Okay, so this idea has been floating around for a while now and I literally could not write The Golden Girl without getting this one out because it wouldn't leave me alone. This is literally just a feeler chapter to see who would be interested in me continuing this story. It's starting in October, a couple of weeks before Halloween, so none of the Season 4 nonsense has happened yet.

The premise of the story is basically about a girl, my OFC Katherine, who has lived a pretty sheltered life due to having an overcontrolling father. His controlling turns into physical abuse (no sexual abuse) and once he starts in on Katherine her mom decided to get them out of there and that's how they end up in Hawkins. She gets to know Eddie, and he kind of helps her learn to live and have fun a little.

Oh, and this shouldn't HAVE to be said, but I do NOT give permission for anyone to repost my work. Someone literally took my old Vampire Diaries story and posted it on Amazon to try and monetize it for themselves. One of my readers told me about it and I had to spend a whole day with costumer service to let them know what was happening. This person is no longer active on Amazon, but he or she had done this with about 35 other stories.

This will also be posted on Ao3 under the name creativewoman88. Also all of my Mature chapters will now be posted over there as someone told me my Mature was actualy Explicit, even though I've read much worse things than mine on here. I already have two of them up for this chapter (stuff that Eddie and Katherine get up to MUCH later in this story. It shows their relationship, but doesn't really give away any plot details.)

Warnings for this chapter are as follows: hints of child abuse and over controlling dads, bullying in the form of semi-homophobia and toxic gender roles (for instance, people pick on Will for liking art because he's a guy and it's considered a feminine hobby), hints of racism because Eddie feels like Lucas already has a disadvantage because he's black in small town, America. Eddie isn't racist but he's aware how other people think about Lucas and other people with dark skin. Eddie is also suspicious of Will maybe being gay and he looks out for him because of it.

Chapter One

The only thing worse than starting a new school in the middle of a semester was starting a new school in the middle of the semester of your senior year, but that was exactly what was happening to Katherine Davis. She and her mom had arrived in Hawkins on Friday and had spent all weekend setting up their new place, a trailer in the Forest Hills trailer park, and now Katherine was getting ready for her first day at Hawkins High.

"Katherine? You're gonna be late if you don't hurry up," her mom called through her bedroom door.

"I'm up, Mom."

She'd been up for over an hour and was already dressed because she hadn't been able to sleep well the night before. She was nervous about not only starting a new school but a new life.

Katherine grabbed the bag she was using for school and then walked out to the kitchen, where her mom was moving around frantically trying to get ready herself.

"You want breakfast?"

"I can just take pop tarts with me and eat on the way."

They were in the cabinet above the stove, but her mom was looking around as if she were lost.

"I've got it," Katherine said. "Still planning on putting in applications today?"

"Yeah. Just wanna make sure you get on the bus okay. You're used to me dropping you off and picking you up."

"Mom . . . I'll be fine."

"You sure?"

Katherine felt her throat tighten and her eyes burn. Her mom was trying so hard, but she was not used to having to do things on her own or make her own decisions. Neither was Katherine, for that matter, but they were going to learn together.

"Yeah. I'm okay. I know Max, so I can wait with her if you're that worried."

"Please."

Katherine had introduced herself to Max, the red-headed freshman next door, over the weekend. Max had been skateboarding and Katherine had been fascinated because she'd never seen a girl skateboarding before.

"They said you have to stop by the office to pick up your schedule. Someone is supposed to show you around the school."

"Or I could just walk around aimlessly all day."

"How about you not do that?"

"Yeah, yeah."

Katherine did as her mother had asked and waited with Max; she even sat with her on the bus. Max had a Walkman and kept her headphones on for most of the ride, but it was still nice being able to sit with someone she sort of knew.

The ride was only about ten minutes and then Katherine and Max parted ways so she could go to the office and Max could head to first period.

Once inside the office, Katherine was welcomed by Principal Higgins and introduced to another student, a girl named Nancy Wheeler. She was one of the top students in senior year and had been assigned the task of showing Katherine around.

