strgshazam

[strgshazam]

Missing Out - Chapter IV - If you forget what I've done, I'll do it again

While she's smoking, he leans down and starts pressing his lips against her neck. She turns her head away from him and back towards the party to give him more room to work.

That's when she sees Steve Harrington coming their way.

She puts a hand onto Billy's chest before whispering to him, "Sorry babe, fun police is here."

Just as Billy's pulling away to see what she's talking about, Steve makes his presence known. Loudly.

"Harper! The hell are you doing back here?" Though he doesn't say it, she can feel the added 'with him' at the end of that question.

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previous | next

a/n: writing has been especially tough because i'm traveling for work right now, but i'm doing my best. also, if anyone is interested in being a beta for this, please let me know!

about: billy hargrove x ofc, slow burn strangers to lovers modern!au

warnings: drug and alcohol use, substance abuse as a coping mechanism, dead dove: do not eat, eventual smut, minors dni, violence

︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦

10:14 AM billy the flirt: Hey. Can we talk?

He set his phone back down on his nightstand with the intention of going back to sleep (or at least attempting) for a few hours. Harper didn't typically wake up until mid-afternoon. To his surpise, his phone buzzed against the wood surface beside him almost instantly.

Harper: sure thing, honey. the sooner, the better. got some shit to take care of later.

He had spent the majority of the last three weeks pissed off - why the fuck had she lied to him? What was wrong with him that she was interested in...anybody else? It wasn't until he had driven Max home from school a few days prior that some sense was knocked into him.

"Get in the car, Max. You're already late enough as it is."

"I'm only like two minutes late! What's up your ass lately?" She tossed her skateboard into the trunk of his car - there's no way she's putting that dirty piece of wood on his leather seats - and climbed into the passenger's seat and shut the door with a light slam.

"Hey! Watch the door, shitbird, or you'll be walking home for the rest of the month," he turned the key in the ignition and checked his rearview mirror that just so happened to contain his own reflection before peeling out of the school parking lot.

She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, "Seriously, what's your deal? You been fighting with that girl?"

His head snapped to look at her ever so briefly, "What girl?" She let out an incredulous laugh. "The girl you've been spending all your time with lately."

"There's no girl. And mind your fuckin' business," he kept his eyes focused on the road.

Max made her eye roll obvious enough that he didn't even need to look at her to see it. "Then why're you so defensive? How'd you fuck it up, huh?"

"Watch your mouth, Maxine. I didn't fuck up anything."

"Oh right, I forgot that you've never been an asshole to anyone before. 'Specially not girls. Never been anything less than a gentleman while trying to get in their pants."

That's what set him off. The tires of the Camaro screeched to a halt on the side of the road before he reached over to grab her arm.

He pulled her closer to him with an intense grip, "Didn't I tell you to mind your fuckin' business? I didn't do anything. And there's no girl to fuck anything up with anyway. Now get out of my car before you piss me off even more," he shoved her arm back toward her and waited for her to get out. 

She climbed out of the car and held the door open, "Never been an asshole to a girl, huh?" She sneered at him before slamming the door.

He sped off without giving her the skateboard out of the trunk.

To no one's surprise, Billy had a hard time admitting he was wrong. What was worse than Max calling him out was the fact that she was right. He'd never admit that to her, of course, but she was.

The next day, he had taken her out for ice cream. Neil hadn't liked that.

He arrived at Harper's apartment and knocked on the door. He wasn't sure that he still was welcome enough to just walk in.

"It's open, Billy!"

He found her in her usual spot on the couch, but the...air of the apartment felt different. He could tell that she felt differently about him now. God, he really had fucked this up. He finally had accepted that they were just going to be friends, but now it was too late. Now it was-

"Holy shit, what happened?" He saw bruising on her cheek and a split lip that was no more than a day and a half old. He moved quickly to sit beside her on the couch and hesitated a bit before gently placing his hands against her jaw to get a better look.

She didn't flinch at his question. She didn't flinch at his touch. She only muttered, "I could ask you the same thing," as she pointed to her own eyebrow. The exact spot that he had a butterfly bandage on his own face and what little bruising remained from a black eye.

