Empathy (Billy Hargrove)

1.1 - THE FIRST ENCOUNTER

"Shit, shit, shit," the raven-haired girl cursed as she sped through the halls of Hawkins High School as quickly as she could without her sore body protesting too much.  She had woken up late, much too late. Jackie only had time to throw on clothes, run a brush through her black hair, and swish with some mouthwash before booking it out the door.  There would only be twenty minutes left of first period by the time she reached the high school, but she'd rather be tardy than absent.  If she skipped, the school would no doubt call her father, and that was the last thing she needed.

Scott Johnson had already been angry enough the previous night when he found out his daughter didn't get an A on her AP Chemistry test. Jackie didn't need him angry again tonight and to have more of a reason to believe his daughter was "slacking off and going nowhere."  While the high school senior wasn't sure if she'd go straight into college after graduating, she knew for certain that she was going to get the hell out of Hawkins, Indiana.

Once voted "Student Most Likely to Make Something of Themself," was all but a distant dream anymore for Jackie. After the death of her mother nearly a year ago, the raven-haired female had started distancing herself from everyone and everything, especially when Jackie's father began physically abusing her. Scott Johnson had always been a harsh man, yet had never previously laid a hand on Jackie or her mother before the family tragedy. After the mysterious death of Janice Johnson, Scott succumbed to numbing his heartache with alcohol. Unfortunately for Jackie, she was the main outlet for her dad when all his emotions would blow over in his inebriated state.

With her best friend, Steve Harrington, being preoccupied with his new girlfriend, Nancy, Jackie didn't have anyone to turn to. All those that worshipped her didn't actually know the raven-haired beauty, they just wanted to be her or be with her. The final blow to her crumbling reputation though, was when Carol noticed the concealer around the Johnson girl's neck from a night her father got particularly nasty. In typical Carol-fashion, she immediately spread the rumor that Jackie was hiding a multitude of hickies and sleeping around with someone different each week. Overnight, Jackie Johnson went from Queen of Hawkins to Hawkins's Whore.

The worst part for Jackie though was not her tarnished reputation, but the fact that her supposed best friend, Steve Harrington, had not even asked her what happened. The day after the rumor caught like wildfire, Jackie saw Steve in the hallway, and he simply shook his head at her, as though he was a disappointed parent.  Once surrounded by admirers, the raven-haired girl was now truly alone in the world.

Now almost two months into her Senior year, Jackie rushed to get to the last twenty minutes of Mr. Beckham's Honors English class.  Once she finally made it to the room, she caught her breath and smoothed her hair prior to entering.  Attempting to sneak in without too much disruption on her part, she pushed the door open quietly, but of course with her luck, the class goes silent as Mr. Beckham stopped his lecture. 

"Ah, Miss Johnson. I was wondering if you were going to grace us with your presence at all today." He held a worn copy of Macbeth and his black-framed glasses were half-way down his pointed nose.

Jackie mumbled a brief apology while looking down at her worn chucks, before she made her way to the back of the classroom and to the usual desk she sat at.  She paused when she noticed a body sitting in the seat next to hers.  Since she became an outcast, she typically sat alone in most of her classes, this one included.

As she lifted her head, her hazel eyes caught onto a stranger clad in denim jeans that perfectly hugged his built legs, a tight fitting, white, cotton shirt, and a denim jacket to finish off the look.  His dirty blonde locks were fashioned into a mullet and everything about this stranger oozed confidence and style – a style that most of the population of Hawkins did not possess, instantly making Jackie curious of where he came from.