Ayyyy! You clicked mah storeh! *whispers* I love you. *normal voice* Ok so this story will have a lot of flashbacks so if you're ever confused about anything, feel free to PM me. I also loooooove reviews! *hint hint*

The song used in the beginning, End This Way by FFDP, and Teen Wolf belong to their rightful owners. YOU HEAR THAT, MA? I OWN NOTHING.

OK so now Imma tell you a little more about this story. Derek is an Alpha, but he doesn't have a pack (Erica, Boyd and Isaac are not in this). There is going to be another main character that will be introduced later. I think you guys will like her :3

Deep inside I know what I am worth

A life on my own

It could have been much worse

But it should have been much better...

I know I'd hurt you, deserted you

And now I see it clear

You pulled me closer, tighter

'Cause I knew you'd disappear...

He sat alone upagainst the wall, right under that massive window in his loft. It was storming outside, the powerful rain spattered against the window like bullets but they never made a crack in the glass.

Bullets... Would be nice. Derek thought with a sigh as he pulled one leg up and left the other outstretched. How long had he been sitting there in the dark, listening to the rain? How long had he been sitting in silence, not speaking a single to word to anyone? Well... How ever long it was, his tailbone ached from sitting on the hard floor. He ignored the pain. Just like any other physical pain he felt, he ignored it.

However, there was always something he couldn't ignore. He couldn't ignore the psychological pain, the deep ache that had been growing deeper and deeper with every passsing day. He couldn't ignore the memories that flooded with it... He couldn't ignore the anger, or the guilt, or the lies that constantly churned in his heart, mind and soul, the soul he was sure was damned.

"What's even up with that guy?" Derek would always hear people ask. "He looks like he hasn't slept in days... Maybe he's just having a bad day... But wait, isn't that Derek Hale? The guy who's family died in that fire? ... He should just leave. He obviously can't deal with life here..."

He couldn't stand the fact that people always talked aboout him everywhere he went in that damned town. Everyone knew each other; everyone knew about his history. But they didn't know the truth. They didn't know that it was his fault his family perished. They didn't understand that every day of his seemingly useless life, he lived in grief and anguish. And they sure as hell didn't know what he was.

Derek smirked slightly at their ignorance. They all thought they knew everything about him when really, they were missing all of the key details. One of those details: He's a werewolf. But not just a werewolf. An Alpha.

Memories of the night he came back to Beacon Hills flooded through his mind. Derek tried pushing them off, he tried to focus on anything that would keep his mind off of the only thing that felt real. But, just like everything else he tried to do, he failed. The memories played through his mind's eye as if he were watching a movie. Everything was so vivid... So real.

The soft crunch of the autumn leaves under his black and white converse sounded with every step he took through the woods. The moon was the only thing that was providing light, but he was able to see well enough, given he was a werewolf and he had the eye sight of a hawk.

Worry had long seeped through his body and mind. When Laura told him she was going back to California to protect the town from a mysterious werewolf that was killing people, Derek immediately objected.

"You can't be serious, Laura! You're gonna go back to a place that we are supposed to forget and leave behind, and you're going to hunt down a wolf that is killing people. I can see the last part. You want to protect them, but this isn't our problem anymore. How the hell are we supposed to start new if you go back?"

The older wolf sighed and looked up at her brother. She may have been older, but Derek had at least five inches on her. "Beacon Hills is our home, Derek. No matter how much we try to run from it, it will always be there. As for forgetting about our past, our lives, we can't. We can't just act like it didn't happen. Come on, little brother. I know you're smarter than this."

Derek growled lightly and looked off to the side, staring at the wall of the apartment they shared. "This is bullshit. We left that place behind. Why can't you just ignore it and live your life?"

"You know I can't do that! And I know deep down, you want to help them just as much as I do. You're just too afraid to go back to the place that you would call Hell. The truth is, Derek, I don't want to go back either. But I'm still Alpha Hale. It's my job to protect Beacon Hills wether I like it or not. Mom and Dad sure as hell would do this, so why shouldn't I?"

He stared down at his sister, wishing she wouldn't be so damn logical. She was like their uncle in that sense, which really bothered him. He missed Peter... He was his best friend. For a while, Derek blamed him for Paige's death. He figured if they were not so close, he wouldn't have trusted him and allowed him to convince him so easily. But Derek soon realized that it was his own fault that his first love was killed... Not his uncle's. He was the one who agreed to have her bitten. He was the one who snapped her spine. Not his uncle.

"Whatever. Do what you want. But I'm not coming with you. I can't be there..." Derek sighed, shoving his hands in his pants pockets. He would give reason as to why he didn't want to go, but Laura was his Alpha and his older sister. Of course she knew what was going on with him.

Laura's voice dropped low and comforting as she slipped her arms under his and hugged him. "You can't feel bad about this forever, Der... You were young and you were still... Messed up... From what happened with Paige. You didn't know any better."

Derek didn't respond, he didn't even hug her back. All he could think about was the crushing feeling in his chest and the tears that threatened to water his eyes. He kept them back. He wasn't going to let Laura see him tear up... He hadn't cried since his family died and they were on the plane to Brooklyn. He swore to himself then that he wouldn't shed anymore tears. Hales don't cry...

