[ start of the tell ]

spend the night with Lydia, Eleanor did not expect to be sitting in Jackson's porsche, arguing about what movie they were all going to watch. She hadn't known Jackson would be included in this night, if she did she would not have said yes to Lydia's invitation.

"Hoosiers is not only the best basketball movie ever, it is the best sport movie ever made!" Jackson stated firmly to Lydia, pleading eyes on full display as the two girls rolled their eyes.

"No."

Jackson sighed. "It's got Gene Hackman and Dennis Hopper?"

"No."

"Lydia, I swear to god, you're going to like it!" He defended loudly, glaring at Eleanor as she quietly laughed in the backseat.

"You know what?" The youngest Hale started, climbing over Lydia and opening the passenger door. "I'm just going to go ahead and get The Notebook, because I know damn well that's what we'll be watching."

Jackson glared at her again as Lydia smiled in delight, however swatted Jackson's shoulder. "Jackson, go with her."

"Why?"

Lydia widened her eyes at his lack of kindness and stared at him, waiting until he rolled his eyes and opened the door. "Fine."

Meanwhile, Eleanor had already entered the store and the smell of blood immediately hit her nose. She wrinkled her eyebrows and sniffed slightly, wandering the isles to follow the scent she had caught. Something was definitely wrong. The smell pulled her toward the horror movie isle, and she froze in her place at the vision in front of her.

It was almost as if she was in a horror movie. Blood poured down the step ladder the clerk had previously been using, and trailed down to where the now deceased shop assistant lay, in a pool of his own cold blood. The smell was excruciatingly bad and her eyes watered at the stench, her mouth agape in shock.

The door chimed, signalling that someone else had entered the shop, and Eleanor turned to find Jackson walking toward her with a grimace. His eyes went wide with shock at the sight before him and Eleanor spoke quietly, yet clearly. "Jackson, go."

However, the demand was too late, and Jackson was shoved to the side and into a cabinet with great force by a tall, black creature with red glowing eyes. The alpha. Eleanor widened her eyes and noticed Jackson's eyes planted firmly on her, deciding that now would definitely not be the best time to shift into werewolf form and protect herself. She couldn't risk him knowing.

And so as the Alpha charged toward her, Eleanor ran, making every move as if she were the dumb blonde being chased in a cliche horror movie. Her every step was choreographed to a human like consistency and her breathing felt heavy as it flowed from her mouth. She did this for one of two reasons. Obviously, as already explained, she couldn't let Jackson know that she was not human, however she also used this to her advantage to draw the Alpha away from Jackson, to give him a head start at trying to escape the video store.

She leant against one of the shelving units and sighed heavily, as though she were out of breath from all of the running. She peered around the side of the shelving unit and spotted Jackson, wide eyed, staring at her with alarm and nodded toward the door, signalling that he should leave. He immediately shook his head, rejecting her demand.

Her gaze became more firm but he still would not agree, refusing to leave Eleanor alone with such a horrific, inhumane monster. However, his stubborn frown dissipated to a worried surprise, and Eleanor looked behind her just in time to face the Alpha towering over her.

Immediately she turned to Lydia's boyfriend, her eyes overflowing with plead as she slipped her demand once more. "Jackson, run. Now!"

And with that, the wooden shelves behind her toppled sideways, landing in the crook of her leg as she fell, crying out in pain as the weight on her legs increased. She looked up to find that Jackson had obeyed her commands, and squeezed her eyes shut upon finding the Alpha only a few steps away. Her excruciating pain was shown through her inaudible gasps and the Alpha seemed to be smiling among his wolf like features. He seemed accomplished.

For a second, his face was centimetres from hers, and she wrinkled her nose in disgust and tried to avoid eye contact with the creature. She felt like she knew who it was, but yet she had no clue. The heavy breathing fanning her face ceased and when Eleanor opened her eyes, the Alpha had gone and she was left alone to feign a defenceless young girl in need of medical attention.

...

