Chapter Text
November
The winds whipped violently around the atrium. She stood tall and grounded like a statue pushing back on the force of the other individuals in the room. Her eyes were blacked out but her anger was white and red and hot. She was determined to kill every single person in the room, even if meant she went with them.
An older boy stood his own ground pulling open the rip in space-time he created. A whole world just for her. He panted and screamed from her sheer force trying his damnedest to do his part. Blood dripped from his nose like a leaky faucet. Sweat pooled in the collar of his shirt and the muscle in his arms strained far past their limits. He was losing his grip, feet sliding inward with the rip's own want to close in on itself.
A young girl kept her hands to the floor igniting it in flames pushing her back. As hot as the flames were the other girl did not burn. With her hands pressed firmly to the floor she begged for some kind of respite. They were all loosing strength and the will to carry on. She started to cry, tears mixing with the blood on her face.
The dark skinned boy used unknown forces of power to push back against her with invisible hands. It was like the clash of titans as one tried to overpower he other. They were screaming in each others faces trying to push back against the other. The two titanics disrupted the atmosphere in the room itself as the winds did not let up and lighting bolts struck the walls and desks and bookshelves.
Gun shots erupted as an added coercion to push her back. Invisible forces wrestled with the men in combat gear. Her transparent force field protected her but her consciousness could only spread so far. With so much going on she was distracted.
Billy stood back as another girl a few years his senior, wrapped her arms firmly around him, fear nearly overwhelming ready to pass out as he fought against his own fight or flight instincts. His breathing was hard and heavy as he watched the others fight valiantly and bravely. The wind made it hard to take a breath in let alone see clearly. Debris flew threw the air like shrapnel. As scared as he was he wanted to do his part too. They all came together to stop her. They were all here for a reason. She was too powerful too soon consuming her sanity entirely. She wasn't even the same person anymore. She was a monster.
He felt his astral spirit separate from his body and made the conscious decision to run straight towards her.
_______________________________________________________________________________
With a sharp intake of air Billy sat straight up. His breathing was labored as he grabbed for his chest. There was a fine sheen of sweat across his forehead he wiped away with the back of his hand.
That dream...
He took a few deep breaths and leaned back on hands trying to get his wherewithal together. He was still laying on the hardwood floor of the Byers residence.
He remember edtripping up Harrington in the driveway and making his way in to find his little step sister, Maxine, alone in a strangers house with four dudes, one of whom was a high school senior and lied about her whereabouts.
So yeah, he panicked pushing Harrington out of his way to get in. He did however lose concentration upon walking in. Sometimes this happened and he didn't mean for it to.
He noticed two things at once; one, Maxine and two, the insane amount colored paper lining the walls and floors. He didn't mean to but he projected and let his astral body walk around the house leaving his body on autopilot which was a fucking mistake.
He made a lot of those lately.
He was sucked back in when Maxine shoved a syringe full of mystery drugs into his neck. He apparently just finished kicking the ever loving shit out of Harrington as he came too straddling him. He vaguely recalled Max making some kind of point to leave her and her friends alone. He looked down on the floor and saw the imprints of the nail bat and knew that part was definitely not a dream.
He finally stood up and glanced around the room again. He still didn't know what the hell was going on here. He didn't hear anybody else and assumed he was alone.
Billy walked slowly, still coming down (or up) from the drugs, to the bathroom. Not like it was hard to find, the house was small even by Hawkins standards. He looked in the mirror leaning down on the sink and saw a bruise blooming around his eye and his nose bloody. He held his hand to his face and breathed in on a count of 4 and exhaled on a count of 6. He felt the skin around his eye tingle and he dropped his hand looking back into the mirror.
He stood up tall, "There... good as new..."
Kind of. The tissue under the skin was still sore.
He assumed Max and her apparent band of merry misfits left a while ago. He checked his watch and saw he's been out looking for Maxine for three hours now. His Dad was going murder him and give Maxine a strong talking to. The little bitch.
As he walked to the front door he felt around his pockets for his keys. He kept searching but came up empty handed. His heart dropped. "Bitch..."
He scrambled out the front door and saw his car was also gone.
"Bitch!" he yelled to no one in particular. He stomped around and kicked dirt in heated anger.
Like hell he was walking back home too. Billy couldn't believe the absolute audacity of this girl to shoot him up with drugs that came from God knows where, threaten to nail his balls to the floor, then steal his fucking car. Steve Harrington was probably the one driving it too!
At least she left him cigarettes and lighter in his back pocket; what an angel.
He groaned loud enough to hear an echo in the distance and sat down on the porch steps with a plop. He lit his cigarette and stared into the misty distance. His jacket was in the car too. Maxine probably threw that out the window to really kick shit in his face while on her joy ride. Hopefully a cigarette would help him calm down. He's had a looming like ominous type of feeling since arriving in Hawkins but never would have seen this coming.
He could have found Maxine a hell of a lot sooner had Neil let him find her his way rather than the old fashioned way. The both of them were probably in cahoots with each other to make his life miserable. He could have gotten a location on her in a matter of minutes. But Neil didn't like that shit in the house where people, i.e. Susan and Maxine, could see him do it.
He finished his cigarette and threw it on the ground not even stomping it out. He stared at the empty spot on his inner wrist. He was so over the entire night and just wanted to go home, get his beating, and go to bed. Neil would no doubt still make them go to school in the morning, it being a Monday night and all.
The familiar roar of the camaro brought him back to the present. He watched as the headlights guided the way down the driveway and up to the house. Billy stood and spit on the ground waiting for whoever was brave enough to get out first.
The passenger side door opened and Max got out staring at him. He couldn't read her expression but knew it wasn't fear. Not after her very intimate threat from earlier. The three boys, Sinclair, a curly haired kid, and the kid with the face followed out of the same side. They all stood behind her like she was a wall between them and him. They had no idea what he was capable of.
His blood pressure was rising again and he felt heat build in his core. He was ready to start screaming and punching the first thing he got his hands on. But then Steve Harrington got out of the car and Billy looked at the damage he'd done.
The pretty boy he'd been harassing/admiring for the past week was bruised and bloody and covered in dirt. His left eye was swollen shut. Somehow all that rising anger leveled off and now he just felt like an asshole. Subconscious-Billy really did a number on him.
Max shut the passenger side door and came around the front of the car. She immediately stood between him and Steve like he was going to after Steve again.
She held her hands out, "Billy... I can explain..."
"Shut up Maxine."
He walked passed her and up to Harrington and held his hand out. "Give me my keys."
Harrington laughed dropping the keys in his hand, "Not even sorry, are you?"
Yes, he was. He looked him dead in the eye, "No." To be fair it was still cringey that she was alone with these boys doing God knows what.
He moved passed him too and got into his car. At least they were nice enough to leave the heat on and also drained his car of most the gas. Such sweethearts. They left dirt tracks in the rug and in the upholstery. He had to clean this shit before Neil saw it or he'd get a second beating to instill responsibility that he apparently lacked.
Max tried opening the passenger side door but Billy was quick to lock it. She looked confused so he cracked the window. She asked, "Are you not driving me home?"
"No, I'm not. Any kind of bridge that was between us was burned tonight. You are never to speak to me again you little bitch."
"Fuck you!" She retaliated, "Neil is gonna' kill you if you come home without me!" She was becoming hysterical. They both knew he was going to tell their parents most of the truth. She refused to come home with him and she was desperately trying to save herself. He was not going to fall victim to her bullshit anymore. She's a big girl now apparently.
