Climbing out of his parked BMW, Steve leaned back against the vehicle and held his arms. He didn't want to go inside yet, so he decided to wait for Billy instead. So far, the school parking lot wasn't crowded yet which was nice. It also meant that there wouldn't be many people watching them or trying to pry into their business. The breakup between Steve and Nancy was still lingering, as well as his relationship with Billy. Give it another week or two and people will move on to the next best thing. Hopefully. While he waited for his alpha, he couldn't help but recall his short and bitter conversation with Nancy.
Well, it wasn't really a conversation but more so the fact that Steve didn't want to listen to whatever she had to say. A part of him felt guilty for speaking to her that way, but he was just so upset. Yeah, maybe he let his anger cloud his judgment, but he didn't want to hear her apology, he really didn't. Somewhere in his brain, he wondered if he should hear her out and give her a chance to explain herself. But at the same time—he didn't want to. Right now, Steve needed time and space from Nancy.
Maybe there'd come a time when he was ready to talk, but it wasn't now. Because every time his eyes land on her, he was just reminded of bullshit and hurt and heartbreak all over again. But when his eyes land on Billy, he feels a sense of safety and that everything is going to be okay.
Because Billy was his alpha now. Steve was a claimed omega. They were mates and he belonged to Billy just as much as Billy belonged to him. There was no point in fighting it when the outcome was going to end up the same. Steve tapped his fingers on his arm and continued to ponder as he waited patiently for his mate. He wasn't going to lie that it was a bit weird to call Billy mate. That's what he used to call Nancy. But now that title has fallen to Billy. And it kind of surprised Steve how willing Billy was to protect him or make him feel safe. Billy just fell into the role of alpha without a complaint. Just like the first day of school, the blaring sound of Scorpions blasted through the air signifying Billy's incoming presence.
The engine of his Camaro roared and the tires screeched against the pavement as he dangerously whipped into the school's parking lot. Steve couldn't help but snicker at the sight. Well, it was nice to see that Billy was still a crazy driver—that much hadn't changed. How Billy got his driver's license, Steve will never know or understand.
The alpha would probably run a pedestrian over and not notice what he'd done. The omega's smile subconsciously widened when Billy's Camaro approached and smoothly parked right next to his BMW. His alpha was here. It sparked a bit of excitement in Steve to see his alpha. But that excitement quickly dissipated when he saw the prominent bruises on Billy's face.
The alpha climbed out of his Camaro with a look of fury. He was clearly pissed off and not in a good mood. "Omega." Billy approached Steve to stand directly in front of him.
Steve was beyond tempted to reach out and touch Billy's face. "Oh my God, Billy, what happened to your face?" There was a mean bruise right on Billy's left cheekbone that looked like it might be there for a few days. His bottom lip had a small vertical cut but was also bruised. It looked like he had gotten into a fistfight. From what Steve could tell, it looked like Billy almost had a black eye as well. "Alpha," Steve whispered with a whimper. He felt terrible to see his alpha so hurt and beaten up.
Without thinking, Steve wrapped his arms around Billy's neck. "Who did this to you?" He spoke softly, using his soothing omega pheromones to try and get Billy to relax. Which, thankfully, seemed to be working.
Billy exhaled deeply through his nose. He didn't waste any time and wrapped his strong denim-clad arms around Steve's lithe waist. "It's nothin' you need to worry about, sweetheart. Alright? I'm fine."
But he wasn't fine. Steve could tell that was bullshit. But he didn't want to press on the matter. He didn't want to make Billy even more upset, so he simply nodded his head and obeyed like a good, little omega. "Okay. Well...you can always talk to me, Billy. I'm here."
Billy gave a hint of a smile at that before hiding his face in the crook of Steve's neck to inhale his flower-petal scent. "I'm fine." He told himself with a mutter.
Steve hummed and gently stroked the back of Billy's head. They remained like that until the school bell rang. As much as he wanted to stay like this, Steve reluctantly pulled himself away. He didn't hesitate to take Billy's hand in his immediately interlocking their fingers. "C'mon, let's get to class." Steve smiled, gently tugging the alpha with him as they entered Hawkins High together. It shouldn't have come as a surprise that everyone's eyes focused on them again.
Seems like people still liked to talk. Steve felt a sense of relief to see that his locker was cleared of all those ugly, bullshit Valentine's Day decorations. He totally forgot to confront Carol about that yesterday. But he certainly will today and he was going to get answers.
He needed to know who did this to his locker in the first place. Of course, his money was still on Carol. He wouldn't put it past her, it definitely seemed like something she'd do. Grabbing what he needed from his locker, he noticed how quiet Billy has been. He hasn't said a word so far and that kind of worried Steve a bit. Usually, Billy always had something to say to him. Even if it was something crude or inappropriate. But not right now. Whatever happened to him must have been pretty significant.
"Hey," Steve held his books to his chest and turned to face his alpha. "Do you...wanna, maybe, skip school for today? We can go back to my place? If you want?" He bit his lower lip and placed his hand on Billy's forearm.
The alpha frowned, his jaw tensed before he spoke with a shake of his head. "No. I can't. I can't skip. Sorry, princess. As tempting as that is, I...I can't skip."
Wow. All Steve can think about is: what the hell happened to him? And who did this to his alpha? "Okay, that's okay. Maybe after school?" Steve tilted his head. That seemed to make Billy smile just a tiny bit. The blonde alpha held Steve close and kissed him gently. Steve eagerly returned the gesture but remained mindful of the cut on Billy's lip. "So...is that a yes?" Steve's smile brightened.
Billy chuckled, wrapping his arm around Steve's waist to keep him close. "Yeah."
