Rainy Days ▸ BUGHEAD

chapter one

Rainy days have never been something I've enjoyed. If the rain pours too much, it can overflow and cause bigger problems. The rain turns the night cold. It ruins so much, it's hard to predict what in it's control. Much like people in this small but messy town.

And while Riverdale has never been a town full of sunshine, the production of what I call rainy days have increased. It's like the sun was abducted from this town, never to return again.

People I once knew have turned into complete strangers. The sun deep within, has lost its light. The light that shined through their deepest flaws. The light that proved maybe there was some hope left in this mess we call home. It was here and now is lost.

But this never would have started, if Jason hadn't been murdered. Somehow a town filled with endless bore, can change in the blink of an eye. To a place where no one is considered to be trustworthy.

I wouldn't have really noticed much of it if I didn't have to. But one girl can truly change your views on something, with the drop of a hat. If it wasn't for Betty, I wouldn't be in this spot I'm in now. 

Here's how it all happened.

Our story begins during lunch period, that hazy mid-August day. Being the social outcast, I sat towards the back, under a tree that shadowed myself from my friends. But that day I clearly didn't shadow myself enough.

I didn't notice the faces of two girls I knew approaching my direction. I didn't bother to look, because I knew it was probably going to have nothing to do with me.

But a pair of long legs greeted me. "Hey Juggy."

I looked up to see the long legs face. I would know that face anywhere. The beautifully constructed face features, emerald eyes the size of the moon, and a gorgeous smile. It had to be Betty Cooper.

Tagged along was Veronica Lodge. The girl with the raven hair, who didn't come close to the beauty of Betty. But Veronica was still a good person, maybe even a friend.

"Hello Betty." I answered. "What are you doing here?"

"Well," she answered. "Me and V saw you under this tree all alone. We wanted to know if you'd be down for sitting with us."

I chuckled at her comment. "Betty, you know I'm a social outcast. I don't think sitting with you and Veronica suits my social cues."

"Oh c'mon Jughead," Veronica said. "Since when have you cared about social cues?"

"Yeah." Betty added in. "C'mon Juggy, just one lunch?"

I sighed. "Fine."

Betty gave me a huge smile. She grabbed my hand and pulled me up until I was stood upon the grass. We walked to the other side of the small schoolyard, to a table set for four.

From a normal point of view, it looked like a normal lunch period. Three students, eating a peaceful lunch on the Riverdale campus. And it definitely started off that way.

But simple is not the Riverdale way. Something odd will creep its way into very situation, no matter how normal it is. But the thing is how the odd came to be.

It was around the end of lunch when a watch beeped. At first I thought it was from a table around, but a sound so loud and vivid had to be closer than that. It had to me at the very table I sat at.

Only problem, no one was wearing a watch. Not even me. But that was just the first thing I noticed.

A couple of seconds later Betty stood up from her seat, holding her tray firmly. The food was untouched. It looked just as fresh, or as fresh as a high school lunch could be, as it first came.

"I got to go." Betty told me and Veronica. "But I had a nice lunch with you guys."

As she walked away I called after her. "But lunch doesn't end for another 15 minutes."

Betty quickly turned around. "Sorry but it's an emergency." she called back. She began to run in a different direction.

While this wasn't even close to the strange things I'd see in this town, it did get me thinking. I watched her carefully as she left. She run in a opposite direction, one leading off the high school campus. Plus she didn't throw she tray away.

I took a sip from my milk carton as I faced Veronica. "That was a bit... odd, don't you think?"

Veronica gave me a slight chuckle. "Odd? This has been happening everyday since the school year started."

I almost choked on the milk. "Wait, you're telling me Betty has been doing this all year?"

"Yeah..."

I looked Veronica deeply in the eyes. "And you don't find this the least bit concerning?"

"No." she replied. "It's honestly not that big of a deal."

But I didn't care what Veronica thought about this. I felt something strange things up with that. It was very unlike Betty, and trust me I would know.

Something was leaving a bitter taste in my mouth, and it wasn't just the schools milk.

But the milk was not important that day. And it never will be. What was truly important were the things I saw later that week.