COMING THIS SUMMER:
WE WANT ALEX HENDERSON !
☀︎
HAWKINS, INDIANA WAS GROWING HOTTER AND HOTTER, DAY BY DAY AS THE FOURTH OF JULY APPROACHED. Ice cream, Starcourt, babysitting and poolsides are the only things that seemed to fill Alex Henderson's summer. With Dustin gone for a month, away at camp, things we're looking bleak and boring. Yet, it was a completely normal summer with the Upside Down and the Mind Flayer out of everyone's minds.
Sitting at the poolside, Alex had been lounged in her bikini with her sunglasses pushed up on top of her head as she read her book. Erica only ever had one demand from her babysitter, and that was to keep her distance and mind her business. It was something Alex found easy to follow given Erica did have a way with words— for a little girl, she was vicious.
Out in the water, Karen Wheeler had emerged from the pool, soaking wet and hungry for a younger man. Coming to deliver exactly what she had needed, Billy had came with a towel in hand just for her. "Looking good, Mrs. Wheeler. Perfect form."
"Well, your form is amazing," she responded back. As Karen continued to stutter out that she had been talking about his teaching skills with the children, Alex had overheard the conversation given they stood not too far away.
Knocking her sunglasses down to shield her eyes, she had pulled her book up closer to her face to keep herself hidden as she watched the interaction in curiosity. Her eyes shifted back and forth between the two— Karen Wheeler, flustered and flirty, and Billy Hargrove soaking it all in.
"You know, I could teach you, if you'd like," Billy offered her. "I know all the styles. Freestyle. Butterfly..." Biting his tongue, he had inched closer to her the more flustered she had became. "... Breaststroke."
Losing sight of her dignity, Karen dropped her towel down to the wet concrete under their feet. Both had made a reach for it as she attempted to laugh it off as a simple mistake. "I didn't think you... I didn't think you taught adults."
"Well, I offer more, uh...advanced lessons to select clientele." Being a lifeguard had its perks for Billy with women fawning over him and getting to yell at the occasional kid. However, the only times he didn't shoot a wink in the direction of the very interested moms and talked nicely to the kids that ran around was when he would see Erica Sinclair laughing and splashing with her friends in the pool. Her arrival only meant that Alex was not too far away.
And just as his eyes lingered over the pool as he spoke, he had seen Erica Sinclair instructing her friends what game they would be playing next that he realized Karen Wheeler was not the only person he was looking to impress.
Taking a step back from Karen, he had wanted to create some distance if Alex had been watching— which she very well was and with a look of disgust to see this conversation unfold in front of her. Billy had continued to speak, attempting to make plans with Mrs. Wheeler at Motel 6 on Cornwallis tonight for what he liked to call "swimming lessons."
However, his eyes had checked out of the conversation as they scanned the surrounding area and there she was. Billy couldn't help but feel his smile grow, most likely making Mrs. Wheeler swoon in the process. Alex Henderson had found the perfect spot to be hidden away from the view of the lifeguard tower and if it had been on purpose or not, Billy didn't seem to think much of it, he was just glad he caught her. His confidence was at an all time high thanks to Karen Wheeler.
The moment Mrs. Wheeler had finally agreed to a private night with him, Billy had been prepared to dismiss himself. Without a proper goodbye to her, Billy had stepped to the side as he changed his focus to someone new, someone he was desperate to make right with.
While Alex had chosen to go back to reading with the conversation over, Karen had stood there for a moment as she slowly realized that was it. She agreed and the flirty conversation was over. Quickly wrapping the towel around her self, she still felt unsatisfied as she rushed back towards her friends as sat down in a huff.
"What does that girl have that we don't have?" Her voice dripped with jealousy as the group of moms watched Billy nervously fix his hair and slowly approach Alex.
"Perky boobs?" One mom had suggested.
"No husband or kids," one mumbled, holding her magazine back up to her face.
"Oh come on, she has a boyfriend! My daughters ex-boyfriend! She probably only goes after unavailable guys," Nancy Wheelers mom complained. Though that was the weakest of insults that floated through her head, consumed with jealousy the moment Billy Hargrove took a seat next to Alex, facing her with a nervous smile.
As for Alex, she was panicked to see Billy sitting near her. Neither had spoken much since the Snowball dance and their issues had still been left out to discuss. To say she was nervous was an understatement.
Clearing his throat uncomfortably, Billy had sat on the edge of the empty seat beside her but his confidence had seemed to be left with Mrs. Wheeler. He was at a complete loss for words.
Gently setting her book down against her legs, Alex had looked over to him as she awaited a response and when nothing came, she frowned. "Is everything okay?"
