Amaurotic.

part 2 // the exchange.

{pls leave comments and stuff i'd really love to get you guys' feedback}

it was sunny that day. but not the kind of sun that heats the floor and scorches your hands when you touch it. it was just sunny. still, jughead wasn't happy about it. he was the kind of kid that got excited when it rained, when the trees shook and branches brushed against his bedroom windows in the night. there was something about the rain that interested young jughead, there always had been. whether it was the feeling of the downpour against his bare skin or the contrasting sudden warmth that enveloped him when he finally returned back home. maybe it was the sound of rainfall against the thin fabric of a camping tent or the specific smell of the air that only ever occurred right after the rain finished. whatever it was, something made jughead fascinated by rain from a very young age. when everybody normal ran for cover and opened their umbrellas, jughead opened his arms instead, looked up to the skies and prayed to whatever higher power may exist for more. jug liked watching life go by. he liked watching everyone trying to escape the downpour into the comfort of the nearest building. jughead liked watching.

archie andrews, on the other hand, was practically the human embodiment of sunshine. he walked, or rather skipped, around with a constant grin on his face that screamed 'i am most likely the happiest person you will ever encounter in all your life'. jughead wasn't a fan. the redhead was eager to make friends with whoever he met, unlike jughead who would much rather ignore anyone and everyone who crossed his path. archie could make friends with the simple flash of a smile and, since he had joined 3 days prior to his and jughead's encounter, he had already managed to befriend practically the entire class. even jughead's best (and only) friend, miss haggly, had swooned over young archie's vibrant hair and beaming smile. jughead however, had sworn from day one that he was to stay as far away from Sir Carrot Head as humanly possible. besides, his arrival had left jug with a lot less people to deal with and a lot more time for his much loved privacy, which he often used for reading books in the most secluded corner of the classroom's library.

jughead decided to spend his recess inside, cosied in the same place that he spent most of his school days: a beanbag in the outermost corner of the school library. immersed completely within his story, jughead was interrupted only by the loud and sudden sound of a collection of roald dahl plummeting to the ground beside him. he generally would have taken no notice and returned to his book if it wasn't for the flash of crimson he saw disappear quickly behind the protection of the bookcase opposite to him.

peering back down, he began to reread the familiar words of goldilocks and the three bears in an attempt to portray a disinterest in the current situation. archie didn't leave. time passed and jughead grew more and more uncomfortable as unfamiliar chocolate eyes burnt holes in his beanie. without looking up, he inhaled and asked detachedly 'archie andrews, right?' he didn't care. or, he wouldn't allow himself to care. jughead had learnt from a young age that making the decision of refusing to open up to or put trust in people would ultimately prevent him from getting hurt in the long run.

after finally looking up, jughead found himself suddenly stifling a laugh. this was the closest he had ever been to the elementary school celebrity and jug was somewhat taken aback by how unbelievably cliché he was. 'peewee football, huh?' he said, scanning archie's outfit and focusing primarily on his football jacket. 'you wanna be one of those varsity football gods when we get to high school?' he asked with a tinge of sarcasm in his voice.

the new boy still hadn't spoken a word, which surprised jughead as he was fairly certain it's hard to become the most popular guy in school when you're simultaneously a mute. possibly even a deaf-mute judging from the lack of acknowledgement he was giving to jug's questions.

'okay, well. this was a great conversation but i've got a book to read and i'd much rather do that than continue this invigorating exchange. i'd actually rather drag my tongue against broken glass, if i'm being honest.' quipped jughead with an attempted wink.

there was an uncomfortable pause whilst jughead waited for the strawberry haired boy to make an exit. he didn't.

'come to the sandpit' archie finally mustered.

'dude, really?' jughead asked in a somewhat patronising voice, muttering under his breath 'god, maybe you truly are deaf.'

archie scratched the back of his neck and laughed awkwardly 'nope, not deaf. just... intimidated.' even the red head was surprised by the words he spoke 'every one here was so welcoming, they all like me and actually want to play with me. everyone but you.' he explained.

reluctantly, jughead placed his book on the floor and jumped off the beanbag onto his feet. after all, archie andrews wasn't going anywhere and there was secretly something about him that intrigued jughead in a similar way to how rain did. the two boys proceeded to walk to the sandpit together, archie climbed in immediately whereas jughead did so with a lot more hesitation than his new... acquaintance. this was probably the first time he had been in the social play area in the whole time he had attended the school.

'my names jughead' he said nonchalantly, unaware of the fact that not everybody he spoke to would classify it as a normal name. then again, neither was forsythe.

'oh yeah? well, my name is' quipped the redhead as he reached for a sandcastle bucket and attempted to balance it on the top of his head, '... pothead' he seemed impressed with his joke and gave a small smirk.

this caused the darker haired boy to chuckle under his breath. although only in elementary school, jughead had a mind that was far more developed than any other child of his age. the combination of his family's background and his wild, vivid imagination had given him a need for street smarts along with a desire for escapism.

his father never read him stories, no matter how hard he begged, as he was always 'too busy' with work. 'work' was the usual reason for why his father refused to do things with him. so, when jellybean came along, jughead took it upon himself to:
first, learn how to read
and
then, make sure his precious younger sister heard a brand new bedtime story read to her each and every night.

jellybean was the one and only exception to his rule of not getting close to people, but maybe, just maybe, archie andrews would be too.

{THANK YOU to hannah for helping me edit this, means a bunch!!}