The car was quiet, Liam eyed the passing streets of Beacon Hills mutely.

An old man teetered down the road, a dog that looked just as old at his ankles

The indicator ticked like a clock and Liam found himself copying it with the snap of his tongue until they were swaying round the corner and the sound was gone, once again leaving the car plunged into a heavy silence.

He wished for the click of the indicator to come back, or for the familiar sound of a finger tapping against the wheel to fill the car.

Liam dragged his gaze from the streets, turning his back to the window to sneak a peek at his Mom, her hands locked in the 10 and 2 position, eyes firmly on the road.

It was strange, knowing that he was in trouble with his parents, knowing that he'd broken rules when for the past month he'd had none.

The car pulled to a stop outside the school.

Liam could hear the rumble of noise as sleepy teenagers greeted each other. Despite the rude wakening and subsequent uncomfortable family breakfast it seemed his mother had been able to shove him and Theo full of food, shoo Theo from the house under the guise of a lift home with David and get Liam to school before first bell.

Liam felt his breath catch in his throat as he let his gaze travel over the building. He remembered the crack of Gabe's fists as they collided with his face, the silence of the onlookers.

He remembered how last time he'd stepped foot in the building it had been filled with dead hunters. Would the smell of terror from the anukite even be gone yet?

He remembered how it felt like the weight of the world was on his shoulders, like he was tied in chains and cinder blocks and left sinking to the deepest depths while everyone else left him alone.

Everyone but Theo, Theo who'd taken his wrist and led him away, out of the school, out of Beacon Hills and the state and the chains suffocating him. He remembered Idaho and feeling like he could breath with Theo next to him.

"You have everything you need?" Jenna asked, her first words since she'd herded Liam into the car.

Liam breathed in, submerging himself in the remnants of Theo's scent still clinging to his skin, even after a change of clothes. He let his finger tap against his thigh, once, twice.

Mimicking Theo's heartbeat.

"Yeah." Liam croaked, grabbing the backpack shoved between his feet and hopping out of the car idly hoping there was in fact a pen shoved somewhere in the depths.

"Go straight to class." Jenna warned. "Yeah, I will." Liam said.

*

Liam kept his head bowed as he made his was to Mason's locker, looking through his lashes at the students milling around waiting for someone to notice him, for them to point and scream 'werewolf, he's a werewolf'.

Instead the hall was quiet from any acknowledgement of the supernatural, or really, of his return. He only really raised his head when he heard the soft tenor of Corey's voice.

His eyes immediately locked onto the two boys standing by Mason's locker, hands locked between them as they spoke. A smile found it's way onto Liam's face, the lingering nerves forgotten for a second as he picked up his pace to reach the two. "Hey!"

"Hey man-" Mason greeted absentmindedly "So I told Gwen that if we were gonna be partners she had to-" He broke off on his story, first double, then triple taking Liam.

"LIAM!!" He bellowed, loud enough to draw the gazes of the sleepy students for all of a second before they apparently decided the three weren't that interesting. "You're here? Like? You're really here, in school?"

"I'm really here."

"I didn't think you'd come back till Monday, i was gonna come visit you after school."

"Believe me, i don't want to be here." Liam said. "It would be way less weird to start back Monday but Mom said i've missed enough school."

"At least this way you don't have to do a full week." Corey said. "Get to ease back in a bit."

"Yeah..I guess. It's weird though."

"Being back?"

"Yeah, especially here. I thought I'd get more looks." Liam admitted, eyeing the halls, a girl smiled at him as he caught her gaze in his sweep but otherwise everyone seemed unaware he was there. "I mean last time i was at school half the year attacked me. I thought, you know-"

"People have kinda..forgotten." Mason said.

"What?"

"Man i mean it, the hunters disappeared and it was like boom, whole town decided to collectively ignore the fact they'd turned into an angry mob."

"It's true." Corey said.

"Look. Hey man!-" Mason caught one of the students passing by. "You know werewolves exist right?"

"Yeah, sure , and Santa got me a bike last Christmas." He scoffed, shrugging Masons hand off of her shoulder and stomping down the hall, anxiety wafting off of him.

"Freaks." She muttered.

"She was literally with the hunters." Mason said.

"So they're just pretending it never happened?"

"I guess it's easier than admitting they tried to murder their classmates." Corey said.

"How can they do that?" Liam asked.

