Darry was the only boy at the baby shower. He had expected it, but he hadn't anticipated just how awkward it would be. Especially since it was his first proper introduction to Polly and Mrs. Cooper. Mrs. Cooper was known to be a lion – going in straight for the kill. Today, she hadn't set her sights on Darry. Still, Darry was prepared to throw himself in the line of fire to keep her away from the Blossoms. That was what a good boyfriend should do. Even if he didn't want to. He really didn't want to.

They weren't sure that Mrs. Cooper was going to show up to Polly's baby shower. Betty had told him that her parents had been insisting Polly give up the baby. Something Betty had said must have changed Alice's mind though because she showed up with a gift. Betty spent most of the evening running interference. What surprised Darry most about the whole situation was not the two feuding grandmothers, but the redheaded aunt who had done a complete three-sixty for her brother's baby.

Yes, it was Cheryl Blossom who surprised him the most. She had disliked Polly from the start and told Betty how crazy she thought Polly was, but Cheryl was willing to play nice and do anything she could for Jason's child. When the Blossom's planned to get Polly deemed an unfit mother, Cheryl warned the Cooper girls of her parent's evil plan. She was still Cheryl, of course, trying to trade an expensive stroller for the title of godmother.

"I'm surprised Mimi isn't here," Cheryl said cattily as Darry poured glasses of punch for guests. "She seems to love to use this whole situation against me."

"My sister broke Polly out of The Sisters' Of Quiet Mercy's torture chamber to keep Jason's baby safe," Darry whispered back. He wasn't supposed to tell anyone but Millie didn't need anything else on her plate. He thought she might have known but the look on Cheryl's face told him that she really had no idea. "I know you two are fighting, but she's trying to do right by Jason, okay?"

"Well then, I'm surprised she's not here with a gift." Even though he didn't know Cheryl well, he knew that she cared about his sister. Darry hated when people played games with each other. He wished Cheryl and Millie would just scream at each other until they weren't angry anymore. "Since she's now an official Jolly shipper. This is Riverdale, after all. What's a party without an uncomfortable situation and an ill-fitting guest? Or are you here to fill that slot?"

"Lay off, Cheryl. She'd be here if she wasn't bedridden." Just for a second, Cheryl showed genuine concern. Izzy had been heartbroken for Millie and while they were bonded by blood, Cheryl had been much closer with Millie. Apparently, Cheryl didn't know about Millie's accident. Instead of playing more games and fishing around, Darry decided to be straightforward. Someone in Riverdale had to be. "Last night Millie was visiting the guys are Andrew's construction. Someone tried to attack the site and they broke Millie's knee cap. She had surgery and she's home from the hospital now, but she could really use a friend. Knee injuries are bad for dancers, Cheryl. She might not be able to go on pointe."

Cheryl quickly excused herself to get a good seat for opening presents, but Darry could see that she cared. He didn't know the exact details of the girls' fight, but they were behaving like they were in a reality show. One minute they were sisters for life and the next minute they were enemies. Darry didn't understand girls. He looked to Betty, who was doing everything to give her sister a special day. He was so grateful that Betty wasn't like that.

When someone knocked on Millie's door, the painkillers had mostly worn off, leaving her groggy and irritable. She assumed it was her dad, but she really didn't feel like talking to anyone. The doctor told her that there was no reason to believe she would have any real handicap from the surgery and it was possible she might be able to gain full control of her knee. Millie hated the word "possible." It meant that she might not be the same.

The summer intensive at NYU was out of the question. She'd never be ready in time to audition and she'd be in physical therapy for the foreseeable future. Her father promised to look for a physical therapist who specialized in dancers, but she still felt defeated. She wouldn't dance pointe for a long time if ever.

"What do you want," Millie groaned. She couldn't have more medicine for another hour, even though her knee was sore and uncomfortable. It wasn't her father who entered, but Jughead Jones, carrying a vase of red roses so large she could hardly see his face.

"Your dad had me bring them up. There's a card,' Jughead told her, placing the flowers on her desk. He handed her the card. Millie didn't examine it closely, but she recognized the handwriting and perfect swirls immediately. Cheryl. "I, ah…didn't bring flowers, but I wanted to see how you were doing."

Jughead gently sat down next to her on the bed, like he was afraid he might hurt her. Her leg was elevated on a stack of pillows. She looked at her knee and suddenly felt incredibly vulnerable. Izzy had helped her get changed from the hospital gown and she certainly wasn't looking her best. Her sister might be a genius but she certainly wasn't a stylist. Millie wasn't wearing makeup or a bra and one leg of her sweatpants was pulled up high above the brace. She ran her fingers through her hair and hoped that would be enough. At least she had brushed her teeth.

"Did they catch who did it?" Sherriff Keller had interviewed Millie when they prepped her for surgery, but she hadn't gotten a good look at the guys. He pressed for any signs that it was the Southside Serpents, a well-known gang in Riverdale, but she couldn't confirm anything. All she knew was that they were two white men and they weren't afraid to push a girl. "Was it the Serpents?"

