Krystal woke up slowly the next morning, stretching her back, finding her head lying on a surprisingly soft pillow. She looked down when she felt a strange pressure over her abdomen, her eyes widening when she saw a tanned, muscular arm wrapped around her waist. She turned slightly to see none other than Billy Hargrove spooning her. As her mind slowly caught up to current events she started to panic. Krystal remembered sharing the bed with Billy, kissing him, feeling his hands all over her body…looking down she was relieved to see all her clothes were still on. Nothing more had happened than stolen kisses in the night. Her panicked movements seemed to have stirred Billy from his sleep, as she felt something hard pressing against her ass. With a deep blush, she jumped out from under his arm and ended up falling out of the bed. Billy woke with a start, his head snapping up just to see Krystal going over the edge. He raised a confused eyebrow before he seemed to realise he had a boner, his hands instantly reaching to cover his groin.
"Shit" Billy mumbled, grabbing a nearby pillow and placing it over his crotch.
"You should probably…" Krystal trailed off, gesturing towards the door.
"Yeah" Billy nodded, hoping he could find Murray's shower quickly.
He ripped open the bedroom door to come face to face with Murray, who had two plates in his hands. He looked down to the pillow covering Billy's lower half and had to bite his lip to stop himself from laughing.
"Good night, huh?" Murray queried, in an amused tone.
Billy opened his mouth to reply but couldn't think of a good enough answer. Instead, he stood there an awkward stuttering mess. What the hell was Krystal reducing him to?
"Can I use your shower?" Billy asked, finally finding his words.
"Up the stairs to your left…don't worry, the water always runs ice cold" Murray grinned, as Billy rushed past him, embarrassment clear on his face.
"You're an ass" Krystal exclaimed, as she walked over to him.
"Better than being in denial" Murray retorted, as Krystal took the plate of scrambled egg from him.
"Thanks for the food" Krystal murmured, before slamming the door in his face.
"You get through to your folks?" Murray announced, later that morning, after Krystal had asked to use his phone.
"Yep. They hadn't realised we didn't come home" Krystal scoffed, as Murray gave her a pitying look for a moment, before thinking better of it.
"C'mon, we better go before my dad throws a fit" Billy advised, ushering her towards the front door, which Murray opened for them.
"Thank you…for helping us" Krystal exclaimed, as she and Billy took a step outside.
"What can I say? I always root for the underdogs" Murray shrugged, with a grin.
"Do you think it'll work? Will people listen to the tape?" Billy couldn't help but question.
"I hope so" Murray replied, as the two teenagers took a step back, as he went to close the door.
"See you kids around" Murray stated, before shutting the door in their faces.
"Well…he's certainly a character" Krystal mumbled, turning on her heel and walking towards Billy's car.
"And that's putting it nicely" Billy mocked, as he went to unlock the car, and flopped down into the driver's seat.
Just as he went to put the keys in the ignition, Krystal reached out to stop him, placing her hand over his. She noticed how he flinched away from her touch instantly as if it burned.
"We need to talk about last night" Krystal announced.
"It was a stupid drunken kiss" Billy stated.
"Except it was more than just one kiss" Krystal pointed out, raising an eyebrow at him.
"Look, your hot, I'm hot…it was bound to happen eventually" Billy shrugged, making Krystal scoff.
"Well, it's not the first time I've wanted to kiss you" Krystal admitted, refusing to meet his eyes.
"It's not?" Billy asked, as Krystal shook her head.
"At the lake, if you had kissed me…I wouldn't have stopped you" Krystal admitted, not missing Billy's surprised expression.
"But I meant what I said last night. No one can find out about this. Ever" Krystal insisted.
"Trust me, I'm not going to shout it from the rooftops" Billy scoffed.
"What happens at Murray's, stays at Murray's" Krystal suggested, as Billy nodded enthusiastically.
"…Technically we are still at Murray's…" Billy trailed off, as Krystal turned to look at him, watching as his eyes dropped to her lips.
"This is wrong" Krystal gulped, as Billy leaned in closer.
