I'm never gonna give up on you.

7. Talk to her

Betty slowly opened her eyes and reached for her phone to check the time. She had still an hour left to wake up, but instead of going back to sleep she carefully got out of the bed. She didn't want to wake up Jughead so she quietly went out of their room to find her mother. She had been thinking about Alice a lot and chose to explicitly talk to her.

Betty shyly opened the door which leads to her mother's room, because she hoped she would find her in it. Her smile faded while she saw the empty bed. Did she leave without saying anything to her again? Betty turned around and went downstairs.

"Mom?" her voice was full of hope that Alice will be standing in the kitchen and making herself her favorite morning coffee, but she wasn't there. She turned around when she heard someone was calling her name.

"Betty? Why are you awake? Is everything alright?" FP lifted himself from the couch to look at her and straight away noticed something was bothering her. She shook her head and came closer to him.

"Betty, you are like a daughter to me. I would like to help you overcome your fears but first you need to tell me about them." FP slept less than two hours, but he didn't even care about it. His sleepy voice was so soft and calm, that Betty decided to open up to him.

"I want mom to be back home." She confessed diffidently and her eyes were filled with tears. What should he tell her? That he also wants her back so badly? That he wants to fall asleep wake up holding her in his arms? That he wants to kiss her every time she is around him?

"You know, our relationship had always been complicated. She is overprotective, stubborn, and short-tempered, but despite it I miss her so much. She is my mom and I love her with my whole heart." Betty breathed out while tears streaming down her face. FP smiled at her, while she was telling about Alice's defects. He loved her with all of her imperfections.

Meanwhile Alice was sitting on the stairs that she would hear their conversation. She knew that they couldn't see her from this place. She was touched by her daughter's words. She didn't want to hurt her but apparently, she did, again. She was making the same mistakes all over again.

"Betty, you should go and talk to her about your emotions. Try to explain everything you feel to her like you said it to me." FP encouraged her while whipping her tears away from her cheeks. It was the only way Betty could deal with her mother – honestly talk to her about their bond.

"You think so?" her voice was filled with hope. She didn't know how to talk with her mother after she came back from the farm. It was hard for both of them. They haven't talked practically at all for a few months Alice was living on the farm with Polly and Edgar.

"I know so. She will appreciate your honesty." He pulled betty into a soft hug. She was broken and only Alice could help her by giving her daughter her time and love.

Alice was speechless. How could she be so blind? Her daughter was on the verge of collapse. Betty was her biggest pride and she was pushing her away, because of some unexplained feelings between her and FP.

Betty was about to lift herself from the couch but suddenly she reminded herself, that there is one more thing, she wanted to ask about.

"Do you still love her?" FP froze when he heard her question. The answer was so simple for him, but it was too hard to say it. Betty deserved to know the truth, but was he ready to tell her about it? He took a deep breath and decided to be honest with her.

"I..." He started softly, but that was enough for Alice. She didn't want to know the answer. She was too scared to hear it, but also too stubborn to admit it to herself.

"Betty? What are you doing here? You should go get dressed at school." Alice cut in before FP answered her question. Betty's eyes grew wider when she saw her mother, who had stayed with them for the night.

"Mom?" She questioned surprised by her mother's presence at home. She was certain that her mom had left before she woke up, but to her surprise she was here all the time.

"Yeah, who else could it be?" Alice joked rolling her eyes playfully. Betty chuckled and came closer to her to hug her mother. Alice's palm rested on her daughter's messy hair while stroking them tightly.

"JB should get up, she will be late for school." FP said and walked towards the stairs when Alice's voice stopped him.

"Jellybean is ill, she should stay at home for a few days. She had a fever and nausea so I picked her up from school yesterday. They called you several times. You should spend some time with her, she needs it." Alice said calmly while carrying Betty in her arms.

FP felt guilty that he wasn't able to be with JB. He didn't even know that something is wrong, because he had left his phone at Sheriff station before they left the town.

"I have a day off today so we will spend some time together. I'm going to check up on her. Thank you, Alice." He smiled thankfully and went upstairs.

"Mom I think I would like to talk with you," Betty confessed bashfully while pulling herself out of her mother's embrace. She looked deep into her blue ocean eyes and took her hand into hers. She has never liked that kind of conversation but finally decided to go for it.

"Mom, I want you back in my life. I want you to mess up with me, to live in the same house, to be the with me again. I want us to be that fucking mother-daughter duo like we used to be." Alice put her hands on Betty's cheeks while listening to her speech. She finally realized how big mistake was leaving Betty all alone.

"Sweetheart, I'll always be a part of your life. I don't know if I'm ready to go back to this house, but I promise you that we are going to rebuild our relationship." To be honest, by saying "house" Alice meant FP, but she didn't want to admit it loudly. Betty giggled when her mother pressed a quick kiss on her nose and pulled her back into a hug.

"Now go and prepare yourself to school young lady. I don't want to hear that you were late today." Alice's imperative voice made Betty laughed but her facial expression told her, that she was serious.

"You are kidding, right?" Betty asked confused, but Alice shook her head in response to her question while placing her finger under her daughter's chin to place a soft peck on the top of her head. It felt so right for both of them.

Alice watched her daughter going to her room and sat down on the couch. She started to ask herself a lot of questions, but one of them was the most important. Is she ready to admit that she still feels something to FP?