A/N: Hey beauties!
So this is another missing moment from 1x8 and not compliant with my last chapterI think I will continue on from where I end this one in my next instalment in Storms of Passion [my m rated fic] for anyone who's interested!
And of course, a huge thankyou again to all of my amazing followers and all of you who have been supporting my work. Honestly there have been so many beautiful reviews! Especially those of you who have reviewed multiple chapters and continually send me messages of support, THANKYOU!
The engine of the truck slowed to a low rumble before dying as Jughead shut off the ignition. The night was still, stuck in a transit full of question marks and uncertain tomorrows. The two teens made no move to hop out, sitting in the drive way of his temporary home. They were okay now. They had done what was innate to the both of them and confronted the issue that hung before them. Although Betty had initially been hurt by his lack of full disclosure she understood why he had kept his father's involvement with the Serpents from her and she knew he truly was remorseful for not telling her about it sooner; and not just because he had been caught out either. She had tried her best to quell his insecurities and he had already made things up to her by trusting her to meet his dad, to view his dysfunctional home up close. He had kissed her, sweet and passionate and they were okay.
Yet there was still a heady tension around them. Betty cast her gaze to Jughead in the driver's seat. She studied him, knowing he was wrestling with his own demons. His features had taken on a harder edge- jaw set, brows knitted together, eyes hard.
She waited.
The blonde's chest constricted at the sight of him. She ached to take his pain away, to change his crappy circumstances and give him a life he deserved. It wasn't that simple though. They both knew the intricacies of devastation, doubt and disappointment all too well. Neither of them were fortunate enough to live amongst circumstances that could be cured by simplicity. She could comfort him though, remind him that she was right here and that they were going to get through all of it together.
Betty reached across to place a delicate hand on his where it rest on the steering wheel, interlocking their fingers and prompting him to turn his body toward her; open, inviting. Unconsciously she accepted his offer to let her in, shifting closer to him.
His gaze was firm as it locked on her own, green eyes taking on an intense shade as he searched her blue orbs before finally speaking.
"You said you wanted to know who I am," his voice was quiet but steady, encapsulating a sincerity and strength she had always admired in him and was learning to love.
"I did. All of it," she replied, rubbing small circles across the back of his hand with her thumb and offering a small but encouraging smile.
"All of it," Jughead affirmed.
He sighed, the sound amplified in the night, as he steadied his resolve.
"I'm Forsythe Pendleton Jones the Third. My parents gave me a ridiculous name. I was raised on the wrong side of the tracks. My dad always struggled to hold down a job and could never be loyal to the one person who always had his back. My family has been dirt poor since I can remember. My dad started drinking last year and became an unemployed drunk who destroyed his wife so much emotionally she took off with my little sister while I stayed behind the rot. My dad became a Serpent. I have been bullied most of my life. I did a stint in Juvie when you thought I was staying with my grandparents that summer. I was homeless. I am a loner, a social outcast. That's who I am." His voice shook as he reached the end and Betty could tell he was struggling to hold her gaze now.
She could feel her heart shatter as he deprecating words and grasped at anything that could make him see that was all superficial. She didn't care. He was so much more than that.
"Juggie…" she began, ready to take everything he had just told her and expel his fears. "You are so much more than that. You are smart and you are brave and you are loyal and you are strong. You're someone whose been dealt a tough hand in life and yeah maybe you're a little rough around the edges but all those things are only part of who you are. They don't define you." She was even closer now, personal space becoming a non-existent concept as they filled each other's senses. One hand rested on his jaw, the other still gripping his hand.
"But Betts-"
"No, I'm not done. I wanted to know it all-good and bad- and now I do and I appreciate you telling me. But I hope you know that there's good in who you are. And it outweighs all that other stuff." Betty spoke in a low voice; intimate. One that was just for his ears and she pleaded with him to understand how truly valuable he was.
