JUGHEAD X OC - WREAK HAVOC (PART 2)
Olivia lay stretched out on her friend’s bed, watching her adjust her makeup and fix her hair for what seemed like the hundredth time, letting out a small sigh. The original intent for this meet up – for her at least – was to catch up with her friends and finally get the ball rolling on her plan to make her chaotic life a little less lonely, but the whole evening the conversation kept drifting towards why Betty Cooper was sat perched by her vanity, fussing over her appearance; Archie Andrews.
Now, she loved her brother, but she feared that he was as clueless to the blonde’s romantic inclination towards him as a goldfish was to physics. And therefore, she just couldn’t get behind the big confession that Betty was determined to make, too worried about the girl’s feelings being hurt than to share in the growing buzz of the room. Kevin Keller, was on the complete other end of the emotional spectrum however.
“Are you excited? Nervous?” the boy asked, watching Betty fix her ponytail with a smirk.
“Both” Betty sighed blissfully, the pair chuckling as she spun around to smile at him “I haven’t seen him all summer”
“Which is why nerves are acceptable, but we agreed, Betty. It’s time. You like him. He likes you”
“Well, then why, Kevin, hasn’t he ever said or done anything?” she pointed at him with her blush brush.
“Because, Archie’s swell…” he chose his next words carefully - very aware that his over-protective sister was present - , getting up from the bed they shared as a precaution to the warning look she sent him “But like most millennial straight guys, he needs to be told what he wants, so tell him. Finally”
“Well. We’ll see. I mean it depends” Betty turned towards her female friend, a worried look in her eye “What do you think, Oli? Do you think I should tell him? How will he react?”
The ginger paused before she spoke, not wanting to hurt the girl but also wanting to prepare her in case her suspicions were correct.
“I think it doesn’t matter how he reacts, because your feelings are valid Betty. You need to get it out there, or the not knowing and hiding will just drive you insane. You’ve got to be honest with him, and even if he doesn’t feel the same way about you, you’d still want to be his friend, right?”
“Oh, my God” Kevin exclaimed, peering out the window with wide eyes.
“What?” Betty frowned, returning her attention to the boy.
“Game changer” he gawked at his view – the view of a very shirtless Archie who was also getting ready for the meet-up – the girls getting up to join him “Archie got hot. He’s got abs now. Six more reasons for you to take that ginger bull by the horns tonight”
“Ew gross” Olivia grimaced “I did not want that image in my head”
“And when were you going to mention this dramatic transformation, you snake?” Betty hit the girl lightly on her shoulder, the ginger letting out a surprised cry of pain.
“Oh you know me, I love a shocking twist. I thought I would let you discover it on your date. Now get away from the window, both of you. If Arch saw you in that pink bra I think he would die of embarrassment”
After sending Betty off on her mission and parting ways with Kevin, Olivia found herself sitting on her windowsill, head pressed against the glass as she hid away from her father’s worried watching. She had tried sitting in the living room with him and Vegas, the TV on and both of their heads turned in that general direction but neither paying attention to what they saw or what was being said, too caught up in their own minds. She could sense that that long dreaded serious talk was hanging in the air, so she feigned tiredness and gave the man a large hug and kiss on the head as compensation, before retreating to her little sanctuary.
Now her little lie seemed to hold more truth than she had originally thought, her head drooping slightly and her mind drifting into a blank nothingness. That was of course until she heard a rustling from the vines and bushes just outside, and some quiet cursing. Letting out a small sigh of amusement she got up from her comfortable position and opened the window, sticking out her head and grinning down at the figure clinging onto the side of her house for dear life.
“Hey Romeo, still not afraid of broken bones I see?” she called, watching her volume as to not alert her father of the intruder.
“Oh please, I would get a sprain at most” Jughead scoffed, gladly accepting her hands as she helped him up the last part of the climb and into the room.
“Well remind me to get that ladder from out of the garage, so then there’s no risk of a hospital visit” Olivia grinned, shutting the window before creeping over to her door and closing it as quietly as she could “So what brings on this little surprise. Here to break me out?”
“No late night adventures tonight, princess” the boy shook his head, slipping off his shoes and flopping onto her bed “I was on my way home from work and I thought I could squeeze in a power nap before I trek back”
“Well, it’s gonna have to be super quick, we have school tomorrow” She smiled, sitting down next to him and slipping off his beanie, tangling her fingers gently in the dark strands of his hair.
