Chapter Text
Billy’s cast had come off two weeks ago. His wrist was healed for the most part; he was only trying to regain his full mobility back now. It locked up every once in a while.
Basketball practice had been going well. He still attended and played while his wrist was broken because that’s just how Billy was. He was the best player on the team, surprisingly, and everybody knew it. It would be cutting it close to play a game with him benched.
It was a Thursday which meant Billy was at the high school late at night. He liked to workout after basketball practice while his adrenaline was still high and ever since Neil got arrested, he was actually able to. He didn’t push himself too hard; just lifted weights, mostly. Their first game was on Friday and Billy wanted to improve his strength as much as he could before then. Given he only had one day left, but he had been working out every Tuesday and Thursday for the past four weeks. He had gotten stronger, that much was for sure.
It was nearing 9:30pm when Billy had finally finished showering and packed his things up to leave. He dumped his belongings into his backpack, then grabbed his car keys and walked out of the locker room. It was always somewhat eerie walking through the school hallways at night alone. They held an uncomfortable feeling that never failed to put him on edge. Billy walked out the set of double doors and headed towards the parking lot where his camaro was parked. He scuffed when his car came into view because there was another car parked in the space directly next to him. The whole damn parking lot was empty yet they chose to park right there . Billy was ready to give them a piece of his mind as he approached the cars. However, when he finally walked up in between the cars and to his driver's side door, he found their driver's seat empty. He shook his head irritated.
He was in the process of unlocking his car when he heard footsteps behind him. He started to turn around but was immediately caught off guard when a pair of hands pulled something over his head. He punched blindly, fight or flight kicking in, until another pair of arms wrapped around his torso, keeping his arms by his sides.
Billy kicked and screamed as he was dragged backwards. Yet another person was grabbing his legs and hauling him into a car. The trunk of a car , his brain supplied helplessly. The trunk was closed harshly and Billy felt the car’s engine rumble to life. He pulled the bag off of his head, but it did not change the fact that he could not see anything. The trunk was pitch black.
The realization of what was happening started to set in and his breath picked up. No no no no no this can’t be happening. It wasn’t something that he could just walk away from. This wasn’t Neil beating him, or him picking a fight with his classmate. No, this was a real threat. These people might kill me. Billy thought as he continued to hyperventilate.
The ride was extremely bumpy; there was no way they were driving on pavement. They had to be driving over dirt. They’re gonna kill me and dump me out in the woods. A few tears slipped from Billy’s eyes without his consent. He was absolutely terrified.
Okay, okay. When they open the trunk I need to kick them; my legs are stronger than my arms. It’s okay. I can do this. I can do this.
However the more Billy thought about what he was about to have to do, the more his mind tried to flee into his headspace. He couldn’t do this. He was too afraid; he needed somebody else to come fix this problem for him.
Billy wiped his eyes and he attempted to even his breathing. He tried to focus but he could feel himself slipping and there was nothing he could do to stop it. He was so scared. He was about to die. For a moment Billy wondered if your life could flash before your eyes that soon before death, because all he could see was Max. He saw Max smiling and laughing, and tried not to sob over that fact that he was never going to see her again.
Billy dropped hard.
The tears had stopped but he was hardly breathing. He had never been so afraid before in his life. He didn’t know where he was, or what was happening. He needed Max desperately.
The car stopped. Billy heard voices outside but all he could do was lay there completely frozen and petrified. The voices were laughing.
The trunk opened and Billy was immediately blinded by a flashlight shining in his eyes. Two sets his arms grabbed him again and pulled him out of the trunk. The bag was pulled over his head too.
“Alright, Hargrove! Now move!”
Hands pushed on his back and dragged him forward. The slight wind and leaves crunching beneath their feet told him that they were outside. He was so scared. They walked for a few minutes and then he was shoved down to the ground. The bag was pulled off of his head too.
And he was surrounded.
Six beasts stood around him, circling him. They had big teeth and scary eyes and Billy had never been so afraid in his life. They are gonna eat me!
He was too Little to notice that the beasts were wearing the letterman jackets of the opposing team for Friday's game. And how the big scary teeth were really made out of cheap plastic.
Billy’s face crumbled and he cried.
The beasts immediately began to laugh at him. “Jesus christ, Hargrove! You’re a fucking pussy!”
Billy cried louder. He was so afraid.
