Betty spent the morning of the 4th with Archie and Fred. They had a wonderful Independence Day Lunch in their backyard, under the cover of willowy trees. Everything they'd made was either red, white, or blue or a combination of such colors (meaning, a few things took a purple hue). But the commitment to the bit thrilled Betty, especially the little flags they'd stuck in half the dishes.

"I feel bad I didn't bring anything! I didn't think it would be like this," Betty said, put out.

"What would you have made? A car?" Archie snorted, "C'mon, there's a reason you're always at Pop's."

"Are you calling my cooking bad?" Betty gasped, throwing a cherry at him.

"Maybe," Archie replied with a cheeky grin and a wink.

"Look, I've just never had to," Betty said, cheeks flushed red, "My mom always cooked and never let us touch a stove."

"Us?" Archie tilted his head, "Got siblings?"

She realized she rarely talked about her family. Feeling more at ease, it was only now that that slipped out.

"A sister. Polly." Betty chewed on a nail, "We haven't talked in…" She trailed off.

"Gee, I wish I had a sibling," Archie gave a long sigh. Fred rolled his eyes.

"We tried," He told Betty with a side-glance, "But Archie was just such a handful…" He sipped his iced green tea, a sparkle to his eyes.

Betty guffawed, "Oh, I'm sure you were! You're a terror now, so I can't even imagine how exhausting baby Archie was."

"A little devil, I'm told," Archie shrugged, "Guilty as charged."

"Polly was the perfect sibling," Betty offered, "I liked taking things apart…not so good at putting them back together. Though, in my defense, if they'd just given me the time…" She shook her head, "Well, I'm sure I could have."

"I let Archie do all that," Fred said, "I always though it was good developmentally."

"I agree," Betty said with a firm nod, already deciding what sort of mother she wanted to be. To be clear…whatever her mother had been, she wanted to be the opposite of that.

"Can't say it made me smarter," Archie said, scratching his head.

"You're smart, Archie!" Betty jumped to defend him.

He winced hard, "Ugh. Tell that to my high school teachers." He sipped his drink, "Naw, I bet you were a little smarty-pants in school, weren't you?"

Even if not for her parents and their insane standards, Betty imagined she'd still be tightly strung.

"Not the valedictorian," She mumbled, "Only the salutatorian. And honor roll in college."

Archie had a strange look on his face, as though wondering how she went from all that to choosing to be here, where she'd make only a fraction of whatever she could be making back home or in a bigger city. But he was polite enough not to ask, not to be so bold, but Betty still felt the urge to explain.

"I just needed a break from…ugh, all that." She flicked her fingers towards D.C., or as generally as she could, "I'd spent a lifetime with my fake parents and being whatever they wanted me to be and I guess one day I just realized I was an adult and I didn't have to listen to them."

"So you packed up and fled town?"

"I knew they'd never understand. So the best option was to take away the ability for them to try to change me back. Trust me, if you ever met my mother…" Betty shuddered, "You'd understand."

"I'm sorry," Fred said, as though he was somehow at fault. He seemed genuinely upset, "No child should feel like that."

"It's easier here, meeting you both," Betty assured, "And for the first time, everything I do is entirely my choice. And even when I mess up, I love that."

All too soon, brunch ended and both the Andrews were endlessly apologetic about it.

Archie was going to meet up with his girlfriend. They were splitting the distance and meeting in between, and Archie had rented them a suite for the night. Or, well, he explained his girlfriend did. She was the one with the money, after all.

And Fred was going to visit his brother-in-law. Despite no longer living with his wife, and for all intents and purposes was separated even if they never formally divorced, he still was great friends with his wife's younger brother, who lived just one state over.

"I can take you with me," He offered.

"Didn't you say it's family only?" Betty said, "I couldn't impose, really!"

"I can say you're family," Fred said earnestly, "You basically are. I can say you're my niece. My brother-in-law wouldn't know the difference."

Even though Betty was warmed at the idea, and almost took him up on it, she thought of Jordan.

Her curiosity to see what this holiday would be made her pause.

"Maybe next time," Betty said.

She sat on the stoop of the Andrew's house, watching both men pack their cars, both planning on spending an evening away.

"Here," Fred said, dropping something into Betty's hands, "I had a spare made, in case you ever need to be in here, even if we're not home."

When she uncurled her fingers, it was a house-key.

