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fandomweekly2023-02-02 09:06 am
iluvroadrunner6) wrote in fandomweekly2023-02-02 09:06 am
Entry tags:
[#166] The Loneliest Number That You'll Ever Know (Teen Wolf)
Theme Prompt: #166—Loneliness
Title: The Loneliest Number That You’ll Ever Know
Fandom: Teen Wolf
Rating/Warnings: PG-13 | Mild Spoilers for Teen Wolf: The Movie
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 998
Summary: Derek returns to Beacon Hills and it’s not the homecoming he expected.
When Derek comes back to Beacon Hills, toddler Eli in tow in the back seat of his car, running from yet another failed relationship, he hopes he’s coming back to a pack. Instead, he discovers the pack scattered to the four winds, the bonds of the things they went through only barely holding them together. Even Scott is gone, and while it’s disappointing, Derek isn’t surprised. They all have their own lives to live and he’s not trying to impede them. It’s just…lonely.
It also allows him to fly under the radar of the non-pack members who would still notice if Derek Hale rolled into town, which might also be for the best. Eli settles in rather easily—he’s always been a fairly adaptable kid, even for a four-year-old—but Derek needs time. Mostly to stop kicking himself for being unable to be a functioning adult in how he wants, rather than the ones that matter. He buys a house, buys an auto shop, tries to stay out of everyone’s way and hopes no one asks questions.
It works pretty well, until Eli sneaks out into the machine area of the shop without him noticing, trips, and slices his chin open on one of the exposed metal pieces. It sends him running into Beacon Hills Memorial in a panic, pleading with someone to help him until he hears his name through the din of noise.
“Derek?”
He turns and has never been happier to see Melissa McCall in his life. “Melissa. I took my eyes off him for one second—”
She laughs. “Welcome to the club. C’mon, let’s get him cleaned up.”
Melissa charms Eli easily, and while the cut does need stitches, there’s no broken teeth, no sign of any kind of trauma. He’s going to be just fine. Once the assessment is done, however, Derek becomes the subject of inspection.
“How long have you been back in town?”
“A couple months.” Derek shrugs. “Still kind of getting things settled.”
“Just the two of you?”
“Yeah.” She hears the tone and gives him a sympathetic look that he doesn’t know how to take. It’s not pity, but it might understand, and he’s not sure he’s ready for that just yet. “Things didn’t work out, and I came home for a little while.”
“Well, we’re happy to have you.” She finishes up the sutures before turning to look at Derek more seriously. “I know we’re not exactly Scott. But we’re here for you, if you need it. Parrish and Mason are still in town, and believe it or not, there are still supernatural problems floating around, so Noah could always use someone who knows about that kind of thing. And, I know better than anyone how tough being a single parent can be. So if you need someone to call in the middle of the night because you do not know what you’re doing? You have my number.”
Melissa knows what she’s doing. She’s appealing to him in the ways that she knows will make him feel useful. Offer friends that he’s not unfamiliar with but maybe not as close with. Offering him a network, the more human version of a pack, to reach out to if he needs it.
He doesn’t know if he’ll use it, but for now, he takes it. “Thank you.”
* * * * *
Things get a little easier after that. Melissa calls the sheriff almost immediately after he leaves the hospital, so by the time he gets home there’s a voice mail welcoming him back to Beacon Hills and asking if he’d be willing to come in and look at a few cases. When he does, Mason greets him with a hug and an: “Oh thank God, I know a lot but I have no idea what I’m doing.”
It’s nice, as strange as it is.
He helps them solve a few cases. He and Parrish have beers sometimes after work, and the adult conversation is nice. Things feel a little more normal, but he still misses the feeling of pack. He misses his family.
Parrish is gone, but he’s still sitting on the porch of his house as the cooling fall breeze floats through the air. He has one ear listening to the sleeping child inside, and he closes his eyes, trying to push away that ache for something more than what he has, when the scent on the breeze shifts, and turns familiar. There’s a very soft creek, and when he opens his eyes, he’s not alone. Cora sits in Parrish’s empty seat, while Malia leans back against the railing of the porch.
“You came back.”
“She did,” Cora points to her cousin. They’ve been traveling together, trying to make up for the lost time they had due to the fire and his mother’s meddling. They get along like a house on fire, but it’s been good for both of them. “I’m just visiting.”
“How’d you—”
“Melissa.” Malia shrugs. “I was on my way back anyway, mostly because it’s the last place Peter wants me to be and I enjoy pissing him off. But she said you were having a hard time and could probably use some family.”
“Why didn’t you call?” Cora asks. “We would have come a lot sooner.”
Derek shrugs. “Guess I didn’t want to interrupt everyone else’s life with my problems.”
“Well, that’s dumb.” Malia, blunt as ever. “You spent so long getting ‘if you need help, you ask for it’ to stick with me and can’t follow the advice yourself?”
“No, but it’s very Derek,” Cora teases. “C’mon. It’s late and I’m jetlagged. We can see where we’re at tomorrow.”
