Cingulomania

This is a work of Fanfiction, no copyright infringement is intended. I own nothing pertaining to the Archie Comics/Riverdale universe.

…

Chapter 8

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FP was a man of many resources, having sat down to smoke a cigarette twenty minutes prior to Betty bouncing outside asking about her Dad's whereabouts, he'd already learned from Tall Boy that Hal Cooper was locked up for DWI and possession. The house phone hadn't rang, and Alice never checked her cell last night. The man hadn't even called his wife to let her know of his current predicament. The Serpent Leader was currently looking Betty in the face, trying to find the right words to inform her of last night's complicated events.

"Where's your Dad?" He repeated the question.

"His car was gone this morning when Sweet Pea dropped me off. You stayed the whole night, with my Mom. I just thought it was weird he wasn't here, and you are. Not that I'm complaining." She sat down next to FP, gauging his reaction to her. She liked the way he looked, sitting here in his leather, reaching for his pack of cigarettes. If she were truly being honest, she wished this was a regular thing. It was easy to be around the elder Jones male. It was easy to talk with him, to be herself around him. Despite her undeniable attraction to FP, she still appreciated the way he took care of her Mother, how he always seemed to help her when she needed him.

The way his lips parted to allow for the filtered end of the cigarette made her stomach flip flop. She involuntarily leaned forward resting her crossed arms on the glass table top. FP's eyes squinted a little when he brought the flame of his lighter to the end of the tobacco, hollowing his cheeks upon inhaling the first drag. She'd never seen something so entrancing, he was intriguing.

"He wasn't here when your Mom called me last night. I heard from Tall Boy just a little while ago. I don't know if I should be the one telling you where you're Dad is Betty. Your Mom doesn't even know." He cleared his throat at his admission, bringing the cigarette back to his lips.

"You do know where he is." It was a statement rather than a question. He nodded in agreement. "Please Mr Jones, tell me. I won't say anything to my Mom, to anyone." She sounded desperate and she knew it, she didn't care.

"He's in county Betty. He got stopped for swerving, on his way to the motel just between here and Greendale. He was arrested for a DUI, but then they found some pot in his possession. He could have rolled on us, if it was us he bought from. He didn't. I'm sorry, I had no idea. Your Mom, she just needed a friend, nothing more." FP wasn't sure how Betty was taking the news about her father, she gave no indication that it swayed her emotionally in any way. She simply sat there, looking from one of his eyes to the other.

Betty thought back to the night before, riding with Sweet Pea to the garage in Greendale. They'd seen a Police cruiser near the motel, they hadn't seen anyone being arrested though. She couldn't help the little bit of relief she felt knowing her Dad wouldn't be home today, wouldn't be yelling at her about something out of her control. He wouldn't be fighting with her Mom about where they'd been last night, or why FP was sitting his back yard. Betty could only watch the smoke curling from FP's parted lips, the cigarette resting between his pointer and thumb, like he was smoking a joint. She was momentarily mesmerized by the simple action. He noticed how she licked her lips while she stared at him.

"Is it a problem that I stayed here last night Betty?" He watched her intently now, slightly amused at Betty's outright ogling of him. He was used to women looking at him, the hang arounds pushing their tits out to get his attention, the outright shortness of their skirts. This was different, his ex's daughter who also happened to be his son's ex, watching him as he smoked. It was flattering to say the least, but this had to be some sort of Hal fueled infatuation. Or maybe he was taking it out of context. Maybe he was reading her all wrong.

"Not at all Mr. Jones. It's kind of cool, you know?" She smiled at him now.

"Kind of cool? How so Betty?" He ashed his cigarette into the ashtray, still watching the young blonde, trying to gauge her.

"Well, my Dad, he's not exactly Father of the year, he's never here. He's mean, he treats my Mom like garbage, like she's here to make sure his picture perfect life is maintained at all times. Look at what he did to Polly, and how he always treated Juggie. You make her happy, I can tell. You're real. Genuine." She bit her lip now, smiling to herself. "Jug is lucky to have you."

