Chapter 10: I see a red door and I want it painted black. (2/2)
After a very pleasant night spent talking with Betty about romance movies, where Dante basically challenged her into imagining most of the romantic leads being replaced by an ugly guy and then tell him if it would have worked the same. He honestly had a fun time as a Betty only managed to list three movies out of twenty that it did. When it got too late however, the Dark Gentleman went back home and got some sleep.
The next day came relatively quickly and after a very unremarkable class, he went with Kevin, Moose and the other volunteers to work at Andrew's Construction wearing the exact same outfit that he used last time. But he was called into Mr. Andrews officer. The reason was that, Mr. Andrews basically informed him that those thugs that Dante beat up were actually sent by Veronica's father after he found out that Mrs. Lodge went behind his back when she gave the contract to Mr. Andrews. She informed him about it while Dante was on the ceremony and he thought Dante should know. Mainly because the two guys actually got released.
Dante spent the entire day thinking about that, unfortunately in his state of deep thought, he accidentally cut his hsnd while he carried some sharp materials. Mr. Andrews wrapped around some bandages and told him to go home for the day. But he ultimately decided to go ask Mrs. Lodge about it the thugs instead. Mostly because he was wondering if him dealing with the thugs would have some repercussions.
After he was done with the day's work, Dante decided to go visit the Lodge ladies.
"Danticho?" Once he got there, Veronica answered the door for him. "Did something happened?" She asked in worry.
"Ummm..." Dante was trying to find the right words to ask. "The thugs that attacked the construction site..."
"My dad sent them." She finished for him.
"So you know." Dante was actually relieved, he was worry about her reaction about it.
The raven haired girl invited the boy dressed in black to enter. Which he gladly did. "Mom told me about it," She confessed before closing the door behind him. "I was going to tell you but..." He could tell that she mean it.
"It's okay," Dante decided to ease her guilt. "But the thugs got released."
"Mom guaranteed me that they skip town, so they won't come after you." Veronica assured him while touching his shoulder.
"Good to know." Dante replied as he looked around. "You're mom isn't home?"
"She had to solve something, not exactly giving me any details about it." Veronica sounded a bit annoyed by that, though, it was probably because of the recent discovery.
"It's probably nothing important, don't worry about it." Dante tried to reassure her, before he looked at the couch. "Do you mind if I... Sit down a bit?" He politely asked.
"Not at all, make yourself at home." Veronica replied before leading him towards the couch. Where he say down comfortably with Veronica sitting next to him. "What happened to your hand?" She asked him.
"Had a little accident, but nothing I can handle." Dante had an urge to remove his boots, but he was afraid of torturing Veronica with the smell of his feet at the moment. "How was your day?" He asked.
"Well..." Veronica seemed bothered by something. "Not so great."
"Wanna talk about it?" Dante instantly asked.
Veronica seemed a bit reluctant at first, but after few seconds she took a deep breath and stared at Dante's green eyes. "Short version," She decided to get started. "I noticed that there was something wrong with Ethel Muggs and decided check on her to see if she was okay." Dante didn't really care much for Ethel, but he listened closely. "She told me that her parents were fighting a lot, but she didn't know why. I... Later found out through my mom that... Ethel's father invested with my father and lost everything of money because of it and they'll have to sell their house as result."
"And, you feel a little guilty about that, because it was your father's fault." It wasn't a question, he was just pointing out.
Veronica looked down sadly.
"Sorry for saying this, but... Good riddance." Dante bluntly told her, with little sympathy on his voice.
Which obviously surprised Veronica. "What?"
"Manfred Muggs, Ethel's dad, is the greediest asshole in Riverdale." Dante decided to inform her. "He sabotaged several small business in order to buy the properties to resell them in a much higher price, both in Riverdale and Greendale." Sadly, Dante knew the owners of some of the business that he ruined in Greendale, and it depressed him as they all work exceptionally hard to build those businesses. "Some of the people who's businesses he ruined, also had to sell their houses, so this is a literal case of karma."
Veronica seemed to be surprised by that. "I... How do you know that?" She seemed really curious.
"I have two aunts that own a mortuary in Greendale, and the asshole payed someone to set the house on fire in order to force my aunts to sell the property." He explained to Veronica, who widened her eyes in surprise.
"But, are you sure it was him?" Veronica asked.
"My cousin caught the guy before he could do anything and the guy confessed right away." Dante then chuckled a bit. "My cousin was covered in blood because he just made the autopsy of a body and had a bloody saw on his hand, when the guy saw it, he screamed like little girl."
