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Toni was unimpressed.
No, she was furious.
But she couldn’t deny that she totally deserved it.
It’d barely been three days since she’d been released from hospital. Cheryl had stayed by her side, keeping her bandages fresh and her every need taken care of.
Well almost every need.
“Oh come on Cher, this is ridiculous.” Toni whined as she sat on the sofa, more mindless TV playing in the background.
Cheryl was next to her, frowning at her homework with a pencil between her teeth.
“Hmm? I know did Matthews really have to give us this much shit to do?” Cheryl complained as she filled out another answer.
Toni looked at her with narrowed eyes and pursed lips.
“You know that’s not what I’m talking about babe.” Toni said lowly.
“Well it’s your fault you got stabbed.” Cheryl said lightly, still focused on the papers in front of her.
Toni huffed and took a deep breath, only barely wincing.
“Cheryl.”
“Toni.” Cheryl mocked, looking up at her girlfriend with an amused smile. Toni folded her arms gingerly and glared at Cheryl.
“All I’m asking for is a kiss.” Toni muttered, leaning closer to Cheryl, “You’ve been at school all day babe… I’ve missed you.”
Cheryl felt herself leaning into Toni, her heartstrings being tugged on the quieter Toni spoke. Her papers slowly slipping off her lap, her pencil long since rolled to the floor.
Toni was sure she’d got her.
But right as their lips brushed against each other, Cheryl pulled back with a quiet clear of her throat.
Toni groaned and closed her eyes.
Cheryl pressed a slow, soft kiss to the corner of her lips and waited until Toni’s eyes popped open before moving back.
“It’s been like a couple days T.” Cheryl mused. Toni sighed and raised her eyebrow.
“So?” Toni grumbled. “I love you and I want to kiss you.”
Cheryl smiled down at her papers as she gathered them back up and set them aside.
“How about I skip school tomorrow and we spend the whole day doing nothing?” Cheryl suggested, sidling up against Toni with a hand placed gently against Toni’s collarbone.
Toni licked her lips and moved one arm to rest on the sofa behind Cheryl.
“Well I mean…” Toni mumbled, pulling Cheryl closer to her slowly. “Would be nice.”
Cheryl hummed her agreement, her hand slipping up to rest on Toni shoulder, her other hand scraping over the rough bandage on Toni’s stomach.
“Am I gonna have to join the Serpents to keep you in line babe?” Cheryl asked quietly, her eyes drifting down to the bandage under her fingertips.
Toni laughed and shook her head, twirling Cheryl’s hair between her fingertips.
“As much as I’d love to see you wearing a Serpents jacket… I think I’ll be fine.” Toni replied with a smirk.
“But you aren’t.” Cheryl said with a frown. Toni used her free hand to tilt Cheryl’s head up and look into her girlfriend’s swirling brown eyes.
“It was a one time thing Cheryl. Never gonna happen again.” Toni reassured her quietly. When Cheryl stayed silent, Toni let her eyes flick down to pale plump lips.
Cheryl noticed and smiled coyly.
“Consequences babe. You gotta suffer through them.” Cheryl said, slipping out of Toni’s hold and picking up her homework, ignoring Toni’s exasperated groan.
----
Four days later and Toni was back at school.
Her walk was slower and her face still a little pale but she still held herself tall and proud. Cheryl was by her every step of the way around school and in their shared lessons.
The town had finally cottoned on and realised Cheryl and Toni were more than the greatest gal pals of all time.
They were now such a power couple not even Hermione and Hiram could compete.
It’d now been a week since the ‘no touching’ rule had been put in place.
Toni was wondering if this was what waterboarding felt like. Because not being allowed anything past a chaste kiss on the cheek with the girl she loved was fucking torture.
Toni was getting desperate.
It was beginning to show.
Toni had stormed into the rec room and collapsed on the empty sofa with an arm thrown over her eyes.
“Uhh hi Toni?” Veronica said with a chuckle.
“Women suck.” Toni grumbled. Veronica raised her eyebrow, stifling her laughter as the others joined them.
“Cheryl?” Veronica asked. Toni sat up very sharply and glared at Veronica, ignoring Betty, Jughead, Archie walking in.
“You know she won’t even kiss me. Not even a little.” Toni snapped.
“Cheryl still holding out on this?” Betty asked in surprise.
“Yes. Yes she is and it’s fucking awful.” Toni growled.
“Then you should’ve kept your promise.” Cheryl said breezily as she walked in and languidly sat in Toni’s lap with an arm around her shoulders.
“It was an accident!” Toni yelped as Cheryl scraped her fingernails across the back of Toni’s neck.
“It’s either no touching for another week or a month so take your pick.” Cheryl said with a raised eyebrow.
Toni promptly shut the hell up.
For a whole five minutes.
“If you keep teasing me you won’t last another week.” Toni mumbled, resting her head on Cheryl’s shoulder with her lips brushing Cheryl’s ear.
Cheryl cleared her throat and shifted on Toni’s lap.
“Don’t try kidding yourself baby… I know I’m not the only one suffering here.” Toni whispered, her teeth lightly biting at Cheryl’s earlobe.
