After a tragic end to her relationship results in bullying and hate, Betty Cooper struggles to hold on in a world where she feels invisible...where she feels nothing except for the siren call of Sweetwater River...And after a nasty encounter, Betty makes a decision that will change her life forever...Will this once vibrant soul be lost to the icy abyss of her sorrow before an unexpected hero can convince her to live...

Notes: Soooo, apparently when my anxiety get bad it manifests in angsty one-shots...I'll apologize in advance for the angst but I promise there's a happy ending...

...

Would you dance if I asked you to dance?
Or would you run and never look back?
Would you cry if you saw me crying?
And would you save my soul tonight?

Would you tremble if I touched your lips?
Or would you laugh? Oh, please tell me this
Now would you die for the one you love?
Oh hold me in your arms tonight

I can be your hero baby
I can kiss away the pain
I will stand by you forever
You can take my breath away

Hero by Enrique Iglesias

...

"Oof" Betty huffed as someone slammed into her, effectively scattering her books and papers across the hallway floor before speeding along their way without so much as a sorry, something that had become an almost daily occurrence in the recent months.

She frowned as she crouched down to pick them up, Yeah that's right, just walk right by like I'm invisible, what else is new she thought bitterly as the crowd of students passed her by while kicking her books around and stepping on her papers. "Oh no, I'm fine, totally, don't apologize, or offer to help...hey, maybe one of you could kick me while I'm down and then I could spend the day alone in the nurse's office instead of in class with all the people who have forgotten I exist" she mumbled sarcastically to herself as she picked up her last report, wiping the shoe print off as she tried to smooth out the crinkles.

She stood up, clutching the lot back to her chest before continuing towards algebra, keeping her head down as her eyes followed the lines of the scuffed, yellowing hallway tile.

"I wonder if anyone would notice if I did disappear" she mused under her breath before joining her fellow classmates for an hour of mind numbing math.

...

The rest of the day followed in a similar way, if she wasn't being ignored, she was being snubbed or bullied. Clenching her fists so hard that her nails would bite into the raw skin of her palms as they spat hateful words and taunts at her.

"There goes Crazy Cooper...another nut from the nut tree."

"Did you hear she cuts herself?"

"I heard she had a mental breakdown and went totally postal and that's why he dumped her."

"He said she's absolutely wild in the sack, like total dom with costumes and everything, but even that's not worth dealing with the crazy."

"Maybe she should do everyone a favour and just….disappear...you know what I mean"

The hate filled words followed her around daily, to the point where the days no longer felt normal without them. Her only escape being the small dock she currently sat upon on the edge of Sweetwater River. An oasis from the noise that existed just across the border of the Southside.

Betty came here everyday after school, trying to clear her mind as she sat on the edge of the old wood and swirled her feet through the freezing water. Wanting to feel something—anything—even if it was just the cold blue bite of the river...one numbness to ease another.

Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't...those days were the ones where she drowned in her mind, not knowing if her thoughts were of complete insanity or utter clarity as she watched the sun beam off the ripples and wonder what it would feel like to just walk out...to just put one foot in front of the other until the sandy bottom dropped away and the current pulled her into a crystal world, a quiet resting place free of life's cruelty.

"No one would notice...no one would miss you...they may not even find you…" she reasoned with herself as she tilted her face to the sun.

"No one sees you Elizabeth" she self deprecated before pushing herself to her feet to start the journey home, another battle sure to await her when she got there.

She took one last longing look at the river, "Maybe one day….but not today…" she whispered, before ducking under the trees and into the forest, too caught up in her turmoil to notice the one person who did see her—who had always seen her—who watched her every day, hidden just within the shadows of Fox Forest.

…..

"Elizabeth!" her mother yelled as she shut the front door, charging to meet her in the entryway, hands on her hips and a frown on her face, "Where have you been?!"

"I—I told you mom, I have the Blue and Gold after school" she said timidly as she slipped off her shoes.

"Don't lie to me Elizabeth! I called Principal Weatherbee to leave a message with you and he said you quit the newspaper months ago!" she accused, "So where have you been sneaking off to everyday?"

