By Your Side

"Come on, skinny love, just last the year. Pour a little salt, we were never here." Zoey sang softly as she carefully painted her toenails. Bored out of her mind, she had spent part of the day cleaning the house, rearranging her room, and doing pointless things to keep her busy. "And I told you to be patient, and I told you to be fine. And I told you to be balanced, and I told you to be kind." She sang and nodded her head to the gentle strumming of the acoustic guitar.

Somebody cleared their throat from behind Zoey and she jumped, causing her nail polish to go flying. Her head whipped around and was met with the amused smile of Isaac. His hands were tucked into the pockets of his jeans, his shoes covered in mud. "You're voice is still great." He said quietly. She noticed something was off about him. He looked...more muscular, less scrawny. His jawline looked more defined and his features were sharper and intense.

"So..." Isaac began. Zoey still hadn't said anything. What could she say? Isaac had avoided her for the past week and now all of a sudden he just shows up. Isaac seemed to notice her hesitance and he sighed. "I, well...I came to apologize." The blonde blinked and stayed silent so he continued on. "I feel really bad about what happened. I shouldn't have flipped out or ignored you. But..."

"I deserved it," Zoey replied quietly, playing with the sleeves of her sweater. "I never should have made you skip. God, Isaac your dad probably beat you to hell, didn't he?" She asked, a frown attaching itself to her lips.

Isaac shrugged and gave her a small, weak smile. "Nothing I couldn't handle."

"Still..." She murmured and sat at the edge of her bed. Isaac took a seat next to her, his blue eyes focusing on her every detail. It was amazing how well he could pick up on things now. He never knew she had so many freckles on her cheeks, or that her hair smelled so good. He lifted a gentle hand to her head and brush some of the hair out of her face. Zoey smiled, her cheeks tinting a beautiful shade of pink. She sighed and glanced down at his shoes, her eyebrow quirking up. "Were you hiking or something?"

Isaac didn't understand what she meant until she motioned towards his muddy Converse. "Oh," He chuckled and slipped them off, gingerly placing them under her bed. "Yeah, well, it was raining so..."

Zoey watched as his features changed and she grew concerned, placing a hand on his upper arm. "Isaac, did something happen?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." He replied solemnly.

"Isaac..."

"It's nothing, Bumble." He muttered, pulling himself free from her hand.

Zoey gave him a disbelieving look but left it at that. She had just gotten him to talk to her and she didn't want to scare him off with her senseless questioning. "So, what have you been up to...lately?" God, this is awkward. She thought to herself and glanced up at Isaac.

The blue-eyed boy shrugged and gently tugged on the frayed ends of her old blanket. "Nothing much," He replied. "I, uh...well, I missed you."

Zoey sighed. "I missed you, too," She replied quietly, the corner of her mouth turning up slightly. "You want something to eat?"

Isaac nodded and as if on cue, his stomach let out a low rumble. "That always happens." Isaac murmured and the two friends chuckled before Zoey stood and stretched, her long sweater riding high on her thighs. Isaac sucked in a breath at Zoey's creamy, exposed skin, going completely unnoticed by her. Snap out of it, Lahey. Isaac scolded himself and followed his friend down the stairs.

The two made their way to Zoey's large kitchen, the house eerily quiet as she forced Isaac sit at the bar. "So, you still like my spaghetti, right?" She grinned and started pulling out the ingredients.

Isaac nodded vigorously and then gave her a playful look. "It's only been a week, Bumble. Not a year." He immediately regretted his words, watching as the usually perky blonde's face fell and she frowned a bit.

Zoey sighed and turned towards him. "It felt like a year..." She mumbled, her eyes meeting his. Isaac felt his heart clench at the guilt and sadness that was swirling in her blue eyes. He quickly stood up and strode towards the much smaller girl, engulfing her in a large hug. She returned his embrace tightly, nuzzling her face into his chest and breathing in his comforting scent. "It was all my fault, Isaac."

Isaac shushed her and ran slender fingers through her blonde curls. "It wasn't, Zoey. And I don't regret skipping with you for one minute." He replied and placed a soft kiss to her forehead. Zoey glanced up and gave him a small smile, one that he returned wholeheartedly. She leaned up and pressed her lips to his cheek, before twisting herself out of his arms and pointing back at the stool.

"Sit," She ordered playfully. He nodded at her request and planted himself in the seat, watching as she fluttered around the kitchen. Her feet were bare and freshly painted, her toes curling against the cold floor, making Isaac smile. She had so many small, subtle quirks, and he loved every single one of them.

