AN/ Well then guys, this is longggg overdue. I meant to update this on New Year's Eve, but I never managed to finish the chapter, because I've been suffering a pretty bad bout of writer's block, and it's taken a liftetime to pull together something I could be proud of. I hope we're all okay, healthy and happy in 2019. It's my birthday today, and I can't believe I'm seventeen... I took my first driving lesson this morning, and much to my surprise, I didn't crash (are you all proud of me?!). For 2019, I've started up an Instagram account, and that's going to be the base from which I'll work at when I'm not posting so you guys can keep up to date with everything I've got going on and read work I'm doing that isn't strictly fanfiction. I'll also be using it to provide insight to updates on this fic, and a new one I'm planning on posting at the end of the week. Please go and give it a follow thegirlwiththewords._ on Instagram.

Anyway here's a new chapter. Hope you all enjoy!

"Mommmm," Jason hollered from his room, "the pretty lady from the burger place is coming up the driveway… I think she has a motorbike!"

Cheryl nearly dropped her curling iron when she heard Jason shout her. Glancing at her phone, she cursed Toni Topaz and her compulsive punctuality. It was five forty-five. And where was Jughead at? Not at Thistlehouse; that much was certain.

"JJ," the redhead called out, wrapping a strand of hair around the contraption in her hands to curl it, "Would you do me a massive favour and see our guest in? Offer her some juice or water and explain I'm getting ready sweetie."

"But Mom," Jason declared, walking into the room and collapsing on his mother's bed, "you always say I can't talk to strangers…"

"Well I give you permission just this once," she said, turning around to look at her son. "Go and get the door… be polite JJ!"

"When am I not?" the young boy mused, running down the stairs to greet the woman behind the door.


The door swung open before Toni had chance to ring the doorbell.

"Hiiiiiii," the kid standing in the doorway greeted. "You're really pretty!"

Toni blushed, looking at the boy and smiling softly when she realised he was just Cheryl in miniature. "Thanks kiddo. You're not too bad yourself, Mister."

"Hey!" the boy scolded, crossing his arms in a way that was far too like his mother to be allowed. "I'll tell my mom if you're mean to me."

"Aww, kid," Toni sighed, shaking her head, "you're adorable. Is that better?"

"Much better," the boy nodded. "Now are you just going to stand there outside, or are you coming in?"

"Jason!" a voice shouted from downstairs, and it didn't take much for Toni to imagine its owner's eye roll. "I thought we agreed you'd be polite.

"We did!" the boy yelled back, turning to face Toni with a smirk on his face. "Grown-ups these days, they're a pain, aren't they?"

Toni laughed at the kid in front of her, following him into the house. "That they are. Children are hardly any better though, I'll admit."

Guiding Toni into the kitchen, Jason carefully lifted two beakers from the cupboard, one green and the other red. "Do you have any kids? Uncle Jug doesn't. Nor does Auntie Veronica."

"Nope," Toni replied, popping the 'p' and wondering how long Cheryl was going to be.

"So… you're single?" Jason inquired, placing the beakers on the cupboard, adding another question before she had chance to reply. "Juice?"

"Yes and yes," Toni answered, taking a seat on one of the stools by the breakfast bar, taking how different the place looked into account. "You have a lot of questions, kiddo."

"Yep," Jason mimicked, popping the 'p' in the same way Toni said. "Uncle Jug says questions are the sign of a good reporter."

"Well, you're Uncle Jug is right, kid."

"What's your name?"

"Toni."

"Hi Toni, I'm Jason. I'm ten and before you ask, yes I'm related to Cheryl."

"You have a lot to say for yourself young man, you know that?"

Jason cheeks burned a vicious shade of red and the boy ran his hands through his hair while thought of a response.

Before he had chance to reply, the ringing of the doorbell chimed through the house.

Jason jumped up, running towards the door. "I'll get it Mom!"

His shout to his mother was closely followed by a cheer of "Uncle Jug!"

"Taking part in the Spanish Inquisition there, Topaz?" a familiar voice mused, and Toni jumped, feeling a sudden chill run down her spine.

Turning around, Toni nearly jumped again when she looked at the woman standing in the doorway. "Cheryl…" she whispered. "Jeez, you look… you just look wow!"

