Stiles woke up with a headache and realized he doesn't even know when he fell asleep. He knew it was after Lydia, but not when. They slept on her bed, even though he still wanted to leave, but she told him it was her birthday wish. So he stayed.
They ate breakfast in Jungle, at around eleven. He didn't mention the messages and neither did she, so he figured she really didn't know. There was no need to ever talk about that. Nothing was awkward between them and he was really glad for that, because tomorrow morning he'd be driving her to the airport and he really didn't want the last day (and her birthday!!) to suck.
Little after noon, when they were laying around on her bed and watching random music videos on Youtube, the boys knocked on their door. He opened and explained that no, they didn't have sex this time either. She confirmed it from the bed.
That was about the moment Stiles remembered they had an acoustic gig planned. Which Lydia didn't know about because he forgot to tell her. So, he sent the boys away and he and her got ready in less than ten minutes and he told her about the gig. She was excited and that made him even more excited. She also wondered out loud if people would recognize them, which made him very nervous.
(But she smiled at him and said not to be, but that made him even more nervous because he realized that she was going to be in the crowd.)
All of them posted about the gig on all social media and she even posted on her Tumblr account (which was about the same time she noticed his selfie. She laughed.) They weren't expecting many people to show up, but she was still going to be filming so they could put something on their Youtube channel as a thank you for 100k subscribers.
When they came to the park—the same one he'd taken her to—they saw that there were groups of people all over it, and they always thought exactly that group must've been here for them. Which never turned out to be the case, as they realized. Still, they settled on a small clearing where most of people could see them and began putting out the set-up. Although it was supposed to be an acoustic gig, he brought along his drums and they took some of the electric equipment, too.
(Mainly because Derek whined his bass needed to be heard everywhere.)
She was managing the recording and as most people knew to ask her about the location of the gig, she spent most of the time on her phone. He felt bad about that, since he wanted to talk to her, but he didn't let it show.
(Except that one time when Scott noticed and rolled his eyes, mouthing him 'grow a pair'.)
At around two, when the gig actually began, there was about thirty people. Most of them were random people, but one or two were actually fans of the band. They all took pictures with them and they stood with Lydia.
"Hey," said Scott; excitement could be heard in his voice. Stiles hoped others couldn't notice it was trembling. "We're Road to Serenity and this is Jesus of Suburbia by Green Day."
He and Scott exchanged a look and a nod. Stiles banged his sticks against one another, smirking at Lydia, and began drumming. Soon, Scott began singing and everything went as planned.
By the time the gig was nearing its end, a lot of people actually came and most of them were taking pictures and videos. She stood in the front row, both filming and smiling at him. There was more than one occasion when he slipped up a little because he saw her singing a long, or she looked exceptionally amazing, or his mind wandered to the last night when she fell asleep next to him.
"Do you think we're still going to be friends?"
They lied on her bed, staring at the ceiling. It was very late and they should've been sleeping ages ago, but neither of them could. So they talked and talked until they no longer had happy things to talk about and the nightly feelings hit in.
She was the one who asked that but not the only one who thought it.
"I don't know," he said.
He really didn't know. Things were very great at the moment and he hoped they would remain the same, but no one could know what would happen. Besides, it was hard for him to think of LA without her. It was like hot chocolate without chocolate. When the best part of something just isn't there. And, strangely enough, he couldn't picture a day without her in it. Present was all he had.
He had them in her bed, alone, together, emotional and together. And he was happy.
"I don't want to stop being friends with you," she said. She sounded really sad, so he turned to her and she turned to him. "That would suck."
"I agree." He didn't smile. He didn't need to. This conversation didn't need smiles. "I'm going to miss you."
"I know."
He just stared at her, wondering how this all happened and how long it would last. He felt like the answer wasn't the one he'd like.
"Don't forget me, okay?"
"Why would I?"
She rolled back onto her back, breaking the gaze. He wondered if she was crying, but he couldn't hear it from her voice and it was too dark to see.
"You're going to be famous," she said.
"So?"
"I'm just a fan."
"You're my friend, Lyds."
"I know." Her voice felt heavy. "But I lost a lot of friends who didn't have great lives and other great friends."
"We're not like that."
She looked at him and even in the dark, he could see the sadness in her eyes. He smiled. There was only as much he could do to fix the look in her eyes. So, he made a promise.