Nancy was about the same height as Katherine and had brown hair, shoulder-length, with highlights throughout. Katherine's hair was a little darker with no highlights, and it reached halfway down her back. Nancy was wearing a short-sleeved dress designed with light pastel colors, whereas Katherine was wearing black leggings and a loose white sweater.

Principal Higgins made sure Katherine had her schedule and the paper she needed to get each of her teachers to sign and then bring back at the end of the day. Katherine looked over her schedule to make sure everything was right and then handed it over to Nancy so she would know where exactly Katherine needed to know where to go. Her first class was Typing, but since Nancy was giving her a tour it would have to wait.

"Okay, so everything is pretty much arranged by subject here. Each subject has its own hall here, so Typing and Art are in the same hallway because they're considered electives. The only ones that have their own places are Drama, Band, Journalism, and Photography."

Drama and Band kids used the auditorium. Journalism students used the basement, and Photography kids had their own dark room there. Nancy told her she'd probably never have to use the basement, but Katherine was an art student, so she would need to know where the auditorium was because sometimes the art kids would help the Drama Department build props.

Nancy asked innocent questions about Katherine throughout the tour. If Nancy noticed the fact that Katherine had a brace on her wrist, she didn't mention it at all, which was good because Katherine wouldn't have known what to say other than the truth, which she didn't feel like getting into with a stranger.

"So . . . where are you from?"

"Indianapolis."

"Is it much different from here?"

"Uh . . . the school was bigger."

"Why'd you have to move here?"

"My parents recently separated and my mom thought some distance would be good."

"Oh." Nancy gave her a sympathetic look. "Sorry."

"It's okay. Sometimes distance is better."

By the time Nancy had shown her where everything was, Katherine had missed the entirety of first period. Typing was an elective, so she didn't really care, but it did mean she would have to make a stop there before the day was over so she could get the sheet signed.

Nancy dropped her off at her Literature class, told her she could sit with her at lunch if she wanted to but that she would see her in last period if she didn't because they shared the same Government class.

Once inside the classroom she was assigned a seat and a copy of Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen. She'd already read it at her old school, so at least she was familiar with the material. Hawkins senior class was about halfway through the book.

She sat quietly through the class but didn't feel the need to take notes or really even pay attention that much.

That, however, was not the case for her next class, which was Calculus, the bane of her existence. It wasn't that she was bad at it; she just didn't like how time-consuming it was.

She wasn't assigned a seat, so she picked one in the back next to the wall because the seat next to it was empty. Though it wasn't empty for long, because someone came in not long after the bell rang and this someone took the seat.

She knew who he was even though she'd never had the chance to speak to him. His name was Eddie Munson, and he lived across the street from her. She'd seen him and heard him over the weekend. He apparently liked driving fast and listening to loud music.

"If you could try to be on time, Mr. Munson . . ." From the exasperation coming from the teacher's tone, this was obviously not the first time Eddie Munson had been late.

"Sorry, Mrs. O'Donnell. I was otherwise occupied."

"I'm sure you were. Just don't disrupt the class, please."

To be fair, he didn't disrupt the class. He was, however, a distraction to Katherine. He didn't bother her at all, but she couldn't help but notice when he kept bouncing his leg up and down.

Of course, Eddie Munson was noticeable all on his own with his long hair, which was a bit frizzy at the moment even though it still looked soft, and his clothes that didn't seem to fit in with anyone else's – leather jacket, denim vest with band patches on it.

She also noticed his rings because they clicked against each other when he began tapping his fingers against the desk. He was obviously bored, and she couldn't blame him.

He eventually pulled out a notebook, but she could tell it wasn't for Calculus because he immediately began doodling in it. He focused on it until the bell rang, and he was one of the first people out of the room.

Katherine, on the other hand, took a little longer to leave because she had to put her things back in her bag. Art was her next class, so she went to the elective hallway only to immediately get stuck behind a group of people – guys, mostly – dressed in the school colors. Obviously jocks, if the jackets were anything to go by.

She tried to go around the chaos but was almost knocked over as the group parted only for a tall, thin boy to be pushed out of it. She would have actually fallen over if she hadn't seen it coming. She assumed the boy was heading to art as well – or heading from art – because a sketchbook fell from his hands.