"Worth it," he said and rolled up the window. He backed out and peeled away before she could pick up a rock throw it at his car.
He drove like the typical teenage asshole he was speeding through town and down side streets home. He a took a few wrong turns but he made it none the less. He was still learning the back roads to this shithole town. Once he got to Old Cherry Rd. he slowed down and crept down the street under 25 mph. One less thing his father could bitch at him about.
He pulled up out front. Waiting it out in the car was useless. It was either wait for Maxine outside and get yelled at together or go in without her so she would also get in trouble. Maybe he should've just taken her home and made it easier for both of them. She'd get a talking to and he would get yelled at and maybe smacked around a little while Susan squeezed polite "Neil please"s out every now and then.
He saw the dirt smeared on the interior door beginning to crust over.
Fuck Maxine.
He got out and walked the 'green mile' to the front door. He took a deep breath in already knowing they were up waiting in the living room. The light was on and he heard the faint noise from the TV. The 11 o'clock news was on. There would probably be enough time to broadcast his obituary on the 7 o'cock news tomorrow morning.
He turned the knob walking in empty handed.
His father was up and out of his seat in an instant. "Well? Where is she?"
Susan asked at the same time, "Did you find her?"
Billy sighed, "Yeah, I found her. She was at the Byers house on the edge of town. She was there with these kids from her class and refused to come home with me."
Neil had his hands on his hips, mustache bristled and all. "Maxine is thirteen years old and half your size and you couldn't get her into the car? You expect me to believe you didn't just fuck off for the past three and half hours and go on your god damn date?"
Billy was floored, he hadn’t even considered that. "I swear to God! What the hell do you want me to do? Manhandle her? I was looking for her all night going door to door to her little friends houses!"
Neil stared him down, "It would be a lot easier to believe you if you didn't lie all the damn time. Its like second nature to you isn't it?"
Billy was getting mad, "I'm not lying!" The one time he actually doesn't lie and his father calls him on it.
Neil nodded to his left, "In your room, now..."
Susan stood from the couch, "Neil wait-"
"No Susan, he had one job all day and one job tonight and like the incompetent idiot he is, couldn't do either!"
She sat back down. Billy didn't know what she was afraid of. He never laid a hand on anyone but him. It was like Neil tried so desperately to move on from Billy's mother but was still legally obligated to him. Neil must have learned his lesson from slapping his mother around years before to not do it again. Billy never learned his lessons. He had a taste for spite and enjoyed it most of the time hence him leaving Maxine at the Byers house.
He turned and marched into his room with Neil following him. He heard the door close behind him and as he turned back Neil gripped the front of his shirt and shoved him into the wall. His father definitely caught him off guard as the back of head hit the wall and he held onto Neil's shirt at the shoulders trying to get some kind of leverage.
Neil began screaming obscenities in his face and calling him a fucking idiot and a faggot. He didn't know what that had to do with anything and his father definitely didn't know that for sure. Billy didn’t even know that for sure. Billy's head kept hitting the wall. He was losing his footing and Neil's fists that were gripping his shirt were pressing into his throat. He took a deep breath and separated his astral spirit from his body.
His astral stepped back and watched his father continue his onslaught of insults and slapping him around. This was easier to just watch until it was over. He wouldn't feel the pain until he returned to his body. He consciously told his father over and over how sorry he was and there was only so much he could do. Max just wouldn't comply.
But that meant nothing when it came to responsibility and respect. It was his responsibility to watch her. She should've never left to begin with, she was just a child and didn't know any better. But that was bullshit. Maxine knew exactly what she was doing. He should respect her and this family by accepting her as his sister and Susan as his mother.
Billy didn't have a mother. Susan wasn't his mother and neither was his actual biological mother. She left him and never came home. She put herself first and he never forgave her for that. She tried to reach out every few years or so but Billy was too busy with school and his friends and sports and never bothered to call her back. She knew what she did and he would project to her sometimes and watch her cry just like he did as a child. He didn't feel better or worse. He did feel justified though. He loved to spite people.
Billy watched himself fall to the floor and Neil gave his final commencement of the night.
"You've gone too far tonight! This will never happen again! You're going to respect this family or you're going into the military. 18 or not, you're fucking going! Do you hear me? Maybe then you’ll learn how to be a decent fucking human being."
"Yes sir."
"Good. You do this to yourself. If you just did what you were told this wouldn't happen," Neil held out his hand, "Now hand over the keys. Your ass is grounded for the next 3 weeks."
Billy slipped back into his body and dug his keys out of his pocket and handed them over. Even though Billy had bought the car himself Neil did pay for insurance, even if it was just liability. And he still lived under his roof. If Billy had the means and funds he wouldn't be here at all.
Neil finally left and he got up off the floor. He pulled off his collared red shirt and jeans changing into sweatpants and a t-shirt. He looked in the mirror and saw cuts and bruises forming on his face. Neil forgot to take his wedding ring off. He had blood dripping from his nose again. That happened sometimes too.
He opened up his bedroom door to find Max standing in the living room with Neil and Susan. He wondered briefly how she got home so quick. Susan was giving her the old 21 questions and Maxine was pleading the fifth. They all turned to look at him. Susan looked sad and Max looked stunned. Neil asked him, "The hell are you staring at?"
"Nothing," he replied making his way to the bathroom. In there he wiped the blood away and pressed his hands to his face. He felt the tingle beneath his skin and his skin stitching itself back together. He pulled his hands away and saw his face looked like new. But the tissue beneath was still sore. One day he'd figure out how to fix that.
He sat back down on the bathroom floor and listen to Susan and Neil have it out with Max. He listened to her lie through her teeth. She said it was all a big misunderstanding. Made Billy out to be incompetent. She said she didn't know she was supposed to come home with him and he just needed to know where she was and she wasn't ready to leave her friend who was in some kind of emotional distress. She said it was her friend Jane. It was obviously bullshit, she was the only girl there. She conveniently left that part out.
She apologized and promised to never leave unannounced again. They sent her to bed and grounded her for the next week. Of course she would get a lighter sentence. Little Maxine could do not wrong, only make minor mistakes while Billy habitually fucked up and was destined for military grade disciplinary action. He listened to everyone retire to their respective rooms and he finally got up off the floor.
He walked back into his room and shut the door. He wished he had a lock on the inside of it...
He reached under his bed for an old cardboard shoebox. There were random items of interest in there like movie and concert tickets, notes passed around from friends back home, and some pictures. But what he wanted was right on top. A blue bandanna and a metronome.
He set the metronome on the floor and flicked the pendulum. It swung back and forth in an even tempo and he tied the bandanna around his eyes and laid on the floor. He needed to check in on someone. A little someone that was in fact the entire reason Neil uprooted his family to Hawkins, Indiana.
She was a young girl that had gone missing last year and the department his father was contracted out to had been looking for her ever since. His father was a Master Sergeant for the US Army but was contracted out to the government. Had been since before Billy was born. They promoted Neil to head of security at Hawkins Lab. And this wasn't Billy's fist time in Hawkins but he didn't like to think about it. Billy had these abilities thanks to his father. He had offered up his own son as an experiment in order to get the big promotion back in the day. It was a sick operation that held kids prisoner and tested them like lab rats. Billy however had special privileges except for when they needed him because of who his father is.
