#and nothing about neil or his mother or the creeps or susan

[every-dayiwakeup]

Something about Flayed Billy still showing up for work, watching people carefree and having fun in the pool... 

Even before he was flayed, he had to see others enjoying what he used to have. 

And to top it all off, he finally had a position of some authority in his life (plus getting as close as he could to the water, where he belongs) ... 

The Mind Flayer took that away from him, too. 

I think about those disgusting “parents” ogling him like a piece of meat, and if he ever for one second thought they actually noticed something was wrong. When they didn’t, it only confirmed in his mind that the only good thing about him happens to be his looks.  

[cavinginhisfvce]

Little!Billy

Sweet Baby Billy gets the cuddles and affection he deserves.

Flurries of snow fell to the ground as Billy trudged up the walkway to Steve's house, the air was harsh when he breathed in. 

He wasn't sure which hurt more, the sting of his steadily bruising ribs, or the cold, sharp intakes of breath. It didn't matter in the end, because everything just hurt, his body was alight with different aches on a good day. 

Today wasn't a good day, the aches were replaced by searing pain, an unfortunate side effect of discussions with his father.

Neil was pissed at Billy because Susan gave Max permission to spend the weekend with her nerd squad. Despite having nothing to do with his step-mothers decision, Billy still found himself on the receiving end of Neil's anger. It was better him than her or Max, at least that's what he told himself as his dad rounded on him, swiftly knocking the air out of his body.

He was demanding Billy bring Max back home, however Billy had no intentions of doing so. 

It didn't matter if Max came home today, or Sunday, because in the end; it was Billy who would end up bloody and broken, so he opted out of ruining her weekend and subsequently his own any further than Neil already had.

 This meant he couldn't go home for the next few days as well, leaving him with nowhere to escape the storm that was rapidly picking up momentum. 

There was one place, though. One place he was always welcomed, always safe.

This is what landed him at Steve's front door, his eye was swollen shut, the right side of his face aches and burns from where his father's wedding ring undoubtedly made a gash, if the dried blood on his jacket was any indication. He should've called first, or even texted. 

Max and her friends were probably all in Harrington's den, playing that fucking fantasy game that she claimed was stupid, but he had found her learning more about in free time.

Any other time, Billy would've gone anywhere besides where Max was, especially with his face busted. Not to mention her nosy friends, but this time was different. He had nowhere else to go, not that he'd choose to be anywhere else. 

When he finally gathered the courage to knock, the door swung open and revealed a smiling Steve Harrington, though said smile quickly dropped as he took in Billy's appearance, his warm hands reaching out to pull the younger boy into the familiar household. 

Before the door had fully clicked shut, Billy was letting himself fall into Steve's embrace, a welcomed fog creeping into his mind as the other wrapped his arms around Billy. 

"Hey, Sweet Boy...I've got you…" That was all it had taken for Billy to dissolve into a heap of silent tears, his face pressed into the crook of Steve's shoulder, as he breathed in his boyfriend’s comforting scent.

It didn't take a genius to figure out Billy's father hurt him again, Steve could feel the anger shimmering inside of him, but he forced it down in favor of comforting the boy in his arms.

Billy had all but molded their bodies together with a pained whimper, his face pressing into the crook of Steve's neck.

Soft sniffles could be heard as Steve guided the smaller boy to the couch, his body shaking from the cold or maybe something else; Steve couldn't pinpoint. 

It had taken Billy a while, but his tears eventually subsided. 

He was situated in Steve's lap, wrapped in a fuzzy throw blanket as the elder rubbed soothing circles along his back; burrowing closer, he hid his face in Steve's neck with a small whine.

A whine. Steve knew that meant Billy had dropped, which would explain why the blond was attempting to turn their two bodies into one. It wasn't unusual for Billy in his regular headspace, he just approached cuddling differently. In little space, Billy was quick to manhandle Steve to get the position he wanted, but outside of it, he would just stare at Steve until the elder boy got the hint. 

"Hurts, Dada." Another whine left the boy, his fingers painfully curled into the fabric of the latter's shirt. Steve was quick to run a hand up the boy's back, softly cooing as he buried his nose into Billy's curls, "I know, baby. Can Daddy get up to get you some medicine?" Billy immediately shook his head hysterically, a small cry bubbling from his lips, "N-no, Daddy. C-can't leave Billy-Bee!"

Steve would gently shush Billy, his tone soft. "I'm not gonna go anywhere without you, Sweet Boy. You can always come with me." Billy looked up at Steve with watery eyes, his bottom lip wobbling, "B-Billy go wit' Daddy?"

Steve would hurriedly nod his head, and scoop Billy into his arms the moment his own feet hit the ground.

Billy's arms wrap around his Caregivers neck as he moves to bury his face in the crook of Steve's neck once more. 

It wasn't the easiest task, but eventually Billy was cleaned up, all evidence of a run in with his father washed away by soft kisses to his nose and cheeks, and the sting of antiseptics. Obviously, his eye was still swollen, angry reds and purples covering smooth skin. His lip, while no longer bleeding, posed the all too real threat of opening back up.

It wasn't until he had Billy dressed in a pair of fuzzy pajama pants and an oversized sweater, his pacifier dangling dangerously from his lips, that the kids had finally trailed out the den to find Steve and demand food. 

They found him rummaging through the freezer.

When Max's eyes landed on Billy, she immediately gasped and rushed over to him, her hand gently reaching out to cup his bruising cheek. His lack of resistance informed her that her brother had dropped, something she'd only witnessed twice since their parents had married. She didn't have a chance to speak before Billy was clinging to her, mindlessly nuzzling against her shoulder. "H-Hi, Maxie! D-daddy is makin' dinos!" To say Max was confused was an understatement, but she knew better than to let it show, if she'd learned anything about Littles in school, it was that their emotions were often a mess, and any signs of discomfort would weigh heavily on them. "Oh, really? Stevie knows how to make the best nuggets!" This had Billy nodding as he peered up at Max, his blue eyes wide and shining with an innocence she'd never known her abrasive older brother to have.

"N-not Stevie! D-daddy!" He spoke slowly, as if to emphasize that Max had called Steve by the wrong name, but a giggle followed his words. "He's your Daddy, Bubba. He's Stevie to us."

"Uh, what the fuck?" It was Mike who spoke, his confusion clear as day. Immediately Max whipped her head around to glare at him, her fiery locks all but slapping her in the face, "don't curse in front of him, idiot!"

At that, Billy giggled again, a finger pointed at Mike as he spoke, "i-idiot!" His smile after was so big, so warm, that neither Max nor Steve made any move to correct him, both in fact just let out a coo, ignoring the sounds of indignation from Mike.

The kids were all learning about Classification in school, though only Will had ever met a Little. His brother was a Little, but it wasn't often he saw him regressed. He was usually with Nancy. 

They were all shocked to learn Billy Hargrove was a Little, but the shock wore off the moment Billy began doling out nicknames for his new 'Fwends". 

Mike was Mickey, and when asked why the boy simply declared that he didn't like Mickey Mouse, and he didn't like Mike. Mike was upset, but quickly got over it when Billy gave him one of his nuggets.

Lucas was Lu-Lu. Billy seemed proud of himself for the name, especially when Lucas beamed at him, and reached over to high five him, stating the name fit him perfectly.

Dustin was Bunny, because he looked "'xactly like a Bunny! Jus' a Dust Bunny!" No one had the heart to tell him that dust bunnies didn't look like actual bunnies, especially with the way his blue eyes seemed to shine with something akin to pride.

Will was dubbed Bee-Bee, once Billy had learned they shared the same name and had then decided they needed a similar nickname.

Jane was simply Janey, but she had adored hearing the name from Billy, a lisp to his words when he called out to her.

Naturally, Max had become Maxie, but no one was surprised as he had yelled it upon seeing her.

Instead of returning to their game, everyone spilled into the living room, where Steve put on The Nightmare Before Christmas, and scooped Billy up into his arms, much to the displeasure of Dustin who had been curled up with Billy's head on his lap.

"Get your own Little, this one is mine." He punctuated his words by tightening his arms around Billy's waist. 

"Don't be an ass, Steve! You see him this way all the time."

From his place on Steve's lap, Billy peered up at Dustin and gasped, "N-no say that, D-daddy is not ass!"

Steve was torn between scolding the boy for cursing, and praising him for his quick defense. He hadn't needed to do either before Max was ruffling Billy's hair, cooing her own praise, and Jane was gently reminding him he shouldn't use bad words.

Dustin silently apologized to both Steve and the regressed boy, the latter leaning over to hug him in acceptance.

It was clear that Billy was tactile in his headspace, which came as no surprise to The Party as they knew Billy's father wasn't the warmest person.

[buckysgrace]

Forty Two

Kim didn’t even have the chance to confront Billy that night. She had practiced it, rehearsing the lines in the shower and in the mirror as her heartbeat anxiously for the sight of his return. Every second just made her angrier as she realized he had left without a word and was most likely out partying as the hours ticked by. His absence didn't go unnoticed by Neil, who seemed to be growing even more furious the longer he was back home. She had a feeling their vacation hadn't worked out like Susan had been hoping. It was fairly obvious that Neil had no plans of changing.

She had waited until everyone was asleep to creep to the phone. She was hesitant but called her father all the same. She needed to know, to hear from his voice that he hadn't received anything from her. Not that it got very far. As unusual, her father seemed to miss her phone call again. That, or he had taken to ignoring her completely now that he hadn't received any money. It scared her, thinking that her relationship with her father was completely gone. 

Billy confirmed her suspicions about being out partying when she heard him dragging himself into the house in the early hours of the morning, reeking of alcohol and smoke. She felt anger brewing in her chest when she waited for him to open her door, then, she was even more angry when he never did that. Despite being so tired, she stayed awake to stare up at her ceiling. She was so mad at him that she had kicked her stuffed animals off of her bed, letting them rest on the floor.

So, she practiced the next morning once she was dressed. She looked in the mirror, thinking of everything she was going to say to him once she saw him again. Not that he made it easy. He had locked himself in his room and as each second passed, the angrier she grew. It was irritating. She desperately wanted to find out why he would do that to her but it seemed like he had other plans. She wondered how long he had kept this from her and if he just expected her to never find out. She didn't understand him sometimes. 

“I’m off,” Susan kissed the side of Kim’s head as she nibbled on the pancakes she had made. Kim grumbled in response as she dug her fork into her fluffy pancakes, “Are you okay?” Susan questioned softly. Kim spared a glance at her mother.

“I’m fine.” Kim said shortly, not feeling like she was able to trust her mom with anything she said. She knew if she told Susan that her dad had asked for money she would freak out. Her parents hadn’t ended their marriage well and this would be another reason for her mom to hate on her father. Kim was still convinced he wasn’t a bad man.

“Hm,” Susan fluffed a hand through her hair softly, not sounding convinced, “Things will get better.” Kim looked up at her longer this time, noticing the tired lines under her eyes. It suddenly made Kim sad, realizing something was wrong.

“Will they?” Kim was uncertain as she watched a sad look pass through her mother’s hazel eyes. Susan kissed the top of her temple and Kim felt like she was a little girl again, wrapped up in her mother’s arms. She felt safe, like nothing was wrong. She thought that if she closed her eyes hard enough, she could still picture their tiny house with yellow, peeling walls. 

“We can only hope. I know they will for you and your sister. You’re both so smart and sweet. You won’t ever end up in a situation like me.” Susan promised and it made Kim sick to her stomach. She wondered if one day she would be grown, in a happy marriage, and thinking about all of the shitty things her mother had gone through. She wondered if her mother had thought the same thing, that one day she would be in a happy relationship with a kind man and escape the abuse that had come before her. 

“Mom,” Kim looked at her worried, “I’ll help you. We can figure something out. You don’t have to live like this.” Susan looked as if she was really lingering in her daughter’s words, but shook her head just as fast.

“I’m happy,” Kim listened to the strained tone in her voice as she tried to convince her eldest daughter. Kim thought that this must be part of the reason she had said that love didn’t exist. She was sure if she was in her mother’s shoes, she would think the same thing. She really would really want the best for her daughters too, “Oh, I got you an appointment for Wednesday. It’s at 9:15.” Susan turned quickly, picking up her purse from the counter. Kim watched, still feeling like she was the scared little girl who used to sleep on her mom’s side of the bed when she was scared. She lingered in her thoughts as she remembered her mom would be the one, she would go to when she was scared, not her father. 

“Thank you,” It was hard to swallow as Kim looked at her mom. Things still didn’t feel the same between them, but Kim wasn’t sure if she blamed her anymore. The way they were talking now reminded her of the other day and when they used to live in San Diego. Way before Neil. Kim realized that her words from the other day weren’t from her, but from Neil. It made her worried, thinking that Neil must have something terrible to dangle over her head, “I can make dinner tonight if you want.” Kim offered softly.

Susan took a hold of her keys and Kim tried not to think about how weird it was that Neil hadn’t taken her to work. She didn’t need something else to be upset about.

“Oh, that would be nice. Go have some fun today,” Susan smiled but it didn’t quite reach her eyes, “I’m really sorry about how things have been going between us.” Kim nodded her head stiffly; afraid she would cry if she said anything else. Susan walked out towards the living room, to the back staircase. Kim stared after her for a moment before she dumped the rest of her pancakes into the trash. She carried her plate to the sink, washing off the sticky syrup quickly as her mind wandered. 

She went to the phone again, picking it up and dialing her father’s number again. Her heart throbbed in her chest as she curved the phone to fit her face. This had been the fourth time she had called since this morning. He hadn’t answered yet and she wasn’t sure why she thought he might answer this time.

"Hello?" A woman's voice answered on the other end, just as Kim felt her heart sinking back into her stomach. She paused, her mind thinking a hundred different thoughts as she urged her tongue to move. She clutched the phone tightly to her ear.

"Hi," She breathed out quickly, unsure of who she was talking to, "Is Sam nearby?" Her heart was racing in her chest as she waited to hear her father's voice again. There was silence on the line for a second. 

"Yeah," The girl on the other end sighed dramatically like it was an inconvenience, "I'll go get him." Kim grew anxious as she rehearsed what she would end up saying to her father. As angry as she was at Billy, she didn't want to risk having it get around to her mom that he had messed with her money. She couldn't see Neil being very happy with that. 

"Hello?" Kim felt the tears welling in her ears as her father's warm voice traveled through the phone. She breathed deeply, trying to relax her breathing before she broke down into tears.

"Daddy, hey," She breathed out quickly, "How are you?" She held the phone tightly, as if she could will him to stay and talk to her. She glanced over her shoulder, wishing that Max was here to talk to him too. 

"Kim?" Sam sounded confused when he finally spoke up, "I'm doing pretty well. I didn't expect you to call." She lingered for a moment, blinking her eyes as she furrowed her eyebrows together. She wondered if she should mention how many times she had tried to call.

"Yeah, I missed you," She spoke softly, twirling the wire around her finger. She waited for him to say it back, but he never did. She spoke up again, "Hey, there was an issue with sending the money but I'm going to get it sent again. Sorry it took so long." She explained as vaguely as possible. 

"Oh, oh that's good," He suddenly sounded interested, "Things have been really hard over here." Kim nodded her head, listening to every syllable he said. She missed him so much.

"I know, I'm so sorry," She responded quickly, wanting to get as much of a conversation in as she could. She thought about her complicated feelings towards Billy and thought that her dad might be the one person to help untangle them for her, "I've tried to call. I've wrote too, but I don't know if it goes through." She tried to not sound as defeated as she felt. 

"I've gotten your letters," Sam spoke and she thought she could hear the smile in his voice, "You still have a knack for your silly stories." She paused for a moment, exhaling slowly.

"You've gotten my letters?" She repeated, waiting for his response.

"Of course, I love reading them. You're so bright, I knew you would be." His tone sounded happy but none of that mattered to her anymore. She felt like her heart was dangling loosely in her chest, barely holding onto the veins that raced through her body. Her grip loosened on the phone.

"I never got any letters from you." She managed to not sound hollow, despite feeling like there was an empty spot inside her chest. It hurt, realizing that he had received everything she had wrote to him and not taken the time of day to send anything back. She would've been happy with an empty envelope that had his name signed on it. At least it would've meant that he cared enough to speak to her. She wondered how many phone calls he had purposely ignored, thinking that it was her or Max. The other line was quiet and for a moment she wondered if he had hung up, so he didn't have to answer her. 

"Oh, Kim," Her dads voice was soft as he spoke, "Things have just been so hard on me recently. I haven't had time to do so." She thought of how she would write to him in California, how often her and Max would call, and he would never answer. She paused for a moment before she hung up the phone up on him, feeling more alone than ever. She didn't have anything left to say to him. Her heart was throbbing as if he was actually here in front of her, stabbing her in that exact spot. She exhaled, expecting to feel the need to cry but instead feeling nothing.

She pulled off of the wall at the same time Billy’s door popped open. She felt the angry brewing in her chest again but her speech about confronting him had left her suddenly as she stared at him. He had on a light blue buttoned up shirt and a pair of dark denim jeans. His curls were looser than usual, and his grin was sloppy as he looked at her like nothing was wrong. Her heart did tumbles in her chest, and she only seemed to grow more infuriated from it. She couldn't even seem to stay mad at him. 

“Smells good in here,” His voice was raspy as he walked by, letting her know that he must’ve woken up just a little bit ago. She kept quiet as he passed her, stepping towards the kitchen and rummaging through the bags of cereal. She felt that it served him right that he didn't get any of the pancakes she made, “Is everyone gone?” She watched his lips curl into a mischievous grin, but she ignored it, forcing her soaring heart to calm itself as she walked to the living room. She didn't want to give in so easily, she knew she had a right to get angry with him over this situation. Even if this all boiled down to her father. 

“Yeah.” She thought that maybe she should leave and find somewhere to go so she didn’t have to see him. She wasn’t necessarily comfortable showing up at her friend’s house unannounced and she really didn’t have anyone else to hang out with. She turned on the TV, pretending to focus on what was on while she rehearsed the lines in her head again. She could feel her pulse in her wrists and her hands grew sweaty with nerves. She wasn’t good at confrontation. It made her sick as she thought about having to tell him that she knew what he had done.

She thought of her father again and wondered what he was doing. If he was truly mad enough to not talk to her or if he was just busy trying to straighten his life out. She had a feeling it wasn't the second option. It made her worried and feel even more full of guilt, not hearing from him for this long. She had Max and her mom, but he had no one. She couldn't imagine how lonely it must feel for her dad to be on his own and facing his addiction alone. She didn't think he was right to ask her for money, but Billy wasn't right in taking her choice away either. 

“Okay,” She listened to the way he rummaged in the fridge and poured a bowl of cereal. She dragged her eyes to the bottom of the floor as she realized she was staring at his reflection through the TV, “Are you doing anything today?” His voice sounded like smooth honey in her ears as she listened to him. She exhaled again, trying to focus on the words that was coming from the person on the show rather than him.

