Pinball Wizard: People (Vance Hopper x Fem! Reader Chap. 3)
Hey guys, sorry this is a bit late, I just got on school holidays, and I just got back from a date with this guy I really like. (He has moved schools, so we have been trying to find a good time to hang out together for ages now, so this was really exciting.)
@Ianadelraystan (requested a tag, thanks so much love, it's really exciting to know people are actually looking forward to my upcoming chapters <3)
Edit: Not proof read, I was too lazy.
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Vance slung his bag down on the floor next to him, propped his feet up on the desk and rested his hands behind his head.
I felt Casey nudge me gently, I turned my head towards the girl, and her eyes twinkled with mischief. I could hear the teacher groan and turn around to lecture the boy. Vance seemed to know what was coming but didn't pay any mind to the teacher, just glanced out the window across the room.
"Mr Hopper, would you care to remove your feet from the desk, please?" The teacher stated, already looking fed up. Vance scoffed and raised his hand to the air, flipping the teacher off.
I almost let out a snort at such a bold and unexpected action, Casey was trying to hold in her laugher too but ended up making eye contact with me, which caused her to let out a loud laugh. The whole class turned to look at us, I couldn't help but laugh with her, we had now drawn the classes whole attention.
"Shut up." I elbowed her in the ribs as she covered her mouth with her hands, trying hard to cease her fit. I held my head down, laughing silently. The teacher coughed obnoxiously at the both of us. "Excuse me girls, care to explain what's so funny?"
I had to take deep breaths in order to keep myself from spiraling back into second laughing fit. "Um, well a lot of things, clowns, jokes, the sound of your voice." I listed sarcastically with an innocent look in my eye. Casey whacked my arm as she let out a loud cackle.
The teacher didn't say anything, just shook his head and turned back to the board. I felt a gaze on me and shifted my eyes to the blond boy sitting in front of me, just as he recognized that I caught him staring he furrowed his brows and swiftly looked away.
I smirked and shifted in my seat, waiting for Casey to come back down from her high.
----
The class continued with us laughing obnoxiously and Vance jabbing the occasional insult or mean comment at the teacher. I can safely say that my first class is probably going to be my favorite.
I was swapping my books from my locker when I heard the sound of yelling. I turned around to see Vance grip some poor kids collar and lift him into the air, I rushed over to Macey who was already at the scene.
"What's going on?" I asked, placing a hand on her shoulder to help peer over the rest of the crowd. "Some kid got pushed into pinball Vance Hopper, and now he's guuna pay." She explained, slightly tilting her head towards me.
"So now he's gunna bash the kid into a pulp?" I asked, my eyebrow raised at the immature scene in front of me. Macey nodded, she was acting as if this was normal, and it something didn't sit right with me about it.
I looked both ways down the hall for a teacher but there wasn't any sign of one. "How come no one is standing up for the kid?" I asked, my stomach churning as I watched the scene before me. "Because whoever picks a fight with Vance Hopper usually ends up in hospital." She said unfazed.
It was hard to watch some innocent kid having his head smashing into a wall and I really wanted to do something, but I also don't want to go to hospital and make a fool out of myself.
I sighed, contemplating my decisions, it made my chest hurt to imagine how the boy must be feeling, hearing his cries for mercy didn't help.
"Come visit me in hospital or possibly my death bed." I muttered quickly before pushing passed the rest of the crowd. I heard Macey call out to me and try and grab onto me, but I was already too far gone.
I stormed towards the two, clenching my fists as adrenaline pumped through my veins. "Hey!" I shouted aggressively; Vance stopped beating the kid momentarily as he glanced at me. I reached for Vance's shoulder, shoving him off the boy harshly. Vance stumbled and almost fell to the floor, his fists were clenched and covered with blood.
Before he could do anything, I ducked down to kneel on the floor, wedging my hands under the back of the boy's head and lifting him into a sitting position. The boy had tears pouring out of his eyes, but it was kind of hard to notice because it was mixed in with the blood.
"Tilt your head back for me." I said softly, the boy nervously glanced back to Vance who was staring at the both of us with steam coming out of his ears. "Don't worry about him, tilt your head back for me." I instructed gently. The boy did as I asked, I needed to stop the blood from pouring out of his nose.
