As it turns out the blonde alpha's name is Billy Hargrove. And it also turns out that Billy Hargrove is utterly and irrevocably an asshole. Actually, him being an asshole would be an understatement. A newcomer to Hawkins and apparently he already believes that he's in charge—that everyone will do as he says because he's...what? An alpha? Because he's strong and good-looking? Because everyone's just going to fall to their knees and do as he says? There was no way in hell that Steve was going to blindly follow the herd. A majority of the girls already had a thing for Hargrove and that also seemed to boost the alpha's ego a ton.
He was confident (extremely so) and suave in his actions and words. There's no question that he knew how to wrap the omegas and (possibly) betas around his finger. Hell, Steve certainly wouldn't be surprised if Billy already had a fan club. Sure, he was hot. Anyone with a pair of eyes can see that. And yeah, he's an alpha with good looks as an added bonus. But that damn attitude...not to mention the alpha's cocky smugness. And did Steve forget to mention the crude way Billy talks?
And now, thanks to Tommy, Billy has been invited to hang out with them and to be a part of their inner circle. The freckled beta asked Billy to chill with them during lunch and also suggested that he should join the Tigers basketball team. Steve has never felt more tempted to duct-tape Tommy's mouth shut. The team was doing just fine. They didn't need another member. Steve was pretty sure that Billy probably didn't even know how to play basketball anyway. And even if he did—they didn't need him.
"Yeah, man, you should totally consider joining the team." Tommy had said during their lunch period. But all he got in response was a simple hum from the blonde alpha. Maybe if Billy wasn't such an asshole he and Steve could have been friends. But he had already humiliated Steve during their shared language arts class. Due to his terrible luck, Mrs. Jones decided (out of all the students) to pick Steve to answer the question on the chalkboard. Language arts was one of those classes that Steve wasn't very adept at.
His responses were slow and on top of that, he was a slow reader. He was dyslexic, so it was challenging for him to grasp complex words and sentences. Plus it didn't really help that Steve didn't even read the assigned chapter of their novel. So while he was staring like a dumbass at the board as if the question would answer itself, Billy decided it would be an amazing opportunity to embarrass Steve. He had said something along the lines of "need help there, princess?" or "try not to think too hard. You might pop a vein, pretty boy." It was absolutely embarrassing.
And the worst part was that his classmates were all giggling and laughing at Billy's remarks. He felt like the laughing stock in his class. Even Mrs. Jones had nothing to say about that. She just sent Steve back to his seat and picked someone else to answer the stupid question. Oh, and to make matters worse Billy took Tommy's advice. He was now a part of the Tigers basketball team. Isn't that just great? Steve felt like he was going to pop a gasket. A part of Steve wondered if he should give Billy the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he wasn't really that much of an asshole. Maybe he should give the alpha a chance. Yeah, what a mistake that was.
Apparently, Coach Clayton wanted to see Billy's skills out on the court. And what better way for Billy to test his skills than have a 1v1 with Steve? Steve didn't really like to brag, but he believed he was pretty good at basketball. It was one of his favorite hobbies. He liked basketball—it was something he was good at. His confidence is what made him captain of the team. That's right. He was an omega in charge of a bunch of betas and alphas. And once again, Billy took a great deal of pleasure in humiliating Steve on the court. Billy's moves were precise, aggressive, and swift meanwhile Steve was nearly struggling to keep up with the alpha.
What was really annoying was how Billy was imitating Steve's moves. If he moved to the left then Billy did the same thing. It was like Billy became his shadow and that was truly aggravating. Steve's scent soured with sheer irritation. It didn't take an idiot to notice that Billy was purposefully showing off. What made matters worse (again) is when the two boys started grinding on each other. Steve's body was coated in a light sheen of sweat as his back was fully pressed against Billy's hard naked chest. Steve had the ball (for now, at least) and Billy was not making things easy for him. He could feel the alpha's hot breath fanning against his ear and the back of his neck where his unclaimed mating mark is.
His strong alpha scent was so overwhelming at such close proximity that Steve had to shake his head as if that would snap him out of his daze. "Don't tell me that's all you got, princess." Billy had whispered huskily into his ear causing Steve's cheeks to flush. The moment didn't last long until he felt himself being pushed to the floor as Billy seized the ball and threw it effortlessly into the hoop. Steve groaned when his back met the hardwood floor with a soft thud. Great. Just great.
Steve winced at the slight pain in his lower back when Coach Clayton clapped his hands at Billy's performance. "Not bad, Hargrove. Not bad. You boys hit the showers."
