Time After Time

Part 5

Twenty three

Archie couldn't help the way his jaw clenched when he saw Betty drape herself all over Adam. They were at Veronica's, who was throwing this little five year reunion party for those who were in Riverdale at the time. Adam was this ex-Bulldog that Archie only vaguely remembered as being one of Reggie's friends.

"Jealous?" Veronica asked sweetly, raising an eyebrow. He didn't bother answering her, she already knew. A lump formed in his throat when Betty grabbed Adam's hand and walked towards them.

"Guys, this is Adam. Adam, these are my friends, Veronica and Archie." Betty said, smiling.

"Excuse me." Archie muttered, shouldering Adam out of the way. Betty narrowed her eyes as he headed for the door.

"Archie where are you going? It's pouring outside!" Betty called. He didn't respond. 

Veronica just shook her head. "Dear God, you two are so blind."

"I'm sorry, I should go after him." Betty said, following Archie out into the bucketing rain. Betty couldn't help the gasp that escaped her when cold droplets started hitting her.  

"Archie! What the fuck is going on?" Betty said crossly, grabbing his wrist to stop him continuing across the lawn.

"What's with Adam?" He spat, and Betty was surprised at the anger flickering in his eyes.

"What's with the girl that was clinging to you all afternoon?" Betty returned, the jealousy burning in her chest not warm enough to keep her from shivering in the ice cold rain. Their clothes were getting soaked through, and her hair was clinging to her neck irritably.

"Betty." He said, voice breaking. "I am so in love with you."

The sentence hit her like a truck.

"I always have been, since the moment I met you, when we were five years old."

Betty stared at him, trying to find her words.

"I'm in love with you too, obviously." She said happily, surging up to kiss him. She circled her arms around his neck as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. They kissed like they were starving for each other.

"Let's get out of here." She said, finally breaking away, their foreheads still pressed together, and rain falling around them.

Twenty four

It did feel a bit strange. Betty moving into the Andrew's house, right next door to her mother and FP, Archie's old room facing her old room.

Archie had bought the house off his mother, who was moving back to Chicago with her girlfriend. He had been nervous when asking Betty to move in with him, even though they'd been dating a year. Betty had just squealed and hugged him.

Betty carried her last box up the stairs, and into the master bedroom.

"Isn't it weird thinking that your parents used to sleep here?" Betty wondered out loud, as Archie moved her massive pile of boxes from the door to a clear space of wall.

"Kind of." Archie grunted, placing the boxes down. "But I don't remember the last time they ever slept in it together, so it always just felt like a spare room. But now it's our room."

He walked over to her and tilted her chin up to give her a soft kiss, before taking the box out of her hands and putting it down with the rest.

"Do you want to unpack now, or have lunch first?" He asked, pulling his shirt over his head, to reveal a very muscled chest. Betty stared, even though she'd seen it thousands of times.