A Bad Trip in An Even Worse Life
It's a slow night at the bar, when possibly the most beautiful male specimen walks through the door. Stiles gapes a little before Boyd, his coworker, slaps his shoulder to snap him out of it. Right, being professional, he can do this. The man takes a stool and Stiles greets him, trying not to stare too much.
"What can I get you?" he asks.
"Scotch, neat," he orders.
His voice is smooth and has Stiles' heart fluttering. The man's wearing a dark suit that hugs all his muscles nicely and his stubble is so perfectly groomed, Stiles wants to touch it, maybe lick it. That was not professional at all.
He quickly fixes the man's drink and totally doesn't check to see if he's wearing a wedding ring, which he isn't by the way. Which doesn't mean he's single and Stiles really needs to get back to work. Stiles wipes down the bar and can't help the occasional glance. The man is avidly watching the television above the bar and Stiles subtly moves closer.
The man looks to him, frowning.
"I don't really follow football," he replies.
"I think there's a baseball game on," he offers.
The guy shrugs and he's not particularly chatty. Stiles changes the channel anyway and receives a nod as a thank you. Stiles watches him for the next twenty minutes and the man keeps looking at his watch.
"Want another?" he asks, holding the bottle up.
The guy sighs, looks at his watch again, and then nods.
"Waiting for someone?" Stiles pries.
"Yeah," is all the answer he gives.
Stiles should probably leave him alone, but he can’t help himself.
"You from around here?" he asks.
The man frowns, but seems to relax again after taking a sip of his drink.
"Me too. I'm Stiles, by the way," he says.
A brow raises, which he's used to.
"So, Derek, is it business or pleasure tonight?"
"Business," he says, sipping his drink.
Stiles nods and is about to ask what he does, when the person he's been waiting for slides onto a stool. He almost drops his rag because he knows the guy.
"Stiles, how've you been?" Aidan asks.
He takes a breath and continues to wipe down the bar.
"I'm fine," he says, nodding politely.
Derek glances between them, still frowning. Of course Derek would work with this guy because that's how his life rolls.
"Can I get a drink?" Aidan asks.
"Whatever my friend here is having is fine," he replies.
Stiles glances at Derek, who's scowling so hard at the other guy it almost makes him laugh. He fixes the drink and can't help but glare at the wedding band on Aidan's finger. The guy was an ass, Stiles doesn't know what she sees in him.
"So, Derek, shall we?" he asks, pointing to a table a few feet away.
"Oh and Stiles," Aidan calls, grinning.
"Lydia says hi, by the way."
The glass he'd been holding thumps onto the counter and Aidan laughs. Stiles' heart is pounding and he really wants to punch this asshole in the face. He's instantly stepping around the bar, planning on doing exactly that, but Boyd holds him back. He sees Derek pulling Aidan away, who'd chuckled and taunted him to come at him. Stiles struggles for a minute, but Boyd is a mountain.
"It's not worth it, man, come on," he mutters.
Stiles and Aidan stare each other down until the former finally agrees that no, getting fired for punching this jerk isn't worth it. He backs off and his coworker tells him to cool off outside, which he does. Stiles seriously doesn’t know what Lydia sees in him. When he thinks about how this man is raising his kid-
Stiles shakes his head. She made it clear, the kid isn't his, whether that's biologically false or not. She's right though. After what happened, he doesn't deserve any rights over that child. Stiles pushes the thoughts away, counting his breathing like he'd been taught as a child. He's only out there for about ten minutes when he hears shouting from inside. Rushing back, he finds the two men in a heated argument, something about finances or fraud. Stiles can’t really follow it. What he does know is that by the end of it Aidan is in Derek's face, threatening someone named Cora and that's when Derek's fist goes flying. He gets in a few good punches before Aidan tackles him to the ground. Boyd jumps into the fray, pulling Aidan off the other. Stiles doesn't hesitate to intervene when Derek gets up for another attack, holding the man back. Derek surprisingly doesn't fight him and is visibly trying to calm down.
"If you ever go near her, I-" Derek starts.
"You'll what? What are you gonna do, Derek?" Aidan chuckles.
Stiles thinks he could do plenty, if the hard muscle he's feeling beneath Derek's sleeve is anything to go by. Derek does shake him off then, advancing on Aidan, but Boyd pulls him away and eventually shoves the guy right out the door.
Stiles glances at Derek and gently prods him to sit at the bar again and the man follows willingly. He scoops up some ice and wraps it in a dish towel.
Derek quirks a brow and Stiles says, “For your hand.”
He takes it after a few seconds, nodding a thank you.
“’Nother round?” Stiles offers.
The man sighs and glances at his watch.
“No, I should really get home,” he says, but doesn’t move to leave.
“Sorry about, you know, the fight,” he mumbles.
Stiles snorts and say, “Dude, don’t be sorry. You punched Aidan in the face. You are officially on my list of favorite people.”
Derek’s lips twitch in an almost smile, making Stiles full on grin.
“So, you a lawyer then?” he asks.
“No, I own the firm,” he replies.
Derek nods and they’re quiet for a few minutes as Stiles cleans glasses.
“How do you know him?” Derek asks eventually.
Stiles fumbles the glass because he has no idea how to answer that.
“He, uh, well, it’s a long story,” he eventually stutters.
He looks away, not wanting to talk about it and Derek thankfully drops it. The guy takes out his wallet to pay, but Stiles tells him it’s on the house. It earns him another lip twitch and Stiles suddenly wonders what a real smile would look like.
“A tip then,” he says, sliding a bill across the counter.
Derek leaves after that and Stiles doesn’t watch him go because that would be unprofessional. He picks up the folded bill and almost chokes on air because he just got a hundred dollar tip. Not even the regulars tip that well. Derek has moved to number 3 on his list of favorite people, right after Scott and Allison.
Stiles lingers around the bar after closing and is surprised when Boyd starts chatting to him about some band they have in common. Though unexpected, it’s definitely welcome. He’d been working at this place for about 2 months and he and his new coworker really haven’t said much to each other. Apparently he’s lived in Beacon Hills his entire life, but he was home-schooled, which explains why they never met. They talk about simple things like movies, books, music, television shows, etc. After an hour there’s an awkward moment of silence and Boyd pulls out two beers, handing him one.
“No thanks,” he says, waving it off.
Boyd looks a little disappointed, making Stiles sigh and reach into his back pocket. He flips his 5 month chip onto the counter and awaits the inevitable, but Boyd surprises him again by simply nodding.
“Gotta face your problems sooner or later, right?” he murmurs.
Stiles huffs a laugh and nods in return. They part ways after that, going home to sleep after a long shift. His apartment is only a few blocks away, but he’s not stupid enough to walk it. Not in this neighborhood, not at night. He even runs across the parking lot to get to his jeep as fast as possible. There’s a chance he’s being a bit paranoid, but it’s better to be safe than sorry around here.
Derek doesn’t stop in for another week, leaving Stiles’ nights completely uneventful and boring. The night he does show, Stiles isn’t bashful about greeting him with a wide smile.
