A/N: So I've been watching Stranger Things from the beginning recently and I've decided I'm still pissed about Billy dying. I get it, someone has to die every season, but he could have been so useful in season 4. So Billy is alive! It's a miracle! I'm gonna go off of the assumption that he never drank any chemicals, only because he didn't turn into that sludge that everyone else did.
Also, with Eleven now moved away, it would make sense for her and Mike to drift apart, after all, how many people really stay with the same person they fell in love with when they were twelve? I mean really. So this will be a Billeven story just because I want to. Lol.
I'm gonna play around with Eleven not having been used to social situations so to me she wouldn't understand the whole shy aspect to certain areas. She's more curious as well. I would imagine after being locked up for 12 years she would want to explore everything and learn as much as possible.
So I'm going off of the age premise from the show, so Eleven is 16 and Billy would be 18, because he is the same age as Steve.
Warnings: Mentions of past torture on Eleven's part, mention of past abuse on Billy's part, sexual content obviously, swearing and some violence. Plus Billy being a peeping perv.
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Chapter 1
It had been three months and one week since the Starcourt Mall incident. The Byers and Eleven had spent the week settling into their new home in Rockport Maine. It was a small town right along the coast. When Joyce had decided they were going to move, she wasn't sure where to go exactly, but she did know that Maine would be the state they would call home. It was opposite of Indianna, it had beaches, sun, and it was far away from Hawkins and the Lab. The kids were not happy about it, Joyce knew that and even though Jonathan was eighteen, he knew he couldn't leave his mom and Will on their own. He had been helping to pay the bills since he was fifteen, he couldn't just let his mom and Will figure it out now. There were also a lot of photography opportunities in Maine and it would be an adventure for them.
The house that Joyce had purchased was a three bedroom house, with a huge basement that Jonathan had laid claim to. There was enough room if he wanted to, to have a dark room built in. Joyce knew they were all upset about the move and recent events, but she was hoping that with them starting school and being able to go to the beach, that they would eventually warm up to the idea. Tomorrow would be the first day that Will and El would be going to school. They were entering high school now and Joyce had to admit, she was a little worried about El. She would be going into grade nine, while Will would be in grade ten. They had been working with her over the past three months to help get her ready, but there was a lot she was missing. She was going to be placed in the remedial classes for now, while Will was getting placed in the advanced classes. They knew that El was smart, the problem was she was missing so much from growing up. She was going to be struggling in the remedial classes as it was. Joyce was just hoping she would make friends and love school. With her being away from Hawkins, they didn't have to worry about anyone finding out about her. As long as El didn't use her powers, they would be ok. Something that currently wasn't an issue, as her powers hadn't come back yet. They had no idea why they hadn't, Joyce wondered if it was more psychological than a physical reason.
Losing her powers was bothering El greatly. That was part of her identity and without it she didn't know who she was, and at sixteen that was not a good thing. Joyce knew how important they were to her, so she never tried to keep El from trying to get them back. She was encouraging and allowed El to try and work them back up again. She was hoping that El would get her powers back, because if nothing else, she would be able to defend herself should she have to. With school starting tomorrow Joyce had wanted to take El out to get some new clothes and a haircut. El hadn't really had much of a chance to discover her own look and she wanted to make sure she had that before school. One of the good things about the move, Joyce had been able to secure a job as a receptionist and was able to make twice what she did working at the General Store. With the higher pay Joyce was able to not stress as much and spend a little bit of the money she had saved from the sale of the house. El had been nervous and unsure at first, but she quickly got used to it and found her style. It consisted of skinny jeans, a few leather tulip skirts, a couple of sundresses, some denim shorts, two bikinis for the beach, some salads, high tops and a couple of black high heel boots to go with it. When they got to the hair salon, El had decided to trim her hair slightly so it would sit just above her shoulders and she also lightened it with some highlights. She looked amazing and Joyce was so proud of her for finally finding her own style and reflection of herself.
It was nearing bedtime and El was in her room with her radio talking with Max.
"How is Billy?" El asked.
Billy had survived the incident, but he was in a coma. The doctors thought it was originally from his injuries, but they were healed up. For some reason his mind wasn't waking up and the doctors had no idea why or if he ever would. The others had suspected it had something to do with the Upside Down and the Mindflayer, but without her powers, El was no help.
"The same, but his brain activity has picked up. The doctors think he might actually come around. Maybe he was caught in that dream circle thing you've talked about. Maybe he just needed to find his body or something." Max said, not sure about any of this.
"Maybe. I'm sorry that I can't do much to help."
"It's ok. You'll get your powers back eventually, I know you will. Are you looking forward to school tomorrow?"
"Sort . Byers took me out today to get some new clothes and a new hairstyle. It's lighter now. I really like it. But I'm nervous about school. There's a lot I don't know."
"I can't wait to see your new look. And don't worry about what you don't know. You've come a long way. I mean you could barely speak english three years ago. You'll pick it up real quick. And you have Will there to help you. You'll be acing everything before you know it."
"I hope so. It's weird going to school and not having to hide anymore. I keep having to remind myself that I can leave."
"It's going to take some getting used to. You've been on a strict freedom for basically your whole life. You finally have the chance to just be you and not having to hide. It's gonna be great tomorrow and I can't wait to hear all about it." Max said supportingly.
