Red moons ---Beronica (Riverdale's, Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge)

Chapter 10: dreams of normalcy

She doesn't remember where she first heard this, but it's a quote that stuck with her for years:

There are things you can't get anywhere, but we dream they can be found in other people.

That's what Archie used to be to her - a dream. Delusions of a typical high school sweetheart romance where the football player is dating the cheerleader. Pipe dreams about a picturesque wedding in a church bursting with flowers, and she's in a dress so white it could burn your retinas if you stared too long. Daydreams revolving around a perfectly manicured lawn, a shiny new car sitting on the driveway, kids with flame red hair and bright green eyes.

Dreams are tantalizing because they aren't true. It's the chase, the desire for them to come true that make them so desirable in the first place - and that's why Archie loves her now.

He only wants her when she's out of his reach, and that is not enough.

"We're both so lucky, don't you think-" Betty's never been a good liar, and neither has he. They both know this. "-To have found the people that we were meant to be with? And that we're all friends."

But when she goes to bed and closes her eyes at the end of the day, she isn't dreaming of a boy with a funny beanie and tired blue eyes - in fact, she isn't dreaming of a boy at all.

Because even though she doesn't want to admit it, she can't help but shake the feeling that she hasn't found the things she's been searching for in him either.

"Who would've thought at the beginning of the school year...?" She trails off, uncertain where to go from here.

"Yeah," Archie grins, and he looks halfway back to his usual self: Boyish, cheery...but there's something missing. She used to be in his position. She knows how much it hurts. "Who would've thought?"

Everyone's expected to go back to normal now that Jason's murder is no longer a guillotine hanging over their heads (For the most part) - but that's where Veronica's stuck, because she's not exactly sure what her version of normal is supposed to be. Unlike everyone else, she doesn't have a "pre-murdered Jason" setting to dial back to, and reverting to New York Veronica is out of the question. Even her mother has something to work with, since she grew up in this town.

Stick to what's expected, She tells herself, Do something you know you're supposed to be doing.

So she opts for some "girl time" with Betty after Vixens practice, because that sounds normal enough. They sit in the blonde's pink room and do each other's nails. Predictable, stereotypical, normal. Everything's going according to plan.

But when it's time for Veronica to paint Betty's nails, things are far from normal. She takes the taller girl's hand in her own and her thumb unknowingly brushes against the hard scabs raised against her palm; Betty responds with a shaky sigh and Veronica swallows hard. The brunette drops her hand like it's on fire and her eyes desperately search for something to stare at - a lamp, a bookcase, anything.

Those wounds felt like they were just recovering from another relapse. They're recent - but what could have caused it? Her mind reels to the mess that was homecoming, and guilt threatens to swallow her whole.

"S-sorry." The blonde breaks the silence, chuckling nervously. "Caught me off guard, that's all."

"You're fine." Veronica wills herself to look at her; Betty's cheeks are splotched pink, and she's sure her own cheeks aren't far off. "Er, maybe we should start with a pedi."

For the first time since they've met Veronica feels awkward around Betty, and that's definitely not normal.

Stick to what's expected. Do something you know you're supposed to be doing.