Betty felt such familial love bubble up inside her. She hadn't felt this since she was very, very young and not yet jaded about her family.

She pressed it close to her heart, "You have no idea what this means to me, Fred," She said sincerely.

He ruffled her hair, "I know, Betty. But you deserve someone looking out for you. As Archie said…" He gave a shrug, "I always wanted another kid."

Archie also had a surprise for Betty. He pulled her into the garage, out of sight of his dad.

"Can you keep a secret?" He asked in a low whisper.

"Sure, Arch," Betty said, the key still hot in her hands.

He took something out of his back pocket. A tiny, velvet box.

It took a moment for Betty's mind to catch up with what she was seeing.

She gasped before he even opened it.

"You're proposing to Ree?" She said, grabbing his wrist and jumping up and down, "Holy shit, Archie! Holy shit!"

"Shh, Dad doesn't know. I really want him to be surprised too," He said with a wink, "Thought it was high time. Now that she's graduated and all."

"Oh, Archie!" Betty grabbed him into a hug, "I'm so excited for you. I can't wait to meet her either."

"I think you two would get along just swell," Archie said, "Maybe if she had a friend here, she'd be more willing to move back," He added, only half-way joking, "You know, you're still free to join."

"And be a third wheel to this?" She clasped the ring box closed, "No way. Your girlfriend would think I'm certifiably insane or like…into you…"

Archie shuddered, "No offense, Betty, but really, you're like a sister."

Betty laughed, "I'm glad we're on the same page. But c'mon, even bringing your sister to your proposal, unless I was taking photos, would be just weird ."

Archie looked glum, "Yeah, guess so. I just hate to think you're all alone on your first holiday here. Pop's is closed today, you know?"

She chuckled, "Well aware. And really don't worry about me…" She tried to play it casually, "I may have…plans…"

Archie examined her for a long moment, and then his whole face cracked into the most shit-eating grin ever.

"Daaaad! Guess what!" He said, scrambling outside, "Betty has a date tonight!"

It was so something a brother would do that Betty couldn't even be upset.

"Oh, that so?" Fred said, leaning on the frame of his car, having just put his last bag and cooler inside.

"I think 'date' is a strong word. It's just a hang-out."

Archie poked her ribs, "That's what kids are calling it these days, huh?"

"Oh, shut up!" Betty felt her face go red.

"Well, I think that's fantastic, Betty! You couldn't find nicer people than the folks in Riverdale." Fred said, looking just as excited as Archie was.

"You're both putting the cart before the horse," Betty sighed, "Someone else took pity on me. That's all."

"Sure, Betty," Archie winked, "Well, that makes me feel much better. But you do know that my dad and I will be trying to suss out who it is all day, right? This town ain't that big to hide some boy we don't know."

"If either of you guess it, I'll eat my hat," Betty said.

Archie grinned, "Ah, well, that takes out like five of my guesses. Up for a little Riverdale guess-who, Dad?"

"I'm leaving now before I give you any more ammunition!" Betty threw her hands up, started to walk, and winced, "Damn it. Archie?" She realized he'd picked her up and needed to give her a ride home, "You're getting nuthin' out of me." She warned.

"Don't need it," He said with a tinge of arrogance, "We'll figure it out. Just need to whittle down the choices. I always did best on multiple-choice tests."

XXX

In her apartment, Betty sent Jordan a message and then threw her phone face-down on her comforter, sure that he would have come to his senses and was about to disinvite her.

Then, because she needed to do something to occupy her mind, she went and scrubbed her bathroom and kitchen until they were cleaner than when she'd first arrived.

Two hours later, Betty was getting worried.

She picked up her phone like it was going to bite her…and realized her ringer was off.

And that Jordan had texted her back not even five minutes after she'd sent the first one.

It had an address that was walkable and a time.

She liked the message, sure that he was wondering why the heck it had taken her so long to reply.

She knew what Veronica would say; God, Betty, it's fine! You're a little mysterious, a little aloof. Guys love that. I never respond to a message back until it's been at least 12 hours. Leave them wanting more.

She was supposed to meet up at around 6 pm, and when she looked at her phone time, she had about four hours to entertain herself.

She showered first. She told herself she'd just relax, and watch a TV show or something, but then she spent the next two hours trying on every conceivable combination of clothes she had.

