Ambedo [RIVERDALE]

FIVE

DARKEST HOUR- CHARLOTTE OC

"THERE'S A SCREAM IN YOUR SILENCE THAT DOESN'T LET ANYONE IN"

AND THERE SHE WAS

Stiff leather dug into the pale ankles of Charlotte Harper as she strode through the doors of Riverdale High School. The shoes were new, black boots with low heels that had been a gift from Betty. It was still odd for the blonde to see her cousin not wearing a pastel cardigan or demure scalloped dress, but she knew that was in the past for the brunette. Charlie wore ripped jeans and band tees now but today she had made an effort to soothe the fraying nerves of her younger cousin.

The black ankle boots were a start. She had spent the past few months going barefoot or wearing ripped black converse from the local Salvation Army. Before that, during her stint with the Sisters, Charlie had worn gray slippers every day. Now, the sculpted arches and smooth leather felt alien on her feet.

If it was up to her, she'd be wearing converse and a sweatshirt. Hell, if it was up to her, she wouldn't even be in school. But it wasn't- the choice belonged to her family. Alice and Hal had insisted that she begin school again, now a year behind her old grade. And Betty... well, Betty wouldn't settle for Charlie's new blase attitude.

She said it was a coping mechanism, but a dangerous one. Betty was worried that by Charlie hiding her old self under her new veneer of sarcasm, she might never be able to recover it.

Betty Cooper didn't know that it was long dead.

So, Charlie had made an agreement with her cousin. She wouldn't slip completely off "the deep end of fashion" as Kevin called it. She would make an effort to hold onto Charlotte, the girl that once was. Of course, that didn't mean Charlie would be wearing pastels. Betty knew she had a new style now, she just wanted Charlie to put effort into it.

And there she was. Charlie Harper, long legs encased in ripped blue jeans that tapered off right above her belly button. Charlie Harper, a white Clash t shirt hidden beneath a leather jacket. Charlie Harper, a stranger to those who knew her.

She had already gotten the looks. The woman in the main office, a sweet blonde woman whom Charlotte had known, had looked as if she might've fainted right there. It had taken her a while to realize that Charlie wasn't the same girl she'd been. Her smile had tightened but her eyes had remained sharp, taking in every detail of the last remaining Harper. 

Charlie had heard her call her friend about the "murder girl" before she had even left the office.

And there she was. Charlie Harper, her newly printed schedule crumpling beneath her grip. Charlie Harper, eyes set forward as to ignore the looks she received. Charlie Harper, the murder girl, walking through the halls of the high school that had once meant so much to her.

Now, it was just another prison.

The hallway was familiar. The arched ceilings and linoleum floors reminded her of a simpler time, whence she and Violet had gossiped about teachers and the latest tests. She past a locker decorated with flowers and stuffed animals- Jason Blossom. He was dead now too, the fourth Riverdale citizen to die in the past year. But was he dead? Charlie had seen him that morning, seen him walk away from the river and into the Greendale forest. For someone who had drowned in Sweetwater River, the situation seemed odd.

But Charlie ignored that, because the last thing she needed to do was get caught up in another Riverdale golden boys demise. 

And there she was. Charlie Harper, her eyes lingering on the faded metal of the locker she once had occupied. Charlie Harper, catching a glimpse of an unfamiliar boy with the blond hair that had been carved into her nightmares. Charlie Harper, lost in a memory that seemed as clear as day.