It felt wrong just to forget about what she saw at Stiles' house. She thought maybe she could pay Scott a visit and see how he was feeling, but provoking him would make things worse. There was no explaining what she witnessed in the room, but one thing was for sure. She hoped the conflict between her two best friends wouldn't last long, and things would just go back to normal. It pained her to see them fight. Especially since they were her only close friends and she didn't want to be in the position where she had to alternate time to speak to them

Since she decided to skip out on the party, nerves decided to wrack Aspen's brain when it came to how she would approach Isaac. The two werent exactly close and showing up out of the blue would seem out of the ordinary. Though these thoughts permeated Aspen's mind, she knew if she asked to visit him at the graveyard, he would object. But seeing as no one would be with him to celebrate him making the lacrosse team, she thought she owed it to him.

Aspen quickly changed to something more comfortable and sat on her bed with her phone in hand. Her fingers hovered over the screen, trying to find a way to tell Scott she wasn't coming to the party. Allison did seem excited, but if her feelings for Scott were as serious as she made it seem, she would be completely occupied in his company. Lydia, on the other hand, well, she wouldn't let Aspen hear the end of it.

After texting Scott a small lie on her reasoning for not attending the party, she jumped up from the bed and let her eyes linger over her features in the mirror. She wondered why she suddenly felt so self-conscious. The thought of it bothered her. Her fingers twirled a strand of her hair, wondering if she should do something with it. It's not like Isaac was someone to impress, but seeing as the boys at Beacon Hills highschool loved the girls when they got all dressed up for school, she wished she could understand that feeling.

Blinking a couple of times, Aspen shook her head in attempts to wipe the thought from her mind. With a pained groan, she tucked her hair behind her ears and slowly inhaled from her nose as she grabbed her bag and jacket from her bed and rushed down the stairs.

Using his socked foot to kick off from the ground, Grandpa Sam was satisfied as his rocking chair soothed his mind. Multiple blankets draped over his body, letting him snuggle into them and inhaling their divine smell as they were just pulled out from the drier. Jeapoary played loudly from the tv as Sam slowly sipped his tea and hummed along with the tune playing from the game show.

"Aren't you hot?" Aspen laughed, making her way next to her grandfather, crossing her arms, and trying to find what was so entertaining about this show.

"I'm actually quite frostbitten." he shivered, his grip on his hot cup tightening.

"You know the normal term would be cold."

"I'm an intellectual, Juney."

Aspen let out a breathy laugh from her nose and knelt next to her grandpa. A warm smile came over her features as she admired his honey-colored eyes and the creased wrinkles decorating his skin. Sam always believed in a good skincare routine, leaving his skin clear and smooth. Even though he was aware of his old age, he always said he looked young for a man in his seventies.

"Are you going somewhere?" Sam asked, tilting his head down to see her more clearly through his small frames.

"Yea, but I won't be out long. Just visiting a friend for a bit."

"Oh, is this some kind of date?"

"No, it's how it sounds. Just visiting a friend. He made the lacrosse team, but can't make it to the party to celebrate with everyone else."

Sam nodded slowly as he pursed his lips.

"So you're intentionally skipping a party to keep this boy company?" he inquired, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

Aspen rested her arms on the arm of the chair and rested her head on them. With a small nod confirming his answer, Sam smiled softly.

"So, it's a date then?"

Aspen gave her grandfather a blank stare as she sat straight.

"Are dates usually in a graveyard?"

Sam gasped in horror, taking another sip from his tea.

"My dear. What if he murders you?"

Aspen playful rolled her eyes and made her way to the fridge to pull out two glass bottles of beer. Sam tried turning in his chair to view what his grandaughter was doing but failed when she had already tucked them in her bag and rushed to the front door.

"What-what did you grab from the fridge?" he asked her worriedly, glaring at the bag held tight against her chest as if he could possibly see through th blue material.

"Uh, lemonade. Lemonade in glass bottles," Aspen said, patting the bag, making the two beer bottle clink with one another. "oh, and can I take the car?"

"I don't know, Juney," Sam sighed, shaking his head, thinking about all the possible things that could happen to his grandaughter on the road.

"Please. It's a school night. No one will be on the road, and I won't be out long."

Sam grumbled to himself as he sank deeper into his chair as if it would eat him wholly to avoid the conversation. "Fine," he murmured.

Aspen did a little dance with her feet before planting a kiss against her grandfather's smooth cheek with a squeal of excitement. A laugh escaped his lips, glad to see his granddaughter leaving the house to spend time with someone besides Scott or Stiles.

