Chapter Text
Then
Derek spotted Paige leaving the music room, massaging her wrists the same way she always did when she had been playing non stop for an extended period of time. He watched her as she headed for the water fountain, brown waves of hair falling to shield her face. Beautiful as always. He excused himself from his friend, giving him a quick handshake before moving down the hall to catch up with her.
He slowed down when he came close to her, tip toeing to get behind her and covering her eyes with both hands after she was done taking a drink.
“Guess who?”, he asked.
Paige sighed in fond exasperation, moving Derek’s hands from her face before turning around to face him with a strained smile.
“Hey.”, she responded tersely.
Things between him and Paige hadn’t been great lately. She’d been ignoring his calls, avoiding him at school, and canceling their dates, saying that she needed to focus on her upcoming audition. Derek knew Paige’s music was her life. She had been working on her repertoire for Julliard’s live auditions for over a year. He’d tried his best to respect her wishes and give her all the time and space she needed, but he just plain missed her.
Derek reached to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. “You know, it’s not good for your health to stay cooped up in there all the time. Kev is throwing a party tonight. Kind of like a pre-prom thing. We should go.”
Paige scowled. “I can’t. I’m flying to New York in two weeks. You know how important this is Derek.”
“Okay, we don’t have to go to the party. I can just stay here and hang out in the music room. I’ll be quiet. Scout’s honor.”, he said holding up his hand in a salute
Paige laughed.“Liar. You couldn’t be quiet if you tried. I’m serious Derek, I have to practice. No distractions.”, she said turning and walking back into the room.
Derek’s pride stung with rejection as he followed her. She saw him as a distraction? He just wanted to spend time with her. Ask her how her day was. Maybe steal a kiss or two. They’d been together since Sophomore year and they were inseparable for a long time. He didn’t know what had changed between them or why, but he knew he didn’t like it.
“Paige, I’m trying. I really am, but you keep pushing me away. Talk to me. What’s wrong?”
Paige sighed again and closed her eyes like she always did when she was about to say something unpleasant. The gesture left a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.
“I think we should take a break.”
Derek blinked. No matter how long he stared, he was still unable to process what his girlfriend of two and a half years was telling him. Paige avoided looking at him as she began gathering up her music into her sheet binder. “It doesn’t have to be forever, but things haven’t been right with us for a long time. You said so yourself.”
Not once through her entire speech, did she look at him. Just continued to organize that damn binder while his chest felt like it was shattering into a billion pieces. Having had enough, Derek put one hand on the binder to stop her; forcing her to actually look him in the eyes. It’s the least she could do for breaking his heart like this.
“If I did something or said something, I’m sorry. We can fix it. Don’t- don’t do this.”, hating the way his voice cracked on the last part.
“You didn’t do anything wrong Derek. It’s just- we’re graduating in a couple of months. You’re going to UCLA and if I get lucky, I’m going to New York in the Fall.”
“You don’t need luck. You’re going to New York. You’re too talented not to get in.”, Derek says firmly. He still believes in Paige and wants her to know that.
“Thank you.", she said sincerely. "Derek, I know you have this fantasy scenario in your head about us getting married after graduation and having kids-”
“You don’t want that?”, he interrupted.
“Of course I do, but I'm not so sure it's in the cards anymore. We've been together almost all of high school. I want to live a little bit first.”, she admitted. “We’re Betas Derek. It’s not the same for us. We don’t have to be tied down.”
Hearing her words was like a slap to the face. Derek had always envied the love between his parents and every other Alpha-Omega couple out there. The bond was rare, omegas in short supply and only presenting when their Alpha came of age. Growing up, he always thought he’d be an Alpha like his mom and older sister and find a dream Omega of his own. As the years went by and he still hadn’t presented by his 16th birthday, he was officially registered a Beta.
After meeting Paige, the disappointment of never being able to feel that soul binding connection, of never being mated, immediately disappeared. He thought he and Paige fit together as well as anyone. He loved her and he convinced himself that it was more than enough. Obviously he was wrong.
