[for thomas]

[triskehale]

It's been nearly two weeks since they returned from that other Darrow, and Derek is beginning to settle back down. The things he saw there still haunt him, and keep him up at night, but he's almost to a point where he can ignore the memories. Derek has seen many, many terrible things, and he knows that he just has to keep on going.

He knows that everyone has been struggling, and it's his friends that have been helping to get him through it. Derek is trying to help however he can, and that's why he laces up his running shoes one morning and heads to Thomas' with a hoodie over his track pants and fitted t-shirt. Winter is drawing near, and Derek can see his breath while he walks. There's a calm sort of stillness to the city, one that only seems to come with cold, crisp mornings.

After stopping to get two coffees and breakfast sandwiches, he heads to Thomas' building and knocks on the door, listening hard as he waits for it to open. Thomas saw some horrible things, and Derek wants to make sure that he's doing okay. Feeding him and dragging him out for a long run should hopefully be a good start.

Comments

[shuck_you]

Some nights, Thomas woke up sweating and panting, fresh off a nightmare full of blood and Cranks and the vicious, violent deaths of his friends. This morning, thankfully, had been free of nightmares. He'd woken up early, letting the sun's warmth streaming through the window soothe him before he'd rolled out of bed.

After a long shower, Thomas threw some comfortable clothes on and was padding out into the living room when he heard the knock. He took a detour and opened the door, raising his eyebrows at Derek standing there, holding food and something hot.

"Shouldn't you still be asleep or something?" Thomas joked, stepping aside to let Derek inside.

[triskehale]

"And why would you think that?" Derek asks, stepping into the apartment and pushing the door shut with his foot. He hands a coffee and a breakfast sandwich over to Thomas and sits on the sofa with his own. "I came to drag you outside."

He looks over at Thomas, pleased to see that he doesn't look so pale and exhausted anymore. It looks like he might have gotten some decent sleep, and Derek is glad for that. It'll take time, but they're all healing. He looks at Thomas and then pats the sofa next to him before peeling the paper away from his own sandwich. "But you have to eat first."

[shuck_you]

"I don't know, television shows have told me that most people like to stay in bed when they don't have anything to do," Thomas said, sitting down next to Derek and rubbing his face.

"I was considering going back to bed myself," he added, yawning quietly. "What's outside? I've been doing just fine staying inside. You didn't need to bring all this either. I have some food in my cabinets. Some water. I'm fine."

[triskehale]

"One of these days you'll just say thank you," Derek says with a wry smile, wondering if maybe he isn't welcome here. Thomas doesn't seem to want him to go, though. He sits down next to Derek, at least. "You promised me a race and a new employee."

[shuck_you]

"Did I?" Thomas asked, leaning back against the sofa and feigning confusion. "I don't remember doing that. I must have been half asleep."

He laughed though, shaking his head and rubbing a hand through his hair. "I'm just kidding. I didn't expect you, that's all. I'm just glad I wasn't asleep. That's all I've wanted to do since I got back. Just sleep. Sit in a dark room and sleep where it's quiet."

[triskehale]

"You think you're so funny," Derek replies with a laugh, rolling his eyes a bit. His expression softens into one of understanding when Thomas continues speaking, and he nods a bit. "That's all I did for the first few days too, but no good come of that. You have to keep moving, move forward."

He reaches over at pats Thomas' thigh with the back of his hand. "So come on, eat up and then go change. I'll drag you out of here if I have to."

Derek is smiling as he says it, but he doesn't want to let Thomas wallow too much. He's been through a lot recently, and Derek wants him to know that life goes on. People are there for him, and he has to keep moving. He knows this from experience.

[shuck_you]

"I don't know, some good came of it," Thomas said, opening the sandwich and taking a bite. "I got a lot of sleep and watched television I wouldn't have otherwise watched. Some of things I watched were even halfway decent."

Most of the time, he'd just been bored. He'd wanted to go outside, go run and climb, but the thought of Cranks appearing had kept him in. The fear had all been in his head but it had taken time to convince himself completely that this place wasn't the other Darrow and he wasn't going to be assaulted with his worst nightmare if he ventured outside.

"How are you doing?" he asked quietly. "Bitty told me he'd been staying with you."

[triskehale]

"Rest is good," Derek says with a nod, looking over at him. Thomas does look a lot better since Derek last saw him. Some of his color is back, and his eyes are a little brighter, but his cheeks are a little sunken in like he hasn't been eating quite enough. Derek picks up Thomas' breakfast sandwich and very deliberately sets it in his lap, gesturing at it with his chin.

