A/N: Writer's block is a very weird thing, my dudes. I had about half of this chapter written in like an hour and then I just could NOT finish it. But it's here now! We're getting closer and closer to the nightmare that is the Mind Flayer. Who else is excited?

xxx

By the time Teddi, El and Max made it back to the apartment, the two girls had filled Teddi in on everything from Demogorgons, to secret government labs, to alternate dimensions out in the woods. Teddi had been uncharacteristically quiet through all of it.

"So you're saying...that El has magic, psychic powers and that monsters from Dungeons and Dragons, a board game, kidnapped Will and possessed him?" she asked finally after she'd spent nearly three entire minutes starting quietly at Max and El.

"I mean, that's the short version…" Max muttered. "Everything got quiet right when you moved here. We got rid of the Mind Flayer and things went back to normal...for the most part."

Teddi's eyebrows came together in a confused frown. "...Are you two messing with me right now? How long did it take you to come up with all of this? I gotta say, it's pretty impressive," she laughed. "You like actually had me there for a second-"

Max looked over at El and shot her a look that Teddi was familiar with. It was like they were judging someone without speaking a word. El shifted in her seat a little, turning towards the TV and taking in a deep breath. Teddi opened her mouth to ask what she was doing, the sound cut off with a gasp as the TV came to life. Teddi jumped, falling further back against the couch. "...H-how…?" she asked with wide eyes. The TV shut off again.

El wasn't finished yet. The stack of magazines on the coffee table in front of them rose up into the air, each issue shuffling together before landing back on the table in a neat stack. Teddi's mouth was hanging open as she stared down hard at the magazines. "...Holy shit," she breathed out. The two girls watched carefully as she stood up, moving around the couch and to the fridge. She grabbed one of Billy's beers, popping the tab and taking a long swig. "Holy shit."

"You sound like Steve." Max joked, she and El letting out small laughs.

Teddi wiped the foam from her lips with the back of her hand, letting out a loud scoff. "Wait, what? Steve knows about all of this and I don't? Steve Harrington?"

"He helped Nancy and Johnathan catch the Demogorgon when Will went missing," Max explained. "Then he helped us destroy the Demodog nest last year."

"Nancy and Jonathan know? Am I the only person around here that doesn't know about all of this?" Teddi asked, crossing her arms tightly across her chest.

"Billy doesn't know." El assured her.

"Yeah, I stabbed him in the neck with tranquilizers when he tried to kill Steve at the Byers' place." Max said with a proud look.

"What?!" Teddi blanched.

Max rolled her eyes. "We have other things we should be focusing on right now. Like finding Billy and figuring out what he's up to."

Teddi had no idea how she was supposed to focus on whatever it was that Billy was doing now. She had suddenly stumbled into a fantasy world that was straight out of the books she loved to read. How could she possibly worry about boys when there might be monsters running around Hawkins?

"You know...when you said El could find Billy, I thought you were gonna just suggest we star 69 the last number that called." Teddi finally said.

El and Max gave each other another look. "...This way's more fun." El finally said.

Teddi couldn't argue there. "Well what do we do? How does this work? I was kidding earlier about the ouija board but I totally have one in my closet-"

El laughed, shaking her head. "I need a radio. And a blindfold."

Teddi didn't need to hear anymore. She hurried off to Billy's room, grabbing his boombox and yanking the cord from the wall. There was a brief moment when she thought that she could probably find something Billy had used as a blindfold at some point, but shuddered at the thought. Instead she grabbed a pink bandana from her room, bringing the radio and the blindfold back out to the tiny living room.

El sat with her back to the TV. She tied the bandana around her eyes while Max plugged the stereo in and set it next to her. El had done this a handful of times before with Max. They liked to spy on the boys whenever they got bored. It was simple enough, but El had to admit she was sort of dreading what she might see once she found Billy.

El couldn't see Teddi, but she could practically feel her nervous, jittery energy from the couch. "So how does this work? Is it like telekinetic powers or something? Like Jean Grey?" Teddi asked, her words were quick and almost jumbled together.

