It Hurts Because It's Real

Meet me by your car x

Stiles had sent the text five minutes ago and Bella was still staring at her phone. He had most likely sent the 'x' by mistake, as a form of habit.

Please bella

She inhaled deeply and forced herself to start moving towards the school doors. Bella speed-walked to her car and felt a pang in her heart when she saw him. He was breathing heavily and looked like he hadn't slept in weeks.

"Stiles, are you okay?"

"What? Yeah, yeah." Stiles was acting like someone was about to jump him at any minute. "I just... I, uh, I need you to..."

"What, Stiles? What's going on?" Bella asked him softly but urgently as he was obviously disorientated. She subconsciously reached forward to grab onto his hand.

"Will you take me to hospital?" Stiles said, barely audible but Bella knew he was about to cry. "I don't think I... I can drive, right now." Bella felt her heart ache more and more as he spoke. "Something is wrong with me, Bella."

Bella helped the shaking boy into the passenger seat of her car and helped him to put on his seat-belt. On her way round to the driver's side, Bella leaned against her car and took in a deep breath –– she didn't know if she could do this. But she had to, for Stiles.

Driving over the speed limit and constantly looking over at Stiles to see if he was okay, all Bella wanted to do was get Stiles to the hospital and see her Mom. They finally did and Bella jumped out and jogged over to Stiles' side, helping him out and grabbing onto his hand again.

"Bella, what are you doing here?" Her mother's voice exclaimed almost seconds after they had walked in the door. "You should be at school. Both of you."

"Mom." Bella said quietly, her voice wavering as she brought a fragile Stiles up to the front desk where her mother was sitting.

"What's going on?"

"Stiles needs to see a doctor." She said and looked at the trembling boy beside her.

"Okay." Melissa replied as she could see how scared and confused the both of them were. "Dr Garner's not back until next week. Do you wanna try waiting for one of the urgent care doctors?"

"Uh..." Stiles breathed out and stepped back, his hand slipping out of Bella's.

"Stiles?" Bella whispered but it looked like Stiles wasn't even in this world.

"Are you alright?" Melissa said as she stood up.

"I don't... I don't know." Stiles barely mumbled out, his breathing heavy. Bella's heart broke to see him like this. "Yeah, I guess. I guess –– not really."

"Alright, kiddo." Melissa said softly and put her hands on his shoulders. "Come with me." She said and started leading him down the hall. "Bella, you wait here for a moment, okay?"

"No, Mom, I have to stay with him."

"He'll be okay––"

"I'm coming!" Bella accidentally raised her voice but immediately backed down. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Bella. Come on." Melissa replied calmly, looking at her daughter with a sympathetic expression. The nurse led them to a room and sat Stiles down on the bed; Melissa fetched a clipboard whilst Bella helped Stiles take off his jacket. "So, Stiles, what's been going on?"

"Uh, a lot." The boy replied, his voice croaky from his lack of sleep.

"Okay, start slow." The nurse suggested and glanced at Bella who was biting her nails as she stood on the other side of Stiles' bed, where he couldn't see her worried expression.

"Blackouts –– but, not for that long. And... sleepwalking, which I used to do a lot as a kid." Stiles explained and with every word Bella just felt like the worst person in the world. "Um... also having some really bad anxiety."

"Panic attacks?"

"Yeah, a couple." Stiles replied and Bella's mother continued to write things down on the clipboard. "Oh and I temporarily lost the ability to read, but that might've had something more to do with this giant magic tree and all... human sacrifice thing."

"I recall something vaguely about that, yes." Melissa smiled slightly but Stiles didn't smile back. "How many hours of sleep are you getting?"

"Eight."

"A night?"

"The last three days."

"What?" Bella spoke but Stiles didn't look at her.

The nurse moved over to the side of the room where the two teenagers couldn't see what she was doing. "Been feeling irritable?"

"Yeah. Possibly... to the point of homicide."

"Inability to focus?"

"No, the Adderall's not working."

"Vivid dreams during the day?"

"OK, basically all of the above." Stiles replied and Melissa moved back over to the bed, now holding a needle.

"Mom, what is that?" Bella asked quietly, referring to the syringe.

"It's a sedative." She replied as she injected Stiles.

"Why did you give me sedative?" He asked lowly.

"Because you need rest, and you need it now." Melissa said softly as she helped the boy to lie down on the bed whilst Bella watched helplessly.

"Okay, how long does it take to –– oh, not long at all." Stiles almost whispered, the sedative starting to spread throughout his veins.

Bella's mother was about to leave when Stiles held onto her hand. "Get some rest." Melissa told him.

"Thanks, Mom." Stiles mumbled, his eyes closed and Bella felt her heart shatter into tiny pieces. She looked up at her mother who managed a small smile, but Bella just wanted to cry. She dropped down in the chair at Stiles' bedside and moved it closer to the bed so that she could hold onto his hand.

"He's gonna be alright, Bella." Melissa said softly from the other side of the bed.

"I know." She replied as she stared at the sleeping boy. "It's just... he never told me anything." Bella whispered, looking up at her mother. She had no idea how Stiles was feeling - all she knew about were the dreams he had been having. She had treated him so badly and right now she couldn't feel any worse. "I'm a horrible person." Bella muttered as tears started welling in her eyes.

"Whatever it is, you two can work it out." Melissa said, certain of it. "I've never known you not to." She smiled but Bella just kept staring at Stiles. "Is there even any point in me asking you to go back to school?"