She hated how easily her heart still beat for him even though she was mad. She chewed on her bottom lip, “I don’t know.” She was being short with him, but she didn’t care. She was too mad with him, not understanding why he would do that to her without saying something. She felt like she was able to handle him telling her that it was a bad idea. She didn’t think it was fair for him to go behind her back and do it without asking. 

“What?” He looked up at her, his mouth full of cereal as he chewed. She dipped her eyes back towards the TV, ignoring him as she wrapped a blanket around herself. She didn’t have anything to say at the moment, “What did I do?” He tried again, nudging his foot up against her. She turned to him, fairly sure that her irritation was showing on her face.

“Did you do something wrong?” She asked him, tilting her head as she did her best to analyze him. She was positive she could see the gears in his head turning as he tried to think. It was almost funny, watching him try to find something that he may or may not have done wrong. 

“I don’t think so,” He grumbled, glancing back towards her rigid form. His blue eyes looked soft as he searched over her irritated expression. She figured she wasn't as good as hiding her expressions as what he was. She shrugged her shoulders stiffly, "You're acting like you're mad about something." 

“Then nothing’s wrong.” She said simply, turning away again. She was tempted to go to her room and pout again but decided against it. He sat forward, resting his cereal bowl on the coffee table before scooting closer towards her. She nestled herself as close to the arm of the chair as she could.

“Kim, cut the bullshit,” She looked at him surprised, “What are you upset about?” He looked genuinely concerned and it just seemed to make her even more upset. She felt like she couldn't trust him, like he had been lying about everything.

“You took the money I was going to give to my dad.” She didn’t ask him, she told him. As much as she wanted to deny that he would do it, she knew deep down that he was the only one that would. She watched the way his blue eyes softened and that was all she needed as a confirmation before she was standing from the couch and stomping to her room.

“Will you at least let me explain?” He was right behind her, catching the door with his hand so she wasn’t able to slam it shut in front of his regretful face. She felt her eyes narrowing as she stared at his large hand and wished that she had a bit more strength inside of her to push him away. She wanted him out. 

"What's there to explain?" She was still trying to barricade him out of her doorway, "You said before that I shouldn't comment about your relationship with your dad. What makes you think you have the right to do that with me?" She meant every word she said as she stared up at him, trying to pick him about and understand him. 

"You act like it's a big deal. All I did was put your money back where it belongs. He's an adult, he shouldn't be looking to you for money." Billy's voice was soft as he spoke, and he looked at her as if he didn't understand why she was so upset. She gulped hard, knowing his words were partially true but she didn't want to admit it. She wasn't ready to think of her dad in that manner. 

“You had no right to do that. That was my money, and I can spend it how I want and give it to whomever I want.” Her chest was heaving as he pushed his way into her room. The back of her throat was burning as she stared at him, waiting for him to apologize. She felt betrayed that he would do such a thing and not tell her about it. No wonder her father hadn’t called, he was probably hurt that she hadn’t sent him anything. She wouldn’t let Billy be the reason her father stopped talking to her altogether. 

"I didn't want you to get hurt," He tried to plead to her, "I was trying to keep you safe." She ignored the soft look in his eyes.

"I'm not a little kid. I don't need your permission to make my own decisions, regardless if I get hurt or not. He wasn't forcing me; I chose to send him money." She was angry as she spoke, not understanding how Billy couldn't even trust her to make her own decisions. She had just complained to him about her mom not treating her like an adult, yet he was acting similarly. She knew it was the same reason he didn't invite her to go out last night either. He was treating her like she was a glass doll that could break down into teeny tiny pieces at any second. 

“I never said you needed any of that. I just didn't want you to blow your hard-earned money on your pathetic dad. He probably would've blown it all on gambling anyways.” He looked at her seriously, like he couldn’t believe what she had just said. Her jaw went slack, and the anger consumed her as his insulting words bounced around inside of her mind. She knew he had no right to say anything about her father. He didn’t know anything about her dad and there was nothing wrong with helping him out. She was sure he was just busy, probably hurt that she hadn’t sent him anything when she said she would.

“Don’t call him that!” Her voice shook as she yelled at him, the back of her throat burning hard. She didn’t want to cry in front of him, “He’s my dad, not yours. You have no right to say anything about him, you don’t know him.” She meant every word she said too. She knew her dad wasn’t pathetic. No, he wasn’t the best at parenting, but he never hit her. He was never mean to her. He was kind and funny. He was everything that Neil wasn’t. Billy exhaled softly.

“I know he doesn't deserve to be your dad. That was the first time he spoke to you in how long? Kim, he wanted money. That’s fucked up. I couldn’t let him do that to you.” She was crying now, his words cut straight to the bone. They hurt. She shook her head hard, feeling the tears soaking her soft cheeks. Billy looked at her with sympathy, like he somehow could understand how she felt at the moment.

“He’s going through a hard time, and you don’t know him. He’s my dad.” She replied pitifully, staring up at him with reddened eyes. He cupped her cheek softly and as upset as she was, she wasn’t able to pull away from him. She knew he was right, that her dad had only wanted her for her money. It didn’t make the pain hurt any less. She still felt like she was breaking inside as the image of her father continued to fade in her mind.

“I know what it’s like,” Billy rubbed her cheek softly with her thumb, removing the tears from her wet cheeks, “To have a parent that doesn’t want you, that is only there when it’s convenient. Kim, I didn’t want you to have to go through that. I’m sorry, I should’ve told you.” He spoke earnestly. She didn’t know why she felt like he was the only one that could comfort her, even if she was still upset with him. She shook in his hands, keeping her eyes down casted so she didn’t have to look up at him.

“My dad loves me.” She was trying to convince herself. His thumbs felt soft as he wiped away her tears, touching her cheeks so softly she could barely feel it. She didn’t understand at what point her relationship with her father had come to this. She felt as if she had been a good daughter, like she hadn’t done anything to make her dad leave.

“I’m sure he does,” Billy said softly, drawing her away from her thoughts. She looked up at his soft features, feeling vulnerable as he observed her, “It doesn’t mean that he should treat you that way.” He said softly, his tone sounding raw as he spoke. She felt her eyebrows furrow in sorrow as she watched him, realizing the hidden meaning in his words. 

“I’m sorry.” She wasn’t sure what she was sorry for, it just felt like it was the right thing to say at the moment. She was still angry, but she realized it wasn’t really towards Billy, it was towards her dad. Even if she had sent the money, he hadn’t called her once to check on her. From the day he left it had been her and Max that had been the ones to make sure he still had something to do with them. He must be too far into his addiction to even care. It hurt her; it made her feel small.

“Don’t apologize. You had a right to be mad,” Billy spoke softly, nudging his nose softly against hers to draw her attention back to him. He pulled away a few inches as she gazed at him, taking in the look of remorse on his face. She wasn’t sure if his actions were right, or if she quite forgave him yet, but he was the only one that could comfort her. He was the only one she wanted to have at her side at the moment, “I didn’t want you to get like this.” He mumbled, pressing a kiss against each of her cheekbones. She sniffled in his hands, still feeling like a blubbering mess.

“Okay,” She breathed out slowly, her eyes felt like they were puffy and burnt a bit as she blinked at him, “I want you.” She admitted quickly, taking a fistful of his shirt and pulling him towards her. She pressed her lips against his gently before he pulled away, much to her dismay. She felt a fresh wave of betrayal wash over him as she watched his blue eyes. He hesitated as he looked into hers.

“Kim,” His minty breath massaged her wet face, “I don’t know if you’re ready.” She kept her grip on his shirt, feeling like he’d slip away if she let go of him. She was sure she looked desperate because she was. She wanted him more than she had ever wanted anything else. 

“Why?” She felt her breathing coming out harder. She wanted to feel like someone wanted her, like someone wanted to be with her. Even if it was only for a few moments, she could pretend that it was something more, “Don’t you want me?” It was a risky question; she knew that if he said no that it would hurt her more than what her father did. His blue eyes looked uncertain as he peered at her, biting down on his bottom lip.

“I always want you,” He told her softly, glancing down at her pink lips, “I just don’t want you to regret anything.” He mumbled so softly that she had to strain to hear him. She watched the look of vulnerability that crossed his face, realizing that his walls were down.

“I would never regret you.” Her heart thumped hard in her chest, realizing he would never truly understand what her words actually meant. She didn’t know how long it took her to realize how special he was to her, but she knew it now. Maybe there would come a time in the future when it was time to let go of each other, but she wouldn’t be the first one to do it. She would forever feel him around her. He would haunt her for what they could’ve been, for what they could’ve had. She knew that whatever happened, she would at least be glad that she had him for a small amount of time. 

His eyes lingered against her features, but she ignored the way he watched her, instead, she worked on unbuttoning his shirt as the warmth spread across her cheeks. She thought that after crying she would feel empty on the inside, like there was nothing else to feel. However, all she could think of was him. He made her feel whole, like she wasn’t quite so broken. She pulled the shirt off of his broad shoulders, waiting for him to say something. He kept quiet instead, so she began to fiddle with his belt. She knew what she wanted; he wasn’t just some distraction. 

She moved first, pressing her lips up against his lips this time. She was so used to him taking the lead that it almost felt wrong. He still tasted like cigarettes, mint and beer. She wondered what he tasted when he kissed her and if she tasted like salty tears at the moment. He pulled away just as fast, his eyes searching over her features again. Her heart was beating hard in her chest, afraid that he was going to push her away after what she had said. She wished she was able to tell him how much he meant to her.

“Please,” She begged softly as she began to push his jeans down his sturdy thighs, “I’ll stop if you don’t want this. Just say something.” She thought of brushing her nose against his, like he had done. She looked at his blue eyes, worried that she would see uncertainty in them. He watched her softly, tracing his thumb across her skin.

“I want you,” He promised softly, “Are you sure you’re okay? We can do this later; I don’t want to rush you into anything.” She leaned down against his hand, resting her cheek against his warm skin as she shook her head at him.

“You’re not, I promise,” She spoke sincerely, “I mean it, I want you. Please.” She added again, exhaling deeply as she cupped his bulge in her hand. She pressed up against him, in complete passion as she examined him. His eyebrows furrowed together, his lips curling into a small smile. She wanted him to want her as badly as she did right now. She wanted him to care for her in a way she knew he was unable to do. 

“Okay,” He peppered a kiss against the corner of her mouth, “Don’t cry about it.” He mumbled under his breath as he yanked her shirt over her head. She winced softly when it caught on her hair but fixed it all the same. She didn’t even care about his tone right now. She needed to feel him against her, to remember that at least a small part of him belonged to her. 

“The door,” She reminded him after he had undressed her and tossed her onto the bed. She couldn’t even find it in herself to giggle as she bounced on her soft mattress. Her heart was still heavy as she watched him cross the room and shut the door quickly. He crawled back onto the bed, smiling as he pushed her legs apart, “You’re pretty.” She mumbled softly, catching the sun that glistened off of his smooth skin. He furrowed his eyebrows together.

“Thanks, I guess,” He looked at her a bit amused, but she watched the way his eyes softened after a second of looking at her expression, “You’re sure this is what you want?” She sat up on her elbows to move closer to him as she nodded her head eagerly. She cupped his strong jawline in her hands as she felt captivated by the way he was looking at her. 

“I always want you,” She breathed out slowly, pressing her lips against his gently. He leaned forward, deepening the kiss as she rested her head back against her soft pillows. His tongue slid across her bottom lip, before pushing inside and exploring her open mouth. Her whole body felt as if she had been lit into flames. She oddly felt like it would be okay to burn as long as she had him with her, “Billy.” She breathed out softly as his thumb flicked across her hardened nipple. He pulled away, a trail of spit connecting from their lips. It sent electricity between her legs as a deep desire inside of her grew in a way that she had never experienced before. 

“Needy little whore,” He wiped the drool from her lip with his thumb, before pressing it inside of her mouth. She sucked on his thumb softly, looking up at him with big doe eyes. The blue in his eyes became harder to see as he watched her, “Fuck.” He bit his lip hard, pulling his thumb from her mouth slowly as he rested back on the heels of his feet. She stared at his hard cock, reaching between their legs to pump him softly in her hand for good measure. Something about this felt different than all of the other times they had been together. She was sure she was on edge and Billy was probably right, she may not be ready for him like this yet. Still, she wanted to feel like she belonged to someone.

“Please,” She spoke so softly that she was unsure if he heard her at first. She pushed his tip between her drenched folds, sighing at the sensation of their skin meeting. He groaned softly, watching her through his thick eyelashes, “Don’t make me beg for it.” She pleaded, watching a hint of amusement cross his face like he was considering it. He nodded, grunting softly as he pushed his hips forward and rubbed his hard cock against her wet cunt.

“I’ve got you, baby,” He promised, and she wished he had her in more than just one way, “S’okay.” He cradled her face with one hand, rubbing her soft cheek with his thumb as he glided himself in with his other hand. Her hips raised on instinct, moaning at the sensation of his cock stretching out her fluttering walls. She felt her eyes fluttering as she drank in the feeling of his thick length bottoming out inside of her. He pressed in so deeply, exhaling softly as she felt his balls rest against her skin. 

Her fingernails traced up the side of his muscular arm softly, leaving a trail of goosebumps in her wake as she lingered near his tattoo. She gripped onto his skin tightly when he slowly pulled his hips back and then slammed back into her tight cunt. She whimpered, forgetting everything she had been focused on. All she thought of was him and the way they fit together like two missing puzzle pieces.

“Oh my god,” She clung to him, digging her heels into his skin to urge him closer to her. He grunted softly, throbbing inside of her as he drew his hips out slowly and pushed back into her. He pushed her hair from her face, leaning down to lick the corner of her mouth. Her nails scraped against his skin as his movements drove her into the bed. She mewled, pulling him down further on top of her until his chest was pressed flush against hers, “More.” She demanded quietly, turning her face to watch his eyebrows scrunch up in pleasure.

He was rutting his hips into her as he moved one of his arms behind her neck, careful not to pull on her long hair. He placed another hand on her hip, desperately clawing her closer towards him as he rocked into her. His nose was brushing against her skin, his breath filling her lungs as she was sure they had never been this close before. She felt the familiar warmth spreading through her body, her clit throbbing as they moved in unison. 

“You’re so beautiful,” He murmured against the crook of her neck, his lips gliding across her sweaty skin, “So fucking beautiful and all mine.” He promised her, his words vibrating across her pale skin. She moaned, feeling a ticklish feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. His praises went straight to her core, causing her to grind her hips up and push his cock deeper inside of her wet cunt. 

She felt her toes curl as he hit the sweet bundle of nerves inside of her, the movement of his hips growing faster as she clenched around him. Her room was filled with the sounds of their moans and of their skin meeting together. She dug her nails into his skin softly, squealing as he thrusted his cock into her harder. 

“You make me feel so good,” She whimpered, tilting her head up high as his lips sucked across her skin. She could feel his teeth grazing and she didn’t even care if he left any marks on her. She’d embrace it, she’d be happy that she would have some sort of memory left of the two of them, “Billy.” She cried out, grinding her hips up helplessly as the familiar feeling grew in her stomach. He grunted in response, licking up the side of her neck before connecting their lips harshly.

It was rough and sloppy, their tongues flicking against each other as they chased their high. His arm flexed around her, drawing her in even closer as his hips began to stall. She whimpered against his lips, rolling her hips in unison as she felt the familiar feeling growing inside her.

“Cum inside me,” She begged, her lips brushing against his as she spoke, “Please Billy, fill me up with your cum.” She was nodding her head, like it would help sway his decision. He grunted, rocking into her harder as his skin smacked loudly against hers. Her legs were shaking as she clung to him tightly, feeling herself release around him with a loud cry.

“Fuck,” He exhaled softly, his hips beginning to stall as he rutted his hips down against her, “Holy shit.” He cursed, bottoming out inside of her as he filled her wet cunt with his warm liquid. She gasped in pleasure, soaking in the feeling of being full. She squeezed onto his arm softly, nudging the side of his cheek with her nose. He was still breathless but peppered a kiss against her lips. Their mouths were still met when he puckered his lips and spit into her open mouth. She moaned, swallowing his spit without another thought.

Everything that had just happened felt so small as she held onto him. No matter what she was feeling, it felt right lingering in his arms. Her heartbeat to the rhythm of his own and the line that was between them seemed to be fading to nothing in her eyes. She realized how hard she was truly falling for him as their skin mixed together.

“I’m sorry,” He mumbled again, looking at her sincerely. His curls were stuck to his sweaty forehead and his chest was moving in unison to hers, “I thought you’d be mad if I said anything.” She looked at his soft blue eyes, feeling like he was being genuine with her.

“I would have,” She admitted, knowing there really wouldn’t have been a way for her to not be upset, “I just wish my dad was different.” She didn't want to say anything else, too afraid that she would start crying if she brought up any more memories. He nodded softly and she was sure he felt the same way towards his father. She liked the way he never made her feel less than. She knew her father was far better than his own, but he never brought that up. 

They laid there together, still wrapped up in unison as they came down from their high. Kim’s legs were still shaking, her clit still vibrating as she relaxed against his touch. She turned, rubbing his tanned skin softly as she watched the way his eyebrows furrowed together. She looked over his thick eyelashes and high cheekbones. She thought if she laid still enough, she could count every freckle on his cheeks while he tried to recollect his breath. 

“I love you,” It was like all of the warm air left the room and a chill breeze spread over them instead. Love. The word bounced around every crevice inside of her brain as she tried to process what was happening. Everything inside of her froze for a long uncomfortable minute before it all kickstarted again. Kim’s eyes were just as wide as Billy’s as he stared down at her in horror, looking like he couldn’t believe he had just said that. Kim was too afraid to breathe, too afraid to move as she tried to keep her face as neutral as possible. She felt a flicker growing inside of her as she began to believe that maybe she wasn’t that crazy after all, maybe there had been more to the two of them. Her mood quickly damped as she looked at his expression, realizing it wasn’t filled with love, “Shit, shit, fuck.” Billy pulled himself from her wet cunt quickly, earning a sound of protest from her. His face was reddening like she hadn’t seen before as he moved quickly. Her heart was thumping nervously, and she suddenly found her tongue very dry as she stared up at him. She felt like she had done something wrong suddenly, not quite understanding why he was pulling away so quickly. 

"Billy," She breathed out, unsure of what she could say to make things better. Her heart was beating faster in her chest as the familiar warmth grew from her cheeks down to her toes. She suddenly thought of saying the same words back but was unsure if she would mean it. She had never been in love before, and she was certain this was just a crush. Even if she did feel the same way, the panicked look on his face made her feel like it was just a mistake. Like it had been a slip of the tongue. She thought she really would scare him away if she repeated those three words back. She didn't want to be rejected and lose him at the same time, "Don't worry about it." It hurt herself to say. She wanted him to say the words over to her again and she wanted to know what he meant them. He was doing his best to ignore her, his eyes darting around the room quickly.

