DONTMAKEMEFALLINLOVE || Billy Hargrove, Stranger Things

LIV.*

The couple went back to Diana's dorm room late into the night. Diana had to sneak in Billy through a back door because Billy wasn't a student and he's not supposed to be in the girls hallway. Grabbing the key from her pocket, she unlocks the door and opens it, shutting it quickly after they're both inside.

"Where have you been? I was looking all over for you!" A voice shrieks from afar. There Avery stands, flustered yet worried when her eyes gaze from Diana to Billy.

"Shit okay," Diana mumbles when she realizes she bolted from the restaurant without a word, "I'm so sorry but I needed some fresh air at the beach earlier and I guess I forgot to tell you."

"You disappeared out of thin air! I got so worried cuz you're new!" Avery grabs Diana's arm and pulls her into a tight hug, leaving Diana surprised. Diana's never met anyone so bubbly and caring before. "By the way, who is your...guy friend?"

"Oh right!" Diana pulls away from the hug and turns towards Billy, "he's an old friend of mine. His name's–"

"William. Hey."

Avery's gaze averts to Diana, winking at her in the process then back to Billy. "Nice to meet you! I haven't seen you around campus before but I'm Avery, Diana's new best friend and roommate."

Diana only furrows her eyebrows in confusion but quickly covers it up when Avery turns back to her. "Well Diana I'll see you tomorrow morning. I may or may not be sneaking into my boyfriends dorm."

And that's how it started. The couple was crammed on Diana's bed, barely any room to move. Diana had her legs on Billy's and her face against his neck as he spoke. The night was spent focusing on Billy's experience. Diana listened to Billy talk for hours on end, not interrupting him. Billy spoke of where he had been, what it felt like being hostage to a grimy monster, and the moments leading to his temporary death. Diana shed a few tears but Billy quickly wiped them away, assuring her that he was okay now. But Diana knew him more than she knew herself. "Billy you're not okay."

"Of course i am." He said bluntly, not giving much thought to it because he knew he wasn't.

"It's okay if you're not," Diana speaks up, "it's okay to break down. Nothing can hurt you here."

Billy wasn't okay. The trauma tortures him in his sleep and even breaks his concentration during the day. The only thing that brought him down was knowing Diana was alive and the mind flayer was gone. All he could think about was her pain now that she's in his arms. "I'll be okay Dee. What hurts me is not being there for you when you needed me the most."

"Don't blame yourself over my stupid decisions," Diana dryly chuckles, "I wanted to feel something and now I face the consequences." What hurt Diana was the fact that Billy was all alone for months, with the scars on his body as a constant reminder. She carefully traced her fingers around the places the mind Flayer stabbed him in, following the permanent scars tattered all over his arms.