She caught him – or at least kept him from falling to the floor – and a sharp pain shot through her wrist and up her arm. It didn't help that her bag fell down her shoulder and caught at her wrist.

The boy didn't seem to have any injuries, but his hair and clothes were disheveled, as if he'd been shoved around a bit, and his eyes were wet, as if he were holding back tears.

"Jeeze, watch where you're going, Byers. It's not nice to knock a girl over."

The boy didn't say anything, but his eyes did start shining with panic.

"I'm okay," she said. "It's okay."

She had no clue who had pushed the boy, but she decided to ignore whoever it had been and head on to class, but first . . .

"Are you headed to art?"

The boy nodded uncertainly and she smiled softly at him.

"Well . . ." She nodded toward the doorway. "I know we're close already, but . . . walk with me?"

"I . . . okay." The boy bent to pick up his sketchbook. "Thanks."

"No problem."

Art class was definitely going to be Katherine's favorite class. It had a very laid-back feel to it. The teacher had music playing in the background, and once the assignment was given, the students were basically given free rein to pick out the supplies they needed to get started.

There was no assigned seating because a lot of the class involved standing, but she ended up sitting beside the boy who had walked the rest of the way to class with her.

"I hope I didn't hurt your wrist," the boy said.

"Nah." She could tell this boy was harmless, so she sent him an encouraging smile. "I'm Katherine, by the way."

"Oh, uh . . . Will. My name is Will."

"Nice to meet you, Will." Katherine opened her sketchbook to a blank page. "Why were those guys picking on you?"

"Specifically? Today it's because I take art. It's been happening since school started."

"Oh. Why? I take art. Everyone in here takes art."

"Yeah, but almost everyone in here is a girl."

It took a second for his meaning to catch up to her, but then she realized that what he was saying was that apparently the guys that had been picking on him thought that art was a more feminine hobby, something they thought boys shouldn't be doing.

Looking around the classroom, Katherine noticed that most of the other students were girls, as Will had said, but there were four other boys. She wondered if they got picked on too.

"You know, I have Calculus third period. If you think it'll help, you could wait for me at the beginning of this hallway and we can walk here together from now on."

"Are you sure? If they see you hanging out with me, they might start targeting you too."

"I can handle a bunch of stupid jocks. You shouldn't be bullied just because you are a boy who likes art."

"I – okay. Thanks."

"No problem."

"Do you have somewhere to sit at lunch? I have a group I sit with if you want to sit with us."

"Well, someone named Nancy offered, but I think it was more out of politeness than anything else. She was my tour guide this morning."

"Nancy Wheeler?"

"Mm-hm."

"I know her brother Mike. He's a freshman like me."

"The guys picking on you seemed a lot older than you."

"Yeah. The seniors think they run everything, especially the jocks."

"Ah. Some of the jocks at my old school thought they ran everything too. Like I said, I can handle them."

She was intimidated by a lot of things, but high school boys weren't one of them.

Eddie Munson was in the middle of talking to Gareth, Jeff, and Dave about the band practice they were going to have pretty much right after school that day when Will Byers – or Baby Byers – came walking up to the lunch table with a girl in tow.

It was the new girl that had moved in across the street on Friday with her mom. He'd only seen them in passing since he'd gone home from school Friday only to pick up his D&D stuff for Hellfire that night and then leave to go set it up.

Since he didn't know her, all he said when she walked up to the table with Will was, "New girl."

She looked at him with no particular expression and said, "Late boy."

Oh yes. They shared Calculus. She now occupied the seat that had been vacant the whole year so far. It was now October, so school had been in session for about a month-and-a-half.

"Eddie, this is Katherine. She's in my art class and she's new, so . . ."

"She a girl," Mike said from his spot further down the lunch table. "Does she even play D&D?"

Eddie sighed and forced himself to not roll his eyes. Eddie didn't regret letting Mike join his friend group, but he could be so whiney sometimes.

"Do you?" Eddie asked.

"Uh . . . since I don't even know what that is, I'm gonna say no."

"You don't know what Dungeons and Dragons is?" That came from Dustin, and Katherine's head snapped towards him. She seemed almost alarmed at how loud and enthusiastic the kid was. "It's only the best game that was ever invented."