"You okay?" He gently touched his thumb against her cheek, which still didn't make her flinch. "I'm fine. You?" She stared directly into his eyes. When most people saw him like this, they couldn't stop staring at the injuries. But not her. She couldn't stop staring at him. 

He used his calloused hands to gently turn her head to try to get a better look, and that's when he saw it: the bruises on her neck that were in the middle of fading. Or the middle of developing?

"Harp. What happened to you?" His voice was barely above a whisper. 

She smirked at him, "You should see the other guy."

He dropped his head and let out an exastperated sigh, "You're not going to tell me, are you?" He pulled his hands away from her face and she shrugged, "You show me yours, I'll show you mine."

He leaned back against the couch and rubbed his hands over his own face, carefully avoiding his own injuries.

"Look, about what I said..."

"I forgive you," she smiled at him as much as she could without pulling her split lip open again. She reached forward toward the coffee table and picked up a joint. Holding it between her teeth, she lit it with the Zippo she pulled from her pocket.

Before she exhaled, she nudged her shoulder against his, "Hey. What's the difference between a hippo and a Zippo?"

He held his eyes closed for a moment, not wanting to just change the subject as if the situation they were in was funny. However, that was clearly what she wanted, so he gave in.

"What?"

"One's really heavy, and the other's a little lighter," she absolutely beamed.

The joke wasn't funny. It was pretty stupid, honestly. But her smile...despite them both being in the middle of shitty circumstances, she was still wanting to make them both laugh. And it worked. His own smile was big enough to exceed hers. He dropped his head into his hands and muttered, "You're the fuckin' worst," while trying to hold back as much laughter as he could. 

She passed the joint to him as her smile faded, "You really wanna know what happened?"

[strgshazam]

Missing Out - Chapter III - You'd better never forget me

While she's smoking, he leans down and starts pressing his lips against her neck. She turns her head away from him and back towards the party to give him more room to work.

That's when she sees Steve Harrington coming their way.

She puts a hand onto Billy's chest before whispering to him, "Sorry babe, fun police is here."

Just as Billy's pulling away to see what she's talking about, Steve makes his presence known. Loudly.

"Harper! The hell are you doing back here?" Though he doesn't say it, she can feel the added 'with him' at the end of that question.

︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦

previous | next

a/n: writing has been especially tough because i'm traveling for work right now, but i'm doing my best. also, if anyone is interested in being a beta for this, please let me know!

about: billy hargrove x ofc, slow burn strangers to lovers modern!au

warnings: drug and alcohol use, substance abuse as a coping mechanism, dead dove: do not eat, eventual smut, minors dni, violence

︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦

Harper and Billy had been spending a lot of their free time together. Especially once Harper had informed him that she had graduated early the year prior. He was at her apartment at least three times a week - either on the weekend, after school, or when he wanted to skip.

They spent their time as far from sober as possible. When Harper got a new supply in, she was always willing to share with Billy. He wasn’t nearly as upset about the “highway fuckin’ robbery” prices she was charging him for his own drugs since she was sharing all her own shit for free.

Today was no different. As soon as Billy saw her text informing him that she got some new pills in, he was already getting dressed to come over. By this point, Harper didn’t even lock her door when she knew Billy was on his way. He walked right in and made himself at home.

“Alright babe, what’s today’s special?” He was always making sure to make his presence known even if she had heard him walk through the front door.

Harper was sitting on her couch, hunched over her coffee table to cut up some lines of crushed up pills.

“Got some painkillers I haven’t had in a hot minute. Hope you like downers,” she lifted her head to smile at him when he sat down beside her.

“Dunno if I’ve ever really had them. What should I expect?” He picked up the bottle of pills from the coffee table to inspect the label.

"You're gonna feel really relaxed. We can just veg out on the couch," she finished cutting a couple of lines for each of them and rolled up a bill.

"How is that any different than what we usually do?"

She responded with nothing more than a smirk and took her first line before handing the rolled bill to him.

Within the hour, Billy understood the difference. The two of them ended up curled up on the couch together in the dark and silence of her apartment. She had explained that lights and sounds become a bit too intense during this kind of high - he took her word for it.

