The Serpent of Love

10. Back to school

September 8, 2017

"Hey, Jug," I hear my mom's voice and behind my closed eyes see the light being turned on. "You gotta wake up," she says, squatting down in front of my bed. I pull the duvet over my head and she pulls it down to my chest. "Jughead, I mean it. I'm not going to do this until you finish high school. Get up. Now."
I slowly open my one eye, but the brightness kills me, so I close it again and go under the duvet, making my mom sigh. "Jughead, I'm serious. You're not gonna be late for school on the first day... Jelly's gonna eat all your pancakes."
My eyes go open and I sit up, trying to get my eyesight back. "You're incredible," she laughs and gets up and goes out of the room.
"Jelly, my food is mine!" I yell, going out of the room.
"I haven't tasted it yet," she murmurs tiredly, sitting in the breakfast table with our parents. I fall down next to her onto my chair and pull the pancakes in front of me.
"Half of them are for us," my dad says, pointing his finger at me.
"Yeah yeah," I mumble, lifting five onto my plate. The first one I make with Nutella and banana, the second one with sugar, the third with jelly and the two last ones I eat with maple syrup.
"Are you like ever full?" Jelly asks as I take a few more.
"Can't say I am..." I look at her and see how she's picking at her food. "Nervous?"
"Hmm," she just answers quietly, which really doesn't say anything.
"It's Riverdale, Jelly. You know everyone who goes to your class and school. It'll be okay," I say and give her hair a nice ruffle, making her smile.
"I don't know what classes I have," she says.
"Junior High isn't any different from Primary, believe me. Well besides Sloppy Joe," I smirk.
She giggles. "His name isn't even weird for me. You say he makes good food, right?"
"The best. Last year we went to high school and still went to eat there with Betty a few times."
"Is Betty okay?" she asks.
I frown. "What?"
"Have you texted her already?"
"No, I came to get my food. Why?" I ask worriedly.
"I don't think she's up," she shrugs.
"If there's one person who's harder to get up than Jug, it's her," my mom agrees and dad nods with me.
I shrug. "Maybe at least one of us can sleep in normally," I say with a sigh, making them laugh.

When I walk into the classroom, there are two things I notice immediately. The first one is that as usual, many girls and guys make themselves look extra cool on the first day back, including Cheryl, Toni and Reggie who seem to have all the energy possible. And the second one is that my group is sleeping. Betty and Veronica behind their table Archie behind them, the place next to him empty for me. Betty's head is on Ronnie's shoulder, hers on Betty's head and Archie is basically straddling all over our table.
I walk to my three best friends with a smile and before they can even notice I'm here, I give Ronnie a kiss on her head, for Betty a longer one on her forehead and then shove Archie off his chair, making everyone in the class laugh, including me and him.
"The fuck dude, why can't you just kiss me too?" he chuckles, sitting back up on the chair.
"That wouldn't be fun," I chuckle and point at Kevin and Fangs making out furiously.
"Mph, it does look kinda gross," Veronica agrees, observing them.
Suddenly Betty is on my lap, pulling her legs up and then after that curling up. "Baby, what are you doing?" I ask quietly with a smile and kiss her temple as she snuggles her face into my chest, my arms around her so that she wouldn't fall. How is it even possible for a 15 year old girl to curl up like she's 5?
"I'm tired, just give me a snuggle," she murmurs.
"Betts, we're at school," I smile into her hair, eyes closed, nose nuzzled against her head.
"Well too bad, you're already doing it," she mumbles.
I chuckle as I see the teacher we've never had coming in with a tired face. "The teacher's here," I whisper to Betty. She sighs and raises her head, observing her. "Literature," I say quietly, hoping to get her into a better mood. It's our favorite subject.
She kisses my cheek and then sighs, getting off my lap. I smile at her skinny jeans and a sweater; back to her school mode.
"Hi everyone, I am Ms. Griffins, I'll be your teacher for this and probably the next year's literature," the teacher says.
"Do you live in Greendale?" Reggie asks, making all of us chuckle.
"Yes, I do, Mr.-?"
"Mantle, miss," he smile.
"Well, Mr. Mantle, do you have a girlfriend?" We all start laughing so hard.
"Why is that important?" he asks, confused.
"Why is it important where she lives, asshat," Archie grins and throws his pencil against Reggie's hair.
"Thank you, Mr. Andrews," the young woman smirks and starts with the class normally.
With only one class and one hour, I already have a favorite teacher.