"Wow?" Cheryl repeated, and it was all Toni could do to nod.

The way the woman's hair was held in perfect curls that cascaded down her back in ringlets, framing her face in a way that made the redhead's face suddenly look a million times softer than it had mere hours ago. The way Cheryl's eyes were shining, they had that glint in them, a look that was just a tiny bit dangerous but – should the onlooker actually know Cheryl – they'd know it was a look of approval, even happiness. She was wearing a dress too, a black number drawn in at her waist, emphasising how slim she was. Toni almost chuckled when she noticed its length. It was easily as short as Cheryl's skirts had been back in high school, and it truly seemed as if old habits died hard. Same could be said for her lipstick, still applied with an expert hand in red. Toni wondered if Cheryl still used the same type. She probably did. It looked far too much like the girl's old one to be anything else. Glancing downwards, she saw Cheryl's heels, six inches, just like before. Stilettos in scarlet red. Nothing less for Cheryl Bombshell. Cheryl looked amazing. She looked stunning. She looked a million different adjectives, all of them not quite able to fully describe what Toni was looking at. They all fell short of what Cheryl Blossom was, none of them quite able to do Cheryl's immaculate appearance justice.

"You always did know how to charm a woman, Topaz." Cheryl mused smirking at the woman sitting in her kitchen. "You scrub up well."

Though her remark was said in a sarcastic manner, Cheryl hadn't delivered a compliment that genuine to anyone other than her son in the last ten years. And she was entirely right.

Toni was wearing a tartan skirt, the red of the skirt contrasting beautifully with the black leather of her Serpent jacket. She had a simple choker around her neck, and – as Cheryl let her gaze wander – she noticed a snake ring winding its way around her fingers. Distracted by the ring, Cheryl continued to stare at the girl, smirking harder when she saw the big, bulky, black boots – Doc Martens, she noted, Topaz was going up in the world – on the feet of the other woman.

"You have a real thing for staring at women, Bombshell," Toni remarked, snapping the redhead from her daze. "You should probably get that seen to."

"Only beautiful women, Topaz," Cheryl joked, rolling her eyes when she heard a giggle from behind the door, followed by a low chuckle. "Okay boys, you do know you don't have to stand out there, right?"

"But Mom," Jason groaned, "Uncle Jug said we were playing spies."

"Of course he did," Cheryl replied, shaking her head at the duo. Glancing towards Toni, she didn't miss the icy look she was shooting Jughead, something that confused the redhead. What had caused that? The tension between the two of them was palpable. It didn't take much for Cheryl to see it, and it didn't take long for her to begin feeling a part it herself.

"So you two, we're heading out…"

"And we'll see you later, Bombshell," Jughead finished, pulling two bowls out of a cupboard. "Go, have fun," he said with a wink, lowering his voice so Jason didn't catch the last bit, "but not too much fun!"

"Jug…" Cheryl groaned, and Toni rolled her eyes.

"Now be gone, ladies!" Jughead declared, ushering them out of Cheryl's own kitchen and out of the door, shutting it behind them.


"Well," Cheryl deadpanned, "I can cross one of my friends locking me out of my own house from my bucket list."

Toni laughed, turning her attention to her fingers to try and distract from the nerves building in her stomach, threatening to erupt. She didn't need another panic attack. Not again. Not when she'd already had one that day.

Certainly not in front of Cheryl Blossom.

"So Veronica's?" Cheryl began, noticing how quiet Toni Topaz had suddenly become, and worrying that it was her comment about beautiful women that had triggered it. Damn. She shouldn't have said that; it was much to forward.

"Perhaps," Toni replied, obviously distracted, "but I'm not sure if I fancy it."
"You don't fancy it? So what, we're just going to stand outside my house all night?"

"No, Cheryl, I didn't mean it like that."

"Then how did you?"

"Just. Listen. I don't know. I just don't want to go there."
"Okay," Cheryl shrugged, her expectations for the night crashing. "Not to impose, but is everything alright?"

Toni looked at Cheryl and felt herself longing to say everything she'd heard from Jughead and Betty a few hours before.

"Fine," Toni lied, breaking eye contact with Cheryl and glancing at the floor. "Now, where go we?"

