Hey guys! I swear I'm alive and typing, just very slowly. I've been away from writing for a bit to clear my head. More chapters to come!
I wanted to thank all of you guys who are reading, silent or reviewing.
Special thanks to: TheBrightestOfBlues and Destinie Harms for that extra kick in my butt to update xD
Enjoy!
Info:
Rating: T
Word count: 4273
Chapter count: 7/?
Faceclaim:
Ruby Wolfe – India Eisley
Jo Wolfe – Adrian Paul
Mattie – Elle Fanning
Lucas Bradshaw – Lucas Till
Leviathan 'Levi' - Emjay Anthony
Galadriel 'El' - Maddison Brown
Chapter 7: Ready, get set, go!
Ruby was moving on an automatic the whole time. Jughead actually had to take her hand and lead her out of the Mustang to join the crowd of onlookers. They were all watching as the Sheriff's department unfurled a long, yellow tape around the access point to the river, organizing inflatable boats with motors on the bank to search the area. Ruby saw a redheaded girl, in pure white, being handed a blanket and spoken to by the officers before they walked her over to a couple on the bank with the same flaming hair. The woman looked positively broken, while the man seemed to be holding on by some miracle.
"Those are the Blossoms." Jughead supplied, knowing that Ruby wasn't well-acquainted with all the Riverdale residents. With a small nod, she watched the couple hug their daughter as the woman cried. "Cheryl and Jason are, or were, twins." The boy kept talking.
"Must be horrible for her." The girl replied in a low tone. Then, her phone rang and Ruby moved away from the scene, tearing her eyes away from the redheaded family in mourning. "Ruby," she picked up.
"Hey, hon. Where'd you guys go?" Jo's voice came from the other end of the line, a little groggy. "The car was gone and there was no note. I got a bit worried."
"Sorry, dad," Ruby replied. "Archie called. Someone named Jason Blossom drowned in the Sweetwater River this morning. Jughead and I went to check it out."
"Blossom? Get out of there, Ruby," Jo's voice became clear instantly, focused. It got Ruby to snap out of her fugue state and focus, as well. She instantly became more aware of the chatter of the onlookers and the slight breeze in her hair. "Listen to me. Come home. Now."
"Okay. Should I bring Jughead with me?" The girl asked, turning to see the teen still watching the scene.
"If he wants to. If not, leave him. Watch your own skin first." Jo instructed and then, the line cut off. Ruby took the phone away from her ear and looked at it for a second, wondering what Jo's tone was all about. She made her way back up the rocky path to Jughead.
"Hey, Jo called," she told him. "He said to head home, he wants to grab some food. You wanna join us?" Ruby asked, watching his face. Jughead's eyes flickered from the boats to Ruby and then back.
"Sure, I'll come." Ruby texted her father that she would head out to Pop's for some breakfast before coming home.
It was that same day, in the evening, after Ruby had dropped Jughead off at the Drive-In for work, that Chili tore out the open door and started barking down their driveway. Ruby stood from her spot in front of the newly set up TV, courtesy of Jo and Jughead, to call the dog back and welcome their guest. Soon enough, a familiar man in uniform was walking up the front steps.
"Good evening, Ruby," Sheriff Keller greeted. "Is your father at home?" The girl hesitated for a second, but moved aside to let the man enter the house and pointed him to the kitchen.
"I'll go get him for you," she told the officer. "Please, help yourself to some coffee." The girl hopped up the stairs, knocking before she entered the master bedroom on the first floor. Her father turned, in the middle of folding some of his clothes before placing them into the large wardrobe his grandfather used to use.
"What's up, kiddo?" Jo asked.
"Sheriff Keller's here to see you." Jo frowned, but followed her back downstairs. They found the Sheriff standing awkwardly in their kitchen, not having touched anything. "How do you take your coffee, sir?" Ruby asked politely, getting three cups out.
"Black," the man replied with a nod. "Jo, I need to talk to you," Jo glanced at Ruby.
