Soulmates | Derek Hale - Chapter 6: Chapter 6

A light shower of rain floated down on the darkness of the woods, pouring down on the Argent family as they walked with their weapons in hand. Maeve sighed, her pristine trainers soaked from the mud as she closely followed behind Chris, tightly holding onto the knife in her pocket.
Maeve had been nervous since the moment they left the house with minimal instructions from Gerard, and Kate nowhere to be found, Maeve knew her second hunt would not go how she'd want it to.
Maeve stumbled into Chris' back as he stopped walking, stepping aside with wide eyes as she spotted the injured omega hanging down, struggling in ropes from one of the trees, her aunt stood proudly beside him.
Chris guiltily gazed down at a bewildered Maeve, lightly nudging her forward at the stern gaze form his father, nervously sighing as Maeve fearfully grabbed onto his hand, turning to him with pleading eyes.
"Maeve," Kate alerted the startled beta, turning with a smirk as she handed Maeve the gun, Maeve hesitantly taking it into her cold hands "Don't disappoint us again,"
In the centre of Beacon Hills, Derek and his father stood in the gym of the older beta's apartment building. Derek felt a sharp pain in his head, tugging at the ends of his hair as fear ran through him, sending another punch to the beaten down punch bag to try and distract himself.
Derek's father, Seth, sighed, stopping Derek from hitting the punch bag, "What is going on with you?"
"I cant control it," Derek breathed heavily, taking a few steps back to compose himself, trying to shake the feeling off.
"You've been fine this whole session, keep on it," Seth pointed out, tapping his boxing gloves against the punch bag "Come on!"
Seth had always been the pushover parent, but when it comes to Derek's inability to have control, Seth and Talia had to be overly strict with him.
"Derek," Seth warned, shaking his head in disproval, "Don't put me through calling your mother,"
Derek defensively glared up at the taller wolf, anger striking over the anxious feelings running through him. The separation of his parents had not gone down well with Derek, ever since he's had a burning resentment towards his father because of it.
"You're the one that divorced her," Derek argued with a growl, Seth glanced down at the ground, quickly shoving off the insult.
"Come on," Seth changed the subject, running a hand through his dark hair before throwing a punch that Derek dodged, "You think worrying about control's going to keep you alive with a hunter after you?"
"Not everything's about fighting," Derek mumbled, Seth heard clearly, raising a brow at Derek as the teen stopped fighting back.
"Huh, and why do you think that?" Seth questioned harshly, taking the gloves Derek harshly shoved at his chest.
Derek stopped, going to reply, but realisation flashed in his eyes as he whispered, "Maeve,"
Flashbacks of the day he met Maeve flooded back to him, the feelings of fear, the sudden change in emotion. Derek didn't know how, or why, but he knew he was feeling this way because of Maeve, that something was wrong with Maeve.
Before he could even think, Derek was rushing out for the gym, concentrated on finding Maeve as all control he once had disappeared, leaving his concerned father in the dust.
Seth watched his son storm out of his apartment doors, rushing after the beta shouting for him, "Derek!"
Kate rolled her eyes impatiently, throwing her arms out as she shouted at her niece "Oh, come on!"
Maeve blinked away her tears, taking a deep breath as she stepped forward towards the omega, shakily wrapping her cold fingers around the gun. At the last hunt this was where everything went wrong, making the family believe Maeve was to weak to kill, but in reality, she cared too much to kill.
"I'm going to help you," Maeve whispered to the omega, raising the gun out in front of her, eye's glowing at the tied up werewolf.
The werewolf nodded discreetly, following Maeve's gaze as she eyed the ropes holding him up, raising the gun higher than she'd need, pushing aside remembering her family knew she had a perfect aim.
Surprised glances were shared between the Argent family and their hunting friends, in total disbelief Maeve had pulled the trigger, even Chris had to double take. The shock quickly turned to fear as the rope snapped, the omega breaking out from its hold, following Maeve's instructions as she nodded over at Kate.
Kate's scream echoed through the woods, her back slamming down onto a log, a painful snap hitting Maeve's ears as the werewolf knocked her down, growling down at the hunter as his claws pierced her skin.
Chris protectively pulled Maeve behind him, pushing the both of them back from the wild omega, watching in shock as the hunters shouted amongst themselves to try and kill the wolf. Maeve bit her lip, watching Gerard angrily stomp forward to his screaming daughter trapped by the wolf, bringing out his knife.
