Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Scott McCall remembered the first time he saw him. They were at the Beacon Hills Train Station, waiting for the 8 o'clock train to finally come around. It never comes around at 8. It was always late.

To Scott, he was like Prince Charming. Every kid grew up hearing stories of Prince Charmings and the princesses that they'd fall in love with and sweep off their feet. But you don't hear a lot about Prince Charming finding a Prince Charming of his own. Not that Scott believed he was charming in any way. He was well aware of how pathetically single and not-charming he was. In fact, he was the opposite of Prince Charming. Charming had it all: unmatched wealth, a loving family, a sea of friends and admirers, and his one true love.

Scott had no boyfriend, only friendly acquaintances, barely enough money for his rent, and no family. His mother had died from cancer right after he turned eighteen and moved to the city, and his dad was a good-for-nothing drunk who would only call Scott up to borrow money that Scott could barely even spare. Scott was probably the loneliest guy this half of Beacon Hills.

But that was until he met him. It was the him he read about in fairy tales. The him that made you believe in love at first sight and, boy, did Scott love that sight. He was tall, he looked to have a bit of a slim build with a smattering of moles spread all across his face which had the softest looking skin, complete with soulful amber-colored eyes. And he had what looked to be the most delectable and plushy, pink lips that Scott had ever seen. But Scott never dared to talk to him. That would be crazy. He could only watch as his One True Love would get on the train every day with his usual morning coffee.

And it stayed that way for almost four months. Scott would stare at him from afar, trying his best to be subtle, all the while picking up on a few of the young man's little quirks. The guy had the most infectious laugh, noting how it made his cute button nose scrunch up in joy. He would always trip slightly over his own shoes, as if he still hadn't learned how to walk properly. And he'd bounce his foot up and down like he was a ball of energy that needed to channel it into an outlet. It was endearing to Scott and only made him love him more. He was perfectly imperfect and Scott was so gone.

Just a few more steps (it was actually ten yards to be exact) and Scott would feel those beautiful lips against his, break the curse of the Evil Queen, and get married in the middle of an enchanted forest, surrounded by cartoon birds and chipmunks while Julie Andrews sang in the background.

And they all lived happily ever after...

Sadly, that was the end of the story and there was no happy ending, because in the end, it was all a fantasy. One of these days, Scott would work up the courage to talk to him. Even just a simple "good morning" between friendly strangers. And who was Scott even kidding? He didn't know if the man was even even into guys, and if he were, Scott was last person he would ever consider dating. A guy like that doesn't date guys like him.

However, it just so happens that on this particular mid-December day, fate would finally intervene and Scott's life would be turned upside down. It was just Scott and Prince Charming, braving the cold winter air. Charming had gotten there first, and Scott walked up slowly, hesitant, contemplating if he should go for his usual spot ten yards away or take the plunge and just walk up just a few feet away from him (because any closer would seem really creepy) and finally talk to him. A "hello" or a "good morning" or even a "what's up?" was all Scott needed to break the ice.

"Will you marry me?" Scott whispered. That might seem a little more forward than a "what's up".

As he was stuck in his internal dilemma, Scott hadn't notice the group of guys surrounding his future husband or the altercation that followed. They were arguing about something, one of the guys was pulling on something that Charming was tugging back. Might have been a wallet or something valuable. Whatever the reason, the argument got physical enough that the young man was tumbling backwards onto the train track and holy shit—that just happened. The thugs were frantically getting away, while Scott saw the whole thing from a distance.

Scott's body was on autopilot and without even thinking, his feet were moving before his brain could even process the situation. Somehow, Scott was on the train tracks as well and staring down at the limp, motionless body of the future father of his adopted children.

"Oh, my God. Sir?" Scott squeaked. "Hello? Are you okay?"

He figured he wasn't going to get a response. It looked like he may have landed on his head and was off in La La Land. He leaned forward to make sure he was still breathing.

"Wow, you smell amazing," Scott sighed before mentally hitting himself in the head. "Shit! Focus!" Scott wrapped his arms around the man. "Wow, you're really built—Damn it! Stop it!"

To make matters even worse, Scott could hear the train quickly approaching. And what the actual fuck? Since when did the 8 o'clock train come by at 8 o'clock? That's so rude.

Scott could feel the rails rumbling beneath them and he knew he had a limited window. He tried his hardest to pick the man up, but to no avail. The guy was a lot heavier than he looked. All that weight must have been pure muscle. Either that or Scott was just way out of shape. Probably both. Very likely both.

The train was getting closer and closer and Scott knew they were screwed. They were going to be flattened like flapjacks and Scott could say goodbye to his happily ever after, because they would both be dead. Where in the fairy tales does it say that the protagonists die in the end? All of them actually, but Scott preferred the Disney versions. He frantically looked in all directions, for a device that could help him or someone who could assist him, and then his eyes fell on a little opening space by the side of the tracks and with only minutes, maybe seconds left, Scott was able to work up enough momentum to roll both of their bodies off the tracks and into the opening just in time to avoid becoming a tragic story on the 10 o'clock news.

After that, life was passing Scott by in a fuzzy haze and the only thing clear in his mind was the man of his dreams. One second he was lying underneath a beautiful, unconscious man and the next, he was being hauled off into the back of an ambulance, being looked over by the paramedic and then riding along with the his Prince Charming to the hospital.

He had managed to get a glimpse of his I.D. from one of the paramedics trying to get his name and what in the hell?—Was that even a name? Mickel-speckle-zykle-slaw? Michelangelo-zises-shawl? Macklemore-zackle-stein? Was there any reason why this man shared his name with a Superman villain? Poor guy. Even the paramedic had scrunched his face up in disbelief. For now, he was going to refer to the man by his last name, Stilinski. Sounded familiar. It seemed very European. Like Russian or Polish.

But it didn't matter to Scott what the man's name was, he was Scott's entire world right now and Scott wanted to be there for him. Not surprisingly, by the time they got to the hospital and they were hauling him off into the emergency room, Scott was being blocked by one of the nurses.

"Are you family?" asked the redheaded nurse. "Jennifer" as it reads on her name tag.

Crap. Scott was so focused on Stilinski's condition that he hadn't even come up with a good lie as to why he should be with him. And he was a terrible liar.

"Well, uhm, not really, but—"

"Family only."

"N-no, wait, you don't understand! I was—"

"I'm sorry, but family only. You need to wait over there in the waiting room."

Scott's heart felt like it was being put through a blender, puréed-style. His chest hurt as he watched the nurse disappear between the double doors, leaving Scott to stand there, alone and sad, two adjectives that accurately described Scott McCall.

"But I was going to marry him..." he whispered sadly to no one in particular. Unbeknownst to him, one of the doctors had been signing off some papers with one of the nurses and he overheard Scott. He stared at him with sympathetic eyes before disappearing into the double doors with the rest of the doctors.

Scott decided that he would stick around the hospital, walking around the waiting area, getting himself some coffee and deciding between a Twinkie and a Cinna-bun from the vending machine. After waiting for what felt like hours, one of the doctors had come out and spotted him.

"Hi," the doctor had greeted kindly. His name tag read "Geyer". "What's your name?"

"Scott," Scott answered, curious.

Dr. Geyer motioned for Scott to come with him and soon he was seeing the love of his life once again. Only this time, he was unconscious—sleeping, it almost looked like—and hooked up to a bunch of beeping machines. Prince Charming was now Sleeping Beauty.

"Talk to him, let him hear your voice," Dr. Geyer suggested before leaving Scott to have some privacy. It was awfully kind of him to go through this trouble and Scott would have to thank him later for it.

Scott got closer toward Stilinski's bedside, leaning over slightly to study the serene look on his face. If he wasn't in a coma, this would almost be a beautiful sight. Scott wondered if this was how he looked like when he was actually asleep. He imagined waking up to see his beautiful face every morning and they'd be happy and he'd be happy.

Scott could feel his eyes welling up slightly, because now everything was so fucked and he wasn't even sure where to begin.

"Uh, hello... Good morning... What's up?" Scott may be a little late with the ice breakers. It figures, the one time Scott actually worked up the courage to talk to a handsome guy like this, the guy would be in a coma. But at the very least, he was alive and unconscious rather than dead and splattered across the Beacon Hills train tracks. And that was because of Scott and Scott should feel proud of himself. He did the right thing.

But even that wasn't enough to quell the ache in his chest. Because soon, he would wake up and he won't even know who Scott was or have any recollection of the incident because he wasn't even awake. All he would have to go by was what people would tell him and the best he would get was a grateful thank you. Not that Scott was entitled to more or anything, but it still didn't stop Scott from feeling even sadder that all of this would be ending soon.

"You're beautiful and I love you," Scott said finally. "I don't even know you. I can't even pronounce your first name. But I'm love with you. I love you so much."

That was probably a little excessive, but Scott's "hopeless romantic" goggles were on and that was a dangerous thing. "I'm Scott, by the way. God, I can't believe I told you I love you and I hadn't even told you my name! Jeez, I'm so pathetic. You're lucky you're unconscious for all of this because I'm a fucking mess!"

Scott's rambling was cut short by the sound of two police officers walking in. Oh, shit, they were coming to arrest Scott for sneaking into Stilinski's room and telling him he loved him. This had to have been some form of verbal sexual assault. Scott can't believe he love-raped a guy just now!

"Are you the one that saved this man's life?" one of the officers, Parrish was his name, had asked. He seemed unusually distressed for a cop in this situation.

"Better than that, he's his fiancé," said Jennifer the nurse. Dr. Geyer must have said something to her because there's no way she'd know that Scott was Stilinski's—Wait, whaaaaat?

"I'm sorry. What?" Scott asked, perplexed. "Wait a second, you've got it—"

Scott wasn't able to finish his sentence because the officer was enveloping him in a tight hug and, Jesus, the man's body was made of solid marble. This was rather unprofessional for a cop, to be quite honest.

"Thank you," Parrish said, "Thank you so much. You have no idea how amazing you are!"

The other officer, a woman named Clarke, also gave him a hug. "The entire sheriff's station is really grateful for this."

Did Scott just rescue a Polish king or something? What was going on?

"I can't believe Stiles is engaged already! He's growing up so fast! I'm so happy for you guys!"

"Stiles ..." Scott repeated in a low voice. It fit him so well.

Clarke gave him a warm smile. "You look so in love."

Scott snapped out of his dreamy thoughts because these officers really believed Scott was Stiles' fiancé. He opened his mouth to clarify that he and Stiles weren't engaged or even together, and that Scott was just some creepy loser who was at the right place at the right time, but before he could, the doors burst open and all hell broke loose.

It was like Stiles' entire family was piling through the doors, squawking and moaning and talking over each other.

"I can't believe it!"

"He looks pale!"

"How could this happen? It's almost Christmas!"

"Poor Stiles! I hope he didn't get me for Secret Santa."

"Real nice, Malia!"

"I told him riding the train was dangerous, but he never listens to me!"

Just then, through the chaos, an older man in a police uniform came through the doors. It was the sheriff, Scott recognized, and shit—Now Scott remembered where he had heard the name Stilinski before. He just saved Sheriff Stilinski's son! The man looked horribly distressed, understandable since his son was in a freakin' coma.

"Oh, my God, Stiles!" the sheriff cried as he rushed to his side.

"Noah, please, your heart," one of the family members, an older woman had said with concern in her voice. Scott had guessed she was Stiles' mother and the sheriff's wife. He could see the man rubbing at his chest, but the love for his son was more important than his beating heart.

And this seemed like it was Scott's cue to make his exit and to give the family some privacy. Unfortunately for him, just his luck, one of the family members, that girl Malia, had noticed him.

"Who's he?" she asked, pointing him out.

All eyes were on him now and Scott suddenly wished he could go back to being invisible again.

"That's Stiles' fiancé," Clarke explained with a proud smile.

Oh, no.

Not surprisingly, everyone went crazy. They were yelling over each other about Stiles' getting engaged without telling anyone and some were questioning when Stiles started liking guys. Scott didn't know what else to do but stay frozen in place. And maybe a lot of that had to do with the two cops that were blocking the entrance. He was so royally screwed. This was so bad. So very, very bad.

"Uh, I-I'm just g-gonna go now..." Scott took baby steps toward the exit, trying to find a way to get past the two cops, before Deputy Parrish stepped forward and placed a muscular arm around Scott's shoulders.

"And that's not all! He also saved Stiles' life!" he declared proudly, "He's a hero!"

And that did not seem to quiet down the family at all. Instead, it seemed to have had the opposite effect. Everyone was hollering even louder and Scott was trying his best to sink into Parrish's side, making himself as small and unnoticeable as possible. That was hard to do with this bunch because Scott McCall was the main attraction tonight. This was so unfamiliar to Scott that he felt like he might have an anxiety attack any second now.

"Everyone, I really have to insist—family only!" said a female doctor, Hilliard, who had walked in during all the commotion.

"We are family! And so is he!" One of the family members pointed directly at Scott, who was still trying to huddle away, head hung down and anxious.

"Stop it, girls! Can't you see you're making him nervous?"

"He must be terrified with this bunch."

"I can't believe Stiles didn't tell us about you!"

"Since when is he into guys anyway?"

"The gay's real strong with this family."

"Nice, Laura."

"I thought he was dating that Lydia chick?"

"He was dating someone?"

"He never tells us anything about his love life, apparently."

Before long, Scott was being dragged out of the room and back to the waiting area where everyone introduced themselves. There was the sheriff, Noah, and his wife Talia Hale-Stilinski. Apparently, they were both widowed and the rest of the kids were all of Stiles' step-siblings. There was Laura, the oldest, and her girlfriend Braeden. There was the youngest, Cora, and their cousin Malia and her father Peter, Talia's brother. And there was a third sibling, Derek, the middle child, who was not present currently. All of this was incredibly overwhelming that Scott was barely even given a chance to explain the entire situation.

"I... really, I mean... I just—"

However, they were all lost in their own side conversations.

"I wonder why Stiles never mentioned him," the sheriff had asked of his wife.

"Maybe he was worried about telling us that he was marrying a man."

Laura rolled her eyes. "Why would he be worried when he's got two gay siblings?"

"And a bisexual cousin, thank you!" Malia added.

"Derek probably knows about it," Talia insisted. "He and Stiles were always close."

"Close? They fought all the time!" Laura interjected.

