Chapter Text
When Derek was 12 he met young 5 year old Stiles Stilinski in the most awkward way possible. His mother’s old friend was moving back into town and her hyperactive child was intrigued by the rooms in the hale mansion. Derek hadn’t listened to his mom when she said he should lock his room – he is 5 years old mom I don’t think hell even want to be in my room – until the girl ran in yelling at the top of her voice about being the best at hide and seek. He was… busy. (Don’t judge me. I was 12 and still growing)
Anyway it was a very interesting moment and he would rather have forgotten about. But unlike Stile’s ADHD he had no luck. That, and the fact that he felt like a pervert from thinking about her every single time after that. Like he couldn’t get her out of his mind. He could hear her heart beat every single time she was anywhere in his vicinity. Even in the loud house he calls a home. He can hear when she is laughing even when he’s paying attention to his mother. Like right now she is saying something about control and…
“Ow mom what was that for?” he asks.
“Derek am I talking to myself this entire time? I thought you of all your siblings would be more accepting of this situation. It is going to happen soon and I just want you to be ready.”
“I know mom. I'm sorry I just… the kid, stiles? She is in my head all the time. I can’t… I can’t think when she’s here.”
“Derek that’s just because she found you…”
“Fuck! Mom?” he gets hit upside his head.
“Language young man. Maybe you should just stop thinking about her and see if it helps ok?”
“Alright I will,” and then his mother starts talking again and that’s just the time the kid decides to walk towards Derek with her big brown eyes that he can not resist looking at if he taped his eyelids together. She looks so crazy with her hair in all directions like she just got through a wind storm. How she stays on the ground Derek has no idea.
His mother looks at him suspiciously before the kid stubs her toe on the corner of the kitchen wall on his way over. And Derek just finds himself rushing towards her. He doesn’t think he’s never moved that fast. Not even when running away from bullies in preschool. No he wasn’t scared, he just didn’t want to hurt them. Then comes this child who makes him feel like he should protect her every minute of his life.
“Ssh. It’s gonna be ok,” he soothes her as he picks her up. She is so light.
“I stub my toe,” she sniffs cutely as she wipes snot from her face. She is adorable when she is like this.
“Oh I’m sorry stiles,” he touches her foot to take her pain and he is relieved when her crying starts to subside.
“It’s not that bad anymore,” she says looking shocked. In that instant her mother rushes into the kitchen calling stiles’ name. she looks really worried even though she should not have been able to know that stiles was hurt all the way from the soundproofed library. He has to remember to ask his mother about her later. Right now he needs stiles to be ok.
“Mummy! I stub my toe and De’ek made it better, look!” She lifts up her foot to show her mother. She starts giggling wiggling her toes and he laughs with her. “I can wiggle my toes. I did it last week and mom said it was awesome. Isn’t it awesome De’ek?” It’s only after he nods to her and raises his head to assure his mother and stiles’ mother that stiles is fine, that he notices his siblings are also around and Laura is giving this knowing look.
“What?” he asks her after a bit.
“Nothing really. Just didn’t know you could be so… anything like… that!” Laura says smirking as she walks away. He looks around to see the rest pf the family walking away in some sort of secret agreement. Then he notices stiles starting to play with his hair and he laughs again.
“I’ll talk to you later dear,” his mother says walking away with a smiling Claudia and they walk out of the room leaving him rendered hypnotized by the young child in his arms. He turns his attention back to her as she starts talking again somehow unable to resist her.
“My mom took me for ice cream. But she won’t let me have it at supper. De’ek, are you listening?” he nods back unable to speak. “can we be best friends? I like you. You made my toe all better. Can you do other stuff? Mom said I should apologize for walking into your room without knocking…”
And that is what does it, he suddenly remembers and gets flushed in embarrassment. He walks to Laura and leaves her there despite the kids protests. Soon he hears Laura getting her distracted and he is thankful to whatever deity that didn’t make her scream in tears when he left. But he did hear her emotions change to a kind of sadness filling the air with a sombre mood in an instant. He feels really guilty about that. He takes off into the woods behind his house and beta shifts to run out his frustration. When he came back a few hours later to find his room smelling like salt and wounded emotions, he knew they had left and he hadn’t had a chance to say goodbye. He curled up in his bed and tried to inhale her into his chest. Until he sees her again. he hopes he can be better at this next time.
CHAPTER 1 END