Come What May

Two months after the craziest time of Hailey’s life, it was the holidays. Hailey and her family were back in New York to spend Christmas and New Year’s with Alyssa’s family. The night before Christmas Eve they were visiting Alyssa’s parents Jacob and Marion in their independent living community. Alyssa’s brother Frank, his wife Casey, and their son Brady were there as well.

Brady was telling everyone about how stressful it has been for him applying to college the past few months and how his girlfriend was going through the same thing. And this whole time Hailey had to keep her mouth shut about Derek. Her parents and Derek agreed to keep the family out of it because Alyssa had already gone through the struggle of getting her parents, mainly her father, to accept her relationship with Jason being ten years older than her. And now Hailey was in a similar relationship and they didn’t want to put that on Alyssa’s conservative parents.

While the family was hanging out, the door to her grandparents’ apartment was open in case any of their friends wanted to stop in and visit. When Aaron was in the middle of telling one of his soccer stories an older gentleman entered the doorway on a motorized scooter, a cannula in his nose attached to a tank of oxygen.

“Am I interrupting?” he asked and Hailey’s grandfather laughed and shook his head.

“Come on in!” he said waving his hand. “Everyone, this is my friend Gerard.”

“They play cards and watch golf together every day,” Marion explained to the family and Hailey’s ears perked up at the name Gerard, recognizing it from past conversations with Derek but remembering he never told her what the whole deal was.

“Gerard this is our son Frank, our daughter-in-law Casey, and our grandson Brady,” Jacob said as they all shook hands. “And our daughter Alyssa, our son-in-law Jason, our other grandson Aaron, and our only darling granddaughter Hailey.”

“Well it’s nice to finally meet you all. I’ve seen all of your pictures and heard so many stories I feel like I know you,” Gerard said with a laugh.

“It’s nice to meet you too,” Jason said. “Did your family come out for the holidays?”

“No, my son doesn’t… he doesn’t speak to me anymore. And my daughter died about a year ago.”

“I’m so sorry,” Alyssa said softly and Gerard shook his head.

“No bother. The company here is all right. Most days.”

“Hey now,” Jacob said causing Gerard to laugh.

“Only joking, Jake. So, your parents here tell me you live out west?” Gerard asked looking at everyone.

“Just our part of the family,” Alyssa said.

“Where out west?”

“Beacon Hills, California,” Jason said.

“That’s where my son and his daughter live,” Gerard said perking up.

“What are their names? Maybe we know them,” Alyssa said with a smile.

“Argent. Chris and Allison Argent,” he said and Hailey’s eyes widened.

“You’re Allison’s grandfather?” she asked.

“Yes. I take it you know her?”

“She’s one of my best friends,” Hailey said, nodding her head.

“Would you tell her something for me?” he asked and Hailey nodded again. “Tell her that Grandpa misses her… and that charming boyfriend of hers.”

“You know Scott, too?”

“So she is still with him?” he asked.

“Yes,” Hailey said, raising an eyebrow and Gerard shook his head.

“Well you tell her what I said. I should get going now and let you all get back to your celebrations,” Gerard said, shaking everyone’s hands.

“Mr. Argent?” Hailey asked, standing up and following him out to the hallway.

“Please, call me Gerard,” he said.

“Gerard… is there anything else I should tell Allison. Or your son, even? I don’t want this to come off as rude but you seem very ill and I would feel terrible having seen you and not letting them know how you really are. Even though you aren’t speaking,” she said and he smiled, taking her hand in one of his and patting it with the other.

“That’s very kind of you. Just tell them that I’m as strong as ever,” he said, a grin on his face that was unsettling to Hailey.

“I will. Merry Christmas,” she said, pulling her hand away.

“Merry Christmas,” he said, turning and heading down the hallway.

“What a small world,” Alyssa said as Hailey walked back into the room.

