Poison and Wine

Tuesday morning Hailey woke up to her alarm going off. She stretched her arm out to grab her phone to stop it but before she could find it the noise stopped. Rubbing her eyes she looked up to see Derek behind her, his arm draped over her waist, her phone in his hand. Gently, she rolled onto her other side to face him, his arm still around her waist.

“Hi,” she mumbled, a sleepy smile on her face.

“Hi,” he mumbled back, pushing some of her hair behind her ear.

“I must look awful,” she said, covering her face up with a slight laugh.

“I don’t think that’s possible,” Derek said, pulling her hands away.

“Derek Hale are you flirting with me?” she gasped bringing a hand to her mouth and opening her eyes wide.

“I don’t think you can really call that flirting,” Derek said, rolling his eyes.

“I’ll take what I can get,” she said with a smile as she threw the blanket off of her. She stood up and stretched her arms over her head. Derek stayed on the bed and watched as she picked out an outfit for school.

“I wish you would have let me beat the shit out of Jackson Friday after the game,” he said, sitting up.

“Then this could have been much worse than it is,” she said, pointing at her casted arm.

“It wouldn’t have happened at all because I probably would have killed him,” he said and Hailey rolled her eyes. “What? Do you not want me to protect you?”

“That’s not it at all and you know it,” she said with a sigh.

She walked over to the bed and climbed onto it on her knees and sat back on her heels facing Derek. Shuffling closer she reached out and put her arms around his neck. He tilted his head closer and she closed her eyes as he placed his lips on hers, kissing her gently.

“I have to go shower,” she whispered, leaning back and putting her hands on his chest.

“Is it safe for me to wait here or will your Mom or someone randomly walk in?” he asked as she stood up.

“Actually I think she’s at work already. After yesterday she changed her shift to days.”

“That will be better for tomorrow,” he said and Hailey nodded in agreement. “What about your Dad?”

“When he realizes I’m in the shower he won’t bother coming in here,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. She grabbed her towels from the hook on the back of the door and headed to the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

After her shower Hailey got dressed in the bathroom before going back to the bedroom. She opened the door and continued to run her towel over her hair to get moisture out of it. Derek had pulled his jacket and shoes back on and was sitting at the foot of her bed. They were both silent as she stood in front of the mirror doing her hair and makeup. Occasionally she would catch his eye through the mirror and blush.

“I feel weird having you just sit there and watch me,” she admitted as she ran the last of her hair through the straightener.

“Why?”

“It must be boring you to death.”

“I don’t mind,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

Hailey smiled and started doing her makeup. As she was finishing up her phone rang and she looked over her shoulder. Derek grabbed her phone and looked down at it.

“It’s Stiles,” he said.

“Can you answer it?” she asked. He nodded his head and held the phone to his ear.

“Hello? … Yeah she’s almost ready … okay.”

“Is he here?” she asked as he set the phone down.

“Almost,” he said, standing up. “I’m going to leave once he gets here.”

“Thank you for staying the night,” she said, putting her makeup away and turning to him.

“It won’t be the last time,” he said and she smiled.

“I need to grab something to eat real quick. Do you want anything?” she asked, heading over to the door.

“Nothing in particular, I’ll be fine with anything,” he said as she went to go downstairs.

“Good morning,” Jason said as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Morning,” she said, mussing up Aaron’s hair as she passed him at the table where he was eating some cereal. She walked over to the cabinet and grabbed two granola bars.

“Do you need a ride to school or is… Derek… picking you up?”

“Stiles is picking me up actually. He volunteered to do it for as long as the cast is on since it was his house I fell at.”

“Well that’s nice of him. Will he be here soon?”

“Yeah and I have to go finish getting my stuff together so I’ll see you before I leave,” she said, walking out of the kitchen and to the stairs. She opened the door to her room to find Derek sitting on the window bench, looking out to the street. He looked up when Hailey walked over to him.

“Stiles is pulling up,” he said, nodding out the window.

“Take a granola bar before you slip out the window,” she said, handing it to him. He thanked her and put it in his pocket, standing up to open the window. Hailey looked out to see Stiles park his Jeep in her driveway. He climbed out and parted the ash line before walking up to Hailey’s front door.

“Be careful,” Derek said as he stepped out onto the roof. Hailey heard the doorbell ring downstairs and the door open. “I’ll be at the school later. I’m going to check in with Peter and Isaac first since I ignored their calls last night.”

