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◤ chapter seventeen: ❛ the waiting game ❜ ◢
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THE HOURS PASSED SLOWLY, EVERY SECOND TICKING LIKE DRIPPING WATER FROM A FAUCET. Tick, tick, tick...drip, drip, drop slowly down the drain. The night passed with Cooper and Scott crashing with Deucalion, him not wanting them out of his sight just yet. Morning rose and instead of preparing for school as he should've been, he was eating breakfast with an Alpha pack, only one ally by his side.
He didn't know who looked more uncomfortable. Him, trying to control his emotions and not give any wolf the satisfaction of hearing his racing heart and growing paranoia, or Scott, who had a dead look in his eyes. Defeated, perhaps, with a hint of fear in the back. If he hadn't been studying his friend, he wouldn't have noticed either. He hoped Deucalion didn't notice.
Breakfast was a quiet affair, and eventually the wolves peeled away. Deucalion didn't tell them the full plan, and Cooper didn't inquire. He may not have much when it comes to survival instinct, but he knew that his healing abilities wasn't enhanced. He didn't want to risk it.
When they were left alone, Cooper joined Scott on the couch, close enough to feel the brush of the other boy. The contact soothed him, and he was sure his heart skipped a beat. He prayed that Scott didn't notice.
"Why did you come with me?" Scott asked in a low voice, turning towards him.
"I didn't want to leave you alone."
The answer couldn't be that simple, shouldn't, but it was. He didn't want to leave Scott alone – the thought of him here by himself terrified him the same way letting Scott run through the hospital alone did. And he knew, logically, that Scott was more than capable of handling himself – he knew that last night Scott would've been fine on his own, but something in Cooper refused to let Scott leave without him.
And that feeling stayed with Deucalion, and this. It stayed when Deucalion taunted the safety of Stiles' dad, and by extension Scott's mom, if he didn't join. He couldn't be the variable that ended in their death; he refused. And he refused to let Scott be alone.
"You didn't have to," Scott softly said.
Cooper turned away. "Well, I'm here now. Can't go back and change that."
He thought about pulling away, began to separate his body from Scott's, but the boy chased him. When he went to stand, Scott pulled him back, gripping their hands together to keep Cooper. He looked over in surprise, and Scott's face was closer than he remembered. The breath caught in his throat, Scott's eyes searching his, and he was sure his heart was going crazy in his chest. He waited, and then –