"Teddi," Max laughed. "You have to be quiet."

Teddi mumbled out a sorry, the room growing quiet. El sat up straight, taking in a deep breath. Nothing happened at first. El let the breath she'd been holding in out slowly. There was a low hum of electricity that filled the tiny apartment. The tips of El's fingers felt tingly, like she had shocked herself. The feeling travelled up her arms, the lights flickering around them as the room almost groaned under the weight of her powers.

"Your nose!" Teddi breathed out. El could hear her get up from her seat, ready to wipe away the small trail out blood that was probably running down El's nose. She never really felt it when it happened anymore.

"It's fine. It happens when she uses her powers sometimes." Max explained.

"Guys." El mumbled.

"..Sorry." Teddi and Max said. Eventually El found Billy. She always found it harder to find Billy than it was Mike or any of the boys or even Teddi. She didn't know why. Sometimes she felt like somehow he knew she was watching him and was trying to push her away. It didn't feel like that now at least. El almost immediately felt guilty for prying.

"I see him," El finally said. Max perked up, Teddi leaning forwards against the coffee table. El frowned as Billy's surroundings started to slowly appear around him. There were shelves of books around him. And a pretty girl. She was smiling up at him. "He's...there's books." she said with a slight frown.

Teddi raised an eyebrow. "Books? Yeah right. Is it possible for her powers to be broken?" she asked. Max let out a snort. El didn't answer.

"There's a girl," El mumbled. She leaned forward to get a better look at the name tag she was wearing. "...Mckenna?"

"Who the fuck's Mckenna?"

"Max," Teddi said sternly. There was a long pause before Teddi finally spoke again. "...It's gotta be Mckenna Prescott. She went to school with us. I'm pretty sure she works at the bookstore at the mall. But Mckenna's nice. I mean, I thought she was…" Teddi said with a frown.

El watched Billy flash a charming smile down at Mckenna. He leaned against one of the shelves casually, tucking a hand in one of his pockets. "I really appreciate this, Mckenna. You're a lifesaver." he said cooly.

Mckenna giggled, giving her chocolatey hair a dramatic shake. "It's no problem, Billy," El hated how she said his name. She let out a small 'blech' sound. "I think it's in the back room. Follow me."

Billy, Mckenna and the bookshelves started to slowly fade away like a cloud of smoke as the two walked off. El frowned hard at what she had just seen. Was it suspicious? Definitely. Did it make any sense? Not even close. She pulled the bandana off, her eyes immediately falling on Teddi.

Teddi looked almost scared. Like she was waiting for El to tell her something horrible. It sounded horrible. El wanted to believe that there was something about this that she was missing. Something that would prove that Billy wasn't the guy that everyone thought he was.

"...That's all I could see," El finally lied. "He's too far, I think."

Max and Teddi both noticeably deflated. "Well should we go to the mall?" Max asked, her head whipping over towards Teddi.

Teddi had settled back into that unusual silence. She watched El, like she knew she was lying and was waiting for her to crack. Hop gave her that look sometimes too. It never made her feel as guilty as it was now. Eventually Teddi shook her head. "No. That's...no. I'm sure it's fine, right? We're just being paranoid," it was obvious she was trying to convince herself as well as Max. "Let's just watch some movies and forget all about Billy. We can order pizza."

It was like El blinked and Teddi was suddenly back to normal. Her bright, cheery smile was back and she was holding her shoulders up high. El wondered how often Teddi kept that facade up. How often she was genuinely smiling rather than convincing everyone she was.

Teddi downed the rest of the beer, pushing herself up off the floor and heading over to the phone to order the pizza. Max shot El a look. "...What?" El asked, a defensive frown on her face.

Max narrowed her eyes at her best friend. "...Did you see something else?"

El's eyes flickered instinctively towards Teddi. She paused for a moment before shaking her head. "No. Nothing." she lied.

xxx

It was late. Billy's hands gripped tightly at the steering wheel as he pressed down on the gas a little harder. He felt like shit for skipping out on the party and lying to Teddi. But adding on the fact that it was pushing midnight and he had just driven two towns over made him dread going back home and trying to explain himself.