That was the problem with being a Beta.
Your heart could get broken.
“Look, I’ll call or text you later or something. I’m going to go home to practice. Take care of yourself.”, she said, quickly brushing past him before he could say anything else.
Now
It had been two weeks since Paige had ended things between them. It didn’t feel right being in school without talking to her or driving past her house in the morning without honking the horn and watch her come running out lugging her cello case to drive to school with him. In a way, he also felt relieved not constantly wondering where their relationship was going or afraid he would do something wrong to make her hate him. They had always been so different from one another.
He tried to call and text her a few times, but she never answered. They didn’t run in the same circle at school so he never saw her anymore. All of his friends looked at him with pity and tried to set him up with other girls because as of now, he was dateless for prom. They all had big plans for that night, but they just didn’t seem worth it anymore. None of it. He still hadn’t figured out how to tell his family what happened, but he was sure they could probably smell the heartache coming off of him in waves.
His dad had even been making his favorite meals for dinner every night while exchanging worried looks with his mother. It was surprising that his dad hadn’t tried to talk to him and have a heart to heart. Derek always felt closer to his dad as he was an Omega and stayed at home with them while his mom went to work. He was thankful that everyone seemed to be allowing him time to come to terms with the break-up on his own.
He sighed and tried to attentively listen to his teammates discuss the upcoming championship game while he packed his locker for the day, but his heart just wasn't in it.
Stiles Stilinki's mouth was running a mile a minute as usual. His best friend Scott simply looked at him in amusement, throwing in a comment here or there as he rambled on while they headed to second period English.
The two young boys kept up a steady dialogue without paying much attention to their surroundings when Stiles’ felt his body collide with something, or rather, someone. His eyes glanced up and he gulped when he realized the figure was a lot taller than him.
Great, he’d bumped into Derek Hale, a senior on the basketball team and was now surrounded by the group of much larger athletes.
He quickly found himself being roughly shoved in the rib cage and sprawling onto the floor.
“Hey! Leave him alone.”, he heard Scott protesting weakly on his behalf next to him, clutching his inhaler through his jean pocket.
“Watch where you’re going loser.”, one of the players hissed at him, looking down at him with cruel blue eyes before placing a swift kick to his side just for good measure. Stiles groaned in pain.
Another player placed a hand on his friend’s chest to push him back. “Back off, that’s the sheriff’s kid.”, he warned. The group quickly backed up and Scott ran to Stiles to help him up as the tardy bell rang.
“Let’s go.”, one of them said and all of them began retreating with the exception of Derek who had been quiet the entire time, his eyes eerily fixated on Stiles.
The one who pushed Stiles clapped a hand on Derek’s shoulder to get his attention. “Der, what’s up with you man? We’re gonna be late.”
Derek could hear his friend talking to him, but he wasn’t listening. He was focused on the Alpha in front of him.
His Alpha.
He wanted to fight it, but every fiber of his being was screaming at him to submit, like a thousand needles prickling at his nerves. He cried out in pain, body temperature rising to an unbearable heat. He was no longer in control of himself. Derek dropped to his knees, palms laid flat in front of him, barely flinching as his cheek hit the cold tiled floor. A perfect submissive pose.
He was vaguely aware of a pair of beat up vans moving in front of him and before he could make heads or tails of what was happening, he was being flipped on his back and the solid weight of a short, slender body climbed over his to rest in between his legs. Hands tangled in his hair and his head was gently pushed to the side; exposing bare skin.
Derek heard his Alpha growl lowly in his ear before he bit down on the nape of Derek’s neck; breaking the skin.
He was marked.
“What the fuck?!”, Patrick said loudly, drawing the attention of anyone left in the halls as well as causing a few teachers to pop their heads out of their nearby classrooms to see what all the commotion was about.
Holy.
Shit.
Derek Hale was an Omega.
And he just presented.
For a Freshman.
Derek’s bedroom door flew open and Cora tumbled in. “Get out!”, Derek grumbled, not bothering to get up or even open his eyes.
