I'D SPENT MORE TIME IN STILES JEEP THAN I HAD MY OWN CAR since moving back home. As it turns out, it wasn't too shabby of a car and it was pretty roomy save for the general lack heating inside. It was always cold inside the Jeep, especially when you were in the back seat but it wasn't like I could demote Scott to the back when I'd just gotten here.

I was glad to see Stiles contact name popping up on my screen when he called me because it gave me the excuse to get out of my empty house for the night. I didn't know what he and Scott were planning but I didn't care.

My supernatural friend had been to see Derek though, I learnt of that when they picked me up. Scott went to him seeking advice on how he could possibly recall what happened last night and whether he had anything to do with the bus driver.

It was how I found myself heading back to school when it was dark out, pulling up to where the buses were kept locked over night in Stiles' Jeep.

I leaned forward between the two front seats casually, "Remind me why we're returning to the scene of a crime?" I asked my two friends.

"Derek said the only way I'd remember was if I came back." Scott said to me before turning, "I need to do this."

"Right." I nodded, "But if you two had explained before you picked me up we'd be coming to the school I'd of said no."

"Like you had anything better to do." Stiles replied, turning the engine off.

"You don't know that." I scoffed as they both climbed out the Jeep. I climbed out of Stiles side, jumping on to the pavement and the three of us walked towards the high metal gate.

"Hey, no, just me." Scott said to Stiles and I, "Someone needs to keep watch."

"Well then Alex can keep watch." Stiles shrugged.

My jaw dropped as I turned to him, "I don't want to keep watch, you can keep watch."

"How come I'm the guy who's always keeping watch?" He asked us both, trying to climb up the metal fence.

Scott pulled him back down by his arm, "Because someone's got to."

Stiles climbed down and turned to Scott, "Okay, why's it starting to feel like you're Batman and I'm Robin?" He asked.

"If you're Robin and Scott is Batman what does that make me?" I questioned, furrowing my brows as I looked to the floor in thought.

"I don't know, Cat Woman?" Stiles replied incredulously.

I pulled my lips down fairly while nodding, "Yeah, Cat Woman I'm good with that. I like that."

Stiles turned back to Scott, "Look, I don't want to be Robin all the time."

"Nobody's Batman and Robin any of the time." Scott replied, "Or Cat Woman for that matter."

"Damn." I muttered in disappointment, "That's a shame, I liked being Cat Woman."

"Yeah." Stiles said, equally as disappointed as me, "Not even some of the time?"

Scott rolled his eyes, "Just stay here."

"Oh my god. Fine!" Stiles exasperated, grabbing my wrist and pulling me back to the Jeep as Scott climbed over the fence.

I got into the passenger seat and closed the door behind me as Stiles climbed in, I drew my knees up and rested my feet on the dashboard as we watched Scott walk towards the bus.

"Hey." I said to Stiles, turning to him as he sulked in the drivers seat. He pulled his head away from resting against the window and looked at me, "If it makes you feel any better, I prefer Robin over Batman."

"You do?" He asked me, a small smile on his face.

"Yeah." I nodded, "Of course. He's cute and y'know, he's the brains behind the operation. Everyone knows Batman couldn't survive without him."

"I didn't know you knew so much about superheroes and comic books." Stiles said in slight disbelief.

I shrugged nonchalantly, turning to look out of the window as it rained, "Hidden trait, I guess."

"Well I like Cat Woman." Stiles responded and I smiled at him.

"Me too." I nodded faintly.

We fell into a comfortable silence, watching as Scott disappeared on to the bus and I lounged back in the passenger seat comfortably, waiting for our friend until Stiles cleared his throat.

I looked over to see him fidgeting in his chair, sitting further and further up in it until he finally turned to me, "So, um, who's that guy you were talking to in chemistry today?"

"You means my lab partner?" I asked him, furrowing my brows.

"Yeah." He nodded, "Him."

I shrugged, "His name is Isaac."

"He seems.. nice." Stiles muttered but his words sounded more like a question. It was like he was forcing himself to compliment him.