", two, three!" And suddenly, Eleanor awoke from her slumber and felt a weight lift off her legs, allowing her bone to snap back into its rightful place.

Her eyesight remained fuzzy and unclear for a mere few seconds before she was aware of what was happening. The police officers had lifted the shelving unit off of her lower body and were now gently pulling her to her feet. Her face contorted in a mock of displeasure and pain, and just for show, her eyes leaked of tears she forced for the paramedics as they guided her out of the video store.

She was taken to the ambulance immediately, meeting with a dazed Lydia and an angry Jackson, whom didn't seem all that bothered about Eleanor and her health anymore. Instead, his gaze hardened at the sight of the nearing police car and he ignored the Hale's presence as an EMT wrapped a blanket around her shoulders while another observed the state of her physical health.

The loud, whirring siren of the Sheriff's car stopped upon arriving at the scene. He had a report of a possible murder from dispatch, and Stiles had joined him for a take out dinner just minutes before, and both were out of the car within seconds after making their entrance.

Eleanor hadn't been spotted at first. Sheriff had taken a look at the overall situation, already trying to find evidence of what had happened and Stiles was captivated by the body bag being carried out of the store, both too busy to notice who the victims were. It wasn't until the paramedic whom tended to her called her name that they realised Eleanor had been involved.

"Eleanor? Can you look into the light for me?" The mention of her name caught both of their attention, and they snapped their necks to where the source had come from.

Their eyes planted on the all too familiar face and Sheriff forgot about the case and Stiles forgot about the dead body, and the two bounded toward the ambulance holding Eleanor.

"Oh my god, Nora?" Stiles reached his best friend first, occupying the pace beside her as the EMT stepped away to give the couple space. His hands smoothed over the skin of her cheek and the hair behind her ears and his eyes scanned her body for any injuries. "Are you okay? Are you hurt? What happened?"

His eyes darted to Jackson, whom was stood to the side of the ambulance, glaring at the cemented floor beneath him. "Hey, what the hell happened?"

Jackson looked up at Stiles and scoffed. "This isn't my fault. I have no clue, alright?"

Sheriff soon arrived at his son's side and examined the girl quickly and carefully, his hand resting upon her knee in worry. "Hey sweetheart, how are you feeling?"

Eleanor looked up, her eyes glistening from the lights of the police cars as her lip quivered. "I, I don't know. It just happened so fast."

Sheriff pulled his thin lips into a frown and pressed a kiss to her hair, looking toward the video store in complete shock. He wanted to ask her what had happened, but he knew all too well that she was far too unstable to answer his questions. At least that's what he thought, anyway.

Eleanor had analysed the scene over and over again after being seated in the ambulance, and she had only minutes before come to terms with what had actually happened, and how terrifying it truly was. She already knew that it was the Alpha, but she'd never met the creature, and she didn't expect to feel frightened by it.

Stiles hesitantly sat down next to his best friend and wrapped an arm around her, their hands intertwining as she leant closer to him, shivering from the cold night air. Sheriff shrugged off his heavy coat and wrapped it around her shoulders, over the thin blanket she had been given, and headed toward the store.

Her head rested upon the boy's shoulder and she allowed herself this moment to let a single tear drop from her eyes, a subsequent from her encounter with the beast that killed her sister. Stiles could tell that Eleanor was frightened, and so he held on to her cold body tighter.

He watched as the chaos surrounded them, and knew that it would help to get her mind off of things. "Do you ever wonder what it would be like to run away?"

"Huh?" Eleanor tilted her head sideways and upward to catch his eye and he shrugged, his leg jittering nervously.

"You know, just get up and leave this place, the people, the drama."

Eleanor gave a small smile, nodding her head as she shuffled closer to him. "All the time. I've always thought of the time when I would pack everything up and leave Beacon Hills for good. Everything here is so complicated and it's so much worse for us because we see things that nobody should see. We are things that nobody should ever be."

