Billy lounged against the Camaro, taking a long drag of his cigarette, as he closed his eyes, feeling the cold wind of the night brush against his face. He expected he would get through his whole packet of cigarettes before the night was done. As punishment for all the times they had played hooky around Halloween, Billy and Krystal had been roped into helping out at the Snow Ball. It wasn't so bad, it got him away from his dad, and meant he got to spend more time with Krystal. Over a month had passed since their first kiss, and Billy's interest in her still hadn't dwindled, in fact, it had only grown stronger. He looked forward to seeing her, something that he had never experienced before. Neil tried to keep the pair apart at home, but there wasn't much he could do at the school. Krystal and Billy had become practically joined at the hip the moment they entered school property. It was still half an hour until the Snow Ball was set to start, which had given him enough time to collect an anxious Max from home, giving Krystal the time to change into her dress. Billy's eyes snapped up as he heard the hall door open, and the girl on his mind started to approach him. Billy let his eyes trail down the dark blue dress that puffed out around her waist, finishing just above her knees. Two small straps covered her shoulders, giving the dress an almost square neckline. Krystal grinned as she saw Billy checking her out, happy that she was getting the reaction she wanted.

"What do you think?" Krystal raised an eyebrow, as she came to stand in front of him.

"It's a pretty dress…but you'd look even better out of it" Billy smirked, mischievously.

An indignant cry cut off Krystal's giggles, as Max shoved the back door of the Camaro open, looking a little green.

"You two are gross" Max muttered, crossing her arms.

"Says the girl who's been making googly eyes at Lucas all week" Krystal teased, as Max gave her a look of disbelief.

"Sinclair's the reason you've been so huffy all night?" Billy scoffed, unimpressed, throwing his cigarette on the ground.

"Max, just ask him to dance. You've taken on dogs from hell, a school dance won't kill you" Krystal insisted, but Max still didn't look convinced.

"…What if he says no?" Max mumbled, looking down at her shoes.

"Then he's an idiot and you'll find another boy who'll dance with you," Krystal told her.

"I could always threaten him if you want…" Billy trailed off, seeing how Max glared at him.

"Kidding! Jesus Maxine, just suck it up and ask him for Christ sake" Billy shook his head.

"Alright, alright! I'm going" Max exclaimed, as she began to make her way towards the school hall.

Krystal went to follow her sister, but Billy held her back as he saw a familiar car driving into the parking lot. Krystal frowned when she watched a grin spread across Billy's lips, and realised it was Steve's car that was stopping a few metres away from them.

"What's that look for?" Krystal inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Wait and see" Billy smirked, as the passenger door opened.

Dustin quickly exited, clutching at his stomach as he burst into a fit of laughter. The door was slammed shut from the inside, as Dustin turned to walk towards the hall, still in a fit of giggles.

"Steve?" Krystal called out, as she saw him trying to hide behind the steering wheel.

"Come on out, Harrington" Billy exclaimed, sauntering forward and banging lightly on the hood of the car.

With a loud groan, Steve slowly opened the car door and stepped out, crossing his arms as he did so. Krystal's mouth went slack as her eyes trailed up, instantly seeing what Dustin was laughing about. She practically screeched with laughter, tears of amusement welling in her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah…hilarious, right?" Steve huffed, as Krystal clutched at her stomach.

"Guess you need to pay more attention when you're spraying your hair with that girly stuff, huh?" Billy grinned.

Krystal quickly put two and two together, realising from the red highlights that now coated Steve's hair, that Bily must have changed the Sarah Fawcett spray with what appeared to be a paint can.

"It's not even that bad-" Krystal began but started giggling again before she could even finish the sentence.

Billy and Steve had started a prank war a couple of weeks ago, neither of them remembering how it started now. A couple of days ago, Steve had stepped things up by removing all the screws in Billy's classroom chair. The result was Billy falling on his ass at the start of a lesson, resulting in a rare blush from the boy as everyone almost passed out from laughing. It seemed like this had been Billy's response.