He was almost too caught up in her adorable habits to notice a familiar scent outside the house.

Almost.

Turning his head sharply, Isaac's eyes widened at the sight of Derek Hale. His clothes--all black and adorned with a leather jacket--were nearly soaked as the storm brewed outside around him, the lightning illuminating his buff and muscular figure. Derek's usual scowl plastered his lips and his eyes weren't looking at Isaac, but rather at the smaller girl in front of him, buzzing around the kitchen as she threw together ingredients for the sauce.

Isaac nearly choked on his own breath at the sight of his Alpha, and gave the older wolf a shocked and confused expression. Derek narrowed his eyes at the girl before turning to his beta and motioning him upstairs. Isaac replied with a shake of his head and a meaningful glance at Zoey, who was lost in her own little world.

Derek grew upset and flashed his eyes at Isaac, his bright red irises nearly causing Isaac's heart to stop. Instead, the beta quickly nodded and turned his attention back to Zoey, knowing Derek had already made it upstairs. "I'm gonna use the bathroom real quick," He said and stood, making his way to the stairs.

"Isaac?"

"Yeah," He whirled around, nearly crashing into the wall as he did so.

Zoey gave him an odd look before motioning down the other hall. "The closest bathroom is right over there, not upstairs."

"Oh, I know," Isaac chuckled nervously. "But, I have better...internet service up there. You know, with the wifi and all." He said quickly and gave her a wide smile before scrambling up the stairs, leaving Zoey to watch his retreating form in confusion. She just shook her head and muttered 'boys' under her breath before returning to her meal.

Isaac could hear Derek rummaging through Zoey's things through the door He stepped inside her room and glanced up at his Alpha expectantly. "What, Derek?" He asked quietly, hoping Zoey wouldn't hear their conversation.

Derek didn't answer right away, instead he continued flipping through Zoey's photo album, filled with pictures of her and Isaac as kids. Isaac soon got fed up with watching Derek invade Zoey's personal things and snatched the album away from him, giving him an aggravated look. Derek glared slightly at the younger beta, but sighed and took a seat on the girl's bed. "Who is she?" He finally asks.

"A friend."

"She's more than that, Isaac," Derek smirked and glanced up knowingly at the teen.

Isaac looked up at Derek in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Derek scoffed and gazed around Zoey's room. She wasn't like average teenage girls, he assumed. Her room wasn't painted in pink or glitter, and it didn't smell like it had been doused in horrible air freshener. It was nice, to say the least. The walls were an average blue color, one of which was covered in posters, pictures, and drawings. The carpet was white and felt soft underneath his boots, and he could smell the faint scent of a candle that had been burning earlier. Shaking his head, he stood from her bed and gave Isaac a threatening look. "I didn't come here to tell you that you love the girl," He said quietly, though his voice was tense. "I came here to tell you that she can't find out about us."

Isaac looked horrified and shook his head vigorously. "No, Derek. I can't keep this from her."

"You have no other choice, Isaac." Derek huffed and straightened out his leather jacket. He listened in on downstairs, still hearing Zoey hum to herself as she prepared dinner. She was completely oblivious to the fact that there were two werewolves arguing in her bedroom. "She can't find out about us. We can't have another liability."

"But, Derek," Isaac started but was cut off when Derek pinned him with a dangerous glare. Isaac sighed and nodded, falling onto his friend's bed with a soft groan.

Derek glanced around the room once more before turning to Isaac, his expression softer than the last. "I'm sorry, Isaac, but if you want to keep her safe then you can't let her know about what we are." And with that, he was gone.

Isaac let out a low growl, angry at his Alpha for making him keep secrets from Zoey, but he knew he couldn't disappoint Derek. He had to keep this from her. Standing from the bed, he made his way downstairs and nearly ran into Zoey. She gave him a warm smile and motioned to the kitchen. "Dinner's ready. I was just gonna go get you."

Isaac smiled and nodded as Zoey turned on her toes and lead the way to the dining room. As he watched the blonde serve spaghetti onto his plate, he couldn't help but feel his stomach turn with guilt. "If you want to keep her safe..."

From who? Who would want to do Zoey any harm? Derek had informed him of the hunters, obviously, but would they be so desperate as to go after his friend? Was she really in that much danger? After a few seconds of pondering the questions, the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

It wasn't the hunters that put Zoey in danger.

It was Isaac.