Stiles frowned, fiddling with Eleanor's fingers as he gazed at the police car's bright red light, shaking his head in disagreement. "I don't think you are, Nora, not at all. You're not the reason things like this are happening, okay?"

"You didn't let me finish. As much as I think I'm part of all this chaos, I have so many memories her that I contributed to. Some mortify me but I grew up here, the people here raised me and I can't think of any other place to call home."

The conversation that started by trying to distract Eleanor had succeeded and Sheriff exited the store and made his way toward the ambulances, raising his eyebrows at the two as Eleanor lifted her head off of Stiles' shoulder. "Talking about anything important?"

The pair shook their heads and Sheriff rolled his eyes. "Well, we should be leaving soon. Paramedics want to take you to the hospital to do a few check ups, but Stiles and I will come with you for that."

Eleanor nodded and leant her head sideways to rest back on Stiles again as Jackson firmly gripped Noah's arm, his handsome features displaying an ugly grimace of disgust. "Why the hell can't I just go home? I'm fine."

"Jackson, don't be rude." Eleanor mumbled quietly.

"I hear you, but the EMT says you hit your head pretty hard. They just want to make sure that you don't have concussion." Noah stated, staring down at Jackson's contact on his arm before shrugging the grip off of him.

Jackson groaned in frustration. "What part of 'I'm fine' are you having trouble grasping? I want to go home."

"I understand that."

Eleanor frowned, her head rising slightly and her voice increasing in volume. "Jackson, he's trying to help you."

"No, you don't understand! Which kind of blows my mind, it should be a pretty basic concept to grasp for a minimum wage rent a cop like you! I want to go home." This time, his anger resided into a frustrated roar and Eleanor jumped slightly before standing up.

She carefully stepped toward the boy and narrowed her eyes. "How dare you speak to him like that. He's looking out for you. He's doing this for your benefit. I saved your ungrateful ass and you should be thankful because if I didn't, then you would have a lot more than a suspected concussion and you'll have lot more if you don't shut the hell up and let the man do his job!"

Noah smiled slyly at the end of Eleanor's small rant, and Jackson quietened down, embarrassed as the paramedics surrounding them watched in amusement. The sheriff checked the time and hit the side of the ambulance containing his son and Eleanor twice, signalling that they could start heading to the hospital.

"Head on over, I'll follow behind you in my car."

Stiles helped Eleanor into the vehicle and let her lay on the bed, grabbing her hand comfortingly as she closed her eyes. It was obvious that she was tired, and she needed some sleep to help her get through her upcoming tests.

"Hey, what happened in the store? What did you see?"

Eleanor squeezed open an eye and glanced at Stiles, shrugging before closing her eyes again. "It's a long story. I'll explain later."

And with that, she drifted to sleep with the comfort of her best friend right next to her.

...

next day, Stiles arrived at the Hale house during his free period. Eleanor hadn't shown up for school, he hadn't seen Jaden all day and Scott and Allison had ditched for her seventeenth birthday. Lydia had gone AWOL and Jackson wouldn't speak to him, the only thing he wanted to do was check to see if Eleanor was alright.

He was hesitant to knock on the worn down door in front of him, however the contact was not needed, for Derek opened the door before he could so much as touch the wood. A monotone stare cast deep in his eyes, Derek raised an eyebrow at the teenager in front of him as Stiles stuttered to find words. Derek intimidated him.

"I - uh, you see. Eleanor, she just -"

Derek almost let out a quiet chuckle, but masked it with a cough to clear his throat instead. "Whatever Stilinski, she's upstairs in her room."

Stiles nodded his head nonchalantly, walking into the remains of the house behind Derek, before rushing up the stairs as the oldest brother headed to the kitchen. This time, he did not hesitate in knocking on the door, waiting for a response from Eleanor.

Slowly, the door creaked open, and his best friend stood before him, clad in pajama shorts and one of Scott's old hoodies. She smiled lightly at him and allowed him to enter her room, before shutting the door and heading back to sit on the bed.

