What We Once Were: A Bughead Fanfic

Chapter 23.

On the first beep of Betty's alarm she shut it off immediately. Taking a long breath, she dreaded the thought of leaving her bed for the last time. She'd been here for a little less than two weeks after she'd gotten out of the hospital and it was time to return to her old life back in New York.

Betty turned to look at Jughead sleeping beside her. This wasn't the first night they'd slept together, they'd done this every night since the hospital. She'd gotten so used to sleeping beside him, Betty wasn't at all ready to leave him behind again. In the last two weeks, they'd gone out on late night dates, spent time together with Juliet and rekindled their relationship, Betty felt closer than ever to him and leaving him killed her.

She carefully crawled out of bed and freshened herself up in his bathroom, trying to be as quiet as possible as not disturb him. After she retrieved her suitcase by the bedroom door, Betty gave Jughead one last look before she closed the door slowly behind her.

She tip-toed into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of coffee, she had a three hour drive back to New York City to make it in on time for work at eight a.m.

As she sat at the table in the dim lighting, she heard the faintest footsteps coming from down the hall other shadows. "Mommy?" A tired, timid voice said.

"Jules, you should be asleep. What are you doing up?"

"I had a nightmare." She whispered, hugging her Nancy Drew book tight against her chest.

"Oh sweetie, I'm so sorry. What was it about?" Betty ushered for Juliet to come over to her. Juliet did and curled up on Betty's lap.

"You were driving away, and I kept calling out to you but you didn't answer me. You didn't see me, then you disappeared and grandma told me you got into a car crash. I dreamed you died mommy, and you didn't even say goodbye to me." She sniffled, burying her face into Betty's body.

"Oh, Jules, I'm so sorry." Betty rubbed circles around Juliet's back.

"Mommy, please don't go. Stay with daddy and me forever. We could live in Riverdale, why do you have to go mommy?" She questioned, her big blue eyes holding Betty's green ones.

"Sweetie, I wish I didn't have to go, but I have work out there. I need to make money to buy—"

"Buy me toys and food and the apartment. I know, but you can do that here. You can do that with daddy, he can help you and you can help him too." Juliet pushed, she'd heard this a million times and she was old enough to understand that her mother was not happy back in the city. Juliet has never seen her mom so happy until she saw her here with Jughead, it didn't make sense to her at all as to why her mom was going to run away from the people who made her happy.

"Sweetie, I wish it was that easy, but I can't stay here. Even though I want to more than anything." She said truthfully.

"Everyone you love is here mommy. Grandma, Ronnie, Archie, Alec, daddy and me. Why are you leaving them? Why are you leaving me?" Juliet's little voice cracked and tears began to roll down her cheeks. Betty hugged Juliet tighter and rocked her back and forth.

"I'll only be gone for a few weeks, and I'm not leaving forever, it's just for a little while. I'll call you everyday, and I'll call aunt Veronica and uncle Archie once a week. I'll still be here, just not in person. I won't be leaving them all ever again like what I did before." She answered honestly.

"You're still leaving mommy."

"I want to stay, but I have to work. I promise I'll call you the second I get to my office. But you'll get to have fun with daddy all day, and for the rest of the summer. You'll have fun, and I'll see you very soon." Betty promised, standing up and carrying Juliet back to her room.