Jughead's features softened as he took her in. Kind soul shining through her crystal gaze, radiating sincerity and purity. He knew she was far from perfect, a contrast to how the rest of the town saw her, to the category they tried to supress her into. But it was the way she carried herself, with such grace and class despite being aware of her own flaws that astounded him and created an organic, selfless image that thawed his damaged, cold heart.
"Okay." He finally conceded, warm breath fanning across her face as he whispered the words. She let a slight grin grace her features as she was brought back to the Lodge's apartment and their earlier conversation.
"So we're gonna do this then? Be together?" Betty already knew the answer. They both did.
Jughead nodded in confirmation, his hand that was not currently entwined with hers coming up to rest on her own cheek. His lips quirked slightly unable to ward off the feeling akin to happiness that was flooding his system in that moment. He wanted to speak, to let her know how much this meant to him, how much she meant to him but for once in his life words were failing the aspiring novelist. Finally his vocational skills returned after what felt like an eternity of empty air and a dry throat.
"I want to know you too by the way, all of it. Your crazy family and complicated mind. I want to know the straight A student, the nice girl and the darker girl trapped beneath her. I want to know all of that on top of what I already do. Because I've always known you were special Betts, from the moment we met and you offered to share your lunch with me, to when you purposely sat at Ethel's usual desk in fifth grade because you know Cheryl had put gum on her chair, to when you made Kevin change his chemistry class last year so that Archie could be my lab partner and I wouldn't sit alone. You have always gone out of your way to protect everyone Elizabeth Cooper and that is who you are. Strong, brave, smart and beautiful."
Betty had never heard words so sincere and genuine in her entire life and it made her entire body yearn for him. How had she been so blind before? Jughead had always noticed her, always known her and she couldn't contain the true serenity and happiness it brought her as she pushed away the slight bitter taste of her own ignorance in not realising until now. Butterflies roared to life in her stomach and she let herself swoon as magnetism drew their lips together.
The kiss they had shared earlier had been alive with a passionate energy, sparks flying and catching in the air to ignite electricity previously unknown to the pair. As their lips moulded together and moved in sync that same intoxicating and liberating heat returned and it was like no matter how hard she pressed her lips against his, Betty couldn't quite quell the burn. Jughead was feeling a similar addiction beginning to surface as he let his tongue probe her lips and seek entrance into her mouth. He couldn't get enough of her sweet taste and was putting all his emotions and gratitude toward her into his actions. Betty gasped when his tongue touched hers and wrapped her arms securely around his neck to draw him further into her world. She wanted to be closer, to be consumed by everything that was him and them. Becoming bold suddenly Betty lightly nipped a this bottom lip causing the dark haired boy to groan slightly before kissing her harder.
This was new to them. Up until now their relationship had arisen out of dire circumstances and a beautifully raw, need to be near each other and seek solace in one another as they stood up against the current while everyone else drowned in its lies. They had grown close and began to slip into unchartered territory of overwhelming emotions of affection and a connection greater than they could have imagined was forged. They naturally fell together in something more real and wonderful than either had ever experienced. They had kissed and felt a physical pull toward each other of course but this completely consuming sense of passion and the primal need to be with one another to explore one another in the most physical sense of the word was unchartered for them, yet both were willing to welcome the next phase of their relationship and embrace the attraction that was growing between them.
Her hands tangled in hair as breathy sighs and slight moans began to fill the truck. Jughead pulled Betty to him as his hands circled around her lower back and pressed her against his chest, the heat of their bodies permeating their clothing only making their kiss more devouring as a new lust overcame them.
The need for air eventually won out though, and the two teens pulled back from the embrace with flushed cheeks and silly grins.
"Is that ladder still by my window?" Betty whispered in his ear a moment later. Jughead shivered at the proximity of her lips to his skin and swallowed before nodding slowly. His eye brow raised in question to her motive.
"Use it," she supplied before pecking his lips once more and climbing out the car hurrying to her house next door and leaving a stunned and dazed beanie clad boy in her wake.
