Chapter 7

Tessa is watching him with golden eyes. The contrast of her silver hair and gold eyes is stunning. He now knows that the band he felt is the pack bond. He hasn't felt that with the rest of the people he bit. The only bond he has felt was his dad, assuring him that the man is still alive.

He tears his eyes away from Tessa to look at Adam. Adam is still panting and now leaning against the wall, it seems like he is sagging down to the floor, and Stiles immediately understands why.

Black blood is starting to ooze out of his nose, ears, and mouth. Adam lets out a wet cough. Stiles is next to him within a second.

Tessa is on Adam's other side. Looking worried. Fuck. Adam called her his girlfriend. Stiles just killed her boyfriend. Fuck. This is going to be a bitch.

''Shit. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry,'' Stiles whispers. His beta form retreating.

''What's wrong?'' Tessa says while wiping some of the black blood off her boyfriend's face. Stiles can see and smell that she is crying, but she doesn't make a sound.

''The bite didn't take, not like it did with you,'' Stiles explains. Avoiding looking in her eyes.

''What does that mean?'' She asks.

Stiles bites his bottom lip before answering.

''I'm sorry, but he isn't going to survive the bite,'' Stiles says while wincing. Shit, what a cluster fuck.

''Alpha?'' Tessa says, and Stiles is forced to look up and look her in the eyes, his Alpha instincts kicking in.

''Is Alpha your name? Or what is it?'' She asks before looking down. ''Because I feel a little weird to say Alpha the whole time, it seems like a title.'' Tessa mumbles. Not removing her eyes from her dying boyfriend.

''It's Stiles,'' He rasps out, also looking at Adam, who is now struggling to breathe.

''Stiles, you aren't to blame,''

Stiles whips his head up to look at his new beta, her gold eyes glowing with determination.

''We can try to take his pain.'' Stiles grates out, his voice faltering for a moment, not expecting Tessa to not blame him. Why wouldn't she blame him?

''What do I do?'' She asks determined, and Stiles already feels pride coursing through him for his new beta. Stiles thinks back to when Derek explained it to Liam when the guy was just turned.

''Come on, let's do it together, grab his hand,'' Stiles says while doing the same with the other hand.

''Now concentrate, imagine taking away his pain and pull it in yourself. It will sting and don't get scared about how it looks.'' Stiles says before starting the drain himself. He flinches a little when he feels the pain. He had never done this before, but it seems to work. Adam is now slightly more relaxed.

Black vines are rising over Stiles's underarms. He was used to how it looked, but the stinging feeling made him even more appreciate what Scott or Derek did for him when he was in the hospital or just hurt.

He sees from the side of his eye that Tessa is draining Adam's pain now too. She seems to feel the pain sharply because her face is twitching.

''That's it—you're doing great, Tessa,'' Stiles reassures her.

''Tess - Tessa, stop.'' Adam rasps out, a little out of it. Stiles can relate. The whole pain draining is like a drug.

Tessa stops immediately and starts stroking Adam's cheekbones with her thumbs.

''Adam, I'm sorry, I should've listened, we never should've gone for that walk,'' Tessa says while her voice is breaking. Stiles wants to turn around, feeling like he is intruding in a private moment. But when he tries to pull away, Adam holds on.

''Don't - don't blame yourself,'' Adam says at Stiles.

''I'm sorry, dude, I really am,'' Stiles responds, feeling pained that he killed this young man.

''Not your fault, I was already - sick. I would've died - either way within - the next - six months,'' Adam says while in between gasps.

Stiles is startled for a moment before looking at Tessa. She just nods.

''Cancer.'' She mumbles as an answer.

''Take - care - of - her.'' Adam rasps out while squeezing Stiles arm as hard as possible.

''I - I - will,'' Stiles says while looking confused for a moment. Then Adam focuses on Tessa.

''You remember? What - I - said?''

Tessa seems to think for a moment before nodding.

''I remember.''

''Get - out, be free - from - everything.''

''I - I will try. Now rest, Adam.''

Stiles doesn't know why, but he kinda was expecting a love declaration. They were boy and girlfriend, right? When he was still with Lydia, he would tell her all the time how much he loved her when they got into dangerous situations. Until they broke up. They're still friends, but friends is all they are and should be.

Adam nods before coughing up black blood. He almost chokes on it, so much is coming out. Stiles tries to take more pain, but it isn't working anymore. He then helps Adam a little up, so he isn't choking on the black blood.

Stiles is now sitting behind Adam, holding him so he won't choke, while Tessa holds onto Adam's arm and rubbing circles on his hand. They keep seated like that for a long time. At some moments, Adam starts coughing violently, and other times he just draws in raspy breaths.

After what seems like hours, Adam starts choking again.

''Please - please - please,'' Tessa is chanting while tears are rolling over her cheeks. Stiles's heart is breaking for this girl who he doesn't even know.

''Sti-les, please, I can't - take - 't - n't - any'more,'' Adam now rasps out.

Stiles swallows back bile. He already knows what Adam is asking from him. His mind flashes back to the story Peter told him years ago about Derek and Paige.

''You sure?'' He says gruffly.

Adam is too weak to speak again and just slowly nods. Stiles looks at Tessa over Adam's head. Her eyes are glazed over, and her face has red spots from crying.

''You might want to look away.'' Stiles softly says, knowing that she will hear him.

''No, but please, do it fast.'' She breathes out. Stiles nods and puts Adam in a chokehold. He applies pressure and feels Adam's windpipe crush beneath his strength. He and Tessa wince from the sound. But the deed is done. Adam is dead.

Stiles slowly lowers him onto the floor. He is still kneeling next to him when he hears the heartbreaking sobs from Tessa.

She is trying to hold them in and has her arms tight around her chest as if she is hugging herself. His Alpha instincts kick in, and his wolf wants to help. Help her get through this, help her feel better.

He slowly brings his hand up, so she can back up if she doesn't want the contact, but she doesn't move. He then clasps his hand on the back of her neck. Something he had seen Derek do to the pack, calm them down with the comforting hand of an Alpha. It had helped Stiles more than once, certainly after the Nogitsune.

Tessa melts into the contact, and after a couple more sobs, she throws her arms around his neck and hugs him close. Stiles is frozen for a moment, not used to contact in the last six months, only used to violence. But it feels so good to finally hold someone again. He hears whining from somewhere and figures that he is the one whining, only because of a hug.

He then slowly returns the embrace and buries his nose in her neck. Taking a big sniff of her scent. He smells honey, coconut, and the electric smell of ozone. But underneath those scents, he smells pack, beta, home.

If this is how Derek felt after biting Isaac, he definitely understands why he was hell-bent on biting more betas and fast. He feels connected to Tessa in a way he has never felt. Not even with Scott. He never understood why Derek always said that it's different for humans.

But now he understands, he understands it because he now has his own small pack, with only Tessa. He just knows one thing, and that's that he will do anything to protect her.

The girl with silver hair and golden eyes, his beta, the girl he doesn't know, not yet at least. Tessa.