Chapter Seventeen

First Day of Summer

Piper nearly tripped over herself and her desk as the last bell of the school year rang out. She threw her backpack over her shoulder and walked towards her locker, working quickly to take all of her things out. When she slammed her locker shut she moved with the rest of the students out the double doors of Hawkins High School. Piper smiled and brushed her curls from her sight as her eyes scanned over the parking lot. When she spotted him leaning against his signature blue Camero, she walked quickly towards him. Dropping her bag down on the ground beside the car, she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tightly, his blue eyes shining down towards her before kissing her deeply.

"Ready to get out of here?" Billy smile down towards her, his hand gently moving down her back as he held her.

Piper bit her lip and nodded her head, before grabbing her things and getting into his car. Once the two were inside, Billy pulled quickly out of the Hawkins High School parking lot and headed straight towards the park that looked over the lake. Once the car was parked, Piper moved out of the car and climbed onto the hood of the car and moving to relax back against the windshield. Billy threw off his jean jacket before moving onto the hood beside Piper.

"Can't believe we're done." Piper sighed and closed her eyes rested back against the car "Don't have to go back to that hell hole ever again."

"We're still living in this shit town." Billy spoke "Speaking of I wanted to talk to you about something."

Piper opened her eyes and turned her head to face him. "What's up."

"Well...I wanted to talk to you about how I'm moving in a few months."

Piper frowned. "Yeah."

Billy moving back to California was something that he talked about constantly. Piper always hoped deep down that it was something that he was talking about and not actually doing.

"Well, I-I want you to come with me." Billy spoke softly, adverting his gaze away from her and towards the calm lake in front of them.

"What" Piper spoke in shock. "You...what?"

"I want you to come with me." Billy shrugged and looked back down towards her. "I mean do you really wanna stay in Hawkins forever?"

Piper quickly sat up and fully turned towards Billy. "No. I-I don't know...I don't really have a plan."

"Then come with me. To California." Billy smile and reached over and gently grabbed her hand.

"C...Can I think about it?" Piper sighed "That's a big decision, Billy. Like really big."

Billy's demeanor changed quickly and Piper knew almost automatically that his walls were coming up. She shifted quickly and moved to caress his face to have him look towards her, his blue eyes slightly hardened.

"Hey, that's not a no." She rubbed her thumb against his cheek. "I just wanna think about it. You have a life back in California, I literally only have my Uncle Jim left when it comes to family. I-I don't know if I'm ready to lose that right now."

"We would have each other." Billy sighed

"I know. And I don't wanna lose you either." She smiled slightly and brushed back his hair from his face. "I just wanna think about it."

Billy nodded his head and reached to grab her hand and kiss the inside of her palm gently. "Ok baby. I need to save up anyways. I don't leave till the fall. Gotta start that lifeguard job tomorrow."

"Ugh don't remind me." Piper rolled her eyes moving her hands down from his face.

"You coming to the pool?"

"Why? To watch you parade around for the middle aged moms of Indiana?"

Billy laughed louder and shook his head, before wrapping his arm around Piper's shoulder and pulling her back to rest against the windshield. Piper knew about the rumors and though she didn't believe them, didn't mean she liked hearing the whispers. Or the looks they got from some of the older woman around town. She knew that Billy was attractive, anyone with eyes was able to see that, but she didn't like other's looking at what was hers.

"You coming over for movie night with El?" Piper asked after a moment of silence.

"Of course." Billy smiled as he gently played with her hair. "I like spending time with the kid."

"She likes you too."

Piper closed her eyes and sighed with content as she rested her head on Billy's shoulder.

Piper walked into her room and threw her backpack into her closet, thankful to not need that for a long time, before changing quickly out of her clothes and into a pair of gym shorts and a tank top. Down part of the cabin was that there wasn't any air conditioning so it got hot, quickly. When she walked back out into the living room she found El sitting on the couch with a bowl of ice cream.

"Ice cream, again?" Piper laughed and sat down beside El.

"It's so good." El smiled and laughed softly. "Movies tonight right?"

"Of course. Billy's joining if that's ok?"

El nodded her head. "It's cool. He's cool."

Piper laughed "He is cool. You and Mike still doing good?"

A few weeks ago Mike and El had decided to no longer be friends and instead be boyfriend and girlfriend. Piper thought that it was adorable even though her Uncle Jim hated it.

"Yeah. Hopper won't let us hang out without the door being open. Is that...normal?"

Piper shifted in her seat to face El more. "Hopper is protective. Especially over us cause we're his girls. He see's you as his daughter."

"Daughter?" El looks towards her confused.

"Yeah. That's someone very special." Piper smiled towards her "Like family."

"We're family?"

"Of course, kiddo. Me, you and Hopper."