The man in charge of the operation was named Sam Owens now and Billy had met with him his first day here just a week ago. Owens set him up in a room and gave him the items he needed. They supplied him with a vague picture of the girl and said she was experiment number 011. Billy looked for well over an hour, his nose bleeding enough to give him a headache and told Owens he couldn't find her. In truth though, he did find her almost immediately. She lived with a man right across town deep in the woods who gave her food, clean clothes, and roof over her head. He was obviously hiding her for her own protection. Billy knew all about her, even knew why she existed in the first place. She was supposed to be the best of them all. But the Hawkins Lab was no place for her or any child. So he told Owens no dice, he'll try again next time. His father told him he needed to try harder.
Billy felt his astral spirit leave his body. He reappeared in the living room of the little cabin in the woods. She sat curled up on the couch under the arm of the man she called Hopper and he in turn called her El. Billy knew now he was the chief of police here in Hawkins. He had been checking in with her everyday since he arrived. It looked like her hair was damp, she must have just showered. There were McDonalds wrappers on the little coffee table and they were watching late night television. An infomercial for the ginsu knife came on and Hopper clicked through the channels. He noticed El nodding off to sleep and picked her up off the couch and carried her into her little bedroom. Billy stepped out of his way.
Hopper laid her down gently and pulled the covers over her and kissed her forehead. He told her what a good job she did tonight and how proud he was of her. Billy wished someone would say that to him. She smiled, closed her eyes and snuggled under the quilt. Hopper stood and flicked her light off and said goodnight and he loved her. Billy left.
He sat up in his room and pulled the bandanna off his head. He was glad someone was happy tonight even though he wasn't sure what Hopper was talking about. His astral spirit was able to interact with whatever environment was around him and could see whatever his pinpoint was seeing. But he couldn't read minds. He knew someone who could though. Billy wondered if Hopper knew El had been with Kali in Chicago the night before. Billy saw her and panicked a little but she obviously made it home safe.
He put his bandanna and metronome back into his shoebox and shoved it under his bed. He climbed into the bed and laid down. He was just glad this night was finally over.
The next morning he was woken up bright and early by his father clapping in his face
"Voting is down at the library on Main. You're going before school and shouldn't take you more than 30 minutes."
He groaned and his father let him be for once. He didn't give a shit about the election. Neil called from the other room, "Drop your sister off at school first!" He groaned louder.
He pulled himself up and out of bed and into the shower. This really was the only way he could fully wake up and be aware of the world again. He got out and toweled off heading back to his room to change. Max stood outside the door and she said good morning. He said nothing and brushed passed her. It was cute how she felt all bad and stuff for him now.
He threw on a clean shirt and jeans and made his way to the kitchen. Susan was already gone for work. Neil had gotten her a job at Deloitte Haskins and Sells as an accountant in the next town over. She really was smart as a whip but quiet and reserved. He didn't really have any kind of relationship with her. They just lived in the same house.
Billy grabbed a mug out of the cupboard and filled it with black coffee. This was another must-have in the mornings even though half the time it really messed up his stomach. Another thing he couldn't fix. His father dropped his keys on the kitchen table.
"You go to school and you come home. You understand?"
"Yes sir." He felt like a robot.
"And did you read those pamphlets I gave you?"
His father had been hounding him to join the military like his little clone. Billy couldn't imagine doing anything worse then signing his life away and being any closer to becoming his own father. It made him sick to think about it.
"I skimmed them," he told Neil.
"Can you actually look through them? Military discipline would do you some good. At this rate you'll be picking up trash off the side of the road in an orange jumpsuit in no time."
He's been on his ass on the same thing since he turned 16 trying to brainwash him and shit. Billy would much rather be picking up trash on the side of the road. Fresh air and he looked great in orange.
"I'll read them when I get home."
"Good." Neil walked up to him and studied his face. He looked him over carefully, "You missed a spot," and pointed to his own cheek.
"It's too deep," Billy told him.
He turned away and headed out yelling back, "Don't be late getting her to school."
Billy didn't even bother to respond.
Max walked into the kitchen grabbing milk from the fridge, a bowl and cereal. Billy decided this very second would be a good time to leave for school.
He dumped the rest of his coffee in the sink and sat the mug in there. "Let's go, now!" He told her.
"But I didn't eat breakfast yet!"
He walked out and yelled back, "I don't care, let's go!"
He dragged himself outside and into the Camaro. There was a lot more blood and dirt in the daylight. He closed his eyes trying not to get overly angry again even though the mere sight of Maxine made his blood boil.
She came meandering out with her bookbag, skateboard, and a plastic baggy filled with dry Lucky Charms. Billy thought dried up marshmallows in cereal was for shit and gross, just like her.
She hopped in and got settled and he peeled out onto the street.
She stared intently at him as he drove. Billy always heard of people saying they could feel other people watching them and he didn't understand until now. "Fucking what Maxine?" he asked
"What happened to your face?" she asked. Damn she really didn't beat around the bush.
"Obviously nothing."
She was quiet for just a minute. He assumed she was gathering her thoughts and choosing her next words wisely. "Yeah, I see that. Last night-"
He cut her off immediately, "Nothing happened last night so drop it."
She turned in her seat to face him, "But you had blood and-"
"And what?!" he yelled turning to her for just a second then facing the road again. "I said nothing happened and you shouldn't be speaking to me right now at all!"
She wanted to argue but he turned the radio up on her and drowned her out.
She folded her arms over her chest in a big dramatic way and faced away from him for the rest of the car ride to school. He dropped her off where her nerd friends were waiting for her and drove off before she could even fully shut the door.
He drove down to the library and whipped into a parking spot out front. It was the 50th quadrennial presidential election with Reagan versus Mondale. Billy didn't give a shit who won, he didn't even pay attention to the election news, TV or paper. His father wanted him to vote for Reagan so he voted for Mondale. Honestly, he didn't even know the other guys name until today.
But he fulfilled his civic duty on his fathers request and saw Chief Hopper on the way out paling around with another guy on the force. He eyed Billy up and down and said nothing and Billy was glad. He seemed docile in his moments at home with El but looked like a mean son of a bitch in person.
Billy made his way back to school and barely paid attention though classes. Harrington was nowhere to be found but Jonathan Byers walked the halls with Nancy Wheeler like his house wasn't covered in weird ass drawings and some kid from his class wasn’t drugged on his living room floor. Now that he thought about it, he was pretty sure no one there last night was even named Byers.
What the hell was wrong with this town?
Lunch period finally rolled around and Billy sat out on the hood of his car as Tommy and Carol ate their lunches and talked their bullshit. Billy really wasn't paying attention. He couldn't believe these two were the best Hawkins had to offer.
Tommy leaned on the Camaro a little to close to Billy and shoved a bologna and cheese sandwich into his mouth taking a bite while saying, "Carol saw Harrington at the Five and Dime buying iodine this morning."
Billy side eyed him cringing a little.
Carol bit into her apple, "Yeah, looks like someone kicked the shit out of him. He left before I could talk to him."
Billy could've told them it was him that punched his face inside out but something held him back. He felt... small. He didn't like feeling this way. Billy just shrugged instead.
Carol asked, "You don't care? After all harassing and flirting you've been doing?"
"What?"
Tommy was up in an instant and kind of pushed her back a little away from Billy, "Woah wait a minute. We were both egging him on all week," Tommy turned back to Billy, "It's cool."
"Whatever..."
Carol rolled her eyes and chucked her apple core over her shoulder. Biodegradable or not Billy thought that was gross. She dug around in her brown paper bag and pulled out a plastic container of apple sauce. Billy asked, "What's with all the apple shit?"
