Warnings: spoilers for season 2, swearing, mention of death
Word Count:1,123
Characters:jughead jones, archie andrews, fred andrews, veronica lodge, betty cooper, mary andrews, pop tate
"Dad's been shot."
As soon as those three words were mentioned by your brother, your phone was immediately hung up, thrown in a backpack along with some other things; some cash, your phone charger, a water bottle, your purse and a pocket knife (you can never be too sure).
Slipping on your attire that you wear for duties and meetings; black ripped jeans, a black t-shirt, your dad's flannel and your South Side Serpents jacket over top. It was especially chilly, so you threw on a pair of thick socks and your black Doc Martins. You slung your backpack over your shoulder, grabbed your car keys and headed out the door.
-
It was about a 10 minute drive from your trailer to the Riverdale hospital, and the whole time your phone was going off every 30 seconds with Archie asking where you were or how long you were gonna be. Parking your black Mitsubishi Lancer in the car park, you quickly got out the car, shut the door and made your way into the hospital.
The sight of a nurse mopping up blood made you a little bit nauseous, but you stomached it, kept your back straight and head high as you walked to the waiting room. The first thing you noticed was that there was a lot of teenagers about your age in the room, but a familiar redhead caught your eye.
Archie.
He was wearing his letterman jacket, which was covered in blood and you assumed it was your dads. Opening your mouth to call out to him, your brothers best friend, Jughead, had already beat you to it. Placing his hand on Archie's shoulder and motioning to you, your *older* twin brother was already walking towards you and wrapping his arms around you, silently crying into your same coloured, red hair.
"Hey, it's alright," you whispered into his ear, holding him tighter as his hand slipped under your serpent jacket and balled the flannel in his fist. "Come on, Arch. I need you to tell me what happened." You pulled away slightly, taking your brothers face in your hands and forcing him to look at you. "Or we can talk about it later. Just, please, calm down."
Archie nodded as he let out a deep breath, closing his eyes and letting go of you. You let your hands drop at your sides as Archie went back and sat down next to Jughead and the infamous Veronica Lodge. Letting out a sigh, Jughead stood up and came to greet you.
"Hey there, Strawberry Shortcake," Jughead laughed a little, making you smile. "How's life been in the fast lane?" He raised an eyebrow as he embraced you. Looking over his shoulder, Betty Cooper was watching him with a raised eyebrow, but you ignored it and pulled away from the hug.
"It's been good," you smiled, looking into the eyes of the boy that was at your side all the time when you were younger. "Hey, I have to grab some things out my car. Mind letting Archie know?" You let your hand rest on Jughead's bicep and he nodded, turning around to go back to Archie. Letting out a breath as you turned on your heel, you walked back down the hallway to retrieve an item from your car.
While you were gone, you became the gossip of the hospitals waiting room.
"Did you know she was a Serpent, Archie?" Betty asked as she watched you exit the hospital, the doors shutting behind you.
Archie nodded his head, keeping his eyes on his bloody converse. Veronica and Betty looked at each other with wide eyes.
"Why didn't you tell us that your sister was, first of all, a Cheryl Blossom lookalike, and also, a part of the Southside Serpents?" Veronica crossed her arms over her chest as she raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend.
"Why does it matter? She's my sister and she only left so she could protect dad and I after the whole ordeal with Jason Blossom." Archie looked at Jughead, silently begging for help.
"Well she obviously didn't do a very good job at keeping you both safe did she?" Veronica scoffed and Jughead looked at Veronica with a piercing stare.
"Why don't you just back off from (Y/N), alright? Fred has been shot and you're both arguing over why (Y/N) is wearing a Serpent jacket. You're both being pathetic," looking at Betty, Jughead shook his head and scoffed. "I can tell you're thinking the exact same as Veronica, Betty. So don't even try to defend yourself." Jughead stood up, patting Archie's back as he walked down the hallway and out the doors, looking for your familiar, fiery hair.
Seeing you rummaging through the boot (trunk) of your car, he walked over to stand next to you, but immediately noticed the tears streaming down your red cheeks. "Hey, are you alright?" Jughead held out his arms and you wrapped yours around his waist, starting to sob into his chest. "Shh, it's alright," he hummed softly, rocking back and forth gently. "What's going on, (Y/N)?"
"I said I'd protect them," you cried, trying to steady your breathing, but failing. "That's why I left, Jughead. I was going to protect them both from everything. I was receiving threats from someone and I just wanted to protect them, but I didn't."
Jughead took a deep breath, not knowing what words to form together to calm you down, so he just stood there, holding you close.
-
After calming down and having a chat with Jughead, you had gone back inside, eyes a little puffy but cheeks no longer red. You had been lead to your fathers room by Archie, and here you were, sat on a plastic chair while Archie went home with Veronica so he could change.
Watching your dad's chest rise and fall, you draped your Serpent jacket over your lap and traced the green embroidery on the back. Jughead had gone back to FP's trailer so he could pick up his laptop and a few other pieces.
So you were here, watching your dad breath with the help from a machine.
Standing up and placing your jacket on the chair, you stood next to his bed and let your fingers trace his knuckles. "I'm so sorry, daddy," you whispered softly, biting your lip. Looking up as you heard the door open, you saw Jughead standing there, a bag crossed over his body and a smile on his lips.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" Jughead asked as he closed the door behind him, placing his bag on a plastic chair. Almost ready to start crying again, you sat down and bit your lip.
"I just want my dad back..."