Betty released a tired breath, "No where, I go know where mom...I just walk around until my head clears enough to come home" she lied, not wanting her mother to know about the one spot that was hers.

"Have you been taking your meds, every morning like you're supposed to?" she questioned.

"Of course mother" Betty answered, rolling her eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me young lady! What is it then? Does this still have to do with Archie and what's been happening at school?" she probed, "I told you to just ignore them if you can't fix it" she said shaking her head, "But honestly Elizabeth, you need to start putting some effort in and just fix it already. We can't have you sulking around town everyday, continuing to tarnish the Cooper name."

"How mom! How do you propose that I fix it?! That I make a whole school stop hating me?!" she yelled, losing her cool, "The same way you fixed Polly when you sent her to the Sisters? Or the way that you fixed dad by nagging him into submission until he got tired of being your lap dog and left" she seethed, flinching as she felt the sting of her mother's hand across her cheek.

"Don't you EVER raise your voice or talk to me like that again Elizabeth. You think your life is hard now….it can get a whole lot tougher missy" she swore, her mouth pulled up in disgust at her youngest daughter as her eyes burned into her. "Maybe if you were a little more approachable people wouldn't avoid you, and maybe if you had listened to me and lost a little weight then the Andrews kid wouldn't have be screwing the Lodge girl behind your back and none of this would have happened" she spit out like her word was as holy as the scriptures of the bible.

Betty couldn't stop the tears that welled up, the harsh truth rolling from her mother's mouth like a demons tongue, licking fresh wound after fresh wound. She covered her mouth with her hand, a sob escaping as she turned and ran up the stairs, slamming the door behind her and blocking out her mother's demand to see her for dinner in an hour.

She cover her face with her hands and let the sobs come, the tears falling freely down her cheeks as she sank against the door to the floor. She didn't know how long she stayed there, crying until there was nothing left but an empty shell of the girl she used to be. She was numb, she was nothing, she felt nothing…

She lifted her body on shaky legs and all but stumbled to her bed, collapsing face first into the mattress, overcome by the darkness and spiteful, angry words as she slipped into a black oblivion...not even noticing that the blood that had once dripped from her palms and down her arms now covered her face and the pretty pink duvet.

…..

The followed weeks rolled by the same, but now the words felt like daggers, each one slicing into her skin a little more, cutting a jagged gash across her flesh as her soul dripped from them a little at a time.

Today had been a bad day….

It started off normal—normal for Betty at least—that is until her run in, quite literally, with the redhead next door in the middle of the cafeteria.

"Hey, watch where you're going psycho!" he growled, giving her a shove back when she collided with him, her tray of food spilling in a mess of color that contrasted brightly against the floor.

"I—I am sorry, I didn't—I didn't mean too" she stuttered as she squatted and she hurriedly picked the solid food items off the floor and placed them back on the tray, avoiding everyone's stares as her eyes burned.

You will NOT cry in front of them Elizabeth! You will not give them the satisfaction, she scolded herself.

"You are 'sorry', that's for sure, no...more like...pathetic" Archie went on venomously as his raven haired temptress smirked wickedly beside him.

"What's with the bandages on your hands Coop?" he taunted, grinning at her flinch as his old nickname for her eliciting the desired effect. "Did you lose it again baby" he sneered, crouching down so that he was eye level with her, "Did you go full dark, no stars" he chuckled in her face, her knuckles turning white as she angled her head away from him.

"That's enough Arch! Leave her alone already!" someone spoke as she felt hands under her arms, lifting her to her feet. She watched as Kevin Keller stepped between her and the boy who used to hold her heart. "Don't you think you've tormented her enough for one lifetime?" he defended as the person behind her dragged her back and put more space between the exes.

"Whatever Keller, you're just another loser, .her" he said pointedly before throwing his arm around Veronica and turning away. "Let's get out of here babe, before their crazy rubs off on us" he insulted, smirking as she giggled and let herself be lead away, their posse of sheep following close behind.

"Ass!" Kevin cursed as he turned around, "Don't let him get to you Betty, douchebags like him get theirs eventually" he stated.

"Are you okay?" the owner of the hands still holding her shoulders said behind her.

