it's nice to have a friend
pairings: betty/reggie
rating: T
words: 10k+
summary: walks home with betty turn into a regular thing for reggie. those walks turn into conversations. those conversations into friendship. or their version of friendship.
or, the version of season one where betty and reggie are friends.
A/N: i've been working on this for the better part of a year, and i don't think there's much interest in it anymore, if there was any. i finished it because i love this pairing and i have a soft spot for this version of them. this is the longest thing i have written in a while and i'm glad i finished it.also, there's a hint of archieronnie in here because i wouldn't be me if i didn't include them, even in the smallest capacity.
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She's not sure how long she sits there crying, but her eyes start to get sore, and her throat gets hoarse. When she finally looks up, she sees Reggie sitting across from her leaning against the wall, and he's staring at his hands. He doesn't say anything at first. In fact, she doesn't think he's noticed her looking at him, so she clears her throat.
"I saw you walk away from Andrews crying," he says, clearing his throat when he finally looks up. "I wanted to check on you, but I didn't know what to say or do." He pauses, looking down at his hands nervously. "I'm not really good at the whole comforting thing."
His parents weren't the affectionate type. His mother stopped being affectionate once he'd hit double digits. He's more likely to be on the receiving end of his father's fists than an 'I love you.' There was a time when he'd craved any kind of love he could get from them, but he's grown used to the way things are.
He shakes his head and looks back at her. "You wanna talk about it?" Listening is all he can really offer.
"Not really," she says, her voice hoarse. "But only because I'm not really sure what I can say that you don't already know," she says and looks at her knees. "I like Archie, and Archie doesn't like me, and it hurts. I know I can't be mad at him, but I am. I'm mad he doesn't like me. I'm mad he went into that closet with Veronica. And most of all, I'm mad at myself for even thinking he sees me that way. I'm not the kind of girl guys have crushes on. I'm the nice girl that their girlfriends don't mind them being friends with because I'm plain. That's who I am."
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