Since the ship I've supported since about season 4ish is about to set sail, I thought I ought to write a little something to commemorate it.

Summertime Memories

Malia yawned loudly and stretched her arms out. She looked at her clock and sighed when she noticed it was almost 12. She should probably get ready. After all Scott would be here soon. Normally she'd just sleep in on a Saturday but Scott had been pretty adamant the day before.

"I'm so happy for you!"

Malia raised a brow at Scott's toothy grin. "Happy that I can finally sleep in instead of waking up so early?"

"No," He chuckled. "I'm happy you passed high school!" In one quick motion he had his arms around her, lifting her off the floor and swinging her in the air. "You did it!"

Malia wasn't sure what the big deal was about passing high school, but she returned the hug nonetheless. Lately she'd been enjoying his warm embraces a little more than she probably should. But she chucked it up to being relieved he hadn't gone away like Stiles and Lydia. Since he'd gotten into UC Davis that meant he was still close.

"Why don't we celebrate?" Scott suggested, cutting her thoughts. "You know what, we are going to celebrate."

"Now?" Malia groaned. "Scott I just finished boring math. I'm really not in a celebrating mood."

"Hmm, okay. Tomorrow then. I'll pick you up around one so don't forget."

"Wait, hey!" She called out as he began leaving her porch, grin still plastered on his face. "Where are we going tomorrow?"

"It's a surprise, you'll see! We're going to have a blast!"

Malia couldn't help but chuckle at the memory. Hopping off her bed she began getting ready. A knocking at her door had her quickly putting her boots on.

"Hey!" He greeted cheerfully, donning one of his famous hoody shirts he seemed to have plenty of. "Ready to go?"

"Sure, I guess," She answered, following him to the familiar Jeep parked on her street. It'd only been close to two months since they'd graduated, but Malia felt like it had been centuries. She never had anyone stick by her post coyote life, not like the pack did. Which was why it bothered her so much to be away from them.

She wished she could go back to the days of pretending to listen to Lydia's math lessons, they bored her to tears, but she wanted to go back. She missed seeing Stiles' eyes light up at the prospect of adventure, they never ended well, but she missed those days. She wanted to look over her shoulder and catch Liam making out with Hayden, it made her gag, but she'd welcome it now.

Perhaps that was why she clung to Scott's presence like a lifeline. And he made sure to be around her as much as he could, picking her up after her summer classes had ended, texting her constantly any other day, not a day went by where they didn't communicate. It made her wonder if he felt a bit lonely too.

"So I've got a big day planned out for us," Scott spoke as he started the engine.

"This thing sure has seen better days," She commented as it took a few moments to start. "Shouldn't we have a better squad car by now?"

"Hey come on, don't even think about getting rid of it. This is our getaway car, our batmobile, our Scooby Doo van. It's iconic Malia!"

"Relax Scott, I was only kidding. So, what are we doing today?"

"Thought you'd never ask! I've got a lot on the agenda. In fact we've made it to our first stop!"

Malia eyed the extremely bright sign. "An arcade? Aren't we a little too old for this?"

"Nah!" He replied before grabbing her wrist and leading her inside. "Besides, I know for a fact you probably haven't been to one in years, so I thought it'd be fun."

His sweet gesture mixed, with the fact that he was still holding her hand, had her cheeks reddening. The truth was she'd never been to an arcade. "To be honest, I've never been to one before."

"What? Never?" He asked in surprise, which quickly turned into a smile. "We'll in that case let's go all out! Me and Stiles used to come to this place every day!"

And so eagerly he led her towards one of the machines.

"What's this?"

He smiled. "It's Ms. Pac-Man!" Without skipping a beat he sat her on the chair. "All you have to do is collect all the dots on the field, while simultaneously dodging the ghosts. Just try and beat my high score!"

Malia narrowed her eyes. "Is that a challenge? Okay you're so on!"

"Good luck, I've gotten all the way to level 45."

"Level 45?" She gaped. "How many levels does this thing have?"

He paused to think. "Not sure actually. It's the biggest myth but some say there are an infinite amount of levels. Others say there's a glitch that stops you from passing level 255 without it crashing."

Malia smirked. "That myth is about to be tested."

She spent the next thirty minutes in vain trying to get to the supposed end.

"Oh come on!" She snapped as the annoying death tune played out. "These stupid ghosts are cheating! How can they possibly know I'll be popping out of that side?"

Scott laughed from over her shoulder. "Some run away from you and some chase you. Anyway it wasn't bad for a rookie. You made it to level 38!"

"I wanna go again! This time I'll beat your score."

Scott grabbed her hand again and led her away. "We'll be here for hours Malia. There'll be other days. Now it's time for the bumper cars."

"Bumper cars?"

"Yeah, it's exactly what it sounds like."