One of the beasts suddenly stood very still. It slowly pulled its face off to reveal a person; a teenager. He stared at Billy for a moment.
Billy desperately held his arms out towards the guy, Pick me up! Pick me up! I’m so scared! Save me from these monsters! Please!
The guy stared at him for half a second longer, then turned to the monster standing beside him and shoved his chest hard. “He’s a fucking Little. You’re gonna get us fucking arrested!”
All of the masks slowly came off after that and Billy realized he was actually surrounded by high school guys. They may have been assholes, but even they weren’t going to stand there and laugh at a crying Little — that was just something you didn’t do.
They were less scary once their masks came off, but Billy still didn’t know who any of them were. He was still so afraid.
“Well how the hell was I supposed to know he’s a Little?!”
“Jesus christ, man!”
Billy had not stopped crying. He was still loudly sobbing in the middle of the woods surrounded by six stupid high school guys.
Someone came up next to him and awkwardly put their hand on his shoulder. Billy continued to cry.
The two guys were still yelling at each other.
“Well what the hell are we supposed to do with him now?! We can’t just leave him here!”
A third voice spoke up, “We need to take him home.”
“I don’t know where he fucking lives, dumbass!”
“Well what are we supposed to fucking do?!”
The guy beside Billy started rubbing his back, but it did little to calm him down. It was obvious that none of them were Caregivers, and Billy was practically inconsolable by that point. Billy stuck his fingers into his mouth and the dirt from the ground stuck to his tongue. They looked at him slightly grossed out, but none of them stopped him or told him to take his hand out of his mouth.
“This is all your fault!” They were still at it; the first guy to notice Billy was Little walked over and harshly jabbed his finger into the other guy’s chest.
“My fault?!”
“Yes! This was your fucking idea and look what happened!”
The first guy took a few steps towards Billy and pointed at him, “Look at him! What the fuck are we supposed to do with him?!”
The other guy, who was obviously the ringleader to the whole situation, held his head in his hands. Quietly he spoke, “I don’t know.”
The guy rubbing Billy’s back spoke from beside him, “We could drop him off at the police station. They won’t know it was us. We can literally kick him out of the car and drive off.”
The ringleader shook his head, “They’ve got us on camera at the school. That will just make it worse. . .Maybe if we go in and explain it won’t be as bad.”
It was completely silent aside from Billy’s crying.
The first guy loudly sighed, “We have to. Anything else will get us arrested.”
. . .
They all ended up back in the car as they drove towards town. Billy didn’t have to ride in that trunk this time. The car only seated five, but all seven of them managed to squeeze in.
Billy was sitting on one of their laps in the backseat, despite the fact that he was more muscular and heavy than most of them. There was no way in hell he was going to let anyone sit on his lap in the state he was in.
“Where the hell is the police station even at?” the driver asked. Shotgun responded, “Just keep driving; it's a little farther west.”
Billy sucked on his fingers the entirety of the ride. The suckling noise was kind of irritating to listen to, but they were just relieved he was done with the loud sobbing. Tears continued to run down his cheeks, but at least he was quiet.
“Oh shit! FUCK!”
“What?! What the hell is your problem?”
“He’s fucking pissing on me!”
The guys in the front of the car laughed. “Well, that’s what you get for helping us fucking kidnap him.”
They pulled up in front of the police station a few minutes after that. All seven of them got out of the car. Both Billy, and the guy he was sitting on, had wet pants. That guy looked pissed. The ringleader grabbed Billy’s arm, “Let’s go, Hargrove.” He dragged Billy into the building.
They walked up to the front desk. A woman who looked entirely too tired to be working looked up. “Can I help you?”
The ringleader awkwardly smiled at her, “Hi, uh we uh play Hawkins high school tomorrow for a basketball game, so we uh, like because it’s a tradition, we wanted to prank Hargrove, but we um we didn’t know he’s a Little and he uh- he dropped. And we don’t know where he lives to take him home.”
She looked at them with a mix between irritated, disappointed, and angry when she finally spotted Billy. Scared, sad, crying, Little Billy. She yelled over her shoulder but did not break eye contact, “Phil!”
An officer walked up to them and gave a tight lipped smile.
“These boys decided to prank Billy and he dropped into headspace.”
Callahan looked at each of them with a disappointed expression. Hopper told the entire station to keep a close eye on Billy especially after they arrested his father.
