stupid // steve harrington

t w o

it would be so easy to key his car. i can hear it now, the sickeningly sweet screams of pain from his most prized possession, piercing my ear but also setting me free from pent up rage. i leaned against the rusting vehicle and forced the thoughts of vandalizing an extremely abusive person's vehicle out of my heaf. i saw max walking with a boy in the distance. she told me about him and the rest of the people she had met. it could be dustin or lucas, certainly not mike. billy slammed his hand down on the roof of the car. i turned around and glared.

"look who showed." i spat, waiting for him to unlock my door. he didn't respond, instead looking at max and her friend. he shook his head and a sinister grin took his face captive.

"stupid bitch doesn't listen." i climbed in the car, shut my eyes and put my head in my hands. i was waiting for the storm that was brewing to pass. eventually, max scurried into the car, unsuspecting of billy's rage. we swerved out, narrowly missing a group of children. billy didn't care, however, he blared the horn and zoomed down the road. i bit at my nails, head still resting lowly on one of my hands. "max," she hummed in response, "who was that boy you were talking to?" she shrugged.

"just some kid from school."

"i've told you that you need to be careful about who you're friends with," his voice was sickeningly calm, "and he looks like someone you should avoid. he looks like someone that you shouldn't be friends with." if i wasn't in the car he would have been much more violent, he would have even laid his hands on her. my bike toppled around in the boot. i rose from my cowardly position and looked back at her. tears were pricking her eyes.

"i don't really know him, he was just harassing me about homework." max's voice was precarious and calculated. she knew that if she spoke too loud or if her tone was too nonchalant, he would erupt like a volcano.

despite her solid efforts, billy snapped. his foot still on the accelerator, he turned back to reduce the distance between them and maximize the emotional scarring she would recieve.

"it didn't look like the conversation was one sided! i've told you, don't fucking associate with people like him!" his words echoed through the enclosed vehicle even after he turned back to the wheel. max was frozen. i wanted to lean back and comfort her, but i knew that would only make him more mad. so i just sat there. we all just sat there. max didn't move a muscle until the sickening scent of the farm filled the car; then she tucked her nose into her shirt. who knew pumpkin could smell this bad? i mirrored max's actions, stuffing my nose into my orange sweater. but billy was more devoted to standing his ground than us, remaining stoic for the entire ride.

i've never been less surprised in my entire life. mum and dad's car was absent from the driveway still. it wouldn't have made much difference if they were there. it would have just been loud. uncomfortable and loud. telling them about billy's questionable behaviour would have resulted in even more discomfort and noise. besides, it wasn't billy's fault he was horribly bigoted and abusive; that was all on his dad. i grabbed my bag from the floor of the car and slammed the door behind me. max followed my actions and started walking to the house.

"hey, max! help me with my bike?" she turned around and nodded. we lingered by the boot until billy disappeared into his bedroom. she looked at me with the biggest, saddest puppy eyes ever. i brought her into my arms and held her while she sobbed. the raw, pure emotion in her choked cries were moving enough to haunt me for the rest of my life.

"he's just so nice to me! why does it matter what he looks like? billy looks like us and he's a horrible person, maybe i should start actively looking for people who aren't like us!" i held her head and began to cry silently. make sure you're as silent as a mouse, she doesn't need to know that you're hurting. be strong for once. i looked up at billy's window and saw him leaning on the top of the window frame, cigarette dangling lazily from between his lips. i glared up at him, wishing him a cruel and painful death. her sobs began to fizzle out, but my anger stayed full-strength. she pulled from my embrace, a chain of dribble and snot attaching her to my sweater. i laughed.

"real classy, show that mucas to lucas next time you see him." she laughed and popped the boot for me. my bike was still intact. i grabbed it, ushering max over to help me. "any plans for tonight?" i asked, knowing she'd want to get out for the return of our upstanding parents.

"i was thinking about doing something with lucas, the arcade or something." she seemed distant, like she was keeping part of the truth from me. given her recent emotional trauma, i decided not to pry.

"like a date?" i asked, winking and biting my lip. she rolled her eyes and dumped the bike on the ground.

"dates are for girls." she smirked and walked inside. i stood in the aftermath of her teen angst and wallowed for a moment. they grow so fast. i shut the boot and moved my bike out of the drive before following max inside.

//

AYYY BABY BOYEEEE

this is short soz

pls comment and vote i am lonely and desperate