"Whatever you have to say, feel free to do so in front of my daughter," the former SEAL told the Sheriff. "We have an honesty policy in this family." The Sheriff nodded, looking around before speaking again.
"Can you account for your whereabouts this morning?" He asked, accepting the cup Ruby gave him. The teen froze in place, not picking up her own coffee or giving Jo his. Her father let out a small grumble.
"Really, Tom?" Jo's tone was anything but friendly. "You think I make my business out of drowning kids?" Ruby was glad that she hadn't picked up her cup, because she definitely would've dropped it then. Her eyes were positively icy when they looked at the Sheriff again.
"It's my business to ask, Jo," the Sheriff replied. "You're new in town, known for your work in the army. You certainly have the knowledge for making a boy drown and leaving no trace." Jo's form was like carved out of stone. He stood complexly still for a few moments.
"I wasn't at Sweetwater River this morning," the man replied. "I was here, cleaning up and settling in."
"Can anyone vouch for your whereabo-"
"I can," Ruby interrupted the man in an icy tone. "So can Jughead. My father was up after us and he was unpacking his boxes the whole morning." She moved to the side, passing her father who was still standing like an iron rock, the veins in his arms bulging from anger. "Now, if that's all, we'd like you to leave, Sheriff."
"Of course," Sheriff Keller replied, going to the door. "Thank you for the coffee and I'm sorry for the inconvenience." He spoke from the entrance.
"It was no problem," Ruby walked behind him with a soft smile on her face that sent a shiver down the Sheriff's back. He turned to leave, but the girl stopped him on the front steps. "Oh, and sir," the Sheriff turned to see the girl standing there, glaring at him. For a brief second, he was reminded of how Jo Wolfe used to look back in high school, when he was quite a bit of trouble. "If you have any more questions, please bring a warrant." The front door closed in his face without a sound. Sheriff Keller sighed, walking down the front steps and to his cruiser.
The rest of Ruby's summer passed quickly, unsurprisingly without another visit from Sheriff Keller, with or without the warrant. And, before she knew it, she was choosing her classes online and picking the outfit for her first day over facetime with Mattie. She'd spent the rest of her summer mostly texting Toni and Fangs, occasionally meeting up at Pop's or at the Drive-In. The two had been pumped to see that the hood of her Mustang was perfect for watching a movie with a few buckets of popcorn and a soft blanket. They'd made fun of the girl and her unicorn patterned sheet, too. When she wasn't with the two Serpents, Ruby was with Jughead or Archie. Not together, as they'd had some kind of a blow-out in between them. The most she got from either was that Archie had bailed on their 4th of July plans at the last minute. And, neither she nor Jughead had managed to figure out why, only that it was big.
"No, superwoman, you can't go like that!" Mattie exclaimed in horror as she surveyed Ruby's dark jeans and black Supernatural themed shirt combo. "You need to make a splash, even if you're going to a weird school now," the girl grumbled. "Get that dress that I bought you last winter. The pink one with the sweetheart neckline."
"Okay," Ruby went back to her closet, now perfectly arranged and color-coded, and began rummaging. "Just so you know, wearing pink at this school… I'm going to stand out."
"That's the point!" Mattie squealed when Ruby pulled out the dress from one of her piles of pink clothing, all given to her by her friend. "Perfect! Now, all you need is a pair of tights or some pale jeans," Ruby got on top of the task instantly, rummaging. She had a pair of washed out jeans in her hands soon enough. "Great," Mattie nodded in approval. "You've got some pink flats, too, right? Oooh, and some make-up." The rest of Ruby's morning was spent in applying the pale pink eyeshadow and some mascara, along with rose lip-gloss, while Mattie guided her.
"You're sure that that outfit is the best way to go for your first day at South High?" Jo asked when he saw his daughter come down the stairs and join him in the kitchen for a quick bite before school.
"Mattie approved." Ruby nodded, grabbing some toast and hummus, before filling up her travel mug with coffee.
"Stay alert, then." Her father told her, passing the salt. Ruby finished her breakfast standing and grabbed her pastel blue messenger bag.
