stars will fall - byler

.14

my eyes slowly start to flutter open as i realize what just happened. i looked up and saw the other car had rammed near the back right side of the car.
i look back at max as she looked like she was having a panic attack.
-"max, are you okay?"
she nodded while hyperventilating but my attention left her sight when will opened his door.
-"will? will, are you okay?" i mumbled as he slowly began crawling off the seat. he fell out of the car and onto the concrete. i opened my car door and slowly walked around to him, max following behind me.
-"will? are you hurt?" i shouted, trying to catch his attention. he was on all fours while looking around. i couldn't tell if he was injured or not. he crawled up off the ground and leaned against the car, still glaring at the ground.
-"will? are you in any pain?" i walked closer to him, trying to make him look at me. he looked over at the other car before slowly turning his attention to me. we made eye contact before he gripped onto my shoulders aggressively.
-"what the fuck is wrong with you?!" he screamed.
-"will!" max tried to pull him away.
-"do you have any idea what you just did?!" he began to cry as he slammed his hands into my chest.
-"will, i'm sorry!"
-"i'm going to fucking kill you!" he began kicking me with tears streaming down his face but we all turned our heads to the sound of sirens approaching. i suddenly started to panic.
i cant get in trouble like this.. i caused this crash. i'd get in so much trouble, it wouldn't look good. 
my future plans would all go down the drain.
i started running the opposite direction and i could hear max and will screaming for me, but i couldn't stay. they began following behind me and we ran as fast as we could down the street. i didn't realize we were being chased by an officer until one pummeled me to the ground. my body crashed into the grass as he kneeled over on top of me, pulling my hands behind my back.
-"where do you think you're going, pal?" the officer sarcastically laughed as he lifted me from the ground. when i looked up, max and will met my eyes with fear while running back for me.

all three of us sat in the back of the still ambulance as we watched the other people in the car get carried off into the other ambulances.
-"were you the driver?" the officer approached and asked me. i hesitated to answer and i looked at max and will again. i looked down at my lap, accepting it.
i'm going to lose so much. i'm going to lose everything because of this.
just as i was about to admit it, i was interrupted.
-"no, he wasn't. i was the driver." will spoke.
max and i both looked over at him in shock.
for the first time in a while, will didn't look at me with anger. he looked me in the eyes with compassion.
-"what?" i softly whispered.
-"you were the driver?" the officer repeated.
-"yes sir." will nodded.
-"will.." i mumbled.
-"shut the hell up, mike! just stop, okay? i did this,
stop trying to take the fall." he yelled, looking at me with his eyes glistening with fresh tears.
-"you've got so much going for you right now, mike. i'm not going to let you take the blame for me, okay? i've got nothing to lose." he muttered, making tears form in my eyes. i looked at max and she was just as stunned as i was. i didn't know what to say, there was nothing to say. i couldn't even manage to get a word out before he stood up from the truck.
-"come with me." the officer leaded him by his arm to a cop cruiser. will made eye contact with me before he was forced into the backseat.
it felt like i was dreaming. did i die? am i in heaven?
because will just hated everything about me.
but he just did that for me.
i never thought i would've admitted to myself that i loved will until this moment. but i couldn't deny the fact that i was so in love with him anymore and it's exhausting pretending to hate him.
and from what he just did for me,
i know he loves me too.

- Wills POV -

i was driven all the way down to the Hawkins Police station and when i was walked inside, hopper was shocked to see me.
-"will? what did you do?" he worriedly asked as the officer nudged me towards him.
-"attempted a hit and run." the officer answered for me. i looked up from the ground and saw the disappointment in hops face. it was the same disappointment i knew my mother would've felt. the thought of my mother in this moment brought tears in my eyes.

-"take a seat, kid. i'll call lonnie." he patted on my back when the other officer left.
-"what?" i gasped.
it had hit me that i had stolen my dads car. i ruined his brand new expensive car.
he was going to do a lot more than kill me.

