Rainy Days ▸ BUGHEAD

chapter twenty one

buzz buzz buzz

my phone buzzed on the floor later that night. i rose my head just barley from the air mattress, to see if it was just a dream. as expected, it was real.

but who would be calling me at such an hour?

i weakly reached over to pick up the phone. without looking to see who it was, i swiped right to answer.

"hello?" i whispered, so i wouldn't wake up archie.

"juggie it's me." a voice said.

"don't know a juggie it's me, you're gonna have to be clearer" i whispered back.

"it's me." the voice said. "betty cooper."

i got frustrated, how did i not know betty's own voice? but that wasn't what i was mainly focused on. i wanted to know what was with the late night phone calls. betty never calls me, and even if she did wouldn't it be at a normal hour?

is this what people who have gone through what we've gone through do?

"is everything okay?" i begin with.

"not at all." betty said, heavily breathing. "look i need you and archie to get down to sweet water river, as soon as possible. i'm shaking to much, so i'll explain when you arrive."

"betty, i..." i said before being interrupted.

"don't ask questions!" betty butted in. "just get archie and come here NOW!"

betty hung up the phone, leaving me a cliff hanger. i wondered what was so bad that it couldn't wait until morning. i mean i be be a man, but men need beauty sleep too.

but i better listen to betty, i thought i would  regret not going. so i guess we start off with step number one, wake up archie.

now for any normal person, waking someone else up isn't always hell, depending on whom you choose to wake. but archie, he might as well be sleeping beauty, without the beauty. because once he wakes up, things get ugly.

i walked over to his bed, and begin whisper shouting. "archie wake up!"

however this was a failed experiment, i had to use my trusty plan b. whenever he wouldn't wake up at our sleepovers this was my go to plan. it's one that never failed me once.

ice water to the face.

i mean it's practically genius right? i mean pouring ice water on someone's face is certainly gonna give em' a chill. and a punch to the face or balls, depending on their preference. but even with the pain, it still gives you a laugh.

and as i expected, the ice water worked. and my first task was complete. now was the hard part of it, dealing with grumpy archie. and i haven't since that since grundy left town, but we don't speak about that.

no one speaks of it.

archie sat up in his bed. "yo dude what the f-"

i cover his mouth before the word slips out. "okay i know you're mad, i can explain. betty called me, she needs us at sweet water, now."

one of archie's eyebrows goes up. "what's so important that it can't wait until morning?"

"she didn't have time to explain." i told him. "betty told me she'd explain when we get there."

"go without me, it can wait until morning." archie said, pulling his covers over his head.

before too long i pull them back. "don't you understand? betty's in trouble, and she wanted us to be there for her. not just me, but you archie. and the fact that you'd choose sleep over a girl who has been there for you and was your best friend since the 1st grade, is straight up ridiculous. for once archie andrews, do something for her. do it for your best friend. think of someone else than your damn self, okay?"

archie sighed at my long rant. "fine, just promise you'll never go on that deep route again."

i nodded, as i fully took off archie's bed spread. he quickly grabbed a dirty shirt from his floor, and the turned back to me.

"so what's the big deal about this anyways?" archie asked me.

"if i knew i'd tell you." i said.

and as soon as you could think, we were on our way. we had to be dead silent though. if mr. andrews knew we snuck out, it might have ended badly. so archie used a ladder, that was previously set.

he must be an expert on sneaking out.

we both climbed down, making little noise. and then we both start running. we ran for countless miles, a number not even i knew. but luckily this town was small enough it only took half and hour.

and the we reached the blonde beauty.

when we saw her, she looked like she'd been to hell and back. she had mascara lines down her face, and messy hair. it sort of reminded me of carrie, minus all the blood.

but what i also noticed a car, that seemed to be crashed. it was a nice car too, one only wealthy folk could get their hands on. yet it didn't really add up, at least without betty's explanation, which was on its way.

"hey betty, were here. now explanation please?" i asked after some inspecting.

archie's eyes darted to the car crash. "and what happened to this nice car?"

betty took a deep breath. "well after court, cheryl treated me and polly to a dinner at pops. it was all nice and stuff, but that's not the point. the point is, after cheryl offered to drive her home. when i came to give her some supplies she wasn't in the shack. i looked hours for her and then i found her."

"okay this doesn't sound bad. expect for the fact she isn't here. where is she?" archie asked.

betty walked over to the car. she took the keys from off the grass, and unlocked it. as the car door opened, a dead body rolled out from within.

"here." betty said.