Before the knife coated in wolfsbane could hit the omega, Maeve raised the gun, squeezing her eyes shut as she pulled the trigger, holding them shut until she heard the familiar cry of pain. Kate screamed in pain, the leather gloves on her hand flying down to press down on the bullet wedged into her thigh, blood seeping through her jeans.
The wolf scampered away, Maeve took a proud step back, but her moments of victory was short lived as her uncle sharply turned to her, pointing over at Kate in disbelief.
"Diana!" Chris shouted in shock, disappointment shining in his eyes.
Maeve glanced down to the ground, a whirlwind of emotions flying through her, the disappointment in her uncles eyes was enough to bring tears to her own. There wasn't a part of her that could feel guilty for hurting Kate, but what hurt was seeing who she'd have to betray in the process.
Maeve blinked back the tears, her eyes flashing amber before returning to their crystal blue, smirking up at Chris, acting tough in front of the crowds gathered around them.
Maeve smiled, shrugging as she turned to walk away, her hair curled up in a ponytail bobbing behind her "Oops?"
Maeve took a deep breath once out of sight, leaning against a tree as her throat tightened, panic filled her stomach, her mind dizzy with all the thoughts. Maeve didn't know who she was becoming, she was afraid yet excited, but in a world of secrets and lies, any emotion can get too much too fast.
Maeve frowned, hearing a thumping heartbeat in the distance, pushing off the tree as a familiar scent settled. Maeve broke out into a jog, concentrating on not slipping on the wet leaves as she stared through the darkness to the figure leant against a tree.
"Derek?" Maeve called out, wiping away her tears, rushing forward at the sight of his claws, amber eyes shining over at her.
The moment Derek left the apartments he hadn't had control, alone in the woods he felt safe, but seeing Maeve in front of him made him afraid of hurting her.
"Stay back," Derek spoke through growls, digging his claws into the tree bark as he turned away from Maeve "I don't want to hurt you,"
"Derek, its okay," Maeve told him softly, slowly placing her hand on his arm, taking a step back with a frown as he pulled away.
"Derek, hey," Maeve pulled Derek's body around to face her, Derek tried to avoid her gaze but Maeve placed her hand on his jaw, gaining his full attention "Derek!"
"I don't know how to help you, but," Maeve told him worriedly, glancing around at their surroundings, "We have to go, Derek, you need to control this!"
All Maeve knew about control was what Derek taught her, figuring out how to help him surprisingly came natural to her. Maeve wrapped her hands around his, biting down on her lip as she winced, Derek's claws cutting into her palms.
Derek pulled away as soon as he noticed her wince, sliding down against the tree as he took a deep breath, Maeve's hands falling back to her sides as blood dripped down from the healing cuts.
Derek noticed the blood, staring up at Maeve with wide eyes as he instantly apologised, his claws disappearing and glowing eyes fading "I'm sorry,"
Derek went to apologise again, but Maeve held out her healed hand with a smile, kneeling down on the wet leaves in front of him "Look, all healed,"
"Der?" Maeve questioned, Derek slowly looked up, gazing at Maeve happily as she grinned "You controlled it,"
"Come on," Derek pushed himself up from the mud, lifting Maeve up with him, wrapping his arm over her denim jacket.
Over the weeks they'd known each other, Derek and Maeve became friends, affection was like a second language, even in Maeve's awkwardness and Derek's constant grumpiness.
Maeve leant her head on his shoulder, events from moments ago flashing back to her mind, "I shot my aunt,"
Derek stopped walking, raising a brow at Maeve, holding back his laughter as she innocently added "In the leg,"
Derek laughed, shaking his head, walking back through the trail with Maeve at his side "Yeah, because thats so much better,"
"Derek?" Talia sighed in relief as she noticed her son in the hallway, rushing out from her office "Why did you run out on your father like that? Are you alright-"
"I controlled it," Derek told his mother proudly, stepping aside as Maeve walked in behind him, Talia looking between them in realisation.
Maeve smiled weakly at the alpha, standing closely next to Derek, still unsure whether the Hales trusted her enough to be in their home. As much as Talia wanted to hate Maeve for being an Argent alone, the alpha couldn't hate Maeve, feeling the need to protect her like family, even if she and Peter were the only ones that knew why.
"Hello, Maeve," Talia greeted, glancing down at Maeve's shaking hands with a frown, a gunshot echoing around the woods causing Maeve to flinch "Why don't you stay for dinner?"