"How is everything there?"
"A little tense at home. Turns out Billy kept my step-dad in line more than I thought. Now with him gone, he's gotten a little crazy. I spend most of my time with the guys. It's fine, soon he'll wake up and everything will go back to normal. You still coming down for Christmas?"
"Ya, Mike seems pretty sure it'll be ok for Will and me. I'm looking forward to it."
"Good. I can't wait to see you. I gotta go, my mom is calling me. I'll talk to you tomorrow after school. I want to hear all about it."
"Ok, good night."
"Good night."
El put her radio away and got up to turn off the lights. After crawling into bed, she quickly fell asleep.
It was the middle of the night when Billy appeared in El's room. He was instantly confused and looked all around, trying to figure out what was going on.
"Ok, well this is better than nothing but the blackness and water." Billy said, taking in the new room.
Ever since that night at the mall all Billy had seen was that black void. But all he could hear was his name being called out from somewhere in the void. He knew that voice belonged to Eleven. He didn't know why she was calling out to him, but she had guided him here. Wherever here was. He took in the room and saw that it was a light yellow color, with a white dresser, bed and desk. On the bed was a mop of brown hair. Billy walked over to the other side and saw that it was El in the bed. Her voice had called him here. Only she was asleep.
"Eleven, hey kid." Billy called out, but El didn't even budge.
Billy went to reach out and touch her, only his touch went right through. He then called her name again and when that didn't work he screamed right in her face. The whole time she slept as if he wasn't even there.
"Perfect. Aren't you supposed to be the one with the powers and shit? How is it, your voice calls to me in some black void for god knows how long. And now I'm here with you, but you can't even hear me."
Billy let out a sigh as he went and sat down on the edge of the bed. He wasn't even going to try and understand why he could stand and sit on things, but he couldn't touch anyone. Billy turned to look at El's sleeping face. He had no idea what he would have even said or done if El could see and hear him. The last time he saw her, he was ready to hand her over to be killed. He was flooded with so much darkness, so much hatred and then all of a sudden it was blown up by a sweet sounding voice. A voice that had been able to shine the strongest light he had ever seen inside of him. It made him fight, it made him take his body back over and he was able to through the darkness out of him. He was prepared to die to save her. To save all of those kids. Mostly her and Max. He had unfortunately figured out that he actually cared about his kid sister. He had made a point often that she wasn't his sister, but after everything he had been through, he knew that was a lie.
He hated the void, but at the same time, it would mean he wouldn't have to see everyone after what he did. How the hell was he supposed to look at his sister after he tried to kill her and her friends? He had no idea what was going on, but it was better to be here for now, then back in Hawkins.
"Well, if I'm gonna be stuck to someone, it could be worse. You are beautiful when you're sleeping." Billy said as he took in El's soft features and smooth skin. She would be a killer on guys.
Billy looked over and saw that it was only three in the morning, he had a few hours before anyone would be awake and maybe El would be able to see and hear him.
El's alarm went off just after seven. She reached over and turned it off as she let out a groan. Billy was sitting against the wall, right by her bed. He gave her a smirk as he watched as she tried to wake up. Her arm was out of the covers now, and he was able to see for the first time the small tattoo she had on her forearm by her wrist.
"What the fuck? Who the fuck put that on you?" Billy asked, beyond pissed that she had what looked to him a lot like a brand.
Only once again El didn't hear him. After a moment El stretched and got out of bed. She was only wearing an old Metallica t-shirt from Jonathan, so it just covered below her ass. Billy couldn't help but look at her. She had great legs. El went over to her dresser and started to pull out different clothes to wear for school today, including clean pink underwear and a matching bra. She removed the t-shirt and Billy was able to get a full view of her uncovered boobs and her pale yellow underwear.
"Well damn." Billy said, as he licked his lips.
El, being completely unaware that she had an audience, removed her underwear, as she was facing Billy. Billy's smile got even bigger at the sight.
"Fuck, no hair below deck eh? I love it nice and smooth. Fuck, being stuck here ain't gonna be so bad after all."
El got dressed in her undergarments and then put on her new black leather pants, along with a black crop t-shirt. She paired it with her new red heeled boots that went up to her mid-calf and then she headed out to go to the bathroom. Once she was finished peeing, she went back into her room and sat down at her desk with a table top mirror, her brush and the small amount of makeup she had. She got her hair styled and then added pink lipstick and some electric blue eyeshadow to make her eyes pop. With that she stood up and grabbed her new leather jacket that sat at her hips.
"Looks good on ya. Better than what you were wearing." Billy said, now standing and looking at El.
El went over to her bed and grabbed her backpack before heading out. Billy followed her, not too sure how this whole situation worked. He didn't know if he could be that far from her, but at the same time, he had no desire to go anywhere to begin with. El was the only person in the world that would be able to eventually hear or see him. If he ever wanted to get back to his body, he would need her help to do that. El walked out to see that Joyce was making pancakes for everyone. Jonathan was already sitting at the table ready to get to work. Will came out a moment later.
"Wow, look at you El." Will said with a smile.
"You look beautiful Sweetie. My God you could be a model." Joyce said, as she turned to look at El.
