#derrish

It took some time for Jordan to get to know Derek, and still they are amiable acquaintances at best, but Jordan has always admired Derek’s perseverance and big heart. Derek suffered a lot of tragedy in his younger years: losing his house and family to a fire set by hunters, and later losing his only surviving relative, a sister, a few years after that to a power-hungry rogue wolf. But, in spite of all that, years later, Derek rebuilt his family home and turned it into a foster home for children who had similarly tragic supernatural pasts.

When Derek walks into the station, Jordan waves him over to explain. The Sheriff is still occupying the little girl with a paper and pen, and she’s stopped crying, which is a plus.

"It’s about her, huh?" Derek asks right off the bat as he sits in the chair in front of Jordan’s desk.

Parrish nods. “One of the guys patrolling found her off the highway, and she looked pretty banged up. It wasn’t until we brought her to the station that I noticed that under the dried blood the scratches were healing, and then her eyes flashed.”

"It might be hard to say how long she’d been injured. Born werewolf children’s healing is faster when they’re older." Derek twists his head to look back at the little girl. "She only looks to be about four or five. Has she said anything about what happened?"

Jordan shakes his head. “That’s another reason why we called you. We think she… I’m not sure, but we think she might be deaf? The Sheriff and I think she’s trying to sign, but we’re not sure how much she knows, and we can’t interpret it. Do you think you could… help?”

"Of course." Derek stands from his seat and strides to the little girl, Parrish following behind him.

Derek kneels down in front of the little girl, and when she finally notices him she shrinks back a little. Derek flashes his eyes, an electric blue, and when he does the girl leans forward, like she’s never seen anything like it before. The important thing is that she doesn’t seem afraid of Derek, more like curious.

Derek smiles softly and signs what Jordan thinks is “Hello” and spells his name. The little girl returns the smile and signs something back. Jordan can’t help but smile himself at the interaction, at the warmth in his heart that grows because of it. Derek signs a few more things, and the little girl signs back, presumably answering Derek’s questions.

Derek signs something, but the little girl shakes her head vehemently and squirms back away from Derek, tears springing to her eyes again. Derek signs something else quickly and shakes his own head. She nods slowly, and Derek gives her a reassuring smile and a soft pat on her calf.

"Her name is Sophia Carter, and she is five and a half years old," Derek says, rising from his kneeling position on the floor. Sophia goes back to drawing on her paper, and Derek walks with Jordan over to his desk while the Sheriff continues sitting with her.

"Did she say where she lives?"

"She says she lived in Little Brook?"

Parrish types it into his computer and his eyes widen. “That’s almost a 100 miles away from here! An hour’s drive at least, and she was found walking!”

"I asked if she could tell me what happened or where her family is, but that’s when she got upset and shook her head. I’m not sure if she doesn’t remember or if she doesn’t want to say."

Jordan sighs. “Well, we have a town, so that’s a start. I’ll see if I can find something out.”

"I don’t know of any Carter pack nearby, but I’ll ask around and see if maybe they were part of someone else’s pack?" Derek offers.

Jordan smiles at him, thankful that Derek has some contacts that could help with the whole werewolf aspect of this situation. “Thank you. That would be wonderful.” Jordan scratches his head a little, leaning forward across the desk. “Do you think, that maybe… in the meantime you could…” He waves his hand at the little girl.

"I would be happy to. Let me know if you need anything else. If I can get any more information from her or my contacts, I’ll call you."

With a sigh of relief, Jordan grins. “Awesome.” He scribbles his phone number down on a pad on his desk and rips the paper from it and hands it to Derek. “Here’s my cell phone in case you can’t reach me here.”

Derek accepts it and pockets the paper. They both stand and walk back to the girl, who seems to have moved on from drawing to playing a game on the Sheriff’s cell phone. Parrish watches as Derek kneels down in front of Sophia again and gently pats her leg to get her attention, watches as they have their own conversation and then sees her hand the Sheriff back his phone before launching herself at him in a hug.

"She says thank you," Derek says. The Sheriff nods in understanding and pats her back before she climbs off his lap. The Sheriff holds a finger up at her for her to wait, and he retreats quickly to the break room and returns with a couple cookies wrapped in a napkin for her. She grins and continually touches her hand to her lips and brings them down towards the Sheriff.

The Sheriff looks up at Derek and asks, “How do I say ‘you’re welcome?’” Derek smiles and shows him, bringing out his hand and in a curving motion bringing it back to his chest. The Sheriff squats down in front of Sophia and repeats the action, and Sophia beams and wraps her arms around his neck in a quick hug.

She lets go and turns back to Derek who has his hand out for her to take. She looks at it and then ignores it, instead moving to hug the legs of a surprised Jordan.

"I told her you called me," Derek replies in case Jordan needed an explanation.