"Why didn't you bring anything cute?" She groaned, the floor of her bedroom trashed. She waded through her entire closet on the ground. She wasn't showing yet, so nothing from her old life wouldn't have fit. She just didn't imagine she'd need…alluring clothes when she packed the two suitcases she could carry herself.

After finally deciding on a light green sundress, she spent the remainder of her time on online thrift store sites adding pieces to her cart.

She'd had a sizeable closet back home…she deserved to live just as well here, as prices on resale sites were within her reach if she spent the time searching.

The walk wasn't too far and the entire town was celebrating. She got more jolly waves in her direction than she'd ever gotten on the streets of D.C. and someone even offered her a free popsicle while she walked.

The whole downtown was dripping in red, white, and blue banners and garlands. It looked like someone had taken a 1950s photo and recreated it, which Betty adored. The charm of small towns just couldn't be experienced anywhere but places like this.

The directions took her to a duplex. She checked the address, twice, and fidgeted with her dress.

"God, Betty, woman up," She whispered to herself, "It's just a casual party. Not a date."

But she was anxious for reasons she couldn't quite voice. Her heart pounded and her hands were sweaty with perspiration.

She wiped her palms violently down her dress.

Just as she was gathering the courage to ring the doorbell, the fence to the backyard opened up.

Jordan stood in a rose-covered archway, wearing a white shirt, a pair of roughed-up denim, and a leather jacket.

Her first thought was; god, he must be sweating like hell in that!

It was hot out, nearly 90 degrees.

Her second thought was; but damn…he looks so good.

There was the association with danger, with someone who played on the fringes of society, that immediately bubbled to the surface when she saw him like that. And somehow, knowing he was much kinder than what this would make him seem just made her desire him all the more.

"Betty!" There was a flash of a smile before he tempered himself, "You made it!"

"I brought some fruit," Betty said, holding the fruit plate she'd bought from the only store open today aloft.

He came out, standing on the front lawn with her, waving her in.

"It's a small thing, really," He assured, as though reading her mind.

He wasn't lying. Only four other people milled around in the backyard, though they all seemed very familiar with each other. There was the cook and the girl that Betty had seen with the Serpents and two other girls.

The cook looked up, "Shit, girl, you came?" He laughed out loud.

"...Yes?"

"Thank god! I've been dying to meet you, properly," He said, getting out of a lawn chair, "Franklin Fogarty, but around here, call me Fangs."

Betty shook his hand, but looked back at Jordan, remembering his strange nickname and the way he'd reacted when she'd called him that.

"Yeah, he's another one where I wouldn't call him that at work," Jordan confirmed, "That's his fiancee, Midge."

The girl he called forward was petite in every way with short, choppy hair but a warm, welcoming smile. They exchanged pleasantries, but she seemed quieter than her significant other.

The girl with pink-streaked hair was not quiet.

"Let me see her!" She said, jumping up, "Oh! You! Yeah, I've seen you around town. Toni Topaz," She said.

"No snazzy nickname for you?" Betty asked with a chuckle.

"Naw, I'm cool enough to just be me," She winked, "Babe, come here!" She called the last woman forward, a red-haired girl who looked straight out of a pin-up magazine, "This is my wife, Cheryl."

"Why aren't you just wet dream of any guy who wants a girl next door," Cheryl said, almost sounding like it was insulting. At Betty's face, Jordan shoved Cheryl.

"Ignore her. Her bark is worse than her bite," He insisted, "She's nice, really, once you get to know her. She's just… protective over us. C'mon, let's put this by the food."

He led her away from the group of four, who all watched the two of them with gleams in their eyes.

"So…" Betty coughed, "This feels a lot like a…triple date."

Jordan was bright red. He opened the lid of her tray, popping a piece of watermelon in his mouth, "It's hard when your two best friends are coupled up. It doesn't have to be, unless-,"

"No," Betty shrugged, trying to sound more 'whatever' about it than she felt, "It can be."

Jordan nodded fast, "Sure. Cool. Cool." He also sounded like he was trying to not make it a big deal.

It wasn't nearly as socially bad as she thought it would be. After the group got their teasing out of the way, they were just glad that Jordan had another person here to play games with. Well, not Jordan, Sweet Pea. They all called him that here.

There were plenty of games, and as it turned out, everyone was just as competitive as Betty was. Which was a relief. She knew who she was as a person and if she had to pretend not to care, it would have killed her inside. Even Midge had a ruthless streak where she'd shove Fangs down to win herself.

