DEAD MAN!
CHAPTER NINETEEN.
you're still my brother.

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SCOTT MCCALL CAME TO THE MARTIN HOUSE THE NIGHT AFTER THE FULL MOON. To say he felt bad would be an understatement. Not only had he made out with one of his best friend's sister . . . he had also told her his deepest secret that was not for him to share.

Stiles had not stopped scolding him since that night, using any way of communication to shout at the werewolf and demand he march over and apologise. Scott was going to do so already- as he immediately felt bad the second the full moon wore off on him- but his best friends' words were like a dagger to the heart.

Lydia was the one to answer the door unfortunately, a look of surprise going to her face from seeing the boy. Scott felt his nerves shoot up and heart stop for a second, looking around awkwardly. "Scott? What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to see Adrian." The tanned boy replied quickly, already wanting this conversation to end. Visions of his crappy decisions yesterday came running back to him; making his stomach sink.

"He's in his room." Lydia let the boy in, walking with him up the stairs. "I'll warn you though, he's been distant ever since last night."

"That'll be my fault." Scott sighed, dipping his head as he took the blame. He felt awful.

"Scott," Lydia's serious tone snapped him back to meet her green eyes similar to her brothers. The female Martin bit her lip. "What you said in the classroom . . . is he really-"

"That's not for me to say." Scott shook his head, knowing he had to do one right thing amongst this mess. Lydia nodded in understanding as Scott scratched the back of his head, hesitating before speaking. "So umm. . . about that kiss."

"Forget about it." The strawberry blonde shook her head immediately, flicking her hair round to whack the tanned boy in the face as she walked off.

Scott watched her strut away, a deep breath escaping his lips as he opened the bedroom door to reveal the second part of the Martin siblings. Adrian was by his desk as per usual, his mouse clicking at his computer as he scrolled through multiple websites. When the door opened, the teen turned expectantly; a frown on his face. "Scott."

"Hey." The boy awkwardly waved. It was silent between them, Scott's mood deflating at the obvious signs Adrian wanted him gone. "Look, I'm sorry about yesterday; I really am."

Adrian stared at him with a poker face, looking him up and down and observing his body language. He seemed genuine in his apology, the redhead eventually allowing himself to give in. "It's okay, I guess. It was the full moon; I get it."

"No. That didn't give me any right to tell Lydia." Scott was quick to shake his head, stepping more into the room. "You trusted me with that secret, and I let you and Stiles down."

"Is he mad?" Adrian frowned, staring down at his desk again as he played with his pen for note taking.

"At you? No. At me? Absolutely. My phone has not stopped blowing up." As if on cue, his phone buzzed in his pocket. "That would be another one." The werewolf shook his head, running a hand through his shaggy hair. "I know nothing's going to make up for what I said and did, but are we good?"

Adrian didn't reply for awhile, making Scott all the more anxious for his awaiting answer. Eventually the boy gave him a small smile. "We're good." He nodded.

The Latino boy's face took over with relief, a smile making its way onto his face. Adrian smiled too, glad to have made amends. He was mad at first, yes, but he soon learned that that wasn't Scott; it was the full moon. Besides, he had to tell Lydia at some point, right?

The Martin siblings would have to have the conversation at one point, but that was for another time.

"What are you doing?" The boy later asked, sitting on his bed as he peered at the computer screen displaying a website.

Adrian turned round in his seat, a grin on his face. "Fancy a bit of research, McCall?"

❚ ❚ ❚

"Oh my god, we're going to die." Adrian stated as he swerved left and right due to Scott McCall's hectic driving. The werewolf was going at an incredibly fast pace, his eyes wild and frantic as they drove on.

Let's catch up. Kate Argent- Allison's werewolf hunter of an aunt- was currently chasing after the car she thought Derek was driving; giving it was his car. When in reality, it was three idiot teenagers who had no idea what they were doing.

"Faster?" Scott questioned from the drivers seat, Stiles and Adrian looking behind them to see Kate Argent hot on their tail.

