"Toni really is a good person. She's not usually one to run around with guys that are taken. I guess she met him at a concert over the summer and he was with the band or something. Anyways, they hung out for a few weeks, but once school started he began acting all weird and when she confronted him about it, and he admitted that he had a girlfriend. She wouldn't tell me much more but maybe you guys can get it out of her. We're close but she can be pretty private about her dating life. I didn't even find out she was seeing someone until she drug me out of Innuendo last night, upset about finding out the fact that he had a girlfriend." Jughead said with his arms slung across the seat behind him.
"Well now's our chance." Veronica whispered as Toni walked through the doors.
"Gosh, Forsythe, I didn't realize you were so popular at your old school." The pink haired girl mused as she took a seat next to Veronica. Betty looked a bit surprised at Jughead. He usually doesn't like getting called by his dad's name.
"Trust me, he's not." Cheryl smiled at her across the table. "Cheryl Blossom," She extended her hand as if someone were going to bend down to kiss it.
"Toni Topaz." The short girl smiled nervously and awkwardly shook Cheryl's hand. "Sorry to hear what happened to your brother."
"That was years ago." She waved her hand dismissively. Most people knew this was still a pretty sore subject for her. "The beauty next to you is Veronica Lodge, I'm sure you've heard of her father, Hiram Lodge. And this is Betty Cooper." She jerked her head next to her.
"Oh, the Betty Cooper. Trust me I've heard all about you. Probably too much." She rolled her eyes in her foster brother's direction.
"So, at lunch today someone suggested that you come to the Riverdale back to school dance and I think that would be a good idea to socialize you more." Jughead said to Toni.
She snorted. "That sounds like about as much fun as dragging my tits through miles of shards of glass. And who are you to suddenly talk about who needs to be socialized? Outside of the Serpents, you don't really have any friends." She stole one of his fries.
"Well I've connected with some old friends back at Riverdale High and I know you have a lot of preconceived notions about it, but I think you'd fit in just fine."
She seemed to just about choke on the milkshake she was finishing for him. "Yeah, because my biggest concern is fitting in, I think I might even join the cheerleading squad." She cackled sarcastically.
The table fell silent. "Um, Toni, all these girls are actually River Vixens."
"Cheryl and I co-captain." Veronica smiled, trying to break the tension.
"Oh I'm sorry. I didn't actually mean anything by that. I mean just look at me, cheering isn't exactly my thing." Toni said apologetically.
"It's not everyone's." Cheryl gave her a tight smile. "You should still come to the dance though, I host an after party every year and anybody who's anybody will be there."
"It's in a really creepy mansion. It has its own graveyard and everything." Jughead added, as if it were a good thing.
"Will I have to wear a dress?" She grimaced.
"I happen to have plenty to chose from if you'd like to get ready with us at the Pembrooke. I'm sure I could find something that fits your style." Veronica suggested as Toni looked over her, as if assessing her style.
"Deal. But Jughead has to come too. I'm not being put through this excruciating night alone." Toni crossed her arms.
"I'm sure that can be arranged. I heard he's already asked a girl to save a dance for him." Veronica smiled and looked between Betty and Jughead who both immediately turned red.
"Who else will be going?" Toni asked sipping the strawberry milkshake that matches the exact shade of her pastel hair.
"You know Joaquin, and his boyfriend Kevin Keller." Jughead responded.
"Oh and Betty's snoozefest football player boyfriend will be going too." Cheryl added happily.
"Cheryl didn't you date just about every guy on the football team before you and Ronnie got together?" Betty looked at her.
"Exactly, so I know how boring they all are and that you're lucky if you find one smarter than the guy from The Blind Side." The redhead retorted, not looking up from her phone.
"I think I'm gonna get along with you guys just fine." Toni sat back in her seat and smiled.
Back at Betty's house later that night, Archie still wasn't home and didn't answer his phone. She turned out her light and went to bed hoping that tomorrow would be a better day.
The four girls stood comfortably in a closet big enough that Barbie would be jealous. "Okay ladies, we have a few hours before the boys arrive to pick us up. My closet is your closet and nothing is off limits. Unless I want to wear it of course." Veronica held her arms out in display of her clothes. "Betty, your dress is in my bedroom since we already found you something earlier this week."
