Not Your Baby ║ Billy Hargrove

Chapter One

*** Hello my Billy stans! This is my first PUBLISHED fanfic so I'm high key nervous bc normally these are stored away in a deep, dark folder titled something like "ENG 462 notes". I'll be uploading chapter two later today! If you like it, comment! If you don't like it, comment! :) ***

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"Here we go again." I groaned as I shuffled out of bed on the crisp, September morning. "Shit!" I checked my bedside clock to find myself already 15 minutes late to the day. I shot out of my baby blue bedroom and sprinted through the narrow hallway, adorned with our stereotypical family photos from the holidays. I screeched to a halt as I came to find the bathroom door closed. "Dustin!" I screamed, sounding like the devil himself had been reborn into her body. "If you don't get out of the bathroom in like, 5 seconds, I swear to god I will ruin your entire life!" I yelled as I persistently banged on the door.

"Hold on!" my curly headed little brother meekly replied from the other side. I pressed my cheek to the door, wondering why in the hell a middle schooler is taking so goddamn long in the bathroom "One. More. Curl." I heard from the opposing side.

"What the hell are you-," I, infuriated with his lack of realization that I was late and it too, was my first day, was cut off by the door unlocking and seeing my brother with what looked to be a sad mullet on his head. My anger transpired into tears and I let out laughs that echoed throughout the house. "What. Is. THAT!" I gasped for breath as I tried to compose myself.

"Steve showed me a cool way to do my hair for pictures today." Dustin held his chin high as he refused to let his sister's jokes get the best of him.

"It looks like a rat died on your head but hey, Steve knows best, right?" I wiped the last tear from my face before shoving him out of the doorway and slamming it shut.

I never understood the relationship between Steve and my little brother. It always seemed awkward and at times, uncomfortable. I knew something happened that made them all close, but no one ever told me so I figured with was puberty conversations or something along those lines. I quickly rinsed off in the shower before sprinting back to my room to throw on some jeans and my favorite yellow top that helped bring out my highlights in my blonde hair from the summer sun. After a few strokes of makeup and an earring or two, I bounded down the stairs to find my mother with a large breakfast already spread on the table.

"Can't start your first day of junior year without a good breakfast!" the infamous Miss Indiana, Jillian Henderson, greeted me. My mom, her voice like a warm fire during a snowy night. I was grateful for her as she was always there as a set of ears for the meaningless drama that ensued at school. My mother was a natural helper, always wanting to pitch in the solve the problem. I, however, only inherited half of those genes.

"Mom, this looks great but Nancy is going to be here literally any minute." I rushed to the table, grabbing a pancake and stuffing it with a strip of bacon, a handful of scrambled eggs and a drizzle of maple syrup before folding it half like a taco.

"Penelope, come on. You're not going to sit down?" she beckoned once more to the table before the sound of a car heavily beeping was heard from outside.

"That's my cue! Thanks mom, love you!" I managed to make one more pancake-taco concoction before bumping into Dustin on my way out of the house, almost dropping my breakfast completely on the hardwood floor.

"Dustin!" I hollered before staring him down as she hastily walked to the door.

"You were born with eyes too, Nel!" I heard him holler back as I closed the door behind me.

"Let's go! We are so late!" Nancy beckoned for me to hurry up and get in the car. Always so put together, Nancy wore a matching plaid skirt with her purple top. Her brown eyes lit up like a campfire once she saw me running over to the car. "Should I even ask?" she eyeballed the pancakes.
"Nope!" I laughed as she took a bite and turned up "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" on Nancy's "Mega Mixtape" cassette that Jonathon made her for Valentine's Day last year.