"Why are you asking me about him?" I asked Stiles while drawing my brows in as I looked to him, my head against the headrest.

"Just curious." Stiles shrugged, trying to play it off as nonchalantly as he could.

I couldn't hold my curiosity because there was a small part of me that thought maybe Stiles was jealous but then what did he have to be jealous about? We were just friends, he showed no further interest in me.. then that night I woke up in his arms came back to me. I pressed my teeth into my bottom lip while I thought about it. Friends did that, right? They cuddled as they slept in the same bed together.

Did they?

Um..

The more I thought about it the more I thought the answer to that question was a big fat no. I don't think I'd ever known someone who had shared a bed with their friend and spooned them.

"Stiles." I muttered, looking out of the window. It was almost like I couldn't meet his eyes anymore.

"Hm?" He responded and I could see him looking at me out of my peripheral vision.

I hesitated. I didn't know which way to swing nor did I truly know what I wanted to ask him about more. His sudden interest in Isaac or when I woke up to his arms around me.

And then I crumbled under the pressure and panic of the silence that built up around us, "Nothing."

"Sure?" He questioned me.

"Yeah." I nodded, "I think so."

He sighed before turning fully in his seat to me, "What did you want to say?"

I'm not sure.

"I, um, was just going to ask about Isaac." I muttered, taking the easier and slightly less awkward conversation.

"What about him?" He asked me, "I don't know him."

"No, I know that." I nodded before shrugging, "Just confused why you're asking me about him."

"Oh." He responded and this time he was the one to hesitate, "I just.. uh, I wanted to know who he was. I've never really seen him around before until today."

"Yet he's been in our class and my lab partner the whole time." I replied, finally looking to him.

"Right." He nodded, "Guess I just wasn't paying much attention until now."

I didn't reply to him, instead I nodded faintly and turned back to look out of the window. I tried to find Scott on the school bus but I couldn't see him. Why would Stiles suddenly be paying attention to who I'm sitting with and talking to? As far as I was aware he hadn't done that in the past few weeks so why now? What had changed?

In the pit of my stomach I could feel something fluttering. It was small and it was a feeling that was foreign to me but I noticed it. It came with the thought of Stiles' attention, the fact that he was focusing it on me. It was a different type of attention. One that — instead of given to me when we were having a conversation — was given to me in a new light.

"Do you like him?" Stiles broke the silence.

My brows furrowed as I looked over to him, "Huh?"

"Isaac." He said, "Do you like him?"

I nodded, completely thrown off guard, "I mean, yeah, he's nice. He seems a bit complex but—"

"—No." Stiles interrupted me, "I mean do you like him? As in like, like him."

"Oh—no." I shook my head softly, "Not really.. why?"

He simply shrugged, pulling his bottom lip between his teeth and when I thought he was going to reply he looked away from me. I noticed how the rhythm of my heart had increased and I waited apprehensively for Stiles to say something to me. I'd accept anything right now.

But instead of looking back to me his eyes widened as he looked out of his window screen and then he started honking his horn.

"Stiles—what the hell are you doing?" I rushed out quickly, lunging over the centre console to grab his hands but he just pushed mine away lightly. He carried on honking several times, "You're gonna give us away!"

When I tried to push his hands away again he grabbed my wrist and turned to me, "There's someone there, look!"

I forced my eyes away from Stiles hand around mine and looked out of his window. I couldn't see the person just I saw the flashlight they were holding is it illuminated the bus.

"Oh, crap." I murmured, climbing out of the passenger seat as Scott made a beeline for the Jeep. I pretty much fell into the back seat after I tripped on the hand break just as Stiles started the car back up again.

I managed to sit up when Scott jumped in, "Go, go, go!"

"I'm going!" Stiles yelled in response, reversing quickly away from the school.

He spun the Jeep around and I skidded across the backseat, the entire right side of my body slamming into the side of the Jeep and I gripped my arm with seething, "Jesus, Stiles!"

"I'm sorry." He apologised quickly, putting the car into forward and speeding away.