"That means a lot. It really does. I'm just doing my best, and I'm sure my Uh- Jughead's Mom would disagree with you." He looked away now, trying to push away thoughts of Gladys and Jellybean.

"No offense Mr. Jones, but Mrs. Jones is insane. It's not my place to say, but you're one of a kind. I'm glad to be a prospect, to work with you, learn from you."

"Thank you Betty. You're honesty is always welcome." He stubbed the cigarette out in the ashtray, laying the spent filter in the ashtray with the other butts, like a cigarette graveyard.

"Can I be honest with you again?" She couldn't keep the feelings of dread quiet any longer.

"Of course darlin'." He was leaning back in his chair, watching the shades of emotion slip across her face. Her watery green eyes meeting his brown.

"I'm scared to go to the meeting, because of Jughead. He wasn't exactly kind to me last night. I put my heart and soul into it, the dance I mean." She let a lone tear slide down her cheek, wiping at it, never tearing her gaze from her President.

"You were great on that stage, like I said last night, you'd give your Mom a run for her money. That's no joke. I know who is meant to be and who isn't. I wouldn't have let you get past all those buttons on your blouse if you weren't meant to be a Serpent. Don't you worry about Jug. He's in a bad place right now, acting out and causing problems for himself. You don't have to go if you don't want to, but I want you there. It's important if you're going to be prospecting for me, after learning what you did last night."

"Okay Mr. Jones. I'll try. For you." She smiled at him, leaning over the arm of the patio chair to hug him.

"One more thing Betty?" He hugged her back.

"What's that?" Pulling back to see FP's face, feeling immense relief.

"You don't have to call me Mr. Jones all of the time. You can call me FP." She blushed at the thought of calling him FP, after having been so formal with him all of her life.

"Okay, FP." She said.

"That a girl!" He stood then, fixing his wrinkled shirt, and smoothing his jeans.

…

The conditions of the Whyte Wyrm in the daylight left Betty feeling the urge to run to the store for bleach, rags and cleaning gloves. She tried not to act offended by the sticky bar top, or the dirty seats she was currently resting in. The grime was taunting her from every corner of the dank bar, trying desperately to pay attention to what FP was saying. Her skin was crawling with the unbearable need to scrub. Toni noticed Betty squirming in her seat, for a second she thought it might be because of Jughead, until betty started picking at the bubbled surface of the table they sat at together. Toni laughed under her breath, then put her hand on the girls knee, hoping to keep her thoughts on the task at hand. Betty was receptive to Toni's hand, she looked to her new friend and smiled, stilling her movements and giving her attention to FP.

"Like I said before, we can expand, if we make the effort. Sweet Pea has been growin' some killer strains, his new partner will be assisting at the grow house." FP winked at Betty. Her stomach flip flopping from the little attention he'd given her publicly. "Alright, young ones, stick around, we have some things to go over. Everyone else get back to business."

The squeal of chair legs on the tile floor and the loud murmur of voices drowned out Betty's discomfort at being in close proximity to both Sweet Pea and Jughead. She felt like her body was being lit on fire, she started fidgeting again, then her hands rolled into fists, her nails biting into the soft flesh of her palm. Toni leaned over, cupping her mouth as well as Betty's ear.

"Hey, don't worry about these dumb ass boys. It's just us in here with FP. They don't exist right now, all you need to do is focus on FP's voice. You can do that right?" Betty nodded at her. Toni's arm was around Betty's shoulders, squeezing her slightly, then she crossed her arms and sat back in her chair, letting her hair fall over the back of it. Betty was grateful for Toni, she had really came through with the clothes last night, not to mention how the shorter girl kept trying to reel in Betty's nerves.

"Thanks Toni." Betty said, smiling to her friend.

"Anytime girl." They stayed in their seats, right up front so they could see FP better.

"I wanted you all to know that you did good last night. We had a real good profit, and now that we have Betty here, it should be a stellar year. We have a slow Saturday, so if you sell, that's cool. If not, don't worry about it. We do have orders for edibles, so those of you that can, bake. Get back to me sometime before nine tonight." FP walked around a little bit, looking at his younger crew, taking in their faces as most of them looked in Betty's direction. "Alright, I really didn't have a lot to say other than make Betty feel welcome. She's crew, family, show her around, help out if she needs it. We take care of our own." He looked directly at Jughead, hoping his point was made.

