Chapter 9

She loved so much she lost herself...

Being a part of his world. That is all Betty had wanted. She had accepted that he was a Serpent now and all that went along with that. She didn't mind, as long as she could be with him. She sat across from Archie at Pop's, waiting for Jughead to meet them. She had told Archie her plan. It would be six months after today that they had been together, and she wanted to do something special. She had everything set up at her house, and couldn't wait to celebrate with him. Archie was planning something as well. He had come to sit down with them both, ready to fix things with his old best friend.

Jughead walked inside, but he wasn't alone. A couple of serpents were with him, including Sweet Pea. Archie and Betty exchanged glances, Archie moved a little closer to her, and sat a little taller as they approached the table, his eyes focused in on them.

"Hey guys" Jughead began. "This is Sweet Pea, and then there's Fox and Stryker he said gesturing to them. Sweet Pea was towering over the group. Fox was watching Archie closely, his eyes dark and mysterious. Stryker had shaggier hair, dirty blonde, and his blue eyes were murky and unclear, which gave off a distrustful presence. Betty stood and smiled as she held out her hand. "Nice to meet you."

They all glanced at each other as if trying to decide what to do, Sweet Pea was the first to reach out and take my hand. His eyes were so focused on me it made me feel a bit self-conscious, like he was looking right through me.

"Pleasure's ours" Sweet Pea replied.

Jughead glanced over at him, seeming a bit concerned as well before he walked past him and sat down beside Betty. He was so close to her that it pushed her more against Archie until she was like a sardine squeezed into a can. His friends filled in across from him. Sweet Pea was directly across from Archie, Fox across from Betty, and Stryker across from Jughead.

Betty glanced over at Archie, she could feel the heat coming off of him. She looked down to see he was clenching his fists, placing one hand in the other as he rubbed them together. She had been his best friend since they were in Kindergarten and she recognized this. He was getting mad. Betty placed a hand lightly on his arm, and Archie turned his eyes off of Sweet Pea and back to her. She silently pleaded with him to relax and he nodded shortly in understanding, just so subtly that no one else could tell.

"So what are we having?" Jughead asked.

"I ordered for you already" Betty answered. "Double thick burger, large fry, chocolate milkshake right?"

"Thanks Betty" he replied as he took her hand in his.

The other serpents put in a order just as Pop walked back to check on the table and they snickered as he walked away. "This is gonna take all day" Sweet Pea said. "What they couldn't afford more staff than the old timer over there?"

"Hey..." Archie started.

But Betty cut him off to keep things from escalating, "So your all good friends of Jug's?" she asked.

Sweet Pea kept his eyes on Archie as he answered, taking a bite of his burger. "Yeah great friends" he replied over his mouthful of food. "We all got each other's backs."

"That's right" Fox spoke up as he clapped him on the back.

"You two seem cozy" Sweet Pea said as he looked between Betty and Archie. "How long you known each other?"

"Since we were little kids" Betty replied with a small smile.

"Aww" Sweet Pea said with a smirk as he glanced over at Archie. "That's so adorable." The way he spoke sounded like he was talking to a baby and as he chuckled a little Archie scrunched up the bottom of his jacket at he glared at him.

"Must really suck seeing her with a guy like Jughead huh Arch?" Sweet Pea asked.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Jughead demanded as he glared over at him.

"Just teasing" Sweet Pea replied calmly as he crossed his arms behind his head. "We all know Jughead here is ten times the man you are Andrews."

This time Archie leaned forward, slamming his hands on the table. "You better shut up."

"Yeah? You gonna make me?"

"Archie it's okay, let's all just relax" Betty intervened.

Archie leaned back and tried to calm down but Sweet Pea wasn't done.

"Man, Betty here must be quite the flame to have both of you drooling over her." Betty's cheeks reddened at this and Jughead caught him with a threatening stare. He was warning him. Sweet Pea was clearly enjoying all the attention. Archie's was tense in his seat, his face red as well but for another reason than embarrassment. "How's it feel Bet's having such a hold over both of them?" He looked over at Archie. "Just stringing him along as he watches you like a lovesick puppy."

Jughead scooted away from the table in that moment and grabbed onto Sweet Pea's jacket, pulling him away from the table by the front of his jacket. "Get out of here" Jughead said as he stared him down. He looked over at Fox and Stryker. "You too."

