Emma || Steve Harrington/Billy Hargrove

002. Exploring

*Emma's POV*

The next morning, I had him take me home bright and early. I showered and changed into a casual outfit so I could go around town and sort of get a feel for things. Billy was supposed to come with, but he got roped into babysitting his stepsister, Max. She wasn't in the picture for me back in Cali. Not until his dad and Susan got married at least. She was always quiet, but I liked her. The interactions that we'd had were nice and friendly.

I walked down the quiet streets, only passing by a few people, mostly adults. I stumbled upon an arcade and smiled a little when I saw Steve sitting outside with a curly haired boy. I skipped on over and smiled back at Steve when he smiled at me.

"Harrington, what a coincidence," I said.

"Johnson, good to see you," he chuckled. The boy next to him cleared his throat and I turned my attention over to him. "Uh, this is Dustin, he's-" the kid cut him off.

"I'm his wingman," the kid said, letting out a purr. I threw my head back in laughter.

"I'm Emma, nice to meet you, Dustin the wingman," I smiled.

"What are you doing here?" Steve asked curiously.

"Well, I was exploring and I saw you over here, thought I'd say hi," I told him, "I'm so sorry about Billy last night. He's usually not like that."

"Funny," he said, "We've seen very different sides of Billy then." Dustin nodded.

"Dustin, you're up on Dragon Slayer," an adorable kid with a bowlcut said as he came outside. Dustin got up and ran inside. I took the newly vacant spot next to Steve and asked what he meant about Billy and us having different views on him.

"He's kind of not the nicest guy around here," he said.

"What are you talking about," I giggled, "You were at the party. Everyone loves him."

"Yeah, but he's kind of a douche, no offence," he said. I shrugged and changed the topic, asking him what there was to do around there. "I can show you better than I can tell you," he said with a small smile. I followed him to his car and we made our way through the town.

We spent the day going to all his favorite places. I liked most of them, but my favorite was the big empty corn field. You could see the stars clearly and the only sounds you could hear were the sounds of the animals and the corn blowing in the slight breeze. I didn't understand how Steve and Billy didn't get along. They seemed pretty similar to me. Billy was a little bit more of a reckless driver, but that was really the only difference. Maybe that was it though. Maybe they were too similar and that was what made them butt heads.

"So, new girl. How are you liking our little town?" he asked.

"It's not too bad," I smiled, "It reeks of cow shit though."

"Yeah, that's our one downfall," He sighed. I let out a little laugh. I checked the time and decided it was probably time to go home. I think Steve read my mind because he suggested we leave almost immediately after that. We drove through the lone Indiana roads in a comfortable silence. Until Steve spoke up. "So, how do you and Billy work as friends?" he questioned, "You guys are total opposites from what I can tell so far." I gave him a confused look and shook my head.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I told him, "Billy is a total sweetheart. We've been friends forever and he's always been really nice."

"You're kidding, right?" he asked, "Billy Hargrove a sweetheart?"

"Yeah, what's so hard to believe about that?" I asked, "He's a sensitive guy." Steve just laughed and shook his head. I was slightly annoyed that he didn't think Billy was a good guy, but I didn't say anything. I knew he might have his reasons to think that way, but I still didn't agree with him dismissing my best friend as a bad guy.

A/N: This one is slightly shorter. Idk if anyone cares or is actually reading these, but yeah!