Detention - bughead story

Dates and Debates

Betty sat in the newsroom, lost in thought. She had been given the "party-planning" role, as she was always given, to plan the sophomore year formal. She had been zoned out in her surprisingly creative mood, but was completely stuck for some reason. She had listed all of the supplies, all of the decorations, the music, the theme, until she realised... she probably wouldn't even be going.

Jughead wasn't one for parties, especially if it concerned the whole school. Not that she blamed him though. Everyone isolated him, and he was always treated as an outcast, so it was common sense that he wouldn't ask her to the formal. She had wanted to go. It was her party after all, she had planned the whole thing, and she wanted to know how it would all unravel, and if people would enjoy the party she had planned. It was just a shame that she couldn't go. She didn't mind doing something else that night with Jughead, he was her boyfriend, and she was glad to be with him, anyway, and if she was going to be with him, she needed to accept some consequences, and she needed to accept his decisions. She then thought, why am I planning a party that I won't even be going to?

She sat, staring at the wall, in which her "detective board" was hung, as she repeatedly tapped her pen off the table, lost in thought.

A warm hand gently touched her shoulder, freeing her from her thoughts and bringing her back to reality.

"There you are, I've been looking for you"

She hadn't even heard the door open, and she turned around in her chair to be met with the boy she had just been thinking about.

"Oh, hey." She said, still seeming distracted.
"W-what are you doing here?" She internally shook herself out of her deep thought, urging to come back to the present.

"Well, just came to see my favourite girl." Jughead hoisted himself onto the desk Betty was at and smiled at her. She managed one back at him, but still couldn't meet his gaze.

"Something wrong?" He spoke.

"No, Jug. I'm fine." She smiled at him, willing it to be a bit believable. He still looked quizzical, but moved on anyway.

"So. How's the party planning going?" He asked.

"It's... going good." She said. "I'm done I think" she added before looking back down at all of her carefully hand written notes and lists, sprawled across the small table.

"Great." He nodded his head before lifting one of the papers, reading it aloud.

"Ooh, starry night. I like it." He stated the theme.

"Yeah, I like the mystery behind it all, you know? Starry night, kind of magical. Like anything can happen. It's just exciting." Betty's voice got quieter as she realised that she ironically picked her favourite theme to a dance she wasn't even attending.

She looked sad, or let down, maybe even disappointed. She wasn't herself, Jughead knew that for sure. Betty was usually quirky and jumpy. All full of smiles and in great moods.

"Betts" he began, to grab her attention, as the silence continued, her zoning out again. She snapped her head around to him, raising her eyebrows in response.

"Look, I know there's something on your mind. There's also no point lying about it, because I know when you're lying" he seemed serious but Betty started to shake her head, about to protest when he spoke again. He placed his hand on her cheek, stroking it.
"You trust me, right?" He was questioning her, and no matter how much she could lie to him, she knew he wouldn't stop until she told him, the determination in his eyes said enough.
Betty nodded,

"Yes." She paused.

"Yes of course I do, Jughead. And you have to trust me when I tell you that everything is fine, okay?" She couldn't tell him, because she knew what he would do. Again, he'd go out of his comfort zone, and take Betty to the formal, and although there's nothing more she wanted, she wouldn't allow him to do that for her. She wanted him to want to be there.