To Be Strong
Betty groaned as she glanced towards her ringing cell phone, the number of the twins' school flashing on the display screen.
"I am so sorry Miss Vane. I wasn't aware of the time and I had to meet a deadline," Betty was apologizing the second her phone touched her ear. The second grade teacher merely chuckled at the apologies the blonde was saying.
"You're not late Miss Cooper. It's only lunch time. However, I am calling you for a reason. Jason got into a fight today, and I would like to talk to you about that if you're available," Miss Vane stated, and Betty knew this was going to be a tiresome conversation.
"Of course. I should be at the school in ten minutes," Betty answered before ending the call and sliding into the driver's seat of her mini cooper. Slipping the key into the ignition, she inhaled a deep breath in hopes of steadying herself before she needed to face the teacher. This was going to be a long talk and she didn't know if she would be able to sit through it.
Jughead groaned at the number flashing on the display screen, recognizing it as Jellybean's school.
"I'm not late picking Jellybean up am I?" he questioned once the receiver touched his ear. A chuckle was his answer before the voice of Jellybean's second grade teacher replied.
"No Mister Jones, you're not. I was calling to inform you of the parent teacher conference we have scheduled for twelve thirty, which is in fifteen minutes," she answered, easily.
"Shit, right. I'll be there," he replied, ending the call before searching the work site for Fred. Jughead had been working at Andrews construction since he was eighteen, ending his life as a Serpent the moment Jellybean came into his life.
"Fred, I have to bounce," Jughead started the moment Fred Andrews came into sight. He quirked an eyebrow in question, watching Jughead pull the hard hat from his head and replace it with his crown beanie.
"I have to be at a parent teacher conference in fifteen minutes. There have been issues with bullies. Jellybean's just recently told me about it, and I'm hoping to put a stop to it as soon as possible," Jughead explained.
"All you had to say was Jellybean was involved. Go ahead. I'm sure the other guys and I can handle this until you get back," Fred answered, waving the twenty four year old man he saw as a second son away.
"Thanks Fred, I owe you one," he called as he jogged away from the sight and made his way to his dad's beat up old pick up that he refused to trade in.
Betty sighed once she pulled into a space in front of the school, shutting off her engine and sliding out of her mini cooper. She loved working with her mom, helping run the Register after her dad left them. She loved writing, it was just exhausting attempting to meet these deadlines while raising the twins. Running her slender fingers through her honey blonde hair, she couldn't help the sigh of relief that escaped her lips after releasing her hair from the tight bun she wound the strands into that morning. Her hair had grown out, ending at her lower back, and it was to heavy for her usual tight ponytail. She began experimenting with hairstyles, especially since Bee loved it when Betty did her hair for school. She easily made her way towards Miss Vane's second grade classroom, managing to slip past all of the children running towards the playground after enjoying their lunch. The sight that greeted her caused her to pause. Jason and Beatrice were sitting in chairs against the wall, eyes trained on their hands which were folded in their laps. Whenever they thought they were in trouble, that was what they would do, Betty was very familiar with it. However what caused her to pause was the little girl seated in between the twins with long raven black hair that was styled into a fish tail braid. She was whispering quietly to the twins, obviously uncaring as to whether or not she would be scolded by the teacher or not.
"Don't worry so much. I'm sure your aunt won't be to mad with you," the little girl spoke softly, her small hand covering Jason's closed fists.
"And don't do that. You're hurting yourself. Stop," Betty couldn't help the small smile that danced on her lips at the little girl's bossy tone.
"JB, you don't understand. Aunt Betty hates violence. She told us we shouldn't fight," Bee whispered, or attempted to whisper to the other girl, shaking her red curls wildly. JB huffed, obviously annoyed with having to reassure her two friends. Before the young girl could say more though, the doors to the class room were ripped open by a tall, toned, broad shoulder man. He was wearing a black wife beater and worn jeans which rested low on his hips. Betty's eyes widened slightly at the sight of the stranger with rippling muscles as he pushed his large hand into his messy raven curls. Betty watched as the three kids glanced up finally, Jason and Bee noticing her while their friend saw the man behind her.
"Juggie!" Every muscle in Betty's body tensed at the nickname, her meadow green eyes widening even more as she realized the man she had been ogling was her ex-boyfriend.
"Jellybean," his voice was deeper, rougher, and Betty closed her eyes as she shivered at the sound. The raven haired little girl was out of her seat and across the room in a matter of seconds, her arms wrapping around Jughead's neck and her legs wrapping around his waist. That was when Betty noticed the sleeve of tattoos covering his right arm. She turned her attention towards her niece and nephew as she watched Jughead lean in to kiss the little girl on the cheek.
"So I got a call from Miss Vane,"Betty began quietly, quirking an eyebrow as she crouched in front of the twins, knowing they would tell her what had happened before the teacher came to collect them.
"It wasn't his fault Aunt B," Beatrice protested, pushing herself until she was on the edge of her seat. Betty cocked her head to the side, focusing her bright green eyes on the little girl in front of her.
"It wasn't? Than who's fault was it Bumble Bee?" Betty questioned, knowing the use of the familiar nickname would take the sting out of her words.
"Patrick Turner wouldn't leave JB alone. He kept making fun of her because her mom left her and her dad is in prison," Jason finally growled, crossing his arms over his chest and fixing a glare on the wall just over Betty's shoulder.