"No."

"Okay."

-

Bella barely blinked for the next five hours that Stiles slept through –– her guilt was eating her alive. How could she of done this to him? These past few weeks Stiles had been going through hell and Bella had no idea. It had hardly been an hour after her and Stiles had broken up that she went and kissed Isaac. Had her and Stiles really even broken up? The thought made her sick.

"Hi." She whispered when his eyes fluttered open and he looked around in a confused manner. Bella pulled her hand away from his and sat back.

"Hi." Stiles mumbled back and pulled himself up to sit. "How, uh, how long was I out?"

"About five hours." Bella replied. "You still probably need more sleep, though."

"Yeah," Stiles nodded. "You been here the whole time?" He asked, almost incredulous. The girl nodded. "Thanks. For... bringing me here. And staying with me."

Bella smiled slightly but the wave of guilt washed over her again. "Stiles, I need to tell you something." She muttered hesitantly. Bella knew that if she didn't tell him now, she never would.

The tired boy frowned at her. "What is it?

There was a pause before Bella breathed out, "I kissed Isaac."

Stiles face fell completely and he blinked quickly, as if trying to figure out if he was dreaming. He visibly swallowed and looked away from her, his eyes darting all around the room.

"Stiles–––"

"When?" He interrupted harshly, not even looking at her.

"Two nights ago, after our fight." She whispered. "I wanted to tell you at the party but–––"

"Oh, did you?" Stiles cut in. He looked at her and Bella could see the pain in his eyes. "How very considerate of you, Bella."

"Stiles, please." Bella pleaded, tears in her eyes threatening to spill over. She couldn't believe she had done this to the boy she loved. "I still love––

"No, no way, you do not get to say that to me anymore." Stiles said, his words dripping with venom. Bella couldn't remember a time she had seen him this angry and hurt.

"It's the truth," Bella said, leaning closer to the bed. "I love you." Tears started spilling down her cheeks as Stiles looked away from her, almost in disgust. "I love you so much."

"How can you say that you love me when we get in one fight and you go and kiss someone else?!" Stiles yelled at her, pulling himself off of the bed to stand now. He turned around to face the wall and put a hand on his head and winced. "I was right this whole time."

Bella looked down, properly crying now. "I know you were."

Stiles turned back to her. "How could you do this, Bella?" He said lowly, tears starting to gather in his eyes now, too.

She looked up at him and felt her heart sink even lower. Bella stood up and started moving around the bed to be closer to him. "I'm so sorry. It was a huge mistake."

Stiles stepped back from her and shook his head, a tear escaping to run down his cheek. "I don't even know if you mean that."

"I do." Bella exclaimed. "I love you."

"Stop." Stiles said and shook his head again. "Just stop, Bella."

"I'm sorry." She whispered again. "Where are you going?" Bella asked when Stiles moved towards the door to the hospital room.

"I can't be around you right now." Stiles mumbled, shaking his head, his voice breaking as he slipped out the door. Bella stepped forward to go after him but she knew it would just make it worse.

She really had lost him forever.

-

Bella had warned one of the nurses about Stiles wandering off before she left the hospital; he wouldn't of listened to anything she had to say and she didn't blame him. She sat in silence the whole drive home, wallowing in her own guilt and self-pity.

"Scott?" Isaac's voice rang through when Bella walked in the door to her house, dropping her keys on the table. The werewolf now stood at the top of the stairs, looking down at the girl. "Oh, hey," he greeted Bella as she walked towards the stairs, "have you seen Scott?"

"What?" The girl asked, only just noticing that he was there when she got to the bottom of the stairway.

"I asked if you'd seen your brother." Isaac replied quietly and looked her over. "You've been crying."

"No, I haven't seen Scott." Bella said, taking a few steps closer to him. "Why ––– is he okay?"

"Are you?"

Bella paused for a moment before plastering a smile on her face. "Of course I am." She said, shrugging her shoulders, making Isaac frown at her. "Have you tried calling him?" The girl asked as she walked up the remaining steps and brushed past Isaac to walk towards her bedroom.

"Yeah, he's not answering." Isaac replied as he followed her. "Is it Stiles?"

Bella stopped in her tracks and turned around to look at him. "What do you mean?"

"The reason you've been crying." He said, his tone darkening and his arms folding across his chest.

"You have no right to be angry at me."

"I'm not," Isaac said sternly, "I'm angry at him."

"You don't know what he's going through, Isaac." Bella replied softly, wanting anything but to get into a fight with him aswell.

"I don't care." He exclaimed and took a step forward. "You don't deserve to be treated like this, Bella."

The girl gave him an incredulous look. "What about Stiles? What about the way I've treated him?" Isaac's expression hardened and he fell back. "Don't try to defend me, Isaac. I'm in the wrong here, not him." There was a moment of silence as Bella dropped onto the edge of her bed and put her head in her hands.

"Did you tell him about our kiss?"

"Yeah,"

"Was he mad?"

"I've never seen him so angry."

"Bella, if he really loves you..." Isaac said softly as he stared down at her sadly, "he'll get over it."

"He shouldn't have to." She mumbled as she stared at the floor. "I don't think I'd forgive him if he did the same to me."

Isaac took a seat next to her on her bed. "Everyone makes... mistakes." He said, carefully choosing his words. To him, what happened between them was anything but a mistake.

"I seem to make more than the average person." Bella almost laughed, staring straight ahead.

Isaac's mouth curved into a smile as he watched her. "You're still only human."