"Well, look at what the cat dragged in," Tatum commented as Billy walked over to the water fountain, looking absolutely miserable.
Billy just threw her a glare before he took his usual reclining position, one leg down on the ground while the other laid in front of him on the stone edge. The only difference that kept it from being a normal day at school was the fact that the space between his legs was empty.
His girlfriend, Sidney, wasn't at school. She had been taken out yesterday during the afternoon because she and her parents left early for a vacation during the upcoming spring break. She had all of her assignments given to her and after a brief goodbye between the two of them, the Prescott family left Woodsboro for the allotted seven days that the school gave the students so they could relax and recharge before the homework/class attendance cycle began again.
So, safe to say, Billy was very moody and would remain so until he saw his beautiful girlfriend's smiling face at the end of the week.
"Come on, Tay, give him a break," Stu lightly reprimanded his girlfriend as he tugged her onto his lap. "He just misses Sid."
"So do I, but you don't see me being all grouchy and grumbling around like I've got a stick up my ass," Tatum retorted, popping a grape into her mouth. She missed her best friend/unbiological sister like crazy, but that didn't mean she felt much sympathy for Billy. The only pass she gave the dark blonde bad boy was the fact that he treated Sidney well; other than that, she didn't see much of a reason to extend him any olive branches given that his dislike for her was just as strong as hers for him.
Stu nuzzled into her neck, delighting in both her scent and the way she squirmed when he lightly nipped the smooth flesh. "I'd feel the same way if you were gone," he whispered, tightening his grip around her waist as if she'd disappear right there.
Tatum leaned back against him, relaxing. She didn't say anything, but her eyes were contemplative as if she were truly thinking over his words.
Billy paid no mind to any of them. The only thing on his mind was Sidney and how much he missed her. He missed her face, her voice, her eyes, the way that she could always calm him down when he was getting angry or upset…the list for how much he longed for her company was neverending. The earring she gave him on their anniversary was still firmly embedded in his ear, but it wasn't the same as having her there, physically, in his arms, and it made his mood plummet. He just didn't feel like himself without her.
Tatum stared carefully at Billy, noting his melancholic aura. Not pensive, not angry, but depressed. He didn't even tell her to shut up or send a sarcastic remark towards Randy, two things he did every day without fail. He really was miserable without Sidney…
Huffing a sigh, Tatum leaned forward out of Stu's grasp and said: "Hey. Mr. Broody. Over here."
Billy took in a deep breath and blew it out through his nose, closing his eyes for a moment. This bitch again…
Opening his eyes, he moved so that he was face to face with her, his arms behind him to support his weight. "What do you want?" He asked rather brusquely.
"He speaks," Tatum said mockingly.
Billy rolled his eyes; the blonde was already pissing him off and they were barely ten minutes into their lunch period. How Sidney could stand being friends with this bitch was beyond him.
"What do you want?" He repeated through clenched teeth.
"I think you're an ass, but since you're my boyfriend's best friend and my best friend's boyfriend and you're even worse as a depressed ass, I'm going to take pity on you today," she ignored the way he bristled at that and reached into her bag to pull out a blue silk scrunchie. Holding it out to him, Tatum continued, "Here. This is Sid's. She let me borrow it a few days ago and I forgot to give it back to her. Take it."
"Sidney already gave me her earring," Billy said, glaring at her.
Tatum rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but she gave it to her during your anniversary while she was here. You can put her scrunchie on your wrist until she gets back or whatever since you miss her so much," she replied matter-of-factly.
Billy reached forward and took the scrunchie. He took a moment to stare at it, the strong scent of lavender and vanilla wafting up to his nose. He closed his eyes for a minute, the fragrance calming him, before he slid it onto his wrist.
Billy opened his eyes and looked at the blonde still leaning against Stu. "Thanks," he said.
Tatum shrugged. "Don't mention it. Seriously. Just refrain from being an insufferable asshole until Sidney gets back," she said.
"So close," Billy stated as he stood up, grabbing his bag. "So close to being a decent human being, Tatum."
Despite the barbs, Billy did feel a lot better now that Sidney's scrunchie was on his person. The earring did bring him some comfort, but it didn't have her scent on it. The scrunchie did, and the sweet floral smell made it easier to deal with her absence.
Much like how Billy was missing Sidney in California, Sidney was missing him just as much in South Carolina as she and her parents spent their spring break at Myrtle Beach.
Sidney sighed as she laid on her bed in the adjoining hotel room her parents booked. She could hear the TV going on the other side and her parents talking happily.
She loved going on vacation with her parents and Myrtle Beach has been her favorite spot since they made their first visit when she was a child, but she couldn't help but long for Woodsboro because Billy was there.
She loved Billy. Really, truly loved him. She knew what people said about high school love:
"It's puppy love."
"You'll meet your real love when you're older."
"You'll break up and then you'll never speak again."
Sure, some of those stories were true, but there were also stories about couples meeting during high school and not wanting to be with anyone else because they already found their one and only. Sometimes it was possible for someone to meet the love of their life as a teenager, and Sidney believes that she already met hers.
Billy made her deliriously happy. Every time she woke up in the morning, she was excited to get to school because he would be there. Whenever the phone rang, her heart would skip a beat because she knew he was on the other line. And whenever he looked at her, whenever he stared at her like she hung the moon and sun and all the stars…it made her feel like she was the only person on Earth.
And now they were separated for seven days. She had her promise ring that he gave her on their anniversary, the symbol of their love and dedication to one another, but it wasn't the same as having him there with her, smelling him and feeling the strength of his body as he held her.
But she did have one thing of his that she knew would help.
Leaning over to grab her bag, she unzipped it and rummaged around in it before she pulled out a blue flannel. Billy's blue flannel she had borrowed last week and kept.
Sidney brought the flannel up to her nose and inhaled deeply, closing her eyes and sighing in contentment as she took in his familiar spicy, oily, woodsy scent. Lying down on her side, she hugged the flannel close to her chest, imagining that her boyfriend was there with her and holding her in his arms.
She missed him so much and this next week was going to be torture to be away from him, but his flannel made it bearable until they returned and she could see him again.