"Very" He mumbled, pressing his lips against hers, hard.
Instantly, her hands were wrapped around the back of his neck, pulling him closer, wanting him as near as possible. Billy trapped her against the car door and his body, as he pressed a hand against the window for support. The chasteness from the night before was completely gone, now swapped for needy desperation. As Billy's other hand trailed down Krystal's waist, she felt butterflies in her stomach. It reminded her of how Nancy would describe her kisses with Steve. The knees weak, sweaty palms kind of kiss that would leave you breathless. Any thoughts about Steve or Nancy were quickly abandoned as Billy bit down on her lip, earning a breathy moan from underneath him. Deciding he wanted to hear the sound again and again, Billy began peppering kisses down her neck, nipping at a particularly sensitive spot that made her grip onto his arms—
A loud knock on the door shocked them both, as Billy looked up to see Murray standing beside the car through the fogged-up window. The teenagers quickly sprung apart, Billy returning to the driver's seat, as he looked away from the man outside. Awkwardly, Krystal began to wind down the passenger seat window, finding Murray standing there with a large grin and a bottle of vodka in his hand.
"I thought you two might need some entertainment for the road…but it seems like you've got that covered" Murray teased, watching as the pair blushed deeply.
"If you tell anybody about this-" Billy began, but Murray cut him off quickly.
"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me. Good luck…I think you'll need it" Murray advised, handing Krystal the bottle of vodka.
"Oh…and if you need to contact me again…don't" Murray announced, before turning on his heel and walking back to his home, leaving both teenagers stunned.
Krystal cursed under her breath as the doorbell to the house rung, causing her to lose her grip on the nail varnish she was using, as it splattered to the floor. She picked it up quickly, glad to see there was only a tiny mark. She brought her hands closer to her face and was pleased to see the nail varnish hadn't smudged. It must have been almost a year since she had painted her nails, she mused as she blew on them. It had nothing to do with her earlier encounter with Billy. Nor did the fact that she knew he'd like the deep red colour on her.
"Max, are you gonna' get that or what?" Billy yelled as Krystal rolled her eyes.
Usually she would be more than happy to answer the door, but she hadn't left her room all morning. She had heard Billy shuffling around in their living room earlier, effectively trapping her in her room. How could she look her stepbrother in the eye now?
"Okay!" Max shouted, in an annoyed tone.
"Swear to God, Max…" Billy insisted as they could both hear her bedroom door hadn't opened.
Deciding enough was enough, Krystal pushed herself up from her bed, and walked out of her bedroom just in time to see Max storming over to the front door. She cleared her throat loudly to get the pair's attention. Max gave her a confused look, as she crossed her arms. Billy on the other hand, placed the heavy weights down he had been using, sweat glistening over his tanned body. Krystal didn't miss the way he looked her up and down, his eyes landing on her painted nails quickly.
"Seeing as Max saved your ass yesterday; don't you think you should be a little more grateful?" Krystal suggested, watching as Billy took a long drag from his cigarette.
"You're so right, Krystal. Max, could you please…answer the damn door" Billy exclaimed, making Max scoff.
"I think that's the best you're going to get" Krystal stated, as Max turned on her heel and ripped open the front door.
"Nice nails" Billy mumbled, as he leaned down to pick up the weights once again.
"You've been doing that all morning" Krystal pointed out, ushering towards the weights.
"What can I say…I have good stamina" Billy grinned, a cigarette hanging loosely from his lips.
Neither of them noticed Max had slammed the door shut behind her when she saw who the visitor was, as the teenagers were too distracted. Billy watched smugly as Krystal's cheeks grew a pink colour.
"Or maybe you're just overcompensating" Krystal teased, her eyes following Billy's rippling muscles as he pulled the weights up.
"As you could probably tell this morning, there's nothing small about me, Krys" Billy smirked, his eyes snapping up to meet hers.
"Stop it" Krystal scoffed, crossing her arms.
"Stop what?" Billy asked, innocently.
"Flirting. We're not at Murray's anymore. Max is right outside that door" Krystal pointed out.