There was another round of chairs scraping and loud banter. FP stopped next to Betty, clapping his hand on her back in reassurance, then went to his office. Jughead kept away from the two girls at their table, making a beeline for the exit, never looking at the blonde or Sweet Pea. Toni rolled her eyes at the sulking young man, with his ever present beanie seeming to be upset as well.

"That boy is a damn fool. He has no business being angry with you. You were fantastic. That dance last night, it got me a little heated. Then Sweet Pea delivers you to my dorm like a Christmas present? I had to cool off before our drops." Toni, pulled her long waves to one side, evaluating Betty's demeanor. "You okay Betty?" She leaned on the table, elbow bent, hand in her hair.

Betty was trying not to overthink things. She was already on edge with the dirt and grime, then Jughead leaving without even so much as a glance. Her heart was aching, throat tight with sadness. Despite her semi wild night with Sweet Pea, she still loved her childhood friend, she wanted so badly to hug him and tell him it would all be okay, they could work through all of this crazy stuff. Refraining from speaking with Jughead only sent her anxiety over the edge, hyperfocusing on the peeling laminate table top, and how she would scrub the floors with gloves, a brush and bleach water. When Jughead left, it hurt in a way she hadn't anticipated. Now Toni was telling her that Jug was crazy for how he reacted.

"I'm alright. I feel bad, but at the same time, I'm happy to be here. I thought Jug would at least waved to me or said hi. I feel a little uncomfortable with him ignoring me. I'll be fine though, so what do we do now?" Betty mimicked Toni's posture on the table, weaving her fingers into her wavy blonde locks, meeting the brunette's eyes straight on.

"Right now? Whatever you want, we can do anything. We can go wherever, with whoever-" Toni's eyes left Betty's face, glancing toward Sweet Pea who was leaning his elbow against the bar, watching the pair talk. Betty's eyes followed where Toni had glanced, meeting Sweet Peas expectant stare. He smiled and nodded at her, his heart giving a little leap in his chest. Betty couldn't help but smile back, he had an effect on her.

"Okay girl, I can see we'll have to postpone our time. Go ahead, go get him." Toni was out of her seat before Betty was able to respond, she patted Sweet Pea on his shoulder as she moved past him to talk with Fangs, this was his cue to talk to Betty.

Taking the now unoccupied seat next to Betty, a smile was on his face.

"Hey." He said.

"Hey yourself." She replied, still leaning on her hand on the table.

"So, you and Toni have plans or do I get you all to myself again?" He mirrored her posture on the table.

"No, she told me to-" She cleared her throat. Looking Sweet Pea over.

"She told you what? It can't be that bad." He wagged his eyebrows at her, making her giggle.

"It's too embarrassing." She could feel the heat in her face now.

"Oh come on darlin', don't be shy. You can tell me anything." He leaned in closer to her, running the backs of his index and middle fingers along her rosey cheek, sending a shiver down her spine.

"She told me to go get you." She sat up straighter now, the feel of his skin on hers relaxing her some.

"Looks like you got me already babe." Sweet Pea sat up in his seat. "You know how to bake right?"

"Oh. Yeah, I do. Why?" She was surprised by his question.

"I have some orders that need to be filled, figured you could help me. We could dress you up like a girl scout. Sit you outside the old folks home, or the VA hospital. We'd be makin' bank babe." He took her hand, tugging her toward the door.

…

A bag of semi sweet chocolate chips and butterscotch chips were on the counter, Betty scooped out the appropriate measurements from each bag then dumped them into the mixing bowl. Sweet Pea pushed the switch on the mixer to the on position, they watched the dough hook mix the bits of brown and tan into the dough. When the chips were mixed in enough, he turned off the machine.

"Ready to get baking?" He asked, rubbing his palms together, a smirk playing on his lips.

"That's what I'm here for Sweet Pea." She pulled the mixing bowl from the mixer.

"That's all you came here for? You're using me to bake?" He feigned sadness, poking his bottom lip out at her.