Veronica seemed to holding herself to not laugh at the situation.
"My point is, it's a shame that Ethel and her mom have to deal with the consequences of his actions, but, he brought it on himself." Dante decided to assure her. "Honestly, I'm pretty sure he would have lost everything even without your father's help."
"Yes but, we at least wouldn't be involved in it." Veronica clearly felt guilty either way. "But thanks for telling me that anyway."
"You welcome." Dante replied with a smile.
Veronica smiled back before she asked. "So... This aunts you have at Greendale, are they your father's sisters or..."
"No... Not my father's." Dante was hoping that she got the hint and didn't ask any further questions.
But.
"So they're your ..." She seemed to be trying to find the right words.
"They're the sisters of the thing that gave birth to me, and let's leave it at that." The Dark Gentleman bluntly told the girl that he likes.
Veronica sighed before putting her hands up. "Okay, okay... I'm not going to pry." Which Dante was relieved. "I just wish you'll trust me enough to tell me." She could clearly tell that something happened between Dante and the "thing" that gave birth to him.
"I trust you a lot, but some things are best left forgotten, forever." Dante stated as this is something he doesn't want to talk about.
Veronica just stared at him with a strange look. Before Dante knew it, however, Veronica leaned forward and gave the boy with dirty blond hair, a kiss. Dante gladly returned the kiss, before he gently pulled her on top of him. "How about we forget about everything for a few minutes?" She suggested as soon as they separated with her hands on his face, gently caressing his cheeks with her thumbs.
"How about a few hours?" Dante also suggested with a smirk as he wrapped his arms around her torso.
"Or maybe a few days, but, I don't think any of us is going to count anyway." Veronica stated while biting her lower lip, before she connected her lips with his once again.
Sadly, Dante and Veronica's passionate making out session only did lasted a few minutes, because Veronica's mother arrived soon after.
All that the dirty blond haired boy could do, was go home afterwards. Where he was currently at, laying on his bed for a bit, wearing a black T-shirt, black trunks ad black socks. Wondering what exactly is he supposed to expect from the dinner at the Blossoms.
He was about to fall asleep, but suddenly, his door started to ring. Dante sighed before he rolled out of his bed and made his way out of his room to go answer it. Once he opened his door however, he was surprised by who it was. "Cheryl?" It was literally the last person that he could possibly expect. Cheryl was standing outside his door carrying a box.
"Hello Dante," She took a good look at Dante, mainly his legs. "You're looking extremely DILF-y today." He really doesn't know what the hell does that mean.
"Ummm... How did y-" He was about to ask how the hell did she found out where he lived, but she spoke first.
"May I come in." It wasn't really a question, because she literally passed right through him while she said it.
"No... But you just did anyway." Dante spoke in a low voice as he closed the front door and followed Cheryl towards the living room.
"Oh my, I loved your house." She commented as she placed the box that she was carrying on the table in front of the couch. "There's a lot of charm in it's simplicity." Dante was fifty percent sure that she was basically calling him poor when she said simplicity.
"Thanks... I guess..." Dante spoke with a somewhat confused face, which was mainly a result of not understand what the hell is she doing there.
The red head girl then opened the box. "As a maj thank-you for coming to the maple banquet with me tomorrow," Dante approached to see what was in the box. "I wanted to give you this."
"Holy shit!" Inside the box there was a pair of shoes, an Nike air Foamposite One, in the color black. Which happened to be a shoe that Dante wanted. "How did you...?"
"I heard the mother of my future niece or nephew, mentioning that you wanted it." She informed him. "You're welcome."
Dante then inspect the very nice looking shoes.
"Okay." Cheryl called his attention. "That's all." She told him. "I'm going now." She announced. "My claustrophobia acts up in small houses." And that pretty much confirms what Dante thought earlier. "See you tomorrow." To Dante's shock, Cheryl gives him a kiss on the cheek, before making her way towards the exit.
Once she was out if the house, Dante decided to speak up. "What the hell was that?" He asked himself. But he quickly forgot about, mainly because he wanted to try on the shoes. The boy with sea-green eyes quickly put then on and was very pleased by how perfectly they fit. "Awesome." Dante spoke as he saw the shoes.
The next came as quickly and as promised, Dante was taken by Jason's father to the local tailor to get sized for the suit that he will wear for the banquet.
"As requested, fully black." The Tailor spoke as he measured Dante. "I'll take measurements for the pants."
