Agony (Sequel to Hunger)

Chapter Twenty-One

A/N: You're going to need a hundred boxes of tissues. I apologize. Really, I do. I'm so so so sorry. I feel terrible. I suffered too, though. I cried writing this chapter. I cried so much. 

BUT DON'T WORRY BECAUSE THERE ARE PLENTY MORE CHAPTERS AND A LOT CAN HAPPEN. 

Stiles

I'd never felt this much worry in my life, and that was saying something. The numerous times I thought Derek was dead, or going to die, none of them compared to this feeling because at the moment, it wasn't just Derek. It was Derek and Ben, two of the most important people in my life and I wasn't sure if they were okay. Derek claimed that he could safely bring Ben back, but I wasn't so easily convinced. He had this look on his face that said he didn't even believe it, which wasn't a good sign. 

I waited outside Derek's apartment, tapping my foot impatiently. I wanted to do something, but I didn't know how to help. I couldn't go see my dad because I would end up falling apart and breaking down, and I didn't want him to worry any more. If he found out Ben was missing, he'd be trying to get up and out of his bed, trying to get back into his uniform to find his grandson. He didn't need to be moving around. 

The wind blew past and made me shiver. It was already cold enough without the wind chill. A few small snowflakes had even hit the ground, but they melted immediately. I wanted to bury my face in my hands and just scream, but I didn't. I took deep breaths instead, trying to calm myself. I was freezing, but I wasn't moving until I saw either Derek, or Ben. 

"Daddy?" a small voice called, somewhere near. I looked around, eyebrows drawn together in confusion. "Daddy, where are you?" That was Ben. I knew what Ben sounded like, and that was him. 

"Ben?" I yelled, shooting up off the ground. Ben came around the corner of the building, his face stained with tears and sweat. "Ben! Oh my God, are you okay?" I asked as I ran over to him, immediatly dropping to the ground so I could face him. His clothes were muddy and torn in places, like he'd been running from something. "What happened?"

"My other father. The bad one," he sniffed, wiping at his nose with his sleeve. "He took me somewhere and wouldn't tell me why. Then he made me leave and he said-" Ben paused, sniffing again as his tears started rolling down his cheeks. "He said he was going to kill both of you. Derek too, even though he left. He can't kill him, because he's not here. All we have to do is run away, right daddy? We can find dad, can't we?" 

I hugged him close, even though he was getting my shirt dirty with his tears and snot. It didn't really matter. All I wanted to do was comfort him. "Your dad came back last night, Ben. He left to go find you, because he loves you. He loves both of us, and I'm not going to let Aaron hurt him, okay?" Ben nodded against my shoulder and squeezed tighter. "I'll take you back to grandpa-"

"No!" Ben argued, pulling away from the hug, his eyes wide. "I wanna find my dad! I miss him, daddy. Please, let me go with you? I know where Aaron is." 

I shook my head slowly, pushing the hair out of his eyes. "Ben, you know how dangerous Aaron is. I don't want you to get hurt. You and your dad are everything to me, okay? I need you to stay safe with grandpa." I started to stand up again, but Ben tugged me back down by my sleeve. "Ben, please, just listen to me."