The minute Steve turned to walk down the hallway he froze when his eyes landed on Carol and Tommy. The two betas were down the hall, laughing and talking in casual conversation with the rest of the popular crowd. Steve clutched his books to his chest and narrowed his eyes at them. He had to talk with Carol. He had to. "Billy, why don't you head to class? I wanna talk with Carol for a second."
Billy looked at the crowd with a shake of his head. "I don't fuckin' think so. I'm staying with you, princess. I'm not leavin' your side."
Steve wanted to protest but figured that Billy wasn't going to take no for an answer. So he simply nodded and hesitantly approached Carol and the others with Billy by his side. Why the hell was he feeling so nervous? He had nothing to be nervous about. But it was Carol and Tommy. They were malicious and mean. "Carol." Steve cleared his throat just as they all turned to face him and Billy. Well, here goes nothing.
Carol pursed her glossy lips and twirled a strand of her hair around her manicured finger. She blew a piece of gum before it popped. "What do you want, King Steve? Oh, wait. I totally forgot...you're not king anymore, right?"
Tommy's smile curled into a wolfish grin when he draped his arm over Carol's shoulder. "That's right. More like slut, am I right? Steve 'the slut' Harrington."
Billy growled and popped his canines at the two betas. He opened his mouth to say something when Steve took a bold step toward Carol. They were now face-to-face. "Was it you? Were you the one who put that shit all over my locker the other day?" Steve's chocolate doe-eyes narrowed at her. He couldn't believe that he used to think they were his friends.
"Oh, you mean your little Valentine's Day gift? What? You didn't like it? I probably should have gotten some balloons, huh?" She giggled, popping her gum again. Steve's scent flared in anger. He didn't like violence toward girls, but he has never been more tempted to slap the shit out of her. So his suspicions were correct. It was Carol who did it. Why does that not surprise him?
Instead of resorting to violence, Steve snickered with a shake of his head. "God, you are such a miserable bitch, aren't you? So insecure and petty. It makes you so ugly, Carol. Y'know, I'm glad I was able to see your and Tommy's true colors. It opened my eyes, it really did." After a short pause, Steve leaned in so their faces were inches apart.
The smile on his plush lips didn't reach his eyes. "Don't forget, you two are betas. Nothing more, nothing less. You will always be betas. Useless and boring. Nothing special. I hope you and Tommy are very happy together." Steve easily pushed past them with Billy following behind. He couldn't help the confident smirk that spread on his lips as he walked away.
────── 〔♡〕──────
By the time lunch came around, Steve let Billy know that he was planning to use the restroom. Like yesterday, the alpha insisted on remaining by Steve's side like his personal bodyguard. He quickly reassured Billy that he would be right back and that there was no need for Billy to follow him. Billy wasn't fond of the idea of Steve venturing anywhere by himself even if they were on school grounds. However, the alpha seemed to let it slide and decided he'd wait in the cafeteria for Steve's return. Said he'd wait at their shared table since they were no longer sitting with Tommy and the rest of those douchebags. Which was fine with Steve. He didn't mind sharing a table with just his alpha and no one else.
He definitely didn't care that he wasn't sitting with Tommy or Carol anymore. They could both kiss his ass. Making his way down the hall and into the nearest bathroom, he used the toilet before washing his hands in the sink afterwards. In the midst of washing them, the bathroom door flung open causing the door handle to slam into the wall with a sharp thud. The sound caused Steve to flinch and startle in surprise. His head turned to see Tommy and his two male beta friends, Liam and Noah, (or whatever the hell their names were) it's not like Steve ever paid any attention to Tommy's friends anyway.
The three betas stepped into the bathroom as Liam closed the door behind him. Tommy had a cruel smirk on his lips, his eyes solely focused on Steve. There was dark intent in those hazel eyes. "I'm kind of surprised you don't have your guard dog with you, Harrington. Lucky for us, that makes our job easier."
Liam locked the bathroom door behind him as the two betas moved to stand on either of Tommy's sides. A shiver ran down Steve's spine causing goosebumps to form on his skin. Fear was the first thing hinted in his omega scent. His jaw tensed and he gulped, trying his best not to let his fear show.
But it was a little too late for that the minute Liam locked the door. Steve narrowed his eyes at the freckle-faced beta. Whatever was circulating through Tommy's mind wasn't going to be good. But maybe, just maybe, Steve could try and convince him to change his mind—it wasn't too late to turn around and leave. Deep down, Steve had a sickening sense of what Tommy was planning. "Tommy..." He spoke in a warning tone. "Whatever you're thinking. Don't. You don't want to do this."
Tommy snickered, running his tongue over his short canines. He had a determined and dangerous look in his eyes that made Steve tremble. "No. Steve. I think I do. What do you guys think?" He glanced back at his friends.
They both seemed just as eager as they nodded their heads. "Hell yeah, I think we should give Steve 'the slut' Harrington what he deserves." Liam licked his lips, keeping his eyes on Steve as if he was a piece of fresh, tantalizing meat. Steve felt like he was going to be sick. They couldn't do this. It was wrong. It was twisted and sick. But it didn't seem like Tommy or his friends were going to leave.
Steve took one step back when Tommy took one step forward. All Steve could think about was what was going to happen to him and—Billy. His alpha had no clue. Most likely, he was probably still waiting for Steve to return. The minute Steve's back hit the tile wall, Tommy had already invaded his space with Liam and Noah behind him.
Steve immediately turned his head away and squeezed his eyes closed when Tommy's face was inches from his. His hot breath on his face when he chuckled. "I don't know about you, Stevie. But I'm gonna enjoy this." He whispered, his lips curling up into a wicked smirk. Steve whimpered, his bottom lip trembling as he released distress pheromones in the air hoping that Billy would miraculously show up to save him.