"Can I ask you something?" Billy whispered against the top of her head, careful to not make too much noise. She nodded against him.

"What made you get into this?"

"The drugs?"

Billy responded with a soft mhmm and Harper let out a heavy sigh. "The short answer is my dad." He pulled back a bit to look at her, "And the long answer?" Her gaze met his, pupils just tiny dots in her eyes. She shook her head and placed the side of her face back against him.

That was enough of an answer for him to drop the subject. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, "Feels good."

She sits up and reaches for her pack of cigarettes off the coffee table. She pulls one from the pack and lights it, offering the pack to Billy.

"You should see what it's like to get laid during this high," she hands him the lighter after he puts his own cigarette between his lips.

"You offering?" She laughs in response, "You know I'm not."

He lets out a chuckle, "Guess I'll have to try it sometime." He readjusts his position on the couch, facing toward her. He takes a long drag of his cigarette before his next question.

"Why don't you want to have sex with me?" Harper looks at him with a confused expression. He had never seemed to be the type to be bothered by rejection. Definitely seemed like he wouldn't be expecting it, but not bothered by it. She decided to feed his ego a bit.

"I never said I didn't want to," she ashed her cigarette and pulled the ashtray closer to the middle of the coffee table so he could reach it more easily.

He ashed his own cigarette, "So what gives?" She let out a huff in response. "Don't take this personally - it's a side effect of the pills. But you're starting to piss me off."

He gave a quick nod, reverting the two of them back into silence.

Before he left later that night, she told him about a party Steve was throwing that weekend.

-

She was there doing what she does best: selling to teenagers. Steve never invited her for that purpose, but she figured she may as well make a bit of cash while she gets drunk, knowing she's able to crash at his house for the night. She had sold a couple of joints to some guy named Ryan before he starting really upping his flirt game.

By the time Billy arrived, she was nowhere to be found. He made his way to Steve in the kitchen to ask about her whereabouts.

Steve gave a shrug when Billy had confronted him, "I dunno, dude. She went upstairs with some dude she was selling to earlier."

The confusion on Billy's face must have been more apparent than he was hoping.

"What's wrong, Hargrove? You jealous?" Steve chuckled before taking another swig of the beer in his hand.

"I- no. She just doesn't fuck her customers," he explained.

Steve let out a hearty laugh at this, almost spitting his beer out directly onto Billy, "Yeah she fuckin' does. That what she told you?"

He was making Billy look like a fool for believing her. And Billy hated looking like a fool. He stormed out of the kitchen, grabbing a liquor bottle on his way. He could still hear Steve laughing as he walked to the backyard.

Harper appeared no more than ten minutes later, chatting with some of Steve's friends by the pool. Billy waited until the group dispersed, dropping his cigarette butt on the ground and stomping it out.

She spotted him as he was walking over, "Hey handsome, I was wondering if you were gonna show up."

"You don't fuck your customers, huh?" Harper was taken aback by the anger in his voice. She sighed, "You talked to Steve, didn't you? I'm gonna kick his ass."

"Why'd you fuckin' lie to me?" he spat. She turned to leave, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back into the conversation. "Watch the hands, asshole. You wanna talk about this, that's fine. But lose the fuckin' attitude and we're not doing this here. You can text me when you can stop acting like a child," she pulled her arm from his grip and left to get lost back in the party.

Billy didn't text her for three weeks.

[strgshazam]

#ReservedforDacre 2018

[strgshazam]

Missing Out - Chapter II - I needed a change of pace

While she's smoking, he leans down and starts pressing his lips against her neck. She turns her head away from him and back towards the party to give him more room to work.

That's when she sees Steve Harrington coming their way.

She puts a hand onto Billy's chest before whispering to him, "Sorry babe, fun police is here."

Just as Billy's pulling away to see what she's talking about, Steve makes his presence known. Loudly.

"Harper! The hell are you doing back here?" Though he doesn't say it, she can feel the added 'with him' at the end of that question.

︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦

previous | next

a/n: writing has been especially tough because i'm traveling for work right now, but i'm doing my best. also, if anyone is interested in being a beta for this, please let me know!

about: billy hargrove x ofc, slow burn strangers to lovers modern!au

warnings: drug and alcohol use, substance abuse as a coping mechanism, dead dove: do not eat, eventual smut, minors dni, violence

︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦

11:34 AM (Unknown number): Hey sweetheart, what time should I come by today?

Billy waits not-so-patiently for Harper to finish up whatever business she's doing, or even just to wake up (it's definitely the latter).

2:46 PM Harper: morning, sunshine. feel free to come by whenever. running one of my famous movie marathons today if you're interested in being a part of the hottest event of the season.

Harper sends a pin of her location to him a takes a couple of painkillers that hold a permanent residence on her nightstand. She saves his number to her phone as she dry swallows the pills.

billy the flirt: Looking forward to it. Be there in an hour.

When Billy knocks on the door of Harper's apartment, she's holding a bottle of whiskey in her hand and has a joint hanging between her lips. She opens the door and gestures with the bottle to let him in.

"Hair of the dog?" She asks as she holds the bottle out to him. He sighs before taking the bottle from her and lifting it to his lips. As if she couldn't get hotter, she's drinking straight whiskey through a hangover? Jesus.

She leads them toward the couch where there's already a movie playing on the TV. She sits down with her back against the arm of the couch and her legs folded up in front of her. Billy does the same, but he sits facing the TV with his legs spread wide. He passes the bottle back to her as she trades him the joint.

"Your boyfriend fuckin' sucks," he remarks. If King Steve hadn't been such a cockblock, they would've both had a much better night.

"My what-now?" She takes a swig of the whiskey. She looks at him with an inquizitive expression. "Your boyfriend. Officer Harrington of the Fun Police," he smirks and takes another hit. Harper lets out a hearty chuckle and puts the bottle on the coffee table.

"Oh, you mean Buzz Killington? Steve's my cousin. Basically thinks he's my big brother," she picks the joint from between Billy's fingers.

He lets out a cough, "Your what? Why the fuck did he seem so bothered by you being with me, then?" He already knows the answer to his question when she says, "Like I said: big brother-type. The two of you don’t exactly get along, either.”

A devilish smirk comes across his face, “So, no boyfriend then?” She rolls her eyes and takes another hit.

“If you’re wanting to finish what you started last night, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“What’s wrong sweetheart? Afraid I won’t live up to the rumors? Cause I promise you, the rumors don’t even begin to cover it,” he presses his hand against her calf and starts running slow, delicate circles with his thumb.

“I don’t fuck my customers,” she offers him the last of the joint and he takes a hit before putting the roach into the ashtray on the coffee table. She does her best to maintain a neutral expression, not letting Billy know that his caress is getting to her. Apprently, she's successful.

He gives her calf a gentle pinch. “Not a customer. I haven’t bought anything from you yet.”

“And where exactly do you plan on getting your weed from, then?”

He pauses for a moment. “Aaron’s got a connection.”

“Aaron from the basketball team? Yeah I’m his connection. Same with Trevor from the football team, Noah from the baseball team, and Ryan from the Mathletes.”

“The fuck are the Mathletes?” He asks, legitimately confused. “Nevermind. All I’m saying is you can’t be the only dealer in Hawkins.”

She gives a small shrug before reaching over to the table and grabbing the whiskey bottle. “May not be the only dealer, but I’ve definitely got the best product,” she winks at him and takes a long gulp from the bottle. He gives her calf a gentle squeeze.

He chuckles, “Are we still talking about weed? C’mon sweetheart, I’ll show you the best time you’ve ever had. Not to mention it’ll piss off that little shit of a cousin of yours.”

“Awfully cocky, aren’t we?” She takes another drink before handing the bottle back to him.

“Confident,” he takes his own long pull from the bottle and sets it back down on the table. His hand is slowly crawling up the side of her leg, inching its way to her knee, as if that is going to convince her.

“You can touch my leg all you want, it’s not gonna get me to fuck you.” She pulls her phone from her back pocket, “Want some pizza? I’m buying.”

