31 : American Dreamer

27.7K 1K 451
                                    

No blood got on the Marra's cream carpet but there was a carmine smudge on Prue's cheeks from where Billy had tried to touch her face in his drunken, bloody state. With a gloss of tears in her eyes and a sigh heavy on her chest, Prue had looked up from the fallen Billy to Patrick Turner standing above them with a frown digging into his forehead.

"Can you help me get him to my car?" she asked her old boyfriend as Billy's laughter faded, his eyelids heavy.

"Sure," Patrick agreed instantly, bending down to hoist Billy's body up straight. "Grab his another side," he directed. Prue struggled with Billy's other side, holding him up around the torso, his arm lagging over her shoulders. He felt heavy like lead, dead weight. The two manoeuvred Billy Hargrove out of the house on Maple and into the night still rich with heat.

"Why do I always have to haul your ass home?" Prue muttered to Billy, who was floating in and out of an ocean of consciousness.

"Damn, this guy is freaking heavy!" Patrick whistled out. His sunburnt skin even glowed under the cover of night. The three weaved around teenagers that littered the front yard, plastic solo cups in their hands.

"It's all the muscle," she said, wheezing under Billy's weight. Nicotine and cologne clouded her, filling her senses.

"Are you sure it's not all the assholeness?" Patrick argued as Billy's head rolled back onto his shoulders, mumbling something inaudible, probably a rude dig at the boy helping to get his sorry ass home.

"Yeah, it's probably that too," she admitted, pointing out her car across the street. The street was quiet and Prue could see to the very end of the cul-de-sac, and even despite the party still raging on, the street was pleasant with dead grass and only illuminated by the soft glow of lights from house windows. "You got him?" she looked across Billy's body to Patrick.

"Yep," he declared before Prue ducked out from under Billy's arm to fish out her car keys and open the backseat door; she held it open with her hip as Patrick shuffled Billy's body into the car, rather gently all things considered. "You need me to come too?" he added as Prue closed one door to open another one, swinging her keys around.

"Nah, I got this," Prue said, leaning on the metal frame of the driver's door to look back at the severely sun-kissed boy. "Thanks though, Patrick," she said sweetly. Patrick Turner swayed on his feet, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his shorts.

"Hey, about Ronnie and me―" he began meekly; his sudden, blooming blush matched the harsh hue of his sunburn.

"We don't have to have this conversation," Pure interrupted with a warm smile. "Ronnie's great. You're great. And you'll be great together," she clarified genuinely. While her relationship with Patrick had ended with a big blowout last Halloween, she had no hard feelings for the boy and honestly wanted the best for him, and she believed Ronnie Marra was the very best. It was actually really sweet of him to ask if she would be okay with him and her best friend getting together.

"Great!" A smile leapt across his freckled face, and if he really were a puppy, surely his tail would be wagging happily.

"Goodnight, Patrick!" she said, hopping into her car and conjuring the engine to life. Patrick waved, caught in the headlights momentarily as Prue drove to the other side of town where Old Cherry Road sat, much less pleasant than Maple Street.

The small and old Hargrove house was dead in the darkness, no lights burning low in the square, dirt-streaked windows. As Prue cut the engine, she supposed that was better than the alternative. The alternative being Neil awake and waiting with steam for his son to come home. With the light of the moon acting as a lighthouse, the brunette teenager sneaked around the side of the house, rasping her knuckles on Max's window. It took a few minutes to wake the redhead girl, but finally her tanned faced popped up behind the pane of glass. Prue waved lamely at Max, who blinked away her sleep and confusion before nudging the window open.

Risky Business 。 Stranger ThingsWhere stories live. Discover now