THINGS THAT ARE BAD CAN ALSO BE GOOD.

☆︎ OCTOBER, 1997 ☆︎

When the month came to an end and the one-year anniversary of the Woodsboro Massacre passed, those from the small California town felt like they could take a deep breath for the first time in weeks. They were all safe and healing, moving on with their lives. There were plenty of other things to worry about like school assignments, basketball practices, theater schedules, and upcoming dates.

Indiana spent an embarrassing amount of time thinking about her date with Mickey — and she wasn't sure if it even counted as a real date or if he just wanted to watch the movie and convince her it was bad. Friday was still two days away, though, so she'd have to wait a little longer to see how it went.

To keep her mind off of it, Jackson, Derek, and Cici were playing a round of basketball with her in the gym. Cici was a cheerleader in high school and never played basketball, but Derek was on her team and the tallest of them all, so that was an advantage against Indy and Jackson. But as Hallie said, they were basically twins, so they were so in sync with each other that it was frustrating for their opponents.

On the bleachers, Randy and Mickey were hanging out and watching them while doing homework. Indiana had extended an invitation for them to join their teams, but Randy didn't want to play and it'd make the teams uneven if Mickey joined in.

Randy was the typical film nerd who hated pretty much all sports but he'd still go to Jackson and Indiana's basketball games in school to support them. And while Mickey was a film nerd too, he was in really great shape with muscular arms and a broad chest — Indiana would know with how often she'd lean against him when watching movies for film theory or on the quad.

Even without joining, Mickey was content to watch Indiana as she played her favorite sport. He was anxious to see her in action on her actual team once the season officially began. Sidney told him that she was much more aggressive and intimidating than she was now as she joked around and tried to jump on Derek to block his shot.

"That's a foul!" Cici shouted, throwing her hands up.

"Do you see a referee, blondie?" Jackson asked as he swooped in and got the ball out of Derek's hands, who was too busy trying to fling Indy off. Then he pivoted and aimed from the three-point line, the basketball sinking in perfectly. "Nothin' but net!"

"Remind me again what that score is now?" Indiana asked while finally sliding off Derek's back.

"Sixteen to nine," the boy grumbled while pushing his sweaty hair back.

"I'm gonna grab some water," Jackson said before jogging over to Mickey and Randy where his bottle was. As he got a mouthful, he noted how Mickey didn't even acknowledge his presence, his eyes staying glued to Indiana as she practiced free throws. "Hey, Rand? Wanna go in for me for a minute while I catch my breath?"

Randy visibly cringed at the thought. "I'm good," he mumbled. "I'm sure Mickey—"

"Randy," Jackson cut him off, shooting him a pointed look. "Go play basketball for a minute."

For a second, Randy glanced between Jackson and Mickey, then over at Indiana and back again, realizing that he wanted to be alone with the other boy. So, he sighed and got off the bleachers. "Yeah, okay. I'm going. I'm going."

With Randy gone, Jackson dropped into his previous seat. Mickey looked at him questioningly. It wasn't that the two boys didn't like each other, but they'd never hung out on their own. They didn't even have any classes together — their only common denominator was Indiana.

"I want to talk to you."

"Yeah," Mickey said with an amused smile. "I gathered that when you sent Meek off — very subtle."

"It's about Indy," Jackson told him. "And your movie night."

"Oh, I get it," he said, letting out a chuckle. "This is the best friend threat. Let's hear it then. You're gonna kick my ass and all that if I hurt her?"

Jackson shook his head. "No, Indiana can kick your ass herself. I'm not threatening you to not hurt her. I'm just asking you not to, man. If it's a date, then great. Have fun. But if it's not, if it's just hanging out and shitting on a movie, then don't lead her on. After Billy, she deserves someone who will be honest with her about what they want from her," he said, speaking softly. "Look, you don't have to be serious about her or anything. I get it. We're in college, and it's the time to mess around. Just don't fuck her up more than she already is while messing around."

Mickey looked down at his hands for a moment. "I'm not just messing around with her, Jackson," he said, looking up at him "I really like her, dude. God, I... she's just perfect. I don't want me to screw it up either."

"Good," he nodded, looking back at the end of the court where their friends were messing around. Indiana was stomping her feet as Derek and Cici scored a point. "And you said the best friend threat earlier, but that's not right."