Dinner went without any faults, Maeve had sat around the table and laughed with a family for the first time in months, Derek sat mostly in embarrassment at the taunting from his sisters and Peter, whilst Cora had attached herself to Maeve the moment she walked through the door.
Maeve sat in Derek's hoodie, her own drenched from the rain, laughing with Cora as they sat at the table colouring, whispering between each other between laughter.
Derek watched with a loving gaze with a small smile on his lips, leaning on the kitchen counter from across the room. Cora nudged Maeve's shoulder, Maeve moving to hold up their drawing, a green dragon with furry eyebrows stood out on the page, Derek clearly labeled above it.
Derek playfully glared at them as he noticed the drawing, the two girls laughed, returning to the next drawing. Peter waltzed into the kitchen, scooping up some of the leftovers gaining Derek's attention.
"Does she know?" Peter questioned, eating a spoonful of the apple pie on the kitchen counter, leaning back against the cupboards "About Paige?"
"Maeve has enough going on in her own life," Derek told him, turning away from the dining room to lean against the back of the counter, glancing over at Peter with a sigh.
"She obviously cares enough about you to know," Peter reminded him, pointing the spoon at his nephew before placing the pie in his mouth.
Derek scoffed, glaring over at Peter as he shook his head, "You think telling the girl i like that i killed my girlfriend will help?"
"Has Maeve ever lied to you?" Peter questioned, a frown landing on his face as someone grabbed the spoon from his hand, turing to glare at Laura as she reached over for the plate too.
Laura took a bite of the plate, smiling smugly down at her younger brother from beside Peter, "By the way, you just admitted you like her,"
Derek had never acknowledged his feelings for Maeve, knowing he felt a love towards her was enough for him, prying anymore on the thought would cause more harm than good for him.
Derek ignored the pair, walking out of the kitchen over to Maeve and Cora, lifting his younger sister up from the chair "Stop terrorising, Maeve, Cora,"
Cora punched Derek's leg in annoyance, grabbing her artwork from the table before storming away, Maeve watched in amusement as Cora slammed the door behind her.
Maeve nodded over to the kitchen, waving sarcastically at Peter, "The real terror is stood over there,"
Peter glared at the young wolf beside his nephew, Maeve playfully winked back at him causing Derek to roll his eyes with laugh, turning Maeve away from Peter and Laura.
"We're leaving before my family ruin my life!" Derek exclaimed, glaring at Peter and Laura as he took Maeve's hand, leading her out of the dining room.
"Don't forget to wear pr-" His sister and uncle shouted after them, smiling at each other as they teased Derek, taking another bite of the pie.
Derek turned around in shock, slamming the door before they could finish the sentence "Shut up!"
Derek jogged back up the stairs with two bottles of soda, passing his mothers office as he returned to his room, the alpha shouting out after him"Door open!"
Derek turned around in embarrassment, glaring at Talia before glancing down the hallway to check the door was shut, "Mom!"
Derek purposely slammed the door behind him, Maeve jumped in surprise, raising a brow at Derek, the teen wolf shaking his head not bothering to answer.
"I can't believe you convinced me to do your homework," Maeve muttered, rolling her eyes as she wrote down Derek's name at the top of the page "You didn't even write your name."
"But you've already done the homework," Derek pointed out, putting the sodas down on the counter.
"You don't know that," Maeve disagreed, scribbling the answers down from memory, moving across the bed to make room for Derek beside her.
"Do you think you'll get me an -A? I'll settle for a B," Derek questioned, Maeve turned to him in surprise, rolling her eyes at his grin.
Maeve hit Derek's shoulder with his notebook playfully, Derek laughed waving her off, jokingly holding his arm in pain as the notebook hit him again, moving to find another stationery weapon against Maeve but fell back off the bed. Maeve leant back on the bed in a fit of laughter as Derek hit the floor, smiling brightly at his glare.
Maeve lay fast asleep in Derek's room, notebooks and textbooks scattered across the bottom of the bed, the two betas falling asleep after trying to catch Derek up on everything he'd somehow missed. Derek's eyes slowly fluttered open, adjusting to the darkness around them before gazing down to the weight on his shoulder, finding Maeve asleep in surprise, his grip around her loosening.
Happiness welled in Derek's chest, smiling down at Maeve's sleepy face resting against his t-shirt, her hands curled up at his side whilst Derek's arms held her close. Seeing Maeve like this only made the love in his heart for her grow, Derek didn't want it too, afraid of the feelings hitting him so soon, but gave in regardless.