El smiled and set her finished off her ice cream before moving to place it down on the coffee table. "Since you're done with school, are you going to be able more to hang out and stuff?"

"Well as long as I'm not working at the movie theater at the mall, I'm all yours. Billy is life-guarding at the pool so we can go and hang out there too."

Piper sighed softly and rested more into the couch and turned towards the TV and watching the movie that El had on. Hours passed before night fell and a pizza was ordered. Piper sat on the couch placed against Billy's chest as a movie played on the TV screen. El sitting down on the floor in front of the coffee table eating a slice of pizza.

"This movie is supposed to be scary?" El asked as she watched. A teen was running down the hallway screaming and running away from the killer. "Nothing about this is scary."

"Damn, what could be scarier?" Billy asked

Piper and El shared a knowing look, quickly flashes of what happened at Hawkins lab flashing through their mind. But both quickly looked away before Billy could notice.

"I just think someone's watched one too many movies." Piper shrugged before moving to grab another slice of pizza from the box on the coffee table.

A few weeks passed and Piper found herself standing behind a theater counter wearing a black and red stripped polo and her hair tucker under a red baseball cap. Plastering a fake smile on her face as she passed out bucket after bucket of popcorn. She thought working in a movie theater would be cool, but she quickly finding out that it's the opposite. Piper pushed back from the counter and smiled as she looked towards the clock, seeing that it was time for her break.

"Hey, if Sanders comes looking for me, I stepped out for my break. Ok?" Piper spoke to her co-worker, before stepping back and quickly taking the cap off from her head.

As she walked through the lobby of the theater she tucked her name tag into her back pocket and headed straight towards the food court if Star Court Mall. The loud sound of people talking, children yelling and the annoying music playing in the speakers over head welcomed Piper as she walked through the crowds of the mall. When she saw the bright sign of Scoops A'Hoy, Piper quickly walked inside and smiled towards the girl standing behind the counter with a unamused look on her face.

"Don't you look like a ray of sunshine." Piper chuckled as she walked towards Robin and leaned against the counter.

Robin rolled her eyes and laughed. "You'd have this look on your face too if you were shoveling scoops of ice cream to children all day."

"Ugh. I am doing that but with popcorn." Piper looks around "Where's Harrington?"

"In the back."

Piper nodded her head and walked around the counter and through the small double doors to head into the backroom. When she walked through she saw Steve sitting at the fold out table in the back.

"Canon! What are you doing here?" Steve asked as she took a seat across from her.

"On break and I'm bored. Thought you could entertain me with your presence." Piper reached across and took a few chips from the small Ziploc bag that sat on the table.

"What could I possibly entertain you with? I'm working a job just as boring as you are."

She groaned slightly "I thought working in a theater was gonna be fun. Or at least a little fun. But my boss Sanders just has be shoveling out popcorn and candy to children."

"We can switch and you shovel ice cream to children." Steve laughed "Come on it won't be that bad once we have enough money in our pockets to do fun stuff this summer."

Piper sighed "Yeah I guess you're right. At least Jonathan is having the better job between us. I swear if I have to hear him able the paper for one more second my head is gonna explode."

"He's having that much fun?" Steve asked finishing off his lunch.

"He goes into full geek mode if you even mention the paper. His eyes light up and he won't shut up about it. I love the kid as if he were my own brother, but its starting to get to be too much."

"What about Hargrove?"

Piper shot him a confused look. "Since when do you care about, Hargrove?"

Steve shrugged "I may not really like the guy, but he's apart of your life."

Piper smiled and blushed slightly "Hargrove is good. And thank you for asking, Steve. Means a lot that you support me."

Steve smiled towards her before standing to throw his garbage away. Not long after the sound of the bell on the front counter ringing consistently could be heard from the back.

"What the hell is that?" Piper asked, while Steve sighed annoyingly and shook his head.

"Dingus! Your children are here!" Robin shouted from the front counter.

Piper quickly stood up and followed behind Steve as he pushed the back door open, both peeking their heads out to see Mike, Dustin and the rest of the kids standing at the counter.

"Really guys?"

"What!?" Mike shrugged and lead the group through the double doors "Piper wasn't at the theater."

"I'm on break." Piper spoke "And you gotta stop doing this. One of us is gonna get caught and we're gonna lose our jobs."

"Yeah, yeah." Dusting waved them off non-nonchalantly as Steve opened the back hallway doors for them, allowing them through and straight towards the theater.

"A simple thank you would be nice!" Steve shouted after them as they excitedly ran towards the theater.

"Thank you!" Max shouted back.

Steve shook his head before closing the back door tightly behind him.

"I didn't know you were sneaking them in too." Piper folded her arms across her chest. "Thought the kids and I had something special."