Having grabbed the key to the yellow Volkswagon parked in the driveway of her home, Aspen sat in the front seat, gripping the steering wheel with both hands. It's been a while since she's been behind the wheel, but not so long that she should be timid. Aspen tapped her nails against the worn-out leaver, contemplating whether or not she should go through with the plan. She didn't want Isaac to feel weird around her, but from her perspective, Aspen thought they had grown quite used to each other's company.

Arriving in the dark parking lot of the cemetery, nerves came over Aspen as she had never really stopped by the cemetery this late at night. The clouds didn't help in the natural light from the full moon, and the air became more frigid as the wind began to pick up, blowing the trees in every direction.

Aspen climbed out of the car, shivering as the wind graced her now pink cheeks. She held her tote bag close to her side as she gradually made her way into the cemetery threshold. The distant sound of cars put her at somewhat ease. Silence scared her the most, scared she would hear something besides birds and the wind.

Goosebumps ran along her arms, bring her to cuss under her breath. Aspen came upon an open space of the cemetery with floodlights keep her from straining her eyes any longer. They were dim but enough for her to see a Loader scooping up dirt from the ground a little ways from where she stood. She made the silhouette of someone sitting in the driving seat, slumping as if this was like breathing to him.

Aspen hoped it was Isaac and not some random worker who would be confused as to why she was there. Taking her chances, she shuffled forward on the cobbled path and strained her eyes to see Isaac. His face was solemn as his eyes were barely attempting to stay open. He rubbed them with the back of his hands and let out a long yawn.

Aspen was now close enough to the Loader to say something but was afraid she might scare him. Turnin the Loader to pick up more dirt, Isaac's eyes fixated on the darkness to see Aspen standing close enough for him to hit her.

Aspen yelped and took a quick step back before Isaac shut off the machine with wide eyes, his cerulean color now more visible under the dim floodlights. His hands fumbled with the controls, but he was able to shut it off entirely before he killed the girl in front of him. With shaky breaths, he found Apsen's gaze.

Aspen laughed nervously as she sent a small wave in Isaac's direction. Still shocked that she was there, Isaac wasn't sure whether to approach her and stay in his place.

"W-what are you doing? Here, I mean," Isaac asked her, turning in his seat to let his long legs hang over the side of the Loader.

Aspen fumbled with the material of her jacket she grazed her tongue on her bottom lip before bringing it between her teeth.

"I just wanted to see you," Aspen told him slowly, "you made the team, and it's not fair that you can't celebrate with everyone else. So I thought...."

Aspen trailed off as she shouldered one of the straps of her bag off her shoulder and fished for the two bottles of beer. Presenting them to Isaac made him laugh as he rubbed his forehead, surprised that she had really shown up to share the celebration with him.

"So I thought we could celebrate ourselves. Just to commemorate this momentous moment in history."

Isaac let out a breathy laugh and shook his head, still in a state of bafflement. No one has shown such a small but sweet gesture to him before. He had witnessed Lydia inviting her personally to the party, and the fact that she came out to see him instead brought him to just stare at Aspen with admiration.

She bounced in place, scared that his silence meant he didn't want her there. His eyes wandered from the beer bottle in her shaking hands, and up to her brown eyes, that hasn't left his since she approached him.

"Making the lacrosse team isn't exactly momentous." Isaac finally spoke after a brief silence.

He hopped down from the Loader and steadied himself on impact with teh ground. Approaching Aspen made her realize how intimidatingly tall he was. She wasn't too short herself, but her head only being a short way higher than his shoulder still mad her feel small under his gaze as he finally stood before her.

"Well, maybe not for us, but it most definitely is for the self-proclaimed cool kids at the party right now."

"You really didn't have to do this," Isaac told her, his nervous state still visible under the floodlight's beams. Aspen shrugged and let her feet shift in the leaves crunching under her shoes.

"I didn't think it was fair that you were here all by yourself," Aspen explained, waving her hand around the dark cemetery that made her shiver in place. "While everyone is partying and getting drunk, you're here scooping dirt out of the ground for a dead person."

Isaac chuckled at her blunt statement, making her wince at her horrible wording. "My condolences to whoever died, but you get what I mean. You did great out there, and it seemed only appropriate that you had a little celebration of your own. The guys on the team may not recognize you yet, but I definitely do. I saw you out there, and you come at level with Jackson."

"I think you just offended Jackson," Isaac laughed, tucking his hands into his jacket pockets.

