Co-parenting

Chapter 22

Veronica, Archie, Betty and Jughead sit in the backyard of Archie's house. Valerie runs around with Vegas Junior. Her hair flutters in the wind.

"V, Archie we have to tell you guys something" Betty grins. She intertwines her fingers with Jughead's and squeezes his hand. "We're engaged"

"Oh my god" Veronica squeals. She jumps up and wraps her arms around Betty. "I'm so happy for you"

"Thanks" Betty giggles.

"Congrats guys" Archie smiles.

Jughead turns slightly to Valerie and asks her to come over. The little girl giggles and climbs into Jughead's lap. "Auntie Betty and I want to ask you something"

"What?"

"So first of all we're getting married"

"Really?"

"Mhm"

"That's so cool" Valerie smiles and claps her hands.

"So now our question, will you be our flower girl"

Valerie gasps "YES YES YES" She wraps her arms around Jughead's neck and holds him close. She looks to Betty before she blows her a little kiss. "Thank you"

"No need to thank us honey" Betty smiles "oh and V, will you be my bridesmaid"

"Of course!" Veronica squeals. Tears stream down her cheek. Her pregnancy hormones make her really emotional. She basically cries all day long.

"Archie?" Jugend grins "will you be my best man?"

"Sure bro, definitely"

"Can mommy and I wear matching dresses?" Valerie asks. She lets go of Jughead and reaches for Veronica.

"Sure" Betty smiles.

"Let me get some beers to celebrate" Archie says and gets up "Ronnie baby, what do you want? Water? Juice? Tea?"

"Water please" she smiles and sets Valerie down. The little girl wraps her arms around her mom's legs and leans her head closer to her stomach. "Hello little baby" she whispers "I love you"

Veronica's eyes water again. She plays with Valerie's hair and tries to keep her tears from falling.

"Betty?" Jughead whispers "I want one of those too"

She giggles "One step at a time. Let's gets married first"

•••

"Come on honey, go to bed. I'll be there in a minute"
Veronica says to her daughter. She sits on her parents's bed and pats the little puppy. Her hair is braided into a French braid and she wears a purple pyjama.
The little girl sighs. She kisses Vegas's head and reaches her arms out towards Archie. He lifts the girl into his arms and kisses her cheek.

"Come on Val" Veronica laughs.

"Okay fine, goodnight daddy" Valerie smiles and kisses Archie's cheek.

"Goodnight my little princess" Archie grins and sets her down. Valerie runs into her room and leaves her parents alone.

Archie walks closer to Veronica. He grabs her hands and intertwines their fingers. "Betty and Jug are engaged"

"I can't believe they're getting married. This is so exciting" Veronica squeals.

"Mhm, now you don't need to worry about me kissing Betty again" he laughs.

Veronica's jaw drops. She pulls her hands out of his grip. This wasn't funny, not at all. "Excuse me?"

"Ronnie baby, I was joking"

"No, this was one of the most stupidest things you have ever said and you said a lot of stupid things" she says. A few tears form in her eyes.

"Ronnie, I'm sorry" he mumbles. He takes a step towards her and tries to kiss her but she pushes him away.

"No!"

"Please don't cry and don't stress, I'm really sorry but try to stay calm. You're pregnant"

"I can handle myself"

"I'm sorry Ronnie" Archie sighs "I love y-"

"You'll sleep on the couch tonight!"

"Ronnie-"

"No, no Ronnie. Couch!" she says.

Archie sighs and nods. He walks towards Veronica and kisses her cheek but she doesn't react. She rolls her eyes and waits for him to leave. After he took a few steps he turns back to her "Just know that I love you"

"Go!" Veronica says loudly.

The tears now run down her cheeks. She takes a deep breath, wipes the tears away and then walks into Valerie's room to check on her.

The little girl lies in her bed with a bunch of stuffed animals in her arms.

"Mommy, are we moving back to New York now?"

"What? Do you miss New York? We can spend the weekend there if you want"

"No but I heard you and daddy fight"

"Oh honey, daddy said something stupid that's why I got mad but that's normal. Mommies and daddies fight sometimes even though-" she stops and sighs before she closes her eyes and continues "even though they love each other. We're staying here, with him. Don't worry my love"

"Okay mommy"

"Goodnight mija" Veronica whispers. She kisses her daughter's forehead and runs her fingertips over her cheek.

"Nighty mom"

"Mom?" Veronica laughs "You're five years old. You called me mommy like 2 minutes ago. I'm mommy, understood, missy?" Veronica says while tickling her daughter.

Valerie squeals. Her laughter release Veronica's heart from the pain Archie caused. She feels so much better. Her daughter's eyes shine, her beautiful hazel brown eyes. She leans down and places a couple of kisses on Valerie's cheek.

"I love you baby"

"I love you too mommy"

Veronica laughs. She kisses Valerie one last time before she walks back into the bedroom.

•••

It's 2 am and Veronica can't sleep. She feels sorry for yelling at Archie. What he said did hurt her but he apologized and she knows she overreacted. She gets up, wraps her blanket around herself and walks towards the living room. Her heart breaks when she sees him lying on the couch without a blanket. "Oh Archiekins" she whispers.
She lays the blanket over him and gets under it, next to him. The second she lies down she feels Archie's arm wrapping around her waist before he pulls her into his chest. "Ronnie" he whispers.

"I'm sorry Archie. I know I overreact"

"It's okay baby. You're pregnant, you're carrying my child. If that means I have to sleep on the couch every now and then, I'm happy to do it"

"You're so cute. I love you"

He chuckles and kisses the back of her head. "I love you too. Do you want to go back to bed?"

"No, I don't want to move"

"Okay fine then we'll stay here"

"Just hold me Archiekins" she sighs.

He chuckles and kisses the back of her head again. He places his hand on her stomach and slowly strokes it with his thumb. "I'll never let you go again"