Snake Bites chapter 5
With the light filing out of the trailer behind him made him look positively angelic. Just looking at him made her heart ache and pulse. No matter how much she wanted it all to back to normal nothing felt the same as before. But god did she try.
"What are you doing here so late?" He wiped his eyes as if to make sure she was real, like she was really there in front of him. "Come in its freezing." He stepped aside to let her walk in.
The doorway didn't give much and she had to brush passed him to get in. Nothing. No sparks. No electricity. Nothing. She felt nothing, not a damn thing.
He closed the door behind them gesturing to the couch. She sat down feeling more out of place than she ever thought she could. He disappeared in the other direction and for a second she thought he'd abandoned her again but he came right back out with a blanket. He placed it around her silently looking anywhere but her face.
She had her eyes closed to scared to open them when she felt the couch dip beside her. She had yet to udder a single word.
"Why did you come?" It wasn't harsh. It was soothing, making her feel just so at home in a place so foreign.
"I didn't know where else to go. I needed familiar. I needed safe. I didn't know where else to go." Her voice was so quiet she was surprised that even she could here it let alone him. She felt the quiver in the back of her throat as the words escaped.
"Do you wanna talk?" He was quiet too as he placed an arm around her pulling her into him. She didn't speak just shook her head no before letting a tear drop onto the trailer floor. She leaned into him instinctively.
"I'm here if you ever decide you want to." He kisses the top of her head. "You can sleep here tonight. My dad won't be home so you'll be fine." With that he helped her up holding her hand, leading her to his crappy bed in his crappy bedroom all the while she wanted to wash her hair clean feeling so dirty from the kiss. She used to relish in these moments, live for them, crave them. But she just felt so wrong. So broken.
His room was never someplace she spent much of her time in but she wasn't a stranger in the least. The same creaky bead frame, same dingy sheets, same dark interior no matter how much sun was filtering in. She hated him but couldn't help but love him. He was and forever will be her first real love and in moments like that she wondered why it was so bad but then remembered everything he did. Everything che said and she felt a wave of nausea roll through her.
Man she had to get better taste in men.
He covered her in the sheets never once looking in her eyes. She stared at the wall for a while feeling him get in bed beside her. He wasn't under the same blanket as her but she couldn't help feel to close, to intimate. She closed her eyes squeezed them shut hoping sleep would come and grace her but nothing came.
Jughead breathing was even beside her but she dared not move. She steadied her breath calming down the nerves slowly creeping up her throat. Beside her Jughead shifted in the bead causing her to stiffen ever so slightly.
She heard a sigh come from his lips, felt the breath on her neck, trying her hardest to suppress a shiver.
"Damn It I love you Betty Cooper." He whispered so so quietly. She didn't move, couldn't move, just kept her eyes closed tight and breath even as he spoke. "I should never have let you go. God I just wish I could tell all of this to you for real." He sighed when he finished still whispering.
Betty wanted to cry, felt the tears stinging her still closed eyes. She couldn't tell him she was awake. She didn't know what to say. She didn't feel the same in the slightest.
Right in that moment all she wanted was Sweetpea's arms around her but she knew she couldn't. He'd hurt her where it mattered most. Her friends.
The next morning Betty woke much colder than normal. The second she touch the blankets she knew they were most defiantly not hers. She bolted up right snapping her eyes open wondering where she was.
She looked around at the creaky bed, dingy sheets, and dark room automatically knowing where she was. Relief swept over her before she had time to remember exactly what was said. She couldn't help but feel a rush of happiness wash over her as she remembered the night before.
She sneaked our of bed when she realized she was alone. Her shirt was wrinkled and dirty from all the walking and sleeping she did and Betty Cooper could not have that. She ripped it off heading right to where she knew she could find a new one.