"Well I haven't been around here for a while, Topaz," Cheryl pointed out, "so it's your call…"

"How do you fancy doing something a little different?" Toni proposed, and Cheryl rose an eyebrow.

"A little different in what way?"

"A little different in a 'climb on the back of my motorbike and you'll find out later' kind of way."

"Intriguing," Cheryl replied, still sceptical of what the other woman meant. "But I don't do motorbikes…"

"I don't do cars, Blossom," Toni reminded Cheryl, "for obvious reasons, so it's up to you: either you climb on my bike with me, or we walk the two and a bit miles into town, with you in six inch heels. I'm good with either."

Cheryl grimaced at the thought of walking to town in her stilettos. "Bike it is."

"Good." Toni confirmed, walking over to her bike and climbing on. Cheryl stood frozen, watching the other girl bring the ancient Harley Davison towards her. "So Blossom, are you coming or are you just going to stand there gawping?"

In reply, Cheryl climbed onto the back of the bike, wrapping her arms around the smaller girl's waist. Toni sighed contently.

The redhead smirked as Toni revved the engine and began to ride the bike down the driveway. Feeling the other girl relax, Cheryl piped up, "so Topaz, is this whole bike thing just an excuse to get my arms round you again?"

"Obviously, Blossom!" Toni shouted, her voice scarce heard amid the wind. It wasn't too quiet for Cheryl to hear, and the redhead's cheeks burned the same colour of her hair for the remainder of their journey.

Being on that bike, for Cheryl, was liberating. There was something to be said for racing down the winding roads towards town, feeling the wind rush through her hair, the vibrations of the roaring engine beneath her and the girl in her arms. The last thing was her favourite, though the redhead would have refused – in that moment – to admit it. Toni Topaz hadn't changed these last eleven years. Not in the slightest. It was then, on an ancient motorbike that most certainly hadn't been checked by a mechanic, that Cheryl realised something. Her comfort with Toni, the contentedness about being with the smaller girl… it was home. She was home.


When Toni cut off the engine, Cheryl was shocked. When Toni had suggested she would have to "wait and see" the improvised plan for their night, she had not expected this. The five seasons? She thought that might have been on the cards. A walk down by Sweetwater River? Perhaps… actually no, because that mass of cold, dark, unforgiving water was the site of bad memories for both of them, somewhere Cheryl had no intention of ever revisiting. Not in person, anyway, because she was forced to go back there all too often in her nightmares. A chill shot through her spine when she thought of those crashing waves, of an over-turned rowing boat, of icy water strangling her, of a bottle labelled CHCl3 left discarded on the shore… Sweetwater River was somewhere less than sweet. Certainly not somewhere Toni would take her. Maybe even Pop's would have been a good idea for their evening, seeing as they used to frequent it when they were younger. The diner had always been a magnet for the teenagers of Riverdale, a place where they could spend hours in those red booths, sipping on a milkshake or picking at a basket of fries, free from judgement and safe from the horrors of the world outside them. Pops was somewhere secure, somewhere Cheryl could relax. Pop's was good.

Riverdale High, however, was the opposite.

Cheryl couldn't quite comprehend what Toni's reasoning was, but she didn't understand why this was the Serpent girl's choice location. Nevertheless, she still took Toni's hand, letting the smaller girl lead her into the empty building, the hallways hollow in the late hour.

Stepping into the vacant corridors, Cheryl felt the nostalgia hit her like a punch in the stomach. Riverdale High was remarkably unchanged, just like everywhere else in the town. Walking hand in hand with Toni, she walked down those familiar hallways, stopping every now and then to admire some freakishly familiar detail. They lingered for a while before the trophy cabinet, Cheryl silently grieving when she saw Jason's football portrait standing at the back. It was a photo of a boy they'd never get to see grow up, a father who would never see his own children grow up. She felt tears well up in her eyes, and pulled Toni away before she could let them fall.

Wordlessly, Toni guided Cheryl through a labyrinth of hallways until drawing to a halt outside a locker. Cheryl didn't even need to read the number on its door to realise the significance of it. Locker 492. The locker that had once been her own.