“Yeah,” Hailey said, mulling it over in her head that Allison’s grandfather’s name is Gerard and there used to be a Gerard in Beacon Hills that was a problem for the pack. Gerard Argent didn’t give any indication that he had been in Beacon Hills, just that his family lived there. For the first time in her life she wanted time with her family to pass by quickly so that she could talk to Derek.

****

“Hi,” Hailey said quickly as soon as Derek’s face appeared on her computer screen.

“I miss you too?” he said, quirking an eyebrow, noticing how restless Hailey was.

“Sorry I just really need to talk to you,” she said, biting her lip.

“Is everything alright?” he asked and Hailey nodded.

“Hails! What’s up?” Stiles asked, walking into the room and tossing some popcorn in his mouth.

“Stiles will you go away?” Derek asked, rolling his eyes.

“It’s alright he can stay. He might be able to help,” Hailey said and Stiles grabbed an extra chair and sat down.

“Fine,” Derek sighed. “Go ahead.”

“So something really weird happened today. You know how we were going to my grandparents’ tonight for dinner?”

“Yeah,” Derek said nodding as Stiles shoved another fistful of popcorn in his mouth.

“Well one of their friends stopped by and introduced himself. He said his son and granddaughter live in Beacon Hills,” she said slowly and Derek raised an eyebrow.

“Cool. What’s his name?” Stiles asked and Hailey took a deep breath.

“Gerard Argent?” she said quietly and Stiles choked on the popcorn in his mouth, spitting it out and coughing. Derek’s face grew stoic and Hailey could tell he was fuming.

“You’re shitting me, right?” Stiles asked after he caught his breath.

“No… Derek… is he the same Gerard you mentioned before?” she asked and he jerked his head yes. “You never told me what he did.”

“You don’t wanna know,” Stiles mumbled, running a hand through his hair.

“Hailey you need to stay away from him. If you see him again, turn the other way. Don’t talk to him.”

“Are you going to tell me what he did or do I have to guess?” she asked.

“When you get home,” Derek said and she sighed.

“Okay,” she said. “How… worried should I be? Like, would he hurt my grandparents?”

“I honestly don’t know about that, but you should tell your parents. Let them feel it out,” he said and she bit her lip. “Hey, I promise I will tell you everything when you get home.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” she said and Stiles rolled his eyes.

“Well good to catch up but I think I hear Scott calling me. Please, no cyber sex until I leave the room,” Stiles said, standing up.

“Goodbye Stiles,” Derek said through his teeth as Stiles shut the door behind him.

“You know you could be a little nicer to him. He’s letting you use his computer after all,” she said and Derek just grunted causing her to let out a slight laugh. It grew quiet and Hailey sighed, looking up at the screen to see Derek watching her and she raised an eyebrow. She tilted her head, asking a silent question.

“I miss you,” Derek said, catching Hailey off guard. Her face softened and she could feel herself starting to tear up. It was unusual for Derek to look and act so vulnerable. Yes, he had said it when their chat first opened but that had been in a lighter tone.

“I miss you, too,” she whispered, getting choked up. Derek sighed and ran his hands down his face.

“Now that you’ve told me about Gerard I just… I don’t like the fact that he knows who you are and where you live.”

“So come here,” Hailey said, causing Derek to raise his eyebrow.

“What?”

“Catch a red-eye and come here.”

“But what about your family?” he asked and Hailey shrugged.

“Who cares? If it will make you feel better, why the hell not? I know it will make me feel better. And you know that I have to tell my parents about Gerard,” she said and he nodded.

“If you’re sure…”

“There’s nothing more I’d love than to spend Christmas with you.”

“Okay I’ll… go home and pack and have Stiles get me a flight.”

“Keep me updated and I’ll fill my parents in with what I know so far and we’ll pick you up at the airport when you get in,” she said, doing her best to hide her excitement.

“I love you.”