"Max has already figured it out-" Billy began, but she cut him off.
"No, she hasn't! Because there is nothing to figure out. It was a moment of madness. And that's the end of it" Krystal insisted, marching over so that she was standing right in front of Billy.
"Fine" Billy scoffed.
"Fine!" Krystal replied, as the front door re-opened.
"Who were you talking to?" Billy inquired, as he put the weights back down.
"Mormons" Max shrugged, as Billy and Krystal shared a look.
"Max?" Krystal exclaimed, knowing when the ginger was lying.
"…It was one of the boys from school. Lucas" Max admitted.
"I told you to stay away from them!" Krystal gaped, as Max rolled her eyes.
"He's my friend. And I can hang out with who I want" Max told her.
"There are certain people you stay away from in this world, Max. And he's one of them" Billy warned her, as Krystal nodded.
"Exactly, he's…wait, why are you saying it like that?" Krystal frowned.
"Because he's a racist prick" Max mumbled, under her breath as Krystal's eyes widened.
"Seriously, Billy? What the hell does the colour of his skin matter?" Krystal glared at him, crossing her arms.
"Wait, that's not why you want me to stay away from him?" Max questioned, growing confused.
"No! Of course not. He's mixed up in what happened to the Byer's kid last year. That's what I'm worried about" Krystal explained.
"Okay, well I'm just going to leave you two to your lover's spat" Max murmured, as she went to walk away, as Krystal's jaw dropped.
"That's not…we weren't…" Krystal stuttered as Max's door slammed shut.
"I told you she knows" Billy shrugged, as he picked up the weights again.
Krystal was laid on her bed a few hours later, trying to distract herself by reading a magazine. But once again her mind wandered to Billy. She couldn't understand how she had gone from hating him to being desperate to be near him so quickly. He was so goddamn intoxicating. Groaning, she threw her magazine down on the bed and wandered over to her bedroom door. She wasn't sure where she was going, but she needed to get out of the house before another mistake happened. She came to a halt when she opened the door to find the boy in question standing there, his hand outstretched as if he had been reaching for the door handle.
"I found your sweater in my car" Billy announced, handing it to her.
"And you were creeping outside my door just for that?" Krystal questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"My whole damn car smells like your perfume" Billy pointed out, as Krystal blushed thinking about how she had dowsed herself in the spray the day before when she had been planning for Billy to take her for a ride.
"What do you want? Me to apologise?" Krystal scoffed, as Billy took a step forward so that he was standing in her room.
"You know what I want" Billy told her; his voice suddenly much lower.
"Well, I'm not about to make out with a racist prick" Krystal exclaimed, making Billy groan.
"Look, it's not that I…people talk, okay? If they see Max hanging around with someone like that-" Billy started, but Krystal cut him off.
"Do you realise how much you sound like your dad right now?" Krystal pointed out, watching Billy's forehead wrinkle.
"You want to make out with your stepsister and you're judging Max for who she likes?" Krystal went on, as Billy cringed at the implications.
"I guess my dad has finally succeeded in screwing me up, huh?" Billy stated.
"You don't have to be like your dad, Billy. You can be better" Krystal insisted.
No one had ever said that to him before. They all assumed he would turn out like his dad, no matter what. It was his worst nightmare and he had no idea how to stop it. So why did Krystal see that?
"I want to be" Billy admitted, in a small voice, surprising Krystal with his vulnerability.
Krystal inwardly groaned as she realised his confession only made her want to kiss him more. There was so much more to Billy than most people realised. Being the only person allowed to see his vulnerable side made her heart flutter.
"Why did you kiss me yesterday?" Krystal blurted out; the question having been on her mind.
"Because I wanted to" Billy replied, making Krystal scoff.
"…Right, well if that's all then-" Krystal was cut off as Billy took another step forward until their faces were only inches away.
"Because I can't stop thinking about you" Billy admitted, his eyes falling to her lips.