"But deep down, they cared about each other!" Talia argued. "I'm sure if anyone knows about this, it'd be Derek."

And that was all the incentive Scott needed to avoid this Derek guy as much as possible. Actually, he really shouldn't even be here. He really needed to tell them the truth.

Fate, however, had other ideas. As soon as Scott was about to tell them what was really going on, the sheriff winced and clutched at his chest.

"Damn it, it's acting up again," he huffed out. "I'm fine, Talia. I swear."

Talia rubbed soothing circles around his back, her hand firm on his lap. She turned to Scott with a sad smile. "He has a weak heart."

He has a weak heart. Of course he does.

"It's just the stress of all this mess. It's got nothing to do with you, son." There was a small tug in Scott's chest about being called 'son' by the sheriff. Like he felt like he was part of the family. Except that he wasn't. He's just a stranger that inserted himself into their lives unjustifiably. Just because he saved his son's life, that doesn't mean he could lie to them just like that.

"I'm actually really happy you're here," Noah smiled at him. "It's some good news on a sad day."

This was fantastic. Scott saved Stiles' life and now he was going to give his father a heart attack. Why was the universe doing this to him? Was this a sign that Scott can never have anything that he wants? He just wanted to meet the guy, talk to him, have a pleasant conversation. He didn't want to become engaged and already put on the Christmas card after exchanging zero words with him except for the ones that fell on deaf ears because Stiles was in a freaking coma! And the worst part was that it was all fake! Scott was fake engaged to a guy he's never talked to, who has a family that's so nice and at the same time, looked very intimidating. They could beat Scott to a pulp if they wanted to. And when they find out he lied, they are going to.

"I-I can go if you want me to," Scott offered. "I don't want to intrude on you guys."

"Absolutely not," said Talia, "You stay here with us. We owe you a lot. Everything, in fact."

"And besides what kind of parents would we be if we let our youngest kid's fiancé spend the holiday season alone?" said Noah.

Everything pretty much segued from there. Scott was forced to sit through the next couple of hours, drinking coffee and eating Cinna-buns and trying to answer the many questions the family had about his and Stiles' engagement.

"So, how did you and Stiles meet?" Talia asked nicely, sipping her coffee.

"Uh..."

"Mom!" Laura hissed, "He probably doesn't even want to talk about it right now."

"Why not?" Cora interjected. "We could all use a nice story right now. And I wanna know how this happened."

Again they were bickering, but only for a short while until all eyes were back on Scott, staring at him expectantly.

"Uhm..."

"I bet it was love at first sight," Braeden suggested. "You seem like the type who falls in love real fast."

She hit the nail on the head. And he must've given something away with a bashful smile or whatever, because they were all making noises of approval. There was no scenario in which Scott could make it out of this situation alive. As soon as the truth came out, he was going to die.

"What did you first notice about him?"

Scott thought about the first time he had ever laid his eyes on Stiles. Scott had been shoved around a lot, through the hustle and bustle of the roaring crowd and that's when he made eye contact with him. Stiles Stilinski. It was like a comic book character name, but he wasn't Batman. He was real. His alluring eyes and smile were real.

"His eyes," Scott uttered out without realizing it, "And his smile."

He had the attention of everyone in the room and it was still all so disconcerting. He figured it was probably best to keep up the ruse until everyone's settled down. Everyone was on edge at the moment, considering their beloved son and brother was in a coma right now. Plus, being as honest as possible would help clear his conscience over lying about being their comatose son's fake fiancé.

"We were at the train station one morning, waiting for the 8 o'clock train, and it was really crowded that day but I saw him for like five seconds and I just wanted to talk to him..." Scott didn't know who was speaking right now. This was certainly, most definitely, not Scott McCall talking. Scott McCall doesn't do big crowds. Scott McCall was invisible. Scott McCall never held anyone's attention or got the sweet looks that he was getting. This was Bizzaro Scott and he was in Bizzaro World, where he was cool, loved, and wanted.

"And?" Talia pressed, a big smile on her face. Noah and the rest of the Hale-Stilinski kids were also listening with rapt attention.

"And..." Scott shrugged, "... and I knew my life would never be the same."

There was a series of 'awws' that followed.

"That's cheesy," Uncle Peter mumbled with a roll of his eyes, earning an elbow to the ribs from his sister.

At some point, Scott finally managed to sneak away from the Hale-Stilinski family, but only after giving his contact information to Noah and Talia, with the promise that he'd be by their house some time during the week for dinner and to help finish decorating their house. Scott waved them goodbye and finally left the hospital. He waited patiently for the cab that the sheriff had called (which he insisted on giving him cab fare) so he could be driven to the train station and get home safely, and that was when he finally let out the long, deep breath that he had been holding in.

He felt like crying because everything was a mess now. Everyone was so nice to Scott that it really felt like he had a family again. And Talia was so incredibly sweet to him, reminding him so much of the loving and caring person that his mother once was. He wanted to call them, go to dinner, have fun with the entire family. But this wasn't his family, this was his fiancé's family. The fiancé that wasn't really his fiancé and this was all so confusing and messy and Scott wasn't even sure how he was going to handle all of this.

And then there was the issue with this Derek person. He was reason enough to stay far away from this family. From the way they described him, he sounded big and scary and he and Stiles were very much brothers in every sense except blood-related. Once Derek reveals that he's never heard of Scott, the entire family are going to turn around on him and put him in a hospital bed next to Stiles. Or far away from Stiles because Scott was nothing more than a sick stalker that took advantage of his family. Oh, this is the absolute worst. He was so screwed.

It was late at night and Scott decided to take the train again to the hospital. He shouldn't have, but he just couldn't keep away. And it wasn't like if Scott stayed at home and cut himself off from the world, that everything would just be forgotten. He bet Stiles wasn't the type of guy to just ignore his problems until they just went away. He needed to fix this.

The doctors and nurses let him see Stiles this time, now knowing the situation. The situation that wasn't actually real. He wondered if he could go to jail for fiancé fraud.

"Hi," Scott said softly, looming over Stiles' sleeping form. He was so magical. There was no way a guy like him would ever give a guy like Scott the time of day. "I bet you're wondering what I'm doing here in the middle of the night. I thought I should introduce myself. I'm Scott... Scott Andrew McCall. I think you should know, you're family thinks we're engaged. I've never been engaged before, so this is all very sudden for me. God, I can't believe this. I swear I didn't mean for this to happen. I just... I just wanted to meet you. Say 'hi'. That's all. I didn't mean for us to get engaged, it just happened." Scott smacked himself in the head. "We're not engaged. You don't know me. When you wake up, everyone will know the truth and they're gonna hate me. I don't want them to hate me. I just ..."

Scott took a moment to compose himself and then sighed. He missed his mother so much. She was the last bit of family he had. Not counting his dad, obviously. It was so unfair. He wondered what he did in a past life to deserve having to be put through all of this.

"I don't know what to do now. I mean, if you were awake, I wouldn't be in this mess. N-not that I'm blaming you for this, because you're in a coma." Scott shook his head. Here he was, pining over a guy he doesn't even know, who's unconscious, and whose family thinks he's engaged to him. And now he's talking to him, spilling his secrets as if he would respond back or hold him and tell him that everything was going to be okay. How was this his life? "You know, when I was younger, my mom always told me that I'd find somebody. That when I'd find the right somebody, I would just know. I asked if there was a way I could find that somebody fast and she told me that life doesn't work that way. That when you try real hard to find the right person, that life finds a way of taking a left turn. I think this might have been what she meant."

The machines continued to beep minutely, a soft tune in Scott's ears. What was he doing here? He shouldn't be here. He stayed for a couple more minutes before getting up and heading out, but not before giving Stiles' hand a small, affectionate squeeze.

"I love you," Scott whispered, and he knew it was wrong. "We would've had a beautiful life together."

By the time he got to the elevator, head hung down solemnly, the sun had risen, and he almost made it out of there alive until one of the nurses rushed over to him with a box full of stuff. "Mr. Stilinski, sir! Excuse me, I'm so happy I caught you. I have your husband's things."

It was either let the box fall to the ground or accept the box, so he grabbed it and with a big sigh, he mumbled, "I'm not his husband."

Just then the elevator doors opened and Scott was ready to bolt out of there.

"Oh, that's right. You're Mr. Stilinski's fiancé. I forget. I'm so sorry."

Scott shook his head, exasperated, as the nurse waved goodbye and went on her way.

As she left, a very tall, handsome-looking man with curly, dirty-blonde hair strolled up to him, eyeballing him and having no regard for personal space. "Did she say you were Stiles' fiancé?"

Scott backed away slightly. He was never going to get out of this. "Okay..."

The man let out a belly laugh. "Holy shit. That's insane. I'm Isaac Lahey. I work with his brother Derek. I had no clue he was getting hitched. I swear, Derek doesn't ever tell me anything good. And I didn't even know he was into dudes. I thought he was still dating that Lydia girl."

Scott had to find a way to escape. Escape from this nutcase and escape from Stiles' life.

"Has he mentioned me at all? You know he's had a tough year with the accident last month."

"Accident?"

Isaac narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, accident. It was an accident... Did he tell you it was my fault?" He seemed so offended and Scott had a bad feeling that he was about to find out why. "We were shooting hoops. I keep a pencil in my shorts. I'm a cop. I give out tickets. Man, I can't believe he'd... Ugh..."

And then he went into more detail and Scott was never going to forget this conversation or Isaac Lahey. He was scarred for life now and that was more information about Stiles than he needed to know. Some things were better left unsaid.

"Sounds like you've found yourself in quite the predicament."

Alan Deaton, the local veterinarian and Scott's boss, was probably the closest to a father figure that Scott had. Probably the closest thing to a family member in general since his mom died.

"I don't know what to do. His dad has a heart problem! If I tell him the truth, he's gonna have a heart attack and then he'll die and it'll be all my fault. Why couldn't I just say something? Why did I have to be so stupid?"

Deaton let out a chuckle. He finished wrapping the gauze around a scruffy Yorkie named Bullet and asked Scott to hand him the adhesive.

"Maybe you should go along with it, then?" the vet suggested.

"Go along with it?" Scott exclaimed. "That's a terrible idea."

"Yes, go along with it. And when Mr. Stilinski comes out of his coma, the family will be so happy they won't care that you lied to them. They'll probably even thank you for it."

Scott grunted in frustration. "This is the worst advice you've ever given me."

"Scott, when my mother found out I was getting married to my wife, her intestines exploded." Scott's face grew pale. "Now if you tell them the truth right now, you might as well shoot the sheriff."

Scott buried his hands in his face. This was not happening. His boss, the man he looked up to, was honestly telling him to keep up with the ruse. This was the worst idea ever and he honestly had no one to blame but himself for this mess.

"What am I going to do about the dinner and the decorating and the...—Oh my God! They've been calling me all day, asking me when I'm going to come over."

Deaton walked out of the room for a quick second to return the dog to her owner before walking back in. "Well, what do you want to do?"

That was a loaded question. Scott wasn't even sure what he wanted. He wanted to do the right thing, to tell the truth and hope for the best that he walks away without the need to replace his organs. But on the other hand, he really loved being around them. The rambunctious noises, the way they touched him, held his hand, hugged him. This was what family felt like.

Deaton hummed knowingly. "I think you've already made up your mind."

They didn't talk about it after that. Scott went through the entire day fighting with himself. His mind kept telling him to stop all of this, to not go and to tell them the truth. But his heart was fighting a pretty damn good battle. That warm feeling in the pit of his stomach. He wanted that feeling again. As the day wound down and the night sky was beginning to come around, Scott had pretty much made up his mind to go over to the Hale-Stilinski household. He put on his best jeans and his nicest sweater and made the journey over to the other side of town.

When he arrived, he was left in awe at the house. It looked very much like the picturesque scene you'd see on a Christmas card or in a feel-good holiday movie. There were colorful Christmas lights strewn across the roof and support beams, a light-up Santa's sleigh on the roof that looked worn from years of use, and there was snow on the ground. It hasn't snowed in Beacon Hills since the 80s. But this year was different. It was going to be a white Christmas for everyone. As soon as he saw it and how real it was, he questioned himself again what he was even doing there.

He was getting ready to leave until he heard his name being called out.

"Scott! You made it!" Talia and Braeden were walking arm in arm.

Scott waved nervously. "Hi. Uhm, yeah. I just... I just decided, why not?"

There were many reasons why not, scumbag.

"How are you feeling, sweetie? I know things must be hard for you right now."

Guilt suddenly filled him. As much as he was pining for Stiles, they didn't actually have a relationship. He hasn't put in the work that these people have. They had actual love for him. Scott was just a fantasy. Everyone should be worried over their beloved son and brother in the hospital, but they're not because of a false pretense that Scott was feeding them. He was truly an awful person for this.

"I'm okay. There's no need to worry about me. Really, it's you guys I'm worried about."

"You're so sweet," Talia said warmly, "I'm so happy Stiles has you in his life."

Scott really hoped he kept a straight face because he felt like he might cringe uncomfortably.

"And don't worry about us. I've known Stiles since he was nine-years-old. That boy was a tornado of accidents. If anyone can get up and dust himself off, it's him."

Scott couldn't help but smile as Talia and Braeden slid to both of his sides and locked their arms around his. "Keep us company. Braeden and I were just turning on the lights and we decided to enjoy the nighttime together."

"Beautiful isn't it?" Braeden added. "It took me a while, but I got them just right."

"You did the lights?"

"Well, Derek's the one who does the lights, but he's off doing his own thing... again," Talia sounded very unimpressed. "But Braeden doesn't need a man to do the work for her. Isn't that right?"

Braeden responded with a smug smile as they made their way to the porch. They took a seat by the steps.

"It's beautiful," Scott said finally, hoping to break the silence.

"It is," Braeden concurred. "We're all really happy you showed up."

Talia nodded her head in agreement. "Having you here really helps fill the void that Stiles usually occupies. Braeden and I agree, having you here is like having the entire family with us."

Scott swallowed thickly. "Family is important."

"Yes, it is. Do your parents live around here?"

Scott sighed. Not sure what to say. The truth might have been good. He really should go back to doing that sort of thing. "No, my mom was diagnosed with cancer and, uhm, I had to drop out of school to help her out. She was doing fine until a couple years ago, she fell ill again and then she passed."