"Oh?"

"Randy and Sidney, they're my best friends. Indy is my sister — all jokes aside," Jackson said, looking back at Mickey. "And I like you, man. I like how you two are around each other. That's why I wanted to talk to you."

"I like how I am around her too," he murmured. Mickey's eyes were glued to Indiana, watching as she tried to wrestle the basketball from Derek's grip while Cici was copying her earlier move and clinging to Randy's back to keep him from helping. "I look at her and it's like, I don't know, like she's the sun or something. And I've been stuck in her orbit since that first day of class."

Jackson narrowed his eyes playfully at the boy that was always so unserious. "Did you steal that quote from a movie or something? It's very sappy."

Mickey rolled his eyes and shoved Jackson's shoulder, who just laughed. "I'm allowed to have a genuine, meaningful thought every now and then, I'll have you know."

"Alright then, Romeo," he said, clapping Mickey on his back. "We got Randy on the court, so go join Juliet's team."

"Horrible comparison," he muttered while getting up. "They both die at the end. The audience always knew they were doomed from the start."

Jackson shrugged while walking backward toward the basketball court. "That doesn't make their love affair any less meaningful. Now, c'mon, Spielberg."

Clueless to the fact that she was the topic of their conversation, Indiana was slowly losing to Cici and Derek now that Jackson was gone and replaced with Randy. The boy was trying his best but he couldn't score or block or run particularly fast.

Thankfully, Indiana was still a gifted player on her own. She managed to steal the ball from Cici and run back up the court, spinning past Derek before lining up to take her shot. But milliseconds after the ball left her hand, someone ran in front of her and jumped high over her head, their hand smacking the ball off in another direction, making her miss.

"Mickey! What the fuck?" she shouted as the boy laughed at her. "That was gonna go in!"

"I wanted to see that cute little angry expression that you get when you're annoyed — oh look, that one right there," he said, grinning brightly down at her.

"Careful, Mick," Randy said in a warning tone. "She fucking bit a girl over this game once."

"You bit a girl?" Derek asked in disbelief while Mickey just laughed.

Randy nodded in confirmation. "I told you — she's like a feral street cat."

"She pulled my ponytail," Indiana said, crossing her arms and turning her nose up.

"Oh, she was so asking for it then," Cici agreed while twirling her own hair that was pulled back. Indy beamed at her roommate, glad that someone finally agreed with her reasoning.

As Indiana's back was to him, Mickey quickly tugged twice in her ponytail, making her whip her head back around to glare at him. "What are you gonna do about it, Jaws?" he asked teasingly, raising an eyebrow.

Mickey's smirk fell as Indiana pounced on him. He managed to scramble backward a few feet but then tripped, landing on his stomach as he tried to catch himself. Though he wanted to grin, he let out a fake huff of annoyance as she sat on his back. He couldn't keep up the act for long because as soon as she lightly bit his clothed shoulder, he let out a laugh.

Then Indiana sat up on Mickey's back, smiling triumphantly at them. "I think that should give my team extra points."

"What does Mickey falling on his clumsy ass and you chomping at him have to do with basketball?" Cici asked, raising an amused eyebrow.

"Everything," Jackson answered, a huge grin on his face. He was just glad to not be the one being tackled. "You wouldn't know since you didn't play growing up. You didn't need to know the rules to cheer on the sidelines."

"Let me up," Mickey whined, not trying all that hard to throw her off of him. Really, he was just thinking about her weight on him in a different sort of situation.

Finally, Indiana moved off of him, letting Mickey roll onto his back as he looked up at her with a stern expression, trying to be annoyed. But then Indiana smiled sweetly and made grab hands toward him, silently offering to help him up. Mickey happily took her hands and got to his feet, groaning a bit from how hard he hit the court.

Then he looked at his shoulder. It didn't hurt, of course, but there was a small, dark ring around the fabric from where she bit him. "Did you draw blood when you bit that girl?"

"Yeah, it was mega gross but also cool. It made people fear me," she said, grinning.

"Ah yes," Randy said, shaking his head. "Every musician's dream is to be feared."