Sweet Pea shoved him away. "Did you not see the way he's been looking at us since the moment we stepped inside? He thinks he's so much better, he looks at us like we're criminals, nothing more."

Archie looked over at him from where he sat on the other side of Betty. He didn't say a word. Because in his mind it was true. They were too different, and he didn't expect them to change.

Sweet Pea turned and left the diner, Fox and Stryker were right behind him.

Jughead turned to Archie, and took his seat across from him. "I'm sorry about all that man."

"Jug it's okay" Betty said at the same time that Archie spoke.

"Why would you bring them here?" Archie demanded.

"Arch..." Betty started. "It's okay."

"No Betty it's not" Archie said, the anger clear and strong in his voice. He could tell how rattled she was and how uncomfortable they were both feeling. "Jughead, I was trying to give you a chance tonight, I wanted to fix things, but then you bring them without even telling us? This place is for our friends. You, Betty, me, and Ronnie. Not some corrupt Southside serpents."

"Hold it" Jughead said, now his voice was rising too. "I'm one of those 'corrupt Southside serpents' now, and if you can't accept them, then you can't accept me."

"Guess I can't" Archie replied. "Not if your going to hang out with them, and let them treat your friends like them... let them talk to Betty like that..."

"I told him to leave didn't I?" Jughead questioned. "What else do you want from me?"

"You should have knocked that jerk to the ground for what he said" Archie replied. "If it wasn't for Betty not wanting me to make a scene, I would have hit him the second he started targeting us."

"Since when did you care so much about what Betty wanted?" Jughead questioned. "Maybe Sweet Pea was on to something after all. What are you not telling me?"

"You want the truth?" Archie demanded. "I love Betty, I always have, and I'll be damned if I ever let anyone screw with her the way that guy was."

Jughead was left in shock by his words and he stood angrily to his feet. "Betty come on" he said. He started to walk away but Betty didn't move. Jughead turned towards the table.

"Betty."

"I'll text you later" Betty said, her mind still reeling with what Archie had just admitted. She needed to talk to him about it. She needed to understand where this had come from.

"Don't bother" Jughead stated as he pulled on his Serpent jacket. "Have a good night."

He walked out the door and she listened as his motorcycle pulled out, and long until it disappeared. She glanced over at Archie.

"Arch..."

"I'm sorry Betty, I shouldn't have said what I did. It was stupid."

"Then why did you?" Betty asked.

"I just..." Archie started as he let out a breath. "Betty, I can't keep sitting back and watching you be with him, with someone like him, he's going down a bad road, and you're going to end up hurt."

Betty shook her head. "You can't... Archie... you can't"

Her eyes were watering and a tear dripped down her cheek. "You... your with Veronica, I'm with Jughead, we're with who we're supposed to be. Why couldn't you just be satisfied with that?"

"She doesn't love me Betty" Archie said. "I told her, I told her I loved her, and she didn't feel the same, she doesn't..."

"You told her you loved her?" Betty asked. Her eyes shone with hurt and she shook her head. "How can I trust you Arch? When you just throw that word around like it doesn't mean anything. First it was Grundy, then Valerie, then Veronica, and now it's me?" She shook her head. "I won't do this, I can't do this to her and I can't do this to Jughead."

And that's when it happened. That's when Archie Andrews leaned forward and kissed her, in the heat of the moment, in the heat of all the frustration and uncertainty.

She pulled away, and her eyes widened as she stood and pushed past him, heading out of the booth.

"Betty wait!" Archie took her hand and she pulled away.

"No Archie!" she said. "Just stop!"

She then ran from the shop and Archie was left standing in the doorway. He slammed his hands into the door and paced for a moment as he tried to reason with himself. That was stupid. What was I thinking? But a part of him was glad to have it out in the open now. There would be no more hiding it. But he hoped more than anything that he hadn't just lost Betty forever. And he knew that when Jughead found out, that would be the final straw. There would be no friendship to fix.

Please let me know how you guys liked this chapter! This was super hard to write because I love all 3 of these characters so much! I still don't know who I'm going to have her end up with! There are things I love about Jug and things I love about Archie, and things I hate about them both. I know I am describing Archie as a hot-head a lot but that's just how I picture him because of how close he and Betty are.