Stiles joined her moments later, and they both sat in silence for what seemed like hours before Stiles decided to speak. "How are you feeling?"

"Physically? Great, everything's healed. Mentally? Exhausted."

He frowned at her response and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to him as his thumb traced patterns into the skin on her arm. "Is that why you weren't at school today?"

Eleanor shrugged. "That and the fact that Jaden and Derek thought any 'normal person' would have a day off after yesterday."

Stiles nodded and Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows, turning to face the boy as she spoke again. "Hey, what are you doing here anyway? I thought you had school."

"Free period," He stated causally. "I wanted to check up on you before I head to Lydia's."

Eleanor sat up straight, no longer leaning on Stiles for support. "Oh my god, how is she? I didn't even think to ask yesterday. Was she hurt? What happened? Did she have the day off school."

"Woah, calm down El. As far as I'm aware, she's not hurt, she's just in a state of shock. She took today off and I'm going over to check up on her and see if she saw anything."

Eleanor immediately stood up, rubbing her hand across her forehead as she opened her closet and began to rummage through her clothes. Stiles frowned and stood up too, following her footsteps until he reached her small, yet shaking body. His hand cautiously made its way on top of hers, stopping her from flicking through the hangers dangling from her wardrobe, and she sighed, turning to face her best friend.

"Nora, stop." Her bottom lip quivered and he pulled her into his chest, allowing her to forget about what to wear and enjoy his comforting embrace.

She sniffles slightly and wiped at her tears. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be like this."

"You should Nora, you're still human. You may have been born a werewolf, and you can hear and smell things nobody else can, but you're still human. It's alright to cry."

Those words alone made Eleanor calm down. She felt at ease in his arms and she wanted nothing more than to stay there, but she knew she couldn't. They were best friends, nothing more. She couldn't call him her's. Besides, they had a friend to look out for.

"Thank you." Eleanor mumbled. "But I'm still coming with you to check on Lyds."

...

checking on Lydia, finding a video of the Alpha on her phone, and having a lengthy conversation about what she saw, which most definitely was not a mountain lion, Eleanor and Stiles headed for the school.

As much as they both wanted to head home and forget that this week never happened, tonight was parent/teacher conferences. Stiles had a few D's in his classes, and so it was mandatory for him to attend with Noah. Eleanor and Jaden were both passing their classes, and so the youngest Hale had no need to go. However, Stiles seemed to make it impossible for her to reject.

They arrived at the school five minutes before Mr. Stilinski's first appointment and were stopped twice in the process of heading into the school building. The first time, Allison's dad greeted them with a stern glare and a threatening tone as he asked why Scott had, quote kidnapped Allison, and where the couple had gone.

Eleanor shrugged, not the least bit apologetic, for she despised the Argents. "Sorry Argent, I wasn't at school today and Scott hasn't been answering either of our messages."

"Ah, yes." Victoria, Allison's mother hummed, eyeing Eleanor suspiciously. "The animal attack at the video store. We heard you were involved."

Stiles scoffed under his breath and pulled his best friend closer before shrugging. "Yeah, you'll have to excuse us, my dad is waiting."

And with that, they stalked away from the parents, shaking their heads at how rude they had been. The next to encounter them was Melissa, whom was also looking for Scott.

"Hey, El. How's your head?"

Eleanor smiled at how thoughtful Scott's mum always was about her son's friends and pretended as if the wounds from yesterday hadn't healed like they did. "It feels much better now, thank you."

Melissa nodded. "Good. Now have either of you seen Scott? I keep trying to call him but it's going straight to voicemail."

Stiles and Eleanor shared a look, feeling guilty about lying to Melissa about Scott's whereabouts. However, they knew not to tell the truth, they'd leave that to Scott. "No, he hasn't been answering our texts either."

Melissa looked downward, disappointed in the words Stiles' spoke and Eleanor stepped forward, resting a hand on Melissa's arm. "Hey, we'll let you know if we hear anything."