“Hailey! Stiles is here!” her father called up the stairs.

“I’ll be right down!” she called back, watching as Derek agilely jumped from the roof to the ground. He twisted around to look back up at her with a smile before running down the block to where he parked his car. Hailey shut and locked her window and grabbed her backpack and phone before heading downstairs.

“Morning Hails,” Stiles said, winking at her once she reached the bottom.

“Hey,” she said, smiling at him.

“Let me take that,” he said, reaching out for her backpack. She gladly handed it over to him.

“Have a good day,” Jason said, giving Hailey a hug. “Try not to break anymore bones.”

“Jesus, Dad,” she said, grabbing her coat and pulling it on over her cast with much difficulty.

“We should probably get you a new coat a size bigger just so it fits over your arm.”

“That would be nice,” she said.

“Bye Hails!” Aaron called down the stairs.

“See ya!” she called back. “Bye Dad.”

“Bye, drive safe, Stiles,” Jason said, patting Stiles on the back.

“Will do,” Stiles said, nodding his head. He slung Hailey’s backpack over his shoulder and they walked over to the Jeep as Jason closed the door behind them.

“Thanks for this,” Hailey said as Stiles opened her door. “By the way, I kind of told my Dad that you were going to be picking me up every day for school until the cast is gone…”

“Well I thought that was obvious,” he said, handing her backpack to her. She smiled and set it at her feet. “I’m just going to close the line and then we can go.”

“Okay,” she said, watching through the rearview mirror as he bent down, making it look like he was tying his shoe. When he was done he climbed in the car and started it up to head to school.

****

Hailey and Stiles pulled into the school parking lot as Allison was getting out of her car. Stiles grabbed his backpack from the backseat and Hailey’s from the front before climbing out of the car and slinging one bag over each shoulder. Allison smiled when she saw them and walked over.

“Stiles what are you doing?” she asked with a laugh.

“Carrying Hailey’s backpack,” he said, hoisting it more securely over his shoulder.

“I can see that but why?” she asked, looking at Hailey.

“Because I kind of broke my arm,” she said, lifting her arm and pulling up the sleeve of her jacket just enough to reveal part of the bright green cast.

“Oh my God Hailey,” Allison said, anger rising in her voice. “Did Derek do this to you? I told you it would be a bad idea to get to know him. I knew that he would end up hurting you at some point but I didn’t think it would be so soon. Where is he? He’s…”

“Allison! Will you shut up for two seconds?” Hailey asked angrily. Stiles let out a low whistle and turned to head into the school.

“Sorry,” Allison said softly, lowering her head. Hailey gestured towards the school and the two of them walked side by side behind Stiles.

“Derek didn’t break my arm.”

“Then who did?”

“Jackson,” Hailey said and Allison’s eyes widened.

“Why?”

“You know that history assignment we have?” Hailey asked and Allison nodded her head. “Well we went to his house to work on it and Derek, Peter, and Isaac were outside making sure nothing sketch happened. Turns out Jackson texted Lydia or Danny, I’m assuming Lydia, to call the cops and next thing I know Stiles’ Dad shows up and is leading my handcuffed boyfriend to his car.”

“Wow.”

“So naturally after they leave I go inside to get my stuff and leave because I was so pissed off and when I went inside I didn’t see Jackson anywhere… until he grabbed my from behind and shoved my back against the wall. He pinned my right wrist to the wall and turned my head to get to my neck so he could bite me.”

“No!” Allison gasped. Hailey held her hand up so she could finish explaining.

“I reached out to hit him or try to shove him away but he grabbed my arm and twisted it so hard that I could actually hear the bone break,” she said and Allison covered her mouth with her hand. “He was about to bite me again when Scott and Stiles appeared out of nowhere and saved me.”

“Scott saved you?” she asked, a smile creeping on her voice.

“Hell yeah I did,” Scott said, coming up to the three of them and giving Allison a kiss. “Hailey saved me first so I had to return the favor.”

“I never thanked you for that Hailey,” Allison said with a frown. “When my Dad and I realized Scott was missing we went to Jackson’s house and then Lydia’s thinking maybe he and Stiles were taken there. We never thought they’d just be inside the school.”

“I did my best,” Hailey said, shrugging her shoulders. “You should really be thanking Derek though.”

