The first time Betty and Veronica kissed was an experience. In every sense of the word.
"Don't freak out. Just trust me."
Betty had barely had any time to wonder what the hell Veronica was talking about before Veronica had pulled her in and pressed a warm, wet kiss to her lips.
Veronica was an amazing kisser. Not that Betty was gay or anything - of course not. She'd been into Archie for years, everyone knew that. (Except for, well, Archie.) Betty was definitely not gay. But, objectively? Veronica was really good at this. (Not that Betty had much to measure it against, admittedly.)
A warmth unlike anything Betty had ever known was spreading through her, starting at the pit of her stomach and reaching all the way to her fingertips and toes, as if there was a huge flame growing inside of her. Before she had time to wonder why that was, or even really kiss Veronica back (Was that what Veronica wanted her to do?), Veronica pulled away, leaving Betty stunned and with an odd, floating feeling surrounding her.
Whatever Veronica was hoping to accomplish by kissing her, it didn't work. Cheryl was unimpressed, and, of course, moved on to grilling Betty about her sister. And the warmth that was inside her was suddenly replaced with a cold, sinking feeling of dread. She somehow managed to keep her tone nice and civil, even as her nails dug into her palms so hard she nearly bled.
"Veronica, welcome to the River Vixens. Betty, better luck next time."
Betty tried to keep the disappointment off her face, internally kicking herself for expecting anything different. Of course Cheryl would exclude her - and of course Veronica would join the team while Betty hung back and watched.
Except...
"Wait, what?" Veronica's voice said, snapping Betty out of her thoughts. "Why? Because you couldn't bully Betty into being a bitch?"
"I need girls with fire on my squad," Cheryl replied, voice even.
If Betty had been angry at Cheryl for not letting her on the team, it was nothing compared to the look in Veronica's eyes right now.
"...I know what you need, Cheryl, because I know who you are. You would rather people fear than like you, so you traffic in terror and intimidation. You're rich, so you've never been held accountable — but I'm living proof. That certainty, that entitlement you wear on your head like a crown? It won't last. Eventually, there will be a reckoning. Or... maybe that reckoning is now. And maybe that reckoning... is me."
Veronica stepped forward, the rest of the room so quiet, you could hear a pin drop. What she said next was the last thing Betty expected.
"Betty and I come as a matching set. You want one, you take us both."
Veronica's dark eyes flashed, as if daring Cheryl to try and refuse.
"You wanted fire? Sorry, Cheryl Bombshell. My specialty's ice."
Everyone stared at Veronica, in shock over this girl who, on her very first day at Riverdale High, had dared to challenge the great Cheryl Blossom, the demon queen herself - and win. Because, like it or not, everyone in the room knew that Veronica had won that confrontation.
Most of all, though, Betty was in shock that Veronica had gone to bat for her like that. The two of them barely knew each other. Betty wouldn't have blamed her for staying silent and on Cheryl's good side. But now, Veronica was definitely on Cheryl's shit list - because she stood up for her.
Finally, Cheryl let out a sigh, barely suppressing her irritation.
"Fine. Don't make me regret it. Go get your uniforms."
Betty and Veronica exchanged excited glances, before practically running over the boxes with the cheer uniforms in them, trying not to seem too eager or geeked out. The look of glee on Veronica's face made Betty happier than she could remember being in weeks, and one thought played in her head, over and over.
She did that for me.
All that aside, she was definitely not gay.
The second time Betty and Veronica kissed had been strictly to get Reggie to shut the fuck up.
Cheryl Blossom's Christmas party was huge, of course - and the hostess had taken it upon herself to stick mistletoe in every single doorway in her house. Veronica wondered where she had even found that much mistletoe. Betty suspected that Cheryl would use this party to ignite chaos, just as she always did, but she went anyway. All her friends were there, and it gave her somewhere to be other than at home, listening to her mother rant about the neighbors and their extended family and how Betty should "go easy on the Christmas cookies."
"Enjoying yourself?" Veronica asked Betty, approaching her with a couple gingerbread cookies in hand, snagged from the snack table.
Betty shrugged. "It's nice to get away from all the family drama," she said. "You know, by escaping into high school drama."
Veronica's mouth twisted into a small frown of sympathy. "Your mom still giving you grief?"
Betty let out a sardonic laugh, taking a sip of punch. "It's not a Cooper family holiday until my mom says, 'Congratulations, you just ruined Christmas.'"
"God, what a bi-" She caught herself just in time. "...That sucks."
Betty shrugged. "It's life."
"Yeah, but it shouldn't be."
"Well, well, well, look who got caught under some mistletoe!" Reggie's voice crooned from seemingly out of nowhere. He rolled on up to Betty and Veronica, seemingly not noticing the fact that neither of them wanted to speak to him, and pointed upwards.
