Love's Spiral

“Spencer!” Stiles shouted as soon as he entered the front door to his house. “Spencer! We might have a problem!” he ran up the steps, taking them two at a time, to Spencer’s door. He threw it open, startling her as she was sitting on her bed with her headphones in her ears, doing her homework. She jumped slightly as the door swung open, and pulled out her headphones.

“Stiles! What the hell!? You know I do my homework with music! You can’t surprise me like that.”
Stiles looked at her questioningly. “There was no surprise. I announced myself. I was practically screaming as I bounded up the stairs. I definitely attempted to make my presence known.”

Spencer sighed. “What’s so important?”

“This.” He said, taking a cell phone out of his pocket.

“That’s not your phone. Who’s is that?” she asked.

“Lydia’s.”

Spencer shot him a glare, a little irked that he stole her friend’s phone.

“It’s okay.” Stiles assured. “She’s totally high right now. She won’t even know it’s gone. Besides, look at this.” Stiles pressed a few buttons on the phone and a video began playing. It was outside the video store, and it was dark. In a second, a darker figure with glowing red eyes passed the camera.

Spencer gasped, taking Lydia’s phone to rewatch it. “Stiles, what the hell is that?”

Stiles sighed. “I’m not sure, but it might be the alpha.”

“Call Scott. Call him, now.”

“I’ve been trying. His phone is off.”

“Call him.” Spencer insisted, taking out her own phone.

“You’re not calling Derek.” Stiles said.

Spencer shot him a look.

“You know, unless you are. Which is totally your choice.”

Spencer shook her head. “Oh, no. We’re doing this on our own. He is the last thing that I need right now. I’m sending the video to myself so that we can bring Lydia’s phone back. Since you kinda stole it.” Spencer lied though. She was really sending a text, along with the video, to Deaton. She was sure that this would be something important.

“Stole is a very strong word.”

“Call Scott.” Spencer stressed.

Stiles nodded, taking out his own phone and dialing Scott’s number. “Hey, it’s me, again.” He said. “Look, I found something and I don’t know what to do, okay? So, if you could turn your phone on right now, that’d be great. Or else I’ll kill you. Do you understand me? I’m gonna kill you.” Stiles took a breath. “And I’m too upset to come up with a witty description about how exactly I’m gonna kill you, but I’m just gonna do it, okay? I’m gonna… Urgh!” he groaned into the phone. “Goodbye.” He slammed his phone down on Spencer’s bed and groaned, angry with his best friend. Stiles turned around to see Spencer staring at him with a raised eyebrow. “What?”

“Tell him how you really feel.” She said, nodding.

Stiles sighed and threw himself into the cushioned lounge chair in the corner of the room. He laid back and placed the crook of his elbow over his eyes.

“We’ll figure it out, Stiles. No one else is gonna get hurt.”

There was a quick knock at the door and the two teenager’s heads snapped towards it. Sheriff Stilinski was standing there, leaning against the door frame. He looked to his son. “Please tell me I’m gonna hear good news at this parent-teacher thing tonight.” The man begged.

Stiles hesitated, moving his hand in the air. “Depends on how you define ‘good news’.”

“I define it as you getting straight A’s with no behavioral issues.”

“You might wanna rethink that definition.” He said, carefully.

“Enough said.”

“Don’t listen to him, Pops.” Spencer said, joined Stiles on the lounge chair, his arm moving to the back of the chair, behind her. “Stiles is doing great in school. The teachers only pick on him because he’s different.” She patted his head.

The sheriff smiled and shook his head. “What about you? Do I have to attend a meeting for you?”

Spencer shook her head. “No worries. My mom is going.”

“Alright. You two, be good.” He said, walking away.

Stiles sighed and took Lydia’s phone from Spencer and watched the video again.

Spencer sighed with her friends and leaned her head down on his shoulder. “Stiles, it’s gonna be okay.”

“Yeah. I just wish Scott would answer his phone. I can’t just sit here and wait around while th-this… this thing is roaming the streets.”

“We have to. We’re only human.”

“You’re not.” He pointed out. “And I, for one, really think you should embrace that. You could do something.”

“I can’t do anything.” She argued, sitting up and turning around to face him. “I can smell things, hear things. That’s about it. I can’t defend myself against that. I wouldn’t even know where to begin. What to read. I have a magical book of everything and I can’t understand it. I’m trying, Stiles, but there’s only so much that I can do.”

