Goodbye, good life | Bughead

04: Name calling

It was early Saturday morning when Jughead woke up for noises in his tiny rental apartment. "Where the fuck is it??" his blonde girlfriend was furious.

Jughead looked his phone - 6:38.

"Fuck Vicky, why are you up this early and making all this noise.." he murmured and pulled the covers over his head. "Nothing to you, just sleep," she snapped. She was lovely. Says nobody.

Two hours later Jughead woke up again, hearing his front door closing. She was back and came to his bed straddeling on him. "Hi babe," she said. Jughead smelled her. Cigarettes but also, he smelled booze too. "What the hell Vicky, already?" he was then wide awake.

Jughead had spent every month in New York not smoking. After five years of smoking. He also didn't drink anything stronger than wine anymore. No mixed drinks. He really tried to grow up and to get success in his career, try to behave, be an adult.

"Just one drink and few cigarettes. My friend texted me after her bar night and asked me to the streets. I was her company, she needed me," Vicky explained but Jughead just laughed, ans it was an empty laugh. "I have heard that before, please be an adult sometimes," he groaned, moved her away and got out of the bed. "I was trying, just a few second ago when I sat on you," she yelled to his back, when Jughead headed to shower.

He really didn't know why he still wanted to see his girlfriend, let even her have his spare key. She was boring and annoying, she was using his money and didn't care his plans or job. She was childish. They fought a lot and if Vicky was wasted, she was throwing things and sometimes she had even hitted Jughead. For example last weekend, he was there when umbrella flew and hitted right there on his temple.

He was wondering what is was, why he kept her around and then in the middle of that thought Vicky walked to shower wearing nothing. And he remembered. She was there because of that hot body and what that offered to him..

It helped. Again. The shower with her. He forgot once again why he hated her just one hour before. "I'm out the rest of the day, so you might wanna go to your own place. See you next week?" Jughead told her girlfriend like it was nothing, it was his life, his plans.

"What? You can't be serious? After that shower, you'll leave me for the rest of the fucking weekend! Fuck you Jones! You are just using me for sex, I kind of knew it but you made me realize that again. Well. Call me when you need me!" she yelled, dropped all the things on the table to the floor and walked out.

As the books, pens, his laptop and remote dropped, Jughead shooked his head, was again annoid with his girl but came to thought that actually, he didn't care much. He'll call her, when he need some company.

He drank his third cup of coffee and changed his clothes. He changed his shirt like three times, every shirt was feeling wrong coloured or something else was wrong in it. He felt himself stupid, why did he care? Because of Betty? No, he shaked that thought out of his head and planned all the ways he could make Betty uncomfortable and blushing and maybe even little bit mad. Anyways, he wanted her to lose her freaking control. Betty used to be all about the control. Now, it was time to lose it.

Just before noon Jughead met Joel and Carla in the park, they joked a little while but soon Betty came. Jughead was almost chocking in his own saliva when he saw Betty. Their clothes were fucking matching. Fuck this girl. He saw that Betty was noticing that too and was processing it, not in a happy way. She really wasn't happy. He saw his moment, it was now, he needed to get over this idiotic coincidence, so something else it is.

"Hey there Betts!" Jughead smirked but the smirk was anything but kind. More evil. "What the hell Jughead! We discussed this like just a second ago. You have no right to call me that! That one is for Joel and people who loves me, clearly not for you," Betty snapped and it was nothing like she planned. The act. It ached her heart hearing this nickname from Jughead's lips. "Well Elizabeth then?" Jughead kept it going, he wear the stupid grin still. He knew Betty wouldn't like that one either.

Betty took a big breath, tried to find her zen, tried to focus on Veronica's plan. "Fuck you Jughead. You have never called me that and never will, could just be a normal person and call me Betty or Cooper," Betty said, little calmer. She tried really hard.

Her actual first name wasn't sentimental, like 'Betts' was, especially from his mouth. She just didn't like Elizabeth. Only her mother, Veronica and Kevin called her that, all of them when they wanted to make a point and not the nice one.

"Okay Cooper. That will work, has worked before too, in many ways and in many places ," he smirked. Jughead had his fun and he was pleased he got Betty out of her comfy place right from the beginning.

Carla and Joel had enjoyed the show and they were little confused. But they weren't the people who kept it quiet. They were bold and spoke everything out, they were in many ways like Veronica. Betty herself was little more reserved so maybe that was the reason she found herself with people like this, people with guts.

"Are you done? Thank you for that, I'm really looking forward what would you guys have in a future, this is fun" Carla stated and Joel laughed. "Just wait for it," Jughead said and took a sip from the beer Joel had brought.

"Okay everyone chill. All good. But don't mess with me when I'm hangover. So our big planner, Joel, what you have been planned for us?" Betty found her kind of happy self and decided that it's time to show Jughead who is the happy Betty he didn't know yet.

They sat down and started with beers and wine they had. They made a plan what they'd do and where to go. Betty and Jughead acted normal, Betty was actually feeling quite normal too. Maybe the act helped. They visited few of Betty's, Carla's and Joel's favourite places and after many hours of touring around the city, they walked to the food stall in the middle of this little park. "Best pizza slices in the world, I promise," Joel promised to Jughead who was of course pleased to hear there was delicious food ahead.

"So Betty and Jughead, did you call each others and planned your outfits?" Carla grinned while eating her pizza. Betty blushed immiditiately but also heard Veronica's voice in her head again and put herself back together. "We both just have good sense of style, I think," she smirked and was so proud of herself. Like she was really above all this shit. She looked at Jughead who was surprised and couldn't say a word.

"It's still little bit odd and knowing you have some history.. you matched. I think more than this obvious way. So could you just tell, I don't believe that shit that you just went same high school!" Carla continued.

"You can't handle that story today, I'm sorry," Jughead answered quickly and Betty almost chocked in her pizza. "Oh my god, I knew it! You have time til Thursday. Then. At the pub. We need to know," Joel told them and he was way too excited, Carla too. "We'll see," Betty had to say something and she really didn't know what else to say. What kind of story they could tell?

They ate their pizzas and were planning to get their homes. Just before leaving the park, group of young men came near. "Betty, is that you? Well this was a nice surprise," one of them shouted and Betty realized it was Zack from the morning.

Well she was in deep shit. Carla and Joel knew how she handled her one night stands, but Jughead.. "Yeah, hi. We were just about to go and kind of in a rush. Sorry," Betty was determined to leave the park as soon as possible. Jughead followed the situation and couldn't stay quiet. "What rush Cooper, we have time," Jughead grinned. He noticed that Betty didn't wanna stay but he had to tease a little. He just didn't know what he just did.

"Cooper? That's your name. Well now we could just see sometimes, things are different now. We met again and the name.. right?" Zack asked Betty, who was red like hell. No, she didn't blush. She was mad, Joel and Carla looked each others, they knew this was going to blow. "I'm sorry Zack, I really need to go," she tried to say calmly, took a very heavy grip on Jughead's arm and pulled him away. Joel and Carla ran after them.

"How the hell is it possible you have to ruin everything! Fuck!" Betty yelled but didn't say more. She tried to act like she planned. But fuck this man was impossible!

Jughead didn't understand what happened but he was amused by the fact Betty was so upset. He looked back and saw Joel. "Don't never call her Cooper in front of strangers" Joel whispered and gave a friendly squeeze on his shoulder.

Jughead was putting things together and got it. Wow, Betty, Betty, you are living some life.. and just when he was smiling about this new thing he learned, it was his time to be lucky. As they walked to the street, there was one annoying, familiar blonde who definitely saw Jughead and his new friends..