“I didn’t,” He stammered out quickly, pushing his blonde, sweaty hair off of his forehead, “I wasn’t thinking. That just sort of slipped out. I didn’t mean it; I mean this is just sex. Nothing else.” She had never seen him ramble so much and fight for the right thing to say. She wasn’t sure if he was trying to reassure himself or her. She gulped, feeling her once elated heart grow weak from the stabbing of his words. She quickly nodded in agreement, not wanting to seem like the only one who had feelings. She felt a burning in the back of her throat that she ignored. The last thing she needed to do was cry in front of him. 

She watched him for a moment, understanding that she had been the only one to get feelings so far. She realized quickly while she watched him that this probably meant nothing to him. He didn't care for her in the way she did for him. This was purely sex for him, and she was just another outlet for him to use as he pleased. He didn't love her; he had just slipped up on his words. She felt sick and wondered if this was what her mother had been trying to warn her about. She didn't want to have a broken heart, especially not from Billy. She paused as she watched the way his eyes darted around wildly, like he had just done something bad. She tried to pull herself together, not wanting him to feel guilty for anything that he was saying. As much as it hurt, she knew she would keep giving herself to Billy even if he never felt anything for her. She knew there was something between them, even if he wasn't ready to admit it yet. 

She wasn’t really sure why she was so upset. She didn’t know what love was, there was no way she could love him. She was sure that she had a crush on him, but that only meant that she liked him. There was nothing deeper between them. At least, she hoped there were no deeper feelings brewing towards him. He had told her well enough that there was nothing on his end. 

“It’s okay,” She breathed out slowly, trying to pretend that it didn’t hurt while she laid in a puddle of his come, “It just slipped out. No big deal.” She mumbled, each word making her tongue feel even more numb. She could feel a familiar lump burning in the back of her throat as her heart hung sadly in her chest. Billy couldn’t even look at her and she thought that his actions may have hurt the most. She kept urging him to turn her way and face her again, but he was refusing to do so. It worried her, thinking of how he always held eye contact so strictly and now he couldn't even look in her direction. She wondered if he could see right through her, if he knew that she would've whispered the words right back to him. 

“I should go,” For the first time she could see him fully as he had unknowingly torn his own walls down. He looked panicked, full of fear as he sat on the edge of the bed and dressed himself. She stared at the way his back flexed as his muscles moved and she tried to ignore the throbbing in her heart. She wondered if the reason he wasn’t looking at her was because he could see how badly she was bleeding on the inside.

“Yeah,” She was still messy between her legs but that was the least of her worries at the moment. Her throat burned as spoke, the tears threatening to spill, “I’ve got stuff to do anyways.” She mumbled, pulling her panties back over her ankles. She had a strong urge to shower and scrub every inch of her skin. She wasn’t sure how she was supposed to clean the dirty feelings inside of her. 

“Kim,” He turned suddenly, looking over his shoulder as he watched her, “I really didn’t mean to say that.” She felt a small sliver of hope growing in her chest as she realized it sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than anything. She ignored that feeling, knowing that it was too good to be true. It felt like he was twisting the knife as she slowly sat up to look up at his stony features. She did her best to keep her shoulders from sagging, not wanting to seem as disappointed as what she felt. He didn’t feel the same way about her, she knew that, and she knew that she shouldn’t let it bother her. Yet, it did. It hurt so badly. 

He didn't love her. 

“It’s fine,” She darted her eyes towards him, looking at the worried expression that was plastered across his pretty features. She looked back down towards her feet and shrugged her shoulders, “No hard feelings.” She promised. He didn’t kiss her when he left this time, he didn’t even spare her another glance before he was out the door. She rested back against her bed as a lonely feeling settled in her chest. Her eyesight grew wet as she stared up, urging for her heart to stop crying. She felt worse than she had earlier, like part of her heart had just broken off from the rest of her heart.

[billyhargrove-s]

A Pair of Trouble

A/N: I'm back! Season 4 has me missing Billy so here we are. Also can you tell I love writing brother! Billy? Will probably continue on with this specific reader in future.

Characters: Sibling!Reader x Sibling! Billy (Twins)

Warnings: Mentions of Domestic Abuse (Neil), underaged drinking, mentions of date rape (nothing specific), Billy gets in a fight, blood, etc. Vomit. Y/n is pretty similar to Billy with her actions, but also notably tamer. Some wholesome sibling content. (Most warnings are for the end of the story!)

word count: 6.3

Out of all places you thought you’d end up living, Hawkin’s Indiana was the last on your list. It was quite literally, the middle of fucking nowhere. Compared to the sunny California you’d grown up in your entire life. You hadn’t even seen the house you’d be moving into across the country. Only your father Neil and new step-mother Susan had. You were going in blind and it terrified you. 

The last minutes of your school day were quickly approaching, the last moments of normalcy creeping up on you like some kind of monster in the night. As soon as the bell rang, you’d climb into your twin's car and leave your entire life behind, leaving straight from the school. Both yours and Billy’s belongings were either already in the uhaul Neil, Susan, and Maxine were driving or tucked away in the back of the camaro. Your friends had been giving you teary-eyed goodbyes all day. All the plans you’d discussed regarding your senior year, halloween plans, and graduation had been thrown away when your father dropped the bomb about the move last week. Based on the fight that had occurred between you and Billy versus him, he’d been waiting until the last minute to give the two of you zero room to argue and change his mind.

A shrill sound rang out, signaling the end of the school day. You gave one last hug to your lifelong friends, and headed to your locker. Billy was already making his way to the car and you saw numerous guys pat him on the back and girls throwing themselves at his feet, telling him how much they’d miss him making him promise to stay in touch. You scoffed, knowing he’d be doing none of that. Shoving the rest of your books and miscellaneous items from your locker into your backpack. You slammed your locker angrily and hot tears began to stream steadily down your face as you grit your teeth together, your jaw set in the expression that deemed you a bitch from most people.

It was bullshit, everything was bullshit. You wanted to punch something, anything to release the anger coursing through your veins. There was no denying that you and Billy both had extreme issues when it came to controlling your anger, you could thank your father and his methods of ‘parenting’ for that. 

You made your way to Billy’s camaro, Neil had sold your car without you knowing the day the bomb about Hawkins was dropped. Probably knowing you’d be the less explosive between the two of you. You had screamed at him, that was for sure and it wasn’t until Neil had stood up abruptly you made eye contact with Billy, no doubt him telling you to pick your battles. This was not one you’d be winning. Your brother was currently leaning up against the driver's side door, a cigarette placed between his lips which you took the minute you noticed it. 

“Give me that.” You muttered, placing it between your own lips as he protested behind you. Ignoring him, you found yourself in the passenger seat, arms crossed as you took a puff from it, blowing the smoke out of the side of your mouth. Billy had already lit another one by this point and was now getting in the car, placing the key in the ignition and listening to the engine turn over with a rumble. 

He said nothing as he pulled out of his parking spot and onto the main road, music blaring through the speakers. The windows were rolled down, and you took the time to take in your surroundings of the place you grew up in one last time. You snuffed out the cigarette in the ashtray occupying the middle of  the front seat. Eventually, when you made it to the highway leading away from California, Billy rolled up the windows and turned down the music. 

“You okay?” He asked cautiously. 17 years of arguments and tears from that exact question in the back of his mind. The two of you being twins meant that sometimes you knew the other better than they knew themselves. Both of you were practically attached at the hip, and it was always just the two of you against the world. God forbid anyone got in your way. You’d go to war for each other, and there’d been numerous fights broken up by each other to prove that. It was school-wide news that the pair of you were trouble and not to be fucked with.

“No.” You said shortly, puffing out your chest and he laughed quietly as you stated the obvious. 

“Neither am I.” He admitted, turning the radio up once more. 

_____

You arrived in Hawkins, approximately 48 hours later. After hours of switching between who was driving, and even pulling into a rest stop to sleep in the camaro, you in the backseat,  Billy in the front, (who admittedly hadn’t slept well, waiting after you had gone to bed to make sure no one approached the car until eventually he couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore) your new house was in front of you. It was a shit shack. An actual shit shack. 

“Fucking hell.” Billy grumbled, parking on the street and turning off the car. Silence encased both of you as the radio turned off with it. 

“Fucking hell is right.” You muttered, opening the car door and stretching your legs for the first time in hours, getting the first official glance at your new house. 

The front porch was encased by screens to keep bugs out, and the house itself was white. Mildew stained the sides of it green and your fathers car was already parked out front, taking up the entirety of the driveway that could easily fit two. Guess the Camaro would permanently be parked on the street. 

You and Billy walked to the front door, your heart felt like it was going to pound out of your chest. Max was sitting outside on the porch, taping her skateboard. 

“Welcome home.” She grumbled, her attention never leaving the skateboard. 

“Thanks.” You said back pushing the door open, Billy following suit. Boxes were stacked everywhere, some already unpacked, more waiting for the two of you. It was Sunday night, you’d have school in the morning but your father surely wouldn’t let either of you sleep until the entire house was unpacked. You had flashbacks about the conversation regarding “respect and responsibility” that ended up with you having a bruised wrist from how hard he’d gripped it, and a hole in the inside of your cheek from biting it so hard to avoid snapping back. 

The house had four bedrooms, they were extremely tiny, but at least you’d have your own space and wouldn’t have to share with Max. Probably better for everyone involved. The bathroom would be shared between the three of you but you could work with that, fully prepared to fight Billy for your time to get ready in the morning. 

“About damn time the two of you showed up.” Your father spoke, coming from what you could only assume was the kitchen area. “What took so long?”

“We had to sleep sometime, dad.” You mumbled taking in the space that would now be your room. Whether he heard you or not wasn’t discussed as Billy came into your room, holding your backpack out towards you. 

“Thanks.” 

“The two of you need to get your rooms unpacked before you go to bed tonight. Try not to slack, you still have school in the morning. No excuses.” Neil said, looking between the two of you as if waiting for some sort of objection. Neither of you had the energy to fight him on this and it already felt like you were walking on eggshells around your fathers temper the minute you entered the house. “Susan and I are going out, so I expect you both to keep an eye on Maxine.” 

“Yes sir.” Billy said hoping the conversation would end and Neil would leave them both alone. 

Finally, Neil left the room. The twins let out a sigh of relief when he was out of ear shot. It was 5 o'clock now, and the amount of boxes that crowded the hallway was already overwhelming enough, let alone the fact that you had school in the morning and had been in a car for the past two days. You heard the door shut and the engine of your fathers car come to life and pull out of the driveway. They’d be gone for hours, you could almost guarantee it. 

Every bit of your entire being wanted to lay down and sleep, but unfortunately your mattress hadn’t even been placed on the bed frame. Instead it was leaning against the wall in the hallway, right next to Billy’s. 

“Alright Billy, better put your workouts to use.” You said, grabbing his attention from where he was putting your knick-knacks on shelves. Oddly enough it was one of his favorite things back in California. He’d rearrange them to make them fight, or put them in lewd positions waiting for you to notice and bitch at him for moving them.

“I’m busy.” He all but whined, placing seashells in the shape of a penis. Still he followed you to the hallway and helped you maneuver the mattress through the door.

“Jesus Billy, are we in middle school?” You asked, shaking your head. He only giggled and told you to move and allow him to put the mattress on the bed frame. 

Eventually your rooms began to resemble just that. Like there were people living there rather than blank walls and bare shelves. It was approximately 11 o’clock when the two of you finished unpacking. Boxes were broken down and put in a recycling bin on the curb. 

Max was already in her room with the lights off, probably sleeping while you and Billy shared a cigarette on the front porch. Probably the last moments of peace you’d have for a while.

Your new house was smaller than the last, and tensions were bound to be high. The fall air was cold, you had a crew neck from your old highschool on. It was strange, referring to it as your old school. Didn’t feel normal at all. Nothing about this was normal. 

You snuffed the cigarette out on the railing, throwing the bud somewhere in the bushes hoping Neil wouldn’t find them. 

“Are you ready for tomorrow?” You asked your brother who was taking the final drag of his own cigarette. Blowing the smoke up into the brisk night air and watching it disappear. 

“Not worried about it whatsoever if that’s what you’re asking.” He scoffed putting his cigarette out on the same rail you did. “Won’t take long for us to climb the ranks, I’m sure everyone’s dying for someone new to roll in.” 

_________

Morning came and Billy’s words from the night before seemed to be proven correct. All eyes were on the camaro as it peeled into the parking lot, blaring Rock you like a hurricane by the Scorpions. Max was in the backseat, eyeing the middle school with disgust. Billy stepped out first, his dirty blonde mullet styled to perfection. Every single person in the lot eyed the denim clad boy who shut the car door behind him taking a cigarette out from in between his lips as he looked back towards you letting Max out of the car, putting the passenger seat back in position. Max skated off towards the middle school, and Billy offered you a drag of his cigarette before throwing it to the side with a flick of his fingers. 

You blew the smoke towards the sky with a laugh shaking your curls back behind the base of your skull, pulling your leather jacket on tighter. Your jeans hugged your waist and the cream colored sweater you had on kept you warm in the brisk October air. 

“Who are they?” You heard a feminine voice ask from across the parking lot. You smirked looking at your brother and the two of you walked in the building as if you already owned the place. Then again, it wouldn’t take long until you did. 

By the time the bell rang, the two of you were still in the office getting schedules and locker combinations. Luckily, they were practically the same. Apparently the majority of Hawkin’s students had the same one. In a town this small, they could be. Eventually the secretary let you go to find your first class of the day which happened to be chemistry. Internally, you groaned. It should be a crime to take chemistry at 7:30 in the morning but here you were. 

Billy was behind you as you opened the door, interrupting the man teaching who you presumed was Mr. Blake. Once more, all eyes were on you. 

“Ah, you two must be our new students. Everyone, this is Y/N and William Hargrove.” 

“Billy.” You and your brother spoke in sync. Immediately correcting him. 

“My apologies, Y/n and Billy. There’s a couple of spots in the back for you.” Unfortunately the only spots left were at different tables, luckily they were tables adjacent to each other. You sat next to a boy who was practically drooling as he took you in. His black hair was to his shoulders and he held out his hand for you to take. 

“I’m-” He started but he never got the chance to finish his sentence.

“Piss off.” You grit through teeth and you feel Billy glare at the guy next to you before slinking back into his seat. If there was one thing Billy was good at, it was getting creeps to back off if you couldn’t. 

Mr. Blakes lecture droned on and you tuned it out completely, tapping your pencil on the desk mindlessly as the guy next to you blatantly stared at your curls. Eventually after learning about ionic bonds or something along those lines, the shrill sound of a bell ringing pierced your ears. Immediately you stood up, your chair scraping against the floor as you grabbed your backpack. 

A girl was handing out bright orange flyers in the doorway. Both you and Billy took one graciously. A badly drawn ghost and bottle of booze accompanied the words “Tina’s Halloween Bash” and it was telling everyone to “Come and Get Sheet Faced.”

“Hey.” She said with a wink towards Billy. “Be there.” 

 “Guess we have plans for tomorrow.” You grinned. It wouldn’t compare to any party you’d gone to in California, but free booze was free booze. Along with that, it was the perfect opportunity to get out of your house for the night. 

By lunch, the Hargrove siblings were the talk of the entire school. Spots at the table with the so-called popular kids were already reserved for them and Billy let you take your seat first. Turning the chair next to you around and straddling it. He leaned his chin on his fist as the people already sitting began to introduce themselves. 

There was Tina, the one throwing the party tonight. Tommy, was the one of two guys at the table and was obviously looking for a new leader, saying something about how the now King of Hawkins was whipped or whatever. Carol was his girlfriend, a girl with bright red hair not to be confused with Vicki who was currently eyeing Billy hungrily. There was also a man named “big Mike” who was staring straight at your chest.Your brother rolled an apple in your direction and you took a bite out of it, breaking Mike out of his trance and listening to the gossip of your new school. 

“Will you two be at Tina’s party tomorrow? It’s gonna be all the rage.” Carol asked, Tommy’s arm slung over her shoulder. 

“We might make an appearance.” You weren’t one to promise things, especially knowing that there was a chance one or both of you would be required to babysit Max, who probably already had plans to trick or treat anyways. You saw the Michael Myers mask and fake knife sitting on her bed yesterday as you moved things in and shut the door so Billy wouldn’t find it. Your brother knew you had a fear of horror movies and would most likely use it to his advantage at some point to scare the living hell out of you for a quick laugh.

“How are you liking Hawkins so far?” Tommy asked, puffing his chest out, like they were in some sort of competition. Like he could be superior to Billy. There was a sense of pride in the boy's voice, probably because he was the top dog around the place, then again there was no competition before either of you came around.

“It’s shit.” Billy said, twirling a cigarette lazily between his fingers. He wasn’t dumb enough to light it with teachers staring him down like a hawk at the edge of the cafeteria. 

“Oh yeah, it definitely is.” Tommy’s smile was wiped off of his face within a split second of Billy’s response. That gave you all the information that you needed to know about Tommy, he was a pushover and willing to bend over for anyone he deemed superior, if you weren’t he was a bully. 

“What’s it like in California?” Vicki asked, resting her head on her hands and batting her eyelashes towards Billy. Just like that, your position at the top of Hawkins High was claimed. 

_______

After school the next day, Billy was leaning against the Camaro, obviously annoyed that he was waiting for not only you, but Max. He was smoking a cigarette, watching as you conversed with the girls from the lunch table earlier. Obviously in no rush, he was growing irritated with you as more time went on. Max skated up to the car from the Middle School, and you looked at your brother watching you angrily. Obviously in a hurry to leave. 

“I’ll see you ladies tonight.” You said tossing your bag over your shoulder and approaching the Camaro. 

“You're late again and you’re skating home, you hear me?” Billy was telling Max as you got to the passenger side door. 

“Oh piss off Billy.” You said ruffling his mullet, knowing that would push his buttons even further. “She’s got a farther walk.” 

“Yeah and she still made it before you.” He mumbled, flicking his cigarette to the side. 

“She still made it before you.” You mocked in a high pitched voice getting in the front seat of the Camaro. “I was getting our plans for the night dipshit. Stop being a grouch.” 

He simply ignored you starting the engine and blaring Wango Tango through the speakers. Obviously annoyed. He sped off, going much faster than the speed limit on the backroads to your new house. You noticed he always took the back roads, probably because that meant you'd be home later and that was less time to deal with your father. 

“God this place is such a shithole.” You laughed pathetically looking out the windows at dead trees that had fallen to the ground. 

“It’s not that bad.” Max piped up from the backseat.

“No?” Billy asked, rolling down the windows of the speeding Camaro, and plugging his nostrils for dramatics. “MMMM. You smell that Max? That’s actually shit.”

“Cow shit.” You laughed, your curls blowing in the wind around your face.

“I don’t see any cows.” Max said, reaching in between the two of you to roll the windows up. 

“Clearly you haven’t met the highschool girls,” Billy said. 

“Please, you’re still gonna bang your way through the school.” You said smacking your brother on the shoulder. You knew him better than he knew himself. 

