A/N — Hi! Just a brief note before the start of this chapter to reply to a comment I got. First of all, thank you to kksambo for taking your time to write such a lengthy comment! I really do appreciate it. I understand what you're saying: Lori indeed missed a lot of school in the first few chapters (because Will went missing, both her and Jonathan didn't go to school much if at all during that time), and since she went into the upside down and got stranded there she missed a lot of the action with the gang. She went through a very lonely and isolated experience. It was necessary however to put her through this, as will become more evident later on in the story! From here on out though, she will absolutely become much more involved with the plot, and more with the other characters, and I'm really excited to start fleshing that out. As for her dynamic with Billy and how he is portrayed in the show, and the horrible missed chances at his redemption arc, I couldn't agree with you more and I absolutely am going to attempt to rectify that. I won't give anything away on how I plan on doing it because spoilers, but I can tell you now that I too am a sucker for bad boys with a soft spot for the girl they love and I am a firm believer that Billy was shaped by his environment, and that the right influence can also reshape him :). There was also a question about how they got out of the upside down—it's the same as in the show! Hopper and Joyce go through the gate to find Will and Lori, they eventually find them and simply walk out again. It will be mentioned in future flashbacks in the story as well. Again, thanks for the comments and I hope you enjoy this new chapter!

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"Shit, shit, shit," I cursed under my breath as I hastily drove up the driveway to my house. The lights were still on and mom's car was still there, so maybe she hadn't actually left the house to look for me, like she had said she would. I parked the car and ripped the keys out of the ignition before quickly getting out. As I did, the front door opened and Bob appeared in the doorway, a relieved expression on his face.

"Jeepers, Lori, you gave us quite the scare. Are you alright? You didn't run into trouble, did you?" he asked as I walked up the steps of the porch.

"No no, I just forgot about the time. I'm really sorry…where is mom?" I asked after he stepped aside for me to enter the house, and I only saw Jonathan sitting on the couch. He didn't exactly look pleased either, but whatever was going on in his mind, he was keeping it to himself for now.

"She is out with Jim Hopper, looking for you."

My stomach sank and I groaned. I glanced at the clock hanging on the kitchen wall. It read 12:36. Okay, I shouldn't be surprised that she was out looking for me. I shouldn't even be surprised she had called Hopper, not after-

"What happened, Lori," Jonathan asked me in a hushed tone and I almost jumped. I hadn't noticed him getting off the couch and walking over. I looked over my shoulder and watched Bob walk over to the phone and dialling what I was assuming the number for the police station.

"Nothing happened, I just lost track of time," I said, which was actually exactly what had happened.

"Oh really, and what about why you left in the first place, huh? A project due tomorrow? We don't have any projects due tomorrow," he whispered, and I knew the excuse that I had initially given mom would not feel him. I groaned and sat down on the couch, running a hand through my messy waves.

"You didn't tell mom, did you?" I asked as I looked up at Jonathan.

"Of course I did, Lori, what was I supposed to do," he said, waving his hands defensively. "She was worried about you, rightfully so after everything that happened, I couldn't just lie to her."

"Yes you could, Jonathan!" I hissed, glancing over at Bob to see if he heard me, but he was now talking to whom I assumed was Flo from the police station. "Nothing is happening, there is no danger, all of that is in the past. I have friends who go out past their curfew all the time and that is never a problem."

"Well your friends didn't almost die less than a year ago," Jonathan argued. I knew he was right, but I hated feeling like I was in the wrong for simply being outside past midnight. I was almost 18 for crying out loud, when would I be allowed to go out and do normal things again.

"What were you doing anyway?" Jonathan asked then, calmed down a little as he sat next to me. "I know you weren't at Jenna's because mom called her house, and her mom said she hadn't seen you all evening."

"I was just by the lake down Pine Road. I needed to get out and just…be by myself for a while," I shrugged.

"And you sat there for four hours and lost track of time? Alone?" he challenged, clearly not believing that was the whole story.

"There was someone else too, a classmate. A transfer student, I've never seen him before but he will probably show up at school tomorrow," I added. I realized it kind of sounded like a fake excuse when I said it out loud.

Before Jonathan could reply to me, Bob walked over and put his hands on his hips, smiling down at us. "Flo let Hopper know that you're safe and well at home, so he and Joyce are on their way back here. Are you sure everything is alright?" he asked again, and I nodded up at him with a smile.