Jamie and Archie stood at the end of the bed, dressed up for the basketball practice that, naturally, Derek was late for. In search of their best friend, the duo were incredibly surprised to find him cuddled up to their new friend.
"Unbelievable," Jamie grumbled, looking over to Archie in disbelief "How does he always get the girls?"
Archie shrugged, pushing the curtains open before turning with a smile as Maeve and Derek groaned "Morning lovers,"
Maeve went to snuggle back into Derek's chest, wanting nothing more to go back to sleep, but finally noticing her surroundings, Maeve jumped back, her cheeks burning in embarrassment, looking to her friends and Derek like a deer in headlights.
"Oh, no!" The werewolves exclaimed, looking to each other shaking their heads before back to their two friends "No! No!"
"Us?" Maeve pointed to her and Derek, Derek nodding in agreement with her, glaring up at Archie's knowing grin "No!"
Archie crossed his arms, humming at them in amusement "Uh, huh?"
Jamie mockingly pulled Archie into a hug, motioning to them as they mocked their friends hug "All this, totally looked like 'oh, no', right?"
"Talia wouldn't let just any girl stay in your room," Archie reminded Derek, Derek shrugged, himself and Maeve quickly standing up from his bed, the girl still blatantly embarrassed.
"She does know, doesn't she?" Jamie questioned in excitement, at the horror flashing over Derek's face, Jamie sprinted out of the room "Talia!"
"Jamie!" Derek groaned, pulling on a hoodie before chasing after Jamie, running out of the bedroom.
"Talia!" Maeve and Archie laughed at Jamie's shouts echoing around the house, a loud thud sounding at the bottom of the stairs, a quiet groan from Jamie following.
"Morning," Archie greeted with a friendly smile.
Maeve grinned at the curly haired boy, "Morning,"
"Boys!" Talia scolded, trying to usher the fighting boys out of the door "Go to practice,"
Jamie tripped over his own feet, stumbling to the ground pulling Archie with him, Derek pulled them both up as they jogged to the door, Talia chasing them out with a scowl.
"Bye Maeve!" The three boys shouted back to their friend, Archie and Derek teaming up to push Jamie through the door.
Maeve waved goodbye with a laugh, moving over to the coatrack to pull on her converse, turning in confusion as Talia called over "Maeve?"
"Thank you, for all of this," Talia glanced down at the folder in her hand, pulling a piece of paper out from it, handing it over to Maeve "You left this in the folder,"
"Is this about your mother? Derek mentioned she was missing," Talia questioned, smiling sympathetically as Maeve sighed with a nod.
"More like being hidden," Maeve replied, taking the paper from Talia gratefully, turning to leave as Peter emerged from the living room.
"Peter," Talia instructed, Maeve frowned stopping by the door, "Drive Maeve to this address, will you?"
"Bonding time with my bestie, huh?" Peter muttered sarcastically, moving to follow Maeve out of the door, taking the car keys from the bowl.
Maeve puled open the front door, walking out first letting the door slam in Peters face behind her, the beta slamming against it with a groan, grumbling to himself as he pulled it back open, marching after Maeve with a glare.
Peter glared at Maeve in annoyance as she held a pair of sunglasses out to him, "Put them on,"
"Argent, really?" Peter rolled his eyes, hesitantly taking the glasses as he parked the car outside of the doctors office.
Maeve groaned impatiently, shoving his shoulder "Put them on!"
Maeve didn't know how her friendship build solely on arguments and sarcasm with Peter came around, but she had the feeling it wouldn't be leaving anytime soon.
"Okay!" Peter shouted back, grumbling to himself as he slid on the sunglasses "God, can you get any louder?"
"Wouldn't you like to know," Maeve bickered, scanning the carpark for any clues, sitting up on the leather seats.
"I don't know if i like the confidence the bite's given you," Peter pointed out, staring down at Maeve in amusement and annoyance.
"Your problem, not mine," Maeve shrugged, suddenly pushing herself and Peter down on the seats, hiding behind the dashboard "Get down!"
Maeve watched her grandfather leave the doctors office in surprise, the suspicious SUV parked across the lot, one of Gerard's minions in the drivers seat, shielded by the tinted windows.
"What does Derek see in you?" Peter complained, peaking over the dashboard as they watched Maeve's grandfather walk back to his car.