After the incident, he was immediately separated from Stiles and taken to the school nurse’s office. They had gone over his new status and everything that it entailed. While Derek knew most of it already, it was different when hearing the words heat and suppressants and pregnancy being applied to his own body.
The gist of it was that now that he was matched, he would start having regular heats four times a year unless he went on suppressants. Only, he has to have the approval of his Alpha to get any.
The nurse was kind and sent him home early to be with his family. Everyone in the building was rattled, including the principal. Luckily, neither of his parents were home so he was able to relax for a while without answering any questions.
“Yeah, right.”, he heard Cora snort before he felt her body bounce down onto his bed. He glared at her, but she was completely unbothered by his bad mood. “Is it true? Did you present today?”, Cora pestered with wide, eager eyes.
Derek sat straight up. “How do you even know about that? You’re in the eighth grade.”
“Everyone is talking about it. Anna’s sister told us all about it when she drove us home from school today. She said your mate’s name is Stills or something like that."
“It’s Stiles.”, Derek corrected before letting his head drop back against his head board.
This was going to be a lot harder than he thought. He wouldn’t put it past his parents to already know everything by the time they got home. Matings like his were rare and far enough in between that the whole town would probably be talking about it for months. It wasn’t often that an Omega went un-presented until he was almost legal as Alphas were almost always older than their mates.
Cora frowned at him. “Why aren’t you more excited? You matched today Der. This is like a dream. I’m so jealous.”
Derek closed his eyes. She wasn’t wrong. This is what everyone dreamed about. What songs and romance novels were written about. The bond between an Alpha and his Omega. But he couldn’t find the joy in it. Nothing felt like it was supposed to.
Everything he thought he knew about himself had gone right out the window. Every dream he’d made for his future had vanished. He was supposed to be going to college in the Fall and now....nothing.
He knew what some of his friends and a lot of other close minded people thought about Omegas. Even though things were different in recent years and he’d grown up in an Alpha/Omega house, he’d heard the whispers. The things some Alphas said about his dad when he wasn’t paying attention. It always made him angry, but his dad was strong. He never let it bother him and he was proud to be mated to their mother and have carried them.
Derek should have known this could happen. The likelihood of a male Omega birthing another one was high.
His breath caught in his throat and he shivered; tears falling of their own accord; hot and heavy on his skin. He felt Cora’s skinny arms wrap around him and hold him tight. She was a good sister. Annoying on most days, but there when he needed.
Every house they passed brought Derek closer to his doom. He knew they had to do this, but for some reason he wished he didn't have to be in attendance. His parents were trying to keep things light, turning on his favorite radio station and trying to make small talk. He knew he was being a brat, but he didn't respond to any of it. Just grumbled out one word answers.
His mom pulled into the driveway of a small, two story house and Derek could tell just from the smell that they were at his mate's house. He balked at the purr threatening to rumble from his throat. Derek reluctantly climbed out of the car following his parents. His dad kept a soothing hand on his shoulder and his mom strode confidently up to the door like the alpha she was.
Derek and the rest of their family had always admired her strength. He was more than proud to have her as a mom. He knew she would look out for his best interests as much as she could and not let this mating ruin his life. Even though legally, she was not his Alpha anymore.
A few minutes after ringing the bell, a tired looking man answered the door in a cop uniform. He looked surprised to see them standing there. Derek vaguely recalled that Cora had told him that his mate was the sheriff’s son. Not that he had really been listening. He was too busy sulking. This week had officially topped the list as the worst of his young life. He’d been dumped by the love of his life, found out he was an Omega and not a Beta like he’d believed since he reached puberty, and now he was mated to a preschooler.
"What can I do for you folks?", the Sheriff asked.
"Good evening Sheriff. I'm Alpha Talia Hale with my husband Darren. And this is our son Derek.” She pushed Derek slightly forward with a hand on his shoulder. “Our boys go to school together."
The man sighed and ran a hand over his face as if he was preparing himself to hear the worst. "This is about Stiles isn't it? What did he do now?"