Pretty soon the two were climbing onto the car. The way Scott had explained it to her was that all she had to do was crash as many people as she could. Easy stuff.

That is, it was, until the session began and cars began colliding with her like she'd killed their dog. One of the little boys mockingly stuck his tongue out at her. And that was when she snapped.

Her blood began boiling and her eyes glowed.

"Uh... Malia?" Scott nervously said when he heard her growl. "Are you— Whoa Malia!" He shouted abruptly when she'd slammed her foot onto the pedal, ramming onto one of the other cars.

Malia was relentless; her eyes had already landed on her target: the boy in the red car. She slammed passed a yellow car, sending them crashing to the wall.

"Malia chill out!" Scott cried out as he clung to her for dear life.

But if she heard him she didn't show it. Pretty soon the entire arena was aware of the 'crazy girl' in the green bumper car, and began parting like the Red Sea. Which was good for them, Malia had no bone to pick with them. The red car was her prey. For a moment she was back in the forest again, deer in sight and a need to satiate her hunger.

Malia was very aware of the timer above the wall which was nearing zero. She swerved passed one of the cars and vaguely noticed Scott was praying. The seconds were wearing thin, making her grip the steering wheel tightly. A wave of satisfaction coursed through her veins as she pummeled the red car, sending it whirling in a circle like an uncontrollable tornado.

"Hah! Not so tough now are you pipsqueak!"

The buzzer rang then and one of the staff was glaring in their direction. The next few seconds were a blur. One second she's in the car, and the next Scott is scooping her onto his arms and making a beeline for the exit. He only set her down when they'd reached the parking lot.

"Holy crap that was close," Scott muttered as he caught his breath. "Man I hope you didn't just get me banned for life."

Malia eyed him quizzically. "I do something wrong?"

"Let's just go before these guys run our plates!"

The last thing he needed was to go on a speed chase with the cops. Although Scott suspected she'd outrun them.

... ... …. …. ... ... ... …. …. ... ... ... ….

"Alright, we're here!"

Malia stepped out of the car to examine the amusement park in front of her. She could see the tall roller coasters and hear the hustle from a mile away. Once upon a time she'd gone to something similar. Of course being a kid she was too much of a wimp (and too short) to ride the roller coasters. Now they were priority number one.

This time she was the one who grabbed Scott's hand and dragged him forward. "We're getting on the tallest, scariest roller coaster of them all."

"Huh? Already? Aren't you hungry? Actually," He stopped to ponder that. "On second thought it'd be best if we don't eat. Don't want you puking on me."

"As if I'd puke! Just you watch, I won't bat an eyelash."

Scott was smiling ear to ear at her enthusiasm. She'd been a little depressed lately and it hadn't escaped him. He was delighted to see her back to her usual self. These types of days were pretty rare with them so it was safe to say he was savoring this moment to the fullest. It wasn't every day they got to kick back.

The line was humongous, as expected.

"This sucks," Malia said with a frown. "At this rate we'll be here forever!"

"You sure you want to go on this ride Malia?" Scott asked, eyeing the many turns and loops on the roller coaster with a bit of fear. "It's a bit of a tough one to kick things off with."

"Don't be a scaredy cat Scott. I'll be here to protect you."

The way she put it made Scott think she probably felt he was scared the roller coaster would sprout legs and attack him. The concern was pretty cute but he'd never admit it.

Almost forty minutes later and it was finally their turn.

Malia was bouncing in excitement. "Ooh dibs on the front seats!"

"The front!?" Scott repeated incredulously. "Damn nothing scares you does it?"

"Nope," Malia replied. Once the gate opened she dragged him towards the front. There was already someone there but one hard stare was enough to send the guy for the hills. "Nice! Move it Scott we don't have all day."

Reluctantly he sat beside her. He was beginning to get cold feet but there was no turning back now. He only hoped he didn't puke. That would just be really humiliating and he did not need that.

"Come on, hurry," Malia muttered impatiently while they slowly made it up the tracks. Then the fun part came as they dove to the bottom at such a high speed. That was when Scott decided to shriek in horror.

"This was a bad idea!"

She grabbed his hand. "Just hold my hand!" Honestly he was such a baby. "And if you puke I swear I'll toss you off this thing!"

Thankfully Scott heeded the warning and made it to the end without losing his stomach. But he was still a bit dizzy so she continued holding his hand even after they had exited, not that she really minded.

A few minutes later and he was back to himself. "Well that was pretty cool. Wanna get something to eat?"

"Yeah, I'm starving."

"Sweet, me too."

"I could really go for some deer. Think they have?"

"Eh... I'll be sure to ask."

They walked towards the food stands. Much to her delight he hadn't removed his hand. So they walked a good distance hand in hand. To any onlooker they most certainly looked like a couple. Which oddly didn't bother her as much as she thought it would.

