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Derek knew he made a mistake when he let Stiles Stilinski walk out of his life. He remembered the day clearly, as if it happened yesterday and not nearly two years ago. He missed the human more than he thought he would. The alpha knew that Stiles meant more than he let on. He knew some of his beta’s had caught onto it as well. Erica had no shame in letting him know how dumb he was for letting Stiles walk away.
The thing is, he wanted Stiles to have an escape. To have some normalcy in his life. Stiles didn’t need to be looking over his shoulder every two seconds. He didn’t need to be fighting the newest big bad every other week. He wanted Stiles to go to college, to get out of Beacon Hills.
It wasn’t like Derek was used to holding his feelings back. He didn’t want to be the reason Stiles didn’t have a good future for himself. He couldn’t keep Stiles from following his dream.
“Stiles, texted earlier. Asking about the pack and stuff.” Erica mentioned as she sat on the couch next to Derek.
Derek nodded his head in reply. He knew Stiles stayed somewhat in contact with the pack.
He can’t remember the last time Stiles texted him. He knew it had been a while.
“How’s he doing?” Derek asked finally as he glanced towards Erica.
“Good. Really good. He has exams this week for the end of the semester. His internship is going well too.” She commented.
Derek nodded once more before getting up.
“Where are you going?” The beta asked as she watched him move around the couch.
“For a run.”
Erica sighed and shook her head. She wondered when Stiles would stop being a sore subject for Derek. He shouldn’t have let Stiles leave without telling the human how he felt. Her and the rest of the pack knew that.
Across the coast, Stiles was at his apartment with his fiancé. They had both just gotten home after classes. It had taken Stiles a few months to stop questioning if leaving had been the right choice. He constantly thought about the pack and about Derek. His heart had been broken when the wolf didn’t even say anything when Stiles told everyone he was leaving. He had even gone to the wolf's apartment the night before he left. Derek acted like there was never anything there between them.So here Stiles is two years later, engaged to an amazing man, college has been going well, his internship thriving. He couldn’t be any happier. Kyle and him were on their way to Beacon Hills to surprise his dad. Since getting engaged they haven’t been out to see the Sheriff, and the Sheriff hadn’t been able to come out to see them.
Stiles was a bit nervous to be coming back home. He hadn’t seen anyone in two years. Of course they’ve talked on the phone and they would video chat when everyone had a chance but it wasn’t the same. Stiles hadn’t heard from Derek at all during those two years. Stiles stopped waiting for that to happen about six months after he had left, when he finally decided to live his life.
“Hey Daddio!” Stiles greeted as he walked into his dad’s office.
The Sheriff’s eyes widened when he realized it was his son standing before him. He jumped up quickly and moved to pull the kid into his arms. “Stiles? What? I had no idea you were coming back.” He said happily as he pulled back and gripped Stile’s arms.
Stiles smiled widely as his dad and shrugged. “Surprise. Kyle and I wanted to come for a visit. I missed you. I missed home, so I figured why not?” He said as he smiled at his dad. He moved so Kyle and the Sheriff could greet each other as well.
“Good to see you sir.” Kyle said as they hugged before moving to step beside Stiles again, wrapping an arm around the other's waist.
“Kid, call me Noah. Don’t have to do all that formal stuff.” The Sheriff said as he waved his hand around.
“We wanted to stop by and say hi real quick. I’m gonna stop at the store and then head home to make dinner for us all. Are you getting off the same old same old?” Stiles asked as he smiled at the Sheriff.
“Yeah, I should be heading home around six, maybe sevenish.” Sheriff replied.
They said their goodbyes and left the station. Stiles couldn’t keep the smile off his face. He was happy to be home, happy to see not a lot has changed. Beacon Hills was still that same old small town. It was nice.
“Okay, I shouldn’t be long. Maybe five minutes. I know what I want to make dad and everything.” Stiles said as he kissed Kyle’s cheek.
“If you don’t get distracted or run into anyone.” Kyle commented as he smirked at him.
“That too. I’ll be right back.” Stiles hopped out of their rental and he made his way into the grocery store. He walked up and down the isles gathering what he needed for dinner. He wanted to make his dad a nice home cooked meal. He knew Melissa had been looking after the Sheriff some when she could. But knowing his dad, he probably didn’t eat all that healthy food since Stiles has been gone.
Stiles was trying to decide between two different types of pasta when he heard his name. He recognized the voice slightly and turned his head. His eyes widened when he saw who had been calling his name. “Holy shit.” He mumbled, he knew the pack was still lived in Beacon Hills, he just wasn’t prepared to run into them right away.
“I knew that was you!” Erica said as she pulled him into a tight hug.
Stiles hugged the woman back. He pulled back slightly and smiled at her. “Hey Erica. Fancy seeing you here.” He said as he grinned.
“When did you get back? None of us knew you were coming back.”
“I just got in not too long ago. Just picking up something to make for dad.”
“Sweet, how long are you in town for? You have to come over and see everyone. We’ve all missed you.”
“I missed you guys too. I’ll be here for a week or two. Just wanted to come back for a few days. Plus I gotta get back to my internship.” He said as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll text you guys and see what day we can meet up. I’m sure you’re all busy and stuff.”
“Yeah, yeah, Please. We all would love to see you. It’ll be nice to catch up not on a tiny screen.” Erica said before hugging him once more. “Don’t be a stranger, Stilinski.”
Stiles just laughed and waved her off. He sucked in a deep breath and sighed. Looks like he has some werewolves to visit before he leaves. He wondered if that meant he’d see Derek as well.