"Much faster." Stiles answered for them both, Adrian nodding along while clutching the two seats in front of him.

Scott put more pressure on the pedal, sending Adrian back in the seat he was in. The engine revved as Scott led them further, Adrian feeling his stomach churn.

"Hey, Scott, I don't think you're really grasping the concept of a car chase here." Stiles told the boy, his head turning between the driver and advancing car.

"If I go faster, I'll kill us." Scott defended, voice raising as his eyes stayed glued on the road.

"You'll kill us?! They'll kill us if you don't go faster!" Adrian shouted from the backseat. The redhead dared a glance back at Kate . . . only to see her car driving away. "Crap. She knows. They're gone."

Stiles immediately reached down for the walkie talkie that had been sitting in his lap, pressing a button. An officers voice came through the line. "All units, suspect is on foot heading into the iron works."

The two best friends stared at each other for a few moments, Adrian being the one to snap them both back. "Well, you heard the officer! To Derek!"

Scott took a few turns and drove as fast as he could to the iron works; seeing Derek crouched behind boxes and scrap metal. Adrian wondered what the older werewolf was hiding from, but he didn't have to search far to know the answer. Chris Argent stood tall on a high platform, trying to aim at the man with a gun in hand.

With wide eyes, the three boys stopped the car close to Derek, Stiles urging him forward. "Get in!" He yelled, climbing to the back next to Adrian.

Derek ran to the car, jumping into Stiles' seat securely. Scott took off the minute he was in, Adrian jumping every time a gun shot rang through the air. That was too close. He thought.

"What part of laying low do you not understand?!" Scott yelled, taking a quick glance to Derek before back to the road.

The older werewolf didn't reply. Instead, his hand slammed against the dashboard. "Damn it! I had him!" He yelled, clearly angered.

"Who? The Alpha?" Stiles leaned forwards, his head poking through the seats.

"Yes!" Derek responded. "He was right in front of me, and the freaking police showed up."

"Hey, they're just doing their jobs." Stiles defended his dad and police.

Derek glared at him, the boy crumpling like paper under his stare. "Yeah, thanks to someone who decided to make me the most wanted fugitive in the entire state." His gaze trained to Scott.

"I didn't have any say in that." Adrian raised his hand immediately, Stiles being the one to put it back down.

"Can we seriously get past that?" Scott suggested. "I made a dumbass mistake. I get it."

"All right! How did you find him?" Stiles broke the two apart, leaning forwards again.

Derek didn't say anything, looking ahead at the road with his usual glare. It was clear he wasn't keen on giving the teens any information. Scott sighed. "Can you just try us for at least half a second?"

"Yeah, all three of us." Stiles added. When Derek faced him again, he winced. "Or just him. Me and Adrian will be back here." He fell back next to Adrian, the boy sending him a gentle smile.

"Look, the last time I talked to my sister, she was close to figuring something out. She found two things. The first was a guy named Harris." Derek began, and would've continued had it not been for Stiles jolting forwards again.

"Our chemistry teacher?"

"Why him? Why Harris of all people?" Adrian couldn't help but ask, looking to the older werewolf.

"I don't know yet." Derek grumbled, looking pretty pissed he didn't have the answers.

"What's the second?" Scott questioned.

Derek then reached into the pocket of his trousers, digging through until a piece of paper was clutched in his hand. Once unfolded, it showed three teenagers. In the centre was a vaguely familiar symbol, a wolf surrounding it. Adrian furrowed his eyebrows. Where had he seen that before?

"Some kind of symbol." Derek told them through a mutter. Whilst Stiles and Adrian remained clueless, Scott closed his eyes and sighed deeply. Everyone looked at him, Derek the most eager. "What? You know what this is?"

"I've seen it on a necklace."

Adrian sat up, eyes wide. "Allison's necklace!" Scott winced at the redhead's words, hitting the nail right on the head.

