#justabigassnerd

You listened as Tom congratulated Oscar over the radio for how he’d performed over the year, your heart sinking at Oscar’s dejected tone despite the podium he’d earned.

You headed out of the garage to parc fermé, ready to greet Oscar.

Lando had practically been swarmed by people by the time Oscar had clambered out of his own car. It didn’t take long for Oscar to locate you, his shoulders slightly slumped as he crossed to you, his helmet and visor disguising his expression. He stopped briefly to clap hands with Lando, congratulating him quietly before he finally reached you.

“You did really well today, Osc,” you say softly, resting your hand on his forearm as he shrugs.

“Should’ve been better,” he mutters, an unusual anger in his tone, heard only by you.

“Hey, you’ve been brilliant. Nothing can take away how good you’ve been this year,” you say quietly, reaching out to lift his visor, finally able to see his eyes. You could see the disappointment festering in his eyes, especially at how he was now third in the standings of the championship after he fought so hard.

“Go and take your helmet off. Your mum and sisters are around here somewhere, I’ll find them so you can speak to them, okay?” you say softly, squeezing his arm softly as he nods, trudging back over to the stand for his equipment to go on while you track down the Piastri women, finding them fighting their way through the crowd and helping them make their way to the front of the crowd just as Oscar returns. You step back, allowing the four to embrace Oscar, all of them reassuring him that he had raced brilliantly. But his smile never reached his eyes; it was only out of politeness for his family's words.

After Oscar had finished talking with his family, he crossed to you, his hands settling on your waist as he pressed a soft kiss to your lips. He stayed with you and his family for as long as possible before he and Max were ushered away to go to the cooldown room while Lando completed his interview.

“He’s disappointed,” you state the obvious as Nicole sidles up alongside you, her arm winding around your shoulders to tug you into a side hug.

“He is. He’s always pushed himself, we know that. But we also know better than anyone that he’ll be okay. He’s strong,” Nicole says reassuringly, running a hand up and down your arm as you nod.

“He’s so strong. I’m so proud of what he did this year. I just hope he can be proud of himself, too,” you admit quietly.

“We can all be proud of him, and he’ll catch up when he’s ready,” Nicole says, her tone soft and motherly as you nod once more.

Before you knew it, the podium celebrations started. Lando came onto the podium to an outpouring of support, people roaring and clapping as he stepped onto the third-place step, his smile so wide it took up his entire face. His smile was so contagious, you couldn’t help but smile with him, your heart surging with pride at your best friend’s achievement. You could still remember the days of your childhood when Lando had confidently told you that he’d be a Formula One world champion. It had been hard watching your oldest friend and boyfriend compete against each other for a championship, but there had to be one winner, and while you were heartbroken for Oscar, you were happy for Lando at the same time.

When Oscar made his way out to the podium, you and the Piastri’s made sure to cheer loudly and clap as he took his position on the second-place step, a reserved smile on his face as he waved to you all. Even though he hadn’t been able to claim the win of the race, he still put Max under pressure, making Red Bull work hard to maintain the win of the race.

Finally, Max came out to the podium alongside a Red Bull team member, his reception as rowdy as you expected, the former champion taking his spot on the top step with a smile, clearly proud he managed to end his year on a high note despite the loss of the championship.

After the anthems had played, the four on the podium popped their bottles and sprayed each other with smiles, both Max and Oscar making sure to focus on Lando. You watch the celebrations with a soft smile, glad to see both McLaren drivers on the podium after months of not sharing a podium.

Soon, Oscar, Max, and the Red Bull team member leave the podium, with only Lando remaining, soaking up the moment before doing yet another interview, while you make your way to the McLaren garage to wait for Oscar.

When Oscar finally returned, he was clearly running out of steam. His social battery wasn’t as good as the likes of Lando’s, and that, combined with the disappointment of the night, meant he was a bit more sluggish than usual, clearly wanting the night to be over. You hang out with the McLaren crew, waiting for Lando to return from his media duties for photos and more celebrations.

Soon enough, Lando returns, still riding the high of his championship win, bounding from person to person, thanking them for their help and support in his journey, before there’s an attempt at trying to wrangle the papaya team into a photo to remember the moment. You and the rest of Lando and Oscar’s friends and families move out of the way, watching the celebrations. After the photos are taken and the champagne is sprayed, Oscar manages to make his way back over to you.

“I’m going to get changed, I’ll be quick,” he says, turning to his family as his mum announces that they’re going to head back to the hotel for the night, making him move to bid them goodbye with hugs and promises to see them in the morning. After you say your goodbyes to the Piastri’s, Oscar makes his way back to McLaren’s hospitality to get changed, while you find yourself talking with some of Lando’s friends who had come to support him in the final race.

When Oscar finally returns, now in fresh clothes, he approaches you, clearly ready to head out. But noticing that Lando had been given space to breathe, you knew you had to make your move now, otherwise you wouldn’t get a moment to talk to him.

“I’m just going to say congratulations to Lando, okay? We’ll head out after,” you say quietly, squeezing Oscar’s hand before quickly crossing over to Lando.

“Congratulations, champ,” you say with a small smile, embracing Lando in a hug he was quick to reciprocate.

“Thank you. How’s Oscar doing?” Lando says as he pulls away, his smile faltering slightly as he glances over at his teammate, who was locked in a staring contest with his shoes.

“He’ll be okay. He just needs a bit of time,” you say with a small smile, as Lando nods, oddly subdued for someone who just achieved a childhood dream.

“Keep an eye on him, yeah? I’ll be around if he ever wants to chat, or grab a drink or something. I’ll give him space for now. I’m sure the last thing he needs is me hanging around during the break. But let him know I’m there for him too,” Lando says softly, tugging you into another hug.

“I will. But don’t get comfortable just because you’re world champion, he’ll be kicking your ass next year,” you say, making Lando laugh as he tightens his grip on you slightly.

“I don’t doubt it.”

Unbeknownst to you, Oscar had ceased his staring contest with the floor and was now watching you and Lando interact with an intensity he saved for focusing on a race. He watched as Lando hugged you close, both of you smiling and talking as he pulled away.

Oscar couldn’t help but feel his eyes narrow at the sight of your smiles. He felt his stomach turn in jealousy as he watched you interact with Lando. What if you decided you preferred someone who won? What if third place wasn’t good enough? It wasn’t good enough for him, so why would it be good enough for you? What if you realised you deserved someone better than someone who lost a thirty-four-point lead to his teammate in six races? Who crumbled under the pressure of the championship fight? After all, you had been Lando’s friend first. In Oscar’s mind, it felt like it was only a matter of time before you decided to ditch him for Lando.

“Hey, Osc. Ready to head back?” Your gentle hand on Oscar’s upper arm shakes Oscar from his thoughts, making him focus on your gentle smile.

“Yeah, let’s go,” Oscar says quickly, turning on his heel and beginning to stalk his way through the paddock with you following close behind.

“Osc. Oscar. Slow down,” you say hurriedly, rushing to keep up with your boyfriend, who barely slowed his pace.

“Oscar, why are we rushing?”

“I want to get back to the hotel, I’m tired.” Came Oscar's blunt reply, a hint of obviousness in his tone as he adjusted the strap of his bag as he continued to hurry to the car, both of you climbing in.

“Oscar, are you okay? What’s wrong?” you question, reaching across to rest your hand on his. He didn’t pull away. He didn’t intertwine his fingers with yours. He just let his hand sit there.

“I’m fine,” he replies quietly, his gaze fixed on the world passing by his window.

Not wanting to press Oscar any further, you decide to stay quiet, letting him deal with his swirling emotions in silence, the hum of the car and the faint radio the only break in the quiet.

The two of you arrive at the hotel and make your way to the room in relative silence. You don’t attempt to talk to Oscar, knowing that pressing him more would just make him retreat into himself further. You knew without a doubt that it had something to do with the championship, and your heart broke for him. You had seen the hard work he’d put into everything, into extracting every ounce of performance he could get out of the car. To lose his lead and his momentum in the last few races was crushing, and Oscar couldn’t make sense of it, and you knew that was frustrating him the most.

“I’m going for a shower.” Is all that Oscar said the moment he crossed the threshold of the hotel room, immediately discarding his bag and beelining for the bathroom, while you nodded, barely given the chance to respond vocally. While Oscar busied himself in the bathroom, you changed into something comfy, choosing to lounge on the bed while you waited for Oscar.

When Oscar emerged from the bathroom, he was now clad in sweatpants and a loose shirt. His hair was damp, and his movements were sluggish as he clambered into the bed, keeping a slight distance between the two of you, a choice you couldn’t help but furrow your eyebrows at.

“Oscar. Please talk to me,” you say softly, discarding your phone and shifting so you are facing your boyfriend, who exhales through his nose.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Oscar says quietly, his gaze masterfully avoiding yours.

“Oscar, it’s okay to be upset, mad, frustrated, whatever it is. But you don’t need to hide anything from me. I’m here for you, always,” you say softly, shifting closer to brush a stray strand of hair away from Oscar’s forehead, fighting back a frown when he doesn’t move, not even leaning slightly into your touch the way he usually did.

“I lost it,” he finally mutters, his chin dipping in slight shame as you allow the frown to appear.

“Oh, Osc. It’s okay. You gave such a good fight. You have been brilliant this year, Oscar. So fucking brilliant,” you say softly, cupping Oscar’s chin with your hand and gently lifting his gaze to finally meet yours.

“There you are,” you muse quietly, watching as Oscar’s lips twitched upwards slightly before steeling again.

“I should’ve had it this year. It was in my hands for so long,” Oscar mutters, fighting every urge to burrow into the palm of your hand as your thumb gently grazes his cheek.

“It’s your first year competing for a title, Oscar. Your time will come, I know it,” you say, your voice never straying from its soft tone.

“What if…” Oscar trails off, his gaze dropping once more as you tilt your head.

“What if, what, Oscar? What’s on your mind?” you press gently, your eyes searching Oscar’s.

“What if you realise you deserve better than me? Lando won, and I just came third… what if you realise you deserve someone like him?” Oscar’s voice was small as he spoke, his eyes flicking away from yours in shame as your heart shatters.

“Oh, Osc, c’mere,” you say quickly, pulling him into your arms as you hold him close, a hand coming up to run through his hair.

“I sound so pathetic,” Oscar mumbles, his cheeks heating up in embarrassment as he buries his face into your shoulder.

“You don’t sound pathetic, Oscar. You’re allowed to feel what you’re feeling. I can promise you one thing, though. You won’t ever catch me ditching you for Lando. He’s one of my best mates, sure, but I have a little too much self-respect to get involved with the chaos that is the life of Lando Norris,” you say, your lips turning up in a slight smile when you hear a breathy laugh escape Oscar’s lips.

“I’m being serious, Oscar. Lando could win ten championships, and I’d still pick you over him. You’re the one I fell in love with, not him,” you continue reassuringly, your hand playing with the hair at the nape of his neck as he melts further into you.

“I love you,” Oscar mumbles against your shirt, shifting slightly but still not looking up at you.

“I love you too,” you reply, your hold tightening the slightest amount as you fall into a comfortable silence for a few moments, the room filled with nothing but the hum of the air conditioning, and your and Oscar’s soft breathing.

“You know. Lando told me he was hoping you’d win today. He said he would’ve been happier having you on that top step. And he knows better than anyone that you’ll come back stronger next year. He knows you’ll give him hell out there next year,” you say suddenly, remembering the conversation you had with Lando when congratulating him for his championship win.

“I’m never going to make it easy for him out there,” Oscar replies, a smile playing on his lips at the thoughts of the battles he and Lando will have on track next year.

“Oh, none of us doubt it. I can’t wait to see you out on track next year. Who knows? It could be your year next time,” you say, shuffling slightly so the two of you are lying down in bed, tucking the cover over both of you as Oscar curls further into you.

“It will be,” Oscar says, a slight confidence in his sleepy voice as he tightens his grip on you.

“That’s the spirit. Get some sleep, Osc. I’ll be right here. I’m not going anywhere,” you say reassuringly, pressing a soft kiss to the top of Oscar’s head. You hold Oscar close, continuing to run your hand through his hair as his breathing evened out and he relaxed against you.

Even after Oscar had fallen asleep, you continued to run your hand through his hair, pushing the gentle curls away from his face before pressing another kiss to the top of his head.

You and the Red Bull team headed out to greet Max at parc fermé. As soon as Max had pulled his helmet and equipment off, he made his way over to you and his team. You let the team congratulate him first, knowing how hard they worked to stay in the title fight even after the rough start to their season. The second Max finished thanking his team, he made his way over to you, his lips instantly finding yours, the kiss soft before he pulled away, smiling at you.

“You were amazing, Max,” you state with a smile as fireworks explode in the sky above, lighting up the darkened sky.

“Thank you, schat,” Max replies softly, smiling despite the loss of the championship right at the final hurdle.

“Go and congratulate Lando for me, will you? He’s worked hard for this,” you say, noticing the McLaren driver climbing out of his papaya coloured car to a roar from the stands. With a small nod, Max steps away, crossing to the new champion, embracing him quickly and congratulating him for his achievement.

You watch Lando thank Max before excitedly rushing to his team, eager to soak up his victory as much as humanly possible. You understood his excitement, remembering how it had felt when Max had won his first championship, how the usually stoic Dutchman had cried happily into Lando’s shoulder before doing the same to your shoulder.

“He’s happy,” Max observes as he returns to your side, his arm instantly winding around your waist as he tugs you into his side.

“As he should be. He worked hard for this. But you should be happy with yourself, too, Max. You were easily the best driver out there this season,” you say, leaning your head against Max’s shoulder, watching Lando’s hyperactive celebrations, darting from person to person.

“I know I was,” Max says, a light smugness to his voice as you laugh, all too used to his confidence in himself and his driving ability.

“Max, you need to head to the cooldown room, mate,” GP calls over to Max, gesturing in the direction of the cooldown room, both of you seeing Oscar just disappearing through the door.

“I’ll see you on the podium,” you say softly, as he nods.

“See you,” Max says softly, in a voice only reserved for you, his lips grazing your temple before planting a soft kiss there, before he heads through to the cooldown room.

In Max’s absence, you drift over to the Red Bull crew, chatting with the team as you wait for the podium to begin. Everyone was happy to end the season on a high note from winning the final race, and the team were eager to celebrate once Max had completed all his duties.

Before you knew it, the podium celebrations started, with Lando crossing to the podium first, his eyes shining with unfallen tears as he crossed to stand on the third-place step, the papaya crowd of McLaren cheering like there was no tomorrow. And their cheers continued as Oscar stepped onto the podium, taking his second-place. Then, as Max made his way onto the podium, it was time for you and the Red Bull crowd to get loud, cheering rowdily for Max as he positioned himself on the top step. You couldn’t help yourself from pulling your phone out of your pocket, snapping some pictures of Max on the top step as you did every time you saw him win a race, before returning your phone to your pocket to cheer and clap for your boyfriend.

You watch the podium celebrations with a soft smile as Max and Oscar drench Lando in the rose water, the men laughing and smiling as they celebrate. You clap and cheer one final time as Max and Oscar make their way off the podium to complete their media duties, while Lando is completing yet another interview on the podium.

While waiting for Max, you decide to return to the Red Bull hospitality building, helping yourself to a drink before lounging on one of the plush sofas, scrolling through your phone to entertain yourself while you wait for your boyfriend to return from his endless stream of media duties. The hustle and bustle of the paddock is a familiar background noise as you mindlessly scroll, texting friends and family.

“Who are you texting? Someone interesting?” Max’s voice comes from behind you as he stoops down to press a kiss to the top of your head, making you twist to look up at him with a small smile.

“Just my family. Had to show off that my boyfriend won the last race of the year. They say congratulations, by the way,” you reply.

“Tell them I say thank you, schat. I’m going to shower and get changed, and then we can head back to the hotel.”

“What? Not going to Lando’s party, are we?” you tease.

“I’ll celebrate with him another night. Right now, I just want to rest,” Max replies simply, no shame in his tone as he shrugs.

“Fair enough, grab my stuff while you’re up there, will you?” you ask with a grin as Max once again stoops down to kiss you, this time on the lips.

“You’re lucky I love you,” Max says with a soft smile as he pulls away before disappearing to his driver's room, leaving you alone once more as you text your family to pass the time.

It didn’t take Max long to return, now in fresh clothes with a soft smile on his face as he holds your bag out towards you with one hand as you get to your feet. You take the bag with a smile, pressing a soft kiss to Max’s cheek in thanks before his hand finds yours, the two of you leaving the paddock hand in hand, bidding farewell to the chaos of Formula One for a few blissful months.

The two of you make your way back to the hotel, the journey a smooth one, and you are back in your hotel room before you know it, all too eager to settle down and get some rest after the eventful season. You and Max both get changed into something comfy before settling down on the plush sofa in the room, flicking the tv on and putting a random movie on to watch. As you watch the movie, Max’s arm winds around your middle, tucking you safely against his side as you settle your head on his chest, your arm winding around his middle. The room was quiet, the tv the only thing filling the room before you spoke up.

“Max, can I ask you a question?” you ask quietly, shifting to be able to look up at Max.

“You just did, schat,” Max replies, raising an eyebrow with a slight smirk as you groan.

“Another one, then. But you don’t have to answer it if you don’t want to,” you elaborate, Max’s gaze finally shifting to meet yours, his attention fully on yours.

“What is it?” he asks softly, his eyes searching yours.

“Do you ever regret anything that happened this season? Like, do you wish you did things differently or something? It was so close between you and Lando at the end there. Sorry, I know the media’s probably asked you that about a million times but-”

“No, it’s okay. I don’t mind if it’s you asking me. There might’ve been some things I should’ve done differently, like how I handled things with George in Barcelona. But it’s like I said in Miami last year, it’s always if, if, if, right? I’m just glad the car was better after the summer break, and I got to fight for a fifth championship. But I’m also happy for Lando. Winning your first championship is special, and he’s a great driver. I said there’d be a time he’s world champion, and he proved me right,” Max admits, answering the question honestly and without his usual snark that journalists would be on the receiving end of had they been the ones asking the question.

“That makes sense. You have been amazing this year, Max. Seriously, you’ve been like some… charging bull or something. I’m so proud of you,” you say quietly, reaching up to press a gentle kiss to his jaw, smiling as he lets out a soft chuckle.

“A charging bull?” he muses with an amused smile.

“It was the best I could come up with, don’t laugh,” you say with a joking scowl, quickly laughing when Max tugs you closer.

“I like it. It’s accurate,” Max says softly.

“Better than being compared to a T-Rex?” you ask, watching as Max debates your words for a moment.

“Both can work if I try hard enough,” he manages to joke, eliciting another laugh from you as you settle against him once more. The two of you fall back into a comfortable silence, focusing on the movie, still wrapped up in each other’s arms, while the world outside celebrates the beginning of a new champion's reign.

Quietly, you look up at Max, taking a moment to study him, finally unguarded and relaxed after a whole season of fighting for a title. He may not have been able to secure himself a fifth consecutive championship, but he’d proven himself as one of the best drivers of the current generation, and no one could take such a title from him. He’d gone from the pit lane to the podium in Brazil. He’d won six of the ten races after the summer break. His comeback was one to be celebrated, overturning a point deficit of over one hundred points and bringing it down to just two points by the final race, showing just how talented Max was.

“Hey, have you seen Tim?” Lucy asks, sitting down in between Jackson and Nolan who both shrug, shaking their heads. Before the three could begin theorising about where Lucy’s training officer had gone, Sergeant Grey stepped up to the podium and began to talk, detailing what was going to be happening during the day. Just before he sends everyone off to start the day, he addresses Lucy.

“Officer Chen, you’ll be riding with me today. Dismissed.” Grey says, his dismissal causing everyone to stand up and make their way out of the room to start their day. As Grey begins to exit, Lucy follows after him.

“Sergeant Grey, while it’s an honour to ride with you today. Where’s Officer Bradford?” Lucy asks, trying her best to sound respectful while enquiring about where Tim is.

“Officer Bradford is taking a personal day,” Grey replies simply, gesturing for Lucy to go and get the war bags to load the shop. At Grey’s gesture, Lucy began to make her way to get the bags, silently wondering to herself why Tim had taken a personal day and whether he was okay.

Across LA, Tim was sitting at home. He had barely had the energy to move out of bed when he woke up but he had managed to drag himself over to the sofa after making sure Kojo had his breakfast. Kojo, while not having lived with Tim long, had picked up on Tim’s melancholy mood and curled up next to him, whining softly as Tim studied a picture on his phone. Tim let out a soft sigh, tears filling his eyes as he studied the picture, a picture of him and you, his wife, on your wedding day. He was embracing you happily, lips pressed to yours.

“I miss you so much,” Tim whispers, unable to remove his gaze from the image of you. You had gone missing three years ago to the day, and Tim could never forgive himself for it. At Tim’s whisper, Kojo shuffled around, resting his head on Tim’s lap, sensing Tim’s pain. Kojo’s movement briefly pulled Tim’s attention away from his phone.

“I’m sorry buddy,” Tim says softly, stroking the top of Kojo’s head. Since you had been taken, Tim had consistently taken a personal day on the date you were taken with each passing year you remained missing. Most detectives involved in your case had told Tim that it was time to give up. The chances were high that whoever had taken you had killed you and had moved on. But Tim wouldn’t just give up on you. He couldn’t. Deep down he knew you were still out there somewhere, and he needed to find you. As Tim continued to swipe through the album of photos he had of you and him, Kojo began to paw at his leg slightly, as if trying to drag him out of his slump.

“I know. Come on, I’ll take you for a walk.” Tim says, knowing that keeping Kojo inside because of his upset would just not be worth it. Tim manages to get up from the sofa, shower and change before grabbing Kojo’s lead. As he left the house with Kojo trotting along by his side, he was silently grateful for the dog’s presence in his life. Before Kojo came around, Tim just wallowed in his house, hiding away from the world when he missed you too much. But now he had someone relying on him, and he couldn’t let Kojo down. After reaching the park, Tim let Kojo off the lead so he could explore while he sat on a bench. As he watched Kojo, he couldn’t help but imagine you sat by his side. You had always wanted to get a dog since long before marrying Tim and he had always put it off, claiming he wanted to wait. He felt so guilty for owning Kojo while you were missing but he knew that when he found you, you’d love Kojo and you’d so quickly become his new favourite person.

After a while, Tim whistled for Kojo to come back over so they could walk back home and as they made their way home, Tim’s phone buzzed, alerting him that he had a message but he opted to wait until he was home to see what it was. When he finally made it home, Tim collapsed onto the sofa and pulled out his phone to see a text from Angela.

‘How are you?’

That simple message was enough to bring the smallest of smiles to Tim’s face. Angela had been Tim’s entire support system since the day you went missing. She had checked in with him regularly and was someone to lean on during his bad days. When she had been promoted to detective, Angela had promised Tim she would do what she could to try and pick up any leads in your missing persons case. Tim had been so grateful for Angela’s support over the last few years, she was the person he needed to help him navigate your absence in his life.

‘Could be better.’

Tim could never lie to Angela. She had ways to see right through him, even over text so he knew there was no point even attempting to act like he was feeling okay on a day like this.

‘Do you want to come over? Have some company?’

Angela’s offer of company was not unusual, although the last few times Angela had asked if he wanted her to come over after her shift had finished, but now with her on maternity leave, both she and Tim had a whole day to console each other.

‘That would be nice. I’ll be over in a few.’ 

Tim types out and sends his response, once again forcing himself up from the sofa and petting Kojo, promising him he’d be back soon before grabbing the keys to his truck and making his way to Angela’s house.

When he arrived he barely even knocked on the door before Angela opened it, a soft gentle smile on her face as she took in Tim’s appearance. It was obvious to her that he hadn’t slept well the night before but she couldn’t blame him. If Wesley had gone missing she knows she’d be absolutely beside herself with worry and anticipatory grief.

“Come and sit down,” Angela says softly, resting a hand on Tim’s back and guiding him to the sofa, easing herself down alongside him, her gentle hand never leaving his back as she moves it up to rub his shoulder lightly. For a few minutes, the two of them sit in silence before Tim lets out a shuddering breath.

“I miss her so much.” Tim manages to say, his voice choking as tears begin to well in his eyes.

“I know, Tim,” Angela says sympathetically, her hand continuing to rub soothing circles on his shoulder in an attempt to keep his breathing steady.

“It hurts.” Tim manages to say, hand hovering near his heart, swearing he could feel his heart pounding louder and stronger with each second.

“I can’t imagine the pain. But I’m here for you. You’re not alone.” Angela says softly, feeling her heart break more and more at Tim’s broken state. She was the only person who got to see this side of Tim in these moments and it made her more and more determined to find you. After a few moments of comforting whispers from Angela and teary sniffles from Tim, he turned to face her, eyes still shining with unshed tears.

“Do you think we’ll even find her alive?” Tim asked, uncharacteristically pessimistic about your case, making Angela shocked.

“She’s got to be out there somewhere. And we’ll find her.” Angela says, pulling Tim into a careful hug.

“It’s my fault she’s gone,” Tim mutters against her shoulder, a confession no one had heard from him before.

“Don’t say that. You’re not to blame.” Angela says, pulling away slightly to look him in the eyes as he shakes his head.

“I am.” Tim insists, his right hand moving to fiddle with his wedding ring, a movement Angela didn’t miss. She knew he would take the ring off when he was on duty, but when he was off duty it would be restored to its rightful place and he’d often find himself twisting it around on his finger out of habit.

“Why do you say it’s your fault?” Angela asks tenderly, hoping she’d be able to help Tim realise that it wasn’t his fault.

“We had an argument that night. A stupid one at that, I can’t even remember what it was about, maybe about chores or something? But y/n got pissed at me and she said she needed to go on a walk to clear her head. I was pissed too and the moment she left I just decided to go to bed. I was too angry to do anything else. If I had gone after her none of this would’ve happened. She’d still be here with me.” Tim whispers, feeling like his throat is closing more tears welling in his eyes as he relives that night.

“Where are you going?” Tim asks, pausing his angry pacing to glare at you from across the room.

“For a walk. I can’t be around you right now.” You reply, your voice just as venomous as his as you grab your keys, reaching for the door handle.

“Fine.” Tim spits angrily, turning on his heel and stalking off again as you open the door, exiting and angrily closing the door behind you while Tim storms to the kitchen, grabbing himself a beer from the fridge.

After a couple of beers, Tim decided it wasn’t worth staying up waiting for you any longer. You had taken your keys and he knew you’d come back whenever you were ready to so he took himself to bed, practically passing out as soon as his head hit the pillow.

The next morning, Tim woke up and found your side of the bed still empty, and when he reached across to search for any remaining body heat, he found that your side was still cold, like no one had slept in it all night. Figuring you had spent the night on the sofa, Tim sat up and got himself out of bed, all anger from the night before gone.

“Hey, Baby, I’m sorry about last night.” Tim enters the living room, rubbing his eyes as he enters, stopping in his tracks when he realises you’re not in the room, nor was there any evidence you had even slept on the sofa. At the sight of the empty room, and your keys still missing from the key bowl, Tim felt his stomach turning with anxiety. He just knew something bad had happened to you. You wouldn’t just go silent on him or not come home at all.

After trying to call your phone and getting no answers, Tim knew he had to file a missing persons case when he got to work. He wasn’t going to rest until he found you.

“Tim, listen to me. It is not your fault. You couldn’t have known. Neither of you could’ve known there would be a psycho out there. You can’t blame yourself for something you never could’ve anticipated.” Angela says softly, her voice shaking Tim from his thoughts. She could imagine the guilt Tim was feeling, but she knew it wasn’t his fault.

“It is. If I had just-”

“Okay, I’m going to stop you right there. There’s nothing you could’ve done. I know just as well as you that y/n is stubborn as anything, so if she wanted to go and get some air after your argument then she would’ve done it regardless. You can’t predict the future and y/n wouldn’t want you to blame yourself.” Angela says, her voice was soft yet firm so she can get her point across to Tim. She knew Tim had a habit of blaming himself for things out of his control but she had no idea that he had carried guilt from your disappearance silently and had been beating himself up about it for so long.

“I just need to find her. I need her safe and home with me. I didn’t even tell her I loved her the last time I saw her.” Tim says, fiercely wiping at his eyes to stop any tears from falling.

“I’m working with detectives to pick up the dead ends from y/n’s case. One of them will lead us somewhere I’m sure. Between you and me, working y/n’s case is the only work Wesley is okay with me doing while on maternity leave. He knows how important it is to us and he’s promised me that if we catch the asshole he’d ensure he spends the rest of his life behind bars.” Angela says reassuringly, wanting to help restore Tim’s faith in finding you.

“Thank you, Angela,” Tim says quietly with a nod. With the topic seeming to be at an end, Angela decides to change the subject and while Tim had always jokingly complained about helping Angela with wedding planning, he was more than happy to do so on this day. While he helped Angela plan various parts of her wedding, he couldn’t help but think about the time he had spent planning his wedding with you.

