LAST NIGHT WAS STILL A BLUR.  My emotions fluctuating, thoughts scattered. I'd left the house a half hour before Stiles would usually pick me up and braced myself for the walk ahead, hoping he'd have the common sense to know that I wouldn't be riding with him this morning. Truth be told, I felt like a bad friend. Like maybe I was selfishly expecting too much from them. But if I hated anything, it was being kept in the dark. Too much of my youth was spent knowing only half truths... and look how that turned out.

Sometimes hiding the truth was just as bad as lying. And if my life was in some element of danger, surely it was safer to be in the know.

The walk to school feels longer than it should as I take the quieter route, through the back roads on the edge of the woods. I'm glad of the peace, for the sound of only birds and rustling leaves as a mild wind blows.

I adjust the backpack strap that's slipping off my shoulder and wrap my arms around my frame. It's cold, and I can feel it nipping at my cheeks, giving them a natural coral glow.

A shiver suddenly runs down my spine, a feeling like I'm being watched growing with every step that I take. I tell myself I'm being paranoid and keep on ahead, picking up the pace significantly. I shouldn't look back and I know it; it's rule one in cases of emergency and I've seen enough scary movies to know that it never ends well. Yet, the moment I hear a twig snap in the distance behind me, I dare spin around.

"Hello?" My voice is unwavering, a false sense of braveness. God knows what I'd actually do if I got a reply.

But there's nothing there. No one. Not that I can see, anyway.

"Idiot," I mutter under my breath before letting out an embarrassed laugh I assume only I can hear. But when I turn back around, I realize that I'm not alone.

"Jesus, fuck!" My heart pounds in my chest, my first reaction one of fear before I notice who it is.

Derek.

This is becoming a bit of a habit between us both.

The fear slowly fades, confusion taking its place. He's intimidating, sure, and seems to be annoyed by the sheer fact that I breathe, but he doesn't seem like he wants to hurt me. Though I have to admit, this is a little creepy.

"Were you... were you following me?" I question, marching forward in annoyance as I study him standing there, sturdy and stoic like he's untouchable. But no one is. I'm sure he has his demons, and I curse myself for wanting to know them.

"No." It's said matter-of-fact as dark eyes stare far into the open space behind me. Who, or what, is he looking for?

"So I'm just supposed to believe you were casually walking by right as I got the feeling I was being followed?" There's a smirk daring to find it's way to my lips, desperate to test him.

"Yes." One word answers— great.

"Are you always this good at conversation?" I retort, tucking loose strands of naturally wavy tresses behind my ear.

Finally his gaze lands solely on me, and he's smiles teasingly.cocking his head slightly to the side. "Do you want to have a conversation?"

Yes. But i won't tell him that.

I roll my eyes with slight dramatics and push my way past him, scoffing lightly. "What I want is to walk to school without the jump scares. Is that too much to ask?"

"Then you should probably avoid taking this route." I can hear the cockiness in his tone, and I hate the fact that I know he's right.

A huff escapes my mouth. "Whatever." My feet take me a few more steps, slightly ahead of him now. I stop and turn, defences down for just a moment.

"What is this? Is this your weird way of trying to intimidate me into silence? Because if it is, you don't need to worry, ok? I'm not going to tell anyone about your little jail-break."

With an effortless suave he places both hands into the pockets of his leather jacket and takes two very careful steps towards me, as though something about me scares him and I have no idea what that could be. "I know you won't."

"Yeah, how?" I'm curious as to how he seems so confident about my character, for all he knows I could be lying just to get away from him.

"Because you care about your friends too much."

He's right, but the statement makes me sad. I cast my gaze towards my feet and turn my back on him once again, only this time I don't plan on turning back. "Yeah, and look where that's got me."

I'm late and in a rush and I'm relieved that he doesn't stop me. Or at least that's what I'm trying to tell myself. The devil on my shoulder says differently.

The day had only started and already I couldn't wait for it to be over, but it seemed my best friends had other ideas.

The moment I enter school, I'm ambushed once again. "Grab her," I hear the words before I see anyone, and truth be told I'm not sure which one of them grabs me, all I know is that within seconds I'm being pulled into a classroom and once I finally wiggle free from someone's grip, I come face-to-face with two smiling idiots.

Scott and Stiles.

"Kidnapping is a felony you know." I'm trying my best to act irritated, but truthfully I'm happy to see them. "Might have been easier to just... ask me to talk?"

"Yeah, right, because that would have worked. You're literally the most stubborn person I've ever know." Stiles takes a brief pause before adding, "Like... ever!"

