Chapter 24 || Stay With Me

Chapter 24

Malia

For a moment, it seemed like time had frozen. No one moved, there was no sound in the room except the constant drone of the flatline.

Then the room suddenly burst into motion. Nurses and a Doctor rushed into the room followed shortly by Scott’s mother. Malia just sat on the floor in shock unable to believe that the scene in front of her was really happening.

“Get them out of here” Malia heard someone yell. Melissa started herding the shell-shocked people out of the door. Malia felt someone pick her off the ground and pull her out the door. She twisted and managed to get one quick look at the pale Stiles before her view was obscured by people. She fell against a wall once out in the hall and slid to the floor. She buried her face in her hands and sent out a silent plea to whatever or whoever might be listening to please let him live.

“Please, Stay with me Stiles.” She whispered so softly she knew no one else could hear it. Stiles couldn’t die, he just couldn’t, her entire world would collapse.

Malia could hear muffled yells and noises from inside the room, but she tried to separate herself from them. She felt like her body was an empty shell, she was physically present, but that was all. She couldn’t think about anything without it somehow leading back to Stiles, so she instead just focused on the blackness of the back of her eyelids. She stared at it until she felt like it was swallowing her up. Every single second felt like an eternity.

*****

Scott

He jumped up as soon as he got his bearings and ran over to his best friend’s bed. He put his hand over Stiles', trying to take the pain away, but instead he found that there was no pain. He stared at the face of his lifeless friend, half expecting his eyes to flicker open. This couldn’t be happening. He had failed Stiles, his friend was dead and it was all his fault.

Scott felt himself being pulled away from Stiles. He started to yell and protest until his eyes found his mother. She wrapped him in a hug and he felt tears begin to fall.

“Mom…” He choked

“I know honey, but the doctors are going to do everything they can. But we need to clear the room.” She pulled back and took his face in her hands. “Scott, do you hear me? We need to get everyone out.” He managed to pull himself out of the haze he was in. He was the alpha and he had been given a task.

“Everyone out, give them room.” He shouted. He grabbed Liam and pulled him out of the room. Derek pulled Malia up and his mom ushered the rest out. Then she went back inside and closed the door. Scott flinched at the sound of it slamming shut. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. He and Malia were supposed to help lead Stiles out. They were supposed to come back to the real world and see him open up his eyes. Today was the day he was supposed to save Stiles, not lose him forever.

This wasn't what was supposed to happen.

*****

The Sheriff

The atmosphere in the room became steadily more intense when they saw the blood dripping from Malia and Scott’s noses. The Sheriff didn't know exactly what it meant, but he knew enough to know that it was nothing good.

“What does it mean?” He said turning to Derek for an answer. The man opened his mouth to respond, but before he could both Malia and Scott fell forcefully to the ground, almost as if they had been pushed. At that exact moment, a long beep filled the room. The Sheriff’s stomach dropped, he felt like he had been punched in the gut.

“No” he whispered, it was barely audible over the eternal beep. He stared intently at his son’s unmoving chest. Maybe whatever Malia and Scott did would just take a second to kick in. Maybe at any moment Stiles would take in a breath and open his eyes.

The Sheriff was staring so intently at Stiles that he didn't notice the other people filling the room. He only noticed when a dark haired women blocked his view to his son. He tried to move around her, but she placed her hands on his shoulders.

“....Stiles, but you need to move.” He realized she was speaking to him and tried to focus.

“W-what?”

“The doctors are going to try to save Stiles, but you have to let them do their job. I need you to go out in the hall. I promise I will let you know the second something changes.” He nodded and numbly allowed himself to be steered out of the room by Melissa. Once out in the hall he slammed his fist against the wall. He brought back his hand to do it again but was stopped by Argent. He looked into the eyes of a man who had lost his child, someone who knew better than anyone what he was feeling.

