Veronica lays down flat on the sand for quite some time, although she doesn't know exactly how long. She can feel the soft material of her dress tickle her legs as it flutters in the breeze. Her hair gets blown into her face, but she doesn't bother taking it out of her mouth. Moving would disrupt the peace.

She hears the steady beat of cat-like footsteps in the distance, getting closer and closer. She prays that it's just a person strolling across the coastline for fresh air. Or a teenager who is taking advantage of the freedom of summer. Or a desperate dude with a metal detector looking for lost jewelry. But she knows that nobody would be on Maywater Shore at a time like this.

The footsteps come to a stop. Veronica's eyes are still closed, but she can sense that the person in question is a few feet away. Probably staring at her. Probably came here specifically to look for her. It's probably Archie.

"Are you just going to stand there?" Veronica asks. She pops open her eyes and tilts her head up, thinking she's prepared to see the red-headed boy shifting his weight from one leg to the other. She's not. Her heartbeat quickens significantly. She turns her gaze back to the sky, forcing herself to get lost in the magnificence of the stars.

"Uh, no… you left your phone near the bonfire. Just came to, uh, give it back."

Veronica sits up and runs a hand through her wind-swept hair. "Yeah, thanks." She reaches out to take her phone from his outstretched hand, making sure their fingers don't brush.

"May I?" he asks, gesturing towards the empty space next to her. Veronica's heart is now pounding vigorously in her chest, threatening to burst out of her rib cage. Initiate panic mode.

"Um, actually, I, uh, better get going," she hastily stands up and brushes the sand off her dress. "Maybe I'll, uh, see you around, okay?" She adjusts her shoulder straps and turns around without a backwards glance.

"Wait, Veronica!" She continues walking, head down, flip-flops in hand. "Veronica!" She's now scampering hurriedly across the sand, her strides awkward and uneven but she couldn't care less.

"Ronnie!" She stops. It's like a bowling ball hit her square in the stomach, knocks the wind out of her. She can barely breath. She's transported back to the days of sophomore year, when they were still a couple doing all the things that a sappy, lovesick couple would do. Take long walks near Sweetwater River, have paint wars in Archie's garage, watch late night movies while cuddling on the couch. Those were the good old days. She isn't a naïve hormonal teenager anymore.

Archie's rushed footfalls come closer and closer behind her.

"Please!" she cries, suddenly twisting around. She's breathing hard. She closes her eyes and takes a gulp of air. "Please." Her voice lowers to a mere whimper. "Leave me alone." She looks up at a dejected Archie and meets his grief-stricken eyes. Her bottom lip quivers slightly and is that a tear in the corner of her eye?

"Did I do something?" he whispers. He rubs his neck nervously and Veronica can see his left leg bouncing up and down.

"No. Yes. No." She shakes her head. "I mean, I don't know. Can you just… leave me alone?" He nods, dropping his gaze to his feet. And it breaks her, again. It's only been an hour or so and she already hurt him for the second time in her life.

She turns her back and walks off. A teardrop slides down her cheek and she wipes it away with the back of her hand.

'I'm such an asshole why am I such a fucking asshole?' she thinks. She reaches her rental car and slips inside, leaning her head against the seat. A migraine throbs against her skull, grinds against her temples, the pain flashing hot and heavy in her brain. Remembering what her therapist had said, she focused on taking deep breaths, in through her nose, out through her mouth. In, out. In, out.

A knock on the car window jolts her out of her quietude.

"Girly, what's wrong with you?" Cheryl quips, a nasty smirk on her face. Veronica rolls down the window. "Can't you keep your panties on?"

"What?"

"Oh please, don't play dumb. The sexual tension between you and my dear sweet Archibald is thicker than molasses."

"Um… okay?"

Cheryl snorts. "You obviously still have feelings for him."

"I don't! Stop saying that!"

"Yes, you do. Literally everybody knows that except for yourself." Veronica grips her steering wheels hard until her knuckles turn white. Cheryl leans in closer to the window until her nose is only a few inches from Veronica's. "Aaannnddd… Archie definitely still has feelings for you."

"Please leave. I need to go." Cheryl raises her eyebrows, hands on her hips, not budging. "I swear to fucking god, Cheryl. Get the hell out of my face or I will kill you."

Cheryl puts her hands up in mock defense. "I'm just saying, pull yourself together Veronica. You and Archie used to be relationships goals but now… y'all are too busy being moody and depressed all the damn time to actually see what's right in front of you."

"Fuck off." And with that, she reverses and drives out of the parking lot into the darkness of the night.


Veronica sits on her motel bed, a steaming cup of hot tea in her hands. She's utterly exhausted and it's only 9:12. She has already showered and changed into pajamas, which tonight consists of fuzzy pink shorts and an oversized Adidas t-shirt.

Her phone vibrates next to her. Veronica groans and closes her eyes. If it's Cheryl, she'll kill.