"I'm getting by," Derek says, expression going a bit more serious at the question. "Yeah, he was having trouble sleeping on his own. Can't say I minded the company. I've been thinking too much when I'm alone."

[shuck_you]

"I'm eating," Thomas told him, shaking his head. "I'm not that hungry and I'm not gonna force food into me. But, relax okay? I'm eating. I just didn't have food for awhile. Takes time to come back from that. I know."

He'd gone without food for a lot longer than he had while they'd been in the other Darrow. He knew what his body could take and he knew that over eating wouldn't do him any favors either so he was doing his level best to balance everything out.

"I told him he could stay here too, if he wanted," Thomas shared, shrugging. "Just as a backup or something. Just in case. I don't mind him being here either."

[triskehale]

"Fair enough," Derek replies, feeling faintly embarrassed as he takes the sandwich from Thomas' lap and puts it in on the table. He just remembered how hungry he had been in that other place, so hungry that it was a gnawing ache in his stomach painful enough to keep him up at night. He just wants to make sure that everyone he cares about has enough to eat.

"Oh," Derek tells him, looking over at him. He wonders if maybe Thomas didn't want to be alone either, and he furrows a brow slightly. "You're welcome at my place too, if you ever want company."

[shuck_you]

"Stop, don't take my food away now," Thomas laughed, reaching for the sandwich and shaking his head. "I'm just not going to shove it in my mouth or anything. I do want to eat this and I will eat it, I'm just taking my time with it. Relax. Thank you for thinking of me."

It wasn't the first time Derek had brought him food and Thomas doubted it'd be the last. He appreciated it more than Derek probably knew and the only thing stopping him from eating it quickly was that he knew his stomach wouldn't take too well to that. He'd learned from his time in the Scorch, starving and sick, that after a time like that, it was better to eat slow and work up to feeling normal again.

"I know," Thomas said, laughter dying away only to be replaced by a gentler smile. "I wasn't really good to be around anyone the first few days after I came back. I thought this was all a trick so I stayed in my bedroom, barely doing anything until I was convinced ash wasn't going to start falling again."

[triskehale]

"So indecisive," Derek says, rolling his eyes in fond exasperation. It is good to see Thomas laughing, even if it as at Derek's expense. He relaxes back against the sofa as Thomas speaks, nodding along in understanding. "Yeah, I wasn't much different. I just slept and ate, and didn't want to go outside."

He smiles softly and looks over at him, shrugging a shoulder. "But still, I'm around if you need. I can always be here in a few minutes."

They sit there in silence for a few moments, and then Derek reaches over to lightly slap Thomas' knee, squeezing a bit before letting go. He gives Thomas a teasing smirk, eyes shining with amusement. "So, are we doing this, or are you going to be lazy all day?"

[shuck_you]

"Hey, you brought me food and something to drink," Thomas pointed out, nodding at the sandwich and his half finished drink. "It's not my fault I can't inhale it like you can. I don't have a black hole for a stomach."

With that said, Thomas took a few more bites of the sandwich before he got to his feet, leaving everything on the table in front of them. It'd probably be cold when they got back but he didn't want to throw it away. He'd find something to do with it even if it meant eating it cold.

"But yes, we're doing this," he said, nodding solemnly. "I've been waiting to kick your shucking ass all week. I've been practicing. Feels like all I've been doing lately is running."

[triskehale]

"Some of us are just lucky, I guess," Derek says with a laugh, finishing off his own sandwich and getting up. Thomas walks away from the table and Derek rolls his eyes and grabs his sandwich, heading for the kitchen. "Don't leave stuff like this out. It could make you sick."

He wraps it up and puts it in the fridge and grabs two bottles of water out before turning on his heel and raising an amused eyebrow. "Gonna kick my shucking ass, huh? Big words, Thomas."

Derek laughs a little and bounces on his feet a little like he's psyching himself up. "Go get dressed then. You're on."

[shuck_you]

Thomas rolled his eyes playfully and shook his head before he disappeared back into his bedroom. He changed quickly, going with pants, a long sleeved shirt and sneakers. He'd almost grabbed for his boots on instinct but remembered that he didn't have to run in those now.

It wasn't long before he reappeared, stretching his arms and stifling a yawn behind his hand. He wasn't tired but he'd been sitting and relaxing for awhile so Thomas guessed it was just leftover.

"We running the same path today?"

[triskehale]

"I was thinking maybe we could go to the cove, like the first time," Derek replies, looking at Thomas hopefully. That's a good memory in Derek's book. Thomas had handled learning about Derek's secret so well, and he feels like that was a turning point in their friendship. He'd felt closer to Thomas after that, and more like he could trust him.