"Always am, dad." She threw a few punches his way, in the air, mockingly. "Give me a ride?"
The front doors of Southside High looked more ominous than Ruby remembered them to be. She sat in the passenger seat of the Mustang for a few more moments before she took a deep breath, grabbed her bag and exited the car. She slammed the door closed, getting a few looks from the crowd on the front steps, all dressed in dark color in a huge contrast to her peppy outfit. Ruby didn't mind them, though. She walked around the Mustang and stuck her head through the driver's window, giving Jo a kiss on the cheek.
"Knock them dead." He encouraged, driving off. Ruby took another deep breath, slowly exhaling and then turned around, facing the entrance. By then, she definitely had the attention of the students out front, whispers going between them and curious looks tossed her way. But, Ruby was in her bubble. She took out her earphones and plugged them into her phone, throwing her playlist on shuffle. Nicki Minaj came on with a fierce rap from No Frauds. In Ruby's opinion, it was the perfect soundtrack. With a giggle, she hopped up the front steps, not shying away from the dangerous looking crowd, but waiting for them to move out of her way with a steady glare.
She headed for the teachers' lounge after passing the metal detectors, in order to get her schedule and locker combination and number. Nora seemed as bored as always as she handed out the papers to various students like a machine. Ruby grabbed hers and pushed through the buzzing crowd, heading down the hallways to find her locker. It was located in the area for sophomores, like Lucas had shown her earlier that summer. Ruby opened it and found it full of empty wrappers, some kinds of colorful straws, which reminded her of candy canes and cigarette buds. As some of the wrappers fell out onto her feet she heard chuckling from behind her. There was a group of boys and girls, pointing at her and laughing at the contents of her locker. Ruby wouldn't be deterred. A bit of trash was nothing she hadn't expected.
The girl pulled out two plastic bags from her back pocket, proceeding to use one as a makeshift glove and the other as a trash bin. She soon had an empty, yet dirty locker. Then, she tossed her 'glove' away into the plastic bag and hung it on the edge of the metal door. She dug out the packet of wet wipes from her bag and wiped the inside of the locker completely clean, tossing away wipes until the last one came completely white. When she was satisfied, she took out a packet of stickers from her messenger bag. On the door of her locker, she plastered a few colorful unicorns and rainbows, hearing the laughter increase behind her. Ruby turned, seeing the same group from before losing it at the sight.
"I love unicorns." The girl told them with a sugary tone, winking at the end. They laughed even harder. When she was done, Ruby took the trash bag and closed her locker, leaving it empty. She stuffed the leftover supplies back into her messenger bag. Her spot stood out horribly against the other doors, which were all tagged with graffiti. Hers was plastered with pink, yellow and blue unicorns and rainbows. Altogether, she was happy with her work.
"You're going to get so much crap in your locker for that, new girl," a girl had wandered over from the laughing group, leaning casually on the lockers next to Ruby's. She was quite pretty, with short, red hair in an asymmetric style and multiple piercings on her face. "I'm El, sophomore."
"Like Eloise or Elena?" Ruby asked, offering her hand. "I'm Ruby. Ruby Wolfe. I'm a sophomore, too." El shook her hand.
"Like Galadriel," El groaned out, making Ruby giggle. "My parents were too high and too into Tolkien when they named me. But, you might just have a weirder name than I do. Why not put a red wolf on your locker instead?" The obviously gothic teen asked. "This will really get you a lot of crap."
"That's a pretty cool name, still. I wish mine had such a backstory," Ruby laughed. "I got it because my dad proposed to my mom with a ruby gemstone necklace," El gave her a raised eyebrow look. "To be fair, they were in Afghanistan and he couldn't find anything else."
"Sweet," El replied in a bored tone. "Did she say yes and make him a number of babies afterwards?" The girl waved at some of the passing teens who nodded back.
"She said no, actually. She didn't want to get married," Ruby elaborated. "And, I'm an only child. By the way, I'm alright with a bit of crap in my locker until I build some kind of rep here. Then, I might consider a red wolf." At that, El laughed.