"I get it." Mason said. "Not saying I agree with it, but i get it. I mean, they're not stuck in it you know? They can turn their back on it and pretend the world doesn't have literal man eating beasts in it."

"I don't eat-" Liam started.

"Wendigo's do man." Mason said. "We're in the thick of it but everyone else...Ignorance is bliss you know. And we showed we can stop the big bad so i guess they just wanna leave us to do that."

"It's still weird." Liam grumbled. "What about Nolan? Surely he-"

"He's not forgotten." Corey said placatingly.

"He knows what he did and he's been... nice since, well since everything. He said you can have the captain spot back when you come back..which you know...you're back so you might want to find him."

"Really?" Liam asked, lips tipping in a grin. He could be captain again, could get back on the field without his teammates hating him. "I'll find him later, i can't wait to-"

"Mr Dunbar?" Liam turned, noting Miss Martin eyeing him. "A word please."

"That doesn't sound good." Mason mumbled.

"I'll save you a seat." Corey said as him and Mason scurried away. Liam turned back to Miss Martin with a closed lipped, hopefully innocent looking, smile. She nodded, gesturing for Liam to enter her office.

Liam perched himself on the edge of the chair, eyeing Miss Martin over the desk as his leg threatened to jog nervously, The bell rang outside the room, the shuffle of footsteps sounded as students made their way to their classes.

"Is everything okay?" Liam asked.

"I was wondering if you could explain your recent bout of absences." Miss Martin said calmly.

"Uh-" Liam floundered, picturing himself sprawled out in the passenger seat of the truck.

"I was sick." He settled on after a moment.

Miss Martins eyes narrowed, the corner of her lips turning down.

"You were sick?" She asked, voice dry and unimpressed. Liam puffed his cheeks uselessly, shoulders lifting in an innocent shrug.

"What were your symptoms?"

"Well-" Liam started, breaking off as he shifted in his seat, finger itching at his cheek as he tried to think of a believable lie. "I mean-" He shifted back the other way.

"Um-" really, thinking of anything past 'a cold' would do. "I had mono." He settled on.

"Mono?" Miss Martin parroted.

"Mono." Liam repeated, head bobbing sympathetically.

"You were off for over a month with Mono?"

"Yes."

"Do you have a Doctors note?"

"No."

"Okay...Well would you like to try explaining where you've been for the past month again, this time without lying?"

"No thank you." Liam said politely. Miss Martin sighed, long fingers massaging at her temples. "Well, you will be happy to know that when your mother informed me you'd be returning to school today I had your teachers print out the work you missed." She let her hand moved to pat a stack of papers spilling across her desk.

"That's all for me?" Liam asked, grimacing at the pile. She nodded. "That's a lot of catching up."

"It is." She said, sounding far too happy for Liam's liking. "I suggest you start soon, how about this afternoon in detention." Liam barely managed to tamp down the groan threatening to burst from his lips.

"You should head to class. Don't want to add any more onto the pile now do you?" Liam nodded, pushing himself up out of the seat and eyeing the pile of papers, trying to keep the visible sneer off of his face. "You can leave it here until detention."

"..Thank you."

"You're welcome." Natalie said smartly, no doubt fully aware of how much Liam wished to take the papers and launch them into the sun.

He dropped his head in a polite nod before turning towards the door. "Oh and Liam, Next time you have 'mono' try to do it out of term time." Liam let out a choked noise of agreement before fleeing the office quick enough to slam his hip in the door as he left.

"Mother fu-"

"Language." Liam's head jerked up at the low drawl of a voice that interrupted him. Eyes landing on the teen sprawled across the seats outside the principal's office like they were a throne rather than uncomfortable plastic chairs.

"Theo?" Liam gaped."What the hell are you doing here?"

"Told you I was planning on finishing school." Theo said.

"Not today." Liam hissed.

"I know i'm smart but i'm pretty sure it'll take me more than a day to finish the school year." Theo hummed, lips tilted in a smirk.

"You-" Liam started.

"Oh good, You're here." Natalie said, interrupting Liam as she followed him from the office and caught site of Theo.. "Come on in and shut the door Mr Raeken. Liam, you best get to class before you have more to catch up on."

Theo wasted no time. Just stood up and shouldered past Liam, hard enough to leave the beta stumbling. He span round, blinking dumbly at the back of Theo's head as he sauntered into the office. Theo only looked back as Miss Martin began to close the door, shooting a wink over her shoulder.