"Nothing bad.", she assured. "It's just well. Our son and your son appear to be....a pair. Derek presented for him today."
The sheriff looked shell shocked. He blinked owlishly before his eyes zoomed in on Derek in disbelief and then back to the older Hales. "Your son is an omega?"
"Yes."
“And he presented for Stiles? My Stiles?” At that, Derek had to roll his eyes. Like there were ten other Stiles Stilinski’s running around Beacon Hills.
“Yes.
"Well I'll be damned.”, the Sheriff grumbled to himself before shaking his head and coming to his senses and looking guilty. “My apologies, I'm being rude. Come on in. I'm John by the way. John Stilinski.” He stepped aside and reached out to shake both of the older Hales’ hands as they followed him inside.
Derek took in the scenery in front of him. The house was nice and cozy, if not a little small and lacking any semblance of interior design. Photographs of a very young Stiles and a woman with a matching dimpled smile sat over the mantle. Derek couldn’t put his finger on it, but it made him sad for some reason.
He could hear his parents and the sheriff conversing behind him.
“I apologize again for this. I work long hours and Stiles has been left on his own a lot since his mother passed. If I had any idea what happened, you wouldn’t have had to come all the way over here. We would have come to you. I don’t know what goes on in that kid’s head sometimes.”
“Stiles, get down here right now!”, John yelled up the stairs.
A few seconds later, the sound of a door opening and footsteps pounding against the steps were heard.
“Dad, whatever it is. I swear I didn't-” Stiles stopped short when he saw the Hales standing in his living room.
“Do it.”, he squeaked. He knew at that moment that he was in big trouble.
His father was obviously fuming, with his arms crossed in front of him. Stiles knew from the look on his face that he’d really messed up this time. “Stiles, would you mind explaining to me why I wasn’t told that you matched today?”
“I forgot?”, he tried. The Sheriff fixed him with a look that made him want to shrink within himself.
“The Hales are here to discuss your mating arrangements. Why don’t you two have a seat on the couch.”, the Sheriff suggested, voice low and even. Stile knew it meant that he was one step away from certain death and quickly complied.
Derek and Stiles found themselves sitting awkwardly next to each other on the couch. Derek’s head was still down and he never looked up once while the adults began planning their entire lives for them. Normally, all the big decisions would be left to Stiles’ discretion because he was Derek’s Alpha, but since he was still a minor, Stiles’ dad had the final say.
Every time anyone asked Derek a question, they were rebuffed by Derek’s mumbled one and two word answers, seemingly far away in his own little world. Stiles was starting to wonder what the hell fate was thinking matching him up with Derek Hale. They obviously had nothing in common and Derek didn’t even seem to want to talk to him.
Derek’s sullen mood was really starting to get to him. He understood where the older boy was coming from, but he was scared and upset too. The whole situation was overwhelming to put it lightly. They were basically married. At least Derek was a few months away from graduating. He was almost an adult. Stiles was just a kid and he was now considered to be the head of a household; responsible for an Omega. Sure, he did a decent job helping his dad keep their house from falling apart and both of them fed, but he had just turned fifteen. He couldn’t even drive yet!
“Derek’s graduating in a few months, but I think it would be best if he went ahead and moved in permanently once the summer begins. That way when Stiles goes back to school in the Fall, they’ll already be transitioned.”, Talia suggested.
Stiles’ eyes grew wide and he couldn’t help but notice Derek’s visible flinch. “Um- what about college? I thought Derek got into UCLA on scholarship? He’s not going anymore?”, Stiles piped in.
Everyone turned to look at him.
“How did you know about that?”, Derek asked, surprised.
The younger boy shrugged. “Everybody knows. It was in the school paper when they did that article on all the senior athletes.”
Derek had forgotten all about it, but hazily recalled giving some type of brief interview to an excessively enthusiastic girl with a notebook and old school tape recorder.
“Oh.”, he replied softly.
Talia and Darren looked at one another. “Well, that was before you two were matched. We just assumed you’d want him here. With you.”