"No, I came here to learn. You're my teacher right?" She pulled some dough out, shaping it into a ball then placing it on the greased cookie sheet.

"Of course I am. I'll teach you anything you want to know." He was behind her now, reaching around her, taking dough from the bowl. "All you have to do is ask." His mouth was near her ear now, his answer almost whispered. She shivered, despite the heat between them.

"We'll never get anything done with you distracting me like this." She took a deep breath trying not to think about how is chest felt on her back, or how his arms warmed hers as her made another ball of dough to put on the sheet.

"We can get all kinds of things done with me distracting you like this." He reached back into the bowl, the skin of his arm skimming hers.

"I can't think with you all around me like this." She shook her head, trying to duck under his arm. Sweet Pea moved in closer to her, blocking her in with his arms and the countertop.

"We're just making cookies Betts." He was right near her ear again, she could feel every muscle in his arms and chest.

"I think it's more than cookies." She was hyper aware of his hands in the bowl with hers, and how he said her name again. His name for her, she liked how it sounded falling from the other Sweet Pea's lips.

"More than cookies? We're servicing the pained of Southside. We're Chronic Scouts babygirl." He kissed her temple, then moved from her back, coming to stand next to her at the countertop in the kitchen. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable. He just wanted her to know how he felt about her. Things with Jughead were fresh, he didn't want to push her before she was ready.

"Chronic Scouts?" She missed the warmth of his body, she hated to admit it to herself. She was conflicted, sad about Jughead, but excited at about how things her time being spent with Sweet Pea.

"Yeah, like I said earlier, we'll set you up outside the VA, you can sell these delectable edibles to the painful older generation." He placed another dough ball on the sheet. It was almost full.

"Isn't that illegal?" She asked.

"It's all illegal babe. Especially when you'd look so good in that little jumper with the knee high socks and mary janes, selling Mary Jane. Good Lord! I'd buy anything from you wearing that." He bit his lip giving her a once over.

"Oh no, I will not be wearing any such outfit." She laughed a little, setting the last ball on the sheet, sticking it in the oven. Unaware of Sweet Pea's eyes grazing over her backside. He felt the rush of heat in his body, wishing he could get his mouth on hers again.

"How do you propose we sell these cookies then?" He started placing dough on another tray. She shut the door to the oven, turning around to look at him. She watched him make a few dough balls then joined him.

"I think packaging helps. Maybe sell an assortment?" They reached into the bowl at the same time, fingers reaching for the same bits of dough. Betty pulled away first, grabbing for the dough on the other side of the bowl.

"An assortment huh? Never thought about that. You know how to make rice krispies treats?" He had ideas now, all the things they could make, then sell. If she was anything like he thought she might be, they'd be selling baked goods everywhere.

"I can. Have you ever had Fruity Pebble treats?" Her mouth watered at the thought of the sweet fruity marshmallow goodness.

"No. That's a thing? Can you make them with reese's peanut butter puffs too?" He was stoked now, he might end up weighing an ungodly amount at the end of all of this.

"I think we can make anything out of cereal, marshmallows and butter." She said.

"Oh my God girl! Yeah, FP was right about you. You and me, we'll make a great team." He kissed her cheek, taking the empty bowl over to the sink to wash it. "You can go wash up in the bathroom. I got the dishes." She went straight to the bathroom, needing to escape his enticing gestures.

Sweet Pea watched her slip from the kitchen, turning on the hot water. He washed his hands of the sticky dough, then reached for the sponge. Betty came back in when he was rinsing the bowl and the utensils. She came to lean on the countertop next to him, watching the water glide over his hands. He set the items in the dish drainer to his right, then washed his hands again.

"What's up babe?" She was still watching his hands while he dried them in the towel he pulled from the oven handle.

"I was just thinking." She hoisted herself onto the counter, resting her hands in her lap. "I might have a plan"

"What are you thinkin'?" He leaned back on the counter across from her, watching her.

"I was thinking, we could do a big bake day at my house. We could make brownies, cookies, your chocolates, anything. We package everything all up, make them look nice. We figure out prices, then have some clients to the Whyte Wyrm." Like a bake sale. She thought to herself.