I used my sleeve to try and dab the blood from under his nostrils, but it was pretty much useless. There was too much blood to get this kid fully cleaned up.
"Can you stand up?" I asked, he might have a concussion from the way his head was hitting the wall. He shrugged, his whimpers and cries made my stomach squirm. I held one of his hands as I helped him up.
A few other kids who must have been his friends came rushing over to me and slung their friends' arms over their shoulders as the helped him hobble to the nurse's office. Once they had him secure, I turned back to Vance who was breathing like a rabid dog with rage.
"Who the fuck do you think you are?" I spat bitterly as I slowly walked towards the boy. He has no right to treat others like that over such a small accident. He growled as he marched over to me, getting in my face. "Who the fuck do you think you are?" His teeth were clenched so hard it had to be hurting his jaw.
"I'm someone with a little humanity. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but you decided to bash that kid into a pulp for bumping into you, correct?" I asked, jabbing my pointer finger into his chest. He slapped my hand away, huffing and puffing wildly. He stayed silent for a moment, his eyes never leaving mine, glaring hard into my soul.
"You're lucky I don't hit girls." He knew he had nothing to excuse his behavior, so his only tactic was to change the subject. I scoffed, "Why, are you scared that they're better fighters than you? Or that they're too weak to fight back?" I tilted my head, getting closer to his face as I narrowed my eyes at him.
Once again, he stayed silent, finally, after a moment, he turned around and slammed his fist into the wall as hard as he could, grunting loudly as he did so. He spun back around to face me, ramming his shoulder into mine as he left, everyone who surrounded us parting to make room for him to leave.
I crossed my arms and shook my head as I watched him leave.
Everyone was silent after that, staring at me. I quickly got uncomfortable and yelled at them all to leave. "What is everyone looking at? Go away!" I flung my arms in the air and everyone quickly moved on.
----
The next few days I got even more attention from bystanders, people whispered as I walked by. Some people even avoided eye contact or kept their head low as they walked past me in the halls.
I kind of regret picking a fight with Vance, only because everyone looks at me as if they're scared or they're pointing me out to some of their friends.
The only reason I don't fully regret it, was because the sound of the boys screams and cries for mercy made my chest tighten and my stomach churn. I can't even begin to understand how Vance could do something like that to someone and then when I tell him to stop, go storming off like a toddler and act as if he wasn't in the wrong.
I guess I'll never understand, I've made a few friends in the last few days, so I've asked them and a few other about the boy. They all say the same thing, they tell me that he is bad news, or that he has always been the way he is.
He has always picked fights and had a bad temper. It makes me wonder how badly he must be hurting to constantly be angry enough to break people's bones. Maybe he's been doing it for so long, that it's just routine or the natural thing to do for him.
I was shaken from my thoughts when the bell rang for the end of school. I eagerly stuffed my books and pencil case in my bag and pretty much bee-lined straight for my locker. I had to duck and weave through people charging through the halls, it wasn't that hard, I've gotten pretty good at it.
I closed my locker with a slam, wanting nothing more than to be in my pajamas at home, binging some cheesy romance films we have on tape. Or I could watch some lame horror movie, they're always fun to laugh at and criticize. Either way I know I want to be home, in pajamas and watching something while eating popcorn.
Just as I was walking away, I heard a familiar group of people call my name. I whipped around, a tired smile on my face as I looked between the girls who were all marching towards me.
"Hey, we were wondering if you were free to have a sleepover this afternoon, considering it's Friday and all." Brianna asked. I thought for a moment, maybe binging a whole bunch of movies with other people could be fun, I just have to ask my mom.
"Yeah sure, we could have it at my house if you guys haven't picked a house already, I just have to ask my mom." The girls all smiled and nodded, looking between each other excitedly. "Sure, just give me a call and I'll pass the message along." Macey said with a toothy grin. I nodded, Macey and I had exchanged phone numbers with each other in English. Bidding my goodbye's, I sighed and sluggishly walking out of the school grounds.
I kicked a pebble as I was walking along the fence of the school when a loud engine noise came from behind me. I turned my head to see a blue ford mustang screeching down the road, heading straight passed me. I made sure to get a peek at the owner to find Vance, glaring daggers through my skull and a scowl on his face as he drove passed.
I scoffed and shook my head, not understanding the point of all that commotion in the slightest.