☆︎

Indiana didn't know why Cici insisted on helping her get ready for the movie night with Mickey. After she got back from her music marketing class, her roommate was waiting with outfit choices and her makeup bag. Indy mentioned offhandedly she was gonna wear a t-shirt and sweatpants because she wanted to be comfortable, and Cici nearly had a conniption.

It wasn't that Cici hated how Indiana dressed, but to her, this was a first date, and first dates required effort. So, despite Indy's uncertainty about the official label on the movie night — date or not a date — she was still going to look pretty if Cici had anything to do with it.

"I'm gonna sleep over with Melissa at the OBZ house," Cici said as she was pulling the sides of Indiana's hair back with little braids to frame her face better. Then she met her eyes in the vanity mirror and smirked. "In case, ya know."

Indiana snorted as Cici wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Cici, why would I want to have sex when I could be watching Killer Klowns From Outer Space?"

Cici rolled her eyes. "God, it's like you're a stranger to me," she mumbled. "Where's the Indy that hooked up with a guy during the first week of school and didn't even know his name?"

His name was Darren, and he was a business major who tried very hard to connect with Indiana after that night, but she just ignored him and pretended she couldn't hear when he'd spot her on campus and shout her name — much to her friends' amusement. Eventually, he gave up, accepting that it was a one-time thing that occurred after a party.

"For starters, I know Mickey's name," she told her with a smile. "And if I wanted to just hook up with Mickey, I'd have done it by now. But I think I want more than that with him. Besides, I haven't even slept with someone since that guy."

"Well, like you said, it's been a few months. So, what? If it is a date, you're gonna be totally hands-off tonight?" Cici questioned nosily. "You're gonna shove him off the couch if he tries to make a move?"

Indiana grinned and shook her head. "I didn't say that. But I guess, well, I mean, what if I sleep with him right away, and then he's uninterested after that?"

"Look, we all know I'm not Mickey's biggest fan," Cici told her. They got along well enough, but more often than not, she'd have been okay if he never joined the friend group. "But he really likes you, Indy. And I think you make him less insufferable. Whatever happens tonight and after, don't for a second think that there isn't something between you two. I know he wants more than a one-night stand, just like you."

"Thank you, Cici."

"I still think you can do better though."

"I know you do."

"Like, way better. He's such an annoying dweeb."

"Yeah, he really is," Indiana admitted with a small smile. "But I like it about him."

Cici grimaced and then shrugged it off, finishing with Indiana's hair. Once she was done, she spun Indy around in her desk chair to look at her. The makeup was simple with some nearly sheer gold eyeshadow with light traces of glitter in it, blush across her cheeks and nose, and some lip gloss that smelled like strawberries.

"Are we done?" Indiana asked with a hopeful expression.

"With makeup," she said. And Indy's expression fell at Cici's next sentence. "Now it's time for clothes."

☆︎

"Mickey Altieri, I hope you're ready for your world to be changed forever."

"Indiana, I've seen this movie before," Mickey reminded her with a huge grin. "I know it's shit."

After letting him into the dorm room and turning the lights off, Indiana had Mickey sit on the small futon in her and Cici's room that was across from the TV and positioned in the couch formation. She was standing before him in a thin blue slip dress with a white t-shirt layered underneath and holding her well-worn copy of Killer Klowns From Outer Space.

Given that Mickey was wearing a blue flannel shirt open over a white t-shirt, Indiana suspected Cici called either him or Randy and told one of them to dress Mickey accordingly. She didn't really care either way because she loved how Mickey looked in blue. It was his favorite color, meaning it influenced his wardrobe — and Indiana's for the night.

And as instructed, Mickey did bring the snacks — popcorn and Skittles, which were Indiana's favorite. But no amount of candy could make her less annoyed over him hating her favorite movie.

To mock him, Indiana lowered her tone and frowned. "I've seen this movie - blah blah - it's shit — shut the fuck up!"

Mickey smirked at her and tilted his head to the side. "I love how sweet you are to me."

Indiana bit back a smile and turned to put the tape in the VCR but didn't play it right away. She looked at Mickey over her shoulder pointedly.

"Remember that this movie isn't Halloween or Carrie, okay?"

"I know. They're good movies."

"No," she said, rolling her eyes. "Mickey, you're watching Killer Klowns and comparing it to serious horror films like those when it's not meant to be. It's not meant to be taken seriously. It's ridiculous and funny. You can just laugh for an hour and a half while watching alien clowns kill people in the most absurd ways."

