stay away

Part 14.1

Betty pov

Every time I look at my phone I hoped to have a message from Jughead. I know that it was totally stupid and dangerous to get involved with the leader of the Serpents like that, but as he himself had already noticed, I can't keep my hands off him, because I am drawn to him like a magnet. Cheryl and Veronica were still very skeptical about us, but they couldn't say anything against it because they were in a similar situation themselves. Cheryl and Toni were getting stronger while Veronica also had to admit that she might be attracted to a certain Sweet Pea. Until recently, I thought Veronica was mourning her ex Archie but obviously she's finally over him. Good for her because he never really loved her and was never there for her in difficult situations. I hope she finally finds her deserved happiness.

Today there was still no text from him on my phone and I thought about writing him first, although I didn't really want to, because I didn't want to come across as too needy. So I tried to survive the rest of my shift without constantly wondering why he wasn't texting me.

Bret wasn't the annoying person he usually was today for a change and left me alone for once, maybe because he had seen that huge hickey I got from Jug the other day. He even avoided me for several days, which I found absolutely childish but at least I had a relaxed time.

Right after I left the hospital to enjoy my night off, Bret caught up with me and wanted to talk to me about an important topic. I invited him to join me at Pop's but he declined and suggested we go for a walk instead.

"So spit it out, Bret. What's so important?" I asked when we were crossing the bridge over the Sweetwater river. It was quiet and you could hear the pleasant sound of the river below us.

"What's going on between you and this Jughead?" His voice was filled with curiosity and annoyance. He just can't stop talking about this topic, can he?

"Look, I know you don't like that Jughead and I have contact with each other but it's my life and I don't owe you an explanation. Why can't you just let it go?" I knew that I was quite harsh with him and he was probably just worried about me but it got on my nerves.

"Of course I don't like that you are involved with this criminal. He can' t offer you anything except a life full of violence." he hissed and looked at me with a stern look, as if he wanted to force me to see Jughead as the bad one.

"How do you know that and why do you even care?" I snapped at him and stopped to restrain my anger.

"BECAUSE I LOVE BETTY AND DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU FIND IN HIM, IF YOU COULD HAVE ME!" he confessed and yelled at me. Luckily we were alone, at least I thought so, because otherwise this scene would have been even more embarrassing. Did Bret seriously just confess his love to me?

"Wha...what?" I stammered, unable to formulate a proper sentence.

"You must have known, Betty." a voice came from the background and made me freeze to death. Are you kidding me? Where does he always come from?

"What do you think she must have known?" Bret asked into the darkness to realize after a few moments that the voice belonged to Jughead. Immediately his attitude became aggressive and his eyes darkened as the leader of a gang approached him and provocatively stood in front of him. The size ratio between them was completely balanced and nobody took a step back.

"The way you ran after her, like a little puppy, she knew for sure that you had a crush on her. But that you are in love with her is also new to me, because I thought and still think that you only want sex." Jughead poisonously spit out while his hands clenched into fists. This whole thing is going to escalate faster than I thought, I had to do something.

"Please guys, let it go. No one-"

"How can you still take his side after knowing what he is?" Bret interrupted me and looked at me angrily.

"I don't take sides, I just want to avoid you doing anything stupid." I cleared him up and shook my head in disbelief.

"He's got you wrapped around his finger and you can't even see it. I never thought you would spread your legs for him so fast and become one of his sluts. I guess I was wrong about you, Betty." he finished his sentence, turned around and was just about to leave when Jughead grabbed him by the shoulder, turned him around and punched his fist right into Bret's face. In an instant you could see blood spurting and probably hear a broken nose. The punches that Jughead gave were so precise and fast that I could hardly react. Bret was unable to defend himself while Jughead sat on him and beat him tirelessly. He would kill him if I didn't do something immediately.

"JUGHEAD, STOP IT! YOU WILL KILL HIM!" I yelled at him and tried unsuccessfully to stop him from doing any more damage. So I grabbed the knife I saw in his back pocket and stabbed him in the shoulder blade. Immediately Jughead cried out in pain and let go of Bret who was lying on the floor whimpering and bleeding.

"SHIT Betty, what was that about? Are you crazy?" he snapped at me while trying to stop his own bleeding.

"YOU'RE ASKING ME IF I'M CRAZY? Which one of us was just trying to kill someone? FUCK OFF Jughead before I call the police." I threatened him and did my best to keep Bret alive. With my phone to my ear, while trying to stop Bret's bleeding, I called an ambulance. Bret wouldn't survive if he stayed here any longer. Next to me I could still feel Jughead's presence and wondered why he was still there even though I had told him clearly that he should leave.

"Jughead you should fuck off, did I make myself clear?" Anger rose in me about how unnecessary this action was. Why did these two have to fight each other like this?

"Betty, he called you a slut. I-"

"Jughead I am not interested in what he called me, I am more interested in him getting recovered. The ambulance will be here in a few seconds, I think you should leave now." I said brusquely, not paying any attention to him. He stood there for a moment and was not sure what to do when he finally regained his sanity and disappeared into the forest. As I had predicted, my colleagues came to the scene of accident in the ambulance and took us to the hospital. Once there, I naturally had to answer many questions, but for some reason, Jughead's name didn't cross my lips. My feelings for him were already too strong and therefore I couldn't betray him.

A long time later, but still in the middle of the night, there was certainty that Brett would heal completely. It took a load off my mind when the news came and immediately I felt relief flowing through my body. Seconds later I also felt tiredness take over my body and decided to go home and fall into my comfortable bed.

Taking the shortcut through the forest behind the hospital may have been a rather dangerous decision at this hour, but my legs didn't want to carry me longer than absolutely necessary. I thought about why my life had been so turbulent lately and came to the conclusion that Riverdale and its inhabitants were the only reason. In the middle of my thoughts I suddenly heard a whimpering sound coming from the depths of the forest, which suddenly made me feel alive again and I listened with pricked up ears. It sounded like a girl crying but I wasn't sure, so I turned on the light of my phone and illuminated the darkness. Step by step the noise got louder and I knew that it couldn't be far away. I climbed over rotten branches and sharpened stones as I approached my destination.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" I called into the forest but got no answer and heard no more whimpering. I am sure he or she was trying to be as quiet as possible because I was a stranger.

"You don't need to be afraid, I won't hurt you. Where are you?" I tried to build up the person's trust and hoped that I would succeed and, luckily, I heard a cry again. Finally, I was able to locate where the sounds were coming from and I quickly made my way there. Through my flashlight I could see from a distance how a dainty little person was leaning against a tree. The girl was so thin that I could have sworn she would break down at the slightest touch.

"Hey, hey you don't have to cry, I want to help you. My name is Betty. What's yours?" I asked carefully not to frighten her but she didn't give me an answer. I knelt down in front of her and tried to show her that she was safe but she flinched away from me.

What did someone do to her that she was so afraid?