sweetener • riverdale [2]

01.

Our story continues. The Mayor's Jubilee was supposed to change everything. Be a new start. But when we woke up the next morning, Riverdale was still, at its heart, a haunted town.

Thorn Sanders spends the morning after the jubilee at her father's garage. When her friends left Pop's last night in their couples, Thorn stayed behind and sat in the booth for a while longer. She was alone, and she realised she was the outsider in their group now. Thorn's not part of the core-four, and so she need to reevaluate where her priorities lie. And that starts at Sander's garage.

It's one of her favourite places in the world. At least, it is in her world. It was her great-grandfather's business and it was passed down until it is now her dad's. She remembers spending most of her childhood there with her granddad and then her dad. Joel Sanders was always working after he split with her mother, and it was all to provide a house of his own for them.

Joel has done so much for her, and Thorn wants to start to unmake herself by spending time with her favourite guy. The only one that has always loved her from the day she came into the world.

Thorn takes cups of coffees from the office with her towards the shop. Sure enough, her father is working on his bike. He messes with the engine of his Harley Davidson like he has been doing for years. He never rides anymore, but he's always tinkering with that bike somehow.

"Haven't seen that for a while," Thorn comments, making him look up.

"Well, you haven't been here for a while," Joel counters. He gives her a smile. "It's nice seeing you in here. Reminds me of when you were little. My little grease monkey," he says, and she lets out a small chuckle at his old nickname for her. "You used to love it here, until swimming came first," says Joel.

Thorn nods sadly. "I know. I'm going to try though. I want to be more involved," says Thorn, "with you and the garage."

Joel wipes his brow of sweat, completely missing the oil that's on his face, making Thorn chuckle again. He comments, "so, that's why you're spending today with your old man rather than your friends."

"The options for me are shockingly bad," Thorn replies. She moves to place the coffee-mugs down on the desk by the wall and then she perches herself against it. "Kevin," she says, "is spending the day with his dad, and then it's either be a third-wheel with Betty and Jug or Archie and Veronica. Neither of which sound particularly fun of my side."

"Archie and Veronica?" Joel asks. His brows raise. "When did that happen?"

"Last night," she answers flatly.

"I thought you two were..." Joel gestures with his hand, rolling his wrist, trying to think of the words, "sort of; kind of seeing each other. A thing?" He asks, "is that it? Is that right?"

"Not a thing, dad." Thorn tells him, "it was - I don't know - a passing moment. It ended before it could even start."

"You got to keep trying, Thornbud." His nickname for her makes Thorn go soft, her heart melting at the core. "You don't just give up on love," says Joel. "I think you're just scared. - scared of love, or at least being in love." He admits truthfully, "you haven't had the best example of love with your mom and me."