“No!”, Stiles exclaimed a little too quickly. All eyes turned to stare at him. “I mean, I just think he should go to school. I don’t want him to give up on his dreams just because we matched. He’s an awesome player.”, Stiles finished.
Derek’s parents were looking at him with an expression that made him uncomfortable. He shifted a little bit under the intensity of their stares before he saw Derek’s dad moving towards him. The older man walked over and kissed his cheek. “You’re going to be a great Alpha. I’m so happy you’re our son’s mate.”
Stiles stood with his dad waving at the Hales as they backed out of their driveway and back to their home. After some consideration, it was agreed by everyone that Derek would start spending the weekends at the Stilinski home to get better acquainted with his Alpha and father in law.
Stiles was tired. He found himself reeling from the events of the day. He'd barely popped his knot a month ago and was already mated to an Omega.
Sensing his son’s weariness, the sheriff ruffled his son’s hair and led him inside. “Come on kid. Let’s call it a night. I’m beat.”
As soon as they pulled up in front of their house, Derek had bolted up the stairs and to his room, closing the door shut behind him. He slid down the door with his back, surprised by the overwhelming relief he felt at being able to come back home. After some time, he pulled himself off the floor and face planted down on his comforter. “How is this my life?’, he wondered aloud.
His parents seemed to be respecting his space and hadn’t bothered him, but he forgot about his siblings. He’d only been home for five minutes before the knocking on his door came. “Open up Derek!”, Cora’s voice sang.
“Go away!”, he thundered.
He heard sounds of indignant disbelief and after some fumbling with his doorknob, the door popped open to reveal Damien kneeling on the floor with a hair pin dangling from his lips and Laura and Cora standing behind him with identical looks of triumph.
“Not again.”, he grumbled.
Laura brushed past Damien and he grumbled out an indignant, "Hey!". Derek would have felt bad for him if he hadn't just aided their sisters into highjacking his personal space.
Almost tripping over her heels and jumped on Derek’s bed like she owned the place to hug him tight. He should have known Cora wouldn’t keep something like this to herself. She probably called Laura at work as soon as they left for Stiles’ house and had her rush over immediately.
“My poor baby.”, she cooed, brushing his hair down. “Who is this Alpha? What’s his name?”
Derek hated being coddled like a toddler, but he could admit that Laura’s presence made him feel better.
“His name is Stiles Stilinski.”, Derek grumbled.
Laura pulled away and frowned. “Stilinski? The Sheriff’s kid?”
Derek nodded.
Laura sighed. “He’s a little young isn’t he? A Sophomore?”
“Try a Freshman.”, Cora chimed in. “He was in my school last year.”
Laura looked down at Derek sadly. She knew how hard this must be for her baby brother. How embarrassed he probably was. Derek was used to being the best and getting whatever he wanted. He was the golden boy. It probably hurt his pride to be matched with someone younger than him. Thought it made him look weak.
She gently shooed the younger two siblings out. She needed to have a private discussion with Derek.
“Listen to me Der, I know what you're thinking. Don’t worry about it, okay? You’re graduating soon and trust me when I say, no one cares about age differences when you get out of high school. It’ll be fine, you’ll see.”
Derek wished he could believe her.
Stiles was almost dead on his feet the next morning. He and his dad ended up talking late into the night after Derek and his parents left. The Sheriff told Stiles how proud he was of him and made sure he knew what was expected of him now that he was matched. Admittedly, most of it had gone over his head as he was still unable to process the fact that he had an omega. Hid dad had given him a hug and shooed him up to bed, promising that they would finish talking after he got off.
Now that he was at school, he was trying his best to ignore the way that everyone’s eyes followed him as he walked towards his locker. Overnight, he’d gone from a lowly, nameless Freshman to everyone knowing exactly who he was and whispering his name.
He couldn’t really blame them. If he’d been on the other side of this fiasco, he would feel the same way. It was unusual for people their age to mate. Even more-so, it rocked the very core of the school’s social hierarchy to find out that star athlete Derek Hale turned out to be an Omega and was mated to him, of all people.