“You better call Hopper.” Then he turned back to the guys, “And none of you are leaving until he gets here.” They all nodded their heads quickly.
Callahan gently led Billy farther down the hall, leaving everyone else at the front desk. He led him up to Mary’s desk; she was a Caregiver. “Some kids scared him and he dropped. Can you help him get cleaned up?” She looked up at Billy sadly, “Of course. Poor baby.”
Mary led Billy around the corner to the bathroom and grabbed him some clean clothes. She guided him into the bathroom with her and closed the door behind them. Billy was visibly dirty. He had dirt on his clothes, hands, and face from sitting on the ground in the middle of the woods.
Shy griminced when Billy’s dirty hands made their way into his mouth. “Okay, sweetheart. Let’s wash your hands. It’s okay.”
She led Billy over to the sink and helped him scrub all of the dirt off his hands. “Okay, let’s get you into some dry clothes.”
She helped him into a diaper and Hawkins PD sweatpants and t-shirt, just like last time. Then, she wet some paper towels and cleaned off his face; the dirt and the tears. “There we go.”
Mary put her hands on Billy’s shoulders and smiled, “Do you want to lie down? I can set you up on the couch in Hopper’s office while we wait for him.” Billy nodded, but he stuck his bottom lip out and his chin wobbled. She gently ran a hand over his face, then led him down the hallway to Hopper’s office and guided him over to the couch. Billy climbed onto the couch and stuck his fingers in his mouth, again trying to soothe himself. “Let me go see if I can find you a blanket. I’ll be right back.”
She left the room and Billy closed his eyes for a moment, while he cried. He was tired and upset, and he was still scared. Mary walked back into the room with a worn blanket and a pacifier, “Look what I found you!” Billy immediately did grabby hands for the pacifier. She handed it to him, then covered him with the blanket. “You try and get some sleep. Hopper’s going to be here soon. And if you need anything I’m just outside, okay?” She smiled at him, then briefly rubbed his shoulder and closed the door behind her. Billy looked around the room, his face fell, and he cried.
. . .
“Okay, kid. Did you put the tape in?” Hopper sat down in his chair with a bowl of popcorn. El nodded. The opening scene of ET rolled across the screen. It was the fifth time they watched it that month. It was El’s favorite movie.
The phone across the room started to ring. El looked over at him. He smiled, “Ignore it. Tonight is our movie night. Work can wait.” El smiled back at him.
They continued watching the opening of the movie until the phone rang for a second time. El glanced over at him nervously. Hopper sighed, “Let me just see who it is. . .” He slowly got up and walked over to the phone.
“Yeah?”
He paused. “What do you mean they pranked him?”
“Hang on- yeah, yeah, of course. Give me like twenty minutes. Alright.” He hung up the phone.
El looked at him sadly, “You have to leave?”
Hopper sighed, “Kid, I’m sorry. It’s an emergency. I have to.”
“Billy?”
“Yeah, it’s Billy. Some kids played a mean trick on him. I have to go pick him up.”
“Okay.”
“El, I’m sorry. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
. . .
Hopper walked through the front doors of the police department exactly eighteen minutes later. He was met with six boys who looked very nervous and very guilty. He put his hands in his pockets. “Well which one of you’s gonna tell me what happened?”
Nobody said a word and Hopper raised his eyebrows.
“We- We play Hawkins tomorrow night at the basketball game. And uh, we have a tradition to prank the- the best player on the team.”
Hopper looked at them expectantly, “I already know that. What. did. you. do?”
The kid swallowed hard, “We scared him. We had masks and we scared him. We didn’t know he’s a Little!”
Hopper pinched the bridge of his nose, “You. scared. Him.”
They all nodded.
“What else?”
“Nothing, sir. Nothing!”
Hopper sat down on the corner of the front desk and put a cigarette between his lips. “Alright. Here’s what’s gonna happen. You’re all gonna write down your name, address, and phone number. I’m gonna call your parents in the morning. And don’t even think about fudging your information because I will find you! And then , I’m going to ask Billy what happened. So . . . Is there anything else you want to tell me?”
They all stared at Hopper with wide eyes. Not a single person spoke. Until, one of the quiet kids yelled,
“We pushed him in the car!” The guys sitting on either side of him punched his arms.
Hopper raised another eyebrow.
“The trunk! We pushed him in the trunk of the car!”
Hopper angrily put his cigarette out, “Jesus fucking Christ!”
