FP put his face in his hands when the other Serpent left. Penny was back. He knew she would try and hurt Jughead after what he did to her. He screamed and threw his empty glass at the wall, putting his head back in his hands when it smashed, the pieces of glass covering the floor. There were so many ways she could hurt Jughead. If she went for Betty— Alice would publically murder him. That damn boy. He told him to stay away from her, and he didn't listen, in fact, Jughead never listens. It was entirely Jug's fault, but he couldn't let his son deal with the snake charmer alone. He was going to keep him out of this, he needed to protect him at all costs. FP would never forgive himself if anything happened to Jughead. He sighed and grabbed his Serpent jacket before heading out the door, intending on talking to Penny.
After hours of searching he finally gave up and headed back to his trailer. FP hadn't seen Jughead all day, what if she found him? He took his phone from his pocket to call him as he opened the front door.
"Hey, dad," Jughead kept his eyes on the tv and carried on eating one of the many burgers he brought from Pop's, and held up another paper bag full of food, "got some for you too."
FP sat on the sofa next to his son and pulled out some fries from the bag, "where've you been? I got worried for a second," he looked at Jughead, who laughed, and his small frown turned into a grin. He was happy that Jughead was at home and safe, but his mind filled with dread, knowing he still had to tell him about Penny.
"I went to Betty's after school, we're investigating something."
"Can't say I'm surprised, kiddo. How's the mini detective doing?" He took the rest of the food out the paper bag and screwed it up, throwing it into the bin from where he was sat.
Jughead smiled, "she's okay, Chic's a bit weird though. I asked her if she wanted to stay here for a little while, but Mrs Cooper said no before Betty could even answer, so," he looked at his dad and shrugged before turning back to the tv. They both sat in a comfortable silence for a while, watching whatever came on the tv, before FP turned it off and looked at his son.
"I have a couple things I want to talk to you about."
"What've I done now, dad?" Jughead sighed and rolled his eyes.
"Nothing, boy. This is serious. Alice wants to know if anything happened at that cabin," when Jughead opened his mouth to answer, FP cut him off, "and tell the truth, Jughead. For once, just tell me the damn truth."
"Alright! Jeez. Me and Betty fell out with Archie and Veronica because Mrs Cooper called Betty and told her that Mr Cooper sold the register to Hiram Lodge. And some people from the village broke in and threatened us but Veronica called security, so they ran, and Archie followed one of them, and the next thing, we all heard a gunshot. That's the truth dad."
FP nodded, "you need to tell me these things, Jug. It's better to tell someone you trust than to bottle it all up. I know it's hard to trust anyone lately, with Jason Blossom's murder, the Black Hood, and now Hiram, but you need to trust me," he grabbed his son's shoulder and made him look at him, "you need to trust me Jughead."
"What's the other thing you want to talk about?"
"Penny's back in Riverdale, and I want you to stay far away from her. Understand?" He raised an eyebrow at Jughead and waited for an answer, knowing damn well the boy would involve himself somehow, but he was still going to try his best to keep him out of it.
"Dad-"
FP cut him off again, "after what you did to her, boy, she's going to want you dead. Hell, she'd burn you alive if she got her hands on you. So stay away and let me deal with this. If I catch you trying to involve yourself in this then wave goodbye to Riverdale, Jughead."
Jughead glares at him before getting up and slamming the door on his way out of the trailer. FP put his face in his hands.
-
It was the next Saturday when Penny walked in Pop's. She smirked when she saw him behind the counter and strode up to it, taking a seat, "hello, Forsythe."
FP looked up at her and sighed.
"Heard you were looking for me," she leaned forward, "scared about what I'm going to do to that little shit you call your son?" She chuckled when FP glared.
"Don't you dare go near him, Penny."
She grit her teeth, "you know what your boy did to me, Jones. Don't pretend it's not his fault."
She stared at him as he walked around the counter and stood next to her, leaning against it. They used to get along so well. She would watch from the sidelines while FP was working on making the Serpents better than they were, and she would use her law school degree to get some idiot out of a mess they'd created. Her "favours" didn't come into play until later on. When FP broke his promise. Penny could remember that day as if it happened only an hour ago. She sighed and rested her chin in her palm. He promised her. Hell, she could even recite his words if she wanted to. A double promise, he said, a promise not to break a promise. She felt some remorse, she was human, and all humans are flawed in some way. Although, most people wouldn't call remorse a flaw, but she didn't care. She was too focused on making fp's life as miserable as possible. She caught him staring and raised an eyebrow.
"I still remember that day. The day you broke your promise."
"Penny, you and I both know it was an accident. I didn't mean for it to happen, and I'm sorry it did, but no one can change the past."
She glared and stood, pushing him, "I don't want an apology. You got my brother killed, FP. So no, I don't want your empty apology," she leaned up, bringing her mouth to his ear, "you know how I see things, an eye for an eye, Forsythe. Good luck keeping Jughead safe," she glared one last time before storming out of Pop's, completely forgetting why she wanted to see him in the first place.
-
FP gulped when he saw Jughead sitting on the sofa. He finished his shift at Pop's an hour ago, but he spent that hour talking to Gladys on the phone about what to do with Jughead. He leaned against the wall and stared at him.
"Shouldn't you be sleeping? It's a school night."
"I was waiting for you, did Pop keep you late?"
He sat on the sofa next to his son and clasped his hands together, "no... I was actually talking to your mum on the phone. We both think it's best if you go live with her in Toledo for a while," he braced himself for the shouting match that was to come.
"So you're just going to ship me off? Can you not be bothered to look after your own son, dad? Is that it?" Jughead raised his voice, "am I not good enough for you?"
FP closed his eyes and forced himself to stay calm, to not be like his father, to be better, "Jughead. For god's sake, stop shouting. Both of us think Toledo is safer for you right now," he put on hand on his son's shoulder, and the other on his cheek, "have you seen this town lately? It's a mess, kid. There's rumours about the Black Hood not being dead, and— Penny... she came to Pop's today, she threatened you. Both me and your mum want to keep you safe."
Jughead stares at his dad before moving away from him and standing up, "I can look after myself, dad!"
"You're sixteen, you're a child, and you don't get a say in this, boy. It's 1am, just go to bed," he watched as Jughead went to his room, mumbling a series of curse words and insults. He groaned, leaning back on the sofa, and not long after, he fell asleep.
He woke up the next morning to Jughead shaking him awake. He waved him off and looked at the clock. Noon. Why wasn't Jug in school? It was then he spotted the small suitcase on the floor next to his son's feet. FP sighed and looked at his son.
"Figured I'd go to Toledo today, seeing as you don't want me here."
"Jug-"
"Bye, dad," Jughead picked the case up and walked out, ignoring his dad's pleas to stay and talk.
He put his face in his hands and stayed where he was for hours, thinking about his mistakes and what he could have done better. After a while he decided to make himself some dinner. FP laughed to himself when he looked in the cupboards, only finding ingredients for mac and cheese. Well, he guessed he had no choice. He frowned, looking at the small table, when he realised he'd have to eat alone. He should be used to it. His relationship with Jughead was already strained, and he wouldn't be surprised if this was the final straw. FP figures he should give his son some time to calm down before calling him. He'll do it tomorrow. He should call Gladys as well, maybe she could talk some sense into the boy. He ate his dinner quickly and washed up before sitting on the sofa to watch tv, well, at least try to. His mind kept wandering to Jughead, to going to the Wyrm and drinking away his sorrows. No. He can't. He was doing so well, h had been sober for so long now, he wouldn't go back to his old habits. FP looked at the time and decided to get ready for work.