Part 2 where we get to see a softer side of Billy. Enjoy!
"Dinner's ready!" My sister called pounding on my door.
"Not hungry." I yelled back.
"Mom told me to get you for dinner." Lily called through the door.
"That's great but like I said I'm not hungry." I snapped.
"Mom wants you to come downstairs, she told me to tell you-"
"I get it! It's not your fault I don't come down, just tell her I don't want to right now. I'm sure she'll understand."
The door to my room creeped open.
"Lily!" I shouted, "Get out!"
Ignoring me she stepped further into the room, "Is that my camera?"
Damn it! Stupid camera! I meant to hide it till I got her another one. I hadn't expected her to come trespassing into my room.
"Nope." I said quickly tossing it behind me on the bed.
"You're being super weird. You just ran right into your room when you got home." Lily pushes.
"I'm not being weird, you're just nosy."
"Come on Vera I know that's my camera."
"It's not."
"If you still need it, I don't care but why are you being weird about it?"
"I'm literally not."
"Show me the camera then."
"No."
Lily rushed over to me. I stood to intercept her, but she dove behind me and snatched the camera off my bed. She turned it over and then quickly looked up at me, her expression irate.
"What happened?"
"Nothing." I insisted.
"You broke my camera!"
"Who said it's your camera?"
Lily scoffed, "unbelievable."
"Okay, look I didn't break it."
"Then what happened?"
I shrugged helplessly. It suddenly occurred to me that I couldn't exactly let slide that Billy Hargrove had knocked it off the stand in a rage.
"It could have been an accident!"
"What do you mean could have been?"
"Like it might have broken from an accident."
"Was it an accident?"
"I don't know!"
"How could you not know? What happened?"
"I don't know!"
"That's it." She ran from my room clutching her camera, "Mom!"
She raced down the stairs as I began chasing her. Both our footsteps pounding on the floorboards.
"Hey! Hey, you cannot tell mom okay." I hissed, grabbing at her arm.
"Mom!" She shrieked again.
"Tell me what?" My mom asked appearing at the bottom of the stairs, her tone strained.
"Nothing!" I yelled quickly.
"Vera broke my camera!" Lily shouted over me.
"Girls! Stop yelling, what is this?"
"Vera broke my camera." Lily repeated.
My mom's gaze snapped up to me, "Vera! Why would you do that?"
"I didn't break it!" Technically that was the truth.
"You borrowed it!" Lilly shrieked.
"What did you do?" My mom demanded.
"I didn't break the camera alright. I'll get her another one, it's not a big deal."
"Mom, she won't even apologize." Lily whined.
"It was not me."
"Did someone knock it out of your hands? Did someone attack you and you dropped it? Is someone picking on you? If that's the case, just tell me! Why are you being a jerk about it?"
"No. Nothing like that. Look I can explain later, the person who broke it might not even have meant to break it! I don't know."
"Who broke the camera, Vera?" My mom demanded, her tone rough and cold.
Averting my eyes to the floor, I gave a small cough that sounded suspiciously like Billy Hargrove.
"What was that?" My mom pushed.
"Billy Hargrove." I repeated lowly.
I knew this wouldn't go over well. My mother hated Billy. She had only met him once in a grocery store where he had supposedly hit on her. Upon finding out he was to be a new classmate of mine she sat me down and gave me explicit instructions to stay away from him. What my mom didn't need to know was that he was my lab partner, I sat next to him in English, and he was supposed to be my partner on assignments all year. It wouldn't have mattered to her that he never showed up and I rarely saw him despite these things.
"Billy Hargrove!" My mom shrieked, "What were you doing with Billy Hargrove?"
"A project. For school. He got mad and broke the camera." I mumbled.
"Oh, you wait till his parents hear about this."
"No, mom. I'll buy Lily another camera. Leave him out of it."
"But if he broke it-"
"It was technically my fault. I'll just buy another one. Don't call his parents." I pleaded.
The last thing I needed was for Billy to have another reason to want to kill me.
"You're right you're getting her another one. And with your own money too."
"Yes, mom."
"And don't you dare hang around or even look at that Hargrove boy ever again you hear me?"
"Yes, I hear you."
"We'll talk about punishment later. Go to your room."
I didn't have to be told twice. I turned right around and went straight for my room.
"Apologize to your sister!" My mom called after me.
"I'm sorry, Lily!" I yelled without even turning around.
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Mom and I talked it out later that night. No TV for two weeks and I wasn't allowed anywhere except school, I lost phone privileges too. Not so much different from my normal life. But as soon as my mom figured out, I missed an assignment worth twenty percent of my grade I'm sure I was in for an even worse time. I'd be grounded until I graduated college or maybe she'd just kill me.
The stress of the project was eating away at me. My mom had given me her own video camera, which was significantly less nice than my sister's. But even with another camera I had somehow lost all my notes and a few textbooks. I supposed I had left them at the Hargrove house in my rush to leave. I considered asking Max for them back, but I found myself afraid to approach her if Billy ever found out I had.
Then rounding the hallway corner of school, my stress turned to rage. There was Kelly Conrad pressing some freshman against a wall of lockers, sucking his face off. So much for being out of school for a week.
