takes place the first night Jughead sleeps at Archie's house after Archie confronts him about sleeping in the school and Jug says not to tell Betty

"So you and Betty, huh?"

Jughead sighed, turning on his air mattress so Archie could see him roll his eyes.

"When uh- when did that happen?" He was grinning at Jug, knowing the emotional stuff wasn't in his friend's comfort zone.

"When did we have a moment?" He sat up. A raised eyebrow accompanied a small smirk. One that Archie could tell was only a little sarcastic and a lot happy.

Archie nodded, "yeah but more like when did you even start liking Betty? You don't like anyone."

In all truth, he'd probably loved Betty since they were little kids but there was one moment that stood out in his mind as THE moment he officially fell in love with Betty Cooper. They were twelve and doing what most twelve year olds did in Riverdale; hanging out at the elementary school playground. Archie, Betty, and Jughead sat on the highly coveted big kid swings, Betty in between the two boys, as different as night and day. Jughead remembered looking at them and seeing happiness and warmth as they laughed, trying to out swing each other while he sat, unmoving, a metaphorical rain cloud to their sunshine.

He had contemplated leaving, feeling that out of place, when Chuck Clayton and his band of Neanderthals (as Jughead referred to them) sauntered up, almost getting hit by the two swinging kids. They dug their heels into the mulch to stop the collision.

"Hey Jughead, what are you doing on this side of town?"

"Don't you know no one wants you here?"

The lesser minions in the back of the group muttered low insults about his shabby clothes, his dark hair, his scowl.

Back then, it was harder for Jughead to hide what their words did to him. He shrunk into himself, tried to slip around the side of the swing but the bullies surrounded him.

"No one wants you anywhere, not even your mom. That's why she left right?" Mrs Jones had finally had enough and took herself and Jellybean away a few weeks earlier. She'd begged Jughead to come with them but he still believed he could make his father better.

Tears sprang to Jug's eyes. He dropped his head and they moved in on him, jostling him hard enough that he fell. Since it was a little big on him, his hat fell off and he made to grab it before they could.

Moose's eyes grew wickedly as he zeroed in on the move, darting a hand out to grab the hat. "What's this? The loser without his hat?" Jughead made a half-hearted grab for it but he tossed it to Chuck. They all laughed as they tried to get him to play some cruel monkey in the middle game with the first gift he remembered his mom ever giving him.

The tears were close to spilling over when a movement caught his eye.

While Archie had sat cowering, Betty stood up, planting her feet and staring Chuck down. "Leave Juggie alone, he's my friend." She shoved him hard. "And I want him here!" She pulled the hat from his hand and offered her other one down to Jughead.

From his vantage point, the sun poured behind her and she looked like an angel, his guardian angel. When he hesitantly put his hand in hers, she pulled him up and secured the hat back over his black curls, slightly too long since his mom wasn't there to cut it for him.

"Come on, Juggie," she whispered, squeezing his hand, "let's go. And don't listen to them." Her shining face glowered for a moment before she smiled at him. "I will always want you around."

And he knew. He loved Betty Cooper.

"Jug?"

He shook himself out of his memories and answered, "a while. Since we were twelve, I guess."

After a moment's shocked silence, Archie asked, "but then why didn't you do anything about..."

The older they got, the more he loved her. Maybe not more, he mused, but differently. A child's love changed with age. He had loved her for sticking up for him and playing with them. As they grew up he loved her intelligence and tenacity and even, strangely enough to him, her positivity. Anything felt possible when he was with Betty.

But she liked Archie. And he'd do anything to make Betty happy.

So Jug did what he did best, stayed silent.

"...it was because of me, right?" Archie answered his own question, feeling very uncomfortable.

Jughead shrugged, "I just wanted Betty to be happy. Even if it wasn't with me."

"I had no idea, Jug."

The dark haired boy smirked, "that was kind of the point."

"I'm sorry, man, if I'd known-"

Jughead threw his pillow at him, shutting him up. "It's whatever."

In fact, he was actually glad things had played out as they did. If Archie had stepped aside and Jug went after Betty he could see only two outcomes; Betty would turn him down or she'd give him a shot and he'd live in perpetual fear of her leaving him for Archie. This way he was at least mostly sure that wouldn't happen.

And he had kissed Betty. And she'd kissed him back.

An unfamiliar happy warmth bubbled up in his chest at the thought and he smiled, a real smile.

It felt weird.

He liked it.

A/n a little cute thing I had rolling around my brain. I'm so late to the Riverdale game. I just watched it all this week. I'm obsessed and I love Bughead with all my heart! This might turn into more. Like little snippets between scenes in the show. Fluff stuff. Thanks for reading