Dynasty || Betty Cooper [1] [COMPLETED]

||EIGHT - GRUNDY PROBLEMS||

Tatum's POV

It's been a week since Jason's body was found, and everyone was suspecting one another. Betty hadn't mentioned the kiss, and neither had I. I was beginning to suspect that she'd forgotten about it.

I was sat with Jughead, Veronica, Betty and Kevin at a booth in Pop's, and Jughead was going on and on about some drive-in closing, or whatever.

"The drive-in closing, it's just one more nail in the coffin that is Riverdale." Jughead complained. "No. Forget Riverdale. In the coffin of the American Dream. As the godfather of indie cinema, Quentin Tarantino, likes to say--"

"Please, God, no more Quentin Tarantino references." Kevin cut him off.

"What? I'm pissed. And not just about losing my job. The Twilight Drive-In should mean something to us. People should be trying to save it." Jughead responded.

"In this age, of Netflix and VOD, do people really want to watch a movie in a car?" Veronica questioned. "I mean, who even goes there?"

"People who want to buy crack." Kevin answered.

"And, cinephiles and car enthusiasts, right Bets?" Jughead asked her. Betty had been in her own world really. Thinking about things, and not paying attention to anyone, really.

"Totally." Betty stated. I zoned out of the conversation, and replayed Betty and I's kiss in my head. I couldn't stop thinking about it, really. I just guess that she doesn't like me that way. I was just something to take her mind off of her sister.

"Here you go, kids." Mom says, and puts our order on the table.

"Thanks, Mom." I smile at her. 

"If I would have known Mama Lodge was working as a waitress at Pop's, I never would've given Veronica a spot on the Vixens. It's off-brand, and sends a false message about acceptance." I overheard Cheryl say, and I rolled my eyes.

"After her TMZ-style takedown of Chuck, all the Vixens kinda like Veronica now." One of Cheryl's minions said.

I wasn't involved in their takedown of Chuck, as it involved me having to pretend to be straight, which I don't really like.

Mom went to take the money off of Cheryl's table, and Cheryl stopped her.

"Be sure to put all of that cash in the register. You are a Lodge, after all." Cheryl sassed. Veronica and I both slide out of the booth. "And, Lodges are known to have sticky fingers."

"Cheryl." Veronica and I both say at the same time.

"Girls, I've got this." Mom stopped us. "Cheryl, I went to school with your mother. She didn't know the difference between having money and having class, either." Nice one, Mom.

Veronica and I sit back down, and then the door opened.

"Now, that's an odd combo of people." Kevin commented. We look at the door, and it's Archie, my dad, and Ms. Grundy.

"I'll be right back." Betty said, and began to slide out of the booth.

"Betty, no, don't." I tried to warn her, but it was too late. I sent a look to Jughead, and he returned it.

"Wait, what's happening?" Kevin asked. We ignored him, and didn't answer. Then, soon, Betty and Archie went outside to talk, probably about his Grundy situation.

"What's happening out there? Do we know? Is it about me?" Veronica bombarded.

"I have a strong inkling. And, no. Also, I'd let it go." Jughead told her.

"Yes, but you're you, and I'm me." Veronica replied. "You do you, girl. I'll be back." And then she went after them.

"What was it like before she got here?" Kevin asked Jughead. "I honestly cannot remember." They're conversation got really heated, until Betty's mom came and picked her up.

-----

After Betty and Veronica told me about the fact that they found nothing on Grundy, Betty devised a plan to break into her car.

"Are we really breaking into Grundy's car right now?" Veronica asked, and Betty continued to break into the car. "How did you even learn how to do that?" 

"Heh. My dad and I fix cars together." Betty told us. "Thank God she drives an old..." She stops when she got the car unlocked. She smiled at us, and we climbed into the car. Veronica gets in the backseat, and Betty and I are in the front.

"Okay. Before going any further if I'm committing a felony, I need to at least ask the question. Are you doing this because you still have feelings for Archie or--?" Veronica started.

"No, Veronica." Betty cut her off. "We're doing this because Grundy has Archie under some kind of sexual spell, and he won't listen to reason."

"We're looking for anything that proves that Grundy isn't as clean as she says she is." I added. We all fumbled around the car, looking for anything out of the ordinary.

Then, Veronica found a lockbox in the backseat, and passed it to Betty.

"Bobby pin." Betty stated.

"Okay, Miss Gyver." Veronica replied, and handed her a bobby pin she'd just gotten out of her hair. Betty then tried to unlock the box, by moving the bobby pin around inside it. Then, it opened.

"I learned that from the Nancy Drew detective handbook." Betty explained.

"Okay, go." Veronica said, and we opened the box.

Inside, was a Minnesota driver's license, with the name Jennifer Gibson.

"Oh, my God." All three of us said at the same time. I took the license out of Betty's hand.

"'Jennifer Gibson'? Who the hell is Jennifer Gibson?" I questioned.

"That's not the only thing." Betty told us, and we both turned to Betty. Betty then pulled out, and showed us a gun.

Why the hell did she have a gun? And why was she lying to us?

-----

We waited at the front of my dad's house for Archie.

"Oh, God." Archie sighed, when he saw us. We went over to where he was standing on the sidewalk. "Please, don't tell me you're still on this crazy witch hunt. And, you too, Tatum?"

"It's not a witch hunt, and it's not crazy." Betty defended. "We were just in Grundy's car--"

"What?" Archie cut her off. Understandable. "You were in her car?"

"Yeah, and thank God we were." I stated. "We found a gun."

"What?" Archie questioned, taken aback.

"And, an ID with the name Jennifer Gibson." Betty added. "This is proof Ms. Grundy is not who she says she is."

"Then who is she?" Archie asked.

"Obviously, some sketch queen named Jennifer Gibson." Veronica answered.

"Archie, what if she had something to do with Jason's murder?" Betty floated the idea. Archie scoffed, and shook his head.

"She taught him. She made you lie about him. We know she was at the river. She has a gun." Betty pointed out.

"So does Dilton Doiley. But, you never thought he killed Jason." Archie defended. He took a step to leave.

"Open your eyes, Archie." I said, stopping him. "Jason was her student last year. Everything about her is a huge, boldfaced question mark."

"Okay, whatever her name is, she's not a killer." Archie stated.

"You didn't ask her. Did you? About her name? And why there's no record of her before last year?" Betty spoke. Archie sighed. "Why not?"

Archie ignored Betty's question, and walked up into the house. Shutting the door behind him.