Mickey studied Indy's serious expression and nodded before waving his hand over his head. "Okay, blank slate. Going into this ready for my opinion to be molded by you."

"That's all I ask," she said before pressing play and rushing over to the futon, not wanting to miss a second — the VCR remote needed new batteries, but Cici and Indy were too lazy to buy some.

They weren't sitting the closest that they could be — Mickey was close enough that Indiana could nearly feel the body heat coming off of his arm. Indiana ignored the urge to lean up against him and stared intently at her TV. And as soon as the opening notes of Killer Klowns by The Dickies started playing, she was nodding her head along with a big grin.

Mickey noticed with a small smile that she was tapping her left fingers on her thigh, mimicking the movements she'd make if she were playing the guitar.

"There is no scene with music in a horror movie that is more iconic than this," Indiana suddenly declared as the music faded out and the movie began.

At her words, Mickey's affectionate smile dropped. "No way! Everyone knows the Psycho shower moment is the most legendary musical cue in not just horror, but cinema in general."

"Well, you're wrong."

"Sweetheart, you're fucking insane for thinking I'm wrong," he shot back with wide eyes.

"I'm right," Indiana told him, nodding her head. "Now watch the movie."

"Yeah, yeah, let me get comfortable," Mickey grumbled.

He slumped down on the futon to do so, and then Indiana let out a quiet yelp when he snuck his arm around her waist and pulled her into his side.

"Comfy, are you?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow.

He smirked down at her, tightening his hold on her. "Incredibly so now."

Rather than make a snarky comment, Indiana just laid her head on Mickey's shoulder. She was glad he couldn't see her smile from that angle as she settled comfortingly against him.

"See, now this! This is what I mean," Mickey spoke up. He couldn't even go five minutes being quiet and needed to complain as the ice cream truck interrupted all the couples making out in their cars. "This acting is so bad, Indiana. It's laughable."

With a heavy sigh, Indiana looked up at him. Since he was grimacing at the screen, she pinched his bicep to get his attention. "Things that are bad can also be good. A movie doesn't have to be flawless for it to be someone's favorite."

"So, why is it your favorite then?" he questioned.

Indiana shrugged. "It just is. I watch it when I'm upset or sick or missing home — my dad showed it to me the first time when I was home sick with the flu at an admittedly too-young age. He'd play it all the time. Now, it's a comfort movie, ya know? So, of course, I don't want people to laugh when it's my favorite film."

Mickey could understand it after that — why Indiana would always defend it so aggressively. And it wasn't because she thought it was a work of art, even if she wasn't really aware of the truth. It was because it was something she and her father watched together — something she'd never get to do with him again.

"Look," Mickey said in a soft tone. "I'm always gonna love making fun of this movie more than I'll ever love the movie itself. But if you want someone there to watch it with you when you're sad or sick, then call me up, and I'll be here as quick as I can."

There wasn't anything particularly romantic about his words, but Indiana's heart still jumped — her stupid crush was making the bare minimum of not cursing the existence of her favorite movie seem like a valiant deed.

"Thank you, Mickey," she mumbled while leaning back on his chest.

"No thanks necessary," he said while running his fingers through her hair before letting his arm rest around her again. "Besides, I get to pick the movie next time."

"Next time?"

"Oh, Sweetheart, there's gonna be a next time if I have any say in this."

☆︎

The viewing of Killer Klowns From Outer Space went on with many comments and small bouts of bickering between the two, which only made it more fun for them. Mickey would try to pick out the flaws in the film as if Indy hadn't seen it countless times and knew every little detail.

"You can't say that isn't immaculate special effects work, Altieri! Those Klowns are fantastic!"

"Yeah, but the poorly animated balloon dog and ray guns take away from the believability."

"There's just no pleasing you!"

Then they'd settle down again, enjoying their time in each other's arms. But eventually, something else would inevitably happen to set Mickey off.

"That's just lazy fucking editing! You can see Debbie's actress tuck her shirt into her bra instead of taking it off. It'd take two seconds to end the pan down earlier. Randy could've edited this better."

"You're not supposed to be focusing on the missed tit shot, Mickey. Look at the popcorn moving on the floor. It's the baby Klowns!"

