( chapter fifteen! )
─ find me where the wild things are
─
"Are you sure this is gonna works?" Manic asked, standing with Betty and Veronica in the back of Pop's watching Chuck eat his food. Tonight was the Taste of Riverdale event and Manic managed to convince his dad to not let him go.
He even told Lola of the plan, to which she accepted quickly. That shocked him but he didn't complain.
"Trust me, it will." Betty promised.
"Just lure him in with Betty and Lola will meet us after her performance, okay?" Veronica reminded. Manic sighed, in dismay. He really should stop being nice to people all together.
"Okay, hang tight," he said, walking away from the girls. They watched as Manic walked over to his booth.
He slid into the opposite side of Chuck with an almost alluring grin on his face. Chuck jumped a bit at his sudden presence.
"Hey Chuck," he said in faux friendliness.
Chuck scrunched his eyebrows a bit. He has never know on Manic Montoya to be suddenly nice to anyone. Let alone himself. "Whats up, Speedy?"
Manic played with the napkin on the table.
"So you know about that book thing you jocks have?"
"What about it?" He asked still confused.
Manic shrugged nonchalantly. He pursed his lips a bit, looking him in the eyes, "What if I told you I can get you with not only one but two girls? Don't you want to earn your points?"
Chuck looked at him suspiciously. "Who are we talking about here?"
Manic smirked and nodded his head backwards. Chuck looked behind him to see Betty Cooper sitting on the stools, looking at him seductively. He almost laughed out loud. "Betty Cooper wants to be a bad girl?"
Manic shrugged, sporting a convincing smirk. "Yeah, she wants to be like Polly. You know, prissy prude by day, freak in the sheets by night. The whole package."
"Okay, what's the catch?" Chuck asked, still not convinced. This had to be a trick. Manic nodded his head. "There's no catch, I mean what I said and uh..."
He leaned forward, placing his hand on his forearm. Chuck wasn't gay, he knew that but somehow Manic had a way with people. Gay or not.
"How about we, as in me and you, show Goldie locks over there the time of her life?"
Chuck blinked. Did he just asked what he thought he just asked?
"Y-You mean the three of us.....together?"
Manic knew he hooked him.
"Yeah, listen...Ethel's parents are gonna be gone tomorrow night and she gave me a key. So swing by and the three of us can have our own Wet n' Wild party.
She has a pool and a hot tub be there or miss out on having the grand prize,"
Chuck's excitement could be seen through the table, much to Manic's dismay. But he had to be convincing enough. So he played it out, thanking god it was almost over.
Manic slowly climbed out of the booth. "And you know what the grand prize is," was the last thing he said before walking off pass him and out of the diner.
-
Lola and Jughead drove to an old abandoned park on the other side of the town. Which was weird to Lola as to why he would travel all this way to think. But she didn't question him on it. It was his business.
"So this is your fortress of solitude?" She asked, walking across the sand. "A creepy abandoned park where I'm pretty sure kids have died here?"
Jughead laughed out. He walked over to the swing set and sat down on one of the extra long wooden swing that could fit two people. "You don't remember this place?"
Lola shrugged, sitting on the other end of the swing. "It's been so long since I've been at the park as a kid."
"Well, over there in that jungle gym," he said, pointing at the jungle gym. "That's where you use to play with Manic and The Blossom twins all the time."
Lola looked at him incredulously. How on earth did he remember that?
"I remember because I was that kid who would always sit on this very same swing by himself and observe everyone. Even though I had Archie as my best friend." He explained. He pointed over to the monkey wrenches. "That's where you fell and sprained your wrist because Gerald Fuscha pushed you off. I remember Manic beat the crap out of him that day."
Lola remembered that too. They were only 7 years old and their class took a trip to the park as a field trip.
Jughead then pointed at the old slid. His face turning pink, remembering a special memory of his. "Over there is where you kissed me on the cheek for helping you and Manic out of trouble."
Lola slowly smiled, looking over the slid. She remembered that day. It was after school and before their dad picked them up, she wanted to thank him for getting them out of trouble.
"It's amazing how you remember all of this," she mumbled, looking around the park. Jughead smiled sheepishly.
"Like I said, you're impossible to forget,"
Lola looked at him, seeing that he was staring at her. She saw something in his eyes. Something that made his brown eyes even more beautiful. It made her heart flutter a little.
"The benefits of being in the shadows, going unnoticed huh?" She said quietly.
Jughead stared a bit into her eyes a little more deciding that ocean green was definitely his new favorite color.
"It's feels nice to finally be noticed..."
Lola giggled, looking down at her hands as she played with them a bit. She scooted herself closer to him and laid his head on his shoulder. Normally intimate contact would scare Jughead but this felt right. Like it was supposed to be like this. And he wouldn't have it any other way.
He put his arm around her, pulling her closer to him.
She snuggled her head into his neck, letting out a content sigh. He was very soft and warm. She felt,I,e she could stay like this all night.
"If you remember all of this about me, how come you never came and said hi to me?"
Jughead shrugged a little, laying his head on top of hers. Her hair smelt of vanilla and roses. Just like her name.
"I was too scared and most of the time, I was invisible to you."
"Well now that I have you, I don't want to let you go," she mumbled losing her eyes. Jughead smiled to himself, looking down at her.
"I'm not going anywhere..."
They didn't kiss because I want them to build up to it.
Sorry if you were hoping for something like that.
But next chapter we will see jealousy and Maronica.
Comment your reactions and love!
See you next update!