“I love you too,” she said before closing the chat. She sat there with her laptop illuminating the hotel room while she figured out how exactly to explain this to her parents. After a few minutes she closed her laptop and walked over to the door separating her and Aaron’s room from her parents’ room. She opened it to see the three of them sitting on the couch watching a Christmas movie.

“Hi honey,” Alyssa said, rolling her head on Jason’s shoulder to look at Hailey.

“Hey can I talk to you guys or did you want to finish the movie?” she asked, motioning towards the TV.

“You can talk, we watched this the other day but there was nothing else on,” Aaron said and Jason reached for the remote and shut the television off.

“Is everything alright?” Jason asked.

“Um… I don’t really know,” she said, pulling the chair in the corner closer to the couch as her mother sat up.

“What’s wrong?” Alyssa asked.

“Well… remember Gerard? Grandpa’s friend from earlier?” she asked and they nodded.

“Allison’s Grandpa,” Aaron recalled and Hailey nodded.

“A few months ago, Derek and Stiles had mentioned a Gerard in Beacon Hills who caused a lot of trouble for the pack and was a really bad person. I brought this Gerard up and Derek told me it’s the same guy,” Hailey said and her mother’s eyes widened. “So Derek’s getting on the soonest flight possible to come out here because he’s uncomfortable knowing that we’re here and Gerard knows where we live and that we’re associated with the Argent’s.”

“Is that really necessary?” Jason asked causing Hailey’s jaw to drop. “Well how much trouble could he be? He gets around on a scooter, I don’t think he’d win in a foot race.”

“I don’t know the whole story, Dad. All I know is that he really screwed things up and Derek’s worried. I mean, Allison and Chris don’t even talk to him anymore so it had to have been something bad,” she said and Alyssa nodded.

“He’ll call when he knows when he’s getting in?” Alyssa asked.

“Yeah,” Hailey nodded.

“Just when we thought it was all over…” Jason said with a sigh and Hailey frowned.

“I know Dad but let’s just wait for Derek to explain everything before we start freaking out,” she said and he nodded.

“Fair enough,” he said, turning the television back on.

****

“Hi,” Hailey said, unable to hide the large smile on her face when she saw Derek filter through the crowd exiting the terminal. Derek also seemed unable to hide a smile as he walked towards Hailey and engulfed her in his arms.

“Finally,” he whispered into her ear before pulling away.

“How was your flight?” Jason asked, shaking Derek’s hand before leading the way to the parking lot. Derek slung his duffel bag, his only luggage, over his shoulder and sighed.

“Long. I was never really a fan of flying,” he said and Jason laughed.

“That makes two of us,” he said, putting his hand on Derek’s shoulder.

“Where are Alyssa and Aaron?” Derek asked as they got in the car.

“They wanted to sleep for a little bit before you got here to explain everything,” Hailey explained.

“That can wait until the morning. Let them sleep.”

“Well will you at least tell us?” Jason asked. “It will at least give me some peace of mind.”

“Do you remember what we told you about Jackson being a Kanima last year?”

“Yes,” Hailey said as Jason nodded, glancing at them through the rearview mirror.

“Gerard, for a little while, was his master. He controlled him, told him who to kill.”

“Why?” Jason asked.

“He was dying and he knew the only way to be cured was to be bitten. And he knew we were after Jackson. Controlling Jackson led us to him. I was forced to bite him.”

“So he’s a werewolf?” Hailey asked.

“I’m not really sure. Before I bit him, Scott had realized to some extent what was going on and switched his pills with ones filled with mountain ash. After he was bit, he basically projectile vomited this black goo. Meanwhile, Peter and I attacked Jackson. While he was changing from Kanima to werewolf, Gerard just… disappeared. No one has seen or heard from him since.”

“Until now,” Hailey whispered.

“So we have no idea what he’s capable of now,” Jason said and Derek nodded.

“No but we can base what we know off his past. He’s very well known for his torture skills.”

“I don’t like the sound of that,” Hailey said with a shudder.