"Gimmie your schedule, gurl. Let's see if we have any classes together."
In the end, they only had Trig together. But, Ruby wasn't too concerned with having El in her classes. She found that Toni and Fangs were in her first period, English 10, along with Sweet Pea. Ruby had waved at them, getting an eager greeting back from the former two and a glare from the tall biker. It was a clear message not to associate with them. So, she had chosen a seat up front, ready to get some work done. Her next period, Biology, she also had with the Serpents. She knew Sweet Pea and easily recognized Gorgonhead in the back. However, she didn't bother saying hi then. Then, she had Trig with El and some of her friends, who'd welcomed her into their circle readily, and finally, lunch.
Ruby had listened to Lucas about bringing her own food to school. And, she instantly realized that it was good advice. The cafeteria food, meatloaves, peas and something suspiciously gooey on the side, looked positively revolting. Despite El waving her over, the girl politely declined the invitation and chose a table near the wall, which was empty, away from any large groups of people. She sat down and took out her phone and her lunch, preparing to talk to Mattie as she ate. But, as soon as she shot off her first text, along with a stealthy picture of her English class and professor, someone sat in front of her.
"Hey, new girl," Ruby looked up to see that Levi had joined her, carrying a tray of cafeteria food. "Disgusting, I know," he laughed at her wrinkled nose. "But, I had no choice today. How were your morning classes?"
"Pretty okay. I made some friends and I think I'll be doing an essay for extra credit in English. What about yours?" Ruby asked, opening her Ziplock and taking out her sandwich.
"Mmm," Levi swallowed a piece of his meatloaf. "Boring, mostly. Anatomy is going to kick my ass, I already know."
"Isn't that an AP class for seniors?" Ruby was a little shocked. And, by Levi's laugh, it showed on her face.
"Yeah, what can I say? I've got both the brains and the looks." He tossed his messy curls back from his forehead in an extravagant motion, making the girl laugh.
"Fair enough." She agreed.
"Hey, we're hanging with the new girl, now?" Lucas joined them at the table, taking out his wrapped lunch. He glared at Levi's plate. "Damn, that's nasty. Love the outfit, Rubes. You're gonna get jumped for it, though." Apparently, she had a nickname now. Ruby shrugged.
"I'll wing it when it comes to it." Levi laughed through his peas, teeth green.
"Gosh, I love her already," he told Lucas. "She's got spunk."
"I told you," Lucas shook his head, getting started on his own lunch. "So, any new friendships? Made any enemies?" He asked eagerly. "Or perhaps frenemies?"
"El, over there." Ruby pointed out the redheaded girl who was telling a story while sitting on top of a cafeteria table. "She's in my Trig class and seems pretty nice. Enemies, not yet. Maybe that guy?" Ruby motioned her head towards Sweet Pea, who was showing Fangs something on his phone on the other side of the iron fence.
"Ooooh, getting into the gangship early on," Levi laughed. "El's in the Ghoulies, like us. But, those guys are Serpents. Don't mix and match, new girl." He warned her in a light tone, but it came off as a half-threat.
"I'm not planning on segregating or discriminating based on your tags, Levi," Ruby reassured him after she swallowed a bite. "I like El and you guys, but I also like Toni and Fangs." Lucas and Levi exchanged glances on their side of the table. Ruby followed their silent conversation with mild amusement.
"We'll see how that works out for you, shall we?" Levi turned to her with a smile. Lucas, though, leaned over the table and lowered his voice.
"We're not in the business of recruiting, Rubes," he told her in a soft, but warning tone. "But, watch out for El. She'll get you hooked on drugs and pull you into the Ghoulies if she can. She's our top recruiter, after all." Ruby gave a nod, glancing back at the laughing redhead.
"Also, she's pretty nasty," Levi warned. "Keep your eyes and ears open and your mouth shut." Despite the friendly demeanor of the redheaded girl, Ruby took Levi's and Lucas' advice to heart, keeping information flow to a minimum when she spoke to El later.
"Okay, I'll go to the library here and wait, then," Ruby told Jo over the phone as she cleaned her locker for the fourth time that day. "Just ring me when you're close?"
