Mamas | Sweet Pea

Chapter 4

I awoke to a rapid thump, and voices. Loud voices. I could feel sweat sliding down my forehead. My lips painfully chapped. I licked my lips tasting the dry blood. I opened my eyes to nothing. Pitch black, but around me was clear. I was in a room, but not mine. I stood up slowly, something trying to weigh me down. I looked in front of me in a body mirror.

I was dressed in a straight jacket. My hair was shorter like someone had violently cut it without a care of how it looked. I was beat up, physically. The walls were padded, while there was a single light source, but no light bulb. Like it was coming out of thin air.

I was calm in my mind, but frantically moving. I had no control. Voices were pounding against the room, like speakers.

"Don't lie. Dont lie. Don't lie." Over and over again. Same tone, voice, urgency.

"Lie about what. What do you mean? Make It stop make it stop." It felt like an eternity until finally they did. I stopped moving, talking, hearing, thinking. Then they spoke, but it was more than one, it was more.

"To yourself." One wall said.

"You need to stop." another.

Then one voice spoke, while all others whispered. "You need to stop lying or one day you won't have a soul to begin a lie. Or a truth, or simply a sin."

I woke up.

My breathing was heavy. My hair matted to my forehead. I look around the room to see my actual bedroom. I was about to pinch myself to see if I was dreaming or if I was in another nightmare,but Archie came instead.

"Finally you're awake. Don't wait up tonight I am going to the southside. See you later." He rushed the last words knowing I wouldn't be ok with it.

"What no way. You are not going to the southside Archie, especially alone." I got up and put on a baseball cap, and grabbed my phone. "And I know I can't stop you from going so I guess we are going to take a fun midnight trip." I walked passed him down the stairs out the door.

We had just passed a liquor store when Archie stopped us. It would have been a good idea to ask him what his reason for coming to the side is, but no. "Hold up Stacey I gotta do something." I rolled my eyes and waited for him. He took out a bottle of red spray paint and started to draw a red circle.

"Archie what the hell. Is this for the black hood? Are you crazy you can put us in serious danger." Before he could say anything else I heard laughter in the distance. It was three boys, and of course one of them included Sweet Pea. I immediately hid behind Archie.

"Look what we have here. Northsider on southside turf?" He looks up towards the tagging. "Oh don't tell me it's about the black hood. You seriously believe this shit?"

"Listen I'm not here for you alright so how about you leave before you make trouble." Archie stated. I wanted to slap him, but I didn't move.

"Make trouble. You already made trouble when you came on to southside turf. Now" He pulled out a switchblade, which resulted in me gasping. Which surely caught the serpent's attention. "JJ?" He had said in a confused tone.

"Who's gonna start trouble now." Archie had pulled a gun on Sweet Pea. He had a gun. I did the only thing that came to mind. I stepped in front of the gun. He still didn't budge.

"Archie put the gun down now or swear to god." He looked at me, the gun pointing straight at me.

"Or what Stacey? Tell me what you're gonna do? Protect your little snake friends" his hands shaking, making it easier to pull the trigger

"Get behind me now princess." Sweet Pea didn't give me a choice. He pushes me behind him and raises his hands up to archie. "What the hell man."

Archie didn't speak, but rather came to his senses and started to put the gun down, but Sweet Pea didn't wait another moment to book it, dragging me along with them.

We ran all the way down to the trailer park. Stopping and trying to catch my I look up to Sweet Pea with fury, pacing around. "Who do those northside assholes think they are? Coming onto our turf. Shoving not only a gun in my face, but in JJ's too? They got another thing coming to them."

His fists clenched and his friends didn't look so happy either. "Sweets please calm down, please." I begged hoping he would, but his reaction was the quite opposite.

"Calm down? Are you crazy that won't help! Im not stupid Stacy, unlike your stupid friend." I jumped back, scared how much closer he was going to step towards me. He must have seen it because his face relaxed and softened.

"Shit. I didn't mean to frighten you. Just I get really mad and I don't mean to take it out on you ok." I nodded, not knowing what to say. I heard a cough behind me, totally forgetting about his other two friends. There was only one left, the other must have walked somewhere else.

I stuck my hand out, trying to be polite. "Hi, I'm Stacey." He looked at me like I was crazy.

"You're a northsider though." He stated.

"Yeah and?" I asked with an attitude.

"Nothing just surprised is all. I'm fangs though. That dumbasses best friend" He says pointing behind me. I turn around to sweets shaking his head, laughing at fangs.

"So no offense to you both, but why the unusual names?" They looked at each other and chuckled. Sweets walking up to me, wrapping an arm around my shoulder, calmly said "That's a story we will never tell. Now who's up for milkshakes?"

"With fries" I blurted while bouncing on the balls of my feet. I saw fangs and sweets and looked at each other and nodded, which was weird but I didn't ask.

We sat in the back booth. Me sitting next to sweets and fangs across from us. Fangs have gotten up to go to the bathroom. I decided while I have this alone time with Sweets I would ask him the question that's been bothering me all day,

"Why?"

His eyes opened wide, almost spilling his drink. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean Sweets. Today when you dropped me off home." He didn't answer me.

"Fine you know what maybe I should just leave." I was standing up, but was pulled back down.

"Listen JJ my world is difficult ok. Different from yours. I was just nervous. Tallboy, you know the one that had to talk to me at the wyrm? He was going on about drama in our gang and I just didn't want you to get involved or see what i'm actually like. I didn't mean to hurt you. I just don't want you to think of me as a monster." He looked away. I knew it was hard for him to say that.

I took my hands and cupped his face so that he was looking me in the eye. "Sweets these past few days, after everything, I could never be scared of you. Are you still an asshole at times?" I chuckled. "Yes, but I wouldn't change that." We both laughed staying in that position.

We looked at eachother, but didn't say anything. He was inching closer, I was nervous but I couldn't pull away. Before anything else could happen I felt something cold on my cheek.

Whip Cream. By the one and only Fangs. Who not only sprayed me, but also Sweets. We both grabbed ours and threw it at him. It was like all my worries went away, I was finally just a teen.

We were standing outside in front of pops, winter had already started to come to riverdale. I was freezing in the light pajama shirt. Sweets noticed and soon took off his leather jacket.

"No stop your gonna be cold to Sweets I promise." Fangs need to hurry up. How do you guys always have to go to the bathroom?

"JJ I'm like a heater ok? I promise I'll be fine. Besides by the time we get back to your house Ill-"

"No," I said harshly. "I am not going back there. I don't care how much you think I don't belong. I will not be sleeping in the same house as him."

He was next to me, now his turn to be cupping my cheeks. His Jawline sharper in the neon sign, blasting down at us. "JJ I promise I didn't mean any of those words back at the wyrm. Ok? Now let's go back to the trailer park. FP isn't home, but you can sleep at mine. Come on" He grabbed my hand and didn't wait for Fangs. He was running at us screaming to wait up for us. Eventually he caught up.