I felt the urge to make some cover art for my Sterek storyExtraordinary. It’s also my first Derek/Stiles manip 🙂
Story Summary: An awkward encounter with a man of few words in the laundry room of
Stiles’s building sparks a chain of events that will change the way he
sees the world forever. A little story about finding a place for oneself
and someone to share that place with.
Story Tags: AU, Barista!Stiles, Speech Recovery, Speech Issues, Drama & Romance, Domesticity, Cuddling, Comfort/Angst
It’s hard to find your place in life when you’re only human and feel
completely replaceable. Or, how Stiles finds out that while yes, he is
completely human, he is irreplaceable.
“Are you…” Stiles rubs the back of his neck, eyes darting around the living room to avoid his father’s gaze. “Are you disappointed?”
“Stiles, please look at me,” the Sheriff quietly pleads. But it’s not that easy. Stiles is scared. Even though he asked the question, needs the answer, hearing it is one thing. Seeing it written all over his father’s face, the image seared forever onto his brain, is quite another. “If I’m disappointed in anyone, it’s me.”
Stiles’ brow furrows, brown eyes burning a hole in the cushion of the ugly old plaid recliner his father refuses to get rid of, because his mother brought it home on a whim two years before she passed away. “I don’t understand.”
John sighs. “I don’t expect you to, at least, not right now. It’s part of being a parent, I think. You want things for your kids, picture them in your mind, clearer and sharper than anything you’ve ever imagined before. When you were an infant, Claudia and I used to lie in bed and daydream about what your voice would sound like, your laugh. As you got older, the dreams got bigger: what you’d be when you grew up, where you’d live, your wedding. It was so vivid, that future for you I fabricated in my mind, Stiles, but it was mine, not yours.”
From the corner of his eye Stiles can see his father’s shoulders square up, stubborn and determined. “Maybe it doesn’t turn out exactly as I’d envisioned, but that’s on me, not you. Now, will you please look at me?”
Stiles drags his eyes to his father’s face, takes in the deepening grooves around his eyes and mouth. His father is smiling.
“I know it’s… complicated.” Stiles winces. “You and mom probably didn’t account for a child who’d like both men and women. I’m sorry.”
“Never apologize.” The passion in John’s voice booms, reverberating like a gong inside Stiles chest, shaking loose the ragged breath he’s been holding. “No matter what those pictures we painted looked like, they all had one thing in common, the only thing that counts. You were happy.”
Stiles’ eyes get wet at the words and his heart fills with so many emotions it’s impossible to pinpoint just one.
“Are you in love with someone, Stiles?”
“Yeah, Dad, I am.”
His father nods. “And does this person make you happy?”
It may not have always been true, but it is now. Happy and crazy and whole. “Yes. More than anything.”
“Then for me, it’s really not that complicated. I will never be disappointed in your happiness, son. It’s something to celebrate. Now, does this guy have a name?”
“He does.” Stiles wipes the wetness from his cheeks and grins. “Derek Hale.”
Out of nowhere I draw Sterek. This here is an illustration (of sorts) for my fanfic The Taming of the Wolf, and yes, it’s all VERY symbolic. I might have gone overboard with the stained glass window, but at least I had fun! Enjoy!
Okay, the @teenwolfdrabbles word today is “retire” so here’s that along with this week’s word “memory.”
“You’re too young.”
“And maybe that means something now,” Stiles admits. “But maybe it doesn’t. What will it matter when we’re old and we have a couple of kids and start thinking about retirement that I was seventeen when we got together? We’ve both been too close to death already. Too many times. Do you want to look back at this and think we could’ve had more time? Do you really want to waste another second?”
Derek’s heart aches, the idea already hitting him like a blow, making him sick with worry. “No.”
It chafes at Stiles’ patience, crouching down in the small dark space unable to fidget, but there’s no better spot in a house full of werewolves. The linen closet is just outside the second floor bathroom, upwind from the central air vent, and he hasn’t been found for sixteen straight games. There is only one other person who knows about this spot, and she’d never tell.
The door flings open and Stiles tumbles into the hallway in an ungraceful heap. Their daughter looks up at Derek with a mischievous grin. “Told you he’d be here.” Rude.
One of Stiles favorite things while away at college is waking up to photos of Derek and Licorice, bathed in the early morning light filling the bedroom. All the photos taken before their morning run.
Derek had fallen in love with Licorice the moment Stiles turned up with the black lab puppy at his door, both soaked from the downpour that Stiles had found the him in. His father wouldn’t be able to take care of the dog since Stiles was leaving for Berkley in only a month and it wasn’t far to ask that of a man who worked more hours than he spent at home. So Stiles had headed straight to Derek’s. Did really know what else to do. Already in love the moment the puppy had run towards him on the side of the road and then curled in Stiles’ lap on the way home.
Derek simply grabbed the puppy, heading towards the bathroom to start warming up water to heat up the shivering pup. Stiles headed to the bedroom, stripping and then gapping a set of Derek’s sweats before joining him. They washed the lab, warm water helping bring energy to the lethargic animal.
Stiles said he loved Derek for the first time that night. Had known if for longer but not until that moment did the words flow easily from his lips. The way Derek had looked down at the puppy, cradling his sleeping body to his strong chest. That was the final nail in the coffin. Stiles would be forever ruined on this man.
So waking up to photos of what he was hoping to wake up to for the rest of his life never failed to brighten his day.
@luvs-sterek this is beautiful, fluffy, and sweet. 🙂
Why: This is a really cute and funny (and slightly angsty!)
fusion with Monsters Inc, where Derek has lived as a wolf-monster and scarer
for so long, he’s forgotten who he really is. But everything changes when he
walks through Stiles’ closet door, and doesn’t avoid the teenager, but becomes
friends with him instead. I really loved seeing Derek’s little journey of
self-discovery, and the way Stiles tries to help him figure everything out.
Why: This is a bizarre but oddly charming fic, with the
Hales as actual showed-up-in-a-spaceship aliens
(werewolf aliens, of course) that disrupt Stiles’ life in the best way. I loved
Derek the awkward but sweet alien, and Laura with her confident, take-charge
attitude. And my favorite thing was the scene on the plane, where I was both
worried for Stiles and very amused.
In case you think the premise is too cracky, I assure you it is a lot of fun,
but also very sweet and genuine!
Why: This is a really lovely, unexpectedly soft zombie AU!
The pack have gathered in Derek’s loft, and are slowly trying to take back
their town. What I love is the way Derek keeps tabs on the other survivors, and
of course, always make sure Stiles is okay. Even if it means losing a little
sleep in the process. This is a moment of stillness in the midst of a long
uphill battle, and it’s just delightful.
Why: This fic is magical, but I think my favorite part about
it is that Derek spends the majority of the story in his wolf form, meaning
Stiles has no idea what Derek looks
like (negating him being attracted to Derek only due to his looks), and has to
learn how to communicate with Derek when he doesn’t actually talk. I love all
the cuddle times between Stiles and wolf Derek, and I think their relationship
builds really beautifully!
After presenting what he felt was a solid plan for facing the latest string of hunters in town, Derek is reminded that he still isn’t fully trusted within Scott’s pack. Stiles thinks that’s a load of crap. He believes Derek has more than proved himself as a crucial member of their group and he intends to make sure Derek knows it.
theproblemwithstardust 