Derek nods, letting his sister pull him into the house, his cousin close behind. Eventually one of the guest rooms Malia will claim for her own, and Cora will go back to her life in New York, but for now, it’s more than enough. Now, the house is feeling like a home.
Title: The Loneliest Number That You’ll Ever Know
Fandom: Teen Wolf
Rating/Warnings: PG-13 | Mild Spoilers for Teen Wolf: The Movie
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 998
Summary: Derek returns to Beacon Hills and it’s not the homecoming he expected.
When Derek comes back to Beacon Hills, toddler Eli in tow in the back seat of his car, running from yet another failed relationship, he hopes he’s coming back to a pack. Instead, he discovers the pack scattered to the four winds, the bonds of the things they went through only barely holding them together. Even Scott is gone, and while it’s disappointing, Derek isn’t surprised. They all have their own lives to live and he’s not trying to impede them. It’s just…lonely.
It also allows him to fly under the radar of the non-pack members who would still notice if Derek Hale rolled into town, which might also be for the best. Eli settles in rather easily—he’s always been a fairly adaptable kid, even for a four-year-old—but Derek needs time. Mostly to stop kicking himself for being unable to be a functioning adult in how he wants, rather than the ones that matter. He buys a house, buys an auto shop, tries to stay out of everyone’s way and hopes no one asks questions.
It works pretty well, until Eli sneaks out into the machine area of the shop without him noticing, trips, and slices his chin open on one of the exposed metal pieces. It sends him running into Beacon Hills Memorial in a panic, pleading with someone to help him until he hears his name through the din of noise.
“Derek?”
He turns and has never been happier to see Melissa McCall in his life. “Melissa. I took my eyes off him for one second—”
She laughs. “Welcome to the club. C’mon, let’s get him cleaned up.”
Melissa charms Eli easily, and while the cut does need stitches, there’s no broken teeth, no sign of any kind of trauma. He’s going to be just fine. Once the assessment is done, however, Derek becomes the subject of inspection.
“How long have you been back in town?”
“A couple months.” Derek shrugs. “Still kind of getting things settled.”
“Just the two of you?”
“Yeah.” She hears the tone and gives him a sympathetic look that he doesn’t know how to take. It’s not pity, but it might understand, and he’s not sure he’s ready for that just yet. “Things didn’t work out, and I came home for a little while.”
“Well, we’re happy to have you.” She finishes up the sutures before turning to look at Derek more seriously. “I know we’re not exactly Scott. But we’re here for you, if you need it. Parrish and Mason are still in town, and believe it or not, there are still supernatural problems floating around, so Noah could always use someone who knows about that kind of thing. And, I know better than anyone how tough being a single parent can be. So if you need someone to call in the middle of the night because you do not know what you’re doing? You have my number.”
Melissa knows what she’s doing. She’s appealing to him in the ways that she knows will make him feel useful. Offer friends that he’s not unfamiliar with but maybe not as close with. Offering him a network, the more human version of a pack, to reach out to if he needs it.
He doesn’t know if he’ll use it, but for now, he takes it. “Thank you.”
Things get a little easier after that. Melissa calls the sheriff almost immediately after he leaves the hospital, so by the time he gets home there’s a voice mail welcoming him back to Beacon Hills and asking if he’d be willing to come in and look at a few cases. When he does, Mason greets him with a hug and an: “Oh thank God, I know a lot but I have no idea what I’m doing.”
It’s nice, as strange as it is.
He helps them solve a few cases. He and Parrish have beers sometimes after work, and the adult conversation is nice. Things feel a little more normal, but he still misses the feeling of pack. He misses his family.
Parrish is gone, but he’s still sitting on the porch of his house as the cooling fall breeze floats through the air. He has one ear listening to the sleeping child inside, and he closes his eyes, trying to push away that ache for something more than what he has, when the scent on the breeze shifts, and turns familiar. There’s a very soft creek, and when he opens his eyes, he’s not alone. Cora sits in Parrish’s empty seat, while Malia leans back against the railing of the porch.
“You came back.”
“She did,” Cora points to her cousin. They’ve been traveling together, trying to make up for the lost time they had due to the fire and his mother’s meddling. They get along like a house on fire, but it’s been good for both of them. “I’m just visiting.”
“How’d you—”
“Melissa.” Malia shrugs. “I was on my way back anyway, mostly because it’s the last place Peter wants me to be and I enjoy pissing him off. But she said you were having a hard time and could probably use some family.”
“Why didn’t you call?” Cora asks. “We would have come a lot sooner.”
Derek shrugs. “Guess I didn’t want to interrupt everyone else’s life with my problems.”
“Well, that’s dumb.” Malia, blunt as ever. “You spent so long getting ‘if you need help, you ask for it’ to stick with me and can’t follow the advice yourself?”
“No, but it’s very Derek,” Cora teases. “C’mon. It’s late and I’m jetlagged. We can see where we’re at tomorrow.”
Derek nods, letting his sister pull him into the house, his cousin close behind. Eventually one of the guest rooms Malia will claim for her own, and Cora will go back to her life in New York, but for now, it’s more than enough. Now, the house is feeling like a home.