Love Him Like He's Yours [FPJones] [JugheadJones] [O.F.C]

2003

The first time Nerys Miller had ever been kissed, she had just turned seventeen years old.

On the night before her birthday, Nerys found herself on yet another terrible date with yet another handsy guy from her school.

Her date couldn't seem to understand why Nerys wasn't having the time of her life, smoking up together in his rusty car while he pawed aggressively at her every curve.

Not long after, Nerys would stumble home with bloodshot eyes and a woozy head, only to collide directly with a drunken FP's chest upon opening their front door.

Her eyes narrowed at the sight of him openly swinging his half empty bottle around.
However, as was usual for this time of night, Gladys was already out cold from taking her sleep aid, and Jughead was curled up in "Ann Neri's" bed, having fallen asleep while waiting for her return.

FP would look her over, taking in her disheveled hair and clothes, and tensed involuntarily when an uncomfortable twisting took hold of his chest.

"What happened to you? Where ya been tonight?"

A disheartened Nerys hadn't realized the scowl had claimed her face, until a single warm tear ran it's way down her cheek.

She never could hide from FP.

Even a drunken shell of him.
Even with their once inseparable, tight-knit friendship having taken a recent turn for the awkward and distant.

She found that she couldn't help but spill her guts to him.

"Apparently, I'm just too fucked up to seriously date.
No one wants the weirdo as their girlfriend."

Her voice had taken on a hard edge that she usually reserved for handling troublemakers when on Serpent business runs.

FP couldn't bring himself to look at her. He could feel the frustration radiating off of her and it gave him all kinds of uncomfortable flashbacks from his own teen years.

But then FP realized, during his own awkward, and mostly alone teen years, he had made a good friend out of a sweet kid who had listened to him after every disappointment and stuck by his side through it all.

He figured the very least he could do now, was try to return the favour if she was in a similar spot.

He reached out for her arms and clumsily pulled them both down onto the worn sofa.

"Come on now, you might've struck out tonight but you're still young. You've got plenty of time to find someone better.
So one date was a bust, there'll be others. You'll see."

FP managed to churn the words out while still avoiding her dark eyes.
Nerys sniffled and her shaking hands wiped at her face.

"No FP. You don't get it. No one wants me.
I'm a loser.
A complete loner.
Part of me loves that, you know. Prefers it even.
But other parts of me don't.
Whenever I do reach out and try to relate to everyone else, it just falls flat!"

His eyes went wide as the girl openly cried in front of him now.

This...was new.

In all the years they had known one another, in all the situations he had seen her pick herself up and walk away from, without so much as a second glance, FP had never actually seen Nerys this upset before.

The tightness in his chest twisted some more.
FP found himself speechless.

His glazed-over eyes tried to focus in on her but couldn't.
Everything around him, including his distraught young friend, seemed so faded and blurry.