The blonde went into her friend's bedroom and sure enough, on the canopy bed, lay the blue dress. Blue was usually Veronica's color but since she usually opted to match Cheryl, she'd been wearing a lot more reds and purples.
Once Betty had the dress on she gave herself a once over in the mirror. The fit and flare dress was blue lace on the top half and black on the bottom. It reminded her of the top she'd worn Monday. Except that the straps we're about an inch and a half thick and her navel was completely hidden, thank God. It was a bit low cut for her liking and a lot of her back was exposed but she did had to admit it looked good on her. Her hair was down and wavy, and her eye makeup Cheryl had done on her was gold, really making her green eyes pop. Her lips were red and even though this overall look was darker than her average style, she felt pretty and confident.
"You look like a real life Barbie." Toni announced walking into the room behind Betty. She was wearing a silver velvet dress. Betty guessed it was the one Veronica was contemplating wearing. It had spaghetti straps and showed far more cleavage than Betty's. It was skin tight, as if it were wrapped around her. "I think, you may even make Jughead the least bit jealous of your boyfriend tonight." She whispered once she was close up behind her.
"Thanks." Betty smiled unsure how to respond. "That dress looks amazing on you. Maybe even better than it looks on Veronica."
"Hey, I heard that." V said, waltzing into the room in a short purple dress. It was strapless and had a sweetheart neckline with a full tulle skirt. "But it is true." She smiled.
"There you are, my little cupcake." Cheryl teased and strolled up to Veronica kissing her on the cheek. Cheryl's dress was also purple but it had two pieces exposing a section of her midriff. The skirt was a long purple tulle like Veronica's and the top was the same shade of purple in lace, with a high neckline. "Well ladies I will say that you guys clean up a lot better than my old minions."
"I think that's the closest thing to a compliment I've ever heard her say." Betty whispered quietly to Toni, making her giggle.
"So, Toni, do you have a boyfriend?" Veronica asked.
"Or girlfriend. We obviously don't judge. Jughead mentioned you play for both teams." Cheryl interjected.
"Uh, well I'm not really seeing anyone exclusively. I'm keeping my options open. I was seeing a pretty nice guy until I found out he had a girlfriend. Kinda makes him not so nice anymore, right? Anyways I broke that off Wednesday night and Thursday he tried convincing me to still see him even though he seemed to feel pretty guilty about cheating on her. When I refused, he just begged me not to tell anyone. What a dick." She shook her pink locks. "He goes to your school so I'm really hoping I don't see him at the dance tonight."
"Those are the worst kinds of guys." Betty said, putting a hand on the short girl's shoulder. "Maybe you could find someone to make him jealous tonight. I'll even loan you my boyfriend for a dance or two."
"I can't say no to that offer. Thanks, Betty."
"I'm sure Archie won't mind. It'll be nice for him to get a chance to dance with someone else. He complains about my two left feet. I step on his toes too much." She clasped her hands and looked down sheepishly.
"Wait, Archie Andrews?" Toni held up her hand.
"Yeah, why do you know him?"
"Um, no I just- he plays with Josie and the Pussycats right?" She knitted her dark eyebrows.
"Yep, the one and the same." Betty beamed proudly.
"Yeah I uh went to one of their concerts over the summer."
"You all look fabulous!" Kevin exclaimed walking into Veronica's bedroom. "Limo's downstairs."
"Should we swipe some of mother's champagne for the ride?" Veronica gave everyone a devilish grin.
"I could use a drink." Toni sighed.
"I second that!" Kevin said following them out if the room.
The five of them walked down to the limo and met Jughead, Archie, and Joaquin standing outside of the limo.
"You chariot awaits, ladies." Jughead held him arms out to display the elongated car.
Once everyone was in the limo, Veronica insisted they all have a glass of champagne. "To new and old friends." She held up her cup smiling at Jughead and Toni. Everyone repeated her and clinked glasses before taking a sip.
Betty couldn't help but notice that they had sat in the furthest possible seats from her and Archie. They were whispering about something and and Jughead's eyes grew wide. "Are you sure?" He asked his pink haired date and she nodded solemnly. They didn't talk for the rest of the ride.
