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Theo had a weird relationship with his hands. They were one of the few things the doctors - dread doctor, liam would correct him- hadnt operated on. Like sure they had broken them a few times when he disobeyed them or nust because they could. But they would let his healing fix them. He had used his hands to do a lot of bad. Killing obviously, but things like hold lydia hostage, slice a few throats along the way. They didnt look like they could do as much harm as they had.
But then again they have done some good. He thinks of the times he'd dragged liam out of danger, the time he protected mason as best he could down the tunnels. Taking away gabes pain.
If there was a scale of good and evil, well theo knew it was still heavily tilted to the bad. But he was trying.
The fucked up thing was trying to figure out what could be quantified as good. He was out on a full moon chasing down a stray puppy, and by straypuppy it was liam. The beta had a better control over his wolfness than he gave himself credit for, but he still had bad days.
Theo found him running near a pond.
"If you jump in and get all wet theres no wsy I'm letting you into my truck. You'll hace to sit in the bed"
The response was a low growl.
"C'mon youve burnt off enough steam. Lets get you home." He prompted reaching his hand out to the beta.
Liam didn't move. Just stared at theo's extended hand. His hands, he wont trust me. Theo guessed that knocking him out the last few times would leave a bit of hesitation. Was that a tip towards good or bad he pondered.
Knocking liam out meant that they could escape = good, liam getting hurt in the process = bad. Circles around and around, scales forever unbalanced.
Too stuck in his own head theo dodnt see liam move. He jumped when liams fingers slowly made their way to connect and intertwine with his own. He looked calmer.
"Lets go home" liam spoke softly
Home.
Theo didn't really have hobbies. Well he didn't really have a life growing up they way he did. He would see liam and his friends play lacrosse, play video games and just feel worlds away from it all. To do something to pass the time was never a luxuary he had. Like sure he was smart and school dispite never staying anywhere to long was easy enough. But hobbies theo wouldnt even know where to start.
Theo was in the school libary one day, post the war and being dragged by his tail to join the puppies in senior year, where he saw a group of students studying in a group. They were all sitting there doing whatever they needed to do. All but one. One was knitting. Or something that looked like knitting. It was fascinating to watch. The quick work of their hands in a dance like motion. And soon wnough shape was veing made.
Using your hands to create something good. Well that was a thought. Theo went to find a spare computer and started researching.
Theo knew what knitting was, he had vague memories of his mother teaching his sister a life time ago. So he had the basics in the back if his head somewhere. Acquiring wool was easy enough too,plenty of craft stores existed and discount bins in thrift stores always had some. So with his materials he was ready. He started to learn.
It was fucking hard. No one ever mentioned that. Theo was used to being good at the things he did, planning scheming whichever, but that was a practiced art. This too would take practice.
He was in his truck once again. He had been spending more time at liams. But he knew he couldnt be there all the time dispite how much he actually wanted to. Realistically he knew that if liam found out that he was spending most nights sleeping in the back of his truck liam would get him to move in. But theo couldn'tthink like that. Too much wishful thinking would be the death of him.
So here he was in the back of his truck. Fingers tangled in yarn and curses filled the scilence of the forrest. Knots were everywhere and although theo was good at math, he had discovered he cpul not count.
A wrong pull caused several sitches to undo. He cursed again.
There was a knock at his window that startled him out of his fustration. It was liam
He slowly opened his window
"Hello, what brings you to my neck of the woods?" He mused taking in the beta still dressed in his sleep clothes
"What are you doing?" Liam asked. Slightly out of breath probably the adrenaline from running here
"Nothing what are you doing?" Ever the escapee of letting people in
"I smelled stress. I thought something had happened to you, like you were attacked or like your nightmares." Liam explained.
Theo flinched slightly at that. Not at the fact that the boy was intuned with his emtions. That had been going on for eachother since the hunters, the mention of his nightmares they don't talk about them. Well theo doesn't. Liam has been a witness to a few but they dont talk about them
"Well clearly I'm fine, so go back home little wolf I'm just here trying to relax"
"Relax. But its clearly stressing you out what are you doing?"
Theo sighed giving up his avoiding stance. He lifted the work he was on
"I'm knitting"
Liam blinked at him. Clearly struggling to take it in but then something clicked for him. What, theo could never guess.
"Ok well, you clearly need more light so take me home and well have a look at what you've done. My mom taught me some stuff back when we were trialing out things as stress relief when i had my ied diagnosis lets go!" Liam ran around to the passenger side and junped in. Theo just stared for a minute. Then thought fuck it and got ready to drive.
Together they managed to get a half project going for theo. It was a simple scarf. But it was something. Something that theo made. Something that was good.
It probably took way longer than it should have. But in a few weeks it was done. Theo had been working on it alone any chance he could get and finally it was finnished. What to do with it he didn't know. He could keep it for himself. The truck wasn't the warmest at night. But his mind kept going back to liam. The beta never questioned why theo was doing it. Never made fun if him. So theo thought it would be nice to give the beta the scarf.
Giving people things could be considered good too right?
Theo had placed the scarf in a small box and kept it on the back seat of the truck. He had decided that yes the scarf would be given to liam but the actual giving part was hard. But oppotunity often knocks when you least expect it.
And in this case oppotunity crashed in.
Theo and liam were out keeping an eye on things in the preserve, there had been rumors of hunters around and liam wanted to check things out and there was no way theo would let liam go out alone. Not that he didn't think liam was capable, but he'd rather be there to try and stop anything from going wrong.
And of course with that line of thinking something did go wrong. Liam stepped on a trap but before he could get hit with whatever was coming for him theo had managed to push him out of the way andhense got stabbed himself.
Liam somehow manged to drag him back to the truck and there they took the arrow out. Luckly there was no wolvesbane laced on it but it still hurt. There was still a decent amount of blood too. Theo went to grab the box with the scarf. But stopped he didnt want to use it for this. It wasn't for him. So he just pressed his hand onto the wound.
"Theo you have to have some bandages in here right or is your self presivation that awful?" Liam teasedvto try hide his panic. It wasn't working.
"Well theres the scarf.." he trailed off
"Noo!" Liam yelled " you worked so hard on that." Liam had shifted his weight then pressing himself into theo as if to try and stop him from moving. It worked.
"Well what else is there? Well its not like im going to bleed ou-what are you doing?"
His sentace was inturupted by liam tearing his t shirt and wrapping the clothe around theos hip as a psido bandage.
Theo scoffed
"Hero complex much?"
Liam rolled his eye
"Martyr complex much?" He retorted
Theo avaided his eyes. Liam didnt let him get far though. He had finnished the improv first aid session and brushed his fingers under theo's chin to tilt his head back towards him. Their eyes met. Liams bright blue and full of something. Was it aw, hunger dare it be lust or something deeper?
"I know you have this thing about wanting to do good. Be good. But you cant keep getting hurt. Coz i cant handle it. "
"You noticed that?" Theo muttered under his breath, afriad that if it was any louder it would break whatever moment was happening.
"You have no idea what i notice"
And then liam was pulling him in. Their lips met softly, softer than anything else theo had ever felt.
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"The scarf is for you." Theo whispered while they were laying in the bed of the truck. Liams nose pressed into theo's throat, limbs tangled.
"Mmm?" He rellied sleepily
"I made it, but i wanted you to have it." He explained "You were right, i wanted to do something good. My hands they well, i mean I've done a lot of bad. I wanted to do something good."
Liam shifted and looked down and him. Smiling fully, brightly and beautifully.
Maybe being good was easier than he thought.