serpents. [riverdale]

the walk// s w e e t p e a.

"You know, you've been staring at y/n since she walked in," Jughead says, nudging Sweet Pea lightly.
Friday was the busiest night at the Whyte Wyrm – it was so crowded that Sweet Pea could barely hear Jughead despite sitting right next to him.
"What is she doing here?" Sweet Pea asks, turning to Jughead, "And with that idiot."
Jughead's eyes travel across the bar to you. You were seated in a booth, opposite Reggie Mantle, laughing and talking like you'd known him forever even though you barely knew him.
"I mean, we transferred to Riverdale High a week ago and she's already dating a jock?" Sweet Pea scoffs, "We're Serpents. We're meant to stick together."
"She's not abandoning us," Jughead says pointedly, "She's just making friends. Plus, you guys never really talked anyways. Why do you care what she's doing?"
Jughead was beginning to grow concerned by Sweet Pea's set jaw and narrowed eyes – he looked like he was about to lunge across your booth and tackle Reggie to the floor.
"Because she's really wholesome..." Reggie answers.
"Wholesome?" Jughead repeats, biting back laughter.
Sweet Pea glares at him. He had no idea how to explain why he was so protective of you – he always had been – but it'd flared up lately, ever since you both ended up at Riverdale High together. When you were at Southside High, you had your own group of friends and extra curriculars to keep you busy so you weren't around Sweet Pea that much. You were a Serpent by blood, but you didn't associate with them anymore than you had to – you had a certain aversion to violence and conflict, but you stood with them where it mattered.
"I mean she's innocent. She's too nice and trusting," Sweet Pea explains, "That's why she doesn't hang out with the Serpents in her spare time – because we're always doing dumb or illegal shit. Or both."
"Just because she doesn't want to get arrested doesn't mean she isn't a total badass," Jughead argues, "When she punched me during my initiation, I threw up."
"I remember," Sweet grumbles, disgusted, "But you haven't known her long. She's always getting herself into-" he pauses, shooting up out of his seat when he notices Reggie moving out of his seat and in beside you, "-trouble."
He takes long strides across the room until he's standing at your booth.
"Everything okay?" you ask him. Reggie shifts in his seat to face Sweet Pea, clearly amused by his sudden appearance.
"I think it's time for you to get out of here," Sweet Pea says facing Reggie and completely ignoring you, "The rest of the Serpents will be coming through soon and you don't want to be here when they do."
"Sweet Pea," you hiss, frowning, "Reggie was just-"
"Leaving," Sweet Pea interrupts, yanking Reggie up by his jacket.
Reggie shoves Sweet Pea's hands away, swinging his arm back.
"You don't want to do that," you say, pulling him back, "Not in here."
The bar was filled with enough Serpents to beat Reggie to a pulp if he made one wrong move. He reluctantly drops his fists to his side, scowling at Sweet Pea as he heads for the door.
"What is wrong with you?" you grumble, pushing him out of the way as you follow Reggie. By the time you get to the car park, he's already speeding off down the street.
You glimpse at your watch – it was already 1am.
At least if you made it home in time for the Harry Potter reruns on TV, your night wouldn't be a complete waste. You trudge across the car park, fishing through your bag till you find your phone and turning the flashlight on.
It wasn't the best idea to traipse through Fox Forest in the middle of the night but now that the Black Hood was gone, you didn't feel so terrible about taking the shortcut.
You were halfway home when you feel a hand grab your shoulder. Instinctively, you swing, only to be faced with Sweet Pea staring at you wide eyed, rubbing his jaw.
"It's just me!" he shouts, "Holy shit!" he huffs, flexing his jaw.
"I thought you were-" you pause, inhaling sharply, "Whatever, you deserve it. What were you thinking with that alpha-male bullshit you pulled with Reggie?"
"What were you thinking hanging out with him in Serpent territory?" Sweet Pea retorts, "This is the same guy that tried to get us kicked out on our first day!"
"I know that," you snap, your brows furrowed together, "It's not like I had a choice."
"Really? He forced you into going on a date with him, did he?" Sweet Pea scoffs, crossing him arms over his chest.
"D-date?" you stammer, "I wasn't on a freaking date with him! We got paired up for an English project. He suggested working on it at his place, I said I'd rather die, so we met at the Whyte Wyrm but you screwed that up by trying to start a fist fight!"
Sweet Pea felt like an idiot, but he wasn't about to let it show.
