The Last Blue Rose// Reggie Mantle (1)

Chapter Twenty-One

Caia walked into the dimly lit bar with only two things on her mind. Her father and a glass of whiskey.

She made her way through the smoky haze and crowds of people to seat herself at the bar. She plopped down on the well worn leather and groaned. She needed a distraction. Now.

"Hogeye, get me a whiskey. Straight up." The bartender nodded his head and grabbed the bottle from the back. Caia watched intently as he poured the liquid into the glass. He slid the cup across the counter and Caia caught it with ease. She downed it in one sip and slammed the cup down on the table. "Hit me again." He poured her another glass, this time filling it fuller.

A few drinks later found Caia with her head on the counter. Her hand was wrapped around her drink.

She had tried to drown her problems in the alcohol, probably because that's all she knew from her father. However, although it may have worked for him, it didn't seem to be doing the same thing for the girl.

Outside the bar, a group of Riverdale's jocks gathered. Kevin Keller's boyfriend Joaquin, was their guide. He turned toward the three other boys.

"Play it cool, just like we said," Joaquin advised. "Keep eye contact to a minimum." He looked around the group to make sure everyone heard what he said.

Archie turned to Moose. "Hey Moose, if you see the guys who jumped you, we leave. And we call Kevin's dad." He motioned to Kevin.

Moose nodded. "Should we have told Caia we're doing this?" He questioned.

Archie shook his head. "No. If we did, I know she'd insist on coming along." Archie looked up at the sign on the bar. "And there is no way in hell I would let Caia Sinclair into a place called the Whyte Wyrm."

Joaquin whipped his eyes to Archie. "Did you say Sinclair?"

Archie nodded. "Yeah. Why?"

Joaquin gulped. He knew who Caia was now, more specifically, who her father was. If she hadn't told her friends who she was, then he wasn't going to throw her under the bus. "No reason. Come on, let's go," he commanded, turning to enter the bar. He attempted to change the subject. Surprisingly, it worked.

When the red haired Archie Andrews walked through the door of a bar and spotted the curly hair of Caia Sinclair, you could say he was more than surprised. Caia had always been the classy chic type of girl. Definitely not the type to hang around on the Southside, especially at a bar.

He slapped Moose's chest with the back of his arm. He pointed towards the girl he thought he saw. "Dude, is that-"

Moore's eyes got wide. "Oh my god." He breathed.

Without thinking, Archie made his way over to Caia's seat. The girl was drawing circles on the counter with her finger. He tapped on her shoulder and she slowly lifted her head.

She shifted her gaze towards his. "Archie?" She asked, clearly confused. She was puzzled at why the Andrews boy was at the Whyte Whyrm. "What are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" Archie exclaimed. "I think the real question is what are you doing here?" Caia didn't answer. She scanned over the faces that had appeared. Moose, Kevin, and Kevin's boyfriend, Joaquin. She had known who Joaquin was, but not that he often fraternized with northsiders.

Archie was getting frustrated at the girl's silence. He wanted to know what was going on, and he wanted to know now. "Answer the damn question, Caia!"

Caia, who's bravery had been spiked by the alcohol, replied snarkily. "I don't have to tell you a damn thing, Andrews."

Archie was about to reply but his attention was caught by Moose. He was staring at someone. "Is that one of them?" Archie asked, referring to the man in the black jacket.