"Oh, like you don't fucking love a good tit shot too."

"I mean, yeah, you got me there."

As the movie neared the climax, Indiana moved to the edge of the couch, her eyes glued to the screen with a smile on her lips as the Terenzi brothers were separated from Dave and Mike. She glanced at Mickey, prepared to tell him that one of her favorite parts was coming up, but saw he was already looking at her.

"You're supposed to be watching the movie," she said pointedly.

"Right, right," he whispered, quickly looking away from her, a cute smirk on his lips. "Drinking blood through a silly straw. Cinema was changed forever."

Indiana kept watching, but by the time Dave and Mike were freeing Debbie, she could feel eyes on her again. She glanced toward him, and immediately, Mickey looked pointedly back at the screen, pretending like he hadn't been caught. Rather than comment on it, she rolled her eyes and focused back on the movie again.

But then Indiana couldn't even focus on Jojo the Klownzilla, because Mickey was just blatantly staring at her as the movie neared its end.

"What?" Indy finally asked, turning to look at him. "I know you'd rather be watching anything else, but you could at least try and pretend to pay attention. You were having a good time before."

"You're right. I would rather be watching something else," he admitted. "You."

She rolled her eyes and let out an amused scoff. "Evidently."

"I don't know," he said with a sheepish shrug. "I looked over, and you were smiling like a freak over him drinking the blood out of a silly straw. Sometimes, I can't look away when you smile."

Of course, Indiana couldn't help but smile at him then, her cheeks heating up from the compliment. It reminded her of when she told Sidney that she couldn't help but smile whenever Mickey did because she loved his so much.

"Yeah, just like that, Sweetheart," Mickey told her in a soft tone. He gently cupped Indiana's face, his thumb brushing across her bottom lip. "I'll do anything to keep that on your face."

While leaning into his touch, she narrowed her eyes. "Even admit Killer Klowns From Outer Space is the best horror movie ever?"

"Not anything, as it turns out," he quickly admitted, letting out a chuckle. Indiana huffed and moved to smack his chest, but Mickey easily caught her wrist and raised an eyebrow. "That wasn't very nice. How am I meant to pay attention with you hitting me?"

She rolled her eyes and tried to free herself, but he just grabbed her other wrist and kept her against his chest. Mickey made a point to look at the screen and not at her. With a sigh, Indiana relaxed against him.

This time, it wasn't Mickey who had trouble keeping his eyes on the movie. Indiana couldn't help it, though. Not when she was practically on top of him, and he was gently rubbing circles on the inside of her wrist with his thumb. The movie was basically over anyway as Jojo the Klownzilla's nose was popped.

Slowly, the corners of Mickey's lips turned up in a smirk, his eyes still glued to the screen. "Now who's not watching the movie?" he asked sarcastically. "I know I'm handsome, but really?"

Indiana stubbornly rolled her eyes, refusing to admit that she was looking at his handsome features rather than the last scene of the movie as pies fell on the characters' faces.

"The movie's over," she mumbled before pulling her hands free. She also got off the futon to stop and rewind the tape in the VCR so that she could put it away. "And you are so full of yourself. I was not—"

Before she could make it more than two steps away, Mickey caught her wrist again and he pulled her back. Indiana tumbled onto his lap, her palms flat against his chest as she caught herself. She looked down at him, her eyes glued to the stupid smirk still on his lips.

"...looking at you," Indiana mumbled, finishing her thought halfheartedly.

"Now I know you're a better liar than that," Mickey told her. "So, just go ahead and admit how handsome you think I am, and how you like my smile, and it's so easy to get lost in my eyes."

"I think you're revolting," she murmured.

Mickey drew his eyebrows in, pretending to listen to her insult. "Is that right?"

"And your eyes are like - like plain and muddy," she lied, looking into his light brown eyes she adored so much.

"Right," he said, nodding. As he did, he slid his arms around her body, drawing her closer. "Like you said the other day — the hues of mud that a picture of heaven could be painted with."

It took a moment for Indiana to remember what she was doing as he pulled her against his chest fully. She looked from his eyes to his lips — he'd gone a few days without shaving, so there was stubble growing in along his jaw.