She grabbed the one she knew for a fact fit her well and slid it over her head looking down at the faded 'S' plastered on the front. She pulled the hair tie from her hair letting it flow freely down her shoulders. She turned to the door and the closer she got the larger the aroma got. Jughead was making her breakfast and the thought just sent a tingle through her whole body.
She took a breath before opening the door to the bedroom. She could see Jughead down the hall but he had not noticed her. She stood on the doorway just watching him move around the kitchen so gracefully feeling ever single one of the feelings she had come thrusting to the surface of her mind. She hates it, but loved it all the same.
She smiled to herself as she walked down the hall in his shirt. He finally noticed her coming when the floor squeaked lightly under her feet. He smiled right back at her.
"Morning sunshine. You wanna talk? Did you finally realize that dick isn't good enough for you?" There it was. Everything she felt came crashing down around her. She thought for a second that maybe he had changed, that maybe he could be a friend to her when she needed it and vise versa. But not after that.
Her smile faded away fast and turned into a scowl even faster. "For you information Jughead" she said his name like it was poison in her mouth. "we're just having a slight disagreement and that's none of your business." She was mad but not so mad that she'd cause a scene.
"Then why did you come here? Of all the places you could have gone why come to me?" Anger bled through his words as he turned from the stove to lean his hands on the counter behind him.
"I told you las night I didn't know where else to go-"
"Yeah yeah you needed the familiar and the safe." He brushed her off. "But you could have gone to Archie or Veronica or even Kevin. But you came to me for some reason." She didn't have an answer she really didn't. She didn't consciously choose to go to Jughead's, her feet just took her. She dropped her head looking at her shoes on the squeaky floor.
"I can't do this with you right now Jug. I just have to much going on right now." The anger left her words and tiredness filled the void.
"I'm sorry Betty. I just want what's best for you and I happen to know that Sweetpea is not." He sounded sincere but that just made Betty's blood boil. She was seething.
"You have no right!" She was screaming, eyes burning. "No right to tell me what's best for me. If you wanted what is best for me you wouldn't have left. We wouldn't be in this mess if it wasn't for you and your stupidity. Stop trying to run my life." She pushed passed him hitting him as hard as she could with her shoulder.
She was so angry and ready to leave and never see him again she didn't even think about her own clothes left in his room and the clothes she had stolen from him. She stormed out and walked all the way to the street closest to the trailer park.
The moment she hit the sidewalk reality hit her she had no idea where she was going and it was still freezing. She walked all the way home not having enough money for the bus on her.
She hit her front steps only a half an hour after she left Jughead's trailer. She hesitated before opening the door running straight to her room. She flopped on her bed ready to just forget the day and do nothing when she heard the screaming.
"Elizabeth Cooper get down here!" Alice's voice rang through the quiet house. Betty didn't want to deal with her mother that day so she knew she'd have to run again.
She grabbed the jacket out of her closet, phone and wallet from the dresser next to her bed and ran down the stairs faster than she ever had in her life.
She heard her mother screaming her name as she closed the door, wind hitting her like a wave, freezing her to the bone. She walked down to the end of the driveway before putting on her jacket zipping it all the way up. She had money. Money she could use on the bus and keep warm and away from her mother.
She waited at the stop down the street from her for about ten minutes before it finally came. She basked in the warmth and just sat in the back avoiding the looks of the other three passengers.
She was in day old jeans, hair a crazy mess from not being brushed since the morning before, and some random windbreaker from years ago. She sat o mute bus for as longs as she could before she felt she needed to get off. When the last passenger got off she promised herself that no matter what the stop was she was getting off.
Not but fifteen minutes later the bus stopped just down the street from the Whyte Wyrm. She kept the promise to herself and got off with a thank you to the driver. He tipped his hat as she bounced down the steps walking in the direction of the bar.
In the back of her mind she knew it was a bad idea but she didn't know where else to go and lately she had been feeling welcome. That all could have been because of Sweetpea but she didn't really care. She thought she might as well talk to him if he was there and fix things. She really did like him. The talk with Jughead helped her see that.
