The sky hung heavy over city that day, dark clouds unleashing a torrent of rain that drummed relentlessly on the rooftops. It was one of those afternoons where the world felt muffled, cocooned in gray sheets of water. The twins, Eli and Noah, were due for their vaccinations—a routine checkup that Allison had dismissed with a wave of her manicured hand. “I’m too busy,” she’d snapped earlier that morning, her beautiful face twisted in annoyance as she scrolled through her phone, planning yet another shopping spree. “You handle it, Derek. Or let that slut do it.” Her rude words hung in the air, but Derek ignored her, his kind heart already turning to Stiles.