"Shut up." I protest perhaps a little too much. I fold my arms across my chest in defiance, somewhat proving his point. "No I'm not."

"Um, yeah, you are." He chimes back, and I know we both know we could go back and forth all day long, which is why I'm rather glad when Scott interjects with a laugh.

"Can both of you shut up? Please." He says in true Scott McCall fashion, with a gentle tone that makes you listen. I sigh in return and lower my arms, letting him know I'm open to hearing whatever it is he has to say.

He walks towards me and Stiles hangs back, probably trying to hold in the comeback he's spent the last two minutes coming up with. But he refrains. Thankfully.

"Look, Cas, I know things have been weird since you got back and I'm sorry if it seems like we're trying to keep things from you," he pauses and reaches out to place a hand upon my shoulder, "it's just- this things, it's bigger than just us. But I'm going to tell you everything, I promise."

"We. We're going to tell you everything." The other adds, not wanting to be left out.

"Ok... so...?" my voice trails off, eyes never straying from his as I wait for the explanation to come.

Scott chuckles and shakes his head at my impatience. "Not here. It's... not something I can just spring on you in the middle of school, you know? Can we swing by tonight?"

Nodding, I give a smile. "Yeah, sure, but I have to work until 10. Can you come by after that?"

"Yeah. Yeah, that'll work." Scott let's out a breath of relief, and even though he hasn't told me yet, I already sense that there's a weight lifting off his shoulders. Though he still seems to be carrying a heavy burden that I can only hope to help ease. I glance between them both and raise both hands, extending a pinky out towards each of them.

"Seriously?" Stiles groans, rolling his eyes despite the fact he's already intertwining his pinky with mine. "We're not kids anymore."

"A pinky promise is sacred." And to us, it always had been. Maybe it was foolish, maybe it didn't mean anything to them anymore. But it did to me "Once we make it, we can't go back."

Scott follows Stiles' lead and we all share a warm smile. We may not be related by blood, but these boys were my brothers. I'd go to the ends of the earth for them and I know they'd do the same for me.

     ——————————

That night at work all I can do is watch the clock, counting down the hours until I'm finally in the loop. The diner is quiet, more so than usual. It's around nine when Grandma finally tells me to leave early, that there's no point in both of us being stuck there. Of course I agree and waste no time in grabbing my stuff, rushing out the door before she has a chance to change her mind.

It still cold outside, colder than it was this morning. I shiver and curse myself for not wearing a warmer jacket. Earphones in, I stuff my phone into my pocket and go to pick up my bike. It's only when I go to swing my leg over the seat that I realize the front tire is completely flat. Upon further inspection I find that there's a large rip in the rubber, one that looks too precise to be an accident.

But who would do that?

I brush it of more quickly than I should and put it down to a stupid prank. It was an old, worn-out bike anyway and I should have just left it at home and opted to walk to work like I had done for school that morning. I dump it back in it's place on the side of the wall outside the diner and begin my journey back towards the centre of town.

The further I get, the less creepy it is. There's more lights now, cars driving past every now and then. But I'm desperate to get back to the warmth of my house, to get some food in my growling stomach. I regret not eating the hamburger grandma had offered me only an hour or so ago.

My feet instinctively slow down when headlights flood the space behind me, my shadow confronting me before the car drives around, mimicking my pace as it follows along beside me. It's black, windows tinted out. My heart is in my throat, fear rising. But I try to stay calm.

The window slowly rolls down, and there he is — again — Derek Hale. My fear quickly turns to annoyance, which then switches to curiosity as I take out my earphones and slip them into my other pocket.

"Are you stalking me?!" I ask, half-serious. It's starting to seem that way. Though I really don't see myself as interesting enough to follow.

He ignores my question and reaches over to open the passenger door. "Get in."

I scoff in reply and shake my head, scuffed trainers kicking the ground beneath me as I fight against their urge to move forward. But I don't say no. I just stand there, for several seconds, contemplating my next move.

"Fine." I hate myself. I hate that I can't resist my need to know more about him. He's just a guy. Just a stupid, annoyingly handsome guy who I can't seem to shake. "But don't mistake this as me wanting to spend time with you."

I slide into the seat beside his, and the moment I close the door over my body is grateful for the warmth the inside of the car provides. It's only when my seatbelt is secured that he takes off.

"You know I wouldn't have to keep popping up if you actually used your brain and stayed out of potentially dangerous situations." Again, he sounds annoyed. I'm beginning to think he permanently is.

