The next morning, Betty helps her mother unpack the rest of their things. She's taken off guard by how interested her mother is in her evening and proceeds to relay the events of her night with excitement.

"Is Fred still cute," Alice questions giddily. "He was always cute."

"Mom," Betty scolds through laughter.

"What," she laughs. "I can't ask how he aged?"

"That is so not what you asked," Betty argues. "But yes, he's cute, in a sort of dad kind of way I guess."

The rest of their morning goes similarly, teasing back and forth and Alice sharing a few memories she has of growing up in Riverdale. It's such a huge change from Alice's usual high strung persona and Betty is hoping that it will continue.

Later that afternoon, Alice steps out to meet with the local paper, hoping to land an editing job in town. While she's out, Betty invites Archie and Jughead over to go swimming.

"Man," Archie sighs as he wipes water from his eyes. "I've been thinking about hopping that fence since they put this pool in. Never thought I'd actually get to swim in it."

Betty laughs. "You know there's literally a door in the fence to your back yard, right?"

"It was always locked," he huffs.

"Well, I'll leave it unlocked," she shrugs before cannonballing into the deep end.

Jughead shouts in surprise as he's thoroughly drenched with cold water from his seat beside the pool. Archie can't help but crack up, pointing at Jughead's sopping clothes as Betty rises to the surface with a smug grin on her face. Jughead glares, wiping water from his face as Betty climbs out of the pool.

"Might as well get in now Jones," Betty taunts, tugging at his arm to drag him to the pool.

"Betty," he warns.

"Juggy," she replies. "Get in the pool."

"I don't swim," he argues, fighting against her pull on his arm while Archie laughs from the water.

With a quick hand, Betty swipes his beanie from his head.

"Betty," he yells, chasing after her as she bolts around the pool.

"Oh shit," Archie laughs, watching with baited breath as Jughead catches up with Betty.

He corners her behind a deck chair. He goes left, she goes right. He goes right, she goes left. With a smirk on her face, she waives his beanie in the air, Jughead reaches for it, following her back step towards the pool.

"Betty. Give it," he grits.

"Come get it," she taunts.

Jughead glares, lunging forward to grab his beanie, but Betty is faster. In one swift motion, she pulls his beanie just out of reach and shoves him into the pool, plunging in after him.

"Betty," he yells upon surfacing, his arms flailing in the water as he makes his way to the edge of the pool. He hauls himself up over the side, his jeans sagging with the weight of the water and his t-shirt twisted and glued to his torso in all the wrong places. Without even a glance over his shoulder, he trudges through the gate in the fence, leaving Betty to look to Archie in confusion.

"Is he really mad," she questions in disbelief.

Archie nods as he gets out of the pool to meet her at the side. "Jug's a little touchy about his beanie."

"Shit," she sighs.

"I'll go talk to him."

"No," she shakes her head. "It should be me."

Archie nods and follows her through the gate to his house.

Next door, Archie waits in the kitchen while Betty heads upstairs to his room.

"Jughead," she calls softly, only to be met with a glare as she pushes the door open. She approaches carefully, where he sits in Archie's desk chair and holds his beanie out for him to take. "I'm sorry."

Jughead only nods, his glare softening just a touch as he takes his beanie from her hand.

"You're soaked," she laughs lightly, earning the slightest of smiles from Jughead.

Taking another step closer, she touches his cheek, drawing his gaze to meet hers.

"I really am sorry," she repeats. "If I had known-"

"It's ok," he speaks up, looking a little embarrassed.

Betty smiles before urging him up from his seat. "Come on, let's get this off you."

"Betty," he warns nervously as she lifts the hem of his shirt.

"The least I can do is help you get this t-shirt unstuck," she says. "It is my fault you fell in the pool."

"I can get it," he says harshly as he shoves the hem of his shirt back down.

"That's why you don't go swimming isn't it," she questions. "Because from what I saw, you swim just fine."

"Yea, well we're not all built like Archie," he scoffs.

"What's so wrong with the way you're built?"

Jughead shrugs, his eyes downcast to the floor. With great care, Betty takes hold of the hem of his sopping t-shirt, lifting it just slightly before awaiting his permission. He gives a heavy sigh before allowing her to pull it over his head, the fabric clinging to his skin as it goes. It lands with a splat as she drops it to the floor.

He doesn't look at her until he's startled by her fingers on his chest. He watches, his heart rate rising rapidly, as they trail along his skin, lower to trace the lines of his abdomen and lingering at the dark trail of hair beneath his navel.