Jordan pats the top of Sophia’s head, and after a few moments she lets go and finally takes Derek’s hand.

"Take good care of her," the Sheriff says, which is unnecessary in Jordan’s opinion because he knows Derek will treat her as if he were her own. He always does to the children that end up in his hands.

"I will," Derek answers. He nods to Jordan with a smile and walks hand in hand with Sophia out of the station.

He doesn’t even realize he’s still standing there watching them through the windows as Derek helps Sophia climb into the back of his minivan and buckle her up until the Sheriff claps a hand on his shoulder.

"She’s in good hands, son," the Sheriff says. "But if you’re concerned, I’m sure Derek wouldn’t mind you checking in later," he says with a smirk before returning to his office across the room.

He’s not quite sure what prompted his boss to say such a remark, and perhaps he was a little worried Derek might not have clothes and shoes for her (although that’s probably not true, Derek is such a boy scout when it comes to these things), but it’s not like he needs to check up on Derek.

Maybe if he finds more information on her case or about her family he could drop it by on his way home from work. It’s an innocent enough plan, and it has nothing to do with the fond look on his face and stupid smile he’s wearing when he watches Derek enthusiastically sign a few things that make Sophia laugh before shutting her door and climbing into the driver’s seat.

~

After some fruitless researching mixed in with various paperwork, Jordan clocks out and picks up some fast food. On his way home, Derek texts him, saying he might have more information about Sophia’s family and asks him to stop by later if he can. He replies back, saying he just got off and could come over now. When he gets a confirmation from Derek it’s alright, he stops at a store for a coloring book and a box of crayons, sure that Derek probably has some, but wants to bring Sophia something.

He knocks on the door, and as he waits for someone to answer, he can hear yelling and laughter and the occasionally scream. Derek finally swings open the door and there’s two little boys clinging to his legs and Sophia is hanging off of his back, her arms tight around his neck.

"Come in," Derek says, a little strained when Sophia slips a little and squeezes Derek’s neck tighter. He swings the door open wider for Jordan and walks into the living room with ease, as if he doesn’t have three children attached to him.

Jordan smiles as the two little boys grin up at him when he steps into the house. One of them waves and almost falls off of Derek when Derek moves to shut the door. A chuckle escapes Jordan when he sees it, and the little boy scrunches his face at him. The house isn’t a mess, but it’s definitely lived in. There are several pairs of shoes scattered in the entryway, and when Jordan follows Derek into the living room, there are toys and books splayed on the floor.

"How many kids do you have right now?" Jordan asks.

Derek pries the two boys from his legs and ushers them with a gesture into the kitchen, but he does nothing with Sophia but hitch her a little higher on his back. “At the moment I have six with Sophia.”

Jordan nods and opens his mouth to ask something else, but Derek touches his shoulder as if to stop him for a moment.

"These walls aren’t that sound proof, guys," he shouts in the direction of the kitchen. "If you’re done eating, put your plates in the dishwasher and go get ready for bed."

Even Parrish hears the grumbling and sliding of chairs and clatter of plates and silverware as the children obey Derek’s words. Slowly, the two small boys from earlier, an older girl with long blonde hair who looks to be about twelve, and a teenage boy about the same age as the girl with curly hair, file out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

Derek turns to Parrish. “Sorry. You were saying?”

Jordan holds up his hand in a way to say it’s alright and extends his hand with the bag that contains a coloring book and crayons. “I, uh, brought something for Sophia? If that’s alright?”

Derek grins, as if the gift is for him and not the child wrapped around his neck. He reaches up to untangle her from him and lowers her down to the ground. He signs something to her and points to the bag in Jordan’s hand, and Sophia smiles and turns to take the bag. She thanks him in sign language and hugs his legs before taking off into the kitchen to color.

"Thank you for that," Derek says, gesturing for Jordan to follow him into the kitchen. Sophia is at the table, book already open and a few crayons out of the box on the side as she flips through the pictures. “Do you want a coffee or anything?” Derek asks, to which Jordan shakes his head in response. “Take a seat.” Derek gestures to the table, and Jordan pulls out the chair next to Sophia. She doesn’t pay him any attention, picking a picture to start coloring.

“So, you said you may have found some information?” Jordan asks, watching as Derek sits down across from him.

Derek nods, a frown growing on his face before he begins. “I contacted the pack that I knew of near that area, and it turns out that Sophia’s family was part of their pack. But… they thought she had died with the rest of her family.”

“Her parents are dead? How?” Jordan asks, unable to hide his sadness for Sophia.

“Hunters. I don’t know the details; it doesn’t sound like their Alpha knew either. I think they’re still trying to figure it out. However, they said that they could bring her home and take her in, but with them still trying to determine safety for themselves, they asked me to take care of her until they come to retrieve her.”