"Derek..." She hugged him tighter.

He sighed lightly then puts his arms around his sister and returned the gesture. "You don't have to worry about me, Laura... I'll be fine. I know that it's all done and over with, so what's the point in dwelling over it anymore... Right?"

She pulled her arms from him and took a step back, smiling slightly. "Yeah. Now I just need you to believe it."

Derek nodded, glanced around the room briefly then looked back at his sister. "Well... You should get going. It's a long way to California."

He cut himself off there. Thinking about the day his sister left Brooklyn led to him going back to California to find her, which led to finding her...

Derek shook it off and pushed himself up off the floor, feeling that ache in his tailbone escalate to a dull burn. He walked a few feet forward to the desk, relieving the pain. He sighed and looked around the empty loft, save his bed, desk, clothing cabinets in one corner next to the large window and the dark hallway, or hole in the wall really, that led to the kitchen if he were to go left and the bathroom if he were to go right.

The loft felt so... Hollow. Like it were missing something. He knew what it was, but he felt guilty bringing it in. However... Like always... He did it even though he knew it was wrong.

Derek slowly walked up to the nightstand next to his bed and picked up the photo frame he held close to his chest every night. He played a small smile at it, lightly brushing his fingertips over the girl in the photo.

Florence...

She was sitting in the front seat of his car, the door open. She smiled happily at the camera, just like always... She was always smiling around him. How he loved that about her. How even though she had been through hell two years prior, Florence was able to get up, dust herself off then run to him and hug him. He wanted more than anything to share all of his secrets with her. Well, he wanted to tell her the truth of what he was. He didn't want to tell her about his past... He wanted to bury that and not let her in on it. He wanted to shield her from it, not let her know that's she's playing with fire. But then... It was wrong. It was wrong to hide all of that from her and he knew it... But he couldn't let her go. He loved her.

Derek smiled a bit more. He may have been alone at the moment, but he knew somewhere in the city, probably at her mother's house considering she didn't live with him and she didn't have her own place yet, Florence, the girl he loved with all of his heart and soul, his mate- although she didn't know that- was alive and breathing, full of love and light.

She was his exact counterpart. When Derek looked at her, he saw his world. He saw the person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. But when he looked in the mirror... He saw the person who would probably break her. He saw the man who would crush her soul... Possibly be the reason she meets an early demise.

But no matter how bad he felt, no matter how guilty he was, he couldn't stay away. He couldn't bring himself to make her leave... He sure as hell couldn't be the reason she felt utter heartbreak. Derek knew deep down that she loved him. He could see it whenever he looked into her eyes, could hear it whenever she told him so.

His heartbeat quickened at the thought of her calling out his name, smiling and laughing.

"The way you make me never ceases to astound me..." Derek mumbled under his breath as he continued to stare at her photo.

A knock came from the door.

His head snapped up to the heavy steel and instinctively went back to the state he was usually in... When she wans't around. His eyes darkened as he set the photo down on the nightstand, and he frowned slightly.

What do you want now, Scott... He thought as he quickly walked up to the door and pulled it open. He was about to growl at whoever was knocking at his door, but he stopped short when he saw no one. A milisecond later, right as he was tilting his head down to check the floor, small arms wrapped around his left thigh and hugged him tightly.

"What the f-"

"Hey! Watch your mouth around my nephew!" He heard a very familiar voice call out to him as she walked down the hall to his door, carrying a small round container in one hand with a plastic bag over it and her purse held in the crook of her arm.

Derek looked up and saw the very person that brought light to his world. His heartbeat quickened and he smiled. "Florence."

The short brunette, whose hair and clothes were wet from the rain, quickly walked up to him and snaked a single arm around his waist, looking up at him, while her other hand held out the object. Derek didn't even have to ask what it was. He could smell the scent of the cream cheese frosting and red velvet cake. Of course. Of course she would bring a cake on that day of all days... He would just ignore it.

He always thought his sisters were short compared to him... But Florence was short. While he stood at 6'1, she came up to his shoulder.

He looked down at the little boy, who was still hugging his thigh. "You must be Colven. Florence told me all about you."

Colven blushed and let go of Derek only to hug his aunt's hips. "Aunee Flower..." The two-year-old giggled, "You alway tell people 'bout me..."

Florence smiled down at her nephew. "Of course I do. You're so cute!" The boy only blushed and smiled more then looked up at Derek.

"Aunee? Is this Cuddly Puppy? Because he doesn't look so cuddly..." the toddler's voice was quiet and shy.

Derek looked up at his girlfriend with a raised eyebrow. Florence only giggled and looked back at him while speaking. "Yes, this is him. But he really is super cuddly."

Colven didn't dare make direct eye contact with him. He only smiled then ran past he and Florence and into the loft, quickly looking around the area. "Wow! Aunee Flower, thi' place is so big! But i's dark in here." The two-year-old expressed his excitement by running up to Derek's bed and running around it a few times before he crawled underneath the desk.