“Yeah I know,” she said, turning to walk down the hallway to Physics when they heard the first warning bell ring. The group of four walked to class and the first thing that all of them noticed was that Jackson and Lydia weren’t there.

“Maybe they’re just late,” Stiles said when he noticed the panicked expression on Hailey’s face.

“Hopefully,” Scott said. They walked to their seats and settled in. Hailey looked up to the clock and watched it, hoping that the pair would walk in before class started. The minutes ticked by and soon class was starting and they weren’t there.

“Stiles,” Hailey said quietly, her voice shaking.

“I know,” he whispered back, looking over his shoulder at Scott. “Just, wait forty-five minutes. If they’re not here by the time class is over then we can all panic.”

“Too late,” she said, her right leg jumping up and down.

“Just wait until Physics is over,” he whispered, putting his hand on her knee. “They could walk through that door any minute.”

****

“I’m officially panicking,” Hailey said as soon as the bell rang, ending Physics.

“Luckily we have a free period next so let’s… go out to the quad and you can call Derek,” Allison said, grabbing her things and leading them out of the classroom.

“What if Jackson’s trying to go after Aaron again? Or my parents?” Hailey asked, her heart pounding.

“It makes sense that Jackson’s not here after yesterday but where the hell is Lydia?” Scott asked in confusion.

Stiles opened the door to the quad and they all stepped out into the crisp air. Hailey pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and sat on the cold bench, Stiles next to her. Scott and Allison sat across from them and were silent as Hailey listened to Derek’s phone ringing.

“Hi,” Derek answered.

“Derek I need you to go to the elementary school now. Please,” she said quickly, her eyes welling up.

“Hailey, calm down,” he said, panic in his voice. “What’s wrong?”

“Jackson and Lydia aren’t in school. Did Peter and Isaac ever come across him last night?”

“No they didn’t,” Derek said with a sigh. “I’m getting in the car right now. Hailey you need to calm down. Are the others with you?”

“Yeah they’re all here. We have a free period,” she said, biting her lip.

“Tell Allison to call her father and let him know what’s going on,” he said pointedly.

“Allison,” she said, causing Allison to look up at her. “Derek wants you to call your Dad and let him know what’s happening.”

“Okay,” Allison said, nodding her head and pulling out her phone.

“I sent Peter and Isaac to check out Jackson and Lydia’s houses again to see if they went there at all. As soon as I check on Aaron and hear back from those two I’ll check on your parents.”

“Please hurry,” she said, her voice shaking, a tear dripping down her cheek. Stiles wrapped his arm around her back and she rested her head on his shoulder.

“Where in the school should he be right now so I can find him from the outside?”

“His classroom is along the left side of the school facing the playground. It’s either the third or fourth window down from the front.”

“I’ll listen for his heartbeat and smell him out. Then I’ll check around for Jackson.”

“I’m so scared,” she whispered into the phone, closing her eyes as more tears slid down.

“I know,” he said softly. “I’m almost there. I’ll call you back after I check it out.”

“Okay,” she said, keeping the phone to her ear until she heard the click signaling the end of their call.

Her whole body was shaking as she waited for her phone to buzz with Derek’s call. Stiles held her tight to him while Scott and Allison stayed silent across from them. Time seemed to drag on but it only had to have been less than five minutes before Derek was calling her back.

“Aaron’s fine. He’s in his classroom,” Derek said and Hailey let out a sigh of relief.

“Oh thank God.”

“Hailey… I can smell Jackson,” he said hesitantly and her eyes widened. “He’s been here. His scent went all the way around the school but it doesn’t lead off anywhere. Just the parking lot.”

“Is he still there?”

“No.”

“What about Lydia? Has she been there?” she asked, sitting up a little straighter.

“I couldn’t smell her.”

“What did Peter and Isaac say?”

“Both houses are empty. I’m going to check on your parents now.”

“Go to the hospital first. It’s closer,” she said.

“How long do you have until your next class?”

“About thirty minutes.”

“If I don’t call you back in time I’ll text you as soon as I know she’s okay.”

“Be careful,” she said before hanging up.

“Aaron’s okay?” Stiles asked, rubbing his hand up and down her arm.

“Yeah,” she said, letting out a slight smile. “He’s going to check on my Mom now. He said both Jackson and Lydia’s houses were empty. And Jackson’s been to the elementary school before. I don’t understand why he’s doing this.”