And they took it all seriously . So serious that there was a chalkboard with tally points for the night. When Betty's name was added after her first win (horseshoes) she asked what the prize was.

"Bragging rights!" Toni said, slapping her back, "And 'King for a Day'."

"What's that?" Betty asked.

"Well, we usually hang out once a month. Next month, when we have our next get-together, whoever won the previous month is King for a Day. I mean, within reason."

"Oh," Betty said, blinking, "Who won last month?"

"Fangs. And he's been insufferable about it so far," Sweet Pea grouched. In her mind, he was Sweet Pea here, a new person different from Jordan at Pop's or even Sweet Pea with those Serpents she'd had a run-in with. Luckily, the few times she'd interacted with them since, they'd kept their mouths quiet, but she wasn't sure why, "He's making me do fifty push-ups every time I eat anything with my dominant hand."

"Isn't it great?" Fangs asked with a wild gleam in his eyes.

"Oh, I want to win that!" Betty said out loud and then realized that maybe she wouldn't be invited back. Before she could backpedal her faux pas, Midge nodded enthusiastically.

"Please do! It's always Fangs."

There was a wide variety of skills and games at play. Other than horseshoes, Betty's night was filled with lawn darts, boche-ball, cornhole, and a hundred little games in between. Everything was a competition here, which Betty was perfectly fine with.

They took a break to start the grill. Sweet Pea had burgers and hotdogs and corn on the cob and Betty couldn't think of a more perfect dinner.

"Want a drink?" Toni called to Betty as she stood at a cooler.

"Uhm, well…" Betty hadn't come up with a good reason to deny a beer yet. She hadn't been asked, so she had been hoping it just wouldn't come up.

"Think fast," Toni said and threw a can her way. She caught it, and when she looked down, she was surprised to see it was just a regular old lemonade. Not spiked, just plain.

Toni must have seen her expression of surprise, "Ah, Sweets didn't tell ya? We're a dry friend group."

Oh, thank god, Betty thought.

"My bad," Fangs raised a hand, tending the grill, "Sober now for…" He closed one eye, sucking in through his teeth, "How long, now, Midge?"

"Three years," She confirmed.

"I don't mind. That's fine. Perfectly fine." Easier for her to not explain her…erm…situation.

"Best for all of us, honestly," Sweet Pea said, shrugging, "Me, Toni, Cheryl, and Fangs all dealt some pretty tough shit when we were Serpents in High School. And Midge had her issues with Jingle Jangle too. We don't judge anyone's past."

"So…you're…not anymore? Serpents?" Betty wasn't sure what the connection was. She'd seen Toni sitting with them and seen Sweet Pea at the helm, but…

"It's complicated," Toni said, "I still have friends in it, and to hang with one is to hang with all. But for the most part, we're part of what we call the Southside Serpent Mutiny Club. Fangs and Cheryl are out of it entirely, but me and Sweets…" She glanced at Sweet Pea, clearly his story to tell.

"She might as well know," Cheryl nudged him.

"Right," Sweet Pea sighed, "I mean, it was just the way of life before. After my parents died, I guess you could say I wasn't…down the right path. Rose my way through the ranks. In the junior Serpents, you could say I…had some pull."

Toni guffawed, "Some pull? He's being modest; he was basically at the head of it."

"Slinked out of CPS view most of the time. Lived wherever. Did whatever. Until I got arrested one night with Fangs; on everything you can imagine. We nearly killed someone. Fangs had wrapped his car around a pole, miracle he was alive. Keller drained my system in a jail cell. Then my grandma appeared out of nowhere. Properly adopted me, helped me turn everything around…" He tapped his fingers, "Wouldn't be here without her. At 18, we were all…in it. In the thick of addiction. But I think that we all knew if we wanted to survive, we had to find another way. So we did. My grandma and Pop go way back, she got me my job. Helped Fangs get one too."

"I'm a middle school teacher," Midge said.

"Wedding photographer," Toni said with a grin.

Betty looked at Cheryl, expecting her to chime in with a totally normal job, but Cheryl laughed.

"I'm rich, darling. I don't need to work."

"When she gets bored, she starts a new charitable foundation. The Blossom name is synonymous not just with maple syrup, but also for the good they do," Toni said, kissing her cheek.

