pretty boy like you // harringrove

07.

They were together, after that. Neither of them needed to have the conversation. They both knew what they were. They both knew that there was no one else.

Or, Steve assumed Billy knew. Billy wanted to believe that Steve loved him. But he couldn't help the nagging thought that if Nancy ever said she wanted Steve back he would be dropped in a second. All this worry finally came to a climax when they were laying in Steve's bed, staring at each other. He really liked staring at Steve. He spent a lot of time on it.

"Do you really care for me or am I just some stand-in until Nancy or some other girl wants you again?" Billy said. He said it fast. It burned to say out loud, but it had been banging around in his head ever since Steve had told him he loved him on the floor of his garage. He needed to get it out or he thought it may actually kill him.

Steve shot up immediately. "What?"

"Yeah. I just... You loved Nancy so much. And then there was Chloe. You still talk to the both of them constantly. What if one of them says they want you back? Would you just... drop me?"

Steve was gaping at him. "What? Billy, of course not. I care about you. You have no idea how much. Do you want to know what Chloe said when I broke up with her? 'I hope we can be friends. Maybe I can even help you with Billy.' I spend half my time with Nancy smoking Jon's pot and rambling about how pretty your mouth is. I was over Nance the second you came to town. I'm not going to drop you. I cared about Nance, but not like you. You're everything to me. How do you not get that by now?"

"I don't deserve you, Princess. I beat your face in-"

"Billy, I don't care about that. At least I know why you did it, and that you would never do it again. You're not the same person you were then. You've been amazing to Max, and to me. I like you, okay? That's not going to change."

Billy took Steve's hand in his and kissed it. "I like you too, Pretty boy."

☆☆☆☆☆

"Steve?"

"Yeah?"

"Let me take you to the movies, baby. We can make out during the previews and hold hands in the popcorn and all that shit. A real date, instead of just hooking up in the backseat of the Camaro. It'll be fun."

Steve grinned, then faltered. "You have no idea how good that sounds. People will see, though."

"Way ahead of you. We'll go to the 11 o'clock tomorrow, as long as you're okay with skipping. No one will be there. We'll sit in the back. Cmon, Princess."

"Yes, please." And he leaned over to kiss his boyfriend. (Boyfriend. Steve didn't know how he'd ever gotten this fucking lucky.)

☆☆☆☆☆

A day and a half later, the two boys were sitting in the back row of the movie theater, making out during the previews as promised. They were seeing Children Of The Corn, the new Stephen King. It was between that and some romcom, but Billy figured Steve would get scared and hide in his jacket, and the idea was too good to pass up on.

But as soon as that motherfucker Isaac showed his creepy face, Billy was buried in his boyfriend's shoulder. (Boyfriend. Billy didn't know how he'd ever gotten this fucking lucky.) Steve was laughing at him.

"Shut the fuck up," Billy grumbled. "Kid's scary as hell! Did you not see him in the window? With that ugly fuckin' hat?"

Steve's still laughing. Billy throws popcorn at his face and he catches it in his mouth and now they're both giggling, so fucking happy they forget for a second that if anyone sees them here together they might actually, literally, be dead.

☆☆☆☆☆

Billy was strange, after the movie. Tense. On edge. Silent. On the drive back to school, Steve put his hand on Billy's thigh.

"Fuck you, Harrington. Get off me." Steve was shocked. This side of Billy, the angry side, was a part of him he barely ever saw. And never directed at him. Maybe Tommy H. (Fuckin' Tommy H.) Never Steve, though. Ever.

"Are you okay?" Steve furrowed his eyebrows. Billy slammed on the gas, speeding up far too fast. "BILLY! WHAT THE FUCK!" Steve yelled, grabbing the steering wheel away, nearly wrapping the Camaro around a tree. "Slow down!" Billy pulled over.

"I had that under control, Steve. You almost killed us!"

"You had it under control? You were going a hundred in a thirty-five! I wouldn't have had to intervene if you weren't such a fucking psychotic driver!" Steve yelled.

"FUCK YOU."

"What the fuck is wrong with you?"

Billy slammed his hands down onto the dashboard. "Goddamn, Princess. Can you never just mind your own business?"

"This is my business! Nevermind the fact you could've landed us in the morgue, you're my boyfriend! You're my boyfriend and I care about you and I know we both have our shit and I know neither of us are doing great but please fucking enlighten me on how this is in any way not my business!" Steve was precariously close to losing his shit. He knew Billy was struggling, but it was just so hard sometimes.

"You shouldn't have to deal with my shit, that's why it's my shit!"

"You are my shit!"

And then they're making out in the back seat and Billy's shirt is off and yeah, they just got into a massive fight and yeah, they could have died and yeah, they should talk and yeah, there are better ways to deal with this than sex, but hey, they're teenagers, right?

Steve figures there'll be plenty of time to talk afterwards.

☆☆☆☆☆

Later, curled up in Steve's bed, (his parents were out of town. He didn't really care why anymore, not as long as Billy was there.) Billy turned around to face him. He ran a finger over Steve's face, landed on a scar on his cheek. "Was this me?"

"Yeah." Steve couldn't meet his eyes.

"Fuck. I don't think that'll ever stop breaking my heart. pretty boy." Billy smiled, but it was so goddamn tragic Steve quite nearly burst into tears.

Steve leaned in to kiss him, them stopped a centimeter away from his mouth. He touched the new bruise on Billy's neck, in the shape of his father's fingers. "Neither will this, babe." He kissed him, and it managed to say 'I'm so sorry' in a way words never could.

"Billy, stay with me. Grab stuff from your place. Your car. My parents are never home, and it's not like we don't have the room. You don't ever have to go back there. Shit, you shouldn't go back. One of these days you're gonna end up in the hospital or worse. Please." Steve tangled his fingers in Billy's curls. "C'mon."

Billy just smiled that sad smile and shook his head. "Steve, I can't. My dad never hits Susan or Max. He wouldn't dare. But I'm afraid that if I'm not there as as punching bag he'll get mad and hit one of them. I'm used to it. It's better this way. I need to protect Max. She's so young. She shouldn't have to deal with this shit."

Steve kissed him and nodded. "Yeah, okay. But if something happens, come over, or call me, or something. I'll be there."

"I know, baby. I promise."