"What, you don't like apples? Where's your lunch? You never have any."
"I'm too lazy to bring it or buy it."
"You want some?" She said in a cutsey sing-song type voice and shoving the container in his face. He'd had with her.
He smacked the container from the bottom and it spilled all over the front of her turtleneck shirt.
"What the fuck?!" She screamed and Tommy immediately busted out laughing. He was such a supportive boyfriend. She stormed off inside telling them both to go fuck themselves. Jokes on her, Billy rather enjoyed fucking himself every now and then.
After school he waited for Max, who was actually on time, and drove her and himself home. She tried talking to him again like he told her not to and turned the radio up again. Once they got home he went to his room shutting the door in her face. She really wanted to say something to him but his metaphorical wounds were still bleeding. They both knew he didn't have a lock on his door but she left him alone anyhow.
He figured being stuck home he might as well get started on his college essays. Neil had given him two choices, military or college. He wasn't going to be some schmuck laying around the house with a minimum wage job all his life. Billy didn’t even have that yet, they’ve only been here a week after all.
UCLA wanted to him to describe a facet of his identity or background and how it was essential to him. Stanford wanted to know about a time his preexisting worldview was challenged and how he addressed it. His safety school, Indiana State, just wanted to know why he wanted to go there.
Billy was in his room on his bed sitting against the wall jotting down random and straying thoughts to get him started when Maxine knocked on his door. It had been less then an hour and she was already bugging the shit out of him. "Go away you twat!" he yelled to her.
This apparently meant 'Hey buddy, come on in' as she opened the door and stood there with her red hair tied back in a stupid pony tail. He groaned rolling his head to the left waiting for her to say whatever it was she wanted because she always wanted something.
"I was going to make a snack, do you want some?"
He usually ate as soon as he got home but he still hated her right now. "No, fuck off Maxine."
"It's Max shithead. And are you sure you’re ok?"
He tossed his book and paper to the side and sat straight up on the side of the bed. "Why do you care? Wanna' make sure there’s no adverse effects from your mystery syringe last night?!"
"No I just-"
"Just get out of here already and stop talking to me! You made you point loud and clear last night. You did this, now go away!"
"Fine asshole! See if I ever care what happens to you again!"
She left slamming the door all dramatic-like.
He screamed at the door, "Do you see any marks? No! Nothing happened!"
That was fucking rich, her caring about him. He slid back into the bed and got back to his essays.
The next morning Billy stood in the kitchen watching Max scarf down a bowl of lucky charms while Susan yakked on about her day at work. She was having a good time getting to know the other ladies in the office. Max nodded and said "Oh, that's good,” every now and then.
Neil made his grand entrance by wishing them a good morning and immediately getting down to business with Billy.
He said pouring himself a cup of coffee, "Dr. Owens says your appointment for today is canceled. We're having issues at the building."
"What happened?"
"I'm not entirely sure," he told Billy, "But I'm being reassigned to Camp Atterbury. That's where you'll being meeting with him from now on."
Neil poured some creamer and sugar into his coffee taking a sip.
Billy asked, "Where's that?"
"Close enough, and you're going, end of discussion. And you'll be meeting once a month rather than once a week," Neil said pointing his cup at Billy and taking a seat at the kitchen table and reading the paper. Susan already had toast and eggs set out for him.
Billy hurried Max into the car like every morning and she immediately began her shit with asking questions she had no business asking.
"Why do you meet with a doctor every week?"
Billy turned up the radio and she turned it off.
"Hey asshole!" he said.
"Answer me!"
The audacity on this girl. She was definitely getting brave with him. Once upon a time she used to cower around him and he liked it better that way. Hawkins was a whole new a brave world for her. He never wanted any siblings and the one he got he thought was docile and submissive. But no, turns out she had bigger balls than most dudes he knew. They apparently grew in over during the road trip here.
He told her, "Its none of your business what I do." She wasn't even supposed to be speaking to him but she obviously didn't give a shit.
"You've been acting weird and angry ever since we got here and the first thing you did when we got here was meet with that doctor. Something is going on!" She was getting hysterical. Thank God they were pulling up the school.
"It's none of your business Maxine, stop being a twat and get your nose out of my shit!"
He slammed on his breaks pulling into the parking lot and got out of the car before she could hound him more. He already knew she was flipping him off as he walked away from her.
Friday came around and Harrington had finally come back to school. His face was definitely looking a lot better. Billy wished he could've helped because he honestly did not mean to slug him so hard or at all. He wished he could go back in time and suppress his subconscious. Had he not been so panicked and curious maybe Harrington would've made it out without his face being rearranged.
Today was their first basketball game. They were home against Shelbyville. Steve Harrington tried to be sly and stay out of Billy's way but most everyone in the locker room noticed the tension between them even though they didn't speak one word to each other. And most everyone knew to just shut up about it. Billy was glad his first impression in a brand new place was that he was an asshole first and foremost.
But of course Tommy was blind to whole thing and started in on Steve.
Steve sat on the bench lacing up his shoes as Tommy came over and slammed the locker door closed, "What's up buddy? You piss somebody off?"
Billy was watching from his locker on the other side of the room.
"Fuck off Tommy," he told him.
"Don't tell me Jonathan Byers got you again," he immediately started laughing. A few others did too. This was apparently a thing here. Billy didn't know too much about Jonathan Byers but he was informed he was somewhat of a weirdo here. Which meant if you got our ass handed to you by the weirdo then you dropped a peg on the popularity totem pole.
A new Steve had blown into town. He stood right in Tommy's face, "Get the fuck the out of my face."
Tommy of course didn't back down. Chef Julia Child over here loved stirring the pot. "Why? Don't wanna' admit you got your ass kicked by a pedo nerd?"
Billy didn't know why but he was beginning to feel defensive. He walked up to them and Steve immediately rolled his eyes seeing him making his way over. Billy shoved Tommy into the locker, "Quit fucking around, let's go," and left them to get out onto the court.
Their first game sucked and they lost. Billy didn't even bother showering, he just grabbed his shit and left only to be met wit Max in the hall. Why was she to determined to all of a sudden be his friend? Did she really feel that guilty?
"What the hell are you still doing here?" he asked. He didn't mean to be so polite.
"I stayed to watch your game," she told him holding her skateboard in one hand.
He didn't even reply to her blatant lie and started walking down the hall to the doors. She followed him like a lost puppy and he didn't say anything as they both walked out and into the car. They both tossed their crap into the back seat and he turned the car on.
As he started driving home Max once started getting all buddy-buddy with him.
"You played a good game," she said like she didn't try and kill him five days ago.
"Why were you even there?" She had never stayed to watch his game back home in Cali.
She stayed facing forward but looking down at her hands in her lap, "The guys stayed and watched Steve."
And there it was. She was only there for her friends. "So you weren't actually there for me. That sounds more realistic."
"I watched you too!" She barked back.
Billy wanted to turn the radio on but had a feeling she was going to continue.
"I did want to talk to you," she said. His intuition was never wrong.
She continued, "I wanted to say sorry for the other night. Things got kind of out of control..."
"You think? Where did you even get that syringe?" It was honestly the best sleep he'd gotten in a while, he might've even been in the market for more.
"It's a whole thing, I can't tell you."
"Then this conversation is pointless."
She rounded on him, "No it's not! I'm trying to say sorry!"
"Why? We both know you’re not! You've been dreaming to do that shit to me."
She was getting heated, "No I didn't! You didn't give me a choice! You almost killed Steve!"
