wild one - steve harrington

outfox

I have to apologise for not updating on time - my anxiety is getting worse and I haven't really been inspired to do much apart from just work and I have to force myself to do uni. But, I'm very keen to finish writing season three now that I have an ending in mind. I hope you are all doing okay :)

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"You've got to be joking." Roxy snapped at Mike after he relayed the plan after figuring it out with the other boys. "I'm not doing that. He'd be dead if he tried this shit on me." She yelled, watching Mike lead El toward the pool area. 

"Yeah, well, blame it on someone else. It's the only way to know if he's safe." Mike called back at her, leaving Roxy and Max at the cars to keep an eye on Billy. 

"Man, he's got a death wish." Roxy said to herself under her breath. She was going to go along with them, for Billy. If he was in trouble, at least they'd find out. And if he wasn't, Roxy knew he'd never forgive her until she set him up with a girl to get him laid. Roxy noticed Max's worried expression as she looked at Billy. "It's not him." 

"I really hope it's not him. But what if you're wrong?" Max asked. Her question dissolved into the silence that hung between them. It was a while before Roxy spoke.

"Then I'll fix it. Get it out of him like they did last year." Roxy said, turning away from her brother and looking into the forest, unsure of anything.  She'd love to be at Star Court, being able to talk to Steve about all this. But if he knew that she was putting herself even remotely in danger, he would join her, and she decided that he didn't need to go through this again. Keeping it under wraps is going to get it over with, she thought.

"You should call Steve." Max spoke up, seeing the vacancy in Roxy's eyes. 

Roxy shook her head as she thought of the right words. "Billy wouldn't like that." She attempted to make a joke, their laughs ending so quick it felt like nothing was said at all. "Steve's having fun. Things are good for him right now. Better to just get this over with instead of making it a bigger deal." She explained to her step-sister. Max didn't agree, but nodded slowly anyway. 

"Okay, maybe call him when we get back to the house." Max spoke up again after awkward silence filled the air. Roxy shook her head again, giving Max a look. "I thought you guys didn't keep secrets?" Max continued, smiling at Roxy. She knew she was hitting a nerve.

"That's not fair. It's not a secret if I just forget to tell him for a moment." Roxy argued her sister's point, knowing that she'd probably lose. 

"Yes it is. Plus, it'd keep him safe if he knew." Max said back.

"No, it'd keep him paranoid."

"Why don't you want him to know? Are you guys okay?" Max asked, pestering her step-sister too much.

"Yes! Jesus, Max. We're fine, alright?" Roxy snapped. She took a second to take a deep breath and regain herself, lowering her voice. "Look, right now it's me and Billy and a bunch of kids running around a swimming pool. If I tell Steve, it gets way more real and it's another person I have to protect." Max smiled at her sister, who was now making more sense. "You saw how hurt he got last year. And that was from normal, non-possessed Billy." Roxy finished talking.

"...And you don't want to pick sides again." Max added, recognising the guilt in Roxy's eyes - she never really forgave herself for telling Steve to back off when Billy was really in the wrong, she felt responsible for that. Roxy hesitated before nodding at what Max had said. 

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It was a while before the whole group met up inside the boys' locker room, out of sight from the main room, waiting for Billy to be the only person in there. Roxy raked her hair back into a messy high ponytail, trying to distract herself from thinking about what was coming next. Finally, the plan was set into motion, and no matter how much Roxy objected to it, she figured that if she was involved now she may as well do it right. They all began making noises and getting Billy's attention. "Pool's closed." They heard him grumble from the lockers. Hearts racing a little, they continued. "Hey. Do you hear me!" Billy yelled, walking toward the sauna. Roxy recognised that he slammed his locker door shut the same way he would when something angered him back in high school. She barely had time to reminisce before Max grabbed her hand as a signal that they needed to be on guard. 

"Billy..." Mike sang through his radio. Roxy wanted to roll her eyes but couldn't take her eyes off the emptiness of the room. 

"Who's there?" They heard Billy call back in the same sing-song tone. It gave Roxy chills. She stayed focused as the kids laughed fakely, freaking Roxy out a bit. She felt as if she was in a really cliche horror scene, apart from the fact that she knew it was all real. Mike kept calling for Billy, hearing him getting closer, ignoring the death threats that Billy gave. Finally, Billy came into the room adjoined to the sauna, not noticing Roxy and the kids hiding nearby as all his focus was on the dummy they set as bait. "Got you." They heard, and Roxy began to creep forward, being extremely careful to not make a sound. She stopped moving altogether when hearing Billy's cackle; their shared evil side really only belonged to Billy now. Roxy shook her head without meaning to. She didn't have an exact reason why, but she couldn't do it. Max ushered her friends out past Roxy. Once Billy turned around, El threw him back into the tiles (something Roxy couldn't watch), and he was trapped in the sauna by a thick metal pole blocking the door. After taking a breath and mustering up strength, Roxy walked out of the hiding place, not wanting to face her brother at all. The second they saw each other, Roxy had a sinking feeling that it wasn't just her brother in there.