“So, what do you like it here now?” He asked the redheaded girl who was angrily staring out of the window.

“No.” She said defensively.

“Then why are you defending it?” You asked whipping around to look at the girl. She shrugged silently and looked once more out the window before replying. 

“I’m not.” She mumbled. 

“Sure sounds like it.” Billy spoke. It was unfair, the way you both seemed to gang up on her. The relationship you had with Max was a rocky one. When you were all introduced she was the definite outsider. Both you and Billy were entirely content that it would be just you and him against the world for the rest of your life, there was no room for someone to join that pact. Thus, Max sometimes fell victim to the way you and Billy seemed to bounce off of each other. 

“It’s just that we’re stuck here so,” She told you both. 

“You’re right, we’re stuck here. And whose fault is that?” Billy asked and there was not a doubt in your mind that this was about to be a famous Billy explosion. Especially after you heard Max mumble something that you couldn’t quite pick up. “What’d you say?” 

His attention was quickly going back and forth between the road and Max in the rear-view mirror. 

“Jesus Christ Billy, just focus on the damn road.” You interjected before he could start yelling. “Deflate your ego for just a damn second.” 

“Shut up Y/n.” He snapped and your eyes widened turning towards him angrily. “Don’t be a bitch.” 

“What did you just say?” You asked bewildered, your jaw set in a scowl.

“I told you to shut up.” He said. 

“No, uh-uh. What the fuck did you call me William.” You asked angrily. “Because I swear to fucking god if it starts with a B and rhymes with itch I’m going to fucking kill you.”

“Not if I kill you first.” He said snarkily, changing gears on the camaro and beginning to speed even faster down the street. The sudden change of force made you hit the back of your seat and cross your arms. You both knew you didn’t mean it but when your temper got this high there were no apologies coming any time soon, just rage filled screaming matches. 

“Oh yeah, here we go Mr. Fucking tough guy.” You said throwing your arms in the air with a laugh, you turned the music up louder. He hit his hand on the steering wheel to the beat and you noticed a group of kids on bikes and he only sped up faster. “Jesus Billy are you on a fucking warpath?” 

“Billy slow down.” Max warned from the back. 

“Oh are these your new hick friends?” 

“No I don’t know them!” 

“Guess you won’t care if I hit them then huh?” He spoke, turning around to look at the fear on her face and you laughed. “I get bonus points if I get them all in one go?” 

“No Billy, stop! It’s not funny.” Her panicked voice made you laugh loudly as Billy didn’t appease her at all, and only continued banging the steering wheel to the beat of the song as he looked back at her. “Billy slow down! Come on! Stop it! It’s not funny, stop it!”

As you came closer to the group of kids Max quickly launched herself at the steering wheel and swerved around them. Billy laughed maniacally as she did it matching your own. 

“Woo!” He yelled shrillely. “That was a close one huh Max?” Your adrenaline was pumping as you looked back at the kids who had peeled off into the grass seeking refuge from the speeding Camaro. Your brother’s laughter was louder than your own as he still continued to drum on the steering wheel the entire time it took to finally pull up to your house. 

As soon as you let her out, Max was the first one inside of the house and slammed the front door shut behind her. Luckily, your father’s vehicle wasn’t already parked in the front to complain about the noise that surely you or Billy would get blamed for. You only had a couple hours to get ready for the party tonight so you looked over your shoulder who was walking behind you. 

“I call shower!” You yelled and raced in the house before he could object, grabbing a towel from the linen closet and slamming the bathroom door shut before he even made it inside the house. 

______ Tina’s house was large, and sweaty teenage bodies filled every square inch of the interior and exterior. You had a drink that was most definitely vodka, fruit punch and more vodka. Already you were beginning to feel the effects of the drink in your body, everything seemed a lot funnier and Billy had pointed out fairly quickly that the whiskers drawn on with eyeliner were already smudged, to which you flipped him off and took another large gulp of your drink. 

Billy, as always was shirtless underneath his leather jacket leaving little to the imagination of the girls who were oogling him without remorse. Currently he was upside down in a keg-stand, chugging as much beer as he possibly could, the sound of Mötley Crue no doubt motivating him even further. 

“Fourty! Fourty-one! Fourty-two!” The crowd was cheering him on as he came down, spitting in the air and raining down beer on anyone who surrounded him, including you. 

“Yeah!” He screamed, loudly taking the cigarette you gladly handed to him. Before coming, the two of you had made a promise to stick close to each other, mostly to relieve any type of anxiety Billy would have about worrying about your safety if you weren’t in his line of sight. 

“We’ve got ourselves a new keg king!” Tommy yelled loudly following you and your brother inside the house like a puppy. The crowd surrounding you chanted his name like a mantra and you smiled wickedly knowing that there was no doubt anyone that would over take you both at this point in time. In a matter of 48 hours, the two of you had made Hawkin’s high your bitch.

“That’s how you do it Hawkins!” Billy yelled, taking a drag of his cigarette. “That’s how you do it!”

You passed off your cup to big Mike who was on your left shoulder. “Get me another drink will ya?” 

You danced your way through the living room, arms reaching for Billy’s cigarette as he held it above his head as he weaved through the crowd, pulling Tina’s ‘decorations” which consisted of toilet paper hung from the ceiling, down to wipe his mouth. Finally you snagged it and took a drag, smiling as he looked at you in annoyance. You’d seen that look many times before and only blew the smoke in his face. 

“Haven’t you had enough to drink yet?” He asked, quirking an eyebrow. 

“Not enough to forget we’re in California!” You said as big Mike came from the kitchen with your drink in hand, you took one sip cringing at the taste. “Besides, this shit still tastes awful. That’s how you know I’m fine.”

“Alright just, slow down a bit okay?” He whispered, letting down his facade for just a second to be the older brother he always was. Even if he was only older by 6 and a half minutes. “Let’s try to be coherent for at least an hour more.”

“Yes sir!” You slurred and he rolled his eyes. 

“I see we’ve already failed that request.” He scoffed, grabbing your wrist and dragging you through the crowd once more. He took the cigarette out of your mouth and placed it between his lips. “Give me back my cigarette.” 

“It’s got my germs on it now.” You warned. 

“We’re twins, we share the same fucking DNA Y/n, we have the same germs.” 

“Oh yeah.” You laughed clutching your stomach tightly as you tried to regain composure. Once more, he dragged you up the stairs stopping in front of a boy in sunglasses. He stood next to a pretty girl, who was obviously annoyed with the interruption. 

“We’ve got ourselves a new keg king Harrington.” Tommy said, appearing over your shoulder to gloat Billy’s accomplishment.

 “Yeah, eat it Harrington!” Mike said from next to you. 

The girl accompanying Harrington rolled her eyes and walked away quickly disappearing into the crowd. 

“Better go follow your bitch.” You whispered, pointing to the girl who walked away. Billy and his posse laughed and Harrington took off his sunglasses to glare at all of you. Big Mike returned to your side, handing both you and Billy a cup full of punch. “Word on the street is that you’re whipped.” 

Without a word back, he followed the girl to where the large bowl of punch sat and you smirked. Your words proved to be right as he watched her make her way into the crowd after slamming her drink. Mimicking her, you did the same dragging Carol and Tina to come dance with you. 

“I love this song!” You screamed laughing hysterically as AC/DC blared on the speakers. Carol was equally as piss drunk as you were and sometime throughout the night her cat ears had gone missing. 

You weren’t sure how long you danced for, but you knew you were in need of another drink and made your way over to the punch bowl, filling your cup to the brim with red liquid. Steve and his girlfriend were in the middle of an argument about her having more to drink. You sipped yours, entertained as the arguing caused the girl to spill the liquid all over herself. 

“Party foul!” You yelled as the rest of the onlookers let out a collective ‘Ohhhh’ and downed your own drink as you saw Billy making his way towards you. You filled it up once more and set it on the counter. 

“Fucking hell, I left to piss for one minute and you disappeared.” He snapped. 

“Billy!” You cheered. “My song came on! I can’t believe you missed it, you shit head.” 

“Sorry kid.” He apologized but it was anything but sincere. “How much of that garbage have you had?”

“I don’t know, probably at least one or two” You slurred and your words hinted that it was anything but one or two. You picked up your cup once more. “I’m just trying to have fun Billy. I’m just trying to catch up to my friends, they said if you walk out with no help you’re doing it wrong and, and, and I agree. You need to catch up.”

“No, you need to chill.” Billy said glaring. You said nothing and only took a sip, there was no taste by this point and some tiny, very tiny, voice in the back of your mind said you should probably stop, another voice, a very loud one said you should annoy your twin at all costs and you smirked. “I know that look, don’t even think about it Y/n.” 

You laughed and instantly chugged the rest of your drink, red stained your face as you brought the cup down. 

“Happy now?” Billy asked. 

“Very.” You told him, beginning to wobble on your legs. He put two hands on your shoulders to steady you and you looked at him strangely. Your legs felt like they were giving out. “Fuck Billy-” 

You reached for your brother with weak arms, collapsing into him the same way you did the first time you got dumped freshman year. Your make up smeared on his chest, leaving black lines from your whiskers as your words only became more and more incoherent. He held you upright, leading you outside quickly. 

“Don’t feel-” You said, short breaths escaping your mouth. 

“I know. Just cooperate with me a little bit Y/n.” He was leading you towards the camaro but it felt miles away. Your vision was blurry and nothing around you felt right. “Don’t forget to breathe.”

“Trying too.” You mumbled as the passenger side door opened and you were placed inside. 

“Don’t puke in my car or I’ll kick your ass.” Billy warned, but it was an empty threat. Most he would do would be to make you clean it up. He eyed you with caution, watching your eyes stay wide with wonder looking at the streetlamp above you. 

“Why the fuck is the moon so close?” You asked, looking at your brother before letting your body fall forward and head drop onto his shoulder

“Because that would be a streetlamp, not the moon.” Billy said, turning the key to the camaro making the engine roar to life. “God you’ve never been this fucked up. Did you drink the same punch as me?”

“Yup.” You slurred, eyelids getting heavy as your body began to grow limp. “Big Mike hand delivered it to us, remember?” 

Billy took his hands off of the wheel immediately, lifting your body off of him by the shoulders. Your eyes were barely open and words were becoming less and less coherent as more time went on. 

“Fuck.” He whispered to himself before gently setting you down and taking the keys out of the ignition. “Fuck, fuck,fuck.” 

“Fuck is right.” You slurred once more. “Dad can’t see me like this Bill, please don’t let him, he can’t- fuck. He’ll kill me.” 

“Just stay here kid.” Billy said, getting out and slamming the door. “Don’t fucking leave this car, got it?” 

Crowds parted as Billy walked back into the party on a mission for blood. He found Big Mike talking to Tommy with a drink in his hand. 

“Hey Billy! Where’s Y/n?” Mike excitedly, reaching out to give the guy a hug. Billy said nothing as he grabbed Mike by the shirt and shoved him against the wall. 

“What the fuck did you do to my sister Mike?” He yelled, grabbing the attention of Tina and Carol who were nearby. 

“What the fuck man?” 

“You have less than a second to answer me or I swear to god I’ll fucking kill you.” He whispered in his ear causing the boy to shake. Already, a crowd was beginning to form around the two boys.  

“Nothing! I swear!” Mike said. “Get off of me man.” 

“Well if you swear, then I guess you’re telling the truth.” Billy said, shrugging and putting him down, beginning to turn away. “Except, did you know you look past me when you lie?” 

His knuckles hit Mike’s face with a crunch, and the boy was on the ground in less than a second. Billy on top punching him once more, he didn’t stop until Mike was pleading. 

“If you ever even think about my sister again, you’re dead.” He whispered into his ear. “Got it little man?” 

“I’m sorry!” Mike was crying on the ground. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.” 

Billy said nothing as he turned on his heel and left the party, finding you barely conscious in his car. He couldn’t go home, he knew that. If Neil found you in this condition you’d be dead, skipping curfew would have consequences but not as dire as coming home reeking of alcohol. He was afraid. You barely looked alive in the passenger seat of the Camaro as your eyes were half opened and you laid limp. He wasn’t sure what to do, waiting it out seemed like the best option so he decided to stop at a gas station, purchasing a couple waters and something solid in hopes of getting you to eat and filter everything out of your system. He found the bathroom on the side of the building, an idea sparking in his blond head. 

“You’re gonna hate me for this, but you’ll owe me big time Y/n.” He said, opening the door and leading you towards the bathroom. He placed you in front of the toilet and gently opened your mouth.

“I’m sorry” He muttered before sticking his fingers down your throat, forcing you to puke all of the contents of your stomach into the bowl before you. Green bile coated the toilet and you groaned falling back into your brother's chest. 

“Fuck, Billy why?” You asked, hiccuping as you regained your breath. 

“Just, trust me on that one.” He said handing you a water bottle. “Feel better?”

“Kind of. You’re not going to hold this against me will you?” He only laughed and shook his head.

“I think we need to forget this night ever happened.” Billy said, helping you lean over the toilet once more as you gagged. “And Y/n? Let me know if Big Mike gives you trouble.” 

“Noted.” You muttered. “You kicked his ass didn’t you.”

“Something like that.” Billy shrugged and held your hair back away from your face. “Let’s just say he won’t be coming around you anytime soon.” 

“If I ever see that slimy fucker-” 

“Don’t even worry about it, I took care of it.”

You liked this side of your brother. The one that was caring, even if the two of you fought like no other, you still loved each other endlessly. It was the two of you against the world and sometimes it felt like you only had each other. 

“Thank you Billy.” You said, finally sitting up on your own.

“It’s kinda my job, I am your older brother.” He said teasingly as the two of you walked back to the camaro. Your legs felt wobbly as he opened the door and you all but fell into your seat. 

“By like 30 seconds, hop off your high horse.” Billy laughed loudly and got into the driver's seat next to you.

“So, we’re already in trouble because it’s way past curfew.” He said. “Figured we just don’t go home.”

“Can we get food?” You asked, clutching on your stomach that still felt like there were waves inside of it. 

“Yeah, we can get food.”

[papipopsicle]

HANDMADE HEAVEN PART ONE

Pairing: Steve Harrington X Hargrove!Reader

Summary: In which the new Queen of Hawkins High finds herself falling for the fallen king.

Song: Easier by 5 Seconds of Summer

Warnings: swearing, asshole parental figures

Words: 1.7K

MASTERLIST

feedback is always appreciated

The house itself was fine, not pretty and polished like the one she grew up in, but at the very least she was grateful not to be sleeping in another motel bed filled with broken springs and anonymous stains. Susan greeted her like a good little home maker, tightly waved hair bouncing against her shoulders as she walked down the steps of the porch.

"How was it, sweetie?" The ginger woman waited with pursed lips while her step daughter stood from the vehicle. She really hated that car, it stood out like a sore thumb next to her husband's silver SUV, especially when her brothers parked alongside the two.

"Not the worst." Y/N shrugged. She missed the silent solace already, "Has Max decided which room she wants?"

Susan nodded, leading the blonde into their new home, "She's at the back opposite your father and I. William hasn't arrived yet so you have the choice of the one next to hers or ours."

Without hesitation she chose the one next to Max's. Her father helped unload her heavier furniture from the U-Haul currently fixed to the back of her red muscle car. The room was in the shape on an 'L', mirroring her step sister's. Her small double bed only just managed to fit in the crook, creating a cosy space to drift away in.

Hours of rearranging the room passed before a navy blue Camaro could be heard pulling up onto the curb and a muggy sunset made itself present in her bedroom window. Emptying out her socks into the small drawer of her dresser, Y/N dropped the empty black bin liner behind her and rushed to greet her brother.

"Billy!" She squealed, attacking him with a hug. The two would roughhouse and swear at each other like drunken sailors, but their love for each other would always be the first thing anyone noticed about the twins. He picked her up with ease and spun her around, quickly dropping her to the floor again.

Y/N's twin would sometimes forget the rude masculine persona he put on and actually behaved like himself, but it never lasted long with their father close by.

"See that hunk of crap didn't kill you on the way here then?" Billy joked as they both carried a bed frame into his new room. His distaste for the nineteen-sixty-eight Mustang Cobra was evident whenever it came up in conversation, only due to it being left to her rather than him in their mother's will.

"Not just yet." His sister hummed and the two let out a huff as they dropped the mattress onto the wooden frame. They talked about the bullshit of finishing their senior year at a completely different school and what that we're going to dress up as for Halloween. It was their favourite holiday and this year she planned on being Tom Cruise from Risky Business. Nobody would understand it but it was better than Billy's 'slutty teen boy' costume he wore most days anyway.

"Y/N/N honey, could you come into the lounge!" Susan's sugary tone rang through the house. The twins shared a look that always subconsciously found their faces when she attempted to play doting step mother.

Fucking doormat of a woman.

"Coming." The blonde shut her brothers door on the way out and walking down the hallway into the small living area. By now any remnants of the sun had long hidden away from Hawkins and only warm ceiling lights lit up her face.

Susan appeared from the kitchen door with a tray full of oatmeal cookies, grin etched into her features like puppet strings pulling at her cheeks, "Try one, would you?" She gleamed, pushing the metal tray out for emphasis, "I'd ask your father but he'd just say they were nice, never wants to upset me. He's too good."

Not wanting to answer, Y/N took a small crumbly cookie and bit into it, eyes bugging out at the statement only able to nod in response.

The step mother watched in anticipation, hair bouncing at her shoulders as usual, "So, gorgeous? Be honest with me, how are they?"

"Really good," She didn't like the woman, but couldn't deny her ability to copy a recipe, "I think these may even top the peanut butter ones."

Susan's sterile smile managed to stretch further and Y/N was scared her lips may crack and bleed from the force, "Perfect! We're handing them out to our new neighbours tomorrow. Which reminds me, I need you to get some new trainers for Maxine tomorrow, nothing expensive though, they're just for gym class. She's a four now.

The blonde resisted the urge to roll her eyes, and instead nodded while an idea popped into her head, "I drove past a giant superstore on my way here, I'm sure they're still open I can just go now."

"Are you sure, honey?" Susan sounded concerned, but Neil didn't share the same feelings, "Curfew is eleven until you start school on Monday, same rules apply here."

"I know, Dad." She nodded curtly and turned on her heel, not wasting a moment grabbing her brothers old khaki bomber jacket and her car keys. The front door shut just as quickly as it opened, leaving the small U Haul sitting on the driveway next to Billy's Camaro.

It had been her brother's favourite jacket since he was sixteen, but he'd gained so much muscle his arms couldn't slip into it anymore. Although Y/N was tall for the average girl, the material still managed to shroud her frame.

Y/N felt amazed after managing to get to the store fairly easily, she picked up some plain black pumps and paid for them with cash, pocketing the receipt to make sure Neil would reimburse her. That took less than fifteen minutes. There were still over two hours until she needed to be back at the house and she needed to make the most of any freedom from her father.

