Love Is..?

Chapter 15

Sunday went by pretty uneventfully. Joyce helped Nova unpack, Bob and Jonathan picked up Joyce's car from the garage since it was FINALLY fixed and Will.. well, Will was having nightmares and drawing pictures of monsters. Jonathan left soon after dropping off Joyce's car to see Nancy, who asked for his help with something. Monday came, Jonathan was still AWOL and Joyce was running late to work, so Bob volunteered to take Nova and Will to school. So, off they went, Bob, Will and Nova. Nova let Will sit in the front seat as she sat in the back, putting on her makeup.

Bob looked over at Will, "Was that you I heard milling about last night, or was it a ghost?" Will smiled sheepishly, "Yeah. Me, probably." Bob nodded, "Another nightmare?" "Um... no." "Did I ever tell you about Mr. Baldo?" Will looked confused, "Mr. Baldo?" Bob nodded, "Yeah. I was a little younger than you, standing in line for the Ferris Wheel at the Roane County fair." Will 'mmm-hmmed' and Bob continued, "I feel this fat white glove tap me on the shoulder. I spin around, and there he is. Mr. Baldo." Bob tries to imitate a clown, "Hey kiddo, would you like a balloon?"

Will started laughing and Nova chuckled from the backseat. Bob chuckles, "Go ahead, laugh. It's funny. It wasn't funny back then, I can tell you that. I couldn't get him out of my head. Every night, he would come to me in my dreams. And every night when he came to me... I ran." Bob sighed, "It got so bad that I made my mom stay in the room with me until I could fall asleep every night." Will frowned, "Really?" Bob nodded, "Really. It went on like that for months. And then one day, the nightmares suddenly stopped. Wanna know how?" Will nodded, "How?"

Bob continued, "Well, I fell asleep... and just like always, Mr. Baldo came to me. Only this time, I didn't run. This time, I stood my ground. I just looked at Mr. Baldo in his stupid face, and I said, 'Go away. Go away!'. Just like that, he was gone. Never saw him again. Easy-peasy, right?" Will nodded with a small smile, "Easy-peasy. Just like that." Nova smiled from the backseat as they arrived at the middle school. Nova looked at Will, her makeup finally finished, "You have a good day, ok?" Will nodded and smiled at her before getting out and going up towards the school where the party was.

Nova sat back and looked at Bob, "You, Bob Newby, are a good man. Don't let anyone ever tell you differently." Bob smiled warmly at Nova, "Thanks Nova. Now, let's get you to school." They drove off to the high school and Bob decided to ask, "How come Billy didn't pick you up?" Nova shrugged, "Dunno. I'll ask him when I see him." They arrived and Nova got out, Bob wished her a good day and left. Nova looked around and didn't see Billy's car. She frowned. She hoped her boyfriend was ok. Someone tapped her on the shoulder and she whipped around to see Steve with a smile. She sighed with a smile, "Hey Steve. You having a better day today?"

Steve looked confused before he remembered Saturday and nodded, "Oh yeah, much better. So, I don't see Billy's car... or Billy for that matter." Nova nodded with a frown, "Yeah, I hope he's ok." Steve didn't really care but he nodded for Nova's sake, "I'm sure he's just skipping today. Don't worry Nova." Nova looked up at Steve unconvinced but nodded anyways, "Yeah. Let's head inside before we're late." Steve nodded and walked with Nova inside the school. Nova looked up at Steve again, "Hey Steve? Do you mind driving me to the middle school during free period? I think you have the same as me." Steve nodded, "Sure but why?" Nova sighed, "I wanted to check in on Will... he has an appointment today. I won't be able to join them but I at least wanted to see him off." Steve nodded with a smile, "Sure, sure. How's he doing by the way?" Nova frowned and sighed, "He's been having nightmares lately, so I'm kind of worried."

Steve frowned, "Poor kid. I'll take you to go see him today." Nova smiled at Steve, "Thanks Steve. I owe you one." Steve just smiled, "Nah... well, maybe." They laughed before going to their separate classes.

Timeskip~

It was lunchtime and Nova sighed. She wasn't very hungry, so she decided to go explore outside. After a while of walking, she found a lone picknick table and sat down on it. She sighed and listened to nature around her, which caused her to smile. She became so distracted that she never noticed someone coming up close to her. Eddie had come out to his spot to smoke and saw, to him, the most beautiful sight. Nova Varlineau, his dream girl, sitting on his table. Her eyes were closed, she was smiling, and her hair was blowing in the slight wind. She looked... ethereal, in a way. He snapped himself out of it, reminding himself that she was spoken for and approached her.

He lightly touched her shoulder, which startled her, causing her to fall and him to catch her, "Easy there, princess. I got you." Nova looked up and sighed, "Eddie! Why do you always scare me?" Eddie just grinned, "Because... you're easily distracted." Nova didn't comment and just stuck her tongue out at him as she steadied herself on her feet. Eddie laughed and sat down on the table, "So, princess, tell me... why are you all the way out here instead of with the other kids in the cafeteria?" Nova sat next to him and sighed, "Wasn't hungry and I decided to explore outside the school grounds." Eddie chuckled as he pulled out a joint and lit up. He puffed on the joint, inhaling it before eventually blowing it out again. He offered Nova a hit, which she took, surprising him.

She puffed, inhaled and eventually blew out like a pro. Eddie grinned and took the joint back from her when offered, "You really are perfect, you know that?" Nova chuckled and looked at Eddie, "Nah, just perfectly ordinary is all." Eddie took another hit and let loose a breath. Nova sighed and listened to the sounds of the woods again. Eddie kept stealing glances at Nova, "No really, why are you out here instead of with your boyfriend?" Nova frowned softly, "He didn't come to school today. And I didn't feel like sitting with Steve by myself. Can I another hit?"

Eddie nodded and handed her the joint. She took a hit and sighed, finally feeling her tense muscles relax, "This is good shit, Munson." Eddie laughed, "You're lucky I'm not charging you for it." Nova giggled and handed the joint back to him. "Yeah, yeah. I saw you dealing by the way. You might want to be more careful of where you do that." Eddie smirks, "Nah, the owner is one of my many customers, so I'm usually ok." Nova grinned, "Usually?" Eddie grinned back, "Let's just say that, Sheriff Hopper and I are well aquainted."  Nova laughed and swayed a bit, laying her head on Eddie's shoulder. They both just sat there for a while before they heard the bell ring in the distance.

Nova groaned and got off the table, which made Eddie frown, "Where are you going?" "I asked Steve for a ride to see my cousin before he goes off to his appointment. So, I'm going to find him." She looked over at Eddie who had gotten off the table and stood next to her. "Thanks for the high, Eddie." She leaned forward to kiss his cheek but he had turned his head at the right time and their lips met instead. They both looked at each other and shock before they deepened the kiss. The weed was affecting their brains and by the time they realized it, they were pressed against each other. Nova's hands were gripping Eddie's shirt as Eddie's left hand was on Nova's back and his right hand was under her shirt, feeling up her bra-covered breast.

They broke the kiss suddenly and leapt away from each other. Both were panting and fixing their clothing. Nova said nothing as she practically ran away and Eddie sighed, thinking he fucked up royally.