𝓛𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓑𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓭

𝒻𝒾𝒻𝓉𝓎-𝑜𝓃𝑒

A promise made by a hospital bed, is always a bitter one. Whether it's a promise to recover, a promise to become a better person or a promise of revenge, nothing goods comes from it.

After all, you either plague yourself until the end of times or your enemies.

+ + + +

Outside of the hospital, Sweet Pea emptied his stomach. Leaning heavily on his knees, he continued until the aching in his abdomen must hurt about as much as Fangs' wound. Sweat pearled on his forehead, his tanned skin a few tones lighter.

Toni leaned on the railing of the entrance staircase, just looking after him. He ran a hand across his face, looking up to the pink haired girl. "Any news?"

"He's still in surgery. F.P. and Jughead have called his mom and sister." Toni said, looking away from the pile of dirt near Sweet Pea's feet. "They're now headed to the sheriff station again, to see if they've got any news on the shooter."

The gunshot echoed through Sweet Pea's mind by memory. He clenched his fists, feeling his nails dig deep into the soft flesh of his palms.

"I swear to you, those Northsiders will be the death of us," he hissed between gritted teeth. Toni sighed. "Things are getting way out of control, Sweets. Why on earth are they even so riled up? Sure, they want justice for Midge Klump but blaming the Southside without evidence? It just seems so unnatural..."

"Unnatural?" Sweet Pea let out in disbelief. "They have been blaming us for years! Seriously, can't you see? And since Jughead joined us, everything went even worse!" Trembling with rage, he kicked a deserted trashcan. The unlucky object fell over, rolling down the empty parking lot until it halted underneath a lone street light.

"You should get some rest, Pea. Go back to Nellie. I'll stay here until the morning."

"Are you insane? I'm not leaving Fangs behind!" Sweet Pea stated. His breathing was ragged, desperation making it hard to think clearly.

"Cheryl is already on her way to stay here with me," Toni replied as if she hadn't heard his outburst. "You can go home."

Sweet Pea didn't even come up with a response as he instead ignored his fellow Serpent and thundered up the stairs. Ignoring her pleading, he ran past Toni and headed straight inside. The nurse he bombarded with questions made sure to get away from him as quickly as she could, safe behind the glass of her information desk.

Sweet Pea grunted and rolled his eyes, slamming his fist against the wall. Frustrated and tired, he leaned against the hard surface, sliding down until he reached the cold floor. He remained sitting there. His arms rested on his knees, his stare vacant.

If anything would happen to Fangs, he would kill Reggie and Archie, he thought. He'd seen their fight. He'd seen the gun dropping to the ground. It didn't even matter if Fangs would make it out or not. Those Bulldogs were going to suffer for their mistake.

+ + + +

After a panicked phone call from Toni, Nellie jumped out of the bed and quickly got dressed. Running towards the bus stop, she hugged herself closer in her oversized red hoodie. From what Toni had told her, Fangs had been shot. He was now in the hospital but he'd lost a lot of blood. Sweet Pea was losing it.

Nellie could only imagine what the sight of his best friend must've done to him. She couldn't imagine how she would feel if it had been Poppy who'd been shot right in front of her. Her mind played with the thought of calling her former best friend in hopes that she might have an answer to one of her many problems. But what would she say?

I found my dad. I want to ruin him. A mobster tried to assault me. I witnessed a madman's attack. My boyfriend's best friend just got shot. Oh, and did I mention I joined a gang?

Nellie shook her head. Now was not the time to dwell on the past. She needed to get to the hospital as fast as she could. Reaching the bus stop, she finally realised none would drive at 1 in the morning. Letting a curse slip from her mouth, she pushed her black hair back in thought. She could walk the distance but then she'd be on the road for over half an hour. With a murderer still on the loose, that option wasn't the most attractive one.

A motorcycle skidded to a halt just as Nellie was contemplating calling F.P. or Jughead to pick her up. Azure lifts the shield of his helmet to reveal his burning blue eyes.

"What are you doing here? It's the middle of the night?" The Serpent shot, his blazing gaze furious.

"I can ask you the same thing." Nellie bit back, crossing her arms over her shivering torso.

"I need a ride to Sweet Pea," she explained, too riled up to start a ridiculous argument with Azure.

"I'm heading his way," Azure said, motioning with his head for Nellie to take a seat behind him. Holding on tight onto his slender frame, the trees rushed by. Although still cold, the adrenaline and fear that was running through her, kept Nellie warm. They passed the hospital, leaving the dim streetlights behind them as Azure drove the motorcycle deeper into the center of town.

"Where are we going?" Nellie screamed against the wind. She had no idea if the gang member even heard her for he kept quiet.

However, their destination became clear when the fire of burning trashcans illuminated the bright blue shredded flags of Riverdale High.