Always the Mysterious Ones

Chapter 5: Flashback

~July 10th~

Lark pulled into Pop's, the only place open at midnight in Riverdale. "Let's go, we're gonna spend the night here. You can set up camp at Sweetwater tomorrow while I look for a place for us. Sound good?" Lark asked, and even though I knew it was a rhetorical question, I nodded.

I got out of the car and followed her into the "chock'lit shoppe". When Lark got through the door, she immediately went over to Pop Tate and started talking, probably making sure it ok for us to stay. I saw him nod and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

As they talked, I wandered around the small diner. My eyes landed on a boy in one of the booths, typing on his laptop. He looked about my age, so I decided to go say hi.

I walked over to where he was sitting. "Mind if I join you?" I asked, trying my hardest to smile. It wasn't that I didn't want to smile. I just hadn't smiled in a little under a week.

He glanced at me, then went back to typing. "Sure, but I'm not really the social type," he said.

I slid into the other side of the booth. "I'm usually not either, but I could use someone other than my sister to talk to right now," I said. "Hey, I know you. You're Jughead Jones, right? My mom went to school with your dad."

The boy finally closed his computer. "Yeah. You're Phoenix Matthews, right?  Gosh, it's been forever since we've seen each other."

"I know, right? So, what were you writing?"

"A story about this guy that drowned. He was around our age. His name was Jason Blossom."

"That sucks."

"Yeah. Why haven't I seen you in a while? Why are you back now?"

"I'm still living in Brooklyn. But, I had a breakdown earlier, so my sister Lark decided to pack up and go camping at Sweetwater. That always cheers me up, a camping trip."

"Where are your parents?"

I unconsciously stiffened. I hated talking about it. Then again, I really only hated talking to Lark...

"My dad's in jail. He slept with a student, not from Brooklyn. They did it a couple times. I found out, and she must have gotten mad, because she told the police. He got arrested for it, even though she was the instigator, and he's gonna be in jail for a while."

"What about your mom? I haven't seen her in a while, I would love to see her again."

I sighed. I wasn't gonna cry, even though it was a sensitive topic. I never had. "She practically raised my sister and I, as you probably already know. One day I woke up and she was just gone," I said.

Jughead seemed to understand what I was saying. "I'm sorry. I can't imagine what that must feel like."

"Yeah, trust me, I know. People have been telling me since she left that they 'can't imagine what it must feel like'. I'm just so done," I said, immediately regretting it.

But, surprisingly, Jughead didn't snap back. He didn't even seen surprised. He just... nodded. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap. I've just had a bad day," I said.

He nodded. "It's cool. I understand, I've been there before."

"What's your sob story then?"