The redhead raised an eyebrow as she watched the other girl's gaze become fixed on the floor, a look of intense concentration forming on her face. The smaller girl took a step away, walking down the corridor before stopping by a poster advertising the current high school production.

"Hey Cheryl," she called, "come here."

Unsure of what Toni wanted, Cheryl took several tentative steps forward, approaching the other woman hesitantly. She glanced at Toni, the meaning of this whole set up suddenly dawning on her.

"Everyone loves a good friend, right?" Toni declared, and Cheryl's suspicions were confirmed.

"Well call me stupid, Topaz, because I feel the same…" Cheryl replied, a grin beginning to spread over her features, adding warmth to her sharp, marble-cold features.

"I believe that line was a lot later in the script, Blossom…"
"Well I'm not wasting time today."

"Cher," Toni began, "do you actually feel that way?"

The redhead nodded. "I do. Even after everything that happened, after the whole ordeal with Nana Rose, after New York. My feelings towards you have never changed, TT."

"Then why hide away?" Toni asked, well aware of how many miles she'd left the boundaries behind her in that moment.

Cheryl shrugged. "I couldn't do it. I broke your heart and I couldn't bear the thought of calling home one day to discover somebody else had picked up the pieces with you."

Recounting the several brief flings she had partaken in to try and remove all memories of Cheryl Blossom from her mind, Toni knew that nobody else had managed to ever leave a lasting impact on her like the redhead had. "There was never anybody else, Cher; at least, not anybody who stuck around."

"Why didn't you call?"

"I tried. I even came to New York but never found you."

Cheryl suddenly felt guilt sink into the depths of her stomach like a stone. For the last ten and a bit years, she'd tried to deny that girl in New York was actually Toni. She'd tried to convince herself that she'd been replaced, that forgetting was the best way to heal her broken heart. All along, the fragments of her heart had been telling her she was in the wrong place. When she was in John-Phillipe's arms, her heart was telling her it was wrong. It had been telling her she was missing something. Something big.

Glancing into those eyes, she knew that the thing she'd been missing was Toni Topaz.

"I'm so sorry, Toni," she whispered, her voice cracking as the memories began to flood her.

"For what?"

"For not running after you."

"What?"

"Rockefeller Centre. It was you I'd seen, but I've been trying to convince myself it wasn't. Climbing in the back of a cab. Even in the bleak midwinter, you refused to wear a coat. In your Serpent jacket."

The redhead started to ramble more and more as Toni fell into silence. She'd spent that whole weekend searching for Cheryl, and for nearly eleven years she'd been deadly certain that the girl she loved was just another ghost of her past. She'd given up at the ice rink. She'd finally admitted defeat. But still… she was that close?

"How do you even know I was there?" Toni eventually stammered, feeling the hurt begin to flood her veins.

"I saw you," Cheryl said, letting her gaze drop from the floor. "And I've regretted not shouting your name every day since."

Toni placed a gentle hand on Cheryl's chin, guiding the redhead to look at her. "No regrets, Blossom, okay?"

"But…"

Toni didn't let the other girl argue, softly placing her lips against Cheryl's, silencing the girl.

"We're here now, aren't we?" Toni whispered as she pulled away for breath.

Cheryl nodded wordlessly, leaning back in.

Toni shook her head, moving a little away from the other girl. "What happened before, that doesn't matter, okay?"

Cheryl nodded.

"All that pain, all the hurt, we're leaving it in the past, where it belongs. What matters now is the present and the future."

Toni cursed herself for sounding so much like her therapist, but had to agree that Doctor Jameson's advice was right.

Dwelling in the past was not going to do either of them any good. Anything they felt before, maybe it was still there… judging by the way Cheryl was acting it certainly was… but that was before. They could have that again. There, in the now.

They could just be them.

Toni felt her head let go of any and all arguments, and she gave into those brown eyes before her, appreciating the longing hiding in those pools of melted chocolate.

She leaned in and damned the consequences.

It was time to try again.

AN/ Thank you all so much for reading, and I just want to say, even though I've been super inactive lately, every follow, favourite and review means the world for me. Please, please, please drop me a review so I can see how you all found the chapter, and drop me a few ideas about where you see the two of them going. Is there anything in particular you guys fancy seeing? Please tell me!

Love you all, and thank you so much for sticking with this :)