...

i was waiting for hours for my dad to show up. it seemed like he wasn't even going to show. he's probably still passed out drunk on the couch. hopper and i were the only ones in the main room of the station since it was 2 am. he sat down in front of me and his eyes met mine briefly.
-"how's jonathan holding up?" he asked.
-"he's alright, i think." i mumbled
-"and you? how are you holding up?"
i looked up at him and saw a look of concern in his eyes.
-"let's just say i'm hanging by a thread." i chuckled
-"what's that mean?"
i ignored his question and dazed into my lap as my leg anxiously tapped as i waited for lonnie to show up.
-"will, is everything okay at home?"
-"what do you mean?"
-"is your dad still drinking?" he rephrased.
-"well, yeah. a little." i stuttered.
-"does he still get physical when he's drinking?"
-"why do you think that?" i scrunched my forehead.
-"i saw the look on your face when i was on the phone with him. are you safe at home?" he repeated, looking into my fearful eyes. before i could reply, the doors to the station swung open and my father rushed into the back room.
-"where's my car?" my father shouted loudly to me and i saw the anger in his eyes.
-"it's still in Lafayette. i have the files right here from the Lafayette county sheriffs court." hopper picked up a yellow folder and started looking through it.
-"unfortunately, there will be a compensation for the damages of the other car involved."
-"how much?" my father stuttered, making me nervous.
-"20 thousand.."
my heart sunk when my father made eye contact with me after hearing that number.
-"you can call this number right here to check how much the damages for your car will be."
-"how much do you think i'll have to pay in damages for mine?" my father asked.
-"well, for a side collision repair i'd say somewhere between $2-5 thousand."
my father chuckled and looked at the ground. i felt my whole body nervously shaking when his eyes met mine again.

the entire car ride home was silent. that's how i knew he was beyond angry. it's not bad when he's yelling, but it's so much worse when he's silent. i'm just waiting for him to say something. to do something. do anything, just get it over with.
but when we got home, i knew it was coming. i wasn't ready but when i saw my brothers car in the driveway, i started to get hope he wouldn't do anything in front of jonathan. but when i tried to open the door, my father locked it. i turned my head towards him but it quickly turned away when i felt his fist slam into my face. he didn't stop either. i lost count on how many times he punched me.
-"20,000! 20 fucking thousand dollars, will!!" he screamed as he hovered above me in the seat, punching the air out of me.

he dragged me inside the house by my hair and threw me on the ground when he slammed the front door. i couldn't feel my face. i could feel it already beginning to swell from what he did in the car.
-"you're disgraceful piece of shit!" he screamed as he stomped towards the kitchen. i sat in the living room floor and hugged my knees as he screamed remarks from the other room.
-"Damn it! your mom should be so lucky she's dead!"
-"stop.." i quietly cried.
-"i wish i was the one that fucking died! she left me here stuck with your faggot ass! i should've let you go with jim so he could deal with your ass!"
the more he yelled, the more i cried. it was hard to squeeze my eyes shut from the pain.
-"fuck!!" he kicked into the drywall, making me shake and cry harder. i heard a door from the hallway slam and jonathan came running in.
-"what's going on?!" he shrieked while still in his briefs.
-"that disgraceful son of a bitch that's crying on the floor over there just crashed my brand new cadillac!" he complained
-"will, are you okay?" he kneeled down and the muscles in his face immediately relaxed when he saw what my father had done to my face.
-"what the fuck happened?!" he shrieked.
-"you wanna tell me where you plan on getting me 20 grand, will? huh??" dad yelled from the kitchen table, throwing empty bottles at the wall and letting the glass shatter.
as jonathan ran up to him and started arguing with him, i bolted towards my bedroom and locked myself inside. just as i had tossed myself in bed, i could hear my father yelling down the hallway to my bedroom door. when he realized it was locked, he banged on it aggressively.
-"what did i tell you about locked doors?!" he screamed while slamming his hands against the wood. i could hear jonathan screaming and trying to calm him down but it didn't work. my father was kicking my door in. he kicked and punched at it so hard, it fell off its hinges and almost hit me while i was laying on my bed. he pushed the door on the floor and walked into my room, screaming insults at me. i buried my face into my pillow, screaming and crying.
please just go away, i prayed.
in this moment, i related to my dad. i wish i was the one that died that day too.