Once they got to the high school, Jughead started pulling Archie away from the group. "Sorry Betty gotta borrow your date for a few minutes. You guys head inside we'll catch up to you." He waved them ahead.
"Are you sure?" She asked. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, everything's fine. You guys go. Just need to have some guy talk." He replied, tightening his grip on the redhead's shoulder.
"Come on Betty," Kevin grabbed her hand. "Josie promised to play a cover of You Don't Own Me towards the beginning and I don't wanna miss it!" He dragged her along.
Joaquin and Betty decided to get punch while everyone else decided to join the mob on the dance floor. "So you're dating Archie now?" He asked her and she nodded in response. "Well that is something I didn't see coming."
"What makes you say that?"
"Well didn't Jughead and Archie used to be best friends?"
"They were but they kinda had something happen between them before Jughead and I ever dated. Neither of them really talk about it so no one's really sure exactly what went down." She took a sip of her punch. "Oh ew, somebody spiked this!"
"That-" Someone slurred behind her. "Would be me." A drunk Reggie Mantle grinned down at her when she turned around.
"Reggie you're gonna get caught if you don't get cleaned up a little. Come on." She pulled him out into the hall. His tie had come undone so she tied it and straightened his shirt under his jacket. His usually perfect gelled hair had become unkempt and she wet her hands at the fountain and tried to replicate his usual style as best she could. At her locker, she gave him mints and sprayed a bit of perfume on him.
"Hey, now I'm gonna smell like girl." He whined.
"Well, it's better than a distillery. Come on, if you can walk straight, I'll let you back into the dance."
He began walking toe to toe like at a sobriety checkpoint. "If you want me to say the alphabet backwards, just know that I can't even do that sober."
"That's okay." She giggled. "Alright let's head back."
"Hey Betty?" He asked falling in step with her back towards the gym.
"Yeah?" The blonde looked up at her friend.
"You look really nice tonight." He commented and offered his elbow out to her for her to take.
"Thank you Reggie." She smiled slightly and leaned into his shoulder as they walked through the gym doors. "I'm gonna drop you off at the snack station okay? You need to eat a bit and I heavily recommend switching to water for the night."
"Yes, nurse Betty." He saluted. "Hey I know her." He pointed at the pink haired girl among her group of friends.
"That's nice Reggie." She patted his shoulder and began walking away.
"Yeah she's been hanging out a lot with-" He started searching the room as a realization dawned upon him. He looked between her and Betty when he didn't seem to find what he was looking for. "Hey where's Archie?"
"That's a good question." She looked around the room with him. Jughead seemed to rejoin the group but her boyfriend was nowhere to be found. "Why do you ask?" She looked back at the jock.
"Uh, no reason." He quickly turned away from her. "Hey Ethel, hit me with some of those crab puffs!" The girl serving the snacks obliged and Betty walked over to her friends.
As she got closer they saw her approaching and all seemed to wear the same look on their face, it was kind of sad, like they pitied her? "Guys, what's wrong? Where's Archie?" She asks.
"He left." Jughead said not meeting her eyes.
"Well should I go after him? What did you say to him Jughead?" She looked at the gym doors contemplating how far he could have gotten.
"That, I am not at liberty to discuss. You should probably hear it from him. You shouldn't follow him though." He still wouldn't look her in the eye.
"Yeah, please stay, enjoy the dance." Veronica grabbed her wrist.
Betty eyed her group of friends who all seemed to be wearing looks of guilt on their faces. "What's going on you guys? Kevin?" She raised her eyebrows at him knowing he'd be the first to crack.
"Archie has a secret he needs to tell you but he chickened out and fled." He chewed his lip.
"Do you know what that secret is?" She crossed her arms.
"Can't say. Oh look Joaquin there's Josie let's go say hi!" He pulled his boyfriend away.
"Cheryl?" She turned to the redhead hoping her love of gossip would make her spill.
"Veronica made me promise I wouldn't start any drama tonight. At least not until my after party. So I'm not aloud to discuss it either." She inspected her perfect nails.
Lastly, she turned to her best friend and found the dark haired girl looking down at her expensive shoes. "I can't believe you guys." Betty said shaking her head and backing away from them. "I'm going to go look for him."
She got halfway down the hallway before a hand clapped her shoulder and spun her around. "Betty, please stay."
