The next Sunday around noon, Archie receives his first phone call, a cheery sounding female voice on the other end. He hadn't really considered what it would be like to have a girl as a roommate, but he doesn't really have much opportunity to be too picky. She sounds nice enough over the phone and he's just as pleasantly surprised when they meet up later that evening. She's a petite girl, pretty, and she seems quiet. He gives her the tour, informing her of the rent cost and they get acquainted a little bit. Everything seems well and good, until a loud mouthed, beast of a man lets himself in and plants himself on the couch beside her. He goes on to thoroughly inspect her tonsils with his tongue while Archie watches in near horror. The guy looks lethal, definitely into some hard drugs or something, but whatever it is Archie wants nothing to do with it. Just as he'd expected, one mention of himself being a cop and the pair high tailed it out of there so fast he'd contemplated putting in a few calls.
The next few weeks were filled with similarly undesirable people. There had been a handful of young kids going into college, but being just a year shy of 25, Archie is hardly up for the college scene and certainly not in his apartment on a work night. Reggie would kill him if he knew he'd turned away a set of twins with identical boob jobs and lip fillers. As much as they were nice to look at, he didn't want to be that guy and he got the vibe they wouldn't regularly make rent.
It's not until the day before the last of the month that Archie finds a true potential.
"So, everything seems good Jughead," Archie nods as he looks through the documents he'd asked to be brought along. "Your job's steady, no psycho girlfriends, and I'm pretty sure you're not a serial killer."
Jughead chuckles, "I have other vices. More of a get stoned and chill kind of guy."
Archie pauses, glancing up from his checklist.
"Is that gonna be a problem," Jughead questions as he straightens up in his seat.
"I should probably mention that I'm a cop at the beginning of an interview huh," he chuckles.
Jughead shrugs, "maybe, but I probably would have just left the bit about me being a stoner out."
"Look man," he chuckles, "you're about the best chance I have at keeping my apartment. You want to smoke, I'm not gonna say shit."
Jughead nods.
"Unless, you don't share," he adds, "then we might have a problem."
The mood shifts to something of mild tension before the two of them burst into laughter.
"Alright, all jokes aside," Archie laughs, "When can you move in, cuz I'm drowning here."
"How's tomorrow morning sound," he suggests as he stands from his seat.
"Tomorr- Yea, yes," Archie nods, "I thought you'd need like a week or something. Here's your key." He hands over Reggie's old key. "I work until six tomorrow but make yourself at home."
"Will do," Jughead nods, dangling the key from his index finger and clasping it in his palm before heading out the door.
It takes less than a week for Archie and Jughead to get comfortable with each other. Whether they owe it to their likeness of growing up in a small town and being close in age or the chill friendliness that sharing a joint supplies, the two become fast friends. Where Archie is more of an early riser, hit the gym and drink protein shakes kind of guy, Jughead is notoriously a night owl, sure to be found devouring a bag of cheese doodles and leaving orange finger prints on the spare game paddle. He keeps to himself mostly, spending a lot of his time typing away on his laptop when he's not sleeping the day away or working all night. Archie finds his presence to be refreshing in comparison to Reggie. Where Reggie was always jamming to music or bringing home his latest conquest, Jughead is the exact opposite. The loudest he ever gets is when he's cursing at online game players, but Archie's usually doing just the same, and in the month that they've been living together, he's never even once mentioned a girl.
"So, what's up with you," Archie asks casually, coughing slightly as he passes Jughead the joint.
"What do you mean," Jughead chuckles, bringing it to his lips and taking a long slow hit.
"I mean, you just chill and write and shit," he shrugs, taking back the joint and holding it between his fingers. "Don't you ever like want to get laid or anything?"
Jughead chokes, coughing out a billow of smoke as his laughter passes through his lips. "Cuz you're just rolling in pussy."
"Hey, I do alright," Archie chuckles, picking up the lighter from the coffee table to relight the forgotten joint in his fingers.
"Maybe I just don't bring girls home," he argues as he swipes the still unlit joint and lighter from Archie's hand.
"And when the hell do you leave the house except to go to work," Archie retorts through a laugh.
Jughead takes a minute to relight the joint, taking a couple hits before passing it back to Archie.
"Smoke that shit this time," he laughs.
Archie gives a goofy grin before taking a hit, coughing heavily for a few steady beats. "Oh shit," he laughs, sinking back into the sofa. "I'm fucking high."
Jughead laughs, taking one more hit before stubbing it out in the ashtray on the table.
"So do you," Archie questions, earning a look of confusion from Jughead.
"Do I what," he questions.
"Get fucked," he chuckles.
"Oh," Jughead laughs. "Honestly. Not really."
"You're shitting me," Archie says in disbelief.
Jughead laughs, "I shit you not. Chicks don't really dig the whole weird loner guy thing."
"Fuck that. You're hot," Archie argues.
"Oh yea," Jughead laughs. "You want a go do ya Arch?"
"Fuck you," he laughs. "If I was a chick I'd be on you like a fly on shit."
The two of them burst into laughter, losing themselves in the haze of smoke filling the room.