“Tim, we can’t seat my uncle next to your brother-in-law!” You exclaimed with a laugh, curling further into Tim’s side as he wrapped his arm around you, chuckling lightly to himself, both of you focusing on the seating chart Tim had drafted.

“Sure we can. It would be hilarious.” Tim says, squeezing you closer, his hand winding around your waist.

“You want our wedding to result in a fistfight?” You say, an amused tone to your voice as you raise an eyebrow.

 “Mmm, might not be the best idea then,” Tim murmurs, leaning close to press a kiss to your cheek.

“The best idea is to make sure they stay as far away from each other as possible.” You muse, unable to stop the smile covering your face as Tim continued to press kisses to your cheek.

“We’ll figure it out.”

By the end of the day, Tim had spent most of his time at Angela’s house and he had been beyond grateful for her company and her willingness to help him through a day like this. When Wesley got home, Tim decided that was when he should be heading home himself, knowing Kojo was probably waiting for him.

“I’ll see you around,” Tim says quietly, giving Angela a gentle hug, pulling away and giving Wesley a friendly nod before making his way out of their house, heading to his truck to head home. Unbeknownst to Tim, the moment he left, Angela’s phone buzzed and when she read the text she knew she had to step into work again. Whether Wesley liked it or not.

The next morning, Angela made her way to the hospital, meeting with other detectives once she got there before being led to a room that had a girl inside. Angela figured she couldn’t be any older than her early twenties. After getting a quick brief from the other detectives, Angela made her way into the room, smiling softly to let her know she wasn’t a threat.

“Hi, Bella. I’m Detective Lopez, but you can just call me Angela.” Angela introduces herself, easing herself down onto one of the hospital room chairs as Bella eyes her carefully. Angela could tell that the last thing Bella wanted was to be questioned but it was protocol, whether she liked it or not.

“I promise I’ll make this quick, just tell me what happened,” Angela assures, pulling out her notepad and pen.

“A few months ago, some guy grabbed me off the street while I was making my way home. He kept calling me ‘Samantha’ the whole time. No matter how many times I told him my name was Bella he just ignored it.” Bella explains, tears welling in her eyes as her arms wound around her middle.

“Can you describe this man? And where he was keeping you?” Angela asks carefully, making notes on her notepad as Bella nods.

“He looked like he was in his forties, his hair was greying and he had a huge burn scar on his right arm, like all up it. He was keeping us in the woods. It sounds really cliche now that I say it out loud. He’d moved us around a bit before he found this old abandoned cabin on the outskirts of the city. He managed to get power and water so he figured we could just stay out there, like some delusional family or something.” Bella says, and Angela immediately picks up on her choice of words.

“I’m sorry, you said ‘us’. Was there someone else?” Angela enquires, glancing up from her notebook.

“Yeah, there was another woman, she might’ve been in her thirties? The guy kept calling her ‘Vivian’ but I’m guessing that wasn’t her name.” Bella explains with a nod while Angela pulls her phone out of her pocket, hurriedly scrolling through it and finding a picture with you in.

“This other woman. Did she look like this?” Angela flips the phone around, showing Bella the picture, watching as her eyes widen in recognition.

“Yes! That’s her!” Bella exclaims, looking over at Angela.

“She’s alive,” Angela mutters to herself, unable to believe the news.

“Do you know her?” Bella asks, noticing Angela’s reaction and how hurriedly she was typing into her phone.

“She’s a friend of mine. She’s been missing for a while.” Angela says, tucking her phone away as she talks.

“She’s the one who helped me escape. She saw the opportunity and she encouraged me to go for it.” Bella says, watching Angela’s reaction carefully.

“That sounds like y/n. She always looked out for others.” Angela says with fondness, remembering how you had always put others above yourself.

“I want to help her,” Bella says, a strong, newfound determination in her voice.

“Can you recall where the cabin was? If you can that would help us track her down.” Angela asks, listening carefully as Bella explains all the details she can remember of her escape from that cabin. After getting as many details as Bella could remember, Angela excused herself, exiting the room and immediately calling Grey on her way out, informing him of everything and letting him know that he and the LAPD needed to act fast before you were moved again.

Back at the Mid-Wilshire police station, police officers were starting to prepare for an operation on the outskirts of Los Angeles just as Lucy and Tim entered, ushering their recent arrest to be processed. They quickly became aware of the atmosphere around them so while Lucy was processing the arrest, Tim stepped out to find Grey.

“What’s going on?” Tim asks after tracking down Grey.

“I’m getting some people together for an operation. But I need you and Officer Chen to stay on patrol.” Grey says, gathering his war bags and barely glancing Tim’s way.

“I want to help,” Tim says, confused as to why Grey isn’t letting him get involved with an operation, not when he had as much experience as he did.

“This isn’t a matter to discuss Officer Bradford. You’re one of my best patrol officers and I need you out on the streets with Officer Chen while we do this. Is that understood?” Grey asserts, facing Tim and staring him down as Tim straightens up.

“Understood, Sir,” Tim says, feeling his heart sink at not getting to be involved with an operation.

“You’ll get in on the next operation,” Grey says, clapping Tim on the shoulder quickly before making his way towards his shop, leaving Tim to head back to Lucy, finding her after she had just finished processing their arrest.

“Hey, did you find out what everyone’s doing?” Lucy asks, looking up at Tim curiously.

“There’s an operation going down. I don’t know what it’s for but Grey wants us on patrol.” Tim says with a shrug, beginning to turn on his heel and make his way towards their shop, annoyance evident in in his body language.

“Do they know this would be a great learning opportunity for me? I want to get as much experience in operations as possible. Why aren’t they letting us help?” Lucy asks, following behind Tim.

“I don’t know, Boot. But it’s not my place to challenge Sergeant Grey’s orders.” Tim says firmly, glancing over his shoulder at Lucy who nods, still obviously upset about not getting to help with an operation while she’s still in training.

“Come on, get in. We’ve got a patrol to finish.” Tim then says with a shrug, both of them reaching the shop and getting in, ready to continue their patrol.

After a couple of hours of patrolling, Tim and Lucy had stopped to grab some coffee and while they stood outside their shop, talking and sipping at their drinks, Tim’s phone rang, making his eyebrows furrow when he saw Angela’s name displayed across his screen.

“Angela.” Tim greets as the phone reaches his ear.

“Tim, you need to get your ass to the hospital right now,” Angela says, making Tim raise an eyebrow before he thinks of a reason why she’d be asking him to come to the hospital.

“Are you having the baby already?” Tim asks, a panicked expression crossing his face.

“What? No. Look, just come to Shaw Memorial as soon as you can.” Angela says, an urgency in her voice that Tim hasn’t heard in a while.

“Okay, I’ll head over now.” Tim concedes, bidding Angela goodbye before hanging up the phone and shoving it away in his pocket.

“We’re going to the hospital. And no Angela is not giving birth.” Tim says, able to predict what Lucy was about to ask from a single look.

“Then why are we going to the hospital?” Lucy then questions, both of them getting into their seats just before Tim starts the drive to the hospital.

“No idea. Maybe one of my C.I’s ended up in hospital and they wanted to talk to me.” Tim says, shrugging lightly, wondering to himself why it was Angela had summoned him to the hospital when she’s not supposed to be working. The closer they get to the hospital, the more Tim starts to suspect that it has something to do with you. Angela had assured him that the only case she was working while on maternity leave was yours. But as he parked in the car park for the hospital, he started to picture the worst possible case scenario as he bursts through the hospital, tracking down Angela within minutes, practically leaving Lucy behind.

“What’s happened?” Tim asks, studying Angela’s expression carefully as she grabs his wrist leading him to a nearby hospital room and letting him look through the window. At the sight, tears immediately began to well in his eyes, stepping forward slightly towards the door before Angela stopped him.

“The doctors are working on her now. They’ll get you when she’s stable. I just wanted to show you that we found her.” Angela explains softly, watching as Tim refuses to tear his gaze away from the window.

“She’s alive,” Tim whispers, tears in his eyes as he watches the doctors hooking you up to an IV drip and heart monitors.

“She is. We found her.” Angela says softly, carefully guiding Tim back to the waiting room and helping him ease himself into a chair just as Lucy finally found the pair.

“What the hell? Why did you leave me behind?” Lucy demands, approaching Tim who barely processes her words, his gaze locked on the floor in front of him as his knee bounces impatiently.

“Not now, Lucy,” Angela says, holding a hand out towards Lucy to silence her while her other hand rests on Tim’s shoulder, squeezing it softly.

“Wait, what’s going on?” Lucy then asks, noticing the unusual behaviour Tim was exhibiting and how Angela was protecting him fiercely.

“We’ll tell you later,” Angela says, knowing that with the state Tim was in, she shouldn’t go spilling his personal life.

After half an hour of waiting, a doctor approached Angela since they only recognised her but she made sure to bring Tim into the conversation as well as make sure the doctors knew he was your husband so that he would make any and all medical decisions that you couldn’t make.

“y/n had been drugged upon being found, I assume something that was something done so that the perpetrator could move her without the risk of her running away. She’s also showing clear signs of dehydration and malnourishment so we’ve got her on IVs to give her what her body needs. She’s still asleep but would you like to see her?” The doctor explains, glancing at the tablet in his hand before looking at Tim who nods. The doctor gestures for Tim to follow him to your room but before he leaves he turns to Angela.

“Message me if you need me,” Angela says softly, watching as he nods once more before following the doctor and being granted access to your room. As soon as he enters the room, he grabs a chair and pulls it up along your bedside, one hand taking your hand in his while his other hand runs through your hair.

“I’m here, Baby. I’m so sorry. I love you.” Tim says, repeating the three sentences like a mantra as he squeezes your hand softly. He felt more tears welling in his eyes as he took in your form. Your cheeks were hollowed and you had dark circles under your eyes. The more Tim watched you as you slept, the worse his guilt got. He couldn’t help but hate himself more and more for letting you leave the house that night. As the day progressed, Tim found himself uncharacteristically talkative with you, rambling about everything you had missed.

“I’ve got a new rookie. Her name’s Lucy Chen. You’d like her a lot actually. She reminds me of you in a way.” Tim says, his thumb absentmindedly rubbing the back of your hand as he talks. He knew you and Lucy would get on well. After all, Lucy was someone who was unafraid to speak her mind around Tim and you’d admire her fire. By the time night fell, Tim was sure he’d covered everything that had happened since you had gone missing. He felt a yawn slip past his lips which made him attempt to shake the sleepiness off. He didn’t want to fall asleep and then risk waking up to find out that this had been a dream. He couldn’t bare to wake up to find you missing again. However, as the night progressed, Tim got more and more tired and he began to struggle to keep his eyes open so he laid his head down on your bed, making sure he was facing up at you, keeping your hand in his the whole time before letting his eyes slip closed, hoping this wasn’t all a dream.

You woke up slowly in the early hours of the morning and as you slowly open your eyes, you couldn’t help but smile tearily when you recognised the sleeping face of your husband. The face you had dreamed of seeing for years. You watched Tim quietly for a moment, admiring the man you loved so much before your need to talk to him overtook you and you squeezed his hand softly, rousing him almost instantly. His eyes blinked open and you felt a tear slip down your cheek.

“Hey, Tim.” You whisper softly, your voice slightly hoarse from lack of use. Tim couldn’t even bring himself to talk, he just squeezed your hand, tears welling in his own eyes.

“You’ve grown your hair out a bit.” You observe quietly, gently extracting your hand from his to run your hand through his hair, having been used to his shorter haircut for too long.

“You like it?” Tim asks with a teary laugh.

“I love it. I did always tell you it would look nicer if you grew it out a little.” You muse softly, enjoying the feeling of running your hand through his hair with the slight added length. As another tear rolls down your cheek, Tim reaches out and wipes it away, his touch as soft and as gentle as you remembered it.

“I’m so sorry, Baby. I let you down.” Tim apologises, his hand lingering on your cheek as you lean into his touch, desperately craving the love and comfort only Tim could provide you with.

“It’s not your fault. I’m the one who left that night.” You say, slowly retracting your hand from Tim’s hair, returning it to your lap as Tim shakes his head.

“I should’ve stopped you.” Tim argues, making you shake your head in response.

“You couldn’t have known, Tim. Look, let’s not argue. We haven’t seen each other in years I don’t want to ruin this by arguing. It’s no ones fault but the ass who took me.” You say, your voice soft yet firm as Tim nods lightly in understanding.

“I missed you so much.” Tim then whispers, his face displaying every emotion he was feeling in the moment.

“I missed you too.” You reply softly. Glad you were reunited with your husband again.

After a few days stay in hospital, you had finally been cleared to go home which you were excited for. Your days in the hospital were mostly spent talking to lawyers and detectives to get all the evidence needed for the case against your kidnapper. But Tim had all but refused to leave your side through it all, and some of your friends came to visit you after news had spread that you had been found. You even got to meet Tim’s newest rookie, Lucy, who like Tim predicted, you got on brilliantly with. And while you had appreciated people wanting to visit you, and that the detectives and lawyers wanted to get that guy behind bars as soon as possible. But you just wanted to go home, to spend some time with Tim in the comfort of your own house, as well as getting to know the family member you had missed the arrival of. When Tim had told you about Kojo, he had not missed the way your eyes lit up and he knew it was going to be love at first sight for both you and Kojo. After all the paperwork had been sorted and Tim had brought you a comfy change of clothes from home, you finally headed out to Tim’s truck, letting him help you into the vehicle and settling in to the passenger seat.

The drive back to yours and Tim’s shared house was relatively silent, you listened to what was on the radio and occasionally chatted with Tim until he pulled into the driveway. You waited upon Tim’s orders for him to round the truck and open the door for you, helping you out carefully before leading you to the front door.

“Are you ready?” Tim asks softly, hand interlocked with yours as you both stand in front of the door, staring it down before you nod lightly, giving Tim the sign he needed to unlock the front door, easing it open and ushering both you and him inside, quickly coming face to face with Kojo.

“Hey, you must be Kojo. Tim’s told me all about you. I’m y/n.” You introduce yourself to the dog, watching his reaction carefully as he approaches you, sniffing at your outstretched hand for a few seconds before gently licking your hand and allowing you to pet him.

“Oh, aren’t you the sweetest boy?” You praise, petting Kojo happily while Tim jokingly rolls his eyes.

“It took less than a minute for me to be replaced by the dog.” Tim jokes, making his way into the kitchen to grab some drinks and by the time he returned, you had curled up on the sofa with Kojo and Tim couldn’t help but smile at the sight of having you home again. After placing the drinks on the coffee table, Tim sat down on your other side and wrapped his arm around your middle, pulling you into him and pressing multiple kisses to the side of your head as you smile softly, cherishing the attention and love Tim was giving you.

By the time night fell, you were ready to crash and Tim knew it. He chose to carry you to the bedroom, sitting you down on the bed and finding one of his old police academy shirts he knew you loved to wear and a pair of flannel pyjama bottoms, handing them to you before turning around to get changed himself. When you were both ready for bed, you climbed under the covers while Kojo curled up at the foot of the bed. You instantly curled into Tim’s side, burying your face in his chest.

“I’ve missed this so much.” You mumbled, smiling to yourself when Tim tightens his grip around your waist.

“Me too. I love you so much.” Tim whispers, kissing the top of your head before you tipped your head up so Tim could press the softest of kisses upon your lips.

“I love you too.” You reply softly, eyes full of love as you look up at Tim before curling back into him, quickly falling asleep in his arms the way you had been dreaming off the past few years.

In the middle of the night, Tim stirred, aware of the way the two of you had shifted throughout the night. You were now lying with your back to Tim and his arm was wrapped around your middle but he quickly withdrew it when he noticed you twitching and crying in your sleep. He instantly knew you were having a nightmare so he flicked his bedside lamp on and reached out to gently rouse you, placing his hand on your shoulder and calling your name softly until you bolted upright, eyes wide open and tears staining your cheeks.

“y/n. Baby. It’s okay. I’m here. You’re safe.” Tim says softly, his hand reaching down to hold yours, his actions only stopping when you practically curled into him instantly, changing his action from holding your hand to holding your sobbing, shaking form instead. Tim continued to reassure you and comfort you quietly, his hand rubbing up and down your back while Kojo rested his head on your leg, whining softly in his own way to comfort you. Tim then began to coach you through slowing your breathing, using techniques you had used when he suffered with nightmares and when you began to calm down, he began to wipe your tears away.

“I thought I was really back in that cabin.” You admit with a sniffle, making Tim hold you closer, taking your hand in his and placing it above his heart.

“You feel that? I’m here and so are you. I’m not going to let anything happen to you again.” Tim promises quietly as you focus on the steady thumping of his heartbeat while your other hand reached down to pet Kojo softly.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.” You apologise, pulling away with your eyes still shining with tears as Tim shakes his head.

“Don’t apologise. I’m going to be here for you when you need me to. I’m your husband and after what you went through I’d be a shit excuse of a husband if I did anything but look after you when you needed me. Don’t ever apologise for having a nightmare. I love you and I’m going to help you through this.” Tim says, pulling you back into his arms and feeling you settle your head perfectly above his heart so you could focus on his heartbeat once again.

“I love you too.” You mumble, soothed by Tim’s repeated action of running his hand up and down your back as well as his melodic heartbeat and soon your eyes slipped closed again. In the arms of the love of your life and feeling safe for the first time in years.

“Chen. Stop. Don’t move.” He instructs, watching as she looks at him confused before following his gaze down to the used needle sticking out of her thigh. At that moment, it was like Lucy could focus on nothing but the needle and all the diseases it could bring if it had actually embedded in her leg. Noticing Lucy’s distant gaze, Tim instructs other officers to take both women away so he can focus on making sure Lucy is okay and gets taken to the hospital.

“I didn’t see it,” Lucy mutters, looking up at Tim with a terrified expression.

“I have to pull the needle out. Stay still.” Tim says, feeling bad upon seeing the expression on his rookie’s face but he knew he couldn’t show any signs of worry because that would only panic her further. Tim pulls on a pair of gloves and grabs a box to put the needle in and he crouches down alongside Lucy, carefully extracting the needle from her leg and trying not to react when he sees the small traces of blood on the tip of the needle from where it had clearly made contact with her leg.

“What’s the protocol for when an officer is exposed on duty?” Tim then asks, straightening up after putting the needle away. He already had a good idea of how worried and panicked Lucy was and he needed to keep her focused on her job to stop her from spiralling. When he clocked that Lucy wasn’t focused he calmly gained her attention and got her to tell him what it was they needed to take as next steps. Lucy wasn’t used to Tim being so calm and gentle towards her but she appreciated it nonetheless.

“Where’s the nearest hospital?” Tim asks after Lucy tells him what protocol is for an incident like this.

“Shaw Memorial,” Lucy replies, getting a nod in return from Tim before he turns to another officer, making sure they know to keep an officer posted in the area while he takes Lucy to the hospital. Tim drives Lucy to the hospital and when he’s parked the shop, he escorts her to the first nurse desk he can find, letting her approach the desk herself.

“I need to get my blood tested. I got stuck with a used hypodermic needle.” Lucy says, trying to keep her voice steady as the nurse begins to look around, apologising before he grabs a clipboard, holding out to her.

“Just fill this out for us and take a seat in the waiting room. A doctor will be with you shortly.” Gino says with a friendly smile.

“You must be new. She’s got a weapon, so what if someone tried to grab her weapon? The hospital protocol dictates that an armed officer be seen immediately. So set her up in a room right now and find a doctor.” Tim says, an authoritative tone to his voice as Gino straightens up, nodding nervously before leading Lucy and Tim to a private room so she can safely fill out her information and wait for a doctor while he goes to grab one. Gino heads straight to your office, knocking on the door and entering with permission.

“Gino, what can I do for you?” You ask with a sweet smile, removing your gaze from your computer to Gino.

“Doctor Bradford, there’s a police officer who’s been stabbed with a used needle and needs bloodwork done,” Gino explains, watching as you nod, shutting off your computer and getting up from your seat.

“I’ll go and get acquainted with my patient if you could get the equipment I need. And Gino? Please call me y/n, Doctor Bradford is too formal.” You say with a slight chuckle as you follow Gino to the door of your office.

“Sorry.” Gino apologises as you both step into the hallway.

“No harm done.” You say dismissively, waving your hand loosely, turning in the direction of the room Gino tells you your patient is in.

“Oh just a heads up, the police officer's partner is a really grumpy guy,” Gino warns, and at the warning, you had a feeling you knew who was going to be in that room.

“Hi, I’m Doctor Bradford.” You introduce yourself as you walk into the room, smiling sweetly at the woman sitting on the end of a bed, not missing how her eyes flicked between you and your husband who was standing across the room, his arms across his chest.

“B-Bradford?” Lucy asks, eyes widening slightly as Tim scoffs, rolling his eyes at Lucy’s miraculous mood switch.

“Yes. Tim’s my husband.” You say with a soft laugh as you pick up the completed form from alongside Lucy, eyes scanning it and inputting the information into a file for Lucy.

“Sorry, that was so rude of me. I’m Lucy Chen. I’m Officer Bradford’s rookie and I just didn’t know he was-”

“Chen,” Tim said simply, making Lucy stop talking, apologising as she relaxed slightly.

“Don’t apologise Lucy. In fact, excuse me one second.” You say, walking over to Tim, taking his hand, leading him to the corner and glaring at him.

“What?” Tim asks, looking at you, confused.

“Do you seriously talk to everyone like that? Even the rookie’s you’re teaching?” You scold, watching as Tim sighs lightly.

“I gotta be tough. That’s my way of teaching. It’s how I learnt in the Army and how I learnt when I joined the force.” Tim says, explaining himself.

“I get that Tim but in the hospital? The poor girl is probably terrified and thinking of all the worst-case scenarios possible. Just tone it down a little.” You ask, eyes flicking over to Lucy who was wringing her hands nervously, eyes flicking all over the room as she takes deep breaths. At your words, Tim lets out a soft sigh, nodding lightly.

“Okay. I’ll tone it down for now.” He agrees quietly, getting a nod in response from you and a soft squeeze of the hand before you drop it focusing back on Lucy just as Gino enters the room with all the stuff you need to draw blood.

“Thank you, Gino.” You chirp happily, taking the tray from him and beginning to prep yourself.

“You can go back out to the desk, I’ll page you when I need you to run this down to the labs.” You then say, glancing over your shoulder to smile at Gino who nods and exits the room.

“He’s new, isn’t he? He didn’t know the rules about what to do when an armed officer needs to see a doctor.” Tim says, sidling up alongside you as you pull on gloves, sitting on a stool in front of Lucy and rolling your eyes.

“Yes, he’s new. I take it you were the one who made sure he knew the protocol?” You say glancing over your shoulder at Tim before focusing back on the needle as you prep it.

“I think he would’ve found a room for me if Gino hadn’t corrected himself,” Lucy says with a soft laugh.

“That doesn’t surprise me. Tim’s always been one to find his own solutions to things.” You say, smiling fondly at the many memories you have of Tim fixing situations himself when he wasn’t satisfied with the options he had.

“You must have some great stories about Tim,” Lucy asks, making your eyebrow rise as you catch on to what she was hinting at.

“What kind of story would you like? I’ve got some good ones from when we first started dating.” You say, making sure the needle is in Lucy’s arm and drawing blood.

“Hey, no.” Tim attempts to cut in and you just hold a hand up, silencing him quickly which makes Lucy giggle at how quickly her training officer was silenced. At first, Tim pulled a slight face behind your back when you held your hand up, but when you looked over your shoulder and blew him a little kiss, Lucy saw how quickly Tim melted at the gesture. Even if he was trying to be his normal, tough self, she could see how he had a huge soft spot for you.

“Tim, could you go and get Gino for me? I’m almost done. Ooh and could you grab me a snack from the vending machine?” You say sweetly, smiling over your shoulder at Tim before you pop one of the last vials of blood into the holder.

“You better not start gossiping the moment I leave.” He says lightly in response, a small smile on his face as he crosses over to you to give you a quick kiss on the top of your head before exiting the room.

“I’ve never seen him act like that before,” Lucy says as you finish putting things away before focusing on cleaning Lucy’s arm and giving her a cotton ball to put on the puncture wound to stop any extra bleeding.

“Seen him act like what? A big softie?” You ask jokingly, smiling at Lucy.

“Well I mean he was nicer than he usually is when the needle first pricked me but he’s like a whole different person with you. He actually listens to you for starters.” Lucy says, explaining herself while she thinks of the man who had put her through so many Tim Tests.

“This conversation doesn’t leave this room, okay? He’s a tough nut to crack but he’s strict because he knows you can handle yourself. He wants you to be the best police officer you can be. I’m not involved in the work aspect of Tim’s life. He likes to keep it that way and I just guess he feels he doesn’t have to put up a front when he’s with me.” You explain with a small shrug. You remembered what Tim had been like when you first met. He was closed off and it took you a while to even talk to him enough to form a friendship, and then it took another year and a half before you both had the courage to act on your romantic feelings for each other. Before Lucy could reply, Gino entered the room again to take the bloodwork to the labs to be run through tests to see if the needle infected Lucy with anything. After Gino left and there was still no sign of Tim, you continued to chat with Lucy.

“It’s nice to see him so relaxed with you. It’s like he’s a whole different person with you.” Lucy says, smiling softly.

“That’s the Tim I’m used to. I’m sure with time he’ll learn to be a little less military towards you.” You say softly, smiling at Lucy who nods lightly.

“I hope so. There’s only so many Tim Tests I can handle.” Lucy says with a gentle laugh.

“Oh, he’s told me all about them. I don’t think I would be able to handle them.” You say with a chuckle, and before either of you can say something else, the door opens and Tim enters the room.

“You took your time.” You tease lightly, swivelling around on the stool to face him.

“The nearest vending machine didn’t have your favourite so I just kept looking until I found one that did,” Tim explains, holding your favourite snack out towards you while you smile softly, taking it and standing.

“You didn’t need to do that. I would’ve been fine with anything.” You say softly, smiling up at Tim who smiles back.

“I wanted to,” Tim says, his voice matching yours in softness as he pulls you closer for a kiss.

“Aw, you two are so cute!” Lucy gushes as you pull away from the kiss, giggling lightly as Tim looks over at Lucy.

“Chen, this doesn’t leave this room,” Tim warns, pointing a finger at her as she frowns, caught out in her plans to tell Jackson and Nolan.

“Okay fine. But I need to go to the restroom.” Lucy says, standing and crossing to the door. You bid her a quiet goodbye before turning to Tim.

“I should probably go back on my rounds. You and Lucy are welcome to keep using this room until I get her results from the lab. I’ll come back when I have the results, promise.” You say to Tim, taking his hand and squeezing it softly while your other hand tucks the snack Tim had bought you into your pocket.

“Take care of yourself, won’t you?” Tim asks softly, trying to hide his worry. He knew some patients could get rough with doctors and he always worried about whether someone was going to hurt you.

“I’ll be okay. We have security and if I really need help, I do have my handsome, strong, police officer husband around.” You say softly, your smile widening slightly as Tim raises an eyebrow, hands drifting down to your waist.

“Handsome, huh?” Tim teases, moving to kiss you again as your hands move to his shoulders, one hand resting on his shoulder while your other moves around to the back of his neck, cupping it as you deepen the kiss before your brain kicks in and reminds you of what you’re supposed to be doing.

“As much as I’d love to stay here with you. I have to go. I love you.” You say after pulling away from the kiss. You wished you could stay with your husband but you knew you had a job to do.

“I love you too,” Tim says, giving you one last quick kiss before letting you leave the room so you could go on your rounds.

You visit the various patients that you need to check in on, checking their progress and giving out advice that they need to aid their recovery. You loved checking in with your patients. Sure, there were some who were permanently grumpy and barely acknowledged you or the work you and the nurses were doing for them, but the majority of your patients were sweet and made the job worth it. As you finish up with a patient who was in recovery from a surgery they had the day before, you exit into the hallway and see a few nurses gathered by a door as they cart a woman out on a gurney. You head towards the gathered group and just as you approach the room, Tim and Lucy step out of it.

“What happened? Are you both okay?” You ask worriedly, reaching to grab Tim’s shoulders, eyes scanning him worriedly, checking him over for any injuries.

“y/n, I’m fine. We’re both fine.” Tim says softly, reaching up to his shoulders to gently lift your hands off, holding them in his hands and squeezing softly.

“What happened?” You ask, eyes flicking between both Lucy and Tim waiting for an answer.

“I bumped into this woman in the restroom, she told me about her brother who had been involved in a car accident and after she left I noticed a bottle of bleach on the floor. She was going to inject her brother with it to kill him. She claimed he wouldn’t want to live like how he is now but I just couldn’t let her go through with it so I had no choice but to tase her.” Lucy explains, her voice was shaky as she recounts the events.

“Is everyone okay?” You ask, glancing behind Tim at the room.

“The patient is being checked over now but thanks to Officer Chen’s swift actions, the sister never pushed the plunger,” Tim says, smiling over at Lucy who smiles back weakly.

“I was just doing what needed to be done,” Lucy says with a shrug.