❚ ❚ ❚

"This is gonna be impossible, you know." Scott told his two friends with a sigh as he opened the doors to school, Adrian and Stiles close behind. The werewolf turned to the redhead, a look of pleading on his face. "Can't you do it? You're on much better terms than I am."

"Why would I ask to borrow her jewellery? I may be gay, but I'm a closeted gay." Adrian deadpanned, giving the boy a look. Scott closed his eyes again, running out of options. "Look, just talk to her."

"She won't talk to me." Scott sounded hurt, a sad look in his brown eyes. "What if she, like, only takes it off in the shower or something?"

"That's why you ease . . . that's why you ease back into it, okay?" Stiles made wild gestures with his hand, the other boy nodding along. "Get back on her good side, remind her of the good times. And then you ask her for the necklace."

Scott pauses in the hallway suddenly, a dazed look in his face. Stiles took longer to register than Adrian did, meaning he was the one to reach out and slap his shoulder. "Stop thinking about Allison in the shower!" He hissed, placing his hands on the boy's shoulder. "Here's the game plan. You get the necklace, get the Alpha, get cured and get Allison back."

"In that order, got it?" Stiles whacked his shoulder, the two boys walking away as Scott recited the words back to himself.

❚ ❚ ❚

"How the hell did he find out?" Stiles mildly questioned Scott as the three teens turned the corner, leading into another hallway.

Scott had come running over to the two boys, spilling that apparently Jackson approached him and told him he knew of his werewolf abilities. And if Scott didn't get the bite for the rich boy, he would go round spilling everything to Allison.

"I have no idea." Scott's voice raised with panic, eyes wide as he helplessly stared at the two boys.

"All right. Did he say it out loud? The word?" The sarcastic boy asked, trying to slip his way past this as a bad situation.

"What word?" Adrian rolled his eyes at Scott's cluelessness. Sometimes he really thought the boy played dumb on purpose.

"Werewolf, dumbass." Adrian spoke in a hushed whisper. "Did Jackson say 'I know you're a werewolf'? Anything like that?"

Scott shook his head, ignoring the insulting word. At this point, he kinda learned to deal with it. "No, but he implied it pretty freaking clearly."

Stiles stopped to think over things. "Okay, maybe it's not as bad as it seems. I mean, he doesn't have any proof, right? And if he wanted to tell someone, who's gonna believe him anyway?" He tried to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, Allison doesn't know jack about werewolves. She'll think he's off his head." Adrian tried too, doing his best to stay positive for Scott despite his doubts. Jackson can be pretty persuasive when he wanted to be.

"How about Allison's father?" Scott knocked their attempts down, both their faces falling. They hadn't thought of that one.

"Okay, that's bad." Stiles said just as Adrian cursed under his breath.

"I need a cure. Right now." Scott fussed, the panic growing more and more.

Stiles ran both hands frustratedly through his buzzed hair. "Does he know about Allison's father?"

"I don't know." Scott shook his head.

"Okay, where's Derek?" The Stilinski boy thought further.

"Hiding, like we told him to. Why?"

"I have another idea." Stiles proposed, setting a hand on Scott and Adrian's chests do stop them. "It's gonna take a little time and finesse, though."

Adrian released a groan from the back of his throat. "But we have a game tonight. The quarterfinals, remember?" He looked back at Stiles. "And you're playing. I will not allow you to miss it."

"I know, I know. Look," he turned back to Scott. "Do you have a plan for Allison yet?"

The werewolf sighed. "She's in my next class."

"Get the necklace." Stiles ordered before the two boys walked off. As they walked further away, a smirk grew on Stiles' face. "So, you wouldn't allow me to miss the game?"

The boy rolled his eyes, shifting his bag on his shoulder. "Shut up. I won't have my hard work go to waste."

"Your hard work? I think it's pretty safe to say that it was a team effort." Stiles retorted amusedly.

"Whatever you say, Stilinski." Adrian laughed, shaking his head.

