He should have known.
Taking a break from his typing, Jughead lightly flexed his fingers and shifted his glance to the figure resting against his side. It had only been a few hours since their reconciliation, and he still felt his chest tighten with guilt as he remembered the whirlwind conversation that had righted his upturned world.
Jughead had been sitting at his kitchen table. An uneaten sandwich lay abandoned in front of him as he cradled his head in his hands. The last 48 hours had been almost comically hellish, one nightmare coming after another, starting with Archie's visit to the trailer in which he had effectively ripped out Jughead's heart and stomped it into the ground in front of his very eyes.
Since that moment, Jughead had felt like he was underwater as he drifted from event to event. The gauntlet, Toni, dealing with Malachi and the Ghoulies, the race, the arrests. The stress and responsibility had come relentlessly, leaving him almost no time to deal with the inner turmoil of having been cut off from the one person he trusted the most. The one person who he craved each moment by his side, his partner in crime, had unceremoniously abandoned him - through Archie no less.
In the darkness of his trailer, Jughead breathed deeply as he massaged his temples and savored the silence that rang around him. He hadn't been alone in days and was selfishly grateful for the opportunity to wallow without anyone else interrupting with another crisis that needed resolving.
But just as he moved to rest his head against his folded arms and close his eyes, the world proved it was not yet done tormenting Jughead Jones that day and a sharp knock came on his door.
Jughead groaned and clenched his jaw. He felt a wave of desperation wash over him as he pleaded with any universal force that might listen for one goddamn moment of peace. He screwed his eyes shut, and for a second wondered if he could just pretend he wasn't home. Maybe if he stayed very quiet, whoever was standing outside his door would take their problem and find someone else to fix it for them.
Another knock came with more force behind it. Jughead resisted the urge to pound his own forehead against the table, and instead opted to lift his head and run his hands down his face. Another knock, quicker and more insistent. Jughead took one last deep breath as he pulled himself to his feet. His bones felt like lead and all he wanted to do was lay down and go to sleep, but the knocking offender on the other side of the door was proving that they would not allow silence to impede their quest to further ruin his day.
Jughead was running through a list of guesses for who might be visiting him this late at night, but felt his breath hitch in his throat as he turned the handle and swung the door open to reveal someone who he hadn't even considered.
A wave of emotions crashed over him as he looked at Betty Cooper standing before him, her fist curled and poised ready to continue her knocking. Jughead noticed that the look of determination in her eyes was swiftly replaced with one of uncertainty as she realized her knocks had finally been answered. She let her arm fall back to her side and released a deep breath.
"Hi Jughead" she greeted quietly. She looked into his eyes for a fleeting moment, before turning them towards her hands, which she now clasped in front of her as she fiddled with the hem of her sweater.
"What do you want, Betty?" The icy sound of his own voice surprised him. The words had tumbled out his mouth before he could even think. He watched as Betty frowned, but also nodded her head lightly, as if she had been expecting a less-than-warm-welcome. She lifted her head to look at him again, and the determination slid back behind her blue eyes.
"I'm here to tell you the truth Jug."
Jughead raised his eyebrows, his interest piqued. He stepped back from the door and held it open, allowing Betty to step across the threshold. She crossed into the living room but made no moves to sit down. She reached up quickly to tighten her ponytail before turning to face Jughead. He had resolved himself to stay silent, crossing his arms as he waited to hear what she had to say.
"I don't even really know where to start," she mumbled, half to herself. Jughead could clearly tell that she was distressed, fumbling over words in her mind, trying to find the right ones. He felt his heart tighten slightly, wanting to help her through whatever was troubling her, but Jughead had to look out for himself in this moment. He shifted his weight, allowing her the silent seconds she needed to sort out her thoughts.
"After the town hall meeting a few nights ago, I got a call" Betty began. Her eyebrows knitted together.
"From the Black Hood."