“We won’t let him do anything to your family,” Scott said and Hailey nodded her head, knowing it was the truth but worrying all the same.

****

*Derek’s POV*

Once Derek got to the hospital he climbed out of his car and could instantly smell Jackson, accompanied by Lydia’s scent. Calmly he walked into the hospital, following their scents down many hallways, keeping his eyes open for Alyssa. As he turned a corner, he could hear Jackson’s voice from behind one of the curtains and he stopped, knowing Jackson was sure to smell him already.

“Looks like we have some company,” he heard Jackson say quietly.

“Who is it?” Lydia asked.

“Hale,” Jackson said, amusement in his voice.

“Just as you predicted,” Lydia said smugly.

“Well Hale,” Jackson said to Derek. “It took you long enough to fine me.”

Derek clenched his fists and was about to walk over, tear the curtain away, and grab Jackson by the throat when a nurse walked by him. His eyes widened when he realized it was Alyssa. He followed her with his gaze and groaned when she pulled back the curtain allowing him to finally see Jackson and Lydia. Lydia was on the hospital bed, her right leg stretched out in front of her on a pillow.

“Sorry that took so long,” he heard Alyssa say as she grabbed a stool and pulled it close to the bed. “One of the doctors will be over soon but I’m going to stitch up that nasty cut on your forehead while you wait.”

“Great, thanks,” Lydia said, offering her a smile. “Is it going to leave a scar?”

“It shouldn’t be too noticeable once it’s healed,” Alyssa said, applying some lidocaine to the laceration.

“Especially with all the makeup you wear,” Jackson said, giving what sounded to Derek like a fake laugh.

“So how did this happen?” Alyssa asked as she started to stitch Lydia up.

“I was walking down my driveway to Jackson’s car when my heel caught in a dip and I fell and my ankle just… twisted,” Lydia answered, her gaze drifting towards Derek, a grin on her face.

“Ouch,” Alyssa said sympathetically.

“That’s why you shouldn’t wear heels to school,” Jackson said and Lydia rolled her eyes.

“I wonder if you two know my daughter,” Alyssa said, pausing to look up at them. “Hailey Miner.”

“Oh we love Hailey!” Lydia exclaimed.

“She’s such a… sweetheart,” Jackson said, grinning when he heard Derek let out a low growl.

“I’m just glad she’s making friends so easily.”

“I hear she has a boyfriend already,” Lydia said.

“Yeah. Derek,” Alyssa said, a smile on her face.

“Derek Hale?” Jackson asked.

“That’s him,” Alyssa said, nodding her head. Derek groaned, expecting Jackson to say something stupid about him that would make Alyssa put her guard up.

“Well… good for them,” Lydia said with a smile catching Derek off guard.

“I like him so far,” Alyssa said with a laugh. “Well, I’m all done here. I’ll go see if I can wrangle one of the doctors over here so you don’t have to wait all day.”

“Thank you,” Jackson said. His eyes followed Alyssa as she walked away and he looked up at Derek. “You can’t protect everyone Hale. You saw how easy it was to get close to her. That can easily be repeated.”

“Derek?” Alyssa asked in surprise causing Derek to turn his attention to her and force a smile. “What are you doing here?”

“Hi, Mrs. Miner. I was just… visiting a friend,” he said, shoving his hands in his pockets. His eyes shifted towards Jackson and Lydia before looking back at her.

“Oh well, it was good to see you,” she said, putting a hand on his arm and he fought back the urge to flinch away from the contact. It was one thing for Hailey to touch him but he still wasn’t used to it with other people.

“Yeah, you too,” he said, nodding his head.

“You should come over for dinner this weekend,” she said with a smile.

“Thank you, I will. Have a good day.”

“You too, Derek,” she said, starting to continue on her way.

“Uh, Mrs. Miner?” he said, causing her to turn back to him, an eyebrow raised.

“Yes?”

“Just… be careful,” he said quietly. Her eyebrows pulled together in confusion and she nodded her head.

“I will.”

“Alright… bye,” he said, lifting his hand in a wave and heading to the exit.

“Bye,” she said, shaking her head.

As soon as Derek got outside he checked the time. Hailey still had at least ten minutes before her next class so he pulled her number up on his phone and hit send. It barely rang three times when she answered.