Braeden gave his hand a comforting squeeze.

"What about your father?" Talia asked.

Scott let out a small, bitter laugh. "My dad and I don't talk at all. He's got his own family in San Francisco. We're... we're not close."

Talia hummed in understanding. "Braeden here was put up for adoption when she was really little. Passed around from foster home to foster home."

"Until I turned eighteen and they kicked me out," Braeden added, "Talia was actually the one who helped me when I couldn't find a place to stay."

Scott nodded his head, feeling moved by the tale.

"Before I met Noah, I was married to my husband, Eric, but he died after the house caught fire," said Talia.

"Wow, I'm so sorry."

"Oh, it was a long time ago. Almost 15 years. And Noah, he lost his wife to frontotemporal dementia. It was pretty hard on both of them, especially Stiles. He loved her so much and to see her in that condition was just heartbreaking."

Scott's heart was hurting for Stiles and he's barely known him for two days.

"Thank you for being there for him. It really means a lot," she added and it was like the hardest punch in the gut.

Even worse, it was like being stabbed in the stomach having salt and lemon juice and alcohol sprayed all over it and then getting shot in that same place. Everything that Talia was telling, it was like Scott would never be worthy of knowing such intimate details of the Hale-Stilinski family. This family had been through so much and they're about to go through so much more once Scott is found out. There was no way Scott was going to come out of this squeaky clean.

After a little while, the three retired back into the house. Scott's memories of Christmas were never as happy as the other kids. He mostly remembers his parents arguing, his dad drunkenly saying horrible shit to a young, baby-faced Scott, and him getting only hand-me down clothes instead of the latest Power Rangers action figures or the newest Pokémon cards. But this house was so much different from what he's used to. It was the Christmas you saw in movies. Decorations were everywhere, Christmas music was playing in the background, and the only arguing going on were playful spats between siblings rather than the angry, drunken insults that Scott was used to hearing.

"Scott!" the boisterous family all yelled at once.

"Come help us with the decorations!" Cora offered.

"Yeah, we're still trimming the tree," Malia added.

And soon, Scott was being sucked into the Hale-Stilinski family festivities as if he had always been there. There was something about the Hale-Stilinskis that made a person feel like they were part of the family. Actually, to them, he was family.

The food was great. Talia, Laura, and Braeden were an amazing team of cooks. Sheriff Stilinski grumbled at having to skip out on the honey glazed ham in favor of the steamed vegetables. Malia and Cora dragged Scott into a competitive game of charades. He was shoved into every family photo opportunity. And somehow, they already had a colorful stocking with his name on it hung up by the fireplace. It wasn't even Christmas yet and it was probably the best Christmas he'd ever had.

When it was getting late and came time for Scott to say his goodbyes, they had refused it. They offered to let him sleep at the house tonight, saying that it was too late for Scott to go out by himself and he had drank so much of Uncle Peter's special eggnog that he would've probably gotten lost along the way. So, Scott stayed for a little while longer until he passed out on the couch, with Talia draping a warm Christmas blanket over him and pressing a motherly kiss to his forehead.

"Goodnight, sweetheart," she whispered softly.

Across town, at Scott's apartment, inside the box of Stiles' possessions that the nurse had given Scott, Stiles' phone was ringing, Wham's iconic Christmas classic, "Last Christmas" was playing. After a short while, it went straight to voicemail.

"Yo, you've reached Stiles Stilinski, the coolest cat in Beacon Hills. Leave a message."

"Hey, it's Lydia. Sorry, I haven't called in a while. New York's been fantastic, but I'm cutting my trip short. Stiles, I've been doing a lot of thinking and I thought... Oh, what the hell. I love you, Stiles, and nothing would make me happier than being your wife."

Chapter Text

It was the middle of the night, probably way past that, when Derek Hale finally walked through the door. The welcoming scent of fresh evergreen mixed with the milky-eggy-alcoholic tang of eggnog and cooled sugar cookies had filled his nose, smelling like old Christmas. He had gone by the hospital to see Stiles and decided to finally make an appearance at the Hale-Stilinski household, being careful to be as quiet as possible. He toed off his snow boots, unwrapped the scarf around his neck, and shucked off his winter coat before looking around the living room for any sign of life until his eyes fell on a lump on the couch.

"You are a piece of work, Derek Hale," came a familiar voice, causing Derek to almost jump out of his skin. "Remind me again why I dated you?"

With a knowing smirk, Derek turned his attention to Braeden, who was sitting a few steps above the staircase. "To date my sister."

Braeden let out a snort and got up to give him a hug.

"Is everyone asleep?" Derek asked, returning the hug.

"I think Cora and Malia are having a late-night Ryan Reynolds movie marathon in Cora's room. Come on. We don't wanna wake up Scott."

Derek scrunched his face in confusion, looking back at the sleeping figure on the couch before Braeden dragged him off to the kitchen for some late night snacks. "Who's Scott?"

"Stiles' fiancé," Braeden replied slowly, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

To say Derek was surprised was an understatement. He was flabbergasted, gob smacked, and any other silly-sounding words that associated themselves with shock. Derek put down the coffee Braeden had handed him and eyeballed her. "I don't think I heard you right. Who the hell is Scott again?"

Braeden rolled her eyes, the only one that could rival the infamous Hale eye roll. "He's Stiles' fiancé. You haven't met Scott yet? We figured you would've."

"No, I haven't met Scott yet!" Derek snapped, "Stiles doesn't have a fiancé! He would've told me about it."

Derek bit the head off a Santa cookie a lot rougher than he intended, and then the arm. There was something funny going on and it was most definitely not Uncle Peter's eggnog.

"And when the hell did Stiles start dating guys?"

Braeden gave him a look, the same look he's gotten to know all too well. "Considering the environment he grew up in?" she retorted sarcastically, gesturing to both him and herself.

"Considering the environment he grew up in, you'd think he'd be a little more open about his sexuality," Derek shot back, shoving the rest of his Santa cookie into his mouth before starting on a Frosty the Snowman one. "And an engagement? That's a little fast, isn't it?"

But Braeden just shrugged. "Your mom got engaged to the sheriff pretty quickly."

"What about Lydia?"

"What about her?"

"Where the hell is she?"

"Who knows? Anyway, Scott's great. Everyone loves him and I'm sure once you meet him, you'll love him, too."

Derek wasn't convinced, however. He scarfed the rest of his cookie, took a big gulp of coffee and sat in silence as Braeden finished cleaning up in the kitchen, all the while chastising him for missing out on decorating and family dinner yet again.

After kissing each other goodnight, Derek wandered off to the main hall and sat halfway up the staircase where Braeden had been sitting. He and her were a lot alike in many ways: both were independent individuals, both famously hard-headed, and both really, really gay. That period of their lives where they tried really hard to be straight and date each other was nothing short of awkward, but Braeden was probably the closest Derek would ever get to being in love with a woman. And the same had gone for Braeden, who opted to date Derek's sister instead. Laura had mischievously whispered into his ear one day about how Braeden loved it three knuckles deep, even emphasizing with a hand gesture, and if there was any shred of heterosexuality left inside Derek, it evaporated after that comment.

He had been so lost in his thoughts, he hadn't even realized that the morning had finally come back and a handsome looking face with major bedhead wandered into the foyer, ready to sneak out as quietly as possible.

"Good morning."

Derek couldn't hide the smug, satisfied smirk on his face when this Scott person jumped in surprise. It reminded him of that time he scared those kids on Halloween. Terrified eyes looked up at him and Derek sucked in his breath, because he was face to face with the most beautiful man he'd ever seen. Big, brown puppy dog eyes, soft-looking black locks, flawless brown skin, and a crooked jaw that only seemed endearing to Derek. This guy was everything.

"Oh, uh, yeah. Hi... Good morning, Derek," Scott replied, clutching his coat tight into his chest. He seemed so shy and it was the most adorable thing.

Derek snapped out of his thoughts because now wasn't the time to have the hots for his brother's alleged fiancé. "That's funny. I don't remember meeting you," Derek stated, sounding a bit accusatory. He wanted to seem intimidating; to see what this guy was about.

Scott smiled, letting out a small chuckle and titling his head. It was an amazing smile, the kind that lit the sun. In fact, there was no need for the sun anymore, because now Scott's smile could be the sun for Derek. Or... Stiles.

"That's probably because we've never met," Scott retorted cheekily. He had sass. He was perfect.

Derek snorted "That might have something to do with it."

Silence fell between them, and suddenly things were awkward again. Scott's eyes were doing everything they could to avoid Derek's, but all Derek could do was memorize the details of his face. He had three prominent moles: one right on his lower left eyelid, another just below his right eye, and the last one on the left side of his lopsided jaw. And then there his lips. Those lips should be illegal.

Their uncomfortable silence was finally broken when a honk could be heard from outside. Scott hitched a thumb over his shoulder.

"That's the cab, I gotta go... I'm late for a thing... that I'm late for." A flustered Scott snapped his mouth shut, as if he was worried he'd say something he'd probably regret. "It was nice meeting you, Derek."

He was halfway out the door when Derek finally jumped from his spot on the stairs and ran after him. "Hey, Scott?"

Scott stopped dead in his tracks, looking back at him anxiously. "Alright, look. I know... I-I-I don't know if you'll understand what's... what's—"

He was stammering and Derek felt a little bad for him. Derek had intended to grill him even more about what the hell he was doing around his family, but all he could do was tell him a simple, "Welcome to the family."

Scott looked at him, confused, but nodded his head. "Thank you."

He waddled out of there as fast as he could, but not before Derek was able to get a quick glimpse of his ass along the way.

"Seriously, though, what do we know about this guy?" Derek whispered to his stepfather.

They were all at the church by his parents' house. Father Deucalion, or Father Duke as he was usually called, was conducting a lovely sermon, even giving a nice prayer for Stiles while he was in the hospital. Uncle Peter had his sunglasses on, still hungover, and trying his best to look like he was awake, except his light snoring kept giving himself away. Talia made it a point to nudge him in the ribs every time.

Sheriff Stilisnki let out a sigh. "He's your brother's fiancé."

Derek scoffed, not convinced. "You would think he'd have announced it in the Beacon Hills Express or something."

"Since when has Stiles ever cared about what goes on in the paper that he can't get from the police scanner that I keep taking away from him? Amen."

"So why did this Scott character sneak out this morning?" Derek questioned.

Talia rolled her eyes. "You're awfully inquisitive today. You don't even join us for dinner, but you throw around accusations at our newest addition to the family—Oh, Peter, will you wake up!" She let her brother have a nice, swift elbow on his side which woke him up and had him grumbling annoyingly.

"He has a job," the sheriff answered, "He told us he works at a veterinary clinic."

Derek huffed. "Couldn't get an actual medical degree?"

"Oh, be quiet, Derek." Talia scolded, now fully giving up on trying to make her brother an honest man. "He's a sweet, kind, caring person. Your brother is a lucky man."

"And that's another thing. How come Stiles has never told us about him being with a guy? Why is this the first time we're hearing of this?"

"Derek's right," Peter agreed, though Derek wasn't sure if he was happy with getting the endorsement from his flamboyant, alcoholic uncle. "I mean, Stiles has always been about girls, girls, girls. You'd have to plug a hole in the garbage disposal otherwise he'd stick his dick in it."

"Peter!"

"I'm just saying," her brother said with a shrug.

"Next time, we leave him at home," Laura whispered to her mother.

"I second that," Peter mumbled, before hanging his head and going back to sleep.

Talia let out a frustrated groan, eyes going all the way to the back of her head. Just once, she would love a normal family gathering. After Father Duke was finished with his first reading, Talia turned her head toward her middle child and whispered, "Oh, Derek, by the way, did you fill out the order for Mr. Stewart?"

"Got it."

"And what about the Yukimuras?"

"Got that, too."

"Mahealanis?"

"Did it last week."

"Good. You know, you would think being an officer of the law would help you more on the path of good, but I think working an honest job at the furniture company is a nice outlet for you."

"Makes you a lot less grumpy." Cora quipped, causing Derek to shoot her an annoyed look.

"No, I think what he needs is to get laid," Laura added helpfully as everyone in the church stood up, earning her mother's ire.

Worth it.

"Will you keep it down?" one of the church goers hissed.

"Ey, be nice, pal. We're in church," Sheriff Stilinski shot back.

"You're disrupting the service!"

"Who made you the Pope?"

"Will you please keep it down?" Talia admonished.

Everyone else kept quiet and returned their attention back to the sermon.

"You know, Father Duke and I used to smoke marijuana on the weekends," Uncle Peter remarked.

Talia let out another frustrated sigh as everyone sat back down.

Scott decided that he would look through Stiles' possessions, though he wasn't sure if he should. It seemed wrong to just invade someone's property the way he was, but then again he was already on the slow ride to hell after invading his family, so he figured that he might as well check Stiles' belongings since he was already in too deep.

It was mostly the usual things: a ring of keys, most likely to his apartment; a nice-looking wallet, an iPhone. Scott picked it up and swiped it with his thumb, but saw that it had a passcode, so Scott didn't bother with it. He opened up the wallet for a small peek. There were a few credit cards, a few bills in the slot, and in the middle were some photos of Stiles and his family. There were some of all the Hale-Stilinski siblings, together with big smiles on their faces, one of Noah and Talia, and another of a very young Stiles hugging a pretty, dark-haired woman. That must've been in his mom that passed away.

Seeing him with his mother reminded him of that common ground he and Stiles shared. They both lost someone they loved dearly and Scott felt like he was somewhat closer to him now. As if practically getting sucked into his family's crazy chaotic traditions wasn't close enough.

There was a crumpled brown paper bag at the bottom of the box, underneath his clothes and shoes. When Scott went to shake whatever contents out of the bag, a small can of Purina cat food fell on his lap. Stiles must've had a cat. He seemed more like a dog person, but the cat thing was kind of endearing.

"God, what am I doing?" Scott asked to no one. "I'm so fucked up for doing this."

He paused for a short while before thumbing the label on the can of cat food. That poor, little kitty must've been stuck at Stiles' apartment, alone and hungry and not a clue of what happened to its owner. He jumped off his bed and into his snow boots and bolted out the door.

