Betty followed Jughead to his car, pleasantly surprised when he took the time to open the door for her. "Just a minute," he told her, sticking his head into the car to brush something off the seat. "I didn't want to chance you ruining your skirt from the ashes. Go ahead, hop in." Betty did as told. The corvette may have been beat up from the outside, but the inside was in pristine condition. She could tell Jughead maintained it well.
She watched him slid across the hood before sliding into the driver's seat beside her. He turned the engine over, revving it before taking off. Nervous to make any eye contact with Jughead, Betty focused her attention out the window, watching the town she'd grown up to love pass by in a blur.
Silence hung like a dense fog in the space between them, neither saying a word. Betty kept smoothing out the wrinkles in her skirt, overly aware of the fact that she was riding front seat in Jughead's rag. If all her friend's hadn't been there to witness it, she doubted they would have believed her when she told them.
Jughead reached for the dial to turn on the radio, attempting to drown out the quiet. "You can change it to whatever you'd like," He said offhandedly, returning his attention to the dark road ahead. Betty shuffled through the stations, settling on one of her favorites.
"June Carter, huh?" Jughead looked over to her and raised his eyebrows. "Any chance you're a fan of Johnny Cash?"
Betty nodded. "I love him. There's something so undeniably raw about his music. He has a talent for creating an entire story out of his songs."
"I can appreciate that, he's my number one go to. I have his 8 track in the glove box if you want to take a listen."
Betty popped in the track and they listened to Johnny as they cruised. She sang along quietly under her breath, noticing Jughead steal glances at her out of the corner of her eye. Embarrassed, she stopped singing and just nodded her head along to the beat of the music.
Not before long, Jughead turned down a narrow drive canopied by evergreens and maple trees. He reached to turn down the radio and pulled into a spot right along the edge of the river. "I'll be right back."
Jughead exited the car and reached up to pull the rag top back. "What are you doing?" Betty asked. "It's cold outside."
"I think you'll survive Betty Crocker. Remember, you're the one with a jacket on in this situation." He laughed and continued to put the top back. She held his jacket closer to her body for warmth, swimming in the scent of cigarettes and laundry detergent. Once Jughead was finished he jumped over the side, falling into the backseat. He patted the leather beside him. "Care to join me?"
Betty bit her lip, swallowing the lump that formed in her throat. "No thanks," she choked out. "I'm comfortable up here." She could feel his eyes on her, analyzing her body language. She refused to budge from her spot, unsure of what his intentions were.
"Alright." Jughead stood up and swung his legs over the seat, gracefully settling into the seat next to her
For a moment it was quiet. The question Betty had been dying to ask ever since they fled from Pop's lingered on her tongue. "Why did you invite me out here Jughead? Why not one of your friends or one of Cheryl Blossom's many minions?"
He paused with a thoughtful look on his face. "Has anyone ever brought you here, Betty?" She shook her head, about to push him to answer her questions but he cut her off. "And why is that? Because surely boys have asked you."
Despite the cold Betty's hands were starting to clam up under Jughead's interrogation. She looked out over the river and answered, her voice barely above a whisper. "I've always told them no." Her fingers clutched the sleeves of his jacket, hugging it closer to her body for security.
"That's what I thought. So let me ask you a question, before I answer yours. Why'd you say yes this time, to me that is?"
Betty rested her gaze in her lap, unable to meet Jughead's piercing stare. She'd seen the way he looked at her, catching him when he thought she wasn't watching. She didn't understand what he found so interesting about her, knowing fully well that she was anything but Jughead's type. But the last few weeks he'd been cordial to her, making her laugh and smile despite the constant stress that seemed to weigh her down. She appreciated his company, even welcomed it most times. So Betty shrugged and finally looked up from her lap. "I don't know really, I was curious to see what would happen."
Jughead exhaled slowly, "And what do you think so far?"
She drew in her lip and shifted slightly on the seat. "I'm glad I said yes." Betty shivered in the crisp autumn air. She still wasn't one hundred percent sure of what to make of Jughead. In all the years that she'd known him, she'd never seen the side of him that kept sneaking out whenever they spent time together as just the two of them. There was more to Jughead than she'd thought, and she'd only just breached the surface.
Jughead threw an arm around her shoulder and scooted in closer to her. His eyes were scanning her face, wondering if he'd gone too far by the simplest of gestures. Betty didn't push him away, but she didn't want him getting any closer either. They'd just barely become friends, if she could even refer to him as that. She didn't want to move too fast. And from what she'd heard about Jughead, fast was the only speed he knew.
He wanted to kiss her; that much he knew as he watched Betty take in the view before them. She kept mindlessly biting her lip, completely oblivious of the effect it had on him. He wanted all of her in a way he'd never wanted another human being before. He wanted to know how someone so perfect ended up in a world that didn't deserve her kindness. Betty was absolutely breathtaking, and the way the moonlight reflected in her eyes made his heart go into overdrive.
Betty caught him in his brooding stare. "What?"
Jughead raised a steady eyebrow, instantly directing his gaze to the sky. "I like spending time with you Betty," Jughead said to a sky full of stars and constellations with names he didn't know but could only guess.
"I like spending time with you too, Jughead." He could sense the smile in her voice. He refocused his eyes back to her face, zeroing in on her full, pink lips. Before he could stop himself he was leaning in, eyelids fluttering shut, going in for the kill. At the last second Betty turned her head and Jughead's lips grazed her soft cheek.
Hastily he pulled back. "I'm sorry, was that too much?"
She shook her head, unable to meet his eyes. "Will you take me home now?"
Jughead frowned and backed away, noticing the way her hands balled into fists in her lap. He was curious by the act, but not enough to pry. Instead he turned the engine over and pulled back onto the road without another word.
In his rush to remove them from the awkward situation, Jughead forgot to put the top back on. He blasted the heat, making sure Betty stayed warm on the drive home. Again, he flipped on the radio, unable to stand the silence between them.
He shouldn't have tried to kiss her. What he was thinking, he didn't know. Maybe it was what she said, or the way she looked when she smiled at him. Whatever it was he felt like an idiot, swallowing the pity he felt for himself and focused his attention on the road.
After what felt like an eternity he'd pulled up to her house. "Thank you." Betty mumbled, refusing to look at him and rapidly excusing herself from the car.
"Bye Betty," he called to her retreating back, waiting until she was safe inside before driving off.
The clock on the dash read a few minutes past ten. It was too early to go home, so he went to the one place he knew he'd be welcome.
Pop's had died down since he'd left earlier with Betty. He grabbed his bag from the floor on the backseat and headed inside. Archie and Cheryl were still there, along with a few others from school scattered throughout the diner. He waltzed over to them, hands in the pockets of his jeans, realizing Betty still had his jacket.
"So how'd it go with little miss perfect?" Archie asked, removing his arm from Cheryl's shoulder and leaning across the linoleum table to talk to Jughead.
Resisting embarrassment for the second time that evening, Jughead shrugged and ordered a burger. "It was OK, we had a good time."
Cheryl butt in, "Betty Cooper doesn't know how to have a good time."
Archie snorted into his milkshake, in obvious agreeance with Cheryl. Jughead ignored them both and grabbed the cigarette tucked behind his ear. He lit up, touching his fingers to his lips and remembering the way it felt to brush them against Betty's cheek. His face was flushed. He could feel the heat from his toes all the way to the tips of his ears.
Jughead didn't allow himself to hope for much, but in this moment he hoped he still had a chance with the girl of his dreams. Although who was he kidding? Girls like Betty Cooper didn't fall for boys like Jughead Jones.