Speak To Me

The Simplest Thing

*Present Day*

Alice stood in the kitchen after just hanging up the phone. She felt a burning in her nose as tears wanted to fill her eyes, but she frustratedly shook her head and turned to head back into the living room. "I just got off the phone with FP." She spoke upon approaching the sofa. "He's on his way."

"Cool." Chic folded his hands in front of him as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

"I'm, uh....I'm thinking about setting up a little plate of snacks or something." The anxious mother told them. Her nerves were all over the place for several reasons, the main being that she wasn't sure how she'd feel seeing FP so soon after he blew up at the Register. Doing something, like fixing snacks or walking around the house would get her mind off of it....even if it were just slightly. "Betty, could you keep an eye out for when FP gets here?"

Elizabeth glared up at her mother, but graciously answered anyway. "Sure thing, Mom." She hid the annoyance in her tone so as not to seem so suspicious to Chic.

"And come get me when he does, please."

"Mhm." Betty squinted before Alice raised an eyebrow down at her and headed back to the kitchen.

Alice stood with the refrigerator door open, staring into it for some time before she finally reached in to grab the two bricks of cheese and the green olives in the door. She went over to the pantry to take out the crackers inside and set them down on the island in the center of the kitchen. After grabbing a large platter, she sighed, leaning her hands against the counter before attempting to actually put some effort into her task. She tried to listen in on the conversation between Chic and Betty in the other room as she grabbed the cheese knife from one of the drawers.

"So, did you hear anything from the auto repair shop, yet?" Betty asked as she played with a strand of her hair.

"Not yet. He said he would call me by tomorrow, so I might find out soon." Chic responded, leaning further back onto the couch. "Hey, maybe if you're looking for a little job after school you could come work with me." He suggested.

"That'd be cool. Lord knows I could use some of my own money. Maybe get a little vacation away from Riverdale for awhile."

"Ha! Yeah." He replied, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. Betty's eyes widened and she looked over her shoulder into the kitchen to see if Alice was looking. Chic inhaled, blowing out a smoke ring before turning to see the look of shock on his little sister's face. Then he whispered. "You wanna try?" Betty bit her lower lip, knowing Alice would maim her if she ever found out. She looked back into the kitchen once more before shrugging a shoulder and leaning over to take the cigarette from him. She stared down at it for a moment, battling herself before thinking 'screw it' and she placed it in her mouth, taking a small puff. She let out a few small, as quiet as possible, coughs before handing it back to him while her eyes watered. Chic giggled to himself as he took it back and placed it in his mouth again. "So...your mom was really a Southside Serpent?" He finally asked with a grin. "What was that like?" He wondered.

"I don't know. I only just found out myself." Elizabeth coughed once more before clearing her throat and finally getting ahold of herself again. She watched him take a few more puffs of the cigarette before whispering to him. "You better put that out before Alice comes back in here. She'll throw a fit."

Chic tried his best not to laugh, realizing just how much he was beginning to like Betty. "You just called your mom by her first name." He chuckled.

"Go!" Betty demanded, slapping him on the arm before she raised her voice to normal volume again. "You remember where the bathroom is, right?"

"Yeah, back in the hall by the kitchen." Chic said as he stood, picking up on her fake helpful tone to fool Alice in the other room.

"Yeah." Betty stood as well and he rushed passed the kitchen, heading to the bathroom to flush the cigarette down the toilet.

Just when Betty stood, she looked out the window and saw FP's truck pulling into the driveway. She rolled her eyes and went into the kitchen to let her mother know. "Mom. FP's here." She interrupted her mother placing one last piece of cheese perfectly on the platter.

"Oh. Thank you." Alice picked up the platter, turning around ad handing it to her daughter. "Take this out and set it on the coffee table in the living room, please. I need to go out and talk to him before he comes in." Betty sighed, taking the platter from her and doing as she said while she left the house.

When Alice stepped out onto the porch, she heard FP's truck shutting off and she jogged down the stairs to meet him when he got out. She folded her arms across her chest as she felt a chill in the air. "Alice." He said, closing the door.

"FP, I need to talk to you."

"Well, I don't need to talk to you. I just wanna meet my son." He tried to head toward the house, but she put her hand on his chest, stopping him. He looked down at her hand, realizing it was the simplest thing, but it was a thing she used to do all the time when they were teens and he actually missed it. Alice let her hand fall to her side when she noticed him staring at it. "What?" He asked, not too happily.

"I don't want you to overwhelm him in there, okay? This is the first time you're meeting so don't bring up the Serpents or the fact that you were in prison for covering up a murder. None of that. Alright? And don't tell him what happened between us."

"What if he asks?"

"I don't know. Change the subject, something. Just...try not to reveal too much on the first day."

"Alice, something tells me that's not what you came all the way out here to tell me." He placed his hands in his jeans pockets and glared down at her, waiting for her to answer.

She opened her mouth, about to tell him about Hal's plan to divorce, but nothing came out for a moment and she changed her mind. "No." She shook her head. "That's it."

They gazed at each other for a moment before FP scoffed and walked passed her, heading up to the porch.