“Oi! PDA chill it.” Veronica interrupted, making Toni flinch back.
“Are you kidding me V?” Toni snapped. Veronica just shrugged.
“Cheryl asked me to.” Veronica explained. Cheryl say there with a smug smile and let her fingers dip below the collar of Toni’s t-shirt.
“Sneaky little Bombshell.” Toni grumbled, a shiver going down her spine despite the glare she aimed at Cheryl.
----
It wasn’t until the second to last day that things got worse.
Toni had been suffering through school with more and more suggestive and teasing touches from Cheryl. At this point she was thoroughly regretting getting stabbed, even more so than when it actually happened.
But she was so caught up in her own teasing that she missed the poorly hidden itch that Cheryl also had. Her own teasing touches of Toni had successfully made Toni sorely sorry but also put her on edge.
It got worse because Cheryl had only been half joking about joining the Serpents.
In reality she’d be talking to FP for weeks about joining the gang; partially for Toni and partially for her own reasons.
So when Cheryl rocked up to the Whyte Wyrm while Toni was on her shift, taking it easy per FP’s orders, Toni was thoroughly surprised.
In fact she was downright terrified when Cheryl glanced at her but continued up to FP’s office.
“Hey wasn’t that your girl?” Sweet Pea asked. Toni nodded warily, eyes glued to FP’s door.
FP came out first, followed closely by Cheryl.
And headed for the stage.
“Oh no.” Fangs mumbled.
“Please tell me she’s not gonna do what I think she is.” Toni said weakly.
“Nail in the coffin for poor T.” Sweet Pea snickered. Toni just swatted at him with the cleaning rag, eyes glued to Cheryl as she stepped onto the stage.
Five minutes later and Toni’s jaw was on the floor.
As were most of Cheryl’s clothes but that’s what happens when you do the Serpent dance.
Toni was a weird combination of angry and turned on.
Mostly the latter but still mad she wasn’t the only audience to her girlfriend’s strip tease.
Cheryl donned the jacket at long last. The Serpent’s a sheer contradiction to the red hair and matching red underwear that Toni definitely knows… intimately.
And Toni promptly said:
“Fuck the rules.”
“Careful T. Or else it’ll be a month.” Fangs snickered. Toni flipped him off and swiftly, well as swift as possible when still in recovery, maneuvered herself in front of Cheryl as she jumped off the stage.
“Cheryl-” Toni began.
Cheryl, missing her gravelly and thoroughly lust filled tone, held up her hand and sighed.
“Yes I know I should’ve told you I was going to join the Serpents but I figured you wouldn’t-” Cheryl was suddenly cut off when Toni grabbed her by the hip and pulled her in for the deepest kiss imaginable.
Cheryl barely hesitated before wrapping her arms around Toni’s neck and sliding her hands to twine with pink tresses.
The whole bar was in wolf whistles and cheers when Toni finally pulled back. She opened her mouth to apologise for breaking the rule but Cheryl just licked her lips and stared at Toni with wide, dark eyes.
“You owe me Blossom.” Toni growled. Cheryl merely nodded and smirked.
“A private show I would say.” Cheryl whispered in Toni’s ear. Toni laughed sharply and kissed Cheryl again, slow and soft despite the heat between them.
“God I love you.” Toni breathed over Cheryl’s lips when they parted. Cheryl grinned brightly and bit her lip.
Safe to say Toni left her shift early.
----
The two weeks were up.
They’d skipped school on that final day of the agreement.
Too wrapped up in each other, the rule having been shattered the night before once Toni had dragged Cheryl from the bar and back to her trailer.
But yes the rule lasted 12 days.
Toni had given in first so Cheryl was smug with her victory despite the fact they didn’t last the two weeks like she’d sworn she’d stand by.
But the look on Toni’s face when she’d done the dance was enough to crack her resolve on the rule.
And now they were curled up in bed, sated and in love.
“You broke the rule.” Cheryl said lightly. She’d rested her head over Toni’s chest, pressing her ear right over her heart.
“I didn’t hear you complaining.” Toni shot back smugly. Cheryl trailed her fingertips down the valley of Toni’s breasts, a trail of goosebumps left behind over smooth skin, up until her fingers reached the edge of the bandage still plastered over Toni’s stomach.
“Well you were pretty desperate.” Cheryl replied quietly. Toni laughed and let her fingers draw patterns over Cheryl’s bare skin.
“Have you seen yourself? Have you been on the receiving end of your touch? You would be too after the torture I’ve been through.” Toni muttered with a grin.
“Just because you managed to escape the last two days of punishment there’s no need to act so smug.” Cheryl grumbled.
“I think I suffered enough babe.” Toni laughed. Cheryl huffed and nuzzled the bottom of Toni’s throat.
“No more fights without me.” Cheryl murmured. Toni nodded and closed her eyes.
“No more fights. Promise.” Toni replied quietly.
“You break that and it’s two months.” Cheryl said with a sly smile. Toni snorted and pulled Cheryl tighter against her.
“Well we wouldn’t want that now would we?”