"Thanks, Bob. I really am okay," I reassured him. Bob stayed until the headlights of Hopper's truck shone through the windows, and he went out to greet mom. I nervously tapped my foot on the floor, waiting for the moment mom would get inside and start yelling at me.

When she did come in, instead of yelling at me, she simply quickly walked over to me with an exasperated "oh thank god!" and wrapped her arms around my head, pulling me against her belly. "Lori Byers, don't you scare me like that again."

"Mom, I can't breathe," I mumbled, my face pressed against her shirt, and she let me go then, sitting next to me on the couch.

"You have some explaining to do, young lady," she said, but then she turned to Bob."thank you for staying Bob, really. I know you have work early in the morning and you need your sleep, but-"

"Oh don't mention it, I'll be fine in the morning," he reassured her as he grabbed his coat. "You good here?"

By now, Hopper had also entered the house, and when our eyes met, I instantly knew he wasn't going to let me off as softly as mom had.

"Yes, we're good. I'll see you tomorrow," mom told Bob, and he said his goodbyes before leaving. As soon as Bob pulled the door closed behind him, mom and Hopper started talking at the same time.

"I was so worried, Lori, Jenna's mother said you weren't there, now why would you lie about something like that?"

"You gave your mother a real scare tonight, Lori, you should know better than to pull something like this. Don't forget that last year, you simply vanished into thin air at night as well."

I sat there and took it as they simultaneously told me off. I did feel bad and guilty about it, the last thing I wanted to do was to scare my family, but did they not understand that it really just was a misunderstanding?

"So, where were you, kid?" Hopper asked after taking a gulp of the beer Jonathan had offered him. He and mom were sat around the coffee table too now.

"I was just out, I needed some space," I said, looking at the table rather than meeting their gaze.

"Sweetie, if you didn't want to watch the movie with us, you could have just said so. You could have hung out in your room, or—"

"It's not just that, mom, I—" I started, almost mentioning the static that I kept feeling. If I told her about it now, all I would be doing was opening a whole new can of worms.

"I just need to get out sometimes, some real peace and quiet. I was just at a lake, a classmate was there, we talked for a while until I realized what time it was. I didn't mean to worry you or…do anything that I wasn't allowed to do," I tried to explain. I finally looked up at my mother and saw her look back at me with that look in her eyes that I saw so very often lately. A mix between worry and affection. I knew she was trying, really trying to let me have my space to live a normal life again. Just how long was it going to take before things actually would go back to normal, if ever?

"I got this, Joyce," Hopper said to mom, who clearly looked tired and probably needed a long, deep sleep to get over this scare.

"We'll talk tomorrow," mom said before kissing the top of my head and getting up to get ready for bed. Jonathan also left the room after saying a soft "goodnight", and it was just Hopper and I left. We sat in silence for a while as I looked at my hands and still tapped my foot. Last year's events—literally getting carried out of the Upside Down by Hopper—had left its mark on the family. It was an inexplicable bond that had formed between all of us, which now opened the door for a talk like this, despite him being the sheriff and not my parent.

"So…am I grounded?" I eventually broke the silence, daring to glance up at him. He looked me in the eye, not a glimmer of humor on his face.

"Don't try to get smart with me. You can't do something like this to your mom, Lori. She near had a mental breakdown when she called me. It's been hard for her—"

"It's been hard for me too," I interjected, starting to feel angry. Everyone was acting as if I had intentionally done something horrible, while all I had done was try to give myself peace of mind, taking care of myself in a way.

"She almost lost both you and Will, Lori. Now, I know what you went through was shit. But you can take it from me, that losing a child—or thinking that there is a chance that you could have lost them—is worse than having to be home in time for curfew."

I stayed quiet. I couldn't argue with that. Everyone knew that he had lost his daughter when she was only a kid, and I understood that it was something I probably never would be able to understand. Even if Will and I had both been alive in the end, there had been a while where mom didn't know whether she would ever see Will alive again, and after I had disappeared too, that feeling had doubled.

I sighed and leaned forward, my elbows resting on my thighs and my hands in my hair. "I know I messed up. I should have paid more attention to the time," I said before looking up at him. "I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize to me. Apologize to your mother," Hopper said as he got up from his seat and adjusted his belt. "Now go get some sleep, it's a school night."

