Author's Note: I'm sorry this was delayed, I actually just got to catch up on riverdale after being SUPER far behind. Anyways, hope you like it.


Jason's lips always made Alicia second guess everything she knew. The way they felt against hers felt so right, but she knew everything about this situation was extremely wrong. Jason had parked down by the river, he had pulled a blanket out of the trunk and the two of them had been laying on the hood of his car simply enjoying the stars. It was such a romantic setting, yet as the cool spring air brushed over her skin she knew that wasn't the cause of her goosebumps.

"Jason." She breathed as she pushed lightly against his chest. He pulled up with that gorgeous smile that left her speechless. "I need to talk to you, you said we could talk this time."

"That was until I saw you in those jeans, Keller I am honestly not sure how you manage to make everything look this fucking good but..." Sweet words. All Jason ever said was sweet words. She pushed herself up and found herself pulling her knees to her chest. It must have been her closing herself off that finally sparked something in him that she hadn't seen before. "Fine, what is it?" He was annoyed, frustrated, he for once didn't sound like the prince charming but more like a boy who was told he wasn't allowed to play with his toys.

"Cheryl knows." Alicia bit her lips trying to regain any form of confidence she once had. She always felt so vulnerable around Jason, like he would crush her with a simple word. "I told her." She admitted, she couldn't deny the fear she felt when she watched Jason's expression grow more and more aggravated.

He ran his hand through his hair as he pushed himself up as well. "Of course you did." He bit his lip as he looked away from her. "Tell anyone else?" He asked clearly trying to figure out how to recover from hearing something that went against his plan.

"She already knew, or thought she knew." Alicia said thinking maybe it would make the situation feel less stressful.

"Did you tell anyone else?" Jason stated again, stronger this time.

"No."

"Good." Jason's eyes actually set fear into Alicia's being, for the first time since she had met the boy his reaction actually scared her. "Get in the car." She couldn't even read his voice for a hint of the boy she once knew.


For the first time in Alicia's high school experience she felt completely alone in a crowded gymnasium. She watched as Cheryl spoke in the assembly, with such ease and grace. It was almost unfair how she didn't appear to be as hurting as much as her friend knew she should. Ali had found herself crying herself to sleep over a boy who had never been officially hers, yet here his sister stood with elegance and grace. That was the difference between the Blossoms and everyone else.

Alicia closed her eyes, holding them tightly trying to not lose composure. When she reopened them she had to do a double take as she caught the eye of a boy from her class. Archie Andrews and his flaming red hair, it brought that flood of feeling that she had been fighting back to come rushing over her. She stood up and wove her way down the bleachers, and out into the hallway not noticing the footsteps following her as she ran towards the nearest rest room.

Alicia pushed through the door and into an open stall, pushing the door closed behind her, leaning her back against it trying to find a form of composure.

"Ali." Reggie's voice carried into the bathroom.

For the longest time, she had been told she deserved someone better than Reggie Mantle, but now every part of her wanted to scream that he deserved so much better than her.

"Ali." He said again this time, he was clearly in the bathroom.

"Reggie, this is the girl's room." The words choked out of Alicia's throat in a squeak.

"Yeah, but when your girlfriend runs out of an assembly crying, you kind of have to go check on her or be labeled the asshole of the century." That sense of humor that Ali had initially found so attractive in him. "Can you please come out of the stall?" His voice was earnest and kind, Ali's heart felt heavy. "Ali, can you please come out, I really don't want to explain why I'm in the girl's room if someone walks in." Desperation. If only Reggie knew how desperate Alicia felt in this moment.

Alicia tried to sift through the hundred of thoughts that raced through her mind in this moment but the words that can out of her mouth next would be words she would regret. "Since when aren't you the asshole of the century?" She asked her voice hanging in the empty room, a piece of plastic that was the stall door being the only thing that separated the two bodies in the small room.

