au where billy did sleep with k*ren and he expects this to be a recurring thing because 1. no ones ever rejected him before and 2. hes grown this fucked up attachment to her attention. except she ignores him the next time they run into each other and after enough pressing from billy she tells him they cant see each other anymore and shes gotta think of her family etc etc and billy… does not handle it well. damn near blows up except theyre in public so hes gotta keep some relative cool, even if he does still garner a few looks from passersby.
and then billy just… gets drunk. spends the rest of the day wasted until its the middle of the night and he ends up on the train tracks, lying down in the middle staring up the stars wondering what the hell is so wrong with him that no one wants to stick around and love him
and then theres headlights. and a car rolling to a stop. and a door opening and footsteps approaching and “hargrove? the hell are you doing?”
and of course harrington shows up at a time like this because what the fuck else could go wrong in his life right now. as if he needed another reminder of everything he doesnt have. cant have.
and billy doesnt have the energy. can only slur out “fuck off harrington” and honestly steves a okay with that. is about to leave until theres the sound of a train off the in the distance. and billys not moving.
“id probably get up if i were you unless you wanna be turned into ground meat.” and steves voice is still casual. the train still far enough away that i doesnt feel like a present danger just yet.
the train gets closer. billys not moving.
“seriously hargrove, get up.”
no response. no movement. train getting louder.
steve can feel the rumble in his feet. makes a split second decision. lunges for billy and grabs him by his shirt, pulling him up and falling backward just barely escaping collision. he trips over his feet, falls flat on his back with billy on top of him as the train roars by.
and billys…. laughing? steves heart is about to beat out of his chest and billy fucking hargrove is laughing on top of him. except.
the train passes by, night going quiet again, and steve can recognize the shaking in billys body for what it is. hes fucking… crying. sobbing. like steves never seen anyone do, let alone the biggest prick hes ever had the displeasure of meeting.
and hes just kind of frozen. not knowing what to do or how to respond. but he doesnt push billy away. lets him cry, scream into the night. find whatever catharsis this is supposed to be even if steve is left confused as shit about whatever the hell is going on
(he’ll find out eventually. in bits and pieces. find out nancys fucking mother is worse than he ever couldve imagined. and maybe next time hes at the wheelers he sneaks off to the master bath. finds karens side of the vanity and grabs her red lipstick. leaves an i know what you did on her mirror. watches her sweat it out after. how the guilt and shame eats away at her. and billy wont let him tell anyone. wont let him do anything that would actually help, but. steve finds ways to remind karen shes not off the hook, in his own little ways.)