"They didn't catch them, but it wasn't the Serpents. We're sure of that." Millie almost wished it had been. It was so easy for the Northside to blame the Southside for the crimes. She just wanted someone to blame – to get revenge on. "I'm sure of it because…my dad is a Southside Serpent. But I need you to know that I'm not. I'm not part of that."

"Juggie, I told you before. I know who you are." When their eyes met, Millie thought that this might be it. It might finally be the moment they kissed, but there was something else. He wanted to tell her something. "What is it? You can tell me."

He ran his thumb along the side of her face. She held her breathe. "Jason was doing a delivery for the Serpents, but my dad promised me that they didn't kill him and I believe him. I didn't tell you about him because…I didn't want you to think less of me."

"I don't." Millie meant it when she said she knew who Jughead was. He was the type of guy who crawled through her window when she was sad and followed her out of a biology dissection. Jughead Jones was her first kiss when she was six-years-old.

He kissed her then and it was much better than it was all those years ago. This time he initiated. Millie couldn't believe that Jughead Jones had soft lips or that he was an incredible kisser. She was comfortable around him. With Jughead, Millie never felt like she had to impress him or dress up. He didn't care how many solos she got or whether she wore school colors on game days. "Was that okay?"

Millie didn't answer with words. Instead, she crashed her lips back into his. She would always miss Jason because he had been her first love and one of her best friends, but this felt right. Jughead was right for her.

Betty's heart was broken. Polly chose to live with the Blossoms over coming home, even though her mom had kicked her dad out. She couldn't wrap her head around it. There was no way that the Blossoms truly cared about Polly. They only wanted the baby. Or babies, as Cheryl informed her.

At the baby shower, Nana Rose predicted that Polly would have twins and while no one believed a necklace could tell the gender of a baby, she had been right. Polly was having both a boy and a girl. Betty was supposed to be a godmother to both…so why did she move in with the Blossoms?

Darry and Betty had gone to talk to Cheryl to ask her to pass a message along to Polly. Betty wanted Polly to call their mother, who was devastated. Alice tried to hide it by focusing on exposing the Blossoms in a tell-all article in the Review, but Betty saw right through it. Her mother said she wanted to show all of Riverdale the Blossoms true colors, but Betty knew that she was really trying to show Polly. Betty had put so much work into making it safe for Polly to come home and Penelope had originally planned to have Polly declared an unfit mother. She trusted Cheryl to pass along the message, but she didn't trust her own sister to listen to it.

She had two saving graces. First, Cheryl had set her sights on Archie and while her iron grip was bound to upset Valerie, it gave him the opportunity to be the Cooper's spy. He assured her that the Blossoms were treating Polly well but he was trying to get Polly to at least talk to Betty – to explain herself. The second was Darry.

Darry told her to call him whenever she needed to talk and he hadn't been the least bit annoyed when she took him up on that offer…at 3AM. He even got up early to bring her breakfast that morning after. Her boyfriend attended and set up a baby shower with her, defended her to Cheryl, and helped her hunt a murderer. Even though they were so young, Darry really felt like the person she was meant to be with. Her family was falling apart, but Darry was keeping her together.

"The only way to truly stop this is to solve Jason's murder," she told him as they stared at the evidence board in the Blue and Gold room. "We have to look down every possible angle. We're missing something. Something big. Something that could change everything and bring Polly home."

"I have to tell you something." He sounded so guilty. Darry had been distraught when Izzy told him that Ruthie was at the Whyte Worm with the Southside Serpents. He knew more about Ruthie than his sisters, but he hadn't known that. "It's about my mom."

"What is it?" Betty's tone was gentle like she could sense that he had never said these words out loud before. She took his hands in hers. "It's okay, Dar. You can tell me anything."

Darry believed her. He was disgustingly smitten with Betty Cooper. He hoped she wouldn't be mad that he hadn't told her sooner. "My mom – she lied to us. A lot."

Four Years Before:

Lionel and Cassandra Miller often fought behind closed doors. They had agreed to never fight in front of the children and they mostly followed that rule. It led to some passive-aggressive comments from Cassandra which, while not ideal, they agreed were better than an all-out war. Their relationship was complicated.

When they first began seeing each other, they were very much in love. Lionel had just gotten his pilot's license and Cassandra was destined to be a star – dancing across stages in New York City. They were a few years apart but Cassandra was mature for her age and she certainly matured the moment the first pregnancy test returned positive…and their second.

Cassandra loved her children but the moment Millicent was born, she wanted Lionel to quit his job so she could return to her career as a dancer. Lionel knew they couldn't afford it and things became…strained. A few months after later, he met Ruthie in a bar.

Lionel knew he was in the wrong. Ruthie had started out as a fling until he couldn't bear to throw her away. So, he told his wife. He assumed they would separate but news of another baby changed everything.

"The children must never catch you," Cassandra had instructed him. She had laid out the rules very clearly. He was only to meet Ruthie on the Southside of town and no one was never to know. As long as they kept the secret, there wouldn't be a problem. Even though there was already a well-established dance studio in Riverdale, Cassandra started saving to start her own. Lionel picked up extra shifts and worked overtime to put money away. How could he not? Cassandra had been so understanding. Their arrangement was perfect…until years later when she announced the studio was to be in New York.