Disclaimer: I don't own Stranger Things or any of the characters in this story.


I DO IT FOR YOU

Prologue: Summer, 1985

Billy Hargrove was your average, ordinary 18 year old guy, until there was one night when he wasn't.

He had a father, a stepmother, and a stepsister. The four of them had come from California to Hawkins last year, and Billy hated every second of it. There was zero fun to be had in Hawkins. All he wanted was to go back to California and spend time with his friends, his surfboard, and her.

Billy's mom had left him and his dad when he was a young boy. It both broke his heart, and made him angrier than he'd ever been. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that she left him, and it wasn't fair how his dad had been treating his mom. But Billy loved and missed her so much. She had to be in California, still, after all this time. She loved the wind and the waves just as much as Billy. She was the one who introduced him to surfing, after all.

Until he could save up to go back to California, however, he was spending his summer working at the Hawkins Community Pool as a lifeguard. Swimming in the Pacific Ocean had trained Billy well, and he was one of the best lifeguards they had. The pool also experienced quite an uptake in female attendance while Billy was working. With his brooding stare, washboard abs, and golden skin, he was extremely easy on the eyes…and he knew it, too.

He smiled as he worked, thinking of one of the pool's regulars. Karen Wheeler and her friends were fun to get riled up. They brought their kids to the pool almost every day, and Billy could feel their eyes on him as he walked on the pool deck towards the lifeguard stand. He made sure to add a little extra swagger to his step for their benefit. "Probably the most excitement they get all day," he thought. But secretly, the ladies weren't the only ones enjoying themselves. If Billy was being completely honest with himself, Karen was actually kind of hot for a mom. He remembered one particular day when she was climbing out of the pool after doing laps. It was like the pool scene with Phoebe Cates in Fast Times at Ridgemont High had come to life. With her wet hair slicked back, and her swimsuit clinging to all the right places…

"Shit," he muttered under his breath. Upon looking down, he saw he now had a problem that needed attending to. But not now…not when he needed to finish closing up the pool. It was dark now, and all that was left was locking up the equipment and the gate to the pool. He'd just have to hang onto that image for later when he got home, or maybe he'd make a detour to Cindy's place after work. She was always willing when he was…

With a quiet click, Billy locked the padlock to the equipment shed. Just as he was turning to go out the pool gate, a flash caught his eye. One of the lights in the pool was now blinking slowly. "That's odd," he thought. Usually if those lights were burning out, they would just go off. As he watched the light, it began blinking faster, more erratically. Billy couldn't look away – it was hypnotic. He began edging closer to the side of the pool where the light was, almost like a magnet was pulling him closer. Suddenly, the light stopped blinking and grew steadily brighter – so bright, it made Billy shield his eyes – until…

Nothing.

The sudden absence of light was a shock to Billy, and he stumbled and fell before his eyes could adjust. His palms stung on the concrete as he caught himself, and he knew he probably had gotten badly scraped. "Fuck," Billy yelped. He blew out a long breath and stayed seated for a few extra seconds to collect himself.

Billy didn't realize it, but those few extra seconds had cost him dearly.

He didn't realize that the breath he expelled masked the sound of the gurgling inhale behind him.

He barely had time to register the arms the were now around his upper body, pulling him to God knows where.

All Billy knew from then on…was darkness.


I'm back! I hope you'll take the time to review my story – it would mean a lot. I'll try to update every week or so. Lots of ideas rattling around in my head.