Tommy and the rest of the team that had watched the whole ordeal headed to the locker room. Billy ran his fingers through his sweaty curls before extending his hand out to Steve. Was he serious right now? First, he humiliated Steve in front of Coach and his teammates and now he wants to help him up? Steve's jaw tensed but he was going to push his vexation aside for now. Yes, he could admit that Billy was good at basketball, there was no doubt about that. But he didn't have to be a show-off about it.
Placing his hand in Billy's, the alpha instantly squeezed Steve's hand in his before he leaned down so their faces were inches apart. "Plant your damn feet next time, sweetheart." He scowled with narrowed eyes down at the omega before shoving him back down on the floor again. Steve let out a shaky exhale when he slowly moved to sit up now that he was alone. What a total douchebag. As Steve was about to head into the showers he stopped in front of Coach Clayton's closed office door. A part of him wanted to tell Coach to not have Billy on the team. That he should find some kind of liable excuse to get the alpha kicked.
But that would have been something that the old Steve would have done. Last time he checked, he wasn't the old Steve anymore. He wasn't going to fall back into his old ways—not anymore. He'd just have to suck it up and deal with it. It already seemed like Coach made his choice regardless of what Steve could possibly say. So instead, the omega entered the locker room.
Opening his metal locker, he gathered a pair of fresh clothes from his duffel bag just as Tommy shimmied over to him with a grin. What did he want now? "Man, I can't believe you got your ass kicked by the new guy. Not much of a captain, are you?"
Steve pursed his lips when he twirled to face the beta. "Are you done, Tommy? Because I really don't want to hear it."
Tommy scoffed with a roll of his eyes and a shake of his head. He held his hands up in defense before walking to the shared A/B showers. He muttered something like "prissy omega" under his breath. Entering the O showers by himself, Steve stripped off his sweaty t-shirt, socks, and gym shorts that had clung to his skin. Nothing was more disgusting than having your sweat-dripped clothes sticking to you. It made Steve cringe and shudder.
Lathering his shampoo in his hair, he stopped his actions when he heard the boys laughing in the adjoining shower room. "I mean, seriously! Why the hell is Steve our captain?! He's just an omega!"
"We're a bunch of betas and alphas taking orders from a fucking omega?!"
"Hell, maybe Hargrove should be captain, whaddya think about that, Hargrove?" That was Tommy's voice.
Why was Steve not surprised that Tommy was shit-talking him? Walking over to the tile walls, Steve placed his ear against the wall to try and listen in. But the voices on the other side of the wall were muffled, he could only make out bits and pieces of the conversation. He couldn't believe this. He couldn't believe that his own team was talking shit behind his back. Again, it shouldn't be surprising. But it still hurt to hear what they were saying.
Was he really that terrible of a captain? Did they really dislike him that much? He always thought he was pretty fair on and off the court. But alas it was because he was an omega. That was the problem. Omegas meant very little in this town. Alphas were at the top of the hierarchy pyramid. Then betas. And of course, omegas were at the bottom. Anger bubbled in Steve's chest. So what if he was an omega? He knew his self-worth. He was worthy, wasn't he?
Finishing his shower and changing into a fresh pair of clothes, Steve neatly tucked his polo shirt into his denim jeans. Stepping out into the locker, Steve dropped his duffel bag on the long bench. The soft thud of his bag echoed in the room causing his teammates to quickly shut up. How convenient that now they want to be quiet. Like a bunch of fucking gossiping school girls. "Well, any of you have something you want to say to me?" Steve's scent flared with exasperation.
If they had something to say then they could say it to his face. They weren't in middle school anymore. "Tommy?" Steve crossed his arms as he took a step forward to be face-to-face with the freckled beta. "Whatever you've been dying to spew about me, go on, the floor's yours." He was sick of being treated like he was nothing. He was sick of the name-calling and the slut-shaming from his classmates and his teammates.
He's dealt with it for so long now and he was tired of all of it. A part of him wondered if he should tell Coach about what's been going on behind his back. But then...he had a feeling that Coach probably wouldn't believe him without concrete evidence. Everyone always takes an alpha or betas side. But no one takes an omegas side.
No one listens to what an omega has to go through on a daily basis. When he didn't receive a response from Tommy, Steve snickered and nodded his head slowly. "Right..." Grabbing his duffel bag, Steve stormed his way out of the locker room leaving his teammates open-mouthed and baffled by what just happened. All except Billy who had a small smirk on his lips.