Stiles is missing.

Stiles is missing and Derek is going out of his mind. He'd already been to Stiles' room; he turned the whole damn place upside down looking for something, anything that would give him a hint as to where Stiles might be.

He's the alpha. He's supposed to protect his pack, keep them safe. Especially the humans. Especially his mate.

God, his fucking mate.

Stiles has been missing for exactly four hours and sixteen minutes and Derek can feel his sanity slipping away minute by minute. He's useless. Stiles hasn't come home and he's can't do anything until he gets a lead, a scent, anything.

Stiles is missing and Derek won't be able to breathe until he's safe in his arms again.

"Fucking hunters, man." Stiles spits out. "Do your fucking research, asshats! You'd think werewolf hunters would be able to tell if someone was ACTUALLY A WEREWOLF."

He gets a fist to the stomach for that, the force of it making the chair he's tied to rock unsteadily.

He's getting too old for this shit. Well, he's only 19, but still. This is starting to get ridiculous. Stiles just want to be back home with his pack and not (once again) kidnapped by incompetent hunters.

He misses Derek.

Jesus, he's fucking pathetic. It hasn't even been that long. He thinks. He can't really tell, but it couldn't have been too long.

He wants to be eating curly fries and kicking Scott's ass in Mario Kart. He wants his legs to be propped up on Derek's legs, not chained to the floor of someone's stereotypically eerie basement.

He misses the way Derek would subconsciously tap out Stiles' heartbeat onto his legs.

He just wants them to come get him so he can go home.

Stiles shuts his eyes and thinks about the way Derek's face lights up when he laughs. He thinks about how it feels when they twine their fingers together when they're alone, when Derek lets his guard down.

Stiles hears the hunter interrogating him ask a question, but he doesn't bother to answer. He gets two broken fingers for his insubordination. That won't take long to heal. One of the many, many perks of being mated to an alpha.

Still hurt like a bitch, though.

Come find me, he thinks desperately.

Please find me.

Derek is pacing back and forth in front of the betas, fists clenched in frustration. "There has to be something!"

He realizes he's been shouting and can't bring himself to care.

"Derek, we'll find him. I know you're worried. We all are. Just calm-" Scott tries, but Derek shoots him down with a deep-throated growl. Like hell he'll calm down.

Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump.

The second he hears it, nothing else matters. Everything around him falls away.

Thump-thump.

Stiles.

He doesn't realize he's said it outloud until Isaac speaks up. "What about Stiles?"

Derek unclenches his fists, smiling for the first time in hours. "I can hear him. I can hear Stiles."

And without further explanation, he takes off running in the direction it's coming from.

He hears the betas following him and runs faster, knowing they'll catch up. He stops in front of an old department building, taking in the smashed windows and overall creepy aura radiating from it. Stiles probably rolled his eyes when he first saw it. Even Derek is resisting the urge to.

Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump.

"The kid's not talking, Jerry. I beat this kid within an inch of his life and all he does is mouth off." He hears from inside, and Derek bristles. They're talking about Stiles.

"Then we kill him. By the time the rest of his pack gets here, he'll be dead, and we finish the rest off easy."

Derek growls low in his throat, and he hears the betas respond in kind. Derek knows the only reason they aren't charging in there is because Stiles' life is at risk. The alpha's mate is just as important to the pack as the alpha himself. A threat to Stiles' life is a threat to them all, and Derek rumbles with pleasure at the knowledge that these hunters won't be getting out of here alive.

Derek directs them through an already broken window close to the ground, presumably leading to the basement, where Stiles is. He drops to the floor gracefully, careful not to make a sound. He inches around the corner, spotting the two hunters. Pathetic, something inside Derek spits. Hardly worthy of the bloodshed.

He lets the pack deal with them, walking away from the sounds of tearing flesh and ferocious growls. Derek swells with pride at the last blood-curdling scream, mentally reminding himself to treat the pack to some downtime when Stiles is back home safe.

Derek follows the sound of Stiles labored breathing and counts each beat of his heart. When he reaches the door, he hears Stiles' heart speed up significantly, and a wave of anger crashes over him. He finds himself wishing he had at least gotten one good swipe in before setting the betas on those bastards.

When he walks in, Stiles doesn't look up. Derek can hardly look at his torn clothes, stained with blood and dirt.

"Stiles," He murmurs softly, and Stiles head snaps up.

"Derek," Stiles whispers, fear trickled away. "Oh my god, Derek."

Derek is over to him in a second, ripping open the chains cuffing him to the floor and slashing through the ropes tying him to the chair. The moment Stiles is free, he flings himself at Derek, completely disregarding his injuries.

Derek holds him close, listening to the steady thump-thump of his heart. He touches Stiles everywhere, running his hands along his hair, his sides, his legs.

Stiles is clutching him like a lifeline, and Derek is never letting him let go again.

"How did you find me?" Stiles asks him, face buried in Derek's shoulder.

"I could hear your heartbeat," He answers honestly. Stiles laughs quietly.

"How romantic," He nuzzles the hollow of Derek's throat, breathing out slowly. "Took you long enough."

Derek gently presses a hand on the back of Stiles' left shoulder, right over his heart.

"I'll always bring you back home to me," He promises. "Never forget that."

He feels Stiles smile against his skin. "Okay."

It's been a while since I last ficced, so there it is. I needed a fic somewhat related to Justin Timberlake's new song Blue Ocean Floor. It's my new Sterek song tbh. Sooo, review! I'd love to hear what you thought!

Leena x