Chapter Text
Plans made things easier, they used to be the only thing saving her from a total breakdown. Today more than any day she needed a plan to survive and not disappear into thin air. She needed a plan because she was 2 seconds away from giving up.
Today was supposed to be the beginning of her life, she'd leave behind all the pain that had once ruled her life, she'd leave it all behind to create new memories alongside the person who glued her back together.
7 p.m was supposed to be the time of redemption and new beginnings instead it turned into the twilight zone. The drive to her destination took longer than she had imagined, that's because she wasn't going to her original destination...she was driving to a hospital located 2 hours away.
Once she arrived she wasted no time walking but instead ran to find her, frantically looking for the room the injured girl was in. The chart read her name and the numbers displayed 217,the room she dreaded going in.
Fearing the worst she braced herself for what she would find. Hospitals didn't sit well with her ,the idea of death scared her but finding the other girl faced with death...that petrified her. Drawing in breath she filled the gap between the hospital bed and her nervous self.
A small cut and a few bruises was all she could see wrong, seeing that death was no longer on the top of the list and that the sleeping girl with the hospital gown was fluttering her eyes she started to let out the breath she had been holding in.
But she wasn't half way done letting it all out when the sleepy girl spoke softly. "Red.."The voice was barely audible but she'd recognize that voice even over blaring music and loud people. For some reason words couldn't come out to respond but maybe it was for the best.
The next thing she heard would just make her go speechless. "You have red hair I've never met someone with red hair."The bed bound girl seemed curious to the rare pigmentation found in the other girls hair. The red headed girl stood there not being able to breath, everything seemed to be closing in, she told herself it was just a joke to turn a difficult situation lighter. After all that's why she loved her, she always found ways to make the mood from gloomy to funny.
"Toni..."Even though she could speak well, her voice also came out barely audible."This hospital seems to fancy to be in Riverdale."The other girl said ignoring her name being spoken. Now The read head was worried, of course this place wasn't in Riverdale. They hadn't been living in Riverdale for over 3 years.
Before anything more could be said a tall man walked in he had a chart in his head belonging to the patient that was currently in front of him."Mrs. Topaz you've woken up I'm just here to check some things but you are looking good."Of course the doctor was not yet aware of the true severity of it nor did he check the right side of Mrs. Topaz's bed where the young Red headed girl was starring at the wall trying not to break down.
"Doctor may I ask you something?"The patient asked him as he examined her vitals."Of course that's why I'm here for."He gave a reassuring smile."I'd like to ask where I am...I know I'm not in Riverdale and I don't know why I'd be living somewhere else."Toni slowly said keeping her words calm and flowing. There was no fear in them but just curiosity which surprised the doctor."Mrs. Topaz you're at Le Belle Hospital in New York."Toni frowned a little trying to piece everything together at the site of this the girl by her side couldn't take it anymore.
Cheryl felt her chest constricting and her vision getting blurry, she bolted out of that room into the nearest empty space. Of course this would happen to her, meeting the love of her life and making countless memories only to have them wiped from Toni's mind.
She'd be laughing if it wasn't so tragic. Instead of either of those she ended up on the floor sobbing not caring if anyone heard her. It started it out small and before she knew it she was choking on her own tears. Luckily for her before she suffocated in her sadness a nurse found her.
The nurse informed her the doctor would like to speak with her about the prognosis. Cheryl stood up with the help of the nurse who just looked at her with pity all over them, and she just wanted to run away from everything.
But she'd never do that, she promised Toni a lot of things and sticking by her side even when things got bad(even when she didn't even remember the promise)Cheryl would not leave a confused and scared Toni alone.
A million medical terms were thrown at her, some she couldn't even pronounce. Seeing how out of it Cheryl was the doctor simplified everything to "She has memory loss and we don't know how permanent it is, we just know she's lost the last 5 years or maybe a little more that is yet to be seen."All she could hear was "she doesn't remember me or what we had" The universe really hated Cheryl by some sort of comical joke Toni had forgotten exactly the amount of time they had shared.
