Chapter Four ✧Sophomore Year✧

It was weird to think that one year ago, I was just starting high school. At this time last year, I hardly knew Scott or Stiles. At this time, Lydia Martin was the most intimidating teenager I knew. A year ago, I was still living with Derek, and I still had Isaac by my side. As I walked into school for the first time last year, I was still able to see the beautiful face of Allison Argent, and I had yet to be introduced to the extraordinary women that were Malia Tate and Kira Yukimura or the handsome IED that was Liam Dunbar. 

My heart felt heavy in my chest as I stood in front of my high school. A lot had changed since last year, including me. I was a completely different Charlotte then the one who had to be dropped off at school by a very tired Derek Hale just a year ago. That Charlotte wasn't capable of starting a fire on a random bouquet of flowers in the middle of a hospital. 

Thinking about what had gone down at the hospital after Liam had left me only made my heart sink further in my chest. I had yet to tell anybody at the incident, mainly because I had no clue how to tell someone about what I'd done. My friends were mostly Seniors, they had so much more to worry about then my little issues. 

The only other two people I would ever think about telling my problems to were Liam and Mason. As much as I trusted Liam, I didn't know how I could ever bring myself to telling him that I came back from France as even more screwed up, no less. Things were good between us, I couldn't mess that up. 

And as for Mason, well, me and Liam hadn't exactly told him everything about our lives. I guess we just wanted to protect him. 

Students began walking in to the school building, and I realized I couldn't avoid starting my first day of school forever. At least I knew it most likely wouldn't be as bad as my first day last year, which had ended early as Derek came to pick me up to take me to get Isaac from the hospital. 

I put one foot in front of the other, slowly making my way towards the front entrance. Sadly, before I could make it to the doors I was literally swept off my feet by an unknown force.

Arms were holding me tightly around my waist as they lifted me off the ground. I let out a small, confused shriek as I was spun in a circle. Once I was placed back on the ground, my head felt a little dizzy but my eyes could still make out the one and only Mason Hewitt. 

"So is there any reason you didn't call me the second you got back from France?" Mason questioned, an eyebrow being raised teasingly in my direction. 

"Jet-Lag?' I answered jokingly. Mason was another thing I hadn't had a year ago, but at the start of freshman year he had been determined to befriend me, and I was glad that his plan worked. 

"I suppose that's a good enough reason." Mason decided with a nod of his head. A smile quickly broke out on his face as he wrapped his arms around me again, seemingly holding on to me for dear life. "There was a Charlotte Lahey sized hole in my heart all summer, by the way." 

I laughed as I hugged Mason back. "I missed you too, Mase." 

When Mason finally let go of me, there was a smirk on his face that could only mean trouble. "You know, I wasn't the only one who missed you this summer. I have this friend, Liam Dunbar, he's a total loser and was whining about how much he missed his girlfriend all summer." 

"I'm not his girlfriend." I muttered sheepishly, trying to concentrate in tucking my hair behind my ear instead of blushing. 

"Who says I'm talking about you?" Mason asked, feigning confusion for a moment before his face was overtaken by a smile once again. "I'm kidding. But if you want to be in denial about you guys, you can go right on a head." 

I wanted to say something snarky in response, but my mind was too fuzzy to think. Did Mason really think we were a couple? Were we a couple? I mean, we'd never really talked about it, and I never really considered putting a label on anything. Then again, it's not like I ever had any kind of social situation that was even remotely similar to this so I guess you can say I'm a little new at anything and everything involving relationships. 

Before my mind could give me any kind of answer to my confusion, I heard a certain true alpha call my name. I froze, my mind racing with worry, could his mom possibly have told him about finding burned flowered in the hospital? Could he have somehow linked it all back to me? 

I quickly shook my own problems out of my mind. Scott had a million other things to worry about, like finding out who the guy from the night before was. Apparently, the reason Liam had rushed off was because a strange man with talons in stead of claws was after Scott. Just your typical life or death situation that I couldn't have possibly been any help with. 

But wasn't so typical was someone who came along to help save Scott (though from what Stiles had told me, Scott didn't need anyone's help in the end). Theo Raeken had mysteriously returned to Beacon Hills, and my older brothers former classmate had returned as a werewolf. I didn't remember Theo at all, mostly because I had only been in second grade when he was in Beacon Hills last. But Stiles did remember Theo, and the pale Stilinski boy had a very strong belief that the guy from last night was not Theo Raeken. 

As Scott McCall finished rushing up the steps to get to me, I realized he seemed far to calm for either of those subjects, meaning that things might be actually okay. 

"What's going on?" I asked the senior as he walked up to Mason and me. 

Scott held out a paper bag to me, a soft smile on his face. "You forgot your lunch at home." 

I let out a short embarrassed laugh, feeling slightly dumb for worrying that it could've been something else. Of course he didn't know about the fire, how could he? "I did even realize I'd forgotten it. Thanks, Scott." 