She was her mother's daughter and the opposite of Susan Mayfield-Hargrove; if someone showed themselves as a thorn and not the rose they seemed to be, they were a thorn. She could accept it and move on, which is difficult when they own the house she calls home. Her step mother was a fixer, finding wilted petals and taping them up against the thorn to appear more sightly. If Neil was the thorn, Y/N the rose, then Susan was a daisy in a field where she didn’t belong.

The younger Hargrove twin decided to explore her new home, driving around cul-de-sacs and roads which mirrored one another. After a while of aimless driving, Y/N parked up at the side of a quiet road, seeming to back onto a rich neighbourhood. She locked the muscle car, Ellie, and began walking on the edge of the road.

"Stay put, El." She whispered to herself, echoing her mother's voice. Meredith Hargrove always swore her car changed parking spaces whenever they went somewhere together.

Y/N couldn't imagine having so much space, no family was big enough to make use of it all. Her feet brought her into the small forest area, passing a few more eccentric gardens before finding one which intrigued her. The lights were all off, moonlight bouncing off the unmoving water in the centre of the garden.

Swimming had always been something the Hargrove girl not only loved but turned to in uncertainty. Billy would surf alongside her a long time ago, but he hadn't for years now. Her eyes danced around each room, unable to see any kind of life within the mansion. Against Y/N’s better judgement, she left the tall trees and let her toes edge onto someone's private property.

It seems a shame not to.

Fallen leaves stopped crunching under her brown boots as they found concrete slabs. The family must have employed a cleaner and gardener as nothing seemed out of place or dirty. The water was clear and not a single leaf or bug lay on its surface. Crouching down, her fingers drifted along the water, creating a small ripple, confirming her suspicions of how cold it would be.

She didn't care, stripping down into her underwear in the cool autumnal winds, anyone would've thought she was a crazy person. Y/N ignored the small ladder next to her and gracefully dived into the pool, swimming down to the bottom until she needed to come back up for air. The blonde lay on her back, staring up at the stars wondering what her friends were doing on the other side of America. Probably at Sadie's getting high.

Y/N wasn't sure how much time had passed, her fingertips were now wrinkled but it didn't bother her. She was in her element, so much so she didn't register when the kitchen light turned on and alerted the homeowner of someone in their pool.

Steve's body was overcome with terror as he did a double, triple take out of the kitchen window at the figure in his garden. He only wanted some leftover lasagne. Grabbing his nail punctured bat, the home alone teenager unlocked the back door, and against his own better judgement, creeped towards the intruder.

As he came closer, he was thankful to find a girl than a demogorgan, a girl he certainly didn't recognise. Her blonde hair lay on top of the water like a halo as she floated in her own world.

"Hello?" He questioned, bat still firmly in hand, "Why the fuck are you naked in my pool?"

Y/N left her mini trance, flailing in the water as her eyes found a teenage boy wielding an odd weapon, only a scream leaving her lips in response.

part two?

want to be tagged? just send in an ask!

[catharrington]

@harringroveweekoflove day 4: secret admirer

Every Rose Has It’s Thorn.

Steve should have done something with those roses he tried to gift Nancy. Something, anything, please God anything, other than letting Billy get a hold of them. 

(2 k words. Writing is weird. sometimes you wake up at 6 in the morning with a fever to see Billy bloodied, knocked out cold, and cuddled up in the back seat of Steve’s car)

***

It’s very late at night when Steve finally gets the Camaro back in the Byers’ driveway and children tumble out of it like clowns from a clown car. Max stayed behind as they all rush into the house, she’s gripping the car’s window with both hands.

“He’s still knocked out!” Lucas yelled from inside and Max let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding.

Steve is right beside her, having tucked the keys into the drivers side visor, and was waiting with equally baited breath. They both trudged inside to see Billy still drooling on the living room floor.

Dustin looked from Steve to Max then back to Billy. “Are you sure you guys are okay? What if he wakes up for round two?” He asked.

Steve stood watch with his hands on his hips. “Wouldn’t matter, but I really doubt it. He looks super far gone.”

Max looked down at Billy as she spoke. “We have to bring him home, I’ve already got a lot of explaining to do... I don’t want to be in any more trouble.” Her words were a little sad, but Max said them as a state of fact. Like she already had her mind set on it and nothing was going to change it. The four younger boys looked at each other without a word.

Steve took that as his cue. Stepping forward, he crouched down over Billy’s splayed open legs to wrap his arms around his waist. Steve locked his hands on his wrists and made sure to lift with his knees as he tried to pull Billy up off the ground. 

Thankfully, he lifted easier than Steve imagined. Maybe Steve was just stronger than he was giving himself credit for. He lifted Billy so his arms and chest were hanging over Steve’s shoulders, and his legs were pressed up against Steve’s legs. He groaned and moaned from the effort, but Steve was sure in his grasp as he turned to carry him out to the porch.

Max wordlessly lead to the BMW still parked right outside the door. She opened the back seat door and moved quick so Steve could lower Billy into the fabric cushions. As gently as he could, Steve placed Billy’s head and shoulders down and then used his legs to push him further up the seat. 

When Billy’s mud covered boots were tucked in and smearing over the expensive seats, Steve closed the back door.

From the porch the gaggle of boys were watching them two. Steve was winded but he swallowed thickly before offering anyone a ride. They all shook their heads in unison, even Will who lived there and obviously didn’t need a ride.

Steve just shrugged. He gave a last wave and goodnight before finally getting into his car. Max was sitting in the passengers seat with a sour look on her face. The car continued to be quiet and sour as Steve drove the two Hargrove kids home. 

Max was good with directions, she told him the quickest way, and Steve watched from the corner of his eyes as her cool exterior was starting to crack with little yawns.

With the BMW speeding down the highway, Steve dared to look up into his rear view mirror and steal a glance at Billy. He almost groaned out loud again as he saw his back seat. 

Billy had twisted in his slumber and must have reached down to the floorboards because he was cradling Steve’s discarded bouquet of red roses to his chest. The petals were a little squished but still the bouquet was impressive and huge, even against the broad size of Billy’s chest. He had them tucked up under his chin, smelling into them, and their red rose color looked ridiculously pretty against his red shirt and the steam of blood coming from his busted nose. 

Steve had to catch himself as he thought of that. Pretty wasn’t a word that would describe Billy Hargrove. But as he laid there unconscious, his long dark eye lashes closed against his freckled cheeks and his chin pressed snugly into a dozen roses- Steve could only think of the word pretty.

And he kept thinking of the word over and over again until he almost didn’t hear Max announcing they had to turn. He did, thankfully, and drove up to park in the driveway.

Max left the car first. She went up into the house to ready her parents with a planned story. What the story was that was up to her. And Steve was happy for that because his brain wasn’t wanting to work properly after he braved turning around in his seat to actually look at Billy cuddling a bouquet of roses like a teddy bear.

Max returned from the door of her house and flashed a thumbs up sign. Steve was rather reluctant to let this moment alone with Billy go, but he followed and meet Max at the back seat door.

“Wow,” she breathed as she noticed Billy’s new prize through the window. “Sorry about... your flowers?” She asked.

“Well,” Steve opened the door slowly like he didn’t want to wake anyone up, “they were a dumb idea, I’m not really using them anymore.”

She just nodded at the meager amount of information. “You guys got jumped,” she changed the topic. Now she was letting him in on the cover story. “Some guy who was mad Billy was dating his girl. Something lame like that. A whole group of them. And you are Billy’s friend, by the way. Sorry.” She said it all quickly, wincing as she she said the friend part. Then she held the door open fully as Steve reached inside.

He considered moving the flowers out of Billy’s hands, he should drop them back onto the floor and forget all about them, but he couldn’t bring himself to touch them. 

Instead he reached inside and held Billy with two arms around his ribs. Steve pulled him close to the edge of the seat and then lifted so Billy’s chest was flush against his own. One of Steve’s hands went down to lift under his legs. He lifted Billy almost bridal style from the car, but he was unceremoniously slumped over Steve’s shoulder, crushing the flowers, and maybe still drooling.

Max was leading him again up to the porch. Steve was happy he held Billy like this only because it made taking steps much easier. And not because he could smell the spiced wood cologne Billy used in abandonment very well this close. 

The night was creeping up his back. Cold waves of exhaustion reminded him how Max was yawning earlier and that made his muscles very tired. But Steve pushed that all back and powered himself to carry Billy up the steps and into the house.

Inside the door, Susan, Max’s mother, was waiting for them. Her hands pressed white knuckled against the wood almost trembling. She lifted one slim hand and wordlessly pointed to another room just a little down the hallway. Max pushed past her and opened the door so Steve could follow inside.

Billy’s room was so obviously Billy’s room it hurt. The place was simple, almost bare, but yet messy in the scattered clothes and crushed beer cans. Blankets on the bed were unmade, folded over to one side. They let Steve daydream about Billy just waking up and pushing them off himself. But he shook that dream from his mind.

Steve laid down Billy as gently as he could into the bed. The springs creaked with the weight but held, and like that Steve’s job was done. 

As a reward Steve let himself have one last look at Billy’s sleeping form curled against the roses he bought before he turned to leave.

Very quickly, Steve realized he wasn’t followed into the room by Max, but was followed by an older man. Billy’s father, Neil, if Steve could remember his name. Swallowing thickly, Steve stepped away from the side of the bed and walked towards the door where Neil was waiting for him.

“Got yourselves banged up?” Neil’s voice was not friendly. He nodded towards Steve’s face, there were cuts and a growing bruise there Steve didn’t need reminding about.

“Yes, Sir.” Steve kept his reply simple. And he knew to use the word sir when he made these types angry.

“Over some whore?” Neil’s anger was boiling under his words, and his words were pointed directly at Steve like daggers.

They were standing close together, Steve had let himself get his back against the open door and Neil was standing against the frame on the other side of the door way, but with his stare Steve felt like he was trapped.

“Yes, Sir.” The cover story was more important.

Neil wouldn’t back down. Steve wasn’t giving him anything to work with but he just wouldn’t let off. “What’s with the flowers?” Neil didn’t look over at Billy as he asked.

That question was the hardest for Steve to bullshit. He willed the blush away from his cheeks as the answer of ‘their mine’ tried to ghost from his lips. Instead he stuck to the script.

“That girl. She was like a... a...,” Steve let his eyes drift back over to the bed longingly, “a secret admirer. Tried to be at least. You see how that turned out.” Steve chuckled low as he turned back to Neil, but the older man wasn’t laughing. He took a deep breath and that seemed to cool the fire inside a little.

Neil lifted one hand to clap heavy over Steve’s shoulder, fixing the young boy with a hard glare. But Steve has seen this before, the fathers of the girls he never brought back on time, and his own father trying to make him realize what a missed opportunity not attending tech college was. It was an intimidation factor, plain and simple, and Neil was really good at it. 

Steve felt himself slip back into his King character, blinding Neil with a smile that was completely nonthreatening. Neil was going to have to try harder if he wanted to get a crack out of the great King Steve.

From the hallway Susan broke out into her own smile, and started talking in a hushed voice. “Thank you, so much, for bringing him home.”

Steve looked over to see Max and Susan wearing matching worried looks. Steve questioned for a moment why was everyone scared in this house? The thought made Steve tired again as he imagined Billy having to deal with this intimidation every day he came home.

“Thank you, what was your name again?” Neil was using his iron grip on Steve’s shoulder to lead him out of Billy’s room and back into the hallway.

“Steve Harrington,” he pulled the honey laced words like a magician pulling flowers from his sleeve, with a smile.

“Steve Harrington,” Neil repeated. They stopped walking at the front door. Steve was ready to leave such a depressing house. “I think I’ve meet your father.”

Steve walked out into the porch. The chill air was nice against his flushed skin. Billy’s room had been stuffy and a little smelly, but it was homely and comfortable as well. Steve was sad the smell of cologne and cigarettes was getting blown away.

He turned back to look at Neil. “Yeah it’s a small town. My dad’s got a big name.”

Neil’s fake smile faltered a little. Steve just lifted one hand up in a goodbye salute before stepping down off the porch. 

The burgundy BMW was siting with the back door still open. Steve shut it and went around to get behind the wheel as quick as he could. Before he pulled away he noticed a bright red thing sitting in the middle of his back seat. Looking around his seat Steve found a discarded rose head. 

For a second he didn’t want to touch it. Didn’t want to break the spell. But he reached out with long fingers and lifted the rose very softly from the seat. He felt it for a moment, the petals velvet under his skin, and under them a small part of the green stem remained. Steve held his breath and tucked the rose into his jacket pocket. 

He was going to have a lot to talk about with Billy tomorrow morning. 

He had a lot he was going to hold over his head, for sure. But more importantly there was so much he wanted to ask. 

Now he just drove off back to the highway and got lost in a heavy metal song on the radio.

[billyhargrovesbabe]

ocean eyes | billy hargrove

Soooooooo this is super angsty. But I needed a different kind of angst from the one the season finale left me with, and lo-and-behold this was born. I really enjoyed writing it, despite the obvious angst and feels. Feel free to let me know what you think!

Word Count: 2,738

Warnings: Character death, violence, season 3 spoilers, gore, blood, mentions of abuse, swearing

Most people didn’t believe it when they found out the Billy Hargrove—King of Hawkins, King of the Keg-Stand, and King of the Bad Boys— was dating a total brainiac. They’d scoff, or laugh, or (at least the girls) would shriek in dismay. But no one really believed it. Everybody knew Billy was too wild to be tamed, to settle down, to pick just one girl— everyone but you.

In all honesty, you weren’t completely sure why he picked you either. Maybe it was the quiet help you’d offer him when you two were assigned to be desk neighbors in English, then partners in a History project, then lab partners in Science. It was like the world or maybe just the teachers were determined for you two to work together. Maybe it was the calm, collected way you’d dissected that frog when he was clearly too squeamish to do it himself (not that macho-man Hargrove would ever admit it, and you didn’t even make fun of him for it). Maybe it was the silent help you’d offer when he’d wince from raising his arm too high (something you soon diagnosed as a dislocated shoulder), or when you subtly re-bandaged his bloody knuckles at the back of the classroom, or that time you quietly pressed your favorite concealer in his hand to try and help with a black eye. Maybe it was because you just happened to have an amazing rack (something you knew definitely didn’t hurt). Whatever the reason, few people believed it. But that was just fine by you; no one else needed to understand it. All you knew was that it worked.

Billy protected you, and you took care of him. That was the deal. You let each other pretend to be whole. You accepted his anger and his violence, and he accepted your perfectionism and anxiety. You two never pushed the other for more than they were willing to give or say, and you respected each other’s boundaries. Hell, you didn’t even find out he had a step sister until week three of dating him. But because of this mutual respect of boundaries, you two quickly became inseparable. Soon, you were sharing even the most intimate, awkward details without a second thought. Neither of you really knew what was in store when you two would leave in the fall for California (you to attend college and him to move home), but you both knew it’d be fine so long as you had each other.

So that summer when Billy abruptly withdrew, you knew something was wrong. Your boyfriend wasn’t without his flaws— after all, he had certainly earned his reputation as an asshole— but you knew there was good in him. You had seen the sweet, funny, mischievous, caring side he buried so deep down. You knew him like you knew your multiplication tables or your SAT vocabulary— you just did. You didn’t question it. You simply trusted yourself, trusted in your knowledge, and trusted him.

That seemingly nondescript summer evening when he didn’t call you to let you know he had survived another day under his dad’s roof, you got nervous. You tried to call him a few times, and you’d either get the machine or Max or Susan, and both would tell you he wasn’t home (one time you got Neil, but you hung up before speaking to the monster). After the umpteenth unanswered call, your nervous energy began to morph into worry. That worry persisted over the next few days until you ran into his kid step-sister and her odd little friend who spoke in somewhat broken sentences at the pool. When you cornered them about Billy and they shared their strange findings with you (after a lot of convincing), that worry blew up into panic. The last straw was when someone told you they saw him drive up to Heather Holloway’s house, dressed up for a fucking date. Even when he had made it his mission his first year in town to sleep with anything in a skirt at Hawkins, he hadn’t so much as considered Heather for a second. You knew something was very, very wrong with your boyfriend. And you were determined to get to the bottom of it. You agreed to help the kids lure him into the sauna. Whether it was the promise of another victim or the supposed “normalcy” of your relationship the Mind-Flayer was after, you hadn’t ben sure. You barely managed to get out of the way before he was shoved into the sauna, where you saw the heartbreaking truth. You saw the possession, then the shift to the poor whimpering mess he was. You could see the terror in his eyes. You saw it persist in his eyes even when the Mind-Flayer took back over and broke him out of the sauna. You knew you had to save him.

You really shouldn’t have even been there that night at Starcourt, but you refused to leave. You had never been a fighter—that had always been Billy’s job— and the Party didn’t want to bring in any more people than they already had, but you refused to take no for an answer. It was your job to take care of him, and you were going to do it dammit. When the teams split up, you immediately volunteered to go with whatever team had Eleven. The girl was the only one who didn’t look at you with fear, or concern, or trepidation. She understood. She had seen Billy’s mind, after all. She confided in you later that she had seen you there, in his happier memories. They had just been a few brief glimpses, and there was nothing as lasting or influential as his memory of his mom. But you didn’t expect there to be. You had only been dating a few months. And besides, what she had seen spoke volumes. She told you about the quick glances she had of you cleaning him up ever so gently when he came to your house after Neil really laid into him, and of you sitting on the roof of his car with him between your legs while the two of you shared a smoke on one spring evening. She even told you about a memory she caught of you two just lying on the floor of your room, staring up at the ceiling and listening to music as he quietly promised to take you to California so you could see the beautiful ocean he loved so much. She knew no one could bring him peace like you did.

So Eleven understood later that night when Billy seemed so jarred after pushing you aside to get to her. She saw the swift flicker across his face, his resolve cracked and the Mind-Flayer’s hold briefly damaged as he pushed you aside. The sickening crack as your head collided with the hard floor of the mall seemed to echo in the massive space. It was easy after that. She could see he was still in there, that there was still a fraction of his soul and his mind worth saving. El saw the pain, and the heartache, and the grief as her words sunk in and she reminded him what he had left to fight for and of his mother. And Eleven understood what happened next, although that didn’t make it any less tragic.

Your eyes opened to a dark world, lit only by the fluorescent lights of the stores around you. There was a suspiciously wet feeling where your head had collided with the floor, but you paid no mind to it. You frantically searched the scene around you, eyes darting around for your boyfriend and the girl you had promised to protect. You found them off to your right, his domineering figure crouched over hers, his hands around her throat, until... suddenly, his hands were by his side again. You blinked, mind and vision a little fuzzy (you knew you probably had a concussion). Your vision cleared, and you couldn’t believe the sight before your eyes.

There was Billy— your Billy, you were certain of it— fighting off this massive... monster. It was the only word for it. As he grappled with the freakish and terrifying tongue-like appendage, you saw what he didn’t. You saw the tentacles creeping through the cloud of light and debris, snaking their way towards him. You saw him struggle to keep the creature at bay, and you knew in that moment he had no idea what was coming for him. But you did. You saw the scene flash before your eyes as the tentacles slowly seemed to open at the ends, revealing horrific fangs. In your heart, you knew there was only one way this would end if you didn’t intervene. And you refused to watch it happen.