“How do you do it?” The Sheriff asked brokenly, not needed to explain himself further. He knew Argent would know exactly what he was talking about.

“Hopefully you won’t have to find out.”

*****

Lydia

She wanted to scream. More than anything she wanted to scream. The more time that passed with Malia and Scott inside Stiles’ head the more she wanted to scream. But it was a hospital, she knew she needed to keep it in. If she screamed the nurses would come running in and they all would have some explaining to do. Lydia didn't want to think about what her urge to scream meant, so she ignored it. Or at least she tried to, but the more time passed the harder it got to push down the urge.

So she left. She quietly backed out of the door. She didn't think that anyone even noticed, they were all too focused on what was happening with Malia, Scott, and Stiles. As soon as she was out the door she ran. She ran until she was out of the hospital. She ran to her car and turned it on, and turned the music up full blast. Only then did she give in, only then did she let out the ear-piercing scream she had been holding in for hours.

Lydia screamed until she ran out of air and her chest felt like it was going to explode. Once she had stopped she heard silence, she couldn’t even hear her radio. Then through the silence she heard the beeping of the monitor attached to Stiles’ heart. It beeped steadily a couple times, then it sped up, faster and fast, and then…it stopped.

Tears began to slip down her face as she listened to the progression. All the noise came rushing back suddenly. The blaring music, the sounds of sirens, the far away sounds of people talking. Lydia jumped out of the car and began running back to Stiles’ room. She rounded the corner and was met with a horrifying sight. All of her friends were scattered around the hallway, all wearing masks of distress, disbelief, and fear.

Lydia sank to her knees. She didn't need to ask anyone what had happened. She had heard it, she had felt it. A feeling of despair washed over Lydia. Maybe if she had just given into her banshee feelings this all could’ve been avoided. She would have known what was going to happen and stopped it, she could have prevented it all. She was getting better with her powers, but she needed to learn to trust her feelings more.

And now because she hadn't she had lost one of her best friends in the world.

*****

Derek

He didn't often miss being the Alpha, but times like this he did. Times when he felt helpless and useless. Here Scott and Malia were risking their lives to help Stiles and he could do nothing to help. Derek paced in the back of the room, wishing desperately that he could do something.

He hadn't been able to keep Stiles from being taken, he hadn't been able to locate him, he hadn't had any idea how to bring him out of his coma, and now he couldn’t do anything to help those bringing him out of the coma.

Derek might not be the Alpha, but it would always feel responsible for the rag tag pack he had assembled. He felt a duty to protect them and guide them, and he had failed at both of those. He had gotten so caught up in helping Braeden find the Desert Wolf that he had ignored his duties to his pack.

Derek was brought out of his musings by the sound of bodies thumping and Stiles’ heart monitor coding. He looked between Scott and Malia on the floor and the lifeless Stiles. Something had gone wrong inside his head. They had said or done something that he rejected, from the looks of it he had pushed them out of his mind. Whatever had happened was too much for him to handle. Stiles had lost the battle for his mind.

“Everyone out, give them room.” He heard Scott yell finally spurring them all into action. Derek went over and took Malia’s arm to help her off the floor. He lifted her up and set her on her feet where she swayed slightly. Putting his arm around her shoulder, he led her out of the room. He saw Argent leading Isaac out and everyone else filing out on their own. Everyone except the Sheriff. Derek took a step to go back and get him when he saw Melissa approach the man. Knowing she had it covered he turned his attention back to the hallway. Everyone sat or stood in a state of shock. The Sheriff punched a wall when he came out, but no one except Argent seemed to notice or care. Even Deaton, the usual stone-faced, emotionless man, seemed to be a bit shaken.

*****

Argent

He listened to the steady heartbeat of Stiles and tried to remain calm, he couldn’t believe that there was another teenager whose life was in danger. That was what he as a hunter was supposed to prevent. It was the sacred duty of the hunters to protect the innocent and take care of anything dangerous. He had failed. He had run away from his responsibilities and now Stiles was in a hospital bed dying. To make matters worse, it had been rogue hunters who had hurt him. If he had been here he may have been able to convince the hunters to leave or done something to help.

