Betty, Interrupted - Bughead

12

Jughead was having a hard time avoiding the steely glare he was currently receiving from Archie as he stuffed his backpack with clean clothes. "Where are you even going man? This is absolutely insane.." Archie could hardly keep the disbelief out of his voice.

"I don't know. All she asked was I meet her at the bus station so I'm going." Jughead didn't want to have this conversation. He could only remain focused on getting to her, figuring out what was going on. If she wanted to leave town forever, he didn't think he could argue. As much as he wasn't about to say, he would follow her anywhere, riding off into the sunset to face the world.

"I just think this is a bad idea. Can't you just ask her what's going on? I think all of Riverdale High is freaking out right now.. She's become like an entirely different person." Archie couldn't understand why Jughead would go along with any of this. How difficult could it be to talk her out of all of this? This was Betty after all, her behaviors were never over the line, always consistent.

"I'm just going to see what she wants to do. I'll call you if everything is going sideways." Jughead shrugged the bag over his shoulders and headed out the door, leaving Archie to sit in the darkening room and wonder what had happened to his childhood best friends.

The bus station wasn't far off and Jughead found himself incredibly thankful. He wasn't sure what she wanted, so he packed just about everything he owned, leaving only the laptop he kept safeguarded at Archies. Maybe this was crazy, but he had to admit nothing about the past few days had been normal. Were they even still together? Did she ever think about how much she had kept hidden from him, thinking he wouldn't notice? He couldn't let himself think about losing her, couldn't wonder if she was really leading him to the bus stop to tell him this would be the last he saw of her. Couldn't let her leave.

He could see the familiar blonde curls tied into a ponytail and almost thought he would pass out from relief. She was here, and okay, looking at him expectantly with the small bag at her feet. He tried to hold himself back but she was running at him regardless, reaching for his embrace. He held her tightly, letting his bag slip off his shoulder and onto the sidewalk, closing his last free arm around her.

"Tell me what's going on," shocking himself with the harsh tone of voice.

She tried as best she could to cover the last few hours, handing him the police report to read and explaining the painful conversation with her father and the revelation that there had been another Cooper child the world would never see. She struggled to put into words her feelings about her mother's apparent suicide, "I don't think she did it Jug. . I think maybe it wasn't a suicide at all."

He finished off the last of the police report, feeling a little lightheaded at what she was suggesting. "So you think whoever killed Jason.. May have killed your mom?" He struggled to keep himself from letting his face show his true feelings on that thought.

"Yes!" She exclaimed "None of this makes sense, someone must have killed her!" She was so determined to believe it that he was almost heartbroken.

"Betty... I found a medication in your room the other night. I didn't bring it up. There never seemed like a right time. But what is that?"

"So you think I'm crazy too? Like the rest of my family?" Her voice raised unintentionally.

"No, that's not it.. I just think you've been under a lot of stress lately and you have to be feeling the strain of everything. Maybe the right thing to do is just leave it to the police." She refused to meet his eyes anymore, and he wondered if he was making the biggest mistake of his life telling her this.

"I believed you Jug. I've always believed you, no matter what. Can you just trust me on this?" She pleaded for him to understand.

The bus pulled up before he had anytime to respond, she stood to board it and he realized there were only two choices left in this short moment: Board the bus to Greendale with the girl he loved or leave her alone to face the unfamiliar place herself. Whichever he chose would probably pick the course of their relationship. She wouldn't be able to forgive him for allowing her to go through this alone.