𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗻 // 𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚛𝚘𝚟𝚎

Chapter 4 | Deal? Deal.

Steve didn't like the deal Billy gave—not one bit.

The deal is awful. According to Billy, Steve has to do whatever Billy wants — whether it was embarrassing, stupid, or fucking illegal — until Billy is satisfied and then he'll tell Coach Simmons that they're "best buddies."

Hell no! is what Steve's immediate answer is. He's never driven faster away in his life, and as he does he watches Billy grin at him in the mirror. Cocky bastard probably thinks Steve will run back to him.

News flash: no way in hell.

The next day is filled with Steve thinking about Billy's offer, and every part of his mind is immediately bringing down even the smallest thought of accepting the deal.

This is Billy Hargrove, the guy who beat him until he was unconscious. Steve would be the stupidest guy on the planet if his gravestone read, "Killed by Billy Hargrove, the same dipshit who sent him to the hospital a year before Steve actually got murdered because he accepts a dare."

Longest death message in the world, but you get the point.

Steve decides that this won't do, and searches for a second opinion.

"Steve?" there's a hint of surprise bleeding from the tone. "What're you doing here?"

Steve hesitates, then sighs and places a hand on his hip, facing the person with a reluctant expression. "How good are you at life advice, Henderson?"

Dustin grins. "The best you'll ever get, bucko."

"And then—then he tells me that I'll basically be his bellboy, Henderson. How stupid is that? What did he think I'd do, instantly agree and shoot the next person that ticks him off? With his standards, I'd be committing mass murder in one day." Steve finishes, burying his face in his hands. "I don't know what to do, man."

There's silence, and Steve thinks that he might've killed Dustin from talking too much, so Steve's about to look up when—

Dustin bursts out in sobbing laughter.

Steve's face scrunches, offended. "What the hell, man. What's so funny?" he says. He's not actually hurt, but not exactly calm either. Dustin's laugh is so pure that it's hard for Steve to be genuinely mad at the kid.

"You—" Dustin coughs, throat probably sore from how hard he's laughing. "you thought he was a Demogorgon?" he cackles, and Steve's jaw drops to the floor.

"That—that's what you got from this?!" Steve gapes. Dustin continues laughing, dropping to the floor fron how entertaining he finds Steve's situation. "Alright—thanks, man. Nice to know that you find my suffering amusing."

Dustin coughs. "No—no. I'm thinking." he attempts to cover up his amusement as he tries to stand up, but he ends up laughing out loud once again. This time, he stays on the ground.

"Sure looks like it." Steve mumbles, crossing hid arms.

Dustin can tell, so he finally finishes laughing, and sits down on the chair across from Steve. "Okay, okay. What about Coach Simmons? Is he open to any negotiation?" he asks, and Steve groans.

"Uh... no. No he isn't." Steve answers, rubbing his temples. "I've tried. I've sent notes to his house, to his grandson. I've bought him dinner a few times and set it at his doorstep. Hell, I even sent a note to his wife!" he pauses, and Dustin looks like he's about to laugh again. "...but I feel like he might've taken that one in the wrong way, because he said that me and Billy would have to be friends now, not just tolerate each other.

"Yeah, no shit he took it the wrong way. That's his wife, Steve, and your reputation with women is..." Dustin makes smooching noises, and Steve rolls his eyes.

"Mrs. Simmons looks twenty years older than she actually is," Steve dismisses as Dustin gasps, half-amused and half-shocked. "I'd rather bang your mom before I even go in her vicinity."

Dustin gasps even louder. "Not my mom, man. Too far."

Steve winces. "Shit, yeah. My bad, sorry. I'm just... stressed." he mutters, burying his face in his hands once more. God, he hated feeling this conflict of decisions. He couldn't back out, and he couldn't move forward.

Dustin frowns. "No, man. It's alright, I get it." he smiles. Even though Steve can't see it, he can hear it in Dustin's voice. "Listen, I'm honestly not the best with things like this, but if you don't wanna do it—you don't wanna do it. Simple."

Steve looks up. "Yeah... yeah. That's true." he relents, a bit of the burden releasing from his shoulders.

Dustin grins as Steve sits up. "Good luck, man."

"Why didn't you agree?" is what Linda asks the day after Sunday, eyebrow quirking at Steve's taken aback expression. "It's not a bad deal, Stevie. What's he gonna do? Ask you to rob a bank. The cops will catch him just by those cigarettes he smokes."

"Uh, because he's a psycho!" Steve whisper-shouts. "Anyway, dodgeball is actually pretty cool. You can hit people in the balls and get away with it." he says, but there's no denying the slight desire to rejoin the basketball team.

"Steve, you're the king of basketball, are you really going to chicken out when it's Billy Hargrove who is challenging you?" Linda shakes her head as she shuts her locker, leaning against it. "I'm sure he'll only do a few favors anyway, maybe you'll be some sort of cigarette fetcher, but perhaps you shouldn't have thrown a basketball at his face!"

Steve glances around, exhaling when he notices that no one is watching him. "Okay, put salt on the wound, Lin—that's not the point, though. Billy is a complete asshole. He'll make life a living hell for me."

Linda sighs. "It's not even a legal contract. If you really don't want to do something he asks—then don't." she reasons, and Steve calms a bit from that. "But I know you, Steve, and I know how much you love basketball. Is doing a few jobs for Billy Hargrove really enough to make you quit your favorite sport?"

Steve thinks, and thinks, and thinks. Reasoning versus Disdain is a horrible mental fight, but the winner is quickly decided. Steve groans in distress, already knowing that Linda is right as he leans on the lockers so he can turn his head to stare at his friend.

"Damn you for being smart."

Linda smirks. "Oh, I know."