"Going somewhere?"
Betty sharply turned around, startled by the voice behind her. Archie.
"Yeah," she replied flatly. She was very clearly going somewhere; she was also rather too nervous to deal with Archie's curiosity. Still, though, he looked her up and down, and continued.
"You're dressed for like, a date? I thought you and Jug only lasted about a week?"
"We did." Betty shifted slightly, uncomfortable with where this was going.
"So who -"
"Arch, can we talk tomorrow?" Betty's voice had an edge now, and though she felt a little guilty, sometimes Archie wasn't good at taking hints.
"Uh. Sure?" He looked puzzled at her coldness for a second, but brushed it off, and turned to carry on jogging. "See you at school!"
"See you." Betty started walking again, her pace increased, her fidgeting hands clutching the strap of her bag. She was calmed slightly by the peace of the evening; the sun sinking, spreading amber light across the town. Crickets chirped in the garden hedges, and very occasionally, a car stuttered past, but even they seemed to be slow and quiet at this hour. She thought back to the craziness of the last few months - Jason, then nearly Cheryl, Cliff, then Fred, and what came after - tense interrogations, neighbour suspecting neighbour, everyone shaken at such terrible things so close to home. Her tense and fleeting relationship with Jughead hadn't helped, and neither had her ordeal with Chuck, or Polly. Maybe though - just maybe - tonight was a sign of healing, not only of the town, but of herself, too. Hopefully, anyway.
Betty finally reached the bus stop, and leaned against it, exhaling for the first time since she left. Pulling her phone out of her bag, she checked her messages.
let me know when ur here! - T 3
Hey, Archie mentioned you were on a date? You didn't mention anything to me! You have to tell me everything tomorrow! xoxo V
Betty dismissed both of them. Veronica could wait - as much as she loved her, it was none of her business where Betty was going. She was allowed secrets. As for Toni - well, she'd have to make up her mind over how much of her attention she deserved later. Sliding her phone back into her bag, Betty glanced up, and saw her bus at the end of the road. She tried to relax her shoulders a little, and murmured to herself - come on. You can do this.
A crisp breeze had begun to blow as Betty stepped off the bus in Greendale. She'd memorised the route in her head - left, left, right, left again. She was shivering a little now as she turned one corner, then the next, still plagued with nerves. She took a deep breath as she rounded a corner - there it was. There she was. She pulled out her phone again, and typed - "I'm here." In the window, she saw a silhouetted figure turn to peer out of the window, and her stomach did a few somersaults. This was it. She crossed she street, and a little bell tinkled as she opened she door - and sat in the booth in the corner was Toni Topaz.
Betty offered a smile as she sat down. "Hi! It's cool to finally meet you."
"You too, cutie," Toni smirked. "I ordered two hot chocolates, I hope that's okay."
"It's good, thanks. It's getting kinda cold out."
"I mean, you're hardly dressed for it. That dress looks good on you, though." Betty blushed and shook her head a little.
"You're sweet, Toni."
"So I made a good first impression?" Betty nodded encouragingly, and felt somewhat reassured by the Toni's question. At least she wasn't the only one who was a bit nervous. They sat in a comfortable silence as they drank in the atmosphere of the cafe, and waited for their drinks - retro movie posters and artwork adorned the walls, and the large and old-fashioned windows offered a view over the surrounding roads, with quaint little suburban houses lit by glowing yellow streetlamps. Further back, the shadow of the forest surrounding Sweetwater River, rather pretty in a calendar-stock-photo way, but a dark reminder of the past. Betty turned her attention to a glowing neon sign, under which was a spread of vintage photographs of Greendale.
"They feature photography of locals, or cool shit that you find at garage sales. Old photos and stuff. A few of them are mine - I took the ones in Riverdale. That one - and that one, and that one - I rescued them from a skip full of stuff that my family were throwing out. I'm glad I did - shots of old Greendale, with that kind of quality, are really valuable to anyone interested in town history. Personally, I'm not, but the photos are cool either way."
"You like photography," said Betty. It was a statement, not a question; she was just glad to have found something she knew a little about that she had in common with Toni.
