Ficlet: The idea of difference || G || eventual Stiles/Derek
Author: marishna
Title: The idea of difference
Rating: G
Pairing/s: Eventual Stiles/Derek
Character/s:Stiles, Derek
Summary:Derek eased the bathroom door open quietly, not sure what he was going to find. He looked around and couldn’t see anything but he could hear Stiles talking attached shower room. With a sigh, he padded into the room, peeked around the corner, and saw Stiles hunched over the farthest sink, shirtless.
Derek cleared his throat loudly and Stiles jumped. He clutched a bundle of fabric to his chest, a familiar pattern broadcasting one sarcastic witticism or another. Stiles seemed to have no end of them.
Warnings: N/A
Content Notes: College AU
Submission Type: Ficlet
Word Count: 980
Prompt: 243 - rose
Author's Notes:I envisioned this with a bit more padding and exposition but I couldn't make it to 1800 words for this part. I've got a rough idea for a fully-plotted fic around this so I'll see what I can do with it.
As soon as Derek heard the familiar voice float down the hall he closed his eyes and swore under his breath.
Stiles’ voice carried, even when he was trying to be quiet. Derek could hear his voice from the bathroom where, admittedly, things echoed but all the same it was after midnight and quiet hours were in play.
Derek flipped his book over to hold his place and slipped out of bed to grab a t-shirt. He tugged it on while he grabbed his master key and sighed as he left his room for his wing’s bathroom. As he approached the bathroom he could hear Stiles’ voice get louder, even though for him it was likely only a mumble.
Derek eased the bathroom door open quietly, not sure what he was going to find. He looked around and couldn’t see anything but he could hear Stiles talking attached shower room. With a sigh, he padded into the room, peeked around the corner, and saw Stiles hunched over the farthest sink, shirtless.
Derek cleared his throat loudly and Stiles jumped. He clutched a bundle of fabric to his chest, a familiar pattern broadcasting one sarcastic witticism or another. Stiles seemed to have no end of them.
"What are you doing, Stiles?" Derek asked tiredly. "Are you okay?"
"Derek, hey! Yes, I’m great! Right as rain, you could say. Yep, that’s me." Stiles nodded frantically and clutched his shirt closer to his chest. He had it bunched up and he was holding it with both hands so at first, Derek was sure he was just imagining it.
"Is... your shirt moving?" Derek asked as he zeroed in on one particular spot and--yeah, that was definitely movement. "Stiles, what is that? I swear, if you brought a squirrel or raccoon in here--"
A tiny fuzzy kitten head popped up from Stiles’ hands and let out a weak, plaintive cry. Stiles frowned down at the animal while and tried to tuck the shirt around it better.
"You can’t bring that in here, either," Derek warned.
"You’re right," Stiles replied and for once Derek thought that finally, Stiles was going to do something without arguing with him or deliberately poking back at him, pushing Derek to the edge of his own sanity.
That’s how it felt most of the time, anyway.
"I can’t bring it in here; my roommate is allergic. You, on the other hand..."
Derek’s eyes widened and he shook his head before he realized he was reacting. "No, no I can’t. You have no idea how much I can’t."
"Look at her, Derek," Stiles crooned lowly, walking over to Derek so he could get a better look at the kitten. "I found her all alone under the bushes outside, the thorny ones?"
"The roses?" Derek asked drily to which Stiles just waved his hand.
"Whatever. She’s too young to be on her own, Derek. Look at her. She’s only about two weeks old, look at her eyes. They’re barely open."
"How do you know that?" Derek asked skeptically even though he can tell that Stiles is right. There’s no way this kitten was anywhere near close enough to take care of herself.
"I texted a pic to my friend Scott in the vet program. He’d take her but he lives off campus with his girlfriend and they’re both in school. He can’t take her to the school because they’re not a shelter but if we take her to a shelter they’ll put her down, anyway," Stiles pleaded.
Derek frowned, drawing his eyebrows together in a way that his older sister used to tease him about when he got too serious about anything. "What are you asking, Stiles?"
"Please help me get her through the next couple weeks until she’s old enough so we can find her a home. We can keep her in your room and I’ll take shifts to feed her," Stiles proposed hurriedly.
Derek snorted. "Shifts? You think I want to wake up every couple hours to feed a cat I don’t want and that isn’t even allowed in this building, let alone being raised in someone’s dorm room?"
"Derek, please," Stiles outright begged. He shoved the bundle of fabric with the kitten swaddled within into Derek’s arms. He was momentarily distracted by the sight of Stiles’ lightly defined chest and happy trail leading down...
Derek blinked and shook his head, even as he cradled the kitten to his own body. "Stiles, I can’t."
"I think we could call her Rose," Stiles plowed on. As Derek opened his mouth to protest the kitten, Rose, mewled pathetically and reached with a slow paw stretched toward his face. It landed on his chest and tiny pinprick-like hooks scratched against his skin.
Derek sighed and Stiles grinned. "Do you even know what you’re doing?"
Stiles tried to scoff for a second, then held up his phone. "Scott’s already texted me some instructions."
Five minutes later Derek sat stiffly on the edge of his desk chair while Stiles sprawled out on his floor with some makeshift supplies until Scott could get him proper ones. He managed to snag a pillow and blanket from his own room and Derek was staring at him, trying to put together what was happening.
"Are- are you sleeping here?" Derek asked.
Stiles gave him an obvious eye roll. "You said you didn’t want to wake up every two hours."
"I just meant... not for every feeding?"
"Fine, I’ll take the first one, you can take the one in four hours, cool?"
"I could come get you," Derek tried but Stiles shrugged like it was no big deal. For him anyway.
"Too much trouble. We’ll get through it!"
Derek swallowed hard as Stiles’ words echoed in his mind to the rhythm of Rose’s purring.
