Louise honked her horn twice upon arrival to the pale green house with the faded white door. Even though Louise had been the designated driver for the last two years, Vickie always managed to run late. She didn't mind so much, having grown used to it- sometimes it even gave her time to finish up homework. She pulled the visor down, and bared her teeth as she ran her tongue over her braces. Hopefully they could be off within the next few years; if she were really lucky they'd be off by the time she graduated.
She deserved a bit of luck after the events of the previous year. They all did, really. Louise still had nightmares about the monster's scream, and she'd be lying if she said her brother was also affected in the same way. She didn't know nearly as much as her little brother did (which was nothing new if she were honest with herself). He seemed to have bounced back remarkably fast; had continued on as if the government hadn't opened a portal to another dimension, with hellish monsters in their once quaint little town. If he could move on, knowing what he knew, then she should have been able to as well. She hadn't even been involved until the very end, just when those creepy vans popped up everywhere and Dustin yelled at her not to go home.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the passenger's side door being opened, a bag slung onto the floor. The freckled redhead beamed at her as she slid in, her blue flower hat doing its best to tame her fluffy short hair.
"Admiring your orthodontist's handiwork?" Vickie asked as she fiddled with her seatbelt, settling into place once it clicked together.
"How could I not, when he had such fine specimen's to work with?" Louise joked and flipped the visor up before she pulled off from the curb.
Vickie pulled the passenger's side visor down, and moved a few wisps of hair in the front around. "Are we getting Sarah today?"
"If we were, we'd be late. Her dad is taking her today, something about dropping donations off at the church."
Vickie pushed the visor back up, "do you think he's giving her The Speech again?"
Sarah's dad was the town pastor, and he was very faithful to the church. Sarah wasn't allowed to paint her nails a shade darker than ballerina pink, all of her skirts had to be ankle length, and her music was heavily monitored. The only time she really got to listen to anything other than gospel music was when she hung out with them. Ninth grade they showed Sarah who Madonna was for the first time, and nearly scandalized the girl. Pastor Davies was wary of them after that, but trusted his daughter not to fall for the "Devil's traps".
"He wouldn't be Pastor Davies if he didn't."
Vickie laughed as she dug through her bag, "remember when we went to her sleepover, and he gave us that sermon about the dangers of MTV?"
"That was so intense, and I would like to know what David Bowie did to him." Louise added as she glanced over at Vickie as the sound of shuffled paper got louder, "what are you doing?"
"I'm pulling out the homework for Mrs. Mirske, I know you did the extra credit work." Vickie pulled out her own binder before going for Louise's backpack.
"Only because I need all the help I can get. Math isn't my strongest subject, and I refuse to ask Dustin for help. He gets so into it and I can't follow anything he's saying."
"If you're doing bad, imagine how I'm doing. I have the soul of an artist, what am I supposed to do with prime numbers?" Vickie said as she looked over Louise's notes, "you got number three wrong. Where did that seven come from?"
Louise pulled into her regular parking spot, which wasn't too far from the building, and snatched her homework out of Vickie's hands. "Mind your business, don't criticize the person you're copying off of." She looked over the page and struggled to find the random seven, "What's the answer then?"
"Well, without that random seven, the answer should be thirteen." Vickie said while she unbuckled her seatbelt, and gathered her things.
"Thirteen? How? Nevermind, it's too early for this." Louise shoved the homework back into her binder and grabbed her bookbag from the back. She took extra care when she pulled out the camera she loaned from the school, and hung the strap around her neck.
After everything they had gone through the previous year, Louise had decided to be more active. She wouldn't just be the Hawkins Wallflower, easily forgotten and always overlooked. While the students of Hawkins High had brushed Barabra's disappearance as a teen runway, she knew the truth. Her death had shaken Louise, and while she'd never really hung out with her, the loss had affected her greatly. Barbara had been so similar to her, and they could have easily switched places. So she joined the Yearbook team, which would hopefully put her at every major event throughout the school year. She was bound to make an impression then.
Vickie pointed ahead, "look, Sarah is here."
Louise turned to see Sarah being waved over. Her soft blonde hair was in a side braid, and her ankle length floral pink dress was covered with her fleece lined jean jacket.
"How'd the drop off go?" Louise asked Sarah after she was a little closer, and swung her bag over her shoulder.
Sarah rocked back and forth on her heels, backpack strapped over her right shoulder with both hands gripped around it. "Dad is still doing it, he dropped me off on the way there. You guys are here earlier than I expected."
"Not on purpose, but I'm having a great hair day." Vickie smiled.
Whatever Sarah's response would have been, was swallowed by a loud rumble that overtook the parking lot.
