Still Time / Billy Hargrove

𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍

•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧. •̩̩͙*˚⁺‧.˚ *•̩̩͙ ✩. •̩̩͙*˚⁺‧. •̩̩͙*˚⁺‧.˚ *•̩̩͙ ✩. •̩̩͙*˚⁺‧

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧. •̩̩͙*˚⁺‧.˚ *•̩̩͙ ✩. •̩̩͙*˚⁺‧. •̩̩͙*˚⁺‧.˚ *•̩̩͙ ✩. •̩̩͙*˚⁺‧

     NEITHER OF THEM HAD ANY NIGHTMARES THAT NIGHT. But despite how safe and loved they felt, Addie and Billy were both a little scared of how quickly they'd become attached to each other.

During the few days Billy was absent from school, Addie didn't let it show just how worried she really was. Twice, she was called on in class for not paying attention. She thought about sneaking to his house at night to check on him, and she knew Max would let her in through the window if she asked. But she also thought of the consequences if they got caught. She knew how Neil treated his son.

And Billy thought of Addie constantly. After his father had given him that black eye, he basically threatened him, saying that he better stay home from school until it heals. This was the first time that Billy thought of disobeying his father to avoid ditching school. He wanted to go, but only to see Addie. He saw and felt the way she cared for him and wanted him to be safe. He knew she'd be worried when he didn't show up 3 days in a row.

Those 3 days he was home felt like torture. Neil had taken the next day off, Billy guessed it was to make sure he didn't leave the house. So he spent the entire day in his room, only leaving it to use the bathroom, and to grab something to eat when he was sure his dad was taking a nap.

One thing that did help pass the time, was daydreaming, which wasn't something he did often. In fact before that day, Billy couldn't remember the last time he sat there and thought about the future.

He tried to imagine what the future held for him. At first, his plan was to leave Hawkins the moment he graduated. Since he'd already be 18, he was pretty sure his dad couldn't stop him. But now, he didn't know. Addie said she'd like to leave Hawkins someday, but would she want to leave that soon, and with him?

If she didn't want to leave right away, and she asked him to stay, he imagined that he'd say yes. That he'd wait as long as she wanted him to, because he now didn't even want to picture a life that involved moving so far away from her.

Billy thought he was a little crazy for imagining a future with a girl he'd only known a short while. But she meant so much to him, and had done so much for him. The deep conversations that they had ended up doing more for him and his mental health than anything else, and he knew he'd always be grateful to Addie for that.

He thought of all of the things that he hoped to do for her someday. Take her to California, because with the way she talked about the ocean, he knew she'd love it. And maybe that's where they could move to. It was pretty much as far away from Indiana as you could get, without leaving the country.

But part of him was worried. What if she decided she didn't want to leave? They both wanted to for different reasons. Billy, because of what living in Hawkins represented, what moving there had taken from him. He'd gained so much more now and no longer hated the move, but still couldn't quite picture spending the rest of his life here, unless maybe Addie asked him to. And Addie only wanted to leave because she wanted to get out and see the country, experience new things. He knew how close she was to her mom and brothers, and also thought that if she left and came back after a short time away, she'd be just as happy to stay in this town.