“That’s something you can keep us in the dark about, for now at least,” Jason said.

When they got back to the hotel, Derek and Hailey went right to her and Aaron’s room. They were as quiet as possible as they got ready for bed. Hailey lay down and rested her head on Derek’s chest.

“Derek?” Aaron asked, his voice full of sleep, just as Hailey was about to close her eyes.

“I’m here, bud,” Derek said and Hailey bit back a smile.

“Go back to sleep Aaron,” Hailey whispered.

“What about,” Aaron said, pausing to yawn, “Gerard?”

“I’ll tell you in the morning. Go back to sleep,” Derek said. Aaron let out a quiet hum and soon his breathing became slow and steady again.

****

“But he gets around on a motorized scooter and hauls a tank of oxygen,” Alyssa said as she poured a cup of coffee and handed it to Derek.

“Which could be real or could be an act,” Derek said.

“But he couldn’t have known where we lived before. He seemed genuinely surprised when he found out.”

“I’m sure he did,” Derek said, taking a sip of his coffee. “There’s no reason to believe he had any prior knowledge of this. But now that he knows you’re connected to the Argent’s and Scott there’s no telling what he may be thinking.”

“My biggest concern is would he harm Jake and Marion to get information or anything?” Jason asked.

“I’ve known Gerard to do many… villainous things… but I can honestly say that I’m not sure.”

“Is there a way we could warn them that he’s bad news?” Hailey asked, concern on her face.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea since your grandfather seems to really trust him,” Derek said, shaking his head.

“I’m just worried about them,” Alyssa said, fear evident in her voice.

“I know,” Derek said with a sigh.

“I’m also worried about how they’ll react to you interrupting the family Christmas,” Hailey said, biting her lip.

“Especially since they don’t even know about me,” Derek said and Hailey put her arm around his waist.

“Well, Grandma will love you,” Aaron said and everyone nodded in agreement.

“I’m assuming she’s a hugger?” he asked, growing uncomfortable at the thought. Hailey rubbed his back when she felt his muscles twitch.

“I’ll keep her at bay,” she said softly.

****

“We’re here,” Alyssa said, opening the door to her parents’ apartment. Everyone turned to welcome them while Brady continued his story. Their faced turned to shock when they counted five people as Derek walked in behind Hailey.

“Uh, who’s this?” Jacob asked, looking from Alyssa, to Hailey, to Derek.

“Dad, this is Derek Hale. He’s uh, Hailey’s boyfriend,” Alyssa said as her mother’s eyes widened.

“Honey, you didn’t say you were dating anyone,” Marion exclaimed, standing up and making her way over to hug Derek, a smile on her face. Hailey felt Derek tense up next to her and immediately stepped in front of him causing her grandmother to frown.

“Uh Gran, Derek’s not really the hugging type of person. It’s a personal thing,” Hailey whispered and her grandmother nodded in understanding.

“Come on in honey, sit down,” she said, motioning for Derek to follow her. She pointed to the couch next to her chair as she sat. “You sit right here next to me.”

“So what brings the impromptu visit?” Brady asked as Hailey sat between Aaron and Derek on the couch.

“My Christmas plans fell through,” Derek lied.

“Family couldn’t make it?” Hailey’s Uncle Frank asked and Derek cleared his throat.

“Something like that,” he said, looking down at his hands. “I’m sorry to intrude.”

“Nonsense. The more the merrier,” Marion said as Jacob grunted in his chair. As Derek settled in, the family continued the conversation from before they arrived. Hailey noticed the look of disapproval on her grandfather’s face and looped her arm through Derek’s and put her head on his shoulder.

Every time Hailey heard footsteps coming from the hallway her stomach flipped with the thought that it might be Gerard. She hoped that since it was Christmas Eve he would leave them alone and they could avoid any uncomfortable situations. What she wanted more than anything was for time to fly by so they could return home and tell the others, especially Allison, about Gerard.