"Model? Like a toy?" El asked confused, as she sat down.
"How the hell do you not know what a model is?" Billy asked.
"A model can be a toy like a car. But it can also be a person. They get their picture taken in different outfits. Kinda like a photobooth, but they get paid to do it." Jonathan explained.
"People do that for work?" El asked, surprised.
"Ya. The people you see in magazines are models. Some are super famous and travel all over the world getting the pictures taken and walking on the runway." Joyce added.
"A runway?" El asked.
"It's what the stage is called. It's really long and you walk down to music in a designer's outfit." Joyce explained.
"That sounds fun." El said with a smile.
"Does it? Well, we can always keep an eye out for any model calls. That's when agencies or businesses are looking for someone to model for them. You never know, that might be what your passion is." Joyce said warmly as she placed the plates down.
"Ok." El said with a smile, as she grabbed some pancakes.
"You all set for school you two?" Joyce asked.
"Ya, I think so. It'll be good to get back to school. I just hope I'm not behind in any of the work." Will said.
"I think so." El said, and they could hear she was nervous.
"I know this is going to be a change for you Sweetie. But I want you to remember it's not your fault for anything you don't know. If you have questions, don't hesitate to ask. And we will all be here to help you with your homework and get you caught up ok?" Joyce said.
They all knew this was going to be hard for El. There was a bunch she didn't know and the social queues were still a long way away. The only comfort was knowing that El would have Will there for her at lunch to help.
"I feel like I'm missing something." Billy said, confused why they would be so worried about El at school.
"Ok." Was all El said.
They finished eating breakfast and then they were off. Jonathan drove El and Will to school, while Joyce had to get to her job. Billy sat in the back and took a good look around. It was the first time that he noticed he wasn't in Hawkins.
"Where are we?" He asked himself.
He took in the ocean views and he knew he had to be on the coast somewhere, but it didn't look like the west coast. He was hoping to see something that would tell him what town there were in. His answer came when they drove by a store that told him they were in Maine. He couldn't help but wonder how El ended up out here. He thought she was supposed to be living with the Chef. He had more questions, but he knew it would be a long time before he got an answer.
They pulled up to Rockport High School and Billy at least now knew what town they were in. But he had never heard of it and based on how it looked he figured it had to be a small town.
"Ok, are you sure you don't want me to come in?" Jonathan asked.
"Oh ya, nothing looks better on the first day then big brother walking you to class." Billy said sarcastically from the back.
"We'll be ok." Will said.
"Alright, but make sure you stick together. And Will you might need to help El find her classes and understand her schedule." Jonathan said.
"I know, I will. Don't worry." Will said.
"I'll be fine." El said.
"She has gone to school before, right? I mean, she's the same age as Max so she's in her second year of high school. Why would she need help with her schedule?" Billy just didn't get it. They were acting like they were dropping El off for her first day in kindergarten.
El and Will got out and Billy did as well. They all headed inside and Billy noticed that Jonathan didn't pull away until they were inside. Billy looked all around, but it looked just like every other small town high school. The halls were flooded with people and Billy couldn't help but notice that El seemed shocked and a little overwhelmed by it all.
"Come on, we need to go to the office and get our schedules. They will tell us our classrooms." Will said, as he took El's hand and headed off in the right direction.
"Classrooms?" El asked.
"Ya, so we'll move around between different classrooms for different subjects. We'll have four subjects a day for five months and then we'll get four different subjects. We'll be on the same lunch though and we might get lockers next to each other." Will explained.
"What were you homeschooled?" Billy asked.
They arrived at the office and they both got their schedules and locker number along with the lock combination. Billy looked over El's shoulder and saw that she had all remedial classes. She was taking English, Math, History and Geography this semester. He was slightly surprised that she would be in remedial, she seemed smart to him. Will did all of the talking, something that seemed to be normal. El didn't seem to speak much outside her group of friends. With that done Will guided El through the hallways until they reached their lockers. They were side by side thankfully and he showed El how to do the lock combination.
"Ok there's no way you've been to highschool before." Billy finally said. Though that brought more questions.
"Do you get it?" Will asked.
"I got it." El said.
She placed her bag inside and removed the books for her first class. It was English and she was hoping it wouldn't be too bad. With it Will guided her through the school and over to her classroom.
"Ok, I'll meet you at our lockers for lunch, ok?" Will said.
"Ok."
"Don't worry, you're gonna do great." Will said with a warm smile.
"You too." El said, with her own smile.
El walked into the classroom, while Will headed off for his. Billy stayed with El, curious to see what would happen. El took in the classroom and saw that there were only ten seats. She wasn't too sure where to go, as school had started a month ago, so she stood off to the side and waited for when the teacher would walk in.
"You probably sit anywhere." Billy said, but once again El didn't hear him. "You know, you not being able to hear me is really starting to get annoying."
The teacher walked in a minute later with a cup of coffee. El walked over to her as she spoke.
"Um, excuse me."
The teacher turned around, surprised to see someone here. "Oh, you're early. Class doesn't start for another ten minutes. Most students don't come until the first bell. You must be Jane Hopper. I'm Ms. Wilson."
"Jane Hopper? Hopper I get, but Jane. That's too boring and plan for someone like you." Billy said he much prefered El.
