There was darkness at first.
A bleak nothingness if anything.
But then, a slow, sluggish awareness. An ebbing spasm evolving into a stabbing pain in her neck, an achy stiffness in her legs that begged to be stretched out. She blinked, assessing her environment and groaning lowly. She tilted her head back to an upright position and found that she still remained upright against the wall, her lanky legs sprawled out in front of her. Next to her, Jughead slumped over in a heap on his side, his feet pressed up against her thigh and his right bicep used as a pillow. The screensaver on his forgotten laptop changed slide to slide still but remained toppled over in front of him on the floor.
She gasped loudly. It was morning. She didn't need a watch to tell her she was already late.
The sleeping boy stirred and groaned lowly, pulling his knees into his body and attempting to sit upright. "Oh, god," he rasped out. "Ow." He rubbed the back his tender neck.
Sage jumped to her feet hastily, scrambling for her rucksack. "Oh no, I fell asleep. We fell asleep! Son of a bitch! I'm late!" she exclaimed.
Jughead sluggishly looked up at his panicked friend. "I don't remember falling asleep," he moaned sleepily, rubbing his eyes with the backs of his hands. The last thing he remembered, Sage had fallen asleep beside him and he resorted to typing out a few new paragraphs. He watched as Sage located her jacket and threw it on carelessly and swung her bag over her shoulder.
"Neither do I," she said, frantically, realizing her feet were bare. "Where are my boots?"
He pointed at the end of his makeshift bed, crawling over and picking it up and tossing her one. "Hey," he said softly.
She froze as she stood on one leg, hands fumbling to tie up her boot. "What?"
"What's wrong?" He asked.
"I can't be late Jug." she furiously tugged on her other boot. "I have to go to school and I have a test. It's part of my agreement with FP. I have to go. Maybe I'll see you around."
With the mention of FB, Jug's mouth instantly went dry. He nodded numbly, and before he could get another word out, she dashed out the door.
With a heavy sigh, he closed his laptop shut and got up and began to get ready for another mundane day at Riverdale High School.
For Sage, school didn't hold much of anything. She didn't get good grades and she didn't like being forced to learn. It was simply an obligation and a bargaining chip. Either way, she found herself sitting at the Serpent's table, munching loudly on an apple, when Sweet Pea and his best pal Fangs, plopped down beside her.
Both boys had food piled high on their trays and wasted no time digging in.
"You end up getting your beauty rest?" Sweet Pea asked through a mouthful.
Sage shook her head. "Not really. It sucks, cause I have a test in English today, that I'm totally going to fail."
"Skip it." Sweet Pea suggested, eyeing the table of people across the cafeteria.
Southside High had always been a mixed bag of colorful people. Southside had a strong reputation for drugs, gangs, and thieves which naturally begat, chaos. Anybody born of Southside usually stayed in Southside. Instead of being ashamed of it, most of the people were proud of their heritage. They embraced it and wore it as a badge of honor. For years past, the Serpent's had run the town, but as of late, new threats were encroaching on their territory, and the Serpents were weakened by the events of late. The rope was fraying, strand by strand.
"Stupid ghoulish fiends." Fangs muttered, catching Sweet Pea's glance.
"Does FP still have you tailing them?" Sage questioned.
Fangs nodded. "Yea, but so far, I don't have much on them. I don't know who or where they're getting the heroin from. I just know that everyone wants what they have lately, not what we're offering."
Sweet Pea's eyes clouded over, his fist curling angrily on the table in front of him.
"We'll figure it out," Sage said to diffuse Sweet Pea, swiping a fry off of Fang's plate. "We always do. Hey, how'd you make out with the new girl, Sweets?"
Sweet Pea's face lightened up immediately and he grinned wide, pushing his tray with his half eaten food over to Sage. "Swing and a miss. Toni said that she's -and I quote, "more into girls."
Sage and Fangs laughed boisterously. At the same time, Toni made her way over from the cafe line and plopped down with her tray and a pile of books. She looked between them bewildered when Fangs and Sage doubled over in another fit of laughter.
Sweet Pea shook his head. "Ignore them," he said, rolling his eyes. "Toni, these are my friends, Fangs, and Sage."
Toni smiled warmly. "Nice to meet you both. I think I saw both of you last night actually. I was there with my grandfather. Can anyone tell me why we've been having parties at the Twilight Drive-In of all places?"
"Ah, it's just been our spot lately. We do a lot of deals there and it's town property but the town's given up on it finally. Sheriff Keller has bigger things on his plate, especially now." Fangs explained.
That was true, but there was more to that statement which Fangs neglected to expand on. An outsider had paid the Serpents good money to trash the local spot, thereby decreasing the value of the land. Decreased value meant it could be purchased at a lower price. It was a win for everyone, except anyone that loved the drive-in.
The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch.