“Hey,” Isaac nudged him, “this wasn't your fault.” Chris opened his mouth to argue but then realized that Isaac could read him like a book.

“I should’ve came back with you.”

“You were looking for Kate, no one can blame you for that.” Isaac said softly

“I knew it was a lost cause, yet I still kept looking. I couldn’t face coming back here yet.”

“No one can blame you for that either.” Argent gave the boy a smile, unable to voice his gratitude.

“What does it mean?” They heard the Sheriff ask. They both turned to look in horror at the blood dripping from Scott and Malia’s nose. Argent froze, knowing it meant something was wrong. He couldn’t watch Stiles die, he couldn’t watch a teenager’s life drain from him without thinking of Allison. Every part of him wanted to run, but he found that he couldn’t move. Not when he heard the flatline tone. Not when Isaac’s weight slumped against him. Not when the nurses and doctors burst into the room.

He was only brought back to the present by a broken “No” uttered by the Sheriff. It was a sound that he knew well. The sound of a man completely broken by the loss of a child. Chris grabbed Isaac and followed the others out into the hall. His hunter training as he pushed his feelings down and focused on what needed to be done. He looked as he heard the Sheriff slam his fist into the wall. He quickly grabbed his arm before he could do it again. The fight went out of the man and he looked into his eyes with a look of pain that matched the pain in Argent’s own eyes.

“How do you do it?” The Sheriff whispered. Argent didn't need an explanation, he knew exactly what the Sheriff was asking about. How did he deal with the pain of losing a child, how do you manage to keep going when your only reason to live has been extinguished. Both he and the Sheriff had lost their wives and only child.

Argent shook his head. He couldn’t think like Stiles was already gone. There was a team of medical professionals working to bring Stiles back to life. They couldn’t give up hope yet. So Argent put his hand on the Sheriff’s shoulder and gave him what he hopped was a reassuring smile.

“Hopefully you won’t have to find out.”

*****

Liam

He shifted nervously from foot to foot. It was bad enough that Stiles was hurt, but now Scott was putting himself in danger. Liam couldn’t lose them both. They had both helped him so much in so many ways. They had given him friends, a family, a place to belong. They helped him control his anger. They grounded him. They kept him safe.

Liam wasn't sure if he could survive without either of them, but he was sure that he couldn’t survive without both of them. He couldn’t lose them both. Olivia slipped her hand into his and he stopped shifting. The human connected made him feel the slightest bit better. He squeezed her hand in thanks.

When the flatline started his hand went limp and slipped from hers. Part of Liam’s brain vaguely registered that Scott was alive but most of it was screaming that Stiles was dead.

Stiles who let him crawl through his window at all hours and sleep on his floor. Stiles who would play video games with him for hours even though he knew he had no chance of winning at all. Stiles who would always give him a sarcastic verbal kick in the butt when he needed it. Stiles who would give him an inspirational pep talk when he needed one of those. Fun, crazy, full of life Stiles. There was no way he was dead.

Liam felt arms wrapping around him and looked down to see Olivia embracing him. They were out in the hall, although he wasn't exactly sure how they had gotten there. Olivia didn't say anything, merely held him tight.

As the disbelief and shock began to fade away, the anger began to set in. There was understandable anger, like the anger he felt towards those who had put Stiles in the hospital. But there was also the unreasonable anger, directed towards many undeserving towards it. Liam was angry and Stiles for always being so reckless, he was angry at Scott for not protecting him and not being able to bring him properly out of the coma, he was angry at himself for not being able to do anything to save Stiles. He was angry at Olivia and Remy and Dawson for bringing the hunters here. He was angry at Deaton for not having any more ideas. He was just angry.

