"Sheriff, what are you talking about? You've made a mistake this can't be serious!" Betty was in disbelief and utter shock as she sat in the police station questioning room, still handcuffed and opposite the Sheriff.
"And are these really necessary?" Betty lifted her handcuffs off the table in gesture.
"Look, Betty, I didn't want to have to do this. I mean, I didn't believe it at first. You're Kevin's friend, I know that you're a good girl and you wouldn't do something like this," the sheriff started.
"Exactly, and you know what part you're missing out on, Sheriff?" Betty asked sweetly.
The Sheriff raised his eyebrow in response.
"The part where, HE'S MY BOYFRIEND!" Betty shouted, completely baffled at this whole situation. "So riddle me that, Sheriff, why would I try to kill the one person I love more than anything, huh?"
The Sheriff looked at her in pity, but didn't respond. He knew she was confused and sleep deprived. She was going insane, and this wasn't making things better for her.
"See! It sounds crazy when you say it, right?" Betty said slamming her cuffed hands off the table.
"Betty, you're forgetting I didn't accuse you of this," Sheriff Keller spoke very softly.
"Oh yes. Of course not. But I don't even need to guess who did," Betty started, "and you know, why do you even believe him, Sheriff Keller?! Do you really believe that I did this? I mean, it's crazy! You believe Chic over me? He murdered my sister!"
"Betty, I didn't believe him at first. But as Sheriff, all accusations have to go under investigation, to see if they're true or false, he filed an attempted murder report. And, as we investigated further and further, Betty, everything was explained. I mean, your fingerprints were everywhere. All over Jughead's blood. Chic's wasn't traced anywhere at all. And then, you brought him to the hospital, maybe to cover up your tracks? Make it look like someone else did it?" The sheriff explained.
Betty laughed in shock. "What? W-What?! Sheriff, Chic did this! He told me! Sheriff, my fingerprints are everywhere because I was the one who escaped him and brought him to the hospital! Chic set me up! He got other people to do it for him, don't you see? What you're saying... is completely crazy! Are you hearing yourself?" Betty shouted.
"Well, Betty, after that, this topped it off. Chic told us to check through your phone documents, and we found this picture on it." The sheriff took a piece of paper from the drawer and slid it over to Betty. Betty's heart almost stopped.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
It was that picture that Chic sent her! He had completely pinned this whole thing on her! That was his revenge! As if the actual near death of Jughead wasn't enough. Betty could barely swallow.
"Betty? Is this picture familiar?" Sheriff Keller asked her.
Betty couldn't even speak as she looked at the picture, she couldn't bare to see him like that. The last time she saw it she had a panic attack.
Betty stood up from the chair and turned away. "Stop! Stop it! Just get it away from me, stop! Please! Please make it go away! It hurts!" Betty was crying as she turned away, heart wracking sobs and the sheriff quickly removed the picture from the desk and urged Betty to sit back down and handed her a glass of water.
"Listen, Betty I know this is hard for you. But in the law, and in order to close this case, I have to question you. You are down as a legal suspect," the sheriff told her.
Betty nodded as the tears streamed down her face.
"Now, Betty I want you to tell me your side of the story."
Betty told him everything, from when Jughead and her rushed to her house after Pop's to be met by Chic, when he promised revenge. When she told Jughead everything. When he came by her house twice a day for a week to check on them. Then on to the morning where Betty called him and he wouldn't answer. The sketchy text messages. The picture. Where she saw the picture from. The panic attack. Chic coming back again, saying he would kill him. Betty hunting to find him. Finding him. Struggling but in the end escaping him and bringing him to the hospital. Waiting hours and hours in the waiting room. The anticipation. The worry. The nurse telling her he wouldn't make it. The guilt. The crying on the floor for hours. The courage to finally go and see him. The crying again. The talking to him. The believing in him. The plead for him to wake up. To leaving the hospital room. To be met by the police cuffing her. To being accused of attempted murder. To right here, right now.
The Sheriff took down Betty's whole story. "Betty, you said, you saw that picture because Chic sent it to you through Jughead's phone. Do you have your phone with you to show me?"
Betty nodded and took out her phone, her hands being free from the handcuffs that dug into her skin.
She showed the sheriff her messages. And he nodded. Scanning her phone through a machine and printing out the text documents.
"Okay, Betty, the questionings over but I'm gonna need you to—" the Sheriff was cut off by Betty who stood up suddenly.
"Hospital," she said, "I need to get to the hospital. Jug, he's gonna wake up, I need to be there when he wakes up. He needs me."
Sheriff Keller put a hand on Betty's shoulder.
"Betty. You are still a suspect of attempted murder. We're gonna need you to stay here, in a cell until this case is closed."
"What? But Jughead," Betty started pointing to the door.
"Betty, we will let you know if and when Jughead wakes up. Straight away. As soon as he's well enough to discharge from the hospital, he will be brought straight here for questioning. We need to ask him who did this to him. To get the truth. And until after that, you can't see him. I'm sorry."
Betty almost started crying but held it in. She was led by the Sheriff out of the questioning room to be met by Alice who was waiting in the hallway. She stood up and rushed over to Betty when she saw her emerge.
"Right, come on, Elizabeth, let's go, we need to get back to the hospital," Alice said, starting to leave but Sheriff Keller stopped her.
"Betty is still a suspect, Mrs Cooper. We'll need to keep her here, until Jughead Jones has finished questioning."
Alice looked from Sheriff Keller to her broken daughter. Betty looked absolutely heartbroken and it broke Alice's heart.
"But... but sheriff. They're in love. She needs to see him. He needs to see her."
"I'm afraid, they can see each other, after Jughead Jones has finished questioning," the sheriff said, leading Betty down the hall and into a cell, locking it behind her.
"I'll let you know, about Jughead, Betty," the sheriff said, and then walked away.
Betty held it together. But as soon as he left, she backed up to the wall and slid down, breaking down into tears. Her back slid down until she was sitting on the cold, hard floor as she sobbed into her knees. How she wished Jughead was here right now.
"Please wake up, Jug," Betty whispered into the nothingness,
