Chapter 2

The car ride was meant to be spent composing herself. However, sitting behind Betty, whose window was rolled down the slightest, had quickly put an end to that plan. The breeze that flowed in and around Betty, making its way to Veronica, picked up the blonde's intoxicating scent on its journey. The crisp, fall air, laced with the fruity spice of Betty, filled Veronica's nose. Betty smelled like a peach pie; decadently sweet, but crisp and fresh, with the fiery, warming undercurrent of cinnamon. Veronica's mouth began to water. The sheer cliche of it all, as well as her own thorough ineptitude at subduing her now growing sexual appetite, had Veronica giving herself a vicious internal talk-down.

Come on, Lodge. Pull it together! This is so not Raven! And it's Betty. Sweet, smart, innocent, drop dead fucking sexy...NO! It's BETTY. Who is in love with ARCHIE. You're going to go to this club, fill your face with alcohol that wallets controlled by penises you have no intention of touching will buy you, and you will forget whatever stupid little pointless escapade that your incorrigible libido has cooked up!

Veronica was snapped out of her interior rant by the car coming to a stop in the parking lot behind a building that seemed to seep neon strobe lights through every crack, and pulse thick, bass-laden music from every window, vent, and door. As the sounds slipped in through Betty's open window, the blonde nervously turned and caught Veronica's now dancing, confident, deep brown eyes with her own thoroughly nervous green ones. Betty's eyes screamed, I am 100% regretting letting you talk me into this, Veronica Lodge. Betty's eyes snapped away when Kevin made his appearance at her door, and proceeded to excitedly yank her out, chanting about "Betty's first time at a club! It's going to be like that scene where Bambi learns to walk!" Veronica slipped out her own door and protectively laced her fingers through Betty's, giving them a reassuring squeeze,

"Oh pipe down, Sober Steve. You're just being bitter because Betty Bombshell over here is making us both look like we just rolled out of bed." Betty's eyes caught Veronica's and they crinkled with the gentle smile that adorned her lips as she gave Veronica's hand a soft, thankful stroke with the pad of her thumb. Veronica's self-righteous grin grew exponentially at the tender touch from the blonde, and she straightened, pulled her shoulders back, tilted her chin up, and stated, "Now let's light this bitch up," and strode confidently towards the doors, a nervously, but excitedly giggling Betty's hand still in hers, and Kevin grumbling something about Veronica becoming even more of a vengeful vampire at night, tailing them.

"Act like you belong. Show him the ID and just smile," Veronica whispered to Betty before letting go of the blonde's hand to pull her lovely new fake ID out of her clutch. They were no longer their 18-year-old selves; Veronica was now 22-year-old Carmella Lawson, Kevin was 22-year-old Teddy Butler, and Betty was the 21-year-old Emily Hayes. Betty rummaged for her own while Kevin and Veronica confidently displayed theirs to the bouncer, who barely gave them a second glance as he handed the shockingly unworn plastic cards back, and prepared to take Betty's. Betty's face solidified into the most plastic grin Veronica had ever seen, and she quickly faked a cough to stifle the laugh that came bubbling out of her at the blonde's painful effort. The bouncer's eyes combed the ID, and then Betty's frozen grin. His eyes narrowed slightly as he beheld her, but it didn't take long looking at the sheer adorable that was this absolute sex bomb reduced to a female cowardly lion to wear him down, and he soon shook his head, sighed softly, and gave a rueful smile,

"Enjoy yourselves," he chuckled, and passed the ID back into the hands of a trembling Betty. Betty hastily tucked the ID back into her purse and scrambled into the pulsating aura of the nightclub, hot on the heels of a still giggling Veronica and Kevin.

As the inner door opened, Betty was frozen by the sensory overload; the thick smell of sweet and sharp liquors mingled with countless colognes and perfumes, the pulsating beat of the music hammering in her ears, the dim atmosphere sporadically broken by a pulse of neon over a sea of intertwined, undulating bodies.

"So, what will your first drink be, my lady? Don't worry, Teddy over here is treating," Veronica grinned, casually turning towards Betty. However, her grin instantly melted into a frown as she laid eyes on the paralyzed blonde, her clutch held tight to her body, her eyes the size of saucers, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. Veronica strode toward her, effortlessly slicing through the crowd of incomers thronging around Betty's immobile form.

"Betts," Veronica called firmly, startled green eyes desperately flitting to hers as she placed her hand firmly on the small of Betty's back. "Come on, Betts. It's ok. I know it's a little Lord of the Flies your first time, all that gyrating and juvenile bloodlust, but trust me, this will be fun. Relax, and more importantly, trust me," Veronica spoke as softly as was possible over the music, never letting the firm, comforting presence of her hand slip from Betty's back as she slowly, surely guided the blonde toward the table Kevin was viciously guarding from other club goers.

"O-ok," Betty finally murmured and a smile stole over her lips as she caught Veronica's eyes, "I trust you, Ronnie". Veronica felt the blush rush to her face in a wave of heat, and she smiled much more broadly than she would ever admit as the blonde looked down lovingly at her and laced her own arm around Veronica's waist as they made their way towards Kevin.

