Hometown

Sunday

    I grab a cup of coffee and sit on the couch while Maya, Juniper and Dagwood sit at the kitchen table and Betty gives them small bags with bacon and hash browns in them.
    "So we'll see you tonight?" Polly asks and Charles lifts Maya into his arms.
    "Yeah." Betty responds.
   They make small talk for less than a minute before everyone leaves. Betty comes over to me and rests her bead on my shoulder with a sigh.
    "Juggie, do you want kids?"
    "No, why?" She lifts her head off of my shoulder and stares at me. "Oh, that's what we're going to do today. We're gonna fight."
    "You really don't want kids?"
    "No, I just never thought about it much. Kids were just never something I felt I wanted. Why?"
    "Well, I...I want kids. Not now, but in the future."
    "Oh."
    We fall silent for a few minutes.
    "Juggie, I have to have kids. It's just something that I need to do." A tear slides down her cheek.
    "Betts, what are you trying to say?"
    "Jug, I don't think we're going to work out. We just want different things."
    "Betty, it's just one thing."
    "Yes, but right now it's the most important thing to me."
    "Well, are you going to change your mind?"
    "Are you?" She asks. I shake my head. "There's your answer."
    "Betty, I don't want to lose you."
    "You won't, we can still be friends."
    "Can't we stay together and then..."
    "Jughead, it has to end sometime. I can't get more involved when this is going nowhere."
    I nod and my heart breaks at her words.
    "I think you should go." She chokes out.
    I blink a few times before leaving her apartment.

Betty's POV

    As soon as I know Jughead is back in his apartment I run out of mine and down the hall to Cheryl and Toni's apartment where her, Toni, Sweetpea and Ronnie are all sitting. I burst into tears, sliding down the door and they all speed over to me. Cheryl holds me in her arms as I sob.
    "What happened?" sweet pea asked, stroking my hair.
    "Jughead and I broke up."
    "I'll kill him." Cheryl barked, standing up.
    I pull her back down. "I broke up with him. He doesn't want kids and I do."
    "Oh, Betty..." The door swings open, hitting me.
    "Sorry, Betty." Jughead says walking into the apartment.
    "That's alright. Did you need something?"
    "Betty, I love you and if kids are what it takes to be with you, then we can have kids."
    "No, Jughead. I'm not going to make you live through something that you don't want. We will just have to move on."
    "Betty I don't want to move on. I want to be with you. I love you so much."
    "I feel like we shouldn't be here." Sweetpea whispers to Veronica who quickly shushes him.
    I feel a tear slide down my cheek and Cheryl wipes it away with her thumb. "Juggie, we both need to do what's best for our future. I guess we just don't fit in each other's plans."
    "Betty, you fit perfectly into my plan. I love your nieces and nephew, I'm sure if it was our child-"
    "Stop, a child isn't something you get just because. It's something you want."
    "Betty, I want a baby with you. I do."
    "Jug, stop. Please."
    I see a tear fall down his face. "Betty, please."
    "Cher, can I go to sleep on your bed. I'm still tired. It's been a long morning."
    "Of course, " Cheryl says, helping me up off of the ground and into her bedroom.
    Ronnie holds Jughead back from reaching me while I get into Cheryls bed. "Thank you, Cher. This means a lot."
    "I'll tell your dad and everyone that you can't make it tonight." I nod, drifting off to sleep.

Jugheads POV

    I walk back to my apartment, defeated. My arms feel like weights we're tired on to each hand and nothing feels real. I walk back into my apartment where Archie is now awake and drinking a bottle of water.
    "You look like hell. What happened?" He asked.
    "Betty dumped me."
    "Ahh, the old kid conversation."
    "How did you know?"
    "Well, when you're the single guy in the friend group you tend to hear the gossip right away. I heard that Toni told Veronica to ask Betty if she would marry you. Betty said she would, Veronica asked about kids and bam. Also, Betty and I talked about having kids when we were dating too."
    "That what broke you up?"
    "No, I was insecure about you two being around each other and frankly I still am not all that fond of you. But you've grown on me over the past couple of years."
    "Oh, right. Is it true you hit Betty?"
    "It was a mistake a while back."
    I nod, I can tell he is ashamed.
    "Did you love her?" I ask him.
    "Not the way you do."
    "I know I said I don't want kids, but now that I think of it, all I want to do is have a baby with her. We would have the cutest little baby."
    "Yeah, you guys would. Why don't you just talk to her?"
    "I did, she thinks I'm just saying those things to get back together with her."
    "Well, she knows the truth now."
    My eyebrows pull together. "What do you mean?"
    "I called her when you were talking. She heard your entire speech."
    "Juggie?" I hear from behind me.
    I spin around and see Betty standing in the doorframe. I run to her and kiss her, hard.
    "I love you so much." I say, before kissing her again.
    "I love you too."

That night

    I wrap my arm around Betty's waste as an anxious reflex. Her dad opens the door and smiles at me as we walk in. I hear the kids all playing in the other room. Betty pulls away from me and heads to the bathroom, leaving me alone with her family. I walk over to Polly in the living room, since I've spent the most time with her out of the group of people around me.
    "Hey Jug." She says with a smile. "What's up?"
    "Nothing. It's weird seeing Hal again. He looks so different."
    "Ya, after mom passed he changed. Not negatively, he just spent a lot of time at the gym and everything."
    "I'm sorry, about your mom, I mean."
    "Thanks. We were going to invite you to the funeral but...it probably would have been weird."
    "I get it."
    She smiles at me sadly and I head down the hall where Betty is walking out of the bathroom. Her face is blotchy and her eyes are puffy and pink.
    "Betty, we're you crying?"
    She nods, trying to pass me.
    "What's wrong?" I ask.
    "It's still weird, without mom. I just miss her." She says with a quiet sob.
    I wrap my arms around Betty and let her sob into my chest. She takes a deep breath, wiping away her tears.
    "You ready?" I ask.
    She nods and gives me a peck on the lips. "Thank you."
    "Anything for you. After this do you wanna grab some snacks from the corner store and watch a movie at home?"
    "Yeah, that sounds great." She smiles.