"I'm sorry, what? You told me these kids were messing with you because of your name Jellybean, not because of that?" she heard the fury in Jughead's voice as he heard what Jason told her. She noticed how both Beatrice and Jason watched the man across from them, holding their friend as if she were made of glass. His brow was furrowed, and she could see the anger in his storm blue eyes.
"I might have fibbed a little. I didn't want you to worry Juggie. They're just being stupid kids. And plus, I can take care of myself. What they say, what they think, it doesn't bother me," Betty could tell in that moment the little girl was related closely to Jughead, his attitude had been the very same when they had been children.
"Jellybean, I thought we agreed, no lying," Jughead chided lightly, shaking his head before turning to look at the twins, staring at them from over Betty's head.
"I'm thinking I should be thanking you two. The famous J.J and Bee?" Betty stood to her full height in her six inch heels, taking a step to the side as Jughead took a step towards the twins, dropping his six feet three inch frame into a crouch in front of them.
"Thank you for looking out for Jellybean. Not a lot of people would do that. You two are true friends," he commented quietly, offering them a soft smile. Betty watched in amazement as Jason only shrugged his shoulders before Beatrice spoke up.
"It's the least we could do. She looked after us when Patrick mentioned our parents," she stated, her jaw set in a familiar stubborn way that reminded Betty of Polly and herself.
"Still, you two ever need anything, just let me know," Jughead vowed, and Betty could swear she almost swooned. She was tempted to say something before Miss Vane interrupted them.
"Miss Cooper, I can see you now," she watched as Jughead whipped towards her, eyes widening fractionally before she stepped forward, past him and into the office space the teacher had been given.
"So why exactly was I called in today?" Betty questioned once she was seated, legs crossed and hands folded over her knee. Miss Vane cleared her throat, obviously thinking over her words before she began to speak.
"A few months back, a couple of the bigger kids began to bully Jason and Beatrice because they were orphaned at such a young age, and everything surrounding their family history. Those children left the twins alone after a few weeks, that was why I didn't say anything about. It appears, Patrick and his friends set their eyes on Jellybean. She's been holding her own these last few weeks, and her brother was the one who actually brought it to my attention, he suspected she was being bullied and I noticed a few days later that he was correct. Mister Jones and I had set a meeting to talk about it with Jellybean and take further action. However today, on the playground, Jason took matters into his own hands, and Beatrice helped. He hit Patrick when he noticed him and his friends pushing Jellybean," Miss Vane paused, watching as Betty's eyes widened at her words.
"Jason didn't like the way they were treating her, and Beatrice had agreed. They chased the boys away after Jason punched Patrick. The principle isn't very happy and wishes for me to punish the children, however I think what they did was very brave. I'll be assigning them a paragraph on what it means to be good friends. Patrick and his friends will be assigned a paragraph on what it means to be better people," Miss Vane finished, folding her hands on top of her desk and waiting for any protest from the younger woman across from her.
"That sounds reasonable. I taught J.J and Bee that violence doesn't solve everything. However from what I heard, this boy deserved it," Betty said with a satisfied nod. Miss Vane offered a smile, pushing to her feet and leading the blonde woman out the door.
"Thank you for understanding. The twins are free to go home with you for the day," she stated once they were out of the office. The sight that greeted Betty was one that surprised her.
Jughead was seated on the floor in front of the three plastic chairs, Jellybean seated in his lap as he listened intently to a story the twins were telling him. Betty shook her head, pushing the old feelings that rose from the sight away before drawing the attention of her niece and nephew.
"Okay you two. Extra homework tonight, not to mention a chat from both me and Grandma. Let's hit the road," Jason groaned while Bee pouted before sliding from the chairs and going towards their table to gather their bags.
"JB, right?" Betty questioned once the twins were at the table. She watched the way Jughead tensed, his hand tightening fractionally against his jean clad thigh.
"Yep," she answered popping the 'p' as she turned her attention to the pretty blonde.
"Thank you for looking after my twins. They don't make friends easily, but from what they've told me, you just wouldn't take no for an answer," she ended with a small smile, watching the bright grin that stretched across the little girl's face, her two front teeth missing.
"'s no problem. They looked like they needed more than each other," was all she said before shrugging. Betty glanced up, noticing Jughead watching her with a familiar guarded look. Betty noticed that the little girl's attention was no longer on her, returning to chatting away in her brother's ear.
"I thought it was Joaquin's turn to watch me today?" Betty caught the question before turning away to watch the twins sluggishly put their things away. She rolled her eyes at the sight, knowing they were prolonging the inevitable.
"It was before I remembered the meeting I set up with your teacher. Next time you decide you want to slug someone, talk to me first. You still need a few lessons on how to throw a proper punch Jumping Bean," she heard Jughead reply, before heading towards the twins, knowing she needed to get out of there quickly, and make a phone call. Shaking the familiar feelings away, she grabbed each of the twins' hands before leading them out of the school. She needed distanced, she needed space. She left the school, refusing to look back.
A/N: Next chapter will have the meeting between Jughead and the teacher. And maybe Veronica, Archie, and Kevin make an appearance. Still planning that chapter out. Enjoy and feel free to let me know what you thought.
