Everything was not fine.

Stiles could smell the blood that stained Theo's shirt before he even saw him.

He'd never seen Theo look quite so panicked.

"We have to run," Theo said frantically before Stiles could get a word in.

Stiles' eyes were wide with the same fear, but he had no idea what was going on. Did someone or something attack Theo? Who or what would they be running from? His mind began to race at a mile a minute as questions ran around his head, overwhelming him.

"Run? Run where? From who?" Stiles asked.

"She's here," Theo replied, not wanting to waste anymore time. "I️ tried to keep her away, but I️ couldn't."

Stiles blinked as everything suddenly clicked.

"You've been tracking her, haven't you? That's what the shady texts and you leaving in the middle of the night was all about, wasn't it?" he accused.

Theo shook his head.

"We don't have time for this. Let's just get in my truck and I'll explain everything, but we need to move," he replied, looking over his shoulder briefly as if he expected Stiles' sire to potentially be behind him.

Gently, Stiles placed a hand on his boyfriend's arm.

"I'm not running," he asserted.

The other's eyes widened in shock. He knew Stiles could be stubborn, but why wasn't he understanding the urgency of the situation?

"We have to-" Theo began before being cut off.

"For how long? How long are we supposed to run? Because I️ have a feeling she's not gonna give up until she gets what she wants," Stiles interrupted.

The truth was, it was more than just a "feeling." It had everything to do with the psychic link. He hated it. He didn't want to be connected to her in any way at all, but he also knew he couldn't just ignore it and what it was telling him.

Theo took Stiles' hands in his.

"We'll run as long as we need to. It'll be okay, as long as we're together," he tried to convince the other.

Stiles shook his head, taking a step back and removing his hands from Theo's.

"No. I️ can't ask you to just pick up and leave everything," he explained.

"Stiles, you are my everything. I️ don't give a rat's ass about this town. I️ just want to be with you," Theo pleaded.

Stiles gave a sad, halfhearted smile in response. He gently touched a hand to his boyfriend's cheek before kissing him.

"I'd go anywhere with you," he admitted. "But running will only piss her off, and I️ can't put you or anyone else I️ love in danger. I️ couldn't live with myself if...we just can't, okay?"

Theo opened his mouth to speak. He wasn't even sure what he was going to say. Probably just something, anything, to convince Stiles to run away with him. But he was too late.

"I️ do get pretty angry when I️ don't get what I️ want," a woman's voice cut him off.

Theo whirled around to see her.

She wasn't alone. Two other vampires stood on either side of her, trailing ever so slightly behind. They were tall muscular identical twins with broad shoulders, dark hair, and olive skin.

"Allow me to officially introduce myself. My name is Aida," she said, fangs on full display.

Theo stood in front of Stiles protectively, flashing his eyes and baring his teeth in a snarl, earning hisses from the two male vampires and an eye roll from Aida.

"Mieczyslaw, calm your guard dog down," she commanded.

This only made Theo angrier, but Stiles placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay," he said, moving from behind Theo to face his sire. He knew Theo was only trying to protect him, but he also knew that it wasn't Theo's fight.

Stiles looked her up and down briefly before he spoke.

"What do you want?" he inquired bluntly.

Aida smirked.

"Why, isn't it obvious? I️ want you, of course," she said flippantly, like it was all still just a game to her.

Stiles could feel the rage resurfacing, but he knew better than to do anything stupid.

"I️ find that hard to believe considering that you abandoned me," he bit harshly.

He hated how angry he sounded. Even more than that, he hated that he was still genuinely hurt by her leaving. She was a monster. She turned him into a monster. He should want nothing to do with her. He did wanted nothing to do with her. Still, he remembered the slight sting of betrayal he had felt when he'd first turned and realized that whoever did this to him just disappeared without a trace. He had no one to help him who truly understood. He even almost killed Scott. Of course he felt guilty for all of it, but a large part of him couldn't help but blame her, the one who broke him and then couldn't even so much as stay to help pick up the pieces.

"Oh, now don't take it personally. I️ can't stand newborns. So moody. And all of that guilty and self hatred. The whole tired 'I'm a monster' spiel, not to mention the lack of self control. Besides, I️ don't think fledglings should be coddled. Learning how to stand on your own after you've been reborn builds character," she explained.

The explanation of her twisted version of tough love only made things worse. While there probably wasn't a single explanation that actually would have made Stiles feel better, a part of him regretted even asking.

"I️ never asked to be 'reborn'! What was this all for? Is it because of Scott?" Stiles asked.

Aida tossed some of her blonde hair over her shoulder, her head tilting back as she chuckled.

"The 'true alpha'? Please. I️ have no interest in wolf affairs," she replied.

Stiles shrugged.

"So what, then? You just get off on turning random people?" he accused, growing angrier but still working to contain himself.