You knew a little something about physics. You had been fascinated with it ever since you broke Jamie Foster’s arm in elementary school. After apologizing to the poor boy profusely, you tried your best to understand what had happened. He had been braced against the wall, his arms in front of him to avoid running into it while playing a game of basketball with his friends. It just so happened at that exact moment, you tripped and feel forward into the direct line of his left arm. The arm that had previously been braced against the bleachers quickly gave way, snapping like a twig and creating a sickening s-shape. You were baffled by how something so strong, so firm as a child’s bone, could break just like that. You quickly came to learn that his weight and energy had all been braced forward, meaning there was little resistance to any energy or forces that would’ve caused a change in direction. It was a lesson you’d never forgotten, and one that had inspired you on the cold floor of the mall. thirst for knowledge and love of learning. AAs you rushed towards your boyfriend, you remembered the ease of crashing and breaking something that should’ve been immovable.

You slammed your body into Billy with your full body weight and the momentum of the short sprint behind it. The usually stable mass of muscle that was your boyfriend slammed into the floor, as all of his strength had been thrown forward into resisting the Mind-Flayer’s attack. He was helpless to your unexpected shove, just as he was helpless when the bites meant for him sunk into your abdomen and back.

You were breathless, suspended in time for just a moment, as you watched him hit the floor. You couldn’t quite believe it had actually worked. His beautiful, piercing blue eyes were focused on you in a way they hadn’t been for— was it days? Weeks? You’d lost track. All you knew was that you never wanted him to stop looking at you like that: like he’d never really looked at you before. You tried to send him a small, reassuring smile even as his eyes screamed at you. You could practically hear him berating you, calling your sacrifice stupid and wrong. You didn’t mind though. You had made your choice the second you opened your eyes.

You felt the pain as the first bite sunk into your stomach, still facing the boy you had knocked out of the way. It sunk deep into your stomach, following the fangs as they tore into your flesh. The stabbing sensation tore tears from your eyes and the breath from your chest. You felt it again as the second one latched onto your back, colliding with the middle of your spinal column. After that, the pain numbed. You weren’t sure if it was shock or paralysis, but you appreciated the reprieve. You felt a strange sort of calm wash over your body. You barely registered the rest of the bites and the attacks on your battered body, barely heard the screams of Billy and Max as they cried your name. You didn’t even realize the monster had been defeated until you were laying on the ground, gasping for air, finally feeling the burning pain of the bites and the blood soaking the floor around you as it seeped out of your body. You finally realized it when you saw him crouching over you, with what looked like tears in his eyes. But that couldn’t be right. Billy Hargrove didn’t cry.

He did feel betrayal though, and you saw it. You felt his heartbreak as he looked at your beaten body, covered in blood and bites that were too deep to even pretend could be fixed. You saw the betrayal as he realized you had broken your unspoken deal: you hadn’t let him protect you. Instead, you had taken it upon yourself to protect him and now there would be nobody left to take care of him when you were gone. There’d be nobody left to patch him up, nobody there to help him pass his classes, no one there to cuddle him on the hood of his Camaro in the evenings. Maybe someday, but it would never be you again. You could see him fighting the anger that would’ve been so much easier to deal with, simmering under the surface. You could tell he had to bite his tongue, wanting to yell and rage and scream but refusing to let that taint your final moments.

You felt the aching and the warmth slowly start to leave your body as your breaths started to become quick, shallow gasps. It was almost painful to feel your chest compressing with the futile effort. Having taken more than your fair share of health classes, you knew you didn’t have much time left. You felt the sleepy haze of blood loss start to settle over you, but there was still so much you had to say. You still had to tell him just how much you loved him, how much you believed in him, how you just knew there was still so much out there for him, how he had to go and live that life in California for the both of you. You had to tell him to learn to let his anger go, to try and repair his relationship with Max, to let himself be vulnerable and love someone else—someone who wasn’t you. You had to tell him to live his dreams, to find the man you already knew he was, and to shave his mustache that had always itched when he kissed you. You opened your mouth, desperate to say something—anything—but he quickly shushed you.

“Shhh, Y/N. Don’t say anything. The cops are coming, and after they patch you up I’m going to kick your ass for scaring me like this. Just stay with me, princess.” You don’t think you had ever heard his voice so tender. You appreciated his empty promises, knowing neither of you wanted to really confront what you both knew was inevitable. He sounded so broken, trying to be brave and strong for you. You tried to grin at him, but your world was starting to fade. You knew your last moments were here.

“Forgive yourself.” You rasped up at him as your body started to give up. You could feel your heart begin to skip, to stop working, as the cardiac arrest started setting in. “I love you.” And you tried to convey just how true that was, even with your dying breath. You tried desperately to send him all the love and hope and strength you could as your vision slowly started to fade, reassuring him that you knew exactly what choice you had made. You had seen the way things would have ended, how you would’ve had to watch him die instead and then continue to live on in a world where he was gone. Go to California by yourself, a stranger in your dead boyfriend’s world with no one there to guide you. Selfishly, you chose to force him to continue on instead. He’d be fine. The infamous Billy Hargrove always made it through. As he sat there holding you, those fabled tears finally spilling from his beautiful blue eyes as he cried ever-so-silently, you quietly marveled at how he had still managed to keep his promise and show you the beaches and water he so loved in your last moments—even if it was just in the tempestuous waters of the oceans in his blue eyes.

[hunnywrites]

Arcade Dreams: Chapter Nine

Summary: There’s a new girl working at the Palace Arcade and Hawkins’ Family Video. Billy can’t stand her, and the feeling is mutual. No matter what everyone else seems to think.

Pairing: Billy Hargrove/OFC

A/N: Thanks everyone for the well wishes about the hurricane! Thankfully it didn’t hit us too badly. I would’ve gotten this out sooner, but I was at horror nights this weekend. I got to see our boy Billy and walk through the Palace arcade. I’d definitely recommend going if you can!

Teddi woke up the next morning with a loud groan. The sun was shining so brightly in through the window she was almost too afraid to open her eyes. She also had the overwhelming feeling that something was off. Holding a hand up in an attempt to shield herself from the light, Teddi slowly cracked one eye open to look around at her surroundings. This definitely wasn’t her room. Her heart started to beat a little faster as she tried her hardest to remember everything from the night before. She remembered getting ditched, playing beer pong...Billy? Had he given her a ride home? Something about that didn’t feel right. 

She remembered hanging out with Max and El, and when Teddi spotted the empty popcorn bowl and three empty cans of coke sitting on the dresser she realized that maybe Billy had given her a ride. To his house. Neither Max or El were there. It didn’t really sound like anyone was home until Teddi picked up on the sound of the shower coming from down the hall. She groaned again, rubbing at her temples as the bathroom door opened and Billy strolled out surrounded by a cloud of steam. 

“Morning, Sleeping Beauty,” he teased. Teddi only stared blankly at him as Billy moved to Max’s doorway, toweling off his hair. “You’re not dreaming, Larsson. It’s really me.” it was like he could read her mind. His cocky tone was enough to knock Teddi back into reality and she rolled her eyes.

“What happened?” she asked. 

“You got wasted last night. And you wouldn’t tell me where you lived, so I brought you here and you crashed with Max. I thought that was better than you waking up on David’s couch.” Teddi rubbed at her eyes and smudged the makeup she had forgotten she’d been wearing. Billy watched Teddi as she stared up at the ceiling for a moment before she slowly sat up.

“...I think I’m gonna puke.” she announced. Billy wordlessly moved aside to let Teddi pass. She hurried into the still steamy bathroom, kneeling down in front of the toilet and emptying her stomach. Billy watched on with an amused look. 

Teddi’s top rode up her back slightly as she bent over the toilet, and Billy caught a glimpse of something bright and pink peeking out from the top of her skirt. He crossed his arms over his chest and grinned. “Is that a tattoo, Larsson?” 

Teddi’s hand instinctively reached behind her to pull her top down. She glared over at him before grabbing a few pieces of toilet paper. She wiped her mouth and flushed the toilet. “Are you seriously checking me out while I’m throwing up? Don’t you have any shame?” 

“Nope.”

She rolled her eyes. Now that she didn’t feel quite as sick anymore, it was a little more obvious to her that Billy was in nothing but a towel. “God, can you put some clothes on?” 

“Why? Am I making you nervous?” it was driving Teddi absolutely insane how amused and almost happy Billy seemed to see her in this state. 

“I’m just trying not to puke again.” Billy chuckled as Teddi stood and moved to the sink to wash her face. Her black eye, now turning a yellow shade as it healed, was in full view. Billy pretended not to notice.

“That why you were telling me how strong I was last night?” he asked.

Teddi scoffed. “I definitely don’t believe that...I didn’t totally freak Max and El out, did I?” 

“How the hell should I know? I dumped you off in Max’s room and went to bed.” that wasn’t entirely true. After he had gotten in bed he could hear the three girls giggling like idiots, so the two girls had clearly enjoyed whatever it was Teddi had been talking about. Max hadn’t said much the next morning. She threw his bedroom door open and told him that Neil and Susan left for a movie date and she was going over to El’s before throwing a “Your girlfriend’s still asleep.” over her shoulder. The little shit. 

Teddi couldn’t remember much of what happened during the impromptu sleepover. She was pretty sure she had told them they should start an all girls D&D group, but that was about it. She let out a groan. “...What time is it? I have to be at the pool at ten.”

“It’s Christmas Eve, Larsson. Pool’s closed.” 

“Shit..that’s right. I guess now I can knock out for a few more hours until I have to be at the arcade,” she sighed with a short laugh. She couldn’t believe Christmas had crept up on her so quickly. She felt like she might have to throw up again. 

Billy was pretty sure he’d never seen someone so completely depressed at the idea of Christmas Eve. He also wasn’t sure if Teddi knew how much she was letting her disappointment show. He felt like he was getting a peek behind the chipper, always happy Teddi curtain. “Uh...just let me get dressed. I’ll give you a ride back to your car.” Teddi only nodded and gently splashed her face with warm water again. 

A few moments later Billy emerged from his room in a pair of his infamous tight blue jeans, a white tank top and a jean jacket. Of course he looks like that and I look like roadkill, she thought bitterly. Teddi pulled on her boots and her jacket and silently followed Billy out to his car. The awkward silence during the drive made her want to scream, and she let out a relieved sigh when Billy turned the radio on with a jab of his finger. 

“Um, so...thank you. For all of this…” Teddi knew that Billy didn’t like pleasantries like this, but she truly did appreciate that he had looked out for her. 

Billy shook his head and refused to meet her glance. “Don’t worry about it, Teddi.”

“No, really. I mean you could have just left me there-”

“I’m not a complete fucking dick, Larsson,” Billy snapped. “I give you shit sometimes. I’m not about to leave you passed out on the couch for some creep to feel up on.” and while that was just...common human decency, Teddi was a little surprised to hear something like that from Billy. It made her feel a tiny bit guilty for thinking so little of him so often. He could be a dick sure, but he wasn’t evil. 

Teddi pinched the bridge of her nose. “That’s not what I meant. It’s just...I guess I’m not used to other people looking out for me. I usually look after myself. So can you just let me say thank you without arguing with me like a normal person?” she snapped. 

Billy scoffed, but said nothing. Like the day at Melvald’s, Billy had caught a glimpse of a genuine anger that he hadn’t known that Teddi had. It was more than just the general annoyance she felt when they bickered. This was something he could see in her eyes. It looked similar to the anger he felt. Teddi was just obviously much better at working past it than he was. 

Teddi knew that Billy hadn’t believed her lie about falling on ice. She knew that in some capacity he had put two and two together and he knew that there was something more going on that she didn’t want to talk about. And there was part of her that wanted nothing more than to just tell someone about it, especially at a moment like this. But it was Billy. If she said anything she knew that he wouldn’t have cared. 

So she bit back the rest of her explanation as to why she had been grateful for Billy looking out for her, and instead neither of them said anything. They both sat silently as Billy drove her back to the arcade and listened to the Scorpions. When he finally pulled into the arcade’s parking lot she almost let out a cry of relief. “So...thanks again. I guess I’ll see you...whenever,” 

Billy held up his hand in a short wave, but said nothing. Teddi quickly slid out of the Camaro and took a step back as Billy nearly peeled out of the parking lot and sped off. “Such a jackass,” Teddi muttered as she headed over to her van. She rested her head against the steering wheel and let out another loud groan. She was never going to let herself drink that much again. Her head felt like a rock. 

The drive home felt like it took forever. It was silent except for the thump, thump, thump that repeated in Teddi’s head as if her skull was threatening to explode. Thankfully her dad’s car wasn’t in the driveway. Whether that meant he was working or somewhere else, Teddi only cared that he wasn’t home. Her mother was though. Bonnie Larsson was sitting at the kitchen table flipping through a magazine and completely unaware that Teddi had come home. 

“...Hey, mom.” Teddi muttered. 

Her mom didn’t look up. “Hmmm? Hi, Teddi. Aren’t you supposed to be at work?” and to think Teddi had been so worried that she’d get in trouble for being out all night. She probably could’ve taken a trip down to Mexico with Billy and neither of her parents would have noticed. It almost annoyed her. 

“I don’t have to go in until later...where’s dad?” she asked tentatively.

Bonnie flipped another page of her magazine. “He’s working. Some big meeting today or something.” Teddi found that to be unusual. The construction team for the Starcourt mall was having a team meeting on Christmas Eve? Some higher up thought it was important enough to have her dad at that meeting? In any case, Teddi was sure that’s all she’d be getting out of her mother no matter how many questions she had now.

“Oh, okay...I’ll be in my room,” her mom let out a small hum, and Teddi headed down the hall to her bedroom, shutting the door quietly behind her. She landed face first down onto her bed and let out a loud groan. She had half a mind to just fall asleep right then and there with her coat and boots still on. 

Then her phone rang. 

Teddi groaned again, sitting up and reaching over for the hot pink phone that sat on her nightstand. “Hello?” she grumbled, rubbing at her forehead in an attempt to get rid of her headache.

“Teddi! How could you not have told me?” it was Heather. 

“Uh...that depends. How could I have not told you what?” Teddi asked with a frown. 

“That you totally hooked up with Billy Hargrove last night!” 

Teddi sat up quickly, her eyes going wide. She felt like she was going to puke again. “What? What? That totally, completely did not happen-” she stuttered out. On her drive home she had remembered bits and pieces of the night before. Billy driving her home. Smoking together. She definitely didn’t remember anything that was even in the realm of hooking up. 

“Teddi, it’s me. You can tell me. I can’t blame you, I mean he’s Billy. You have to tell me what it was like.” 

Teddi pinched the bridge of her nose. “Heather, I barely even remember last night and I can still confidently tell you that absolutely nothing happened with Billy and me.” 

Heather let out a short huff. “Please. Tommy said that last night he walked in on Cheryl Burns and Brian Jean hooking up in David’s parents bedroom, and then he said he saw Billy carrying you out to his car a few hours later.” well, at least that explained where Brian went. The asshole. But the fact that all of these pieces were enough to actually make it look like she had in fact drunkenly hooked up with Billy was enough to make her want to scream. 

“Heather, trust me. If I hooked up with someone I would tell you. He just gave me a ride home is all.” and of course the insane idea of Billy Hargrove giving someone a ride out of the goodness of his heart probably made her story sound that much more like a lie. 

Heather was silent for a few moments on the other line, most likely trying to decide whether she believed Teddi or not. “This is the last time I get gossip from Tommy. He never knows what he’s talking about. I’m pretty sure half the time he makes stuff up just so people will pay attention to him. Anyways, I guess I’ll see you at work in a few days?”

Teddi nodded, extremely grateful that Heather had decided to drop the topic. “Yep. See ya then, Heather.” Heather hung up after an all too cherry “Merry Christmas!” and Teddi set the phone down with a sigh of relief. That relief quickly turned into annoyance as she kicked her boots off angrily in the direction of her closet. Did Billy have any idea what people were saying about them? If they hadn’t gotten into that fight in his car would he have told her? Even if he did, what would he care? He probably loved the fact that the entire school thought he’d finally gotten her in bed. 

She was muttering angrily to herself as she finally changed from her party outfit and into some pajamas. Even when he was being nice he still somehow managed to be a thorn in her side. Teddi decided that the next time she saw him it would be her throwing him in the pool. But now it was time for much, much needed sleep. If she could stop stewing over Billy. He ruins everything, she thought with a huff. 

[thebumblebeetumbletree]

Better Color's: Soulmate AU

Soulmate/mark AU where you have a black mark on you that, when touched by your soulmate, changes into a rainbow of colors.

Soulmates were supposed to be something special. Someone to hold and cherish, someone Billy could confide in. Could protect and be protected.

But the black smudges on his hands said otherwise. Proof that Billy just wasn't cut out for a soulmate, wasn't good enough. They were ugly smudges of ink smeared across his knuckles and palms. Signs that Billy would be no better than Neil.

Soulmates embodied everything he wanted- comfort, love, a home. But it wasn't in the cards, Billy would only hurt; could only do harm. Just like Neil said, a good for nothing waste of space. And maybe at one point Billy didn't believe him, but then of course, he hadn't understood the sad looks his mom would give his hands when it was bathtime or the looks his classmates gave him when he raised his hands, the marks always on display.

He hadn't understood what the marks meant, not until he was older. Not until he had Jamison Rogers, from his tenth grade English class, underneath him and panting while Billy sucked bruises into his neck. A necklace of bites like the pearls his grandma used to wear.

It didn't even click when Jamison said, "you get in a fight with your dad again?" Billy still hadn't understood, had thought he'd seen the belt marks on his back where they edged over his shoulders like vines. But then Jamison had brushed fingers over his knuckles, right where the smudges were and Billy finally understood.

"No," Jamison must've thought he was talking to him because he just shrugged and went back to undoing Billy's zipper, the marks forgotten. "No," he couldn't hide the panic that enveloped him, not even if he'd been the greatest actor could Billy contain the horror and shame that creeped over him. He finally understood the looks his mom used to give him before she left, her own soulmark glinting on her cheek, the sneers and jibes Neil made, the pity in his teachers and classmates eyes.

He jerked away from Jamison when the other boy reached into his boxers, his dick having long lost interest. "I- I have to go," he didn't wait for an answer, Billy left in a rush, not even having the sense to put his shirt on or fix his belt and unzipped jeans, his boxers peeking out, showing exactly what he'd been up to.

When he got home, his panic was almost palpable. He felt like if Maxine or Susan even glanced at him he'd shatter. He almost wished they would, if only so he wouldn't have to live with the guilt. When Neil saw him, Billy welcomed the hits, embraced the curses flung at him like a whip.