"Sounds good," her father replied, noise coming from his end of the line. "I'm sorry about this, kiddo. We need to get you a car or something."
"It's fine. I'm good here." The line cut off after they said their goodbyes. Ruby finished with her locker, stuffing tissues into the slots in hopes of preventing more trash from being placed inside until the next day. Then, she closed it and headed to the library. Lucas had pointed it out after lunch, saying that, no matter how crazy the gang rivalry got, it was neutral ground and nobody would bother anyone there. There was some kind of a truce between the Serpents and the Ghoulies when it came to studying.
Ruby found the library as interesting as the rest of South High. It was dark, filled with rafters upon rafters of messily arranged books, with green lamps at each desk and a countertop with a student librarian behind it. She found a fairly secluded spot in the corner and took out her homework, getting started on her English essay first. She'd volunteered in the end to do a piece analyzing happiness in the book and proving why some of the character were or weren't merry. Ruby began with checking out the Great Gatsby at the counter, reading the first few chapters and noting down the characters and the points as to why or why not they could be considered content with their various choices.
Halfway through, she gave up on concentrating, instead taking out her earbuds and answering a few of Mattie's texts. When Ruby looked up next, she saw that the library was empty. The counter light had been turned off and the student librarian was gone. All the other desks were empty, too. So, she allowed herself a bit of downtime and rose from her desk, deciding that she needed to move around in order to get her blood flowing and concentrate on the assignment later.
The song which came up on her playlist was perfect, too. It was an old hit from Major Lazer, Watch Out For This, from a few years back. Ruby blamed Mattie for getting her into the artist and obsessing over both their new and old stuff together. Placing her phone in her back pocket, the girl let the music take over, forgetting that she was at the library. The only sound she could hear was the drop of the beat and the endearing accent of the vocalist on the track, Busy Signal.
Soon enough, her hips were swaying, her hair was swishing around her head and Ruby was having as good of a time as she would at any nightclub. As the song progressed, she got more daring, going around the library, instead of only dancing by her own desk, flowing through the different hip-hop moves Mattie had taught her during their numerous sleepovers.
Then, the whole affair came to an abrupt stop when Ruby's body slammed into something, back against a hard surface. She turned around, her hair flying, and ripped the earbuds from their place. There was a pair of familiar dark eyes, giving her an amused look from above.
"God, Sweet Pea, you almost gave me a heart attack," the girl breathlessly exclaimed, her hand over her heart. The tall biker's grin grew. "What are you doing here so late?"
"Enjoying the show," Sweet Pea rumbled, still looking her over. Ruby was painfully aware of her cheeks becoming even redder, and not because of all the dancing she'd just done. "This place is close to my home and I needed some extra material for class." He showed her the book in his hand.
"The librarian is gone." Ruby helpfully supplied, cursing her brain.
"I can see that," Sweet Pea couldn't stop his lips from smiling at the show he'd walked in on. "She won't miss this one. I'll check it out tomorrow." Ruby nodded a few times, trying to recollect herself.
"Okay." She backed away from him, heading for her desk. But, the biker followed her.
"What are you doing here so late?" He wanted to know.
"Waiting for Jo to pick me up," Ruby shrugged as they both sat down, Sweet Pea's legs extending under the table all the way to her side. Gosh, he had some long legs, her brain helpfully drooled. "He had a job interview in Centerville, so he's late."
"I see." Sweet Pea replied and then opened his book, obviously staying put. Ruby suppressed a sigh. There was no way that she could continue working, with the handsome distraction in front of her and all the adrenaline she'd worked up during her downtime.
"Sorry that I didn't say hi or anything during class," she told the biker, making him look up from his book. "I got the idea that you guys didn't want to be associated with the fresh meat up for grabs." Sweet Pea huffed, closing his book.
"I didn't know that you were coming to South High," he avoided the clear question with an honest admission, surprising Ruby. She offered a small smile, closing her own book and propping her head up, elbows on the desk.