"And so here we are…a bunch of former troubled kids, just doing our best," Sweet Pea said, shrugging.

"God, Sweet Pea…" Betty whispered, looking among the faces. No one seemed ashamed of their past, more so willing to admit their fault.

"I still have pull with what's left of the Serpents. Mostly just young adults making noise now, not the way it used to be. If I don't…" He drummed his fingers on his can, "Show up every once and while to just…keep them in line, I'm worried they'd just pick someone else."

"That doesn't sound like it's your responsibility, though," Betty said, eyebrows knitting.

"Maybe, maybe not," Sweet Pea said, "And I know one day I'll have to really cleave myself away. But not today."

And that seemed to be as much as he was willing to argue the topic.

"So the jackets…" Cheryl, Fangs, and Toni were also weathering leather, though Cheryl's was red.

"More of a joke," Fangs confirmed, "But this shit was expensive. I'm not throwing it away," He scoffed.

Sweet Pea tilted his head, "Well, he's right."

They all sat at the wooden table to eat.

Afterward, they dragged their lawn chairs to the front driveway where they had a perfect, unobstructed view of the city's fireworks.

"Shit," Midge sighed, "We only have five lawn chairs," She put her hands on her hips, "We really thought Sweet Pea had just made you up!"

"It's fine," Betty waved a hand, "I'll stand."

"Let me give you my chair," Sweet Pea said.

"God, no," Betty said, "Really, it's fine."

Toni leaned in and whispered something in Fang's ear. He had a grin on his face, one that made Betty nervous, and laughed out loud. He whispered in Midge's ear and she nodded enthusiastically, sending a look over to the one chair between Betty and Sweet Pea.

"There's an easy fix for this," Fangs said in a booming, commanding voice, "Betty…" His eyes were gleaming, "Sit on Sweet's lap."

"Fuck off. She doesn't have to if she doesn't want to," Sweet Pea said, "I'll just stand! It's not a big deal!"

"That's an order from your King," Fangs said, pretending to be apologetic, but Betty was sure he was having the time of his life.

"Well…" Betty swallowed, "I mean…if our King says so."

She wanted to be invited back. She wanted to play by their rules. She knew if she made a fuss of it now, well…

Besides, it wasn't so bad. It wasn't like he was forcing her to sit on the lap of someone she hated or didn't have a crush on.

Well, no, it was a bit nerve-wracking because she did, but Betty Cooper was not fucking afraid of anything, was she?

Sweet Pea looked between all his friends.

"You all suck."

"Yeah, yeah, we know," Toni rolled her eyes.

Crap. Maybe Sweet Pea didn't want to, and she was…reading into all of this? But no…he'd made it clear this could be a date if she wanted it to be.

Sweet Pea was looking at the ground, as though trying to count all the ants that crawled around, but she could see the flush all the way up the back of his neck.

When she carefully settled herself on his lap, his hands came up to keep her from falling off.

"Huzzah!" Fangs said, raising his can of flavored sparkling water.

"Huzzah!" Everyone else in on this little joke echoed, raising their glasses. Betty shot them a 'you fuckers' and raised her can too.

Everyone jumped as the first fireworks boomed above them. Soon enough, the other four were enthralled with the show, the speakers from the town square floating through the woods, close enough for them to hear the peppy patriotic instrumentals.

"You can lean back," Sweet Pea said quietly, "You seem…uncomfortable."

"Just don't want to upset you," She whispered back.

"Upset?" He scrunched his nose, "I'm not…upset about it," He said, "I'd just rather not have the audience," He added, for her ears only, "Wearing a dress like that…Fangs knew how I'd react."

A shiver went up her spine.

"That is?" She prompted, brave now that everyone else was preoccupied, their focus elsewhere.

Sweet Pea's fingers flexed on the bare skin of her thigh, the hem of her dress dancing along his knuckles. He pulled her back so she was sitting fully in his lap, and not merely on his leg as she'd been doing, and felt that hardness against her tailbone. She tried not to choke on her lemonade, inhaling hard.

"Well, I think you can tell," Sweet Pea said, his nose pressed against the curve of her neck.

Heat pooled in her stomach. She couldn't think of a time- ever- when she'd wanted someone so much. All her high school and early college crushes had been juvenile, nowhere near fiery enough to elicit such a response. And then with her Big Mistake, she hadn't been sure where hate and lust started and stopped.