As he got down to the front entrance, he let out an annoyed groan. Theo Raeken was outside, working on his car. That five-foot-nothing sociopath was absolutely obsessed with Scott, telling everyone that he and Scott were dating. Always making lewd passes at him whenever they'd meet each other in the hall. The guy was a little perv.

Actually, now that Scott started to think about it, he probably shouldn't be the one casting judgment on people who believed they were dating someone that they actually weren't dating at all. At least Theo didn't go running around and telling people they were engaged. Well, not yet, at least.

With quick maneuvering, Scott managed to sneak away, unseen, while Theo was busy with his head buried under hood.

Meanwhile, just as Scott was making a dash for the train station, Derek Hale pulled up to the apartment buildings. After pressing his stepfather into giving him Scott's address, Derek had decided that he was going to confront Scott with more questions about his and Stiles' "engagement". He spotted a short, muscular guy in a greasy wife beater working on a beat-up looking Cadillac and walked over.

"Excuse me," he greeted. "Do you live here?"

The guy gave an arrogant smirk. "Live here? I own this place." Unbeknownst to Derek, it was actually Theo's father who owned the place. Theo was just the maintenance man.

"Riveting," Derek mumbled flatly. "So I assume you know the guy who lives in 411?"

The guy's smirk was now a full-on toothy grin that looked as slimy as the oil on his shirt. "Know him? I'm dating him." He did a sleazy humping motion to emphasize his point.

Derek was pissed beyond belief. Although he wasn't sure which he was angrier about: the fact that Scott was two-timing his younger brother or the fact that Scott would choose this douchebag to cheat on his brother with. Scott could do a lot better. Like Derek, for example.

Derek shook those thoughts out of his head. He was going to get to the bottom of this.

Stiles' apartment seemed like an ideal size for a guy like him. Or what Scott would think a guy like him would have, since he hardly knew him. It was pretty messy for the most part. Scott liked to keep his place neat and tidy, while it looked like a tornado ran through Stiles' place. Clothes were strewn in odd places (How and why was there sock in the sink?), there were posters of various bands from The Ramones to All Time Low to Mumford and Sons hang up, there was a framed photo of the New York Mets. There was a drum set that was currently being used as a coat rack. A few pictures of him snowboarding. There was so much personality in this place that Scott could feel like he was learning more and more of Stiles' quirks.

It honestly made Scott fall more in love with him.

He shook the bag, hoping to get the cat's attention. "Here kitty, kitty, kitty."

He walked passed the swinging door and into the small kitchen area, still calling for the elusive feline. "Kitty, kitty, kitty?"

He turned back and pushed the door back before it was stopped midway by a hulking obstacle and he heard a pained yell on the other side. Scott squeaked in shock, jumping slightly as Derek Hale pushed through the door, his fist clutched against his face where he had been struck.

"Oh, my God, I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry!" Scott said in a panicked voice as he ran straight for the fridge and opened the freezer, noting the unusual abundance of rocky road ice cream from Baskin Robbins, as he fisted a few ice cubes and handed them to Derek.

"Nice shot," Derek grumbled, "How'd you get in here?"

"Uhm, key?" Scott answered nervously.

Derek's face quickly turned sour. "You must stay here a lot, then, huh?" There was a slight bitterness to his tone that went right over Scott's head because Scott was too busy trying not to have a heart attack.

With the way Derek had been acting toward him in all of their interactions so far, it was clear to him that Derek was the most suspicious of the entire Hale-Stilinski family. He could probably see right through Scott's bullshit and accurately concluded that he was nothing more than a pathetic stalker that was trying to insert himself into his brother's life and his family's lives.

"Uhm, uh, yeah," Scott tried to reply as best as he could without stumbling over himself. "Feed the cat and stuff."

Derek's face lightened up and he smirked at him. "Stiles doesn't have a cat."

Shit. Scott was caught. He had assumed that the can was for his cat. It could've easily been his neighbor's cat or hell even for one of the Hale-Stilinski's and he just hadn't seen it. The way Derek was looking at him, it was like the cat that caught the canary. But speaking of cats, as if the universe finally decided to throw him a bone, the adorable mewling sound of a fluffy Persian cat was heard as it walked right into the kitchen. It's fluffy tail stuck straight up as it rubbed itself against Scott's leg. He must've known that he had food for him.

He picked him, noting the name "Prada" stamped on the front tag (That's... original), and placed him on top of the small table, feeling somewhat vindicated. He opened the can and placed it right in front of Prada, who happily gorged himself on the feline feast. Scott looked back over at Derek, who looked to be somewhat distressed or deep in thought.

Suddenly, the iPhone in Scott's chest pocket started ringing, the soulful mezzo sound of Leona Lewis' "One More Sleep" playing against the uncomfortable silence. Crap. Derek was looking at him expectantly, like he was waiting for Scott to answer it, but Scott couldn't answer it because it was Stiles' phone and he didn't have Stiles' passcode. This was going to be bad.

"You gonna answer that?" Derek finally asked.

Scott shook his head, looking like a deer caught in headlights. "I'll just let it go to voicemail."

Derek did not look pleased, but then again, from what he's seen and heard about Derek so far, he always looked that way. Without warning, Derek fished the phone out of Scott's pocket, and Scott let out a nervous gulp as Derek typed in the passcode (that Scott didn't know) and answered it.

"Hello?" Derek said gruffly. There was a small pause and Derek's eyebrows knitted together into an even grumpier expression before he was holding the phone out to Scott. "It's for you."

Scott wasn't sure he was breathing right. He really hoped his asthma wasn't coming back because he didn't have his inhaler with him. With shaky fingers. he grabbed the phone and held it against his ear. "Y-yes?"

After a short while, Scott said his goodbye and turned back to Derek.

"What was that all about?"

He had his arms crossed and was leaning back against the counter, looking very cool. And wow—he had some guns on him. It was like everyone in his family was secretly a model, they were all so attractive. But Derek, with his manly scruff and strong arms and chest hair peaking out from his Henley shirt, it was like staring at a Greek god. Scott wasn't even sure how he hadn't noticed how hot Derek was.

Oh, this was certainly not the time, Scott McCall. Derek asked you a question.

"Uh, the hospital. They said that usually in a situation like this, it's customary for friends and family to go and donate blood."

Derek nodded his head, before tilting his head cheekily. "We can go together."

It wasn't a suggestion. Scott was in for the most uncomfortable hour of his life.

They got the hospital at an agonizingly slow pace. But that was mostly because Derek just insisted that they take Stiles' car, which Scott had no knowledge of because why would someone with a car take a train to where he needed to be? And as it turns out, the car was actually a jeep and a junk of a jeep at that, which is why it went at a slow pace. Why would anyone use duct tape to keep the radiator from leaking? The ride was silent, horribly so. And the entire time, Derek was looking at him with calculating eyes. This was the absolute worst.

Scott was getting a lot of "absolute worsts" lately.

As the nurses were finishing getting their blood, Derek had decided it was now time to commence with his obnoxious interrogation torture.

"You know, we're gonna need to get a photo of you for the mantle," he had said.

Scott furrowed his eyebrows. "Of me?"

"No, of you and Stiles." The way he was talking, he didn't sound very genuine. In fact, everything that was coming out of Derek's mouth either sounded like an accusation or a set-up.

Scott let out a nervous laugh. "I'm not very photogenic."

This time it was Derek's turn to chuckle. "I highly doubt that."

Scott wasn't sure how he was supposed to take that comment.

"When did you and Stiles start seeing each other?"

"September 17th."

Derek nodded his head and scrunched his eyebrows in thought. "That's three months. That's really... fast. That's very fast. Who gets engaged after three months?"

"I do, apparently," Scott snapped before hopping off the adjacent bed and walking away, despite the pleas of the nurse urging him to rest for a little while.

Derek trudged after him, still eyeing him suspiciously, as the nurse looked ready to pull her hair out at her impudent patients.

"Why do they need a TV set in a coma patient's room?" Uncle Peter had asked as he played a game of gin rummy with Noah, Braeden and Laura. "He can't see it."

"Oh, shut up, Peter," Talia hissed. "You know, he can probably hear you!"

"Then get him a radio!"

"Maybe he'd like us to sing to him?" Talia suggested.

"Maybe we can not do that at all," Cora mumbled.

"Maybe Scott knows his favorite song," Derek suggested with a smirk as he followed Scott into the room.

This guy was not going to leave him alone anytime soon. It was clear that he wouldn't rest until he caught Scott in a lie. The fact that Scott was able to keep up this ruse for this long was a miracle, to be quite honest. Everyone looked over at Scott, except Talia who rolled her eyes at her petulant brat of a son.

"Everyone knows his favorite song is that one song... Blitzkrieg-something," Talia said, snapping her fingers to try and jog her memory.

"Bop," Scott finished, "Blitzkrieg Bop... by The Ramones."

Talia gave him a warm smile. "That's it."

Everyone nodded and voiced their approval, but Derek was the only one who was still not convinced. He quickly blocked Scott and cornered him.

"Which of the Three Stooges was Stiles' favorite?"

Talia rolled her eyes again. "Curly," Scott answered after a brief pause. It was just a hunch, but he guessed Curly because...

"He's everybody favorite," Derek said bitterly.

"I liked Shemp," Noah added.

"You're the only one," Peter mumbled as he discarded a card.

"Favorite ice cream?" Derek continued, ignoring everyone in the room except Scott.

Scott huffed, annoyed. "Rocky Road."

"Red Sox or the Yankees?"

"New York Mets."

Scott was impressing even himself with all of these questions, or maybe he just had incredible luck. Actually, scratch that. He had shit luck because he wouldn't even be in this position if he had good luck.

"What are you doing?" Laura asked.

"Yeah, what's with the third degree?" Cora asked.

Derek narrowed his eyes at Scott before turning to his family. "Don't ask me. Why don't you ask Scott's boyfriend?"

And now Scott was even more confused. What on Earth did Derek mean by that? He knew Stiles was in a coma.

"I'm talking about Theo."

As soon as he heard the name, Scott let out a belly laugh. "You're kidding me right? Theo? Theo Raeken?"

The idea of him and Theo ever being an actual thing was laughable, preposterous. And a little gross, if Scott was being honest. Just thinking about kissing that slime ball made Scott want to shudder and gag.

"Yes, Theo Raeken. He said that you both were very intimate with each other on a regular basis."

Scott wouldn't be able to hide the grossed out look on his face even if he tried, "Yeah, he also thinks he invented Instagram. He's delusional! And he voted for Trump! I would never date him!"

"He seemed really insistent," Derek countered, still not giving up.

Everyone was now arguing with each other, with Derek telling them all that they shouldn't trust Scott and questioning them on why they believed this engagement nonsense so easily. Finally, amidst the chaos, Sheriff Stilinski had had enough and yelled over them to stop.

"Look, bottom line is, that if Scott wanted to prove it to you, Der, he'd prove it."

Scott nodded his head in agreement, feeling triumphant. That is, until everyone turned their heads expectantly at him, including Derek who was smirking at him with that smug look on his face that could only be rivaled by Theo. Scott didn't know what to say or do. He felt like it was day one again and everyone was wondering who he was and why this random kid had popped up into their lives. It made him feel small. He knew that there was no way he could get out of this without a scratch unless he thought up something, anything that could convince them all that he and Stiles were really engaged... even though they weren't.

"S-Stiles has one testicle!" Scott blurted out. He didn't even remember thinking about that awkward conversation with Isaac Lahey.

The looks he got were so perplexed, it was almost funny, but considering that his life depended on the credibility of a crazy, 7-foot-tall meter maid, this was no time for a laugh.

"You're kidding," Laura gasped.

"There was an accident," Scott explained, "about a month ago. He was playing basketball with Isaac and Isaac had a pencil in his back pocket and then..." Scott knocked his index left finger against his balled up fist to emphasize his point.

A series of pained hisses and grossed out noises followed.

"Gross," Cora shuddered.

"Maybe, uhm..." Derek nodded his head at Sheriff Stilinski, who grimaced at the thought of having to look at his son's intimate areas.

"Yeah, uh..." the sheriff mumbled. "Somebody's gotta look."

"Don't look at me," said Malia.

"Maybe someone who's changed his diapers should do it," Peter suggested, gesturing to Noah.

But the sheriff gave him a look. "I'm pretty sure things down there have changed since then."

Talia let out a huff. "Alright, I'll do it."

Everyone fell silent, the tension so thick, Scott was afraid he might choke on it. And if he was wrong, he was going to wish he was choking. He waited with bated breath as Talia lifted the blanket, snaked her hand downward and did some adjusting down underneath.

"Eww, mom!" Cora cried, keeping her eyes covered.

Talia's eyes widened, her face growing pale as she dropped the cloth and looked back the family bewildered.

"He's right," she finally announced, "There's only one."

Scott let out a deep sigh, finally happy he was able to breath again and no longer had to worry about going home with broken ribs. He tried his best to smile, but it most likely came out as an awkward display of teeth.

Everyone then turned their heads toward Derek, who looked utterly defeated. With a bitter tone, he finally nodded his head. "Alright, I'll let it go." He turned toward Scott. "I'm sorry, okay?"

Scott was relieved that it was all over and that he had survived the relentless pursuit of Detective Derek. He can finally go home with as little mental scarring as possible.

"Look on the bright side," Peter began, shrugging his shoulders, "At least he has more room in his jockey shorts."

"Ugh, dad..."

When Scott made it home, he finally felt like he might've gotten through the day scot-free, no pun intended. Now that Derek was laying off with the investigation, things might just get easier.

There was a buzz at his door and to his utter disgust, Theo Raeken's voice came from behind the door. With reluctance, he unlocked the door and opened it, allowing Theo to barge in uninvited like he own the place and Scott.

"You broke our date, babe," he mentioned with a puff of his chest. Scott would never understand why Theo felt the need to assert himself as an Alpha male. It was unattractive even on someone who was actually attractive.

"We never had a date," Scott bit out, his voice laced with venom.

But Theo brushed it off, unfazed. "Yes, we did. To the community theater production of Hamilton! I had to eat your ticket."

"I didn't agree to go on any date with you."

"It's okay. I was never a fan of the show anyway," Theo admitted with a shrug, "I only figured you'd go for it because you're into that whole liberal, social justice cause thing and what not."

Scott rolled his eyes. "Voting Democrat isn't a cause, you psycho!"

