Monstrous ➳ Dunbar

[ in which he has PTSD ]

The next morning, Sydney found herself sitting in the gym at Beacon Hills High, wearing a pair of black skinny jeans, Liam's over-sized hoodie, and her black combat boots propped up on a fifty pound weight. Her hair was pulled up into a messy bun, with a few strands hanging down over the side of her face, and her mouth gaped in a yawn as she struggled to stay awake. After being drugged and almost burned alive by a group of assassins the night before, Sydney didn't even bother putting on concealer to hide her daunt skin and the dark bags that were under her eyes. She barely remembered anything from the night before, apart from Liam beating the crap out of the guy who was getting all touchy with the girl and later on waking up with her clothes and hair soaked in gasoline. And to top it off, she woke up feeling like complete crap, and she began to wonder why she had ever been jealous of people who were able to experience hangovers- as what she had experienced that morning felt pretty close to a hangover.
"That is a lot of weight." Sydney was pulled out of her sleep-deprived daze as Mason spoke almost pessimistically. Her gaze drifted over to Liam, who was only just laying down on the bench press, which just so happened to be loaded with over three-hundred pounds of weights.
"I have got to get ready for the game tomorrow," he stated flatly.
Mason pursed his lips, obviously just as bothered by Liam's odd behavior as Sydney was. "You need a spot?" He offered, motioning towards the three-hundred pounds that were loaded on the bench press.

Liam laid back, his eyes rolling in their sockets as he wrapped his hands around the bar. "No, do you?" He retorted rudely, causing Sydney to slam her head against the wall behind her. She brought her legs up onto the bench in front of her, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her chin on top. She would have much rather been at her house, only just now getting out of bed at the sound of Stiles' obnoxious singing coming from the bathroom. But instead, she was stuck in the gym at the school an hour before she was even scheduled to arrive.
"This is my warm up, you ass," Mason defended, holding up the ten pound weights that he was currently lifting. Rolling his eyes, he set down the weights beside Sydney, sending her a small smile before stepping behind the bench press. Liam laid back, his hands gripping the bar tightly, though he froze as he noticed Mason standing behind him.
"Wait, what are you doing?" He questioned rather impatiently, lowering his hands once more.
"I'm spotting you," Mason replied in a monotonous voice, raising an eyebrow at his best friend.
"I said I don't need one," Liam snapped, sitting up completely and glaring at the boy behind him.
"Are you kidding me?" Mason scoffed, his words laced with disbelief. "This is like three hundred pounds. You're gonna kill yourself."
"Do I look like I need help?" Liam asked stubbornly, crossing his arms over his chest. Mason glanced behind him, his eyes locking with Sydney's as she only groaned in disbelief, before looking back at his best friend.
"Yeah, man." Grabbing his bag off of the bench beside her, Mason shot one last glare in Liam's direction. "You do need help."
Letting her eyes fall shut at the sound of the door slamming behind her best friend, a sigh fell from Sydney's lips as Liam continued on as normal. "You shouldn't push him away," she advised slowly, stifling yet another yawn that threatened to fall from her mouth.
"I'm not pushing him away," Liam droned, flexing his muscles as he grabbed on to the bar once more. As she sighed again, he lifted his head, his eyebrows pulled together and his face scrunched in a look of guilt. "I'm sorry for being an asshole."
Not letting herself be fooled by his stupid blue eyes and the way his bottom lip stuck out in a slight pout, Sydney crossed her arms stubbornly. "Asshole is, like, your number one mood, isn't it?" She deadpanned, pursing her lips as Liam laid back on the bench press once more.
"I guess so," he agreed flatly. "I'm sorry."
"Maybe you should tell Mason that, see if he believes you." Grabbing her backpack and slinging it over her shoulder, Sydney stood up. She ran her hand through Liam's sweaty hair as she passed him, though kept a blank look on her face. "I'll see you later, Dunbar."
She turned to follow Mason's footsteps out of the nearly empty gym, though froze as the sound of struggling met her ears. She turned around quickly, running to Liam's side as several groans of pain fell from his mouth, struggling under the weight of three hundred pounds pressed against his chest. Wrapping her hands around the cold metal bar, she lifted it off of the boy's chest and rested it on the latch above him. Couching and groaning, Liam sat up, smiling thankfully at her before resting his head against her stomach. Pursing her lips, Sydney ran a hand through his sweaty hair, the sounds of the pairs' hearts racing almost simultaneously filling her ears.
"What the hell." At the sound of her best friend's disbelieving voice, she whipped her head around. Scott and Mason stood in the doorway of the gym, their eyes wide as they stared at the scene in front of them. Mason's lips were parted as if he were fighting to find the right words to say, staring at the girl who had just lifted three hundred pounds off of a boy like it was nothing.

