Part 1 of the Werewolf Stiles series.

Any other night being pressed against Derek's naked chest would be Stiles' idea of a wet dream.

This is a nightmare.

The sticky-slick warmth between them is blood, it's dark because they're trapped in a cave, the bare skin is Derek's attempt to keep Stiles warm as he bleeds out.

Getting to be close to Derek before he dies is a small measure of comfort.

"I have the hugest crush on you," Stiles says, his voice weak, his teeth chattering. "Wanted you to know, before—"

"You're not going to die," Derek says, voice clipped. His body is tense.

Stiles attempts a snort. He can feel his own blood draining away. "Weak human, remember. So. Crush. I have one. Liked you for ages, but you hate me—"

Derek's lips come down on his, hard, and Stiles' head is fuzzy and he thinks this is a weird way for Derek to get him to shut up, but Stiles is going to pretend it's a kiss, he's going to pretend this is really happening, that in an alternate universe Derek likes him back.

Then his lips are cold again, Derek's laying him back on the sharp rock floor, pressing his mouth over Stiles' heart.

"I've died already," Stiles says. "This is heaven." The cave floor is still digging painfully into his back and the hand pressed over the wound in his belly is doing nothing to stem the flow of blood. "Bad heaven."

Pain lances through him as the warm breath over his left pectoral turns to fire.

As quickly as it flares through him it's gone, and Stiles grabs Derek around the neck, digs his fingernails into bare skin."You bit me? I don't like you, I hate you. Death's not bad enough, you've gotta bite me, too?"

Derek lifts his head and a drop of something wet hits Stiles' collarbone. "I'm sorry," Derek whispers. "I couldn't let you die." There's blood on Derek's lips, Stiles can taste it because Derek's kissing him again, and when he stops, Stiles blinks up into the darkness before he passes out.

---

When Stiles wakes up, he thinks there must be light getting into the cave because he can see. The smell of old blood hits him so strongly he thinks he might pass out. Or throw up. Or both.

But he sits up, looks down at his stomach, and the wound is gone, the blood dried on his skin, but it's not scabbed over.

It's just gone. Healed.

He looks for Derek, finds him easily because all he has to do is follow the sound of his heartbeat. He's sitting on the other side of the cave, blinking at Stiles, face expressionless.

"You bit me, you bastard," Stiles breathes, but there's no malice in it.

"You were dying," Derek says.

Stiles blinks, remembers. His eyes widen. "You're supposed to save a life before the deathbed confessions, you know. What I said..."

Derek crosses the cave, crouches beside Stiles. "I kissed you," he says.

"Appreciate it, I really do, but the last meal thing sort of loses it's shine when you don't fucking die."

"I like you." Derek's heartbeat falters, speeds up.

"I can hear your heart now, you know. You're lying. Why would you do that? Mess with the new werewolf, is that a hazing thing?"

"I'm not. I'm worried that you only said it because you thought you were going to die."

"I did only say it because I thought I was going to die. You don't even like me."

Then Derek's kissing him and it's heaven all over again and there's all these new hormones flooding Stiles' system and he's not sure what to do with them, so he kisses back.

Tries to resist the urge to hump Derek's leg.

---

Stones are digging into Stiles' back again, sticky-slick warmth spread between them, again, and this time it's not blood.

Derek rolls off of him. "Can you hear that?"

Stiles listens carefully. Machinery, something big, getting closer, louder, the distant scraping of stone.

"They've found us," Derek says, rises to his feet, yanks his jeans back up and then the two of them are shouting through the fallen rock at Scott and Isaac to let them know that they're okay, that they're both still alive.

Stiles catches Derek stealing glances at him. He looks happy, and Stiles isn't sure he's ever seen him look like that before, but he's convinced it's not just because they're being rescued.

fin