Riverdale Preferences

#34 You Tell Him You Love Him

Archie: This wasn't an awkward situation but you definitely felt that way. You had been dating Archie for two months now, but had only been official for one, and you had fallen hard. You loved him and you honestly believed he felt the same. The problem was you were both too frightened to be the first to say it. This was obvious after last night's conversation. You had been chatting online and Archie said 'you know, if you loved me, you don't have to be afraid to say it first just because you're the girl.' It had turned into this huge thing where both of you were trying to incept the other into saying it first. Neither of you caved and now you were at his house, feeling awkward and silly. "It's ready," Archie says, pulling the pizza he had just made out of the oven. You walk over to him and give him a big hug. When you pull away you look right at him and lose all sense of self. You go for it. "Archie, I love you." He looks at you for a moment, smiles, and pulls you in for another hug. "I love you, too," he whispers in your ear.

Jughead: "How's the fresh air treating you?" Jughead asks, sitting down next to you on the back deck. You were at a party and had drunk too much too quickly. You didn't want Jughead here. You didn't want to word vomit. You didn't want to tell him you were in love with him. Telling someone you love them isn't a big deal, but it is when you aren't even dating them. Jughead was your best friend and you had been in love with him for three years. You had thought maybe he felt the same, but he had a girlfriend. They recently broke up, giving you hope that maybe he would come after you. That had yet to happen. So you had drank too much and now he was there and all you wanted to do was kiss him. Instead, you started crying. "What's wrong?" Jughead asks, concerned. "I can't tell you," you say. "It will ruin everything." He rubs your back. "Nothing you can say can ruin our friendship," he says. Friendship. He had to say friendship. "I'm in love with you," you blurt out, turning to look directly at Jughead. "I've loved you for three years and never told you." Jughead pauses to process this, but you can't read him. Finally, he stands. "I should check on the host," he says, turning to go back inside. He leaves you to your tears.

Kevin: You were never one to rush into anything, but Kevin took you by surprise. Within months of meeting you two were practically living together. You knew you loved him but, as was your custom, you didn't want to tell him until it seemed appropriate. You just didn't know when that would be exactly. Kevin had just returned from a business trip and you'd gone out to dinner to celebrate. It was a fancy restaurant and you'd both gotten dressed up for the occasion. Kevin kept looking at you and smiling all night, telling you how beautiful you looked and how much he missed you while he was gone. It was touching. Something clicked in your head. Why did it matter that you waited for the opportune moment to tell him how you felt? There might never be a perfect moment to tell him, but this was pretty close. Reaching across the table, you take his hand in yours. "Kevin," you begin, but he interrupts you. "I love you." It takes you a minute to process what had just happened. It would seem Kevin beat you to it. You briefly consider waiting for another time before it occurs to you how stupid that would be. "I love you, Kevin," you say. He smiles.

Reggie: "Which ones?" Reggie asks, snickering. You were at the pharmacy in the condom aisle. You had decided earlier that it would be funny to troll people by buying the most ridiculous condoms you could find. It was always uncomfortable to be seen buying them, you couldn't imagine what it would be like selling them. "What about these ones?" you say, pointing at some flavored ones. "No, that's too normal!" says Reggie. He was super excited about the whole thing. It was adorable. "These," you say, picking a package off the shelf. They had three different kinds in them: his, hers and mutual AND they were glow in the dark. "You are a genius!" Reggie says, kissing you on the forehead. He steps away and looks at you. "I love you," he says quietly. You smile. You can feel your face turning red. "I love you, too."