Sure enough, there was a bit of mistletoe in the doorway above them.
Fucking Cheryl Blossom.
Betty shifted uncomfortably, but Veronica just whispered, "Let's just do it so he'll go away," before pecking Betty on the cheek.
"Weeeeeak," Reggie crooned.
Veronica glared at him. "God, don't you have anything better to do?"
"Come on! In the spirit of Christmas!"
"I'm an athe-"
"Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!"
"Oh, come on, you think, just because you started chanting-"
"KISS! KISS! KISS! KISS! KISS! KISS! KISS!"
Betty felt her cheeks heating up as other people began to join in - many of whom, she noticed, were way too far away to even know what was going on. It appeared that people really would chant anything.
Veronica rolled her eyes, plainly irritated and probably thinking of 10,000 different ways to kick Reggie Mantle's ass, but leaned in, pressing a kiss to Betty's lips. It only lasted for five seconds, but Betty still felt a bit of a buzz as Veronica pulled away to glare at Reggie.
"There. Got your quick fix?"
Reggie grinned. "Hot," he said, because that was apparently the most "alpha male douchebag" thing he could come up with.
Veronica flipped him off, before grabbing Betty by the arm, saying, "Let's find somewhere else to talk. The bullshit levels in the air around here are a bit too high for my liking."
Betty nodded, letting Veronica lead her, her heart racing. Mostly from embarrassment, but also from having kissed Veronica. Again. She felt just like she did after they'd kissed at cheer tryouts. Like her whole body was on vibrate.
"I'm sorry about that," Veronica said, as she found an empty guest bedroom for them to claim. She pushed open the door, letting Betty go in. "I hope I didn't make you feel awkward or anything."
Betty shook her head. "It was Reggie making me feel awkward, not you."
Veronica smiled. "Honestly, it was the chanting that bugged me. Kissing someone under the mistletoe is just a fun tradition, but the chanting was idiotic."
Betty laughed. "Yeah, a fun tradition," she agreed. "Friends kiss under the mistletoe all the time. Don't worry about it, Ronnie."
Friends kiss under the mistletoe all the time.
So why, as Veronica closed the bedroom door behind them, was her first thought to kiss her once again?
The third time Betty and Veronica kissed had been strictly for educational purposes, of course.
"I don't know, I just never saw the appeal of French kissing," Betty said, staring at Veronica's ceiling. They were hanging around at Veronica's place on a slow Sunday night, the apartment empty except for them, the bedroom lights dim, Hayley Kiyoko playing in the background. They were practically a Tumblr aesthetic post. "Like, 'I like you, so I'm going to exchange saliva with you?'"
"Well, have you ever tried it?" Veronica asked from where she sat at her vanity, pulling her hair back into a loose bun.
"Yeah, I've made out with two guys, and they were both terrible," Betty said. "I mean, I say 'made out,' but it was more like being assaulted with someone's tongue. In the face."
Veronica laughed. "Oh, God, yeah. I think that's a guy thing, to be honest. My last three boyfriends were terrible at the tongue thing until I set them straight and gave them guidance. My girlfriends were always okay at it. Maybe it's womanly intuition."
Betty sat up so quickly, she nearly gave herself whiplash. "Wait. Girlfriends?"
"Yeah," Veronica said casually. "I've had a couple."
Betty stared at her.
Veronica stared back, giving a confused laugh. "Betty, I'm bisexual. You knew that."
"No! No, I didn't!" Betty said. "I-I mean, it's not a problem, I just-I'm surprised."
"I never mentioned it?" she asked. "Huh. Could've sworn it came up. Anyway, I thought it was obvious."
"You don't exactly radiate 'bi,' if that's what you mean."
"I don't? I'll have to try harder."
"So I take it your parents know," Betty said. She couldn't explain - even to herself - why she was pressing the issue. It didn't bother her, no, of course not - it didn't matter... Right?
Veronica nodded. "Yeah. I came out freshman year. Honestly, in New York, you sort of assume bisexual until proven otherwise."
Betty had to laugh. "Not so much the case in Riverdale!"
"Yeah, I can tell," Veronica chuckled.
"...How did you realize?" Betty asked quietly, not really looking at Veronica anymore. Now staring off into space, thinking to herself even as she continued the conversation.
"Oh, God, there was this girl I went to summercamp with that I had a mad crush on in eighth grade," Veronica said, smiling to herself at the memory. "I kept trying to convince myself that it was just a girlcrush, you know, wanting to be besties - but then we had to kiss during a game of truth or dare. After that, it got quite a bit harder to live in denial."