After Hopped left and I had locked up the house and turned all the lights off, I went and got ready for bed. I hadn't felt this dreadful in a long time. I knew Hopper was right. To me this might have all seemed like a big overreaction, because I knew nothing was wrong, but the others didn't know that at the time. Will and I weren't the only ones left with scars, even if those scars might not be physically visible on everyone.

After brushing my teeth and changing into my pyjamas, I walked to Will's room out of habit, to check on him. He was asleep, probably not even aware of what had gone on tonight. I closed his door again and turned to go to my own room, when I stopped. I hesitated for a second before walking to mom's room and softly knocking on the door.

"Yes?" I heard mom say and I opened the door.

"Hey sweetie, are you okay?" she asked as she sat up in bed, only making me feel even more guilty.

"Yeah I'm okay," I said as I entered the room and closed the door behind me. It had been years since I slept in my mom's bed, but tonight I had the urge to, and I knew she wouldn't say no to me. I walked over to the bed and she pulled the sheets aside for me, apparently being able to tell just by looking at me that I didn't want to be alone.

"I'm really sorry, mom," I said after crawling in next to her and getting comfortable. "I shouldn't have lied to you about going to Jenna's. I just didn't want you to worry. I don't know if it makes you feel any better, but…nothing happened tonight, really. I was just by the lake with a classmate who also happened to be there. We talked and lost track of time. I didn't mean to make you worried," I said softly.

Mom smiled and reached up to caress my cheek. "It's okay, sweetie, I know you didn't mean to. Just know that you can talk to me, okay? About anything. And if you need to get out of the house and have some time for yourself, that's okay too. But you need to understand that I just need to be able to check on you," she said, and I nodded.

"No more secrets?" she added, and I smiled at her.

"No more secrets."

I didn't have any nightmares that night. All the better, because I would have to explain to mom what happened if I woke up in the middle of a night in a cold sweat. But I was more surprised by what I had been dreaming about. It was an exact reenactment of my evening with Billy.

"What's California like? I've never been outside of Indiana, let alone seen an ocean or anything like that," I had chuckled, taking a drag from the cigarette he had offered to share with me.

"It is warm, the weather is much nicer. It also doesn't smell like shit everywhere," he added, which made me look at him with a confused frown.

"What do you mean, smell like shit?"

"See, you've probably been conditioned to not smell it anymore since you've always lived here," he said as he cocked an eyebrow at me.

"Ah yes, that'll be it," I said with a snort as I handed him back the cigarette. "Did you hear about Tina's Halloween party tomorrow?"

"Sure did. Will I see you there?" Billy asked.

"Yes, but I won't have much of a costume, so I'll probably look stupid."

"God, Halloween parties here are still costumed? The suburbia in Indiana really lives thirty years in the past, doesn't it. Do your movie theaters show decades old movies too?"

I laughed at that and I could see a smile growing on his face too.

"Come on, it's not that bad here. Sure we're maybe a little old fashioned in some ways, but yes we do have new movies playing, and we have new songs on the local radio as well," I said im a tone that suggested it was incredibly impressive.

"Oh wow, well in that case, Hawkins really is the future, huh? Maybe it's you guys who are out here living in the new millennium. Does your car fly too?"

Our conversation went on like that, comfortable and effortless, as if I had known Billy much longer than just for a few hours. It wasn't until much too late that I had a curfew in the first place.

"I should head back home. I'm actually surprised you're out this late, your parents must be pretty cool for not giving you a curfew."

My eyes went wide and I jumped up from the hood, quickly leaning through the open window to check the dashboard clock. "Oh fuck…" I whispered.

"Yeah, about that… I do have a curfew, and I'm over an hour late. Sorry but I have to scram," I said as I opened the door and got into my car. Billy hopped off the hood as well and walked around front, to lean in my open window.

"Shame, I was actually having a good time," he said, flashing a grin at me. I was too busy trying to get the key to in the ignition to actively notice just how gorgeous his smile actually was.

"Hey, relax," he told me once I did get the engine to start, "you don't want to be driving in a frenzy, do you."