"Yeah! I want to study it when I go to uni. Y'know, I've done my research, and I found out that Betty Cooper writes the school newspaper at Riverdale High." Toni arched an eyebrow, and Betty blushed again.
"I like it lots, yeah. My parents own the Riverdale Register. I wrote most of it with Jughead Jones, though, and he's at Southside High now. Maybe you've met him?"
"Yeah! He seems kinda cool. How long have you guys known each other?"
"A while. We were friends in kindergarten."
"That's awesome! My friends have never stuck like that." Toni's earnest enthusiasm was incredibly endearing to Betty, and it made her feel very conflicted. She was planning on keeping this date a secret - if her overbearing mother didn't approve of Northside comic book nerd Jughead, she would never approve of a Southside girl, with bright pink hair and a Serpent jacket. It made Betty's heart sink a little; this was why she'd tried Jughead, tried to make Archie like her. She had thought it would work, she had convinced herself that the knot of stress in her stomach was turbulent young love. She'd kissed Kurt behind the bleachers in seventh grade, and Jughead in her room, hoping to feel something. Yet here, in the glow of the Greendale cafe's candles, she felt more for this girl she'd only just met than she had for anyone else. She felt warm, and despite only just having met her in real life, the few late night conversations they'd had had felt like home. A spark inside her, urging her forwards. It was the most she'd felt since Veronica kissed her at cheerleading tryouts. But it was so hard. Here, they were safe, a bubble of hot chocolate, warm conversation, comfortable silence, gentle teasing. As soon as she left, everything would be so much harder. It was confusing and difficult - and the reason she hadn't told her friends. "You okay?"
Toni's voice cut through Betty's thoughts, bringing her back to the present, their date.
"Yeah. Sorry." Betty took a sip of her hot chocolate - it was running low, and she noticed, so was the daylight outside. There was a pause. "I've never dated a girl before."
"I know dating can be scary. Especially in small town, especially being like us." Toni finished drinking her hot chocolate, and set her mug down carefully, before holding her hand out to Betty across the table. Nervously, but gratefully, Betty took it. "You're allowed to be nervous! It's normal. But the truth is, it's worth it. We can keep this a secret for as long as you want. Who knows, we might not last. But I knew I liked you before - and God, you're so pretty - and I'd quite like us to last for a while, at least. But that means I'm here for you. And, truth be told, I've never dated a girl seriously, so we can figure it out together."
"You're so adorable, Toni," Betty said, smiling, and leaning forward.
"I was going for badass, but if you like adorable, I can do that too." Toni winked and squeezed Betty's hand. Betty felt as though a flame was burning inside her; happiness and comfort and security, and whatever this fun new feeling was with Toni Topaz. The pervasive chill of the dark March evening was beginning to steam up the windows though, and it occured that they were the only two left in the cafe. "I'm thinking we should maybe wrap this up on a high note." Offered Toni, and Betty nodded, still smiling. "Do you want a ride?"
"Yes please!" Betty felt a surge of relief. She hated buses, and she really liked Toni.
"Can you drop me at the end of the road? This is a mission of stealth," Betty asked.
"Sure, Agent Cooper." Toni pulled over, and killed the engine, before turning to Betty. "I really liked tonight. Thank you."
"We'll have to do it again! Maybe for a bit longer, next time," Betty smiled. Toni smiled back, and reached over to squeeze her hand again. "You're cute, Cooper." Betty laughed softly.
"You're cuter, Topaz."
Whatever happened next was a blur, but Betty found herself kissing Toni - it was gentle, and warm, and she felt a tug inside her. Her heart swelled as she felt Toni's soft lips on hers, one hand coming up to cup her face. It was unlike anything Betty had felt before; she never wanted it to end. For a long second, it didn't. Betty wondered if kissing pretty girls really did have the power to stop time. Reluctantly though, they parted, both flushing. Betty was speechless - Toni recovered more quickly though, and summoned another smirk.
"Goodnight, Betty. I really can't wait to do this again." Betty opened the door, and stepped out.
"See you soon, Toni." She shut the door, and waited for her date to drive away before walking home and creeping through the door. As soon as she got in, she collapsed on her bed, grinning.
Today was definitely the best.