Louise squinted against the autumn sun, and watched as a blue Camaro pulled into a parking spot. A redheaded girl popped out of the side, and quickly sped off on a skateboard. The driver just stood by the driver's door, curly blond hair ruffled in the wind as he surveyed the area. He looked big, like one of those muscled guys on the cover of sports magazines. His jean jacket seemed to fit tightly, as did the white T-shirt beneath it. He winked at a few of the girls as he made his way to the building, a cigarette flicked to the side before he entered the school . Not a backpack in sight though.
"He's...very well groomed." Sarah commented as her eyes trailed after him.
Vickie rolled her eyes and she turned away from him. "Don't waste your time, Saint Sarah, he looks like a complete and utter douchebag."
"He doesn't even have a book bag with him. Who goes to school without a book bag?" Louise asked, her eyebrows furrowed together as she locked her car.
"Degenerates, as my dad would say." Sarah said, and they made their way to the school.
"I never thought I'd agree with your dad." Vickie deadpanned.
Louise laughed, "careful, it's cold enough without hell freezing over.", and Sarah snorted.
By the time the second bell rang for third period, Louise was already seated in her regular seat. Everyone picked their seats on the first day, and even though they were free to sit wherever, people usually stayed where they originally sat. Some swapped to be closer to friends, but most stayed in place. Louise was in a very advantageous spot; the second seat behind the first row. She was by the window, not at the back where disruptive (rowdy) students went, and not up front where the teacher could keep a better eye on her.
This was unfortunately one of the classes where she didn't talk to anyone. Not even a casual acquaintance, to converse about the weather with. She dreaded the day when they had to partner up. She'd either get stuck with someone who believed she'd do all the work, or someone who thought her completely incompetent. The latter was more so about Fred Benson. She dreaded Fred Benson being partnered with her, and having him think she's dumb.
She tried to look discreetly over where he was, and watched him as he set his desk up. He was in the very front row, closer to the door, just barely in front of the teacher's desk. He wore a white button down under a button up vest, his hair perfectly groomed with not a hair out of place. She'd had a crush on the willowy boy since ninth grade, when her pen ran out and he offered her a spare. He was always so prepared and sure of himself. More often than not, he was the one who answered the teacher's questions. She always got so flustered around him, which only amplified the fear of him thinking her dumb.
"Good morning, how is everyone today?" a voice rang out.
Louise jerked up and looked to the front of the class where Mr. Young stood with the muscle guy from the parking lot. "We have a new student, would you like to introduce yourself?" Mr. Young asked, clearly directed towards the new kid.
He looked unenthused, and from a quick glance, it was clear he had the attention of the whole class. She couldn't imagine how uncomfortable he must have been, openly ogled like a piece of meat. "I'm Billy, pleasure to be here", he talked with what could only be described as a self assured smirk, but it didn't match his eyes. His eyes seemed…hard, where his smile was soft. His gaze made her uncomfortable as it swept over the room, and he seemed to size them up in return. He didn't seem to be impressed by what he saw, if the slight quirk of his eyebrows were any indication.
"Alright, why don't you have a seat? You can sit wherever you like, we don't have assigned seating in this class." Mr. Young gestured to the classroom. There were only three empty desks, and Tina eagerly waved him over to the seat in front of her. He gave her a megawatt smile, and sauntered over to her.
He reminded Louise of those show dog tournaments her aunt Cecile would make her watch as a kid. Where the dog pranced to the podium, proud and well trained. His hair was curly like a poodle; Louise hid her smile behind her hand at the thought.
"Now, we're going to be covering the Canterbury Tales. You are going to be graced with the poetic words of Chaucer." Mr. Young said, already poised with chalk to write the page and chapter numbers on the board.
Louise pulled out the English textbook and put the packet she had doodled on away. She could hear Tina as she giggled in the back, her whispers to the new kid louder than she'd probably intended. She wasn't surprised that they'd become fast friends, since he hadn't brought any school supplies and this was Tina's second attempt at eleventh grade English.
She supposed it made sense for them to become friends. He was this new cool kid, dressed head to toe in denim. His hair was immaculate, and it was apparent that he took care of his appearance. He'd fit right in with Tina and her friend's, where presentation was everything. She vaguely wondered how early they had to get up to get ready for the day. Probably earlier than it was worth.
Louise tended to just wear jeans or overalls, usually paired with one of the many sweaters her mother had gotten her over the years. They took no effort and no thought as she got ready in the mornings. Sure some joked that she dressed like a little kid, but her mom had picked them out. They were comfy, and made her mom happy. Only losers peaked in high school anyway, if the movies were anything to go by. If scary hell dimension monsters existed, then there had to be some truth to the movies.
