08. for any of ours if you’re so inclined
08. i slip on some ice and you’re the stranger who catches me
“I don’t know about this.” Betty eyed the ice warily, and received an eye roll from her older sister in response. This was her first time back at the rink since a traumatic incident when she was twelve, and Betty could still feel the sting of her tailbone as it smacked against the hard ground as she fell. Her fingers hesitantly laced up the skates that she had rented from the counter a few feet away but she made no move to get up off the bench and join the merry skaters circling around. She really wanted to be spirited and live out her dreams of being Tessa Virtue but she also didn’t want to spend her Christmas break sore with her pride injured as well. Watching Polly as she grabbed Jason’s hand and left Betty to her stewings, Betty let out a soft sigh. She missed the days before Polly discovered boys and realized they were more interesting than her younger sister. Back then, Polly would’ve given her the ultimate pep talk and bribed her with a hot chocolate from Pop’s if she just gathered some courage.
Instead, Betty had to chew her bottom lip for a few minutes as she watched little Tony Turner wave at her cheerfully as his mother helped him onto the ice. Was she going to let children she babysat have more fun than her? Was she going to be Riverdale’s scaredy-cat? No. She was going to give herself her own pep talk, damn it, and she was going to definitely hold onto the rails for the majority of the time as she skated around.
Baby steps.