Billy had looked out towards the pool as he gave a small nod and built up his courage. "We haven't talked. I just wanted to make sure you were doing okay."
"I'm okay," she said with slight confusion. "Are you okay?"
Clearing his throat once again, Billy finally looked over to her. "Yeah. Just been working here all summer."
"Oh, well, I've just been babysitting."
The conversation was not going as Billy had planned— meaning it had been awkward and he felt unlike himself in every sense. He couldn't bring himself to meet her eyes as he tried his hardest to focus on anything but her. "I know you said we can't talk and that, you know, we were pretty much done— whatever we were. Friends or-or acquaintances, whatever it was." Billy paused as he realized that though his attention had been elsewhere, Alex had kept her eyes on him as she listened, something he didn't really expect from her.
Encouraging himself to speak up, Billy had finally met her eyes. "You we're going through shit and I knew that and I was an asshole. And I know you probably don't think I care, but I just wanted to check on you. Make sure you're really okay."
Alex found herself turning away at the mention of last years events. She was okay— or that's what she had always told herself but she would never forget. Nothing could take away the pain that was caused to her, but she was great at lying to everyone else around her. Forcing a smile, Alex hid the pain in her eyes, "Everything's great now."
"Still with King Steve?" Though mentioning Steve had made him clench his fists, he remained calm in fear that Alex would leave and never come back to the pool.
A genuinely happy smile had came to her face as she had nodded her head— in fact, Alex had lit up just from the mention of Steve. "Yeah, we're still together. He's actually working at Scoops Ahoy at Starcourt. Which is great, of course, because I get free ice cream and all."
"Sure, but he has to wear that sailor uniform."
Alex turned over to him with her brows furrowed. "Sure beats being out here trying to hook up with desperate moms though." Closing her book shut, Alex pushed her sunglasses back down to her eyes as she grabbed her bag.
Sitting up in surprise to see her ready to rush off, Billy decided to speak quickly. "You saw that, huh? Mrs. Wheeler really can't get enough."
"Oh, yeah, I bet. She's definitely had enough of me, that's for sure." Scoffing, Alex slung her bag over her shoulder as she rolled her eyes. "Nancy told me that she was asking if we weren't friends anymore because I stole Steve. As if I have the brains for that." Standing up from her seat, she wrapped a towel around her waist as she bit her cheek in thought. Pointing down to him, she gave him a questioning look. "If you end up marrying Mrs. Wheeler, you'll be Nancy's dad. That's messed up."
"Noted," he said as he got to his feet. Moving away from him, Alex had decided to walk off from between the lounge chairs to make sure she had kept her distance. As she had made her way towards the pool to call Erica over to leave, Billy had followed after in hopes of keeping up the conversation. "You coming back here tomorrow, Henderson?"
Alex thought for a moment as she watched Erica swim her way over. "Yeah, but we'll be coming earlier tomorrow so we probably won't see each other. She wants to hang out with friends at Starcourt." Extending out a towel to a dripping wet Erica, Alex looked over her shoulder at Billy. "So I'll probably miss out on all the details of your private swimming lessons you're giving tonight."
Chuckling, Billy had felt his face grow red as he shook his head. "That's a shame, really." He had watched as Alex gave him a small smile and placed her hand on Erica's shoulder as they began to walk off. "I'll see you soon," she said quietly.
This time, Billy was not going to allow his moment to disappear. Extending a hand out, he had quickly tapped her on the shoulder. Coming to a stop, Alex had begun to turn around and instantly Billy's nerves grew. Swallowing hard, he found himself unintentionally avoiding her eyes as he spoke. "I'm still sorry about what happened between us and what happened with Harrington."
There was a moment of silence as Alex had tried to understand what she could say. She was not ready to forgive and she could never forget, but for once, she didn't feel she had a conversation with Billy that had her skin crawling or feeling lesser than him with his choice of words. Yet she could only find herself saying one single word. "Okay," she whispered. Turning back around, she had kept her focus on Erica, asking her about her time in the pool.
As for Billy, he was as satisfied as he could get. It was a step and that step was finally in the right direction. Another lifeguard had been walking in his direction as he kept his eyes on Alex's back. Holding out his hand, he had stopped her for a quick and easy favor. "Trade shifts with me tomorrow and I'll buy you dinner." Shifting his eyes off of Alex, he had found his confidence once more as a flirtatious smile came to his lips. It was just that easy and straight away, she had agreed.
Yet, all he could hope for now was catching even a second of Alex Henderson's time tomorrow at the pool.