Jordan rubs his chin. “Do they know how long they think it would be? Do they need help?”

“They said they would handle it themselves, and it might be best if we leave it at that. They said it might be a week, maybe two. The Alpha is going to call me at the end of this week to let me know for sure.”

“Alright. Well, that’s good, right? That she at least has somewhere to go? A pack that knows her and can take care of her?”

Derek smiles sadly at Sophia, who is still coloring, oblivious to their adult conversation. “It is. It’s always easier if they at least have pack. They can… help with understanding… grieving.” Jordan knows Derek speaks from experience, sure that Derek probably could have used more pack surrounding him when he lost his own family by hunters.

“Are you alright to watch her until then?” Jordan asks, knowing the answer but feeling like he should ask anyway.

“Oh, of course. She’s been an angel, kept to herself but was very helpful when we cooked dinner. The others don’t know sign language, but they’ve been friendly.”

“Is that… is that possible? For a werewolf to be deaf?” Jordan asks. He realizes he probably comes off as very naive and ignorant for asking, but he’s still learning about this supernatural world. It’s something else he’s been wondering ever since Derek took Sophia from the station. If werewolves have super hearing and fast healing, how could one be deaf?

Derek though doesn’t look at him as if he’s asked a stupid question. “I’ve never heard of it, but I guess it is possible… obviously. She also could have lost it some how when she was a baby. Healing’s not fast when they’re children, remember? It’s like an immune system in a human. It needs to be built up.”

“Right. That makes sense. How do you know sign language? Did you have a family member that was deaf?”

Derek runs his fingers over the table, staring down at his hands before he starts. “My little brother, Patrick. He was human, born deaf. It was kind of an adjustment for all of us, being werewolves with super-hearing. But, I think it helped us a lot, as a family, as a pack. We all took classes to learn ASL, and we got in the habit of watching TV with no sound, just closed captioning.” His voice has a mixture of fondness and sadness running through it as he relays these memories. Absentmindedly, Derek runs his hand along Sophia’s head, and Jordan thinks it’s more to comfort himself than Sophia, who continues to color while Derek pets her hair.

The front door unlocks and Jordan can hear someone step into the house, the rustle of bags and keys as someone shuts the door and kicks of their shoes. Soon, the person emerges into a kitchen, a tall dark-skinned boy in jeans and a T-shirt, carrying a few bags and a set of car keys. From the keys, Jordan would guess he’s at least sixteen, but he looks older.

Silently he steps further into the kitchen and hands the keys to Derek who pockets them. “Boyd, this is Deputy Parrish. Jordan, this is Boyd.” Derek gestures between them as he makes the introductions.

Jordan sticks out his arm, and Boyd shakes it with a firm nod before turning back to Derek. “I got what you asked. They didn’t have any socks where I went, so we’ll have to go somewhere else tomorrow,” Boyd says, holding the bags open for Derek to peer into.

“That’s alright. I’ll take her to the mall and get some and have her pick out a few things. Thanks for going and doing that, Boyd.”

Boyd smiles and nods. Derek then taps on Sophia’s shoulder to get her attention and signs something to her, Boyd standing by the table watching while Jordan does the same. Sophia nods when Derek’s through and scoots back from the table and climbs down from her chair. She laces her hand through Boyd’s at his side and looks up at him waiting.

“Will you take her up to Erika’s room? I’ve already told Erika she’ll have to share, and she was supposed to clear off the extra bed.” Boyd nods, starting to lead Sophia out. “I’ll be up there in a few minutes, but can you check on Aaron and Ryan? I can still hear them messing around up there.” Boyd waves in acknowledgment and continues out of the kitchen and up the stairs with Sophia.

Derek watches after them and once they are out of sight, he turns his gaze back to Jordan. “Well, I don’t want to keep you,” Jordan says. “I know you’ve got your hands full.” He scoots back from the table and stands, Derek doing the same.

“Thanks for stopping by and for bringing the crayons,” Derek says while he walks Jordan to the door.

“My pleasure. And thank you for the information about the other pack. I’ll let the Sheriff know.” He opens the door for himself, and Derek holds it open while Jordan steps down to the porch and turns around. “And if you… uh… need anything? Help or something? Let me know?” Jordan says.

Derek nods, and Jordan’s sure Derek is taking his comment as an empty offer, as something someone says to others when they are doing them a favor. So he adds, “I have tomorrow off, so if you need some adult company at the mall, I can tag along?”

The warm smile on Derek’s face kind of makes Jordan’s heart stop, and he’s glad he said something. “That would be nice,” Derek says, voice soft. “I’ll text you and let you know when you can meet us? It’ll probably be afternoon before the others get home from school.”