"You done?" Steve rolled his eyes, as Krystal bit her lip.

"Uh huh," She nodded, rubbing her eyes which had filled with tears.

"You just wait till Monday, Hargrove! Just wait!" Steve grumbled, pointing a finger, making Billy's grin grow wider.

The pair burst into laughter again as Steve crouched down to get back into his car, mumbling about how he was going to make Billy pay. The playful rivalry between them had become a welcome distraction to Billy recently, helping to get his mind off the difficulties at home.

"C'mon, we better go in before they think we're playing hooky again" Krystal announced, grabbing Billy's hand.

"I think I'd rather stick a fork in my neck" Billy sighed.

"Oh, don't be so dramatic. It's just a bunch of thirteen-year-olds. How bad can it be?" Krystal suggested, dragging him towards the hall.

"What's in this?" A small boy with glasses questioned, as Billy poured some punch into a glass.

His only response was to glare at the boy, who backed up a few steps, raising his hands up.

"Uh…n-never mind" The boy replied, his brow sweating as he rushed away.

Billy grumbled under his breath as he continued pouring the foul-smelling punch into the cups, wondering how his life had gotten to such a low point.

"Cheer up, pal. It might never happen" A male teacher exclaimed, as he reached over and took one of the cups.

"It has happened, pal" Billy spat back, with a mocking tone.

The teacher audibly gulped as he walked away, obviously becoming uncomfortable under Billy's a thousand-yard stare. Jesus, he really needed a cigarette. Billy scanned the crowd for Krystal, finding her walking through the streamers to the side of the hall, and wondered where she was going.

"Why are you crying?" Krystal inquired, as she stopped in front of Dustin, who quickly rubbed at his eyes.

"I…I'm not. It's just uh…allergies…" Dustin stuttered as Krystal came to sit beside him.

"Ah, those pesky things" She nodded, as Dustin sniffled.

"…None of the girls will dance with me" Dustin admitted, his eyes downcast.

"Well, that's not quite true" Krystal informed him, holding out her hand, as he stared at it in confusion.

"C'mon, don't make me drag you out there" Krystal insisted, reaching out to hold his hand.

She led him onto the dancefloor, as his eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head. Dustin's mouth went slack as she placed his small hands on her waist, pulling him a little closer.

"I don't know how to dance" Dustin blurted out.

"Neither do I. But who cares?" Krystal shrugged, as they started to sway to the music.

"Why are you being nice to me?" Dustin frowned, as Krystal placed her arms over his shoulders.

"I know what it's like to get rejected. It sucks. But you want to know a secret?" Krystal questioned, as Dustin nodded quickly.

"If someone can't see how special you are, then it's their loss. You don't need some stupid girl, Dustin. You fought against a demonic entity from another universe and won. You…are badass" Krystal insisted, as Dustin gave her a toothy grin.

Krystal saw a familiar figure in her peripheral vision and turned to see Billy staring at them, with a sad expression on his face. She thought a moment he was stupidly feeling jealous, but as her own shoulders deflated, she quickly realised the real cause.

"You wish you could dance with him?" Dustin queried, watching where Krystal's eyes had landed.

"It's not gonna' happen. He'd probably have two left feet anyway" Krystal shrugged, looking away from Billy's intense gaze.

"He wants to dance with you," Dustin told her, as a thoughtful look grew on her face.

"You think?" She asked as Dustin nodded.

"Max says he'd do pretty much anything for you" Dustin replied, watching Krystal grin.

Billy shoved the streamers out of his way, as he went to sit on one of the benches at the corner of the hall. He grabbed a flask from his back pocket, about to bring it to his lips when he heard a boy's mocking voice distract him.

"Poor Zombie boy, no one will dance with a freak like you? Boo hoo" A boy exclaimed, as he came to stand in front of Will a few metres from where Billy was sitting.

Will gave no response, simply fidgeting with his fingers, as he wiped at his nose.