"Thanks, I'll be okay. It's not too far from here anyway," I said, looking up at him now. "And thanks for tonight, Billy. I kind of came out here to be alone, but this was nicer than sitting here by myself."

"My pleasure, darling," he said with a wink, before standing up straight and taking a step back. Again, maybe if I hadn't been mentally preparing for the sticky situation I would be in when I got home, I would have actually blushed at him.

I woke up from my dream then, roused by mom's alarm clock. I had actually slept trough the whole night without waking up even once. I was groggier than usual, since I had gone to bed quite late, but for the first time in a long time I had actually had good quality sleep. And there was no trace of the static feeling. Actually, now that I thought about it, I hadn't felt the static at all since Billy and I had talked on the hood of my car.

"Earth to Lori," Jonathan said when we were sitting at the kitchen table, eating our breakfast. I snapped out of my thoughts, still thinking about the night before.

"Is this because you met a new boy last night?" Will asked before shoveling a spoonful of eggs into his mouth. I raised my eyebrows and slowly looked from him to Jonathan. He shrugged and and focused his attention onto his food, which in turn told me that he had indeed told Will about me meeting the new transfer student.

"I just woke up, give me a break," I said before taking a sip of orange juice.

"If you're going to have a boyfriend now, are we still going to spend time together making art? Or brainstorming ideas for my D&D characters?" Will asked, and I almost snorted the orange juice up my nose.

"He is not going to be my boyfriend, I barely even know him. Besides, guys and girls can just be friends," I said, refusing to let him get any more of a rise out of me. Will pulled a face and quickly shook his head, clearly disagreeing with me.

"Come on Will, let's get you into your costume!" mom called from Will's room, and he quickly got up from his chair and sped to his room. I watched him run off until he disappeared around the corner, then gave Jonathan a look that could kill.

"Really? You tell him what shape your poop was this morning too?" I asked, still offended that he had to tell Will about my encounter with the new guy.

"Look, he asked what happened last night so I just told him."

I rolled my eyes and decided to drop it, eating the last of my eggs. By the time both Jonathan and I were done eating, Will had emerged from his room again dressed up as Egon from Ghostbusters. I would have made a joke about how nerdy he looked, but he looked so genuinely happy and excited that I didn't want to rain on his parade.

The three of us drove to school together, like we did every morning, and said our goodbyes on the parking lot. Classes went by slowly that morning, and I made sure to keep an eye out for the new guy, but I hadn't spotted him yet. Maybe he was in a different year than I—it would make sense if he was in Steve's year rather than mine, since he definitely did look older than seventeen—or maybe we simply hadn't had classes yet together.

"What's wrong, Lori," Jenna asked as I was staring off into space. Jenna, Steve, Nancy and I were spending a free period in the school library, and while they were either reading up on study material for the upcoming periods or working on homework assignments, I was constantly looking around and distracted, trying to spot the blonde I had met the day before.

"Oh, nothing. I just can't really concentrate," I said. It didn't help either that every now and then, I would feel a little surge of the static on the back of my neck, sending a shiver down my spine. It was normal by now, feeling it off and on throughout the day, but it never got any more pleasant. It was like an ever present energy that I didn't know how to turn off. After spending time with Billy it had disappeared for a while, but it had returned some time during the car ride to school.

I pretended to read for a while, still unable to actually take in what the information in my book said, when Nancy got up and went to sharpen her pencil. After a few minutes Steve went to join her, and not long after the both of them disappeared into one of the archive rooms. It had a window with blinds, but since they were open I could still see them as they talked. Nancy clearly seemed upset by something, while Steve attempted to calm her down. I nudged Jenna's arm and nodded towards the arguing couple.

"Do you think they've been acting strange lately?" I asked as Jenna looked up at me, then followed my gaze to look at our two friends.

"I thought it was just me who noticed it, but yeah, you're right. Do you think they're fighting?" Jenna asked. Not a second later, Steve walked over to the window and closed the blinds, cutting us off from the scene we had been observing.

"It looks like it…" I said, unsure if I should ask them about it. We mostly hung out together as a group, sometimes with Jenna, sometimes without. It didn't happen often, however, that I spoke to one of them individually. "I'lol ask Nancy about it later. I think she is still having a hard time after absorb went missing and maybe she needs someone to talk to."

