Loving // Riverdale x Reader

I can't help it // Jughead Jones

      I knew Jughead all of my life. He was always around Archie's house and I was Archie's and Betty's neighbor. He was my best friend. But he was also the boy I was in love with. Everyone knew this. Everyone except Jughead himself. It was fine because none of the managed to tell him. But they teased me all the time because of it. They all loved to put us in situations together. Which I never minded. They all tried to get me to tell him. But I was always afraid I would lose him. He is my everything. My world.

"Y/n," Betty yells as she ran towards me. I was in my safe space. My place I would run away too when my parents fighting got too loud or the kids at school said something so mean I snapped. It was a tree house in my backyard. I could see everything I needed to from here. "Y/n please let me in!"

"Betty go away," I say. My voice faint and shaky from crying. I watch as she climbs up to where I was hiding.

"Please talk to me," she says.

"Why?" I ask, "why should I?"

"I'm sorry," she says. I stare out the hole we called a window. "I'm so sorry."

"Are you really?" I ask.

"Yes I am so so sorry," she says.

"Then why did you do it?" I ask her.

"Because" she says

"Because what?!" I ask her. She stays silent and looks down. "What Betty what the hell is it?"

"Because you didn't!" She snaps, "You've liked Jughead for years and you never made a move on him. It's not my fault that you never did."

"Really?!" I yell at her, "so if 3 months ago I went to Archie and fucked him because you hadn't made a move it would have been fine."

"That's different," she says.

"No, it's not Betty it's the same fucking situation," I hiss.

"You're so difficult!" She screams.

"No I'm a rational human being, and you are a fucked up backstabbing bitch," I yell, "now get away from me!"

"I'm sorry I ruined your little crush," she says.

"I love Jughead," I say, "I am in love with him. He is the reason why I smile. He is my sun and moon. He is my everything Betty that is the problem. It wasn't a stupid fucking crush."

"I didn't know," she says.

"Of course you didn't," I say, "You're never here for me anymore. It is always about Veronica."

"She is my best friend," Betty says.

"I was too once," I say, "now please Betty please leave me alone."

"Fine," she says climbing down the tree. I watch her walk back to her house and I go back to the waterworks.

~1 week later~
Betty and Jughead were dating now. They were in love. It hurt to see them together. So much I stopped hanging around them. I stuck to myself.

I take my books from my locker when I hear a voice beside me. "Y/n,"

"Jughead," I say.

"Whats going on with you?" He asks, "why are you avoiding me?"

"Jughead," I say as I look in my locker avoiding his eyes. "I think we should stop hanging out and stop talking."

"Y/n what?" He asks, "are you listening to yourself?"

"Jughead I'm being serious," I say on the verge of tears.

"Look at me," he says, I don't and he grabs my shoulders so I face him. "Why are you doing this?" He asks.

"Jughead, I can't be around you anymore, stop talking to me, and texting me, just leave me alone," I say now in tears.

"Y/n you are my best friend don't do this," he says tears falling from his eyes, "don't leave me."

"This is goodbye Jughead," I say walking away from him.

~Months later~

I sat on the edge of my bed finishing my algebra homework when my phone buzzed. I grab it and read the message.

Betty- Do you still love him?

Me- I don't want to.

Betty- But you do

Me- I do

Me- I can't help it. I'm sorry Betty.

I sigh as I hit send. Betty and Jughead had been dating for 5 months now. I hadn't talked to anyone in that friend group for months. And to be honest I hadn't talked to many people in that time. Really just my parents and a few words to the kids at school. My parents screaming got too much and I stood up from my spot on my bed and went outside to my tree house. I sat in my usual corner. The corner where my name was carved into the wall.

"What's wrong with you?" I hear someone say. I look out the window to see Archie.

"Nothing," I say. He sighs and climbs up into the tree house.

"Seriously, what is wrong with you?" He asks, "ignoring me for months, telling Jughead to stay away? What's going on?" I sigh and trace the carving with my finger.

"I can't see them together," I say to him, "I see him and Betty and I feel crushed. I feel like my whole world is crashing around me, Archie. It hurts and I can't fix it."

"You really love him huh?" He asks.

"More than anything else in this world," I say. He moves beside me and I lay my head on his shoulder. He wraps his arm around my shoulders and pulls me close to him. I let a few tears fall, which turns into me sobbing into Archie's chest. "I fucked up everything," I say to him.

"Just come back," he says,"talk to us again. Be around us again."

"Archie, Jug's gonna hate me," I say.

"No, because he agrees with me, he just wants you to come back. He hates seeing you like this. All of us hate seeing like this," Archie says.

"Thank you for being here Archie," I say wiping tears away.

"I always will be," he says.

"Do you think it will ever work for you and Betty?" I ask him.

"I do," he says, "I think that she and I were meant to be. Even if that means that it won't be until later in life." I sigh, "Do you think it will work out with you and Jughead?" He asks.

"I don't know," I say, "I hope."

~The Next Day~

Archie was by my side when I arrive at where Jughead was. "What do you want?" He says harshly.

"Can we talk?" I ask him.

"I said not to leave," he says, "I begged you not to leave. And you did."

"Jughead I love you," I say to him.

"Y/n?" Archie says.

"Trust me, Archie," I say to him.

"You what?" Jug asks me, his anger slipping away.

"I love you," I say, "but Betty does too. And I see how you look at her and I know that what you guys have is real. It pure. You look at her in a way you have never looked at me. And that hurt me. It killed me. So I pushed you, and her, and everyone away. I isolated myself from everyone because I thought it wouldn't hurt. But God damn it hurt more. It hurt more not being around my best friend. You did nothing and I blamed it all on you. Jug you are my soul mate, my everything, but I'm not yours. And life works that way. It does fucked up shit like that. But it is not your fault or anyone's fault, and I shouldn't act like it is. I'm sorry Jug." By the end, I was crying. Jug pulls me into a hug. I pull away and smile.

"I understand," He says,"and I accept your apology. But don't cry over me." He wipes my tears from my face.

"Friends again?" I ask.

"We always were," he says, "and we always will be."

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First One Shot, and it is not even a fluffy happy one.