The next moment, his lips crashed into hers, his hands tangling into her brunette hair. She kissed him back breathlessly, raising her arm out to slam the door shut behind them. Billy took advantage of this and twisted them around so that she was pressed firmly against the door, his hands slipping from her hair and trailing down her waist. Krystal felt feverish as she felt Billy's hand slip under her shirt, her skin burning underneath his fingertips. She wanted more. Pulling her hands away from where they had settled on his neck, she pulled away from the kiss momentarily, to attempt to pull his white shirt over his head. Billy assisted her quickly, throwing the shirt across the room, and grabbing her hands. He pulled them above her head, effectively pinning her hands to the door, as he started kissing down her throat, finding the sensitive spot that made her moan. Not being able to use her hands, she wrapped one of her legs around him, pulling him closer to her, as she felt him grow hard against her.
"Guys, we're home!" A familiar voice called out from the living room, as the teenagers pulled apart.
"Shit, shit, shit…" Krystal mumbled as she pushed Billy off her.
She could believe that they hadn't heard Neil or Susan returning home, or the fact that for once they were home on time. Billy quickly rushed across the room, picking up his discarded shirt, and throwing it on. Krystal smoothed down her hair and wiped her lips with the back of her hand. She was hoping that Billy could sneak back to his room when the door was suddenly opened by a confused looking Susan. She looked in between her daughter and stepson, not missing their guilty looks.
"Stop leaving your shit in my car!" Billy suddenly exclaimed, picking up the jumper on the bed and throwing it at Krystal.
"Jesus, would you calm down! Are you on your period or something?" Krystal rolled her eyes, going along with Billy's scene.
Neil wasn't far behind Susan, an angry expression on his face, as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"What's wrong?" Billy questioned.
"Why don't you tell us?" Neil retorted as Billy gave him an exasperated look.
"Because I don't know" Billy stated.
"We can't find Maxine" Susan announced, as Krystal felt her blood run cold.
"What?" Krystal gaped, as she shared a look with Billy.
"And her windows open…where is she?" Neil inquired, looking towards his son who was supposed to be keeping an eye on Max.
"I don't know" Billy admitted, a hint of worry in his voice.
"You don't know?" Neil scoffed.
"Her friend stopped by the house earlier. Dammit, she must have sneaked out" Krystal realised.
"Sneaked out? You were supposed to watch her" Neil accused, stepping into the room, rubbing a hand over his face.
"I know, dad, but I was cleaning out my car and Krystal keeps leaving her shit in it-" Billy began, wanting to keep going with the story.
"So, that's why you were in her room with the door closed?" Neil went on, seeing his son freeze for a moment.
"We were arguing" Billy retorted.
"That's funny. Because I didn't hear any arguing. Did you, Susan?" He questioned, turning back to her.
"…No" Susan agreed, in a small voice.
"So, what were you really doing in here?" Neil insisted, looking in between the two teenagers.
"I was trying to be the mature one and give him the silent treatment, but clearly he doesn't-" Krystal began, but Neil cut her off instantly.
"I didn't ask you" Neil snapped, as Krystal shut her mouth quickly.
"I have been looking after Max all week, dad! If she wants to run off, that's her problem, alright? She's thirteen years old! She shouldn't need a full-time babysitter!" Billy pointed out, wanting to change the subject.
"And she's not my sister!" Billy couldn't help but blurt out, a moment later.
In the blink of an eye, Neil had lunged at his son and pushed him against a nearby cabinet, not caring how rough he was being. Krystal took a step forward, worried that things were going to turn ugly quickly.
"What did we talk about?" Neil questioned, holding onto the collar of Billy's shirt.
When he got no reply from the younger boy, he hit him across the face, making Billy's head bang into the cabinet. He quickly grabbed his son by the chin and forced him to look up at him.
"Stop it!" Krystal gaped, shocked that Neil would hit his son in front of them.
"What…did we talk about?" Neil repeated as Billy glared at him.
"Respect and responsibility" Billy replied, meeting his father's gaze steadily.
"That is right" Neil nodded, his grip around his son's throat tightening, as Billy knew it would leave a bruise there.
"Let go of him!" Krystal insisted, worry for Billy clear in his voice.