Now that he was looking at her, with the camera in her hands and her lips moving in sync with Scott's, he thought the promise might've been too much. But he didn't know. He wanted to keep it, that for sure, but he didn't know if he could. She was still a mystery to him, despite having known her for months. At times, it would feel like she's locked away, somewhere too far from him to reach.
But he believed that someone somewhere has got a plan for him – and her.
When they sang Lose Your Mind, flashbacks of last evening came back to him. The overwhelming sadness was back, too. He was a coward, he wasted every opportunity he'd get. Maybe he didn't even deserve her.
(It was complicated. He was in one of those moods.)
He saw her singing and she was looking at him. And he felt like she was singing to him, too. She probably wasn't but that didn't change anything. He felt like he was losing her, bit by bit – and he was so close. That's when it dawned on him that she probably saw the messages. That she probably concluded he didn't like her, after all the times he chose not to kiss her and now that he knew she liked him, he still didn't do anything.
He felt like shit.
He wondered if she felt like shit, too.
But seeing a smile on her face that radiated with happiness, he figured that maybe liking her or making a move wasn't all that mattered. In all his emotional mess he forgot that she was not only a human being like him, but someone who was celebrating their birthday and someone who enjoyed their music. She was so much more than just a girl he liked and too often he let himself forget that.
That's when he smiled at her and that's when he decided that he was going to kiss her today. It was his birthday present for him. If she doesn't like it, okay. He was going to live with it.
But she was a fan of his and that slipped his mind way too often and now that it lingered on, he realized how attractive it was. He saw her in the new light and that light made her go from gorgeous to incredibly hot in a matter of seconds.
When they were finished and they took pictures with all the fans and people who wanted, he saw her talking to someone and filming them. He wondered if they were talking about them, if she was interviewing them.
She was wearing a plaid skirt and combat boots – an unusual combination, even he knew as much. But it looked good on her.
(Everything looked good on her.)
He also noticed she was wearing glasses instead of contact lenses. How hadn't he noticed that before? He wondered if that was because last night he'd told her she looked good in them. And he still thought that. She looked incredibly clever and he liked clever.
(Hell, if she wore a trash bag he'd probably discover he's always liked trash bags.)
"You were great," she told him.
He smiled at her. "Thanks." He didn't even notice he was blushing – except he was. Or maybe not blushing, but his heart was definitely working overtime. And the stomach was a jelly again. "Good birthday present?"
"Best birthday present. Hard to overcome this."
His smile grew. She looked happiest he's ever seen her and it was making his heart melt. "I think there is something that might."
"Oh?"
"Yeah. You'll see."
"Damn you, Stilinski." She laughed and picked up his guitar. They began walking towards the van. "You know, you're always so secretive and I always think you're about to screw things up but you end up making everything better."
She probably wasn't talking about all the chances for the kiss he'd missed, he figured. He most definitely disagreed with her, as most of the time he would screw up and, besides, she was the one that made everything so great. He didn't think LA ever looked as alive and bright as it did when she was a part of it.
"Hey, Lydia," called Derek. "I think Scott said he needs you for something."
"Sure."
He watched her walk away, after she'd given him a small smile. When she was out of sight, Derek approached him. "Listen, are you going to do something?"
"Did he even need her?"
"Yes, I'm using the chance to talk to you since you're literally never without her," said Derek. "Now answer the question."
Stiles shrugged. "I don't know."
"You should make up your mind because if you try to do something only tomorrow morning, I will kick your ass to the moon."
"I'm either doing something tonight or nothing."
The bassist raised an eyebrow. "Got an idea?"
"Maybe."
Just as he was about to ask for details—or at least that's what Stiles assumed—Lydia came back, carrying the wires along with Scott. They were chatting lively and he realized how much she'd changed. She was no longer so shy around any of them and she almost felt like a part of the band. He thought it had a lot to do with the fact she'd been a fan, besides being a friend.
He really liked that.
When they entered the van, Scott sat with them and told her he'd been talking to Allison for a while. She only smiled, telling him she'd known since the first text. It made Scott smile. Stiles recalled how bad he felt about having to end things with her, especially since he liked her, a lot. If Lydia being with them changed anything between the two for the better, there was nothing he could've liked more.
He was happy, with his arm lying around her shoulders. He was surrounded by her band—the boys he'd come to call brothers—and by the person he liked the most.
One thing he couldn't wait for, was the surprise birthday party for her.
[triple update. no fucking way.]