Dante was standing in front of a mirror wearing black trunks, black socks and a black T-shirt with a half done top for the suit. While Jason's father was watching as the Tailor measured him.
"Something happened to your hand?" Mr. Blossom asked, as it was wrapped around some bandages.
"I cut myself by accident while I was working at Andrews's Construction." Dante explained as the Tailor measure his hips.
"Jason told me you worked there, but I thought it was only during the summer." Dante wondered why did he care.
"I asked a few... "Friends" to help me improvise a crew for Mr. Andrews until he gets a more... Permanent crew." Honestly, only Kevin was actually his friend. And he honestly doesn't know why he's explaining to him, since it was Mr. Blossom that brought Mr. Andrews's crew in the first place.
"I'm impressed." He heard Mr. Blossom said as the Tailor finished measuring his hips. "You decided to help man even though there was not any necessity to or anything in it for you."
Sadly, it was partially true. Mr. Andrews was just paying him and the others as part-timers at most. But, Dante gladly did it because Mr. Andrews was a very solid guy.
"Honestly, I can imagine Jason joining you in this just for the sake of helping you." Dante doesn't know why, but he noticed the tone of his voice changing for a second when Jason's name was spoken. "It always impressed how close the two of you were."
"We were and ummm..." Dante turned around to face Mr. Blossom. "Cheryl told me about the problems you're facing the with board and... Whatever I can do to help , feel free to ask." The boy dressed in black didn't really care about the Blossoms, but honestly, Jason wouldn't want his family falling apart or their businesses being stolen from them, despite all of his problems with them, Jason loved his family. "Jason wouldn't want his family business being stolen from you or your wife, despite everything."
Strangely, Dante doesn't know why. But there was something off about Mr. Blossom that he couldn't understand what it was. "Yes... He wouldn't." The tone of his voice only added to Dante's strange feeling. "I'll tell you what, let's just through this banquet, all right?" He touched his shoulder in a friendly matter. "Afterwards, we'll sit down man-to-man and discuss how can you help our family."
Dante just nodded in response, trying to shake the weird feeling off.
Suddenly, the Tailor returned. "Is it satisfactory?" He asked Mr. Blossom.
"It's more than satisfactory."
After his conversation with Jason's father and getting the measurements for the suit. Dante went straight to school and the first thing he did, was meet up with Betty at the Blue and Gold office. Who was extremely distraught over something that happened.
Apparently, the previous day. Hal and Alice Cooper had a massive fight because Betty's dear father decided take the very mature approach to deal with being kicked out of his home, by changing Alice's password at The Register and firing her. And Alice also decided to respond to that maturely, by tossing a brick through the front door window. Which Dante would have loved to see.
But he would definitely preferred that such thing did not happen, because of how upset Betty is with it.
"My parents are unbelievable, Dan." Betty was extremely upset about that. "Polly is locked up in that house like a character out of Jane Eyre," Dante is just sitting on a chair as she complained, he was wearing black jeans, a black hoodie and the black shoes that Cheryl gave him. "And what are they doing?" She's walking left and right. "Changing each other's login accounts and throwing bricks through windows."
"I'm gonna be honest, it looks like they're competing to see who can be more petty." Dante told her.
She seemed to agree with him since she nodded. "It's like, you know, in a time of crisis, people either come together or fall apart?" The blond girl asked him while trying to hold back tears. "It feels like we're falling apart." He could see tears appearing on her eyes. "And the way things are going, pretty soon, the Coopers, we're not gonna exist anymore." She started to cry. "And there's nothing I can do to stop that."
"Hey, hey..." Dante stood up from his seat and quickly placed his hands on her shoulders. "Listen to me," He stared into her eyes. "As long as you're still standing, you're family will not fall apart." The boy dressed in black assured her. "Because you're the only thing that is keeping them from completely falling apart, and all you need to do is hold on a little more until I solve this mess." He gently placed his hands on her cheeks and wiped the tears with his thumbs. "Starting with getting Polly home." The Dark Gentleman stared deeply into her eyes to say. "So promise you will hold on, even if it's just a little longer."
Betty stared back into his eyes and held his hands which were still on her cheeks. "I promise." She promised in a sobbing voice.
The boy with dirty blond hair only had one response. He removed his hands from her cheeks and wrapped his arms around the blond girl tightly. Her immediate response, was to return the hug. And the two just stood there in the middle of the room, embracing one another tightly.
