trouble | steve harrington / billy hargrove

four

"a judgmental bitch?"

"yup," sam sighed. she told steve the story, minus the fact that it started over him of course.

"wow. you were just looking out for him. he's your best friend, he'll see that soon enough," steve said hopefully.

"the thing is that jack is beyond sweet, but he's also stubborn as hell. he'll be too embarrassed to talk to me. i should just apologize."

"well, he should get his head out of his ass and talk to you! you guys have known each other for how long? you shouldn't be the one to apologize for looking out for him, samantha." steve rested his head on his hands.

"i know. we do argue, but this time it truly hurt. i know he's just blinded by a love he thinks is real, but our love is real. so, it hurts to hear him say such cruel words," she turned to face him.

they were both laying on her bed.

"well, if it helps, i don't think you're that much of a judgmental bitch," he grinned.

sam playfully punched steve. he rubbed his ribs and laughed. she stared at him and at his newly opened wounds that she attended to as soon as they got home from school. she sighed and shook her head. "you need to stop fighting, steve. it could get you expelled."

"you act like i want to fight," he sighed and faced her. he was biting his lip. sam turned away quickly.

"you fought almost every day last year and you're doing it all over again. i thought you were a "changed man", steve." she sat up and stared down at him. she made sure to air quote the two words that he had been repeating over and over for the last few days.

he closed his eyes and shook his head. "i'm telling you, i started the year off telling myself that i wouldn't. billy is just aggravating," he muttered.

"you're literally the only person who finds him annoying. everyone else talks about his like he's some god," sam scrunched her nose up.

steve scoffed. "he's definitely not."

"jealous much?" she teased.

"me? jealous? of him. nothing could ever make me feel jealous of him."

sam laughed and shook her head. she enjoyed being around steve. she really thought they were an unlikely pair. during her junior year, everyone talked about a steve who was far from the boy laying in her bed.

"what's on your mind, princess?" steve asked.

sam's breath hitched. she felt a warmth fill in her chest. "stop. don't ever call me that again, bum."

steve placed his hand over his heart dramatically. "bum? that one hurts."

sam rolled her eyes. "you're different than everyone says you are," she told him truthfully.

he sat up and played with a small ball. "how so?"

"i mean, you fight all the time like everyone says." she looked at steve who rolled his eyes, "but everyone would say that you're a jerk and rude to everyone. that you're arrogant and selfish. that you don't care about school. that-"

"i get it. samantha, i wasn't lying when i told you i changed. i was a moron last year. i only cared about my reputation, but those kids and essentially nancy helped to see that there's more to a person than being cool," he shrugged.

"i'm sorry if i believed all those things. you did try to push around jack once, so it sort of painted everything about you for me. i'm glad you're not an asshole."

"gee, thanks." he grinned and rested his head on his palm. his elbow propped on her bed.

she blushed when she noticed his eyes watching her intensely. she quickly buried her face in one of her pillows.

"why do you hide when i look at you?"

"because it's weird, you creep." she lifted her face and looked at him.

"i'm not a creep," he frowned.

"you are. you're also very intimidating. when you stare at me i feel self conscious," she flipped around and stared at her ceiling.

"why would you feel that way?" she felt the bed shift a bit. he was suddenly hovering over her. their bodies weren't touching, but she was already breathing hard and such proximity.

"steve, what are you doing?" she was taking deep breaths.

"you're very beautiful, sam. i'm not sure how i hadn't noticed you before."

she stared directly into his brown eyes. he hadn't seen such eyes as beautiful as his. anyone who believed brown eyes were boring, had to look into steve's to change their minds.

"steve, we shouldn't," she gulped, "be this close."

"i'm sorry," he muttered and backed off. he seemed angry with himself as he stared away from her.

sam suddenly regretted saying anything. as much as she didn't want to admit, she was ecstatic to have him so close to her.

"i shouldn't have done that. i'm sorry," he muttered.

"why did you do it?" she asked him. she felt her heart beating quickly in her chest.

"i guess i just miss being close to someone. i think i still miss nancy," he replied.

her heart shattered completely.

"oh," was all she could say in return. of course she was just a tool to him.

she was sure that the only reason they were in this situation was because steve could so easily get any girl he wanted. he was used to girls throwing themselves at him. he was used to having a girl to distract him. she felt tears threatening to escape.

"wait, hey. i didn't mean it like that," he sighed. he reached for her shoulder but she pushed him away. "i'm sorry that was very inappropriate. i swear i'm not just using you."

"yes, it was. don't do it again," she huffed.

steve sighed deeply and ruffled his hair. he checked the clock and hopped off her bed. "i should go. i'll pick you up for school tomorrow morning, okay?"

"okay."

—

guess who they'll be meeting tomorrow? hint: rhymes with hilly.