Betty and Jughead's First Kiss: Chapter 1
It was one of those nights when the room is spinning in the best way and good conversations fill every space around you. I hadn't been to a decent party since last summer and going to Cheryl's was proving to be a good distraction from the stress of being the only editor at the Blue & Gold, especially with the Moscato sloshing around my wine glass.
"Hey!" Jughead yelled over the noise, "Are you having a good time?"
I leaned into him so he could hear me over the pounding bass, "Yeah, a really good time!"
"Do you like the music?"
"Not at all," I laughed.
Jughead just started at the Blue & Gold and has been invaluable to me as a second writer on the paper. Besides knowing so little about him, I enjoyed our times in the quiet school newsroom, just the two of us.
"Me neither, do you want to check out the Blossom vinyl collection?"
"Sure!"
Before I can set my drink down, Jughead grabs my other hand and starts leading me through the small ballroom at Thornhill down a quieter corridor. His fingers are warm wrapped around mine and I blush as he looks back at me with his secretive brown eyes and knowing smirk.
"How do you know where it is?"
The music has turned into a dull hum, but you can still feel the pounding of dancing bodies against the old floorboards, making the house lightly vibrate.
"I'm not one for parties," he gestures to the room around us, "but curiosity leads you to some interesting places."
"So, you're snooping?"
"I prefer, investigative reporting." He smirks and I playfully roll my eyes.
We walk over to the corner of the room littered with black wooden crates, completely filled with vinyl records. Their turntable is massive and knowing the Blossom family, it must be handed down from faded generations before based on the thin layer of dust blanketing the top of the case.
"Wow, this is an impressive collection."
"You spoke to soon," Jughead laughs and holds up Hot Space, Queen's one and only disco album.
"Oh no, put it away!" I laugh.
I thumb through the nearest crate and eye some of my favorites; Rubber Soul, Ricky Nelson, Van Morrison, Johnny Cash Live at Folsom Prison, and some Dion. I gingerly pull The Drifters out of its paper-thin sleeve and walk over to the turntable. The record falls onto the spindle and rests perfectly on the felt, then I fiddle with some knobs until the ancient machine wakes up from its long sleep. I gently lift the needle and the record starts to spin and I notice Jughead has stopped flipping through his crate and watches me set the needle down.
Silence steadies the room for a few wonderful seconds then the first few notes of "This Magic Moment" breaths life into the space.
"Good choice, Betty Cooper." Jughead stands up from the crates and walks over to me with a hand outstretched, "Want to dance?"
I smile and look down at the ground before biting my lip and taking his hand in mine. He pulls me closer to him until I can feel the heat radiating off his body and he tilts my chin up for me to meet his tender gaze. I was wrong, his eyes weren't secretive. They're an open book and when I look into those pools of warm chocolate, I swear I can understand him in a way I hadn't before.
"Do you want to know why I really came here tonight?" Jughead asks as we sway to the music.
"To see if you could unravel the mysteries of Thornhill?"
"No, I knew you would be here."
His hand drops from my waist to my lower back and I rest my head on his shoulder. His flannel smells like earthy musk and cigarette smoke, but it's not overpowering. We keep swaying in time but neither of us dares break away from this moment. I don't know how many songs pour out of the turntable but eventually the needle starts skipping and a silence settles across the room once more.
"I think it's your turn to pick something." I practically whisper into his chest.
"Don't move," he pleads.
His boots are heavy against the floorboards and I listen intently to all of the little sounds he makes as he selects a record and throws it on.
"'Crimson and Clover'?"
"You know it," He takes me back in his arms and slowly spins me. My soft pink dress flares just a bit around my knees, but after drinking white wine all night I'm a bit unsteady. Just as I'm about to turn into his arms, I stumble in my low heels and accidentally lunge into him. Both of us lose our balance trying to save the other one, but to no avail. We fall to the ground and half of my body is draped over his with our faces inches away from each other.
With Tommy James and The Shondells crooning from the record player, I close my eyes and let myself tenderly kiss his lips. I'm so overcome with the need to kiss him I don't think about my body on his or the small flash of surprise on his face after I open my eyes until it's already happened.
"Oh my god, I shouldn't have done that. I'm so sorry." I start to pull away from him.
"Wait," Jughead holds the back of my neck with delicate fingers and looks at my lips before kissing me with more intensity than I dared. I can feel the wet touch of his tongue glide over my bottom lip and I meet his kiss with eagerness. I weave my hands around his neck and let my body fall on his once more so we're as close to one another as possible.
"I've been wanting to do that since you invited Archie and me to sit with you at Pop's." He smirks.
I take a deep breath and look down, not knowing what to say. Looking at my leg resting over his on the floor of Cheryl's house, I'm overcome with embarrassment and realize how ridiculous I must look strewn over him like a ragdoll.
I immediately shuffle off him and sit on my knees next to him while smoothing out my dress and avoiding eye contact at all costs.
"Oh, Betty," Jughead rests his palms on the floor behind him to prop himself up, "I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?"
"No, no, not at all!"
"Is it because of Archie?"
"What?"
"I know you used to like him, and I shouldn't have-"
"Jughead, no, I mean I did like Archie, but I don't anymore. I'm just," I take a deep breath and place my hand on his knee, "I've never done anything like that before. I've never even been kissed before, except this one time with Veronica, but never like this. What I'm trying to say is, I don't know what I'm doing, and I just got embarrassed is all. Not embarrassed of you, of course, I just didn't know if I was doing everything right. Now I'm talking to much, I'm sorry, just ignore me."
A few uncomfortable seconds pass and Jughead just looks at me with an undiscernible look on his face.
"Wait," he cocks his head, "you and Veronica?"
I slightly giggle and shake my head at the memory.
"It's a weird story."
We both laugh and patiently wait for the other to say something without having to speak ourselves. The room doesn't carry the warmth it did when we first came in here looking for better music than whatever Cheryl has blaring in the ballroom. Now, everything is ruined because of me.
"I thought you were doing everything right." Jughead finally says, "I mean, I don't have a lot of practice, but it definitely felt right."
A blush rises in my cheeks and I feel my face growing overwhelmingly warm again. Jughead rests his hand on top of mine, which still lies on his knee.
"I definitely liked it." He adds.
"I really liked it too." I practically whisper.
"Do you want to do it again?"
I swallow my reservations and tell myself to just enjoy the moment for once. Just let myself be here in this room with a handsome boy who wants to be here with me surrounded by good music. So, I slide closer to him and wrap my arms around his shoulders before closing my eyes and surrendering myself to his kiss.