After his conversation with Betty, Dante went to the music room in order to play a little bit of music before his next class started. But he was surprised by Veronica entering the room and telling him about a very interesting encounter that she just had with Cheryl.
"What?" Dante thought it was hilarious.
"Cheryl tried to pour some insane poison into my ear about how close you two are getting." Veronica sounded extremely chilled about that and even amused with her attempt. "I think she genuinely thinks that she's going to steal you away from me or something."
Dante, who was sitting on a couch with a guitar in hand, only smiled at that. "Oh, so... Am I yours then?" He put the guitar down and stood up from the couch to stand in front of her.
Veronica just smirked a bit. "Maybe... But I'm the type of girl that likes to... Try things first before taking them."
Dante really wanted to know what exactly did she meant with try things first. But he sadly decided to go back to the subject of the Red Barbie. "Just ignore Cheryl, not that I have to tell you this but... Cheryl and I... Have a very chaotic relationship." It was understatement.
Veronica folded her arms and seemed curious about something. "What exactly is the deal between you and Cheryl?" She asked. "If you don't mind me asking."
"When... Jason and I became friends, we started to hang out together all the time and I think Cheryl started to hate me because of it." It was his best theory about Cheryl's hatred of him.
"Wait, she hates you because you would hang out with her brother?" Veronica seemed confused.
Dante decided to tell her the reason. "Truth is, no one really likes Cheryl." He thought for a second about telling her why Cheryl was River Vixen, but quickly remembered that he promised Jason to not tell anyone. "The majority of her "friends" only hang out with her because she buys them stuff, according to Jason."
That ended up surprising Veronica. "Are you serious?"
"Jason told me that." He revealed to her. "Honestly, not even Jason wanted to spent time with her most of the time because she was very clingy towards him."
Veronica made a expression of pity after Dante said that. "That's really sad actually."
"It is, but we can't really coddle Cheryl either." Dante bluntly told Veronica. "The reason why people don't want to be around her, is because Cheryl Blossom constantly acts like a bitch and treats people like shit." He harshly expressed his opinion towards Cheryl.
"That's a little harsh, Danticho." She didn't seem to disagree with him though.
"Doesn't make it any less true." Dante folded his arms in response. "But... I'll try to help her family in anyway I can, for Jason."
Veronica smiled at him. "Honestly, Jason hit the jackpot when he became your friend."
"I think, it was the other way around." Dante added before sitting back on the couch and grabbing the guitar once again.
Veronica just sat besides him and listened to him, playing the guitar flawlessly.
Once school was over, Dante went back home and remained the rest of day sitting inside his room playing Halo. But as soon as it got dark, he took a long warm shower,brushed his teeth, put on s bit cologne and immediately put on the suit that was gifted to him by the Blossoms. A very high quality black suit that fit him perfectly with a black bow tie, which Dante wasn't really a fan of. Before he left to go there, the Dark Gentleman did something that he never does, he actually applied some product and combed his hair into a slick back style.
He borrowed one of his father's cars to go there. The Ferrari, to be more precise.
After arriving at the Blossom's residence, Dante parked his car in front of the Belmont Lodge and made his way inside. The inside looked exceptionally similar to the mansion, though, it seemed to be designed for festivities. Upon entrance, he noticed that the other guests haven't arrived yet. But he did saw Polly on the inside.
Polly wasted no time in approaching him once he was inside and she instantly covered her mouth to hide her giggle.
Dante knew perfectly well what was the cause. "The hair?"
Polly nodded almost instantly, before she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. "You look super handsome, but it doesn't suit you at all." She spoke in complete honesty.
"Agreed." He wrapped his arms around her torso and hugged her back. "How are you?"
"Much better now with you're here." She admitted to him.
"Where's everyone else?" He asked.
"Cheryl is upstairs getting ready and the rest of the... "Clan" is coming from the mansion." The blond explained to him.
Dante, who was still holding Polly in his arms, saw the opportunity. "Polly, what is going on?" He decided to ask her in a low voice. "What is the actual reason for you coming here?"
Polly, who was also still holding Dante in her arms, closed her eyes and took a deep breath before speaking. "The truth is-" She was about to tell him, but suddenly, they heard a loud noise coming from outside.
The two quickly stared at each other before letting each other go, because it was obvious the noise was coming from the other guests and Mr. And Ms. Blossom.
"Later..." Polly whispered in his ear before they prepared to greet them.
The Belmont Lodge soon got filled up and the dinner finally got started, with Dante sitting in between Cheryl and Polly. Both friends were completely awkward and felt really out of place there. For various different reasons. Sitting down in a dinner table filled with people that they never saw before wasn't exacty fun.