“Look, Grey’s called me back to the station,” Tim says, looking between you and Lucy.

“Do you need me to come with you?” Lucy asks, looking up at Tim who shakes his head.

“No, you stay here and wait for your results. I’ll come back when I’m done. If you need anything I’m sure y/n will help you.” Tim says as you nod.

“Of course. Lucy if you need anything at all while you’re waiting, just shoot me a text.” You say pulling your notebook out of your pocket and scribbling down your phone number to hand to Lucy who takes it with a nod.

“Thank you,” Lucy says gratefully, tucking the paper away in her pocket before you both look over at Tim.

“I’ve got to go. I love you.” Tim says, giving you a quick kiss and hug before turning to Lucy.

“Chen, take care of yourself.” He then says, patting her shoulder before excusing himself, heading down the hallway and disappearing around a corner.

“I said it to Tim earlier but you’re welcome to keep using the room Gino put you in until I have your results.” You say softly, reaching to rest a hand on Lucy’s shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze before quietly excusing yourself so you could continue your rounds until the lab results came back.

As it pushes into the afternoon, you finish your rounds and take care of some appointments you had booked for the day and eventually you get paged by the lab and you head down, picking up Lucy’s blood test results and reading them over before heading back to the room Lucy had been using. However, when you entered the room it was empty, so you walked to the waiting room to see if she was there and you soon found her sitting alongside another police officer.

“Officer Chen.” You say softly, getting Lucy’s attention as she shoots out of the seat, the other officer following suit, resting a supportive hand on her shoulder.

“Yes?” Lucy says watching you as you smile softly.

“I have your results. Would you like to follow me to my-”

“No, sorry, can you just tell me now please?” Lucy asks, cutting in and watching carefully as you nod, eyes moving down to your clipboard to flip through the paperwork.

“So your initial tests came back negative for any viral infections like HIV or hepatitis. But your bloodwork indicated the presence of a staph infection.” You explain, seeing how Lucy relaxed at your first sentence before she grew worried again.

“What does that mean?” Lucy asks, her eyebrows furrowed as she worries about what it could mean for her future.

“It just means we need to get you started on some intravenous antibiotics right away. Some strains of staph infection are drug-resistant so we’ll monitor the wound for any abscesses or cellulitis.” You explain to Lucy, watching as she releases a big breath before turning to the police officer standing behind her.

“Go. I’ll call Tim. He’ll be here for you by the time you’re out.” He says softly before Lucy pulls him into a hug, thanking him quietly before she releases him and turns to you with a small smile and nod.

“If you just follow me.” You say, gesturing with your head for Lucy to follow you to your office which she does and while you settle in your office chair, Lucy eases herself down on the chair opposite your desk. You copy the bloodwork data onto Lucy’s file and print out a prescription, informing her of how to best care for her wound, when to take her medication and where she can pick it up from. After talking her through everything and checking Lucy’s wound over just to be sure it was okay for now, you stood in front of her with a small smile.

“I’ll walk you out, I’m sure Tim’s here now.” You say softly, leading Lucy back to the waiting room where Tim was waiting, rising from the seat he was sitting in when he noticed the two of you approaching.

“Hey, is everything okay?” Tim asks, looking down at Lucy who nods, finally able to relax for the first time since the incident.

“Everything’s good,” Lucy replies, smiling at Tim who nods lightly, a small smile of his own on his face.

“If you have any concerns about anything Lucy, you’re free to give me a call whenever.” You say, making sure Lucy knew that you’d help her no matter the time.

“Thank you for everything, Doctor Bradford.” Lucy thanks you gratefully.

“Please, call me y/n.” You say with a small laugh, not missing how the police officer stood behind Tim gasped lightly with widened eyes as he realised what Lucy said.

“Sorry, did you say-?”

“Yes, she said Bradford. Tim is my husband.” You say, moving to stand next to Tim, taking his hand in yours as you smile up at your husband.

“If I find out you and Officer Chen have been spreading this around later Officer West, I will put you both through the most intense Tim Tests I can think of and it’ll have you questioning whether you want to even continue in the LAPD,” Tim warns lowly.

“Jackson and I would never do that,” Lucy says quickly, standing up for her friend as you sigh lightly.

“Tim, surely you’re tired of dancing around everyone. I don’t mind if people know about me. In fact, I’d like to get to know your colleagues. They’re part of your life too.” You say softly, turning to face Tim as he mirrors your actions.

“Are you sure?” Tim asks quietly, watching you nod.

“I’m sure, Tim. I’d love to get to know the people you work with. I’m your wife and I would like to be more than just a secret.” You admit, watching as Tim’s eyes drop to the floor briefly before looking back up at you. You understood why he had been so hesitant to tell people about you, he was worried that he’d somehow get involved in a case involving a dangerous person which could put you at risk. But you were capable of making your own choices, and you knew that even if you were at risk, knowing Tim’s work friends would make you feel safer.

“I’m sorry. I just wanted to keep you safe.” Tim mutters softly, taking your hands in his.

“Don’t apologise. I know you wanted to keep me safe and I appreciate that. But you can’t hide me forever.” You say, squeezing hands softly and reaching up to press a kiss on his lips.

“Okay, I’ll stop trying to hide you,” Tim replies after you pull away from the kiss, his smile soft as you glance over to Jackson and Lucy.

“I think you two are safe.” You say with a laugh watching as they exchange a quick fist bump.

“I won’t give you any Tim Tests yet,” Tim says, releasing your hands and turning to face the two.

“You won’t give them any unless it’s part of training.” You say, nudging Tim in his side as he lets out a small grunt of pain at the jab.

“Does that mean we can tell Nolan?” Lucy asks, testing the waters and watching Tim’s reaction carefully. When you hear Tim let out a small huff of a sigh, you speak up.

“You can tell Nolan but only Nolan. Let Tim do the rest.” You say. You didn’t know who Nolan was but you could only guess he was the third rookie that had joined the LAPD alongside Jackson and Lucy.

“What she said. Anyone else knows before I tell them, you know what the punishment will be.” Tim says, raising an eyebrow as both Jackson and Lucy nod hurriedly, aware of what Tim Tests he could potentially put them through.

“I should probably get back to work.” You mutter, noticing the time on the clock behind the nurse’s desk.

“Yeah, I’ve got to take Lucy back to the station,” Tim says with a nod, pressing a quick kiss to the top of your head.

“I’ll see you when I get home.” You whisper softly smiling up at your husband before watching him leave with Lucy following close behind while Jackson stays put.

“I know you have to get back to work but it’s honestly incredible how different Tim is with you,” Jackson speaks up quickly, catching your attention as you laugh softly.

“Funnily enough Lucy said a similar thing.” You say with a soft laugh as you shrug, making Jackson let out a gentle laugh of his own.

“I won’t keep you. I should probably find my TO.” Jackson says, nodding with a soft smile as you smile back.

“If your TO is Angela, tell her I say ‘hi’ will you?” You say, beginning to back away and shooting Jackson a quick wink when his jaw drops before turning around and making your way back to your office to continue with the rest of your shift.

By the time your shift came to an end, you were just about ready to drop. It had been a long day and when you got home you were greeted by Tim who pulled you into his arms almost the moment you walked through the door.

“Tim. I love you but I need a shower.” You giggle as you feel Tim press a kiss to the top of your head.

“I’ll get dinner sorted then.” He replies softly, releasing you from the embrace and letting you go off and shower and change into something comfier. By the time you had finished showering and changing, you could smell the dinner Tim was preparing.

“It smells good.” You say as you enter the kitchen, sidling up alongside Tim and winding your arms around his middle as he turns the stove off.

“I could’ve had a career as a chef.” Tim jokes lightly, welcoming your embrace. When you release Tim from your embrace so he can finish up the food, you begin to grab some plates and cutlery for when Tim is ready to plate up the food. Once the food is plated up, you sit at the table and eat your dinner, conversing the whole time. When you finish your meal, you both tidy away everything before retiring to the sofa, cuddling into each other while Tim finds a tv show to put on in the background.

“Are you really okay with telling people about us? I feel like I put you on the spot.” You mumble, resting your head on Tim’s chest and looking up at him.

“I’m more than okay with telling people about us. You’re right. You deserve to know my colleagues, and I don’t know how much longer I can go hiding you. You deserve to be shown off.” Tim replies, squeezing you tighter as a smile crosses your face.

A week later, you pulled up outside the Mid-Wilshire police station, parked your car, and stepped out. You headed into the building with a smile as you met Tim in the reception area.

“Hey.” He greets you with a smile, capturing your lips in his for a soft kiss as he pulls you into his arms.

“That’s a nice welcome.” You say with a smile as you pull away from the kiss.

“Only the best for you,” Tim mutters softly.

“You big softie.” You say with a laugh as Tim rolls his eyes.

“y/n!” You hear Lucy’s excited voice say as she rushes over to you, hugging you close as you reciprocate the embrace, smiling widely.

“Hey, Lucy. How have you been?” You ask. Since Tim had started telling people about you, you’d met various people from Mid-Wilshire station as you swung by the station every so often but Lucy had been the one you’d formed the closest friendship with.

“I’ve been doing well! But between you and me I think you need to stop by more. Tim’s always happier after you visit.” Lucy says, muttering her words lowly so Tim doesn’t hear her as you laugh lightly.

“Well, hopefully, these make everyone a little happier.” You say with a smile, holding up the bag of various cakes you had gotten from a bakery you and Tim frequented.

“Oh yes! I knew there was a reason you were my favourite Bradford!” You hear Jackson exclaim as he approaches you, making you laugh as you hand the bag to Nolan who also joins the group as you glance over at Tim who rolls his eyes and shrugs at Jackson’s comment.

“Everyone’s going to love that you’ve done this. You and Tim have been talking this bakery up for a week now.” Nolan says, opening the bag enough to peek in at the goodies inside.

“I just got things I thought everyone would like.” You say, watching as the three rookies take it in turns peeking inside the bag and trying to figure out what each thing is. As you watch them discussing their theories quietly, Tim walks up alongside you, wrapping an arm around your middle and tugging you into his side.

“I can’t believe I have to share you with all these guys now,” Tim mutters, and this time it is your turn to jokingly roll your eyes.

“Well, just remember, I married you. So you don’t need to worry about someone ‘stealing’ me away.” You joke, leaning into Tim’s side.

“It’s relieving to hear that.” Tim jokes in return, chuckling lightly.

“I hate to do this so soon after arriving but I need to head back to the hospital. I don’t want to see any of you guys in there as patients. Got it?” You say, pointing at Tim and the three rookies who all nod hurriedly before you turn to face Tim.

“Stay safe out there.” You whisper before giving him a soft kiss.

“Always,” Tim replies after you pull away, letting you say your goodbyes to the rookies before walking you out to your car and giving you one last kiss before watching as you get in your car and drive away to head back to work.

Since you had made friends with the people he worked with, Tim found himself more willing to be friendly with those around him at work. Most of the time he was still the tough training officer that everyone was used to, but you had taught him not to burn all his bridges too soon, and that it was okay to have friends at work.

“Good morning, Tim.” Your sweet voice says softly as Tim blinks his eyes open, a smile coming to his face as his eyes lock with yours.

“Good morning, Baby,” Tim replies, instantly reaching across to wrap an arm around your waist, tugging you close so he can press a soft kiss to your lips as you giggle.

“You’re up earlier than usual.” Tim then muses with a light laugh as he notices the time on the clock behind you, knowing you always woke up after his alarm went off.

“Your daughter wanted a glass of water and who am I to deny her what she wants?” You reply, curling into Tim as he presses a kiss to the top of your head.

“My daughter?” Tim asks, an amused tone to his voice, pulling away enough to be able to look down at you.

“She wakes up at the crack of dawn most mornings. She gets that from you.” You laugh, watching as Tim lets out a gentle laugh before giving you another soft kiss.

“Momma! Daddy!” You glance over your shoulder to see your little girl Mia rushing into your room, and you open up your arms to catch her when she launches herself onto yours and Tim’s shared bed.

“Good morning, Sweetheart.” Tim greets Mia with a smile as she clambers from your embrace to Tim’s, giggling as he peppers her face with kisses. You couldn’t help but smile as you watched Tim and Mia interact. You remembered how in your early stages of pregnancy, Tim had been terrified, he was scared he was going to end up like his own father or that something would happen to him and leave you alone with a baby to take care of. But the moment Mia was born and he held her in his arms for the first time, Tim knew that he would go through hell and back to protect his little girl. He wanted to give her the whole world and more. You saw how Tim took to being Mia’s dad easily, he loved her like it was breathing and he made sure he was a present parent in her life.

“Can I have breakfast, please?” Mia asks, looking between you and Tim with the puppy dog eyes that melted you both down in seconds.

“Let’s get you ready for preschool first, then we’ll make breakfast,” Tim says, scooping Mia up into his arms, and sitting her on his hip as he gets out of bed. As he takes Mia back to her room to get her ready for the day, you get up and begin to change yourself, readying yourself for the day before heading out to the kitchen to begin making breakfast.

“Momma! Daddy said I could help make breakfast!” Mia comes hurtling into the kitchen, excitedly looking up at you as you laugh.

“Of course, you can help, Sweetie. What would you like for breakfast?” You ask, finding the little stepstool so that Mia can reach the kitchen counter to assist you in making breakfast.

“Cereal please.” She requests as you nod, already handing her one of her favourite princess bowls. Mia reaches up to the cupboard you kept the cereal in while you watched carefully. Mia was only five years old but she was already growing in her independence, and you knew she got that from Tim. Despite that, she was the sweetest little soul who loved and cared for everyone around her and you couldn’t be prouder to have her as your daughter.

“You got it, Sweetie? Do you want me to grab you the milk?” You ask softly, resting your hand on Mia’s back as you watch her carefully pour some cereal into the bowl, her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth in her concentration.

“Yes please, Momma,” Mia asks, satisfied with the amount of cereal she’s put in the bowl as she carefully places the box down. You press a soft kiss to the top of Mia’s head before heading over to the fridge to grab the milk for her as Tim enters the kitchen, smiling at you both and now dressed for the day.

“How’s breakfast making going?” Tim asks, crossing to you and capturing your lips in a soft kiss before letting you give the milk to Mia.

“You’re getting soft, you know?” You say with a laugh, thinking about the way Tim used to be when you first met him.

“Only for my family,” Tim says, hovering near Mia to supervise as she tries to pour the milk herself, eventually placing his hand on the carton and giving Mia a helping hand.

“I forget work doesn’t get the same privileges as us.” You tease, beginning to prep both your and Tim’s morning coffees, putting them into their respective travel mugs before making Mia’s packed lunch and filling a bottle with water for her.

As Mia eats her breakfast, Tim makes breakfast for you and him while you pack Mia’s bag with everything she’ll need for the day. You then join Tim and Mia at the table to eat your breakfast before noting the time when you’ve finished eating and tidied away.

“We should head out. Don’t want you to be late to preschool, do we?” You say, tickling Mia quickly, smiling as she squeals and squirms.

“Daddy, help!” Mia calls out for Tim to save her, making him scoop her up in his arms, holding her close as you laugh.

“I’ll protect you, Mia,” Tim says, holding her close as you roll your eyes jokingly.

“You can protect her by taking her to preschool, then.” You say, picking up Mia’s bag and holding it out towards Tim who takes it and slings the small strap over his shoulder.

“I can do that. Are you okay to collect her this afternoon?” Tim says, carrying Mia over to the shoe rack and helping her put her shoes on while you follow behind, grabbing your own work bag.

“Yeah, that’s perfectly fine.” You say, bending down as you gently brush Mia’s stray hair away from her face.

“Bye, Momma,” Mia says, throwing herself into your arms. You’re quick to hug her back, relishing the feeling of her clinging to you.

“Bye, Sweetie. I’ll see you this afternoon.” You whisper, pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head before releasing her from the hug, straightening up to say goodbye to Tim.

“You’ll stay safe, won’t you? Come home to us?” You ask quietly so Mia doesn’t hear you.

“I always do. Nothing can stop me from coming home to you both.” Tim reassures you softly, placing his hands on your waist to pull you a little closer. He understood your fears, and he knew you’d been living with them for years. After Mia was born your worry only increased which made Tim all the more determined to get home to his family after every shift. And after the recent incident where Tim got shot, you worried about him even more.

“I love you.” You whisper softly just before Tim cups your face softly in his hands, pressing a kiss to your lips.

“I love you too.” He whispers after pulling away from the embrace, smiling down at you softly to reassure you that little bit more.

“Daddy, come on we need to go!” Mia’s little voice snaps you back to reality as she tugs on Tim’s jacket, making you both laugh.

“Okay, okay, you have a point. Let’s get going, Princess.” Tim says, taking Mia’s little hand in one hand while grabbing both his bag and hers with the other before heading out of the front door to take Mia to preschool and then head to work. A few minutes after Tim leaves, you grab your keys and bag then head out to your car so you can make your way to work. You worked at the local high school so you knew your day was going to be busy as you began the drive to work.

As you arrived at work you greeted your colleagues as you passed them in the corridors, making your way to your classroom, heading over to your desk and placing everything down so you can get on with your morning tasks. You spend time prepping your classes and making sure you’re ready for the day before your students begin to file into the room, all of them greeting you with a smile as they cross to their desks and settle in their seats.

The day progressed like any other, nothing you weren’t used to working in a high school. You taught your classes and caught up with your coworkers during lunch. Until your phone rang with an unknown number. Instantly filled with dread and assuming the worst, you excused yourself from your coworkers and accepted the call, walking to a quiet corner of the staff lounge.

“Hello?” You say into the phone, your throat drying up in anticipation of any bad news.

“Hello, is this Mrs. Bradford?” A nervous female voice asks.

“Yes, it is. Who am I speaking to?” You confirm before asking the woman on the other end of the line for her name.

“I’m Officer Lucy Chen. I’m Officer Bradford’s rookie.” Lucy introduced herself, pacing anxiously back and forth in front of the door she knew Tim was behind. You recognised Lucy’s name quickly as you recalled Tim talking about her.

“Is Tim okay?” Your voice was shaky as tears threatened to well up in your eyes. You knew Tim didn’t open up about his personal life to anyone at work outside of Angela and Wade so the fact he told his rookie about you was ringing alarm bells in your head.

“He- you know I’ll just let him tell you himself,” Lucy says, placing the phone by the gap under the door and putting you on speaker.

“Tim?” Your voice came through to the other room, making Tim perk up the slightest bit at hearing your voice.

“y/n?” Tim replies, making you let out a slight sigh of relief from hearing his voice, even if it was partially muffled.

“Tim, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” You ask, your fear evident in your voice as Tim leans his head back, resting it against the door.

“There’s been an incident. I don’t know if I’ll make it home tonight.” Tim says, trying to find the words to describe what’s going on without panicking you further.

“Tim, talk to me. What’s happened?” You plead, desperate for answers.

“Don’t tell anyone at work about this. But we found out there’s a group wanting to disperse a virus within the city. We tracked one of the weapons to this house after a guy picked it up by accident and he got sick and… he coughed on me. I’m quarantining in this room while we wait for the CDC but if I start showing any signs of the virus, I want to go out on my own terms. I don’t want to go through what I just saw this guy go through. I owe it to you to tell you that.” Tim says, and you feel a tear slip down your cheek at his words.

“No. You’ll be okay. You’re going to come home.” You say, lifting your free hand to wipe your tears away before anyone notices.

“But I might not. And I want you to be prepared for that outcome. Just promise me you’ll give Mia a hug from me and tell her I love her so much.” Tim says, fighting back the building tears at the thought of not seeing you or Mia again.

“You’ll tell her that yourself. Just hold on. You’ll be okay.” You beg, hoping that by some miracle the CDC will enter the room Tim is in and save him.

“I love you so much,” Tim murmurs softly.

“I love you too.” You whisper quietly in response.

“You go back to work, okay? I’ll have someone call you no matter what happens. I promise.” Tim says, and as much as you wanted to tell him no, to tell him that you wanted to come and sit with him and be by his side when he needed you. But you understood that he wanted you to keep busy, and for you to try not to worry about him too much, although that ship had already sailed.

“Okay. I love you.” You say, hearing Tim’s whispered response before you hang up the phone, wondering how you are going to get through the rest of the day with these thoughts in your head. You were thankful that after lunch you had a free period so you didn’t have to worry about teaching any classes and could focus on grading papers and making new lesson plans to get a head start. As you worked, you found your gaze being drawn towards the framed picture you have on your desk of you, Tim, and Mia. All you could do was hope that Tim would be okay, you had no idea how you’d tell Mia if anything happened to Tim. Mia was the biggest daddy’s girl and you knew it would crush her if you had to look her in the eye and tell her that her daddy wasn’t coming home.

“Please be okay, Tim.” You whisper, hoping that by some miracle, someone will hear your whisper and be able to save Tim. Halfway through your free period, your phone buzzed once more and this time you saw Angela’s name displayed across your phone screen and you scooped your phone up instantly, answering the call.

“Angela, please tell me he’s okay.” You plead, pacing your classroom anxiously as you wait for Angela to respond.

“He’s on his way to the hospital. The CDC got there and administered the vaccine but as he was leaving the house he passed out. He’s going to Shaw Memorial.” Angela explains as Jackson drives them to the hospital.

“I’m getting Mia and I’m coming to the hospital.” You say, shoving everything in your bag with little to no consideration for anything else but getting to Shaw Memorial.

“I’ll be waiting for you both,” Angela says with a nod, ignoring Jackson’s confused glances, bidding you goodbye before hanging up the phone.

After ending the call, you finish packing your bag and immediately make a beeline for the principal's office, knocking and entering with permission.

“Ah, y/n, what can I do for you?” He says with a friendly smile which falters when he notices your worried expression and the bag on your shoulder.

“Something’s happened with my husband. He’s in the hospital and I need to go and see him. I have lesson plans all written up in my desk so a substitute can step in I just need to go and see Tim.” You explain, trying not to sound too flustered but you also knew you were failing miserably.

“Of course, you can go. We should have someone available, I’ll track them down before the next period. You’re free to go. I hope everything is okay.” He says softly, holding up a hand to calm you down. When you process his words, you let out a small sigh of relief, your shoulders sagging in relief.

“Thank you so much, Paul.” You thank him gratefully, beginning to back away towards the door before saying a quick goodbye and rushing out to your car. You waste no time driving over to the preschool Mia is at, soon pulling up outside and heading into the reception.

“Mrs. Bradford, how can I help you?” The receptionist, Poppy greets you as you enter the room, her normal smile plastered on her face.

“I would like to pick Mia up early, please.” You say as you reach the front desk, bracing your hands on the desk.

“Is everything okay?” Poppy asks, picking up on your worried expression instantly.

“Tim’s in the hospital.” You say quietly and Poppy’s eyes widen slightly, making her nod as she gets up from her seat.

“I’ll go and get her.” She says quickly, excusing herself and heading off to find Mia and bring her to you. Poppy was only gone for about five minutes and soon returned with Mia skipping along by her side.

“Momma!” Mia exclaims happily, rushing into your outstretched arms as you crouch down to catch her in your arms.

“Hi, Sweetie.” You greet her, trying not to let your voice wobble with emotion as you straighten up, taking her hand in yours and taking her bag from her with your spare hand as you thank Poppy before walking Mia out to your car, helping her into her car seat and buckling her in.

“Where are we going, Momma?” Mia asks, her voice filled with innocence as she watches you carefully. And as much as you wanted to protect her, you knew you couldn’t lie to her.

“Daddy’s in the hospital so we need to go and make sure he’s okay.” You explain, brushing some baby hairs away from her face as she frowns, eyebrows furrowing as she puts everything together in her head.

“Daddy’s hurt?” She asks quietly, making you realise she was thinking of when Tim was last hurt on the job.

“I’m not sure, Sweetie. The doctors will tell me what’s happened when we get there and then we can check on him.” You say softly, leaning forward to press a gentle kiss to the top of her head before you get behind the wheel, driving to the hospital. When you find a place to park, you help Mia out of the car, walking alongside her hand in hand while you call Angela, letting her know where you’re entering the hospital so she can meet you. It took you less than five minutes to locate Angela.

“Auntie Angie!” Mia calls out, rushing over to Angela who scoops Mia up in her arms, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

“Hey, Mia.” Angela greets you with a smile before looking over at you.

“How is he?” You ask quietly, watching Angela’s reaction carefully.

“He seems to be okay. He woke up before they got him into the hospital. He actually helped one of our rookies out of a tough spot. The doctors are waiting for you, I’ll keep an eye on Mia. I think you need some time alone with Tim first.” Angela says, causing you to let out a sigh of relief as you thank Angela quietly before crossing to the nurse's desk.

“Hello, I’ve been told my husband, Tim Bradford has been brought here. Can I see him?” You ask, watching as the nurse glances at you with a smile.

“Let me just get the doctor for you.” They say, paging the doctor who arrives in what feels like record time and quickly locates you still standing by the desk.

“Mrs. Bradford?” The doctor greets you softly, making you turn to face him with a smile and a nod.

“Yes. Is Tim okay?” You ask, desperate for answers.

“Your husband is okay. All his test results have come back clear and an allergic reaction to the vaccine caused his passing out.” The doctor explains, a smile on her face as you nod, happy tears coming to your eyes.

“Can I see him? Is that okay?” You ask, your fingers drifting to your wedding ring as you twist it nervously around your ring finger.

“Yes, you may. Follow me and I’ll take you to his room.” She says with a nod, turning and leading you to a room, stopping by the door and encouraging you to head in. After a deep breath, you open the door and head into the room.

“y/n.” Tim breathes out softly from where he is sitting on the hospital bed. You didn’t respond at first, instead striding across the room, sitting alongside Tim on the bed, grabbing his face in your hands and kissing him strongly. You had no words for how relieved you were to see Tim alive and well so all you could do in this moment was kiss him.

“You scared the shit out of me.” You whisper, pulling away enough to speak, your lips brushing up against his as your hands drop from Tim’s face to his shoulders.

“I’m sorry. I promise it was never my intention to scare you. I thought today was going to be an easy day at work.” Tim admits quietly, lifting a hand to cup your cheek in his hand and brush a thumb over the apple of your cheek softly.

“Last time you said that was after you got shot. Maybe you should stop assuming work’s going to be easy.” You weakly attempt to joke, pulling back a little more as Tim lets out a light chuckle, dropping his hand from your cheek, reaching up and taking one of your hands in his, rubbing his thumb across your knuckles rhythmically.

“Sounds like I should,” Tim says softly. There was then a slight lull in conversation as you thought of what Tim had said to you on the phone earlier.

“Did… did you mean what you said about going out on your own terms? Would you have really-” You cut yourself off, tears already stinging your eyes at the mere thought of Tim taking his own life.

“If you had seen what that virus did to a person, you’d understand why it was a serious consideration. I didn’t want to go through what I had just seen that guy Peter go through. That virus was horrible, I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.” Tim explains, his eyes never leaving yours for a second as you nod lightly.

“So, you don’t feel like that normally? It was only because you thought you were sick with that virus?” You ask, watching Tim’s expression carefully.

“I promise you I don’t ever have thoughts like that. I’ve never been happier with my life than I am now. You and Mia are my life and you both make me so unbelievably happy. I promise.” Tim says, squeezing your hand to exaggerate his point. At his words, you nod, lifting your free hand to wipe the threatening tears away.

“You’d tell me if you ever felt like that. Wouldn’t you?” You ask softly, watching as Tim nods.

“Of course,” Tim whispers. Part of you knew that Tim had a tendency to keep his struggles to himself, but since starting a relationship with you he had gotten better at opening up about things so you at least had some comfort in the knowledge that he was more likely to come to you about any problems. With everything now discussed, you looked at Tim with a soft smile before speaking.

“Would you like to see Mia? She’s with Angela in the waiting room.” You say, not missing how Tim’s eyes lit up at the mention of his daughter.

“She’s here?” He asks, watching as you nod with a smile.

“I’ll go and grab her now.” You say, standing up and pressing a quick kiss to the top of Tim’s head before exiting the room and heading back to the waiting room where you see Mia sitting on a chair as a female police officer stands behind the chair as she did Mia’s hair. You didn’t know who this officer was but judging by everyone’s smiles, she was a good one.

“Momma! Look! Lucy did my hair!” Mia exclaims excitedly, hopping off the chair and showing off the braids she now had in her hair and when you hear Mia name the police officer, you realise that she must be the one who called you earlier.

“It’s very pretty, Mia! Did you thank Lucy?” You ask, guiding Mia back towards the group of gathered police officers.

“Thank you, Lucy!” Mia chirps, rushing over to the rookie who smiles and shakes her head.

“No need to thank me. Mia’s a sweetheart.” Lucy at first says to Mia before looking up at you and directing her next sentence to you.

“Aw thank you. But in all seriousness, I should be thanking you for calling me about Tim in the first place.” You thank Lucy gratefully, feeling like you owe her so much.

“Tim asked me to call you for him. All I did was dial the number.” Lucy says in an attempt to downplay what she did.

“You still let me know about what happened. That means a lot.” You say, smiling at Lucy who nods with a shy smile of her own.