"Seriously?" He tried to remain calm, she could hear it in his voice. "Ali, I am not having this conversation with a fucking bathroom stall." Alicia found herself spinning around to look at the door, the same door Reggie was staring at on the other side. As she reached for the handle, she heard him sigh. "Listen, I don't know... I don't know what is going on with you, but I want to help." She squeezed her eyes shut as she bit her lips together. She opened her eyes and pulled at the door to see the boy she had let down most in her entire sixteen years of life standing their with his hands shoved deeply into his Letterman jacket's pockets. She knew she didn't deserve this moment but the moment she found her face pressed against his chest and his arms around her, she felt a feeling of warmth wash over her cold heart. "Let me take you home, text Keller and tell him you're sick. We aren't going to miss anything." He said gently into her hair as he kissed the top of her head.

"Are you actually telling me to skip school on the first day?" She found herself almost laughing into his chest.

"The day's almost over, and I'll deal with Coach Clayton tomorrow. I'll run suicides for hours if you would stop crying." Reggie said pulling back trying to look into her eyes while she stared down at the floor. "We can head to my place if you don't want to risk running into your dad." She found her face being pulled up to look at him, "just please tell me what I did to be considered the asshole of the century." He said forcing a smile on both of their faces. He pulled off his jacket and wrapped it over her shoulder before walking out of the bathroom together and towards her locker, to get her bag and keys, she debated asking Reggie if he had even brought his truck today, typically Moose always drove or before his disappearance Jason, but it was rare occasions that Reggie drove. Those were typically when the two of them were on dates, or when Moose was sick, her doubts were put to an end when she reached in his pocket and felt his set of keys and a fuzzy little key chain that was attached. His lucky rabbits foot, that he had gotten out of one of those little quarter vending machine on their first date. Yet another reason, she didn't deserve him.


A week had passed since Jason had gotten angry with Alicia for telling Cheryl about their relationship if you could even call it that. He had gotten cold and distant since then, and though she missed his touch on her skin, she could almost feel her old self coming back to the surface. Reggie had asked if she would accompany him to a party hosted at Moose's house that weekend, it was a step closer to being back to normal. Until her phone rang on that Thursday evening.

"Hello."

"Can we talk?" His voice was a sweet melody that she knew was like a siren's call.

"About what?" She asked as she heard a tap on the window, she was standing in the kitchen and had been making a pitcher of sweet tea for her mother. She spun to see his porcelain skin and flaming hair standing outside her window. She lowered her phone from her face and felt a feeling of dread, did she truly have a choice if they spoke or not. He pointed to the door and she walked over to it, crossing her arms over her chest as she stepped out into the driveway behind their home. "Where'd you park?" She asked, her voice reading cold and trying to emphasize the distance she wish to keep from him in this moment.

"Down the block, by library." He said simply, it would be much easier to explain his car down there, then in front of the Keller home. She found herself nodding, not knowing what to say. "I miss you." He said so simply it made her feel cheap.

"You didn't even say goodbye," she pointed out. That night after her confession at the river, he told her to get in the car and dropped her off in front of her house for the first time, he didn't say a word as she climbed out of the car and walked up to her house.

"Cheryl was waiting for me, when I got home." He said looking at the ground, kicking at a rock on her driveway. "She asked how Polly was, and I told her. I told her I had no idea, because I was with you." He said, and Alicia found herself hugging her arms tighter around her. "She told me to fuck off and hasn't been speaking to me much since."

"I should probably take a lesson from her." Alicia found herself saying, "telling you to fuck off would make my life so much less complicated."

"I'll break up with Polly," those words found a spark in Alicia's chest that shook her. "I'll do it Sunday."

"Is that why your here?" She asked.

"No." He answered, before stepping forward and bringing his lips to hers. She knew she should push him away, at any moment Kevin could come downstairs and see them through the window, yet she couldn't bring herself to do it as the electric sparks coursed through her body. He placed his hand on her side and she felt the warmth she had associated with him, when she kissed Reggie and he touched her she never felt this warmth that seemed to radiate from Jason's touch. This kiss was gentle, like their first kiss back on that evening after that game. He pulled away and left her in awe, craving his lips back on hers in the naughtiest of ways.

Reggie, when she opened her eyes, just for a moment she saw Reggie. "I have a date tomorrow."

"Have as many as you want, I can't ask you not too. I'm not a hypocrite," he said simply. He took a step away from her and smiled, this was his way of telling her, he wanted her most. She knew it was but she always knew his pride wouldn't allow him to admit that.