Though, the food was pretty good. So the Dark Gentleman just kept his head down and eat. Until his attention was called by the sound of glass clicking. Looking up, he saw Mr. Blossom standing up.
"We were tested this year," He spoke with the guests. "As a town, as a company, mainly as a family." Dante drank a glass of water as he listened to him. "And it may not have been Jason's hand that staked the maple this year," The moment he spoke Jason's name, Polly grabbed Dante's hand and held it tightly. "But it was the hand of hope." Mr. Blossom finished before raising his glass towards Cheryl. Who just looked away awkwardly as everyone started to applaud.
With Dante and Polly letting go of each other's hand to join. As soon as they stopped, Dante started to eat again. Only to hear Cheryl whisper to him as he did. "Don't think they're being nice or genuine." He looked at her to hear her clearly. "They wanted me to fail at the tree-tapping." She seemed certain of that. "But you're going to help me with all of that." That sounded like statement rather than a request.
"Yeah..." That was the only response he could conjure.
Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Dante, have a word?" It was Jason's father.
Dante looked at Cheryl and then Polly. "Excuse me."
As he stood up from his chair and followed Mr. Blossom, he took a small look back and couldn't help but notice Cheryl and Ms. Blossom giving some very subtle hostile stares at Polly. Which angered Dante a bit. "I would like to return to the topic that we were discussing earlier." Mr. Blossom spoke to him. "You've helped my family, Cheryl, especially."
"I honestly... Don't know what exactly I did to help if I must be completed frank." Dante admitted, since he honestly just stood there and say a few encouraging words.
"You fit in exceptionally well and that was how you helped." Mr. Blossom reassured him. "I think you have a very bright future with us, especially since you're my grandchild's godfather."
"Umm... Thanks, Mr. Blossom." He shacked his hand.
"Oh, just Clifford, please." He gladly shacked him hand.
But then, Dante had a bit of a doubt that he decided to bring to light. "Mr. Blossom, please don't be insulted but... I need to know, what exactly does you and your family want from me?" That was his main question.
Mr. Blossom barely reacted to that question. "Straight business then," That was his response. "I'm going to be honest with you." He made a serious expression as he spoke. "Cheryl's a bright girl, but the Blossom board, they're very skeptical of her playing an active role in the company." Considering Cheryl's personality, Dante couldn't judge them. "Now, someone with your stock and character by her side, tempering her more erratic behavior..." Dante cringed a bit, since he's completely aware of what he means by erratic behavior. "You know, it's about... Creating a picture. The right picture." He touched his shoulder in a strange manner. "Having you with us, with Cheryl, it tells a very appealing story." Dante just stood there quietly. "Which is something I think we could all use right about now." The boy with dirty blond hair understood what he wanted from him. "You'll help us, won't you?" He asked.
Before Dante could say anything else. "Excuse me, Mr. Blossom," He heard Polly's wonderful voice. "May I have the first dance with Dante?" She came like guardian angel to get him away from that situation.
"I think that's an excellent idea." Mr. Blossom said.
With that Polly pulled him away by the hand, and Dante gladly followed her. As the music started to play and Dante took Polly's hip, both started to dance next to one another. He spared a small gaze to his side to see Jason's parents staring at him before he moved his gaze to Polly's. "Okay, what the hell do they want with you?" She asked.
"Fucking hell, they want me to play poster boy with Cheryl." He told her.
"Jesus Christ..." Polly seemed very annoyed by that.
"Can you tell me why are you here now?" He asked , as he really needed to know. Not just him but her sister and mother did as well.
"Keep dancing." She instructed him with a serious face. "And smiling." Dante gave a very false smile that made Polly chuckle a bit. "The Blossoms had something to do with Jason's death," The boy with sea-green eyes widened his so called eyes. "I'm sure of it."
"What?!" It was his instant response.
"They threatened him and I'm going to prove it." She stated to him.
Dante however, only had one response to that. "Are you fucking insane?!" He asked her bluntly. "If they did had something to do with their own son's death, you actually think that being pregnant is going to protect you?!"
"No..." Polly replied before she looked down a bit. "But I need to do something, for Jason and for my children." She spoke with a lot of conviction.
Dante was conflicted, although he does understand what Polly is doing. He certainly doesn't like the idea of her risking herself like that. But if she's right about the Blossoms involvement in Jason's death, it could be their best lead. It took him nearly a minute of clumsy dancing to make a decision.