His naturally spastic demeanor allowed for him to not show outwardly how thrown off he was by all the attention, but inside he was on the verge of a very serious panic attack. He could feel his throat clench painfully with every whisper and gesture.
He hasn’t had this many people interested in him since his mom died three years ago. Where everyone looked at him with pity and whispered, “Poor Stiles.” behind his back. When the casseroles and dying flowers piled up in their house in the worst kind of way.
This brings him back to that frame of mind. The one where he feels like he’s stuck in a small tunnel and the farther he crawls and the more he tries to get out, the smaller the space gets. Until it’s so small that the breath is literally taken from him and he’s crushed under the weight of everything that he’s feeling.
A familiar arm was thrown around his shoulder. Scott. "This is so cool! You have an actual omega. How do you feel?". Scott whispered loudly as they walked.
Stiles looked over at his best friend wanting to tell him that he’s on the verge of losing it, but he can’t get the words out. After being friends almost since diapers, Scott is well versed in “Stiles”.
He doesn’t have to say anything because Scott just knows. He can read it on his face.
Scott’s formerly happy expression morphs into one of concern and panic. He grabs him by the hand and pulls him into the janitor’s closet. Once the door was closed safely behind them, Stiles could finally breathe. “Thanks Scotty.”
“Are you okay? Do you need me to call your dad?”, he asked in concern.
Stiles shook his head wildly. “No! I’m good. It’s just a lot, you know? Everybody knows about me and Derek and I just couldn’t take it.”
Scott nodded in understanding. “Don’t worry about them Stiles. They’re just jealous because you mated the hottest guy in the whole school.”
Stiles gave Scott a weird look and growled a little under his breath. He knew how hot Derek was, but it felt uncomfortable having someone else say it now that they were matched. Like an intense itch crawling underneath his skin. It was his wolf rising to the surface, begging to come out and protect Derek’s virtue. Stiles knew the only reason he hadn’t lost it completely is because Scott was family. He was pack.
“Sorry Stiles, but it’s true. Even I can see how hot he is.”
Stiles had to laugh at that. “I know, right? He’s gorgeous. He’s a total sourpuss though. And he kinda hates me.”, Stiles confessed a little sadly.
“Come on, it can’t be that bad. He has to like you. He’s like biologically programmed to, right?”
Stiles sighed. Scott had a point. They were meant to be together. Things were just hard right now.
If Stiles thought his life couldn’t get any weirder, he was wrong.
News of his mating had spread through the school and even the teachers were referring to him as Alpha Stilinski when they called on him in class. It was customary to refer to any matched Alpha that way, but it was irritating and drew way more attention that he wanted or needed. The only good thing that came from it was the fact that he and Scott weren’t getting shoulder checked into the lockers anymore.
Lunch had finally rolled around and he was sitting with Scott at their usual spot, at the third table in the left corner. He almost spit out the sip of soda he’d just taken when none other than Lydia Martin slid into the seat next to him. He looked up to see Jackson Whittmer slide in next to her and Danny Mahaelani sit next to Scott.
“Hey Stiles. Scott.”, she greeted, twisting the cap off of her bottle of water and taking a drink before digging into her salad. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one confused because Scott was busy looking like an absolute deer in headlights with a little bit of mayonnaise stuck on his chin.
And when Danny reached over to wipe it off with his napkin with a dimpled smile, because that’s just the kind of guy Danny was, Stiles could have sworn he saw Scott blush. They were so talking about that later, but right now he was stuck on the fact that Lydia was actually talking.
To him!
Of all people.
Yes, his not so secret epic crush on her was the thing of legend in their class, but she’d never even hinted that she even knew he existed before now.
This was his moment. He’d been waiting for Lydia to acknowledge him since the second grade. Every time he’d followed her down the hall like a puppy, all those special valentine’s and flowers he bought her every year. It all boiled down to this.
“You- you know my name?”, he stuttered. Smooth Stiles. Real smooth.