It was a kind of all consuming anger that Liam had felt before. It was misguided and dangerous. Liam knew he had to get a handle on it before he did something stupid.

Carefully he stepped out of Olivia’s arms. He mumbled that he needed to go for a walk and quickly set off out of the hospital and into the woods where he could yell and punch a tree or two.

*****

Kira

She didn't take her eyes off of Scott the entire time. She watched him carefully, gauging his facial expressions and trying to figure out what was happening. She saw a mixture of pain, confusion, happiness, sadness, and many others flicker across his face. She could not figure out if he and Malia were succeeding or not.

Kira’s fingers itched to hold her Katana. She felt unwhole without it in her hands. She wished that there was some foe that she could cut down. She would rather fight a bloody battle against 100 enemies than stand in that room and just wait. The silence in the room was overwhelming, she felt like it was crushing her.

Kira stared at Scott. Willing him to come back to her and to bring Stiles with him. A soft click reached her ears and she turned to see the door closing. She glimpsed red hair passing out of sight. She looked around to see if anyone else had noticed and caught Dawson’s eye. He sent her a questioning look. She shrugged her shoulders in response. They both knew what Lydia’s power’s were, but neither of them were willing to voice what it might mean. Kira looked around the room and saw that no one else had paid any attention. Isaac and Argent were whispering quietly but everyone else was just focused on Stiles, Scott, and Malia.

Kira turned her attention back to Scott just as a grimace flashed across his face. She took an instinctive step forward as blood dripped from his nose. She looked at Malia and noticed the same thing was happening. She glanced at Stiles and saw that he was pale, sweaty, and still unmoving. Kira gasped when Scott and Malia went flying to the floor. She ran over to Scott just as the flatline sound began. She put her hand on Scott’s shoulder, but he jumped up from the floor and away from her. She watched as he ran over to Stiles’ bed.

Kira felt tears in her eyes as Scott was comforted by his mom. She saw him snap into Alpha mode as he ordered everyone out and pulled Liam out. She numbly followed them and leaned against a wall, wrapping her arms around her middle. She closed her eyes for a minute and tried to collect her thoughts.

Scott and Malia had failed. Something had gone wrong and Stiles’ heart had stopped. But the Doctors could bring him back, they had to bring him back.

“Please let them bring him back.” She whispered quietly as she slid to the floor.

*****

Deaton

He sat in the uncomfortable hospital chair and racked his brain for anything that could help. He hadn't gotten a chance to talk to Scott or Malia, but he could guess what had happened. Somehow Stiles had rejected their presence in his mind and had managed to throw them out. Whatever they had done had pulled him out of the coma he was in, but instead of waking up like they had hoped, Stiles’ had gone into shock.

Deaton wished he could grill Scott and Malia about what exactly had happened, he hated not knowing. But he knew everyone was in too much shock and pain at that current moment. So he could only stand by idly and hope that the doctors could bring him back.

Even if they did manage to bring him back, Deaton wasn't sure what their next step would be. Stiles would probably still be in his coma and their current methods clearly weren't working. He had no idea what else to try. He had checked every resource he had multiple times and had come up with nothing. Deaton gave a frustrated sigh and ran his hands over his head. He hated not knowing how to solve something. He was the apothecary. He was supposed to guide and advise the pack. Scott is particularly important to him. Deaton cared greatly for the boy and respected him greatly as an Alpha. The boy and his pack had faced terrible foes and defeated them. Deaton had done what he could to aid this process. He wasn't always completely honest and he wasn't always compassionate, but he did always try his best to aid Scott and his pack in whatever way he could,

He was the apothecary. It was his duty to help. This time however all he had ended up doing was sending Stiles into cardiac arrest.

*****

Isaac

He glanced over at Argent, who was watching Scott, Malia and Stiles apprehensively. Isaac knew that he felt guilty about not being there. Every since Allison had died, Argent had tried to live his life in the way that Allison would approve of. And everyone knew that Allison would do anything to protect her friends.