But Theo ignored him, in favor of biting his lip suggestively in some sleazy attempt at seduction. He successfully cornered Scott against the wall, their bodies uncomfortably close. "That's alright, babe. I can think of—" Theo brushed the pad of his thumb over Scott's bottom lip, which he was going to have to scrub furiously to get the stink of Raeken off. "—other ways for you to make it up to me."

He punctuated that statement with a wink and it was the grossest thing ever. Scott's jaw dropped and he looked beyond offended, violated, and disgusted. "Oh jeez. You're a pig!"

There was another buzz at the door. Visiting hours must have extended past ten o'clock, because everyone wanted to see Scott McCall tonight.

"Who is it?" Scott called out.

"It's Talia," came the singy-song, motherly voice that he had gotten to know so well.

Scott groaned. Just one day, he would like a off from all of this chaos and silliness, and then the universe can go back to fucking with him and his life. Without warning, Scott grabbed Theo by the arm, hushing his protests as he shoved him into his closet and telling him to keep quiet.

Scott rushed over to the front door and was greeted by a warm smile of perfect teeth. "Hi," he tried saying with a forced smile.

"Have you got company?"

"Oh, no, it was just the TV... from the neighbors!"

He invited Talia inside, politely hanging her coat for her and showing her to the living room.

"What a lovely tree," Talia commented, eyeing they half-size Christmas tree that was messily thrown together with bright red and green baubles and silvery tinsel, and with multi-colored lights wrapped around it. All topped off with a thrift store angel right above.

Scott smiled, genuinely this time. "Thank you. Would you like some coffee or tea or anything?"

Talia held up her hand. "I'm fine, thank you. Actually, there's something you should know."

Scott blinked. "Yeah?"

"Well, the night you visited Stiles alone—that first night we all met—I was standing outside the door. I know the truth."

Scott swore his heart stopped right there. In fact, he could feel it sinking so low, he might shit it out. Suddenly he felt very claustrophobic, like the walls were closing in on him and it was becoming increasingly hard to breathe. Is this what an anxiety attack felt like? It was awful. He hoped he would never have another one again.

"I... I am so sorry," Scott squeaked out, but he knew that wasn't enough. He had lied to the matriarch of a family that belonged to a man he had fallen in love with, whom had never even met him. He was half-expecting all the Hale-Stilinski siblings and more, to be out there waiting to take turns getting a few hits in. "I am so sorry. I know that that probably means nothing to you and you probably hate me right now, but please, I swear I didn't mean anything malicious by it! I'm going to tell everyone..." If Talia hasn't already told them everything.

"No, don't tell them a thing!" Talia interrupted.

Scott looked up at her in confusion. At some point, he must have plopped on his couch because Talia took a seat right next to him.

"Do you remember the day when you said you would never do anything to hurt the family?" she had asked. Scott nodded his head. "Well, since they met you, it was like we all had Stiles back. And if you tell them the truth right now, you'd be taking him away again. You're the one keeping their hopes and spirits up. They need you, Scott."

Scott scoffed, disbelieving. "I've never been needed by anyone."

"You are very needed. Just like you need us." Scott felt his shoulders go slack as Talia placed a welcomed, comforting hand on his shoulder. "You're a good boy. I know you are. And you're going to do the right thing. But right now, the right thing is to keep this secret until Stiles wakes up. Then we'll sort out this little mess you've gotten yourself into."

Little mess was quite the understatement. Talia gave him a small hug before getting up to leave. Just as she was about to head out the door, she turned around to Scott and asked at the last second, "By the way, how on Earth did you know about Stiles'..." She cupped her hand in what was probably supposed to be an impression of a singular testicle, and now all Scott can think about was Stiles with one giant ball. He stammered to find an answer, but before he could even get out a coherent word, she waved her hand dismissively. "Actually, it's best that I don't know. I've already learned more about my stepson than I would've liked. Good night, sweetie."

She pressed a kiss against his cheek and left. And now there was the annoying cockroach he would have to deal with. He stalked over to his closet and ripped the door open, and was shocked and disgusted (the usual emotions when it came to Theo Raeken) at the sight of Theo with one hand at the top of his unbuttoned jeans and the other clutching one of Scott's black boxer briefs that was way too close to Theo's face for Scott's liking. This was truly a new low for the both of them.

"Would you believe me if I said this wasn't what it looked like?" Theo asked.

"Get out!"

And like clockwork, there was another knock on the door. Does anyone call before coming over anymore?

"Who is it?" Scott called out, sounding a little more annoyed than he had intended.

"Derek Hale."

Scott whined. The universe was really having a ball with him tonight. Other than Theo, Derek Hale was the last person on Earth that Scott wanted to see. Especially now with the cat out of the bag and a perverted fascist in his closet. With great annoyance, Scott opened the door and tried putting the best fake smile he could muster.

"Hi. More questions?" he asked. He probably sounded like he wanted nothing more than to stick needles in his eyes than talk to Derek, which was probably more true than he would want to let on.

"No, actually, I have an engagement present for you."

Scott was a little surprised. "You really shouldn't have."

"I didn't," Derek replied flatly. "It's from my parents."

Scott rolled his eyes. Of course Derek wouldn't have gotten him a gift, Derek hates him. And the feeling was kind of mutual where Scott was concerned.

"It's furniture," Derek continued, "Want me to bring it up?"

Suddenly, a small thud was heard and then the distinct repeated motion against the closet door had followed that let Scott know exactly what Theo was doing in his closet.

"You with someone?" Derek had asked, which he probably hadn't intended to sound as accusatory as he did.

Scott gulped. "It's just the cat."

The other man nodded his head. "Sounds like a big cat."

"Yeah, big cat. Big, dumb cat. Probably licking his balls somewhere. He's a little crazy. Shits everywhere... Uh, do you need any help with the furniture?"

"I can probably manage by myself. It doesn't seem like a long walk-up."

Scott quickly let himself out the door, to prevent Derek from walking in. "Actually, there's not really enough room in my apartment for any new furniture. How about we go to Stiles' place and drop it off there?"

He didn't give Derek much of a chance to answer until he was shutting the door behind him and leading him down the hallway and into the elevator.

The drive there was rather calm. He and Derek listened to Christmas songs on the radio, with classics like "Baby Please Come Home" and "All I Want For Christmas Is You" playing. Finally, they had arrived at Stiles' apartment building after making small talk about silly things like the snow and what Scott's life as a veterinary assistant was like. Nothing too fancy and for once, Derek wasn't being the accusatory ass that he was.

"I think you parked too close to the car," Scott noted as he eyed the hair-thin distance between the moving truck and the blue Sedan in front of them.

"I have to. We gotta unload the furniture." Derek pulled up the backdoor and with an unenthusiastic ta da, he showed him the most beautifully crafted wooden rocking chair.

"Wow, that's so beautiful," Scott said, mouth hanging open.

Derek smirked. "You like it?"

"I love it," Scott beamed, his face full of happiness.

And for a moment Derek just stared at him, a half smile formed on his face that was meant to be a full smile but stopped suddenly, as if something gorgeous caught his eye and made him freeze in place. But soon, he caught himself and let out a teasing, "Too bad. That's yours."

He pointed at the green couch that was tied down right behind Scott, and Scott suddenly felt a little stupid. "Oh, right. Sorry."

Derek shrugged. "Don't be. I made that actually."

Scott's eyebrows shot up. "You made this? It's perfect."

"Thanks" Derek replied with a cocky smirk, "It is perfect. I do great work."

Scott chuckled, shaking his head. "It looks great."

"Thanks."

They held each other's gaze for only a few seconds before Derek decided that they needed to get the couch out before they both freeze to death. Scott helped Derek moved the couch out of the truck before manhandling it through the front entrance and up the stairwell. They tried and failed to get through the front door without laughing like idiots and only managed to wedge the sofa between the door frame. With one strong push, they both finally got the couch into Stiles' place before any of the neighbors would start complaining and then headed back downstairs.

Scott tried his best not to laugh, but the grumpy look on Derek's face when he saw the two cars blocking the moving truck was just too hard to resist. "I told you not to park too close to the car."

Derek huffed at him, but didn't respond.

"Well," Scott continued, "I'm gonna head home."

"Oh, you're just gonna leave me by the truck?"

"Pretty much," Scott quipped, but there was no malice in that beautiful smile of his. "You can probably rest in Stiles' place until the morning."

"What about you?"

"I'm gonna walk home," Scott said, tossing Derek the keys to Stiles' apartment. "Have a good night."

He turned on his heel and made for the usual route to the train station, only to hear footsteps clamoring behind them and then a familiar face walking right by him. "I'm not gonna let you walk by yourself. A handsome guy like you will probably get murdered or raped or something worse."

"Something worse than being murdered or rape? Like?"

"Like... being forced to talk to some asshole who's been an even bigger asshole than he normally is."

Scott let out a laugh. "Yeah, well, that asshole doesn't seem like such a big asshole anymore."

"Oh, don't worry, I'm sure they'll find a way to fuck things up again. Just give them time."

Scott snorted. "You're on."

And somehow, the next couple of hours were Derek and Scott strolling across town, taking the long way home and purposely not taking the connecting trains so they could talk some more, despite the biting cold as the night ran on. At some point in the last twelve hours, Derek had undergone a complete personality change. Going from the dickish older brother who was constantly pressing for information about what Scott knew about Stiles to this actual nice person who was asking questions about Scott and his life without any hidden agenda.

Scott talked about his mom and all the sacrifices he had made to help her through chemo, and how hard it was when she died. He also opened up about what a verbally-abusive drunk his father was, something he never really liked delving too deep into. But there was something about the way Derek spoke to him, it was so unlike the Derek he had known in the past couple of days. It was just so easy to talk about details of his life and it was so new to him for someone to actually listen to what he said and not get bored. In fact, it seemed like Derek was completely invested in him.

It was odd. But a good kind of odd. Like a new experience kind of odd that you wouldn't know how to handle but you don't push against it.

Somewhere between passing the Beacon Hills River and the icy pathways toward his apartment building's street, Scott had begun to realize something awful. That he might actually like Derek. Like like like Derek. In a very non-future-brother-in-law kind of way. They had finally reached Scott's building just as the temperature was starting to drop even more. Derek's normally pale face was now tinged a rosy pink from the cold and it was the cutest thing.

"Wow, you've been Mr. Chatty this evening," Scott teased.

Derek pouted, which was even cuter. "The fact of the matter is that I'm about to start shivering and making conversation keeps my face from freezing." Which made Scott laugh.

"Be careful, it's slippery," Derek warned as they reached the ice patch that Theo always forgets to salt. He instinctively latched on to Scott's arm.

"I'm fine. I think you need to be careful. Crap! Be careful!"

Two pairs of legs were currently doing a wonderful impression of Bambi on ice as they struggled to find some footing on this impossibly slippery ice patch, all the while laughing jovially at their misfortune. At some point, they managed to find their footing by grabbing on to one another and holding each other close. They were so both out of breath from the little work out they did and from laughing so hard, that Scott had failed to realize how very close his mouth was to Derek's.

This seemed like one of those moments in those romantic comedies where the two hopeless romantics found themselves in a situation where they accidentally fall all over each other and were about to kiss, and both of them wanted that kiss, but then one of them decides that they shouldn't, for whatever reason. And Scott had to be that person tonight.

He pulled away, a sad, shameful look on his face. And Derek also looked sad, but from disappointment rather than guilt.

"I, uh, I'll see you for Christmas Eve dinner?" Scott asked, eyes looking anywhere but Derek's.

Derek was still out of breath, his jaw slack, still looking disheartened by what was about to happen, only for it to not happen.

Scott didn't really bother to wait for the answer. He just completely removed himself from Derek's grip and slowly shimmied his way back to his building, not wanting to look behind him to see the devastated look on Derek's face.

"I'm having an affair," Scott blurted out just as Deaton was about to shove a thermometer up Mrs. Walcott's Pomeranian's ass. "I'm in love with Derek."

Deaton furrowed his brow. "Recap for me. Who is Derek?"

"Stiles' brother!"

"Stiles the... coma patient? That Stiles?"

Scott nodded his head. "The one I'm fake engaged to!"

Deaton held his hand up. "I'm sorry, I'm a little confused here. Is this a real affair or a fake affair?"

"It's a real affair! I'm real cheating on my fake fiancé."

"Scott, I'm not even sure how you managed to get yourself into this mess, but I really don't have time for this." In one swift move, the thermometer disappeared inside poor little Chewy, but Scott was the one who whined like he got the butt thermometer.

"No, no, no! You have to tell me what to do! I don't know how I can fix this."

"How long have you even known this Derek?"

"About two or three days."

"Scott, I think you need to see someone about this problem you have with falling in love with people after a very short period of time."

Scott whined again. "I need you to tell me what to do. Tell me what I should do."

He slumped against the metal tray, looking very much like one of the many sad dogs that had to come in to get their balls cut off.

With a deep sigh and a sympathetic smile, Deaton looked him in the eyes and told him the only thing a decent advice-giver could give to someone in Scott's position. "Scott, it's time to tell the truth. You can keep the ruse going, allow this thing with this Derek person to escalate and then look like a scumbag for cheating on your fiancé with his own brother. Or you can tell them the truth, explain what happened, hope for the best, and, at worst, look like a scumbag. There are no other options here."

And as much as Scott hated to admit it, Deaton was right. As usual.

"You are shit at cards even when you're unconscious," Derek quipped as he tossed a card down in front of an unresponsive Stiles.

He had decided to go visit Stiles, feeling a little light-headed after what happened with Scott the other night and needing to vent his frustrations to someone who would listen and not respond. He wanted so badly to kiss Scott, but he felt like a complete and utter shithead.

"God, he's amazing, Stiles," he admitted, "I get it. I get why you fell for him. I've barely known him for a couple of days and I'm fucking gone. Is this why you kept him a secret? So your older brother doesn't move in on your boy? Well, shit. You had good instincts then, kid. I am such a fucking asshole, because I wanna fight you for him. He is... he is everything I've ever wanted. And now he's marrying you. My own brother, whom I didn't even know into guys until a couple of days ago."