"Yeah, of course." Scott beamed. His thumbs were locked around his backpack straps, making him looking like he was all too ready for the day to start. "Have a good day, make good choices, and whatever other good advice you can think of. I got to go meet Kira, but maybe I'll see you at lunch?" 

I nodded, and as Scott began walking past me to get into school, he leaned down to kiss the top of my head. When he leaned back up, a smile was still spread across his lips, but he quickly froze. 

"I totally just 'mommed' you, didn't I?" Scott cringed in embarrassment, his dimples widdening as he shot me an apologetic smile. 

"I think the correct terminology would be 'dadded'." I told him jokingly. "But yeah, you did." 

"Sorry." Scott apologized uneasily. He gave my shoulder a light pat, nodded his head towards Mason, and then rushed off inside to meet Kira. 

Once Scott walked into the school, Mason let out a log whistle. "Charlotte Lahey, how did you manage to surround yourself with so many good looking guys?" 

"Um?" I raised my eyebrows in surprise. I'd never really considered the subject. 

Looking past Mason, I saw Liam approaching us. Catching my gaze, Mason turned to look at his approaching best friend. Under his breath, I could've sworn I heard my friend mumble something that sounded an awful lot like 'Larlotte' and I wisely chose not to question him. 

"Happy first day of sophomore year." Liam grinned once he got to us. Mason repeated the phrase as the two boys slapped each others hands in a gesture that reminded me of something Scott and Stiles would do. When Liam looked at me, his smile only widened and he didn't hesitate to drape his arm around my shoulders. "Hey." 

"Hi." I said back. For some reason, the simple yet familiar greeting that we did had the ability to wash away my current worries. 

"Don't worry, you guys can kiss." Mason assured us, nodding his head in both approval and amusement. "I won't mind, I promise." 

"I know you won't mind, but I will mind you're staring and hooting when we do." Liam told his friend. The blue-eyed werewolf shot his friend a smirk, which Mason responded to by narrowing his eyes. 

"Agreed." I murmured as I leaned into Liam some. Whether or not we were a couple, it was nice to have him there with me. 

The three of us eventually made it inside of school. As it turned out, we all had the same class. History with Mr.Yukimura. As much as I liked Kira's dad, I couldn't decide whether or not I thought it would be a good idea to be in his class. I could imagine it getting fairly awkward at times. 

But I couldn't ever imagine history class being as awkward as the conversation Liam and I were having with Mason. Our friend had pulled out a large, bulky book and had shimmied his way between us so he could should us something in it. 

"This is the one I was telling you about." Mason explained to us, his eyes wide with excitment as he flipped through the pages. In a way, he kind of looked like a mad scientist trying to bring his homemade monster to life. "I got it from a rare book dealer in Germany. Cost me two hundred bucks, but it was totally worth it." 

"You're still reading about this stuff?" I asked my friend. I glanced over at Liam, who shrugged his shoulders in incertitude. 

"I was attacked by an armor-plated giant wearing a bear skull. It left an impression." Mason reminded me. Mason then directed his attention back to the page he had opened to, pointing vigorously to the picture on it. I looked away from the picture quickly, feeling a little unnerved by the sight of the berserker drawn on it. "Look. Look. Have you ever seen anything like this?" 

"Uh, no. Never." Liam lied, which he obviously wasn't very good at as he awkwardly shook his head at mason. 

Apparently not ready to give up, Mason continued to tell us about his findings. "And then there's this whole section about Nagual. Have you ever heard the name Tezcat..." 

Looking over Mason's shoulder, I instinctively read the name he was struggling with. "Tezcatlipoca." 

"No, no. We've never head of him." Liam said quickly, shooting me a warning look while Mason was distracted with the book. Apparently we wasn't too impressed with my lying skills either. 

Mason let out a heavy sigh as he closed the book. I put a hand on his arm and smiled gently, before corralling the two boys into Mr.Yukimura's class. 

"Take you seats, everyone." Kira's father instructed our class. 

Liam made his way down one aisle and I followed behind him. He stopped next to a seat, and I swiftly sat down in the one behind him as Mason sat in the one next to him. Liam didn't sit down, though. Instead he stared at the girl next to him, letting out a small. "Oh." 

The girl looked over her shoulder at him, not looking anymore thrilled to see him then he did her. I frowned looking back and forth between the two as I tried figuring out what was going on. I turned to look to Mason, who looked just as confused as I felt. 

"Great," Liam mumbled. He looked back at me, jerking his head like he wanted me to get up. "Can we, uh, switch?" 

I frowned, my eyes flitting to the girl who was now blowing up a big pink bubble. Then I looked back up to Liam, who I had never seen look so uncomfortable. "What?"

Before Liam could give me a reason, or even an answer at all, Mr.Yukimura called out to him. 

"Liam, you're not just gonna stand there, are you?" 

"Maybe." Liam nodded before looking around for a better seat. I tried shooting him a look, but he was to busy searching for a new seat to notice me. 