"Yes Ma'am. I preffer El though, it's my middle name." El said. She knew the name her Momma wanted to give her was Jane, but to El, she didn't feel like that person. That little girl was supposed to grow up with her Momma and not in some lab. She wasn't Eleven, but she wasn't Jane either. She felt like an El and she wanted to be El from now on.
"Not a problem El. While we have some time alone, can you tell me what school you were at before this one?" Ms. Wilson asked, as she sat down at her desk.
"I was homeschooled." El said and it was clear someone had told her to say just that.
"Ok, not a problem. Why don't you take a seat, you can sit anywhere, I'm going to give you some work and that will help me to know where you are and what you need the most help with." Ms. Wilson said with a warm smile.
"Yes Ma'am."
Ms. Wilson looked through her desk for the right papers while El headed over and sat at a desk in the front row, but in the corner closest to Ms. Wilson's desk. Billy went and leaned against the window ledge so he could see what El was capable of doing. After Ms. Wilson found the papers she brought them over and handed them to El.
"If you have any questions, ask. And if you don't know something, then leave it blank. This isn't for marks at all, this is just for me to get to know what level of English you have so I can better help you, ok Sweetie?"
"Ok."
Ms. Wilson walked away and El pulled out a pencil and wrote her name at the top.
"Holy fuck. That's not how you hold a pencil." Billy said as he watched El grip the pencil like a four year old does. Her writing was also bad, it was too big and messy. "You have four nerds as friends and not one of them taught you how to hold a pencil? Are you fucking kidding me?"
Billy was pissed. It was one thing to be bad at school, just because you were stupid. It was another thing to apparently have never been to a school and have a bunch of people around you who could have taught her things. There's no reason why she was writing like this when she had five friends, three young adults and two old adults there to teach her. Billy felt like they didn't care enough about her to actually help her in life, they only wanted her for her powers and nothing else. He didn't like Max growing up, but even he taught her shit when she was young.
Ms. Wilson looked up and saw how El was holding the pencil. She got up and went over to her. "Ok Sweetie, so you aren't holding your pencil right and that is making it harder for you to write. Can you hold it like I am?" Ms. Wilson asked, as she held her own pencil to show El how her fingers should be.
El copied Ms. Wilson. "Like this?"
"Just like that. It might feel weird at first, but once you get used to it, you will be able to write better."
"Ok."
"You're doing great." Ms. Wilson said she could tell that El was going to need more support than the other kids.
"At least someone fucking taught her something." Billy said, as he crossed his arms.
Ms. Wilson went back over to her desk while El continued with her work. The problem she was having, she didn't understand half of what it was asking her. She didn't know what a pronoun was or what verbs and adjectives were. She could spell words she knew really well, but she had no idea what sentence structure was or what would be wrong in it. As she read through it, Billy could tell she was getting depressed and feeling stupid. Despite not wanting to, his heart ached for her. He wasn't stupid, he played stupid well, but he graduated high school with B's. El wasn't stupid, she was just not taught anything. The more she left blank the more Billy knew, this wasn't her first day of high school. This was her first day of any school. She was starting way too late and for her to catch up would almost be impossible, unless someone took the time to teach her. El was able to answer a few of the questions, but over ninety percent was left blank. When the bell rang, El got up and went over to Ms. Wilson with her papers.
"Done already?" Ms. Wilson asked.
"I tried my best, but I don't know." El said sadly.
Ms. Wilson took the papers and she saw that they were mostly blank. Billy could see she was schooling her features, but there was anger in her eyes, but not at El. She was clearly not happy about the lack of education she was given.
"That's ok Sweetie. For today, I want you to try and follow along as best as you can. And tomorrow I'm going to put your binder together for you to work through here and at home. It will help you to be able to answer these questions. Do you like reading?"
"I don't know. People have always read to me." El answered.
"Do you like love stories?"
"Yes." El said with a smile.
"There isn't much here in our library. But the town's public library has a lot of great romance novels and they are all about love stories. I want you to pick out a couple and read them to yourself. They tend to be written very simple and you will learn a lot about all of this stuff. Plus you get to read a love story."
"Ok, I will after school."
"Class is about to start, so take your seat and just do your best to follow along and take the information in."
El gave a nod and headed back to her desk. The other kids looked at her, but they didn't say anything. Billy was thankful for that. He had a feeling El was going to have a hard enough time with bullies once people found out she was basically at a grade three level. Didn't matter how beautiful she was, that wouldn't save her. And without her powers, she would be on her own.
"I really wish you could hear me. At least then I could explain shit to you."
Billy let out a sigh and watched as the class began. He made sure to check out El to see how she was reacting to it all. She just looked confused and Billy had no idea what the next class would be like. She needed more help than the teacher could give her in a seventy-five minute class. Especially when she had nine other students that needed attention as well. The problem was, those students had English as a second language, El was clearly the odd one out. When the bell rang Billy followed El as she tried to find her way to her next class after going to her locker. Billy could tell she was disappointed to not see Will. She did her best to find the class on time, but she was a few minutes late. When she walked in everyone looked at her.
"Sorry." El said, slightly awkwardly as she went over to a free desk.
"It's alright, you must be Jane. I'm Mr. Watts, it's nice to meet you."