"...So are girls always better kissers than boys, or is it just with French kissing?"
"In general, girls tend to be better. Though I think it may be because with two girls, they have a better sense of what the other person will like."
"I just don't see how shoving your tongue down someone's throat could ever be appealing," Betty laughed, shaking her head.
Veronica stood up, going to sit next to Betty on the bed. "Well, you're not supposed to just shove your tongue in there. Contrary to what the average teenage boy seems to believe."
"Okay, what are you supposed to do?" Betty asked, tilting her head as she looked at her.
"Well, you - um..." Veronica faltered. "Dammit, I don't know how to explain it. Maybe if I had a diagram, that would help." She let out a small laugh.
There was a short pause.
"...You could just show me," Betty said quietly.
Veronica looked stunned, but she didn't reject it immediately, as Betty thought (feared?) she might. She just said, "Are you sure? I wouldn't want you to feel weird."
"Sure I'm sure," Betty said, despite her heart pounding so hard she could hear the blood pumping in her ears. "Hell, maybe it'll help me tell the guy what to do next time."
Veronica gave a small smile, before nodding. "Okay. Just... feel free to shove me off if you decide you change your mind."
"I won't." Why was she so sure of that fact?
Veronica nodded, slowly, before she leaned in, resting her forehead against Betty's. Betty closed her eyes, her breath caught in her throat as she waited, insides burning with anticipation. Slowly, lightly, Veronica pressed her lips to hers, gently encouraging her mouth to open. Betty let Veronica take the lead - unsure of what to do with her hands, she let one come up to rest on Veronica's shoulder. Veronica's hands cupped Betty's face, her tongue slowly running over her bottom lip. Emboldened, Betty leaned into it, kissing Veronica back, not protesting when Veronica's tongue gently darted into her mouth. She wasn't sure how to respond - she'd never kissed someone like this before who was any good at it. Still, she tried her best, copying what she'd seen on TV, her free hand sliding into Veronica's dark hair, as if she needed to cling to her to remain on earth.
They pulled away slowly. Betty knew her entire face was pink, and was relieved, when she opened her eyes, to see that Veronica was blushing, too. They sat there in silence for a minute, hands still on one another, lips still mere inches apart, before Veronica finally broke their silence.
"So, now that I've ruined guys for you forever, any questions?"
Relieved to hear some of Veronica's trademark snark, to know that she hadn't made everything weird forever, Betty laughed, ducking her head.
"Yeah, I have a question. Could you give a seminar or something to the guys of Riverdale High? Because, seriously, you'd be doing all us girls a public service."
The fourth time Betty and Veronica kissed had been a complete and total accident. Honest.
"God, it's a good thing you wore flats tonight," Veronica said, laughing. They'd gone to Moose Mason's birthday party, and Veronica had stayed sober. Betty had not. Actually, right now, Betty was about as far from sober as it was possible to be without actually getting alcohol poisoning.
"I'm not that drunk!" Betty protested, giggling even as she said it. Yes, she was. She so was.
"Shh," Veronica whispered, opening up Betty's back door. The two of them were quiet (well, as quiet as a drunk girl and her sober companion could be) as they made their way up the stairs to Betty's bedroom. Veronica paused when they reached the top of the stairs, listening to make sure Betty's parents were still asleep.
Good. They were.
Veronica guided Betty into her bedroom, closing the door behind them.
"Betty, baby, you gotta sleep now," she said gently, trying to lead her to her bed. "I do not envy the hangover you'll have in the morn-oof!"
She was cut off by Betty doing something very, very stupid, as drunk girls are known to do. Specifically, she was cut off by Betty pulling her in and kissing her, rough and sloppy.
Betty pulled away almost immediately, and backed away, laughing to herself at her own stupidity.
Veronica looked stunned. "...What was that for?" she asked, a small smile curving her lips as she reached for Betty's hand.
Betty hesitated. Why had she done that? She suddenly realized she had no idea. Fuck, she was too drunk for this conversation.
"I-I guess, I guess I was thinking about... what... what you said, about liking guys and girls-and I thought maybe I wanted to-to try it out."
"Try it out," Veronica repeated. Her smile was gone.
Betty nodded earnestly. "Yes, exactly!"
Veronica dropped Betty's hand, taking a step backward. She looked... hurt.
"Betty," she said quietly.
"What's wrong?"
Veronica ran a hand through her hair. "Fuck, Betty, you can't just do that! Kiss your only gay female friend as - as an experiment."
Shit.
"No, no, that's not what I-" Betty stammered, realizing she'd screwed up, even if she couldn't articulate why.
"Betty, you're supposed to kiss people because you like them. Not because you want to try it out."
