Flatline ((Jughead Jones)) 3

5

After Ethyl was taken into hospital, Jughead dropped me home. It had been a long night and sleep was the only thing on my mind. Of course that wasn't true, but I thought if I said it to myself enough, then maybe I could convince myself that it was the case.

The moment I walked through the door, I was thinking too much of what happened Ethyl, so I got myself a glass of water, trying to calm my nerves. Over the back of the couch was my Serpent jacket, and just the sight of that made me think of happier times. It made me imagine the pride on Jughead's face as I settled into my new lifestyle, and then the smiles on Serpent's faces as I passed them. Being a Serpent Queen felt the same as being royalty.

I walked up the stairs and stood outside my room. In horror movies, there is always a pause when the demon was about to show up. Or a door at the end of the corridor that looked a little too dark to be like the rest. That was how I felt looking at my closed door now. I knew this because I never shut my door.

My hand clutched the handle and slowly pushed down. Thoughts of the Black Hood stood in my room holding a knife crossed my mind. I'd open the door and he'd be stood in the corner of my room. I would see him and scream as he charged towards me. But when I opened the door, I was met with the same room I had been in all summer.

I scanned the room for anything out of the ordinary. There was no black figure anywhere, no abnormal black shadows. Wryms tank now sat on my desk, the light casting a white glow to my room. I shut my door behind me, and turned my bedside lamp on and tried to slow my breathing a little more. There was nothing here. All I had to do was wait for Jughead to get back from seeing Ethyl, then I could sleep.

Something deep red caught my eye.

Taped to my door was an envelope, with the cursive gold writing glittering in the light. 'Angel of Death' was written on the front. Standing, I approached the door, taking the letter in my hands. I then noticed how calm I was to find a strange note left on my door, the very evening I start playing the game that had captured my attention. Nothing about the note scared me. But everything about the note intrigued me.

After opening it, I saw five words written on the inside. It was a simple note, that gave nothing away of the sender.

'Welcome to the game Angel.'

How did anyone know I played the game, and how did someone know what my character was called. The only people who had been there were at the hospital. That left the only other person who chose my name. The Gargoyle King.

I put the envelope in my top desk drawer and went to get ready. I slipped into a simple red dress and pulled my hair into two victory rolls just in time for Jughead to walk through the door, ready to go to Veronica's brand new Speakeasy.

"I hid the manual in the trailer, that thing is like a gold mine i'll have to show it to you later." Jughead said as we walked down the stairs into a full hall of people. The whole place looked perfect and everything about it screamed Veronica Lodge. Every person had dressed up in evening gowns and suits, all looking just as expensive as lady who ran the place.

"How was Ethyl?" I asked him.

"She'll need a bit of deprogramming to get her head back in normal society." Jughead explained, pulling a chair out for me on the same table as Betty. She had come to the party with Kevin and promised to sit with us to discuss the ever developing Gryphons and Gargoyles mystery.

"Oh, well, she can keep my mom company then." Betty smiled, hearing what Jughead had just said. I smiled sadly to her, knowing the stress she was under with her mom.

"Is she coping okay?" I asked her from across the table.

"The farm got way deeper into her head than I thought. She knows something about G&G." Betty told us both. She looked to me gesturing to Jughead and then pointing to her lips while J scanned the room. I noticed the blue tint to his lips and began to laugh with Betty.

"J, you have Fresh aid on your lips." I laughed, grabbing a napkin and trying to wipe the blue stain while Betty tried to hide her laugh.

"Thanks Princess."

With a performance of 'anything goes' by Josie, I felt that our night had just about ended. But her haunting singing, seemed to be just what the little party under Pop's needed, because it was clear rules of law and order didn't apply to the 'Town with Pep'.

After the night at the speakeasy, Jughead took me home. Sadly I was home barely half an hour before he came and picked me up, taking me to the bunker. We lay together as he told me how angry his father had been about him having a manual to the game, and how FP had burned it, seeming almost terrified of the game. He then mentioned how Betty had called him, saying her mom had been shouting at her for seeing the manual and forbidding her from playing the game as well.

"Maybe it's for the best." Jughead finished, and I turned my head from on his chest to look at him. "Flipping through that manual felt like I was reading pure evil." His hand was running itself through my hair. This was one of the rare nights that he had removed his beanie as we lay in bed, his hair was falling behind him, glad to be free from the restraints of the fabric.

"They must have played the game, J. Betty's mom. Your dad. That's why they didn't like the fact we were investigating Ben and Dilton with Betty."

"Well, if what Ethyl said about that being the only rulebook is true, no ones going to play that game ever again. It's over." With a raise of my eyebrows, questioning Jughead about his last statement. When was it ever over in Riverdale? He pulled my head down to his chest, stroking my hair and sending me off into a dreamless sleep.

Ethyl must have done it before our rendezvous in the bunker. Or maybe there was someone helping her. Either way, by the next weekend, almost every student at Riverdale High would play Gryphons and Gargoyles. And the real game was just beginning.