"Oh god, are you crying? Did I hurt your girly little feelings? You really are a fag-" The boy began but was quickly cut off by a loud shout from Billy.

"Hey, asshole!" Billy yelled, pushing himself up from the bench and storming towards him.

"I…I was just…" The boy stuttered as Billy loomed over him.

"Fuck off" Billy told him, as the boy did what he was told, almost tripping over his own feet.

"…Why didn't you say anything?" Billy questioned, turning to a surprised Will.

"What?" Will mumbled, confused as to why Billy was even speaking to him.

"You don't stand up for yourself and dicks like that are going to walk over you your whole life" Billy explained.

"I don't want to fight" Will shrugged, as Billy slumped down beside him.

"Well, the world's not really going to give you a choice not to, kid" Billy exclaimed.

"I deserve a lot worse than being called a…you know…" Will muttered, his eyes downcast.

"No one deserves that" Billy scoffed, bringing the flask to his lips and taking a swig.

"You've been called…that before?" Will questioned, his eyebrows raised in shock.

"My dad's a grade-A asshole" Billy replied.

"My dad used to call me that too" Will admitted, as he went back to fidgeting.

"I…I'm not normal. I don't like…things I should like. And things I do like…it's wrong…" Will blurted out, as Billy realised what he was trying to say.

"Look, I'm not gonna' judge you, alright? I was making out with my step-sister in the storeroom a couple of hours ago…and that's wrong, isn't it? But it doesn't feel wrong. It makes me…happy, or whatever. So you…you just do you, kid" Billy explained.

"Thanks" Will smiled, as he turned to Billy with a hopeful expression.

"This conversation never happened, right?" Billy stated as he stood up.

"What conversation?" Will shrugged, as Billy's lips twitched into a smile.

Max's cheeks flushed a dark red as she pulled away from the kiss she had just planted on Lucas' lips. She giggled at the proud look on his face, knowing that she made the right choice in asking him to dance. An angry cough from behind them made her whip her head around, finding Krystal glaring at the pair.

"No way. This is not happening. Two metres apart…c'mon!" Krystal exclaimed, as she tried to get in between the couple.

"It was just a kiss, Krystal" Max groaned, embarrassed.

"Yeah, and I'm making sure that it stays like that" Krystal pointed out, as Lucas had to bite his lip to stop himself from laughing.

"I'll, uh…I'll call you tomorrow?" Lucas offered, as Max gave him a sweet smile.

"Cool" She nodded, as Lucas walked away with a skip in his step.

"So, that's what you've really been so nervous about all week, huh? You've been planning on kissing him?" Krystal suggested as Max shrugged.

"Mom said if I like a boy at the dance I should make sure he knows it" Max mumbled, as Krystal scoffed.

"And that's why mom ended up pregnant at nineteen" Krystal exclaimed, as Max gaped at her.

"You're so embarrassing" Max complained, hiding her face in her hands.

"Just like an older sister should be…in fact, maybe Lucas would want to see some baby pictures of you some time? Hey Lucas-" Krystal began, but was cut off as Max placed her hand over Krystal's mouth.

"Anyways, we better start heading out. If we miss curfew, Neal will kill us" Krystal pointed out.

"Can't we stay for a little longer? I've barely got to hang out with my friends" Max pouted, as Krystal let out a sigh.

"…Alright, thirty minutes" Krystal replied, as Max grinned and rushed off to the table her friends were sitting at.

It was then that Krystal spotted a familiar face cautiously approaching her, tugging at their dress nervously. Eleven.

"Hi" The young girl announced, with her strange accent.

"Hey…I like the hair" Krystal offered, as they came to stand near each other.

"Hopper helped. It smells funny now" Eleven replied, indicating to the hair gel that was smothered over her brunette hair.

"I bet Mike liked it. I saw you two dancing earlier. You've come a long way since we first met, huh?" Krystal teased, making Eleven blush.

"Are you…are you mad at me?" Eleven questioned, with wide eyes.

"For what?" Krystal frowned, confused by the guilty look on Eleven's face.