"You finally understand, you faggot?" Neil smacked Billy, his head bouncing off the wall heater that sat under their window. Susan had taken Maxine to the kitchen. "You understand?" He repeated, crouched over Billy's prone form, "you're just like me, boy. And you're soulmate will be no better than your whore of a mother."

Billy hadn't understood the meaning behind his mom's rainbow handprint, he thought it'd been a caressing hand- a lover's mark. But he understood now, he could now see how lifeless and doll like his mother had become, the longer she stayed with Neil. He now understood the way she'd flinch, yet leaned into every touch Neil gave her.

Billy realized, as his head bounced off the floor, that soulmates were just another form of abuse. Were just another way for people like Neil to use as a prison because why else would someone stay when all they received was pain?

Maybe that was why Susan fell for Neil. She didn't have a soulmate, not a single mark, and Neil's had left him. Two sad stories coming together to form an even shittier one. Billy almost felt bad for Susan, for falling for Neil's sob story,  for dragging Maxine into a horrible situation. But then he remembered how she turned a blind eye to every smack, every kick, every curse word flung at him. Billy wondered how long she could keep up the willful ignorance before Neil went after Maxine.

He reckoned by then it'd be too late for her to leave. She'd be too financially entwined with him to be able to get away without a scratch, besides the fact Neil would probably have claws dug in too deep. Either way, Billy didn't really care.

What he did care about was Neil's declaration that they were leaving, he said this while standing over Billy. Sweat was dripping down his temples, his mustache quivering from the exertion. Billy, for a heart stopping moment, thought he meant Billy wasn't welcome anymore, that he could finally leave. He hadn't realized that Neil meant they were leaving California. They were leaving home, were leaving mom.

After packing his things into the camaro, Billy left that night to meet up with Jamison again, and when they both lay sweaty and sated, he beat the shit out of him with Neil's words echoing in his ears. His soulmarks winking up at him between the flashes of his fist as he screamed, “I'm not a faggot,” at Jamison, his tears burned hot and his nose ran.

They left the next day.

This is going to be a story, it'll probably be a long one shot. Stay tuned for Better Color's!!

[bitchinlyras]

almost five months

summary: It’s been almost five months before he tries anything again, which really, is pretty good if Max thinks about it. Five months of him not calling her a little shit or whore; five months of him not grabbing her arm so hard that he leaves bruises where his fingers were; five months of him not slamming her into walls when their parents aren’t home. For almost five months he’d left her alone. warning: domestic violence/child abuse available on ao3 as well

It’s been almost five months before he tries anything again, which really, is pretty good if Max thinks about it. Five months of him not calling her a little shit or whore; five months of him not grabbing her arm so hard that he leaves bruises where his fingers were; five months of him not slamming her into walls when their parents aren’t home (or really his shitbag dad and her mom, who Max still doesn’t know how she willingly married into such a family).

Almost five months since Billy was beating Steve to a pulp in Will’s living room; almost five months since Max slammed the needle into his neck; since she yelled at him and brought the bat down close enough to make him obey.

And he had obeyed, for almost five months. For almost five months he’d left her alone.

Until she broke her mom’s vase that Sunday afternoon. Her mom’s vase that Billy’s dad (the shitbag) had given her on their first anniversary.

It was an accident. She didn’t mean too. Her mom and step-dad weren’t home, and Billy was out (though he was supposedly babysitting her according to their parents); she’d just been skating down the upstairs hallway — it was raining outside — and she just bumped into the table and it had fell, and smashed into a million beautiful pieces.

Max quickly swept up all the pieces and the flowers and through them into the bin outside, thinking it would probably be awhile till her mom noticed anything, by which time she would’ve come up with some heroic story that involved saving a kitten, and nothing about skateboarding indoors (which she definitely wasn’t allowed to do).

One unfortunate issue with this otherwise brilliant plan? Tomorrow was trash day.

Billy (the shitbag’s son, aka shitbag 2.0) got home only minutes before their parents; Max was sitting on the couch watching TV.

“If they ask, make sure you tell ‘em I was babysitting you, got it?” he said, dropping his cigarette butt, and squishing it out on the carpet; Max ignored him.

Their parents were home not long after, and Billy’s dad, Neil, asked Max if they’d gotten along, and Max nodded, her eyes still on the TV.

That night, after dinner, Neil took the trash out, and Max, watching TV again, heard a cry of exclamation come from outside, and she froze, realising he’d found the remains of the vase in the bin.

He came immediately storming in, and Max sat absolutely frozen on the couch, eyes still on the TV.

“BILLY!” Neil yelled up the stairs. “Billy get your good-for-nothing ass down here at once!”

Max’s mom, Susan, was washing the dishes and looked up with alarm. “Neil? Neil, what is it?”

“He’s gone and broken the vase I got you,” Neil told her, “the little shit!”

Shit, Max thought, not daring to tear her eyes away from the TV, shit, shit, shit.

“Oh, Neil, it’s okay you don’t need to—” Susan protested, but Neil cut her off.

“No, it’s not fucking okay!” he yelled at her. ‘We’ve been married for almost five fucking years, and it’s about time my shitbag of a son realised that!”

At that moment Billy appeared at the end of the stairs. “It’s about time your shitbag of a son realised what, Father?” he asked, his voice coated in sarcasm.

Neil turned around, and punched Billy square in the face.

Billy fell, Susan gasped, and even Max turned her head at the sound of bone hitting bone.

Billy wiped the blood of his mouth, and stood up shakily. “‘The fuck I do?!”

Neil shoved Billy, not hard but hard enough to make an already disoriented Billy to trip up the stairs and fall backwards.

“Susan’s vase!” Neil spat venously, and Max quite literally saw fat drops of hateful saliva fly at Billy.

“Neil, really you don’t have to—” Susan protested weakly again, but Neil shut up her with one wave of his hand.

Max hadn’t felt sorry for Billy since the first time she saw Neil hit him — back when they lived in California. Max had only been nine, and Billy only thirteen; she can’t even remember what Billy had  done now, but Neil had smacked a pre-pubescent Billy so hard he’d fallen over. It had been the first and only time Max, who’d been watching through the banisters of the stairs, had seen her shitbag of a step-brother cry. She’d seen him be hit and shoved by Neil since, but that had been after Billy had decided that Max made a good punching bag, and it was hard to feel sorry for someone who had slammed your fingers in his car door on purpose on more than one occasion.

But the complete confusion in Billy’s eyes as to why he was being treated this way at that moment, is enough to make Max feel sorry for him.

“What about it?!” Billy asked, screaming madly at his father, saliva and blood dripping from his mouth.

Neil grabbed him by the shirt collar, lifting him up, so that their faces were only millimetres from each other.

“You broke Susan’s vase, you shitbag faggot, don’t play dumb with me,” he whispered, and the poison from his voice sent a shiver of fear through Max.

“Neil, really!” her mother again.

“Shut up, Susan!” he yelled, this time turning to face, and Susan jumped back in fright.

“I—” Billy opened his mouth to protest, but then understanding flashed in his eyes, and he shut his mouth, and Max, who’d been watching the whole thing unfold since Neil had punched Billy, turned quickly back to the TV, her heart thumping in her chest, and her mouth dry with fear.

Neil dropped Billy, who thudded quietly on the stairs. “Yeah,” he said to his suddenly silent son, “that’s what I thought.”

No response, and Max wished the TV was louder, but she dare not move to turn it up.

“Say sorry to Susan, and tell her you’ll buy a replacement,” Neil instructed Billy.

“Sorry Susan, I’ll buy a replacement with my own money,” Billy said in a monotone.

“With your own money,” Neil added.

“With my own money,”

“Th—Thank you, Billy,” Max’s mother stuttered.

Billy grimaced, blood smeared on his teeth. “My pleasure, Susan.”

And Max could feel his eyes staring straight at her, and the hair on the back of her neck stood up; her whole body was absolutely frozen in fear.

She listened as Billy walked slowly up the stairs, and she knew he was walking that slow and that loud deliberately, just to freak her out.

It was working.

At the sound of Billy’s door closing upstairs, Max let out a whimper, and tears filled her eyes. She bit the inside of her mouth to stop herself from crying out any louder, and wiped her eyes quickly before her mom or Neil could notice.

It’s been almost five months since he’s tried anything, but Max knows that’s all about to come to an end.

That whole week Max leaves for school early in the morning, she’s out of the door before Billy was out of bed; she goes to a friend’s house everyday after school, anything to avoid being alone with Billy.

Thursday evening she’s not so lucky.

It’s already dark as Max skates home form Dustin’s; she knows she’ll be in trouble with her mom for being home late, but it’s better than being home alone with Billy after school.

Neil and Susan are outside, getting into the car, as Max comes up the driveway.

“Where are you guys going?” Max asks, hopping off her skateboard and picking it up.

“Max!” her mother exclaims, walking quickly up to her. “What have I told you about being home after dark?!”

Max ignores her. “Where are you guys going?!” she asks pressingly, fear creeping in her voice.

“Out for a business dinner,” Susan replies, confused, “you know this sweetie, we told you last week remember?”

She remembers now, her mom mentioning a dinner with some of shitbag Neil’s clients, in her terror of the past four days she’d completely forgotten.

“Right! Of course!” she’s panicking now. “I was gonna ask if I could stay over at Dustin’s tonight? That’s okay, right?”

“Susan we’ve got to go.” Neil calls, who’s already sitting in the car.

“Coming, honey!” Susan replies to him, before turning back to Max. “What have I said about staying over at boys’ houses?”

“Mom, please!”

“Susan!” Neil calls again.

“Maxine—”

“It’s Max, Mom!” Max snaps at her.

“Maxine,” her mother emphasises, “go inside, your brother’s making dinner.”

“Step-brother,” Max mutters.

Susan glares at her. “Inside, now!” she tells her firmly. “Or you’ll be grounded for two weeks.”

Max considers running, just skating away, and her mother must see this, because she snatches Max’s skateboard out of her hands.

“Mom!” Max exclaims, as Susan puts it into the trunk of the car.

“Maxine, I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but no skateboard until you snap out of it.”

Max gapes at her mother.

“Inside, now!” Susan tells her again, and Max walks, defeated, into the house, her mother watching her with her arms folded.

Max shuts the door and hears the car drive away; as quick as she can she sprints up the stairs, into her bedroom, and locks her door.

“Oh, Max-eeeeeen,” Billy calls in a singsong voice from downstairs, and Max’s blood runs cold. She hastily begins to push her heavy chest of draws towards her door.

“Max-eeeeen,” she can hear him walking up the stairs, and her heart thumps desperately in her chest, and she tries to push harder.

“Max-eeeeeeen,” he’s closer, and in a panic she abandons the draws and rushes to her window, and tries to open it.

It’s locked.

She tries again.

It’s never locked.

He planned this, he planned this, he planned this.

Her mind races with panic as she tries hopelessly to open it.

The doorknob turns and rattles, and Max spins towards the door, sinking down the wall and onto her bed.

“Open the door, Max!” Billy yells from the other side.

“Leave— Leave me, alone!” Max stutters, not sounding half as brave as she’d like.

God, what she wouldn’t give to have that needle and Steve’s bat again.

“Open the motherfucking door right now, you little whore!” Billy screams, the whole door shaking.

“Go away!” Max screams back, tears in her eyes.

There’s silence, and for a moment Max thinks he’s really gone, that he thinks she has another bat or needle in her room, but then she hears the ‘click’ of a door being unlocked, and Billy comes bursting into her room.

Max scrambles to the window, and tries to break it with her fists, but Billy is pulling her back with her hair, and there’s nothing but pillows in her arms reach.

He has a whole fistful of her hair and tugs her back hard enough to make her fall off her bed, landing on her back.

Billy steps domineeringly over her, as Max sobs, covering her face with her hands. He pries them away from her, and leans down, gripping her left arm so hard that she knows the bruises she was once so familiar with will return.

“Why are you crying, Maxie?” he asks her villainously.

“Billy, please,” she cries, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know he’d blame you, I’m sorry,”

His grip still firm on her arm, he shakes her, and she lets out a sob. “You’re what?” he yells.

“Sorry! I’m sorry!”

He lets go of her arm, standing back up, and Max breathes out in relief. “Sorry?” he questions sarcastically. “So saying sorry suddenly makes it all okay?”

Max doesn’t reply, not daring to speak.

Without warning, Billy leans down again and smacks her across the face. Max cries out in pain, her sobs raw.

“I’m… sorry,” Billy says into her ear, “does that make it better?”

Max shakes her head, trying to do her best to hold back her tears.

“Didn’t think so,” he says with disgust, and he hovers over her, his mouth open and big blob of spit forming. Max keeps her eyes tight shut as it falls onto her her; she bites the inside of her cheek to stop herself from letting out anymore sobs, but she can feel her whole body practically convulsing with them anyway.

Billy grabs her left forearm again, his fingers pressing into her skin. “And what was that thing you told me to do at your little friend’s house?” he asks her in the same venomous tone as before.

Max shakes her head, her eyes still tight shut.

“Look at me!” he screams at her, shaking her arm, and Max’s eyes fly open in alarm. “What. Was. That. Thing. You. Said.”

“Understand,” she finally whimpers.

“Well, bitch, understand that I don’t give a shit what you say about leaving you or your little friends alone, and that I’m the one in charge, okay?”

Max nods, desperate for him to leave her alone.

He smiles, an evil, self-satisfied smile, and lets go of Max’s arm. He steps away from her and walks over to her chest of draws, picking up the piggy bank and throwing it at the ground.

It shatters, and Max winces as pieces of china fly in all directions. She watches as picks up all the coins and notes, and stuffs them into his pockets. He leaves the room without so much as another word, slamming the door behind him.

Max lets out a sob, and another, and another. She brings her knees her up to chest, and lies on the floor in the fetal position, crying for what feels like forever.

When her parents come home, she’s cleaned up the broken china and put her chest of draws back against the wall. She’s lying in her bed, pretending to be asleep, as her mother pushes her door open quietly to check on her. Max holds her breath until her mother leaves, and cries herself to sleep that night.

She’d always preferred long sleeve t-shirts, and the next morning is no different. The bruises of Billy’s fingers are imprinted on her arm again, so she pulls a red long sleeve t-shirt over her head and the bruises are gone.

When she goes downstairs for breakfast Billy is already in the kitchen, sitting on the bench eating cereal, milk running down his cheeks.

Max feels him watching her as she reaches for the cereal packet.

It’s empty.

“What a shame,” Billy comments sarcastically, sliding off the bench, and placing his bowl, still full with milk and cereal, in the water filled sink. “Come on,” he says to her, reaching out to ruffle her hair, but Max flinches back automatically, “let’s go, otherwise you’ll be late for school.”

“I’m skating to school.” Max tells him angrily, getting the bread out of the fridge.

“I thought Susan still had your skateboard,”

Max stops in her tracks and swears under her breath, and Billy grins. He’s won. Again.

Max gulps. “Fine. I’m coming.”

The long sleeve t-shirt does the trick that day at school — no one sees her bruises, though Lucas does ask why she’s so hungry at recess, but Max shrugs it off as not having enough time for breakfast, which is technically true, she tells herself.

But it’s Lucas who sees the bruises on Sunday afternoon, and this time he doesn’t believe her excuse.

They’re at the Hawkins skatepark — Max has been teaching Lucas to skate the past couple of months, and he’s actually being making some progress.

Without really thinking, Max’s pushes her sleeves up, clapping Lucas who managed to go down a ramp without falling.

“I did it! I did it!” he exclaims happily, picking up the skateboard and running over to Max.

“You did it, Stalker!” she beams, hugging him.

“Whoa,” Lucas says, frowning, extracting himself from the hug, and grabbing her arm softly; Max’s heart sinks.

“What happened?” he asks concernedly.

“Nothing,” Max says hastily without looking him in the eye; pulling her arm away and pushing the sleeve down. “I just— just fell on my skateboard, that’s all.” She skates over to the ramps before he can reply.

“Max! Max!” he runs after her, and she narrowly avoids a collision with him.

“Max, can we just—” he pauses to jump out of her way “—talk?”

“There’s nothing to talk about, Stalker.” Max says firmly, still skating.

“He did this to you, didn’t he?” Lucas asks her, and that stops her dead, hopping off her skateboard.

“I said I didn’t want to talk about it, Lucas,” she tells him her voice breaking.

Lucas steps closer to her. “I thought you said he stopped after what happened at Will’s?”

Max sighs, looking at him, and takes him by the hand, leading him off the skatepark. They walk away from it in silence, until Max finds a slightly more secluded spot behind a tree. “He did stop,” she tells him quietly, as she slides down the trunk of the tree, and Lucas does the same, sitting next to her. “He stopped, but  I… I broke this vase that his dad brought my mom, and his dad found out and just went…” she shakes her head in an attempt to stop the tears in her eyes, “it was bad, he blamed Billy, and Billy… he knew it must’ve been me, but he knew his dad would never believe him, so he waited till we were alone and, well…” she gulps and shrugs, not daring to look up at Lucas, and instead playing with the thread of her sleeve.

“That’s awful, Max,” Lucas murmurs, and he reaches out for her shoulder and squeezes it comfortingly.

Max looks up at him, her eyes filled with tears and smiles. “It’s okay, really,” she laughs sadly, “I’m okay.”

“We… we should tell someone,” Lucas says, and something flashes in Max’s eyes, and he knows immediately that he’s said the wrong thing.

“No,” she shakes her head firmly, “we’re not telling anyone, okay?”

“If your mom knew, she could tell Billy’s dad and…”

“And Neil would beat him up and then Billy would beat me up in revenge.” Max finishes angrily for him.

“Okay, well… Steve? Steve would beat him up for you,”

“Do you remember what happened last time Billy and Steve fought? It didn’t end well for Steve.”

“What about El?” Lucas suggests, and his eyes sparkle as if he’s thought of the perfect solution. “We could tell her next time we get to see her, and she’d be able to break Billy’s arm by just a flick of her head, Max, she’s done it before!”

“No, no, and no!” Max snaps, shaking her head. “I can’t tell anyone, Lucas, okay?! No one can know, ‘cause the second they know, the second Billy will come after them as well!”

“But El—”

“I don’t care that she has powers, Lucas!” Max yells, standing up and pacing angrily. “I don’t care! You’re not telling anyone, okay?! Because I don’t want to put anyone else in… danger,” her voice breaks on the last word, and the tears return. “Okay?!”

Lucas nods. “Okay.”

Max slumps back down next to him. “Thank you.”

“I just wanna help you,” Lucas explains, “that’s all,”

Max smiles at him. “I know, I know you do, but… no one can,” she says sadly, before adding in a more positive tone, “but he’ll be off to college soon and I know visits home will be rare and far between — he hates it here.”

“I guess that’s good,” Lucas says quietly, “and… if… until then, y’know, you ever need a place to crash, you can, um, y’know…” he stumbles over his words, and Max smiles softly and finishes the sentence for him.

“Stay at yours?”

He nods. “Yeah, whenever you want.”

Max moves closer to him and rests her head on his shoulder. “Thanks, Stalker.”

