Work Text:
His first mistake was talking to middle schoolers.
Billy’s been having a rough week. It all started on Sunday when Neil had decided it had been far too long since he had used his son as a punching bag. The next day he had to bare the uncomfortable silence with Max and Susan in the kitchen, then more uncomfortable silence with Max on the way to school, wearing his shirt all the way buttoned up to hide the shoe shaped bruise that sat in the middle of his chest.
He had to stand Tommy’s ridiculous goads about how having a split lip must have meant he had fucked some crazy bitch, his words not Billy’s, and on top of that he had to stand Harrington avoiding him like the plague.
When Monday had finally been over, he was beyond relief. He had dropped Max at the Sinclair house and decided to go by Steve’s so he could relax a little but it had only made everything worse.
There was a strange car in the driveway when he got there, Billy thought he had seen it before but he couldn’t remember where. It was definitely not Steve’s or his parents. His question was answered shortly after, when he walked up to the door and after a knock Nancy Wheeler answered.
Nancy Wheeler.
“Um – is” Billy had said, trying to come up with an excuse and an explanation at the same time, “What are you doing here?” was what came out instead.
“What are you doing here?” Wheeler said, crossing her arms and eyeing him suspiciously.
“Hargrove!” Steve exclaimed running towards the door interrupting the tense moment, “Nance if you could just wait in the living room.”
Wheeler gave him a once over and then walked back into the house as Harrington stepped out, closing the door behind him.
“I didn’t know you were coming today,” Steve murmured as soon as the door was closed.
“Well I didn’t know you had company,” Billy answered, sounding angrier than he meant to. “Sorry to interrupt your little date.”
“C’mon you know it’s not,”
“What is she doing here?” Billy had interrupted. He was not in the mood today for this feel happy shit of being friends with your ex Harrington had going.
“Um – she is my friend and –“
“Right,” Billy said stubbing his cigarette on the ground and turning around to walk back to the Camaro “Call me when you think of a better excuse,”
“Hargrove, c’mon! Don’t be like that.”
Billy had not answered and just got into his car and drove the fuck off. Honestly, he was pissed off, he was pissed off Nancy Wheeler was at Steve’s house, not letting him in, not knowing Billy had much more right to be there than her.
It was unnerving how on edge the whole thing left him. He knew Steve had not been the one to end the relationship with Nancy, so what if she decided to take him back? He knew she was with Byers but she could have just changed her mind again.
So he had driven around town and ended his Monday by going home and talking back to Neil when he had asked where Billy had been.
The rest of the week had gone even worse.
Harrington was avoiding him like the plague and Wheeler kept giving him the side eye whenever she saw him in the hallways. It was the longest him and Steve had gone without talking since they had started this, whatever it was.
And it was even worse since Harrington was acting like he had the right to be angry or offended or whatever when Billy was the one that should be mad.
So on Thursday when he had gone to pick Max up from the arcade, he had had it.
Max and her friend had climbed in the backseat and Billy had just driven off without speaking. He liked driving El because she didn’t speak much like all the other brats. Max of course, was another story.
“What’s gotten into you? You’ve been an asshole this entire week.”
“Watch it shitbird,” Billy answered looking at her through the rear-view mirror, “Or I’ll drop you here and make you walk home.”
Max rolled her eyes, knowing his threat was empty of meaning.
“Was it Steve?” she continued “What did you do?”
“Why do you think it was me?” Billy asked offended.
“Well you tend to act like an idiot when you are cornered by your emotions,”
“Just for your information, I went by the house of the fucking King of Hawkins and Wheeler opened the door. And when I asked him about it he was all weird and evasive and now he won’t talk to me,” Billy said, “So no, I did not do anything.”
“Mike was there?” El said confused.
“No, girl Wheeler.”
Billy observed how the girls exchanged a glance and then they both turned to look at him again.
“Give him the medicine,” El said solemnly.
“Dump his ass,” Max continued.
“What?” Billy exclaimed, “That is exactly what I’m trying to avoid,”
“You have to dump his ass for him to realize,” Max explained “I’ve dumped Lucas five times,”
“I’ve dumped Mike twice,” El says nodding.
Billy rolls his eyes behind his sunglasses. Honestly why is he talking about his relationship with two fourteen-year-old girls? He deserves the kind of advice he is getting.
“I don’t want to dump his ass,” Billy says finally, trying to sound not so torn up about it.
“It’ll make him better,” Max says “That’s how they learn.”
There is no way Billy is ever listening to dumb advice from his stupid sister.
He lets it go and does not even think about it until Saturday, he is sitting on the diner next to the arcade, waiting for Max and the other brats to finish their stupid game of Space Invaders or whatever the fuck they are obsessed with this month when Harrington himself slides into the booth in front him.
Billy only slightly lifts his eyes from the strawberry milkshake he is drinking, placing the straw between his teeth.
“Well color me surprised,” he says and Steve has the decency to look embarrassed, “To what do I own the pleasure?”
“I just heard a rumor,” Steve says leaning forward while resting his elbows on the table, “That you had dumped my ass.”
Honestly, fuck Max.
“I’m surprised you didn’t go running into Wheeler’s arms then.”
Steve rolls his eyes and huffs.
“You are ridiculous,” he concludes, “Nancy was just helping me out.”
Billy leans back onto the booth, setting the milkshake aside and crosses his arm in front of his chest.
“Why were you avoiding me?”
“This is embarrassing,” Steve says pressing the heels of his hand onto his eyes. His stupid hair flops onto his face and he looks so cute, Billy wants to throw up. “I was just writing an essay for a college application and Nancy was helping me out with that. I wanted it to be a surprise and I knew that if you corned me I would tell you everything.”
“What do you mean a surprise?”
“It’s for California,” Steve says “So that I can go there with you. But it will all be for nothing if you dump my ass now, as your sister so kindly put it.”
Billy wants to laugh, he wants to lean forward and grab Steve’s stupid face between his hands and kiss him as he runs his fingers through his stupid, stupid hair. But he can’t do any of those things because they are in a very public place.
So he just settles for hooking his ankle around Steve’s under the table.
“I’m not going to dump your ass.”
“Oh, thank God.” Steve says and he drops his hands on the table, he moves his hand behind the napkin holder and lets his pinky finger trace the side of Billy’s hand. “I love you.”
He doesn’t get the chance to say anything because a second later the group of brats pours into the diner, yelling and shoving themselves in the booth, El grabs the half drank milkshake and winks at him. Steve and Billy jump apart, hiding their hands under the table.
Maybe there is some wisdom in listening to Max occasionally.