Darlin' ~ FP Jones

Shades of Cool

"Okay as your best friend in this town, you have to tell me what guy you're seeing." Polly questioned Harper as they walked home from school. Harper shrugged. Technically, she and FP were only friends. The warm June air brushed against the girl's faces as they walked down the sidewalk towards their homes. The two had become inseparable in school, unless Polly was with Jason.

"There's no guy." Harper said and Polly rolled her eyes. She knew Harper better than that by now.

"Please, then who were you texting all day like a mad woman?" Polly laughs now as Harper averts her eyes, almost smiling. She had ignored almost everyone and everything all day, glued to her phone typing away quickly to the man who paid all the attention in the world to her.

"Fine... there is a guy. But we're just friends." She probably shouldn't even consider FP as an option. Polly just shook her head. Harper desperately wanted to tell her all about FP, who he was, how they acted together, and how much Harper's feelings for him were steadily developing into more romantic feelings rather than platonic ones.

"Well, who is he!" Polly gushed with a gossipy tone, she grabbed onto Harpers hand swinging it as they walked along.

"You don't know him. He's from the South Side." Polly gasped, how scandalous. 

"If he's from South Side high, I probably know him! What's his name?" Harper just shakes her head.

"It's not that its... well he's older." Harper looks down, expecting to be judged.

"Oh! Harp you're bad!" Polly laughs.

"He's also a Serpent." Harper says. This time Polly widens her eyes.

"Damn! You're good you bagged an older Serpent?" Polly smiles and then pauses, "Was he that man that you were talking to when we all went to the Whyte Wyrm?" Her smile turns into a devilish smirk. 

"Well, yes actually, he is." Harper looks sheepishly at her best friend.

"He was super hot, for someone old enough to be our parent!" She laughs and stops again suddenly turning to Harper, wide eyed, "He is a dad. He's Jughead Jone's dad. I knew I recognized him from somewhere." 

"Yeah, I know." 

"Have you ever met Jughead before? Do you plan on telling him this? From stories I've heard, Jughead and his dad both have tempers to match. They don't get along." Polly looks at her friend again.

"Not yet and no why would I ever do that? Pol, it'll be fine. I trust FP and he is trying to improve his relationship with Jughead." Harper chuckles and Polly just shrugs.

"Moving on, that's amazing I'm super happy for you. How far have you two gotten?" She waggled her eyebrows not and Harper pushed her away gently.

"Well, we hugged once." Harper's cheeks redden.

"That's it? Come on Harper! If you like this dude, you gotta move on it. I mean if he's older and a Serpent, if you don't give him something to stick around for, why would he?"

"Alright alright little miss know it all!" Harper laughed. "How about you and Jason then?  Pol, somethings up with you. You're different. Just, I don't know, different." Polly stiffened at her friend's words, she looked away, hiding the tears that were brimming.

"No, nothing is different. Everything is the same. We are fine just normal." She whispered, trying to hide the shake in her voice.

"You know you can tell me anything?" Harper asks, putting a comforting hand around her friends shoulder. Maybe if she had pushed further, things would have gone differently.

"I know. But seriously don't worry about me Harper." She turns back to Harper, smiling sweetly as she always did. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" Polly says before turning onto her street, leaving Harper alone to think about everything.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"You ever think of just going to see your son? I think it would be good for you. And maybe for him too." She said quietly, hoping not to upset him. He shrugged his shoulders. They sat in his truck together driving to Harper's house after a long evening of chatting in Pop's over strawberry milkshakes, FP's favorite. There was nothing that she couldn't talk about with him. But, Harper knew he had secrets that he hadn't revealed yet. She also knew that whenever he talked about his son, he looked hurt and regretful. He loved his son, but he wasn't a good father.

"If he wanted to see me, he would. He knows where I live." He said, rolling his eyes. Harper just shook her head. She wished that FP put more effort into his relationship with his son. But she also knew how little FP thought of himself. 

"That's not necessarily true... If I were you, I'd give it a shot." She said, as they pulled up outside her house. FP didn't bother saying anything, he knew the girl would fire off her opinion anyway. That was one of the many things he loved about Harper.

"Do you know where he lives?" She asked and he nodded.

"I know where everyone lives. Gosh that sounded creepier than I intended." FP sighs and Harper just chuckles at him. She loved seeing him like this, quiet and funny when everyone else saw him as a criminal, she saw him as this man.

"Then go see him. FP he deserves a dad just as much as you deserve a son. Wrongs from the past can always be made right. Go and apologize and try and be the amazing dad I know you are." She said, sliding out of the truck and smiling at him from the doorway.

"Night FP." She said, closing the door and climbing up the steps to her house. He sat for a moment, considering everything with Jughead and his family. As he pulled away he thought of the girl, the only person that believed in him and didn't look at him and see a piece of garbage like everyone else did. 

"Who was that?" She said, peeking out the window as the green pickup pulled away. Harper's mother was waiting for her inside, watching her every move

"A friend." Harper said, beginning to climb the stairs. Her mother turned and watched her for a moment. She seemed so much happier. Her mother believed all her poking and prodding towards making friends helped somehow. Little did she know.

"How old is this friend of yours? From here he looked older." Her mother wasn't going to drop this. Harper turned around and sighed.

"He's a little older, not much." She lied. "Really good, stand up guy." She partially lied. "He's nice to me." She didn't lie. He was kind to her. He would never let anything happen to Harper, and she knew that. With him, no matter if they were at the Wyrm or at Pop's she felt safe.

"Well, as long as he's nice. Maybe you could bring him by for dinner sometime." She smiled up to her daughter, thinking that by "a little older" her daughter meant nineteen or twenty, not 47. Harper nods and smiles but when she turns her back she almost laughed.

"Oh please."