Yeah, he did. She was right, "No I didn't!" Not that he would ever openly admit that.
"I just wanted to say sorry. The tension in the house is horrible and Mom even noticed and thought it would be a good idea for us to make amends. Even though you literally drew blood first."
He almost felt those big feelings until she admitted her mother basically talked her into apologizing to him.
She continued, "I am sorry though. But you have to admit, you really lost control that night. You went too far."
He laughed, "Me? Maxine, you were alone in a strangers house with four dudes, one of which was a high school senior, with no parents in sight! What the hell was I supposed to think?"
She was silent for a solid 30 seconds. He didn't mean to admit that but if they were being honest than he was going to be honest. She looked a little floored that he cared a little bit about her.
"Were you scared for me?"
Billy sighed as he pulled into the driveway and shut the car off. Yes, of course he was scared. He fucking panicked.
"No, I was pissed off then got more pissed off when I had to cancel my date and go looking for you because you can't follow instructions to just stay the fuck home!" They both knew that whatever bullshit he just spewed was just that; bullshit.
He opened the door to get out and paused, "It's over now. Everyone got what was coming to them. Just leave it alone."
He left before she could say anything more.
The weekend went by slow as shit because he was stuck in the house. He just listened to music and worked on his essays. Neil being home didn't help any and gave him house work to do like cutting down the dead plants and cleaning out the gutters. He also managed to buff out the few scratches in the Camaro and scrub the blood out of the interior. He had to wait for Neil and Susan to leave for a date night to bring the vacuum cleaner outside with an extension cord and get the dirt and dried mud out of the carpet.
That Monday Billy drove himself and Max to school like usual. He flicked a cigarette out the window and saw a 'help wanted' sign in the window of a bar. He pulled over.
Max asked, "What are you doing?"
"Just stay here," he said getting out and walking into the bar.
The place was a hole to say the least, inside was drab and dark considering it was 8am. There were no patrons inside but he could smell breakfast foods being cooked in the back. A short graying man walked out from the swing doors leading to the kitchen. He asked Billy, "Can I help you?"
Billy shoved his hands in his jacket pockets, "I saw the sign out front."
"Sure," he said, "I'm looking for a bar back. My names Ron, I own the joint. You want an application?"
Billy shrugged, "Sure. I'm Billy Hargrove."
Ron handed the piece of paper over, "Nice to meet you. You can fill it out here if you want."
Billy did. There were only the basic information questions like name, age, address, and other random quips. He handed it back and Ron said he'd give him a call. Billy walked back out to the car.
Max asked, "What was that? We're gonna' be late."
"I was in there ten minutes, we're fine." Billy guessed it was ok if she talked to him every now and then after sleeping on her half assed apology from the other day.
School went by like any other day, Steve was looking better. Billy only saw him in homeroom and practice. If he was in any other of his classes, he may not be able to pay attention and end up failing. Failing was a non-option, you weren't allowed to be stupid in Neil Hargrove’s house.
They had dinner that night like the perfect nuclear family they were and Billy retired to his room. Max finished her homework and grounding sentence and was allowed to go outside and fuck around on her skateboard.
Billy finished his homework and when it was late enough and everyone else was in their rooms for bed he decided to check in with El again.
He pulled his box out with his bandanna and metronome and set it all up. He plucked the pendulum and laid down on the floor with his eyes covered.
His astral spirit left and he opened his eyes inside the little cabin in the woods. El was watching TV on the couch with a boy. Billy instantly recognized him. He recognized the kid from the night at the Byers house and from outside the middle school with Sinclair, the kid with the curly hair and a little fairy kid with a bowl cut. It was kind of late for him to there at all. How did he know her? Did all of these kids know about her?
Hopper sat back at the kitchen table smoking away and ashing into a cup of old coffee every few minutes or so. Billy got the sense he wasn’t overly excited for this kid to be here.
Hopper dropped the cigarette butt into the cup and stood. Billy moved out of his way.
“Alright Wheeler, time to go.”
El turned around on the couch, “Right now?”
Hopper crossed his arms, “It’s late; time for bed. Teeth brushed and hair combed by the time I get back ok?”
“Ok,” she told him and got up off the couch. She hugged the Wheeler kid at the door and he promised to call her tomorrow. Billy pretty quickly didn’t like him, he felt very protective of El. He was already trying to protect her from the Government, now he had to keep a look out on this hormone addled teenage boy who shouldn’t even know she existed.
Hopper left with Wheeler and little El went into the bathroom to do as she was told.
Billy sat back up in his room and put his things away. He crawled into bed and tried to just go to sleep. He just couldn’t stop thinking about, or rather feel, just off ever since he got here. The night at the Byers still plagued him and now he wasn’t who did and didn’t know about El. How much did the Wheeler did actually know about her?
The rest of the week blew by and he got a call from Ron at The Pour House on Thursday to come on in for an interview on Friday. Billy skipped practice and when coach asked where he was going he told him he had a job interview and he gladly let him go. Work was an important step when learning to walk in the real world.
Billy didn’t really see the point of an interview since all he was really doing was bringing beer cases and kegs from the basement to the floor. But Ron asked him why he was looking for work and what interested him in working here. Billy was honest with him. He needed a job and he was strong enough to do some heavy lifting.
Ron asked if would be able to handle school, extracurricular’s , and work. Billy said he would be fine so long as it meant he could get out of the house as often as possible. He didn’t need Billy everyday but enough to stock up for the floor for weekends and maybe a Saturday every now and then. Billy and Ron shook hands. He could start in one week.
His father was actually happy to hear he got a job, but he warned Billy he better keep his grades up and soon enough could pay for his own car insurance. That being said, his father made sure he knew if he fucked up again he would still take his car away as he still lived under his roof.
So now Billy was allowed to drive to school and to work. He still had another week or so until he was off punishment.
The weekend dragged by again and Billy ended up reading Catcher in the Rye in its entirety. He had to write a report on it and finished that too. He spent most of Sunday smoking, listening to music, and lifting weights. Neil later put him to work cleaning out the garage loft so they could put the rest of the ir shit in there. The previous owners left behind old broken furniture, broken and rusted lawn equipment and trash. Absolutely nothing of value.
Thursday Billy turned in his paper early and was able to get a head start on The Great Gatsby. Later he bullshitted outside during lunch period by his car. It was getting cold out so he wouldn’t be able to do this for much longer. He’d have to actually sit inside with Hawkins High’s finest.
Steve Harrington’s face had pretty much healed up but he still didn’t talk to Billy. Then again Billy never made any attempt to talk to him either. Tommy had calculus with him and said he kept fussing with his hair like a fag.
Billy thought Steve’s hair was great and wouldn’t mind running his own fingers through it one day. But that was more of daydream for nighttime. Tommy kept on about Steve this and Steve that. Carol actually stood with them too even if Billy never apologized to her. She shouldn’t have been shoving food in his face to begin with.
She started in on him too and Billy was getting mad. He didn’t like how much they were talking shit and honestly they just sounded dumb. Tommy especially, he was failing history and the first quarter was even over yet. They just didn’t have anything more interesting to talk about apparently. Billy didn’t say much and didn’t give into their fucking around. He had to get his head straight for the game tonight.