"Like a bake sale?" He asked. A smile taking up her whole face. They did work well together.

"Yeah, exactly like a bake sale." She replied. He liked how she thought. FP would be proud, because he certainly was.

"You're smart as hell Betty Cooper. I'm too down for this. Let's get these ready to go for now, then we can hit up FP, give him a run down. I think he'll back it." The timer on the oven went off, Betty went to slide from her seated position, but Sweet Pea put a hand on her thigh, giving it a light squeeze. He turned off the timer, then opened the oven door.

"Those smell so good." She sucked in another breath, letting her eyes close.

"You busy today?" Sweet Pea asked, pulling the cookie sheet out of the oven with his Mom's turkey oven mitt. He set the pan down on the stove top, then placed the other pan inside of the oven. Betty set the timer, then placed it beside her on the counter.

"No. Are you?" Her eyes narrowed at him. She thought he would return to his place across from her, but he ended up standing directly in front of her, hands on either side of her legs.

"Nah, today is a free day. After the cookies anyway. You want to hang out again?" He was hopeful, wanting to taste her lips again.

"Aren't we already hanging out? What would we do?" She leaned toward him slightly.

"We're working, this is a Serpents thing. Anyway, we can do anything you want. Have any ideas?" Sweet Pea was the second person today to say this to her. There was always an agenda with her friends. Veronica had a schedule to uphold. Not to mention that her own Mother lived by her planner. Every detail planned out to a precise detail. He leaned in a little closer, brushing a piece of hair out of her face, like she'd done to him the night before.

"I dunno, do you?" She let his fingers linger near her face, her breath catching when he nudged her knees apart with his hip, coming to rest between them.

"I have a few ideas. It's a matter of if you're receptive to them." Sweet Pea said softly, eyes moving between her own and her pink glossy pout.

"I think I've been quite receptive to you, it's hard not to be." Her hands were already resting on his hips above her knees, holding him to her.

His fingers pushed her hair behind her ears, then his lips were pressed to hers, a sigh escaping her mouth as he did so. Betty hadn't anticipated that she would relish Sweet Pea's touch the way she did. She was a little inebriated the night before, she thought her yearning for his touch was because of the weed and whiskey, she was so very wrong. Here and now, sober and clear headed, she felt the increasing need for him, for his body to be near to hers.

Sweet Pea's long fingers wove through her loose waves, holding her to him, so she couldn't back away from him if she wanted to. He had been waiting to do this most of today, reliving the the night before over and over again in his mind. She tasted better than what he'd been remembering. Before he knew it, she was becoming assertive, her tongue gliding along his bottom lip, he obliged her and opened his own mouth, granting her entrance. She couldn't get enough of him, his hands in her hair, his tongue on her own. Betty snaked her hands up his back, tugging on his t-shirt, pulling his chest to her own. They were so entranced with each other, they never heard the door open, or the sound of a purse being deposited on the table next to the door. They were so intertwined and lost in the feel and taste of each other that they didn't hear the clearing of a throat at the entrance of the kitchen.

It was only when a finger was jabbed harshly into Sweet Pea's ribs that he noticed the other energy in the room. Startled, Sweet Pea jumped back, grabbing for his rib, looking toward the culprit. His face fell when he realized who exactly had poked him in the side. He felt slightly ashamed at being caught with his tongue down a girl's throat in his Mother's kitchen, by none other than his Mother herself. He looked from his girl to his Mom, feeling a tightening in his stomach at his mom's crossed arms.

"Sweet Pea. Sweet Pea's friend." The woman did not sound amused. Betty immediately scooted off the counter, she settled behind Sweet Pea toward the back of the galley kitchen, reaching for his hand, he laced his fingers with hers.

"Mom. I'm so sorry. We were just baking cookies." The woman stood in the doorway, trying to hide her amusement. Her son had never been caught in such a compromising situation. He was a good kid, and to see him act like a normal teenage boy was refreshing.

"Interesting way to bake cookies Son. Aren't you going to introduce me?" Her arms fell from her front as she waited.