A blonde brow lifted, and her insides tensed as he stared at her with unflinching serious eyes. Louise quickly looked away, face hot with embarrassment. She hadn't meant to stare at him, and now he probably thought that she was some kind of weirdo. When had she even turned to look at him?
She quickly flipped to the page written on the board, and waited for the floor to open up and swallow her whole. Or for her cheeks to cool down. Either would be preferred. She stared straight ahead, and tried her best to focus on Mr. Young's lecture.
Twenty minutes later, her cheeks still burned.
For the rest of class, Louise avidly avoided looking at the back where the new kid sat. It should have been easier than it was, since he was in the back and she was faced forward. Not even the sound of Fred's voice as he answered questions was enough to keep her focused on the subject at hand. She knew she was overthinking this, and that she probably wasn't even a blip on his radar.
Maybe she'd been too hard on him already. Just because he took care of his appearance, and easily chatted with Tina (they were not subtle the entire period, and Louise was convinced Mr. Young didn't call them out since it was Billy's first day) did not mean he would be as dumb as Tina and her friends. Granted he didn't bring any supplies with him on the first day of school, but maybe he struggled financially and couldn't afford it. Maybe she should talk with Sarah about a charity drive, to help kids in need of school supplies.
"Alright, we'll leave off there. I want you to read the next passage for homework, and we'll discuss it tomorrow." Mr. Young said as he put his chalk away and wiped his hands, "Louise, if you could catch Billy up on what he missed that would be helpful."
Louise froze, her textbook half in her bag as his words hung in the air. She glanced back at Billy, who looked as displeased as she felt.
"I could catch him up, !" Tina called out as she leaned forward on her elbows, a wide smile on her face.
"Thank you for your participation, but I'm sure Louise will do a fine job. I hope you're this eager in the next class." Mr. Young said, which caused most of the class to snicker. The bell rang and everyone began to file out for lunch.
Louise quickly piled the rest of her things into her bag and shuffled over to Billy. He leaned against a desk, arms crossed as he chatted with Tina, who barely acknowledged her.
"Hi, I'm Louise! I can make copies of my notes, or we could meet up after school to study?" Louise offered, her tongue heavy and her stomach knotted. She was proud that she didn't stutter though, since he was way more intimidating up close. Much taller than originally believed. Not that she thought too hard about that.
He barely glanced down at her before he waved his hand, and shooed her away. "I'll pass, I have better things to do in my spare time."
Tina snickered, arm wrapped around Billy's as they made their way out of the classroom. Louise had been thoroughly rejected, and dismissed. She hadn't even wanted to help him in the first place, but that didn't stop the sting of rejection. Whatever, he wasn't worth it anyway. Her original assumption had been correct. No more maybes.
She made her way out of the classroom, and found Vickie leaned against the lockers across from her classroom. "What's wrong?" Vickie immediately questioned as she pushed herself off of the lockers, and made her way over.
"Nothing, just a rough class. Canterbury Tales." Louise said and they made their way through the hallway. She luckily shared lunch with Vickie, whose class let out just up the hall.
Vickie shook her fist in the air, and laughed, "that damned Chaucer!"
"That damned Chaucer." Louise agreed, as she grabbed her lunch from her locker. It wasn't anything to get excited about, just a peanut butter and marshmallow fluff sandwich with apples sliced in a Ziplock bag.
They made their way to the cafeteria, where Louise spotted Jonathan perched at a lunch table alone. He hadn't noticed them yet, eyes focused on the camera as he fiddled with it. They weren't close friends, but they were friendly enough. Which she supposed would happen, when you fought for your life with someone. A different kind of bond.
"How is your day going?" Louise asked him as she swung her legs under the table. Vickie took the seat to her left, across from Jonathan. Her packed lunch looked to be a standard ham and cheese sandwich.
He offered a small, shy smile, before going back to his camera. "It's dragging, but it could be worse".
"That's fair, our dear Louise barely survived her encounter with the written word." Vickie said as she set up her lunch.
Louise noticed that he didn't pack anything, and wordlessly gave him half of her sandwich and apples. He went to push it back, but she pushed it further towards him. He gave her a small smile in return, and Louise made a mental note to pack more next time. Just in case.
Uproarious laughter emerged from the center table, which captured the attention of everyone. It's the cool kid table, where Billy sat surrounded by Tommy H and his crew. It's like a renaissance painting, or even the Last Supper, the way they crowded around him. He looks like he's right at home, like he was born to be the center of attention.
Vickie turned back away from the table, and shoved a baby carrot into her mouth. "He really does just look like an ass."
"He looks like he'd fit in there." Jonathan added, not bothered to give the table a second glance.