Stiles' tone suddenly grew more serious, looking at the boy curiously. "Have you had any more weird dreams lately? Ya know, or anything peculiar?"

Adrian though it over for a second, before shaking his head. "Not that I can recall. No, I don't think so. But, I think I'm getting closer to figuring out what Thana Sparrow is trying to tell me."

"How so?" Stiles raised his eyebrows.

"I'll tell you later. There's something else I need to talk to you about, but now is not really the time. See you later." The redhead bid him farewell, walking off into his next class without a reply.

❚ ❚ ❚

Lunch soon rolled round and Adrian took his now usual seat next to Stiles Stilinski and across a very grumpy looking Scott McCall. His mission to get Allison's necklace had failed when he sent her pictures of the two of them, only making her cry and storm out. She claimed he was trying to make her feel bad and also said they weren't even friends. Well, at least not now.

"Did you get her to give you the necklace?" Stiles asked nervously, getting a pretty good answer by the look on the boy's face.

"Not exactly." Scott shook his head.

"What happened?" Stiles pursed his lips, Adrian tucking into his food beside him.

"She told me not to talk to her." Scott explained as Stiles took a big bite out of his chicken. "At all."

Stiles spoke with his mouth full. "So she's not giving you . . ."

"She's not giving me the necklace!" Scott declared with a mad face. It didn't seem like he was mad at Stiles necessarily, more at himself due to the fact he made things worse with his ex.

"Ok. Well, did you find anything else out?" Stiles asked, drumming his fingers on the lunch table as he ate.

"Just that I know nothing about girls and that they're totally psychotic." Scott claimed, earning a small chuckle from Adrian.

The redhead admired the boy's struggle, smirking silently to himself. He was glad he wasn't having this problem.

Stiles slumped in his seat, exhaling before talking. "Okay, I came up with a plan B just in case anything like this happened." He began, ignoring Scott's glare towards Adrian when the werewolf got exactly what he was thinking.

"What is your genius idea this time?" Adrian sarcastically remarked, folding his arms across his chest.

Stiles picked up the salt, rolling his eyes as he did so. "Just steal the stupid thing."

"Couldn't we try at least getting to Harris?" The young werewolf tried to negotiate.

"My dad put him on a 24-hour protective detail, okay?" The Stilinski boy mumbled, mouth stuffed with food. "The necklace is all we got. Steal it. Thank you."

Adrian scoffed at the boy's words, mindlessly stabbing his food with his fork. His attention was brought back over to Scott, who was looking at something behind him. Confusedly, he turned round to find none other than Jackson watching the three of them intensely.

Adrian was quick to turn his back. "Uh . . . why is Jackson staring at us?"

Stiles stopped mid-drink from his water bottle, looking over to the star athlete. Jackson didn't dare break eye contact, leaving Stiles to turn back to his friends with wide eyes.

"Act normal." Scott mumbled to the two of them, crossing his arms. Stiles and Adrian slumped in their seats, trying their best to focus on anything else.

When the young werewolf winced, Adrian sat up alertedly. His brows furrowed. "What's wrong?" He whispered.

Scott peaked a glance at the redhead, a panicked look on his face. "Jackson's talking to me. He knows I can hear him." He said quickly. Stiles gaped, turning in Jackson's direction. "Look at me!" He hissed. "Just talk to me. Act normal. Pretend that nothing's happening. Say something. Talk to me!"

When have you two ever had a normal conversation? Adrian thought to himself as Stiles waves his hands around, a pressured look on his face. "I can't think of anything! My mind's a complete blank!"

"Your mind's blank?! You can't think of something to say?" Scott said lowly in disbelief.

"Not under this kind of pressure!" The boy argued, the redhead enjoying the bickering pair.

"Well, you can stop. He's not there anymore." Adrian signalled to the pair, taking another bite of his food.

Scott didn't seem as calm as he was, looking around completely paranoid. "Where the hell is he?" He suddenly froze, meaning Jackson was most likely talking to him.

