Drowning • Billy Hargrove

Chapter 40

"Fine! Fine." He finally answers.
"Oh my gosh!" I say, falling back onto the couch.
"Sir, are you sure about this?" The guy with the gun asked.
Doctor Owens nodded his head. "She's right, he's a good guy and he doesn't deserve this."
"Thank you so much!" Joyce says, her voice breaking.
He smiles at her. "Saturday morning, 10:00am sharp. Meet me outside the malls front entrance."
I couldn't force any words out of my mouth because I was too overwhelmed and Billy sensed that. "Thank you." He says politely.

Tyler showed Doctor Owens and his gang the door and now it was just us.
"We got what we wanted!" Joyce wiped away her tears. "We're going to get Hop back!"
I smile at her as she pulls me into a hug. I knew she cared for him just as much as El and I did. In my opinion, they were truly soulmates.
"I should get going now." Joyce says as soon as she pulled me away.
"No! No! Please stay!" I beg, looking over at Tyler who nodded his head. "You can sleep in my room if you want!"
She smiles and shakes her head. "No, its okay. I'll stay on the couch. Could I borrow the phone first, though?"

I lead her to my phone and grab a bunch of pillows and blankets from the closet.
"I hope you don't mind." I say to Tyler.
He shakes his head. "Not at all."

After Joyce got settled in, the rest of us decided to go to sleep, too.
"Good night." I say, shutting my bedroom door. I turn to look at Billy who was already laying down on my bed.
I quickly change, not caring if he was watching me or not and crawl into bed next to him.
"When are you leaving?" I ask his as he cuddles up next to me.
He chuckles. "You really want me gone, don't ya?"
I giggle back. "No, no. I want to come with you."
"Oh wow! For good?"
I shake my head. "No, not for good. Just for maybe a couple of weeks."
Billy nods his head. "You need a break. I'm going to leave tomorrow"
I also nod my head. "Okay."

"What the hell is that?" Was the first words I awoke to. Billy was complaining about my alarm clock I forgot to turn off.
I started laughing. "My alarm for school." I reach over and slap the 'off' button.
"You have to wake up this early everyday?"
I roll over and face him. "Yep."
"I could never do it."
"You did it for highschool though?" I ask, confused.
He smiles at me. "Why do you think I was late most days?"

We both awoke a couple of hours later at a more appropriate time.
I threw some clothes on and walked out of my room to see Joyce and Tyler chatting in the kitchen.
"Morning." They say to me.
I smile back. "Good morning."
"I think I'm going to head out at around noon." Joyce says to me.
I nod my head. "That's the time Billy and I will leave too, then."
Tyler looks at me, confused. "You're going back early?"
I turn my head and look at him. "Yeah. I want to let El have a few days to process what's going to happen."
Joyce nods her head. "That's a good idea."
"Could I come?" He asked. "I hate school and I have nothing else to do."
I think about it for awhile, knowing Billy and Tyler wouldn't get along really well. "Sure." I finally say.

I quietly ran back to my room and began packing my clothes. I was trying to be extra quiet because Billy was still in bed, out like a light.

After I finished packing, it was now noon. Billy was still sleeping, so I decided to jump on him.
"Get up." I whispered in his ear.
"What?" He rolled around, rubbing his eyes.
"We're leaving. Get up." I say, a little louder now.
"Going where?" He asked, completely out of it.
I started to giggle. "We're going back to Hawkins. We're going home, remember?"
He sat up straight and looked at me. "Oh."
I threw him his clothes and walked out of my room to meet Joyce and Tyler in the hallway.

"Is he up?" Tyler questioned.
"Yup." Billy responded, from behind me.
I look back at Billy, shocked at how fast he got ready. "Let's go then."

We walked out to the parking lot, Joyce and Tyler leading the way.
"Is he coming?" Billy asked quietly.
I nodded my head as he rolled his eyes. "Perfect." He says sarcastically.
"Hey, he's not that bad!" I say, defending my roommate.

We drove back to Hawkins in a line of cars. In front of us, Joyce was leading the way. Behind us, was Tyler. He thought it'd be best if he took his own car and it definitely was.

Billy parked behind Joyce as we finally arrived back at her house.
"Mom!" Will yelled, running out of the house, followed by El, Max, Mike, Lucas and Dustin.
"What is Billy doing here?" I could hear El whisper to Max.
"I don't know." She replies.
I step out of the car and immediately El runs over to me.
"Kate! What are you doing back?" She asks, hugging me.
I hug her back. "We've got some big news."

Everybody sat down in the living room of Joyce's house.
"So." Joyce began. "A lot of stuff has been happening."
"Like what?" Mike asks.
Joyce and I exchange looks and I nod at her, giving her permission to tell the story.
"Hopper is in the Upside Down."
All of the kids gasp.
"What?" El asks, her voice trembling.
I look over at her. "It's true. Remember when the lights flickered and the photos fell off of the shelf?"
She nods her head. "Was that him?"
I look at her and smile back. "Yeah it was."
"How are you guys going to get him out?" Max asks.
"Doctor Owens gave us permission to reopen the gate. We just need El's help." Joyce says, looking at El.
She nods her head. "I'll do it."