I made a mental note to ask Nancy about it after class. I would be going home with her anyway, since we were supposed to get ready for Tina's party together. I was actually kind of excited to go now that I had gotten used to the idea. It had been a long, long time since I had gone to any party, and even though I had promised mom that I would actually be home by 11 that evening, sort of as a way of redeeming myself for the day before, that should give me enough time to let loose, dance and have a little bit of fun.

Steve dropped us off at Nancy's before driving home to get his own costume, while Nancy and I set out to find something for me to wear. Something neither of us had realised until there were piles of clothes on the floor, was that Nancy and I did not share the same size. I was only a size or two bigger than her, but that did mean it made it a lot more difficult to find something suitable to wear.

"Hold on, I'm sure my mom will have something," she said before disappearing out of her room. I was sitting on her bed, clothes scattered all around her otherwise tidy room, as I waited for her to come back. I spotted a picture of her and Barb on a cork board that hung on the wall, and remembered the conversation I'd had with Jenna earlier and how I meant to ask Nancy about her and Steve.

When Nancy returned with a bubblegum pink dress and a matching set of heels, I almost burst out laughing. "What is this supposed to be…" I said as I got up and took the items from Nancy, who smiled widely at me.

"Madonna… come on, Material Girl? The look is iconic," she assured me, and I turned to the mirror, holding the dress in front of me. It was definitely way too short, but then again, who cared. It was halloween, if there was a time to wear something like this, it was now.

"So, I've been meaning to ask you," I started as I took off my blouse. On days where I didn't have cheerleading practice, I didn't bother putting on my uniform, so I was just in my regular clothes today. "Is everything okay with you and Steve?"

I looked over my shoulder at Nancy when it stayed quiet for a few seconds, and I saw that the smile had disappeared from her face.

"I don't know… I mean yes, we're okay. It's just… hard for me to accept that everyone seems to be moving on with their lives like nothing happened, while Barb is … dead, and nobody knows but us."

My movements slowly came to a halt, leaving me in my underwear as I had just taken my pants off. I knew what she was talking about. Only a handful of people—the people who had been directly involved with the incidents in and around the Upside Down—knew what had actually happened to Barb. We knew she was dead. Everyone else, however, was still under the impression that she had simply disappeared, or most likely, ran off somewhere. Not only did Nancy have to deal with the loss of her best friend, but she also had to pretend not knowing she was no longer alive, and I couldn't imagine how difficult that must have been for her.

"Steve wants me to pretend to be normal, like everything is okay again, but I just can't," she said as she sat on her bed and let out an exasperated sigh. I pulled the dress over my head, worried that if I didn't cover up, someone could walk into the room while I was still half naked. The dress fit me well enough, and it definitely showed off the curves I had accumulated since hitting puberty. As much as I wanted to admire my generously revealed cleavage—and partially try to get over the slight discomfort of having my boobs on display—I sat next to Nancy and reached out to take her hand.

"I know I can't really understand what you're going through… but I do want you to know that I am here for you whenever you need to talk, okay? I know Steve means well, but…maybe he just isn't the right person to come to with everything that's on your mind," I said, giving her a genuine smile. She looked up at me and smiled back, giving me a firm nod.

"Thank you, Lori. I really appreciate that," she said as she took a few seconds to compose herself. She then pulled her hand back and got up from the bed, picking the pink heels up off the floor and holding them out to me. "Come on, let's see the whole look."

I put the heels on and stood up, wobbling around on the uncomfortable shoes before finding my balance.

"You look absolutely gorgeous. You're definitely turning heads tonight," Nancy complimented me, and I took that as my cue to finally admire myself in the mirror. I felt like I hardly even looked at myself, especially with the make-up we had out on before getting dressed. I looked like I belonged in a music video, with teased hair and bold eyeliner and a bright red lip.

"Actually, we need to get you a different lipstick, because this red looks awful with the pink. Oh, and we need pink eyeshadow!"

Just when we were both dressed and made up to our satisfaction, Nancy's mom called us down for dinner. I always found dinner at the Wheelers a little bit awkward, which was why I almost never ate there. The food was always a little under seasoned, I was never sure if Nancy's dad was an actual person or some kind of robot sent from the future—with how little he actually spoke or interacted with everyone else—and Nancy and Mike always had some sort of squabble at least once per meal. Today, however, everyone seemed to be in a good mood because of halloween, and even though Nancy had expressed her discomfort about keeping up pretences, she did seem in good spirits and ready to party.