They played home again against Providence. Billy watched Steve pretty much the whole game and only knocked down three players, two of them being on the other team. He tried staying away from Steve but every now and then either one of them were open and ended up passing the ball to each other. Actual team work helped them win, who knew…
Max and her Nerd Herd were in the stands again. The toothless kid was screaming bloody hell for Steve and the others tried quieting him down. Afterwards Max walked with him again out to his car and they drove home. Thankfully she didn’t ask her usual shit again but he knew she was side eyeing him with unjustified suspicion.
That night it snowed and Billy went outside to see it. He’d never seen snow in person before. He held out his hand and felt the cold flakes melt into his palm. Maxine came outside and was all excited and smiling like a little gremlin.
“Do you think it’ll snow enough to build a snowman?” she asked.
“I’m not building a snowman with you.” He actually did kind of want to build one. He wanted to see how well snow stuck to itself to make one like in TV shows.
Neil came outside and told them to stop being dumbasses and get in the house for supper, they were gonna’ catch a cold. Billy didn’t need to get sick right before starting a new job he guessed.
The next day was Friday the 23 rd and he started work at 4pm. His coach and him worked out a schedule for work and practice. Some of the other guys on the team were working part time jobs too. Ron gave him the basic run down of the bar back. He needed to change out the kegs, refill the liquor bottle s , swap out the ice wells, and keep tabs on little shit like the napkins and garnishes.
He met one of the bartenders. He was older and made mediocre drinks and Billy didn’t really care to get his name right away . It was a pretty boring job but he ended up getting paid just over minimum wage which was nice of Ron. They had some real bar flies in here. Some country bumpkins with old style beers and some guys in suits drinking whiskey and bourbon after a long day at the office.
Over the weekend he ended up working Saturday night. It wasn’t bad, not like he had shit else to do. Tommy called and asked he wanted to go out to quarry and smoke pot but he was still grounded anyway. Tommy told him creepy Jonathan Byers’ kid brother had supposedly died in the quarry but was actually lost in the woods for a week. The had a funeral and all for him which was insane if was only missing for a week. Carol filled in the missing pieces saying they found a kid that looked just like Will Byers but they never found out the identity of the dead kid.
One Sunday Neil told him to take Maxine out so she could rent some movies and gave her a few dollars. She picked out FlashDance and Billy wanted Cujo but she was into these drama movies that Billy could throw cold water on. She must have been feeling some type of way because she rented Star Wars for him. He decided he wanted to watch the movies too but didn’t share snacks with M ax or engage in her nonsensical conversation. Billy was still barely hanging onto a grudge.
Monday morning rolled around and Neil gifted Billy’s his keys back officially and said he was free to roam Hakwins so long as he kept out of trouble and an eye on Maxine. She scowled into her cereal hearing that. She claimed to not be a baby but definitely acted out like one most times.
In homeroom Billy kept staring at the back of Steve Harrington’s head. He wanted to talk to him so badly but had no idea what to say without looking like a complete tool. He thought Tommy had been talking about some game from the weekend but Billy wasn’t paying attention. He kept thinking up scenarios of himself talking to Steve, none of which were realistic.
Max waited for him outside of school by his car with Lucas Sinclair. Lucas gave him a look like he smelled something bad as Billy walked up. Billy said, “Getting pretty brave Night Rider.”
He scoffed, “You don’t scare me.”
Billy dropped his smirk and stood over him looming with his best pissed off expression. Lucas shrunk back and turned to Max, “I gotta’ go,” and walked away with extra motivation to get away.
Billy threw his bag in backseat as Max climbed in.
“You don’t need to be an asshole all the time you know,” Max informed him.
“And you don’t need to be hanging out with that kid all the time.”
She laughed like he was stupid, “Are you kidding me? Are you still doing this racist bullshit after what happened?”
“Maxine, I don't give a shit what color he is. Neil does. And if Neil catches you with him I get my ass kicked because you’re somehow my responsibility. Do you understand? Because I can’t explain it any more than that. You can’t be this fucking stupid.”
He absolutely did not care what color Lucas was, he himself had a few dates with girls of all makes and models. He just didn’t need Neil going after Maxine like he did to him. He honestly didn’t want to see her get hurt like that.
She must have not known what to say because she was quiet for a while. They got to their street and he parked in front of the house. Billy decided enough was enough, she needed to understand.
“Max,” she looked at him, “if your gonna’ keep seeing this kid, you need to have eyes in the back of your head. Neil is everywhere all the time. I just….I don’t wanna see him-...”
She stopped his stammering because she knew how uncomfortable he was right now. “I get it Billy. I know how bad Neil can get no matter how bad you are at hiding it. But it still doesn’t make it right.”
Billy rubbed his eyes, “Yeah, no shit. But that doesn’t matter to Neil.”
“I get it.”
He opened up his door and headed inside with her following right behind him. He may have been off punishment but he still had shit else to do on a Monday.
Wednesday night was Tina’s ‘famous’ Thanksgiving Eve party. Billy thought this girls parents must never be home or dead in an upstairs closet because she threw parties like it was going out of style. Of course he went with his new deep blue collared shirt and fresh bottle of Drakkar Noir.
Girls at the party were hanging all over him and talking him up like he had something other than dick to offer. They ran their fingers threw his hair and he had an urge to push them away but he didn’t need anyone asking questions. At least not any questions he was still asking himself. He let them talk and talk and then dance a little with him.
He ended up doing shots in the kitchen while some girl he thought was named Cindy or Sandy laid on the counter and poured vodka into her belly button. Tommy took a shot then Carol slapped him hard in the face. Everyone in the crowd “Oooo”ed, Billy included. He started laughing and others joined in too. Tommy laughed too but he was drunk.
Billy went out into the garage where they set up a beer pong table. He used to play this all the time back out west but it was apparently a new thing here. Billy teamed up with Jake from the basketball team and they played two guys from the baseball team. Even though they weren’t in season right now, they still hung around in tight clique.
He was playing a good game and then noticed Steve Harrington walked out into the garage with Nancy Wheeler and Jonathan Byers. He had heard down the grapevine that Wheeler cheated on him with Byers and yet here he was paling around with them like they were the Breakfast Club.
Steve noticed him looking and nodded in his direction. Billy didn't know how to react. Steve just nodded at him like they were friends or some shit. He felt that weird feeling in the pit of his stomach like he might be sick or something. He was forced back into the game when he heard a ‘plunk’ noise in front of him. They sunk one of his cups. Damn it.
They kept playing but Billy wanted to know what Steve and company were talking about. He separated his astral spirit and was in close enough range that he could still pay attention to the game. He weaved between people and was close enough to hover around them.
Jonathan asked, “Are you cool with Billy now?”
Steve sipped on his beer, “No but he hasn’t hassled me or anything. He even shoved Tommy H. into a locker for me… kind of.”
Nancy gave him to most ridiculous look, “Steve, he’s horrible. All he does is talk shit to people and acts like a total asshole.”
Jonathan shrugged, “None of the girls seem to mind.”
“They just think he’s hot.”
Steve looked back at Billy playing the game and Billy too watched himself from across the garage sink a cup on other teams cup and high five Jake.
Nancy went on, “So that makes it ok he almost killed Steve?”
“Ok lets’ get one thing straight, I didn’t almost die, I just...”
“Just what? Took a nap?”
Jonathan was apparently a voice of reason, “Nance….”
She in mock defense, “What? He shouldn’t get a pass.”
Steve sipped his beer again, “No one is giving him a pass. I mean, if I were in his shoes I might’ve over reacted too. You gotta’ remember he doesn’t know anything about the… stuff or Barb or Will or anything.”