He gave her hand a little squeeze and smiled. "Just hang here and I'll get us something."

Malia nodded and took a seat on one of the benches. All this excitement had her stomach growling. There was something else fluttering in her stomach, but effectively she chose to ignore that. Suddenly her nose wrinkled when she picked up a familiar scent.

"Fancy seeing you here!"

Almost on instinct she shot daggers at the smirking teen in front of her. "The hell do you want Theo?"

"Easy on the hostility, can't a guy enjoy himself?"

"Why don't you get lost. You're the last person I want to see."

As expected he ignored her to take a seat right next to her. "So, didn't know you and Scott were a thing."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" She retorted a little too defensively.

"Do I have to spell it out for you forest girl?" Theo smirked when he knew he'd pressed her buttons.

She frowned. "We're not a thing."

"Oh really," He said looking unconvinced. "What was up with the hand holding?"

Malia's jaw dropped slightly and she blushed, causing his infuriating smirk to grow.

"Don't look too embarrassed I thought it was adorable."

She was about to punch the chimera but that was when Scott had arrived.

"Sorry Malia but they're fresh outta deer! So I—" Scott stopped mid-sentence when he noticed Theo sitting beside Malia. He frowned slightly at how Theo had his arm swung casually behind Malia. Thankfully she was leaning forward and looking uncomfortable.

"Scott!" Theo waved at him. "Nice day right?"

"Yeah... What are you doing here Theo?"

"Same as you two! I'm just enjoying the day." He stood from the bench and patted Scott's shoulder, wiggling his eyebrows "I'll be going now. Three's a crowd after all."

"Good riddance." Malia spat.

He waved at them and threw a teasing smirk over his shoulder. "Enjoy the date you two!"

"Wait we're not— this isn't..." Scott fumbled for words, deciding to just drop it as Theo had already disappeared into the crowd. He chanced a glance at Malia who looked equally as embarrassed as he was.

"Remind me again why we didn't kill him?" Malia asked sarcastically.

"Forget about him, let's eat." Scott said and pulled out the burger and fries from the bags.

"These are really good. Not as good as deer but it's really good."

Scott chuckled, relieved the atmosphere hadn't gotten too awkward. He didn't want to admit how much it bothered him to see Theo so close to Malia, or how much what Theo said about them being on a date kept playing over and over in his head.

Because this wasn't a date at all. It was no different than when he hung out with Stiles. Heck, he'd even hung around with Lydia on occasions, that didn't mean it was a date.

But somehow being around Malia felt different. It didn't feel anything like when he was with Stiles, or Lydia, or even Liam. Those were all strictly just hanging out. This was so completely different and he didn't know how he felt about that.

"Scott? Hey Scott are you even listening?"

"W-What? Oh sorry I just zoned out." Mentally he kicked himself for getting lost in thought. "What were you saying?"

"I was asking you if you wanted to try your luck out on some games, obviously after we finish eating."

"Hell yeah, let's go for it!"

They headed straight for the many booths set up once they finished their eating.

Scott grabbed one of the paintball guns before tossing her one. "Just to let you know I'm friends with Chris, this'll be an easy win for me."

"Don't count on it."

In their first try the two had hit a bullseye on every target. This led to trying five more times and a whole crowd staring in awe. With all the prizes they'd won they actually had to donate some to random kids. Their fan base only increased when Malia won an arm wrestling contest against some 200-pound looking guy.

Pretty soon everyone wanted a selfie with the 'super couple' as they'd been dubbed. Somehow they were able to lose the crowd by ducking behind the popcorn stand.

"Are they gone?" Malia whispered.

Scott peered over the counter and nodded. "Yeah, but just in case," He rummaged his bag of prizes and pulled out two masks he'd won. "Here, put this on."

She scoffed at the eagle masks. "We'll totally look silly. It beats being annoyed for... what was it called?"

Scott couldn't help but laugh. "Selfies."

Malia cringed. "Yeah that."

"Want to get some ice cream?"

Her eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. "You bet your ass I do!" Ice cream was something she loved as a kid. Even once she'd returned to her human self that didn't change.

The sun had already set when they got their ice cream. A sudden noise popping in the sky caused them to look up.

"Fireworks!" Scott grinned as he lifted his mask.

"They're so beautiful..." Malia murmured, entranced by the vibrant colors. The dazzling sparkles, mixed with the orange skies, even the sounds had her transfixed.

When Scott's gaze fell on her he found himself unable to look away. She'd also removed her mask making the colors reflect on her features, illuminating her brown orbs. Her hair glowed along with the lights. The sight was truly mesmerizing.

"Yeah... beautiful."

And standing there, ice cream in hand, it began dawning on him. He began to realize, truly realize, why it irked him so much seeing Theo too close to Malia; he began to understand why being with Malia felt different to when he was with anyone else.