----
I continued home, humming a tune to a song as I walked. After what felt like an eternity of walking home in the hot Denver sun, I finally reached my room. Pulling out a pair of pink silk pajamas, I turned my record player on, finding the black disk with the right sort of tunes.
I stuffed my feet into my slippers and jumped my way downstairs, feeling a lot better now that I'm back home and in the air con. I turned on the stove and rummaged around for a popcorn packet.
When the popping had ceased, I took the pot off the heat, stirring around the little bits stuck at the bottom. I had just gone upstairs to bring my blanket downstairs when I heard the front door open, my mom calling out through the house.
"Hello my darling!" She hollered. "Hi mom." I called back, snatching my blanket off my bed and hauling it downstairs. "Oh, what movies do you plan on binging now?" She scoffed, I rolled my eyes and continued my way to the couch.
"It's a tie between cheesy romance or lame horror series." I explained, neatly piling my blanket next to some pillows.
"Ooo, that's a tough choice." She admitted, I nodded franticly. "I was thinking about it the whole way home, I just couldn't make up my mind." My mom tapper her chin thoughtfully. "I think some good horror would be nice, it's always fun to have a good scare."
I pulled a cautious face. "Maybe... Oh! I could binge a whole bunch of horror movies with friends, they wanted to come over anyway." My mother smiled. "Sure, do you have their phone numbers?" I nodded. "Good, give them a call and they can come over."
I grinned and threw myself into my mothers' arms. "Thank you." I beamed. My mother kissed my head just before I rushed upstairs to the phone in my room.
I dialed Macey’s number; she picked up within the first three rings which I wasn’t expecting. “Hello Macey speaking.” Her voice was flat, as if she was expecting someone like her parents or siblings.
“Hey girl, my mom said it’s fine for you guys to come over.” I explained, wrapping the cord around my fingers. “Oh hey, okay great. I’ll give the message to Brianna, and she’ll give it to someone else and it’ll go on like that.” Macey explained. “Oh okay, you guys can come over at around six, I should have everything set up for a movie marathon, it’s going to be great.” I said, trying not to sound as giddy as I was.
“Oh my gosh, that will be so much fun!” She squealed. “What movies are we watching?” “I was thinking some horror movies, and after that if everyone’s up to it, we can stay up and talk about random shit.” I bit my lip to stop myself from jumping up and down on the spot, I was just a little too excited for this.
“That is a must! And horror movies sound good to me, what’s your address?” I gave the girl my address and reminded her of the time everyone should get here. She said she would pass the message on, and I thanked her before we both hung up.
I had gathered around six blankets as well as two pillows for each of us. Hopefully that should make everyone comfortable, if not well then, they aren’t human because my couch looks like my dream land right now.
I stood back for a moment, trying to think of anything else we might need. I almost face palmed when the idea came to me, snacks. We need snacks, it was around three forty, so I still have heaps of time before the grab and go closes at six. I raced upstairs to get changed, pulling on some very short denim shorts and a tight tank top with a pair of white flats, I looked myself over in the mirror, I looked plain and kind of skimpy, but I wasn’t dressing to impress anyone, so I decided it would be fine.
“Mom, I’m heading to the grab and go for snacks, I’ll be back soon!” I called, peaking my head out from my room and towards my mom’s room. I heard my mom call out in approval, so I snatched some money from my purse and began my journey to the grab and go.
The walk was nice, much better now that I wasn’t in my jeans and converse. The breeze made the hairs on my arm prickle and goosebumps erupt over the exposed skin, the good thing about Denver, is that it has a cool, crisp breeze, even in the hottest time of the year.
Just like all the previous times I’ve walked to the grab and go, I was pretty much on auto piolet and daydreamed the whole time I’ve been. The store wasn’t as busy as I expected it to be for a Friday afternoon, maybe people come at specific times, either way it just means I have less people to worry about.
I entered the store and headed straight for the cady section, picking out a whole lot of MnM’s, around fifteen packets of pop rocks, some jellybeans, some ring pops, and a few others. I decided it would be best to get some soda too, we have some at home, but I figured a variety of cans would be better.
