Stranger Things - Imagines

Billy Hargrove X Reader - Dreams

A/N - This chapter was inspired by the song Dreams by The Cranberries. I hope you all enjoy it.

Your bedroom had become a safe haven from the very first moment that Billy had stumbled through your window. Of course, at that point, you'd been nothing more than friends, harbouring some pretty devastating crushes on one another. You'd been a little shocked by the intrusion at first, not being able to make sense of how he had managed to scale the wall to your bedroom window so effortlessly. And then you'd seen the bruise beginning to form around his eyes and it had all started making sense. 

Billy had told you about his dad in the past. Neil is just a dick. Now it seemed like an understatement, really. But you weren't going to bring it up and risk upsetting him. So, you'd gone to the kitchen for an icepack and returned with a bunch of junk food in an attempt to cheer him up. It had worked, to an extent. The pain was still there, there was no avoiding that, but he could at least forget the fear for a little while. He could just enjoy your company and pretend that his family didn't exist. 

After that, Billy started showing up every time his dad had kicked off, whether he needed patching up or not. You'd started making sure to leave your window open just enough that he could climb inside whether you were expecting him or not. Some nights he would just crawl through the window and sit quietly whilst you did homework. Others, he would demand your full attention, lounging around your room cracking jokes until you eventually gave up on whatever task you'd been working on. 

Soon enough, you'd ended up like this though. You were perched on your windowsill, head just out of the window, a cigarette perched between your lips. And Billy was knelt in front of you, his head resting on your chest, only ever lifting to take a drag from the cigarette when you would lower it to his lips. It was nice, really, and it came a lot easier than either of you had expected. But then, the moment would break and you would remember that you were just friends and suddenly, nothing was easy at all. 

Your feelings for Billy were never going to be easy. There was no ignoring them, you knew that better than anyone, but at the same time, the idea of telling him you loved him only for him to tell you he didn't feel the same way was enough to terrify you. You were Billy's safe space. His hideaway when things got hard. His home away from home. And if you ruined that by breaking your own heart, you would never be able to forgive yourself. 

"What are you thinking about?" Billy hummed, lifting his head and tilting his chin up to indicate he was ready to take the cigarette back for a second. 

"Nothing," you murmured, going through the motions, his lips brushing against your fingers as he took a deep drag. 

He coughed slightly when you pulled it away, shaking his head. "Bullshit," he told you, his voice a little thicker than usual. "You have the most obvious thinking face I've ever seen," he reminded you, scrunching up his nose in his own little impression of you. 

"I don't look like that," you uttered, shaking your head as you chuckled. 

"You do," he corrected, letting the expression fall from his face, replacing it with a soft smile. "Come on, what were you thinking about?" When you didn't answer, his eyes narrowed. "Was it mean?"

"No-"

"Was it dirty? Were you thinking of something really nasty?"

"Billy," you chastised, smacking his arm lightly in your frustration. 

He settled down again, resting his head on your chest. "Tell me and I'll leave you alone," he pressed, his hand shifting to rest on your hip. Shit, you guys really had gotten too comfortable with each other, hadn't you? This was too much.