"My dad went here for the majority of his high school years," the girl told him in a soft voice. "So, I wanted to see what kind of a school it was, if it helped make dad into the man he is today."
"A shitty one," Sweet Pea shot back, his phone in his hand, fiddling with it. "How long are you going to be waiting here, do you know?"
"Jury's still out." Ruby laughed easily. The tall biker stood, his phone going back into his pocket. Ruby's eyes trailed up his form, seeing him looking down at her expectantly.
"C'mon then, I'm not going to wait with you here, for sure," Sweet Pea told her and Ruby was frozen in shock for a mere second, before she started stuffing her books and notes into her bag.
"You're giving me a ride home? Why?" She couldn't help asking.
"Do you not want one?" Sweet Pea grumbled back, already halfway out the library when Ruby ran after him, slinging her messenger bag over her shoulder.
"No, no. I mean, yes, I want one. Thanks." She jogged to keep up with his long strides with a small smile on her face. Sweet Pea noticed it and schooled his features into an angry scowl, which just made the girl grin wider.
"I couldn't leave you here looking like a lost Northie," the biker told her as they reached ground level. "You'd get robbed, raped or sold into slavery and FP would hang me outside the Whyte Wyrm as an example of incompetence." Sweet Pea pushed the front doors open, holding them for the girl to pass, ignoring her laughter as they stepped into the waning sun.
That's all folks!
Onto the reviews:
Serpent Rose:
Hey! Thanks for the super nice review :D I swear I'm still here, alive and kicking xD I've been sorta playing this game rather competitively, which made me lazy when it comes to writing hahahaha I swear more chapters to come!
Cheers :)
Janusscientes:
Hiiii! Thanks for the encouragement :D I swear I'm just a super slow typer and updater xD I'll try to be a bit more diligent in the upcoming months xD
Lexxxloubell:
Your wish is my command :D Enjoy!
snm1:
Thanks so much for the lovely review :D I'm glad that you're enjoying the story :)
Luvs2Read:
Hello! I'm glad that you're enjoying their odd dynamics, more to come where that came from XD I find Jughead to be a very hard character to befriend, but I think Ruby suits him in ways, because she's also similar in that 'one friend for life' kind of mentality. He definitely deserves someone like Ruby :D
bitch-jerk-cas:
Glad that you're enjoying the story! Here's a small update :)
SmillyReaper:
Yessir xD
top story:
Happy that you're enjoying it :) Here's a bit more on Ruby starting school in this chapter :D More insanity to come though hahahha
Guest:
My pleasure to update :D
Forbesfever:
Please don't cry xD Here's an update :D
Valerie:
Hi there! Surprisingly, I'm still alive XD I was pretty sick and then I got into this game during my down time and the rest is history? xD
I promise there will be much more on the topic of Jughead and Ruby and their friendship… Also, on Ruby finding her spot in the mess that is Riverdale xD
Thanks for thinking of me, all my best!
Jitsukawa:
Cheers!
What can I say, I love good background? Like, most fanfics focus on the pain pairing and just roll that thing over and over. However, I think that those kinds of relationships are a bit toxic. Everyone needs friends other than their s/o. Hence, I'm laying down some groundwork XD
Hope you enjoyed the update :D
DarkWorld67:
I swear Jughead being in with the Wolfe family was not planned xD It was supposed to be Archie or Sweet Pea originally… However… Juggie came and stole all the thunder xD
Guest27:
Oh man, me too! I'm not American but I only had one 4th of July experience and it wasn't nearly as grand as this xD I need a giant one with all these fireworks omgggg xD
P.S.: There may or may not be a mention of that in the future :P
When I Make It Shine:
Omg, please invite me xD I need some crazy fireworks and insanity xD
Jo is… everything a USA dad is to me tbh xD I lived in a host family in USA for a while and I'm kinda pulling a lot of him from my host father xD Crazy and sweet, but overdone since this is Riverdale xD
Juggie came and stole the thunder I say haahhahah
Thanks for the lovely comment!
My best to all of you readers, I hope to hear from all those who are still reading :P