Broken: the Ultimate Crossover

Chapter 14

Betty's POV

"Peter!" The words ring throughout the halls.

Every one of us turn our heads in the direction in which the familiar voice of my best friend comes from.

We have successfully removed the death mass from Kavinsky's locker and it's currently in the hands of Peter. It amazes me how unnaturally strong he is, especially with his small build and stature. I'm very curious, but there's too much going on right now for me to focus on that right now.

"Peter!" Jonathan calls again as he skids around the corner toward us.

"Jonathan?" I ask, looking at him with fear. "What's wrong?"

"I...I talked to Will," he explains as he comes to a halt, resting against the lockers.

"You talked to Will?" Archie asks disbelievingly, crossing his arms.

Jonathan nods and explains his situation to Peter as Archie and I both stare in disbelief.

"No way," I mumble. "He called your house?"

Jonathan nods again, with a hopeful look on his face. "I think he could be alive."

"This is crazy," Peter tells him, geeking out over the whole thing. "I'm sorry, but I have no idea what to do."

"So what now?" Archie asks, staring at the death mass, now back in a backpack for safe travels.

"The science room is locked now so we can't run tests," I remind everyone as we stand in a circle, making a game plan.

"Mae's probably worried sick," Peter mumbles to no one in particular. "Maybe we should go home and listen for any news."

"I think that's a great idea," Archie agrees. "I need to catch up on homework and, you know, breathe for a minute."

I can see Jonathan is disheartened by the news. I'm sure he was expecting a sure answer that Will is findable, and he didn't get his reassurance.

"Well, see you tomorrow then?" Archie asks before heading out, Peter following suit, the backpack slung over his back.

I look at Jonathan's unsure expression and scratch my arm.

"Are you going to go home?" I ask him,  my voice cracking when it comes out.

"No," he replies definitely, shaking his head and looking back to where he came from. "I'm gonna go look for him. I have to."

"Do you want me to come with you?" I offer.

"Nah," he says as if he's trying to make the situation lighter. "I need time to think everything over anyway."

I nod and playfully punch him in the shoulder. "Well, if you ever need me, you know where to find me."

He gives me a tight smile and then heads off, leaving me alone in the now seemingly cold hallway. I shiver and then start in the opposite direction before seeing Nancy and Lara Jean exit the bathroom.

"I can't believe I looked that amazing for nothing," Lara Jean sighs and then smiles at me. "Oh, hey Betty. Did you get the death mass out?"

"We did," I tell her proudly as the three of us start down the hall. "It took some work and a lot of fire but we did it."

"Fire?" Nancy asks worriedly, casting a strange look in my direction.

"It's scared of fire," I explain. "Pretty cool really."

"Woah," Lara Jean says in awe, folding her costume in her arms. "Where are the others?"

"Oh, they all left," I say, turning red because of my not telling them. "We decided to calm down for a minute and see if any more news comes forward."

"Oh good," Nancy sighs with a relieved tone. "I need a break. This whole monster business takes a toll on you."

"Yeah, I haven't read a book in over 48 hours and I'm romance deprived," Lara Jean admitted. "Nance and I usually hang out at my place after school, you can come with us if you want."

I blink. I've never had friends that were girls before, I've always hung out with Jonathan. Thinking about it, he's my only real friend that I can think of.

"Really?" I find myself asking, almost in disbelief. "I mean sure, why not?"

"Sweet," Nancy says with a kind smile as we head out of the school. "We found out a couple days ago that Peter and Kavinsky live next door to Lara Jean."

"A coincidence indeed," I say awkwardly as we start out in the damp and gloomy weather.

The skin on my neck prickles. I can't shake the feeling that the demagorgan could be hiding anywhere: in the shadows, behind a car, in a tree...

"Ah shit," Nancy says tiredly. I look over at her and find her gaze fixated on a car sitting in the parking lot a little ways away.

"Steve Harrington?" I ask, unsure of the significance of his existence. I know he's pretty high on the social hierarchy, along with Archie and Veronica, but he's never been relevant to my life.

Lara Jean nods and presses a finger to her lips to silence me. I cock and brow as we make our way closer to him, Nancy in the lead. Lara Jean grabs ny arm a small distance away, but Nancy keeps walking.

"Steve," she starts awkwardly with a small, forced smile. "You're still here."

"Where's your boyfriend?" he asks in a tone that immediately tells me what's going on.

"My boyfriend?" Nancy repeats, confused. "What are you-"

"You know," Steve interrupts. "The new guy, tall, dark hair, desperately needed your attention at lunch? That guy."

I see Nancy's shoulders fall and I wince. "You mean Kavinsky."

"Ah, he has a name," Steve rolls his eyes. "Why did he want to talk to you so bad?"

I feel Lara Jean tense beside me and I place a hand on her shoulder to calm her down, just so she doesn't kill Steve.

"It was nothing," Nancy tells him.

"Nothing," Steve repeats, looking off into the distance. "Right. Okay, well...if nothing is more important than figuring this out, does being with me really matter to you?"

"Of course it does," Nancy says stubbornly. "It's just been a long week and we have a big project coming up..."

Steve nods and then slides off the hood of his car, getting into the driver's seat. "Well, whenever you wanna make an effort again, let me know."

And with that he drives away, leaving Nancy in the dust. She straightens her shoulders before turning back to us. I can feel my mouth gaping open and force myself to close it, trying to play it off like it didn't happen.

Lara Jean marches past Nancy and shakes her fist in the direction Steve drove off in. "No good piece of...argh."

She turns back to Nancy. "We don't need him, we have Betty now, and she won't break your heart."

Though Lara Jean's words are both humorous and encouraging, Nancy's face is still long and distressed.

"Right," she decides before starting off again. "We don't need him."

The words feel forced and unreal, but they're the best we'll be getting for now, and we start off into the fog.