The two teenagers had only been home for just over ten minutes when they heard the door swing open, surprising them both. Billy instantly jumped up from the couch as he saw his father and Susan enter. Krystal stayed where she was, drying her hair with a towel, as she and Billy shared a worried look.
"What the hell are you two doing here?" Neil Hargrove questioned, slamming the front door shut, hard.
"I was just…we…" Billy stuttered, as his father marched towards him, an angry look on his face.
"It's not even been a week and your playing hooky, you ungrateful shit?" Neil growled, shoving his son roughly.
"It's my fault. I wasn't feeling well this morning and Billy offered to look after me" Krystal announced, standing up.
"Yeah, she…she was throwing up all morning" Billy added, looking uncharacteristically nervous.
"You look fine now" Neil stated, suspiciously.
"Yeah, I do feel better. I slept most of the morning" Krystal replied.
"My poor girl. You should have called me at work" Susan insisted, walking over to her daughter, and brushing some hair from her face.
"Like I said. I feel better now" Krystal retorted, flinching away from her touch.
"It's only 1 pm now, you've still got lessons. So, get going" Neil ordered Billy.
"But-" Billy began but stopped himself when Neil raised a finger near his face.
"Don't answer back, boy. Go" Neil told him, pointing towards the door.
"You should stay off school, Krystal. I can make you that soup you always liked as a child" Susan offered, as Billy walked over to pick up his denim jacket.
"I'm fine really. I shouldn't miss anymore school" Krystal explained, as she went to stand next to Billy.
"Go on then" Neil dismissed, as the pair quickly began to rush towards the front door.
"Bye honey…" Susan trailed off, as Krystal slammed the door shut before she could finish her sentence.
Neither of them said anything as they walked over to the car, still expecting Billy's father to come running out of the house and beat them both to a pulp. Billy let out an audible sigh of relief once he got into his car and shut the door.
"Jesus, I thought we were dead meat back there" Krystal mumbled.
"Shit, what were they doing back so early?" Billy questioned, as he placed his hands on the steering wheel.
"My mum finishes work about this time…I guess he's picking her up now" Krystal bit her lip, recognising Neil's controlling behaviour.
"Billy?" Krystal questioned when she saw Billy's hands were shaking on the steering wheel.
"I need to go to the store. Pick up some flowers for Tina" Billy announced, as he started the car and began reversing out of the driveway.
"Good choice" Krystal smirked, as Billy opened the car door and she saw the bouquet of roses in his hand.
"They cost $35" Billy grumbled, as he threw the flowers into the backseat.
"Tina would accept nothing less. She always wants to be the centre of attention" Krystal explained, as she poured her purchases onto her lap.
"You know you're only going to school, not the runway" Billy scoffed, as he saw all the makeup she had bought.
"I may have lost my popular girl status a long time ago, but I'm not about to commit social suicide by turning up to school with no makeup" Krystal retorted, as she began applying mascara.
"Speaking of which…what's our next step?" Billy inquired.
"Our next step?" Krystal frowned, especially at the word 'our'.
"To throw King Steve off his throne and put me there instead" Billy clarified.
"You know you could probably become King of the school without pushing Steve off his pedestal" Krystal explained.
"Now, where would be the fun in that?" Billy smirked, as Krystal shook her head, fondly.
"He plays basketball most days after school, you get on the team, win over all his jock buddies and you'll be halfway there" Krystal informed him.
"Piece of cake" Billy mumbled, as he pulled out a cigarette from his jean's pocket.
"Oh yeah, because you're so easy to get on with" Krystal scoffed.
"I've won you over, haven't I?" Billy suggested as he lit the cigarette.
"I still haven't decided" Krystal responded, playfully, as she put on a barely there layer of lipstick.
Billy turned the engine on, as he could see Krystal was done with her makeup. He raised the cigarette to his lips and took a puff, his heart still racing from almost getting caught by his father earlier. He imagined he would have ended up with more than a few bruises if Krystal hadn't stepped in.
"What?" Krystal inquired when she saw he was staring at her.
In response, Billy raised his hand to brush his thumb across her bottom lip, brushing away the thin layer of lipstick. Krystal frowned as he did the same to her upper lip and noticed how his eyes refused to meet her own.
"You don't need it…the lipstick…" Billy trailed off, as he pulled away and placed his hands on the steering wheel, as he pulled out of the parking space.
Krystal did her best to calm her reddening cheeks, as she tried to decipher his actions. How did he go from hating her to touching her so gently in a few days?
Krystal's mind was still on her strange encounter with Billy when the locker next to hers was ripped open, dragging her back to reality. She and Steve had managed to get lockers next to each other ever since they started high school, so she knew exactly who was hiding behind their locker.
"Steve?" She questioned, as she saw his bruised knuckles clenched on the locker door.