"The whole semester?" Mr. Yukimura asked next, a faint look of entertainment etched across his face. 

"Maybe." Liam repeated. 

"Liam, have a seat." 

Liam let out a soft groan before reluctantly sitting down in the seat in front of me. For some reason, the werewolf just couldn't stay still. He continued to fidget in the seat in front of me until he finally looked down at something in his seat. Following his gaze, I noticed he was sitting in a large wad of pink gum. 

I looked over to the girl, knowing that it had to be her gum. Liam must've had the same train of thought, because he looked over at her too. The brunette responded to his gaze with an overly sweet smile. Apparently, she was proud of her work. 

Since Liam was sitting in front of me and I couldn't see his face, I choose to look over at Mason. He had seen all of what had just happened with Liam and the girl, and he seemed to be mildly amused. 

I let out a small sigh, sitting back in my seat as I tried to decide what I should feel. 

++++

While I had a free period, Liam and Mason had yet another class. They were lucky enough to have multiple classes together while I was stuck in most of my classes alone. I guess there were a few cons to only having two friends that were your age. 

Seeing as I was an anxiety powered teenage girl, I had memorized practically all my friends' new schedule within the span of my first period. Therefore, I knew that both Scott and Stiles should have a free period right now. Finding those two and tagging along with them with what ever mischief they'd be getting themselves into sounded a lot better then sitting in the library and stewing in my own worry. 

I turned down a hallway, figuring I might be able to find the two teenage boys at the lacrosse fields, but as I turned the corner, I almost collided with another person. Luckily, they were swift enough to both step back before we collided and put his arms out so they could stop me. 

"Whoa, there." The guy I'd almost pummeled said with a soft laugh. "Looks like someone is off on a mission." 

"Oh, uh, sorry." I stammered quickly, giving the unfamiliar face an apologetic smile. "I was thinking about where I could find my friends and I just wasn't paying attention." 

"Happens to the best of us." He assured me. I looked up, noticing his dark blue eyes were staring at my kindly, almost like he was looking at a close friend or something. But then his smile fell a little, and was replaced by a look of astonishment. "Wait. Jesus Christ, I can't believe it." 

I raised an eyebrow at the boy. "Excuse me?" 

"Sorry, I didn't mean to stare. It's just- Is that really you, Charlotte Lahey?" He asked. The smile returned to his face, and for some reason the stranger looked genuinely happy to see me. 

"How do you know my name?" I asked cautiously. My eyes scanned the hallway we were in and I suddenly noticed it was just the two of us. Suddenly, I was feeling a bit disheartened as I remembered what Scott had said about the scale tipping. 

"I'm not surprised you don't remember you. I probably wouldn't recognize you if I hadn't known your brother." The boy explained. Resisting the urge I had to back away from the teenager, I raised my chin some and tried to pretend to look unconcerned. Whether or not he noticed the fact I was on edge or not, I couldn't tell because the boy just kept beaming down on me. "I'm Theo Raeken." 

I felt myself go rigid for a second. This was the guy Stiles had told me about. This guy was the 'very suspicious suspect' as Stiles had put it. Naturally, when I had questioned Stiles about what he was a suspect of, Stiles had responded with 'something evil'. 

Speaking of the Stilinski, he was rushing down the hallway, dragging a very confused Scott McCall with him. I shot him a confused look but he only responded by shaking his head and waving around his arm hysterically. I almost laughed, figuring he wanted me to stop the conversation I was in the middle of having with Theo. 

Realizing that my attention was no longer on him, Theo turned to look what I was looking at. When his eyes fell onto Scott and Stiles, Theo shot them a smile as though they were old friends. 

Stiles frowned at Theo, then looked over at me accusingly. "Wh-What the hell are you doing, Lahey." 

"Looking for you guys. It's my free period, too." I explained. 

Stiles' frowned deepened, apparently not very impressed with my response. Scott elbowed him lightly, though, and Stiles let out a sigh. "Fine, you can come with us too." 

"What are you talking about, Stiles?" I asked. Trying not to be obvious, I looked at Theo out of the corner of my eye. He was cocking an eyebrow at the paler boy, apparently as bemused by Stiles as me. 

"We want to talk to him for a minute." Scott explained in a much gentler tone. His soft gaze went from me to Theo. "If that's okay with you?" 

Theo shrugged his shoulders, smiling at the three of us. "Yeah, of course." 

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So I've been so excited to write this story. There's some new characters (including the main bae Theo) who I'm excited to write Charlotte with. Her dynamic with all the characters in this show make me so happy tbh.

Confession time, I'm in love with Theo guys. Like I know he's a baddie and I know I shouldn't love him but I do. Which is why I started a story for him, it's called Wicked Games if you wanna check it out. I honestly love the OC in that story as much as I love Charlotte (Which is a lot). 

Question - What character (Malia, Lydia, Brett, Mason, etc.) would you like Charlotte to have more time with? And you can't say Liam!