Poison | Jughead Jones

Chapter twenty two

Focusing strengths

Bella chucked another beer can in the bin as the boys slouched on the broken sofa, a haze of smoke wafting through the air.

"How's the traitor? Still in prison?" Jack laughed as he tried to rip another drink from the packaging, eyes glinting mischievously.

"When were you arrested?" Bella shot back with a roll of her eyes, creaking open a window as the smoke became too heavy. Jack took a drag from his cigarette, a deep glare glued to his skin.

"You're hilarious Bells." He muttered, his eyes red and pupils wide.

"I try to be."

SweetPea grabbed one of the bags of crisps scattered on the coffee table and winced at the tense atmosphere rising quickly.

"You two ever gonna stop bickering." He asked, chucking some of his food in his mates direction. Joaquin had chosen to join the group that night, curious to see if anything about his new 'friend' would come up in conversation.

"Probably not." Bella smirked, propping herself up against the wall. Toni Topaz nodded in agreement and raised her can, her movements growing sluggish.

"Anyway, I heard you battled with the sheriff when you got there." Toni chuckled, pushing back her pinkish hair and waiting for a new story.

"I politely asked to see Jug, and when he wouldn't let me I went anyway." Bella vaguely explained, playing up her innocence card with a subtle and fake gasp. Joaquin perked up at the new topic, his interest spiking.

"Sheriff as in Sheriff Keller?" He asked with a hoarse voice, speaking for the first time really since they had arrived at the apartment. Some of the boys muttered 'obviously' and 'idiot' throughout the dense air, unaware of the meaning behind his words.

Bellas eyes glinted at the comment however, her index finger tapping her nose slightly as the boys eyes widened. Bella had kept secrets for long enough to know when someone was hiding something. And the spark in Joaquins eyes had explained everything she needed to know. Of course with the help of Betty Cooper filling her in.

What a weird couple, the Sheriffs son and the serpent biker. Stranger things had happened.

*****

"I am not going to a baby shower with two families who want to see my head on a spike." Bella muttered as she squished in between Kevin and moose in the back of Keller's truck. Jughead turned pleadingly, attempting to win the girl over with a sad expression.

"No." She shot back, her lips pursed and eyebrows furrowed.

"Betty wants you there." Kevin nudged the girl as the truck spluttered forward, letting the wash of disbelief flood through the girls skin.

"You're pulling that card, really Keller?" She mumbled, grabbing the hard hat from her lap and shoving it against his chest as the car chocked to a stop. The group hurried out of the run down vehicle and into the chilly air. Winter had bitten down on the town and it wasn't afraid to leave bite marks against the frost bitten floor.

"Even if I have to drag you there, if I'm going you're going." Jughead told her in a hushed voice as they gathered outside Andrews construction and awaited Fred to greet them. Bella wanted to stomp her foot childishly, to say she wasn't going without a fight, but Mr Andrews had already noticed the new comers and hurried out to meet them.

"What's going on here?" Fred asked as he and hermonie stopped with agape jaws, eyeing the group of teens suspiciously.

"Your new crew, reporting for duty." Archie Andrews beamed, playing with the sledgehammer that was in his muddied grasp. Fred was taken aback with the kind gesture, the mismatched group had banded together just because of his stumble.

"I appreciate, that I really do. But isn't there something more important you guys should be doing?" Fred combatted, a shy smile glued to his exhausted skin. Hermione narrowed her gaze at the serpent girl as her partner listed off any other non curricular activity the group could be doing, a slight uneasiness toward the idea of a gang member working there.

"We can work after practise and on weekends." Archie laughed, clapping mooses back as the two jocks pretended to be bulkier than they really were.

"What're you doing here, Bella?" Fred called out to the brisk air, sending all eyes to fall on the petite brunette nestled in the midst of the group.

"Well I was bored, and apparently this is Jugheads idea of fun." She snipped back, a sly smirk painted on her lips as she watched the Lodge mother recoil slightly at her tone.

"I want to help Mr Andrews, I'm tougher than I look."

*****

Bella chucked her water bottle back to the ground as she wiped the dewy sweat from beading on her forehead. They had been working for several days to help Archie's father, nothing in it but pleasure at helping the old man succeed.

Moose tried smashing down one of the large boulders still left dawdling in construction, but instead let his arms ricochet with the impact instead of the Stone. Bella sighed as she clambered over to the boy, easing the hammer from his grasp and giving him a pointed look.

"You're focusing all your strength in your joints, that's how you break a bone." Bella rolled her eyes, readjusting the tool in her grip and parting her feet. Jughead watched curiously as Bella tried to help the half witted jock, overly exaggerating her hand movements for theatrics.

"You have to focus your strength in your gut, and propel that forward." She carried on, angling the tool right before slamming it down onto the hard boulder. It shattered as if it were glass, pebbles littering the floor as the rock became dust around them. Moose was taken back as he watched the girl click her joints and hand back the tool without as much as a wince.

"The size you are doesn't matter, a five year old could shatter that rock if they could create enough force." Bella muttered as the boy furrowed his eyebrows, not expecting the serpent girl to be as smart as she truly was.

He nodded and went into practising the movements she had just performed, the action soon becoming fluid in his work. Jughead smirked at the girl with a raised eyebrow, letting her come toward him before speaking.

"Who knew you were such a badass." He pointed out, passing her back her water bottle as she chucked off her hard hat. Bella shook her head, exhaustion falling under her skin as fatigue bit at her bones.

"I would be lying if I said that didn't hurt like a bitch."