Jordan grins taking a few steps back from the door as he nods. He needs to leave before he does something embarrassing. “Sounds great! See you tomorrow.” Jordan calls with a wave. Derek waves back and shuts the door, leaving Jordan to continue on to his car without the fear of Derek watching him.

When he’s safely in his car, heading home, he smiles to himself as he thinks of Derek with those kids and of seeing him again tomorrow with Sophia. He’s so good with them all, and Jordan isn’t sure if it’s a werewolf thing or not, but the kids seem to respect him and love him even though Derek is not related to him. Seeing them climb and play on him was heartwarming, and he doesn’t want to say it but seeing Derek lifting them all with ease did something else to Jordan, something he probably shouldn’t fixate on.

He never thought he would have a werewolf thing so to speak, but the more he thinks about it, maybe it’s not a werewolf thing and more of a Derek thing.

He’s okay with having a Derek thing. More than okay.

~

The trip to the mall is fun and frustrating all at once. It’s not crowded, which is a good thing because both Jordan and Derek can tell that all the unfamiliar sights and smells are draining on Sophia enough as it is without it being packed with people. She doesn’t get more than just being agitated in certain stores, and they try not to spend too long in those places.

Jordan ends up getting a dinner invite that night, and spends more time with Derek and Sophia and the other children in Derek’s care. Jordan’s been alone for most of the time he’s lived in Beacon Hills, going on five years now, and his parents both passed away a few years before that. So being surrounded by all of them is comforting and happy and feels like home, something Jordan wasn’t sure he’d ever get to experience.

And when he leaves at the end of the night, he misses it. Misses them, the kids, Sophia, Derek. But as it turns out… they miss him too, and Derek invites him over the next day… and the next, and for the rest of the week. He works it out as best he can with his shifts, but he makes it a point to come by Derek’s at least once a day and spend time with Sophia and Derek.

~

Sophia’s pack calls at the end of the week and tells Derek that they can send someone to get her in a couple days, and when Jordan gets the news from Derek, he’s surprised at how sad he is by it. If anything he should be happy for Sophia, that she gets to go home and be with pack, people she knows that know her that may be better at comforting her and taking care of her. But in the short amount of time he’s had with her, he’s already grown attached, and he knows Derek has too, can tell by the hint of sadness and disappointment in his voice when he calls Jordan to tell him.

He knows logically it’s for the best, that Sophia belongs with her pack, but he can’t help but be a little heartbroken that she will be leaving. Not to mention that, now that he thinks about it… what excuse would he have for spending time with Derek once Sophia is gone? Part of him feels like the only reason Derek kept inviting him over was because he thought Jordan wanted to spend time with Sophia, which is true, but he wanted to be with Derek too. Without Sophia, where does that leave he and Derek? Will they go back to being amiable acquaintances? Friends who see each other at the store and say hi but nothing more?

~

They have a big welcome meal for when the members of Sophia’s pack arrive. As soon as they step out of their car, Sophia runs to them and jumps into their outstretched arms.

It puts them all at ease as to whether their claim of being her pack is legitimate, and the rest of the meal goes well, with the members of Sophia’s pack thanking Derek for taking care of her. Once all the kids are off playing and distracted, the adults tell them of what happened to Sophia’s parents and how they handled the situation, to emphasize that Sophia was returning to somewhere safe.

When it’s time for Sophia to leave and go home, Sophia takes her time holding on to each of the children. She hugs Jordan for longer and hugs Derek last and for much longer than anyone else. They pull apart, both of them with eyes shiny from tears and Derek signs something to her, which makes her pat his cheek and give him a peck on the other. Her pack members help her into their car and assure Derek that he can always call if he needs something and he’s always welcome to visit them and Sophia.

Jordan and Derek remain standing on the driveway next to each other as they both watch the car drive away, getting smaller with distance until it turns and disappears from sight.

“You gonna be okay?” Jordan asks, seeing how the tears have finally fallen from Derek’s eyes.

Derek rubs his face and nods. “It’s always hard for me when they leave. I get attached too easily.”

“She was easy to get attached to,” Jordan replies, bumping his shoulder with Derek’s. He remains standing close to him, their arms brushing as they stand in the drive. They stand in silence for a moment, and Jordan thinks maybe he should leave now that there’s no reason for him to stay any longer.

“She wasn’t the only one I got attached to,” Derek whispers, slowly brushing his fingers against Jordan’s until he laces their fingers together, holding his hand.

Jordan’s heart leaps at the touch, and he blushes as he squeezes Derek’s hand. “I know what you mean,” Jordan replies.

“I have ice cream. Want to stay a little longer?”

Jordan looks at Derek, who is blushing a little too, his lips curled up in a bashful smile. He returns the smile and replies, “I’d love to,” and thinks he’d be okay with staying forever if Derek asked.