"He can suck it up," Aspen sighed and handed him the beer bottle. "so can you take a break and have just one teensy little drink with me?"

Isaac hummed to himself and looked around as if someone was watching him. Aspen furrowed her brows and looked around with him. There's never been a murder case here, but since finding the body in the woods, she wouldn't be surprised.

Clicking his tongue, Isaac accepted the drink and held it in his hands. Aspen watched as his fingers wrapped around the head of the bottle and noted his fingertips tinted a red color. It wasn't cold to the point of frostbite, so seeing his burnt fingers rose concern in her mind.

"Your hands," Aspen said in almost a whisper, bring Isaac to look at his own hands. He quickly shook his head and dropped his hands to his side.

"It's nothing. Must have burned them while cooking-or something." Isaac mustered his words out so fast, and Aspen had a hard time telling if he was lying or not.

"All ten of them?"

"I never said I was good," Isaac laughed nervously as he spun on his heel and made his way to a bench hiding under a large tree. Aspen hesitated to move for a moment and forced her feet to move and match his pace. Reaching the bench, they both plopped down. Aspen stared at down at the bottle in her hand, and side glanced Isaac. He had already begun sipping on his beer, the taste not affecting him in the slightest.

"You've drunk before?" Aspen asked him, struggling to uncap the stubborn bottle.

"um, a couple of times but nothing heavy. Why, have yo-"

Isaac broke off, seeing Aspen struggling to open her bottle as she whispers profanities rapidly under her breath.

Her hand continued to slip, making her fingers come close to bruising at her tight grip. With a light chuckle, Isaac grabbed her bottle and exchanged it with his own to hold.

With a quick twist, he uncapped the bottle but winced at the soreness from his fingertips throbbing. Aspen flinched, imagining how the sensitive skin must have felt from the applied pressure.

"Show off," Aspen quipped, exchanging their bottles again.

"You're welcome," Isaac murmured, bringing his bottle to his lips to take another swig.

Aspen closed one of her eyes and peeked into the hole of the bottle. She took a small whiff and scrunched her nose from the distinct smell. Isaac took notice of this, and a grin threatened to break from his lips. After taking a deep breath, Aspen tilted the bottle, letting the warm liquid slip down her throat. Dry coughs made Aspen hold the back of her hand against her mouth as her eyes screwed shut.

"Oh, god! Why-why does it taste like that? L-like-like acid." Aspen choked on her words and let out another cough. Isaac began patting her back, helping clear her throat as she continued shaking her head in regret.

"How would you know what acid taste like?" Isaac asked in fond amusement.

"I don't, but I can't imagine it tasting any different,"

Aspen set the bottle down by her feet and leaned back against the cold metal of the bench. She let her hand run over the arm's embedded floral carvings. The wind began to feel warmer as she allowed her mind to wander off into noting.

"Thanks for coming out tonight," Isaac spoke out, bringing Aspen to face him and see his eyes already on her own. The close proximity of his face made her clear her throat and inched away, moving her hair over her shoulder. "you didn't have to."

"You're right, Aspen sighed as she faced forward and griped the edged of the bench, "but I wanted to. Besides, if I didn't, you would be alone, and it sucks seeing you like that."

Isaac leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he kept a loose grip on the bottle. "Being alone has its perks. Sometimes," he said quietly, but loud enough for Aspen to hear and slightly frowned.

"Why are you always alone?"

"I dunno. I guess so I can take care of myself without anyone else worrying. It just seems easier that way. Not having to.... check in every time I have a problem. Waste of time."

"Is that really what you think? That people wouldn't care about your problem and just look the other way?"

"Do you care?" Isaac looked over his shoulder to see Aspens already looking at him.

"Of course I do."

"You don't know my problems."

"Yea, and you don't know mine. Doesn't make them meaningless. Besides, you're not alone anymore, and you won't have that option. Not with me around."

Isaac quirked a brow with a sheepish grin. "Oh, yea? Why is that?"

"Because I'm proclaiming you as my friend whether you like it or not. And I'll help you study and hell, I'll even tutor you."

"I can't pay you if you were to tutor me."

"I'm not asking for money. I just want something that will benefit you in two ways. If I tutor you, your not alone as often, and your grade will go up. It's a good deal, so take it or leave it, Lahey."

Isaac leaned back on the bench and hung his head back to see the clouds peeking through the thick leaves from the trees hovering over them.

"I'll let you tutor me but only under one condition," Isaac suddenly hummed, making Aspen lean back with him with her lips parted.