"Well," Veronica chirped, "now you have to trust me to order your drink," and Betty smiled broadly.

"Just as long as I can still stand after, I will take whatever you get me," Betty replied. They had made their way to the table in a corner, a curved leather booth wrapping around a small metal table, and Betty slid in to hold down the fort whilst Veronica and Kevin went to the bar.

"Trust me, Betts, you'll be able to stand. After all, I want to see what you can do out on that dance floor," Veronica replied with a wink and a toothy grin, and then ushered Kevin towards the bar. As they sidled up to the bar to wait for the bartender's attention, Veronica could feel Kevin's eyes boring into the side of her face as her eyes combed the shelves, searching the bottles of booze for the perfect match for herself, but more importantly, for Betty. However, the staring was becoming distracting, and she sighed deeply and rolled her eyes toward the devilishly grinning Kevin.

"What?" Veronica groaned. Kevin's lips pulled into a tight smirk,

"Well, what do you think of your girl?" he prodded knowingly.

"My girl?" Veronica feigned innocence, and quite poorly, she had to admit.

"Oh come off it, Lodge," Kevin groaned, rolling his eyes. "Please don't insult me by insinuating that I'm as blindingly self-involved as Archie, or as blockheaded and clueless as Jughead, or any of the other cave trolls at Riverdale for that matter. I see the way you look at her. And I see the way she looks at you, too." Veronica snapped to attention. The way Betty looked at her?

"What do you mean, Kevin? Betty is hopelessly in love with Archie. She has been since they were four. You know that better than anyone," she responded, hoping she had embedded her question in enough deflection for Kevin to miss her obvious hope that Betty indeed did look at her in some significant way.

"Maybe she doesn't know it, but that girl wants you. That's what I mean. If you don't believe me, turn around," Kevin challenged, crossing his arms over his chest and watching Veronica expectantly. Veronica shrugged as though she was doing Kevin a favor by indulging him, but her heart leapt into her throat with a force that indicated it was trying to escape her body as she turned slowly back towards their table. Betty's eyes were instantly locked on hers. Once again Betty's plump bottom lip was being worried between her teeth, but Veronica could perceive, even from across the expanse of the club, that it was fevered anticipation, the barely bridled machinations of one completely enamored with the subject of their gaze that had the blonde's pearly whites grazing the plump, glossed, pink bottom lip. Her green eyes glinted like emeralds under the shifting light, and they pulled gently upwards as they were touched by the ripples of a smile that caused a sharp intake of breath in the brunette. Veronica turned back to the bar and the gloating Kevin.

"Seeeeee?" he grinned, both at his victory and the vicious blush that was roaring like a wildfire up Veronica's chest and neck, into her cheeks. His gloating was only interrupted by the bartender,

"What can I get you two?" the bartender asked, smilingly at Veronica, and, she suspected, flexing the visible biceps under his tight black shirt a little more than was necessary as he leaned toward her over the bar to hear her over the aural inferno of the club.

"Two shots of tequila, a pineapple and vodka, and an Old Fashioned," Veronica answered matter-of-factly, making it blatantly obvious he would not be one of the things on the menu tonight. "Knob Creek for the Old Fashioned," she added, before the bartender could ask.

"Club soda with lemon, please," Kevin placed his order as well, eyeing Veronica curiously. "I'm assuming you have a plan?" Kevin queried as they waited for their drinks.

"I'm just going to throw a little bourbon on that smokeshow and see if I can't get it to turn into a fire," Veronica grinned devilishly, sneaking a peek over her shoulder back at the blonde, who quickly looked away, feigning that her eyes had been anywhere other than trained on the brunette's backside.

"Oh this is going to be so good," Kevin practically cheered, bouncing giddily on his toes, taking the club soda the bartender returned with, and passing him a sufficient number of bills for the groups drinks in exhange. Veronica picked up the tray that contained the shots, each adorned with a lime wedge, a shaker of salt placed amongst them, the Old Fashioned and vodka pineapple sitting neatly on the other side of the tray. The pair made their way back through the crowd toward Betty, whose eyes grew wider at the amount of alcohol heading her way. Veronica ceremoniously placed the drinks on the table in front of her, Kevin took a seat at the end of the booth on Betty's opposite side, and Veronica slid into the booth next to Betty, sliding close enough for their thighs to touch. Betty didn't even flinch at the sudden guest in her personal space, but instead her eyes flitted to Veronica's lips as the brunette gave a playful smirk and lifted one of the tequila shots towards her.

"Betts, I think it's time for your first body shot," Veronica simpered, and removed the lime wedge from the small glass now clasped in Betty's fingers, and used her free hand to sweep aside her curtain of hair and gave a gentle squeeze of the lime against the side of her neck, leaving a trail of juice shimmering there, onto which she quickly shook a line of salt.

"Salt, shot, lime," Veronica directed simply, and gently took the lime wedge between her teeth, turning her hooded black eyes towards Betty, just in time to see the blonde's tongue dart over her lips as her green eyes lifted from Veronica's neck, to her lips, and then up to meet Veronica's equally blown pupils.