The more darlin backstory we receive the more and more I want to sit down and write a whole timeline of events for my version of them just because I need to be able to correctly reflect their experiences in the blurbs I write….
Also: (unpopular opinion, so if you disagree that’s cool, don’t worry I’m not comin for you, this is just my darlin in my head)
I tend to see a lot of content that has David being sort of an older sibling to Darlin, or that their role in the pack is often more inflated then what’s canon (which again, cool for y’all if that’s how y’all wanna play it) but there’s so much room for angst and growth and raw emotions by exploring the avenue that Darlin isn’t really that same teenager that they all managed to make friends with- and that now after everything that happened they’re much more jaded.
They’re trying again, and they want to be a part of the pack again, and right now David, Asher, and Milo are all trying to find their footing with where they stand with Darlin. Too much has happened for all of them for them to just resume that easy teenage experience- but I think that the four of them rebuilding a bond that extends beyond just being in a pack, that stems beyond blood (real or metaphorical), is a stronger bond than the idea of them being there out of obligation.
Darlin is choosing the pack. Not because they have a duty to their past self- not out of guilt for some connection to Gabe, not because they feel like they owe it to anybody, but because these people are people that have proven they’re reliable, safe, and willing to allow darlin the space to breathe that they need. Consistently, David has made it a point to not try to take up the role of an overbearing older brother because Darlin does not need more family. Darlin needs friends. And at the end of the day, they need a circle of support they know they could never let down rather than more people they have to try to meet expectations for.
