wouldn’t be leaving. Had he been wrong in his assumption that resurrected Peter was very different from the half-mad one that had been killed not too long ago.
Swallowing softly, Stiles took a step back cautiously, looking to see what Peter would do. His bathroom only had one door, and Peter was blocking it.
What he didn’t expect was for Peter to start unbuttoning his shirt and dragging it off of his shoulders.
“What are you doing!?”
He guessed it was the slight panic in his voice made Peter stop and stare at him some more. Finally realizing what was happening and how this would be perceived by just about everyone.
Sighing as he rubbed the bridge of his nose, Peter nodded, seemingly to himself before he took a step back.
“I’ll wait for you in your room.”
With that the door opened and closed, leaving Stiles standing in the bathroom with a very confused look on his face.
“What the fuck…”
Shaking his head, he went back to dressing himself. Still thinking about what exactly was going on. Why would Peter come to his house to check up on him when none of the others had done that. Scott hadn’t even looked twice after everything that happened with Derek. He had just left with Allison, and that hurt more than Stiles wanted to admit.
Derek on the other hand had left the moment that it became clear that Jackson was somewhat himself again. He looked at Stiles once, before he too left again. Left as all of the people in Stiles’ life seemed to be doing right now.
“Why would Peter come here when not even my dad can bear to be in the same house as I am?”
Pulling his shirt over his head as he caressed the letters on his chest one more time. Stiles sighed, preparing to find an empty house when he opened the bathroom door.
The light coming from his bedroom told him that Peter didn’t leave. That for once, he wouldn’t be alone for the night.
Swallowing thickly, he opened the door leading to his room to see Peter perched on his desk chair. The other man looked up the moment that Stiles entered the room. His shirt was off, but he didn’t move from where he was seated on Stiles’ chair.
That didn’t take away that Stiles’ eyes were drawn to the text on Peter’s chest, not only was it his own handwriting. But it very clearly stated ‘What the Fuck’, which was somewhat of his catch phrase. He uttered it under his breath most of the time, his dad berated him on it all the time. Or he used to do that, before his mom. After she died he didn’t seem to care as much.
“What the fuck?”
Peter’s grin was enough to answer that question, which made Stiles get to the bed to sit down.
“You knew.”
Peter nodded at that, pulling his shirt over his head again. Or at least the henley he wore underneath his dress shirt, before he turned to look at Stiles fully. Their eyes locked to show Stiles something that he didn’t think he saw in eyes ever since his mother succumbed to her illness.
“I knew, or I suspected ever since I came back from the dead. Seeing you standing there with that word written on you, in my handwriting at that, it confirmed it all. I take it you didn’t know?”
Stiles shook his head, hugging himself close before he whispered, “My mom used to call my sweetheart, you calling me that reminded me of her and I didn’t think any more of it. Seeing the words on your skin shocked me, I honestly didn’t think that I could have this.”
Peter blinked at that, “What, a soulmate?”
Biting his lip, before he nodded, Stiles looked away. He didn’t want Peter to see the tears gathering in his eyes. How long had it been since he had been called sweetheart, how long had it been since his own father was able to look at him because of how much he looked like his mother. Since he heard his own name, as it was one that his mom was fond of, and a lot of people couldn’t pronounce.
“I… My mom and dad were soulmates. Her death broke him in ways that I don’t want to think about. Because of that he… he never was the same. He used to tell me all the time that he wished I would and wouldn’t find my own. I… I never expected to find you, just because the way most people couldn’t stand me.”
He could hear footsteps as Peter stood and approached him, a hand caressing his neck before grasping his chin in a light grip to turn his head towards the older man.
“I’m here now, and I don’t plan on leaving.”
Stiles sobbed at that, before he stood and threw himself into Peter’s arms. The tears of all the hurt that he had been bottling up came out. They were soon joined with the hopelessness he had felt after Scott was turned and subsequently left him all alone. The hurt he was still feeling from grieving his mom, from losing his dad in a way too, for what happened these past few months, about his wounds still littering his body.
As he fell asleep, it was the pain slowly draining out. He assumed that Peter caught him as he didn’t fall to the floor as soon as he lost consciousness.
—-
When he woke up the next morning, it was to Peter asleep on the spare mattress that he kept around for an impromptu sleepover that he and Scott used to have. Before all of this went down
Ruffled as he was from sleeping on a bad mattress, Peter grinned as he saw Stiles look at him.
“Did you have a nice rest, sweetheart?”
Stiles nodded, biting his lip as he looked at Peter, “Why are you still here?”
Peter hummed, “Didn’t think you’d want to wake up with me next to you on the bed. Nor did I want to deal with your father on the off chance that he’s walking in here during the night.”
Stiles wanted to snort, but kept it in, “ Dad hasn’t been home in weeks. And when he does get home, it’s when I’m at school. He… He’s been having a hard time with the fact that he knows I’ve been keeping things from him and he knows but I’m not telling.”
Sighing deeply, Stiles looked at Peter, “What do you want to do now?”
Standing and stretching, his back popping a few times, Peter hummed, “I want to get to know you better and see where we can take this. You’re still a minor right now, so I won’t go there. But in a few years, who knows where we can go.”
While he didn’t want to believe this, Stiles couldn’t keep the smile from his face. Maybe for once, his life could take a turn in the right direction. He was willing to see where this was going. Where this could end up at.
“I’d like that.”
Peter grinned at him, before they both got ready for the day. Seeing as no one had checked up on either of them, they didn’t feel like telling Scott or Derek what was going on. It might blow up in their faces in the future, but that was something to be dealt with then.
In the end, people found out when Stiles went to college out of state, Peter moved with him to open up his law business again. His paycheck made it possible for them to rent an apartment together instead of Stiles staying in the dorms. It was the start of a whole new life, and one Stiles was so happy to have found.