Derek hung his head down, ashamed of himself and angry at the world. If he can recall, he was like that for a while after the fire. He knew that he shouldn't have blamed himself for it, because there were so many factors that happened that night. Derek wasn't even sure if he had left the stove on or not or if that was even the actual cause. The firemen ruled it as a gas leak, but that didn't stop the ache in Derek's chest over it. And when he told Scott that during that little walk of theirs, all he had to do was give him a sad smile and told him not to blame himself. That sometimes things were beyond their control. How can Derek not be in love with Scott?

He dealt another a hand to Stiles. "Best two out of three gets Scott. Whaddya say?"

The next time they met up with each other, which was at Noah and Talia's for Christmas Eve dinner, things were understandably awkward. Scott found himself sitting across from Derek at the dinner table while the sheriff and the rest of the family were all chatting animatedly with one another. Uncle Peter was once again nursing an entire bottle of red wine to himself while Cora and Malia were talking excitedly about their plans for New Year's.

Most of the night was just the usual talk, and it seemed like Scott was about survive it until the sheriff spoke up. "So, uh, Scott, you know any guys that you can set Derek up with?"

Laura let out a loud snort, earning her a harsh glare from Derek that went unnoticed or she just didn't care.

Scott also laughed. "No, I, uhm... I don't think I even know what Derek's type is."

"Well, we all know Scott's type," Talia joked, earning a laugh from everyone around the table.

"I like blondes," Derek announced, before stuffing his face with mashed potatoes. "The chubbier the better."

"Bullshit," Laura argued, earning a pointed look from her mother. "Every guy I've ever seen you with has been a brunette."

Braeden smiled. "It's true. You go for the same type over and over. Soft dark hair, nice skin, soulful eyes. Kinda like me." She winked at Derek, who was currently trying to hide the tomato-colored flush around his face by eating his green beans with his head down.

Scott also felt himself going a little red and it didn't help that Braeden snuck a knowing glance his way, but he might have just been seeing things.

After the rest of the night just went by in a blur. It was like the usual rambunctious joyfulness that went on in the Hale-Stilinski house. And before Scott knew it, it was a little past eleven and time for him to head back home.

"We'll see you tomorrow for the Christmas party." Talia pecked a small kiss on his cheek before saying goodbye. The rest of the family all said their goodbyes and Derek was ready to walk him out of the house until Malia said something that caused them both to stop dead in their tracks.

"Mistletoe!" she beamed proudly.

Scott and Derek both looked right above them and sure enough, there was that infamous little white-berry plant wrapped in a pretty red ribbon, hanging right over the door frame between with some holly surrounding it. Just when Scott thought he could get through a normal day without any complications, something like this happens. Both of them let out a nervous laugh, trying their best to avoid having to partake in this age old tradition, but the family was insistent with their hoops and hollers.

"Kiss him, you idiot," Braeden shouted. She was on a roll tonight.

Scott was still chuckling awkwardly, trying to find a way out of this situation, but before he could do anything, he felt two fingers lift his head up from under his chin and rough lips pressed against his soft ones. Their eyes were open, and he could see the glimmer in Derek's eyes, that feeling of want overcoming him. What was probably only a second or two long felt like way longer. Like time stopped and there was nothing else but them. And his body felt like electricity had coursed through him. This was what his mother told him about when it came to love. She told him when it happens, he will know and he knew now. He knew...

They pulled away at the same time, not wanting to seem too obvious that there was anything more than innocence behind this kiss.

"Well, I'll see you guys tomorrow, then," Scott waved weakly, still feeling like he might accidentally reveal something he shouldn't. "For Christmas!"

Scott felt like he might get lock jaw with how big his smile was and he was smiling because he wanted to show how much he appreciated the Hale-Stilinski family for welcoming him to their lives, and it was definitely not because he just kissed Derek Hale and can't stop smiling like an idiot. That was not happening. Absolutely not.

Once again, the chorus of "Last Christmas" was playing and once again, after a short while, Stiles' phone went to voicemail.

"Stiles? It's Lydia. Is your phone working? I'm back in Beacon Hills and I'm a little surprised you haven't called me back. Look, I would really love to hear from you. And I would really love to see my little Prada. Call me back. I love you."

Chapter Text

When Christmas finally came around, that was when things started to change. Scott joined the Hale-Stilinskis for their annual Christmas party, which, in a nutshell, was very much like the previous get-togethers on steroids. Christmas music was playing in the background, the piney smell of the Christmas tree filled Scott's nose as it glittered by the window, and the faint tinge of white frost was all over the windows. It was truly a perfect Christmas, the kind Scott wasn't used to. He was smiling, laughing, actually talking to people who wanted to talk to him. No arguing except for the playful banter among siblings, no inebriated insults except for drunk Uncle Peter's many quips. For once, Scott was having the Christmas he always wanted.

He blushed madly when Talia got him a gift, a Cashmere sweater. It was expensive and certainly not a hand-me-down. And he didn't even bother with saying that he shouldn't just take it because he knew they would refuse to accept any other explanation. By the time things were winding down, everyone was gathered in the living room, a mess of torn Christmas wrapping paper scattered all over the floor as many of the Hale-Stilinski siblings squealed in delight at all of their gifts.

There was a small tap on Scott's shoulder. It was Derek, who jerked his head to follow him as he slowly walked toward the kitchen area. Scott didn't really give it much contemplation before he was up on his feet and following Derek through the kitchen and out the back door.

It was still freezing outside. Scott could see his breath right in front of him as he watched Derek make his way over to a beautifully-crafted rocking chair.

"Ta da," Derek announced, though this time there was just smidge more enthusiasm than the last time they were in this scenario.

Scott blinked in confusion, pointing to himself. "Is that for me?"

Derek gave him a small smile. "Yep, it's yours. Don't worry."

Scott's eyes fell back on the chair. The woodwork was impeccable, and the dark cedar color was flawless. "You made this?"

Derek nodded his head, looking rather pleased with himself. "Merry Christmas."

"Where did you even find the time?"

He shrugged. "Only cost me a couple of hours and a good night's sleep."

Scott snorted, finally walking forward to examine the chair. He took a seat on it, taking it for a spin. It barely creaked and rocked fluidly. "Thank you. I ... I didn't get you anything."

"You're here," Derek countered, "That's enough."

Scott wasn't sure what he meant by that. He wasn't really sure about anything with Derek Hale anymore. He was the most confusing person he'd ever met. With Stiles, even without speaking to him directly, he felt like he had the guy figured out. But Derek? He was an enigma. One minute he hates Scott with every fiber of his being and the next he's going out of his way to give him something so incredibly sweet. Scott really is clueless about guys who like him.

After a little while, Scott finally sat up and walked over to the back porch. "We should get back," he said before he felt Derek pull on his arm and spin him around. Everything happened so fast. Derek's lips were on his, and like the first time, he could feel the electric jolt run through is nervous system again. Except the last time, it was only a few seconds of a chaste kiss under a mistletoe. This time, the kiss was longer. He was unable to tell how much longer but it was definitely more full and deep than the last one. Derek sucked on Scott's bottom lip before pulling away slowly.

Scott felt like his body was made of lead. He had no idea what to even think or say. He couldn't, his brain was all mush at the moment. The only thing he could mumble out was a half-coherent, "Wha-what?"

Derek pointed upwards. "Mistletoe," he explained in a low voice.

Scott looked up to where Derek was pointing, seeing the festive flower messily hammered onto the top of the front porch frame. There were no holly or any lights. It just seemed weirdly out of place. "That's, uh ... an odd place for a mistletoe."

Derek just shrugged, but unbeknownst to Scott, he had hammered the plant just before they got there. And that may or may not have correlated with why Derek decided to use the back porch to show Scott his gift.

Their little moment was interrupted, however, when Malia came bursting through the door. "Hey! We gotta go! Come on! Braeden has an announcement!"

Scott's wasn't really paying much attention to reality, but he managed to move his feet enough to follow Malia and Derek out to the front where everyone was piling out of the house. Christmas songs were still playing softly in the background. Cora had Laura by the shoulders, ushering her out as Peter was rushing to finish off his and Talia's glasses of wine. Scott and Derek stood in the back as they waited in anticipation in front of the house. Now that Scott thought about it, he hadn't even realized that the lights were off when he had first arrived.

"Alright, everyone," Talia announced, "Braeden wants to show you something she's been working on. Go on, hon."

Braeden took a deep breath, looking like she was praying silently to herself, and she finally put the plug in.

Immediately, the Christmas lights all lit up at once, shining and shimmering and looking beautiful. And then Scott smiled before turning his head over to Laura, who had a look that was absolutely priceless. Derek smirked, because for once his sister was finally left speechless.

MARRY ME, LAURA

She looked like she was about to cry, about a hundred different emotions flying across her face.

"Oh, my God," she finally said something after struggling to find any words.

"I've been wanting to do this for a while and I couldn't think of a better time," Braeden declared. "Laura Meghan Hale, will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

"Yes!" There was no hesitation. Braeden barely got the entire sentence in before Laura jumped happily and planted a big, loving kiss on her lips.

Everyone was in hysterics, surrounding the newly engaged couple with rapt fascination. It made Scott want to cry tears of joy. Actually, he did shed a single tear which Derek did the honor of wiping away with his thumb.

At the hospital, various nurses and doctors were gathered around, chatting with each other, hoping to enjoy to their time while having to work on the holidays. Unbeknownst to them all, Stiles Stilinski of room 318 had started to open his eyes.

Scott rushed to the hospital as fast as he could when he got the call from Talia in the early post-Christmas morning. He pushed past the many nurses and doctors and saw Sheriff Stilinski waiting patiently for him by the elevators.

"He's awake!" he had said to him with barely-concealed joy, face glowing with excitement.

Scott's stomach dropped and he turned to run away before the sheriff was scooping him up in his arms and dragging him into the elevator. This was amazing and horrible news. Sheriff Stilinski gushed about how excited Stiles was going to be seeing the love of his life again, and Scott was now praying that some freak Final Destination-type accident would occur and kill Scott before he could make it to the hospital room.

When they finally got there, Dr. Geyer was gently shaking Stiles awake as the whole family gathered around him. Everyone was there, Talia, Braeden, Laura, Cora, Malia, Uncle Peter, and even Derek was leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed, keeping his distance. Guilty conscience and all.

Noah laughed happily as he wrestled a resisting Scott to a spot between Cora and Malia, who trapped him in place when they snaked their arms around both of his own. And now he couldn't escape.

"Don't be so nervous, son," Sheriff beamed with a friendly smack on Scott's back, which hurt a lot more than Scott anticipated. "He'll be happy to see you!"

Scott let out a pathetic whimper, which was thankfully unnoticed by the family, whose attentions were all still glued firmly on their slumbering family member.

Finally, after a few more shakes, Stiles' eyes opened, which was followed by the excited gasps of the Hale-Stilinski family. All except Scott, who was wincing at the site, and Derek, who just kept quiet by the door.

The first thing he saw was his father's happy, smiling face. And then they trailed over to his loving stepmother, Talia, and then Laura and Braeden, and then Uncle Peter and Malia, and then Scott and Cora. And then—

His eyes trailed back to Scott's and they made eye contact. The look on his face was not love or happiness. It was bewilderment, confusion. This was it. In ten seconds, a bombshell was about to drop and Scott was going to die. December 26th, 2016 was the day Scott McCall was murdered by a rabid, angry family.

"Wh-who are you?" Stiles asked and it was weird hearing his voice for the first time ever.

Jaws dropped, eyes widened, and gasps were heard. All except Talia, who had her face buried in hands, shaking her head. And then suddenly, all eyes were on Scott, who looked like the lamb in the lion's den. What was that chattering noise? Oh, that was his teeth banging together from all the shaking he was doing.

"Oh, my God..." Noah muttered, looking Scott dead in the eyes before looking back to his son.

This was it, the moment when Noah Stilinski was going to die, but not before the family kills Scott. Maybe they're graves will be right next to each other. What the sheriff was about to learn about his "future son-in-law" was going to be the worst thing to ever happen in his life.

That is, until he spoke again, and suddenly there was a fate worse than the truth getting out.

"He's got amnesia!" the sheriff declared.

And suddenly, Scott felt like he was about to fall into a coma. Actually, he really think he might have fainted. And then Stiles fainted, too.

When Scott regained consciousness and everyone was settled down, the family gathered outside the room to hear Dr. Geyer's assessment on the situation.

"Lacunar amnesia," Dr. Geyer explained, "is a condition in which memory loss is localized and patchy, limited to isolated events. He can remember everything, except that one thing."

"Selective amnesia?" Sheriff asked. "So he can't remember his own fiancé?" Scott grimaced but no one was paying attention to him.

The doctor just shrugged. "'fraid not."

Suddenly, Nurse Jennifer shuffled into the room to inform everyone that Stiles was awake again. Scott wanted to stop everyone to finally let the cat out of the bag but most of them were already clamoring through to the patient room. He managed to stop Talia before she could leave.

"Talia!" he said in a panicked voice, "What am I gonna do? They're gonna kill me!"

Talia held her hands up. "Now, now, they're not gonna kill you. We'll sort this out. Don't worry. I'll figure something out."

Except the slight squeak in her voice and the way she was anxiously ushering Scott toward Stiles' room didn't give Scott much confidence that he'll be able to get out of this without making an even bigger mess.

"How are you feelin', champ?" Noah asked, smiling at his son.

"I don't know," Stiles replied with a nervous laugh.

Scott stumbled in, practically tripping over his feet as Talia glided elegantly past him. Stiles looked over at him with furrowed brows.

"Remember him?" Derek asked, jerking his head in Scott's direction.

Stiles squinted his eyes, trying hard to recall when they'd ever met. "Should I?"

Scott remained tight-lipped, feeling like he's holding his breath in.

"Look closer," Laura suggested.

But it was clear that Stiles wasn't going to recognize Scott, because he didn't know him! They've never actually met. This was going south real fast.

"He looks familiar," Stiles muttered. "Why?"

"I think it's coming back," Sheriff Stilinski said, smiling brightly at his wife, who was trying her best to force one right back.

"What's coming back?" Stiles sounded like he was about to panic, if he wasn't already.

"You have amnesia," his father explained. "Stiles, you're engaged."

"I am? I thought... I thought they said no..."

Scott scrunched his face in confusion, but steeled himself as the family began talking over one another, trying to explain the situation. He shot a pointed look at Talia, who just smiled sheepishly at him and shrugged her shoulders. She was going to be no help today.