Louise mindlessly munched on an apple piece while she gave Billy a withering stare, "I can confirm that he is a massive dick. I have English with him, and he totally dismissed me after I was asked to help him."
Vickie stopped mid chew, before she shot a fierce glare at the table. "Is that why you were upset? I can get Dan, he could totally take that jerk. Even Jonathan could take him, he wrecked Steve last year!"
Louise glanced from the table to Jonathan, whose face was red from the compliment Vickie had given him.
"He's not worth it, but thank you for oh so graciously offering both Jonathan and Dan to handle it", she laughed while she took a bite of her sandwich.
"Well, if there is one benefit to dating a meathead, it's that he can be the muscle of the group." Vickie said as she aggressively opened her water bottle.
"I'm sure Dan loves how endearingly you refer to him."
"He probably does, he can be so self-absorbed! It's like since he's gone off to college, his ego has inflated to astronomical proportions." Vickie rambled, a bite taken in between words. Jonathan and Louise just shared a look, before he abruptly stood up.
"Well, I've got to check in with Mr. Farber about camera stuff." He said, a small smile and finger wave salute being given to Louise before he headed off.
"And I've chased him away." Vickie grumbled.
"You didn't chase him away; he just takes his cameras very seriously." Louise said, but she refused to look at Vickie.
"Mmhmm, that's why it's camera stuff", Vickie rolled her eyes, and took another bite out of her sandwich. "Also, when did you become the Jonathan Whisperer?"
"The what?" Louise asked, nearly choking on her water.
"Well, you just suddenly started talking. You spent a suspicious amount of time together last year, and now he actually socializes with you."
"I mean, our brothers are close. Last year was a weird year for everyone, and he knows a lot about cameras. He helped me with the yearbook, and everyone knows he's only got eyes for Nancy Wheeler."
"And you only have eyes for our bespeckled smarty-pants Freddy."
Louise balled up a napkin and poorly threw it at Vickie, who just laughed.
Louise was seated on the living room floor in front of the coffee table, papers spread out before her. She liked doing her homework in the living room, even though the desk in her room was more than adequate. She liked to hear the sounds of her mother as she cooked, and Dustin's ramblings. What she disliked was him commenting on her problem-solving skills.
He leaned over her shoulder, eyes squinted on the paper in front of her. "Where did the four come from?"
Louise quickly covered her work and gave him her fiercest glare. "Go away if you aren't going to help."
"This is basic stuff, Lou!"
"Maybe for you Boy Wonder, don't be mean." Louise said, her homework clutched to her chest.
"Stop fussing and set the table. Dinner is about to be served!" their mom called out from the kitchen.
"I'll help you after dinner." Dustin said, and she stacked her books.
"If you're offering..." she trailed off, before her eyes locked on his, "thanks, you really are the best brother a sister could have." Louise ruffled his hair as she stood up.
"Watch the curls, I've got a reputation to keep."
Louise gathered the dinner plates, Dustin the silverware, and soon there were three places set at the table. Their mom brought out the serving bowl, and it became apparent that dinner is mashed potatoes, meatloaf, and string beans. Louise and Dustin shared a squinched up face at the meatloaf. Her mother was a wonder, and she truly could do anything. So long as anything wasn't meatloaf. It was always dry and overcooked, and once even vaguely tasted of bananas.
"So, how was everyone's day?" She asked from the head of the table, once everyone had gotten a serving.
"Well, there's this new kid, Mad Max. They've beaten our Dig Dug scores, and she looks so cool." Dustin gushed in between bites.
"There is a new kid in my class too. He's kind of a jerk though."
"That might be her brother. They came all the way from California!"
"Well, maybe he just needs time to settle in. We should give them a casserole, to welcome them to Hawkins." Her mother's eyes lit with excitement.
"Let's maybe not go that far. I'm sure their neighbors have already given them the Hawkins welcome," Louise said around bites. She tried to keep the mashed potatoes with the meatloaf, to help it go down a little better. Across the table, Dustin had the same strategy.
"Oh, I suppose. Maybe you could invite Max to go trick or treating with you tomorrow. And your costume is already finished, you kids are going to look so adorable! Are you sure you don't want to dress up?"
Louise didn't need to look up to know that this question was directed at her. "I'm positive. The sky is supposed to be super clear tomorrow night and I'll finally be able to use my new telescope."
She had saved up all of her babysitting money for that telescope. The events of last year nearly put that in jeopardy, and she had been too busy to really use it. Her old one was great, one of the last great gifts her dad had gotten her, but this one was so much stronger. She was very excited to spend her Halloween beneath the stars. Hawkins didn't have much, but the view of the sky was unmatched.