That being said, Isaac knew what it was like to not feel ready to come back to Beacon Hills. After all, he hadn't come back when Chris had first come back. Isaac hadn't been able to face the memories of Allison that he knew he would see at every turn. So he had understood completely when Argent had called him and told him that he was staying in Mexico. Isaac had quickly agreed to go to Beacon Hills in his stead. He had known that it was time for him to return.

“Hey,” Isaac nudged him, “this wasn't your fault.” Chris looked like he was going to argue, but thought better of it. The only person who had been able to read Chris better than Isaac had been Alison.

“I should’ve came back with you.” Argent said with a sad shake of his head

“You were looking for Kate, no one can blame you for that.” Isaac said softly so no one else in the room could hear what they were saying.

“I knew it was a lost cause, yet I still kept looking. I couldn’t face coming back here yet.”

“No one can blame you for that either.” Isaac said in a knowing voice. Chris gave him a small smile. It was a sad smile, but Isaac saw a bit of relief in his eyes.

“What does it mean?” They heard the Sheriff ask. Isaac felt his stomach drop when he turned to his friends. He knew immediately that their plan wasn't working.

Isaac watched in horror at the series of events over the next few moments. He felt Argent pulled him out of the door. Isaac’s brain refused to compute what was happening. He couldn’t watch another one of his friends die. He just couldn’t. He and Stiles may have gotten off to a super rough start, but somehow the boy had come to mean an incredible amount to him. Stiles was one of his best friends. He couldn’t lose him.

*****

Melissa

She began running as soon as she heard the code blue. She ran out of the client’s room she was in without an explanation and down the stairs to Stiles’ room. She arrived just after the Doctor and nurses. She was overwhelmed by the amount of people as she rushed into the room, but her gaze quickly found her son. She went over and drew him into a hug. He sobbed her name and her heart nearly broke. She had never wished more than that moment that she could take away all the hurt and the pain from his life.

“I know honey, but the doctors are going to do everything they can. But we need to clear the room.” She would have more time to comfort her son later, but right now she had to make sure that they did everything they could for Stiles. When Scott didn't respond she stepped back, taking his face in her hands and forcing his eyes up to meet hers. Scott, do you hear me? We need to get everyone out.” She watched in relief as his eyes cleared and he nodded. He shouted that they all needed to leave and grabbed Liam and left. Everyone else followed suit. Everyone that is except for the Sheriff. He stood rooted to the spot, staring at his son as tears slipped down his face.

Melissa went up to him and planted herself in between the Sheriff and Stiles. She put her hands on his shoulders and tried to get him to move. He stared in a daze at her for a few seconds before absorbing what she was saying and allowing himself to be led out of the room by her. She caught Scott’s eye as she moved to close the door. She tried to communicate with a look that it would all be okay, but she wasn't sure he got it.

She shut the door and finally paid attention to what was happening with Stiles. They had laid him flat and cut open his shirt. The Doctor was preparing the defibrillator and had the paddles in his hands. Melissa moved to the foot of Stiles’ bed.

“Clear” the Doctor said as he placed the paddles against Stiles’ skin. The boy’s body lifted and went limp again, the flatline still droning on. The Doctor stepped back and let the paddles recharge before stepping closer again. “Clear” he said as he shocked Stiles again with the same result.

“Come on baby” Melissa murmured. She felt her Nurse mode slipping as she watched the Doctor shock Stiles. She was unable to separate herself from him emotionally. She was not just a nurse watching a teenage boy die, she was a mother watching her son.

“Clear” The Doctor closed his eyes for a second when there was again no response. Melissa knew he would only try a limited about of times. The Doctor once again placed the paddles against Stiles’ skin. The shock pulsed through Stiles’ body.

Then Melissa heard the best sound she had ever heard in her life.

The sound of a heartbeat.

- N x