“Gah…” Stiles sighed. “I know.” He reached forwards and grabbed her hands. “I’m sorry. It would be completely stupid for you to go out there. All it would do is get yourself killed.”

“Thank you for finally realizing that I’m not impervious to everything like Scott.” She joked.

Stiles smiled and his eyes shot to her lips.

Suddenly, Spencer became extremely self-conscious. She bit her lip before she spoke again. “Um, I’m gonna get dinner going. Pasta, okay? I’ll make my sauce.”

“Uh,” Stiles started, following her as she got off the chair, and walked to the door. “That’s great. Sounds good. Awesome.”

“Great.” She said, quickly, before leaving Stiles in her room to wonder what was going on in her head. Truthfully, Spencer didn’t know. She liked Stiles, and she liked kissing him, but she didn’t want to force it again. She wanted it to just happen.

!@#$#@!

The two were sitting on the couch in the living room with Xbox controllers in each of their hands and empty pasta bowls on the coffee table. Spencer was trying to get her team to win in their most recent round of Call of Duty matches. She was down by only a few kills with a minute left. Spencer smirked, coming up with an idea. She stood from her spot on the couch and sat down right on Stiles’ lap.

“Spence!” Stiles exclaimed with a tone of laughter in his voice. “You’re cheating.”

“No, I’m not. I’m distracting. There is a difference.” Spencer said, as she shot two of his teammates in one go. One more kill.

Stiles pushed her off of him so he could get back his kills, only to find that she had moved right in front of his own character.

Spencer acted quickly, shot until it fell to the floor, and jumped up from the couch in victory.

Stiles stood up next to her and watched the recap of the kill with his jaw dropped. “That was definitely cheating.” He said, turning towards her.

“Was not.” Spencer insisted, picking up their dirty dishes and taking them into the small kitchen. “I’m just that good.”

Stiles followed her into the kitchen. “I’m calling a rematch.”

“You wanna help me with some dishes first?” she asked, with a big smile on her face to persuade him.

Stiles’ shoulders fell as he moped towards the sink. He washed while she dried to put away.

Spencer made sure to save a bowl for the sheriff as well as more leftovers tomorrow for his lunch.

When Stiles finished washing, he dried his hands and watched as Spencer put away the last bowl.

“What?” Spencer questioned, when she saw him staring at her.

“Uh, nothing. I’m just glad that you’re here.” He stepped towards her, hugging her before she could pull away.

“Well, good. I don’t plan on leaving. I like living here with you guys It’s nice not to pretend that I’m someone else.” She said, pulling away from the hug, but Stiles kept her at an arm’s length. She saw him look to her lips again, but instead of walking out, she spoke to him. “Stiles?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for putting up with me. Through everything. And…” she shrugged, “taking me back, after all I did.”

Stiles smiled, and nodded.

Spencer took one breath before she quickly sprung on him before she could talk herself out of kissing him.

Stiles was caught off guard by her kiss. He enjoyed it though, relaxing into it, gently moving his own lips on hers.

Just as Spencer could fully relax into the kiss, realizing she hadn’t done something stupid, the house phone rang. She sighed, pulled away, and answered the phone since she was closest and Stiles was still in a daze. “Stilinski residence.” she said into the phone.

“Spencer? Is that you? It’s Melissa McCall.”

“Momma Mel? What’s going on?” she asked, curiously.

“Well, it’s the sheriff. He got hit by a car that was backing out of a parking spot at the school.” Melissa managed to say as gently as she could.

“Pops?” she questioned, looking up at Stiles with worried eyes. “God, tell me he’s okay.” she begged.

Stiles got equally worried and joined her side to listen to the call.

“He’s fine. Just fine.” Melissa assured. “He’s got a couple bruises and a slight sprain on his ankle. He’ll be fine.”

“What exactly happened?” Spencer asked. “I mean, how could somebody just back out? Without even checking.”

“There was a commotion. A, uh, mountain lion was running through the parking lot after the conferences.”

“Oh, my God. Is everyone else okay?” Spencer wondered if it was actually a mountain lion or if it was something else.

“Everyone’s fine, Spencer. Mr. Argent, Allison’s father, shot it… And killed it.” Melissa sighed. “Although, the sheriff is complaining about being cooped up in the hospital and, honestly, it’s driving the hospital staff insane. Which is why I called. We need you or Stiles to come and get him because he can’t drive.”