He's right. He's built nothing like Archie. Where Archie is bulky and muscular, Jughead is lean and toned. She wishes she could show him how beautiful he is in her eyes.

"Everything alright in- Oh. Uh, I can go back downstairs," Archie fumbles awkwardly in the doorway.

Betty's hand falls away quickly as Jughead jumps back to busy himself with finding a shirt in his backpack.

"It's not what it looks like," Betty says, hoping to ease Jughead's tension, but from the look on his face he may have been thinking otherwise.

"Ok," Archie says in question. "Well whatever this is or isn't, are you guys good?"

"Yea we're good," Jughead clips. "Now can I get changed or what?"

"Yea, uh, sorry," Archie says in defense as he follows Betty's lead out of the room.

Back at the pool, Betty and Archie sit at the edge, their legs dangling in the water as they enjoy the sunshine on their skin.

"Think he's coming back," Betty wonders as she suns her face.

"Doubt it," Archie shrugs.

"What's up with him," she questions more seriously.

"He's just moody," Archie shrugs again. "Can't really blame him though, he's had a pretty hard time growing up"

"Hard like how?"

"His dad- Man, he'd kill me if he heard me talking about this," Archie worries, glancing around for any sign of Jughead nearby. "Jug's dad is the leader of the Southside Serpents. It's a biker gang. FP, Jug's dad, he's got a drinking problem, can't hold a job, disappears from time to time."

"And his mom," she wonders.

"Left when he was eight," he shrugs. "Took his little sister with her and he's pretty much never been the same since."

"Poor guy," she coos.

"Don't let him hear you say that," Archie warns. "If I know anything about Jughead, it's that he can't stand to be pitied. Forget everything I just told you, ok?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she smirks, squealing as Archie shoves her into the pool.

Later that afternoon, while playing video games up in his room, Archie can't help but wonder how Jughead feels about Betty. Never in all their years of their friendship has he ever witnessed Jughead offer food to anyone and he most definitely has never seen him get cozy with a girl. He's tried to set him up on countless dates, even tried convincing him to go on a few double dates thinking he might agree if they did it together. All his attempts at setting him up have been a huge flop with Jughead's unwillingness to even put himself out there and today he found him willingly shirtless with Betty very much touching him in a way that suggested a desire to be more than friends.

"What's up with you and Betty," he questions as he sets down his controller.

"Nothing," Jughead replies coolly.

"Oh come on," Archie scoffs. "You had your shirt off in front of her. You barely take your shirt off in front of me"

Jughead sighs. "It was wet. She just helped me get it off."

"I'll bet she did," Archie teases, making use of his poor choice in words.

"Not like-" Jughead rolls his eyes. "You're a child."

"Hey, all I'm saying is she looked like she wanted to help you get your pants off too," he laughs.

"She didn't. I'll see you tomorrow," he clips before storming out of the room and out the front door.

Early the next morning, Betty heads out for a run. Back home, she used to run every morning, per her mother's insistence and she's always hated it. With Alice's newly acquired relaxed attitude, there hasn't even been mention of a run and she actually finds herself craving it.

As she runs, she takes time to make mental notes of things in town. The people on her street are early risers, many of them offering waves and smiles of good morning as she runs by. Her new school is within walking distance and there's a great trail that leads through fox forest. When she emerges at the other end of the trail, she finds herself just outside a quaint little diner, its sign reading Pop's Chock-lit Shoppe.

With the quickly increasing heat of the day, she decides to go inside and get a water but mostly, she just wants to see if the 50's theme extends to the interior as well. As she enters, she can't help but smile with the cheerful chime of the bell on the door.

"Good morning," calls a cheerful older gentleman from behind the counter. "Haven't seen you around before, you new in town?"

"I am," she nods. "Betty."

"Pop Tate," he offers as he takes her outstretched hand in a firm greeting. "What can I get for you?"

"Just a water would be great," she says with a cheerful smile.

"Coming right up," he grins, getting a cup and promptly filling it to the brim with ice and cold water. "It's going to be a hot one today."

"Mmm," Betty agrees. "And humid too."

Pop Tate smiles in agreement. "Take a seat anywhere you like."

Betty nods in thanks and turns towards the booths to her left. She'd thought the diner was empty, but a quick movement in the far corner catches her eye. She walks slowly in the direction of the corner booth, pausing when she catches a glimpse of a familiar grey beanie just barely visible from her standpoint.

"Jughead," she says in surprise, but she gets no response. She marches straight up to the booth, chuckling when she finds Jughead's six foot frame curled up in the seat. "Why are you hiding?"

