Chaos Rising

17

Ella

I wake up to hot air tickling the back of my neck.

I open my eyes, and the first thing I realize, is that I'm warm. Too warm. I blink, my vision slowly clearing of the sleepy haze placed over the room. The curtains are closed, only a small sliver of morning sun shining through the crack. The sound of chirping birds fill my ears, and I inhale, letting myself smile as I breathe in the faint scent of-

Wait.

I freeze. My breath catching instantly when I realize exactly what is going on.

I lift my cheek off Stiles' chest, glancing up at his closed eyes, his face is calm, peaceful even. I shift my body, not wanting to wake him just yet. But as I try to move, I become dreadfully aware that I was hugging him in my sleep. He has his arm around me, loosely holding me against him. I stop breathing instantly, letting go of his shirt that I didn't know I had been gripping. Crap. This wasn't supposed to happen.

My heart falters as he exhales once more, his own breath holding a tint of... whiskey? Confused, I look over at the nightstand, finding an empty bottle sitting on top.

I hold my breath as I try to lift myself off of him, but his arm tightens, pulling me back into his embrace. Just then, he begins to turn onto his side, towards me. I roll with him, like a ragdoll, until he pulls me against him, onto our sides; my back pressed tightly to his chest. We're spooning? My heart races, taking off as he intertwines our arms, his fingers lightly brushing my skin.

The butterflies in my stomach duplicate.

I shudder as he exhales, his breath once again grazing my collarbone, his face close enough for his lips to touch the nape of my neck. It's funny to think that this one interaction with Stiles has given me more of a reaction than anything I've ever done with Thomas. I've known this boy for barely a week, and my feelings are stronger for him than they ever were for my boyfriend.

Stiles inhales deeply, sending shivers up and down my spine. He is gentle, even in his sleep it's like he's making an unconscious effort to keep me from harm's way. And as I lay here, in his strong embrace, I can't help but lean into his warmth.

I shouldn't be this vulnerable. I chastise myself.

This is honestly the cutest thing I've ever seen. Abby says into my mind, scaring my soul straight from my body. And stop thinking like that. Stiles is a million times the man Thomas was. Just kiss him already.

What? No. He has a girlfriend, and I have a boyfriend. I can't-

One, his pack banished him from his hometown, his girlfriend ended their relationship the moment she didn't object. And two, if Thomas came knocking on our door at this very moment asking for your hand in marriage, I would kill him myself. He doesn't deserve you, he never has. She says. Or Stiles would kill him, I mean-

For the dozenth time this morning, my breath catches as Stiles stirs, he rolls onto his back, groaning as he slowly begins to wake up. His eyelids flutter open, and he blinks against the sunlight. Still slightly asleep, he looks down, finding our limbs tangled together. He stares at our touching arms for a while, as if barely registering what's going on. Then his cheeks redden and he looks up, meeting me with wide eyes.

Stiles immediately swears, scrambling to get off the bed. "I'm so sorry." He says, looking frantic as he swallows hard and runs a hand over his face. "I'm so sorry."

"Stiles. Hey." I get off the bed as well, following him. "Hey. It's alright. I woke up on you, not the other way around. You just didn't... object to it."

God. Abby interrupts. This hurts to watch.

Oh be quiet.

You guys are so awkward, it's embarrassing. At first it was cute, with you waking up and finding out you were using him as a pillow the whole time. And then he turns over and holds you like you're the only person in the whole world, it was adorable. And now... she pauses. Ugh.

Stiles stares at me, again, his eyes still wide.

I restrain myself from putting a hand on his shoulder. Instead, "what's with the whiskey?"

"Whiskey?" He looks up, confused, momentarily forgetting our past situation. I nod at the night table, he follows my gesture. "Oh." His face softens. "Void wanted some at like three in the morning. So I went down and bought it from the bar."

"At three in the morning?"

"Probably more at like two, but yeah."

"And you drank all of it?"

"It appears so." His lips thin. "I'm an ugly drunk, so I'm glad I can't get wasted anymore."

I smile. "That's one perk of being possessed by evil foxes."

Void's the evil one. Don't put the blame on me.

You both are. You just threatened to kill my ex.

And?

I groan out loud, causing Stiles to cast me a glance. "She's back?" he asks.

I nod. "Fun times."

He scoffs, his cheeks still burning from before. "Here. I'll go grab us some breakfast. You can take the first shower, just save me some hot water, okay?" he starts walking towards the door. "Oh, and I also packed you some clothes, they should fit."

"Are we going somewhere?"

He stops before pressing down on the door handle, looking back at me with a small smirk. "I'm going to teach you how to shoot."