Forever and Always (Sciles)

84: Struggling to Cope

Scott POV

On this particular Thursday afternoon, something finally changes, pulling us all out of our stunned stupor of sorts. John, Moselle and Kara finally return from Atlantia. Well, that's what Mom just told me anyway. Apparently, John, Kara and Moselle are on their way over here right now. Mom just got off the phone from John and is now standing in front of Stiles and I, as we are sitting on the sofa in the living room.

"Really?" Stiles asks hopefully, obviously excited to see his dad again. I then see his expression crumble.

"I-I can't let him see me like this!" Stiles exclaims with a squeak, sounding terrified.

"Why?" I frown worriedly at him.

"Because... I don't want him to... well, you know, uh, I don't want him to know that I can't see anything." Stiles stammers nervously, fiddling with his fingers and looks down at the floor. My mom and I exchange a sad look with each other before I shuffle closer to Stiles and Mom sits on the other side of him.

"Stiles, honey, listen. Your dad won't be angry with you or anything just because you have lost your eyesight temporarily, alright? He won't judge you. It wasn't your fault, nor was it your dad's fault." Mom assures Stiles firmly, squeezing his shoulder. Stiles doesn't look up from the floor.

"Are you sure it's only temporary?" Stiles asks in a weak and defeated voice. My heart breaks for him. He's starting to give up. I'm not anywhere near giving up yet, but I can understand why Stiles might feel a little hopeless. It has been days and he still hasn't got his eyesight back. Not even with his supernatural eyes.

"Even if it wasn't temporary, that is not going to change anything. Your dad will still love you and won't think of you any differently. Just like Kara and Moselle won't see you any differently." I try to encourage Stiles with a small smile.

"How do you know that?" Stiles asks, turning to the sound of my voice, almost directly looking in my eyes. He is getting better at finding out where people are by listening closely, which is a good start.

"Because the rest of us don't think of you differently, do we? We all love you for who you are, Stiles. It doesn't matter whether you can see or not." I reply in a confident voice. I also wanted to mention something about the whole love potion thing and how that hasn't changed our opinions on him either, but I decide against it, not wanting to accidentally upset Stiles more.

"I guess..." Stiles mumbles, not sounding like he really believes me.

"Stiles. I promise you. Everything will be okay." I assure him firmly before planting a kiss on his cheek. As I pull away, I notice his cheeks are starting to blush a little, which causes me to smile a little. I feel myself start to blush though when Mom looks over at me with a proud look. I quickly look away, feeling awkward, scared to know what Mom must be thinking.

"I hope so, Scott. I really do." Stiles sighs. I reach out and grab onto his hand gently, squeezing it comfortingly.

"Do you really think your Dad wouldn't love you or would think differently of you just because you're... You're blind?" I ask, hesitating a little, not really wanting to say the word 'blind'. It's a word that I never thought that I would associate with Stiles. "No, I guess not." Stiles shrugs.

"Then you've got nothing to worry about." I reply.

"If you want, Scott and I can explain to them what has happened. If that'll make it easier for you." Mom offers, still squeezing Stiles' shoulder gently. "Yeah, yeah that might be good. Thanks." Stiles replies gratefully. Mom nods in acknowledgment. "Of course." She says.