These new discoveries scared the crap out of him more than any ride ever could.

"It's melting you idiot."

Scott blinked. "Huh?"

"Your ice cream."

"Oh!" Quickly he began devouring his ice cream. It was much better than thinking.

"Easy hot shot, you're going to dirty your shirt. Then people would think you were the one raised in the wild."

He laughed nervously, the awkward feeling from before slowly creeping back up. "Right, yeah."

"Hey, are you okay?"

Scott nodded vigorously. "Of course why wouldn't I be?"

She leaned extremely close to inspect his face, sniffing a bit. "I don't think you're fine. You seem jittery."

He quickly pulled away, blushing and cursing himself for not teaching her about personal space. "Seriously, I'm fine Malia! Really! Now I'm sure you're tired, so I'll take you home."

"Now that you mention it," She stretched her arms over her head, failing to see him checking her out. "I am pretty beat. Let's head home."

Scott was beyond relieved at her approval. He needed to get some sleep. The exhaustion was clearly affecting his head and making him think stupid things like how muscular her arms were, or how perfectly curved her body was, or how her shirt had lifted a bit, showing him a glimpse of her smooth skin and giving him an almost animalistic urge to run a hand over it.

The car ride home was quiet, not the awkward kind but the pleasant one. The breeze was relaxing. They made it to her house around nine and he was glad her dad was working a late shift. A confrontation was the last thing he needed. Especially when he didn't even know what was what.

"Well, here we are," Malia began as they reached her porch. She turned to him and smiled. "Thanks for today Scott. I had the time of my life. And I have enough plushy toys for a lifetime."

This made a warm feeling course through him. He was the one making her smile. It was then he remembered something important. "Oh wait up! I almost forgot!"

"Huh? Forget what?"

"Just stay here!" He headed back to the Jeep and pulled a paper out, before jogging back to her. "This isn't the real thing, and I know you haven't received your diploma yet, so..." He scratched his head nervously, wondering if this was a good idea or if she'd just laugh at him.

"Huh? What are—"

Her words were cut off when the paper was shoved in front of her face.

"I made you a diploma!"

"You made me... a diploma?" She asked in confusion.

He gulped. Here goes nothing. "You don't receive yours until Monday so I thought I'd make you one. We couldn't celebrate without one."

Malia took the paper off his hand. It was a pure white printing paper that read: Congratulations on passing high school! Super proud of you! There was even a thumbs up drawing below the words as well as his signature.

Her eyes widened. She was rendered speechless. Her heart pounded against her chest. In that precise moment time froze, everything gradually faded, except him. Except his paper, her diploma.

Scott averted his gaze, taking her silence as his cue to leave. "I know, I know, it was pretty lame and stupid. Look, just forget—"

Suddenly her arms flung around his neck, so abrupt that the force had them falling to the grass.

"Thank you Scott," She murmured into his neck. "Thank you for picking me up after classes ended; for texting me in the middle of class to make sure I never slacked off; for taking me out; for giving me a diploma. Just... Thank you for staying with me."

Scott nuzzled his head against hers and wrapped his arms around her waist. "And you know I'll always be by your side. I'm never going to leave you Malia."

She relished the feel of his strong arms around her, before rising to her feet. "You have to present it to me! Otherwise it won't be like the real deal."

Scott nodded eagerly. "Yeah you're right! Damn it if only we had a cap or something..."

"I know!" Malia exclaimed while she dug in her bag, eventually pulling out a ridiculous hat she'd won after winning the arm wrestling contest. "We could use this!"

"Hahah nice!" Scott said with a laugh. He then held the paper up, coughing dramatically before starting. "I'd like to present this diploma to Malia Tate. She went beyond what some people thought, and completed summer school. For that I think she should be proud. Many may have thought she'd flunk out of it but she didn't. As for me, I knew better, I knew she'd be able to do it."

Malia was grinning so hard she feared her face might get sore. Happily she took the diploma. "Thanks." To her this was better than any boring graduation ceremony. This moment belonged to her, and him, and no one else.

"Well, I'm gonna go now. You should get some sleep."

"Scott wait!"

Scott turned back curiously. "What's up?" His eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly when he felt soft lips on his cheek.

Malia pulled away, smiling shyly. "Come back here tomorrow."

Scott rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Yeah, sure."

With that he walked back to the Jeep, bumping into it in a daze. Realizing this he got in and gave a wave before driving off. His head was in the clouds; his heart was fluttering; and he just couldn't stop smiling!

What he didn't know was that Malia was feeling the exact same things.

Author's Notes

I was so compelled to write something after seeing the trailers. Tragically there's so little written about these two. Anyways I'm going to happily bask in my beautiful ship that will be departing real soon! Feel free to climb aboard!