The One Exception: A Jughead Jones/Riverdale FanFiction

Prologue, Part 2

*listen to Highway Don't Care by Tim McGraw ft Taylor Swift and Keith Urban on guitar while reading from here until you see this symbol 🌟*

still Dixie's pov

After they had loaded my boyfriend's body into the funeral home van, all I could do was stand there frozen, lost in a daze as I stared at his wrecked car. Red and blue lights still going all around me. I blinked once and fresh tears made their way down my face. How will I ever move on from this? In a blinding flash, my life has changed forever. I thought that happened when I gave birth to Virginia, but it did it again now that John is gone. I guess when something big happens to you, there's a blinding flash. I never thought I'd be making funeral arrangements this early in life, but I guess I have to do it at some point. His parents never really cared for me and would have most likely made sure me, Virginia, and my mom wouldn't be at the funeral. Well, guess I'll have to get a funeral set up before they do, which I can do.

*a week later*

It was later discovered in the glove box of his car that there was a small jewelry box that contained the most perfect diamond ring inside. The police came to me a few days later with it and all I did was break down with the open box in my hand, ring in view.

My mom and I decided on having the service at the high school in the gym. Since he had applied to go into the military after graduation, he would have a flag over his casket, Taps played and a 21 gun salute at the cemetery.

🌟

The gymnasium was filled. Bleachers filled. Seats by the casket filled. Standing room only, basically. It amazed me how many people showed up. I think basically the entire school, plus the staff. The judging eyes I got when I was pregnant were long gone and they were now sorrowful eyes. However, I knew I would see the judging eyes again when I walked in with Virginia in my arms and my mom beside me. I had a black dress on, but I also had a black mesh veil over my face, hence the judging eyes. Virginia had a black dress on with matching bow on her head. My mom had a dark navy blue dress on. Of course, his parents just had to come today. They were sitting in the front row on the right hand side. We sat in the left hand side in the front row. Shortly after my mom and I sat down, the pastor began the service. More tears fell down my face, but I'm not sure if I wanted to full out cry or just cry quietly for now. I tried not to go into full sobbing mode when they said they were going to play a song that was special to John for a good reason (me). The song they played was the last song he sang to me, which was George Strait's "I Cross My Heart". When the pastor said if anybody wanted to come up and share a memory or two of John, then they were welcome to come up and do so. As I vaguely heard people come up one by one, my own mind was clouded up with various thoughts of him. I started talking to him in my mind. Baby, why'd you leave me? Why'd you have to go? I was counting on forever. Now I'll never know. I can't even breathe. It's like I'm looking from a distance, standing in the background. Everybody's saying 'He's not coming home now.'. This can't be happening to me. This is just a dream. Babe, tell me now, how do I live without you? I want to know how do I breathe without you? Why did you go? how do I ever survive? How do I live?

At the end of the service, they dismissed the standing people and whoever was in the bleachers first. Then the back rows of the seats by the casket, up until the very front row. My mom and I didn't budge and his parents went up by the casket and they just placed their hands on the casket for a moment before walking away. Then, my mom and I went up to the casket for our final goodbye. My mom placed her hand on the casket for a moment before whispering to me,
"I'll let you and Ginny have a moment."
All I could do was nod. That's when I broke down as I placed my hand on the casket and lowered my head into my arm and cried there for a minute. I whispered,
"We love you so much, baby. I wish you didn't have to go this soon, but I guess God has other plans for you. See you later, honey." before walking towards my mom with Ginny in my arms. We walked out to our vehicle along with everyone else to wait for the procession to the cemetery to begin. Our vehicle was right behind the hearse and everybody else was behind us. The hearse pulled ahead for the military pallbearers to load the casket into the back.