"Okay..." It was his decision. "I'm gonna accept Mr. Blossom's offer, and help you find proof." Polly immediately opened her mouth in order to protest, but Dante was quicker. "Either that or I'll drag you out of this house, put you on the Ferrari outside and drive your pregnant ass back to your house right now."
Polly immediately closed her mouth and widened her eyes after hearing what he just said. But then she made a goofy face before speaking. "Pregnant ass, I can't believe you said that." She laughed a bit at that.
"Sorry, I'll drive your wonderful ass back to your house." He corrected himself. "Better?"
"No..." Polly giggled a bit in his attempt to sound less nasty. "But thanks for the compliment." Dante used to state at Polly's ass quite a lot when he had a crush on her. She does have a wonderful ass.
"Seriously though, I want to help you and protect you
... In any anyway I can." He confessed to her.
Polly smiled at him before speaking. "I-" but whatever she was going to say, was interrupted by the sound of yelling.
"I'm so done with this!" Cheryl yelled at her father.
"Do not make scene." Her father replied.
"No, I'm done."
Not now."
"I'm done!" Cheryl yelled before storming off.
Both Dante and Polly observed as Cheryl stormed off of the party and the two looked at one another once again. Not exactly sure how to proceed.
"Should I...?" Dante tried to ask but he was in doubt.
Polly took a deep breath. "Despite Cheryl's treatment of us... She's still Jason's sister." She pointed out to the boy in a black suit. "I can't leave so..."
"I got it." Dante understood.
Polly then planted a kiss on his cheek before sending him off to after Cheryl. With Mr. And Ms. Blossom staring at him as he leaves.
It was cold outside and Dante didn't want to stay outside long. Luckily, he found Cheryl quickly enough, standing in front of the pool located behind the Belmont Lodge. The boy with dirty blond hair, approached the red head girl slowly noticing that she was hugging her arms, probably because of the cold.
Living up to his dumb nickname, the Dark Gentleman removed the suit's jacket and placed on Cheryl's shoulders from behind. "It's cold as hell in here." Dante genuinely wasn't expecting her to accept, but she did. "Are you okay?" He asked.
Cheryl looked at him in the eye and said. "What did my dad say to you?" She asked. "That everyone thinks I'm a train wrech?"
Dante cringed a bit before speaking. "He didn't use those exact words but... " He decided to be honest.
Cheryl was clearly upset by that, as she looked down for a second before replying. "Jason was the golden boy, but me..." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "People hate me, Dante." He sadly agreed with her. "And at school, that's fine, whatever." She dryly remarked. "But this is my family." She hugged the jacket after she said that.
Dante actually felt bad for her, mainly because he understands what it is like to have a parent that hates you. "Look, Jason may have been the golden boy but even he had to put up with their shit and trust me when I say this, if he was manage it, then so can you." He reassured her
After hearing that, Cheryl sighed. "Oh ,Dante, sometimes I think you may be the only decent person left in Riverdale." She told him while staring at his eyes. "The only person who doesn't want something from me." What could he possibly want from her anyway? "Or doesn't want me to apologize for who I am..." Because there's absolutely no point in apologizing as he knows that she wasn't going to change anyway.
"You are who you are, Cheryl Blossom." Dante stated, he does really mean it as a compliment though.
"I..." Cheryl seemed to want to say something, but she couldn't find the words to say it. She sighed before saying . "I'm sorry."
Dante rose an eyebrow before asking. "For what?"
Cheryl looked at the water in the pool before clarifying. "For... Everything I did,said, implied and thought about doing with you." And the list sadly long, and probably longer than he imagines since she added thoughts.
Dante folded his arms with a very confused expression on his face. But then a question came on his head and he decided to ask, because she might not respond on another occasion. "Cheryl... What exactly is your problem with Polly and I?" That was the major question that he had.
Cheryl seemed to be taken aback by that question as she moved her head to look at Dante. She looked down a bit before she decided to respond him. Taking a deep breath, she got started. "For as long as I can remember, Jason and I were..." She paused a bit. "We were like best friends... No... Soulmates, we did everything together." Dante could tell that she wasn't exaggerating. "I... Always knew that people, and even my parents hated me but, it didn't matter, I didn't care, as long as he was with me." She stated. "But then... Him and Polly started to date and out of nowhere... I had to share him with someone else, and I hate i-... No, I despised." The red head girl had a look of hate. "But I swallowed, because Jason was happy... So I thought... I can do it, I can swallow his girlfriend..." Then Cheryl's gaze of pure hatred turned into sad eyes. "But then... He met you..." She sighed deeply before continuing. "Jason... Had friends before but... He never had one like you." His best friend's sister revealed to him before looking up. "Before I knew it, I had to share him with two other people." Tears seemed to be forming on her face but she held them back. "And then, it happened."
