TELL YOUR BOYFRIEND I SAID HI !

☀︎

ALEX, JONATHAN AND NANCY HAD ALL SHARED THEIR FIRST CLASS TOGETHER. They had all left together as they normally did, all trying to squeeze their way out the doorway at the same time. Tina had been waiting outside of their class, a stack full of orange Halloween invitations. Her eyes had travelled right over Jonathan and Alex as she passed one straight to Nancy.

Nancy had came to a pause as she quickly scanned over the sheet. A party sounded perfect to clear their minds and spend Halloween together. Turning back to Tina, she politely asked for two more before coming back to their sides. Excitement bubbled in her as she thrust the invitation right into each of their chests. "You two are coming to this."

Both Alex and Jonathan had glanced over the invite before quickly meeting one another's eyes and biting back their laughter. This was not something that they were at all interested in. Handing back over the paper to Nancy, Alex had shook her head, "No thanks, Nance."

"Oh, no. At least give it a chance," Nancy groaned in response. Clinging onto Alex's arm, she held a pleading look in her eyes until Alex had gave in with a laugh and took the paper back from her.

"Come and get sheet faced," Jonathan read aloud with a laugh. "No, I'm not going to this either."

"I can't let you sit all alone on Halloween. That's just not acceptable," Nancy stated, shoving her flier into her binder. She had been determined to be persistent on the matter. These were her friends and she had wanted to spend Halloween with them, no matter what anyone else had thought.

"Well, you can relax. I'm not gonna be alone. I'm going to be with Alex and taking the boys trick or treating." Jonathan looked to Alex for help but she didn't think there was anything they could say to get Nancy to stop. There was a determination in her eyes and even if they had said no, there was a chance that she would be at Jonathan's house demanding that they go.

"You're gonna be home by eight, you two will go back to Jonathans, listening to the Talking Heads or watching a movie, eating Mike and Wills candy."

"Mike? You mean Dustin?" Alex asked.

"No. I mean Mike. He has a huge crush on you," Nancy smiled devilishly. Alex thought for a minute but shook her head in response, "No way. I mean, he already offered to give me some since Dustin won't share but that's because he's like my little brother."

"Whatever, I think it sounds like a nice night," Jonathan said, diverting the conversation back to Halloween night. Spending the night in the comfort of his own home and being kept company by his best friend had sounded more than enough.

"Both of you just need to come," Nancy said, stopping at her locker, "I mean, who knows, you two might even meet someone." Nancy held her silence for a moment as they continued on down the hall. A smile had came to her lips as she looked towards the two in a playful manner. "Or realize all along you like the person you hang out with daily." She raised an eyebrow at the two, hinting that maybe they would start to like each other. It seemed reasonable enough for her and had felt like a perfect distraction to take her mind of Jonathan.

Instantly, Jonathan and Alex had met one another's eyes. They were perfectly similar, but they had known that there was never going to be a romantic connection. Quickly, the two had looked back to Nancy who had patiently waited for their response.

Alex began to open her mouth to protest against Nancy's thoughts as they came to her locker, but a distraction had fallen before them. Behind Nancy, Steve had crept up, picking her up as she let out a shriek of laughter. As he placed her down, he leaned her against the lockers to meet his lips against hers.

Jonathan and Alex had raised their brows up towards one another, not sure they could find their place in this situation. Jonathan had taken it into his own hands to grab Alex by her arm to guide her down the halls to their next class.

"That was gross," Alex said with a frown. Steve had shown up after her first class, but it had not been for her after all. The two continued walking down the hallway, not bothering to look back at the other two. They didn't need to admit it out loud to know how much it had hurt to see them with each other.

"Tell me about it," he grumbled, releasing her arm. "After school I can still give you a ride but I gotta talk to a teacher first."

Alex nodded in understanding. Waiting for Jonathan had never been a problem. "Thanks. I'll meet you at your car. I'll just hang out around here until you're done," she looked to him for confirmation, earning a single nod from him. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, "As cheesy as it is, we are bonded," Jonathan grinned as he held up his hand with the scar. Alex rolled her eyes sarcastically as she smacked his hand down.

They were bonded. A bond that would throw them into each other's arms when they had spent time apart fearing for the other's safety. This bond would tear them up inside if they had ever lost one another.

『••☀︎••』

AFTER SCHOOL, ALEX KNEW TO WAIT FOR JONATHAN. She had instantly headed for the side of the school, far from where teachers had bothered to look. Digging into her jacket pocket, she had pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Flicking it on, she watched the flame dance around before her as she thought of the bit of heat that had radiated off the small flame. She felt a sense of distain as she had looked it over and she couldn't understand why but her stomach had twisted and that was enough.

The new kid at Hawkins High School had found himself rounding the corner to the side of the school. He had hoped for a moment of peace with no watchful eyes on him. Typically he had basked in the attention of those around him, but he hated Hawkins. He came to a pause when he had seen that someone had the same idea as him.

"Do you even know how to light a cigarette?" His question had been loud enough to startle her out of her thoughts. Letting the flame disappear, Alex sat up straighter as she ignored his comment. Taking one out of the pack for herself, she lit it just as he made his way over. Without bothering to look up to who it had been, she held out the pack up to him.

He was hesitant for a moment. Most of the girls at Hawkins had been tripping over themselves for him, or at least that's how he had viewed it, and Alex had been lost in her own thoughts to even pay him much attention. In the end, he reached out and took the pack from her, soon followed by a lighter.

Placing a cigarette between his lips, he had looked down to her curiously. "So what, you don't have a ride?"