He pulls his hand back with a huff. “You’re a tough one, aren’t you?”

“Don’t start pouting, William. It’s not a good look on you.”

He ignores her comment and sinks into the couch to make himself more comfortable, "Pizza sounds good."

Throughout the ordering, the delivery, and the consuming of said pizza, they continue to pass the whiskey bottle back and forth. The once mostly-full bottle now only has a couple inches of liquid left in the bottom. Neither of them are remotely sober.

They've gone from sitting on opposite ends of the couch to Harper leaning her head on Billy's shoulder, her legs draped across his lap. He's got one arm around her and the opposite hand on her thigh. He clearly thinks the alcohol is going to be changing her mind about fucking him. Spoiler alert: it isn't.

Billy interrupts their focus on the movie by pressing his mouth against Harper's hair to ask, "So y'think Harrington would be pissed if we hooked up?"

"We aren't hooking up."

"Okay, but if."

"It'd probably piss him off enough that he'd actually win a fight for once," she smiles up at Billy. They both start laughing at the idea of Steve taking an L on every fight he's been in so far.

"Still couldn't beat me," Billy shrugs. She nods at the sentiment, "Don't doubt it. Still isn't happening."

Billy lets out a low grumble and asks, "How much do I owe you for that eighth?"

She looks up at him with an enormous grin. "Forty," she replies with a bat of her eyelashes as if to lessen the blow.

"Forty?! And I don't get laid? Highway fuckin' robbery." She shrugs his arm off of her shoulders and gently slaps him on the chest with a smile, "So go find another dealer."

He tosses his head back against the couch cushions and groans, reaching into his pocket for his wallet. He pulls out a couple of bills and hands them to her. She goes into the kitchen and rumages through a drawer for a moment before returning with a bag of weed in one hand and another smaller bag in the other.

"Need anything to sober you up a bit? My treat." She lifts the smaller bag of white powder as she hands him the weed. He takes his purchase and lets a wide grin spread across his face.

"Y'know, maybe just being your customer isn't so bad."

[strgshazam]

Missing Out - Chapter I - I'm so glad I woke up today

While she's smoking, he leans down and starts pressing his lips against her neck. She turns her head away from him and back towards the party to give him more room to work.

That's when she sees Steve Harrington coming their way.

She puts a hand onto Billy's chest before whispering to him, "Sorry babe, fun police is here."

Just as Billy's pulling away to see what she's talking about, Steve makes his presence known. Loudly.

"Harper! The hell are you doing back here?" Though he doesn't say it, she can feel the added 'with him' at the end of that question.

︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦

a/n: tags and characters will be updated as the story moves along. there will be eventual smut. maybe. probably.

about: billy hargrove x ofc, slow burn strangers to lovers modern!au

︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦︶︶꒷꒦︶︶꒷︶︶꒦

Harper had heard about the infamous Billy Hargrove, sure. Her customers had mentioned the new guy in school, not to mention Steve never shut the fuck up about their rivalry. Of course she had heard about how hot he was, how much of an asshole he was, how great in bed he was. But she didn't expect him to be this attractive. Were these other rumors gross underestimations too?

She sat on a picnic table in the backyard of….someone's house party. To be honest, she didn't give a shit whose party it was. She was here to conduct a business. Maybe that's a bit too formal. She was here to sell drugs to teenagers. But it was how she kept her bills paid, so business it is. Cigarette in hand, she was sitting on top of the table with her feet on the bench. Along with the small black bag she had tucked between her feet on the bench, she was dressed in all black: her Docs, her jeans, and the lace bodysuit she had on that was better described as lingerie than clothing. This was entirely on purpose: the sexier she looked, the more easily she could sucker her customers into buying more than they were originally asking for. It was a fairly warm night, so the worn leather jacker she brought (also black) was laying on the table directly underneath her so as to provide some semblance of a cushion between her and the table. It wasn't working.