Betty didn't say anything, staring down at her feet, trying to get the room to stop spinning. Veronica simply shook her head, going for the door.
"Veronica, wait."
"What?"
"If you're only s'posed to kiss people because you like them-then... why... Why do you kiss me?"
Betty looked up, forcing her eyes to meet Veronica's. Veronica's were filled with tears, and Betty felt like the biggest monster in the world for being the reason behind it.
"Ronnie, I'm-I'm sorry-I didn't mean-"
"Fuck off."
Veronica was out the door, rushing back down the stairs and out the Cooper family's back door, before Betty could even begin to try and come up with something else to say.
Betty sunk to sit on her bed, resting her head in her hands.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
The fifth time Betty and Veronica kissed...
It had been a week since stupid drunk Betty had stupidly drunkenly kissed her best friend, and they had spent that week awkwardly avoiding each other in the halls, denying that anything was wrong whenever someone asked about it. God, who could Betty tell? Archie? That would be the one way to make this more confusing.
Betty had spent this week thinking.
A lot.
It was raining when Betty found herself outside Veronica's apartment, because of course it was. She pressed the call button in the little box on the wall, shivering as the downpour continued.
"Yes?" a man said.
"Smithers, it's Betty. Is Veronica there?" she said, leaning in.
"...Miss Lodge is not available at the moment."
Okay, so Veronica had even told her doorman she wasn't talking to her. Great.
"Smithers, please," Betty said, voice pleading. "I am begging you. Just ask her to talk to me. Five minutes."
There was a long pause, and then, Veronica's voice came out of the little box, sounding deflated. "...I'm on my way downstairs."
The door opened a little less than a minute later. The good news was that Veronica didn't look as pissed off as she was the last time she and Betty had spoken. The bad news was that she didn't exactly look glad to see her, either.
"You look like shit," she observed.
"Thanks," Betty said. "Look, Veronica-"
"What?"
Betty looked away at the sharpness in Veronica's voice, tears filling her eyes. "Veronica, what I said when I was drunk was moronic."
"I know."
"I didn't mean what I said."
Veronica looked down at her feet. "I know," she repeated, quieter.
"I didn't kiss you because I wanted to 'try it out,'" Betty said, running a hand through her hair. "I kissed you because I wanted you. I kissed you because - because when you told me you were bi, I was suddenly forced to really acknowledge that that was an option. Not just for you, but - but for me, too. And I - don't get me wrong, I already knew that bisexuality was a thing, but it's not really something people talk about Riverdale. I know, big shock... my-my point is, before, I never considered that maybe I could be that way. Before, I was never forced to realize that I was that way. But I was. I am. Ronnie, I am!"
In spite of it all, Betty let out a laugh, a genuine laugh.
"God, it feels amazing to say that! For once in my life, I know what I am! And Veronica - I don't know if another girl could've gotten me to realize it. All I know is that for the first sixteen years of my life, I thought I was one way, and then you came along, and you opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me. Being with you - as a friend, or - or... or something else... being with you is like seeing in color for the first time. No one has made me feel this way. With everyone else, I'm pretending - God, even Archie, I feel like I have to pretend. But with you... with you, I'm able to be completely real. And you still want me around. Or... or you did."
Betty stepped closer to Veronica, who was watching her, stunned. Silent.
"Veronica... If you're not into me like that, that's okay. I'm - I still want to be your best friend. My entire life. And I will always be grateful to you for making me realize who I really am. So if you don't like me that way, just tell me, and it'll be okay. I promise, I won't be angry. But if there is any possibility you want me the way - the way I want you..."
"Shut up."
And suddenly, Veronica's hands were gripping the front of Betty's shirt, pulling her in and pressing a kiss to her mouth. This kiss wasn't gentle, or soft, or hesitant. It was desperate. Hungry. And so, so loving.
When they pulled away for air, Betty couldn't bring herself to move further than a couple inches away from Veronica's lips. Veronica's eyes were still closed, leaning her forehead against hers.
"...Are you sure?" Veronica whispered.
"About you or about us?"
"Both, I guess."
"I'm sure. More sure than I am about just about anything."
Veronica opened her eyes, sliding her hands to rest on Betty's hips. "...Come inside with me. I wasn't kidding, you do look like shit."
Betty laughed, nodding. "Thanks."
Veronica took Betty's hand into her own, intertwining their fingers as she led her back into the apartment.
There was still a lot to figure out. Betty knew that. And she knew there'd be pushback from some people. And questions, and doubt, and judgement. Maybe even a little bit of that would be coming from herself. But Betty was sure of something for the first time in years. And she was certain she could get through anything the world decided to throw at them as they tried to figure this - themselves - out.
After all, she had Veronica Lodge. That was the important thing. The rest was all details.