Jughead hadn't been sure what to expect from this conversation, but it was already headed in a decidedly unexpected direction. He felt his stomach drop at this revelation and opened his mouth to respond, but Betty had apparently found the words she needed and her story came rushing out as she smoothed her hands over her hair.
"He said he was doing it all for me, that I had inspired him to cleanse the town. And he was jealous Jughead. In a really strange way. He went on about the terrible people in this town and how they weren't worthy of me. He didn't want to 'share me' with any of them. He wanted me to cut them out of my life, or he'd do it his own way."
Jughead's mind was racing to understand what she was telling him. The Black Hood had threatened her?
"Betty, why didn't you…" he stammered, but she cut him off, anticipating what he was about to ask her.
"He said he knew where Polly was, Jug. He said that if I didn't do what he asked, or if I told the police, he'd hurt her. He also told me specifically not to tell you," she explained.
"The first thing he asked me to do seemed pretty innocuous. He was the one that sent me the mugshot of my mom, and he wanted me to publish it to knock her down a peg. I knew it would hurt her, but she had been going around spewing her nonsense against the South Side and honestly, I was sick of it. She was being a hypocrite, and I felt like I was justified in showing the town what she truly was."
Jughead remembered the shock of seeing the article posted in the Blue and Gold. Shocked not only by its content, but also by the fact that Betty had written such an explosive exposé without consulting him. She certainly never needed his permission to do anything, but he had thought it seemed like something she would have wanted his feedback on.
"She's barely spoken two words to me since the article ran. I didn't feel all that bad though, she had deserved it." Anger briefly flashed across her eyes before she continued on. Jughead had a thousand questions coursing through his brain, but her words flooded out of her.
"I got to ask him one question after I did his bidding. Anything I wanted, except his name. I asked if I would recognize his face, and he said I would. Then he told me to cut out someone else – Veronica." At this point, Betty's emotions seemed to be bubbling right under the surface.
"There was a party that night. A bunch of us went over to the Four Seasons. Veronica's awful New York buddy was there, and he started passing out Jingle Jangle to everyone, even Archie. It was absurd, and as I sat there watching them all, this anger exploded out of me. I said some really awful things, Jug. You should have seen the look on V's face as I told her that she would never change, that she would always be a stuck up party girl." Her voice cracked as she relived the memory of what she had spat at Veronica in the heat of the moment. Jughead felt himself cringe, knowing that Betty had thrown some of Veronica's biggest insecurities back in her face.
"I had never felt so disgusted with myself. I didn't mean any of the things I had said, but I had to. Seeing the look of hurt on Veronica's face was nothing compared to how it would have been to see her lying in a hospital, or worse…" Betty's emotions began to spill over. Her eyes were glazing over with tears, and Jughead noticed her hands curling tightly by her sides.
"I wanted him to stop. I had done what he asked and Jughead, I felt so alone. My family was avoiding me, and after the party I knew Veronica would never speak to me again. Even Kevin had looked at me that night like I was some kind of monster. Archie knew about the first few Black Hood calls, but after what I said to Veronica, I wondered if he'd be able to forgive me. I didn't think I could feel any lower. That was, until I got his next call telling me to cut out someone else."
As Betty was speaking, Jughead was sorting through the details in his mind. He was beginning to puzzle together a picture of what had happened, and he had a very strong hunch about what she was going to tell him next.
"It was you, Juggie." The tears in her eyes spilled over. Jughead felt his heart ache in his chest and closed his eyes tightly as he breathed through his nose.
"It was the worst thing he could have ever asked me. He told me to cut ties with you, or he would…" she trailed off, unable to even form the words. "I couldn't live with myself if anything happened to you Juggie, especially because of me." The fervor in her voice had died out, and her passionate storytelling was replaced with a broken whisper.