Despite her discomfort, she was having a great night - with sales, at least. She had gone through most of the weaker shit she brought along, leaving her with a bit of weed, some coke, and a fair amount of pills left. That's when she saw him: his tucked-in shirt almost completely unbuttoned, heavy boots, a gold necklace, and jeans that fit him almost too well. Plus it was painfully obvious that he had spent a decent amount of time making sure his hair looked perfectly coiffed. He's standing just outside the backdoor of the house with that asshole Steve used to hang around with. Suddenly, said asshole points directly at Harper, causing Billy and her to make direct eye contact. God he was pretty. She takes one more drag from her cigarette as he starts walking toward her. She stubs the butt out on the bottom of her boot and flicks it directly into the pool nearby.

"Hey sweetheart, haven't seen you around before," he smirks as he's closing in on the table. He sits down beside her and leans back on his hands.

She leans back with him, mimicking his posture, "Must not be looking very hard then, handsome."

"Well that can't be true. If there were someone as hot as you walking around Hawkins, I would've been the first to know."

"Is that so? Any girl who's above a seven needs to be on your radar, huh?" She quips back at him. He seems unphased.

"Please. You think I'd be caught dead with anyone less than an 8.5?" Okay, so he's absolutely full of himself, but at least he's quick.

"Can I help you with something, or did you just come over here to shower me in compliments? Cause I'll accept either, honestly."

He nodded his head back to where the asshole was standing, "Tommy over there told me you've got some party favors. I was in the market." That's the asshole's name. Tommy. She tells herself she's going to remember it this time, but she won't.

She grabs the small bag from between her feet and gives a sort of 'follow me' gesture to Billy. They get up from their seats and walk over to the side of the house where there's no crowd.

"What kind of party favors were you looking for, sweet thing?" She leans against the wall of the house and Billy stands directly in front of her. Almost too close.

"Just some weed. Maybe an eighth?" He takes a small step even closer to her as she unzips the bag she's carrying. She frowns, "I've only got a couple pre-rolls left. But I'll tell you what - I'll smoke one with you, no charge, and you can come by my place tomorrow to pick up the eighth."

He's now directly next to her, leaning his shoulder against the wall. He starts brushing some of her hair behind her shoulder and she can smell the mint and cigarettes on his breath. He's smiling something wicked, "Sounds perfect, doll."

Harper pulls one of the few joints she has in an Altoids can from her back and places it between her teeth before rezipping her bag and placing it over her shoulder. By this point, Billy is already pulling out a lighter to assist her. Once the end of the joint is lit, she takes a deep inhale and holds it in. She looks her smoking partner directly in the eyes while she exhales, following it up immediately with her second hit. Wordlessly, she passes the joint to him.

Harper is used to people flirting when it comes to their drugs. Trying to get a discount, usually. Sometimes it works, but not usually. Not to mention she fully anticipated Billy Hargrove being an enormous flirt even if drugs weren't involved. What she wasn't expecting was for Billy to take a hit before using his free hand to gently grab her face, pushing her lips into a pout. His lips just barely graze hers as he exhales the smoke directly into her mouth. She can't remember the last time she shotgunned with someone - and it's definitely never made her this flustered. Billy takes one more hit, this time exhaling away from the both of them, before passing the joint back to her. She's doing her best to remain unphased (at least visibly) while she takes her next hit. She thinks she's doing a pretty damn good job until Billy surprises her yet again. While she's smoking, he leans down and starts pressing his lips against her neck. She turns her head away from him and back towards the party to give him more room to work.

That's when she sees Steve Harrington coming their way.

She puts a hand onto Billy's chest before whispering to him, "Sorry babe, fun police is here."

Just as Billy's pulling away to see what she's talking about, Steve makes his presence known. Loudly.

"Harper! The hell are you doing back here?" Though he doesn't say it, she can feel the added 'with him' at the end of that question.

"It's called running a business, Steven. You should try it sometime," she quips as she rolls her eyes at him. She pulls the bag off her shoulder and grabs a pen out of it. Without a word, she grabs Billy's hand and begins writing something on his wrist.

"Here's my number. Text me tomorrow when you want to come by," she winks at him before walks toward Harrington. Billy can hear them arguing back and forth as they walk back into the house, but he can't hear what's being said.

He looks down at his wrist and adds the number into his phone before it gets smudged.