"You know, you had that same look on your face before we bought it, too. You couldn't see past the windmill in the front lawn. And you said you'd never buy an old lady house." Malia told Stiles as they stood in front of their shared home. It's been a few weeks since Stiles had woken up from the coma. He was now cleared and ready to leave the hospital and try to get into a new routine.
"Do you know what made you change your mind?" Malia asked Stiles, jogging his memory.
Truthfully, Stiles had no clue. He didn't remember anything Malia had told him in the hospital, he didn't have memories of the pictures he'd been shown either. "I see the windmills gone." Stiles mumbled.
Malia began guiding Stiles up the steps and onto the porch of their house. "Come on. Everyone's waiting."
"Who's everyone?" Stiles asked as Malia opened the front door. Stiles was met with a group of people cheering and welcoming him. Most of whom he had no memory of seeing before. There was a sign saying, 'Welcome home, Stiles' strung on the ceiling. Stiles began to feel overwhelmed. Malia began introducing him to whom he presumed was family members. He finally got to one familiar face, Dr. McCall or Scott. Scott and Stiles had grown close in his time at the hospital.
In the other room, Henry and Emma had been invited to Stiles' welcoming home party. "You know why he doesn't remember?" Henry asked Emma, she shook her head urging him to go on. He was talking about the memories he should be having. "The curse isn't working on him yet."
"Henry, Stiles had amnesia." Emma tried reasoning with the boy.
"Which is preventing the curse from replacing his fairy tale story with fake memories."
"Right, because everyone here has fake stories that prevent them from remembering who they really are."
"Right, and now is our chance to help him. We just have to get him to remember that he's--" Henry was cut off by Emma.
"He's the Prince."
"We just have to jog his memory and get him and Y/N together."
"Didn't we just try that?" Emma asked.
"And it woke him up." Henry sing-songed. While they were talking, Stiles spotted them and automatically recognized them. He excused himself from the conversation he was having with Scott and walked over to Emma and Henry.
"Hey. You're the ones that saved me, right?" Stiles voice cut into the conversation and caused Emma and Henry to look at him.
Emma stood up and put on a friendly smile, "Yeah, I guess."
"And uh, you're also the other only people I know here." Stiles lowered his voice and looked to the other people in the next room over.
"You can hide with us."
"Fantastic."
Henry then spoke up, "So, you ever used a sword?
Stiles laughed. "I'm sorry? Emma, you live with Y/N, right?" Emma nodded. "Do you know if she's coming tonight?" Stiles' tone was hopeful.
"No, she couldn't make it." Stiles' hope faltered at her words.
~~~
After his talk with Emma, Stiles had decided to go for a walk. He was feeling suffocated and pressured at this party. He got a few blocks down the street and decided he'd go to Y/N's apartment. He saw her trying to hang a birdhouse on a tree. She was struggling to put it up.
"Did you not get the invite?" Stiles asked the girl. His voice turned Y/N's attention to him.
"Stiles." He was smiling as Y/N looked down at the blue and purple birdhouse she had built. She did get the invite, but she was avoiding him. Y/N had been keeping Stiles company at the hospital because she was a volunteer. About a week ago, Stiles told Y/N how he felt about her. He told her that he had these feelings that he couldn't describe. He felt like he was supposed to be with her. Y/N knew she couldn't get involved in this. Y/N didn't want to be responsible for ruining a marriage, but she felt the same way.
