Aberration ≫ Jarchie

F O R T Y - S E V E N

Sixteen Years Old ❣︎ November

Somehow, house parties in high school just automatically scream sex. Someone always ends up getting laid somewhere when there's alcohol involved.

Tonight that person is Archie Andrews.

The seniors of the football team have been throwing parties almost every Friday night since school started, serving as their legacy for their final season.

Like any random house party, everyone is basically welcome in, and almost everyone did come to every single party.

Except Jughead.

Parties have never really been his thing and he'd rather sit home and binge watch old Nickelodeon shows instead. Reggie always begs him to come, but it's just something Jughead never really wants to do. He can't dance, he refuses to drink, he's definitely not hooking up, and he hates most popular music so why would he want to go?

Archie on the other hand, loves them. It's probably for the wrong reasons though. He does what he has to to fit in and not cause problems. He likes being ¢øøł with everyone, and going to parties with the football team is just sort of expected of him. That's just how it goes.

The party starts out just like all of the other parties. The seniors bring out the beer keg, someone turns on some dance or rap music, and people come swarming in like flies throughout the entire night. Archie doesn't drink, but he usually carries around a red cup in his hand for show because again, that's just sort of expected of him. Then he usually avoids Val throughout the entire night by staying with the football team, Reggie in particular. Archie had managed to figure out that the key to parties is to blend in. Talk and smile to a few people, but don't talk for too long or smile too much. Don't sit down, because that draws more attention than dancing, but don't dance too well or else people will start cheering you on.

The key for Archie in any situation is to blend in, and maybe that's why he isn't happy now. He's content.

He built up his reputation since middle school by trying to hang out with the right people and be compliant with the right people. He's put things that look better for his reputation over things he actually cares about. He's spent almost five years creating Archie Andrews; the cute redhead that plays football and dates one of the hottest girls in school. The guy who everyone likes, who nobody has a problem with, the guy you want to be in high school.

And this is why he isn't happy.

And maybe he isn't really content either.

Lately, he's starting to realize that all the attention and passes he gets for being who he is in high school, isn't worth all the stuff he's given up lately.

He practically gave up music for a sport that doesn't make him as happy. He gave up his best friend for a girl who doesn't make him as happy. He's been unbelievably selfish for the last five years, and none of this has made his life better in anyway.

He's too young to have all of these regrets, but his biggest regret will always be Jughead. Why did he have to treat him like that? Part of it is that he doesn't think he has a chance with him, but the more selfish part of it is that he's afraid.

He afraid how people will treat him for liking a boy if they find out.

He doesn't want to stand out, he just wants to blend in and that definitely isn't his definition of blending in.