"I go by El."
"Ok, please open a notebook El and copy the notes on the board as we go."
El gave a nod and Billy saw that it was history. This time around, El looked even more confused as to what was going on. That was when Billy knew, this day was only going to get worse.
It was finally lunch time and Billy was relieved to be getting a break. He had quickly grown sick of listening to a teacher go over what he'd already learned. It was clear El wasn't understanding any of it, and she seemed to be getting sadder as the class went on. She made her way over to her locker and pulled out her lunch. Will came up beside her with a big smile on his face.
"Hey, how was it?" Will asked.
"Hard. I don't know anything they were talking about."
"You didn't know anything." Billy corrected.
"That's ok though. You'll get there and we'll help." Will said with a smile.
"You're not helping if you don't correct her. Be her friend, but fucking correct her or she's never gonna learn." Billy said, amazed that no one seemed to be helping her learn.
"How was your classes?" El asked, as they headed for the cafe.
"They were good. I had to catch up myself. I'm gonna have a lot of homework for a little while."
"Not as much as her." Billy grumbled.
They walked into the cafe and El looked around. She wasn't used to being around that many people. She had gotten so used to having to hide, that being around this many people was still overwhelming. Will put his arm through El's and guided her through the crowd and over to the table where his new friends were.
"Hey guys, this is my sister El." Will said, as they sat down.
They had decided when they moved here, that they would refer to El as a sister. Even though she kept Hopper's last name, it was easier to explain then having to tell them she was a friend that lived with them. That would bring up questions about why she wasn't with her parents. It was just easier to explain she had a different dad then they did.
"This is Tom, Chris and Dan." Will said, as they sat down.
"Hi." El said, sitting next to Will.
"She's your sister? Is she your twin, you guys are the same age." Tom said.
"No, we're not twins. We're just close in age." Will said.
"So how are you liking the new school El?" Dan asked.
"It's ok." El answered.
"What classes have you had?" Chris asked.
"English and History."
"Oh really? I didn't see you in my class." Tom said.
"What class?" El asked, confused.
"For English. I didn't see you there." Tom said.
"El's in grade nine, not ten. She was homeschooled by her dad." Will supplied.
"Oh, that's different. Who is your English teacher?" Chris asked.
"Ms. Wilson." El answered, having no idea what that would mean.
"Ms. Wilson only teaches special ed classes." Dan said.
"Special ed?" El asked, confused.
"Watch it, you little bastard." Billy threatened.
"It's where all the stupid kids go. I guess Will got all of the smarts in the family." Dan teased.
"Not stupid." El said with anger.
"The way you said that, is not going to help your case Kitten." Billy said.
"She's not stupid. She was homeschooled and the school needs to evaluate her to see where to place her. She doesn't have any past records they can look at. I'm not going to tolerate you talking to her like that." Will said with strength in his voice.
"Fine, we'll play nice." Dan said.
Billy doubted it. He didn't trust these little bastards. He had a feeling they were just getting started. He was impressed that Will stood up for her. He didn't think Will had much of a backbone, but he was happy to see someone standing up for El. No one was teaching her, but they were at least defending her. El sat there quietly as the others all talked about something to do with science. She didn't understand any of it and they didn't seem interested in including her within the conversation. El was used to it though from hanging out the guys. They were often talking about things she knew nothing about or even understood half of the words. When lunch was over El headed off to her Math class after grabbing her books. She went and sat down in one of the corner seats in the front. She was really not feeling very confident with it. The teacher was already in the room and he came over to her.
"Hi, you must be Jane Hopper. I'm Mr. Smith."
"Hi, I prefer El, it's my middle name. That's what everyone calls me."
"No problem El. So I've heard from Ms. Wilson, that you were homeschooled. Did you do much math?"
"Some. I like math."
"Ok, I have a worksheet for you to try and get through today. If you don't know how to do something, just leave it blank. I'm not going to grade it, I just want to know where you are so I can help you. Just like Ms. Wilson."
"Ok."
Mr. Smith went and grabbed the worksheet and brought it over to El to start working through. El pulled out her pencil as the other students started to come in. She focused on her worksheet and Billy was happy to see that she did know some of it. She could add and subtract easily in her head. She knew geometric shapes, how to multiply and divide including the long version.
"At least someone taught you something." Billy said.
El was able to finish half of the worksheet before she got stuck and didn't know how to do it. When Mr. Smith took a break El went over and handed him her paper. He looked it over and gave her a warm smile.
"Ok, not too bad. What you have done is right, which is a very good sign. I think after this semester we will be able to get you all caught up and next year you'll be ready to in applied math with everyone else." Mr. Smith said warmly.
"Really?" El was surprised.
"Absolutely. Tomorrow I will have a binder put together for you, like everyone else has. I'll have the math sheets in there that you need to focus on to get caught up. If you put the work in, you'll get there easily."
El couldn't help but smile. It was the first time today that someone had made her feel smart.
"See Kitten, you just need someone to teach you and you'll be acing everything before you know it." Billy said with a smile.
"For the rest of class, I want you to take notes, because eventually you will need to be doing this stuff."
"Ok."