So this was different. It was overwhelming, all-consuming. She didn't know how she could sit here and pretend like it was just nothing, act casual. She didn't how he could be either.

She must have made a face because Sweet Pea laughed quietly, but it was enough for her to feel the vibrations rumbling through his chest.

Betty pressed her lips into a thin line, trying to keep from smiling.

"You're adorable, you know that, right?" Sweet Pea asked.

"I've been told."

"Trying to make me jealous, Heather?"

For a second, she had almost forgotten she had a fake last name. Being with him felt so natural, and it was at the tip of her tongue to tell him the truth.

But she'd been dumb with a boy once, she needed to be more careful. So, instead, she swallowed the feeling crawling up her throat and focused just on him and the day and nothing else.

She turned around, raising an eyebrow, "Is it working?"

Sweet Pea gave a wolfish grin, "Yes." He paused, eyes flickering to his friends who were fully engrossed in the fireworks. It was dark now, the only illumination highlighting their face was the explosions in the sky, "Can I kiss you?" He mumbled.

Betty couldn't form words. Her tongue felt lit was tied in a knot, but she nodded twice. Sweet Pea cupped her face, pulling her down.

It was fast, but it wasn't chaste.

Betty felt like she was delirious, high on lack of oxygen, as though he'd stolen it right from her lips.

When they parted, Betty looked over. Only Midge had seen, and she was grinning, but she gave Betty a shake of her head, as though to say that she'd let this moment be a secret just for the two of them. Fangs was wholly focused on the show and Cheryl and Toni were in a romantic embrace.

The fireworks finished around 10 pm and the group stayed chatting around until about 11:30. It sort of pinged in Betty's mind that this wasn't just some random duplex but Sweet Pea's when the other two pairs took their leave.

"This is yours?" She said as Sweet Pea brought in the food through the screen door.

"Yeah. Surprised?" He guessed.

"I mean, I guess…" She titled her head, "Do you…rent it?"

"Naw, I own it. Along with that side," He jerked a finger to his right, "So why do I work so many shifts at Pop's, you want to know?"

"Well, sorry, yeah…" She kicked herself. What a stupid thing to ask.

"Grew up dirt poor. Didn't save well as a kid. I guess I just want to be better prepared for my life in the future. Rent is cheap here, I don't make that much." He added as an aside.

"Oh," She furrowed her brow, "How…responsible of you."

Sweet Pea snorted, "I burned through my foolish youth a long time ago." He unceremoniously dumped the food on a kitchen table, "C'mon, Betty, I'll drive you home."

As they idled outside of the walk-up, Betty turned, "You going to walk me to my door?"

Sweet Pea turned off the car, "Am I allowed?"

"Yeah, yeah, I think so."

Sweet Pea pulled the key from the car, stuffing it in her back pocket. The street was deserted.

Like they were drunk kids, they were giggly up the steps, full of shy glances and slight brushes of skin upon skin.

At her door, Sweet Pea reigned himself in.

Betty opened her door, leaning against the frame.

"So."

Sweet Pea put an arm next to her, tilting forward, like all the movies showed and her heart felt like it was going to explode with how much heat that sent all over.

"So," He echoed, "So…I'd like to take you on a real date."

Betty tilted her head, "By ourselves? No chaperons? Scandalous." She teased, "I think I could be down. I'm not sure when, since whenever I'm off you're at work and vice versa."

Sweet Pea considered this, shrugging, "I'll make the time."

The matter-of-factness of the way he spoke, though casual, made her fall for him even more. It was just a fact, and she was charmed by it all.

Betty instigated the next kiss. She pushed herself up on the heels of her feet, pulling him down around his neck, and lacing her fingers in his hair.

Sweet Pea responded with equal enthusiasm, grabbing her waist and pulling her close.

Like before, there was hardly any hesitation, and it certainly would be something rated far more than PG.

He was a gentleman, but when he was invited to partake…well, Betty shivered, wondering what it would be like if she offered more…

He pulled away first, cheeks splotched with a pink hue.

His eyes were dark, his hair was tousled, and when he looked at her, he licked his lips.

Betty felt her knees go weak.

"Goodnight, Betty," He said, taking two steps back, "We'll do something. Soon."

Betty slid into her apartment, closed the door, and collapsed against it.

You're down bad, Betty Cooper. Watch yourself…