She turned her head and met the hazel eyes of Ethel Muggs; and the pity she saw there almost hurt worse than anything else. She didn't want anyone's pity, she didn't want to be someone's problem or fucked-up project that they needed to fix. That was the whole reason that she had slowly distanced herself from the pair of old friends in the first place.

She could ignore the talk and the glares from most people by telling herself that they didn't matter, that they were never her friends to begin with and never really knew her in the first place, therefore, she never really lost them. But to see the pity in her friends eyes day after day, like they were trying to apologize to her for something that was never their fault...well she felt that right to her core.

And as their conversations became quieter and more forlorn, and the easy friendliness of their chatter faded away as they carefully weighed each word, almost as if she'd shatter like glass if they spoke to loud or too much, the more she pulled back.

She didn't want her friends to treat her like she was broken, even if she was. She didn't want them to be scared to laugh, to talk, to be happy around her, like they were doing something wrong. It wasn't fair to them, and it wasn't fair to her...so in the end, she thought it was best to just remove herself from their lives, and after a few failed attempts on their end to communicate with her, they eventually gave up and left her to her own devices.

They still remained in the background though, she'd see them watching, and she knew that they would stick up for her and scold anyone who had dared to speak ill of her in their presence, and she was grateful, really she was, but it didn't change anything, or help anything, and her decision to stay away had remained the same.

"I'm—I'm fine" she managed, her voice hollow and devoid of any emotion.

"Betty…" Kevin said with gentle sympathy, laying a hand on her arm, "You don't have to lie to us."

"Kevin's right, we used to be your friends, you can talk to us, we can help you—"

"No, no one can help me….and said I'm fine!" Betty snapped, cutting Ethel off as she shrugged out of their hold and raced from the cafeteria, the sound of them calling her name mixing with the amused snickers as she pushed through the double doors and ran down the hallways, not stopping until she heard the sound of rushing water.

…..

Her legs felt like jello and sweat dripped down her neck as she sank to the rough wood of the dock, splinters biting into her hands as she gripped the boards to anchor herself, her body shaking with a grief so deep and volatile that she felt it in her bones as she once again cried herself hollow.

By the time she opened her eyes the sun had shifted in the sky, and she's sure that the harsh grain of the wood had left a permanent pattern across her cheek. She sat up, swiping any moisture from her cheeks before crawling to the end of the dock and peering into the ripples as she sank her fingers beneath the water, swaying them back and forth and scattering a small school of minnows.

She closed her eyes, the coolness calming her almost instantly like it always did and she imagined for the hundredth time what it would feel like to sink her whole body deep within its grasp.

She opened her eyes, today's the day…

She got up and sat on the edge, dropping her feet into the water before pushing herself up and sliding her body off the end. She gasped as she sank into her knees, her toes curling into the soft riverbed. She focused her eyes on her destination, the center of the river where the current licked and swirled the most as she set a slow even pace.

Her fingertips skirting the water as the light waves lapped at her jeans. She gasped again as the water reached her waist, wrapping around her like frozen fingers. She shivered, pausing as she closed her eyes and tilted her face to the sun again, it's warmth providing a euphoric contrast to the icy depths that called her.

After a moment her body either adjusted to the cold or went numb with it...either way it didn't really matter which one it was as it gave her the push to resume her trek forward. Her memories helping her along as she thought about the events that had brought her here.

About her childhood best friend, turned boyfriend, turned ex-boyfriend...the boy next door who used to make her heart flutter and her stomach twist. The one who had been her first kiss, her first love, her first everything….until the darkness crept in and corrupted her mind. Until she started having panic attacks...attacks that would plague her at any time of the day regardless if she was feeling anxious or not. For a while the meds helped, but then they didn't and she found that the only thing that would center her and bring her back was the sting of nails into soft flesh.

She was ashamed of her weakness and had hid her anxiety and it's vice from her perfect boyfriend….that is until the day she looked out her bedroom window and saw him fucking the new girl. A rage building inside of her as she watched, feeling humiliated and used and stupid...oh so stupid for believing him when he said their flirty banter and wanton glances were nothing, even going as far to accuse her of being irrational, and jealous, and delusional.