"Look, I'm sorry about last night. I know you and Billy fought but…holy shit…" Krystal trailed off, as Steve closed his locker door so she could see his face.
He was covered in numerous cuts and bruises, not to mention a black eye that was forming. He had an especially nasty cut on his forehead, that Krystal expected was from the vase Billy had hit him with.
"Yeah, you should have seen my mum's face this morning" Steve huffed.
"Jesus, Steve. I didn't realise he'd hurt you so bad. Are you okay?" Krystal inquired.
"Are you sure you care?" Steve retorted.
"I'm trying to apologise to you, asshole. Let me" Krystal insisted, as Steve laughed, clutching his ribs as he did so.
"It's not as bad as it looks" Steve shrugged.
"Still, I'm sorry. I'll talk to Billy after school. Maybe even get him to apologise to you?" Krystal suggested.
"Yeah right" Steve scoffed.
"Okay, that probably won't be happen. In fact, it definitely won't" Krystal snorted, as Steve gave her an amused smile.
Meanwhile, Billy was on a mission of his own, as he leant against the locker next to Tina's, holding the roses close to his chest.
"Hey, beautiful" He greeted her, as she rolled her eyes in his direction.
"I know you're angry about last night but I'm here to make it up to you," Billy told her.
"With those cheap ass flowers? Please" Tina scoffed.
"C'mon, baby. I'll do anything…anything" Billy insisted, leaning in closer to her, his trademark grin on his lips.
"I'm going to have to pay for that vase out of my own allowance, Billy. That's like…three whole weeks!" Tina grumbled, as Billy inwardly groaned.
"Alright, I'm going to do something I don't usually do. Will you go on a date with me?" Billy asked as Tina frowned.
"I thought you said you don't do dating" Tina stated.
"I don't. That's how serious I am about you. C'mon, give me another chance" Billy went on, raising his arm above her head, so he could lean in even closer to her.
"Do I get to choose the date?" Tina smirked, as he nodded.
"You can pick me up at seven. We're going to the mall" Tina informed him, as the grin dropped from his face.
"The mall?" Billy queried, an irritated tone to his voice.
"And your going to buy me whatever I want…a lot more than those stupid roses," Tina told him, raising an eyebrow.
"Whatever you want, beautiful" Billy responded, pressing a kiss to her lips.
He grabbed her hips and twisted them around, so he was pressing her against the lockers, as he deepened the kiss, which caused a happy moan to come from her lips. Billy pulled away smugly, as he saw her lust-filled gaze and knew he had her right where he wanted her.
"See you at seven" Billy smirked, as he turned and began to walk away, the roses still in his hand.
As he rounded the next corner, he wiped his lips against his sleeve, noting that she was a slobbery kisser. He really didn't want to have to take an airhead like Tina to the mall that night, but if it meant he had a little more power over the school, he was willing to do it. Billy stopped in his tracks, as he noticed Krystal at her locker…in deep conversation with Steve. He gritted his teeth as he saw Steve place his hand on Krystal's shoulder, who looked uncomfortable at the action and flinched away from him. Billy remembered how she had reacted the same way to her mother's touch earlier that day. For some reason, she never seemed to do that with him. Shaking his head, Billy continued to walk through the corridor, going unnoticed by the pair.
"Sorry, I just…I miss you" Steve admitted, as he took his hand away from Krystal's shoulder, noticing her uncomfortable expression.
"It's not my fault we're not friends anymore, Steve" Krystal sighed, shutting her own locker.
"I know. It's mine" Steve nodded.
"Why did you drop me after what happened to my dad? Did you just not want to be around the depressed girl? Did you not care?" Krystal blurted out.
"It's not like that, I swear! I wanted to be there for you…but I just couldn't" Steve exclaimed.
"Seriously? That's the best you've got" Krystal huffed.
"I didn't want to put you in danger, Krystal. I did this for you" Steve told her, giving his best puppy dog eyes.
"Wow…you did this for me?! Billy was right. You are a prick" Krystal mumbled, as she shoved past him.
Steve sighed as he watched her walk away, wishing he could tell her the real reason why he had avoided her. But he feared it would only make her hate him more.
Steve's day was going from bad to worse as Billy continued to complete thrash him at basketball. He was starting to think Krystal's stepbrother had some sort of vendetta against him.
"C'mon, King Steve. Is that the best you've got?" Billy mocked, as Steve kept the ball close to him, watching Billy's every move.
"Not really seeing as I can barely see out of my left eye" Steve gritted out, as Billy smirked.
"I've got to say Harrington, this whole look…I think it's an improvement" Billy stated, ushering to the bruises and cuts on Steve's face.
Without a second's thought, Steve rushed forward, hoping to catch Billy off guard, but he instead found himself with Billy behind him, with his arm going underneath his own to keep him in place.
