If he was being honest with himself he knew this wasn't going to work, he was a barely 17 year old scrawny teenager with about 0 sex appeal chasing after a 20 year old guy that looked like he could be a Calvin Kline model.

Thing was despite the fact that he had about zero chance, he was kind of addicted. He wasn't sure what it was, it might have been the eyes, or the stubble, or the smile that he sometimes coaxed out of the guy. But it was overall, overwhelmingly addicting. He couldn't make himself stop. Which was crazy because he knew it was going to end in heartbreak. On his end obviously.

But he ended up here over again, sprawled over Derek's couch or sitting in his kitchen or various places around his property. Trying to wear him down with pure charm and bad pick-up lines.

"Did you know they changed the alphabet? They put U and I together." "No they wouldn't Stiles." Had been his response. And ouch, that one had hurt a little bit but after a while he kind of got used to the rejection.

He would put on his most charming smile, sometimes pull out a wink, say things like, "Are your legs tired? Because you been running through my mind ALL day long." And "Do you have a boyfriend, because I am available." Only to receive responses like "my legs don't get tired, and no I don't." usually followed by a roll of his eyes and Derek walking in the other direction.

Stiles wasn't sure why he didn't just give up. He pegged it on being addicted, and really when you think about it as a teenage boy there were a lot of worse things he could be addicted to. Like meth. He could be addicted to meth and not the striking green eyes of the local alpha werewolf. Which admittedly probably wasn't the healthiest addiction either because he was sure one day he would press too far and Derek would snap on him.

But hey, it hadn't happened yet and he had about a bajillion and one more pick-up lines to try.

"I miss my teddy bear…Would you sleep with me?" he had gotten a smile out of that one, it was fleeting but there was a smile, and when he got home later there was a small bear on his bed. Which he named Dere bear. A fact that nobody in the entire universe would ever know because it was just too sappy to be allowed to be true.

Sometimes it seemed to Stiles like he was addicted to the actual rejection. Because after a while he thought that was really all he was getting out of it, getting shut down, over and over, and over, day after day, week after week.

"I'm new in town, could I have directions to your house." Which admittedly wasn't a very good one, had received a smirk, "Stiles? We're in my house, and you've lived in beacon hills since you were born. I remember." And on the upside it was rejection but it came with information, Derek knew him when he was little. Something he didn't know. But of course in Derek's mind he was still little. Which was really stupid because he was going on 18 now. Only a few more months.

He got a little more blunt as he went on, craving the smiles that had become more frequent as of late. They weren't the annoyed smirks they had once been. He might have even ventured to call them fond. But you know, not the fondness that Stiles looked at his little cousin Natalie with. At least he hoped not because that would just be awkward.

"Can I flirt with you?" he asked one day, arm slinging over Derek's shoulder. The touching was a rather new development. Something he just realized he was allowed to do, actually he wasn't really 100% sure he was allowed to do it yet but everyone in the pack was becoming progressively more touchy as they grew closer so, he figured he might as well just jump on the bandwagon. "You do, every day." Derek replied, with that fond smile. And Stiles counted that as a win, Stiles Stilinski 15, Haters, well they still had like 200 rejections to hold against him, more actually because a smile wasn't an acceptance it was still a rejection. But whatever. He had 15!

"I just want to be loved - is that so wrong?" had come a few days later, it wasn't so much of a pick-up line as complete and blatant honesty. He wasn't even working for a smile this time, he was kind of just thinking out loud. Half of him acknowledged that Derek was there. And the other half of him just wanted someone to know he wasn't just kidding. He was serious.

"We all love you Stiles." Had been Derek's response, and ouch. That one had really hurt because if that wasn't rejection what was? He pretty much just asked him to love him and his response had been that the pack loved him. As family. Like a little brother. Which was all Stiles ever was, to anyone.

It was pretty much the same thing Lydia had told him when he finally stopped chasing after her at sixteen, "Stiles, hon, I love you, but you're like a little brother to me. I just couldn't go there."

Same underlying message really.