"Clearly something appealing," Maeve replied, pushing open the car door before jumping out, watching the SUV speed away, running her hand through her curls in frustration "What the hell is he doing here?"
"Didn't you say your mom was locked away in a psych ward like Rapunzel?" Peter reminded her, shoving his hands into his oversized denim jacket boredly.
"This is a doctors office, genius," Maeve corrected zipping up the duffle coat she'd picked up on the way to the office, walking away as Peter looked around, pushing through the main doors with out him.
"Hey, do you thi-" Peter began, turning to find no one there, shouting after the blonde as he jogged into the building after her "Maeve!"
Peter caught up with Maeve as they reached reception, the waiting room eerily quiet, only two awaiting patients, the sound of typing and the clock ticking filling the silence, the entire room screaming 'sketchy' to Peter.
"Hi, Katherine Argent," Maeve greeted the receptionist, easily fitting into the character of her aunt, leaning against the counter separating the rooms "I need to confirm a payment i made a few months ago on behalf of my sister, Elizabeth, for my bank statements,"
The receptionist glanced up at Peter cautiously, Maeve smiled forcefully, patting his shoulder harder than Peter expected, "My fiancé, Harold,"
The receptionist nodded, scanning the computer screen, looking up to Maeve with a warning flashing on the screen "I can't realise that information without authorisation of the manager,"
Maeve nodded slowly, reaching into her bag to pull out a wad of hundred dollar bills, slowly sliding it across the table with a smirk "Its not your typical transaction,"
The receptionist nodded knowingly, moving over to the filing cabinet as Maeve silently cheered in victory as the woman took the money Maeve had, borrowed, from Kate's safe.
"What the hell was that?" Peter whisper shouted as Maeve turned to him, glaring at the omega as she smiled, shrugging her shoulders.
Maeve quietly shut the front door to her house, hiding the documents in her bag as she hung up her coat, kicking off her muddy converse before pulling out her phone to let Derek know she was home, walking into the living room. Kate appeared out of nowhere, stepping in front of Maeve causing the werewolf to jump back in shock.
"Where were you last night?" Kate questioned bluntly, stopping Maeve from leaving the room, holding her hand out on the side of the door, the other resting on the wound bandaged on her leg.
Luckily, the bullet had only skimmed the surface of Kate's thigh, but still left a nasty cut in the process. Maeve felt herself becoming distracted by the wound she inflicted, but quickly reminded herself of the plan she'd started.
"With Derek," Maeve replied, forcing a smirk on her face as the lies connected in her head, straightening out her alibi.
"Huh?" Kate nodded in surprise, not expecting any worthwhile commitments from her niece"Any information worth knowing?"
"Lets just say I'm getting him to trust me," Maeve told her, smiling tauntingly as she hinted "If you know what i mean."
Maeve felt lying so much easier knowing Derek was aware of what she was doing, in some ways, she wasn't really lying.
"Keep it up," Kate praised, glaring suspiciously at Maeve as she whispered down to the shorter girl "I wouldn't want to have to do it myself,"
"Theres no need for that, i already have his family in my corner," Maeve argued in defence of Derek, taking a step back as she realised her sudden reaction, falling back into her lie.
"You're smarter than i thought," Kate told Maeve as the teen finally pushed past her, walking down the hallway with a relieved smile.
"You have no idea," Maeve mumbled to herself knowingly.
Allison and Maeve stood side by side, their pjs hidden under their jackets as they stared up at the shelves making up the video store. Allison curiously walked forward, dragging Maeve along with her, the beta adjusting the pink beanie on her head whilst leaning forward to fuss over Alison's matching one, pushing the hat back to make the pom pom central to Allison's head.
Allison waved her cousin off with a glare, Maeve laughed nodding her head, pointing up at one of the shelves "Any movie you want,"
Allison grinned, raising a brow at Maeve, her cheeks rosy from the cold, "Any?"
"But, please, no more mean girls," Maeve begged, groaning as Alison went to reach for the dvd, Alison grabbed the dvd as she rolled her eyes.
"But you're the only one that lets me watch it," Alison reminded her cousin, handing the older teen the dvd with a taunting smile.
"Which is exactly why we shouldn't speak about it," Maeve argued, taking the dvd from her, placing it on a shelf to high for Allison, pointing over across the store "Look! A perfectly fitting kids section,"
Allison pouted but Maeve shook her head, nudging her forward with a laugh "Go on."