"What?" He asked her.
"It happened that, Jason no longer wanted to spend time with me. I mean, when he hanging out with you or Polly or the two of you, he seemed to be having the time if his life, but when he was spending time with me, it looked like he was being obligated and that spending time with me now was a chore more than anything." Dante wanted to say something but then she continued. "He'll start to make excuses to why we couldn't spend time together, lie to my face about where he was when I asked or the best one of all , cancel something that we were planning for weeks to go on a last minute concert with his best friend. " She pointed at Dante when she said that. "And I wanted to hate him for that, god I did..." Suddenly, tears started to fall from her eyes. "But I couldn't hate him, no matter how hard I tried." Cheryl then started to cry in front of him.
"So you started to hate us in response." Dante concluded and pointed out.
Cheryl just nodded as she wiped the tears from her eyes before it ruined her make-up.
That was a side of Cheryl that he really did not expected to see. Honestly, it was true, although he felt bad about it, Jason did have a habit of ditching his sister to spend time with him and Polly. He didn't do it on purpose though and honestly, maybe Dante did took a lot of Jason's time. Taking a deep breath, Dante approached Cheryl. Who started at him with her hazel eyes before before he placed his hands on her cheeks slowly and stared deeply into her eyes with his sea-green ones. "Back in the Detroit, I used to hang out with a group of Thugs, that I used to consider... Friends." He started to tell her his story a bit. "But their friendship was... Condition... If I didn't do whatever the fuck they wanted, they'll just ditch me... And I a lot of stupid shit because of them... Shit that got me into a lot of trouble." He explained to her without getting into details. "What I'm trying to say is that... Jason... Was my first ever real friend and I... May have took more of his attention than I should, and I... Apologize for... Stealing him from you so many times." Dante knows that Jason hang out with him at his own free will, but there were times when Dante convinced him to ditch Cheryl to hang out with him and he wished that he didn't since it clearly hurted Cheryl. "I just... Really like... Having a real friend." He admitted to her with a very sad face.
Cheryl just stared into his eyes in response, before looking down a bit. A few seconds pass before Cheryl looks up again. "Accept my apology and I'll accept yours." She proposed.
Dante smiled at her before removing his hands from his cheeks. "Deal."
Cheryl also smiled at him as well. But it quickly disappeared when she asked. "What did my father want with you?" She asked him with a very annoyed look.
"Honestly?" He asked and she just nodded. "He wants me to be a... Poster boy of sorts, because according to him, at your side I transmit a... "Perfect picture" or something like that."
Cheryl barely reacted to what he said, she just stared at him with a... Poker face of sorts while her arms were folded. "And what was your answer?"
"I didn't give one yet." He replied to her as he put his hands inside his pockets. Dante was going to accept, but now that he slightly improved his relationship with Cheryl, he was starting to have second thoughts. "This involves you so... You decide, should I accept your father's offer or not?"
Cheryl but her lower lip before responding. "Would you... Really help me, even if it's the way my father is implying?"
"Yes." He bluntly told her. Dante is going to help Polly investigate but he promised Jason to look after Cheryl and despite his opinion of her, he will keep his promise.
"Then... Go find my father and accept the offer." She instructed him. "And get ready to dress a little better and I suggest you keep the skick back hairstyle because it frames your pretty face."
Dante sighed because real Cheryl was back and he decided to go find Mr. Blossom before she continued with her demands. "Whatever you say..."
"Dantekins.. " She called him something that Dante didn't hear right as he walked away. He turned around to see what else she wanted. "Thanks." She gave him a beautiful smile.
Dante smiled back before he started to walk away from her. Once he was far enough from Cheryl, he was about to make his way back inside. But before he stepped in, he heard Ms. Blossom's voice. "They seem satisfied, but Uncle Bedford keeps asking about the drive-in land."
Followed her voice and saw the two standing in front of one of the doors. Curious about what they were saying, Dante hid behind some brushes to eavesdrop.
"I am so close to getting that land back. " Mr. Blossom stated. "Hermione Lodge will crumble." He drank some wine after saying that.