His eyes flickered over to the brown paper bag sitting in the seat beside him. He'd been searching for the perfect gift for Teddi for almost a month. About a week ago he'd driven out to Star Court while Teddi was at work and asked Mckenna if she could help him get his hands on it. Billy didn't know her very well. They'd had maybe one class together in high school, but like most girls in Hawkins, Mckenna had a thing for Billy and was more than willing to help him out. So he flirted with her a little to get what he wanted. It was harmless. He definitely wouldn't be telling Teddi about it, but it was totally harmless.

After he'd shown up to the mall, Mckenna had started talking his ear off about what she'd been up to in the month since they'd graduated. Billy had done his best to pretend to care. She was doing him a favor after all. But after he realized he'd been standing in the bookstore for over half an hour, he decided to give her a little push. A lot of good that had done.

"Oh god. I think Josh must've sold it. I told him like nine million times I was holding it for you!" she'd said when she had all but dragged him to the back room. So Billy had to wait for Mckenna to call what felt like every bookstore in all of Indiana until she found one that had what he was looking for. Of course the store was over an hour away.

Billy parked the Camaro next to Teddi's van. The lights were still on in the apartment. Billy let out a frustrated huff, grabbing the brown paper bag and heading up to the apartment. The girls were all asleep. Teddi was sprawled out on the couch with Max tucked against her side. El was curled up in a makeshift fort they'd built with Teddi's sleeping bag and Billy's comforter. The TV was still on. Billy assumed from the bright blue screen that they'd fallen asleep in the middle of a movie. There were soda and beer cans and a box of half eaten pizza littering the coffee table.

"...Billy?" it was El. She leaned up on her elbows, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she blinked up at him.

Billy dropped his keys onto the kitchen counter along with the brown paper bag. He shifted awkwardly. "Hey...sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up."

El shook her head. "Had to pee...where were you?"

If Billy imagined El, Max and Teddi sitting around the cabin with the boys probably playing dungeons and dorks, he would be glad that he missed her birthday. But looking at El, with those big, sad brown eyes of hers made him remember how sad Teddi had looked when she was talking about her own birthday. Had Billy wanted to spend the night with her alone? Of course. But Teddi wanted to spend her birthday with him, El and Max. Her family. He hated himself.

Billy looked down at Teddi. She was sound asleep, snoring a little into Max's hair. He tentatively reached out for the brown paper bag, moving around the couch and kneeling down in front of El. She was wearing that god awful necklace Teddi had found. Billy felt his lips twitch in a small grin. "I uh...I was getting this. For Teddi. It's a secret though." he held the bag out to her.

El frowned a little, leaning forwards to peek inside. She mouthed the words on the cover to herself as she read it before smiling up at him. "For her birthday." it wasn't a question.

"Yeah. Kinda had to go on a hunt for it...sorry I missed your party."

"It's fine. We brought cake home for you. It's in the fridge." she said, pulling her knees to her chest.

Billy let out a small laugh, reaching forward to ruffle her hair. "Thanks, Punky."

El raised an eyebrow. "What's Punky?"

"Y'know...Punky Brewster. It's a show. Jesus, what's Teddi teaching you kids?" he looked over his shoulder to where Teddi was sleeping on the couch. He briefly looked at the beer cans on the table before looking back at El. "She get drunk?"

"A little," El confessed. "Not too bad…"

"She mad at me?"

"More sad...she thinks you're with other girls."

Billy felt a jolt of guilt through his chest. "Yeah, I was worried she might think that…" he sighed. "Get some sleep, kid. We can all go out tomorrow, make up for me missing the party, okay? Whatever you want."

El eyed him carefully. "...Promise?"

"Have I ever broken a promise?" he asked. El shot him a look. Billy let out a small, dry laugh, rolling his eyes lazily. "...Okay, fine. I promise."

El smiled up at him, nodding before getting up and hurrying off to the bathroom. Billy stood, running a hand through his hair and letting out a sigh. Carefully he leaned over Max, easily scooping Teddi up into his arms and off the couch. Max grumbled quietly, shifting over into a more comfortable position.