"Oh right, Mom, this Betty. Betty Cooper, this is my Mom, Tanis." Betty smiled and reached around Sweet Pea, holding out her hand to shake with Tanis'. Tanis returned the smile, shaking Betty's hand.

"Cooper you say? You're Jughead's girl aren't you?" Tanis leaned against the doorway, eyeing her son, waiting for Betty's answer.

"Oh, no, not exactly." Betty felt the pang in her heart, everyone must of known about her.

"Not after last night Mom." Sweet Pea relaxed a bit, looking from his Mom to Betty.

"I take it you're the new prospect?" Tanis remembered how things could get when you stepped up on the stage at the Whyte Wyrm. Her own relationship had crashed and burned after her own dance. Where FP and Alice had become an inferno of passion and fire for each other. Betty's cheeks reddened, knowing full well that the woman had probably heard about her through the Serpent grapevine.

"Yes Ma'am, I am." Betty was quiet.

"That dance either makes or breaks a relationship. Good to meet you either way. You have to be somethin' special if Sweet Pea has you here baking pot cookies. He doesn't have too many people over." Tanis began placing cookies in small plastic zipper baggies. The timer went off for the last batch of cookies, Betty turned it off, handing Sweet Pea the oven mitt.

"These smell really good. You used the butterscotch chips with the chocolate?" Tanis was inspecting the cookies before placing them in pairs in the sacks. Betty came to stand next to the older woman, pinching the seal closed on each bag.

"Yeah, you said it would make them taste better, so we picked up a bag after the meeting today." Sweet Pea was rinsing the cookie sheet in the sink now, making sure his Mom's kitchen wasn't a mess. "You worked late again today." He said.

"They offered me a double, I took it. I should have called, but then again," She looked from Sweet Pea to Betty. "I wouldn't have been able to catch you being a normal young man Son." She said bumping her hip into Sweet Pea's. He smiled at her, knowing exactly what she meant.

"So that dumbass kid of FP's kicked you to the curb huh?" Tanis turned her attention to back to Betty.
"Yes Ma'am. He said he didn't want me to be a part of this life. That it was dangerous. I wanted to do it though, my Mom was a Serpent." Betty sealed the last baggy, then set it on the counter with the others.

"Jughead is more like his own Mom than he'd like to admit. She was never real keen on FP being Pres after Senior passed him the torch. That woman always drove me nuts. She accused me of sleeping with FP once. Like that'd ever happen, ha!" Tanis laughed a little at how Gladys had confronted her at the Wyrm, spouting off about her supposed affair with FP. They'd grown up together, he was a brother, both metaphorically and literally, a brother by choice. "Gladys Jones always did have a flair for the dramatics. Well, I'm going to shower, get some sleep. Make sure you put this batch in the baggies right away. I love you son." Tanis lifted herself up on her tiptoes to kiss her son on the cheek. He hugged her back then kissed her hair.

"I love you too Ma."

"Betty. Keep this kid in line. Welcome to the family." Tanis kissed Betty cheek next, then walked down the hallway to her room.

"I'm sorry about that Betty. I should have been paying more attention, shouldn't have been so pushy. You just broke up with Jughead last night and here I am trying to-" He couldn't bring himself to finish his sentence. He felt so guilty. His Mom wasn't mad, but he felt like he should have been more respectful of both the women in his life.

"Sweet Pea, It's okay. I was right there with you. I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to be. Beside's, I like you." Betty slid her arms around Sweet Pea's waist.

"I like you too Betts." Sweet Pea wrapped her up in his arms also, relaxing at her touch.

"You don't have to worry about pushing me too far. I only go as far as I want. Worrying about Jug and what happened last isn't going to make things between us different." She was looking up at him now, content in his arms. "I like being with you."

"I like being with you too, I like kissing you more though." He tipped her head back, bringing his lips to hers again. Her eyes closed at his touch. This beginning to be her favorite past time, then Sweet Pea pulled away from her.

"We have to deliver cookies to the Wyrm, then we can continue this. He kissed her forehead.

"Promise?" She asked.

"Yeah, I promise."