1 | There's a Ghost [JUGHEAD JONES]

TWENTY SEVEN

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN:
UNRAVELING TRUTH

GINNY HOPKINS NEVER THOUGHT that her friends would ever find out about her home life. But sadly, today was that day. She had gone to the bar her mother had frequented often– the one that she ran into FP Jones that summer day.

The young brunette went because she was allowed to drink alcohol, no one there gave a shit that she was underage. So there she was, drinking after school instead of at Pop's. She was moodily staring at her drink, knowing Jughead was probably with Betty. Virginia Hopkins had found a spot at the bar, knowing some alcohol would cure the blinding headache that she had. After waking up at noon to an empty house, she walked down the street to the Whyte Wyrm bar.

The young girl didn't know when it became habitual for her to go to the bar, maybe it was her mother who made her go there– maybe it was just the thought of alcohol that persuaded the girl to drown her thoughts away.

Ginny left her phone at home, knowing the only person who wanted to talk to her was Jughead, and right now, she didn't want to hear from her best friend. Her thoughts were plagued by their almost kiss.

She definitely needed to talk to Jughead about this. Shit, his birthday was coming up! Virginia cursed herself for being so stupid. She knew that Jughead wasn't a birthday person. He enjoyed his movie marathon and milkshakes at Pop's. But, with that came the tradition of Ginny giving him a small present: a journal. Each year she would find a new notebook for her best friend.

Maybe it was the old school heart in her but she felt that the best works were written on paper. Although Jughead typed his story, she knew that he would use her present– he always did.

Ginny yanked one of the cigarettes from her pack that rested beside her drink, grasping her lighter in the other hand. The hand she held the small piece of wrapped nicotine was wrapped from the other night, she frowned at the thought of the altercation she was in. Ginny lit it quickly, sucking on the death stick before exhaling smoke in relief. From the corner of her eye she saw a blur of a redheaded person approaching her.

"Ginny?" Archie asked, shocked as he walked up to his friend. He took a double take when he noticed her smoking, at a bar.  "What the hell are you doing here?"

Ginny coughed through the smoke, waving her hand that held the cigerette around to clear the air and her lungs. "Archie? What the f–" She paused, watching her other friends gather around her, confused to why she was there. Archie, Kevin Keller, Moose, and Joaquin where there.

It was a good question, none of them really knew she frequented this area since her mom practically lived there. She knew Joaquin, she just didn't know that Kevin was dating him. She glanced at Joaquin and he shrugged, his eyes glued to the ground as he tried to avoid the confrontation happening in front of him.

"You need to get out of here, Ginny." Archie told her with a frown, worry etched in his features. "It's dangerous here."

Virginia scoffed, tilting her head to the side to look at her friend in disbelief. "Archie, I know dangerous," she flipped open her pocketknife that hid in her jacket pocket. After her first visit to the bar, she always came prepared.

"And when did you start smoking?" Archie shook his head, disappointed in his friend and Ginny frowned, wondering when Archie became such a concerned friend/parental figure.

"I smoke once in awhile," she shrugged, leaning back onto the bar. "What the hell are you doing here?" She prayed he didn't acquire more of her presence at the bar.