"I do," she mumbled through the cigarette in-between her lips. She looked up to him now, bothered that he hadn't found himself walking off just as he had in the halls. "Is this how you make friends? Standing over me like you need something?" She instantly realized how rude she had been but couldn't find it in herself to apologize. Much had been irritating her and she often had been too unaware of it to find the need to keep herself together.

The boy scoffed at her, taking another step closer to her. "You're the last person I'd want to be friends with."

"I haven't done anything," she said. The two had shared a few classes together, but both were quiet in those classes. It wasn't like either to put themselves out there in school so neither had known too much about the other.

He glanced around, watching as a few people had passed by but none had seemed to be her ride. The autumn winds were chilling and he didn't feel like standing around the cold all day. "You wanna hang out in my car until your ride comes? It's cold as hell out here and I don't wanna freeze my ass off." He had begun to head towards the parking lot, feeling that his words were enough for her to follow along. However, she remained in her spot. "You seriously not coming?"

Clearing her thoughts, she stood up with her backpack slung over her shoulder. She followed after him, feeling that maybe it would be best to start over with him. There was a chance he had been looking for a friend and that can sometimes be hard to find as the new kid in Hawkins.

She had followed him to a blue Chevrolet Camaro and realized that maybe this was not for the best. She knew nothing about him but he was just as she told Jonathan— cute. Alex had made bad decisions in the past but he hadn't seemed like a monster that could hurt her so she climbed in. Inside the car, Alex took note of all the cigarettes that littered his car in disgust.

He had settled in comfortably as he leaned back in his seat. "So you're a freak, huh?" His question had startled her, but he kept her eyes out the window as he waited her answer.

"Who told you that?" Alex ended up scoffing as she turned from him. "Look, I don't even know you..."

He cut her off as he raised a hand up to stop her from continuing. "Billy Hargrove. Don't even bother telling me your name. I already heard plenty about you." He glanced over in her direction, watching as embarrassment flooded her cheeks. "I don't care what people think if that's what you're worried about." The silence in the air was aggravating to him. She just sat there, staring out the window in frustration. "Listen, I know what it's like having someone treat you like shit."

"Is that why you're such an ass?"

He let out a small laugh and Alex couldn't even help herself to smile at Billy. He had been someone she would make an effort to stay clear of. He had a bad attitude and didn't seem like one to care how others had felt. But he had laughed and for a moment, his smile had made him feel like a different person because this laugh wasn't forced. It was all him.

The two grew silent as they looked over one another, trying to understand each other. To Alex, he was compelling to look at. His features were handsome in her eyes. The only person Alex ever thought of that way was Steve.

Her attention was torn away when she heard whispering in her ears. It was nearly inaudible, but it had been there and it was frightening. She shut her eyes tight as she turned herself away from him.

Her brain had felt rattled as she tried to push this quiet voice away. "What'd you say?" she asked, turning back to Billy.

He looked to her questionably. "I didn't say anything." Billy had met many people in his life but no one could compare to how strange yet interesting the girl was that sat in his car. "I see why they call you a freak now..." he mumbled under his breath but she still heard. The face he made at her was just the same as everyone in school made at her when they saw her walk by.

Alex knew that she wasn't the most popular person in school, but she had felt that she hadn't stepped on anyone's toes. But it was high school and in Hawkins, if you were down, people like Tommy would be sure you stayed down.

She tore her eyes away from Billy, feeling alone once again. Out of the corner of her eye, Jonathan was walking towards his car, camera and brand new pictures in hand. Alex flung open the car door and made her way out until Billy grabbed her hand roughly.

"I was joking. Where are you going?" There was some strange, small part of Billy that wanted her to stay. She was the only girl so far in Hawkins that didn't fawn over him. She acted herself. At least, he assumed to be her full self.

"My rides here," she said in a whisper, feeling uneasy as he tightened his grip around her wrist. Billy sensed something was wrong and didn't want her to rush off, "Well, tell your boyfriend I said hi," he said throwing her hand back at her.

"Whatever," she mumbled getting out of the car all the way. She slammed the door extra hard and jogged up to Jonathan, attempting a smile at him.

"Hey! Look, I got some pictures I want your opinion on," he said happily, holding out his pictures to her. Alex threw the cigarette onto the ground and stomped it out while wiping her hands off before taking them. She flipped through them, stopping at a few that really caught her eye. The two had walked closely beside one another as they went through the pictures.

"They're awesome Jonathan but please shred the one of me stuffing my face," she let out a small laugh and handed them back to him. Rolling his eyes, he had accepted back the pictures as he opened her door for her. "I'm keeping it," he stated, and without waiting for her to respond, he shut the door on her before rushing over to his side to climb in.

As he settled into the car, he had noticed Alex's once playful attitude had disappeared completely. The voice had been back but she hadn't been able to place her finger on a what had been said. The voice was too quiet to understand, but she had heard it and feared for the moment it would grow louder.

"Are you okay?"

Alex quickly snapped back to her thoughts as she looked to him. "What? Yeah, I'm fine," she said quietly, buckling up her seatbelt hoping that Jonathan would accept the answer for what it was worth.

"Was it Tommy again? I told you, just talk to Steve and he'll make him shut up," Jonathan said. Tommy had been out to pick on the two for as long as he had known them, and it wasn't like him to want to stop.

"It's not Tommy," she informed him, throwing their stuff into the backseat.

"Then what is it?"

"It's nothing, Jonathan, really." Though she didn't sound confident, Jonathan took it as is. He pulled out of the parking spot, not taking any notice that Alex was staring up at the sky as she listened intently to the voice in her head. For now, he had wanted things to be normal.