"It's not too cold yet," Derek tells him, tossing a water bottle his way. "You up for it?"

[shuck_you]

"Yeah, that sounds good," Thomas said, nodding and grabbing the water bottle out of the air. A little familiarity was actually welcome. He'd spent a lot o time mapping the city just as he had the Maze so many months ago. The only difference between then and now were the the layouts and that Thomas wasn't painstakingly recreating every twist and turn he took in the city by drawing it on paper.

"I don't know if I'll wanna swim this time since it is kinda cold but running's definitely gonna happen," he continued. "Haven't been down there in awhile anyway."

[triskehale]

"Too cold for swimming," Derek agrees, finishing off his coffee and tossing the cup in the trash before heading for the door and looking at Thomas with a smirk. "Heading out to my secret cove without me, huh?"

He pulls open the door and ushers Thomas outside with a wave of his arm. "Come on, slowpoke."

[shuck_you]

"Hmm?" Thomas asked, tucking the water bottle up into his sleeve and slipping by Derek and out of his apartment. He waited till Derek stepped out of his apartment so he could lock it up.

"I didn't know it was secret," he said, making a face. "I've been down there a few times just to sit and think. It's quiet. Kind of reminds me of the Deadheads back home except it's not full of gravestones."

[triskehale]

"I'm kidding, Thomas," Derek tells him, reaching out to give the back of his neck a squeeze as he passes by. "Go there whenever you want. It is a really nice place."

There were little coves like that near Beacon Hills, and he would go out there to get away from all the noise back home. Sometimes he would go do his homework or read a book, or just lay there and listen to the waves. There's something inherently peaceful about the sound.

"Definitely better than the Necropolis," Derek says with a nod, pushing the lobby doors open and holding it so Thomas can pass through. It's cool but sunny, and Derek takes in a deep breath with his head tipped back, letting the sun hit his face.

[shuck_you]

"Hey, I figured as much but I didn't want to keep impeding on a place that you might be keeping secret," Thomas said, lightly smacking Derek's arm as he passed and turned around to walk backwards down the hall.

He pushed out into the cool air and stretched again, still pleased every single time he went outside and the sun didn't burn him and, now, that ash didn't fall from the sky and paint the ground grey.

"Deadheads wasn't like the Necropolis," Thomas told him, falling into step beside Derek now. "It was smaller and not as dark. No one went in there but Gladers. Necropolis isn't terrible but the Deadheads was better."

[triskehale]

"Impede all you want," Derek says, laughing as Thomas smacks his arm. "Just don't be surprised if a big black wolf comes lumbering through."

He reaches out to lightly flick the back of Thomas' neck and then falls into step with him, heading towards the park. It has the best entrance to the woods, and to the place where most of the trails Derek has worn down over the years start. "Not a fan of the smell of the Necropolis."

Derek wrinkles his nose and shakes his head a bit. "And be careful with that old asylum. I've ran into literal monsters in there, though I think that might have been a Halloween prank by the city."

[shuck_you]

"I'm not about to go inside an asylum," Thomas promised, shaking his head. He was oftentimes stupid, sometimes insanely so, but he wasn't out looking for trouble in Darrow. He had enough troubles waiting for him back in the Scorch to build up ill will and enemies in a completely new place.

"You're probably not a fan of how a lot of places and people smell," he joked, stretching his arms over his head and rolling his shoulders. "Ever get tired of that sense of smell?"

[triskehale]

Derek barks out a laugh at that and looks over his Thomas with an amused smile, shaking his head a bit. No one has ever really asked him that, and he wrinkles his nose a bit as he reaches up to scratch the back of his head. "It can be a pain in the ass, yeah, but I'm used to it."

He laughs again and reaches over to poke the underside of Thomas' arm before scoffing and moving into a lunge to stretch out his hamstrings. "Funny question to ask when you're waving your pits around in my face."

It's all just teasing, because Thomas smells fine to him. Good, even. It's all clean sweat and this musky earthiness that's inherent to him, like vanilla and cloves. And Thomas never seems to wear any cloying, chemical colognes that always make the inside of his nose itch.

[shuck_you]

"I took a shower and this is a clean shirt," Thomas quipped, making shooing motions at him with his hands. He uncapped the water Derek had given him and took a few gulps, letting the cold water slide down his throat before he capped it and put it away.

He rubbed the back of his neck and pushed his hair back, making it stick up with the movements of his fingers before exhaling.

"Stop smelling me, you weirdo," he joked, making a face. "I don't know if I could deal with a super sense of smell even after getting used to it. There are some things I hate smelling and I've just got the normal ability."