"It's fine." I said through gritted teeth as I pulled myself over to the middle seat again, "Just another reminder that you're a bad driver."

Stiles ignored my quip about his driving ability but he did meet my eyes in his rear-view mirror. Instead of humouring me he turned to Scott, "Did it work? Did you remember?"

"Yeah. I was there last night." Scott said to us both, "And the blood, a lot of it was mine."

"That's weird." I frowned.

"So you did attack the driver?" Stiles said.

"No. I saw glowing eyes on the bus but they weren't mine." Scott said to us both, "It was Derek."

"And you're sure this time?" I asked my friend. He was starting to build a bad habit of blaming Derek for things that weren't him.

"Yes!"

"What about the driver?" Stiles asked.

"I think I was actually trying to protect him."

"Wait, what?" Stiles rounded, "Why would Derek help you remember that he attacked the driver?"

"That's exactly what I'm thinking right now, too." I agreed with Stiles.

"That's what I don't get." Scott shook his head.

"It's got to be a pack thing."

"What do you mean?"

"Yeah what do you mean?" I asked, putting my elbows on the top of their seats.

"Like an initiation." Stiles said to us both, "You do the kill together."

"Because ripping someone's throat out is a real bonding experience." Scott retaliated sarcastically.

I scoffed in amusement.

"Yeah, but you didn't do it." Stiles replied, "Which means you're not a killer.. and it also means that—"

"—I can go out with Allison."

Stiles nodded, "I was gonna say it means you won't kill me or Alex.. but yeah, that works out too."

"Oh yeah." Scott nodded, "That too."

_______________

When my phone started to ring I picked it up without any hesitation, accepting the call and putting it onto speakerphone, "Hello?"

"Come to the back of your house."

I sat up immediately, closing the book I was reading and frowning at my phone in shock, "Derek?"

"Just do it." He replied sharply.

"Okay, okay. I'm coming." I said quickly, getting off my bed and running down the stairs. I left my phone on my bed and headed into the kitchen, walking out of my back door and closing it behind me. The light was already on from Derek and he met my eyes, "What's going on?"

"I ran into your dad tonight." He said to me, narrowing his eyes somewhat.

"Uh.." I nodded, "All right."

"Does he know?" He asked me.

"Know about—?" I trailed off, shaking my head until I realised just what it was that he was asking me, "Oh."

"Yeah." Derek nodded, "Because he was with Chris Argent."

"Yeah." I nodded, running my tongue over the back of my teeth, "He knows."

Derek took a step towards me, narrowing his eyes, "How does he know?"

"I honestly don't have a clue, Derek, I swear." I said to him honestly, "I only put it together because Scott told me Allison's dad was a hunter and the other night he was over storing things here and when I asked what for they both told me it was business."

"Well they know about me." Derek told me.

My brows raised in shock, "Are you sure?"

He shrugged before nodded, "Pretty sure." He replied, "He smashed my car window in."

"Do they know about Scott?" I asked him.

"I don't think so." Derek responded, "Not at the moment anyways."

I leaned against the door and sighed loudly. If the hunters knew about Derek it was probably from my dad and what was stopping them now from killing him?

"What are we gonna do?" I asked him.

"You're going to do anything." He told me, "You're gonna go back inside and not say anything to your dad."

"Yeah, okay." I nodded to him.

"No, Alex, I mean now." Derek said, pointing to the french doors I was leaning against, "Because I just heard his car pull up."

"Right, right." I said quickly, turning and opening the door, "Bye." I called back shortly, walking in the house but I was sure Derek was already gone.

As I closed the back door I heard my dads shoes against the linoleum flooring and I turned to see him looking at me, his brow was raised, "Going somewhere?"

I shrugged, "Could say the same about you." I replied, shifting uncomfortably on my feet. I didn't like the fact I knew exactly who my dad was now. I much preferred it when he kept me in the dark but now I knew I just wanted to know why he'd hunt people my mom and I knew.

"Business." He told me flatly.

I licked my lips before I pursed them, looking down to the floor, "What type of business?" I dared to ask.

