New Girl In Town

Chapter 3

I almost had to run to keep up with Sweet Pea's long strides. Now that I was walking

alongside him, I was able to gauge his true height, and damn, this boy was taller than I thought. Well over six feet. I continued following him until we ended up in some back parking lot. The same group that I saw walking down the hallway this morning was now in front of me, most of them leaning against their motorcycles.

"Hey guys," Sweet Pea said as we approached them. "This is the new girl," he started to

say,  but looked at me when he realized he still didn't know my name.

"Asher" I replied.

"Nice to meet you Asher," said a handsome tan guy who was sitting on his bike, "I'm Fangs. Welcome to Riverdale." Fangs? What was with these names?

Fangs pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket as Sweet Pea pulled a cigarette out from behind his ear, previously hidden by his shaggy hair.

"Want a smoke?" offered Fangs.

"Isn't it, like, illegal to smoke on school property?" I questioned, recalling all of the 'Tobacco Free Zone' signs I had seen throughout the school. There was a moment of silence as they all exchanged glances, and then they all busted out laughing. Fangs extended his hand, offering me a cigarette, and I took it. I know that smoking is bad, its my biggest vice, but once my mom died, I turned to smoking. It quickly became the easiest way to relieve my stress and anxiety.

"So, where are you from?" the brown and pink haired girl to my left asked as she gave me her lighter.

"California" I replied, lighting my cigarette. "Thanks".

"You're welcome," she said as she took her lighter back. "I'm Toni Topaz". Finally, a somewhat normal name.

"So, what brings you to Riverdale?" asked Fangs.

"California is expensive and my dad couldn't find any work out there, so here we are" I replied.

"And your mom?" asked Sweet Pea. I responded by taking a drag from my cigarette and looking down, hoping that my silence would be answer enough. It seemed to have worked because after a moment of awkward silence, they quickly began talking about other things.

"So, what's with the snakes?" I asked after a few minutes, pointing to the patches on their jackets while I threw my cigarette butt on the ground and put it out with my foot.

"It's their gang symbol" replied a beautiful redheaded girl who grabbed my arm and dragged me with her as she walked by. "And trust me, you don't want to be caught hanging around with them" she said coldly.

"Why not?" I questioned, looking over my shoulder at the group of people I was beginning to like. I made momentary eye contact with Sweet Pea who looked disappointed in my deparcher.

"Because if you hang around with them long enough, you'll either be killed by a Ghoulie, get pregnant, or be found dead in a bathroom overdosed on jingle jangle" she declared as she continued pulling me away from them. Ghoulies? Jingle jangle? What kind of a place is this?

"I'm Cheryll Blossom" said the strangely blunt girl as she sat down at a picnic table out of view of the 'South Side Serpents'. Her lips were painted with a bright red lipstick, and the sun shined off of the golden spider brooch that was pinned to her cashmere sweater. As rude as this girl seemed, she had a point. I mean, I figured they were a gang based on their matching tattoos and jackets. Maybe it wasn't in my best interest to hang around a potentially dangerous group of people that I hardly even knew.

"You're Asher, right? The new girl from California?" She asked.

"Yeah" I replied, taking a seat across from her. "What are 'Ghoulies', and what the hell is jingle jangle?" I questioned, still confused by the statement she made moments before.

"The Ghoulies are the Serpent's rival gang, and jingle jangle is a highly addictive drug that's making its way around Riverdale. Nothing but bad news" she informed me with a scowl on her face. "But enough about that crap," she said, now smiling, "let's talk about you!"

"Me?" I asked confusedly. Hardly anyone ever took interest in me.

"Of course, silly. You're from California, so you must be cool. Have you ever done cheerleading? I'm looking for some new recruits for my River Vixens, and you would be perfect! Well, except for the hair of course; that would have to change" she said, grabbing my purple locks.

"Thanks" I said, pulling away from her grip on my hair, "but I think I'll pass".

"What?" she exclaimed in disbelief of my response. She looked as though I had just rejected an offer from the queen.

"I mean, it was really nice of you to offer" I said, getting up from my place at the table, "but I'd rather just hang around by myself". Thankfully, the bell rang, signaling the end of this surprisingly eventful free period. I gave her an awkward smile as I began to walk away, and she just continued to sit there looking like I had slapped her in the face. Man, this school is weird.