Derek and Florence followed him inside, the short brunette smiling at her nephew's behavior and Derek's expression as he flipped on the light switch, illuminating the loft.

"Oh cheer up, Mister Grumpy Gills. He's two, soon to be three tomorrow."

"I know..." The werewolf responded as he stopped a few feet away from the desk and watched the toddler.

Colven then ran out from under the desk and jumped on Derek, wrapping his arms arround his waist and his legs around his knees.

"Well you sure are hyper... I think I'm going to call you Colt."

"Wha's a colt?" Colven looked back and forth between the two adults.

"A baby horse. They're usually rambunctious and hyper," Florence stated.

"Like you," her boyfriend implied with a slight smirk as he grabbed the boy by his sides then planted him on the ground.

"Colven," Florence spoke up as she pulled a box of crayons and a small notepad out of her purse, "why don't you go sit down at the desk and color?"

The two-year-old smiled and ran up to her, grabbed the crayons and paper then went to the desk. Derek eyed him for a moment before turning to look at the short brunette. "Someone comes prepared."

"I have to... I mean you see how hyper that kid is."

"Yeah..." The werewolf glanced at the plastic bag-covered container in Florence's hand, figuring she had forgot about it. However, just as the universe always seemed to be conspiring against him, she turned her back to him and he heard a series of ruffling noises.

The girl quickly turned and held the cake out to him, a wide smile on her face. "Happy birthday!"

"Florence..."

"Don't you 'Florence' me. I baked this myself, with help from Colven. Now shut up and smile."

He couldn't help it. Well, he could, but seeing that light in her eyes brought out the side of him that no one ever saw, save her. A small smile tugged at his lips and he shook his head, glancing at Colven for a moment.

Derek took the cake and looked down at it. "Thank you, rabbit."

Florence smiled even more at him and giggled, "I'm not a rabbit. I'm a fox."

He walked over to the desk and set the cake down as he spoke, "Ohh." He turned to look at her since she walked up behind him and he placed his hands on her hips, pulling her toward him. "So you're my foxy lady?"

"Maybe I am," she snaked her arms around his neck, "maybe I'm not. What do you think?"

"What do I think? Oh I don't think... I know that you're mine."

"Is that so?" she tilted her head and stared up at him.

"Mhm. All mine," he mumbled as he leaned his head down and kissed her.

"Eww! Aunee Flower!" Colven exclaimed, shielding his eyes.

The couple broke the kiss, Derek smirking and Florence giggling. "Sorry, kid," he said.

"Tha's gross!"

"We won't do it again," Florence promised, causing the child to slowly remove his hands from his eyes. That's when he remembered the cake. Colven quickly glanced around the loft till his large hazel eyes fell on the very thing he was looking for.

Derek followed his gaze. "You want some?"

The two-year-old smiled happily and jumped in his seat. "Yes! Yes!"

He laughed and nodded. "Alright..." Derek made his way to the kitchen where he picked up two plates, forks and a knife. He then went back to the table and set the plates down, Colven running to his side.

"Hey," he tugged at Derek's shirt, "can I cut it?"

"No, baby, you're too young to handle knives," Florence cut in as she picked him up and put him back in his seat. Derek cut the cake and served a small slice to a very excited Colven.

"... I'm starting to wonder if giving him that is a good idea..." Derek mumbled as he watched the boy tear into the cake, getting frosting all over his face.

"Yeah... He is going to be so much more hyper... But hey, he's a kid," Florence stated with a smile. He nodded and looked at Florence, taking in her features. He could swear she got even more beautiful every time he saw her...

"So, what do you want to do for your birthday?"

"You know I don't celebrate my birthday," he said with a stern voice, although it didn't seem to faze her.

"Oh, what's that? You want to go get dinner and a movie?"

"What? I didn't say that."

"Hehe, we can do that too," she winked at him.

Derek crossed his arms. "Florence."

She mimicked him and copied his tone, "Derek."

He rolled his eyes and looked at Colven who had already devoured his cake. "You're not going to let me win this, are you?" he asked as he turned his attention back to his girlfriend.

"Nope."

He sighed and put a hand in his pants pocket. "Fine..."

Florence smiled happily and glomped him. "You act like your birthday is a horrible day."

"Because it is," he stated bluntly.

"No it isn't. You wanna know why?"

Derek stared down at her and raised his eyebrows.

She kept that brilliant smile as she told him, "Because September 11th, 1991 is the day the love of my life was born."

Warmth spread through his chest like honey. He smiled genuinely at her and picked up her right hand then kissed it before pressing it to his cheek. "I love you..." he mumbled quietly.

Florence held the back of his neck and stood on the tips of her toes, kissing him briefly. "I love you too, Derek."

Soooo how was it? Should I change anything, add anything? If you have any ideas, or if there are any songs that you feel ties to the story, please tell me! I will be wrapping a lot of songs to the story, for example the one in the beginning (check that song out, by the way. It describes Derek and Florence's relationship and you'll be able to get a good feel of things. Once again, the song was called End This Way by Five Finger Death Punch). Anyway, pleaaaasssseee give me reviews. It helps me out a LOT. You know you wanna :D