"Why? You're all keeping this supposedly big secret from me for Archie. You know me, I'm just going to worry about it the entire time and it will drive me crazy." She threw up her hands.
"First of all, we're not doing anything for Archie. We just think it's best that he tells you. Which he will, he promised me when he and I talked earlier. I'm sorry he left. He got scared I guess. But he's your next door neighbor, it's not like you won't be able to track him down this weekend. Now, your friends all want to spend time with you. Just because Archie bailed doesn't mean that you have to too." Jughead tried to reach out to her before she stepped away from his touch.
"I'm not bailing, I just need to know what's going on. He's been acting weird ever since school started and to be honest, I just thought it had to do with you being back but that's obviously not it and I just have a really bad feeling." She searched his eyes hoping to find some sort of answer.
"What if I could maybe find a way to calm your anxiety a bit. Just for tonight?"
"What could-" Her eyes went wide. "Jughead! You brought drugs to a school event?!"
"Hey, it's not 'drugs' it's medication. And I didn't exactly bring it with me. It's kind of already here." He started walking down the hall and she followed him.
"You keep weed in your locker?!" She whispered loudly as he pulled out a pre-rolled joint.
"Only for emergencies. I also have eye drops so as long as you can act like a mostly sane person, you'll be fine." He closed the locker. "Follow me." They walked out the back door of the school Betty found Monday.
"Where are we going?" She asked.
"Somewhere no one will find us." He whispered back and she couldn't help but feel a little jolt up her spine at the prospect of being alone with him.
They walked across the parking lot and into the woods. The walked a little further until the trees covered them and found a fallen tree to sit on. Jughead took off his jacket and layed it on top of the tree trunk that had developed a thick layer of moss before offering the seat to her.
"I can't believe you've talked me into this for a second time this week. This is illegal." She crossed her arms.
"It's actually medically and recreationally legal in several states, including this one." He said in a matter-o-fact tone as he lit the joint. "And I haven't talked you into anything. Both times I've literally just asked you. No peer pressure here."
"Okay well you've got me there but you always ask at the right times. By the way, you do realize it's not legal for minors." She countered.
"Neither is underage drinking but I sure know a whole hell of a lot of people who do that. I think even Reggie was drunk just now." He jerked his thumb in the direction of the school and handed it to her.
"Yeah he was, I actually cleaned him up a bit so he wouldn't get caught." She put the paper up to her lips and inhaled.
"And if need be, I'll do the same for you." He teased.
"Maybe I should just go home after this. See if Archie is there. Well not like at my house but across the way, you know."
"Trust me, that is not a conversation you want to have high. Besides, with how beautiful you look it would be a waste for you to not even get a chance to dance. Which, I happen to remember you owing me one." His lips curled up into a smirk and for a short moment Betty thought about kissing him. She shook her head as if to knock loose the thoughts she was having.
"Just so you know, this," She held up the now half of a joint. "will not be a common thing I do. I've just had a long week."
"Oh no, you've ruined my plan to get you addicted. You were supposed to dreadlock your hair and start a reggae band with me by the end of the year. Now who am I supposed to have play bongos?" She giggled and swatted him on the shoulder. "Seriously though, if you're only concern is the legality of it, you should know that drugging and almost drowning dumb jock is illegal, so is breaking into a teacher's car, and keeping a gun that isn't legally registered to you. God knows how many other laws you've broken since I've been gone." He teased.
"Okay so I guess it's not that bad. I am not going to start doing it often though." She shrugged.
"No one's asking you to. You can excerise your right to just say 'no' anytime you want." He lightly bumped his shoulder to hers.
"Yeah I know, but this seems to be a big part of your life now and we're all friends again so I figured I'd be spending more time with you." Betty shrugged again.
"It sometimes just make things a bit more tolerable. I have my own anxieties you know. And it's not like I do it excessively. I mean the other day I was stressed because it was my first day back. Tonight, I'm trying to help you enjoy this dance." He flicked what the last little bit of the joint that was too small to continue smoking. He stood up and offered his hand. "We should be getting back, our friends are probably wondering where we went."
She blushed. "What should we tell them?"
"The truth. That we took a walk." Jughead smiled down at her. "Now how about that dance?"