"Toni, we'll see you at White Wyrm after school? " asked Sage. She liked Toni immediately.
A smile graced Toni's lips. "I'll be there."
As promised, the four of them sat in a back booth at the Whyte Wyrm.
It was a large, grungy place, with bad lighting and a constant reek of liquor and beer, but it was home for so many of the Serpents.
"So, when exactly did you complete the Serpent's Dance?" Fangs asked curiously, leaning in. "And how did I miss that?"
"Oh god, Fangs," groaned Sage.
Toni rolled her eyes. "You mean that outdated and sexist tradition? Back in the summer, like the end of June," she replied bitterly.
"We've all had to do it." shrugged Sage, although she agreed with Toni.
"Not the boys." Sweet Pea smirked, flashing a row of his perfect white teeth
"Misogyny dies hard." murmured Toni, annoyed.
"Seriously, how did we miss that?" Fangs wondered aloud.
"That must have been when we were on that run, dropping off stuff for the Blossom boy to pick up." Sweet Pea reminded him.
Sage's ears instantly perked up. She remembered the boy, whose hair reminded her of the red licorice that she used to steal from the Penny Store. He had found his way to the Whyte Wyrm and asked for fast cash. It came at a cost of course, but he was willing to pay.
Did he know it would cost his life?
"Who are you?" Sage asked him from the wooden steps she was sitting on.
"I'm here to see FP," he stated with false confidence as if he had rehearsed it prior.
"What does a Northsider want with the Serpent King?" she mused, standing up to circle around him. He was taller than her and watched her move slowly until still stopped into the front of him, sizing him up.
Fear and doubt flickered momentarily in his eyes before it was replaced with determination. "I need money and you need runners that don't look like petty riff rats. I'm here to talk with FP."
She gnawed on her lip for a moment, slightly impressed.
"Sage, inside. I'll take care of this." a voice from behind her boomed with authority. She turned to see the Serpent King himself, standing in the doorway.
"Jason Blossom…" his name rolled off FP's tongue like honey before he greeted him with a sly smile.
"Let's talk, boy."
"Sage!"
She blinked coming back to reality. "Huh, what?" she stuttered, looking up from her drink.
"I asked you if you're doing the drop with me tonight, or if you're gonna sneak off to see Jughead again," repeated Sweet Pea, with a raised eyebrow.
Her mouth dropped open slightly, but she couldn't come up with a defense.
"Yea," he continued, running the pad of his finger along the rim of his glass. "I saw you last night."
"FP's son?" questioned Toni. "You know him?"
"We all do." shrugged Sage. "In one way or another."
"I don't get it. Where is he? Why isn't he with the Serpents?"
Fangs leaned forward, folding his arms on to the table "He stays on Northside territory now. It's kinda a sore spot."
Sweet Pea made a noise of disgust under his breath. "Traitor."
Fangs continued, "Things around here have been… tough lately. Gladys moved up to Toledo almost a year ago after FP lost his job and when on a drinking binge. Rumor has it, she started up her own business and it could very well be an extension of the Serpents." he whispered in a hushed voice.
"But Serpents don't abandon their own…" Toni trailed off.
"And nobody knows if that's true," added Sage.
Fangs shrugged. "I don't know. Tall Boy and Mustang have been stepping in a lot with these new threats popping up."
Toni fiddled and ripped her napkin in tiny pieces, scattering them across the table. "Think Jughead will eventually join us?"
"That prick?" scoffed Sweet Pea.
"Hey," Sage's head snapped up, her eyes narrowed in a tight glare at him, "Say whatever you want, if he chooses, he's next in line to lead this club."
"If he wants it, and he's made it clear… he doesn't." Fangs resolved.
Silence fell among them for a moment.
"To answer your question, Sweet Pea." Sage piped up, softer this time. "Yea, I've got your six on the run tonight."
Sweet Pea nodded curtly, still sour at the mention of the long-lost Serpent Prince. "Good."
Sage hated that Fangs was right. Absolutely hated it. Jughead had no interest or intention in getting tangled up in the gang. In fact, since his mother and sister had left, he'd become more brooding and introverted than ever, almost a shell of himself. A tumbleweed, blowing from one side of the town to the next.
Her mind drifted again to the night before. Up until last night, she hadn't seen him in months. It was so good to see him again. Like a breath of fresh air after inhaling stagnant polluted water.
The long summer months with the Serpents had kept her busy and working long hours. All the while, Jug stayed close to his Northsider friends, buried behind a book, a laptop or a milkshake.
As much as she knew he was never too far away, and as much as she missed her friend, it didn't change anything. He didn't want the life she needed and he moreover, he didn't understand why she needed it. She didn't understand why he was reluctant to be a part of something that was his destiny and flat out denied it.
But what Sage didn't know, was how true Jughead's words from the night before would be.
The worst was yet to come.