El headed back over to her seat and started to write down what was on the board. She was feeling good about this class and she was hoping she would be able to get into the normal grade level for it next time. With math over El had one more class to go Geography. She had never done anything for it and she knew it would be a hard one for her to understand. She only knew about Hawkins and now Rockport, she had no idea what the other Countries were or what States there were. At this point Billy was not surprised anymore. It really wasn't shocking to see that El didn't even know what States were or that there were different countries in the world. She had a long way to go when it came to History and Geography. Her Geography teacher looked at her like she was crazy and Billy couldn't blame him. How the hell are you sixteen and have no idea what states there were? She had been to Chicago, but she had no idea that it was in a different state. Her so called friends had severely let her down. The good mood El had gotten into during math had instantly disappeared within a few minutes of starting geography. Billy could tell she was going back to thinking she wasn't that smart. By the time school was over El was looking forward to getting out of here.
"It'll be ok, you'll get it figured out." Billy said, but El couldn't hear his words of encouragement.
El grabbed her things from her locker.
"How was the rest of your day?" Will asked.
"I like math. I didn't know anything in geography."
"But you will know a lot soon enough. Do you have any homework?" Will asked, as they headed out.
"I have to go to the library and find history, geography and romance novels to read."
"Romance novels?" Will asked.
"Ms. Wilson said it would help me learn english better, while being interesting."
"Oh, that makes sense. Ok, we can hit the library on the way home." Will said as they headed over to Jonathan's car.
"Hey, how was it guys?" Jonathan asked, as they got into the car.
"It was really good. I made some new friends and I'm not too far behind. But I have a lot of homework." Will answered.
"That's good that you made some friends Will. And you'll get caught up in no time. What about you El? How was your very first day of school?"
"Hard. There's a lot I don't know."
"I know, but you will get there and we'll help you." Jonathan said.
"My math teacher, Mr. Smith, thinks I'll be able to be in normal math next year." El said, slightly happy about that.
"That's awesome El. See, you will get there." Jonathan said proudly.
"That's really great El." Will said to her. "She needs to go to the library to pick up some books." Will said to Jonathan.
"Ya no problem, we'll hit it on our way home. Mom will be home just after four, I think we're gonna make pizza for dinner."
"Yum." El said with a smile.
One of El's favorite things to do since the move was sit outside on the deck and look at the ocean. They were only a few minutes walk away from the beach and she couldn't wait until this weekend to go swimming. They arrived at the library and they all headed in. Will showed El to where the history section was and he picked out an easy basic book that would cover the major points in history. It would at least give her a basic understanding so she could keep up in conversations. They then headed over for a geography book that would cover the countries and the states that she would need to learn, along with a world map inside. With them they walked to where the romance section was.
"What's that?" El asked, pointing to a section.
"They are encyclopedias." Will answered.
"What is that?" El asked, confused by a word that big.
Jonathan answered as he picked up the first book for A-C, opening it to show her. "It has everything in it that we know in the world. It starts from A and goes all the way through to Z. It covers things like animals, law, science, history, pretty much anything you want to know about the world, is in these books."
"I read?" El asked.
"Ya if you want. We can pick up a dictionary in here too so you can look up any words you don't know." Jonathan said.
"Ok."
Jonathan held the first book and he picked up a dictionary on the shelf over. They then headed over to the romance section.
"See, you want to learn. These idiots just need to teach you." Billy said.
El looked through the romance books and read the back on a few of them. She was able to find three books that seemed interesting to start. With all of the books they headed over to get them checked out. Will and El both got a library card and Jonathan passed. He wouldn't have a need to use the library right now. If he ended up going to College he would have access to their library. With the books they all headed back to Jonathan's car and headed home. Once they got there they headed inside and put the books in El's room. They then headed into the kitchen to get started on getting things ready for dinner. El helped to cut up the different vegetables that they were going to put on their pizzas. She liked cooking and seeing what different food there was. She had gotten used to eating certain food, because that's all there was in the lab. She found it really enjoyable to make different things.
It was just after four when Joyce came home.
"Hey, how are you guys?" She asked.
"We're good. Just working on getting dinner ready. How was work?" Jonathan asked.
"It was good. I've finally gotten the hang of the computer system. My boss was very happy with me. What about you guys? How was school and work?" Joyce asked, removing her coat so she could help them.
"Work was good. My editor really liked my photos." Jonathan said.
"Good Sweetie. What about you two?"
"It was good. I made some new friends that are classmates. I have some work I need to catch up on, but it wasn't too bad." Will answered.
"Oh I'm glad you made friends and that you won't be that far behind. What about you El? How was it?" Joyce asked with a big smile.
"Hard. I don't know much of what they talked about."
"But her math teacher thinks she'll be able to go into the normal math class for next year." Jonathan said, trying to sound supporting to encourage El.
"That's great Sweetie. I know it will be hard at first, but you are so smart. And you'll already be able to move up in math for next year, that's amazing. What about friends? Did you meet some new people?"
"I met Will's friends. Other people talked about things I don't know about."
"That is going to be a bit of a challenge for you for a little while. You haven't had much of a social interaction before, and it's only been with the guys and Max. It's going to take you a bit to get used to how people interact socially and what they are talking about." Joyce said.
