"I'm fine!" I argued, attempting to push myself from the bed. "I need to see my mom!" I cried, trying to get past the nurse who was currently doing her best to keep me in the hospital bed. Five out of the eight people that had been standing in our kitchen when we were attacked had been shot. My mother, father, Mason, Lydia and myself included.

"Sydney," she calmed, "You were shot, you need to rest."

I looked to her incredulously, "I know!" I argued, "But you said I was going to be fine. I want to see my mom!" I shot back.

She let out a breath, clearly getting fed up with my antics. "The doctor said that you were going to be okay, but that entails resting. I promise you, you can see your mother the minute the doctors clears you."

"Syd!"

I stopped fighting against the nurse as Liam entered the room, his eyes ablaze. He relaxed at the sight of me, instantly rushing to my bedside.

The nurse let out a sigh of relief, happy that there was now someone else to keep me in the room. She wordlessly excused herself, hurrying out of there as fast as she could.

"I'm okay." I promised as Liam pulled me into a hug. I could hear his heart pounding against his ribcage as I pressed my head against his chest. "The bullet missed everything." I explained, "Just a few stitches."

He nodded, pulling back and cupping my face in his hands. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there." he whispered.

I shook my head, "I'm glad you weren't." My thoughts then moved elsewhere. "Have you seen Mason yet?" I questioned.

"I'm going to check on him next." Liam explained. "But I ran into Sheriff. He said Mason's out of surgery."

I nodded, "So is my mom." I answered, "Scott told me she was resting...but they won't let me see her. I just want to see for myself that she's okay."

"I know." Liam whispered, gently rubbing his thumb across my cheek. "I'll check on her." he promised.

"And my dad, and Lydia?" I inquired.

"Your dad was transferred to San Francisco Memorial, he's going to be okay. Lydia too, the bullet missed everything."

For the first time since we had all been rushed to the hospital, I felt myself relax. Some of us almost died last night, and I knew that this meant war. When Scott had come in to check on me earlier, he looked more distraught and angry than I had ever seen him.

"I'm going to head to the school after I see Mason." Liam explained. The notion seemed harmless enough, but there was something else behind his words.

"What are you going to do?" I demanded, already knowing he was not heading to BHHS to learn.

He leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine, "Don't worry about it." he promised. "I'll see you after. Call me if you need me, for anything...I'm serious."

With that, he was up and rushing out of the room. At this point, I was scared for whoever he was after at the school.

---

"Mom." I whispered, gently taking her hand into my own. She looked frail, like I had never seen her before. I almost broke down just at the sight of her. Hours had passed since Liam had been here, but they still had not let me see my mother. So, I took matters into my own hands.

When her eyes didn't open, I swallowed the lump in my throat, "Mom." I repeated, this time a little bit louder.

Slowly, her lids lifted to reveal her tired eyes. At the sight of me, she wore a lopsided smile, "Hey, sweetheart."

I felt myself let out a small sigh of relief at the sound of her voice. "I'm sorry for waking you." I mumbled, "I just needed to see you."

My mom wrapped her hand around mine, "I'm glad you did." she whispered, her voice hoarse. "You're okay?"

I nodded, tears welling up in my eyes. "I'm fine." I promised, "Bullet missed everything." my voice cracked at my words.

My mom's face fell as she tightened her grip on my hand. "Syd, what's wrong."

I looked back at her with tear filled eyes. "You almost died mom." I squeaked, my voice not strong enough.

She shook her head softly, giving me a comforting smile. "But I didn't."

She was right, she didn't. But she very well could have. Same with my dad, Lydia, Mason, and anyone else in the house that night. These were some of the people I loved most in this world, and I almost lost more than one of them in a single night.

I opened my mouth to say something else to my mom, however another voice cut into the room. "Sydney!"

I felt myself wince at the sound of the nurse's voice. Sloane was her name, and she was relentless.

"You shouldn't be out of bed." she chastised, already making her way toward my mother's bedside to escort me back to my own room.

I turned to look at her with a slight glare. "I feel fine." I promised. "I was just checking on my mother...who almost died."

Sloane sent my mom a quick smile before looking back to me with narrowed eyes. "You're about to be discharged." she explained, helping me out of the chair and into a wheelchair. "And in order for that to happen, you need to be in your own room."

"Why can't I just stay with my mom?" I questioned, turning to look at her.

My mom shook her head, letting out a quick cough. "Go home, Syd." she ordered, "Stay with your brother."

"But-"

She cut me off, "No 'buts'. Go home, you can see me when I'm discharged."