“So?” she asked.

“The good news is that your Mom’s okay. The bad news… is that she’s Lydia’s nurse.”

“What are they doing at the hospital?” Hailey asked, confusion in her voice.

“Lydia claims she fell and twisted her ankle, probably breaking it.”

“Do you think he did something to her on purpose?”

“I wouldn’t put it past him,” he said, walking over to his car and climbing in. “What time does your Mom’s shift end?”

“Two,” Hailey answered and Derek looked at the clock and realized that was almost five hours away. “What are you doing now?”

“Staying outside the hospital until she leaves. Or Jackson and Lydia leave.”

“Keep me updated,” she said.

“Of course,” he said with a sigh. He wished he could have her with him, he knew it was the only way she would remain calm.

“I have to go to class,” she said and he nodded his head.

“I’ll text you.”

“Bye,” she said softly, ending the conversation.

****

“So?” Allison asked as they grabbed their bags, Stiles grabbing his and Hailey’s, and headed back into the school.

“She’s okay but she’s Lydia’s nurse,” Hailey explained.

“What happened to Lydia?” Scott asked.

“Either she twisted her ankle or Jackson twisted it for her. And Derek’s leaning toward the latter.”

“I don’t understand what Jackson would want with your Mom,” Allison said, shaking her head. “Do you think he’ll go after your Dad too?”

“Probably. I think he’s doing this for the same reason he tried to get Scott’s Mom and Stiles’ Dad.”

“I just don’t understand why he feels the need to build a pack though,” Stiles said in exasperation.

“Especially with how many failed attempts he’s had,” Scott added.

“Could there be something in his bloodstream? I mean, there has to be! Why else would he turn into a Kanima instead of a werewolf last year when Derek bit him?” Allison asked raising a very good point.

“That’s got to be it but what could it be?” Stiles asked.

“Deaton’s been trying to figure it out but who knows if he ever will,” Scott said, shrugging his shoulders. “He was never able to figure out what makes Lydia immune.”

“Wait, what do you mean Lydia’s immune?” Hailey asked.

“Peter attacked Lydia last year but for some reason she didn’t change,” Stiles said.

“Derek told me the Bite either changes you or you die,” Hailey said, looking between the three.

“Not with Lydia,” Allison said as they walked into their next class.

****

*Derek’s POV*

Derek sat in his car for almost three hours waiting. If Alyssa was going to leave first he had about another two hours to go. He thought Lydia and Jackson would have left by now but he could still see Jackson’s car parked a couple of rows ahead of him. Suddenly his attention was drawn to the entrance when he heard Alyssa’s voice.

“Remember to keep your ankle elevated. You’re going to have to get used to taking baths again while you have the cast so put a plastic bag tight around it,” Alyssa instructed as she pushed Lydia out of the hospital in a wheelchair.

“I’ll go pull the car up,” Jackson said.

“Can I get out of this thing now?” Lydia asked.

“Sorry, not until he’s got the car here. Hospital policy,” Alyssa said with an apologetic smile.

“I broke my ankle I didn’t have a heart attack,” Lydia said with a sigh.

“I know,” Alyssa said as Jackson pulled up in front of them and got out. “There, now you can get up.”

Derek started the car as Jackson helped Lydia into his and handed her the crutches she’d be using. Derek watched as Jackson thanked Alyssa before climbing into the driver’s side. He waited until Alyssa walked back into the hospital before pulling forward and following a few cars behind Jackson.

For some reason he was expecting Jackson to lead him somewhere in the middle of nowhere but surprisingly he followed him to Lydia’s house. He parked a few blocks away but was still able to see them and watched as Jackson helped Lydia out of the car. Derek rolled down his window slightly to hear them better. He was surprised when he heard Jackson speak to him.

“You know, Hale, you’re not very good at being inconspicuous. I should have a restraining order put on you like I did for Stilinski and McCall,” he said, smugness in his voice. “Wondering why I didn’t harm your girlfriend’s Mommy? I like to keep you on your toes, Hale. That visit was purely to get her scent. Three Miner’s down, one to go.”

Derek sped away, a growl rising deep in his throat. He drove to the school. Hailey still had three more hours to go but he was going to wait. He couldn’t tell her what just happened in a text. As he drove, he worried about what might happen the next night. The full moon was always unpredictable but this was different. It wasn’t just about him this time around.