"I'm engaged to a guy?" Stiles cried out, eyes wide. "H-how? When? Wh-what? I don't understand!"

The room erupted into more chaos, with everyone except Derek, shouting over one another. At some point, Dr. Geyer had insisted that they leave the room to give Stiles time to rest, as taking in so many new information at once was not good for his health. They all piled out of the room with Scott slumping after them, head hung in shame.

Sheriff clasped a hand against his shoulder. "I'm so sorry, son. I know this must he hard on you."

Scott had decided that he'd had enough. This had gone on for too long. He needed to come clean. He opened his mouth to confess, but Talia ran straight toward him and pinched his mouth shut.

"Oh, no, Scott, you don't have to say a word," Talia interrupted in a faux sympathetic tone, before turning to her family. "It's obvious Scott is incredibly distressed. Just look at his poor face." Scott could feel his eye twitching. "Braeden, why don't you help me comfort Scott? We'll go get some coffee. Get his mind off things!"

Pearly white teeth shone brightly as Talia waved her family away while Braeden wrapped her arms around Scott and practically manhandled him out of the room and out into the hallway where they could get some privacy, ignoring the perplexed looks of their family.

"What are you doing?" Scott protested as he squirmed in Braeden's vice grip. Braeden was stronger than him, so he wasn't going anywhere.

"You can't tell them yet," Talia admitted. "Not until you let me figure this all out."

Scott huffed. "And when will that be? On our golden anniversary?" Scott paused and turned to Braeden. "Wait, you know?"

"Of course," Braeden said with a scoff, as if it should've been obvious.

"She figured it out," Talia explained, shrugging her shoulders. "Smart girl. My son and daughter have good taste." Braeden replied with a smug smile.

Scott grunted. "I can't keep lying to them for very long."

"It's only until you and Stiles have settled into your new place and have a few adopted children."

"WHAT?!"

"I'm kidding," Talia held her hands up in defense, chuckling.

Their little private conversation came to an end when Derek showed up, hands in his pocket, to inform them that everyone else was leaving. He offered to drive Scott home so he wouldn't have to take the train, although the train would be much faster than Derek's truck. Nevertheless, Scott accepted the offer and the two left the hospital en route to Scott's apartment building.

The ride, for the most part, was pretty silent, with just a few tunes on radio, but not even a few holiday classics could stop the awkwardness between Scott and Derek. Derek looked incredibly glum this evening, more so than usual. He seemed to have been deep in thought, as if he was fighting a battle within himself. Scott would recognize that look because he had been having that since the very first day. They finally got to the apartment complex by the end of "This Christmas" before they finally spoke a word to each other.

"So," Scott sighed, "I guess things are gonna be changing real soon." Derek only nodded in response. He didn't bother to look at Scott, as if the dashboard was more interesting. "Thank you for being so nice to me through all this."

Derek snorted, finally looking at him. "You mean like when I accused you of lying to my family? Or cheating my brother with some sleazy asshole?"

"You've had a busy holiday season," Scott said with a bashful smile. He unbuckled his seatbelt and shimmied out of the truck before Derek stopped him.

"Scott, uh, I just wanted to say..." Scott looked up at him, curious, and Derek was so lost in those big, brown eyes. "I hope you and Stiles work things out. I think you two are gonna make a really terrific couple... And I'm really glad you won't be alone anymore."

It was almost painful for Derek to say, but it needed to be said. Or at least, he thought it did. Scott gave him a half-hearted smiled before closing the door and retiring back to his apartment building and Derek felt like his world was slipping away.

Derek walked into the sheriff's station with a box full of Dunkin' Donuts in hand, a small bribery for being late. The sheriff was currently in his office, busying himself with boring paperwork, finishing off the rest of Deputy Clarke's hot coffee, which tasted awful but he didn't have the heart to tell her.

"I come bearing gifts," Derek announced as he walked in and placed the box on the sheriff's desk. "I won't tell mom."

"Oh, you're my savior." The older man happily dug through for his favorite ones, double fisting a Bavarian cream-filled donut and a chocolate-coated one with rainbow sprinkles. "Your mother's got me on these fat-free bran muffins. They taste like a tree trunk's ass."

They both sat in silence with only the gleeful, appreciative hums the sheriff made as he took a big bite of the Bavarian cream. "Been a helluva week, eh?"

Derek scrubbed a hand over his face. "Yeah. Laura's getting married. Stiles is getting married. I'm not getting married." He said with a sigh, his thoughts consumed with brown eyes and a crooked jaw.

"Oh, man, are we in for an expensive new year," the sheriff joked. "Who knows? Maybe you or Cora are gonna be next."

Derek chuckled. "I think marriage and boys are the last thing on Cora's mind."

Sheriff nodded understandingly. "But what about you?"

What about Derek? There was so much Derek could say to that question, but the sheriff wasn't a therapist and Derek figured he might have a heart attack once he tells him how he's in love with his own son's fiancé and actually kissed him on Christmas. Ever since the fire and then Talia marrying the sheriff, Derek had always looked up to the sheriff as a father figure in his life. He was a great, loving man. So much that he reminded him of his own dad, and he really had been a great dad. Derek could feel his chest aching a little from the thought. The sheriff may never take the place of him, but he respected and loved the man no less.

"Do you know that chair I made for our old neighbor, Mr. Reyes?"

"Yeah."

"Well, he's friends with the D.A., Mr. Whittemore—" The sheriff made a face. Understandable because the Whittemores were never pleasant people to be around. Too haughty and stuck-up for their liking. "—Yeah, well, believe it or not, he actually liked my chairs. Said they had a refined looked to them or whatever." The sheriff was nodding his head to let him know he had his attention. "He put in an order for eight chairs. It's gonna bring in some good cash."

"Sounds like a good side business."

But Derek shook his head. "No, it's... it's good business. I like doing this. It makes me feel accomplished."

Sheriff sighed and smiled at him. "I feel like I know where this is going." Derek looked away. "You wanna go into your own business, don't you?" Derek finally looked back up at the man. "I mean, ideally, I was hoping you would eventually take my place as sheriff, run things around here."

"I thought you had to be elected for that?"

"If I step down, I can name a replacement. I always figured you'd be the best at it. Everyone respects you. You're a great man, Derek Hale."

Derek snorted. If he was such a great guy, he wouldn't be pathetically, hopelessly in love with his brother's fiancé.

"You can always give it to Isaac," Derek suggested. They both turned to see the bumbling bike patrol officer drop his handcuff keys and accidentally kick them under Clarke's desk. With a roll of their eyes, they looked back at each other and agreed, "Parrish."

Derek had arrived at the hospital to visit Stiles again. Cora, Laura, Braeden, and his mother were all there, hoping and trying their best to help a now conscious Stiles jog his memory of their sweet, future in-law Scott McCall. Derek felt a bitter taste in his mouth at the idea of Scott being his in-law.

"11-24-04, 8th grade locker combination," Stiles revealed. "Birthday, April 8th, 1991."

"You have to remember Scott," Cora pressed, "You love him."

"3.9 GPA, Beacon Hills University. My Literary English teacher was Jennifer Blake. My biological mother's name was Claudia Gajos, died April 30th, 1999 from frontotemporal dementia. Spelled F-R-O-N-T-O-T-E-M-P-O-R-A-L D-E-M-E-N-T-I-A."

The longer Stiles spoke, the more upset it made Derek. It wasn't like the old days where Stiles' motormouth would annoy Derek because he was just making too much sound. It was the fact that it was not enough sound. Or at least, not enough about Scott in a loving tone that he had expected when Stiles woke up. This whole amnesia thing was absolute torture for Derek.

For a good couple of days, Derek had to sit through and listen to Stiles try and figure out who the hell Scott was. And then there was poor Scott. Derek couldn't even imagine how he must've felt, having the love of his life forget who he was. Derek just couldn't even fathom anyone forgetting Scott McCall. Even worse, it sounded like Stiles had lost so much of his memories of Scott, that he had reverted back to mooning over that Lydia chick. How Stiles can choose anyone over Scott was just insanity.

"Hey, kids, why don't you let me talk to Stiles by privately," Talia suggested. "Some mother-son talk."

Derek hadn't wanted to leave but he knew that look. It sounded like a suggestion, but it was definitely not a suggestion. He gave Stiles a playful punch on the shoulder before the three siblings and Braeden all walked out to the waiting area as Talia took a seat by Stiles' side. However, Talia should've known better because Derek always had a hard time following instructions. Rather than giving them full privacy, he stood outside the door, hoping to listen in on the conversation. The door was closed, so he could only make out the tail end of the conversation.

"You see, he's..." There was a long pause. "He's not only your fiancé, he's your guardian angel! Stiles, he saved your life. And he's coming by to see you today, and I want you to do yourself a favor. I want you to look deeply into his eyes and listen with the heart of a man that's just been given a second chance at life. And after two minutes, you're not madly in love with him, then tell him you want to break up. But if in those two minutes, you see what the rest of us only took seconds to see, then propose to him a second time and marry him before he has a chance to escape."

That was all Derek had to hear before he stormed off to the hallway. He felt like he was going to be sick after hearing his mother practically endorse this engagement between Scott and Stiles. It wasn't fair. Derek had found the guy of his dreams, but instead of him being by his side, he'll be on his brother's side or not at all. If Stiles doesn't fall in love with him, like he should, then Scott was going to be crushed and probably never want to see any of them again. It was an awful position to be in.

"I know that look," came Braeden's voice. "I know it all too well." Derek remained silent. "You're in love with him, aren't you?"

Braeden was too damn smart for her own good.

"I hate this," he finally said, with a sad sigh. "Stiles doesn't even remember him. How can you forget a guy like him?" This time, Braeden remained silent. "I want him to be happy."

"Derek, you know, I think..." She trailed off, not really finishing her sentence, almost as if she wanted to say something but held back. "Look, everything will work out. I'm sure by the time all of this is done, everyone will be with who they're meant to be."

Derek scrunched his face, confused. He wasn't sure what that was supposed to mean, but never the less, he accepted the half-hug she gave him and they both went on their way to the waiting area.

At some point, after they all left, Scott had decided to come by the hospital with the box of Stiles' things. Stiles was resting, so he'd hoped that he could just leave the box and sneak away without being noticed.

"Scott!" No such luck.

Scott winced but steeled himself, turning to the former coma patient with a forced smile. "Hello."

"Hey."

"Uhm, good morning..." Scott said with a shrug. "What's up?"

Stiles was studying him, which made Scott a little uncomfortable. Like he was being judged or something. It seemed like he was a little perplexed, maybe curious as to who this enigma that just walked into his life was. Scott shuddered to think about what Stiles was going to think once the truth came out. If it ever came out. At this rate, the secret won't get out until Stiles was on his death bed, surrounded by his and Scott's adoptive grandchildren.

"Curly fries?" Stiles said finally. "It's from the hospital and they're cold, but I thought 'eh, what the hell', y'know?"

Scott merely nodded his head. This was kind of odd, finally getting to talk with the guy he's been in love with for the past four months. It was all too much at one time, especially with the confusing feelings he had for Derek, the man's own brother!

"It's nice to meet you," Stiles continued, snapping Scott out of his thoughts. "I'm sorry I've been so distant. It's just this is a lot to take in and ... a lot of stuff seems to have happened in these past few months and I've forgotten just about all of it."

Judging by the way he was talking, it sounded like that "talk" Talia said she'd had with Stiles didn't involve that little detail about Scott lying to everyone and being a creepy stalker.

"You seem like a nice guy," Stiles decided, "You must be, otherwise, why would I be engaged?"

There was a small stabbing pain in the pit of Scott's stomach at that remark. It made Scott remember how big the lie has gone on, and how he wasn't really engaged to this man. He wasn't wanted, he shouldn't be wanted. He didn't deserve this. But he was still sitting there, still looking Stiles's amber eyes. They talked more and more about each other, getting to know each other better, and to their delight, they had quite a lot in common.

"I think me and you might have been separated at birth!" Stiles declared, but retracted it once he realized the implication in that. But Scott could only laugh good-naturedly over it. "You're a pretty cool guy, Scotty."

Scott could feel his breath leave him at the nickname. Hearing the way affectionate way he spoke to him felt incredible and confusing at the same time.

"Oh, you are my savior, bro!" Stiles squealed happily as he gobbled down the rocky road ice cream that Derek had snuck in. "The food here sucks."

"So, they're moving you to the second floor, huh?" Derek asked casually.

Stiles stuffed a cheek full of rocky road, making a funny face from brain freeze which probably was not ideal when you just woke up from a coma.

"Yeppers. Movin' on down!" Stiles seemed like he was getting back to his old self, whether that was a good thing or not, remained to be seen. "Oh, and that Scott fella is a real cool guy." Scoop. "Umph, I can fee why yer all like 'im."

Derek scrunched his nose up at the way Stiles spoke with his mouthful.

"Yer know—" Gulp. "I feel like I'm reborn! I feel like I've got a second shot at life."

"So, you and Scott are gonna continue things?"

Stiles shrugged. "I don't know. Scott's a cool guy and all, but he is a guy. So, this is kinda new to me."

Derek didn't really like that answer. If anything, Scott deserved all the love and attention he could get. But Stiles? Stiles doesn't even remember the moment when they fell in love, so pretty much all that work they had to do had to be done again. That wasn't fair to Scott, though. Scott already knew all of the fun times they had. But now, they have to do a redo. It just wasn't fair. Stiles would get Scott twice, while Derek won't even get him once. The universe really hates Derek Hale.

"He's a special guy, you know that? Treat him right."

Stiles just nodded, pouting his lip in concentration. "Yeah, I guess. He's cool. He's... I don't know... He's something."

Derek swallowed thickly. "I'd say he gets under your skin as soon as you meet him. He drives you so nuts, you don't know whether to hug him or just really arm wrestle him."

Stiles smiled. "Nah, that's not it. But it doesn't matter. I guess I'll be spending the rest of my life trying to figure out Scott McCall."

Derek's already figured out Scott McCall. And he felt... no, he believed that Scott had figured out Derek Hale.

Scott had given up on waiting for Talia to finally spill the beans on his secret, so he decided to march into the hospital with the intent on seeing Stiles and telling him the full truth. He got to the front entrance and politely held the door open for a young strawberry blonde woman in red heels. He walked over to the elevator, the same one the woman was going in, and politely asked for them to take them to the third floor while she took the second.