“I’d love to spend time chatting but I promised Tim I’d bring Mia to see him. But I would love to get to know you all properly at some point.” You say apologetically, taking Mia’s hand in your own and bidding the gathered officers a hurried goodbye before heading off in the direction of Tim’s hospital room. As they watch you leave, Nolan and Jackson move to stand by Lucy’s side.

“Tim had a whole secret family and no one knew but Angela?” Jackson asks, glancing over at his training officer who shrugs with a grin.

“It helps to be the one who introduced them,” Angela says proudly, making the rookies exchange a look.

“She’s basically the polar opposite of Tim,” Nolan says, wondering why Angela had thought you and Tim would’ve made a good couple.

“They say opposites attract and I just knew y/n and Tim would work,” Angela says, folding her arms across her chest as the other rookies begin to bombard her with questions.

Meanwhile, you led Mia to Tim’s hospital room, opening the door and encouraging her to enter the room, seeing how she smiled upon seeing her dad.

“Daddy!” She says happily, rushing over to Tim’s bedside as Tim smiles widely.

“Hi, Sweetheart,” Tim says, holding an arm open to encourage Mia to hop up alongside him but you both see her hesitation as you pull up a chair alongside the bedside, settling into it. You exchange a glance with Tim before you realise why it is she was hesitating to join Tim.

“You’re not going to hurt Daddy, Sweetie.” You say softly. You remembered how when Tim got shot and was in the hospital last, Mia had rushed into his hospital room and nearly jumped up alongside him so you had warned Mia to be careful and to not jump on him while he was hurt.

“I’m not hurt, Princess. I promise.” Tim says, smiling softly at your daughter as he extends his arm out once again, and this time Mia carefully climbs up on the bed alongside him and curls into his embrace, resting her head on his chest.

“How long have you got off this time?” You ask lightly as Tim runs a hand up and down Mia’s back.

“At least two weeks,” Tim says, remembering what the doctor had told him just so they could play on the side of caution.

“Oh good, that’s plenty of time for you to reconsider my idea of getting a dog.” You say with a smile, watching as Tim jokingly glares at you while Mia perks up.

“Yes! Get a dog!” She says excitedly, curling up closer to Tim and attempting to give him puppy dog eyes.

“We’ve been over this,” Tim says, looking pointedly at you as you smile innocently.

“Please, Daddy.” Mia pleads, cuddling impossibly closer as Tim rolls his eyes jokingly.

“I will consider it.” Tim concedes, sighing as you and Mia share a high-five. As you settle back in your seat, you reach across and rest your hand atop Tim’s free hand, smiling as you watch him press a gentle kiss atop Mia’s head.

As you watched Tim interacting with Mia, you were filled with overwhelming gratitude that Tim was okay. He was so important to you and Mia and you dreaded the mere thought of him not being around anymore. But he was alive and healthy, and you knew that he would not let anything get in between him and his family.

You had been in the middle of your gap year, having chosen to take one so you could stay closer to home to help look after your childhood best friend, Nick Clark, who had been battling his addiction. You were a pillar of support within the Clark family, and while you couldn’t magically heal Nick and remove the addictions he had, you could help as best you could. With your parents away travelling, you’d been left in charge of your house, but spent most of your time with the Clarks. You were glad you did.

When you began to see things on the news of people attacking other people, you were scared but thought it was a craze that would just pass by. But when it showed no sign of slowing and you began to encounter people who had turned, the reality of the situation began to set in. You had hurriedly called your parents, barely able to get a conversation in with them before the phone lines clearly went down, making you anxious and terrified of what was going on around you. At first, you were able to stay on your street near the Clark’s thanks to the safe zone the military had established where you lived but when it began to fall apart, you had all fled and with the help of a man named Victor Strand, you made it to the ocean, taking his boat with the hope that Mexico would have a better situation as you watched the military napalm the place you used to call home.

At first, Mexico seemed safe. You found a place run by the adoptive mother of the man Victor loved, but the facade quickly fell apart and as that did, so did your group. You managed to escape the burning building with Madison, Alicia, Victor, and Ofelia. You had watched as Nick, covered in the blood of the dead, went his own way, breaking your heart as you held Ofelia, comforting her as she mourned her father and all of you knowing that Travis and Chris were also missing after Chris ran away.

The five of you travelled until you found a hotel, managing to transform it into a safe place to live thanks to the surrounding walls and nearby beach. Unfortunately, Ofelia went missing, and after Madison turned on the generators late one night in a desperate attempt to signal to Nick, it drew a crowd of survivors, desperate for any help they could find. However, it did bring Travis to the hotel, but soon you, Madison, Alicia, and Travis were forced to leave after Travis killed people in a fit of rage after learning their role in his son’s death.

These events led you back across the border into California in a search for Nick, where the four of you were captured by some military personnel. You, Alicia, and Madison were separated from Travis, being locked in an office with nothing to do other than wait for answers.

You were anxious, pacing up and down in the office as Madison and Alicia looked for a way out, ranging from jiggling the locked handle to testing the windows, only to discover that they were locked as well and with no weapons, you were unable to fight your way out of the situation. As you were beginning to think you were going to spend the rest of your life locked in an office, you heard the familiar sound of a key jingling in the lock before it opened.

You had watched as a man in military uniform stepped in wearing a friendly smile and bearing tea as he greeted you all. Madison and Alicia were hostile from the get-go, demanding to be let go and asking if he knew where Nick and Travis were. You chose to stay silent, observing how he interacted with your friends and how he handled their aggressive approach to conversation.

You later learnt his name was Troy Otto, and no matter how much the three of you pestered him about Travis and Nick, he refused to give you any answers until he had processed you. Eventually, Madison reached a breaking point and took the opportunity she was presented with and attacked Troy, shoving a spoon into his eye and holding him hostage to get what she wanted. Thanks to the arrival of Troy’s older brother, Jake, the boiling tension was subdued. Only moments before a deal could be made about letting you all go, the camp got overrun by the dead, leaving you with no choice but to escape with the Ottos with you, Nick, and Madison climbing into the truck with Troy while Alicia, Travis, and Jake climbed into the helicopter to medivac Nick’s girlfriend Luciana to the ranch quicker than the truck could.

It turned out that you guys would make it to the ranch first, discovering that Jake and the others hadn’t arrived yet. With that news, Troy ordered you, Madison, and Nick out of the truck, forcing you to stand outside the gates alone and with little means to protect yourselves. You listened as Madison and Nick argued, Madison arguing that the three of you stay here and wait for the helicopter to arrive, while Nick wanted to backtrack to find the others.

Eventually, a man whom you learnt to be Troy and Jake’s father approached the gate, introducing himself as Jeremiah and allowing the three of you in, apologising for Troy’s rash decision and showing you around the ranch, even giving you all a bunkhouse to share.

When Jake and Alicia arrived at the ranch with Luciana, you were overjoyed to see that Alicia was okay after learning that the helicopter had been shot down before quickly being crushed by the realisation that in the attack, Travis had lost his life. You couldn’t find a way to wrap your head around the news, even with Troy and Nick arguing about Luciana’s care in the background, all you could focus on was losing someone as vitally important to your group as Travis.

You were shaken back to reality by Alicia, who tugged you towards the bunkhouse, the four of you regrouping while Luciana was taken to the infirmary to get the medical help she needed. You felt useless, unable to form any cognitive thoughts about your situation. You were aware of Madison making the decision that you’d all stay at the ranch for the foreseeable future, not knowing how much your time at the ranch would change you.

You were encouraged to try and make friends, to try and get a sense of what the ranch was like and the family that ran it. But despite your best efforts, you couldn’t seem to form an effective bond with anyone. Although you were sure it wasn’t the fault of the people you tried talking to. Your attention was simply turned elsewhere.

The youngest of the Otto brothers had caught your eye. He could be aggressive, and he had the tendency to shoot first and ask questions later, but there was something so alluring about him and his boyish charm. He helped teach you how to fire a gun when you asked, tired of only relying on your machete for close-range attacks, putting you at risk of getting bitten by one of the dead.

After that training session, Troy started making more of an effort to spend time with you. He’d invite you to sit with him while everyone was eating, and he involved you in conversations you were sure you weren’t supposed to be a part of.

“Hey, how do you feel about going on a sweep of the area with me tomorrow? Make sure there’s no infected coming too close,” Troy’s question caught you off guard, stopping you in your tracks as you stabbed at your food.

“I thought that’s what the guards were for? Making sure they didn’t get too close?” you reply, tilting your head slightly in confusion.

“I mean, yeah. But sometimes I head out just to make sure I don’t get too comfortable behind the fence. I want to make sure we’re not gonna get a bunch of these assholes at our front door. Plus, no harm in looking for extra supplies,” Troy shrugs, shovelling a forkful of food into his mouth as he glances over at you expectantly.

“I mean, if you’re confident taking someone who barely has any gun training under their belt,” you shrug, locking eyes with Troy.

“There’s no place better to practice than out there. I trust you,” Troy responds, making you hesitate slightly. No one had told you that they trusted you since the world changed, so to hear someone so confident in his place in the new world say he trusted you gave you confidence you didn’t even know you had.

“Okay, I’ll head out with you,” you say, missing Nick’s side-eyed glance at you as you continue to eat.

“I’ll come and grab you tomorrow when I’m ready to head out,” Troy says with a nod as you listen carefully. After eating, you all head your separate ways, and you head back to the shared bunkhouse, mingling awkwardly until Madison, Nick, and Alicia enter.

“Nick tells me you’re heading off the ranch with Troy tomorrow,” Madison says, everyone’s focus on you as you nod nervously.

“He’s been helping me learn how to use a gun. He said it’ll be good for me to learn out there,” you say, shrugging ever so slightly as Madison folds her arms across her chest, pursing her lips in thought.

“Are you sure this is a good idea? Troy’s unhinged,” Alicia says, studying your reaction carefully.

“This is good, if y/n gets in Troy’s good books, he might tell her stuff we can use to take over the ranch. He clearly likes her,” Madison says as your eyebrows furrow slightly, your stomach turning in disgust at the thought of betraying Troy’s trust.

“He tolerates me at most,” you argue weakly.

“No, Mom’s right. Troy likes you,” Alicia says with a nod, agreeing with Madison’s words while you fiddle with your fingers awkwardly. The way Alicia was talking, it seemed like she was trying to insinuate that Troy liked you in a more than platonic way. You didn’t expect her words to be true. You weren’t the kind of person boys took a look at; you’d pretty much accepted a life of being single the moment you got rejected by a boy you liked when you were thirteen. If no one paid you any mind before the apocalypse, you knew Troy Otto would definitely not care about you.

“Why do we need to take over the ranch? Yeah, Jeremiah isn’t great, but Troy and Jake could make this place work,” you say, your focus not moving from your hands as you fidget.

“I’d rather die than trust Troy with this place.”

“It’s his family's ranch.”

“Okay, guys, I think we’re getting a bit worked up. Maybe we should call it a night.” Nick steps in, calming the brewing argument between you, Madison, and Alicia. Nick understood why you were drawn to Troy; he liked him well enough, but he just didn’t want everyone to fall out over it.

“We’ll finish this conversation later,” Madison says pointedly as you shrink into yourself. Part of you hated being scolded for something you didn’t see as a bad thing, but the other part of you hated the fact that Madison thought she could tell you what to do. You knew your parents were missing, probably dead, but you were nineteen, you didn’t need her hovering over you like you were her own kid.

With one final goodnight, the four of you climbed into your separate bunks, hoping that the next time this conversation was brought up, everyone would have a more level head and it wouldn’t boil the way it did this time.

Unlike your bunkmates, you failed to find sleep, tossing and turning as you listened to the soft snores of those around you. Your anxiety was chewing at your stomach, you were beginning to regret saying yes to going with Troy. What if you got him killed? What if you somehow led another group of people to the ranch? What if you led a horde of the undead to the ranch? Endless ‘what ifs’ swirled around in your mind, plaguing you as you desperately tried to block them out.

When sleep failed to come, you carefully sat up, your eyes straining in the dark to see the shapes of the others as they slept. You debated on waking one of them to talk to them and get your worries off your chest, but in the wake of the slight argument, you didn’t want to bother anyone. You also felt an uneasy feeling settle in your stomach. As days in the apocalypse passed, you felt more and more like you didn’t have a place with the Clarks. They were banding together in the wake of Travis’ death, while you were being pushed more and more to the outskirts.

Reaching a decision, you decide to quietly sneak out of the bunkhouse, making your way to a quiet stretch of field, far enough away from the fence line that a guard wouldn’t spot you and far enough from the ranch that no one would disturb you as you sit down on the grass, soon laying back to look up at the stars.

You loved the night skies at the ranch. There was no light pollution to obscure the stars the way there was in LA. It felt much more peaceful on the ranch. Sometimes it was easy to forget that there was an abundance of undead people shambling around, waiting to feast on anything they could get their teeth into.

“I thought I saw you sneaking out. What are you doing?” Troy’s voice made you jump, making you prop yourself up on your elbows as you looked over your shoulder at him.

“You scared the shit out of me,” you say with a weak laugh, lying back against the grass.

“You scared the shit out of me when I saw you sneaking out of your bunkhouse. I thought you were trying to escape or something,” Troy says with a grin, sitting down on the grass alongside you.

“With my awful weapons skill set? Never,” you joke, your laugh weak as you briefly spare Troy a glance, feeling your face heat up slightly when you lock eyes for a brief second and quickly averting your gaze to look back up at the stars.

“I wouldn’t say you have an awful skill set. You handle that machete of yours pretty well,” Troy says, remembering how you had wielded the machete with a ferocity he had never expected from you, defending yourself and others from the dead without hesitation.

“Only because I had to learn how to use it. If I didn’t, I’d be dead,” you mumble, your sullen tone not lost on Troy as he cocked an eyebrow.

“So what’s got you all mopey?” Troy questions, settling back on the grass, joining you in staring up at the stars.

“It’s nothing. I’m fine,” you mutter, refusing to remove your gaze from the stars.

“You could at least try to sound a little more convincing than that,” Troy jokes, turning his head to look at you, a movement you caught in your peripheral vision.

“It’s stupid,” you then say, trying to get Troy to drop the subject, but you knew it was futile given his annoying persistence.

“I promise I won’t laugh,” Troy says, a grin on his face as you quickly spare him a glance, making you sigh softly before returning your stare to the sky.

“I don’t feel like I have a place in this world,” you admit quietly, your eyes slipping shut as you anticipate Troy’s laugh despite his promise. Instead, you were met with silence, which prompted you to open your eyes, finally turning your head to lock eyes with Troy, who was studying you carefully, with an unusual seriousness about him.

“You came with Nick and the others, right? Surely you have a place with them?” Troy questions, trying to make sense of your comment.

“Yeah, but I’m not part of their family. I just tagged along when everything fell apart because I’m Nick’s friend. I don’t even know if my parents are still alive,” you whisper, tearing your gaze away from Troy’s as you feel tears welling in your eyes, hurriedly wiping at them so Troy wouldn’t think of you as weak.

“If you don’t think you have a place with them. You’ll always have a place here. I like you,” Troy admits, his eyes flicking up to the stars, hoping you didn’t look over at him and catch him in a moment of flustered weakness.

“You’re not too bad yourself, Troy,” you admit quietly, a soft laugh escaping your lips as both you and Troy turn to look at each other, both of you wearing shy smiles.

“I’m glad you said yes to coming on the run tomorrow,” Troy then mutters, smiling to himself when he hears a slight laugh cross your lips.

“Somehow, I doubt you’ll be thinking that after tomorrow,” you joke, glancing over at Troy, who finally brings his gaze back to reach yours.

“Wanna bet?” he wagers, shooting you a charming smile.

“What does the winner get?” you question, interested in Troy’s proposed bet.

“Bragging rights? I don’t know, we can figure it out on our way out tomorrow,” Troy shrugs. Even with the limited lighting, you could see Troy’s blue eyes shimmering with glee at the idea of a bit of fun between the two of you.

“Fine, you’re on,” you say with a laugh, holding your hand out towards Troy, both of you grinning as he takes your hand in his and shakes it. Just before he releases your hand from his grip, you could’ve sworn you felt him squeeze your hand slightly, making your cheeks heat up as you return to looking up at the stars, an action Troy mirrors quickly.

“What are we looking for? A plane or something, because if so, I might have some bad news for you,” Troy’s joke made you roll your eyes as you let out a slight scoff before sobering up.

“My parents taught me how to stargaze. They took me on a camping trip just before I started high school, and I remember lying out on a blanket while my parents taught me all the constellations. I guess it’s just a way to feel close to them, if they’re even out there anyway,” you mutter at first, happy to explain about what your parents had taught you before the crushing reality of the world around you dragged you back down to earth from your fantasies.

“They could be out there, you know? Your folks?” Troy offers softly, turning to study you carefully as you continue to watch the night sky, your eyes drifting from star to star, tracing the constellations.

“I don’t want to get my hopes up. They were so far away when it happened, and I can’t contact them,” you say quietly. Truthfully, Troy didn’t know how to react to your words. His relationship with his parents was not one to be desired. He didn’t know what a good family dynamic looked like, but just from the way you described the camping trip with your parents, he could tell you loved them with everything you had, and he had no doubt they loved you the same way back.

“Maybe when things have settled down here, me and you can go and look for them. If you want to,” Troy offers quietly, his voice so quiet you didn’t know if you imagined hearing him say that until you turned to look at him, seeing him watching you carefully.

“That would be nice. Thank you,” you whisper, grateful for Troy’s offer as he nods, carefully taking your right hand in his left, making your cheeks heat up rapidly at the way his fingers carelessly intertwine with yours.

The two of you spend a few more minutes out on the field, observing the stars together. Troy listening intently as you point out the various shapes in the stars, your outstretched finger tracing the shapes.

The moment between the two of you felt like forever, the tranquillity of the ranch setting a mood that made the world feel like it just consisted of the two of you. As you pointed out the stars, you were unaware that for most of the time you were talking, Troy was entirely focused on you and not the stars.

“Travis taught me that in Māori culture, Orion’s Belt is called ‘Tautoru’ and is part of an entirely different constellation for them. It’s so cool how different cultures perceive the stars,” you say, a fond smile on your face as you recall the nights under the stars after the world fell. Travis had caught you watching the stars and had sat with you, telling you the stories of the stars that were rooted deep in his culture, as you had listened intently.

“You’re full of information, huh?” Troy muses lightly, his gaze not shifting from you while you remain oblivious.

“Just way too interested in the stars,” you laugh, suddenly turning your head and locking eyes with Troy. It was like the world stopped turning, you had no idea if you imagined it, but you could’ve sworn Troy’s eyes flicked to your lips before looking back up at your eyes. Just before you could grab the courage to do anything, the staring contest was abruptly ended as Troy awkwardly cleared his throat, propping himself up on his elbows, yanking his hand from yours and casting a glance down at his watch.

“It’s getting late. We should head to bed,” Troy says hurriedly, pushing himself up as you rush to mimic him, shocked by his sudden switch in demeanour.

“Okay,” you mutter meekly, forcing yourself to your feet and trailing behind Troy awkwardly, wondering what you had done to make him up and leave so quickly.

As you climbed into your bed after quietly sneaking into the bunkhouse, despite the awkward ending to the night, the moment you had shared with Troy somehow calmed you enough to find sleep, your heart pounding at the thought of spending more one-on-one time with the youngest of the Otto’s.

The next morning, you were awoken by Nick shaking your shoulder, gently telling you that you needed to get up. You rolled out of bed with a yawn, dragging yourself to get changed and then heading out of the bunkhouse to grab some breakfast.

“y/n, over here!” Troy calls you over, gesturing you over, and before you knew it, you were crossing over to his table, unaware of Madison’s watchful eye.

“Morning,” you mumble shyly, surprised that Troy wanted to see you after the end of the night.

“You ready for today?” Troy asks, quirking an eyebrow as you stare at him, trying to process his question before nodding hurriedly.

“Yeah, as ready as I’ll ever be,” you nod, trying to exude an aura of confidence.

“Once we’ve eaten, we’ll go and grab our guns and then head out. The earlier we get out, the better,” Troy says, his fork hovering just in front of his mouth as he prepares to take a bite.

 The breakfast passes by smoothly, and after finishing your meals, you all clean up after yourselves, and you follow Troy to the armoury. You both check out a gun for the day, you get a small handgun, while Troy gets a handgun and an assault rifle. You both check your weapons and grab extra ammo, water, a first aid kit, and some rations before exiting the armoury and making your way out to Troy’s truck. You studied Troy’s mannerisms carefully, noticing how he was acting as if the awkward moment between the two of you had never happened, making you wonder if you had overthought the entire moment in your head.

“You good if I play my music?” Troy asks, already in the process of readying his cd as he glances over at you.

“You never asked before. You normally just play it regardless.”

“Thought I’d be nice and offer you the choice,” Troy says, putting the cd into the radio and hitting play, filling the truck with the loud, heavy metal music that Troy liked so much.

The journey outside Broke Jaw’s fences was not long, but nerve-wracking. Every time you saw one of the infected, even from a distance, you got nervous, remembering the reality of the world now.

“This shouldn’t be too bad. We’re prepared if we get stuck out here, and we’ve got our comms.” Troy’s voice was slightly raised, attempting to speak over the blaring music, but making zero attempt to turn it down. You opt not to respond vocally, not wanting to fight the volume of the music as you nod with a small smile, so Troy knew you’d heard him.

After about half an hour of driving with the somewhat pleasant undertones of heavy metal, Troy pulls up on the side of the road, instantly reaching to grab his guns the moment he shuts off the engine.

“Stay sharp, okay? It won’t just be infected out here,” Troy instructs as you nod, climbing out of the truck and making sure your machete was in the holster Troy had generously donated to you after seeing that you lugged it around without a way to holster it. After checking your machete was secure, you holstered the handgun as well, after making sure it was loaded and ready for if you needed it.

You traverse the area with Troy, both of you on high alert as you go. It felt almost too quiet to be the end of the world. There were no infected anywhere to be seen, and with no buildings around to scavenge, it left the two of you with nothing to do but chat.

“You haven’t lured me out here to kill me or something, have you?” you question with a laugh, glancing over at Troy.

“You really think so lowly of me, huh?” Troy jokes, letting out a soft chuckle to mask his hidden sadness. He knew that you knew about the experiments he had conducted at the militia base and how Nick, Luciana, and Travis had been caught up in them, and all he could hope was that you weren’t holding it against him.

“No, I didn’t mean it like that. I was just joking. Sorry, it was a bad joke, I know,” you say awkwardly, looking away from Troy to hide your shame at the distasteful joke.

“I think I deserved it,” Troy laughs, telling you that he didn’t take what you had said too personally.

The two of you continue to walk, taking small sips from your canteen to stay hydrated, until you catch sight of a shambling corpse in the distance.

“Is that?”

“It sure is. Let’s get some shooting practice for you,” Troy says in response to your question, whistling loudly to get the infected’s attention.

“Troy, what are you-?”

“Just relax, okay? You need to learn how to shoot something that isn’t standing still. I’m right here if something happens. I won’t let him get you,” Troy says assuringly as the infected nears, his growls growing louder as he gets closer and closer.

You nervously grab the gun from its holster, holding it level in the way that Troy had carefully taught you. You felt your hands shaking as you focused on the infected.

“You’ve got it, just take a deep breath and calm down. I got you.” Troy’s instructions were gentle as you took a breath before pulling the trigger.

The first bullet you fired skimmed the infected’s jaw, sending it stumbling from the force behind the bullet, but it remained upright, staggering towards you.

“Shit.”

You hurriedly cock the gun again, readying yourself and pulling the trigger again. This time, the bullet flies into the shoulder of the corpse, once again unsteadying it, but it remains upright. Despite knowing that the infected was only growing closer, you knew that with Troy nearby, you weren’t in any danger. Taking one last deep breath, you steadied your shaking hands and pulled the trigger, finally landing the headshot you needed to take the infected down, sending it crashing to the floor.

“I did it!” you say excitedly, turning to face Troy, whose smile matches yours.

“You did,” Troy confirms, folding his arms across his chest as he nods.

“So, how was that? I know there’s a lot I could do better and-”

“That wasn’t bad, you just need to hold the gun a bit more like this,” Troy quietly instructs, gently taking you by the shoulders and turning you around. He then sidled up behind you, gently lifting his hands to your arms and adjusting your position when holding the gun, his breath tickling your ear as you felt your cheeks heat up at the close proximity.

“This feels better,” you agree as Troy releases the gentle grip he had on your arms, his hands still hovering nearby as you test out the new stance.

“It’ll help with the recoil, too. Save you some-” Troy cuts himself off, his whole position tensing as he glances around, making you mirror his actions, anxious as to what it was he was sensing. Before you had the chance to question him, he sprang into action, tackling you harshly to the ground just as bullets began to rain down around you. As you lay on your front, fumbling for the gun you had just dropped, Troy shielded your body with his own, crouching over you as he readied his rifle.

“Are you hurt?” Troy asks, glancing over the rock the two of you were sheltering behind in a search for your attackers.

“I don’t think so,” you stammer, your heart pounding out of your chest as Troy hurriedly helps you sit up against the rock.

“Just stay down, okay? I can handle these assholes,” Troy says, quickly returning fire to the attackers. You had no idea if Troy could see who was attacking the two of you, but you knew he was the best chance you had to get out of the situation you were in. Your panic was in full drive as the sound of gunfire rang out. You felt useless, cowering behind the rock while Troy was fearlessly fighting back.

As you sit against the rock, trying to slow your rapid heartbeat, you begin to feel a pain in your right shoulder. Naturally, your hand drifts to your shoulder, your eyes widening when you pull your hand away, finding it stained red with blood.

“Oh no,” you mutter to yourself, your gaze flicking up to where Troy was, carefully positioned behind the rock as he fired at the attackers. In that moment, you decided to keep quiet about your injury, not wanting Troy to lose focus on what he was doing. 

The gunfire continued to ring out for a few minutes as you anxiously waited, hoping that Troy would be able to get you both out of here. After a while, the gunfire ceases, and Troy smirks to himself, clearly proud of his achievement.

“Told you I could handle those assholes. Now let’s- shit what happened?” Troy’s eyes instantly caught on the blood staining your hand as you trembled.

“I got shot,” you say feebly as Troy quickly crouches down, moving to assess the wound.

“We gotta get you back to the ranch,” Troy says hurriedly, noting how quickly blood was seeping from the wound. He could tell it was a through-and-through, but it needed to be treated properly with the medical equipment they had back at the ranch.

“I can bandage it up, but it won’t be the best job. It should get you to the ranch, though,” Troy says, digging the first aid kit out of his bag and bandaging your injury as best he can, but due to his rushing, it wasn’t the best patchwork job he could’ve done. Troy then quickly wound your uninjured arm around his shoulders and quickly ushered you back to the truck, keeping an eye out for any threats, alive or dead.

Troy carefully loads you into the truck, trying his best not to jostle your injured shoulder before jumping into the truck and speeding off in the direction of the ranch.

“It hurts,” you whimper, silently hating yourself for seeming so weak in front of Troy.

“I’m going as quick as I can. Just stay awake for me, okay? I don’t know how much blood you’ve lost, so you gotta keep your eyes open. Deal?” Troy asks, glancing over at you as you nod, feeling your vision swim slightly at the motion. You would never vocalise how you were feeling to Troy, but you were terrified. You knew that the world today was dangerous, and that people would turn on each other in fights for food, territory, or just for the sick pleasure of it all, but you had never anticipated being caught up in it all. Troy had stayed level-headed and fought back without hesitation. He knew exactly how to handle the world around him, while you felt a hundred steps behind.

As the journey continued, you felt your eyelids growing heavier. Troy’s words about you losing blood echoed in your head as your hand drifted to your shoulder, pressing down on the wound to try and slow the bleeding, your head lolling to one side before jerking up, a motion that caught Troy’s attention.

“Hey, remember our deal? You gotta stay awake. I swear we’ll be back at the ranch soon,” Troy says, a sense of urgency and panic in his voice that you were sure you were imagining.

The rest of the journey felt like it was a blur. The only things you could remember from the end of the journey were the truck parking outside the gate, hearing Troy’s hurried yells to be let in before the truck went roaring onto the ranch’s land, before stopping outside the infirmary. You were aware of being lifted out of the truck and ushered onto a bed.

“I don’t care what you do, just save her!” The numerous voices all merged together, but Troy’s voice rung out clear as a bell, the only comforting presence around you as you felt someone grab your hand, Troy’s blurred face appearing in your vision.

“You’re going to be okay.” Was the last thing you heard Troy say before you allowed your exhausted eyes to finally rest.

When you woke up, you blinked harshly, your eyes taking their time to adjust to the sudden light that hit them. Once adjusted, you looked around, noticing that your right arm was in a sling while your left hand was handcuffed to the bedframe before catching sight of Nick, who was sitting loyally by your bedside.

“Nick?” you croaked, clearing your throat after speaking.

“Here,” Nick says quickly, lifting a glass of water to your lips and encouraging you to take small sips.