It's not Cheryl, it's Betty. On the fourth ring, she picks up.

"Hey V! We didn't really get a chance to talk earlier. Do you wanna… chat for a bit? Get something off your chest?"

Veronica sighs. "I'm so sorry I'm kind of dead tired right now."

"It's okay, that's completely understandable!" There's a brief pause. "Um, actually, Juggie and I were planning to go to Pop's for lunch tomorrow, do you wanna join?"

"Sure," Veronica yawns. "Just us three?"

"Yes, as of now."

"Sounds good. Bye Betty! See you then."

"Goodnight V, I love you."

"I love you too." Veronica ends the call. What the actual fuck is wrong with her? She has absolutely no problem saying 'I love you' to Betty but she freaks whenever she's within a five foot radius of Archie? What a disaster.

A few notifications ding on her phone. There is a 'how are things going?' text from her mom and a bunch of Instagram posts. First, she responds to her mom and lets her know that she's in fact still alive. Turns out that Hermione's protectiveness intensifies when Veronica isn't living in the same house as her. Coping while her daughter is at college is going to be a struggle for Hermione, Veronica can already tell.

On her Instagram feed, she likes a few pictures of her friends back in New York, partying the summer away. Miranda Covey posted a photo of herself attacking Travis Smith, both laughing their heads off near a ping pong table and a cluster of knocked-over red cups. Brown liquid was spilled everywhere in the background, undoubtedly beer. The caption read 'EPIC beer pong tournament… I am the ultimate champ! lol suck a dick travsmith114'

Veronica kind of wishes she was back in New York, getting drunk and doing stupid stuff and not caring about anything in the world. She needs a break from reality at least for a night. Sighing, she scrolls down a bit further and finds a post by The_ArchAndrews, one she must have missed. It is a photo of him playing guitar in his garage, a strand of red hair falling in his face. 'feels good to be songwriting again!' the caption read.

Veronica finds herself studying the photo, not dismissing it as she would normally do. He just looks so… Archie. Quintessential Archie. If he becomes a world-famous musician (which, let's face it, will probably happen), this would be the picture that is featured on the cover of an album or a magazine. She smiles, feels almost giddy with delight. Like she took a weird pill that makes her feverishly giggly, or inhaled some laughing gas at a dentist's office. Does she miss him? Is that it? No. There's no way. She was the one who dumped him, not the other way around. But she still feels a pang of something in her chest, in her heart.

She clicks off her phone and sets in aside, turning off the bedside lamp and snuggling deeper into the sheets. As soon as her head hits the pillow, exhaustion takes over and she falls asleep, the photo of Archie still lingering in her mind.


"I thought you said it's gonna be just us two plus Jughead!" Veronica cries. She and Betty are sitting in a booth at Pop's, waiting for Jughead and apparently Archie to come.

"No, I said it's gonna be us three as of now, which means plans can change."

"So Archie really is coming?"

"Yup."

"Then I'm not staying."

Betty sighs exasperatedly. "Veronica, please. It won't be that bad."

"Yes, it will."

"You guys don't even have to talk or anything."

"I still don't wanna be here." Pissed off, Veronica gathers her purse and stands up, moving sideways out of the booth.

"Veronica, don't be a bitch!" Betty rarely swears, so whenever she does you know it's a big deal.

"I'm leaving. Tell Jughead I'm sorry."

"What the fuck is wrong with you? It's just Archie!" Betty exclaims, frustration and irritation taking over.

"Yeah, but I don't want to be near him, okay?"

"Why?"

"Because!"

"You know that's not a fucking answer!"

Veronica pauses. "Fine. Because he probably doesn't know that I'm here and I don't want to make things awful and awkward like I always do. Did you see what happened last night?"

"Yes, but this is the perfect time to sort things out, don't you think? And I know that's not the real reason you don't want to see him." Betty's eyebrows quirk accusingly.

Veronica narrows her eyes and huffs. "I'm leaving. Goodbye." She whisks around in the typical overdramatic Lodge way, her raven hair bouncing on her shoulders.

"Okay, then. Leave!" Betty shouts. "Leave your best fucking friend in a booth all alone, that's fine with me!"

"You have Jughead! Go make out with him in a bathroom and leave me the hell alone!" Veronica pushes past Pop Tate and out the swinging glass door. All she wants to do is get back to her motel room and sulk, maybe binge-watch Grey's Anatomy or something. But, as luck would have it, she spots Jughead getting out of his car, and he's seen her as well.

"Hey-"

"Fuck off don't talk to me." Veronica steps into her car and pushes the gas pedal, speeding out of the parking lot. Great, another person she has hurt. So far, she has abandoned Archie, Betty, and Jughead, which tallies it up to a grand total of three people in the past 24 hours. Yikes. Three of her former best friends in the whole entire world now probably hate her guts, all because of her stupid feelings.

What a fucking mess.