New Girl In Town

Chapter 16

   It was our free period now, and Jughead had called an emergency meeting for the Swords and Serpents, a school "gaming" club that he had developed as a secret safe place for the Serpent attending Riverdale High. Although I wasn't technically a Serpent, I was dating one of the most active members of the gang, so I was always treated like one and was invited to most of their meetings.

Although everyone was still pissed about this morning, we'd had enough time to cool off a little and think about what happened at the assembly. I was seated in the chair of one of the desks, and Sweet Pea was sat on the tabletop of the same one. An ice pack was covering his right hand, and the swelling was beginning to subside on his bruised and bloodied knuckles. He refused to use it when I had initially offered it to him, but he finally took it after ten minutes of me persistently telling him to ice his hand. He's honestly the most stubborn person I've ever had to deal with.

"Alright you guys, this meeting is officially in order" Jughead announced, quieting the dull murmurs of the Serpent's surrounding the room. He leaned against the teacher's desk and surveyed the group in front of him before continuing.

"I've had enough of Principal Weatherbee's shit, and I'm sure you guys have, too" he stated, earning a few calls of agreement.

"We have to do something. Maybe we could schedule a meeting with him and a few of us could talk to him about it" he suggested.

"You've got to be kidding me" Sweet Pea scoffed in response, rolling his eyes as he did so.

"Do you have a better idea?" Jughead questioned.

"Yeah, Jones, I do. We've been trying to talk to that jackass since we've transferred here, and he hasn't done shit" Sweet Pea retorted. A few people nodded, showing that they agreed with what he was saying.

"We have to make a statement," he continued "something to catch everyone's attention. We have to prove that we won't let these prissy, little Northsiders push us out and treat us like trash. The Serpents are here to stay". That got everyone excited; a majority of the Serpents were now out of their chairs, clapping and cheering approvingly.

"So, what exactly do you suggest we do?" Jughead asked, but Sweet Pea only shrugged in response.

"Well, what do we usually do when we're trying to claim our territory?" Toni prompted with a smirk.

"We tag our turf" Fangs replied with an equally mischievous grin. That excited all of us; everyone was buzzing with eagerness at this idea. Everyone except for Jughead.

"Wait, you guys, let's talk about this for a minute. Don't you think that defacing school property will just get us in more trouble? I'm pretty sure that Reggie's little stunt proved that" he argued, referring back to when Reggie had framed us for his wrongdoing.

"Sweet Pea is right. Weatherbee won't listen to us unless we catch his attention. We have to do this" Toni asserted.

"Okay fine" Jughead gave in. "But who's going to do it?" The crowded room instantly became silent, and all heads suddenly turned to me. I felt tiny under their heavy stares and shrunk into Sweet Pea's side. He put his arm around me, comforting me and pulling me closer to him.

"Come on babe, you have to do it" he encouraged, looking down at me with a small smile; his deep brown eyes were so hard to say no to, and I felt powerless under his pleading stare.

"I don't know" I mumbled. "What if I get caught?"

"No Serpent stands alone" Fangs replied swiftly. "We'll be there with you. We won't let you get in trouble for it."

"But I'm not really a Serpent" I reminded him.

"Yes you are. You're one of us" Toni countered softly. "You're a part of this family". I looked around at the Serpents surrounding me. I've only known them for a few months, and despite everyone's warnings, they've embraced me with open arms. They took me in without question, and that's more than most people would even consider doing. There was no way I could say no to such an accepting and loyal group of people.

"Okay" I grinned. "I'm in".

* * *

I was in art now, sitting in my usual seat by Betty. I would occasionally steal a glance at Toni and Sweet Pea from across the room; however, I was mostly focused on the sketches I was working on. I was drawing out the designs for what we were planning on tagging the school with later that night. They were relatively simple designs; I had to make them easy enough to do quickly, but good enough to make a statement.

The more I drew, the more my surroundings began to disappear. The designs were the only things I could see. I was also completely tuned into my music. I was listening to one of my favorite songs, "Can't Help Falling In Love" by Elvis Presley. It was kind of cheesy, I know, but it was my guilty pleasure. My focus was stolen, however, when an earbud was suddenly ripped from one of my ears.

"What the hell?" I exclaimed, turning around to find none other than Sweet Pea standing inches from me.

"What are you listening to?" he questioned casually, taking a seat on the empty stool next to me.

"Elvis" I replied bluntly, returning my attention to the drawings. He grabbed my phone to look at what song was playing and laughed.

"You're such a cheeseball" he scoffed, putting my phone back on the table.

"Hey, don't disrespect the king of rock and roll!" I retorted defensively. He just giggled and jokingly put his hands up in surrender.

"So, have you finished the designs?" he asked softly, leaning in closely and scanning the room to make sure that no one was listening to us.

"Just about" I replied,adding one final detail before sliding my sketchbook over to him. I observed his reaction as he looked over the three, small drawings that I had created. A devilish grin spread across his face as he closed the book and handed it back to me.

"Those are perfect. I can't wait until everyone else sees them" he whispered. And with that, he slipped away and back to the other side of the room. I couldn't stop the sly smirk from sneaking onto my face as I thought about our plans. I had to admit, I was excited.

"What was that all about?" Betty questioned skeptically. I snapped my head up to look at her, worried that she had overheard my conversation with Sweet Pea.

"It's nothing" I replied cooley. She didn't look convinced, but she didn't press for any other answers, so I was thankful for that. I had to admit, though, as excited as I was for that night, I was also incredibly nervous. I mean, sure I've tagged things before, but they were usually abandoned buildings and train cars, not my school. What would we do if the police came? As much as I trusted the Serpents, I had a hard time believing that we wouldn't get in trouble for this. It was practically inevitable, but I knew the consequences when I agreed to it, so there was no turning back. All that was left to do now was wait for nightfall.