“We’re on our way, Melissa.” Stiles said, taking the phone and hanging up before Spencer could respond in her own manner. Stiles ran towards the door, grabbing his keys on the way.

“Stiles, wait!” Spencer called, following quickly after him.

Stiles didn’t listen as he moved to the driver’s side of the Jeep.

“Stiles!” she shouted at him. She caught the door before he could close it. “Stiles, listen to me.” she ordered, grabbing his hands in her so she had his attention. “You cannot drive. You’re too shaky. Your dad is fine. It’s just a sprain. He’s okay.” she reassured him. “Move over. I’ll drive.”

Stiles sighed, but nodded, moving into the passenger seat.

Spencer drive quickly, but still monitored the speed limits. As soon as the two arrived to the entrance of emergency care, Stiles threw himself out of the car. Spencer followed him through the sliding doors.

“Dad?” Stiles called out, looking his father.

Spencer calmly walked up to the front desk and asked where the sheriff was being kept. The nurse pointed them in the direction, ignoring Stiles’ pushiness. They walked to the room, swiftly, finding it easily.

“Dad?” he called again.

The sheriff was sitting in a wheelchair in the middle of the room. “It’s about time.” The sheriff complained. “I’ve been trying to go home for almost an hour.”

Spencer laughed, looking to Stiles. “I told you he was fine. I mean, he’s still complaining. Means not much has changed.”

!@#$#@!

The next Monday, Stiles and Spencer were sitting in their first class. They had arrived early, since they had to drop the sheriff off at the station. He still wasn’t allowed to drive yet.

Spencer was focusing on her hearing with her eyes closed. She was just practicing, not looking for anything important. Deaton had told her the previous night that she should start using it in public places to see if she could pinpoint certain things and focus on them. Mostly all she heard was gossiping girls and guys congratulating their friends on their most recent conquest over the weekend.

Then she heard Scott.

Scott was talking to himself, saying that he had to stay away from Allison and Jackson.

Spencer furrowed her brow.

Stiles watched her from the seat next to her. He tapped her arm to get her attention.

“What’s going on?” He asked her.

Spencer opened her eyes and shook her head. “Nothing.” She said. “Scott’s here.”

“Great.” he said, sarcastically, leaning back in his chair.

Spencer listened closely, again, to find where he was in the school. “He’s coming.” Then she counted down from five.

Scott walked in the door when she hit zero.

Spencer smiled at her accuracy.

However, Stiles wasn’t as happy to see their friend. He rolled his eyes and stared at the board.

Scott moved to the seat behind Stiles. As he passed, he spoke to Spencer. “Hey, Spencer.” he said, nicely.

“Scott.” She said, her eyes not leaving the page in her textbook.

Scott sighed and continued to the desk. “I take it you two still aren’t talking to me.” When the two didn’t answer, Scott sighed. “Can you at least tell me if your dad is okay? I mean, it’s just a bruise, right? Some soft tissue damage? Nothing that big?”

“He’s got a sprain.” Spencer stressed. “That’s kinda big.”

“You know I feel really bad about it, right?”

Stiles didn’t answer him.

“Okay.” Scott sighed. “What if I told you that I’m trying to figure this whole thing out, and… That I went to Derek for help?”

Spencer turned to look at Scott.

Scott shrugged his shoulders.

Stiles groaned. “If I was talking to you, I’d say that you’re an idiot for trusting him. But obviously I’m not talking to you.”

“We don’t need Derek.” Spencer insisted. “Stay away from him.”

The school bell rang, signalling the beginning of class.

Spencer turned to Stiles and watched as he fidgeted in his seat. Stiles probably couldn’t stop thinking about why Scott would go to Derek. He looked to Spencer and as if she knew what he was asking, she shrugged.

Stiles sighed. “What did he say?” Stiles and Spencer turned in their seats to look at Scott.

The teacher cleared his throat at the front of the classroom.

“After class.” Spencer whispered as they turned to look in the right direction.

The three of them trudged through class. Spencer and Stiles had conversation of their own about their work. Scott only listened in since he knew that he still wasn’t on good terms with either of them. He did notice how Spencer’s heart skipped a beat every time that Stiles would say her name or tap her arm when he needed to ask a question.

Spencer felt Scott’s gaze on her so she turned around. “Stop it.” She said under her breath so that Stiles couldn’t hear.

Scott smiled, widely.

When class was over, the three filed out of the classroom together, Scott quickly filling them in on what Derek wanted Scott to do and focus on.