"It's not worth mentioning." My dad said to me while shaking his head, "Besides, it's a private matter."

I clenched my jaw lightly, forcing myself to nod. I wasn't satisfied with his answer. I was sick of being kept in the dark now and in my eyes I deserved to know.

"You know I'm not a kid anymore, dad." I said to him.

"I didn't say you were."

"But you're still treating me like one."

He sighed in disinterest, "Because sometimes you still act like one."

His words stung and he hit wherever he was aiming. I hadn't acted like a child since the day I lost my mom, I hadn't been a child since that day because I lost my childhood. I think my dad wasn't expecting me to retaliate and I knew I shouldn't lower myself to his level but I just couldn't help it as I muttered, "That one hurt."

He ran his tongue over his lips before he nodded once, "Sometimes life hurts."

"I know." I nodded, "But I haven't once acted like a child since the fire."

He scoffed and shook his head, "What about the times were you want out and didn't come home until the morning? When you hung out with those friends — those two boys — and rode around on the back of their motorcycles."

"You know why I did that?" I fired to my dad, "I did that because it was the only way I'd ever get any form of attention from you. You'd ignore me any other time of the day."

"That is not the way to get someone's attention, Alex. That is called being irresponsible and childish."

"Childish is ignoring your daughter because she reminds you too much of your dead wife." I muttered but my tone was harsh. I knew for a fine fact that my dad heard what I said.

My dad's jaw dropped somewhat, completely caught off guard by what I had just said to him but it was the honest truth. I knew that was why he couldn't bare to look at me half of the time, why he didn't talk to me. It was because I reminded him of mom, I looked exactly like her.

Finally he started to stutter, "That— I don't—"

I shook my head softly to silence him, "It doesn't matter." I said, "I'll get out of your hair, I'm going to Stiles'."

"You're not leaving this house." My dad put his foot down firmly, "There's a police enforced curfew."

"I don't care." I told him honestly, "I was out last night past it.. and the night before and the night before that. You wouldn't know though because you don't really care what I get up to."

His face hardened, "Alex—"

"—Bye, dad." I cut him off, walking passed him through the house while grabbing my keys and leaving.

_____________

I caught Stiles just as he appeared to be leaving his house and without even questioning why I was at his he dragged me into his Jeep silently. I had noticed that Sheriff Stilinski's car was gone and I figured he must've been on the late shift tonight.

As we drove through town I turned my head to look at Stiles, "Where are we going?"

"Scott's." He muttered a reply before glancing over at me fleetingly, "Are you all right?"

I shrugged and looked out of the window, "I don't know— got into a fight with my dad."

"Do you wanna talk about it?" He asked me gently.

"Derek said that he'd payed him a visit with Chris Argent so when he came home I asked him where he'd been." I said to him after a moment of silence, "But he didn't tell me, said it was none of my business. He told me I was still acting like a child apparently and we argued about it. When I tried to leave he said I wasn't allowed but I left anyways, he's not the boss of me."

Stiles pressed his lips together, "I'm sorry Alex." He said to me sympathetically.

"Don't be." I shook my head with a hazed smile. We fell into silence again but I wanted to break it. It wasn't like it was uncomfortable, I just wanted to hear his voice to make me feel better. All the silence was doing was giving me the time to think about the argument my dad and I just shared.

"Why are we going to Scott's?" I asked him as we pulled onto his street.

"Oh." Stiles muttered, "Need to talk to him, it's important."

"But isn't he bowling with Allison?"

He pulled up outside the McCall house and stopped the car, "I'm kind of hoping he's back." He said to me.

The two of us got out the Jeep and walked up to the front door, while the car was in the driveway the door was locked and I sighed, "It's locked. You'll have to wait until morning."

"I can't." Stiles shook his head, "This is important, c'mon." He said to me, walking off the porch and round the side of the house. He pointed up at Scott's room and we saw the bedroom light was off but the window was open.

"He's either sleeping or still out." I said to him.

Stiles checked his time for the phone before looking to me, "Probably still out." Was his response before he walked forwards towards the side of the house.