"Who would have thought she'd prove so resourceful?" Ms. Blossom asked. "Maybe we should've sent her to jail instead of Hiram."
"What?" Dante spoke to himself after hearing that. What the hell did they mean with that? Did they really sent Veronica's father to Jail.
Thanks everyone for reading and favoriting this story.
Questions and Answers:
See all referencing Greendale did is make me hope if Dante does get involved with the shit over in that town that in reality he's a op demon who could bitch slap anyone or anything Magical
Talking he could be unquestioned king of hell powerful
The other thing is hope Sabrina if we do get involved with the shit over in the next town joins the pairing with Dante
But yeah curious about who his cousin is and which cousin of his is sending him photos and what kind of photos haha
Quite happy with Betty coming over to spend time with Dante and his reaction when she just made him a meal of course things got serious when speaking about Polly but the two falling asleep together was very sweet and shame they didn't take that shower together haha ah well always the future and a few extra girls could join them then to haha
Now even if Cheryl interesting Dante to the vampire coven I mean Blossom family gathering was pushed by her parents I did like seeing the signs how Cheryl is warming up to Dante even more kinda getting that feeling with each scene to be honest and actually with how she was at the end of the scene I'd say she actually has fully warmed up to him now and likes him just having a little trouble expressing that
Liked how both Polly and Cheryl held onto Dante for comfort during the ceremony to and loved reading Dante supporting Cheryl when she lost her nerve a bit with all the eyes on her
So I definitely enjoyed it when Dante stepped in and shut those relatives who where talking shit about Cheryl up and how clearly happy Cheryl was when he did this
Glad to know Dante is going to be with Cheryl to at this fancy dinner
Nice scene to end with Betty to
Ah shit so with Dante seeing his old "friends" again does that mean he's going to go to prison…. Fuck
Pretty soon on Dante seeing Veronica in her PJs in person huh neat…. Yes I also hope it's sexy Pjs or basically lingerie haha and curious when Dante will get to see the other girls like Betty and Cheryl in that
Speaking of girls what's happening with Toni then the polls been up for a good long while now
More or less something of sorts.
Dante and his cousin are equal in power.
Sabrina loves Dante and that's all I'm going to say.
Haha haha
You could say that.
I'm glad you liked.
It was more because Jason was involved in the conversation.
His old buddies will bring him some amount of trouble.
The poll is going on her favor so far.
Loved it. Interesting to hear from Dante's perspective about how Jason felt about the maple tree tapping ceremony & other Blossom family members. I agree with Dante, not a fan of The Notebook (Ryan Gosling's behavior at the beginning made me cringe), I prefer A Walk to Remember (another Nicholas Sparks adaptation with Mandy Moore and Shane West). Looking forward to the next one.
Dante hates most romance films because he honestly imagines what would happen if the main character was unattractive.
I want to say that I read it and got goosebumps. And excited to wait to read the next chapter of the story.
- The scene where Dante talks on the phone with his cousin. Who is this cousin? Man or woman? Maybe the protagonist in Sabina?
- The scene where the Blossom family invites Dante to a party, I thought to myself, "Oh Dante, you're entering the danger zone."
-I love the moment Dante and Betty have right now, either the scene where they watch movies together or the scene where they eat pies together. It's a very cute moment
-I think Alice Cooper doesn't hate Dante. But she felt guilty for betraying his father. But with her disrespectful personality So she did that
-Hal Cooper, miss Dante?
- What you said that Sabrina is in the same universe as Dark Gentleman means we will read a new story?
- I think Dante's mother is a witch. And the reason why she left Dante...I don't care. I'm waiting for you to answer better.
Good morning, and in case I don't see ya: Good afternoon, good evening, and good night!
It's Sabrina, not Sabina.
Only when he finds out about Jason's killer though.
I'm glad you liked it
Maybe..
What?
Dante's mother did something beyond depraved with him and that's why he despises her.
I ship Betty and Dan so much! I hope they end up together cuz the interactions are funnier between them when compared to others
I kind of agree.
Ok now that you confirm Sabrina me Greendale is a thing when will Dante go there and will he get With Sabrina and maybe Dorcas or other witches too? And will he get invited and involved in the academy of unseen arts
Involuntarily, but...
No to Buchanan, his face is just so punch worthy
Dante is a Wizard
I'm assuming the Detroit thing is a reference to another one of the spin offs
His face is not do bad but I get what you mean.
He can do magic, but he's not really a Wizard, he's much more than that.
Nah, it's only where he used to live and that's all.