Hopper headed straight for his office where he knew Billy was. He walked into the room to find Billy lying on his couch, quietly crying. He immediately walked over to Billy and softly ran a hand over his hair.
Billy looked up at Hopper and cried harder. He stuck his arms out towards him desperately. Pick me up, hold me. I need you. Hopper sat down, pulled Billy into his arms and held him tightly. He ran one hand over the back of Billy’s head and kept his other comfortingly on his back. “I’ve got you. It’s okay, I’ve got you.” Billy cried loudly.
Hopper held him tighter in the bear hug they were embraced in. He whispered, “It’s okay, Billy. I’ve got you, I’ve got you.”
They had to have stayed like that for at least twenty minutes. Hopper slowly rocked him, and kept a hand protectively on the back of Billy’s head.
He didn’t stop even after Billy calmed down. He continued to slowly rock him and hold him tightly. Providing him with the comfort he knew he was neglected his whole life.
Hopper felt something dripping in his shoulder. He didn’t know if it was tears, snot, or drool, and frankly he didn’t care. He continued to slowly rock Billy.
By the half hour mark, it became obvious that Billy wasn’t going to move. So, Hopper slowly pulled Billy away from him. The kid had tear stains on his face, red eyes, and snot pooled beneath his nose. Hopper smiled sadly at him.
Hopper reached for the tissues on his desk and grabbed two. Gently, he wiped the snot off of Billy’s face. He pulled the pacifier out of his mouth, and shushed him when he whined, “You can have it right back. I promise. I’m just cleaning you up.”
Once he finished cleaning his face, Hopper pressed the pacifier back to Billy’s lips. He smoothed Billy’s hair back, away from his face and gently smiled at him.
. . .
Twenty minutes later, Hopper held Billy’s hand as he led him up the front steps to the cabin. He paused and did his secret knock on the door. When he heard the lock click, he pushed it open by the handle.
Billy tensed up beside him when El came into view.
Hopper placed his hand on Billy’s back, “Billy, this is my daughter, El.” Billy looked at her nervously, so Hopper added, “El is friends with Max.” Billy’s head shot towards Hopper at the mention of his sister.
“Max?”
“Yeah, kid. Max and El are friends.”
“Hi. Billy.” El took a step towards them. Billy stepped closer to Hopper. El did not really look scary, but he had also essentially just been kidnapped so he wasn’t taking any chances.
Hopper wrapped an arm around Billy’s shoulders. He set down the bag he was holding, filled with clean diapers he took from the station. He squeezed his arm around Billy, “Are you hungry?” Billy looked at him nervously, as if he would be in trouble for saying yes. Hopper put on a show of rubbing his own stomach, “I sure am hungry. El, are you hungry?” She looked at him quizatively. They ate dinner before he left.
“Come on, eggos for everyone; like an early breakfast.”
Hopper led them all into the kitchen, and got Billy situated at the table. El took a seat beside him. He stuck his fingers into his mouth and El watched him curiously. She had never been around a Little before. Brenner, a man essentially stealing children to turn them into weapons, believe it or not, viewed Littles as a waste of resources. So, that in combination with the fact that she had only lived with Hopper for one short year, she never had the chance to meet a Little. Hopper explained classifications to her one night during dinner. She had seen something on the tv and did not understand. She still did not quite understand as she watched Billy suck on his fingers beside her.
“Billy. Is. Little.”
Hopper glanced at her over his shoulder, “Yeah, Billy’s Little. Billy’s a young Little.”
El slightly nodded, processing the new information.
Hopper walked over to the table with three plates of Eggo waffles. He set one plate in front of El, and the other two in front of his chair. Then, he set the syrup and forks on the table and sat down. El covered her plate in syrup while Hopper quickly cut up Billy’s waffles. He drizzled some syrup on top, then placed the plate in front of Billy.
Billy sat quietly, like he was not really sure what to do. Hopper picked up Billy’s fork and poked it through one of the pieces. He held the fork out for Billy, “Here you go, kid.” Billy hesitantly took the fork from him, then ate the bite. He paused again and nervously glanced at Hopper. Hopper gave him a reassuring smile, “Go ahead, Billy. You can have as much as you want.” Billy gave a small smile in return, then scooped up another bite. As he brought it up to his mouth, it rolled off his fork and into his lap, leaving a trail of syrup down his shirt. Billy looked up at Hopper with tears in his eyes.