He navigated the messy living room, heading into Teddi's room and gently setting her on her bed. Teddi let out a low groan, rolling onto her back and blinking up at Billy. Her lipgloss and eyeliner were smudged. "The hell have you been?" she asked, her voice slurring slightly.

"Out." Billy said evenly.

Teddi let out a heavy sigh, rubbing at her eyes and smudging her makeup further. "Look, I know you were out with someone else. Why can't you just like man up and break up with me if you don't wanna do this anymore-"

"The hell are you talking about, Larsson? I wasn't out with anyone. I had something I had to do."

Teddi sat up slowly, swaying a little as she glared up at him. "And this something was more important than El's birthday?"

"Can we talk about this later when you're not drunk?" he huffed, his hands resting angrily on his hips. Teddi's expression didn't waver. Billy ran a frustrated hand over his face. "You just gotta trust me, okay? I told El I was sorry." Teddi's expression softened a little.

She held out her middle finger to him. "You promise you weren't out being a rat bastard?"

Billy laughed softly, groaning a little as he hooked his finger with hers. "You chicks are big on promises, huh? Yeah, fine. I promise," he wrapped his arm around her middle, easily lifting Teddi up and moving her over to make room for himself. Teddi squeaked as he tossed her, grabbing fists full of his t-shirt. "You still mad at me?" he asked as he settled next to her.

"Yes...a little," she sighed. "The keeping stuff from each other just gives me this like...icky feeling." she confessed.

"I'm not...I mean, except for now. But you're gonna have to deal with it, Larsson," Teddi let out a scoff, letting his shirt go and crossing her arms tightly across her chest. Billy chuckled, leaning over his girlfriend and pressing a few kisses to the base of her neck. "You know," he mumbled against her collarbone. "If it helps, I felt guilty about skipping out."

"You mean you're capable of that emotion?" Teddi asked dryly.

"Funny."

Teddi gave Billy's chest a soft push, their eyes meeting. "Okay, but like...what if you killed a guy?" she asked. Billy blinked down at her. "You'd tell me right?"

Billy was silent for a few moments before letting out a laugh. "What are we, Bonnie and Clyde? You gonna help me hide the body, Weird Girl?"

"It's hypothetical, smartass."

"Fine," Billy grinned. "The second I off someone, you're the first person I'm gonna call," Teddi seemed genuinely pleased with this answer. "You know, you're even weirder when you're drunk." he teased, leaning down to kiss her.

"If you two are gonna make out all night, can you at least close the door? I so don't wanna hear this." Max called out from the couch.

Teddi smiled against Billy's lips, breaking out into a fit of giggles. "Sorry, Max!" she called back, pushing a grumbling Billy towards her bedroom door.

"I thought you were still mad at me?" he asked, shutting the door and stripping down to his underwear.

"I am. But we used your blanket to make the fort so it's only fair," Teddi explained, wriggling out of her cut off shorts and throwing them across the room. "Let me sleep on that side though, I might have to puke later." she said, reaching for the small trash can that sat next to her nightstand.

"...Sure know how to get a guy hot, Ted." Billy muttered, grabbing the trash can and setting it next to the bed. Once they were both settled, Teddi tucked against Billy's chest with his chin resting on her head, it didn't take long for Teddi to fall back asleep.

Billy briefly wondered when this had become his life. Living with a girl he loved, sharing a bed almost every single night, family dinners at Hopper's on the weekends. He was happy. That loud, angry voice that had at one point controlled almost everything he did barely spoke to him anymore. It scared him a little. Like he was turning into that annoying gold droid in those stupid Star Wars movies Teddi had forced him to watch that was always saying I've got a bad feeling about this.

He shoved those worries aside. His arm tightened around Teddi, her hand mindlessly reaching down to rest on his forearm as she snuggled deeper into her pillow. They deserved to be happy. Billy wasn't going to fall for that self fulfilling prophecy bullshit Teddi was always talking about (he was pretty sure he understood what it was at this point).

What could possibly stand in their way?