Stiles had stopped after that. He had admired from afar, he was still addicted to the stupidly perfect eyes, and the stupid hair that somehow never got messed up no matter what kind of crazy stunt they were pulling. Sometimes he wondered if it was a werewolf thing because Isaac's never seemed to get messed up either. But point being, he was still addicted. He still found himself seeking out Derek's presence unconsciously. Only, now he just didn't do anything about it.

He would casually slip out of the room when he found himself face to face with Derek, because he just didn't want to be anymore. He couldn't, because he figured he was just annoying him. And he knew from the beginning he was just going to get himself broken. He knew it, and now he just had to deal with it.

And he did, for a while he made it almost till his birthday. He almost made it to the point where he could up and leave if he wanted to. He wouldn't, because people here needed him but it was the point. It was the fact that he could that made it better. He almost made it to freedom.

"You're avoiding me." It was the first thing Derek had said to him in three and a half weeks, and there was no possibly way that he could deny it either. Seeing as he hadn't been exactly subtle about his avoision. He honestly had walked into a room, seen Derek and turned on his heel and walked in the other direction.

So he just nodded.

"Why"

He shrugged, because it wasn't like he really needed to explain. Derek should already know, it wasn't like he was being subtle about It., and it wasn't like Derek hadn't made his rejection pretty obvious. It was only a matter of time before he realized it was a lost cause and gave up on chasing him.

"Stiles."

He shrugged again, "there's only so many times you can get rejected before you just have to stop putting yourself through it." He replied, "because being stomped on time after time apparently isn't enough for my feelings, cause they just won't go away and it's easier to just not talk to you then to be around you because I'm going to flirt with you, and you're going to give me that stupid look like I'm an adorable five year old chasing after someone way out of his league. Which I get it, I am, but it doesn't make it any easier." He said rubbing his hand at the back of his neck in an attempt to will the blush down that he was sure was now filling his cheeks.

He was about to leave when Derek replied, "I was flirting"

Which wasn't true, couldn't possibly be true. Because Stiles had run through every situation in his head over and over again and Derek had never ever flirted back.

"I smiled." He supplied and he couldn't deny that, he did smile. Which he didn't do all that much around everyone. "I told you we love you." He said and Derek looked so confused it was hard for Stiles to argue with him. But he did.

"Yeah, that's the point Derek. You told me that "you" all of you, as a pack love me. And I'm well aware that everyone loves my goofy sidekick, loveable little brother self. That wasn't what I was talking about. I love you. I love you like sappy movies and teenage girls with crushes on guys way older than them, like freaking merlin loved Arthur, and like Scott loves Allison, and like my mom loved my dad! Not like you love a fucking puppy, or like I love my cousin Natalie. That wasn't what I meant!" he said exasperated, his heart was beating erratically but steady.

Derek frowned, and Stiles nodded, taking it as just yet another rejection. Because he had just proved he was addicted to them. He had just probed he should have walked away a while ago; there was no way Derek wanted him at all and he had just freaking screamed a love confession at him.

He frowned shoving his hands back into his pockets and turning to leave, thinking maybe he would go somewhere else when he turned 18; he had gotten into Chapel Hill in North Carolina. He heard the weather there was nice. Supernatural occurrences were to a minim, might even find a guy in his league.

He took a breath, willing himself to walk out the door, "Stiles" he stopped. And he really wasn't sure why because he was positive nothing good could come from continuing this conversation. But regardless he turned around, face to face with the thing he couldn't seem to let go.

"Could I get some directions, to uh… To your heart."

A really stupid grin plastered itself over Stiles' face, "that is the worst pick up line I've ever heard sourwolf." He replied stepping closer and wrapping his arms around his shoulders, foreheads so close they were almost touching. "Really, I thought 'did it hurt when you fell from heaven' might have beaten it" he replied with a smile leaning forward to kiss him.

Stiles smiled, "you're really bad at flirting sour wolf." He said when he pulled away moments later, breath labored. "I've got time to practice" he replied sealing their lips together again.