The Exception to the Rule

Part 1

Jughead sat in his usual spot in the Blue and Gold offices staring at his laptop, trying (desperately) to think of anything other than Betty Cooper.

It'd been a week since he walked her home and they'd kissed, Betty thanking him for her burst of clarity.

They hadn't talked about it, and frankly that wasn't weird.

Jughead understood, exactly how she felt. Whenever they were with each other, which was constantly, they both felt a sense of peace.

Peace?! Jughead Jones?! He shook the thought.

Turning his attention to the blank chapter in front of him, he realized that "work" was a fruitless effort. He closed his laptop and slid it into his bag.

Slouching back into his chair and tugging at his beanie, he rested his hands on the back of his neck allowing himself to think of her.

She was intoxicating in all aspects of the word, everything about her was dizzy, warm and perfect to him. Jughead wasn't into booze, on account of his dads struggles, but he was beginning to understand what addiction might feel like.

He was never interested in girls, or anyone. He'd always thought that it, sex, was reserved for other people. People that were willing to chase after it, people that would let it become the only driving force in life.

Jughead hated the thought, so his impression of love and sex was forged early on. And having Archie as a best friend instilled this notion in his brain at a very young age. That kid was always chasing some girl.

Jughead too had known Betty his whole life, but only recently he found his thoughts enveloped by her. He'd never had anyone consume his thoughts, let alone a girl. But she wasn't just any girl, she was the brightest surprise of his young life. The warm sun in an otherwise cloudy sky that was his childhood. Given all of this he knew Betty, to what seemed like a tee. Jughead was no fool, nor was he a coward and he knew that if he wanted to keep her all to himself he would have to tell her, everything...always.

That thought scared him more than anything.

Betty rounded the corner to find him sitting there, right where she knew he'd be. He was a creature of habit, but his mysterious nature always kept her guessing. She stopped at the threshold of the Blue and Gold to stare, for a moment, at the young man she'd grown so fond of. With his back towards her she could see the broadness of his shoulders, his large hands resting on the back of his neck with slim fingers laced and thick black waves escaping from under his trade-make crown.

God, she found him so effortlessly handsome. He having only recently emerged from Archie's shadow, she truly saw him. He was tall, dark, smart and handsome. And from what her gut was telling her...all hers.

She tilted her head to the side and raised an eye brow, looking at his raven hair and thinking of herself running her hands through it, gripping onto it in the heat of passion. She inhaled deeply and let out an audible moan.

He spun around in his office chair with a smile "Hey Betts"

"Uh...Hi J-Jug" She stammered, shuffling forward closing the door behind her. He noticed her awkward steps and stood, crossing the room in three long strides

"You ok?" he smirked. She was normally so graceful and he wondered if maybe she was lurking in the doorway, thinking of him.

"Oh! Yea! Totally...Have you been waiting for me long?"

'my whole life'  he thought dryly. "Not at all, I was just trying to get another chapter done in my book"

"Any Luck?" She asked dropping her back pack and cardigan onto her desk, next to his bag