[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.He hasn’t worn a suit since Cam’s funeral.God, I wish you were here, Cam.Maybe he’d been kind of an asshole sometimes—he liked to drink too much, even as a teenager, and he never could manage to keep himself to one girl at a time—but he was still a good brother.He provoked Dad on the worst nights to keep him from picking on Isaac.He kept his friends from giving Isaac too much grief.He wrote Isaac even after he got deployed—said how sorry he was he left Isaac alone with Dad, promised Isaac could come live with him once he got back to the States and saved up enough for a place—always at least one or two letters a week until…“You’ll be fine,” the sheriff promises, clapping a comforting hand on Isaac’s shoulder as he mistakes the melancholy for nervousness.“Don’t worry.”Isaac takes a deep breath, pulling himself back to the cheerfulness of the moment.“Yeah, I’m good,” he says forcing a smile.“No worries.”“I’m really happy for you three,” the sheriff says, “you’re going to have one helluva life together.”“Thanks.”I sure hope so.I think we’ve fucking earned it.********************************************************“Hey, kiddo,” Dad says coming back in.“They’re about ready to start.You ready to go?”“Yep,” he answers, brushing quickly at tears and he tucks the picture of Mom back in his pocket.It’s well-worn from years in his wallet, and he feels like she should be with him today, too.“She’d be so proud of you, Stiles.You know that?”Stiles nods, not trusting his voice, and Dad pulls him into a tight hug.“No tears, just smiles,” he says quietly to his son, repeating the rule Mom made during her last days.“She’s still with you.”“Yeah.”Stiles pulls back from the hug, taking a deep breath to steady himself, trying to ignore the fact that Dad’s playing with his wedding band though he probably doesn’t even realize it.He understands better now why Dad’s never been able to take it off.Stiles can't bear to imagine losing Isaac or Derek—can’t imagine giving up such a precious reminder of them if he did.The thoughts of them bring him back to the moment, the happiness he should be focusing on, not the longing for his mom.No tears.Just smiles.She’s still with me.********************************************************The hand fasting ceremony was all Lydia’s idea, but Derek fucking loves it.It’s perfect for pack; it’s easy to manipulate into a three-person union.Most importantly, he doesn’t have to say a damn word, just clasp his hands in Stiles’ and Isaac’s.Lydia’s suggestion that everyone in the pack gets a cord and helps to join the three seems to fit it all perfectly.Derek’s the last of the three to exit the house.Isaac’s just joined Stiles by the ornately decorated table where Lydia has the cords laid out.They’re beaming at him, and Derek’s honestly breathless for just a moment at the sight.He’s utterly overwhelmed and the ceremony hasn’t even started yet.Oh fuck, I’m going to be tearing up like a pansy by the end of this.He realizes he’s not nearly as embarrassed about that as he should be.****************************************************************Once Deaton’s recited a history of the meaning of a hand fasting union, Lydia comes up to be the first to take a cord, probably to make sure the others can mimic her and don’t fuck up her plan for the flow of things.“I honestly wasn’t sure you three were going to be able to pull this off,” she admits, “but you three have always kind of had a way of going against the odds.” She reaches to start winding the cord around their hands as she continues, “There’s no doubt in my mind anymore that you’re going to make this work.You’ve all grown so much together, and I can’t wait to see how much better life gets for the three of you.I love you all.”Isaac can feel the tears burning the back of his eyes at the words.Dammit, Lydia.I can’t be losing it already.Jackson stands as Lydia returns to her seat, and Isaac can’t help the slight surprise.He knows the whole pack was given the chance to say something, but he expected Jackson to tag along with Lydia’s or pass altogether.Instead Jackson takes the gray chord from the table and steps over to where they stand.“Still don’t know how the hell you three morons make this work,” he says, so quietly that the words are just for the three of them—and Scott’s werewolf hearing.“But I’m glad you figured it out.You guys deserve something good after all the shit you’ve been through.” At the last words, his eyes linger just a moment on Isaac’s; Isaac can’t help but marvel at how fucking far Jackson’s come from the total ass he used to be.**********************************************************************************************Scott rises as Jackson sits.His eyes find Stiles’ as he starts talking.“You’ve been my best friend for like forever, man,” Scott says as he loops the cord around.“So—uh—I wouldn’t be on board with all this if I didn’t think you two loved the hell out of him,” he goes on, looking to Derek and Isaac with something just shy of a hurt-him-and-I’ll-kill-you glare; Stiles fights the urge to roll his eyes.“Just—just be good to each other and stuff, ya know?” he says, gaze softening as he concentrates back on the rope in his hands.“You guys are pretty awesome together.I’m happy for you [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]