“Anytime, Madmax.”

[rowdywarrior85]

STRANGER THINGS PRESENTS: WHEELERS VS HARGROVES (PART 2)

TED: Uh, honey. This, uh, woman is here to speak with you. She says she’s, uh, Billy’s mother.

SUSAN: Uh, excuse me, it’s step-mother.

TED: Right, sorry.

KAREN: Oh, hi. So lovely to meet you. Karen.

(Karen and Susan shake hands.)

SUSAN: Susan. Pleased to finally meet you, can we talk, please?

KAREN: Of course. Nancy, can you get the lemonade, please? Ted?

TED: Yes, Karen?

(Karen urges him away.)

Girl talk? Gotcha. Oh, and Karen, I’m glad you didn’t go through with, you know.

(Karen mouths a “thank you”, then urges him out of the kitchen.)

(Ted throws his hands up.) OK.

(Nancy hands Susan a cold glass of lemonade.)

SUSAN: Thank you. I’m sorry to come in here like this.

KAREN: Oh, don’t be. I don’t know why we don’t ever meet Billy’s parents.

SUSAN: Oh, we have our reasons. Look, you can obviously guess why I’m here. I couldn’t help but chime in on your conversation. My husband and I know you’ve been talking with Billy.

KAREN: Well, we’ve had our moments.

SUSAN: Look, try to understand. I know Billy has this allure about him with girls AND mothers, of course, and he’s beautiful.

KAREN: Of course.

SUSAN: (sips her lemonade) But, nothing could be farther from the truth. He’s always angry, all the time, even before me and my daughter, Maxine became a part of his family. He and Maxine would always be at extreme odds with each other.

NANCY: Me and my brother, Mike, would be at odds with each other at times. But we would never be your definition of “bad”.

SUSAN: True. But, as bad as Billy can be, his father, Neil, is even worse.

KAREN: Oh, come on. He can’t be all that bad, can he?

NANCY: He actually is, Mom.

SUSAN: He is. He and Billy would get into fights almost everytime Billy stepped out of line in any way. Sometimes verbal, but mostly physical.

KAREN: Well, didn’t Billy’s actual mom having anything to say about this?

SUSAN: Neil never said a word about his first wife. One time at dinner, I unexpectedly brought it up, and Neil would stare at me for a second. Then turn and stare at Billy like he had something to do about her leaving them behind.

KAREN: He isn’t the same with you, is he?

(Susan sheds a tear and sniffles.)

Oh, honey.

SUSAN: You have no idea what it’s like; stepping on broken glass everyday, doing whatever means necessary to avoid confrontation.

KAREN: Honey, I’m so sorry, but… why would you ever marry yourself to such a…

NANCY: Shithead?

KAREN: (winks at Nancy) Right.

SUSAN: (sniffles) Before becoming Mrs. Hargrove, my first husband, Maxine’s father, was a lousy husband and provider, basically a slacker. But, despite all that, he was a good father to her. But I wanted responsibility in my spouse. I thought I’d gotten the perfect package with Neil.

(voice breaking, sips her lemonade) I was wrong both times. It’s stupid to you, I’m sure.

KAREN: No, I get it, Susan, I do. There are times in a housewife’s life, and I just realized this. Sometimes, you have to make due with what you have, even for the sake of your children. Never settle for more… or less.

(Both mothers share tearful smiles at each other. Just then, the phone starts ringing.)

Damn, hold that thought, I’ll be right back.

(Karen makes for the phone.)

SUSAN: Your mom is… quite insightful.

NANCY: I never knew how insightful.

KAREN: (picks up phone) Wheeler Residence. Oh, Liz, hey. How’s your pool day? What? Slow down, what’s wrong?

(On the other end, Liz and the Mom Squad are trying to warn their fellow Mothers-At-Arms about the approaching danger.)

LIZ: Karen, listen to me. Billy’s father was just here, starting some shit, and of course talking to Billy. He even asked about you, specifically. We think he’s on his way over to you, right now.

KAREN: Well, Billy’s step-mother is here with me right now.

(By saying that, Liz knows the Hargroves have already made it to the Wheeler residence.)

LIZ: Karen, listen to me. Hang up now, and call the police. Don’t answer the door til we or the cops get there. Do you understand?

(At that moment, Karen and Nancy hear a truck horn blaring out front. Susan starts sweating bullets.)

NANCY: What the Hell?

TED: What in the name of…

SUSAN: Oh, fuck.

KAREN: Liz, can I call you back?

LIZ: (over phone) No, Karen. Call the…

(Karen hangs up the phone.)

Hello, Karen!

(Hangs up phone.) SHIT!! Girls, grab our shit. I’ll get the car.

(Back at the Wheeler residence, Neil is still blasting his horn, informing Susan that her 5 minutes are up. In the house, the adults contemplate on what to do next.)

KAREN: Let me guess, the asshole father.

SUSAN: I’m afraid so.

KAREN: Ted, where’s Holly?

TED: Living room, watching cartoons.

KAREN: OK. Nancy, can you take Holly upstairs to her room, please?

NANCY: Mom…

KAREN: Nance, this has nothing with you whatsoever, so just take Holly upstairs, please.

(Nancy looks to her mom with concern, then looks to Susan. Susan nods in affirmation, then nods her upstairs.) Nancy then make her way to Holly.)

NANCY: (turns off TV) Holly, why don’t you go upstairs and play in your room, OK?

HOLLY: Why?

NANCY: Mom and Dad are about to have a very grown-up conversation.

(Nancy leads Holly upstairs, her and Karen nod at each other.)

KAREN: So, who wants to take the plunge?

SUSAN: Oh please, don’t jump out all at once.

TED: (deep inhale and exhale) You ladies stay inside…

(The moms look shocked at Ted.)

…I’ll handle this.

SUSAN: Sir, I rather you didn’t. Neil used to be in Vietnam, so he’s crazy. He’s really fuckin’ crazy.

TED: Ma’am, I negotiate with bankers after breakfast. I believe I can handle one loony Republican.

KAREN: Ted, listen to me. You really have nothing to prove to me, you don’t have to this.

TED: You’re right, Karen. I don’t have to.

(Ted touches Karen’s cheek.)

As your husband, I want to.

(Ted makes for the front door.)

KAREN: Susan, get behind the prep table.

(Both women get behind the prep table.)

SUSAN: Not to get your hopes up, but my husband is gonna destroy your husband.

KAREN: No shit.

(As Ted opens the front door to face off against Neil, Karen’s eyes the knife set on the prep table. Outside, Neil steps out of the truck to see Ted stepping outfront.)

NEIL: Do I have the privilege of addressing Mr. Wheeler?

TED: That you do, sir. Ted. You, uh, Mr. Hargrove?

NEIL: Neil, if you please.

(Neil walks right pass the lawn to the walkway, much to Ted’s dismay. Only the row of bushes stand between the two patriachs.)

TED: So, uh, what can I do for you, Neil?

NEIL: Actually, there is something YOU can do for ME, Ted?

TED: Really? And, uh, what would that be?

NEIL: I was wondering if my son has been by your residence.

TED: And your son would be…?

NEIL: Billy? Yea-tall? Long, curly blonde hair? Bit of a prick?

TED: Yeeah, I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure.

NEIL: (takes a swig) You see, Ted, I got this scenario in my head lately. It’s really scaring the shit out of me.

TED: Really, how so?

NEIL: Your beautiful, defiant wife who’s married to a bureaucratic dipshit like you, engaging in a lustful affair with my 18 year old son. And it’s very fucking disturbing.

(Upstairs, Nancy gets Holly into Holly’s room.)

NANCY: Now, Holly, I want you stay here in your room and play, no matter what you hear. I’ll tell you when it’s safe to come out, do you understand?

HOLLY: I understand.

NANCY: (kisses Holly’s forehead and smiles) I love you.

(Nancy then goes to the dresser in her room. She opens the dresser drawer to reveal her tape recorder she used to bring down the U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY lab last year. She then pulls the drawer back more to reveal the Byers Family .45 Revolver and ammo she got from Jonathan the year prior. Nancy looks at herself in the mirror, contemplating what she’s prepare to do. Meanwhile, back out front…)

TED: So, um, let me see if I understand what you’re saying. You believe that Karen, my wife of 20 years, is having some sort of an affair with your 18 year old son. Is that what I’m hearing from you, Neil?

NEIL: I do believe that was the point I’m making here. Either you don’t know about it or don’t give a fuck.

(Ted starts laughing.)

Something funny, Ted?

TED: Obviously, Vietnam has not been very kind to you, sir.

(Neil starts raising his eyebrows.)

Look, Neil, I don’t know what else I have to say to make you understand. Your son… is not… here, and believe me if he was, I’d certainly know about it.

NEIL: Really? Well, how bout I ask your wife personally.

(Neil tries to pass Ted, but Ted puts his hand up, holding him back. BIG MISTAKE.)

TED: Yeah, I don’t think that’s such a good idea, being in your state of mind at all.

(Neil looks down at Ted’s hand, trying to stop him. Then he looks back at Ted.)

So, why don’t come on back next time when you’re so-beeeerrrr!

(Neil then proceeds to twist Ted’s arm, getting his back. He then forces Ted to the door.)

NEIL: How about to let me in, right now.

TED: (groaning) Alright, alright.

(Ted opens the door. The ladies look on in fear as Ted is helpless in Neil’s grip.)

KAREN: Oh my God. Ted!!

TED: Sorry, Karen. I tried.

(Neil tosses Ted roughly on the stairs.)

NEIL: Thank you for your cooperation, Ted.

(Neil then lands a swift kick in his nuts.)

TED: (strained voice) Anytime.

(Neil then walks to the kitchen, about to face Karen.)

NEIL: Well, well, well. (sniffs) Karen Wheeler, I presume. I’ve heard so many things about you.

KAREN: Oh, I deny everything.

NEIL: Oh, sure you do. Perhaps you can answer the question in which your inept husband was unable to answer.

(Nancy, carrying her purse across her torso, tries to creep past the conversation, but Karen’s eyes give her away to Neil.)

Oh, this must be your daughter?

(Neil turns back to Karen.)

Perhaps, she’ll want to join us.

KAREN: Mr. Hargrove, leave my daughter out of this. She has nothing to do with this.

NEIL: Nonsense, I want her to be here.

(Neil points at Nancy.)

You, come down here and join us. Perhaps you’ll like to know what kind of ungrateful shut your mother is. Stand over there with my wife and shut up.

KAREN: Do what he says, Nancy.

TED: Nancy, just be rational.

NANCY: Dad, just stay down and shut up.

(Nancy walks cautiously behind the prep table with Susan. Neil then focuses his attention back to Karen, inching up next to her.)

NEIL: Now, Mrs. Wheeler. I’m gonna ask you one simple question, and you better give me a solid answer. Has my son, Billy, been by your house? And if so, have you been fucking him?

KAREN: (puts hand on her hips) First off, he WAS here last year, looking for his step-sister. Secondly, that’s not exactly what a rational parent would ask, because, obviously you’re drunk.

(Nancy and Susan look on in anticipation.)

NEIL: Ma’am, I’ve been through 3 yours in ‘Nam. I can practically smell bullshit a mile away. Now tell me the truth, have you and Billy been fucking each other?

SUSAN: Neil, please.

KAREN: I’m not going to answer that, asshole, because nothing happened!

(Neil grabs Karen by her arms and throws her to the stair scaffolding . Then gives her a stiff hand across her left cheek, making her grunt softly. Ted cringes at the sound of the slap in Karen’s face.)

NANCY: YOU SON OF A BITCH!!

(Nancy tries to intervene, but Susan stops her to protect her.)

SUSAN: DON’T!

(Neil takes his left hand and holds Karen’s face steady so he can see her eyes. A bit of blood emanates from the left corner of her mouth.)

NEIL: I’m no idiot, Mrs. Wheeler, so I would suggest you don’t treat me as such.

(A single tear falls from Karen’s left eye.)

I see sluts like you everyday, from L.A. to here, young and old, and they all want a piece of my Billy. Needless to say, I can’t blame them.

(Nancy looks to the prep table. She notices a steak knife missing from the knife set. She looks to Susan, thinking she took the knife. Susan nods in denial, then both ladies look to Karen.)

You know, now that I think about it, you actually remind me of Billy’s mother, his REAL mother. She too, was ungrateful. Always encouraging him to do things I don’t want my son to be doing. She even actually cheated on me, and then I forced her out, all because she couldn’t go along with what I WANTED FOR MY FAMILY, MY SON!

(Nancy looks down to the middle drawer to the left side of the prep table, she opens it to reveal a wooden rolling pin. Susan motions her not to go for it, but Nancy shushes her as she switches the purse on the left shoulder.)

Now, I may not have caught you in the act this time, but I’m gonna warn you right now. Stay away from my son.

(Unbeknownst to Neil, Karen inches the missing steak knife out of her right shorts pocket.)

STAY… THE FUCK… AWAY… FROM MY… SON!!! Is that anyway unclear, Mrs. Wheeler?

(Karen gives a light chuckle.)

Oh, I’m sorry, is something funny, bitch?

KAREN: Oh, it’s nothing, really. It’s just…

(The steak knife is fully out, and ready to draw blood.)

…your son told me the same thing a few days ago. For a while, I wondered why.

(Then, Karen gives Neil a kick to his nuts.)

NEIL: AW, GODDAMMIT!

(She follows it up with a cut across his left cheek. Forcing him back to the prep table, hard. Nancy pulls out the rolling pin at that very moment, but keeps it down until the opportune moment. Neil holds his face in pain.)

FUCK!! GODDAMMIT!!!

KAREN: (holds knife close in stabbing formation) Until now, that is.

(Neil recovers with a big gash across his left cheek.)

NEIL: Oh, ho. You got some spunk in you, Wheeler.

(Nancy closes in behind his port side, one handle of the rolling pin in both hand.)

SUSAN: (tearfully) Neil, please don’t!

NEIL: I’m gonna enjoy this.

NANCY: Hey, shithead!

(Neil turns to a grand slam swing square on his nose by Nancy’s rolling pin, knocking him to the right side of the hallway. Neil is screming in pain, blood gushing out of his nose. Nancy rushes to her mom’s side, checking the minor injury. Karen wipes the blood off with her middle finger and licking it off. Nancy moves her mom behind her.)

NEIL: HAVE YOU LOST YOUR FUCKING MIND, YOU LITTLE BITCH!!

NANCY: (points the rolling pin at Neil with one hand) Unless you a broken jaw, I suggest you BACK THE FUCK UP, ASSHOLE! Susan, do us a favor and check on my dad, please. Go through the living room.

SUSAN: Sure.

NANCY: Mom, I hope you’re ready to die today.

KAREN: Honey, I’ve been dying bit by bit everyday, and it’s not all that bad.

TED: People, please. Nobody needs to die in any way, we can be rational here.

KAREN & NANCY: SHUT THE FUCK UP!!

(Nancy continues to point the rolling pin at Neil.)

NANCY: As for your uptight ass. I’ve had a really, REALLY bad day already. I just got shit-canned from my summer job, trying to prove myself to overbearing dickheads like you.

KAREN: (eyes on Neil) Nice one.

NANCY: Thanks, Mom. And let me tell you something else. I don’t appreciate anyone who barges into my parents’ house, with your Army ‘tude. Assaulting my folks, talking them down, making a scene, being rude; and believe me, you’re exceptionally fuckin’ rude.

KAREN: Very exceptionally.

NANCY: So hears what’s gonna happen. You’re going to apologize to my dad. Then, you’re gonna apologize to my mom. Then you and your wife are gonna get back in your pickup, and peddle the fuck out of our neighborhood.

NEIL: HA! Oh,ho. That’s rich. And what if were to tell the both of you, to blow me?

NANCY: (scoffs with a smile, left hand on her purse) See, Mr. Hargrove, we like to think of ourselves as reasonable women. So, we’re gonna give you a choice.

KAREN: You can either leave peacefully…

(Neil tries to reach for Karen with his right hand. Nancy swats it down with the rolling pin, while at the same time, pulls out the Byers .45, fully loaded and in front of Neil’s surprised face.)

NANCY: …or you can consider your untimely demise…

(Nancy thumbs back the hammer with a cold look on her face.)

…self-defense.

TED: Ohhh, boy.

(Closeup on Ted’s eyes, then Susan’s, Neil’s, Karen’s and Nancy’s. Nancy fences Neil back with the rolling pin, then gives it to Karen so Nancy can gets both hands to steady that .45.)

SUSAN: Uh, Neil maybe we should take them up on their offer.

NEIL: Shut up, Susan, they’re bluffing. Besides, the bitch doesn’t even know how to use that damn gun.

(Nancy lets off a warning shot pass his left ear, scaring him a bit.)

JESUS! FUCK!!

KAREN: I say she knows how to handle it.

NANCY: Your move.

(Nancy thumbs back the hammer again.)

NEIL: Alright, ALRIGHT, GODDAMMIT! Mr. Wheeler, I wish to… apologize for early behavior.

TED: Quite all right.

NEIL: If you do see my son, you will let me know.

TED: Of course.

NEIL: You all can consider this a courtesy call.

(Neil then points to Karen.)

But let me tell you right now. If you ever come within 100 yards of my son again, he’ll rue the day he ever met you. Guaranteed.

(Neil then points to Nancy.)

And the same go to your little priss of a…

(Nancy lets off another warning shot at Neil’s feet, forcing him back.)

CHRIST!!

(She thumbs back the hammer again.)

NANCY: Get out.

NEIL: (deep huff) Ladies. Mr. Wheeler.

TED: Sir.

NEIL: (tosses Susan the keys) Susan, you drive.

(Neil walks to the truck in defeat, for now.)

SUSAN: I’m deeply sorry for this inconvenience, guys.

(Nancy nods in sympathy.)

By the way, you have a lovely home.

TED: Thanks.

KAREN: Thank you. Susan…

(Susan looks to Karen before leaving.)

My door’s always open if you want to walk.

(Susan tearfully mouths a “thank you”.)

NEIL: SUSAN!

SUSAN: I’m coming, dammit. Thanks again.

(Susan closes the door and walks away to the truck. Ted gets up and watches the truck drive away.)

TED: OK, they’re gone.

(Karen lowers her kitchen ware, while Nancy releases the hammer and lowers the .45. Mother and daughter share an deep, embracing hug. Nancy sighs in relief, while Karen lets out her tears of fear in relief.)

KAREN: Oh, my God. I’d ask where you got that gun…

NANCY: Holy shit. Be glad I had it.

KAREN: You weren’t kidding about Billy’s father.

NANCY: I told you.

KAREN: Billy does not deserve a father like that. His step-mom’s a sweetheart, but him…

TED: If that’s the father, I’d really hate to meet the son.

(Karen and Nancy look at Ted coldly. Suddenly, there’s a knock at the door. Fearing it might be Neil again, Karen raises her rolling pin and Nancy raises her .45.)

TED: (hesitantly) I’ll get it.

(Ted creeps to the door.)