"Stiles." I groaned lightly, "You can't honestly tell me you think the both of us can climb into his room?"

"C'mon." He replied, waving me over, "It's the only way in."

"Haven't you heard of knocking?" I fired in retaliation.

Stiles jumped up on top of the trashcan and grabbed on to the gutter attached to the porch roof. He pulled himself up and I watched slightly in amazement as he climbed up. I hadn't expected him to do it so effortlessly but he did and it left me quite shocked.

Once he was sturdy on top of the roof he turned back to me and arched his brow, "Well?" He asked me, "Are you coming or what?"

I cleared my throat, trying to hide my surprise from watching him climb up on to the porch roof in the first place and nodded my head. I walked over to the trashcan, using the side of the house to steady myself as I stood on the lid and reached for the pipes. When I wrapped my hands around it Stiles held his hand out to me, offering to help pull me up. I accepted his offer silently and he shocked me again by pulling me up and on to the roof.

Once I was on both my feet and away from the edge I exhaled heavily, "God, I can't believe you've got me climbing into his house right now."

"Just come on." Stiles muttered, walking over to the bedroom window.

He climbed in first and I hoisted myself up after he was in and pulled myself through Scott's window. I fell on to the bed, my side clashing with Stiles back as I rolled through and he turned to me, "Alex." He grumbled, complaining as I fell into him.

I sat up, "Gee, I'm sorry. I'm not experienced when it comes to climbing into windows." I replied sarcastically.

He met my gaze to roll his eyes and when he looked away from me he yelled loudly in shock. I turned to look and saw Melissa stood in front of the both of us, a baseball in her hands as she held it above her head protectively.

I jumped back in shock, scooting up Scott's bed as the three of us yelled in the shock of seeing one another.

And when we finally calmed down she turned to us, "What the hell are you two doing here?!"

"What am I doing?" Stiles yelled incredulously, "God, do either of you even play baseball?"

Melissa sighed in exasperation as the bedroom light was switched on. Scott walked through his door with a confused frown, "What?" He muttered to the three of us, looking skeptically.

"Can you please tell your friends to use the front door?" Melissa said to her son.

"In my defence I wanted to use the door." I said, "Stiles wouldn't let me."

"But we lock the front door. They wouldn't be able to get in." Scott replied.

"Yeah, exactly." Melissa responded before looking to the three of us, "And, by the way, do any of you care that there's a police-enforced curfew?"

"No." We all chimed.

"No." She nodded, "All right then. Well, you know what?" She tossed the bat on to the bed besides me and looked to us, "That's about enough parenting for me for one night so, good night." Melissa said to us before she walked out the room.

"Night!" I called after her.

"Good night." Scott said to his mom, reaching over and grabbing a chair.

Stiles sighed heavily from besides me.

"What?" Scott frowned.

"We have problems." I said to my friend.

"What kind of problems?"

"My dad left for the hospital 15 minutes ago." Stiles said to him, "It's the bus driver... they said he succumbed to his wounds."

I turned my head to Stiles and my eyes widened, "Wait.. what?" I asked him in shock. I hadn't expected him to say that.

"Succumbed?" Scott asked.

"Scott." Stiles sighed, "He's dead."

My friends face dropped immediately and I pressed my lips together, "Oh my god." I muttered.

"He's dead?" Scott questioned in disbelief, "He's dead? H-how? I—I thought he was doing okay?"

Stiles shrugged lightly, clasping his hands together and the three of us sat in silence until Scott stood up, "I need to find Derek."

Immediately Stiles and I stood up from Scott's bed and he shook his head, "No, man, you shouldn't—"

"—I have to find out why he did it." Scott snapped at us, "I need to know why he killed him."

I stepped forwards, "Wait, Scott, he didn't—"

But he was gone, jumping out of the window Stiles and I had just crawled through and into the night.

I sighed in defeat, "—He didn't kill him."

Stiles glanced to me and when I met his eyes I shook my head. What we were going to do now I didn't know.

_____________

A/N; I don't know if you guys have noticed by now but this is going to be a slow burn.