"Stay out of this, Krystal. Unless you want to be next…" Neil warned her, as Krystal gulped nervously.
"Don't talk to her like that!" Billy snapped, as Neil raised an eyebrow.
Before Billy could say anything else, Neil's fist collided with his cheek, his other hand still gripping him tightly by the neck. Krystal gasped as Neil continued the assault, moving his fist to punch Billy repeatedly in the stomach, leaving him too winded to fight back.
"Mom! Mom, do something!" Krystal cried, rushing over to Susan and gripping onto her arms.
"Just…stay out of it, Krystal. You'll only make it worse" Susan mumbled, as Krystal's jaw dropped, unable to believe what her mother had said.
Shoving the older woman away from her, she stormed over to Neil, who now had Billy on his knees. She rushed forward as Neil kicked Billy in the ribs, throwing him into the cabinet with a sickening thud.
"Stop it. Stop it!" Krystal yelled, as she grabbed Neil's arm, which was raised in the air, ready to strike.
With an annoyed growl, Neil pushed her away from him roughly, not realising how close she was. His elbow connected with her face, hard, striking her in the nose as she stumbled back. Susan let out a cry as her daughter clutched at her face, making the two men on the floor turn around. Neil allowed a sliver of guilt to fall across his face as he saw that Krystal's nose had begun dripping with blood.
"…That was your fault" Neil exclaimed, pushing himself up from the floor.
Krystal glared back at him, a dark look in her eyes. Billy gaped at the scene in front of him, as he tried and failed to push himself upright. He couldn't believe his dad had hurt Krystal.
"Neil…please" Susan announced, holding out her hand.
"You're going to leave this house now and you're not going to come back without Max. Isn't that right?" Neil ordered, his gaze landing on his son on the floor.
"Isn't that right?!" Neil yelled, not caring as tears filled in Billy's eyes.
"Yes, sir" Billy mumbled, trying his hardest not to cry.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you" Neil sighed in annoyance, gritting his teeth.
"Yes, sir" Billy replied, more forcibly this time.
"Find Max" Neil insisted, turning on his heel, refusing to look at Krystal as he did so.
He took Susan's hand and pulled her away from the room roughly, who had been looking at the bruised and bloody teenagers guiltily. Billy finally allowed the tears that had been welling in her eyes to fall once his father had left.
"Fuck" He sobbed, clutching at his bruised chest.
"Billy…" Krystal trailed off, rushing to his side.
"Are you okay?" Billy questioned, watching as she wiped away the blood from her nose that was still dripping.
"No…are you?" Krystal asked, pulling his arm over her shoulder.
"No" Billy replied, as she helped pull him upright.
Billy couldn't help but cry out in pain as his bruised muscles flexed, and for a moment he worried he could have internal bleeding. The pair quickly stumbled out of the house, Billy leaning on Krystal gratefully, as he wasn't sure he would be able to stand otherwise. His father had never attacked him so badly. Not ever. Krystal was careful when helping him get into his car, grimacing as he groaned in pain. She rushed over to the passenger's side and slammed the door shut, letting out a deep breath she hadn't realised she had been holding. Before she knew what she was doing, tears started to leak from her eyes, as she quietly sobbed. She had never felt so helpless. She heard a rustling beside her and suddenly there were tissues being thrust in her face. She was grateful how dark the car was, as she tried to mop up her tears.
"…Are these your wank tissues?" Krystal inquired, after a moment, hearing a chuckle from beside her.
"Yeah" Billy laughed, as she threw the box towards him.
"You're so gross" She giggled lightly, as he started the car up and pulled out from the driveway.
Neither had ever been more relieved to leave the house.
Author's Notes: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Sorry that this chapter took longer than usual, but I think it should have been worth the wait. Also, I hate Neil. That is all. Please leave a review:)
LoveFiction2019: Thanks for the review! I know, you could cut the tension with a knife, couldn't you? Haha.
Guest: Aw, thank you:) What part of this story do you like the most?
Guest: Thank you for the review! I'm glad you're liking Murray and their interactions, he's such a fun character. Enjoy this new update:)