Her ears rung with anger and her vision blurred as her boyfriend thrust over and over into the vixen; and suddenly she had found herself standing in his bedroom doorway with no memory of how she got there, the lovers scurrying to get dressed with their tryst interrupted.

Betty stewed as Veronica grabbed her clothes and threw them on, not bothering to button her blouse as she told Archie to call her and pushed past the blonde and out down the stairs.

Archie however was slower to get dressed, watching her with curiosity as he did up his jeans and waited to see how she'd react. He leaned against his dresser and crossed his arms in front of his chest, a smirk on his lips and not an ounce of regret in his eyes as he stared her down.

"So is this the part where you cry and beg and ask me why?" he asked after a silent moment, quirking a brow in question.

And that was when it happened, the moment something snapped within her and she let out a guttural scream as she lunged at him, his arms coming up to block her as she beat at his chest with her fists, tears streaming down her face as she cursed him.

When he had finally had enough, he grabbed her by her shoulders and chucked her onto the bed, pouncing on top of her and holding her down with his body.

"You know...you can still have me Coop, if you ask nicely" he whispered against her ear as he pressed his arousal to her thigh, "But it'll have to be our little secret…cause you see, I'm going to date Ronnie now, so this thing between you and me...it's over...but if you still want to fuck, I'm completely down wit's that" he growled, squeezing her breast roughly as he ground into her again.

Betty felt the bile rise in her throat and swallowed it down, "I wouldn't fuck you again if you were the last man on earth Archie Andrews!" she scorned between clenched teeth before clawing her nails down his chest, making him hiss and jump, giving her just enough room to raise her leg and swiftly connect her knee with his crotch.

He swore, sliding to the side as he cupped himself and she wiggled out from under him, running from his room and down the stairs.

"You're gonna regret that you crazy bitch!" he yelled as she slammed through the front door and hurried across the lawn.

But he was wrong...because even after everything he has done to ruin her life, she doesn't regret it...in fact, she would have kneed him in the balls again if she had been given the chance, which is probably why he'd always stayed a legs distance away from her...until today she thought as the seductive waves met her chest, bringing her back to the present as her nipples perked and strained against the fabric of her fall sweater. Another delicious shiver ran through her and she closed her eyes, lost in the sensation until someone yelled her name, startling her out of her daze.

"Betty! Betts!" a voice shouted, a voice that she'd know anywhere but hadn't heard in over a year.

She turned around, lifting a hand to shield her eyes against the bright sun, her suspicions confirmed as she saw a familiar beanie sitting atop a mop of black curls.

"Jughead?" she asked, confused at his presence and wondering if she was imagining him.

"Yeah Betts it me" he said, his confirmation stirring something within her, "What are you doing Bett's?" he asked, his voice laced with concern as he stripped off his leather jacket and entered the river after her; boots, jeans and beanie included.

"I can't—I can't do it anymore Jug" she told him just loud enough for him to hear as he waded closer and she instinctively took a step back, slipping a little on the river rock.

"Stop! Please don't go any further" he pleaded as he continued in her direction, feeling his way with his feet as his eyes never left her own. "You can't you do what anymore…talk to me Betts…"

"I—how are you—why are you here Jug?" she stumbled, changing the direction of conversation.

"Kevin called me, he told me—he told me what happened today, he said he was worried about you" he revealed, flinching as the water now hit his torso. "And I had a pretty good idea of where I'd find you because I...well I've kind of followed you here almost everyday" he admitted.

"What? Why? Why would you follow me when you don't even care about me anymore Jug?"

"Betts.." he said softly, "I care about you, I care about you so much, you have to believe me."

"Really?! So is that why you stopped talking to me when you transferred...why you completely forgot about me...because you care??" she accused, "And why would Kevin call you? I didn't even know you guys were still in touch."

"Of course we keep in touch, he's my friend, just like you were my friend—are my friend" he emphasized. "It isn't what you think Betty, I never meant to hurt you or to shut you out" he pressed, stopping a few feet from her.

"So why did you?"