“Where’s Troy?” you ask, your eyes flicking around in search of the man who had saved your life.

“Jake took him to talk through some plans to protect this place,” Nick explains as you sit back slightly, tugging at your restraint lightly.

“It was just in case,” Nick clarifies softly.

“Like they did with Luci,” you nod, understanding why you had been restrained.

“What happened out there? Troy wouldn’t tell me much other than some guys jumped you.”

“I don’t know any more than that. Troy noticed them before I did; it was like he had a sixth sense or something. He saved me. I owe him so much.”

“Mom and Alicia were right, Troy does like you.” Nick’s words made your eyebrows furrow.

“Hardly.”

“I’m serious. Until Jake dragged him out of here, he pretty much refused to leave your side. He really cares about you.”

You find no way to protest Nick’s words after that. You were still struggling to believe him, but part of you was curious as to why Troy would’ve spent so long at your bedside.

“How long have I been out?” You find yourself asking quietly, glancing over at Nick.

“About a day. You lost a fair bit of blood, but you’ll be okay in the long run with some rest,” Nick explains, offering you some more water which you take gratefully, thanking Nick before settling back into the pillows.

Nick continued to hold polite conversation with you, and even Alicia was able to swing by for a brief moment to check in with you. Before the sun began to set, you heard someone approaching the infirmary, smiling when you locked eyes with Troy.

“Hi Troy.”

“y/n, you’re okay.” Troy’s smile was small but genuine as he approached the bed while Nick subtly backed off.

“I’m okay,” you echo softly.

“Let’s get these off you,” Troy says quietly, instantly digging the key for the handcuffs out of his pocket and gently unlocking them.

“Thank you,” you mutter quietly, rolling your wrist to try and alleviate some of the pain from the tightness of the restraint.

“I’ll swing by later, see you y/n/n,” Nick announces his departure, nodding at you with a smile before exiting the infirmary, leaving you and Troy alone.

“Are you okay? Did you get hurt at all?” you ask worriedly, attempting to sit up further as Troy occupies the seat that Nick had been in prior.

“I’m fine.”

“I’m sorry. I ruined the run,” you apologise, your gaze drifting to your sling, picking at a loose thread.

“You didn’t ruin anything. It was those assholes out there who shot you. I don’t know if I got them all, but if I run into them again, I’ll make them regret what they did.” Troy’s tone was dark as he spoke, his eyes narrowing as if picturing the attackers standing before him.

“Troy, don’t go on some revenge spree just because I got shot. I’m not worth that,” you mumble, shuffling embarrassedly in place at the idea of Troy being hurt because of you.

“Not worth that? y/n, do you have any idea how terrified I was when I saw the blood?” Troy says, his voice lowered as he speaks, afraid to let anyone but you hear the vulnerability he was allowing to seep into his tone.

“I’m sorry,” you whisper, refusing to meet Troy’s gaze.

“You say sorry a lot. You don’t have to apologise for something that wasn’t your fault.” Troy’s words were gentle as he finally got the courage to reach forward and take your hand in his, an action that made your heart pound.

“You know… technically, I won our bet because I am still glad you came on the run. It didn’t end the way I’d hoped, but I liked getting to spend time with you,” Troy admits, his gaze briefly dipping to the bedsheets before looking back up at you with a shy smile.

“I enjoyed spending time with you too. You’re not nearly as bad as people try to make you out to be,” you admit with a soft laugh, finally getting the courage to look up and lock eyes with Troy as the two of you fall into a comfortable silence.

“So, did you decide what the winner of the bet wins?”

“I didn’t, but now that you mention it I gotta come up with something, especially since I won,” Troy muses, leaning forward slightly as his brows furrow in thought.

“You don’t have to think of something right now.”

“Okay, I got something. Since I won, why don’t you join me for dinner at my place? Just the two of us?” Troy offers, making your eyebrows raise slightly.

“Dinner? You don’t want me to do your chores for the next month or something?” you ask incredulously, cocking your head in confusion.

“I wouldn’t be so cruel as to make a lady do all my chores. I just want us to do something fun together, if you want to, of course,” Troy says, absentmindedly squeezing your hand.

“If that’s what you want, then I can’t exactly say no. You did win the bet after all,” you shrug with a small smile.

“If you don’t want to, I won’t force you, I can pick something else,” Troy suggests, his soft tone suggesting that there was no pressure.

“No, I don’t mind. I’d like to have dinner with you,” you reply, smiling shyly as Troy nods.

“Once you’re out of here, we’ll have that dinner. Deal?” Troy says, quirking an eyebrow as you nod.

“Deal.”

It took a couple of days before you were released from the infirmary, the medical personnel wanting to monitor your injury and make sure there’s no risk of infection before you’re released. When it was determined that you’d be okay and you were released, Troy was right by your side, accompanying you on a walk around the ranch as per your request, wanting to do nothing more than to stretch your legs after a couple of days of being bedbound.

You were aware of the looks you were getting from Madison whenever you were in her line of sight, but you tried not to care. She could dislike Troy and the ranch as much as she liked, but you were happy on the ranch. If Madison wanted to take her family and leave, she was more than welcome to in your eyes.

You and Troy walked mindlessly around the ranch, saying hello to some of the horses as you went, and enjoying the pleasant weather that the world was providing you with. It felt nice to be able to enjoy your surroundings and the company of Troy. When you finished your walk, ending back up at the bunkhouse, Troy turned to you with a grin.

“I’ll swing by here tonight to bring you to mine for dinner?”

“Tonight? You gotta give a girl more warning than that,” you joke, making Troy quirk an eyebrow as he folds his arms across his chest.

“I did say once you’re out of the infirmary. Did you forget our deal?” Troy asks, leaning against the wall of the bunkhouse, his tone light and informing you that he didn’t hold any ill will and was only joking.

“I couldn’t forget our deal.”

That evening, true to his word, Troy showed up at the bunkhouse, both of you dressed up a little smarter than usual, or as smart as you could be with the lack of clothing options you had.

“You scrub up well,” you tease lightly as you step out of the bunkhouse, taking Troy’s outstretched hand in yours.

“You look as perfect as ever,” Troy says with a soft smile, making your cheeks heat up as you smile shyly.

“You don’t need to say that,” you say, unable to handle the sweet compliment.

“I do,” Troy says softly, linking your hand with his as he leads you to his house. The walk wasn’t long, but it was pleasant, filled with the sounds of the bustle you had grown accustomed to on the ranch. When you reached the house, you were greeted by Jake, who was waiting on the porch, smiling at you both.

“Hey, y/n, while you’re here, could I have a word with you? In private,” Jake asks, his question aimed at you before he glared over at Troy, who hadn’t moved an inch.

“Hey, she’s here for me, not you. Talk to her another time,” Troy says defensively.

“It’ll be quick, just go inside,” Jake says dismissively, waving Troy away, and he obliges, although not without muttering a few choice words under his breath as he goes. Once the door is closed, Jake gestures for you to come closer with a smile.

“I’m not in trouble, am I?”

“No. No, definitely not. I just wanted to talk to you about something,” Jake says reassuringly, leaning his forearms against the bannister of the porch as you move to stand alongside him.

“What is it?” you question timidly.

“I just wanted to thank you.”

“Thank me?”

“Yes. Look, we all know Troy isn’t the easiest to get along with. He’s antagonistic and crass. But he wasn’t always like that. And you’ve helped to bring back the old Troy, even if it’s only a little.” Jake’s words were soft as he spoke, glancing over at you.

“I didn’t realise…”

“You couldn’t have known. Our old man and Troy’s mom… they weren’t easy on him. But you bring him back. He cares about you in a way I’ve never seen him care about anyone before. Just… take care of him for me, okay?” Jake then continues, unafraid to hint at the connection between the two of you.

“I will,” you vow quietly, not wishing to hurt Troy more than he already had been.

“I don’t doubt it. I just had to have my big brother moment,” Jake says assuringly, moving to embrace you quickly before pulling away.

“I should probably head inside, Troy might freak out if I’m out here any longer,” you say with a soft chuckle, motioning towards the door with your head.

“Enjoy your evening,” Jake bids you goodbye as he heads down the stairs, leaving you free to enter the house, quickly locating Troy in the kitchen where he was plating up the food.

“You either own an oven powered by the sun or you prepared this earlier.” Your words made Troy jump slightly, making him turn to face you with a boyish grin.

“I prepped all this earlier, just left it in the oven to keep warm while I came over to get you,” Troy replies simply, returning his focus to the two plates in front of him. You watch as he carefully plates up the food, arranging it as if it were a Michelin star meal he was serving you. Once he was content with the presentation of the food, he carefully carried the plates to the nearby table, placing them both down on the relevant placemats before pulling a chair out for you.

“Such a gentleman,” you say, a slight teasing to your tone as Troy flushes slightly, grateful you were too busy looking at the food to see his reddened cheeks. Once you were securely tucked into the table, Troy took his seat opposite, his gaze drifting down to the cutlery he had meticulously placed out before looking back over at you.

“Shit, I forgot. Do you need a hand with… You know…? Cutting your food?” Troy stammers awkwardly, the first time you’ve ever seen him in such a state.

“I should be okay, thank you,” you say politely, not wishing to inconvenience Troy when he had already worked so hard on trying to prepare a nice meal even in the middle of the apocalypse.

You diligently attempt to cut up the food yourself, trying multiple methods, all while Troy observes quietly. At first, he remained quiet, letting you attempt to do this for yourself, not wanting to take any more independence from you. But after what felt like the millionth breathy huff, he stood abruptly and crossed to your side of the table, gently removing the cutlery from your hands and setting to work, deftly cutting up the food into manageable chunks.

“Troy, I’m not a child, I can-”

“Let me do this, okay?” Troy’s instruction was soft yet firm, enough to get you back down and let him get on with what he was doing. When he was finished, he placed the cutlery back down and smiled over at you softly.

“Thank you,” you mutter appreciatively. While at first you felt embarrassed by the ordeal, as you watched Troy work, the sweetness of the gesture sank in, and you found yourself appreciating the effort he made to help you. Once Troy had moved away and returned to his seat, you tucked into the meal.

“Troy, this is really good,” you praise in between mouthfuls.

“I couldn’t just let you show up to some MREs,” Troy jokes, both of you laughing lightly at the mental image of Troy serving military rations.

The evening was calm and serene. The quiet clinking of cutlery and glasses was only overshadowed by low conversation between you and Troy. You enjoyed every second you spent with him, and when you’d both cleaned up after yourselves, Troy invited you out onto the porch, easing you down to sit on the steps before he sat alongside you while your gaze drifted to the night sky.

“You never got views like this of the sky back in LA,” you mutter as Troy glances over at you, his gaze as soft as ever.

“I suppose that’s one thing good about growing up in the middle of nowhere,” Troy replies softly, shifting to look at the stars once more.

“You’re not wrong there,” you murmur, a soft chuckle escaping Troy’s lips before you both fall into a comfortable silence, your gaze fixed on the stars that flickered in the sky.

“Hey, I wanted to apologise for the other night,” Troy says suddenly, both of you turning to look at each other in tandem.

“The other night?” you question, trying to act as nonchalant as possible.

“I know I was pretty rude when I just got up and left with no warning.” Troy’s apology was something you didn’t expect, and you were sure it was shown as clear as day on your face despite your best efforts to hide it.

“It’s okay. It was late, you probably wanted to go to bed, and I can’t blame you for that.”

“It’s not okay. I know there was something happening between us before I left. I just-”

“Something happening?” You try to play dumb, desperately trying to protect your heart in anticipation of Troy’s rejection.

“Yes. You can’t seriously tell me there wasn’t something between us before I left.” Troy began inching closer, making your heartbeat pick up at the proximity.

“Troy…”

“Tell me I made it all up. Tell me there was nothing going on that night.”

“I… I can’t.” Your voice was breathy as Troy moved even closer, his face now mere inches away from yours.

“Do you want this?” Troy asks quietly, wanting to be one hundred percent sure you were on the same page as him before he tried anything.

“Yes.”

Without hesitation, Troy’s lips found yours, and his hands instantly settled on your waist, pulling you as close as he could without bumping your injured shoulder while you lifted your uninjured hand to tangle in the curls on the back of Troy’s head, deepening the kiss further.

The two of you kiss until the need for air becomes too much, both of you pulling away yet barely leaving any space between you.

“Stay.” Troy’s request was soft, yet held an aura of gentle command.

“Stay?”

“Yes. I know Madison keeps talking about leaving. But you don’t have to. You have your place here, with me. Please stay,” Troy asks again, his eyes searching yours as you fall silent, processing his question before nodding.

“Okay,” you say with a small smile, watching as a smile breaks out across Troy’s face, too. He pulled you in for another kiss, both of you a mess of tangled limbs. Two souls intertwined beneath the blanket of stars in the sky.

“There’s no way this is true. y/n hates Mateo,” Jake mutters, getting up from his seat and crossing the room to call Javy in privacy.

“I thought I hated you too at first,” Bradley murmurs to himself as Jake walks away, rolling his eyes at his husband’s dramatic reaction.

While Javy was in the process of receiving a very angry phone call from Jake, you and Mateo were none the wiser, continuing to spend your time together, constantly peppering each other in kisses as you lounged on the sofa. You spent the entire day together, only leaving the house once Javy came home much to your disappointment.

“I’ll see you tomorrow at school, Darling,” Mateo says softly, pressing a soft kiss to your lips in farewell.

“I’ll see you around, Asshat,” you respond with a soft smile, the nickname now no longer holding the same malice it used to. With one final kiss goodbye, you get into your car, drive home and instead of being greeted at the door by an overexcited Moose, you are greeted by your dad who stands before you with his arms folded across his chest.

“Hey Dad, what’s going on?” you ask worriedly, concerned about what could’ve happened.

“Why don’t you tell me?” Jake asks with a raised eyebrow as he gestures towards the living room with his head as you comply with his request, heading into the living room and sitting down on the sofa alongside Moose who settles his head against your leg.

“Okay, Dad, seriously, what’s going on? Is everything okay?” you ask again, growing concerned at your dad’s lack of an answer. Instead of responding, Jake opens his phone, showing you the text he had received as you read it carefully, your eyes widening slightly in shock when you realise what Javy had said.

“Would you care to explain why I got this text from Javy? And don’t give me that ‘it’s not what you think’ crap, Javy told me everything,” Jake says firmly, tucking his phone away in his pocket.

“Snitch,” you mutter annoyedly under your breath.

“What was that?” Jake asks, cocking his head slightly as if it would help him hear you better.

“We were just trying to figure out the best time to tell you. We’re still figuring things out,” you argue, trying to defend yourself.

“What has gotten into you? I thought I raised you better than this,” Jake scolds angrily, pacing as he talks.

“Raised me better than what? Having a boyfriend?” you question, your eyebrows furrowed as you try to make sense of your dad’s rant.

“I raised you better than to have a boyfriend like that,” Jake insists as you glare viciously at your dad.

“He’s Uncle Javy’s kid, are you saying you hate Javy now?” you ask.

“No. He’s my best friend. It’s Mateo I don’t trust. He’s nothing like his dad,” Jake says, his voice raising slightly as you stand up, disturbing Moose who whines softly at the sudden shift in tone.

“So what if he’s not like Javy? He’s his own person and he’s not as bad as you think,” you say desperately, trying to convince your dad that his snap judgement on Mateo was wrong.

“He’s been making Javy’s life miserable since he got here. You want to date someone like that?” Jake fires back.

“I’m not saying Mateo was right to treat him like that but he’s trying now. We’ve spoken about it and he’s genuinely putting in more of an effort to get to know Javy,” you argue, refusing to break the staring contest you’d initiated with your dad.

“He’s not a good kid, y/n. The sooner you realise that the better,” Jake says.

“Jake…” Bradley warns from the kitchen doorway, having been a silent observer up until now.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t know him the way I do,” you say, angry tears welling in your eyes.

“You think you know him. But he’ll just break your heart,” Jake says as you scoff turning on your heels and storming out of the house, ignoring the calls of Jake and Bradley for you to come back as you jump into your car, instantly driving in the direction of Mateo’s house.

“Well, that was nicely handled,” Bradley comments, folding his arms across his chest as Jake rounds on Bradley, his face set.

“I notice you didn’t try to help,” Jake observes, his anger now directed at Bradley.

“It wasn’t my place. Plus, I don’t exactly have any problem with them dating,” Bradley shrugs, making Jake falter for a second.

“You what? How can you not have a problem? Mateo is bad news,” Jake argues as Bradley moves away from the doorway, crossing to Jake.

“You’re making a very quick judgement. y/n is right, we don’t know Mateo well enough to comment on whether or not he’s a good boyfriend for her,” Bradley says, watching as Jake rolls his eyes.

“I think I’ve got a pretty good grasp on what he’s like and he’ll treat y/n like shit if I don’t put a stop to it,” Jake says, exasperated that no one understands his point.

“Jake. You’ve raised y/n to make good decisions in life. She’s not the type of girl to just jump headfirst into situations she doesn’t understand. If things don’t work out then that’s the way it goes. We shouldn’t be judging Mateo after what he’s been through,” Bradley tries, keeping his voice level not to provoke Jake any more than he was already.

“He’s got an attitude problem and he’s been causing nothing but trouble since he got here. I don’t want that kind of influence around my daughter,” Jake fires back.

“He hasn’t had an easy life, Jake. Kids can lash out when they feel like the world’s against them,” Bradley explains, folding his arms across his chest.

“That’s just an excuse they use to deflect their actions. We all know that it’s bullshit,” Jake says angrily, making Bradley scoff slightly, shaking his head.

“I guess that makes me a bullshitter then,” Bradley mutters, making Jake stop in his tracks slightly.

“What do you mean?” Jake asks, faltering slightly at Bradley’s now dejected mood.

“I used to be like Mateo. When my mom died I turned into an asshole. I lashed out at everyone, Mav, my friends, and pretty much anyone who dared to be nice to me when my world was falling apart. It took me a while to work through that,” Bradley explains, his stomach twisting as he remembers the person he used to be when his grief consumed him.

“That’s different,” Jake splutters, suddenly on the defensive after Bradley’s words.

“It’s not, Jake. Mateo’s not had it easy and if y/n sees the person he can be and is supporting and loving him, then maybe he’s not that bad,” Bradley states, finally fed up with Jake’s attitude and leaving the room, making his way up to their room for some privacy with Moose in tow.

Meanwhile, you had just parked outside Javy’s house, pounding on the door as tears welled in your eyes.

“y/n/n, are you okay?” Javy asks as he opens the door, confusion and worry written across his face as you shake your head slightly.

“Can I see Mateo, please?” you ask quietly, folding your arms across your chest as Javy nods, ushering you inside.

“He’s in his room, you can just head straight up,” Javy says softly, allowing you to go up the stairs in search of Mateo while he stays in the hallway, wondering if his text had caused the upset.

While Javy tried to get to the bottom of what happened, you found yourself outside Mateo’s bedroom door, tentatively knocking on the door and waiting to be allowed in.

“What do you want, Dad?” you hear Mateo call through the door, clearly not moving to open the door.

“It’s me,” you say timidly, feeling tears roll down your cheeks as you talk. In a flash, the door was open and Mateo was looking at you worriedly.

“What’s wrong, Darling?” Mateo says, his question staying unanswered as you immediately bury yourself in his chest, winding your arms around his middle and hugging him tightly. Taking your cue, Mateo ushers you into the room, guiding you into his room and closing the door behind him before sitting you on his bed. Mateo holds you close as you cry, clinging to him like he was your last lifeline. Mateo didn’t once pry, letting you cry yourself out, his hand running up and down your back soothingly until you calmed down.

“I’m sorry,” you sniffle, pulling away from Mateo to wipe at your eyes, embarrassed that he’d seen you in such a state so soon into your relationship.

“Don’t be sorry. What’s gotten you like this?” Mateo questions softly, lifting his hand to gently wipe at your tears, his calloused thumbs gentle against your skin as you subconsciously lean into his touch.

“My dad…” you mutter, trying to find the right words to explain the situation. Clearly understanding your inner torment, Mateo remained quiet and patient, letting you find your words. Mateo listened patiently as you explained everything, his soft gaze never leaving yours. When you finish explaining, Mateo shifts to hold you close once more

“He doesn’t get a say in us, Darling. He can hate me as much as he wants, but that isn’t going to change how much you mean to me,” Mateo says reassuringly, resting his chin atop your head as you tuck yourself against him.

“I just don’t understand. I’m not doing anything wrong,” you mumble tearily, still struggling to understand your dad’s reaction.

“You’re right. You’re not doing anything wrong. He’s the one with the issues here,” Mateo mutters, a slight edge to his tone, his anger at your dad evident.

“It’s just that his opinion of me really matters. I don’t want him to hate me.” Your teary words broke Mateo’s heart as he held you close, wishing there was something he could do to ease your upset.

“I don’t think he hates you. And if he did, I’d talk to him and make sure he realises what a mistake he’s making,” Mateo promises quietly, wanting you to know you’d be supported no matter what. Before you could respond, your phone buzzed, making you pull it out of your pocket and study the text.

“Is that your old man?” Mateo asks softly as you shake your head.

“It’s Bradley. He’s asking if I want him to pack a bag to stay here a few nights,” you mumble, glancing up at Mateo who nods quickly.

“Say yes, you’re staying for as long as you want,” Mateo says instantly.

“What if Javy says no?” you ask, worried that Javy wouldn’t let you stay.

“He’ll say yes. He loves you,” Mateo assures, pressing a soft kiss on the top of your head as you text Bradley, asking if he could pack you a bag. As you hit send on the message, Mateo carefully detangles himself from your arms, making your eyebrows furrow as he stands up.

“Where are you going?” you ask.

“I’m gonna ask my dad if you can stay round. Stay here, I’ll grab you some snacks too,” Mateo says, pressing another kiss to the top of your head before exiting his room, closing the door behind him, and leaving you alone.

While Mateo was gone, you scrolled mindlessly through social media, watching random videos of people attempting to be funny in an attempt to take your mind off what had happened between you and your dad.

“My old man says you can stay for as long as you want, but we can’t sleep in the same room,” Mateo says as he enters the room, holding out a bar of your favourite chocolate towards you as you take it with a soft smile.

“Somehow I’m not surprised,” you joke as Mateo sits down alongside you once more.

You and Mateo spend some time together, cuddled up as you and Mateo watch some mindless tv show on his laptop before you hear Javy calling.

“y/n, Bradley’s here!” At Javy’s call, you push yourself off the bed, make your way downstairs and find Bradley at the door with a bag in one hand and Moose’s leash in the other.

“Hey, buddy.” You pet Moose, smiling as he licks your hand before Bradley hands you your bag.

“Moose and I are going to stay with Phoenix for a couple of days, if you need me, text me,” Bradley says as you place the bag down on the floor.

“Is everything okay?” you ask worriedly, concerned that you’d caused something between your dad and Bradley.

“Your dad and I just need a little time apart. I’m trusting you’ll be good for Javy?” Bradley says, looking at you pointedly.

“I’m always good,” you reply.

“And separate rooms for you and Mateo, okay?” Bradley warns, pointing at you and Mateo as you both roll your eyes.

“Yeah, yeah, we got it,” you grumble, feeling your face growing hot at Bradley’s words.

“I’ll see you later,” Bradley says, embracing you before leaving, closing the door behind him.

“Bradley’s right, you’re in separate rooms,” Javy says, making you both jump as you turn to face him.

“We know,” Mateo says with a slight scoff.

“Just, go and hang out, do whatever couples these days do,” Javy says with a dismissive wave, allowing the two of you to head upstairs and spend more time together.

By the end of the day, you were feeling slightly better about what had happened between you and your dad. Mateo had dedicated his time to cheering you up, a far cry from the boy who lived to irritate you. By the time night came, you were just about ready to crash so you headed into your room, only stopping when Javy approached you.

“Hey, Kit-Kat, you doing okay?” Javy asks softly, watching as you nod.

“I’m doing better,” you reply, smiling softly.

“I know I’m the reason your dad found out and I’m sorry. I never thought he’d react badly to it.”

“Uncle Javy, it’s not your fault. I’m not upset with you or anything,” you say, not wanting Javy to blame himself for what had happened.

“I wouldn’t blame you if you were upset with me,” Javy says with a light scoff.

“But I’m not. Dad shouldn’t have reacted the way that he did. If he had just listened to me in the first place everything would be okay,” you say with a shrug.

“I’ll try to make it right. Jake has a tendency to jump to the worst conclusions sometimes. Hopefully, I can make him see sense,” Javy promises quietly, bringing you into a hug.

“I love you, Uncle Javy,” you mumble, winding your arms around him as you hug him back.

“I love you too. Now, you should head to bed, you’ve got school in the morning,” Javy says, releasing you from the embrace and gesturing towards the bedroom door.

“Okay,” you grumble lightly, making your way towards the bedroom door.

“Oh, and y/n, if you’re going to sneak into Mateo’s room or if he’s going to sneak into yours, please be quiet. And don’t make me a grandpa at this age, I’m too young and beautiful,” Javy then says as you scoff lightly, rolling your eyes as you open the door.

“Good night, Javy,” you say with a laugh, disappearing into your room for the night.

Over the next week, you continued to stay with Javy, enjoying the freedom you had, not having to hide your relationship with Mateo, even if Javy did joke about your public displays of affection within the house. You had kept regular contact with Bradley who was still staying at Natasha’s house. He had explained what had happened after you had left the house and you couldn’t help but feel guilty that your relationship with Mateo had caused such a divide between your dad’s.

One day, while you and Mateo were at school, Bradley and Javy decided it was time to meet and talk with Jake about his behaviour to not only settle the tension between Jake and Bradley but also to help quell the tension between you and your dad.

“Jake,” Bradley greeted curtly as he and Javy sat with Jake at the bar of the Hard Deck, all three men locked in an awkward stare-off as they sat down.

“Bradley, Javy,” Jake responded, acknowledging both men.

“How have you been?” Javy asked quietly, wondering how his best friend was doing.

“Well my kid and my husband have both moved out,” Jake says gruffly, taking a swig of the beer Penny handed to him.

“Jake, it’s not like we wanted to do it. You were out of line,” Bradley starts, his voice soft as Jake rolls his eyes.

“I was out of line for protecting my daughter?” Jake asks incredulously.

“Look, I get it man. Mateo isn’t a model citizen. But he really cares for y/n. I’ve never seen him care so much about someone the way he cares about her,” Javy says, glancing over at Jake.

“I’ve seen his attitude towards everyone though. What if he treats y/n the same way?” Jake asks worriedly, glancing between Javy and Bradley.

“Maybe you should have a conversation with Mateo, get to know him better,” Bradley suggests softly, reaching out to take Jake’s hand.

“I know,” Jake mutters as Bradley squeezes his hand.

“Trust me, Jake, I know how much of a shock this all is. I never expected Mateo to get with y/n with how much they were at each other’s throats but I guess that’s kind of like you and Bradley in a way,” Javy says, chuckling lightly when both men turned to jokingly glare at him.

“He’s not wrong,” Bradley then muses, glancing over at Jake who nods slightly.

“I guess,” Jake admits with a small joking shrug as Javy and Bradley roll their eyes.

“I’m never wrong Jakey, you know that,” Javy teases, slapping Jake on the shoulder as Jake lets out a low chuckle.

“Look, Javy, I’m sorry for the shit I’ve been saying about Mateo. I’m just-”

“You just want to protect y/n. I get it. Just give my kid a chance, okay?” Javy says softly, not wanting to hold any bad blood towards his best friend.

“I will,” Jake promises quietly, shifting to sling an arm around his friend, the two briefly embracing in a side hug.

“I’m going to let you guys talk. I’ll be over on that table if you need me,” Javy says softly, releasing Jake from the embrace and moving to another table with his beer, leaving Jake and Bradley alone.

“Jake-”

“No, I should talk first. Bradley, I’m so sorry for the way I spoke to you the other day. I never wanted to make you feel like that. I was just all over the place and I know it’s no excuse but I lashed out at you and that’s not okay. I don’t expect your forgiveness, I just need you to know I’m sorry.” Jake says apologetically, turning to look at Bradley, his eyes displaying every emotion he is feeling in the moment.

“Jake, it’s okay. I really appreciate your apology. It did really hurt when you first said that. It made me feel like maybe I wasn’t worthy of love because of the way I acted when I was younger but the fact you’ve apologised has spoken volumes,” Bradley says softly.

“I never meant to make you feel like that. You know I love you so much, right?” Jake says quietly, holding Bradley’s hand and squeezing it softly to emphasise his point.

“I know you do. I love you too,” Bradley replies softly.

“How can I make things right with y/n?” Jake then asks, watching as Bradley sighs softly.

“Do what we suggested. Talk to Mateo. Get to know him and show y/n that you care,” Bradley suggests as Jake nods.

“I will. I’ll text y/n and tell her I’d like to speak to her and Mateo when they’ve finished school,” Jake says, already beginning to pull out his phone and typing out the message. The second he hit send, he shoved his phone in his pocket almost as if he was afraid of your response before turning his attention back to Bradley.