"They obviously only come here when you're not around." Steve shrugged.

The two of them walked from the back door of Scoops Ahoy and out to the front to join Robin. But shortly after stepping into the front did the entire mall encase into darkness. Piper looked up and around in confusion.

"What the fuck?" Piper spoke, turning around to see Steve flipping the light switch over and over again.

"That's not gonna work, dingus." Robin rolled her eyes, and even in darkness could see the annoyed look on her face.

But before another work could be spoken about it, the lights turned back on and the mall returned back to life.

"Weird." Piper spoke before shrugging "Gotta get back to work before Sanders has my head."

Piper sighed heavily and ran her hand through her hair as she stepped out of her truck, thanks to her begging and pleading she was able to get a car of her own. Of course her Uncle was making her pay for the gas and anything else it was gonna need. But now she didn't need to depend on Jonathan, Billy or anyone else for rides. She used the side mirror and adjust her hair and fix the slight smudge in her gloss before walking towards the community building. She sighed happily to the feel of the warm sun against her skin. The sound of the pool grew louder and louder the closer she got, the sound of children screaming seeming to be the sound of summer.

Piper passed through the gate and walked towards the woman's locker room, setting her bag inside, before stripping off her tank top revealing the bright yellow bikini top beneath it. She bit her lower lip nervously, not fully feeling confident in the slightly revealing bathing suit. Piper looked around and noticed the slender girls walking around the locker room, and then looked down at herself. She grabbed her towel quickly and used it as a shield around her curvier body.

When she walked out to the pool, she held her towel and book tightly in her hands, as she walked around towards the lounge chairs. Piper couldn't help but scoff when she saw the line of moms at the edge of the pool. Their hair was teased, hair-sprayed and lips painted. The damn Billy Hargrove fan club. As she found a empty lounger she threw her towel across the not plastic and slowly sitting down and taking the sunglasses from the top of her head and to her eyes to shield away the sun.

Piper looked towards the wall and saw that it was time for Billy's shift. Just like clockwork the girl moved down from her post and headed towards the office building doors, where soon following out was none other than Billy. Piper couldn't help but bite down on her lower lip and watch as he moved around the pool. Did she blame the fan club for drooling over her boyfriend? No. She she like it. Hell no. Piper looked towards them and shook her head as she watched them adjust and pose as he walked past them. Billy said a quick comment, one Piper couldn't hear from where she sat, before he looked towards her and smirked. She rose her hand up slightly and smirked back as she waved towards her. Earning herself a few glares from the fan club.

After a few hours later Piper decided to take full advantage of the sun and slipped off her shorts before moving the recliner back. She reached down and grabbed the sunblock and slowly started to rub it against her skin.

"Need help with that?" a deep voice spoke from beside her. She looked up to see Billy standing over her, his hands placed on his hips.

"Don't you have a pool to watch?" Piper smirked

Billy shook his head and pointed towards the other lifeguard sitting at the post. "Break time. Do you want help or not?"

Piper stood up and handed the bottle to Billy, before turning around and brushing her hair away from her back.

"Won't your fan club be disappointed that you're not giving them attention?"

"Be nice." Billy gently rubbed the sunblock over her skin, before turning her around to face him. "And I obviously only have my eyes on one girl."

"Oh really?" Piper cocked her eyebrow "Who is this girl? Should I be worried?"

"Oh she's perfect." Billy slowly raked his eyes down her body slowly "Very tempting."

Piper stepped closer to Billy, reaching forward to gently grab the necklace hanging around his neck. "How tempting."She looked up towards him through her lashes.

"You're playing with fire, doll." Billy's voice dropped lower

"Mmm, maybe I want to."

Piper reached up on her toes before leaning up and kissing him deeply. Billy quickly reaching down and grabbed her waist to steady himself, before deepening the kiss more. Piper slowly pulled away before looking up towards him.

"You working tonight?" Billy asked with a slight pant in his voice. Piper quickly shook her head.

"Meet me at Motel 6 tonight?"

"I have to pick El up from Mike's and then I can head over." Piper released her hold on his necklace but slowly moved her hand over his chest.

"Good, cause I think we need a little alone time." Billy moved to her ear and whispered softly "Bring that set you bought from the mall last week. Think it's time I get to see it on ya. No?"

Piper nodded her head before smiling towards him. "Think you better get back to work."

"You gonna stay and torture me?" He cocked his head to the side.

Piper laughed and shrugged "For a little and then I gotta head out."

"Alright, doll."

Billy bent down and kissed her lips softly before moving back towards the post, letting out a whistle as he watched another kid run across the length of the pool.

AN: Hope everyone is doing ok during the quarantine! Please leave a review with thoughts. I have most of season three planned out for Piper, Billy and the rest of the crew. Will update again soon!