Games| B. Hargrove

02

Nicole put an effort into her appearance that next morning, wanting to make an impression on the new kid. It definitely wasn't a lie that he was more than attractive; he was total eye candy. She was dressed in some light washed mom jeans, a navy blue pull over sweater which was tucked in, and she wore a plain black belt as well. She paired the outfit with some black converse as well.

Nicole never wore a ton of makeup, she didn't need it. So, she only put on a light coat of mascara, some blush and some lip gloss. All she did with her hair was give it some volume, and she decided that she was ready. Steve arrived a little after she finished getting ready and they sat at the dining table, eating some Eggo's she quickly threw in the toaster.

"Why are you so.. done up?" Steve asked, eyeing his best friend.

"I'm literally not. I look like this every day." Nicole rolled her eyes as she shoved another bite of waffles in her mouth.

"This doesn't have something to do with a certain douche bag does it?" The brunette boy rose an eyebrow, mimicking her by taking a bite.

"Literally shut up. We're going to be late." She snatched her plate off the table and quickly rinsed it before grabbing her bag by the front door.

As she walked out to Steve's car, she realized that the blue Camaro was already vacant from its parking spot in front of 4819 Cherry Lane. She gave a small pout before Steve came out of the house, and only then did she hop in the boys BMW.

.·:*¨¨* ≈☆≈ *¨¨*:·.

"Uh-oh. Here comes Harrington and the slut." A girl beside Billy snickered as a BMW pulled into the parking lot.

"Who?" He questioned. He'd already made company of some of the girls. When you flirt you can really get what you want.

"Oh, Steve Harrington is like one of the most popular guys in school. He's dating Nancy Wheeler but this chick, Nicole Moore is always up his ass. It's rumored she's just trying to break Steve and Nancy up so she can get with him." A girl named Carol explained, her boyfriend, Tommy, had his arms slung around her shoulder.

"Heard she's a real dirty girl too." Tommy snorted and that caused the group of popular to cackle.

Sure enough, out stepped the Nicole the boy had met last night. She was making big explosion expressions with her arms which was causing Steve to laugh as they walked closer to the school. Tommy suddenly nudged Carol and told her to 'watch this'.

"Hey, Harrington! Stop cheating on Nance, the poor girl doesn't need to be humiliated this bad!" He shouted and Nicole automatically snapped her head toward the group.

"Stop being a home wrecking slut!" Carol followed soon after.

Nicole's eyes met with Billy's, and Steve mumbled something to her. This caused her to hang her head low and stare at the ground in front of her as she walked. Billy couldn't believe it, he was really going to go after the schools slut. It's a good thing he waited to make a serious move. His reputation would've been plummeted the second he stepped into the school.

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"I just- I can't believe that! I'm not that kind of person!" Nicole sighed in annoyance as she walked alongside Steve who had his arm around Nancy.

"It's Tom and Carol, they're never going to stop and you know that. All that matters is Nance and I know it's not true, right Nance?" Steve asked.

"Hm? Yeah, totally." The short girl subtly rolled her eyes, annoyed about having to listen to Nicole's problems.

"And Billy, oh my god he's going to think I'm so gross." She groaned while the boy next to her shrugged.

"Maybe it's not all bad. It'll be his loss."

"No it's bad, Steve. Like, end of the world bad! I do not want this reputation." She sighed out.

"Then do something about it. I've gotta go, bye Steve." Nancy bitterly suggested before she practically stomped away.

"What the hell is her deal?" The blonde stared as the other girl made her way down the hall.

"She's probably just nervous. We've gotta go talk to Barb's parents uh.. to you know. Be there for them." He quickly covered which made the girl nod.

The pair made their way to their next shared class, gym, and parted ways to go to the separate locker rooms. Nicole quickly got changed into her gym uniform. The shorts were uncomfortable, as they were way too short. No other girl seemed to mind, however. With one last breath, she stepped out of the locker room and bumped into a broad body.

"Oh! I'm sorry." Nicole quickly tried to regain balance before she looked up, meeting familiar blue eyes.

"Just watch where you're going." He mumbled, trying to move around her.

"Hey! Billy-" she gentle grabbed his arm and he tensed, but stood still, "d-don't listen to Tom and Carol, okay? Those rumors aren't true, like at all."

The blonde boy shook his arm out of her hand, "stay away from me."

"Oh.. um- yeah. Okay. Sorry." She quickly sputtered as he began to walk off.

Suddenly, Nicole Moore felt as small as an ant in the high school. She wrapped her arms around herself as she made her way toward the bleachers, to sit out and watch the boys play basketball alike always. It felt like everyone was talking about her. Every whisper, ever hushed laugh, it all felt pointed toward her due to the nasty rumors Tommy and Carol decided to spread. Suddenly, Nicole Moore wanted nothing but to crumble away into nothing.

Billy felt bad as he snuck glances at the lonesome girl sunk in the bleachers. However, he had to be harsh. His reputation was on the line, and he wasn't going to listen to one girl over almost the entire grade. Billy was no follower, but he had to fit in before he could lead. Going with the flow was the best way to get to the top, so that's exactly what he was going to do.

From that day forward, he would use Steve and Nicole to climb the social ladder. They weren't friends, not anything near it, so he wouldn't feel bad for doing what he needed to do.

Billy Hargrove needed to be king, and the pair of best friends were his direct source to becoming that.