"Hey, how was history?" Betty asks, Archie and V next to her making out when I sit on the stands next to her.
"Your sister was right, the teacher sucks," I say, making her smile just a little. "Everything okay?" I ask.
"Yeah," she smiles and hands me one of her earphones. I put it into my ear and move closer to her, taking out my food. Cheryl, Toni and Kev come and sit with us, everyone else still buying their food.
My eyes go on Betty as she doesn't even greet our friends. I see the saddest sight. She's looking down at her lap, fiddling with her fingers, a sad frown on her face, shoulders raised up a little. Whatever it is, she doesn't want to tell me. So I'm not gonna bother her with it. I just move against her side and wrap both of my arms around her, pulling her head against my shoulder.
She smiles a little as I give her nose a quick kiss and snuggles herself more into me. "Whatever it is," I start and she looks up at me with the same sad face. "I love you," I say.
She smiles at that and I give her three kisses on her cheek. "I know," she sighs, wrapping her arms around my torso, head resting on my chest now.

September 17, 2017

I look at Betty sitting next to me on my bed. Me wearing my pajama pants and she panties and my flannel that falls on her mid thigh. She's not eating, just twirling a fry in her fingers, staring at it. She's been real quiet the whole day since lunch and I don't know what's wrong.
"Betts?" I ask and she looks up at me. "Do you wanna tell me what's wrong?" She shrugs. "Come on, why not? You always tell me everything..."
"You're gonna get angry."
"I could never get angry at something that makes you sad," I say, my hand on her shoulder now. She sighs and looks down.
"I'm fat," she just says. Just as I'm about to protest, she continues. "I see myself in the mirror in the mornings and I have a flat stomach and I look okay. Then when I go to school, my body changes even if I don't eat anything and I can't hold it back either," she explains quietly, staring at her lap. "Why does it change that much? Every clothes I look great in when I choose it just makes me look even fatter in a few hours."
That's why she isn't eating or talking to everyone. She's trying to hold herself back from getting 'fat' and hiding her sad voice.
"Baby," I sigh and take her head in between my hands. "First, you are not ugly. Second, you are definitely not fat and third, I love you."
She smiles a little, still looking sad. "I just don't get it... Why couldn't I be as skinny as Veronica or Cheryl or Josie," she murmurs, staring into my eyes.
"Because you are not them," I say softly, caressing her cheeks with my thumbs. "You won't ever look like them. You all have different bodies and you're all beautiful... If you asked me who was the most beautiful one, I'd say you. Definitely you."
She sighs sadly. "You're my boyfriend, you're supposed to think that."
I smile at that a little. "Don't worry, I'll always think that. You're the most beautiful girl in the world, no matter what other people look like. And about your clothes... I think you look amazing in them and beautiful and cute, but personally I'd still take you with none on."
That earns a giggle from Betty, who is now smiling. She hugs me tightly and I hug her back, brining her closer to me a little. "Thank you," she says quietly and is smiling when we part.
"Just tell me next time, okay?" I sigh. "I was worried... Also..." She puts a few fries in her mouth and looks at me while eating, which makes a little smile onto my mouth. "Who were they?"
She gulps the food down, holding the eye contact with me, knowing what I asked. "Baby," I sigh. "Who told you you were fat?"
"Doesn't matter. He's just a jerk," she says, rolling her eyes.
"I'm gonna kill him," I say, talking about Chuck. He's the one who says these things to Veronica and Betty. Now we're back at school and it starts again.
"No," she says, hand on my arm now. "You're not. You promised not to get angry and Jughead Jones doesn't break his promises," she insists.
"Betty," I chuckle.
She shakes her head. "No." Her eyes go onto my half eaten burger and she takes it and starts eating it herself. Usually I'd protest, but she hasn't eaten basically anything today, so I just pull her to sit on my lap and rest my cheek on her head, arms going back around her.
"I feel like a little kid," she says and looks at me with narrowed eyes.
"Me too, don't worry," I say, making her laugh with me,, giving the burger back to me to get the last bite. I open my mouth and she puts it in and then pecks my lips as I eat. "Don't do that, it's gross," I tell her.
"No it's not. You're sexy when you eat," she says kind of shyly, blushing a little at her own words.
I smirk. She's never said that word before. "I guess I'm sexy all the time then," I tease.
She looks at me. "Yeah you are," she says with a baby voice and kisses me on my jaw a few times, moving to my mouth and then kisses away the mayo from the corner ow my mouth after what she gives me a peck on my lips and then kisses my cheek, hand caressing my other one.
"You'll be a great mom," I chuckle. She gives me a wink with a smile and opens the next burger from it's wraps.