‘y/n, could you and Mateo come home after school? I’d like to speak to you both,’

“What’s that?” Mateo questions as he sits down at the desk next to you, noticing you staring at your phone.

“Dad wants us to go to mine after school. Says he wants to talk,” you mutter, showing the message to Mateo as his eyebrows furrow, studying the message closely.

“If he tries breaking us up I swear…”

“We should go and talk to him. It could be good,” you say, pulling your phone back to you, typing a response and hitting send before Mateo had a chance to object.

The rest of the school day felt like a blur. You couldn’t focus on anything other than the looming thought of what might be awaiting you at home. When your last class ended, you and Mateo made your way to your car, the tension so thick a knife would shatter if it attempted to cut it. You were both anxious for what was to come, your mind swarming with thoughts, every worst-case scenario worming its way into your brain and consuming your every thought the entire drive home.

When you made it home, you entered the house carefully, your eyes widening when Moose came bounding up to you excitedly, his tail swishing wildly.

“Hey, Moose!” you greet your dog happily, crouching down to his level as you pet him.

“You’re home. Jake’s in the living room.” You look up at the sound of Bradley’s voice as he comes down the stairs, smiling at you both. Taking Bradley’s soft smile as a good sign, you make your way into the living room with Mateo by your side, the two of you instinctively holding hands as you enter the room and greet Jake who gestures for you to sit on the sofa which you both do without complaint.

“I owe you both a mature conversation, so that’s what I want to have,” Jake starts, glancing between you and Mateo.

“What prompted this?” you ask curiously, wondering if your dad was hiding any ulterior motives.

“My best friend and my husband can be pretty persuasive when they try. I was an asshole to try and tell you who you could or couldn’t date. You’re seventeen, and I should trust you to make your own decisions,” Jake then says.

“You got one thing right,” Mateo mutters lowly, being silenced by you gently elbowing his side.

“I appreciate this, Dad,” you say quietly, smiling softly at your dad.

“y/n, I’m sorry for the way I reacted. I jumped the gun and overstepped when I shouldn’t have. I don’t expect you to forgive me but I just needed to apologise to you,” Jake says, his gaze flicking to the floor, almost as if he feared a negative reaction from you. After a split second of silence, you got up from the sofa, releasing Mateo’s hand, crossing to your dad and crouching down to envelop him in a hug.

“I forgive you, Dad,” you say quietly as Jake shifts to hug you back.

“So… can I go now or am I just going to sit here awkwardly?” Mateo’s question made you and Jake pull away, shooting him a look.

“Really?” you ask as you straighten up, folding your arms across your chest.

“I mean this conversation probably could’ve happened without me. Do I need to be here?” Mateo questions, leaning back against the cushions of the sofa.

“Yes. I need to talk to you, alone,” Jake says pointedly, getting up from the armchair and gesturing for Mateo to follow him into the kitchen, leaving you in the living room as Bradley enters with Moose.

“If you’re going to tell me not to get your daughter pregnant or something I’ve had that talk from my old man I don’t need to hear it from you too,” Mateo says the moment Jake closes the kitchen door, leaning against the counter with folded arms.

“You’re not going to make it easy for us to get along, are you?” Jake points out.

“I’ve heard that one before,” Mateo grins, clearly unbothered by Jake’s words.

“Look, I’m not trying to be your friend or anything like that. I just want to make sure I can trust you’re going to look after y/n,” Jake responds with a sigh.

“She doesn’t need me to look after her, she can do that pretty well herself,” Mateo replies, making Jake reach up to rub at his forehead.

“You know what I mean. I want to be able to trust that you won’t break her heart,” Jake reiterates, dropping his hand back to his side as he talks, glancing over at Mateo who just shrugs.

“I don’t plan on it,” Mateo says, allowing the smallest amount of vulnerability to slip into his voice as he speaks, finally getting Jake to relax.

“That’s all I needed to hear. Now you can go back to y/n. Just don’t make me a grandfather yet, I’m not old enough for that,” Jake says, letting Mateo go as he rolls his eyes, pushing away from the counter and making his way back into the living room.

The moment you see both Mateo and Jake entering the living room, you jump to your feet, anxiously awaiting someone to say something.

“Well, I’m not banned from seeing you ever again,” Mateo shrugs with a boyish grin, making you smile, quickly embracing Mateo as Jake clears his throat.

“I guess I’m going to have to get used to this, huh?” Jake mutters to Bradley who nods.

“She’s been putting up with us this long, I think this is long overdue payback,” Bradley replies, shooting Jake a glance as he nods slightly.

“Yeah, I guess so,” Jake says softly, watching you and Mateo interact and embrace.

“I should head back to my place. Are you coming?” Mateo asks quietly, watching you as you glance over your shoulder at Jake and Bradley before turning back to face him.

“I think I’m gonna stay here. I’ll come by after school tomorrow to pick up my stuff,” you reply quietly, pressing a soft kiss to Mateo’s lips, ignoring Jake’s soft tut.

“I’ll see you around, Darling,” Mateo says softly backing away with a joking salute sent towards Jake and Bradley before he makes his way out of the house.

“Thank you for giving him a chance, Dad,” you say gratefully, turning to look at your dad with a smile.

“I’m still not his biggest fan, but if he makes you happy then I can’t be the bad guy who bans you from dating him. It’s not like it would stop you either,” Jake admits with a chuckle as you rush to hug him.

“I love you, Dad,” you mumble, throwing your arms around your dad, a gesture he quickly reciprocated.

“I love you too. It’s good to have you home,” Jake replies softly, squeezing you closer before releasing you from the embrace.

“I’m going to head upstairs to do my homework,” you say as both Jake and Bradley nod, watching as you head upstairs with Moose following loyally behind you.

“You see? She’s going to be okay,” Bradley says softly, pulling Jake in his arms and smiling gently at him.

“I still think that kid has an attitude problem,” Jake jokes with a light laugh, making Bradley roll his eyes.

“I’m sure he’ll grow on you. It took you a while to grow on me,” Bradley muses softly, pulling Jake into a kiss.

“You’re lucky I love you,” Jake says with a grin as he pulls away.

“Aren’t you lucky I love you too then?” Bradley retorts with a soft chuckle, both men smiling.

You knew finding a partner that your dad would approve of wouldn’t be the easiest task in the world, especially when you started dating someone who had made an impression the way Mateo had. But you were just glad your dad was willing to give Mateo a chance. It gave you hope that in the future, your dad and your boyfriend might one day get along.

And the world would never be ready for that day.

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In the time you’d spent with the pack, you’d developed a crush on Isaac Lahey, the only other Beta werewolf within the pack who wasn’t you or Liam. He was soft, kind, and gentle, but had the ability to fight back viciously when he needed to in order to protect his pack or his Alpha.

After almost a year of learning to be a werewolf and keep control on full moons or when your emotions got too much, you were on the brink of starting your senior year, bringing about the stress of college and life.

“How much longer until Scott and Stiles get here?” you ask after checking your phone for what feels like the millionth time as Isaac shrugs.

“They said they wouldn’t be much longer,” Isaac comments, glancing over your shoulder to see the time displayed across your phone screen, the close proximity never failing to make your cheeks heat up. You knew both Scott and Stiles had volunteered to keep an eye on Liam after his last full-moon incident until the time you’d all agreed to meet up for senior scribe.

“If they’re late after all the demanding Stiles did, I swear,” you joke, laughing along with Isaac, who shakes his head.

“They’ll be here,” Isaac assures as your phone buzzes in your hand, lighting up with a text.

“Stiles is on his way. Scott’s gone to get Kira,” you relay to Isaac, who nods.

“See, I told you they wouldn’t be long,” Isaac responds as the two of you glance around as the heavens open and rain begins to pour, both of you silently grateful you’d already taken shelter under a roof. The two of you patiently wait, being joined by Malia and Lydia as you wait, seniors begin to rush past through the rain to get to the library, everyone excitedly chatting to each other about what’s about to happen.

“I’m here!” Stiles calls out, rushing over to you all.

“Everything okay? Is Liam okay?” you ask, your focus instantly on Stiles as he nods.

“He’s good,” Stiles replies.

“He didn’t lose control or anything?” you continue to ask.

“Nope,” Stiles responds, clearly trying to move on from the conversation and focus on what you’re actually at the school for, and you take the hint.

“Should we head in?” Isaac asks, gesturing with his head towards the library.

“I’m gonna wait for Scott, you guys go ahead though,” Stiles says with a dismissive wave, making you all nod as you turn to head into the library with Lydia and Isaac while Malia stays behind with Stiles. The three of you mingle in the library, chatting with each other and other classmates, eagerly anticipating the years-long tradition you are about to partake in.

Before you could all get prepared to join the line, Stiles came running up to the three of you, panic written all across his face.

“Scott’s in danger.”

The five of you, plus Liam, who had run all the way from the hospital to inform you of the danger Scott could be in, run out into the rain with you, Isaac, Liam, and Malia sniffing at the air, hoping to catch a scent.

“Anything?” Lydia asks, looking around desperately.

“The rain’s too heavy. I can’t catch a scent,” you say apologetically, everyone suddenly tensing up when they hear a roar coming from across the campus before rushing off in the direction of the roar, filled with the urge to protect your Alpha.

When you make it to where Scott and Kira are, you bare your fangs, you, Isaac, Malia, and Liam snarling at the large werewolf with blue glowing claws that dug into Scott. You longed to step in, to protect your Alpha with everything you had, but the moment you saw Scott begin to fight back, you knew you didn’t need to. You watched as Scott fought back, sending the mysterious werewolf running off with his tail between his legs.

And that’s when you met Theo Raeken for the first time.

All eyes were on the mysterious newcomer who had supposedly gotten there before you and the rest of the pack to help Scott. You watched as Scott studied him carefully before muttering a quiet.

“Theo? Theo Raeken?” Scott asked, shocked at the arrival of someone he hadn’t seen since the fourth grade.

“Who?” The question slips past your lips without even thinking, grunting slightly when Lydia’s elbow suddenly digs into your side.

“You moved away. What are you doing back here?” Stiles asks, immediately suspicious of Theo’s sudden return.

“I heard rumours that there was a True Alpha in Beacon Hills and I had to come and find him,” Theo says with a smile, glancing at Scott as everyone’s eyebrows furrow.

“You’re a werewolf? Since when?” Stiles asks, his question falling short as no one pays him any attention, too focused on Theo.

“We can worry about this all tomorrow, right? We’re here for a reason,” Lydia says, exasperated by the questioning that was happening.

“You’re right,” Malia agrees with a nod, already turning on her heels and heading in the direction of the library.

“Okay, fine, we’ll pick this up later,” Scott says with a slightly apologetic look towards Theo, who simply shrugs with a friendly smile. You all make your way to the library, thankful that the rain is beginning to ease off slightly. As everyone heads into the library, you quickly catch Liam by the shoulders, turning him away from the library as he groans.

“What are you doing that’s such a big secret?” he questions, making you roll your eyes at his question. Ever since he’d found out that you and the others were going to the school in the middle of the night for something, he wouldn’t stop pestering you about it, begging to be told what it was you were doing.

“Just wait until you’re a senior. Then you’ll find out,” you grin, reaching out to ruffle at Liam’s hair, laughing as he swats your hand away with a glare. With one last joking smile, you head into the library, leaving Theo and Liam to their own devices.

The library was bursting with excited chatter, groups of friends huddled together as they talked about their futures and the importance of tonight. You stuck with the pack, joining the line of excited seniors.

“Have you thought of any colleges yet?” Isaac asks casually, leaning against one of the shelves as you wait for the line to move, his eyebrow quirking as you purse your lips, thinking carefully.

“Nothing solid yet. I’m still worried about leaving Liam behind,” you admit quietly, only allowing your gaze to meet Isaac’s for a brief second before looking back down to the floor.

“You know Liam will be okay, right? You’re allowed to want to do things for yourself,” Isaac says, his voice softening as he straightens up, watching you carefully.

“I’d just feel guilty leaving him behind. What if he needs me?” you ask, worst-case scenarios whirling their way around your head, gleefully dragging you into overthinking.

“Then he can call you. Liam’s a tough kid, he can handle himself, you know?” Isaac says as you nod slightly.

“I know it’s just… I always promised myself I’d be there for him if he needed me. I feel like I’m abandoning him,” you mumble, your gaze dropping to the floor in embarrassment.

“You’re not abandoning him. We’re growing up, and that means moving away to do new things. Liam will understand, and you’ll still be there if he needs you,” Isaac says softly, placing a gentle hand on your shoulder and squeezing softly.

“I know,” you mutter, relaxing at Isaac’s gentle touch, thankful for the comfort he was providing you with without even being aware of it.

“I can’t imagine it would be easy for you. We all know how much you care about Liam. But you deserve to live your life for you and not anyone else,” Isaac says, his voice never wavering in softness as he talks. After losing his brother, Isaac had regrets about not spending time with him as much as he should’ve, but he knew that with how much you loved and cared for Liam, Liam would never feel like he wasted a second spending time with you.

“You’re right,” you admit quietly, both you and Isaac smiling shyly at each other.

“I usually am,” Isaac jokes, releasing his grip on your shoulder as you roll your eyes, shoving his shoulder playfully, unaware of your friends watching with raised eyebrows.

“Scott, you have been telling Isaac to make a move, right?” Stiles whispers into his best friend’s ear.

“I’ve tried. He’s pretty insistent that she doesn’t like him like that,” Scott replies quietly, making Stiles scoff quietly.

“Is he talking to her with his eyes closed or something? She’s head over heels for him,” Stiles says, gesturing towards you and Isaac as you chatted, both of you smiling widely.

“Trust me, she’s just as oblivious. I’ve tried telling her Isaac likes her, but she just won’t see it,” Lydia shrugs, remembering the times she’d tried talking to you about it.

“I’m gonna lock them in a room together until they figure it out,” Stiles mutters, quickly regretting his words when Scott whirls around to glare at him.

“No, you’re not. y/n would kill you because if Isaac had a panic attack and hurt himself, she’d never let it go,” Scott says firmly, remembering how Isaac had reacted when he and Allison had been locked in a room by Ethan and Aiden. Since then, Isaac had opened up a little bit more about his past with his dad and how his claustrophobia often resulted in panic attacks when he felt trapped.

“Okay, then what else can we do?” Stiles shrugs, glancing at everyone.

“Maybe just let them figure it out for themselves?” Malia suggests with a shrug, turning around as the line starts to move.

The line continues to move steadily, your group of friends inching closer and closer to the front. When your friends reached the shelf, Stiles was handed the marker, and you all watched as he scribbled his initials onto the library shelf alongside all the other initials of your classmates. The marker is then passed to Lydia, then Malia, and then Scott, who wrote down two sets of initials before handing the marker to Isaac.

As you watched Isaac approach the shelf, you noticed how he stiffened at the sight of the extra initials Scott wrote. You heard his heartbeat pounding as his hand hovered over the shelf, his gaze fixed on the ‘A.A.’ It was at that moment that you realised that you could never compare to Allison. Whoever Allison was, she had stolen the hearts of both Scott and Isaac, and there was no way you’d ever be able to compare to her in Isaac’s eyes, and you knew it. You always knew having a crush on a friend was risky for your heart. To get attached to someone and to love them wholly while knowing they most likely never saw you as anything more than a friend. But this felt worse. To know that someone had been so loved by Isaac before that no one could possibly replace her in his heart.

“y/n? It’s your turn.” You shake yourself from your thoughts, noticing Isaac holding the marker out towards you expectantly, all eyes on you.

“Sorry,” you apologise, taking the marker and approaching the shelf. Without thinking, you hastily scribbled your initials on the shelf and handed the marker to the person behind you before crossing to your friends.

“Are you okay?” Scott asks, noticing your increased heartbeat.

“Yeah, fine. I just need some air,” you say quickly, turning away from the pack as you feel tears burning in your eyes. You knew Scott, Malia, and Isaac would be able to pick up your heartbeat pounding, but you weren’t in the mood to be grilled for answers. Instead, you rush out of the library, almost running straight into Theo and Liam, who were waiting just outside.

“y/n? I thought you guys were going to be in there longer?” Liam asks innocently as he and Theo watch you.

“What are you guys still doing out here?” You try dodging the question, laughing nervously.

“I need a ride home,” Liam says with a shrug.

“I just thought I’d hang out and get to know my new classmates,” Theo responds, folding his arms across his chest with a smile.

“Shit, of course, I’ll take you home now Liam. I’m not feeling up to staying here much longer,” you say, plastering a smile on your face as you usher Liam in the direction of your car.

“But I wanted to find out what you guys were doing,” Liam grumbles.

“You’ll find out when you’re a senior, buddy,” you say, trying not to let irritation slip into your tone as you continue to guide him towards the car, Theo hot on your heels.

“Hey, sorry I didn’t catch your name. Is everything okay?” Theo asks, approaching as Liam gets in your car, making you turn to face him.

“Hi, sorry, I’m y/n, and I’m fine,” you say dismissively, moving to turn towards your car again before Theo gently takes your arm, turning you to face him.

“Look, forgive me for using my werewolf abilities, but you reek of sadness right now. I just want to make sure everything’s okay. I mean it’s still a full moon, we don't need anyone running off with a thirst for human blood,” Theo jokes, smiling slightly when you let out a light scoff.

“I appreciate the concern. But I’ll be okay,” you say softly.

“Here, give me your phone. I’ll give you my number, and if you need someone to talk to, I’ll be there,” Theo says, releasing his soft grip on your shoulder and holding his hand out.

“That’s very forward, mister.” You find yourself joking, pulling your phone out of your pocket and handing it to Theo, patiently waiting as he inputs his number before handing it back to you with a smile.

“Don’t be afraid to text me if you want to talk. Deal?” Theo says as you take the phone from his hand.

“Deal,” you agree, bidding Theo goodbye before climbing into the car, where Liam was sitting with his headphones in.

“You’re done flirting then?” Liam’s quiet voice made your eyes widen as you turned to look at him.

“We were not flirting,” you splutter, turning the key in the ignition as Liam nods, clearly unconvinced.

“That’s why he gave you his phone number, huh?” Liam muses as you pull out of your parking spot.

“He was just being friendly,” you insist, focusing on the road in front of you.

“A bit too friendly if you ask me,” Liam mutters, his gaze fixed on the scenery passing by.

“He’s come back to Beacon Hills after a long time, it’ll do him some good to have some friends,” you explain further, trying to justify what happened.

“I heard what you guys were talking about. Theo’s right, you’re really sad. Is everything okay?” Liam asks, glancing over at you.

“I’m fine, buddy. You don’t need to worry about me,” you say assuringly, not wanting Liam to worry about your silly unrequited crush.

“You always say I can talk to you about anything. You know you can always talk to me, too, right?” Liam says softly. You could hear the worry in his tone and smell the anxiety surrounding him, making you sigh lightly.

“I know I can. But part of my job is to protect you and-”

“I’m not five years old anymore. I’m a werewolf now. You don’t need to protect me from anything,” Liam insists.

“I know. I know. I’ve just been so used to the idea of keeping you protected from my shit. I just never wanted you to have to worry about me,” you say softly, tightening your grip on the wheel slightly.

“I always worry about you,” Liam says softly, making you briefly glance over at him before focusing back on the road.

“I didn’t know you felt like that,” you mutter, your heart panging in sorrow.

“I mean, you’ve been looking out for me my whole life. You demanded that Scott turn you into a werewolf when you found out what happened to me. You’ve been protecting me and helping me without complaint. You do so much for me and the rest of the pack, and you expect nothing back. You always listen to my problems. You deserve to have someone to listen to yours,” Liam says, a firm yet gentle tone to his voice.

“Just don’t fall in love, Liam. It can hurt,” you mutter.

“Did someone reject you? Who?” Liam demands, looking over at you as you shake your head weakly with a smile.

“No, no one rejected me. It was just a silly crush. I never should’ve even hoped they liked me back,” you shrug, finally pulling into the driveway of your house and climbing out of the car with Liam mirroring your actions.

“But did you talk to them? Do you know for sure?” Liam questions as you approach the front door.

“I don’t need to talk to them. Sometimes you can just tell, and that’s okay. Some things just aren’t meant to be,” you shrug, unlocking the front door and letting Liam in before entering behind him.

“Well, it’s their loss. You’re one of the best people I know. They’re just too blind to see a good thing even when it’s right in front of them,” Liam says, kicking his shoes off at the door.

“You have to say that, you’re my brother,” you laugh, taking your shoes off and placing them on the shoe rack.

“I don’t have to say anything. I’m saying it because it’s true,” Liam says, smiling over you as you soften.

“How did you turn out so sweet?” you ask gently, moving to bring him into a hug.

“I guess I had a few good influences,” Liam jokes, making you laugh as you release him from the embrace.

“You should head to bed. It’s your first day of being a sophomore tomorrow,” you say, nudging Liam in the direction of his bedroom.

“You should do the same. It’s your first day of senior year,” Liam states, looking pointedly at you as you roll your eyes.

“Alright, smart-ass. I’ll see you in the morning,” you bid Liam goodnight before making your way to your room. You get ready for bed and climb into bed, staring up at the dark ceiling, trying to find a way to fall asleep. Every time you tried closing your eyes, you were reminded of the way that Isaac had inspected Allison’s initials, forcing your eyes open again so you didn’t have to relive the moment. After half an hour of failed attempts to fall asleep, you reach over for your phone, unlock it and find the newest contact that has been added.

‘Hey Theo, it’s y/n. I think I might take you up on that offer to talk.’

By the next day, you felt more confident going to school for your senior year. After you watched Liam meet up with Mason and head into the building, you glanced around the parking lot, catching a glimpse of Scott, Stiles, and Isaac climbing out of Stiles’ Jeep before beelining straight into the building, colliding with someone who quickly catches and steadies you.

“Whoa, careful.” You look up to lock eyes with Theo, who grins, with no malice in his eyes, as he releases the grip you don’t even realise he is still holding onto your shoulders.

“Sorry, Theo. I wasn’t paying attention,” you apologise as Theo shakes his head with a soft laugh, waving a hand dismissively.

“No harm done. You doing okay?” Theo asks, making you shrug.

“Just distracted, I guess,” you reply, both you and Theo making your way through the hallway to get to your lockers.

“Is this what we were talking about last night?” Theo asks softly.

“Yeah. It’s like I can’t stop thinking about it,” you admit quietly. You’d confessed to Theo the bare minimum about your situation, not disclosing the identity of your crush and what it was that prompted you to realise that they didn’t have any feelings for you. But Theo had been patient with you, listening carefully and offering advice where he could.

“Maybe all you need is a distraction?” Theo offers, both of you grabbing your books from your lockers.

“What would you suggest then?” you reply with a light laugh, slamming your locker door closed mere seconds before Theo places a piece of paper on top of the books you had in your hands with a grin.

“I’m gonna need a hand finding all these classes. Fancy being my tour guide?”

As you and Theo chatted, leaning up against the lockers, Scott, Stiles, and Isaac entered the building. When Isaac spotted you with Theo, his eyes narrowed.

“Why is y/n speaking to Theo?” He couldn’t help the question from slipping past his lips the moment he noticed what was happening.

“Maybe she’s just being friendly,” Scott shrugs, already moving to get to his locker while Stiles and Isaac stay put.

“I don’t trust him,” Isaac mutters, already wondering what Theo’s ulterior motive could be.

“I think that’s the first time we’ve agreed on anything,” Stiles muses, glancing over at Isaac as the two share a slight nod of understanding.

“I’ll take it,” Isaac mutters, following Scott to their lockers while keeping a careful eye on Theo’s proximity to you.

Throughout the day, Isaac carefully monitors you, noticing how you barely speak to anyone from the pack and spend the majority of your time with Theo. You only spoke to him or one of the others if they initiated a conversation with you, but even then, you kept it brief, clearly wishing to be left alone. While Isaac was opting to keep his cards close to his chest and figure out Theo’s motives before anything happened, Stiles was much more willing to lay his cards out on the table for the pack to see, and so summoned you all to the library to show off the information he had found.

“You think Theo’s lying because the signatures are different?” Scott questions, looking at the two forms signed by Theo’s dad that lay before him.

“I know he’s lying,” Stiles insists.

“Stiles, come on, no one’s signatures are going to be the exact same every time. If you asked someone to write their signature a bunch of times on a piece of paper, it wouldn’t look the same each time,” you argue, not seeing Stiles’ point.

“I’m telling you there’s something going on with him, and I’m going to get to the bottom of it,” Stiles insists as you roll your eyes, pushing your chair back and standing up.

“And on that note, I’m leaving. Good luck with all that, Stiles,” you say, gathering up your books and leaving the library, ignoring the calls of your friends as they beg for you to stay.

As you head out of the library, you walk down the hallway, finding Theo leaning against his locker, grinning as you approach.

“Where did you sneak off to?” he teases, pushing himself off the locker and joining you as you walk down the hallway.

“Library,” you shrug, smiling slightly as Theo bumps your shoulder lightly.

“You a secret bookworm or something?” Theo teases, chuckling as you shake your head.

“I wish, my grades would definitely benefit from that. I was just meeting with the others,” you say with a soft laugh. You knew that you wouldn’t be able to lie to Theo, so you figured you’d tell him the truth, but not the whole truth.

“Fair enough,” Theo grins as you continue to walk together, only separating when you make it to your classrooms.

By the end of the school day, you found yourself searching for Theo in the sea of students trying to make their way home for the day. It didn’t take you long to locate him, grinning as you approached.

“You waiting for me or something?” you tease, shoving your books into your bag at your locker as Theo quirks an eyebrow.

“My locker is right here too, you know,” he retorts, knocking on the door to his locker lightly with his knuckles.

“But maybe I stuck around to see you, too,” Theo then adds with a smile as you close your locker, slinging your bag over your shoulder.

“Are you trying to soften me up or something, Theo?” you joke, the two of you then making your way out of the school building. It doesn’t take long for Liam to track you down, bounding up alongside you with a smile and Mason at his side.

“Hey, Liam, you ready to go home?” you ask, glancing between your brother and his friend.

“Yeah,” Liam says with a nod, bidding Mason goodbye and heading in the direction of your car as you mingle behind with Theo.

“I’ll see you around. If you need me, text me,” Theo says with a smile as you nod slightly with a shy smile of your own before turning and heading to your car, where Liam was waiting impatiently, jiggling the door handle as if it would unlock the door by itself.

“Can you not potentially damage my car?” you scold jokingly, unlocking your car so Liam can get in.

“Am I going to have to wait for you to flirt with Theo every time I want to go home now?” Liam grumbles, shoving his bag on the back seat before settling into the passenger seat while you get behind the wheel.

“You could always take the bus or catch a ride home with Mason. No one’s forcing you to get in my car,” you say, glancing at Liam out of the corner of your eye as he rolls his eyes, unintimidated by your joking threat.

“You’d never make me take the bus,” Liam says, calling your bluff almost instantly.

“True, but I’m not above making you Mason’s problem instead,” you joke as Liam scoffs lightly.

“Maybe, but I know you love me,” Liam says, glancing over at you with a grin.

“Unfortunately, I do,” you tease, laughing as you pull out of your parking spot.

“And you know that Mom and Dad would kill you if you left me behind,” Liam then adds with a chuckle.

“That too,” you confirm, smiling as you focus on the road. 

The journey back to your house was uneventful, and once you made it home, Liam disappeared into his room to do his homework, and you went to your room with the intention to do the same. Only you ended up spending most of the time texting Theo, seeking comfort in how he listened and offered advice. You’d barely known Theo for the best part of a day, yet you felt like you’d known him forever. You had no idea if it was something that came with being a werewolf and the desire to find a pack, or if it was just Theo’s alluring charm, but you felt yourself wanting to be around him more.

You talked with Theo until he told you he was about to head out somewhere, and he’d have no service. Taking that as your cue to actually make a start on your homework As you work diligently on your assignments, you hear the front door open and shut, making you sit up slightly when you don’t hear the jangling of house keys, signalling to you that someone had left the house instead of coming home. Knowing Liam was the only other person in the house, you instantly beelined for Liam’s room, knocking on the door and furrowing your eyebrows when you got no response. You opened the door enough to stick your head in, quickly realising that Liam had left the house, making you pull your phone out of your pocket and text him.

‘Where did you disappear off to?’

“Guys, she just texted me, she knows I’m gone,” Liam says, leaning forward from the backseat of Stiles’ Jeep, holding the phone in front of him so Isaac and Stiles could see the text.

“I mean, she is a werewolf too. She definitely heard you leaving. Just lie to her, man,” Stiles says, returning his focus to the road.

“And say what? If I can’t tell her you guys have dragged me out of the house to go and stalk Theo, then what am I supposed to say?” Liam questions wildly, panic preventing him from having a rational thought. In response, Isaac takes Liam’s phone, types out a response, and hits send before waiting for your response.

“There, she thinks you’re at Mason’s, now text him and tell him to cover for you,” Isaac says, handing the phone back to Liam when he sees your response. Nodding quickly, Liam types out a message to Mason, begging him to cover for him if you contacted him.

