Stiles can remember the first time they cuddled, the way Derek wrapped around him like a big blanket and completely swallowed his body whole. It's summer, but the nights are cold in Beacon Hills and Stiles is as good at holding body heat as a piece of ice. He's cold and trying not to shiver but Derek can tell, and Stiles can tell that he can tell. So he just scoots a little closer to maybe absorb some of that incredible werewolf heat but there isn't really anywhere to go on the small couch that Derek is way too tall for but he knows Stiles had always wanted to lay down and watch movies with him so he does.

Stiles doesn't expect the arm wrapping around him and he flinches, expecting a hand around his throat or a knife in his back because life isn't so sweet and simple, except this time it is. Derek just pulls him against his chest and the sound of The Lion King seems so distant suddenly and all he can hear is the blood rushing in his ears. Derek nuzzles the nape of his neck, Stiles can hear him breathe in his scent and hum softly. It's warm and perfect and his dad works the graveyard shift so he just soaks it up, closes his eyes and rolls over to face Derek, forgetting about the movie completely.

Derek doesn't seem to mind, even pulls the blanket off the back of the couch to wrap them up together like a little love burrito. Stiles snuggles closer and peeks up at him just a little before curling up against his chest like a scared rabbit, and Derek chuckles at that; Stiles can feel it vibrate through his chest and it makes him shiver again. It's the most perfect sound, deep and warm and rich and about as rare as brown sheep in Minecraft.

They fall asleep like that, right there on the couch, and when Stiles wakes up it's to the sound of his father's voice. Derek is long gone, the couch cold and vacant where he used to be, but the blanket is wrapped tight around him and he can still feel where Derek's stubble scraped against his cheek when he kissed him before he left.

It's four years later and the kids are alright. Beacon Hills a lot less like a beacon now and everyone's all grown up, some married, some engaged. Stiles and Derek have their own apartment now, and the rings on their fingers tell so much. Stiles feels grown up but Derek says he looks the same, but he likes that, and Stiles agrees that he likes the little bit of salt-and-pepper Derek has sprouting in his beard. It's still scratchy against his cheeks when they kiss and it still makes Stiles weak in the knees like he's seventeen again.

The bright Spring sun comes through the window above the sink, the kind Stiles had always wanted, and it catches the angles of his face all in the right places and Derek falls in love again. He grabs his face and kisses him even though Stiles' hands are covered in soapy water and he squeezes the sponge a little too hard because that kiss still gets him. Stiles laughs and smiles that stupid smile, and that's all he does anymore, and Derek hates it because it just makes him love him even more.

Stiles kisses his neck and whispers that he loves him, and Derek says it back like it's the most honest truth he's ever told. Derek can hear the lump in his throat when Stiles says 'I know' and kisses his neck again, can feel the bits of moisture on the ends of his long eyelashes and he hates himself. Hates himself because he knows it's still like a fairytale for Stiles to hear that from him. It's a fairy tale because it took so long for Derek to say, and even though he apologizes even now, Stiles always says it was worth the wait, that he'd keep waiting if he had to. Stiles says he always knew Derek loved him, and Derek believes him.

They kiss some more even though Stiles' hands are wet and completely ruin Derek's shirt when he grabs the front of it and mewls, and the couch is so much closer so by the end they're cuddled up together like that summer night, and Derek's whispers are sweet and real and if Stiles could get any closer without fusing right through him he would. Stiles falls asleep to Derek whispering a lullaby to him that his mother used to sing him about rabbits and wolves, and it's the sweetest sound he's ever heard.

Three more years and an apartment becomes a house, and two turns into four. Derek can hear the little feet no matter where he is in the house and he likes that because he always knows where they are and Stiles never has to worry. Stiles likes to call them pups and even though Derek pretends to think it's ridiculous Stiles can see through his ruse and knows he thinks it's cute, too. Derek makes a comment about litters and Stiles pinches him, because he wouldn't want anything but their twins.

They only smile as they hear feet running down the stairs, and somewhere along the line Claudia trips and Peter helps her up, but they don't stop. Stiles is in the living room and Derek is in the kitchen, and when Derek walks in his has children hanging from him like he's a coat rack, Peter up by his shoulders and Claudia around his waist. Peter is pulling at his hair while Claudia climbs him like a jungle gym, and Derek walks like he has kittens on him. Stiles looks up and laughs and Peter jumps from Derek's shoulders and into his lap, smiling like a loon.

Derek dislodges Claudia and sits down next to Stiles and he looks at them, his family. It's whole again and the sound of Peter's laughter fills him as Stiles tugs at one of his "puppy fangs" and howls. He looks at Claudia who's smiling at him so big, like she's looking at the most wonderful thing and it takes Derek a few beats to remember that this is his child and she's supposed to think her dad is perfect and amazing.

