𝘼𝙪𝙜𝙪𝙨𝙩 [𝙎𝙩𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙤𝙣]

[Cover up]

Days passed since the incident with Cherry and her father. The tension still thick in their home, Cherry and her father now hardly spoke to one another. Cherry stood in front of the bathroom mirror, her hands trembling as she attempted to apply makeup to her now lightly bruised cheek. Though, the bruise had faded, still nothing seemed to cover it up. Groaning, she smeared even more product onto her cheek. Max entered the room, her gaze falling on her sister's reflection.

She pursed her lips, feeling bad as she continued to get ready for school. "So much for makeup, huh?" Cherry muttered to herself, her voice tinged with bitterness as she glanced at her reflection. Max couldn't help but chuckle softly at Cherry's attempt to lighten up the situation. It was almost as if her father hadn't touched her at all. But, he did, and now Cherry had to suffer to consequences. "You know, it's not that bad..?" Max spoke, her lips quirking into a sympathetic smile as she reached for her hair brush.

Cherry turned to face her sister, a wry grin spreading across her face. "Really?" she asked, a hint of disbelief in her voice. Max grimaced, her nose wrinkling at what she was about to reveal. "Okay, yeah. It's pretty bad," she admitted, a soft laugh escaping her. Cherry turned back to the mirror, her smile fading as she inspected her bruised cheek once more. "God, what am I going to do?" she murmured, a note of desperation creeping into her voice.

Max frowned, her brows furrowing as she searched for a solution. "Well, maybe you could just, I don't know, tell people you got into a fight?" she suggested tentatively, her voice hesitant. Cherry's eyes widened in horror at the suggestion. "I sound like Billy! That's even worse," she exclaimed, shaking her head vehemently. Max nodded in understanding, her mind searching for alternative ideas. "Maybe... you had a bad fall?" she suggested, her voice sounding curious.

Cherry's eyes brightened at Max's suggestion. "You're right," she exclaimed, her voice infused with optimism. Max nodded in agreement, a sense of relief washing over her as she saw Cherry's spirits lift. "I mean, everyone falls. It's a common accident. For all they know, you have a concussion!" "Exactly," she replied, her voice filled with reassurance. Cherry smiled gratefully at her sister, a weight lifting from her shoulders as she realized they had found a solution that wouldn't jeopardize their family.

"Thanks, Max," she said sincerely, her voice tinged with relief. "I told you, Cherry. I don't do thank you's." Max replied with a playful grin. As Cherry and Max grabbed their backpacks and headed towards Billy's car, their older brother waited for them with a brooding expression. His gaze immediately fell upon Cherry's bruised cheek, and a frown creased his brow. "You didn't wanna cover that shit up?" Billy remarked bluntly, his tone tinged with disapproval as he gestured toward Cherry's face.

Cherry felt a pang of embarrassment at her brother's comment, but she stood her ground. "I fell," The brunette replied simply, her voice steady despite the lingering sense of shame. Billy's expression remained unchanged, his skepticism evident in the furrow of his brow. Having witnessed the truth behind Cherry's injury, he scoffed in disbelief. "Yeah, right," he muttered dismissively before turning away and cranking up the volume on the radio, a loud rock song drowning out any further conversation. Disappointment washed over Cherry as she watched her brother's reaction.

She had hoped for understanding or at least a hint of sympathy like he'd given a few days ago, but Billy's skepticism only served to deepened her sense of isolation. With a resigned sigh, Cherry climbed into the car beside Max rather than the passengers seat, the weight of Billy's judgment heavy on her shoulders. As they drove to school in tense silence, Cherry couldn't help but wonder what her brother truly thought of her. Was he disappointed? Angry? Indifferent?

This gnawed at her, but Cherry pushed the thoughts aside, knowing that she had to focus on getting through the day ahead. At school, life carried on as usual. Well, if that's what you want to call it. Cherry tried to focus on her classes, but her mind kept wandering back to everything going on at home and, worst of all, Steve Harrington. You know, Hawkins golden boy with the cute smile. Yes, Robin did try warning her about him, but it wasn't Cherry's fault he couldn't leave her mind. There was just something about him that intrigued her, something she couldn't quite put her finger on.

It had been weeks since the Halloween party she'd attended. The party where she'd caught a glimpse of Steve Harrington for the very first— and only— time. But since then, she hadn't seen him around anywhere. Not at school, not in stores, nowhere in town. Perhaps she just didn't know the places where he hung around, being new in town. Part of her just couldn't help but wonder where he'd disappeared to. Was he avoiding her? Definitely not, he probably doesn't even remember her. Or was he just busy with his own life, oblivious to the effect he had on her? That had to be it.

Cherry found herself replaying their brief encounter in her mind, savoring every detail as if trying to piece together a puzzle. She thought of Robin's words, her friend's warning about getting involved with someone like Steve Harrington nothing but a funny joke in her mind. Lost in her daydream, Cherry hadn't even noticed when her teacher called on her. "Cherrilyn, could you please answer the question?" Her teacher's voice snapped her back to reality. Great, chemistry. Cherry blinked, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment as she realized she hadn't been paying any attention.

"Uh, sorry, what was the question again?" she stammered, her mind still lingering on thoughts of Steve. Her teacher sighed in exasperation, shooting her a disapproving look. "You seem to be in a world of your own today. Please try to focus, this is important for the test," she scolded, before moving on to another student. Frustrated by her own inability to focus, Cherry turned her attention back to the lesson. Maybe Robin was right; she was wrapped around Steve's finger, and there didn't seem to be anything she could do about it.