monsters | riverdale

American Psychos

Betty holds up her half-empty glass. "It's been...a day. What're you doing here?"

"I came to check on Veronica. We've been working on things," she reveals. She's decided it was time for her to take a step in the right direction. "Why the long face? SlaughterCon's not all you were hoping for it to be?"

"I'm just bummed that this didn't draw out the Trashbag Killer." Her shoulders slump.

"I was wondering why you would throw a serial killer convention. It makes sense now."

Then Jillian appears. "Betty, I've finished organizing the tables for tomorrow." Then her icy blue eyes land on Mickey. "Oh, hi, Mickey. It's nice to see you again."

Betty, with her pink tinted cheeks, asks, "You two know each other?"

Mickey flags down the bartender to order a drink.

Jillian says, "We've...bumped into each other once or twice." Her tone is suggestive and flirty. "Sexually," Jillian admits.

Mickey doesn't have to look at Jillian to know there's a pink glow around her again because she's outing their interaction. She does give Betty an awkward smile, but that fades when she also sees the pink glow around Betty. "Are you joining us for a drink, Jillian?"

"As fun as it would be to sit between two women I'm insanely attracted to, I'm beat." She waves her fingers, "Goodnight, ladies."

"So...you and Jillian?"

Mickey faces Betty again, watching the pink glow fade away as Betty's blue eyes follow Jillian's backside as she walks away. "I could ask you the same thing."

Betty takes a sip of her drink. "Who would've thought we'd go from fighting over the same guy to...—"

"Being attracted to girls too?" Mickey smirks. "I've come to learn we're more alike than different, Betty Cooper. It's getting kind of scary." She holds up her newly-arrived drink before sipping it.

"So are you going to keep...seeing her?"

Mickey shakes her head. "It was a one time thing. You know, a distraction from reality and the fact that I'm lonely. I just don't think I want to do that anymore."

"Why?"

"I want something meaningful. Like you and Archie. Or is that not a thing anymore because of Jillian?"

"No we're still a thing." Betty sighs. "I'm just starting to realize that I compartmentalize with Archie. I don't talk about work. I have dark thoughts, but I don't go there with him. With Drake, I don't feel the need to censor myself."

"Yeah, but Betty, everyone compartmentalizes with everyone." She puts her drink down. "Can I give you some advice?"

Betty nods.

"A, don't go there with Drake, and B, talk to Archie. Many relationships have ended, sadly, because we don't have the convos we need to have, or we have them too late."

"Okay. Thank you, Mickey. I appreciate it."

✿

A couple nights later, Veronica is throwing Toni a bachelorette party at the casino. The absinthe is flowing—as well as other drinks at the stocked bar—and the music is non-stop at the late night dance party that Veronica usually throws a couple times a week.

"To one of Toni's final outings as a single woman!" Mickey exclaims. She holds up her glass and clinks it with the other girls.

As if on cue, a new song starts playing and half of them are rushing to the dance floor. Tabitha has no intention on joining them when she realizes Mickey isn't moving either. This is the first time they've been around each other and Tabitha can sense the cold shoulder.

Then Jillian comes back to their private section and pulls Mickey to her feet and toward the dance floor.

Tabitha can feel the tightness in her stomach as she watches Mickey dance with Jillian. She hates that she notices Mickey's hands fall to Jillian's hips and how close the two of them are. Next thing she knows, she's downing the rest of her green liquor and going over to Jillian and Mickey on the dance floor.

Mickey turns when she feels Tabitha's presence. "Is everything alright?"

Tabitha leans into her ear, "I need you for a second!" Then she's pulling Mickey away from Jillian without permission. It's not until they're back in the section and Mickey's staring at her with wide eyes that Tabitha realizes she has no idea what she's going to say. The two of them sit on the couch, facing each other with their knees touching. "Have you two hooked up?" she blurts out.

Mickey furrows her eyebrows. "What? Why would you ask that?"

"Mick, I'm not blind and I'm not stupid!"

"Can we not do this now?" This is why she's been keeping her distance from Tabitha. She doesn't need anything else being revealed due to her power.

"She's not the person for you," Tabitha states. "I've seen the future, remember? I know!"

Mickey can't help but to roll her eyes. "Then tell me, Tabby. Who is? Because you've been pretty tight-lipped about the future, so why are you spilling now?"

"Come home with me and I will tell you everything."

✿

Mickey sits on the end of Tabitha and Jughead's bed, waiting for the silence between them to break. Tabitha has convinced her to get comfortable because the talk they're about to have is, apparently, going to be big. Mickey has changed out of her dress into one of Tabitha's sweats and pajama shirts.

Tabitha comes back into the room with a notebook in her hands. "I told you and Jughead that I went and saw one-thousand-three-hundred-eighty-four scenarios of the future. I was lying. There was one more. And I wrote it down." She gives the notebook to Mickey. "That scenario is how I know Jillian isn't for you."