He sighed, rubbing at the back of his neck, his height giving him the advantage of being able to keep his arms dry and out of the water still. "When I transferred to Southside High, well things got hairy for a while and it took me a bit to get my footing there, and by the time I had my feet on the ground…" he paused, his steely blues meeting her sea greens, "Well by then the jock had noticed the girl next door…" he unveiled as a red tint creeping up his neck. "Which was fine... really , I always knew that he'd pull his head out of his ass eventually and see how great you are, and I knew it's what you wanted and I was happy for you Betts, really I was because all I've ever wanted was for you to be happy" he insisted, taking another step.

"I—I don't understand...how does my relationship with Archie have anything to do with you ghosting me? You know that I would have been your friend still Jug, that I wouldn't have left you out."

"I know" he nodded, "I know that, and that's why I called you, but Archie answered and he told me that you didn't want anything to do with Southside trash like me."

"He what?! You didn't believe that I would actually say that did you?"

"Of course not, I know you Betty, I know that you don't have one snobby bone in your body, so I tried again; I went to Pop's every day after school until I managed to catch you there. I could see you through the window, sitting with your back to the door, Archie was there too, so I waited outside, hoping to catch you alone because if what he said was true, then I needed to hear it right from your mouth" he told her, wetting his lips before continuing. "Anyway, Archie must have noticed me lingering outside because the moment you had excused yourself from the table to go to the washroom, well he was out the door and on me like a dirty shirt. He demanded to know what I was doing there and when I told him I was waiting to talk to you he lost it, he told me to leave you alone. He said that you didn't need someone like me messing up your life...as well as some other really nasty things that aren't worth mentioning before storming back into Pop's….all before you had even returned" he scoffed.

"But I wasn't going to let him scare me off, so I waited, determined to talk to you and to tell you what a jackass your boyfriend was being and that you deserved so much better" he urged before his face fell, "But then I saw you when you came back out, I saw how your face lit up when your eyes fell on him, and how happy you were and I realized that it would be selfish of me to get in the middle of that. And I couldn't—I couldn't be the one to take that happiness away from you" he told her, "So I told Kevin about what happened and asked him to keep an eye on you, make sure you were happy and okay. It pained me to stay away but as much as I wanted to be near you, you never saw me like I saw you Betts, like I still see you, and I had to respect that. Besides, Archie never would have quit….as long as you were his there was no way he would have let me near you without a fight because" he took a breath, "Because he knew Betty...he knew all along."

Betty's mind spun as she tried to wrap her head around all the information; Archie didn't want them to be friends, Archie is the one who chased Jug away...because he knew...because he knew what?

"What did he know Jug?" she pried, watching as he bit his lip and look away briefly before meeting her gaze.

"He knew that I had feelings for you."

"Had?" she pressed, her voice airy.

"Have, that I have feelings for you" he confessed, reaching out to stroke her cheek as she gasped, "I think I've always had them but I thought that maybe they would fade over time, especially with me being on the Southside, and you being with Archie...but they didn't, it's like the year apart never even happened" he told her.

"I—I never knew" she awed.

"I know you didn't baby" he said softly, cupping her cool cheek, "And when Kevin told me what had happened, between you and Archie, I was livid—I don't think I've ever been so angry in my life or had the urge to punch someone so badly. All that time I just assumed that he was jealous of me...I didn't realize that he had become a complete and utter asshole, or I swear I wouldn't have stayed away. I would have warned you Betty, even if you didn't believe me, I would have tried" he insisted, stroking her cheek with his thumb.

"Why...why didn't you come around, after the breakup?"

He sighed, "I wanted to, God I wanted to, but when it happened I was in Toledo visiting my mom and JB before school started again and by the time I got back everything had imploded and Kevin had said that you had pulled away from everyone, that you wouldn't let anyone in, not even me—well especially not me considering you were already pissed at me. But I didn't believe him...until I saw you that is...one day after school, you looked so miserable and alone and all I wanted to do was wrap you in my arms and never let you go…but you—you never even saw me and you walked right by with your head down" he closed his eyes and shuddered at the memory, stroking her skin to calm them both. "You were like a ghost Betts, like this person who floated amongst the living but never really lived...you were there but at the same time you weren't and my heart broke for you" he said, reaching below the water with his other hand and gripping onto hers.