I let out an angry huff as Sloane wheeled me back toward the hall. "You guys are real buzzkills...you know that right?"

Sloane let out a laugh as she pushed me back to my room, "You're quite the entertainment."

I turned to look at her, shooting her a cheeky grin. "I have been told that before."

---

An hour later, I sat outside the hospital on one of the benches, awaiting Liam's arrival. Night had fallen, and a light rain fell from the sky. I felt myself shiver as I looked down at my phone once again, getting impatient.

Unlike my mom had directed, I attempted to stay with her after I had been discharged, but she promptly kicked me out and told me to go home. So now, here I was waiting for Liam who seemed to be taking a rather long time.

Just as I was about to call Scott to come pick me up instead, a truck pulled into the parking lot, stopping in front of me.

"You've got to be kidding me." I muttered, watching as Liam jumped out of Theo's truck.

He sped over to me, apology written on his face. "I'm sorry." he breathed, helping me stand up. "We were at the school and-"

I looked over at him with narrowed eyes, "Is Theo replacing me?" I questioned.

The look on Liam's face made me break into a fit of laughter. "Just get in the car, Syd." he grumbled, pulling the door open for me.

He placed his hands on my hips, steadying me as I pulled myself into the backseat. The minute I was seated, Theo turned to me with a grin, "Nice to see you, Sydney."

I turned to pull on my seatbelt as he pulled out of the lot. "Wish I could say the same." I snipped, which resulted in Liam letting out a small laugh from the front.

Theo glared at me through the rearview mirror. "You can walk if you'd like."

I raised my brows, "Stop the car and let me out then."

Liam spun to look at me with a look of warning. "You're not walking." he ordered. "Theo, keep driving."

Maybe if I wasn't so exhausted, I might have actually gotten out and walked, but tonight was not the night for that. Instead, I leaned back in the seat, letting out a deep breath and trying to relax.

However, my relaxation was soon ruined as Liam spoke up, filling me in on what I had missed today. Evidently, it was a lot.

Apparently, according to Liam and Theo, Aaron was the Aunk-ite. The reason he had been testing kids at school wasn't to figure out if they were supernatural or not, it was so he could find his other half. Our mission now, was to ensure that didn't happen.

"So his other half is someone supernatural?" I questioned, leaning forward in my seat slightly so I was closer to the two boys.

Theo nodded, "A werewolf."

"Okay," I whispered, slowly nodding. "And how do we find the other half?"

Liam winced slightly, "We have no idea."

"Great." I muttered, slumping back in the seat as Theo stopped in front of my house. This was going to be a difficult task, and that much I knew. If only we had Stiles to help us.

"Come on." Liam prodded softly. Jumping out of the truck and opening my door. I gave him a tired look, taking his hand as he helped me onto the ground.

"Thanks, Theo." I muttered, not waiting for a response before I made my way up to the front door. Liam followed. It didn't need to be spoken that he would be staying with me tonight.

I didn't bother making any stops throughout the house as I made straight for my bedroom. I could hear Liam in the kitchen for a few moments before he joined me in my room. "Here." he mumbled, handing me a glass of water and a couple of pills.

I smiled, taking them from him as I sat on the end of my bed., letting my mind wander. "My mom almost died, Liam." I whispered, my voice barely audible.

He let out a sad sigh as he sat beside me, placing a comforting hand on my thigh. "But she didn't." He sounded like my mother.

I just shook my head as I stood up and made my way to my dresser, pulling out a pair of pajamas. I was so ready for this day to be over.

As I pulled my shirt over my head to get changed, I could feel Liam's stares on me. "What?" I demanded, turning to look at him, instantly becoming self-conscious.

He wore a sad smile as he pulled me closer to him, his eyes focused on my stomach. "You've been shot twice." he commented as if he just realized it, lightly running his fingers over the scar on my lower abdomen from the first time I had been shot, and the surgeries that ensued because of it. He then ran his fingers around my freshest wound.

I flinched slightly at his warm touch. "Yeah, and now I'm going to have these ugly scars for the rest of my life." I muttered, pulling away so I could pull my shirt on, covering where Liam had just been looking.

His eyes darkened slightly as he shook his head. "Nothing about you is ugly, Sydney."

As I finished changing, I turned back to look at him, a smile covering my face. "I love you." I whispered, moving so I was in front of him.

Liam looked up at me, a smile covering his own face. "I love you." he responded, "More than you'll ever know."

And as we fell asleep that night, tangled in each other's arms, I felt more safe that I had in months. And for the first time since all of this had started with the Anuk-ite, I felt happy.

-an-

okayyy super cheesy ending...but I feel like we could all use that right now.

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