Betty woke up one day a few weeks after being back in Riverdale to a pounding headache, swollen throat, and body chills. Fuck. She hated when she was sick. Sighing, she tightened her comforter around her more securely, wondering if she should get up and go get coffee or just stay in bed. Just then there was a knock on her door.

"Betts?" Pea called softly.

"Come in," she croaked, watching as the door was pushed open and her brother poked his head in. One look at her face and there was concern in his eyes. Striding over, he bent down to press his hand to her forehead.

"Ah, shit, Betts, you're sick," he murmured with a frown. She nodded. "Okay, just stay here and I'll get your coffee and some toast, okay?"

She nodded again. He kissed her forehead gently and she knew he was trying to gauge how high her fever was.

"And, a cool washcloth and some medicine," he added as well before heading out of her room. He came back in about ten minutes later with a tray in his hands. He sat it down on her nightstand and took the washcloth off first, placing it on her forehead gently before taking her temperature.

"Not too high to the point I need to get you to the doctor, yet," he commented, and she nodded. Then she saw the cheese toast on the tray and grinned.

"Cheese toast?" Betty asked in a raspy voice and he nodded, soft smile on his face.

"Your favorite, kid," he replied. She took a bite and he pulled out his phone.

"Dad is with FP right now but I'm going to get Jug over here, alright?" Sweet Pea asked.

"You're alright with that?" Betty asked her brother in surprise and he grinned.

"Trust me, better than anyone else," he replied. She laughed before wincing at her swollen throat. He nodded and hurriedly made the call.

XXX

Betty drifted in and out of sleep until she felt her bed dip down and opened her eyes slowly.

"Hey hon," came his soft voice followed with a kiss to her temple. "Go back to sleep."

She hummed but shook her head. "Want to see you."

Jughead nodded, maneuvering them so she was resting on his chest. He traced his fingers against the material of her sweatshirt.

"Is this the sweatshirt my dad got you?" Jughead asked.

She nodded. "Yeah, it was comfortable."

The night after the party that Cheryl and Toni had planned, the Serpents, all of them, had gone out shopping. Betty had found a sweatshirt she had liked – because the color matched Jughead's eyes – and FP had been the one who ended up buying it for her. It was twice her size, but it was okay, she liked them bigger on her.

Jughead kissed her temple again. "Are you hungry? I made some soup before I came over."

"Your famous chicken noodle?" Betty asked hopefully.

"Of course, baby," he said softly.

She smiled. "Yeah, I need something to eat. Can we go eat on the couch?"

Jughead hesitated before nodding. "Yeah. I'll just help you walk downstairs if you need me."

She stood up slowly, getting acclimated to her body's sluggish movements, before wrapping her throw blanket around her and following Jughead out into the hallway. She paused outside of the bathroom. "One minute, please." She made her way inside and took a look in the mirror. Death personified. Fantastic. Sighing, she brushed her teeth and washed her face, ignoring her muscles aching protests, before going back out into the hallway. She let Jughead lead her downstairs and towards the couch where he had her sit down before going to get the soup. Coming back a moment later with Sweet Pea in tow, he sat down next to her and handed her the bowl, along with some bread.

"Here, baby, just eat it slowly," he said gently. She nodded and took a spoonful.

"How's the fever, Betts?" Pea asked. Jughead placed his hand against her forehead, frowning in concentration.

"Still there, Pea," he said. "We'll need to get her more medicine."

"Should we call Penny?" Pea asked. Betty blinked.

"Who's that?" Betty asked, swallowing down another sip of soup and wincing at the pain in her throat.

"We hired her on as the Serpent's doctor about a year ago. She's good. Also, she's a good fighter so we have her help if we need it," Sweet Pea replied. Betty nodded. Jughead looked at her, then Pea.

"Yeah, go ahead and call her, just to be safe," he said.

XXX

Penny Peabody, a beautiful blonde woman, showed up around half an hour later. She smiled at Betty. "It's nice to finally meet the third part of the Cooper residency." Her voice was kind and she sat down next to Betty on the couch after Jughead got up. Betty took an instant liking to her.

"Thanks," she coughed, and Penny frowned.

"Okay, I'm going to feel your lymph node glands. Are you alright with that?" Penny asked, and Betty nodded. After massaging them and watching Betty's reactions, Penny looked down her throat and took her temperature once more.

"Bronchitis. Lasts about a four to five days," she said as she filled out something on her prescription pad. "I'll have this called in and bring it back. First one is on the house for the safe return of Hal Cooper's daughter." There was a kind smile on her face and Betty nodded appreciatively.

"Thank you, Penn," Pea said, standing up to lead her out as Jughead sat back down and pulled Betty flush against his chest.

"She's nice," Betty said, tucking herself into the broad expanse of his arms.

"Yeah, she helped your dad and Pea out last year. Hal seemed to smile a bit more with her around," Jughead said, and Betty smiled.

"Good," she murmured. "I'm glad."

He dusted a kiss to the crown of her head. "Get some sleep, hon."

Closing her eyes, the last thing she felt was him tightening the blanket around her as she snuggled tighter into his arms that never seemed to want to let her go.

Author's note: Just a soft one for you. Also, nothing ulterior with Penny here. Just have her a nice lady this time.