Lydia paused from her meal and flicked her red hair to the side, giving him an exasperated look.
“Of course I know your name. You’re matched to a Senior. And not just any senior, but Derek Hale. Congratulations, you’re popular.”, she told him in a matter of fact, no nonsense sort of way.
“Okay...but why are you sitting here?”
“You’re Derek Hale’s Alpha. That makes you one of us.”
Stiles opened his mouth to ask another question, but was cut off by Jackson. “Jesus Stilinski, just shut up for once and eat your sandwich.”, he growled.
His eyes met with Scott who shrugged happily and started talking to Danny and Jackson about lacrosse tryouts. Things were definitely looking up.
For Derek, things weren’t going quite so great. When he walked into the school, all eyes were on him as he walked to his locker. This wasn’t unusual, but he knew the stares weren’t ones of admiration like they’d always been. There was a mixture of curiosity, lust, pity, and even a little envy.
To his relief, most of his friends hadn’t shunned him, but he could tell that things were different. They tiptoed around him almost like he was...delicate. Pat had even offered to carry his books for him before backing off after Derek threatened to rip his throat out.
By the time he got to gym class, he was more than happy to burn off some of the frustration he’d accumulated throughout the day.
As the warm water from the shower poured down on his aching muscles, he instantly felt better. Like all his cares were being washed away. He turned off the spray and wrapped the towel around himself; rolling his eyes at the antics of the other boys in the room.
When he got into the locker area, you could have heard a pin drop. It seemed like time stood still as everyone stopped to stare at him before slowly resuming their conversations. Derek pulled his towel tighter and distracted himself by planning an off campus run to the burger joint with his friends during lunch. It was all good until they were walking to his Camaro and Derek felt someone grab his ass.
He whipped around to see his classmate, Joshua Adams smirking at him. Joshua and Derek had always had some sort of unspoken competition going on since they were kids. Joshua’s family was also wealthy and he was good looking. In many ways, he was the official #2 guy of Beacon Hills High’s Senior class and Derek had been #1 even though Adams was an Alpha and Derek was just a Beta.
Was a Beta. Not anymore.
Derek should have known he would take this opportunity to try and demean Derek in any way he could now that his status had fallen.
“What the fuck Josh?”, he growled.
Joshua held his hands up in surrender. “Relax. I didn’t mean any harm. I thought most Omegas lived for that kind of thing.”
“Well I’m not most Omegas. Keep your hands to yourself you little shit or next time, I’ll break them.”, Derek warned.
Josh’s face morphed into an ugly scowl. “Little Omega’s got big balls huh? Face it Hale, you’re nothing but a bottom bitch now. That Stilinski kid won’t be enough for a slut like you. You need a real Alpha's knot.”
He boldly stepped up to Derek and caressed his cheek. “If you’re a good boy, maybe I’ll consider bending you over before he does. I always wanted an Omega to claim.”
The last thing Derek remembered was his vision going white.
“Hey Stilinki!”, Jackson called from his seat by the window. Stiles looked up from his book along with everyone else in the class. “Your Omega is outside beating the shit out of some guy.”
Stiles’ mouth dropped open and half the class rushed towards the window to look. Their history teacher chastised Jackson for his language and tried in vain to get everyone back in their seats, but was unsuccessful.
In high school, there was nothing like a fight to get everyone to lose their collective minds. Stiles watched in shock as Derek’s fist collided with the other boy’s nose and he went down, Derek jumping on top of him and punching him again. They could almost hear the crunch of his bones all the way inside.
“Dude, Derek is a total badass!”, Scott said staring wide eyed at the scene before them.
Stiles could do nothing more than nod and agree.
In the end, Scott was the one to shake him from his stupor, grabbing him and pulling him down the hall and out the front door of the school. By the time they got there, Derek was being held back by Coach Finstock and the other boy, who Stiles now recognized as an Alpha in Derek’s grade, was walked to the nurse’s office’ limping.
The principal looked sternly at both Derek and Stiles.
“I need to see both of you in my office. Now.”