heartbeats ; bughead

33

Betty

It was January 1st. I woke up to the birds outside, the wind whistling in a pleasant way, and to the smell of pancakes. And bacon. And everything good in this world. I opened my eyes slowly, and what I saw wasn't the pleasant pastel pink of my bed, and the sweet Polaroid photos on the wall.

It was a ceiling made of wood, and a pure, white as snow bed. I was confused for a second, but then it dawned upon me. I slept at Jughead's place. Oh shit. Did I--

I checked under the covers. I was in Jughead's shirt. Oh crap. 

I wasn't ready for that yet. I flipped over to talk to Jug, but he wasn't there. He must have been making something. I threw off the covers, and rushed into the kitchen, feeling slightly exposed. The air slapped against my feet, and I shivered a little.

"Jug, you really need air conditioning. Really." I exclaimed, and he turned around, smiling.

"Hey, Betty." I smiled, happy to see his face instead of my dad's. He wrapped his arms around my waist, and kissed me softly. Once again, my stomach did flips and turns and twists. I pulled away, and I cautiously asked him the question burning in my mind.

"Hey, uh, I'm in your clothes. Did we..." He flinched, and I feared the worst.

"No. No. Definitely no. I...I didn't look, I swear, but I changed your clothes. They're on the shelf near the door. I'm sorry, I didn't--" I squeezed his hands.

"Hey, it's okay. I-I know you wouldn't do that. But I gotta get home. I'll see you later, Jug. Bye." I started to leave, when he made a little kid whine.

"But waittttt, you forgot something." I rolled my eyes, but laughed a little at how happy he made me.

"What, Forsythe Pendleton the Third?" He smiled mischievously, and leaned into me, cupping his hands around my face.

"This," He kissed me, and it wasn't like before, a soft, sweet kiss. This one was deep, passionate, the right amount of romantic and needy. I kissed back, feeling a surge of energy. The kiss grew into a symphony, and his hands ran down my back, lifting up my shirt a little, until they fell onto the small of my back.

I had to steady myself against his strength, resting my hands on his chest.

I let out a small giggle, and fell onto the couch, excited to feel him on me. But not in that way. I was just happier than everything else around me. We were our own little bubble of happiness, though small, in a world of hate.

He smiled too, and we were absorbed in each other. I never wanted it to end. His hands ran up and down my back , and his hands, again lifting up my shirt my little, rested on my skin, exposed a little at the waist.

I felt a jolt of electricity, a jolt of something. But I knew it was time to go. I pulled away, but felt his breath on me. "I gotta go, Jug." He made a bigger pouty face, and I laughed.

"Bye, Jug." And with that, I went out the door.

Jughead

I thought Betty wouldn't come home after New Year's. But what I didn't realize is that she wanted this as much as I did. We were on the same page. We were serious about this. So she came back. Every day. 

We talked about everything that happened, shared a bunch of kisses, and fell asleep snuggled next to each other. Sometimes. I wonder how her mom felt about all this.

She didn't exactly like me. She knew my secret. I remember that day at the Coopers, when I ran out the door, embarrassed, ashamed. I wouldn't wanna get on her bad side. 

Now, before Betty, I'd never been good with people. I was a real weirdo. But with her, all that went away. I felt as if I could tell her anything, and she would never judge.

 For the next month or two, she would come every day, and share everything about herself.

My eyes would only focus on her. They would never avert to some other distraction. Something just radiated off of her that made me feel whole again. 

Was it the way her lips felt on mine, soft but sure? Was it the way that her hands fitted on my chest? Was it her? 

I didn't know. But whatever it was, it captured me. I couldn't get enough of her. Even though I told her everything, she didn't judge me. She would put a reassuring arm around me, and she would let me hold her.

Betty Cooper was everything right in this world. Everything right. One day, she came over with a smile on her face, and she attacked me, hugging me, and saying something like, "JUGJUGJUGJUG!" I laughed, and said, "What happened to you?" She smiled.

"I'm just happy. To be here. And I--" I kissed her deeply, and she kissed back, but pulled away, laughing.

"Stop! Oh my god. Not now. What I wanted to tell you was that my family wants you home. For dinner. Please come. Not today. Like, on Saturday. Please?" I sighed.

Just when I was planning on avoiding the Coopers all together, here they were, inviting me home. Probably to grill me and interview me about everything that happened in Riverdale.

They did that to my dad. They were one of the reasons why he got arrested. I was a reason too, but I would never tell anyone that. Not even Betty. Betty clearly saw my concern, because she put a hand on my shoulder for support.

"Hey, it's okay if you don't wanna do it. It's just...I wanna tell them sometime that we're actually serious about each other. That we're not just...silently feeling something for each other. Hey, let's go to Pop's--"

"Betty, what if they hate me? What's gonna happen then? To us? They're probably gonna burn me on the stake and eat my innards or something else equally Satanic." She laughed softly, went on tiptoe, and kissed my cheek.

"I promise you, that won't happen. I'm not gonna stop being with you even if they don't like it. I told you, you mean more to me than just a physical thing. And if they burn you, they're burning me too. And we'll be eaten together. Okay?" I laughed along with her, and kissed her nose.

"Yeah. That's a little better. Let's go to Pop's." I held her hand for support, and we walked to the door, but she brushed against something which made her stop.

I craned my neck to see if it was rifle or something, but it was a jacket. A Riverdale High jacket. Betty immediately recognized it from the blue and yellow, and she turned to me, narrowing her eyes.

I gulped, fearing the worst. Then she said, "You play football?" I widened my eyes, out of relief and whim. 

"No, ew. I told you. I'm not that kind of person. Archie left his jacket at my house. I have to return it to...him." I stood nervously, as she looked at me, staring deeper into me. I was reminded of Polly all over again at the store.

How her eyes burned into me, threatening to explode. But the only difference between her and Betty was that Polly knew my secret. Betty didn't. But she started smiling, to my relief.

"Did Archie spend the night at your house? And should I be jealous?" I mimicked her, and she laughed.

"Yep. Very. His abs and masculine charm set me on fire." She giggled, pecking my lips, and ran out the door. 

I followed her, breathing a sigh of relief. But I knew that lies couldn't  be hidden for long. She would figure out. But until then, I was in the safe zone.

I wasn't dead just yet. 

heyyy, i updATED! i'm really sorry for spending so much time writing this, but at least betty and jughead are finally together. y'all must be breathing a sigh of happiness inside. but can't say the same about alexis and carter in the last box. something bad just happened in that book! check it out, i'm sure you guys will love it! anyways, imma not advertise anymore, and also, enjoy the chapter. i know it was kinda a fluff, but ~more~ will be coming, and it won't be cutesy. i promise that! nyehehe. almost done with the story, though. i love you guys, and a thank you note will be at the end. look out for more, and stay happy! ly <3

~mo