"I ran. They hurt your dad and I didn't do anything" Eleven mumbled, looking down at her shoes.

"You did the right thing" Krystal replied, as Eleven's eyes snapped up to hers.

"I'm sorry. It's my fault…it's my fault he's dead" Eleven cried, her bottom lip wobbling.

"Hey, of course it's not. My dad would have gladly taken a bullet for you. Just like he would have for anyone else. He was a good guy…he was a hero" Krystal exclaimed, tears welling in her own eyes.

"I thought you'd hate me" Eleven admitted, rubbing at her eyes, as a tear fell down her cheek.

"What good would that do? I'm glad you got away…that we helped you. Your one of the good guy's too, Eleven" Krystal pointed out, placing her hand on the younger girl's shoulder, and giving it a squeeze.

"Billy…someone could see…" Krystal trailed off, as Billy kissed down her neck.

He had her pinned up against the lockers in a dark hallway, not far from the school dance. Billy knew she was right, any of the kids or teachers could appear at any moment and that was something they couldn't afford to happen. Grabbing her hand, he led her further down the corridor, trying a few of the classroom doors, before he found one that was still ajar. He quickly pulled her in, his hands trailing down to grab her ass, pulling her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist.

"Someone's eager tonight" Krystal grinned, as he walked them over to the teacher's desk.

"We've barely had any time to ourselves all week…I'm just making up for lost time" Billy smirked, as dropped her down on the desk.

"Well, when you put it that way…" Krystal exclaimed as she moved to rip open the blue shirt he was wearing, touching the muscles underneath.

"You're such a tease" Billy complained, as Krystal began to trail kisses down his chest.

"Says the guy who barely buttons up his damn shirts" Krystal retorted, moving up to brush her lips against his neck.

Before Billy could reply, they heard the classroom door open, revealing a panting Will Byers in the doorway. Will's mouth dropped open as he saw the pair, Billy's shirt on the floor, and Krystal's legs wrapped around his waist.

"Uh…we were just…um, studying?" Krystal cringed, not sure what to say.

"He knows" Billy informed her, pulling away and crouching down to pick up his shirt.

"What?! What happened to Rule number two?" Krystal gaped, as she jumped down from the desk.

"He's not gonna' tell anyone-" Billy began but was cut off by Will before he could finish the sentence.

"Neil's here" Will piped up, as both the teenager's eyes snapped down to his.

Billy and Krystal wasted no time in rushing through the school hall, out to the parking lot, where they were just in time to watch Max being dragged towards Neil's car. It seemed that everyone else had gone home apart from Will and Eleven's whose respective parents were watching the scene.

"Get in the damn car, Maxine" Neil hissed, his hand wrapped around her bicep.

"Hey! Don't touch her" Krystal called over, quickly getting in between the pair, and pulling Max away from his grip.

"It's gone ten o'clock. Why the hell do I even bother with setting a curfew time if you little shits aren't going to listen to it?" Neil exclaimed, glaring at Krystal.

"We just lost track of time, dad" Billy stated, as his father turned to give him a look.

"And where exactly were you two, huh? I thought I said I didn't want you two spending time together" Neil insisted, as Billy opened his mouth to reply, but wasn't sure what to say.

"They were helping me! I was getting bullied and…and they stepped in" Will interjected, from where he was standing a few metres behind Billy.

"And who the fuck are you?" Neil scoffed, as Will audibly gulped.

"He's my son!" Joyce Byers announced, storming over to the man, a furious expression on her face.

"Well you should teach your son to fight his own fights, lady" Neil mocked.

"Trust me. The Byers can handle themselves" Hopper retorted, coming to stand beside Joyce.

"Chief! Nice to see ya'. You arrested anyone else wrongfully recently?" Neil questioned, not backing down.

"Dad, stop it" Billy exclaimed, able to smell the alcohol on his father's breath from where he was standing.

"Just get in the damn car. We'll talk about this at home" Neil gritted through his teeth.