"Would you just shut up and play the game?" Steve insisted as he tried to keep the ball out of Billy's hands.
"I am playing the game" Billy responded, enjoying the way he was making Steve sweat.
"Your lucky that I haven't told anyone you're the one who did this to my face…it'd get you expelled" Steve explained.
"And then you'd have to tell them how it happened at Tina's party, where there was underage drinking and God knows what…meaning you'll fall even further down the social ladder than you already have. No one likes a snitch" Billy explained.
"Jesus, why are you so obsessed with me, Hargrove?" Steve scoffed, twisting them around as Billy almost caught the ball.
"It's my stepsister that's obsessed with you. And you're going to stay away from her" Billy warned him.
"Really?" Steve scoffed.
"Really" Billy retorted, as he kicked Steve's legs out from under him, quicker than anyone could have seen, and began dribbling the ball away from him.
Steve looked up from where he was on his back and saw Billy get the ball through the net with ease. He flopped back against the floor, exhausted and fed up when a hand was suddenly thrust in his face. Steve looked up with a frown when he saw the hand belonged to Billy. Reluctantly, he accepted the hand as Billy pulled him up to face him, roughly.
"If I see you talking to Krystal again, you're going to regret it. Stay away" Billy ordered, as he shoved him back to the floor, hard.
Steve slowly sat upright, his muscles aching as he did so. He really didn't want to go for round two against Billy.
The game was over by the time Krystal entered the gym, as she noticed the courtside seats were far more full than usual. Once she spotted Billy, she could guess why. His broad, tanned chest was on show, his usual necklace hanging from his neck. Krystal unconsciously licked her lips, rubbing the back of her neck when she realised what she was doing. Billy's eyes met her own across the court, a grin growing on his face.
"Hey" He announced, as he walked towards her.
"Hey" She replied, a smile growing on her own face.
Her attention drifted as she noticed Steve walking past the pair, not sparing Krystal another glance.
"He hates me" Krystal mumbled, as Billy rolled his eyes.
"So? He's been treating you like shit for the last year, remember" Billy insisted, as she nodded.
"True…c'mon, we need to go pick up Max. We're already like twenty minutes late" Krystal stated.
"I've got to shower," Billy told her.
"Your dad's gonna be pissed if we get home late" Krystal pointed out, as Billy knew she was right.
"So, how'd things go with Tina?" Krystal inquired, as she followed him into the changing rooms.
"I've got a date with her tonight" Billy smirked, not thinking anything more needed to be said.
"A date? Already? Someone's keen" Krystal suggested.
"Jealous?" Billy replied, raising an eyebrow.
"I've already been Queen of this school once before…it's overrated" Krystal told him, not really answering the question.
"Well clearly you've still got some of your old moves. It's like you said she wants to feel the centre of attention…special. I made her think I really liked her by taking her on a date, which I never do" Billy explained, as he grabbed his duffel bag.
"Oh, so I'm going to be partly to blame when you break her little heart in a couple of weeks when she realises you don't give a shit?" Krystal guessed.
"Pretty much," Billy said, smugly, as he placed his bag over his shoulder.
"Are you not going to put a shirt on?" Krystal questioned.
"I don't want to deprive the high school girls of checking out the hottest guy at school," Billy told her, as she scoffed.
Krystal bit her lip as she saw the clock strike 6:30 pm and was thankful that her mother and Neil were still not home. She had found a note from them saying that they had gone to some sort of community meeting, as Neil was clearly trying to get in with the locals. Krystal wondered whether they'd be able to see through his innocent exterior and see the monster underneath. The reason why she was thankful they were still out was because Max had still not arrived home. When she was nowhere to be seen when Krystal and Billy went to pick her up, they had guessed she had already skated home. Krystal had immediately grown concern when they found Max wasn't home either.
"She'll be fine" Billy announced, as Krystal turned around on the couch to the look at him.
Her response died in her mouth, as she looked at what he was wearing. She could tell he must have used half a can of hairspray to get his hair to curl so perfectly. His jeans looked even tighter than usual, not to mention his red shirt was barely buttoned. Realising that she hadn't said anything, she blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
"It smells like you've been marinated in cologne" Krystal teased.
"The ladies love it" Billy shrugged.
"I'm a lady, Billy" Krystal pointed out.
"And you definitely love it" Billy grinned, as he approached her.
"So where is this amazing date going to take place? Paris maybe?" Krystal inquired, as Billy placed his hands on the back of the couch, on either side her arms.
"The mall" Billy answered, with a sigh.
"Seriously? She is going to make you her bitch" Krystal laughed, loudly.
"I doubt that. I'm going to rock her world so hard tonight that she'll never even look at another guy again" Billy smirked.
"You better be careful walking out the front door…I don't think your head's going to fit" Krystal scoffed.
"Don't wait up" Billy stated, pushing himself away from the couch.