“He wants you to tap into your animal side and get angry?” Stiles asked Scott. Stiles had his hand wrapped around Spencer’s and the three were walking in a line down the hallway.

“Yeah.” Scott said.

“Scotty, there’s no reason for that. You don’t seem me getting angry every time I want to listen in on something.” Spencer pointed out.

“And, correct me if I’m wrong, but every time you do that, you try to kill someone. And that someone is usually me or Spencer.” Stiles added.

“I know.” Scott stressed. “That’s what he means when he says he doesn’t know if he can teach me. I have to be able to control it.”

“Well, how’s he gonna teach you to do that?” Stiles asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t think he does either.”

“What if we can teach you?” Spencer asked, looking to Stiles, curiously.

“What?” Scott questioned. “How are you gonna teach me?”

“Well, apparently, I half-turn.”

The boys looked to her, completely confused.

Spencer sighed. “A while back, Derek called me a kid and it got me really mad. I slapped him. And scratched him.” she paused. “With my claws. That had grown. And then disappeared.”

“Are you kidding?” Stiles laughed.

“Stiles, it’s not funny. I seriously had claws. They changed before my eyes. I nearly freaked out completely.”

“How is that going to help him? You just said that you were angry when it happened. That’s what we’re trying to avoid, here.”

“Well, if you want to keep laughing at me, we’d find out.” Spencer sent a glare at Stiles, who shut his mouth. “Okay, Scott, you know me, right? Cool, calm, and collected Spencer.”

Scott nodded.

“Well, I wasn’t always like that. I kind of remember when I was really little, I would get mad and break things. Remember, Stiles?”

Stiles thought. “Yeah, come to think of it.”

“Well, just before I started school, my dad started to tell me that there was never anything in this entire world that I would need to get angry over. Nothing that would justify breaking or hurting things, or even people. So, instead of thinking how angry I was, I was supposed to think of something that made me happy so that my mood would turn around. That would make me happy again and not angry.”

“You’re a genius.” Stiles said, leaning over to kiss Spencer’s temple. “When are you seeing him again?”

“He just told me not to talk about it. Just act normal and get through the day.” Scott responded.

“When, Scott?” Spencer repeated Stiles’ question.

“He’s picking me up at the animal clinic after work.”

“After work.” Stiles reiterated.

Scott nodded.

“Alright. Well, that gives us ‘til the end of the school day then.”

“To do what?”

“To teach you, Scotty.” Spencer answered. “We’re gonna teach you to control your anger instead of unleash it.”

!@#$@!

Later, the three friends were sitting in the lunch room, picking at their almost eatable lunches. Scott was sitting across from Stiles and Spencer, hiding behind one of Stiles’ textbooks.

Stiles rolled his eyes and put his hand on top of the book to tilt it down a little. “I think the book is making it more obvious.” Stiles admitted. He looked behind him, to where Allison was sitting with a book. “Besides, she’s reading anyway.”

Scott thought about taking the book down, but decided against it.

“Scott, I’m not gonna talk to a textbook all lunch period.” Spencer complained, reaching for the book.

Scott only held it tighter.

Spencer groaned when it wouldn’t budge.

“Did you come up with a plan yet?” Scott asked.

“I think so.” Stiles answered, before taking a bite of his apple.

“Does that mean that you guys don’t hate me now?”

“You disappeared off of the planet with no notice and Pops got hurt in that time, on your watch. Of course we still hate you.” Spencer said.

“However, your crap is so far into our lives that we can’t just sit by and watch. We have to do something about it. Plus, I’m definitely a better Yoda than Derek.”

“Okay, yeah. You teach me.” Scott said.

“I’ll be your Yoda.” Stiles redefined.

“Yeah, you’ll be my Yoda.”

“Your Yoda, I will be.” Stiles said using his terrible Yoda impersonation.

Spencer snickered at his ridiculousness.

“I said, it backwards like -”

“Yeah, I know.” Scott assured.

“Even though you still haven’t seen the movies.” Spencer pointed out.

“Alright, you know what,” Stiles started when Scott didn’t like his humor. “I definitely still hate you. Uh-huh. Oh, yeah.” Stiles grabbed his things, tossing them in his backpack, making sure that he had a hold on his apple and Spencer’s arm. She was carried away without even finishing her lunch. She managed to grab her fork and bowl of fruit salad before she was whisked away from the table.