I marched over to them and tapped the boy on the shoulder.
"She has mono you know." I told the boy.
Kelly turned and scoffed at me, rolling her eyes. But the boy's eyes widened.
"Screw off, Hetfield this doesn't concern you." Kelly snapped.
"Does she really have mono?" The boy asked, he had pushed her away as she tried to lean into him again.
I shrugged, "she told me herself."
"Oh God!" The boy yelled.
"I don't have-"
"Oh God! Get away from me!" He yelled before tearing off down the hallway.
"Maybe call your primary care physician!" I called after him.
Kelly was staring me down with a death glare, she crossed her arms over her chest.
"What is your problem Hetfield?" She snapped.
"Oh, I have a problem, do I? Why are you in school?"
"What do you mean? I go here?"
"You told me you have mono and you'd be out for the whole week! I talked to Mr. Harris to make sure you wouldn't get screwed over for that! That you'd be taken care of! And yet here you are sucking boys faces off! So, either you lied, or you don't care that you probably just gave that boy a horrible illness."
"You told Harris I have mono?"
"Yeah, I did."
"I told Harris I was switching groups! Who else did you tell?"
"Just that guy. But word will get around, I'm sure. That's the consequences of being a lying b*ch. Now what do you mean you switched groups?"
"I switched groups, I'm not working with you. I never was going to work with you if I could help it."
"And you were going to tell me this when? I mean come on! This was assigned more than two weeks ago! Now it's due in like two days! I don't even have enough time to find a new group!"
"What? It's not my fault I overestimated you. I figured you could take a hint. You just so happen to be stupid and that's on you."
"No, no you don't get to be inconsiderate like this and just walk away. We got assigned in a group! You can't just switch groups! Everyone bailed on me!"
She smirked, "what happened to Hargrove? Aw did he bail on you too? He doesn't want you sweetie. Anyone could have told you that."
"You know what I think you're the one with a problem, Kelly. I feel sorry for you."
She laughed now, "aw how cute the freak feels sorry for me."
"Freak?"
"Yeah, you were going to force us all to make out for that project. That's pretty freaky if you ask me. That's why none of us want to work with you, I don't blame Billy for bailing too."
Furious at all the torment I'd taken from Kelly since seventh grade I stepped closer to her.
"First off, Cyrano was assigned to us. That doesn't change the fact that it's a literary masterpiece that deserves to be appreciated. Second, we could have faked the kiss scenes. Thirdly has it ever occurred to you in that shallow pool of a brain you have that maybe it'd be just as disgusting for me to kiss any of you assholes as it would be for any of you to have to kiss me? The lot of you disgust me the way you act and treat people. And fourthly I know Billy doesn't want me and I couldn't give any less of a crap. But guess what honey he doesn't want you either and it drives you up a wall. Steve Harrington's sloppy leftovers." I sneered at her.
"Ugh." She scoffed, she made a move to push me, but I deflected and punched her across the face.
"Have a nice day." I said in a falsely sweet tone.
I left her there clutching the lockers and holding the side of her cheek.
"Bitch." I called over my shoulder.
As I stormed down the hall out of the building, I saw a familiar figure leaning against the frame. Hugging my arms to myself I hung my head down and rushed past him. Billy Hargrove wouldn't have the chance to kill me today. Not after I had just stood up to my worst bully for the first time in my life.
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Thursday night rolled around faster than I would have liked. Around 8:30pm, I laid across my bed staring up at the ceiling. My chest hurt feeling like someone had stacked bricks on me. Tomorrow morning second period my assignment was due. And I had nothing to turn in. Nothing to present. Nothing to grade. Tomorrow my life ended.
Without my notes and being completely alone in this I had given up every hope of finishing the project. I just was going to do nothing. Absolutely nothing.
A little while later I heard a tap against my window. I flinched but didn't move to get up. Then it happened again. More taps. Maybe I'd just accept my fate. Maybe some monster came out at night to eat kids that didn't do their homework. My mom had been right. Take me now then Mr. Monster. It'd be easier than facing my own mother.
Or more likely the taps were imaginary or a tree. I was overreacting.
And then the window opened and a dark figure entered my room.
I jumped off my bed ready to start screaming bloody murder until a hand clasped over my mouth.
"Alright, I'm going to take my hand off, but you have to promise not to scream or yell alright? We're going to be quiet." The voice was much softer and gentler than I had last heard it. But there was no mistaking it. Not to mention the overpowering cologne and the softer hints of cigarettes now floating through my room.
Billy.
"Hey, you hear me?" He asked again.
I nodded. The second he released me I jumped back putting much needed distance between us. He took a step towards me, but I backed up more, almost into my dresser.
"No," I croaked, "that's close enough."
"Crap, Hetfield what did I wake you up? Were you asleep?" He asked seeming concerned more than anything else.
I looked at my clock, "No I wasn't asleep. It's nine! What person our age goes to bed at nine?" I hissed.
He shrugged, "I figured you did. You seem like the type to do something like that."
"What, no!"
"Okay, okay! I'll take your word for it."
"You know where I live?"