“The sooner we find out what this guy is hiding the sooner we can get y/n away from him,” Isaac mutters, settling back even further in the seat, folding his arms across his chest and closing his eyes, willing for time to go faster so he can figure out what it was that was going on with Theo so he could get you away from him.

‘I went to Mason’s, I’ll be back later.’

“Could’ve said bye,” you mutter with a soft laugh as you close your phone, returning to your room to finish your homework. You went about your evening, oblivious to your brother’s activities with Stiles and Isaac. You were unaware of them tracking down Theo, trying to catch him in the act of doing something treacherous, but instead found him paying tribute to his sister.

Defeated by the lack of evidence and after being caught by both Scott and Theo, the trio called it a night and headed home, both Stiles and Isaac particularly dejected at the failure of their plan.

‘Has your brother got a tendency to trail along with your friends to follow people?’

Theo’s text made you furrow your eyebrows, your eyes scanning the question over and over again, trying to make sense of Theo’s question.

‘Are you sure it was Liam? He said he was with his friend Mason.’

You hit send on the text, chewing your fingernail as you pace your room, hoping Theo was just joking.

‘Pretty sure it’s the same kid I saw at the end of the school day with you. I can’t think of any other sophomores that would hang out with seniors.’

You bit your lip harshly when Theo’s response came through. Just as your thumbs readied themselves to send another text to Theo, you heard the front door open and close, making you jump out of your skin before you realised that Liam was home. Knowing this was a perfect opportunity to find out what happened, you headed downstairs, greeting Liam from the stairs.

“Hey, how was Mason’s?” you ask with a smile, leaning against the bannister as Liam stops in place, his heart rate instantly picking up, something you couldn’t have missed even if you tried.

“It was good. We just played some video games,” Liam shrugs, clearly trying to get you off his back, his heartbeat so loud it was almost like it was being drilled straight into your brain. Part of you wanted to drill him further, to find cracks in his lies and get the truth out of him. But the other part of you was betrayed enough by his lie that you couldn’t be bothered to try questioning him further.

“I was going to order some pizza, you want in?” you ask, keeping your smile on your face, waving your phone in the air.

“Yeah, okay,” Liam stammers, clearly caught off guard by you dropping the subject.

You tried to spend the rest of the evening acting as normal as possible around Liam. You had dinner, cleaned up and managed to hold a civil conversation with him the whole time. By the time you got ready and collapsed into bed, you couldn’t help but stare at the ceiling, squeezing your eyes shut when tears threatened to build.

“Damn it, Liam,” you mutter tearily to yourself. You couldn’t believe that Liam lied to you. You weren’t naive; you knew he’d probably lied to you hundreds of times prior to the two of you becoming werewolves. But the two of you had always been close, and Liam had never lied to you about where he’d been and what he’d been doing, especially when he knew you could tell when he did lie. You just couldn’t make sense of it. You couldn’t understand why Liam would’ve lied to you, and no matter how hard you tried, you couldn’t shake the gaping hole in your gut as your thoughts consumed you, sending you spiralling even as you fell asleep, continuing to plague you into your dreams.

The next morning, you dragged yourself out of bed and got ready, not feeling up to going to school at all but knowing you needed to. Once you were ready, you went downstairs and made yourself breakfast, waiting for Liam to join you. Despite the conflicted emotions you were feeling, you knew you couldn’t abandon Liam to make his own way to school, so you forced yourself to wait, texting Theo as you waited to pass the time.

When you and Liam were both ready, you climbed into your car and drove to school. The drive was awkward, both of you knew that Liam had lied to you last night, and neither wanted to approach the subject with a ten-foot pole. Once you made it to school, you got out of your car, quickly locking eyes with Theo as he offered you a friendly wave.

“I’ll see you around, Liam,” you say haphazardly, throwing your bag over your shoulder and heading over to Theo.

“Hey, are you okay?” Theo asks the moment you reach him, clearly picking up on your conflicting emotions.

“Just confused about last night,” you shrug, heading into the school building with Theo by your side.

“We can talk about it at lunch if you want?” Theo offers softly, lightly bumping your shoulder in an attempt to cheer you up.

“Only if you’re okay with listening to my problems,” you say with a small smile.

“It’s fine. You need someone to talk to, and I’m happy to be that guy,” Theo says, slinging an arm around your shoulder with a grin as you both make your way to your homeroom.

When lunchtime came around, you met up with Theo, both of you grabbing some food before finding a quiet place to sit down where you wouldn’t be bothered.

“So, talk to me about yesterday,” Theo says, instantly digging into his food.

“I just don’t know what to think. You told me one thing and Liam told me another,” you shrug, poking at the food on your plate with your fork.

“I’ll tell you what happened, and you can listen to my heartbeat the whole time. I went out to the woods to bring some flowers to where my sister died. I haven’t been able to do it for a few years, so I figured I owed her. While I was there, I heard your friends, Stiles and… Isaac, is it? Clearly, they brought Liam along too. I asked what they were all doing, and Stiles was pretty open in confessing that he thinks I’m suspicious. I’m pretty sure Isaac thinks the same, but he’s not the kind of guy to say that to your face. I mean, I get it, I show up out of the blue after years, wanting to join Scott’s pack, but I would’ve appreciated them coming and talking to me instead of following me into the woods. Those two made their stances pretty clear, but Liam? He’s the mystery. I can’t figure him out yet. But he’s definitely tougher than he looks.” You listen carefully to Theo’s heartbeat, unable to pick out a single increase in speed. His heart beat as steady as a drum the whole time.

“I just don’t get it,” you mumble, still trying to make sense of everything in your head.

“Does Liam not lie to you often?” Theo asks, his voice soft.

“Not since we became werewolves. He knows that I know about him lying last night. I don’t know why he’d lie to me,” you say, lifting your drink to your lips and taking a sip.

“Sometimes people lie to protect people they care about,” Theo shrugs, his gaze never leaving you.

“But what was he trying to protect me from? He knows I get on with you. I trust you.”

“Maybe it’s because Liam knew Stiles and Isaac didn’t trust me, and he wanted to protect you from that?” Theo suggests, briefly glancing over your shoulder, fighting back a smirk when he locks eyes with Isaac, who was glaring at him from across the cafeteria, clearly hearing what was being said between you.

“He doesn’t need to protect me from anything. I’m his big sister, it's my job to protect him,” you argue, glancing down at your plate and missing how Theo twitched slightly, feeling a pang in his heart as he thinks of his own sister, wondering if she had ever thought the same about him. Not that he’d blame her if she didn’t after what he did.

“I mean, he’s a sophomore now. He’s gonna become more independent and you can’t hover over him forever, especially with college around the corner,” Theo says with a shrug as you slump slightly, your fork hovering over your food as you digest his words, frowning as the reality sets in. He was right. You knew that you wanted to go to college, to go out into the world and begin your life. If you wanted to do that, then you had to accept that you’d be leaving Liam behind, too. You knew it came with growing up, that you and your family would grow up, and you and your brother would start lives of your own. Liam needed to have time to figure out who he was and where he fit in the world. You’d spent so much of your life looking out for Liam and worrying about him that you’d forgotten that you could live life for yourself.

“Just for the record, I hate when people are right,” you mutter, smiling as Theo lets out a breathy laugh, helping to ease the tension.

“Hey, how about we hang out after school today?” Theo offers, smiling at you. At first, you went to interject, ready to say that Liam had lacrosse practice, so you had to stay to take him home before you stopped yourself, instead nodding at his question.

“Yeah, sure.”

“Cool, I’ll catch a ride with you after school then?” Theo says, grinning as he looks at you. The moment your gaze slipped away, he once again looked over your shoulder, cocking an eyebrow when he notices that Isaac had not stopped staring at the two of you. You and Theo continue to talk until your gaze drifts down to your phone, seeing the time, which makes your eyes widen.

“Shit, I just remembered I was supposed to meet with the guidance counsellor. I’ll see you later,” you say apologetically, grabbing your tray and leaving the cafeteria, clearly in a rush. Taking advantage of your absence, Isaac gets up from his seat, crossing to Theo and sitting down opposite him, where you had been sitting previously, a set look on his face.

“Can I help you?” Theo asks, turning his attention to his food, uninterested in Isaac before the conversation had even started.

“Yeah, you can. Stay away from y/n,” Isaac says lowly, resting his arms on the table and leaning forward, attempting to intimidate Theo.

“I’m just being friendly. I don’t know why you’re acting like I’d hurt her,” Theo says, glancing up at Isaac with a look that only served to irritate him further.

“I don’t know what your plan is here, but it’s going to get y/n hurt if you don’t leave her alone,” Isaac says, fighting the building growl in his throat. At first, Theo stays silent, studying Isaac’s expression carefully before leaning back, a smirk drifting across his face.

“You like her, don’t you?” Theo asks, putting the pieces together in his head as Isaac scowls.

“She’s my friend,” Isaac says, his glare hardening. Despite Isaac’s words, Theo was unconvinced, picking up on the skip in Isaac’s heartbeat, something that gave away his true feelings.

“You can lie to yourself, lover boy, but you can’t lie to a werewolf,” Theo says, tilting his head slightly as Isaac clenches his jaw, fighting the urge to leap across the table and strangle Theo.

“If you hurt her, I’ll rip your throat out,” Isaac growls, his warning not having the intended effect as Theo chuckles.

“Look, man, I don’t know what to tell you. We’re just hanging out. She needed someone to talk to, so I stepped up. I’m not the one following people into the woods when they’re trying to pay respects to their dead sister. How did Scott feel about that one by the way?” Theo queries, resting his arms on the table with a raised eyebrow. Sensing that Isaac was struggling to come up with anything, Theo shrugged.

“You can hate me all you want. I’m just here to find a pack. You’re gonna have to get used to me,” Theo says, turning his attention back to his food, finished with the conversation as Isaac gets up from his seat, crossing back to the others with a scowl on his face.

After your meeting with the guidance counsellor, you made your way to your next class, still trying to wrap your head around everything you had discussed. College was the next big step for you. You needed to get your grades up and decide where you was you wanted to go for college, so as you entered your next class, you were ready to work your ass off to get the grades you need to get into a good college.

By the end of the day, you were ready to head home and spend time with Theo, desperate to spend time enjoying being a teenager instead of worrying about what supernatural threat might come and attack you next.

“Hey, Liam, I’m heading home early today, so you need to catch a ride home with someone else tonight,” you say, catching Liam in the hallway.

“What? Why?” Liam asks, stopping in his tracks as he looks at you.

“I’m hanging out with Theo tonight. I’m sure Mason can give you a lift,” you say, nodding over at Mason, who grins.

“Yeah, I can drop you home,” Mason says, clapping Liam on the shoulder.

“You always stay for practice, though,” Liam mumbles, his head dipping slightly.

“Come on, Liam, you don’t want your sister hanging around you all the time, right? You’ve got your friends, your lacrosse team, you can handle things without me,” you say, clapping him on the shoulder as he shrugs.

“Okay,” Liam mutters grumpily, turning and walking off with Mason in tow. You couldn’t help but feel guilty as you watched Liam walking away. You didn’t like having to ditch Liam, but you knew you needed to have time for yourself, something that had been in short supply since you became a werewolf.

“You ready to go?” Theo asks as he appears alongside you. Just before you can turn to face Theo, you catch a glimpse of Isaac and quickly turn your back to him.

“Yeah, let’s get out of here,” you say quickly, ushering Theo out of the building as he raises an eyebrow at your switch in demeanour.

“Hey, you okay?” he asks, following you as you beeline to your car.

“Yeah, fine, just saw someone I didn’t want to talk to,” you mutter, pulling your keys out of your pocket and rushing to unlock your car. As you focus on your keys, Theo spares a glance over his shoulder, smiling to himself when he sees Isaac exiting the building with Stiles, both of them clearly looking for you. He could smell their anxiety and stress from a mile away.

“Let’s go.” Your voice pulls Theo’s attention back to you as he nods, climbing into the passenger seat as you get behind the wheel. As you drive out of the parking lot, Theo clears his throat awkwardly, glancing over at you.

“Okay, I don’t want to make assumptions or anything, but… is Isaac the guy you like?” Theo’s question was quiet, no sound of judgment in his tone, but you couldn’t help but clench the steering wheel tighter in response, your heart pounding out of your chest.

“Am I that obvious?” you ask, embarrassed.

“Not to most people, I just saw him in the hallway when you were rushing us out of there. It would also explain why you’re avoiding him,” Theo shrugs, keeping his voice soft.

“I just know he doesn’t like me like that. I need to move on somehow, but it just feels so hard,” you admit, sparing a quick glance over at Theo before returning your focus to the road.

“He’s the idiot who can’t see a good thing when it’s right in front of him,” Theo says, making you laugh under your breath.

“I’m nothing special, Theo. I’m no different to anyone else,” you say with a roll of the eyes.

“You’re a werewolf, for starters, which makes you different to a lot of people. You should give yourself more credit; you’re awesome. I can see that after only a couple of days,” Theo says softly, leaning back against the seat, his gaze focused on you as you drive. Unused to hearing any sort of compliment come from someone outside of your family, you fall silent, feeling your cheeks heat up as you fight to keep your focus on the road.

When you finally make it back to your house, you lead Theo into the building, giving him a brief tour as he takes in every inch of your home.

“Are your parents not home?” Theo muses as you enter your room.

“They work long hours, they’re usually home super late or early morning. We’ve got the whole house to ourselves until Liam gets home from practice,” you shrug, perching on the end of your bed as Theo mimics your actions.

“That gives us some privacy to hang out, especially without another werewolf’s prying ears,” Theo jokes with a laugh, making you roll your eyes.

“Trust me, even if Liam were here, he’d never think my life was interesting enough to pry,” you retort, raising an eyebrow at the mere thought of Liam wanting to pry into your private life.

“I’m kinda glad he’s not here,” Theo mutters, making you glance at him, confused.

“You’re glad Liam isn’t here? I thought you wanted to make friends with the whole-” you’re cut off by Theo suddenly pressing his lips to yours, taking you aback for a brief moment before you came to your senses enough to reciprocate the kiss.

“Wow,” you mutter quietly as you pull away, unable to wipe the grin off your face.

“I told you, you just needed a distraction. If Isaac wants to miss out on someone like you, then it’s his loss,” Theo says, his eyes fixed on yours.

“You’re calling yourself a distraction?” you question with a laugh as Theo scoffs lightly, shaking his head.

“I walked into that one, didn’t I? Well, I was hoping I’d be a bit more than a distraction,” Theo replies, shifting closer and placing his hands on your middle, pulling you even closer.

“You’re certainly confident,” you tease, your lips just inches away from Theo’s as you both laugh.

“Should I not be?” Theo asks, his voice low as he moves just close enough for your lips to brush up against each other, sending a shiver down your spine as his lips connect with yours once more.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” you admit with a laugh as you pull away.

“Just cute? Not jaw-droppingly handsome?” Theo asks, quirking his eyebrow as you roll your eyes.

“Do you want to add ‘has a massive ego’ to that list too?”

“If it gets me another kiss.”

Theo pulls you impossibly closer, his lips grazing yours once more as you giggle, placing your hands on his chest and putting some distance between the two of you.

“Slow your roll there. Let’s take it easy, maybe watch a movie or something?” you suggest, watching as Theo nods.

“Okay,” he says, getting to his feet and tugging you up with him, both of you grinning as you head downstairs. You grab snacks while Theo picks a movie. Once you’re all ready, you curl up on the couch, Theo instantly tugging you into his side as the opening credits of the movie play.

The two of you watched the movie cuddled up together, sharing comments and laughing at unrealistic moments of the film. Just as the film was nearing its conclusion, you heard the door open, and you glanced over as Liam appeared in the doorway, stopping and furrowing his eyebrows when he saw the scene in front of him.

“Is practice over already?” you question, glancing down at your phone to look at the time.

“I wouldn’t be home if it wasn’t,” Liam mutters through gritted teeth, folding his arms across his chest as you sit up, shocked by his sudden attitude.

“I should head out, my parents are probably wondering where I am. I’ll see you tomorrow, y/n,” Theo says, sensing the tension between the two of you and getting up, but not without pressing a quick kiss to your lips. As Theo walked past Liam, the two brushing shoulders, he smiled, only to be greeted by Liam’s vicious scowl.

“Liam…” you warn lowly as Theo exits the house, Liam suddenly rounding on you when the door closes.

“You ditched me at practice to kiss some guy you met like two days ago?” Liam asks, making you clench your jaw, frustrated with Liam’s attitude.

“Liam, seriously? Firstly, I didn’t ditch you, I told you before practice so you could find someone else to take you home. Secondly, yes, okay, I just met Theo, but he gets me, and I can talk to him about anything,” you argue, turning the tv off and beginning to clean up after yourself as Liam trails behind you, following you into the kitchen.

“You can talk to me about anything, remember? You don’t need to protect me from anything,” Liam says, reminding you of the conversation you had two nights prior.

“I thought you liked Theo,” you mutter, swiftly changing the now awkward subject.

“I liked him when he wasn’t kissing my sister.” You hear Liam mutter, making you glare over at him.

“Liam, he’s not doing anything wrong,” you scold, frustrated with the way Liam was acting. Before Liam could respond, you finished shoving everything away and stormed off, not wanting to continue the argument, instead choosing to hide away in your room.

The next morning, you made your way downstairs, shocked to find Liam in the kitchen. Usually, you were the one up and ready first, but judging by the set look on his face, you could tell he didn’t want to talk to you.

“Mason’s picking me up today,” Liam says gruffly, barely glancing your way as you halt, glancing over your shoulder at him.

“If that’s what you want,” you say with a shrug, returning your attention to your breakfast. When you finish eating, you tidy up, moving to grab your bag as Liam’s phone buzzes.

“Bye,” Liam says quickly, rushing past you as you stand dumbfounded.

“Is the air chillier in here, or is it just me?” You turn around, startled at the sound of your stepfather’s voice, seeing him leaning against the doorway with a smile.

“Everything’s fine,” you say quickly, scrambling to pick up your bags as you hear a soft chuckle from behind you.

“Do you want to try sounding more convincing?” You’re asked as you sling your bag on your shoulder.

“Dad, it’s okay, there’s nothing to worry about.”

“It’s not like you and Liam to act so cold with each other. You’ve been close as anything since the day I met you both.”

“Seriously, you don’t need to worry about us. I need to get to school anyway,” you say, scrambling for an excuse to leave the house while your stepfather regards you quietly.

“Have a good day at school, kid.”

“I’ll see you later, Dad,” you call over your shoulder as you exit your house, letting out a slight sigh of relief after freeing yourself from the awkward situation before making your way to your car, mentally preparing yourself for school.

When you arrived at school, you met up with Theo and Scott, ignoring the not-so-subtle glances from Stiles and Isaac. Even if some of your friends weren’t keen on Theo’s presence, it meant a lot that Scott was willing to have an open mind about Theo despite his closest friends insisting otherwise.

Unbeknownst to you, while you, Theo, and Scott were making your way down the hallway, talking and laughing as you went, Liam sidled up alongside Isaac and Stiles.

“I think Theo and y/n are dating now,” Liam mutters, glancing at the older boys as they gawp, glancing at each other before focusing on Liam.

“Wha- what do you mean?” Stiles questions, turning to look at Liam, fighting the urge to shake him by the shoulders when Liam remains quiet for a moment, gritting his teeth as his gaze flicks to the floor.

“When I got home from practice last night, I saw them kiss,” Liam says, glancing over at Isaac when he hears Isaac’s heart rate pick up and a low growl form in his throat.

“Are you doing okay there, buddy? You’re looking a little… tense,” Stiles says, noticing how Isaac’s posture had shifted, like every muscle in his body had been tightened.

“I’ll be okay once Theo’s gone,” Isaac growls lowly, his eyes fixed on you and the others talking, and how Theo had unashamedly wound his arm around your middle, tucking you into his side as you all laughed.

“And as much as I love the ‘let’s get rid of Theo’ train. You can’t start a fight in school. That’s a surefire way to get yourself in trouble and probably make y/n hate you, which I’m guessing is not your end goal here,” Stiles says, placing a hand on Isaac’s shoulder, regretting his action slightly when Isaac glared over at him.

“You’re right,” Isaac mutters, shrugging Stiles’ hand off his shoulder as Stiles gawps slightly, looking over at Liam.

“Did you hear that? He said I was right,” Stiles says proudly, his laugh falling short when he sees the unimpressed glances from Isaac and Liam.

“Hey, Liam, do you think you could try to keep an eye on Theo for us? If he’s at your place, just listen in or do what you can to see if there’s anything off about him,” Isaac requests, turning to address Liam, who nods quickly, keen to help out despite the nagging feeling that he was potentially betraying you and Scott who both trusted Theo wholeheartedly.

A few weeks down the line, any hope of a normal senior year had gone completely out the window. You had been forced to confront what you quickly learnt were chimaeras, people that had been killed and turned into a mix of different supernatural creatures by a trio of scientists that called themselves the Dread Doctors. You had no idea who they were and why they were so desperate to experiment on people in such a way, but you did know that you had to stop them, whatever their plan was. You worked with the pack and Theo, and you could tell that even despite being forced to work together, Isaac and Stiles refused to give Theo the benefit of the doubt.

Despite the looming threat of the Dread Doctors and their chimaeras, you still had to go to school as usual when you could, carefully keeping an eye on your fellow classmates, looking for anyone who was acting out of the ordinary. As you entered your English class, ready for another class on intensely watching everyone else’s moves, you made your way to the nearest table to sit down.

As you sat at a table in your class, you smiled as Theo entered the room, gesturing him over and just as he reached your table, Isaac barged his way in, forcing his way into the seat Theo was about to claim.

“Isaac, what the hell?” you question, your eyes widening as he pulls out his books, ignoring Theo, who just rolled his eyes and walked away.

“The seat was free,” Isaac shrugs, unbothered.

“Theo was clearly coming to sit here,” you point out, glancing over your shoulder at Theo, who was now sitting at the back of the room, shooting you a slight shrug.

“I’ve not been able to hang out with one of my best friends in forever, and I’m the bad guy here?” Isaac asks, raising an eyebrow as he looks over at you.

“I’ve been helping out with the pack, I’ve not gone anywhere,” you argue with a glare.

“Okay, I’ve not been able to talk to you alone for a while, and I missed you,” Isaac then says, clearly attempting to appeal to your softer side.

“We could’ve had this conversation outside of class. I know it’s because you don’t trust Theo,” you mutter, opening your notebook and trying to focus as the teacher begins the class. To your relief, Isaac stayed silent for most of the class, only talking to you when the teacher requested you to talk to the person sitting next to you, but the moment class was over, and he realised Theo was staying behind to talk to the teacher, he trailed after you.

“I don’t think you should be dating Theo,” he says quickly, following you through the hallway as you step out of the building.

“You don’t get to do this, Isaac,” you say lowly, your grip tightening on your bag strap as you stop in place, frustrated by the constant hounding.

“I’m not trying to do-”

“The one time I finally have something good going for me and you want to step in and ruin it?” you say, running a hand through your hair, exasperated at Isaac’s words.

“I’m not trying to ruin anything. I just don’t think you should trust him,” Isaac tries, attempting to step closer to you, his eyebrows furrowing slightly when you step back, a far cry from the times you had cherished his presence.

“He’s not done anything to make anyone consider him untrustworthy. I don’t get why you won’t trust him,” you say, confused as to why Isaac was acting like this.

“Because I know what it’s like to have someone manipulate you. To use love as a cover for when they do bad things. Ever since Theo showed up, bad things have happened, and I don’t want you to go through what my dad put me through,” Isaac says in a brief moment of vulnerability, something you’d only seen a sparse few times since meeting Isaac.

“Isaac… Theo’s not like that. I’m sorry that your dad put you through that, but… Theo wouldn’t do that. He’s not done anything bad towards me, I swear,” you say, trying to get Isaac to understand that you trusted Theo wholeheartedly, wanting him to at least give him a chance.

“He’s not the right guy for you, y/n,” Isaac says, making you roll your eyes, irritated at Isaac’s recently constant desire to insert himself into your life. Before, you might’ve found his insistence to be around you endearing. Now that you were finally happy with someone, you were beyond pissed off that he was trying to take it away from you.

“Oh, and I suppose you know who the right guy for me is, then, huh?” you argue back, glaring up at Isaac, the two of you locked in a standoff.

“I’m sorry, am I interrupting something?” Theo’s voice broke the apparent staring contest between you and Isaac, making you look over at him.

“No, you’re fine. I was just looking for you anyway. I’ll see you around, Isaac,” you say quickly, crossing to Theo and smiling as Theo’s arm winds around your middle, tucking you close against him as the two of you walk away, leaving Isaac alone.

After that, tensions were high between you and Isaac, and you began to make an effort to avoid him as much as possible until the pack needed to come together.

And then your brother went missing.

The Dread Doctors had taken Liam and a chimaera called Hayden, and you felt like you were going insane with worry. The argument that had hovered over you and your brother was suddenly non-existent; you were just terrified for your brother’s well-being. You were snapping at everyone when you couldn’t find any hints to your brother’s whereabouts, and you were running yourself ragged looking for them. Despite Theo’s reassurances that you’d find them, you couldn’t find it in yourself to believe anything until you saw them safe.

‘Come to Scott’s house, I’ve got a surprise for you.’

The text you received from Theo while on the outskirts of the woods at first sent a wave of frustration over you, making you think he was making light of a situation that was beyond terrifying for you. But after taking a breath and reading the text again, you realised that Theo wouldn’t have sent a text like that if he hadn’t had a good reason, so you headed back to your car and drove to Scott’s house. The moment you enter the house and peek in the living room, you catch sight of your brother and Hayden sitting on the couch, and tears spring to your eyes.

“Liam,” you whisper, relief washing over you as Liam gets up from the couch. The moment he reaches you, you grab him in an embrace, holding him close. You knew the slight argument between the two of you was unresolved, and it still hung in the air, but you wanted to ignore it for the moment, desperate to reassure yourself that your brother was okay.

“Are you guys okay?” you question, holding Liam at arm's length to check him over before glancing over at Hayden, who was still on the couch.

“We’re fine,” Liam says, nodding as he pulls away from your grip slightly before crossing back to the couch, wrapping an arm around Hayden, holding her close and pressing a kiss to the top of her head as you watch quietly. You were surprised to see the way they interacted, especially knowing what went down between them in the sixth grade, but you did want your brother to be happy. Finally tearing your glance away from the two, you locked eyes with Theo, quickly striding over to him and capturing his lips with yours in a kiss.

“Thank you for finding them,” you say after pulling away, winding your arms around Theo’s neck.

“No need to thank me,” Theo replies softly, his hands settling on your waist. You keep an eye on Liam and Hayden while Theo calls Scott, letting him know that Liam has been found, and while you wait for the others to arrive, Liam and Hayden end up dozing off on the couch, curled up in each other’s arms. You move to cover them with a blanket, regarding them softly before moving to sit with Theo, the two of you embracing as you watch over the two, waiting for Scott to get back.

You had naively hoped that with Theo saving Liam and Hayden, it would’ve earned him some trust within the pack, but Stiles and Isaac remained steadfast in their lack of trust. Even Liam was hesitant to trust Theo fully. It was clear that Theo saving them had at least gained a little bit of Liam’s respect, but he still opted to keep a distance, and you couldn’t help but wonder if it was Stiles and Isaac who had convinced him that Theo was untrustworthy. That thought hurt your heart slightly, wondering if Liam didn’t value or trust your opinion. All you could do was continue to push forward, hoping Theo would finally get his moment to prove his worth to everyone.

Instead, everything backfired on you.

It happened on the night of the full moon, a full moon that just so happened to be a super moon, making the pull of the moon stronger than ever, setting everyone over the edge. You couldn’t figure out what it was the Dread Doctors wanted to achieve with their experiments, especially when they were branding them ‘failures’ and killing them. You were beginning to find yourself frustrated with the lack of progress in the pack’s investigation, just wishing it could all end.

“Hey, I was going to go looking for that chimaera who went missing later to see if we can get some answers, you want in?” Theo asked, pulling you aside in the animal clinic. You hesitated at his question, glancing out at the setting sun before your gaze flicked to the examination room where Liam was anxiously watching as Melissa did her best to save Hayden’s life after the Dread Doctors had pumped her full of mercury.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? With everything that’s going on, wouldn’t it be safer for us to stick together?” you questioned, glancing back over at Theo, whose expression softened slightly before he took your hand in his.

“You trust me, right? I’m confident we could track him down easily,” Theo says softly, squeezing your hand as you purse your lips slightly, debating with yourself quietly.

“If you’re sure…” You mumble, your gaze flicking to the floor before looking back up at Theo.

“I’m sure we can find him. The others can focus on saving Hayden,” Theo says, his voice reassuring as you nod slightly.

“Okay. If this can lead us to the Dread Doctors, we might be able to find a way to help Hayden,” you say as Theo smiles, squeezing your hand once more.