She had a big look on her face with her arms crossed and holding her drink. Billy never had a good feeling about her anyway. She looked over to Billy at the beer pong table, “I still think he’s a pig.”
She took a sip her drink and Billy’s astral flicked the bottom of her cup spilling it all over her shirt.
“What the hell?!” She yelled. Jonathan and Steve looked bewildered. Billy had heard enough and returned to his body to finish the game.
About an hour later Cindy or Sandy started hitting on him real hard and ended up bringing him upstairs to a vacant bedroom. She kissed him all over and undressed the both of them. Billy was a little more than buzzed and was only about half hard when she threw herself to the bed and undid his pants. He assumed she was drunk enough to not notice when he put the condom on.
So he fucked her while she made all kinds of noises and shrieks. He thought he would enjoy this a lot more it being his first sexual interaction in Hawkins and she wasn’t bad looking or anything but he just wanted it to be over. He blamed it on the alcohol. She finished and he lied and said he did too. He took the condom off and threw it away after doing up his pants and shirt. He left without even saying good bye. He just wanted to go home now.
He was way too drunk to drive so he ended up walking home which only took him about 45 minutes from across town. It was cold outside but the booze kept him warm enough. He walked up to the house and projected inside to see if anyone was wondering around in the middle of the night. He also left his keys in the sun visor of the Camaro so his astral spirit unlocked the door for him.
The only problem was that when Billy was drunk, so was his astral. Upon unlocking the door from the inside he knocked over a lamp on the side table. It fell to the floor with a loud bang.
“Shit,” Billy said simultaneously looking at the lamp and the other side of the door from the outside. He opened up the front door and his astral reconnected and he picked up the lamp from the floor placing it back on the table.
Neil was quick to come charging in and flick the living room lights on.
“Where the hell have you been?”
Billy burped and his eyes rolled, “I was at a party. School function.”
“At 3am? You’re drunk aren’t you?”
“No,” Billy lied, “I’m just exhausted from being up all night drinking.” That was definitely the wrong thing to say. It earned him a nice hard slap to the face.
Neil was stern, “You don’t fucking learn do you? Taking things away means nothing to you. Get in bed and you’re waking up in 4 hours to help Susan cook for Thanksgiving dinner, you understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Did you drive?”
“No, I walked.”
He shoved Billy in the direction of his room and ended up face first into the door frame, “You’re ass is walking back in the morning to get it so sober up.” Billy rubbed at his face and stumbled into his room.
Billy did as he was told and didn’t even bother undressing as he just fell right into bed and went to sleep.
It was only three hours later when his father was smacking him in the face with a rolled up newspaper to wake him up.
Billy held up his hands to cover his face, “Jesus Christ I’m up, what the hell?”
“Up and at ‘em. Susan got up early and so are you.”
Billy rolled over and sat up, “Can I shower first?”
“Ask Susan,” he told him then pointed the newspaper at him, “And get rid of that.”
He left the room slamming the door behind him. Billy got up and looked in his mirror, there was a splotchy bruise starting at his forehead, across his nose, and stopped at his cheekbone like a slanted line across his face. What the hell angle did he hit the door frame at?
He covered his face with his hands and took a deep breath. The familiar tingle took over and the soreness lifted somewhat. He pulled his hands away and the bruise was gone. He couldn’t imagine what he would look like if he couldn’t heal himself.
He changed into loose fitting jeans and a t-shirt. He walked out to the kitchen like a zombie and Susan was tutting around getting stuff ready. She pulled the turkey out to thaw. She looked up to him, “Good morning. You’re Dad said you’d be helping me out today.”
Billy nodded. His sight wavered for a second and thought he maybe shouldn’t move so fast. She handed him a mug of black coffee, lightly buttered toast, and some Tylenol . “You should be ok with something light.”
“Yea,” He sat down and drank the coffee and ate the toast swallowing the Tylenol down too. When he finished he asked her, “Mind if I grab a quick shower?”
She smiled, “Of course not , go ahead. I won’t need any help for a while yet.”
She didn’t really need any help at all. Neil just wanted to be petty to him. She pretty much did everything herself and he helped prep some things like cutting up vegetables and mixing together whatever she handed him. Maxine finally rose from the dead around 10am and sat at the breakfast table. She apparently didn’t hear a damn thing from last night.
Billy told Susan, “I gotta go pick up my car at some point.”
She kneaded dough on the floured counter top; she was really going all in this year. “Why don’t you go now? You feel ok?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. I’ll be back in like an hour.”
Max perked up as she dropped her bowl in the sink, “Can I walk with you?”
Her Mom interjected, “Max, you need to clean that bowl.”
“I’ll get it when I get back Mom!”
She ok’ed it and Billy was stuck with her walking all the way to Tina’s house.
They bundled up and walked out the house and of course it was snowing. They turned down the block and Billy asked her, “Why do you wanna’ walk all the way across town with me?”
“Because I wanted to formally apologize.”
What the hell was happening right now? Didn’t she already plead her sorries a couple of weeks ago? He lit a cigarette after a very exaggerated head roll and let her continue.
“I shouldn’t have injected you with mystery drugs and threaten you-”
“Threaten me how?” he interrupted.
“I shouldn’t have threatened to nail your balls to the floor. And I don’t want you to leave me alone.”
He laughed at her, “What, you wanna’ be best friends and braid each others hair and shit?”
“No! I just don’t like fighting and I don’t like tension. We’ve never been friends and I hate the feeling of coming home to people who don’t like me. I don’t want to live with that.” Billy could understand that. “I feel like we can be friends and survive home together.”
That was actually a pretty good way to put it and honestly he would appreciate the kinship. “Fine, apology accepted.” He would never tell she was kind of a bad ass that night.
She kept staring at him as they crossed over Main Street. He looked at her and looked away. He still felt her eyes on him and looked at her asking, “The fuck are you staring at?”
“Don’t you have anything to say?”
“Not really.”
“Billy! You roughed up two of my friends in one night and almost ran my new friends over last month!”
People walking in and out of shops looked in their direction. “Would you keep it down! Jesus Christ, Max!”
“Well?!” She asked like the little impatient troll she was.
Billy didn’t say sorry unless it was to his father. That was degrading enough which is probably why he didn’t like saying it at all. He flicked his cigarette into the snow covered street and groaned real loud.
“Fine! I’m sorry I almost killed your friends twice. There, happy?”
Her eyes almost rolled out her head, “I guess its as good as its gonna’ get.”
Good he thought, she understands he was still an asshole no matter how good of friends they became.
They picked up his car with no issues and drove back home. They helped Susan around the kitchen and they listened to the oldies station on the radio. He mostly helped while Max did crossword puzzles and complained about how cold it was in the house. Neil apparently didn't like the idea of a high heating bill. They didn’t really have that issue in California. They would’ve turned it up behind his back but he sat like a giant lump on a dogs ass on the couch watching the Raiders on television and the thermostat was right in his line of sight.
Dinner went as expect ed . They all sat down and made casual conversation and pretended they all weren’t sick of Neil in general. Neil asked Max about school and congratulated her on job well done in science class. He passed Billy the bowl of corn.
Billy was working his turkey, “Can’t have corn Dad...”
“Oh, right.” He put it back down and continued on with whatever boring shit he was just talking about. After 18 years of Billy existing he thought his father would know what he could and couldn’t have. Again he was surprised he was still alive.
After dinner he headed back into his room and shut the door. His father was back in front of the TV with a beer and didn’t plan on moving for the rest of the night while Susan cleaned up in the kitchen and Max fucked off to her room.