“Ugh, you’re so studious it’s aggravating” he hummed, letting out a content sigh as she played with the mop on his head “No more talk of school, it’ll only depress me more”
“Fine, school is vetoed” she agreed, twisting a particularly long strand up with a slight chuckle “You’re well overdue for a cut, mister. It’s a wonder you can see through this mess”
“Nah, it’s okay. I kinda like it long. I think it makes me look ruggedly handsome, don’t you?”
“Eh, that isn’t the word choice I would use” she teased, making the boy look up at her with narrowed eyes “But if you’re happy to keep it this length then fine. It’s your hair, your problem”
“Besides, when it’s short you can’t play with it like this” he continued, moving up so he lay his head on her thigh and closing his eyes as he enjoyed the attention.
“You make a valid point” the girl nodded “How else can I practice my braiding skills?”
“And there dies the last fraction of my masculinity, with a whimper and a French braid”
Olivia let out a quiet laugh, the pair falling into a comfortable silence as she continued to fuss him.
“I really am sorry Jug, for abandoning you all like that”
“It’s okay, you have a decent alibi so I’m willing to overlook it”
“No, I’m serious” she stopped playing with his hair, the boy sitting up and locking eyes with her “Even before I went away with my mom, I kept pushing you all away. And I’m sorry”
He smiled at the genuine look of guilt on her face, edging closer to wrap his arms around her in a tight hug.
“All is forgiven, Oli” he murmured “Well, it will be once I get that last milkshake you owe me”
Olivia stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the pink and white shirt she had just thrown on and letting out a nervous chuckle. This was it, the final push back into reality. She was really going back to that hellhole, and planned on pushing through it by the skin of her teeth if she had to, mentally preparing herself for all the fake smiles and dull chit chat she would have to make over the next few months. One thing she knew for certain, was that high school was not going to defeat her. It may have knocked her down momentarily, but now she was back in the ring and fighting strong.
She only had one specific goal for that day, and it was to talk and apologise to Cheryl for her recent lack of contact – she had been the only one to not respond to the girl’s texts after she had got back and she intended to set things right with her. The two had grown to have a mutual amount of respect for the other, and now the ginger feared that that almost friendship was torn to shreds by her disappearance. But that morning, instead of the normal feeling of dread, she felt a fiery passion stirring within her, a new found energy to fix the mess she had created, starting with Cheryl Blossom. Her little night spent relaxing with Jughead had been a real morale boost.
“Any small battle is a victory”
She hummed the mantra ingrained in her head as she walked down the stairs, following just behind her brother who seemed equally as angsty to get back to school as she was.
“Hey Dad. First day of school and I’m already late” He called, glancing at his phone as he rushed ahead, bending down quickly to greet the faithful dog waiting for them “Hey Vegas”
“Correction, we are late” Olivia chimed in “Like we are, every day. Why did you sound surprised?”
The pair walked into the kitchen, grabbing their things from the table and passing the correct books to the other in a practised act, their father walking through, usual red mug in hand.
“Hey, you uh stopping by the site later?” he asked his son.
“Dad, it’s my first day” Archie countered, stuffing his notebooks into his bags whilst Olivia ran to grab a bottle of water from the fridge.
“We gotta get you going in the office, so next summer you’re not on the crew”
“Well, I-I can’t” Archie shook his head, lying smoothly as he swung his backpack over his shoulders “I’ve got football try-outs. Or is that not okay?”
“No, no. It’s uh…okay” Fred nodded in understanding, smiling slightly “Good luck”
“If you need extra hands, I could always help you out dad” Olivia offered, feeling bad about the slightly disappointed look in the man’s eyes. Clearly, the two had spent almost the whole summer working together, and now it seemed he was going to miss out on that bonding time to school and Archie’s real interests.
“As kind as that offer is, you can barely lift this table” her father chuckled, motioning in front of him with a sly smirk.
“You’re right, but don’t say I didn’t offer” she agreed, placing a quick kiss on his cheek as she walked by him “See you later”
Archie gave his father one last smile before following after the girl, waiting until they were a safe distance from the house before she turned to him.
“So I’m guessing you haven’t told him about your new found love for the old six string yet” Olivia pressed, noticing his discomfort instantly as the subject was brought up.