“No, no, it’s okay. It’s okay. We can clean it up.”
Billy’s chin wobbled and more tears filled his eyes. Hopper got up and stood next to Billy; he held Billy’s head against his body comfortingly. Billy’s reaction told Hopper that Neil without a doubt beat him before for dropping food. That bastard. He ran his hand over Billy’s hair.
“Billy. Is. sad?”
Hopper looked at her sympathetically, “He’s scared.”
“Why. is. Billy. scared?”
Hopper knelt down next to Billy and cupped his face, then brushed his tears away, “You’re not in trouble. Nobody is mad at you, okay?” Billy’s chin continued to wobble, but he nodded his head.
“. . .Bad man?”
Hopper turned around to look at his daughter, “. . .Yeah, kid; bad man.”
. . .
After they ate, they all sat down to watch the movie. Hopper quickly learned how clingy Billy was. At first he tried to sit in his chair, but after Billy tried to climb into it with him, then cried when he said they’d break it, they ended up on the couch.
Billy laid his head down on Hopper's lap and closed his eyes like he usually did with Max. Hopper ran his hand over Billy’s hair the way he learned to do so, as Billy dozed off. Quiet suckling of his pacifier echoed thoughout the room. El watched the pair of them with curiosity. She was still trying to put all of the pieces together involving Littles. Hopper caught her eyes. She held the eye contact.
“. . .Billy’s papa. is the bad man.” It was not a question the way she phrased it.
“Yeah,” Hopper said sadly. El nodded like she finally had all the pieces together.
“Billy. Is Little.” Hopper sighed. She was smarter than she let on.
“Yeah, kid. Some people don’t like Littles. Just like how some people don’t like gay people; remember when we talked about that?” El nodded her head. She was confused about some of the things she saw in Will’s head when she piggybacked his mind, and she asked Hopper. It prompted a long and meaningful discussion about different peoples views and what was wrong and what was right; it lasted the entire night. “Well, Billy’s dad doesn’t like Littles. He didn’t let Billy be Little and that hurt him. He hurt him a lot.”
El nodded again. “Billy’s dad. is gone?”
“Yeah, he’s gone.”
“Billy is better. now.” She did not phrase it like a question. She turned back to the movie.
When it hit 11:00pm Hopper gently woke Billy up, “Hey, kid. It’s time to go to bed.” Billy looked up at him all confused and sleepy, pacifier and all. Hopper smiled at him, “Come on, let's go to bed.” Hopper stood up and helped Billy do the same, then carefully guided him towards the guest room. He helped him get changed then tucked him under the covers. “Goodnight, Billy.”
“You stay? P’ease?”
“Uh, yeah, sure. I’ll stay. Close your eyes, okay?” Hopper took a seat at the small desk, and dimmed the lights. Billy tossed and turned for a while, but eventually he laid still. Hopper waited for Billy’s breathing to even out, then quietly left the room.
. . .
Jim got up at 6:00am to get ready for work, nauseatingly tired. He ate a bowl of cereal then got dressed. He quietly opened the door to the guest room and peered inside. Billy was still asleep, bundled up in the blankets on the bed. He quietly closed the door, then walked into the kitchen and picked up the phone. He dialed the Byers phone number and listened to the dial tone. Over the past few months he had gotten much closer with Joyce. They were now able to bond over being parents, the upside down, and all of the kids they somewhat now felt responsible for. They had become very close friends. So, he felt okay with asking her to come over and watch Billy while he was at work.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Joyce! It’s Hopper.”
“Hopper? Why are you calling so early? Did something happen? Is El okay?”
“Everything’s fine. I’m calling to ask a favor; are you working today?”
“Yeah, I have a shift at Melvald’s today. I go in at 9:00am.”
Hopper cursed under his breath. Joyce was his first choice. Not only is she a Caregiver, but she is a mother before anything else.
“Okay, nevermind. I’ll-”
“Well what do you need?”
“No, it’s okay. I’ve got it handled.”
“Jim.”
“No, really. Joyce, it’s fine. I promise.”
“Well, okay. But call the store if you do need anything!”
“I will. Thanks. Bye.”
Hopper hung up the phone, then picked it back up. He would have preferred for Joyce to come over, but at least he had a few backups lined up. Besides, his second choice in Caregiver also happened to be Hawkin’s best babysitter.