He got out his bandanna and metronome and plucked it. He laid down and listened to the rhythmic tick tock of the pendulum. His astral ended up checking in on El. Her and Hopper were sat down at the little kitchenette eating a small turkey with dinner rolls, mashed potatoes, and other assorted veggies. Hopper was telling her the watered down version of the Pilgrims and Indians and she listened intently. He went on while looking down into his food and El began looking around the room. Billy was trying to see what she was seeing but nothing was there.
Hopper asked, “You ok?”
She focused back on Hopper , “Yes. I thought I heard something.”
He looked around too, “I don’t hear anything.”
Billy wondered why they would looking for a sound, you can’t see sound. She seemed fine and they continued their dinner and story. Billy backed out and reconnected. He sat up and pulled the bandanna off. He was about to put everything away when he thought of someone else he wanted to see.
He put the bandanna back on and laid back down. He reappeared in a pretty luxurious kitchen. There sat Steve Harrington and his parents. He picked at his food and pushed things around on his plate. His father went on and on about work and business and Steve going to some Ivy League School next year and his mother chiming in with a ‘Yes, dear’ every now and then. Steve looked miserable though, like he just wanted this night to be over. Billy didn’t know how smart or dumb he was but he was in a lot of the same classes as Carol and she was average at best.
Steve asked, “Can I be excused?”
His mother smiled, “Sure, dear.”
He cleared his plate in the trash and washed his dish. He went upstairs and Billy followed him. Steve didn’t exactly lead the most exciting life apparently but Billy liked watching him anyway. Steve flopped down on his plaid covered bed and started reading Of Mice and Men. His hair fell into his eyes and he brushed it back with his fingers. Billy left.
He sat up in his room again. His nose was bleeding a little which meant he had been out for a while. He wiped his nose with his shirt and put his stuff away. He changed his clothes and threw on a RATT record while he laid in bed to think his gay thoughts.
He had always been able to tell who was and wasn’t attractive no matter their gender. But as he grew into his sexual preferences he was beginning to realize he preferred specific details to others when it came to comparing genders. He knew he shouldn’t be thinking these thoughts but they were so hard to bury and part of him took great joy in thinking those thoughts. Steve Harrington was the first person to really awaken deeper, more frustrating and confusing thoughts. What was once idle wonder was becoming serious circumstance.
Maybe he shouldn’t be looking in on something he couldn’t have.
The next morning Susan got up extra early and made the trek out to the Columbus outlets for all of the Black Friday specials. She said the ladies from work told her all about how crowded Indianapolis got and people got trampled all the time. Neil said he would go with her. Billy was kind of surprised at that but didn’t say anything. Good riddance, they’d be gone for the rest of the day.
Tommy had called and asked if wanted to hang out but he honestly just wasn’t in the mood to leave the house. Back in California he spent as much time away from home as possible. But ever since moving to Hawkins he didn’t like leaving the safe space of his room. It wasn’t because of Neil because Neil has been a hassle his entire life.
He had work in a few hours anyway. He told Ron he would work some extra hours since he didn’t have school today. He woke up around 10 and walked passed Maxine on the couch watching MTV. He ran through his normal routine of coffee, cigarette, and a shower. He fucked around in his room for a while before he thr ew on a t-shirt, jeans, and leather jacket and headed for The Pour House.
He was honestly surprised how many people were in at 3pm but most people had the day off after Thanksgiving. Billy was chucking old ice from the well a few hours in when he overheard two guys sitting up at the bar talking. One spoke of his son and his accolades in school. The other man in a sweater vest and an expensive looking Rolex counter ed with his sons accomplish ments . He immediately recognized him as Mr. Harrington.
Mr. Harrington’s son was apparently a champion swimmer, varsity basketball player, and spoke fluent Italian. Smart as a whip apparently. Billy had no idea.
The other man asked, “Did he pick any good collages yet?”
Mr. Harrington responded, “Not sure, Steve hasn’t really talked too much about it but he’s got plenty of options.”
Billy spoke before thinking totally barging in on their conversation, “Steve Harrington?”
He smiled and said, “Yep, you know him?”
Billy kept shucking ice, “Yeah, I go to school with him. On the basketball team too.”
The other man then said , “He could probably get some kind of scholarship for that.”
Mr. Harrington said, “Yeah, maybe,” then he asked Billy, “What’s your name?”
Billy stood up and expected this next part to go either two ways, good or bad depending on how much Steve talked about him at home. “Billy Hargrove.”
Mr. Harrington slicked back his hair in a similar fashion to Steve, “Ah yes, Steve has mentioned you before. I think it was something about basketball. Mentioned you like to rough up the other team sometimes.”
Billy shrugged, “Gotta’ get through to the other side somehow.”
The two guys laughed and Billy bid them farewell. Nobody mentioned Steve’s fucked up face from earlier this month.
Billy was refilling napkin dispensers while the one waitress Theresa made eyes at him but she was in her late 20’s and Billy was less and less interested in women these days. He still thought girls were pretty and liked the idea of sex but once he got into it he kind of just wanted it to be over half way through. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d actually finished but he sure wasn’t thinking of whoever he was with.
Around 9pm when Billy was getting ready to clock out a few shady guys came in. They wore dark clothing and had the collars on their jackets popped up. But Ron greeted them and welcomed them into the back. Billy had never been back there and had no clue what was going on. He could easily find out but he was just ready to go home.
He decided to pay them no mind and punched out. The drive home was uneventful and walking into his own house was uneventful. Neil was watching TV, Susan was doing her needlepoint in the kitchen gabbing on the phone to someone and he figured Max was in her room. Neil had set a strict curfew for the both of them even though Billy was 18 and had been since October 17 th . Neil still treated him like he was 10 years old though.
Billy closed his door and got changed into a pair of sweatpants. He threw on a Spinal Tap record and smoked cigarettes in his bed for a while until he heard the TV in the living room shut off. Billy separated his astral and followed Neil to see if he was going to bed. Billy watched him brush his teeth, trim his mustache then head into his own bedroom and close the door.
Neil would have kicked his ass if he knew Billy spied on him. Neil hated when he used his gifts outside of the labs. Neil claimed people would hunt him like a witch but Billy thought maybe people would be disgusted that he offered up his own son for experimentation in the 1960’s.
Billy turned his music off and got his bandanna and metronome out. He tied up his eyes and plucked the pendulum laying down on the floor.
His astral left and he opened his eyes inside the little cabin in the woods. El was watching Miami Vice on NBC with Hopper on the other end of the couch. Her hair was a little damp and she was in a pink robe. Billy usually saw her in large fitted drab clothing so he guessed Hopper went all out for her this time. They shared a bowl of popcorn and she was totally enthralled with the action on the television.
Her smile faded a little and her head quirked to the side. She started looking around again and Billy tried to follow where she was looking. She sat on her knees on the couch to face behind her and looked all around. She was like a dog sniffing something out.
Hopper watched her for second before asking, “You alright kid?”
“I think… I think someone is watching me.”
Umm… what?
Hopper reiterated his question and was sitting up in an instant, “What? Where? Is someone here?”
She settled back down, “I don’t know. I can’t explain.”
Hopper motioned with a nod at something behind him and tried being quiet like they were hiding, “Should I get the...”
El faced forward again, “No. I’m not scared.”
Billy decided now was a good time to back out.
He sat back up in his room breathing heavy and removed his blue bandanna and put everything away.
Maybe he should look in on her less often.