Stranger Things - Imagines

Billy Hargrove X Reader - Anymore

They revelled in the torture they put you through. Knocking your books out of your hands. Kicking your leg out from underneath you or stepping on the back of your heel to make you stumble or trip. Shooting spitballs at you in the middle of class.  But today, apparently, they'd decided that none of that was enough. Which was exactly how you had found yourself being shoved up against a locker at full strength, your entire body going rigid when your eyes landed on Tommy Hagan, practically grinning at your response. 

He opened his mouth as if he was going to speak, but before any words could actually escape him, he was being tugged backwards away from you, leaving you leaning awkwardly up against the wall of lockers with eyes like a deer in the headlights. And then, your eyes had landed on Billy, shoving Hagan away from you a little more harshly than you'd have expected from two boys who were supposed to be friends.

"What's your problem?" Tommy bit out, his eyes darting back over to you for a second as he questioned his friend. 

"Leave her alone," Billy uttered, his voice a clear enough warning of what could possibly happen if Tommy didn't listen. 

You swallowed down the sob that wanted to escape you, your hands balled into fists at your side and your focus still completely fixed on the two boys in front of you. 

"You got a crush or something, Hargrove?" Tommy hummed, his head tilting to the side as he returned his attention to you. "Seems a little too mousy for your usual tastes-"

Billy shoved him again, watching him stumble back a couple of steps. "Just leave her," he answered, skirting around the question effortlessly. 

Tommy held up his hands in surrender, taking a few steps back, a smirk painting his lips. "Who am I to get between two kids in love, huh?" he teased, grinning when he turned to look at you. "Have fun whilst it lasts, Sweetheart," he uttered, sending you a wink that made your stomach churn. 

As soon as he was out of earshot, Billy was moving closer to you, clearing his throat as he stood at your side. "Take a deep breath," he told you, his voice so gentle that it made your brow furrow. Hearing the difference in how he spoke to everyone else versus how he spoke to you was a rather shocking revelation. "Did he hurt you?" he added softly, lifting his hand as if he was going to touch you, only to hesitate, his hand hovering awkwardly between the two of you. 

You finally shook your head, your tongue darting out to wet your bottom lip you finally pushed off of the locker, standing up a little straighter. "You didn't have to do that-"

"Yeah, I did," he murmured, swallowing down the lump in his throat before shrugging. "I get the feeling we may have more in common than anyone might think," he added softly. 

Your brow furrowed as you looked at him, head tilting to the side slightly as you tried to make sense of what he was saying. "I-" you paused, looking so damn lost that it made Billy chuckle. 

"Mine is my dad," he murmured, nose wrinkling as the thought of Neil passed through him. 

Your expression softened as realisation dawned on you. You and Billy did have something in common. Something that you had never talked to anyone else about, but that he had seen in you without you ever saying a word. "Oh-"

"I've never said that to anyone before," he murmured, letting out a shocked little snort of laughter. 

"Me neither," you uttered, lifting your hand to take his, where it still hovered awkwardly between you. "Thank you," you added softly, allowing a small smile to pull at your lips, his own forming in response. 

Billy hesitated for a moment, his eyes darting down the hallway and then back to you. "How would you feel about cutting class with me?"

"Cutting class?"

"Yeah," he hummed, leaning a little more comfortably against the locker beside you, smiling down at you. "We could go over to Betty's. Get a milkshake or a soda or something."

"I don't have any money," you murmured. 

He shrugged slightly.  "Good thing this one's on me then, huh?" 

*Time Skip*

You had never been to Betty's diner before. In fact, you'd never really gone out to eat anywhere before. Your dad was always so short on money, and whatever was left of his paycheck tended to go on beer rather than going out for food. 

Billy had watched you scan the menu as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. Like it was the Rosetta Stone or the Ark of the Covenant or the Holy Grail. God, you were looking at it as if it was anything but the sticky plastic sheet sitting in front of you. 

"I'm going to get some pancakes," he hummed, watching as your eyes darted up to look at him. 

"I don't think I've ever had one before," you uttered. "Are they good?" 

Billy's brow furrowed in confusion. He didn't think he'd ever met someone who'd never had pancakes before, but it seemed the more he learned about you, the more intriguing you became. 

"They're not just good; they're incredible," he corrected, watching a small smile pull at the corner of your lips. "You should try 'em-"

"I don't want to be wasteful," you murmured. 'What if I don't like them?"

He shrugged slightly. "Then maybe you can just try some of mine instead?"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," he responded softly. "You can have whatever you want," he added, and he swore he could see the words settle in your brain, your expression softening. 

You sat quietly after you had ordered, your eyes focused out of the window at the traffic driving by. And then, the food had come, and Billy immediately cut you off a bite of his food, nudging it to the edge of the plate for you with a small smile. 

"It's my dad too," you suddenly uttered, watching as just a second of confusion spread across Billy's face before understanding flooded out of him. "My mum died when I was little, It's been just us two since before I can remember," you added softly, clearing your throat as you pushed the food around the plate. "He's not a bad man," you finally murmured, glancing back up at Billy.

"No?"

You shook your head. "He's angry but he's not evil. He tried getting sober after mom died, but-" a soft sob slipped out of you before you could catch it, and Billy's hand slid slowly across the table for you to take. 

"It's okay," he murmured, even though the idea of anyone ever doing anything to you was anything but okay. God, it made him so mad to think of anyone ever making you feel so shitty, and here you were defending the guy as if he wasn't destroying your life. 

"He doesn't want to hurt me," you pressed on, sniffling as you bit back another sob. "It's not him; it's the alcohol," you added, wiping at the tears that were forming in your eyes. "Shit," you muttered, taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm yourself down. 

"Deep breath," he reminded you, giving your hand a gentle squeeze. "Just take your time."

You nodded, letting out a shaking breath. "If I tell someone, he'll get in trouble," you finally uttered, biting down on your bottom lip. "I don't want him to get in trouble; he's the only family I have." 

"You don't need to tell anyone else," he hummed. "You're the only person I've ever told about my dad," he reminded you. "And it's not like I'm trying to protect him or anything, he's an asshole; he deserves whatever he gets. But, I don't want people to look at me any differently, you know?"

You hesitated for a moment, your tongue darting out to wet your bottom lip. "Yeah, I get it." You squeezed his fingers before releasing, picking up your fork and spearing the bite of pancake off of the side of his plate. "Thank you for bringing me here," you uttered before taking a delicate nibble from the edge of the forkful. "Holy shit," you bit out, eyes widening in shock as they moved between the food and Billy. 

"That good, huh?"

You nodded. "That good," you agreed, letting a short bubble of laughter slip out of you. 

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