They have Derek's eyes and Stiles' smile, but Peter's covered in Stiles' beauty marks while Claudia has Derek's jet-black hair. Claudia gives him a big hug and he squeezes her, squeezes her like she'd vanish if he didn't, and Peter his laughing again as Stiles lays him down on his lap so that his head his hanging over his knees while he kisses him silly. He pushes his shirt up and blows on his belly, and Peter squeals and wiggles around and Derek calls him his little piggy.

Derek looks down at Claudia and he sees so much of Stiles in her, and even though she's still young she already has Stiles' nose. It's just the right size and turns up just a little at the end and he grins at her and she knows what's coming. He tells her he's going to get her nose, and she squeals not much unlike her brother, and Derek leans forward and nips right at his favorite part, where it turns up just those few centimeters. She giggles and clasps her little hands over her nose and he pretends he can't get through them, nibbling on little fingers.

Claudia rubs her cheek on Derek's stubble and he lifts her up into the air, throwing her up and catching her as she comes down. She laughs just as loud as Peter, and Derek swears the only sweeter sound comes from Stiles on late nights.

Autumn's not like New York but it's how Derek always remembered it, and he promises he'll bring Stiles up north to watch the leaves change. Derek is getting the twins ready to go over Pop Pop's for Thanksgiving and Stiles watches from the door, smiling while he twists the ring on his finger. He plays This Little Piggy Went to Market with their toes and chases them around the room, the "big bad wolf" capturing them and tossing them onto their beds.

Stiles rubs his eyes with a flannel sleeve and tells himself he's not crying, but Derek looks over because he can smell the salt and Stiles just smiles because that's just what it is, happy tears. He's happy because Derek's fears of parenthood are completely gone, and he's become the amazing dad Stiles knew he would. Somehow he knows Derek can sense that when he turns back to the twins, maybe it's the hint of a smile on his lips or the gleam in his eyes, but Stiles just knows.

When they get to the retired sheriff's house the twins practically take him down when they jump on him, but he catches them and squeezes them tight. Scott is there with Allison, and Melissa, too. Stiles always feels horrible because their twins were a strange miracle and he knows Scott wants his own, but Allison can't and it's heartbreaking. But it's like family, like it's always been, and it's small and a little strange, but it's perfect.

The dinner table is full for dinner time, the room filled with conversation and laughter. They finish in time to watch the rest of the football game, and Claudia falls asleep in Derek's lap while Peter is in Stiles', wide-eyed and bushy-tailed even though he doesn't understand the mechanics of football. The McCall's leave shortly after the game is finished, and the Hale's not long after that. They wave goodbye to Pop Pop, and Nana, too, even if Melissa isn't their biological grandmother.

When they get home they each put one to bed and Derek sings them his mother's lullaby. They share a toast with an expensive wine Derek picked up on the way back, and Stiles scratches Derek's beard until he's whining like a puppy. They both have off the next morning so they take hold of their night, their room warm and filled with soft coos and whispers.

Christmas morning is bright and beautiful with the nip of cold winter but lacking the snow, and even though Derek only lived in New York for a short while on bad terms he still misses the white winter. But California is home, and Stiles is there so he'd never leave.

Derek knows the peaceful morning won't last and he can hear them running down the hall before they even get there, but Stiles and Claudia and Peter pounce on him, and it's like he lives with three children inside of two. One of the twins, he's not sure which, is biting at his ear, tugging on it like a lion cub. He figures it's Peter when Claudia starts telling him to get up and nuzzles up under his chin, Stiles' lips are what pries his eyes open.

Stiles is still a little fresh from sleep, his cheeks a rosy pink and his hair messy. He's smiling and his eyes sparkling, and Derek falls even more in love with him. They kiss again and Derek sits up, pulling his family into his arms and hugging them. He holds them, kisses them all, before he puts a twin on each shoulder and gets up, carrying them downstairs with Stiles in tow.

The Christmas tree is just as enormous as it was when they got it, the piles of gifts almost reaching the kitchen. Derek lets the twins down and they make a path through the presents for daddy and papa. They sit on the couch and watch them tare through their presents, and even though they said they weren't going to buy each other anything this year they both cheat. Derek gives Stiles a necklace that looks like it's worth more than their house, but the Rolex he gave in return didn't exactly look cheap. At some point Stiles asks where they're going to put it all, and Derek just laughs and kisses him.

The phone rings and it's Scott, and after exchanging merry Christmas' Scott practically shouts into the phone about their unexpected gift. Stiles nearly cries and Scott definitely cries, and Allison has to take the phone to continue the conversation, even if she does get choked up, too. The Hale family congratulates them before they hang up, and when the twins find out they're going to have a cousin they nearly burst out of their seams. Stiles and Derek each scoop one up and exchange kisses, and the twins make noises of disapproval that their giggles completely negate.