“I have some things I need to do first, okay? I’ll text you when I’m ready to go looking,” Theo says, pressing a quick kiss to your lips before backing away and leaving the animal clinic. You turn your attention back to helping Melissa with Hayden. You knew the tensions were high after Scott had rejected Liam’s request for him to bite Hayden to turn her into a werewolf so you felt like you were stuck in the middle of it all until Theo sent you a text asking to meet you at the preserve, which you did so happily, especially when Melissa was beginning to talk about transferring Hayden to the hospital.

“You going somewhere?” Scott asks, all attention suddenly on you as you nod.

“Theo and I were going to go look for Lucas, he could lead us to the Dread Doctors, and maybe we can find a cure for Hayden,” you say, noticing how Liam perked up slightly at your words.

“Be careful out there, y/n,” Scott said as you nodded, giving him a small joking salute before leaving the animal clinic, hoping Scott and Liam can stay civil long enough to help Hayden.

You make your way up to the preserve, meeting Theo, who was leaning up against a nearby tree with a small smile, pushing away from the tree as you approached.

“So, do you have any idea where it is we’re going?” you ask curiously as Theo begins to walk off with a sense of purpose as if he knew where to look.

“I’m just guessing he’ll be hiding away somewhere. If he’s starting to show signs of being a failure, we might be able to catch a scent of mercury or something too,” Theo shrugs, continuing to walk as you chase after him.

“Do you think he could be near where you found Liam and Hayden? If the Dread Doctors were operating in that area, he could be nearby, right?” you ask, glancing over at Theo.

“I can’t say for sure, it depends on how he feels about the Dread Doctors,” Theo replies as you both quietly sniff at the air, trying to pick up a scent.

The two of you look around the abandoned water plant first, your search coming up unsuccessful with not a single other person in sight, human or otherwise. As you both exit the abandoned building, you turn to Theo.

“Where did you find Liam and Hayden? We should look there next,” you say, glancing around as you await Theo’s response.

“I don’t think he’s there. I have an idea of where he could be,” Theo says, gesturing with his head for you to follow him, which you do without question. Theo leads you to a sewer grate, lifting it with relative ease and climbing down the ladder, with you following close behind.

“We’re never going to catch a scent down here,” you grumble the moment the stench hits your nose.

“And that’s why it would be the best place to hide,” Theo says, smiling at you as you reach the bottom of the ladder.

“I’m glad you had the sense to think of this place because I wouldn’t touch it if you weren’t here,” you laugh as you follow Theo, the two of you navigating the damp sewer. As you follow Theo, a sudden sense of unease begins to wash over you, a shiver running down your spine mere seconds before Lucas springs out from around a corner, growling, his face inches away from Theo’s, who barely flinches.

“Theo! Get back!” you cry out, worry instantly clutching at your heart at the closeness between the two, expecting Lucas to lunge at any second. Instead, you watch as Lucas backs off with a grin.

“What’s going on?” you then question, glancing between the two.

“I could ask the same question. I thought you were coming alone,” Lucas says, turning to look at Theo as he scoffs.

“I did say that, but there was a question I needed to ask y/n, and it was best to have a little privacy and some backup,” Theo says, quirking an eyebrow as he glances at you and Lucas.

“Theo… what is this?” you ask again, beginning to feel your heart pound, something that didn’t go unnoticed as both Theo and Lucas focused on you.

“You don’t need to be scared, y/n/n. I just have an offer to make you,” Theo says, and despite his friendly smile, you could sense the sinister undertone, making you take a small step back out of fear.

“Theo, you’re scaring me.”

“I told you, you don’t need to be scared. I just want to offer you a place in my pack,” Theo says, standing before you as he folds his arms across his chest.

“Your… pack?”

“Yes, my pack. That’s why I came back to Beacon Hills. When I heard about the True Alpha and his pack, I knew I had to have it for my own,” Theo states as your eyes widen.

“I…”

“Think about it, you could take Scott’s power for your own and we could run the pack together,” Theo offers, his voice dropping to the soft tone you’d grown accustomed to hearing, attempting to sway you as you started to understand what he wanted you to do.

“You need me to kill Scott,” you mumble, remembering the times you’d been told that as Betas of Scott’s own making, only you and Liam had the capability to take his Alpha power from him. When Theo fails to respond, you shake your head, getting ready to run to warn Scott of Theo’s betrayal. However, Theo was quicker, ordering Lucas to attack you.

Lucas’s attacks came hard and fast, and no matter how much you tried to fight back, once Lucas got his poison in your system, you found it harder to fight. You soon collapsed to the floor, dragging yourself to sit upright against the wall as you heard Theo quietly urging Lucas to run away, muttering something about the Dread Doctors.

“You know, as much as it’s disappointing that you won’t join me, there is a silver lining. With you out of the way, it’s going to make getting to your brother so much easier. After all, between us, he’s the strongest Beta out of the two of you. If I can talk anyone into killing Scott and taking his power right now, it’s Liam, and that will leave me free to take the power from him,” Theo gloats, turning to face you as he shows off his claws, admiring them with a smirk.

“If you hurt Liam, I swear,” you snarl, baring your fangs as your eyes glow a vibrant gold, attempting to intimidate Theo as you struggle even to try to get to your feet.

“Oh, don’t you worry y/n/n. I’m not going to hurt Liam. Not until he can give me what I want,” Theo taunts, crouching down and leaning in close as you continue to growl at him, clearly unintimidated by you.

“Theo, please, don’t do this,” you then plead, tears filling your eyes as you sit back against the wall, fighting the urge not to writhe in pain.

“I need a pack of my own. And to do that, I need the power of an Alpha. I’m not going to let anything stand in my way,” Theo says, straightening up as you try one last feeble attempt at a growl in his direction before Theo stalks off, leaving you alone.

Isaac was lost; he couldn’t escape the violent twist in his stomach that something was wrong and that you needed help wherever you were. You weren’t responding to his texts or his calls; all he knew was that you had left the animal clinic with Theo, something Isaac would never get used to.

“Come on, y/n. Give me a sign you’re somewhere,” Isaac mutters, shifting his gaze to look up at the supermoon, watching it silently for a moment. He could always feel the pull of the full moon once a month, but controlling himself got easier with each month. But the supermoon was different. Its pull was stronger than ever, and he felt like any little nudge could set him off.

“Looking for someone?” There was the little nudge. Isaac felt irritation mixing with his anxiety as he clenched his jaw, turning to face the source of the voice.

“Where’s y/n? I know she was with you, so don’t lie to me,” Isaac says, stalking over to Theo, a growl building in his throat while Theo remains steadfast, leaning against the tree.

“Lover boy’s certainly gotten himself worked up. I’m sure she’s fine,” Theo says with a shrug, smirking at how easy it was to rile Isaac up.

“Where. Is. She?” Isaac snarls, baring his fangs as he steps as close as possible to Theo, his incessant snarling not having an ounce of an effect on Theo who simply cocked an eyebrow.

“Are you done? Because if you keep snarling at me like a wild animal, you won’t find her in time,” Theo says, a smirk playing across his lips as Isaac steps back, a mix of worry and anger playing across his face.

“Where is she?” Isaac demands once more.

“Giving that away would take all the fun out of this little game. All I can suggest is you hurry up. I don’t know what Lucas’ poison will do to a werewolf this time around. You might want to run, lover boy,” Theo shrugs as Isaac’s heart begins to pound, his head whipping around in every direction, desperate to catch a scent, a hint that you were anywhere nearby. As he desperately racks his brain for any ideas on where Theo could’ve taken you, a few locations come to mind, making him sprint off in the direction of one of the areas. As Theo watched Isaac disappear into the woods, he pushed himself away from the tree, smiling to himself. Now that the pack was out of the way, he could finally put his plan into place.

As you lay in the darkness, your hand pressed firmly to the wound that was beginning to burn, you felt tears continue to pool in your eyes. You felt like you deserved every second of pain you were experiencing. You were the one who had turned your back on your pack, tossing them aside just because a boy had finally looked your way. And now you had to lie helpless, bloody, and alone, all while knowing Theo was about to manipulate your younger brother into killing his Alpha just to steal the power for himself.

“y/n? y/n, are you down here?” You couldn’t help the sob that escaped your lips at the familiar sound of Isaac’s voice. Somehow, he had cared enough to look for you in your absence, even when you’d treated him awfully.

“Isaac, I’m here! Please help!” you beg, the tears now flowing freely as your breaths begin to quicken. You wait anxiously, listening for Isaac’s footsteps as they grow closer, and Isaac’s face comes into your line of sight as he worriedly checks you over.

“Did Theo do this to you?” Was the first question Isaac asked, identifying your injuries and carefully assessing them.

“He wanted me to join his pack. When I told him I couldn’t turn my back on Scott, he… he let Lucas attack me.” You wince as you attempt to move, the burning sensation beginning to spread viciously across your body.

“That asshole,” Isaac mutters, a slight growl behind his words.

“You need to get to Liam before Theo does; he’s going to manipulate him into killing Scott,” you say, attempting to push Isaac away to get him to save your brother and your Alpha.

“I’m not leaving you,” Isaac argues, shaking his head.

“Isaac-”

“No, y/n, I’m not leaving you here. Scott can handle himself. It might be bad of me to say, but my priority is you right now,” Isaac says firmly, making your defences come crashing down as tears well in your eyes.

“I just want to get out of here,” you say tearily, making Isaac nod quickly, wrapping your arm around his shoulders and easing you to your feet, apologising as you whimper in pain. Isaac carefully navigates you through the sewer, helping you up the ladder and into the fresh air.

“I’m going to take you to the animal clinic first, okay? I have Deaton’s number; he can help me treat your injuries over the phone.”

“My car… It’s parked at the edge of the preserve, you can take that,” you say, weakly digging in your pocket and pressing the key into Isaac’s hand. With a determined nod, Isaac helps you to your car, easing you in carefully before getting behind the wheel and driving you to the animal clinic. Isaac drove with a sense of urgency you’d never seen from him before, and you felt like you arrived at the animal clinic in what felt like record time.

“Come on,” Isaac urges, helping you out of the car and into the clinic, helping you sit on the table before fumbling for his phone to call Deaton.

You wait awkwardly after explaining what happened to Deaton over the phone, feeling utterly useless as Isaac rushes around, grabbing the ingredients to make something that’ll help ease your pain and hopefully combat the poison.

“Okay, chances are it might sting, but you need to put it directly on the wound.” You hear Deaton’s voice crackle through the phone as Isaac finishes making the paste that made your nose wrinkle once the smell hits it.

“Is there not any other way?” you ask weakly, attempting to lean away from the noxious mixture.

“If you want to try to treat that poison, then it’s the best thing we can do. I’m sorry, this mixture should help a lot,” Deaton says, making you groan slightly. You listen as Isaac hangs up the phone, promising to contact Deaton if anything else happens before turning his attention to you.

“Could you… lift your shirt?” Isaac asks awkwardly, looking anywhere but at you as you nod, carefully lifting your shirt to expose the wound that sits on your side.

“You can look, it’s okay,” you say softly, making Isaac finally look over at you, his eyes fixing on your injury. Wordlessly, Isaac applies the mixture to your wound, making you gasp at the stinging sensation. As if he acted on instinct, Isaac grabbed your wrist, and the moment you felt him trying to take your pain, you wrenched your arm away.

“What are you doing?” you ask, looking at Isaac, whose eyebrows furrowed in concern.

“I’m trying to take some of your pain, let me help,” Isaac says, watching you expectantly as you shake your head, your eyes once again filling with tears.

“I don’t deserve your help. You have done all this for me when I’ve done nothing but treat you badly. You shouldn’t have even come looking for me in the first place. I pushed you aside because a boy finally looked my way and I’m so sorry.”

“I meant what I said a few weeks ago, you know? You’re one of my best friends, and I’d do anything for you. I had a feeling that something was wrong, and I wasn’t going to just sit back and let something happen to you. I care about you so much, so let me help.” Isaac’s words were firm yet gentle as he watched you carefully, tenderly reaching out to wipe a falling tear from your cheek. When you do nothing other than silently nod, Isaac gently takes your hand in his, taking some of your pain as you relax.

“Thank you,” you mumble, gratefulness in your tone as Isaac squeezes your hand softly before letting go, moving to bandage your injury, making quick work of the task before looking up at you.

“I should get you home, you need to rest and heal,” Isaac then says, helping you off the table and leading you out to the car.

“Once you drop me off, you need to find Scott; he might need your help. Theo would’ve gotten to Liam by now, and he’ll need you to help him.” Your words came out quietly, but Isaac heard you all the same.

“I will, I promise,” Isaac assures you.

“If Liam is there, please don’t hurt him,” you then add, your hand resting protectively on your injury as Isaac pulls out of the animal clinic’s car park.

“I’ll try my best,” Isaac says. You understood why he couldn’t promise, with Liam’s IED combined with the strength of the supermoon, he might not listen to reason, and if needed, Isaac may be forced to fight back. The drive was silent, your thoughts consumed with the evening's events and worry for your younger brother. When Isaac parks your car outside your house, he quickly moves to help you out of the car.

“I’ve got it from here, Isaac. Go and help Scott,” you urge Isaac, pushing him away from you slightly, trying to encourage him to leave. At first, Isaac hesitates, glancing at you worriedly before letting out a soft sigh, nodding and running off in the direction of the school.

You entered the house as quietly as you could, wincing with each step taken. While you were beginning to heal, you could still feel the slight burn from the poison that was making its way through your system. As you made your way to your room, you heard a door open, making you stop in your tracks as you waited to see who it was, worried you’d woken one of your parents. Instead, you see Liam entering the hallway, his eyes locking with yours. Seeing Liam took you aback slightly, expecting him to be somewhere else, but when you see his red rimmed eyes that are filled with tears, you know you couldn’t let yourself fall apart yet. Not when Liam needed you.

“Come here, buddy,” you urge quietly, opening your arms for Liam to walk into, holding him close as he clung to you desperately.

“Hayden’s gone.” You hear Liam say through his tears, ignoring the pain that shot through you when he squeezed tighter.

“Oh, Liam…” you mutter sympathetically, moving to escort him back to his bedroom, sitting him down on his bed as you tuck him against your side.

“I almost killed Scott,” Liam admits after a small silence, his voice so quiet you wondered if he’d meant to say it out loud at all in the first place.

“That wasn’t your fault,” you say quietly, attempting to hold Liam closer, stopping when he pushes against you, putting distance between you so he could look you in the eye.

“Did you hear me? I said I almost killed Scott,” Liam reiterates, his eyes flicking between yours, waiting for your reaction.

“I heard you, Liam. But I know it wasn’t you. You were upset because of Hayden, and Theo used that and the supermoon against you,” you say softly, not letting a single ounce of judgment slip into your tone as Liam’s eyebrows furrow, putting pieces together in his head.

“How did you know it was Theo?” he questions, making you sigh slightly, realising your slip-up and knowing you needed to be truthful or else Liam would know.

“Turns out Theo has a tendency to monologue just after letting someone almost kill you,” you admit with a weak chuckle, wincing as a flash of pain sparks through you.

“He tried to kill you?” Liam asks, his eyes blown wide as you shrug.

“Not Theo himself. He let Lucas have at me, though. I think the Dread Doctors made him stronger; this poison is really taking its time to heal. Deaton says I’ll live,” you say, your hand drifting to the tear in your shirt.

“I’m so sorry,” Liam apologises, his gaze drifting to where your hand was resting.

“You don’t need to apologise, Liam,” you begin, stopping as Liam shakes his head, tears beginning to well in his eyes.

“I should’ve been there. I could’ve helped you. Instead, I let Theo talk me into-” you cut Liam off suddenly, cupping his face in your hands and lifting his chin gently so you could look him in the eye.

“Liam. Do not blame yourself for this. I’m the idiot who let Theo separate me from the rest of the pack. I let him come between us. You’re my brother, and I shouldn’t have turned my back on you. If anyone should be sorry, it’s me,” you say softly, gently wiping away the tears that rolled down Liam’s cheeks. Your heart felt like an iron hand had it in a vicious grip, squeezing as hard as it could. You hated seeing your brother upset, no matter the context, but seeing him upset because of you shattered you in a way you didn’t know was possible. Feeling your eyes burn with tears, you shifted to hold Liam closer, cradling his head close to your chest as he clings to you, reminding you of the times you had comforted him when he was younger.

“Did someone help you? Or were you…” Liam asks, his voice a quiet mumble, as you hold him close.

“Isaac found me. I don’t know what I did to deserve having a friend like him to come looking for me after what I did to him,” you admit, finally allowing a smile to tug at your lips as you think of Isaac, the selfless boy who risked everything to come looking for you just based off a hunch that something was wrong. You couldn’t believe that even after you made it clear you didn’t want to be around him, he still cared enough to come looking when you went missing.

“I’m glad he was there,” Liam mumbles softly as you hold him impossibly closer.

“So am I,” you mutter, the two of you falling into a comfortable silence for a few minutes.

“I just want to forget about everything that happened,” Liam says quietly, neither of you moving to break the embrace.

“Why don’t we watch a movie or something? That might help,” you offer, moving your head away slightly so you could look down at Liam, who lifts his gaze to meet yours, nodding.

“Yes, please.”

“Okay, you stay here and pick which movie you want to watch. I’ll grab us some snacks,” you say, moving to excuse yourself from the room, wincing when the pain flares up once more and before you could get too far away, Liam grabbed your hand, taking some of your pain for himself as you soften, tears building in your eyes once more at your brother’s kindness.

“Thank you, Liam,” you mutter softly, moving to hug him once more before finally making your way downstairs to raid the kitchen for snacks. You grab a variety of snacks, grabbing what you knew Liam liked before scooping up some drinks and making your way back to Liam’s room with armfuls of food and drinks.

“Did you just take everything?” Liam asks with a slight laugh as you enter the room.

“Pretty much,” you admit, closing the door behind you before dumping the snacks on the end of the bed and placing the drinks on the bedside table. Once Liam had picked a movie, the two of you sat up against the headboard as you tucked Liam against your side, hugging him close as the opening of the movie played.

About halfway through the movie, a knock at the door rings out, making you and Liam stiffen slightly, both of you looking at each other.

“You stay here, buddy,” you say quickly, forcing yourself to your feet as you make your way to the front door, your hand hesitating above the doorknob for a moment before you bite the bullet, tugging the door open.

“Isaac?” you question, your head tilting slightly when you see Isaac standing before you, a bag slung over his shoulder.

“Do you think I could crash here for a little while? I didn’t get to Scott in time, and Melissa didn’t take it well. I don’t blame her for reacting like that, so I figured I’d find someplace else to crash, give her and Scott some space,” Isaac explains, smiling sadly at you. It upset you to hear what had happened, especially given that Melissa had become an important maternal figure in Isaac’s life after losing his own mom at a young age.

“Come in, we’re watching a movie, so just dump your stuff in my room and join us,” you say, gesturing for Isaac to come into the house. You lead Isaac to your room, letting him put his bag down before bringing him to Liam’s room.

“Hey Isaac,” Liam says, offering Isaac a kind smile as you entered the room.

“Hey, Liam,” Isaac replies with a curt nod and a small smile of his own. You sit down alongside Liam once more, wrapping an arm around him again while patting the free space alongside you, encouraging Isaac to sit with you. As Isaac sits down alongside you, you grab his hand gently, squeezing it softly as you both smile at each other. The three of you then continue to watch the movie, enjoying each other’s company and putting the day's events behind you.

As the closing credits of the movie begin to roll, Isaac shuffles slightly, preparing himself to make a comment that falls short the moment he sees you and Liam fast asleep, his head on your shoulder as your head rests atop his. Isaac couldn’t help the soft smile that covered his face at the sight. He carefully eased your hand out of his and crossed to grab a blanket before carefully covering you and Liam with it, before moving to sit on the beanbag in the corner of the room so he could get at least a few hours of sleep himself.

A few weeks down the line, Isaac was still staying at your place after an awkward conversation with your parents, as you and Liam tried to explain the situation without exposing your family to the supernatural world.

The pack had come back together after a lot of apologies, and you had to focus on finding and defeating a creature called the Beast of Gevaudan, which had been brought back by the Dread Doctors, learning that their chimaera experiments were dedicated to.

On top of that, Theo still had the audacity to keep showing his face after what he had done. He had revived a number of chimaeras, Hayden included, to make his own pack, and it took everything within you not to rip his throat out every time you saw him in the hallways. Thankfully, Isaac stuck to your side like glue and helped keep you calm and away from Theo, especially when he tried to get involved in the pack’s investigations.

After what felt like forever, you learnt that the Beast of Gevaudan had been Mason the whole time, making the pack realise that you needed to do whatever you could to save him which seemed fruitless, especially when the Dread Doctors had been successful in using Mason as a vessel to revive the true monster behind the Beast. But thanks to Lydia’s banshee scream, she was able to bring back Mason after a long, hard battle that left most of you knocked off your feet before Theo showed up, keen to use his newly gained powers he had gotten from killing off members of his pack.

Then you watched as Kira stepped forward, protecting you all from the electrical blast Theo had sent your way before telling him that the skinwalkers she had been training with had a message for him. You watched in horror as Kira stabbed her katana into the ground, and a sinkhole opened up. You saw Theo’s sister clamber out of the hole, grabbing Theo and dragging him down with her as Theo begged and pleaded for someone to help.

“y/n! Help me, please!” You were shocked when Theo called out to but you didn’t move from where you were on the ground, just watching as Theo was dragged under the ground, which then sealed itself up, leaving everyone speechless for a moment before Isaac crossed over to you, extending a hand to you. 

“I told you he wasn’t the right guy for you,” Isaac muses softly as you groan, in too much pain and annoyance to deal with his jokes.

“Are you ever going to tell me who the right guy for me is, or am I going to have to keep making mistakes like Theo?” you ask, sitting yourself up against the wall as Isaac falls silent for a moment, clearly thinking before he speaks up again.

“I can do better. I can show you instead,” Isaac says, inching closer. Your heart pounded as he moved closer, it was so loud you were sure Isaac could’ve heard it without his supernatural hearing. Just as his lips were millimetres away from yours, he stopped, his eyes flicking up to yours.

“Is this okay?” he then asks quietly.

“Yes,” you whisper, your voice breathy before Isaac closes the gap, pressing his lips to yours, as he cups your face gently. Isaac’s kiss was soft and full of love, and you couldn’t help but melt into his touch.

“I thought you guys would never figure it out,” Lydia’s words made you and Isaac pull apart, the two of you smiling shyly as the rest of the pack laughed softly as you rolled your eyes, leaning against Isaac as he wrapped an arm around you.

“Come on, guys, let’s get out of here,” Scott says, making everyone nod. Isaac helps you to your feet as the rest of the pack make their way out of the dingy tunnels, desperate to leave the Dread Doctors in the past where they belong.

After getting a phone call from Deaton, Scott and Liam rush off to the animal clinic to check on Hayden, who had been attacked by the Beast and found her way to the clinic despite her vicious injuries. All you could do was hope that it wouldn’t end up the way it did last time. You could tell Liam loved Hayden, and you didn’t want to see his heart get broken all over again.

“Let’s go,” Isaac says softly, leading you away from the abandoned water plant and away from everyone else, leading you to a secluded clearing so the two of you could have some privacy. Once you are confident you’re away from prying ears, Isaac turns to you.

“How are you?” he asks softly, brushing a strand of hair away from your face without a second thought.

“I’m fine. I’m healing pretty quick-”

“No, how are you feeling? I saw the way you looked when Theo got taken.”

“I couldn’t care less about what happened to Theo. I’m glad he’s gone after all he put my pack through. Wherever he is, I hope he’s suffering.” You’d never been filled with so much anger towards someone before. The bitterness was clear in your tone, and you could tell that Isaac was concerned.

“It doesn’t change the fact that you liked him.”

“Yeah, past tense, liked. Anyone would be creeped out seeing someone getting dragged underground by their dead sibling. It’s fine, I’ve got my pack, I’ve got you,” you say softly, taking Isaac’s hand in yours.

“If you ever want to talk about it, I’ll be there,” Isaac says softly, squeezing your hand as you nod wordlessly.

The two of you then spend an hour or so in the woods together, relishing in each other’s presence and talking about everything and nothing at the same time. When you call it a night, the two of you head back to your house, entering the house and heading into the living room when you hear the tv playing.

“Hey, you two,” you greet Liam and Hayden, a smile on your face as you lean against the doorframe, stifling a laugh when they jump, turning to look at you.

“Look, Hayden’s okay!” Liam says excitedly, showing off Hayden to you as you nod.

“I can see that. Did Deaton figure something out?” you ask as Isaac sidles up alongside you, winding an arm around your middle.

“No, I think being a chimaera made things a bit more complicated for him. Scott gave me the bite,” Hayden explains as you nod, happy for the two younger teens.

“That’s awesome! You know it’s great to have another female Beta, I was beginning to worry I’d stay outnumbered forever,” you joke, squirming when Isaac lightly pokes you in the side and Liam jokingly glares.

“We’ll leave you two alone, but don’t stay up too late,” you say, pointing between the two as Liam groans.

“Yes, Mom,” he grumbles.

“Love you, Liam,” you say as Liam rolls his eyes before softening.

“Love you too.”

Deciding to leave Liam and Hayden alone, you make your way up to your room with Isaac, the two of you instantly curling up on your bed together, your head resting on his chest as he pulls you close.

“This is nice,” Isaac admits quietly, his hand drifting up and down your back as you hum contentedly.

“I feel like I can finally breathe after everything that happened,” you murmur, your eyes slipping shut at Isaac’s soothing motion.

“It’ll be nice to go back to normal. At least until the next supernatural problem.”

“Please don’t tempt fate. I wanna get through my senior year with as few issues as possible,” you grumble, opening your eyes and lifting your head to look at Isaac.

“I’m not tempting anything, it just seems to happen,” Isaac says with a soft laugh as you roll your eyes.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” you mumble, pressing a soft kiss to Isaac’s lips, something he reciprocates quickly.

“If being cute gets me kissed, you won’t catch me complaining,” Isaac says as you pull away.

The two of you spend the evening cuddling and kissing until you fall asleep in each other’s arms, a sense of relief you hadn’t felt in a while settling over you.

The next morning, you both begrudgingly get up and ready for school, heading to school with Liam and Hayden in the backseats. At first, you had expected Liam to complain about being delegated to the backseat, but he was more than happy to be sitting in the backseat with Hayden, the two engrossed in each other’s presence and barely giving you a second thought.

When the four of you arrived at school, you bid goodbye to Liam and Hayden as you all went your separate ways to begin the school day. Unbeknownst to you and Isaac, as you walked down the hallway hand in hand, you were being watched by the rest of the pack who couldn’t stop smiling.

“What? What are you all smiling at?” Stiles asks, his back to you, making him unaware of the progression with you and Isaac’s relationship.

“Behind you,” Lydia mouths, looking pointedly over his shoulder as Stiles finally turns around, his eyes widening when he sees you and Isaac kissing.

“Wha- when did that-”

“Yesterday, after everything went down with the Beast, Isaac finally ‘fessed up,” Scott says, folding his arms across his chest with a smile.

“The one time I’m not there and they finally kiss? Does Isaac really not have a sense of timing?” Stiles complains, gesturing over to the two of you, blissfully unaware of Stiles’ rant.

When the pack meets up in the library at lunch, it was relieving to talk about school and life instead of researching some historical werewolf. You loved moments when you got to feel like a normal kid again, even if it meant dealing with your friends joking about you and Isaac’s newfound relationship.

By the end of lunch period, everyone but you and Isaac cleared out of the library. You both stayed because you had a free period, and you wanted to talk about colleges with Isaac, finally ready to take the leap. You were aware of the closing window you had to apply, and you were finally able to accept that Liam would be okay in your absence; he had Hayden, and he had Mason. He was going to be just fine.

Just before you and Isaac looked at anything, you found yourself drawn to the shelf you and the others had signed the night of senior scribe, and you carefully removed the books, a soft smile on your face as you regarded all the initials while Isaac approached you.

“You know, the night we did this, I saw how you looked at Allison’s initials, and I thought there was no way you’d like me in the same way you loved her. I let my feelings get the better of me, and that drove me right into Theo.”

“Hey, you don’t need to worry about that. I did love Allison, you’re right, but I also love you,” Isaac says softly, making you look at him with a soft smile.

“I love you too,” you say quietly, pressing a soft kiss to Isaac’s lips before focusing back on the initials, Isaac wrapping an arm around your middle as you lift a hand to ghost your finger along Allison’s initials.

“I’d love to hear about Allison someday. She meant a lot to you, so I want to help keep her memory alive,” you then say, looking at Isaac, who nods, pressing a soft kiss to the top of your head.

“I’ll tell you some stuff someday. But I can say wholeheartedly that she would’ve loved you,” Isaac says, helping you put the books back on the shelf before you head to a free table to start your college research.

It had been a long and rough beginning to your senior year, but it made you more confident. You knew you had your pack beside you, and it helped you and Isaac finally confess your feelings for each other. You knew you were ready for the next step in your life. You’d be okay.