Slowly, Aida shook her head in response.

"I️ choose my fledglings very carefully. I️ knew immediately you had the potential to be an extraordinarily powerful vampire. And I️ also know that deep down there's a part of you that wants that power," she answered.

The young vampire looked away from her, unable to meet her gaze after what she'd said, unable to face the possibility that he was already a monster and she had little to do with it.

"I️ can teach you to live up to your full potential," she proposed. "All you have to do is pledge your loyalty to me and join my clan."

All he would have to do. She said it as if it was simple, as if he wouldn't be uprooted his entire life and leaving everything he knows behind.

"No," Stiles replied. "I'm not joining you. I️ don't want anything to do with your 'clan.'"

Aida clicked her tongue and shook her. She sighed, sounding more bored than anything else.

"You see, I️ had a feeling you'd say that. That's okay, though. I know what will change your mind," she said.

She then looked the the vampire standing to her right.

"Arnaldo, prendi il lupo," she commanded.

The vampire, presumably Arnaldo, grabbed Theo in a flash, one hand holding his arm behind his back and the other grasping his jaw, in a position where he could snap his neck.

Stiles gasped as he saw his boyfriend in the compromising position. He then began to move toward Theo before Aida spoke.

"I️ wouldn't. Arnaldo here is over two hundred years old and could snap your little pet wolf's neck before you can even blink," she warned.

Stiles clenched his jaw, hands balled into tight fists at his sides.

"Let him go," he gritted, his voice low.

"Why are you so attached to it anyway? If you join us, we can get a new plaything. Maybe even a real werewolf instead of this lab rat," she condescended, gesturing toward Theo.

Theo growled defensively, causing Arnaldo to apply enough pressure on his jaw to get him to shut up.

"Stop! Don't hurt him!" Stiles shouted at Arnaldo.

He then turned to look at Aida.

"Theo isn't a plaything. I️ love him," he said.

Aida shrugged.

"Well, if you do, then I️ assume you don't want Arnaldo to kill him, correct? Well, you see, no harm as to come to your boyfriend if you just join me. Leave your pathetic little wolf pack and come with us," she said.

It was Theo who spoke before Stiles said anything.

"Stiles would never-" he began.

"I'm in," Stiles cut off. "But no harm can come to Theo, the my dad, or Scott's pack. And we stay far away from Beacon Hills."

Aida nodded.

"You have my word," she assured.

Stiles didn't want to do it, but he could tell that Aida was telling the truth, and that was enough for him. He couldn't put the people he loves in anymore danger than he already has.

"Can I️ just...have some time alone with him? To say goodbye?" Stiles asked.

His sire nodded.

"Sure, but make it quick. We'll be waiting for you outside. And if you try to run off I'll kill everyone you've ever met and force you to watch," she said.

"You know I️ won't try anything," Stiles replied.

He had given up, and he knew that she knew that.

"Giuseppe, Arnaldo, vieni," she said with a snap.

Arnaldo let Theo go, causing Theo to gasp for air and place his hand on his jaw where he had been restrained. Arnaldo and Giuseppe both followed her out.

Theo then looked around, listening for when they were gone.

"Stiles, there's still time. We can make a run for it and-"

It pained Stiles to see Theo like that, still so hopeful. Even after everything, he had no intention of giving up on being with Stiles. Not then. Not ever.

Stiles shook his head.

"You know we can't do that," he said, choking up.

Theo then came to Stiles, taking his hands in his. He looked at him with misty eyes, shaking his head slowly.

"You can't just leave. You promised you'd never leave me," Theo said.

Stiles pressed his lips together, nodding as tears began to slide down his cheeks.

"I know. I'm so sorry," he breathed.

Theo slide one hand up Stiles' arm and came to touch his cheek.

"Stiles, I️ love you. You're all I️ have. Please, don't leave me. Please," he pleaded.

Stiles kissed Theo gently on the lips. The kiss was slow and salty from tears. They then rested their foreheads against each other's, just holding on to one another. Theo closed his eyes, breathing in Stiles' scent, realizing it might be all he would have to cling on to.

"I'm sorry," Stiles whispered.

Somehow, it was the lack of the vampire's presence that left Theo feeling cold. When he opened his eyes, Stiles was gone, and he was completely and utterly alone.

I️t was in that moment, without the love of his life, that he let himself lose control. He threw a punch at the wall as tears streamed down his face, causing his vision to go blurry.

He couldn't take it. It hurt so much he could feel physically in every part of his body, and he screamed. Eventually, he could no longer even stand, falling to his knees.

He promised he'd never leave me.

The thought rang in Theo's head, but Stiles was still gone.

He was on the ground, crying with arms hugging himself as there was no one there to hold him. He was all alone, and he was in so much anguish it felt like he was dying. In that moment, he wondered if that was it, and if this was him facing his fear of dying alone after all.