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"What a shit hole." Billy says, opening a can of beer and gulping it down before crashing the can and throwing it away.
His car is his only joy, and even if it sucks that he has to share it with Maxine every fucking morning, by night it is just the two of them: Billy and his Camaro.
He cracks another can of beer open; he probably shouldn't, he already drank too much with the basketball team at the HideOut and if Neil caught him drunk it would be hell for him, but at this moment he really doesn't care.
Why the fuck did Neil choose to move from California to bumfuck Indiana is still a mystery to Billy. Yeah, he knows that finding his only son with his tongue buried deep in the mouth of another boy definitely had a role in Neil’s decision, but he could have just beat Billy and threatened him of killing him like usual, there was no need to move across the Country, right?
He grabs a cigarette and lights it, then he stares at the red cherry burning in the night, god he would give everything for a joint but he is not the kind of guy that buys that stuff, he is the one the others offer weed to because they want to get on his good side.
Well, at least he has a couple of beers more.
The familiar sound of a car getting closer distracts Billy from his thoughts. He is not surprised, the quarry is a quite famous make-out place, he just hoped that the boys were still at the HideOut and he could enjoy some solitude for once.
Billy turns just enough to see a familiar beemer parking next to his Camaro.
"Scratch it and you are dead, Harrington." Billy states, his eyes fixed on the moon.
"I'm quite sure I am a better driver than you are, Hargrove."
Billy glares at him: better driver, never, a safer driver, maybe.
"Why are you here? I see no pretty girl with you."
Steve snorts "Haven't you heard? I'm not the school sweetheart anymore, I'm much more of a pariah. Little Miss Perfect chose Byers over me and I got my face smashed by the school's new alpha, so no pretty girls in the near future I fear. Can I have one?" Steve asks, pointing at Billy's cigarette.
The blond boy gives him the packet and offers him the lighter, but Steve simply bends over the flame, cups Billy's hand with his, and drags a deep breath of smoke.
"God I needed this."
"It's just a cigarette." Billy replies, still feeling Steve's gentle touch on his hand like a permanent stain on his skin.
"Yeah, but sometimes a cigarette is just what you need to relieve the tension."
"Still fighting monsters?" he asks, staring at Steve's trunk.
"As always." the chestnut boy replies, exhaling white spirals of smoke.
Billy nods, after waking up that horrible night at Byers' house and finding a monster leaking from the fridge, Billy has discovered that there is a parallel dimension full of hungry monsters waiting to devour them, which might be one of the motifs why he is drinking, staring at the quarry and wondering if a jump from that height could kill him on the impact.
"Probably not, you are a big boy, but I guess you'll break at least a few bones, maybe some vertebrates, and then you'll be spending all your time on a chair depending on your father. How does it sound?"
"Pretty shitty actually."
Steve nods, stabbing the cigarette "Are you ready to go?"
"I still have one beer."
"I think you drank enough."
Billy lifts an eyebrow "I can still punch that pretty face of yours."
"I know you can, but you have to sober up before Neil sees you, so it's better if you cut this shit now and come home with me."
"Are you proposing, pretty boy?"
Steve smirks "I know I'm not your type. Now let's go." he says pointing at his car.
"We are not going to leave my car at the quarry!" Billy complains loudly, but when he gets off the hood he finds out that he is far more unstable than he thought.
"You are too drunk to drive so either you give me your keys and I drive it to my place, but everyone will know that you have been there, or we leave it here and come back later on to retrieve it."
Having his car at Harrington's is a very bad idea, so he begrudgingly agrees to leave it at the quarry, but before leaving they hide it in the nearby woods.
Steve's car is warm and welcoming, like him, Billy studies the school sweetheart while he sings a stupid pop song along with the radio.
In a different world, a world where Neil would not beat him just for thinking about it, they could be friends, maybe even best friends. They could rule the school and maybe even get into college together, being roommates, best friends forever, or any other stupid shit the girls say.
They could go on trips together, sleep in the same room, and share air, food, and affection.
Billy stares at Steve's plump lips and shakes his head, no, they couldn't be. He will always be a fucking fag and his thoughts will always be too dirty.
"You ok?" Steve asks, his eyes fixed on the road.
"Yeah... just more drunk than I thought."
Steve takes him to his room, offers him pajamas, and guides him toward the guest rooms where there is a bottle of water and a couple of headache pills.
“How?”
“Max called.” he replies, ready to leave the room.
Billy grabs Steve's wrist, there are so many things he would like to ask Steve that he can’t speak.
Don’t leave.
Stay with me.
Take care of me.
Please.
“Hey. It’s ok. You are fine. I’ll be right on the other side of the wall and I have a nailed bat under my bed. There are no monsters here.” Steve whispers, caressing his arm.
It’s not enough and it’s too much at the same time; Billy’s skin is bruised under the jeans jacket, but Steve’s touch soothes him.
“Can you stay with me until I fall asleep?” Billy feels so small right now and he knows that if Steve refuses him his heart will break.
“I can sleep with you if you want. We can have a sleepover, like if we were in middle school.” Steve proposes with a smile and Billy nods eagerly.
If during the night Billy’s head finds Steve’s chest it’s only because he is drunk.