Scott's hands began to shake, clenching around his water bottle until it crushed within his grip. Adrian's eyes widened, leaning forwards to the boy. "Scott, don't let him win on this one. You can't let him control you."

The Martin boy had seen Jackson's manipulative powers first hand, and he never wanted anyone to be on the other side of it. And, given Scott's anger at the moment, he wasn't sure he wanted Jackson on the other side either.

Scott's tray suddenly snapped in half, creating a loud noise that stopped all chatter in the cafeteria. Allison looked over at Scott, a confused look in her eyes. Scott deathly glare was on Jackson however, watching the star player bite into his apple to hide his smirk.

❚ ❚ ❚

"Hey, Lydia, do you want to have takeout for dinner tonight or-" Adrian's words were silenced when he entered his sister's room; only to find her in tears. The boy's face fell, rushing to the crying Martin's side. "Hey, what happened?"

Lydia swallowed thickly through the tears, mascara trailing down her cheeks due to the tears. "Jackson. He-He broke up with me."

Adrian frowned, sad that was what his sister was crying about. Yeah, him and Jackson got along decently . . . but they never were actually good friends. "What did he say?"

"H-He sent me a text-"

"That asshole dumped you over text?!" Adrian's voice raised, the star player angering him more and more today.

Lydia nodded, sniffling. "What do I do, Adrian? I talked to him about it; he's serious."

"What do you mean 'what am I going to do'? You're Lydia freaking Martin! Any guy who dumps you over text, is not worth it. Period." He lectured, pointing a stern finger at her. "Martin's don't take shit from anyone. And who are you?"

The strawberry blonde sniffled, a light smile on her lips. "A Martin."

Adrian smirked. "Then show him."

Lydia's smile broadened, her eyes lighting up. Her eyes casted over to her brother, throwing her arms around him. "I will. Thanks, Adrian."

"Anytime, sis." The boy smiled, happily hugging her back.

The hug lasted a few more seconds before Lydia pulled away, and the look in her eyes was clear she was hesitant to speak. Adrian furrowed his brows, giving her a confused look. "Is it true?"

Adrian tilted his head. "Sorry, I'm not following. What?"

"You and Stiles, is it true?" The Martin girl bit her lip, playing with her hands.

Adrian felt his heart pound. There it was; the question that could ruin everything between them. The truth could change everything . . . so was Adrian sure he wanted to tell it?

Answer: he wasn't sure.

"It's complicated." Adrian muttered, hand reaching out to scratch the back of his neck. "It just kind of happened, I guess."

"So you're," Lydia trailed off, her eyebrows raising in suspicion.

Adrian exhaled deeply, shaking his head. "I- yeah . . . maybe." The redhead closed his eyes, a defeated look on his face as he sighed. "Yeah. It's true."

Lydia frowned at her brothers' struggle, noticing his distant body language. She shifted closer to the boy, nudging his shoulder to gain his attention. "You know I don't care about that type of stuff right? I couldn't care less if you're gay, bi, queer, straight or anything that falls in between. You're still my brother."

Adrian snickered to himself. "Yeah, an idiot brother who can't even fess up to his crush and runs away like an idiot."

Lydia chuckled. "You're telling me Adrian Martin, Mr Smooth With The Ladies, is scared of a crush?"

"On a guy!" Adrian defended himself, pointing a finger at her.

"Whatever." Lydia rolled her eyes, leaning forward. A smirk rose onto her pink lips as her eyes twinkled. "You're a Martin, show him."

The Martin siblings smiled at each other. And, for the rest of the night, they stayed up and talked the night away just as they had done when they were kids.

It felt good to Adrian. It felt good to know that he was accepted; a feeling he hadn't felt in a long time.

A U T H O R. N O T E
we love martin sibling bonding time.
side note; scott mccall is a absolute puppy.

thanks for reading this book so far! still can't believe i have written as much as to chapter nineteen.

GIF MADE BY ME !
━ R O S C O E O B R I E N