"She'll turn up, Krystal. She's probably just out with friends or something" Billy told her, as he stopped at the door.
"Yeah" Krystal nodded, gratefully.
It was just before nine when the front door finally opened to reveal Max, as Krystal was instantly on her feet. She crossed her arms and gave her sister an unimpressed look.
"I know, I know. I should have told you I was staying out-" Max begun, as Krystal cut her off.
"You know what this is, Max? It's a phone…people use it so their sisters don't spend the whole night worried!" Krystal exclaimed as she walked over to their landline.
"I just lost track of time" Max shrugged.
"That's not an excuse. What if something had happened to you?" Krystal pointed out.
"I'm not a little kid, Krystal. I can look after myself" Max rolled her eyes.
"You're thirteen, so no actually, you're still a kid" Krystal insisted.
"Does mom know I was missing?" Max inquired.
"No…she went out with Neil" Krystal answered.
"Figures" Max huffed.
"Who were you out with?" Krystal asked.
"Friends" Max mumbled.
"Jesus, you really are a teenager now, huh?" Krystal sighed.
"You were out all night yesterday; I didn't make a big fuss over that" Max stated.
"That's because I'm your older sister. Emphasis on the older" Krystal retorted.
"You know what, I take back what I said this morning. I miss when you were a mute" Max rolled her eyes.
"Max, I'm not trying to start a fight, but it's not safe to be out at this time of night. Hawkins is a dangerous place" Krystal explained.
"It's no more dangerous than California. Mom used to let me stay out late there" Max shrugged.
"No more dangerous? What about what happened to that Byers kid last year? Or my dad!" Krystal insisted.
"I know more about what happened to Will than you do…and your dad committed suicide, Krystal. I'm not about to blow my brains out, so no danger there" Max exclaimed, her eyes widening when she had finished.
Max cringed as she saw the hurt flash over Krystal's face before she instantly put her mask back on. Krystal turned on her heel and stormed towards her room, slamming the door shut so hard, Max was amazed it stayed on its hinges.
Late that night, Krystal was drinking from one of the bottles of vodka she knew Billy hid in his room, when the boy in question barged into her room, a grin on his face. Krystal flinched at the loud sound, looking away from Billy, as she placed the bottle back to her lips. Luckily, Neil and her mother were still not home, which Billy seemed to be aware of.
"I'm guessing the date went well" Krystal mumbled.
"She's not a great kisser, but her ass-" Billy began, but she cut him off.
"Woah, woah. Too much information" She complained as she felt the bed sink, as he sat next to her.
"What's up with you?" Billy inquired, noticing her red rimmed eyes.
"Nothing" Krystal shrugged.
"Did Max come home?" Billy queried.
"Yep," Krystal replied, as she took another swig of the drink.
"Hey, stop that. You're gonna' be hangover again tomorrow at this rate" Billy warned her, taking the bottle from her hand.
"Didn't you say I was less of a bitch drunk? And Max seems to like me more when I'm drunk too" Krystal sighed.
"Did that little shit say something to you?" Billy guessed.
"Don't call her that, Billy. She's just a kid. Doesn't know what she's saying" Krystal insisted, as Billy decided to drop it.
"C'mon, cheer up. If I become King of the school, I can probably get you reinstated as Queen" Billy said, nudging her.
"I don't care about that anymore" Krystal mumbled.
"Bullshit. Queen Krystal has a good ring to it, right?" Billy grinned, as Krystal shook her head, fondly.
"Maybe" She shrugged, as Billy suddenly placed something in her lap.
It was the roses that he had bought this morning. Krystal turned to look at him with a frown, confused as to why he was giving them to her.
"Tina didn't want them. And I kind of owe you for this morning" Billy exclaimed.
"You're being nice again…are you feeling okay?" Krystal teased, as Billy rolled his eyes.
"Well, I can take them back if you don't want them-" Billy suggested, placing his hand on the bouquet once more.
"No! No, I like them…thanks" Krystal smiled, grabbing his hand to stop him from taking them away.
Billy nodded in response, as he looked down at their hands, seeing that she still wasn't taking her hand away. Krystal felt a strange spark the moment she touched his hand and couldn't help but wonder if he had felt it too. She let go of his hand a moment later, as he quickly pushed himself up from her bed and left the room with an awkward expression. Krystal looked down to the roses that were still on her lap, with a genuine smile on her face. Maybe he wasn't so much of an asshole.
Author's Notes: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! This was a super long chapter, but I'm starting my new job next week, so expect all my stories to have shorter and more sporadic chapters from now on. Billy's darker side is going to be coming out more in the next few chapters, which means angst, of course. Please leave a review:)
Runaway Fantasy Princess: Aw, thank you! Glad you're liking it:)
Alessandra12: Thank you:) I hope you liked this chapter!