Alison trudged along the dirty carpet of the store in her fluffy boots, holding up a dvd with a grin, Maeve scowled at the sight of the barbie dvd she'd seen too many times for one person to ever see barbie "Allison, no!"
A few streets away, Derek and Archie walked back from Archie's fathers veterinary clinic, the topic of earliers events finally coming to the surface. Derek and Archie followed the dark street lit up by the street light and closing stores, the dvd rental shining in the distance.
"You don't have to pretend you don't like her because of what's happened," Archie told his best friend with a sigh, shaking his head as Derek avoided his gaze "Derek, buddy, you can move on,"
Derek glared down at the pavement, scuffing his black vans along the curve in annoyance as they crossed the street "I can't let Maeve get hurt because of me,"
"I have feelings for Maeve! Real feelings that hurt because she's so goddamn obvious, feelings that hurt because i'll never be able to even have another relationship incase it ends like the last one!" Derek exclaimed in frustration, taking a deep breath as the turned to Archie "Happy?"
Allison and Maeve walked out of the video store, a disney movie and a sneakily hidden mean girls movie with them. Maeve held onto Allison's hand as they stepped out onto the dark street, protectively holding her cousin close to her.
"Maeve, hey!" Maeve turned in confusion at the voice, finding Milo jogging up the street behind them.
Maeve immediately became nervous, squeezing Allison's hand as Milo reached them, grinning down at Maeve. The omega looked around the empty streets, sighing in relief as she noticed the two friends walk out from behind one of the stores, noticing her stare on them.
Archie couldn't hear, but he knew whatever Milo was saying wasn't good, Derek's glare was enough to realise what was happening. Derek felt his chest tighten at the sight of Maeve and Milo, the hurt finally sinking in, but the moment Milo went to touch Maeve's side, anger flooded his veins.
"Maybe we should go out sometime?" Milo suggested, raising a brow at Maeve, not letting go of her jacket as Maeve tried to step back.
"Oh, uh-" Maeve stuttered awkwardly, her heart raising with her nervous, looking up in shock at the sound of Derek's growl from the opposite side of the road.
"Maeve has a boyfriend," Allison told the older boy confidently, Maeve's eyes widened in surprise, glancing down at Alison in confusion but Milo seemed to understand.
"You and Derek are actually dating?" Milo pieced together, humming in amusement, "I thought after Paige he'd never da-"
"Arch," Derek panicked, worriedly turning to his best friend before Milo could speak anymore, the two boys quickening their pace over to the girls and Milo.
"Maevy!" Archie's loud screech ran through the empty street, greeting Maeve dramatically in a bid to distract Milo, Maeve smiled thankfully over at him.
"I should go-" Maeve rushed, her hand tightening around Allison's as she pulled the younger girl along, sprinting up the street away from Milo.
"Why are you running?" Allison complained, tugging on Maeve's arm as they slowed down "Mae!"
Maeve nodded at Archie gratefully, her cousin stepping in to introduce herself to Archie, stepping aside to talk to Derek.
Maeve took a step back in surprise as Derek quickly asked "Are you and Milo a thing or something?"
"Hi to you too, Derek," Maeve muttered, shaking her head with a sigh, raising a brow at the anger Derek failed to hide "Milo and i, not a thing, never will be."
Derek tried his best to cover up his sigh of relief, nodding down at Maeve's spotty pyjama bottoms with a smile "Nice, PJs,"
Maeve's frown still remained, but a slight smile graced her lips, waving goodbye to Derek as she pulled on Allison's hand. Maeve was slightly freaked out Milo's request of a date, confused about Derek's ambush and wanted nothing more to just clear her head for a moment before the realities of everything else in her life settle back in.
"Come on, Ally," Maeve sighed, leading her cousin away from her two friends, gazing back at them as the girls walked "I'll see you guys at school?"
Archie patted Derek's back, smiling at him sympathetically, leading Derek in the other direction "Come on,"
Derek walked through the preserve to meet Maeve on the bench they'd taken a liking to in his garden, Maeve sat cuddled up with her coat and scarf, watch the ice slowly freeze onto of the pond.
Derek slid down on the wooden bench, turning to look at Maeve "Is everything okay? You sounded worried on the phone,"
"Derek?" Maeve mumbled, twirling the bluebell she'd picked from the garden in her hand, nervously glancing up at Derek "Who's Paige?"
Derek stared down at Maeve in shock, frozen for words, all he could hear was the pounding of his heart, his eyes locked on the curiosity shining through Maeve's.