"So then teach her! I don't get this, why isn't any of you teaching her this shit then?" Billy yelled. He had just watched this girl go through one of the roughest first days he had ever seen. She had been failed her whole life by adults and friends. None of them taught her anything she needed to know and now she was left out there on her own to try and figure it out. If she didn't have social skills, then why wouldn't they teach her something?
"You're gonna do great. It's just taking you some time to get used to everything." Will said.
"Fucking unbelievable." Billy said as he shook his head.
Together they all worked on creating and cooking their pizzas. As they were cooking El took the plates and helped to set up the table out on the deck. Billy walked out with her and took in the view. They were very close to the beach so they could see the ocean right from the deck.
"Shit, this is nice." Billy said, taking the view in.
Billy stayed out there and leaned against the deck railing so he could watch the waves. He missed the ocean. No matter what was going on back home, he could also escape to the ocean and surf. That was his outlet to life and he missed it horribly. Billy half listened to the conversations that went on behind him. It was all about their day and family conversation. Something he didn't get growing up. They all sat at the table for dinner, but no one ever spoke. That just wasn't something they did, but it was something he would like to do with his children one day. Assuming he ever found a girl to settle down with. He wasn't in a hurry, but he did often think it would be nice to be with someone that was fun, but also strong and brave, someone that wouldn't be afraid to stand up to him and put him in his place. Too often growing up he watched his mom be abused by his dad. That same anger that was in his father lived in him and he wanted a wife that would be able to stop him, to keep him in line. The very last thing he wanted to be was his father.
Once dinner was done El stayed out there in the sun reading her geography book. She found everything in it really fascinating. She had no idea the world was so big or that there were that many countries in it. She focused on the States as that is what they were working on in class. She wanted to be able to know what they were and where they were. She spent the rest of the night focusing on memorizing the states and how to spell them. When she thought she had it, she grabbed her notebook, turned the book over and started to write them down. She wanted to see if she could first write them down, spelt properly, and then she would try and put them in order from west to east. Once El wrote them down she turned the book back over and looked to see if she got them right. She couldn't help the big smile when she saw that she had done it.
"See, you are smart Kitten." Billy said proudly.
El couldn't believe she had been able to do it. Now tomorrow she would be able to go to class and show that she knew the states and where they were. It may seem like a small thing to some people, but to her it meant a lot. She learnt something that she could now use in school. Feeling good about herself, she packed her things away and headed inside. She put her things away in her room before she grabbed her things for a shower. Afterwards she would talk to the others back in Hawkins. She headed into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She placed her sleep shirt and clean underwear down on the counter before she turned and turned on the shower.
"If I was a gentleman I would leave you alone." Billy said with a smirk, as he watched her get undressed.
Once she was fully naked she got into the shower and Billy joined her. There was enough room in the tub for him to lean against the wall and face El.
"You got a beautiful body, fuck girl. Looking at you is making me all hard." Billy moaned, as he moved his hand down to his crotch and rubbed it.
Billy stood there and watched as the water ran over El's body. He watched as she moved her hands through her hair and down down her body. He couldn't help but watch her perky breasts and her hard nipples. He watched as the water ran down to her smooth pussy and over her perfectly shaped ass. Billy couldn't handle it anymore. He unzipped his pants and removed his hard dick. He started to jerk off as he watched El start to use the body wash all over her body. He watched as she ran her soap covered hands over her breasts to get them clean.
"Oh fuck." Billy moaned.
El moved her hands lower and did her back and her ass before she moved down to her legs. She then stood under the water and ran her hands back over her body to make sure the soap was gone. She turned around so Billy could see her ass perfectly now as she stood under the water and let the heat consume her. Billy picked his pace up and after a moment he was giving a deep moan as he came hard, his cum disappearing as it squirted out. He leaned back against the wall, breathing heavy.
"Shit. Fuck Kitten, I haven't came that hard from my own hand is years. What is it about you?"
El turned the water off and got out. She got dried and then got dressed in her bed clothes, before she headed out and closed her door. She picked up her radio and laid on her bed on her stomach, with her feet up in the air as she radioed in.
"Hey, you guys there?"
"You keep sleeping in that, and I am going to run out of cum. Why the fuck do I find you so attractive? I shouldn't, you're the same age as my sister. I go for women twice your age. The more experienced ones, the ones that aren't shy about what they like. I shouldn't be looking at you this way." Billy said, as he sat down on the floor next to the bed again.
"Hey, how are ya?" Max asked.
"I'm ok. You?"
"We're good. Everyone is here, but um Mike. He had to work on a school project with someone." Max said and they could tell she was not happy about it.
"Oh...ok." El said sadly.
"But we're here!" Dustin said.
"How was school?" Lucas asked.
"Different. I don't know what they are talking about."
"What subjects do you have?" Max asked.
"English, math, history and geography."
"Those are some hard subjects, and it might take a bit for you to catch up, but you will. You'll rock it." Max said supportingly.
"Ya, and if you have any questions, we'll always be there for you. We can meet up here to help you with your homework even." Lucas said.
"The library would be good for some books too if you wanted to learn more." Dustin offered.
"I went and picked up some for history and geography. I learnt all of the names of the states tonight and where they are." El said proudly.
"See, I told you! You are so smart El you are going to crush it." Max said.
