What We Once Were: A Bughead Fanfic

Chapter 21.

"How? How are you alive?" Betty stuttered, "that—that's not possible. You were dead and we pushed you into the river. You weren't breathing."

Dodger slinked around Betty's chair, still playing with the switchblade between his fingers. "Jones got me pretty good. But he didn't finish the job like he'd hoped. I could hardly move, that's why when I finally crawled out of the river after floating for god knows how long. I swore that I would get my revenge. And now, I have. And when he comes for you like I know he will, I will finish the job he wasn't able to do with me. I'll kill him with my bare hands to make him suffer like I did, except this time, I'll let him die instead of living through it. I've thought of nothing else for five years." Dodger's voice hissed, he stopped pacing around and leaned in so close to her face, Betty cringed at his toxic breath sweeping across her face.

"This is where you come in Betty baby. Before I kill him, he will know that you have always been mine to take. That you will be mine and there is nothing he can do about it." His beady eyes bore into hers, she retaliated and leaned away from him.

"I'm not an object Dodger, and you're wrong." Her voice died off, as realization dawned on her. Betty's heart sank, she knew Jughead wouldn't come to her rescue, she didn't give him any reason as to why he should.

"Wrong? I'm never wrong, Jones is on his way as we speak. You are his weakness."

"He won't come for me." She said sadly.

Dodger chuckled, "and why would that be?"

Betty took a shaky breath, "there's no reason why he'd come for me. We fought and never resolved it, he probably hates me."

"Somehow I highly doubt that, he's still a foolish man, he'll follow you blindly off a cliff if you lead him. Like me, he's been waiting for you, but unlike me, he didn't know how to find you, or bring you back to him."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Betty baby, I've been watching you. I know your address in New York, I know your office number, office address, I know the preschool where you drop off Juliet. And I knew exactly how to bring you back to Riverdale." He deadpanned, tracing his fingers along Betty's face.

"You murdered those girls to get my attention?" She asked, horrified at this sick man standing before her.

"Of course I did Betty baby. I had them all in my class, and each of them reminded me of you. Personality. Looks. Attitude. Extracurriculars. They were all a separate part of you. I've missed you, I've wanted and thought of nothing else but you for five years. And now here you are, home, and safe under my protection. You and Juliet will be happy with me, and I with you. Everything will be exactly what should've happened, you should've been with me and not Jones. You and I will finally be together, we will be a family."

If Jughead had said something like this, Betty would've fallen helplessly into his arms and would've been overjoyed to hear those words spoken from his lips. She would've told him she loved him and that she'd never stopped, even though she'd tried to hide from the blissful truth. Tears filled her eyes, she'd blown it with him and she should've told him yesterday that she loved him still, she should've said that to him when she knew she did. And now, he wouldn't come to her side, and her heart broke.

"Dodger, you're a sick man. Killing those girls just to get me to come back? You've always been so creepy, always watching me. You never said anything to me at all, just watched me. And the fact that you almost killed my boyfriend, makes you even more sick! What on earth would make you think this would make me fall in love with you?!" Betty shrieked as Dodger slapped her across the face.

She whimpered as her cheek stung from his slap, "I have my ways. And besides, Jones did way worse things and you still loved that son of a bitch."