The Last Blue Rose// Reggie Mantle (1)

Chapter Twenty-Six

Caia walked into school on Monday completely exhausted. She had tried to go home after the party, but when she saw that her father was home, she decided against it. So instead, she stayed on the street, trying to get some sleep in an alley. It was hard for her to fall asleep for she was on guard, constantly checking her surroundings.

Caia was standing by her locker. She had opened it to get something but was so tired that she had fallen asleep standing up.

"Caia." Caia woke with a start as someone called her name. She shook off her stupor and looked at Cheryl.

She yawned. "What do you want, Cheryl?" She questioned, annoyed. Cheryl had done some really horrible things at Jughead's party and Caia did not appreciate that she was trying to talk to her now.

Cheryl crossed her arms over her chest. "Well first, homecoming is this Friday and I would just like to inform you that I have graciously decided to exempt you from all cheerleading duties." Caia rolled her eyes.

"Well, thanks for that," she replied sarcastically.

Cheryl took a deep breath. "I also wanted to appologise for what happened at the party. You weren't supposed to be mentioned." For the first time, Cheryl looked genuinely sorry. Caia struggled on whether or not to accept the appology.

She bit the inside of her cheek. "Cheryl, regardless of what happened to me, you shouldn't have done any of that. No offense, Cheryl, but it wasn't very nice at all."

Cheryl swallowed hard. She knew what Caia was saying was true. "I know," she started. "It was horrible of me."

*

Caia slept through what seemed like the whole first half of the day. She shuffled to lunch, still half asleep. She tripped over her own feet and almost crashed straight into Jughead. He saw her falling and caught her before she completely ate it.

"Thanks, Jug," she mumbled.

Jughead stood Caia up and made sure she had her balance. He cocked his eyebrows at her disheveled appearance. "Are you okay, Caia?"

Caia rubbed her eyes. "Yeah, just tired," she explained. "It's hard to sleep on the streets," she added under her breath.

Jughead caught the confession. He widened his eyes. "What did you just say?" He questioned.

Caia stayed silent, wildly searching for an excuse to what she just said. She was about ready to bolt out of the hallway when she was saved by a certain blonde haired girl. "Hey guys," she greeted with a smile. Her smile faded as she observed the looks on her two friends' faces. "What's going on?"

Jughead opened his mouth to respond, but Caia cut him off. "Nothing," she replied. "Let's go get lunch, yeah?" Betty nodded and the trio started down the hallway.

Caia exhaled. That was a close call. Jughead wasn't supposed to know anything, and the fact that he almost told Betty was terrifying. She knew if her friends knew about her dad, they would try to report him, or something. However bad of a father he was, Caia still held a love for him. She probably shouldn't havr, but there was nothing she could do about it.

Caia sat next to Betty at the lunch table, with Jughead on the other side of Betty. She purposely sat in this spot so she could avoid any confrontation from the Jones boy.

Veronica, Archie, and Kevin showed up only a moment after Caia's group did. Betty immediately started speaking. "Are you guys excited for homecoming?" Her bright smile and happy eyes showed that Betty was definitely excited.

Veronica nodded. "Of course I am! I mean, I think everyone is." Caia scoffed internally.

"Actually, Cheryl informed me this morning that I will not be a part of the Vixens dance," Caia explained.