Going into a room with the ghost of your lover was one of the worst things Cheryl had experienced, and she considering she had her hands full of trauma and sadness was really saying something.
Cheryl thought over what she would say to Toni, how to address her without "baby,T.T or hunny" how to act around her and especially try not to look at her like Cheryl had just lost the one good thing in her life.
Before Cheryl could execute anything she'd practiced Toni greeted her with a questioning look."Is vanishing in a blink of an eye something Red heads specialize in? Or just you." Toni tried to lighten the mood, obviously whoever this girl was knew her well enough to care to come to the hospital. "How do you know me?"Cheryl dreaded that question, out of all the things she had practiced she still couldn't bear that one.
"Friend..."Was all she could manage out."Before or after Riverdale?"Toni asked trying to gather as much information as she could."Before" Cheryl said a stoic look on her face."Oh..Serpent?"That would make a lot of sense Toni thought to herself."No."Cheryl only found herself responding in one word sentences, if she spoke longer she'd fear her voice cracking.
Toni was now back to Square one, secretly she was hoping for the red head to say yes. The Serpents were still fresh in her broken mind,she really couldn't think of a reason a friend, not from The Serpents, from Riverdale would be here with her.
"Did I meet you in the Southside?"Toni kept interrogating Cheryl who was looked like she wanted to be anywhere but here. "No."Toni was growing tired of her one worded reply, she remembered nothing and the girl who did would not share information with her.
Cheryl needed time to make a plan on how she should go about this. How could she tell Toni anything without revealing stuff Toni was not prepared to hear."Could you at least tell me why I decided to leave everything behind and move to New York of all places?"
"Let's leave Riverdale T.T,let's start over in a place not tainted by death and memories."Cheryl said as she kissed a sleepy post-sex Toni."We could totally do it, I'm emancipated so my mother can't stop me. Plus we're about to graduate and Riverdale doesn't have stellar Universities at least not the Universities we deserve."
Toni sat up now awake "And where would we go?"Cheryl smiled and let all her research and plans be heard by Toni. The shorter girl laughed and gave her a loving look before speaking.
"I guess I'll be a city girl after all."
"You wanted a fresh start."Omitting more than half of the true story was necessary in order to give Toni something that could resemble useful information. "Why?"Toni's question was in hate air for a while before Cheryl replied."I never really asked...you never really said."Now that was just a plain old lie thrown toward Toni.
"We came here together didn't we?"Cheryl gave Toni a sad smile, her mind was tired of fabricating lies and twisting the truth so this time she didn't."Yes...we did, we both came here to start fresh."
"I can't remember your name, I'm sorry."As much as it hurt her, she tried her best to act like it wasn't a big deal."My name is Cheryl and don't worry about it. Everything will be okay I promise."All she could do was make new promises to Toni, promises she'd remember for the time being.
"I'm glad you're here Cheryl...this city seems scary to be in alone."Toni confessed her voice faltering slightly .Up until now she hadn't expressed any fear just confusion but Cheryl knew every little movement Toni had she knew when Toni was scared, and right now she was terrified about her own mind betraying her.
"You should get some sleep Toni."Cheryl suggested after seeing Toni's eyes droop almost unnoticeable. "Will you be here when I wake up Cher?"She didn't want to be alone in a place she knew nothing about but something about the presence of the Read Head soothed her enough to actually be able to sleep without having a panic attack on the spot.
"Of course Toni."
Toni fell asleep before Cheryl could finish her sentence. The words came out painfully and automatically.
"I love you..."It was more of a whisper into the dark but a part of her needed to say it. The little box that weighed so much in her pockets demanded to be opened, not being able to ignore it anymore Cheryl took the black box out and opened it carefully.
A perfectly crafted ring was securely inside, it was meant for Toni to symbolize the beginning of new chapter of their lives.
Today turned out to be a new chapter in their lives, not in any way she had imagined, but she couldn't give her the ring because this ring was meant for Toni just not the Toni she had in front of her.