Steve picked us up at 8 and drove us to Tina's house, which was positively huge. Nancy's place was already big in comparison to mine, but Tina's place took the cake, there were three stories and a basement, an actual pool in the backyard and the house was filled with expensive electronics and art. I spent the first half hour gawking at everything around me, never really having been to a house as fancy as this. Despite Tina also being on the cheer squad, we definitely were not friends, let alone did we visit each other's houses.

Nancy had been right. The dress was a head turner and I wasn't sure how to feel about it. I kept telling myself that it was just for the night and tomorrow I could go back to my cheerleading uniform being the most risqué clothing item I owned. Somehow every punch filled red solo cup also made me loosen up more, which was probably a sign that I shouldn't keep drinking it, but it tasted incredible and I kind of liked how relaxed it made me feel as well. Before I knew it, I was dancing with Nancy, Steve and Jenna, who had also made it to the party. I had long forgotten about both big and small worries—even the static was far from my mind.

It was like I was in a rosy haze, the music surging through my body, and I didn't snap out of it until there was a collective gasp from the people around us and everyone stopped dancing. I stopped too and followed everyone's gaze, my eyes focusing on Steve and Nancy—whom I hadn't even noticed aphid wandered off—by the large punch bowl. Nancy's white attire had a huge pink stain in the front, which I could only assume was gifted to her by Steve from the look on Nancy's face.

"Oh shit," I said under my breath as I watched the two of them walk off to the bathroom, and I turned to look at Jenna.

"I told you," she said with a shake of her head, "they're on thin ice."

"They'll be fine, it was probably just an accident. Knowing Steve he'll probably take her home."

We continued dancing, and I was about to go back for another cup of punch when I almost got knocked over by Steve, who seemed to be crying and was clearly in a rush to get out of the house. Nancy, however, was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, what's wrong with y—" I started saying to Steve, but didn't bother finishing my sentence, since he was practically already out the door.

"Damn…okay, maybe they won't be fine," I said to Jenna who had joined me by the table.

"I'll go see what's up with him. You go find Nancy," Jenna said before following Steve through the front door. I groaned and poured down at the punch bowl. I so didn't want to go find Nancy. I wanted to keep dancing and drinking this magical liquid, I didn't want to play mediator in another lover's quarrel, even if that might have been bitchy of me.

I was about to scoop another load of punch into my glass, when a shiver went down my spine so violently I almost couldn't stay upright. My whole body felt cold in matters of seconds, goosebumps covering every inch of my skin, and I felt a surge of nausea coming up.

"Oh no…" I muttered as I dropped the cup and put one hand on my stomach, the other over my mouth. I stumbled towards the stairs, knowing the downstairs bathroom would probably be busy, and decided I would have better luck finding privacy upstairs. I clumsily climbed the stairs and was surprised I made it without falling even once, desperately searching for the nearest bathroom. When I found it, empty to my surprise, I slammed the door shut behind me and dropped to my knees just in time for me to hurl my guts out inside the toilet bowl. Tears welled up in my eyes purely from the discomfort of throwing up, and after a few more waves of pink, my stomach finally settled enough for me to trust that I was done.

I pulled the handle to flush the toilet and pulled myself up on the counter, taking a look at myself in the mirror. Yep, I looked awful. My makeup was smudged, I had pink liquid on my chin and my vision was a little blurry. I pulled a face in disgust and turned on the faucet, leaning down to rinse my mouth and wash my face. It only made my make-up look even worse, but I didn't care at this point. The water on my face did make me feel slightly better, even if I was still shivering and had goosebumps everywhere. I hated it, I hated how it made me feel and how it always reminded me of the things I wanted to forget the most.

"Fucking great, Lori," I cursed at myself in the mirror, more tears coming to my eyes, but not from the nausea this time. "You basket case," I added spitefully before drying my face with a hand towel and pulling open the bathroom door. I hadn't expected anyone to be there, so when I almost walked into someone I nearly lost my balance and tumbled to the floor. Thankfully the door frame was there to catch my fall, leaving me half slumped over in the door opening.