"It wasn't Billy's fault! I asked to stay longer-" Max exclaimed, as Neil cut her off.

"Then maybe it's you I need to have words with, Maxine" Neil stated, the threat clear in his voice.

"Actually, Max is going to stay over at a friend's house tonight" Krystal informed him, her eyes falling on Eleven from a few metres away.

"Sleepover?" Eleven suggested, looking up at Hopper.

"Sounds good to me. I'm sure that won't be a problem, right Neil?" Hopper nodded, as he ushered Max over to him.

"Whatever. You two, let's go" Neil insisted, pointing to Billy and Krystal and then to his car.

"…Krystal could come too-" Max began, but Neil quickly stopped her.

"Krystal needs to learn about a little something called responsibility" Neil muttered, as he ripped open the driver's door to his car.

"It's fine. I'll see you in the morning" Krystal told her, as she all but pushed Max towards Hopper.

Hopper watched her climb into the backseat with clenched fists, knowing exactly what was going to happen to both Krystal and Billy when they got home. If only he could get some real evidence of the abuse…footage maybe, he could get the pair out of the house. He placed his hands comfortingly on Max's shoulders, sharing the girl's worried expression.

"Why did you do that?" Krystal asked, later that night, in the bathroom as she used a cloth to clean Billy's bloody lip.

The moment they had arrived home, Neil had sent Susan to their bedroom and started on Billy and Krystal. Neil went straight for his newfound target, hitting Krystal directly in the stomach, just where he knew it would hurt. Billy had quickly stepped in between them and stated that he was the one who decided to stay out past their curfew and had gained a hard punch from Neil's fist. In retrospect, it could have been a lot worse. Neil's drinking had meant that he wanted to pass out rather than beat on his son, but Krystal was still pissed.

"You took the last beating" Billy shrugged, as Krystal cupped his cheek.

"We're not keeping a fucking score, Billy" Krystal sighed.

"Look, no harm, no foul, okay? This is nothing. C'mon, we can't hang in here forever, he might wake up soon" Billy pointed out, pulling away from her touch.

"Will you pick up Max in the morning?" Krystal questioned, dropping the cloth into the sink.

"What do I get as my reward?" Billy grinned, as Krystal gave him a thoughtful look.

"…You get to cop a feel…afterwards" Krystal exclaimed as Billy leaned forward.

"Deal" He smirked, pressing a quick kiss to her lips before turning on his heel and leaving the bathroom.

Krystal's smile quickly faded, as she let out a breath that she had been holding since they had entered the bathroom. She unzipped her dress at the back, pulling the material down to her stomach as her gaze fell on the new bruise that was blossoming over her abdomen. Her forehead wrinkled as she looked at the healing wound that lay underneath her bra. The clear outline of the bite from the demodog was still red and…black? Krystal turned to look in the mirror and saw that there was a strange black line running down from the wound. She rubbed at it with her thumb, wondering if it was just dirt, but it didn't rub away. She grimaced as pain ripped into her chest as she touched the skin there, almost doubling over in pain. Suddenly, the next moment the discomfort was gone, as if it had never even been there. Straightening up, she looked back into the mirror and saw the black mark had vanished. Strange, she thought to herself, as she pulled the dress back up and walked out the bathroom, not seeing how the lights flickered as she left.

Author's Notes: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Lots of insights into which friendships might happen in Season 3 in this update. Uh oh, I wonder what's going on with Krystal? Please leave a review:)

Apoka: Thanks for the review! Don't worry, karma will eventually catch up with their parents.

teenwolfismylife101: Just the reaction I wanted, haha. Thanks for reviewing!

Lovefiction2020: Thank you! I hope you liked this update.

Guest: Aw, glad you're enjoying this! I hope you like the way the story is going, thanks for the review.

Napola: Wow, that's awesome! Really glad you like this story, thanks for reviewing:)

Medi2020: Thank you so much:) Don't worry, Billy's ending will be much better than it was on the show but it's going to be a rocky road! I hope you liked this new update.