"Im not," he argues quickly. "I uh, I dropped- ok I'm hiding."

"From me," she questions as a smirk quivers on her lips.

"Maybe."

"Ok? Well, do you want me to like pretend I didn't see you or something," she laughs.

Jughead gives her a look that says, "you can't be serious," as he straightens up in his seat.

"Can I sit?"

"I guess," he shrugs.

Betty takes the seat across from him, examining him curiously as she sips on her water.

"What," he clips, his eyes darting around in avoidance of her stare.

"What are you doing here so early?"

"Because it's so weird to be at a diner at seven in the morning," he scoffs.

"Well it's not like you're eating breakfast," she points out, gesturing to the empty table in front of him.

"I have coffee," he argues, sliding his half empty mug into the space she'd pointed out.

"Ok, fine. Don't tell me," she shrugs.

"There's nothing to tell," he scoffs. "I'm in a diner, same as you."

Betty only nods, her eyebrows knitting together as she examines his features more carefully.

"Did you sleep last night," she questions, concern heavy in her tone.

"Of course I slept. What kind of question is that," he grits, but Betty can tell he's lying. She can see it in his eyes.

"Juggy," she says softly, placing her hand carefully over his atop the table. "If you don't want to tell me why you didn't sleep last night, that's fine, but don't lie to me."

Jughead glares momentarily, his expression softening with the stroke of her thumb against the back of his hand.

"You want to get some breakfast," she asks with a smile.

He shakes his head. "I'm fine."

With a tight lipped smile and a pat to his hand, Betty gets up from the table. "Come over later."

Jughead gives nothing more than a curt nod, his eyes fixed on the dark liquid in his mug as she goes.

Ten minutes later, Jughead is startled from his dozed off state by the clinking of a plate and silverware being set down in front of him.

"That nice girl bought you breakfast," Pop says with a smile. "Made your favorite."

Jughead can only stare at the array of bacon, eggs, and sausage on his plate. His eyes burn with the threat of tears and he wants to be angry, but he's just too exhausted. Pop gives him a pat on the back and walks away, leaving him to dig in to the first meal he's had since yesterday's breakfast of pop tarts at Archie's.

Back home, Betty promptly takes a shower. Her run had been more of a light jog on her way back, given the rapid rise in temperature and by the time she'd reached home she was thoroughly drenched in sweat. After her shower, she gets dressed in a pair of cotton cheer shorts and an old band t-shirt she'd stolen from her brother some years back. She allows her wet hair to hang down her back, welcoming the cool wet patch it leaves against her back and tosses herself onto her bed.

Sometime later, Betty is woken by the ring of the doorbell. With a sleepy groan, she gets to her feet and shuffles down the stairs to answer the door.

"Jug," she says in question as she opens the door.

"Uh, you said-"

"Oh, right, yea. Sorry." She shakes her head.

"I can come back," he says, taking a step back.

"No. No, come in," she insists. "My brain is just-"

"Exhausted," he suggests. "Mine too," he agrees with Betty's nod.

"Want to nap with me," she grins as the door closes behind them.

"Uh-"

"Oh come on," she pleads. "My bed is super comfy, and I have a.c."

Jughead rubs at the back of his neck, his eyes peeking out from beneath his lashes as he ducks his head. With the roll of her eyes, Betty takes his hand and drags him up the stairs behind her.

Inside Betty's room, Jughead's heart begins to race as he watches her close the door. They're entirely alone, in her bedroom, with the door closed and he's starting to think this was a terrible idea.

"Come on Juggy," Betty calls with a grin, patting the bed beside her.

Without any good reason not to, Jughead approaches her bed and hesitantly takes a seat.

"You gonna take your boots off," she chuckles.

Jughead's lips part slightly as he searches for an argument as to why he should keep them on before he gives in, kicking them off beside the bed. Betty lays back against her pillows and waits expectantly for Jughead to join her. He's slow to lie down, but the moment he does, his exhaustion completely takes over. Her bed is softer than any he's laid in before and his limbs become heavier and heavier as he's swallowed up by the plush feel of her comforter beneath him.

"Comfy," Betty giggles with his heavy sigh.

"Mmm," he agrees, his eyelids stretching as he fights against the pull of sleep.

With a smile on her lips, Betty scoots herself closer to him. He startles slightly with the nudge of her forehead against his chest, one eye peeking open to find her curled into his front on her side. He watches her hand come to rest gently against his stomach before his eye forces itself closed once more. In his sleepy state his defenses are lowered and he dares to rest his hand at the back of her head, threading his fingers into her golden tresses as he allows sleep to take him.