A female voice giggled, followed by a snicker from a second person. "Damn, looks like someone had one too many drinks."

I recognised that voice. I blinked, trying very hard to get my surroundings to stop spinning, but I wasn't doing a very good job of it. When I did manage to get a somewhat clear image in front of me, I was looking at Tina, who in turn was hanging onto a guy's arm. Billy's arm.

"You look like hell," he snorted, and for a second I didn't understand his tone. Was he…making fun of me?

"I-I think… I think I had too much alcohol," I said, trying to express just how miserable I was feeling.

"Clearly. Unsurprisingly, with an outfit like that it would only make sense that you'd get shitfaced. If you stick around for a while, I'll make sure to give you a round or two as well. Unless someone gets to you first," Billy said, which made Tina giggle.

"Come on Billy, I'll make you forget all about her," she said as she pulled on his arm and led him down the hall. I looked after them, slightly stunned and blinking slowly. Had that been the same Billy I met last night? The guy who had told me about California, whom had shared cigarettes and laughed with me? I could hardly believe it, and a new kind of nausea now settled in my stomach.

I leaned down and, with much effort, took off the pink heels. I felt like attempting to go down the stairs in those shoes would guarantee a tumble down the full length of the stairs. I set out to get out of the house as soon as possible, steadying myself as best as I could as I walked down the stairs, when I remembered that Steve had already left and that I had no ride. By now I was pretty much ready to break down in tears, but if I hadn't already embarrassed myself enough tonight, I knew that would absolutely do the trick.

I walked out the front door and onto the porch, where more people were scattered about, talking and drinking and kissing. I was crying as I set out to walk home, not caring anymore that it was going to take me over an hour to get there, especially barefoot. I wanted to be anywhere but at that stupid party.

I barely made it down the street when I heard a car slowly come to a halt next to me. I groaned, really not in the mood to deal with any more bullshit tonight, and was planning to ignore the car, when I heard the driver's side door shut and someone hurry over towards me.

"Lori!" I heard a familiar voice say, and I had never been so happy to hear my name before.

"Jonathan," I mumbled, not even needing to look up to know that it was my brother who had found me, and I reached out to steady myself on his arm. I had miscalculated the distance between us, however, and almost slumped to the floor again, but he grabbed me by my arms and held me upright.

"Shit, Lo, you're drunk," he said, and I let out a loud laugh.

"Really?" I said sarcastically, obviously having arrived at that conclusion already.

"Come on, let's get you home," he said as he slowly walked me to the car and opened the back door. He helped me crawl in and I laid down, my eyes closed to keep myself from getting dizzy again. Jonathan walked around the car and got in the driver's seat again before slowly driving off.

"I'm going to have to make one stop before we go home, okay?" I heard him say and I groaned in protest, opening one eye. I then spotted Nancy in the passenger seat, who honestly looked just as wasted as me, and put two and two together. I didn't give him any more grief about it as he drove to the Wheeler's house and dropped Nancy off. Somewhere along the way I fell asleep, only to wake up again when we were home and Jonathan opened the door by my legs. He carefully helped me to sit up and get out of the car, then supported me as we walked to the house.

"Wait," I said as we were halfway up the porch, "mom can't know I got drunk…"

"It's a little too late for that now, Lori," Jonathan said, and I could hear the sympathy in his voice. Normally whenever I would do something stupid he would never back down from telling me to my face that it was indeed stupid, but I think that even he knew that being a smart as about it wasn't going to make things any better right now.

Mom was about as upset as I had expected her to be, but she was also sweet and made sure that I was decently cleaned up and had a fresh glass of water on my bedside table, as well as a bucket next to my bed.

"In case you think you can't make it to the bathroom," she had said.

After mom had tucked me in and left me to go to sleep, Jonathan came in to check up on me one last time as well.

"Hey," he said, "I just wanted to say goodnight."

He turned to leave again but I stuck my arm out to him and whined.

"Wait…" I slurred, still not close to sobering up. "Thank you…for helping me and not being mean about it."

He gave me a genuine smile. "Lo, I can tell when you're actually feeling like shit. I have no intention of making that worse. Tomorrow is when I do that," he added with a chuckle, and he actually managed to make me crack a smile with that as well.

"Goodnight, Lori."

"Goodnight, Jonathan."