"Well next time, don't bring him anywhere near me," Sweet pea grumbles. He stops rubbing his jaw and shoves his hands into his pockets, waiting expectantly for a witty reply.
"Whatever," you grumble in response, turning on your heels and continuing your walk home. You'd already had a long enough night without having to stand in the middle of nowhere, arguing with him.
It takes you a few minutes to realize that Sweet Pea was still following behind you.
You stop walking and turn to face him, "What are you doing?"
"I'm walking you home," he replies.
"No, you're stalking me," you scoff. He walks to your side, pausing to slide your bag off your shoulder and sling it over his own.
"Now, I'm walking you," he says, walking ahead of you. You catch up with him, falling into step.
"Why?" you ask.
He clears his throat, keep his eyes pinned ahead, "I've told you like a million times that I don't like you walking through here alone at night. It's not safe."
"You used to say that when we were like eight," you laugh, "At least back then you had a reason to walk with me because you lived next door. Now it's just creepy," you mutter, trying to pry your bag off his shoulder. He dusts your hands away easily.
"Get used to it," he states.
"What's with you? Ever since we both got transferred to Riverdale High together, you've been seriously invading my space," you say.
You were nearing the edge of the forest now. You could see the street lights shining through the trees on the other side.
"I just figured-" he bites his lip hesitantly, "I figured now that we've kind of been thrown together that maybe we could hang out again or whatever," he shrugs, "We were kind of close when we were younger."
"We were neighbours," you correct him, "And people grow apart, Sweet Pea. You shouldn't take it so personally. You moved houses, you joined the Serpents way before I did – there was no way we were going to stay friends through all that."
Sweet Pea sighs, "It was personal. I missed you."
You frown, stopping walking as you finally step out onto the sidewalk, "You missed me? I've been part of the Serpents for years and you've barely talked to me."
"You didn't talk to me either," he says defensively.
"I didn't realize we had anything left to talk about!"
Sweet Pea stays silent, feeling foolish for having brought it up at all.
After all, the only reason he wanted to talk to you so badly was because he'd been in love with you since you were kids and it was becoming increasingly clear you didn't feel the same way.
How was it possible that during all these years he'd been stealing glances at you, you'd not once looked at him the same way?
You both begin walking again, heading down the long, curving street that led to your house. Sweet Pea felt himself slowing down, trying to spend as much time as possible with you before the night ended – god knew when there'd be another one like it again.
He could do a lot of things, but finding the courage to talk to you wasn't one of them.
"Feelings," he blurts out after a long silence.
You'd both come to a stop outside your house and it felt unbearable to let you go without one last confession.
"What?" you ask, half laughing in confusion.
"You asked me what there was to talk about," he says, swallowing hard, "My feelings for you. Let's talk about that."
"You have feelings for me?" you ask, frowning, "You're saying... you like me?"
He nods stiffly.
You weren't sure how to react. Sweet Pea was funny and fearless, not to mention gorgeous – but you'd never considered dating him. He's always seemed a little out of your league and you didn't like wasting your time.
"I've never thought of you like that," you admit.
Sweet Pea slumps, "Fuck," he mutters under his breath, feeling ridiculous. As he turns around, you reach for him, tugging on his jacket.
"But we could get to know each other... again," you suggest, "If that's something you want?"
It felt like a ridiculous suggestion, even to you. Sweet Pea hardly seemed like the type to go on a coffee date and make small talk.
"We don't have to do anything generic," you add.
Sweet Pea would've done something as generic and embarrassing as singing High School Musical karaoke if it meant spending time with you.
"What did you have planned for the rest of the night?"
"Not much," you admit sheepishly.
"So, I'll take you to Pop's, buy you a milkshake and we'll finish your English project," he proposes.
"You want to help me work on an assignment?" you frown, surprised. That wasn't much of a first date in your opinion.
"I want to get rid of Reggie, permanently," he smirks, "Plus it is kind of my fault you didn't get to finish it."
You nod in agreeance, heading towards Pop's. Sweet Pea reaches for your hand, practically sinking in relief when you intertwine your fingers with his.
He knew he liked you; no other girl could make him this nervous.
"So," you hum, "Back there, you tried to hit Reggie because you were jealous, huh?"
"Shut up," he grumbles in embarrassment. He could tell you wouldn't let this go for a long time, but just the mere thought of you taunting him daily made him smile.