"An ultimatum? I didn't know you could be so cruel." Aspen quipped with a shake of her head as she clicked her tongue.

"It's just two questions. That's all. I swear."

Witha huff, Aspen turned in place to face Isaac completely and brought her legs up to cross them. "Ask away," she sighed, wavering her hand for him to proceed.

"Well, for one," Isaac started, resting his arm over the back of the bench, his hand close enough to touch her shoulder. "why did Stiles call you June?"

Aspen was afraid he would bring it up at one point but was somewhat grateful because the dim light wasn't enough to expose the blush that overcame her face. A weak laugh left her lisp a she looked down at her hand and shook her head.

"You..." Aspen broke off with a sigh, debating to tell him or not. Being insecure about her middle name was silly, but she had hidden it for so long just to tell someone intentionally. "You can't laugh. Promise you won't."

Aspen met his gaze, and she could only see sincerity as he nodded.

"My middle name is Juniper, so they boys call me June. More often than they should. But I guess I've gotten used to it. Now they act like that's my name rather than Aspen."

Isaac raised a brow and snort, making Aspen slap his arm.

"You're laughing!"

"I'm not!"

Aspen gave him a look, tilting her head.

"No, no, I'm not laughing at that. It's just weird that you would be remotely embarrassed by that." Isaac told her, his hand held up in defense to prevent from meeting her fiery.

"It's a plant. Juniper is a plant."

"Still don't see the big deal."

"It's not appealing."

"Do you think people would make fun of you for it?"

"I expect it in a way. It's not a common name you hear as often as others."

"That's what makes it nice."

"We have very different definitions of nice."

Issac just shrugged and placed his beer bottle on the ground alongside Aspen's. "I think you're overthinking it."

"I tend to overthink everything if you haven't noticed."

"You also ramble a lot."

"Shush." Aspen playfully nudged his leg with her foot, but a smile played along her lips.

"It's pretty," Isaac said simply, bringing Aspen to perk her eyes up at him. He avoided her eye contact and stared at the cemetery around him.

"You think so?" she asked softly.

Isaac nodded in silent response.

"Next question-"

"Woah woah woah," Aspen put both her hands up to stop him, "You already asked two questions."

"No, I didn't," Isaac argues, his mind pondering over what they had just discussed.

"Yes, you did. You asked what's June mean, and then you asked if I was embarrassed by it. Two questions total. I tallied them."

"huh," Issac laughed, baffled by her preciseness but shook his head to dismiss the thought. "well, I'm asking anyway. Where did you get the marbles?"

Aspen watched as Isaac dug through his jacket pocket and let it roll around his hand as he presented it to her.

"Well, if you must know," Aspen cleared her throat and grabbed the marble from his hand. "my grandpa made them for me when I was younger. It was a gift for my tenth birthday, and I've absolutely adored them since then."

I

saac smiled, seeing the admiration in her eyes as she looked down at the marble in her hands. Being this close to her, it was then when he noticed the small imperfections in her iris. The red dots were tiny and indistinctive, almost maroon color that no one would see if not for how close they were.

Feeling his gaze linger, Aspen slowly lifted her head to see Isaac's eyes closer than ever. She immediately melted in his soft yet intimidating eyes. She didn't dare breathe, she didn't move an inch, and neither did Isaac. His eyes glanced between her eyes and her lips, making her become self-conscious at how long he's been looking at her.

From this close, Isaac could see every impurity on her face. No one has ever looked at her like Isaac was right now. She had never worried about anyone paying attention to her, but right now, she wished she had done something to make her appearance more appealing.

"You have really pretty eyes..." Aspen sighed in bliss, trailing off as her shoulder became tense from Isaac's fingers grazing over the material over the jacket. A moment later, she realized the words that carelessly trailed from her mouth when Isaac slightly grinned and looked down. His smile was enough to make her weak in the knees if she wasn't already sitting down.

Aspen buried her face into her hands and stifled a 'sorry' multiple times with a quiet groan. The sensation of warmth overcame her wrist as Isaac used his hand to pry them away from her face. She perked her eyes at him; the grin replaced with a soft smile. He tilted his head to meet her eye level, his hands now placed into hers.

Isaac let the pad of his thumb graze against her hand as he looked down at them. Aspen was now in a trance. She couldn't take her eyes off him. The shy boy whom she befriended actually had the confidence to hold her hands. From the uncertainty on his face, it was evident he was surprised with himself.

Just as Isaac opened his mouth to say something, Aspen's phone rang.