"I followed you that day and you led me here, and every day since you've been leading me here, and maybe that sounds creepy but I needed to see you, to make sure that you were okay. You always seemed more at peace when you were out here and I thought maybe...maybe everything was getting better. But then Kevin called me all in a panic and I don't think I've ever ran so fast in my life, you scared the hell out of me Betts!" he exclaimed, "What did you think you were doing?! Why are you out here? You know the current is dangerous once you get so far out, you could have been swept away…" he worried.

She ran her tongue along her bottom lip as she looked down, too ashamed to look him in the eye, "That was the idea...that was the plan…" she revealed quietly, not seeing the way his eyes widened in shock, then in fear as he realized what would have happened if he hadn't been there.

"Betty" he choked as he pulled her into his arms, needing to feel her, to physically hold her, "No baby no" he muttered against her hair, "Promise me Betts" he swallowed, "Promise me that you'll never do that, that you'll never leave me that way" he pleaded, his voice cracking on the last word.

"I can't Jug—I can't go back there...to that school, to that house...I can't see him everyday for the rest of the year...I just—I can't take it anymore...I'm nothing Jug, I feelnothing, people see nothing!" she sobbed as she tried to push him away, "Just let me go Jug, just go home and let me go" she begged, pushing against his chest again, only to be pulled in tighter.

"Never, I will never let you go, and you are not nothing you hear me, you are Betty Cooper and you are brave and intelligent and beautiful and we see you! Kevin sees you and Ethel sees you and I see you...we all care about you and only want to help you, you just have to let us" he asserted, squeezing her tighter to him.

"I can't—I can't go back Jug, I won't survive it" she hiccuped.

"Then don't" he stated, "Come home with me...come live with me, my dad already loves you and would never turn you away, especially if he knew what was happening, and you can finish out the school year at Southside with me. It's a little rough around the edges and the education is lacking but no one would know who you are and they won't bother you, I promise , I'll make sure of it" he pledged, pulling back to look at her, "Say yes Betts."

"My mother will never allow it" she reasoned.

"We'll figure something out, even if we have to sneak in to steal your stuff and make it look like you ran away or something, whatever it is, whatever hurdle we need to cross, we'll do it together okay?"

She chewed her bottom lip anxiously, taking a minute to mull it over in her mind before looking up at him and uttering a soft "Okay."

"Really!?" he asked, his blue eyes sparkling as he cupped her face.

"Really" she confirmed, a small smile gracing her lips for the first time in months.

He returned her smile as he leaned down and brushed his lips against hers, tentatively at first and then firmer as she gripped onto the front of his shirt and pulled him close, a small moan escaping her as their lips moved together and something akin to hope bloomed in her chest, his kiss making her feel more alive than she ever has. Maybe she will make it through this she thought...and it was all thanks to him. He made her feel special and loved and strong and as long as she had him beside her she felt like they could weather any storm.

She grinned softly as they pulled apart, his forehead resting on hers as they caught their breath, "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that for" he exhaled, pecking her lips again.

She giggled, actually giggled, and it felt good and it felt right and her heart fluttered as she looked up at him, "Well maybe you should have done it months ago" she teased, "But thank you, for being here when I needed you the most...I don't—I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't shown up, so thank you, for saving me from myself" she told him, pulling him into a hug.

"No need to thank me Betts...I'd be your hero everyday for the rest of my life if you'd let me" he swore as he pulled back and ran his fingers along her cheek.

Betty let out a laugh, "That was cheesy as fuck Juggie" she said, giggling again.

He grinned and shrugged a shoulder, "Yeah...it was, but that doesn't make it any less true" he told her fondly.

She blushed sweetly as she placed a kiss to his cheek, "Come on Superman, let's get out of this river and go home before we catch pneumonia."

Home...she repeated to herself as she thread her fingers with his, for the first time in her life the term felt right. He's my home she thought, smiling as she laid a hand on his cheek, her heart beating in synch with the laughter that burst from her lips as he lifted her from the water and wrapped her thighs around his sturdy frame before carrying her to freedom.

…..

End Notes: Hello :) Soooo what did you think? Should I refrain from writing when anxious lol? Leave me a note below and let me know...thanks for reading :)