“Yeah, and I would appreciate it if you didn’t either”
“Don’t worry, these lips are sealed”
They moved on to more light-hearted topics before finally parting ways when they reached the school halls. Olivia began her search for Cheryl but came up empty handed, wondering if the girl had decided to take the day off due to her grief. However, in her wanderings she did manage to find Kevin, the two walking the corridors and chatting away until they spotted Betty a few paces ahead of them talking with a girl she didn’t recognise.
“Is that the-?” she began.
“Hot new girl?” Kevin finished, looking the brunette up and down quickly before taking his friend’s hand and rushing over to them “I believe so”
“So, what’s the social scene like here?” the new girl asked “Any nightclubs?”
“A strip club called to Ho Zone and a tragic gay bar called Innuendo” he interrupted, rushing ahead of the pair and pulling Olivia with him, a bright smile flashed on his face as they walked backwards “Friday night’s football games and then tail-gate parties at the Mal-Mart parking lot-“
“I’m sorry” Olivia smiled to Betty as the blonde rolled her eyes “I tried to control him”
“Saturday night is movie night, regardless of what’s playing at the Bijou” Kevin continued unfazed, not even pausing to breathe “And you better get there fast because we don’t have reserved seating in Riverdale. And Sunday nights?”
He stopped, clasping onto Betty as she chuckled at the new girl’s delighted expression.
“Thank God for HBO” the boy concluded, his friend pulling out of his embrace and motioning towards him.
“Veronica Lodge, Kevin Keller” Betty grinned “Veronica’s new here, Kevin is-“
“Gay. Thank God” Veronica interrupted, shaking his hand quickly “Let’s be best friends”
“The quiet, polite one is Oli” Betty motioned towards the girl, the ginger waving slightly.
“Is it true what they say about your dad?” Kevin asked, unable to stop himself, Betty sending him a warning glare to drop the subject.
“That he’s the devil incarnate?” Veronica nodded, crossing her arms over her chest “I stand by my father. Does everyone here know?”
“Well I sure don’t” Olivia admitted “But I’m usually clueless, so no change there”
Veronica sent her a quick thankful smile before turning to the other two, both pulling strange faces as they tried to think of the best way to soften the blow.
“Wonderful” Veronica huffed “Ten minutes in and I’m already the Blue Jasmine of Riverdale High”
The girl stomped away, Betty turning to glare at Kevin before following after her.
“What?” he shrugged, scoffing as Olivia waggled her finger at him “Oh don’t give me that look”
Luckily after a few minutes of awkward talking, Betty explaining things about the school and the other two chiming in with quick witted responses, Veronica was eased out of her mood and soon they were all joking as if they were old friends.
“Oh, and of course, there’s the back to school-semi-formal-dance this weekend-“
Betty was interrupted by a sharp gasp, Veronica pulling her close to her side when she noticed a familiar face.
“There’s the hottie you were with last night” she whispered, watching him with hungry eyes “The red headed Ansel Elgort. Is he your boyfriend?”
“No, we’re just friends” Betty answered as Kevin simultaneously chimed in with “No, he’s straight”
“And he’s my brother, so can we keep the hottie comments to a minimum please” Oli screwed up her face in disgust.
“Hm, in that case mind putting in a word?” Veronica smiled as they began walking once again “I’ve tried every flavour of boy but orange”
“Actually to clarify…” Kevin interjected “Betty and Archie aren’t dating but they are endgame”
“You should ask him to the semi-formal then” Veronica nodded in Betty’s direction.
“She should, but I heard it might be getting cancelled. Because of what happened to Jason. They’re gonna tell us at the assembly”
“Who’s Jason and what happened to him?”
They paused for a brief moment to explain, not going into too much detail as they could tell by the empty nature of the hallway that the assembly was about to start, the small group making their way into the hall and taking their seats.
At the mention of the boy’s name, Olivia had felt her stomach tighten into knots, reminding the girl of her failed attempt to reconnect with her hurting friend. She hadn’t been there for Cheryl, but she could only hope the girl would forgive her in time, and that she could be there to support her now.
Any small battle is a victory.
Any small battle is a victory.
She continued to repeat the words in her mind, to try and fight against the overwhelming and louder sentence that had settled there.
Wishful thinking gets you nowhere.
turnnoffyourmind
discoholicmusic
romaincrisis
titsay
theartofmadeline
stormborns
kaledo-art
janainaart
gummygunk
dailybridgerton
andulkaphoto
pixelskylines