"Your smile is so fucking..." Indiana trailed off as he leaned closer, his breath washing over her face. "Every time you open your goddamn infuriating mouth, I want to—"

"Want to what?" Mickey interrupted, sliding a hand up her arm and neck to cup her jaw, pulling her closer. His eyebrow rose challengingly, knowing exactly what she wanted — and he may not have known her long, but he knew Indiana Winger was the type to always take what she wanted. "What do you want, Sweetheart?"

Indiana took a deep breath before surging forward, forgetting all about what she told Cici as she kissed Mickey. Though his lips were rough — and tasted like the popcorn they'd been eating — his kiss was surprisingly soft. Mickey's lips which were so often fixed in a teasing grin or smirk were moving slow and gentle against hers. Then her own parted slightly when she felt his tongue swipe at her bottom lip, letting him in.

His hands were careful and warm as he touched her, one cupping her cheek to guide her head and the other settling on her hip, holding her gently against him — not that she was going anywhere. Her own slid around his shoulders, wanting to be completely wrapped up in him.

Warmth consumed Indiana as the kiss consumed her, sparks igniting as Mickey kissed her — held her — like she was some delicate thing. She'd never had soft and gentle touches. Not with Billy, and certainly not with any of the other meaningless flings she sought out from time to time.

And when they both parted for air, Mickey's mouth hung open over hers, his nose rubbing against her own, breathing each other in. She slowly opened her eyes, and he was already looking up at her in awe, like she was the goddamn sun or something, and he'd been waiting in darkness since meeting her in August.

Indiana remained on his lap, her legs on either side of his waist. The closeness was dizzying for both of them all of the sudden — the bergamot in his cologne and the soft, strawberry scent of her shampoo that they could each pick up on.

Mickey didn't have to lean far at all to kiss her again, just a short one this time. She didn't even have time for her eyes to shut before he pulled away again, looking up at her with eyes blown wide.

Sure, he'd thought a hundred times about kissing Indiana. But now that he'd done it, he knew he'd never get enough of the girl on his lap. It only made the sickening feeling in his chest grow tighter, like an early warning sign that was telling him to stop. That nothing good would come from whatever the hell he was getting himself into with her.

But then she opened her mouth — her shiny lips that were red from the kiss, just begging for him to kiss again — and sounded almost shy as she asked, "Was that okay?" Her fingers toyed with the hair at the base of his neck, such a simple touch clouding his mind of any rational way of thinking.

"That was — fuck, that was perfect," he breathed out, his heart still beating wildly.

Indiana bit her bottom lip to keep from grinning, glad to know that he enjoyed it as much as she did. She leaned in and pressed her forehead against his. "I wouldn't mind doing it again sometime."

"Sometime like now?" he asked with a boyish grin.

She laughed and nodded a little bit. That was all Mickey needed as he drew her face in once more, his lips meeting hers in another kiss that was both gentle and dizzying — Indy didn't know the two could coincide.

It wasn't long before one kiss morphed into twenty, Indiana forgetting all about the world around them. She didn't know how long it'd been since they'd started making out — she only knew his hands rubbing shapes on her thighs and his mouth placing ticking kisses along her jaw. And when she'd giggle from those, he'd grin and nip playfully at the skin before kissing her on the mouth, smiling happily into the kiss.

"I've changed my mind," Mickey whispered before placing a soft, quick kiss to her neck. They were facing each other while laying down on their sides on the futon, having fallen over at some point as they kissed leisurely.

"About what?" Indiana asked, her eyebrows furrowing with worry. He couldn't have changed his mind about her already?

As if he could read her mind and sense her concern, Mickey kissed her forehead, letting his lips linger as he formed a smile that she could feel. "I'm willing to admit that there are some pros to watching Killer Klowns From Outer Space."

Indiana just snorted in amusement and swatted his chest. Mickey grinned and grabbed the same hand, bringing it to his face so that he could kiss her fingertips.

"So," she began, letting Mickey toy with her fingers, "what movie will we watch next time?"

"Something easy to follow."

"Easy to follow?"

He grinned at her confused expression and then leaned closer. "So that I won't get confused by the plot after I keep doing this," he murmured. Then Mickey leaned in even more, Indiana meeting him halfway in another kiss.

Indiana hummed against his lips happily, feeling like she could melt into him. "Yeah. Better make it a simple one."