"It's a small town, everyone knows where everybody lives. You know where I live."
I had no response to that. He wasn't wrong.
"So, I'll let you get ready, and we'll go." He said breaking the silence.
"Go?"
"Yeah, I mean hey it's getting warm but it's not that warm. I'll let you put real clothes on, and we'll be on our way. Unless you have more stupid questions?"
"Go where?"
He nodded, "alright I understand. You have a few more stupid questions to get out of your system. I get it. Honestly, I don't really know where were going but I had a few ideas, you know given the context."
"No. No, look Billy I'm sorry. Really, I am sorry, but I can't go anywhere with you. I'm sorry about a couple days ago. I promise I'll never go there again. I'll-"
His brow furrowed and he tried stepping closer to me again.
I moved to the other side of my bed.
"Hetfield? Are you afraid of me?" He asked.
He tried stepping towards me again and I instinctively took a step back.
"Holy crap you are afraid of me. What happened Hetfield? I'm the big bad around school but you still tried to order me around. You were never afraid of me."
"Billy-not even counting a few days ago look what you've done now! You've all but broken into my house! I have no idea why and as I'm trying to get answers from you, you're just being vague."
I couldn't see him very well in the dark. He was barely illuminated in the moonlight. I could just make out the curls of his hair and see him enough to notice he didn't have his usual cigarette hanging from his lips.
"I don't want you to be afraid of me. I mean usually I like when people are. Most of them deserve it. But not you. You don't deserve that. I don't want you to be afraid of me."
"Then don't yell at me." I snapped. It came out colder than I had meant.
"You don't get it."
"How am I supposed to get anything when we've barely talked and the few times, we have you just angrily shout vague nonsense at me!"
He didn't answer.
I sighed, "listen, I'm sorry. I know you're mad at me, just please don't-"
"Don't what? Hurt you? I'm not mad. I mean I was but I'm not anymore. I don't want to hurt you. I'm not going to."
"I'm so confused right now."
"You, I appreciate you. You've never insulted me back even though it would be completely warranted given how I treat you. You've never called me stupid, and you don't sexualize me like literally every other girl. Thank you."
"Why would I call you stupid?"
"I don't do school and most people take that as- as me being stupid."
"I never thought you were. I just thought you had problems with authority. All that heavy metal."
Even in the dark I could see he averted his eyes to the ground. "Something like that."
"Did you want to talk or something?" I asked.
He raised his head, "I came to help you finish your project for English."
"Billy- that's due tomorrow morning. We'll never finish in time. It's due second period."
"We can skip chemistry if need be and if we leave to work on it now-"
"Dude I'm already in trouble for not completing work in one class, I can't skip another."
"Then we'll finish it tonight."
"Why all of a sudden do you want to do schoolwork?"
"Look do you want my help or not?"
"It's really nice of you to offer your help but it's too late for that!"
Billy sighed rubbing his face, "this is pay back, isn't it? All those times you begged me to do my assignments. Now that I'm actually going to do work, you're going to make me beg like a f**king nerd!"
"Billy, it's not that it's just that we waited too long it'd be literally impossible to do now."
"What are you talking about? Maxine said you just had to do the last scene or whatever. If you're worried about it taking too long, we'll just shorten the guy's fifty something monologues to 'oh no I'm dying' and then he just dies ya know?"
"No, Billy I'm sorry but the camera broke it won't turn on anymore. All that footage from a few days ago is gone."
"You're joking?"
"I wish I was joking."
Billy ran his hands over his face. "You've got to be kidding me. You wrote f***king War and Peace! I thought great we only have to do the peace part and now you're telling me we have to do the war and the peace?"
"And- and I broke your camera?" He added.
I shrugged, "my sister's camera but yeah."
"Damn it! I'll buy her another one I guess."
"No, that's okay I already said I'd get her another one."
"But I broke it!"
"It's okay they're expensive. I can't expect you to do that."
"Alright, well I am helping you with this assignment so let's go, Hetfield."
"I can't sneak out. My mom is already going to find out that I failed to do an assignment worth twenty percent of my grade and then when she catches me sneaking out, she will kill me. Either I don't sneak out but then don't do my assignment and then she'll kill me, or I sneak out and do the assignment and she kills me for sneaking out."
"Will you just relax? You'll do the assignment and not get caught for sneaking out. It's fine a win win for you right?"
"Billy-"
"Listen Hetfield I did not read your entire f**king novel just for you to bail on me alright."
"Billy?" I asked tentatively, "Did you read my script?"
"No, no you mean your novel. Yeah, I read it and it took damn near forever."
The gesture had moved me. It was all I needed to hear really. For him to do that, to me it meant that he was serious about doing this for me. It was real progress for him.
I strode over to him and stopping when I was right in front of him.
"Billy?"
"Hm?"
"Can I give you a hug?"
He snorted but said, "yeah, whatever Hetfield."
Quickly before he could change his mind, I threw my arms around him.
"Thank you." I whispered into his chest.
Billy had only put a hand to my back. But when I tried to pull away, he pressed it tighter to me.
"You've been waiting to do that for how long, Hetfield?" He purred in my ear.