"Go on Pumpkin, run along." He smirked.

*

By the time Liam was being herded to a table for lunch he was fairly sure he'd actually learnt more on the road listening to Theo's Biology rants than he had in the first few hours of school.

He'd spent the morning trying to search for a whisper of Theo, senses focusing outside of the classroom as he tried to listen past the rumble of the school to hear what exactly Theo was doing. The walks between lessons saw his head snapping from side to side like a meerkat trying to catch a glimpse of the chimera in the halls.

At 10 o'clock he'd been gifted with the echoes of mocking laughter and a disembodied voice saying 'see you at lunch' while he had been meant to be listening to Coaches lesson about... something.

"Is that-" Liam turned in his seat, ears pounding with the sound of Theo's heartbeat as the chimera waltzed through the cafeteria towards the table Mason had commandeered for them.

"Holy shit." Mason breathed. "What the hell is he doing here?"

Theo reached the table. "What the hell are you doing here?" Mason asked.

"Eating Lunch." Theo replied calmly, dropping into the seat next to Liam and snatching half a sandwich from his plate.

"I thought you were in Idaho." Corey said. Mason nodded eagerly.

"He's finishing up school then going to Idaho." Liam explained before turning his gaze back to Theo. "You didn't tell me you'd be here today though."

"Surprise." Theo said, complete with Jazz hands that almost sent the sandwich half flying. Liam snatched it from his hand, quickly taking a bite before Theo could steal it again.

"You knew he wasn't in Idaho?"

"Yeah? I mean, he was at mine when I got home last night." Liam shrugged. Mason's tongue flicked at the corner of his lips, brow furrowed.

"Really man?" he grumbled. "You knew for like, a whole night and didn't think to tell me that I didn't have to be worried about you crying yourself to sleep over your boyfriend leaving."

"In his defense-" Theo hummed, reaching for the other half of Liam's sandwich, he slapped his hand away quickly. "-His parents came home pretty much straight away so he was busy with them."

"And Stiles saw him." Liam said. "I guess I just figured you'd all know."

"Well we didn't. Did you even let Scott know?"

"I did." Theo hummed.

"You did?" Liam gaped.

"Of course I did." Theo scoffed. "This is his territory and we're not exactly friends, better he hears it from me so he doesn't think I'm hiding something."

"What did he say?"

"Not much, thanked me for letting him know and told me to tell you that you suck at full disclosure."

"No he didn't." Liam argued.

"You want to see the text?" Theo challenged.

"...So how come you didn't tell me you were coming back today?"

"Nice subject change." he grinned. "I didn't know I would be, Sammy called the school for me, only found out I had an appointment with Lydia's Mom twenty minutes before I was meant to be here."

"And?"

"And what?"

"How'd it go?"

"Fine." Theo said eloquently. "I'm a student again."

"So what? They're just letting you back into school immediately?" Corey asked.

"Pretty much." Theo shrugged.

"That's...this schools admin is terrible." Mason said.

"Yes it is." Theo smirked. "Why do you think i'm staying here?" Despite the question being rhetorical Liam felt Mason and Corey's eyes land on him pointedly.

"Yeah, because it's the school system that's keeping you here." Mason snorted. Theo's cheeks dusted a pretty pink.

"I should go." Theo said. "I don't actually start until Monday."

"Why are you still here then?"

"To steal your lunch. I didn't think your Mom would be up for cooking for me twice in one day." Theo said. Liam felt his own cheeks heating as he thought of Jenna's finger pointing in Theo's face as she threatened to ground him.

"Later Pumpkin, other two." He added with a sage nod across the table to Mason and Corey, with that he snatched the other half of Liam's lunch and scurried off before he could protest.

"You know, I'm happy for you and all but I stand by what I said at mini golf."

"What?"

"It's weird ." Mason stressed. Corey nodded emphatically.

"Come on guys." Liam groaned. "it's not weird. He's changed."

"Yeah, no, I know. I wouldn't be okay with you two dating if he hadn't." Mason nodded.

"Then why is it weird?"

"You saw him change, we didn't." Corey said.

"Exactly. He left us as murder Theo and came back as 'steal your lunch' Theo. It's-" Mason paused, searching for a word.

"Weird?" Liam suggested.

"So weird." Mason snorted. "We'll get used to it though."

"Yeah?"

"Of course man. Might be a little while until we're planning double dates but, you know, if you like him, then we like him."