"I couldn't do it. I knew I'd never be able to tell you I didn't want to see you anymore, and even if I could I knew you'd see right through me. But Jughead you have to understand. You are the most important person in my life, and the thought of the Black Hood targeting you was unbearable." Betty looked at him squarely for the first time since she'd started talking. Her gaze implored him to understand, to realize that she had never meant to hurt him.
"So you sent Archie." It was a statement, not a question. When the redhead had appeared to deliver the news in Betty's place, he had been overcome with rage at her insensitivity. But now, he took a moment to consider what he would have done if it had been him on the phone with a killer who was threatening his girlfriend. He would have done anything to protect her, even if it meant breaking both of their hearts in the process. And she was right, he would have known something was off and demanded the truth. He knew that if they swapped places, it would have been the same.
Betty sank down onto the couch, her head in her hands.
"I'm so sorry Jughead. I will never forgive myself for what I did to you, and I understand if you can't either. I am so, so sorry." Her voice broke away and her shoulders shook as her emotions overcame her.
Jughead's mind was whirling, but without having to think he moved to sit next to her on the couch. Without hesitating, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her close against him. He pressed a fervent kiss to her hair.
"I forgive you."
He had meant it with all of his being. Despite his frustration that she had left him in the dark, he certainly didn't blame her for what she had been through. In fact, he was mostly overcome with guilt for not being there for her. He thought back to the day at Pop's, before everything went to hell. He brought back an image of her that day to his mind.
Her ponytail had been low and disheveled. She had bags under her eyes and her cheeks almost seemed sallow as she sat across from him and created the fantasy of running away and leaving it all behind. Jughead had been wrapped up in his own troubles, but he should have known. Seeing the Betty from that day in his mind, he should have known something was wrong. The way she had talked, the look in her eyes, almost begging him to realize that she needed help.
Jughead let out a deep sigh and lifted his hand to twirl the end of Betty's ponytail. He had come so close to losing her – hell, he thought he had for a few days. If he had ever questioned how important this girl was to him (and he hadn't), the time he had spent thinking she was gone certainly solidified his conviction to never let her go again.
In the quiet hours of the night, after Jughead had soothed Betty's fears and she had soothed his (especially regarding his instant confession about Toni), Betty had finished filling him in on the latest news with the Black Hood. He had been less than thrilled at how far she had gone to follow his orders (an abandoned house by Fox Forest? Alone? Was she crazy?!), but he couldn't help the turning up of his lips as she told him what she had said during her last phone conversation with the Black Hood.
It killed him that this cowardly monster had been able to push Betty Cooper so low, but he was proud at how she'd overcome her distress to see through his manipulation and say enough was enough. He wished desperately that he'd been there to help her back to her feet, but he was there now, and he was damn sure he'd make up for lost time.
"Hey Betts?" he prompted, running his hand across her shoulder and pulling her closer.
"Hmm?" she responded. Her eyes were still locked on Silence of the Lambs (a small detail that made Jughead's heart flood with adoration) until a few seconds of silence passed and she turned her gaze to meet his green eyes.
"Will you promise me something?"
She furrowed her eyebrows in concern as she fiddled with the book jacket to save her spot and turned slightly on the couch to see him better. The look in her eyes confirmed that she would likely promise him anything he asked without hesitation.
"We're a great team, but we can't help each other if we don't know what's going on with the other. Even if you think it might hurt me, will you promise to be honest with me?" He knew he was asking a lot, but the question had been weighing on him ever since their conversation had ended. Betty studied his face for a moment before reaching her hand up to his face to pull him in for a kiss.
"Juggie I will if you will" she responded honestly. They both knew this wouldn't be easy, but they also both understood that if they were going to get through Black Hoods and Red Circles and Ghoulies and Sugarmen, they would need to do it unequivocally together.
Jughead pulled back from the kiss and smiled as he put his hand between their faces with his pinky up. "Deal."
Betty smiled back fully at him and wrapped her own pinky around his. Jughead drew their joined hands towards his face and kissed her knuckles. They were going to make it.