"Oh . . . and it's about dungeons and dragons?" Katherine seemed hesitant but not immediately bored or horror-filled.

"It can be about anything," Will said, tone gentle and quiet. "It's a fantasy game. We each made up our own character, and Eddie is the Dungeon Master, so he basically comes up with the campaign and –"

Will continued explaining and Katherine continued listening, though she did seem to become overwhelmed after a minute or so. It could be a lot to someone who wasn't familiar with the game. It was easier to catch on by actually playing rather than just hearing about it.

"Okay, Will the Wise," Eddie interrupted. "While I appreciate the enthusiasm, it is in fact, time for lunch and neither you nor the new girl have actually gone through the line to get your food."

"Oh, uh . . ." Will looked sheepish. "Sorry, Katherine."

"It's fine," she reassured him. "Let's go get our food, okay?"

Eddie watched as Will and Katherine moved across the cafeteria towards the lunch line. He watched out for his group while they were in school, but he kept an eye out for the younger ones the most. Eddie had known from the moment he'd seen the freshmen sitting together but off on their own that they would have a hard time fitting in.

Dustin had been wearing a Weird Al T-shirt, which had basically announced to all of Hawkins High that he was a nerd; Mike had been wearing a long-sleeved shirt and a sweater vest like he was an old man or something; Lucas, who didn't sit with them but did come to Hellfire meetings when he could, had a disadvantage already for being the wrong color in Small Town, America; Will . . . he was being bullied for being into art, and he even got the occasional "Zombie Boy" thrown his way, but it wasn't the main reason Eddie kept an eye on the younger Byers.

No. It was because Eddie noticed something he hoped other people wouldn't. He noticed the way Will always looked at Mike, sad and full of longing. That kind of thing could be dangerous if the wrong person noticed. It was the kind of thing that could get someone hurt or even killed.

Eddie definitely didn't want that.

Will and Katherine made their way through the lunch line without a problem. She chose a plastic-wrapped peanut butter and jelly sandwich and an apple, along with a small carton of chocolate milk.

It was as they were headed back to the table that someone called out to her by saying, "New girl," much like Eddie had just a few moments before.

She stopped moving and turned to find out who had been trying to get her attention. It didn't take long to see who it was because the guy stood up. It was someone from the table full of guys wearing letterman jackets – the group that had been picking on Will before art class.

Speaking of, she could see Will basically shrink into himself. It reminded her of all the times her father made her and her mom feel that way, and it wasn't okay.

Katherine didn't answer the guy as he moved towards them. He was blond, not overly tall, and had an entitled look about him. When he reached them, he said, "Beat it, kid," to Will, and Will did take a few steps back.

Unbeknownst to Will or Katherine, Eddie had decided to come over to them as well, and Will backed into him.

"Is there something we can help you with, Carver?" Eddie asked.

"Wasn't talking to you, freak. Just trying to give the new girl a bit of advice."

"What kind of advice?" Katherine asked.

"You don't wanna sit with those guys. The whole group is made up of freaks and losers."

"Oh." She nodded as if taking in that information. "What's your name?"

"Jason." His tone was definitely less hostile than when he'd been directing the conversation at Eddie.

"Jason? Hm. Well, from where I'm standing, all I know about you is that you like picking on freshmen, so that kind of makes you the loser."

There were a few 'oohs' coming from the jock table, but Katherine ignored them and turned away from Jason, returned to Will's side and, by default, Eddie's. Will gave her a small but grateful smile.

To Eddie she said, "I can sit with you guys, right?"

The boy in question smiled and made a sweeping gesture for her to go ahead of him. "M'lady."

She gave him a cautious smile before saying, "Thank you," and moving past him to head to the table.

Okay, so please let me know what you guys think and if I should continue!

I'm almost done with the next chapter of The Golden Girl and I already have 4 chapters of this one done if you think I should continue. Keep in mind that I am in school for and English degree, so I have writing and reading to do with that as well. I'll try to keep updates up every two weeks, but no promises for that. Right now my workload is okay, but the closer it gets to the mid-semester mark the more papers I'm gonna have for school, so we shall see.

Thanks in advance for reviews!