Stranger Things - Imagines

Billy Hargrove X Reader - Demons

A/N - This was inspired by the song Demons by Imagine Dragons, and also, by a comment from @11jordan. I hope you all enjoy it. 

Everything was a little fuzzy as you tried to make sense of everything that was going on around you. The mall was a mass of destruction and in the middle of it was one of the most disgusting things you had ever seen. And yet, none of it was making any sense. Then, your eyes landed on Billy, standing in the centre of the mayhem, and your stomach had dropped. He was standing over a little girl, clearly trying to protect her from whatever this monster was and right as he glanced back in your direction, the thing took a swing at him, piercing his chest. 

You'd let out a terrified cry as you woke up, sitting up in bed and panting as though you'd just run a marathon. The tears had pricked at your eyes immediately, your hands shaking as you unsuccessfully tried to wipe them away before they could start making tracks down your face. 

There was a shuffle beside you as Billy woke, still slow and full of confusion as he reached out and ran his hand up your spine, his palm warm where it made contact. 

"Baby?" he hummed softly, his voice still thick with sleep. When you didn't answer, he sat up with you, his hand slipping down to your hip, his arm wrapped around you. "Oh Sweetheart," he murmured, pressing a quick kiss to your shoulder. "Another one?"

You nodded, your hands scrambling to catch his free one, grounding yourself. Billy was here. Billy was alive. That creature had tried its hardest but it hadn't killed him. He'd survived. But God, that was so hard to remember when you had to relive him almost dying every single night. 

You moved quickly, turning around to wrap yourself around him, your face burying into his neck, taking a deep breath and relaxing as the lingering smell of his cologne settled in your nose. He's right here. He's okay. 

He wrapped you up in his arms, turning his head to kiss the crown of your head. You'd explained the dream the first time. And the second. And the third. But after that, he'd decided it was better that you didn't have to say it. It was always the same dream, over and over, and listening to you get so worked up as you tried to describe it had broken his heart. 

"I'm right here, Baby," he hummed, unhooking one of your arms from around his neck. He managed to get a good hold on one of your hands, drawing it down until he had your fingers pressed to his bare chest, brushing over the barely-there scar the monster had left on him. "Still here," he added, feeling you nod against him, your fingers still lingering on the still slightly raised scar. 

Deep down, he'd been a little self-conscious about the marks it had left on him. I mean, he'd spent years taking pride in having his shirt off. He'd loved showing off the hard work that went into keeping himself looking so good. Then he'd seen the scar for the first time and he'd hated the thought of other people seeing it. But you'd taken great effort to make him love it the same way he loved every other part of his body. That mark showed how brave he was. It showed that he was a good man, even if he often played the part of being an asshole. It showed that he was selfless and loving. Hell, it showed that he was still alive and for that, you would always be beyond grateful. 

When you pulled back from his embrace, your hand stayed on his chest, your eyes lingering on the scar. "I'm sorry for waking you up-"

"Don't be," he interrupted. You said the same thing every night, no matter how often Billy reminded you that he wasn't upset with you. No matter how many times he had told you that he would rather be awake to help you through it. "It's already 6," he hummed, reaching out to tap the top of his alarm clock. "You nearly made it through the night this time," he added, offering you a sweet smile. "Give it a couple more weeks and I bet you'll be sleeping like a baby again," he pressed on, catching your chin and giving you a quick kiss. "Do you want to go back to sleep or do you want to get up?"

"You should go back to sleep," you murmured.

"That didn't answer the question, Baby."

You let out a soft sigh. "I've got to be up in half an hour for work," you reminded him. "Might as well just go get a shower."

"Right," he uttered, throwing the covers back and climbing out of bed, glancing back at you to find your brows furrowed in confusion. "What?"

"You should go back to sleep. You aren't working today," you started, still looking so confused that Billy couldn't help but chuckle. 

"We've got an extra half an hour before you have to start getting ready and you just mentioned a shower. You really think I'm going to miss the chance to get in there with you?" he teased, drawing a snort of laughter out of you. Hell, your laugh was his favourite sound in the world and recently it had been pretty damn rare, so being able to bring that out so effortlessly made his heart stutter. "Come on, Baby. Get your ass out of bed and into that shower," he added, grinning when you did as you were told, making your way into the bathroom with him hot on your tail. 

"You're an idiot," you chuckled, smiling when you caught sight of him behind you in the mirror, watching you intently. 

"Yeah," he hummed in agreement, his hands moving to rest on your hips, his eyes meeting yours in the reflection. "But I'm your idiot, so deal with it," he added.

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