She walked in opening the door quietly. She scanned the room slowly for that oh so familiar face. She locked eyes with one of the Serpents from pop's that night with Sweetpea. He began screaming Sweetpea's name never breaking eye contact.
She put her game face on practically strutting up to him. She made if over just on time for Sweetpea to turn the corner.
"What's up Fangs-" he cut his own speech off abruptly looking Betty up and down smirking just like he did that first day. This time she was actually cover.
"Can we talk?" She didn't wait for his answer before turning around, walking to an empty part of the bar.
He followed suit with his hands in his pockets. He stopped only a few inches away when she turned to look at him again. There was silence for a moment while he stared into her eyes.
"I just wanted to say... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have freaked out so badly, I had no right to. It doesn't mean that I'm ok with you fighting my friends but it was before you knew me. Also Archie can be an ass I don't blame you for wanting to fight." She gave a half hearted laugh at the end trying to relieve some of the tension closing in on the room.
He gave huff of his own. "I'm just glad you're here." He smiled at her and she smiled back. "And I promise not to fight your friends anymore." The air felt ten times lighter on her limbs, thankful he took the apology.
She tiptoed to hug him wrapping her arms behind his head. He hugged her back giving her the warmth she'd been craving all day.
They broke apart to go find someplace to sit and talk. She wanted things to get back to normal, to finally leave Jughead behind. When Betty sets her mind to something it gets accomplished no matter how impossible. Is she could find a damn murderer she could fix a relationship.
They laughed, they talked, they kissed, but most importantly they went back to normal. The easiness of conversation came back in a second. She loved just sitting there with him in the Serpent bar being herself. She never felt so free.
The day was getting later and the bar was getting fuller but she didn't mind. None of the Serpents seemed to care that she was there. Some even said 'hello'.
They stayed on the surprisingly clean couch mostly kissing but sometimes breaking to talk for a moment. During one of their breaks someone came and stood by Betty's side. They looked up at the same time seeing Jughead standing there avoiding Sweetpea's gaze.
"I'm sorry, Betty can I talk to you for a second?" He sounded small. Betty looked to Sweetpea noticing the harsh stare on Jughead.
"Yeah." Her response was short. They walked only a few feet away hoping to be out of ear shot.
Jughead held a pale pink cloth out to Betty. "You left your shirt at my house." That's all he said before turning to walk the opposite way as Sweetpea.
Betty held te shirt in her hand to scared to move. She didn't want to see Sweetpea's face. She didn't want to see him hurt and she had a feeling what just happened wouldn't be making him happy.
She gathered her courage and walked to him with fake confidence, stuffing the shirt in her jacket pocket. She plopped down on the couch but as soon as her body hit the cushion she realized that she still had Jughead's shirt on and it seemed that Sweetpea did too.
"What was that?" He was calm. That wasn't normal. The thing she loved about Sweetpea was the passion that he had about everything no matter what. Now that it was absent she didn't know what to do.
He had his arms stretched out from him on the arm he leaned on making him look so powerful even when sitting.
"It's nothing I swear." She smiled to conceal her nerves. She tried to brush it off and hope he wouldn't be mad and leave like she had the previous night.
"Well then why are you wearing his shirt?" His anger was coming back and in some weird way she felt relieved.
"I'm sorry but I swear nothing happened. I was upset about what happened with us and it was a last resort I promise." She was almost in tears once again. Sweetpea leaned closer grabbing her arms lightly.
"You promise me?" It was soft. Not angry. Not calm. But soft.
She didn't speak just shook her head wiping her eyes.
"Well. Then it doesn't matter does it?" He gave a smile and a laugh moving his hands to her cheeks. She gave a watery laugh back before his lips were on hers once again.
Yes! Yes! Its getting better again. Hope you like it and let me know how long you want me to make this cuz I have no idea how long this is going to be.