"You're gonna be in the normal classes before you know it man." Dustin said.
"Mr. Smith, my math teacher, thinks I'll be able to be in normal math next year."
"That's great El." Lucas said.
"What about the people there? Did you make any friends?" Max asked.
"Will did. We sat with them at lunch, but they spoke science the whole time. I haven't made friends yet. Ms. Byers says it will take time."
"It will, but you'll make some friends soon. It's hard being the new girl, trust me. Everyone is already friends with each other and then you need to try and find the right place that you fit in. It'll happen, it just might take a couple of days." Max said.
"Ya before you know it, you'll be super popular and won't have time for us." Dustin said.
"Never." El said.
"We're gonna head out, but Max wants to talk to you." Lucas said.
"Oh, ok. Good bye." El said.
"See El." Lucas said.
"Talk to you tomorrow." Dustin said.
It was quiet for a moment before Max spoke. "Ok, they're gone. So tell me honestly, how was it at school?"
"I felt stupid and angry." El answered honestly.
"Stupid because you didn't know what they were teaching?" Max asked.
"Ya. My english and math teacher gave me this worksheet. I left most of it blank for english and half for math. I didn't know there were different states or who many countries there are. My english teacher, Ms. Wilson, she showed me how to hold my pencil."
"Ya, that is rough. But El, it's not your fault. You were taken from birth away from your mom. You were locked away in a lab to be experimented and tortured for twelve years of your life."
"Whoa what?" Billy said, cutting Max off momentarily.
"You've never been to school and you've never been taught the basics that every child gets. It's not your fault that you didn't know any of that stuff. But you will learn it. You just taught yourself about the states tonight. That's huge and now you know it and tomorrow you'll learn something new. Before you know it, you'll be smarter than everyone in that place. Why were you angry?"
"Mike said he would help me two years ago to learn things. I was gone for a year, but last year he didn't teach me anything. Why didn't he teach me what I would need for school? He didn't teach me the right way to hold a pencil. He just kept saying to not worry about it. Now people call me stupid and I know nothing." El said with hurt in her voice.
"He's an asshole that needs a good beating." Billy said pissed.
"I don't know why he didn't. He should have helped you. He should have worked on teaching you some basic things so you wouldn't be feeling like this. I'm sorry he didn't. He should be here and not working on a project that he could have done tomorrow. It's due in two weeks, he had the time to come and talk with you. I'm sorry you felt stupid today, that's not cool. But it's not you. You are smart El and don't forget, you've saved this whole how many times now? I mean without you, we all would have been dead ten times over. You're badass. Just be yourself and people will be begging to be your friend."
"Thanks Max." El said with a smile.
"Anytime."
"How's Billy?"
"The same. I really hope he wakes up soon. I don't know how much more of my step dad that I can take." Max said honestly.
"What's that fucker doing?" Billy asked with an edge to his voice.
"He still yelling?"
"Oh ya. I avoid the house at all costs. My mom foolishly believes he will be different. It's ridiculous. I just want Billy to wake up and maybe my step dad will stop screaming at me all the time."
Billy let out a sigh before he spoke. "I'm sorry Max."
"I'm sorry. Maybe he'll wake up soon and then he'll be able to stop it."
"I hope so. Have you gotten any of your powers back yet?"
"You lost your powers? That explains why you can't see me. But if you lost your powers, how the fuck am I gonna get back in my body?" Billy said.
"No. I can't figure it out."
"Maybe you need to just clear your mind and stop thinking about it? I mean, you were born with them, they can't just disappear. Maybe it's like having the yips."
"Yips? What is yips?"
"It's something that happens with athletes. They have a bad game and then they can't play anymore. It's something in their mind that blocks them. Maybe you have the yips and need to get your confidence back."
"How do I do that?"
"I don't know. Maybe just letting yourself live this life for now and when you need your powers it will come back."
"Maybe. I hope it happens soon."
"It'll happen. Don't worry over it or it will take longer. Just have some fun and enjoy what that town has to offer. Go to the beach and soak up some sun."
"Will this weekend. I even got a new bathing suit for it."
"See, have some fun. And if my house gets any worse, I'm gonna be hitchhiking up to you." Max said with a slight laugh, but Billy had a feeling she was being serious.
"Things will get better. Billy will wake up. I know it."
"Thanks El. I better get going, it's getting late. I'll talk to you tomorrow."
"Ok, goodnight Max."
"Goodnight El."
El turned her radio off and went and placed it on her desk. She then turned off the lights and crawled into bed. Billy let out another sigh.
"Looks like it's just you and me Kitten. I guess we'll know when you get your powers back and you finally see or hear me. For now, I'll just have to get used to not being in pain and enjoying the ocean. And seeing your fine ass naked."
Billy smirked as he looked at El as she started to fall asleep. He couldn't believe that she had been kept locked away in a lab for twelve years and yet she wasn't pissed off at the world. She had been through a lot and she was still sweet. Billy wanted to know more about her. He wanted to know more about what she had been through. He wanted to help her learn everything he knew. He wanted to watch as she grew more confident and started to become who she was meant to be. Billy didn't know how he felt about all of this, about this connection he seemed to share with her, but he did know he was excited to see where this was all going to lead.
