Not Your Baby ║ Billy Hargrove

Chapter Nine

It was as if the sound of a car trying to start merged with a whistling firework; a rhythmic sound with an ear-bleeding pitch. I felt every inch of color drain from my face as the sound came from the exact point in the field in which I had been staring. Without hesitation there was a sudden burst of movement in that exact spot, causing the cornstalks to practically break with force. The movement was so uncommon that my brain didn't have time to comprehend what it could have been. What felt like ages was only a matter of seconds. My body was seconds from going numb before I felt a warm hand grab mine and jerk me forward. 

It was Billy. 

"Let's go. Now." Billy commanded as he flung my body into a frantic run. My adrenaline shot me forward as I couldn't feel my legs underneath me. I felt myself glide past Billy as I practically sprinted to the blue Camaro I had seen earlier that week. I skidded to a halt past the passenger door and began frantically trying to open it as Billy neared the driver's side. "Hold on," his voice shakily muttered, "I sa-, I said hold on!" he barked at me to stop trying to open the locked door. The wind picked up as the trees screamed with noise. *click* Simultaneously with a solid movement we opened the doors, slid in and slammed the doors shut.

Billy's car reeked of cigarettes and that nauseating cologne. The cold leather seats ran cold jolts down my leg. Oddly enough, the feeling of being freezing lessened my adrenaline. Billy and I said nothing as the only sounds we heard from inside the car was that of our heavy breathing. Billy's eyes never left his front view. He was fixated on the unknown- like I was. I too, sat facing forward in fear that, whatever that was, we were about to see it. I broke my forward gaze to watch Billy's fingers intertwine over his car key and quietly insert the key into the ignition. Eyes never leaving his front view, Billy started up the car instantly began driving out of the street. The radio was on low, with We Built This City playing in what felt like a hollow shell of a car. We rode in silence for the duration of the 17 minute car ride home; neither Billy or I even trying to remotely explain what had just happened.

The wind blew throughout the cracked windows as we drove down the dark, never-ending backroads of Hawkins. I laid my head against the side of the seat, crutching my head between the side of the car and the headrest. He recently polished the seats, as I smelled the same polish my dad uses when he cleans his Chevelle every summer. The familiar smell eased my discomfort as it took me to a safe place; home. I took a deep breath and readjusted my head to spot Billy from my peripheral vision. We hadn't looked at each other since we got in the car. He too, looked incredibly uncomfortable. My eyes shot to the front as I felt his gaze on me. I adverted to look outside, before realizing we were already on my street.

"Uh," I forgot what it was like to speak "This is my street. I'm-, I'm right down here." My finger pointed to the white, post-colonial home with brown shudders. My mother's lamppost that she kept from her childhood was lit outside; the warm, dim light bringing a slight crease to my lips. Home.

Billy pulled to the curb aside the driveway and put the car in park before resting his head back on the headrest. He slowly turned his face to mine as I watched his strawberry blonde curls bop to each side of his tanned cheeks. The silence drew awkward, as if he wanted to say something but the words failed to come out. I took initiative and unbuckled my seatbelt while taking a long, deep breath in.

"Thanks for driving me. You didn't have to do-," I watched his eyes roll to the back of his head before he lifted his hands from his thighs and rested them on the steering wheel. I watched as the veins in his hands pulsed with vigor; his blood pressure raising.

"Nel," he shook his head "Yes I fucking did. You were a mess and were about to make a fool of yourself in front of everyone." I felt my cheeks become flushed with embarrassment.

"It wasn't that bad." I tried to redeem myself as I felt his piercing blue eyes dig deeper into my body. I watched as my comment sparked him to grin wide and demeaning.

"Oh baby," he sighed, "if only you could have seen yourself."

"Stop calling me your baby. I barely know you." I seethed as I broke his gaze by fumbling for my purse on the ground of the cold passenger floor.

"Fine, fine. Everybody's got to start somewhere." He chuckled as I felt his eyes watching me finally locate my purse after what felt like eternities of struggle.

"Thanks." I gritted my teeth as I went for the car door handle. As soon as my fingers wrapped around the cold metal to unlock the door, Billy's hand grabbed my left arm with a grip that made me completely freeze.

"Hey," my eyes darted to his in fear and confusion. "I don't know what the hell that was that we heard, okay? It was probably some rabid animal or whatever. You're fine, right?" that compassion that I'd seen in him came rushing back. His eyes were soft, his facial expression inviting. Chills ran up and down my body as I remembered that screeching sound from the cornfields.

"Ye-, yeah," I mustered up my voice once again, "I'm okay." His grip lessened. "Are you?" I asked. His facial expression reverted to one of arrogance and annoyance.

"Come on" he scoffed, "I don't get afraid." One hand placed itself on the wheel and the other back on the shift knob as a signal for me to get out. I shook my head and groaned as I unlocked the door and forced it shut. I watched as Billy threw his hands in the air in anger that I slammed his door and didn't give an ounce of care. He sped off, leaving me alone outside the front of the house. 

I looked up at my looming house, taking note of how the moon illuminated the white face to make it almost glow. The wind picked up once more; the falling leaves danced around my feet. A quick chill ran up my spine as I booked it for the front door while scrambling for my keys in my purse with every step.