Finally, he got to Stiles' floor and slowly took the pathway to Stiles' room, only to find the room completely empty. He waited for a little bit, assuming that they may have just taken him in tests or what not, but after a while Dr. Geyer had popped up behind him and had informed him that they had moved Stiles downstairs. So, Scott took the elevator down to the second floor and let one of the nurses show him to Stiles' room.

When he got there, he was chatting animatedly with some old guy and when he saw Scott, he beamed happly. "Scotty!"

"Hey, you look good. So, uh, there's something I gotta say—"

But Stiles held his hand up. "Let me go first." He took a deep breath and smiled at him. "Havin' an encounter with death really puts life in perspective for a guy. And I've been thinking about my life and I don't like what I've been seeing. I'm a simple guy who works in I.T. It's a boring ass job and I mostly take the time to listen to my dad's police scanner. But you know what I've been missing?" Scott gulped. "Someone to share that life with. Someone I can trust, someone I can raise a little Stiles with."

Oh god.

"And, Scotty, it's you. You are the guy. You've been there for me when I needed someone."

"Yeah, about that—"

"And you know what? Just a second ago, my old girlfriend came by... Lydia? I've been chasing after her for ten years already, and guess what? I broke things off with her! For good. I was a little taken aback about the whole guy thing, but if I fell in love with you once, I'm sure I can do it again! My whole family already loves you. So, Scotty, whaddya say? Will you marry me?"

Scott felt like he was about to faint. Actually, from the way things suddenly turned blurry and then pitch black, he did faint.

Scott sighed sadly as he stared at himself in the mirror. It was a beautiful tuxedo, finely tailored. Only the best for Stiles' fiancé. He couldn't believe he was doing this. He was a real scumbag, a real degenerate. Not even Theo Raeken would stoop this low.

No, actually, he would.

There was a knock on the door. Speak of the devil, Scott thought with dread.

"I don't want any flowers, I'm not wearing those tight boxer briefs you like to sniff, and I am definitely not going to move in with you!" Scott shouted, opening the door.

Instead of the sleazy arrogant smirk on a cherub face muscle-head, he just saw an arrogant smirk on a scruffy-faced muscle-head, complete with those adorably cute bunny teeth. "Derek!"

"I don't really sniff boxer briefs that much," he quipped, "I'm more of a tighty whities kinda guy. You got any of those?"

Scott let out a hearty laugh. "I thought you were Theo."

"You know, I get that a lot."

Scott invited him in and they spoke pleasantries and small talk for a bit until Derek finally opened up about why he came. He handed it over a poorly wrapped gift, which Scott handled with care.

"Just a little engagement present," Derek said. "From me this time."

Scott tore open the newspaper wrapping and revealed a small snow globe with a miniature model of the Beacon Hills Transit being rained on by flurries of fake snow. He smiled genuinely, but he was a bit confused by it and looked back up at Derek.

"It's the place you and Stiles met," Derek explained with a slight shrug of his shoulders. "I don't know. I saw it on the way out from the store and thought it was cute. It was like 6 bucks."

He felt his heart swelling a bit, because despite how seemingly cheap it was, it was actually one of the most thoughtful gifts he'd ever gotten. And he had gotten a Cashmere sweater, too.

They talked for a little while longer until they realized that it was getting late and Scott had to rest up for the wedding tomorrow. Scott walked Derek to the door and watched as he made his way halfway down the stairs. That should've been the end of it, but Scott couldn't keep himself quiet any longer. There was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind ever since Christmas when Derek gave him that really deep kiss under the mistletoe, which seemed way more intimate for simple Christmas tradition. He had to know if ... if maybe Derek felt something. Maybe even the same something Scott may or may not have been feeling.

"Derek," Scott called out, stopping the taller man midway. He was looking up at him, and there was something sad in the way his green eyes sparkled. "Can you give me any reason... why I shouldn't marry Stiles?"

Derek looked at him, confused slightly, before he was walking back up the steps and facing Scott, toe to toe. And for a second there, Scott actually thought Derek would kiss him. That romantic comedy kiss, where the two idiots in love finally realized their feelings. Except this wasn't a romantic comedy. This was real life and Derek was a real person and what he said made Scott's heart sink.

"I can't," he had said, and Scott was crushed.

He stood in place as Derek walked away, back down the steps where Scott wouldn't see him again until tomorrow, when he's the best man at the wedding. Scott's wedding. His wedding to Derek's brother, whom Scott was in love with. Whom Scott was supposed to be in love with

Once Derek was gone and out of sight, Scott returned back to his apartment and went straight to bed.

By the next morning, he was rushing to get ready and get down to the hospital. Braeden and Laura had driven him, and with each passing road sign and vehicle and building, Scott could feel his heart beating faster and faster. This was it. This was the day he had been dreaming of since he was a little kid, to the guy he had been dreaming about since he first laid eyes on him four months ago. All of the Hale-Stilinski family were there, plus a few of the deputies like Isaac, Parrish, and Clarke. Deaton was also there, adjusting his suit right outside the door. Through the hustle and bustle inside, it sounded like everyone was eagerly anticipating the wedding that they've all been waiting for.

Before Scott knew it, "Here Comes the Bride" was playing—was that even appropriate for a wedding between two men?—And Scott was walking slowly down the aisle, a tiny cluster of roses in his hand. For some reason, he'd always imagined his wedding day to be less... terrifying. Was it normal for the groom to feel like he was about to be led to the electric chair?

Stiles looked really nervous himself, slightly confused, maybe even scared. Scott was sort of glad he wasn't the only one. He glanced over at Derek, who looked like he was avoiding making eye contact with anyone, opting to stare down at his shoes like they were more interesting than his brother's wedding. When he finally made it to the hospital altar, he looked back at the crowd, at the smiling faces of the family he had grown to know and love, at Deaton who looked really concerned, and then at Talia and Braeden who looked uncomfortably awkward throughout the entire ceremony.

This wasn't right. This had gone on long enough. He couldn't keep this up anymore. Not like this. Stiles didn't deserve this. None of them did.

"I object," Scott blurted out. The sounds of a confused and shocked audience filled his ears. He knew he had to do the right thing.

"I didn't even start," Father Duke responded.

"I have to object, too," came Derek's voice, much to Scott's surprise.

Father Duke turned over to Stiles. "What about you?"

Stiles looked ready to run away. "Gimme a minute, I'm still deciding."

"What's going on?" Malia asked.

He looked over at the crowd, they were all staring at him and once again, he felt small. But he was already in too deep, so he needed to come clean. "I'm in love with your son."

Well, shit. That wasn't supposed to come until later in the speech.

"We know that!" Sheriff Stilinski said with a confused chuckle.

Scott gulped and lifted a finger in Stiles' direction. "No, not that one." He shakily pointed at Derek. "That one."

Father Duke sighed and closed his Bible, shaking his head.

"Oh, and here I thought today was gonna be boring as hell," Peter muttered, pulling out a flask from his coat pocket so he could really enjoy the show.

"You're in love with Derek?!" Cora shouted.

Laura glared at her little brother. "What did you do?"

Before Derek could respond, Scott immediately rushed to his defense. "He didn't do anything. It was all me." Scott turned toward the sheriff. "Um, Sheriff, how are you doing? Are you feeling okay?" He got a nod in return, but he looked at Scott expectantly. "You remember that day in the hospital—I mean, of course, you guys do. Well, uh, uhm ..." This speech was not going well. He should've practiced. "Well, there was a mix-up. I-I had seen Stiles being pushed down to the tracks and I saved his life, but they wouldn't let me see him, so I-I... I, uhm... S-somehow through all the chaos, one of the doctors had mistaken me for Stiles' fiancé and... and I wasn't. He and I were never engaged."

Jaws had dropped and there was an unreadable expression on Sheriff Stilinski's face.

Derek cleared his throat. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because I was embarrassed," Scott admitted, "And I didn't know how to tell you guys. And Mr. Stilinski had a heart problem so I didn't... I didn't want to hurt you." Finally, the sheriff's face broke its steel expression and turned into one of sympathy. "We had never even met until that day on the tracks. And then everything just happened so fast and I didn't know how to tell you the truth and then I didn't want to tell you the truth, because... because I had fallen in love with you."

"You fell in love with me?" Peter asked, earning an elbow to the ribs from his daughter.

"No, I mean, I fell in love with all of you. And suddenly I wasn't alone anymore. I was somebody... I went from being all alone to being a fiancé, a son, a brother, a cousin, a nephew, and a future in-law." Braeden smiled at him. He turned back to Stiles, still trying to fight the tears that were forming at the corner of his eyes. "You know, I saved your life on those tracks, but you're the one who saved my life. You allowed me to be a part of a family, a happy one... Something I've never had before. And I'm really sorry for all of this. For lying to you and lying to them." He turned back to the family that he would never see again. "Because I love you guys. I love you guys a lot. And I am so sorry for lying to you."

And that was all Scott could get before he went bolting for the exit. Any longer and he might start sobbing like a baby in front of everyone and he had embarrassed himself enough for one lifetime. However, just before he could finally escape, he was stopped by that same strawberry blonde girl he had run into a few days ago.

"Stop! Stiles Stilinski is engaged to me!" Oh, shit. "I object to this wedding."

"Get in line," Father Duke grumbled.

Suddenly a tall Matt Damon-looking guy popped up and sandwiched Scott on the very cramped aisle. "And I object to your objection!"

"Who the hell is that?" Cora asked.

"Uh, yeah, that's Lydia's husband, Aiden," Stiles answered, scratching the back of his neck.

"You proposed to a married woman?" Noah cried out angrily.

"Oh, this is the kind of stuff that leads people to drink," Peter quipped, before taking a big gulp from his flask, eyes practically going cross-eyed.

"She said they were going through a divorce!" Stiles defended, "And I was in a coma when my own flesh-and-blood brother by marriage makes a pass at my fake fiancé!"

Somewhere through all the chaos, Scott had finally managed to escape. Escape forever and he had managed to do that without a scratch on him. He had hoped and dreaded that this was the last time he would see the Hale-Stilinski family, because all he would have now are the wonderful memories.

Scott didn't expect them to call or even come visit. All he had now was Theo Raeken, who had come up to his door to tell him that he was sorry things didn't work out with Stiles and then offered a friendly hug, which didn't turn out to be as friendly as it appeared when he felt Theo snake his hands down to pinch his ass. He thinks Theo might have left a bruise or two, but not as bad as the one he gave Theo on his right cheek.

New Year's Eve had finally came and once again Scott McCall would welcome another year of loneliness and a pathetic existence while everyone else got drunk off champagne, singing "Auld Lang Syne" against the loud explosion of colorful fireworks.

By the next morning after New Year's Eve, Scott found himself at the train station waiting for the 8 o'clock to come by. And once again, it was late. It was always late when you needed it. He was standing by himself, shivering like crazy, until one of the workers called out to him that the 8 o'clock was running an hour late.

With an annoyed groan, Scott decided to take a seat on one of the benches by the window and hoping to busy himself with a game on his phone. After checking the status on his Eevee, he noticed something in the reflection of his phone, so he looked up to see the faces of the Hale-Stilinski family smiling at him through the window. With a high-pitched yelp, Scott tumbled over, hitting the ground.

"Derek, what are you doing? Help him up!" Laura roughly hit her brother in the arm, shoving him toward the entrance where he ran around and went to help Scott up.

"What are you guys doing here?" Scott asked, a tinge of fear in him. "Are you guys finally gonna kill me? Beat me to death? Or throw me on the tracks? Because you'd have to wait for another 30 minutes."

"We're not here to kill you, Scott," Derek laughed, "I, uh ..."

"Say something, you moron!" Laura blurted out.

Derek glared at her before turning back to Scott and holding something up. It was a diamond ring. Holy shit, that was an engagement ring. Scott looked up at Derek like he was crazy. "Wha—?"

"I need to ask you a question," Derek announced. Scott was speechless.

"He spent three hours in front of the mirror for that?" Malia scoffed.

"Yeah, he's not even down on his knee."

Scott didn't know what to say, but he started with a simple, "Why?"

"Because I love you, okay?" Derek explained, "It sounds crazy how fast this is, but it's true. Scott, I'm a complete mess. And you're a complete mess, too. So let's do the world a favor and take each other off the market... Marry me, Scott."

That actually happened just now.

"Yes." Scott yelled before he could stop himself. Actually, he didn't want to stop himself. He wanted this, he knew he did.

Derek leaned forward, planting a kiss on Scott, an amazing kiss. One that beat the out the two others under the mistletoe by miles. He felt like he was floating now, not even caring about the squealing and teasing noises from the peanut gallery. All that existed in the world right now were Scott and Derek. The was no curse to break, no Evil Queen, no cartoon birds. Just two Prince Charmings and their kooky, crazy family.

And they all lived happily ever after ...

There was no point in welcoming Scott to the family, because he was already family way before he and Derek even got engaged. It was like old times now, back when Malia and Cora were pulling him in all directions to hang out with them, boisterous sounds of everyone having a good time ringing in his ears, Uncle Peter drinking himself into a deep sleep on the couch. Scott McCall was home now. With his family. His mom was right. Sometimes when you want something so bad, life takes a left turn and shows you its own way.

Stiles patted Scott on the back while they chilled out on the front porch, "I'm glad you're here, buddy. Maybe now we can finally get to know each other without all that awkward fake engagement-slash-amnesia business."

Scott snorted.

"So you gotta tell me, when did you fall in love with Derek?"

Scott scrunched his face, thoughtful. Come to think of it, he couldn't even pinpoint the moment when he truly fell in love with Derek. It seemed like every moment was that moment.

With a coy smile on his face, Scott uttered, "It was while you were sleeping..."

Chapter Text

i. mariah carey — all i want for christmas is you ii. natalie cole — this will be (an everlasting love) iii. jordin sparks — christmas time to me iv. leona lewis — one more sleep v. wham! — last christmas vi. michael bublé — the christmas song vii. darlene love — christmas (baby please come home) viii. jamie blackley — heart like yours ix. ashanti — this christmas x. kari kimmel — christmastime xi. mairi campbell & dave francis — auld lang syne xii. jean beauvoir — merry christmas (to all of the world) xiii. dusty springfield & daryl hall — wherever would i be?

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