I walked out towards the big fridges of soda and almost immediately regretted it, just as I turned the corner I noticed Vance at his usual spot in the store, at the pinball machine. His eyes trailed me as I opened the big glass doors, I tried hard to pretend not to notice but my eyes eventually flickered to meet his, I sheepishly looked away.
I am sure he hates my guts now which is something I don’t want, I know he can easily fuck me up beyond repair, so maybe making friends with him or at least some middle ground will help to not have my teeth knocked in. I know he said he didn’t hit girls, but I know many boys who have said that but a few days later beat me senseless.
I sighed and picked out a few drinks, stuffing them into the bag I had brought with me. I sighed and picked out a few drinks, stuffing them into the bag I had brought with me. I gave a small smile as he looked towards me again, I slowly made my way over to him, leaning gently against the pinball machine.
“Hey.” I started, not meeting his eyes, instead focusing on the flashing lights in front of me as I looked down at the see-through plastic. “What?” He snapped, sliding a sliver coin into the slot. “I just wanted to say that I didn’t mean to make enemies the other day, I just wanted you to know that I only did what I did bec-“ I was cut off by his harsh voice. “Because you want to be a hero? You want to help the people that can’t help themselves? Is that it?” He spat; teeth clenched.
I scoffed and rolled my eyes. “Okay, if anyone knows anything about being beaten senseless for no damn good reason its me. So when you see someone being treated just the same as you were, it hurts, and you remember the pain of people watching but no one doing anything, it hurts more than any bruise or broken bone that I’ve had. The fact that people can see what’s going on and can stop it but don’t, leaves you falling in a deep pit of despair, knowing that you aren’t worth saving or standing up for. I’m not some wanna be hero, I’m sympathetic.” I explained firmly.
He went quiet for a moment and just looked at the pinball track in front of him. “I don’t want to make enemies, if you don’t want to be friends, that’s fine, but I don’t want to start some stupid war. And don’t expect me not to stand up for some other kid I catch you beating up, also, don’t pull that ‘I don’t hit girls shit,’ because the last time someone told me that, I ended up with a black eye and a scare across my rib cage.” I smirked, giving a gentle punch to his shoulder.
He lightly licked his lips and shook his head just hard enough to make his curly hair bounce on his shoulders. “Come on, I need some form of confirmation to know that I’m not next on your hit-list.” I said gently, not watching to push him to much in case he blows up or something.
“Fine, if you give me some money for pinball.” I threw his hands up and finally turned to look at me. I smirked. “Easy, give me one second, I’ll just go pay for my stuff, and I’ll give you the change.” He nodded at me hurriedly, wanting almost nothing more than to get back to him precious game.
I walked over to the cashier, pulling my bag onto the counter and unzipping it, pulling out all my items before showing my empty bag in case she thought I was stealing. She gave me around four dollars fifty in change, so I asked to get it in coins.
She gave me a strange look but agreed to my request, counting up the amount in little piles of silver coins. I thanked her, swiftly stuffing the goods into my bag once again and scooping the coins into my hands.
I walked back over to Vance who was tapping his foot impatiently, it made me chuckle. “My god, calm down. You’ll be able to return to your precious game in a minute!” I exclaimed, piling the cash onto the machine, scooping up the remaining coins that almost slipped off.
“Here, that’s four dollars fifty in coins. Is that enough?” I asked, stepping back and going quirt for a moment. He slapped his palms against the side of his legs and letting out a breath. “Yeah, that’s plenty.” He said vaguely. “Sorry, I figured the money would be better in coins because you can actually use them on the machine.” I pointed briefly to the slot.
He hummed, swiftly turning to me ever so slightly before turning back to the stack in front of us. “Thanks, that was smart.” He mumbled the last part so quickly I almost didn’t understand what he was saying. I turned to him and smiled. “So, this is our peace offering, I give you money and you don’t kill me when I see you killing some kid?” I smirked, he rolled his eyes, the tiniest smile on his pretty plump lips.
“Sure.” He shook his head again started scooping the money into the pockets of his denim jacket. I inhaled sharply. “Okay, well I better go, I have a sleepover to prepare. I’ll see you in science, or at the pinball machine again.”
He scoffed and bit the inside of his cheek briefly. “Yeah sure, whatever.” He cracked his neck and slotted another coin into its place in the machine.
I smiled, walking off in the direction of the exit and feeling satisfied at my achievements.
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