Title: The idea of difference
Rating: G
Pairing/s: Eventual Stiles/Derek
Character/s:Stiles, Derek
Summary:Derek eased the bathroom door open quietly, not sure what he was going to find. He looked around and couldn’t see anything but he could hear Stiles talking attached shower room. With a sigh, he padded into the room, peeked around the corner, and saw Stiles hunched over the farthest sink, shirtless.
Derek cleared his throat loudly and Stiles jumped. He clutched a bundle of fabric to his chest, a familiar pattern broadcasting one sarcastic witticism or another. Stiles seemed to have no end of them.
Warnings: N/A
Content Notes: College AU
Submission Type: Ficlet
Word Count: 980
Prompt: 243 - rose
Author's Notes:I envisioned this with a bit more padding and exposition but I couldn't make it to 1800 words for this part. I've got a rough idea for a fully-plotted fic around this so I'll see what I can do with it.
As soon as Derek heard the familiar voice float down the hall he closed his eyes and swore under his breath.
Stiles’ voice carried, even when he was trying to be quiet. Derek could hear his voice from the bathroom where, admittedly, things echoed but all the same it was after midnight and quiet hours were in play.
Derek flipped his book over to hold his place and slipped out of bed to grab a t-shirt. He tugged it on while he grabbed his master key and sighed as he left his room for his wing’s bathroom. As he approached the bathroom he could hear Stiles’ voice get louder, even though for him it was likely only a mumble.
Derek eased the bathroom door open quietly, not sure what he was going to find. He looked around and couldn’t see anything but he could hear Stiles talking attached shower room. With a sigh, he padded into the room, peeked around the corner, and saw Stiles hunched over the farthest sink, shirtless.
Derek cleared his throat loudly and Stiles jumped. He clutched a bundle of fabric to his chest, a familiar pattern broadcasting one sarcastic witticism or another. Stiles seemed to have no end of them.
"What are you doing, Stiles?" Derek asked tiredly. "Are you okay?"
"Derek, hey! Yes, I’m great! Right as rain, you could say. Yep, that’s me." Stiles nodded frantically and clutched his shirt closer to his chest. He had it bunched up and he was holding it with both hands so at first, Derek was sure he was just imagining it.
"Is... your shirt moving?" Derek asked as he zeroed in on one particular spot and--yeah, that was definitely movement. "Stiles, what is that? I swear, if you brought a squirrel or raccoon in here--"
A tiny fuzzy kitten head popped up from Stiles’ hands and let out a weak, plaintive cry. Stiles frowned down at the animal while and tried to tuck the shirt around it better.
"You can’t bring that in here, either," Derek warned.
"You’re right," Stiles replied and for once Derek thought that finally, Stiles was going to do something without arguing with him or deliberately poking back at him, pushing Derek to the edge of his own sanity.
That’s how it felt most of the time, anyway.
"I can’t bring it in here; my roommate is allergic. You, on the other hand..."
Derek’s eyes widened and he shook his head before he realized he was reacting. "No, no I can’t. You have no idea how much I can’t."
"Look at her, Derek," Stiles crooned lowly, walking over to Derek so he could get a better look at the kitten. "I found her all alone under the bushes outside, the thorny ones?"
"The roses?" Derek asked drily to which Stiles just waved his hand.
"Whatever. She’s too young to be on her own, Derek. Look at her. She’s only about two weeks old, look at her eyes. They’re barely open."
"How do you know that?" Derek asked skeptically even though he can tell that Stiles is right. There’s no way this kitten was anywhere near close enough to take care of herself.
"I texted a pic to my friend Scott in the vet program. He’d take her but he lives off campus with his girlfriend and they’re both in school. He can’t take her to the school because they’re not a shelter but if we take her to a shelter they’ll put her down, anyway," Stiles pleaded.
Derek frowned, drawing his eyebrows together in a way that his older sister used to tease him about when he got too serious about anything. "What are you asking, Stiles?"
"Please help me get her through the next couple weeks until she’s old enough so we can find her a home. We can keep her in your room and I’ll take shifts to feed her," Stiles proposed hurriedly.
Derek snorted. "Shifts? You think I want to wake up every couple hours to feed a cat I don’t want and that isn’t even allowed in this building, let alone being raised in someone’s dorm room?"
"Derek, please," Stiles outright begged. He shoved the bundle of fabric with the kitten swaddled within into Derek’s arms. He was momentarily distracted by the sight of Stiles’ lightly defined chest and happy trail leading down...
Derek blinked and shook his head, even as he cradled the kitten to his own body. "Stiles, I can’t."
"I think we could call her Rose," Stiles plowed on. As Derek opened his mouth to protest the kitten, Rose, mewled pathetically and reached with a slow paw stretched toward his face. It landed on his chest and tiny pinprick-like hooks scratched against his skin.
Derek sighed and Stiles grinned. "Do you even know what you’re doing?"
Stiles tried to scoff for a second, then held up his phone. "Scott’s already texted me some instructions."
Five minutes later Derek sat stiffly on the edge of his desk chair while Stiles sprawled out on his floor with some makeshift supplies until Scott could get him proper ones. He managed to snag a pillow and blanket from his own room and Derek was staring at him, trying to put together what was happening.
"Are- are you sleeping here?" Derek asked.
Stiles gave him an obvious eye roll. "You said you didn’t want to wake up every two hours."
"I just meant... not for every feeding?"
"Fine, I’ll take the first one, you can take the one in four hours, cool?"
"I could come get you," Derek tried but Stiles shrugged like it was no big deal. For him anyway.
"Too much trouble. We’ll get through it!"
Derek swallowed hard as Stiles’ words echoed in his mind to the rhythm of Rose’s purring.