"I didn't realize walking was that dangerous. I must have missed the memo on that one." Try as I might, I can't help but to bite back.

"It's not," he begins, "but walking close to the woods or alone in the middle of the night when there's been multiple dead bodies showing up doesn't seem like the smartest choice, does it?"

He's got a point. But what else was I supposed to do? My eyes narrow in on him, but he keeps his eyes on the road. "You're the one who's taken a suspected murderer under his wing, or did you just overlook that fact with Isaac?"

"Isaac didn't kill his father!" Fingertips tighten their grip around the wheel as he snaps back at me, and I retreat back, slumping into the leather seat.

I believe him, but still... I was just trying to make a point. He didn't really have any right to question my choices when his didn't seem exactly rational.

"Then who did?" The question comes out quiet, my demeanour changing. I'm trying to be less on edge around him, hoping that maybe it will make him more open to to lowering his defences with me.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out." Those are the last words he's says before we drive the rest of the way in silence. It's a silence that grows a little more comfortable as the time goes on.

It's only when we pull into my grandmother driveway that I realize I didn't give him the address. I don't question it, I don't see the point.

Deflated, I let out an exasperated sigh and run my hands over my face before gathering my things. When I look over, he's already staring at me. But the moment our eyes meet, his gaze falters slightly. "Thank you. For the ride."

His hardened expression softens as he gives me a single nod. "You're welcome." It's the first time he doesn't sound like my mere existence is painful for him. It almost makes me want to stay here in this moment for a while longer, but I don't. Instead I quickly exit the car and hurry to the front door. It's not long before Scott and Stiles are due to be here, and I can't wait to finally know the truth.

The front door closes behind me and I instantly notice how dark the house is. Grandma almost always leaves the small light on in the kitchen. Nimble fingers reach for the light switch in the hallway, but even as I hear the switch click, no lights come on. My feet take a few small steps and that's when I hear it; a low hiss coming from the living room. Another few steps and then I freeze in fear as I come face-to-face with a monster you'd only dream of finding in the pages of a supernatural book.

It's eyes two bright yellow slits glowing in the otherwise pitch black room. Its long, reptile-like tail waving from side to side above its head as it perches by the door. It takes a moment for my brain to catch up, but when it does my mouth follows suit and out comes a terrified scream loud enough to wake the entire neighbourhood.

The front door bursts open as I slowly retreat back, and before I know it I can hear Derek calling out my name in a state of concern. What happens next happens so fast I question if I might be dreaming. Question if perhaps this is all just a nightmare. But it's not, and I know that because of the way I can feel my heart thumping in my chest.

There are roars, and the sound of carnage unfolding as Derek battles against the creature that seemed to be waiting for me to get home. It eventually flees and when it does he turns to face me, all red-eyes and sharp teeth; a monster all of his own.

And suddenly I'm frightened of him.

"Cassia." It sounds painful for him to say my name now, but I'm thankful that my brain doesn't take so long to warn me into action this time. I turn and run, the only thing on my mind is making it to my bedroom. When I eventually get there I slam the door shut, holding back confused sobs as I struggle to pull the lock shut.

My back rests against the door and I slowly drop to the floor as my weak legs give out from under me. This can't be real... there's no way. How can this be real?

"Cassia!" Derek sounds desperate now, almost pleading as his fist bangs on the door once, twice, and three times more. "Let me in. I'm not going to hurt you."

Shaky hands cover my ears as I try to block him out. I can feel the tears against my cheeks, the salty taste as they caress my lips. The voices I hear next are more familiar. But at this point they still don't bring me any comfort.

I hear them, all three outside my bedroom door, bickering back and forth. "I didn't mean for her to find out like that!" Derek insists, words laced with sorrow. "What was I supposed to do, Scott, leave her to die?"

"What are you even doing here, Derek?" It Scott that speaks now. I hear him clearly, even over the sound of Stiles at the door asking me to let him in. "First Isaac, then Erica and Boyd. Was she next, was that your plan?"

Whatever they say next gets lost as my thoughts take over. I don't let them in and eventually my grandma comes home and ushers them out. I don't let her in either. I just sit there, half the night, questioning everything I've ever know and believed in.

Derek was a werewolf, that I now knew for fact. But I wasn't sure he was the only one.

'She should hear it from Scott.' The words Stiles had said the night before echoed in my mind, taunting.

He couldn't be... could he?

Scott was my friend, a boy I'd known since I was just a little girl. He was the first true friend I'd ever had. Could he really be a creature of the night, with fangs and claws so sharp he could easily tear me apart?

It didn't seem possible. Until it did.