Chapter Three

An unexpected burst of rage rocked through Jughead, and he felt the phone slip out of his hands and hit the floor with a clattering sound. Running a hand through his wild hair, he felt that he wasn't wearing his hat. For once though, he didn't really care.

"You dropped it." Betty huffed and Jughead turned to see his girlfriend picking up her phone with shaky hands. Crimson liquid spotted her pale fingers, and he realized the glass shards lodged in her palm with a jolt.

The first-aid kit!

Ducking down, Jughead swiped up the kit and hurried over to Betty. Sitting down beside her, he shakily opened the small box. It was filled to the brim with supplies, and Jughead honestly thought he'd cry in relief.

It was a smaller first aid kit, but it was stocked as full as it could. Of course, his Betty would be prepared for anything. "Betty…" he whispered. She moaned in pain. "Let me see your head."

Leaning forward, the young man brushed some hair from her forehead, revealing a gash on her hairline. It seemed deep and he felt panic rise inside of him before he gathered himself and searched through the first aid kit. His fingers brushed against a bottle of ibuprofen and he snatched it up the moment he noticed it.

Shaking two pills from the battle, he instructed Betty to open her mouth, she did. Then he told her to take the pills. She did. Quickly, he took two himself before putting the bottle on the ground carefully. The pills were dry on his tongue and throat, but he ignored it the best he could.

As carefully as possible, Jughead dabbed the blood that crusted Betty's forehead.

Next, the young man took out a mini bottle of saline solution with trembling fingers and applied the cleansing material to the gash on her head. Betty cried out in shocked pain but didn't speak. "You're doing so great, Betty, just focus on your breathing."

Brushing some excessive solution from her face with his shirt, Jughead clutched his hands to his stomach, breathing on them to warm them off. After his moment of rigid coldness, Jughead rummaged through the kit for something to bandage the wound up with. After what seemed like ages, he spotted a wrapping of gauze pads and quickly snatched it up.

Within a few minutes, he had wrapped the gauze around Betty's head, despite her weak protests. "It should start feeling better soon, Betts… Just hold on for me, okay? Please?"

Silence.

"Betty!"

Jughead's girlfriend shifted slightly, her eyes struggling to flutter open. "Jug, thank you," she finally said quietly. Her voice was barely more than a rustling in the wind, a scratchy, pained wind. Then, "Jug?"

Getting to work on the glass that stuck to her hands, Jughead looked in her beautiful eyes. "Yes?" He asked and he carefully pulled shards of glasses from her palm.

"Where are we?"

He didn't answer for a moment, just winced when Betty suddenly cried out in pain. Once the glass was out of her hands, he cleaned them as sparingly as possible before bandaging them up. "I don't know." the young man suddenly answered.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, Betts, I'm okay." He was speaking out his hopes. Jughead didn't want to lie to her, but he couldn't worry her. No matter what he did. "How do you feel?"

Quiet breathing. "Better."

Jughead nodded in an attempt to convince himself she was going to be okay. Gingerly, he looked at her stomach. Blood smeared the pale pink jacket, and it was cut up pretty badly. He wasn't sure whether to take it off or leave it. Pulling at the gauze remaining, he winced. It was running out. Could he finish wrapping up her stomach?

"Betty, can you lift up your shirt for me?"

Betty sighed shakily and nodded. Carefully, she lifted it up, revealing numerous scratches all over her stomach. Jughead felt panic race through him. He wouldn't have enough gauze for it all. Bandaids? Those could work. After he got the glass out.

Inching closer, he watched as his girlfriend trembled against the unforgiving cold. "You're going to be fine," Jughead repeated, like a mantra. "You're going to be fine. You're going to be fine." Then he began tugging out the glass. One by one, the glass soon was piled in a bloody pile, away from them.

Quickly, he wrapped up the worst wounds in gauze before it eventually ran out. Searching desperately through the scattered supplies, he found bandaids and quickly placed them on the next worst wounds.

Betty's jacket fell back over her stomach, and she fell into his arms. Breathing in Betty's comforting feeling, Jughead gently touched his head to hers. Her salty tears streamed down both of their faces. Guiltily, he just held her until she stopped crying.

"Are we going to die out here?" The Serpent Queen asked after a long moment.

"No," Jughead answered immediately, followed by a terse silence. They didn't know that. They might. He was only hoping. "Do you feel better?"

The young woman laughed dryly, before wincing at the movement. "Yeah, but it's just so damn cold." Betty's voice shook and he hugged her closer. Jughead had a coat, Betty had a jacket. Beginning to slip off his coat, he felt Betty's ice-cold hands touch his face. "Don't. Keep your coat. You'll freeze without it."

Slowly, he nodded. He hated it, but he also knew Betty was right. And if he died, Betty would be out there alone.

He wouldn't leave her.

"Damn, where are they?" Archie cursed, checking his watch. Nestled in about three blankets, he glanced out the window again. The blizzard was just as bad as it had been all freaking day.

Veronica sat beside him and wrapped her arms around him. "They probably saw the blizzard warning and stayed an extra day." she soothed. "Cocoa?"

The young man turned his attention to his girlfriend and laughed. "Couldn't hurt, I guess. It's just… wouldn't they have texted us by now?" The red-head sighed in frustration and opened his phone's messages again. Nothing. Well, there was Archie questioning their whereabouts, but no reply.

"Archie, stop. They're fine." Veronica said a bit more forcefully. Seeing how he was upsetting her, Archie offered her an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, Ronnie, you're right. They're fine. I'm sure they'll reply in the morning."

The Lodge relaxed slightly and nodded, handing Archie a steaming mug of hot cocoa. He took it and sipped at the drink immediately, wincing at the boiling water that burned his lip. Veronica rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Wait for it to cool, would you?"

Archie placed the mug on his counter before taking Veronica's and putting it beside his. If it wasn't for the fact that they were different colors, the mugs were nearly identical. "We're under the mistletoe." he grinned.

The young woman laughed and kissed him gently. Then she pulled away and rested her head on his chest, staring out the window at the fierce snow blizzard raging outside. Archie followed her gaze and they stayed that way for a while.

Wondering.

"It gives me strength to have somebody to fight for; I can never fight for myself, but, for others, I can kill." - Emilie Autumn

A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! Review and favorite, please! Tell me, what do you want to see?