>>

After deciding to grab their stuff for their first class early, Sydney walked beside Liam down the empty freshman hallway. The boy's heartbeat was still racing rapidly, his eyes still wide in shock after what had just happen only minutes before in the weight room. Despite desperately wanting to, Liam didn't hold her hand, as he always did when the couple walked down the hallway together. He could feel the annoyance coming off of the girl is waves, and he suddenly felt guilty for being such an asshole. He wanted nothing more than to feel her warm, small hand entwined with his, though he knew he would have to make up for his actions before he could do that once more.
Liam stopped short, his breath hitching in his throat, as his eyes landed on a figure standing at the end of the hallway. He almost immediately recognized the bony body and the long, claw-like fingers of a Berserker- the sound it made was unmistakeable as it turned its dark, haunting gaze onto the pair.
"You're not there," he spoke through gritted teeth, closing his eyes and hoping that when he opened them once more, the hideous monster would be gone again. "You're not real."
"Liam?" He barely heard Sydney's soft voice in his ear as the girl stepped in front of him. "Liam, are you okay?"
The boy's eyes opened once more, and she recoiled a bit as she came face to face with the glowing beta yellow- so unlike his usual, soft blue eyes. His shoulders heaved as he breathed heavily, muttering the same words over and over again underneath his breath.
"You're not there."
Without really thinking, Sydney pushed his against the nearest wall, placing her hands on his chest and pressing her lips to his. Almost immediately, Liam's hands found their way to the sides of her neck, where he gripped gently. Letting herself melt into the kiss, she relived the feeling that had grown to be one of her favorites- the shaking fingers, the light-headed, the butterflies in her stomach, and the odd feeling of warmth she felt in the pit of her stomach whenever her lips touched his. She pulled back after several moments, her eyes fluttering open as she stared at the boy in front of her.
"Better?" She asked breathlessly, keeping her gaze focused on Liam's naturally pink lips.
"Much." He smirked and licked his lips, pulling her closer to him and reattaching their lips. Never knowing exactly what to do with her hands, Sydney found herself wrapping them around Liam's neck, her fingers tangling themselves into his hair almost naturally.
The pair pulled away at the sound of an awkward cough, coming from beside them. Her arms still draped around Liam's neck, Sydney turned to look at Mason as he leaned against the wall.
"Not to interrupt or anything, but-" he paused and pursed his lips, running a hand over his short hair. "I'd like to know what the hell happened back there. I mean, Sydney you lifted that weight- which was nearly three hundred pounds, by the way- like it was nothing. Are you on steroids, too?"
Her lips pulling into a frown, Sydney stepped away from Liam and shrugged rather awkwardly. "I've been working out." She said it as more of a question than a statement, glancing at Liam for backup as she did so. Mason reached out and grabbed her small arm in his hand, holding it up and cocking an eyebrow.
"Oh, yeah. You definitely have some guns there, Sydney," he agreed sarcastically, nodding. "Remind me not to compete in an arm wrestling competition with you." He suddenly dropped her hand, his face pulling into an annoyed look as he looked between the pair. "Seriously, what the hell is going on with you two?"
Liam pursed his lips and looked at Sydney. "She's on steroids," he stated with a nod.
Clearly fed up with their actions, Mason rolled his eyes. "You know what? Come talk to me when the two of you are done keeping secrets."