All yours // Billy Hargrove

\\ Chapter 14 // Billy //

It had been 4 days. But it felt like years.

Nothing.Not a sign of her.Not a glimpse. Nobody had seen her. 

But they didn't care, not like Billy did.

He had called the Byers home 32 times. Never speaking, hoping, praying that one day Eris would pick up, Her sweet voice would ring in his ears. But nothing, everyone spoke to him when he called. All he wanted was to know she was okay.

His desperation was the same at school.

 Every day he waited for her. Leaning onto his turquoise camero, like usual, but with a purpose now. Waiting for Jonathan's crappy car to creep into the lot. 

Billy's breath would hitch every time he saw the rusty old veichle. Praying, That today would be the day. Eris would pop out the veichle smiling profusely. She would be fine. And eventually, her hazel eyes would wander over to him like they always did. He would greet them thankfully, then she would spend the whole day teasing him with them.

But there was never any sign of her.  It was maddening.

The strangest part was that Nancy looked just as upset, maybe even more so than Billy each morning. Billy couldn't understand why her supposed best friend didn't know where she was -something must have happened, the circumstances though, were unknown to him.

The anger he had felt was long gone now. All he did was miss her.

He missed her messy hair. Her Rosy cheeks. Her gleaming eyes. The echo of her laugh.Her toothy smile.Her smell. Her voice. Her touch.

 He missed everything about her.

Billy would never have forgiven himself if she was harmed him in any way. It wouldn't have been his fault. But he still would have blamed himself. Even now he was convinced her disaprence was because of him. It was quite big-headed of him, but Billy was sure it had something to do with him, one way or another.

He hadn't been home, not properly, not through the front door at least. He was too unstable. The boy would crack in a second if his dad tried anything. And for the moment his body couldn't take another hit. And he wouldn't be able to concentrate. Not fully. His mind was on her, always.

 Most mornings he just snuck in, grabbing a pair of clean boxers and a t-shirt before heading off again. Billy was a stranger and imposter in his own home.

That night, like all the previous nights Eris had been gone, after he dropped off max, instead of driving off, he walked aimlessly in the woods. 

They had become quite comforting to the boy. He enjoyed the silence of it all, pondering the idea of the chaos of microorganisms that swam across every surface, silently.

But no matter how far he walked, no matter the direction, he always found himself outside the bungalow. Her Bungalow. 

Tonight was no different. Billy could still see her running. The look on her face was imprinted on his soul. 

Billy couldn't describe the relief he felt at that moment. When he saw that night. It was something he had never felt before. It was as if he had been starving for weeks and finally found food. Or that he'd been thirsty and she was his first drop of water. She was an umbrella on a pouring day. A hallway light that protected him from the dark. 

She had saved him that night, in more ways than she ever knew. 

And how did he repay her?

He ignored her. He was consumed by spite, and he fucking ignored her. Blamed her for his own unrequited feelings. He knew now that it wasn't fair. Billy would always feel embraced by the way he treated the girl who had been nothing but wonderful to him.